1 . As a writer, I miss rejection slips. Not that I enjoyed receiving those pre-printed slips of paper, but at least when I got one, I was pretty sure that a flesh-and-blood _______ had put it in the envelope. And there was always the chance I might see a handwritten sentence on the bottom, _______ the piece almost made it. When an editor at McCall’s wrote, “I’m afraid I have to say no on this _______ piece, but try me again on another, would you?” It was almost as _______ to me as if she had said, “We’ll _______ it and here is an advance for you”.

Nowadays, rejection slips seem to have disappeared with the use of online submissions. Most editors don’t feel it a must to _______ they have received, read, or considered your work because they receive so many _______ each day.

For me, there are three _______ of rejection slip pain. The first is _______ brought on by finding a flat “no” on a ________ piece of paper, then followed by anger (how could they ________ a piece that is obviously so much ________ than most of the stuff they print), and, finally, rebirth: I will live to ________ a new piece another day.

Learning to ________ rejection seems like part of growing up as a writer. Despite the many letters of acceptance I have received, my folder of “Noteworthy Rejection Slips” is far ________ than that of “Noteworthy Acceptances”, which indicates to me the fact: I still have some growing up to do.

1.

A．writer

B．reader

C．mailman

D．editor

2.

A．demanding

B．indicating

C．suspecting

D．arguing

3.

A．boring

B．novel

C．lengthy

D．particular

4.

A．thrilling

B．upsetting

C．embarrassing

D．amusing

5.

A．buy

B．reject

C．check

D．substitute

6.

A．prove

B．determine

C．explain

D．acknowledge

7.

A．proposals

B．drafts

C．contributions

D．instructions

8.

A．meanings

B．stages

C．wonders

D．rewards

9.

A．relief

B．frustration

C．anger

D．hesitation

10.

A．valueless

B．expensive

C．characterless

D．shiny

11.

A．make up

B．put away

C．turn down

D．insist on

12.

A．easier

B．better

C．shorter

D．longer

13.

A．print

B．revise

C．download

D．submit

14.

A．accept

B．criticize

C．judge

D．evaluate

15.

A．thinner

B．fatter

C．older

D．newer

2 . It was like finding a needle in a haystack. Shelly Romo surveyed what was ________ of her home in Maui, which was hit by a deadly wildfire, hoping to find her wedding ring, expecting to leave ________. But luckily, after three hours’ ________ with volunteers, it finally appeared, the diamond ________ but the band completely damaged. Romo and her husband went straight to No Ka’ Oi Jewelers — a local business that has been ________ fire-damaged jewelry free of charge.

No Ka’ Oi owner Omi Chamdi said he was one of the ________ ones — the fires had avoided his home and storefront. That’s why, in its aftermath, he immediately sprang into action and advertised ________ restorations. “When the fires here on Maui occurred, pretty ________ I decided this is something I can do and I really want to do for the ________ community.”

However, Chamdi doesn’t restore the jewelry himself; ________ he has been paying for the restoration services. When asked if he ever ________ that, he shook his head. “These are not just ordinary items, these are the most ________ possessions that people go back and dig through the ________ to find.”

________, Romo was not ready to say goodbye when the fires destroyed her home. But finding her wedding ring and getting it restored gave Romo some peace about ________.

1.

A．expected

B．reminded

C．left

D．robbed

2.

A．bright-eyed

B．light-hearted

C．absent-minded

D．empty-handed

3.

A．talks

B．journey

C．waiting

D．efforts

4.

A．sound

B．broken

C．solid

D．gone

5.

A．recycling

B．restoring

C．marketing

D．advertising

6.

A．distinctive

B．lucky

C．helpful

D．anxious

7.

A．perfect

B．extra

C．free

D．instant

8.

A．quickly

B．excitedly

C．cautiously

D．hesitantly

9.

A．affected

B．nearby

C．calm

D．united

10.

A．therefore

B．otherwise

C．nevertheless

D．instead

11.

A．expected

B．enjoyed

C．rejected

D．regretted

12.

A．precious

B．necessary

C．beautiful

D．expensive

13.

A．items

B．houses

C．ruins

D．boxes

14.

A．Eventually

B．Originally

C．Gradually

D．Naturally

15.

