Sitting in the garden for my friend's birthday. felt a buzz（振动） in my pocket. My heart raced when I saw the email sender's name. The email started off："Dear Mr Green，thank you for your interest" and "the review process took longer than expected." It ended with "We are sorry to inform you…"and my vision blurred（模糊）.The position﹣measuring soil quality in the Sahara Desert as part of an undergraduate research programme﹣had felt like the answer I had spent years looking for. I had put so much time and emotional energy into applying，and I thought the rejection meant the end of the road for my science career.
So I was shocked when，not long after the email，Professor Mary Devon，who was running the programme，invited me to observe the work being done in her lab. I jumped at the chance，and a few weeks later I was equally shocked﹣and overjoyed﹣when she invited me to talk with her about potential projects I could pursue in her lab. What she proposed didn't seem as exciting as the original project I had applied to，but I was going to give it my all.
I found myself working with a robotics professor on techniques for collecting data from the desert remotely. That project，which I could complete from my sofa instead of in the burning heat of the desert，not only survived the lockdown but worked where traditional methods didn't. In the end. I had a new scientific interest to pursue.
When I applied to graduate school，I found three programmes promising to allow me to follow my desired research direction. And I applied with the same anxious excitement as before. When I was rejected from one that had seemed like a perfect fit，it was undoubtedly difficult. But this time I had the perspective（视角）to keep it from sending me into panic. It helped that in the end I was accepted into one of the other programmes I was also excited about.
Rather than setting plans in stone，I've learned that sometimes I need to take the opportunities that are offered，even if they don't sound perfect at the time，and make the most of them.
（1）How did the author feel upon seeing the email sender's name？
| A． |
Anxious. |
| B． |
Angry. |
| C． |
Surprised. |
| D． |
Settled. |
（2）After talking with Professor Devon，the author decided to .
| A． |
criticise the review process |
| B． |
stay longer in the Sahara Desert |
| C． |
apply to the original project again |
| D． |
put his heart and soul into the lab work |
（3）According to the author，the project with the robotics professor was .
| A． |
demanding |
| B． |
inspiring |
| C． |
misleading |
| D． |
amusing |
（4）What can we learn from this passage？
| A． |
An invitation is a reputation. |
| B． |
An innovation is a resolution. |
| C． |
A rejection can be a redirection. |
| D． |
A reflection can be a restriction. |
Imagine the following scenario(情景): A woman buys her lunch every day from a fast food outlet near her job. After some years, she finds herself 30 pounds overweight, and feeling unhealthy. So what does she do? She chooses to bring a lawsuit against the fast food outlet, claiming that the food served there was the cause of her being overweight and in poor health.
Sounds ridiculous, doesn’t? The only thing more absurd than the story itself is the fact that is not fiction. There are people who have sued（控告）fast food chains for causing their weight problems.
This is an example of one of the ways in which many of us spend enormous amounts of energy trying to deny the undeniable and universal fact that we are all ultimately responsible for our own choices and our own lives.
How much easier would we make it for ourselves if we could accept this fact rather than resist it? But how can we embrace the truth, that we are living the lives we choose to live, that we are enjoying or suffering the consequences(结果) of our own choices, and that blaming others for our problems and shortcomings is nothing more than a comfortable fantasy?
We must acknowledge the truth of our lives, however unpleasant this may be. If we are overweight, in a bad relationship, in a dead end, we need to accept that this is where we are, at this moment in time.
Imagine that woman decided that she was unhappy with the extra pounds she’d gained after many years of eating fast food on a regular basis. Imagine that this woman took the time to really understand and accept that she and no one else was responsible for her eating choices. Having acknowledged this fact, she then decides to make the changes in her lifestyle to become the healthier, slimmer person she wants to be.What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Be responsible for Our Own Choices. |
| B．Overcome the Challenges in Our Life. |
| C．Acknowledge the Truth Rather than Deny It. |
| D．More than a Comfortable Fantasy. |
Why is the woman mentioned twice in the passage?
| A．To show the right way of dealing with weight problems. |
| B．To describe a familiar scenario in life. |
| C．To give support to the author’s viewpoint. |
| D．To compare the consequences of different choices. |
What can we learn from the first paragraph?
| A．Fast food chains contribute little to people’s overweight problems actually. |
| B．Fast food outlets are responsible for many people to become overweight. |
| C．Many people tend to blame others for their own problems. |
| D．The author himself is a supporter of fast food chains. |
What should a person do if he is in a bad relationship with his roommates, according to the author?
| A．Acknowledge the truth of his life and let it be. |
| B．Think about what’s wrong with himself and then put it right. |
| C．Accept that this is where we are and wait for things to improve. |
| D．Do whatever he likes regardless of what others think and say. |
Buying a house for most of the people is a once in a lifetime decision, which means people decide to do so only after coming across the ideal house. Surprisingly, eight in every 10 home buyers are unhappy with their houses.
