1 . I’m now the cook and owner of a restaurant. Nothing in my early years led me to
When accepting the job assisting cooks after finishing college, I just
Too little salt, and a dish is
Also, working with food teaches me to really taste, smell and touch. I learn to observe my
| A．wonder | B．expect | C．doubt | D．admit |
| A．suggestion | B．pleasure | C．tradition | D．desire |
| A．center | B．trouble | C．witness | D．secret |
| A．sensitive | B．passive | C．unconcerned | D．unclear |
| A．sponsor | B．company | C．follow | D．urge |
| A．happened | B．intended | C．managed | D．promised |
| A．inspire | B．affect | C．replace | D．prevent |
| A．opportunity | B．wisdom | C．memories | D．skills |
| A．easy | B．fit | C．true | D．sure |
| A．preserve | B．hide | C．restore | D．change |
| A．worry | B．forgive | C．justify | D．ignore |
| A．decisions | B．improvements | C．surroundings | D．differences |
| A．keep away | B．end up | C．suffer from | D．come across |
| A．Even so | B．Above all | C．Therefore | D．Anyway |
| A．free | B．absent | C．different | D．far |
2 . My first shopping in a general store was in Miss Bee’s when I spent the summer with my grandmother in New York.
“Go get them yourself” Miss Bee said, ignoring the shopping list held up before her nose. “I’m not your servant, so just get yourself a basket from that pile over there and start filing.”
It took me three wall-to-wall searches before I found the first item on my list — a pork can be placed between boxes of cereal and bread. Next up was toilet paper, found under the daily newspaper, and Band-Ads, found next to the face cream. The store was a puzzle, but it held some surprises too. I found a new Superman comic behind the peanut butter.
I visited Miss Bee a couple of times a week that summer. Sometimes she short-charged me. Other times she overcharged or sold me an old newspaper instead of a current one. Going to the store was more like going into battle. I left my Grandma’s house armed with my list — memorized to the letter — and marched into Miss Bee’s like General Patton (巴顿将军) marching into North Africa.
All summer long she found ways to trip me up. No sooner had I learned how to pronounce bicarbonate of soda (小苏打) and memorized its location on the shelf than Miss Bee rearranged the shelves and made me hunt for it all over again. By summer’s end, however, the shopping trip that had once taken me an hour was done in 15 minutes.
The morning I was to return to Brooklyn, I stopped in to tell her that she was mean. To my amazement, she laughed and said. “Well, I don’t care! Each of us is put on this earth for a reason. I believe my job is to teach every child I meet some life lessons to help them. Think what you will, but when you get older you’ll be glad our paths crossed!”
1. Why did the writer spend a long time doing her first shopping in the general store?| A．She was too young to remember all the items on the list. |
| B．Miss Bee didn’t treat her kindly. |
| C．Her grandmother asked her to buy too many things. |
| D．The store was in disorder and she was not familiar with the shop. |
| A．She was well prepared and full of confidence. |
| B．Going shopping in the store was a challenge to her. |
| C．She was very aggressive, taking Miss Bee as the enemy. |
| D．Going shopping was so fun that it was like playing a war game. |
| A．The writer would benefit from the experience of shopping in Miss Bee’s. |
| B．The writer would find shopping in Miss Bee’s store very interesting. |
| C．The writer would be happy to meet Miss Bee again later in life. |
| D．The writer would realize that Miss Bee could become her friend. |
| A．Mean. | B．Careless. | C．Helpful. | D．Humorous. |
“A man can fail many times, but he isn’t a failure until he begins to blame somebody else.” — J. Burroughs
内容包括：
1. 你对该名言的理解；
2. 个人或他人的例子；
3. 你的感悟。
注意：
1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3.开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
4 . Climbing, I once thought, was a very manly activity, but as I found my way into this activity, I came to see that something quite different happens on the rock.
Like wild swimming, rock climbing involves you into the landscape. On the rock, I am fully focused. Eyes pay close attention, ears are alert, and hands move across the surface. Unlike walking, where I could happily wander about absent-mindedly, in climbing, attentive observation is essential.
