I could not have been better prepared for the talk, my first conference presentation as a PhD student. I had learned my speech by heart, and I had practiced the answers to potential audience questions. The day before the talk,alone in my room, I felt confident. But as soon as the moderator invited me on stage, I felt like I was walking the plank. I was overwhelmed by a fear I had experienced too many times before — the fear of getting stuck because of my stutter (口吃).
Looking for a strategy to deal with my stutter, I realized I could speak smoothly when I recited text I had learned by heart. But this wasn’t a realistic approach for the entirety of my university training. I needed another tool. I tried speech therapy(治疗), but the exercises I learned there didn’t make much of a difference. To stop my stutter from affecting my new career, I would need a more drastic intervention.
After much hesitation, I decided to finally try psychoanalysis (心理疗法) to confront my deep feelings of shame related to my stutter. With the help of my therapist, I slowly realized the real problem was not the stutter itself; it was my fear of stuttering. I decided to get rid of that fear. It took me about a year to spit out during one of the weekly sessions that I love myself as I am. Stutter or not, I was going to pursue my desired career in science.
My first chance to test my newfound confidence by speaking in public arrived at a departmental meeting at the institute where I was a research assistant. I presented my data to 25 or30 people — and received compliments for my speech for the very first time. I returned home excited, relieved, and, most of all, proud.
Now, I no longer shun public speaking; instead, I actively seek opportunities to be on the stage. It is rewarding and inspiring, and I feel excited to have a good story to share. And if I happen to stutter along the way, so be it.
1. What can be learned about the author?| A．He had a poor memory. |
| B．He was often misunderstood. |
| C．He was ashamed to try any therapy. |
| D．He focused much on whether he could speak smoothly. |
| A．Speech therapy. | B．Mental treatment. |
| C．Making new friends. | D．Talking more with others. |
| A．Instructive. | B．Successful. |
| C．Awkward. | D．Ridiculous. |
| A．If you think you can, you can. |
| B．The shortest answer is doing. |
| C．All things come to those who wait. |
| D．You’re unique,and nothing can replace you. |
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【推荐1】Including a healthy diet and exercise in one’s busy schedule isn’t that easy. Yet Martina Laird, 31, managed to do so.
I’ve always loved power walking. I was in theatre in Stratford a few years ago and used to walk along a disused railway line. The sights are beautiful and it was so relaxing a type of walking meditation (沉思) with headphones on. I find gyms terrible and boring. I can’t see the point in getting a personal trainer. I don’t like the idea of having someone beside me while I exercise.
I don’t own a car, which means I walk everywhere. It really keeps me fit. I’d love to get a mountain bike. Bristol, where we film, has so many hills that cycling back from work each day would be an amazing exercise on its own.
I love fine food, but I don’t eat red meat or dairy products (奶制品). Cutting out bread has also made an amazing difference to my health. I have so much more energy. I always stick to healthy food and make my own juices for breakfast. When it’s freezing cold, I make my soups and take them to work. But I’m not perfect. I have my days of reaching for the biscuits. I also like to eat candies in the evening. They have left a bad influence on my teeth. I really want to stop and I’m giving it a try.
I’m really happy with my health and I’m about 75% happy with myself. But like any woman, I still a little admire that other 25%. As a woman in this profession, you can’t help comparing yourself to your workmates. There’s some pressure to be thin on TV, but I’m a role model and I don’t want to put out the message to young viewers that being underweight is healthy. You can only make the most of what you’ve got.
1. What exercise does Martina dream of?| A．Power walking. | B．Riding bicycles. |
| C．Training in the gym. | D．Climbing mountains. |
| A．Red meat. | B．Dairy products. | C．Candies. | D．Juices. |
| A．She is an athlete. | B．She is an actress. |
| C．She is a personal trainer. | D．She is a fashion designer. |
| A．An advertisement. | B．A health instruction. |
| C．A self-introduction. | D．An interview report. |
【推荐2】In 1959, Handler changed how toy dolls were made when she introduced “Barbie” to the world. With her mature figure, Barbie was one of the first “grown-up” dolls to hit the retail market.
Handler wanted to create a toy that was different from the baby dolls that occupied little girls’ toy boxes. She wanted a doll that girls could show their future dreams upon and allowed for limitless outfit (全套服装) and career choices. Inspired by paper dolls of the time, Handler, to much disagreement, made sure Barbie had the body of a grown woman.
“My own idea of Barbie,” Handler wrote in her autobiography, “was that through the doll, the little girl could be anything she wanted to be. Barbie always represented the fact that a woman had choices.”
