1 . With the death of congestion pricing which was aimed to charge drivers for driving private cars downtown to ease traffic, New York City is left with drivers still stuck in traffic and riders packed like sardines. How else can we ease traffic jams and provide decent and affordable bus and subway service?

Gov. David Paterson took the first step yesterday by thinking of identifying new ways to improve mass transportation. With the income from congestion pricing gone, the city meets with heavy burden from its proposed $29.5 billion five-year capital program. In killing congestion pricing, the city acknowledged that the program is “severely underfunded” and that the shortfall has to be the first area of concern. Now we need other sources of funding or increases real estate and gasoline taxes that finance the authority.

The state should now conduct a detailed environmental review of all choices for reducing traffic. Many legislators who opposed congestion pricing expressed concern that the previous plan had been given truncated environmental review, where sufficient study under the State Environmental Quality Review Act was called for. There’s time now for an all-out study of all traffic-reducing choices, from restrictions on driving days based on license plate numbers to mandated car pooling（强制共乘）. Many parties of interests, however, argue that the measures, similar to the congestion pricing, make no better sense in solving the problem.

The legislature should also give New York City the tools it needs to make buses go faster.   New York has the most upsetting buses in America: it takes more time to take the M15 bus from New York’s Harlem to City Hall than to travel by “Amtrak” train from New York to Philadelphia. It doesn’t have to be this way. Other cities have demonstrated that buses go faster when more dedicated (专用的) bus lanes are provided, when cameras mounted on buses are used to issue tickets to keep cars out of bus lanes and when traffic signals are designed to give buses priority.

Finally, the state should allow the city to issue residential parking permits. A study showed that 45 percent of traffic in Brooklyn New York, consists of cars looking for parking spots. Residential parking permits would discourage drivers from using neighborhood streets as a parking lot, which is definitely good news to the traffic.

1. “Congestion pricing” was mainly used to ________.

A．increase fund to finance railway system

B．reduce the prices for taking public transportation

C．discourage driving private cars in New York city

D．give more attention to environmental quality review

2. The underlined word “truncated” in the passage is closest in meaning to ________.

A．incomplete	B．outlined
C．flat	D．adequate

3. The author refers to “Amtrek” in order to demonstrate that ________.

A．American railway system is very efficient

B．Traveling by trains takes less time than by bus in America

C．Bus transportation within New York city is slow

D．Public traffic service in America is of poor quality

4. According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT TRUE?

A．The lack of financial support is an important problem the city faces.

B．All cars are forbidden to drive on particular days to help relieve traffic.

C．Fining private car drivers for taking bus lanes makes buses faster.

D．Lack of parking spots contributed to traffic jams in Brooklyn.

2 . You may read the questions first:

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Diary of a Wimpy Kid	Greg Heffley is in big trouble. School property has been damaged, and Greg is the main suspect. But the crazy thing is, he has done nothing wrong. The authorities are closing in, but when a surprise storm hits, the Heffley family is trapped indoors. Greg knows that when the snow melts he’s going to have to face the music, but could any punishment be worse than being stuck inside with your family for the holiday?

1. About the book Steve Jobs, which of the following statements is NOT TRUE?

A．The main contents of the book are mainly based on various interviews.

B．The book is written by Steve Jobs.

C．Steve Jobs has experienced both successful and difficult periods in his lifetime.

D．Steve Jobs has totally changed six different industries.

2. What is the book Thinking, Fast and Slow mainly about?

A．Two thinking types and thinking-related facts.

B．Difference between two thinking systems.

C．How to think fast and logically at the same time.

D．The great power of personal impression on thinking system.

3. From the introduction of the Book Diary of a Wimpy Kid, it is implied that ________.

A．Greg was caught damaging the school property

B．Greg knew who really damaged the school property

C．it was hot during the holiday

D．Greg had a poor relationship with his family

3 . The glass window shook and Matthew placed a hand roughly through the opening to lift the latch (插销) slowly. He then climbed into the room, landing on his feet with a soft step. A sudden rush of cold air swept into the room after him. Matthew trembled and he quickly tightened his clothes. Glancing down, he saw the deep cut on the back of his hand. Sighing over his rotten luck, he tore off a piece of cloth from his coat sleeve and bandaged it. With his heart beating fast, he inched his way forward, hardly able to see anything in front of him.

