【推荐1】My father told me a family story about his mother, my grandmother.

In 1949, my father had just returned home from the war. On every American highway you could see soldiers in uniform hitchhiking home to their families, as was the custom at that time in America.

Sadly, the excitement of this reunion with his family soon disappeared. My grandmother became very ill and had to be in hospital. The doctors told my father that she needed a blood transfusion immediately or she wouldn’t live through the night. The problem was that Grandmother’s blood types was AB-, a very rare type even today, but even harder to get then because there were no blood banks or air flights to ship blood. All the family members had their blood tested, but not one member was a match. So the doctors gave the family no hope; my grandmother was dying.

My father left the hospital in tears to gather up all the family members, so that everyone would get a chance to tell Grandmother good-bye. As my father was driving down the highway, he passed a soldier in uniform hitch-hiking home to his family. Deep in sadness, my father had no inclination at that moment to do a good deed. Yet it was almost as if something outside himself pulled him to a stop, and he waited as the stranger climbed into the car.

My father was too upset to even ask the soldier his name, but the soldier noticed my father’s tears right away and asked why. My father told this total stranger everything.

It got very quiet in the car. Then this soldier reached his hand out to my father, in which rested the dog tags from around his neck. The blood type on the tags was AB-. The soldier told my father to turn the car around and get him to the hospital.

My grandmother lived until 1996, and to this day no one in our family knows the soldier’s name. But my father has often wondered, was he a soldier or an angel in uniform?

1. Why did the author’s father leave the hospital ?

A．To buy something necessary for Grandmother.

B．To ask the family members to have their blood tested

C．To pick up a soldier whose blood type was the same as Grandmother’s

D．To gather the family members to pay their last respects to Grandmother

2. According to the passage, which of the following is true?

A．After her serious illness, Grandmother lived 47 years.

B．Grandmother’s children refused to help her.

C．My father has forgotten the soldier.

D．The doctors didn’t try to save Grandmother.

3. What does the underlined word “inclination” in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．arrangement

B．design

C．schedule

D．willingness

4. What may be the best title for the passage?

A．A Strange Soldier	B．An Unexpected Gift
C．An Angel in Uniform	D．An Unknown Soldier

【推荐2】There is a wonderful story about a young girl who had no family and no one to love her.
One day, feeling very sad and lonely, she was walking through a grassland when she noticed a small butterfly caught in a thorn （荆棘） bush. The young girl carefully released the butterfly. Instead of flying away, the little butterfly changed into a beautiful fairy. The young girl rubbed her eyes in disbelief.
“For your wonderful kindness,” the good fairy said to the girl, “I will give you any wish you would like.” The little girl thought for a moment and then replied, “I want to be happy.”
The fairy leaned toward her and whispered in her ear. Then the fairy disappeared.
As the little girl grew up, there was no one in the land as happy as she. Everyone asked her secret of happiness .She would only smile and answer, “The secret of my happiness is that I listened to a good fairy when I was a little girl.”
When she was very old and on her deathbed, the neighbors all gathered around her, and feared that her unbelievable secret of happiness would die with her. “Tell us, please,” they begged, “Tell us what the good fairy said.” The lovely old woman simply smiled and said, “She told me that everyone, no matter how secure they seemed, no matter how old or young, how rich or poor, had need of me.”
1. ______ the girl felt sad and lonely.

A．There were many friends but

B．There was nobody to love her so

C．There was nothing to do

D．Seeing the butterfly was caught

2. Noticing the butterfly was caught by the thorn, the orphan girl ______.

A．helped the butterfly escaped from the thorn

B．felt sorrow,but she didn’t go up to help it

C．fell down on it too

D．failed to help it release from the thorn

3. The only thing that the little girl wanted was________.

A．to be rich	B．to have her own parents
C．to have a lot of friends	D．happiness

4. The neighbors all gathered around the old happy woman when she was dying, because ______.

A．they loved this woman deeply and they didn’t wanted her to die

B．the woman had lots of money to be shared as soon as she died

C．they wanted to know the secret of her lifetime happiness

D．they wanted to pray for her after her death

【推荐1】My cousin is nine years old, a little bit fat and doesn't do really well at school. As the youngest in the household, she is heavily teased, and thus has developed some resistance and distrust towards adults, who usually don't put high hopes in her.

