1 . At 20 years old, I was a confident and handsome student at the University of California at Berkey.

But that year, I ________ a bump (肿块) in my right nostril (鼻孔), and when it didn’t go away, I made an ________ with a doctor. It turned out to be a tumor (肿瘤). Then I underwent surgery. Fortunately, the procedure was ________, and I returned to classes soon.

But six months later, a new bump appeared. Numerous ________ confirmed it had reproduced a horrible, life—threatening tumor. I was advised to have another operation and ________ that I might lose part of my nose. I was too young to think about death then, but the thought of disfigurement (毁容) made me feel ________.

I awoke from the surgery with a scarred, disfigured face. As I re-entered the real world, I noticed adults ________ and children pointing—and sometimes laughing—at me. The occasional and ________ negative reactions from my friends also hurt me. My self-respect sank increasingly lower, and I constantly asked others, “Do my looks ________ you?”

Five years and 20 reconstructive surgeries later, I ________ a man receiving treatment. After hearing my question, he criticized me. My problem, he ________ me, was not my physical appearance, but my emotional insecurity. His ________ helped me realize my mental scars were far more disfiguring than my physical ones.

I began examining myself from the inside out. Later, I volunteered at a cancer support organization to offer inspiration and hope to those ________ cancer

Now, I am ________ for who I am—a much stronger person than before. To you, I offer this message: Avoid making judgements about people at ________.

1.

A．took charge of

B．took care of

C．took control of

D．took notice of

2.

A．appointment

B．arrangement

C．commitment

D．placement

3.

A．severe

B．minor

C．apparent

D．complicated

4.

A．novelists

B．specialists

C．impressionists

D．journalists

5.

A．advocated

B．predicted

C．warned

D．witnessed

6.

A．desperate

B．enthusiastic

C．delicate

D．optimistic

7.

A．smiling

B．glaring

C．glancing

D．staring

8.

A．unusually

B．unintentionally.

C．unconventionally

D．unselfishly

9.

A．bother

B．impress

C．annoy

D．restrict

10.

A．greeted

B．persuaded

C．encountered

D．grasped

11.

A．abused

B．defended

C．informed

D．motivated

12.

A．relief

B．security

C．defence

D．honesty

13.

A．going about

B．relating to

C．wrestling with

D．breaking with

14.

A．greedy

B．grateful

C．suitable

D．tolerant

15.

A．mental vitality

B．physical fitness

C．social acceptance

D．face value

2 . When handball was introduced to Sri Lankan schools in 2010, I wanted to bring it to my school in a remote village. This became a(n) _______ task as the sports teacher was unwilling to initiate anything _______ traditional sports like basketball. Despite being an English language teacher before _______ my post as deputy principal (副校长), I was _______ to start this game at any cost.

40 students aged between 13 and 19 _______ to play. I had the support of their parents but I still couldn’t _______ the sports teacher to agree. _______ , I used my position to get the game going.

Heshan Pradeep, an alumnus (校友) and member of the Air Force handball team, volunteered to _______ the team. Although handball is an indoor game, we trained outdoors due to limited _______. Training started early in the morning before class and ________ after school until it was dark. The boys loved the game and were ________ training. After three months of devoted training, we were able to send an under-19s boys’ team to ________ with 50 other schools. Our boys played remarkably well and ________ the semifinals. The following year, nobody could ________ our team from winning the all-island schools handball championship.

The ________ sent the whole village into carnival mode. Heshan and I were much honored to have shown the boys that dreams can be fulfilled.

1.

A．appealing

B．challenging

C．confusing

D．amusing

2.

A．regardless of

B．in relation to

C．other than

D．in terms of

3.

A．leaving

B．assuming

C．offering

D．creating

4.

A．determined

B．resistant

C．forbidden

D．grateful

5.

A．woke up

B．grew up

C．sped up

D．signed up

6.

A．allow

B．encourage

C．convince

D．force

7.

A．Ultimately

B．Occasionally

C．Similarly

D．Unfortunately

8.

A．protect

B．contact

C．coach

D．assess

9.

A．prospects

B．appliances

C．qualifications

D．facilities

10.

A．ended

B．continued

C．changed

D．functioned

11.

A．passionate about

B．particular about

C．embarrassed about

D．objective about

12.

A．debate

B．compete

C．associate

D．cooperate

13.

A．watched

B．hosted

C．reached

D．predicted

14.

A．stop

B．free

C．separate

D．excuse

15.

