It’s that time of year again, when college graduates attend graduation ceremony, half-listening to celebrity speakers’ wisdom and advice. Here are the don’t-miss graduation speeches of 2016.

   ◆President Obama at Howard

   At Howard University, Obama had some tough love for young people with enthusiasm, saying that’s just not enough: “Change requires more than anger. It requires a program and it requires organizing. Enthusiasm is very important, but you have got to have a strategy.”

   ◆Michelle Obama at Santa Fe Indian School

“ I want you to keep pushing forward. Just keep pushing forward. And I want you to reach out and ask for help. I know your teachers tell you that all the time, but please understand that no one gets through college---or life, for that matter—alone. No one. I certainly didn’t.

◆SheryI Sandberg at Berkeley

As the chief operating officer of Facebook, SheryI Sandberg is one of the most famous figures in tech. last year, her husband suddenly died. In a speech at Berkeley a year later, Sandberg spoke about his death and her experience for the first in public: “My hope for you is that you can find that thankfulness—not just on the good days, like today, but on the hard ones, when you will really need it.”

◆Elizabeth Warren at Suffolk

“Knowing who you are will help when it’s time to fight. Fight for the job you want, fight for the people who mean the most to you and fight for the kind of world you want to live in. It will help when people say that’s impossible or you can’t do that. Look, if you take the unexpected opportunities when they come up, if you know yourself, and if you fight for what you believe in, I can promise that you will live a life that is rich with meaning.”

21. Who stressed the importance of strategies in the speeches?

   A. President Obama               B. Michelle Obama

   C. SheryI Sandberg               D. Elizabeth Warren

22. If you like struggling alone, whose speech may touch you most?

   A. President Obama’s            B. Michelle Obama’s

   C. SheryI Sandberg               D. Elizabeth Warren

23. In which university did the speaker mention appreciation?

   A. Howard            B. Santa Fe Indian School         C. Berkeley          D. Suffolk

24. What does Elizabeth Warren want to tell the graduates?

   A. Fight for the job you want           B. Fight for the people you love

   C. Fight for the world you want         D. Fight for what you believe in

   In many cases, you ability to understand the local language directly affects the quality of your travel experience. For some travelers, the challenge of learning a new tongue is one of the joys of travel, and as a result, they spend much of their time in conversations with local citizens. Others will find that just learning to read the most common signs and use every-day greetings is enough.?

No matter which view you agree with, it’s necessary to take some time to learn some of the simple phrases of the new language before you go. One way of finishing this task is by listening to the new language. A phrase book can help expand your vocabulary, but hearing the sounds of the different spoken words is an excellent activity that can be done right in the comfort of your home. You can see movies in the new language or listen to the tapes or CDs. You can also download some listening material from the Internet. Just spending 15 minutes a night will improve your language skills.

When you arrive in the new land, begin by greeting new friends in their own tongue. This may come easy or it could take some time to learn, but it’s interesting. If you can’t do this, then it means that you will need more practice and patience to learn these very important words. You can go out during the day and begin one-one-one conversations with shop owners, business-men hand taxi drivers. This should not be one until you have learned some of the most common phrases, but one you begin to go shopping in a second language your communication skills will start to improve rapidly. You can also watch the local TV or listen to the local radio. For example, the advertisements(广告)will help you recognize the correct pronunciation of local street names.

25. What does the underlined word “tongue” in Paragraph I refer to?

   A. language             B. sign           C. vocabulary         D. greeting

26. When could a traveler start one-one-one conversations with local people?

   A. When he has mastered enough grammar rules

   B. The moment he steps in the place he is visiting

   C. After he has many movies in the local tongue

   D. Once he has learned some of the most common phrases

27. What’s the last paragraph mainly about?

   A. How to prepare for traveling

   B. How to enjoy oneself during traveling

   C. How to learn a new language during traveling

   D. How important it is to learn a new language well

   Glenn was born on July 18,1921, in Cambridge and grew up in nearby New Concord, Ohio. He started his flying career as a fighter pilot(飞行员). Later, Glenn took a dangerous job as a test pilot, flying new planes to see if they were safe.

   In the late 1950s, a “space race” began between the U. S. and the Soviet Union. Both countries wanted to be the first to send a human into space, including to the moon. In 1961, a Russian astronaut, Yuri Gagarin, orbited Earth. But the space race was not over yet. Glenn’s chance to go into space came on February 20, 1962. By that time, another American, Alan B. Shepard, had flown in space, but he had not orbited Earth. Glenn’s flight was aired live on television and radio. Americans everywhere stopped to watch.

   Glenn’s Friendship 7 capsule circled the planet three times. A faulty equipment led Glenn to believe the capsule might burn up on its return to Earth, but in the end it splashed down safely in the Atlantic Ocean. He became the first American to orbit Earth in a spaceship.

