1 . Two years ago, my friend Terry and I were living in our dormitory at our university. With his birthday approaching, he came to me with an unusual request. Instead of receiving presents and getting drunk (like most every other 21-year-old would), he wanted to do some acts of kindness. I was struck with such an idea. He told me about a TED talk he had watched online, which had inspired him.
Our university is not located in the safest area in Los Angeles. In fact, its location is so unsafe that the school employs the second largest private legal militia (民兵队伍) in the United States to protect its students. They have to work around the clock, standing on street corners throughout the university keeping watch. It’s a thankless job as most students grow used to seeing officers all around and finally hardly even notice their presence.
How could we show them our appreciation? We rented a truck and asked its driver to drive us around the place where we knew the officers would be and we poured them each a cup of hot chocolate. The truck driver was a bit hesitant (犹豫的) about our plan at first but after a while he was helping us spot officers and our lively spirits had spread to him as well. Smiles and appreciative words from the officers impressed us a lot. Soon they were talking about us over their radio and we were the ones being spotted and called over. Finally, the hot chocolate seemed secondary (次要的) to their interest in meeting us, the two boys that went around with hot chocolate expecting to share some late-night laughter. It was amazing to see how a small simple act can lift everyone’s spirits.
1. What inspired Terry to celebrate his birthday in a different way?| A．A radio speech. | B．An online video. |
| C．His concern for other people. | D．Other 21-year-old’s birthday celebrations. |
| A．They don’t think the officers perform their duty well. |
| B．They feel frightened to see the officers around. |
| C．They are not used to being watched by the officers. |
| D．They seldom appreciate the officers’ hard work. |
| A．He was unwilling to accept the idea. |
| B．He couldn’t wait to join the two boys. |
| C．He was strongly against the idea. |
| D．He was struck with the idea. |
| A．Lovely officers around the school |
| B．Importance of school safety |
| C．A unique birthday request |
| D．Late-night laughter |
1. 骑共享单车出游；
2. 超市购物，自助结账；
3. 你对科技的感受。
注意：1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
参考词汇：self-service checkout 自助结账
Dear Peter,
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Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
1. In what month does Earth Day take place?
| A．January. | B．February. | C．April. |
| A．Julian Koenig. | B．Gaylord Nelson. | C．Denis Hayes. |
| A．China. | B．The U.K. | C．The U.S. |
| A．Over one billion people celebrated Earth Day. |
| B．Earth Day became international. |
| C．China signed the Paris Agreement. |
1. 读报的经历；
2. 喜爱的栏目；
3. 期望和祝福。
注意：写作词数应为80左右。
21st Century and Me
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5 . Looking at the photos of public celebrations for International Pillow Fight Day in the news and social media from the 50 cities around the world, one question occurred to me: What are pillows really stuffed with? Not physically, but symbolically? Armed with nothing more than bring-our-own sacrificial cushions, strangers struck heavily each other in playful feather from Amsterdam to Atlanta, Warsaw to Washington DC. But why? Is there anything more to this delightful celebration?
As a cultural sign, the pillow is falsely soft. Since at least the 16th century, the humble pillow has been given unexpected meanings. The Chinese playwright Tang Xianzu tells a famous story about a wise man who meets a depressed young scholar at an inn and offers him a magic pillow filled with the most vivid dreams of a seemingly more fulfilling life. When the young man awakens to discover that his happy 50-year dream has in fact come and gone in the short space of an after-noon’s nap, our impression of the pillow’s power shifts from wonder to terror.
Succeeding writers have likewise seized upon the pillow. When the 19th-century English novelist Charlotte Bronte poetically observed “a ruffled (不平的,起皱的) mind makes a restless pillow”, she didn’t just change the expected order of the adjectives and nouns, but instead she made unclear the boundaries between mind and matter — the thing resting and the thing rested upon.
That can be considered as a trick which perhaps Bronte learned from the Renaissance philosopher Montaigne, who once insisted that “ignorance is the softest pillow on which a man can rest his head”. On Montaigne’s thinking, intelligence and happiness confront each other forever in a pillow fight that only one can win.
