You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone. I’ve learned that through my personal experiences. A few months ago, I woke up deaf in one ear. I did not pay much attention to it at first. It felt that I had water in my ear. However, I began to hear less and less out of that ear. I even had to ask people to talk into my other ear so that I could hear them. I didn’t realize how serious it was until late in the day (为时太晚). One evening, when I was sitting on my bed doing chemistry homework, I fell off my bed. When trying to get up, I was incredibly dizzy (头晕的).
I went to see a doctor and he told me that hearing loss was common. However, hearing loss is usually bilateral, or occurs in both ears. He said that my hearing should come back within a week. After about a week the dizziness eventually went away, but the hearing loss did not. The medicine helped and I gained some of my hearing back. After many hearing tests, the doctor diagnosed (诊断) that I had permanent hearing loss in that ear.
School became harder for me because I couldn’t hear my teachers. I was very depressed. Finally, I bought a hearing aid. With the hearing aid, my hearing is almost back to normal. It makes school and group conversations easier.
My friends, teachers and even complete strangers always ask me questions about hearing loss. I answer them patiently. I never get offended because I know this is new to them. I am delighted that I can teach them something new.
What I have learned from this particular situation is that when things are desperate（绝望的；急切的）, there is always something good that can come out of it. My experiences have given me an opportunity to teach people about hearing loss and also taught me about the value of hearing.What happened to the author?
| A．He is born deaf. |
| B．He becomes deaf in a traffic accident. |
| C．He woke up deaf in one ear one day. |
| D．He becomes deaf due to taking some medicine. |
The author fell off his bed when .
| A．getting up from bed | B．doing his homework |
| C．waking up from a dream | D．wearing his clothes |
From the text we can infer that .
| A．the author’s hearing loss was cured after the treatment |
| B．the author is unwilling to talk about his hearing loss with others |
| C．the author took some medicine to treat his hearing loss |
| D．the medicine that doctors gave him didn’t work at all |
At present, the author is .
| A．desperate | B．optimistic |
| C．depressed | D．angry |
Plants are very important living things. Life could not go if there were no plants. This is because plants can make food from air, water and sunlight. Animals and man cannot make food from air, water and sunlight. Animals get their food by eating plants and other animals. So animals and man need plants in order to live. This is why we find that there are so many plants around us.
If you look carefully at the plants around you, you will find that there are two kinds of plants: flowering plants and non-flowering plants.
Flowering plants can make seeds. The seeds are protected by the fruits. Some fruits have one seed, some have two, three or four, and some have many seeds. But a few fruits have no seeds at all. An example of a fruit without seeds is the banana fruit.
Most non-flowering plants don’t grow from seeds. They grow from spores. Spores are so small and light that they can float in the air. We may say that spores are quite the same as he seeds. When these spores fall on wet and shady places, they usually grow into new plants.The main idea of the passage is that .
| A．plants are important for life | B．plants cannot grow without air |
| C．there are many plants around us | D．we cannot live without water |
Which of the following is NOT TRUE?
| A．Plants can be divided into main types: flowering plants and non-flowering plants. |
| B．All fruits have seeds in them. |
| C．Seeds are protected by the fruits. |
| D．Some plants grow from spores. |
The underlined word "non-flowering" means .
| A．开花的 | B．有花的 | C．多花的 | D．不开花的 |
In “shady places” there is .
| A．a lot of sunshine | B．a lot of water | C．no water | D．little sunshine |
If I were writing a history of my family, some of the darkest moments recorded would be those surrounding Christmas trees. One would certainly think otherwise; selecting and putting up our trees have always been filled with risk.
For example, one afternoon dangerously close to Christmas Eve my mother bought what she thought to be a bargain, a glorious tree that was so full and tall that we could hardly get it into the house. Once we did, my father immediately realized that we would have to hire a carpenter to build a stand for it.
Another December, perhaps the very next one, we bought a tree earlier than we ever had before. We were happy with its shape and delighted that its size was manageable. We easily placed it in a stand, decorated it from top to bottom, and then self-satisfiedly sat back by the fire in its soft light.
