1 . Mitsuhiro Iwamoto is a blind person who sailed non-stop across the Pacific Ocean. One of Mr. Iwamoto’s friends says, “He feels the waves and he can sense the speed and angle of the winds to adjust the sails properly. ” The only thing Mr. Iwamoto can’t do is see. So he teamed up with Doug Smith.
In 2013, Mr. Iwamoto tried to sail across the Pacific. But after only five days at sea, his boat was hit by a whale. The boat sank, and he spent 11 hours floating in the sea in a life raft before he was rescued. When Mr. Smith learned the story of Mr. Iwamoto’s defeat during his first attempt at crossing the Pacific, it had a big effect on him. He decided to join the trip not just to prove that they could do it, but also to collect funds for a public welfare foundation that bought medical insurance for poor children. He got in touch with Mr. Iwamoto. The two realized that they would make a good team.
It took a lot of courage to make a second attempt after the failure. But Mr. Iwamoto was determined. He began to train for the trip. He skied, ran half-marathons and marathons, and took part in triathlons(races with swimming, biking, and running). Mr. Smith bought a 12-meter sailboat from local people. They took drinking water and enough food for 60 days. The sailboat had solar panels to keep the GPS and the satellite phone charged.
On February 24, Mr. Iwamoto set out from San Diego, California on their 14,000-kilometer trip. Finally, around 9 a. m. on April 20 — after sailing non-stop for 55 days, the two arrived in Iwaka, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, “People often say that the physical illness can’t stop a person from making a difference, but I have to walk the walk to prove it, ” Mr. Iwamoto said.
1. What can be inferred about Doug Smith?| A．He spent a lot of time in the ocean. |
| B．He had great skills in sailing the boat. |
| C．He worked as a guide during the trip. |
| D．He bought the insurance before the trip. |
| A．To hunt whales. |
| B．To raise money for charity. |
| C．To rescue people lost in the ocean. |
| D．To be in search of fame and fortune. |
| A．The preparations they made for the trip. |
| B．The support they received from local people. |
| C．The equipment they bought for their training. |
| D．The difficulty they encountered during the trip. |
| A．Never look down on underdogs. |
| B．Actions speak louder than words. |
| C．A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
| D．Be the change you want to see in the world. |
2 . Growing up in Havana, Cuba, Mario Garcia was a well-known child actor. He was about 10 years old the first time he ever stepped on the set. It began with a chance encounter. Mario had been sitting on a bench outside a studio in Havana, waiting while his father and his band were performing.
Suddenly, someone approached him and said, “ We are trying to test for this commercial. ” So he got up and had an audition (试境). Even with no acting experience, it quickly felt like a natural career path. From the commercial, he went on to be on TV series and a movie and all that.
But a revolution came and in its wake, his career was broken off. Mario was 15 when he had to fly to America as a refugee (难民). He landed in Miami, where he went to live with his aunt and uncle while his parents stayed in Cuba. They joined him in Miami about a year later.
Mario clearly recalled the day he left: Feb. 28, 1962. He was in high school that first year in Florida. It was a challenge living in a foreign country with no language, no parents and going to school. He had to go from being an actor to being a waiter. He always went to an alley behind the restaurant and sat on a wooden box and dried the tears with his apron. But Mario’s optimism never failed him. He went on to earn his Ph. D. in Spanish language and literature from the University of Miami.
He currently teaches journalism at Columbia University. Still, he said, “ I’ m not giving up on getting a good part in a movie. ” Mario’s latest acting job was as an extra in the new musical drama film In the Heights. He continues to audition for new roles.
1. What do we know about Mario’s early acting career?| A．It had something to do with good luck. | B．It arose from his passion for acting. |
| C．It didn’t arouse his interest in art at all. | D．It was driven by his urge to achieve fame. |
| A．He involved himself in a revolution. | B．He failed to join his family in Miami. |
| C．He gave up his acting career completely. | D．He had to start a new life in America. |
| A．It was full of stories but interesting. | B．It was painful but ended in success. |
| C．It was hard and challenging for Mario. | D．It was a blow to Mario and his family. |
| A．Ups and downs make one strong. | B．An optimistic man can stick it out. |
| C．Fame is a great thirst of the young. | D．Experience helps to promote excellence. |
3 . The other day, while taking a drop-in art class, I had an experience that I don’t always have when I’m engaged in something creative. I was fully in the zone. My instructor even commented: “You’re on fire today.” Painting after painting was flying out of me. I felt free—a very unfamiliar feeling for me.
