1 . In the 1970s, a new supermarket selling LPs arrived in my hometown and I began devoting my pocket money to acquiring records. I swiftly developed an affection for Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, harboring dreams of performing that music myself. Despite the absence of a piano at home, there was one at my grandmother’s care home, where I learned to play Beethoven by ear, with pigeons cooing and farmers working in the fields. It was truly magical.

Entering the Royal Academy of Arts at 16 marked the beginning of my artistic journey. In my 30s, I took another significant step in life-marriage. My wife worked at Elephants World, a reserve dedicated to the care of rescued domestic elephants. These elephants have worked for humans all their life and many are blind or disabled from being treated badly, so I wanted to make the effort to carry something heavy myself. For my 50th birthday, my wife successfully persuaded the manager to allow us to bring a piano into the reserve, bringing music to the elephants’ lives.

Initially, when I started playing, it was hard to hear the piano above the sounds of nature and the elephants chewing grass. However, everything changed when a blind elephant ceased eating and tuned into my playing. It struck me that this elephant, trapped in a world of darkness, had a profound love for music. From that moment on, there was no longer any concern about disturbing their peace. We occasionally film these performances, and now, we proudly have nearly 700,000 YouTube subscribers.

I continue to play for these elephants that run freely in the reserve, despite the constant potential danger. Surprisingly, it’s the moody male elephants who show the most fascination with the music. I firmly believe it has a calming effect. These elephants’ breathing actually slows down when I play, which tells me they are relaxed and happy. I’ve even witnessed elephants seemingly dancing to Beethoven’s tunes. With their exceptional hearing and the ability to sense vibrations (震动) through their feet, I am convinced that elephants grasp the language of human expression. This serves as a powerful illustration that music serves as a universal language, connecting us all.

1. What motivated the author’s early affection for music?

A．Exposure to Beethoven’s music.	B．Employment at Elephants World.
C．Attendance at the Royal Academy of Arts.	D．Piano teaching at his grandma’s care home.

2. What did the author’s 50th birthday celebration symbolize?

A．Personal achievements in music.	B．A combination of music and care.
C．Successful fundraising for the reserve.	D．Recognition for the author’s artistic journey.

3. What role did music play in the lives of the elephants in the reserve?

A．Emotional recovery.	B．Physical exercise.
C．Financial support.	D．Artistic expression.

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

A．Save the Mistreated Elephants	B．Connect the Elephants with Music
C．Play the Piano for Rescued Elephants	D．Make the Hearing of Elephants Sharp

2 . Never had a lovely sunflower been absent to my house on my birthday, since I turned 13, no cards or notes in it. Calls to the flower shop were always _______ — it was a cash purchase.

I never stopped _______ who the mysterious giver might be. Some of my happiest moments were spent daydreaming about someone wonderful but too shy to disclose his or her _______ .

My mother even _______ my imaginations. She’d ask me if there was someone who I had done a special favor and then might be showing _______ . As a teenager, _______ , I had more fun assuming that it might be a boy I had a crush on.

When I was 17, I failed _______ in a significant test. That night when the result came, I just _______ my self to sleep. When I awoke in the morning, my mother comforted, “Don’t indulge (沉湎)! It’s not a big deal!”. Yet, I remember _______ out of the house at that time, yelling ... “You just don’t understand”.

One month before my graduation from high school, my father died of a heart attack. My feelings ranged from pain to ________ so that I became completely uninterested in the upcoming ceremony. But my mother, in the midst of her own grief, would deny my ________ any of those things. Before my father died, we had shopped a party dress which made me feel like a(n) ________ Cinderella. But it was the wrong size. Later I totally forgot about the dress. My mother didn’t. The day before the dance, I found that dress, in the right size, ________ still in the box to me — gracefully, and lovingly. She just wanted her child to feel loved and showed that there still existed magic and beauty even ________ hardships.

Actually, my mother passed away one week after I got married. That year the adorable sunflower stopped ________ .

