Starry Night

Have you ever seen a real night sky that looks like Van Gogh’s Starry Night? I hope not! So, why would an artist paint the sky this way? Perhaps I can answer that with another question. When you’re happy, why do you sing instead of speaking? Or when you’re in love, why do you speak of roses and honey? When we do these things, we, too are artists. We’re using something that goes beyond a mere scientific description in order to communicate our feelings more powerfully than straightforward words can. So consider for a moment that Van Gogh might not have been hallucinating (产生幻觉的) on the night he painted this. Maybe he felt something so powerful that he had to go beyond the familiar to express it.

I hope I’m reminding you of something you already know as I describe the experience of being outside at night under a crystal clear sky that makes everything seem clean and refreshing. So you look up. And suddenly you see the sky that you’ve seldom seen before. It’s not just the same old dark night sky tonight. Instead, the blackness is a deep, rich blue that is more bottomless than any ocean. The stars are not spots of light but brilliant, magical diamonds that dance like tiny angels. In just this special moment, the sky is somehow alive, and it seems to speak to you silently about the meaning of infinity (无限).

Now look at the painting again. Can you see something of what makes this such a famous and well-loved image? But there’s more here than that. Van Gogh painted this while he was quite struck down by a mental disease. It is natural to imagine that he frequently battled the fear that he would never escape his prison to true freedom. It is natural for us to imagine this because each of us has faced our own personal prison, whether it be disease, the loss of a loved one, serious financial problems … In such moments it is tempting to give up to despair (绝望) and collapse in hopelessness.

Looking at this painting, I imagine Van Gogh in just such a moment of despair, when he is struck by the memory of one of those amazing night skies. He recalls the sense that he is not alone, that there is a living, infinite world with rich colorful creatures and scenes all around.

And so the sky flows across the canvas (画布) full of vitality (活力) and power. The stars don’t just sparkle; they explode. Looking closer, we notice that the earth itself seems to respond to the movement in the sky, forming its own living waves in the mountain and rolling trees. In the sleepy village, the windows of the houses glow (发光) with the same light that brightens the universe. The giant trees at the left seem to capture the joy by stretching upwards toward the sky.

What a tremendous message of hope there is in this masterpiece! Even if our troubles persist, the world around us assures us that life is worth living. That’s what the angels sing about. Doesn’t it make you want to sing, too?

1.Looking at the painting Starry Night, we can see all the following except________.

A. The singing angels                             B. the giant trees

C. the sleepy village                               D. the sparkling stars

2.Van Gogh does NOT describe a feeling of ______ through the Starry Night.

   A. happiness         B. vitality            C. power                    D. despair

3.The underlined word “prison” in the 3rd paragraph probably means ______.

   A. trouble in one’s life                                   B. mental illness

   C. control from the authority                  D. a place where criminals are kept

4.What is the main purpose of this passage?

 A. To explain how Van Gogh painted the Starry Night.

 B. To tell us how to appreciate the Starry Night.

 C. To prove Van Gogh was in a hallucinating state of mind while painting the picture.

 D. To show us the beauty of the sky on a starry night.

Our risk of cancer rises rapidly as we age. So it makes sense that the elderly should be routinely screened for new tumors (肿瘤) or doesn’t it?

While such tracking of cancer is a good thing in general, researchers are increasingly questioning whether all of this testing is necessary for the elderly. With the percentage of people over age 65 expected to nearly double by 2050, it s important to weigh the health benefits of screening against the risks and costs of routine testing.

In many cases, screening can lead to additional examinations and operations to remove cancer, which can cause side effects, while the cancers themselves may be slow-growing and may not cause serious health problems in patients’ remaining years. But the message that everyone must screen for cancer has become so ingrained (根深蒂固的) that when health care experts recommended that women under 50 and over 74 stop screening for breast cancer, it caused a noisy reaction among doctors, patients and social groups.

It’s hard to uproot deeply-held beliefs about cancer screening with scientific data. Certainly, there are people over age 75 who have had cancers detected by routine screening, and gained several extra years of life because of treatment. And clearly, people over age 75 who have other risk factors for cancer, such as a family history or previous personal experience with the disease, should continue to get screened regularly. But for the rest, the risk of cancer, while increased at the end of life, must be balanced with other factors like remaining life expectancy.