As an arts student studying English literature, I discovered a new type of reading from outdoor climbing. Going out on to the crags (悬崖), I saw how you could learn to read the rocks and develop a vocabulary of physical movements. Good climbers knew how to adjust their bodies on to the stone. Watching them, I wanted to possess that skillful “language”.
My progress happened when I worked for the Caingorms National Park Authority.Guiding my explorations into this strange new landscape was Nan Shepherd, a lady too. Unlike the goal-directed mindset of many mountaineers, she is not concerned with peaks or personal achievement. Shepherd sees the mountain as a total environment and she celebrates the Caingorms as a place alive with plants, rocks, animals and elements. Through her generous spirit and my own curiosity, I saw that rock climbing need not be a process of testing oneself against anything. Rather, the intensity of focus could develop a person into another way of being.
Spending so much time in high and st ony places has transformed my view on the world and our place in it. I have come into physical contact with processes that go way beyond the everyday. Working with gravity, geology (地质学), rhythms of weather and deep time, I gain an actual relationship with the earth. This bond lies at the heart of my passion for rock climbing. I return to the rocks, because this is where I feel in contact with our land.
1. What does the writer find important in climbing?| A．Balance. | B．Concentration. |
| C．Determination. | D．Perseverance. |
| A．Climbing goes together with nature. |
| B．Every mountain top is within reach. |
| C．The best climber is the one having fun. |
| D．You can not achieve high unless you change. |
| A．Time. | B．Transformation. | C．The world. | D．My view. |
| A．It challenges her to compete with men. |
| B．It allows her a unique attitude toward rock. |
| C．It teaches her how to possess a new language. |
| D．It makes her feel connected with the earth. |
5 . We cannot argue with reality. We cannot argue with science. Therefore, we simply cannot argue with the fact that there are no straight lines in the universe.
Let’s start with science. The science of a straight line falls under the subject of physics. It might seem like a complicated topic, but the theory behind it is pretty simple. If you start rowing in a boat from one place and keep sailing, the concept of the curved (弯曲的) Earth will take you in a circle and you will end up where you started. The brain forms the concept of a straight line to simplify what you see in nature. Consider it a tool for the mind to recognize reality.
The concept of straight lines was controversial and heavily influenced the politics and society of Europe from the 15th century to the 17th century. Greek thinkers and scholars like Aristotle in the 5th century already proved that the Earth was a globe, but many Europeans at that time did not believe in this idea! However, some Europeans during the Age of Exploration denied this belief. Just as the famous Italian scientist Galileo Galilei was persecuted (迫害) for advocating a heliocentric (日心的) model of the solar system, many thinkers like Giordano Bruno were shamed for believing that the Earth was round.
Well, my friends, let’s move on to life. The concept of nothing going in a straight line can be associated with life as much as it relates to science and architecture. Whenever you do something, it never turns out to play out exactly as planned. I especially know that as a thirteen-year-old! Life is a rough road—every time you go forward, it is followed by two steps back or to the side. Just like how science explains it, life is a curvy path full of unexpected twists, turns, and adventures that nobody can ever predict.
1. What does paragraph 1 function as?| A．An introduction to the topic. | B．A means to attract readers. |
| C．An explanation of a common sense. | D．A proof of the author’s opinion. |
| A．The mind could not recognize realities. | B．Things in nature might look complicated. |
| C．What you see in nature could seem simple. | D．People in the 16th century might find the Earth flat. |
| A．Plain and smooth. | B．Easy but fruitless. | C．Long and tough. | D．Bothersome but safe. |
| A．A Straight Line: Everything Simple | B．A Straight Line: People’s Good Wish |
| C．A Straight Line: Difficult To Prove | D．A Straight Line: Simply Nonexistent |
6 . After years of observing human nature, I have decided that two qualities make the difference between men of great achievement and men of average performance curiosity and discontent. I have never known an outstanding man who lacked either. And I have never known an average man who had both. The two belong together.
