A MOTHER’S DAY SURPRISE
The twins were filled with excitement as they thought of the surprise they were planning for Mother’s Day. How pleased and proud Mother would be when they brought her breakfast in bed. They planned to make French toast and chicken porridge. They had watched their mother in the kitchen. There was nothing to it. Jenna and Jeff knew exactly what to do.
The big day came at last. The alarm rang at 6 a.m. The pair went down the stairs quietly to the kitchen. They decided to boil the porridge first. They put some rice into a pot of water and left it to boil while they made the French toast. Jeff broke two eggs into a plate and added in some milk. Jenna found the bread and put two slices into the egg mixture. Next, Jeff turned on the second stove burner to heat up the frying pan. Everything was going smoothly until Jeff started frying the bread. The pan was too hot and the bread turned black within seconds. Jenna threw the burnt piece into the sink and put in the other slice of bread. This time, she turned down the fire so it cooked nicely.
Then Jeff noticed steam shooting out of the pot and the lid starting to shake. The next minute, the porridge boiled over and put out the fire. Jenna panicked. Thankfully, Jeff stayed calm and turned off the gas quickly. But the stove was a mess now. Jenna told Jeff to clean it up so they could continue to cook the rest of the porridge. But Jeff’s hand touched the hot burner and he gave a cry of pain. Jenna made him put his hand in cold water. Then she caught the smell of burning. Oh dear! The piece of bread in the pan had turned black as well.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右。2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
As the twins looked around them in disappointment, their father appeared.
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________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________2 . Like many young people, Jessica wants to travel the globe. Unlike most of them, this 25-year-old is doing it
They’re part of a new form of the
It’s not all sightseeing. The two travelers carefully
The couple has a high
| A．indoors | B．online | C．single-handed | D．full-time |
| A．game | B．service | C．vacation | D．procedure |
| A．safe | B．busy | C．helpful | D．affordable |
| A．local | B．private | C．sharing | D．agricultural |
| A．strangers’ | B．parents’ | C．co-workers’ | D．neighbors’ |
| A．favor | B．defense | C．honor | D．absence |
| A．plan | B．explain | C．compare | D．complete |
| A．buy | B．transport | C．choose | D．please |
| A．support | B．comfort | C．control | D．attention |
| A．cooking | B．staying | C．waiting | D．studying |
| A．success | B．survival | C．growth | D．unemployment |
| A．budget | B．abilities | C．expectations | D．understanding |
| A．admiring | B．donating | C．sending | D．borrowing |
| A．clean | B．open | C．simple | D．empty |
| A．guess | B．decision | C．response | D．impression |
Decorating with Plants, Fruits and Flowers for Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year is a
These are some of the most popular in many parts of the country:
Oranges: Orange trees are more
Bamboo: Chinese love their “Lucky Bamboo” plants and you will see them often in their homes and office.
Branches of Plum Blossoms (梅花): The
4 . We all know that unpleasant feeling when we’re talking about something interesting and halfway through our sentence we’re interrupted. But was that really an interruption? The answer depends on whom you ask, according to new research led by Katherine Hilton from Stanford University.
Using a set of controlled audio clips (录音片段), Hilton surveyed 5, 000 American English speakers to better understand what affects people’s perceptions of interruptions. She had participants listen to audio clips and then answer questions about whether the speakers seemed to be friendly and engaged, listening to one another, or trying to interrupt.
Hilton found that American English speakers have different conversational styles. She identified two distinct groups: high and low intensity speakers. High intensity speakers are generally uncomfortable with moments of silence in conversation and consider talking at the same time a sign of engagement. Low intensity speakers find it rude to talk at the same time and prefer people speak one after another in conversation.
The differences in conversational styles became evident when participants listened to audio clips in which two people spoke at the same time but were agreeing with each other and stayed on topic, Hilton said. The high intensity group reported that conversations where people spoke at the same time when expressing agreement were not interruptive but engaged and friendlier than the conversations with moments of silence in between speaking turns. In contrast, the low intensity group perceived any amount of simultaneous (同时) chat as a rude interruption, regardless of what the speakers were saying.
“People care about being interrupted, and those small interruptions can have a massive effect on the overall communication,” Hilton said. “Breaking apart what an interruption means is essential if we want to understand how humans interact with each other.”
1. What does Hilton’s research focus on?| A．What interruptions mean to people. |
| B．Whether interruption is good or not. |
| C．How to avoid getting interrupted. |
| D．Why speakers interrupt each other. |
| A．Record an audio clip. | B．Answer some questions. |
| C．Listen to one another. | D．Have a chat with a friend. |
| A．It’s important. | B．It’s interesting. |
| C．It’s inefficient. | D．It’s impolite. |
| A．Human interaction is complex. |
| B．Communication is the basis of life. |
| C．Interruptions promote thinking. |
| D．Language barriers will always exist. |
5 . If you are already making the time to exercise, it is good indeed! With such busy lives, it can be hard to try and find the time to work out.
