1 . Table tennis may not seem a reasonable option for someone with no arms — but Ibrahim Hamadtou doesn't believe in limits. The 48-year-old Egyptian Paralympian breaks the barrier by holding the paddle (球拍) in his mouth and using his right foot to serve the ball.
Hamadtou, who lost his arms in a train accident at the age of ten, was drawn to table tennis after being challenged by a friend. "I was once watching a match between two of my friends," Hamadtou explains. "They disagreed on a point, When I counted the point in favor of one of them, the other player told me, 'Mind your own business as you will never be able to play.' It was that statement that fired me up to decide to play table tennis."
It took Hamadtou three years to master the sport. He says the biggest challenge was figuring out the best way to control his body. "I was trying first to use the bat under the arm, and I also tried using other things, which weren't working so well. Finally, I tried using my mouth. It took me nearly a year of practice to get used to holding the paddle with my mouth and making the serve. With practice and playing regularly, this skill was improved."
The Egyptian's incredible talent came to light in 2014 when he was awarded the best Arab Athlete of the year. He won a silver medal at the 2016 African Championships, qualified for his first Paralympics in 2016 at 43, and then again for the 2020 Tokyo Games at 48.
The inspiring athlete says, "The disability is not in arms or legs but to give up in whatever you would like to do."
1. What made Hamadtou take up table tennis?| A．His passion for table-tennis. | B．His ambition to prove himself. |
| C．His willingness to inspire others. | D．His suffering in a train accident. |
| A．Serving the ball with his mouth. | B．Holding the paddle under his arm. |
| C．Practicing strengthening his muscles. | D．Playing the game with the right body parts. |
| A．He was recognized as a gifted player at 41. |
| B．He was awarded the best athlete in Africa. |
| C．He won a medal in the 2020 Tokyo Games. |
| D．He realized his dream of winning a gold medal. |
| A．Well begun is half done. | B．Love breaks down barriers. |
| C．Success gives people delight. | D．Nothing is impossible to a willing heart. |
2 . 
UPS (联合包裹) driver Ryan Arens was making his rounds near a pond in Bozeman, Montana, when he heard an unearthly sound. “Like a cry for help,” he told the Dodo. It was December 2019, and about 15 feet from the frozen banks was the source of that cry — a half-submerged brown-and-white wirehaired hound (猎犬), struggling to hold to a thin layer of ice. How she got there no one knows, but an elderly man was already on the scene. He’d entered the pond in a rowboat and was knocked at the ice with a rock to create a path to the dog. It was slow going, and Arens, 44, thought he stood a better chance.
“Animals are my weakness,” he told the Great Falls Tribune, explaining why he stripped (拆开) down to his boxers and socks, even though the temperature was freezing cold, and commandeered the rowboat.
His heart thumping, Arens slid closer to the dog and used the other man’s rock to smash away at the ice. He gave one strong knock and slipped off the boat, crashing into 16 feet of freezing water.
He resurfaced in time to see the dog going under. Using nervous energy to keep warm, he swam about five feet toward her, grabbed hold of her collar, and pulled her to the ice. He then boosted the dog into the boat and slid it back to the shore, where anxious bystanders carried the dog to the home of the rowboat owner, a retired veterinarian. Once in the house himself, Arens jumped into a warm shower with the dog until they both defrosted (解冻). A few more minutes in the pond, the vet told Arens, the dog would have likely suffered cardiac arrest (心脏骤停).
The next day, Arens was back working the same neighborhood when the dog’s owner came over to thank him for saving Sadie. “Would you like to meet her?” he asked.
He opened the door to his pickup (皮卡), and Sadie rushed out. She made a beeline for Arens, leaping on him and bathing him in wet kisses. That special delivery, says Arens, “was the highlight of my UPS career.”