Yesterday we went to an art exhibition together. There were paintings from kids with disabilities. My little girl has keen eyes, for the paintings she liked most were also the best of the show. She also voluntarily helped to arrange the chairs and table for a sharing session, painted by herself alongside new friends while I attended the sharing, and cheerfully helped me to get my bag from another room, something that doesn't happen often at home as she's usually glued to her iPad.

We went to buy books together. I bought a book written by a mom telling about her journey with her autistic(自闭症的) son. On the bus back home, I briefly introduced the book to my cousin, and to my surprise she was truly interested. She kept asking me to tell more stories about this friend in the book who struggles with small things in life. This is the first time I've seen her so interested in a topic. Usually when she talks to me, she describes events at school and at home without a clear focus. I'm very touched that the life of an unknown stranger has found its way into this little girl's heart.

I'm very thankful for the power of books, for the beauty that my cousin showed to me, and for the time we had together. I pray that I can keep seeing clearly the wonderful things in her, so that whenever the not-so-kind world puts her down, I can remind her how truly wonderful she has always been.

1. Why does the little girl have a bad attitude to some adults?

A．Because she doesn't do really well at school.

B．Because she is the youngest in the household.

C．Because the adults constantly make fun of her.

D．Because the adults don’t put any hopes in her.

2. The underlined word in Paragraph Two can be replaced by       .

A．charming	B．sharp
C．loving	D．pretty

3. Whom does “an unknown stranger” in Paragraph Three refer to?

A．The autistic son.	B．The writer’s cousin.
C．The mother.	D．The writer.

【推荐2】A man sat at a metro station in Washington D.C. and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, 1,100 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by, and a middle-aged man noticed there was musician playing. A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him. They stopped for a few seconds, and then hurried up to meet their schedule.

The one who paid the most attention was a 3-year-old boy. His mother followed him along, hurried, but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally, the mother pushed hard, and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money, but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded（鼓掌）, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the most talented musicians in the world. He had just played one of the most beautiful pieces ever written, on a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theatre in Boston where the seats averaged $100.

This is a real story. Joshua Bell’s playing in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment.

One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

1. Why did few people stop to listen to Joshua Bell playing?

A．People were in a hurry.

B．They were not interested in music.

C．It was too cold in the subway.

D．The performance was not good enough.

2. What did the parents do when children stopped to look at the violinist?

A．They would applaud for the performance.

B．They would urge them to continue walking.

C．They would stop to enjoy the music.

D．They would give him some money.

3. Why did Joshua Bell play in the metro station?

A．To make more money.

B．To practise his skills in playing music.

C．To made an advertisement for his concert.

D．To find out people’s reaction under such a circumstance.

4. What is the purpose of the passage?

A．To tell us the importance of music.

B．To show us how to play music.

C．To set us to think about our life.

D．To report a subway performance.

【推荐3】“Everything happens for the best.” My mother said whenever things weren't going my way. “Don’t worry. One day your luck will change.”

Mother was right, as I discovered after I had finished my college education. I had decided to try for a job in a radio station. One day, I wanted to host (主持) a sports program. I went to Chicago and knocked at the door of every station. But I got turned down every time.

In one station, a kind lady said my problem was that I hadn’t got enough experience. “Get some work in a small station and work your way up,” she said.

I went back home. I couldn’t get a job there, either. Then my dad told me a businessman had opened a store and needed someone to help him. But again, I didn’t get the job.

I felt really down. “Your luck will change,” Mom said to me. Dad lent me the car to help me to look for my job. I tried another radio station in Iowa. But the owner, a nice man, told me he had already had someone.

As I left his office, I asked, “How can someone be a sports announcer if he can’t get a job in a radio station?”

I was waiting for the lift when I heard the man called, “What did you mean? Do you know anything about football?” He put me in front of a microphone and asked me to try to imagine that I was giving my opinion on a football game. I succeeded.

On my way home, Mom’s words came back to me, “One day your luck will change, Son. And when it happens, you’ll feel good because of all the hard work you have done.” At that moment I knew just what she meant.

1. What job was the writer most interested in?

A．A sportsman.	B．A shop assistant.
C．A businessman.	D．A sports announcer.

