2 . We are the sum of our actions. I believe that the actions you take determine who you are. But, you say, had an abusive father/mother, I was poor growing up, just wasn’t born smart, I have a disease... All of these things do not make you who you are. They only broaden your knowledge or experience. They are things that happen to you, circumstances. You are not the sum of your circumstances, but of your “action” to them.

This is why rich kids become drug addicts or wife beaters; kids from ghetto (贫民窟) become doctors or loving fathers, and everything in between. All walks of life produce all walks of life. So, it is all about your own choices/reactions/actions/behavior, Every human being has within them a mechanism that guides their actions. The more you rebel against your inner guide, the more you tune your selective hearing to the “me” channel, the father down the “bad” side of the scale you will slide. On the other hand, if you not only listen to but act upon, the “universal” channel, the farther up the “good” side of the scale you will fly.

Even psychiatrists have in recent years discovered that in order to change thinking, a person must frst change behavior. At first thought, it would seem the opposite is true, it is not. We all have the same range of human emotions. When we feel slighted (被看轻), it sounds in our heads like: “I want to slap them, curse them, get even, and cause them the same pain they caused me. Acting upon these thoughts perpetuates (使继续) cycles of abuse, addiction, and pain. It’s when you choose not to act upon these thoughts, and instead, forgive and heal, that your thoughts and perceptions will start to change also. You change because right actions produce right results. You are choosing to heal properly by forgiving, and accepting life and mankind as it is, and in turn yourself as you are, which is the only way to have peace, joy, and true happiness.

I will admit that if you have a parent who accepts you as a whole person, inclusive of “good and bad”, you may have an edge or jumpstart (快速启动) on understanding life, yourself, and others. If you don’t, it may just take you longer to understand, accept, and act on it. Either way, who you are is determined by you, and you are determined by your actions. So, tune in everybody, to that universal channel, and act right!

1. The author argues that an abusive parent a person once had ________.

A．affects the reaction he will take in different circumstances

B．prevents him from understanding life

C．has little to do with what kind of person he is

D．determines the tough circumstances he lives in

2. By saying “All walks of life produce all walks of life”, the author means that ________.

A．poor children are more likely to succeed in their work

B．the occupation a person engages in affects his personality

C．wealthy children tend to be spoiled by their parents

D．circumstances contribute little to a person’s future success

3. The example of what we think and do when we feel slighted is given to show that ________.

A．our behavior is guided by our thought	B．human beings share similar emotions
C．we have to cultivate our behavior first	D．it’s wrong to act upon your thoughts

4. The passage is intended to show us that ________.

A．we should accept life and mankind as it is

B．everyone is determined by what he does

C．understanding life promotes right action

D．it is better to have a parent who accepts both your “good and bad”

3 . Camera flashes cut across the softly lighted downtown Los Angeles restaurant, as the crowd at Ludo Bites jostles (推挤) for the photo-of the Columbian River king salmon duck. “This is the game we all now play, ” chef and owner Ludo Lefebvre said. “We cook, we smile-and the people, they don’t eat. They get their cameras.”

Not so long ago, diners, hungry for special meals, would pull out a point-and-shoot at a restaurant for a quick picture of sliced birthday cake.

No more. Taking a cue from Twitter and Facebook cultures, serious foodies (美食家) and casual consumers alike are using digital technology to document each bite, then sharing the pictures online.

Flickr, the photo-sharing website, has seen the number of pictures tagged as “food” jump from about half a million in 2008 to more than 6 million today, according to company officials. In the group “I Ate This” on Flickr’s site, nearly 20,000 people have uploaded more than 307,000 images of their latest meals.

Camera manufacturers are joining the trend, selling cameras that offer “food” settings, which adjust to enhance colors and textures (质地) on close-ups.

“I am sharing my experiences with my friends,” said Hong Pham, 33, a Los Angeles radiologist who runs the food blog Ravenous Couple. “Why shouldn’t I share what inspires me?”

