I am Peter Hodes, a volunteer stem cell courier. Since March 2012, I’ve done 89 trips -— of those, 51 have been abroad, I have 42 hours to carry stem cells (干细胞) in my little box because I’ve got two ice packs and that’s how long they last. In all, from the time the stem cells are harvested from a donor to the time they can be implanted in the patient, we’ve got 72 hours at most. So I am always conscious of time.
I had one trip last year where I was caught by a hurricane in America. I picked up the stem cells in Providence, Rhode Island, and was meant to fly to Washington then back to London. But when I arrived at the check-in desk at Providence, the lady on the desk said: “Well, I’m really sorry, I’ve got some bad news for you — there are no flights from Washington.” So I took my box and put it on the desk and I said: “In this box are some stem cells that are urgently needed for a patient — please, please, you’ve got to get me back to the United Kingdom.” She just dropped everything. She arranged for a flight on a small plane to be held for me, re-routed (改道) me through Newark and got me back to the UK even earlier than originally scheduled.
For this courier job, you’re consciously aware that in that box you’ve got something that is potentially going to save somebody’s life.
1.Which of the following can replace the underlined word “courier” in Paragraph 1?
A. provider B. collector C. delivery man D. medical doctor
2.Why does Peter have to complete his trip within 42 hours?
A. The ice won’t last any longer.
B. The donor can only wait for that long.
C. The operation needs that much time.
D. He cannot stay away from his job too long.
3.Which fight did the woman put Peter on first?
A. To Newark. B. To London. C. To Providence. D. To Washington.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
A survey has shown that what you do on a plane can be determined by which nationality is listed on your passport.
According to the results of an international passenger survey, Australians are the biggest drinkers on board with 36 percent choosing to down the hatch, compared to 35 percent of Americans and 33 percent of Brits.
The Airline Passenger Experience Association(APEX) spoke to around 1,500 people, aged 18 and older, who have travelled by plane at least once during the last three months and were living in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, China, Singapore, Australia and Brazil.
The results found Chinese travelers are most likely to nod off once the seat-belt sign switches off. They are also the first to take out their credit card for some in-flight shopping and the biggest fans of gaming. Americans on the other hand like to use their time in the air more productively—when not drinking—choosing to work while flying at 35,000 feet.
Meanwhile, Brits and Germans are the best at making chat with random strangers—spending 50 percent more time than any other nationality. Comparatively, Brazilians conduct their conversations online via email, messaging apps or social media.
Despite plane food having a bad reputation, seven out of ten interviewees said they were happy to eat up on the selection of in-flight snacks and meals. In-flight magazines were also popular with four out of five passengers.
The international flyers did however express their desire for better in-flight entertainment. “The industry has greatly improved the comfort, entertainment and onboard service, and passengers are accepting those improvements” said Russell Lemieux, APEX executive director. “At the same time, passengers are demanding more from their air travel experiences which will drive more improvements touching all aspects of the journey.” he added.
1.What can you probably see in the flight according to the passage?
A. Brazilians choose to drink.
B. Americans do in-flight shopping.
C. Germans chat to kill the time.
D. The Chinese switch off the seat-belt sign.
2.When on board the plane, ______.
A. passengers from one nation have little in common
B. most passengers like to read in-flight magazines
C. more than half of the passengers don’t enjoy plane food
D. most people tend to use in-flight time to have a good sleep
3.What can we learn from the last paragraph?
A. Flyers care little about entertainment.
B. Flyers are not satisfied with the improvements.
C. Flyers are expecting better flight experiences.
D. Flyers have more and more demands from airlines.
4.What’s the purpose of the passage?
A. To entertain readers with interesting stories.
B. To encourage people to behave well in public.
C. To criticize impolite behaviors on the plane.
D. To inform readers of the results of a survey.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Need for closure is a psychological term that describes a person's desire for a firm answer to a question. Our need for closure is our natural preference for definite answers over confusion and uncertainty. Every person has their own baseline level of need for closure. It likely evolved via natural selection.
What I find really fascinating is how our need for closure is affected by the situation we're in. Our need for closure rises when we have to act rather than just observe, and it matters much more when we're rushed, or bored, or tired. Any stress can make our discomfort with uncertainty increase, and a high need for closure negatively influences some of our most important decisions: who we decide to trust, whether we admit we're wrong and even how creative we are.
In hiring, for instance, a high need for closure leads people to put far too much weight on their first impression. It's called the Urgency Effect. In one experiment, psychologists tried to lower people's need for closure by telling them, right before participants are about to make various judgments of a job candidate, that they'll be responsible in some way for them, or that their judgments have serious consequences.
In making any big decision, it's not enough just to know that we should take our time. We all know that important decisions shouldn't be rushed. The problem is that we don't keep that advice in mind when it matters. So, one of the best solutions is to formalize the reminders. Before making important decisions, write down not just advantages and disadvantages but what the consequences could be. Also, think about how much pressure you're under. If your need for closure is particularly high that day, it's even more important to think twice.
1.How does "need for closure" probably come into being?
