【推荐1】It was Mother’s Day, but I knew there would be no celebration for me. I was a mother of a very active two-year-old and my husband was a Captain of a Navy ship. That morning I had been up early and had already taken several phone calls from both Navy wives and other people needing to be comforted. After one phone call, I leaned back in my chair, and said, “Dear God, I am hustling to be a blessing to others, but what about me? Is there anything for me today?”

At that very moment the telephone rang. It was the voice of a little girl who said, “Miss Stephanie I’ve been thinking of you!” It took my breath away! I had known this girl from another city, but at that moment it was to me the voice of God! I greatly valued the thoughtfulness of the little one and her family who knew my husband was out. But even greater than their kindness, I felt deeply touched by the timing of the call and felt that precious voice spoke to me of God’s great love for me.

There have been many Mother’s Days since that one, but none so special, so deeply moving, so tenderly comforting. I will never forget the feel of knowing how loved I was, and that I would never be forgotten.

In the United States and elsewhere, Mother’s Day has become synonymous（与…同义）with lots of human expectations. If we’re not careful, the fulfillment of these clichés can become a false standard for feeling loved, and a heavy burden on our family. When I think of that Mother’s Day long ago, tears come to my eyes, but not out of sadness. I rejoice（庆幸）in the profound love and caring I felt and still feel to this day. This experience helps me see that love hugs everyone, and that makes my heart sing for us all!

1. How did the writer feel after comforting others on Mother’s Day?

A．Comfortable.	B．Disappointed.
C．Anxious.	D．Energetic.

2. What conclusion can we draw from the last paragraph?

A．Mother’s Day has become not so important in the United States.

B．The fulfillment of human expectations will never be a heavy burden.

C．The writer was always moved to tears on every Mother’s Day.

D．That Mother’s Day long ago had a positive influence on the writer’s life.

3. What can be a suitable title for the passage?

A．A Call from a Little Girl.

B．A Memorable Mother’s Day.

C．God’s Great Love for Everyone.

D．A Mother’s Day Long Time Ago.

【推荐2】In 1963, at age 65, my grandfather, Erwin, decided to build a new house. He wasn’t quite sure what to do with the old house since it sat where the new house would be. He finally hired a powerful vehicle to push it far out into a small group of trees. That old house sits there to this very day.

Erwin and his wife, Elida, passed away, and I purchased the farm from their estate. My wife and I raised our sons on this place and have lived here for more than 30 years. When we first moved in, my wife took one look at the deserted house and declared it a hidden danger. I agreed and planned on a large bonfire. But I thought it appropriate to check out the house first, just in case something of worth had been left behind.

I walked through the tall grass in the meadow where the old house sat. Time had worn it out. The entrance floor had fallen down on itself and most of the windows were gone. We entered through an open window. ① Here lay the reminders of my grandparents’ lives: a broken chair, some old clothes ... But the thing that drew my eye was a cardboard box stuffed with papers. I dug through its contents and was instantly transported back in time. There was a tax return from 1957. Greeting cards from old friends and relatives, now all dead and gone. An uncle’s third-grade spelling book. So sweet were the memories that the old house was spared the torch.

As we hurried through our lives, my visits grew infrequent. I might catch a glimpse of the house through the trees and remembered how, as a child, I would struggle to walk in my father’s footprints. Even then, I could imagine no nobler calling than farming, just like Dad. Then, one April morning, my father was felled by a massive heart attack, at age 68. The entire family was shocked by his passing, none more than me. Why I visited that old house on a day shortly after my father’s funeral is still beyond me. It was as though it were calling; even the trees seemed to whisper an invitation to come, to visit, to stay awhile.

② As I stood once again on that ancient floor, my eye was drawn to a pile of papers on the floor. An envelope, yellowed with age, lay on top. A blue stamp on the envelope read “Passed by Naval Censor”. How could I have missed this treasure? My father had served aboard the USS Washington during World War II and had written home whenever he could. My grandmother saved all of his letters.

