【推荐1】When we were very small, we realized that having friends was important. Some of us even had imaginary (想象中的) friends. The need for friends continued as we grew into our teens. Friends played a big part in forming our personalities (性格). As adults, it is still important for us to have friends.

True friends are people who like us though we make mistakes and who listen to us and tell us the truth. Friends support our decisions and tell us when we’re foolish. They laugh with us and share our sadness. They are our partners and share interests with us. They stimulate us when we are feeling down. They are people we aren’t afraid of telling our secret wishes to or what is really on our minds.

Friends are our supporters. When you can depend on friends, you feel safe and warm. Friends offer acceptance and emotional (情感的) support. At times, they also help with our everyday lives, cooking a meal, doing chores, or giving us a lift when we need one. Friends also are there to offer advice, an ear to listen, or a shoulder to cry on.

Friends also help us reduce stress. Not only do they listen to us when we feel stressed, but they also discuss what is stressing us. Sharing interests and doing activities with friends help us forget about problems at work or at home. For a short time, we can lose ourselves in a pleasant activity and perhaps laugh and breathe more easily.

1. What does the underlined word “stimulate” in paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Educate.	B．Encourage.
C．Surprise.	D．Dislike.

2. What can we learn from the third paragraph?

A．Friends always laugh at us when we’re foolish.

B．Friends always tell us other people’s secrets.

C．Friends always share our sadness and interests.

D．Friends always support us when we need help.

3. What can we infer from the passage?

A．People should make friends anytime.

B．Friends are people who allow you to cry.

C．A friend helps you in many ways.

D．Good friends are always difficult to meet.

4. What is the best title for the passage?

A．How to Reduce Stress

B．How to Make New Friends

C．The Importance of Friends

D．The Qualities of Good Friends

【推荐2】Victor’s hobby was collecting stamps. He had stamps from many countries, like England, Canada and China. On his birthday, can you guess what people gave him? That’s right—stamps.

Victor’s favorite stamps came from France. He had almost every stamp from 1954 to 2004. He only needed one. That was a 1974 special edition*. It was very hard to find.

He looked for it everywhere. He asked his friends and relatives to help him. But nobody could find the stamp. It made Victor very sad.

“Don’t worry. Never give up,” his father said to him. “If you have enough patience, you’ll find it one day.”

“I hope so,” Victor said.

Victor also liked writing. He had a pen friend in France. They wrote to each other every month. Victor’s pen friend, Phillip, usually used new stamps to send letters. Sometimes, his mother gave him stamps to use. Once Phillip’s mother gave him a big, green stamp. It looked old. When Victor received the letter, he was very surprised. On the envelope, he looked carefully at the stamp. It was the 1974 special edition stamp. Victor was so happy. He told his sister, his mother and his father.

“You see,” his father said. “You did find your stamp. So, it’s good to have two things in life. ”

“What are they?” Victor asked.

“Friends and patience.” He answered.

1. It was very difficult for Victor to find a special French stamp of _________.

A．1954	B．1974
C．1994	D．2004

2. Who owned the special edition stamp at the very beginning?

A．Phillip.	B．Phillip’s mother.
C．Victor.	D．Victor’s father.

3. The passage mainly tells us that ________ is（are）important to people.

A．a happy family	B．a good hobby
C．relatives and friendship	D．friends and patience

【推荐3】Signs of Healthy Friendships

Once in a while it’s helpful to see if your friendship is as healthy as it can be. You might get used to a friendship over time to the point where you don’t see the room for improvement. And since great friendships are priceless, you should always surround yourself with the kind of people who will lift your spirits, make you laugh, and remind(提醒) you that you are loved.     1     Here are characteristics that strong friendships share.

    2    

Friends make you feel comfortable with yourself, so you don’t need to act like someone you’re not. Your friends know your shortcomings and love you anyway. You are perhaps the “best version” of yourself when you’re with your friends.

A healthy friendship includes plenty of gentle honesty. True friends won’t pretend(假装) just to avoid an argument.     3    . As a result, you’ll know where you stand with your friends and won’t be afraid to share your true opinions.

They argue in a healthy way.