A. By accident. B. By nature.
C. By acquiring. D. By imitating.
2.It can be inferred that a high need for closure ______.
A. brings about more stress
B. leads to not so good decisions
C. causes discomfort and uncertainty
D. promotes one's creativity
3.In the experiment the psychologists reduced participants’ need for closure by telling them to ______.
A. value their first impression
B. be responsible for their boss
C. be cautious about their judgments
D. pay little attention to the consequences
4.What would the author probably discuss in the paragraph that follows?
A. More helpful solutions to high need for closure.
B. Some serious consequences of making decisions.
C. Other approaches to making important decisions.
D. Another strategy to escape the pressures of modern life.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Bad news sells. If it bleeds, it leads. No news is good news, and good news is no news. Those are the classic rules for the evening broadcasts and the morning papers. But now that information is being spread and monitored in different ways, researchers are discovering new rules. By tracking people’s e-mails and online posts, scientists have found that good news can spread faster and farther than disasters and sob stories.
“The ‘if it bleeds’ rule works for mass media,” says Jonah Berger, a scholar at the University of Pennsylvania. “They want your eyeballs and don’t care how you’re feeling. But when you share a story with your friends, you care a lot more how they react. You don’t want them to think of you as a Debbie Downer.”
Researchers analyzing word-of-mouth communication—e-mails, Web posts and reviews, face-to-face conversations—found that it tended to be more positive than negative, but that didn’t necessarily mean people preferred positive news. Was positive news shared more often simply because people experienced more good things than bad things? To test for that possibility, Dr. Berger looked at how people spread a particular set of news stories: thousands of articles on The New York Times’ website. He and a Penn colleague analyzed the “most e-mailed” list for six months. One of his first findings was that articles in the science section were much more likely to make the list than non-science articles. He found that science amazed Times’ readers and made them want to share this positive feeling with others.
Readers also tended to share articles that were exciting or funny, or that inspired negative feelings like anger or anxiety, but not articles that left them merely sad. They needed to be aroused (激发) one way or the other, and they preferred good news to bad. The more positive an article, the more likely it was to be shared, as Dr. Berger explains in his new book, “Contagious: Why Things Catch On.”
1.What do the classic rules mentioned in the text apply to?
A. Private e-mails.
B. Research papers.
C. News reports.
D. Daily conversations.
2.What can we infer about people like Debbie Downer?
A. They’re socially inactive.
B. They’re good at telling stories.
C. They’re careful with their words.
D. They’re inconsiderate of others.
3.Which tended to be the most e-mailed according to Dr. Berger’s research?
A. Science articles.
B. Sports news.
C. Personal accounts.
D. Financial reviews.
4.What can be a suitable title for the text?
A. Sad Stories Travel Far and Wide
B. Online News Attracts More People
C. Reading Habits Change with the Times
D. Good News Beats Bad on Social Networks
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项，选项中有两项为多余选项。
A garden that’s just right for you
Have you ever visited a garden that seemed just right for you, where the atmosphere of the garden appeared to total more than the sum of its parts? 1. But it doesn’t happen by accident. It starts with looking inside yourself and understanding who you are with respect to the natural world and how you approach the gardening process.
● 2.
Some people may think that a garden is no more than plants, flowers, patterns and masses of color. Others are concerned about using gardening methods that require less water and fewer fertilizers. 3. However, there are a number of other reasons that might explain why you want to garden. One of them comes from our earliest years.
●Recall your childhood memories
Our model of what a garden should be often goes back to childhood. Grandma’s rose garden and Dad’s vegetable garden might be good or bad, but that’s not what’s important. 4. —how being in those gardens made us feel. If you’d like to build a powerful bond with your garden, start by taking some time to recall the gardens of your youth. 5. Then go outside and work out a plan to translate your childhood memories into your grown-up garden. Have fun.
A. Know why you garden.
B. Find a good place for your own garden.
C. It’s delightful to see so many beautiful flowers.
D. It’s our experience of the garden that matters.
E. Still others may simply enjoy being outdoors and close to plants.
F. You can produce that kind of magical quality in your own garden, too.
G. For each of those gardens, writer down the strongest memory you have.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项, 并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
The concept of solitude (独处) in the digital world is almost non-existent. In the world of digital technology, e-mail, social networking and online video games, information is meant to be ________. Solitude can be hard to discover ________ it has been given up. In this respect, new technologies have ________ our culture.
The desire to be connected has brought solitude to a(n) ________ as we’ve known it. People have become so ________ in the world of networks and connections that one can often be contacted ________ they’d rather not be. Today we can talk, text, e-mail, chat and blog, not only from our ________, but from our mobile phones as well.
Most developed nations have become ________ on digital technology simply because they’ve grown accustomed to it, and at this point not ________ it would make them an outsider. ________, many jobs and careers require people to be ________. From this point of view, technology has changed the culture of work. Being reachable might feel like a ________ to those who may not want to be able to be contacted at all times.
