阅读下面短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空，并将答案填写在答题卡标号为16—25的相应位置上。

Viennese-born composer Frederick Loewe,     we remember from his classical musicals including “My Fair Lady” and “Camelot”, was not always famous. He studied piano with the great masters of Europe and achieved huge success as a    (music) and composer in his early years. But     he immigrated to the United States, he failed as a pianist. For a while he tried other types of work including gold mining and boxing.    he never gave up his dream and continued to play the piano and write music.

       those difficult years, he could not always afford    (make) payments on his piano. One day, bent over the keyboard, he could hear nothing but the music that he played with such rare inspiration. When he finished and looked up, he was astonished to find that he had  

audience of three moving men who     (seat) on the floor.

    They said nothing and made no movement toward the piano. Instead, they dug into their pockets, pooled together enough money for the payment, placed it on the piano and walked out, empty     (hand). Moved by the beauty of his music, these men recognized excellence and responded to  .

The film which _______ the book by Jack London is well worth seeing.

A. based  B. is based in        C. is based on D. to be based

The new building         in our school is for us students. In spite of the noise most of the day, we still feel very happy.

A. built       B. has been built    C. being built     D. to be built

Complete the following passage by filling in each blank with ONE word that best fits the context.

With the widespread use of the computer, many middle school and primary school students can type very fast. ____, their handwriting is becoming worse ____ before. Wrongly written characters and untidy writing are the common problems. The biggest problem is    they don’t think it is necessary to practice handwriting any more since typing can take the place of     . To me, I always prefer handwriting _____ typing. I think handwriting is ______ better way to express my feeling. ___, Chinese characters are the important part of Chinese culture and typing can never take the place of it. Therefore as a Chinese, we should   stop practicing writing them to avoid the wrongly written character and the untidy writing.

Now I’m a senior high school student in Grade Two . I feel that school life is a little hard , just as my friends said . However , a hard life doesn’t have to mean a boring one at all .

School life is not just about studying and getting high marks . Getting involved in student clubs can be a unique and unforgettable experience .

Wang Tian enjoys Tuesday afternoons more than any other time of the week . Why ? Well , that’s when Wang and 47 other members of the DIY ( do it yourself ) club learn to make things such as rondo flowers ( 丝网花 ) and cross-stitch（ 十字绣 ）. Wang also knows how to knit scarves and make clay accessories（ 小饰件 ）. They even sell their products to raise money for poor students !

When Chen Mo started the High School , there was a drama club and a rock band , but no street dance club . So the girl started one . “Street dancing is dynamic and helps us relax and keep fit ,” Chen said . There are around 30 students in Chen’s club . They practice dance skills on Sundays . Sometimes they go to street dance performances in the city . “We watch , learn and make friends . People in this circle are actually very nice and sweet ,” she said .

There are dozens of clubs for me to choose from , such as basketball club or science club . But I love the translation club best . The 30 club members get together once a week . With the help of a volunteer teacher , I’ve learned the general principles of professional translation . It’s the first step to becoming a good translator . Besides ,after attending this club , my English has improved a lot .

I like my school life very much . And I believe whether a life is meaningful or not depends on the person who leads it .

Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage ?

A.  The members in the DIY club sell their products to raise money for the club .

B.  There are more members in the DIY club than in the translation club .

C.  Chen Mo joined the street dance club and played an important part in it .

D.  The members of the translation club meet on Tuesday afternoon .

How many clubs are mentioned in the passage ?

A.  5                   B.  6                    C.  7                    D.  8

The underlined word dynamic in Paragraph 4 means __________.

A.  energetic        B.  helpful           C.  challenging            D.  attractive

If you want to improve your English , you’ll probably join the _______.

A.  DIY  club             B.  science club           C.  drama club      D. translation club

We can infer that _____________.

A. the writer feels the new school life is hard

B. the writer’s friends feel the new school life is hard

C. the writer is pleased with his new school life

D. every student leads a meaningful life in the new school

OK, I admit it: emoticons (表情符号) are popular. Some people even think they are fun. Many seem unable to get through an e-mail or Instant Message chat sentence without using one. Some feel that they add feeling and character to otherwise cold digital communications.

Some, however, such as editor and Hollywood scriptwriter John Blumenthal, blast (抨击) the use of emoticons as “infantile (幼稚的) just like the people who use them”  He believes that words themselves should be enough. “If you’re being funny, happy or sad, that should be apparent (明显的) from the comment that goes before the emoticon,” he argues.

In the eyes of Blumenthal, the use of emoticons is a gender issue. “Men don’t use emoticons very much. Maybe not at all,” he said. “Teenage girls and women seem to use them a lot. Maybe there’ s an emoticon gene.”

It’s an interesting opinion, but it is not shared by all.

In an interview with The New York Times, Dacher Keltner, professor of psychology at the University of California, said that emoticons are popular because our brains are programmed “to seek out representations of humanity”. He believes that they appeal not because they are shortcuts for the lazy, but because they tap into (融入) something beyond language. They reach to our need to be with and communicate with people.

All of these arguments may be somehow valid (正确的). Each one of us will choose to communicate in our own way. I do not have much time for emoticons. I tried to use one once and felt like I was stealing into a primary school class that I had no place being in. I’d rather let my words do the talking.

Friends, however, send me messages and e-mails full of emoticons. I have no problem with this. I don’t regard any of my friends as lazy or immature (不成熟的). It’s just a question of individuality. :)

According to the article, emoticons are popular because ______. 

A. most of them look funny

B. they are easy for lazy people to use

C. they add feeling and character to a communication

D. a reader cannot understand a message without them

Which of the following views would John Blumenthal agree with?  

A. Instant Message chatters are childish.

B. It’s enough to use language in digital communication.

C. Men never use emoticons.     

D. There is an emoticon gene in everybody.

From the text, we can conclude that the author ______. 

A. feels he has no difficulty using emoticons

B. thinks emoticons don’t suit him

C. encourage his friends to use emoticons

D. believes that emoticons are suitable for everyone

What is the main point of the article? 

A. Advice on language used over the Internet.

B. The history of emoticons.

C. Arguments over the use of emoticons.

D. Reasons for the popularity of emoticons.

The visitors here are greatly impressed by the fact that _______ people from all walks of life are working hard for _____ new Chengdu.

A.不填; a          B. 不填;the          C. the; a          D. the; the  

—        the team finished most of their research work?

—Yes, but the rest        rather difficult.

       A．Has, are    B．Has, is      C．Have, are  D．Have, is

This picture looks beautiful ______.

A. at distance     B. at a distance     C. in the distance     D. in distance

I don't feel like ____ anything now.

A. eating   B. having eaten   C. to eat  D. to have eaten