1 . Very few people can say that they have achieved all that they are capable of. But what is it that is preventing you from fulfilling your potential (潜能)?

    1     They know that they have something special to contribute and they are determined to make their mark. This does not mean that they are too proud. On the contrary, they are self critical and push themselves hard because they know that they can achieve more.

It is easy and natural to settle into a rut (墨守成规). Why try something new when you are already doing that you are good at?     2     They take risks. They move out of their comfort zones. They take on difficult challenges. They push themselves to acquire new skills and to face new examinations of their abilities.     3     Where are you right now — inside your comfort zone or taking risks?

    4     Thinking and planning are great but it is action that leads to success. It is only by doing things and doing the right things that you change the world.

Let’s face it — your friends and family are really nice people but they are not challenging you to achieve more. Spend more time with high flyers and positive thinkers who understand ambition and achievement. Share some of your thoughts, dreams and challenges with them.     5    

A．High achievers go further.

B．This means that they run the risk of failure.

C．All successful people have strong self-belief.

D．They can take comfort in modest achievements.

E．You waste a lot of time every day on low value activities.

F．They will encourage you and give you the direct advice you need.

G．It is really very hard to make progress if you have no ambition for your life.

2 . Despite an ever-higher bar to grab the attention of students in large lecture hall, Tatiana Erukhimova, who teaches physics at Texas A&M University, has managed to get her students, as well as future generations, excited about the science.

Known as “Dr. Tatiana”, the professor performs physics tricks with boundless energy and enthusiasm in her videos. A range of everyday objects are used in her experiments, from pingpong balls and toilet paper to marshmallows, bicycle wheels and hair dryers. Videos of her dramatic demonstrations have received hundreds of millions of views across social media platforms.

However, things aren’t always easy. When she first started teaching college freshman classes two decades ago, she also struggled to grab the attention of her students. “I did not grab their attention on the first day-that was my mistake.” she says. “I missed this opportunity to bond with them from the very beginning, and then it took me a while to find my voice.”

By the second semester, she found her footing, adjusting her approach to get her students engaged. The key, she says, has been to make herself approachable and her instruction personal. And, of course, add showy demonstrations. “These demonstrations often help students to connect these abstract concepts with real life.” she says.

Physics department head Grigory Rogachev says Erukhimova’s work has helped bring visibility to the department, with about 2. 5 million subscribers on its department’s YouTube page, which has translated to a boost in research funds and physics major applicants.

As a leader in a STEM field in which women are underrepresented, she’s become a role model for some. Afiya Dhanani attended Texas A&M University after seeing Erukhimova’s videos online. “Watching Dr. Tatiana do the experiments online, especially since she was a female leader. Was more inspiring for me to even go into physics.” Dhanani said in an interview with CBS Mornings. That’s all Erakhimova says she can hope for -making physics less forbidding and more exciting.

1. What does Erukhimova’s online videos feature?

A．Rare materials.	B．Energetic presentation.
C．Plain demonstration.	D．Professional explanation.

2. Which saying explains Erukhimova’s initial failure to grab students’ attention 20 years ago?

A．All that glitters is not gold.

B．Sharp tools make good work.

C．First impressions are make or break.

D．A fall into the pit, a gain in your wit.

3. How does Erukhimova’s work contribute to the physics department?

A．It leads more students to change their majors.

B．It makes more people to know about the department.

C．It helps the department translate more research papers.

D．It attracts more physics professors to join the department.

4. Which word best describes Erukhimova as a leader in a STEM field?

A．Inspirational.

B．Underestimated.

C．Cooperative.

D．Ambitious.

3 . Nature can be unforgiving, especially when it comes to the animal world. As such, squirrels need every advantage they can get in order to protect themselves from a variety of predators that may want to make them their next meal. Squirrels pay incredibly close attention to their surroundings, and they pick up alarm calls from other nearby animals in reference to nearby predators. Now, a new study reveals that squirrels also listen to nearby birds’ conversations to make sure there is no threat close by.

