【推荐1】Geese live to be around 25 years old, are very loyal, and never forget their first home. Even so, it came as a total shock to me when, in 2019, an aging adult wild goose made his way back to my family home. Geese love houses with large, green grassland to eat on; the flat area also makes it easy for them to watch out for predators (捕食者). So, at first, I assumed it was just another goose.

And yet, something about the lone male seemed oddly familiar to me. After two weeks of the goose coming back repeatedly, it became clear to me that this wasn’t a random goose. He did all of the same things Peeper used to, like trying to come in through the front door and sleeping in our enclosed pool area. In addition to following Peeper’s old ways, this goose also responded to the name Peeper. Much to my amazement, my old best friend had returned, 20 years later.

Why did Peeper return? It’s hard to say. Perhaps his mate died, leaving him lonely. If s also possible that he is approaching his twilight (薄唇) years and knows it, making him long for his early home. This behavior is typical of geese. Whatever the reason, Peeper continues to live with me. It’s a good thing that I stayed in my childhood home.

He doesn’t come home every single night the way he did as a baby. Some nights he may seek out the comfort of his own kind at the lake nearby. Geese in the wild typically sleep on water. But he’s here a lot, making his presence known and giving me joy. Many years later, the goose still remembers the true meaning of family. So do his people.

1. What was the author’s feeling at first?

A．Joyful.	B．Natural.
C．Shocked.	D．Strange.

2. Which best suggests that the goose was Peeper?

A．The goose kept coming back.

B．The goose reacted to the name.

C．The goose fed on the grassland.

D．The goose slept at the front door.

3. What can we infer from paragraph 3?

A．Peepers mate had made him return.

B．Peeper was too old to live in the wild.

C．The writer knew why Peeper returned.

D．The writer felt lucky to have Peeper back.

4. What does the author think of Peeper’s frequent presence?

A．He takes it as a sign of family bond.

B．He considers it as typical of geese.

C．He thinks Peeper is seeking comfort.

D．He supposes it to be a past habit.

【推荐1】My husband and I had been married nearly twenty-two years when I acquired Stevens-Johnson syndrome, a disorder where my immune system (免疫系统) responded to a virus by producing painful blisters (水疱). Although my long-term evaluation was good, I, who had been so fiercely independent, rapidly became absolutely helpless.

My husband, Scott, stepped up to the plate, taking care of kids and cooking dinners. He also became my personal caretaker, applying the medicine to all of my blisters because my hands couldn’t do the job. Needless to say, I had negative emotions, bouncing from embarrassment to shame caused by total reliance on someone other than myself.

At one point when I had mentally and physically hit bottoms I remember thinking that Scott must somehow love me more than I could ever love him. With my illness, he had become the stronger one, and I was the weaker one. And this disturbed me.

I recovered from my illness, but I couldn’t seem to recover from the thought that I loved my husband less than he loved me. This seeming distinction in our love continued to annoy me for the year following my illness.

Then recently Scott and I went on a long bike ride. He’s an experienced cyclist; I’m quite the green hand. At one point with a strong headwind and sharp pain building in my tired legs, I really thought I couldn’t go any further. Seeing me struggle, Scott pulled in front of me and yelled over his shoulder, “Stay close behind me.” As I fell into the draft of his six-foot-three-inch frame and followed his steps, I discovered that my legs quit burning and I was able to catch my breath. My husband was pulling me along again. At this very moment I woke up to what I now believe: during these and other tough times, love has the opportunity to become stronger when one partner learns to lean on the other.

I pray my husband will always be strong and healthy. But if he should ever become the struggling one, whether on a bike ride or with an illness, I trust I’ll be ready to call out to him: stay close behind me — my turn to pull you along.

1. What made the author feel helpless?

A．Her treatment failure.

B．Her husband caring for her too much.

C．Her suffering from illness and losing the previous independence.

D．Her husband stepped up to the plate.

2. Which of the following can best describe the author’s husband?

A．Family-centered.	B．Not good at taking action.
C．Career-centered.	D．Independent but tired of negative emotions.

3. What did the author’s husband do when going on the long bike ride?

A．Followed her closely.	B．Supported her all the way.
C．Gave in to her depression.	D．Stopped to take care of her.

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A．A hopeless husband took good care of his ill wife.

B．A helpful husband cured his wife of blisters.

C．An independent wife shared how her husband had helped her.

D．An appreciative wife showed how her husband had encouraged her.

