1 . Although an eager baker, I'm terrified of working with dough （生面团）. It is particularly _________ --- a heavy hand or a gentle press can result in catastrophic failure. Having gained some _________ while cooking regularly during this lockdown, I decided to bake a pie all by myself. Usually my mother would send over the shortcrust pastry （简易酥皮） to fill and bake, but it was time to relieve her of the _________.

When my pie came out, it didn't look very nice, but its taste _________ decades-old memories of opening the fridge   _________ to break off pieces of buttery crust（黄油酥皮）, remaining pieces dropping on the floor and a frameless pie _________ my attempt to look innocent the next morning. It made me realize that the _________ of cooking goes beyond mere living during these troubled times.

During social distancing and self-isolation（自我隔离）, cooking connected us with the community at large. The community came to the _________ of many of us who weren't _________ in cooking as we burnt or misshaped things. A message from a friend, with whom I shared a banana ice cream __________, lead to much laughter: “How do I get the skins off these bananas? My hands are freezing and the banana skins are __________!” I stated that they had to be   __________ in advance, a lesson I had learnt the hard way a week earlier.

It's simple to heat food in the microwave or order takeout with a click of a button. But to buy your __________, store them, cut, chop（剁）, and stir-- each part of the process is an exercise in patience and creativity. __________, in anxious and unstable times, cooking __________ us of when things weren't so uncertain.

1.

A．absurd

B．flexible

C．sensitive

D．essential

2.

A．support

B．courage

C．respect

D．reputation

3.

A．pain

B．discomfort

C．burden

D．command

4.

A．brought in

B．brought back

C．brought forth

D．brought forward

5.

A．secretly

B．skillfully

C．casually

D．violently

6.

A．betraying

B．interrupting

C．threatening

D．accelerating

7.

A．art

B．joy

C．effect

D．value

8.

A．mind

B．attention

C．rescue

D．knowledge

9.

A．interested

B．disappointed

C．weak

D．expert

10.

A．series

B．recipe

C．record

D．theory

11.

A．lost

B．broken

C．burnt

D．stuck

12.

A．picked

B．watered

C．skinned

D．sliced

13.

A．devices

B．nutrients

C．components

D．ingredients

14.

A．Therefore

B．Moreover

C．However

D．Otherwise

15.

A．reminds

B．relieves

C．informs

D．warns

2 . “The really frightening thing about middle age,” the actor Doris Day is said to have joked, “is that you know you'll grow out of it.” We may bravely try to claim that life begins at 40- but for many people，it can feel more like the beginning of the end.

Mid life wasn't always seen this way. It isn't clear why we have a more negative view today, but Margie Lachman, director of the lifespan development lab at Brandeis University in Massachusetts, suggests it may be linked to the pressures that begin piling up in our 30s. “Midlife is a period of high stress today, more so than in the past,” she says. “One is exactly in the middle of work and family careers. This can affect one's ability to focus on one's own well-being.”

There are, however, many reasons to feel positive about this crucial period. In a series of experiments, Laura Germine at Harvard Medical School has tested tens of thousands of people to examine the differences in cognitive abilities between age groups. Germine's studies have included the famous “mind in the eyes” test, for instance, which gets people to infer emotional states from small differences in facial expressions. She found that people in their late 40s scored highest. This may be due to practice, she suggests. “When you think about the amount of social differences that one has to learn across the lifespan- that's where we think that comes from.”

Germine found similar patterns in a task demanding continuous attention. In this, the participants had to watch different scenes fade into one another and adapt their response according to what they saw-pressing a button when they saw a city and releasing it when they saw a mountain. 40-somethings found it much easier to “get into the zone” than younger people.

It is interesting to note that middle-aged people frequently bring in the most supplies in traditional hunter-gatherer societies. According to various studies, hunter-gatherers often take decades to learn their skills, and these abilities continue to grow into their 40s.

There are some downsides to hitting this age, of course. Our skin tends to become loose and our body fat starts to be redistributed around the midriff. But after a drop in life satisfaction, happiness is already set to rise at the end of this decade and the beginning of the next.

Contrary to popular opinion, humans seem to have evolved to flourish into middle age and beyond.

1. What can we infer from the first paragraph?

A．Doris Day felt excited in her 40s.	B．It's believed that life begins at 40.
C．Lots of people feel worried at 40.	D．We are supposed to be braver at 40.

2. Which of the followings is TRUE according to the text?

A．People in their 40s attach more importance to their well-being.

