Did you see American figure skater, Jeremy Abbott, crash to the ice during the short program at the Sochi Olympics, rolling into the wall, clutching his side in pain. Ten seconds later, he got up and continued his skate—despite the pain, embarrassment and fear. All I could think was: this kid’s got courage. In business we have a word for it—resilience, the ability to gain strengths and confidence from overcoming unpleasant events.
However, opposite examples appeared in Sochi Olympics as well. For them, failure is someone else’s fault, because they do not accept personal responsibility. Therefore, they have to pay a high price for this attitude. After years of studying failure, I have learned one thing: modesty and open-mindedness in the face of mistakes is the single best thing you can do to improve results. Everyone fails, but not everyone recovers from failure. The key is to learn from it rather than get beaten by it.
The good news is that each of us has the potential to live a resilient life on and off the job. It may be difficult, but that just makes it all the more powerful and important. If you believe the above paragraph to be true, then you’re probably more resilient than you think you are. It takes confidence to be resilient but that too much confidence is a killer is so true of leadership. For example, Ron Johnson, the ill-fated CEO of JC Penney, was so stubborn that he completely missed all sorts of signals from employees and customers and instead listened to all those who agreed with him, which failed his strategy. Bouncing back from failure requires that you recognize something has gone wrong, and you were the one who made it happen.
The challenge of resilience is not just about our work. When parents help their kids deal with every challenging situation, they are doing an unhelpful action to their children. Parents want to protect their kids from failure, but doing so takes away the opportunity from them to practice not
just a life skill but an essential work skill. When self-esteem becomes more important than results, we are accidentallytraining young people to become less adaptable, not more.
Resilience is not just about getting up off the floor, but also being ready for whatever comes next, even when you don’t know what it is. Failures and setbacks are no longer unusual events, but regular features of a dynamic, competitive and highly demanding work environment. Getting up to finish your skate is no longer optional. The example of Jeremy Abbott shows that one should ______.
| A．recover from failure |
| B．stick to his own viewpoint |
| C．take others’ opinions to heart |
| D．challenge difficulties bravely |
According to the author, what can best build up resilience?
| A．Being positive and powerful. |
| B．Being competitive and helpful. |
| C．Being modest and open-minded. |
| D．Being confident and responsible. |
Which of the following examples shows us resilience?
| A．A teacher offers students timely help and care. |
| B．A determined athlete practices skating hard every day. |
| C．A confident leader persuades his staff to follow his plan. |
| D．A student has got a low grade but continues to work hard. |
Which might be the best title for the passage?
| A．An Example of Resilience: Ron Johnson |
| B．Resilience: A Lesson from Sochi |
| C．Optional Challenges of Resilience |
| D．Resilience in Family Education |
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64. According to the ads, the two companies are both expert at_____.
A. making windows and doors that suit the look of your home
B. persuading people to want what have already been built
C. building windows that help save your energy costs
D. building your doors completely to your taste
65. The two ads are most probably about______.
A. managing money matters B. environmental protection
C. architecture styles D. home improvement & design
66. If you prefer comfort as well as energy efficiency, you can________.
A. call (403) 982-1107 or (403) 720-8055
B. call (403) 720-8055 or visit www.allweatherwindows.com
C. call at All Weather Windows or Award Windows & Doors
D. visit Renovations Showroom or Award Windows & Doors
For a song to become popular, people need to bear it. In order for people to hear it, the program directors at radio stations have to play it on the air. A song’s popularity is directly related to how often it is played. That is a big responsibility for program directors. How do they decide what gets played and what doesn’t?
In the past, disc jockeys(音乐节目主持人) decided what music was played on the radio. These DJs had an ear for music and an understanding of what their audience wanted to hear. Today, that is all changing. Most major radio stations are owned by a few large national businesses. The decision of what gets played on the radio is made by executives(主管) who have little or no interest in music. They do, however, know how to run a business, and they know what sells. So, the music industry designs and creates pop entertainers, and executives in the radio industry make sure that their music is played on the radio. This explains why you do not often hear anything new and fresh on the radio. The executives do not want to give air time to music that has not been tested on the market. It is too risky. They prefer to go with music that they already know will sell. They know it will sell because it sold last week and last month and last year. They just have to change it a little.
