【推荐1】Because my stories keep my heart pounding at night with the possibility of it all, when I can’t get words on paper, I want to scream. All my energy pools at the bottom of my heart, where it continues to yell at me all day long, “Write! Write! Write!” I have to quiet the voice like a hidden pet, shushing (发嘘声) it over and over until I get the chance to leave, laptop in hand, stories pouring out of my mind.

What poor, unfortunate lives we artists live! We’re tortured by our words, whether they’re circling around in our minds at 3 a.m. or written on paper, looking sad and regretful that we’ve put them there. Our words laugh at us before and after they leave our bodies. I messaged a writing mentor (导师) when I found myself running in circles. With only a small window of time to myself each afternoon, I found it hard to write. If only I had more time, I could finish my book. If only people would leave me alone. I could become an accomplished writer. It was everyone else’s fault.

Small -- my mentor told me to start small but keep going. “Do what you can, when you can. Let that be enough during the busy seasons.” In her eyes, she was once me. She was once crazy with tasks that kept her hands pushing, pulling, grabbing and moving endlessly. She recognized herself in the way I talked with starry eyes about my dreamy writing goals and plans. Essays, articles and short stories flowered in my rich mind.

In a few wise words, she gave me the freedom to write in small periods of time she called “the cracks of the day”. She argued that I should run after publishing with the same desire as ever. But in her patient voice, I heard a gentle reminder of stopping running so hard and instead slowing to a sustainable pace.

So I write. I submit. I live, and I dream.

1. What can we infer about the author from the first paragraph?

A．She is forced to write constantly.

B．She has a strong desire to write.

C．She has serious heart problems.

D．She is unable to focus on reading.

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

A．Examined.

B．Inspired.

C．Troubled.

D．Impressed.

3. What problem did the author have in writing?

A．Almost no one likes her writing.

B．She couldn’t make a living by writing stories.

C．She has no one to rely on.

D．She suffered from a serious lack of time.

4. Which of the following can sum up the writing mentor’s suggestion to the author?

A．Constant drops wear away a stone.	B．All roads lead to Rome.
C．Strike while the iron is hot.	D．No pains, no gains.

【推荐2】It’s not possible to stay together with loved ones all the time. Sometimes family members have to be far away from each other.     1     Although we know what they are suffering, being far away makes it harder to help and comfort loved ones.     2     Keeping a positive attitude of support is more helpful than getting into worrying about the person. I think it is what I can do to help my loved ones.

My daughter has been working full-time during summer about 10 hours a day. She has to study hard for a big entrance exam. At first, like most people, I wanted to try to solve the problems and analyses the situation. Was there a better way of time management? Was there a better way of studying for this test?

    3     Sometimes, it even gave more pressure to her. Sometimes it might sound like there was something wrong to fix. However, it was just tiring at the end of the day. What would be the kind thing to do in this situation?     4     I decided to just chat with her online and to send a hug emoji (表情) this time. It seemed more suitable than talking about solutions. Giving space can also be an act of help, comfort and kindness. It was a fun and meaningful experiment to actively think about kind things to do rather than let it happen naturally.     5     Give it a try too and you’ll enjoy sweetness.

A．It was hard to read someone’s mind.

B．However, that was not always helpful.

C．There is no use worrying a lot about them.

D．Being peaceful and giving more time can be useful.

E．During that time they might face something terrible.

F．Focusing on the task at hand can make a person stronger.

G．I’ve realized it and I’m grateful for this chance to share online.

【推荐3】I’m an ocean lover. Living in Montreal, far away from the ocean, makes it even more a dreamland for me.     1     And I’ve been doing it for the last 20 years.

When I was younger, I would pick up seashells and little stones and bring them back home.     2     But as I visited the ocean more and more, I started picking up the garbage left by some polluting people. I picked up less and less “ocean treasure”.     3    

I realized that a stone or seashell we find in the ocean has a wonderful color that makes us pick it up. But when it dries up one day, or we don’t find what we have kept lovely anymore, what can we do then?     4     At the same time, I also realized that natural things are nice in their natural environment. If everybody picked up every shell from the ocean, and left garbage out there, the beach would become something not so nice very shortly.

    5     I would just “borrow” seashells or little stones from the ocean, and bring them back after a while, since the beauty of shells does so much good to me.

I control the quantity and keep it to the smallest number. So if you’ve seen a lady picking up garbage and throwing shells back into the ocean from a box or a bag on a beautiful sunny day, don’t feel strange. It was probably me.

A．So I made a decision that day.

B．I began to question my habits.

C．I try to visit it at the very least, once a year.

D．I will regret why I picked it up in the first place.

E．I had lots of them on my shelves, floors, desks, etc.

F．The ocean influences life in California in many ways.

G．Ocean lovers from all walks of life should come together to protect it.

【推荐1】There is a huge need for shark fins (鳍) in Asian countries. As a result, many sharks are caught and killed. According to reports, sharks are being killed at an shocking rate (速度) of up to 273 million worldwide every year.

Some experts predict that if the killing continues at the current rate, many shark species will be lost forever. It can be very dangerous. Sharks are very important and they should be protected.

In a study of the east coast of the United States, 11 species of sharks were eliminated from their range. Of the 14 species of ocean life that those sharks used to eat, the populations of 12 exploded and caused great damage to the ecosystem. For example, the cownose ray (鳐) population was no longer kept under control by sharks and so grew out of control. As a result, the rays destroyed the population of bay scallops (扇贝), their favorite food. The scallop fishery, which had been in good condition for over 100 years, was destroyed completely. Also, the removal of the scallops most likely had an effect on water quality as they were no longer there to perform their function (功能) of cleaning the water.

