A flock of wild mandarin ducks(鸳鸯) are the biggest draw in the West Lake scenic area in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province, with tourists flocking from around the country to see them. However, some of the tourists have been feeding the ducks, even pulling them by the neck to force-feed them. On Monday, a video claiming that some of the ducks had died from over-feeding went viral on social networking sites.
Although there are prominent signboards warning people against feeding them, tourists just cannot hold back. Some even believe the ducks are underfed and they are doing them a favor, little realizing that their action can be detrimental to the birds' health.
Human food does not always go down well with ducks, particularly potato chips, as the oily snack can damage the health of mandarin ducks. However, tourists can frequently be seen feeding the ducks food that the birds cannot digest. Besides, feeding the ducks could stop them from competing in the wild to find their food. If they become dependent on food provided by humans, they will lose their survival skills. Also, by giving food to them, the tourists are polluting the environment. Especially, food thrown into the water could harm the ecosystem there.
However, the tourists know little about the harm they cause to the environment and there is a need to create awareness about it. Meanwhile, the number of mandarin ducks at West Lake has dropped from 336 last year to 260 this year. Maybe the declining numbers will wake the tourists up to this reality.
1. What is the main reason for the ducks' death in the West Lake according to the passage?| A．The ducks are fed with oily snacks. | B．The tourists fail to see the warning signs. |
| C．The tourists feed the ducks too much food. | D．The tourists kill the ducks by pulling their necks. |
| A．harmful. | B．sensitive. | C．vital. | D．beneficial. |
| A．Human food is not suitable for ducks to digest. |
| B．Food thrown into the water does harm to the ecosystem. |
| C．Tourists' feeding ducks may have a bad effect on ducks and the environment. |
| D．Ducks may lose their survival skills if receiving food from people all the time. |
| A．More mandarin ducks are seen in the West Lake this year than before. |
| B．People have already known the damage they did to the mandarin ducks. |
| C．More mandarin ducks are likely to be introduced to the West Lake in the future. |
| D．It's high time that people should be aware of the harm to ducks caused by overfeeding. |
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【推荐1】Despite not being documented by researchers since 1968, the sengi(象鼩), a tiny big-eyed mouse with a long tail and a trunk-like nose that’s native to Somalia, was rediscovered living in well-preserved habitat in neighboring Djibouti this year, and in quite healthy numbers.
An exploration beginning in 2019 looked to use local knowledge about the sengi from the people of Djibouti who said it was still there. Sure enough, it took only one trap filled with coconut, peanut butter and yeast to find the little guy.
“It was surprising,” said Steven Heritage, a research scientist at Duke University in the US. “When we opened the first trap and saw the little tuft of hair on the tip of its tail, we just looked at one another and couldn’t believe it. A number of small mammal(哺乳动物)surveys since the 1970s did not find the Somali sengi in Djibouti — it was indeed a serendipitous discovery.”
One of the least understood members of the 20 species-strong elephant shrew genus(象鼩属), the sengi lives in habitats that are unsuitable for most human activities, allowing it to remain relatively undisturbed and safe.
“Usually when we rediscover lost species, we find just one or two individuals and have to act quickly to try to prevent their extinction,” said Robin Moore, of the Global Wildlife Conservation (GWC) group.
The team set 1,000 traps and caught 12 of the little shrews while making the first video and photographic documentation of the animal for science. Along with rediscovering the species, the team gathered DNA samples(样本)which later showed the Somali sengi to be more closely related to sengis in other corners of Africa like Morocco and South Africa.
This finding has suggested that the Somali sengi needs to be placed in a new genus — moving from Elephantulus to Galegeeska.
Like all great discoveries in science, the questions answered are only equal to the new mysteries presented, but the researchers’ work has highlighted Djibouti as a biodiverse(具有生物多样性的)nation worthy of scientific study. With any luck, perhaps more discoveries are waiting to be made among its desert and salt lakes.
