Harry’s reward
Harry didn’t want to learn to swim. He couldn’t figure out what the use of learning to swim was. But Harry’s parents believed it was a great pity for a healthy boy to be afraid of the wind and the sea.
“Everybody, especially every Englishman and boy, should know how to swim,” Papa had said. “There is never any knowing the use it may be of.”
“Isn’t it very hard to learn?” Harry asked.
“It takes some patience,” his father said. “But in three weeks or so, you should be able to swim fairly well, if you have a lesson every day.”
There was no escaping it, however. Papa, though very kind, was very firm, and once he said a thing, it had to be done. So with a rather white face, poor Harry set off every day for his swimming lesson. He was a quick and clever boy, and a strong boy, and his father knew this. After the initial fear was overcome, it went on better and faster than could have been expected. Two weeks later, Harry had the pleasure of hearing his father say to his mother, “He swims already very nearly as well as I do myself.”
Seacliff, the place at which the family was spending the summer, was not a fashionable watering place but a little village. There were a few gentlemen’s houses in the neighborhood, so that in fine weather merry groups met at the little sheltered bay among the rocks.
One day, Harry, having finished his own morning swim, set off to walk home at his ease. Suddenly a sound disturbed his pleasant thoughts. A carriage was rushing wildly along, coming nearer and nearer. The driver, Ann, stood upright in the carriage (马车), hitting the poor horse as if she were mad, while from time to time she screamed, “Help, help!”
“What is it?” screamed Harry too, as Ann passed. She would not stop, but she threw back some words through the wind. “My sister—Alice—is drowning (淹溺). Go to the village to fetch someone who can swim.”
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右;2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。
Harry ran back to the bathing place at once.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________There were plenty of hands to help carry them to land once they were within a safe distance; however, it was Harry who was the true hero.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________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.
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In the end, Emily’s poem won first place.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Jean’s dream was to be a great chef, so when she was 20, she travelled to France, which has the most famous cuisine in the world, to learn to cook. After twelve years, she was among the best.
Her father, Bob, was getting old, and she wanted to be near him. Jean accepted an offer from one of Washington’s top restaurants. The manager offered her a handsome salary, and 30% ownership of the restaurant. The next day, Jean went to sign the contract. As she got out of the car, she caught sight of a green sunshade. Instead of going to meet the manager, she crossed the street towards the old restaurant, Fargonetti’s. She pushed open the door and the memories came flooding back.
Jean’s mum died when she was just 11, and her father lost his job and was forced to freelance (从事自由职业). Money was very short. When Jean turned thirteen, Bob had made a reservation at Fargonetti’s, the capital’s best restaurant.
“I’m not hungry, baby girl. I had a huge breakfast,” Bob said. “This is all for you!” “Oh,” Jean cried. “Daddy was so silly! He’s been saving to come here for lunch for MONTHS and now he ruined his appetite with breakfast!” The waiter, Carl Bader, immediately realised what was going on and went to Mr Fargonetti, the restaurant owner, and told him about Jean and Bob.
An hour later, surprisingly, the waiter brought wonderful dishes and set them before the father and daughter. “Lunch is on the house with Mr Fargoneti’s compliments (致意),” Carl said. For Bob and Jean, it was a free but magical meal. They were on cloud nine when they walked out. “Jean,“ said Bob happily. “I feel our luck has changed!” And it did! The next day, one of Bob’s old friends called and offered him a job at a new magazine, and Jean believed Fargonetti’s had made it all happen. That was when she decided to become a chef!
Twenty years later, the old restaurant looked run-down and sad, but Jean recognised the waiter immediately. “Carl?” she asked delightedly.
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 man looked surprised.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Jean was staring at Carl and a brilliant idea was taking shape in her mind.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________One day, while Sutter surfed the Internet watching some videos of cute animals with his mom, he came across a story posted by the local animal shelter (收容所). It explained that there was a cat, which was named Hazel by the workers, living in the shelter and needing help.
The workers found the cat at a transfer station where garbage and other waste are sorted. At first, the workers thought Hazel was just looking for food. But they later discovered that the back legs of the cat were injured. What was worse, after a physical examination, they found the bones of the cat were broken and that necrosis — meaning the death of cells in some part of the body — had set in. The workers thought Hazel would need surgery (手术) to get better. So they called on the community to raise money for the cat.
That was when Sutter got to work. After he knew the story about the poor cat in his community, the nine-year-old cat lover said to his mom,“I just can’t stop thinking about the cat. It is in urgent need of surgery. I want to raise money to help the cat.”Hearing those words, Sutter’ s mother was happy that her son was a kind-hearted boy and decided to help him.
