---Why should you be so late today ?

---I got stuck in the heavy traffic, or I ____________here earlier.

A. had arrived

B. arrived

C. would arrive

D. would have arrived

---Did you see “Running Man”?

--- ______. Smart man(潮人)，you know.

A. No problem

B. Why me？

C. That’s for sure

D. Why bother？

A

I left university with a good degree in English Literature, but no sense of what I wanted to do. Over the next six years, I was treading water, just trying to earn an income. I tried journalism, but I didn’t think I was any good, then finance, which I hated. Finally, I got a job as a rights assistant at a famous publisher. I loved working with books, although the job that I did was dull.

I had enough savings to take a year off work, and I decided to try to satisfy a deep-down wish to write a novel. Attending a Novel Writing MA course gave me the structure I needed to write my first 55,000 words.

It takes confidence to make a new start — there’s a dark period in-between where you’re neither one thing nor the other. You’re out for dinner and people ask what you do, and you’re too ashamed to say, “Well, I’m writing a novel, but I’m not quite sure if I’m going to get there.” My confidence dived. Believing my novel could not be published ,

I put it aside.

Then I met an agent（代理商）who said I should send my novel out to agents. So, I did and, to my surprise, got some wonderful feedback. I felt a little hope that I might actually become a published writer and, after signing with an agent, I finished the second half of the novel.

The next problem was finding a publisher. After two-and-a-half years of no income, just waiting and wondering, a publisher offered me a book deal — that publisher turned out to be the one I once worked for.

It feels like an unbelievable stroke of luck — of fate, really. When you set out to do something different, there’s no end in sight, so to find myself in a position where I now have my own name on a contract of the publisher — to be a published writer — is unbelievably rewarding.

1.What does the underlined part in Paragraph 1 mean?

A. I was waiting for good fortune.

B. I was trying to find an admirable job.

C. I was being aimless about a suitable job.

D. I was doing several jobs for more pay at a time.

2.The author decided to write a novel ______ .

A. to finish the writing course

B. to realize her own dream

C. to satisfy readers’wish

D. to earn more money

3.How did the writer feel halfway with the novel?

A. Disturbed. B. Ashamed. C. Confident. D. Uncertain.

4.What does the author mainly want to tell readers in the last paragraph?

A. It pays to stick to one’s goal.

B. Hard work can lead to success.

C. She feels like being unexpectedly lucky.

D. There is no end in sight when starting to do something.

B

Riding a London subway, a person from China will notice one major difference: in London, people do not look at each other. In fact, eye contact is avoided at all times. That’s not rudeness—people are just too busy to bother looking.

Busy doing what, you ask? Well, they’re certainly not using the time for a moment of quiet reflection, nor are they reading a book. New technology has replaced quiet habits. Today the only acceptable form of book on the London underground is an e-book.

Apple must earn a fortune from London commuters(乘車上下班的人). Since the launch of the iPhone in 2007, over 40,000—yes, that’s 40,000—“apps” (programs downloaded for the iPhone) have been designed.

Commuters love them because they are the perfect time-fillers. One “app”, called iShoot, is a game that features tanks. Another one, Tube Exits, tells passengers where to sit on the train to be closest to the exit of their destination. ISteam clouds the iPhone screen when you breathe into the microphone. You can then write in the “ steam” on your phone screen.

For those without an iPhone, another Apple product, the iPod, may be another choice. It’s not just teenagers who “plug in” to their music—iPods are a popular way to pass the time for all ages.

And if games, e-books and music aren’t enough to keep you engaged, then perhaps you would prefer a film. The development of palm DVD technology means many commuters watch their favorite TV show or film on the way to work. With all these entertainments, it’s amazing that people still remember to get off the train.

1.People in London do not make eye contact on the subway because they are busy_____.

A. playing games, reading e-books, listening to music or watching films.

B. going to work

C. reading books

D. thinking about private things

2.Those who like war games can download _____to their iPhones.

A. Tube Exits B. iShoot

C. ISteam D. iPod

3.The underlined word “engaged” in the last paragraph probably means______.

A. delighted B. busy

C. controlled D. amused

4.The article tells us that_____.

A. London commuters are unfriendly to strangers

B. Apple has earned a lot of money from selling 40,000 iPhones

C. with all the new time-fillers, London commuters often forget to get off the train.

D. technology is changing the way London commuters spend their traveling time.

E

A German study suggests that people who were too optimistic about their future actually faced greater risk of disability or death within 10 years than those pessimists( 悲觀者)who expected their future to be worse.

The paper, published this March in Psychology and Aging, examined health and welfare surveys from roughly 40,000 Germans between ages 18 and 96. The surveys were conducted every year from 1993 to 2003.

Survey respondents (受訪者) were asked to estimate their present and future life satisfaction on a scale of 0 to 10, among other questions.

The researchers found that young adults (age 18 to 39) routinely overestimated their future life satisfaction, while middle-aged adults (age 40 to 64) more accurately predicted how they would feel in the future. Adults of 65 and older, however, were far more likely to underestimate their future life satisfaction. Not only did they feel more satisfied than they thought they would, the older pessimists seemed to suffer a lower ratio (比率) of disability and death for the study period.

“We observed that being too optimistic in predicting a better future than actually observed was associated with a greater risk of disability and a greater risk of death within the following decade,” wrote Frieder R. Lang, a professor at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg.

Lang and his colleagues believed that people who were pessimistic about their future may be more careful about their actions than people who expected a rosy future.

“Seeing a dark future may encourage positive evaluations of the actual self and may contribute to taking improved precautions (預(yù)防措施),” the authors wrote.

Surprisingly, compared with those in poor health or who had low incomes, respondents who enjoyed good health or income were associated with expecting a greater decline. Also, the researchers said that higher income was related to a greater risk of disability.

The authors of the study noted that there were limitations to their conclusions. Illness, medical treatment and personal loss could also have driven health outcomes. However, the researchers said a pattern was clear. “We found that from early to late adulthood, individuals adapt their expectations of future life satisfaction from optimistic, to accurate, to pessimistic,” the authors concluded.

1.According to the study, who made the most accurate prediction of their future life satisfaction?

A. Optimistic adults.

B. Middle-aged adults.

C. Adults in poor health.

D. Adults of lower income.

2.Pessimism may be positive in some way because it causes people ______.

A. to fully enjoy their present life

B. to estimate their contribution accurately

C. to take measures against potential risks

D. to value health more highly than wealth

3.How do people of higher income see their future?

A. They will earn less money.

B. They will become pessimistic.

C. They will suffer mental illness.

D. They will have less time to enjoy life.

4.What is the clear conclusion of the study?

A. Pessimism guarantees chances of survival.

B. Good financial condition leads to good health.

C. Medical treatment determines health outcomes.

D. Expectations of future life satisfaction decline with age.

—Do you like Mary’s new hairstyle?

— Perfect！How much _____ she looks with the curly short hair!

A. well B. good

C. best D. better

I’m not good at _____ people’s mind, so if you should have some requests, let me know.

A. reading B. crossing

C. occupying D. changing

I really shouldn’t have shouted at my parents like that, but _____.

A. it was none of your business

B. I just couldn’t help it

C. I didn’t care about it

D. it made no difference

The old woman carefully sorted out the eggs, _____ them in the basket and headed for the market.

A. put B. to put

C. putting D. having put

The bride and groom gave _____ attended their wedding some gifts to share their happiness.

A. whomever B. whoever

C. whom D. who