Driving to the airport in the early morning, I felt 1.__________(excite) because I would spend the summer in Paris. While 2.___________ (look) for more interesting things to do besides sleeping and eating on the plane, I jumped at the chance to study French in this city 3._________ (know) for its art, food and culture.
My connecting flight (转机) was in Frankfurt, Germany, 14 hours from Denver. But when I arrived there, a feeling of anxiety 4.___________ (begin) to set in. I was very nervous __5._________ I was in a country 6.__________ language I could not speak. But when I found my way, I gained 7.__________(confident). When I boarded the second plane and discovered that the flight was less than an hour, I was filled 8.___________ excitement.
When I stepped on foreign ground for the first time, I was 9.__________ (extreme) happy. I quickly had my first experience trying to communicate in 10.___________ language that I had only practised in school. As I left the airport, with one sharp turn, the Eiffel Tower came into view. I was fully in Paris.
阅读下面短文，从所给的四个选项（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。
Once, a professor held a test on his students. The professor started with the following question, “Now, you are going to cut trees on a hill. One of the trees has a big while the other’s small. Which will you cut?” The question got a quick , “Of course the big one! No need to .”
The professor , “The big tree is a poplar（白杨） seen everywhere, while the small one is a Korean pine. Consider again?” A second brought students more sense: a Korean pine is much more than the poplar, so they changed their decision. “ we’ll cut the pine. The poplar isn’t worth our .” Smile still on the professor’s face. “But the pine’s trunk is less than the poplar.” Rather puzzled, they became , then said, “While, we’ll cut the poplar.” The professor gave more detail. “ the poplar is straight, the trunk became empty within. Then what’s your choice?”
Finally one of the students lost his and said, “Professor, you have asked a series of questions leading us to change our answers . What do you want to after all?”
The professor’s smile . He said, “Why none of you ask me for what purpose to cut the tree? Though my questions all the way, they are decided by one thing: your to take the action. If it aims at making handicraft articles you may cut the pine; if you just want to have some firewood, you’d better cut the poplar.”
1.A. decide B. believe C. suppose D. communicate
2.A. trunk B. leaves C. root D. branch
3.A. show B. reply C. choice D. notice
4.A. intend B. worry C. mind D. consider
5.A. smiled B. upset C. ignored D. asked
6. A. especially B. commonly C. hardly D. completely
7.A. benefit B. design C. thought D. time
8.A. valuable B. enjoyable C. suitable D. reasonable
9. A. frequently B. particularly C. extremely D. Naturally
10.A. performance B. effort C. concern D. advantage
11. A. received B. arranged C. informed D. remained
12.A. straight B. twisted C. smart D. energetic
13.A. excited B. terrified C. hesitated D. disappointed
14.A. Whether B. Though C. Because D. However
15. A. memory B. temper C. patience D. way
16.A. frequently B. generally C. slowly D. suddenly
17.A. search B. refuse C. test D. accept
18. A. offered B. disappeared C. broke D. recognized
19.A. promise B. share C. declare D. vary
20.A. reflection B. explanation C. contribution D. motivation
How to Be Interesting
Everybody tries hard to be interesting and well-liked in his or her life. If you feel like you are boring or dull, don't fret (苦恼)! 1. Read this article to learn how.
2. The more you know about what is going on in the world, the more you can contribute to conversations. Interesting people are the ones who can bring something new to a conversation and share fun facts rather than just sitting there nodding. The more you learn, the better conversationalist you will become. So keep yourself educated by reading books and staying up-to-date with current events in the news and pop culture.
Create more stories to share. Interesting people always seem to have a lot going on in their lives. 3. . The best way to accumulate interesting stories is by travelling, constantly meeting new people, and putting yourself in new and interesting situations.
4. . Expand（扩展） your social circle by starting conversations with anyone and everyone. You never know when a stranger can turn into one of your new best friends! Give everybody you meet a chance to show you who they are, and welcome them into your life.
Be yourself. Remember that even though you may feel uninteresting, you are one-of-a-kind. Don't try to get attention by pretending to be somebody you are not, because eventually the truth will come out and you will seem like a dishonest person. 5. .Instead, learn to highlight (强调)your positive qualities and downplay（轻视）your negative ones.
A. The more you do，the more stories you will have to share with others.
B. Everyone has the potential to be interesting, regardless of how unexciting your life may seem.
C. Get to know new people.
D. Be busy with what you do.
E. Be educated.
F. Accept yourself.
G. Don’t hide who you are.
Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed Wednesday that the socialist path China has followed is "correct," and it is the choice of the “history and people.”
Citing(引用) the remarkable achievements China has made over the past 37 years when it initiated the reform and opening-up policy, Xi noted that it only took several decades for China to complete the journey the developed countries have gone through for centuries.
“That fully shows that the Chinese people are following a correct path,” the president said while addressing a banquet hosted by Lord Mayor of the City of London Alan Yarrow on Wednesday evening.
Meanwhile, he pledged that China will stay committed to a peaceful development path and does not accept the logic that a country will seek hegemony(霸权，领导权) once it gets strong.
“No one and nothing — in any reason — can influence China’s determination and will to pursue the path of peaceful development,” he said.