Together, these deep human urges (驱策力) count for much more that ambition. Galileo was not merely ambitious when he dropped objects of varying weights from the Leaning Tower at Pisa and timed their fall to the ground. Like Galileo, all the great names in history were curious and asked in discontent,“Why? Why? Why?”
Fortunately, curiosity and discontent don’t have to be learned. We are born with them and need only recapture them.
“The great man,” said Mencius (孟子), “is he who does not lose his child’s heart.” Yet most of us do lose it. We stop asking questions. We stop challenging custom. We just follow the crowd. And the crowd desires restful average. It encourages us to occupy our own little corner, to avoid foolish leaps into the dark, to be satisfied.
Most of us meet new people, and new ideas, with hesitation. But once having met and liked them, we think how terrible it would have been, had we missed the chance. We will probably have to force ourselves to waken our curiosity and discontent and keep them awake.
How should you start? Modestly, so as not to become discouraged. I think of one friend who couldn’t arrange flowers to satisfy herself. She was curious about how the experts did it. How she is one of the experts, writing books on flower arrangement.
One way to begin is to answer your own excuses. You haven’t any special ability? Most people don’t; there are only a few geniuses. You haven’t any time? That’s good, because it’s always the people with no time who get things done. Harriet Stowe, mother of six, wrote parts of Uncle Tom’s Cabin while cooking. You’re too old? Remember that Thomas Costain was 57 when he published his first novel, and that Grandma Moses showed her first pictures when she was 78.
However you start, remember there is no better time to start than right now, for you’ll never be more alive than you are at this moment.
1. In writing Paragraph 1, the author aims to ______.| A．propose a definition | B．present an argument |
| C．reach a conclusion | D．make a comparison |
| A．Trial and error leads to the finding of truth. | B．Greatness comes from a lasting desire to explore. |
| C．Creativity results from challenging authority. | D．Scientists tend to be curious and ambitious. |
| A．Observe the unknown around you. | B．Follow the fashion. |
| C．Lead a life of adventure. | D．Develop a questioning mind. |
| A．Lack of talent and time is no reason for taking no action. |
| B．The genius tends to get things done creatively. |
| C．Gaining success helps you become an expert |
| D．You should remain modest when approaching perfection. |
7 . I remember as a young child bringing a bunch of brilliant yellow flowers to my mother. It didn’t matter that the stems felt sticky or that both my parents cursed the presence of these flowers in the lawn. I thought they were beautiful!
And there were so many of them! We spent hours picking the flowers and then popping the blossoms off with a snap of our fingers. But the supply of dandelions (蒲公英) never ran out. My father or brothers would chop off all the heads with the lawnmower at least once a week, but that didn’t stop these hardy wonders.
And for those flowers that escaped the honor of being hand-delivered to my mother or the sharp blades of the lawnmower, there was another level of existence. The soft roundness of a dandelion gone to seed caused endless laughter of delight as we unconsciously spread this flower across the yard.
As I worked in my garden last week, pulling unwanted weeds out of the space that would become a haven for tomatoes, corn, peas and sunflowers, I again marveled at the flower that some call a weed.
And I thought, if only I had the staying power of a dandelion. If only I could stretch my roots so deep and straight that something tugging on my stem couldn’t separate me completely from the source that feeds me life. If only I could come back to face the world with a bright, sunshiny face after someone has run me over with a lawnmower or worse, purposely attacked me in an attempt to destroy me. If only I could spread love and encouragement as freely and fully as this flower spreads seeds of itself.
The lawns at my parents’ home are now beautiful green blankets. The only patches of color come from well-placed, well-controlled flowerbeds. Chemicals have managed to kill what human interference couldn’t. Still, I hope you and I can be different. I hope that we can stretch our roots deep enough that the strongest poison can’t reach our souls. I hope that we can overcome the poisons of anger, fear, hate, criticism and competitiveness.
