Music is my first love. I can sit down at my electronic keyboard and forget all about time and space, all about my problems. During the lowest moments in my life, music was my savior. Besides, I would like to thank two volunteer organizations — one is America’s Veterans Services and the other is The Paul Hazelton House for seniors and the disabled.
I was a veteran (老兵). After I got out of the service, I began a career in music, and then became an ironworker for higher pay. A few years ago, the one-bedroom house I rented in Massachusetts was sold. The developer planned to tear it down. The property manager gave me two months rent-free to find a new place to live. It didn’t help because I’d been disabled from an accident at work and was living on benefits. Nothing affordable turned up.
With the help of two friends, I silently and hopelessly packed up my belongings and moved everything — including my electronic keyboard — into storage. I slept in my car, thinking it wouldn’t last long. But weeks turned into months and the months into years. My car had become my home.
The one thing that kept me alive was music. I would lose myself in music. Although I had developed cataracts (白内障), nothing could keep my fingers from finding the right keys.
However, I hit my real low one Christmas Eve. I was driving down a narrow back road to where I would park my car and sleep at night. I turned right and accidentally ran into a wall. My car — my only home — lost its right front end.
At that point, I really had no place to live. Fortunately, Bruce Knight, a retired firefighter, heard about me. He drove me to a homeless shelter in York County where I stayed for 75 days. That’s where I met with case managers from Volunteers of America's Veterans Services. They helped me move into their housing, a place called Huot House. I was able to sign up for Veterans Administration benefits and get the cataract treatment I needed to recover my eyesight.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150个左右；2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Ken Darby, manager of Huot House, told me to move toward life.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I went to volunteer for the “Day of Caring” held by The Paul Hazelton House.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________As a substitute teacher, my daily routine involves driving to a new school almost every day so I’m usually unable to anticipate the day’s events, good or bad!
On one particular day, I was teaching in a very difficult classroom.I was managing behavior all morning and by lunch time, I knew I needed coffee to even consider surviving the afternoon.So on my lunch break, I drove to a nearby plaza (购物中心) to get a cup of coffee.Upon returning to the car I realized I had locked my keys and my phone inside! I had about 15 minutes to get back to the school which was a good 5minute drive away.I considered rushing back, but it was winter, and I thought a nasty fall on ice would only make the situation much worse.
So I ran into a McDonald’s which was in the same plaza and asked the man at the counter who happened to be the manager.I briefly explained my situation to him, and I could tell by the look in his eyes, that he empathized.He hurried to the back to use the phone while I paced in the restaurant.I had less than 10 minutes to get back to my school at this point.
The manager returned only to tell me that the cab company had put him on hold and then the line got disconnected, and that he was now on hold again, but had not yet been able to request the cab yet.My expression, I assume, began to resemble some combination of hopelessness and fear.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；
2．请按如下格式作答。
Without a thought, he grabbed his coat and offered to drive me to the school.
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Upon arriving at the school, I thanked this man endlessly.
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Niesha could not forget the way she froze in front of the class today. Mr. Roberts had divided the class into groups to do presentations. Today was Niesha’s turn. However, her hands shook so violently that she couldn’t read her notes. Her voice became softer even to silence. Mr. Roberts kindly ended Niesha’s part of the presentation even though she did clearly not finish. He also asked Niesha to stay after class for a moment.
“Niesha, I know you’re shy, but you worked hard on this project. I’d hate to see you give up on yourself.” Then Mr. Roberts hesitated, “If I give you another chance until tomorrow, do you think you can find your courage?” Niesha nodded, grateful for the chance. She went as quickly as she could to her next class. She kept her head down and hoped the school day would end soon.
When she reached her back steps that afternoon, she could see an inviting light coming from the kitchen windows. Momma was baking. Momma studied Niesha’s face as she came into the kitchen. “What’s wrong, Niesha?”
