There was once a beautiful nymph called Echo. But Echo had one failing; she was fond of talking, and whether in chat or argument, would have the last word. As she was good company , she and Zeus became good friends. However，Zeus’ wife, Hera, became jealous. She followed Zeus to the earth to find out what he was doing and Zeus asked Echo to distract Hera until he could escape. Later when Hera discovered she had been tricked, she became very angry. She turned on Echo and said, “You shall lose the use of your tongue because you cheated me. You’ll have the last word, bur no longer have the power to speak first.” So from that moment on, Beautiful Echo was hardly able to hold a conversation because she could only repeat the last words of those around her. She became very embarrassed and hid herself deep in the woods.
One day a handsome young man called Narcissus came into the woods. He had been hunting deer and lost his way. However, the moment Echo saw him, she fell in love with him. She followed him, wishing to tell him but unable o begin a conversation. Oh, how she wished she could speak first. Unfortunately, Narcissus was far too busy worrying about where his companions might be and how he could find his way home.
Eventually Narcissus, with Echo following behind along, came to a pool of water in the middle of the woods. Feeling thirsty, Narcissus bent down to drink. As he did so, he saw a beautiful creature in the water staring up at him. . He immediately bent over and said to him, “I love you!” Echo, nearby, and seeing her chance, immediately responded “…. I love you!” But it was too late. Narcissus was already in love, with himself.
` The stranger seemed to rise up closer to Narcissus who was so involved that he entirely failed to notice Echo. “I want to stay and look at this beautiful sight forever,” he whispered dreamily to himself.”… Forever,” repeated Echo sadly. “Come her,” called Narcissus to his reflection as he moved his head and the creature seemed to move away. “…Here.” responded Echo. Narcissus bent back down to see his reflection more clearly. “So beautiful! I’ve never seen anything so beautiful!” “….So beautiful!” responded Echo truthfully.
Narcissus remained by the water refusing all Echo’s silent offers of food and drink until he died. Where he had been, a flower grew in his place, as beautiful as Narcissus himself. As for Echo, from that time forward, she also didn’t eat or drink till she turned to rocks and all that was left was her voice. Even now you can still hear Echo trying to attract Narcissus’ attention by repeating his words and still see Narcissus as a beautiful flower growing near a pool.
63. Why was Echo unable to let Narcissus know she loved him?
A. Because she had lost the ability to speak. B. Because she was too shy to speak first.
C. Because Hera had taken away her ability to speak first.
D. Because Narcissus took no notice of her.
64. “The stranger” in paragraph 4 refers to ______.
A. Echo B. A fairy in the woods. C. Hera. D. Narcissus himself.
65. Which of the following kinds of person can be described as a “Narcissus”?
A. A person who loves and admires himself or herself.
B. A person who’s afraid of being separated from companions.
C. A person who is too shy to have a chat with other people.
D. A person who loves to admire beautiful water flowers.
66. Which of the following is the correct order of the events?
a) Hera wouldn’t let Echo start a conversation.
b) Narcissus fell in love with his reflection in the water.
c) Echo saw Narcissus and fell in love at the first sight.
d) Echo distracted Hera to help Zeus escape.
e) Narcissus became a flower and Echo a rock.
A. a-b-c-d-e B. d-a-c-b-e C. d-a-b-c-e D. c-d-a-b-e
67. What’s the best title of this passage?
A. Echo’s sacrifice. B. Echo and Hera.
C. Echo and Narcissus. D. Narcissus’s self-love.
Director of Overseas Finance
Financial Services
Edinburgh
Permanent
Updated October 30, 2014
Reporting into the Administration and Finance Partner, this is a new role with responsibility for oversight and leadership in international financial matters, overseas tax issues and overseas operational management.
Key responsibilities include:
•Overseeing(监督) development and implementation(实施) of overseas tax strategy and managing relationships with relevant authorities and advisors.
•Managing international financial planning, forecasting and reporting requirements.
•Analysis and communication of impacts and responses to tax and other regulatory
(管理的) documents.
•Establishment and maintenance of appropriate systems, controls and records.
•Managing and leading senior accountants and managers.
Who we’re looking for
The successful candidate will be a qualified accountant with a strong academic record and will have:
•Experience of managing the finances of an international commercial organization.
•A track record of delivering improved efficiency and effectiveness in financial operations.
•Experience of leading and developing teams with proven change management experience.
About our customers
Baillie Gifford is one of the UK’s leading investment management firms and is a major player in the asset（资产）management business. As a market leader they have built their success around the stability of their partnership structure which provides guarantee for customers and motivation for employees. As by 31 December 2013 they managed more than ￡72 billion （US 113 billion）in active equity and bond portfolios(股票和债券组合) for customers in the UK and throughout the world.