【推荐2】My grandparents actively practised simplicity. They both grew up in very large families and lived through the Great Depression. Saving for a rainy day and avoiding superfluous spending was their life guide. Rather than seeking fulfillment through material items, they chose to spend really simple life together, with family and in nature.

Over the years my grandparents noticed dramatic changes in their community. Every year more farmland was destroyed to build larger and larger homes. As land prices rose, many of their neighbors sold their homes. Lots of family members encouraged my grandparents to expand their little old house. But they didn’t want a bigger place. My grandparents built and lived in a small cottage for most of their lives. They loved their little house and were content with what they had.

My grandparents avoided consumptive lifestyle by painting and repairing the house themselves. They lived in a small home, but had a huge garden. They loved gardening and planting because it reduced their grocery bill, improved their health, and gave them an excuse to be outside. They also reused and recycled everything. For instance, they had driven the same car for over 15 years and didn’t buy a new one until the old Chevrolet was worn out.

Through their example I learned an important lesson: It is possible to live a simple and fulfilling life. My grandparents taught me that living a simple life isn’t about self-deprivation (剥夺). Instead, it is about giving yourself the time, freedom, and money to pursue your dreams. Becoming debt free, downsizing to a smaller home, are a few ways to take control of your life and start pursuing your dreams.

1. What does the underlined word “superfluous” in Paragraph 1 mean?

A．meaningful

B．unnecessary

C．increasing

D．troublesome

2. Why didn’t the author’s grandparents expand their house?

A．They didn’t notice the family members’ advice.

B．Their house were really new and large enough.

C．They were satisfied with the house they lived in.

D．They were too old to do any house-building job.

3. Which of the following is a consumptive lifestyle in the grandparents’ opinion?

A．Repairing the house themselves.	B．Planting vegetables in the garden.
C．Reusing and recycling things.	D．Changing cars in a short time.

4. What does the author think of his grandparents’ lifestyle?

A．unacceptable

B．favorable

C．unreasonable

D．impossible

【推荐3】I like to believe that some things in life never change. A constant, ever since I could hold a pen, has been the routine at lunch with my grandfather. My grandmother will ask me how the walk was from my parents’ house before I take a seat at their kitchen table.

Sitting in his usual spot in the corner is my grandfather. He looks up for a quick “hello” before heading back down to the crossword puzzle in front of him.

“So, how is this one coming along?” I’ll ask. With a failed laugh, he’ll slide the crossword toward me. Carefully cut and neatly folded from his newspaper, three-quarters of it will already have been finished. Many of the clues（线索）are far too advanced for me to figure out. However, I’m happy to help with the strange clue related to sports ---my expert knowledge --- that still remain.

Even if I’m certain of an answer, I fill in the squares with a pencil, as clues are always checked thoroughly by my grandfather. In the rare event that we’re unable to finish the crossword by the end of lunch, he’ll call me later that evening to go over the clues he later solved.

Today, lunch unfolds in its usual manner. However, large parts of the puzzle are blanks “Grandfather, I think this is 49-down... and this, 52-across,” I say.

“Oh, right. Yes, put that down there,” he replies.

I reach across the table to hand him the crossword. Looking at him as he searches for answers, suddenly I feel something different. I note his hair is whiter than I remembered. For the first time I think about my grandfather as, well, a grandfather.

But life is about changes we aren’t always prepared for. Just as we are on different ends of life, we find ourselves on different ends of the city now too. But at lunch, when we take up our pens and open the crossword, the world stands pleasantly still. Now, instead of an exercise of quick wit（机智）, our crosswords are about patience and understanding. As clues are slowly understood, so are the truths in life.

1. What is the grandfather usually doing when the author visits him?

A．He is preparing lunch happily as a routine.

B．He is sitting in the comer working at riddles.

C．He is concentrating all his efforts on the crossword.

D．He is cutting crossword puzzles from newspapers carefully.

2. The phrase “go over” in Paragraph 4 probably means “ ”.

A．repeat

B．switch

C．discover

D．provide

3. Which of the following words can best describe the grandfather?

A．Quiet and optimistic.	B．Humorous and helpful.
C．Enthusiastic and careful.	D．Independent and funny.

4. What does the author think of the crosswords now?

A．They bring his grandparents closer to him.

B．They improve his intelligence and patience.

C．They encourage him to solve problems in life.

D．They help him to understand the truths of life.

