1 . 阅读下列材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。答案写在题号对应的横线上。

Over the past few months, game players in China     1     (become) attracted by a traveling frog. In the game, a cute little green frog     2     (raise) in a place where it eats, writes and sharpens its pencil. Players often check their phones to see     3     their pet frog has done. But the     4     (own) has no control over where his or her frog will go or when it leaves or returns. If the players are     5     (luck) enough, they might receive postcards showing where it has been, or they have no choice but     6     (wait). However, sometimes the frog may be     7     (complete) forgotten because players don’t have to spend a lot of energy     8     it. In     9     nutshell, after raising the frog, young people can understand the feeling of       10     (be) a parent.

2 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. Which pet may an outgoing person prefer?

A．A bird.

B．A dog.

C．A cat.

2. What may a cat owner be like?

A．Clever.

B．Sociable.

C．Careful.

3. What does the speech mainly talk about?

A．Pet people’s personalities.

B．More outgoing dog people.

C．Less sociable cat people.

3 . Weekend deals: Items to make tax prep easier

Tax season is in full gear, and the April 15th deadline will be here before you know it. Few people like the process of filing taxes, but it’s an annual task that must be done. Now is the perfect time to stop procrastinating, get organized, and purchase the tools you need so you can complete your taxes. We’ve put together a list of tax-prep helpers that are available at great prices to help you get started, get your taxes filed, and stop thinking about them for another year.

1.H&R Deluxe

Doing your own taxes is a great way to save money. H&R’s Deluxe tax software makes it easy for most consumers to file their taxes — it guides you through a step-by-step process with clarifying tips throughout. Although state taxes require a separate package and it’s not ideal for filers with complicated forms, the Deluxe package is an affordable and basic tax software. It’s currently marked down from $29.99 to $22.49.

2.H&R Premium

For filers with taxes that are a bit more challenging, H&R offers the Premium package that supports schedules A and C. It’s suitable for those who work as independent contractors or do freelance gigs, and can also handle the tax needs of investors and homeowners. It’s on sale for $34.99; regularly priced at $49.99.

3.Intuit TurboTax Basic

Are your taxes basic and your budget tight? TurboTax Basic is only $29.99 (last year $32.99) for the Mac and PC downloadable or disc versions. The basic version is easy to use and comes with free customer support despite the low price. That’s why it’s also a good choice for first-time filers.

4.HP 12CP Financial Calculator

Doing your taxes requires working with numbers, and working with numbers is easier with a reliable calculator. The HP 12CP Financial Calculator features a user-friendly design that makes it easy to take with you or set on your desk to compute numbers. It’s made with business purposes in mind and offers 120 functions for all of your mathematical needs. You can have yours in time to get your taxes calculated for only $49.73, a price that reflects 38% savings off retail.

5.WD 1TB Black My Passport Portable External Hard Drive

Don’t risk losing the important financial information you need for your taxes. The WD 1TB My Passport External Hard Drive is on sale for only $48.99, and has the capabilities that do-it-yourself tax filers need. In addition to providing password protection and ample storage space for your work, it has a streamlined design that makes it easy to transport if you need to visit your accountant.

6.Sauder Edge Water Lateral File Cabinet

From employer financial statements to receipts to the previous year’s taxes, you are going to need a place to store and organize your documents to make tax-time a bit more efficient. The Sauder Edge Water Lateral File Cabinet has an attractive design with an estate black finish that looks great in any room. There’s ample room to keep everything you need for this year’s taxes and beyond, all for the price of $203.66 — that’s a savings of $125.29 of the list price.

7.Apple MacBook Pro

In order to prepare and file your own taxes, you are going to need a reliable laptop computer. The latest version of this popular device offers loads of storage space and the speedy Intel Core i7 processor so you have can store your necessary documents, download tax software, and get the task done promptly and efficiently. We think you’ll also love the Retina display and the 15-inch screen. Get yours today at a $300 savings for the sale price of $2,499.

Written by Jennifer Manfrin from BestReviews — a product review company with a singular mission: to help simplify your purchasing decisions and save you time and money.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

1. In which section on the website can we most probably find this article?

A．Tax Filing Service	B．Terms of Service
C．Products Recommendation	D．Software Support

2. Which of the following statements is true according to the article?

A．BestReviews is a company which sells tools people need to complete their tax filing.

B．If a person wants a software having the biggest discount, he may choose H&R Deluxe.

