1 . What is talent? Are you born with it? Or does it seem to develop over time? Before I start, I’d like to say that one thing everyone agrees on is that the most skilled musicians have worked hard to get there.
While it’s true that a few of us had enough “talent” to avoid extra practice to do just as well as those who did, those who worked hard easily beat us. It is, in fact, very likely that if some of us “talented ones” had actually been practicing and improving our skill, we would have achieved a whole different level.
Another aspect of talent seems to be heart and passion (酷爱). The people I see who are the most talented musicians are crazy about music. They eat, breathe, and live music and they make an extraordinary effort to make it part of their lives. As Remus Badea said, desire for the musician-to-be is significant for them to be successful. This desire is easily found in those considered to be talented. When you want and love something so bad, it drives you and your entire character can be shaped around it. Such determined passion seems to produce incredible skill and talent.
The third aspect (方面) of talent is having talent around you. When surrounded by talented musicians, it only seems natural that you start to catch up to their level Take a look at almost any group of musicians in history. The more talented people in the group the more talented the group is as a whole. A great example of this is the relationship between audio producer and artist. The artist turns up to the studio with their song, and as they work through recording it, the audio producer will often suggest various changes to the song to make it better.
1. What can we learn from Paragraph 2?| A．Pride goes before a fall. |
| B．It’s never too old to learn. |
| C．Practice contributes to talent. |
| D．Talent determines achievements. |
| A．Passion. | B．Character . | C．Skill. | D．Talent. |
| A．To introduce what real talents are. |
| B．To explain how a song is composed. |
| C．To prove talents need team spirit. |
| D．To show the benefits of being with talents. |
| A．Music has no limits. |
| B．Musicians are born with talent. |
| C．Music favors the talented. |
| D．Musicians are created, not born. |
2 . Find your new favorite West End musicals, from heartwarming adaptations and award-winning scores to extremely funny musicals and must-see London shows.
 | The Lion King Enjoy songs such as Circle Of Life. The award-winning adaptation of Disney’s The Lion King features music by Elton John, plus outstanding costumes and wonderful special effects. The Lion King delights all ages with rhythms of Africa and touching stories of love and life. Prices from £43.05 Call 077-533-0589 for Booking! |
 | The Phantom of the Opera Andrew Lloyd Webber’s famous musical, The Phantom of the Opera, tells the tale of a shadowy character who attempts to make Christina the leading lady of the Paris Opera. With a fantastic plot and breathtaking scene, this long-running show is one of the must-see musicals in London. Prices from £30.75 Call 077-916-4545 for Booking! |
 | Thriller–Live See Thriller–Live, a musical in memory of Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5. The show joined London’s West End after three UK tours and popularity across Europe. Celebrate the career of the King of Pop during non-stop hits at this top London theatre show. Prices from £32.72 Call 077-816-3148 for Booking! |
 | School of Rock Rock out at this award-winning new musical. Based on the 2003 movie, School of Rock follows the story of Dewey Finn and his discovery to transform a class of A-grade students into a real rock group. But will they make it to the Battle of the Bands? Booking until Feb. Prices from £18.00 Call 077-317-8315 for Booking! |
 | Matilda The Musical Be wowed by the Royal Shakespeare Company’s multi-award-winning production of Matilda The Musical. Roald Dahl’s celebrated story bursts into life in this West End musical by Dennis Kelly and Tim Minchin. Children and adults alike will be delighted by the little girl with an extraordinary imagination. Prices from £24.00 Call 077-517-8367 for Booking! |
1. The Phantom of the Opera is special because of its _____.
| A．excellent costumes | B．experienced actors |
| C．attractive story | D．beautiful songs |
| A．The Phantom of the Opera. | B．Matilda The Musical. |
| C．School of Rock. | D．Thriller–Live. |
| A．To analyze musicals. | B．To criticize musicals. |
| C．To advertise musicals. | D．To evaluate musicals. |
3 . Human demands for natural resources have doubled in less than 50 years and are now beyond what the earth can provide, a report warned. If humans carry on like this, we will need two earths by 2030. The population of wildlife has fallen by 60% in thirty years.