1.

A．in vain

B．in place

C．in charge

D．in private

2.

A．calculating

B．expecting

C．consulting

D．assuming

3.

A．profile

B．identity

C．capacity

D．presence

4.

A．subscribed to

B．referred to

C．contributed to

D．turned to

5.

A．applause

B．anticipation

C．appreciation

D．assistance

6.

A．otherwise

B．moreover

C．therefore

D．though

7.

A．proudly

B．miserably

C．unexpectedly

D．sincerely

8.

A．applied

B．urged

C．cried

D．exposed

9.

A．hurrying

B．rolling

C．pacing

D．storming

10.

A．abandonment

B．confusion

C．tiredness

D．astonishment

11.

A．grasping

B．interrupting

C．admitting

D．skipping

12.

A．reasonable

B．awesome

C．ordinary

D．imaginative

13.

A．composed

B．thrown

C．paid

D．delivered

14.

A．in response to

B．in face of

C．in case of

D．by means of

15.

A．cheering up

B．lighting up

C．showing up

D．warming up

3 . Scenes of a comic character swelling up after eating peanuts in Western TV shows have long been puzzling for many Chinese viewers, as few people in China meet those who have a severe peanut allergy (过敏反应).

Their confusion can be explained by Chinese researchers in a new study that Chinese adults and children are more likely to be allergic to seafood, and less likely to be allergic to peanuts compared to people in the United States and Europe. “Animal-derived (动物源的) foods were the primary offending foods, especially shrimp, and skin symptoms were the most commonly reported unpleasant reactions,” said the study. The difference means that cultural, dietary, industrialization and biological factors can play an important role in food allergy patterns, it added.

Chen Hongbing, a professor from the State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology at Nanchang University, who was involved in the study, said, “For instance, in a previous study on self-reported food allergies among children, seafood topped the list, followed by fish, eggs, fruits and milk.” However, some research also puts wheat as one of the most common allergy triggers among the general population, eggs and milk are considered the most common allergens among infants and young babies. Chen said more research is needed to address these discrepancies (差异性) and to determine if various dietary habits across China result in varied food sensitivity.

Luo Xiaoqun, a doctor who was not involved in the studies at Fudan University’s Huashan Hospital, said that the increasing rate of food allergies is a phenomenon observed worldwide, driven by changes in lifestyles, eating habits, as well as growing health awareness and diagnostic ability.

Reading allergen labeling on food packages is an easy way to protect consumers from potential allergy triggers. However, food allergen labeling in China is not obligated currently and labeling largely follows an international food regulations. “China has made improvements in devising food labeling standards in recent years, hopefully our findings can accelerate the process of making such labeling compulsory in the near future,” Chen said.

1. What’s the purpose of writing paragraph 1?

A．To introduce food people are commonly allergic to.

B．To make a comparison between different allergies.

C．To introduce a study about allergies.

D．To describe typical allergy symptoms.

2. Which of the following doesn’t affect food allergy patterns in the new study?

A．eating habits.	B．cultural factors
C．diagnostic ability	D．biological factors

3. What does the underlined word “triggers” in paragraph 3 mean?

A．results

B．patterns

C．reactions

D．causes

4. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

A．China has popularized food labeling in recent years.

B．The findings have speeded up the process of food labeling.

C．Professor Chen expects a promising future of food labeling.

D．China makes no progress in making food labeling.

4 . Cats bring bad luck. Cats cannot be ________. This is what I was taught when I was growing up. I hated cats.

And then I married a woman who was brought up with cats. So it was unavoidable that she would want us to ________ one. My parents-in-law lived with Maggie, a big cat that made me quite ________. When we used to take our baby daughter to their home, I watched Maggie ________. Whenever she went near my daughter, I ran to ensure that Maggie did not ________ her. My wife always laughed and told me Maggie wouldn’t hurt our daughter.

