It’s been a long time since I wrote a creative essay. Recently, with lots of time and lack of inspiration, I accepted a _________ to teach creative nonfiction. _________ I couldn’t get myself to write my own stories. I could require that my students tell theirs.
“You’re going to be _________ a journal in this class.” I said. “And I want you to tell your stories like they matter.”
“Why do they matter?” a boy named Michael asked. “I mean, who _________ about our stories?”
No one said a wont. Perhaps they were just tired from their _________ lives. Many worked full-time while in school full-time. Most might not have the faintest _________ that their stories did matter. They didn’t even know that their stories were stories — as beautiful and hard — as their own lives.
_______, I looked at Michael. “They matter because they do.” I said. “Because you’re here and you can tell them. Stories allow us to make _________ of what we’re _________. When you __________ your experience into a story, it becomes yours and not just something that __________ to you.”
Michael didn’t look __________, but he didn’t challenge me either.
Later, Michael wrote about how he grew up in one of the worst neighborhoods in Boston and how his high school teacher, who saw his __________, helped him fill out a college application.
I __________ Michael to read his essay out loud. After he finished, the class went so __________ that we could hear the sound of each other’s breath. I looked at Michael and saw a softening and __________ in his eyes.
After a moment, I said, “That’s __________ you tell your stories.” That night, I picked up my journal from where it __________, dusty and __________. For the first time in months. I had __________ to write.
1.A.business B.view C.reward D.position
2.A.Although B.As C.Unless D.Before
3.A.publishing B.keeping C.updating D.reading
4.A.worries B.talks C.reads D.cares
5.A.beautiful B.secret C.busy D.simple
6.A.dream B.hobby C.picture D.idea
7.A.Happily B.Angrily C.Firmly D.Sadly
8.A.meaning B.notice C.fun D.use
9.A.set about B.gone through C.looked for D.taken on
10.A.shape B.take C.break D.treat
11.A.came B.fell C.worked D.happened
12.A.moved B.convinced C.confused D.embarrassed
13.A.poverty B.fortune C.potential D.sorrow
14.A.asked B.helped C.forced D.allowed
15.A.still B.concerned C.disappointed D.excited
16.A.truth B.doubt C.faith D.weakness
17.A.how B.when C.because D.why
18.A.started B.lay C.went D.hid
19.A.new B.packed C.untouched D.torn
20.A.time B.inspiration C.strength D.right
Questions to ask yourself before making a big decision
Life is packed with decisions, big and small. If you feel a big decision is appearing in your life, don’t hide! Ask yourself these questions to get clear on what’s the right choice for you.
How committed am I to this change?
Rate your level of commitment on a scale out of 10. 1. Is your level of commitment higher than a 7? That’s great data for your decision!
Is this decision in line with my long-term goal?
2. Write down your goals. Then think about how this decision plays into that longer-term plan.
3.
This is one of my favorite questions! If something is stirring(搅动) within you --- a creative idea, a calling to move somewhere new, a desire to end a relationship --- what are you giving up when you don’t do it? What might you be missing out on in your life if you do nothing?
Is now the right time?
Bear in mind: 4. But there are few real reasons we ever need to delay making a big one when it presents itself. Remember, life is always uncertain and time waits for no one.
Making a big decision doesn’t have to be so difficult. There are no right or wrong answers, or right or wrong ways to live your life. 5. Your inner wisdom has the answers. So get busy asking the person who knows best --- you.
A. What is the risk of not doing it?
B. How long have I been thinking about his?
C. Not all decisions need to be made immediately.
D. Think about the amount of work, effort and time you’d have to put in.
E. We always want to know what we need to do next.
F. You don’t have to ask other people what they think.
G. Ask yourself: What do I want five even ten years from now?
Artificial intelligence can predict when patients with a heart disorder will die, according to scientists.
The software learned to analyze blood tests and scans of beating hearts to spot signs that the organ was about to fail. The team, from the UK’s Medical Research Council, said the technology could save lives by finding patients that need more aggressive treatment. The results were published in the Journal of Radiology.
