1 . Setting goals is common in our life. We look ahead, predict what may make us happy in the future, and then narrow down the things to something specific. For the most part, having goals is better than not having any, but there are also problems that come with spending an entire life living from goal to goal.

For one thing, we try to predict an unpredictable future. Who is to say that what you want next year is the same thing you want right now? What if what you want right now isn't in the right direction over the long term?

Secondly, and just as importantly, you only confine your expectations of happiness and satisfaction to the goal you have set so that you often forget that other things in your life can also add just as much joy to your experience. This creates a strange problem.

To solve this problem, we have to move towards something more unclear. Going after interestingness. I think, is what we should do.

Interestingness doesn't mean looking for pleasure only. It’s deeper than that. It's doing that random (随机的) project you had no plan to do because you have a feeling that you might just learn something you didn't know about yourself. It's seeing a person you just met not as a possible partner or someone who can do something for you but simply as someone who may open a new, unknown and unique world for you.

Goals incorrectly assume (假设) that we already know what we want. Interestingness is more modest. It makes up its mind as it moves, slowly blowing from one thing to another, until it catches something that lies beyond prediction at last.

1. Setting goals is to predict an unpredictable future because __________.

A．it ignores possible changes in our life

B．it proves meaningless in the long run

C．it may lead us to the opposite direction

D．it fails to reach our true possibilities

2. What does the underlined word “Confine” probably mean in the third paragraph?

A．Devote.

B．Limit.

C．Deliver.

D．Compare.

3. What's the benefit of going after interestingness?

A．Bringing us self satisfaction at once.

B．Improving our relationship with others.

C．Making us gain something unexpected.

D．Helping us successfully predict the future.

4. What's the purpose of the text?

A．To ease our worry about the future.

B．To express a new thought on setting goals.

C．To point out disadvantages of an aimless life.

D．To recommend a new way of achieving success.

2 . I’ve worked in the factories near my hometown every summer since I graduated from high school, __ doing the full-time blue-collar work during the break never gets any easier. For a college student like me who __    any class before noon to be impolite, getting to a factory by 6 o'clock each morning is full of    __ . My friends never seem to understand why I’m so __ to be back at school or that my summer vacation has been anything but a vacation.

There’re few people as __ as a college student who has never been out in the real world. People my age ___    seem    to    overestimate  (高估）the value of their time and knowledge. In fact, all the classes did not __ me for my battles with the machine I ran in the plant, which would __ whenever I absent-mindedly put in a part backward or upside down.

The most ___    thing about blue-collar life is knowing your job could disappear overnight. _____ like downsizing (裁员）and overseas relocation had always seemed distant to me __ my co-workers told me that the factory I was working in would __ within six months and move to Mexico, where people would work for 60 cents an hour.

After working 12-hour __ in a factory, the other options have become only too clear. When Fm back at the university, skipping classes and turning in la2y re-writes seems too ___ after seeing what I would be doing without school. All the advice on the value of a(n)____ that used to sound stale (老掉牙的）now    __ true.

These lessons I’m learning, __ valuable, often come with a sense of guilt. Many people pass their lives in the places where I __ work, spending 30 years where I spend only two months at a time. “This job pays __    ,    but    it’s    hard    on the body,” said one co-worker. “Study hard and keep reading,” she added.

My experiences in the factories have inspired me to __ of my college years before I enter the real world for good.

1.

A．so

B．but

C．because

D．otherwise

2.

A．thinks

B．sees

C．regards

D．considers

3.

A．excitement

B．curiosity

C．passion

D．suffering

4.

A．relieved

B．refreshed

C．stressed

D．depressed

5.

A．self-controlled

B．self-confident

C．self-evident

D．self-employed

6.

A．never

B．ever

C．seldom

D．always

7.

A．permit

B．prepare

C．promote

D．protect

8.

A．jam

B．mix

C．ruin

D．fix

9.

A．careful

B．grateful

C．merciful

D．stressful

10.

A．Accidents

B．Topics

C．Events

D．Debates

11.

A．after

B．when

C．until

D．unless

12.

A．tear down

B．slow down

C．put down

D．shut down

13.

A．shifts

B．turns

C．units

D．paces

14.

A．familiar

B．understandable

C．irresponsible

D．contradictory

15.

