1 . To build a prosperous (繁荣的) society, a fundamental understanding of the modern economy as a driving force in today’s world is essential.

What kind of prosperity have we achieved so far? The widespread definition of prosperity focuses on economic power and growth as measures of success. Let’s take a look at history. The Second Industrial Revolution enabled mass production and created a sufficient supply of goods. This has greatly increased the importance of money in its role as “a store of value, ” and “a medium of exchange. ”As a result, we have pursued economic power as the only indicator of prosperity, such as GDP. Waves of globalization and technological evolution have promoted overall economic growth, but have allowed the few who are strong to achieve greater power while exploiting the many who are weak. Consequently, inequality has worsened, and disunity has intensified.

The path to a truly prosperous world requires a shift in focus towards the most suitable happiness for all, in addition to economic power. Defining happiness, however, is a complex task. What makes people happy? The degree to which the same thing creates happiness differs from person to person. Happiness is subjective and complicated. This is a world of “multiple values” where each of us determines worth as opposed to “one fixed price” based merely on an economic perspective. Individuals shouldn’t be defined by a single identity or role but by multidimensional nature as well as multiple roles making independent choices and taking actions for their happiness in different aspects.

Businesses must be pioneers in pursuing not only economic growth but also the happiness of all citizens of society. Companies can contribute through the pursuit of social value as well as economic profit. At the heart of this lies “purpose”. A company’s purpose defines the value it brings to society. The true worth of a company should be determined not just by the return s it creates for shareholders but by the value it creates for society as a whole.

1. What is the author’s attitude to the widely accepted standard of prosperity?

A．Indifferent.

B．Critical.

C．Uncertain.

D．Approving.

2. What is the side effect of technological evolution?

A．The slower economic growth speed.

B．The sharp reduction of job opportunities.

C．The enlarged gap between the rich and the poor.

D．The increasing conflict between different nations.

3. Which statement will the author agree with according to the passage?

A．Happiness is changeable and beyond control.

B．Happiness largely depends on economic power.

C．The pursuit of profit determines a company’s true worth.

D．A prosperous world should be measured by multiple values.

4. Who are the main intended readers of the text?

A．Social psychologists.	B．Enterprise administrators.
C．School educators.	D．Technological researchers.

2 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

No one is born a winner. People make themselves into winners by their own efforts. I learned this lesson from an experience many years ago. I took the head coaching job at a school in Baxley, Georgia. It was a small school with a weak football program. The school took part in the league matches every year. However, it never ended well. We were more of the audience, watching and cheering instead of sweating out in the fields.

Fortunately, the school held the tradition that the school’s old team was to play against the new team at the end of spring practice. For lack of resources, the old team bad no coach, and they didn’t even practice to prepare for the game.

I was assigned (指派) as the coach of the new team, which was why I was excited. I believed that we were going to win, but to my disappointment, we were defeated. I couldn’t believe I had got into such a situation. Thinking hard about it, I tried to figure out the reason and what I should do next.

It didn’t take long before I came to realize that my team was depending on me. Without proper guidance or previous experience, my team was at a loss what to do. I had to change my attitude so that I could bring out the best in them about their ability and potential.

I would let my action do the talking. First, I started doing anything I could to help them build a little pride. I could see their spirits lifted, with their head held high in great confidence. Most importantly, I began to treat them like winners. Only when they regarded themselves as winners could they willingly invest time and energy.

This summer, the other teams enjoyed their vacations.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Six months later, football season started.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3 . You hate me. You don’t even know me and you hate me. Before we’ve even spoken, you hate me. At least that’s how it feels on my end of the call as a female collections officer at a call center.

I dread the moment when I have to log on to our phone system first thing in the morning because I never know who is going to be on the other end of that call.

Sometimes it’s an easy task. The caller is pleasant and has accepted personal responsibility for their debts, and we get through the phone call with ease. Then there are the ones who call in looking for a fight, or looking for someone to blame. Through the luck of the phone system, that person is me.

I’ve had people who shout at me, call me horrible names, accuse me personally of taking their money and threaten me. Why? I think it’s because I am invisible. I think I would be treated with the same level of disrespect if we were face to face. Fortunately for me, I have had years of experience in customer service, so I’m fairly rich in not letting the negative encounters bother me.

The biggest and most effective skill when it comes to the job is empathy (同理心). I can appreciate the situation which the caller is in because I’ve been there. That’s why I’m good at my job — I understand what you’re going through, and I’m here to help.

Some days though, no matter how much I try to leave the stress behind when I hang up the phone, it stays with me. I may do some deep breathing, go for a quick walk or simply stick my head outside for a burst of fresh air. I do this so I don’t carry that negativity on to my next call. That next call may be a person having the worst day of their life, but I don’t want to ever be the one who makes it worse. We are all humans just trying to get by in life, which makes you and me equal. So please, the next time we talk, remember that.

