【推荐1】Well-known for historic architecture and chocolates, Lviv, Ukraine's official capital of culture, looks, smells, and tastes like the best of Europe. Indeed, its western flavor has earned it the title "Little Paris of Ukraine".
For centuries Lviv, located 50 kilometers from the Poland-Ukraine border, was an important stopping point on the main trade routes between the east and west. During the Renaissance, the city could afford Italy's finest architects because every merchant passing through was forced to stay and sell their goods for at least two weeks. "It was a very smart move to collect money from them," said Yaroslav Hrytsak, a local historian, adding, "It kept the wealth in the city, and that wealth has been transformed into architectural richness."
Many historic buildings remain but Lviv's prosperity didn't survive its bloody history. Over the centuries, the city fell under the rule of Poland, Austria, Austria-Hungary, Russia and the Nazi Germany. In addition, both Sweden and Turkey tried unsuccessfully to conquer the city. Then for almost half a century Lviv was ruled by the Soviet Union (苏联). With that, the city was condemned to relative obscurity(无闻). But recently things have started to change. Lviv experienced a sudden 40% increase in tourism in early2010, which was the highest rate in Europe. Just last month, its gates opened even wider, when Lviv became a host city for the Euro 2012 football championships.
So how has this happened? With the Soviet collapse, some saw new opportunities for reviving Lviv's former wealth and fame.
Limelight networks is a US-founded company. It's one of many digital tech firms to have opened offices in Lviv over the past few years. "It had good growth and experience in the US, however, the company needs more talent to do the new cool projects and products for our customers. This is why we're here in Ukraine." said CEO of Limelight networks.
Lviv's unexpected abundance of I.T. talent is in fact a legacy(遗产) of the former Soviet Union. To help the military, many Soviet universities focused on turning out world-class engineers and Lviv's university is still producing them. Now, the city is home to 23 higher education institutions.
It's clear that the city of Lviv does not intend to remain a hidden jewel for much longer.
1. Which of the following countries didn't rule Lviv in history?

A．Sweden

B．Poland

C．Russia

D．Germany

2. Why did Limelight networks open offices in Lviv?

A．Because of Lviv's cheap work force.

B．Because of Lviv's beautiful scenery.

C．Because of Lviv's abundant IT talent.

D．Because of Lviv's rich natural resources.

3. The passage implies that ______.

A．it is likely that more universities will be set up in Lviv.

B．it is difficult for Lviv to revive its former wealth and fame.

C．it is possible that Lviv will become a European cultural capital.

D．it won't be long before Lviv regains its former fame.

【推荐3】France has the most beautiful castles throughout Europe.Here are some of the best French castles to visit.You'll surely want to visit one of them during your travels in France.Have a look and enjoy!

Château de Versailles

The Château de Versailles is about 20km southwest of Paris.When the castle was built, Versailles was a small village.Today, however, it is a famous area in Paris.The castle was built as a small hunting lodge (乡间小屋) for Louis ⅩⅢ in the 1620s.Years later, he made it bigger.Later, Louis ⅩⅣ also made it larger, making it one of the largest palaces of the world.

Château de Chambord

The Château de Chambord is one of the largest castles around the world.It sits in the Loire Valley.Being at the heart of Europe's largest enclosed wooded park, Chambord, it was built for King Francis Ⅰ to serve as a hunting lodge.It is one of the world's most well-known castles in the world because of its French Renaissance (文艺复兴) building.

Château de Chenonceau

As one of the most famous castles in the Loire Valley, the castle was built during the 11th century on the River Cher.It was passed through many hands.The castle was not destroyed during the French Revolution because it was the only bridge across the river for many miles.

Château de Chantilly

This historic castle sits in the town of Chantilly, France.This beautiful castle is made up of two buildings: the Petit Château built around 1560 for Anne de Montmorency, and the Grand Château which was destroyed during the French Revolution and rebuilt in the 1870s.There are many interesting pieces of 17th century history concerning the castle.Every two years a fireworks competition is held in the castle gardens.

1. What do we know about the Château de Versailles?

A．It sits in a small village.	B．It serves as a hunting place.
C．It was first built for Louis ⅩⅢ.	D．It was the largest castle in the 1620s.

2. What makes the Château de Chambord special?

A．Its long history.	B．Its building style.
C．Its wealthy owner.	D．Its important position.