Based on the words of Tang, Bronte, and Montaigne, we can perhaps more easily measure the attraction of the global pillow fight. Like a ritual of release, the annual international pillow fight amounts to a kind of cleansing, a brushing off of daily worries, an emptying of the world’s collective mind. Rather than a launch-pad for weightless rest, the pillow is a symbol of heavy thought: an anchor that drags the world’s soul down- one that must be lightened.
1. The writer uses the example of Tang Xianzu, wanting to illustrate that ________.| A．dreams are always wonderful while the real world is cruel |
| B．pillows sometimes bless people with satisfactory dreams |
| C．people’s impression of pillows changes from wonder to terror |
| D．pillows symbolically convey the meaning in contrast to their soft appearance |
| A．learned a trick from the Renaissance philosopher Montaigne |
| B．was likely to have been influenced by the thoughts of the Renaissance |
| C．regarded pillows as reflections of our minds |
| D．wrote poems about pillows |
| A．pillows give us comfort |
| B．pillows make people more intelligent |
| C．people with plenty of thoughts have no inner peace |
| D．people can easily fall asleep when they know little |
| A．Because it is a ritual of release. | B．Because it makes life delightful. |
| C．Because it comforts restless minds. | D．Because it contains a profound meaning of life. |
It was in 1959, one week before my 10th birthday, my mother announced we were taking a trip to Niagara Falls when summer vacation started. Reservations had been made for a hotel and a Maid of the Mist Boat Tour trip. It all sounded incredibly good until Mom said we would drive to Canada.
Driving in the car meant I’d share the back seat with my 3-year-old sister. “Sitting in the back seat all day is dull,” I thought.
“Hey, can we take a plane there instead?” I asked between mouthfuls of hamburger and French fries.
“Sorry, honey, maybe next time,” my mother replied as she and my father exchanged glances.
“Dad, how long a ride is it to Canada?”
“It’s about nine hours, pal.”
This was an excellent chance to get one parent on my side. “That’s not fair to you, Dad. You’ll be too tired to have fun after driving so much.” I crossed my fingers. “Then you’ll have to drive all the way home too! Being on a plane would be very relaxing for you because you won’t be driving so much.”
My father smiled and patted my back. “Thanks for being so concerned, but I’ll be fine. No need to worry.” Then he looked at my mother and winked.
Parents can be so frustrating. Didn’t they get it? I’m in desperate need of a plane ride, and I need something cool to talk about with my friends when we get home. I lost control. “Sitting in the back seat of the car sucks,” I blurted out, then rapidly covered my mouth with a hand to prevent any other forbidden words from escaping.
“Jay!” My mother shouted. “Watch your mouth!”
“I don’t want to hear that type of language again,” my father said, slapping the table angrily.
“Ok, sorry, but I really wanted to go by plane.”
“This conversation’s over.” My father said. “If you have finished eating, go to your room.”
On Saturday morning, We loaded all our luggage into the car.
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。
My father turned the key and started the engine.
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Then I was surprised to see a sign that read “Airport Parking”.
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1. How long will the man’s trip last?
| A．A month. |
| B．Three weeks. |
| C．Two months. |
| A．Nobody. |
| B．His friends. |
| C．His girlfriend. |
| A．In Rio. |
| B．In Santiago. |
| C．In Lima. |
| A．By ship. |
| B．By plane. |
| C．By car. |
1. What does the man offer to do for the woman?
| A．Book her a ticket. | B．Give her a ride. | C．Check the flight schedule. |
| A．Thanksgiving. | B．Spring Festival. | C．Christmas. |
| A．Having a feast. |
| B．Opening gift boxes. |
| C．Chatting with the family. |
注意：1.词数100左右;
2.开头已给出，不计入总词数。
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1. What were the students invited to do?
| A．To have dinner. |
| B．To take part in a party. |
| C．To attend a meeting. |
| A．To play the violin. |
| B．To dance with Harry. |
| C．To sing a pop song. |
| A．John. | B．Rose. | C．Jane. |
