Topping the class academically was certainly an advantage. For Nigel, studying was a piece of cake. The reward was certainly much bigger compared to the little effort Nigel had made. It all began when he was selected to help the teachers in the computer laboratories. And the peak of his school career came not when he topped the class but when he was selected for the nationwide competition.
Unlike everyone else, Nigel wanted to join in the contest because he liked playing with the Lego sets(乐高积木) and making something out of them. Nigel spent two months building his robot. It was during the time that Nigel found out about the big prize for the competition as well as a competitive rival(对手), Alicia, from a neighboring school. His early intentions were forgotten. Getting the thousand-dollar prize was more important th
an anything else. Nigel decided to make friends with Alicia. Unaware of his intentions, she told him all about the robot that she had been building for the competition. He even helped her to put the finishing touches(收尾工作) to her robot. He was glad with the way things had progressed. His robot looked even better than Alicia's and it was able to play a ball with its arm, something Alicia had failed to do.
On the day of the competition, he saw Alicia. Everything became clear the minute she saw him among the competitors. She stared at him, puzzled at first, then angry and finally a look of helplessness came over her.
The flashbulbs (闪光灯) of the camera exploded in Nigel's face. The robot had performed actions so unique and different that the specialists' judgments were the same. Nigel was so pleased with himself that he did not even notice the girl standing a few feet away from him. Without her, he would never have won the competition. What reward did Nigel receive for doing well in his school work?
| A．He was offered a part-time job. | B．He was honored with a scholarship. |
| C．He helped his teachers build a robot. | D．He helped in the computer laboratories. |
Nigel's original intention of joining the contest was to ___ .
| A．win honor for his school | B．be the top student of the school |
| C．build a robot with the Lego sets | D．win the thousand-dollar prize |
Why did Nigel help Alicia finish her robot?
| A．He intended to help her. | B．He was fond of building robots. |
| C．He wanted to be her real friend. | D．He didn't want her to suspect (怀疑) him. |
What is the author's attitude towards Nigel's actions?
| A．Favorable | B．Critical (批评的) | C．Doubtful | D．Sympathetic |
D
It’s hard to be the bearer of bad news，but most of IKEA’s print and digital fascinating shots of picturesque rooms and products are fake．Those beautiful，“natural-looking” photos of gorgeous rooms and kitchens are mostly the work of computer magic，adjusted and corrected until they’re picture-perfect．
Martin Enthed，IT manager for IKEA’s in-house communications agency，revealed，“In 2012，12 per cent of its product and concept images was CGI-rendered，increasing to 25 per cent in 2013．Since then，that percentage of rendered images appearing in the company’s catalogue and online has tripled．75 per cent of the furniture company’s product images today are created by computers．”
It’s a move that first caught the attention of photographers and graphic designers a few years back when the furniture giant announced it would cancel photoshoots in favor of computer-generated imagery(CGI)．
Enthed said IKEA began shifting equipment in 2009 when company officials called in his team and said they weren’t pleased with some previous photos and CG images．
“So we looked at all the images they said weren’t good and the two of three they said were great，and the ones they didn’t like were photography and the good ones were all CG，”Enthed said．“Now we only talk about a good or bad image - not what technique created it．”
It’s a not-so-secret strategy used by top companies specializing in home and furniture design，though many consumers remain oblivious．
The company claims the shift is another way to reduce its environmental footprint，saying constructing digital files produces less waste．It also helps the home furnishing empire’s pocketbooks．
What directly led IKEA to adopt CGI on a larger scale?
| A．The convenience of high technology． |
| B．Company officials’ reaction to works． |
| C．The change in the concept of management |
| D．Development of environmental awareness． |
According to the passage，the advantage of the shift is that IKEA can 。
| A．expand into another field |
| B．increase its financial benefits |
| C．win more support of consumers |
| D．produce more furniture of high quality |
The underlined word “oblivious” in paragraph 6 means “ ”．
| A．unaware | B．calm |
| C．conservative | D．disturbed |
It can be concluded from the passage that ．
| A．IKEA should be punished because of fake photos |
| B．IKEA set a good example as the furniture giant |
| C．IKEA adjusted strategies to answer its need |
| D．IKEA has a pioneering spirit in promotion |
C
A crisis is on the way．Global warming? The world economy? No，the decline of reading．People are just not doing it anymore，especially the young．Who’s responsible? What is responsible? The Internet，of course，and everything that comes with it—Facebook，Twitter，etc..