The report said British people are consuming (消耗) far more than the earth can deal with. If everyone lived such a lifestyle, humans would need 2.75 planets to survive. People are now living lifestyles which would require 1.5 planets, though there are great differences between rich and poor nations.
Researchers studied the global change in land use and water consumption. The UK comes 31st in a list of countries based on “ecological footprint (生态足迹)” that measures how much land and sea each person needs to produce the resources they consume and to absorb (吸收) the wastes. The UK has fallen down from 15th place in the last report two years ago to 3lst place, but the WWF believes it is an increase in other countries’ efforts rather than a reduction in the UK’s use of resources.
Ireland has the 10th highest ecological footprint, while the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Denmark, Belgium and the US are the five worst countries for over-consumption of resources. The study suggests if the expected global population of 9.2 billion in 2050 were to eat a Malaysian diet, 1.3 planets would be needed but if everyone were to eat an Italian diet, humans would need almost two planets. Those countries that can provide the highest quality of life using the lowest amount of resources will not only serve the global interest, but will be the leaders in a resource-limited world.
1. We will probably need __________earths if we follow the British lifestyle.| A．1.3 | B．2.75 |
| C．2 | D．1.5 |
| A．It has something to do with human demands for resources and their wastes. |
| B．It is used to produce the resources and absorb the wastes. |
| C．We can know the total amount of resources on the earth through it. |
| D．It is about changes in land use and water consumption across the globe. |
| A．the earth won’t be able to meet human needs after 50 years. |
| B．the UK has possibly not reduced the use of resources over the past two years. |
| C．Ireland has a lower ecological footprint than the UK. |
| D．there are no big differences in lifestyle between rich and poor nations. |
| A．has a larger population than Italy. |
| B．consumes fewer resources than Italy. |
| C．would need almost two planets. |
| D．has the highest quality of life. |
4 . Some of the most powerful companies in the world have co-founders. For example, Google(Sergey Brin and Larry Page),Apple(Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs),and Microsoft(Bill Gates and Paul Allen)and so on. Having partners can help to deal with the pressure and the failures that come with running a business. No matter how down on your luck you feel they may provide emotional support. They may have extra skills, and be on hand to help out with the day-to-day problems. And an alternate point of view may help to broaden your mind and aid the risk of mistakes being overlooked.
Everybody knows Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7.When the phone was launched in 2016,customers praised it for its storage, design and usability, and it may well have been a hit if it weren’t for the fact that it occasionally caught fire and exploded. It was soon banned immediately from flights, and Samsung had no choice but to recall the entire model. The shortcoming reportedly cost the company $1 billion, and a further $17 billion in lost sales. But remember, based on the lesson, the Galaxy Note 8 and the Galaxy Note 9 are well received in the world! Now we know that failing is part of business success.
One thing that all great companies have in common is that they have failed many times—and luckily, they bounced back. Take Sarah Blakely, founder of shapewear brand Spanx for example. She credits her business success specifically to her failures. “I’d get kicked out of buildings all day long, “she remembered. “People would tear up my business card in my face. But my friends and I knew I could sell and I knew I wanted to sell something I had created. I learned that ‘no’ doesn’t always mean ‘no’ ,and that you may get 30 nos before you get the one yes. People told me no with Spanx for two years. “Spanx is worth just over $1 billion—it was a company that Blakely who took a degree in a law school started with just $5 000!
1. What can we learn from the examples in Paragraph 1?| A．Two heads are better than one. |
| B．Constant dropping wears the stone. |
| C．God helps those who help themselves. |
| D．All things are difficult before they are easy. |
| A．To suggest customers should follow the new trends. |
| B．To prove Samsung is responsible for customers. |
| C．To show Samsung paid for its product failure. |
| D．To explain that failures don’t spell the end. |
| A．Her friends’help. | B．Her will power. |
| C．Her good luck. | D．Her education background. |
| A．By making contrast. | B．By making classification. |
| C．By giving examples. | D．By giving numbers. |
