1 . It was Christmas Eve when my elder sister and I decided to open our presents before our mom got home from work. She usually came home about an hour after we got home from school, which we thought was plenty of time to sneak a look (偷看) at the gifts under the tree.
My elder sister opened present after present while I was ordered to stand guard at the big window in our front room. Finally, when my sister’s curiosity was satisfied, we changed places.
After opening a few presents, I found it faster to open one end of a present and look inside. “Cool! Mom and Dad got me headphones!” I pulled the headphones out of the box and was about to put them on when my sister shouted, “Quick! Wrap (包裹) it back up! Mom’s coming!”
I put the headphones back in the box but my hands were shaking. My heart beat faster as I tried to get the tape to stick. I had just finished burying the package with my headphones in it when my mother came into the front room. I jumped up and said, “Hi, Mom!” She smiled at me and said “Hi” back, but didn’t appear to suspect (怀疑) anything. My heart began to slow as I took a deep breath.
On Christmas morning, my sister and I smiled, and gave award-winning performances when we opened our presents—again. “Headphones!” I shouted. “Thanks, it’s just what I wanted.” After everything had been opened, my sister and I looked at each other, and our eyes met. Our secret was safe, but somehow Christmas morning didn’t feel the same.
My sister and I never opened our Christmas presents early again. I don’t know if it was that opening our gifts for the second time just wasn’t as much fun as the first time, or if we came too close to getting caught and didn’t want to think about what our mother would have done to us.
1. What did the author and his sister do before their mother came back?| A．They bought some Christmas presents. |
| B．They hid Christmas presents under the tree. |
| C．They opened Christmas presents in advance. |
| D．They wrapped the headphones for their mother. |
| A．Grateful and moved. | B．Happy and excited. |
| C．Curious and surprised. | D．Nervous and frightened. |
| A．His secret was found out. | B．His curiosity wasn’t satisfied. |
| C．A pleasant surprise was lost. | D．A festival atmosphere was lost. |
| A．He didn’t like the headphones. | B．He regretted what he had done. |
| C．He wasn’t satisfied with his mother. | D．He couldn’t find his Christmas present. |
2 . People are often surprised by my fear of blood and needles. Working in a public health unit, I probably have more daily interaction with syringes (注射器) than the average person. But the truth is, having my blood drawn scares me.
When I was 9, I had an extremely high temperature. A nurse rudely stuck the needle into my arm, causing a sharp pain. I avoided having blood taken from my body for the next years. A few months before I turned 30, my doctor ordered a blood test as part of my physical exam. I am frightened. Sensing my fear, she gently suggested I see a psychiatrist (精神科医生). “Dr. M helped my other patients with the same fear,” she said.
When Dr. M called to set up an appointment, I hesitated. Talking about personal problems to a medically licensed stranger was uncommon in my family. “A psychiatrist?” Mother asked. “He’ll just put you on drugs. Can’t you get over this yourself?” I almost listened. But I went to Dr. M’s clinic finally. “Phobias (恐惧症) are pretty easy to treat,” he said. I wasn’t convinced of his words. But despite my doubts, I was running out of options.
We started with basic exposure treatment. I watched videos of blood being drawn every day. As I started to feel more at ease with needles, Dr. M suggested drawing blood. As he gently pressed the needle into my flesh, I felt dizzy and breathed deeply. After a few minutes, I looked at the needle. It wasn’t so bad. I didn’t pass out.
I still find it unpleasant getting blood drawn, but thanks to several months of treatment, I’m less scared. I hate to admit it, but Dr. M is right — phobias can be treated. Sometimes, we have to leave our comfort zone and face our fears. And this can lead to freedom in the end.
