【推荐1】Last week the British university system offered a record number of places. That sounds like good news—but do we really need more people to go to university? For that matter, does the world need more universities?

The answer feels like it should be yes.

Education is good, is it not? But everything has a cost.

Education takes time. We could insist that everyone study full-time until the age of 45 but that would surely be too much. And perhaps half the population studying until they’re 21 is also too much. As for universities, they consume financial and intellectual resources—perhaps those resources might be better spent elsewhere.

My own personal opinion is strongly in favour both of going to university, and of simply having universities around.

The main skill I learnt at university was to write about economics, and I use that skill every day of my professional life, even an abstract education seems practical to me. And I now live in Oxford, one of the world’s most celebrated (著名的) university cities. Oxford’s experience certainly suggests that universities have much to offer.

The city’s architecture and green spaces have been shaped—greatly for the better, on balance —by the 900-year-old institution at its heart. The beauty attracts tourists and locals too.

But these are samples of one. Many people do not find themselves using the skills and knowledge they accumulated at university. And Oxford’s dreaming spires (尖顶) aren’t terribly representative of global universities as a whole.

1. Which of the following is the most proper title?

A．Does the world need more universities?

B．Is education really necessary?

C．Is British university system the best?

D．Do you prefer universities abroad?

2. Which of the following about the writer is TRUE?

A．He is an economist now.

B．He likes Oxford’s architecture and green spaces most.

C．The skill he learnt at university is practical in his career.

D．He holds the view that going to univeristy is a waste of resources.

3. The writer develops the passage by ______.

A．comparing his experience with others’

B．persuading us with his own experience and opinion

C．describing and sharing his own university experience

D．informing us of the advantages of universities

4. In the following part, the writer is likely to ______.

A．list more supporting details about his opinion

B．show more disadvantages about going to universities

C．present some opposite opinions about universities

D．draw a conclusion about the topic

【推荐3】The United Nations'World Food Program, WFP, won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday. The Norwegian Nobel Committee is recognizing the group for its efforts to fight hunger and improve conditions for peace in areas affected by conflict. The award comes with a gold medal and $1.1 million --a small amount compared to the money the WFP needs for its work. So far in 2020, the UN agency has received almost $6.4 billion in goods and other donations.

The World Food Program has long specialized in getting assistance to some of the world's most dangerous places. For example, the WFP has air-dropped food in South Sudan and Syria. It also created an emergency service that kept working as COVID-19 delayed many flights.

In 2019, the UN agency provided aid to almost 100 million people in 88 countries. Berit Reiss-Andersen, chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said on Friday, “With this year's award, the committee wishes to turn the eyes of the world to the millions of people who suffer from or face the threat of hunger.” In announcing the award, the Nobel committee noted that “Until the day when we have a medical vaccine (疫苗），food is the best vaccine against chaos.” And it added, “there will be 265 million starving people within a year, so of course this is also a call to the international community not to underfund the World Food Program.”

In Geneva, a WFP spokesman told reporters: “When everything went into shutdown mode, the World Food Programme was there. When everyone was leaving, the World Food Programme had to provide the support that the world deserved.”

Dan Smith is director of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. He said the Nobel committee had wanted to send a message of both hope and support for international cooperation. “Hunger, like climate change, the pandemic (疫情） and other issues, is a world problem that can only be properly addressed through cooperation,” he told Reuters news agency.

1. The WFP won the Nobel Peace Prize because it

A．offered assistance to Sudan

B．fought hunger to promote peace

C．created services against COVID-19

D．collected goods and donations

2. We can infer from the text that the WFP____.

A．could always offer necessary aid in time

B．kept working as food is the best vaccine

C．struggled to keep offering nonstop support

D．defeated hunger with support from cooperation

3. What message does the news convey?

A．International community is supposed to underfund WFP.

B．The money awarded is adequate for WFP to provide services.

C．Problems like hunger call for joint efforts by all the countries.

D．Enough attention should be paid to the importance of vaccine.

【推荐1】Gorman is the youngest poet in US history. She became the youth poet laureate (获奖者) of Los Angeles at age 16 in 2014 and the first national youth poet laureate three years later. She has recently completed her studies at Harvard University.