I removed one letter carefully from its envelope. ③ It was dated September 1944. My father would have been somewhere in the South Pacific at that time and all of 18 years old. I studied the familiar handwriting. Dad wondered how the com harvest had been. He supposed that his youngest brother was starting first grade and imagined that he was becoming quite the little man. He asked his mother to greet everyone and said that he missed them all.

It wasn’t hard to read between the lines. Here was a homesick young man, a kid really, who had spent his entire life living upon a sea of flat land grass. Now he was on a different kind of sea, an ocean that was being disturbed by the thunder and the lightning of a world at war. At the bottom of the page, my father had passed on one last message. ④ Tears burned my eyes as I read those words he had so carefully emphasized: “All is well here. Please don’t worry. I am doing fine.”

As I left the old house that day, I took one last glance back at it over my shoulder. I don’t care what any one thinks, I decided. That old house gets to stay there until it rots into the earth.

1. Why did the writer visit the long forgotten house?

A．He had to ensure his family's safety.

B．There were some antiques inside.

C．He wanted to sort valuable stuff.

D．His wife asked him to check it out.

2. The underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 implies that ________.

A．the shabby house proved of great use

B．the house held his childhood memories

C．the writer could not erase grandpa’s past

D．the writer finally gave up the initial plan

3. Where does the following sentence fit in best?
“I felt as though I had stepped into a time capsule.”

A．①

B．②

C．③

D．④

4. What can we learn from Paragraph 4?

A．Father’s death caused a disaster to the writer’s family.

B．Father had a strong influence on the writer’s childhood.

C．The writer wanted to find Father's letters in the old house.

D．The house was totally forgotten by the writer's family.

5. During his serving in the US Navy, the writer’s father could be described as ________.

A．ambitious and energetic	B．proud and patient
C．considerate and homesick	D．confident and helpful

6. What can be a suitable title for the passage?

A．Saving Grandpa’s Home	B．Treasuring Old Stuff
C．Grandpa, Father and I	D．Letters From Father

【推荐3】When I moved to Senegal in 2007 to work for a charity organization, the first thing I did was to hit the streets. Dakar, the capital, leans out into warm Atlantic wind. It has a relaxing atmosphere that makes it a favorite destination.

Not far from the city center, it also has one of Africa’s biggest slums(贫民区)and its share of beggars. Street kids would tail me, begging. During a previous trip to Senegal, I was once cheated by a man. I'd wondered for years whether to give money to beggars in West Africa.

Near my apartment, I passed a group of young men in wheelchairs whom I took to be beggars. Head down, I walked by them quickly. As the months went by, I'd often come across them. I’d often see them at an outdoor basketball court near my office. They’d sit on the ground with their chairs upside down, tightening and adjusting wheels, waiting until the other guys left so they could play.

I'd stay and watch them warm up. They played with speed, rolling down the court as fast as I could run. A few weeks later I introduced myself to them with the help of Mafall, who was one of the guys and could speak a little French. I started spending more time with them and eventually became something like an assistant coach.

The players quickly grew on me. I started referring to them as “my guys” to my colleagues. It was the most fun I’d had since I got to Dakar. Life on the street had made my players strong and they didn’t back down easily. I was proud of them.

Toward the end of the season, Mafall invited me to where he lived—found many of the players there, with their wives and children. I learned that most of them were born with disabilities. As Mafall and I chatted, I knew something had changed. They were no longer beggars. They were basketball players, my guys, and my friends.

1. It can be inferred from the text that the disabled young men ________.

A．used to beg in the streets	B．often helped the local charity.
C．were not friendly toward foreigners	D．played basketball as well as normal guys.

2. Why did the writer walk by the young men with head down?

A．To be afraid of being recognized by them.

B．To prevent himself from being stolen.

C．To be afraid of being cheated by them.

D．To be careful enough to find his way home.

3. Why did the author call the disabled young men “my guys”?

A．They often played tricks on the author.

B．They were loved by the author.

C．They used to cheat others when begging.

D．They always quarreled while training.