3. Why did the Château de Chenonceau manage to get through the French Revolution?

A．It was far from Paris.	B．It hid in the Loire Valley.
C．It played a very important role.	D．It was built by a famous French king.

【推荐1】Five Booming Careers in Health Care

       Loving what you do is great, but knowing your career will be there tomorrow is even better. And when it comes to booming fields, the health care industry is one that’s primed(准备好) for growth.
       Want to prepare to take your place in the health care field? Check out these five in­demand health care careers.
Career 1 Medical and Health Services Manager
       If you want to take your leadership skills into the growing health care field, consider pursuing a career as a medical and health services manager.
       As a medical and health services manager you might plan, direct, and organize health services in an entire health care facility, or a specific department or clinical area, says U.S. Department of Labor. Daily duties could include handling a facility’s finances, creating work schedules, and making sure that health care services are delivered efficiently.
Career 2 Medical Assistant
       If you are interested in working in a doctor’s office, consider preparing for a career in the in­demand field of medical assisting.
       As a medical assistant, you could play a role in helping patients’ visits go smoothly from when they first walk in the door. Your duties might include measuring vital signs, assisting the physician with examinations, recording health information, and scheduling appointments，according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Career 3 Registered Nurse
       Ready to put your helpful nature to use in the largest health care field? Look into prepping(准备) to pursue a career in registered nursing.
       As a registered nurse, you could work closely with patients by providing care, education, and emotional support. You might give patients medicines and treatments，observe their conditions, or perform diagnostic(诊断的) tests, says the U.S. Department of Labor.
Career 4 Physical Therapist(理疗师) Assistant
       Want to enter an in­demand health care field where you could really play a hands­on role in helping patients restore their physical functionality? If so, a career as a physical therapist assistant could be a good fit.
       Under the supervision of a physical therapist, you could help patients regain movement as they recover from injuries, illnesses, or surgery. Your role in the rehabilitation process could include assisting patients with techniques(massage[按摩], stretching) and therapeutic methods like electrical stimulation and mechanical traction, says the U.S.Department of Labor.
Career 5 Pharmacy Technician(药剂师)
       Prefer a health care career that is less hands­ome? Consider pursuing a career in the growing pharmacy technician field.
       Pharmacy technicians can be responsible for counting pills, filling prescriptions, providing customer service, and fulfilling administrative tasks under the supervision of a licensed pharmacist, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
1. As a medical assistant, your duties might NOT include ________.

A．scheduling appointments

B．providing customer service

C．assisting the physician with examinations

D．recording health information

2. Which of the following is TRUE about a physical therapist assistant?

A．His / Her duty might include measuring vital signs and recording health information.

B．His / Her function includes assisting patients and providing customer service.

C．He / She could play a practical role in helping patients restore their physical functionality.

D．He / She can help patients gain movement as they are in the illness.

3. What does the underlined word “rehabilitation” mean?

A．The process of recording somebody’s name on an official list.

B．The process of cutting a part of a person’s body in order to remove or repair a damaged part.

C．The process of helping somebody to have a normal life again after they have been ill for a long time.

D．The process of improving or becoming stronger.

4. The author writes the passage mainly to ________.

A．advocate five booming careers in health care

B．persuade you to go into five booming careers in health care

C．introduce five booming careers in health care

D．classify health care into five careers

【推荐1】Most of us relate creativity to our concept of self, Either we’re “creative” or we aren’t, without much of a middle ground. “I’m just not a creative person!” a frustrated student might say in art class, while another might blame her talent at painting for her difficulties in math, giving a comment such as, “I’m very right-brained.”

Dr. Pillay, a tech entrepreneur and an assistant professor at Harvard University, has been challenging these ideas. He believes that the key to unlocking your creative potential is to ignore the traditional advice that urges you to “believe in yourself. “ In fact, you should do the opposite: Believe you are someone else.

Dr. Pillay points to a 2016 study examining the impact of stereotypes (固有印象) on one’s behavior; The authors, educational psychologists Denis Dumas and Kevin Dunbar, divided their college student subjects into three groups, instructing the members of one to think of themselves as “romantic poets” and the members of another to imagine they were “serious librarians” (the third group was the control). The researchers then presented all the participants with ten ordinary objects, including a fork, a carrot, and a pair of pants, and asked them to come up with as many different uses as possible for each one. Those who were asked to imagine themselves as romantic poets came up with the widest range of ideas, whereas those in the serious-librarian group had the fewest. Meanwhile, the researchers found only small differences in students’ creativity levels across academic majors.

