阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。
Many times we spare no effort at work, offering hours of overtime by ignoring our family life. We spend time1.people who we have nothing in common with, and attend social 2. (activity) we have no interest in. We always find ourselves living our lives in the way3. pleases and impresses others instead of being ourselves. In fact, for most of people, they only think about 4. (they) 99% of the time, and 5. (rare) give us a second thought, as a result of 6. we often end up unhappy and feeling out of place.
In view of this, it’s time to think about ourselves, our own family, and start creating a future which is7. (base) on our own likes and dislikes. Thus, think it over next time when we 8.(require) to work overtime. Trying to be a loving parent or good friend 9. (be) very likely to give us far more 10. (please) and a feeling of security, connection and belonging.
In a national spelling contest in America, an 11yearold girl was asked to spell a certain word. But with her ________ voice the judges were not sure if she spelled the word with the letter A or E. They talked it over and ________ decided to simply ask her what she had said. By now, the girl knew she had ________ the word. But instead of lying, she told the truth that she had said the ________ letter—so she lost the contest.
As the girl walked off the ________, the entire audience stood to their feet clapping to applaud her ________. Later, dozens of newspaper reporters wrote about this 11yearold girl’s honesty, even when it ________ her the contest. But the fact is that she ________ the biggest contest that day—the contest of her ________.
Probably the biggest test of our character is what we would do if we knew we would never get ________. This young girl could easily have ________ and nobody would have known it but herself. But that’s just it: she would know she did wrong. It’s been said, “If you ________, you make yourself cheap.” This young girl was strong and ________enough to prize her own conscience and character rather than the prize from a spelling ________. Her respect for herself was more important than any ________ others might give her for winning a contest. She knew she would have to live with herself and the ________ she made in that moment will have longlasting influence.
It’s so true that the choices you make today ________ what you are tomorrow. Our children will ________ our behavior much more than our advice. So if we want them to ________ to be honest, we must show them the way by being honest ourselves. Remember, our kids are ________ what we do and how we live even when we don’t think they see or know.
1.A.energetic B.slim C.attractive D.soft
2.A.finally B.approximately C.secretly D.totally
3.A.skipped B.mispronounced C.misspelled D.lost
4.A.correct B.wrong C.different D.same
5.A.stage B.studio C.test D.scene
6.A.bravery B.honesty C.courage D.patience
7.A.reserved B.cost C.offered D.wasted
8.A.achieved B.broke C.won D.defeated
9.A.reputation B.knowledge C.life D.character
10.A.paid B.awarded C.caught D.reported
11.A.escaped B.lied C.changed D.answered
12.A.count B.diet C.cheat D.insist
13.A.smart B.enthusiastic C.confused D.average
14.A.contest B.effect C.judge D.expert
15.A.sense B.pride C.respect D.awareness
16.A.plan B.conclusion C.discovery D.choice
17.A.make B.change C.keep D.create
18.A.suffer B.affect C.follow D.set
19.A.grow up B.bring up C.make up D.step up
20.A.recording B.examining C.correcting D.watching
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。High school can be quite the stressful time for any student. There are numerous stresses to deal with and the pressure can be more intense as you enter your senior year.1.The answer is as follows.2.Adjust your approach to your specific situation. For instance, if you’re active in your community and your school and have a large family, you may feel depressed by having all these people involved in your life on a daily basis.3.You just may need a moment to be alone and collect your thoughts before moving on to the challenges that face you.4.If your stress persists and you can’t figure out a way to handle it, you may want to try speaking to your school counselor(顾问). If you don’t feel comfortable speaking to your counselor, try getting some other types of counseling.Realize your limits, and plan around them. Don’t take on more than you can handle. If you take on too many things, you will be spread too thin and won’t be able to perform at your best in anything.5.You will definitely feel more at ease!
A. Seek professional counseling. |
B. Why does the stress come into being? |
C. Try thinking of alternative ways to deal with stress. |
D. When you feel relieved, you can have a happier life. |
E. Taking some time out to be alone may be the best way to handle such stress. |
F. But how on earth can you reduce some of the stress? |
G. Evaluate what tasks and activities are most important and leave others behind. |
An increase in students applying to study economics at university is being attributed to (归因于) the global economic crisis awakening a public thirst for knowledge about how the financial system works.
Applications for degree courses beginning this autumn were up by 15% this January, according to UCAS, the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service. A spokesman for the Royal Economic Society said applications to do economics at A-level were also up.
Professor John Beath, the president of the society and a leading lecturer at St Andrews University, said his first-year lectures --- which are open to students from all departments --- were drawing crowds of 400, rather than the usual 250.
“There are a large number of students who are not economics majors (专业), who would like to learn something about it. One of the things I have done this year is to relate my teaching to contemporary events in a way that one hasn’t traditionally done.” He said.
University applications rose by 7% last year, but there were rises above average in several subjects. Nursing saw a 15% jump, with people’s renewed interest in careers in the pubic sector (部门), which are seen as more secure in economic crisis.
A recent study showed almost two thirds of parents believed schools should do more to teach pupils about financial matters, and almost half said their children had asked them what was going on, although a minority (少数) of parents felt they did not understand it themselves well enough to explain.
Zack Hocking, the head of Child Trust Funds, said, “It’s possible that one good thing to arise from the downturn (低迷) will be a generation that’s financially wiser and better equipped to manage their money through times of economic uncertainty.”
