In the middle of a hot July afternoon, I became a thief of some sort — a thief of music.
For the first time, I created an original piano arrangement of one of my favorite songs. Using only my ears and iPad, I transformed a mix of sounds and melodies into the tones of a single instrument; I created complex harmonies (和声) and voices into something I could perform with only two hands. No help, no guide — I did it on my own.
I've been a pianist since my hands grew big enough to touch the piano. With my father as a musician, I was all but born on the piano bench. For many years, my musical identity was defined by the notes that others had written in the past centuries: elegant lines of neatly printed notes stamped across the sheet music became the script I had to perform. I valued classical music — adored it — but I felt such performances were shallow. I had nothing of my own to contribute to the masterful compositions of Bach or Rachmaninov.
This was why, when I put the finishing touches to my piano version of a modem song, my pride was glorious: this arrangement was mine. What I'd done seemed magical: an ability to take what had already existed — to "steal" a song from my favorite band — and to change it into something different all on my own. I was a thief but I was also an artist.
In music, as in other aspects of life, I believe that true originality rarely exists. Almost everything has been done before, in one form or another. The most passionate romance novel may be a slightly changed version of a play written by Shakespeare, which in turn was borrowed from the writers of Ancient Greece: the same themes, different characters, and different circumstances. But the novel no less deserves praise just because its uniqueness is compromised.
The gift of creativity is just like the ability to do what I did on the piano: to find out something beautiful, to analyze and change it and lose yourself in the mystery of its composition, and then to make it new. Such an act is not copying; it is finding inspiration and having the strength and the innovation to use it as fuel for your own masterpiece.
1.Why did the author create the piano arrangement?
A.Because he was not satisfied with the old one.
B.Because he wanted to create music of his own.
C.Because he was tired of his father's music-teaching method.
D.Because he wanted to show respect for Bach and Rachmaninov.
2.By mentioning Shakespeare, the author wants to tell us______.
A.there is no true creativity in music.
B.Shakespeare9s plays are totally original.
C.many of Shakespeare,s plays deserve no praise.
D.originality is connected with what has already existed.
3.We can conclude from the passage that______.
A.creativity is to find something beautiful.
B.adaptation has nothing to do with creativity.
C.a masterpiece can be a changed version of an existed work.
D.common people don't have the ability to create something new.
假定你是学生李津。你的美国朋友Tom在给你的邮件中提到他对中国的移动 支付（mobile payment）很感兴趣，请你给Tom回复邮件并做简要介绍。内容包括：
1. 目前中国使用移动支付的情况；
2. 移动支付的好处；
3. 你对移动支付的看法。
注意：（1）词数不少于120；
（2）可适当加入细节，使内容充实、行文连贯：
（3）回邮开头及结尾己为你写好，不计入词数。
参考词汇：微信：WeChat；支付宝：Alipay；二维码：QR code
Dear Tom,
In you letter you asked about mobile payment in China.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Jin
阅读下面短文，按照要求用英语回答问题。
My name is Brooke Parsons, and the story of my life is different. One day, in April, 1993, I was home alone when I had a stroke. When my parents came home, they took me to the hospital to learn what lay ahead for all of us. The stroke has left me with permanent brain damage. The doctors suggested I quit school. However, I chose the opposite.
After returning to high school, I learned very slowly. I had to decide whether or not to complete the twelfth grade in 2 years. Thinking I would fail if I chose to do it in one year, finally I made my decision. The staff at school were very supportive and helped me through the rough times. Finally, I graduated from high school. Graduating from high school was a huge achievement for me. That was an opportunity for me to be really proud of just how far I had come with all the odds I had to beat.
I can now walk, talk, dress myself, feed myself and be the independent person I am today. I have achieved my VCE and I am now at university, studying to be a social worker. I have been a scholarship winner. I have become a life-long member of the local musical band. All of these achievements are beyond my imagination. Now I am even in a novel called Second Chances by Neil Mitchall.
I could have easily listened to the doctors when I first had my stroke, but I decided I was going to prove them wrong as they did not know me, nor did they know just how determined I would be.
