1 . 请认真阅读下面短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。
注意:请将答案写在答题卡上相应题号的横线上。每个空格只填一个单词。

Humor

If you see humor as an optional form of entertainment, you’re missing some of its biggest benefits: Humor makes average-looking people look cute and uninteresting people seem entertaining. Studies show that a good sense of humor even makes you seem smarter.

Best of all, humor raises your energy, and that can have an effect on everything you do at school, at work, or in your personal life. The increase of energy will even make you more willing to exercise, and that will raise your overall energy even more.

Humor also transports your mind away from your daily troubles. Humor lets you better understand life and sometimes helps you laugh at even the worst of your problems.

In my experience, most people think they have a sense of humor, and to some degree that’s true. But not all senses of humor are created equal. So I thought it would be useful to include some humor tips for everyday life.

You don’t have to be the joke teller in the group in order to show your sense of humor. You can be the one who directs the conversation to fun topics that are ripe for others to add humor. Every party needs a straight person. You’ll appear fun and funny by association.

When it comes to in-person humor, effort counts a lot. When people see you trying to be funny, it frees them to try it themselves. So even if your own efforts at humor fall short, you might be freeing the long kept humor in others. People need permission to be funny in social settings because there’s always a risk that comes with humor. For in-person humor, quality isn’t as important as you might think. Your attitude and effort count a lot.

Some people--and I was one of them--believe that humorous complaints about the little problems of life make humor, and sometimes that is the case. The problem comes when you start doing too much complaint-based humor. One funny observation about problem in your life can be funny, but five is just complaining, no matter how smart you think you are. Funny complaints can wear people out.

Self-deprecating(自嘲式) humor is usually the safest type, but here again you don’t want to overshoot the target. One self-deprecating comment is a generous and even confident form of humor. You have to be at least a bit self-assured to laugh at yourself in front of others. But if you do it too often, you can transform in the eyes of others from a confident joker to a Chihuahua dog.

Humor
Benefits of humor	●Humor is form of     1    . Humor can improve one’s    2     and personality. ●Humor can make one     3     in his work, study, and life. ●Humor has a positive    4     effect when we are in difficulties.
5    to follow	●    6     others for a conversation of fun is as good as telling a joke yourself when showing your sense of humor. ●Quality counts     7     than attitude and effort-even stupid joke can     8     others of risk and embarrassment.
Traps to     9	●One humorous complaint makes funny person. But too many complaints will     10     your audience. ●Self-deprecating comments show one’s assurance. But too much deprecation will make a Chihuahua dog.

2 . 请认真阅读下面短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。
注意：请将答案写在答题卡上相应题号的横线上。每个空格只填一个单词。

The Cost of Thinking

Despite their many differences, all human beings share several defining characteristics, such as large brains and the ability to walk upright on two legs.

The first unique human characteristic is that humans have extraordinarily large brains compared with other animals. It seems obvious that evolution should select for larger brains. Mammals(哺乳动物) weighing sixty kilograms have an average brain size of 200 cm². Modern man has a brain averaging 1200-1400 cm². We are so fond of our high intelligence that we assume that when it comes to brain power, more must be better. Unfortunately, that is not the case.

The fact is that a huge brain is a huge drain—consumption of energy—on the body. It’s not easy to carry around, especially when boxed inside a massive skull(倾骨). It’s even harder to provide energy. In modern man, the brain accounts for about 2-3% of total body weight, but it consumes 25% of the body’s energy when the body is at rest. By comparison, the brains of apes(类人猿) require only 8% of rest-time energy. Early humans paid for their large brains in two ways. Firstly, they spent more time in search of food. Secondly, their muscles grew smaller and weaker. It’s hardly an obvious conclusion that this is a good way to survive. A chimpanzee(黑猩猩) can’t win an argument with a modern man, but it can tear the man apart like a rag doll.

Another unique human characteristic is that we walk upright. Standing up, it’s easier to find food or enemies. In addition, their arms that are unnecessary for moving around are freed for other purposes, like throwing stones or signaling. As a result, humans can perform very complex tasks with their hands.

Yet walking upright has its disadvantage. The bone structure of our ancestors developed for millions of years to support a creature that walked on all fours and has a relatively small head. Adjusting to an upright position was quite a challenge, especially when the bones had to support an extra-large skull. Humankind paid for its broad vision and skillful hands backaches and painful necks.

We assume that a large brain makes huge advantages. It seems obvious that these have made humankind the most powerful animal on earth. But humans enjoyed all of these advantages for a full 2 million years during which they remained weak and marginal creatures. Thus humans who lived a million years ago, despite their big brains and sharp stone tools, lived in constant fear of meat-eating animals.