1. What made the finding of the Somali sengi special?| A．It was rediscovered by Somalis. |
| B．It looked surprisingly different. |
| C．It reappeared in Africa after more than 50 years. |
| D．It had become smart enough to avoid being trapped. |
| A．Unrealistic. | B．Professional. | C．Accidental. | D．Individual. |
| A．How the Somali sengi manages to survive. |
| B．Why the Somali sengi can live peacefully. |
| C．How human activities affect the Somali sengi. |
| D．What environment the Somali sengi should live in. |
| A．By doing DNA tests for them. | B．By studying their living habits. |
| C．By comparing their appearances. | D．By studying documents about them. |
【推荐2】During a hurricane, strong winds hit the land. Winds reach speeds of 250 kilometers per hour or more. Some animals including lizards (蜥蜴), may get blown away. But with a good grip (紧抓), others can live through the storm. A new study suggests that such hurricanes can actually help lizards to some degree.
Colin Donihue, a scientist examined lizard species on several Caribbean islands. The process began in 2017, as Donihue was studying lizard populations in Turks and Caicos. A couple of weeks after he and other researchers left there, those islands were hit by hurricanes, first Hurricane Irma and then Hurricane Maria. Returning to the island a year later, he noticed that the populations looked different. The lizards he saw after the hurricanes had larger toe pads than those he’d examined the previous year before the hurricanes. He has looked at 12 island populations of the lizard species Anolis sagrei, and separately analyzed 188 Anolis species with populations that range from Florida to Brazil. He and his team cross-examined the size of their toe pads with the frequency and severity (强度) of Caribbean hurricanes. Over the past 70 years of hurricane data, the result stood out: larger toe pads had a close connection with more serious hurricanes.
The study better explained how evolutionary (进化的) processes are helping species become stronger, even as global climate change threatens their long-term survival. In the past hurricanes simply haven’t been common enough to matter in an evolutionary timeline. But due to climate change, there will be more hurricanes. Some populations can be completely destroyed by hurricanes. But in the case of the lizards Donihue studied, the ones that survived these violent storms were the ones with larger toe pads. And their babies also had similarly large toe pads. That small change in their body tells us how species change as the environment around them changes as well.
1. What did Colin Donihue’s study find?| A．Hurricanes had an influence on lizards’ evolution. |
| B．Many kinds of lizards existed on the Caribbean islands. |
| C．Hurricanes Irma and Maria caused lizards5 extinction. |
| D．The lizards on the islands were stronger than others. |
| A．have a small population | B．do well in finding food |
| C．tend to fight intensely with each other | D．be spotted where hurricanes hit hard |
| A．Humans must contribute to lizards9 development. |
| B．Some species become stronger due to climate change. |
| C．Lizards will be removed from the earth sooner or later. |
| D．Climate change often brings disadvantages to lizards. |
| A．The Perfect Place for Lizards to Live | B．More Hurricanes Hit the Caribbean Islands |
| C．Hurricanes Help Lizards Grow Stronger | D．Tough Life for Lizards on the Caribbean Islands |
One of the biggest celebrations took place at the Pattaya Resort in Thailand’s Chonburi Province. Fifty-two elephants, some wearing beautiful clothes, arrived bright and early (大清早) for the big day. Each was first blessed with holy water by a professional elephant rider and then led to the grand feast, which served an unlimited supply of their favorite treats—bananas, dragon fruits (火龙果), pineapples, assorted melons, apples and the list went on and on! The elephants ate till they were satisfied before walking back with their owners for a good night’s rest.
Though called National Elephant Day, the celebrations that took place on March 13th this year stretched out for an entire week. Besides providing a well-deserved treat and break for the hard-working animals, the celebrations were also aimed to raise awareness about the mammal’s dwindling (减少的) population. One smart elephant even helped show the message by painting a dead elephant and the words “Don’t kill me”, right beside it .
And horrible as the message may sound, there is a sad ring of truth to it. Since the 1900s the number of elephants in Thailand has gone from over 100,000 to just 3,000-4,000 because of the destruction of their natural habitat and illegal killing. Asian elephants are not the only ones that are in trouble. African elephants are facing the same fate (命运). Hopefully, the public and officials are now working together to save these mighty animals from disappearing from the world.