But what is documentary fun for people such as Pham is souring the gastronomic (烹饪的) set.

Managers regularly face diners demanding to be moved away from camera flashes and sounds. Waiters find themselves tongue-tied as customers take out voice recorders to capture a recitation of each course. Some chefs have had enough.

Chef Grant Achatz allows only no-flash photography in his restaurant. He, like many other chefs, finds himself torn between being flattered by the public’s enthusiasm and annoyed with the effect the picture-taking is having on the restaurant’s operation.

Some consumers now believe food should be consumed visually as well as physically. “What happened to the enjoyment of just eating the food?” said Andrew Knowlton, the restaurant editor for Bon Appetite magazine. “People are losing sight of why you go out.”

1. Who is the most supportive of taking pictures of food in restaurants?

A．Grant Achatz.	B．Andrew Knowlton.
C．Hong Pham.	D．Ludo Lefebvre.

2. People tend to take pictures in restaurants because ______.

A．delicately-made dishes are visually inviting

B．they will share with others their dining experience

C．cameras can be specially set for food photography

D．they can profit by selling pictures to famous websites

3. What can we infer from the passage?

A．More pictures will be uploaded at websites like Twitter and Facebook.

B．Consumers used to take pictures in restaurants only for their birthdays.

C．Rules should be set out that there is no food photography in restaurants.

D．Chefs are likely to accept picture-taking in their restaurants to a limited extent.

4. The passage is most probably a ______.

A．news story	B．feature article
C．commercial advertisement	D．survey report

5 .

FAQs on preparing your Application
Q: Should I target my Application to a specific Job Opening (JO)?
A: Yes. Naturally, a customized cover note will also help you focus on the key aspects of your Application that relate to the JO, but it is also in your interest to target the Application according to the responsibilities and competencies of the position.
Q: What’s the difference between duties and achievements?
A: Duties describe the specific responsibilities of your job. They accurately reflect what you are doing or have done in each of your previous jobs. In other words, it is the “what you do” of your job. Achievements describe in specific terms “how well” you did in your job.
Q: Many of my achievements are team-based, how do I draft them in my Application?
A: You should include your team-based achievements in your Application. Indicate that you were part of a team, and describe your specific role in reaching the goal.
FAQs on general Application guidelines
Q: Can I save my Application?
A: Yes. You should save your Application when you make changes and/or update it. It is recommended that you save different versions of your Application in Word format and then edit the Application online according to the post for which you are applying.
Q: Can I update my Application to apply for a new JO?
A: Yes. Each time you apply for a new JO, we recommend that you review your Application and update it, if appropriate, or target it to better reflect your suitability for the new JO. Your updates will not affect the content of Applications previously submitted against other JOs.
Q: Must I use up all the available characters in each section of my Application?
A: No. In fact, doing so may result in an unnecessary lengthy Application. Unless you have an enormous range of experiences, there is no reason to use up all the space given. Applicants are encouraged to list their duties and achievements in a clear and brief manner.

1. Which of the following descriptions best shows your achievements?

A．I’ve developed various interests, ranging from oil painting to designing model.

B．I’m good at creating proposals for new product ideas aimed at a specific market.

C．I’m in charge of the clearance, production and distribution of information material.

D．I succeeded in directing a video presentation, assisting our group to win the first prize.

2. If you want to apply for another JO, you’d better __________.

A．target your focus on your interest in the JO

B．save your latest application in Word format

C．prepare one application with all your competencies

D．update your application to match new requirements

3. Applicants are expected to __________ in their applications.

A．introduce what JOs they have previously applied to

B．list the greatest achievements they have made in detail

C．give key information about their experiences and achievements

D．provide the results of their tests, assessments and examinations

7 . Antarctic Tourism: Should We Just Say No?

More people are visiting Antarctic, the frozen continent than ever before.     1     This has brought a new urgency to the question of how much, if any, tourism should be allowed on the icy continent.

