A few years ago, I was an English professor, and I asked my students to finish a paper during the holiday. Mike, one of my students, came to class without it. He explained that his safe (保险柜)had been stolen by a worker who was repairing his house. His notebook computer was in the safe, where his paper was. I was sure that he didn’t tell a lie because he had been a really good student.
Then over the two weeks, Mike started to show up to class looking very tired. He said that he was on a hunt for the guy who stole his safe, and he was spending late nights with his cousin driving around looking for the thief because they knew his car. They wanted to find the thief and get the safe back because his living expenses were in it besides the paper.
Then Mike rewrote the paper and turned it in. It wasn’t up to his usual quality, and he still kept coming to class looking like he hadn’t slept all night. One day, he came very happily to my office, and he reported that he had found the thief after a long search that involved experiencing dangerous situations. He said that they found the thief’s car in front of a big super-market, and they caught him and sent him to the police station.
I read the news that Mike had in fact put an end to the thief’s attempt to steal from the supermarket. It turned out that Mike got his money and notebook computer back. I gladly accepted his original paper, and it got a much higher grade than the rewritten one because of his virtues. And I reminded him that he should be responsible for his own safety and talk to me or other teachers first if he met with anything like that.
1. What was the problem with Mike?| A．He was often late for class. |
| B．He always got low marks in exams. |
| C．He failed to hand in his paper on time. |
| D．He stayed up too late writing his paper. |
| A．He tried to earn his living expenses. |
| B．He practised driving with his cousin. |
| C．He went to the class which the professor taught. |
| D．He sought for the house repairman who had stolen his safe. |
| A．He voluntarily admitted the theft. |
| B．He was handed over to the police. |
| C．He escaped from a big supermarket. |
| D．He was reported caught by the professor. |
| A．Brave and honest. | B．Imaginative and creative. |
| C．Smart but lazy. | D．Poor but happy. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Smoking is harmful. But as soon as you quit the habit, everything will be OK, right? Wrong.
New research has found that even if you give up smoking, the damage it has done to your genes will stay there for a much longer time. In the research, a team of US scientists studied the blood of 16,000 people. Among them, some were smokers, some used to smoke, and the rest were non-smokers. Scientists compared their genes and found that more than 7,000 genes of smokers had changed--a number that is one-third of known human genes.
According to NBC News, both heart disease and cancer are caused by genetic changes. Some people may have had the changes when they were born, but most people get them in their day-to-day lives while doing things like smoking.
When you stop smoking, a lot of these genes will return to normal within five years.
This means your body is trying to heal (治愈) itself of the harmful effects of smoking. But the changes in some of the genes stay for longer. They can stay for as long as 30 years, It’s almost like leaving a footprint on wet cement (水泥)----it will always be there, even when you’ve walked away and when the cement becomes dry.
Although the study results may make people unhappy, there is a bright side: the findings could help scientists invent medicine to treat genetic damage caused by smoking or find ways to tell which people have heart disease or cancer risks.
1. The function of Paragraph 1 is to_________ .| A．introduce the topic of the passage | B．give an example |
| C．make an argument | D．show the main idea of the passage |
| A．people’s condition at birth | B．environmental pollution |
| C．people’s bad living habit | D．heart disease and cancer |
| A．the footprint | B．the cement |
| C．the harmful effect | D．the genetic change |
| A．The findings are the fruit of more than three years’ research. |
| B．The findings have prevented more people from starting smoking |
| C．The findings offer evidence that a damaged gene can heal itself. |
| D．The findings help to find cures for genetic damage caused by smoking. |
【推荐2】In conversation, body language is more important than you might think. Only 7% of our communication is expressed in words. How can we appear calm and confident?
First of all, try to keep still. The old belief that we make up our minds about someone within the first ten seconds of meeting them is untrue. It’s within one-tenth of a second! Therefore, when meeting someone for the first time, try to avoid any small, repetitive (重复的) movements. Take slow, deep breaths and try to keep as still as possible. Your words will hold more importance and you can get your ideas heard without unnecessary body language.