“Mmmm…,” came the muffled sound. Was it just his imagination? Ignoring the thought, he began to move slowly forward again. Then, without any warning, the next thing he knew was that he had kicked something soft. Matthew took out his torch. Switching it on, he found a pair of round eyes staring at him. They belonged to a little girl! Cloth in mouth, she had been bound so tightly that movement was strictly out of the question. As he was about to turn away, her tear-streaked face stopped him. Feeling sorry for the girl, Matthew used his pocket knife to cut her loose.

The girl started to cry as she believed Matthew to be the rescuer who was there to end her ordeal (折磨). She leaned on Matthew tightly. This confused him further. What was he to do? After a few seconds, Matthew spoke in a gentle voice.

“What happened, little girl?”

From her mumbled reply, Matthew could only make out that the girl had been there for two days without food and water. It seemed that her captors had totally neglected her. Almost immediately, Matthew carried the little girl back to the window from which he had entered. As he climbed out with the girl, Matthew smiled and whispered under his breath, “I can’t believe what I’ve just done. Neither will the police.”

1. Why was Matthew trembling?

A．He had survived a cut.

B．His head ached.

C．He found that a policeman followed him.

D．He had just entered the room from the cold.

2. In the third paragraph, why did the girl start to cry?

A．She hadn’t eaten anything for long.

B．She was hurt by Matthew.

C．She was in pain.

D．She was relieved.

3. From the passage, it’s known that Matthew was a kind thief because ________.

A．he gave her food and water immediately

B．he treated the girl gently and helped her escape

C．he climbed in on the purpose of saving the girl

D．he decided to take revenge for the girl

4 . It's fight night in Berlin club. The lights go down, the door opens and out walks a salesman from San Francisco, David “Dowble D” Depto has travelled 8,000 kilometres in search of glory. As he first walks, then jogs, towards the boxing ring, the muscular, bare-chested American looks cool and confident. But so does his opponent. Waiting for him in the blue corner is Frank Stoldt, a tall, strong German policeman, who calls himself “anti-terror Frank”. For obvious reasons, the crowd is on his side.

The bell rings. Round one! The fighters come out. But then, something rather strange happens. The two players sit down at a table which has a chessboard on it and start playing chess-in the middle of the boxing ring.

“Why?” you may ask yourself. Well, this is chessboxing, and tonight is the final of the first chessboxing World Championship.

The rules of a chessboxing match are simple. There is one round of chess and then one round of boxing. Punching power alternates with brain power. All in all, you have 11 rounds in which to checkmate your opponent-or knock him out.

Two sports in one means double the pain, and double the pressure. Before this big fight, Frank spent hours doing exercises that prepared his mind as well as his muscles. Winners in chessboxing are people whose mental strength equals their physical strength.

But why do it in the first place? Why put yourself through this physical and mental torture? For David Depto, it is all about proving that you can be a boxer and still have a brain. The sport has taken off in Germany, where they are preparing the next generation of chessboxing champions. It is even being taught in a Berlin school.

Back in the ring, it is round seven and the players are locked in battle around the chessboard, sweat pouring from their foreheads. Suddenly, Frank Stoldt sees an opening and moves in to finish the match. Queen to G7… checkmate!

The referee stops the match, the crowd erupts-the local hero has won and is given the world title belt, which proves that, when it comes to mixing brains and muscle, Germany really is the Grand Master.

1. Why is it "obvious" that the crowd wants Frank Stoldt to win?

A．He is a policeman.	B．He has powerful muscle.
C．He is a host player.	D．He fights against terrorism.

2. What's the way in which a match can finish?

A．Either checkmate the opponent or knock him out.

B．One of the players gives up or is sent to hospital.

C．The referee counts down eight to zero in the round of chess.

D．The player finds the opening into the court which is locked.

3. What's TRUE about chessboxing?

A．Compared with boxing, it means half danger and half stress.

B．It requires more mental strength than physical strength.