In his speech, the president also explained in detail about the development of friendly relations between China and Britain, citing tea culture, literature, movies, TV dramas, football and cultural exchanges.
He specifically referred to Shakespeare’s influence on him by sharing the story of his youth time in the countryside, when he was deeply attracted by the master’s works.
“The China-Britain friendship has been deeply rooted in the hearts of our two peoples. And there is a solid foundation in public opinion and in society for the two countries to grow long-term relations,” he added.
1. According to the passage we know that President Xi Jinping is paying a visit to _______.
A. the U.S.A B. Britain C. Canada D. Russia
2. Where can you probably NOT find this passage?
A. On the website B. In a magazine
C. In an essay D. In a newspaper
3.The underlined word “pledged” in Paragraph 4 could possibly be replaced by ___________.
A. predicted B. confirmed
C. announced D. promised
4.According to this passage, which of the following statements is NOT TRUE?
A. Xi mentioned tea culture to emphasize the importance of agriculture in friendship.
B. President Xi Jinping was very interested in Shakespeare's works when in the countryside.
C. The developed countries took hundreds of years to develop to the level that China is now at.
D. There exists a belief that China will seek hegemony once it gets strong.
You get anxious if there’s no wi-fi in the hotel or mobile phone signal up the mountain. You feel upset if your phone is getting low on power and you secretly worry things will go wrong at work if you’re not there. All these can be called “always on” stress caused by smart phone addiction.
For some people, smart phones have set them free from the nine-to-five work. Flexible working has given them more control over their working lives and enabled them to spend more time with their friends and families. For many others though, smart phones have become cruel masters in their pockets, never allowing them to turn them off and relax.
Pittsburgh-based developer Kevin Holesh was worried about how much he was ignoring his family and friends in favor of his iPhone. So he developed an app — Moment — to monitor his usage. The app enables users to see how much time they’re spending on the device and set up warnings if the usage limits are broken. “Moment’s goal is to promote balance in your life,” his website explains. “Some time on your phone, some time off it enjoying your loving family and friends around you.”
Dr. Christine Grant, an occupational psychologist at Coventry University, said, “The effects of this ‘always on’ culture are that your mind is never resting, and you’re not giving your body time to recover, so you’re always stressed. And the more tired and stressed we get, the more mistakes we make. Physical and mental health can suffer.”
And as the number of connected smart phones is increasing, so is the amount of data. This is leading to a sort of decision paralysis (瘫痪) and is creating more stress in the workplace because people have to receive a broader range of data and communications which are often difficult to manage. “It actually makes it more difficult to make decisions and many do less because they’re controlled by it all and feel they can never escape the office,” said Dr. Christine Grant.
1.What’s the first paragraph mainly about?
A. The popularity of smart phones.
B. The progress of modern technology.
C. The signs of “always on” stress.
D. The solutions of smart phone addiction.
2. Kevin Holesh developed Moment to __________.
A. research how people use their mobile phones
B. help people control their use of mobile phones
C. make people better use mobile phones
D. increase the fun of using mobile phones
3.What’s Dr. Christine Grant’s attitude towards “always on” culture?
A. Confused. B. Positive.
C. Doubtful. D. Critical.
4. According to the last paragraph, a greater amount of data means __________.
A. we will become less productive
B. we can make a decision more quickly
C. we will be equipped with more knowledge
D. we can work more effectively
My parents were in a huge argument, and I was really upset about it. I didn't know who I should talk with about how I was feeling. So I asked Mom to allow me to stay the night at my best friend's house. Though I knew I wouldn't tell her about my parents’ situation, I was looking forward to getting out of the house. I was in the middle of packing up my things when suddenly the power went out in the neighborhood. Mom came to tell me that I should stay with my grandpa until the power came back on.
I was really disappointed because I felt that we did not have much to talk about. But I knew he would be frightened alone in the dark. I went to his room and told him that I'd stay with him until the power was restored. He was quite happy and said, “Great opportunity.”
“What is it?” I asked.
“To talk, you and I” he said. “To hold a private little meeting about what we’re going to do with your mom and dad, and what we're going to do with ourselves now that we're in the situation we are in.”
“But we can't do anything about it. Grandpa,” I said, surprised that here was someone with whom I could share my feelings and someone who was in the same “boat” as I was.
And that's how the most unbelievable friendship between my grandfather and me started. Sitting in the dark, we talked about our feelings and fears of life — from how fast things change to how they sometimes don't change fast enough. That night, because the power went out, I found a new friend, with whom I could safely talk about all my fears and pains, whatever they may be. Suddenly, the lights all came back on. “Well,” he said, “I guess that means you'll want to go now. I really like our talk. I hope the power will go out every few nights!”
1.I wished to get out of the house because __________.
A. I was eager to have fun with my best friend
B. I found nobody to share my feelings with
C. I wanted to escape from the dark house
D. I planned to tell my friend about my trouble
2. Grandpa was happy to see me because __________.
A. he could discuss the problem with me
B. he had not seen me for a long lime
C. he was afraid of darkness
D. he felt quite lonely
3.What can be inferred from the passage?
A. The grandchild was eager to leave.
B. They would have more chats.
C. The lights would go out again.
D. It would no longer be dark.
