A. referring B. refresh C. pin D. occurred E. acknowledging F. identify G. drain H. discouraged I. specific J. negative K. specifically |
Make a Wish List
Most of us know of New Year’s Resolutions, where one sets intentions for the year ahead. But too often, people make their resolutions
So instead, try a wish list. This involves writing down 100 things you would like to do in the year ahead. The items can be enormous or tiny, ranging from “Climb Everest” to “buy a new pencil sharper”. The main thing is that at some point it has
The key here is — write it down.
Do you feel any resistance to the ideas? If so, ask yourself why. What is wrong with
It helps to be
Finally, you have your list. And what a work of beauty it is. Here are all the things that you would like to do. Remember to
7 December is International Civil Aviation Day. Of course, we immediately think of the Wright brothers, the great pioneers who invented and put the first airplane into the sky.
The more you study the efforts the brothers made, the more you admire them. These were men who had a dream—to do what only the birds had been able to do. For thousands of years it had only been a dream and a mad one, too. It’s mad because it seemed against nature and mad also because of the dangers involved. But the Wrights flew up to 100 times a year. It was the process of trial and error that led to them producing a machine that could actually carry people through the air safely.
They were brave men. They showed courage, without which human beings would never have made any progress. A Wright brothers expert, David McCullough, gave an example of their courage. He noted that the brothers never flew together. Why? “If one got killed, the other would still be alive to carry on with the mission (使命),” he wrote in his book The Wright Brothers.
Determination was all that they had in the beginning. They weren’t from fancy, rich backgrounds. No business or university sponsored (资助) their efforts. They had to do everything themselves. They put their lives on the line every time they climbed into the pilot’s seat.
The philosopher Aristotle had something to say about courage. He said that it is “the first of human qualities because it is the quality that guarantees (保证) all the others”. Surely the story of the Wright brothers backs up these words. Courage is also part of the American belief that anything is possible if you put your whole heart and soul into it. The Wright brothers certainly had a cando attitude, and they taught us one great lesson: We need ambition and courage if we want to see our plans through to the end.
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Rescue
Dawn came slowly. A shaft of sunlight reached into the 4-meter-deep crater(弹坑), making the metal of the bomb shine. The boys were numb and tight, and hungry. They tried not to look at the huge shape of the bomb that appeared over them.
Harry suddenly opened his eyes and seized Jack’s arm. “Listen!” he whispered. Jack’s eye widened instantly, and both boys strained their ears. They could hear a man talking softly. The voice seemed a long way off. Jack went to shout, but Harry clamped his hand over Jack’s mouth. “Don’t shout,” he hissed(发出嘘声), “We’ll be blown into pieces.”
The soft voice came nearer and nearer. Suddenly, an army captain appeared at the top of crater. He was talking to a mouthpiece(话筒) around his neck. He stopped talking when he saw the boys. “What the...” he said, “Who are you?” Harry found his voice, “Jack and Harry Brown.” “Is that dog dead?” asked the captain. “No, he’s sleeping,” said Harry.
The captain spoke into the mouthpiece again, “Sergeant(中士),” he said, stopped and took a breath before he went on. “There are two kids and a dog down here.” Then the captain crouched down and stared closely at the bomb. “Don’t move and don’t speak,” he said, “or we’ll all go up.” He began talking quietly to his sergeant.
Jack and Harry were too stiff to move. They held Raf, the dog, tightly and waited. Another man appeared at the top of the crater. “I thought so,” he said, “It’s them all right.”
“It’s Old Tin Hat!” whispered Jack. Old Tin Hat was carrying a ladder. He and the captain lowered the ladder into the loose earth next to the two boys. “Keep still,” the captain warned them. As the captain held on at the top, Old Tin Hat started to come down the ladder very slowly, very gently, step by step. At last, he reached the bottom, and with one movement, he lifted Jack on his back. Harry watched as Jack was carried up. It seemed to take an age.
注意:续写的词数应为150左右。
With a sudden fall of earth, Old Tin Hat froze halfway up.
