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    All of us in Monte Vista Christian School know we’ll one day have graduation photos for the yearbook taken. As the time ________, the girls start to have a ________ about what they’ll wear and where to take the photos, while the boys ________ hardly talk about it. As for me, I ________ for my photos to be taken by the sea.

When I arrived there, I met my photographer, Annie. She asked me to make some poses and I ________ her advice. After that, I asked if she could make me look ________ by taking photos in a different way, ________ I’m less than 1.6 meters tall. To my ________ she responded, “I will make no ________ to make you look like someone you’re not. You look good in your own way.” She ________ that she wouldn’t try to edit the photos either.

I was shocked by what she said. Girls always ________ to look perfect by using different visual angles. When you go to a photo studio, photographers always try to hide your ________ by telling you to stand in a certain way. And picture editors can easily ________ your look by making you appear any you want to. ________, that’s not the case here. Seeing I was ________, Annie explained: “Everyone has his uniqueness. You need to ________ your own beauty. You cannot live in a world of ________ photos.”

It was the first time that I had met a photographer who doesn’t ________ photos at all. After the shoot, I saw the photos — they are ________ special and natural. But what’s even more special are Annie’s ________, which will always stay in my heart.

1.A. flows B. ends C. approaches D. develops

2.A. request B. discussion C. reason D. complaint

3.A. by comparison B. in addition C. by accident D. in advance

4.A. accounted B. arranged C. searched D. applied

5.A. considered B. declined C. consulted D. followed

6.A. prettier B. taller C. thinner D. stronger

7.A. unless B. though C. while D. since

8.A. astonishment B. delight C. relief D. satisfaction

9.A. promise B. choice C. attempt D. decision

10.A. admitted B. swore C. explained D. added

11.A. desire B. manage C. pretend D. pay

12.A. preferences B. imperfections C. personalities D. advantages

13.A. change B. recover C. expose D. recognize

14.A. Otherwise B. Therefore C. However D. Anyway

15.A. annoyed B. embarrassed C. discouraged D. confused

16.A. share B. describe C. admire D. advocate

17.A. artificial B. colorful C. vivid D. popular

18.A. exhibit B. organize C. cut D. polish

19.A. causally B. truly C. partially D. roughly

20.A. attitudes B. actions C. words D. skills

    Imagine that you are in a remote village somewhere with no medical clinic.1.Once the doctors get to you, they examine you and take blood samples, but they won’t be able to help you until they take the samples back to the hospital to find out what is wrong.2.Thanks to engineer Andy Ozcan, many people may never be in this situation. He has invented an app that turns your mobile phone into a diagnostic (诊断的) tool.

Ozcan’s invention is important because it is very accurate and easy to use. In many remote places, even if doctors have microscopes and other instruments to help them make diagnoses, there may still be other problems. Many doctors, for example, don’t have enough training to correctly interpret what they see.3.With Ozcan’s mobile phone app, health workers can take a special photo of a blood sample and send it to a central computer at a hospital. The computer will then automatically interpret the photo and send a diagnosis back in a few minutes.

4.His technology only requires a mobile phone and an Internet connection. As more than four billion people already have cell phones, the cost of establishing the diagnostic system is fairly low.

By inventing a medical tool that uses existing technology---mobile phones---Ozcan has developed a medical tool that is both practical and economical. Therefore, it can be effectively almost anywhere.5.

A. As a result, they may diagnose illnesses incorrectly.

B. People are trying to reduce the cost of this new medical tool.

C. This tool has become much more popular all around the world.

D. Another reason that Ozcan’s invention is important is that it is inexpensive.

E. You become very sick and must wait days until a mobile medical unit arrives to help.

F. Ozcan’s simple, cost-effective tool might just save millions of lives around the world.

G. Even though you may only have a simple infection, you might die because of the delay.

    The values of artistic works, according to cultural relativism (相对主义), are simply reflections of local and economic conditions. Such a view, however, fails to explain the ability of some works of art to excite the human mind across cultures and through centuries.

History has witnessed the endless production of Shakespearean plays in every major language of the world. It is never rare to find that Mozart packs Japanese concert hall, as Japanese painter Hiroshige does Paris galleries. Unique works of this kind are different from today’s popular art, even if they began as works of popular art. They have set themselves apart in their timeless appeal and will probably be enjoyed for centuries into the future.

In a 1757 essay, the philosopher David Hume argued that because “the general principles of tastes are uniform (不变的) in human nature,” the value of some works of art might be essentially permanent. He observed that Homer was still admired after 2000 years. Works of this type, he believed, spoke to deep and unvarying features of human nature and could continue to exist over centuries.

Now researchers are applying scientific methods to the study of the universality of art. For example, evolutionary psychology is being used by literary scholars to explain the long-lasting themes and plot devices in fiction. The structures of musical pieces are now open to experimental analysis as never before. Research findings seem to indicate that the creation by a great artist is as permanent an achievement as the discovery by a great scientist.

1.According to the passage, what do we know about cultural relativism?

A. It introduces different cultural values.

B. It relates artistic values to local conditions.

C. It explains the history of artistic works in detail.

D. It excites the human mind throughout the world.

2.In Paragraph 2, the artists are mentioned to show that __________.