B．There seem to be reasons for us to be optimistic about middle age.

C．The participants in their 40s did badly in Germine's experiments.

D．Humans' physical appearance definitely gets worse in their 40s.

3. The underlined word “flourish” in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to ________.

A．Succeed

B．Panic

C．Calm

D．Decline

4. Where is the text probably taken from?

A．A textbook	B．An art review.
C．A science magazine.	D．A biography.

3 . In life, do you choose to take the road everyone has taken, or do you choose the path that is best for you? It might be ________ to choose what everyone has done, especially if it seemed to work for them. But is that what truly ________ for you?

On a recent hiking ________, my partner and I decided to take a popular trail in the ________ direction. This was an old, well-traveled trail that people had been hiking and biking from A to Z for years. For our own reasons, we chose to travel from Z to A. Going backwards made more sense with my ________. The trip would take several days and going backwards ________ that I would end the trip closer to the airport for my flight home.

As my partner and I walked, everyone crossing our path had something to say, “You're going the wrong way. Are you lost? Are you returning ________ you forgot something? Are you crazy? The path occasionally crossed a ________. When it did, even passing cars beeped to ________ us in the “right” direction.

Why did people only see one way? Because that's what everyone does? Because that's how it's always been done? We even ________ to talk to a Danish woman who said, “We have a(n)       ________ in my country: when you go backwards to everyone else, it's because you're avoiding something.” I couldn't believe it. We were just enjoying connecting with nature, hiking the way that best ________ us. Had we gone the “wrong” way? No. At least, not for us.

I decided to ________ the path I chose. ________, we had an amazing experience. Choosing the “wrong” path was right for me. When your inner ________ tells you something is right (or wrong), listen to it. It's your instinct. It's speaking to you for a reason and it knows, better than anyone, what's best for you.

1.

A．anxious

B．normal

C．awkward

D．impressive

2.

A．designs

B．plans

C．works

D．prepares

3.

A．race

B．test

C．project

D．trip

4.

A．opposite

B．wrong

C．common

D．accessible

5.

A．emotion

B．target

C．schedule

D．request

6.

A．supposed

B．ensured

C．provided

D．permitted

7.

A．if

B．because

C．while

D．yet

8.

A．plain

B．valley

C．trail

D．highway

9.

A．point

B．inspire

C．protect

D．support

10.

A．expected

B．stopped

C．agreed

D．hesitated

11.

A．saying

B．point

C．myth

D．spell

12.

A．instructed

B．confused

C．offered

D．suited

13.

A．show off

B．think over

C．pick out

D．stick to

14.

A．Probably

B．Hopefully

C．Eventually

D．Knowingly

15.

A．desire

B．feeling

C．voice

D．reaction

4 . When I was little and something difficult happened,I would look to my mother for comfort and guidance. She was always there for me, helping me _________the issue.No matter what,my mom had a _________outlook (人生观)．

At the time, I had no knowledge of the difficulties and _________she had experienced. Growing up during the Great Depression, my mom lost two sisters and had to _________her paraplegic (下身瘫痪的)youngest sister.

To me, my mother defines resilience (快速恢复的能力).She had such strong faith and was a very _________and positive person. Our house was like a central hub (核心)for family and friends; no one ever left hungry or without feeling a bit _________than they did when they arrived.

As a child, one thing my mother would often say to me was, “this too shall pass." At first, I found this _________ .What I was dealing with seemed like the most_________thing ever! How would it get better? As I matured, I_________she was right. Life moves on and we all have a_________to move forward or back. She always chose to move forward.

“This too shall pass" doesn't mean that the problem will magically________. Rather, it can lead to a very reflective thought process that _________you to find inner strength to_________the challenge at hand.

So as you face difficulties and challenges. I _________my mother's advice will help you choose to move forward, find_________and make the best of what life has to offer.

1.

A．work through

B．believe in

C．focus on

D．worry about

2.

A．simple

B．similar

C．positive

D．new

3.

A．shame

B．losses

C．arguments

D．competition

4.

A．remind

B．trust

C．respect

D．support

5.

A．different

B．interesting

C．giving

D．normal

6.

A．safer

B．busier

C．smarter

D．better

7.

A．annoying

B．frightening

C．surprising

D．appealing

8.

A．enjoyable

B．difficult

C．boring

D．valuable

9.

A．realized

B．imagined

C．doubted

D．expected

10.