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Old Tin Hat pulled Harry onto his back, carrying Raf under his arm.
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As a teacher, my daily routine includes driving to a new school almost every day so I’m usually unable to predict the day’s events, good or bad!
needed coffee to even consider surviving the afternoon. So on my lunchtime, I drove to a nearby plaza to get a cup of On one particular day, I was teaching in a very difficult class. Some of the schoolboys didn’t finish their homework on time and that really annoyed me. I was managing behaviour all morning and by lunchtime I knew I coffee. There I had a wonderful time and forgot the unpleasant experience in the morning. Upon returning to the car, I realized I had locked my keys and my phone inside!
I had about 10 minutes to get back to the school which was a good 4-or-5-minute drive away. I considered rushing back, but it was winter, and I thought a dirty fall on ice would 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 to call me a cab. The man happened to be the manager of the restaurant. I briefly explained my situation to him, and I could tell by the look, 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 am sure, began to resemble some combination of hopelessness and fear.
注意:续写词数应为 150 左右。
Paragraph 1:
Without a thought, the manager grabbed his coat and offered to drive me to the school.
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Paragraph 2:
The manager’s calm behaviour and kind nature made me think
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After twenty years of marriage, Melissas lost her husband, who was a brave soldier and passed away while defending his country.
They had a son, Mathew, who was 18 years old and very considerate. In his spare time, instead of paying, he worked at a local shop so he could help his mother reduce the financial burden.
When Mathew got his first pay cheque from the part-time job, he bought Melissa a beautiful dress and flowers. During the next few months, he often bought something to make his mother smile because he knew she still hadn’t recovered from the death of her lover.
As Christmas neared, Matthew’s friends began planning what to do during the holiday. Soon, they decided to go to a party, but Matthew refused to go with them. He didn’t want Melissa to feel lonely at home on Christmas. For him and Melissa, the day was special and significant, not only because it was their traditional holiday, but also because it was Melissa’s birthday.
“I’ll stay at home with my mother,” he told his friends, “We rarely get to spend time together because she’s mostly on her flights when I’m home.” But later that day, Matthew learned his mother wouldn’t be home on Christmas. “Mom? Why are you working on the big day?” he asked. The airline company Melissa worked for was quite short of attendants recently because many were sick. Besides, there was sharp increase in flights due to the holiday. So Melissa decided to continue working on Christmas to support her company and help serve passengers.
Melissa said, “I’m sorry, Matthew. You’ll have to spend the holiday alone.” She felt sorry that she could not enjoy the holiday with Matthew. Matthew was also upset. But before going to bed that night, Mathew got an idea to stay with his mother on Christmas. He would surprise her on the plane where she worked.
“I can still spend Christmas with her,” he thought. And he turned on his computer to check if the light his mother would be on still had seat left. “Yes! It still has seats!” he yelled.
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。
Immediately, he booked himself a ticket for Christmas.
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Later, while passing by Matthew’s seat, Melissa yelled, “Matthew? Is that you?”
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8 . The expression, “Everybody’s doing it,” is very much at the center of the concept of peer pressure. It is a social influence applied on an individual in order to get that person to act or believe in a(n)
People are social creatures by nature, and so it is hardly
For certain individuals, seeking social acceptance is so important that it becomes a(n)
However, peer pressure is not always negative. A student whose friends are good at contests may be
Although peer pressure is sometimes quite obvious, it can also be so
A.traditional | B.similar | C.peculiar | D.opposite |
A.understandable | B.believable | C.acceptable | D.surprising |
A.disapproval | B.failure | C.absence | D.independence |
A.uncertain | B.practical | C.impossible | D.vague |
A.promotes | B.prevents | C.simplifies | D.increases |
A.challenge | B.inspiration | C.promise | D.addiction |
A.recognize | B.abandon | C.decrease | D.define |
A.avoid | B.encourage | C.decline | D.punish |
A.pressured | B.respected | C.delighted | D.regretted |
A.catch sight of | B.stay away from | C.make fun of | D.keep up with |
A.taught | B.argued | C.urged | D.adapted |
A.knowledge | B.interest | C.assistance | D.influence |
A.specific | B.ridiculous | C.subtle | D.reasonable |
A.consciousness | B.motivation | C.instinct | D.encouragement |
A.motivation | B.danger | C.support | D.achievement |
9 . Today, you can buy a pair of sneakers (运动鞋) partially made from carbon dioxide pulled out of the atmosphere. But measuring the carbon-reduction benefits of making that pair of sneakers with carbon dioxide is complex. There’s the carbon dioxide that stayed in the ground, a definite carbon reduction. But what about the energy cost of cooling the carbon dioxide into liquid form and transporting it to a production facility? And what about when your kid outgrows the shoes in six months and they can’t be recycled into a new product because those systems aren’t in place yet?