C．The sport is popular in Germany, where it is a school subject.

D．The players play chess in the middle of the boxing ring.

4. The underlined word "erupt" in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to_______.

A．leave the stadium	B．burst into cheers
C．interrupt the ceremony	D．fight with the opposing fans

5 . 根据句意，选择单词或短语并以其适当形式填空。

A. unwilling       B. aggression       C. necessarily       D. felt       E. outweigh       F. expectation G. involved       H. substantial       I. range            J. addict        K. relatively

An addiction is an activity or substance we are eager to experience repeatedly, and for which we are willing, if necessary, to pay a price. Common addictions involve alcohol, cigarettes, food, drugs, gambling, etc. This article discusses the concepts which can help cope with addictive behavior.

Usually,     1    minor addictions, such as watching too much television, or lying in bed on weekend mornings, are not even considered addictions, because the price paid for engaging in them is not high, On the other hand, we tend to use the term "    2    " to describe the person who, at least in the eyes of others, continues to be addicted in a behavior long after it has become clear that the     3    price being paid was not worth the benefit. The individual who has lost his career, house, family and friends because of cocaine use, but is     4    to consider stopping, is an unfortunate example.

Negative addictions     5    from those with very minor negative consequences, to those as serious as the cocaine addict just mentioned, with much area in between. Although it is not     6    true that a negative addiction grows stronger over time, a constant level of addictive behavior can lead to an increasing level of negative consequences.

You may be surprised to learn that addictions can also be considered positive. Positive addictions are those in which the benefits     7    the price. A common example would be the habit of regular exercise. The price of membership in a gym, the time     8    and any clothing expense is outweighed by the benefits of better health, energy, self-confidence and appearance. As with negative addictions, positive addictions may not get stronger over time, and there is a broad range of how much benefit is actually obtained.

What is common to both positive and negative addictions is the urge to engage in the addictive behavior, and the satisfaction that is     9    when the urge is acted upon. The urge is a state of tension and     10     that is experienced uncomfortably as a desire for the substance or activity. Because we experience relief when the urge is acted upon, there is an increased likelihood that we will act on the urge again.

6 . The Market for Self-help Books Is booming

Bookshops in China are filled with works offering advice on self-betterment. Topics range from coping with shyness (“How to Make Friends with Strangers in One Minute”)   to succeeding in business (“Financial Management in Seven Minutes”). The title of one recent bestseller urges: “Don't Opt for ________at the Stage of Life that is Meant to be Difficult”. Their popularity and ________reflect the stresses of a society in rapid flux—one in which paths to wealth are opening up in ways barely imaginable a generation ago.________statistics on China's book market are hard to find. But according to a study by Eric Hendriks-Kim, a sociologist at the University of Bonn, self-help books may ________almost one-third of China's printed-book market. In America they make up only 6% of adult non-fiction print sales, reckons NPD Group, a research firm.

Although China's leaders keep stressing the need for China to be ________, seekers of advice on how to succeed often turn to American books for guidance. In China last year the top ten self-help sellers included ________ of several American works, such as “How to Win Friends and Influence People”.

Chinese readers appear more eager for such imports than people in many other countries that are ________closer to America. That may be because both China and America are “hyper-competitive”, argues Mr Hendriks-Kim, who has described this in his book. In the early 2000s a Chinese translation of “Who Moved My Cheese?”, a motivational book by an American, Dr Spencer Johnson, became so popular that a play based on it ________theatres and the Chinese word for cheese acquired a new meaning: one's own self-interest. Books proliferated (激增) in China with cheese in their ________.

China has a long tradition of reading for ________purposes. In 2018, fiction makes up 7% of sales, compared with more than 30% in Germany. “One of the most striking features of China's market for books is its absolute and passionate ________to life,” said a report in 2006 by Arts Council England. The ________education system leaves little time to develop interpersonal skills, so people, desperate for advice on how to sell themselves, turn to self-help books instead.

Perhaps the self-help industry has come full ________. ________, China's 6th-century-BC masterpiece for would-be generals, “The Art of War” by Sun Tzu, was arguably the self-help protolype. Its title has been echoed, consciously or otherwise, in the names of countless other books of the genre. One such is Donald Trump's “The ________ of the Deal”. Its fifth and most recent translation in China was published in 2016.