The Cost of Thinking
Introduction	• Large brains for their bodies and the ability to walk upright are two     1     of human beings.
The     2     of large human brains	• The larger brains may not be better because of the cost. • The big brains make it harder for the body to move around and consume more energy. • The animal brain requires less     3     when the body is at rest. • Large human brains consume more food, and weaken muscles.
The     4     of walking upright	• Walking upright makes it easy to find food or     5     against enemies. • Freed hands can serve some     6     purposes and perform complex tasks.
	• Walking upright challenges the human bone structure, and       7     the size of brains. • Walking upright results in     8     sufferings.
Conclusion	• With a large brain, human beings     9     other beings in terms of intelligence. • Weak and marginal, human beings remained     10     of meat-eating animals.

3 . 任务型阅读

Jenny was the only child in her home. She had a quarrel with her mother that afternoon and she ran out of the house angrily. She couldn’t help weeping sorrowfully when she thought of the scolding from her mother. Wandering aimlessly in the street for hours, she felt a little hungry and wished for something to eat, but it was not possible for her, since she had nothing with her. She stood beside a stand for a while, watching the middle-aged seller busy doing his business. However, with no money in hand, she sighed and had to leave.

The seller behind the stand noticed the young girl and asked, “Hey, girl, you want to have the noodles?”

“Oh, yes. . . but I don’t have money on me…” she replied.

“That’s nothing. I’ll treat you today,” said the man. “Come in.”

The seller brought her a bowl of noodles, whose smell was so attractive. As she was eating, Jenny cried silently.

“What is it?” asked the man kindly.

“Nothing, actually I was just touched by your kindness!” said Jenny as she wiped her tears. “Even a stranger on the street will give me a bowl of noodles, while my mother drove me out of the house. She showed no care for me. She is so merciless compared to a stranger!”

1. 第一节 根据文本内容从方框中选择恰当的词并用其正确形式填入文本图示中, 每词限用一次, 有两词为多余选项。

kind       treat       mercy       hunger       expect       move       anger       wander       strict       complain       sorrowful       possible
One afternoon Jenny quarreled with her mother and left home with ________.		She felt ________ and wept.
________ in the street for hours， Jenny felt hungry.		Jenny ________ something to eat， but it was ________ for her.
A seller had a small talk with Jenny and ________ her to a bowl of noodles.		She was ________ and cried silently because of the seller’s ________.
Jenny thanked the seller and ________ that her mother showed no care for her.		She thought her mother was ________ in   her.

第二节根据文本内容回答下列问题
2. After running out of the house, what did Jenny think of her mother?
________________
3. Hearing what Jenny said in the last paragraph, what will the seller probably say to her?   
________________
4. What do you think Jenny will do in the end?
________________

4 . 请认真阅读下面短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。
注意：请将答案写在答题卡上相应题号的横线上。每个空格只填一个单词。

How Arts Promote Our Economy

When most people think of the arts, they imagine the end product, the beautiful painting, a wonderful piece of music, or an award-winning performance in the theater. But arts groups bring broader value to our communities. The economic impact of the arts is often overlooked and badly judged.

The arts create jobs that help develop the economy. Any given performance takes a tour bus full of artists, technical experts, managers, musicians, or writers to create an appealing piece of art. These people earn a living wage for their professional knowledge and skills.

Another group of folks is needed to help market the event. “If you build it they will come” is a misleading belief. Painters, digital media experts, photographers, booking agents and promoters are hired to sell tickets and promote the event. According to the Dallas Area Cultural Advocacy Coalition, arts agencies employ more than 10,000 people as full-or part-time employees or independent contractors.

A successful arts neighborhood creates a ripple effect（连锁反应）throughout a community. In 2005, when the Bishop Arts Theatre was donated to our town, the location was considered a poor area of town. After investing more than $1 million in reconstructing the building, we began producing a full season of theater performances, jazz concerts, and year-round arts education programs in 2008. Nearly 40 percent of jazz lovers live outside of the Dallas city limits and drive or fly in to enjoy an evening in the Bishop Arts District.

No doubt the theater has contributed to the area’s development and economic growth. Today, there are galleries, studios, restaurants and newly built work spaces where neighbors share experiences, where there is renewed life and energy. In this way, arts and culture also serve as a public good.

TeCo Theatrical Productions Inc. made use of Bloomberg’s investment of $35,000 to get nearly $400,000 in public and private sector support during the two-year period. Further, Dallas arts and arts-based businesses produce $298 for every dollar the city spends on arts programming and facilities. In Philadelphia, a metro area smaller than Dallas, the arts have an economic impact of almost $3 million and support 44,000 jobs, 80 percent of which actually lie outside the arts industry, including accountants, marketers, construction workers, hotel managers, printers, and other kinds of art workers.