The distance most visitors travel to reach Antarctica makes carbon emissions a serious problem.     2     One study calculated that each tourist between 2016 and 2020 was effectively melting around 83 tonnes of snow, due largely to emissions from vacation ships.

    3     The Antarctic Treaty, established in 1961 to provide governance for the continent, operates on a consultative basis, which means all 56 parties have to agree before a change can be put into action. The last major decision on tourism was a measure passed in 2009 that prohibits vacation ships carrying more than 500 passengers from making landings. That regulation has still not officially been carried out as not every signatory country has accepted it domestically.

There is clear agreement that something needs to change, but no agreement on what those changes should be.     4    

A．The number of visitors hit 100,000 for the first time this tourist season, a 40% jump over the previous record.

B．The Antarctic is at risk not just because of the breakability of its environment, but due to the lack of a single governing body.

C．Should landings be made at a larger number of sites for instance, or should we aim to keep the human footprint as small as possible?

D．If what you really want is to connect with snow and ice and you’re in the northern half, can you catch a train to the nearest snow region instead?

E．The average per-person carbon emissions for an Antarctic tourist are 3.76 tonnes – about the total sum that an individual typically generates in an entire year.

F．There is so little regulation now that almost anything that will protect the areas by an official legal source rather than self-regulated would be really positive.

8 . In the past, jobs were about muscles. Now they’re about brains, but in the future, they’ll be about the heart. – Minouche Shafik, the president of Columbia University

LinkedIn researchers recently looked at which skills any given job requires and then identified over 500 likely to be affected by generative A.I. technologies. They then estimated that 96 percent of a software engineer’s current skills — mainly in programming languages — can eventually be possessed by A.I. Skills associated with jobs like legal associates and finance officers will also be highly exposed. In fact, given the broad impact A.I. is set to have, it is quite likely to affect all of our work to some degree or another.

Circling around this research is the big question emerging across so many conversations about A.I. and work, namely: What are our core capabilities as humans?

If we answer this question from a place of fear about what’s left for people in the age of A.I., we can end up admitting a diminished view of human capability. Instead, it’s critical for us all to start from a place that imagines what’s possible for humans in the age of A.I. When we do that, we find ourselves focusing quickly on people skills that allow us to cooperate and innovate in ways technology can intensify but never replace.

A recent Jobs for the Future survey found that 78 percent of the 10 top-employing occupations classified uniquely human skills and tasks as “important” or “very important.” These, commonly referred to as soft skills, include building interpersonal relationships, negotiating between parties and guiding and motivating teams.

Now is the time for leaders, across departments, to develop new ways for students to learn that are more directly tied to where our economy is going, not where it has been. Critically, that involves bringing the same level of preciseness to training around people skills that we have brought to technical skills.

Ultimately, for our society, this comes down to whether we believe in the potential of humans with as much belief as we believe in the potential of A.I. If we do, it is entirely possible to build a world of work that not only is more human but also is a place where all people are valued for the unique skills we have, enabling us to deliver new levels of human achievement across so many areas that affect all of our lives.

1. According to LinkedIn’s recent research, __________.

A．soft engineers are required to identify 500 languages

B．A.I. will replace humans in jobs requiring certain skills

C．we humans underestimate the impact A.I. is set to have

D．A.I. technologies are to influence research to some degree

2. Which of the following is “a diminished view of human capability” (paragraph 3)?

A．Humans are losing control of the world.

B．Technology intensifies humans’ cooperation.

C．Humans outsmart A.I in terms of critical thinking.

D．A.I. and humans are similar in their ability to innovate.

3. Leaders in different departments are advised to __________.

A．teach students unique technical skills	B．develop students’ soft skills for their future
C．remind students where our economy is going	D．build healthy interpersonal relationships with students

4. According to the writer, what is the core factor of human development?

A．Practical value set on skills.	B．Firm belief about A.I. technologies.
C．Decisive effects brought by A.I.	D．Confidence in our potential.

