1 . When you set a foot outside of your door to drop trash, go to a social event or go for a walk, thoughts like “I hope I don’t see anyone I know” or “please don’t talk to me” may run through your mind. I’ve also said such things to myself. Sometimes the last thing you want to do is to talk with someone, especially someone new.

Why do we go out of our ways to avoid people? Do we think meeting new people is a waste of time? Or are we just lazy, thinking that meeting someone new really is a trouble?

Communication is the key to life. We have been told that many times. Take the past generations, like our parents, for example. They seem to take full advantage of that whole “communication” idea because they grew up talking face to face while Generation-Y grew up staring at screens. We spend hours of our days sitting on Facebook. We send messages to our friends and think about all of the things we want to say to certain people and that we don’t have the courage to do in reality.

Nowadays, we are so caught up in our little circle of friends — our comfort zone. We love it that they laugh at our jokes, understand our feelings and can read our minds. Most importantly, they know when we want to be alone. They just get us.

Holding a conversation with someone new means agreeing with things that you don’t really believe and being someone you think they want you to be — it is, as I said before, a trouble. It takes up so much energy, and at some point or another, it is too tiring.

But meeting new people is important. Life is too short, so meet all the people you can meet, make the effort to go out and laugh. Remember, every “hello” leads to a smile — and a smile is worth a lot.

1. What do we learn about the author?

A．He likes to meet someone new.

B．He feels stressed out lately.

C．He’s active in attending social events.

D．He used to be afraid of talking to others.

2. What’s the problem of Generation-Y in the author’s eyes?

A．They are less confident in themselves.

B．They rely on the Internet to socialize.

C．They have difficulty in communicating.

D．They are unwilling to make new friends.

3. Why does the author write the text?

A．To stress the importance of friends.

B．To encourage people to meet new people.

C．To give tips on how to meet new people.

D．To display the disadvantages of Generation-Y.

2 . Yesterday, my daughter had to go to work earlier than usual. Since the gym where I work out is not far from her ________, I decided to take her to work and then go to the gym.

At quite an earlier ________, the gym was already full of men and women of all ages, working out. I ________ go to the gym at this early hour, and was________ to see so many people. It seems that many go to the gym before going to work.

I know how difficult it is for most people to start ________. Most people know it is good for their body, but they are too ________ to go to the gym, ________ in the morning. They prefer to spend an extra hour in bed before starting their_________. In the afternoon, they are too tired after work, and want to stay at home or go out to meet friends.

If you’re one of them, you need self discipline (自律) and ________ your laziness. If you ________ going to the gym and exercising, you would start to like it. This usually ________ when you see that you’re losing weight and you feel stronger.

It is the same in every other area of life, when you study a foreign language or when you make up your mind to ________ your dreams. It is ________ at first. But when you start to see ________, everything becomes easier because you have special ________.

1.

A．house

B．garage

C．office

D．flat

2.

A．hour

B．moment

C．time

D．occasion

3.

A．usually

B．sometimes

C．only

D．seldom

4.

A．happy

B．surprised

C．excited

D．satisfied

5.

A．working

B．fighting

C．exercising

D．practising

6.

A．busy

B．lazy

C．shy

D．afraid

7.

A．actually

B．simply

C．especially

D．generally

8.

A．challenge

B．competition

C．afternoon

D．day

9.

A．recognize

B．realize

C．accept

D．overcome

10.

A．practice

B．keep

C．forget

D．consider

11.

A．improves

B．happens

C．finishes

D．exists

12.

A．remember

B．recall

C．achieve

D．make

13.

A．exciting

B．important

C．interesting

D．difficult

14.

A．results

B．facts

C．sights

D．chances

15.

A．motivation

B．dream

C．need

D．movement

3 . I live in Xizhou in Yunnan Province, on the historic Tea Horse Road. I have to admit that when I first heard that Paul Salopek was going to walk the entire globe on his own two feet, I was blown away. I couldn’t imagine that there could be such an unusual person in the world.

Last May, I met Paul. He told me that it was his first time in China. He talked to me with great excitement about the history, migrations, and discoveries in my region of China. He spoke of the Shu-Yandu Dao (the Southern Silk Road), the travels of the 17th-century Chinese explorer Xu Xiake, the Tea Horse Road and the early 20th-century American botanist Joseph Rock. He also talked of Xuanzang. Paul considered many of them heroes and in a sense Chinese pioneers of slow journalism.