One of the biggest misunderstandings about good friends is that they never fight. But let’s face it: everyone fights.       4    In fact, voicing your opinions freely will cause you to disagree from time to time and that’s okay.

Healthy friendships mean you can be friends with someone else, too.

    5    That’s why great friends will improve your relationship yet still encourage you to meet people and try new things without them. A healthy friendship means that sometimes the two of you spend time apart, and that’s okay.

A．Even if you have the best friend, it doesn’t hurt to expand your social circle.

B．In a positive friendship, your friends won’t lie to you, and they won’t hurt your feelings either.

C．With an unhealthy friendship, you know clearly that something is “off”.

D．Arguing isn’t unhealthy.

E．Good friends lose touch with each other from time to time.

F．Good friends are real and honest with each other.

G．Is your friendship as healthy as it can be?

【推荐1】Almost every night for more than 10 years, Kirk Alexander, 48, ordered a late dinner from his local restaurant Domino’s Pizza. But for the past two weeks, he hasn’t called for even once.

“A few of my staff mentioned that we hadn’t seen his order in a while. Then I found that it had been 12 days since he last ordered, which is not like him,” Domino’s general manager Sarah Fuller said, feeling she could no longer ignore Kirk’s recent absence.

Sarah has known Kirk since 2009, when she started working at the Domino’s Pizza as a deliver driver and often made the short trip to Kirk’s home about six minutes away. She knew Kirk worked from home, and neighbors said he seldom left. She also knew that he had some health problems in the past. Something, Sarah worried, was wrong.

Around 1 a.m. on May 8, Sarah sent delivery driver Sean Hamblen to visit Kirk’s home. Sean arrived at Kirk’s home and knocked on the front door several times. There was no answer. He later noticed that the lights and the TV in the home were on. When he called Kirk’s phone, it went straight to voice mail.

Sean drove back to the restaurant to tell Sarah and they decided to call 911. Soon, officers arrived at Kirk’s home. So did Sarah and Sean. They heard a man calling for help from inside. Officers broke down the door and found Kirk on the floor in need of medical attention at once after suffering from a heart attack. One day later, they might have been too late.

So is keeping an eye on regular customers part of Domino’s business plan? Not really. “Kirk is part of our family here and we feel like we need to do something.” Sarah said.

1. Why did Sarah send a delivery driver to visit Kirk?

A．Because her staff asked her to do so.

B．Because she was worried about Kirk.

C．Because she wanted Kirk to order meals.

D．Because she knew Kirk had a heart attack.

2. What happened to Sean when he first arrived at Kirk’s house?

A．He called 911 at once.	B．He heard Kirk calling for help.
C．He didn’t get any reply from Kirk.	D．He tried to break into Kirk’s house.

3. How can we best describe Sarah?

A．Clever and polite.	B．Brave and patient.
C．Hard-working and careful.	D．Warm-hearted and helpful.

4. What’s the best title for the text?

A．A man who ordered pizza for years

B．Domino’s Pizza served as a life savior

C．Regular customers of Domino’s Pizza

D．Helping others means helping ourselves

【推荐2】My dad was in the Air Force. When I was a kid, we moved every few years. That meant a lot of good-byes. It also meant getting used to a whole new community and a whole new school each time we moved. I can still feel what it was like to have to walk into the new school---that sinking feeling in my belly, that heaviness in my throat. It would always take time for me to learn how everything worked, what was cool and what not. It was always a struggle to find where I could fit in.

Already shy, I didn’t have much self-confidence in my friend-making abilities. I was the girl walking in the halls with her head down, panicking. When I spoke, you could hardly hear my soft voice. I was nervous and doubted myself a lot.

It was very hard not having a history with everyone else. I was an outsider. But what I did have was soccer. Wherever I went, I knew that I could fit it with the soccer ball. The soccer team meant a familiar place and immediate friends for me. I could express myself and feel good about myself on the field. Playing hard helped to get rid of all my nervousness.

Throughout our lives, our self-respect goes down when we feel like a failure, and it goes up when we feel successful. Doing something well, being praised, and feeling loved goes a long way. We all need to explore opportunities where we can be good at something and feel good about ourselves. Physical activity and sport participation is a terrific way to build up our sense of self-confidence and self-worth.

