11．Over half of Americans are single，an increase of 13% since 1976，according to a 2017report．It's nice to have a partner，but relationships can also be terribly inconvenient．Most people in long-term relationships are secretly miserable．Singles have potential for more meaningful relationships with friends．（36）C．
1．You can travel on a whim（一時興起）
How do you think a romantic partner would react if you woke up and decided to move overseas，go back packing through mountains in Iceland，or take a cruise to a tropical destination？They probably wouldn't be happy if  you didn't include them in that decision．L（37）DIf you are crazy about travelling，then singlehood might be for you．
2．（38）B．
It's fun to send flirting（調(diào)情） texts back and forth．But can you imagine how much time the typical couple spends on their phones？A lot of people get anxious without constant communication，so those texts and phone calls might add up to a loss of several hours per day．（39）E．
3．You can do whatever the hell you want to．
（40）GDo you have a friend who complains about how"needy"her partner is？This complaint could be justified（合理的）depending on the context，but most people simply underestimate how much time it takes to sustain a healthy relationship．There is nothing"strange"about wanting your significant other to spend time with you．If you're not ready to consider the needs of another person，then singlehood might be for you．

A．You can work for yourself．
B．You can save tons of time．
C．And being single might have some surprising benefits．
D．Single people，however，have the freedom to travel without hesitation
E．If you would rather invest your time in a more productive fashion，then singlehood might be for you．
F．This shouldn't come as a surprise since these major life decisions require the sacrifice of free time and personal freedom．
G．Just like flower will fade away if you don't water it，a relationship will suffer without proper care and attention．

10．A gift of love
"Can I see my baby？"the happy new mother asked．
"我可以看看我的寶寶嗎？"初為人母的她開心地問道．
When the bundle（襁褓） was nestled in her arms and she moved the fold of cloth to look upon his tiny face，she suddenly breathed deeply．The doctor turned quickly and looked out the tall hospital window．The baby had been born without ears．
當(dāng)裹著的嬰兒放到她臂彎里，她掀開裹著嬰兒的布，在看到他的小臉時，她不禁倒吸了一口氣．醫(yī)生快速地轉(zhuǎn)過身，透過醫(yī)院的高層窗戶向外看去．嬰兒生下來就沒有耳朵．
Time proved that the baby's hearing was perfect．It was only his appearance that was spoiled．When her son rushed home from school one day and threw himself into his mother's arms，she sighed，knowing that his life was to be a succession of heartbreaks．
時間證明嬰兒的聽力毫無問題，只是有損他的相貌．一天，當(dāng)他匆匆從學(xué)校跑回家，撲向母親的懷抱時，她嘆了口氣，意識到他的生活注定會受到一連串的打擊．
He cried out the tragedy．"A boy，a big boy…called me a freak（畸形）．"
他脫口訴說遭到的不幸："一個男孩，一個大個子男孩…他喊我怪胎．"
He grew up，handsome except for his misfortune．A favorite with his fellow students，he might have been class president，but for that．He developed a gift，a talent for literature and music．
他長大了，雖然不幸但還是長得挺帥．頗受同學(xué)的歡迎，要不是有缺陷，他很可能當(dāng)了班長．他對文學(xué)和音樂很有天賦和潛質(zhì)．
"But you might look the same as other young people，"his mother whispered to herself，feeling a kindness in her heart．
"但你可能會和其他年輕人一樣．"母親責(zé)備地說，但從心底里覺得很欣慰．
The boy's father had a talk with the family physician…"Could nothing be done？"
男孩的父親與家庭醫(yī)生商量…"難道真無法補(bǔ)救嗎？"
"I believe I could graft（移植） on a pair of outer ears，if they could be obtained，"the doctor decided．So the search began for a person who would make such a sacrifice for a young man．
"我認(rèn)為可以移植一雙外耳，如果能夠找到的話．"醫(yī)生做了決定，于是他們開始尋求一個愿意為這個年輕人做出犧牲的人．
Two years passed through．Then，"You're going to the hospital，son．Mother and I have someone who will donate the ears you need．But it's a secret．"said the father．
兩年過去了．對兒子說，"孩子，你要住院了．我和你媽找到愿意為你捐獻(xiàn)耳朵的人了．但要求保密．"
The operation was a brilliant success，and a new person emerged．His talents blossomed into genius，and school and college became a series of triumphs．
注意：
1．所續(xù)寫短文的詞數(shù)應(yīng)為150左右；
2．應(yīng)使用5個以上短文中標(biāo)有下劃線的關(guān)鍵詞語；
3．續(xù)寫部分分為兩段，每段的開頭語已為你寫好；
4．續(xù)寫完成后，請用下劃線標(biāo)出你所使用的關(guān)鍵詞語．
Paragraph 1：
Later he married and entered the diplomatic service．
Later he married and entered the diplomatic service．"but I must know，"he asked his father，"Who gave me the ears？Who gave me so much？I could never do enough for him"I do not believe you could，"said the father，"but the agreement was that you are not to know…not yet．" 
Paragraph 2：
The years kept their profound secret，but the day did come．The years kept their profound secret，but the day did come．One of the darkest days that ever pass through a son．He stood with his father over his mother's casket（棺木）．Slowly，tenderly，the father sighed and stretched forth a hand and raised the thick，reddish brown hair to reveal that the mother had no outer ears．"Mother said she was glad she never let her hair be cut，"his father whispered gently，"and nobody ever thought mother less beautiful，did they？"．