2. Why didn’t the writer get the job in Chicago?

A．Because he hadn't got enough experience.

B．Because he didn’t get college education.

C．Because he wasn’t a good looking person.

D．Because he was too young.

3. Which of the following is true according to the article?

A．You just need to wait for some time then luck will come.

B．Luck will come if you try your best to do everything.

C．It’s important for you to wait for luck.

D．You should trust your mother.

4. What’s the best title of this passage?

A．Mother’s Words	B．Everything Happens for the Best
C．No One Is Always Lucky	D．To Find a Job in Radio Is Difficult

【推荐1】Everybody knows that Coca Cola is red and Starbucks is green. Most of us can name companies and their own brand colors. What we may not know about is the science behind these companies' choices of these colors. Color psychology is the study of how colors affect people's feelings, actions, and decision-making. Companies use color psychology when they develop their brands and advertisements in order to encourage us to buy. In fact studies have shown that around 90 percent of people spend money depending on color and appearance. Because of this, companies use colors to influence how we feel about their products. For example, it’s no accident that many tech products use white; it's simple and clean. At the same time, cosmetics companies prefer colors like purple, black, or pink that mean love, comfort, and romance.

Companies often choose active colors that make you buy right now. Red, for example, is a high-energy, exciting color that moves people to take action. Yellow is the color of summer, and it’s bright and remarkable. In fact, most big companies have something to do with certain specific colors. Studies show that customers prefer brands that they know. Then those with a proper color plan, such as LEGO or Facebook are likely to perform more strongly on the market. Research has also shown that men and women like different colors. Men prefer blue, green, and black while women prefer like purple and pink.

1. What products are usually made white?

A．Food and drinks.	B．Clothes for women.
C．Computer and earphones.	D．Starbucks

2. What is TRUE about LEGO and Facebook?

A．They pay attention to the color plan.	B．They may be popular on the market.
C．They may be bright and remarkable.	D．They decide to choose red and yellow for the plan.

3. What products may make Mary buy it\ them now?

A．A coat in pink.	B．A pair of shoes in green.
C．A handbag in black.	D．A T-shirt in yellow

4. The purpose of this passage is to tell us______.

A．Few companies use color psychology.

B．Colors influence our shopping habits.

C．We should buy something according to it's color.

D．colors don’t affect people's feelings, actions, and decision-making.

【推荐2】Learning how to cope with death has always been a central part of human existence. Even the Pixar movie Coco bases its story on the Mexican traditions of Dia de los Muertos. In this article, you will find out why and how Mexicans celebrate the Day of the Dead.

I once visited the Museum of Mummies in the Mexican city of Guanajuato with a Swedish friend. The mummies were displayed among fake cobwebs ( 蜘 蛛 网 ), and other cheap adornments (装饰物). Confronted with this seeming lack of respect for the dead, I explained to my shocked companion that Mexicans have a peculiarly different relationship with death to other cultures. As the Nobel Prize-winning Mexican writer Octavio Paz explained in his work:

“The Mexican ... is familiar with death, jokes about it, caresses it, sleeps with it, and celebrates it. True, there is as much fear in his attitude as in that of others, but at least death is not hidden away: he looks at it face to face, with impatience, disdain (鄙视) or irony.”

The celebration of the Day of the Dead — a week of festivities from 28 October to 2 November — is an essential part of this embracement of death that is particular to Mexican national identity. The popular belief is that the dead have divine permission to visit friends and relatives on earth and enjoy once again the pleasures of life. Therefore, Mexicans visit the graves of families and friends and adorn them with colorful flowers and offerings of food. The period is a joyous celebration of life, rather than a sober mourning of its passing.

The origins of the festival lie in the 16th-century fusion of the Aztecs’ belief in death as merely one part in the wider cycle of existence, their ritual venerations (仪式崇拜) and offerings to   the goddess Mictecacihuatl   (“Lady of the Dead”) for   the deceased, and the Spanish conquerors’ desire to accommodate these festivities within the Catholic celebrations of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day.

