Why does one person get selected for a promotion while others with equal skills, education and experience get passed over? In my opinion, a person’s proven willingness to behave     1     (responsible) is one of the major     2     (reason). In fact, responsibility influences how the leader behaves with subordinates (下级), and it also influences the relationship with an immediate boss and with other departments in the organization. Much management    3     (guide) surprisingly overlooks this characteristic, yet it     4     (explain) many successes and failures, as well as a large portion of promotional decisions.

More than 40 years ago, Dale Miller conducted    5     examination on the promotion of his managers. Each manager received a group of 62 statements,     6     describe management behaviours, and was asked to make a forced choice, going from the most effective to the     7     (little) effective behaviour. The best managers’ choice was the statement, “Accepts full responsibility for the performance of the work unit.” This statement     8     (choose) far more frequently than statements about assignment, planning, staffing, time-management or technical skills. This choice also illustrated the sharpest distinction between the excellent managers and managers with     9     (disappoint) performance. In the end, the managers who hadn’t been promoted attached far less importance to responsible behaviours, because they were considered to be    10     (rely).

Tim and I talked a lot about his problems today, and I’m so glad that I could help my best friend. It also left me thinking about what it really means to be a “good friend”. In my opinion, the following     1    (quality) form the basis of a friendship.

A good friend needs to be     2    (support). I can see that Tim is having trouble     3    (balance) his project and his schoolwork, and I can see that both are important to him. I must respect and support the choices he makes. I should also encourage him to take action to get over these difficulties.

A good friend also needs to be selfless. Tim is someone     4     I should try my best to help, even if it means more work for me. When he’s struggling     5     his schoolwork, I should do all I can     6    (help) him become a more efficient learner. It’ll take up some of my spare time,     7     this friendship is worth my extra time and effort. I’m sure that Tim would do     8     same for me.

To me, a good friend brings out the best in a person. And I think Tim is the one who brings out the best in me. Through our conversation today, I know that our friendship will grow     9    (strong) than ever. I’ll always value these qualities of a good friend and try to measure myself by these standards as our friendship     10    (develop).

Three Things to Do Before You Are 18

Are you bored with your daily life? Here are some things you should try before you are 18,     1     after that it’s too late.

Learn to swim

Seriously, this is so important     2     it can save your life. If you can’t swim well, you     3    (not) be able to do water sports like waterskiing, surfing and diving. Even taking a boat trip will be     4    (danger) for you. Make sure you do it.

Try at least one kind of team sports

Being a good team player is     5     important skill in life. You can’t just think of yourself,     6     have to work well with other people. Other advantages of team sports like basketball, football and baseball are that they keep you fit and healthy, and they are also great fun. Teams     7     (usual) have a good social life, too. You’ll go to lots of parties and make many friends.

Collect something

One of the best     8     (hobby) for under-18s is collecting things. You could collect kinds of stamps, or you could collect things that make you     9     (remember) what you have done, like cinema tickets for films you have seen or emails from friends. The best way to collect is to have a special album     10     (put) your collection in and to write what each thing means to you. That way you won’t forget.

Whenever I feel lonely, I have a secret recipe that never fails: rice, milk and sugar,     1     (cook) low and slow. No matter how bad my mood is, that perfect combination is always enough     2     (lift) my spirits. Sometimes the smell alone can do     3     trick, not to mention the lovely creamy flavour,     4     works like a time machine immediately transporting me back to my sunny childhood.     5     pleasure, I remember the lazy Sunday afternoons I used to spend in the warmth of my grandma’s flat,     6     (listen) to her wonderful stories and     7     (greedy) eating bowl after bowl of her delicious rice pudding. I take my time over every spoonful, gently rolling the silky dessert around my mouth and enjoying the perfect     8     (marry) of rice and milk. Before I know it, I am happy again. That’s certainly true for me. Comfort food     9     (taste) good and by building an     10     (emotion) bond with our happy memories, always makes us feel good. It isn’t just a bowl of noodles or chicken soup. It’s food for the soul.

Scientists usually have to do thousands of     1    (experiment)in order to prove something new or true. They often fail,     2     they never give up.

My neighbour     3    (be)a scientist. He studies chemistry. He is always working alone in     4    (he)lab, trying to figure out all the mysteries that make him     5    (puzzle). One day, when I met him, he had just come back     6     work. Tired as he was, he     7    (sound)so excited. Then I noticed that he was wearing shoes     8     did not match. He must have been working too hard to notice that!

Now I have come to realize that it’s good for you     9    (do)a job that interests you. You will be absorbed in it, and push yourself hard with it     10    (happy).

Small stories often have a great truth in them. One day I     1    (approach) several massive creatures when I came to a sudden stop. It was well beyond me that these huge animals should     2     (limit) by only some ropes. It was obvious that the animals could easily escape from these small ropes     3    (tie) to their front legs. However, they did not. I     4    (spot) a trainer close by and wondered     5     the elephants just stood where they were and had no     6    (intend) to break away.

“Well,” he replied, “as they’re very young we tie them with the same size rope and it’s enough to hold them     7     their age. As they grow up, they’re conditioned to hold the belief that they can never run away. They think the ropes are bound to still hold them, so they do not struggle     8    (break) free.” I was shocked. The large animals could easily move away from their bonds but they felt they couldn’t, so they were stuck right there.

In our life, a number of people are brought up with the same wrong self-limiting thoughts — I’m not excellent enough     9     why try it if I’m not going to make     10     However, we oughtn’t to underestimate (低估) our capability, talent and potential. Instead, we should believe in ourselves. After all, we need to change with the times and think outside the box.

A child and a man were walking on the beach     1     the child found a shell and held it to his ear. Suddenly he heard strange, low, musical sounds. These sounds seemed to be from another world and the child listened to them    2     wonder. Then the man explained that the child heard nothing strange, and that the shell caught a range of sound too faint for human ears. What amazed the child was not a new world,    3     the unnoticed music of the old.

10 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

I can well remember that I was once asked to deliver a speech titled “A Real Test in My Life” before the whole class at the age of 9! You can imagine how     1     (terrible) shy I was with so many eyes       2       (fix) upon me. I had no     3     (choose) but to prepare for it, though. First of all, I was to draft the speech, which was just a piece of cake for me, a good writer. But the hardest part     4     (lie) in my oral presentation from my memory— for to read from the paper was not allowed. The real moment began     5         I stood on the platform with my legs trembling and my mind blank. But my listeners were waiting patiently without any signs of rushing me. Gradually I found myself back,     6     (deliver) my speech with difficulty. After what seemed to be a hundred years, I found my audience applauding— I made     7    ! From then on, my fear of talking before an audience disappeared. Actually with my     8     (confident) building up, I now turn out to be a great speaker. Looking back, I know the greatest difficulty on our way         9     success is our fear. Overcome it     10     we will be able to achieve our goals.