【推荐1】We’ve known for years that plants can see, hear, smell and communicate with chemicals. Now, reported New Scientist, they have been recorded making sounds when stressed.

In a yet-to-be-published study, Itzhak Khait and his team at Tel Aviv University, in Israel, found that tomato and tobacco (烟草) plants can make ultrasonic (超声的) noises. The plants “cry out” due to lack of water, or when their stems (茎) are cut. It’s just too high-pitched (音调高的) for humans to hear.

Microphones placed 10 centimeters away from the plants picked up sounds in the ultrasonic range of 20 to 100 kilohertz (千赫兹). Human hearing usually ranges from 20 hertz to 20 kilohertz. “These findings can change the way we think about the plant kingdom,” they wrote.

On average, “thirsty” tomato plants made 35 sounds an hour, while tobacco plants made 11. When plant stems were cut, tomato plants made an average of 25 sounds in the following hour, and tobacco plants 15. Unstressed plants produced fewer than one sound per hour, on average.

Perhaps most interestingly, different types of stress led to different sounds. The researchers trained a machine-learning model to separate the plants’ sounds from those of the wind, rain and other noises of the greenhouse. In most cases, it correctly identified (辨识) whether the stress was caused by dryness or a cut, based on a sound’s intensity(强度) and frequency. Water-hungry tobacco appears to make louder sounds than cut tobacco, for example. Although Khait and his colleagues only looked at tomato and tobacco plants, they think other plants also make sounds when stressed.

If farmers could hear these sounds, said the team, they could give water to the plants that need it most. As climate change causes more droughts (旱灾), they said this would be important information for farmers. “The sounds that drought-stressed plants make could be used in precision agriculture (精准农业),” said Anne Visscher at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in the UK.

Khait’s report also suggests that insects and mammals (哺乳动物) can hear the sounds up to 5 meters away and respond. For example, a moth (蛾子) may decide not to lay eggs on a water-stressed plant. Edward Farmer, at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, is doubtful. He said that the idea of moths listening to plants is “a little too speculative”.

If plants are screaming for fear of their survival, maybe we should be glad we can’t hear them.

1. What did Khait and his team find from their research?

A．Plants made low-pitched sounds when in danger.

B．Plants made ultrasonic noises to communicate with each other.

C．Plants picked up a wider range of sounds when stressed.

D．Plants were able to produce sounds in response to stresses.

2. How did tomato and tobacco plants react to different stresses according to the text?

A．A plant reacted to different stresses with the same sound.

B．Cut tomato plants produced more sounds per hour than water-hungry ones.

C．Cut tobacco plants seemed to make weaker sounds than drought-stressed ones.

D．Tobacco plants might make louder sounds than tomato plants when short of water.

3. What’s the main idea of Paragraph 6?

A．Challenges faced by farmers in the future.

B．The potential applications of the research.

C．Farmers’ contributions to the research.

D．What the future agriculture will be like.

4. The underlined word “speculative” in the second-to-last paragraph has the closest meaning to “______”.

A．practical	B．unsupported
C．surprising	D．complicated

【推荐2】Before birth, babies can tell the difference between loud sounds and voices. They can even distinguish their mother’s voice from that of a female stranger. But when it comes to embryonic learning (胎教), birds could rule the roost. As recently reported in The Auk: Ornithological Advances, some mother birds may teach their young to sing even before they hatch (孵化). New-born chicks can then imitate their mom’s call within a few days of entering the world.

This educational method was first observed in 2012 by Sonia Kleindorfer, a biologist at Flinders University in South Australia, and her colleagues. Female Australian superb fairy wrens were found to repeat one sound over and over again while hatching their eggs. When the eggs were hatched, the baby birds made the similar chirp to their mothers—a sound that served as their regular ＂feed me!＂ call.

To find out if the special quality was more widespread in birds, the researchers sought the red-backed fairy wren, another species of Australian songbird. First they collected sound data from 67 nests in four sites in Queensland before and after hatching. Then they identified begging calls by analyzing the order and number of notes. A computer analysis blindly compared calls produced by mothers and chicks, ranking them by similarity.