1. Nowadays elephants in Thailand are
| A．still used to help fight battles |
| B．never used as beasts of burdens |
| C．used to do tasks that need strength |
| D．less respected because of the development of the society |
| A．show visitors the elephants’ great performance |
| B．honor elephants for their devotion to the country |
| C．encourage people to play with elephants |
| D．show visitors the beautiful scenery in Thailand |
| A．the elephant rider |
| B．the words “Don’t kill me” |
| C．the elephant that was painting |
| D．the dead elephant |
| A．Elephants are protected very well in Thailand. |
| B．Elephants also face the risk of being killed in Thailand. |
| C．The number of elephants is increasing gradually in Thailand. |
| D．Elephants could enjoy a grand feast every week in Thailand. |
【推荐1】Kangaroos can communicate with humans, according to a new study. The report is the first research of this kind to be done on marsupials — a type of mammal whose young get carried in pouches (育儿袋) on their mother’s body. It suggests kangaroos are cleverer than previously thought.
Researchers from the University of Roehampton in the UK and the University of Sydney in Australia tested kangaroos at three locations — the Australian Reptile Park, Wildlife Sydney Zoo and Kangaroo Protection Co-operative. The scientists put food in a box that the kangaroos could not open, and waited to see what the animals would do.
Rather than giving up, 10 out of the 11 kangaroos actively looked at the person who had put the food in the box and then looked at the box. The researchers said this could be interpreted as the kangaroos requesting help to open the container.
Dr Alexandra Green, a co-author of the study, told The Guardian newspaper that some of the kangaroos actually approached the person and started scratching and sniffing them, then looked back at the box. “So they were really trying to communicate,” Green said.
This behaviour is not uncommon in animals. However, it is usually only seen in domesticated animals. Domesticated means animals that have been bred (饲养) to live alongside people, such as pets or farm animals. The lead author of the study, Dr Alan McElligott, explained, “Through this study, we were able to see that communication between animals can be learnt and that the behaviour of looking at humans to access food is not related to domestication.”
“Indeed, kangaroos showed a very similar pattern of behaviour we have seen in dogs, horses and even goats, when put to the same test,” he added.
It is hoped that the study will give people a more positive attitude towards kangaroos, which are sometimes seen as pests that damage farmers’ crops.
1. Why did the kangaroos look at the person and then the box?| A．They were curious. | B．They were asking for help. |
| C．They were confused by the box. | D．They were playing with the person. |
| A．It is only seen in wild animals. |
| B．It has nothing to do with domestication. |
| C．It sets kangaroos apart from other animals. |
| D．It can only be learned by domesticated animals. |
| A．Protecting farmers’ crops from kangaroos. |
| B．Calling on people to protect kangaroos. |
| C．Changing the way people see kangaroos. |
| D．Encouraging people to domesticate kangaroos. |
| A．How kangaroos access food | B．Why Kangaroos are our friends |
| C．Kangaroos can “talk” to us | D．Kangaroos are cleverer than we thought |
【推荐2】Owning a pet, like a dog or a cat, especially for five years or more, may be linked to slower cognitive decline (认知衰退) in older adults, according to a new study.
“Previous studies have suggested that the human-animal link may have health benefits like decreasing blood pressure and stress,” said the study author Tiffany Braley. “Our results suggest raising pet may also be protective against cognitive decline.”
The study looked at cognitive data from 1.369 senior adults with an average age of 65 who had normal cognitive skills at the start of the study. A total of 53% owned pets and 32% were long-term pet owners who owned pets for five years or more.
Researchers used data from the Health and Retirement Study. In that study, people were given several cognitive tests. Researchers used those cognitive tests to record cognitive score for each person, ranging from 0 to 27. The score included common tests of subtraction (减法), number counting and word memory. Researchers then used participants’ cognitive scores to judge the connections between years of pet ownership and cognitive function.
Over six years, the cognitive scores decreased at a slower rate in pet owners. This difference was stronger among long-term pet owners. Considering other factors known to affect cognitive function, the study showed that long-term pet owners usually had a higher cognitive score compared to non-pet owners. The researchers also found that the cognitive benefits connected with longer pet ownership were stronger for college educated adults and men.
“As stress can negatively affect cognitive function, the possible stress-reducing effects of pet ownership could provide a proper reason for our findings,” said Braley.
