For about three years now, I have been writing poetry. It was not until my junior year in high school that I developed an interest, love and skill for writing poetry.

   Back in elementary school, I loved to write stories. I would write stories on post-it notes and anywhere I could. Yet when I had to write a limerick(五行打油诗) for an assignment, I could not wrap my head around poetry. I had a very hard time figuring out how to rhyme words and have the words make sense. I eventually tossed the paper with the attempted limerick in the trash. I did not try my hand at poetry again until several years later.

   Many years later in my freshman year of high school, my English teacher gave my class a poetry project as an assignment. I still remember my limerick assignment and was afraid of doing the poetry project. For the project, we had to analyze a poem and write a response to it. I chose to respond to Robert Frost’s poem Fire and Ice. I also wrote my own poem first. I became really excited when writing the poem.

   Two years later, I started writing poetry as a hobby and for fun. To learn how good or bad my poems were, I handed them in to some magazines and contests. I won second place in the North Carolina Poetry Society’s Sherry Pruitt Award Contest with a poem called The Ocean, and had my two poems published as high merit(优等) poems. I have continued to write poetry, and have even self-published three collections of poetry in both print and e-book formats, which can be found at my store on Lulu.

   Now, I love writing poetry, but I don’t hate writing short stories. I just find it more difficult and not my style of writing, even though I still write short stories occasionally.

1.When the author was a pupil, he ___________.

   A. liked writing stories

   B. was good at writing poetry

   C. could understand poetry well

   D. was often praised by his teacher

2.When given the poetry project in high school, the author was___________.

   A. excited        B. annoyed       C. confident       D. worried

3.The author took up writing poetry as a hobby when he____________.

   A. was in Grade Three in high school

   B. worked as a storekeeper

   C. was in Grade One in high school

   D. was at college

4.How did the author increase his confidence in writing poetry?

   A. He wrote a lot of poems and asked advice from his teacher.

   B. He published three collections of poetry by himself.

   C. He submitted his poems to magazines and contests.

   D. He gave up writing stories and only wrote poetry.

Father Christmas is at risk of serious illness because of his bulging waistline and needs to cut down on the mince pies, doctors warned.

A survey of shopping centre Santas in Scotland revealed an average waist size of 47 inches - seven inches more than is considered safe.

Dr Miles Fisher, consultant physician at Glasgow Royal Infirmary said: "The image of Santa is of a round, jolly person but if you have obesity around your tummy, then it is very bad for you.

"Before, we thought it was just not good to be overweight but now we know that having fat around your middle is particularly bad.

"That fat produces hormones, which have been associated with heart disease and other conditions."

According to health guidelines, having a waist circumference of more than 40 inches for men or 35 inches for women is a key indicator of abdominal obesity.

It is associated with a greater risk of heart disease or type 2 diabetes. And people who have rounder stomachs, known as "central obesity", are more at risk than people who are merely overweight.

Perhaps Santa should consider cutting back on the sherry as well.

1.What is the best title for the passage?

A. Doctors order Santa to go on a diet

B. Overweight Causes Many Diseases

C. A Survey on Father Christmas

D. Father Christmas should be Jolly

2.Generally speaking, if a man’s waist size is about _____ inches, he is likely to be healthy.

A. 54                   B.25                 C. 47                D. 37

3. What does the underlined word probably mean in the first paragraph?

A. 强壮的          B. 鼓起的          C.扁细的           D. 修长的

4. According to the passage, Father Christmas should be _______.

A. funny and strong.                B. amusing and a little fat

C. quick and handsome              D. healthy and serious

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

In the era of high-tech today, face-to-face conversation is dying.

The New York Times published an article recently that shows great   36   for the “death of conversation”. It   37   that while technology such as cell phones, e-mails, and Internet posting makes us feel more   38   than ever, they’re also driving us away from people around us.

         Users get final connectivity    39   the price of   40   face-to-face conversation. Sherry Turkle, author of the article in The New York Times says people are   41   to a different way of being “alone together”.

Actually,   42   text messages or writing micro-blogs allows us to   43   thoughts. But bits and pieces of online cannot   44   a “real conversation.” Lan Guo, 19, a freshman English major from Changsha University, said that she would like to hear people’s tone of voice and see their faces in a conversation. “The give and take of   45   in a conversation sharpens our minds.” she said. She also mentions that   46   ourselves in mobile technology reduces our chance of starting conversations with strangers and   47   people.

Turkle mentioned the popular   48   of “I share, therefore I am.” among this generation. Liu Xuan, a young writer from Taiwan and psychology graduate from Harvard University, thinks it’s an attitude   49   by most young people. They are   50   busy creating or polishing their online persona (网络人格) that they forget how to live a   51   life. 

