1 . With his leg lame and his teeth uneven, the boy thought of himself as the most unfortunate child in the world. He _________played with his classmates, and when asked to answer questions, he always _________his head without a word.

One spring, his father brought home some saplings (树苗).______of his children would plant a sapling and he promised, "Whoever ________ his sapling best shall get a gift." The boy certainly wanted to get the gift.______seeing his brothers and sisters watering the trees, he_______ an idea: he hoped the tree he planted would die soon. So watering it once or twice, he never_______ it.

Several days later, he was _________ to find it not only didn't die, but also grew so many fresh ________. Compared with those of his brothers and sisters, his appeared greener. His father kept his _______, bought the boy a gift and said he would become an outstanding________ after growing up.

From then on, the boy slowly became_____ and confident. One evening, he suddenly________ his biology teacher once said that plants ________ grow at night. Why not go to see the tree?

When he came to the courtyard, he found his father working near the tree! Immediately he ________: Father had been secretly ________ his tree! He returned to his room, tears in his eyes.

Decades passed. The boy didn't become a botanist. ________, he became the U.S.__________. His name was Franklin Roosevelt.

________ is the best nourishment (滋养品) of life. ________ it is just a bucket of water, it can make the tree of life grow well!

1.

A．seldom

B．ever

C．still

D．often

2.

A．held

B．raised

C．lowered

D．covered

3.

A．Both

B．Each

C．One

D．None

4.

A．likes

B．protects

C．watches

D．grows

5.

A．But

B．So

C．Or

D．And

6.

A．came up with

B．got rid of

C．cared for

D．put forward

7.

A．contributed to

B．attended to

C．got used to

D．turned to

8.

A．amused

B．frightened

C．disappointed

D．surprised

9.

A．roots

B．branches

C．leaves

D．seeds

10.

A．opinion

B．balance

C．agreement

D．word

11.

A．teacher

B．gardener

C．botanist

D．president

12.

A．satisfied

B．upset

C．independent

D．optimistic

13.

A．remembered

B．believed

C．repeated

D．knew

14.

A．hardly

B．generally

C．recently

D．probably

15.

A．doubted

B．admitted

C．wondered

D．understood

16.

A．cutting

B．watering

C．decorating

D．fertilizing

17.

A．Therefore

B．Besides

C．Instead

D．Moreover

18.

A．lawyer

B．doctor

C．president

D．teacher

19.

A．Love

B．Water

C．Disability

D．Father

20.

A．So long as

B．If only

C．Now that

D．Even though

2 . Standing in line for the latest iPhone at the Apple store, queuing for tickets to the match or even just waiting at the post office might just have got a lot easier.

Japanese car-maker Nissan announces that it has just the thing to relieve the painful legs of tired queuers.

The new system of self-driving chairs is designed to detect when someone at the front of the queue is called, and automatically move everyone else one step forward in line.

The new invention is shown in a company video, which shows a busy restaurant with customers waiting outside. In the video, diners are sitting in a row of chairs, but will not have to stand when the next hungry diner is called to a table. Instead, the chairs, equipped with autonomous technology that detects the seat ahead, move along a path toward the front of the line. When the person at the front of the queue is called, the empty chair at the front can sense it is empty and so moves out of line. Cameras on the remaining chairs then sense the movement and follow automatically.

“The system, which is similar to the kind used in Nissan's autonomous vehicle technology, will be tested at select restaurants in Japan this year,” Nissan said. “It appeals to anyone who has queued for hours outside a crowded restaurant: it rids the boredom and physical pain of standing in line,” Nissan added.

Although Tokyo has some 160,000 restaurants, long queues are not uncommon. Chosen restaurants that meet the criteria will be able to show the chairs outside their restaurants next year. Nissan also released a short video showing the chairs being used in an art gallery, moving slowly in front of the various paintings to let viewers appreciate the art without the need to stand up.

1. When does the empty chair leave the line?

A．It feels no person in it.

B．The queue is too long.

C．The remaining chairs follow it.

D．The camera on it doesn’t work.