9 . My son, Ben, died when he was 23. The year after his death, I hiked 48 of the state’s tallest mountains in his memory. Every step, path and peak has been a way to restore.

About a month after his death, my husband and I hiked Carter Dome and Mount Hight, sorrow weighing heavy in our hearts and legs. Standing on the peak, I looked out across the mountains my son loved. For a moment, the heavy blow brought about by Ben’s death faded into the timeless expanse, and I could breathe.

The next weekend found us on Mount Moosilauke. Then Mount Cannon, Mount Flume, Mount Liberty and so on. It was a series of firsts, of struggles and overcoming them — climbing at night, climbing slides and rocks, camping alone, finding paths and planning routes.

Six days before the anniversary of Ben’s death, I hiked my 48^th and final peak: Mount Carrigain. As I stood on the observation platform at the peak, I found the essential truth I had been grasping to express for months: The only place that feels vast enough to hold sorrow this deep and wide is the top of a mountain, looking out into forever.

These days, I hike not to hide, but to seek. I find Ben, but I also find myself: someone broken, now braver and more capable. The forced isolation of sorrow becomes the welcome loneliness of the path; the peace of nature replaces the pain of loss. Hiking is both exhausting and exciting, and it teaches us that sorrow and joy can coexist.

But there’s another, possibly more important truth: A hike is not the only way to find the peace of the natural world; a simple walk along a park path can have a similar effect. The internal journey of sorrow mixes with our steps, and we find comfort along the way.

1. How did the writer feel after climbing Carter Dome and Mount Hight?

A．Doubtful.

B．Relieved.

C．Sad.

D．Terrified.

2. After hiking the 48 peaks, the writer learned that __________.

A．it was possible to live with both sorrow and joy

B．it was the isolation of sorrow that exhausted her

C．only by overcoming struggles could one survive

D．the peaks were proper places to remember someone

3. What does the writer imply in the last paragraph?

A．Walking works best for those in sorrow.	B．We can plan our internal journey as intended.
C．What counts is to make peace with ourselves.	D．People tend to hike in parks to seek comfort.

4. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A．The Heavy Steps That Led Me To Peaks	B．The Mountains That Held My Sorrow
C．The Journeys That Frustrated Me	D．The First Struggles That Empowered Me

10 . Defining Success on Your Own Terms

“You go to college right out of high school. That’s the rule, right?” says Nikki Ivey, a sales trainer and consultant outside Jacksonville, Fla, However, it’s not the case for her. Actually, she got her undergraduate degree at 28.     1    

One by one, she missed the milestones she’d envisioned in some imaginary dream life: earning six figures by 30, buying a house by 35. Then she hit one- attaining a high-level executive position in a company. She didn’t love the job. She did love sitting around the dinner table laughing with her kids. “    2    ” she asked herself. She ended up leaving the job, and started to wonder about all those milestones.

Danielle Ponder had a career as a lawyer before dedicating herself to singing full time. Working as a public defender in Rochester, NY, Danielle Ponder would frequently Google,“Did anyone make it after the age of 35? At one point, she quit her day job, only to return a year and a half later, due to the pandemic and disappointing bookings. On the last day of 2021, five days before her 40 birthday, she tried again.     3     “I don’t know if I could survive this happening to me at 19,“ she says. She thinks her insecure teen self wouldn’t have handled the stress of the public eye well.

It can be hard to make a transition later in life.    4    

A．Do I even want them? On whose clock?

B．Why should you challenge that secret timeline of milestones in your head?

C．This time, quitting her job led to her first album, television appearances and sold-out shows.

D．Instead of feeling pressure to hit life events on someone else’s timeline, maybe it’s fine to make our own.

E．People are felling like they’re falling behind, when in fact they’re probably doing exactly what they should.

F．She spent years feeling like an outsider and failure as she watched her peers rise in school and work, figuring she’d never catch up.