【推荐1】The candles we make at Wax Buffalo are imperfect-"beautifully imperfect''，as we like to say. one is unique, hand-poured (手工灌注的)with pure soy wax (大豆蜡). It's a small business 1 started, and everyone who enjoy, working here comes into the studio in free time, so they can be home with their family, cats, dogs at prime times.

I first fell in love with candles on visits to my grandmother Feme's house in Lincoln. At night, candlelight flashed off the book-lined walls. During the day, she'd take me to a cafe in the historic Haymarket district and we'd drink tea out of china cups.

I poured my first candle at the age of 14, using the candle-making tool that Feme had given me. I gave the finished product to my grandmother for Christmas. She loved that candle I'd made for her. That first candle was imperfect. Beautifully imperfect・

Then in 2014. life took a dark turn for my grandmother. The breast cancer took away her life. I found myself thinking about the candle-making tool she had given me as a 14-year-old kid and the joy it had brought me. I began pouring candles again, making them for friends. Because of kids' health. I'd become especially interested in natural products. I used locally sourced soy wax. Was there a way I could make candles for people beyond my group of friends? And so, Christmas of that year, Wax Buffalo was launched. Little by little, the business grew as we found more people who wanted our candles. Now our candles are sold in more than 60 shops across the country.

Isn't life wonderful? Indeed, it is beautifully imperfect. But it hasn't turned out at all how I'd have predicted. I think that's what Ferne wanted me to understand. To trust the light of hope, to enjoy fun in its light, to know that it can transform a person from within.

1. What may be one of the advantages of working in Wax Buffalo?

A．Relaxing task.	B．High payment
C．Flexible time	D．Imperfect conditions.

2. When did the author probably start her business

A．After she turned 14.

B．After her grandmother died.

C．After she visited Ferne's house.

D．After her grandmother sent her candle making tool.

3. Why did the author use soy wax?

A．To make harmless candles	B．To make candles look better.
C．To save the cost of production.	D．To improve the figures of candles

4. What can be inferred from the text?

A．Imperfection exists everywhere.	B．Life takes off from a dark turn.
C．Life can be predicted somehow	D．Being hopeful about life is important.

【推荐2】A Singaporean woman will return to normal life today after spending three days in a glass box. 26-­year-­old Cheyenne Lu has been living in full view of the public on a busy shopping street in an effort to quit smoking (戒烟)．

Lu, who has been smoking for the last 12 years, knows how difficult it is to quit. Her previous (以前的) efforts all failed because she didn't tell her family and friends that she was trying to give up. So this time she has made her decision very public. The experiment was organized by the Health Promotion Board (HPB) as part of an effort to encourage young Singaporean women not to smoke. There has been a large increase in the number of women smokers in recent years.

Lu has been eating and sleeping in a glass room for the last three days, with an Internet connection and a collection of DVDs to help her pass the time. Besides, she has been having yoga (瑜伽) classes with a fitness trainer. Lu, who is a writer, has been keeping an online blog of her experiences in the glass house.

Lu says she has received a lot of encouragement from people passing by. However, some people have tried to make it more difficult by stopping in front of her window and smoking. One stranger even offered to give her $500 to smoke with him. “Surprisingly, it made me want to stop smoking even more,” said Lu.

Although Lu has tried not to smoke for three days, she knows this is only the beginning of her smoke­free journey. But she has something to look forward to. She is a supporter of Arsenal Football Club, and she plans to use all the money she saves by not smoking to travel to London. She wants to see her hero Cesc Fabregas in real life.

1. Why is Lu living in a glass box?

A．She needed more public support.

B．She failed to quit smoking in private.

C．She wants to make money from HPB.

D．She hopes to ask other women to join her.

2. How did Lu kill time when she stayed in the glass room?

A．She recorded her experiences online.

B．She slept for most of the time.

C．She talked with passersby.

D．She taught yoga classes.

3. What was Lu's attitude towards people's smoking in front of her?

A．It made her angry.

B．It worried her a lot.

C．It attracted her attention.

D．It strengthened her will.