1.

A．desire

B．comfort

C．smoothness

D．goal

2.

A．features

B．illustrations

C．covers

D．contents

3.

A．reliable

B．accessible

C．calculable

D．predictable

4.

A．be made up of

B．consist of

C．take over

D．account for

5.

A．self-interested

B．self-motivated

C．self-reliant

D．self-disciplined

6.

A．adaptations

B．editions

C．translations

D．versions

7.

A．culturally

B．geographically

C．historically

D．economically

8.

A．maintained

B．toured

C．travelled

D．backed

9.

A．modes

B．lists

C．patterns

D．titles

10.

A．affordable

B．practical

C．feasible

D．academic

11.

A．aim

B．similarity

C．relevance

D．root

12.

A．quality-directed

B．job-centered

C．skills-oriented

D．exam-focused

13.

A．realization

B．fulfillment

C．destination

D．circle

14.

A．After all

B．Above all

C．All in all

D．In all

15.

A．Methods

B．Strategies

C．Techniques

D．Art

7 . Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct.

Imagine     1    (live) in a huge house, a house so big that you don't know how many rooms it has! Lady Carnarvon, owner of Highclere Castle, is not sure about the number of rooms, but she does know that Highclere is one of the biggest houses in England. From the outside, the castle looks like the Houses of Parliament in London. In fact, the same person, Sir Charles Barry,     2    (build) both places. When Barry finished building Highclere in 1842, the castle had more than 50 rooms, including one room with a 15-meter-high ceiling! But this room was only used     3    special occasions.

Nowadays, Highclere is one of the most well-known homes in Britain, but it's not because of its interesting past. It is because Highclere is the star of a British TV show called Downton Abbey. The show is all about the life of     4     upper-class family in the 1910s, and most of the story takes place inside Highclere. The castle is such a marvelous place     5    is in the show. Fans love coming to Highclere and many hope to see their favourite actors too!

8 . Imagine swimming in a lake on a hot summer day. The water is quite warm, but the wind is strong and the moment you leave the water you feel chilly and get “goosebumps (鸡皮疙瘩) ”. So you change clothes and move inside to warm up. You make a nice cup of tea, get under a blanket and turn on the radio. Suddenly, you hear a song from a long time ago, one that your grandmother often sang to you when you were a child.     1     Why do such seemingly unrelated events lead to the same bodily reaction?

Goosebumps are a physiological phenomenon we got from our animal ancestors. They are tiny elevations of the skin that look like the skin of children or geese after the feathers have been pulled off.     2    

Goosebumps are caused by a contraction (收缩) of muscles that are attached to each hair. Each contracting muscle creates a shallow depression (凹陷) on the skin surface. As a result, the surrounding area stands out.     3     In animals with a thick coat of hair this rising of the hair expands the layer of air. The thicker the layer of hair, the more heat is retained. In people this reaction is useless because we do not have a coat of hair on our bodies.

In addition to cold, the hair will also stand up in many animals when they feel threatened.     4     This will probably make the attacker back off. People also tend to experience goosebumps during emotional situations, such as walking down the aisle during their wedding, listening to their nation’s anthem, or even just watching horror movies. Quite often a person may get goosebumps many years after a significant event, just by thinking about the emotions they were experiencing at that time.

The reason for all these responses is the subconscious release of adrenaline (肾上腺素). It is often released when we feel cold or afraid, but also if we are under stress and feel strong emotions. Other signs of adrenaline release include sweaty palms, an increase in blood pressure, a racing heart or the feeling of “butterflies” in the stomach.

A．Therefore we could also call them “turkeybumps” or “duckbumps.”

B．Again, you feel a chill on your back and again, you get goosebumps.

C．The contraction also causes the hair to stand up whenever the body feels cold.

D．When a cat is attacked by a dog, for example, the elevated hair makes the cat appear bigger.

E．Adrenaline not only causes the contraction of skin muscles but also influences many other bodily reactions.

F．It is something we inherited from our distant ancestors, though we don’t seem to benefit from the reaction much.