Researchers are trying to help companies figure out how to account for each step in a product’s life.
As companies try to reduce their carbon footprint, many are doing life cycle assessments to measure the full carbon cost of products, from the obtaining of materials to energy use in manufacturing, from product transport to users’ behavior and end-of-life disposal (处理). It’s an impressively complex measurement, but such bean-counting is needed to hold the planet to a livable temperature, says low-carbon systems expert Andrea Ramirez Ramirez of the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.
Carbon use can be reduced at many points along the production chain—by using renewable energy in the manufacturing process, for instance, or by adding atmospheric carbon dioxide to the product. But if other points along the chain like transporting consume more energy or give off more carbon dioxide, Andrea notes, the final record may show a decrease rather than a reduction. A product is carbon-reduction only when its production actually removes carbon from the environment, temporarily or permanently.
In the rush to create products that can fight climate change, however, some companies have been charged with “greenwashing”—making products appear more environmentally friendly than they really are. Examples include labeling (用标签表明) plastic garbage bags as recyclable when their whole purpose is to be thrown away; using labels such as “eco-friendly” or “100% Natural” without official certification; and claiming a better carbon footprint without acknowledging the existence of even better choices.
1. How does the author lead in the topic of the text?A.By listing specific figures. | B.By putting up questions. |
C.By referring to documents. | D.By offering some solutions. |
A.Difficult but meaningful. | B.Expensive but promising. |
C.Energy-saving and affordable. | D.Time-consuming and valueless. |
A.Using renewable energy in production. |
B.Changing carbon dioxide into material. |
C.Reducing carbon footprint in products’ life. |
D.Cutting down carbon dioxide in transporting. |
A.Companies are sparing no efforts to reduce carbon use. |
B.Plastic garbage bags must be labeled as “eco-friendly”. |
C.Most products are less environmentally friendly than before. |
D.There is a long way to cut some companies’ ”greenwashing“. |
It is hard not to desire victory with all your efforts when the world seems so competitive, especially if you’re a boy growing up with those values. A boy called Edward grew up in a similar environment where winning was all that was valued, and he longed to succeed. He was good at running, so he called everyone in the nearby villages for a race. A large group of people from around came to see this exciting event!
Edward had been training hard for this race. He ran among the strongest boys from around the villages, and the young boy came out victorious! The crowd went wild with excitement as they cheerfully held banners (横幅) praising him. The boy loved the attention. It made him feel happy and energetic.
There were two types of races-short distances and long distances. The boy was unbeatable in both the races he competed in. The crowd loved him even more after the second victory; they clapped with excitement. The boy felt very proud of his achievements.
But among the crowd was a wise older man who did not seem as impressed with the boy’s performances as the rest. Just as the boy thought the races for the day were over, the old man shouted from the crowd, “There is one more race left, the most important one.” The boy was surprised by the additional race, but he was, confident he could win any race.
The old man brought two new competitors for the boy, a blind man and a weak old lady. “What type of race is this? I can easily win them,” the boy said. “The most important one,” repeated the old man. So, the boy ran the race as he knew he would win this time, too. When the boy crossed the finish line, the blind man was still at the start, and the old lady had just started to move. The boy was successful, and he raised his hands with great joy after his victory.
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。
To his disbelief, the crowd was very silent.
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Finally, all three crossed the finish line together.
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