9．From losing weight to quitting smoking，each December people around the world make a New Year's resolution（決心）．But studies have shown that despite their best effort，most will fail．
Professor Peter Herman，a psychology lecturer at the University of Toronto says that the reasons why resolutions fail are clear．"They are not realistic in some or all of the following respects：people think that they can change themselves more quickly； they think that they can change much more than anyone else； or they think they can change everything more easily．"
Professor Herman suggests that the issue may be a cycle of failure and renewed effort．which he calls"the false-hope syndrome"（虛妄期盼綜合征）．The cycle begins with a difficult self-change task．such as overeating or smoking-common yet rarely successful changes．While people may make some initial progress in the task，eventually they fail to achieve their goal．Having failed，they interpret their failure to convince themselves that with a few adjustments they will succeed．Finally，they begin to embark on another attempt，and the cycle repeats．
In his paper on the topic，Professor Herman and his co-author，Janet Polivy，write，"People tend to make the same resolutions year after year，vowing on average l0 times to get rid of a particular vice （惡習(xí)）．"Obviously，every renewed vow represents a certain failure； otherwise，there would be no need for yet another attempt．Equally obviously，unsuccessful attempts do not decrease the chance of making future palls for self-change．Even those who are finally successful at sticking to their resolutions make the attempt five or six times on average before succeeding．
Expecting to make a breakthrough is not a good way，so Professor Herman says that the best way of sticking to your resolution is to expect the changes little by little rather than a major transformation．He told Mail Online，"Often this means scaling back （縮減） your resolution to something that is actually manageable．"

32．Why do most people fail in their New Year's resolutions according to Professor Herman？B
A．They doesn't do their best at all．
B．They make unrealistic resolutions．
C．They want to stay unchanged．
D．They change them frequently．
33．What does the underlined part"embark on"in Paragraph 3 probably mean？A
A．Undertake．B．Abandon．C．Welcome．D．Represent．
34．How can you achieve your New Year's resolutions in Professor Herman's opinion？C
A．Set a big resolution．
B．Make a breakthrough．
C．Expect gradual changes．
D．Believe in yourself．
35．What may be the best title for the text？D
A．Actions Speak Louder Than Words   
B．Think Twice Before You Do
C．A Bargain Is a Bargain     
D．Good Plan Is Half Done．

8．A popular saying goes，"Sticks and stones may break my bones，but words will never hurt me．"However，that's not really true．Words have the power to build us up or tear us down．It doesn't matter if the words come from someone's else or ourselves---the positive and negative effects are just as lasting．
We all talk to ourselves sometimes．We're usually too embarrassed to admit it，though．In fact，we really shouldn't be because more and more experts believe talking to ourselves out loud is a healthy habit．
This"self-talk"helps us motivate ourselves，remember things，solve problems，and calm Our-
selves down．Be aware，though，that as much as 77% of self-talk tends to be negative．So in order to stay positive，we should only speak words of encouragement to ourselves．We should also be quick to give ourselves a pat on the back．The next time you finish a project，do well in a test，or finally clean your room，join me in saying"Good job!"
    Often，words come out of our mouths without us thinking about the effect they will have．But we should be aware that our words cause certain responses in others．For example，when returning an item to a store，we might use warm，friendly language during the exchange．And the clerk will probably respond in a similar manner．Or harsh（刻薄的）and critical language will most likely cause the clerk to be defensive．
Words possess power because of their lasting effect．Many of us regret something we once said．And we remember unkind words said to us!Before speaking，we should always ask ourselves：Is it loving？Is it needed？If what we want to say doesn't pass this test，then it's better left unsaid．
Words possess power both positive and negative．Those around us receive encouragement when we speak positively．We can offer hope，build self-esteem and motivate others to do their best．Negative words destroy all those things．Will we use our words to hurt or to heal？The choice is ours．

28．The main idea of the first paragraph is thatD．
A．not sticks and stones but words will hurt us．
B．inspiring words give us confidence
C．negative words may let us down               
D．words have a lasting effect on us
29．There is no sense for us to feel embarrassed when we talk to ourselves becauseB
A．a(chǎn)lmost everybody has the habit of talking to themselves
B．we can benefit from talking to ourselves
C．talking to ourselves always gives us courage
D．it does no harm to have"self-talk"when we are alone
30．The underlined part in the third paragraph means that we should also timelyA 
A．praise ourselves                    
B．remind ourselves    
C．make ourselves relaxed              
D．give ourselves amusement
31．The author would probably hold the view thatD 
A．encouraging words are sure to lead to kind offers
B．negative words may stimulate us to make more progress
C．people tend to remember friendly words
D．it is better to think twice before talking to others．