Tears shone in Niesha’s brown eyes. She told her the whole story. Momma was silent for a moment, her hands still busy with the cake. “Why is it that you can talk to me about anything and everything, but you can’t talk to your class?” Momma asked. She set the timer (计时器) and then said, “Let me show you something.”
Niesha followed Momma to her bedroom. There Momma showed her a book filled with newspaper clippings (剪报) and pictures. In it there was a blue ribbon (丝带) that said “First Place” and a picture of herself when she was very young, standing with her parents.
“I won it for public speaking. I started the school year as the shyest girl on the speech team, but I ended the year as the blue ribbon winner. It wasn’t easy at first-- I was not sure of myself at all. I worked hard, and mostly I faced my fears. You just need to find your courage.”
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。
Paragraph 1:
Hearing Momma’s words, Niesha stared at the precious blue ribbon, lost in thought.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2:
The next day Niesha again walked to the front of the classroom to give her presentation.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A funny thing happened to Arthur when he was on the way to work one day. As he walked along Park Avenue near the First National Bank, he heard the sound of someone trying to start a car. He tried again and again but couldn’t get the car moving. Arthur turned and looked inside at the face of a young man who looked worried.
Arthur stopped and said, “It looks like you’ve got a problem.”
“I’m afraid so. I’m in a big hurry but I can’t start my car.”
“Is there something I can do to help?” Arthur asked. The young man looked at the two suitcases in the back seat and then said, “Thanks. If you’re sure it wouldn’t be too much trouble, you could help me get these suitcases into a taxi.”
“No trouble at all. I’d be glad to help.”
The young man got out and took one of the suitcases from the back seat. After placing it on the ground, he turned to get the other one. Just as Arthur picked up the first suitcase and started walking, he heard the long loud noise of an alarm.
It was from the bank. There had been a robbery (抢劫)!
Park Avenue had been quiet a moment before. Now the air was filled with the sound of the alarm and the shouts of people running from all directions. Cars stopped and the passengers joined the crowd in front of the bank. People asked each other, “What happened?” But everyone had a different answer.
Arthur still carrying the suitcase, turned to look at the bank and walked right into a young woman in front of him.
She looked at the suitcase and then at him. Arthur was surprised. “Why is she looking at me like that?” he thought. “The suitcase! She thinks I’m the bank thief!”
Arthur looked around at the crowd of people. He became frightened, and without another thought, he started to run.
注意：续写的词数应为150左右。Paragraph 1:
As he was running, Arthur heard the young man shouting behind, “Stop! Stop!” _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph 2:The taxi stopped in front of the police station. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. 写信目的；
2. 形势和应对；
3. 个人观点。
注意：字数80左右。
Blessing and a curse
The popularity of AI-assisted academic writing has triggered a series of debates among experts, particularly college teachers. Currently, several Chinese higher education institutions have made their own stipulations (规定) regarding the matter. But people are still unable to agree on whether using AI-assisted writing is a novel research method or an act of academic dishonesty.
Some experts consider AI writing as just another handy tool brought by the advancement of technology. Yang Zhiping, a professor at Northeast Normal University, summarized his experience using AI writing, saying that conversations with an AI model fed with enough material helped him clarify his research approaches.
“It’s like exchanging views with an expert who is extremely knowledgeable,” said Yang. “The collision of thoughts can be helpful in developing new academic ideas.”
However, some college teachers argue that the convenience of AI-assisted writing can cause students to become dependent on it when conducting academic research, which will lead to the deterioration of the academic atmosphere.
On this matter, Fu Weidong, a professor at Central China Normal University, said that any AI-generated thesis should be reviewed in accordance with existing academic standards as well.
According to Fu, AI writing is a technology based on collecting and processing existing knowledge, and therefore can’t avoid repeating the thoughts or even exact texts from existing academic works.
“Once the repetition exceeds the allowed level, it should be considered plagiarism (抄袭),” Fu said.
Dear David,
Learning that you want to know AI-assisted academic writing in Chinese university,
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hua
7 . CAIRO — 16-year-old Yang Shuncheng of China made a sparkling debut as he claimed victory in the men’s solo technical routine at the Artistic Swimming World Cup in Somabay, Egypt on Saturday.