It’s a big world out there. I have done and achieved so much and never once will I allow the odds to get the better of me, as there is still a whole lot more things out there for me to do. I love life and I am living it to the maximum
1.How was the author affected by the stroke? (no more than 6 words)
2.What decision did he make after returning to school? (no more than 10 words)
3.What did the authors efforts bring him? (no more than 10 words)
4.What does the underlined sentence in the last paragraph mean? (no more than 10 words)
5.What do you think of the author and why? (no more than 20 words)
One might expect that the evergrowing demands of the tourist trade would bring nothing but good for the countries that receive the holidaymakers. Indeed, a rosy picture is painted for the longterm future of the holiday industry. Every month sees the building of a new hotel somewhere. And every month another rockbound Pacific island is advertised as the ‘last paradise(天堂) on earth’．
However, the scale and speed of this growth seem set to destroy the very things tourists want to enjoy. In those countries where there was a rush to make quick money out of seaside holidays, overcrowded beaches and the concrete jungles of endless hotels have begun to lose their appeal.
Those countries with little experience of tourism can suffer most. In recent years, Nepal set out to attract foreign visitors to fund developments in health and education. Its forests, full of wildlife and rare flowers, were offered to tourists as one more untouched paradise. In fact, the nature all too soon felt the effects of thousands of holidaymakers traveling through the forest land. Ancient tracks became major routes for the walkers, with the consequent exploitation of precious trees and plants.
Not only can the environment of a country suffer from the sudden growth of tourism. The people as well rapidly feel its effects. Farmland makes way for hotels, roads and airports; the old way of life goes. The onetime farmer is now the servant of some multinational organization; he is no longer his own master. Once it was his back that bore the pain; now it is his smile that is exploited. No doubt he wonders whether he wasn't happier in his village working his own land.
Thankfully, the tourist industry is waking up to the responsibilities it has towards those countries that receive its customers. The protection of wildlife and the creation of national parks go hand in hand with tourist development and in fact obtain financial support from tourist companies. At the same time, tourists are being encouraged to respect not only the countryside they visit but also its people.
The way tourism is handled in the next ten years will decide its fate and that of the countries we all want to visit. Their needs and problems are more important than those of the tourist companies. Increased understanding in planning worldwide tourism can preserve the market for these companies. If not, in a few years' time the very things that attract tourists now may well have been destroyed.
1.What does the author indicate in the last sentence of Paragraph 1?
A.The Pacific island is a paradise.
B.The Pacific island is worth visiting.
C.The advertisement is not convincing.
D.The advertisement is not impressive.
2.The example of Nepal is used to suggest ________.
A.its natural resources are untouched
B.its forests are exploited for farmland
C.it develops well in health and education
D.it suffers from the heavy flow of tourists
3.What can we learn about the farmers from Paragraph 4?
A.They are happy to work their own lands.
B.They have to please the tourists for a living.
C.They have to struggle for their independence.
D.They are proud of working in multinational organizations.
4.Which of the following determines the future of tourism?
A.The number of tourists.
B.The improvement of services.
C.The promotion of new products.
D.The management of tourism.
5.The author's attitude towards the development of the tourist industry is ________.
A.optimistic B.doubtful
C.objective D.negative
San Francisco has its cable cars. Seattle has its Space Needle. And, Longview has its squirrel bridge. The bridge, which has attracted international attention, is now a local landmark.
The Nutty Narrows Bridge was built in 1963 by a local builder, Amos Peters, to give squirrels a way to cross the busy road without getting flattened by passing cars.
The original bridge was built over Olympia Way on the west edge of the library grounds. Before the bridge was built, squirrels had to avoid traffic to and from the Park Plaza office building where office staff put out a nutty feast for the squirrels. Many times, Peters and others who worked in and near Park Plaza witnessed squirrels being run over.
One day Peters found a dead squirrel with a nut still in its mouth, and that day’s coffee break discussion turned into squirrel safety. The group of businessmen cooked up the squirrel bridge idea and formed a committee to ask the blessing of the City Council(市政会).The Council approved, and Councilwoman Bess LaRiviere named the bridge “Nutty Narrows.”
After architects designed the bridge, Amos Peters and Bill Hutch started Construction, They built the 60-foot bridge from aluminum and lengths of fire hose(消防水带). It cost 1,000.
