【推荐1】Planning a visit to the UK? Here we help with ways to cut your costs.

AVOID BIG EVENTS Big sporting events, concerts and exhibitions can increase the cost of accommodation and make it harder to find a room. A standard double room at the Thistle Brighton on the final Friday of the Brighton Comedy Festival (19 Oct.) cost £169.15 at Booking.com. A week later, the same room cost £l18.15.

If you can be flexible and want to know dates to avoid-or you’re looking for a big event to pass your time—check out sites such as Whatsonwhen.com, which allow you to search for events in the UK by city, date and category.

STAY AWAY FROM THE STATION If traveling to your destination by train, you may want to find a good base close to the station, but you could end up paying more for the sake of convenience at the start of your holiday.

Don’t be too choosy about the part of town you stay in. Booking two months in advance, the cheapest room at Travelodge’s Central Euston hotel in London for Saturday 22 September was £95.95. A room just a tube journey away at its Covent Garden hotel was £75.75. And at Farringdon, a double room cost just £62.95.

GET ON A BIKE London’s ‘Boris bikes’ have attracted the most attention but other cities also have similar programmes that let you rent a bicycle and explore at your own pace, saving you on public transport or car parking costs.

Among the smaller cities with their own programmes are Newcastle (casual members pay around £1.50 for two hours) and Cardiff (free for up to 30 minutes, or £5 per day).

1. The Brighton Comedy Festival is mentioned mainly to show big events may            .

A．help travelers pass time

B．attract lots of travelers to the UK

C．allow travelers to make flexible plans

D．cause travelers to pay more for accommodation

2. “Farringdon” in Paragraph 5 is most probably            .

A．the tube line to Covent Garden

B．an ideal holiday destination

C．a hotel away from the train station

D．the name of a travel agency

3. The main purpose of the passage is            .

A．to offer visitors some money-saving tips

B．to tell visitors how to book in advance

C．to supply visitors with hotel information

D．to show visitors the importance of self-help

【推荐3】Four Apps to Boost Your Productivity

When working or studying, you can only focus for so long before your mind starts to wander. The Pomodoro Technique(番茄工作法) helps you avoid this issue by breaking your day up into 25`­minute focus sessions followed by five­minute breaks. Here's a quick dive into the Pomodoro Technique, followed by 4 of the best Pomodoro timer apps to help you get started.

Focus Booster (Web, Windows, macOS，iOS, Android)

● It lets you adjust the lengths of your focus and break sessions.

● Your data syncs across Focus Booster's web, mobile, and desktop apps.

PomoDoneApp (Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android)

● It lets you filter your data with powerful reporting options.

● With its Chrome extension, you can blacklist certain websites during your focus period.

Tomatoes (Web)

If you're struggling to stick with the technique and need some additional motivation, Tomatoes offers a solution: motivation via competition.

Get your coworkers involved, and compete against each other. It might even lead to useful data if one person in particular who works from home wins frequently.

Timerdoro (Web)

Sometimes, you need timers for more than just pomodoros. In that case, Timerdoro has a solution.

● It lets you create as many timers as you want to go off throughout the day.

● It reminds yourself to do multiple things throughout the workday.

1. We can learn from the passage that ________.

A．Focus Booster helps users switch from focus to break sessions regularly

B．PomoDoneApp is ideal for motivating users to complete multi­tasks

C．Tomatoes offers assistance to those who prefer to compete with others

D．Timerdoro creates as many timers as possible to blacklist some websites

2. Which of the following timer apps can show the advantage of coworkers competing with each other?

A．Focus Booster.

B．PomoDoneApp.

C．Tomatoes.

D．Timerdoro.

【推荐1】There are different types of money-saving apps, such as JD Finance, Yu’E Bao, Ant Financial, and all of them work in different ways. Here are 3 of the best apps that can help you save much money.

Capital One Shopping

Capital One Shopping can compare prices automatically as you shop online. As you add items to your cart at an online seller, this app will search the web for better deals and coupon codes(优惠码). You can follow the links to other sellers offering a better price and use the available codes to save. You can even use this app while shopping at physical shops.