7．My color television has given me nothing but a headache．I was able to buy it a little over a year ago because I had my relatives give me money for my birthday instead of a lot of clothes that wouldn't fit．I let a salesclerk fool me into buying a discontinued model．I realized this a day late，when I saw newspaper advertisements for the set at seventy-five dollars less than I had paid．The set worked so beautifully when I first got it home that I would keep it on until stations signed off for the night．Fortunately，I didn't got any channels showing all-night movies or I would never have gotten to bed．
    Then I started developing a problem with the set that involved static （靜電） noise．For some reason，when certain shows switched into a commercial，a loud noise would sound for a few seconds．Gradually，this noise began to appear during a show，and to get rid of it，I had to change to another channel and then change it back．Sometimes this technique would not work，and I had to pick up the set and shake it to remove the sound．I actually began to build up my arm muscles shaking my set．
    When neither of these methods removed the static noise，I would sit helplessly and wait for the noise to go away．At last I ended up hitting the set with my fist，and it stopped working altogether．My trip to the repair shop cost me $62，and the set is working well now，but I keep expecting more trouble．

24．Why did the author say he was fooled into buying the TV set？C
 A．He got an older model than he had expected．
B．He couldn't return it when it was broken．
 C．He could have bought it at a lower price．
D．He failed to find any movie shows on it．
25．Which of the following can best replace the phrase"signed off"in Paragraph 1？A
 A．ended all their programs            
B．provided fewer channels
 C．changed to commercials            
D．showed all-night movies
26．How did the author finally get his TV set working again？D
 A．By shaking and hitting it．
B．By turning it on and off．
 C．By switching channels．
D．By having it repaired．
27．How does the author sound when telling the story？D
A．Curious      B．Anxious      C．Cautious      D．Humorous．

6．第一節(jié)    短文改錯
假定英語課上老師要求同桌之間交換修改作文，請你修改你同桌寫的以下作文．文中共有10處語言錯誤，每句中最多有兩處．每處錯誤僅涉及一個單詞的增加、刪除或修改．
增加：在缺詞處加一個漏字符號（^），并在其下面寫出該加的詞．
刪除：把多余的詞用斜線（\）劃掉．
修改：在錯的詞下劃一橫線，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）不計分．
Dear Peter，
    Thank you for your invitation to dinner at your home in tomorrow evening．Unfortunate，I cannot join you and your family．It is why I will be fully occupied then for an important exam come the day after tomorrow．I felt terribly sorry for missing the chance of such happy get-together．And I hope that all of you enjoy a good time．Is it possibly for you and me to have a private meeting at your convenient？If so，please don't hesitate to drop me a line about my favorite date．I do long for a pleasant chat about you．
    Please allow me to say sorry again．
Yours sincerely，
Li Hua

5．第二節(jié) 閱讀下面材料，在空白處填入適當?shù)膬?nèi)容（一個單詞），或括號內(nèi)單詞的正確形式．
Whether you have（61）interviews （interview） or meetings，your conversations are important．It can't be polite to ask （62）repeatedly（repeat）"what"when you don't know what someone said just now．You don't want that person to think his（63）pronunciation （pronounce） is unclear．There are many ways to ask politely someone to repeat something．
Apologize for not  （64）hearing （hear） what he person said．You can begin （65）with"excuse me"or"pardon"or"sorry"．Then you could kindly say that you did not hear or understand （66）whatwas said．For instance，you could say，"I'm sorry，（67）butI didn't quite hear you．"You could also say，"Can you repeat that？"
It can be （68）disappointing （disappoint） when you don't hear someone clearly．But is is very important to stay clam and pleasant．And be sure to put the blame on （69）yourself（you）．That makes people feel far（70）more comfortable （comfortable） even when you can't understand them well．