Sharks tend to eat very efficiently (高效地), going after the old, sick, or slower fish in a population, keeping that population healthy. Sharks help keep many populations of ocean life to the right size so that those prey (猎物) species don’ t do harm to the ecosystem by becoming too populated. The ocean ecosystem is made up of very complex (复杂地) food webs. For the most part, sharks are at the top of these webs and are considered by scientists to be “keystone” species, meaning that removing them may cause the whole structure to fall apart. Therefore, we should protect sharks because doing so is to protect the whole ecosystem.

1. According to the passage, in Asian, people kill sharks mainly because ________.

A．sharks are dangerous for people	B．there are too many sharks
C．shark fins are in great need	D．sharks often attack swimmers

2. Which of the following can replace the underlined word “eliminated” in Paragraph 4?

A．Fed.

B．Removed.

C．Charged.

D．Protected.

3. After the number of cownose rays greatly increased, ________.

A．water quality improved as well	B．bay scallops grew out of control
C．there are more food for shark	D．the local scallop fishery was harmed

4. What can we know about sharks from Paragraph 4?

A．They can’t find enough food to feed on.

B．They never eat the old, sick or slower fish.

C．Their large populations can harm the ecosystem.

D．They play a key role in keeping the ecosystem healthy.

【推荐2】A British friend told me he couldn't understand why Chinese people love eating sunflower seeds (葵花子) as a snack so much. “I’ve met a lot of older Chinese and many have a crack in their front teeth; I believe that's from cracking the seeds,” he said.

I had never noticed the habit, but once he mentioned it, I suddenly became more aware. I realized that whenever I’m watching TV or typing a report, I always start mindlessly cracking sunflower seeds. My friend doesn't like sunflower seeds, and, to him, it seems unnecessary to work so hard just to get one small seed.

When we were young, the whole family would usually get together for Chinese New Year. Then, we all lived close to one another, usually in a small city, and sometimes even neighbors would go doortodoor on Chinese New Year’s Eve to check out what every household was making.

I remember my parents would be in the kitchen cooking. In the living room, a large table would already be laid out, complete with a fancy tablecloth, readymade dumpling fillings, and dishes full of candy, fruits and sunflower seeds.

Some of the dishes were to be offered to our ancestors later, while others were for neighbors and children to eat before the evening feast. I must have learned how to crack sunflower seeds back then.

I don’t think it’s right to criticize one’s choice in food or eating habits, no matter how strange they may seem.

It’s not only in China. When I went abroad, I found people had all sorts of strange habits when it came to food. In Denmark, they put salted red fish on bread and eat it for dinner, no matter how much it ruins their breath. They think it’s a delicacy, and it’s connected with their culture. I think it’s a wonderful tradition.

1. What lesson can we learn from the passage?

A．One kind of food doesn’t necessarily suit everyone.

B．Eating habits come from a certain culture.

C．It is good to form healthy eating habits.

D．Changing your eating habits will change your life.

2. What did the writer become aware of?

A．She had ever typed a report about seeds.

B．She ate various snacks while watching TV.

C．She has a habit of cracking sunflower seeds.

D．She damaged her teeth by eating sunflower seeds.

3. What does the writer prove by mentioning Chinese New Year?

A．The traditions of celebrating it disappear.

B．Children can eat delicious food on that day.

C．The families would get together for it.

D．Eating sunflower seeds is related to it.

4. The writer’s attitude to Denmark’s way of eating bread is ________．

A．acceptable	B．critical
C．neutral	D．doubtful

【推荐3】I’m not so sure I like my friends any more. I used to like them — to be honest. We’d have lunch, talk on the phone or exchange e-mails, and they all seemed normal enough. But then came Facebook and I was introduced to a sad fact: many of my friends have dark sides that they had kept from me.

Today my friends show off the more unpleasant aspects of their personalities via Facebook. No longer hidden, they’re thrown in my face like TV commercials — unavoidable and endless advertisements for the worst of their personalities.

Take Fred. If you were to have lunch with him, you’d find him warm, and down-to-earth. Read his Facebook and you realize he’s an unbearable, food-obsessed bore. He’d pause to have a cup of coffee on his way to save a drowning man — and then write about it.

Take Andy. You won’t find a smarter CEO anywhere, but now he’s a CEO without a company to lull. So he plays Mafia Wars on Facebook. He’s doing well — level 731. Thanks to Facebook, I know he’s playing about 18 hours a day. Andy, you’ve run four companies — and this is how you spend your downtime(业余时间)? What happened to golf? What happened to getting another job?

Take Liz. She is positive that the H1N1 vaccine(甲流疫苗) will kill us all and that we should avoid it. And then comes Chris who likes to post at least 20 times a day on every website he can find, so I get to read his thoughts twice, once on Facebook and once on Twitter.

In real life, I don’t see these sides of people. Face to face, my friends show me their best. They’re nice, smart people. But face to Facebook, my friends are like a blind date which goes horribly wrong.

I’m left with a dilemma. Who is my real friend? Is it the Liz I have lunch with or the anti-vaccine lunatic(狂人)on Facebook? Is it the Fred I can grab a sandwich with or the Fred who weeps if he’s at a party and the wine isn’t up to his standards?

1. What’s Andy probably busy in doing now?

A．He’s running his company.

B．He’s playing golf all day.

C．He’s looking for another job.

D．He’s playing computer games.

2. Who is opposed to the H1N1 vaccine in the text?

A．Fred.	B．Andy.
C．Liz.	D．Chris.

3. According to the text, Facebook tends to ______.

A．present another side of people

B．offer some food for free

C．show endless advertisements

D．get you to more parties

4. The text is developed mainly by ______.

A．giving examples	B．following the time order
C．listing figures	D．raising questions