I always wondered how people would react if I tried to approach a stranger for help in a busy place like a street corner or in a bustling mall. I personally have hurried past a stranger who tried to catch my attention in a busy place.
Yesterday I had a taste of being stuck in such a desperate situation where your only hope of help would have to come from a total stranger.
I was in a busy shopping mall buying a large piece of luggage. After the purchase in one of the large and expensive shops, I picked up my phone from my pocket to call my driver waiting in the parking lot and my phone was dead.
I then requested the shop assistant selling me the luggage, which was not cheap at all, if she could ring the number of my driver for me. She replied, still all smiles, “I’m sorry Sir, but it is the shop policy that we cannot use mobile phones while working in the shop.”
As I was wondering what kind of policy that was, I saw a nice-looking teenage boy coming toward me. Remember my wife’s interesting theory that beautiful people are more likely to give you a hand when you’re in trouble, I thought I might have a chance. But before I could say a word, he walked past me. It turned out he simply didn’t see me.
I waited in the mall but it seemed nobody bothered to look at me. Disappointed and tired, I got out of the shop on to the busy street in front. I stood there with people rushing by, looking at their faces to see if they will show kindness to me. I began wondering how many times I had reacted to strangers like the shop girl and the teenager.
注意：1. 续写的短文词数应为100左右；2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
That was when I saw a young mother with her two kids.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Finally a man wearing a cheap T-shirt and dirty jeans seemed to notice me.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________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.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________3 . I’ve loved my mother’s desk since I was just tall enough to see above the top of it as mother sat doing letters. Seeing what Mother was doing, I thought that the act of writing must be the most wonderful thing in the world.
My mother was a kind person, who always showed her love on me in action. However, as a little girl, I only wanted heart-to-heart talks between mother and daughter. But such talks never happened. I was sad about it and often rude to her, eager to start a new life somewhere else.
When I had my own family, I came to understand mother’s love. So I wrote to mother and asked if she’d forgiven my rudeness. Then, I posted the letter and waited for her answer, but it never came. I felt disappointed and slowly didn’t care too much about it.
Years later, during mother’s final illness, she left some things for my sister and brother. “But the desk,” she said in a weak voice, “is specially for Elizabeth.” When I cleaned the desk-her present for me, I found a one — page letter inside, folded many times. It was the letter that I wrote years ago.
Then, tears came down, “Oh, dear mom, you’ve chosen the silent act to show you did forgive me and always be proud of my writing. Thank you for your silent love. I love you forever!”
1. According to the author, the most wonderful thing in the world must be the act of__________.| A．reading | B．cooking |
| C．writing | D．dancing |
| A．Arm-in-arm walks with her mother. | B．Face-to-face talks with her mother. |
| C．Hand-in-hand walks with her mother. | D．Heart-to-heart talks with her mother. |
| A．Elizabeth. | B．Elizabeth’s son. |
| C．Elizabeth’s sister. | D．Elizabeth’s brother. |
| A．In words. | B．In action. |
| C．By music. | D．By painting. |
4 . Around 1870, the world entered an era of sustained rapid technological development that was unlike anything that had happened before; each successive generation found itself living in a new world, utterly transformed from the world into which its parents had been born.
Brad DeLong, an economics professor at the University of California, argues that there are two great puzzles about this transformation in his forthcoming book “Slouching Towards Utopia.” The first is why this happened. DeLong thinks there were three great “meta-innovations”- innovations that enabled innovation itself: the rise of large corporations, the invention of the industrial research lab and globalization. The second is why all this technological progress hasn’t made society better than it has. One thing I had not fully realized until reading this book is the extent to which progress hasn’t brought felicity. Over the 140 years surveyed, there have been only two eras during which the Western world felt generally optimistic about the way things were going.
The first such era was the 40 or so years leading up to 1914, when people began to realize just how much progress was being made and started to take it for granted. Unfortunately, that era of optimism died in fire and blood, with technology enhancing rather than lessening the horror. The second era was the “30 glorious years”, the decades after World War II when social democracy(民主)-a market economy with its rough edges smoothed off by labour unions and a strong social safety net-seemed to be producing the most decent societies humanity had ever known. But that era, too, came to an end, partly in the face of economic setbacks and bitter politics.
It would be silly to say that the incredible progress of technology since 1870 has done nothing to improve things; in many ways, today’s average American has a far better life than the richest people of the Gilded Age. But the progress hasn’t made us satisfied or optimistic. DeLong offers some explanations for this disconnect. His book definitely asks the right questions and teaches us a lot of crucial history along the way.