Class started off with quick thirty-second figure drawing, then we worked our way up to one-minute, and then finally four-minute sketches (素描). Ever since the instructor told me not to go over the same line twice, I’ve really struggled with finding my freedom in figure drawing. But that day I was completely free, and as a consequence, my line quality was much better. I felt completely unconcerned with what the teacher thought of my work. It was one of the most enjoyable creative experiences I’ve had.
Afterwards, I was reflecting on why this was such a pleasurable experience. This is how I always want to feel while creating.
I think this was so enjoyable because it was a drop-in class. Not a full course. Not to get a master’s degree. Therefore, I felt no responsibility for getting it right. I was able to take it less seriously and just have fun with it. And I wasn’t monitoring myself to make sure that I was improving.
If you practice at your chosen craft, you will improve over time. Worrying about whether you’re getting better doesn’t help you improve. It actually slows down your growth. Your intellect might think it’s helping out, but it’s actually slowing you down and making your creative process less fun. Eventually, there’s truth to the simple saying—practice makes perfect. Since there’s no perfection in the world of creativity, practice makes better.
Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Create even though it won’t be perfect. Create because it won’t be perfect. Create even though it won’t be perfect. Create because it won’t be perfect. Create because your spirit needs to express itself. That is where the freedom is. That is where the joy is.
1. What does the underlined part in the first paragraph mean?| A．The author was very clever. | B．The author got a little bored. |
| C．The author made a wise choice. | D．The author devoted herself to her work. |
| A．She did what she liked. | B．She learnt the basic skills of sketching. |
| C．She had no inspiration to create works. | D．She couldn’t keep up with other students. |
| A．She focuses on gaining better drawing skills. |
| B．She has no sense of responsibility in her daily life. |
| C．She thinks joy mainly results in a person’s perfection. |
| D．She has found the reason for the pleasurable experience. |
| A．Practice makes perfect |
| B．Begin enjoying drop-in art classes |
| C．Try to find the key to successful work |
| D．Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good |
4 . It’s nice to feel like a hero or to be the centre of attention every once in a while. Walking barefoot down the worm road, cheered on by the villagers of Bradstone, one would have thought that I should feel full of pride and joy. Those feelings might have been nice, except for this one tiny fact: I had no idea where I was heading, even when I heard my name being shouted out upon entering the village.
Earlier, after painfully recovering consciousness beside the road, the only important things I could remember were my name, Jonathan Grey, and a horribly uncomfortable feeling that I had forgotten something which could result in life or death. So I had followed the road. Shortly I noticed that I had somehow also lost track of my shoes.
I had ended up in Bradstone. Many villagers hurried over and screamed my name. One older woman particularly threw her arms around my waist. “ You made it! I knew you were special,” she cried, “My baby is finally home! ” At a loss for words, with no idea what to do, the best I could offer the crying woman was to put my arms around her, too. When she settled down, she pulled back to look at me properly. “How are you? Really? Oh, you will have to report to Mr. Fredrick first… ”
I was not sure how to answer the woman’s — my mother’s? — questions, so I decided to be honest. “I’m sorry, but I’m not sure who Mr. Freddrick is, or what I must report to him. ”
My mother took a deep breath, then took my hand to lead me into the house. “ Your father will be home soon, so get settled in. I’ll be outside if you need me. ” Taking one last look around, my mother let out a sigh. For the time being, home this would have to be. Breathing deeply, I gathered my courage and mentally prepared myself for what was now my new life.
1. What can we know about Jonathan?| A．He enjoyed the welcome he received. | B．The villagers were very sorry for him. |
| C．He had never been the centre of attention. | D．The villagers knew who he was. |
| A．He felt relieved. | B．He was in pain. |
| C．He forgot his name. | D．He regained his memories. |
| A．He would not let her go. | B．He recognized his mother. |
| C．He didn’t know how to reply. | D．He was glad to have found her. |
| A．He tried to make his mother pleased. |
| B．He was worried about meeting his father. |
| C．He was uncertain if he had the courage for a new life. |
| D．He decided to temporarily accept the present situation. |
5 . When Narayanswami was invited to a dinner by a friend who worked at Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, she was excited. Many of the guests flew planes. “I must have expressed some yearning(渴望),”she says, because someone told her “You should join the flying club!” The next day Narayanswami, who was 57 at the time, arranged to meet an instructor. “I said ‘Aren’t I too old?” He said “We’ve got students in their 80s.”