With the theme of The Cello Song by The Piano Guys, Yang declared and executed a difficulty score of 27.0, higher than all other six participants, and received 232.5792 points to top the podium.
Colombian Gustavo Sanchez finished second with 209.1375 points with his routine The End of the World and Fernando Diaz del Rio Soto of Spain scored 208.0417 for the bronze medal.
“I thought about the victory but did not think much. It was my first international competition and I was very nervous before the race. I was lucky to win and feel the taste of gold medals. I expect a more challenging free routine tomorrow,” said Yang.
Mexico saw their first-ever champions at a world-level artistic swimming event crowned in the mixed team technical and Austrian Vasiliki Alexandri took the women’s solo technical crown.
Five events, including the women’s and men’s solo free, women’s duet technical, mixed duet technical and mixed team free will take place on Sunday.
假设你是李华，校英文报体育专栏的记者，看到中国队北京小将杨顺成在花样游泳世界杯埃及站中取得男子单人技术自选冠军，你给校报写了与此相关的英文报道，内容包括：
1.杨顺成取得冠军；
2.杨的夺冠感受；
3. 你的评价。
注意： 词数80左右；必须依据以上新闻报道来写。
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Bacteriophages (phages) and other mobile genetic elements (MGEs) exert an immense selective pressure on
In the evolutionary arms race with CRISPR–Cas, phages and other MGEs have evolved diverse strategies to block or circumvent immunity. One widespread evasion mechanism uses protein-
10 . Running is often tiring and a lot of hard work, but nothing beats the feeling you get after finishing a long workout around the track.
But while it’s long been believed that endorphins (内啡肽) —chemicals in the body that cause happiness—are behind the so-called “runner’s high”, a study suggested that there may be more to this phenomenon than we previously knew.
According to a recent study published by a group of scientists from several German universities, a group of chemicals called endocannabinoids (内源性大麻素) may actually be responsible for this familiar great feeling.
To test this theory, the scientists turned to mice. Both mice and humans release high levels of endorphins and endocannabinoids after exercise. After exercising on running wheels, the mice seemed happy and relaxed and displayed no signs of anxiety. But after being given a drug to block their endorphins, the mice’s behavior didn’t seem to change. However, when their endocannabinoids were blocked with a different drug, their runners’ high symptoms seemed to fade.
“The long-held notion of endorphins being responsible for the runner’s high is false. Endorphins are effective pain relievers, but only when it comes to the pain in your body and muscles you feel after working out,” Patrick Lucas Austin wrote on science blog Lifchacker.
Similar studies are yet to be carried out on humans, but it’s already known that exercise is a highly effective way to get rid of stress or anxiety. The UK’s National Health Service even prescribes (开药 方) exercise to patients who are suffering from depression. “Being depressed can leave you feeling low in energy, which might put you off being more active. Regular exercise can improve your mood if you have depression, and its especially useful for people with mild to moderate (中等的) depression,” it wrote on its website.
It seems like nothing can beat that feeling we get after a good workout, even if we don’t fully understand where it comes from. At least if we’re feeling down, we know that all we have to do is to put on our running shoes.
1. What did scientists from German universities recently discover?| A．Working out is a highly effective way to treat depression. |
| B．The runner’s high could be caused by endocannabinoids. |
| C．Endorphins may contribute to one’s high spirits after running. |
| D．The level of endorphins and endocannabinoids could affect one’s mood. |
| A．To find what reduces the runner’s high symptoms. |
| B．To see the specific symptoms of the runner’s high. |
| C．To identify what is responsible for the runner’s high. |
| D．To test what influences the level of endocannabinoids released. |
| A．Effect. | B．Goal. | C．Opinion. | D．Question |
| A．They can help ease depression symptoms. |
| B．They are the best way to treat depression. |
| C．They only work for those with serious depression. |
| D．They can help people completely recover from depression. |