1. What caused the author’s phobia?| A．Her sensitivity to pains. |
| B．Her bad blood drawing experience. |
| C．Her anxiety about the physical exam. |
| D．Her regular contact with syringes. |
| A．Positive. | B．Supportive. |
| C．Negative. | D．Objective. |
| A．It cost the author a great deal of money. |
| B．It eased the author’s pain totally. |
| C．It centered on watching videos. |
| D．It was smoother than expected. |
| A．Bravery brings us a happier life |
| B．Walk toward what scares us |
| C．Ups and downs make one strong |
| D．Nurse our mental health carefully |
3 . Born in Shiqian county in Guizhou province, 34-year-old Sun Xiaojun used to be the naughtiest student in class. This changed after he broke an ankle and was diagnosed with osteomyelitis (骨髓炎) at the age of 9. His right leg later had to be amputated. His family spent all of their money for the operation. The young man then made the decision to study hard.
In 2006, Sun was admitted to the Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, Hubei province, majoring in material forming and control engineering. In 2009, he won the opportunity to continue his studies at Japan’s Tohoku University. “I started to wear a prosthesis (假肢) two years after I began studying in Japan. I had never worn one before, so it took quite a long time to get used to it.” he said.
The experience wasn’t very comfortable. He would sometimes fall over when he tried to walk fast, which made him feel awkward. In 2013, he came up with the idea of creating a smarter prosthetic that used robotics. In 2018, he founded BionicM in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, to create inventions to help those with a disability. Sun won the Red Dot Best of the Best award in 2020 because of his robotic prosthetic knee.
“I myself use a prosthetic limb, and I’m also a researcher. There are about 4 million people in China with amputated lower limbs,” he added. “The cost of an ordinary prosthesis is around 60,000 to 100,000 yuan, unaffordable for most.” Sun said most prosthetics are produced in Europe. “I didn’t start my company for the money, but to make a product that is useful to society. Amputees have a basic need to walk,” he said. According to Sun, the robotic knee his company produces is priced at around 300,000 yuan per pair, while similar products sold elsewhere average around 800,000 yuan. Admitting that this is not ideal, he said that his robotic knees are still in small-scale production. He hopes that by raising more money, he’ll be able to expand production and make his devices more affordable.
1. What does the underlined word “amputated” probably mean in Para. 1?| A．attended | B．cured | C．repaired | D．removed |
| A．Science and Technology were his majors. |
| B．His robotic prosthetic knee earned him reputation. |
| C．He was the naughtiest student in class at the age of 34. |
| D．He wore his first prosthesis right after he went to Japan. |
| A．Earning more money. | B．Mass production. |
| C．Lowering the price. | D．Helping more people. |
| A．Cold-hearted. | B．Talkative. | C．Caring. | D．Stubborn. |
4 . Kurth Reis of San Francisco, California, has been through many hard times in his life. In 2018, Reis had a serious motorcycle accident and spent time in a hospital. The accident affected him deeply, body and spirit. He had several medical operations. Reis said he felt like he was “reborn” each time he woke after an operation. Following 88 days in the hospital, Reis was released and felt ready to change his ways.
Lately, he says he just wants to make people happy by making bubbles. You can watch him perform his bubble art for hours at a time around the city’s streets and in its parks. Sometimes he puts out a glass container called a tip jar. People who watch his show can drop money into it if they want to.
If the weather is good for bubbles, Reis makes a special mixture that can make bubbles the size of a small car. Humidity, or the amount of water in the air, is good for bubbles. So, he does not perform on very dry days. To make his large bubble, he puts a small rope hanging from two long sticks into the bubble mixture. As he removes it, he opens his arms wide and the bubbles begin to form. Once enough air is inside the bubble, he moves his arms back together to set the bubble free. Some people feel it looks like a bubble “ballet.”
While Reis may seem like a bubble-making expert, he only got started in April 2020. Reis can support himself with donations from crowds that watch him perform. But money is not what stirs him to make bubbles. He feels his art is useful in more important ways. Not long ago, a woman told Reis after a performance that his bubbles had lifted her spirit when her dad died.
Reis can see smiles rise from under the face covers worn by those watching him perform. Children cheer and clap their hands. Reis said such reactions make him feel like an essential worker whose job is to spread joy during the health crisis.