Her mother, Joan Wicks, teaches in a middle school in Watts. Shuttling among the neighborhoods gave Gorman a window to the world. Her love for poetry dates at least back to the third grade when her teacher read Ray Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine to the class.

Gorman is a lot better at it now, but still working on her confidence as a public speaker. “Until two or maybe three years ago, I couldn’t say the letter ‘r’. Even to this day sometimes I struggle with it. I’d want to say ‘girls can change the world’, but I can not say so many letters in that statement, so I’d say things like ‘young women can shape the globe’.”

For Gorman, writing became a cure. “I used writing as a form of self expression to get my word on the page. So the more I recited out loud, the more I was able to teach myself how to pronounce these letters which for so long had been my greatest obstacle. Gorman said she also used a song from Miranda’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Broadway musical Hamilton to help with her speaking. “But I don’t look at my disability as a weakness,” said Gorman. “It’s made me the performer that I am and the storyteller that I struggle to be.”

In September, Gorman will release Change Sings, the first of two children’s books. The poet says she desires to publish a book “in which kids could see themselves as change-makers in history, rather than just observers”.

1. What happened to Gorman in 2017?

A．She became the US first youth poet laureate.

B．She graduated from Harvard University.

C．She applied for the youth poet laureate.

D．She turned into a public speaker.

2. What aroused Gorman’s interest in poetry?

A．Her mother’s encouragement.

B．Ray Bradbury’s works.

C．Miranda’s inspiration.

D．A laureate’s story.

3. Why does Gorman want to write a book for kids?

A．To inspire kids to be the youth poet laureate.

B．To show kids some ways to observe the world.

C．To encourage kids to be change-makers.

D．To give the disabled some writing tips.

4. Which can be the best title for the text?

A．Gorman succeeded in becoming a storyteller

B．Gorman overcame her disadvantage in poetry

C．Gorman used writing to overcome a speech obstacle

D．Gorman’s weakness stopped her from being a speaker

【推荐2】Most dog owners feel that their dogs are their best friends. Almost everyone likes dogs because they try hard to please their owners. One of my favorite stories is about a dog who wanted his owner to please him.

One of my friends has a large German shepherd (牧羊犬) named Jack. Every Sunday afternoon, my friend takes Jack for a walk in the park. Jack likes these long walks very much. One Sunday afternoon, a young man came to visit my friend. He stayed a long time, and he talked and talked. Soon it was time for my friend to take Jack for his walk, but the visitor didn’t leave. Jack became very worried about his walk in the park. He walked around the room several times and then sat down directly in front of the visitor and looked at him. But the visitor paid no attention. He continued talking. Finally, Jack couldn’t stand it any longer. He went out of the room and came back a few minutes later. He sat down again in front of the visitor, but this time he held the man’s hat in his mouth.

German shepherds aren’t the only intelligent dogs. Another intelligent dog is a Seeing Eye dog. This is a special dog which helps blind people walk along the streets and do many other things. We call these dogs Seeing Eye dogs because they are the“eye”of the blind people and they help them to “see”. Seeing Eye dogs generally go to special schools for several years to learn to help blind people.

1. The writer tells the story about the dog Jack to show that ________.

A．it, like many other dogs, always tried to please its owner master

B．it, unlike many other dogs, always wanted its master to please it

C．it was more intelligent than many other dogs

D．it was the most faithful dog of his friend’s

2. Jack came to sit in front of the visitor in order to ________.

A．please him	B．be pleased
C．ask him to leave immediately	D．invite him for a walk

3. Which of the following titles would be the best for the passage?

A．Dogs─A Great Help to People	B．Dogs ─ Our Faithful Companions
C．An Introduction to Dogs	D．Famous Dogs in Germany

【推荐1】Influenced by many negative reports, some people usually regard teenagers as lacking a sense of responsibility, concern for others, and awareness of life. To break the stereotype（刻板印象）, I'm going to talk about the story of Jordan Rice.

I suspect you've got no idea about who Jordan Rice is. Actually, Jordan Rice was a 13-year-old boy who lived with his mom, dad, and little brother Blake in Toowoomba, Australia. He went to buy school uniform this Monday with his mom and brother. It was around 2 pm, when they were in the car on the way back from the shops. Not an unusual day.

