It was a cold and dark winter night. A town, in Wenchuang County, one of the worst ______ areas in the earthquake on May 12, 2008, was extremely quiet except that the sound of ______ came out of a small house. This was not an ordinary house ______ a community KTV set up by a young man in late September.
Ever since its opening, it has become a place for local people to heal their ______. From sentimental(伤感的) love songs to happy pop songs, singing has become part of the long and hard process of easing people back to a ______ life.
The young man still remembers the KTV’s early days. The rooms were ______ on the opening day and many people chose to ______ the whole night. In the following four months, the KTV has ______ nearly all the local people and those from nearby temporary(暂时的) ______. Many couldn’t help ______ as they sang their favourite songs.
The young man may not have known their names, but he ______ their sorrow and relief. He remembers one young woman who ______ many times with her friends. When she first visited, she sat alone in the corner without saying a word, staying ______ all night. She finally chose a heartbreaking love songs, Be Your Lover, and her cheeks were ______ in tears as she sang.
Later, he learned that the woman was in great ______ because of her husband’s death. The young woman would regularly visit the KTV and sing the same love song. Every time she cried ______.
“But recently, I saw ______ of her and on the last two occasions she didn’t sing the ______ song,” he recalls. “I hope that she is ______ and stepping out of the shadow(阴影).”
The young man himself lost his parents in the earthquake, so when people expressed their emotions, he sat quietly in the corner, listening to their ______ and watching people change from weak to strong.
It was deep in earthquake-affected Wenchuan that grief-stricken townsfolk discovered how the simple act of singing could help heal their souls.
1.A.broken B.injured C.hurt D.stricken
2.A.joy B.shout C.music D.laughter
3.A.so B.but C.or D.and
4.A.souls B.injuries C.illnesses D.feelings
5.A.normal B.peaceful C.simple D.hard
6.A.flowed B.surrounded C.covered D.packed
7.A.perform B.stay C.relax D.rest
8.A.attracted B.satisfied C.amazed D.invited
9.A.stations B.hotels C.shelters D.blocks
10.A.trembling B.crying C.leaving D.dancing
11.A.shared B.suffered C.removed D.expressed
12.A.went back B.walked about C.came around D.tried out
13.A.upset B.excited C.frightened D.sorrowful
14.A.trapped B.sunk C.bathed D.hidden
15.A.danger B.terror C.trouble D.pain
16.A.bitterly B.quietly C.gently D.regretfully
17.A.much B.less C.more D.fewer
18.A.same B.favourite C.latest D.popular
19.A.changing B.growing C.struggling D.recovering
20.A.stories B.opinions C.songs D.experiences
When we are grown-ups, it’s quite natural to look back on our different stages of life and remember who was there to see us through. 1. While some people’s high school friendships gradually end, mine have struck with me through every bit of life since. And I suppose high school friends are the friends you’ll build the strongest relationships with.
2. Whether it is the bad haircut or the braces(牙箍) you wear, your high school friends help you through it all. They tell you that you look wonderful when you cannot go out in public with that hairdo. 3.
They understand the most about you. High school friends know you better than anyone else. They can just look at you and know how you’re feeling. You cannot hide much from them. 4. And they’d rather help deal with the problem at hand than let it go. So even when you don’t want to hear it, prepare yourself ----because they’re not going to stop trying until you’re back to your normal yourself.
They make for the best reunion. Reunions are harder to organize when friends live across the country. However, with high school friends, it’s easy to enjoy the time together----you can often pick up just where you left off, no matter how long ago that was. Friendships can be hard to keep. 5.
A. We could depend on our friends all the time.
B. They are with you through your embarrassing stages.
C. They can sense something is off when you’re the slightest bit strange.
D. For me, I often think about my fantastic group of high school friends.
E. They build up your self-confidence to get you through each tough situation.
F. Let’s pray the flower of friendship would always bloom brightly in our hearts.
G. But it never seems like hard with the ones you’ve known and loved for long.
You may not like it, but learning English is absolutely necessary if you want to succeed abroad. Not just that, you have to show your knowledge of the English language on one of the two major English proficiency(精通) tests: the IELTS or the TOEFL.