What’s on offer
Attractive Salary + Benefits PackageWhere is the director of overseas finance supposed to work?
| A．In France | B．In the US |
| C．In London | D．In Edinburgh |
The primary responsibility of this position is to manage ______.
| A．international financial matters and national ones appropriately. |
| B．relationships between the relevant matters and tax strategy. |
| C．overseas tax strategy and relationships with authorities and advisors. |
| D．establishment and communication of systems, responses and other requirements. |
Which of the following people is qualified for the position?
| A．The one who has ever managed financial planning and reporting requirements. |
| B．The one who can analyze tax and other regulatory documents. |
| C．The one who is good at leading and developing teams without experience. |
| D．The one who is a good accountant with rich management experience. |
What is the purpose of this passage?
| A．To tell people how to invest their money. |
| B．To introduce a director of overseas finance. |
| C．To advertise for a director of overseas finance. |
| D．To introduce a UK’s leading investment management firm. |
As the population of the planet increases, so does the number of homes, businesses, parking lots, schools, airports and roadways. All these structures use electricity and need to be lighted. Humans demand these lights. They want their homes more comfortable and they want their streets safe. The problem is that researchers are finding that all the light is having a negative effect on humans and wildlife as well.
Less than 10 years ago I drove to a thinly populated section of my town, lay down in the middle of the road and watched an attractive meteor shower (流星雨). The area was short of homes, street lights and traffic. If I did that today, I wouldn't be able to see the meteor shower as well. Due to the increase in street lights, I would surely be run over by a car.
Nowadays scientists are finding light pollution can be almost as bad as carbon dioxide pollution. If you've ever taken a flight at night, the view is beautiful, but you must remember that all the light you see wastes electricity. The crew of the space shuttles see an even bigger picture of how extensive the wasted electricity is worldwide.
One of the saddest parts of light pollution is that most of it is unnecessary and most of the outdoor light that we use is wasted. One only needs to look at a row of street lights to see how much of the light shines upwards and lights the sky; a total waste of electricity.
Additionally, somewhere electricity needs to be produced, and the production of electricity creates pollution by releasing greenhouse gases. This affects the air we breathe and our quality of life.
Scientists are also studying the effects of light pollution on wildlife. Thousands of birds die each year when they crash into highly lighted buildings, as they become puzzled by the light. It has been long known that tiny baby sea turtles become lost and follow lights on the shore instead of heading towards the sea.
Fortunately, light pollution is one of the easiest sources of pollution that can be corrected without a negative effect. Following some guidelines and a little searching on Google can give you many ideas on how to reduce your contribution to light pollution.It is implied in Paragraph 3 that the best way to deal with light pollution is ________.
| A．reducing the output of the lights |
| B．avoiding the use of unnecessary lighting |
| C．educating people about light pollution |
| D．inventing environmentally- friendly lights |
Which of the following is the effect of light pollution?
| A．Many animals species have died out. |
| B．More traffic accidents happen every day. |
| C．The air we breathe may be polluted. |
| D．It is much easier for us to watch meteor showers. |
What can be inferred from the text?
| A．We are almost at a loss how to deal with light pollution. |
| B．Global warming results in light pollution in some way. |
| C．Astronauts can’t see clearly in space nowadays. |
| D．Some animals use natural light to direct their movements. |
What will probably be provided following the last paragraph?
| A．Helpful tips for surfing the Internet. |
| B．approaches to decreasing light pollution. |
| C．Benefits of searching on Google. |
| D．More bad effects of light pollution. |
Graham and his friends preferred to shoot up in their arms, necks and legs. A dealer once said Graham was the type who would never be able to turn back and that he expected him to die from the drug. Wendy feared the same, but didn’t know how to save her son. “ Once, after he’d disappeared for more than a month, I found him at a friend’s house with a bunch of other users,” she said, “I got down on my hands and knees, begging him to come home. He did, but the next morning he was gone. I don’t know what made him do it, but I drove 20 miles to the nearest train station. Graham was headed for Seattle, his pockets full of drugs. If I hadn’t gotten there in time, I would never have seen him alive again.”
The turning point came in 2007, after Graham was arrested yet again for possession. Wendy got a call from the Montana Drugs Project, which works with local law enforcement（强制执行） to keep track of youth-related crimes so it can help families in trouble. Following a counselor’s advice, Wendy hired two men to come to her home in the middle of the night, tie Graham and take him to a treatment program in Thompson Falls, Montana. “I was high when they came and really angry with my mom,” he said, “But if she hadn’t done that, drugs would have killed me.” After six months of treatment, Graham, now 19, came back to Kalispell, where he’s grown close to Wendy once again. “I still have the desires every day and attend support meetings every night,” he said, “But life is worth living again. My mom thinks that’s a miracle. I guess she is right.”The underlined phrase “shoot up” in paragraph 1 probably means_________.
| A．increase very quickly and suddenly |
| B．put illegal drugs into the body by using a needle |
| C．kill or injure someone by using a gun |
| D．try to achieve a particular aim |
When the two men came to their home in the middle of the night, Graham _______.
| A．had just taken drugs and was in the state of excitement. |
| B．was sleeping in a high bed above the ground. |
| C．had just taken drugs and was in the state of suffering. |
| D．was quarrelling with his mother. |
What conclusion can be drawn from the end of the passage?
| A．Graham is still using drugs now. |
| B．Graham hates his mother very much. |
| C．Graham thinks he can’t be saved. |
| D．Graham has come off drugs now. |
Want to live longer? Win an Oscar.
