【推荐1】Most of the people who appear most often and most gloriously in the history books are great conquerors and generals, while the people who really helped civilization forward are often never mentioned. We do not know who first set a broken leg, or launched a seaworthy boat, or calculated the length of the year, but we know all about the killers and destroyers. People think so much of them that on all the highest pillars in the great cities of the world you will find the figure of a conqueror or a general.     1    .

It is possible they are, but they are not the most civilized. Animals fight, so do savages; so to be good at fighting is to be good in the way in which an animal or a savage is good, but it is not to be civilized.     2    . People fight to settle quarrels. Fighting means killing, and civilized peoples ought to be able to find some ways of settling their disputes other than by seeing which side can kill off greater number of the other side, and then saying that the side which has killed most has won.     3    . For that is what going to war means; it means saying that power is right.

This is what the story of mankind has on the whole been like. But we must not expect too much. After all, the race of men has only just started. From the point of view of evolution, human beings are very young indeed, babies of a few months old. Scientists assume that there has been life of some sort on the earth for about twelve hundred million years; but there have been men for only one million years, and there has been civilized men for about eight thousand years.

    4    . Taking man’s civilized past at about seven or eight hours, we may estimate his future at about one hundred thousand years. Thus mankind is only at the beginning of its whole a pretty beastly business, a business of fighting and killing. We must not expect even civilized peoples not to have done these things. All we can ask is that they will sometimes have done something else.

A．Even being good at getting others to fight most efficiently is not being civilized.

B．Most people believe those who have conquered the most nations are the greatest.

C．However, every year conflicts between countries and nations still claim thousands of lives.

D．And not only has it won, buts also because it has won, it has been in the right.

E．So there has been little time to learn in, but there will be oceans of time in which to learn better.

F．People don’t fight and kill each other in the streets, but nations still behave like savages.

【推荐1】Catherine was ill for two months. During that time my master never left her side. When she finally began to get better, he was happy again. He was anxious for her to get completely well again—not only because he loved her but also because she was expecting a baby—his heir!

Six weeks after her disappearance Isabella sent her brother a letter saying she was married. I told Mr Linton about the letter and he gave me permission to go.

Isabella and Heathcliff were both in the sitting room when I arrived. Heathcliff immediately started asking me questions about Catherine.

"Before you leave this house, Nelly," he said, "you must promise to arrange a meeting for me with her. I want to see her. I will see her! Do you understand?" I refused to help him fifty times, but in the end I gave in.

It was a warm day. All the windows and doors were open to let in the fresh air. My mistress was wearing a white dress, her face was very pale and her eyes had an empty, dreamy expression.

"I have a letter for you, Mrs Linton," I said gently. "It is from Mr Heathcliff."

She looked worried and confused for a moment. The next minute, the doors were open and he was striding across the room. He took Catherine in his arms and held her and kissed her for a long time.

“Oh, Catherine! he cried. "Oh, my life!"

Then she pulled away from him saying, "Heathcliff, you and Edgar have broken my heart! And now you both want me to feel sorry for you. I'm not going to. You have killed me but you are still healthy. How long are you going to live after I die?"

"Oh, why can't we be together forever?" she said in a low voice.

He stood up and walked away. He didn't want her to see his face.

"Heathcliff!" she cried.

Although she was weak, she forced herself to stand up.

He turned round. His eyes were wet with tears.

"Why did you leave me Catherine?" he cried. "I have not broken your heart—you have broken mine. What will my life be like without you?"

"Stop! Stop!" sobbed Catherine. "If I've done wrong, I'm dying for it. It is enough! You left me too, but I forgive you."

She fell against him and he picked her up in his arms.

"She's fainted, or she's dead," I thought.

About twelve o'clock that night Catherine's baby was born. We called her Catherine after her mother. Two hours later her mother died.

1. Why was the master anxious according to the passage?

A．Heathcliff would come and fight with him.

B．His sister disappeared for a long time.

C．Catherine would give birth to his heir.

D．Catherine was no longer faithful to him.

2. What does the underlined part in Paragraph 5 imply?

A．Catherine was filled with hatred for her lover.

B．Catherine was eager to meet her lover.

C．Catherine tended to dream a sweet dream.

D．Catherine was likely to make an empty promise.

