1 . My photographs are the items I would definitely take or guard in case of an emergency. But what else? This was the question I asked myself as a ________ came toward us.

Unlike some friends and________, we decided to stay in our home. We didn’t have to choose what we would save by ________ it into the car, but we still had to decide what required protection by storing it in our walk-in closet. Surprisingly, few items made the cut - an obvious ________ that we had surrounded ourselves with beautiful yet unessential items. We needed ________ for the truly important things: ourselves.

Because when you hear the roar of the winds, or when something ________ hard against your windows, you don’t think of photos.You don’t worry about your big screen TV, or those paintings you’ve covered with towels to protect them, or that ________ car that you still haven’t finished paying for.

As ________ goes on outside, this is what you think: My children, are they OK? Are their impact-resistant(耐冲击的) windows working ________? Are their roofs keeping out the damage? My grandchildren, are they crying out in fear? Are they ________ as their own grandparents are? My relatives — yes, even those I try to avoid — have they ________ the worst of it? My friends, will they be forced to move somewhere else permanently? You don’t think about what you own but about what you love; what money can’t buy back.

Months and years after the hurricane, I often told people that there are two parts to ________ this kind of catastrophe: the horror of the hurricane itself and then the rebuilding that follows. The ________ together of a life, however, will take months, perhaps years.

But we will do it, ________ and as a community. Of that I have no doubt. In fact, I’ll make one more prediction. Piece by piece, item by item, we will once again collect the material possessions that decorate a home. I hate to admit this, but lessons learned ________ fear aren’t always long-lasting.

1.

A．flood

B．drought

C．wildfire

D．hurricane

2.

A．hosts

B．partners

C．relatives

D．architects

3.

A．applying

B．packing

C．exchanging

D．delivering

4.

A．sign

B．gap

C．clue

D．summary

5.

A．kit

B．gym

C．space

D．greenhouse

6.

A．rests

B．erupts

C．carves

D．cracks

7.

A．cheap

B．expensive

C．graceful

D．economic

8.

A．destruction

B．appreciation

C．challenge

D．determination

9.

A．as usual

B．as follows

C．as scheduled

D．as promised

10.

A．annoyed

B．amazed

C．confused

D．frightened

11.

A．escaped

B．protested

C．identified

D．processed

12.

A．causing

B．preventing

C．surviving

D．suffering

13.

A．cutting out

B．putting back

C．giving up

D．working out

14.

A．devotedly

B．creatively

C．individually

D．dependently

15.

A．in favor of

B．in times of

C．in need of

D．in search of

2 . It might sound a bit old-fashioned, but there’s something unique about handwritten things. And I’m a real believer in the_______of letters.

When I was about 12 years old, my friends and I wanted a pet mouse. The pet shop wouldn’t_______us one until we had a letter from a parent, so, having the tidiest_______, I faked(伪)one.

My trick was quickly_______. My mum felt that the punishment should fit the crime, so she made me write letters to a few randomly selected_______.

One of them was my uncle who I’d only_______a few times. I wrote along letter_______my life and listing my interests.

My punishment_______, I forgot about this until I suddenly got a reply from him. He told me all about his life and would love to_______about what school subjects I enjoyed. And so started a correspondence(通信)that________for several years.

Then out of the blue, he passed away. My mum was________as they had not really spoken for years. I went upstairs and presented a box of________from him. She comforted herself reading them and knowing that ________she hadn’t been in touch, I had grown close to him by writing to him.

I often think about how that one________childhood behavior led to such an enriching correspondence. It________me-to write to lots of other people, and it’s something I keep up with to this day.

1.

A．content

B．advance

C．order

D．power

2.

A．sell

B．pay

C．give

D．offer

3.

A．handwriting

B．room

C．hand

D．habit

4.

A．admired

B．exchanged

C．discovered

D．solved

5.

A．strangers

B．neighbors

C．relatives

D．friends

6.

A．ignored

B．met

C．recognized

D．thanked

7.

A．detailing

B．organizing

C．improving

D．wasting

8.

A．reasonable

B．complete

C．serious

D．efficient

9.

A．think

B．care

C．hear

D．argue

10.

A．went on

B．ended up

C．got over

D．turned up

11.

A．concerned

B．upset

C．angry

D．calm

12.