These results suggest that creativity is not a fixed individual characteristic but a “malleable product, as long as he or she feels like a creative person. Dr. Pillay argues that, besides identifying yourself as creative, taking the bold, creative step of imagining you are somebody else is even more powerful. So, wish you were more creative? Just pretend!

1. According to the passage, who is more likely to unlock his creative potential?

A．An art major who always believes in himself.

B．A math major who has excellent academic performance.

C．A physics major who likes to imagine himself as a poet.

D．A history major who works as a librarian on weekends.

2. What does the Study conducted by Denis Dumas and Kevin Dunbar focus on?

A．The creativity of the college students.

B．The stereotypes of the college students.

C．The impact of stereotypes on one’s behavior.

D．The influence of creativity on one’s behavior.

3. The underlined word in the last paragraph probably means ________?

A．Settled.

B．Continuous.

C．Predicable.

D．Changeable.

4. Dr Pillay may agree with the statement that _________.

A．there is no doubt that we are either creative or not.

B．a student who doesn’t do well in art class is not creative.

C．right brain determines whether a person is creative or not.

D．if we pretend to be creative, then we might be really creative.

【推荐2】Educational App Store

Busuu

Busuu helps you learn English language and the lesson's quality is guaranteed as it is based on CEFR language framework. Lessons range from beginners to advanced learners. Busuu is actually a great English app if you want to improve your spoken English by talking with native speakers.

Duolingo

Duolingo is one of the best English language apps today and highly recommended for English beginners. The system of the app helps you learn English quickly by spending twenty minutes a day. Duolingo structures your lessons that teach you about seven new words based on a topic and skill points being awarded for completing the lessons.

Memrise

Memrise uses some creative and easy ways to remember English words. The focus of this app is to help the users expand their vocabulary by learning English words in an effective way. Memrise also offers an offline mode to continue learning without Internet connection.

Rosetta Stone

Rosetta Stone is designed differently from average language apps on the marketplace today. It's trying to teach us English the way we'd learn it if we were children starting to learn the language. It has exercises designed to help you learn basic words. A variety of lessons are offered that Rosetta Stone has been using for years.

1. Which of the following is the most useful for speaking?

A．Busuu.

B．Duolingo.

C．Memrise.

D．Rosetta Stone.

2. What is unique about Memrise?

A．It serves English beginners.	B．It works online or offline.
C．It helps develop vocabulary.	D．It promises quick progress.

3. What is the purpose of the text?

A．To give ways of learning.	B．To promote its latest products.
C．To show its high technology.	D．To inspire language learners.

【推荐3】Are you getting enough protein（蛋白质）? The question provides its own answer: If you are worrying about the amount of protein in your diet, then you are almost certainly eating more than enough.

You merely need to visit a western supermarket today to see that many people regard protein as some kind of excellent medicine — one food companies are profitably adding to anything they can. “When the Box says ‘Protein’, Shoppers say ‘I’ll take it’” was the headline of a 2013 article in The Wall Street Journal.

The intensity of our protein obsession can only be understood as part of a wider series of diet battles that go back half a century. If we now thirst for protein as if it were water, it may be because the other two macronutrients — fats and carbohydrates — have each in turn been made to seem poisonous (有毒的) in the public mind.

In the current nutrition wars, protein has emerged as the last macronutrient left standing. David L. Katz, an American doctor and public health scholar who is the director of the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center said, “First they told us to cut fat. But instead of whole grains and lentils, we ate low-fat junk food.” Then food marketers heard the message about cutting carbohydrates and sold us protein-enriched junk foods instead.

For decades now, there has been a tendency to think about what we eat and drink in terms of nutrients, rather than read whole ingredients in all their complexity. A combination of diet fads and clever marketing has got us here. It doesn’t matter whether we fixate on “low fat” or “low carbohydrates” or “high protein” — we are making the same old mistakes about nutrition in a new form.

1. How does the author begin the article?

A．By raising a question.

B．By giving an assumption.

C．By describing a phenomenon.

D．By illustrating a typical case.

2. How many kinds of macronutrients does food provide us with according to paragraph 3?

A．Two	B．Three
C．Four	D．Five

3. What is the author’s attitude towards protein according to the text?

A．Cold.	B．Crazy.
C．Sensible.	D．Critical.

【推荐1】Many on the Mountain

We often see people waiting in lines at supermarkets, theatres and amusement parks. Surprisingly, some people even have to wait in line at the summit (顶峰)of Qomolangma in the Himalayas.