1. The underlined word “unearthly” most probably means ________.| A．terrifying | B．strange | C．interesting | D．pleasant |
| A．He was skating on the ice. |
| B．He was rowing in the pond. |
| C．He was trying to save the dog. |
| D．He was walking on the path. |
| A．Why Arens fell into the water. |
| B．How Arens rescued the dog. |
| C．How dangerous it was in freezing water. |
| D．Who the dog belonged to. |
| A．She jumped on him. |
| B．She kissed him. |
| C．She ran directly to Arens. |
| D．She remained still. |
3 . I had just won a bidding for a 1950s cookie tin full of memories at an estate sale. Delighted at my victory, I took the box and gave it a shake. The contents rattled. Inside were hundreds of buttons, pins, and other items, all glittering in the sunlight. As a girl, I'd always enjoyed digging through my mom's box, just as my daughters enjoyed looking through mine.
My eye caught the movement of a swing on the front porch of the house. An old woman watched the happenings in her yard. As I carried my purchases to my car, I stopped to chat with her. She told me she was selling almost all her possessions because she was moving to a nursing home.
Her eyes fell to the button box, and when she looked up, they were glistening with tears. I took the lid off the tin, and her rough hands lifted a handful of buttons and then slowly dropped them back into the container. Her fist closed around a delicate pearl button, now yellow with age. "It was from my first husband's uniform," she said. "It's one of the few things that remind me of him when he didn't return home alive." They had been married seven months before he left to serve his country in World War II.
As we sifted through the box together, we found hairpins ranging from black to brown to shades of gray and even white; a key to a music box that played a special love song; garter clips, wooden nickels, ruby buttons; all took her further down memory lane. I learned about her wedding, the birth of her children, and much more of the life she'd led for 89 years.
After our chat, I set the woman's box of memories down on the swing and slid my hands into hers. I knew we would talk again, when I went to visit her at her new home. And I knew that when l reached my own home, my heart would pull me to my sewing room, where I would rediscover my own lifetime of memories in my own button box.
1. How did the author feel when she got the tin?| A．Curious. | B．Regretful. |
| C．Joyful. | D．Embarrassed. |
| A．She was to sell her house and move to a new one. |
| B．She had to sell many things to make ends meet. |
| C．She didn't marry again after her husband died. |
| D．She was the former owner of the cookie tin. |
| A．Examined. | B．Picked. |
| C．Carried. | D．Decorated. |
| A．Antiques that add history to a place. |
| B．Memories of unpleasant experiences. |
| C．Objects that bring moments to mind. |
| D．Expressions of kindness from strangers. |
4 . Saber Hosseini, who teaches children in the city of Bamiyan, central Afghanistan, has converted his bicycle into a mobile library which he rides to remote villages.
“I came up with the idea for this project six months ago. I started alone with 200 storybooks for kids, and started riding to remote villages throughout Bamiyan province. Soon, I recruited more volunteers and we have a collection of about 6,000 books.”
Hosseini revealed that he chose to use bicycles for his mobile library project for a number of reasons. Many of volunteers simply cannot afford cars and most of the villages in his province are only accessible by bike.
Hosseini does more than just distribute books to children—he also stops to talk to them about topics such as peace, tolerance, and why they should stay away from drugs. “One time, I talked to children in a village about guns, using the slogan ‘say no to guns and yes to books’. The next time I went to their village, the kids had gathered up all of their plastic toy guns and handed them over to me—but they had one condition: they wanted their village to be the first in the next round of book deliveries so they could get first pick. It was the most joyful moment of my life!”
Sadly, Hosseini is forced to work with a limited budget and cannot always afford to get the kinds of books that the children request—mainly comics about Batman that they’ve seen on TV. There are other dangers associated with his work too—he sometimes receives phone threats warning him to only distribute religious books or face dire consequences.
“These kids live such stressful lives—they live in a society that is full of death and violence, and they often face violence from their parents at home, too. So we want to keep delivering a bit of joy and calm in their lives through books,” Hosseini said.
