【推荐1】Carbon dioxide isn’t just a greenhouse gas that’s thinning the atmosphere, but it’s also causing a popular food to lose its nutritional value over time, which will have a major impact on more than 2 billion people worldwide.

According to a recent study conducted in a joint effort by researchers in Japan, China, Australian, and the United States, higher levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere contribute to the decline of protein（蛋白质）and other key vitamins in rice. The study, published in the journal Science Advances, looked at 18 different agriculture sites in China and Japan over four years and found that the crops exposed to higher levels of carbon dioxide were overall less nutritious than those that were not.

“Many basic crops are impacted by the rise of carbon dioxide with respect to things like protein concentration and iron and zinc,” says Lewis Ziska, a co-author and research plant physiologist at the US Department of Agriculture. The research explains that the exposed rice contained 10 percent less protein,8 percent less iron, and 5 percent less zinc, while amounts of B1,B2 and B5 vitamins also declined. And increased levels of carbon dioxide doesn’t just have a negative effect on rice, but other food staples（主食）including wheat and potatoes also face serious consequences when exposed to higher levels.

While this certainly impacts many people worldwide, it follows that the people that would suffer the most would be those that consume the most rice, which, as the study also found, also happen to be those who live in the poorest countries.

Additional studies are now underway and researchers are trying to solve this problem by looking at the different types of each crop in hopes of finding the types that react the least, or not at all, to high levels of carbon dioxide.

Until then, what can you do? For starters, you can try to eat a variety of foods and get your vitamins and proteins from various sources. Then to help with the larger problem of global warming and climate change, you can make simple lifestyle changes such as hang drying clothes, walking to work, and turning off the lights when you’re not home.

1. What is the effect of higher levels of carbon dioxide?

A．It increases protein content in rice.	B．It causes nutrient loss in crops.
C．It improves agricultural productivity.	D．It directly affects people’s health.

2. Who may suffer most from the rise of carbon dioxide?

A．Those who eat the most rice.	B．Those who eat wheat and potatoes.
C．Those who live in rich countries.	D．Those exposed to higher levels of carbon dioxide.

3. What does the underlined word“underway”in para.5 mean?

A．Under the ground	B．Under control
C．In the way	D．In progress

4. How can we solve the problem caused by higher levels of carbon dioxide?

A．By developing new types of crops.

B．By eating more fresh foods.

C．By having different types of foods.

D．By changing the existing lifestyle totally

【推荐2】“What kind of rubbish are you?” This question might normally cause anger, but in Shanghai it has brought about complaints(抱怨) over the past month. On July 1^st, 2019, the city introduced strict trash-sorting rules that are expected to be used as a model for the country. Residents must divide their waste into four separate groups and throw it into specific public bins.

Shanghai is faced with an obvious environmental problem. It produces 9 million tons of rubbish a year, and the number is rising quickly. Like other cities in China, it is in short of a recycling system. Instead, it has relied on trash pickers to pick out whatever can be reused. This has limitations. As people get wealthier, fewer of them want to do such dirty work. The waste, meanwhile, just keeps piling up.

Many people appear to be bothered by the details. Rubbish must be divided according to whether it is food, recyclable, dry or hazardous(有害的), the differences among which can be complex and confusing. Some have complained that they must put food waste straight in the required public bin, forcing them to tear open plastic bags and throw it by hand. Most annoying are the short scheduled time for throwing trash, typically a couple of hours, morning and evening. This means that people go at around the same time and anyone can keep an eye on what is being thrown out; no one wants to look bad.

People who fail to obey the rules will be punished. They could be hit with fines of up to 200 yuan ($29). For repeat violators, the city can add black marks to their credit records, making it harder for them to get bank loans or even buy train tickets.

However, others support the idea of recycling in general and say a tough campaign is necessary. “Slowly people will get used to it,” says Li Changjun of Fudan University.

1. What is the purpose of the first paragraph?

A．To amuse the readers with a question.

B．To present a social problem in Shanghai.

C．To offer a way to deal with the complaints.

D．To introduce a hot topic about trash dividing.

