When asked to list typical English gentlemen，for many，Colin Firth immediately comes to mind．

In his recent film，Kingsman：The Secret Service，the 54-year-old actor appears as elegant and violent super spy Harry Hart．One minute he’s calm and polite，and then in the next he’s skillfully violent and aggressive．For example，in one scene he says，“Manners maketh a man”，before severely beating up a group of villains(坏人)．Firth brings out the perfect mix of typical British style and humor through this performance．

Firth began appearing on English TV in the early 1990s，but it wasn’t until he played Mr Darcy，a charming upper class character from Jane Austen’s famous novel“Pride and Prejudice”，that Firth’s career really took off．His portrayal(形象)of the perfect fictional gentleman conquered millions of hearts，especially females’．

In many fans and critics’eyes，Firth has British good looks，British charm，and a gift for characters with a British sense of being reserved(矜持)．Movie reviewer Jason O’Bryan described Firth as“always befitting the calm and stiff-upper-lip British gentlemen character”．

However Firth doesn’t consider himself the authority on gentlemen．“I don’t necessarily approach every challenge like a perfect English gentleman spy．There are many aspects in my personality that are not consistent with someone like Harry Hart，”he said to Dialogue，an English—language show on CCTV News．

But let’s just take his words as another gentlemanly quality-modesty．After all，who might expect an Oscar-winning actor over 50 years old to learn to fight for his first action movie?

To prepare for Kingsman，Firth trained for three hours every day over six months．He broke a tooth and got bru ised everywhere，but took the damage as a symbol of his accomplishments．

In Dialogue，Firth said he had many other sides-he’s passionate about literature and literary research．However，to many of his movie fans, he is indeed a gentleman and excellent actor above a11 else.

1.The example given in Paragraph 2 is _____________．

A．to describe the character of Harry Hart

B．to introduce one scene of Kingsman

C．to prove Colin Firth a gentleman

D．to compare Colin Firth with Harry Hart

2.When did Firth come to be famous?

A．In the early 1990s．

B．After he played Mr Darcy．

C．When he was 54 years old．

D．During his childhood．

3.From the text we can infer ______________．

A．Colin Firth is violent and aggressive

B．Colin Firth has many sides in personality

C．Colin Firth has similar character to Harry Hart

D．Colin Firth has more male fans than females

4.Which of the following might be the best title for the text?

A．An authority on English gentlemen

B．A famous actor

C．A charming upper class character

D．A super spy

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。

No matter what problem we’re facing，we always find solutions．1. If you need a boost of happiness to help you through the day，be sure to remember these things：

1．Accept it．

Although it may seem challenging to accept a negative situation，it's your best bet in moving toward a resolution．2.What you can do is only focus on how to improve the circumstances now．

2．Don’t waste time considering it．

Working on a problem a long time can only make it bigger than it already is．Not only will you feel worse in the long run，but also，you’11 lose valuable time when you could be working toward a solution．3.

3．Don’t compare yourself to others．

When you’re struggling through a tough situation，comparing yourself is the last thing you should be doing．4.Therefore，instead of comparing，you should look at the happiness within yourself．

4．Make a plan of action．

5.If you don’t like the way something is，do what you can in your power to change it．In financial situations，you can work on a budget and prioritize your costs．In a fight with a loved one，you can take some time to cool down and improve things by talking it out．

A．You can’t change what already happened．

B．Keep an optimistic mind towards what you can’t get．

C．Don’t let a bad situation get the best of you — take steps to let it go．

D．You have no idea what struggles another person could be going through．

E．It’s impossible to succeed if you’re in low spirits．

F．It may be hard to look on the bright side，but everything passes in time．

G．The best way to overcome a negative time is to find a way out of it．

某英语报社向中学生征文，请你以“我理想的职业”为标题，根据下列要点完成短文。

1、职业特点；

2、选择的理由；

3、目前做何准备。

注意：1．词数100左右；

2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；

3．文章标题已给出。

阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

Nowadays，the ice bucket challenge is among the 1. (hot)news of a11．It is an activity2.(hold)by an American charity organization．It not only helps the sick people to get the money to heal their disease，but also makes moie and more people aware3. the disease，so that they can give more care to the patients,

Ice bucket challenge is like the epidemic(流行病)，4.becomes popular around the world very 5. (quick)．The starter holds the activity，6.(hope)people can experience the ALS patients’pain．In the activity，people need to pour the ice water down from their heads，and then propose another three people．They can either choose to accept the challenge 7. donate 100 dollars，or do the both．

The ALS makes people’s muscles become hard．It is hard for the patients to move．Stephen Hocking is one of the 8.(suffer)．Ice bucket challenge is 9.great success．Until now，a big donation10. (receive)．

--- Do you often feel anxious and uncomfortable?