Which test you should take depends on your goal. The TOEFL remains the top exam in the U.S. But the IELTS is gaining ground in the U.S. and it has already been the preferred test in the U.K. and Australia. There are also differences in the test themselves. They both measure the four main language requirements: speaking, reading, writing and listening. However, the tests are very different in their forms and methodology. “Compared with the TOEFL, the IELTS test requires you to actually have a grasp of the language and ability to use it, rather than simply being well prepared for the test,” explained IELTS examiner Julian Fisher.
The key reasons for this are that the IELTS test requires fill-in answers besides multiple choice(选择题), and its speaking section is done with a real examiner instead of a computer. “The face-to-face interview with a trained speaker of English allows for real-life communication, which shows real academic(学业的) and workplace situations, ” said senior exam marketing officer Pang Shuai.
What scores do I need? For the IELTS, a band score of 5 to 7 is fine for the majority of undergraduate and post-graduate programs. For top schools, you will probably need at least a 7. When it comes to the TOEFL , there is a range. It all depends on the colleges. Ordinary schools will let you get by with a score as low as 60. For a top-tier university, on the other hand, you will need to score upward of 100 points on your TOEFL.
1.What does Paragraph 2 suggest?
A.The TOEFL score is preferred in Australian universities.
B.Universities in the U.K. mainly see students’ IELTS scores.
C.The IELTS is more widely accepted than the TOEFL by US. School.
D.In the U.S., the TOEFL score is not as important as it once was.
2.Which of the following is a difference between the TOEFL and the IELTS?
A.There are no fill-in answers in the TOEFL tests.
B.The IELTS tests focus more on test-taking skills.
C.The IELTS interviews test-takers on the computer.
D.The TOEFL checks four English skills, while the IELTS doesn’t.
3.What does Pang Shuai think of the face-to-face interview?
A.More exams should take this exam form.
B.It is helpful in one’s studies and at work.
C.This exam form can make test-takers more relaxed.
D.A test-taker can score high simply by preparing well.
4.Which of the following is correct if you want to go to a top university in the U.K. or U.S.?
A.A 7 on the IELTS is probably a must.
B.A score of 60 on the TOEFL is enough.
C.You should take both the TOEFL and the IELTS.
D.You need a 7.5 on the IELTS for post-graduate programs.
The United States Capitol Dome in Washington, D.C., is recognized around the world as a symbol of the U.S. government. Since last November, the dome has been surrounded by metal poles, or scaffolding(脚手架), and heavy cloth as part of a repair project.
The last major repair work on the U.S. Capitol took place in 1960. Since then, the dome has become weathered and worn. The Architect of the Capitol group reports the dome has more than 1,000 narrow breaks in its surface and other damage.
The dome was completed around 1863. U.S. Senate Historian Don Ritchie says the dome’s cast iron frame(铸铁钢架) is at special risk of weathering. “The capitol dome, being cast iron, has been hit by lightning countless times. And so the present construction(=building) is to repair the leaks, to fill in the cracks, to take off unnecessary layers of paint.”
Workers are removing old paint. They covered a large part of the building in plastic and a special cloth to protect workers from the wind and other elements. Much of the work is done at night, when lawmakers are not in the building.
Some recent visitors to the Capitol were unhappy about its present appearance. They had hoped to get a picture of the usually shining dome. Joyce said, “It was dramatic, and very fantastic, and all white, but when I come here today, it is under construction so my family cannot see it clearly. It is kind of a disappointment.”
Others were more understanding of the repairs. Rick Jones, another visitor, said, “It’s a little inconvenient for us not to see the dome but you have to think about the future and the people will be coming to this place for centuries...and you know, there just needs to be preventive maintenance(保养). I am not upset with that at all.”
The project is expected to take more than two years to complete. The dome should be ready for the inauguration of a new president in January 2017.
1.We can learn from the passage that the United States Capitol Dome is ______.
A.worn by exposure to the weather
B.surrounded by many repair projects
C.well kept and in excellent condition
D.regarded as a symbol of the U.K. government
2.According to Don Ritchie, the present repair work involves ______.
a. stopping the leaks
b. changing the frame
c. removing the old paints
d. replacing the lights e. filling the narrow breaks
A.abc B.bcd
C.bde D.ace
3.Which of the following can describe the recent visitors to the Capitol Dome?