1. What is the finding of Tiffany Braley’s study?| A．Both dogs and cats make perfect pets. | B．Pets may help keep the brain work well. |
| C．Females tend to be long-term pet owners. | D．A human-animal link helps decrease blood pressure. |
| A．By referring to previous studies. |
| B．By monitoring several cognitive tests. |
| C．By tracking the changes in cognitive scores. |
| D．By correcting data from the Health and Retirement Study. |
| A．Puzzled. | B．Cautious. | C．Surprised. | D．Unsatisfied. |
| A．Why should we keep pets? |
| B．How long should we keep pets? |
| C．Does the human-animal link have health benefits? |
| D．Do pets have a positive effect on people’s brain health? |
【推荐3】As humanity has got richer, animal’s roles have changed. People need their services less than before. Fewer wolves and thieves meant less demand for dogs for protection; the internal combustion engine (内燃机) made horses unneeded; modern sanitation (卫生设备) kept rats in check and made cats less useful. Domestic animals are no longer necessities, but commonly seen companions. Pet-keeping seems to become more and more popular, as a recent survey found that 69% of American households keep at least one pet.
The pet business is growing even faster than pet numbers, because people are spending more and more money on them. No longer are they food-waste-recyclers, fed with the remains that fall from their masters’ tables. Pet food shelves are full of cuisines tailored to satisfy a range of appetites, including ice cream for dogs and foods for pets that are old, diabetic, or suffer from sensitive digestion.
In the business, this is called “pet humanization” — the tendency of pet owners to treat their pets as part of the family. This is obvious in the names given to dogs, which have evolved from Fido, Rex, and Spot to Bella, Lucy, and Max.
People still hold the false assumption that pets must be working for humanity in some way, perhaps making people healthier or less anxious. But the evidence for that is weak. New research suggests that dogs have evolved those “cute eyes” to affect human emotions and control them, which works very well. Humans now work very hard to pay for the care of their pets. For example, Americans often refer to themselves not as cat owners but as the cat’s “mommy” or “daddy”. South Koreans go one step further, describing themselves as cat “butlers (管家)”. Watch an unlucky man walking his dog, plastic bag in hand to pick up its mess, and we have to doubt: who’s in charge now? Is this relationship what we really want?
1. What can we learn about the animal-keeping trend?| A．People’s needs for animal services are increasing. |
| B．The price for purchasing a domestic pet is on the rise. |
| C．Pet foods are less various and customized than before. |
| D．Both the pet number and the pet business are growing. |
| A．Pets’ ability to make their owners less anxious. |
| B．Human’s increasing investment in pet-keeping. |
| C．Pet’s roles as both working staff and companions. |
| D．The owners’ preference to give pets human names. |
| A．Skeptical. | B．Conservative. | C．Unclear. | D．Approving. |
| A．The Changing Roles of Pets |
| B．The Growing Trend of Pet Business |
| C．The Craze for Pet-keeping |
| D．The Pros and Cons of Keeping Pets |
【推荐1】They block entrances, crowd street corners and tip onto their sides, turning a convenient form of transportation into a sidewalk danger that is particularly dangerous for the elderly and disabled.
Now a new California company is working on a possible solution for stopping the chaos caused by electric scooters（滑板车）in cities around the country. The company, known as Swift mile, has unattended charging stations for e-scooters that are designed to serve as a place where riders can park the scooters between rides. The company’s founder, Colin Roche, said the sola-powered charging stations-which can accommodate any brand of e-scooter-are most suitable for areas that are often crowded with the scooters, such as bus and subway stations.
As the weather warms and ridership increases, that struggle is expected to intensify. On one. side of the debate, experts say, are cities whose leaders want to reduce traffic and encourage alternative, environmentally-friendly patterns of transportation to battle against climate change and promote innovation（创新）. Some local officials also fear that restricting scooter companies will cast cities in an outdated light, discouraging technology companies from doing business there in the future. On the other side of the debate are critics who have complained about e-scooter companies for blocking walkways and selling a product whose use has led to thousands of injuries among riders and pedestrians, many of them severe.