1. When Saber Hosseini first started, ______.| A．he was lacking in funds |
| B．he didn’t have enough books |
| C．he was unwilling to ride |
| D．he appealed for more volunteers |
| A．he is in favour of environment protection |
| B．he is fond of taking exercise by bike |
| C．the majority of villages have bad roads |
| D．cars are too expensive for all of volunteers |
| A．Generous but adventurous. |
| B．Caring and talkative. |
| C．Easy-going and generous. |
| D．Great but particular. |
| A．The difficulties Hosseini is facing. |
| B．Hosseini knows little about comics. |
| C．Dangers keep happening to Hosseini. |
| D．Hosseini might give up his project. |
5 . Every year in Australia, the strongest long-distance runners race more than 500 miles from Sydney to Melbourne. The race takes more than five days to complete. It attracts world-class athletes—the kind who become spokespeople for sports shoes and drinks.
In 1983, however, as the competitors lined up to race, they were joined by a 61-year-old farmer wearing overalls（工作服）.
When the race began，the younger runners flew past Cliff. Instead of trying to catch them, Cliff shuffled（拖着脚走）along in an unusual way.
Cliff received $10,000 for winning the race. He said he did not realize there would be prize money, and he gave the money to his fellow runners. Doing this made him a hero in Australia. Since then, many runners have started to use his special way of running.
| A．His name was Cliff Young. |
| B．He greeted them with a big smile. |
| C．No one sleeps during the race anymore, either. |
| D．On the fifth day, the sheep farmer shuffled into the first place. |
| E．Cliff was welcomed by cheerful crowds when he went home. |
| F．Sometimes I had to run after those sheep for two or three days. |
| G．The other runners and the spectators thought he would never finish the race. |
6 . Having attended a first-aid-at-work course, Brian Cracknell soon found himself responding to two emergencies in a week.
Brian was at work in his bus company office in Weston-super-Mare on May 18 when a colleague called to say there had been an accident at a bus stop nearby. He ran to the scene with his first aid kit and found an old lady sitting at the bus stop. When boarding (上车) the bus, the old lady painfully hurt her left leg, which was bleeding.
He introduced himself, and asked some basic first aid questions to get a general picture of her health. Then he put his jacket on the floor, using the lady’s coat as a pillow, and gently laid her down so he could raise her legs and apply some bandages. Brian said, “At first I was a bit worried about remembering to do all the right things. I made sure she was as comfortable as possible.” When he had nearly finished, he told the lady that she was his first one. The lady said he was doing a great job.
Just a week later, Brian got a second call-out to help another lady at a bus stop.
Having used his new skills twice within a short time, Brian has decided to sign up as a Red Cross first aid volunteer. As he said, “I just thought: what’s the point in having this knowledge if I’m not going to use it? It felt really good to help those people. I was so proud of myself afterwards, so I’m going to join the Red Cross.”
1. Before helping the old lady, Brian .| A．had given first aid on many people |
| B．was thought to be a skilled first aid volunteer |
| C．knew nothing about how to handle an emergency |
| D．had learnt first aid skills but hadn’t put them into practice |
| A．Her legs were bleeding after being injured. |
| B．Her left leg was injured and was bleeding. |
| C．She fell onto the ground and hurt her head. |
| D．She was knocked down by a bus and lost her legs. |
| A．The reason why Brian was asked to help. |
| B．Brian handled two emergencies in a week. |
| C．How Brian gave first aid on the old lady. |
| D．How the old lady reacted to Brian’s performance. |
| A．was discouraged and decided to give up |
| B．realized he still had a lot of things to learn |
| C．decided to give up his job for the Red Cross |
| D．decided to help more people with his first aid skills |
7 . Meeting at a church on a Friday night is not usual for most college students,but it is usual for the women members of the Alcoholics Anonymous(AA)in my hometown, which is an organization for alcoholics who want to stop drinking alcohol.AA is founded upon a number of principles,including twelve steps and twelve traditions,but the only requirement for becoming a member is a strong wish to stop drinking.
