【推荐1】MEGHAN YOUNG is a professional Instagram star. She gets paid to climb beautiful mountains, photograph their glittering (闪闪发光的) summits and post about her adventures to her fans.

Young graduated from Seattle University’s school of Law in 2015. But she decided she didn’t want to become a lawyer. Her parents were shocked by the decision. “They were worried about what I was going to do,” Young says. “How was I going to find career stability?”

But her legal skills haven’t gone to waste. Once companies express an interest in working with her, there’s the tough task of negotiating the terms (条款) of the deal. And the work is still unfinished even after she’s done take the photos. When Young returns from her adventures, she carefully edits the images and writes captions to go along with them. Once the posts are public, businesses sometimes don’t pay on time. That's when she needs to follow up. Her least favorite problem is when she discovers that a company has used her photos in a way that violates the terms of the contract.That usually leads to time-consuming email exchanges.

Social media influencing is not as effortless as it seems. The stress it creates even has its own name: creator burnout (精疲力竭) . Young used to obsessively check her post’s performance, which she says will “drive you crazy”, so she stopped. But if she doesn’t reply, people will stop commenting.Without that engagement on her posts, brands won’t want to keep paying her. Therefore, she had to accept the fact that she’ll be tethered (拴住) to her phone as long as she’s in this line of work.

Beyond the day-to- day headaches of a career online, social media’s inherent (固有的) uncertainly also poses problems for creators. There are times when Young is staring at the calendar without another project in the works. In the long term, it can be risky to focus a career on a single platform, or even on social media itself.

Yet Young says it’s all been worth it, because the sponsorship allow her to spend much of her life in the mountains. Her ideal day starts with unzipping her tent at dawn so she can take pictures of the sunrise reflecting on snowy summits around her. Few jobs in the world would allow her to do that so consistently (一贯地) .

1. What is paragraph 3 mainly about?

A．The main work involved in being an Instagram influencer.

B．The difficulties that every Instagram star will meet.

C．How to deal with dishonest companies.

D．How Meghan Young’s legal skills help her work.

2. According to the article, all of the following are problems with being a social media influencer EXCEPT__________.

A．there are a lot of tough tasks when dealing with sponsors.

B．the work of photo-taking and image-editing is difficult to handle.

C．it is stressful to check one’s phone and to interact with fans all the time.

D．the income is unstable and the career prospects are uncertain.

3. According to the article, what is Meghan Young’s attitude toward her career as a full-time influencer?

A．Bored.	B．Worried.
C．Satisfied	D．Confident.

4. According to the article, which of the following statements is true?

A．Meghan Young’s decision to be a full-time influencer was supported by her parents.

B．It happens frequently that Meghan Young doesn’t get paid on time.

C．It is impossible for Instagram influencers to put down their phones.

D．In order to increase their influence, creators have to keep a good relationship with fans.

【推荐3】Among the coronavirus’s many effects is a boom (突然风靡的时期) in remote workers, who try to get accustomed to a work-from-home lifestyle. Matt Mullenweg, CEO of a software company, said that “it might offer an opportunity for many companies to finally build a culture that allows long-overdue work flexibility.”     1    

Research shows that remote workers gain in productivity. A study led by the Stanford professor Nicholas Bloom examined remote workers at a Chinese travel agency.     2     But research also shows that they often miss in creativity thinking. Steve Jobs believed that Apple employees’ best work came from accidentally bumping into other people.     3     Mr. Jobs said, “You run into someone, you ask what they’re doing, you say ‘Wow,’ and soon you’re cooking up all sorts of ideas.”

    4     That’s a good thing if you’re a boss looking to squeeze extra efficiency out of your employees, but less ideal if you’re someone trying to achieve some work-life balance. Mr. Bock, who was previously Google’s top human resources officer, said that for most people, balancing office work with remote work is good.     5     It’s enough to participate in office culture, with some time reserved for deep, focused work.

A．Remote workers also tend to take fewer sick days.

B．Some people are less productive if they work at home.

C．Creativity comes from random meetings and discussions.

D．So it will be an exciting time for some fans of remote work.

E．Many people find it hard to balance their work and their home lives.

F．It found that they were 13 percent more efficient than the office-based ones.

G．The perfect amount of work-from-home time is one and a half days per week.

【推荐1】Phys ed (physical education) is making a comeback as a part of the school core curriculum, but with a difference.    1    Instead of learning how to climb a rope, children are taught to lift weights, balance their diets and build physical endurance. In this way, kids are given the tools and skills and experiences so they can lead a physically active life the rest of their life.

    2    In many cases, that may mean not just replacing the old gym-class model with fitness programs but also starting up phys ed programs because school boards often “put P.E. on the chopping block, cutting it entirely or decreasing its teachers or the days it is offered,” says Alicia Moag-Stahlberg, the executive director of Action for Health Kids. The difference in phys ed programs is partly due to the lack of a national standard. “Physical education needs to be part of the core curriculum,” she added.

