Kidnappers are rarely interested in animals but they recently took considerable interests in Mrs .Eleanor Ramsay’s cat. Mrs Eleanor Ramsay, a very wealthy but  41  old lady, has shared a flat with her cat, Rastus, for a great many years. Rastus leads a(an)  42  life .He usually takes a short walk in the evenings and is always home by seven o’clock. One evening，howeve，he  43  to arrive．Mrs. Ramsay got very worried．She looked everywhere for him  44 could not find him .She was  45  a loss，for there was nobody  46  whom she could turn for help.

    Three days after Rastus’ disappearance，Mrs. Ramsay received an anonymous letter．The writer  47  that Rastus was in safe  48  and would be returned immediately  49  Mrs. Ramsay paid a ransom of $1 000 Mrs. Ramsay was  50  to place the money in a cardboard box and to leave it  51  her door．  52  ，she decided to go to police，but  53  that she would never see Rastus again—the letter had made that quite clear—she changed her mind．She  54  the exact amount of money from her bank and followed the kidnapper’s instructions. The next morning，the box had disappeared but Mrs. Ramsay was  55  that the kidnapper would keep his word  56 , Rastus arrived punctually at seven o’clock that evening．He looked very  57  though he was rather thirsty, for he drank half a bottle of milk. The police were  58  when Mrs. Ramsay told them what she had done. She explained that Rastus was very dear to her，saying that she believed firmly the cat was  59  the money and that  60  the amount she paid, the old lady thought he was dear in more ways than one!

41．A．lonely                 B．alone                     C．deserted         D．isolated

42．A．usual                        B．normal                C．ordinary               D．orderly

43．A．missed               B．lost                     C．failed             D．disappointed

44．A．but                     B．and                    C．therefore              D．so

45．A． in                     B．at                       C．For              D．on

46．A．at                       B．for                      C．off                 D．to

47．A．explained                  B．stated                     C．thought         D．argued

48．A．hands                B．arms                   C．legs                      D．state

49．A．unless                B．though               C．if                    D．since

50．A．asked                       B．ordered              C．commanded D．instructed

51．A．outside              B．inside                 C．behind           D．off

52．A．first of fall                  B．In all                   C．At first           D．All in all

53．A．feared                B．fearing               C．doubting               D．doubted

54．A．deposited                 B．withdrew             C．placed           D．set

55．A．doubtful             B．afraid                        C．sure                     D．uncertain

56．A．Rather than       B．Other than                C．Or rather              D．Sure enough

57．A．good                         B．bad                    C．ill                   D．well

58．A．excited               B．puzzled               C．shocked               D．surprised

59．A．worthy                B．worth                    C．worthwhile     D．valuable

60．A．considered        B．considering        C．thinking         D．though

 Before I realized what had happened, we were off the ground. The earth just seemed to drop away from the hot air balloon. I   61   (honest) felt nothing when the ropes were unfastened and we started to fly into the sky. John reminded us   62  (relax). He then set out to point out some of the best sights and photo opportunities,  63  (start) with the sunrise. Once the sun was up, the temples and pagodas were even   64   (beautiful). John was too anxious to introduce some of his personal favorites, as well as those buildings experiencing repair work.

With the end of our flight    65   (approach), John began to describe some final sites to us, including a small village and a farm area. He then reminded us of landing procedures and asked us to hold additional sightseeing   66   (question) while he concentrated on the landing.    67   I really appreciated was that he was so clear and responsible   68   safety! Our gentle landing went off smoothly and we were soon back on solid land. Hot air balloon rides 69   (be) an unbelievable travel experience and I cannot think of   70  more exciting place to enjoy them than in Bagan.

Long before Barack Obama became president of the United States, he wrote a book ___41___ (call) Dream from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance, which has since become ___42___  bestseller. It is an ___43___ (appeal) book that includes what he went through during ___44___ (he) childhood. Obama has little contact with his father ___45___ roots were in Kenya because he left home when Obama was very young. His mother got married ___46___ a student from Indonesia shortly after the family moved to Jakarta. A few years later, Obama came back with his grandparents to Hawaii, where he ___47___ (attend) a private high school. ___48___ (study) at Columbia in New York City, he then entered Harvard Law School. This autobiography also touches ___49___ (heavy) on Obama’s exposure to racism. Readers will find his reflections of childhood ___50___ (experience) which involved racial discrimination to be especially moving.

