Success is often measured by the ability to overcome adversity（逆境）. But it is often the belief of others that gives us the courage（勇气）to try.
J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter book series, began writing at age 6. Her good friend-Sean became the first person to encourage her and help her build the confidence that one day she would be a very good writer.
“He was the first person with whom I really discussed my serious ambition（志向） to be a writer. He was also the only person who thought I was bound to（注定）be a success at it, which meant much more to me than I ever told him at the time.”
Though there were many difficulties, Rowling continued her writing, particularly fantasy stories. But it wasn't until l990 that she first came up with the idea about Harry Potter. As she recalls（回忆）, it was on a long train journey from London to Manchester that “the idea of Harry Potter simply fell into my head. To my great disappointment, I didn't have a pen with me, and I was too shy to ask anybody if I could borrow one. I think, now, that this was probably a good thing, because I simply sat and thought, for four (delayed train) hours, and all the details came up in my brain, and this thin, black-haired, bespectacled（戴眼镜的）boy who didn't know he was a wizard became more and more real to me.”
That same year, her mother died after a ten-year fight with serious diseases, which deeply affected her writing. She went on to marry and had a daughter, but separated from her husband shortly afterwards.
During this time, Rowling was diagnosed with depression（诊断患有抑郁症）. Unemployed, she finished her first novel in area cafes, where she could get her daughter to fall asleep. After being refused by l2 publishing houses, the first Harry Potter novel was sold to a small British publishing house.
Now with seven books that have sold nearly 400 million copies in 64 languages, J. K. Rowling is the highest earning novelist in history. And it all began with her friend’s encouragement as well as her ambition to write.
【小题1】 Who believed J. K. Rowling was to be a good writer?

A．Her friend Sean.	B．Her mother.
C．Her daughter.	D．Her husband.

【小题2】 Rowling first came up with the idea about Harry Potter________.

A．at the age of 6	B．on a train journey
C．after her mother's death	D．in her secondary school

【小题3】 She felt disappointed on the train because_________.

A．her train was delayed for four hours

B．she didn't have a pen with her

C．her mind suddenly went blank

D．no one would offer her help

【小题4】 It can be concluded from Paragraph 5 and 6 that Rowling is_________.

A．open-minded	B．warm-hearted
C．good-natured	D．strong-willed

【小题5】 The text mainly tells us_________.

A．adversity makes a good novelist

B．the courage to try is a special ability

C．you can have a wonderful idea everywhere

D．encouragement helps one succeed

Section B

Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A．additional

B．producing

C．regular

D．predicted E. identified

E atmosphere  G. matched     H. reducing   I. carried      J. increase

Forests in the northern half of the globe could be growing faster now than they were 200 years ago as a result of climate change, according to a study of trees in eastern America. The trees appear to have faster growth rates due to longer growing seasons and higher concentrations (浓度) of carbon dioxide in the ___41___.

Geoffrey Parker, a scientist at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Centre in Edgewater. Maryland, said that the increase ha the rate of growth was unexpected and might be ___42___ to the higher temperatures and longer growing seasons documented in the region. The growth may also be influenced by the significant ___43___ in atmospheric CO2, he said.

"We made a list of reasons these forests could be growing faster and then excluded half of them," Dr. Parker said. Their study suggests that northern forests may become increasingly important in ___44___ the influence of man-made CO2 on the climate.

Dr. Parker and his colleagues have ___45___ out a detailed record of the trees on a(n) ___46___ basis since 1987. They calculated that due to the global warming the forest is producing   ___47___ tons of wood each year.

The scientists ___48___ the land with trees at different stages of growth and found that both young and old trees were showing increased growth rate. More than 90 per cent of the tree groups had grown by between two and four times faster than the scientists had ___49___ from estimates of the long-term rates of growth.

 

 

Section B  

Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once.   Note that there is one word more than you need.

 

A. environment        B. necessarily  C. allowed        D. cheated       E. hardly

F. admitted       G. communication   H. necessary    I. joy          J. difficulty

 

    A relative of mine once asked me: “Why should a Chinese take time to learn a language that is not his own?” Obviously he has ___37___ in learning a foreign language. He is not the only one who is mentally against English learning. One reason, as I suspect, is the way English is taught. The emphasis on memorization is such that no ___38___ is left in the process, only endless irritation. What students are presented in the classroom is not the language in real-world ___39___. A Chinese student with extremely high scores for American standardized tests was ___40___ into one of the most famous universities. But his professors soon found out that he could ___41___ understand them in the classroom. Suspecting that he ___42___ in the tests, the school demanded he repeat them. Again, he passed with high scores. Not till then did they realize that the student had mastered the techniques for dealing with the tests, not ___43___ the skills of using the language.