A．rising up

B．moving on

C．giving in

D．taking off

3 . 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。

Stamp collecting has recently emerged as a fresh and innovative approach for young people to document their travels. Instead of     1     (mere) taking photos with famous landmarks,     2     (enthusiast) of this new trend eagerly explore every corner of various attractions, museums, and shops during their journeys in search     3     various stamps. They imprint the stamps, usually with single or multicolored pictures of the scenic spots or images of famous people on postcards or in travel journals, thus     4     (create) a unique memory of their travels. Free or paid, each stamp serves as a representation of the visitor’s     5     (present) at that specific location, becoming a     6     (cherish) part of their memories.

Shi Junchu, 29, from Yunnan province, came across stamp collecting three years ago while traveling in Wuhan, Hubei province. She found it to be a better way of commemorating her travels    7     purchasing souvenirs (纪念品), so she carries a specially prepared notebook for collecting stamps whenever she travels.

“Stamp collecting has added more meaning to my travels. Turning the pages of those notebooks     8     (feel) somewhat like looking at photos. I can recall     9     happened back then just by turning to a page the delicious food I had, and the fun experiences I enjoyed, she said.

She currently operates a private museum in Kunming. Since last October, she has also introduced stamp-collecting services     10    (encourage) more visitors to explore the museum.

4 . Our species’ incredible capacity to quickly acquire words from 300 by age 2 to over 1, 000 by age 4 isn’t fully understood. Some cognitive scientists and linguists have theorized that people are born with built-in expectations and logical constraints (约束) that make this possible. Now, however, machine-learning research is showing that preprogrammed assumptions aren’t necessary to swiftly pick up word meanings from minimal data.

A team of scientists has successfully trained a basic artificial intelligence model to match images to words using just 61 hours of naturalistic footage (镜头) and sound-previously collected from a child named Sam in 2013 and 2014. Although it’s a small slice of a child’s life, it was apparently enough to prompt the AI to figure out what certain words mean.   

The findings suggest that language acquisition could be simpler than previously thought. Maybe children “don’t need a custom-built, high-class language-specific mechanism” to efficiently grasp word meanings, says Jessica Sullivan, an associate professor of psychology at Skidmore College. “This is a really beautiful study, ” she says, because it offers evidence that simple information from a child’s worldview is rich enough to kick-start pattern recognition and word comprehension.

The new study also demonstrates that it’s possible for machines to learn similarly to the way that humans do. Large language models are trained on enormous amounts of data that can include billions and sometimes trillions of word combinations. Humans get by on orders of magnitude less information, says the paper’s lead author Wai Keen Vong. With the right type of data, that gap between machine and human learning could narrow dramatically.

Yet additional study is necessary in certain aspects of the new research. For one, the scientists acknowledge that their findings don’t prove how children acquire words. Moreover, the study only focused on recognizing the words for physical objects.

Still, it’s a step toward a deeper understanding of our own mind, which can ultimately help us improve human education, says Eva Portelance, a computational linguistics researcher. She notes that AI research can also bring clarity to long-unanswered questions about ourselves. “We can use these models in a good way, to benefit science and society, ” Portelance adds.

1. What is a significant finding of machine-learning research?

A．Vocabulary increases gradually with age.

B．Vocabulary can be acquired from minimal data.

C．Language acquisition is tied to built-in expectations.

D．Language acquisition is as complex as formerly assumed.

2. What does the underlined word “prompt” in paragraph 2 mean?

A．Facilitate.

B．Persuade.

C．Advise.

D．Expect.

3. What is discussed about the new research in paragraph 5?

A．Its limitations.

B．Its strengths.

C．Its uniqueness.

D．Its process.

4. What is Eva Portelance’s attitude to the AI research?

A．Doubtful.

B．Cautious.

C．Dismissive.

D．Positive.

5 . 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。

Javon was the shortest kid in the class. It had been that way since the third grade. He’d had to ask to get his gym locker changed so that he didn’t have to struggle so much to reach it. For most kids, being short would be a problem, but Javon didn’t let being short bother him at all.

That was Javon’s attitude about most things except school work. And Javon had worked hard. By the middle of seventh grade, Javon was one of the top kids in the class. So, he hadn’t been too concerned when Mr. T announced they were starting a new unit in math. For Javon, math used to be easy. He figured that since he had ten fingers, he could do most of it. But when Mr. T threw letters into math problems, he couldn’t wrap his mind around using these letters. Mr. T had given them all sorts of rules for what to do when there were letters in math problems. But Javon couldn’t remember what they all were and he didn’t think he even understood the rules he did remember. Soon he was hopelessly lost in math class. Even worse, it was time for the class to take the chapter test.

