2 . According to the majority of Americans, women are every bit as capable of being good political leaders as men. The same can be said of their ability to dominate the corporate boardroom. And according to a new Pew Research Center survey on women and leadership, most Americans find no difference between women and men on key leadership qualities such as intelligence and capacity for innovation, with many saying they’re stronger than men in terms of being passionate and organized leaders.

So why, then, are women in short supply at the top of government and business in the United States? According to the public, at least, it’s not that they lack toughness, management talent or proper skill sets.

It’s also not all about work life balance. Although economic research and previous survey findings have shown that career interruptions related to motherhood may make it harder for women to advance in their careers and compete for top executive jobs, relatively few adults in the recent survey point to this as a key barrier for women seeking leadership roles. Only about 20% say women’s family responsibilities are a major reason why there aren’t more females in top leadership positions in business and politics.

Instead, topping the list of reasons, about 40% Americans point to a double standard for women hoping to climb to the highest levels of either politics or business, where they have to do more than their male workmates to prove themselves. Similar shares say the electorate (选民) and American companies are just not ready to put more women in top leadership positions.

As a result, the public is divided about whether the imbalance in American companies will change in the foreseeable future, even though women have made major advances in the workplace. While 53% believe men will continue to hold more top executive positions in business in the future, 44% say it’s only a matter of time before as many women are in top executive positions as men. Americans are less doubtful when it comes to politics: 73% expect to see a female president in their lifetime.

1. What do we learn from previous survey findings about women seeking leadership roles?

A．They have unconquerable difficulties on their way to success.

B．They are lacking in confidence when competing with men.

C．Their failures may have something to do with family duties.

D．Relatively few are held back in their career advancement.

2. What does the passage say about American companies in the near future?

A．More and more women will sit in the boardroom.

B．Gender imbalance in leadership is likely to change.

C．The public is undecided about whether women will make good leaders.

D．People have opposing opinions as to whether they will have more women leaders.

3. What do most Americans expect to see soon on America’s political stage?

A．A woman in the highest position of government.

B．More and more women actively engaged in politics.

C．A majority of women voting for a female president.

D．As many women in top government positions as men.

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A．What do most Americans think of women leaders?

B．How to balance work and life for working women?

C．When can women achieve equality in the workplace?

D．Why are women leaders fewer in companies or governments?

5 . Directions: After reading the passages below, fill in the blanks to make the passages coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word; for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.

“I saw that the restaurant kept a record of customers who cleared the food on their plates, rewarding them accordingly.     1     inspired me to come up with the ‘Clear Plate’ campaign by using artificial intelligence     2     (reduce) food waste.” said Li Jichen,     3     developed the AI program against food waste. By taking pictures of empty plates       4     a meal, users are awarded the points after the images are uploaded and recognized by AI. Li believes that those who value their food can benefit from the campaign, which can also help them reduce spending on     5     they eat. He added that the program has the potential to reach many users.

6 . A recent study shows that more years of school could help students get higher scores on intelligence tests. That was the finding of a study of teenage males in Norway. Now, other research shows that_______activity may help students do better in their classes.

The research comes as educators in some countries are reducing time for activities like physical education. They are using the time instead for_________subjects like math and reading.

Researchers at VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam_______the results of fourteen studies, which included more than fifty-five thousand children, aged six to eighteen.

Research Amika Singh says the studies showed a _______between physical activity and scores on subjects such as Math, English and reading. “Based on the results of our study we can conclude that being physically active is_______for academic performance.”

Ms. Singh_________some possible explanations. “There are, first, physiological explanations, like more blood flow, and so more oxygen to the brain. Being physically_______means there are more hormones produced like endorphins（内啡肽）. And endorphins make your stress level lower and your mood improved, which means you also_______better.”

Also, students_______in organized sports learn rules and how to follow them. This could improve their classroom________and help them keep their mind on their work.

The study__________some questions unanswered, however. Ms. Singh says it is not possible to say whether the amounts or kind of activity________the level of academic improvement. This is because of differences among the studies.

Also, they were mostly observational studies. An observational study is where researchers do not do controlled comparisons. They only describe what they observe. So they might observe a link that students who are more active often have better grades. But that does not__________mean being active was the cause of those higher grades. Therefore, more high-quality studies are needed to ________their findings.

Still, the general finding was that physically active kids are more likely to do better in school. Ms. Singh says schools should consider that finding before they________physical education programs.

1.

A．mental

B．emotional

C．physical

D．potential

2.

A．academic

B．imaginative

C．objective

D．useful

3.

A．previewed

B．reviewed

C．preserved

D．concealed

4.

A．record

B．explanation

C．treatment

D．link

5.

A．risky

B．beneficial

C．affordable

D．inevitable

6.

A．offers

B．discovers

C．reveals

D．recognizes

7.

A．passive

B．active

C．patient

D．anxious

8.

A．excuse

B．respect

C．perform

D．debate

9.

A．involved

B．supposed

C．attempted

D．separated

10.

A．action

B．awareness

C．recognition

D．behaviour

11.