C．Intuit TurboTax Basic is a good choice for a first-time filer.

D．Apple MacBook Pro cannot be used to store the tax-filers’ information.

3. What’s the main purpose of writing this article?

A．To give readers a clear picture of the process of tax payment.

B．To introduce products and software that help simplify tax filing.

C．To offer some advice to people on how to get taxes filed efficiently.

D．To promote the business of Tribute Content Agency, LLC.

4 . We need to keep pushing the __________ (界限) instead of being satisfied with ourselves whenever we achieve a small step along the journey. (根据汉语提示单词拼写)

5 . The Best Museums to Visit in Singapore

From the essential museums to tick off your list to cool art spaces you never knew existed, here’s the essential guide to Singapore’s art galleries.

Singapore’s culture scene is wildly underrated, more so than most would think. This is especially since it is home to some of the best museums and galleries in the region. This October, get out of your comfort zone and fill your free time getting reacquainted with Singapore’s art and culture scene.

The Ones You Can’t Miss

National Gallery Singapore

Formerly the Supreme Court and City Hall, this behemoth of an art museum—it’s the largest of its kind in Singapore—focuses on Southeast Asian art from the 19th century up until today. And with several kid—friendly exhibits and installations, the little ones have lots to check out, too. Round off the day by having a cocktail at the museum’s rooftop bar Smoke & Mirrors, which overlooks the Singapore skyline.

National Museum of Singapore

Previously known as Singapore History Museum, the National Museum of Singapore is the largest local museum. It comprises two main galleries: the Singapore History Gallery, which traces the history of Singapore from its beginnings in the 14th century to the present day, and the Singapore Living Galleries, which focus on four themes: food, fashion, film and photography. Check out the museum’s permanent exhibition, Story of the Forest, and experience the treasured collection of the National Museum brought to life through a spectacular digital presentation.

ArtScience Museum

Fusing art and science, the 21 gallery spaces here have hosted some of the most famous exhibitions in the world. We’ re talking about those that feature the sets, costumes and props from blockbuster films such as Titanic and the Harry Potter franchise. Its permanent exhibition, Future World, is a mind—bender: designed by Japanese arts collective teamLab, the show takes visitors on an interactive journey of lights, digital art and magic.

Asian Civilisations Museum

The Asian Civilisations Museum is the first in the region to represent an integrated perspective of pan-Asian cultures and civilisations. It boasts 11 galleries showcasing more than 1,300 artefacts from the civilisations of China, South Asia and West Asia. Don’t miss # SGFASHIONNOW, the museum’s first display of contemporary Singapore fashion in the context of Asia’s cultural heritage.

1. What does the website most probably serve as?

A．Tourists’ comprehensive guide.	B．Tourists’ guide to museums.
C．Tourists’ planner.	D．Museums’ manager.

2. If Maria wants her children to be exposed to the art produced in Southeast Asia, they’d better go to________.

A．the National Gallery Singapore	B．the National Museum of Singapore
C．the ArtScience Museum	D．the Asian Civilisations Museum

3. Which of the following statements is true?

A．The National Museum of Singapore boasts 11 galleries showcasing more than 1,300 artefacts

B．The ArtScience Museum promotes artistic experimentation in the mediums of print and paper.

C．The National Gallery Singapore serves as a platform to showcase the rich history of Chinatown areas.

D．The Asian Civilisations Museum presents pan-Asian cultures and civilisations from various aspects.

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。

Mohan was excited. His father had finally declared him old enough to help take the sheep to herd. It was no ordinary herding, though. Mohan and his father and other shepherds (牧羊人) moved high up into the mountains and stayed on the pastures (牧场) with their flocks for six long months.

It was not an easy life. Far away from home, the men were surrounded by forests that were filled with dangerous animals, such as bears, tigers, and leopards (豹) .

As Mohan bid his mother and sister goodbye, he tried to look as grown-up as possible. Mohan, his father, and their sheepdog, Sona, set off along the dusty track with their sheep. Soon they were joined by other shepherds and their flocks. The group climbed for three days until they reached the half-dry bed of a river. “Let’s part up here,” said the oldest shepherd.

Mohan and his father, along with Kishan, a neighbor, took their sheep northward. As night fell, everything seemed peaceful. Mohan sat closer to Sona for warmth. His father and Kishan had taken their flocks to different ends of the pasture.