Smile is a powerful gesture, even when you’re on your own. When others see you smile, a similar reaction takes place and they begin to feel happier and more relaxed. And it does use fewer muscles to smile than to frown. Practise “smiseing” (smiling with your eyes) too, as this will help your big smile look more genuine.
When we suffer from anxiety (焦虑), our heart rate increases, our chest feels tight and we can, I seem to catch our breath properly. In this case, practise breathing rhythmically and finally the rest of your body will relax and you will immediately appear calmer.
You may have heard of the power pose—stand with your legs far apart with your hands on your hips (臀部). This might help you feel at ease, and you’ll appear calmer and more confident.
1. When you meet someone for the first time, you’d better ________.| A．avoid any body language | B．keep as still as possible |
| C．repeat small movements | D．speak out your ideas |
| A．Because you are on your own. |
| B．Because you will be more important. |
| C．Because it helps you look more genuine. |
| D．Because it helps you make up your mind. |
| A．You may breathe rhythmically. | B．You will catch your breath properly. |
| C．Your body will relax immediately. | D．Your heart may beat violently. |
| A．Posture. | B．Language. |
| C．Concern. | D．Signal |
The idea of spending a year in a hot, beautiful country is an attractive option for any 20 - year - old university student, and numbers of students now take a year out to study or work abroad. Two years ago, I joined them.
My reality was long days teaching in Spain for less than one euro an hour. Despite my best efforts, I barely spoke Spanish and made just one friend, I couldn't wait for it to end and after nine long months, I boarded the plane home crying tears of happiness.
However, it has taken me a while to realize that I wouldn't have it any other way. I wouldn't do it all over again, but I certainly wouldn't change it. It was tough, but it was totally worthy.
I had to grow up and learn how to rely on myself. I learned that things don't always go the way you expect or want. I had time to think about what T was doing with my life and what I wanted to get out of my degree.
For many others, too, a terrible year abroad can turn into a positive, character - building experience. I'm not saying that if you have a great year then you don't Learn anything, I’m still jealous of all the adventures and travelling my friends talk about: But a disastrous year abroad gave me the boost I needed to stop taking the opportunities I have for granted.
I spent a long time feeling like I'd wasted what was supposed to be one of the best years of my life, until I realized that was only because I was comparing it with other people's experiences. That year was the best thing that could have: happened to me. So if you've recently started your year abroad, remember to take it as it comes - appreciate the. experience you're having, without comparing it with everyone else's.
1. Why did the author want to leave Spain as soon as possible? (no more than 8 words)2. How do you understand the underlined part in Paragraph 3? (no more than 10 words)
3. Why did the author consider her life in Spain worthy? (no more than 10 words)
4. What made the author think she had wasted a year in Spain? (no more than 10 words)
5. Would you like to take a year out to work abroad? Why? (no more than 20 words)
【推荐1】On our second day in Barcelona, Spain, my classmates and I headed out to see the sights. We hadn’t had a chance to stop by any banks to take out cash, but we had our bank cards, which, to our American way of thinking, would naturally be accepted anywhere. Our teacher led us to La Sagrada Familia, a church which has been under construction for over 100 years.
She let each of us decide whether we wanted to pay for entrance to the church or return to the hotel after a long day. Many headed for the subway and returned to the hotel. Eager to explore more, two of my friends and I wandered about the plaza (露天广场), but soon the other two decided they wanted to return to the hotel also. I was confident in my abilities and had a subway ticket, so I felt comfortable without them; I got in line to enter the church.
When I reached the window, they asked for the 10-euro admission price. I confidently handed over my bank card, which they denied, asking for cash only. I was shocked. I only had three euros on hand, and my entire group had left. I was leaving the next day to fly to Madrid, and I wasn’t going to get this opportunity again.
