1685 was a very good year for German composers. Within the space of a month, two of the greatest were born: Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel. Handel’s father was a barber and surgeon, which sounds like a strange combination today, but back then those occupations went hand in hand. Even though Handel was very interested in music, his father didn’t think that was a good way to earn a living, so he wanted his son to be a lawyer. The story goes that Handel smuggled a quiet piano into the house so that he could practice in secret. One day, Handel went along when his father went to shave a duke. While his father was working, Handel sat down and played the duke’s organ. The duke was so impressed that he convinced Handel’s father to let his son study music, and Handel finally got to learn how to compose. Handel soon discovered that what he liked most was opera. In fact, he was so passionate about opera that he even fought a duel （决斗) over it with one of his friends. Since Italy was the place to learn about opera composing, Handel went off to Italy to study. When he got home, he got a job as court composer for a German prince. Having landed such a wonderful job, Handel immediately asked his boss for time off. He wanted to go to England, where he’d heard that there weren’t nearly enough composers to satisfy the British taste for Italian opera. After great success writing opera in London, Handel came back to Germany. Then fate played a funny trick on Handel and his boss. The Queen of England died, and it just so happened that the prince Handel worked for was next in line to the British throne （王位 ). When he arrived in London as King George, followed Handel, his court composer in Germany. In addition to serving the King, Handel became one of the most successful opera composers of his time. And he also produced them and traveled all over Europe to hire the best singers. There are stories of battles with rival （对手 )opera producers and of fights between rival singers. Handel apparently had quite a temper. If you ever go to London, look for Handel’s grave in Westminster Abbey, where there’s a wonderful monument to him.
How did Handel begin to learn to compose？A. His father was sure of his future success. B. His performance impressed a duke. C. He begged his father to send him to Italy. D. He practiced hard and taught himself music.
What does the underlined word “smuggled” mean in the passage？A. bought secretly B. took secretly C. carried in advance D. possessed personally 68. Why did Handel later settle down in Britain instead of Germany？ A. Because he could find better jobs in London. B. Because he enjoyed greater fame in London. C. Because his boss became King of Britain and brought him along. D. Because London was a wonderful place to learn about opera.
Which of the following words can NOT be used to describe Handel, asshown in the passage？ A. bad-tempered B. talented C. enthusiastic D. optimistic
Which of the following statements is WRONG according to the passage？A. Handel was born in the same year with Bach. B. Many people worked both as a barber and surgeon. C. Handel quit his job to learn about opera in Italy. D. Handel was buried in London and was built a monument.
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It is impossible to think about “growing up” in modern America without considering “youth culture” which every young person—even those who do not attend public schools—is confronted by and must deal with. It is impossible to be so isolated that we are untouched by the surrounding culture. Nor should we wish to be—as we are called to be—salt and light in a very confused and broken world. Popular culture deserves neither uncritical acceptance nor knee-jerk rejection, but thoughtful critique（批评）. On the contrary, China paid too little attention to youth culture in the past. However, with society developing, more and more people have realized the importance of analyzing, understanding and promoting youth culture. About 100,000 young Chinese people from all over the world will attend the first China Youth Culture Week scheduled to open Saturday in Shenzhen’s China Folk Culture Villages, a press conference was told Thursday. A series of cultural activities will be staged from Saturday to Wednesday, including a huge performance expected to challenge for a listing in the Guinness Book of World Records. About 10,000 young people will attend the opening ceremony Saturday. A final list of the Chinese Youth Idol Award to five outstanding young Chinese was announced at the conference. They are the country’s first astronaut, Yang Liwei, Chinese NBA star, Yao Ming, IT entrepreneur, Ding Lei, anchorperson, Wu Xiaoli, and Olympic Games gold medalist, Deng Yaping. The youth idols were selected by Chinese teenagers with 380,000 votes cast nationwide. During the past two months, the organizers received more than 3,000 applications from young people in Hong Kong and Macao who wanted to take part in the performance.
Which of the following can replace the underlined word “confronted by”？A. Concerned about. B. Thought of. C. Confused with. D. Faced with.
Which of the following is TRUE according to Paragraph 1？A. People can be isolated from the surrounding culture. B. The American youth accept popular culture without any thought. C. People shouldn’t refuse popular culture totally. D. Americans ignore cultures at all while growing up.