Suddenly, Sona started to bark. Mohan looked up to see his father’s sheep rushing down the slope. Something was wrong. He waited for the sheep to reach him. Then he turned to Sona and said, “Stay and guard the sheep. I must look for Father.”

Mohan picked up a lantern and his shepherd’s stick and hurried in the direction from which the sheep had come. “Father, where are you?” he called out. Then came another sound that froze Mohan’s blood. Mohan shouted,” Father!” A steady voice answered, “I’m here.”

Mohan rushed up a slope and almost fell into a ditch (沟) on the other side. He stopped just in time and found himself looking straight into the eyes of a snow leopard. Mohan was frozen with terror.

“Mohan, use your lantern.” His father’s voice shook Mohan’s fear out of him. Mohan looked down and saw his father lying in the ditch, holding a lamb.

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。

Mohan knew he had to act fast.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Mohan put out the fire and then climbed into the ditch.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7 . The jigsaw puzzle (拼图玩具) is a delightful challenge where a picture made of cardboard or wood has been cut into differently shaped pieces that must be put together. It is widely thought of as an entertaining recreation.     1    The birth of the jigsaw puzzle was rooted in education.

Officially, the jigsaw puzzle originated in England and its inventor was John Spilsbury, a London engraver (雕刻师) and mapmaker.     2    The first jigsaw puzzle was a map of the world. Spilsbury attached a map to a piece of wood and then cut out each country. Teachers used Spilsbury’s puzzles to teach geography. Students learned their geography lessons by putting the world maps back together.

With the invention of the first fret treadle saw in 1865, the ability to create machine-aided curved lines was at hand. This tool, which operated with foot pedals like a sewing machine, was perfect for the creation of puzzles.

By 1880, jigsaw puzzles were being machine crafted, and cardboard puzzles entered the market.     3    

In the 1930s, puzzles were distributed as low-cost marketing tools in the U. S.     4    

The jigsaw puzzle remained a steady pastime—reusable and a great activity for groups or for an individual—for decades. With the invention of digital applications, the virtual (虚拟的) jigsaw puzzle arrived in the 21st century.     5    

A．But it didn’t start out that way.

B．Spilsbury invented the jigsaw puzzle in 1767.

C．Mass production of jigsaw puzzles began in the 20th century.

D．But traditional wood jigsaw puzzles remained the bigger seller.

E．The invention coincided with the golden age of jigsaws of the 1930s.

F．Companies offered the puzzles for special low prices with the purchase of other items.

G．A number of apps were created allowing users to solve puzzles on their smart phones and tablets.

8 . Four Best Films for You

Dune

Now at last we have a big-screen Dune that may actually do justice to Frank Herbert’s science-fiction novel. Directed by Denis Villeneuve, the film runs for 155 minutes and still only covers the first half of the book.

The French Dispatch

It’s the 10th film of Wes Anderson, a writer-director. In The French Dispatch, he takes his meticulous(一丝不苟的)style to new extremes, so barely does a frame go by that isn’t ornamented(雕琢)with a split screen. It tells three short stories set in the fictional French town of Ennui-sur-Blase, and supposedly drawn from the pages of a New Yorker-style magazine in the mid-20th Century.

Spider-Man: No Way Home

Now that Marvel’s superheroes have saved the universe, their next job is obvious: they have to save the multiverse. In the third of the Spider-Man blockbusters starring Tom Holland, the teenage accidentally opens a portal (大门)to numerous parallel realities. “What people will be really surprised about is that it’s not fun, this film,” Holland told Total Film. “It’s dark and sad, and it’s going to be really affecting.”

Ron’s Gone Wrong

The first cartoon from a new British studio, Locksmith Animation, Ron’s Gone Wrong is a family comedy. The film’s co-writer and co-director, Sarah Smith, said, “In our movie, Barney ends up with Ron, a robot, who’s completely broken, who doesn’t agree with him and doesn’t know anything about him and they have to build this relationship from that point.”

1. Who is the director of The French Dispatch?

A．Tom Holland.

B．Sarah Smith.

C．Wes Anderson.

D．Denis Villeneuve.

2. What type of film is Spider-Man: No Way Home?

A．Science-fiction.

B．Cartoon.

C．Action.

D．Documentary.

3. What’s special about Ron’s Gone Wrong?

A．It’s set in a French town.	B．It’s a family comedy.
C．It’s about superheroes.	D．It’s the longest film.

