I’ve loved my mother’s desk since I was just tall enough to see above the top of it as mother sat doing letters. Standing by her chair, looking at the ink bottle, pens,   and white paper, I decided that the act of writing must be the more wonderful thing in the world.

Years later, during her final illness, mother kept different things for my sister  and brother. “But the desk,” she’d said again, “it’s for Elizabeth. ”

I never saw her angry, never saw her cry. I knew she loved me; she showed it in action. But as a young girl, I wanted heart-to-heart talks between mother and    daughter.

They never happened. And a gulf opened between us. I was “too emotional(易动感情的)”. But she lived “on the surface(表面)”.

As years passed I had my own family. I loved my mother and thanked her for our happy family. I wrote to her in careful words and asked her to let me know in any way she chose that she did forgive(原谅) me.

I posted the letter and waited for her answer. None came.

My hope turned to disappointment(失望), then little interest and, finally, peace— it seemed that nothing happened. I couldn’t be sure that the letter had even got to mother. I only knew that I had written it, and I could stop trying to make her into someone she was not.

Now the present of her desk told, as she’d never been able to, that she was    pleased that writing was my chosen work. I cleaned the desk carefully and found    some papers inside —a photo of my father and a one-page letter, folded(折叠) and refolded many times.

Give me an answer, my letter asks, in any way you choose. Mother, you always chose the act that speaks louder than words.

1.The writer began to love her mother’s desk ______.

2.The passage shows that ______.

3.The word “gulf” in the passage means ______.

4.What did mother do with her daughter’s letter asking forgiveness?

5.What’s the best title of the passage?

6.选A。由But she lived “on the surface ”. 和全文内容可知，作者的母亲表面上很冷漠，但心里充满了对作者的爱，正确

第二节（共5小题；每小题2分，满分10分）

　　根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

　　In 1990 a report was published about what the earth might be like 20 years from then on. 71 According to the report,the picture of the earth in the year 2010 is not a pleasant one. 72 The population could be as large as 6300 million,almost 2150 million more than in 1985.More people would move into cities ,especially cities in developing countries.Cities like Cairo and Jakarta probably would each have 15 million by then.

　　 73 Farmers will grow 90% more food than they did in 1985,but most of the increase would be in countries that already produce enough food for their people. 74 Poor farming ways are destroying large areas of crop land,changing farms into deserts.More farmland is lost as cities become larger and more houses are built.Air pollution will get worse as industrial countries burn more coal and oil.Many of the world's forests could disappear as more and more trees are cut down.Energy will continue to be a serious problem. 75 They only workde out the situation that exists today.By changing the situation,by settling the problems,the picture can be changed.There is still time for the nations of the world to work out a plan of action.But they warned that waiting too long to make de cisions would greatly reduce the chances of success.

　　E.Experts believe enough food will be produced in developing countries very soon.

　　F.The experts say their picture of the earth for the year 2010 may be wrong.

G.Little increase is expected in South Asia,Africa and the Middle East.

第二节　根据对话内容，从对话后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

—Lovely day, isn't it?

—Mm, yes,   61  And it's supposed to get warmer.

—Yes, that's true. You know, though, I'm always a little worried to see winter go.

—   62 

—Well, I love skating. In fact, I used to teach skating for a living.

—Oh? That sounds interesting.   63 

—I work at Bank of America. How about you?

—   64 

—Here?

—No, I'm from Chicago. I'm just visiting here for the wedding.

—Oh, I see.

—By the way,   65  I'm Helen Keller.

—Nice to meet you. My name is John Smith.

E. I'm on the radio station.

F. What' your name?

G. Really?

根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有一项为多余选项。

A.　Goods for auction (拍卖) sales

　　B.　Definition of bidding

　　C.　Way to sell more goods by auction

　　D.　Auction sales in history

　　E.　Brief introduction to auctions

　　F.　Making a larger profit as an auctioneer

1.______

Auctions are public sales of goods, conducted by an officially approved auctioneer. He asks the crowd assembled in the auction-room to make offers, or “bids”, for the various items on sale. He encourages buyers to bid higher figures, and finally names the highest bidder as the buyer of the goods. This is called “knocking down” the goods, for the bidding ends when the auctioneer strikes a small hammer on a table at which he stands.

2. ______

The ancient Roman probably invented sales by auction, and the English word comes from the Latin auction, meaning “increasing”. The Romans usually sold in this way the goods taken in war. In England in the eighteenth centuries, goods were often sold “by the candle”: a short candle was lit by the auctioneer, and bids could be made while it stayed alight.

3. ______

Practically all goods whose qualities vary are sold by auction. Among these are coffee, skins, wool, tea, furs, silk and wines. Auction sales are also usual for land and property, furniture, pictures, rare books, old china and similar works of art.

4. ______

An auction is usually advertised beforehand with full particulars of the articles to be sold and where and when they can be viewed by potential buyers. If the advertisement cannot give full details, catalogues are printed, and each group of goods to be sold together, called a “lot”, is usually given a number. The auctioneer need not begin with Lot 1 and continue in the order of numbers: he may wait until he notices the fact that certain buyers are in the room and then produce the lots they are likely to be interested in.

5. ______

The auctioneer’s services are paid for in the form of a percentage of the price the goods are sold for. The auctioneer therefore has a direct interest in pushing up the bidding as high as possible. He will not waste time by starting the bidding too low. He will also play on the opponents among his buyers and succeed in getting a high price by encouraging two business competitors to bid against each other.

（共5小题；每小题2分，满分10分）

　　根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

51  Many things can become distractions (分散注意力). Your ability to focus your mind, emotions, and physical movements will directly influence your success. Staying focused on the task at hand can be easier said than done. Here are some powerful techniques that can help you improve your ability to focus.

    For physical control, it helps to have a constant exercise schedule.   52   Exercising helps you gain better command of your body, and even goes beyond the body, giving you more flexibility not just physically but also emotionally and mentally.  When you feel more comfortable in your body, you increase your self-confidence, which helps you feel more relaxed.

For mental control, meditation (沉思；冥想) does the task.     53     It' s easy to get distracted by things in your background, but in order to perform well you have to maintain a high degree of focus. When you relax your thoughts it trains your mind to deal effectively with outside distractions so you can stay centered on what matters most at the moment.

54   It prevents you from overreaction and also from overacting. When your emotions settle down, you gain greater awareness of the environment you' re in, and feel calm and in control.

  55   The good thing is that self-control can be developed.  Start exercising frequently, get yourself into meditation, and start to feel positive changes in your career and your life in general.

A. In short, focus requires self-control.

B. There are many benefits of exercising.

C. Generally speaking, you need to practise a lot.

D. There are still some disadvantages of exercises.

E. Your emotions are well served by meditation as well.

F. Focus is an important part of success and achievement in general.

G. It helps block out all the noise and activities that are going on around you.