【推荐1】Florence, a 17-year-old senior student in High School, was busy ,composing(编曲)a song. She plans to release an album(唱片)with three other music lovers whom she met at the 2016 Campus Singing Competition. Edward, 18, is another one of the four students to make their own album. Actually, he was the one who came up with this fun idea in the first place.

"Everyone loves music. Being a good way to express our feelings and emotions, music can tell something about who we are and our experience of the world. We hope we can use our music to touch our peers(同龄人)." Edward said.

The album includes 15 songs across three themes - love, campus life, and youth, with pop and electronic music styles. The inspiration for the songs came from the students' lives. Take the song Sea of Tranquility for example - it was written by Edward during a flight back to Chengdu after he took part in the China High School Biology Olympiad in summer. "The sky is clear and the ground looks small from the plane. This scene makes me feel calm and peaceful." Edward explained.

The songs were created one by one with the efforts of the four writers. But a challenge soon appeared. The students found that they didn't have enough money to produce the album. So to cut down their budget, they used an iPad and headphones to record the songs in an empty classroom on the weekend.

Apart from reducing their cost, they also tried to raise money through crowd funding on the internet. They raised more than 7,000 dollars before the album was released in October. "Thanks to all the supporters, we'll keep working on our own music." Edward said.

1. Why did they make the album?

A．To earn money.	B．To be famous.
C．To influence young people.	D．To make friends.

2. Which of the following best describes Edward and his music team?

A．Upset.	B．Stubborn.
C．Generous.	D．Determined.

3. What was the problem when they produced the album?

A．Short of money.	B．Disagreement on the theme.
C．Stress from teachers.	D．Poor abilities on making music.

4. What's the best title of the text?

A．Album Collections	B．Student Musicians
C．Theme Music	D．School Life

【推荐2】Lucio Arreola is 50 years old, the father of three daughters and a bank manager in Puerto Rico. He is going to have a surprising Father’s Day this year. He finds just about every day surprising now. Arreola has a new heart, or at least, new to him. On April 20, doctors transplanted (移植) the heart of a dead 25-year-old man into him. Although he may never know the man’s identity, he and his family will always be grateful to him.

Arreola was told he had a heart muscle disease 15 years ago that weakened his breathing and circulation, so he went on a lot of medications. His wife and daughters worried about his health, while he worried about their happiness.

Lucio Arreola has been recovering from his heart transplant surgery at Houston Methodist over the past two months. “One day up, one day down,” he said. “Some days dark, some light. But what happens is that when the sun is out, you really feel it. Every breath is sweet. You see the trees and people. You hear your daughters laugh, and it’s like birds singing. You tell yourself, ‘There is no time in life for anything but love.’”

Liz Laguaite, a hospital music therapist, told Arreola and his family, “Why don’t you try to write a song together about what you’ve been through and what you’ve learned?” They decided to try. Lucio Arreola worried that illness might make his daughters see him as a delicate man. But instead of frailty, they mostly saw his courage to go on. And he said their love was like his own powerful heart muscle that gave him faith, hope and courage.

“My weak heart,” he said, “helped make them strong.”

Lucio Arreola said he had learned that human hearts were delicate. But a family’s love was enduring. The Arreolas recorded the song they created while Lucio recovered. The song begins with the strong beat of a father’s loving heart.

1. Why does Arreola find every day surprising?

A．He has a new heart now.	B．He gets promoted at work.
C．He loses his 25-year-old son.	D．He has a new and lovable family.

2. What does Arreola realize at sunrise?

A．Life is full of ups and downs.	B．His daughters have a gift for music.
C．Love is the only thing for life.	D．Light can drive away darkness.

3. What does the underlined word “frailty” in paragraph 4 mean’?

A．Failure.

B．Weakness.

C．Caution.

D．Hesitation.

4. What did Arreola’s daughters see from their dad?

A．The courage to live on.	B．The suffering of a patient.
C．The importance of exercise.	D．The concern of a kind heart.

