1 . Many people say that they are working too many hours. They don’t have enough time to relax or to stay with their family.
Work hours are different from one country to another. In France, people spend about 1,646 hours a year at work. In Japan, however, people work about 2,159 hours a year. That means a Japanese worker works 513 more hours a year than a French worker.
Why do people work so many hours? Some people work extra hours because they want to make more money. However, many companies don’t pay overtime. Their workers don’t get more pay for more work. Some people think it’s their duty to work more hours. Some are afraid of losing their jobs if they don’t work more hours.
Many people say that their vacations are too short. In France, people get five weeks of paid vacation a year. In Germany, they get four to six weeks, and in the United States, two weeks. One study shows fewer than half of workers used all their vacation days. In Great Britain, there is a saying, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull (迟钝的) boy.” If that is true, there must be a lot of dull people in the world.
1. A Japanese worker works ________ more hours a year than a French one.| A．513 | B．1,646 | C．2,159 | D．3,805 |
| A．正常的 | B．额外的 | C．有用的 | D．少量的 |
| A．France | B．Germany | C．the United States | D．Great Britain |
| A．they are not afraid of losing their jobs | B．they don’t think it’s their duty |
| C．they have other jobs to do | D．they want to make more money |
| A．Many workers have to work long hours. | B．Many people have vacations long enough. |
| C．Work hours are the same around the world. | D．There are a lot of dull people in the world. |
2 . Long long ago, there was a young man who made his living by making tofu. One day, the tofu was not sold out. In order to keep the tofu fresh, he cut the tofu into pieces and mixed some flavor (香料) in. Then he put it into a crock (瓦罐). A few days later, he opened the crock and found that the smell was terrible. Then he tasted a piece. To his surprise, the taste was nice. An idea came into his mind-maybe his smelly tofu (臭豆腐) would be a kind of special food. As expected, the smelly tofu became popular with local people. Soon it was well-known all over the whole nation.
Now smelly tofu is the most special food in Hunan. And it is recommended (推荐) to all the people around the world.
1. The young man made his living by ________.| A．making kites | B．making tofu | C．selling cloth | D．farming |
| A．he wanted to make a kind of special food |
| B．he wanted to have it for dinner |
| C．he wanted to keep it fresh |
| D．he wanted to sell a kind of special tofu |
| A．terrible | B．well | C．bad | D．good |
| A．China | B．Japan | C．America | D．Australia |
The word"folk" means " people "．Folk songs tell stories about people．For example，the songs tell about their jobs and work，their friends，and their lives． They also express ideas such as love and war．The words in the songs are an important part of the music．
In the United States and Europe，folk music became very popular during the 1960s．Fans listened to folk singers perform at concerts．The singer told stories，sang，and played the guitar Fans listened to the music and often sang along with the performer．Some of the folk singers during this time were the Kingston Trio； Peter，Paul and Mary； Pete Seeger，and the Weavers．
Later， people began to play this kind of music themselves at schools，at parties， and at home alone．Today fans can still hear folk music at concerts．They can also buy CDs and DVDs by new folk performers．They can listen to folk music on the Internet．
1. When did folk music begin？
2. Why do people want to write folk songs？
3. Are the words important in folk songs？
4. Where did people enjoy folk music in the 1960s？
5. Can people hear folk songs on the Internet？ Whose folk songs do you like best？
4 . As the saying goes, “A hero is known in the time of misfortune（不幸）”. Zhong Nanshan is a hero like this. He is a doctor in Guangdong, who saved many people’s lives in 2003.
In 2003, SARS broke out in Guangdong. Later, it spread across China and other parts of the world. Patients coughed a lot and got fevers. Hundreds of patients even died from the disease. Even many doctors and nurses got SARS when they treated patients. So everyone was afraid of it. But Zhong was brave enough to fight the disease. Zhong spent days and nights finding the cause of the disease. And with his way of treating, many patients began to get better. Zhong finally won people’s trust.