【推荐3】To be more grateful in life means that you are also allowing yourself to be happier, more contented and more satisfied with everything that has been going on around you. But with all the stress, all the disappointments and all the anxiety around you, I bet you ask yourself this question all the time: “How exactly can I be more grateful with my life?”     1    .

1. Learn to live in the moment.

Life is a wonderful adventure full of enriching experiences and endless possibilities. Don’t just go through the motions of repetitive (重复的) activities and boring tasks. No! Being a mindless zombie can make you more likely to take things for granted.     2    , make an effort to enjoy the experience. You’re supposed to attend a conference? Accept it. Babysit your niece? Enjoy the moment. Eat a 15-minute lunch? Taste each bite.

2.     3    

Being aware of your goal to be more grateful can help you look for things to be really more grateful for. Gratitude is a conscious decision. You have to practice it all the time.

3. Control your thoughts.

Of course you have the power to control what you’re thinking of ! Consider this exercise, for example if you find yourself thinking more and more self-entitled, stop.     4    . You are given consciousness. Make use of it wisely.

4. Always resist the temptation of comparing yourself with other people.

As humans, we have the natural tendency to compare ourselves with others with the hope of getting satisfaction. Actually, this kind of activity does not help you feel more grateful in life.    5    ! You will always be meeting someone richer, which makes you feel lower than others!

Don’t do it, please.

Every little think counts. You have the ability to make yourself feel more grateful in your life.

A．It does the opposite

B．Express gratitude all the time

C．Appreciate what you have right now

D．And if you find yourself repeating negative junk, stop

E．Instead of doing something just for the sake of doing it

F．Well, the following are some tips to help you with this particular concern

G．Words that stress you and make you feel worthless should definitely be removed

【推荐1】Integrity is the quality of being honest and strong about what you believe to be right. The concept of integrity has played a key role in moral philosophy throughout history and is promoted in all societies because of its importance to social relations. Individual integrity is vital to society, one that enables people to make use of their capacity for critical reflection, does not force people to take up particular roles and does not encourage individuals to betray (背叛) each other. Besides, societies can be favorable to the development of individual integrity.

Individual integrity can lift up the spirits of the entire society. It can shape the lives of people living in a particular society, the lives of all fellow people and, in its broadest sense, even the destiny (命运) of a nation. By contrast, if those living in the society are corrupt, it could have bad effects, jeopardizing the healthy morality of the society.

On the other hand, a society can be favorable to the development of individual integrity. Society expects and requires integrity. A society consisting of people of integrity, and people who never compromise on their principles, could have a positive mark on the personal development on its members. Being a part of such a morally lively community could serve as a basis for absorbing traits of good character. This could be of a distinct advantage to any individuals in the society.

Nonetheless, some social structures are of the wrong sort for some individuals to pursue integrity. If that is the case, we have to ask questions about the moral nature of society first before raising questions about individual integrity. Questions about integrity may turn out to be about what kind of society it is, rather than about the relationship between individual interests and characteristics of a society. The pursuit of adequate individual integrity often depends, not so much on understanding who one is and what one believes and is committed to, but rather understanding what one’s society is and imagining what it could be.

Under no circumstances can we underestimate the importance of human integrity in a society. People, who are honest, trustworthy, compassionate and caring, are the factors decisive in the growth of individuals as well as the development of a society.

1. Individual integrity has been valued in society because______.

A．it helps develop philosophy	B．it is crucial to social relations
C．it is the basis of critical thinking	D．it ensures people’s particular roles

2. The underlined word “jeopardizing” in Paragraph 2 probably means “______”.

A．dominating

B．deciding

C．dividing

D．destroying

3. What does the author believe according to the passage?

A．Individual integrity relies on what one has faith in.

B．The pursuit of individual integrity changes with time.

C．The nature of society is decided by economic development.

D．Social structures guide the formation of individual integrity.

