【推荐1】Two of the saddest words in the English language are “if only”. I live my life with the goal of never having to say those words, because they convey regret, lost opportunities, mistakes, and disappointment.

My father is famous in our family for saying, “Take the extra minute to do it right.” I always try to live by the “extra minute” rule. When my children were young and likely to cause accidents, I always thought about what I could do to avoid an “if only” moment, whether it was something minor like moving a cup full of hot coffee away from the edge of a counter, or something that required a little more work such as taping padding (衬垫) onto the sharp corners of a glass coffee table.

I don’t only avoid those “if only” moments when it comes to safety. It’s equally important to avoid “if only” in our personal relationships. We all know people who lost a loved one and regretted that they had foregone an opportunity to say “I love you” or “I forgive you.” When my father announced he was going to the eye doctor across from my office on Good Friday, I told him that it was a holiday for my company and I wouldn’t be here. But then I thought about the fact that he’s 84 years old and I realized that I shouldn’t give up an opportunity to see him. I called him and told him I had decided to go to work on my day off after all.

I know there will still be occasions when I have to say “if only” about something, but my life is definitely better because of my policy of doing everything possible to avoid that eventuality (不测的事). And even though it takes an extra minute to do something right, or it occasionally takes an hour or two in my busy schedule to make a personal connection, I know that I’m doing the right thing. I’m buying myself peace of mind and that’s the best kind of insurance for my emotional well-being.

1. Which of the following is an example of the “extra minute” rule?

A．Start the car the moment everyone is seated.

B．Leave the room for a minute with the iron working.

C．Wait for an extra minute so that the steak tastes better.

D．Move an object out of the way before it trips someone.

2. The author decided to go to her office on Good Friday to ________.

A．finish her work on time	B．keep her appointment with the eye doctor
C．meet her father who was already an old man	D．join in the holiday celebration of the company

3. What can we infer from the passage?

A．Avoiding “if only” can make the author comfortable.

B．We should buy insurance to make our life better.

C．The author must have a good relationship with her children.

D．It is the most important thing to avoid “if only” in our daily life.

4. What is the best title for the passage?

A．The Emotional Well-being	B．The Two Saddest Words
C．The Most Useful Rule	D．The Peace of Mind

【推荐2】On Wednesday, January 13th, I performed on stage for the first time. As someone who takes part in so many activities, it’s extremely difficult to find the time to be a part of any production. For me, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to try acting through the Senior Play Project.

Auditions (试镜)came first. They weren’t particularly difficult, more to see who may be a better fit for certain roles. We were told our roles in the various plays, and started to work immediately.

I was unsure of how I was as an actor, and I had to learn a lot fast: actions, my place in the story, my reactions, and countless other small details... As I began to improve as an actor, I was able to understand my characters better.

My first character is a man named Roger who is a senior advisor to a presidential candidate in a play called “The Spot.” He’s a short-tempered guy who says what he wants and takes what he wants to assist his candidate in today’s tough political races. He’s on the set of The Spot, an advertisement for the candidate, to make sure everything runs smoothly and that any problems are dealt with quickly and efficiently.

While I had really interesting characters, and the plays were funny and such a great experience to act in, I really love the Senior Play Project for the people. I worked with 12 other seniors who not only loved what they were doing, but offered help and advice throughout my entire learning process.

Between the lights, sounds, costume and makeup, and plenty more, theatre is a team sport just like basketball or baseball. There are no small parts; there is no one who isn’t needed. I’ve learned to appreciate live theatre, and the effort that every person in the show, both onstage and offstage, puts into it.

1. How did the author feel about being in the project?

A．Lucky.	B．Tired.
C．Nervous.	D．Confident.

2. What do we know about the character Roger?

A．He means what he says.	B．He puts up an advertisement.
C．He gives advice to the candidate.	D．He is running for president.

3. What does the author like most about the project?

A．The people.	B．The plays.
C．The characters.	D．The costume.

4. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．The Senior Play Project.	B．Acting for the First Time.
C．What Makes a Good Actor.	D．A Lesson Learnt through Acting.

【推荐3】“Whatever normal meant”

A pioneering dance group is proving that you can chase your dreams—even in a wheelchair.