The AA meeting I attended was in a speaker week,which meant that most of the time was spent listening to a member talking about her journey with alcohol.The speaker told other members her true story of alcohol problems.The group processed the story in a positive way.I noticed several times when members laughed,smiled,and made brief supporting comments while she spoke.Later,a member named Lucy shared with me her view that"this is the kind of place where you can talk about things,and everyone just laughs...no judgment but support."Being able to talk about her feelings and experiences,receiving support,and the lack of judgment were a large part of her decision to keep coming to the meetings.
Years later,I looked back on the meeting I attended with positive memories.The members at the meeting were mothers,sisters,grandmothers,aunts,daughters,and friends.Some were professionals, some were students,and some were unemployed. Despite their differences,they united in their common goal for a better life.AA is a prime example of how a group of people follow a program and work together at changing their habits.The meeting changed the way I looked at addiction-it was no longer a monster. Now I think it's essential to have support when you're struggling with addiction,just as with any lifestyle change.
1. What is the purpose of the Alcoholics Anonymous?| A．To create a program for college students. |
| B．To improve the alcohol industry. |
| C．To help people give up drinking. |
| D．To break twelve traditions. |
| A．Unfriendly judgment on her stories. |
| B．Loud laughter from the audiences. |
| C．Too little time left for her. |
| D．Silence after her speech. |
| A．Sharing feelings with friends. |
| B．My experience of an AA meeting. |
| C．AA helping women lead a better life. |
| D．Tips on getting rid of alcohol addiction. |
8 . Bloggers (写博客的人) are sometimes accused of being egomaniacs (after all, what could make one more proud than to assume that the whole world is interested in your thoughts?) and some are the source of ridicule. With more than half of all blogs on the Internet written by under-19s, parents are increasingly worried that their youngsters are putting their personal safety at risk.
Perhaps parents should focus on the positive. For a lucky few, blogging has led to fame and fortune on a scale that most people can only dream of. One of the best-known of these is Maisie Lim, whose fashion blog Style Cookie is read by such famous people as Miuccia Prada, Anna Wintour and Lady Gaga. Maisie is regularly invited to top fashion shows around the world and has thousands of fans.
Due to the fact that Maisie is only 15 years old, her parents have received a lot of criticism for letting her achieve so much at such a young age. Some people think it is inappropriate for a teen to become so heavily involved in the “adult” world. Maisie, though, is just one example of a growing phenomenon: the teen blogger businessperson.
“I was shopping at discount shops, taking photos of my clothes and writing down my thoughts. Starting a style blog seemed like the next logical step because it was a way to share things that inspired me jellyfish with a global audience. I started when I was 11, which was before blogs became big. I never dreamed it would take off.” says Maisie.
Besides updating her blog, Maisie spends time running a web magazine for teenage girls and employs four editors as well as numerous writers, illustrators and photographers.
For more inspiration, look at Suke Smith’s lifestyle blog Pay it Forward. Due to the success followers on Twitter. At 16, Suke is considered experienced on the blogging scene.
Despite the success of the teenage bloggers like Maisie and Suke, it can be tough for teens to be taken seriously because of their age. “But if you’re offering something a bit different, and you’re passionate about what you do, people will notice you,” explains Maisie.
1. The word “egomaniacs” (paragraph 1) most probably refers to bloggers who ________.| A．like to | B．worry about their parents |
| C．spend too much time online | D．have too much self-importance |
| A．concerned | B．surprised | C．uncomfortable | D．grateful |
| A．she employs a team of helpers |
| B．she is often invited to top fashion shows |
| C．she takes a tough attitude toward criticism |
| D．she shares things with great enthusiasm |
| A．Inspirational Teen Blogging | B．An Issue of Parental Concern |
| C．Different Views on Teenagers | D．Professional Fashion Bloggers |
9 . One spring morning many years ago, I had been prospecting for gold along Coho Creek in southeastern Alaska. Suddenly, no more than 20 paces away was a huge Alaskan timber wolf-caught in a trap.
