The 1920s was a decade of wealth, decadence(墮落) and social changes. They were known as the Roaring Twenties, and the best place to experience this exciting time was New York City. But what was it really like?

Prohibition

In 1919, a new law in the US known as Prohibition made it illegal to buy and sell alcohol. But Prohibition didn’t stop people drinking; it just drove the sale of strong alcoholic drink underground. Bootleggers(走私販) waited off the coast of New York after dark and brought illegal alcohol into the city.

Jazz

Jazz was the music of New York in the 1920s. In fact, the decade is called Jazz Age. The best place to listen to this new form of music was the Cotton Club in Harlem. All the great jazz musicians played at the Cotton Club, including Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie and Duke Ellington. Also, in 1942 George Gershwin composed the jazz—influenced Rhapsody in Blue. The piece has been called “a musical portrait of New York” and was used by Woody Allen in his film Manhattan.

Art Deco

Art Deco was the most popular style of the 1920s, with bright colors and geometric designs; it can be seen in the art, architecture and inside designs of the period. New York is full of Art Deco buildings, but the most famous ones are the Chrysler Building (built between 1928 and 1930) and the Empire State Building (built between 1930 and 1931).

The Great Depression

On 29th October, 1929, the Roaring Twenties came to a dramatic end. On that day (known as “Black Tuesday”), the US stock market crashed, causing the Great Depression. The economic downturn lasted ten years and affected most of the Western world. Unemployment in America reached 25% and the country didn’t recover until after World War II.

1.We know from the passage that in 1919 people ________ alcohol in the US.

A. began to buy and sellB. stopped producing

C. completely stopped tradingD. secretly bought and sold

2.The 1920s is called _________.

A. Country Music TimeB. Jazz Age

C. Folk Music AgeD. Pop Age

3.We infer from the passage that the US _________ in the year 1930.

A. was in a bad economic state

B. was in good economic condition

C. developed at a rapid speed

D. had many dramatic plays

It was a cold night in Washington, D.C., and I was heading back to the hotel when a man approached me. He asked me for some money so he could get something to eat. I’d read the sign: “Don’t give money to beggars.” So I shook my head and kept marching.
I wasn’t prepared for a reply, but he said, “I am really homeless and I am really hungry! You can come with me and watch me eat!” But I kept on marching.

The incident bothered me for the rest of the week. I had money in my pocket and it wouldn’t have killed me to hand over a dollar or two even if he had been lying. On a freezing cold night, I still assumed the worst of the fellow human being.

Flying back to Anchorage, I couldn’t help thinking of him. I tried to seek excuses for my failure to help by assuming government agencies, churches and charities were there to feed him. Besides, you’re not supposed to give money to beggars.

Somewhere over Seattle, I started to write my weekly garden column for the Anchorage Daily News. Out of the blue, I came up with an idea. Bean’s Café, a soup kitchen in Anchorage, feeds hundreds of hungry Alaskans every day. Why not try to get all my readers to plant one row in their gardens devoted to Bean’s Café?

Before long my idea took off. People would fax me or call when they took something in. Those who only grew flowers donated them. Food for the spirit. And relief for my conscience.

As more and more people started working with the “Plant a Row” concept, many companies gave free seeds to customers and displayed the logo, which also arose in national gardening publications. Row markers with the “Plant a Row” logo were distributed to gardeners to set apart their “Row for the Hungry”.

It is unexpected that millions of Americans are threatened by hunger. If every gardener in America—and we’re seventy million strong—plants one row for the hungry, we can lower the number of neighbors who don’t have enough to eat. Maybe then I will stop feeling guilty about abandoning a hungry man I could have helped.

1.Why did the author turn down the beggar’s request?

A. He was previously reminded not to do so.

B. He was eager to march back to the hotel.

C. He thought that it was beyond his duty.

D. He was short of money at that moment.

2.Which of the following is the closest to the underlined phrase “took off” (Paragraph 6)?

A. We eventually took off at 11o’clock and landed in Seattle safely.

B. To take off pounds, you have to cut down the number of calories.

C. On hearing the news, he took off at once and headed back to the hotel.

D. His business has really taken off owing to his advanced management.

3.What did the author do after the beggar’s incident?

A. He felt guilty but couldn’t help him.

B. He started a project to help the hungry.

C. He ran a blue kitchen to supply the hungry with soup.

D. He still supposed it was unwise to give the hungry with soup.

4.What can be a suitable title for the passage?

