After 21 years of marriage, my wife wanted me to take another woman out to dinner and a movie. She said, “I love you, but I know this other woman loves you and would love to spend some time with you.”
The other woman that my wife wanted me to visit was my mother, 1. has been a widow for 19 years, but my work and my three children had made it impossible to visit her only occasionally. That night I called to invite her to go out for dinner and a movie.
That Friday after work, as I drove to pick her up, I was a bit nervous. When I arrived at her house, I noticed that she, too, seemed to be nervous 2. our date. She had curled her hair and 3.(wear) the dress that she had worn to celebrate her last wedding anniversary.
We went to a restaurant that, although not elegant, was very nice and cozy. My mother took my arm 4. she were the First Lady. During the dinner, we had an agreeable conversation—nothing special but catching up on (了解) recent events of each other’s life. We talked so much 5. we missed the movie. As we arrived at her house later, she said, “I will go out with you again, you let me invite you.” I agreed.
A few days later, my mother died of 6. heart attack. It happened so suddenly that I didn’t have a chance to do something for her. Sometime later, I received an envelope with a copy of a restaurant receipt from the same place mother and I had dined. An 7. (attach) note said, “I paid this bill in advance. I wasn’t sure that I 8. be there; but nevertheless, I paid for two plates – one for you and the other for your wife. You will never know 9. that night meant to me. I love you, Son.”
At that moment, I understood the importance of saying in time “I LOVE YOU”. 10. in life is more important than your family. Give them the time they deserve, because these things cannot be put off till “some other time”.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
“You are being put thousands of dollars into debt to learn things you will never even use. Wasting 4 years of your life to be stuck at a paycheck that grows slower than the rate of inflation (通货膨胀). Paying $200 for a $6 textbook.” Wilson said in his social network.
His story has produced a ________ debate in the comments online. Other young adults are wondering if ________ higher education is worth the time and money.
Wilson, who was on an Architectural Engineering undergraduate course told BBC Trending that the “cost of inflation is relatively small compared to the cost of college over the last 30 or so years. I mean, it really is ridiculous how the cost of college has ________.”
He’s supported by data. According to the US Department of Education the average annual increase in college tuition in the United States, between 1980-2014, grew by nearly 260% compared to the nearly 120% ________ in all consumer items.
In 1980, the average cost of tuition, room and board, and fees for a four-year course was over $9,000. That cost now is more than $23,000 for state colleges. If you want to go ________ it’s more than $30,000.
A similar increase in tuition fees has also been seen in England. In 2012, the government supported initiatives from some universities to ________ more than the 9,000 tuition fee limit.
Wilson also regarded higher education ________ as a reason to leave university and enter the workplace. Students in the United States are estimated to be in around over $1.2 trillion of loan debt with 7 million borrowers.
Wilson says that when he first told his parents that he was leaving university, they were “very ________” but are now supportive of his decision. His parents finally came round to his decision to ________ his studies. Others, like Blair Brown, who agreed with Wilson also pointed out that some professions do require a university degree.
“Being an engineer, scientist, or computer technician could be learned rather quickly through apprenticeships, independent study, and hands-on experience. Human nature is to learn by doing, not ________ to do. As for more professional careers such as medical doctors and lawyers, university study is ________ necessary,” Brown commented.
Wilson, who told Trending that he is currently ________ for a trade show sales team and his employers did Google him and they saw the funny side. He adds that he hopes enough work experience will ________ him to be employed by an architectural engineering team in the future.
He doesn’t think university will play any ________ in that future. “They would have to make a ________ change to the system before I would consider that and I don’t think they’ll do that while I’m still young enough to want to go.”
1.A.troublesome B.vigorous C.open D.reliable
2.A.pursuing B.paying C.accepting D.refusing
3.A.stayed up B.paid up C.gone up D.grown up
4.A.decline B.improvement C.amount D.increase
5.A.private B.abroad C.public D.ahead
6.A.charge B.collect C.pay D.exchange
7.A.quality B.consumption C.debt D.quantity
8.A.happy B.upset C.relieved D.crazy
9.A.follow B.continue C.select D.abandon
10.A.consuming B.working C.learning D.experiencing
11.A.knowingly B.admittedly C.mentally D.academically
12.A.employed B.acknowledged C.confirmed D.approved
13.A.promote B.revise C.motivate D.allow
14.A.joke B.impact C.part D.effect
15.A.moderate B.big C.slight D.reverse
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Mail carriers will be delivering some good news and some bad news this week.