From her appearance, I guessed she had been trapped for several days. She needed my help, I thought. But if I tried to release her, she would turn aggressive to me. The wolf was clearly suffering. The trap's steel jaws had imprisoned two toes. They were swollen and lacerated, but she wouldn't lose the paw (爪子) — if freed. Yet each time I moved closer, she would make a frightening growl. If I could only win her confidence, I thought. It was her only hope.
Over the next few days, I divided my time between prospecting and trying to win the wolf's trust. I talked gently with her, throwing her some meat. Gradually, I kept edging closer — though I was careful to remain beyond the length of her trap chain.
At dusk on the fifth day, I delivered her dinner. Suddenly, I saw a slight wagging of her tail. I moved within the length of her chain. She remained sill. As a towering man, my heart was in my mouth, though. Within her reach, I wrapped my blanket around myself and slowly settled onto the cold ground. It was long before I fell asleep.
The next morning, I slowly placed my hand on the wolf's injured leg. Unexpectedly; she made no threatening move. Then I applied pressure, the trap sprang open, and the wolf pulled free.
My experience told me the wolf would vanish into the woods quickly. But cautiously, she crept toward me and sniffed my hands and arms. This went against everything I'd ever heard about timber wolves. Yet, strangely, it all seemed so natural.
1. What happened to the timber wolf?| A．She was stuck in a trap. | B．Her food ran out. |
| C．Her legs were swollen. | D．She was caught in the author's trap. |
| A．Some food. | B．The author's care. |
| C．Her trust in the author. | D．Winning the author's confidence. |
| A．He was too close to the wolf. | B．The ground was too cold. |
| C．The wolf remained still. | D．The wolf wagged her tail. |
| A．It was frightening and surprising. | B．It was unexpected but natural. |
| C．It was humorous and natural. | D．It was terrifying but encouraging. |
10 . Adventure-seeker Emma broke her ankle when she fell awkwardly while climbing a rock and spent a week in hospital waiting for an operation on her foot. When she was sent home to recover under strict instructions not to bear any weight, she became so fearful of crutches (拐杖) that she didn't move for three weeks. “I tried crutches but I kept falling over and injuring myself. So I literally just stayed on the sofa all day, ” says Emma.
She was gutted at the thought of missing the Wolf Run — a quarterly event that she hasn't missed since 2014. “If you complete four Wolf Runs in a year, one in each season, you get Alpha Wolf status,” explains Emma. “This year was going to be my fifth in a row as an Alpha Wolf and I was really upset that I'd lose my status.” So she was willing to try anything to get through the course — even with her injured ankle.
“I was telling my friend that I was going to cancel, and he persuaded me to give it a go. Having something to aim for really kept me going." Emma completed the run wearing an iWALK2.0, which is a medically-approved device and it basically functions like a hi-tech artificial leg, allowing users to walk freely. I decided to get one and it completely changed my recovery. I could move around the house and start getting out and about again, which had a real impact on my mental well-being.”
On the day of the race, Emma was nervous but the sound of people cheering her on kept her motivated. Emma made it over the finish line in just under six hours and clocked up her 23rd Wolf Run in five years. “It was an incredible day and my determination to finish combined with the support I received along the way kept me going,” says Emma.
1. Why was Emma frightened to use a crutch?| A．She was afraid of recovering slowly. |
| B．She was warned not to move around. |
| C．She just had an operation on her foot. |
| D．She often got injured when using one. |
| A．Extremely sad. | B．A bit relieved. |
| C．Very surprised. | D．Pretty cheerful. |
| A．Her new hi-tech artificial leg. |
| B．Her fear of letting her friend down. |
| C．Her strong desire to achieve her ambition. |
| D．Her complete recovery from the operation. |
| A．Strong-willed. | B．Supportive. |
| C．Creative. | D．Humorous. |