The wisdom of the new approach has some scientific support. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin have showed how effective the fit-for-life model of gym class can be.    3     The researchers also found that teaching sports like football resulted in less overall movement, partly because some reluctant students were able to sit on the bench.

Another problem with simply teaching group sports in gym class is that only a small percentage of students continue playing them after graduating from high school.     4    

A．The new method teaches skills that translate to adulthood.

B．While group sports are still part of the curriculum, the new way is to teach skills that are useful beyond gym class.

C．Research shows that fit kids learn best, and that exercise has a positive impact on brain chemistry and function.

D．Health and physical education provides students with the knowledge, skills and attitude necessary to create and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

E．They observed how 50 overweight children lost more weight when they cycled and skied cross-country than when they played sports.

F．Considering that 15 percent of American children aged 6 to 18 are overweight, supporters say more money and thought must be put into phys ed curriculum.

【推荐2】Music died here last spring, or rather, it was killed by members of the school committee who ignored the importance of music and drama as part of the high-school curriculum.
The committee decided that teaching students how to take a standardized test is more important than a curriculum in which students can explore their interests in the arts as well as academics. Because the school system is running out of funding, it needs to make sure that students pass the mastery test or even more money will be lost. If students fail the state standardized test, it is not the fault of drama and music classes— they are failing because the “ academic” classes are not sufficient.
It is painful to think of how many students will be discouraged from singing, acting, and playing instruments because school programs are no longer offered. Many families cannot afford private music lessons, and many potential musicians and artists may not find their calling if they are not exposed to it in school. The fact that the school committee thinks the arts are not worth the investment will certainly make some students believe the arts are not worth their time or support and the cycle will continue.
Teaching for a test does not shape students into complete, well rounded people. It blocks the natural sense to create and express feelings through art— there is more to life than the analytical thinking that math and English provide. What happens after a test? Sure, a student might graduate, but they will have limited knowledge — certainly not a good preparation for the real world.
1. Music and drama are not included in the high-school curriculum mainly because________.

A．the school committee pays no attention to them

B．the school is afraid of losing financial support

C．the students are not interested in both of them

D．the state standardized test is more important.

2. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The sufficiency of the classes determines students’ performance in the mastery test

B．students can be musicians and artists only if they can afford private music lessons

C．The school committee completely influences students’ attitude towards the arts

D．Quite a few students are discouraged from music and art in today’s school system.

3. We can learn that music and art can ________.

A．make students round-shaped people in future

B．provide students with analytical thinking

C．motivate students in creativity and expression

D．prevent students graduating from high school

4. The best title of the passage can be ________.

A．Who Killed Music and Drama?

B．Can Curriculum Go Without Music?

C．Why is Music So Important?

D．How To Prepare For the Real World?

【推荐3】Physical education, or PE, isn’t required for all high school students. In some schools, it isn’t offered for some different reasons. But should high school students have physical education? The answer is certainly “yes”.

Today many people don’t do sports. But as is known to all. doing sports is very important for an adult. Teaching teens the importance of a healthy lifestyle and making fitness plans now can help teens put exercise in the first place as an adult.

High school isn’t that easy. Many students are under a lot of stress. Stress can be harmful to a student’s studies and life. Doing sports can help them deal with stress better, helping them live a happier life at school.

The American Heart Association says that 10 million kids and teens suffer from obesity (肥胖). Teens should get 60 minutes of physical activity per day to control their weight and to help their bones get stronger. The increase in activities that don’t get teens to move around, such as computer games, means many teens don’t get their required exercise. PE classes act as a public health measure (措施) to encourage physical activities and help teens have healthy weights.

Not doing sports increases teens’ hazard of developing many diseases. An active lifestyle offers a good way of protection from these health problems. As much as 75 percent of health-care spending goes toward treating medical conditions that can be prevented by lifestyle changes, according to the American College of Sports Medicine.

According to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition (PCFSN), students who performed five hours of physical activities each week improved their academic (学业的) performance. Students from programs with no physical activity, who used the extra time for classroom study, did not perform better on tests than those who gave up some study time in support of physical education.

1. According to Paragraph 2, what does physical education in high school mean?

A．Making teens attach importance to ęxercise later.

B．Removing the stress faced by teens at school.

C．Getting teens to encourage adults to exercise.

D．Helping teens learn to make good plans

2. What does the underlined word “hazard” in Paragraph 5 mean?

A．Happiness.

B．Risk.

C．Safety.

D．Sadness.

3. According to the PCFSN, doing sport          .

A．means making students choose between sports and studies

B．helps students make good use of all their time

C．means students adjust to their studies better

D．helps students do better in their studies

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．Why high school students should receive physical education.

