1 . A Wolf in Danger

What is happening to the timber wolf (森林狼) today?

Native Americans and early settlers often went to sleep to the sound of a lonely lullaby (催眠曲). It was the song of the wolf howling in a distant forest. There were many wolves then. One kind was the North American timber wolf.

Wolves are important to the balance of nature because they eat sick and weak animals. In Colorado, people tried to help deer by shooting wolves. But then there were so many deer that many of them starved to death.

The timber wolf is on the endangered special list . Animals on this list are in danger of disappearing from the earth. People drove the wolves away by cutting down the forests to build houses, towns, and highways. Timber wolves are now found only in Canada, Alaska, Michigan, and Minnesota.

This special animal may soon disappear from our forests forever. Then, its lonely howl will never be heard again.

1. Animals that are in danger of disappearing from the earth are called a(n)_______species.

A．endangered

B．living

C．alive

D．lived

2. Wolves help the balance of nature because they _______.

A．are an endangered species

B．eat sick and weak animals

C．no longer live in forests

D．help the farmers

3. At one time, the timber wolf was found _______.

A．in many parts of North America

B．only in Colorado and Canada

C．in towns and cities in Alaska

D．in many parts of Africa

4. Which of the following happened first?

A．People built towns and highways.

B．The timber wolf was driven away from its home.

C．People cut down the forests.

D．Timber wolves are endangered species.

2 . Mrs Black lives in a small village. Her husband is dead. Her son, Jack, lived with her. He worked in a shop in the village, but then he found a job in town named Green sea. He went to live there. Mrs Black was very angry. She got on a train and went to see her son. Then she said to him, "Jack, why do you never telephone me?"

Jack laughed, "But, mother, you haven't got a telephone. " "No. "she answered, "I haven't, but you have got one. "

1. The old Black ________.

A．is dead	B．lives with his wife
C．went to a small village	D．worked in a shop

2. Jack lived with his mother ______he worked in the village.

A．before

B．when

C．after

D．so

3. Green sea is ________.

A．a big city

B．a small village

C．a town

D．a man’s name

4. Jack didn’t phone his mother because ________.

A．he had no phone	B．he was very busy
C．his mother had no phone	D．he went home every day

5. Jack’s mother was very angry because ________.

A．Jack didn’t want to ring her up

B．Jack had a telephone but she hadn’t

C．she didn’t know how to make a telephone

D．she didn’t know she couldn’t be called

3 . When we experience earthquakes, medical emergencies — whatever the situation, the first thing you probably do is panic. Everybody does. While many of us think that we’re cool in a crisis, science tells us that we seldom are. At the moment we need to be keenly aware of our surroundings, but our attention goes to the scariest thing on the scene, leaving us unaware of the other sights, sounds, and even smells around us. At the moment, we’re anything but at our best.

These normal human reactions can be reversed. For example, firefighters are taught how to bring down their blood pressure and heart rates quickly, box breathing, belly breathing, hum breathing — you can learn these techniques in minutes. Once you calm down, you’ll identify accurately what the problem is really about. Lack of practice always causes us to judge problems in wrong ways. Doing the thinking ahead of time also helps you fire off the solution when it’s show time. This is why you are advised to find the closest exit before the flight. And sometimes we aren’t prepared with all the knowledge we need. Let’s say we’re on a hike and a bear shows up. What shall we do? Better to read suggestions on how to respond before heading into the wild.

Performing in a crisis is becoming more important for all of us for two reasons. Back in the good old days, the reliability of most anything we used or did was far less than it is today. Now think about what happens to our preparedness as the probability of something had happening reduces. Unless we practice what hardly ever happens, our ability to respond when it does happen tends to slip away. Reliability can kill you. Also, the systems we use today are more complex. There are seldom moving parts in plain view that allow us to see when things are about to go wrong. Consequently, terrible situations can “come out of nowhere”. Ironically, the systems that were designed to lessen our workload might require us to remain in a state of increased vigilance (警觉) in order to survive these increasingly infrequent events when they do happen.

As technology becomes part of most everything, and as once-large risks break into countless small ones, crisis situations may become standard affairs. We should all learn to breathe, recognize the situation, and carry out the plan that we are smart enough to prepare well in advance.

1. According to the passage, when an armed robbery (抢劫) happens, most witnesses will first___________.

A．observe the surroundings

B．pretend to be calm

C．decide what to do

D．focus on the gun

2. What does the underlined word “reversed” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Tested.

B．Changed.

C．Predicted.

D．Understood

3. It can be inferred from Paragraph 3 that ___________.

A．things are less dependable than they used to be

B．cautiousness helps prevent the occurrence of crisis

C．convenience reduces our problem-solving capability

D．the complexity of present systems ensures our safety

4. What is the main purpose of the passage?

A．To introduce ways of avoiding crisis situations.

B．To point out the connection between stress and risks.

C．To raise awareness of the preparation for emergencies.

D．To analyse the influence of technology on crisis management.

4 . When I was 12 years old, I already knew that my teen years were going to be the worst years of my life. I was a total outsider, bullied （欺凌）at school. I felt completely alone in my small town.

But by starting to do volunteer work when I was 14, I turned my problem into a passion for helping others. The opportunity to practice kindness made me feel like my life had a greater purpose. The more positive energy 1 shared, the more kindness and appreciation I received, I realized that my purpose in life would be to reach out to people, specifically teenagers, and help them feel less alone.

Books were my true friends back then. I was so thankful that the authors wrote those books. The kindness they offered me with their books saved my life. One of my biggest dreams was to become an author so I could write books that would help other teenagers the way those books helped me.