Researchers from Oberlin University say that if the talk from birds is relaxing and normal, the squirrel knows it is not in immediate danger. The authors said that squirrels were listening to bird conversations and sounds to assess their safety, so in order to test their theory they observed the behavior of 54 wild Eastern gray squirrels scattered across various parks and areas in Ohio.

First, a threat was shown by playing a record of a red-tailed hawk(鹰), an animal known to hunt and eat both squirrels and other smaller birds. Then, researchers played one of two different recordings; one recording was of many songbirds chattering among one another happily, and the other was with no bird noises. After playing these recordings, each squirrel’s behavior was monitored for three minutes.

As expected, after hearing the initial record, all the squirrels displayed defensive attitudes, such as running away, looking around, or freezing their movements. Interestingly, the squirrels that heard the happy sounds of songbirds returned back to a normal, relaxed state much faster than the other group that heard the quiet sounds.

The study’s authors say that this indicates squirrels use the sounds of nearby animals to ensure their own safety. This allows the squirrel to either get back to what they were doing in a faster manner, or prepare for potential threats more efficiently.

“Perhaps in some circumstances, cues of safety could be as important as cues of danger,” the study reads. The study is published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE.

1. What does the underlined word “predators” mean in the first paragraph?

A．Animals that hunt squirrels as food.

B．Animals that make friends with squirrels.

C．Animals that hunt squirrels and birds at night.

D．Animals that steal the food from the squirrels’ nests.

2. What will the squirrels do after hearing the sound of a red-tailed hawk?

A．They will stay and freeze.

B．They will behave normally.

C．They will keep on their guard.

D．They will look around and run away.

3. How did the researchers get the result?

A．By studying the different data.

B．By listing the different figures.

C．By comparing the different responses.

D．By playing different games with the squirrels.

4. What is the best title for the passage?

A．Three interesting experiments.

B．Squirrels listen to birds to stay safe.

C．Judging danger from nearby sounds.

D．Squirrels can record the dangerous sound.

4 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

The Day Mother Cried

Coming home from school that dark winter’s day so long ago, I was filled with anticipation. I had a new issue of my favorite sports magazine under my arm. Dad was at work, my sister was away, and Mother wouldn’t be home from her new job for an hour.

I was shocked into stillness by what I saw . Mother pulled into a tight ball with her face in her hands. She was crying. I had never seen her cry.

I approached cautiously and touched her shoulder. “Mother?” I said. “What’s happened?”

She took a long breath and managed a weak smile. “It’s nothing, really. I’m going to lose this new job. I can’t type fast enough.”

“But you’ve only been there three for days,” I said. “You’ll catch on.” I was repeating a line she had spoken to me a hundred times when I was having trouble learning or doing something important to me. She sobbed in silence .

I felt helpless and out of place. At the age of 16 I still assumed Mother could do anything. To provide enough income for my college two years later, Mother was crazy for ways to save money.

A few months ago, Mother arrived home with an old typewriter. It skipped between certain letters. “That’s all we can afford,” Mother said. “It’s good enough to learn on.” And from that day on, immediately after dinner, Mother would disappear into her sewing room to practice. The slow tap, tap, tap went on some nights until midnight. On Monday, she got a job as a typewriter at a radio station. I was not the least bit surprised but she was excited. But on Tuesday Mother looked drawn. I didn’t care honestly.

My shock and embarrassment at finding Mother in tears on Wednesday showed how little I understood the pressures on her. Sitting beside her on the couch, I began very slowly to understand.

“I guess we all have to fail sometimes,” Mother said quietly. I could sense her pain. I reached out and put my arms around her.

A week later Mother took a job selling dry goods at half the salary the radio station had offered. “It’s a job I can do,” she said simply.

注意：续写词数应为150左右。

But the evening practice routine on the old green typewriter continued.

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The old green typewriter sits in my office now, unrepaired.

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5 . Why is George late?

A．He missed the bus.

B．His bike broke down.

C．He had to change clothes.

6 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

When our youngest sister was born, my little brother Tom was six and I was eight. I had always been the “Big Sister” and he had always been “The Baby”.