There’s even a Barbie for cancer patients — Brave Barbie — a partnership between Mattel and CureSearch that sends a bald (光头的) Barbie to families affected by cancer. “Gifting my daughter a Barbie who suffered from cancer was wonderful,” Michelle, a cancer survivor said, “We would play with that Barbie together and I’d heartbreakingly watch her pretend to take the doll to the hospital for chemo (化疗), or place its long wig (假发) on top of its head and tell the doll that it’s time to be beautiful again.”
Bald Barbie was super brave and went on awesome adventures after chemo. Sometimes she felt sick and needed to sleep, but would feel much better after a rest. Bald Barbie always beat the cancer and went on to live a long and happy life with her family. That Barbie became so much more than a plastic doll — she was a means of communication and a coping mechanism (应对机制) during an extremely unhappy time for little families.
1. Why did Handler create Barbie?| A．To make a hit in the women’s retail market. |
| B．To appeal to boys with her various clothing. |
| C．To inspire girls to make choices as they wish. |
| D．To do a research on women’s career choices. |
| A．Interested yet proud. | B．Sad yet comforted. |
| C．Delighted and ashamed. | D．Heartbroken and regretful. |
| A．A reliable emotional support. | B．A glue for broken relationships. |
| C．An effective practical treatment. | D．A secret medium of argument. |
| A．Medicine. | B．Sports. | C．Story. | D．Environment. |
【推荐3】When Tal Golesworthy was told he needed a lifesaving heart operation in 1993, he said no. Golesworthy has Marfan syndrome, a genetic condition affecting body tissues.
Back in 1993, his doctor told him that his aorta (主动脉) was so enlarged that it would unavoidably break unless he underwent a major surgery. “The operation really didn’t look attractive,” says Golesworthy. What he particularly didn’t like was having to take a medicine after the operation that would prevent blood clots (血栓) but presented its own risks. “I was riding motorbikes then, and skiing, so my whole lifestyle would have been affected.”
By 2000, however, his condition had worsened. Realizing something had to be done, Golesworthy put his years of experience as a research-and-development engineer with the United Kingdom’s National Coal Board to good use. He decided he would fix himself. “Learning new stuff and developing new ideas, that was my job,” Golesworthy says.
So Golesworthy spent 30 hours in an MRI scanner, used 3D printing to create a copy of his heart aorta, and wrapped it with a special material. Strong determination together with an original yet practical solution won him the support of two leading surgeons who helped him raise the money to develop his idea.
In May 2004, at the age of 47, he became the guinea pig for his own invention. The operation was a success. It has since been used by surgeons in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the Netherlands. “When you’re as motivated as I was,” Golesworthy said, “you make things happen.”
1. Why did Golesworthy refuse to take the major operation?| A．Because the heart surgery was too risky. |
| B．Because his way of life would be influenced. |
| C．Because his aorta would break during the surgery. |
| D．Because he assumed that it would not save his life. |
| A．resolution and new ideas | B．motivation and magical power |
| C．curiosity and mental problems | D．optimism and practical lifestyle |
| A．An expert in medicine. | B．An animal with talents. |
| C．A subject for experiment. | D．A patient with a serious disease. |
| A．An engineer became a surgeon. | B．A patient invented an operation. |
| C．A patient never gave in to death. | D．An engineer helped fix his own heart. |
【推荐1】Famous American performer Chita Rivera died on January 30 in New York. She was 91 years old. The famed dancer, singer and actor won many awards and honors in her long career on Broadway and beyond.
Rivera first gained wide notice in 1957 as Anita in the original production of the musical play West Side Story. She was still dancing on New York’s Broadway stages a half century later in 2015’s The Visit.
“I wouldn’t know what to do if I wasn’t moving or telling a story to you or singing a song,” she said at the time. “That’s the spirit of my life, and I’m really so lucky to be able to do what I love, even at this time in my life.”
Rivera was born on January 23, 1933, in Washington, D.C. Her father was a musician. He died when Rivera was seven. Her mother was of Scottish and Italian ancestry (血统).
Rivera studied dance as a young girl and was accepted into a highly respected school for ballet. She was 17 when she won her first part in a musical.
She won two Tonys, the highest award for live theater in the United States. Her first came in1984 with the production of The Rink. She won again in 1993 for the play Kiss of the Spider Woman.
The second Tony was an especially sweet victory for the star. Just five years earlier, Rivera had been in a serious car accident that broke her right leg. It could have ended her career. After months of physical treatment to regain her dancing skills, she returned to the stage singing and dancing as energetically as ever. She said, “It never entered my mind that I wouldn’t dance again.”