A. Plant a Row for the Hungry

B. Lend a Hand to Beggars

C. Never Hesitate to Help Others

D. Plan a Gardening Project

When going through major life changes, like changing careers, I would change the people with whom I spent the most time. We’ve all gone through periods when the people in our lives have changed—graduation, moving to a new city, getting a new job, joining a new club, etc. I don’t think I need to convince you just how much influence other people can have over your identity. If you’ve ever experienced a major switch in your people environment, then you know that you change as well.

Most people don’t make these choices consciously, though. You might consciously decide to spend more time with a certain friend, or you may ask someone out on a date to begin a new relationship. But few people choose their existing friendships deliberately.

There’s no “getting rid of people”. People are always dropping into and out of each other’s lives. Associations grow into friendships, and friendships fade into associations. You don’t get rid of anyone. The truth is that in order to make room for new people and new experiences, you may need to loosen up some of your existing connections.

What about loyalty? Shouldn’t you always be loyal to your friends? Once you have a close friend, even if his influence on you is slightly harmful, shouldn’t you stick by him?

Loyalty to a friend sometimes means having to let go. It means being loyal to his highest and best self as well. If someone is destroying his health by smoking, for example, you aren’t showing loyalty by smoking right along with him. True loyalty sometimes requires that you break damaging connections, get yourself back on solid ground, and then decide what you can really do to help your friend.

It can take a lot of courage to tell someone, “I’m sorry, but I can’t have you in my life anymore.” But even though this might seem like a selfish act at times, it’s often the best thing for the other person, too. If a relationship is holding you back in some way, understand that it’s also hurting the other person. For example, if you work for a violent boss, your acceptance of that situation is considered to be silent approval, encouraging your boss to continue to behave violently.

1.When experiencing major life changes, people may _______.

A. join a new social community

B. influence their friend around

C. choose their friendships purposely

D. have their people environment changed

2.What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 mean?

A. Everyone has at least one friend.

B. It is unnecessary to make new friends.

C. Friendships still exist though there are fewer connections.

D. You ought to treat your old and new friends equally.

3.What is the author’s opinion on the loyalty to friends?

A. Never betray your close friends whatever happens.

B. Correct their mistakes while you guard their goodness.

C. Stick by your friends even though they do harm to you.

D. Break up with your friends immediately if they smoke.

4.How should we behave when employed by a violent boss?

A. We should accept what we are told to do.

B. We should stay silent and be in favor of him.

C. We should bravely disobey him if he is wrong.

D. We should give our boss courage to continue.

閱讀下面短文，從短文后各題所給四個(gè)選項(xiàng)（A、B、C和D）中，選出可以填入空白處的最佳選項(xiàng)，并在答題卡上將該項(xiàng)涂黑。

One day, a professor entered the classroom and asked his students to prepare for a surprise test. They waited anxiously at their desks for the test to begin. The professor ________ the question papers, with the text facing down as usual. ________ he handed them all out, he asked his students to ________ the page and begin. To everyone’s surprise, there were no ________, just a black dot in the center of the page. The professor, seeing the expression on everyone’s face, told them the following:

“I want you to write what you ________ there.”

The students, ________, got started on the inexplicable(費(fèi)解的) task.

At the end of the class, the professor ________ all the answer papers and started reading each of them aloud in front of all the students. All of them, with no ________, described the black dot, trying to explain its position in the middle of the sheet, etc. After all had been ________, the classroom was silent, and the professor began to explain:

“I’m not going to grade this. I ________ wanted to give you something to think about. No one wrote about the ________ part of the paper. Everyone focused on the black dot, and the same happens in our ________. We have a white paper to observe and ________, but we always focus on the dark spots. Our life is a ________ given to us with love and care, and we always have ________ to celebrate: nature renewing itself every day, our friends around us, the job that ________ our livelihood and the miracle we see every day.

________, we insist on focusing only on the dark spots: the health issues that bother us, the lack of money, the ________ relationship with colleagues, the ________ with a friend, and etc.

The dark spots are very ________ compared to everything we have in our lives, but they are the ones that pollute our minds.”

1.A. handed outB. wrapped upC. referred toD. pointed at

2.A. SinceB. UntilC. IfD. After

3.A. foldB. turnC. openD. use

4.A. exercisesB. choicesC. questionsD. scores

5.A. rememberB. imagineC. studyD. see

6.A. surprisedB. confusedC. curiousD. displeased

7.A. collectedB. finishedC. markedD. selected

8.A. excuseB. doubtC. exceptionD. explanation

9.A. saidB. answeredC. returnedD. read

10.A. alsoB. justC. evenD. finally

11.A. bigB. blackC. beautifulD. white

12.A. livesB. classroomsC. colleaguesD. studies

13.A. sendB. keepC. enjoyD. show

14.A. burdenB. giftC. pressureD. lesson

15.A. reasonsB. timeC. freedomD. festival

16.A. threatensB. ruinsC. providesD. changes

17.A. HoweverB. ThereforeC. BesidesD. Moreover

18.A. closeB. complicatedC. specialD. strong

19.A. stayB. contact

C. satisfactionD. disappointment

20.A. darkB. roundC. smallD. dirty

閱讀下面材料，在空白處填入適當(dāng)?shù)膬?nèi)容（1個(gè)單詞）或括號(hào)內(nèi)單詞的正確形式。

Hardly can you succeed _1. _ doing something perfectly the first time you do it. __2.__, when you do something for the first time, it is time to give up the idea of perfection.