Narayanswami grew up in Southwest London, and at grammar school suffered horrific racist bullying. The library provided shelter. But, as she reached her late teens, she feel family pressure for an arranged marriage; “I really protested,” she says. “But I want to be an astronaut! My mother made a promise. As long as you are getting an education we will not look for a husband for you.”
Narayanswami studied biology at Leicester University, then did a PhD at St Andrew, followed by postdoctoral research at the University of California. “Every time you move you get further away,” her dad remarked on the phone. “I didn’t feel I would be able to escape unless I did that,” she says.
In 2020, aged 64, Narayanswami finished 423 flight hours she needed to earn her pilot's license. Then she applied to Nasa’s astronaut corps, but received a very appreciative rejection. Even now, at 66, she says “I haven't been able to figure out how to deal with it. It doesn’t go away.” The racist bullying she received as a child has cast a very long shadow.
Flying has helped. It is a workout: she has to tow the plane out to the taxiway. And it offers a different perspective. “I can see eagles, bears, mountain lions, birds of prey. I love the beauty of the clouds. They are like hills. Vaster than our hills,” she says.
New possibilities have arisen—Narayanswami chairs the board of the General Aviation Awards in the US—but she finds relaxing difficult. In flight, she is part of a huge network of people who are communicating by radio frequency. There is no sense of skin colour. We are all tied together by our voices.
1. How did the instructor’s words sound to Narayanswami?| A．Disappointing. | B．Embarrassing. |
| C．Annoying. | D．Encouraging. |
| A．Accepting an aged marriage. | B．Receiving an education. |
| C．Keeping a distance. | D．Making a promise: |
| A．It indicates prejudice against her. | B．It ruins her childhood memory. |
| C．It raises concern for her age. | D．It leaves room for negotiation. |
| A．A good way of relaxation. | B．A different dimension of life. |
| C．A rich knowledge of wildlife. | D．A full exhibition of leadership. |
6 . As the Editor-in-Chief of Cosmopolitan magazine, Jessica Pels is responsible for managing the content of one of the world’s largest young women’s media brands. Pels has ambitiously navigated her career to the top role relatively quickly, but the path she took wasn’t traditional.
Pels learnt ballet as a child and found her way to New York City dancing for a summer, but eventually gave up dance when she knew she “wasn’t good enough to be a star”. She didn’t give up her dream of working in the big city, though. Pels attended a film school at New York University and as a sophomore (大学二年级), got her first internship at The New Yorker. After graduation in 2008, many brands were in a hiring freeze. But Pels was not affected. She got a job doing communications for a charity.
Six months into her first job, Pels got a job at Glamour Magazine to work for the Editor-in-Chief Cindy Levy. She would turn this first assistant role into her career, and finally found her way to Cosmopolitan, where she became the youngest editor-in-chief in the magazine’s history.
Reflecting on her career and the worst advice she’s ever received, Pels said it was “to say yes to everything”. It was a habit she had to learn to break. And while she acknowledges the importance of seizing opportunities, she doesn’t think that strategically saying “no” would have been a damage to her career.
She remembers the conversation with her boss Kate Lewis that changed her perspective on over-committing. “I had just started at Marie Claire as the digital director, and she said, ‘I worry you’re going to burn out because you’re saying yes to everything and you are acting in such an aggressive way, and you need to take a step back and prioritize.’ And that really changed my life. I thought that was an incredible career moment.”