A recent study suggests that doctors start to make more objective decisions about who will truly benefit from screening—especially considering the explosion of the elderly.

It’s not an easy calculation to make, but one that makes sense for patients. Dr. Otis Brawley said, “Many doctors are ordering these tests purely to cover themselves from medical disputes. We need to think about the wise use of health care, which means making some difficult decisions with elderly patients, and going against the misguided belief that when it comes to health care, more is always better.”

1.Routine cancer screening for the elderly people makes sense because ______.

A. it is believed to contribute to a long life

B. it is part of their health care package

C. they are more sensitive about the health

D. they are in greater danger of tumor growth

2.How do some researchers now look at routine cancer screening for the elderly?

A. It adds too much to their medical bills.

B. They are doubtful about necessity.

C. It helps increase their life expectancy.

D. They think it does more harm than good.

3.What is the traditional view about women screening for breast cancer?

A. It is a must for adult women.

B. It applies to women over 50.

C. It is intended for young women.   

D. It doesn’t apply to women over

4.Why do many doctors advise routine screening for cancer?

A. They want to take advantage of the medical care system.

B. They want to protect themselves against medical disputes.

C. They want data for medical research.

D. They want their patients to suffer less.

5.What does the writer say is the general view about health care?

A. Better care, longer life.

B. Prevention is better than cure.

C. Better early than late.  

D. The more, the better. 

Starry Night
Have you ever seen a real night sky that looks like Van Gogh’s Starry Night? I hope not! So, why would an artist paint the sky this way? Perhaps I can answer that with another question. When you’re happy, why do you sing instead of speaking? Or when you’re in love, why do you speak of roses and honey? When we do these things, we, too are artists. We’re using something that goes beyond a mere scientific description in order to communicate our feelings more powerfully than straightforward words can. So consider for a moment that Van Gogh might not have been hallucinating (产生幻觉的) on the night he painted this. Maybe he felt something so powerful that he had to go beyond the familiar to express it.
I hope I’m reminding you of something you already know as I describe the experience of being outside at night under a crystal clear sky that makes everything seem clean and refreshing. So you look up. And suddenly you see the sky that you’ve seldom seen before. It’s not just the same old dark night sky tonight. Instead, the blackness is a deep, rich blue that is more bottomless than any ocean. The stars are not spots of light but brilliant, magical diamonds that dance like tiny angels. In just this special moment, the sky is somehow alive, and it seems to speak to you silently about the meaning of infinity (无限).
Now look at the painting again. Can you see something of what makes this such a famous and well-loved image? But there’s more here than that. Van Gogh painted this while he was quite struck down by a mental disease. It is natural to imagine that he frequently battled the fear that he would never escape his prison to true freedom. It is natural for us to imagine this because each of us has faced our own personal prison, whether it be disease, the loss of a loved one, serious financial problems … In such moments it is tempting to give up to despair (绝望) and collapse in hopelessness.
Looking at this painting, I imagine Van Gogh in just such a moment of despair, when he is struck by the memory of one of those amazing night skies. He recalls the sense that he is not alone, that there is a living, infinite world with rich colorful creatures and scenes all around.
And so the sky flows across the canvas (画布) full of vitality (活力) and power. The stars don’t just sparkle; they explode. Looking closer, we notice that the earth itself seems to respond to the movement in the sky, forming its own living waves in the mountain and rolling trees. In the sleepy village, the windows of the houses glow (发光) with the same light that brightens the universe. The giant trees at the left seem to capture the joy by stretching upwards toward the sky.
What a tremendous message of hope there is in this masterpiece! Even if our troubles persist, the world around us assures us that life is worth living. That’s what the angels sing about. Doesn’t it make you want to sing, too?
【小题1】Looking at the painting Starry Night, we can see all the following except________.