Since the age of three, Chelsie Hill had dreamed of becoming a dancer. “The only thing that I loved was dance," she told CBS News. That ambition nearly ended one night in 2010. Hill, then a 17-year-old high school senior in Pacific Grove, California, was in a car accident that put her in the hospital for 51 days and left her paralyzed(瘫痪的) from the waist down. For most people, that would have ruined all the hope of dancing career. For Hill, it was the beginning. “I wanted to prove to my community—and to myself—that I was still ‘normal’,” she told Teen Vogue. “Whatever normal meant, it definitely took a lot of learning and patience.”

After graduation, Hill wanted to expand her dance network to include women like her. She met people online who had suffered various spinal cord injuries but shared her determination, and she invited them to dance with her. Hoping to reach more people in a larger city, Hill moved to Los Angeles in 2014 and formed a team of dancers with disabilities she calls the “Rollettes”. “I want to break down the stereotype of wheelchair users and show that dance is dance, whether you're walking or you're rolling,” she told CBS News. So far, Hill has achieved her childhood dream. But the Rollettes have helped her find more. Every year she holds a dance camp for wheelchair users. She calls it the Rollettes Experience, and in 2019,173 participants from ten countries attended.

For many, it was the first time they'd felt they belonged. Edna Serrano, a member of the Rollettes, says “being part of the Rollettes team has given me the courage and confidence. It's so powerful to have my teammates in my life, because they're my teachers.” The dancers aren't the only ones who feel inspired. One woman saw a YouTube video of the team competing and commented, “You guys are so awesome! I'm in tears because you rock! To be in a wheelchair and still be so beautiful makes me know I can be beautiful too! Thank you! Feel free to find me.”

1. What happened to Hill when she was 17 years old?

A．She got injured while dancing.

B．She just graduated from college.

C．She survived in a traffic accident.

D．She received treatment for a month.

2. What can we know from the passage?

A．Rollettes invite some teachers to train the members.

B．Rollettes aim to help the competitors all over the world.

C．Hill finally realized her childhood dream as a dance teacher.

D．More people become inspired by Rollettes’ performance online.

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

A．Talented and humorous.	B．Honest and ambitious.
C．Considerate and generous.	D．Optimistic and determined.

【推荐2】When Peter Fortune was ten years old, grown-up people used to tell him he was a “difficult” child. He never understood what they meant. He didn’t feel difficult at all. He didn’t throw milk bottles at the garden wall, or tip tomato ketchup over his head and pretend it was blood, or slash at his granny’s ankle with his sword, though he occasionally thought of these things. Apart from all vegetables except potatoes, and fish, eggs and cheese, there was nothing he would not eat. He wasn’t noisier or dirtier or more stupid than anyone he knew.

His name was easy to say and spell. His face, which was pale and freckled, was easy enough to remember. He went to school every day like all other children and never made that much fuss about it. He was only as offensive to his sister as she was to him. Policemen never came knocking at the front door wanting to arrest him. Doctors in white coats never offered to take him away to the madhouse. As far as Peter was concerned, he was really quite easy. What was difficult about him?

It was not until he had been a grown-up himself for many years that Peter finally understood. They thought he was difficult because he was so silent. That seemed to bother people. The other problem was he liked being by himself. ___①___ Not all the time, of course. Not even every day. But most days he liked to go off somewhere for an hour to his bedroom, or the park. He liked to be alone and think his thoughts.

Now, grown-ups like to think they know what’s going on inside a ten-year-old’s head. And it’s impossible to know what someone is thinking if they keep quiet about it. People would see Peter lying on his back on a summer’s afternoon, chewing a piece of grass and staring at the sky. “Peter, Peter! What are you thinking about?” they would call to him. And Peter would sit up with a start. “Oh, nothing. Nothing at all.” Grown-ups knew that something was going on inside that head, but they couldn’t hear it or see it or feel it. They couldn’t tell Peter to stop it, because they did not know what it was he was doing in there. ___②___ He could have been setting his school on fire or feeding his sister to an alligator and escaping in a hot air balloon, but all they saw was a boy staring at the blue sky without blinking, a boy who did not hear you when you called his name.

As for being on his own, grown-ups didn’t much like that either. They don’t even like other grown-ups being on their own. When you join in, people can see what you’re up to. You’re up to what they’re up to. ___③___ Peter had different ideas. In fact, he thought, if people spent less time joining in and making others join in, and spent a little time each day alone remembering who they were or who they might be, then the world would be a happier place and wars might never happen...