1. Why did Jessica Pels give up dancing?| A．She wasn’t eager to be a star. |
| B．She didn’t want to practice hard. |
| C．She didn’t think she was a gifted dancer. |
| D．She wanted to take an untraditional career. |
| A．She lost confidence in her future. |
| B．She gave up her hobby of dancing. |
| C．She was employed at The New Yorker. |
| D．She succeeded in landing herself a job. |
| A．She always refused to help others. |
| B．She didn’t seize opportunities in time. |
| C．She didn’t know how to ask for advice. |
| D．She seldom refused others’ requests. |
| A．Creative and generous. | B．Ambitious and determined. |
| C．Humorous and confident. | D．Considerate and energetic. |
7 . “Anyone knows single parents who can’t afford to get their child’s hair done for school? I will braid (编辫子) it for free!”Brittany Starks wrote on a Facebook post.
She decided to offer her hair braiding services after a family friend delivered backpacks full of school supplies, clothing and shoes for Cayden and Ceniyah in early August. “At the time, I didn’t have anything for my kids to start school,” said Starks, who is in between homes and staying with her mother. “It meant so much to me.”
The unexpected gift made a big difference to Starks and her children, and it motivated her to pay it forward. Starks, who works two receptionist jobs, also braids hair part-time. “The hair-braiding process involves washing, blow-drying, and finally dividing the hair into small sections and braiding it. It also requires multiple supplies — including combs, brushes, hair jam and additional pieces of hair to weave in. It costs anywhere from $150 to $400 at a salon (美发厅), depending on the style,” Stacks explained. “But it can last for months and is a huge timesaver in the mornings.”
When she wrote the Facebook post, she assumed only a handful of people would reach out,but before she knew it, she had 35 appointments booked. Her Facebook inbox was suddenly full of messages from single parents, whose stories of hardship and financial challenges mirrored her own.
“There’s a huge need for this. I could really relate to a lot of the women who reached out, and it made me realize that what I was doing was really important,” said Stacks. “What got me the most was seeing the kids smile.” Given that there was less than two weeks before the start of school, Starks knew she needed to enlist help.
1. What got Brittany Starks to offer her hair braiding service?| A．A post on Facebook. | B．Her friend’s timely help. |
| C．Her mother’s advice. | D．A trip to her kids’ school. |
| A．It’s a bit dear. | B．It’s time-wasting. |
| C．It’s an easy job. | D．It’s a mother’s duty. |
| A．Rather disturbing. | B．Beyond expectation. |
| C．Far from satisfactory. | D．Very disappointing. |
| A．She is single with one child. | B．She is ambitious and arbitrary. |
| C．She is in need of helping hands. | D．She is free from financial worries. |
8 . An 89-year-old man, Manfred Steiner, has reached a goal he spent 20 years working toward and nearly a lifetime thinking about: earning his Ph. D. And now he is a physicist
Steiner values this degree because it is what he always wanted and because he overcame health problems that could have affected his studies. “But I made it, and this was the most satisfactory point in my life, to finish it,” he said.
When he was young, Steiner wanted to become a physicist after reading about Albert Einstein. But his mother and uncle persuaded him that studying medicine would be a better choice. He earned his medical degree in 1955 and moved to the US soon after.
Steiner studied hematology（血液学）at Tufts University and biochemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He became a full professor and led the hematology department at Browns’ medical school from 1985 to 1994. Steiner helped establish a research program in hematology at the University of North Carolina. He directed that program until he retired from medicine in 2000.
Steiner found medical research pleasing, but it was not quite the same as his interest in physics. “It was something like a wish that was never fulfilled, that always stuck in the back of my head,” he said. At age 70, he started taking undergraduate classes.
Physics professor Brad Marston was surprised when Steiner entered his quantum mechanics class. But he became Steiner’s adviser for his dissertation（学位论文）after realizing how serious Steiner was about the subject and how hard he worked. “He has written many papers in medical science, more papers than I’ve written in physics,” Marston said. “One thing that’s really true about Manfred is that he perseveres.”
After the university published a story about Steiner on its website, people across the US contacted him to ask for advice on how to go after their dreams later in life. His advice is: Do what you love to do.