   In 1984, Glenn ran for president, but he did not get enough support and dropped out of the race. Glenn returned to space on October 29, 1998, when he was 77. He spent nine days on the space shuttle Discovery. Glenn went so that scientists could the effects of space travel on older people. He holds the record for being the oldest person in space. Glenn died Thursday, Dec, 8,2016, at the age of 95.

Glenn refused to see himself as a hero. He preferred to focus on his work, saying. “If there is one thing I’ve learned in my years on this planet, it’s that the happiest people I’ve known are those who devoted themselves to something bigger and more meaningful than merely their own self-interest.”

28. What do we know about John Glenn?

   A. He worked as a fighter pilot in all his life

   B. He succeeded in the race for president in 1984

   C. He competed with another pilot Alan B in space race

   D. He was the first American to circle Earth successfully

29. What happened during Glenn’s return to Earth?

   A. The capsule opened while circling Earth

   B. One part of the equipment went wrong

   C. The capsule was on fire all of a sudden

   D. The spaceship stopped working halfway

30. Why did Glenn return to space in 1998?

   A. To prove the safety of new space shuttles

   B. To get support for his running for president

   C. To test how space travel affected the elderly

   D. To become the oldest person in space by orbiting Earth

31. What can we learn from Glenn’s words in the last paragraph?

   A. Selfish people care for their own interest

   B. Happy people are likely to succeed easily

   C. He has known most of the successful people

   D. The people who work for others are the happiest

Companion(同伴)robots are playing an ever-increasing role in helping busy people look after the elderly and children. With an aging population and an increasing labor shortage, the demand for companion robots for elder care and children’s companions is on the rise.

Xiaoyuzaijia is an intelligent companion robot produced by Zaijia.com, a Beijing-based startup engaged in internet hardware and intelligent home appliances businesses.

If the elderly people are ill at home, the robot can bring medicine and water. The robot will open the door when the guest comes. It can even tell a story, sing a song and play chess.

The number of elderly people aged 60 and above reached more than 222 million in 2015, accounting for 16.2 percent of the total population, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. It is estimated that the number will reach 243 million in 2020.

Song Chenfeng, founder and CEO of Zaijia, said: "The robot is equipped with a monitoring camera and other hardware for facial and voice recognition.” Family members could also connect their smart phones with the robot. “When the elderly fall or the children cry at home, the robot will send messages to inform other family members," he said. “The companion robot should be an important 'blue sea' in the intelligent household robot market. Xiaoyuzaijia aims at white-collar people who are busy with their work and spend less time accompanying their family members. It builds a bridge among family members and satisfies the emotional communications needs of modern people,” said Song.

Yuan Wenhui, chairman of Zaijia, said the company will offer personalized service in the family healthcare and children's education sectors, based on big data algorithms, aiming to be an indispensable intelligent family housekeeper in the future.

Statistics from the International Federation of Robotics show that the market demand for service robots will boom in the next three years, with the market scale reaching $46 billion.

32. Why will the companion robots be warmly welcomed?

   A. They are equipped with a camera and other hardware

   B. They are helpful in the care of the elder and children

   C. They can be connect with their family members

   D. They can bring medicine and even tell stories

33. Which can replace the underlined phrase “accounting for” in Paragraph 4?

A. taking on              B. taking off         C. making out       D. making up

34. Who is the companion robot of Zaijia mainly designed for?

   A. The doctors               B. The injured      C. The white-collar    D. The students

35. Which could be the best title for the text? 

   A. Companion robots will be our best friends

   B. Companion robots will be our family pets

   C. Companion robots will help you do anything

   D. Companion robots will replace housekeepers

   Do you know how to deal with failure at school? Four steps will help you get the most out of each failure and more on.

36   When you feel bad after failing, talk with your parents or good friends, or any other adult. Then decide to take the duty to improve yourself. Read the teachers’ comments on your test carefully.

Ask yourself what you were trying to do and why you failed.   37  Maybe you didn’t have all the information you needed; maybe you made a mistake or a poor decision. If so, give yourself a pat on the back. Fewer people ever get something right the first time they try it, and often it takes them many times.   38   Sometimes the failure isn’t because of something you did or didn’t do; it is someone else’s fault. But don’t spend time blaming them; instead, move on toward your goals.

  39   . Review the situation to see what your choices are. There is a different between making a decision and giving up. Deciding to follow a better way is one thing; simply walking away means you really have failed.

Keep trying again. Successful people are different because they choose their next steps instead of just reacting to feelings. If a goal still important to you, figure out what to do and go after it again.   40  .

A. No pains, no gains.

B. Don’t give up easily

C. Failure is unavoidable

D. Remove your bad feelings

E. If it isn’t, do your best on something else

F. Actually it was because you were very lazy

G. Usually it was because you were trying out a new skill or learning a new subject.