________ from my wife to get a cat became greater after we had two more children. Under stress, I finally gave in and ________. And then Masala came to our home. Our children loved the new “________”. They played with Masala and slept with her. At first, I was a bit ________. I was not sure what would happen next. But slowly I started liking that small animal.

We were happy with life. But then, something ________ happened, and my wife got lung cancer. This terrible time was also when I came to really ________ the cat. Masala provided my wife with good ________. She stayed by my wife’s bedside around the clock. My wife fought the disease bravely but didn’t __________ at last. After my wife died, Masala also ________ me during my darkest days. Her warm welcome after I came home meant a lot to me. Masala helped me ________ my prejudices (偏见) against cats. She really taught me a lesson.

1.

A．served

B．challenged

C．trusted

D．judged

2.

A．get

B．borrow

C．contribute

D．exchange

3.

A．unfortunate

B．unreasonable

C．unhealthy

D．uncomfortable

4.

A．naturally

B．closely

C．eagerly

D．secretly

5.

A．approach

B．harm

C．notice

D．impact

6.

A．Prevention

B．Dissatisfaction

C．Pressure

D．Encouragement

7.

A．agreed

B．failed

C．understood

D．responded

8.

A．stranger

B．visitor

C．neighbor

D．resident

9.

A．awkward

B．hesitant

C．boring

D．surprised

10.

A．similar

B．typical

C．wrong

D．horrible

11.

A．know

B．love

C．care

D．honour

12.

A．faith

B．belief

C．company

D．hope

13.

A．suffer

B．struggle

C．adapt

D．survive

14.

A．impressed

B．supported

C．attracted

D．surrounded

15.

A．get rid of

B．make use of

C．give way to

D．keep track of

6 . As a young music therapist in Colorado, Shannon de L’Etoile saw that when mothers were encouraged to sing to their babies, they were amazed by the positive responses they received. She quickly realized that music could be a powerful tool for helping mothers learn more about their infants (婴儿). Soon, de L’Etoile began researching the practice, called infant-directed singing. She says it helps babies learn to regulate their feelings, which allows them to later behave well in school, and in the social and professional world.

“If a mother can sing in a way that catches the infant’s attention, it can help to promote the development of the infant’s brain,” said de L’Etoile. “Infant-directed singing is a way in which mothers can communicate with their babies that most infants can recognize and respond to. But mothers need to be sensitive to infant cues (提示).”

De L’Etoile is working with people at the Linda Ray Intervention Center to create a coaching program that will guide mothers in the practice. She is now in the process of training workers at the center, who will coach mothers for a month in the most beneficial ways to sing to their infants. The process includes watching and recording mothers as they sing to their infants and then showing these mothers how they can be sensitive to their infants’ feelings while singing. Mothers will be able to notice if the infant is benefiting because the baby will look longer at the mother and reach a happy state.

As part of the study, after each mother completes the training, de L’Etoile will work with a music engineering program to study recordings of the mother’s voice. The study result can show changes over time in the mother’s ability to change her singing according to the infant’s feelings. Videos of the babies will also be studied to discover their connections with their mothers over time. De L’Etoile has been working closely with center workers to develop the program so that it will meet the needs of different families.

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

A．Manage.

B．Produce.

C．Hide.

D．Observe.

2. What can we learn from paragraph 2?

A．Building a positive parent-child relationship is hard.

B．Not all mothers’singing helps develop the infant’s brain.

C．Mothers can benefit from singing to their babies.

D．Singing is the best way to comfort babies.

3. What is the purpose of de L’Etoile’s coaching program?

A．To train babies to respond to their mothers.	B．To get babies to reach a happy state.
C．To help mothers notice the babies’ feelings.	D．To teach mothers to sing to babies effectively.

4. How will de L’Etoile carry out her study according to the last paragraph?

A．By comparing the effects of family members’ voices on babies.

B．By collecting babies’ reactions to videos and voices.

C．By observing changes in mothers and infants after training.

D．By communicating directly with mothers.