Pat Burt, a former Palo Alto mayor who is currently advising Swift mile, said the future of e-scooters could depend heavily on what happens in 2019. Cities have identified the benefits of e-scooters as well as the. drawbacks, which could become existential for the companies. “If the. safety and other problems aren’t addressed, I think cities will restrict them even more, “he said. “But there’s a good chance scooters will be adopted universally if these problems get solved. ”
1. What is the main idea of the first paragraph?| A．The elderly are easy to get injured. | B．E-scooters are difficult to find. |
| C．Many problems are caused by e-scooters. | D．New inventions provide people with convenience. |
| A．Park their e-scooters. | B．Get their e-scooters repaired. |
| C．Have their e-scooters cleaned. | D．Charge their e-scooters for free. |
| A．Attracting more tourists. | B．Reducing traffic pressure. |
| C．Making the roads much safer. | D．Increasing the local company’s profits. |
| A．The public’s attitude. | B．The improvement of traffic. |
| C．The solving of present problems. | D．The benefits of the new business model. |
【推荐2】A Guide to the University
Food
The TWU Cafeteria is open 7am to 8pm. It serves snacks, drinks, ice cream bars and meals. You can pay with cash or your ID cards. You can add meal money to your ID cards at the Front Desk. Even if you do not buy your food in the cafeteria, you can use the tables to eat your lunch, to have meetings and to study.
If you are on campus in the evening or lat at night, you can buy snacks, fast food, and drinks in the Lower Café located in the bottom level of the Gouglas Centre. This area is often used for entertainment such as concerts, games or TV watching.
Relaxation
The Globe, located in the bottom level of McMillan Hall, is available for relaxing, studying , cooking, and eating. Monthly activities are held here for all international students. Hours are 10 am to 10 pm, closed on Sundays.
Health
Located on the top floor of Douglas Hall, the Wellness Centre is committed to physical, emotional and social health. A doctor and nurse is available if you have health questions or need immediate medical help or personal advice. The cost of this is included in your medical insurance. Hours are Monday to Friday, 9am to noon and 1;00 to 4;30pm.
Academic Support
All students have access to the Writing Centre on the upper floor of Douglas Hall. Here, qualified volunteers will work with you on written work, grammar, vocabulary, and other academic skills. You can sign up for an appointment on the sign-up sheet outside the door two 30-minute appointments per week maximum. This service is free.
Transportation
The TWU Express is a shuttle service. The shuttle transports students between campus and the shopping centre, leaving from the Mattson Centre. Operation hours are between 8am and 3pm. Saturdays only. Round trip fare is $1.
1. The Guide tells us that the Wellness Centre _________.| A．is open six days a week | B．offers services free of charge |
| C．trains students in medical care | D．gives advice on mental health |
| A．By applying online | B．By calling the centre |
| C．By filling in a sign-up form | D．By going to the centre directly |
| A．To carry students to the lecture halls. | B．To provide students with campus tours |
| C．To take students to the Mattson Centre. | D．To transport students to and from the stores. |
【推荐3】The Professional Footballers’ Association will help to fund the initiative that will lead to the FA appointing up to 28 black, Asian and ethnic minority coaches to work with all England teams next season, including Gareth Southgate’s senior squad (小队).
The Times revealed details of the joint FA and PFA scheme yesterday, which could be finalised as soon as next week. Martin Glenn, the FA chief executive, is due to meet his counterpart at the PFA, Gordon Taylor, at Wembley before England’s friendly international against Italy next Tuesday. Chris Powell, the Southend United manager, has been identified as a potential addition to Southgate’s back-room staff after the World Cup, which would be welcomed by the England manager.
The FA has already held initial talks with several other coaches, including Jason Euell, Charlton Athletic’s under 23 coach, about taking on a role in the national coaching set-up at St George’s Park. The former Jamaica international has previously questioned the merit of the so-called Rooney Rule, which the FA implemented (执行) in January with a commitment to interview a BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic) candidate for every coaching position. But Euell believes that the governing body’s decision to offer 28 positions is a more practical way to bring about change.
The FA has begun offering opportunities to BAME coaches, with the former Everton striker Danny Cadamarteri, who is currently a youth coach with Burnley, working with England’s under-18 squad this week. It will extend the programme after it has been approved by the FA Board. The PFA has been instrumental in developing the proposals through the work of their sponsors Brendon Batson, Garth Crooks and Paul Elliott, and have promised to provide funds to make it a success.
“This is integral (完整的) to the modernization of the FA,” Taylor told The Times. “If it’s implemented correctly, with meaningful roles, it will show the FA really means football is for all.”