1. How did the author feel about moving to a new school?

A．Delighted	B．Stressed
C．Thrilled	D．Uninterested

2. How did soccer help the author fit in?

A．It made her physically strong

B．It improved her school performance

C．It helped build her self-confidence

D．It enabled her to know herself better

3. According to the author, one’s self-confidence grows when one ___________.

A．gets challenged

B．has a history with others

C．participates in sports

D．feels appreciated

【推荐3】It took me a moment to realize what had happened. Three days had passed and Rita seemed to get weaker and weaker. The rain had stopped. However, the sky was still cloudy, and it was so dark that I couldn’t see the buildings even across the road. I took a pressure reading from the weather station: 947mb, which let me know exactly where I was—in the eye of the storm.

There were rains and winds still, but not oppressive (难以忍受的) anymore. There was still no power, hot water or food. Besides, I didn’t sleep well for all these days, but I felt more relaxed since the weather report said Rita was leaving. What’s more, I was luckier than those people who had lost their homes or even worse, lost their lives because of Rita.

As I travelled further to the west, going after the storm, the damage along the way became less severe. I arrived in Houston after a tricky journey with my fuel supplies almost all gone. However, I came across another storm chaser (追逐者) who had 45 gallons of petrol. He helped me and we shared our working experience these days. With a complete stroke of luck I found a run-down hotel that allowed me to have a room overnight before the midnight. Although there was no running water, no power and no air conditioning, I curled up into a corner and fell asleep quickly.

I woke up the next morning, and what a change! The sky was blue and cars were moving around. Sirens could be heard as convoys (护航队) of emergency managements started to head west towards where I had come from. “The storm had stopped and I could go home. I gave all my remaining supplies to other people at the hotel and headed towards the airport. Houston Airport was not damaged, so I took my flight and drank my first hot drink in four days.”

All in all, when I came back home, I was proud that I finally made it again to follow and record the storm and I really learned a lot these days. Although it’s dangerous, I love my job as not many people would go into the eye of an intense storm.

1. What does “Rita” in the passage refer to?

A．A pet.

B．A storm.

C．A friend.

D．A citizen in Houston.

2. What can we infer from the passage?

A．The author was a storm chaser.

B．The storm lasted for at least a week.

C．The author didn’t like Houston at all.

D．Houston was very badly damaged by the storm.

3. How is the passage mainly developed?

A．By analyzing causes.	B．By making comparisons.
C．By following time order.	D．By listing examples.

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A．Ways to survive in a storm.

B．The weather changes in Houston.

C．The author’s experience in the storm.

D．Damages caused by the storm in Houston.

【推荐1】So many of us hold on to little resentments (怨恨) that may have come from an argument, a misunderstanding, or some other painful event. Stubbornly, we wait for someone else to reach out to us—believing this is the only way we can forgive or rekindle a friendship or family relationship.

An acquaintance of mine, whose health isn’t very good, recently told me that she hadn’t spoken to her son in almost three years. She said that she and her son had had a disagreement about his wife and that she wouldn’t speak to him again unless he called first. When I suggested that she be the one to reach out, she resisted initially and said, “I can’t do that. He’s the one who should apologize.” She was literally willing to die before reaching out to her only son. After a little gentle encouragement, however, she did decide to be the first one to reach out. To her amazement, her son was grateful for her willingness to call and offered an apology of his own. As is usually the case when someone takes the chance and reaches out, everyone wins.

Whenever we hold on to our anger, we turn “small stuff” into really “big stuff” in our minds. We start to believe that our positions are more important than our happiness. They are not. If you want to be a more peaceful person, you must understand that being right is almost never more important than allowing yourself to be happy. The way to be happy is to let go, and reach out. Let other people be right. This doesn’t mean that you’re wrong. Everything will be fine. You’ll experience the peace of letting go, as well as the joy of letting others be right.

You’ll also notice that, as you reach out and let others be “right,” they will become less defensive and more loving toward you. They might even reach back. But if for some reason they don’t, that’s okay too. You’ll have the inner satisfaction of knowing that you have done your part to create a more loving world, and certainly you’ll be more peaceful yourself.