9．Mom wanted only one thing for her birthday．"Can you find me another copy of this song？"she asked，and handed me a worn-out cassette tape．I knew exactly what was recorded on it：My Redeemer（救世主）．I heard the song played at least a thousand times while growing up．After so many years，the cassette tape was too worn out to be used．I promised her I would find a replacement．My Redeemer became Mom's favorite song after my younger brother Tim was killed by a drunk driver in 1973．The only thing that helped her calm down was the soulful sound of My Redeemer from the local radio station．
We recorded it on a cassette tape so she could listen to it any time she wanted but none of us knew who the soloist （獨(dú)唱者） was．These days，I thought the song would be easy to find out．I went home and searched the Internet．Several songs with that title popped up，but none of them was the one Mom loved．I got frustrated．
Mom's birthday drew near and then one day，I was driving home，listening to our local radio station．A familiar tune came on．It was My Redeemer!As soon as I could，I phoned the station．I got a line on the soloist，who was called Alan Parks．I typed his name into Google and found his home number in South Carolina．Minutes later，I was telling him how much his recording meant to Mom．He offered to ship two CDs out to me personally．I gave his my adders．
"Red Lion，Pennsylvania？"he said．"Do you know the Logans？""They are our neighbors!""I've been friends with them for 25 years，"Alan said．"They'll be at my concert at York Gospel Chapel on April 17^th．Would you and your mom come too？"We sure would．Mom was excited to hear Alan sing My Redeemer to her，live in concert-on the evening of her 87^th birthday．

24．Why was the song My Redeemer so important to the author's mother？A
A．it could comfort her sad and painful mood．
B．It reminded her of the love from her husband．
C．It was given to her by a very important friend．
D．it was the only thing that the author's brought friend．
25．What can we learn about Alan parks from this passage？B
A．He lived in Red Lion，Pennsylvania．
B．He is a kind and warm-hearted musician．
C．He offered to give the author two cassette tapes．
D．He would sing for the author's mom on the radio station．
26．Which of the following is most surprising？C
A．Alan Parks and the author lived in the same neighborhood．
B．Alan Parks happened to get to know the author's mother．
C．The author's mother went to the concert on her birthday．
D．The author's mother became good friends with Alan Parks．

8．（31）G．Why read an article in the newspaper，when the TV news can bring you the information in a few minutes and with pictures？Why read the life story of a famous man，when a short television program can tell you all that you want to know？
 （32）A．Today，newspapers sell in very large numbers．And books of every kind are sold more than ever before．（33）FAlthough some books with hard covers are expensive，many books are printed today as paper books （平裝本），which are quite cheap．A paperback collection of short stories，for example，is always cheaper than an evening at the cinema or the theater，and you can keep a book for ever and read it many times．Additionally，（34）B．No matter when you are on the subway or you are waiting at the airport，a book in hand is always a good choice．
Books are a wonderful provider of knowledge and pleasure and some types of books should be in every home．（35）C．A good encyclopedia （百科全書），though expensive，is useful，too，because you can find information on any subject．Besides，you can have such books as history books．，science textbook，cookbooks，and collections of stories and poems．Then from time to time you can take a book of poems off your shelves and read the thoughts and feelings of your favorite poets．

A．Television has not killed reading，however
B．A printed book is a good time killer
C．Every home should have a good dictionary
D．More and more people spend less time doing sports
E．Choosing a good book is just like choosing a friend
F．Books are still a cheap way to get information and enjoyment
G．With the popularity of televisions，some think fewer people will buy books and newspapers．

7．An   individual human existence should be like a river-small at first，narrowly contained within its banks，and           passionately past rocks and over waterfalls．（　�。�

A．

to rush

B．

rushing

C．

rushed

D．

rushes

6．When was the last time you read a．book，or a magazine article？Do your everyday reading habits centre around updates on the Internet？In case you are one of innumerable individuals  who don't make a habit of reading consistently you may be passing up a great opportunity：Reading has a noteworthy number of advantages．a(chǎn)nd only a couple of advantages of reading are recorded below．
Everything you read fills your head with new bits of information and you never know when it might be useful to you．The more knowledge you have，the better-equipped you are to overcome any challenge you'll ever face．Additionally，here's a bit of food for thought：Should you ever find yourself in terrible circuit stances，remember that although you might lose everything else-your job，your possessions，your money，even your health-knowledge  can never be taken from you．
At  the  same  time，the more you read，the more words you gain exposure to，and they'll  surely make （heir my into your everyday vocabulary．Being able to express your ideas clearly in words is of great help in any profession？and knowing that you can speak to higher-ran king people with self-confidence can he a great encouragement to your selt-esteem（自尊）．It could even aid  in  your career．a(chǎn)s those who are  well-read，well-spoken，and knowledgeable on a variety of topics tend to get promotions more quickly （and more often） than those with smaller vocabularies and lack of awareness of literature，scientific breakthroughs，and global events．Reading books is also vital for learning new languages，as non-native speakers gain exposure to words used in context，which will improve their own speaking and writing fluency．
When you  read a book，you have to remember a lot of characters，their backgrounds，ambitions，history，arid nuances，as well as the  various plots that weave their way through every story．That's a  fair bit to remember，but brains are wonderful things and can remember these things with  relative ease．Amazingly enough，whenever you remember something new，new synapses[（神經(jīng)元的）突觸]are formed and existing ones me strengthened．I low cool that is!
No matter how much stress you have at work，in your personal relationships，or countless other issues faced in daily life-it all just slips away when you lose yourself in a great story．A  well-written novel can transport you to other realms （領(lǐng)域）while an interesting article will distract you and keep you in the present moment T letting tensions drain away and allowing you to relax．
Title：Some of Benefits of Reading：You ShouldReadd Every  Day，Why？

Knowledge accumulation	The more you read，the more adequately it （71）prepares you for various troubles in life， Knowledge is what will stay with you （72）forever．
Vocabulary expansion	You can （ 73 ）expand/enlarge/increase/developyour vocabulary by reading，which may favour you in your job and make you proud when you talk with your leaders． Your rich vocabulary means you are a great reader with rich knowledge，which offers you a big （74）advantageover others in promotions． Wards in context will help a foreigti language learner use the laneuaec （75）fluently．
（76）Memory improvement	You will try to keep in mind the （77）contentsof a book while reading and （hut h somewhat （78）easyfor your brain． The more you try to remember，the （79）betteryou will be at remembering．
Stress reduction	An interesting riding will transfer your attention to its plob so that you feel （80）relaxedand forget about your worries．

5．-It's thirty years since we last met．
-But I still remember the story  believe it or not，             wegotloston a rainy night．（　�。�

A．

which

B．

that

C．

what

D．

when

4．Jane went to her teacher just now．She ______ about the solution to the  problem．（　�。�

A．

wondered

B．

was wondering

C．

had wondered

D．

would wonder

3．Work-life balance means something different to every individual，but here health and career experts share tips to help you find what arc right for you．
A lot of overachievers develop perfectionist tendencies at a young age when demands on their time arc limited to school，hobbies and maybe an after-school job．It's easier to maintain that perfectionist habit as a kid，but as you grow up，life gels more complicated．As you climb the ladder at work and as your family grows，your responsibilities increase rapidly．Perfectionism becomes out of reach and if that habit is left unchecked，it can become harmful．
The key to avoid burning out is to let go of perfectionism．As life gets more expanded it's very hard to keep that habit of perfection going．The healthier option is to work hard not for perfection，but for excellence．
From telecommuting to programmes that make work easier，technology has helped our lives in many ways．But it has also created expectations of constant accessibility．The workday never seems to end．There are times when you should just shut your phone off and enjoy the momcnl．Official instructions over the phone interrupt your off time and add stress to your system．So don't text at your kid's soccer game and don't send work e-mails while you're hanging out with family．By not reacting to the updates from work，you will developing a stronger habit of resilience（彈性）．Resilient people feel a greater sense of control over their lives while reactive people have less control and arc more likely to get stressed．
Even when we're busy，we make time for the crucial things in life．We eat．We go to the bathroom．We sleep．And yet one of our most crucial needs-exercise-is often the first thing to go when our calendars fill up．Exercise is an effective stress reducer．So you should devote quite some time each week to self-care，whether it's exercise，yoga or meditation（冥想）．And if you're really pressed for time，start small with deep breathing exercises during your travel to and from work，a quick five-minute meditation morning and night or replacing drinking alcohol with a healthier form of stress reduction．
These exercises require minor effort but offer major payoffs，Our autonomic nervous system includes two branches：the sympathetic nervous system（our body's stress response） and the parasympathetic nervous system （our body's rest and digest response）．The key is to find something （hat you can build into your life that will activate your parasympathetic nervous system．
Title：Tips for Better Work-Life Balance．

Let go of perfectionism	As a student you are free to focus on every detail of what you do and improve them until they are （71）perfect． With a job and a family，you won't have so much time and （72）energyfor perfectionism． In the latler case you may aim at excellence but get （73）ridof perfectionism．
（74）Withdrawfrom your boss	One side effect of the mobile phone is keeping you （75）connectedassociated with work even in your spare time， By keeping your phone （76）off，you can enjoy having recreations with your family without being disturbed Resilient people are able to achieve a better （77）balancebetween work and life．
Exercise and meditate	Exercise should be an （78）essentialpart of your life however tight your schedules are． Even （79 ）easy  simple/liftht gentle and time-savins exercises will effectively help reduce your stress from work． When we work out，we make our parasympathetic nervous system （80）active，which calms everything  down．

2．-All the containers have been unloaded!Can it have been done by Frank？
-Impossible!He      his car last night．（　�。�

A．

has fixed

B．

had fixed

C．

would fix

D．

was fixing