Unexpectedly, a huge flood poured into the area. The water rose high enough to shut off the engine. Unfortunately, they were trapped in floodwaters. Mom got into a panic, and Jordan was frightened because he couldn't swim. No one came to help them out until an old man grabbed a rope, tied it to his body, and jumped into the water. Hopes were growing for the survival of Jordan—the old man was swimming toward him. Instead of seizing the chance, Jordan pushed Blake forward, saying, "Save my brother first."

There was no time for arguing. The old man tied the rope around Blake and carried him ashore. Then he swam back to save the other two. But the strain of the flood and the weight of two people were too much for the rope. It broke and so did Jordan and his mothers' hope. They were carried away by the brown water. Though they managed to hold on to a tree for a little while, they finally loosened their grip and accepted their fate. Being the only survivor of the trip, Blake was reunited with his father to become a family of two.

Jordan Rice was a 13-year-old boy from Toowoomba, Australia. During the destructive floods of Queensland, Jordan Rice sacrificed his life for his little brother. He is a hero and deserves to be remembered.

1. What does the author think of some people's opinion about teenagers?

A．It's a reasonable belief.	B．It's a fair evaluation.
C．It's an out-of-date view.	D．It's a prejudiced idea.

2. Why did the old man save Blake first?

A．He couldn't reach others.

B．His rope was not long enough.

C．There was no time for making other choices.

D．He believed that Jordan Rice could swim out.

3. In which section of a newspaper may this text appear?

A．Your Voice.

B．Star Stories.

C．News Express.

D．Magic World.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．Save my brother	B．Meet the challenge
C．Be brave, boy	D．Accept your fate, teenager

【推荐2】Workers are returning to their careers, or starting new ones after age 65.

More than ever, work is where many of us get our sense of purpose. That doesn’t end at age 65. After being retired for only three months, Sue Ellen King returned to work at the University of Florida Health in Jacksonville, Florida, where she had been a care nurse and nursing educator for 38 years. She is now working part-time in a position created just for her. “It’s perfect,” she told The New York Times. “I get the satisfaction of having people appreciate what I do.” With the average life span for those who reach age 64 now getting all the way to 84 years old, those who reach retirement age still have many potential years of work to go.

Job sites connected toward part-timers, temporary positions, and some can also turn up opportunities that may lead to longer-term work. Fred Dodd tried a part-time job after his unemployment as a clerk for large banks at age 63. He’d thought about retiring then. “But part of me just wanted to keep working partly for the money, but more just because I felt I wanted to do more in my career,” he said.

The retired have the advantage of not needing to focus on the earnings potential of whatever jobs they take on, so these older workers are attracted to more meaningful work. And since they are voluntarily putting their skills and experience to good use, they may well have more flexibility than mid-career people. Two-thirds of retirees who’d come back to the work world were doing meaningful work they enjoyed. Legal work and community service were popular choices, as was teaching—all areas in which older workers might have an opportunity to make their own schedules.

Earning more money rarely seems like a bad idea, but it can cause issues for retirees, including effects when they claim Social Security (申请社会保障) benefits early.

1. How does Sue Ellen King like her work?

A．Interesting.	B．Satisfying.
C．Boring.	D．Encouraging.

2. What does the second paragraph mainly tell us?

A．Giving an example of successful returning to work after retirement.

B．Why Sue Ellen King found a nursing job.

C．What is Sue Ellen King’s work.

D．Giving an example of working full-time in a university.

3. What was the main reason for Fred to have a part-time job?

A．He was out of work.	B．He could help large banks.
C．He had personal crisis.	D．He liked continuing working.

4. Why do the retired like meaningful jobs?

A．These jobs have more flexibility.

B．These jobs have lots of potential.

C．They don’t care much for salary.

D．They can’t do very hard jobs.

【推荐3】The police in Canada had to deal with the escape of 12 million bees on Monday. The bees flew off after the truck that was carrying them turned over. Most of the insects stayed close by, but enough were loose to cause a possible danger to the public. Police told people to stay indoors and keep their windows closed. Bee expert Chris Maund said it was lucky that the accident happened in the countryside. “Fortunately it happened in an area where there are no restaurants or houses around. If it happened in an area like a city center, all the bees would have been killed right away.” Mr. Maund said that people are not in danger as long as they keep their distance.