1. What does the underlined word “dread” in paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Enjoy.

B．Fear.

C．Expect.

D．Avoid.

2. Why does the author think some callers treat her badly?

A．They get angry too easily.	B．They blame her for their debts.
C．They do not see her as a real person.	D．They accuse her of taking their money.

3. Why does the author think she is good at her job?

A．She can offer callers best advice.	B．She is always respected by callers.
C．She can put herself in others’ shoes.	D．She isn’t easily influenced by negativity.

4. What is the author’s main purpose in writing this text?

A．To call for understanding of her job.	B．To explain why she is good at her job.
C．To introduce what she is responsible for.	D．To complain about her being treated badly.

4 . Once there was a farmer with a wife and two sons. He became quite________through hardworking. He wanted his children to have a(n)________life, so he and his wife did all the work and________made them do anything.

After some time, his wife died and________he didn’t want his children to________, so he did the field labor and all the housework. But as time went on, he became old and________, and started to worry about his________when he died.

So he thought about this for a long time and he________his sons and said, “Look, my inheritance (遗产) to you is a lot of gold. I’ve________all my gold in the fields, so it’s up to you to plough (耕作) them and________the gold.”

And he called his neighbors and said, “I’m going to________and my children don’t know how to________themselves. So please cook for them until they can take care of themselves.”

So the neighbors provided them with________for some time.

Certainly the brothers didn’t want to be robbed of the________so they did the digging themselves. They________one field after another and after they had dug all the fields, they found no gold.

So the brothers sat down and one________the other, “Do you think our father________us?”

But the other brother said, “No, I think our father was saying that the________is a golden profession. And if we dig up all the________we can become rich.”

So like all the other________, they sowed wheat in the fields they had dug and became very rich in the end.

1.

A．rich

B．strong

C．clever

D．busy

2.

A．hard

B．easy

C．different

D．ordinary

3.

A．always

B．often

C．never

D．sometimes

4.

A．also

B．thus

C．ever

D．still

5.

A．work

B．move

C．study

D．play

6.

A．healthy

B．sick

C．foolish

D．wise

7.

A．brothers

B．friends

C．children

D．relatives

8.

A．showed

B．taught

C．visited

D．called

9.

A．lost

B．hidden

C．planted

D．put

10.

A．harvest

B．find

C．buy

D．use

11.

A．leave

B．travel

C．die

D．disappear

12.

A．look at

B．look out

C．look after

D．look for

13.

A．relief

B．money

C．water

D．food

14.

A．gold

B．silver

C．oil

D．coal

15.

A．dug

B．piled

C．operated

D．searched

16.

A．advised

B．asked

C．followed

D．doubted

17.

A．loved

B．cared

C．understood

D．cheated

18.

A．gardening

B．fishing

C．building

D．farming

19.

A．roots

B．stones

C．fields

D．pipes

20.

A．farmers

B．workers

C．fishers

D．builders

5 . Instead of being a pacing-up time, winter is a locking-down time. Winter frees us in all sorts of ways.

I once had a neighbor named Earl. An old-timer and a self-made man, he _________ told me stories about Maine winters in the past. He suggested he had _________ the ice age. He backed up his old stories with _________ of old black-and-white photographs of heavy snowstorms that piled up to second-floor windows and completely _________ cars.

And I’ll never _________ what he said as an end to one of his stories, “A man couldn’t get much done once the snow came.” So what did he do once the snow came? He spent a great deal of time _________ to home and hearth, where he _________ the wood stove, sat with his wife, made pots of coffee, and read by the fire.

As I write these words I occasionally raise my head to _________ the window at the woodpile stacked (堆), the garden harvested, the apple tree _________, the lawn mowed, and the bicycle shed newly roofed.

As I tended to all those things, when did I have time to __________?

Some years ago a friend sent me a quote by Socrates that I try to be mindful of: Beware the fruitlessness of a __________ life.

The advice __________ me to look forward to the coming of winter, because I’ve finally learned that it is a slowing-down time, a gift of rest, a (n) __________ to acknowledge that most of the outdoor work that could be done has been done.

A friend of mine who lives in the Southeast recently called. In the course of our __________ he celebrated the climate where he lives, which __________ him to work outside year-round. “I’m always on the go.” he told me.

But I think I need a good time of winter.

1.

A．gradually

B．excitedly

C．angrily

D．unwillingly

2.

A．struggled

B．explored

C．survived

D．celebrated

3.

A．laughter

B．evidence

C．expectation

D．patience

4.