9 . PFAS are found in nonstick pans, water-proof fabrics and food packaging. They’re called forever chemicals because of their ability to stick around and not break down. Now, using a bit of heat and two relatively common compounds, researchers have degraded (降解) the chemical in the lab.

While some scientists have found relatively simple ways of breaking down select PFAS, most degradation methods require harsh processes using intense pressure — in some cases over 22 mega-pascals — or extremely high temperatures — sometimes upwards of 1,000℃ — to break the chemical bonds.

William Dichtel, from Northwestern University in Evanston, and his team experimented with two substances found in nearly every chemistry lab; sodium hydroxide (氢氧化钠), also known as lye, and a solvent (溶剂) called DMSO. The team worked specifically on a group of forever chemicals which contain a large percentage of PFAS.

When the team combined chemicals with the lye and DMSO at 120℃ and with no extra pressure needed, the carbolic acid (羧酸) fell off the chemicals and became carbon dioxide. “What happened next was unexpected, ” Dichtel said. The loss of the acid helped degrade the chemicals into fluoride ions (氟离子) and smaller carbon-containing products, leaving behind no harmful by-products.

“It’s a neat method; it’s different from others that have been tried,” says Chris Sales, an environmental engineer at Drexel University in Philadelphia who was not involved in the study. “The biggest question is how this could be adapted and scaled up. Understanding this mechanism is just one step in undoing forever chemicals,” Sales said.

This process wouldn’t work to deal with PFAS in the environment, because it requires a concentrated amount of the chemicals, but it could one day be used in wastewater treatment plants, where the pollutants could be filtered out of the water, concentrated and then broken down.

1. What can we learn about the previous ways to break down PFAS?

A．They’re eco-friendly.	B．They’ve been widely used.
C．They’re difficult to operate.	D．They’re regarded as useless.

2. What did the team do in their experiment?

A．They experimented with different solvents.

B．They tried two very common substances.

C．They tested every group of forever chemicals,

D．They exposed chemicals to extreme temperatures.

3. What made the researchers most surprised in their experiment?

A．Environmentally-friendly reactions occurred.

B．The carboxylic acid became carbon dioxide.

C．No extra pressure was needed for the trial.

D．The lye and DMSO could work at 120℃,

4. What can we infer from Chris Sales’ words?

A．It is difficult to deal with PFAS in the environment.

B．This mechanism will soon be used in the environment.

C．The method will be applied to different kinds of chemicals.

D．More research is needed before the method is widely used.

10 . As box office success brought renewed interest this week, here’s what our Pop Culture crew advise you to check out this weekend.

Earth Mama

It’s a small, quiet film directed by Savanah Leaf, a former Olympian turned filmmaker. It stars Tia Nomore as Gia, a young single woman trying to regain guarding of her two children. Tia is fantastic in her first acing role. This movie also features the great Erika, who plays a small as Gia’s friend. It’s a thoughtful film on what makes life hard for single black women.

Flyana Boss

The movie is about two young women—Folayan and Bobbi. They met in music school and started filming lyric videos for the song “You Wish”. It’s turned into a whole thing where they’re having their fans tell them where to go filming next- so they’ve run at the Hollywood Walk of Fame，Disneyland, a grocery store, a gym, and a McDonald’s.

Mystery Menu

It’s a Cooking YouTube series done by Sohla and her husband Ham, both chefs and well- matched experts. They are brought a common grocery bag containing a secret ingredient and they have one hour to make dinner and dessert. What you see between the two of them is this great creativity.

The Alarmist

Each part of The Alarmist podcast (播客) looks at a historical event, a pop culture moment, and asks the question: Who is to blame for this? Also on The Alarmist they present a number of theories, a lot of them totally absurd, and then they laugh about them as they come up with a judgment.

1. Which can help you know the hard life of single Black mothers?

A．Mystery Menu.	B．The Alarmist.
C．Flyana Boss.	D．Earth Mama.

2. Who can create wonderful food out of a common grocery bag?

A．An alarmist.	B．Sohla and Ham.
C．Folayan and Bobbi.	D．Tia Nomore and Erika.

3. What can one learn after watching The Alarmist podcast?

A．Think seriously about a historical event.

B．Reflect on the hard life of black people.

C．Learn some theories of making judgment.

D．Get a knowledge of some destinations.