Visiting Joshua Tree National Park, California
Joshua Tree National Park is nearly 800,000 acres (英亩) large and surrounds parts of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts in South-central California. Although barren at first sight, the park is full of wildlife and provides a variety of entertainment activities from hiking to climbing. Within a three-hour drive, Joshua Tree National Park takes at least a full day to visit.
Things to do
 Hiking opportunities within the park include several choices, from 12 self-guided nature routines to all-day back-country hikes.
 Joshua Tree NP has nine camping grounds, and back-country camping is also allowed.
 Rock climbing is a popular activity in the park, which has 10 mountains greater than 5, 000 feet in height.
When to visit
Joshua Tree NP is open 365 days a year, although the best time to visit is October through April, when temperature is milder. The peak season is when the wild flowers bloom, and the summer months are the least crowded.
What to bring
In addition to your camera and telescope, be sure to carry lots of water. Park and guiding maps can be picked up at any of the three visitor centers.
Fees
 Parking fees: You can buy a seven-day vehicle permit (周票) for $ 15, a single entry permit for $ 5, or Joshua Tree National Park annual (每年的) pass for $ 60.
 Camping fees: They vary by camping ground
1. The underlined word “barren” in the first paragraph can be replaced by “________”.

A．rich

B．deserted

C．useless

D．beautiful

2. When is the best time to visit Joshua Tree NP?

A．September

B．May

C．June

D．March

3. If one goes to Joshua Tree NP by car and stays there for 9 days, how much at least one should pay for the parking fees?

A．$ 60

B．$ 25

C．$ 15

D．$ 30

4. What can be inferred from the text?

A．There are guides for nature trails.

B．Tourists can easily visit the whole park within a day.

C．The camping fees at the nine camping grounds are different.

D．Tourists must take park and trail maps with them when they visit the park

“We are good mothers,” I said to my friend, as we sat on our comfortable beach chairs under our beach umbrella and watched our children playing in the waves.
Out of nowhere, the children took off running. About fifty yards from us, a man—maybe in his fifties—was fishing. The children stood next to him and watched with their little mouths hanging open as he cast the fishing lines. He smiled at them. They ran back to us—all except my three-year-old daughter, Drew.
My heart beat fast with horror. “Drew! Come here! Play with your friends!” I shouted, very aware that my speeches about not talking to strangers weren’t working. It seemed that many parents heard of horrible stories about children being taken away by strangers. Responsible mothers should teach their children that the world is a dangerous place. So I felt relieved when Drew ran towards me and took hold of a shovel (铲子). Then she looked me in the eye: “I want to be with the person.”
Again, she approached the middle-aged man, and started digging next to him.
Several seconds later, she returned, waving something shiny.
“Look, Mommy! A toy fish!”
It was, indeed, a toy fish—yellow and rubber. This must have been what he was using to attract the fish. And he’d given it to Drew. The three other children were deeply impressed, and they didn’t try to hide how jealous(妒忌的)they were—clearly, they all wanted the fish.
“My friend gave me that fish!” Drew shouted loudly. The sand in front of the umbrella turned into a preschool cage match with a yellow rubber fish flying through the air. I felt like I might cry myself.
Unexpectedly, there he was: the man, standing right next to us with three more rubber fish in hand. He handed them to each of the children. By their faces, you would have thought he was actually the really kind big brother.
“Thank you,” I said, realizing that there is good and kindness in strangers.
5. How did the author feel when Drew stood beside the man?

A．relieved

B．angry

C．concerned

D．calm

6. What does the author think good mothers should do?

A．be around their kids

B．warn their kids of danger

C．teach their kids to behave well

D．devote themselves to helping their kids

7. When was the author at a loss(迷茫)?

A．Drew handed her the toy fish

B．The kids fought for the toy fish

C．The toy fish was covered with sand

D．The stranger appeared from nowhere

8. What would be the best title for the text?

A．Give a kid a fish

B．We are good mothers

C．The world is dangerous

D．Teach kids to be kind

Those who are used to looking through thousands of books in big bookstores may find Japan’s Morioka Shoten a little strange. That’s because this tiny bookstore that is located in Ginza, Tokyo sells only a single book at a time.