A．right

B．choice

C．responsibility

D．way

11.

A．change

B．develop

C．disappear

D．continue

12.

A．forces

B．helps

C．warms

D．persuades

13.

A．answer

B．accept

C．understand

D．address

14.

A．agree

B．wonder

C．hope

D．remember

15.

A．solutions

B．challenges

C．results

D．purposes

5 . Many of us who’re suffering have asked ourselves this question—“Why me?”. Undoubtedly, the question is _________ This way of thinking fuels self-pity and can _________ us. How do we defeat them? When find myself heading toward a pity-party, I try to _________ what I can’t change. I cannot change my adult son but I can change the way _________ with him.

Years ago when my son first came out of _________, I was constantly asking him. ＂Do you plan to participate in the after-care program? Most often, he would _________ me off with a response like, “I was busy this week but plan to look into it soon. ”Finally, I worked hard to get out of my own _________. Now during our frequent telephone conversations, I don’t ask questions or _________ advice but talk about his beloved dog and other _________ topics. Over the years I’ve come to __________ my son with his strengths and weaknesses like everyone else.

I have learned I should avoid __________. In our competitive culture, we’re encouraged to be __________ than others. So when friends tell me about their children’s __________, I tend to compare their good fortune to my family’s misfortune. Instead, I should be grateful that he can afford the rent rather than living in the streets.

Presently, my son is in __________ and I’m involved in a recovery program as well. We both receive tools to __________ “Why me?” and other negative thoughts.

1.

A．self-adjusting

B．self-seeking

C．self-supporting

D．self-defeating

2.

A．replace

B．weaken

C．conduct

D．protect

3.

A．decide

B．explain

C．accept

D．ignore

4.

A．compete

B．agree

C．argue

D．interact

5.

A．disaster

B．treatment

C．university

D．poverty

6.

A．see

B．take

C．brush

D．show

7.

A．way

B．debt

C．house

D．tradition

8.

A．collect

B．offer

C．follow

D．refuse

9.

A．formal

B．serious

C．complex

D．interesting

10.

A．blame

B．equip

C．appreciate

D．combine

11.

A．damage

B．comparison

C．sacrifice

D．conflict

12.

A．better

B．kinder

C．earlier

D．healthier

13.

A．desires

B．comments

C．senses

D．accomplishments

14.

A．control

B．danger

C．recovery

D．confidence

15.

A．fight

B．observe

C．attract

D．distract

6 . When Henry Ford decided to produce his famous v-8 motor, he chose to build an engine with   the entire eight cylinders (气缸) cost in one piece. No instructed his engineers to produce it ________.

“But,” they ________, “It’s impossible!”

“________.” Ford ordered, “And stay on the job ________ you succeed, no matter how much time is required.”

There was nothing else for them to do, if they were to ________ on the Ford staff. Six months passed and nothing happened. ________ six months passed, and still nothing happened. The engineers tried every conceivable plan to ________ the order, but the thing seemed out of the question: “impossible!” At the end of the year, Ford ________ with his engineers, and again they ________ him they had found no way to carry out his order.

“Go right ahead,” said Ford, “I want it, and I’ll have it.”

Then, as if by a stroke of magic, the secret was discovered. And the Ford determination had ________ once more!

This story may not be described with minute accuracy, but the sum and substance of it is correct. Henry Ford was successful, because he understood and ________ the principles (原则)of success. One of these is ________: knowing out what you want to do. If you can read ________ the lines in which the secret of his great achievement has been described, if you can ________ your finger on the particular group of principles which made Henry Ford rich, your achievements can ________ his in almost any calling for which you are suited.

1.

A．somehow

B．anyway

C．sometime

D．anytime

2.

A．replied

B．reacted

C．refused

D．repeated

3.

A．Hold on

B．Go ahead

C．Cheer up

D．Calm down

4.

A．unless

B．after

C．until

D．when

5.

A．keep

B．apply

C．leave

D．remain

6.

A．Another

B．Other

C．About

D．Over

7.

A．carry out

B．bring up

C．call for

D．put forward

8.

A．agreed

B．argued

C．checked

D．dealt

9.

A．requested

B．protested

C．confirmed

D．informed

10.

A．broken down

B．built up

C．paid off

D．taken off

11.

A．applied

B．established

C．revealed

D．processed

12.

A．wisdom

B．desire

C．favor

D．freedom

13.

A．among

B．within

C．beneath

D．between

14.