--- No, but I __________.

A. didn’t B. used to be

C. used to D. wasn’t

__________ he does has nothing to do with me.

A. If B. No matter what

C. That D. whatever

He made up his mind to devote all he could _____ his spoken English before going to college.

A. to be practicing B. practicing

C. practice D. to practicing

He hasn’t decided _____ he will go abroad next year.

A. whether B. when

C. where D. why

What is real success? I am sure many would come up with answers like lots of money, a big house, a new car, and so on.

It has been interesting to see how my own idea of success has through the years. When I was young, I was eagerly reaching for material success. I chose my jobs accordingly and ended up in . Sure enough, I did earn some pretty good pay checks.

But then a different feeling started to . I began to realize selling was not what I wanted to do all my life. After all I was often forced to sell products that did not really suit customers. All that matters is the amount of money that is made. I became very unhappy.

I came to realize that even with big pay checks I did not feel successful. That is when my search for success turned inwards, I sales and chose another profession–helping people. The feeling of relief and belonging was great–and suddenly I felt successful again. Even though I earned than before, I was much more content.

Then I returned to my old love–writing.

I realized I felt most successful when I loved what I did never the money. Then for my own I define success by the feeling of contentment.

Always remember–you are not here to anyone else’s life but your own. It is not your obligation (义务) to please others with your life – only yourself, because only if you are happy yourself can you happiness to others. You cannot give what you do not have.

So be true to yourself and your own joyful path to your own of success.

1.A. occurred B. developed C. completed D. produced

2.A. sales B. service C. manufacturing D. tourism

3.A. change B. end C. leave D. grow

4.A. Eventually B. Randomly C. Fortunately D. Occasionally

5.A. undertook B. continued C. experienced D. quit

6.A. less B. more C. much D. little

7.A. spending B. donating C. minding D. speaking

8.A. point B. angle C. part D. interest

9.A. influence B. live C. disturb D. practice

10.A. spread B. lead C. link D. lend

11.A. pass B. cross C. remove D. follow

12.A. significance B. definition C. imagination D. limit

A lot of people are afraid spiders（蜘蛛）–even the small ones. But a big tarantula（鸟蛛）is much more terrifying for many. Now, scientists in Sri Lanka have discovered a huge species of tarantula that’s about the size of a person’s face.

The first part of the spider’s scientific name, Poecilotheria rajaei, comes from the Greek words for “spotted”(poikilos) and “wild beast” (therion). Its species name, rajaei, comes from a local police officer who helped the team that discovered the creature. Poecilotheria rajaei has 8-inch long legs, and unusual spots colored gray, pink, and yellow.

Although it is very big, is there a real reason to be afraid of one? Maybe. This tarantula has enough poisonous fluid（毒液）to kill mice and small birds and snakes –but its bite wouldn’t cause the death of most humans.

Poecilotheria rajaei was first seen in 2009, when a villager in Sri Lanka found the body of a male and brought it to Ranil Nanayakkara, co-founder of Sri Lanka’s Biodiversity Education and Research organization.

An examination of the awesome creature proved that it was a type of tarantula scientists hadn’t seen before. So Nanayakkara carefully looked through the Sri Lankan forests to try to find more of the spiders.

It’s still too early to know whether this species is endangered. But researchers fear that the tarantulas’ natural habitat is slowly being destroyed.

“ They prefer old trees, but due to the widespread removal of trees the number has dropped,” Nanayakkara said in an interview.

Tarantulas have eight legs and two body parts. They are different from insects, which have only six legs but three body parts. Tarantulas have hairy bodies and are usually larger than other types of spiders. Some species of tarantulas can live up to 25 years.

While Poecilotheria rajaei is very big, the largest tarantula is the Goliath bird-eater (Theraphosa blondi). Found in the rainforests of South America, its legs can be up to 10 inches long. But don’t worry if you ever see one: Its poisonous fluid isn’t really dangerous to humans.

1.According to the text, Poecilotheria rajaei _______.

A. has unique spots

B. is mostly yellow

C. has 10-inch long legs

D. was first seen by the Greeks

2.Which of the following is most likely to survive a bite from Poecilotheria rajaei?

A. A little girl

B. A small bird.

C. A big mouse

D. A small snake.

3.The number of Poecilotheria rajaei has dropped because___________.

A. the global climate has changed

B. they have too many natural enemies

C. some people are killing them illegally

D. more and more forests are disappearing

4.Which of the following is TRUE about tarantulas?

A. They are a kind of insect.

B. Most of them live in South America.

C. Their body is divided into three parts.

D. They are usually of bigger size than other spiders.

5.Which section of a newspaper is the text most probably taken from?

A. Life B. Nature

C. Science D. Business