I suppose the positive side is that solitude is still possible for anyone who ________ wants it. Computers can be ________ and mobile phones can be turned off. The ability to be “connected” and “on” has many ________, as well as disadvantages. Travelers have ended up ________ on mountains, and mobile phones have saved countless lives. They can also make people feel ________ and forced to answer unwanted calls or ________ to unwanted texts.
Attitudes towards our connectedness as a society ________ across generations. Some find today’s technology a gift. Others consider it a curse. Regardless of anyone’s view on the subject, it’s hard to imagine what life would be like ________ daily advancements in technology.
1.A. updated B. received C. shared D. collected
2.A. though B. until C. once D. before
3.A. respected B. shaped C. ignored D. preserved
4.A. edge B. stage C. end D. balance
5.A. sensitive B. intelligent C. considerate D. reachable
6.A. even if B. only if C. as if D. if only
7.A. media B. computers C. databases D. monitors
8.A. bent B. hard C. keen D. dependent
9.A. finding B. using C. protecting D. changing
10.A. Also B. Instead C. Otherwise D. Somehow
11.A. connected B. trained C. recommended D. interested
12.A. pleasure B. benefit
C. burden D. disappointment
13.A. slightly B. hardly C. merely D. really
14.A. cut out B. shut down C. taken off D. broken down
15.A. aspects B. weaknesses C. advantages D. exceptions
16.A. hidden B. lost C. relaxed D. deserted
17.A. trapped B. excited C. confused D. amused
18.A. turn B. submit C. object D. reply
19.A. vary B. arise C. spread D. exist
20.A. beyond B. within C. despite D. without
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
Once there was a wise landowner who had two sons. After a few years, the landowner fell ill badly. So he considered 1.__________ (select) one of them to rule the family according to their abilities. He called both of them and 2.__________ (give) each one a room. He said，“You must fill your mom completely with anything you wish. It can be anything! But there should not be any space 3.________ (leave) behind and you should not seek advice 4.________ others! "
The next day, the landowner visited the elder son's room. The room was completely filled with hay (干草). The landowner sighed on the 5._________ (foolish) of the elder son. Then he went to the room given to the younger son. But it was kept closed. The landowner knocked at the door. The younger son asked 6._________ father to get in and closed the door again. 7.___________was darkness everywhere and the landowner shouted at his son 8._______ (angry). But the younger son lighted a candle 9.________ said, “I have filled this room with light! Now the landowner felt very happy and hugged his son proudly. He understood that the younger would be the applicable person 10._________ (rule) the family.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面句子，请根据首字母、中文意思或括号中所给单词的提示，在空白处填入适合的单词、短语、句型或语法知识的正确形式，使句子完整通顺。（特别注意：每空一词；按小题给分）
1.Nearly 800 of those victims s__________ (寻求) help but declined to file complaints against their attackers.
2.They left the lights down to create a comfortable a__________.
3.The spread of u__________ areas destroys the habitats of wildlife and endangers some species.
4.Be m__________ and don’t be conceited. Otherwise, you will lag behind.
5.We should direct our attention at the f__________ (基本的) question.
6.科学家们现在发现的基因无法解释所有的那些情况。
The gene that the scientists have discovered today doesn’t __________ __________ all of those cases.
7.像硅谷这样的地方一定会产生与高科技相关的服务。
Places like Silicon Valley will no doubt __________ __________ __________ services related to Hi-tech.
8.既然已着手这份工作，就必须尽最大的努力完成。
__________ __________ you put your hand to the work, you must do your utmost to finish it.
9.你不应该仅仅因为一个人贫穷而瞧不起他。
You shouldn’t __________ __________ __________ a person just because he is poor.
10.大多数出色的律师和推销员都有劝说他人的天分。
Most of the best lawyers and salespeople really __________ __________ __________ __________ persuasion.
11.I __________ (true) feel sorry for your terrible loss.
12.The more he explained about it, the __________(bad) things got.
13.In China, kids are often compared __________ “the flowers of motherland”. (介词填空)
14.The workers of this factory are paid __________ the hour. (介词填空)
15.Mary likes the bedroom, from __________ window a beautiful lake can be seen.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
注意： 1、答案请写在答题卷上；
2、只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分；
3、每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
4、答题符号、格式要规范：
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
There were many people on the bus and no vacant seats. When a woman got off, a man near the door attempted to rise, but she had forced him back into his seat. “Thank you,” she said, “but please don’t do that. I am perfect able to stand.” “But, madam, let me…” began the man. “I ask you to keep your seat,” interrupted a woman with the hands on her shoulders. So the man tried to rise, and said: “Madam, will you kindly permit me to...?” “No, no,” said the woman and again force him back. At last the man managed to get up, say:“Madam, you have carried me three block beyond my house. I want get off.”
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
假如你是李华，已经被大学录取，即将进入大学学习。请你用英语给好友Sam写一封信，谈谈进入大学后的打算。短文应包含以下要点：
1、尽快适应环境；
2、注重能力发展。
注意：
1. 全文100词左右；
2. 书信的开头已给出，不计入总词数；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Sam,
How are you getting along with your life recently? _______________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
难度: 中等查看答案及解析