A．chocolates

B．books

C．puddings

D．letters

13.

A．after

B．although

C．because

D．if

14.

A．meaningful

B．frank

C．unique

D．improper

15.

A．advised

B．required

C．encouraged

D．warned

3 . We’ve made a list of reasons why everyone should enrich their life by traveling around the world.

★Travel is easier than you think.

We believe that traveling around the world shouldn’t be hard.    1    Whether you choose to spend a few years or just a couple of months traveling this beautiful planet, it’s important to see what’s out there. It’s up to you to make the dream come true and take the first step.

★Travel is a good chance for learning.

Travel can provide great learning chances for children. Different cultures, good scenery and people can teach kids valuable life lessons and broaden their views.    2    

★Travel develops skills you didn’t know you had.

    3     Travel brings them to the surface and makes you smile, satisfied to have reached the mountain top, or helped a villager clean up after a storm, or even to have successfully ordered a meal at a restaurant in a foreign country.

★    4    

Meeting people from other cultures will teach you to look at the world in a different way. In fact, your view might have some major blind spots. Seeing the world for yourself will help you see the world differently.

★Travel is education.

    5     Travel teaches you economy, politics, history, geography, and sociology in a hands-on way no class will. Fortunately, the school of travel is always taking applications, no entrance exam required.

A．Travel helps you see in a different way.

B．Travel gives chances to prove dreams can come true.

C．Sometimes this happens without them even knowing it.

D．Finishing a trip gives you the satisfaction of making a travel.

E．Everyone should at least travel around the world once in their lives.

F．It’s likely that you have some skills you have never known or used.

G．Seeing the world provides an education that you can’t get in school.

4 . Review Our Worries

We spend a lot of our lives worrying, but there’s one basic thing we almost never remember to do.    1    For example, one week, we might be worried about running out of money, the next of having offended a friend, and the third about being brought down by a rumour on social media. The worries go on and on, shifting unstoppably from one target to another.    2    

What we seldom spend time doing is pausing to compare the scale of the worry with what actually happened in the end. We are too taken up with the next worry to return for a composed review.

However, if we force ourselves to perform one, a strange discovery is likely to dawn on us.     3    We almost lost our minds to worry, but we didn’t run out of money in the end, our friend wasn’t offended, and so on.    4    Mark Twain’s famous saying comes to mind: “I have lived through many disasters, only a few of which actually happened.”

    5    If we got it so wrong in the past, we’re highly likely to get it wrong now too. Of course, we’re convinced that this is really and truly the end, but such a certainty was with us on many other situations which we appear to have sailed through well enough.

Perhaps the world is not quite as awful as we assume. Perhaps most of the drama is ultimately unfolding in a place we need to explore and heal as fast as we can: our own minds.

A．Our worries are nearly always out of line with reality.

B．They ruin our precious time on Earth in the process.

C．Ignore our worries and focus on more productive things.

D．Go back and check how our worries matched up to reality.

E．We might say that only 1% of our worries truly become awful.

F．Our worries are caused by external factors beyond our control.

G．We should use the data about the unreliability of our fears as a guide to the future.

5 . At the airport, one of my partners greeted me with a broad smile. “Welcome to Cuba!” he exclaimed in perfect English, giving me a strong handshake and a hug. The next day, we drove to the research center where he worked. In the conference room, each of us gave a presentation about science and what we hoped to learn from the study of Cuban rivers.

Then, we toured every lab in the building. I met scientists, technicians, secretaries, students, and the cook. Some spoke English, and others communicated with me in Spanish while my cooperator translated. I was introduced to each person in their center, and that was what I remembered most.

Then we met again to brainstorm. Together, we studied maps carefully to plan how we were going to collect samples. Had it not been for the Cubans, I would have been unaware that the maps I had were outdated and wrong. They left out reservoirs, which was a problem because had we sampled downstream of them, our results would have been misled.

On the last night of the trip, we searched for a restaurant that could seat all 14 of us at one table because that’s what teams do--sitting together. When a restaurant couldn’t seat the team without splitting us up, my partners insisted that we move on and find another restaurant with a large enough table.