When accepting a Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2018, Rivera said, “I wouldn’t trade my life in the theater for anything, because theater is life.”
1. Why does the author mention the two plays West Side Story and The Visit?| A．To show respect for late Rivera. | B．To stress Rivera’s long art career. |
| C．To indicate why Rivera won honors. | D．To introduce the plays Rivera performed. |
| A．Art is everything to her. | B．She was sorry for her old age. |
| C．Art lifts her spirits when she’s in trouble. | D．She received good training in art. |
| A．Her leg. | B．The musical. | C．The accident. | D．Her award. |
| A．Independent and thoughtful. | B．Caring and curious. |
| C．Determined and talented. | D．Proud and confident. |
【推荐2】I had a good job. No, a great job in a marketing division of a Fortune 500 company. Besides developing much of the sale and marketing literature for the company, I organized luxury travel trips for top salespeople to Hawaii and Spain on the largest tour ships in the world. However, after working for this first-class company for fourteen years, I got to think about what it would be like to design a job around what I enjoyed most and spend more time with my wife and sons.
My wife was a stay-at-home mom, so I would sacrifice (牺牲) our only income and insurance for nothing more than a pipe dream. Yet, after conducting extensive research, reading books on how to launch a business as a copywriter, the goal slowly developed.
At thirty-seven, I had an opportunity to chase a dream—to run a home-based business and spend more time with my family. While spending more time with my family, I launched my copywriting business in June 1991, 32 years ago.
Looking back, leaving the Fortune 500 company is one of the best decisions I’ve made. And, while working with clients, sharpening my writing skills on multiple subjects, and winning twelve writing awards, I had the honor to add these achievements to the resume of my life. I watched my sons grow up, played hundreds of unscheduled backyard baseball games and learned it’s more fun to play football in the rain.
How would I have benefited if I had never taken a break from my corporate career? Life provides windows of’ opportunity, but they close quickly. For me, to remain in that first-class company during this “window” came at a price too high. I wasn’t willing to exchange more of my family life for my professional life.
1. What can we know about the author?| A．He showed great love for his family. | B．His company was going out of business. |
| C．His salary was very low in his company. | D．He couldn’t adapt to the working environment. |
| A．To become a house husband. | B．To be a distinguished scholar. |
| C．To engage in fiction writing. | D．To establish his own company. |
| A．His decision to resign showed great will. | B．His leaving the job offered a high return. |
| C．His dream of being a rich man came true. | D．His exchange for family life was valueless. |
| A．Any Dream Is Worth Pursuing | B．Family Needs Our Company |
| C．Every Decision Has a Price | D．Writing Makes One Content |
It was warm and sunny when the accident happened, but temperatures dropped to very low when night fell, and it rained. “I wasn't afraid，” said Mrs Riotton. “But I was worried that my children and grandchildren would become too worried about me.” Mrs Riotton said she covered herself in leaves when feeling cold, taking very small bites of two biscuits which she had in her pocket and drinking rainwater which fell down her face.
She spent six nights before she was found on Saturday. She was lying at the bottom of the valley, which was less than a mile from her home. The search had once been stopped, but Patrice Fossard, one of her neighbors, insisted that the search continue. “There was no way we could give up her, even if deep inside we felt we had little hope of finding her alive，” said Mr Fossard. “It was a miracle that Michelle was finally found.”
Mrs Riotton said she would be taking life easier from now on. “Enough is enough！” she said. “No more forests — don't want to visit one again.”
A mountain policeman said walking alone in the mountain was not recommended and that Mrs Riotton should have carried a mobile phone with her. “The mountains are particularly dangerous at this time of year as sunny afternoons can quickly change into cold, wet and stormy evenings.” he said. “Anybody walking into the mountains should carry safety equipment and be prepared for any kind of emergency.”
1. When Michelle Riotton was in the valley, she ________.
| A．was hurt too badly to move |
| B．missed her home very much |
| C．didn't feel afraid |
| D．felt very hungry |
| A．keep warm during her suffering |
| B．prevent the harmful animals |
| C．make herself noticed by others |
| D．avoid getting wet in the rain |
| A．Sunday | B．Saturday |
| C．Wednesday | D．Monday |
| A．the mountains in the morning are very dangerous |
| B．one had better not walk in the mountains alone |
| C．people should carry safety equipment every day |
| D．people wouldn't be safe without a mobile phone |