In a country as socially and geographically diverse as Mexico, there is significant regional variation in the nature of festivities: the southern state of Chiapas is far more likely to focus its efforts on processions ( 队 伍 ) and public commemorations( 纪 念 ) of death than the valley of

Mexico, where the decoration of altars ( 供 坛 ) in homes and tombs of the deceased is more popular. Urbanization, too, plays a large role in regional variations. For the south and rural areas the period holds far greater social and cultural significance than in the north and large cities; families and communities in rural areas will often spend large parts of the year preparing for the occasion.

1. Why does the author say “Mexicans have a peculiarly different relationship with death to other cultures?”

A．Because Mexicans always show their respect for death in the form of mummies.

B．Because Mexicans do not fear death or respect it.

C．Because adornments like flowers can be seen everywhere during the Day of the Dead.

D．Mexicans face death bravely rather than hide it away.

2. Which statement is NOT true according to the origins of the Day of the Dead?

A．It was the Aztecs who determined how to celebrate the Day of the Dead.

B．The Aztecs believed death was part of the wider cycle of existence.

C．The Aztecs would give offerings to the goddess of death for their lost loved ones.

D．The Spanish conquerors wanted to fit the festivities into some of their Catholic celebrations.

3. Why do Mexicans visit the graves of families and friends and offer colorful flowers and food?

A．Because they can ask God to permit the dead to visit them in this way.

B．To celebrate the joy of new life in spring.

C．Because the dead will be permitted to visit their families and enjoy the pleasure of life again.

D．Because this is an essential part of embracement of death.

4. Which of the following explains the role that urbanization plays in the regional variations of celebrating the Day of the Dead?

A．People in the south and rural areas put more emphasis on the occasion.

B．People in the valleys usually decorate the alters in homes and the tombs of the dead.

C．People in the north and big cities spend large part of the year preparing for the celebration.

D．The southern states do not care about the decoration of alters at home.

【推荐3】For the first time since local extinction in 1996, Nubian giraffes have returned to Pian Upe Wildlife Reserve in northeastern Uganda. Fifteen of this vitally endangered animals were moved over 400 km from Murchison Falls National Park in October 2019.

The 11 female and 4 male giraffes are aged two to four: “We chose younger giraffes because they have a longer reproductive lifespan,” says Robert Aruho, a doctor of Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), who let the move.

Northern Uganda is home to Nubian giraffes. They have large, rectangular blotches (矩形斑点) set irregularly against a cream background. The lower legs are noticeably white and not patterned. Pian Upe’s grassy land held large numbers of giraffes in the 1960s before conflict in the Karamoja region saw them hunted illegally. “The habitat is perfect, and effective anti-hunting measures are now capable of supporting at least 700 individuals,” explains Aruho.

Nubian giraffes are Uganda’s only giraffe species and most of them inhabit Murchison Falls. “We can’t have all our eggs in one basket,” Aruho says, “We have a unique opportunity to act now to prevent them dying out.”

Back in 2015, the UWA moved 15 Nubian giraffes from Murchison Falls to Lake Mburo National Park. After that, 9 of the 10 females quickly became pregnant. From a little over 300 Nubian giraffes in the mid 1990s in Uganda there are now about 1,650. A further 25 giraffes will move from Murchison to Pian Upe in October 2020.

“In Uganda we continue to work closely with the UWA to increase numbers and populations of threatened Nubian giraffes. Boosting existing populations is vital for securing their future in the country,” Aruho says.

1. Why were younger giraffes moved to Pian Upe Wildlife Reserve?

A．They were in greater danger than the older.

B．It was easier for them to adapt to a new habitat.

C．They would reproduce more in future.

D．It cost less to move younger giraffes there.

2. Why did the author say “return” in Para. 1?

A．The local didn’t support the movement at first.

B．The giraffes used to live in Pian Upe in the 1960s.

C．The giraffes’ habitats were built a long time ago.

D．People moved all giraffes to escape local conflict.

3. What is the original intention of the move according to Aruho?

A．It’s better for giraffes to live in different places.

B．700 giraffes is a point of what the reserve affords.

C．Measures should be taken to stop local conflicts.

D．Nubian giraffes look so attractive as to be hunted illegally.

4. Which chart can describe the move of Nubian giraffes since 2015?
P= Pian Upe   L=Lake Mburo   M= Murchison Falls

A．	B．
C．	D．

【推荐2】Scientists are urging that deep sea metal mining should be stopped temporarily. They warn in a report that it can cause severe and   damaging effects on Pacific Ocean areas.