 I can’t understand ______a decision until it is too late.

A.him to postpone to make                 B.his postpone to make 

C.him to postpone making                 D. his postponing making

Recently a new research has been reported. It said that many fathers of children experienced lots of injuries per year while playing with __61__(they) children. Some fathers felt that it was the most dangerous thing of being a parent walking across the floor __62__ (cover) by toys. And some of them fell over because clothes or other things __63__(throw) everywhere. Besides, __64__ third of fathers were knocked down by their young children when fighting with them and a quarter got hurt when playing football or climbing trees with them. In fact, one __65__ five young fathers picked up an injury when doing something that wasn’t suitable for them.

       The research also found that some of the fathers who were __66__(serious) injured had to take time off work. __67__, not all of them had medical insurance(保险) in place __68__(prevent) the case that they were too ill to work. And they were more likely to face a situation __69__ their mobile phones and holiday bookings declined sharply during illness. So the fathers took much __70__(press) from both the family and the work.

Would you like to keep free ebooks handy to read on your phone or tablet? Several websites offer ebooks you can download without spending any money at all.

Amazon

Amazon is filled with free ebooks you can download. Amazon’s Best Seller list is divided into Paid and Free. Check out the free sections in dozens of genres (种类),each listing the Top 100 free ebooks so you will have a lot of choices. This list changes constantly, based on how well the books are “selling” and whether they become or remain free.

Over Drive

Over Drive is an ebook service that works with local libraries to lend free ebooks to readers. It includes a wide collection of ebooks, from new sellers to classics. Sometimes there is a wait for a library ebook, just as there can be for a popular print book.

Project Gutenberg

Started in 1971, Project Gutenberg has over 53, 000 free ebooks. Project Gutenberg ebooks are available to download in the U. S. but may be restricted in other countries if they are still protected by copyright.

Apple iBooks

You can read free ebooks on your iPhone and iPad using the iBooks app. Head to the iTunes App Store and click the “Free Books” category. You can see a list of the top best sellers. Click “Get” to download those books to your iPhone or iPad.

Audible

Audible lets you download audio (有声) books. You can get. a free audiobook when you sign up for a membership. Audible is currently available for listeners in the US, the UK, Canada, India, and Australia.

Finally, when you find a free ebook you want to read, get it right away. Often the offer is open only briefly. If you wait too long, you may discover the book now has a price attached.

21. What is the author’s purpose of writing the passage?

A. To introduce some new best - selling ebooks.

B. To show the advantages of some ebook services.

C. To encourage readers to buy more ebooks online.

D. To recommend some websites to download free ebooks.

22. What can we learn from the text?

A. The ebooks on Amazon are always free to read.

B. Library print hooks arc available on Over Drive.

C. IPhone users can access Apple iBooks via the iBooks app.

D. Only in die US can Project Gutenberg ebooks be downloaded.

23. Which is a must if you want to download audio books from Audible?

A. Profession.                           B. Registration.                  C. Background.                  D. Birthplace.

The Peales were a famous family of American artists．Charles Willson Peale is best remembered for his portraits of leading figures of the American Revolution．He painted portraits(肖像) of Franklin and Jefferson and over a dozen of George Washington．His life-size portrait of his sons Raphaelle and Titian was so realistic that George Washington reportedly once tipped his hat to the figures in the picture．

Charles Willson Peale gave up painting in his middle age and devoted his life to the Peale museum, which he founded in Philadelphia．The world’s first popular museum of art and natural science mainly covered paintings by Peale and his family as well as displays of animals in their natural settings．Peale found the animals himself and found a method to make the exhibits more lifelike．The museum’s most popular display was the skeleton （骷髅） of a huge, extinct elephant, which Peale unearthed on a New York farm in 1801．