4. Which of the following shows the development of ideas in the passage?
CP: Central Point   P: Point   Sp: Sub-point   C: Conclusion

A．	B．
C．	D．

【推荐2】We often say that intelligence means being able to solve problems. Some animals seem able to do this. For example, dogs and cats often find their way home from long distances. To do this they have to use their intelligence. They have to remember and think. But many birds find their way over long distances, too. They travel thousands of miles every year when they move from cold to warm countries. We do not know how they do this but we know that they do not use their intelligence. They do not remember places and directions and then make decisions. Young birds are able to make these journeys without help as soon as they can fly. They are born with this ability. This is not intelligence. We call this "instinct".

Often we cannot be sure whether an animal is acting intelligently or insrinctively. When a dog hears a strange noise, it barks. This is instinct. It cannot stop itself from doing this. It does not really know why it is doing this. But supposing a noise is on fire and the dog barks outside its master's bedroom until he wakes up. Is the dog using its intelligence? Is it solving the problem by waking its master or is it simply barking instinctively because it is afraid? Often we cannot be sure.

Many animals, however, can be taught to solve problems, especially when they are given rewards. Rats have been taught to touch a key to get food Animals in circuses （马戏团）have been taught to do all sorts of tricks to amuse the audience. In all these cases we may say that an animal is using intelligence. It is saying, "If I do this, I will get a reward. Therefore. I will do it.'' This may be thought of as a                           low kind of intelligence.

1. To find their way home from long distances, cats and dogs have to________.

A．use their instinct

B．use their intelligence

C．travel thousands of miles

D．get enough food

2. Birds don't have intelligence because________.

A．they cannot find their way home

B．they don't remember places and directions and then make decisions

C．young birds are able to fly

D．they cannot hear cold weather

3. We say a dog is not using its intelligence when barking at a strange noise because________.

A．it cannot control itself

B．it knows how to bark when it has grown up

C．we are not sure of it

D．it stops people from getting into a house

4. Animals in circuses do all sorts of tricks to amuse an audience because________.

A．they know how to speak

B．they like to do so

C．they know they will he rewarded

D．they are afraid of human beings

5. Which of the following is NOT TRUE?

A．We are not sure whether birds use their instinct when they fly long distances.

B．Even young birds can travel long distances.

C．Animals know how to solve a problem if you teach them.

D．A rat is showing a low kind of intelligence when it touches a key to get food.

【推荐3】Suppose you have everything: a good job, good health, good relationships and a lot of money. But still there is something missing from your life. Guess what? The love. It is not something that you should ignore. Life without love is just like a body without soul.

Love gives meaning to life as without love life is meaningless. Lucky is the person who gets love and keeps the flames of love burning forever. It is not a matter of days or months. Love is for life and life is for love__

It is easy to fall in love but difficult to keep the flames of love burning. Before having serious long - term love relationships, be sure that the person you love is also sincere with you. A selfish person can make your life terrible. If this is the case with you then try to get rid of that person as soon as possible.

Most people do not give importance to their love life as they give importance to their professional life. This is a bad choice which ruins the whole life. A balance between the two is necessary in order to enjoy life in its entirety. Do not lose the love you need.

In order to make your life more exciting and enjoyable, you need a loving and caring person with whom you can share your values, dreams, joys and jokes. In difficult times of failure, pain, or loss of dear ones, this person should stand firm beside you and comfort you in every possible manner.

Love your life and love the person who is in your life. Keep the flames of love burning to live a great life.

1. What's the meaning of the underlined sentence in the second paragraph?

A．Love is only for life

B．Life is designed only for love

C．Life is not separated from love

D．When you have a good life, you can own a real love

2. If you want to keep the flames of love burning, you should _______.

A．try to get rid of your bad manners as soon as possible

B．make sure that the person you love is also sincere

C．try to find out whether the person you love really loves you

D．make sure that you treat the person sincerely

3. According to the passage, the writer wants to tell us _______.

A．to value everything one has	B．to be sincere with the people around
C．to live a life full of love	D．to avoid being a selfish person

4. Which of the following do you think is the most difficult?

A．To fall in love with a person

B．To find a real person loving you.

C．To make the flames of love burning forever

D．To keep good relations with friends.