Paribus

There’s nothing more upsetting than buying something and then seeing it for sale at a lower price a few days later. Wouldn’t it be nice to get that money back? Now you can. Paribus helps you get money back by tracking your purchases from major stores and discussing refunds. It also helps you get compensated (补偿) for late deliveries and makes sure you don’t leave it too late to return anything you bought.

Digit

If you can’t figure out how much you can afford to save, Digit will analyze your spending habits and spare a certain amount to your savings. If the app knows you have spare money to save, then it will be moved automatically, and if you don’t, it will stop, so there’s no risk of being left with no cash for the basics. You can sign up for a free trial for a month, and after that, the monthly service charge is $5.

1. If you want your money back, what app will you choose?

A．Digit.

B．Paribus.

C．Yu’E Bao.

D．Capital One Shopping.

2. What can you do by using Digit?

A．Offer the most favorable price.

B．Track detailed information of goods.

C．Analyze spending habits to save money.

D．Compare prices of products while shopping.

3. What is the purpose of the text?

A．To introduce useful apps for saving money.

B．To advertise various products online.

C．To improve the power of spending.

D．To help to manage spare money.

【推荐3】Floods

Basic safety Tips

● Turn around and don’t drown!

● Avoid walking or driving through flood waters.

● If there is a chance of flash floods, try to move to a higher place. Flash floods are the No. 1 cause of weather-related deaths.

If floodwaters rise around your car but the water is not moving, give up the car and move to higher ground. Do not leave the car enter moving water.

Avoid camping or parking along streams, rivers during heavy rainfall. These areas can flood quickly with little warning.

Flood Watch

Steps to Take

● Turn on your TV/radio. You will receive the latest weather forecast and emergency instructions.

● Know where to go. You may need to reach higher ground quickly.

● Build or fill your emergency kit with something new. Include a flashlight, batteries, cash, and

first-aid supplies.

● Bring in outdoor, furniture and move important indoor items to the highest possible floor. This is help protect them from flood damage.

● Disconnect electrical appliances and do not touch electrical equipment if you are wet or standing in water.

● If instructed, turn off your gas and electricity at the main switch or valve. This helps prevent fires and explosions.

Flood Warning

Steps to Take

● Move quickly to higher ground or stay on high ground.

● Avoid walking or driving through floodwaters. Turn around and don’t drown! Just 6 inches of moving water can knock you down and 2 feet of water can sweep your vehicle away.

After a flood

● Return home only when it is safe.

● Do not try to drive through areas that are still flooded.

● Photograph damage to your property for insurance purpose.

1. What shall we avoid during heavy rains according to the passage?

A．Staying under trees.	B．Taking part in outdoor activities.
C．Walking alone in the street.	D．Driving along the rivers.

2. What does “Flood Watch” tell us to do?

A．Be patient and take things easy.	B．Be friendly and get well organized.
C．Be brave and make wise decisions	D．Be careful and get well prepared.

3. When shall we go back home?

A．When we are sure it is no longer dangerous.

B．When we need to take pictures for insurance.

C．When the flood in our living area disappears.

D．When the gas and electricity supply are provided again.

【推荐1】Since 50 years ago, scientists have been searching for ways to link the brain with computers. Brain Computer Interface (BCI) technology could help people with disabilities send commands to machines.

Recently, two researchers, Jose Millan and Michelle Tavella from the Federal Polytechnic School in Lausanne, Switzerland, demonstrated (展示) a small robotic wheelchair directed by a person’s thoughts.

In the laboratory, Tavella operated the wheelchair just by thinking about moving his left or right hand. He could even talk as he watched the vehicle and guided it with his thoughts.

“Our brain has billions of nerve cells. These send signals through the spinal cord (脊髓) to the muscles to give us the ability to move. But spinal cord injuries or other conditions can prevent these weak electrical signals from reaching the muscles,” Tavella says, “Our system allows disabled people to communicate with external world and also to control devices.”

