1 . Ghanim Al-Muftah was born on 5th May 2002 in Qatar. Due to a rare disease, he was born without legs. He has to go through many operations every year.

At a young age, the boy became a(n) ________ for not just kids but even for adults. In medical cases as serious as his, there are few chances of ________. He showed extraordinary strength and willpower, which not only helped him live a ________ life but helped him go beyond majority of the children of his age.

He is not just a boy who survived a terrible physical disability, but he ________ difficulties and behaved excellently in his life. Ghanim ________ millions of people through his Twitter and Instagram. According to him, social media is a very ________ platform. Social media is what helps him spread his message and ________ the world that disability is simply an excuse for not performing to the full potential.

He is an example for the world and especially for those ________ with physical disabilities. Ghanim did not make his disability an excuse to ________. Rather, he used his weakness to develop a strong ________. A surprising fact about Ghanim is that he is fond of sports and actively ________ in swimming, skateboarding, and ice hockey.

The world can learn a great deal from the young boy. At his young age, he was able to ________

what physically fit individuals fail to achieve in their ________ lives. He is an epitome (典范) of strength and ________ who teaches the world that nothing is big enough to ________ someone from living the life of their dreams.1.

A．defence

B．trick

C．inspiration

D．riddle

2.

A．death

B．survival

C．growth

D．injury

3.

A．busy

B．tough

C．painful

D．normal

4.

A．took out

B．built up

C．got over

D．broke down

5.

A．influences

B．defeats

C．confuses

D．hurts

6.

A．traditional

B．remote

C．important

D．boring

7.

A．shows

B．cheats

C．awakens

D．promotes

8.

A．working

B．struggling

C．cooperating

D．communicating

9.

A．pull up

B．hold on

C．give up

D．move on

10.

A．feeling

B．desire

C．feature

D．personality

11.

A．takes

B．breaks

C．participates

D．throws

12.

A．achieve

B．understand

C．doubt

D．enjoy

13.

A．previous

B．future

C．particular

D．entire

14.

A．health

B．courage

C．strategy

D．image

15.

A．prevent

B．save

C．protect

D．tell

2 . Three paralysed (瘫痪的) men, who were told they would spend the rest of their lives in a wheelchair, are able to walk again, thanks to an electrical device, which was placed around the men’s spines (脊柱) and boosted signals from their brains to their legs.

The first patient to be treated was 30-year-old Swiss man David M’zee, who suffered a severe spinal injury several years ago in a sporting accident. David’s doctor said he would never walk again. However, thanks to the electrical device developed by a team at a public research university in Lausanne, Switzerland, he agreed to take part in a trial led by Dr. Courtine at the university.

“I came with my daughter, Charlotte, who was one month old at the time. As we approached David, he looked her in the eye and said, ‘I will walk before you,’” Dr Courtine recalls. “When Charlotte took her first step she was 14 months old, by which time David was walking by Lake Geneva. He said to her, ‘I have beaten you.’”

David can now walk up to eight paces when the device is switched off and this is the first time that this has been recorded in a chronic (慢性的) spinal injury. However, out of the lab, in the real world, it is hard for David to walk more than a few paces. The signals from the device soon become uncomfortable and so can’t be used all the time. The system is also expensive and not reliable enough to be used out of the laboratory for day-to-day use, so it’s far from a cure.

David is the first of three patients who have benefited from the first wave of the treatment. Two other men have also managed to walk again, to various degrees.

The researchers plan to begin larger trials in Europe and the US in the next few years. If these go well, the researchers are confident the system could become more widely available.

1. How does the electrical device help the paralysed walk again?

A．By straightening the spines.	B．By making the brains recover.
C．By signaling the legs to move.	D．By making use of a wheelchair.

2. Why does Dr. Courtine mention his daughter?

A．To point out David’s weakness.	B．To explain David’s failure to walk.
C．To show the speed of David’s recovery.	D．To prove his daughter’s athletic ability.

3. What is the problem with the device?

A．It is hard for typical patients to operate.	B．It is unreliable when used out of the lab.
C．It always makes patients uncomfortable.	D．It sometimes sends wrong signals to legs.

4. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A．The device can cure paralysis.	B．The device has been widely used.
C．The device will be tested globally.	D．The device has a potential market.