Opened in May 2015, Morioka Shoten is the brainchild of Yoshiyuki Morioka. The experienced bookseller began his career as a bookstore clerk in Tokyo’s Kanda district before branching out to open his own store. It was here while organizing book readings that he realized that customers usually came into the store with one title in mind. Morioka began to wonder if a store could exist by selling many copies of just one single book. In November 2014, he partnered with his two friends, to establish a unique bookstore with the idea of “A Single Room, A Single Book.”

Like its offering, the bookstore is simple. The selections that are picked by Morioka change weekly and vary widely to attract customers with different interests. Recent choices include The True Deceiver, an award-winning Swedish novel by Tove Jansson, Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales, and a collection of artist Karl Blossfeldt’s photography of plants. Morioka has also chosen books written by famous Japanese authors Mimei Ogawa and Akito Akagi.

To highlight his only offering, Morioka often uses clever methods. For example，when selling a book about flowers, he decorated his shop with the ones that had been mentioned in the book. He also encourages authors to hold talks and discussions so they can connect with customers. Morioka says his goal is for the customers to experience being inside a book, not just a bookstore!

Risky as the idea might seem, things appear to be going well. Morioka says he has sold over 2,100 books since he opened it. Things can get better considering that his bookstore is becoming increasingly popular not just among the locals but also visitors from other countries.

9. What inspired Morioka to open such a bookstore?

A．A Swedish novel	B．His present partner
C．A bookstore clerk	D．His working experience

10. Why is Morioka Shoten unique?

A．It is popular with foreigners       .

B．It sells books of different topics.

C．It is decorated with colorful flowers.

D．It sells various copies of a book in a week.

11. Why does Morioka encourage authors to hold talks?

A．To introduce his bookstore.

B．To advocate his philosophy.

C．To make books better understood.

D．To help readers connect with each other.

12. What’s the author’s opinion about the bookstore’s future?

A．Risky	B．Optimistic
C．Unpredictable	D．Hopeless

For most caffeine(咖啡因)consumers, its main benefit is that it helps you get more done. This is what makes it unusual, says Stephen Braun, author of Buzz: The Science and Lore of Alcohol and Caffeine.
“Its appeal is that it helps us earn more money,” he adds. “What makes it different from other drugs is that it’s used as a productivity tool –– not for pleasure.”
Many of history’s creative minds have also been connected with a large amount of caffeine consumption (消耗).
According to one biographer, the French novelist and playwright Balzac drank as many as 50 cups of coffee a day. “Were it not for coffee one could not write, which is to say one could not live,” he once insisted.
For seven years, the film-maker David Lynch ate at the same Los Angeles diner every day, drinking up to seven sweetened cups of coffee “with lots of sugar” in one sitting, which he said would guarantee that “lots of ideas” arrived.
Ludwig van Beethoven was said to have painstakingly counted out exactly 60 coffee beans per cup when he brewed(煮)coffee.
Perhaps recent tales of caffeine excess (过量) featured the singer Robbie Williams, who reportedly consumed 36 cups of black coffee and 20 cans of Red Bull a day.
It is the routine task itself, as much as the stimulating(刺激的)effects of caffeine, that makes the process so important, says Mason Currey, author of Daily Rituals: How Artists Work. “A lot of artists use the process of making coffee as a gateway to the creative process,” he adds. “You need to get into the right mindset to do that sort of work, and the preparation process provides a focus.”
One problem with attempting to control caffeine, says Braun, is that it affects everyone differently –– it is impossible to work out a “safe” limit that works for everyone. “Eventually, you have to become your own scientist –– there isn’t an alternative to careful self-experimentation,” he says.
13. The examples of some famous people are given to show that _______.

A．most artists like drinking coffee

B．drinking coffee helps artists make more money

C．there’s a link between drinking coffee and creating ideas

D．drinking coffee makes artists become more successful

14. What leads to the artists’ creative process according to Mason Currey?

A．Being lost in thought.	B．Drinking the coffee.
C．Brewing the coffee.	D．Getting a good mindset.

15. What does Braun advise us to do in the end?

A．To drink less coffee.

B．Never to limit caffeine use.

C．To work out a safe level of caffeine use.

D．Never to take more coffee than you need.

How to Avoid an Internet Addiction(上瘾)

While it may seem like everyone surfs the web these days, there is fine line between casually checking your social media pages and having a full blown Internet addiction. If you fear that you may lose interest in other aspects of your life because you prefer to be on the Internet, you may be on your way to an Internet addiction.    16    

Admit you are at risk of an addiction.