In early 2020, a disease called Novel Coronavirus pneumonia ( 新型冠状病毒肺炎) hit Wuhan. It spread quickly around tens of thousands of Chinese people were infected ( 感 染 ). Zhong, 84, led his team to Wuhan to fight the illness. Zhong’s team took many measures to cure the patients with Novel Coronavirus pneumonia. He advised people to wear masks, wash hands frequently(频繁地）stay at home and not to go to crowed places. Zhong likes sports very much. Although he was 67, he could still play basketball.
Now at the age of 84, Zhong still treats patients in the hospital and teaches young doctors. “I am just a doctor.” Zhong says. But we think he is a hero and a fighter.
1. Where was the SARS broken out?| A．Guangdong | B．Wuhan | C．Shanghai | D．Wuhan |
| A．85 | B．67 | C．84 | D．73 |
| A．We can go to crowed places |
| B．Zhong’s team took many measures to cure the patients with Novel Coronavirus pneumonia. |
| C．Although he was 67, he could still play football. |
| D．In 2004, SARS broke out in Guangdong. |
| A．Doctors are the heroes. |
| B．Zhong is a hero and a fighter. |
| C．The difference between SARA and Novel Coronavirus. |
| D．Novel Coronavirus pneumonia is very serious. |
| A．救死扶伤，大爱无疆。 | B．幸得有你，山河无恙。 |
| C．哪有什么岁月静好，只不过是一直有人替我们负重前行。 | D．时势造英雄。 |
5 . When your dream is to become a footballer and play for Barcelona team, nothing should get in your way—even if you have no feet.
An 11-year-old schoolboy Gabriel Muniz, who was born without feet, will fly from his home in Brazil to take part in the Spanish club’s summer training camp. Although he is disabled, Muniz is one of the top players at the school and captain of his gym class. He can run, pass and strike the ball as well as any of his able-bodied teammates. He spends all his spare time on the football pitch.
His best friend Lucas Santos spoke about his abilities on a video for The Sun, “He is skillful, he goes after it, he is fearless and he knows how to organize plays. He also makes good passes.” Mum Sandra was thrilled that her son would achieve his dreams. She said, "He started walking before he was one. We would go after him, expecting him to keep falling, but he never fell. "Muniz’s gym teacher added, "He is challenging the social standard. When he arrived there, no one believed in him." But he showed to everyone that he could play as well as any other boy. So he was invited to go to Spain to show his talent.
The Spanish La Liga soccer club has offered to fly Muniz to Spain in September, where he’ll be able to show off his fancy “footwork” and meet his idol, Barca soccer player Lionel Messi.
Muniz wears a prosthetic (假体的) ankle and foot to help him get around in rainy weather. He knows that his disability means he’ll never be able to play for a professional football team and so Muniz is hoping that football will one day become a Paralympics (残奥会的) sport.
1. The underlined word “thrilled” in paragraph 3 may has the similar meaning to ________.| A．excited | B．worried | C．bored | D．interested |
①played football well and became captain of his school gym class
②could walk without falling when he was very little
③was asked to fly to Spain for a summer training camp
| A．③②① | B．①②③ | C．②③① | D．②①③ |
| A．Failure is the mother of success. | B．Where there is a will, there is a way. |
| C．A good beginning is half done. | D．Early birds catch the worm. |
6 . Life is full of surprises and you never know how things will turn out.
Sir John Gurdon is a good example of this. As a boy, he was told he was hopeless in science and finished bottom of his class. However, aged 79, the very same Gurdon shared the 2012 Nobel Prize in Medicine with Japanese stem cell(干细胞) researcher Shinya Yamanaka.
Like so many scientists, Gurdon shows us where the power of curiosity and perseverance(坚持不懈) can lead.
At the age of 15 in 1948, Gurdon ranked last out of the 250 boys at his high school in biology and every other science subject. Gurdon's high school science teacher even said that his dream of becoming a scientist was quite ridiculous．
In spite of his teacher's criticism（批评）, Gurdon followed his curiosity and kept working hard. He went to the lab earlier and left later than anyone else. He experienced thousands of failures.