I decided to accompany Paul on his walk toward Yunnan. On September 28, 2021, we set out. Our days were simple: walk, eat, sleep, and repeat. We woke up at sunrise, set off in high spirits, and rested at sunset, dragging ourselves into exhausted sleep.

We met many people on the road. Some were curious, surrounding us and watching us; some gave us directions; some invited us into their home to take a rest; some spoke of the charm of their hometown. We met many beautiful souls, simple souls and warm souls. We were walking with our minds.

Together, we were impressed by the biodiversity of the Gaoligong Mountains. As I walked on ancient paths through mountains, I seemed to hear the antique voices of past travelers urging me to be careful on the road.

Looking back on the more than 200 miles I walked with Paul, I came to a realization. Walking for its own sake, while healthy and admirable, is only a small part of the benefit of moving with our feet. A deeper reward is rediscovering the world around us, shortening the distance between each other, and sharing each other’s cultures.

1. How did the writer first respond to Paul’s travel plan?

A．Scared.	B．Puzzled.
C．Disappointed.	D．Surprised.

2. What can we learn about Paul Salopek from paragraph 2?

A．He was a western journalist.	B．He had a knowledge of China.
C．He came to China several times.	D．He was Joseph Rock’s acquaintance.

3. What does paragraph 4 tell us about the writer and Paul?

A．They honored the ancestors.	B．They set off in high spirits.
C．They satisfied the locals’ curiosity.	D．They built bonds with people.

4. What is the main purpose of the writer’s writing the text?

A．To share and reflect on a journey.	B．To suggest a new way of travel.
C．To advocate protection of biodiversity.	D．To introduce and promote Chinese culture.

4 . While most parks tend to draw families in the summer and fall, there are also ideal spots for adventurous winter trips.

Yellowstone National Park Wyoming.

The country’s oldest and best-known national park takes on an almost otherworldly atmosphere in winter: the air filled with rolling steam, the strong colors of hot springs, the surrounding white landscapes, let alone the impressive wildlife during this time, like bison, wolves. and playful red foxes. Just book a guided hiking tour to get a ranger’s perspective on the park and local people.

Joshua Tree National Park California.

With its giant red rocks and unique trees, you’ll feel like stepping onto a foreign planet as you spend hours hiking the Panoram a Loop or Maze Loop. The park is recognized as an International Dark Sky Park, featuring virtually zero light pollution and the country’s best views of a starry sky.

Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

A significantly lower number of visitors in winter means you can take in unblocked views of the South Rim, and get to see the rare beauty of the Grand Canyon dusted with snow. For those adventurous and daring, it is recommended to hike the Bright Angel Trail and take the chance to see the canyon’s wintertime wildlife, including mule deer, elk, and bald eagles.

Virgin Islands National Park, St. John

Surprise! Not all wintertime national park trips need to involve snow. Virgin Islands National Park is most famous for its white-sand beaches. You can also hike inland to visit old sugar plantations, or venture out to the water to swim along with sea turtles and manta rays. You will definitely enjoy a different winter here.

1. Which park will one choose if he or she is interested in stars?

A．Yellowstone Nation Park.	B．Joshua Tree National Park.
C．Grand Canyon National Park.	D．Virgin Islands National Park

2. What can we know from the passage?

A．The Bright Angel Trail is challenging in cold weather.

B．The four parks are all well-known for the sports on snow.

C．There is a slight drop in visitor numbers in winter in these parks.

D．Virgin Islands National Park lies in an area with rolling steam and hot springs.

3. What’s the best title for the passage?

A．The Ideal Spots for Adventures	B．The Rules to Follow in the Wild
C．The Big Attractions for Families	D．The Best National Parks in Winter

5 . Online jobs have opened the door for many people to earn a living (谋生) or make some extra money from the comfort of their homes. This includes teens as well. If you’re looking for such a job, here are some choices you can consider.

Customer Service

If you are 16 years old and over, you have a chance to work with Uhaul as a customer service person. You just need to have a good pair of head-phones and high-speed Internet in order to do this job. Basic pay starts at $7.50an hour.