It turns out that baby red-backed fairy wrens also emerge chirping like their moms. And the more frequently mothers had called to their eggs, the more similar were the babies’ begging calls. In addition, the team set up a separate experiment that suggested that the baby birds that most closely imitated their mom’s voice were rewarded with the most food.

This observation hints that effective embryonic learning could signal neurological (神经系统的) strengths of children to parents. An evolutionary inference can then be drawn. ＂As a parent, do you invest in quality children, or do you invest in children that are in need?＂ Kleindorfer asks. ＂Our results suggest that they might be going for quality.＂

1. The underlined phrase in Paragraph 1 means＂____________＂.

A．be the worst	B．be the best
C．be the as bad	D．be just as good

2. What are Kleindorfer’s findings based on?

A．Similarities between the calls of moms and chicks.

B．The observation of fairy wrens across Australia.

C．The data collected from Queensland’s locals.

D．Controlled experiments on wrens and other birds.

3. Embryonic learning helps mother birds to identify the baby birds which ____________.

A．can receive quality signals

B．are in need of training

C．fit the environment better

D．make the loudest call

【推荐3】It is well-known that twins are closer to each other than most brothers and sisters -- after all, they probably spend more time with each other. Parents of twins often notice that they develop special ways of communicating: they invent their own words and one can often finish the other's sentence. In exceptional(例外) circumstances(情况), this closeness becomes more extreme: they invent a whole language of their own, as in the case of Grace and Virginia Kennedy from Georgia in the USA, who communicated so successfully in their own special language that they did not speak any English at all until after they started school.

However, these special relationships are the result of lives spent almost entirely in each other's company. What happens when twins do not grow up together, when they are separated at birth for some reason? Are they just like any other strangers, or are there still special similarities between them? Professor Tom Bouchard of the University of Minnesota set out to find the answer to this question. He traced(追踪) sixteen pairs of twins, who were adopted by different families when they were babies, and often brought up in very different circumstances. Each twin was then interviewed about every small detail of their life.

The results of this research make a surprising reading. Many of the twins were found to have the same hobbies, many have suffered the same illnesses, and some have even had the same type of accident at the same point in their lives. One pair of middle-aged women arrived for their first meeting in similar dresses, another pair were wearing similar jewellery. The most incredible (unbelievable) similarities are to be found in the case of Jim Springer and Jim Lewis from Ohio in the USA. The story of the 'Jim Twins' made headline news across USA. Born to an immigrant woman in 1939, and adopted by different families at birth, both babies were named Jim by their new parents.

But what can be the explanation for these remarkable similarities? Is it all pure coincidence, or is the explanation in some way genetic? Research into the lives of twins is forcing some experts to admit that our personalities may be at least partly due to 'nature'. On the other hand, analysts are also anxious to emphasis(强调) that incredible coincidences do happen all the time, not just in the lives of twins.

1. The case of Grace and Virginia Kennedy (Para. 1) is to show that ______.

A．twins communicate with each other in an unusual way.

B．twins are more likely to suffer from speaking problems.

C．most twins have exceptional abilities to invent a new language.

D．twins won’t have an effective communication until they go to school.

2. The purpose of Tom Bouchard’s study is to find ______.

A．what will happen if twins spend lives entirely in the same company.

B．why the 16 pairs of twins have been adopted by different families.

C．whether separated growing up has effect on twins’ special similarities.

D．when the special similarities come into being during their growing up.

3. What does the word “reading” in Paragraph 3 most probably mean?

A．Book.	B．Explanation.
C．Literature.	D．Measurement.

4. According to Tom Bouchard’s research, the special similarities between twins ______.

A．depend on what the twins enjoy and suffer from.

B．can not be proved or accepted by all the experts.

C．result from the twins’ growing up and development.

D．are not closely linked with where the twins are raised.

【推荐1】The science of physics today is as current as the morning newspaper. Indeed, as a result of new advances in physics and their rapid application to inventions designed to satisfy man's wants,the world itself has been changing rapidly. Space technology, industrial technology, and the technology of the home, the farm, the office, the bank, and the department store have all been revolutionized.

Clearly, every grown-up today would understand the world he lives in much better if he knew something about physics. Whether it be Congress(美国国会)voting huge sums of money for warships, space exploration, or atomic energy; the office staff learning to use a new computers; Son Bobby wanting to know about going to the moon; or the housewife learning to operate a electric stove, physics seems to be everywhere.