The bees were on their way back to their main beehives (蜂房) after being used to pollinate (授粉) blueberries. Bees and the traveling pollination service are an important part of Canada’s fruit industry. Maund said the truck and broken hives were being left on the highway overnight. He believes the bees will return naturally. The bees probably did not go very far because of the rainy weather. Bees breathe through their skin and can drown(溺死) in the rain. Firefighters wearing full protective clothes were at the scene making the bees wet to keep them from flying around. They also sprayed (喷) the bees with smoke to make them feel sleepy. The smoke can also make them think there is a fire, causing them to return to save their honey.

1. Where did the accident happen?

A．On the highway in the Canadian countryside.

B．Near an international bee research center.

C．On the way to a highway restaurant.

D．Near a big city center in Canada.

2. Who came to the scene to deal with the rest of the bees?

A．The bee experts.	B．The fire fighters.
C．The local people.	D．The police.

3. Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?

A．The bees had just pollinated blueberries.

B．The Canadian traveling pollination service is in trouble now.

C．The experts believed that these bees had gone far away.

D．Smoke and water often make bees feel energetic.

4. The text is mainly about .

A．crops in Canada that need the work of bees

B．brave and respectable firefighters in Canada

C．12 million bees that had an accident in Canada

D．the relationship between crops and bees

5. The underlined word “loose” can be replaced by “”.

A．free

B．hard

C．sure

D．easy

【推荐1】Noise pollution in cities is causing our health to suffer: one in five Europeans is regularly exposed to sound levels at night that could significantly damage their health, leading to diseases, sleep difficulties and stress. Researchers in Belgium have developed an app called NoiseTube that allows everyone to transform their smartphone into a sound level meter (仪表).

NoiseTube works by recording sound levels and GPS locations. Once launched the app shows decibel (分贝) levels of green or red depending on the level of noise. That information is then sent to the NoiseTube server via the Internet where a “noise map” is produced and then made available to the user.

The project started in 2008 as a new form of data gathering, one that was close to people and of a social concern. “Sound was an obvious choice because everyone has a microphone on their mobile phone, and noise pollution, along with air pollution is an environmental concern. Often the two go hand in hand,” D’Hondt of the NoiseTube project said.

Since its launch, the app has been popular with community groups who want to monitor their own noise levels. They don’t think that city produced noise maps give an enough explanation of the level of noise they are experiencing. City produced noise maps are based on statistical models involving very few actual measurements. NoiseTube on the other hand gives a detailed account of the level of noise experienced at a specific time and location. “Ten people walking the same area from 9am to 10am every day for one week can make a valid (有效的) and detailed map for an area of a couple of blocks,” D’Hondt said.

So far these sorts of noise maps have been produced for a number of European cities. The app has been downloaded by 10, 000 people with 2, 700 people registered on the NoiseTube website.

1. What is the main function of NoiseTube?

A．Measure noise levels.

B．Reduce noise pollution.

C．Make people aware of noise pollution.

D．Help treat diseases caused by noise pollution.

2. What can be learned about NoiseTube from the passage?

A．NoiseTube is mainly accepted and used by young people.

B．NoiseTube helps record the location of the noise in detail.

C．NoiseTube can show the process of drawing noise maps.

D．NoiseTube is a built-in app in a new kind of smartphone.

3. What is paragragh 2 mainly about?

A．How NoiseTube works.

B．How NoiseTube gathers data.

C．How NoiseTube was invented.

D．How noise levels are classified.

4. Why do people think little of city produced noise maps?

A．They aren’t drawn very clearly.

B．They are difficult to understand.

C．They can’t be used without a smartphone.

D．They can’t show the read noise level of a place.

【推荐2】A university in southwest China's Chongqing City set up a reading room as part of a campaign that stops students from taking their mobile phones with them in case the device prevents them from concentrating on their studies.

Reportedly a student named Hu Xiaopeng participating in the campaign studied 530 minutes without using his mobile phone. Unlike Hu, another one picked up his mobile phone in less than 20 minutes. “Having seen many students use their mobile phones in the library, a habit that shortens their study time and negatively impacts their learning, we decided to open this reading room,” said Zhang Shuran, the person responsible for the project at the university.