Then Sutter came up with a good idea: making use of the power of cinnamon buns ( 肉桂卷). He knew if there was anything that could get the community members to empty their pockets, it would be this sweet treat: cinnamon buns. Then he and his mom started baking cinnamon buns, and his mom posted Sutter’s efforts on a social media page. Knowing Sutter’s good intention, the whole community reached out and donated money to Sutter. Finally, Sutter was able to raise $850 in total. Then Sutter and his mom gladly went to the animal shelter and dropped the money there.
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。
With the money, Hazel was able to receive the surgery.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Since adopting Hazel, Sutter has done a lot to help it recover.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________5 . My students frequently ask me how I planned out my career to become president of Fidelity Investments. I always tell them, “There was no grand plan; I backed into my career one step at a time.” In this tough economy and ever-changing world, it is more important than ever to smartly evaluate each step in your career. To prepare for whatever surprises lie ahead, try to make choices today that will maximize your options in the future.
Gaining transferable (可转移的) knowledge begins with the choices you make at school. You want your education to provide you with the necessary skills and expertise to succeed in a wide variety of jobs.
Once you have finished your formal education, search for jobs that will allow you to further expand your transferable knowledge—to help you find your next job. Let’s say you take a job putting together airplane leases. Within a few years, you could become the world’s expert on the subject.
Remember gaining transferable knowledge is only one piece of the puzzle.
Of course, you can build your network to some degree without changing jobs.
| A．You can make yourself more attractive. |
| B．Gain transferable expertise and form close bonds with your colleagues. |
| C．Your next step should help you expand your web of personal relationships. |
| D．This later helped me evaluate and start business units throughout the world. |
| E．You can attend conferences or participate in committees at trade associations. |
| F．This means that you need to make smart choices about the courses you will follow. |
| G．However, this narrow expertise probably won’t help you in any other line of work. |
Larry had butterflies in his stomach. Today was the day for him to meet his girlfriend Kate’s parents. He was planning to leave them a good impression, so he was in his finest suit. On the way, he secretly recited a few jokes he picked up online the previous night. His weird behavior caught Kate’s attention.
“What are you doing, honey?” she asked. Blushing, Larry told her what he was doing. She, on the other hand, actually found his eagerness to please her family quite cute. “Well, let’s hear your jokes.” she said teasingly.
They were so immersed in their chatter and laughter that before they knew it, they had arrived at the house of Kate’s parents, who gave them a warm welcome. As an orphan, that night, Larry felt the love and warmth he had always longed for since childhood.
The next day, they drove downtown to pick their engagement ring. Everything was working out just perfectly. However, on their way home, a truck driven by a drunk driver smashed into their car, sending it flying off the roadside down a steep hill before it got stuck between several trees.
Larry struggled out of his seat to save the then unconscious Kate. As he made every effort to wake her up, the car began to slip down again. With only seconds to act, he hastily removed her seat belt and pushed her out of the car before it fell downhill again with him trapped inside.
A rescue team finally arrived and drove them to a nearby hospital. Under the doctors’ treatment, Kate woke up the next day. She was only slightly injured, but Larry remained unconscious due to severe damage done to his brain caused by the heavy impact.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右了；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Para 1: The doctors were afraid Larry might never wake up again.
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Para 2: Larry told Kate to leave him and find someone else.
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7 . A huge crowd has gathered to watch China’s new scientific research ship enter the water for the first time. This ship, equipped with on-board labs and the latest scientific kit, will eventually explore the world’s oceans. But it is also going to help China plunge beneath the waves: it will serve as a launch-pad for submarines that can dive to the deepest parts of the ocean. “Humans know much less about the deep oceans than we know about the surface of the Moon and Mars. That’s why I want to develop the facility for ocean scientists to reach the deep seas,” says Prof. Cui Weicheng.
He is the dean of deep sea science at Shanghai Ocean University but he has also set up a private company called Rainbow Fish, which built the new research ship and is busy developing submersibles. One of its unmanned subs reached a depth of 4,000m (13,000ft) in its most recent trial. But Rainbow Fish’s ultimate goal is manned exploration and it plans to take humans to the very bottom of the ocean the Mariana Trench, in the Pacific, at a depth of nearly 11,000m (36,000ft). He shows me around a life-size model of the submarine and explains that there is room inside for a crew of three, who will be protected by a thick metal sphere.”At the moment, we are in the design stage, so we are testing several extremely high-strength materials for it.” It will have to bear immense pressures from the crushing weight of water above. If there are any weaknesses, the submarine will implode. The deepest ocean is a place few people have ever experienced first-hand. The first dive to the Mariana Trench was carried out in 1960 by US Navy Lieutenant Don Walsh and Swiss engineer Jacques Picard. Their vessel, the Bathyscaphe Trieste, creaked and groaned as it made the descent, taking nearly five hours.