The list of the five Chinese youth idols indicates that ____.A. success is considered the most important factor in the Chinese youth’s values B. the Chinese youth don’t care about their idols’ personalities C. there are only five people admired by the Chinese youth D. the parents want to set those people as examples
What can we infer from this passage？A. America paid too much attention to youth culture. B. China pays more attention to youth culture nowadays. C. Chinese youth admire movie stars and regard them as their idols. D. America thinks their youth are more important than the Chinese youth.
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C When asked to point out one or two things that are most important to themselves, many put friends ahead of homes, jobs, clothes and cars. A true friendship carries a long history of experience that determines who we are and keeps us connected. It is a treasure we should protect. Unfortunately, the better friends you are, the more probably you’ll have disagreements. And the result can be what you don’t want an end to the relationship. The good news is that most troubled friendships can be mended First, don’t’ let your pride get in your way. Most of us can forgive each other when differences are brought out in the open. Second, apologize when you’re wrong – even if you’ve been wronged. Over the course of a friendship, even the best people make mistakes. Sometimes, it may be best if the wronged person takes the lead and apologizes. When you apologize, give your friend a chance to admit that he has been wrong. Third, see things from your friend’s point of view. And finally, accept that friendships change as our needs and lifestyles change. Making friends can sometimes seem easy. The hard part is keeping the connections strong during the natural ups and downs that have an effect on all relationships. My suggestion: Consider friendship an honor and a gift, and worth the effort to treasure and nurture.
What would be the best title for the text？A. Easy Ways to Make Friends B. Ups and Downs in Friendship C. How to Mend a Troubled Friendship D. How to Take the Lead in Making Friends
The “wronged person” underlined in the text refers to a person _______.A. who has been mistaken for another B. who has been blamed unfairly C. who has treated friends badly D. who has admitted his mistakes
According to the text a friendship can last long only if _______.A. we have much in common B. we know our friends’ mistakes C. we treat our disagreements wisely D. we have know one another for long
What should we do if we follow the author’s second suggestion？A. Stick to our own prints of view B. Avoid making mistakes C. Make an apology first D. Change our lifestyles
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B Piercings（穿洞）have moved up on the trend list in recent Tattoos（纹身）and body years. Around Western schools lots of teens are sporting new holes and flesh ink. Like all other subjects, we’ll surely be faced with such situation. To get a better view of what has happened in the West, let’s sit down and hear what they say.
Who is wholeheartedly lost in tattoos and piercing？
Kerstin Otto from Washington: The hotter it gets and the more layers of clothing disappear, the more tattoos and piercings appear on various places of the human body, I wouldn’t be caught dead with a snake tattooed on my ankle or with a piece of metal stuck in my belly button. Tiara from Indiana: I personally think body piercing is sickening. If there were supposed to be holes in your body, you would have been born with them. I do, however, think that ear piercing, is not wrong. There is a difference between ear piercing and belly button piercing. Ear piercing is not nearly as dangerous. I would be sick if someone stuck a needle in my belly button. Lee from Illinois: Hi! I live in Illinois. I am 23. I have 12 tattoos and three piercings. I love my tattoos and consider myself an art collector. You would be surprised at who has given me the thumbs-up on my art work. People on the street stop me to look at that on my leg. Most of them don’t know what it is. They just think the work itself is great. Nagib from Washington: I wanted an earring. My friends had them and it looked like a cool thing. I wanted to get a nose ring, but my mum wouldn’t let me. Now I’m glad I didn’t get it. I just wanted a little stud, but I wouldn’t have looked good with it. Jackson from Ohio: I don’t think it’s wrong, but when people do it all over the place like their face and everything —I think that’s ridiculous. People who get the big dragons that cover your whole body—I don’t think that’s necessary. When I see naked chicks on guys, I think. “You have no respect for women.” Brittney from New York: You don’t want to do stuff to your body. You don t need to do that because you were made perfect. You don’t need to add piercings. If it will make you feel beautiful and you really feel like you need to do it for yourself, then okay. If it really makes a big difference impacting your self-esteem and how you are towards others, then do it. But otherwise, don’t mess with what you got. Maybe you should try something more substantial（充实的）to find beauty in yourself.
Who doesn’t think tattoos and piercing are beautiful？ A. Tiara B. Kerstin C. Nagib. D. Lee.A. Jackson. B. Brittney. C. Tiara. D. Nagib
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完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）
阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，从各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
There is one thing better than making a new friend, and that is keeping an old one.