According to the researchers, high blood pressure in the lungs damages part of the heart, and about a third of patients die within five years after being diagnosed. There are treatments: drugs, injections straight into the blood vessels, a lung transplant. But doctors need to have an idea of how long patients might have left, in order to pick the right treatment.
The software was given scans of 256 patients’ hearts, and blood test results. When this data was combined with eight years of patient health records, the artificial intelligence predicted when patients would die.
The software could look about five years into the future. It correctly predicted those who would still be alive after one year about 80% of the time. The figure for doctors is 60%.
The team now want to test the software works in other patients in different hospitals before assessing whether it should be made widely available to doctors. The researchers also want to use the technology in other forms of heart failure, such as cardiomyopathy, to see who might need a pacemaker or other forms of treatment.
Dr Mike Knapton, from the British Heart Foundation, said, “This exciting use of computer software in medical practice will help doctors in the future to make sure that patients are receiving the correct treatment before the condition deteriorates and leaves them needing a lung transplant. The next step is to test this technology in more hospitals with heart disease.”
1.What can artificial intelligence do according to the passage?
A.Predicting how long a person with heart disease can survive.
B.Helping doctors diagnose people with heart disease.
C.Obeying orders and reminding heart disease patients to take pills.
D.Producing medicine without side effects for heart disease patients.
2.What can we know about the software from the passage?
A.It can make accurate long-term predictions.
B.It has not yet been widely put into use.
C.It can prevent high blood pressure in the lungs damaging part of the heart.
D.It can help doctors make sure that patients are receiving the correct treatment.
3.The underlined word “deteriorates” in the last paragraph probably means “________.”
A.continues B.worsens
C.exists D.improves
4.The author’s purpose of writing the text is most likely to _________.
A.advertise B.persuade
C.inform D.entertain
In modern society there is a great deal of argument about competition. Some value it highly, believing that it is responsible for social progress and prosperity. Others say that competition is bad; that it sets one person against another; that it leads to unfriendly relationship between people.
I have taught many children who held the belief that their selfworth relied on how well they performed at tennis and other skills. For them, playing well and winning are often lifeanddeath affairs. In their singleminded pursuit of success, the development of many other human qualities is sadly forgotten.
However, while some seem to be lost in the desire to succeed, others take an opposite attitude. In a culture which values only the winner and pays no attention to the ordinary players, they strongly blame competition. Among the most vocal are youngsters who have suffered under competitive pressures from their parents or society. Teaching these young people, I often observe in them a desire to fail. They seem to seek failure by not trying to win or achieve success. By not trying, they always have an excuse: “I may have lost, but it doesn't matter because I really didn't try.” What is not usually admitted by themselves is the belief that if they had really tried and lost, that would mean a lot. Such a loss would be a measure of their worth. Clearly, this belief is the same as that of the true competitors who try to prove themselves. Both are based on the mistaken belief that one's selfrespect relies on how well one performs in comparison with others. Both are afraid of not being valued. Only as this basic and often troublesome fear begins to dissolve can we discover a new meaning in competition.
1.What does this passage mainly talk about?
A.Competition helps to set up selfrespect.
B.Opinions about competition are different among people.
C.Competition is harmful to personal quality development.
D.Failures are necessary experiences in competition.
2.The underlined phrase “the most vocal” in Paragraph 3 means ________.
A.those who try their best to win
B.those who value competition most highly
C.those who are against competition most strongly
D.those who rely on others most for success
3.What is the similar belief of the true competitors and those with a “desire to fail”？
A.One's worth lies in his performance compared with others'.
B.One's success in competition needs great efforts.
C.One's achievement is determined by his particular skills.
D.One's success is based on how hard he has tried.
4.Which point of view may the author agree to?
A.Every effort should be paid back.
B.Fear of failure should be removed in competition.
C.Winning should be a lifeanddeath matter.
D.Competition should be encouraged.
On the day the tornado hit, there was no sign severe weather was on its way—the sky was blue and the sun had been out. My husband Jimmy and I were watching TV upstairs.
No sooner had we got the coverage of the tornado than it was on top of us. It was the loudest thing I have ever heard. The bones of the house shook, and the power went out. We had three flights of steps to get through to get to the relative safety of the first floor.