3. What could we infer when both Heathcliff and Catherine mentioned the heart was broken?

A．Heathcliff made Catherine sad.	B．Catherine made Heathcliff sad.
C．They actually hated each other.	D．They loved each other deeply.

4. What happened to Catherine at the end of this story?

A．She died with her baby.	B．She died in childbirth.
C．She forgave her lover.	D．She broke up with her husband.

【推荐2】Charles Dickens is often thought of as one of the greatest British writers. February 7 marked the 200th anniversary of his birthday. Yet for many, his language is old-fashioned and his stories often improbable. So why do so many people know and read Dickens today?
One reason is the British government’s insistence that every child studies a Dickens novel at school. Alongside William Shakespeare, Dickens is on every English literature school reading list.
His stories, though often long by today’s standards, are great moral tales. They are filled with colorful characters.
Earlier this month, a ceremony was held in Portsmouth, where Dickens was born. Prince Charles said at the ceremony, “Dickens used his creative genius to campaign passionately for social justice… His characterization (人物刻画) is as fresh today as on the day it was written.”
His books stand out from many other writers because of his insight into human nature. Dickens, like Shakespeare, tells us truths about human behavior. They are as true in the 21st century as they were to his readers in the 19th century.
Readers have returned to Dickens’ books again and again over the years to see what he has to say about their own times.
No surprise then that it was Dickens whom Britons turned to during the economic crisis in the last couple of years. Dickens helped them make sense of a world that was rapidly falling apart. The BBC adapted one of his less well-known novels, Little Dorrit, into a popular television drama that introduced many Brits to the novel for the first time. A dark story about greed and money, it was the perfect illustration of bad times.
As long as Dickens’s novels have something to say to modern audiences, it seems likely that he will remain one of Britain’s best-loved writers.
1. In the article, the author intends to tell us ______.

A．why Dickens’ novels still appeal to readers in modern times

B．that Dickens’ works are no longer popular among young people

C．why the British government puts Dickens on school reading lists

D．that Dickens and Shakespeare’s works are required for study at school

2. In Britain, people still read Dickens because of ______.
a) romance in his books
b) moral value in his books
c) his colorful characters
d) his insight into human nature
e) government education requirement
f) his prediction of the current economic crisis

A．abdf

B．bcde

C．bdef

D．abed

3. We can infer from the article that ______.

A．it’s better to read Dickens in time of difficulty

B．Dickens was a great social observer of his time

C．human nature seems worse during bad times

D．Dickens’s novels are short and easy to read

4. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．Little Dorrit is one of Dickens’ best-known novels.

B．Dickens’ novels are of greater value during economic crisis.

C．Dickens’ works have gained more popularity than Shakespeare’s

D．Dickens’ novels are still of realistic significance to today’s world.

【推荐3】In her new book, “The Smartest Kids in the World,” Amanda Ripley, an investigative journalist, tells the story of Tom, a high-school student from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, who decides to spend his senior year in Warsaw, Poland. Poland is a surprising             educational success story: in the past decade, the country raised students’ test scores from significantly below average to well above it. Polish kids have now outscored(超过……分数) American kids in math and science, even though Poland spends, on             average, less than half as much per student as the United States does. One of the most striking differences between the high school Tom attended in Gettysburg and the one he ends up at in Warsaw is that the latter has no football team, or, for             that matter, teams of any kind.
That American high schools waste more time and money on sports than on math is an old complaint. This is not a matter of how any given student who plays sports does in school, but of the culture and its priorities. This December, when the latest Program             for International Student Assessment(PISA) results are announced, it’s safe to predict that American high-school students will once again display their limited skills in math and reading, outscored not just by students in Poland but also by students             in places like South Korea, Belgium, the Netherlands, Finland, Singapore, and Japan. Meanwhile, they will have played some very exciting football games, which will have been breathlessly written up in their hometown papers.
Why does this situation continue? Well, for one thing, kids like it. And for another, according to Ripley, parents seem to like the arrangement, too. She describes a tour she took of a school in Washington D.C., which costs thirty thousand dollars a year. The tour leader—a mother with three children in the school—was asked about the school’s flaws(瑕疵). When she said that the math program was weak, none of the parents taking the tour reacted. When she said that the football program was weak, the parents suddenly became concerned. “Really?” one of them asked worriedly, “What do you mean?”One of the ironies(讽刺) of the situation is that sports reveal what is possible. ____________________________________________________________________________ .
1. Tom decides to spend his senior year in Poland because _______.