——Elmer G Letterman
Two years ago my family moved. The day we left, my best friend and I cried together in my 36 bedroom for hours. I was miserable during the five-hour car ride to my new house. Life was 37 ．
On the first day of school, I called my best friend to tell her how it had gone. Then on Halloween, I sent her a letter and a picture of my new friends and me．
Finally, she wrote me a letter. It wasn’t 38 a letter—a piece of paper saying, “Best friends forever”．
When I finally got her e-mail address, I e-mailed her the 39 letter I have ever written. After the third e-mail with no 40 , my messages grew shorter and shorter. 41 each passing day, my 42 grew．I never received a reply from her．
Mom said that I 43 try calling my other friends, and that I didn’t need to always call her. 44 my best friend, the girl that I had known from my childhood？
My first 45 was automatic．“No way!” But after five more e-mail messages, I started to consider what my mom had 46 ．Every night for about a week, I stayed up in bed, 47 , “Should I keep trying or．．．？”
The way I looked at it was that: if I’m her best friend, she’d 48 a minute to push a few buttons on the phone, or type a short “hello” on the computer. To me, keeping in touch is part of being a friend and it is important. To her, it really didn’t seem to 49 ．
After two years of 50 , I finally got a phone call from her—my best friend. It was a big 51 ．She told me how sorry she was for not writing, and about how busy she had been. I forgot about everything that had happened and how annoyed I had been with her．I 52 her．I guess keeping in touch just isn’t her 53 ．
I have realized true friends never really lose their special 54 ．Even after two years, it felt like we had just talked yesterday.
Now she and I write regularly—or at least she tries to, 55 she tries hard.
What more could a friend ask for？
36．A．cold B．empty C．small D．dirty
37．A．uneasy B．uncertain C．uninteresting D．unbearable
38．A．just B．only C．even D．hardly
39．A．longest B．best C．simplest D．funniest
40．A．return B．information C．message D．response
41．A．On B．For C．With D．As
42．A．patience B．anger C．worry D．curiosity
43．A．must B．had to C．would D．could
44．A．Put away B．Leave out C．Give up D．Cut off
45．A．reaction B．opinion C．thought D．impression
46．A．reminded B．offered C．stated D．suggested
47．A．asking B．thinking C．whispering D．struggling
48．A．save B．spend C．take D．waste
49．A．matter B．care C．value D．mind
50．A．disappointment B．fear C．silence D．regret
51．A．step B．surprise C．advance D．change
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You may have never heard of Ladislao Biro, but you have certainly heard of the pen he invented—the ballpoint pen, or biro. Before Biro invented his pen, people wrote with fountain pens. The ink smudged（弄脏) and blotted and the pens sometimes leaked. In the 1930s Biro was a magazine editor in Budapest in Hungary. He noticed that the inks which the magazine’s printers used dried very quickly. Biro wondered if quick-drying inks could be used in pens. He came up with the idea of a tube of ink with a free-moving ball on the end. As a person wrote, the ball collected ink from the tube and rolled it on to the paper. The pen would be cheap and could be thrown away when the ink ran out. Biro began to work on his invention, but before he could patent it the Second World War broke out. Biro left war-torn Europe and fled to Buenos Aires in Argentina. There, he and his brother Georg, who was a chemist, began to improve the pen. In the early 1940s Biro began to manufacture his new pen, the biro. In 1944, he sold his invention to another company, who began to mass-produce the pen for the British and American armed forces. Biro was pleased that his pen was popular, but he did not gain much from his invention. The biro was later sold to the French firm, Bic, who now sell twelve million pens a day. Biro sank into obscurity in South America. His name, however, has become a household word.
The reasons for the popularity of ballpoint pens are these EXCEPT that_______.A. the inks dried very quickly B. they were cheap C. they were easy to carry around D. they were mass-produced
Which of the following is the correct order of the events that happened to Biro？a. applied for patent for first ballpoint pen b. began to manufacture pens c. fled from Hungary to escape Nazis d. sold his invention A. a c d b B. c d a b C. a c b d D. c a b d
The underlined part “sank into obscurity”（last paragraph) is closest in meaning to“_______”.A. became unknown to many people B. became popular with people C. lost interest in business D. lost a lot of money
What does the passage mainly tell us about Biro？A. He is successful in business. B. He is an important inventor. C. He is a famous magazine editor. D. He is a popular writer.