A survey conducted by the Beijing Consumers’ Association (BCA) recently shows about 80 percent of the 2,315 respondents in 23 residential complexes of Beijing are dissatisfied with the soaring house prices.
They think the reasonable price in Beijing should be between 3,000 yuan and 7,000 yuan per square meter.
The quality of the buildings, the surrounding environment and traffic and property management(物业管理)are the other factors that play a role in people’s decision to buy a house.
The BCA has suggested strict sales regulations and contracts to ease house-owners’ sufferings. It has urged the authorities to impose severe punishment on developers found violating building and other rules and joining hands with others to bid up property prices, About 41.2 percent of the respondents have complained that their house have defective designs, while nearly 40 percent say the lighting and ventilation(通风)are far from satisfactory.
The landscapes in the residential areas are a source of unhappiness for 43.2 percent of the respondents, and about one-third say they were “bluffed” into buying “third grade” house. And more than half are not satisfied with the sport and entertainment facilities in their neighborhood.
Property management in the buildings, 56.5 percent of the respondents say, is way below standard compared to the high fee charged by the complexes.
60 percent of the consumers doubt the contents of developers’ advertisements, with only 6.3 percent being satisfied.
Experts have suggested consumers gather thorough knowledge about a developer and their work before deciding to buy a house from it. They should check the day-light conditions and ventilation in different weather conditions in advance, if possible. According to the passage________ of the buyers are NOT content with their houses.
| A．80％ | B．60％ | C．56.5 ％ | D．41.2％ |
Which is the best title of the passage?
| A．Most Home Buyers Are Unhappy with Their House. |
| B．Buying a House Is an Important Decision. |
| C．Thinking Carefully Before Buying a House. |
| D．The Environment Is Important When Making a Decision. |
The meaning of the underlined word probably means “_______”.
| A．fooled | B．cheated | C．asked | D．forced |
If you want to buy a flat, according to the survey, you will consider the following EXCEPT_______.
| A．property management | B．the surrounding environment |
| C．the quality of the buildings | D．the height of the building |
Cultural rules determine every aspect of food consumption. Who eats together defines social units. For example, in some societies, the nuclear family is the unit that regularly eats together. The anthropologist Mary Douglas has pointed out that, for the English, the kind of meal and the kind of food that is served relate to the kinds of social links between people who are eating together. She distinguishes between regular meals, Sunday meals when relatives may come, and cocktail parties for relatives and friends. The food served symbolizes the occasion and reflects who is present. For example, only snacks are served at a cocktail party. It would be inappropriate to serve a steak or hamburgers. The distinctions among cocktails, regular meals, and special dinners mark the social boundaries between those guests who are invited for drinks, those who are invited to dinner, and those who come to a family meal. In this example, the type of food symbolizes the category of guest and with whom it is eaten.
In some New Guinea societies, the nuclear family is not the unit that eats together. The men take their meals in a men’s house, separately from their wives and children. Women prepare and eat their food in their own houses and take the husband’s portion to the men’s house. The women eat with their children in their own houses. This pattern is also widespread among Near Eastern societies.
Eating is a metaphor that is sometimes used to signify marriage. In many New Guinea societies, like that of the Lese on the island of New Ireland in the Pacific and that of the Trobriand Islanders, marriage is symbolized by the couple’s eating together for the first time. Eating symbolizes their new status as a married couple. In U.S. society, it is just the reverse. A couple may go out to dinner on a first date.
Other cultural rules have to do with taboos against eating certain things. In some societies, members of a family group, arc not allowed to eat the animal or bird that is their ancestor. Since they believe themselves to be children of that ancestor, it would be like eating that ancestor or eating themselves.
There is also an association between food prohibitions and rank, which is found in its most extreme form in the caste (social class) system of India. A caste system consists of ranked groups, each with a different economic specialization. In India, there is an association between caste and the idea of pollution. Members of highly ranked groups can be polluted by coming into contact with the bodily secretions, particularly saliva（唾液）,of individuals of lower-ranked castes. Because of the fear of pollution, Brahmans and other high-ranked individuals will not share food with, not eat from the same plate as, not even accept food from an individual or from a low-ranking class.According to the passage, who will NOT eat together?
| A．The English during regular meals. |
| B．Americans on their first date. |
| C．Men and women in Near Eastern societies. |
| D．Newly-married people on the island of New Ireland. |
In Paragraph 4, the underlined word "taboos" means _____________.
| A．favors | B．prohibitions | C．hatred | D．gossips |
According to the passage, eating together indicates all the following EXCEPT .
| A．the type of food | B．social relations. |
| C．marital status | D．family ties. |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Different kinds of food in western countries. |
| B． Relations between food and social units. |
| C． Symbolic meanings of different kinds of food. |
| D．Food consumption in different cultures. |
Every summer, no matter how urgent work schedule is, I take off one day exclusively for my
son. We call it dad-son day. This year our third stop was the amusement panic, where we discovered
that he was tall enough to ride one of the fastest roller coasters (过山车)in the world. We experienced through face-stretching turns and circles for ninety seconds. Then, as we stepped off the ride, in a calm voice, he remarked that it was not as exciting as other rides he’d been on. As I listened, I began to sense something seriously out of balance.