However, Crooks added that it was a “monumental error of judgment” by Southgate not to take a black coach to Russia for the World Cup finals to support England’s black players in the event of racial abuse from fans.
The FA’s plans received a cautious welcome from many in the game, with the former England defender Viv Anderson saying that coaches from BAME backgrounds have been hindered (阻碍) by a lack of access. The 61-year-old was the first black player to represent England in 1978 and went on to manage Barnsley before joining Middlesbrough as an assistant coach.
“There are only a handful of black managers so there’s clearly a problem,” Anderson said. “If you go up and down the country there are black and ethnic minority players in every squad, but very few go on to become coaches, which is down to a lack of opportunity and access. There are still a lot of negative perceptions about black managers and coaches, which are totally false.” At least the FA is trying to do something, and it could make a difference.
1. What is the passage mainly about?| A．PFA has funded FA in the World Cup. |
| B．FA and PFA will work together to diversify the coach team. |
| C．PFA will take on black coaches for England teams. |
| D．FA has interviewed 28 BAME candidates for coaching positions. |
| A．working in the national coaching set-up |
| B．in favor of the joint FA and PFA scheme |
| C．likely to be one of the Southgate’s back-room staff |
| D．sceptical about FA’s promise to interview BAME candidates |
| A．BAME coaches lack chances and access to England teams. |
| B．The FA Board hasn’t approved the plan for lack of sponsors. |
| C．Older coaches don’t possess qualifications for national coaches. |
| D．There are not enough BAME players to represent England teams. |
| A．there are still negative perceptions about black managers and coaches |
| B．black managers and coaches are superior in managing football teams |
| C．advantages in taking on black coaches outweigh disadvantages |
| D．attempts are being made to show the FA means football for all |
【推荐1】When I was young at school, I loved to talk, which was not appreciated by Miss Jordan, my tenth-grade English teacher.
She wasn't a popular teacher because she was not good-looking and was so strict. Whenever she got upset, she would lower her head and look at you over the top of her glasses.
One day in her class, while I was busy talking, I didn't realize that she had stopped teaching. She stared straight at me. “Young lady, I would like to see you after school.”
For punishment she told me to write a thousand-word essay on education and it must be handed in by the following Wednesday. Well, that day came. I wasn't worried. It was a good paper. And I expected praise from her. The next day, however, she called me forward, looking at me over her glasses, and returned my paper. "Go back and rewrite. Remember, each paragraph must have a topic sentence." Then came the second time, the grammar. The third time, the spelling. The fourth time, the punctuation. The fifth, it wasn't neat enough. I was sick.
The sixth time, I rewrote the whole paper slowly, in ink, leaving generous space. Seeing it, she removed her glasses and smiled. She finally accepted the paper. After that, I put the whole thing out of my mind.
Two or three months passed, one day Miss Jordan said to us, “Class, do you still remember an essay contest held citywide? They have announced the winners. Yes, Mary has won the first prize."
I was amazed! It was the first time I had won a prize. Years later, I told a reporter the story and expressed my great thanks to Miss Jordan. Soon after that, I got a letter from Miss Jordan, and it said, "What I did wasn't that important. What mattered was the lesson you had learnt. When you wrote and rewrote that paper for me, you began to learn how to discipline yourself.”
1. What made Miss Jordan unhappy with the author?| A．She often lowered her head in class. | B．She always talked too much in class. |
| C．She often made her classmates upset. | D．She often laughed at Miss Jordan's glasses. |
①Grammar. ②Punctuation. ③Topic sentence. ④Spelling. ⑤Neatness.
| A．③②①⑤④ | B．③①⑤②④ | C．③①④②⑤ | D．③⑤④②① |
| A．Active and open-minded. | B．Honest but cold-blooded. |
| C．Energetic and kind-hearted. | D．Strict but broad-minded. |
| A．A naughty girl | B．A good lesson in life |
| C．An essay contest | D．A terrible memory in mind |
| A．No pains, no gains. | B．Love me, love my dog. |
| C．All roads lead to Rome. | D．Two heads are better than one. |
【推荐2】Nobel prize-winners, legendary(传奇的)authors, and famous scientists—you might think all these people were born to be creative. However, that’s not always the case.