A．education

B．independence

C．kindness

D．dignity

16.

A．comes

B．rings

C．goes

D．calls

17.

A．whether

B．however

C．whatever

D．whichever

18.

A．blankly

B．blindly

C．briefly

D．bravely

19.

A．well

B．badly

C．high

D．low

20.

A．make most

B．make the most

C．take charge

D．take the charge

3 . Carlotta sits down to draw a self-portrait (自 画像).The room is very dark, lit just by a few candles. She doesn't need light, because she's not using a mirror or a photograph --- instead, with one hand she traces the outline of her face, while her other hand draws the shapes on paper.

“It's always a surprise when I see my drawings in daylight,” she says.

Carlotta is an artist. Her apartment is filled with self-portraits - about 1,000 of them, she thinks. Each one is completely different, and they have an otherworldly quality. Shapes overlap. Several heads may be projected on top of each other, sometimes upside down. In one, she has three eyes, in another six.

If she catches sight of herself in a mirror, Carlotta will think, “The woman looking at me is in my clothes and in my flat, so it must be me." She will also recognize her hair - it's what happens underneath those gray curls that's a mystery.

Carlotta's condition began to cause problems when she was a young girl, in Munich in the 1960s, though at first no one really noticed. School was a horrible experience. Everyone looked the same to her. The children bullied (欺凌)her. "If a child can't recognize her classmates, then she must be stupid/⁵ she says.

"Art was definitely an escape for me - without it, I wouldn't be where I am now ," she continues. “In making art, I was able to deal with a lot of the emotions and the difficulties I experienced in my childhood. Face blindness has had a major effect on my life but has also given me a sense of purpose as an artist - to make self-portraits of the face 1 cannot picture in my mind.”

1. How does Carlotta draw self-portraits?

A．By using a mirror.	B．By observing light changes.
C．By feeling the outline of her face.	D．By copying her photograph.

2. What does Carlotta's condition refer to in paragraph 5?

A．She couldn't recognize faces.

B．She liked drawing self-portraits.

C．She was bullied by other children.

D．She wasn't as smart as her classmates.

3. What message is conveyed in the passage?

A．Still waters run deep.

B．Rome is not built in a day.

C．He who laughs last laughs best.

D．Misfortune may prove a blessing.

4 . I rushed to the back of the ambulance before I thought to fasten my seat belt as our ambulance dashed down the road. My legs trembled uncontrollably as I felt around for boxes of gloves and passed them to the rest of the crew. Despite my jumpy nerves, I felt a thrill. Here I was, on my first real call after three months of training.

We pulled up to the scene and I jumped out, feeling official and important at having arrived in such style. As we approached the patient, we saw the terrible scene, but the two emergency workers with me were prepared. One immediately began treating the patient while the other calmed the anxious family. I was asked to give breaths to the patient while a worker did chest compressions (按压).

Though I agreed, my excitement and nervousness disappeared as I felt the gravity of the situation. This person’s life was in my hands. For the next 20 minutes the emergency workers and I counted breaths and compressions, occasionally switching positions. We continued administering CPR for the whole of the rough ride to the hospital and I grew increasingly alarmed since the patient was not responding.

Arriving at the emergency room, we knew it was over. My first call, my first chance to save someone, but I failed. I was horrified. A complete stranger had died before my eyes, under my care. The doctors comforted me, and though I felt responsible, I soon realized that there was nothing we could have done to change the result. Our CPR technique had been sound, but the reality was that the chances of life after a heart arrest were very slim.

As the initial shock wore off, a strong motivation to go on another emergency call replaced it. Watching life turn into death is not an easy experience to forget, but it can create a thirst to try again and perhaps save a life the next time. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, the chance hasn’t yet happened. The worst call I’ve had since that first day is a twisted ankle.

1. Why did the author feel nervous and excited on the ambulance?

A．He could assist his partners.

B．He didn’t fasten his seat belt.

C．He was driving the ambulance.

D．He was doing his first emergency task.

2. It can be learned from the text that the patient .

A．called the ambulance himself

B．responded instantly to the treatment

C．was in danger of life on the way to hospital

D．was dead due to the delay of the ambulance

3. What can be learned from the fourth paragraph?

A．The doctors cared little about the patient.

B．Patients suffering a heart arrest rarely survived.

C．The author was responsible for the patient’s death.