A．there are striking differences between the 2 countries

B．Polish kids are better at learning

C．he intends to improve his scores

D．sports are not supported at schools in Gettysburg

2. According to Paragraph 2, we know that _______.

A．little time is spent on sports in Japanese schools

B．too much importance is placed on sports in America

C．American high schools complain about sports time

D．PISA plays a very important role in America

3. The underlined sentence in the last paragraph means _______.

A．American students’ academic performance worries their parents a lot

B．high expectations push up American students’ academic performance

C．lacking practice contributes to American students’ average performance

D．low expectations result in American students’ poor PISA performance

4. The purpose of this article is to _______.

A．draw public attention to a weakness in American school tradition

B．call on American schools to learn from the Polish model

C．compare Polish schools with those in America

D．explain what is wrong with American schools and provide solutions

【推荐1】New Deal Design, one of the world's leading tech design studios, has invented an artificial intelligence-equipped toy to fight the "distraction economy" by developing children's attention spans.

Called Spot, the toy is aimed at learning and discovery. It functions primarily as a handheld scanner that kids can point at an object around them, such as a flower or a bird, to hear it talk back.Using its AI software,Spot recognizes the object and voices a little monologue（独白）from it, processing information to suit children aged five to nine.

There's also a secondary function that comes into play at bedtime, when Spot uses its in-built projecto（r投影仪） to present a story made up around the day's discoveries.

Spot is a concept at this stage, one that grew out of the research New Deal Design conducted into children's development. The designers found that the right kind of toy could encourage focus,as opposed to instant satisfaction. They wanted to cultivate a kind of junior-level mindfulness that would set kids up with positive life skills.

In terms of appearance, Spot has a complicated look, with its 3D camera fixed   in   the   head.   The   models   are   smooth,   including   a   wooden   handle,a button and a base. The choice of materials was inspired by traditional kids' building blocks.

When Spot   recognizes an   object, it blinks   to signal   it has   locked the target. Its head also locks into place to avoid any shaking. As an example, New Deal Design describes a girl called Max, who among other things, encounters a robin while out with the toy. Via Spot, the bird says, "Hi Max, my name is Robin! Did you know ..."

At that night's Story Time, Spot starts "Once upon a time there was a little girl named Max who met a robin. One day, Max asked the robin ..." New Deal Design says that day summaries like this helps kids to relax and get better sleep. Seeing themselves at the centre of stories also helps to build self-confidence and self-awareness.

1. In which aspect do children benefit from the artificial intelligence-equipped toy?

A．encouraging focus	B．giving an instant satisfaction
C．learning self-control	D．developing positive life skills

2. According to the passage, which statement about Spot is right?

A．Spot tells stories programmed in advance.

B．Spot is beneficial to developing children’s attention spans.

C．Spot has already been used to fight the “distraction economy” now.

D．Spot’s appearance was inspired by traditional kids’ building blocks.

3. According to the text,who will the toy be useful for?

A．Tom, two years old, can’t recognize an object around him.

B．Max, eight years old, wants to make up a story about robin.

C．Tina, nine years old, can’t concentrate her attention on her class.

D．Mike,twelve years old, wants to learn something about artificial intelligence.

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A．A scientific invention	B．A learning program
C．An creative method	D．A tech design studios

【推荐3】There are 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic trash in the world’s oceans, and each year, 8 million tons of plastic are added to the figure. Though the oceans seem vast enough to stomach a lot of plastic, the level of waste is starting to reach a crisis point: According to a new report by the Ocean Conservancy, by 2025, the ocean could contain one ton of plastic for every three tons of fish.

All these floating bits of plastic not only disrupt marine ecosystems, but also poison the global supply of seafood. “It’s reaching crisis proportions,” says Andreas Merkl, CEO of the Ocean Conservancy. “Plastic breaks down into small pieces that look like plankton (浮游生物) and is eaten by everything from plankton to whales.”

The new report calls for a focus on improving waste management systems in a handful of developing countries that account for the plastic leakage into the ocean. China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam contribute more than half of the oceans’ plastic since their waste facilities haven’t kept up with rapid industrialization.