Your productivity is improved. Exercising makes you more awake and ready to handle whatever is ahead of you for the day.
Your metabolism(新陈代谢) gets a head start.
There are a lot of benefits to working out, especially in the mornings. Set your alarm clock an hour early and push yourself to work out! You will feel energized all day long.
| A．You will stick to your diet. |
| B．Your quality of sleep improves. |
| C．You prefer healthy food to fast food. |
| D．There is no reason you should exercise in the morning. |
| E．You can keep your head clear for 4-10 hours after exercise. |
| F．After you exercise, you continue to burn calories throughout the day. |
| G．If you are planning to do exercise regularly, or you’re doing it now, then listen up! |
6 . Is going alone in an unknown area the right way to go, or do you want a tour guide to show you the highlights? I think that you can combine the two ways in one trip and have the best of both worlds.
Let’s look at the San Francisco Bay Area which is another one of my favorite vacation spots. Some areas are so familiar to tourists that it’s possible to view the attractions on your own.
You can go alone to attractions or take a guided tour. It’s your choice and you can choose whichever would give you the most memorable experience.
| A．I recommend both. |
| B．It’s possible to drive to the area and go alone. |
| C．One trip we recently took was to Washington DC. |
| D．Some attractions are worth having a tour guide for. |
| E．Chinatown Walking Tours are a tour-guided must-see. |
| F．That allows you to take your time and go at your own pace. |
| G．The tour guides know what we have never found out on our own. |
7 . Kristin Schell is the founder of The Turquoise Table, a movement of ordinary people who want to create community right in their own front yards. Ten years ago, she and her family moved to a new home in Austin, Texas.
One day, Kristin tried to connect with her new neighbors by hosting a party. She bought a few picnic tables but the delivery driver set one table down in her front yard by mistake. “After the party, I painted the table turquoise—my favorite color—and put it in the front yard, just a few feet from the sidewalk,” she says.
That turquoise table became the place where Kristin and her kids hung out. They played games, did crafts and ate snacks. “We got intentional about where we spent our time,” Kristin says. “We became ‘front yard people’.”
Neighbors began to stop by to introduce themselves and sit down for a chat. Kristin invited people to join her at the table for coffee or iced tea. Then neighbors asked Kristin if their family could put a picnic table in their front yard too. A movement was born. “It was a simple way to slow down and connect with others,” she says. The turquoise table was inviting and had a shared feel.
People often hesitate to invite others into their homes. They think their house is too messy, it’s not big enough or they don’t have enough time. “Our perfectionism can cause us to miss out on the joy of connecting with others,” Kristin says. Her picnic table takes away the excuses—and the pressure.
She likes how it enables her to take a small step toward easing loneliness and building relationships in her community. “People’s greatest need is to know that they are loved and that they belong,” she says.
A decade after their Texas beginnings, thousands of Turquoise Tables exist in all 50 states and in 13 countries around the world. Not all of them are actually turquoise. “No matter what color it is, it’s a friendship table,” Kristin says.
1. Why did Kristin Schell start the movement?| A．To host more parties in her front yard. | B．To entertain her friends and neighbors. |
| C．To engage with people in the neighbourhood. | D．To create harmonious communities worldwide. |
| A．Creative and sociable. | B．Friendly and humorous. |
| C．Generous and ambitious. | D．Cautious and responsible. |
| A．People don’t like others to step into their houses. |
| B．The campaign has a big impact at home and abroad. |
| C．Kristin Schell bought the turquoise table to host a party. |
| D．People feel unwilling to join in the front ya rd chat at first. |
| A．Love Your Neighbors | B．An Amazing Woman |
| C．Happy Front Yard Time | D．Tables Where All Are Welcome |
Ali and his younger sister, Zahra, lived with their parents in a poor neighborhood. Their mother was very sick and their father was struggling to find a job, and they had only a little money with which to buy food. As they had not paid the rent for several months, the landlord was breathing down their necks.
One day, Ali took Zahra's shoes to a shoe repairman to be fixed, but he lost them on the way home. It wasn’t until he got home that he realized he had lost the shoes. He was afraid that his parents would be angry and disappointed, so he begged his sister to keep it a secret. Zahra agreed and the two decided to share Ali’s running shoes. Zahra's school hours were in the morning, so she would wear them first. After school, she would rush back and give them to Ali. He could then run to his school, which began in the afternoon. Although he ran as fast as he could, Ali often arrived late and was warned by the school.
Ali heard about a long distance race that was held for the boys in the city.When he learned that the third prize was a new pair of shoes, he decided to take part. He ran home excitedly and promised his sister that he would win her the new shoes.
