【推荐1】As pictures of the recent Northern California wildfires confirm, living on the edge of a forest comes with considerable dangers. But new research from Germany suggested closeness to a wooded area may not have all unfavorable effects.

In a study of older urban residents, it was found that living close to forest land is linked with strong, healthy functioning of a key part of the brain. This indicates that, compared with those who live in a mostly man-made environment, people who live on the boarder between city and forest may be better able to deal with stress.

“The findings suggest forests in and around cities are valuable resources that should be promoted,” writes a research team led by Simon Kuehn of the Max Plank Institute for Human Development in Berlin.

The researcher analyzed data on 341 participants in the Berlin Aging Study II, all of whom were between the ages of 61 and 82. They specifically looked at three different signals of brain structural function, each of which provided distinct information on several key brain regions. They also noted the amount of forest land within a one-kilometer distance of each participant’s home address.

“Our results reveal a significant positive association between the coverage of forest and amygdale (扁桃腺) function,” the researchers report. The amygdale is the set of neurons (神经元) that plays a key role in processing emotions, including fear and anxiety.

Perhaps surprisingly, Kuehn and her colleges found the amygdale function wasn’t germane to living close to urban green spaces such as parks, or bodies of water. Only closeness to forest land had this apparent positive effect.

More research will be needed to confirm that forest has a stronger, measurable impact on brain health than exposure to other forms of nature. But the evidence keeps mounting that, in stressful times, there is much to gain by surrounding yourself with plants and …

1. What’s the finding of the new research?

A．Brain activities relate to stress control.

B．Man-made environment may lead to stress.

C．Old urban citizens have healthier brain functions.

D．Living near a forest may help relieve pressure.

2. What is paragraph 4 mainly about?

A．The result of the new study.

B．The standard of choosing participants.

C．The preparations for the study.

D．The process of the new study.

3. What does the underlined part “germane to” in paragraph 6 mean?

A．beneficial to	B．damaged by
C．relevant to	D．limited to

4. What may be the author’s attitude towards living close to the forest?

A．Cautious.	B．Favorable.
C．Ambiguous.	D．Disapproving.

【推荐1】Kids love animals, so children’s magazines about wildlife are a great way to plant a love of reading in young kids. If your kids love animals, check out these magazines.
National Geographic Kids
National Geographic Kids brings animals, nature, science, and fun to the little learners. Its animal stories develop pre-reading and reading skills. They also answer questions about kids’ favorite creatures. Features about different cultures bring the world to your child and inspire a sense of understanding. Interactive experiments introduce simple science, and fun puzzles and games teach logic, counting, and so much more! It is for children aged from 6 to 14.
Click
Click opens up a universe of wonder by introducing kids aged 3-7 to the world around them. Click is about science, nature, and the environment. From the publishers of Ladybug, Click is written so that children will love the challenge of new learning.
Wild Animal Baby
It helps a child develop a lifelong love of reading and learning. This sturdy (结实的), board format magazine is designed especially for babies and toddlers between the ages of 12 months and 3 years. Each issue (期) is filled with rhymes, stories and lovable baby animals. Wild Animal Baby is a fun, interactive reading experience for children and parents alike.
Zootles
It was created for children aged 2 to 6 years old. Each issue includes a featured animal, numbers, and phoneme (音素) sounds. Counting and sound recognition games are built into the content, along with read-aloud stories, poems and more! This magazine is so much fun that little kids won’t realize how much they are learning.
1. What do we know about National Geographic Kids?
a. It is mainly aimed at adults.
b. Its paper is heavier and of good quality.
c. It tells children about different cultures in the world.
d. It helps improve children’s pre-reading and reading skills.

A．ac

B．bd

C．cd

D．ad

2. A mother would most probably choose _____ for her one-year-old baby.

A．Zootles	B．Wild Animal Baby
C．National Geographic Kids	D．Click

3. We know that the magazine Zootles _______.

A．tells about science, nature and the environment

B．involves many adventurous stories

C．mainly tells kids how to pronounce words

D．tells about a featured animal in each issue

4. What’s the author’s purpose in writing the text?

A．To encourage kids to read more books.