D．The emergency workers used the wrong CPR technique.

5 . I have sometimes given money to beggars.     1     Please let me explain why.

First, for every dollar that we give to a beggar, the more profitable we make begging and, comparatively, the less profitable we make working. This is bad, for we want people to work, not beg. Working is productive while begging is at best neutral and often a burden. Second, the beggar who receives the money might spend it on alcohol or drugs.     2    

When I went to elementary school, I remember that I was very moved by a song named "Streets of London". The song tells a heartbreaking story about some of London's poorest, an old man in particular. Not long ago, however, when I heard the song on the radio, it struck me that the man in the song does not live that horrible a life after all. Judging from the lyrics of the song, the man has shoes, and occasional access to a newspaper.     3     So why should you give money to the beggar in the developed world instead of the starving child in Africa?

It might be harsh to claim that it is immoral to give money to Western beggars. After all, it seems reasonable that you can spend the money as you like.     4     If our aim is to benefit ourselves, then giving money to beggars is not suitable. If our aim is to benefit others, then giving money to beggars is also wasteful.

In seeking to help others, we should not merely give to those who are geographically close to us and whose appearance arouses our sympathy.     5     To achieve this, we should first decide how much we are willing to spend helping others, and then donate money to the most efficient charity.

A．Many people die of hunger in Africa.

B．True as it might be, we should spend our money wisely.

C．Why not donate money to those in need of financial aid?

D．Upon reflection, however, I have come to change my mind.

E．You almost certainly spend money helping the wrong people.

F．In a world where thousands die of hunger every day, that's a pretty comfortable life.

G．Rather, we should aid those who are the least responsible for the situation they're in.

6 . I’m proud of myself for this kindness I did last night. I did it ________ and did the right thing. However, I was unwilling to _______, because by sharing 1 am also sharing the ________ and more self-centered side of myself.

It was last night and I ________ my shift at work. It was late and I wanted to go straight home. On my way out of the door I ________ a fellow staff member and colleague. She doesn’t have a ________ and usually either catches a taxi home or _______ for an hour waiting for _______ staff member and friend of here to finish work.

In the past I’ve ________ to drive her home as she ________ on my side of town. But last night I really did not want to. I wanted to ________ straight home, alone. And I did not have to make “small talk”.

So I tried to ________ her, walking past her, heading down, and stealing out (偷溜) to the _______ without letting her see me and _______ without offering her a lift.

Yet, something in myself was stopping me. Something in myself made me ________ her and put myself in her shoes. She had young ________ who she wanted to go home to attend to and, she could go home right now _______ I took her, not an hour later when the other staff member and friend of hers who was taking her. So I offered.She_______. And of course, she was extremely ________.

Well, I learned a great ________ last night about not being so self-centered and selfish!

1.

A．nervously

B．proudly

C．exactly

D．carefully

2.

A．share

B．remark

C．do

D．consider

3.

A．pleasure

B．respect

C．honour

D．selfish

4.

A．changed

B．kept

C．finished

D．missed

5.

A．noticed

B．greeted

C．followed

D．helped

6.

A．home

B．choice

C．friend

D．car

7.

A．hangs around

B．hides away

C．watches over

D．calms down

8.

A．each

B．another

C．either

D．that

9.

A．hated

B．happened

C．offered

D．refused

10.

A．works

B．lives

C．plays

D．remains

11.

A．fly

B．ride

C．drive

D．walk

12.

A．remind

B．avoid

C．attract

D．please

13.

A．workroom

B．office

C．playground

D．park

14.

A．therefore

B．even

C．however

D．instead

15.

A．rely on

B．spy on

C．look at

D．point at

16.

A．neighbors

B．pets

C．children

D．friends

17.

A．since

B．although

C．as

D．if

18.

A．accepted

B．hesitated

C．approached

D．urged

19.

A．reliable

B．upset

C．generous

D．grateful

20.

A．gift

B．lesson

C．treasure

D．method

7 . When do you stick with something even if you’re not the best at it?

When people find out my son Sam is a(n) ________ mathlete, they usually ask if my husband and I are “math people”. The answer is definitely not. Sam’s done pretty well ________ his parents aren’t math people. But sometimes I wish I was a math person so I could help him or at least give him better ________.