The researchers designed a special cap for the user. This head cover picks up the signals from the scalp (头皮) and sends them to a computer. The computer interprets the signals and commands the motorized wheelchair. The wheelchair also has two cameras that identify objects in its path. They help the computer react to commands from the brain.

Prof. Millan, the team leader, says scientists keep improving the computer software that interprets brain signals and turns them into simple commands. “The practical possibilities that BCI technology offers to disabled people can be grouped in two categories: communication, and controlling devices. One example is this wheelchair.” He says his team has set two goals. One is testing with real patients, so as to prove that this is a technology they can benefit from. And the other is to guarantee that they can use the technology over long periods of time.

1. What is BCI?

A．BCI is a technology that can link the human brain with computers.

B．BCI is a technology that can help to update computer systems.

C．BCI is a technology that can help the disabled to recover.

D．BCI is a technology that can control a person's thoughts.

2. How did Tavella operate the wheelchair in the laboratory?

A．By controlling his muscles.	B．By talking to the machine.
C．By using his mind.	D．By moving his hand.

3. Which of the following shows the path of the signals described in Paragraph 5?

A．scalp→computer→cap→wheelchair

B．scalp→cap→computer→wheelchair

C．computer→cap→scalp→wheelchair

D．cap→computer→scalp→wheelchair

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

A．Switzerland, the BCI Research Center

B．New Findings about How the Human Brain Works

C．Robotic Vehicles Could Help to Cure Brain Injuries

D．BCI Could Mean More Freedom for the Disabled

【推荐2】Amazon is opening its 12th high-tech convenience store Tuesday in New York. The spot will be the first of the chain to allow customers to pay with cash. The move comes with growing resistance against cashless stores, which critics say refuse to serve people who don’t have bank accounts.

At other locations of the store, shoppers enter by scanning the Amazon Go app. That's still the case for customers paying with a credit card, but people paying with cash will have an “entry associate” scan them through the turnstiles (旋转栅门). Once they’re finished, those shoppers will check out with an Amazon Go employee and receive a paper receipt. Cashless customers can still walk out by scanning a phone that has the Amazon Go app at the turnstiles. Customers using the Go app can exit without waiting and get a digitized receipt.

The 1,300-square-foot New York store-the first Amazon Go store on the East Coast-will offer prepared foods, such as sandwiches and salads, It will also have Amazon Meal Kits and locally made options.

Amazon says it will begin accepting cash at its other Go stores “over time.” A number of retailers (零售商) and restaurants, such as Sweetgreen and Dos Toros Taqueria, are facing roadblocks to their cashless recommendations.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy recently signed a law banning cashless stores in that state. Philadelphia also passed a law to prohibit cashless stores earlier this month, and officials in New York City, Washington and San Francisco are considering similar moves. The federal government does not require retailers to accept cash.

“While card-only may be convenient for some businesses, it can actually be discriminatory against poor communities that don’t have as much access to banks or lines of credit,” said New Jersey State Senator Nellie Pou, who sponsored the state’s new law. Not accepting cash could also be bad for business. Americans use it in 30% of all business deals, according to a 2017 report from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.

1. Why is Amazon opening a new store accepting cash?

A．To persuade those critics.	B．To obey the local regulations.
C．To improve its retail service.	D．To compete with cashless stores.

2. What will shoppers paying with cash do at the new store?

A．Exit in line with a digitized receipt.

B．Walk out by scanning a phone with the Go app.

C．Enter through the turnstiles by scanning a phone

D．Check out with an employee and get a paper receipt.

3. How did some states and cities react to cashless stores?

A．By making laws to stop them.

B．By requiring retailers to run them.

C．By learning from Amazon to improve them.

D．By following the federal government to accept them.

4. What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A．It s necessary to make cashless stores easily accessible.

B．More banks should be built in poor communities.

C．Card-only payment is convenient for business.

D．Not accepting cash has its disadvantages.

【推荐3】PhoneSoap: Charge and Clean Your Phone

You may charge your phone every day, but do you clean your phone as much? Whatever your hands touch, your phones touch. It has been discovered that some phones have 18 times more bacteria and viruses than any surface in a public restroom. So it probably won’t surprise you that a 2011 University of London study found that one in six of our phones have bacteria and viruses on them—specifically, the bacteria called E. coli.