The day of race arrived. Ali had a strong start, but halfway through the race he began to get tired and his legs began to ache. Getting more and more exhausted he thought only of Zahra and his promise to her. Dreaming of the new shoes he would win for his sister gave him strength, and he stayed right behind the two fastest runners, determined to finish third. Suddenly, as the finish line drew near, another runner collided(碰撞) with Ali from behind and he crashed to the ground.
Ali looked up and saw the other boys rushing ahead.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Filled with delight, Ali walked home quickly.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________9 . Some bacteria(细菌)have a superpower that scientists would love to use. These bacteria gain energy from light, just as plants do.Scientists have wanted to use cyanobacteria(蓝藻菌)to make electricity. But in previous research, they didn’t survive long on artificial surfaces. Researchers have now moved them to a living surface — a mushroom. Their creation is the first mushroom to make electricity.
Applied Physicist Simon Jackson and his team turned that mushroom into a mini energy farm. This bionic(生物电子的)mushroom combines 3D printing, conductive ink and bacteria to generate electricity. Its design could lead to new ways of combining nature with electronics.
Like plants, cyanobacteria make their own food from sunlight, releasing electrons(电子). When enough electrons build up in one place, they can create an electric current.
The researchers needed to bring a lot of these bacteria together. They decided to use 3D printing to place them precisely onto a surface.Jackson’s team chose mushrooms for that surface. After all, they realized, mushrooms naturally host communities of bacteria and other microbes. Finding test subjects for their tests was easy. Jackson simply went to the grocery store and picked up white button mushrooms.
Printing on those mushrooms, though, turned out to be a real challenge. 3D printers have been designed to print on flat surfaces, but mushroom caps are curved. The researchers spent months writing computer code to solve the problem. Eventually, they came up with a program to 3D print their ink onto the curved mushroom tops.
The researchers printed two“inks”onto their mushrooms. One was a green ink made of cyanobacteria. They used this to make a spiral pattern on the cap. They also used a black ink made of graphene, which is great at conducting electricity. They printed this ink in a branching pattern across the mushroom top.
Then it was time to shine.
“Cyanobacteria are the real heroes here,”says Jackson. When his team shone light on the mushrooms, the bacteria gave out electrons. Those electrons flowed into the graphene and created an electric current.
1. What was the problem in previous research?| A．Cyanobacteria didn’t produce electrons. |
| B．Cyanobacteria couldn’t get enough light. |
| C．The researchers chose the wrong bacteria. |
| D．No suitable home was made for cyanobacteria. |
| A．They are convenient to find. |
| B．They can produce electric currents. |
| C．They are where bacteria can naturally grow. |
| D．They can be easily combined with 3D printing. |
| A．To feed bacteria. |
| B．To deliver electrons. |
| C．To produce electricity. |
| D．To reshape mushroom tops. |
| A．Who are the real heroes? |
| B．New application of 3D printing |
| C．Nature combined with electrons |
| D．Bionic mushroom makes electricity |
My great-grandmother Eileen is fierce, loyal and strong and a bit of a legend in her own lifetime, which now stretches to 92 years. I should add that we’re not allowed to call her Gran, because she says it makes her feel old.
That summer, I lost my job and felt hopeless. One day, I paid a visit to her. She picked up a box which she placed on the coffee table. “There you go,” she said. “You do know what you’re doing with these things, don’t you?”
It was a new phone. Her current mobile was pretty ancient. I was amazed it was still going.
“Yes,” I said.
“Good. That’s why I ask you. You young people know more about such things than us oldies. You can take it home with you and get it all set up,” she went on. “Then, when you bring it back, you can show me how to use my new phone, such as getting on the internet, sending e-mails and so on.” She smiled so sweetly that I felt a surge of love for her.
I grabbed the box and stood up. Setting up the phone would be easy. It was teaching her how to use it that may prove challenging.
The following day I headed back to my great-grandmother’s with the phone. “Here’s your phone. It’s all ready to use.”
For the next hour, I was busy setting up her passcode and fingerprint recognition, which she said was like something out of James Bond.
She chose a picture for her screen and it was all going so well until I tried to show her how to swipe (滑动屏幕). “What do you mean, swipe?” she asked. She was 92, I reminded myself. This had been tiring for her.
She pressed at the up arrow and got angry when nothing happened. When I finally got her to swipe, she didn’t put the right amount of pressure on and the menu slipped away. After what seemed like hours, she threw the phone across the room and it landed on the sofa. “Take it away!” she howled. “I want my old phone back!”
I picked up the phone and was about to leave to give her time to cool down when I realized I didn’t want to go home when she was angry and upset.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；2.请在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1
“Come on, Eileen. One more try.” I said.
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I was not feeling so hopeless any more now.
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