1 . Picture the scene: you’ve spent years working towards a very specific goal. You’ve put in countless hours of work and made many efforts along the way, but now that you’ve got there it doesn’t feel quite like you imagined. Instead of celebration, you feel emptiness, confusion and doubt.

Welcome to the anti-climax. The often-experienced but seldom-discussed downside of achieving life’s biggest milestones. Many of us work tirelessly towards our goals. We may spend our lives dreaming of the day we get married, publish our first hook or buy our first home. However, oftentimes, when we achieve these things it doesn’t feel quite as expected. In fact, the achievement of these goals feels a bit of a letdown.

So why do we often experience an anti-climax with big goals, even though we’re happy to achieve them? “An anti-climax can be an unexpected by-product of a milestone achievement. Usually, the more significant the milestone, the greater the anti-climax may be. The intensity（强度）of an anti-climax often relies on what we expect of this achievement.” says Rachel Vora. a psychotherapist（心理治疗师）.“The journey to achieving a milestone can he exciting and tiring in addition to giving us a sense of purpose and focus. Therefore, when this disappears overnight. we can often feel lost and confused, in spite of feeling proud of our achievement.

When this happens it can contribute to a mixture of emotions. We often falsely believe that we’ll feel completely different afterwards or that our feelings of low self-worth will disappear, but this is rarely the case. “Clients（客户）often present to me with an extremely great sense of ‘is this it?’ and ‘what now?’.” says Vora. “These feelings of confusion and disappointment, if let ignored, have the potential to cause clients to be in low spirits, or even worse.”

1. Why does the author mention the examples in paragraph 2?

A．To present a fact.	B．To prove a rule.
C．To explain a term.	D．To make a prediction.

2. What does Vora think is the leading cause of the anti-climax?

A．Low self-worth.	B．High expectations.
C．Sense of purpose.	D．Unexpected achievements.

3. Which of the following is a case of the anti-climax?

A．Amy felt empty before giving a speech.

B．Jack felt lost after his first novel came out.

C．Mary felt proud when she joined a ballet club.

D．Tom felt doubtful about taking further education.

4. What will the author probably talk about in the following text?

A．How to hold back feelings.

B．How to improve self-worth.

C．Hon to identify the anti-climax.

D．How to deal with the anti-climax.

2 . A psychologist at Stanford once did an experiment. He assigned preschool children to three groups. The first group watched adults play rudely with an inflatable clown (充气小丑) called Bobo; another watched adults play quietly with a different toy while ignoring Bobo; and the third had no exposure to these adult role models. Next, each of the children was left alone with Bobo.

The results of the study were striking. Only the children in the first group later kicked Bobo, hit it with a stick, and sat on it just as they watched the adults do.

The above study indicates kids may follow suit if they see what others do. That’s why role models matter. When kids are exposed to role models they can relate to, it helps them set ambitious goals. Don’t assume kids know they can be anything they want when they grow up.

Take myself for example. “Angela, do you think the US will elect a female president in your lifetime?” Years ago, this was the last question of the last interview for a scholarship I didn’t win. Without hesitation I shook my head saying “no”. As the interview ended, I sensed I’d given an answer the committee found disappointing. “Of course there will be a female president,” they wanted me to say with a confident smile. “And I hope I have your vote.”

Like most children, my first role models were in my family. My dad had a PhD in chemistry. My uncles and countless cousins were mostly doctors or scientists. So, if you’d asked me in, say, third grade, “Angela, could you become a college professor someday if you tried?” Without a bit of evidence that I’d be any good at such a career, I’d have nodded my head.

So it’s quite necessary that we should go out of our way to expose kids to role models, whether it’s an Olympic athlete or a CEO. Now that we have our first female vice-president, can the first female president be far behind?

1. Why did the children in the first group treated Bobo rudely?

A．They regarded it as a mere toy.

B．They meant to make fun of Bobo.

C．They were raised to behave badly.

D．They were set a negative example.

2. What did the committee expect Angela to do with the last question?

A．To raise her doubt.

B．To respond positively.

C．To interpret its meaning.

D．To change her reply quickly.

3. How did third-grade Angela feel about the chance of being a professor?

A．Hopeful.

B．Doubtful.

C．Curious.

D．Hesitant.

4. Which of the following may be the best title for the text?

A．My Role Models

B．Aim High and Act Early

C．How to Become American President

D．Role Models Help Shape Kids’ Future

3 . Under the background of the slow growth of its total population to 1.44 billion, China has seen a sharp rise in older adults over the past decade, solidifying the country’s rapidly aging pattern, the latest national census (人口普查) data shows. The population on the Chinese mainland increased by an average of 0.53 percent annually during the past 10 years to 1.41 billion, compared with an annual growth rate of 0.57 percent from 2000 to 2010, according to the 7th national census published by the National Bureau of Statistics.

“The growth of the total population has slowed down but remains at a steady pace,” Ning Jizhe, head of the bureau, said at a news conference. “Based on trends in recent years, China’s population will grow at an increasingly slow rate in the future while remaining above 1.4 billion.” The increasing elderly population has become a defining feature of the past decade.