“My own belief is that we will, in the end, understand everything about how cells actually work，” Gurdon said.
In 1962, Gurdon took a cell from an adult frog and moved its genetic(基因的) information into an egg cell. The egg cell then grew into a clone(克隆) of the adult frog. This technique later helped to create the sheep Dolly in 1996, the first cloned mammal(哺乳动物) in the world.
In 2006, Gurdon's work was developed by Yamanaka to show that a sample(样本) of a person's skin can be used to create stem cells. Using this technique, doctors can repair a patient's heart after a heart attack.
“Luck favors the prepared mind，”Gurdon told the Nobel Prize Organization. “Ninety percent of the time things don't work, but when they do, you have to seize (抓住) the chance.”
1. Who won the 2012 Nobel Prize in Medicine?| A．Sir John Gurdon. | B．Shinya Yamanaka. |
| C．Sir John Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka. | D．Gurdon's science teacher. |
| A．无知的 | B．无畏的 | C．荒废的 | D．荒谬的 |
| A．As a boy, Gurdon was told he was hopeful. |
| B．Gurdon ranked first at his high school in biology. |
| C．It's impossible for the doctors to repair a patient's heart after a heart attack. |
| D．In spite of his teacher's criticism, Gurdon kept working hard. |
| A．Ninety percent of the time things don't work. | B．Luck favors the prepared mind. |
| C．Life is full of surprises. | D．How cells actually work. |
7 . International Museum Day is coming. Here are some special museums that you must see.
 | Sweet Museum Russia Do you love candy? Don’t miss the sweet world in Russia. You can find different kinds of sweet food here. But they are just models! Look, how big the lollipops(棒棒糖) are! People can ride on them. Want to taste the ice-cream? Be careful—the ice-cream balls are lights! |
| Museum of Failure, Sweden There are more then 100 failed products in the museum. Some of them come from the world’s most successful companies, like the Newton computer from Apple. Maybe success stories are similar and kind of boring, but we can find interesting stories in failures and learn something from them. |
| Cancun Underwater Museum, Mexico It is a secret garden under the sea. You can either dive(潜水) or take a glass boat into it. Down here, sea animals live around 400 sculptures(石膏像). Each sculpture tells a story and it’s made of special material, which is good for the sea life. |
| Museum of Broken Relationships, Croatia Some relationships end—with lovers, with dreams and with cities. This special museum has a collection of objects from people all over the world who want to lock their memories. Each of the object shares a story of their past relationship. |
1. If you’re interested in art under the water, you may go to ____.
| A．Sweet Museum | B．Cancun Underwater Museum |
| C．Museum of Failure | D．Museum of Broken Relationships |
| A．People can taste the candies on show in Sweet Museum. |
| B．People learn about success stories in Museum of Failure. |
| C．Objects in Museum Of Broken Relationships have their stories. |
| D．The material of sculptures in Cancun Underwater Museum is harmful. |
| A．Culture. | B．Health. | C．Sports. | D．Food. |
My son's room⁃mate described the accident,which caused the burns.Our son and his friends decided to barbecue (烧烤)hamburgers in the yard of their apartment.When they hit the charcoal (木炭),it started a fire in a sudden.The fire caught my son's shirt tail and shot from his back to his head.He stayed in hospital for almost two months.After he got well,he had to return to college with scars caused by serious burning.
When I was a child,my mother told my sister,who had a long,very clear scar on her arm,“Xiaoling,if you don't care about the scar,other people will pay no attention to it.It does not mean they will not notice it,but it means it will not matter to them if it doesn't matter to you.”I passed this suggestion on to my son who took my advice to heart and returned to school with his head held high—glad he was alive.
We all have “scars”that cause people to keep away from us.And we spend a lot of time thinking that if only we look differently,or dress differently,people would like us better.But if you focus on them,other people will only judge you by your looks,or your clothes.Put the scars aside,after all,nobody is perfect,so try to be confident,and your beauty will shine through.