The test was quite demanding. Javon was confused by the very first question. He was nervous and kept losing track of what he was doing. When the class period ended, he hadn’t finished all of the problems.

The day came when the class finally got their papers back. Seeing “D” written in red ink on the corner of the paper, he felt desperate. In the seat next to him, Tyler sighed slightly, catching Javon’s attention. He couldn’t help but see the big, red “C” on Tyler’s paper. He felt so upset.

When they started packing up to leave after class, Tyler accidentally told Javon he got extra time on the test. Upon hearing this, Javon burst out, “It was unfair!” He dropped his books, face hot.

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。

At this very moment, Mr. T came up to see what happened to them.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Eventually, Javon understood what a reading disorder was and how to ask for help.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6 . Los Angeles is home to a popular cycling culture. The following bike shops will help you see the city in a whole new light.

Los Angeles Bike Academy

Los Angeles Bike Academy is a bike shop with a critical mission: Provide resources and community for local underserved youth. Its initiative is its Earn-a-Bike program, where students spend time in the shop learning the basics of bike maintenance and running a store, and they graduate with their own bike. LABA also forms competitive cycling teams that race all around the country.

The Cub House

It’s a bike shop, a plant store and a nice place to wander through. It has something for everyone. Here you can play a game of ping-pong on the outdoor table, head into the mini greenhouse for a delicate plant, or just admire the vintage (老式的) cycling clothes hung on the walls. Finally, make sure to swing by the Cub House for the L. A. Invitational, a weekend party featuring multiple bike rides and a vintage car and bike show outside the store.

Frank’s

Some of the wildest bikes in L. A. are rolling out of Frank’s. The house specialty here is BMX, specifically luxury models with large 29-inch wheels. These bikes are as much fun to look at as they are to ride. Since 1992, Frank’s has found a business opportunity for itself as a destination for BMX builds and hard-to-find parts. The display counter has enough attractions to match a jewelry store.

The Bicycle Stand

This spacious store features classic vintage bikes. It’s worth making a trip to this store just to see their amazing collection. The store also specializes in vintage bike repainting and restorations. Besides, the Bicycle Stand team works on all kinds of rides, and the shop has a variety of refurbished (翻新的), ready-to-ride bikes for sale.

1. What is special about Los Angeles Bike Academy?

A．It aims at repairing local bikes.

B．It holds national cycling competitions.

C．It serves as a community for disabled youth.

D．It offers a program for students to earn a bike.

2. Which bike shop favors ping-pong lovers?

A．Los Angeles Bike Academy.	B．The Cub House.
C．Frank’s.	D．The Bicycle Stand.

3. What is the purpose of the text?

A．To discuss benefits of riding.	B．To explain how bike shops work.
C．To promote bike shops in L. A.	D．To introduce a riding organization.

7 . Kelli Boehle says her son Nik was an amazing and caring person. Nik was diagnosed(诊断) with cancer in 2008 when he was 17. He passed away in 2012. But Nik’s kindness and generosity have lived on long after his death.

After he was diagnosed and started treatment, Nik was granted (给予) a wish experience from the Make-A-Wish Foundation. “For just this period of time, we didn’t think about cancer, ”Kelli Boehle said. “All we thought about was enjoying our time together. ”

In 2009, Nik met another young man Nate, who was also going through cancer treatment. He’d been diagnosed a month after turning 18, and Nik learned he was too old to qualify for a wish. The night before Nik passed away, he asked his mother to help ensure that young adults fighting cancer could have their wishes come true too.

“It was like a seed he planted that just wouldn’t stop coming into my mind, ” she said. In 2012, Kelli Boehle started Nik’s Wish. The nonprofit grants wishes to young adults between the ages of 18 and 24 who are battling cancer. Nate was the organization’s first wish recipient. “It’s meant to bring them joy and know that they’re loved and that we’re fighting for them, too, ”Kelli Boehle said.

Recently, 19-year-old Jordan Morrow received her wish to attend a Taylor Swift concert as part of a trip to Los Angeles. For Morrow, who has spent the last year battling brain cancer, going to the concert has done more than lift her spirits. “I think it’s something to get me through whatever comes my way, ”she said. “And I’m thankful for Nik’s Wish for that. ”

In the 11 years since Nik passed away, the organization has granted more than 300 wishes across more than 30 states. In the beginning, Kelli Boehle says she wasn’t sure she could be a wish maker and work closely with the young adults. But now, it’s her favorite thing to do.