In 26 years as a professor, I’ve always tried my best to treat my students as valued partners. I have never been a fan of the grade system in the academic world. I urge everyone working with me to feel as though they are part of a team. But my Cuban partners take teamwork to another level entirely. They make it clear--through actions, both big and small--that all team members are valued, that everyone is equal, and that true team work contributes to better science.

I returned to the United States as a changed scientist. Now, I spend more time listening and making sure that everyone’s voice is heard.

1. What impressed the author most when he visited the research center?

A．He was led to see everyone.	B．There were no many people there.
C．Everybody gave a great presentation.	D．The cooperator spoke perfect English.

2. Why did the author’s partners refuse to eat at the first restaurant?

A．They wanted a smaller one.	B．They wanted to save money.
C．They didn’t want a crowded one.	D．They didn’t want to be separated.

3. Which of the following does the author stress in the team?

A．Honesty.	B．Perseverance.
C．Cooperation spirit.	D．Scientific theory.

4. What can we infer about the author from the text?

A．He used to treat his students unfairly.

B．He used to be misled by other scientists.

C．He focuses on the opinions of the masses now.

D．He speaks highly of the grade system in science now.

6 . You can’t see it, smell it, or hear it, and people disagree on how precisely to define it, or where exactly it comes from. It isn’t a school subject or an academic discipline, but it can be learned. It is a quality that is required of artists, but it is also present in the lives of scientists and entrepreneurs. All of us benefit from it and we succeed mentally and spiritually when we are able to handle it. It is a delicate thing, easily wiped out; in fact, it blossoms most fully when people are playful and childlike. Meanwhile, it works best in meeting with deep knowledge and expertise.

This mysterious—but teachable—quality is creativity, the subject of a recently-published report by Durham Commission on Creativity and Education. The report concludes that creativity should not exist in the school curriculum only as it relates to drama, music, art and other obviously creative subjects, but that creative thinking ought to run through all of school life, infusing (充满) the way humanities and natural sciences are learned.

Nevertheless, it is arts subjects through which creativity can most obviously be promoted. The value placed on them by the independent education is clear. One only has to look at the remarkable arts facilities at Britain’ stop private schools to understand this. But in the state education the extreme focus on English, maths and science threatens to destroy arts subjects; meanwhile, reduced school budgets mean decreasing extracurricular activities.

This difference between state and private education is a matter of social justice. It is simply wrong and unfair that most children have a small part of the access to choirs, art studios and drama that their more privileged peers enjoy. As lives are affected by any number of threatening challenges—climate crisis, automation in the workplace—humans are going to need creative thinking more than ever. For all of our sakes, creativity in education, and for all, must become a priority.

1. What is the primary function of the first paragraph in the passage?

A．It offers a historical overview of creative thinking.

B．It introduces the precise definition and benefits of creativity.

C．It guides the reader on to the topic of creativity in education.

D．It provides evidence for the importance of science education.

2. What is the conclusion of a recently-published report?

A．Natural sciences should be learned the way humanities courses are.

B．Growth of creativity should run through the entire school curriculum.

C．Art courses should be made required for all students，

D．Students should learn more obviously creative subjects.

3. What do we learn about the private schools in the UK?

A．They encourage extracurricular activities.

B．They attach great importance to arts education.

C．They prioritize arts subjects over maths and sciences.

D．They meet the needs of students from different family backgrounds.

4. What should be done to meet the future challenges?

A．Increasing government investment in school education.

B．Narrowing the existing gap between the rich and the poor.

C．Providing all children with equal access to arts education.

D．Focusing on meeting the needs of under-privileged students.

7 . I’m a grandma in my 60s. In the spring of 2020, like the rest of the world, I spent a lot of time staring at a screen and that was when I first got into the YouTube world. I discovered that onscreen offerings were truly endless. From one YouTuber I learned how to plant my own vegetable garden. Someone else shared poetry from Robert Frost, wise sayings from Confucius, and a smattering (一知半解) of other philosophical viewpoints, all of which helped me through some dark days. Down the rabbit hole I went, scrolling for hours and hours, watching other people living their lives and giving me advice on how to live mine.

As the months rolled by, YouTube turned my attention away from the hard reality of what was going on in the world. I subscribed to several channels and waited anxiously for new weekly offerings. I watched people reading poetry or painting by streams or looking out windows into snowy landscapes. I found all this calming. Such lovely scenery, such beautiful background music, such pretty clothes they were wearing!