Sell Items Online

Selling items online is one of the easiest ways to make quick cash. Teens can turn it into a good business by selling things on Bonanza. You need to start sorting through (分类) items at your home that are no longer being used and list them for sale.

Take Surveys

Another easy task teens can do to earn money is to take surveys online. You don’t need any work experience to do this and can be as young as 13 years old to get started. Survey sites like VIP Voices, Swagbucks, Harris Poll, E-Poll, and Paid Viewpoint allow teens to start taking surveys for cash and gift cards. And your opinions should be expressed clearly in English.

Etsy

Do you love to make new things? You can open up an Etsy shop to share your works. Etsy is great for DIYers who can create new products. If you are under 18, you just need a parent who is willing to help manage your shop.

1. What does Bonanza allow teens to do?

A．Learn about computer science.	B．Make money out of their old items.
C．Test new products for customers.	D．Receive training in customer service.

2. What is required to take surveys online for teens?

A．Having a good knowledge of English.	B．Having a good pair of headphones.
C．Having some related work experience.	D．Having a wide range of interests.

3. What is special about those who own an Etsy shop?

A．They enjoy buying things online.	B．They are interested in history.
C．They have a creative mind.	D．They are good at collecting used things.

6 . One night, as I was driving down the road, I found something was sitting in the middle of the road. A few seconds later, I realized I was looking at a large turtle (海龟). Afraid of it being crashed by cars, so I pulled over, ran across the road and dragged the turtle to safety. But I’d made one big mistake.

I had heard that the best way to pick up a turtle without hurting it was picking it by the tail in order not to get bitten. So I’d made that big mistake. While the turtle turned out OK generally, I was determined to figure out how to move a turtle properly. I needed to find someone who dealt with turtles. I found the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre. I talked to Dr. Sue, its Executive and Medical Director.

Dr. Sue told me that the organization dealt with a number of aspects of turtle conservation, including rescue, settlement, birth programs, research, and education. Sue explained that southern Ontario is home to a vast majority of turtles in Canada, but is also one of the vastest road networks of the country.

“Ninety percent of injured turtles brought in are caused by cars. These turtles spend a lot of time on land. And they do travel many kilometers on land for a variety of reasons, to find a nesting spot, or to hang out for the summer or winter. Turtles know where they want to go. So, just keep them going in the direction they want to go and you may have saved a turtle’s life,” Dr. Sue said.

Once an injured turtle arrives at the center, there are medical facilities (设备) ready to go, including an X-ray machine. That’s when the team gets to work with healing injuries, and help their patient.

1. Why did the author stop the car?

A．To help the turtle.	B．To see the thing clearly.
C．To prevent a car accident.	D．To find something good.

2. What happened to the turtle?

A．It got hurt by people before.	B．It was injured a little bit.
C．It was run over by a car.	D．It lost its direction.

3. What did Dr. Sue suggest at last?

A．Leaving the turtles alone.

B．Making Ontario home to turtles.

C．Changing the road conditions.

D．Helping turtles find nesting spots.

4. What does the underlined word “patient” refer to in the last paragraph?

A．The director.	B．The driver.
C．The author.	D．The turtle.

7 . 假定你是李华。你的美国朋友Jack发来邮件，想了解中国茶文化。现在请你给他回一封邮件，内容包括：
1.中国茶文化简介；
2.饮茶的好处；
3.邀请他来中国体验茶文化。
注意：
1.词数80左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3.开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Jack,
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Yours,

Li Hua

8 . “Funny or die” has a whole new meaning, thanks to a study published in April in a medical joumal. Women with a strong sense of humor were found to live longer although they were ill, especially for those with heart problems and infection (感染). Happy men seemed to be protected against infection.

The researchers reported the findings from a 15-year study on the connection between the sense of humor and death among 53,556 women and men in their country. The team studied the influence of humor on people’s way of thinking, social skills and emotion development, and examined death from different conditions: heart problems, infection and other health problems.