3 . Have you ever observed how a family runs smoothly? It’s the balance that plays a role in a family. But a family where there is too much chaos (混乱), argument, and one-sided communication has no balance. As a result, such a chaotic family suffers consequences like divorced parents, distances between children.

In the same way, nature needs balance, harmony and protection. You are already aware of the phrase — too much of everything is bad. That’s why the sensibility to bring balance in nature is every human’s responsibility.

The community of living species interacts with the environment’s non-living components in a healthy ecosystem. Rainfall, temperature, sunlight, soil, and water chemistry are the main examples of abiotic (无生命的) aspects of ecosystems that need to be in a stable manner.

       To survive, plants need a certain combination of temperature, moisture, and soil chemistry. Protecting plants is also important because it provides food for the animals. 

What you see above are the natural phenomena that have been happening since the beginning of the universe. That’s how nature has been functioning. But indulgent human activities in using natural resources has created poor habitation in the natural environment. In fact, here are the human actions that have broken the balance in nature for so many years now.

      People cut down trees to make space for new companies owing to an increase in population, which has decreased the amount of oxygen in the air. Global warming has resulted in the melting of the ice caps, leading to rising sea levels and other natural disasters like cyclones and tsunamis. As a result of habitat loss, it is getting harder for species to survive.  

To bring the Earth to its original form is impossible. But there is always a potential for bringing awareness. Hence, if the above human activities are lessened or changed with recycling activities, the next generation can still live a healthy life.

1. Why is a chaotic family mentioned in paragraph 1?

A．To bring up a new topic.

B．To come to a conclusion.

C．To complain about family chaos.

D．To admire the balance of a family.

2. How do we keep the balance of nature?

A．Limit human activities to the fullest.

B．Control a certain amount of everything.

C．Don’t cut down trees for new companies.

D．Don’t use energy for economic development.

3. Which does the underlined word “indulgent” in paragraph 5 probably mean?

A．Responsible.

B．Controlled.

C．Romantic.

D．Unlimited.

4. What’s the author’s attitude towards the future of the Earth?

A．Worried.

B．Doubtful.

C．Confident.

D．Uncertain.

4 . If you ask children the question, “Where does your food come from?” Their answer probably is “the kitchen” or “the grocery store”. Mahan Chandra Borah, a 41-year-old rice farmer, was concerned about this and aimed to educate young people about the importance of agriculture in his country.

“Hundreds of varieties of rice and other crops went extinct in India because of people’s unawareness and I wanted to do something about it,” Mahan says. The result was the formation of the Annapurna Rice Library — a center preserving native seeds and all things ‘rice’.

As a boy, Mahan was a curious reader. “I always had curiosity about things and wanted to get a PhD,” he recalls. Most of Mahan’s days were spent reading and helping his father out in the fields. “Working with him in the fields is how I learnt all I know about farming,” he says.

“Our family was humble. While I wanted to study more, the money was an issue,” he adds. Things became even harder when Mahan’s father passed away. “I was completing my graduation and was heartbroken. However, I also had to look after my family. Studying further was out of the question, so I decided to do agriculture like my father for a living,” he says. 

Mahan could have decided to go for traditional farming, but instead, he decided to research alongside. “I went online to look for papers on farming and seed saving. For the library, I have 500 types of seeds preserved there,” he says. Mahan says his favorite rice variety is Bhao Dhan. It is very tough in nature and can adapt easily to the flood-prone (易发洪水的) nature of Assam. However, the lower yield (产量) per hectare has been the reason why the farmers do not prefer to grow the rice.

For the last 15 years, Mahan has operated his library on his own funds. “I run my household and maintain the library. Lack of funds has become an issue, but I am managing somehow and I am sure I will overcome the difficulties and keep it alive,” he says.

1. What inspired Mahan to set up the Annapurna Rice Library?

A．The expectation from his father.

B．The lack of grain varieties in India.

C．The great demand for more native seeds.

D．The public ignorance of rice seed protection.

2. What can we learn about Mahan from the text?

A．He came from a family rich enough.

B．He graduated from college with a PhD.

C．He dreamed to be an agricultural expert.

D．He learned about farming from his father.

3. Why does Mahan like Bhao Dhan?

A．Its delicious taste.

