山东省泰安市新泰市2020年九年级英语第一次模拟考试卷

    A young college student thought that he chose the wrong major (专业) at a common college, so he drank every day and didn't study at all. He became more and more upset.

    But he was never1from Professor Yang's biology class. He liked the2. Besides, Yang's class was so interesting that he always listened carefully, never caring about3the other students were paying attention or not in class. Once he put a4in the homework he handed in, saying: "Professor, it is said that today's college students are cheaper than potatoes. Do you agree?"

    That day Professor Yang5him after class. When he came, he found the professor at a table with a plate of food. They drank happily with their meal.

    When they became half drunk, the professor6a small potato that was sprouting (发芽的). "Do you know how much this7?" he asked the young man. "It's soft but harmful.8will take it even if it's free." He then threw the potato away. The professor then showed him9potato. It was half the size of a football and perfectly round. "This potato is organic (有机的). It is not only large and fresh but also free of pollution. It is in high demand and quite expensive."

    The young man was impressed by what he'd heard. "Be such a10" said the professor.

    Mr. and Mrs. Kelly had been married for fifteen years.

    Every day, when Mr. Kelly came home from work, he would come in the front door and call out, "Hi, honey, I'm home!" and Mrs. Kelly would call back, "Hi, sweetheart, I'm in the kitchen!"

    But lately, when Mr. Kelly came home and called out, Mrs. Kelly didn't say anything. There were other times when she didn't answer him. He was worried and wondered if his wife was becoming deaf.

    He asked the doctor for advice. The doctor answered, "Here's something you can try on her to test her hearing. First, stand several meters away from her and ask her a question. Second, if she doesn't answer, move a little closer and ask again. Finally, keep repeating this until she answers. Then you'll be able to tell if she is deaf."

    Mr. Kelly went home and began to test his wife's hearing. He stood by the wall and said, "My dear, what's for dinner?" He didn't hear an answer, so he moved closer to her. "My dear, what's for dinner?" Still no answer. He repeated this several times, until he's standing just a few feet away from her.

    Finally, she answered angrily, "For the fifth time, meat and rice!"

    On Jan 26, people around the world were shocked to hear of the sudden passing of Kobe Bryant, one of the NBA's most popular players. The 41-year-old, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna Bryant and seven others died when their plane crashed in California, US.

    In the basketball world, Bryant is among the top players of all time. Fans remember him as the player who helped the Los Angeles Lakers win five NBA championships during his 20-year-long career. He started out as a basketball prodigy who spent just two years in college while others need four years. He took his talents directly to the NBA. His quickness and playing skills made him get the name Black Mamba. That's why his competitive philosophy (哲学) is known as the "Mamba Mentality".

    "Mamba Mentality is you're going, you're competing, you're not worried about the end result," Bryant said. "It's all about focusing on the process and trusting in the hard work when it matters most."

    Off the court, he was known as a successful businessman, buying stakes (股份) in several companies, including Alibaba and Dell. He also left footprints in the movie industry, winning an Oscar in 2018 with his short film Dear Basketball.

    He was also known as a proud family man. His friend, baseball star Derek Jeter, remembered him as such in an essay: "Throughout our friendship, the most meaningful conversations we had—they were always about family."

    As the Los Angeles Times noted, Bryant's greatness was made further by his skills, hard work and tireless pursuit of victory. His personality will live on long after his death.

    China's biggest and most powerful carrier (运载) rocket flew into space on Dec 27, 2019. The Long March 5 started its task at the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan.

    The 57-meter-tall rocket, known as the Long March 5 Y3, is the tallest, strongest and most technologically sophisticated (技术复杂的) rocket in China. Since it is much bigger than China's other Long March rockets, people call it "Fat 5". The rocket is able to carry spacecraft (航天器) weighing up to 25 tons-about the weight of 16 mid-size cars into low-earth orbit (近地轨道), China Daily reported. This payload capacity (有效载荷) is about 2.5 times as great as that of any other Chinese rocket.

    During the December launch (发射), the Long March 5 successfully sent the Shijian 20 satellite into orbit. At more than 8 tons, it is the heaviest communications satellite built by China.

    The success of the Long March 5 launch was hard-made. The rocket's first launch was carried out in November 2016 at the Wenchang center. A second mission took place in July 2017 at the same site, but failed to send a satellite into orbit. According to project leaders, in the two years since that failure, the rocket's research team held more than 600 meetings and carried out at least 1,000 experiments and tests to improve the rocket.

    The future tasks of the Long March 5 will include a trip to Mars, taking back moon samples (样本), and placing parts of a manned space station into orbit.

     Modesty (谦逊) is a valuable quality in many cultures around the world. However, the phrase maosuizijian seems to disagree with this.

    During the Warring States Period, the Qin army marched (进军) on Handan., Prince Pingyuan asked help from the state of Chu. He wanted to pick 20 talented people to go with him. However, he could only find 19 people who were good enough. Then, a man named Mao Sui volunteered.

    Prince Pingyuan looked at Mao Sui with doubt, "How long have you been here with me?"

    "Three years," Mao Sui answered.

    "I hear that a person with talent is like an awl (锥子) in a cloth bag. Its sharp point will soon pierce through the bag. You've been here for a long time. But I haven't seen any of your achievements.". said Prince Pingyuan.

"What I'm asking you now is to put me into that bag.. But not only the point-the whole awl," Mao Su said confidently.

    Impressed, Prince Pingyuan allowed Mao to join his team, and Mao proved very helpful. Now the phrase "Mao Sui recommending himself" is used to describe someone who volunteers to do a task.

    However, there is a fine line between self-confidence and arrogance (傲慢).. but a strong ego (自我主义) can harm your career and professional relationships.