Just then, I overheard English being spoken around me. It took about ten minutes to collect my courage to approach the speakers and explained my dilemma: American student, no cash, priceless landmark, no other opportunity to see it. Fortunately, one smiling woman handed me a 20-euro bill. “Go buy me a bottle of wine, and you can keep the change,” she offered. I did so without delay, grateful that I wouldn’t miss this fantastic opportunity.
Perhaps seven euros didn’t mean a lot to her, but it meant a lot to me, and she offered it in such a friendly way that I didn’t feel like a beggar. That simple act of kindness remains in my memory as one of the nicest things a stranger has ever done for me.
1. What made the author decide to visit the church?| A．His friends’ company. | B．His ability to travel alone. |
| C．His interest in the church. | D．His teacher’s encouragement. |
| A．He lacked enough cash. | B．He couldn’t speak Spanish. |
| C．The ticket was too expensive. | D．The ticket sellers were unfriendly. |
| A．Thoughtful. | B．Effortless. | C．Selfless. | D．Powerful. |
| A．To suggest a travel destination. | B．To share a heart-warming story. |
| C．To show the cultural differences. | D．To give advice on travelling abroad. |
【推荐2】“The moment before they called my name, I was really nervous because the other finalists’ presentations are really good and I thought they would win,” Kara Fan, 14, who has won America’ s Top Young Scientist, told Yahoo Finance. “When they announced my name, I was really surprised actually.”
To win that claim, Fan’ s nano-particle liquid bandage had to surpass the experiments of hundreds of fifth to eighth graders as well as nine other finalists. Fan started developing her liquid bandage in April 2019 to fight the overuse of antibiotics (抗生素).
According to the CDC, roughly 2 million people every year suffer a bacterial infection in the U. S. and about 23, 000 passed away as a result. If left alone, a UN study reported, drug- resistant diseases or the “superbug” could lead to 10 million deaths across the globe by 2050. When Fan’ s sprayable bandage dries on a person’ s skin, it creates a thin layer that protects the wounded area while breaking the cell wall and killing the bacteria on the skin. After experimenting with copper nitrate (硝酸铜) to fight bacteria, switching to the silver nitrate ended up being the major catalyst (催化剂) to seeing results for her award-winning project.
“Thousands of years ago, ancient people would use copper and silver to eat with and they would drink water from like copper bowls to kill bacteria,” Fan explained. “I found out that it didn’t work. So I used nano silver.”
Sir Alexander Fleming’ s discovery of penicillin— a type of antibiotic— is Fan’ s favorite scientific discovery. That said, she doesn’ t think humans should rely too heavily on penicillin.
Following her years at Westview High School, Fan hopes to continue her biology track at Stanford University. Along with the ＄ 25, 000 cash prize she won on October 29, becoming America’ s Top Young Scientist may help get the private university’ s attention.
1. How did Kara Fan feel about her winning the prize?| A．Confident. | B．Regretful. | C．Proud. | D．Unexpected. |
| A．To fight overuse of antibiotics. | B．To enter a national contest. |
| C．To reduce deaths from injuries. | D．To get into a good university. |
| A．Copper nitrate. | B．Copper. | C．Silver. | D．Nano silver. |
| A．Addictive. | B．Valuable. | C．Useless. | D．Irreplaceable. |
【推荐3】Do you like running enough to make it a habit? Tierney Wolfgram does; she has made running a lifelong career and isn’t stopping.
In February, the 16-year-old from Woodbury High School, Minnesota, US, competed at the 2020 US Olympic Trials.
She finished the marathon (42.195 km) with a time of 2:42:47 as the youngest competitor in the race and ranked 76th out of 390 runners.
However, the cross-country (越野的) season was postponed to winter because of the coronavirus pandemic. So she jumped at the opportunity to train for another race — the Parkway Marathon in California.
In November, Wolfgram, who turned 17, broke the Women’s American Junior marathon record with her time of 2:31:49. The old record was 2:34:32, which had stood since 1984.
“I’m absolutely stunned,” said Wolfgram’s assistant coach, EmKay Sullivan. “I knew she was going to break it, but she really showed out!”