Three of Peale’s seventeen children were also famous artists．Raphaelle Peale often painted still lives of flowers, fruit, and cheese．His brother Rembrandt studied under his father and painted portraits of many noted people, including one of George Washington．Another brother, Rubens Peale, painted mostly landscapes and portraits．

James Peale, the brother of Charles Willson Peale, specialized in miniatures （小画像）．His daughter Sarah Miriam Peale was probably the first professional female portrait painter in America．

27．The author mentions in Paragraph 1 that Washington tipped his hat to the figures in the painting to show that ________．

    A．Charles Willson Peale’s painting was very lifelike

    B．Washington respected Charles Willson Peale’s work

    C．Washington was friendly with Raphaelle and Titian Peale

    D．the painting of the two brothers was very large

28．The underlined word “unearthed” is closest in meaning to“ ______”．

    A．showed        B．invented

    C．dug up       D．looked over

29．Which of the following is NOT the child of Charles Willson Peale?

    A．Titian Peale．    B．Rubens Peale．

C．Raphaelle Peale．                    D．Sarah Miriam Peale．

30．The author’s attitude toward the Peales is in general _______．

    A．puzzled           B．admiring         

    C．excited          D．disappointed

 “Cleverness is a gift while kindness is a choice. Gifts are easy—they’re given after all. Choices

can be hard.”                                                           —Jeff Bezos

I got the idea to start Amazon 16 years ago. I came across the fact that the Internet usage was growing at 2,300 percent per year. I’d never seen or heard of anything that grew that fast, and the idea of building an online bookstore with millions of titles was very exciting to me. I had just turned 30 years old, and I’d been married for a year. I told my wife MacKenzie that I wanted to quit my job and go to do this crazy thing that probably wouldn’t work since most start-ups don’t, and I wasn’t sure what to expect. MacKenzie told me I should go for it. As a young boy, I’d been a garage inventor. I’d always wanted to be an inventor, and she wanted me to follow my passion.

I was working at a financial firm in New York City with a bunch of very smart people, and I had a brilliant boss that I much admired. I went to my boss and told him I wanted to start a company selling books on the Internet. He took me on a long walk in Central Park, listened carefully to me, and finally said, “That sounds like a really good idea, but it would be an even better idea for someone who didn’t already have a good job.” That logic made some sense to me, and he convinced me to think about it for 48 hours before making a final decision. Seen in that light, it really was a difficult choice, but finally, I decided I had to give it a shot. I didn’t think I’d regret trying and failing. And I suspected I would always be haunted by a decision not to try at all.

After much consideration, I took the less safe path to follow my passion, and I’m proud of that choice. For all of us, in the end, we are our choices.

32. What inspired the author with the idea of building an online bookstore?______

A. His dream of being an inventor.

B. The support of his wife.

C. Millions of exciting titles.

D. The greatly increasing usage of the Internet.

33. Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined sentence?_________

A. He would be very excited if he tried it out.

B. The idea of not trying would keep coming to his mind and disturb him.

C. He wouldn’t be always having a doubt if he didn’t try.

D. The decision not to try the online bookstore would terrify him.

34. We can know from the passage that_________         .

A. the author might not regret if he failed the idea

B. the boss thought the idea was suitable for the author

C. the author wanted someone else to try the idea

D. the author might go back to his boss if he failed

35. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?_________

A. Cleverness and Kindness

B. The Starting of Amazon

C. We Are What We Choose

D. Following My Passion   

Danielle Steel, America's sweetheart, is one of the hardest working woman in the book businessUnlike other productive authors who write one book at a time, she can work on up to five. Her    research before writing takes at least three years. Once she has fully studied her subjects, ready to divide into a book, she can spend twenty hours nonstop at her desk.                      Danielle Steel comes from New York and was sent to France for her education. After graduation, s he worked in the public relations and advertising industries. Later she started a job as a writer    which she was best fit for. Her achievements are unbelievable: 390 million copies of books in print, nearly fifty New York Times best-selling novels, and a series of “Max and Martha” picture     books for children to help them deal with the real-life problem of death, new babies and  new    schools. Her 1998 book about the death of her was shot to the top  of the  New York Times  best-selling list as soon as it came out. Twenty eight of her books have been   made into films.   She is listed in the Guinness Books of World Records for one of her books being the Times best-seller for 381 weeks straight.