As we struggled to reach the last flight of steps, our front door blew out. Pieces of glass that looked like crushed ice flew everywhere. Suddenly, a three-foot-long tree branch flew over our heads, missing us by inches. Had we been one step up, it would have impaled us.
By the time I reached the closet, Jimmy pushed me down to the closet floor, but he couldn’t get inside himself because of the wind. I grasped Jimmy’s arm and tried to bring Jimmy with it. My knees and head were full of glass, but in that moment, I felt no pain. If I had let go, Jimmy would have flown right out the back of the house and into the bay.
“Hold on! Hold on!” he yelled. But there was nothing in this closet to hold on to.
All of a sudden, Jimmy lifted off his feet like people in tornadoes do in the movies. I thought he was gone. And then everything stopped. He landed on his feet. In those first quiet moments, I couldn’t believe it was over. Jimmy said he’d go outside to check. “No,” I said. “Don’t leave me. Don’t leave me.”
Our neighbor says the storm lasted four minutes. In that time, four of the twelve town houses in our unit were completely destroyed. Of the houses left standing, ours suffered the most damage. Amazingly, none of us were severely injured.
1.Which of the following sentences is NOT the evidence to show the tornado is violent?
A. It was the loudest thing I have ever heard.
B. The bones of the house shook, and the power went out.
C. Our neighbor says the storm lasted four minutes.
D. Pieces of glass that looked like crushed ice flew everywhere.
2.From the passage, we can infer that______.
A. The couple had predicted the arrival of the tornado in advance.
B. Jimmy flew right out the back of the house and into the bay during the tornado.
C. The three-foot-tree flew over the couple’s head and injured them badly.
D. The author still felt scared when the tornado was suddenly over.
3.Why did the author feel “no pain” in paragraph4?
A. She didn’t hurt badly enough to sense the pain.
B. She was severely injured and failed to sense the pain.
C. Her attention was fully focused on her husband.
D. She had let her husband go away from her hand.
4.Which of the following phrases best describes the couple’s experience in this tornado?
A. A thrilling adventure B. A narrow escape
C. A risky attempt D. A serious accident
Family fights are never pleasant. Whether you are dealing with a loud sister or a stubborn mom or dad, the situation can be bad. At least that’s what we have learned to expect.
What if it could be different? What if family fights and conflicts could be turned into opportunities to become closer? What if problems could be solved with everyone walking away feeling more deeply cared for and loved?
Family fighting is, on one level, about power. Someone is telling someone else what to do. In a short moment, emotions can be brought out and the fight is on. You can go down that old road or you can try something different.
In any fight, you have a need to be listened to and understood. People raise their voices and shout at each other because they’re not being listened to. It’s totally unconscious. You want your mom or dad to listen and understand. But you always seem to forget the person you’re fighting with has the same need to be listened to. So if you can put aside your need for a few minutes, the situation will change quickly. Give the other person some time to express his or her feelings, and you will earn your turn to be listened to.
And while you are listening, you have to listen for the right information. The best way to do this in emotional situations is to forget most of the words because many people can’t express what they are feeling with words alone, especially when they are upset.
But if the situation starts to get out of hand, it would be wise to just calm down and leave the problem until later because many fights happen at the wrong time. The situation will die down quickly, usually in less than 30 seconds. You can either move on to problem solving or reach an agreement to work on it at a better time.
This way, everyone will feel respected and listened to, even when there is conflict. Emotions will be understood and respected, and it will bring your family closer together.
1.From the first 3 paragraphs, we can conclude that ________.
A.people had better avoid family fights.
B.family members fight to control each other
C.family fights can be changed into something positive
D.when family members fight, it’s worse as they know each other’s weakness
2.In the author’s opinion, the key to dealing with family fights is to ________.
A.satisfy the need to be listened to first
B.make sure that you’re the first to be listened to
C.pay no attention to what others say in emotional situations.
D.stop quarrelling when you feel you are giving orders
3.When the situation gets out of control, it’s best to ________.
A.wait for a suitable moment to speak B.let the other person express their feelings
C.work on a written agreement first D.move on to problem solving