4. What is the whole text mainly about?

A．The author refused to be cheated by beggars in Dakar.

B．The author helped the locals in Senegal out of poverty.

C．The author coached the young men in Senegal to play basketbal1.

D．The author helped to change some disabled young men in Dakar.

【推荐1】According to a study published in the pre-print website bioRxiv, a team of Israeli scientists recorded tomato and tobacco plants producing sound frequencies which humans cannot hear in stressful situations—such as when they experienced a lack of water or their stems were cut. The team identified the sounds with microphones placed around 10 centimeters (around four inches) away from the plants, though the scientists say the noises could potentially be heard several feet away by some mammals and insects, such as mice.

Plants exposed to drought stress have been shown to experience cavitation (空化现象)— a process where air bubbles (气泡)form, expand and explode inside tissue that transports water. These explosions produce sound, but they have only ever been recorded using devices directly connected to the plants. The latest study, meanwhile, is the first to identify plants making sounds which can be detected over a distance. And the researchers say that cavitation could potentially be the source of these sounds.

The team detected the tomato plants made 35 sounds an hour on average when they were exposed to drought conditions, while the tobacco plants produced 11. When the stems of the plants were cut, the tomato plants made 25 sounds an hour on average and the tobacco plants produced 15. As a comparison, unstressed plants made less than one sound hour on aver-age, according to the study.

The team say that while they only tested tomato and tobacco. It's possible that other plants could also produce sounds, adding that the latest findings could have implications for agriculture. ''Plant sound emissions could offer a novel way for monitoring crops' water state—a question of vital importance in agriculture, '' the authors wrote in the study. ''More Precise irrigation can save up to 50 percent of the water consumption and increase the output, with dramatic economic implications. ''

''According to Anne Visscher from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in the U. K., the idea that the sounds could be used in precision agriculture is 'practical' though she urges caution regarding the Israeli team's suggestion that other animals could hear the sounds at a distance, '' New Scientist reported.

1. What do the Israeli scientists find about plants?

A．Stressed plants tend to lack water.

B．Some plants can understand humans' sounds.

C．Stressed plants can make more frequent sounds.

D．Some mammals and insects can communicate with plants.

2. What can we learn about cavitation?

A．It may contribute to the plants' sounds.

B．It may lead to plants experiencing drought.

C．It is determined by the number of air bubbles.

D．It was identified and recorded for the first time.

3. How many sounds do the tomato plants make per hour on average when cut?

A．11.	B．15.
C．25.	D．35.

4. What's Anne Visscher's attitude to applying the study to agriculture?

A．Supportive.	B．Cautious.
C．Reserved.	D．Opposed.

【推荐2】Four years into my Ph.D. program, my hands started to go numb each night as I slept. I didn't think much of it at the time. Then one night, while sound asleep, I somehow mistook my numb arm for a snake. I threw myself out of bed and woke in a panic. I later discovered that this nighttime event wasn't simply a strange dream.

At that time, I was working toward my Ph.D. and training to be a clinical psychologist. There was never enough time to occupy myself fully in my world. The exams constantly worried and even scared me.

Later that year, while discussing a patient's symptoms with a neurologist(神经学家), I realized that my anxiety could be the direct cause of the numbness in my hands. There was a certain irony(讽刺) in that realization. I'd spent years learning about psychological tools for dealing with stress and anxiety.But until then it never occurred to me that I, too, was experiencing an abnormal level of stress and anxiety.

Now, I specialize in helping take a healthier approach to dealing with the pressures of academics.I've seen firsthand how many of them possess inner voices demanding perfection and telling them that the sacrifices are necessary for success.

My message to those I work with is that being overworked and stressed-out is unhealthy.Achievements and health can be both gained. So, when your inner alarm bells send you a warning signal-or when snakes attack in the night-don't hesitate; take action.

1. What happened to the author?

A．A snake bit him when he was sleeping.

B．He frequently had strange dreams at night.

C．He could do whatever he wanted in a clinic.