【推荐1】How do you kill your time when you go to work? Most of us stare at our cell phones, and refuse to make eye contact with others. We just read, chat with others online 05; play: games online. Or maybe we're using the time between stops to do our makeup, catch up on email, on read a few chapters of a book. However, Dina Alfasi takes a very different approach.

Each day she has to travel hours on buses and trains to get to her engineering job ata hospital in Israel. Rather than look at her cell phone in silence, she uses one very special way to have connection: with strangers. It is portraits of the people she meets on public transport every day that she is taking. The photographs catch those quiet and personal moments of people readying themselves for the day ahead. Some people lean (倚靠) their head against the window and go to sleep, some stare into space and have a daydream, and others sit quietly to read their documents or books. Each picture catches one tiny moment in people's lives, ripe with potential for your imagination. It is wonderful for her to look at someone's commute (上下班) and make up an entire story about the rest of their daily existence, from the father travelling with a baby to the woman Welcoming a change.

“What inspires me very much are the little moments that happen every day,” Dina told My Modern Met. “My work is to tell stories through a single portrait, and it proves that all you need is just to look around and find those magic moments.”

1. What will most people do when going to work?

A．Enjoy reading a book loudly.	B．Make eye contact with others.
C．Have face-to-face talks with others.	D．Concentrate on their mobile phones.

2. What makes Dina different from others?

A．Staring into the space and having a daydream.

B．Leaning against the window and relaxing herself.

C．Using her mobile phone to appreciate pictures she draws.

D．Drawing people while travelling on buses and trains to work.

3. Which word can best describe Dina Alfasi?

A．Cool.	B．Careful.
C．Generous.	D．sympathetic.

4. What is the main idea of the text?

A．Little moments make Dina special.

B．Cell phone is used to take special portraits.

C．Dina takes portraits of others when commuting.

D．People go to work with different ways to kill time.

【推荐3】Stan Lee was born in 1922. When he was just 17, he got a job at a company that made comic books. Although the salary was beyond his imagination, Mr Lee got tired of it. Most superheroes were strong and smart and always knew the right thing to do. Mr Lee wanted to have a chance to create new superheroes that had weaknesses. Mr Lee didn’t create the heroes by himself. He worked with artists to come up with the ideas. Some people thought the comic books would not sell well and that the readers would be unhappy to see superheroes lead a normal life.

Mr Lee was able to create characters that were different from anything that had been seen in comic books before. Spider-Man was never sure he was doing the right thing, but he always seemed to have something funny to say to the bad guys. Mr Lee made it okay for comic book heroes to be like common people. He also had the clever idea of having his comic book heroes appear in each other’s stories. For example, Spider-Man might show up in a Fantastic Four story. This made readers feel shocked. He also brought them into the real world. Batman and Superman lived in made-up cities. But Mr Lee decided that Peter Parker (who turns into Spider-Man) should live in New York City.

In 1980. Mr Lee moved to California to promote his movies. He wanted to try and get his superheroes onto TV and into the movies. He didn’t have too much luck at first, although The Incredible Hulk became popular TV shows. But after the success of The X-Men and Spider-Man movies in the early 2000s, movies with Marvel heroes began to be favored by millions of fans. Marvel movies have now earned over $ 24 billion. Mr Lee is no longer with us, but the heroes he created live on.

1. Why did Stan Lee get tired of his job at a company?

A．The pay was poor in the job.

B．The characters in their comics were too perfect.

C．The readers didn’t support his books.

D．The artists didn’t cooperate with him.

2. What surprised Stan Lee’s readers?

A．The common life the superheroes lead.

B．The environment the superheroes live in.

C．The connection between different superheroes.

D．The different kinds of super powers of superheroes.

3. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A．Stan Lee moved to California to direct the films.

B．Spider-Man is favored by few Marvel fans.

C．The Incredible Hulk was not popular at first.

D．The Marvel movies generated huge profits.

4. Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A．Stan Lee: The Marvel Superhero Creator

B．Stan Lee: The Best-Selling Author

C．Why Do People Love the Superheroes?