阅读下面短文和问题，根据短文内容，在相应题号后的横线上写下相关信息(不多于
五个单词)，完成对该问题的回答。答语要结构正确，书写工整，字迹清楚。

1. Cousins You could say that the alligator and the crocodile are cousins because they belong to the same animal group. The group is called Archosauria (ark-o-SOR-ee-ah). The name means "ruling lizards." The alligator and the crocodile are alike in many ways. Both have hard, bumpy skin. Both lay eggs in nests that they build near water. Both are reptiles (爬行动物), too. 2. Look Again Even though alligators and crocodiles are similar, there are ways to tell them apart. Adult alligators are usually gray or black, and they are darker than crocodiles. Adult crocodiles may be tan, green, or brown. Most types of alligators have broad snouts. Crocodiles' snouts are different. Their snouts are long and narrow. Look at the picture of the alligator. Whenever an alligator closes its mouth, only the top teeth show. Now look at the picture of the crocodile. Do you see a difference? Whenever a crocodile closes its mouth, some of the lower teeth also show. 3      Alligators and crocodile also have different ways of doing things. Alligators like freshwater. They sometimes wander into salty seawater, but they don't stay in the water very long. The salt can be bad for them. Alligators usually make their nests at the edge of freshwater lakes, rivers, or swamps. They use grass and leaves to make their nests. Crocodiles, on the other hand, usually build their nests in mud or sand. Sometimes they construct these nests near salty water. The salty water doesn't hurt them. Alligators and crocodiles do other things differently, too. A mother alligator stays near her nest. When the eggs hatch, she carries the babies to water. They may even ride around on her head as she swims. They depend on her to help them stay safe. Crocodile babies don't rely as much on their mothers. In fact, the babies leave the nest a few days after they are born.

Embroidering (刺绣)

When I was a little boy living in New York, my mother used to embroider a great deal. I would sit at her knee and look up from the    36    and ask what she was doing. She    37   me that she was embroidering. I told her that it looked like a mess from where I was. As from the underside I watched her work within the    38   of the little round hoop（铁环）that she held in her hand, I complained to her that it sure looked    39    from where I sat.

    She would smile at me, look down and   40    say, "My son, you go about your    41    for a while, and when I am finished with my embroidering, I will put you on my    42    and let you see it from my side."

I would wonder why she was using some dark threads along with the    43    ones and why they seemed so jumbled（混乱的）from my   44   . A few minutes would pass and then I would hear Mother's voice say, " Son, come and sit on my knee." This I did only to be  surprised and    45  to see a beautiful flower or a sunset. I could not    46   it, because from underneath it looked so messy.

   Then mother would    47   to me, "My son, from underneath it did look messy and jumbled, but you did not realize that there was a   48   plan on the top. It was a    49   . I was only following it. Now look at it from my side    50    you will see what I was doing."

   Many    51    through the years, I have    52    up to my Heavenly Father and said, “ Father, what are You doing? ” He    53   , “ I am embroidering your    54   . ” I say, " But it looks like a mess to me. It seems so jumbled. The threads seem so dark. Why can't they all be bright ? " The Father seems to tell me, " My child, you go about your business of doing My business, and one day I will bring you to    55    and put you on my knee and you will see the plan from My side. "

1.A. floor                   B. corner          C. ceiling                       D. step

2.A. demanded       B. blamed                 C. persuaded        D. informed

3.A. decorate              B. boundaries        C. picture           D. surface

4.A. messy                  B. dirty              C. shabby            D. tight

5.A. smartly                 B. cautiously       C. gently             D. precisely

6.A. complaining            B. playing                        C. embroidering              D. imagining

7.A. back           B. chair             C. knee             D. table

8.A. white          B. black                       C. bright            D. shining

9.A. eyes                   B. opinion           C. heart           D .view

10.A. hopeful      B. thrilled                       C. expecting           D. enthusiastic

11.A. believe         B. consider              C. see                   D. touch

12.A. talk            B. mention              C. say                           D. whisper

13.A. pre-drawn      B. previewed         C. preserved                   D. produced

14.A. direction        B. line                 C. diagram                      D. design

15.A. or             B. and                    C. until                         D. unless

16.A. times                  B. days              C. seasons                   D. chances

17.A. climbed               B. jumped                   C. shouted                      D. looked

18.A. required             B. answered          C. instructed               D. concluded

19.A. decision       B. fortune          C. life                      D. business

20.A. home                 B. mother                   C. America                     D. Heaven