I worked at a local station of the Berlin fire department. We got an alert (警报) around 8:25pm that Friday and rushed to the fire engine, where the printout from the dispatcher (调度员) said there was a nine-year-old boy locked in a safe.
I asked myself: if it were a safe, would it be airtight? I was aware that it might already be too late by the time we arrived. I had to plan for a bad outcome. On the other hand, if we were in time, how long would it take us to open the safe? I knew it would be an incredibly difficult task. It’s what safes are designed for—not to be opened.
It took less than five minutes to reach the property. When I saw a woman crying on the street,
I knew the situation was serious. She was the boy’s mother and she led us into the basement. She told us the boy was alive and we started talking to him; he was very calm. We asked how it had happened: during a game of hide and seek with his five-year-old brother, he had thought the safe would be a good place to hide.
The boy’s parents had got the house from his mother’s father. The unlocked safe had been there when they moved in and was in an area they didn’t use much. The boy’s little brother had shut the safe, then, when he couldn’t open it again. The only person who knew the combination was the boy’s late grandfather.
From the outset, the biggest priority was getting oxygen to the boy. We got oxygen from the hospital. The boy said that he could feel a thin stream of air. I asked his parents if anyone had opened the safe before and they said no. So we had to guess a six-digit code (密码). We started typing them in—but we had to wait 10 minutes between each attempt before we could try again. So quickly we tried them all. No luck.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卷的相应位置作答。
We were fully prepared at this point to open the safe by force, starting with a drill.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Then, just as we started to make the first cut, my workmate typed in the correct code.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________内容：
1.描述网购的礼物；
2.介绍网上支付及配送情况；
3.谈谈你对网上购物的看法。
注意：
1.词数不少于120个；
2.不能使用真实姓名和学校名称。
Dear Tom,
I ordered a birthday gift for my sister on the internet three days ago.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I’m looking forward to your early reply.
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
1．活动详情； 2．你的感受。
注意：1)字数：100词左右；
2)可适当加入细节，使内容充实、行文连贯。
3)凡使用铅笔答题，或答题中使用了涂改液或不干胶带，一律不给分。
A Family Activity in the Spring Festival
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Emily was a shy and quiet student in Greenfield High School. Emily was known for her quiet behavior and her love for literature, often found lost in the pages of a book during lunch breaks.
One day, as Emily walked through the hallway, she noticed a colorful poster announcing an upcoming English poetry competition. Her heart raced with excitement at the prospect of showcasing her talent, but her mind was immediately flooded with doubts. “What if my poem is not good enough? What if everyone laughs at me?”she thought to herself, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment.
As the days went by, Emily found herself caught between her desire to participate and her fear of failure. She talked with her best friend, Sarah, who had been by her side since they were little. She was known for her outgoing personality and her ability to make everyone feel included.
“You have a gift, Emily, ”Sarah said reassuringly, her blue eyes filled with encouragement. “Don’t let your fears hold you back. You never know what might happen unless you try. ”
With Sarah’s support, Emily decided to take a leap of faith and submit her poem for the competition. As the day of the event drew near, she felt a mix of nervousness and expectation. She spent hours perfecting her poem, carefully choosing each word and line to convey her emotions. She practiced her poem in front of the miror, trying to perfect her delivery and expression.
But despite her newfound confidence, Emily couldn’t shake off the feeling of doubt in her mind. These thoughts consumed her, making it difficult for her to focus on anything else.
It was during one of these moments of self-doubt that Sarah came to her rescue once again. “You’re an amazing writer, Emily, ”she said, her voice filled with warmth and sincerity. “Your poem is going to be incredible. Just believe in yourself. ”With Sarah’s words in her mind, Emily felt a renewed sense of determination.
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。
Paragraph 1:
On the day of the competition, Emily took a deep breath and stepped onto the stage.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2:
In the end, Emily’s poem won first place.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________5 . 假定你是李华，你的美国好友Susan下周要参加国际中华思想文化演讲比赛（International Speech Contest on Chinese Thought and Culture），给你发来邮件表示焦虑、紧张。请你就此给她回封邮件，内容包括：
1.表示宽慰；
2.提出建议；
3.给予鼓励。
注意：
1.词数80左右；
2.格式已为你写好。
Dear Susan,
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Best wishes,
Li Hua
In a small village called Brightville, there lived three friends: Kimberley, John and Alicia. They were all students at Brightville High School. Kimberley was a hardworking and determined girl; John was a curious and creative boy; and Alicia was a kind and helpful girl. They shared a common dream of achieving their goals through education.