Ninth grade was ________ for Sam, math-wise. He left the ________ of middle school math, where he was kind of a big fish, and started ________ with the high school kids. In the most recent competition, he didn’t do as well as he’d hoped and was ________ by a math camp he’d applied to. He’d set a high goal for himself and hadn’t quite ________ it.

He ________ into my office one day last week, clearly discouraged. “I don’t know why I didn’t do better,” he said, ________ on a chair. “Maybe I should just ________. I’m not good enough.”

I knew how he felt. The thought ________ us all-that we just aren’t good enough, and that all our hard work won’t ________ in the end and we can’t turn our ________ into success. I don’t have an answer for Sam. I am still ________. How to ________ difficulty, disappointment, rejection, boredom. How to commit ourselves to something because it’s beautiful and worth our while, not because we’re ________ we’ll succeed.

“Maybe you’re not,” I said, looking at my son. To me, he is incredible and accomplished, but I know he is ________ by doubt just like anyone. “But I, for one, don’t think that’s been decided yet.”

To devote time to something with no guarantee of its ________ is risky and terrifying. But, then again, ________ is everything. And we don’t need to be a math person to know that.

1.

A．competitive

B．sensitive

C．generous

D．anxious

2.

A．unless

B．because

C．considering

D．providing

3.

A．life

B．advice

C．solution

D．taste

4.

A．interesting

B．attractive

C．boring

D．tough

5.

A．principle

B．world

C．test

D．age

6.

A．running

B．travelling

C．swimming

D．hunting

7.

A．admitted

B．received

C．caught

D．rejected

8.

A．scored

B．reached

C．pursued

D．managed

9.

A．stole

B．marched

C．wandered

D．jogged

10.

A．sinking

B．lying

C．sliding

D．hiding

11.

A．struggle

B．experience

C．try

D．quit

12.

A．interrupts

B．discourages

C．limits

D．suits

13.

A．mind

B．occur

C．matter

D．differ

14.

A．effort

B．luck

C．support

D．belief

15.

A．practicing

B．risking

C．suffering

D．learning

16.

A．bring up

B．go over

C．push through

D．turn down

17.

A．certain

B．happy

C．optimistic

D．anxious

18.

A．warned

B．troubled

C．destroyed

D．guided

19.

A．quality

B．shelter

C．virtue

D．success

20.

A．so

B．nor

C．such

D．it

8 . The other day a friend,a sociable man,told me he had found himself alone in New York for an hour or two between appointments.He went to the Whitney and spent the"empty"time looking at things.He then felt unexpectedly happy.Suddenly alone,he discovered there was a new self to meet.

＂One alone is never lonely."There is great difference between being alone and lonely.Loneliness is most strongly felt with other people,for with others,even with a lover sometimes,we suffer from our differences of tastes,personalities and moods.The fear of hurting or being hurt in a social situation brings us loneliness.Alone,we can afford to be wholly whatever we are,and to feel whatever we feel absolutely. That is a great luxury(奢侈）！

I have been alone for the last twenty years and it becomes increasingly rewarding.When I can wake up and watch the sun rise over the ocean,as I do most days,and I know that I have an entire day ahead, uninterrupted,in which to write a few pages,take a walk with my dog,lie down in the afternoon for a long think,read and listen to music,I am flooded with happiness.

I'm lonely only when I am overtired,when I have worked too long without a break,when from the time being I feel empty and need filling up.And I am lonely sometimes when I come back home after a lecture trip,when I have seen a lot of people and talked a lot,and am full to brimful(满满的）experience that needs to be sorted out.Then I need to be alone to find where my self is hiding.

It takes a while, but the moment comes when the world falls away,and the self comes out again from the unconscious,bringing back all I have recently experienced to be explored and slowly understood.

1. Why does the writer mention his friend in Paragraph 1?

A．To introduce the topic over being alone.

B．To prove that loneliness can bring happiness.

C．To describe the state of being lonely and alone.

D．To express acceptance of his friend's sociability.

2. What can we infer from Paragraph 2 and 3?

A．Loneliness never occurs when others are around.

B．Loneliness brings the fear of hurting and being hurt.

C．Being alone offers one more private time and space.

D．Being alone makes one interested in reading and music.

3. When the author feels lonely,he will

A．take a long lecture trip	B．meet and talk to people
C．stay alone to be refreshed	D．be confused with life troubles

9 . To err is human. To blame the other guy is even more human.