Our sister’s arrival was a complete surprise to both of us. In those days no one worried much about sibling rivalry (兄弟姐妹间的较劲), and no “experts” told us how to deal with another child in the house. We had wise and loving grandpa and mom, however.

I was excited about the baby and loved to hold her and help care for her. Tom’s feelings were quite different! He just looked at her and left, preferring to spend the evening in his room. When I went to his room to talk to him and try to get him to play games with me, he just looked away. “Why did they have to get that baby?” Tom asked.

Later that night, Grandpa came over to see the new baby. As he held her, he said to Tom, “You know, she’s a lot like the baby lamb I’m raising on the bottle. I have to take care of her and feed her often, just the way your mom does with the baby.” Tom said, “I’d rather have the lamb.”

Grandpa heard and said, “Well, if you’d rather have a lamb, maybe we could trade your little sister for it. I’ll give you a day to think it over, and if you still want to trade tomorrow, we’ll do it.” I thought I saw him wink at Mom, but I knew I must have been mistaken because Grandpa never winked at anyone.

After Grandpa left, Mom read to Tom for a long while. Tom kept looking at the baby, and Mom asked him to hold our little sister while she went to the bathroom. When Mom came back. Tom was gently touching the baby’s smooth black hair, and as he held her hand, she took hold of his finger.

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。

“Mom, look! She’s holding my hand!” Tom smiled.

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“She’s a day older now. I think she’s worth five lambs now,” Tom said.

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7 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

The silk industry in Sichuan is one of the original points of Chinese silk culture. Sichuan brocade (蜀锦) originated from the Spring and Autumn period, and fully developed in the Han and Tang     1     (dynasty). It has a history of more than 2, 000 years and had a far-reaching influence     2     traditional Chinese silk production. Sichuan brocade features light shades     3     (integrate) in an elegant and care free style, which shows Han Chinese characteristics and local traditions.

Sichuan brocade is one of China’s four most famous branches of brocade, the others     4     (be) Yun brocade in Nanjing, Song brocade in Suzhou and Zhuang brocade in Guangxi. With its     5     (attract) designs and bright, clear colors that follow the style of Chinese-ink paintings, Sichuan brocade was put on the national intangible cultural heritage list in 2006.

Silk     6     (produce) in Sichuan Province since ancient times and Chengdu was the starting point of the southern Silk Road. Sichuan brocade is made with local silk and colored silk threads,     7     are the raw materials. Special embroidery (刺绣) skills are used     8     (turn) brocade into quilt covers, pillowcases, clothes and shoes.

    9     subjects of the Sichuan brocade are rich and varied. Some come from legends, myths, historical stories, and others come from landscape, figures, flowers, birds and animals,     10     (especial) the beasts that symbolize fortune and long life.

8 . Test anxiety exists and is a common problem among students.     1     . When you’re stressed and anxious during an exam, your mind has a tendency to go completely blank. Here are some tips on how to reduce or overcome test anxiety.

Get to know the material

First, you need to know the topic of the exam.     2     . Knowing as much as possible about the material can get you ready for the test. As to any exam, learn your material thoroughly. Memorize what needs to be memorized and understand what needs to be understood.

Slow down and calm yourself

    3     . So when the test starts, rather than immediately jumping to answer the questions, relax first to get your mind to work. Wait for the class to settle down before you start answering. Saying a few words of encouragement and conscious breathing can help you calm yourself down.

    4    

If you have an hour for an exam, try to consume every second of that hour in answering the best possible choice. There are no rewards for finishing first!

Silence unwanted pressures

Believe it or not, chances are that other students can be a source of major anxiety during the test. Seeing them cramming (恶补), telling you what you need to remember and what might show up in the exam will affect your preparation. Get past through the negative and unwanted thoughts and remind yourself of how well you know about the topic. Avoid speaking with any fellow classmates who are not prepared and who express negativity.     5     .