The bad news: Stamp prices are expected to rise 2 cents in May to 41 cents, the Postal Regulatory Commission announced yesterday. The good news: With the introduction of a “forever stamp,” it may be the last time Americans have to use annoying 2-or-3-cent stamps to make up postage differences.
Beginning in May, people would be able to purchase the stamps in booklets of 20 at the regular rate of a first-class stamp. As the name implies, “forever stamps” will keep their first-class mailing value forever, even when the postage rate goes up.
The new “forever stamp” is the United States Postal Service’s (USPS) answer to the complaints about frequent rate increases. The May increases will be the fifth in a decade. Postal rates have risen because of inflation (通货膨胀), competition from online bill paying, and the rising costs of employee benefits, including healthcare, says Mark Saunders, a spokesman for USPS.
The USPS expects some financial gain from sales of the “forever stamp” and the savings from not printing as many 2-or-3-cent stamps. “It’s not your grandfather’s stamp,” says Mr. Saunders. “It could be your great-grandchildren’s stamp.”
Other countries, including Canada, England, and Finland use similar stamps.
Don Schilling, who has collected stamps for 50 years, says he’s interested in the public’s reaction. “This is an entirely new class of stamps.” Mr. Schilling says. He adds that he’ll buy the stamps because he will be able to use them for a long period of time, not because they could make him rich — the volume printed will be too large for collectors. “We won’t be able to send our kids to college on these,” he says, laughing.
The USPS board of governors has yet to accept the Postal Regulatory Commission’s decision, but tends to follow its recommendations. No plans have been announced yet for the design of the stamps.
1.The main purpose of introducing a “forever stamp” is ______.
A.to reduce the cost of printing 2-or-3-cent stamps
B.to help save the consumers’ cost on first-class mailing
C.to respond to the complaints about rising postal rates
D.to compete with online bill paying
2.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A.The investment in forever stamps will bring adequate reward.
B.America will be the first country to issue forever stamps.
C.The design of the “forever stamp” remains to be revealed.
D.2-or-3-cent stamps will no longer be printed in the future.
3.What can be concluded from the passage?
A.With forever stamps, there will be no need to worry about rate changes.
B.Postal workers will benefit most from the sales of forever stamps.
C.The inflation has become a threat to the sales of first-class stamps.
D.New interest will be aroused in collecting forever stamps.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Charles Dickens’ novel A Tale of Two Cities is set in the years before and during the French Revolution (1789 - 1799). During its course, French revolutionaries brought down the empire and established a republic of free and equal citizens.
In reading the work, one sees that Dickens distorted some details of the French Revolution. At the beginning, Dickens notes that, in 1775, France was busy spending money. This mention of France’s spending touches briefly on what is perhaps the major cause of the French Revolution. Before the revolution, the government often borrowed money because it spent more than it raised in taxes. The increased spending and borrowing made many people’s blood boil, yet Dickens focused instead on the nobility’s oppression and exploitation of the working class, including peasants, as the causes of the revolution.
The Marquis, one of the book’s characters, ill-treats and kills many people. Thus, he represents the nobles who mistreat the lower classes. One reviewer criticized this picture as an unfair representation of French society in the mid-1700s. The reviewer pointed out that the government would have punished nobles who mistreated or murdered. Nobles may have been guilty of other evils, however, such as not feeding the starving masses after bad weather ruined crops in 1789.
Dickens’ account of the storming of the Bastille fails to mention that the gang that stormed the prison was looking for bullets and bombs to use in defense against a possible attack by the king’s troops. Dickens does include some accurate details, however, such as the crowd’s finding only seven prisoners and freeing them and the pack’s executing (处决) the prison administrator and sticking his head on a post. The scene that the women knit (编织) as they watch the executions may seem to be an odd detail, but actually many women did knit stockings for the war effort as they watched the killing machine at work.
Dickens’ descriptions of the steady stream of sentenced people into prison and the carts taking them to their deaths give readers some idea of the frequency with which officials jailed and executed people during the Rule of Terror, which lasted about a year. During the Terror, the government jailed about 250 thousand people, tried (审判) and killed about 17 thousand, and executed about 12 thousand without a trial. Those executed included people who opposed the revolution, people who offended the revolutionaries, and even some revolutionaries. About 15 percent were members of the ministry or nobility.
1.What does the word “distorted” in Paragraph 2 most probably mean?
A.Discussed. B.Revealed.