The best time to climb the Himalayas is during the months of April and May, as well as some days in September and October. "In these periods of recent years, the path contains rocks and deep crack from melting ice due to the warm weather, which make expeditions up the mountain more dangerous,said Apa, an experienced Nepalese guide. During this year's climbing season, crowds of climbers became stuck in a long line near the summit. The line is above the mountain's highest campsite — about 8,000 meters above sea level.

However, most people can only spend a few minutes at the summit without extra oxygen supplies. Twenty-one mountaineers have died in the Himalayan mountains so far this year, according to Gripped, a magazine dedicated to mountain climbing. Eleven of these climbers died on Qomolangma.

This death count marks a four-year high. Overcrowding, inexperience and poor weather have been the most common causes of death, USA Today reported.

After these tragedies, one question remains: Why do so many people risk their lives to climb the mountain? The answer differs from climber to climber. Studies suggest that people who take risks tend to perceive themselves differently than people who avoid risky activities. But for adventurers who are drawn to the Himalayas, reaching the summit of Qomolangma is a lifelong dream, according to Discovery News.

''Qomolangma is like a light to bugs that attracts people once they hear about it. It represents the ultimate for many people, '' US mountaineer Alan Arnette said. Technological advances have also encouraged more people to climb the mountain. People can get high-tech safety equipment more easily than before. And with the internet, climbers know better than ever about how to reach the summit safely, Yahoo Travel noted.

1. What happened during this year's climbing season on Qomolangma?

A．Many climbers got stuck due to a snowstorm.

B．Climbers had to wait in line near the summit.

C．The highest campsite was closed for safety reasons.

D．There were not enough oxygen supplies for climbers.

2. What do we know from the USA Today report?

A．21 climbers have lost their lives on Qomolangma this year.

B．This year's climber death count is four times more than last year's.

C．Climbers who have less experience may have a higher risk of death.

D．Climbers can only spend a few minutes at the summit of Qomolangma.

3. What does the underlined word "perceive” in paragraphs mean?

A．Think.

B．Change.

C．Pretend.

D．Promise.

4. What are the last two paragraphs mainly about?

A．The risks on Qomolangma.

B．Mountaineers lifelong dream.

C．Causes of mountaineers, deaths.

D．Reasons for climbing Qomolangma.

【推荐2】Our emotions can vary considerably depending on many factors, including our health, wealth, relationships and where we live. But sometimes we need to take a step back and think about what happiness really means and how we can find it.

Maybe we should take a leaf out of Finland's book — last year the UN's World Happiness Report found the country to be the happiest place on earth. The report looked at "subjective well-being". That's how happy people feel they are and why — based on factors such as economic strength, social support, life expectancy, freedom of choice and generosity.

Research has also suggested that while personal feelings of pleasure are the accepted definition of happiness in Western cultures, East Asian cultures tend to see happiness as social harmony, and in some parts of Africa and India it's more about shared experiences and family.

Author Helen Russell has been looking at the positive characteristics of a country's population to see what makes them happy and found Japan to be one of the most content. She said this was due to their concept of wabi-sabi —"This traditional Japanese concept around celebrating imperfection... it's this idea that there is a beauty in ageing, it's to be celebrated rather than trying to disguise it." So, basically, we should be happy with who we are and rejoice in our faults and individuality.

But if you're feeling down in the dumps because your home country doesn't have a happiness concept to follow, consider some self-help ideas which include being virtuous, finding something to be passionate about, enjoying the here and now and being altruistic — helping others. However, our pursuit of happiness could make us miserable as we try to meet society's expectations and goals, making us anxious and stressed. Also, having too little experience of negative emotions can make us less adept (熟练的)at facing new challenges.

1. What is happiness in East Asian cultures?

A．Personal pleasure.	B．Harmony of society.
C．Subjective well-being.	D．Shared experiences and family.

2. What does the underlined word "rejoice" in Paragraph 4 probably mean?

A．Be restless.	B．Be tolerant.
C．Be delighted.	D．Be ashamed.

3. What is the author's advice in the last paragraph?

A．Setting up a happiness concept of your home country.

B．Giving others in need a helping hand unselfishly.

C．Thinking twice about accepting new challenges.

D．Sticking to meeting society's expectations.

4. What is this text most likely from?

A．A diary.	B．A guidebook.
C．A novel.	D．A magazine.