A.They could get a clear look at the dome.
B.They were impressed by the white dome’s fantastic beauty.
C.They held different views on the Capitol’s current appearance.
D.They were all disappointed at the sight of the Capitol building.
4.The underlined word “inauguration” in the last paragraph most probably means _____.
A.tour B.taking office
C.interview D.taking photos
Stan Lee, co-founder of the Marvel Universe(漫威宇宙) and co-creator of many of its most popular superheroes, died at the age of 95.
Lee was born Stanley Martin Lieber in New York in 1992. As a son of working-class Jewish immigrants from Romania, times were hard and he lived with his family in a shabby single-bedroom apartment. After graduating from high school at 16, Lieber landed a job as an assistant at Timely Comics. By the early 1940s, he was a temporary editor for the company. It was at this time that he began using his pen name--Stan Lee. In 1947, two years after returning from serving for the U.S. Army, Lee married his wife, Joan. The two began their 70-year marriage and had two children.
In the late 1950s, DC Comics breathed new life into its classic superhero and experienced a significant success with its updated version of the Flash, and later with super-team the Justice League(正义联盟) of America.
To compete against DC Comics, Lee was given the task of creating their own group of superheroes. In 1961, Timely Comics changed its name into Marvel Comics after Atlas Comics, and that November saw the debut(首次亮相) of the Fantastic Four. Lee’s later famous and lasting creations of comic-book superheroes included Spider-Man, the Hulk, Thor, Iron Man and the X-men.
Over the course of his career, Lee was an icon of Marvel Comics. As a writer and editor and, at various points, both the publisher and vice president of Marvel Comics, Lee not only introduced interesting characters to the industry, but changed the way that comic books came together. He also created a cooperative workflow between writers and artists, which became known as the “Marvel Method”. Lee received a National Medal of Arts in 2008 for his innovations that revolutionized (=completely changed) American comic books.
1.What do we know about Lee from paragraph 2?
A.He served for the U.S. Army for two years.
B.He suffered from an unfortunate marriage.
C.He had a tough and struggling childhood.
D.He adopted his pen name at the age of 16.
2.What was the company called when Spider-Man was created?
A.Timely Comics. B.Marvel Comics.
C.Atlas Comics. D.DC Comics.
3.What does the underlined word “icon” in the last paragraph?
A.Theme. B.Character.
C.Assistant. D.Symbol.
4.What can be the best title for the text?
A.Stan Lee, the Godfather of Marvel Comics.
B.The Development of Marvel Comics.
C.Stan Lee, a Superhero in Comic Books.
D.The Popular Superheroes of Marvel Comics.
Frances Stevens Reese Wooldland Trail Guide
The Woodland Trail was opened to the public on October 21, 1997. Boscobel’s Board of Directors adopted a formal decision of naming the Woodland Trail in honor of former Boscobel board member, Fances Stevens Reese (1917-2003), one year after his death.
The trail(小径) is approximately 10 miles in length, leading down to Constitution Forest. When the West Point Glass Factory was operating during the Civil War, trees for miles around were cleared to provide firewood. Walking out of the forest, you will find a large mass of native hard rock about three billion years old.
Throughout this country path, you will find picture boards identifying birds and plants local to this region. You will also find signs with historic and environmental information written by area specialists.
When you take a walk through this “undiscovered” forest land, please be a considerate guest.
Before walking the trail, please purchase a pass in the Carriage House. Plan ahead, so you will be back by closing time.
Follow the trail markers and remain on the trail. Besides protecting the fragile forest ecosystem, you will reduce the risk of poison plants and snakes.
Leave rocks, plants, animals and art works where you see them so that the person behind you can have the same experience.
Carry out whatever you carry in because there are no rubbish containers on the trail. If you happen to see a piece of litter, be a good guest and pick it up.
1.When was the trail named to honor Frances Stevens Reese?
A. In 1997. B. In 1917
C. In 2003 D. In 2004
2.What can you see along the trail?
A. An old battle field. B. A glass factory.
C. Information signs. D. Rock houses.
3.What should you do as a thoughtful visitor?
A. Leave the wildlife undisturbed.
B. Throw the rubbish into the dustbins.
C. Make reservations in the Carriage House.
D. Protect the markers of the Woodland Trail.