A．motivation

B．tendency

C．innovation

D．victory

4 . Even when you have confidence in yourself, your goals will sometimes seem out of reach. When that happens, get hold of the people who _________ you and your goals and don’t let go!

When I was younger, I _________ because life felt so hard. I had _________to become a teacher or a business administrator. I knew I needed a college degree, but I had _________ believing in myself. Then a teacher in my high school _________ me. He told me three things: First, if you don’t believe in yourself, it will be _________ to get anyone else to believe in you. Second, never let other people’s _________ to see your brilliance prevent you from being brilliant. And third, despite life’s _________, stick to creating the future you want.

Early in my _________, I was teaching a workshop when a person in the audience yelled out to me. He told me I had __________ made a job choice and had a bright future. This __________ feedback (反馈)came at just the right time, because while the audience didn’t know it, I was __________ self-doubt.

Even now, I __________ myself that I have a bright future. That’s what I tell myself when I __________ success and failure. You have a bright future ahead. Think about this every single day. Remember your talents, skills, and interests. Explore the jobs that interest you, and have courage—and most __________, believe in yourself.

1.

A．refer to

B．depend on

C．learn from

D．believe in

2.

A．quit

B．struggled

C．regretted

D．argued

3.

A．responsibilities

B．dreams

C．opportunities

D．doubts

4.

A．stopped

B．admitted

C．allowed

D．considered

5.

A．tracked

B．recommended

C．accompanied

D．encouraged

6.

A．serious

B．possible

C．hard

D．necessary

7.

A．request

B．unwillingness

C．inability

D．attempt

8.

A．difficulties

B．options

C．aims

D．standards

9.

A．career

B．experiment

C．business

D．recovery

10.

A．foolishly

B．simply

C．wisely

D．bravely

11.

A．original

B．familiar

C．typical

D．positive

12.

A．looking into

B．taking down

C．dealing with

D．pointing out

13.

A．introduce

B．remind

C．guarantee

D．warn

14.

A．experience

B．describe

C．compare

D．limit

15.

A．probably

B．fortunately

C．obviously

D．importantly

5 . Welcome to American United Travel Company. We’ll help you spend a perfect holiday. For over 6 years, we have been organizing value for money summer holidays, whether it’s a late holiday deal or your main summer holiday. Whether you’re looking for a romantic getaway, a luxury 5-star holiday, or you just want to relax and soak up the sun, we’ve got access to the very best flight and hotel deals throughout the world. We are proud to offer you various services unlike other tour companies where we offer one-stop shop for complete tourism.

Our Services Include

Tours. Meet & Assist Services. Airport Transfer. MICE (Meeting, Incentive, Conferences, Exhibitions) private Jets. Ground handling (24 hours) VIP services on arrival & departure. Adventure Tour.

Means of Transportation Reservations

We operate for all means of transportation available in the country, starting with buses for groups to car rental to individuals.

Guidance

We have the most qualified guides who speak French, English, German, Italian, and Spanish. We bank on their communication skills as well as their knowledge in various fields.

Fancy Dinners

We prepare outdoor dinners in particular places such as castles, beaches, old and traditional houses, etc. Usually, these dinners are arranged according to the clients’ choices.

Luggage Concierge

Don’t worry about luggage size and weight when travelling. Give your bags to Luggage Concierge in advance and they will be waiting for you at your destination when you arrive.

Call one of our experienced travel consultants on 18884700610 to secure one of these fantastic deals.

1. What is special about United Travel company?

A．It provides one-stop complete tourism.	B．It supplies the best flight and hotels.
C．It offers transfer service.	D．Its guides speak various languages.

2. What can you do with your luggage before travelling?

A．Send it to your destination directly.	B．Carry it by yourself.
C．Keep it as light as possible.	D．Hand it to Luggage Concierge.

3. What’s the purpose of the text?

A．To diversify the economy.	B．To attract tourists.
C．To conserve the environment.	D．To entertain readers.

6 . Shortly before he turned 60, Mark Fuhrmann realized what he wanted. He, now, at 65, has just returned from a second voyage. His 6,835 mile-round trip from Nova Scotia took in the great lakes of the US, the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic.

Fuhrmann started these journeys “to kickstart retirement” from the maritime PR business he ran in Oslo for the past 30 years. Before he set off, in June last year, he swapped (交换) his house for a flat, and greatly reduced his possessions. “It was good to get rid of all of those things and say: ‘This isn’t a phase; this is a new season,’” he says.