B．Why some schools consider physical education important.

C．How schools can help students love doing sports.

D．How high school students can live a better life.

【推荐1】Having worked at a 7-Eleven store for two years, I thought I had become successful at what our manager calls “customer relations”. But the other night an old woman shattered my belief that a glib(非诚恳的) response could smooth over the rough spots of dealing with other human beings.

The moment she entered the store, the woman presented a sharp contrast to our shiny store with its bright lighting and neatly arranged shelves. On a zero-degree night, she was wearing only a faded print dress, a thin sweater too small to button, and black slippers with the backs cut out to expose heels. There were no stockings or socks on her blue-veined legs.

After strolling around the store for several minutes, the old woman stopped in front of the rows of canned vegetables. She picked up some corn niblets and stared with a strange intensity at the label. At that point, I decided to be a good employee and asked her if she needed help.

“I need some food,” she muttered(嘟囔) in reply to my bright “Can I help you?”

“Are you looking for corn, ma’am?”

“I need some food,” she repeated. “Any kind. But I can’t pay.” She said.

For a second, I was tempted to say, “Take the corn.” But the employee rules flooded into my mind. I responded dutifully, “ I’m sorry, ma’am, but I can’t give away anything for free.”

The old woman’s face collapsed a bit more, and her hands trembled as she put the can back on the shelf. She shuffled(蹒跚) past me toward the door, her torn and dirty clothing barely covering her bent back.

Moments after she left, I rushed out the door with the can of corn, but she was nowhere in sight. For the rest of my shift, the image of the woman kept coming to my mind. I had been young, healthy. She had been old, sick and desperate. Wishing with all my heart that I had acted like a human being rather than a robot, I was saddened to realize how fragile a hold we have on our better instincts(本能).

1. What does the underlined world “shatter” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?

A．Maintain.	B．Hold.
C．Break.	D．Lose.

2. What do we know about the old woman according to the text?

A．She was attracted by the shiny store with neatly arranged shelves.

B．She left the store in disappointment without any food.

C．She declined the writer’s offer of a can of corn.

D．She was very healthy and was not afraid of the cold weather.

3. Why didn’t the writer give the old woman the food for free?

A．He was actually very mean.

B．He followed the employee rules.

C．He disliked the woman’s appearance.

D．He wanted to give her after she went out of the store.

4. What’s the best title for the text?

A．A Lady and I	B．Working at A Store
C．Sadness	D．If Only ……

【推荐3】Shot in more than 40 locations in L.A., the musical La La Land is “a love letter to the city”. To coincide with UK release, we asked a local writer to pick some of the film’s amazing settings.

Judge Harry Pregerson Interchange

La La Land’s opening scene is a six-minute dance that plays out in L.A.’s bad traffic. It is also where the film’s leading roles, struggling actress Mia and jazz pianist Sebastian, first encounter each other—in a road anger incident. The scene is said to have been filmed over two hot days in south L.A.

Smokehouse Restaurant, Burbank

This is the setting for the scene in which Mia discovers Sebastian’s talent for the piano. The fictional Lipton’s restaurant---where jazz purist Sebastian was reluctant to play Christmas music---is in reality a place long frequented by actors, producers and other show business types. It has been on this spot, across the street from the Warner Bros studio, since 1949. In the film, the outer wall of Lipton’s is the You are the Star mural (壁画). which features Marilyn Monroe, Charlie Chaplin and others, which is on the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Wicox Avenue in Hollywood in reality.

Warner Bros Studios, Burbank

Mia works at the studio’s coffee shop, where Sebastian comes to meet her. As they wander the studio’s lot, Mia points out “ the window that Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman looked out in Casablanca.” It’s one of the film’s numerous nods to movie history. Warner Brons is still a working studio, with 35 sound stages, 14 exterior sets and visitor tours.

Cathy’s Corner, Mount Hollywood Drive

This section of the road that winds through Griffth Park is the setting of their dance play. It overlooks the San Fernando Valley and features on the film poster. Cathy’s Corner is near famed Mulholland Drive, but prepare for disappointment if you’re expecting a park bench and street lamps, which only exist in the movie.

1. In order to encounter some film stars, you may go to _______.

A．Judge Harry Pregerson Interchange

B．Smokehouse Restaurant

C．Warner Bros Studio

D．Cath’s Corner

2. Mia mentioned the underlined sentence so as to _______.

A．stress Warner Bros is still in function

B．show respect for movies of previous generations

C．illustrate La La Land was filmed at Hollywood Center Studios

D．compare Mia and Sebastian’s love story with Humphrey and Ingrid

3. In which section of a website can you most probably find this passage?

A．Nature and Environment.	B．City and Transport.
C．Travel and Recreation.	D．Food and Health.