1. The underlined word “rekindle” in Paragraph 1 probably means “________”.

A．develop	B．recover
C．accept	D．replace

2. According to the passage, the author’s friend never spoke to her son for three years because ________.

A．she had got an argument with her husband

B．she had disagreed about her son’s marriage

C．she had got an argument about her daughter-in-law

D．she had disliked her son’s wife for many years

3. Which of the following is NOT the reason for people to be unwilling to apologize first?

A．People believe that they are right.

B．People always wait for others to offer an apology first.

C．People consider the position more important than happiness.

D．People want to get an inner satisfaction.

4. The purpose of the passage is to ________.

A．instruct the readers how to apologize

B．teach the readers how to gain inner peace

C．tell the readers to reach out first when there are painful events

D．inform the readers the importance of being forgiving

【推荐2】Monthly Talks at London Canal Museum

Our monthly talks start at 19:30 on the first Thursday of each month except August. Admission is at normal charges and you don’t need to book. They end around 21:00.

November 7th

The Canal Pioneers, by Chris Lewis. James Brindley is recognized as one of the leading early canal engineers. He was also a major player in training others in the art of canal planning and building. Chris Lewis will explain how Brindley made such a positive contribution to the education of that group of early “civil engineers”.

December 5th

Ice for the Metropolis, by Malcolm Tucker. Well before the arrival of freezers, there was a demand for ice for food preservation and catering, Malcolm will explain the history of importing natural ice and the technology of building ice wells, and how London’s ice trade grew.

February 6th

An Update on the Cotsword Canals, by Liz Payne. The Stroudwater Canal is moving towards reopening. The Thames and Severn Canal will take a little longer. We will have a report on the present state of play.

March 6th

Eyots and Aits-Thames Islands, by Miranda Vickers. The Thames had many islands. Miranda has undertaken a review of all of them. She will tell us about those of greatest interest.

Online bookings:www.canalmuseum.org.uk/book

More into:www.canalmuseum.org.uk/whatson

London Canal Museum

12-13 New Wharf Road, London NI 9RT

www.canalmuseum.org.uk   www.canalmuseum.mobi

Tel:020 77130836

1. When is the talk on James Brindley?

A．February 6th.	B．December 5th.
C．November 7th.	D．March 6th.

2. What is the topic of the talk in February?

A．The Canal Pioneers.	B．An Update on the Cotsword Canals
C．Eyots and Aits-Thames Islands	D．Ice for the Metropolis

3. Who will give the talk on the islands in the Thames.

A．Miranda Vickers	B．Malcolm Tucker
C．Chris Lewis	D．Liz Payne

【推荐3】The 2019 World Conference on VR Industry shows that Virtual Reality （VR） technology can be used to revolutionize people's experiences in practically any field．

Held in Nanchang from Oct． 19 to 22， the annual conference attracted more than 300 experts， leading scholars and company principals from over 30 countries． The theme of this year's World Conference on VR Industry was "VR+5G tor a new age of insight．" Conferences and exhibitions， which hosted more than 2，000 companies from across the world， were held during the event．

As China introduces 5G this year， experts and industry insiders said that the VR industry will hug the new era． "We will take the lead in VR technology creativity． For example， the technology has already been applied successfully to this year's National Day parade． The popularity of the technology among younger generations of users guarantees a large potential market， said Guo Ping， representative of Huawei．

In 2018， Oral Roberts University in the USA opened a new Global Learning Center， which has classrooms equipped with 360-degree cameras on the wail， which follows and records professors as they teach． Through an app on the smart phone， students can see images in 3D and manipulate （操纵）them．

In May 2019， a VR theme park opened to the public in London． Covering about 13，000 square meters with 120 sets of advanced VR equipment， the park attracts thousands of visitors every day．

During the 22nd Asian Music Festival， the musical Eight made its second appearance． Eight is a unique fusion of music， theater， VR technology and visual art， in which audience members wear VR headsets to walk through and manipulate an equipment． The show tells a poetic story of an old woman looking back on her life and it lasts for 15 minutes．