The trouble with being a daydreamer who doesn’t say much is that the teachers at school, especially the ones who don’t know you very well, are likely to think you are rather stupid. ___④___ Or, if not stupid, then dull. No one can see the amazing things that are going on in your head. A teacher who saw Peter staring out the window or at a blank sheet of paper on his desk might think that he was bored, or stuck for an answer. But the truth was quite different.

1. Which of the following would Peter be most likely to do?

A．To sleep in the tent with his friends.

B．To break the neighbor’s fence for fun.

C．To tie a dirty dustbin to a dog’s tail.

D．To walk around a lake for quite a while.

2. Where can the sentence “You have to join in, or you’ll spoil it for everyone else.” most probably be put?

A．①

B．②

C．③

D．④

3. What is the main reason that Peter was considered “difficult” by grown-ups?

A．He was far from communicative.

B．He turned a deaf ear to others.

C．He did not do well in his studies.

D．He preferred to live on his own.

4. What might the author continue to write about in the following part?

A．Further prejudice against Peter among grown-ups.

B．How the unique ideas Peter had amazed others.

C．Difficulties keeping Peter from learning well.

D．Effective measures to help Peter out.

【推荐1】Clara Daly was seated on an Alaska Airlines flight route from Boston to Los Angeles when a flight attendant asked an urgent question over the loudspeaker： "Does anyone on board know American Sign Language?" Clara, 15 at the time, pressed the call button. The flight attendant came by and explained the situation. "We have a passenger on the plane who's blind and deaf," she said. The passenger seemed to want something, but he was traveling alone and the flight attendants couldn't understand what he needed.

Clara had been studying ASL for the past year to help with her dyslexia （读写困难）and knew she'd be able to finger spell into the man's palm. So she untied her seat belt, walked toward the front of the plane, and knelt by the aisle （过道）seat of Tim Cook, then 64. Gently taking his hand, she signed, "How are you? Are you OK?" Tim asked for some water. When it arrived, Clara returned to her seat.

She came by again a bit later because Tim wanted to know the time. On her third visit, she stopped and stayed a while. "He didn't need anything. He was lonely and wanted to talk," Clara says. So for the next hour, that's what they did. She talked about her family and her plans for the future （she wants to be a politician）. Tim told Clara how he had gradually become blind over time and shared stories of his days as a traveling salesman.

"Even though Tim couldn't see her, she looked attentively at his face with such kindness," a passenger reported. "Clara was amazing," a flight attendant told Alaska Airlines in a blog interview. "You could tell Tim was very excited to have someone he could speak to, and she was such an angel. " Tim's reaction: "Best trip I've ever had."

1. Why was an urgent question asked over the loudspeaker?

A．The attendants wanted to learn American Sign Language.

B．The attendants couldn't understand the passenger.

C．The attendants wanted to use American Sign Language.

D．A special passenger wanted to learn American Sign Language.

2. What did Clara do on the second visit to Tim?

A．Clara asked for some water for Tim.

B．Clara stayed with Tim for an hour.

C．Clara shared her life story with Tim.

D．Clara told Tim what time it was.

3. Why did Tim Cook keep asking for help?

A．He needed someone to talk to.

B．He was interested in Clara's future plans.

C．He was afraid and lonely on the plane.

D．He wanted to share his experience with Clara.

4. Which of the following words can best describe Clara?

A．Polite.	B．Outgoing.
C．Thoughtful.	D．Energetic.

【推荐2】When she was studying to become a scientist, Megan Strauss rode in a small airplane to study giraffes. While a pilot flew over the Serengeti in Tanzania, Africa, the researchers looked down carefully and counted giraffes.

"I am always amazed how easily we can spot warthogs and other small animals, yet we sometimes have trouble seeing giraffes. Giraffes are slender in shape, and they may not throw a good shadow, " says Dr. Strauss, who has since become a wildlife scientist.

The Serengeti is about the size of Vermont, a state in the northeastern US, so the scientists could not study the entire area. Instead, they surveyed three areas where giraffes were studied in the 1970s. As they expected, they saw far fewer of these animals.

To find out if lions had been killing more giraffes in recent years, the team looked at the survival of young giraffes. Lions kill more young giraffes than adults, but the team found no decrease in young giraffes' survival after they are born, compared with the 1970s.

The team then looked at whether too many giraffes were being killed by parasites(寄生虫).The researchers counted parasite eggs in giraffe droppings, and they found too few to harm the giraffe population.

They looked into whether poachers (盗猎者)were killing too many giraffes. Two of the areas they studied are where giraffe meat is sometimes sold in local markets. Poachers catch more adult males than other giraffes. Researchers spotted too few males compared with females in those two areas, a sign of poaching.