　　Many people take TOFEL, IELTS, GRE, annual Band 4 and Band 6 exams not because they work in areas where English is a ___44___ tool, but because they have to do it for job promotion or enrolment in certain programmes.

　　Must English learning be such a pain in the neck?

　　Create a(n)___45____ where learning English is natural and painless. Don't make it compulsory for people whose work or major does not require it. China will not become more international by adding millions of people who can only say a simple "Hello."

 

Section B

Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A．opportunity B． reality C．impossible D．importantly E. ordinary F. achieve       G.. view      H. fame        I. laughed at     J. formed

 

This I Believe

I believe in the challenge to accomplish something out of the ordinary. I have ___41__ this belief from the Guinness Book of World Records. That book showed me the value of equal ____42__and competition. It proved to me, early on, that I could rise above anonymity and ___43___ remarkable things.

The Guinness Book of World Records taught me to believe in the “accessibility of the “___44__”. I was attracted by the descriptions in the book: the fastest, the longest, the widest, the most …whatever you can imagine. It opened up the possibility of what I might be able to do.

The Guinness Book of World Records taught me tenacity and perseverance and, more __45___, the desire to do something unexpected. So many people in the book were __46___ by family and friends for what they were doing. Yet they did it. I see them as success stories --- the ___47____ people who did something extraordinary.

I am not saving the world. I am not the best at what I do, but I am only 24 --- there is still time.

The Guinness Book of World Records helped give me a different ___48___ on the impossible, and encouraged me to try something unusual. I believe in making the “dream ” a ___49____, and I hope to someday break a few records myself.

 

Success is often measured by the ability to overcome adversity（逆境）. But it is often the belief of others that gives us the courage（勇气）to try.

J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter book series, began writing at age 6. Her good friend-Sean became the first person to encourage her and help her build the confidence that one day she would be a very good writer.

“He was the first person with whom I really discussed my serious ambition（志向） to be a writer. He was also the only person who thought I was bound to（注定）be a success at it, which meant much more to me than I ever told him at the time.”

Though there were many difficulties, Rowling continued her writing, particularly fantasy stories. But it wasn't until l990 that she first came up with the idea about Harry Potter. As she recalls（回忆）, it was on a long train journey from London to Manchester that “the idea of Harry Potter simply fell into my head. To my great disappointment, I didn't have a pen with me, and I was too shy to ask anybody if I could borrow one. I think, now, that this was probably a good thing, because I simply sat and thought, for four (delayed train) hours, and all the details came up in my brain, and this thin, black-haired, bespectacled（戴眼镜的）boy who didn't know he was a wizard became more and more real to me.”

That same year, her mother died after a ten-year fight with serious diseases, which deeply affected her writing. She went on to marry and had a daughter, but separated from her husband shortly afterwards.

During this time, Rowling was diagnosed with depression（诊断患有抑郁症）. Unemployed, she finished her first novel in area cafes, where she could get her daughter to fall asleep. After being refused by l2 publishing houses, the first Harry Potter novel was sold to a small British publishing house.

Now with seven books that have sold nearly 400 million copies in 64 languages, J. K. Rowling is the highest earning novelist in history. And it all began with her friend’s encouragement as well as her ambition to write.

1. Who believed J. K. Rowling was to be a good writer?

A．Her friend Sean.                        B．Her mother.

C．Her daughter.                          D．Her husband.

2. Rowling first came up with the idea about Harry Potter________.

A．at the age of 6                          B．on a train journey

C．after her mother's death                  D．in her secondary school

3. She felt disappointed on the train because_________.

A．her train was delayed for four hours

B．she didn't have a pen with her

C．her mind suddenly went blank

D．no one would offer her help

4. It can be concluded from Paragraph 5 and 6 that Rowling is_________.

A．open-minded                          B．warm-hearted

C．good-natured                          D．strong-willed

5. The text mainly tells us_________.

A．adversity makes a good novelist

B．the courage to try is a special ability

C．you can have a wonderful idea everywhere

D．encouragement helps one succeed