Not content with a big house, a loving family, and a view of the Golden Gate Bridge, Danielle    Steel considers her readers to be the most important resource and has kept in touch with them by  e-mail. While she is often compared to the heroines of her own invention. Her life is undoubtedly much quieter. But if she does have anything in common with them, it is her strength of will and   her inimitable style. There is only one Danielle Steel.

29.  Children who have read “Max and Martha” picture books may know ________.

A. how to deal with affairs at school

B. what to do if Max and Martha die

C. what to do when new babies are born into their families

D. how to solve the difficult problems in their writing classes

30.  One of Danielle Steel' a achievements is that ________.

A. some TV plays were based on her books

B. her picture books attracted a lot of young men

C. one of her books became a best-seller in 1998

D. she wrote the Guinness Book of World Records

31.  We can learn from the passage that Danielle Steel ________.

A. lives an exciting life            B. values her readers a lot

C. writes about quiet women        D. is pleased with her achievements

—I’m still working on my project.

—Oh, you’ll miss the deadline. Time is ______.

A. running out    B. trying out        C. letting out        D. looking out

    Some kids love going off to camp in the summer, playing volleyball, swimming, and so on. But I know that some kids absolutely hate it because I was one myself. They hate the cold sea and getting sand in their clothes and they hate being picked last for the volleyball team. 36 It’s especially for those kids who would rather spend time playing computer games than running around getting dirty. But you won’t be playing computer games, this course allows you to design them.

 37  Two top game designers Mike Jones and Mel Wilson from the company Star Games are responsible for making favorites such as Mickey the Monkey and Rainforest Expedition. They will teach you the steps that go into creating a new game, and teach you how to use various computer programs and build some simple games yourself.

 38  You won’t have to sleep in a tent either. Kids on the course will stay at a local hotel, where there is a gym, computers and a great canteen. No cooking on a campfire in the cold!

 39  Last year, the course was extremely popular but it was only five days. This year we’re having an additional three days. So that’s over a week of gaming!

To go on the course, you need to be between thirteen and seventeen years old.  40  We only have space for twenty-two people. That’s slightly fewer than last year’s twenty five, because we don’t have as many teachers on the course this year. So hurry up and book your place!

If you’re still not sure whether to join or not, have a look at the website www.teengames.net,  that’s www.teengames.net and you can see what the students did on the course last year. You can book your place on the same site.

   A. One is never too old to learn.

   B. Don’t worry about the living place.

   C. You will receive comfortable service.

   D. That’s why our course is so appealing.

   E. Places on the course are limited, though.

   F. The length of the course will be increased.

   G. You will get the chance to learn from experts.

You dash through a crowded railway station, tripping over bags, spilling (泼出) your coffee, only to have the doors slide shut in your face, leaving you breathless on the platform as the train pulls away.

But at least, if you're in France, someone may be playing the piano for you. But it won’t be performed by a paid musician, or even a street entertainer playing for coins. It will just be a random passer-by, jamming for the fun of it on one of the pianos that the national railroad company, S. N. C. F., has fixed in nearly 100 stations across France. They are free for anyone to play, and travelers from all walks of life have taken to doing just that.

Gares & Connexions, the S. N. C. F. division that manages its stations, rents the instruments from the producer, Yamaha: which maintains them and tunes them every month or two. The first one was set up in the Gare Montparnasse in Paris in 2012.

The music, mixed with the sounds of shouting passengers, screaming trains and rolling suitcases, gives French stations a special soundscape. The amateur musicians have included Irish soccer fans and even babies. In 2014, Gares & Connexions and Yamaha organized a nationwide contest called Your Turn to Play, asking participants to submit videos of themselves using one of the pianos. It drew nearly 900 entries.

Isn't the railroad company taking a big chance? Apparently not: “None of the instruments has been vandalized to this day, or even merely damaged,” said Claire Foumon, a spokeswoman for Gares & Connexions. “They are shared and respected by all.”