During the run, Wolfgram once hit a wall pretty hard, but she overcame it to finish. “I guess I can say I gave it my all,” she told Runner’s World.
“I When I finished all was thinking was I was super happy,” Wolfgram said.
This was only her third marathon. In 2018, when Wolfgram was 15 years old, she ran her first marathon just because she wanted to see if she was capable of doing it. “I believed that I would get faster as the distances got longer… and I’m still gad that I did it.”
When preparing for that first marathon, she ran up to 120 miles (about 190 kilometers) per week.
Although her parents didn’t have any background in running, they helped Wolfgram train. At first, her dad would take her out in the morning and run about l3 miles. The distance would gradually increase each day. On top of her runs in the morning, she would do cross-country practice after school.
After the Parkway Marathon, Wolfgram shifted to recovery mode. She and her team now prepare for the indoor track and cross-country race this winter.
As for the marathon, Wolfgram will consider attending the Olympics Games in 2024 after it’s scheduled.
1. Why does Wolfgram choose running as a career?| A．She enjoys it so much. |
| B．She can earn a lot of money. |
| C．She wants to compete in Olympics. |
| D．She doesn’t want to be stopped by others. |
| A．Only adults cold compete in the cross country season. |
| B．She was not fully prepared for the cross-country season. |
| C．The cross-country season was put off because of COVID-19. |
| D．The two competitions were held on the same day. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Surprised. | C．Worried. | D．Interested. |
| A．Her coach’s support. | B．Her parents’ encouragement. |
| C．Her hope to break the national record. | D．Her desire to prove to herself she could do it. |
| A．Strong-willed. | B．Outgoing. |
| C．Humorous. | D．Modest. |
【推荐1】Li Jing, 29, currently serves as the director assistant to the village secretary of Maotianping Village Committee in Cuijiaba, a town in Hubei province. Li is a native of this village and was one of the first from her community to achieve higher education. She studied hotel management and tourism. After graduation, she started a career in the hotel industry in Wuhan. However, she made a decision last year to return to her village. She wants to be an essential part of her hometown’s development, realizing her own personal value.
When Li returned to her hometown, she received unconditional support from her family, despite some villagers’ questioning her decision. She resolved to prove herself through determination and action.
Her job involves extensive communication with the villagers, with over half of her workload about promoting potato production, the main business of the village. Li and the villagers regularly hold meetings in the village square, where they share insights on potato planting techniques, sales channels, market trends, and more. These gatherings provide her with opportunities to equip the villagers with planting tools and offer a window for them to voice their concerns and experiences.
In her spare time, Li remains closely connected with the villagers through regular conversations. She admits that it demands a considerable investment of time and energy, but it’s all worthwhile.
Li has very fond memories of an incident from last year when one villager had a poor potato crop. Although her potatoes were unimpressive in terms of size and quality, she held faith in Li and worked tirelessly and enthusiastically. Li never forgets the smiles on the villagers’ faces at harvest time, which is the ultimate reward for her.
In the near future, Li hopes to continue helping her fellow villagers raise their potato production and increase their income. Her long-term vision is to promote urban-rural integration (整合).