1. What does this year's World Conference suggest？ ______

A．VR technology can be used only with 5G．

B．VR technology can change people's lives．

C．China's 5G technology will take the lead．

D．More VR theme parks will be opened to public．

2. Why is Guo Ping confident about VR technology？ ______

A．Because it attracts experts to cooperate．

B．Because it has a large overseas market．

C．Because young customers have interest in it．

D．Because it has changed how to teach and learn．

3. What does the underlined word " fusion'' in the last paragraph refer to？ ______

A．research	B．process
C．combination	D．type

4. Which is the best title of the passage？ ______

A．China Is Leading the Way in the World

B．VR Technology Development in China

C．5G Technology： China Moves Ahead Quickly

D．The Bright Future of VR in Diverse Fields

【推荐1】Celebrity (名人) has become one of the most important representatives of popular culture. Fans used to be crazy about a specific film, but now the public tends to base its consumption (消费) on the interest of celebrity related to any given product. Besides, fashion magazines have almost abandoned the practice of putting models on the cover because they don’t sell nearly as well as famous faces. As a result, celebrities have realized their unbelievably powerful market potential (潜力), moving from advertising for others’ products to developing their own.

Celebrity clothing lines aren’t a completely new phenomenon (现象), but in the past they were typically aimed at the ordinary consumers, and limited to a few TV actresses. Today they’re started by first-class stars whose products enjoy equal fame with some world top brands. The most successful start-ups have been those by celebrities with specific personal style. As celebrities become more and more experienced at the market, they expand their production scale (规模) rapidly, covering almost all the products of daily life.

However, for every success story, there’s a related warning tale of a celebrity who overvalued his consumer attraction. No matter how famous the product’s origin is, if it fails to impress consumers with its own qualities it begins to look like an exercise in self-promotional marketing. And once the attention dies down, consumer interest might decrease, loyalty returning to tried-and-true labels.

Today, celebrities face even more serious embarrassment. The pop-cultural circle might be bigger than ever but its rate of turnover has speeded up as well. Each misstep threatens to reduce a celebrity’s shelf life, and the same newspaper or magazine that once brought him fame (名声) has no problem picking him to pieces when the opportunity appears. Still, the ego’s (自我的) potential for expansion is limitless. Having already achieved great wealth and public recognition, many celebrities see fashion as the next frontier to be conquered. As the saying goes, success and failure always go hand in hand. Their success as designers might last only a short time, but fashion-like celebrity-has always been temporary.

1. Fashion magazines today ____________.

A．totally refuse to put models on the cover

B．rarely put models on the cover

C．need not worry about celebrities’ market potential

D．judge the market potential of every celebrity correctly

2. A change in the consumer market can be found today that _____________.

A．price rather than brand name is more concerned

B．producers prefer models to celebrities for advertisements

C．producers prefer TV actresses to film stars for advertisements

D．quality rather than the outside of products is more concerned

3. The underlined sentence in Paragraph 4 indicates that any wrong step will possibly__________.

A．shorten the artistic career of a celebrity in show business

B．damage the image of a celebrity in the eyes of the general public

C．decrease the popularity of a celebrity and the sales of his products

D．influence the price of a celebrity’s products

4. The passage is mainly about ___________.

A．celebrity and personal style	B．celebrity and market potential
C．celebrity and fashion design	D．celebrity and clothing industry

【推荐2】Grandparents are respected in many human societies. But telling stories about old times and overfeeding grandchildren seem like human qualities. Are these classic grandparent behaviors really limited to humans？

Do any animals know their grandparents the way people do?

For most species on Earth，the answer is certainly “No”. "Usually，there aren't grandparents around anymore when an animal is born，"said Mirkka Lahdenpera，a biologist at the University of Turku in Finland. "Even if an animal's life span does overlap（重叠）with its grandparents'，most species spread out to avoid competing for resources，so the chance of running into a grandparent is slim. "

But there are a few clear exceptions，primarily among mammals（哺乳动物）that live in close social groups. In troops of langur monkeys in India，older females lived together with their daughters and grandchildren. The grandmother langurs defend the group's babies against attacks and even give their own grandchildren special treatment.

Many whale species，too，travel in family groups that include both grandmothers and grandchildren.