The recently-released report examined more than 250 published studies on deep Sea mining. The research was examined by the Deep Sea Mining Campaign- a collection of not-for profit organizations. The report centers on mining activities related to small metallic particles(金属颗粒)，called nodules, found on the seabed. The material can contain different metals. Increasing demand for these metals has led to a rise in deep-sea mining operations. The metals are commonly used in battery manufacturing and other technology products.

However, the scientists warn that mining for these nodules will cause irreversible(不可逆的) damage to an ocean already under pressure. The operations will affect areas across the South Pacific, including the nations of Kiribati, the Cook Islands, Nauru, Tonga and Papua New Guinea.

The report notes that a moratorium is the only responsible way to move forward until certain conditions surrounding deep-sea mining can be met. The scientists are calling for additional study to fully understand the environmental, social and economic risks.

Andrew Chin is the report's lead researcher. He says in a statement that nodule mining will likely result in the loss of sea life and cause damage to deep seabeds for thousands of years. He adds that the operations can put people at risk who depend on the ocean and its continued health.

A company planning to be one of the first to carry out mining operations in the area is Canada's DeepGreen, which aims to begin by 2024. It seeks to mine metallic nodules to be used in power systems for electric vehicles. DeepGreen Chief Executive Officer Gerard Barron defended the company's plans in reaction to the report. He said deep-sea mining offered the best alternative to surface mining, which has & long history of pollution and destroying forests and wildlife.

1. Why are deep-sea mining operations on the rise?

A．More metals are needed.	B．Surface mining is banned,
C．Battery industry is falling.	D．The seabed is easy to find,

2. Which of the following best explains the word “moratorium" underlined in paragraph 4?

A．Loose measure.

B．Thorough study.

C．Permanent deal.

D．Temporary stop.

3. What can we learn from Andrew Chin's words?

A．Conditions surrounding deep-sea mining are great.

B．The damage caused by nodule mining is reversible.

C．Nodule mining can cause harm in various aspects.

D．People sure less likely to be affected by nodule mining,

4. What's Gerard Barron's attitude towards deep-sea mining?

A．Opposed.

B．Supportive.

C．Ambiguous.

D．Unconcerned.

【推荐3】Do you remember the last time you received a postcard? The UK’s family-owned oldest postcard firm, which has been publishing postcards and calendars since 1880, will close this December. The reason? It says instead of penning a card, people are putting photos up on Facebook or Instagram or using WhatsApp to show friends and family at home just how much fun they’re having.

If you get a postcard from someone who’s away somewhere, it’s as much the thought that they’ve gone through the hassle (麻烦) of choosing a postcard, working out where to get a stamp from, finding a postbox and then the postcard making that journey through to you. That’s the value of the postcard. But that time has gone.

Brothers Charles and Harry Salmon, the fifth generation of the family to run the firm, said the popularity of social media had had a huge impact on the business. People are also tending to take shorter holidays, meaning they are likely to have arrived home long before their postcards. As a result the business was no longer viable.

“Increasingly challenging trading conditions and changes to the nature and size of the market for its publications have resulted in uncertainty over the future of its trade,’’ the brothers wrote in a letter to suppliers and newsagents.

As a result they were announcing a proposal to withdraw from publishing. The number of postcards sold each year is reported to have seen a sharp decline to about five million from 20 million just 25 years ago. But the firm said that as well as the drop in the number of postcards sent, “we have also had to consider that there are no more members of the family who wish to join the business.”

1. What’s the value of sending a postcard?

A．It’s a symbol of sympathy.	B．It’s a journey of love.
C．It’s an act of patience.	D．It’s a way of passing time.

2. What does the underlined word “viable” in Paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．likely to exist.	B．worthy of praise.
C．short of money.	D．possible to change.

3. What is the best title of the text?

A．UK’s oldest postcard firm set to close.

B．Postcard industry booming in the future.

C．UK’s postcard firm through a tough time.

D．Postcard industry needing support to survive.

4. Where does this text probably come from?

A．A book review.	B．A business column.
C．A hi-tech advertisement.	D．A finance report.