A new study says that actors who received the award earn more than larger paychecks.
So when 94-year-old Katharine Hepburn once remarked that she was respected internationally “like an old building”, she had no idea that her four Oscars directly influenced her longevity(长寿).
The study says winning actors will live 3.9 years longer than their losing counterparts (对手). Actors who have won more than once, like Hepburn, live up to six years longer than those who were nominated (提名) but never won.
“We found that they died from the same things we all die from—cancer, heart disease, but they fought them a bit longer and diseases came a bit later,” says Dr. Donald Redelmeier, the leading author of the study. Redelmeier says the sense of success and satisfaction makes one’s soul become more full of life.
“We are not saying that you will live longer if you win an Oscar,” explains Redelmeier, “or that people should go out and take acting courses. Our main conclusion is simply that social factors are important.” The study’s implied conclusion, he says, is that doctors should ask about their patients’ personal feelings because mental well-being is related to physical health.
Redelmeier says he got the idea for the study when he watched a glowing Gwyneth Paltrow win an Oscar in 1999 for her role in Shakespeare in Love. Redelmeier says, “She looked more full of life than anyone I had seen.”
“We found, too, those that had multi-nominations and no win had the same life expectancy as those with just a single nomination and no win,” Redelmeier adds. The longevity of Oscar winners mainly has something to do with___________.
| A．the big money that was awarded |
| B．mental factors |
| C．rich and colorful lives |
| D．respect from others and better treatment |
Tom had five Oscar nominations but win no Oscar and Peter had only one nomination and won no Oscar either. We can tell__________.
| A．Tom probably will have a longer life than Peter. |
| B．Peter probably will have a longer life than Tom |
| C．Both Tom and Peter probably will have the same life expectancy |
| D．Both Tom and Peter probably will have a long life. |
According to the passage, we know __________.
| A．When Katharine Hepburn was 94, she knew her long life had something to do with her 4 Oscar prizes |
| B．In general the number of Oscar prizes has nothing to do with a person’s life expectancy. |
| C．That Gwyneth Paltrow’s full of life made Redelmeier decide to do the study. |
| D．If you want to live a happy and long life, you should take acting courses and win Oscars. |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Most Oscar Winners Live Longer Lives |
| B．How to Get a Long Life |
| C．A New Study about Long Lives |
| D．An Amazing Finding |
When people ask me what Down Syndrome(唐氏综合症) is, I tell them it’s an extra chromosome(染色体). A doctor would tell you the extra chromosome causes an intellectual disability that makes it harder for me to learn things.
Even though I have Down Syndrome, my life is a lot like yours. I read books and watch TV. I listen to music with my friends. I’m on the swim team and in chorus at school. I think about the future, and I like the one who I’ll marry. And I get along with my sisters---except when they take CDs without asking! I’m a hard worker, a good person, and I care about my friends.
Some of my classes are with typical kids, and some are with kids with learning disabilities. I have an aid who goes with me to my harder classes, like math and biology. She helps me take notes and gives me tips on how I should study for tests. It really helps, but I also challenge myself to do well. For instance, my goal was to be in a typical English class by 12th grade. That’s exactly what happened this year!
It’s true that I don’t learn some things as fast as other people do. But that won’t stop me from trying. I just know that if I work really hard and by myself I can do almost anything.
I can’t change the fact that I have Down Syndrome, but one thing I would change is what people think of me. I’d tell them, “Judge me as a whole person, not just the person you see. Treat me with respect, and accept me for who I am. The most important---just be my friend.”A person with Down Syndrome ____________according to the passage.
| A．can learn things almost as fast as normal people do |
| B．has one more chromosome than normal people |
| C．is hard to get along with |
| D．is easy to get along with |
The writer tries to picture himself as a __________teenager.
| A．normal | B．perfect | C．lovely | D．special |
The writer feels ________about his life.
| A．confused | B．hopeful | C．unhappy | D．curious |
What is the purpose of the passage?
| A．To prove people with Down Syndrome are a lot like healthy ones |
| B．To show the writer’s honesty and optimism |
| C．To change people’s attitude towards people with Down Syndrome |
| D．To describe the life of a student with learning disabilities |