A．buried

B．struck

C．destroyed

D．supported

5.

A．realize

B．forget

C．recall

D．learn

6.

A．designing

B．improving

C．fixing

D．tending

7.

A．bought

B．controlled

C．built

D．filled

8.

A．look at

B．watch over

C．glance out

D．glare at

9.

A．picked

B．cut

C．planted

D．fell

10.

A．settle

B．arrange

C．work

D．breathe

11.

A．busy

B．happy

C．creative

D．special

12.

A．demanded

B．taught

C．appointed

D．assisted

13.

A．amazement

B．surroundings

C．opportunity

D．ability

14.

A．convenience

B．appearance

C．contribution

D．conversation

15.

A．employs

B．forces

C．enables

D．saves

6 . Why is being alone essential to personal growth?

For many people, being alone is a negative state of being. It often carries a social stigma (污名) that equals isolation or being an outsider. Of course, spending time with people you love is extremely important to your well-being.     1     Only if you’re connected to yourself can you become stronger.

Aloneness enhances your creativity. When you are alone, you are more likely to stay true to yourself and try new things that you don’t have the courage to do around others.     2     Picasso or Van Gogh wouldn’t have created the masterpieces if they hadn’t taken enough solitary (独自的) time to experiment regardless of others’ thoughts.

Being alone also prevents you from burning out. Sometimes you may wonder why you easily feel tired.     3     Especially for people who go to work every day, it is unavoidable to feel exhausted when you have to deal with work, family, and your own passions at the same time. How about giving yourself a few solitary moments? It doesn’t matter how you choose to spend those moments alone. As long as they relieve your stress, they’re worthwhile.

    4     When you take time to understand yourself, pursue your personal growth, and follow your dreams, you’ll definitely discover the truth about yourself. Regardless of how well you may think you know yourself, learning how to be alone will allow you to deepen your self-awareness.

Being alone makes you a more creative person and helps with personal growth.     5    

A．But it’s necessary to learn how to be alone.

B．Aloneness is often associated with mad artists.

C．It is impossible to be alone with the demands of daily life.

D．Aloneness frees us from the limits of the world’s opinions.

E．Self-exploration is perhaps the biggest benefit of aloneness.

F．One reason could be not giving yourself enough solitary time.

G．So spend some time alone today to become a brighter and better person.

7 . It is strange how a small moment can change a person’s life. My son walked into the kitchen this morning and opened his_________to me. I opened my arms too and gave him a big hug just like I do every morning. And this time a beautiful_________came back to me.

My Italian grandma had been a big hugger when I was a boy, but my mum and dad didn’t hug me much as I got_________. By the time I was a teenager then, except for my grandma, I didn’t hug anyone.

When I was sixteen, I_________on a trip with a group of boys to tour a college. And on our way there, we also_________an old temple. As we entered we were_________there by the largest monk I had ever seen. He was over six and a half feet tall with_________arms. And as he welcomed us, he gave each one of us a huge hug. When my own_________came, I felt scared but_________in and hugged him back. I felt__________in my heart as he shared his loving-kindness. I felt peace and joy in my__________as well. It was amazing. Later that day I began to__________why I had ever stopped giving and__________hugs when they brought so much__________.

When my own children were born then I__________to never stop hugging them and telling them I loved them, no matter how big they grew or how old they got.

1.

A．arms

B．hands

C．mouth

D．eyes

2.

A．flash

B．style

C．topic

D．memory

3.

A．older

B．stronger

C．quicker

D．slower

4.

A．looked

B．opened

C．left

D．put

5.

A．thought of

B．stopped by

C．asked for

D．burned down

6.

A．greeted

B．annoyed

C．checked

D．cheated

7.

A．suitable

B．thin

C．small

D．huge

8.

A．challenge

B．confidence

C．turn

D．impression

9.

A．jumped

B．broke

C．packed

D．stepped

10.

A．warmth

B．anxiety

C．curiosity

D．horror

11.

A．personality

B．adventure

C．spirit

D．stomach

12.

A．realize

B．wonder

C．understand

D．notice

13.

A．exploring

B．designing

C．refusing

D．receiving

14.

A．advice

B．joy

C．blood

D．knowledge

15.

A．decided

B．forgot

C．changed

D．returned

8 . 阅读下面短文, 在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

A middle-aged man took his eighty-year-old father, who used a stick for walking, to the park to take a walk every morning.

One day, while the old man stepped out from the car, his stick fell down, and he lost his balance.

However, his son caught his hand tightly     1     (immediate), and saved him. The old man smiled at his son gratefully. The son said, “Father, pleased put that stick aside. I     2     (support)you for walking.”

    3     (hold) his son’s hand, the old man walked slowly.