More and more people in the world are becoming addicted to the Internet. You are not the only one with this problem and it is becoming more and more common and more and more well- known.    17    

Set aside limited time for computer use.

Make sure not to turn it on too many times a week. If you have a laptop, make sure to put it somewhere that you can remember but not somewhere that you see every day. Try keeping the lid closed when you are not using it.    18    If you have a desktop PC, try not to go near it or put something over it like a sheet.

Call people instead of sending instant messages or texts.

If you are free on weekends, call friends and ask them to go outside. This will distract you from the computer.    19    

Use an alarm clock or timer.

Before using your computer, decide on a time limit such as 30 minutes. Set the clock or timer and make sure that you get off the computer when the time is up. Alternatively create a shutdown timer shortcut on your desktop.    20    

A．Make a small list of what you want to do within that time.

B．Do not be embarrassed; find others with the same problem and help each other beat it.

C．Luckily, there are ways to avoid living your life in front of the computer.

D．This can be programmed to shut down your computer after the set time.

E．This will stop you from using the Internet so often or going on to another page.

F．When the computer is not looking at you, you are less likely to use it.

G．If you have a problem on weekdays, phone your friends or ask for help in person.

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Elephants practice altruism (利他主义). An Indian elephant called Chandrasekharan lifted poles off a truck as it moved along, and placed them in ____ . When Chandrasekharan came to one hole dug in the ground, he ____ to put the pole in. ____ , the owner checked and discovered a dog sleeping in it. Only when the dog was ____ would Chandrasekharan put the pole in. This sort of ____ is typical of elephants.
Elephants really do have long ____ . Elephants eat an incredible variety of foods and need to cover large distances to get it. They need to know ____ to go at what time of year. They learn this and ____ it. They also have ____ communication and societies. They need to remember all the different individuals’ ____ and smells so as to be socially adept(精通的). The old saying, “An elephant never ____ ,” is fairly true.
I once had a love-hate relationship with an elephant in Zimbabwe in 1991. Every day I’d ____ out of the front gate and an elephant would attack my vehicle. And every day I’d rev(加速) my engine and ____ the door and tell him to get away and then we would go our ____ ways. Every single day this happened without ____ . If other vehicles came and went he would ____ them and then go for mine.
One day I went out in a(n) ____ vehicle, stopped nearby and watched for a while. The wind changed, and he caught my smell. ____ , he recognized me as usual.
More recently it has been ____ that spindle neurons(纺锤体神经元)play an important role in the development of ____ behavior. Spindle neurons are found in the brains of humans, great apes, dolphins and elephants.21.

A．holes

B．bags

C．trucks

D．houses

22.

A．pretended

B．refused

C．began

D．tried

23.

A．Suddenly

B．Fortunately

C．Sadly

D．Eventually

24.

A．beaten

B．fed

C．gone

D．buried

25.

A．relationship

B．work

C．expression

D．behavior

26.

A．memories

B．stories

C．noses

D．teeth

27.

A．whether

B．where

C．when

D．why

28.

A．remember

B．choose

C．enjoy

D．show

29.

A．close

B．complex

C．direct

D．happy

30.

A．tastes

B．numbers

C．names

D．voices

31.

A．stops

B．hesitates

C．forgets

D．returns

32.

A．just

B．walk

C．run

D．drive

33.

A．paint

B．open

C．hit

D．repair

34.

A．easy

B．separate

C．proper

D．familiar

35.

A．failure

B．pain

C．help

D．patience

36.

A．protect

B．attack

C．ignore

D．follow

37.

A．old

B．expensive

C．large

D．different

38.

A．At first

B．Of course

C．By the way

D．On the contrary

39.

A．found

B．understood

C．recorded

D．recommended

40.

A．anxious

B．terrible

C．intelligent

D．strange

41. Young children should be ______to be honest and happy.

A．brought out	B．brought up
C．brought in	D．brought down

42. At the end of the meeting, it was announced that an agreement ______.

A．has reached	B．had reached
C．has been reached	D．had been reached

43. _____ the Internet is making people closer, it may also be breaking some homes or will cause other family problems.

A．When

B．If

C．As

D．While