Zhang added that students can keep their phones in appointed bags with numbers on them. The bags are placed on a desk near the door of the reading room. “Staff members at the reading room will check the phones when there's a call,” said Zhang, adding that they will inform students when their parents or teachers call them, but will not tell students if an unknown person is calling or when there is a text message. Based on the time students hand in their phones when they come to the reading room and the time they get them back when they leave the room, Hu Xiaopeng from College of Animal Science and Technology of the university set a record of the longest time. Hu spent 530 minutes studying without using his phone. Though feeling somewhat surprised, Hu said, “It's bad to keep a mobile phone with you when you are reading or studying.”

The campaign has attracted nearly 200 students since it was launched a week ago. Some Internet users praised the campaign. One user named Liu Jingchang said, “It's good. I don't bring my phone when going to the library in case I get distracted(分心).”

1. What is the purpose of opening the reading room here?

A．To encourage students to read more books.

B．To help students concentrate on their studies.

C．To prevent the mobile phones from being stolen.

D．To stop students using mobile phones in the library.

2. What can we infer from Paragraph 3?

A．The bags are on the desk near the students.

B．Hu Xiaopeng thinks the campaign is a bad idea.

C．The student will be informed if a stranger calls him.

D．The longest time that the phone is not used is recorded.

3. What is the attitude of the students toward the reading room?

A．Supportive.	B．Cautious.
C．Doubtful.	D．Anxious.

【推荐3】

This little South American Magellanic penguin swims 5,000 miles, to a beach in Brazil, every year in order to be reunited with the man who saved its life. It sounds like something out of a fairy tale, but it’s true!

71-year-old retired brick worker Joao, who lives in an island village just outside Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, found the small Magellanic penguin lying on rocks at his local beach in 2011. The penguin was covered in oil and running out of time fast. Joao rescued the penguin, naming it Din, cleaned the oil off its feathers and fed him a daily diet of fish to rebuild its strength. After a week of recovery, Joao attempted to release the penguin back into the wild. However, Din had already formed a family bond with his rescuer and wouldn’t leave.

“He stayed with me for 11 months and then, just after he changed his coat with new feathers, he disappeared,” Joao recalls. “I love the penguin like it’s my own child and I believe the penguin loves me,” Joao told Globo TV.   “No one else is allowed to touch him. He pecks (啄) them if they do. He lies on my lap, lets me give him showers, and allows me to feed him.”

Professor Krajewski, a biologist who interviewed the fisherman for Globo TV, told The Independent: “I have never seen anything like this before. I think the penguin believes Joao is part of his family and probably a penguin as well.”

However, environmentalists warn that, while hundreds of the Magellanic species are known to naturally migrate (迁徙) thousands of miles north in search of food, there has been a worrying rise in the phenomenon of oceanic creatures washing up on Brazil’s beaches. Professor David Zee from Rio de Janeiro’s State University, said the increase is due in part to global climatic changes. Professor Zee added that sea animals face increased danger from leaked tanker oil.

Luckily the ending for Joao and Din has been a happy one, even though it is illegal in Brazil to keep wild animals as pets.

Professor Krajewski said: “Professionals who work with animals try to avoid relationships like this occurring so they are able to reintroduce the animal into the wild. But in this single case the authorities allowed Din to stay with Joao because of his kindness.”

1. What is the purpose of Din swimming a long distance to the beach in Brazil every year?

A．To avoid being killed.	B．To meet his rescuer.
C．To escape from ocean currents.	D．To find much more fish.

2. What happened to him when Din was found in 2011？

A．He was going to die.	B．He was running on the beach.
C．He was resting on a rock	D．He was cleaning oil off his feathers.

3. What can we learn about Joao from the passage?

A．He is not allowed to keep the penguin as a pet by the authorities.

B．He overprotects the penguin by keeping him away from others.

C．His contact with the penguin is encouraged by professionals.

D．His kindness wins the complete trust from the penguin.

4. What does the story in the passage mainly shows us?

A．The environmental impact on wildlife.

B．The love between humans and wildlife.

C．The tendency of wildlife to bond with humans.

D．The protection of threatened wildlife by mankind.