Two or three days passed and the truth could not be hidden; we had bought a tree cut so long ago that its needles were coming off. There was nothing to do but undecorated it, take it down, and begin tree shopping again.
Our most recent Christmas tree offered still another difficult task. When we brought it home, once again it seemed larger than it was in the great outdoors. To complicate matters, we had bought a new stand, one whose nuts(螺帽)and bolts(闩子)worked more mysteriously than those of our old stands. I persuaded two young neighbors to stop playing basketball and to help us get the tree into the house and set it correctly in the stand. Unfortunately, no one noticed the mud on our helpers’ shoes, so only after removing several reddish brown sports from the carpet were we able to discuss the question of where the lights and ornaments(装饰)were stored. Perhaps those who cut their own trees have tales more painful than these. I don’t care to hear them, as my family’s experiences are enough to cause me to make the following suggestion: “Let’s forget the tree next Christmas. Let’s simply hang some flowers on the front door and over the mirror in the hall.”The darkest moments in the writer’s family were with the fact that .
| A．the family bought big Christmas trees |
| B．they had problems decorating their Christmas trees |
| C．they had problems picking suitable Christmas trees |
| D．they had problems finding carpenters for putting up Christmas trees |
We can learn from the passage that the writer would like to .
| A．forget about Christmas stories |
| B．get the neighbors to put up their trees |
| C．buy a better tree to celebrate Christmas |
| D．make other decorations rather than Christmas trees |
When the writer said “my mother bought what she thought to be a bargain”, he means .
| A．she bought the tree at a cheap price | B．she didn’t really want to buy it |
| C．she had to bargain hard with the salesman | D．she couldn’t afford a more expensive one |
Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
| A．How to Select a Christmas Tree | B．No More Christmas Tree for Us |
| C．Dark Moments of Life | D．Christmas Without Trees |
Some students get so nervous before a test, they do poorly even if they know the material. Sian Beilock, a psychology professor at the University of Chicago in Illinois, has studied these highly anxious test-takers.
Sian Beilock says: “They start worrying about the consequences. They might even start worrying about whether this exam is going to prevent them from getting into the college they want. And when they worry, it actually uses up attention and memory resources. I talk about them as their cognitive(认知的)horsepower that they could otherwise be using to focus on the exam.”
Professor Beilock and another researcher, Gerardo Ramirez, have developed a possible solution. Just before an exam, highly anxious test-takers spend ten minutes writing about their worries about the test. The researchers tested the idea on a group of 20 anxious college students. They gave them two short math tests. After the first one, they asked the students to either sit quietly or write about their feelings about the upcoming second test. The researchers added to the pressure. They told the students that those who did well on the second test would get money. They also told them that their performance would affect other students as part of a team effort.
Professor Beilock says those who sat quietly scored an average of 12 percent worse on the second test. But the students who had written about their fears improved their performance by an average of five percent.
Next, the researchers used younger students in a biology class. They told them before final exams either to write about their feelings or to think about things unrelated to the test.
Professor Beilock says highly anxious students who did the writing got an average grade of B+, compared to a B-for those who did not.
The research shows that for students who are highly test-anxious, who’d done the writing intervention(介入), all of a sudden there was no relationship between test anxiety and performance. Those students most likely to worry were performing just as well as their classmates who don’t normally get nervous in these testing situations.
But what if students do not have a chance to write about their fears immediately before an exam or presentation? Professor Beilock says students can try it themselves at home or in the library and still improve their performance.The purpose of the passage is .
| A．to build the confidence of the highly anxious test-takers |
| B．to introduce a research about the anxious test-takers |
| C．to improve the performance of the test-takers |
| D．to tell something about the highly anxious test-takers |
The underlined word “them” in paragraph 2 refers to .
| A．attention and memory resources |
| B．worries about the consequences |
| C．concerns about the exam |
| D．cognitive horsepower |
According to the research, the solution to the test anxiety is to .
| A．sit quietly before the exam |
| B．prepare well before the test |
| C．set their mind on happy memories |
| D．write about their feelings before the test |
The result of the research suggests that .