4．第一節(jié)  完形填空
One rainy afternoon I was sitting at home feeling so bored．（41）Cfeeling sorry for myself，I wanted to meet people and have new（42）A so I decided to start volunteering．I found a website where I could volunteer on a farm in France．
Volunteering （43）C  so many opportunities to have fun and share（44）Bstories．It was the first time for me to work on a farm．It was almost a（45）B holiday as food and accommodation were provided．It was not one （46）C holiday，however，as I had to（47）A fifteen horses and sheep!I soon discovered that I was a（n）（48）Dfarmer but it did not matter because I made some great friends and also improved my（49）B．
However，you do not（50）Dgo abroad to volunteer．I have had plenty of adventures at home as volunteering can become a （51）A．For example，I love （52）Cso I had a good laugh waving my arms in order to （53）D  my local choir（合唱團）．At university，I organized a concert for charity with my friends．It was really （54）C to find bands and raise money for a cause．
It is true that you feel good volunteering but there are also other （55）B．I once volunteered as a steward （干事） at a charity sports event（56）A the organizers generously gave me cupcakes from an expensive London bakery to thank me for my（57）A．I also volunteered in a charity shop so I found loads of nice cheap clothes to （58）D my wardrobe（衣櫥）．
While this is all fun，my favorite aspect of volunteering is（59）Aand sharing stories．My terrible（60）Cat farming has given me funny stories to tell！

41．A．Apart from	B．Due to	C．Instead of	D．But for
42．A．experiences	B．discoveries	C．opportunities	D．changes
43．A．recommends	B．misses	C．offers	D．a(chǎn)ffects
44．A．popular	B．fantastic	C．familiar	D．important
45．A．impressive	B．free	C．cheap	D．special
46．A．unique	B．normal	C．typical	D．convenient
47．A．a(chǎn)ttend to	B．research into	C．hunt for	D．communicate with
48．A．skillful	B．suitable	C．hard-working	D．a(chǎn)wful
49．A．English	B．French	C．Russian	D．Chinese
50．A．normally	B．basically	C．naturally	D．necessarily
51．A．hobby	B．trend	C．job	D．reality
52．A．dancing	B．writing	C．singing	D．performing
53．A．greet	B．control	C．organize	D．conduct
54．A．powerful	B．hopeful	C．meaningful	D．successful
55．A．a(chǎn)dventures	B．a(chǎn)dvantages	C．factors	D．a(chǎn)chievements
56．A．where	B．which	C．that	D．what
57．A．services	B．patience	C．determination	D．choices
58．A．decorate	B．replace	C．beautify	D．update
59．A．creating	B．imagining	C．choosing	D．completing
60．A．dream	B．shame	C．a(chǎn)ttempt	D．a(chǎn)nnoyance

3．A person named Bernard Jackson today is a free man，but he has many bitter memories．He spent five years in prison after a jury （陪審團） wrongly convicted （判處…有罪） him of raping two women．At Jackson's trial，although two witnesses testified that Jackson was with them in another location at the time of the crime，he was convicted anyway．Why？The jury believed the testimony （證詞） of the two victims，who positively identified Jackson as the man who had attacked them．The court eventually freed Jackson after the police found the real criminal．
Many factors influence the accuracy of eyewitness testimony．For instance，witnesses sometimes see photographs of several suspects before they try to identify the person they saw in a group of people．They can become confused by seeing many photographs of similar faces．The number of people in the group，and whether it is a person or a photograph，may also affect a witness's decision．People sometimes have difficulty identifying people of other races．The questions the police ask witnesses also have an effect on them．
Many people believe that police officers are more reliable than ordinary people．Psychologists decided to test this idea，and they discovered that it is not true．Two psychologists showed a film of crimes to both police officers and civilians．The psychologists found no difference between the police and the civilians in correctly remembering the details of the crimes．
Despite all the possibilities for inaccuracy，courts cannot omit eyewitness testimony from a trial．American courts depend almost completely on eyewitness testimony to resolve （決定） court cases．Sometimes it is the only evidence to a crime，such as rape．Furthermore，eyewitness testimony is often correct．Although people do sometimes make mistakes，and convict innocent people，more importantly，eyewitness testimony has rightly convicted a larger number of guilty people．
American courts depend on the ability of the twelve jurors，and not the judges，to determine the accuracy of the witness's testimony．It is their responsibility to decide if a certain witness could actually see，hear and remember what happened．

32．Bernard Jackson was found guilty and sentenced 5 years'prison becauseA
A．the victims insisted that he was the attacker
B．he admitted the crime of raping two women
C．the police discovered evidence leading to his guilt
D．the eyewitness proved the victims'testimony
33．An inaccurate eyewitness testimony may lead toD
A．the misunderstanding of the case           
B．the disbelief in the court
C．the disrespect for the eyewitness           
D．the conviction of an innocent person
34．Eyewitness testimony is important becauseB
A．it can be relied on to detect criminal in all cases
B．it is sometimes the only way to resolve court cases
C．it is sometimes the only clue for police investigation
D．it is more reliable than physical evidence to a crime
35．According to the text，we can infer thatA
A．eyewitness testimony is valuable，though sometimes incorrect
B．police identification is more reliable than that of the ordinary people
C．crime victims often fail to give positive identification of the suspect
D．the jury relies on the judge than the eyewitness for a decision．