A．lie

B．lay

C．slide

D．point

15.

A．defeat

B．replace

C．equal

D．impact

7 . “Oh boys, don’t throw stones at the poor bird,” said an old grey-headed man.

“Sir,” said a little fellow, “she makes such a loud noise that we can’t suffer from her.”

“Yes, but she uses the voice which nature gave her, and I am afraid the stone will rebound(弹回), and hurt you as long as you live!”

“Rebound! We don’t understand you, sir!”

“Well, come and I will tell you a story.”

“Is it a true story?”

“Yes, every word is true.”

“Fifty years ago, I was a boy like you. I used to throw stones very accurately.” 

“One day I went to work for an old couple. They were very kind to everybody and everything. Few had so many birds making their nests under the roofs of their houses. The birds seemed to love the couple. For seven years a bird had come, after the long winter was over, and built her nest in the same place, and raised her young chicks there. She and her mate had just returned when I went there to work, and the couple welcomed them heartily.”

“During the day, I thought I would try my skill upon her. She sat on a pole and looked at me trustfully. I found a nice stone, and I threw it with my utmost skill. It struck the bird on the head and she dropped dead!”

“I said nothing to the old couple about it. But one of their grandchildren told them what I had done. I could never look at them in the face afterwards. Oh, that I should have told them how sorry I was!”

“They have been dead many years, and so has the poor bird; but don’t you see how that stone rebounded, and hit me? How much the memory of it has hurt me! My dear boys, I would pay a great deal today if I could undo what I did!

“For fifty years I have remembered it. I have never spoken of it before, but if what my words will prevent you from throwing a stone that may rebound, I will be happy.”

The boys at once dropped the stones they had in their hands, and the bird had no more trouble from them.

1. Why did the boy throw stones at the bird?

A．Because she was too noisy to the boy.

B．Because she had a voice nature gave her.

C．Because the stone always rebounded to the boy.

D．Because the boy wanted the old man to tell him a story.

2. For many years after the old man killed the bird, he felt________.

A．proud

B．uneasy

C．relaxed

D．excited

3. The old man told the boy his story in order to________.

A．make fun of him	B．educate him with a life lesson
C．drive him away from birds	D．remind him not to play with stones

4. What is the best title of the passage?

A．The stone that rebounds.	B．The boy that throws stones.
C．The birds that sing well.	D．The old man that tells stories.

8 . In such a lesser-known wildlife reserve, there were no other guests except me. Somehow that night, festivities with the staff reached a point where it seemed a good idea to go for a ________. So we ran down to the river and dived into it. What ________ me the next day, as I had a much-needed coffee overlooking the river, was seeing a large croc (鳄鱼) moving past the very ________ spot. Some people need a bit of ________ to get themselves going, while others willingly throw themselves into potentially ________ situations, and come out the other side transformed.

Walking in the wild can do that. Riding wild rivers, too. Once you take that first step onto ground ________ with the tracks of wild beasts, or put your paddle (浆) into a fast-flowing river for the first time, you cross a divide into a world of ________. Your senses are heightened, your vision sharpens and your ears tune in. It’s what our wild ancestors ________ on a daily basis. So we return to seek out that thrill (刺激), to ________ our domestic lives and remind ourselves what it is to live.

There are ________ for everyone. Some dip their toe in, and some fully commit. Either way, people take that step to immerse (融入) themselves in the world. Recently, three unrelated groups of ________ did just that: walking hundreds of kilometres among dangerous beasts, through wildlife reserves over as many as 21 days. Can it get any ________? There are also kayakers (划皮艇的人) who flew down ________ rivers, showing us that, for all the thrills, it’s the ________ aspects that they enjoy most, those trips where they sleep riverside, beneath the stars.

Their goal was to draw attention to the effect of the pandemic on local communities and conservation and they ________ caught our attention.

1.

A．walk

B．ride

C．swim

D．coffee

2.

A．excited

B．surprised

C．touched

D．frightened

3.

A．same

B．perfect

C．popular

D．special

4.

A．energy

B．courage

C．patience

D．wisdom

5.

A．tricky

B．dangerous

C．real

D．embarrassing

6.

A．marked

B．connected

C．replaced

D．charged

7.

A．harmony

B．calmness

C．security

D．uncertainty

8.

A．treasured

B．remembered

C．experienced

D．abandoned

9.

A．live

B．devote

C．escape

D．compare

10.

A．degrees

B．tours

C．samples

D．outlines

11.

