Here’s a common scenario that any number of entrepreneurs face today： you’re the CEO of a small business， and though you’re making a nice ___1___， you need to find a way to take it to the next level. What you need to do is ___2___growth by establishing a growth team. A growth team is made up of members from different departments within your company， and it harnesses the power of collaboration to focus ___3___on finding ways to grow.
Let’s look at a real-world ___4___. Prior to forming a growth team， the software company BitTorrent had 50 employees working in the ___5___departments of engineering， marketing and product development. This brought them good results until 2012， when their growth plateaued. The ___6___was that too many customers were using the basic， free version of their product. And ___7___improvements to the premium， paid version， few people were making the upgrade.
Things changed， ___8___， when an innovative project-marketing manager came aboard， ___9___a growth team and sparked the kind of ___10___perspective they needed. By looking at engineering issues from a marketing point of view， it became clear that the ___11___of upgrades wasn’t due to a quality issue. Most customers were simply unaware of the premium version and what it offered.
Armed with this ___12___， the marketing and engineering teams joined forces to raise awareness by prominently ___13___the premium version to users of the free version ___14___， upgrades skyrocketed， and revenue increased by 92 percent.
But in order for your growth team to succeed， it needs to have a strong leader. It needs someone who can ___15___the interdisciplinary team and keep them on course for improvement. This leader will ___16___the target area， set clear goals and establish a time frame for the ___17___of these goals.
The growth leader is also ___18___for keeping the team focused on moving forward and steering them clear of distractions. ___19___attractive new ideas can be distracting， the team leader must recognize when these ideas don’t ___20___the current goal and need to be put on the back burner.

【正确答案-参考解析】：参加考试可见

In the quest for the perfect lawn， homeowners across the country are taking a shortcut—and it is the environment that is paying the price. About eight million square metres of plastic grass is sold each year but opposition has now spread to the highest gardening circles. The Chelsea Flower Show has banned fake grass from this year’s event， declaring it to be not part of its ethos. The Royal Horticultural Society （RHS）， which runs the annual show in west London， says it has introduced the ban because of the damage plastic grass does to the environment and biodiversity. Ed Horne， of the RHS， said： “We launched our sustainability strategy last year and fake grass is just not in line with our ethos and views on plastic. We recommend using real grass because of its environmental benefits， which include supporting wildlife， alleviating flooding and cooling the environment.” The RHS’s decision comes as campaigners try to raise awareness of the problems fake grass causes. A Twitter account， which claims to “cut through the green-wash” of artificial grass， already has more than 20，000 followers. It is trying to encourage people to sign two petitions， one calling for a ban on the sale of plastic grass and another calling for an “ecological damage” tax on such lawns. They have gathered 7，276 and 11，282 signatures. However， supporters of fake grass point out that there is also an environmental impact with natural lawns， which need mowing and therefore usually consume electricity or petrol. The industry also points out that real grass requires considerable amounts of water， weed killer or other treatments and that people who lay fake grass tend to use their garden more. The industry also claims that people who lay fake grass spend an average of £500 on trees or shrubs for their garden， which provides habitat for insects. In response to another petition last year about banning fake lawns， which gathered 30，000 signatures， the government responded that it has no plans to ban the use of artificial grass？ It added： “We prefer to help people and organizations make the right choice rather than legislating on such matters， However the use of artificial grass must comply with the legal and policy safeguards in place to protect biodiversity and ensure sustainable drainage， while measures such as the strengthened biodiversity duty should serve to encourage public authorities to consider sustainable alternatives.”