At some point though, I got upset by these artistic and seemingly perfect lives. Who is filming them? I wondered. Do they rehearse or just act on the spot? Isn’t it cold, stepping through snowbanks in dresses? The questions kept bothering me while forcing comparisons to my own somewhat more ordinary existence. I wanted to walk in a flowing dress through hilly green field filled with wildflowers! Instead, I was marching through my neighborhood’s city streets in mom jeans.

In a moment of insight, I realized that I had a full and happy life, which although it wouldn’t win awards for perfection onscreen, suited me perfectly. I put my phone away and started paying attention to my own life instead of watching other people live theirs. I still like checking in once in a while. YouTube can be a rich source of entertainment and inspiration, but I’ve limited my exposure. I am content with the knowledge that my addiction to life onscreen has been replaced by life itself.

1. What can be learned about the author in the spring of 2020?

A．She experienced some hard times.

B．She taught others about gardening.

C．She developed an interest in poetry.

D．She shared her philosophical views online.

2. What effect did YouTube have on the author according to paragraph 2?

A．It made her more anxious.

B．It improved her taste in art.

C．It taught her to accept reality.

D．It brought some comfort to her.

3. How did the artistic lives presented on YouTube make the author feel?

A．Desperate.

B．Connected.

C．Envious.

D．Proud.

4. What has the author decided to do in the end?

A．Seek inspiration from YouTube.

B．Stop using her phone in daily life.

C．Focus on her own life instead of others’.

D．Continue watching other people’s lives.

8 . When I was young, I struggled with body image and disordered eating. I used disordered eating to deal with my _________ and feel more in control of my life. Afterwards, I’d over-exercise to_________my body for what I’d eaten, especially if I thought the _________ too much.

But later I realized how unhealthy my _________ were. A happier life was possible, the one in which I’d hang out with friends and join in enjoyable exercise in my free time _________. I wanted to have a wonderful life filled with amazing _________. In response to it, I stopped punishing my body and began to _________ it right. My body and I had done nothing _________ in eating and enjoying food, but my life would be happier once I was healthier.

Once I became healthier, I dove back into _________.   I attended Zumba classes with an old roommate. I ____________ how cool it was and how privileged I was that my body could do so many fancy dance moves. I even became one of the ____________ of the technique award.

We live in a world where feeling okay about our eating and body image is close to ____________sometimes. But a life free of diet culture and body ____________ is the one that everyone should fight for. I’m so ____________ that I’m able to exercise my body through dancing, and here I want to ____________other particular body’s abilities。

1.

A．passion

B．emotions

C．initiative

D．principle

2.

A．abuse

B．involve

C．punish

D．defeat

3.

A．amount

B．quantity

C．quality

D．calorie

4.

A．reactions

B．thoughts

C．performances

D．behaviors

5.

A．easily

B．quietly

C．actively

D．eagerly

6.

A．memories

B．adventures

C．challenges

D．secrets

7.

A．keep

B．change

C．make

D．treat

8.

A．harmful

B．wrong

C．optimistic

D．painful

9.

A．perform

B．dance

C．paint

D．exercise

10.

A．doubted

B．responded

C．realized

D．imagined

11.

A．creators

B．winners

C．designers

D．collectors

12.

A．innocent

B．unfortunate

C．incorrect

D．impossible

13.

A．judgment

B．structure

C．energy

D．language

14.

A．merciful

B．hopeful

C．grateful

D．peaceful

15.

A．celebrate

B．restrict

C．discover

D．seek

9 . Happiness, as I see it, comprises five elements: spiritual well-being (meaning and purpose), physical well-being (nutrition, exercise), intellectual well-being (curiosity, deep learning), relational well-being (kindness and generosity), and emotional well-being (cultivating positive emotions). As an interdependent aggregate of these five elements of SPIRE, happiness is about much more than experiencing pleasure.

As Aristotle put it, happiness is the ultimate purpose of life, meaning how we spend our everyday lives is ultimately guided by what we think would make us happier. This is not a good or a bad thing. It simply is, like the law of nature. Even people who are tirelessly working for an important cause, for example, to get rid of world hunger, are doing it because they find their work meaningful. Meaning is an element of happiness.