【推荐1】[1] I was interested in different science fiction ideas and technologies. But there is one theme in science fiction that has always troubled me: when technology subverts (颠覆) its creators.

[2] I’ve been involved in dozens of technology projects. I have to admit that seldom in our design or business discussions have we spent much time on the possible negative impact of our work on the world. Instead, in most cases we just create technology because we see a need, or to solve a problem.

[3] Technology has been responsible for an age of distraction. Recently while driving from northern New York City to the Elmira area, I saw signs saying, “Next texting stop is three miles ahead. Don’t text and drive.” Most states have already outlawed texting while driving, and yet we hear almost weekly of traffic accidents caused by drivers tapping on smartphones. I don’t believe Steve Jobs and Apple dreamed that the iPhone, or smartphones in general, would give rise to this level of distraction.

[4] In a recent Harvard Business Review piece entitled “Liberal Arts (人文科学) in the Data Age,” the author writes about the importance of reconnecting humanism with engineering approach. Many of today’s engineers have been so focused on creating new technologies that their short term goals risk covering up unintended long-term outcomes. A few companies, such as Intel, are forward-thinking enough to include ethics (伦理学) professionals on their staff. At this point all tech companies should start getting serious about the need to hire people with backgrounds in areas such as psychology and philosophy (哲学).

[5] My hope is that we can all move a little more in creating technology that is both impactful and thoughtful in its engagement with our lives and the world.

1. What inspires people to create technologies according to the writer?

A．A desire to think and create.	B．An interest in technology.
C．A need to settle a problem.	D．An idea from science fiction.

2. Why is the example of “texting” mentioned in Paragraph 3?

A．To tell the arrival of a new age.	B．To criticize wrong driving behaviors.
C．To stress Steve Jobs’ contributions.	D．To show negative impact of technology.

3. Which of the following can best replace “give rise to” in Paragraph 3?

A．Cause.	B．Resolve.
C．Confirm.	D．Permit.

4. According to the writer, forward-thinking tech companies should ________.

A．value liberal arts professionals	B．put huge profits first
C．focus on creating new technologies	D．hire bookish engineers

5. What does the writer want to get across to readers?

A．The significance of Liberal Arts.	B．Less dependence on technology.
C．The importance of humanism in technology.	D．Diverse views on science fiction.

【推荐2】Every man wants his son to be somewhat of a clone, not in features but in footsteps. As he grows you also age, and your ambitions become more unachievable. You begin to realize that your boy, in your footsteps, could probably accomplish what you hoped for. But footsteps can be muddied and they can go off in different directions.

My son Jody has hated school since day one in kindergarten. Science projects waited until the last moment. Book reports weren’t written until the final threat.

I’ve been a newspaperman all my adult life. My daughter is a university graduate working towards her master’s degree in English. But Jody? When he entered the tenth grade he became a “vo-tech” student (技校学生). They’re called “motorheads” by the rest of the student body.

When a secretary in my office first called him “motorhead”, I was shocked. “Hey, he’s a good kid, ” I wanted to say. “And smart, really.”

I learned later that motorheads are, indeed, different. They usually have dirty hands and wear dirty work clothes. And they don’t often make school honor rolls (光荣榜).

But being the parent of a motorhead is itself an experience in education. We who labor in clean shirts in offices don’t have the abilities that motorheads have. I began to learn this when I had my car crashed. The cost to repair it was estimated at $800. “Hey, I can fix it,” said Jody. I doubted it, but let him go ahead, for I had nothing to lose.

My son, with other motorheads, fixed the car. They got parts from a junkyard, and ability from vo-tech classes. The cost was $25 instead of $800.

Since that first repair job, a broken air-conditioner, a non-functioning washer and a non-toasting toaster have been fixed. Neighbours and co-workers trust their car repairs to him.

These kids are happiest when doing repairs. They joke and laugh and are living in their own relaxed world. And their minds are bright despite their dirty hands and clothes.

I have learned a lot from my motorhead: publishers need printers, engineers need mechanics, and architects need builders. Most important, I have learned that fathers don’t need clones in footsteps or anywhere else.

My son may never make the school honor roll. But he made mine.

1. What used to be the author’s hope for his son?

A．To avoid becoming his clone.	B．To resemble him in appearance.
C．To develop in a different direction.	D．To reach the author’s unachieved goals.

2. What can we learn about the author’s children?

A．His daughter does better in school.

B．His daughter has got a master’s degree.

C．His son tried hard to finish homework.

D．His son couldn’t write his book reports.