1. What does Brad DeLong say about the transformation in his book?| A．It brought about a better society. |
| B．It could be divided into three types. |
| C．It resulted from technological progress. |
| D．It inspired many commercial innovations. |
| A．Emotional satisfaction. | B．Global development. |
| C．Social justice. | D．Economic stability. |
| A．Unique but painful. | B．Sweet but short-lived. |
| C．Glorious but violent. | D．Democratic but long-lost. |
| A．Benefits of Technology to Society |
| B．Technology Makes Us More Human |
| C．Technology and the Rise of Pessimism |
| D．How Technology Transformed Our Lives |
5 . Supporting Others
We’re always being told that the secret to happiness lies in helping others. Indeed, it’s natural to want to support those we care about, especially if we are in a position to do so.
When we offer support, it may not always be wanted.
Try to be mindful of offering support that is disabling, rather than enabling. My son, when aged five, wanted to make a cup of tea. I could see how inspiring it was for him to be able to do this. So I filled the kettle and took him through the safety measures. It felt like a huge risk but it worked. His pleasure was immeasurable. The same principle applies when we offer support that increases someone else’s capacity.
Sometimes the only support that’s needed is to listen without judgement.
Support often works best when it’s a two-way process. It is good to know how to accept help from others as well as offer support to them.
| A．Here are the pros and cons of supporting others. |
| B．Just be there, while someone lets out their feelings. |
| C．Ask what support is needed and provide a practical one. |
| D．This can often be a bigger gift than just doing it for them. |
| E．But we can do more by thinking about the support we offer. |
| F．Because being judgmental can only make someone annoyed. |
| G．Sometimes people are trying to manage life in their own way. |
6 . About 5,000 children die each day because of preventable diseases such as cholera (霍乱) and dysentery (痢疾), which spread when people use unclean water for drinking or cooking. A lack of water for personal health leads to the spread of totally preventable diseases like trachoma (沙眼), which has blinded some six million people.
Water troubles also trap many lowincome families in a cycle of poverty and poor education and the poorest suffer most from lack of access to water. People who spend much of their time on ill health, caring for sick children, or collecting water at a distance averaging 3.75 miles a day don’t have educational and economic chances to better their lives.
Agriculture is called the lion’s share of clean water worldwide, using some 70 percent, and industrial use needs another 22 percent. Water areas have no political borders and nations don’t always work together to share common resources, so water can be a frequent source of international problems as well.
Daybyday demand keeps growing, further draining water sources, from great rivers to groundwater. “We’re going deeper into debt on our groundwater use,” Postel said, “and that has great effects on global water safety. The rate of groundwater use has doubled since 1960.”
Some of Earth’s groundwater is fossil water created when Earth’s climate was far different. Today such water is as limited as petrol. “But we’re pumping much of them out faster than ever,” Postel explained. “Man’s growing thirst also causes a major problem about water and our ecosystems. And that also creates a cost to us, to our sons and to our grandsons, not just to nature.”
1. What does the author mainly discuss in the passage?| A．Water shortage has been a most serious challenge. |
| B．So many children die of polluted water every day. |
| C．Diseases should be properly controlled and treated. |
| D．Wasting water leads to the unrest of the world. |
| A．Because nations don’t always work together to save water. |
| B．Because agriculture uses about two thirds of clean water. |
| C．Because more people live on the agricultural produce. |
| D．Because agriculture is much stronger than industry. |
| A．groundwater is rich for us to use | B．there is no need to dig deep for groundwater |
| C．we are using our next generation’ water | D．we should use river water instead of groundwater |
| A．Water should be distributed equally. | B．Laws should be passed from groundwater. |
| C．We shouldn’t use water from rivers. | D．We should protect our ecosystems. |
An 80-year-old man was sitting on the sofa in his house along with his 45-year-old son. Suddenly a crow (乌鸦) landed on their window.
The father asked his son, “What is this?” The son replied, “This is a crow.”
After a few minutes, the father asked his son for the second time, “What is this?” The son said, “Father, I told you just now. It’s a crow.”
After a little while, the father asked his son the same question for third time, “What is this?” This time, the son was irritated (生气) and said to his father in a low and cold tone, “It’s a crow, a crow.”
After a moment, the father yet again asked his son for the fourth time, “What is this?” This time his son shouted in his father, “Why do you keep asking me the same question again and again? I have told you already, ‘It’s a crow’. Are you not able to understand this?”
A minute later the father went to his room and came back with an old tattered(破旧的) diary, which he had kept since his son was born. On opening a page, he asked his son to read that page. When the read it, the following words were written in the diary:
“Today my little son aged three was sitting with me on the sofa when a crow suddenly landed on the window edge. My son asked me 23 times what it was, and I replied him 23 times that it was a crow. I hugged him lovingly each time he asked me the same question. I didn’t at all feel annoyed, but instead felt a deep affection for my innocent son.”
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右;2. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好;
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After reading the diary,the son was in tears and began to reflect on the days when he used to sit together with his father.
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Feeling ashamed, the son got down on his knees before his father.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________8 . Social Phobia
It’s natural to feel nervous, or shy in front of others at times. Most people manage to get through these moments when they need to.