1. The author’s parents probably viewed the dandelions in the lawn as ________.| A．unwanted weeds | B．hard y wonders | C．supplies of seeds | D．patches of colors |
| A．The flowers were meant as a joyful gift to her mother. |
| B．The flowers that some called a weed were difficult to pull out. |
| C．The flowers were tough enough to spread new lives themselves. |
| D．The flowers evolved into a stronger species because of frequent mowing. |
| A．The author’s family enjoyed the dandelions as much as she did. |
| B．The author purposefully replaced some dandelions with crops. |
| C．The dandelions were never successfully removed from the lawn. |
| D．The author felt sorry but encouraged by the fate of the dandelions. |
| A．You reap what you sow. |
| B．Never judge a book by its cover. |
| C．United we stand, and divided we fall. |
| D．Rise above the storm and you will find the sunshine. |
8 . As a child, there was nothing I liked better than Sunday afternoons at my grandfather’s farm in western Pennsylvania. Surrounded by miles of stone walls, the house and field provided endless hours of fun for a city kid like me.
Since my first visit to the farm, I had wanted more than anything to be allowed to climb the stone walls surrounding the houses. My parents would never agree because the walls were so old that some stones were loose and falling. However, my idea to climb across those walls grew so strong that finally I had all my courage to enter the living room, where the adults had gathered after Sunday dinner.
“I want to climb the stone walls.” I said. “Heavens, no! You’ll hurt yourself!” The response was just as I’d expected. But before I left the room, I was stopped by my grandfather’s loud voice. “Now hold on just a minute.” I heard him say. “Let the boy climb the stone walls. He has to learn to do things for himself.”
“Go,” he said to me, “and come and see me when you get back.” For the next two and a half hours I climbed those old walls — and had the time of my life. Later I met with my grandfather to tell him about my adventures. I’ll never forget what he said. “Fred,” he said, smiling, “you made this day a special day just by being yourself. Always remember, there’s only one person in this whole world like you, and I like you exactly as you are.”
Many years have passed since then, and today I host the television program Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, seen by millions of children throughout America. There have been changes over the years, but one thing remains the same: my message to children at the end of almost every visit. “There’s only one person in this whole world like you,” the kids will hear me say, “and people can like you exactly as you are.”
1. Why did the writer enjoy his visits to the farm?| A．There were old stone houses. | B．He was allowed to climb the walls. |
| C．He missed his grandfather a lot. | D．He could experience new fun there. |
| A．He was backed up by his grandfather to follow his heart. |
| B．He didn’t expect his parents’ disagreement on wall climbing. |
| C．He became a TV program host with his grandfather’s help. |
| D．He didn’t know the possible danger of the stone walls. |
| A．Unforgettable Childhood | B．Just Be Yourself |
| C．Do Whatever You Like | D．Like grandfather, like grandson |
| A.Even if B.move on C. pick up D. break down E. benefit from F. common sense G. in a mess H.in touch with I. turn out J. make a difference K. in fear |
Life is full of challenges, but we must learn to
10 . Our neighbors had a loud party last night. We weren’t
What
And it really worked in their favor. My husband and I were so friendly that even when the event went past the
It takes such little effort to make people feel that they
| A．located | B．explored | C．challenged | D．invited |
| A．trapped | B．impressed | C．annoyed | D．embarrassed |
| A．later | B．closer | C．earlier | D．further |
| A．disappointing | B．frightening | C．puzzling | D．amazing |
| A．phone number | B．room number | C．account number | D．car number |
| A．anxiously | B．politely | C．regularly | D．obviously |
| A．imagination | B．consideration | C．limitation | D．organization |
| A．promised | B．supplied | C．designed | D．compared |
| A．stress | B．anxiety | C．worry | D．anger |
| A．responsive | B．adaptable | C．continuous | D．respectful |
| A．figure | B．succeed | C．matter | D．access |
| A．gathering | B．inviting | C．meeting | D．disturbing |
| A．noticed | B．delivered | C．explored | D．proved |
| A．surrounding | B．appreciation | C．curiosity | D．distance |
| A．gratitude | B．apology | C．thoughtfulness | D．inspiration |
