As Amy Hagadorn rounded the corner across the hall from her classroom, she crashed with a tall boy from the fifth grade running in the opposite direction.

“Watch it, Squirt,”the boy yelled, as he dodged around the little third grader. Then, with an unfriendly smile on his face, the boy took hold of his right leg and mimicked the way Amy limped(跛行)when she walked.

Amy closed her eyes for a moment. ―Ignore him,‖ she told herself as she headed for her classroom.

But at the end of the day, Amy was still thinking about the tall boy‘s mean teasing. It wasn‘t as if he were the only one. Amy was tired of it. Sometimes, even in a classroom full of other students, the teasing about her speech or her limping made her feel all alone.

Back home at the dinner table that evening Amy was quiet. That‘s why Patti Hagdorn was happy to have

some exciting news to share with her daughter.

“There‘s a Christmas Wish Contest on the radio station,” she announced. “Write a letter to Santa and you might win a prize. I think someone at this table with blond curly hair should enter.”

Amy giggled. The contest sounded like fun. She started thinking about what she wanted most for Christmas.

A smile took hold of Amy when the idea first came to her. Out came pencil and paper and Amy went to work on her letter. ―Dear Santa Claus,‖ she began.

While Amy worked away at her best printing, the rest of the family tried to guess what she might ask from Santa. Amy‘s sister, Jamie, and Amy‘s mom both thought a 3-foot Barbie Doll would top Amy‘s wish list. Amy‘s dad guessed a picture book. But Amy wasn‘t ready to reveal her secret Christmas wish just then. Here is Amy‘s letter to Santa, just as she wrote it that night:

Dear Santa Clause,

My name is Amy. I am 9 years old. I have a problem at school. Can you help me, Santa? Kids laugh at me because of the way I walk and run and talk. I have cerebral palsy(大脑性瘫痪). I just want one day where no one laughs at me or makes fun of me.

Love,

Amy

At radio station WJLT in Fort Wayne, Indiana, letters poured in for the Christmas Wish Contest. The workers had fun reading about all the different presents that boys and girls from across the city wanted for Christmas.

When Amy‘s letter arrived at the radio station, manager Lee Tobin read it carefully. He knew cerebral palsy was a muscle disorder that might confuse the schoolmates of Amy who didn‘t understand her disability. He thought it would be good for the people in Fort Wayne to hear about this special third grader and her unusual wish. Mr. Tobin called up the local newspaper.

The next day, a picture of Amy and her letter to Santa made the front page of the .News Sentinel‖. The story spread quickly. All across the country, newspapers and radio and television station reported the story of the little girl in Fort Wayne, Indiana, who asked for such a simple, yet remarkable Christmas gift – just one day without teasing.

Suddenly the postman was a regular at the Hagadorn house. Envelopes of all sizes addressed to Amy arrived daily from children and adults all across the nation. They came filled with holiday greetings and words of encouragement.

During that unforgettable Christmas season, over two thousand people from all over the world sent Amy letters of friendship and support. Amy and her family read every single one. Some of the writers had disabilities; some had been teased as children. Many people thanked Amy for being brave enough to speak up. Others encouraged her to ignore teasing and to carry her head high. Each writer had a special message for Amy. Through the cards and letters from strangers, Amy glimpsed a world full of people who truly cared about each other. She realized that no amount or form of teasing could ever make her feel lonely again.

Amy did get her wish of a special day without teasing at South Wayne Elementary School. Additionally, everyone at school got an added bonus. Teachers and students talked together about how bad teasing can make others feel.

That year, the Fort Wayne mayor officially proclaimed December 21st as Amy Jo Hagadorn Day throughout the city. The mayor explained that by daring to make such a simple wish, Amy taught a universal lesson.

“Everyone,” said the mayor, “wants and deserves to be treated with respect, dignity and warmth.”

1. The underlined word ―mimicked‖(Paragraph 2)can probably be replaced with ___________.

A. struck B. copied

C. blocked D. declined

2.According to Paragraph 4, the message is conveyed that ___________.

A. Amy was often made fun of at school and she disliked the fact

B. loneliness always accompanied Amy because of the tall boy

C. some other students teased Amy made her think of the mean boy.

D. Amy hated being laughed at in the classroom full of other students.

3.Amy‘s mother shared the news of a Christmas Wish Contest that day because she knew ___________.

A. her daughter was teased by a fifth grader.

B. Amy‘s disease went much worse than before.

C. the contest would change Amy‘s life.

D. things weren‘t going well with Amy at school.

4.The postman suddenly became a regular because ___________.

A. he wanted to comfort Amy regularly.

B. a number of letters needed delivering there.

C. he used to be teased alike at school.

D. holidays greetings were asked to give to Amy.

5.Amy learned through strangers‘ cards and letters that ___________.

A. the world was filled with care and love.

B. she would take teasing as a present in life.

C. some people were being teased similarly.

D. everyone should be treated with kindness.

6.The passage talks about ___________.