Common sense is not all that common.

Why tell the truth when you can come up with a good excuse?

These three popular misquotes(误用的引语)are meant to be jokes, and yet they tell us a lot about human nature. To err, or to make mistakes, is indeed a part of being human, but it seems that most people don’t want to accept the responsibility for the problem. Perhaps it is the natural thing to do. The original quote about human nature went like this, “ To err is human, to forgive is divine(神圣的).” This saying mirrors an ideal: People should be forgiving of others’ mistakes. Instead, we tend to do the opposite — find someone else to pass the blame on to. However, taking responsibility for something that went wrong is a making of great maturity(成熟).

Common sense is what we call clear thought. Having common sense means having a good general plan that will make things work well, and it also means staying with the plan. Common sense tells you that you take an umbrella out into a rainstorm, but you leave the umbrella home when you hear a weather forecast for sunshine. Common sense does not seem to be common for large organizations, because there are so many things going on that one person cannot be in charge of everything. People say that in a large company, “the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing.”

And what is wrong with a society that thinks that making up a good excuse is like creating a work of art? One of the common problems with making excuses is that people, especially young people, get the idea that it’s okay not to be totally honest all the time. There is a corollary(推论)to that: If a good excuse is “good” even if it isn’t honest, then where is the place of the truth?

1. According to the passage, which of the following seems the most human?

A．To search for truth..

B．To achieve one’s ideal.

C．To make fun of others’ mistakes.

D．To criticize others for one’s own error.

2. According to the author, what is a sign of a man’s maturity?

A．Doing things his own way.

B．Making as few mistakes as possible.

C．Bearing responsibility for his mistakes.

D．Thinking seriously about his wrongdoing.

3. What is the author’s opinion about a good excuse?

A．Bitter truth is better than a good excuse.

B．A good excuse is as rewarding as honesty.

C．Inventing a good excuse needs creative ideas.

D．Making a good excuse is sometimes a better policy.

4. What would be the best title for this passage?

A．Truth or Excuse.

B．A Mark of Maturity.

C．To Blame or to Forgive.

D．A Mirror of Human Nature.

10 . For years, I have advocated the importance of hard work, determination, persistence, and practice as key ingredients of success. Malcolm Gladwell, who has written The Story of Success, seems to support my theory. He says it takes about 10,000 hours of practice to attain true expertise.

“The people at the very top don’t just work harder than everyone else,” Gladwell writes. “They work much, much harder.” Achievement, he says, is talent plus preparation. Preparation seems to play a bigger role.

For example, he describes the Beatles: They had been together seven years before their famous arrival in America. They spent a lot of time playing in clubs, sometimes for as long as eight hours a night. Overnight success? Not exactly. Estimates are that the band performed 1,200 times before their big success in 1964. By comparison, most bands don’t perform 1,200 times in their careers.

Neurologist Daniel Levitin has studied the formula for success extensively and shares this finding: “The emerging picture from such studies is that 10,000 hours of practice is required to achieve the level of mastery associated with being a world-class expert in anything. In study after study of composers, basketball players, fiction writers, ice skaters, concert pianists, chess players, the number comes up again and again. Of course, this doesn’t address why some people get more out of their practice sessions than others do. But no one has yet found a case in which true world-class expertise was accomplished in less time. It seems it takes the brain a long time to digest all that it needs to know to achieve true mastery.”

Two computer giants, Bill Joy, who co-founded Sun Microsystems, and Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, also were proof of the 10,000-hour theory.

The abilities these people possessed were far-ranging, yet the formula for success was the same: hard work and lots of it. Some people just make it look easy. Of course, you probably didn’t see the first 9,999 hours of hard work.

1. According to the passage, what made Beatles different from most other bands?

A．Their great talent.	B．Their persistent effort.
C．Their charming looks.	D．Their outstanding achievements.

2. How does the author support the theme of the text?

A．By stating arguments.	B．By giving examples.
C．By providing statistical data.	D．By making comparisons.

3. According to the passage, the opinions that Malcolm Gladwell may agree with include the following EXCEPT that____ .

A．life is full of ups and downs

B．work transforms talent into genius

C．success takes hard work and devotion

D．the way to learn to do things is to do things