2. The underlined word “limitations” in paragraph 2 probably means ________.

A．benefits	B．strengths
C．possibilities	D．weaknesses

3. What upsets people most about the trash-sorting rules?

A．Being forced to keep plastic bags open.

B．Being required to tell different kinds of rubbish apart.

C．Being asked to throw trash at the short scheduled time.

D．Being seriously punished when blamed for improper behavior.

4. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A．People will finally reduce the food waste.

B．The idea of recycling will be gradually supported in the future.

C．It is common to have some difficult problems in our daily life.

D．The government will take measures to push people to obey the rules.

【推荐3】As the temperature rises, sweaty humans are making a response that is further worsening the problem of climate change. At present, the world just has 1.6 billion air conditioning units, but these units use a surprising total of ten percent of all global electricity supply. While less than a third of families globally are so equipped, the most AC-addicted countries are Japan (in 91 percent of families), the US (90 percent) and South Korea(86 percent).

New research by the International Energy Agency (IEA) guesses that the total number of AC units is likely to increase to over 5.6 billion by 2050－equal to ten new units being sold every second for more than 30 years－with sales driven particularly by India, China and Indonesia. This will make the use of air conditioning one of the world’s largest demands for energy.

“Growing electricity demand for air conditioning is one of the most critical blind spots in today’s energy debate,” argues Faith Birol, executive director of the IEA. “With rising incomes, air conditioner ownership will skyrocket, especially in the developing world. While this will improve daily lives, it is quite necessary that efficiency performance be prioritized.”

Birol and the IEA stress the need for new efficiency standards to ensure that consumers are at least buying units that require significantly less power to function, therefore decreasing the total energy demand. Variations on the traditional “vapor compression” technology, which has formed the basis for AC units for more than a century, may appear really important. A water-based system was recently developed by researchers at the National University of Singapore (NUS), which uses 40 percent less electricity and produces only one by-product: drinkable water.

“Our cooling system can be tailored for all types of weather conditions, from wet climate in the tropics to dry climate in the deserts,” says associate professor Ernest Chua at NUS. “While it can be used for indoor living and commercial spaces, it can also be easily used to provide air conditioning for blocks of buildings in an energy-efficient manner.”

1. The author mentions the number of air conditioning units mainly to show their ____________.

A．uneven distribution globally	B．popularity among people
C．vital importance to humans	D．high demand for electricity

2. Which of the following statements may Faith Birol agree with?

A．Air conditioners should be more energy-efficient.

B．Air conditioners will be more and more expensive.

C．People’s daily lives should be improved in various ways.

D．People should use their air conditioners less.

3. What do we know about the water-based system?

A．It has caused much debate about its effectiveness.

B．It’ll be a fundamental system for future air conditioners.

C．It seems to be environmentally friendly.

D．It appears different from the current technology.

4. From what Ernest Chua says, we can infer that the new system ____________.

A．has different effects in different places

B．can be applied to nearly all situations

C．can greatly meet people’s cooling demand

D．will be brought into use in the near future

【推荐1】Preschool girl lifts old man’s spirits

When Tara Wood brought her daughter to a grocery store to buy the four-year-old some cupcakes, she had no idea that would be a life-changing experience.

As Tara pushed her daughter Norah around the store last month, she passed an old man who was by himself. The old man looked cold, until Norah shouted to him, “Hi! It’s my birthday today!” The man stopped and his demeanor changed from distant and serious to warm and friendly. “How old are you today?” the man asked. After some time talking together, Norah asked her mom to take a picture of her with her new friend “Mr Dan”, Dan Peterson, 82. They hugged and after ten minutes went their separate ways. That could have been the end of the story. But it is actually the beginning of a special relationship.

Tara posted the picture of her daughter and Mr. Dan on Facebook and someone who recognized him reached out to her with his contact information. It turned out that Mr. Dan’s wife died in March and he had been suffering from depression and anxiety ever since. The person on Facebook told Tara that it was the first time they had seen Mr. Dan smile since the death of his wife. Knowing that, Tara contacted Mr. Dan, and ever since Norah and the 82-year-old have developed a friendship unlike any other. “She has shown me a depth of love, a depth that I didn’t know existed,” Mr. Dan told the reporter.

