My hero — Domi
Five years ago, I had a strange dream, directing me to adopt a particular dog. It was obvious from the dream that I would know the dog by his unusual face. But when I woke up, I could never recall what the unique facial feature was.
I was very curious. So early one Saturday morning, I went to the specified shelter to check the available adoptees. After looking carefully at all the dogs, I was disappointed that not one dog had anything unusual about its face.
On my way out of the shelter, I noticed a box of puppies (小狗) just outside of view from the main area. My attention was drawn to one puppy named Domi who appeared to have no fur on his face. I was worried about this strange-looking puppy, and hoped he hadn’t been injured. However, on closer inspection, I found he did have fur on his face, but it was a very odd shade of gray that made it look like skin. Satisfied and relieved that he was okay, I turned to leave the shelter.
And then it hit me: The face — it’s the dog with the unusual face! Immediately, I returned to the puppy. As I lifted him from the box, we bonded instantly. I knew I could not leave without him so I headed for the adoption desk. In that short amount of time, he had wrapped his paws around my heart; his barks, quite different from other dogs’, had a soothing (抚慰的) and comforting quality, also touching my soul.
Meeting with the shelter manager, I was informed a family had already selected him. There was, however, still a slight chance since the family had not made their final decision. After an anxiety-filled hour, I saw a member of the family, the mother, walk straight toward me, carrying Domi. My heart pounded as she approached. For a moment, she didn’t say a word. Then, with a broad smile, she said, “Here’s your dog.”
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。
I was speechless as grateful tears were welling up in my eyes.
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When Domi was three. I had a brain disorder and fainted from time to time.
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Ever since he was born in 1990 in Xizhuang village, Shanxi province, Jia Jinhui’s life has been closely associated with stone carving,
Jiangzhou stone carving
After
In 2017, Jiangzhou stone carving was listed as a provincial-level intangible cultural heritage,
3 . It all started with a post on the social media.
Returning home from the
Just two days after
As the pandemic continued to worsen in New York, Invisible Hands Deliver witnessed a great deal of support from
Following its success in New York, the platform
In a time when the pandemic forced people apart, the
| A．village | B．grocery | C．chain | D．drug |
| A．better | B．safer | C．longer | D．easier |
| A．responded | B．disagreed | C．ignored | D．hesitated |
| A．favoring | B．approving | C．shaping | D．launching |
| A．citizens | B．volunteers | C．seniors | D．salesgirls |
| A．naturally | B．amazingly | C．secretly | D．eventually |
| A．absent-minded | B．simple-minded | C．open-minded | D．like-minded |
| A．sold | B．handed | C．forwarded | D．explained |
| A．generous | B．ambitious | C．reliable | D．available |
| A．contactless | B．worthless | C．senseless | D．endless |
| A．developed | B．relaxed | C．obeyed | D．provided |
| A．expanded | B．moved | C．reduced | D．changed |
| A．stayed on | B．sprung up | C．broken down | D．pulled through |
| A．willing | B．elegant | C．curious | D．appealing |
| A．conflicts | B．differences | C．cultures | D．gaps |
4 . When our family drove to our hotel on the night of 29 September, 1994, I prayed I would never be in such a bleak place. The streets were deserted, and we were leaving the hospital where our seven-year-old son lay in a deep unconsciousness. We wanted only to go home, to take Nicholas with us and to hold his hand again. It had been the worst night of our lives. In lives that only a few hours before had been full of warmth and laughter, there was now a total emptiness.
Within days, our personal experience turned into a worldwide story. Newspapers and television told of the shooting attack by car robbers, Nicholas’s death and our decision to donate his organs. Since then, many streets, schools and hospitals in Italy have been named after him.
All this is for a decision—we’ve forgotten which of us suggested it. I remember the silent room and the doctors, hesitant to ask questions about organ donation. “Now that he’s gone, shouldn’t we donate the organs?” one of us asked. “Yes,” the other replied.
Nicholas was dead. The future of a bright little creature had been taken away. It was important to us that someone else should have that future. It turned out to be seven people’s future, most of them young, most very sick.
We are pleased this incident has caused organ donation rates to increase dramatically in Italy—a result called the “Nicholas effect”. It seems unfair, however, to the thousands of parents who have made exactly the same decision. Their loss is no different from ours, but their willingness to share has remained largely unrecognized.