Throughout the season, I noticed similar events all around me. Parents found it hard to find new stimulations for cold kids. Surrounded by ever-greater stimulation, their young feces were looking disappointed and bored
Facing their children’s complaints of "nothing to do", parents were spending large numbers of dollars for various forms of entertainment In many cases the money seemed to do little more than buy relief from the terrible complaint of their bored children. This set me thinking the obvious question: "How can it be so hard for kids to find something to do when there’s been such a range of stimulating entertainment available to them?"
What really worries me is the strength of the stimulation. I watch my little daughter’s &ce as she absorbs bloody special effects in movies.
Why do children facing such excitement seem starved for more? Thai was, I realized, the point I discovered during my own adolescence that what creates excitement is not going fast, but going faster. Excitement has less to do with speed than changes in speed.
I am concerned about the increasing effect of years at these levels of feverish activity. It is no mystery to me why many teenagers appear uninterested and burned out, with a "been there, done that" air of indifference toward much of life. As increasing numbers of friends’ children are advised to take medicine to deal with inattentiveness at school or anti-depressants (抗抑郁药)to help with the loss of interest and joy in their lives—I question the role of kids’ boredom in some of the diagnoses (处方).
My own work is focused on the chemical imbalances and biological factors related to behavioral and emotional disorders. These are complex problems. Yet I’ve been reflecting more and more on how lie pace of life and the strength of stimulation may be contributing to the rising rates of psychological problems among children and adolescents in our society.The reason why the author felt surprised in the amusement park was that ________.
| A．his son was not as excited by the roller coasters ride as expected |
| B．his songs enjoyed turns and circles with his face stretched |
| C．his son appeared upset but calm while riding the roller coasters |
| D．his son could keep his balance so well on the fast moving roller coasters |
According to the author, children will probably feel excited ________.
| A．if their parents allow them to ride roller coasters very often |
| B．since parents spend money on the same form of entertainment |
| C．after they take anti-depressants according to the diagnoses |
| D．if they are often exposed to more stimulating entertainment |
From his own experience, the author came to the conclusion that children seem to expect _______.
| A．a much wider variety of sports facilities |
| B．activities that require complicated skills |
| C．the change of the forms of recreation |
| D．more challenging physical exercise |
. In order to relieve children’s boredom, the author would probably suggest ________.
| A．adjusting the pace of life and strength of stimulation |
| B．promoting the practice of dad-son days |
| C．consulting a specialist in child psychology |
| D．balancing school work with after school activities |
I once had my Chinese MBA students brainstorming on “two-hour business plans”. I separated them into six groups and gave them an example: a restaurant chain. The more original their idea, the better, I said. Finally, five of the six groups presented plans for restaurant chains. The sixth proposed a catering service. Though I admitted the time limit had been difficult, I expressed my disappointment.
My students were middle managers, financial analysts and financiers from state owned enterprises and global companies. They were not without talent or opinions, but they had been shaped by an educational system that rarely stressed or rewarded critical thinking or inventiveness. The scene I just described came in different forms during my two years’ teaching at the school. Papers were often copied from the Web and the Harvard Business Review. Case study debates were written up and just memorized. Students frequently said that copying is a superior business strategy, better than inventing and creating.
In China, every product you can imagine has been made and sold. But so few well developed marketing and management minds have been raised that it will be a long time before most people in the world can name a Chinese brand.
With this problem in mind, partnerships with institutions like Yale and MIT have been established. And then there’s the “thousand talent scheme”: this new government program is intended to improve technological modernization by attracting top foreign trained scientists to the mainland with big money. But there are worries about China’s research environment. It’s hardly known for producing independent thinking and openness, and even big salary offers may not be attractive enough to overcome this.
At last, for China, becoming a major world creator is not just about setting up partnerships with top Western universities. Nor is it about gathering a group of well-educated people and telling them to think creatively. It’s about establishing a rich learning environment for young minds. It’s not that simple.Why does the author feel disappointed at his students?
| A．Because there is one group presenting a catering service. |
| B．Because the six groups made projects for restaurant chains. |
| C．Because all the students copied a case for the difficult topic. |
| D．Because the students’ ideas were lacking in creativeness. |
We can infer from the passage that ________.
| A．China can make and sell any product all over the world |
| B．high pay may not solve the problem of China’s research environment |
| C．cooperation with institutions has been set up to make a Chinese brand |
| D．the new government program are aimed at encouraging imagination |
Which is the best title of the passage?
| A．Look for a New Way of Learning. | B．Reward Creative Thinking. |
| C．How to Become a Creator. | D．Establish a technical Environment. |