D．Why Are Marvel Movies Popular?

【推荐1】Artificial intelligence (Al) is practically everywhere today. There are so many products out there which use Al. Some are being developed, some are already in use, and some failed and are being improved, so it’s very difficult to name a few of them and regard them as the best.

Vi

It is an Al personal trainer which is mainly concerned with fitness and coaching. It, however, requires the use of bio-sensing earphones and other fitness tracking equipment! It can play your favourite music while you work out and all you have to worry about is the exercise you're doing.

Deep Text

Do you ever wonder how an ad appears suddenly just when you are looking for something similar? This is because of Deep Text. It uses real-time consumer information to produce data which in turn is used to target consumers. Thus, if you search online for flight tickets from Bangalore to Delhi, it is very likely that an ad relating to hotels in Delhi will soon follow.

Hello Egg

If you live alone and miss your mother because you always miss your breakfast or don’t know what to eat for dinner, then Hello Egg is exactly what you are looking for. A very healthy choice of the 2-minute noodles and oats, Hello Egg provides you with a detailed weekly meal plan about the needs of your body. It is truly a modern AI-powered home cooking tool for the young.

Wordsmith

You can put Mr. Smith into your Microsoft Excel using their free API, and let it write up detailed analysis of the stories behind your numbers. It can produce detailed reports on thousands of pages of spreadsheets in seconds.

1. What can we learn about Vi from the text?

A．It is an AI music player.

B．It is a bio-sensing earphone.

C．It doesn't work without bio-sensing earphones.

D．It can make you more energetic while you work out.

2. Which can help you improve cooking skill?

A．Deep Text.	B．Vi.
C．Wordsmith.	D．Hello Egg.

3. What can Wordsmith do for us?

A．Produce a detailed report.	B．Provide us with a detailed meal plan.
C．Book a ticket ahead of time.	D．Offer us information on hotels for traveling.

【推荐2】Camping is a good way to spend time along with your kids and to show them how wonderful nature can be. Through camping, children can discover new things about nature, such as flowers, birds, and other small animals. Camping gives kids time to get away from all the electronics of today’s culture. So it is necessary to plan exciting and enjoyable family camping trips with your children while they are young.

When planning your family camping trip, consider the activities your kids like:games, hiking, swimming, boating, bicycling, etc. Select a camping place that has some of the activities the kids are interested in. Meal planning is an important part of your camping trip. Plan the meals together, and kids love to choose what they want to eat.

When starting to pack for your trip, let the kids pack their own items. Each person should have his/her own sleeping bag with a luggage bag to put it in. Personal items should be packed with their sleeping bags. Encourage the kids to put their items in a certain place and always return it when they have finished using it.

When you have arrived at your campsite, make all the camping activities a family activity, which will help children to realize how important team work is. Everyone can have his/her own job sitting up the campsite. Meal time can be a fun time. So let the older ones help with the cooking on your outdoor camping stove while the younger ones get the picnic table ready.

1. Which of the following is the best place for a family camping?

A．A place covered with forests.

B．A place with a river and wild animals.

C．A place where kids can find various foods they like.

D．A place which provides many interesting activities .

2. What does the author advise parents to do while planning a family camping trip?

A．Encourage the children to take care of their own things.

B．Keep the children away from animals.

C．Take more food to meet the children’s need.

D．Let the children learn by watching.

3. When at the campground, it is necessary to ________.

A．allow the children to cook	B．give children enough time to play
C．make everyone have work to do	D．keep the picnic table full of food

【推荐3】A Four-Year-Old Boy Convinced Father Is a Fool After 45th Hide-and-Seek Victory

GLENDALE, PENNSYLVANIA-Expressing embarrassment and disappointment over being the son of such a loser, local four-year-old Connor Heyward was convinced that his father, Craig Heyward, was a fool after losing 45 games of hide-and-seek. “God, this is bad. I’ve hidden behind that bush a dozen times, and he still can’t find me, “ said Connor, admitting that after finding his father crouched behind a chair half his size, he had started to worry he might grow up to be a “ complete idiot” just like his dad. “At first, I thought I might be really good at this game, but after succeeding in hiding underneath a clothes basket with visible holes, I realized the kind of game was not his cake. It’d be one thing if he were only bad at seeking, but so far, his best hiding spot was behind the back door. Who hides behind a door? There’s no strategy to it whatsoever. “