For them, like us, the emptiness is always close by. I don’t believe we will ever be really happy again. But our joy in seeing the life that would otherwise have been lost is so uplifting that it has given us some comfort for what would have been just an act of violence.
1. What does the underlined word “bleak” mean in Paragraph 1?| A．Encouraging. | B．Hopeless. |
| C．Attractive. | D．Annoying |
| A．A gun attack. | B．A street fight. |
| C．A car accident. | D．A serious illness. |
| A．They chose to take the doctors’ advice. |
| B．They wished to increase donation rates. |
| C．They attempted to attract the public’s attention. |
| D．They wanted to give others a second chance at life. |
| A．Italy witnesses a sharp decrease in violence. |
| B．The parents have completely got rid of their sadness. |
| C．Their decision has encouraged public organ donation in Italy. |
| D．Other contributors think it is unfair not to be recognized. |
5 . Back in April, Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, took over Twitter for a cool $44 billion. That’s a lot of money, even for a billionaire. However, its appeal isn’t obvious. It has around 436 million users every month, which isn’t nothing—but is still a long way behind Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. It also makes a relatively low profit. Then why would Musk make the purchase?
The answer might be what makes Titter so interesting: what it lacks in profits, size or growth potential, it makes up for in some way. It has an unmatched ability to shape the culture we live in. Twitter’s cultural power is easy to see. Click on any news article, and there’s a good chance that it’s quoting what someone said on Twitter.
What makes the platform significant is its users. Twitter is a bar full of rich people, whereas Facebook is just like the McDonald’s across the street. What Twitter is good at is acting as a global watercooler—a channel for small talk, jokes and informal connections. Because the people hanging out on Twitter are types of great importance and influence, what happens on it can actually affect the rest of the world.
However, its ability to influence the real world has strange results too. What happens on Twitter sometimes can only be known, understood, or appreciated by a relatively small number of people and bear little relation to the “real” world. Recent politics gives us a good example: during a recent debate, the BBC spent ten minutes talking about mean tweets about the candidates’ clothes instead of anything that actually matters.
But in any case, it’s a powerful example of Twitter’s cultural power. This explains why Musk might pay big money for it. Because even if it doesn’t make business sense, if you own Twitter you have a voice in the world’s most important watercooler conversation.
1. What made Musk want to buy Twitter?| A．Twitter’s business potential. | B．Twitter’s high profits. |
| C．Twitter’s numerous users. | D．Twitter’s cultural significance. |
| A．It gains a big advantage over Facebook. |
| B．It has important and influential users. |
| C．It keeps people informed of the latest news. |
| D．It responds to what happens in the world quickly. |
| A．The weaknesses of Twitter | B．The threats to Titer’s survival. |
| C．The contents on the platform. | D．The complaints against social media. |
| A．Who is in charge of Titter? | B．What is Twitter? |
| C．Why is Twitter so important? | D．How is Twitter promoted? |
Zaki was small for his twelve years, and he hated being treated as a child. Farid, his older brother, had been looked upon as a man long before he was Zaki’s age. Now, every day as the sun warmed the gulf, Farid and the other young men went out in their wooden boats, to dive for oysters. With luck, there would be pearls in many of them. Each pearl earned a bonus for the man who found it.
Many times Zaki begged to go along, but Farid always refused.
“You?” Farid would laugh. “First, small one, you have to become larger than the oyster!” Still laughing, Farid would go his manly way, leaving Zaki bitter and angry.
So every day Zaki would go to the shallow water to practice. His grandfather, a former diver, would watch him and advise him. All morning, Zaki would practice diving beneath the waves. Every afternoon, he would again go underwater and hold his breath. With daily practice, his diving improved gradually. Soon Zaki felt as much at home in the water as he did out of it.
Zaki decided to challenge Farid the next day. He rose early the next morning. Even so, he had to hurry to catch up with Farid, who was already on the beach.
“Farid, wait!” called Zaki. “I must speak to you.”
In the stillness of the morning his voice carried clearly. The group of men around Farid grew quiet as Zaki spoke.
“Farid, I say that I can hold my breath under the water as long as you can. If I win, I ask only that you treat me as a man and let me dive by your side.” The men of the village burst out laughing.
Farid looked amused. “And what happens, young brother, when you lose?”