| A．proper amount of burden may turn out to be a good thing |
| B．avoiding facing the problem may contribute to relaxation |
| C．facing the fears bravely may help one to achieve more |
| D．taking no action before difficulty may result in success |
After squeezing into a small space with two other friends, I had a strong sense of pride to be the mission commander of this space flight. Our objective was very important. Scientists had been arguing about the possibility of existence of life on Mars for decades. Some of them said that the pictures of Mars, taken during various space explorations, had given them sufficient proof that only intelligent being could have made those amazing structures. Others maintained that what looked like a face in the pictures was nothing more than a flash of lights. The arguments continued without conclusion. To prove this once and for all, a decision was made to launch an expedition into space.
My crew and I were the best among our group of trainees. We practised hard together, training hand in hand, filled with a single aim—flying safely to Mars and back. This feeling was tense and everyone was highly excited, as the day drew nearer. We were anxious to see what Mars was like but the uncertainty held us with fear.
The last moment finally came. The countdown proceeded, and soon we were deep in space, floating about freely and went about preparing the spaceship for the intended landing. Since the trip was scheduled to take about three years, we slept in a special room to prevent ourselves from aging. So I drifted off to sleep peacefully and suddenly I felt someone woke me up. We must have arrived at Mars and my crew was trying to wake me up.
I opened my eyes slowly and saw a familiar face. “Why would my English teacher wake me up?” I thought. Oh, no. Instead of medals and praise that I should receive, all I had was a severe warning against sleeping in class and then I spent the rest of the lesson standing in a corner.Why did the author feel proud of himself? (No more than 10 words) (2 marks)
What was the objective of the mission? (No more than 11 words) (2 marks)
How did they feel as the day to explore space drew near?
(No more than 8 words) (3 marks)
What did the author finally receive after he was woken up?
(No more than 8 words) (3 marks)
______
Loneliness is all about feeling isolated, but it's actually quite common. In general, there are three different types of loneliness.
The first kind of loneliness is temporary. It is the most common type but usually disappears quickly and does not require any special attention. The second kind, situational loneliness, is a natural result of a particular situation, such as, family problem, the death of a loved one, or moving to a new place. Although this kind of loneliness can cause physical problems, it usually does not last for more than a year. The third kind of loneliness is chronic (the opposite of “temporary”). Being the most severe, it usually lasts for more than two years and is often connected with serious illnesses.
An important factor in loneliness is a person’s social contacts. Through social contacts, we get emotional support and guidance from our parents and teachers and share similar interests and activities with our friends. However, some lonely people almost make no contacts with people around them and feel apart from those who they supposedly know well. They just see themselves as outsiders. On the other hand, some lonely people may have enough social contacts, but they rarely enjoy the contacts and question their popularity, thinking of themselves as someone powerless. So loneliness is closely related to the quality of those social relationship in addition to the quantity.
Loneliness is tough, but something can be done to cope with it. First, take time to accept that you are suffering from loneliness. Then, contact your old friends or visit relatives to spend quality time with others. Besides, pick up a hobby to reduce your feelings of loneliness, such as taking up needle work, joining craft classes, or attending lectures. You can also beat loneliness by volunteering at a nursing home, hospital, church or pet rescue organization. This not only helps you get in touch with people from all walks of life, but also makes you feel good about yourself. In a word, if you take a correct attitude towards loneliness and get involved with people around you, you are sure to get over it.
| Loneliness Loneliness is quite common. Ⅰ. 1 ●Temporary loneliness: disappearing quickly and requiring 2 ●Situational loneliness: resulting from some particular situation, 3 and lasting not more than one year ● 4 : lasting more than two years and being connected with serious illnesses Ⅱ. An important factor in loneliness: 5 ●Lack social relationship quantity: feeling disconnected with others treating themselves as 6 ●Lack 7 : questioning their popularity treating themselves as powerless people Ⅲ. 8 for lonely people ●Face the problem and accept it ●Contact 9 for quality time ●Pick up hobbies ● 10 Taking a correct attitude and getting involved with others, people are sure to get over loneliness. |
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