It is really sad, isn’t it? But the good news is that people with social phobia can learn to manage fear, develop confidence and communicating skills and stop avoiding things that make them nervous. Of course it’s not always easy. Dealing with social phobia takes patience, courage to face fears and the willingness to practice.
Therapists (治疗师) can help people create a plan for facing social fears and build the skills and confidence to overcome it. And family or friends are especially important for them.
Little by little, someone who decides to deal with extreme shyness can learn to be more comfortable.
| A．Friends can overcome their fears. |
| B．But for some, the anxiety can be extreme. |
| C．They are not able to make eye contact with classmates. |
| D．Social phobia makes people lonely or disappointed over missed opportunities. |
| E．It also takes a commitment to go forward rather than back away when feeling shy. |
| F．Each small step forward helps build enough confidence to take the next small step. |
| G．The support from those key people helps them gather the courage to try something new. |
It was Mother's Day and I was shopping at a local supermarket with my son who was five years old, Tennyson. As we were leaving after finishing our shopping, we realized that only minutes earlier an elderly woman had fallen over at the entrance and hit her head on the ground badly. Her husband was with her, but there was blood everywhere and the woman was embarrassed and clearly in shock. Fortunately, a lot of people stopped to help out.
While we were walking towards the scene, Tennyson became very worried about what had happened to the elderly couple. He said to me, “Mom, it's not much fun falling over in front of everyone.” Seeing that there was a flower stall(摊位)at the front of the supermarket, he added, “Why shouldn't we buy the lady a flower? It will make her feel better.” I was amazed that he'd come up with this sweet idea. So we went over and told the flower seller what we wanted. “Just take it,” she replied. “I can't take your money for such a wonderful deed.”
By now medical staff had arrived, and were looking after the injured woman. There we saw the old man was also in great horror, but he tried to comfort his wife and held her hands tightly to encourage her to be strong. We gave the flower to the woman's husband and I told him it was from my son. At that time, the old man started crying and said, “Thank you very much.” He then turned to me, “You have a wonderful son. Happy Mother's Day to you.”
The man bent down and gave his wife the flower, telling her who it was from. Regardless of being badly hurt, the old lady looked up at Tennyson with love in her eyes and gave him a little smile. And my son bent down his body to the injured lady and tenderly said, “Happy Mother's Day to you, too.”
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After a moment, the elderly lady was taken into an ambulance,
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One year later,
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10 . At the age of 14, James Harrison had a major chest operation and he required 13 units (3.4 gallons) of blood afterwards. The blood donations（捐赠） saved his life, and he decided that once he turned 18, he would begin donating blood as regularly as he could.
More than 60 years and almost 1,200 donations later, Harrison, whose blood contains an antibody (抗体) that has saved the lives of 2.4 million babies from miscarriages (流产), retired as a blood donor on May 11. Harrison’s blood is valuable because he naturally produces Rh-negative blood, which contains Rh-positive antibodies. His blood has been used to create anti-D in Australia since 1967.
“Every bottle of Anti-D ever made in Australia has James in it,” Robyn Barlow, the Rh program director told the Sydney Morning Herald. “It’s an amazing thing. He has saved millions of babies. I cry just thinking about it.” Since then, Harrison has donated between 500 and 800 milliliters of blood almost every week. He’s made 1,162 donations from his right arm and 10 from his left.
“I’d keep going if they let me,” Harrison told the Herald. His doctors said it was time to stop the donations — and they certainly don’t take them lightly. They had already enlarged the age limit for blood donations for him, and they’re cutting him off now to protect his health. He made his final donation, with some of the mothers and babies standing around who his blood helped save.
Harrison’s retirement is a blow to the Rh treatment program in Australia. Only 160 donors support the program, and finding new donors has proven to be difficult. But Harrison’s retirement from giving blood doesn’t mean he’s completely out of the game. Scientists are collecting and cataloging（列入目录） his DNA to create a library of antibodies and white blood cells that could be the future of the anti-D program in Australia.
1. What do we know about James Harrison?| A．He saved 2.4 million poor people. |
| B．He is to retire as a blood donor. |
| C．He is a very grateful blood donor. |
| D．He donates blood nearly every day. |
| A．To state Harrison’s decision to continue donating blood. |
| B．To describe how Harrison’s donations come to an end. |
| C．To introduce some babies saved by Harrison’s blood. |
| D．To praise Harrison for his cooperation with the doctors. |
| A．After his retirement, the Rh program will fail. |
| B．New donors are easy to find in a short time. |
| C．He continues to contribute to the Rh program. |
| D．His DNA is kept in a library for future study. |
| A．A Special Man with a Rare Blood Type |
| B．The Blood Saving Millions of Babies |
| C．A Special Blood Type Donor to Retire |
| D．The Man with the Golden Arms |