B．To introduce his / her favorite books to readers.

C．To recommend several children’s magazines about animals.

D．To tell parents several ways of entertaining and educating kids.

【推荐2】       The American book Who Moved My Cheese has been a bestseller all over the world. It teaches people how to face changes in their lives. Now its author Spence Johnson has written a book just for teens. The book tells us that when facing change in our lives, like a new school or new friends, don’t be afraid. Instead, use this change to make a better life. The book gives an example of a change at school. A school is changing from having two terms to three terms because there are too many students.
       Several teens are talking about this. Most of them are unhappy and worried. But Chris is not. He laughs and tells a story about two mice, two “little people” and some cheese.
       The four are in a maze looking for the cheese. Here, cheese means something important in life, like moving to a new class or getting into college. But they find the cheese is gone. The mice realize that they can’t change what has happened and have to find more cheese. This means finding different dreams. The little people, however, can’t do this. They are afraid of change so they find no cheese.
       After Chris finishes the story, the friends understand one thing: to get more cheese, move in a new direction quickly. His friends understand how this can be used in the changes all teens face, such as doing well at school or having good relationships or just feeling good about yourself.
1. The book Who Moved My Cheese is __________.

A．written all over the world	B．read across the world
C．sold only in America	D．loved only by teens

2. What does the text mainly discuss?

A．Never change in our life.	B．Change whenever you like .
C．Change with the changes.	D．Pay attention to the changes,

3. The underline word “four”(paragraph 3)   refers to __________.

A．mice and little people	B．students
C．cheese	D．readers

4. In our lives, we should learn from __________.

A．mice

B．little people

C．Chris

D．Spence Johnson

【推荐3】Looking for educational and inspiring books for your children? You cannot miss these tales of surviving in the wild.

Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome

A tale of a joyful childhood summer spent sailing in the Lake District of England, this novel is based on Ransome’s own family. Two groups of children each have their own sailboat, and spend the summer defending against an imagined enemy, camping, fishing, and exploring, while trying to catch their enemy’s boat.

The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss

Inspired by Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe, Wyss decided to write a story about how a Swiss family survived a ship accident and made a new way of life on an unexplored island in the East Indies so that his four sons could learn about basic family values, the use of the natural world and self-reliance. Morals aside, it’s a great thrilling story.

A Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton-porter

Poor, unpopular Elnora Comstock grows up in the dangerous but beautiful wetlands of northern Indiana, building an unusual life. She loves wildlife more than anything. The book was written as a protest against logging (伐木), drilling for oil (钻井油) and drying up rivers for agriculture that were taking place in the Limberlost Swamp.

Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell

The main character, Karana, is a woman left on what’s now called La Isla de San Nicolas,   just off the coast of California. She struggles in the strange conditions, experiences natural disasters and lives alone on the lonely island. Her story is inspired by that of a real woman who spent 18 years alone on the island.

1. What did Wyss write The Swiss Family Robinson for?

A．Showing the basic values.	B．Teaching his own children something important.
C．Recording a ship accident.	D．Honoring Daniel Defoe.

2. Which book focuses on nature protection?

A．Girl of the Limberlost.	B．The Swiss Family Robinson.
C．Swallows and Amazons.	D．Island of the Blue Dolphins.

3. What do the four books have in common?

A．They are based on real story.	B．They are written mainly for parents.
C．They contain important morals.	D．They tell adventurous experiences.

【推荐1】Believe it or not, there are many strange things banned around the world.

Black cars—Turkmenistan

Trying to buy a new car in the central Asian country of Turkmenistan can be a tricky business due to numerous restrictions issued by President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov. Batir Turken, who is from Turkmenistan but lives in Dubal, explained, “For the country with 60℃ in summer, it is really strange and stupid—cars with black colors are banned, and dirty cars are not allowed to drive in the city.”