A. Everyone can do something remarkable.

B. A small act makes a difference.

C. A girl who was brave to speak her wish up.

D. The disabled deserve respect.

Researchers are now using 3D printing to create models of the human heart to help heart specialists. The heart doctors can use the models to better help patients before an operation.

Dr. Bramlet, a children’s heart expert at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, says the 3-D models show information he cannot get any other way.

“And so what we’ve done with the printed models? We’ve pulled it out of the screen so that you can actually hold it in your hand and evaluate the anatomy(解剖).”

A 3-D printer uses images from a digital display to create a physical model of a human heart. Matthew Bramlet says doctors can use the model to understand the anatomy.

Pictures from medical tests like CAT scan or MRI are sent to a 3-D printer to create a heart in a plaster(石膏)form. The printer then constructs the heart, thin layer by thin layer. Dr. Bramlet says the model matches the real heart in every detail. “When we’re done with the model and made our decision, we want to be able to go back to the source image and confirm those findings, he says.

Dr. Bramlet has built model hearts for different kinds of heart operations. All of the operations were successful. In his first case, digital images showed only one tiny hole in a baby’s heart. But, the 3-D printed model showed several defects or problems that the baby was born with. Dr. Bramlet says those defects could not be seen easily in the images. The heart surgeon was able to change the type of surgery for the patient based on the 3-D model. He added that 3-D heart models saves time during heart operations.

Kathy Magliato is a heart surgeon at Saint John’s Health Center in Los Angeles. She welcomes the new technology. She says it could help her make better decisions before she operates on the hearts of her patients.

“I can then take this very complicated structure before the operation and I can hold it in my hand and plan an operation around what I’m seeing, touching and feeling. That to me is what can potentially change the game in an operation and save lives.

Dr Bramlet continues to research the technology. He is working with the National Institutes of Health to build a 3-D library that includes heart models and images that others can use.

1.Whats the main idea of the passage?

A. The application of 3-D printing in heart operations

B. The development of 3-D technology.

C. The difficulties of heart operations.

D. Heart operations with the help 3-D models.

2.What is the biggest advantage of 3-D models in the diagnose of heart problems?

A. Surgeons can see, touch and feel the 3-D models.

B. They can help surgeons save time.

C. They can be made exactly like the hearts.

D. They can help discover the otherwise hidden heart problems.

3.Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. The 3-D model can be taken out of a screen.

B. CAT scan and MRI are no longer needed.

C. The 3-D model is an exact copy of the heart.

D. Digital images are not reliable in heart operations.

4.What can we infer from the passage?

A. Digital images will mislead heart surgeons.

B. More patients will benefit from the 3-D technology.

C. Heart operations will never fail with 3-D models.

D. Surgeons cannot operate on hearts without 3-D models.

第二节:下面文章中有5个段落需要添加首句(第1~5题)。请从以下选项(A、B、C、D、E和F)中选出适合各段落的首句,并在答题纸上将相应选项的标号涂黑。选项中有一项是多余选项。

A. Become reliable.

B. Make some money.

C. Know about your mind.

D. Be good with discomfort.

E. Be ready for opportunities.

F. Learn to deal with uncertainty.

A Guide for Young People: What to Do with Your Life

You can’t figure out the future. Even young people who have a plan (be a doctor, lawyer, research scientist, singer) don’t really know what will happen. Life doesn’t go according to plans. So if you can’t figure out the future, what do you do? Don’t focus on the future. Focus on what you can do right now that will be good no matter what the future brings.

1. ______ The best things in life are often hard, and if you shy away from difficulty, you’ll miss out. You’ll live a life of safety. Learning is hard. Building something great is hard. Writing a book is hard. A marriage is hard. Running a marathon is hard. All are amazing. How do you get good at this? Do things now that are uncomfortable and hard, on purpose.

2. ______ Starting a business, for example, is an amazing thing to do. But if you’re afraid of the unknown future, you’ll avoid it. You can’t know how things will turn out, and so if you need to know how things will turn out, you’ll avoid great projects, businesses, opportunities. But if you can be OK with not knowing, you will be open to many more possibilities. If you’re good at what you are not sure of, you could do all kinds of things.

3.______ Most people don’t realize that fear controls them. They don’t notice when they fail to fix their attention, or consider doing things they told themselves they wouldn’t do. It’s hard to change mental habits because you don’t always see what’s going on in your head. Learn about how your mind works, and you’ll be much better at all of this.

4. ______ I don’t think money is that important, but it is necessary in your life. Making money is hard. You have to make someone believe in you enough to hire you or buy your products/service, which means you have to figure out why you’re worthy of someone believing in you. You have to become worthy. And you have to learn to communicate that to people so they’ll want to buy or hire you. Whether you’re selling cookies door-to-door or trying to get a job as a cashier, you have to do this.

5.______ If you do all of the above, or at least most of it, you’ll be amazing. You’ll be way, way ahead of pretty much every other person your age. And good fortune will come your way, if you have your eyes open: job opportunities, a chance to build something with someone, an idea for a start up that you can build yourself, a new thing to learn and turn into a business. Take risks — that’s one of the advantages of being young. And if none come along, create your own.

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