Reality of Fatherhood Never Truly Dawned on Man Until He Held Newborn Son’s Hospital Bill

MISSOULA, MONTANA-Describing how he suddenly found himself overwhelmed by a flood of intense emotions, local man Mike Bentzen told reporters the reality of fatherhood didn’t truly set in for him until the moment he held his newborn son’s hospital bill. “Wow, this is going to totally change my life,” said Bentzen as tears welled up in his eyes. “Some friends tell me about their experience, but you can’t understand what it feels like until you’re looking down at it in your own hands.” Bentzen reportedly started weeping softly as he sat down with his son’s hospital bill in his lap and began imagining how he would deal with this for the next 18 years.

1. Which of the following best describes Craig Heyward as a father?

A．Foolish.

B．Childish.

C．Loving.

D．Embarrassed.

2. What made Mike Bentzen truly come to know the reality of fatherhood?

A．His plan for the future.	B．His friends’ experience.
C．His overwhelming emotions.	D．His newborn son’s hospital bill.

3. Where is this text most likely from?

A．A joke collection.	B．A loca A Four-Year-Old Boy Convinced l newspaper.
C．A speech selection.	D．A child-breeding guidebook.

4. What another story can be added to the text?

A．What to Read While Social Distancing

B．This Is What Your Dog’s Behaviors Really Mean

C．Police Chief Vows to Take Concrete Steps to Reduce Violence

D．Children’s Fondest Memories Times When Dad Trying to Make Up for Things

【推荐1】Everywhere I look outside my home I see people busy on their high-tech devices, while driving, walking, shopping, even sitting in toilets. When connected electronically, they are away from physical reality.
People have been influenced to become technology addicted. One survey reported that “addicted” was the word most commonly used by people to describe their relationship to iPad and similar devices. One study found that people had a harder time resisting the allure of social media than they did for sleep, cigarettes and alcohol.
The main goal of technology companies is to get people to spend more money and time on their products, not to actually improve our quality of life. They have successfully created a cultural disease. Consumers willingly give up their freedom, money and time to catch up on the latest information, to keep pace with their peers or to appear modern.
I see people trapped in a pathological (病态的) relationship with time-sucking technology, where they serve technology more than technology serves them. I call this technology servitude. I am referring to a loss of personal freedom and independence because of uncontrolled consumption of many kinds of devices that eat up time and money.
What is a healthy use of technology devices? That is the vital question. Who is really in charge of my life? That is what people need to ask themselves if we are to have any chance of breaking up false beliefs about their use of technology. When we can live happily without using so much technology for a day or a week, then we can regain control and personal freedom, become the master of technology and discover what there is to enjoy in life free of technology. Mae West is famous for the wisdom that “too much of a good thing is wonderful.” But it’s time to discover that it does not work for technology.
Richard Fernandez, an executive coach at Google acknowledged that “we can be swept away by our technologies.” To break the grand digital connection people must consider how life long ago could be fantastic without today’s overused technology.
1. The underlined word “allure” in Paragraph 2 probably means ______.

A．advantage	B．attraction
C．adaption	D．attempt

2. From the passage, technology companies aim to ______.

A．attract people to buy their products

B．provide the latest information

C．improve people’s quality of life

D．deal with cultural diseases

3. It can be inferred from this passage that people ______.

A．consider too much technology wonderful

B．have realized the harm of high-tech devices

C．can regain freedom without high-tech devices

D．may enjoy life better without overused technology

4. What’s the author’s attitude towards the overusing of high-tech devices?

A．Neutral.	B．Skeptical.
C．Disapproving.	D．Sympathetic.

