1 . In a heartwarming incident that highlights the power of human connection, a woman’s act of kindness saved the life of a struggling homeless man.

During a _________ between classes, Casey Fischer made a stop at Dunkin Donuts for a coffee. It was there that she _________ a homeless man collecting change by the roadside. _________, she watched him walk into Dunkin, counting his change to see what he could _________.

Casey went over to engage him in _________ and learned that he had only about $1 in change. _________ by his difficult situation, she bought him a _________ and bagel, inviting him to sit with her. He told her that he lost his family in an accident and how people are usually _________ to him because he’s homeless. They _________ for about an hour, drinking their coffees.

After __________ that Casey needed to return to class, the man, named Chris, asked her to __________ so he could write something down for her. Handing Casey a crumpled-up receipt with a(an)__________ for his shaky handwriting, he smiled and left.

Upon opening the __________, Casey read his heartfelt message: “I wanted to end my life today, but because of you, I now have __________. Thank you, beautiful person.”

Casey posted on social media later that day that “this lovely man’s name was Chris, and Chris was one of the most __________ people I’ve ever met”.

1.

A．holiday

B．break

C．gap

D．pause

2.

A．recognized

B．dominated

C．spotted

D．consulted

3.

A．Basically

B．Repeatedly

C．Eventually

D．Amazingly

4.

A．afford

B．deliver

C．abuse

D．guarantee

5.

A．experiment

B．reputation

C．argument

D．conversation

6.

A．Touched

B．Persuaded

C．Frustrated

D．Criticized

7.

A．tea

B．coffee

C．gift

D．seat

8.

A．dynamic

B．reliable

C．precise

D．mean

9.

A．restored

B．spoke

C．enhanced

D．complained

10.

A．realizing

B．convincing

C．disturbing

D．acquiring

11.

A．leave

B．wait

C．skip

D．bless

12.

A．reward

B．message

C．apology

D．excuse

13.

A．book

B．door

C．note

D．essay

14.

A．pursuits

B．welfare

C．reasons

D．hope

15.

A．sincere

B．negative

C．enthusiastic

D．hardworking

2 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What is the aim of the campaign?

A．To remind people of Earth Day.

B．To encourage people to reduce garbage.

C．To warn people of the bad effects of pollution.

2. What will be the task on the second day?

A．Planting trees.

B．Designing posters.

C．Collecting garbage.

3. What does the man expect the teachers to do?

A．Paint paper.

B．Stop driving cars.

C．Decorate classrooms.

4. How does Sara find the man's ideas?

A．Absurd.

B．Hollow.

C．Practical.

3 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

Dunant, a Swiss businessman, formed the International committee of the Red Cross in 1863. The first act of the Red Cross was     1    (organize) an international conference where countries adopted guidelines and measures for protecting     2     wounded and medical workers during and after battles. In the years since, the Red Cross has been active not only in helping soldiers and civilians caught in war but also responding     3     natural disasters.

Now much of the work     4    (do) by volunteers and workers in the Red Cross is difficult and dangerous. They tend to work in places of crisis, where there are wars and conflicts. It is estimated that about 40 workers of International Red Cross     5    (kill) since 1993. However, their work is also both important and     6    (reward). They help prepare communities and gather     7    (supply) and materials for future disasters. Most of the people who receive help from Red Cross are grateful for the help and some even do    8     they can to help others.

The Red Cross is playing an     9    (influence) part in every country.     10     Dunant is long gone, his spirit continues with us until this day.

4 . In daily life, there exist some nutrition myths (谬见) that people firmly believe.     1     But research shows that’s not the case. Here are 3 common nutrition myths and what health experts want you to know.

MYTH 1: Fresh fruits and vegetables are healthier

Despite the long-lasting belief that “fresh is best,” research has found that frozen, canned and dried fruits and vegetables can be just as nutritious as fresh.     2     And it’s an easy way to make sure there are always fruits and vegetables available at home. One warning: some canned, frozen and dried varieties contain added sugars and fats, so be sure to read nutrition labels, especially on prepared foods. Choose the ones that keep those ingredients to a minimum.

MYTH2: All fat is bad

    3     Instead of this helping us stay slim, rates of overweight and obese people went up significantly. In reality, not all fats are bad. It’s true that certain types, including trans fats, can increase your risk for heart disease or stroke.     4     Examples of those include fats from fish, sunflower and some nuts. Good fats also supply energy, produce important hormones, support cell function and aid in the absorption of some nutrients.

MYTH 3: Potatoes are bad for you

Potatoes have been disliked because of their high GI (升糖指数). However, research has shown that potatoes can actually be beneficial for health. Potatoes are rich in vitamin C, fiber and other nutrients. They are also inexpensive and available year-round.     5    

A．They can also be a money saver as they are cheaper.

B．However, healthy fats can help reduce your health risk.

C．For example, plant-based drinks are healthier than dairy milk.

D．The healthiest ways to prepare them include baking and boiling.

E．If you consume more calories than you burn, you’ll probably get fat.