The findings showed that for women, those who had high scores on a humorous way of thinking had a 48 percent less risk of death from all causes, a 73 percent lower risk of death from heart problems and an 83 percent lower risk of death from infection. For men, a connection was found only for the risk of death from infection — those with high humor scores had a 74 percent reduced risk. The researchers suggested the sex differences could be due to a small decrease in humor scores as the men aged. No connection was found for the influence of humor on social skills and emotion development.

“The humorous way of thinking plays an important role in people’s personality (性格) and may influence the way people cope with everyday life,” said study co-researcher Sven Svebak. “In this way, it may help reduce fighting in daily life, preventing the build-up of stress.” Although the sense of humor is a natural characteristic (特征), it can also be developed through social activities.

“I expect that children whose parents have no sense of humor when feeing challenges are less likely to develop their sense of humor to cope with everyday life when they grow up,” Sven Svebak said. “But if you had a humorless childhood, never fear — studies show people can learn to be humorous at any age.”

1. What can we learn from the first paragraph?

A．Humor could benefit people’s health.

B．Joyflil women can live longer than happy men.

C．Women who seldom laugh may fall ill easily.

D．Humor makes people pay more attention to their health.

2. The reason for men having a higher risk of death from infection than women is that ________.

A．men have poor memories as they age

B．men become less humorous as they grow older

C．men have bad sleeping quality as they grow older

D．men take part in fewer social activities as they age

3. How does the author show the research findings?

A．By listing data.

B．By giving examples.

C．By stating arguments.

D．By making experiments.

4. Which of the following would Sven Svebak agree with?

A．Humoriess people have an unhappy childhood.

B．Children must learn to be humorous at an early age.

C．Humorous people can better deal with pressure in life.

D．Parents with a sense of humor are better at child education.

10 . “Just sign here, sir,” the deliveryman said as he handed Oscar Reyna a package.

The package consisted of a long, narrow box ____ wrapped in brown paper. ____ the box, Oscar saw an umbrella inside—a very old one with a beautifully carved wooden handle. ____ he had not seen it in more than 20 years, he recognised it immediately.

Oscar was 16 when he first saw the____ umbrella. He had gone to a concert with his grandparents. As they were leaving, he noticed an umbrella on an empty seat. Impressed by its beauty, Oscar felt a strong desire to find its ____.

Oscar ____ the manager to look in the record of advance ticket sales. Just as he thought, a name matched the seat ____ Oscar had found the umbrella. The name was Mrs. Katie O’Brien.

Oscar talked his grandparents into going by Mrs. O’Brien’s house on their way home. He rang the bell, the door opened, and an elderly woman appeared. “May I ____ you?” she asked.

“I’d like to return it if it’s yours,” Oscar said, ____ the umbrella as if presenting a gift that had long been wished for.

“Why, yes! It’s mine,” replied Mrs. O’Brien with a ____ smile and shining eyes. “It was given to me by my father years ago. Thank you so much for returning it. May I offer you a reward for your ____?”

“No, ma’am,” he said. “My grandmother says that a good deed is its own reward.”

“Well, that’s ____ what my father used to say. What is your name, young man?”

Years later Oscar was staring at the finely carved handle of the umbrella as he remembered Mrs. O’Brien. It was in perfect condition, considering how ____ it was. Why had it arrived here today?

As if ____, a note fell from the paper. It read: Mrs. O’Brien wanted you to accept this umbrella as a present for a kind, ____ gesture long ago.

1.

A．strictly

B．carefully

C．roughly

D．casually

2.

A．Opening

B．Seizing

C．Observing

D．Searching

3.

A．After

B．When

C．Since

D．Although

4.

A．average

B．unusual

C．plain

D．typical

5.

A．designer

B．seller

C．user

D．owner

6.

A．convinced

B．forced

C．encouraged

D．advised

7.

A．until

B．before

C．which

D．where

8.

A．invite

B．help

C．bother

D．know

9.

A．putting up

B．turning out

C．picking up

D．holding out

10.

A．wide

B．confident

C．proud

D．shy

11.

A．patience

B．kindness

C．courage

D．determination

12.

A．obviously

B．naturally

C．exactly

D．probably

13.

A．old

B．rare

C．precious

D．nice

14.

A．in contrast

B．in return

C．in exchange

D．in answer

15.

A．attractive

B．significant

C．unselfish

D．sympathetic