It was the men's skating finals of the Winter Olympics when l was 16.  Someday I'd be in

the Olympics. In fact, it was my dream.

    That night I lay on our living room floor excitedly watching the battle between the

Brians: American Brian Boitano facing Brian Orser in Canada. Both of them had been world

champions. Both of them deserved to win. Naturally l was for Brian Boitano,a northern

Californian like me. We had skated on the same ice.  I held my breath in amazement. Boitano

performed successfully. The gold medal! I jumped in the air when his score went up.

    But what happened next is what I'll never forget. Brian Boitano sat in front of the camera

with his coach, surrounded by a group of journalists.  He was talking about his career and his

medal, talking to the whole world. A terrible sinking feeling went through me.  I could never

be in the Olympics, I thought.  I could not talk in public like that. Just the idea of a press

conference terrified me.

    I loved skating partly because I didn't have to talk. I could express myself with my jumps

and dances better.  I didn't have to stand up and give a speech like some teachers expected.  I

could feel the blood rush to my face if I thought a teacher was going to call me. I stared at my

shoes.  1 was sure I'd make a fool of myself.

    The next day l was at the rink（溜冰场）as usual.1 was practising a combination of jumps

that had once seemed impossible.  1 worked very hard the next few years - on the ice and

especially off.  After journalists talked to me and although my heart pounded every time I

spoke to them, I got to know them. They became familiar faces. And they got to know me.

So when my big moment came four years after Brian's, I was ready.

    Sometimes I think my biggest accomplishment was not winning the gold but talking to the

press afterwards. When you do the thing you fear most, you put an end to fear.

    Fear can stop you dead in your tracks. Fear can kill a dream. What are you afraid of?

What scares you more than anything else? This year, walk right up to it and conquer it, step

by step.

21. What information can we get from the second paragraph?

    A. The author lived a hard life.

    B. The author comes from Canada.

    C. The author once skated with Orser.

    D. The author wished Boitano to win the match.

22. What is one of the reasons why the author liked skating according to the passage?

    A. She could build up her body to be healthier.

    B. It could help her to get closer to her idol.

    C. She could better express herself with body language.

    D. The possibility of her being a world champion was great.

23. What the author felt the most satisfied with is that     ．

    A. she lived up to her coach's expectations

    B. she became a world champion as planned

    C. she managed to overcome her inner fear eventually

    D. she handled the balance between her career and life

24. What does the author mainly want to tell us?

    A. Face a fear bravely.    B.Practice makes perfect.

    C. Bad times make a good man.    D.Failure is the mother of success.

     Top five best dressed at the Oscars

      No. 5, Keisha Whitaker.  I'm still loving yellow.

      No. 4, Witherspoon seems to be making Best Dressed lists for every event she attends this

season.

      No. 3, Nicole Kidman looked amazing. And honestly, she would have been higher on my

list if her dress hadn't had that bow(蝴蝶结 )  thing off to the side that depending on the angle

she was standing at, looked like a pirate parrot sitting on her shoulder.

      No. 2, Cate Blanchett, Armani, simple, yet not boring.  And I love the gun metal grey

color.

    And this year's No. 1 Best dressed goes to Penelope Cruz. She gets the No. 1 spot for

actually taking a chance, and pulling it off. On a different person, her dusty rose colored

Versace could have easily been on the Worst Dressed List. But she looks perfect.

     Top five worst dressed at the Oscars

     The No. 5 Worst Dressed person was Kirsten Dunst. The dress itself was nice, or at

least I'm sure it was fashionable. Maybe it would be on anyone but Kirsten, but she ended up

looking like a deflated corpse(尸体).

       No.  4 goes to Gwyneth Paltrow.  Her face looked great, but every time the camera cut to a full

body shot, it was like "Huh.  The dress looks bad. "

   No. 3, Anne Hthaway. Giant bows are very rarely a good idea, yet everyone keeps

wearing them. Anne's bow looked OK at times, but from other angles looked like a large,

dead, fuzzy black moth(蛾) on her chest.

      No.  2, Kelly Preston wearing Dolce &. Gabbana leopard print.  I'm sorry, it's the leopard

print. I can't handle it. And nice hair.

       And the No. 1 Worst Dressed star at this year's Academy Awards was Jessica Biel.  At the

Oscars, hot pink and a belt can make anyone look tacky. And then you just end up looking

like an 80's pop star in a room otherwise full of princesses and one tiny layer cake.

25. How many best dresses are relevant to color according to the comment?

      A. 2             B.  3              C.4                       D. 5

26. Nicole Kidman would have looked better if            .

      A. her dress had had that bow thing off to the side

      B. her dress hadn't had that bow thing off to the side

     C. she had moved that bow thing off to the side

     D. she hadn't moved that bow thing off to the side.

27. Kirsten Dunst became one of the worst dressed because            .

      A. she wore a wrong dress                       B. the dress was ugly

      C. the color didn't fit her                         D. the decoration was bad

28. What does the underlined word "tacky"in the last paragraph mean?

       A. Immature.       B. Original.         C. Fashionable.       D. Tasteless.

     Fifty Japanese graduates decided to gamble with their job opportunities at a mahjong

tournament set up by interviewers looking for a different way to choose interviewees.  Held in

a crammed mahjong outlet in downtown Tokyo, competitors competed against each other on

Friday to gain the chance to face interviewers from six companies in the fitness, education,

technology and real estate sectors.