2．A new study by the British government has discovered that the mental well-beings of the country's teenage girls has worsened．
The survey which included 30，000 14-year-old students in 2005 and 2014，showed 37 percent of girls with psychological stress，up from 34 percent in 2005．British boy's stress level was actually seen to fall over the same period from 17 percent to 15 percent．
The report's authors pointed out the"advent of the social media age"could be a major contributing factor for increased stress among teenage British girls．
"The adolescent years are a time of rapid physical，cognitive and emotional development，"Pam Ramsden，a lecturer in psychology at the University of Bradford in the United Kingdom，wrote in a blog post．"Teenagers interact with people in order to learn how to become competent adults．In the past they would associate with parents，teachers and other adults in their community as well as extended family members and friends．Now we can also add social media to that list of social and emotional development．"
Throughout adolescence，girls and boys develop characteristics like confidence and self-control．Since teenage brains have not completely developed，teens don't have the cognitive awareness and impulse control to keep from posting inappropriate content．Moreover，this content can easily be circulated far and wide implications．
Social media can also feed into girls'insecurities about their appearance，Ramsden said．These sites often filled with images of people with body types unsuitable to the normal person．However these images and messages tied to them creep into societal standards．

28．How does the survey tell the negative impact of social media？B
A．By making experiments．
B．By analyzing cause and effect．
C．By asking a question．
D．By telling a story．
29．According to Pam Ramsden，we can knowA．
A．teenagers interact with people to learn more about life
B．teenagers hate sharing their thoughts with people around
C．teenagers interact with others only through social media now
D．teenagers will not post inappropriate content on the internet
30．What does the message mainly tell us？B
A．The well-being of the teenagers in Britain．
B．The social media's negative effect on teenager girls．
C．The development of teenagers in Britain．
D．How interact with teenagers in Britain．
31．What is Ramsden's attitude towards the images with fine body shapes？C
A．Supportive．B．Indifferent．C．Critical          D．Concerned．

1．May：Happenings from the Past
May 5，1884
Isaac Murphy，son of a slave and perhaps the greatest horse rider in American history，rides Buchanan to win his first Kentucky Derby．He becomes the first rider ever to win the race three times．
May 9，1754
Benjamin Franklin's Pennsylvania Gazette produces perhaps the first American political cartoon，showing a snake cut in pieces，with the words"Join or Die"printed under the picture．
May 11，1934
The first great dust storm of the Great Plains Dust Bowl，the result of years of drought，blows topsoil all the way to New York City and Washington，D．C．
May 19，1994
Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis，former first lady and one of the most famous people of the 1960s，died of cancer in New York City at the age of 64．
May 24，1844
Samuel F．B．Morse taps out the first message，"What hath God wrought，"over the experimental long-distance telegraph line which runs from Washington，D．C，to Baltimore，Md．

21．We know from the text that Buchanan isB．
A．Isaac's father                       
B．a(chǎn) winning horse
C．a(chǎn) slave taking care of horses           
D．the first racing horse in Kentucky
22．What is the title of the first American political cartoon？A
A．Join or Die                         
B．Pennsylvania Gazette
C．What Hath God Wrought              
D．Kentucky Derby
23．Which of the following places has to do with the first telegram in history？A
A．Washington，D．C．
B．New York City
C．Kentucky                          
D．Pennsylvania．

20．第一節(jié) 短文改錯
假定英語課上老師要求同桌之間交換修改作文，請你修改你同桌寫的以下作文．文中共有10處語言錯誤，每處錯誤僅涉及一個單詞的增加、刪除和修改
增加：在缺詞處加一個漏字符號（∧），并在其下面寫出該加的詞．
刪除：把多余的詞用斜線（\）劃掉．
修改：在錯的詞下劃一橫線，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）不計分．
    China is facing seriously traffic problems．Too much cars travel on the roads．This heavy traffic causes delays and a plenty of air pollution．Although many cities in China have traffic problems，some of the worse are in Beijing．One of the reason why there is so much traffic is what only a small number of people use public transportation．
    I think one way solve the traffic problems was to make people use the public transportation system．For example，they can take buses instead of drive cars．Meanwhile，the government should make them more reliable and convenient to travel by bus．