While well-known figures like Pablo Picasso and Albert Einstein did their most significant work in their youth, famous American poet Robert Frost and English-born natural scientist Charles Darwin were known as “late bloomers” —people whose talents were not noticeable until later in life.
This idea of “peaking” at different times inspired new research from the United States. “Many people believe that creativity is exclusively(独有地)associated with youth, but it really depends on what kind of creativity you’re talking about,” said Bruce Weinberg, a professor of economics at the University of Chicago and co-author of the study.
According to the study, published earlier this month in the journal De Economist, there are two types of people: conceptual(概念的)and experimental thinkers.
To reach this conclusion, researchers took the 31 previous winners of the Nobel Prize in economics and arranged them according to when they did their most significant work, to identify their creative peaks.
Some peaked from ages 25—29. Classified as conceptual thinkers, these people think outside of the box, coming up with new ideas before they become used to the conventional way of doing things.
The second creative peak came with economists in their 50s. These are experimental thinkers who have been in their fields for a long time. This allows them to learn from errors and experiment with different processes, before eventually finding new solutions.
“Whether you hit your creative peak early or late in your career depends on whether you have a conceptual or experimental approach,” said Weinberg. He added that their study isn’t limited to economics, saying it can apply to other creative disciplines(知识领域). So if you’re struggling to come up with new ideas, don’t panic. Your creative peak may be yet to arrive.
1. What did the study from the US find?| A．Young people are not necessarily more creative than old people. |
| B．Most people take a conceptual approach when thinking. |
| C．People’s creative peak in their life is related to their job type. |
| D．Conceptual and experimental thinkers hit their peaks at different times. |
| A．They tend to challenge conventional rules. | B．They are creative due to their young ages. |
| C．They are likely to follow traditional rules. | D．They fail to come up with new ideas. |
| A．Their talents usually bloom in their 20s. |
| B．They are good at doing experiments. |
| C．They work out new methods based on experience. |
| D．They are more successful than conceptual thinkers. |
| A．It’s difficult to find one’s talent in later years. |
| B．More research needs to be done about creative peaks. |
| C．Conceptual thinkers could be more successful in the art field. |
| D．Experimental thinkers from other fields may succeed in their 50s. |
【推荐3】It sounds like something out of Dr. Seuss, but artist Sam Van Aken is developing a tree that blooms(开花)in pink, purple and red in the spring-and that is capable of bearing 40 different kinds of fruit.
No, it's not genetic engineering. Van Aken, an associate professor in Syracuse University's art department, used an age-old technique called grafting(嫁接)to attach branches from 40 different kinds of stone fruit onto a single tree. But during the process of creation, he soon discovered that it was actually pretty hard to find so many distinct varieties of stone fruit in New York. "I realized the extend which we've created these massive monocultures(单种作物)." Most grocery stores and markets only sell a few varieties-and most of them are grown in California.
Van Aken believes our national security is dependent upon our fond security. Now that we have created these monocultures that only grow a few varieties of each crop, if something happens to just one of those varieties, it can have a dramatic impact upon our food supply. And the key to maintaining our food security is preserving our biodiversity.
100 years ago, there were far more varieties of fruit growing in the backyards of the Americans. Today, only a small part of those remain, and what is left is threatened by industrialization of agriculture, disease and climate change. Most of those threatened varieties were introduced to the US by immigrants. They cared for and cultivated them, and valued them so much that they saw them as a connection to their home. "More than just food, embedded in these fruit is our culture…In many ways these fruit is our story. And I was fortunate enough to learn about it through an artwork that I created entitled the "Tree of 40 Fruit'," Van Aken says.
1. What delayed Van Aken's work?| A．His lack of experience. |
| B．The shortage of fruit varieties. |
| C．The low demand of fruit markets. |
| D．The distance from New York to California. |
| A．Insecurity of food. |
| B．Decreasing sale of fruit. |
| C．Lange production of crops |
| D．Highly industrialized agriculture. |
| A．Carried. | B．Located. | C．Enhanced. | D．Applied. |
| A．The richness of food culture. |
| B．The threat of industrialization. |
| C．The significance of biodiversity. |
| D．The seriousness of climate change. |