D．Numbness in his arms attacked him due to huge stress.

2. The author's anxiety comes from      

A．his academic work	B．his lack of sleep
C．his social relationship	D．his demand for perfection

3. What can we learn from the last two paragraphs?

A．He now realizes academics is of no benefit.

B．A large number of people are forced to be perfect.

C．Warning signals mean it's time to stop being over-stressed.

D．Achievements make it impossible for people to keep healthy.

【推荐1】Loneliness hurts. It is psychologically distressing and so physically unhealthy that being lonely increases the likelihood of an earlier death by 26 percent. But psychologists think it hurts so much because, like hunger and thirst, loneliness acts as a biological alarm bell.

On March 26, just as the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the world, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology posted a report on bioRxiv. It is the first study in humans to show that both loneliness and hunger share signals deep in a part of the brain that governs very basic impulses for reward and motivation. So, our need to connect is apparently as fundamental as our need to eat.

The researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to compare brain responses to loneliness and hunger. 40 adult participants underwent a 10-hour session depriving (剥夺) them of food and another 10-hour session denying them social contact. Both sessions served as a control (对照) condition for each other.

The social-isolation condition was challenging to arrange. Some people are lonely in a crowd, while others enjoy solitude To induce(l t)not just objective isolation but subjective feelings of loneliness, the researchers had the participants spend their time from 9 A.M. to 7 P.M. in a room at the laboratory without phones, laptops or even novels in case fictional characters provided some social support. Puzzles were allowed, as was preapproved nonfiction reading or writing.

Researchers then focused on a midbrain region called “the substantia nigra”, a center of dopamine (多巴胺) release involved with motivation and desire. The dopaminergic response shows a strong wanting. In the scanner, participants saw images of their preferred forms of social interaction and of their favorite foods, as well as a control image of flowers. It was then found that the substantia nigra responded only to cues of what they had been deprived of. The magnitude of the response correlated with the subjects’ self-reports of how hungry or lonely they were, though the feelings of hunger were consistently stronger.

Finally, the researchers used machine learning to confirm their findings. A software classifier trained to recognize neural patterns during fasting (斋戒) proved able to recognize similar neural patterns from the social-isolation condition even though it had never “seen” them. So there seems to be an underlying shared neural signature between the two states.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, an obvious next question for the work was whether different forms of social media could satisfy the need for social connection. Those researchers were never able to get funding for such a study. But now it seems they will.

1. The report posted on March 26 ________.

A．is based on the social-isolation condition during the pandemic

B．is the first study on the effect of loneliness on human beings

C．reflects the similarity between loneliness and hunger

D．shows human need for reward and motivation

2. What is Paragraph 4 mainly about?

A．Why inducing feelings of loneliness was challenging

B．How loneliness was created among participants

C．Why participants were denied access to phones

D．How researchers compared brain responses

3. We can infer that participants’ substantia nigra showed ________ response(s) to the image of flowers.

A．little	B．various
C．strong	D．consistent

4. What does the underlined “it” in Paragraph 6 refer to?

A．The neural signature.	B．Fasting.
C．Machine learning.	D．The classifier.

【推荐2】In 1875, hundreds of Peruvian railroad workers began coming down with a strange fever, which was followed by severe joint pain and then death. As the body count increased, alarm set in across the country. Desperate to explain the origins of this strange new disease, a Peruvian medical society announced a contest. A 26-year-old medical student named Daniel Carrion entered.

Scientists in Peru predicted the fever was connected to Peruvian warts (疣). But they struggled to prove a link. To Carrion, whose father was a well-known physician, there was a simple solution. If someone injected him with tissue from a wart on one of the sick patients, and he got sick, then the problem was solved—there was the connection. But there was another problem: Those who got the fever generally died.

Carrion was undeterred. “Once he made the decision that experimentation on a human was necessary, he must have asked himself: On whom?” wrote Lawrence K. Altman, a physician. “Carrion answered that question in the only way his conscience (良心) would allow: Myself.” He got the fever. And he died.