I remember the first time I ___3.___ (drive) a car in traffic after getting my driver’s license. I was very nervous in that heavy traffic—my driving style showed that I wasn’t a very confident driver. Now I’m much more __4.____ (experience) as a driver. ___5.__ I still don’t consider myself a perfect one, I’m much more confident behind the wheel than what I was __6.____ I started.

In general, __7.___ is useless working hard for doing something perfectly when you do it for the first time. You are setting the bar so high that you just feel bad when you are ___8.___ (able) to meet the level you have set.

Also, perfection is just another way __9.___ (delay), so trying to be perfect is just _10.__ waste of time. You should work hard for excellence instead.

假定英語課上老師要求同桌之間交換修改作文，請(qǐng)你修改你同桌寫的以下作文。作文中共有10處語言錯(cuò)誤，每句中最多有兩處。每處錯(cuò)誤僅涉及一個(gè)單詞的增加、刪除或修改。

增加：在缺詞處加一個(gè)漏子符號(hào)（∧）并在其下面寫出該加的詞。

刪除：在錯(cuò)的詞下劃一橫線，并在該詞下面寫出修改后的詞。

注意：1.每處錯(cuò)誤及其修改均僅限一詞；

2.只允許修改10處，多者（從第11處起）不計(jì)分。

One of my happiest childhood memories were having dinner with my parents and two sisters. As a result, found that we seldom had a chance to get together, then we decided we would set aside three evenings the week for a sit-down dinner. First we tried setting three fixed days for our experiment—Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays. After a couple of week of trying this plan, almost everyone was unhappy. For a while, the kids began to resist the idea. They said they would rather to spend the time with their friends or take part in some activities. Gradual, though, they began to see these evenings together for a very different way. We laughed a lot and we discussed about each other’s problems. Since a few months, we all felt that we had been able to build much strong relationships with the family than we had before.

書面表達(dá)

假如你是李華，請(qǐng)按以下提示給你班因病住院的美國交換生Louis寫一封e-mail:

1. 表示關(guān)心；

2. 表達(dá)對(duì)Louis的安慰；

3. 表示愿意提供幫助。

注意：1. 詞數(shù)100左右；

2. 可以適當(dāng)增加細(xì)節(jié)，以使行文連貫；

3. 開頭語和結(jié)尾語已經(jīng)為你寫好。

Dear Louis,

I am very sorry to hear that you are ill and in hospital. _______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

Yours,

Li Hua

When you're on the go, your best friend and resource can be your phone. In the age of smart phones, apps are like guiding stars: They can point you in the right direction for a hotel, list expenses, send postcards, and much more. When used together, these apps can be the basic travel tool, placing a wealth of information at your fingertips no matter where you are on the planet. U.S. News Travel has picked the essential travel apps, known for their utility and reliability. Best of all, they cost absolutely nothing.

Trip It

Your Personal Travel Agent

Be your own travel agent and plan every detail of your trip—from car rental to accommodating restaurants—with Trip It. You can make travel schedule by hand, or simply forward the email confirmations of your flight, rental car, train tickets, and hotels to plans.

Weather Free

Your Go-To Meteorologist(氣象學(xué)者)

Stop trying to explain the weather forecast on the evening news (particularly when it's in a foreign language). The Weather Free app informs you (in English) of the climate in various locations. It features the local weather, and other key factors that will inform your decision about what to wear before stepping outside.

Goby

Your Event Guru

When you're in a foreign city, you sometimes look around and ask: Where are all the people? Goby has the answer. This app pinpoints the neighborhood hot spots (including museums, hotels, eateries, and more) in your neighborhood. But its true value comes in finding nearby events. You'll discover concerts, plays, and more right around the corner.

1.What is the advantage of using travel apps picked by the U.S. News Travel?

A. They can solve any problem you come across.

B. They reduce your travel budget.

C. They exercise your fingertips.

D. They are reliable and free of charge.

2.With the help of the travel apps used together, travelers can do the following things EXCEPT ________.