Mr. Dan told Tara that before meeting Norah, he hadn’t had one night of uninterrupted sleep. Anxiety kept him up at all hours and made him restless. After meeting Norah, he said he now sleeps soundly. For Mr. Dan’s 82nd birthday on October 20, the mother and the daughter brought balloons and presents—and, of course, cupcakes. Mr. Dan will also spend a day around Thanksgiving with Norah and her family. “If you don’t take the time to notice people, you will never know how you can positively impact a life,” Tara Wood said.

1. Mr. Dan looked cold because ________.

A．he felt lonely	B．he disliked little kids
C．nobody had hugged him	D．he knew little about Norah

2. The underlined word “demeanor” in Paragraph 2 probably means ________.

A．words	B．body
C．thoughts	D．attitude

3. How did Tara know more about Mr. Dan?

A．From a news reporter.	B．From a stranger.
C．From a shop assistant.	D．From his neighbor.

4. What can we learn from the story?

A．Giving makes a real difference.

B．It is important to respect each other.

C．We should not judge a person at first sight.

D．Good things will happen if one keeps trying.

【推荐2】It's been a long, wet winter. Everybody has got colds，and now we are braced for a coronavirus (冠状病毒) pandemic. Improving our immune system has never felt more important，but beyond eating more oranges and hoping for the best. what else can we do?

“When you come into contact with a virus you've never met before,” says Sheena Cruickshank, a professor of immunology at the University of Manchester, “you've got various barriers (屏障) such as skin and microbiome to try to stop it getting into your body.” If a virus breaks these defenses. it has to deal with our white blood cells，or immune cells.

However, our immune systems may have blind spots. “This might mean that our immune response doesn't recognize certain bugs (轻微传染病),” says Cruickshank, “Personally, my immune system is not necessarily very good at seeing colds.” But a healthy lifestyle will ensure your defenses are as good as they can get.

Cruickshank recommends “eating a more varied diet with lots of high-fiber foods”. Being vegetarian isn't a necessity for microbiome health, but the more plant foods you eat, the better.

To be immunologically fit, you need to be physically fit. “White blood cells can be quite inactive.” Says Prof Arne Akbar, the president of the British Society for Immunology, “Exercise activates them by increasing your blood flow，so they can do their surveillance (监督) jobs and seek and destroy in other parts of the body.” The National Health Service says adults should be physically active in some way every day, and do at least 150 minutes a week of moderate aerobic activity (hiking, gardening, cycling) or 75 minutes of vigorous activity (running, swimming fast, and aerobics class).

One of the many happy side-effects of exercise is that it reduces stress, which is next on our list of immune-improving priorities (首要事项). Stress hormones can weaken immune function, a common example of which, says Akbar, is when chickenpox (水痘) strikes twice. If you have had it, the virus never completely goes away. “During periods of stress,” he says, “it can reactivate again and we get ill”.

Exercising and eating well will have the likely knock-on effect of helping you sleep better, which is an extra benefit because a tired body is more likely to get a bug. One study last year found that lack of sleep damaged the disease-fighting ability of a type of lymphocyte called T cells, and research is showing the importance of our natural biorhythms (生物节律) overall. “Your natural biorhythms are, to some extent, controlled by sleep,” says Akbar. “If you've got a regular sleep pattern, you have natural body rhythms and everything's fine. If they go out of order, then you've got problems.”

1. When the barriers fail to prevent a virus entering your body, _______ will come up next.

A．skin	B．blood
C．microbiomes	D．immune cells

2. What does Cruickshank mean by saying “my immune system is not necessarily very good at seeing colds”?

A．She does not lead a healthy life

B．Catching a cold is not a terrible thing

C．The immune system cannot always be trusted

D．Blind spots will not change the immune response

3. This passage mainly introduces ________ health benefits of exercise.

A．2	B．3
C．4	D．5

4. What can be the best title for the passage?

A．How to exercise and eat well

B．How to enjoy a healthy lifestyle

C．How to improve the immune system

D．How to get various barriers against coronavirus

【推荐3】Traditions of giving middle names vary around the world.