One barrier to happiness has to do with the expectation that happiness is an unbroken chain of positive emotions. This expectation, however, prevents people from experiencing happiness because painful emotions don’t go away but grow stronger when we reject them.

The second barrier has to do with equating happiness with success. It’s a commonly held belief that happiness can be attained by achieving certain goals, like money or fame. People tend to think if they finally find success, they will automatically become happy.

The third barrier has to do with the way people pursue happiness. We want to be happy for many reasons. After all, we are constantly told that happiness is good for our health, relationships, and work outcomes. Yet, if I wake up in the morning and decide to pursue happiness straight, I will become less happy.

But how? Indirectly. As is known, if you look up at the sun directly, you’ll hurt yourself. But if you take the same sun rays and break them down, you’ll enjoy the colors of a rainbow. Similarly, pursuing happiness directly can hurt us; pursuing it indirectly—by breaking it down into something like the SPIRE elements—can contribute to our well-being. Starting a meditation practice, exercising, performing acts of kindness, learning something new, or expressing gratitude for what we have are all indirect ways of pursuing happiness.

1. What does the underlined word “aggregate” probably mean in the first paragraph?

A．Combination.

B．Conclusion.

C．Accumulation.

D．Association.

2. What’s the author’s attitude towards how we spend our daily lives?

A．Favorable.

B．Suspicious.

C．Objective.

D．Indifferent.

3. What can we know from the text?

A．Being a success leads one to happiness.

B．Refusing negative feelings helps us obtain happiness.

C．Going after happiness directly makes one feel happy.

D．Pursuing one aspect of SPIRE can boost our well-being.

4. Why is the sun mentioned in the last paragraph?

A．To make a contrast.	B．To make an analogy.
C．To conclude the argumentation.	D．To answer the previous question.

10 . Just about 50 years ago, needing money to support my family—my novels weren’t bestsellers—I had the idea of taking the longest train trip imaginable and writing a travel book about it. The trip was improvisational (即兴的). I didn’t have a credit card. I had no idea where I’d be staying nor how long this trip would take. And I’d never written a travel book before. I hoped my trip wouldn’t suffer a lot, though it was obviously a leap in the dark.

I set off with one small bag containing clothes, a map of Asia, a travel guidebook and some travelers’ cheques. I was often inconvenienced, sometimes threatened, now and then disturbed for bribes, occasionally laid up with food poisoning—all this vivid detail for my narrative.

What I repeated in the more than four-month trip was the pleasure of the sleeping car. Writing on board the Khyber Mail to Lahore in Pakistan, “The romance associated with the sleeping car comes from the fact that it is extremely private, combining the best features of a cupboard with forward movement. Whatever drama is being shown in this moving bedroom is heightened by the landscape passing the window...” A train is a carrier that allows residence.

I wrote The Great Railway Bazaar on my return in 1974, and it appeared to good reviews and quick sales. That’s the past. Nothing is the same. All travel is time-related. All such trips are singular and unrepeatable. It’s not just that the steam trains of Asia are gone, but much of the peace and order is gone. Who’d risk an Iranian train now or take a bus through Afghanistan?

But I’ve been surprised by some of the more recent developments in travel. I rode on Chinese trains for a year and wrote Riding the Iron Rooster, but now China has much cleaner and swifter trains and modernized destinations. A traveler today could take the same trip I took in 1986—1987 and produce a completely different book.

All travel books are dated. That’s their fault that they’re outdated, and it’s their virtue that they preserve something of the past that would otherwise be lost.

1. What happened at the beginning of the author’s trip to Asia?

A．He made full preparations for the trip.

B．He had expected the journey to be rough.

C．He organized the trip with his family’s support.

D．He started the trip out of his passion for traveling.

2. Why did the author repeatedly recall the sleeping car?

A．For its romantic scenery.	B．For its reassuring privacy.
C．For its full equipment.	D．For its long distance.

3. What did the author try to convey by saying “Nothing is the same”?

A．The landscape in Asia was gone.	B．Train trip was no longer popular.
C．He couldn’t write another bestseller.	D．Transportation and travel had changed a lot.

4. Which of the following statements would the author most likely agree with?

A．Practice makes perfect.	B．Sharp tools make good work.
C．Travel, truth is not the arrival card.	D．The journey, not the arrival matters.