Looked down upon, Zaki shouted, “I will not lose! Let us go into the gulf to compete. The men of the village are here to judge.”
Farid looked surprised, but with all of his friends looking on, he had little choice but to agree.
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。
Zaki and Farid went out into the sea until it was deep enough for them to dive.
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Looking into Farid’s eyes, Zaki suddenly understood what losing might mean to his brother.
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7 . It’s not a sight happening every day: an 18-year-old supermarket employee took off his shoes and gave them to a homeless stranger. A customer witnessed the kind act while
The
Later that day, Powell’s boss noticed his employee’s bare feet. After knowing what happened, he took Powell to the store’s shoe
“I learned a lesson from this selfless act today”, the boss wrote on his blog. “Good
“Having been living here for many years, I’ve never experienced such an act of
| A．taking in | B．breaking down | C．picking up | D．digging out |
| A．customer | B．teenager | C．merchant | D．manager |
| A．way | B．list | C．stage | D．street |
| A．provide for | B．count on | C．bring out | D．approve of |
| A．elderly | B．hungry | C．disabled | D．barefoot |
| A．assumed | B．noticed | C．guaranteed | D．recalled |
| A．came | B．skipped | C．left | D．disappeared |
| A．back | B．fast | C．twice | D．aloud |
| A．putting | B．throwing | C．carrying | D．giving |
| A．explained | B．complained | C．questioned | D．hesitated |
| A．advertisement | B．department | C．equipment | D．experiment |
| A．Incidentally | B．Secretly | C．Eventually | D．Fortunately |
| A．chance | B．job | C．luck | D．show |
| A．justice | B．devotion | C．forgiveness | D．kindness |
| A．faith | B．good | C．joy | D．rescue |
8 . As experts warn of a coming food crisis, the vertical farming industry aims to create plants that offer more nutritional value and require fewer resources. In vertical farms, plants are grown indoors. Each set of plants is placed above another. Workers control the climate and closely monitor each plant’s growth.
AeroFarms is one of the top indoor-farming companies. One of its vertical farms is in a large building near a busy road in Newark. It grows more than 250 kinds of greens and herbs. Farmers wear gloves, coats and coverings on their heads. Their shoes must be cleaned.
AeroFarms grows crops at the same rate throughout the year. The methods it uses lower soil destruction. They also reduce the amount of pesticides and water needed to grow the crops. The company says carbon emissions are heavily reduced. “We could do this whether it is in the Sahara Desert or a city like Newark,” David, the chief executive officer of AeroFarms, said. “We think about how we can really bring and celebrate different types of greens.”
Alina, a dietitian and nutritionist at AeroFarms, says she wants people to eat more leafy greens like kale, one of the most nutritionally dense foods. She says if her company is to successfully encourage this kind of healthy eating, it must grow crops that taste good. “Americans especially don’t eat enough vegetables, and so for me the most exciting part is all of the different flavors that we have here. It makes eating your vegetables so much more exciting and so much more fun.” CEO David believes the company’s kale is tasty. “A lot of people like the nutritional density of kale, but they don’t like the taste. So we can make a sweeter kale,” he said. “AeroFarms is helping the world deal with a growing food shortage and people must change their focus from the number of calories they consume to the nutrition levels of the foods they eat.”
Recent World Bank studies predict that an estimated global population of 9 billion in 2050 will require at least 50 percent more food. Experts say the crisis will be worsened by climate change, which they believe will reduce crop harvests by more than 25 percent during that time. They say the food crisis will have a larger effect on the world’s poorest citizens than on those who live in developed countries.
1. What can we learn about vertical farms?| A．They are mostly of vast size. |
| B．They aim to plant tasty foods. |
| C．They grow crops half the year. |
| D．They can control the environmental factors. |
| A．Complete confidence. | B．Physical strength. |
| C．Sociability. | D．Tidiness. |
| A．Muddy. | B．Energy-efficient. |
| C．Watery. | D．Quick-growing. |
| A．The popularity of vertical farming. |
| B．The consequence of climate change. |
| C．The necessity of new farming approaches. |
| D．The seriousness of population problems. |
9 . After the season for giving, it is the one for throwing away. Each year in late December and early January a massive amount of plastic packaging is discarded worldwide. In Britain alone households generate 30% more waste, an extra 3m tonnes, in the month over Christmas. Most is destined for landfill. Sweden will do less damage than many, though. The country now recycles at a record level. Almost three-quarters (74%) of plastic packaging waste was recycled there in 2021, the highest proportion in Europe.