A．Dare to be the first

B．Budget and consume your time

C．A sound sleep may help you ease the test anxiety

D．They might destroy all that you have prepared for

E．Anyone taking an exam experiences some level of anxiety

F．Rushing through a test can make you read the questions and choices incorrectly

G．Also, find out how many questions there would be on the test and the required time for it

9 . “Given that signs of Alzheimer’s disease (老年痴呆症) start to accumulate in the brain several decades before the disease begins, understanding the connection between sleep and cognition (认知) earlier in life is critical for understanding the role of sleep problems as a risk factor for the disease,” said study author Yue Leng, PhD, of the University of California, San Francisco.

The study involved 526 people with an average age of 40. They were followed for 11 years. Researchers looked at participants’ sleep duration and quality. Participants wore a wrist activity monitor for three continuous days on two occasions approximately one year apart to calculate their averages. Participants slept for an average of six hours. Participants also reported bedtime and wake-up time in a sleep diary and completed a sleep quality survey with scores ranging from 0 to 21. A total of 239 people reported poor sleep with a score greater than five.

Researchers also looked at sleep fragmentation (碎片化), a measure of restlessness during the sleep period expressed as a percentage. The higher the value, the more sleep is interrupted. Participants were divided into three groups based on their sleep fragmentation score. Of the 175 people with the most interrupted sleep, 44 had poor cognitive performance 10 years later, compared to 10 of the 176 people with the least interrupted sleep.

After adjusting for age, sex, race, and education, people who had the most interrupted sleep had more than twice the possibility of having poor cognitive performance when compared to those with the least interrupted sleep. There was no difference in cognitive performance at midlife for those in the middle group compared to the group with the least interrupted sleep.

However, due to the small sample size, the researchers were unable to fully investigate potential race or sex differences. “More research is needed to assess the link between sleep disturbances and cognition at different life stages and to identify if critical life periods exist when sleep is more strongly associated with cognition,” Leng said.

1. What do we know about Yue Leng’s study?

A．Data collection was an easy process.	B．It aimed to find a cure for Alzheimer’s.
C．The results were far from satisfactory.	D．Higher scores mean poorer sleep quality.

2. What can we learn about sleep fragmentation in the study?

A．It did require outside intervention.	B．It included a series of memory tests.
C．It measured short interruptions of sleep.	D．It determined those participants’ groups.

3. What do the findings indicate according to the text?

A．The quality of sleep may affect cognitive health.

B．Keeping a sleep diary can improve one’s sleep quality.

C．People sleeping well won’t suffer from Alzheimer’s disease.

D．People with interrupted sleep won’t have memory problems.

4. What is the last paragraph mainly about?

A．The major limitation of the study.

B．An explanation of the research method.

C．A possible reason for the study findings.

D．The use of careful investigations in real life.

10 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

For as long as I can remember. I have spent every Sunday afternoon until I was a teen, around the table at Grandma’s house. As soon as Grandma and I would return from Sunday Morning Mass at St Joseph’s Parish. Grandma got started on the meatball.

Ever since I was just two years old, Grandma would always allow me, her only granddaughter at the time, to sneak a meatball before dinner was served. There was something about that snuck meatball. For some reason, it tasted so much better than the one she placed beside my macaroni, once we all sat down. My Italian Gamma had a way of keeping an eye on all of her meatballs, to make sure no one snuck a meatball but me, who she gave that special VIP sneak. How did she do it? Well, she would make my “before dinner meatball” slightly bigger than the rest.

The meatball stealing games was all fun until Jeanine came along. Allow me to introduce you to my sister Jeanine, my Gramma’s second granddaughter born five years after me, just three years after I fell in love with Gramma’s yummy meatballs.

My younger sister Jeanine was quite the fussy eater. She did not care that her gramma made the world’s best meatballs, or that our mama made almost as yummy meatballs as her mother did. All Jeanine cared about was being done with dinner as fast as possible so she can go back to playing, and so she can get her evening snack, cocoa and popcorn. Jeanine knew the rules. She knew no snack unless you finish your dinner at least 90 percent. Jeanine was not giving up her favourite snack. She knew she had to develop a plan! She did indeed!

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。

So, one day when she was given a meatball on her plate, she stole that meatball.

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One day my mother noticed that something smelt funny in our closet.

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