“I’m just trying to put a smile on somebody’s face by doing some bubbles.” said Reis.
1. What can we know about Kurth Reis from Paragraph 1?| A．He had to repay his operation fees. |
| B．He intended to do something different. |
| C．He suffered a minor motorcycle accident. |
| D．He gave up his career as a motorcyclist. |
| A．Put some money into a tip jar near him. |
| B．Give him a hand when he sets a bubble free. |
| C．Grasp a small rope hanging from two long sticks. |
| D．Add a special mixture to help him make large bubbles. |
| A．forces | B．determines | C．stops | D．encourages |
| A．Lost Time Is Never Found Again |
| B．Ups and Downs Make One Strong |
| C．Everything Comes to Him Who Waits |
| D．Small Actions Have a Big Impact |
5 . A farmer had a cow. He took very good care of this cow and one day when it was ill, he was very worried. He telephoned the vet.
“What’s the problem?” The vet asked him when he arrived.
“My cow's ill,” the farmer said. “I don’t know what's the matter with her. She’s lying down and won’t eat. She's making a strange noise.”
The vet looked over the cow. "She's certainly ill," he said, "and she needs to take some very strong medicine." He took a bottle out of his box, put two pills into his hand and said, "Give her these. The pills should make her better."
“How should I give them to her?” the farmer asked.
The vet gave him a tube and said, "Put this tube in her mouth, then put the pills in the tube and blow. That 'll make it."
The next day the vet came to the farm again. The farmer was sitting outside his house and looked more worried.
“How's your cow?” the vet asked.
“No change,” the farmer said, “and I’m feeling very strange myself.”
“Oh?” the vet said, "Why?"
“I did what you said,” the farmer answered. “I put the tube in the cow's mouth and then put two pills down it.”
“And?” the vet asked.
“The cow blew first,” the farmer said.
1. In the story, the vet must be _________.| A．the farmer's friend | B．a milk factory |
| C．a hospital for cows | D．a doctor for animals |
| A．couldn't lie down | B．didn't eat the pills |
| C．couldn't make any noise | D．was ill |
| A．Bottle of pills. | B．A long tube. | C．Two pills. | D．A small box. |
| A．to blow the tube | B．to make the cow take the pills |
| C．to take the medicine | D．to put the tube in his mouth |
6 . Rick went home from school by bus one day. When an old woman got on the bus, Rick gave her his seat. The old woman thanked him and gave him three apples. She said to him in a whisper, “Tell the apple what you want to be. Eat it and then wait and see.”
Rick thanked her and went to the park with the apples. There were some tall boys. “I want to be tall and strong.” Rick said and ate the first apple. Suddenly, he grew into a big boy. But all the boys ran away in panic when they saw him.
Rick was sad. He took out another apple and said, “I want to be famous and have lots of friends.” With these words, he ate the second apple. But when hundreds of people wanted to interview him, he ran away.
When he saw a sports car, Rick wanted to be rich and ate the third apple. But when his wish came true, he was unhappy at all.
A few days later, Rick met the old lady again. She told him, “Go to the garden, find a small yellow flower and tell the flower what you want to be.”
Rick went to the garden and picked up the flower. Then he said, “I want to be myself.” Suddenly, he was at the park again and one of the boys said to him, “Come on and play with us!”
1. The old lady thanked Rick because he was a ________ boy.| A．weak | B．kind | C．careful | D．funny |
| A．a feeling of being afraid | B．a feeling of being surprised |
| C．a feeling of being happy | D．a feeling of being amazed |
| A．tall and strong | B．very rich | C．famous | D．special |
| A．two | B．three | C．four | D．five |
7 . Having worked for more than a decade in finance in the oil industry in Canada, Tori Fahey found herself wanting more from life. But it wasn't through desperation that her circumstances changed: “I didn't get fed up and storm off, nothing like that; it was curiosity about other interests and wanting to experience something new.”