1.Professor John Beath’s lectures are ______.
A.given in a traditional way
B.warmly received by economics
C.connected with the present situation
D.open to both students and their parents
2.Careers in the public sector are more attractive because of their _______.
A.higher pay
B.greater stability (稳定)
C.fewer applications
D.better reputation (名声)
3.In the opinion of most parents, ______.
A.economics should be the focus of school teaching
B.more students should be admitted to universities
C.children should solve financial problems themselves
D.the teaching of financial matters should be strengthened
4.What’s the main idea of the text?
A.Economics is attracting an increasing number of students.
B.Universities have received more applications.
C.College students benefit a lot from economic uncertainty.
D.Parents are concerned with children’s subject selection.
In 2013 Tallinn(爱沙尼亚首都塔林) became the world’s first capital city to offer people free public transport. Last year Estonia(爱沙尼亚) set the aim to become the first country with free public transport nationwide. Buses are now free of charge in 11 of its 15 counties.
Tallinn’s city government came up with the idea of free transport in 2008. Even though the city paid more than 70% of public-transport costs, ticket prices were still too high for poorer people. Crowdedness had also become a problem. Since 1991, the number of people owning cars has doubled.
Opponents(反对者) thought the idea unaffordable and critics(批评者) predicted the transport system would become overcrowded and lack money.
Surprisingly, public transport has improved, despite a €12 million hit to the system’s finances from lost ticket sales. Tallinn’s population has grown, leading to an increase in local tax intake. Additional revenu(财政收入) comes from tourists, who still have to buy tickets. The use of public transport in Tallinn has gone up by 10%, while the number of cars in the city has gone down by 10%, meaning less congestion.
Now other countries are looking at Estonia’s experience. Tallinn officials say they have had interest from France, Sweden, Poland, Italy and Germany. Other places have already introduced free public transport for certain groups or at certain times. In England 1/3 of all bus trips are fare-free especially for pensioners(领养老金者); Wales runs free travel at weekends to improve tourism. But so far full fare-free travel is rare. The city of Hasselt in Belgium ran free public transport for 16 years before reintroducing fares because of increasing costs.
1.Which of the following places offers full fare-free public transport?
A.Hasselt B.Estonia C.Wales D.Tallinn
2.What idea did the opponents and critics share about Tallinn’s free public transport?
A.The government wouldn’t have enough money to carry it out.
B.It wouldn’t help with the city’s over crowdedness.
C.It would lead to the heavy loss from ticket sales.
D.Years later the city would reintroduce fares from people.
3.What does the underlined word in paragraph 4 mean?
A.pollution B.population C.crowdedness D.income
4.Why do you think so many countries show interest in Estonia’s experience?
A.It offers more job opportunities for people.
B.It helps to solve the traffic problem in cities.
C.It encourages people to stop driving.
D.It attracts more tourists to take buses.
Imagine a cat that does not need someone to clean up after it keeps an older people company and helps them remember to take their medicine. That is the shared dream of the toy maker Hasbro and scientists at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. The researchers received a $ 3-million-dollar from the National Science Foundation for a special project. They want to find ways to add artificial intelligence, or AI, to Hasbro’s “Joy for All” robotic cat.
The cat has already been for sale for two years. Though priced at over 1,000 dollars, it sold quite well. It was meant to act as a “companion”(陪伴) for older people. Now the project is aimed at developing additional abilities for the cat. Researchers are working to decide which activities older adults may need the most. They hope to make the cat perform a small number of activities very well. Such activities include finding lost objects and reminding the older people to take medicine or visit their doctor. They also want to keep the cost down to just a few hundred dollars.
It is an idea that has appealed (有吸引力) to Jeanne Elliott. Her 93-year-old mother Mary Derr lives with her in South Kingstown. Derr has dementia (痴呆). The Joy for All cat that Elliot bought this year has become a true companion for Derr. The cat stays with Derr and keeps her relaxed while Elliott is at work. Elliot said a robotic cat that helps her mother to remember to take her medicine and be careful when she walks would be greater.
The researchers are trying to learn how the improved cats will complete helpful activities and how they will communicate. They say that they do not want a talking cat, however. Instead they are trying to design a cat that can move its head in a special way to successfully communicate its message. In the end, they hope to create an exchange between the human and the cat in which the human feels the cat needs them. By doing so, the researchers hope they can even help prevent feelings of loneliness and sadness among elderly people.
1.What’s the purpose of the project?
A.To reduce the pain of the elderly.
B.To increase the sales of a medicine.
C.To help make the robotic cat smarter.
D.To invent a robotic cat for the elderly.
2.What can we know about the cat?
A.It will be on sale in two years.
B.It may be cheaper in the future.
C.Its abilities will be made simpler for the elderly.
D.It can tell the activities that older adults need the most.
3.What does the example in Paragraph 3 show?
A.The cat gives much help to the elderly.
B.The cat works well to talk with the patient.
C.The cat can make the dementia patient less painful.
D.The cat should be designed to satisfy patients’ need.
4.What can we infer from the last paragraph?
A.Each family can afford such a cat in the future.
B.A talking cat is quite popular among the elderly.
C.Feelings of sadness among the elderly are unavoidable.
D.The feeling of being needed is important to the elderly.