B．Its high production.

C．Its growing popularity.

D．Its good adaptive ability.

4. Which of the following can best describe Mahan?

A．Devoted and determined.	B．Generous and easygoing.
C．Courageous and humorous.	D．Sensitive and open-minded.

5 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. What happened to Stevie Wonder shortly after his birth?

A．He was unable to see.

B．He couldn’t hear anything.

C．He broke his arm.

2. When did Stevie Wonder have his first hit record?

A．As a child.

B．As an adult.

C．As a teenager.

3. When was Stevie Wonder’s most successful period?

A．In the 1960s.

B．In the 1970s.

C．In the 1980s.

6 . Born in Congo, Dieuveil grew up in Germany and began his career in some of Europe’s best establishments. He opened his restaurant Meza Malonga in 2020, where dinner is not just a meal but also a tour of the African continent. Delicately plated dishes feature the Nile perch from Uganda, Algerian olive oil, and Penja pepper from Cameroon. By combining ingredients and food cultures from different countries in Africa with some modern elements, Dieuveil has created his own cuisine that represents not only the heritage and traditions of a vast and varied, continent but also the latest trends. Undoubtedly, such integration has received international applause.

However, Dieuveil’s ambitions are not just for himself. After setting up the digital platform “Chefs in Africa”, which to date has connected over 4,000 professional chefs to career opportunities and the skill development, Dieuveil created a training school to produce the next generation of cooking pioneers. He is on a mission to lay the foundations of an innovative fine-dining scene on the African continent that can compare with Europe’s — but in a distinctive, African way.

When it comes to the understanding of fine dining, different from Europe’s emphasis on exclusivity and competitiveness, Dieuveil focuses more on integration. “If you want to go far, you must share with people,” he says. And his Afro-fusion cuisine has been shaped by this philosophy of sharing. To better understand the diverse traditions, dishes and ingredients of Africa, he went into villages and met with the grandmothers, as they’re usually the masters of amazing, old techniques. These villagers shared their local cuisine and family recipes, teaching Dieuveil regional fermentation (发酵) and preservation processes.

To ensure the quality of fresh produce, Dieuveil sources all his vegetables from his three-hectare organic farm in northern Rwanda, where he continues his “food revolution” by establishing the connection with remote and underserved communities, and involving more students coming from countries across Africa. He said, “Africa is the garden of the world and has an amazing diversity of food. What is happening now with African cuisine and the exposure we are getting are clear indications that our food revolution is already here.”

1. What makes Dieuveil’s cuisine a success?

A．The fascinating mix of the old and the new.

B．The use of imported ingredients and cookers.

C．The balance of international and local flavors.

D．The fine dining environment and table setting.

2. Why did Dieuveil visit the villages in Africa?

A．To share his philosophy.

B．To publicize his organic food.

C．To draw inspiration for his dishes.

D．To seek excellent cooks for his restaurant.

3. How does Dieuveil feel about the development of his food revolution?

A．Amazed.

B．Satisfied.

C．Pessimistic.

D．Concerned.

4. Which of the following can best describe Dieuveil?

A．Ambitious and decent.	B．Generous and responsible.
C．Talented and humorous.	D．Creative and determined.

7 . I was angry with my sixteen-year-old son Anthony, and stormed out of the house. Standing on the front porch (门廊), I ________ deeply. I saw my elderly neighbor, Clara, working in her garden. Seeking ________, I walked across the street.

“Anthony again?” Clara asked. “It’s his hair again,” I replied. “Have you seen him? All that mass of messy curls ________ over his shoulders! But just mention a haircut, and he gets that same ________ look in his eyes I’ve seen a million times before.”

Clara smiled, “It’s only hair, Liz.” She spoke slowly, ________ each word, “It’s … only… hair!” Then her smile disappeared, and her expression became ________. “I learned years ago when my husband died, leaving me three young kids. I had to put everything in perspective if I were to ________. I learned how to say, ‘But it’s only…’ But it’s only a bad day. Tomorrow will be better.” She nodded her head firmly. “You ________ it, don’t you, honey? Everybody has enough ________ in their lives without wasting ________ on the ‘it’s only ’ things that come their way.”