There’s been a warning about the coming death of literate civilization for a long time．In the 20th century，first it was the movies，then radio，then television that seemed to end the written world．None did．Reading survived；in fact it not only survived，it has developed better．The world is more literate than ever before — there are more and more readers．and more and more books．
The fact that we often get our reading material online today is not something we should worry over．The electronic and digital revolution of the last two decades has arguably shown the way forward for reading and for writing．Interconnectivity allows for the possibility of a reading experience that was barely imaginable before．Where traditional books had to make do with photographs and illustrations，an e-book can provide readers with an unlimited number of links：to texts，pictures，and videos．
On the other hand，there is the danger of trivialization(碎片化)．One Twitter group is offering its followers single-sentence-long“digests”of the great novels．War and Peace in a sentence? You must be joking．We should fear the fragmentation(碎片)of reading．There is the danger that the high-speed connectivity of the Internet will reduce our attention span—that we will be incapable of reading anything of length or which requires deep concentration．
In such a fast-changing world，in which reality seems to be remade each day，we need the ability to focus and understand what is happening to us．This has always been the function of literature and we should be careful not to let it disappear．Our society needs to be able to imagine the possibility of someone entirely in pace with modern technology but able to make sense of a dynamic，confusing world．
In Paragraph 2，we can learn ．
| A．the disappearance of traditional books |
| B．the development of human civilization |
| C．the historical challenges for reading |
| D．the birth of pioneering e-books |
According to the passage，the advantage of e-books is ．
| A．1imited link |
| B．imaginative design |
| C．low cost |
| D．varied contents |
How does the author feel towards single-sentence-long novels?
| A．Doubtful | B．Worried |
| C．Shocked | D．Hopeful |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Technology is an opportunity and a challenge for traditional reading． |
| B．Technology pushes the way forward for reading and writing． |
| C．Interconnectivity is a feature of new reading experience． |
| D．Technology offers a greater variety of reading practice． |
B
If a sitcom(情景喜剧)that lasts for l0 years is considered popular，then surely one that still arouses emotions after 20 must be considered a classic．Friends first aired in the US in 1994，featuring a cast of six young men and women in New York．In the time since，it’s become one of the most famous titles in the sitcom style，aired in over 100 countries and regions in the world．
The show is typical among those who grew up in the 1990s because it explores basic yet important themes like friendship，struggling to survive in a big city，and finding independence and identity，all of which are still relevant to young audiences today．
Against the background of the Internet age，IT staff who were once marginalized(排斥)and laughed at have experienced a revival due to the popularity of hit show The Big Bang Theory，in which four talents lacking normal social skills make an attempt at living on a college campus．
At the same time，Gossip Girl，describing a young cast of New Yorkers born with silver spoons in their mouths，demonstrates the difficulties upper-class adolescents experience．The show’s fashion and mature subject matter allowed it to capture the interest of both teenagers and adults．
Although these typical TV shows span a wide timeline and feature a variety of themes，they all have a universal topic．Love，money，friendship，career aspirations and identity are things all young people struggle to understand．Why are they still fascinating? It remains to be found out．
Why is the sitcom Friends typical among young people in the 1990s?
| A．Because it is a breakthrough in the producing style． |
| B．Because it is the most influential sitcom of all time． |
| C．Because it addresses the subjects faced by the youth． |
| D．Because it predicts the future of the young at that time． |
What can we learn about The Big Bang Theory?
| A．It arouses people’s enthusiasm for computers． |
| B．There are four talents who are good at everything． |
| C．It is set in the time before the Internet came into being． |
| D．It improves the conditions of the people in technological industry． |
According to the passage，Gossip Girl ．
| A．attracts people of all ages |
| B．shows eye-catching style and adult subject |
| C．describes the life of ordinary girl |
| D．describes the hardships of upper-class people |
What will the author most probably talk about next?
