赤壁 (Chibi)是中国著名的古战场，位于今天的湖北省境内。赤壁之战发生在 三国时期 (the Three King-doms Period)。刘备和孙权联合起来，巧用火攻，战胜了强大的曹操军队。因此，赤壁之战成了著名的以弱胜强的战例，许多军事文献都有提及。此外，在各种文学作品中也有许多关于赤壁之战的描述。各个时代的诗人们以赤壁之战为主题写下了许多著名诗篇。

传统中医(traditional Chinese medicine)可以不借助任何仪器给病人治病，堪称奇迹。“望”、“闻”、“问”、“切”(pulse taking)为传统中医诊断的四个方法。“望”指通过直接观察病人体表来了解情况。“闻”就是听声音、闻气味(odour)，病人的发声和气味有助于医生收集诊断信息。“问”为咨询症状及先前的治疗情况。“切”即医生给病人“把脉”从而得知病人体内的变化。

Directions：For this part，you are allowed 30 minutes to write a composition on the topic Will Tourism Bring Harm to the Environment? You should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words．Outlines are given below in Chinese：1．国内的旅游业发展迅速；2．有人担心游客过多会对环境造成破坏；3．我的看法。

For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a composition on the topic Changes in People's Daily Expenses. Your should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words following the outline given below in Chinese:1．描述图表中人们每天开支变化情况。2．请说明发生这些变化的原因。3．作出总结，人们生活会越来越好。

7月底，中国环境保护部(China's Environment Protection Ministry)发布了今年上半年空气质量状况报告。报告称，除了拉萨(Lhasa)、海口、舟山和惠州四个城市，我国其他主要大城市的空气质量均未达标。造成这一结果的原因有很多，其中包括不断增长的机动车数量和工业品产量。空气污染状况的不断恶化严重威胁公众的健康。一位官员表示，一份旨在控制空气污染的方案将在年内公布。

{{B}}Section C{{/B}}

[此试题无题干]

{{B}}Section C{{/B}}

[此试题无题干]

太极拳 (Taijiquan)是中华民族的宝贵财富，是东方文化的重要组成部分。作为中国古老的 武术 (martialarts)之一，其主要功能是武术攻防、锻炼身体和 修身养性 (self-cultivation).太极拳在演练时，动作柔缓，但能以突然爆发的力量将对手击退。经过几个世纪的发展，太极拳已发展为多个分支，每个分支都有自己的特点。如今，太极拳在中国乃至世界受到越来越多人欢迎。

中国有着悠久的扇子文化。最早的扇子出现在3000年前，由羽毛制成。如今，扇子的制作材料已变得多样化，最常用的是纸和真丝。扇子的用途很广泛，除了能使人凉快之外，还可用于舞蹈、装饰等。在中国文化里，与其说扇子是个工具，不如说它是一个艺术品。扇面上的 书法 (calligraphy)、绘画和诗歌为扇子增添了艺术价值，使扇子为历代收藏家所珍爱。

微电影的长度从3分钟到半小时不等。

[此试题无题干]

清洁的空气对于健康是至关重要的。空气中含有杂质(impurities)，这些杂质会被我们的身体吸收，让我们生病。我们需要清洁的空气，但不幸的是，目前普遍存在着空气污染，尤其是在城市里。城市里有许多食品厂、服装厂和制造其他东西的工厂。每天这些工厂把千百万吨烟灰排入空气，大大污染了空气。现今，世界上还没有一个彻底摆脱了空气污染的地区。我们必须采取措施来控制空气污染。

{{B}}Part Ⅳ Translation{{/B}}

元曲 (Yuan opera)是中国一种别具一格的文学形式和戏剧形式。它首先流行于民间，内容充满了生活气息。元曲有固定的格式，但相比于 唐诗宋词 (Tang and Song poetry)，有较大的灵活性。历史上涌现了一批杰出元曲 剧作家 (playwright)，其中以关汉卿最负盛名。元曲和唐诗宋词一样，是中国古典文学的重要组成部分。元曲的兴起对于中国民族诗歌的发展和文化的繁荣有着深远的影响。

Various studies have shown that increased spending on education has not led to measurable improvements in learning. Between 1980 and 2008, staff and teachers at US public schools grew roughly twice as fast as students. Yet students showed no additional learning in achievement tests.Universities show similar trends of increased administration personnel and costs without greater learning, as documented in Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa's recent book Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses. A survey shows that 63% of employers say that recent college graduates don't have the skills they need to succeed and 25% of employers say that entry-level writing skills are lacking. Some simplistically attribute the decline in our public education system to the drain of the skilled students by private schools, but far more significant events were at work. Public schools worked well until about the 1970s. In fact, until that time, public schools provided far better education than private ones. It was the underperforming students who were thrown out of public schools and went to private ones. A prominent reason public schools did well was that many highly qualified women had few options for working outside the house other than being teachers or nurses. They accepted relatively low pay, difficult working conditions, and gave their very best. Having such a large supply of talented women teachers meant that society could pay less for their services. Women's liberation opened up new professional opportunities for women, and, over time, some of the best left teaching as a career option, bringing about a gradual decline in the quality of schooling. Also around that time, regulations, government, and unions came to dictate pay, prevent advancements, and introduce bureaucratic(官僚的) standard for advancement. Large education bureaucracies and unions came to dominate the landscape, confusing activity with achievement. Bureaucrats regularly rewrite curriculums, talk nonsense about theories of education, and require ever more administrators. The end result had been that, after all the spending, students have worse math and reading skills than both their foreign peers and earlier generations spending far less on education—as all the accumulating evidence now documents.

{{B}}Section B{{/B}}

[此试题无题干]

[此试题无题干]