1. How old is Waldramina Maclovia?
| A．79 years old. | B．104 years old. | C．110 years old. |
| A．Her sister. | B．Her cousin. | C．Her sister’s husband. |
| A．5. | B．9. | C．11. |
| A．They always respect each other. |
| B．Their marriage was blessed by their relatives. |
| C．They seldom face any difficulties. |
1. What is Jenny’s hobby?
| A．Painting. | B．Reading. | C．Traveling. |
| A．The Eiffel Tower. | B．The Great Wall. | C．A Swiss mountain. |
| A．They contain many details. | B．They are well-designed. | C．They should be bigger. |
Tripod’s story started one spring morning as I was finishing a morning surgery at the veterinary clinic (兽医诊所) I owned. I was writing up medical records of the surgery patients when my receptionist (接待员) stuck her head into my office. She told me there was a big cat lying outside with a seriously injured front leg. What’s worse, nobody knew whom it belonged to.
Then I sent two of my pre-vet students to pick up the poor cat while I went back to my record-keeping. But it wasn’t long before I heard the students returning with this newest patient who seemed to be in pretty bad condition.
I carefully checked up the injuries which seemed to be caused by the pressing of a heavy object. With the extremely horrible smell, I knew from years of experience this cat didn’t have an owner. “Well, then,” I sighed, “I’m not sure whether we are able to bring this cat back to life, but let’s give him our best shot anyway. Afterwards, let’s see if we can find a home for him. ”
Just then, when one of the students began touching the cat’s head gently, somewhere deep in the cat’s throat, a weak purr (呼噜声) began. As the student continued to pet the cat, I noticed the cat’s breathing became less laboured (缓慢而困难的).
When I performed the complicated operation, I whispered, “You’re a fighter, aren’t you, boy? You deserve a chance to live.” However, after the surgery, he lost one leg, and still struggled with life and death. Over the next few weeks, Tripod, the cat, went through many ups and downs, but I was sure about his resilience (快速恢复的能力). News about Tripod spread. A number of customers stopped by regularly to check on the progress of his recovery, including Mrs Melson, a pet lover.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The day finally came when I decided Tripod had really recovered.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Though unwilling to part with Tripod, we were happy to see Mrs Melson come for him.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________4 . Ariel Procaccia has thought a lot about how to cut a cake over the last 15 years. As the father of three children, he knows how hard it is to divide a birthday cake to everyone’s satisfaction. But it’s also because Procaccia’s work focuses on exploring the mathematical rules for dividing stuff up fairly. One way to do that is to think abstractly about dessert.
For decades, researchers have been asking the seemingly simple question of how to cut a cake fairly. The answer reaches far beyond birthday parties. A mathematical problem at its heart, cake cutting connects strict reasoning to real-world issues of fairness, and so attracts not only mathematicians, but also social scientists, economists and more. “It’s a very elegant model in which you can distill what fairness really is, and reason about it,” Procaccia says.
The simplest approach is called the “divider-chooser” method, where one person cuts the cake into two equal pieces in his view, and the other person picks first. Each receives a piece that they feel is as valuable as the other’s. But when personal preferences are taken into account, even the easiest rule becomes complicated. Suppose Alice and Bob are to divide a cake, and Alice knows Bob prefers chocolate, she may knowingly divide the cake unequally so the smaller piece contains more chocolate. Then Bob will choose according to his preference, and Alice will get the larger piece. Both of them are satisfied with what they get, but the meaning of fairness changes in this situation.
The cake is a symbol for any divisible good. When cake-cutting principles are employed to settle disagreements, they are potentially helping the world find solutions. Procaccia has used fair division algorithms (算法) to model food distribution. Social scientist Haris Aziz is exploring situations ranging from how to divide up daily tasks to how to best schedule doctors’ shifts in hospitals.
Even after decades of investigation, cake cutting isn’t like a simple jigsaw puzzle (拼图) with a well-defined solution. Instead, over time, it has evolved into a kind of mathematical sandbox, a constructive playground that brings together abstract proofs and easy applications. The more researchers explore it, the more there is to explore.
1. What does the underlined word “distill” in paragraph 2 mean?| A．Get the essence of. | B．Find the opposite of. |
| C．Keep the focus on. | D．Reduce the impact on. |
| A．Its standard is stable. | B．It prevents unequal division. |
| C．Its concept is complex. | D．It dominates personal preferences. |
| A．The application of its rules. | B．The details of its process. |
| C．The problems it produces. | D．The harmony it symbolizes. |
| A．Who benefits most from fairness? |
| B．How has fairness changed over time? |
| C．What method works best in cake-cutting? |
| D．Why are researchers so interested in cake-cutting? |
My family had only recently moved into a new neighborhood. All of my neighbors have been very friendly and helpful since we moved in.