After returning to my house, I baked some cookies, and carried them to Anthony’s room. “Can I come in, honey?” “Not if you’re going to ________ about my hair again.” I pushed the door open and held out the cookies. “Not one word. I ________.” He stared at the plate of cookies greedily, but there was still a glint of ________ in his eyes. “Not one word about my hair?” He looked at me challengingly.

“It’s only hair,” I said. “It’s your hair. Not mine.” Anthony smiled broadly, saying, “Thanks for ________ understanding me, Mom. And thanks for the cookies.” Now I’ve learned to let go of the “it’s only” ________, and Anthony is more willing to listen to me.

1.

A．dug

B．drank

C．sighed

D．reflected

2.

A．acceptance

B．sympathy

C．company

D．relaxation

3.

A．fixing up

B．showing off

C．flying around

D．hanging down

4.

A．disapproving

B．puzzled

C．loving

D．hungry

5.

A．analyzing

B．recalling

C．emphasizing

D．polishing

6.

A．awful

B．serious

C．funny

D．acceptable

7.

A．return

B．succeed

C．persist

D．survive

8.

A．take

B．make

C．get

D．believe

9.

A．power

B．trouble

C．work

D．support

10.

A．mess

B．freedom

C．space

D．energy

11.

A．complain

B．bring

C．lie

D．joke

12.

A．doubt

B．pretend

C．promise

D．protest

13.

A．annoyance

B．suspicion

C．competence

D．rebellion

14.

A．finally

B．instantly

C．accurately

D．completely

15.

A．principles

B．approaches

C．situations

D．regulations

8 . In early October, Travis Gienger transported an enormous pumpkin (南瓜) from his home in Minnesota to the World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in California. His pumpkin set the record for the biggest one ever grown in North America. How do competitive growers get their pumpkins to grow to massive sizes?     1    

Gienger, who teaches horticulture (园艺学) at Anoka Technical College, begins growing his pumpkins in mid-April, starting with seeds that he grows indoors for the first few weeks, when Minnesota’s soil is too frosty.     2     They can absorb sunlight, nutrients from the soil, and water there. “At their peak, you’re watering them with at least 600 liters a day, ” he says.

Depending on the variety, pumpkin plants can grow up to a dozen fruits on a single vine (藤曼) . But to maximize size, growers remove all but one or two of these pumpkins in order to decrease each individual fruit’s competition for resources.     3    

But what exactly happens inside a pumpkin as it grows? Two factors drive natural growth: cell division and cell expansion. Cell division accounts for most of the growth at the beginning of a fruit’s life. This period lasts for about 20 days in pumpkin plants.     4     Pumpkin cells will expand until around 50 or 60 days after pollination (授粉).

    5     Some varieties of pumpkins have been bred specifically to maximize their size. Still, there is genetic variation even among pumpkins of the same variety. This has led to competition for the best seeds. Following each harvest, many growers auction off (拍卖掉) the seeds from their biggest pumpkins, which will then be used for the following year’s plantings.

A．Biology has the answers.

B．Genetics also influences pumpkin growth.

C．The following tips will give you a head start.

D．Once it warms up, the plants are transferred outside.

E．When it stops, cell expansion will then come into play.

F．Growers extend the growth period for as long as possible.

G．Growers also remove the weeds in the area for the same reason.

9 . 短语填空
请从下面方框里选择适当的短语并用其适当形式填空（其中有两个短语是多余的）

come as no surprise     corresponds to     is superior to     are bound to in store for            subscribe to       weigh up

1. The lazy bird had nothing ________ the winter, so he had to starve.
2. The content of the book ________ what our teacher said in class.
3. You should ________ the consequences before making this decision.
4. With a good command of English and computer skills, she ________ other candidates.
5. Some people are strongly opposed to name the college building after the famous brand, while others ________ it.

10 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What does Ann say about her performance in the World Championships?

A．She did better than she had expected.

B．She regretted not preparing well enough.

C．She was disappointed to win a silver medal.

2. How often does Ann practice?

A．Once a week.

B．Every day.

C．Six days a week.

3. What is Ann’s attitude towards the other competitors?

A．She avoids close contact with them.

B．She likes to communicate with them.

C．She has made good friends with them.

4. What does Ann enjoy doing in her free time now?

A．Flying kites.

B．Reading.

C．Skiing.