He added, “Cars which are older than five years are banned, cars with a right-hand drive are banned, sports cars and two-door cars are banned, and cars with tinted(有色的) windows are banned.”

Vacuum cleaners(真空吸尘器)Victoria—Australia

No one likes a noisy neighbor, but the state of Victoria in Australia has introduced a set of rules about at what point during the day you can make noise including when you can vacuum.

Sumit Gupta, Mumbai, India, said,“In Melbourne, Australia, vacuuming your house between 10 pm and 7am during weekdays and 10 pm and 9 am during the weekends is against the law.”

Chewing gum—Singapore

Singapore prohibits the sale and import of chewing gum,which makes it impossible for locals to get their hands on gum. However, exceptions are made for people who have medical conditions and need to chew gum. The ban began in 1992 and is still in effect.

Running out of fuel—Germany

People are not allowed to let their cars run out of fuel if they are driving on the autobahn(高速公路) in Germany. What complicates matters is that a person can’t walk along the highway to get some gas, as walking on the autobahn is also prohibited by law.

Changing bulb—Victoria, Australia

In Victoria, one of the most populous states in Australia, changing a light bulb is illegal unless you are a licensed electrician. People who disobey this law could receive a fine of up to AU$10(￡5.5).

1. Which kinds of cars are Not banned in Turkmenistan?

A．cars used for six years	B．cars with a left-hand drive
C．cars with colored windows	D．sports cars

2. What makes things complicated in Germany?

A．Running out of fuel is forbidden in this country.

B．Whoever walks on the autobahn is against the law.

C．Dirty cars are not allowed to drive in the city.

D．The ban of running out of fuel is out of effect now.

3. Which of the following is true?

A．Batir Turken considers it an absurd idea to ban black cars in Turkmenistan.

B．A person who is ill and needs to chew gum will be fined for chewing gum.

C．You can change a light bulb as long as you handle with care.

D．People vacuuming houses at midnight in Melbourne will be fined AU$10.

【推荐2】When it comes to the most refreshing Chinese YouTube figure, most people think of Li Ziqi, a Chinese vlogger whose videos focus on the beautiful scenery and the rural life in the Chinese countryside. With more than 7.5 million subscribers on YouTube, Li also has more than 1.9 million likes, and close to 3 million followers on her Facebook page. Experts from China claim that Li Ziqi is a better advocate for Chinese culture than the country's state media.

Li's fans think it is the spirit of craftsmanship behind her works that makes Li's video clips attractive. She strictly follows the authentic traditional steps and procedures in making traditional Chinese food and handicrafts, such as peach flower wine and silk. Sometimes she spends several months producing one of the videos.

Li Zigi's videos are rather unique. Most of the videos have English titles to ensure better recommendations by data platforms. In fact, most of her videos that are produced in a professional and delicate way involve very little speaking at all. Instead，they focus on the visual aspects, and the natural sounds of the landscape. Li's videos convey a more universal message. People can enjoy these videos with little or no background or knowledge about the country. Therefore, Li's videos can be enjoyed by many with different language backgrounds.

1. Who is Li Ziqi？

A．A Chinese director.	B．A Chinese vlogger.
C．A vlog subscriber.	D．A computer programmer.

2. What can we learn about Li Ziqi's video clips？

A．They present the culture of life in urban areas of China.

B．They promote the sales of Chinese food and handicrafts.

C．There are images and natural sounds in her videos rather than language work.

D．They are false rather than honest records of local life in China in her fans' view.

3. What is the author's purpose in writing the passage？

A．To suggest a way of attracting more followers on YouTube.

B．To introduce Li Ziqi's unique tricks of attracting audience.

C．To provide guidance on cooking and making traditional handicrafts.

D．To give an example of how to gain worldwide popularity with short videos