F．Many people replaced calories from fat with calories from added sugar.

G．You’d better choose products with simple ingredients and no added sugars.

5 . Alongside her impressive musical career, Leona Lewis is also the owner of a vegan (素食主义的) coffee shop, Coffee And Plants. She has great enthusiasm for the coffee shop and reveals the drink flavors that they’ve been working on lately. “We’ve just rolled out our new pumpkin drink at the coffee shop. It’s called Pumpkin Pie, and it’s really good! We use all real pumpkin puree, not flavored syrup.”

Coffee And Plants is a real passion project for Lewis, being fully plant-based. She has a long history of animal activism (行动主义), starting with going vegetarian (素食者) at the age of 12 after going on shopping trips with her mum and seeing protesters with animal testing signs. “I was so upset, I said, ‘Mum, I have to help the animals’,” she says. “That became my mission as a kid, and it’s fed into every aspect of my life.”

Her animal activism grew alongside her fame: in 2011 she supported a campaign to ban the use of wild animals in circuses, and in 2013 she released a cruelty-free makeup line with The Body Shop. When it came to opening a coffee shop, making it plant-based was a no-brainer.

“I wanted it to be plant-based because I’m plant-based,” she says. “I would often go into coffee shops and see milk cartons piled up high and think, how many cows are being milked for this? The dairy industry and mass farming—it’s so cruel and harms the environment too.”

Environmental awareness is also at the heart of Coffee And Plants, with all cups being recyclable. But ultimately, Lewis is hoping for a more widespread mindset shift. “What we really try and get people to do is actually bring in their own bottles to refill, or we encourage them to sit in and have a coffee in a cup instead,” she explains. “We need a mindset shift where we start to think, OK, we shouldn’t really be using stuff that just goes in the bin.”

1. What does the phrase “rolled out” underlined in the first paragraph mean?

A．improved

B．discovered

C．denied

D．launched

2. Why did Lewis decide to be a vegetarian?

A．She hated to eat animal meat.	B．She wanted to protect animals.
C．She was inspired by her mom.	D．She was given a great mission.

3. What is the author’s purpose in mentioning the release of a cruelty-free makeup line?

A．To show Lewis influence on business.

B．To compare Lewis’ different activities.

C．To prove that the makeup line is plant-based.

D．To give an example of Lewis’ animal activism.

4. Which of the following statements may Lewis agree with?

A．People have to start using reusable things.

B．The mind shift is quite easy to accomplish.

C．People shouldn’t use cups in the coffee shop.

D．Only vegetarians can go into the coffee shop.

6 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

By the time 18-year-old Amy Waldroop returned to her grandmother’s tiny house, it was nearly midnight and she was exhausted. After a full day’s work at a flower shop, she had put in another six hours waiting tables before heading home. This was her typical weekends.

Pushing the key into the lock, she quietly opened the door so as not to wake her younger siblings. She stepped into the front room, and froze. The house was a mess: plates of half-eaten food were scattered in front of the TV; clothes, shoes and exercise books were everyone.

Amy’s eyes welled with tears. “This is just too much for me.” she thought. Terrible memories began to race through her mind. Two years before, her parents lost their lives in an accident, leaving Amy and her siblings for their grandma, Helen, who had spent half of her life in a wheelchair. The life burden fell on Amy’s shoulders, which was too much for a girl.

Life moved on. One day, walking across the school grounds, Amy found a table littered with university brochures. She browsed through pictures of spacious campuses and happy peers, all of it looking unachievable for her, given the current situation and financial conditions. But her teacher gave her unexpected hope, saying“ You could attend university for free. It would take a scholarship, though, and for that you’d need much better grades.”

During her final year of high school, Amy diligently attended classes, then went to work after school, returned to her grandmother’s house, cared for her sisters and brothers and went through homework till the early hours of the morning, struggling for her dream university.

One afternoon, she walked home from school, holding a sheet of paper tightly. It was a letter from the University of California, informing her that she would be offered a scholarship and was admitted to the university. It was what she’d been longing for, a place where she could study to become someone special-a nurse, perhaps, or maybe even a lawyer.

注意：
1．续写词数应为150左右；
2．请按如下格式作答。

Yet the letter only made Amy struggle inside.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The next afternoon, Amy spotted the wrinkled letter she threw into the dustbin on the table when arriving home.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. What is the speaker doing?

A．Teaching a class.

B．Reporting a study.

C．Chairing a meeting.

2. What is the most important part of taking notes?

A．Reading.

B．Listening.

C．Writing.

3. What is one of the advantages of using symbols?

A．It keeps information secret.

B．It leaves space for future use.

C．It makes key words noticeable.

8 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What’s the conversation mainly about?

A．Fighting fire.

B．Detecting fire.

C．Preventing fire.

2. What can we know from the conversation?

A．Australia lost 4% of its trees.

B．The system is used in America.

C．The system will use heat cameras.

3. What size of fire can the new system discover?

A．The size of a car.

B．The size of a plane.