2. What’s Nissan’s attitude to the future of self-driving chairs?

A．Negative	B．Optimistic
C．Doubtful	D．Neutral

3. From the last paragraph we know that _______.

A．queuing is a rare scene outside Japanese restaurants

B．Japanese people prefer eating in restaurants to at home

C．self-driving chairs will be used in all art galleries in Japan.

D．self-driving chairs haven’t been used widely in restaurants in Japan.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．How to use self-driving chairs.

B．How to queue in self-driving chairs.

C．Self-driving chairs to become popular.

D．Self-driving chairs to make queuing less painful.

3 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

A material can be really special when it was named after the place where it     1       (create)originally.That’certainly the case     2     “china”.And of all types of china，white porcelain(瓷)is among the most famous.

Nowadays，the     3     (tradition)material has taken on a modern look in the       4    (hand)of four Chinese artists in the Modern White Porcelain Exhibition.And the key word here is“modern”.One of the works     5     (be)a porcelain boat.But look     6     (attentive)and you’11 see that the boat     7     (build)with porcelain looks like a takeout box.Inside the boat is a statue of a baby.The baby stands for humans and the boat is       8     supports life.It suggests we may have done some damage to     9     environment and that we’re treating life like fast food.

All the four artists gave white porcelain a model style，each in     10     (they)own way.And this is what the exhibition’s theme comes from.It’s a dialogue between the past and the present.

4 . Classical Chinese poetry is traditional Chinese poetry     1     (write) in Classic Chinese and typified by certain traditional forms. Many     2     (poem) come from particular historical periods, such as the poetry of the Tang Dynasty and the verse of Song Dynasty.     3     (it) existence dates back to at least as early as the publication of the Classic of Poetry or Shijing. There are     4     (vary) combinations of forms and genres, most of     5     arose at the end of the Tang Dynasty.

Development of Classical Chinese poetry     6     (active ) continued up to the year of 1919, when the May Fourth Movement     7     (take) place, and is still popular even today. Classical Poetry created during this 2,500 year period has been developing continuously,     8     (produce) a great deal of diversity - classified by both major historical periods     9     dynastic periods.

Of the key aspects of Classical Chinese poetry is its close inter - relationship with other forms of Chinese art, such as Chinese painting and Chinese calligraphy (书法). Classical Chinese poetry has proven lo have a strong influence     10     poetry worldwide.

5 . The Indian government may use 3D paintings as virtual speed-breakers on major highways and roads, in an attempt to check speeding and careless driving，and eventually make its deadly roads a little safer. “We are trying out 3D paintings used as virtual speed breakers to avoid unnecessary requirements of speed breakers,” India’s transport minister Nitin Gadkari tweeted.

The visual illusions (幻象) are supposed to encourage drivers to slow down automatically. Earlier this month, India had ordered the removal of all speed breakers from highways, which are considered to be a danger to safety for high-speed vehicles.

India has the highest number of road accident deaths in the world. According to the World Health Organisation, over 200,00 people are killed by road accidents due to poor application of road safety laws. This is considerably higher than its official figures of 141,526 for 2014.

The use of visual illusions as speed breakers was first pioneered in the American city of Philadelphia in 2008, as part of a campaign against speeding motorists. The technique has also been tried out in China to create floating 3D crossings.

In India, cities such as Ahmedabad and Chennai have already experimented with 3D zebra crossings in the last one year. In Ahmedabad for instance, two artists, mother and daughter have painted 3D crosswalks in the first few months of this year. The artists say their motto is “to increase the attention of drivers”, and that the concept has been successfully tested in zones where accidents easily occur on a highway.

However, critics argue that once drivers know that these speed breakers are visual illusions, they may ignore them. Others also point out that India’s decision does not consider the safety of a large number of walkers. In the end, the new policy may be just one step towards improving road safety.

1. According to the passage, 3D paintings as virtual speed breakers in India aims to       .

A．Replace all speed breakers from highways.

B．Encourage essential requirements of speed breakers.

C．Check speeding and careless driving on all highways.

D．Remind divers to speed down voluntarily for road safety.

2. What caused the high number of road accident deaths in India?

A．Speeding motorists.	B．Floating 3D crossings.
C．Free use of visual illusions.	D．Bad application of traffic laws.