Ning said an aging society will set the tone for China's population structure for a long time, presenting challenges and opportunities. “A graying population will pile pressure on supply of labor force and social services, as well as adding to families’ elderly care burden. But more elderly people could also motivate consumption of products and services targeting this age group, and advance the development of some technologies,” he said.

Ning added that those between the ages of 60 and 69, who are equipped with knowledge, experience and skills and are generally in good health, make up nearly 56 percent of all older adults. “Their potential to continue making contributions to society and playing a constructive role is big,” he responded to a question on the outlook for raising the retirement age and carrying out other potential measures aimed at addressing the aging trend. Some population economists also said the latest number and proportion (比例) of elderly are largely within predictions, and the aging trend will continue for a long time.

1. What does the 7th national census data show?

A．The aging population of China has risen rapidly.

B．The annual growth rate has increased by 0.04%.

C．The annual growth rate was 0.57% during the past 10 years.

D．The total population of Chinese mainland increased to 1.44 billion.

2. What does Ning Jizhe say about the growth of graying population?

A．It is beyond predictions.	B．It brings few advantages.
C．It has sharply slowed down.	D．It will increase pressure on family.

3. What is Ning Jizhe’s attitude to the graying population?

A．Objective.

B．Doubtful.

C．Unclear.

D．Negative.

4. What can be a suitable title for the passage?

A．The aging trend brings problems

B．An aging society presents opportunities

C．China’s population gets old as growth slows

D．Measures are to be taken to tackle the aging trend

4 . There’s a child-like joy that comes with ordering something online — whether it be clothes or kitchen facilities. We sit refreshing the postal service to see when our items will arrive, and we become overly excited, hopeful and anxious.

Ryan Howes, a clinical psychologist from Pasadena California, has interpreted this phenomenon as “anticipatory pleasure”. “A lot of people believe that placing that order and waiting for it does feel good. This is why people look forward to dinner reservations, hair appointments and yes, receiving packages,” he says.

But it’s not the purchase itself that brings about this happiness. Experts say there’s something about the anticipation of waiting that is exciting for those in need of change in their lives. “It can be helpful to anticipate good things in the future, ’’says Ryan Howes. “Waiting for a parcel can serve as a temporary distraction (分心) from the dullness of your life because it gives you something new to wake up to and get excited about.”

However, anticipatory pleasure isn’t always a good thing. While waiting, many are worried about their items arriving on time, appearing broken, or simply not living up to expectations. Even when our package finally arrives, you’ll find that initial excitement has probably waned. Howes cautions that comfort shopping is only a temporary fix. It’s just a distraction from bigger problems, but it hasn’t done anything to change the bigger problems. It only helps you escape from them temporarily.

“Many people often seek external solutions, such as luxury purchases or alcohol, as a way of feeling better quickly. However, a healthier long-term curing mechanism is to look inward and appreciate your life with gratitude. Real pleasure comes from taking action rather than wait passively.” Howes says.

So the next time you feel the urge to order and track something online, chew over it.

1. What’s the purpose of paragraph 1?

A．To inform a trend.	B．To state an opinion.
C．To describe a phenomenon.	D．To issue a warning.

2. What does the underlined word “waned” in paragraph 4 probably mean?

A．Faded.

B．Strengthened.

C．Returned.

D．Emerged.

3. What’s Howeses attitude to anticipatory pleasure?

A．Objective.

B．Supportive.

C．Doubtful.

D．Unclear.

4. What is Howeses suggestion to readers?

A．Shopping online at will.

B．Seeking external stimulation.

C．Escaping from life occasionally.

D．Pursuing inner satisfaction actively.

5 . You may not consider yourself the patient type. Maybe your first-grade teacher pointed this out when you were pulling the door open before the bell even sounded. As a grown-up, maybe you press the “close door” button in the elevator many times.     1     Impatience has become a sign of a troubled society.

The time we save to get to our destination faster is not worth the price we pay for our health. As we all know, in traffic making rash decisions can send yourself and others to hell.     2    

A 2011 study, for example, suggests it may even be making us fat. If you want your satisfaction right now regardless of future benefits, you are going to have that extra dessert or that extra ice cream. In addition, there are plenty of links between impatient people and many health issues. You don’t need to do a lot of research to link impatience to high blood pressure and even heart disease.     3     And if you’re constantly anxious, your sleep could be affected, too.

    4     The first thing to do is to recognize that you have a problem. Impatience usually happens during several situations. One of them is that your environment isn’t conforming (符合) to your expectations. Another is that you’re not conforming to your expectations of yourself.

There are all kinds of every-day situations that test patience. Once you’ve found that cause, though, it will be a lot easier to break the bad habit. Most importantly, once we understand what makes us impatient isn’t within our control, we can change the way we understand that situation.     5     You’re already on your way.

A．You’re not alone.

B．It will help us stay healthy.

C．If you’ve made it, congratulations.

D．However, it’s not easy to be patient.

E．So learning to be patient is important.

F．It is important to be friendly to others.

G．Besides, being impatient could cause anxiety.