However, Mrs Davis, an elderly lady living in the last house on the other side of the road, escaped associating with us, or anyone else. When I asked around the neighborhood why, they warned me not to go after her because they thought she was insane (精神失常的) and preferred staying alone after losing her husband and only daughter in an aircraft crash. After that, she stayed isolated (孤立的) from all the neighbors, refusing all the care and help.
I often saw her on the streets during the evening, but she was always by herself. She appeared weak and I always wanted to help her, but after hearing what my neighbors had said about her, I wasn’t sure whether I should.
One day, when I was on my way to the supermarket, our paths crossed. I was walking past her and overheard her singing a tune. It immediately drew my attention because my parents used to sing the same song with me. I began to sing along with her, and she smiled at me for the first time. But when I smiled back, she quickly hurried her pace and went home.
She seemed very different to me that day. I refused to trust my neighbors’ claims that she had cut herself off from the rest of society because she was insane, so the next day, I knocked on her door. Mrs Davis was home, and instead of letting me in, she just looked at me silently through the window. I noticed her staring at me and was about to walk to the window when she quickly closed the curtains.
The next day, I revisited her house. “Hello, I brought you something,” I called out to her. “It’s the record of the music you were singing yesterday.”
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The door opened and Mrs Davis’ eyes widened in surprise at the sight of me standing there.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Several days later in the morning, the doorbell rang at my house.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________It was after midnight last December and we were driving home from a party. The weather had been awful, with the rain pouring on our 40-minute journey there. Paul, my husband, was driving our Ford Ranger pick-up truck and my seven-year-old son, Silas, was in the back.
What was so frightening was the speed of water. One minute we were halfway home, the next there was water going up over the bonnet (汽车引擎盖). The rushing water lifted our car up and pushed it back against a hedge (树篱). I felt terrified of the power of the water, and Paul was trying to control the truck.
Water was instantly around my ankles. I reached my hand back and felt it around Silas’s too. Paul climbed out through a window, at which point Silas woke up, confused. I managed to pass him through the window to Paul, who was now on the truck’s roof.
Paul told me I needed to get out, but I couldn’t open my door. I attempted to push my body through the driver’s window and was left clinging on to the support between the windows. Paul grabbed my hood (兜帽) to help in vain and I could hear Silas crying, so I told him to let go—Silas needed him. He refused, but I insisted—I wanted to know Silas would be safe. As I saw his empty, outstretched hand, the water took me away. I was a strong swimmer but I had no option but to shoot down rapids. Shocked, I gasped for breath and tried to keep my head above water.
It was extremely dark but I could just make out trees. As I passed, I reached out and grabbed two slim branches, holding tightly. I hugged the tree with my knees. My plan was just to hold on. Not knowing if Paul and Silas were safe, I thought that if they did survive, they would try to save me. I wondered who would come to my rescue.
注意：1．续写词数应为150左右；
2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
After nearly 40 minutes, I saw a small boat spotlight.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________As I rose to my feet, I hugged my rescuers.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________On the campus of Maplewood High School, Lily, Tom, and Sarah faced their own challenges but got through in the tight-knit community of their school.
Lily, a shy and reserved girl, struggled with her studies. She often felt stressed by the coursework and was too embarrassed to seek help. Meanwhile, Tom a talented athlete, faced difficulties in balancing his academics with his sports commitments. And Sarah, an ambitious musician, lacked the confidence to perform in front of others.
One fateful day, their lives intertwined (交织) in unexpected ways. It started when Lily found herself in need of a tutor (导师) to help her grasp the concepts in math. Feeling hesitant, she reached Sarah, who surprised her by offering to lend a helping hand.
As Sarah and Lily spent hours together studying, they formed a deep bond of friendship. Sarah’s patience and encouragement helped boost Lily’s confidence, and gradually, she began to stand out in her math glass. Grateful for Sarah’s support, Lily wanted to repay he favor in any way she could.
Around the same time, Tom faced a dilemma (窘境). He had an important basketball game coming up, but his grades were slipping down, putting his quality to play in jeopardy (麻烦). Feeling sad, he turned to Lily for help, knowing that she had made significant progress in math. “Let’s meet up after practice and go over the material together,” Lily offered.