Fahey left her job and completed an MBA before setting up a move to New York to begin a degree. However, the opportunity of an open year between the MBA and the degree came up, and as a keen touring cyclist, Fahey realised that a much dreamed-about adventure was now becoming a possibility: "The ride in Africa had been on my fantasy list. It was a moment when I realised that I could do anything, so I should."
Fahey rode across Africa, a 7,500-mile trip that took four months. The whole experience had a life-changing impact. Fahey said: “Bicycles provide a literal freedom. You don't allow yourself to feel like that in everyday life because there are so many distractions. But when you' re out on the bike and there's nothing else, you' re really free to experience what life is.”
Post-degree, Fahey worked on projects with the UNDP(United Nations Development Project) in Montenegro with the aim of bringing investment to rural communities.
It was while working on these projects that the seeds were sown for the next new investment. “It was through my trip across Africa that I discovered pannier and rack systems inconvenient and I was never going to use them again.” Little did she know this would lead her to start up her own company.
In 2013, Apidura was born, producing storage solutions for people looking to travel the world by bike, race across continents and carry all they need to do so. It's now a successful global brand, but Fahey remains reflective about what else the company can do for people.
1. Why did Fahey leave her job in Canada?| A．She was bored with the job. | B．She was disappointed with life. |
| C．She wanted to add new dimensions to her life. | D．She found it hard to adjust to the circumstances. |
| A．Demanding. | B．Liberating. | C．Eventful. | D．Dangerous. |
| A．To encourage bicycle traveling. | B．To make her investment profitable. |
| C．To help cyclists carry traveling stuff. | D．To increase the pleasure of riding bikes. |
| A．A tough path to fame. | B．An adventure across Africa. |
| C．The benefits of green travelling. | D．The story behind the birth of Apidura. |
8 . An English vicar, Sam Leach, climbed 165 feet to the top of his church not long ago. He always had a fear of heights, but he wanted to set himself free by taking the vertigo challenge, while raising money for urgently needed at his church in Devon.
He tied himself to a rope and successfully climbed up the church all the way to the top, despite feeling terribly sick at the thought of it. Sam joined three others in climbing up and down in just under an hour. The feeling he had at the top? It was “very exciting and enjoyable”.
“Actually,” says Sam, “I would do it again. The view was so amazing, looking out the town center. The fear this morning when I first got up there left my knees shaking. I was really nervous but strangely, not quite as frightened as I thought I would be. When I started doing it, I just looked straight ahead. I was not looking up, as that’s what makes me get vertigo. I was not worried about my safety, as I was tied to a rope.”
Sam’s church is covered in scaffolding at present for repairs whose money was provided by the UK’s National Lottery Heritage Fund. But while the work has been going on, US $9,000 in new repairs became necessary in the kitchen—an important part of the church’s connection with the community. “Hospitality is a key value of the church,” Sam says.
“It’s not about the building; it’s what we can offer to the community—and the kitchen is important to that.”
1. Why did Sam Leach climb his church?| A．To overcome his fear of heights. | B．To raise money to build a new church. |
| C．To enjoy the amazing view of the town. | D．To try to get great excitement. |
| A．He was not frightened at all. | B．He was excited but nervous. |
| C．He was confident about the goal. | D．He was anxious about his safety. |
| A．US $9,000 is needed for the whole repair of the church. |
| B．The kitchen was the least important part of the church. |
| C．The repair work of the church has been finished. |
| D．The church often offers food to the community. |
| A．He raised money for climbing the church. | B．He didn’t have a sense of responsibility. |
| C．He was brave enough to challenge himself. | D．He finished climbing up and down alone. |
9 . In my life, I make it a rule to avoid using plastic bottles. So when I was invited to visit Sri Lanka for two weeks, I wondered how I could go without using them.
First, I got prepared for the worst. I brought a water bottle that can convert any water from lakes, streams, or hotel taps into clean drinking water through a filter(过滤器). Next, I bought a package of Aquatabs that help purify the water. And I also packed two other water bottles.