1. Why did the hospital call “us”?
| A．To tell us the bad news of our son. | B．To ask us to call an ambulance. |
| C．To describe the accident of our son. | D．To let us take our son back to college. |
| A．to be careful in our daily life | B．not to care about others |
| C．not to pay attention to the scars | D．to pass suggestions on to others |
| A．the serious accidents someone had before | B．the feelings of sadness after leaving a hospital |
| C．unpleasant experiences that somebody had | D．something that makes somebody different |
| A．Don't barbecue,for it will cause fire. | B．Listen to others’ suggestions and be happy. |
| C．Try to be perfect and people will like you. | D．Be confident and face the disadvantages. |
9 . There was a lovely vegetable patch(菜园).A large tree grew there.Both the patch and the tree gave the place a wonderful look,and they were the pride of the gardener.But no one knew that the vegetables and the tree couldn't stand each other.The vegetables hated the tree's shadow(阴影),because it left them only just enough light to live.The tree,on the other hand,hated the vegetables because they drank nearly all the water,leaving him just enough to live.
The situation became so serious that the vegetables decided to use up all the water in the ground so that the tree would die.The tree answered back by not protecting the vegetables from the hot sun,so they began to dry up.Soon the vegetables were really weak,and the tree was drying up.
The gardener wondered why and stopped watering them.When he did that,both the tree and the vegetables realized that it was better to help each other.They learned how to live in harmony with those around them.So they decided to work together,using both the shade and the water to grow well.After seeing how well they were doing,the gardener gave the best care to the vegetable patch,watering and fertilizing(施肥)it better than any other patch for miles around.
1. Why didn't the vegetables and the tree get on well with each other?| A．Because the vegetables wanted more light. |
| B．Because the tree drank almost all the water. |
| C．Because the vegetables weren't the pride of the gardener. |
| D．Because the vegetables didn't look as wonderful as the tree. |
| A．the vegetables were sorry to see the tree drying up |
| B．the gardener was very angry with the vegetables and the tree |
| C．the gardener didn't know what was happening in the patch at first |
| D．the tree didn't know how important the sun was to vegetables |
| A．for long | B．carefully | C．effectively | D．harmoniously |
| A．why the sunlight and water were very important |
| B．how the gardener took care of his vegetable patch |
| C．why the gardener was proud of his vegetable patch |
| D．what happened between the vegetables and the tree |
Why is he so sleepy？Because，like thousands of student "early birds"in China，he has to get up before 6： 00a．m．every morning．
School students usually need eight to ten hours' sleep a night．But in China，it's reported that 90% of the students do not get enough sleep And studies show that without a good nights sleep，students seem to be weaker than they should be．They can't pay attention to their lessons or the traffic around them，and become upset as a result．
Li Ming，a student of a middle school in Linhe，said，"I usually go to bed after 11：00 p．m But when I have exams coming up，I have to stay up as late as midnight．"This"night bird lifestyle has made many students nod off（打瞌睡）in class． Li Ming said，"It is during afternoon classes that I feel most sleepy． My parents are usually happy to see me studying so late．They think I work very hard and they make me cups of coffee．
So far，the officials of the Educational Bureau of Bayannao'er City have taken many measures to reduce the students'pressure．One is known as putting off（推迟）the time for going to school．It has worked well in increasing the students'sleeping time．Thanks to the policy， the students have enough time to sleep now．However，some people doubt the correctness of it．The problem of the students' pressure is still serious in our area，We still have a long way to go．
1. Although the ten-year-old boy was ______ ，his mother had to wake him up before 6： 00a．m．
| A．angry | B．lazy | C．sleepy | D．ill |
| A．at least eight hours | B．six to eight hours |
| C．less than eight hours | D．more than ten hours |
| A．upset | B．weak |
| C．sleepy in class | D．all the above |
| A．sorry | B．angry | C．happy | D．worried |
| A．All the parents hope their children stay up． |
| B．All the students don't think that they are short of sleep． |
| C．The students dont have learning pressure now． |
| D．The officials of the Educational Bureau care about the students' health． |