After walking     4     half an hour, they felt tired and sat on a bench. Taking     5     deep breath, the old man said: “Dear, this is life!”

The son asked,“ What do you mean, Father?” The man said,“ When you were a kid, I was holding your hand to support you for walking.     6    now, you are holding my hand to help me!Years ago, you were identified as my son; now I am in your care!This is what     7    (call) the rule of life!”

“What?” the son questioned his dad. The old man replied,

“We all want to be ‘young’ forever! Ageless! Young age is always full of     8     (excite) when you keep on doing sports, When you are a child, everything is so     9    (enjoy); that never happens again    10     you catch ages. Life is short. So, live it to the fullest and make every second court!”

9 . Occasionally, misfortune will happen in our life and no one can avoid it. If you choose only to complain and escape from the misfortune, it will constantly follow you no matter where you go.     1    

A girl, called Selina, lost her arms in a traffic accident that caused her father’s death — who was the main source of support for the whole family.     2     For the sake of caring for her, her elder brother became her shadow , never leaving her alone for years. Except for writing with her toes, she was totally unable to do anything in her life. Then one day, her elder brother wanted to live his own normal life, and they had no choice but to separate. So she was almost desperate and didn’t know what to do next.

    3     When he tried to prepare dinner for his parents, he overturned the kerosene light on the stove, resulting in a fire that took his hands away. Though his younger brother that was studying in another city, showed his willingness to take care of him, he was determined to be totally independent. At school, he always studied hard. Most of what he learned was to be independent. Once he wrote the following in his composition: “I am lucky. Though I lost my arms, I still have legs; I am lucky. Though my wings are broken, my heart can still fly. ”

One day, the girl and the boy were both interviewed on a television program. The girl complained to the TV host about her uncertain future at being left on her own, but the boy was full of enthusiasm for his life.     4     The girl wrote: My elder brother’s arms are my arms. However, the boy wrote: Broken wings, flying heart.

    5     It is true that life is unpredictable. Disasters can strike at any time. How you deal with misfortune when faced with it is the true test of your character. If you choose only to complain and escape from the ordeal, it will always follow you wherever you go. But if you decide to face it bravely, the hardship will turn out to be a fortune on which new hopes will arise.

A．A similar misfortune happened to a boy named Jerry, too.

B．Since then, she had had to depend on her elder brother’s arms.

C．So his father went out looking for his mother, leaving him alone at home.

D．One night her mother, who suffered from chronic mental illness disappeared.

E．They both were invited to write something on a piece of paper with their toes.

F．They had both encountered the same misfortune, but had completely different attitudes towards lives.

G．But if you decide to be will-powered, the sufferings will turn out to be a fortune where new hopes will arise.

10 . Thomas was a well-known wise man. One day, he wandered in a beautiful small town. Because of his fame, people from nearby towns who heard of his arrival all came to visit and seek his advice.

Many who came sought help with difficulties in daily life, and Thomas, unable to bear turning them away, patiently offered suggestions. Word spread quickly, and more and more people came to see Thomas for guidance.

One day, dozens of people crowded outside Thomas’s door, all clamoring (大声地要求) that their problems were the most serious and urgent, each insisting that Thomas address their concerns first, with no one willing to yield (让步).

After a moment of thought, Thomas took out some paper and a pen and said, “I can’t hear clearly with everyone talking at once. How about everyone write down your problem on a piece of paper and place it in this basket beside me?”

Once everyone had placed their notes in the basket, Thomas shook the basket and said, “Please each take a piece of paper from the basket and read what it says.”

As everyone read a note from someone else, they all realized that indeed, each person has their own troubles, and every household has its own challenges. Then Thomas spoke up, “Now, whose problem is the most urgent to solve?” Hearing that question, no one spoke again, because now no one dared to claim that their problem was the most severe.

Often, we are bound by our immediate feelings. When difficulties and problems strike, it feels as though we are caught in a vortex of pain. But if we shift our focus from ourselves and look towards others, we might discover that the problems we face are not so significant. Perhaps others are the ones who need help more urgently, or maybe there is something within our power that we can do for them.

1. Why did people visit Thomas?

A．For advice.	B．For a meeting.
C．For a competition.	D．For introductions.

2. How did Thomas handle the crowd?

A．He ignored them.	B．He listened to each one individually.
C．He prioritized the problems himself.	D．He asked them to write down their problems.

3. What did reading others’ problems show to the people?

A．The complexity of their difficulties.	B．The similarity of their situations.
C．Their need for more advice.	D．Their living conditions.

4. What lesson did Thomas teach?

A．Competition.

B．Sympathy.

C．Prioritization.

D．Self-confidence.