A．scientists

B．volunteers

C．athletes

D．adventurers

12.

A．wilder

B．easier

C．faster

D．newer

13.

A．short

B．fierce

C．beautiful

D．famous

14.

A．positive

B．quiet

C．practical

D．lonely

15.

A．suddenly

B．normally

C．eventually

D．undoubtedly

9 . What is talent? Are you born with it? Or does it seem to develop over time? Before I start, I’d like to say that one thing everyone agrees on is that the most skilled musicians have worked hard to get there.

While it’s true that a few of us had enough “talent” to avoid extra practice to do just as well as those who did, those who worked hard easily beat us. It is, in fact, very likely that if some of us “talented ones” had actually been practicing and improving our skill, we would have achieved a whole different level.

Another aspect of talent seems to be heart and passion (酷爱). The people I see who are the most talented musicians are crazy about music. They eat, breathe, and live music and they make an extraordinary effort to make it part of their lives. As Remus Badea said, desire for the musician-to-be is significant for them to be successful. This desire is easily found in those considered to be talented. When you want and love something so bad, it drives you and your entire character can be shaped around it. Such determined passion seems to produce incredible skill and talent.

The third aspect (方面) of talent is having talent around you. When surrounded by talented musicians, it only seems natural that you start to catch up to their level Take a look at almost any group of musicians in history. The more talented people in the group the more talented the group is as a whole. A great example of this is the relationship between audio producer and artist. The artist turns up to the studio with their song, and as they work through recording it, the audio producer will often suggest various changes to the song to make it better.

1. What can we learn from Paragraph 2?

A．Pride goes before a fall.

B．It’s never too old to learn.

C．Practice contributes to talent.

D．Talent determines achievements.

2. What is the key to success according to Remus Badea?

A．Passion.

B．Character .

C．Skill.

D．Talent.

3. Why is the example mentioned in the last paragraph?

A．To introduce what real talents are.

B．To explain how a song is composed.

C．To prove talents need team spirit.

D．To show the benefits of being with talents.

4. What might the author probably agree with?

A．Music has no limits.

B．Musicians are born with talent.

C．Music favors the talented.

D．Musicians are created, not born.

10 . With the social media freely available, I've realized how easy it is to become a jealous cow. The truth is that however much I remind myself of the many wonderful things I have in my life, there are still moments when I look at those around me and feel bitterly upset by their success.

It's a horrible thing to admit! In an ideal world, I'd never want to be jealous of another person's achievements and I'd want to celebrate the successes of my friends. But sometimes it's hard, even when we want to. But I don't want to live my life as a jealous cow, and I assume you don't either.

It's easier to celebrate other people's wins if you celebrate your own. How often do we take the time to enjoy our success rather than instantly move onto the next thing we want to achieve? Last year, I decided to write a book. It was the only professional goal I set for myself and, while it tired me out, I got there. But as soon as it was done, I started planning my next goal-making the book a success. As I saw other people publishing books, I stopped celebrating and instead began to fear that mine wouldn't compete.

When I told a friend how I was feeling, she reminded me how much easier it is to clap for someone else when we also clap for ourselves. So, I took myself out for lunch, ordered a glass of wine and wrote myself a congratulations card. When I saw all those other books being written on my social media, I felt proud of each and every one of us who had battled to the end of the word count.

The other trick for celebrating other people's success is to realize that there is no limit on success. We can make more, which means that while it might seem as if others have everything and we have nothing, the reality is that life turns quickly and our luck could change at any time. If others have achieved those things, we can too. When we celebrate others, we're acknowledging their achievements but also cheering for ourselves as well as for our hopes and dreams and our belief that we can make them happen. And hopefully, when we do, those people will cheer for us too.

1. What can we infer from Paragraph 1?

A．Social media is the source of the author's jealousy.

B．Frequent successes on social media encourage envy.

C．It is a pleasure to face others' successes on social media.

D．People tend to be crazy about immediate success online.

2. As far as the author is concerned,what should we do after achieving success?

A．Appreciate what's been done.

B．Show it off on social media.

C．Reflect on gains and losses.

D．Waite for others' congratulations.

3. One of the keys to removing jealousy lies in.

A．pursuing those achievable goals

B．devoting yourself to the next goal

C．admitting personal incompetence

D．changing your attitude to success

4. What is the best title for the passage?

A．I'm so happy for us!

B．What a considerate friend!

C．I don't care about it!

D．How selfless you can be!