When the food supply is short, the environment supports fewer giraffes and the females have fewer young giraffes. A lot of new trees have grown in the Serengeti, but many are a type that giraffes do not like to eat. The researchers found fewer young giraffes today than in the 1970s compared with the number of adult females, a sign that food was in short supply.

Dr. Strauss is working on an environmental education program for Tanzania including books for students. These materials will educate Tanzanians and help them to help giraffes. As knowledge grows and changes are made, they hope the giraffe population will increase.

1. What did Dr. Strauss find while studying giraffes in the Serengeti?

A．It was too costly to study giraffes.

B．It was hard to spot giraffes from the air.

C．The number of giraffes had increased slowly.

D．Giraffes lived in smaller areas than in the 1970s.

2. How did the team study the lion-giraffe relationship?

A．By analyzing giraffe droppings.

B．By comparing young giraffes with adults.

C．By comparing male giraffes and females.

D．By surveying the survival of young giraffes.

3. What is Dr. Strauss doing to help giraffes?

A．She is founding a national park in Tanzania.

B．She is counting giraffes in the entire Serengeti.

C．She is educating students to write about giraffes.

D．She is raising environmental awareness in local people.

【推荐3】About 1.3 billion years ago, two massive black holes hit each other and formed a new one. The energy set free by the collision created a ripple(波纹)in the space-time structure and spread outward in gravitational waves.

Then, on September 14, 2015, a group of scientists discovered the waves. Or February 11, 2016, an announcement came from the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory(LIGO)in the US that, for the very first time, a gravitational wave was directly observed and recorded.

“We discovered gravitational waves. We. did it, “David Reitze, the director of LIGO, said in. the press conference on February. 11, “It's exactly what Einstein's theory of general relativity predicted.”

Einstein's 1915 theory re-imagined the framework for the universe. According to Einstein, the framework for the universe-or the space-time structure-is not fixed, but changed by matter and energy, “in a way a heavy sleeper causes a mattress. to sag(下陷), producing the effect we call gravity”, explains a:New York Times article.

“A disturbance in the universe could cause space-time to become larger, break into pieces and even move up and down, like a mattress shaking when that sleeper rolls over, producing ripples of gravity:gravitational waves, “ explains the article.

Compared with the other three forces in the universe(electromagnetism, the weak nuclear force and the strong nuclear force), gravity is relatively weak, making gravitational waves hard to discover.

The discovery by LIGO would open a new chapter in astronomy. “Everything else in astronomy is like the eye, “ Szabolcs Marka, a Columbia University professor, told The New York Times. “Finally, astronomy grew ears. We never had ears before.”

1. What is a gravitational wave according to the passage?

A．It's a disturbance in the universe.

B．It's the crash of the two black holes.

C．It's a ripple in the space-time structure.

D．It's an effect caused by energy.

2. What can we learn from the text?

A．It took LIGO 4 months to confirm the discovery of the waves.

B．The framework for the universe can be changed.

C．One produces gravity because he sleeps heavily.

D．There are more than four forces in the universe.

3. What is the last paragraph mainly about?

A．Astronomy calls for more attention.

B．Never before has astronomy achieved much.

C．Astronomy is more about what we can hear in space.

D．A better understanding of the universe is made possible.

【推荐1】Which boy hasn’t dreamed of being a cool secret agent (特工)? The wonderful fighting abilities and the world-saving adventures are much more colourful than most people’s everyday lives. Well, Cody Banks is just like any other boy，except that he is not just dreaming. He has a big secret his friends never know about. He was trained to be a spy (间谍）by a special CIA programme，which was made to look like a summer camp. He learned high-speed driving，hand-to-hand fighting and the use of high-tech tools.
After proving he could become a young hero by saving a baby from a runaway car，Banks gets his first real task. He must make friends with a popular girl at school，Natalie Connors. Then，he must spy on her father，a scientist who has developed a dangerous technology (技术).Banks must stop a group of bad people from forcing Natalie’s father into using the technology to endanger the world.
The CIA may have taught him first-class self-defence moves，but they didn’t show him how to talk to girls. Banks has zero ability when it comes to dealing with girls. How can he get around his problem and get an invitation to the girl’s upcoming birthday party? Will he finally become Natalie’s boyfriend and find out whatever he can about her father’s work?
Agent Cody Banks has everything that young people are interested in: big explosions, breath-taking performances and funny girl-dating experiences. It was listed No.2 in the American box office last week.
“This story is interesting and fun for the whole family to enjoy，and especially cool for young boys，” said Paul Perkins, a film reviewer in theUS.
1. What is Banks’ first real task?