A. the charm of great arts is universal and lasting

B. popular arts are hardly different from great arts

C. great artists are skilled at combing various cultures

D. great arts are works of popular arts in the beginning

3.According to Hume, some works of art can exist for centuries because __________.

A. they are results of scientific study

B. they establish general principles of art

C. they are created by the world’s greatest artists

D. they appeal to unchanging features of human nature

4.Which of the following serve as the title of the passage?

A. Are Popular Arts Universal? B. Is Human Nature Uniform?

C. Are Great Arts Permanent? D. Is Cultural Relativism Scientific?

    The belief that new technologies are causing the death of work is the idea that never goes away. Despite evidence to the contrary, we still view technological change today as being more rapid and dramatic in its consequences for work than ever before. But this is nothing new. People have always viewed the technological changes that take place during their lives as the most dramatic and dangerous that ever happened in history.

In the 1930s, the British economist(经济学家) John Maynard Keynes predicted the widespread use of electricity would produce a world where people spend most of their time doing nothing. In the United States during the 1960s, the government repeatedly investigates fears that automatic machines would permanently reduce the amount of work available. In 1988, one Australian historian claimed that at least a quarter of the workforce would be without jobs within 10 years because of computers.

Of course, none of these disasters came to pass in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia, or anywhere else.

Yet today, we are seeing the return of these predictions, with some experts claiming the world of work is once more undergoing radical（激进的）and unprecedented（前所未有的） change. They argue that robots and other workplace technologies are causing a reduction in the total amount of work available, or are bringing a more rapid pace of substitution of machines for humans than has been seen previously.

But there is a little evidence to support such beliefs. Statistics show that the percentage of people in work, the number of hours they work, and how frequently they change jobs have remained remarkably constant over the past 20 years.

This stability should not come as a surprise. There are good reasons why we should not expect new technologies to cause the death of work. New technologies always cause job losses, but that is only part of the story. What also needs to be understood is how they increase the amount of work available.

One way this happens is through the increases in incomes that accompany the use of new technologies. With the introduction of these technologies, goods and services can be produced faster, which results in higher real incomes for workers. Higher incomes then increase demand for other products and consequently more workers are needed to make them. Additionally, while new technologies are likely to substitute for some types of workers, they will also increase demand for other types of workers, especially those with higher level skills and expertise.

So, the end of work is no closer today than at any time in the past. But there is still a need to keep disproving the prediction, to reduce people’s fears.

1.What is the function of the second paragraph?

A. To explain the importance of developing new technology.

B. To show how technology affected employment in the past.

C. To argue that technological dangers are becoming more serious.

D. To give historical examples of unnecessary fear about new technology.

2.How can employment statistics over the past 20 years best be described?

A. Confusing B. Steady

C. Reliable D. Variable

3.According to paragraph 7, why does demand for products often increase after new technology is introduced?

A. There are more goods for people to choose from.

B. There is more demand for new skills in the economy.

C. Productivity improvements help raise workers’ salaries.

D. Higher quality goods at lower prices encourage consumption.

4.What is the author’s opinion about the introduction of new technology?

A. It does not have an effect on most people’s jobs.

B. Its benefits are usually not worth the introduction.

C. It usually leads to a significant increase in employment.

D. Its danger to people’s employment possibilities is overstated.

    The flowers are blooming and the birds are singing as Melinda sits in the rose garden of the nursing home. She is recalling old times as she waits for her family’s arrival. The nursing home has been Melinda’s new settlement ever since Thomas passed away a week ago. Thomas had fought a long and hard battle against lung cancer for three years. Unfortunately, he has broken the promise that he and Melinda had made: to be with each other for every birthday. Melinda knew this was unrealistic (不现实的) but agreed to the promise for Thomas’s sake.

“Thomas, you are completely a dreamer.” Melinda shouted to Thomas as he dragged on about living on an island with his beautiful wife. That’s what she loved about him most—he had a vivid imagination. They got married at age eighteen and began having children right away. Mary came within the year, followed by Thomas Benjamin II, Lilly-Ann, and Joseph “Little Joey” George. The family lived an exultant life filled with laughter and love.

“Mom!” Lilly shouted, but it really sounded like a howl. Melinda had lost herself in thinking about the life she had shared with her late husband. Lilly pushed her down the long dark halls of the nursing home until they arrived at the recreational room.

When the doors opened, Melinda put her hand over her mouth and was completely speechless. The room was crowded with the people nearest and dearest to her and the warmth and love was felt instantly. The night went on; stories and cocktails were shared and everything was perfect.

However, when Melinda caught a moment to herself she looked around at her family. With a smile on her face, she raised her Manhattan and called out for a toast. “This one is for you, Thomas, though you are not here.”

1.Why did Thomas break his promise?

A. He died of lung cancer. B. He was busy with his work.

C. He had to serve in the army. D. He stopped loving Melinda.

2.Which of the following best explains “exultant” underlined in Paragraph 2?

A. peaceful. B. stressful.

C. happy. D. simple.

3.What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A. Melinda liked to drink alcohol. B. Melinda was tired of noise.

C. Melinda’s children forgot their father. D. Melinda missed her husband badly.

4.What can be a suitable title for the text?

A. Memories of Old Days B. A Particular Birthday

C. A Woman at a Nursing Home D. A Big Surprise for Melinda