Scotland

Middle names are actually a fairly recent discovery in Scotland. However, as the practice has become popular around the world, it has become pretty common for Scottish babies to have middle names. Because last names in Scotland are generally associated with their family roots, and first names usually describe a physical characteristic, many parents see a middle name as an opportunity to give their baby a slightly more creative name.

Spain and Latin America

In Spain and Latin America, a middle name is a way to break free from the cultural code governing first names. In some countries, even first names are legislated(立法) to be of Christian origin. In Chile, most girls are named Maria, after the Virgin Mary, so the middle name is used in practice for differentiation. Maria is the most common name in the Spanish-speaking world, so in all Spanish-speaking countries the middle name takes on great significance.

Russia

In Russia, both boys and girls are given middle names based on their father's first name. For boys, the middle name usually has ovich, or evich, added to its ending. For girls, the middle patronymic(从父名衍生出的名字) name usually has ovna, or evna, added to its ending. People in Russia are often referred to by both their first and middle names, sort of the way parents in America use their children's full names when they're trying to get their attention(or yell at them). Close friends in Russia often don't use their first names completely, and use only patronymic names, when talking to each other.

Australia

According to Law Buddy, an Australian legal advice service, child naming laws in Australia allow Birth Registrars to refuse to register baby names that to be offensive to register to careless, inappropriate, ridiculous. They do allow for children to get a middle name, which is typically reserved for the mother's maiden name(娘家姓),provided, of course, that the mother's maiden name is not offensive, careless, inappropriate, or ridiculous.

1. What do we know about giving middle names in Scotland?

A．It needs to be based on their family roots.

B．It's opposed by the elderly in the country

C．It mainly describes a baby's appearance.

D．It didn't become common until not long ago

2. What role do middle names in the Spanish-speaking countries play?

A．Showing family roots.

B．Showing their unique culture.

C．Describing a physical characteristic.

D．Allowing people to have different names

3. What is a typical feature of middle names in Russia?

A．They usually have the same ending.

B．They're usually very creative names.

C．They're usually difficult to remember.

D．They're based on their father's middle name.

4. What should parents in Australia consider when naming their children?

A．Avoiding a middle name.

B．Avoiding registering baby names.

C．Using the mother's proper maiden name.

D．Using an unusual name for differentiation.

【推荐1】Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso and Leonardo da Vinci ... the art world has never lacked talent. And now, a new painter is ready to join the list, although this one isn't even human.

Next month, the auction house Christie's Prints and Multiples will make history by offering the first piece of art work created by artificial intelligence (AI) for sale. The painting is a portrait of a man called Edmond De Belamy, and is expected to be sold for up to $10,000.

The work, which features a man with a mysterious look on his face, was created by software developed by the French art group Obvious. Laugero-Lasserre, an art collector, called the work "grotesque and amazing at the same time". This isn't the first example of AI-produced artwork, as AI has already been used to write poems and compose songs. However, many people doubt whether it should be called art at all.

According to Russian writer Leo Tolstroy (1828 -1910), art is about creating emotion (情感). It's "a means of … joining people together in the same feelings," he once said.

So, if the emotion behind art is what makes it, the ability to create and use tools is what makes human beings different from other species. And as a tool itself, the AI technology used to create the portrait is the result of a lot of effort made by several designers. Together, they "fed" the AI a huge collection of paintings from the 14th to the 18th centuries, until it was able to work out how to make similar paintings of its own.

The introduction of AI art could be the beginning of a new artistic movement. However, not everyone is ready to welcome these high-tech artists just yet.

"The human mind is what's behind the AI technology. And the human mind is not a cold, hard fact," said Oscar Schwartz, a professor of AI. "Rather, it is something that's created with our opinions and something that changes over time."

1. Why does the author mention the artists in Paragraph 1?

A．To introduce their works.	B．To make an advertisement.
C．To present a piece of news.	D．To focus the topic on the AI.

2. What does the underlined would "grotesque" in Paragraph 3 mean?

A．Strange.	B．Simple.
C．Messy.	D．Understandable.

3. What can we learn about the AI-produced artwork according to Paragraph 5?

A．It comes from human works.

B．It shows human ability to create.

C．It expresses human feelings effectively.

D．It is beyond the imagination of humans.

