(七)
Now, perhaps, more than ever before, people are wondering what life is all about, and what it is for. 1. They feel that they have very little time or energy for family or pastimes.
2. One couple who downshifted减慢节奏 are Daniel and Liz. They used to work in central London. Daniel was a newspaper reporter. They would go to work by train every day from their large house in the suburbs郊区, leaving their two children with a nanny保姆. Most evenings Daniel wouldn't get home until 9 o'clock and nearly twice a month he would have to fly to New York for meetings. 3.
Nowadays, they run a farm in the mountains of Wales. "It took us almost a year to make the decision to downshift. 4. We have to think twice now about spending money on car repairs and we no longer have any holidays. However, I think it's made us stronger as a family, and the children are a lot happier."
Liz, however, is not quite sure. "I used to enjoy my job, even though it was hard work and involved long hours. I suppose I'm gradually getting used to looking after the animals. 5. My advice is not to think about it too much or you might not do it at all."
A. It's taken some time to get used to it, but it's been worth it.
B. Six percent of the workers in Britain took the decision to downshift last year.
C. I like being able to see more of my children.
D. They both earned a large sum of money but began to feel life was passing them by.
E. Seeking追求 material success is beginning to trouble a large number of people around the world.

1.E 2.B 3.D 4.A 5.C

【分析】
本题为英语七选五题型，解题思路是：先通读全文把握主旨（围绕“放慢生活节奏（downshift）”展开），再分析每个空前后的语境、逻辑关系（如总述与举例、因果、承接等），结合选项的内容匹配对应位置，最终确定答案。
【解析】
1. 第1空：前文提到人们思考生活的意义，后文说人们没时间精力陪家人或娱乐，E选项“追求物质成功开始困扰全球很多人”承接前文的疑问，引出后文的问题，故选E。
2. 第2空：后文举了Daniel和Liz夫妇放慢节奏的例子，B选项“去年英国6%的工人决定放慢节奏”是总述，引出具体例子，故选B。
3. 第3空：前文描述Daniel夫妇过去忙碌的工作状态（赚得多但没时间陪家人），D选项“他们赚了很多钱但感觉生活在溜走”对应前文的忙碌状态，故选D。
4. 第4空：前文提到他们花了近一年做放慢节奏的决定，后文说现在要考虑花钱等现状，A选项“花了一些时间适应，但这是值得的”衔接前文的决定和后文的现状，故选A。
5. 第5空：前文Liz提到习惯照顾动物，C选项“我喜欢能更多陪伴孩子”对应家庭相关的语境，故选C。
【答案】
1.E 2.B 3.D 4.A 5.C
【知识点】
七选五阅读、语篇逻辑衔接
【点评】
本题围绕“放慢生活节奏”的主题设置，需结合上下文的语境、逻辑关系匹配选项，考查学生对语篇整体结构和细节呼应的理解能力，属于中等难度的七选五题型。
【难度系数】
0.6

(八)
When John Gurdon was 15, he ranked排名 last out of the 250 boys in his grade at biology. He also came in last for every other science subject. 1. He kept working hard. He went to the lab earlier and left later than anyone else.
On October 8, 2012, 64 years later, the British professor won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine with a Japanese scientist.
2. When he was studying at Oxford, he did some experiments on cells. He took a cell from an adult frog, obtained its genes, and put them into an egg cell. 3. His research proved for the first time that every cell in the body contains the same genes.
4. But later it helped to create Dolly the sheep in 1996, the first cloned mammal in history. 5. For example, cells from someone's skin can turn into any type of tissue组织 in the body. This is good news for those patients who have diseased or damaged tissue.
A. The egg cell then grew into a clone of the adult frog.
B. Gurdon got the honour because of his research into cells and cloning.
C. At that time, many people couldn't accept Gurdon's idea.
D. Luckily, Gurdon didn't stop his love for science.
E. It also led to important findings in the medical use of cells.

1.D 2.B 3.A 4.C 5.E

【分析】
首先通读全文，明确文章主旨是介绍John Gurdon从学生时代科学成绩差到因细胞与克隆研究获诺贝尔奖的经历。解题时需结合每个空前后的语境、句子间的逻辑关系（如转折、因果、承接等），逐一匹配选项：
1. 第1空：前句说他科学成绩差，后句说他坚持努力，需选表转折且体现他未放弃科学的选项；
2. 第2空：前句提到他获诺贝尔奖，后句讲他的细胞实验，需选说明获奖原因的选项；
3. 第3空：前句描述他将成年青蛙基因植入卵细胞的实验，需选实验结果的选项；
4. 第4空：后句用But转折说他的研究后来帮助克隆羊，需选当时人们对他想法态度的选项；
5. 第5空：前句讲克隆羊的意义，后句讲医学应用的好处，需选体现研究另一重要成果的选项。
【解析】
1. 第1空：前句提到他科学成绩差，后句说他坚持努力，D选项“Luckily, Gurdon didn't stop his love for science”符合转折逻辑，体现他未放弃科学，故选D；
2. 第2空：前句说他获诺贝尔生理学或医学奖，后句讲他在牛津的细胞实验，B选项“Gurdon got the honour because of his research into cells and cloning”解释了获奖原因，故选B；
3. 第3空：前句描述他将成年青蛙的基因植入卵细胞，A选项“The egg cell then grew into a clone of the adult frog”是该实验的结果，承接上文，故选A；
4. 第4空：后句用But转折说他的研究后来帮助克隆羊，C选项“At that time, many people couldn't accept Gurdon's idea”体现了当时人们的态度，与后句形成转折，故选C；
5. 第5空：前句讲克隆羊多利的意义，后句讲对患病组织患者的好处，E选项“It also led to important findings in the medical use of cells”说明研究的另一重要成果，承上启下，故选E。
【答案】
1.D 2.B 3.A 4.C 5.E
【知识点】
英语补全短文、上下文逻辑推理
【点评】
本题围绕John Gurdon的科研经历展开，重点考查学生对文章上下文逻辑关系的理解与运用，需结合语境、句子间的逻辑（转折、因果、承接）匹配选项，整体难度适中，理清文章脉络即可顺利解题。
【难度系数】
0.6