1. Why did Li Jing desire to start a career in her hometown?| A．She received higher education. | B．What she has learned could help her. |
| C．She intended to live her dream. | D．She failed to start her own business in Wuhan. |
| A．Passionate and hardworking. | B．Strong-willed and competent. |
| C．Warm-hearted and easy-going. | D．Selfless and thoughtful. |
| A．To show Li Jing’s inability in potato planting. |
| B．To prove Li Jing’s success in gaining villagers trust. |
| C．To put emphasis on the hardship of potato planting. |
| D．To give evidence of Li Jing’s efforts. |
| A．No Pain, No Gain | B．East or West, Home Is Best |
| C．Graduates, Welcome Home | D．From the Village, for the Village |
【推荐2】Mr. Lee was in bed and was trying to go to sleep when he heard the bell ring. He turned on the light and looked at his clock. It was half past twelve o'clock. “Who can it be at this time of night?" He thought. He decided to go and find out. So he got of bed, put on his dressing gown (浴袍) and went to the door. When he opened the door, there was nobody there. "That is very strange." Then he went back to his bedroom, took off his dressing gown, got back into bed, turned off the light and tried to go to sleep. A few minutes later he heard the bell again. Mr.Lee jumped out of bed very quickly and rushed to the door. He opened it, but again he found no one there. He closed the door and tried not to feel angry. Then he saw a piece of paper on the floor. He picked it up. There were some words on it: "It is now after midnight (午夜), so it is April Fool's Day (愚人节). April fool to you!" "Oh, it was the English boy next door!" Mr. Lee exclaimed (惊 叫)and almost smiled. He went back to bed and fell asleep at once. The bell did not ring again.
1. Mr Li was trying to go to sleep when he heard________.| A．the telephone ring | B．the bell ring |
| C．someone knock at the door | D．someone shout |
| A．He wanted to open for the visitor. | B．He wanted to find out who the visitor was. |
| C．He was afraid of the ring. | D．He was waiting for someone. |
| A．a boy | B．a piece of paper | C．someone | D．nobody |
| A．had something important to tell Mr Li |
| B．wanted to give Mr Li a piece of paper |
| C．wanted to make fun of Mr Li |
| D．wanted to borrow Mr Li |
【推荐3】As Eileen Smith walked to the podium to deliver a speech recently, her heart pounded. She was addressing players, coaches and parents at her son’s lacrosse team banquet and felt emotional.
Ms. Smith tried taking deep breaths to calm herself. It didn’t work. So she began singing, in her head: “Gonna fly now. Flying high now. Gonna fly, FLY…”
“I played my ‘Rocky’ song in my head to build my confidence,” says Ms. Smith, 52 years old, a diplomat-turned-speaking-coach.
Ms. Smith has been singing the song for decades at times when she needs an extra boost of courage or energy. The science supports her habit. Listening to a beloved song can help us manage our emotions and focus on the task at hand. It can also help us access what psychologists call our autobiographical memory, or personal history.
“It reminds us who we are and helps us stay focused on who we want to be,” says Daniel Levitin, a cognitive neuroscientist, who studies how music affects the brain.
Music can inspire us and spur creativity. If its beat is faster than our heartbeat, it can fire us up and make a difficult task feel easier, says Dr. Levitin, who was a session musician, sound engineer and record producer before becoming a scientist, working with artists such as Stevie Wonder and Blue Öyster Cult. A more sedate tempo can help slow our heart and respiration rate down.
When we listen to music we love, we experience pleasure in the form of a dopamine release in our brain. And over time, our brain learns to recognize music we enjoy faster and releases the dopamine earlier, says Susan Rogers, a cognitive neuroscientist who studies music and the brain and who, in a previous career as a music engineer, worked with Prince. We get that feel-good rush just anticipating a favorite song.
One of the most powerful things music can do is to give our brain a rest. Listening to music we enjoy is one of the easiest and most reliable ways to activate our “default mode network,” or daydreaming mode— what the brain does when it’s not working or concentrating, says Dr. Levitin. This restorative state is essential to our well-being.
It’s hard to move into it when we’re overworked or over stressed. Music — especially a go-to song — can help.
1. What does the underlined word “ addressing” mean in paragraph 1?| A．warning | B．playing | C．speaking | D．mending |
| A．What his maths teacher once told him. |
| B．The experience she has got from hard work. |
| C．The inspiration she got in an instant |
| D．The song-’Rocky’ that she often sings. |
| A．Favorable. | B．Tolerant. | C．Doubtful. | D．Unclear. |
| A．A melody tune can often make us sad when we work. |
| B．A beloved tune can pump us up and get us through tough tasks |
| C．A beautiful song can make us not know who we are. |
| D．A often heard song can make us feel either happy or sorrow. |