So if you miss a train in Paris; Bordeaux or Marseille one day, perhaps someone will be playing a favorite piece that will ease your pain. Or perhaps you’ll sit down and play your annoyance away yourself.

1. Why did Gares & Connexions fix pianos in railway stations?
       A. To advertise Yamaha's products.                     B. To make stations more attractive.

       C. To let travelers have a relaxing trip.               D. To help street artists make a living.
2. What does Paragraph 4 mainly tell us?
       A. The contest has proved a hit.                         B. The pianos are very popular.
       C. Railway stations are crowded.                        D. everyone can be an amateur musician.

3. What does the underlined word“vandalized”in Paragraph 5probably mean?
       A. Selected carefully.                                        B. Checked regularly.
       C. Reserved in advance.                                    D. Destroyed on purpose.
4. What would be the best title for the text?
       A. Miss a train yet catch a tune                         B. A soundscape in the memory
       C. The role of piano in French life                    D. An amazing train with a piano bar

Public Speaking Training

Get a coach

___16___，so get help. Since there are about a billion companies out there all ready to offer you public speaking training and courses, here are some things to look for when deciding the training that’s right for you.

Focus on positives

Any training you do to become more effective at public speaking should always focus on the positive aspects of what you already do we ll. Nothing can hurt confidence more than being told that you aren’t doing well.   ___17___, so good public speaking training should develop those instead of telling you what you shouldn’t do.

___18___

If you find a public speaking course that looks as though it’s going to give you lots of dos and don’ts, walk away! Your brain is so full of what you’re going to be talking about. ___19___. As far as we’re concerned, there are basically no hard and fast rules about public speaking. Your audience can be your friends.

You are a special person not a clone

Most importantly, good public speaking training should treat you as a special one, with your own personal habits. ___20___. Your training course should help you bring out your personality, not try to turn you into someone you’re not.

A. You aren’t like anybody else

B. You already do lots of things well

C. Turn your back on too many rules

D. Practise speaking whenever possible

E. Whatever the presentation, public speaking is tough

F.The one thing you don’t want is for them to fall asleep

G. So trying to force a whole set of rules into it will just make things worse

Modern humans have a hard time controlling their desire to eat. Often you eat not because you are hungry, but because you are affected by other things. How much you eat is strongly affected by how much those around you eat. People eating alone eat least. People eating with one other person eat 35 percent more than they do at home. People dining in a party of four eat 75 percent more. Eating with overweight friends? You’ll eat more. Is your waitress overweight? You’ll eat more. Wide variety of food? You’ll eat more.

Plates can decide how sweet dessert tastes. If people ate it off a paper plate, they’d say, “This is good.” If they ate it off a fancy silver plate, they would say, “This is the greatest cake I’ve eaten in my entire life.”

Your knowledge about what makes food good or bad also affects how much you eat. You tend to eat more when you think the food is good, and less when you think it is bad. So Grandma’s cookies always taste better than other cookies. “Good food” even has a “health halo (光环) effect”. If we are eating something healthy, we feel that everything in that meal is healthy. Due to this, people often believe that a cheese cake with a salad has fewer calories than the cheese cake alone. That’s perhaps also why eating organic food might turn you into an annoying guy. Your brain may use anything that makes you feel good about your own morality to excuse your immoral behavior.

Food and hunger affect your judgment too. Hungry judges give more serious sentences. Kids who don’t eat breakfast behave worse than kids who eat their breakfast. People who have low blood sugar are more likely than the average person to have trouble concentrating and controlling their unpleasant emotions.

32. What is mentioned as a cause of overeating?

A. Suffering from great loneliness.

B. Being served by a helpful waitress.

C. Being treated to high quality food.

D. Eating with many friends.

33. According to the passage, an annoying person may be one who ______.

A. finds an excuse for eating more

B. is crazy about the quality of plates

C. competes with others in making cookies

D. teaches people to stick to morality

34. According to the passage, people are more likely to make a bad judgment when ______.

A. they don’t feel hungry

B. they aren’t overweight

C. they have low blood sugar

D. they know little about food

35. What would be the best title for the passage?

A. When Can’t We Go on a Diet?

B. What Affects Eating?

C. How to Make Good Food

D. Where to Find Safe Food

 The soldiers fought _________ of their country’s safety.