3. The author explains the experiment of 3D zebra crossings in India by       .

A．giving examples.	B．analysing causes.
C．providing figures.	D．making comparisons.

4. What’s the author’s attitude towards 3D zebra crossings?

A．subjective.	B．objective.
C．supportive.	D．critical.

6 . The National Gallery

Description:

The National Gallery is the British national art museum built on the north side of Trafalgar Square in London. It houses a diverse collection of more than 2,300 examples of European art ranging from 13th-century religious paintings to more modern ones by Renoir and Van Gogh. The older collections of the gallery are reached through the main entrance while the more modern works in the East Wing are most easily reached from Trafalgar Square by a ground floor entrance.

Layout:

The modern Sainsbury Wing on the western side of the building houses 13th-to15th-century paintings, and artists include Duccio, Uccello, Van Eyck, Lippi, Mantegna, Botticelli and Memling.

The main West Wing houses 16th-century paintings, and artists include Leonardo da Vinci, Cranach, Michelangelo, Raphael, Bruegel, Bronzino, Titan and Veronese.

The North Wing houses 17th-century paintings, and artists include Caravaggio, Rubens, Poussin, Van Dyck, Velazquez, Claude and Vermeer.

The East Wing houses 18th-to early 20th-century paintings, and artists include Canaletto, Goya, Turner, Constable, Renoir and Van Gogh.

Opening Hours:

The Gallery is open every day from 10 am to 6 pm (Fridays 10 am to 9 pm) and is free, but charges apply to some special exhibitions.

Getting There:

Nearest underground stations: Charing Cross (2-minute walk), Leicester Square (3-minute walk), Embankment (7-minute walk), and Piccadilly Circus (8-minute walk).

1. In which century’s collection can you see religious paintings?

A．The 20th	B．The 17th
C．The 18th	D．The 13th

2. Where are Leonardo da Vinci’s works shown?

A．In the East Wing.	B．In the main West Wing.
C．In the Sainsbury Wing.	D．In the North Wing.

3. Which underground station is closest to the National Gallery?

A．Charing Cross.	B．Leicester Square.
C．Embankment.	D．Piccadilly Circus.

7 . When students and parents are asked to rate subjects according to their importance，the arts are unavoidably at the bottom of the list. Music is nice, people seem to say, but not important. Too often it is viewed as entertainment, but certainly not an education priority（优先）. This view is shortsighted. In fact, music education is beneficial and important for all students

Music tells us who we are. Because music is an expression of the beings who create it, it reflects their thinking and values, as well as the social environment it came from. Rock music represents a lifestyle just as surely as does a Schubert song. The jazz influence that George Gershwin and other musicians introduced into their music is obviously American because it came from American musical traditions. Music expresses our character and values. It gives us identity as a society.

Music provides a kind of perception(视角) that cannot be acquired any other way. Science can explain how the sun rises and sets. The arts explore the emotive（情感的）meaning of the same phenomenon. We need every possible way to discover and respond to our world for one simple but powerful reason: No one way can get it all.

The arts are forms of thought as powerful in what they communicate as mathematical and scientific symbols. They are ways we human beings “talk” to each other. They are the language of civilization through which we express our fears, our curiosities our hungers, our discoveries, our hopes. The arts are ways we give form to our ideas and imagination so that they can be shared with others. When we do not give children access to an important way of expressing themselves such as music, we take away from them the meanings that music expresses.

So music education is far more necessary than people seem to realize.

1. According to paragraph 1, students ________.

A．regard music as a way of entertainment

B．disagree with their parents on education

C．view music as an overlooked subject

D．prefer the arts to science

2. In Paragraph 2, the author uses jazz as an example to ________.

A．compare it with rock music

B．show music identifies a society

C．introduce American musical traditions

D．prove music influences people’s lifestyles

3. According to the passage, the arts and science ________.

A．approach the world from different angles

B．explore different phenomena of the world

C．express people’s feeling in different ways

D．explain what it means to be human differently

4. What is the main idea of the passage?

A．Music education deserves more attention.

B．Music should be of top education priority.

C．Music is an effective communication tool.

D．Music education makes students more imaginative.