Amazingly, he didn’t plan his trip, beyond committing to fundraise for Medecins Sans Frontières. “I thought: ‘I’ll try to do 40km each day.’ But I never knew where I was going to lay down my head.”

The challenges were psychological, physical, and sometimes life-threatening. In Florida, he was chased by an alligator (短吻鳄), but narrowly escaped from it. In the Boston area, he saw “a black fin moving towards me like a snake”. He lay his oar (划桨) across his lap and waited. “If a great white shark can swim leisurely, that’s exactly what it did. It just passed me,” he says. Ten minutes later, Fuhrmann pulled his kayak (小艇) into a cove, where he ran into a man who invited him into his home for coffee and apple pie. His whole trip was filled with these switchbacks and moments of connection with strangers, which Fuhrmann experienced as “a call to authenticity”.

What does he mean? “Nature is born within us. If you avoid that, you avoid experiencing something that is vital to who you are as a person. I want real things — life isn’t about having more. I think we need to accept where we are at this stage of life, at 60 or 65.”

“I look at retirement as a season,” he says. He started his latest voyage because “I wanted to have a better understanding of who I was. I wanted to have time for my thoughts to wander, to restart, to discover the value and power within myself.”

1. Why did Fuhrmann get rid of most of his possessions?

A．To make donations to charity.	B．To start a new life in retirement.
C．To make up for his business loss.	D．To collect money for the journey.

2. What does the underlined word “switchbacks” in paragraph 4 probably mean?

A．Blessings.

B．Ambitions.

C．Defeats.

D．Challenges.

3. Which of the following might Fuhrmann agree with?

A．The meaning of life is achieving more.

B．Old people should take things as they are.

C．It is good to have nature-based experience.

D．It is advisable for aging people to play safe.

4. Why did Fuhrmann start his latest voyage?

A．To reflect on his past.	B．To discover his true self.
C．To relax his mind and body.	D．To be free from the noisy world.

9 . The boulders (巨石) look generally unremarkable, besides the fact that they stretch up and down the ridge in a curved line. Most people who don’t know their story would probably choose to look at the sweeping view of San Jose below them instead.

The timeworn line of boulder, is part of a system of stone walls, the remains of which stretch along the East Bay Hills all the way from Grimly Peak in Berkeley to where I watched a man tie his shoes at the Sierra Vista Open Space Preserve above East San Jose.

They exist only in sections, and some are better preserved than others — where I found the man, the walls are short and thick and half-sunk into the earth, hut further north at Ed R. Levin County Park in Milpitas, they remain almost perfectly assembled and stand several feet tall.

The first recorded mention of the walls is from an article in the San Francisco Chronicle from 1896. “Half a mile east of Grizzly Peak stand the remains of stone walls which have long baffled the researchers. By whom they were built, when and why is an unsolved mystery,” the article stated. The unnamed author went on to write a generally-accepted theory of the walls that they were constructed by “some long-forgotten race, possibly Aztec”.

Of course, the people who originally inhabited the hills and the land surrounding them are far from forgotten. The Ohlone people thrived in the area for thousands of years until they were largely displaced by European settlers — however, there’re no records of them constructing stone walls.

“Some of my colleagues have heard the rocks were placed there by Spanish settlers clearing their fields, and there have been speculations that it could have been part of Indigenous practice,” said Charlotte Graham, a spokesperson for the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority. “We’ve also heard it could be a natural occurrence.”

However, there isn’t enough evidence on the walls to be entirely certain. A study dated lichen (地衣) on the walls in Berkeley as being from 1851 to 1880, though other sections of the walls haven’t been tested, and there’re few historical accounts on their presence.

1. How may most people never hearing about the boulders react when seeing them?

A．Ignore them.	B．Collect them.
C．Post the photos of them online.	D．Report them to the government.

2. Which section of the stone walls is most probably best preserved?

A．The one along the East Bay Hills.

B．The one near Grizzly Peak in Berkeley.

C．The one at Ed R. Levin County Park in Milpitas.

D．The one at the Sierra Vista Open Space Preserve.

3. What does the underlined word “baffled” probably mean in paragraph 4?

A．Prevented.

B．Confused.

C．Annoyed.

D．Inspired.

4. What can be the best title for the text?

A．Functions of stone walls	B．Newly-found boulders
C．The history of boulders	D．Stories behind mystery walls