A. in advance             B. in need           C. in defense              D. in support

The doctor suggested that I keep away from oily food, because it_____ easily.

A. isn’t digest          B. doesn’t digest

C. isn’t to digest       D. won’t be digested

    (Robert --- R     Jack --- J)

J: Hello, Robert. Are you free on Saturday morning?

R: Yes. _______________________________________ (56)

J: There is a basketball match at the Sports Center. Do you want to watch it?

R: Sure. ____________________________________________(57)

J: Our school Vs No. 1 Middle School.

R: ___________________________________ (58) Let’s go to cheer for our team.

J: Yeah. No. 1 Middle School Team is not easy to beat.

R: So the match will be exciting. ___________________________________(59)

J: 8:30. Do you think you can get up on time?

R: Of course. _______________________________________ (60)

J: OK. There will be three school buses waiting for us in front of the library.     Let’s meet there at 8:30.

R: All right. See you then.

        A. Great!

        B. What time does it start?

        C. I’d like to watch the game very much.

        D. Between which teams?

        E. What’s up/ Why?

    If you intend using humor in your talk to make people smile, you must know how to identify shared experiences and problems. Your humor must be relevant to the audience and should help to show them that you are one of them or that you understand their situation and are in sympathy with their point of view. Depending on whom you are addressing, the problems will be different. If you are talking to a group of teachers, you may refer to the peculiar bahaviors of their students; alternatively if you are addressing students, you may want to comment on their peculiar teachers.
    Here is an example, which I overheard of a students' conversation that works perfectly because the audience all shared the same view of their English teachers. In the traffic court of Shanghai, a young lady was brought before a judge to answer for a ticket given to her for driving through a red light. She explained to his honor that she was a high school English teacher and requested an immediate disposal of her case so she could get to the school on time. A wild gleam came into the judge’s eyes. “You’re an English teacher, oh?” he said. “Madam, I shall realize my lifelong ambition, I’ve waited years to have an English teacher in this court.” “Now sit down at the table and write I will not drive through red lights.” “500 times!”
    If you are part of the group which you are addressing, you will be in a position to know the experiences and problems which are common to all of you and it'll be appropriate for you to make a passing remark about the inedible canteen food or the chairman's notorious bad taste in ties. With other audiences you mustn't attempt to cut in with humor as they will resent an outsider making disparaging remarks about their canteen or their chairman. You will be on safer ground if you stick to scapegoats like the Post Office or the telephone system.
    If you feel awkward being humorous, you must practice so that it becomes more natural. Include a few casual and apparently off-the-cuff(即兴的)remarks which you can deliver in a relaxed and unforced manner. Often it's the delivery which causes the audience to smile, so speak slowly and remember that a raised eyebrow or an unbelieving look may help to show that you are making a light-hearted remark.
    Look for the humor. It often comes from the unexpected. A twist on a familiar quote "If at first you don't succeed, give up" or a play on words or on a situation. Search for exaggeration and understatements. Look at your talk and pick out a few words or sentences which you can turn about and inject with humor.
77.To make your humor work, you should ________.

78.The joke about doctors implies that, in the eyes of students, they all ________.

79. It can be inferred from the text that public services ________.

80.To achieve the desired result, humorous stories should be delivered ________.

81.The best title for the text may be ________.

 The Australia state of Victoria will_______a “zero tolerance” policy towards drunken drivers.

  A. absorb                       B. adopt              C. adjust                D. adapt

As the world enters the 21^st century ,the development in the science and technology will bring us much more new hopes and chances we’ve never imagined before .People are hoping have a peacefully and highly developed world .To catch up with the new development and to be success in the new century, the younger generation is required to have different kind of skills and abilities ,such like the computer science and the English language .Otherwise one will be leaving behind .Young people should study even hard at school and prepare themselves mentally and physically to meet with the challenge of the new century .