How can countries reduce the leakage of waste into the ocean? The Ocean Conservancy report suggests that by providing more waste collection services, closing the leakage points within the collection system, getting rid of waste with effective landfill, and building more recycling facilities, the plastics leakage could be cut by 50% by 2020.

It’s not just an environmentalist’s daydream. Coca-Cola and Dow Chemical, along with some other multinational companies, have joined forces with Ocean Conservancy to fight ocean pollution. “We’re committed to working toward a future of a plastic-free ocean. Companies don’t make plastic with the intention of it ending up in the ocean, and we acknowledge the strong role industry must play in order to help eliminate ocean plastic waste by 2035.” Says a Dow Chemical director.

“While building landfills and incinerators (焚化炉) across these developing countries might not be pretty, it’s far more environmentally friendly than letting waste slide into the world’s oceans.” Says Andreas Merkl.

1. Five developing countries are mostly responsible for plastic leakage because ___.

A．there are too many factories in those countries

B．they produce the majority of the waste worldwide

C．their waste facilities fail to adapt to rapid industrialization

D．their citizens don’t make good use of waste management systems

2. The underlined word “eliminate” in Paragraph 5 means      .

A．end

B．increase

C．remain

D．reduce

3. From the last two paragraphs, we can learn that _______.

A．many companies have begun to play a role in fighting ocean pollution

B．environment-friendly plastics will be invented by multinational factories

C．developing countries will be much more beautiful with a plastic-free ocean

D．landfills and incinerators have greatly reduced plastic leakage into the ocean

4. The main purpose of the passage is to ______.

A．suggest countries learn more about oceanic waste

B．persuade companies to produce fewer plastic goods

C．warn people of the danger of using too many plastic items

D．inform people about the serious issue of plastic in the ocean

【推荐1】Maria Rogers

123 Main Street

Fairfax，,Virgnia 22222

(703) 555-5555

Education：

Praha 5 Gymnasium, May 2011-May 2013

J. E. B. Stuart Transitional High School, June 2015 —May 2016

Experience ：

Cashier, McDonald’s, June 2014—May 2015.

Took customer orders, handled customer complaints(投诉),），mopped floors.

Caregiver, McDaniels family, June 2015—May 2018.

Took care of three children, ages 1 to 7, prepared lunch and dinner, drove children to school, organized children’s activities.

Caregiver, Smith family, June 2018—present

Takes care of twins babies, prepares meals and feeds children, cleans and organizes house, takes children to activities like music class.

References：

Jose Mendez, McDonald’s Manager. 703-111-1111.

Jane McDaniels, employer. 571-555-5555.

Nancy Smith, employer. 301-555-5555.

Leona Riley

1234 Red Oak Drive

Flint, MD 64000

Home：404-555-5555

Cell: 404-555-5556

Email：Leona Reiley@ frontfocus. Com

Objective

To obtain a waitress position in the Food and Beverage Industry.

Qualifications Summary

Extensive knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer service, and so on.

Wide knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services.

Education

Maryland Customer Service Academy, Baltimore, MD

Associate's Degree (July 2015) , 404-554-4556

Work Experience
Waitress：:June 2016—Present, Royal Oak Restaurant, Flint, MD

Responsibilities include :Checking customers' identification to ensure that they meet minimum age requirements for consumption of alcoholic beverages, checking with customers to ensure that they are enjoying their meals, and so on.

Waitress:May 2013—May 2016, Chez Fayette, Flint, MD

Responsibilities included:Collecting payments from customers, writing food orders on order slips.

Prepared hot, cold, and mixed drinks for patrons.

Described and recommended wines to customers.

References available upon request.
1. What does Rogers do now?

A．She’s a teacher.	B．She’s a cashier.
C．She’s a waitress.	D．She’s a caregiver.

2. Where was Riley working in 2015?

A．In McDonald’s.

B．In Chez Fayette, Flint, MD.

C．In Royal Oak Restaurant, Flint, MD.

D．In Maryland Customer Service Academy.

3. Which will Riley's potential employer call to know about her work experience?

A．571-555-5555.	B．404-555-5556.
C．703-111-1111.	D．404-5544556.

【推荐2】Scientists in New Zealand have found fossilized (化石的) leg bones from a penguin believed to have been about the size of an adult human. The previously undiscovered giant penguin species likely stood about 1.6 meters tall and weighed up to 80 kilograms.