Together, Lily and Tom began a journey of academic improvement. With Lily’s guidance, Tom managed to raise his grades and maintain his spot on the basketball team. As they worked side by side, they discovered the power of teamwork and perseverance (坚持).
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Meanwhile, Sarah got stuck in her fear of performing in front of an audience.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Her excellent performances impressed the audience.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________8 . Why is the library the highest building?
9 . Does a happy person live longer? Many studies have convinced us that happiness brings good health, which has resulted in an increasing demand for speakers and products encouraging positive thinking. However, being happy does not promise that one is going to be healthy. There are other factors that influence one’s health and long life such as a person’s genes or even a person’s socio-economic condition.
Some research even suggests that positive thinking can be dangerous. Positive thinking, when taken to the extreme, can cause a person to be separated from reality. For example, a person who thinks that staying happy and positive can help him recover from an illness like cancer but later fails to recover from it, may blame himself for not being happy. In this case, positive thinking may potentially make the victim disregard other factors. Sometimes the pursuit of happiness is even associated with serious mental health problems such as depression.
All types of happiness are not good for us either. For example, pride, a pleasant feeling, can sometimes rob us of the ability to empathize with others or understand another’s viewpoint. This anti-social behavior can cause people around us to turn away from us, and this could, in turn, make us feel lonely and do harm to our mental and even physical health.
Moreover, unpleasant feelings can be beneficial to a person’s well-being. Researchers believe that unpleasant feelings can help us make sense of our challenges and experiences in a way that supports psychological well-being. For example, if I have behaved badly towards my good friend, the feelings of guilt and sadness might motivate me to apologize and ask for forgiveness. The rebuilding of a broken relationship can be a lift to one’s mental well-being.
In trying to experience happiness, we should remember that seeking for happiness as an end in itself can be self-defeating, and does not necessarily lead to better health. After all, one will surely experience setbacks and conflicts in life. Instead, learning to cope with negative emotions with a realistic positive attitude is key to a person’s good health.
1. What’s the writer’s opinion in this passage?| A．Negative thinking can be dangerous. |
| B．Staying happy can bring good health. |
| C．Unpleasant feelings cannot be beneficial. |
| D．Happiness cannot ensure one’s good health. |
| A．When we use it with a realistic attitude to solve problems. |
| B．When we focus on it as an only determinant of happy life. |
| C．When we think it one of the necessary factor for good health. |
| D．When we realize it may rob us of the ability to understand others. |
| A．They rebuild a broken relationship. |
| B．They lead to self-reflection and personal growth. |
| C．They help keep the problems and challenges away. |
| D．They prevent long-term negative effects on mental health. |
| A．An ultimate goal. | B．An individual plan. |
| C．A final decision. | D．A great start. |
Emily was a student, who was always shy and lacked confidence. She struggled to make friends and believed that she wasn’t good at anything. That started affecting her academic performance and overall happiness. She said to herself, “I’m a loser. I can’t get anything done.” She felt worried and tried to find solutions. However, unfortunately, all she had done was in vain.
One day, Emily’s teacher, Ms. Johnson, noticed her attitude and decided to help her regain her confidence. She said to Emily, “No one is born confident and strong. You have to make a change, so take the first step forward.” She encouraged Emily to participate in classroom activities and group projects. At first, Emily was hesitant, fearing that she would embarrass herself in front of her classmates. But with gentle encouragement and support from Ms. Johnson, she slowly started to overcome her fears. So she started to open up and take action to be better.
Ms. Johnson also noticed that Emily had a talent for writing. She suggested that Emily join the school newspaper team. Emily felt nervous about contributing her work, but the positive feedback from her peers and teachers improved her confidence. She saw that her unique views were value d by others. She started writing some essays to show everyone the desire for beauty in her heart. And the readers were amazed by her writings.
As Emily gained more confidence in her writing, she decided to take on new challenges. She joined the debate team, despite her fear of public speaking. With regular practice and guidance from her teammates, Emily gradually overcame her stage fright and found her voice in expressing her opinions. Obviously, she was successful in her speeches as well.
Outside of school, Emily discovered her passion for community service. She started volunteering at a local animal shelter, where she was able to make a positive impact on the lives of abandoned pets. The experience not only gave her a sense of purpose but also allowed her to connect with like-minded persons who shared the same love for animals.
注意：
1.续写词数应为 150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Over time, Emily’s confidence began to come out in other aspects (方面) of her life.
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At the end of her high school, Emily looked back on the journey she had taken.
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