1. What is the goal of Nik’s Wish?

A．To make commercial profits.	B．To cure the youth of their cancer.
C．To ease young patients of pains.	D．To support young adults fighting cancer.

2. Which word best describes Kelli Boehle?

A．Intelligent.

B．Selfless.

C．Straightforward.

D．Ambitious.

3. What can we learn from Jordan Morrow’s words?

A．She survived the deadly disease.	B．She was granted more than one wish.
C．She was motivated by the organization.	D．She lifted people’s spirits by performing.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．Pay-It-Forward: A Mother’s Last Wish

B．Cancer Battles: Stories of Hope and Perseverance

C．Nik’s Wish: Fulfilling Wishes for Young Cancer Fighters

D．Make-A-Wish Foundation: Granting Dreams to Young Adults

8 . Urban agriculture, the practice of farming within the restrictions of a city, is becoming increasingly popular and is viewed as a sustainable alternative to big industrial farms. By some estimates, between 20% and 30% of the global urban population engages in some form of urban agriculture. But until recently, its carbon footprint remains understudied.

Using data from 73 low-tech city farms, community gardens and personal plots of land, Newell and his team compared the average carbon emissions of food produced at low-tech urban agriculture sites to those of conventionally grown crops. The team found that because of urban gardens’ relatively low yields, along with the energy used in constructing the planting beds, big-city spuds (马铃薯) were significantly more carbon-intensive than commercially grown ones. This held true even when the researchers factored in emissions from transporting commercially grown produce to often distant grocery stores. That doesn’t mean that growing vegetables in big cities is totally bad, however. “Urban farming is great, ” if imperfect, says Carola Grebitus, a food choice expert. It can be a powerful tool for job creation and education, she says, and a good way to introduce fresh produce to urban “food deserts” where healthy fruits and vegetables are hard to come by. Community gardens can also provide a place to connect with nature, and the added green space can reduce the risks of heat and flooding.

Conscious of these benefits, Newell’s team highlighted several ways to make urban agriculture more sustainable. One option is to be selective about what crops are grown. For instance, tomatoes grown in the soil of open-air urban plots had a lower carbon intensity than tomatoes grown in conventional greenhouses. Another strategy is to rely on existing constructions. Include old structures into a new garden’s design instead of taking down old buildings. Finally, take the local climate, water quality and soil into account. Growing plants that are ill-suited to an area requires more water, energy and pesticides (杀虫剂), all of which affect the environment.

1. What can we know about urban agriculture from paragraph 1?

A．It is thoroughly researched.	B．It is welcomed by city people.
C．It is environmentally friendly.	D．It is limited to industrial farms.

2. How does the author explain the reason for urban agriculture’s higher carbon intensity?

A．By making a comparison.	B．By telling a story.
C．By giving a definition.	D．By using a quote.

3. According to Carola, what is a benefit of urban agriculture?

A．It adds variety to urban people’s diet.	B．It provides recreational opportunities.
C．It strengthens the bonds of community.	D．It helps to contain drought and flooding.

4. What is recommended to make urban agriculture more sustainable?

A．Reconstructing gardens.	B．Developing greenhouse crops.
C．Selecting pesticide-free vegetables.	D．Growing plants suited to local conditions.

9 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. Why does Nancy make the phone call?

A．To ask for help.

B．To make an appointment.

C．To get some information.

2. What is the main purpose of the event?

A．To improve runners’ health.

B．To collect money for charity.

C．To select out professional athletes.

3. Who will pick up Nancy?

A．Adam.

B．Randall.

C．Joe.

4. When will Nancy set out?

A．At 5: 00 a. m.

B．At 6: 00 a. m.

C．At 6: 45 a. m.

10 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What is the aim of the magazine according to the woman?

A．To help with children’s school careers.

B．To encourage people to save animals.

C．To broaden children’s scientific and natural knowledge.

2. What does the woman say about blue whales?

A．They’re color-blind.

B．They have a longer history than dinosaurs.

C．They can normally live for nearly 90 years.

3. How does the man sound at the end of the conversation?

A．Annoyed.

B．Surprised.

C．Uninterested.