Elephant herds are also famously matriarchal. They are led by a grandmother，who can live to around 80 years old，and are generally made up of her daughters and their young. The females in a herd form close bonds and work together to raise their young.

Lahdenper found that the babies of young mothers were eight times more likely to survive if their grandmothers lived near them than if they didn't. When the young mothers were older and more experienced at raising babies，this beneficial grandmother effect disappeared even if the actual grandmothers were still around.

Indeed，most evidence for the benefits of grand parenting comes from mammals. But in 2010，researchers found that in troops of insects called gall-forming aphids，older females defend their relatives after they've stopped reproducing（繁殖）.

And what about grandfathers？Studies of humans in recent decades have shown that a living grandfather can improve a person's mental health and other indicators of well-being. But there's no evidence of that in the animal kingdom. Male animals rarely socialize with their own children，let alone any grandchildren.

1. From what Mirkka Lahdenpera said, we can learn that___________.

A．an animal is not very likely to meet a grandparent

B．an animal is taken away from its grandparents at birth

C．animals' grandparents move away to avoid responsibility

D．animals' grandparents often fail in competition for resources

2. The underlined sentence in Paragraph 5 indicates that._________.

A．elephants have a high level of intelligence

B．elephants enjoy an equal and fair social system

C．elephants are the largest land animals with a long life

D．elephants live in social groups with females in charge

3. What can be inferred from the passage?

A．Insects still able to reproduce will defend their relatives.

B．Animals' beneficial grandmother effect will exist forever.

C．Animals can be mentally healthier with their grandfathers.

D．Male animals seldom spend time with their grandchildren.

4. Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?

A．Do any animals know their grandparents?

B．Do any animals respect their grandparents?

C．How do animals live with their grandparents?

D．How do animals socialize with their grandparents?

【推荐3】Shelton Murray has been playing the didgeridoo(迪吉里杜管乐器) since he was five years old. Now 22, the musician will be travelling to the United States with the Australian Chamber Orchestra for the first time.

Mr. Murray comes from an Aboriginal (土著的) community and said his love of the didgeridoo had grown out of his culture. He was taught by his father Lazarus Murray from a young age, but said he was also inspired by his grandfather Peter Apaak Jupurrula Miller. ''My father learnt from David Blanasi. Then he taught me what he learnt from David,'' he said.

As the youngest member of a Tiwi Islander band called B2M (Bathurst to Melville) in the Northern Territory, Mr. Murray played the didgeridoo for the opening act of the Tina Arena Darwin concert in 2014. Now his didgeridoo skills have caught the attention of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, where he was invited to perform in the show The Reef Revisited, which will be touring the US next week.

''It's exciting for me to be travelling over to America, '' he said. Mr. Murray said there were challenges for young Aboriginal artists to break into the industry but said it is all about having the right attitude.

Richard Tognetti, artistic director of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, said the team was excited to have Mr. Murray join the 25 - person orchestra. ''He's bringing a really traditional approach. We respect the sound that he brings into the orchestra. We're used to the sound of a didgeridoo but playing it in LA, New York and Richmond Virginia will be interesting for the audience,'' he said.

Another member of the orchestra, Aboriginal musician Steve Pigram, said he was proud of Mr. Murray's achievement at such a young age. ''He's coming through that thing of performing in a reggae (popular music in the West Indies) rock band, same as what I did. But he's got to this kind of level a little quicker. Well it's taken me 40 years, '' he said.

1. How did Murray learn to play the didgeridoo?

A．He taught himself.	B．He learned from his grandfather.
C．He drew inspiration from David.	D．He followed his father' s instructions.

2. What do we know about B2M?

A．It's a popular local band.	B．Its members are all very young.
C．Its tour around the US will come soon.	D．It's a band in the Australian Chamber Orchestra.

3. What did Richard Tognetti think of Murray?

A．He needed to get along with the orchestra members.

B．He would play a valuable part in the orchestra.

C．He would face lots of challenges in the US.

D．He needed to learn traditional approaches.

4. What do Steve Pigram and Murray have in common?

A．They became famous at a young age.	B．They have played in a rock band.
C．They came from the same city.	D．They are of the same age.