The arts are efficient economic drivers and when they are supported, the entire small-business community benefits.

It is wrong to assume arts groups cannot make a profit. But in order to stay in business, arts groups must produce returns. If you are a student studying the arts, chances are you have been ill-advised to have a plan B. But those who truly understand the economic impact and can work to change the patterns can create a wide range of career possibilities.

Arts as an economic driver	Our communities       1     from arts in terms of economy.
2     of arts’ promoting our economy	Arts activity demands a(n)     3     effort. It involves creation, performance, and     4    . ★Artists make a living through their creative work. ★Others get paid by marketing the event.
	Arts have a gradually spreading     5    . They could help promote other industries whether they lie inside or outside arts. ★Besides tickets, some jazz lovers will pay their     6     to and from the events. ★Arts contribute to cultural development when people gather together to share their experience and renew their energy.
	Investment in arts could produce potential     7     economic results. ★TeCo used a $35,000 art investment to attract an overall support of $400,000. ★In Dallas, one dollar invested in arts could harvest and extraordinary return of nearly $300. ★In Philadelphia the arts have created about 35,000 job opportunities for workers     8     arts industry.
Art students making a good living	With these     9     in mind, art students need not worry about their career and have a(n)     10     plan.

6 . 阅读短文，按照题目要求用英语回答问题。

When I was in my second year in senior high school. I found a four-dollar-an-hour part-time job at Villanova Pizza. Like many of my friends, I longed to earn some pocket money from the job as well as gaining social experience. Just one week after I worked there, Stanley, the manager called me into his office. As the saying goes, “life isn’t a bed of roses”. My first job ended in failure. His reason was that I showed up late twice and took more breaks than others. “Oh, I’m a loser.” I thought to myself. I believed that thought was shared by my brothers, neither of whom had ever been fired, and my mother, though she would never express it in those terms.

“I am too sad to do anything.” I complained to my father.

After listening to my words, he laughed. “It’s not funny; I’m a loser.” I said. “No, you’re not. This is a part of growing up. You will be all right, my dear daughter,” he said, patting my shoulder. “Trust me. You are good enough.”

I looked into my father’s eyes and I could see he really trusted me. And I believed him.

Since then, “Trust me. You are good enough.” are the only words I have repeated to myself. I have worked hard to be a better person and cherished (珍惜) every chance I have got.

Finally, I succeeded in entering a good university. After graduation I found my dream job. I couldn’t wait to call my father and show my gratitude.

Look ahead when you experience something unpleasant and there is always someone around believing in you. When they believe in us, we begin to believe in ourselves, too. They tell us we are good enough over and over until we can hear it.

1. Why did the author do a part-time job when she was in senior high school? (no more than 10 words)
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Why did the author lose her first job? (no more than 10 words)
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
3. How did the author’s father comfort her after knowing her failure? (no more than 10 words)
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
4. What did the author do immediately after she found her dream job? (no more than 10 words)
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
5. What can you learn from the author’s story? (no more than 20 words)
_______________________________________________________________________________________________

7 . 任务型阅读

Lily is very friendly and popular in her class. She is friends with everyone in her class. There is no one in class who doesn’t like her.

She is very kind and always busy with her friends. She feels very happy that she has so many friends at school and in her neighborhood.

On Friendship Day, her class would organize an event, in which everyone had to make three presents and give them to their best friends. Lily was very happy for the coming Friendship Day and was expecting gifts from her friends.

However, when all presents were shared among classmates, she was the only one who hadn’t received any present. She felt terrible and cried a lot. She thought to herself how it was possible. She had made so much effort to be friends with everyone and make so many friends. But in the end, no one thought of her as one of their best friends.

Everyone came and tried to console her for a while but each one only stayed for a short time before leaving. This was exactly what Lily had done so many times to others.

On that day when she got home, her mother asked her why she was so sad. She questioned, “Where can I find true friends?”

Mother was surprised at her question. When mother inquired, Lily told her about the day in school.

1. 根据文本内容从方框中选择恰当的词并用其正确形式填入文本图示中，每词限用一次，有两词为多余选项。

ask     busy     comfort     expect     friend     gift     happy     kind     know     like     receive     upset
THE TRUE MEANING OF FRIENDSHIP
Lily is very________ and everyone________ her.		Lily feels quite________.
The friendship Day was coming. They would share________.		Lily ________ it a lot.
She ________nothing from her classmates.		She felt quite________. She tried hard to be________ with everyone but things didn’t happen as she thought.
All of her classmates came to________ her for a short while just as she did.		She was quite sad and wanted to ________ where she could find true friend.