9 . How to Volunteer Abroad and Actually Help People

Fear of “voluntourism” shouldn’t stop you from doing something great. We’ve all heard it. Those “voluntourists” going to Africa think they’re helping, but they’re actually going for a holiday, wasting money, and strengthening dangerous stereotypes (刻板印象). I am, though, against the idea that we shouldn’t volunteer abroad at all. How would the world be a better place without people devoting their time and resources to help others who need it?

I chose my organization well. As a student, there are so many options for volunteering abroad. I travelled with Cambridge Development Initiative, a student-run project that works on sustainable development projects in Tanzania. There were four branches and I was on the business team. We were trained on the dangers of voluntourism and on best volunteer practices. We learned about the culture and even learned some basic Swahili, the local language, before travelling. When we were in Tanzania, we stayed in the same accommodation alongside our Tanzanian team members, ate the same food, and spent our free time in the same places.

When I told my friend I was travelling to Tanzania to volunteer for the summer, he said, “Oh, you’re going to have one of those summers where you go away for a couple of months and it totally changes your profile (头像) picture.”

I didn’t change my profile picture, but I did help 23 young people start their own companies. They brainstormed ideas, surveyed target communities, improved their designs, came up with business plans, and collected seed capital for their startups. They came up with creative ideas, such as a “mini-grid” (微型电网) providing electricity to an off-grid village and a plastic-waste recycling company.

Before I went to Tanzania, I was “this close” to taking an internship in a company instead because I worried I would be contributing to the negative practice of voluntourism. Here’s how I made sure that didn’t happen, and why I think the benefits of volunteering abroad far outweigh the benefits of taking some questionable moral high reasons back home.

1. What is voluntourism?

A．A study in a developing country.

B．A trip to a developing country to help out.

C．A cultural exchange in a developing country.

D．A traveling to a developing country to help out, but doing more harm.

2. How did the writer ensure not contributing to the negative side of voluntourism?

A．By not trusting any organization.

B．By learning about the local culture and language.

C．By providing electricity to an off-grid village.

D．By making trade with the team members.

3. Which one was NOT done by the writer?

A．The writer came up with ideas to solve off-grid problems.

B．The writer helped establish young people’s own start-ups.

C．The writer gave up a corporate internship.

D．The writer went to Tanzania as a volunteer.

4. What did the writer’s friend imply?

A．The writer would have a moral high experience worth showing off.

B．The writer was able to change the profile picture after the trip.

C．The writer should help the locals as much as possible.

D．The writer should volunteer because it would be life-changing.

10 . Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. rewarding       B. inspired       C. regional       D. values       E. shared       F. custom G. achieving       H. coexist       I. culturally       J. deeply       K. traditional

In the workplace, there many different cultures that     1    —including the company culture, the local culture of the business and the national or regional cultures of employees.

The culture of the workplace starts with the company’s mission and core     2     and helps the leadership team manage the employees. It affects all major operations, including recruiting employees, providing employees with compensation (赔偿金) and benefits and     3     employees for good behavior. It also informs the way an organization trains and develops its staff, how it promotes employees and any workplace traditions it follows.

The work environment is     4     affected by the culture of the organization. For example, if one of the main elements of the workplace culture is teamwork, employees will know how important it is to help one another. They will be less competitive with each other, and will instead focus on succeeding together. Such a cultural feature can enable teams to be highly productive and motivated.

Local culture affects the way people behave in the workplace. For example, if it is a     5     in local culture to spend a lot of time enjoying the natural landscape, then many employees will place importance on that activity as well.

Employees can use elements of local culture to connect with and motivate their employees. Using this example of cultural behavior, the workplace can offer outdoor activities as prizes for     6     business targets. In addition, having company functions outside at the beach or at a local park can further make the employees engaged and     7    .

In today’s global economy, it’s common for workplaces to be made up of people from different national and     8     cultures. Being culturally sensitive and aware helps employees to communicate effectively with their teammates and work toward     9     goals. It’s important for employers to take cultural diversity into account when establishing their workplace policies. Teach employees how to be     10     sensitive to their colleagues and customers who have different cultural backgrounds.