Altman’s book is titled “Who Goes First?” It’s a question that’s been asked throughout history when scientists have been faced with a serious new illness.

In the race to discover how disease spreads and what treatments might stop it, someone has to be tested first. That someone is often the doctor in the white coat. “Historically, self- experimentation was an important part of the scientific process, allowing medical advances that would have been hard to achieve otherwise,” wrote two researchers in a 2018 paper titled “Adventures in self-experimentation.”

In more modern times, vaccines (疫苗) are tested on animals for months and often years before reaching humans. Throughout history, though, impatient and desperate scientists decided to throw their own necks in the ring.

Twelve self-experimenters have won Nobel Prizes for their efforts. Carrion didn’t t live to see fame. But his bravery is immortal (不朽的).

1. What was the purpose of the contest declared by a Peruvian medical society?

A．To find promising medical students.

B．To find out the cause of a new disease.

C．To compete for an opportunity to work with a famous physician.

D．To learn from each other by exchanging views on strange diseases.

2. What does the underlined word “undeterred” in Paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．Uneducated.	B．Unfortunate.
C．Energetic.	D．Determined.

3. What did the two researchers suggest in Paragraph 5?

A．Medical advances are very hard to achieve nowadays.

B．Modern scientists turn their back on self experimentation.

C．Scientific progress goes hand in hand with medical advances.

D．Self-experimenters have made great contributions to medical advances.

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

A．Vaccines help scientists win Nobel Prizes

B．A new book about Peruvian warts will be published

C．Scientists risked death testing vaccines on themselves

D．Self experimentation has both advantages and disadvantages

【推荐3】Shipwrecked Prayers

A voyaging ship was wrecked during a storm at sea and only two of the men aboard were able to swim to a small, desert-like island. Not knowing what else to do, the two survivors agreed that they had no alternative but to pray to God.

However, to find out whose prayers were more powerful, they agreed to divide the territory between them and stay on opposite sides of the island.

The first thing they prayed for was food. The next morning, the first man saw a fruit-bearing tree on his side of the island, and he was able to eat its fruit. But the other man’s parcel of land remained barren.

After a week, the first man became lonely and decided to pray for a wife. The next day, another ship was wrecked and the only survivor was a woman who swam to his side of the island. But on the other side of the island, there was nothing.

Soon thereafter the first man prayed for a house, clothes and more food. The next day, like magic, all of these things were given to him. However, the second man still had nothing.

Finally, the first man prayed for a ship so that he and his wife could leave the island, and in the morning he found a ship docked at his side of the island.

The first man boarded the ship with his wife and decided to leave the second man on the island, considering the other man unworthy to receive God’s blessings since none of his prayers had been answered.

As the ship was about to leave, the first man heard a voice from Heaven booming, “Why are you leaving your companion on the island?”

“My blessings are mine alone since I was the one who prayed for them,” the first man answered. “His prayers were all unanswered and so he doesn’t deserve anything.”

“You are mistaken!” the voice rebuked him. “He had only one prayer, which I answered. If not for that, you would not have received any of my blessings.”

“Tell me,” the first man asked the voice, “what did he pray for that I should owe him anything?”

“He prayed that all your prayers would be answered.”

For all we know, our blessings are not the fruits of our prayers alone, but those of another praying for us. So what you do for others is more important than what you do for yourself.

1. The first man’s wife is _____.

A．a swimmer who got to the island by accident

B．an angel sent by God to keep him company

C．a survivor from another wrecked ship

D．a native person on the desert-like island

2. The underlined word “barren” in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to _____.

A．isolated

B．unproductive

C．fertile

D．dry

3. Which of the following is true about the second man?

A．He didn’t deserve any blessing from God.

B．None of his prayers was answered by God.

C．He is not brave enough to tell God his needs.

D．His prayer helped his companion get out of trouble.

4. What’s the moral of the story?

A．Never judge a person by appearance.

B．Don’t lose heart in trouble.

C．Helping others is helping ourselves.

D．Greed is the root of all evil.