C．The size of a football field.

4. What is the woman’s concern besides trees?

A．Protecting humans.

B．Purifying the air.

C．Saving animals.

9 . If you find yourself embracing the thrilling chaos of completing tasks at the last minute, congratulations — You are not alone! According to a survey, 20% of U.S. adults procrastinate (拖延) at home, at work, in relationships, and more. Another survey found that 88% of people procrastinate at least one hour a day.

Sounds alarming? As it turns out, if you’re feeling stressed, you may be more likely to procrastinate. Essentially, our brains are structured to approach tasks we find enjoyable and avoid those we are afraid of. Our limbic brain (边缘大脑), the emotional part of our brain, is screaming, “Let’s do anything but that stressful thing!” while our prefrontal cortex (前额叶皮层) is the CEO of our brain, setting the goals, making a plan, and ensuring we stay on track. CEO vs. Drama Queen Brain — who will win? Actually, there do exist chances when our limbic brain overrides that prefrontal cortex message.

Then there’s the burst of energy we often get when we’re up against a deadline, which leads to a reward pathway within our brains and sets the foundation for procrastination as a habit. When you race to the end and get to the goal finally, your previous stress is gone and you almost get in that pattern of “See, I work better under pressure!”

So, how to beat procrastination? Well, you need to retrain your brain to cope with the stress. One trick is to take periodic breaks (reward) to refocus your attention on the task. Ever heard of the Promodoro Technique? It’s about working for 25 minutes and resting for 5. During those breaks, forget about brain-burning activities — try relaxing techniques such as meditation or yoga instead. Another trick is to “eat the frog” first thing in the morning, or tackle the most difficult and stressful task of the day, as was once said by Mark Twain.

1. Why are the two surveys mentioned in the first paragraph?

A．To warn the readers.	B．To introduce a concept.
C．To present a phenomenon.	D．To make a comparison.

2. Which of the following statements will the author most probably agree with?

A．We are born to prefer what we like and avoid what we fear.

B．The limbic brain is under the control of the prefrontal cortex.

C．We are more likely to burst when getting close to the deadline.

D．Failing to complete a task can lead to habitual procrastination.

3. What does the author suggest readers do to stop procrastination?

A．Force the brain to focus.	B．Take a break regularly.
C．Solve a tricky math problem.	D．Eat something refreshing first.

4. What is the tone of this text?

A．Humorous.

B．Ironic.

C．Serious.

D．Unclear.

10 . To Swedes, the scent of surströmming (鲱鱼罐头) is pleasant, but to most others, it’s sickening. This contrast highlights the role of culture in shaping our perceptions (见解) of scent. However, researchers now suggest that biology might play a more significant role than previously thought.

Artin Arshamian, a neuroscientist at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, and Asifa Majid, a psychologist at the University of Oxford, noticed from their own previous work that people from different cultures described smells differently. They also knew from past experiments by other researchers that culture was important in determining which sorts of faces people found beautiful. Thus, they expected to see a similar phenomenon with smells.

The researchers conducted a study involving nine diverse groups of people, including hunter-gatherers in Mexico, farmers in Ecuador, and residents of cities like Mexico City and Bangkok. They were presented with ten smells, ranging from isovaleric acid to vanilla extract, and asked to rate them according to pleasantness. The results showed high consistency across cultures, with isovaleric acid universally disliked and vanilla extract mostly enjoyed.

Interestingly, the chemical composition of the smells accounted for 41% of the reactions, while cultural factors only explained 6%. It is quite different in the case of visual perception of faces, where a person’s culture makes up 50% of the explanation for which faces they find beautiful. Meanwhile, the researchers identified an “eye of the beholder” effect in our perceptions of scent. This phenomenon, though less obvious than in visual perception, represents the personal preferences that are shaped by influences outside individual culture, accounting for 54% of the differences in which smells people liked.

This study suggests that our sense of smell may be more influenced by biological factors than cultural ones. It challenges the idea that culture alone determines what we find pleasant or unpleasant and opens up new ways of exploring the biological basis of our senses.

1. What is the initial purpose of the research?

A．To explore how culture affects our sense of smell.

B．To prove all people enjoy the scent of surströmming.

C．To examine geography plays a role in scent perception.

D．To confirm biology has an influence on scent perception.

2. How did the researchers conduct the research?

A．By making questionnaire surveys.	B．By recording participants’ reactions.
C．By comparing cultural backgrounds.	D．By referring to previous study reports.

3. The underlined “eye of the beholder” effect mentioned in the research refers to ________.

A．the standard of beauty across different cultures

B．the role of culture in shaping our sense of smell

C．the impact of personal preferences on scent perception

D．the influence of outside factors on our visual preference

4. What can be inferred from the participants’ reactions to isovaleric acid?

A．They were familiar with isovaleric acid beforehand.

B．They hated isovaleric acid all due to its unpleasant smell.

C．Their reactions to the scent of isovaleric acid varied among cultures.

D．Their dislike for isovaleric acid was based more on biological factors.