On a sunny day, the three friends gathered at their favorite spot near the village river. They often met there to discuss their dreams and motivate each other. Kimberley always emphasized (强调) the importance of studying and setting goals. John loved exploring new things and finding creative ways to learn. Alicia, with her caring nature, always supported and encouraged her friends.
One day, they came across an old abandoned library in the heart of Brightville. The library was filled with dust-covered books. Kimberley saw this as an opportunity for their dreams to come true. She suggested turning the library into a learning center for the village.
The three friends spent months cleaning, organizing and renewing the library. They reached out to the villagers, and soon, volunteers joined them to set up the learning center. They created a friendly and welcome environment where students could come to study, read books, and seek help.
Word about the learning center spread throughout the village. Students from all ages and backgrounds started attending. Kimberley, John and Alicia devoted their after-school hours to tutoring (指导) the students. They understood that education was not just about memorizing facts but also about nurturing curiosity and passion for learning.
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。
As days turned into months, they saw the effect of their hard work.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The success of the learning center in Brightville caught the attention of the local government.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1. What’s the talk mainly about?
| A．The development of the bicycle. |
| B．The materials of making the bicycle. |
| C．The process of the bicycle’s becoming popular. |
| A．The bicycle couldn’t change directions. |
| B．The wheels of the bicycle weren’t well fixed. |
| C．The rider’s feet couldn’t leave the ground. |
| A．In 1817. | B．In 1839. | C．In 1869. |
| A．Bicycles first had rubber tires. |
| B．The “safety bicycle” appeared. |
| C．Bicycles could run faster. |
(1)简要介绍“口袋公园”；
(2)阐述“口袋公园”的好处；
(3)号召绿色生活方式。
注意：(1)写作词数应为80左右；
(2)可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Pocket Parks in My Eyes
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________内容包括：1.野生动物灭绝的原因（栖息地的破坏；寻求其皮毛等）
2.保护措施（严惩非法捕杀；建立自然保护区；唤醒人们的保护意识等）
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.可适当增加细节，使行文连贯。
提示词：自然保护区natural reserves 捕猎者 hunter
Dear fellow students,
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The Students Union
10 . On March 7, 1907, the English statistician Francis Galton published a paper which illustrated what has come to be known as the “wisdom of crowds” effect. The experiment of estimation he conducted showed that in some cases, the average of a large number of independent estimates could be quite accurate.
This effect capitalizes on the fact that when people make errors, those errors aren’t always the same. Some people will tend to overestimate, and some to underestimate. When enough of these errors are averaged together, they cancel each other out, resulting in a more accurate estimate. If people are similar and tend to make the same errors, then their errors won’t cancel each other out. In more technical terms, the wisdom of crowds requires that people’s estimates be independent. If for whatever reasons, people’s errors become correlated or dependent, the accuracy of the estimate will go down.
But a new study led by Joaquin Navajas offered an interesting twist (转折) on this classic phenomenon. The key finding of the study was that when crowds were further divided into smaller groups that were allowed to have a discussion, the averages from these groups were more accurate than those from an equal number of independent individuals. For instance, the average obtained from the estimates of four discussion groups of five was significantly more accurate than the average obtained from 20 independent individuals.
In a follow-up study with 100 university students, the researchers tried to get a better sense of what the group members actually did in their discussion. Did they tend to go with those most confident about their estimates? Did they follow those least willing to change their minds? This happened some of the time, but it wasn’t the dominant response. Most frequently, the groups reported that they “shared arguments and reasoned together”. Somehow, these arguments and reasoning resulted in a global reduction in error. Although the studies led by Navajas have limitations and many questions remain, the potential implications for group discussion and decision-making are enormous.
1. What is paragraph 2 of the text mainly about?| A．The methods of estimation. | B．The underlying logic of the effect. |
| C．The causes of people’s errors. | D．The design of Galton’s experiment. |
| A．the crowds were relatively small | B．there were occasional underestimates |
| C．individuals did not communicate | D．estimates were not fully independent |
| A．The size of the groups. | B．The dominant members. |
| C．The discussion process. | D．The individual estimates. |
| A．Unclear. | B．Dismissive. | C．Doubtful. | D．Approving. |