| A．The introduction to other hit sitcoms． |
| B．The further information about the plot． |
| C．The emotional response among audience． |
| D．The analysis of the reasons for the appeal． |
A
The old lady got up early to be ready for the post．Although she seldom received letters or parcels，today she was sure there would be something．Myra wouldn’t forget her mother’s birthday, even if she seldom wrote at other times．Of course Myra was busy．Her husband had been made Mayor, and Myra herself had got a medal for her work for the aged．
The old lady was eighty today．She had put on her best dress．Perhaps Myra might come．The old lady was sure of that．Two spots of color brightened her cheeks．She was excited--like a child．She would enjoy her day．
Mrs. Morrison，a social worker，had brought a card and a bunch of flowers when she came to do the breakfast．Mrs. Grant downstairs had made a cake．The little boy from the ground floor，Johnnie，had been up with a packet of candies，and offered to help her fetch the post．
“I guess you’ll get lots and lots of presents，“he said，I did last week when l was six．”
What would she like ? A pair of slippers，a table lamp，a book or a little clock．So many lovely things．
She stood by the window，watching．The postman turned round the corner on his bicycle．Her heart beat fast．Johnnie had seen him too and ran to the gate．And then he gave her four envelopes．Three were unsealed cards from old friends．The fourth was sealed，in Myra’s writing．
“No parcel，Johnnie?”
“No，granny．”
Maybe the parcel was too large to come by letter post．That was it．It would come later by parcel post．She must be patient．
But disappointment flooded her．She tore the envelope open unwillingly．A cheque fell to the floor like a bird with a broken、wing．Slowly the old lady bent to pick it up．With trembling fingers she tore it into little bits．What kind of work did Myra probably take?
| A．charity | B．paperwork |
| C．accounting | D．education |
What does the underlined word “it” mean?
| A．The reunion time she looked forward to． |
| B．The reason why there was no parcel． |
| C．The birthday gift she wanted most． |
| D．The slowest way to send a gift． |
How is the passage organized?
| A．In order of time． |
| B．In order of space． |
| C．In order of frequency． |
| D．In order of importance． |
The author seems to tell us that ．
| A．there is no love like that of the parent for the child |
| B．to accompany our parents should be the first law of nature |
| C．a mother’s voice is the most beautiful sound in the world |
| D．we never know the love of our parents for us till we have become parents |
E
As a society we might want to rethink the time and money spent on education，so that these resources can benefit a greater percentage of the population．Ideally，both high schools and colleges can prepare individuals for the ever-changing roles．
High school degrees offer far less in the way of preparation for work than they might，or than many other nations currently offer，creating a growing skills gap in our economy．We encourage students to go on to college whether they are prepared or not，or have a clear sense of purpose or interest，and now have the highest college dropout rate in the world．
We might look to other countries for models of how high schools can offer better training，as well as the development of a work ethic(美德)and the intellectual skills needed for continued learning and development．
Meanwhile，the liberal arts(人文学科)become more important than ever．In a knowledge economy where professional roles change rapidly and many college students are preparing for positions that may not even exist yet，the skillneeded is one that prepares them for change and continued learning．
Learning to express ideas well in both writing and speech，knowing how to find information，and knowing how to do research are all solid background skills for a wide variety of roles，and such training is more important than any particular major in a liberal arts college．We need to continue to value broad preparation in thinking skills that will serve for a lifetime．
Students also need to learn to work independently and to make responsible decisions．The lengthening path to adulthood appears exacerbated(恶化)by parental involvement in the college years．Given the rising investment in college education，parental concern is not surprising，but learning where and when to intervene willhelp students take more ownership of the outcomes of these increasingly costly educations．
What kind of education does the author think is ideal?
| A．It benefits the great majority of the general population． |
| B．It prepares students to meet the future needs of society． |
| C．It encourages students to learn throughout their lives． |
| D．It ensures that students’expectations are successfully fulfilled． |
What is the feature of a knowledge economy?
| A．People have to receive higher education to qualify for a professional position． |
| B．Students majoring in liberal arts usually have difficulty seeking a job． |
| C．New positions are constantly created that require people to keep learning． |
| D．Colleges find it hard to teach students how to cope with the changing economy． |
According to the author，a liberal arts college should focus on ?
| A．solid background knowledge in a particular field |
| B．practical skills urgently needed in current society |
| C．basic skills needed for change and lifelong learning |
| D．useful thinking skills for advanced academic research |
What suggestion does the author offer to parents?
| A．Rethinking the value of higher education． |
| B．Investing wisely in their children’s education． |
| C．Helping their children to bring their talent into full play． |
| D．Avoiding too much intervention in their children’s education． |
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