When I got to the first hotel, I discovered that there was a large drinking water machine in the main hallway. The guide told us at the initial meeting that we could expect it in many places. However, I became less delighted when he told me later that many of the hotels bring out the cooler just when we arrive because they know we want to see it. Some will hide it the rest of the time because they’ll be able to make money off the sale of small plastic water bottles in the rooms.
This led to my next strategy. If there was no cooler available to the public, I’d ask the hotel staff to refill my bottle whenever I was at a meal. Sure enough, they did, although they usually asked first if I wanted a bottle of water. I could find they weren’t pleased by my requests, but they did it anyway. These requests are what drive the broader behavioral changes that we need very much in order to shake single-use culture. Imagine if every single traveler asked for their water bottles to be filled from cooler; I bet the hotel would have one installed the next day.
I ended up not using the filter bottle until I got stuck at Delhi airport for 24 hours, my flight back to Toronto delayed by heavy fog. In the hotel room, I filtered tap water before drinking and was grateful to have that option. I never needed the Aquatabs, but they’ll keep until my next camping or backpacking trip.
1. What did the author worry about before visiting Sri Lanka?| A．He might suffer from the terrible weather. |
| B．He might carry more water during his travel. |
| C．He might have no access to clean drinking water. |
| D．He might spend more money in buying water bottles. |
| A．Fill. | B．Transform. | C．Acquire. | D．Boil. |
| A．Uncertain. | B．Uncomfortable. | C．Unbelievable. | D．Unwilling. |
| A．He didn’t have a good time. | B．He didn’t use any water bottles. |
| C．He didn’t enjoy drinking tap water. | D．He didn’t feel satisfied with his travel. |
10 . In January 2020, as I watched the news about the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, I kept thinking, “This is not good.” As the situation stepped up, I knew it was only a matter of time before it came to my hometown in Cornwall. And, on February 15, it did.
That day, we found out the government was sending over 100 Canadians citizens who were aboard the Diamond Princess, an infected cruise ship, to a hotel here for a 14-day quarantine. Suddenly, things got very real. As a nurse in the emergency department at Cornwall Community Hospital, I’d be treating any passengers with the virus. I didn't even have time to fully absorb the news—I just grabbed my scrubs (手术衣)and sprang into action.
There are times when it feels like the whole department is on fire. There are moments when we have multiple critical patients hanging in the balance, incoming trauma (创伤)patients, and an overflowing waiting room. After all, in the ER (emergency room), we're still treating car accident injuries, heart attacks, strokes—anything you can think of, and a dozen things you can't. And it's all complicated by this virus.
I’ve been a nurse since 1994, so I’ve helped prepare for my fair share of outbreaks. I've worked through the rise of Ebola, H1N1, and SARS. But COVID-19 is a sneaky virus. This outbreak is scarier because patients can spread the virus while symptom-free. With SARS, it was clearer who was infected. With COVID-19, we have fewer clues that someone might be a carrier.
I felt so bad for the first cruise ship patients we treated—we were the first people they'd seen in a while, and our equipment made us look like aliens? But they were very kind and patient. They were just eager to get home. Luckily, they didn't have the virus. In the end, we prevented disaster.
I don't think we've yet seen the full extent of this situation. However, I believe my hospital will get through this and we will eventually win the battle.
1. Which of the following is TRUE?| A．The author thought the coronavirus would not break out in the hometown. |
| B．The author managed to put out the fire of her department. |
| C．Only patients with coronavirus were dealt with in the ER. |
| D．The author was busier because of the outbreak of the coronavirus. |
| A．The prediction of COVID-19. | B．The seriousness of COVID-19. |
| C．The influence of COVID-19. | D．The symptoms of some deadly diseases. |
| A．Positive and determined. | B．Emotional and bad-tempered. |
| C．Pessimistic and warm-hearted. | D．Overcautious and aggressive. |
| A．News | B．Blog |
| C．Arts & Culture | D．Science &Tech |