It didn’t take long before reports of squirrels using the bridge started. Squirrels were even seen guiding their young and teaching them the ropes. The story was picked up by the media, and Nutty Narrows became know in newspapers all over the world.
In 1983, after 20 years of use, Peters took down the worn-out bridge. Repairs were made and crosspieces were replaced. The faded sign was repainted and in July 1983, hundreds of animal lovers attended the completion ceremony of the new bridge.
Peters died in 1984, and a ten-foot wooden squirrel sculpture was placed near the bridge in memory of its builder and his devotion to the project.
1.The Nutty Narrows Bridge was built in order to ________.
A.offer squirrels a place to eat nuts
B.set up a local landmark
C.help improve traffic
D.protect squirrels
2.What happened over the coffee break discussion?
A.The committee got the Council’s blessing.
B.The squirrel bridge idea was born
C.A councilwoman named the bridge
D.A squirrel was found dead.
3.What does the underlined phrase “teaching them the ropes” probably means in the text?
A.passing them a rope
B.Directing them to store food for winter
C.Teaching them a lesson
D.Showing them how to use the bridge.
4.Which of the following is true of the squirrel bridge?
A.It was replaced by a longer one.
B.It was built from wood and metal
C.it was rebuilt after years of use
D.It was designed by Bill Hutch.
5.What can we learn about Amos Peters?
A.He is remembered for his love of animals.
B.He donated $1,000 to build the bridge
C.He was a member of the City Council
D.He was awarded a medal for building the bridge.
In my living room, there is a plaque (匾) that advises me to “Bloom (开花) where you are planted.” It reminds me of Dorothy. I got to know Dorothy in the early 1980s, when I was teaching Early Childhood Development through a program with Union College in Barbourville, Kentucky. The job responsibilities required occasional visits to the classroom of each teacher in the program. Dorothy stands out in my memory as one who “bloomed” in her remote area.
Dorothy taught in a school In Harlan County, Kentucky, Appalachian Mountain area. To get to her school from the town of Harlan, I followed a road winding around the mountain. In the eight-mile journey, I crossed the same railroad track five times, giving the possibility of getting caught by the same train five times. Rather than feeling excited by this drive through the mountains, I found it depressing. The poverty level was shocking and the small shabby houses gave me the greatest feeling of hopelessness.
From the moment of my arrival at the little school, all gloom (忧郁) disappeared. Upon arriving at Dorothy’s classroom. I was greeted with smiling faces and treated like a queen. The children had been prepared to show me their latest projects. Dorothy told me with a big smile that they were serving poke greens salad and cornbread for “dinner” (lunch). In case you don’t know, poke greens are a weed-type plant that grows wild, especially on poor ground.
Dorothy never ran out of reports of exciting activities of her students. Her enthusiasm never cooled down. When it came time to sit for the testing and interviewing required to receive her Child Development Associate Certification, Dorothy was ready. She came to the assessment and passed in all areas. Afterward, she invited me to the one-and-only steak house in the area to celebrate her victory, as if she had received her Ph. D. degree. After the meal, she placed a little box containing an old pen in my hand. She said it was a family heirloom (传家宝), but to me it is a treasured symbol of appreciation and pride that cannot be matched with things. (360 words)
1.“Early Childhood Development” in Paragraph 1 refers to __________.
A.a program directed by Dorothy
B.a course given by the author
C.an activity held by the students
D.an organization sponsored by Union college
2.In the journey, the author was most disappointed at seeing __________.
A.the long track B.the poor houses
C.the same train D.the winding road
3.Upon arriving at the classroom, the author was cheered up by __________.
A.a warm welcome B.the sight of poke greens
C.Dorothy’s latest projects D.a big dinner made for her
4.What can we know about Dorothy from the last paragraph?
A.She was invited to a celebration at a restaurant.
B.She got a pen as a gift from the author.
C.She passed the required assessment.
D.She received her Ph. D. degree.
5.What does the author mainly intend to tell us?
A.Whatever you do, you must do it carefully.
B.Whoever you are, you deserve equal treatment.
C.However poor you are, you have the right to education,
D.Wherever you are, you can accomplish your achievement.