The research on bacteria and viruses led to the invention of PhoneSoap. It is not actually liquid like dishwasher soap. It is a phone charger that uses the electromagnetic radiation used in hospitals to kill 99.9 percent of bacteria and viruses, cleaning your phone while it charges.

“There are really certain types of bacteria and viruses that we should not be in touch with, and they are really on our phones,” says Wes Barnes, the PhoneSoap co-founder. It all started while his cousin and co-founder, Dan LaPorte, was in his cancer research lab at college. “He realized he got the idea of getting rid of bacteria and viruses on the phones,” said Barnes. “In the lab they used UV-C light for destroying them. He realized this would be the fastest, most powerful way to kill any bacteria and viruses living on electronic machines.”

PhoneSoap looks like a little metal suitcase. Your phone rests in to charge and get cleaned at the same time. Instead of plugging your phone into the wall, you’d plug it into the PhoneSoap charger box. The process only takes a few minutes but, Barnes says, “The idea is that you can leave it in there overnight if you want to keep charging. Reflective paint keeps the light completely around the phone so it cleans the phone fully.”

The co-founders spent 2013 finding the right companies and they started shipping the product in late November. By last week’s International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, PhoneSoap was all grown-up. Both co-founders have left their previous jobs and are selling PhoneSoap nonstop. “We’re shipping almost more than we can handle each day,” Barnes says. “It’s been a great adventure.”

1. We can learn from the first paragraph that ___________.

A．phones can be very dirty

B．phones are where bacteria are born

C．most phones are attacked by bacteria

D．phones store more bacteria in a restroom

2. According to the passage, PhoneSoap ___________.

A．takes a whole night to kill bacteria

B．deals with bacteria with radiation

C．is a kind of liquid like dishwasher soap

D．has to be plugged into the wall to work

3. From what Barnes said in the last paragraph, we can infer that ___________.

A．PhoneSoap is in great demand now

B．PhoneSoap is really hard to handle

C．they can’t produce enough PhoneSoap

D．they’ll make improvements to PhoneSoap

4. What’s the passage mainly about?

A．Methods of cleaning phones.

B．Tips on charging phones quickly.

C．Soap killing harmful bacteria on phones.

D．A phone charger keeping your phone clean.

【推荐1】The Museum of Ice Cream

Nothing is sweeter in summer than an ice cream. But for those who are searching for both an activity and a dessert, here's the chance: The Museum of Ice Cream is hosting virtual ice cream making classes for those 7 and up September 27-29, at 4:30 pm. For $25, up to two people can follow step-by-step instructions from a scoop master, fun games and riddles and other creamy goodness.

The Museum of Natural History

One of our favorite family attractions is getting ready to open its doors for the first time since March! The Museum took to Instagram to share its forthcoming plans. With approval from New York State, members will be able to visit beginning September 2 and the general public will be able to visit beginning September 9. It temporarily lasts two weeks. Obviously, we're heading for T-rex when we get there.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Kinney is promoting his summer release during a socially-distanced event online Young readers and their parents are welcome to Word Up, where Kinney is hosting a book pickup on August 3 from 4-6 pm. For $16, a parent and child can attend the timed event and get a copy of the book. All books will be pre-signed masks are required for those 2 and up.

The Annual Brooklyn Book Festival

The week-long festival is scheduled from Sept 28 -Oct 5. It's going digital for the first time. Although it seems like a strange way to ring in the event's 15th anniversary, the author lineup and programming, particularly for young readers, is certainly worth celebrating—even from your laptop.

1. Which event will provide real-life communication?

A．Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

B．The Museum of Ice Cream.

C．The Museum of Natural History.

D．The Annual Brooklyn Book Festival.

2. What is Word Up!?

A．A place teaching making ice cream.

B．A top attraction in a natural museum.

C．A way to begin of an annual book fair.

D．A virtual place for selling online books.

3. Which event can one attend in October?

A．Visit a book fair and buy a book online.