However, experts remind us that it’s   52   to blame mobile technology. Chen Chen, a sociology expert at China Youth & Children Research Center, points out that   53   is still owners of tools who’re avoiding personal contact. We take advantage of these devices to hide ourselves from others. Texting messages or calling may be a(n)   54   to avoid contact with others, such as having eye contact. “Only by strengthening conversation can we understand each other.   55   throwing away the mobile phones is not a solution.” she said.

1.A. regret                           B. respect C. anger             D. support

2.A. advises                B. speaks                             C. suggests                           D. talks

3.A. received             B. connected                       C. shared                              D. separated

4.A. with                      B. for                                     C. in                                       D. at

5.A. having                           B. risking                               C. sacrificing                        D. continuing

6.A. related                          B. committed                       C. limited                     D. accustomed

7.A. sending               B. getting                              C. reading                   D. taking

8.A. change                B. exchange                         C. explain                    D. develop

9.A. indicate               B. replace                   C. cover                                D. involve

10.A. ideas                           B. letters                               C. chances                            D. gifts

11.A. imagining          B. joining                     C. burying                   D. attaching

12.A. interviewing     B. introducing                      C. recognizing                      D. meeting

13.A. feeling               B. concept                            C. image                                D.truth

14.A. adapted            B. confirmed                        C. handled                            D. adopted

15.A. so                       B. too                                    C. very                                  D. quite

16.A. real                    B. colorful                            C. daily                                  D. meaningful

17.A. important                   B. necessary               C. unfair                                D. uncomfortable

18.A. that                    B. this                                    C. it                              D. one

19.A. problem            B. excuse                              C. strategy                            D. explanation

20.A. Eventually         B. Hardly                     C. Approximately                D. Simply

Teens don’t understand the big fuss(小题大做).As the first generation to grow up in a wired world,they hardly know a time when computers weren’t around,and they eagerly catch the chance to spend hours online,chatting with friends.So what?
But researchers nationwide are increasingly worried that teens are becoming isolated(孤寂),less skillful at person-to-person relationships,and perhaps numb(麻木) to the cheatings that are so much a part of the e-mail world.“And a teen’s sense of self and values may be changed in a world where personal connections can be limitless,”said Sherry Turkle.
Another researcher,Robert Kraut,said he’s worried about the “opportunity costs”(机会成本) of so much online time for youths.He found that teens who used computers,even just a few hours a week,showed increased signs of loneliness and social isolation.“Chatting online may be better than watching television,but it’s worse than hanging out(闲逛) with real friends,”he said.
Today’s teens,however,don’t see anything strange in the fact that the computer takes up a central place in their social lives.“School is busy and full of pressure.There’s almost no time to just hang out,”said Parker Rice,17.“Talking online is just catch-up time.”
Teens say they feel good about what they say online or taking the time to think about a reply.Some teens admit that asking someone for a date,or breaking up,can be easier in message form,though they don’t want to do so.But they insist there’s no harm.
【小题1】The researchers argue that______.

The New York Times published an article recently that shows great regret for the "death of conversation"．It suggests that while technology such as cell phones, e-mails, and Internet posting makes us feel more  36  than ever, they’re also driving us  37  from people around us．
Users get final connectivity  38  the price of  39  face-to-face conversation. Sherry Turkle, author of the article in The New York Times says people are  40  to a different way of being “alone together”．
Actually ,  41  text messages or writing micro-blogs allows us to  42  thoughts.
 43  bits and pieces of online cannot  44  a “real conversation．” Lan Guo, 19, a freshman English major from Changsha University , said that she would like to hear people’s tone of voice and see their faces in a (n)  45 . “The give and take of ideas in a conversation sharpens our minds.” she said. She also mentions that  46  ourselves in mobile technology reduces our chance of starting conversations with strangers and  47  people．
Turkle mentioned the popular  48  of “I share, therefore I am ”among this generation. Liu Xuan, a young writer from Taiwan and psychology graduate from Harvard University, thinks it’s a mindset adopted by most young people. They are so busy creating or polishing their online persona (网络人格)that they forget how to live a (n)  49  life. For example, They may  50  more about blogging about attending a party rather than enjoying being  51 .
 52 , experts remind us that it’s unfair to blame mobile technology . Chen Chen, a sociology expert at China Youth &Children Research Center, points out that it is still owners of gadgets , such as cell phones and tablets , who’re avoiding personal  53 . We take advantage of these devices to hide ourselves  54  others. Texting messages or calling may be a (n)  55  to avoid contact with others, such as having eye contact. “Only by strengthening conversation can we understand each other. Simply throwing away the mobile gadgets is not a solution.” she said．