【推荐2】When it comes to writing work emails, there are many rules to follow. In the past, people always wanted to come across as someone who’s calm and professional, which workplace manners experts say means they wanted to hold back their love for emoticons while on the job.

But language is always changing, and a recent national survey in the US found that 76 percent of Americans said that they had used emoticons in digital communication at work. The most popular emoticon is the happy face.

Lindsey Pollak, a US career coach who works with Millennials (千禧一代), has also noticed that emoticons have gone from being inappropriate for the workplace to being accepted. The reason behind this, according to her, is largely due to the changing of people in a particular age group of the workforce. Millennials are now the biggest generation in the American workforce. “A few years ago, emoticons were absolutely seen as very young and very personal,” Pollak said. “Over the past few years... I've seen emoticons become more acceptable. I see them more frequently not just from Millennials but from all generations at the workplace.”

“People tend to use emoticons to just add that little bit of extra change in the tone when there's something awkward or potentially offensive, or when they might take in things in the wrong way,” explains Lauren Collister, a sociolinguist. In life and work, many of us have used emoticons to send positive atmosphere or soften statements.

Pollak, however, warns against being too casual at work. Her advice is to be aware of who the audience is. “Frankly, I wouldn’t use a happy face with any CEO in the US. I wouldn’t use a happy face with the people of a certain level no matter how commonplace and acceptable it has become,” she said. “You can make or break a relationship with one email these days.”

1. What does the author say about past working people?

A．They avoided using emoticons at the workplace.

B．They used more serious emoticons.

C．They were not fond of emoticons.

D．They were calm and professional.

2. What can people use emoticons to do at the workplace?

A．Make it personal to communicate.

B．Keep up with the trend of the times.

C．Help them share their ideas and feelings.

D．Show a positive attitude to the receiver.

3. What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．Emoticons should be used with caution.

B．There are strict limitations on emoticon using.

C．All the US CEOs are against the use of emoticons.

D．Emoticons can greatly help bring people close.

4. What’s the writer’s attitude towards the use of emoticons at work?

A．Subjective.

B．Objective.

C．Doubtful.

D．Opposing.

【推荐3】There’s more evidence that what’s good for your heart is good for your head．A new study shows that people who run，swim or do other moderate intensity(中等强度的)exercise have brains that look，on average，10 years younger than the brains of couch potatoes．
“Our study showed that for older people，getting moderate intensity exercise may be protective，helping them keep their brains work better，”said Dr．Clinton Wright of the University．Of Miami，who led the study．But it’s not necessarily easy．Walking，golf，bowling and yoga didn’t count，and people need to start before they begin showing memory loss，Wright’s team reported in the journal Neurology．
The study of nearly 900 people who exercise regularly showed that 90 percent fell into the low-intensity group．These people are part of a larger group taking part in a bigger study called Northern Manhattan Study．They were asked how long and how often they exercised during the past two weeks．Five years later，they were tested for memory and thinking skills and got a brain MRI．Seven years after that，they took the memory and thinking tests again．The 10 percent who said they took part in moderate intensity exercise scored better on the tests．These included running，climbing，swimming，riding bicycles and so on．
“We found that those with moderate heavy activity had higher scores and slower decline than inactive patients when comparing the results，”the study team wrote．
Many studies have shown that exercise may not prevent Alzheimer’s but may delay it．The findings fit in with a study that found two years of exercising，eating healthier food and brain training can promote people’s memory function．
1. According to the study，moderate heavy exercise________.

A．makes people’s heart better than their heads

B．helps people keep a younger brain

C．makes people ten years younger

D．makes people look like potatoes

2. What’s true about the study?

A．Most people surveyed took low-intensity exercise．

B．Only 900 people took part in the bigger study．

C．High-intensity exercise is better．

D．Ten people scored best on the test．

3. How did the study team come to the conclusion?

A．By observing people exercise．

B．By using examples．

C．By making a comparison．

D．By doing a brain MRI．

4. What’s the best title for this passage?

A．How to keep healthy

B．Ways to make your brain work better

C．To exercise or not

D．Moderate exercise keeps your brain younger