Much of Sweden’s success is due to a deposit refund scheme. Customers pay €0.10 extra when buying drinks containers. After use, these can be fed into reverse vending machines installed in shops, which spit the deposit back out. The machines’ contents are sent directly to recycling centres. By the end of 2021, 92% of all bottles and cans sold in Sweden were being returned. The overall plastic packaging recycling rate increased by almost 20%.
The Swedish government says the scheme has aroused a potential enthusiasm for recycling in its citizens. Nearly 90% of Swedes have used the machines at least once. However, Swedes do not generally describe themselves as eco-fighters. A 2021 survey by the European Commission found they were less likely than most other Europeans to regard environmental issues as “very important”.
The eagerness of Swedish recyclers may stem not from a love of the Earth but from a low net worth. A tenth of the population get by on less than €245 a month. In big cities it is common to see people scooping recyclable items out of bins to take to the machines.
Less litter and money for people who need it seems like a win-win. But it might not in fact be best for the environment in the long run. In Germany—where a similar, widely used refund deposit scheme has been in place since 2003—the earnings from keeping the deposits from unreturned bottles seem to have discouraged producers from switching to more sustainable packaging.
1. What might most Swedish customers do under the deposit refund scheme?| A．They send their drinks containers directly to recycling centres. |
| B．They spend more on drinks than other European customers. |
| C．They return their used drinks containers. |
| D．They use vending machines to buy drinks. |
| A．Sweden beat many countries in plastic recycling. |
| B．Swedes had low environmental awareness. |
| C．Swedes made much money from recycling. |
| D．Sweden had an unequal income distribution. |
| A．Positive. | B．Uninterested. | C．Ambiguous. | D．Unfavourable. |
| A．Why Swedes cash in on their trash. |
| B．How waste turns into treasure in Sweden. |
| C．Who are recycling plastic bottles in Sweden. |
| D．Where Swedes throw away their plastic packaging. |
10 . The J in “juice” was the first letter-sound, according to my mother, which I repeated in staccato(不连贯地). This was when I was three, before my stutter(口吃)was considered as shameful. In those earliest years my relationship to language was uncomplicated: I assumed my voice was more like a bird’s or a squirrel’s than my playmates’. I imagined, unlike fluent children, I might be able to converse with wild creatures, learn their secrets, tell them mine and establish friendships with them.
School put an end to this fantasy. Throughout elementary school I stuttered every time a teacher called on me and whenever I was asked to read out loud. Flash forward 25 years. After a lot of speech therapy, my stutter was less noticeable. One night I found myself at a party in Brooklyn surrounded by people freely and proudly stuttering. I realized as I listened to one after another tell their stories that they were not impressed with my fluency. No. They felt sorry for me.
This experience blew my mind. It had never occurred to me to tell myself the way I spoke was OK; it’s the fluent world that needed to practice acceptance. When I watched “The King’s Speech,” a film about King George VI’s stutter, I didn’t buy the happy ending, when, with the help of his speech therapist Lionel Logue, the king delivers with fluency his announcement that Britain will enter World War II. The actual meaning and glory in the film, I realized, occurs between the king and Logue inside their sessions. The king exposes his vulnerability(脆弱)and Logue reacts not with judgment or disgust but sympathy. For the first time the king is seen.
The central irony of my life remains that my stutter, which at times caused so much suffering, is also responsible for my obsession with language. Without it I would not have been driven to write, to create rhythmic sentences easier to speak and to read. As a little girl, I hoped my stutter would let me into the secret world of animals. As an adult, given a kind listener, I am privileged to find a direct pathway to the human heart.
1. How did the writer regard her stutter when she was three?| A．Cautiously. | B．Positively. | C．Skeptically. | D．Critically. |
| A．Stuttering is anything but shameful. |
| B．Stuttering makes a humorous speaker. |
| C．Socializing helps one overcome stuttering. |
| D．Fluent people should feel sorry for themselves. |
| A．Doubt. | B．Judge. | C．Experience. | D．Accept. |
| A．Her stutter made her a writer. |
| B．How she finally stopped stuttering. |
| C．A party shaped her into who she is today. |
| D．What she learned from “The King’s Speech” |