One of the most criticized(批评) practices in the music industry is the practice of “payola”. This is when record companies pay radio stations to play the music of a given artist. This practice makes many people lose trust in the music industry and is therefore against the law. A radio station can accept money in exchange for air time of a song, but they have to make it clear that the song is being played because its air time was paid for. They cannot present the song as if it were part of the normal play schedule(时刻表).
Payola affects both artists and audiences. The artists who work with small record companies that cannot pay a lot of money to radio stations have a much harder time getting exposure. It creates an unfair playing field. Music lovers suffer because they are not able to hear all the music that is available.
60. According to the passage, most major radio stations belong to_________
A. national businessesB. program directors
C. pop entertainers D. record companies
61. “Payola” is the practice of________
A. artists paying radio stations to play their songs
B. record companies buying air time for certain music
C. radio station paying record company for new songs
D. program directors deciding what music gets played
62. Who can make the largest profits from payola?
A. Disc Jockeys. B. The given artists.
C. Business executives. D. Program directors.
63. It can be concluded from the passage that the author .
A. has a positive attitude towards the practice of “payola”
B. is dissatisfied with the present situation in music industry
C. is calling for a change in the normal play schedule
D. thinks that the radio stations are doing the right thing
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Bargaining is an art at Xiu Shui Market in Beijing. The following tips can help you get good offers for most things you buy, especially for clothing.
Be aware that the starting price offered by the seller is at least 40% over the general price acceptable. It’s usually 80% over. It can be up to 150% over. So, always try to drop the seller’s offering price as much as possible before opening your mouth with a price.
Have an idea of the value of what you want. You can consult your Chinese friends or the hotel staff about the price. You may not be able to get the lowest prices stated at Xiu Shui Market, especially on weekends or festival seasons when there are lots of tourists around.
Do walk away once you’ve offered your final price while the seller is not ready to accept. If you get called back, you know you are close. If you do not get called back, go to a similar stall(摊位) and try again with a slightly higher price. Note that if you’ve made a deal, you am then expected to buy the item.
You will help your chances at getting a good price by being confident, patient, and friendly. Treat it as a kind of game to get the most out of it—getting angry or rode will never help to bring the price down.
56. When can you get the lowest price at Xiu Shui Market according to the passage?
A. When the sellers are busy. B. On crowded weekends.
C. When there’re few buyers. D. On festival seasons.
57. The underlined part “a deal” (in Paragraph 4) most probably means_______
58. A. an appointment with someone B. an agreement in business
C. a choice in shopping D. a delivery of goods
58. ff the seller accepts your final price, you should________
B. go on bargaining for a lower price
C. go to a similar stall for a better price
D. pay the seller for what you want
59. From the tips we can learn that the seller’s offer may be affected by________
A. the buyer’s manners B. the seller’s position C. Chinese friends D. hotel staff
Cellphone users in the United States have contributed more than $11 million to Haitian earthquake relief through text messages in what is being called as an unexpected mobile response to a natural disaster.
The Mobile Giving Foundation called it a “mobile-giving record” for funds(基金)raised for a single cause. Donations are rising swiftly, as former President Bill Clinton and other politicians urge the American people to give.
Jim Manis, chief officer of the organization helping to manage cellphone donations, said it was receiving up to 10,000 text messages per second. The foundation said more than $11 million has been donated.
Cellphone users can donate $5 to Haiti-born hip-hop musician Wyclef Jean’s Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund by texting the word “Yele” to 501501, or they can donate $10 to other nonprofit organizations, such as the American Red Cross, by texting the word “Haiti” to a specified number, like 90999.