A．leaves

B．plans

C．urges

D．holds

12.

A．load

B．permit

C．accept

D．affect

13.

A．permanently

B．frequently

C．accordingly

D．necessarily

14.

A．convert

B．confirm

C．confess

D．convey

15.

A．promote

B．cut

C．develop

D．encourage

7 . Directions: Complete the following paragraphs by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. likely   B. common   C. necessary   D. sense   E. usual F. remains     G. drive     H. close     I. occurs   J. mobile     K. contact

Family Patterns in Modern Britain

The family is a central institution of modern British society, at least in the     1    that almost everybody has had experience of living in a family at some time in their lives. There are many different family patterns in modern Britain.

One pattern that was    2    in the 1950s and covers about one in eight families today is where the parents and married children live    3    together but in separate houses. The family bond    4    strong and mothers and daughters are    5    to meet each other most days to talk or help each other. This pattern    6    more often in settled communities rather than in    7    ones, in the north of England rather than in the south, and in working class rather than middle-class families.

Another pattern is where parents and married children live further apart (usually about an hour’s car    8    from each other). Many of them meet only once or twice a month but keep in    9    by telephone and help each other when    10    . This pattern is growing and covers about half of the population. It is found especially in middle-class families in the south-east of England.

8 . The huge thirst for jobs in the civil service has made the national civil servant exam one of China's most Competitive tests. The first exam was held in 1995, and since then more and more people have _________ for it, with applications reaching peak over the last two years.

The latest online _________, carried out by China Youth Daily and www.qq.com, _________that more than 73 percent of young people want to work as civil servants. Of the 17,330 participants, about 83 percent said they were attracted by the job's _________, guaranteed health care and pension(抚恤金). _________, 55 percent said it could bring “practical profits.”

Nearly 1 million people _________to take the exam last year, yet only just over 10,000 were finally _________.This year the stiff (severe) competition continued. The exact number of applicants is not known, with the final day for _________today.

But the influx of applicants has already broken the exam's website once. China Youth Daily _______ that the site was forced to close for maintenance due to __________ high traffic on the night of October 16. In a typical year several hundred applicants will apply for many of the jobs listed. For example, the five job vacancies __________by the secretariat of the Central Committee of the Party have this year __________more than3,880 applicants.

In general, the exam means 50 people competing for one post, the report said. __________as civil servants are attractive, not only because of the stable income and good health care, but also because of the low risks __________with the power and __________the positions enjoy. Among the total 6 million public servants, around 20,000 were dismissed between 1996 and 2003.

1.

A．put up

B．signed up

C．made up

D．taken up

2.

A．discussion

B．search

C．survey

D．project

3.

A．found

B．told

C．spoke

D．insisted

4.

A．interest

B．concept

C．difficulty

D．stability

5.

A．But

B．Otherwise

C．Meanwhile

D．Instead

6.

A．entered

B．adopted

C．allowed

D．applied

7.

A．employed

B．won

C．succeeded

D．dismissed

8.

A．examination

B．applications

C．vote

D．decision

9.

A．declared

B．translated

C．praised

D．reported

10.

A．generally

B．unusually

C．commonly

D．naturally

11.

A．provided

B．introduced

C．supplied

D．planned

12.

A．grasped

B．pulled

C．attracted

D．drawn

13.

A．Spots

B．Locations

C．Work

D．Positions

14.

A．satisfied

B．complained

C．compared

D．recognized

15.

A．sources

B．entertainments

C．resources

D．developments

9 . Directions: Write an English composition in 120-150 words. The composition must be based on the information given below.
随着网络的发展，信息化已经成为教育改革的一种趋势。本学期初，“上海市高中名校慕课平台”正式上线运行。全市中学生可登录该网络平台浏览课程信息并选择感兴趣的课程学习。随着慕课（MOOCs: massive open online courses）的兴起和流行，你认为它会取代传统的学校教育模式吗？为什么？
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

10 . The red phone box in Britain is a perfect example of the British traditional culture. However, with the fast development of mobile phones, it has lost its place in people’s everyday life. In order to save their loved red phone boxes, people have come up with many ideas, for example, to turn them into toilets or art houses.

In a village in Somerset, a place in South West England, villagers have found a new way to save their red phone box.     1    . The idea was given by a local villager, Janet Fisher, who lives opposite the phone box. Villagers rallied together to set up the book box after their mobile library service was cancelled. Over 100 books and a variety of movies and music CDs are available at this tiny library.     2    .

People can put the books that they have read inside the phone box, and take away the books that they’d like to read.     3    . There is a regular check on the books to keep the phone box collection fresh.

    4    . The phone box library is open every day around the clock and is lit at night. “ It’s very pleasing that the red phone box has been saved. More importantly, it can continue providing a service for us,” said the villagers.

A．It was used as an inventory to store books.

B．The books are of different kinds, ranging from cooking books to the classics.

C．They turned it into a mini library to cope with the shortage of libraries in their area.

D．However, not everyone can get access to the library.

E．The books in the library are always changing.

F．Anyone is free to come to read books there.