4. What does Oscar Schwartz think the human mind is compared with the AI ?

A．Limited.	B．Decisive.
C．Useless.	D．Meaningful.

【推荐2】A drug designed entirely by artificial intelligence is about to enter clinical human trials for the first time. The drug, which is intended to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder ( OCD)(强迫症),was discovered using Al systems from Oxford-based biotech company Exscientia. While it would usually take around four and a half years to get a drug to this stage of development, Exscientia says that by using the Al tools it's taken less than 12 months.

The drug, known as DSP・1181, was created by using algorithms (算法)to examine potential compounds (化合物),checking them against a huge database of parameters, including a patient's genetic factors. Speaking to the BBC, Exscientia chief executive Professor Andrew Hopkins described the trials as a “ key milestone in drug discovery “ and noted that there are “ billions” of decisions needed to find the right molecules (分子)for a drug, making their eventual creation a “ huge decision. “ With Al, however, “the beauty of the algorithms is that they are unknowable, so can be applied to any disease.”

We've already seen multiple examples of Al being used to diagnose illness and analyze patient data, so using it to engineer drug treatment is an obvious progression of its place in medicine. But the Al - created drugs do bring about some relevant questions. Will patients be comfortable taking medicine designed by a machine? How will these drugs differ from those developed by humans alone? Who will make the rules for the use of Al in drug research? Hopkins and his team hope that these and a great many other questions will be explored in the trials, which will begin in March.

1. What is special about the drug designed by Al?

A．It's a better cure for OCD.

B．It has no side effect on humans.

C．Its development takes less time.

D．It doesn't need clinical human trials.

2. Which is a key factor in creating the drug according to Paragraph 2?

A．Trials.	B．Algorithms.
C．Compounds.	D．Molecules.

3. How does Hopkins feel about the way of drug creation?

A．Optimistic.	B．Doubtful.
C．Disappointed.	D．Puzzled.

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

A．Medical Trials by Al	B．An Example in Medical Trials
C．A Creation in Al Development	D．Al - designed Drugs to Be on Trial

【推荐3】What do you do when you can’t figure out how to finish a difficult task at work or when you’re lost in an unfamiliar place? In life, when you get into trouble，there are many solutions. For example，you could invest more time and effort by trying different methods over and over again or looking up the answers online.

But there is one thing most people know to avoid for sure：asking for advice.It is inconsiderate— we don’t want to bother others. After all，they have their own problems to solve. Also, they may not have the answer we need, anyway. These reasons may or may not be true. But we are pretty sure that people will think less of us. So, good reasons or no, we don’t ask.

However, our research suggests that the instinct(直觉) to not seek advice is wrong. Fears about appearing to be having no ability to do things by asking for advice — though extremely common — are totally misplaced. Here’s why. when you ask for advice, people do not think less of you；instead, they actually think you’ re smarter. By asking someone to share his or her personal wisdom, advice seekers can gain a deep understanding of something. In their minds, advisors actually think“I’m brilliant, so this guy is smart to ask for my advice.”

This finding is important, because seeking advice encourages information exchange, learning and meaningful connection between us and our friends and colleagues.In addition，there is another side benefit. asking for advice allows us to make a surprisingly positive impression on our mentors(导师).

Asking for advice is an effective way not only when we are facing a difficult task. The study shows that when facing conflict，asking your friends for advice makes you be able to look at it from more than one angle(角度)，thus leading to quicker and more likely solutions to the conflict.

1. According to the text，people usually________ when they get into trouble.

A．call their friends for help

B．turn to their computer first

C．ask for advice from others

D．solve the problem by themselves

2. People don’t like to ask for advice because                 .
①they don’t want to bother others
②they don’t think others’ advice can help
③they believe others will think less of them
④they are afraid of showing they are unable to do something

A．①②③	B．①③④
C．②③④	D．①②③④

3. What can you learn from the third paragraph?

A．Asking for advice often is wrong.

B．Asking others for advice will make a good impression.

C．People who don’t ask for advice are smarter.

D．Advice seekers can get everything they want from others.

4. What is the author’s attitude toward asking for advice?

A．Positive.	B．Negative.
C．Cautious.	D．Objective.