The penguin existed about 60 million years ago. The bones are believed to be from the oldest of several species of giant penguins that lived after dinosaurs died out. A fossil hunter found the bones last year in the Waipara River bed near the city of Christchurch. The bones are from the animal’s legs and feet. Scientists confirmed that the bones came from a newly discovered species.

Paul Scofield is senior curator (馆长) at New Zealand’s Canterbury Museum. He co-wrote a paper on the discovery. He said that the bones are an important find. They show that the species is similar to another giant penguin found in Antarctica in 2000. The latest discovery, he said, helps show a clear connection between the two areas during the Paleocene period. This period lasted from 66 million to 56 million years ago.

Scofield said the penguins were able to grow larger after entering a new development period following the extinction of dinosaurs, sea reptiles and huge fish. Scofield added that the giant penguins became extinct within 30 million years, as large mammals began to rule the waters.

John Cockrem is a penguin expert at the country’s Massey University who was also not involved in the research. He said the discovery helps add to what we know about giant penguins. He said it also confirmed New Zealand as the penguin center of the world.

New Zealand is believed to have been home to many giant bird species that later disappeared. These included the world’s largest parrot, a giant eagle and an emu-like bird called the moa. Recently, Canterbury Museum announced the discovery of an unusually large parrot believed to have lived about 19 million years ago. Scientists say the bird stood about one meter tall.

1. What is special about the penguin found in New Zealand?

A．The place it lived in.	B．The age of its existence.
C．Its species and size.	D．Its shape and habits.

2. Why did the giant penguins die out?

A．Large mammals controlled the sea.

B．They were killed out by huge fish.

C．Climate changes were not fit for them.

D．They grew too large to feed themselves.

3. What do we know from the last paragraph?

A．All kinds of penguins live in New Zealand.

B．Many giant birds used to exist in New Zealand.

C．The world’s largest parrot lives in New Zealand.

D．New Zealand owns the most bird species in the world.

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

A．Similar Penguin Fossils Have Been Found Again

B．An Ancient Creature Has Been Found in New Zealand

C．Some Giant Penguins Appeared after Dinosaurs Died Out

D．Scientists Found Bones from Giant Penguin in New Zealand

【推荐3】Trash and garbage are other words for waste. In San Francisco, they are also words for art. A local recycling (回收) company, called Recology, created a program to give artists the opportunity to reuse unwanted objects. Artists are paid to work for four months on changing things like old tires and toys.

Ma Li, one of the artists at the center, is working on a project that includes plastic bottles and cloth. She is turning them into sculptures (雕塑). She says she learned recycling from her parents while growing up in China in the 1980s.

San Francisco artist Michael Arcega works with recycled wood and old leather belts (皮带). His artwork shows what he says is the wasteful culture of the American people. He says looking through the trash is not easy. It is hard to separate what is useful and what is really garbage.

A gallery (美术陈列室) in Los Angeles is exhibiting some of the art from the San Francisco project. The show includes sculptures from old metal and saws (锯子) cut to look like trees. Los Angeles gallery owner Liz Gordon says artists have a history of recycling. “People who don’t have resources find supplies from garbage and have been using them for many years.”

Artist Ma Li says these art works have a message. “So everyone can come together to actually make a change in their daily life to save the environment and resources.”

Mike Sangiacomo heads the recycling company. He says he hopes to see as much waste as possible reused. “Along the way, if some of it is made into some fun pieces of art and draws people’s attention to the problem, we think it’s a great way to do something that’s good for our business, good for our community, and good for society.” The project shows how a little imagination can change one person’s trash into another’s art work.

1. What do we know about Ma Li?

A．She grew up in a rich family.

B．She learned art from her parents.

C．She spent her childhood in the U.S.

D．She learned recycling at a young age.

2. What does the underlined word “exhibiting” mean in Paragraph 4?

A．Changing.

B．Showing.

C．Supplying.

D．Owning.

3. The recycling program is intended to     .

A．make a large amount of money

B．help people to find beauty in daily life

C．help poor artists who can’t afford supplies

D．encourage the protection of environment

4. What is the best title of the text?

A．Living in San Francisco

B．A Promising Career

C．The Choice of Artists

D．Turning Trash to Treasure