The donation is charged to a user’s cellphone bill.
The American Red Cross said it has received more than $ 9 million in donations from more than 900,000 mobile phone users.
“It’s beyond our imagination that we’ve received this amount,” said spokeswoman Nadia Pontif.
Jean’s fund had raised $2 million via text messages, according to Give on the Go, Yele’s mobile application service provider.
The giving is also being fueled by the popularity of websites like Facebook and Twitter, where users are urging one another to make donations using cellphones.
Wireless carriers(无线运营商) Verizon Wireless, AT&T Inc., Sprint and T-Mobile USA, a unit of Deutsche Telekom AG, have waived(免收) fees for customers wishing to send mobile donations. Carriers are also letting users know they are not taking a cut of the donations.
“There are no text messaging fees and 100% of the $10 donation goes to the American Red Cross, and every carrier is working through a solution to push those funds out faster.” Verizon said in a statement.
68.A mobile phone user can donate some money to Haiti by texting the word .
A. “Yele” to 501501 to donate $10
B. “Haiti” to 90999 to donate $10
C. “Yele” or “Haiti” to 501501 to donate $ 5
D. “Haiti” to the American Red Cross to donate $ 5
69.The underlined word “fueled” in the ninth paragraph most probably means “ “.
A. protected B. discouraged C. inspired D. reflected
70.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Facebook and Twitter are two relief organizations from the USA.
B. Many American politicians force Americans to give donations to Haiti.
C. The American Red Cross expected to receive much more donations.
D. Carriers have promised not to take a share from the donation.
71.Which may be the best title for the passage?
A. U.S. Texting Raises $11 Million for Haiti Earthquake
B. An Unexpected Terrible Earthquake Hit Haiti
C. The American Red Cross Offers Help to Haiti
D. Wireless Carriers Donate $11 Million to Haiti
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑
Recently I gave my adult students homework. It was “go to someone you love and tell them you love them.” It has to be someone you have never said those words to before or at least haven’t shared those words with for a long time.
It sounds like very tough homework since most of the men were over 35 and were raised in the generation of men that were taught expressing emotions is not “macho(阳刚之气).” Showing feelings or crying was just not done. So this was very threatening homework for some.
At the beginning of our next class, I asked if someone wanted to share what happened when they told someone they loved them. I fully expected one of the women to volunteer, as was usually the case, but on this evening one of the men raised his hand, quite moved and a bit shaken.
As he unfolded out of his chair (all 1.85 meters of him), he began by saying, “Dennis, I was quite angry with you last week when you gave us this homework. Who were you to tell me to do something that personal?”
“But as I began driving home my conscience(良心)started telling me that I knew exactly who I needed to say ‘I love you’ to.”
“Five years ago, my father and I had a severe disagreement and really never settled it since then. We avoided seeing each other unless we absolutely had to at Christmas or other family gatherings. But even then, we hardly spoke to each other.”
“So last Tuesday by the time I got home I had convinced myself I was going to tell my father I loved him. It’s strange, but just making that decision seemed to lift a heavy load off my chest.”
56.The homework is threatening for some students because .
A. they are middle-aged people B. they are not macho enough
C. they were taught to hide their emotions D. they didn’t know how to show feelings
57.From the passage we know that .
A. the adult students have classes in the day time only
B. not all the adult students in the writer’s class are male
C. the man refused to meet his father after their quarrel
D. the man quickly decided to say “I love you” to his father
58.The underlined phrase “unfolded out of his chair” in Para 4 is closest in meaning to .
A. stood on his chair straight B. sat quietly in the chair
C. bent himself over his chair D. raised himself slowly from the chair
59.What does the man imply by saying the underlined sentence in the last paragraph?
A. He felt it too strange to say “I love you” to his father.
B. He felt relaxed just thinking of saying “I love you” to his father.
C. He felt very relaxed after saying “I love you” to his father.
D. He had to lift a heavy load off his chest before saying “I love you”.