C.Provided. D.Twisted.
2.Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
A.A wild crowd rushed into the Bastille to fight with the royal soldiers.
B.The nobles’ mistreating and killing people is the main cause of the revolution.
C.About thirty thousand people lost their lives in the course of the Rule of Terror.
D.Women were forced to work for the war supplies while watching people killed.
3.What can be inferred from the passage?
A.Dickens was once among the revolutionaries storming the Bastille.
B.There was an extreme disorder and horror during the revolution.
C.Nobles of those days in France were loaded with heavy social responsibilities.
D.Classic literary works may serve as history textbooks to a great degree.
4.Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?
A.The Collapse of the French Empire
B.Unknown Facts during the Rule of Terror
C.Dickens’ Description of the French Revolution
D.A Critical View on A Tale of Two Cities
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Directions: Read the following passages. Fill in each blank with a proper sentence given in the box. Each sentence can be used only once. Note that there are two more sentences than you need. (8%)
This Way to Dreamland
Daydreaming means people think about something pleasant, especially when this makes them forget what they should be doing. 1. They can seem forgetful and clumsy. They stare off into space and wander by themselves. They annoy us because they seem to be ignoring us and missing the important things.
But daydreamers are also responsible for some of the greatest ideas and achievements in human history. 2. Can you imagine what kind of world we would have without such ideas and inventions?
So how can you come up with brilliant daydreams and avoid falling over tree roots or otherwise looking like a fool?
First, understand that some opportunities for daydreaming are better than others. Feeling safe and relaxed will help you to slip into daydreams. 3. And if you want to improve your chances of having a creative idea while you’re daydreaming, try to do it while you are involved in another task—preferably something simple, like taking a shower or walking, or even making meaningless drawings.
It’s also important to know how to avoid daydreams for those times when you really need to concentrate. “Mindfulness”, being focused, is a tool that some people use to avoid falling asleep. 4.
Finally, you never know what wonderful idea might strike while your mind has moved slowly away. Therefore, it’s a good idea to keep a notebook or voice recorder nearby when you are in the daydream zone.
Always remember that your best ideas might come when your head is actually in the clouds.
A.Having interesting things to think about also helps.
B.Without wandering minds, we wouldn’t have relativity or Post-it notes.
C.At one time, daydreaming was thought to be a cause of some mental illnesses.
D.Daydreamers have a bad reputation for being unaware of what’s happening around them.
E.It involves slow, steady breathing for self-control that helps people stay calm.
F.Daydreams are often very simple and direct, quite unlike sleep dreams, which may be hard to understand
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Directions: Translate the following sentences into English, using the words given in the brackets. (3+3+3+4)
1.多数的大学坚持在录取新生之前进行面试。(insist)
2.与他们组相比较，我们组更多涉及到环境相关的问题。 (involve)
3.他们的一切言行旨在采取主动，弥补差距。(intend)
4.他关于如何避免感染各种疾病的演讲给我们留下来深刻的印象。(impression)
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Directions: Write a summary of the following article with about 60 words.
Teaching Is “One of the Least Popular Jobs in the UK”
The UK government has just published a report on the future of secondary school teaching, and the conclusion of the report is that many secondary schools now face great difficulties in finding people who want to be teachers. Since the 1980s, the number of graduates who would “seriously consider” teaching as a career has fallen sharply, from 64% in 1982 to just 17% today. The report suggests that urgent action needs to be taken in order to encourage more intelligent young graduates into teaching.
The main drawback (缺点) of secondary teaching, according to the report, is the low salary.
Earnings in teaching are much lower than in many other jobs. Joanne Manners, 24, is a good example: “I graduated in maths last year, and I was thinking of doing a teacher-training course to become a maths teacher---but I saw I could earn twice as much if I worked in marketing or advertising, so I decided not to become a teacher.”
It’s not just about the money, however. The survey concluded that another reason why people don’t want to be teachers is that some teenagers behave very badly in school. A lot of schools have problems with discipline, and it seems clear that children do not have the same respect for teachers as in the past. Here’s the view of Dave Hallam, an accountant from London: “I think parents are to blame. They should have stricter rules with their children at home and also teach their children to have more respect for teachers.”
The report is clear that the problem of teacher shortage is a very serious one. It says that the government should raise teachers’ pay significantly, to catch up with workers in other professions. It also indicates that the government could launch a nationwide publicity campaign, with some advertisements on TV and in the newspapers, to show the positive sides of teaching to young people.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析