A．To test a high-tech tool.	B．To save a baby from a car.
C．To study a new technology.	D．To watch a scientist secretly.

2. Banks wanted to go to Natalie’s birthday party to______ .

A．meet her father	B．know more people
C．make friends with her	D．steal some information

3. What is considered as a great danger in the text?

A．The technology developed by Natalie’s father.

B．An explosion set off by some bad people.

C．The CIA’s training of boys for its tasks.

D．Secret agents’ spying on scientists.

4. What is the purpose of the text?

A．Making known the work of the CIA.	B．Telling the story about a cool boy.
C．Showing the dark side of science.	D．Introducing a new film.

【推荐2】Notice

Date:February 8, 2019

To:All community members

From:Steven Bay,director of the community committee

Subject:Paving project in Hyde Parking Lot next to Building F

We would like to remind you that the work is about to begin on the repair of Hyde Parking Lot, to be completed by late September. The paving project will occur in stage. The first stage of the project will begin in mid-March. Please move your car from the parking lot by February 28. The restricted area will be marked and cars parked in the closed area will be pulled away.

The second stage is expected to begin as early as June with the aim of spreading asphalt (沥青)and repairing damaged parking lot areas next to Building F. During this time, it is probable that . the repair will - cause a certain degree of disruption(混乱) to our community. There will be more traffic jams for the next coming 4 months as several streets and entrances will be temporarily closed as paving progresses.

However, every effort will be made to minimize this disruption. Plans have been made to provide traffic advice during the repair. For more information, please contact Kevin Johnson ((ext. 5894, kevinjohnson@community. com))).

Should these time lines change in any way as this work progresses, we will keep the community informed. Your cooperation, and patience is appreciated during this time.

1. What's the author's purpose in writing the text?

A．To investigate a new construction.

B．To revise the schedule for a project.

C．To announce a possible inconvenience.

D．To en courage parking in Hyde Parking Lot.

2. When is the first stage of the project expected to begin?

A．On February 28.

B．On March 1.

C．On September 29.

D．On March 16.

3. What does the second stage of the project include?

A．Repairing Building F.	B．Completing another road.
C．Covering and fixing the ground.	D．Building a parking lot entrance.

【推荐3】We will all probably know both some introverts （内向的人）and extroverts （外向的人）in life, and yet we can gain a wrong impression about both types of people. For example, some introverts can be extremely confident and they can be able people. However, some extroverts aren^’t as confident as they'd like to appear to be and often try to hide their true identities behind a false appearance.

Shyness can affect both introverts and extroverts and anybody else too. It can be very debilitating （使衰弱的）and, if severe, can have a huge negative influence upon our ability to form meaningful relationships and it can also affect our careers or jobs.

A lot of people feel shy because they have low self-respect and feel unworthy when comparing themselves to others. They find it difficult to communicate with others whom they don't know. In that case, one of the best ways of overcoming the shyness is to focus the attention on the other person instead. Shy people can try changing people's focus on someone else， so that they don't need to talk about themselves too much.

If you recognize that you are shy and see that as a lion in the way of enjoying your life. you should first overcome it by accepting that it's causing a problem for you. Trying getting into conversations with strangers is helpful. Shy people are challenging themselves and over- coming their shyness. In this way, shy people can get their own self-respect. Each time they do it, this will be repeated until they feel confident enough.

Like any negative thought， determination can also help you beat shyness and having a positive attitude is the key to overcoming the shyness.

1. What does the author intend to tell us in paragraph 2?

A．The difference between introverts and extroverts.

B．The relationship between ability and shyness.

C．The harmful effects of shyness.

D．The cause of shyness.

2. Why do people feel shy when communicating with others?

A．They are afraid of learning from others.

B．They are often made fun of.

C．They are short of confidence.

D．They have to talk too much.

3. What does the author advise shy people to do to overcome shyness?

A．Do sports as much as they can.

B．Listen to the voice in their heart.

C．Have a good talk with their parents.

D．Keep a strong belief in supporting themselves.

4. What's the best title for the text?

A．How to Overcome Shyness

B．Tips of Expressing Shyness

C．How to Understand Introverts

D．Tips of Talking with Extroverts