3. The author let his son repair the car because he believed that       .

A．his son had the ability to fix it	B．it would save him much time
C．it wouldn’t cause him any more loss	D．other motorheads would come to help

4. What did the author realize in the end?

A．It is unwise to expect your child to follow your path.

B．It is important for one to make the honor roll.

C．Architects play a more important role than builders.

D．Motorheads have greater ability than office workers.

【推荐3】When I was only 3 years old, my mother taught me to memorize and recite poems. She was my first teacher of the arts, and my father was the first to appreciate my performance. Even at that young age, I had a simple understanding of how art and culture affect us as human beings and how we can connect to each other through the arts, which shapes my life to this day.

When I was growing up, my parents supported my interest in taking acting classes and doing community theater. Their faith in me and the professional training I was getting from my theater teachers gave me a sense of purpose and a sense of self-confidence. I learned what artistic achievement actually was and what hard work the business was. Although many people see the rosy picture to our business, I was really learning what it would require for me to become a professional.

I became an actress, but arts education isn’t just about preparing our young people for a job in the arts. I recently talked to some of the kids attending theater education. Some of them want to work in theater, and some don’t. They are learning not only theater skills, but also about the world around them. By studying the arts, these students are open to worlds and lives that they might not have any other way of knowing about or any other way to connect with in their lives the way they are right now.

These young people are our future. We are passing the torch to them. And I think that’s one of the most important reasons why we need to foster (培养) the arts.

1. When the writer was 3 years old, she ________ .

A．learned many kinds of arts

B．did well in communication

C．had a deep understanding of arts

D．recited poems to her father

2. What does the underlined word "rosy" in Paragraph 2 probably mean? ________

A．funny.

B．bright.

C．terrible.

D．hopeless.

3. According to Paragraph 3, which of the following statements is TRUE? ________

A．Discipline and hard work are not included in arts education.

B．Students studying the arts should travel around the world.

C．Attending theatre education does the kids much good.

D．Arts education can only prepare the youth for jobs in the arts.

4. What is the text mainly about? ________

A．Where to get arts education.

B．When kids should learn arts.

C．How to improve arts education.

D．Why arts education matters.

【推荐1】Are you more of a Botticelli or a Van Gogh?

A new feature in the Google Arts & Culture app reveals how a picture of your face may resemble a historical painting.

The app went viral this weekend after users discovered the entertaining feature that analyzes selfies and matches them to historical artwork. It pulls from Google's digital collection of artworks from museums around the world.

The feature rolled out to the app on iOS and Android last month. But users—even some big names such as Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, musician Pete Wentz, and actors Felicia Day and Kumail Nanjiani—shared their results on news feeds.

The app became the top downloaded iPhone app over the weekend, and landed in the top 10 on Android, according to analytics firm App Annie.

To find your fine art doppelganger(与某人外貌相同的人), open the Google Arts & Culture app and scroll until you see the "Is your portrait in a museum?" feature. Tap "get started"，and you'll be guided through the process.

It's currently only available in the U.S.

Google said the experimental feature uses computer vision technology to scan facial features and extract data to match with paintings. The company said it won't use data from photos for any other purpose but to match it with images in its catalog. It only stores selfies for the time it takes to find matches, Google said.

The selfie feature is similar to other apps that use matching technology to find lookalikes. Microsoft's What Dog app can identify and classify dogs based on photos uploaded to the app.

The Google Arts & Culture app is part of the Google Cultural Institute, which provides information about artists, scientists and historical figures from 1,000 institutions worldwide.

1. Why did the Google Arts & Culture app get so popular?

A．Because some famous people used it.

B．Because it can match selfies to some paintings.

C．Because it's more practical than entertaining.

D．Because it was the top download.

2. How can you find your fine art doppelganger?

A．By visiting Google's digital collection of artworks.

B．By analyzing your selfies.

C．By opening the app and following its guide.

D．By scrolling the screen of your smartphone.

3. What can you infer from the 8th paragraph?

A．The feature of the app has nothing to do with data.

B．Google stores selfies as commercial resources.

C．Selfies will be stored for a long time.

D．The users' selfies will not be abused.

4. Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A．The Google Cultural Institute

B．Google app matches your face to a famous painting

C．What Dog app vs Google Arts & Culture app

D．How to find valuable historical paintings

【推荐2】The first thing that Valoy saw when she put on color-blind corrective glasses was green- the vibrancy（活力） of the grass and tree and later, the brilliance of red in stop signs and flowers. Valoy says it's unbelievable and she has struggled with certain topics, especially the painting class in school and she would even paint the ocean purple before that.