B．Buy a book written and signed by Kinney.

C．Visit the museum and learn about dinosaurs.

D．Learn to make an ice cream and creamy food.

【推荐2】The Walkmeter Walking & Hiking GPS has characteristics that are excellent for fitness walkers who want to improve their speed and distance. It uses your phone's GPS to measure the distance of your walks and hikes. It includes audio and voice integration（集成）so you can not only be informed of your workout statistics, but you can also listen to replies your friends send about your workout posts from Facebook and Twitter while you walk. Upgrading is less than $10 per year, far less than with some other apps, such as Endomondo.

Argus packs a lot into one lifestyle app. It functions as an all-day pedometer app. Your daily step count updates from your phone and includes active time, distance, calories, steps. and an hourly graph, It can also measure your heart rate at any time. You can easily take your heart rate during exercise and at rest. Besides, you can use the app’s food diary and sleep timer. A wide range of fitness and diet plans are also provided on it.

Charity Miles gives your walking a purpose, because it turns your exercise into donations to a certain cause. Open up this free app（iOS or Google Play）and choose a charity. Start a workout, choosing walking, running, or cycling. For each completed mile, you’ll have earned a donation for your chosen charity. The basic rate is 25 cents for walking and running miles and 10 cents for cycling miles, subject to a periodic cap. When you finish your walking, you must post to Facebook or Twitter to earn money for your charity.

1. What can users do with the Walkmeter Walking & Hiking GPS while exercising?

A．Upgrade the app for $10.	B．Check comments of friends.
C．Reply to friends’ posts online.	D．Make personalized fitness plans.

2. What is special about Charity Miles?

A．It is free of charge.	B．It can earn you money.
C．It offers a new way of donating.	D．It is connected to social software,

3. Where is the text probably taken from?

A．A website on app ratings.	B．An online fitness course.
C．A medical report.	D．An advertisement for phones.

【推荐3】You’ re in your car, heading for a crossroads. The light turns yellow, so you decide to step on the gas. Then you see a police car. Almost instantly, you know that stepping on the accelerator （油门） is a mistake. But there’s a good chance that you’ll do it anyway, says Susan Courtney, a professor in the Department of Psychological& Brain Sciences at Johns Hopkins University.

Thar’s because as one area of your brain is recognizing that police car, other areas have already begun carrying out your original plan to speed up. "Even if you haven’t actually started moving your your brain has already started that plan, Courtney says. And stopping a plan requires a lot of brainpower, Courtney and a team of researchers report in the journal Neuron

The team monitored the brain activity of 21 people as they met with a situation that was a bit like approaching a crossroads when the night turns yellow. Participants were asked to focus on a central point on a screen and wait for a target to appear somewhere else. Sometimes they were allowed to do the natural thing and shift their gaze to the target when it appeared. However, most of the time, they got a visual order to resist the wish to move their gaze. In other words, they had to cancel an action the brain was already planning to carry out.

The study found that changing an action required three key brain areas to communicate with eight other areas. Previous research had suggested fewer areas were required. The team also found that all the communication had to occur when participants got the order not to move their eyes.

This lag （落后） is why we experience that awful moment when our brain knows we shouldn’t step on the accelerator, but our foot does it anyway. "If the signal has already been sent, you can only watch it happen without being able to stop it, "Courtney says. The brain’s stop system appears to be involved in a lot more than just controlling our bodies. "It’s not just about stopping your foot or your eyes;it’s about changing your plan, "Courtney says.

1. What will people most probably do in the situation according to Susan?

A．They will stop the car.

B．They will drive slowly.

C．They will speed up.

D．They will avoid the police car.

2. What do Courtney’s words show?

A．The brain needs a long time to deal with the signal.

B．It is hard for the brain to accept two different signals.

C．Sometimes people will stop an action without realizing it.

D．Changing an action requires different parts of the brain to work together.

3. What does the text want to show?

A．How to make a change.

B．How to stop a dangerous action.

C．Why your brain reacts faster than your body.

D．Why you have trouble in stopping an action.