1. Why did Steiner value his degree in physics?| A．Because it solved his health problems. | B．Because it was his long-pursued dream. |
| C．Because it met his mother’s expectation. | D．Because it was inspired by Albert Einstein. |
| A．Steiner’s contributions to teaching. | B．Steiner’s researches after retirement. |
| C．Steiner’s achievements in hematology. | D．Steiner’s performances at Tufts University. |
| A．His taking undergraduate classes at 70. | B．His writing more papers in physics. |
| C．His sticking to becoming a physicist. | D．His being a role model for Americans. |
| A．Active and open-minded. | B．Enthusiastic and easy-going. |
| C．Intelligent and warm-hearted. | D．Perseverant and hard-working. |
9 . Around July I had made a purchase from a website in the US. My shipment was sent out the very next day, and I expected the package to arrive at my doorstep within 5 to 7 days like before. Two weeks had passed, and I had not received my package. I decided to track it, and to my shock, the courier (快递公司) actually sent my package to a different country!
I didn't know what to do, so I emailed the courier, who told me I had to email the company from which I had made the purchase. Instead of helping me, the company redirected me to the courier. Rather than getting mad at this entire mess, I tried to calm down by focusing on the good things,those like the fact that I even had the money to make the purchase and that the company shipped out the package rather quickly. I also imagined myself receiving the package, which made me happier.
Weeks turning into months, there was still no sign of my package. As I signed up for updates, I was horrified when I woke up one day in September to see that my package had been returned to the US. Instead of getting depressed, I contacted the company to inform them about the shipment and sought advice about what to do next as I really wanted the items which were a limited edition. The customer service told me that they could only offer a full refund (退款) as the items were already sold out. Even though I accepted and was very pleased, there was still a part of me that was slightly disappointed.
Around the end of November, I received a text update that my package has cleared customs in the UK but I thought it had been returned to the company. Yesterday, my package arrived at my doorstep!
While it did take many months for the package to reach me, I felt incredibly grateful as I got what wanted! And for free! This showed me that the universe works in mysterious ways that we can never really understand but it is not our job to worry about how things will unfold.
1. Why was the author shocked soon after making the purchase?| A．The delivery took much less time than before. | B．He was informed that his package had been lost. |
| C．His package was mistakenly delivered elsewhere. | D．There was a delay in the shipment of his package |
| A．He was happy with the company where he made the purchase. |
| B．He liked the items so much that refunding couldn't clear regret. |
| C．The positive feedback from the company really comforted him. |
| D．The courier and the company agreed to return the package to the US. |
| A．Thankful. | B．Peaceful. | C．Hurtful. | D．Hopeful. |
| A．Good things come to those who wait. | B．Time and tide wait for no man. |
| C．Where there is a will, there is a way. | D．Chance only favors the prepared mind. |
10 . That morning, I dropped our eldest at kindergarten and returned home to let our two younger children play while I worked on my medical report. It was a wonderful chance to work from home, but it hit me that my career in hospital wasn't making a difference in anyone's life. I needed something that would stretch my limits and push me to grow. My career enabled me to work from home. I could work from home, and become a foster mother, providing safety for a child who needed it desperately.
On Monday morning. I picked up the phone and dialed the number I had Googled for the nearest Department of Children's Services. The man on the other end was receptive to my questions and explained the next step of training, involving eight weeks of classes designed to prepare and educate foster parents. We continued through all the classes, the home visits, background checks, and seemingly endless steps.
Five long months after we were approved, the phone rang. In the middle of the night, I woke my husband and rushed to East Tennessee Children's Hospital. Our placement was waiting for us in the emergency room, sick and lack of nutrition. It didn't take long for us to realize the full depth of her suffering. Six months later, her half-brother came to us by our request. We now had five children under our care.
On August 12, 2016, our family of seven walked into a small courtroom. The children's lawyer and social worker were there. With just a few words, our adoption was finalized. These two amazing children weren't going home, because they were already home. We are their forever family, and they are our forever children. We may not be able to change the entire world, but we have changed the world entirely for our new children.
1. How did the author feel about her hospital work?| A．Lacking of motivation. | B．Filled with challenge. |
| C．Highly motivating. | D．Unusually Demanding. |
| A．She felt sympathetic for abused children she knew. |
| B．She wanted to make a difference in other people. |
| C．She felt confident about her ability to raise children. |
| D．She experienced training to raise children properly. |
| A．The child to be adopted. | B．The need to get trained. |
| C．The approval of adoption. | D．The official at the hospital. |
| A．To put the adopted kids elsewhere. | B．To receive another adopted child. |
| C．To make the adoption officially legal. | D．To begin the kids' adoption in her home. |