A. rent a car

B. decide what to wear

C. look for a friend while traveling

D. find the nearby museums

3.Where are the readers likely to read the passage above?

A. In a geography textbookB. In a science fiction

C. On a popular websiteD. In a business report

Born in the State of New York on May 14th, 1984, Mark Zuckerberg was an instant success. In his high school years, he was considered one of top students in the classics, before moving into the arts, sciences, and literature, again picking up high marks and receiving academic praise. It earned him admission to Harvard University.

As a rebellious yet relatively quiet student, he created a website called Facemash in the university — an instantly controversial website that encouraged students to rate each other based on appearance.

The site was controversial for several reasons. The first was its illegal use of photographs, which the university and students took issue with. The second was its controversial nature — not every student like being ranked based on their appearance. The third was its huge resource use — while it was hosted on Harvard servers, it was the most popular page in the university’s entire network.

Zuckerberg was soon forced to shut the site down, but its popularity and controversy had made him consider its future potential. He soon turned the simple site into a personal one for Harvard students, encouraging them to network with their peers at the college. It was then, together with his two friends, that they launched “The Facebook”, which immediately spread to other colleges and grew into a public service that anyone could access in the United States, whether to network with friends and family, or to play games.

The company has been criticized frequently, nevertheless, Zuckerberg has remained true to his initial vision — to create a website that the entire world can use to communicate openly and easily with one another and to keep the user experience clean and pure. The end result is one of the world’s biggest online businesses.

Although its true value is debatable, it’s safe to say that Facebook, and its creator Mark Zuckerberg, are two of the twenty-first century’s most influential, controversial, and potentially powerful figures.

1.When Mark Zuckerberg was a student, he ________.

A. was often praised by teachers for the website he created

B. had good academic performance

C. alone created a website called Facebook

D. encouraged students to set up business like him

2.The reason why Zuckerberg shut the site down was probably that ________.

A. his website was not popular

B. he was doubted for the way he used photographs

C. he needed time to reconsider his choice

D. he stole resource on Harvard server

3.Which words can best describe Zuckerberg?

A. easy-going and smart.B. quiet and shy.

C. talented and outgoing.D. rebellious and creative.

4.The best title of the passage should be ________.

A. Mark Zuckerberg and his Facebook

B. The Foundation of Facebook

C. A Talent from Harvard University

D. The Development of Facebook

Have you ever found yourself in this situation: You hear a song you used to sing when you were a child – a bit of nostalgia(懷舊) or “blast from the past,” as we say. But it is not a distant childhood memory. The words come back to you as clearly as when you sang them all those years ago.

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh studied the relationship between music and remembering a foreign language. They found that remembering words in a song was the best way to remember even one of the most difficult languages.

Here is what they did. Researchers took 60 adults and randomly divided them into three groups of 20. Then they gave the groups three different types of “l(fā)isten-and-repeat” learning conditions. Researchers had one group simply speak the words. They had the second group speak the words to a rhythm, or beat. And they asked the third group to sing the words.

All three groups studied words from the Hungarian language for 15 minutes. Then they took part in a series of language tests to see what they remembered.

Why Hungarian, you ask? Researchers said they chose Hungarian because not many people know the language. It does not share any roots with Germanic or Romance languages, such as Italian or Spanish. After the tests were over, the singers came out on top. The people who learned these new Hungarian words by singing them showed a higher overall performance. They did the best in four out of five of the tests. They also performed two times better than those who simply learned the words by speaking them.

Dr. Katie Overy says singing could lead to new ways to learn a foreign language. The brain likes to remember things when they are contained in a catchy 3, or memorable 4, tune 5.

Dr. Ludke said the findings could help those who struggle to learn foreign languages. On the University of Edinburgh’s website Dr. Ludke writes, “This study provides the first experimental evidence that a listen-and-repeat singing method can support foreign language learning, and opens the door for future research in this area.”

1.The “song” mentioned in the first paragraph is intended to ________.

A. recall the past

B. attract the readers

C. introduce the topic

D. compare the childhood with the present

2.According to the passage which language doesn’t share the same root with Germanic or Romance languages?

A. Hungarian. B. Spanish. C. Italian. D. English.

3.Based on the last two paragraphs, we can conclude that ________.

A. singing is the best way to learn a language

B. the brain probably works best when the foreign language learners sing the words

C. a listen-repeat method is very effective for any language learner

D. Dr. Katie Overy and Dr. Ludke disagree with each other

4.In which situation can the finding of the research be applied?

A. A mother is going to teach her baby how to speak.

B. A child is going to have his first music lesson.

C. A student is going to learn a new English song.

D. An American is going to learn some Chinese.