【正确答案-参考解析】：参加考试可见

Net-zero rules set to send cost of new homes and extensions soaring New building regulations aimed at improving energy efficiency are set to increase the price of new homes， as well as those of extensions and loft conversions on existing ones. The rules， which came into effect on Wednesday in England， are part of government plans to reduce the UK’s carbon emissions to net zero by 2050. They set new standards for ventilation， energy efficiency and heating， and state that new residential buildings must have charging points for electric vehicles. The moves are the most significant change to building regulations in years， and industry experts say they will inevitably lead to higher prices at a time when a shortage of materials and high labour costs are already driving up bills. Brian Berry， chief executive of the Federation of Master Builders， says the measures will require new materials， testing methods， products and systems to be installed.” All this comes at an increased cost during a time when prices are already sky high. Inevitably， consumers will have to pay more，” he says. Gareth Belsham， of surveyors Naismiths， says people who are upgrading， or extending their home， will be directly affected. “The biggest changes relate to heating and insulation，” he explains. “There are new rules concerning the amount of glazing used in extensions， and any new windows or doors must be highly insulated.” Windows and doors will have to adhere to higher standards， while there are new limits on the amount of glazing you can have to reduce unwanted heat from the sun. Thomas Goodman， of MyJobQuote， says this will bring in new restrictions for extensions.” Glazing on windows， doors and rooflights must cover no more than 25% of the floor area to prevent heat loss，” he says. As the rules came into effect last Wednesday， property developers were rushing to file plans just before the deadline. Any plans submitted before that date are considered to be under the previous rules， and can go ahead as long as work starts before 15 June next year. Builders which have costed projects， but have not filed the paperwork， may need to go back and submit fresh estimates， says Marcus Jefford of Build Aviator. Materials prices are already up 25% in the last two years. How much overall prices will increase as a result of the rule changes is not clear.” Whilst admirable in their intentions， they will add to the cost of housebuilding at a time when many already feel that they are priced out of homeownership，” says Jonathan Rolande of the National Association of Property Buyers. “An average extension will probably see around £3，000 additional cost thanks to the new regs.” John Kelly， a construction lawyer at Freeths law firm， believes prices will eventually come down. But not in the immediate future.” As the marketplace adapts to the new requirements， and the technologies that support them， the scaling up of these technologies will eventually bring costs down， but in the short term， we will all have to pay the price of the necessary transition.” he says. However， the long-term effects of the changes will be more comfortable and energy-efficient homes， adds Andrew Mellor， of PRP architects.“Homeowners will probably recoup that cost over time in energy bill savings. It will obviously be very volatile at the moment， but they will have that benefit over time.”

A.The rise of home prices is a temporary matter.

B. Builders possibly need to submit new estimates of their projects.

C. There will be specific limits on home extensions to prevent heat loss.

D. The new rules will take home prices to an even higher level.

E. Many people feel that home prices are already beyond what they can afford.

F. The new rules will affect people whose home extensions include new windows or doors.

G. The rule changes will benefit homeowners eventually.

【正确答案-参考解析】：参加考试可见

In the late 18th century， William Wordsworth became famous for his poems about nature. And he was one of the founders of a movement called Romanticism， which celebrated the wonders of the natural world.
Poetry is powerful. Its energy and rhythm can capture a render， transport then to another world and make them see things differently. Though carefully selected words and phrases， poems can be dramatic， funny， beautiful， moving and inspiring.
No one knows for sure when poetry began but it has been around for thousands of years， even before people could write. It was a way to tell stories and pass down history. It is closely related to song and even when written it is usually created to be performed out loud. poems really come to life when they are recited. This can also help with understanding them too， because the rhythm and sounds of the words become clearer.

【正确答案-参考解析】：参加考试可见

Directions：
An art exhibition and a robot show are to be held on Sunday， and your friend David asks you which one he should go to. Write him an email to
1） make a suggestion， and
2） give your reason（s）.
You should write about 100 words on the ANSWER SHEET.
Do not use your own name in the letter. Use “Li Ming” instead. Do not write your address. （10 points）

【正确答案-参考解析】：参加考试可见

Directions：
Write an essay based on the chart below. In your writing， you should
1） interpret the chart， and
2） give your comments.
You should write about 150 words on the ANSWER SHEET. （15 points）

【正确答案-参考解析】：参加考试可见