After surviving the terrible experiences at school and at home, 1 made a choice to take the optimistic, positive road in the next steps of my journey. My dream career, one I thought was only possible for the authors I loved, is what I am doing now. I have been a full-time author of teen novels since 2007 and am grateful for this amazing opportunity to reach out to readers every single day.

Kindness saved me when I needed help the most. Even small acts of kindness can change someone's life. You never know what someone else is going through. But by practicing daily kindness, you become an architect of positive change.

1. What was the author's life like when he was 12?

A．Boring.

B．Peaceful.

C．Joyful.

D．Unhappy.

2. What benefit did the author get from the volunteer work?

A．It helped him find the goal of life.

B．It made him energetic in his life.

C．It helped to shape his dream career.

D．It helped him understand others' lives better.

3. The reason why the author chose writing as his job is that ________.

A．he was inspired by his teacher.

B．he found he had a talent for writing.

C．he could pass positive energy to readers.

D．he wanted to share his teenage experiences.

4. What is the author's purpose in writing the passage?

A．Say 'no' to bullies bravely.

B．Make positive changes in our lives.

C．Treat others with kindness in daily life.

D．Learn to care more about others' feelings.

9 . On a boat near Costa Rica, a team of marine biologist is helping a turtle. The animal is having trouble breathing, and the team discovers why—there is something inside its nose. A scientist tries to extract the object, but the turtle cries in pain. Finally after eight long minutes, a long object is pulled out. It is a 10-centimeter plastic straw.

The video of the turtle's rescue has been viewed millions of times on YouTube. It has helped raise awareness of a growing problem: The world's seas are full of plastic. Since 2000, there has been a huge increase worldwide plastic production, but we recycle less than one-fifth of it. A lot of this plastic waste' ends up in the ocean. Today, scientists think about 8.1 billion kilograms goes into the sea every year from costal regions. Most of this plastic will never break into little pieces.

This ocean plastic hurts millions of sea animals every year. Some fish eat plastic because it is covered with sea plants, and it looks and smells like food. “In some cases, eating sharp pieces of plastic can seriously hurt sea animals and even result in death,” says marine biologist Matthew Savoca.

Plastic is useful to people because it is strong and lasts a long time, but this is bad news for sea creatures who eat or get stuck in it. According to Savoca, Single-use plastics are the worst.” These are items that are used only once before we throw them away. Some common examples include straws, water bottles, and plastic bags. About 700 sea species have been caught in or have eaten this kind of plastic. Luckily, the turtle survived and was released back into the ocean. How will plastic affect sea animals in the long term? “I think we’ll know the answers in 5 to 10 years’ time,” says an expert from Columbia University. But by then, another 25 million tons of plastic will already be in the ocean.

1. Which of these questions is answered in Paragraph 1?

A．Where was the scientist from?

B．When did the incident take place?

C．What was the cause of the turtle's pain?

D．How did the scientists remove the object?

2. What does “It” in Paragraph 2 refer to?

A．The video.

B．The turtle.

C．YouTube.

D．The Plastic.

3. Why are the seas full of plastic waste?

A．Because sea animals consume plastic.

B．Because more plastic is produced than recycled.

C．Because plastic can be dissolved in the sea quickly.

D．Because other places are already full of plastic waste.

4. What can be concluded from the text?

A．Single-use plastics are people's favorite.

B．Plastic waste can cause deadly damage to sea animals.

C．More than 700 sea species can survive the ocean plastic.

D．The ocean’s plastic problem will be solved in a decade.

10 . Please take a few seconds and think of your personal biggest goal. Imagine telling someone you meet today what you’re going to do. Imagine their congratulations and their high image of you. Doesn't it feel good to say it out loud? Don’t you feel one step closer already? Well, bad news: you should have kept your mouth shut, because that good feeling will make you less likely to do it.

Any time you have a goal, there is some work that needs to be done to achieve it. Ideally, you would not be satisfied until you’d actually done the work. But when you tell someone your goal and he acknowledges it, psychologists have found it's called a "social reality". The mind is kind of tricked into a feeling that it's already done. And then. because you’ve felt that satisfaction. you’re less motivated to do the actual and necessary hard work. This goes against the traditional wisdom that we should tell our friends our goals, right?

In 1982, Peter Gollwitzer, a professor of psychology, wrote a whole book about this. And in 2009, he did some new tests, which were published. It goes like this: 163 people across four separate tests—everyone wrote down their personal goal. Then half of them announced their commitment to this goal to the room, and half didn't. Then everyone was given 45 minutes of work that would directly lead them towards their goal, but they were told that they could stop at any time. Finally, those who kept their mouths shut worked the entire 45 minutes on average, and when asked afterwards, said they felt they had a long way to go to achieve their goal. But those who had announced it quit after only 33 minutes on average, and when asked afterwards, said that they felt much closer to achieving their goal.

1. What do the words "social reality" in Paragraph 2 mean?

A．Necessary hard work.	B．Completion of a goal
C．A sense of satisfaction.	D．People’s judgement.

2. What does Peter Gollwitzer try to tell us?

A．Writing down the goal is very helpful.

B．Achieving the personal goal needs more time.

C．Keeping the goal secret makes people work harder.

D．Making the goal public makes people less satisfied.

3. How did Peter Gollwitzer prove his idea about people's goal?

A．By giving figures.	B．By giving examples.
C．By making a survey.	D．By making comparison tests

4. What will probably happen if you tell your friends your goal?

A．You'll be more confident

B．You will not gain satisfaction.

C．You'll be less likely to realize it.

D．You'll be much more motivated.