根据文本内容回答下列问题。
2. What was the major problem Lily faced and why?
________________
3. Who will help Lily solve the problem and what will he／she do?
________________
4. What changes will Lily make?
________________

8 . 任务型阅读

A Mother’s Day Surprise

The twins were filled with excitement as they thought of the surprise they were planning for Mother’s Day. How pleased and proud Mother would be when they brought her breakfast in bed. They planned to make French toast and chicken porridge. They had watched their mother in the kitchen. There was nothing to it. Jenna and Jeff knew exactly what to do.

The big day came at last. The alarm rang at 6 a.m. The pair went down the stairs quietly to the kitchen. They decided to boil the porridge first. They put some rice into a pot of water and left it to boil while they made the French toast. Jeff broke two eggs into a plate and added in some milk. Jenna found the bread and put two slices into the egg mixture. Next, Jeff turned on the second stove burner to heat up the frying pan. Everything was going smoothly until Jeff started frying the bread. The pan was too hot and the bread turned black within seconds. Jenna threw the burnt piece into the sink and put in the other slice of bread. This time, she turned down the fire so it cooked nicely.

Then Jeff noticed steam shooting out of the pot and the lid starting to shake. The next minute, the porridge boiled over and put out the fire. Jenna panicked. Thankfully, Jeff stayed calm and turned off the gas quickly. But the stove was a mess now. Jenna told Jeff to clean it up so they could continue to cook the rest of the porridge. But Jeff’s hand touched the hot burner and he gave a cry of pain. Jenna made him put his hand in cold water. Then she caught the smell of burning. Oh dear! The piece of bread in the pan had turned black as well.

1. 根据文本内容从方框中选择恰当的词并用其正确形式填入文本图示中，每词限用一次，有两词为多余选项。

bread       boil over     calm     clean     trouble     sink     hand     breakfast     stove   surprise   burn   panic
The twins wanted to plan a ________ for Mother’s Day. They decided to make ________ for their mom.
↓		↓
Problem 1: The pan was too hot and the ________ turned black.	→	Solution 1: Jenna turned down the fire, threw the bread into the ________ and put in another slice of bread.
↓		↓
Problem 2: The porridge ________ and put out the fire.	→	Solution 2: Jeff stayed ________ and turned off the gas.
↓		↓
Problem 3: The ________ was messy.	→	Solution 3: Jenna told Jeff to ________ it up.
↓		↓
Problem 4: Jeff’s hand touched the hot ________ and gave a cry of pain.	→	Solution 4: Jenna made Jeff put his hand in cold water.
↓		↓
Conflict: Jenna and Jeff had ________ again and again.	→	Solution: ?

2. How did the twins learn to prepare breakfast?
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
3. How did the twins’ attitude change before and after trying to make breakfast?
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
4. What would the twins do next? Why?
_______________________________________________________________________________________________

10 . 任务型阅读

It was New Year’s Day, the first day of the year. Lucky for me, it was a day off, so I was thinking about getting my bank work out of the way. The bank person, an elderly gentleman with a white beard, was, as usual, curt (简短失礼的，简略的) to my polite “Happy New Year.” He nodded and I sat in front of him.

Minutes passed but nothing happened.

Then very uncertain and embarrassed, I put my form and booklet (小册子) in front of him. He was busy filling up entries in his register (登记簿). After a few minutes he took my form and from his cabinet he took out a very thick file from which he started filling in my details. I sat there wondering why we had computerized banking if we were still filling in forms and registers.

After waiting for a few more minutes, in which I showed all signs of being impatient, I asked him if my work was done. The moment I uttered the words, I felt as if a bombshell had fallen on him. He shouted, “Nothing is done, it will take time!”

Just then I saw his morning cup of tea which had been lying there for the last ten minutes, untouched. The tea had turned almost cold while he was doing his work. Suddenly I felt what this man, who had been working at this counter for the last God-knows-how-many years, must be feeling when customers like me come who are always in a hurry to get their work done.

1. 根据文本内容从方框中选择恰当的词并用其正确形式填入文本图示中，每词限用一次，有两词为多余选项

polite                    sure                    angry             hope                    go                    fall push                    think             touch             do                    patient             shout
On New Year’s Day, I went to get my bank work ________ and said “Happy New Year” to the bank person ________.		I felt ________.
Minutes ________ by but nothing happened.		I put my things before him, ________and embarrassed.
After a few more minutes, I asked him if my work was done but he shouted at me as if a bomb ________ on him.		I became ________ and worried.
Just then I saw his morning cup of tea lying there for the last ten minutes, ________.		Suddenly I felt what this man must be feeling, realizing I should be ________and not ________ him so hard.

第二节 根据文本内容回答下列问题
2. What must the bank person be feeling when customers like me come?
________________
3. What might I say to him then? How might the man respond?
________________
4. What would I learn from this incident at last?
________________