The only other manned expedition was carried out by Hollywood director James Cameron, who took a solo plunge in a bright green submarine in 2012. Rainbow Fish wants its sub to be next. The team insists its venture isn’t about politics and that it is looking to collaborate with American, Russian and European scientists. It is, though, a commercial operation. The company plans to charge people to use its research ship and submarines, and is targeting three groups, says managing director Dr. Wu Xin. “The first is definitely the scientists who are interested in studying deep-sea science and technology. The second group is offshore companies and oil companies. The last one is tourists and adventurers [who] want to go down themselves to have a look at what’s going on there,” he says. This kind of entrepreneurial approach may be a new model for science in China. Deep-sea research is a difficult, high-risk activity — and much of the ocean remains unexplored. But Cui, who hopes to be the first Chinese person to reach the Mariana Trench, believes that China could be the nation to truly open up this final frontier.
1. What function does the new scientific research ship serve?| A．As a deep-sea facility for tourist adventures |
| B．As a supply ship for scientific explorations. |
| C．As a station for observing giant squid. |
| D．As a launch-pad for submarines. |
| A．Testing high-strength materials for building submarines. |
| B．Designing a thick metal sphere for bearing space pressure. |
| C．Charting the Mariana Trench in the western Pacific Ocean. |
| D．Making plans for his dive to the bottom of the Mariana Trench. |
| A．Prof. Cui doesn’t rely on government funding. Instead he runs a for-profit business. |
| B．Prof. Cui is bold in his submarine design. |
| C．Prof. Cui, who started the company, is a professor-turned entrepreneur. |
| D．Prof. Cui is the first to offer his ship for tourists. |
| A．Deep-sea science and technology | B．Ocean exploration |
| C．Race to the deep | D．The rising of Rainbow Fish |
Two months to save my girl’s life
As my feet pounded the pavement, sweat dripped down my forehead and back. “Just a little bit further,” I told myself, determined to push forward. Though I’d never been much of a runner, I had a crucial motivation to save my little girl, Bridie. Born in January 2017, she had beautiful big blue eyes. But shortly after her arrival, doctors pointed out that her head was measuring quite large. Within days, she was diagnosed with sagittal craniosynostosis. Doctors explained that she’d need surgery. They also noticed that her limbs and fingers were measuring quite short, so Bridie went through genetic testing to find out why. When the results came back, my wife and I met with the specialist. “Bridie has Mainzer-Saldino syndrome,” he said. He also revealed the rare condition would cause reinal (视网膜的) degeneration, meaning she could go blind and develop kidney (肾) disease.
So, when Bridie fell ill in 2019 with common flu, it caused a loss to her little body. Sadly, the medications she needed to help her recover weakened her kidneys even further. By December that year, her specialist revealed they were only functioning at 30 percent. “If it gets any worse, she will need to start dialysis (透析),” he admitted, adding that a transplant might be required sooner than we first thought.
It broke my heart, and I knew I had to step up to help save my girl. So I volunteered to give her one of my kidneys right away. After undergoing multiple tests, I was declared a match. But there were still several barriers I had to overcome before I had the all-clear to donate.
“You’ll have to lose 15 kilos before we consider you fit to transplant,” the specialist told me in June. He gave me two months to get into shape. At 96.5 kilos, I wasn’t overweight, but I needed to lower my BMI to be fit for the surgery.
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。
I was determined to do whatever it took to save my little girl.
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In November, the big day finally arrived.
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It was six o'clock when Breanna heard her mother’s phone receive a text message as it’s at on the kitchen bench. “Mum, I bet it’s Dad!” Breanna said and jumped up from the sofa, books spilling out in front of her. She had been deciding which story her dad would read in one of his funny voices for the night. Breanna’s mum rubbed her temples (太阳穴) and sighed softly. “Honey, would you mind seeing if that’s Daddy? I’ve got a bad headache but I want to start cooking a lovely meal for us to enjoy tonight.”
“Sure, mum,” Breanna skipped into the kitchen to check the phone. Her dad had been away for two whole nights working on a malfunction (故障) at his company’s warehouse that was at risk of theft. Breanna felt sure he’d been able to act like a superhero and save the day — but did it have to take so long? She picked up the phone and read the message, “Just leaving now — can’t wait to see you both.” Breanna confirmed excitedly, “It’s from Daddy! He’s on his way home!”
Her mother managed a weak smile as her daughter clapped her hands with joy. It had been four months since she’d lost her job and with only one income to support the family. Her husband had taken on as many shifts and extra duties as he could to make ends meet. Times were tough and he was working long hours, but it made the time Breanna spent with her daddy even more special. “Oh, that’s wonderful news. Now let’s see what I can find to eat,” her mother rose painfully from the sofa and added.
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。
“Great! Mum’s got a bad headache but I’m going to help her cook dinner. See you soon!” Breanna sent her dad a quick reply.
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Another message from her father drew Breanna’s attention.
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