Valoy wasn't diagnosed with red-green color blindness until the fourth grade. “For the past 17 years, I've lived in a ‘black and white movie’,” the recent Louis E. Dieruff High School graduate says. But not anymore. The transformative moment all started with a public speaking class Valoy took. After she made an informative speech about growing up with her color deficiency（缺陷）, her teacher, Sandy Kile, was inspired to teach the class a more important life lesson.

Kile made a suggestion that the class should reach out to companies that produced corrective glasses to see if they would donate a pair to Valoy. While Kile encouraged Valoy to write a description of living in a world with mostly shades of grey and brown, her classmates wrote accompanying statements about why she needed the glasses. “I didn't expect much for that,” Valoy says. “Professor Kile truly believed it was going to happen but we were not sure.”

It wasn't so surprising when the first company turned down their request. Then, the class received reply from the founder of Pilestone Inc., offering Valoy and six other community members his glasses for free. “started this business by trying to make some difference to people,” founder Ben Zhuang says.

Valoy is grateful to Kile and her classmates for their efforts. But Kile says that she is very glad the students have the chance to realize the significance of lending a hand to those in need, and that being able to aid Valoy in changing her life is something she will never forget the rest of her life.

1. Why is Valoy's painting class referred to?

A．To give an example of Valoy's sufferings.

B．To stress Valoy's serious attitude to study.

C．To prove the importance of wearing glasses.

D．To prevent people from having color blindness.

2. How did Valoy feel when Kile offered the advice?

A．Frightened.	B．Excited.
C．Uncertain.	D．Hopeful.

3. What do we know about Valoy?

A．She made a speech to call for donation.

B．She wasn't the only one to get the glasses.

C．She only understood black and white movies.

D．She didn't know her problem until she was 17.

4. What did Kile try to teach the class?

A．The magic of creativity.	B．The power of great efforts.
C．The benefit of technology.	D．The value of offering help.

【推荐3】Have you ever noticed that after about 6 months your perfectly new 1,000 dollar smartphone begins to slow down? What if I told you that it’s a sales strategy that pretty much all phone companies use to force people into buying new phones?

In late 2015，when Lisa Young was in charge of iOS security and beta software testing teams, her boss revealed a dark secret to her, saying that they were using a new strategy that would purposely slow down older phones every time the phone would upgrade to the latest operating system. This new method would force customers to buy the latest phone model, increasing sales by 70％.

She was a little disturbed to hear the news，but she just kept her head down and continued to do her job. After a while, the guilt of being involved with such a shady sales model started to weigh heavy on her. “How could a multi-billion dollar corporation continue to take advantage of the public like this?” she thought. In March of 2017, she contacted a reporter from CNN to finally leak the information concerning Apple slowing down phones.

The scandal (丑闻) went viral overnight，and every media outlet in the world, in every language was talking about it, making it one of the biggest controversies in consumer electronics history. A week later, she was secretly let go after her 8 years of service. Although she was taking a huge risk going against one of the most powerful corporations in the world, she felt a sense of relief exposing them. The public deserved to know and the fear became her motivation to find a way to destroy their shady sales model.

Several of her colleagues were fired with her. They quietly united，and after a year of extensive research they designed a unique product called CircaCharge that would reverse the negative effects of “software updates”. Phone companies have recently caught wind of their overnight success with CircaCharge and are trying to do everything they can to make this product illegal and ban it forever. Lisa and her team have made unbelievable progress in increasing battery life, battery health, and optimizing phone performance, and they will continue to develop new technology that will beat phone companies at their own game until they change their ways.

1. What can we learn about the new method mentioned in paragraph 2 ?

A．It is essential in the 1atest operating system．

B．It benefits users in upgrading their old phone．

C．It fool s customers into buying the latest model on purpose．

D．It is a successful sales strategy for advertising new soft wares．

2. What does the underlined phrase “kept her head down” in paragraph 3 refer to?

A．Lowered her head．

B．Nodded to show approval．

C．Pretended to know something．

D．Tried not to show she knows something．

3. From the passage，we know______________．

A．it's too tough for Lisa and her team to increase battery life

B．CircaCharge helps phone companies with software updates

C．Lisa struggles to force phone companies to change their current ways

D．phone companies find it essential to ban their illegal software for updating