      "Mahjong is a very strategic game, so I think people who are good at it would be good at

marketing. This is a new approach and I find it really interesting," candidate Tomoko

Hasegawa, who desired to become a designer, told Reuters.

    Mahjong, which originated in China, is similar to a western card game, and players in

Japan said the game required skill, strategy, calculation and a degree of chance.

     Organizers said the tournaments began in 2012 and had gained popularity, mostly among

male students, and also with hirers, who said the game revealed more about the candidates

than just long pages of resumes（简历).

     On Friday, eight students advanced to the next round of the selection process. Between

five and ten students are hired by participating companies every year, organizers said.

29. What did hirers mainly want to express in Para.  4?

      A. The rules of the game.

      B. The qualifications of the candidates.

      C. The functions of the tournaments.

      D. The advantages of long pages of resumes.

30. What is Tomoko Hasegawa's attitude toward mahjong?

      A. A very popular activity.

      B. A competition to win jobs.

      C. A risk of gaining or losing money.

      D. A game related to a set of plans.

31. Why was the mahjong tournament set up?

      A. For employers to pick out interviewees.

      B. To promote the game of mahjong in Japan.

      C. For college students to show their special talents.

      D. To improve employees' skills and working ability.

   Scientists are debating how to limit their newly-discovered power to change genetic

structure. Scientists already modify the genes of farm animals and agricultural plants to make

them more productive or stronger. But now they can also change genes in wild animals and

plants. These genes would continue into later generations. For example, it may be possible

for scientists to remove from existence the kind of mosquitoes that carry the Zika virus. They

might also be able to permanently remove species of plants and animals that are destructive to

other species.

     In a report published last week, the U. S.  National Academies of Sciences, Engineering

and Medicine (NAS) said it supports continued research on this kind of gene control. But it

warned that it is not possible to know what will happen when these changed plants and

animals are released into the wild.

    Sixteen biologists, ethicists(伦理学家) and policymakers are on an NAS committee that

is examining the issue. They say that there is value to the new technology. But, they say,

there is not enough evidence to support the release of modified organisms (生物体) from the

laboratory into nature.

    Many people would support stopping mosquitoes and rats from carrying diseases. But

scientists say we must understand the possible scientific, ethical, legal and social results of

such action before we decide whether to take it. Gene modification is spread through

reproduction(繁殖).

   Changed genes will continue to spread as long as an animal or plant continues to

reproduce. They cannot be limited to a farm or kept within a country's borders. Scientists are

wondering what may happen if a modified organism mates with another species. They are not

yet sure how the modified genes would affect the other species. It is possible that those genes

could harm those creatures or even lead to their disappearance from our planet.

32. What possible advantage does gene control in wild animals and plants have?

      A. Changing the Zika virus permanently.

      B. Removing the destructive species for ever.

    C. Having changed genes in their next generations.

    D. Making all the species more productive and stronger.

33. As for genetically changed wild animals and plants ,what are scientists worried about?

    A. They may become weaker or die out.

    B. They may be more productive.

    C. They may cause damage to their living habitat.

    D. Their genes may spread to later generations.

34. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

    A. Scientists are not sure what exact results gene modification leads to.

    B. Scientists won't modify any genes before they make the final decision.

    C. Gene modification has benefited some farm animals and agricultural plants.

    D. Scientists have not applied gene modification to wild animals and plants in case of

    possible danger.

35. What can be the best title for the passage?

    A. Stop research on gene control

    B. How to change genetic structure

    C. Power and danger of gene control

    D.  Advantages of gene control in wild animals and plants

    Speaking is not equal to learning

 1. You don't need to study grammar too much.

    The first suggestion may sound strange to many students who begin to learn English, but

 it is exactly important.    36    However, if you want to speak fluently, you should try to

 speak English without thinking too much of grammar. Studying grammar will only slow you

 down and make you hesitate. You will think about the grammar rules instead of naturally

 saying a sentence like a native.

2. You can't translate every word.

    When you try to speak English, you do not need to translate every word from your

 mother tongue.    37    Another problem you may meet is that you will misuse grammar rules

 that you have learned in your mother language.

3.    38

    The reason why many people can learn well is that they often practise. But in order to

 speak English fluently, you need to practise speaking. When you study, don't just listen.

Speak out loud the material you are listening to and practise what you hear. Practise speaking

 out loud until your mouth and brain can do it without any effort.    39

 4. You should study correct material.

    A phrase you often hear is,  "Practice makes perfect." This is not completely true.

Practice only makes what you are practising  permanent.  If you practise the incorrect sentence,

you will have perfected saying the sentence incorrectly.40  

    A. You should try to speak fluently.

    B. You need to practise speaking what you hear.

    C. By doing so, you will be able to speak English fluently.

    D. If you want to pass examinations, you should study grammar well.

    E. If you listen more,  you can speak correctly and fluently sooner or later.

    F. Therefore, it is important that you study material that is commonly used by mostpeople.

    G. The order of words is probably completely different and you may be both slow and incorrect by doing this.