Teachers in thousands of schoolrooms in America are trying to communicate some of the excitement and importance of these new developments to their students. They know that some of their eager student will someday be scientists and will themselves   then contribute to the development of new knowledge or its application to new things.

But in any case, they can be sure that if they bring a knowledge of science (any science) to their students in meaningful and stimulating ways, they have contributed much to helping each one live a more meaningful life.

1. The application of new advances in physics to inventions        .

A．may solve all the problems in teaching

B．is intended to meet people's needs

C．can help people understand the meaning of life

D．makes people understand the voting rules of the Congress

2. What does the word “themselves” in Paragraph 3 refer to?

A．the teachers giving lessons	B．the students in the classroom
C．some of the eager students	D．all the scientists in physics

3. What do the first two paragraphs mainly tell us?

A．New advances in physics.	B．The science of physics.
C．The use of physics in our life.	D．Modern developments in science.

【推荐2】"Changing the world" might seem like an unrealistic goal. When faced with huge problems such as air pollution or energy shortages, where do you start? Taoyuan-based Gogoro believes you start with a scooter.

Proof of concept In 2015, Gogoro broke onto the scene by releasing an electric scooter called the Smartscooter. Unlike most electric scooters, this one wouldn't need to be plugged in to recharge. Instead, users would stop by GoStations to exchange drained batteries for fully charged ones. Gogoro was taking a risk. If people were not happy with the system of changing batteries the whole project could fail. They didn't need to worry, though. Only one year later Gogoro sold their 10,000th Smartscooter!

Setting the bar Fast forward to 2019 and the release of the Series 3 Smartscooter. Gogoro scooters are as popular and revolutionary as ever. Their bright colors are chosen by Beatrice Santiccioli, a famous color designer who helped shape major brands like Apple, Nike and Swatch. In addition to the scooters' bright colors, plenty of cool accessories (配件) are available so you can make your scooter your own. But most important of all, Gogoro continues to pave the way toward a future of responsible energy consumption.

Looking forward Multiple cities and countries have committed to making their transportation all-electric in the coming years, and Gogoro is helping make that possible. Ordered a package? Companies like DHL and Taiwan Post now have fleets of Smartscooters to make deliveries. Need a ride? Unlock a Gogoro in Berlin, Paris or Madrid, thanks to scooter sharing services. The Smartscooter is definitely ingenious, but there's more "At Gogoro, I think the essential thing is that we want to change how people use energy. And the Smartscooter is only the beginning," says Horace Luke, Gogoro co-founder and CEO. This is where the GoStation comes in.

Tomorrow's energy Gostations are Al-equipped. They track battery health to maximize each battery's life. They recharge batteries during off-peak hours to reduce strain on the city's power grid (输电网). But they also learn when users usually visit and prioritize supplying charged batteries at those times. The fact of the matter is, cities are only getting bigger. There are already dozens of megacities (特大城市) in the world, and there will only be more in the future. Gogoro's dream is the transformation of megacities into smart cities, where power is plentiful and responsible. They hope to be a big part of that transformation.

1. Compared with other electric scooters, the Smartscooter ______.

A．can recharge itself in Gostations in megacities

B．only needs to change batteries in Gostations

C．wouldn't need to be recharged at all in life

D．can be recharged by its users in Gostations

2. Gogoro scooters are popular and revolutionary mainly because ______.

A．their colors are chosen by a famous color designer

B．their colors are different from those of others

C．it is a good way for people to consume energy

D．it can help us solve the problem of energy shortage

3. What can we conclude from the passage?

A．The more megacities there are, the more GoStations may appear.

B．GoStations will soon entirely take the place of traditional stations.

C．People need not go to GoStations especially during peak hours.

D．More megacities will appear throughout the world in the future.

【推荐1】Nowadays, the world is slowly becoming a high-tech society and we are now surrounded by technology. Facebook and Twitter are innovative tools; text messaging is still a somewhat existing phenomenon and even e-mail is only a flashing spot on the screen when compared with our long history of snail mail. Now we adopt these tools to the point of essentialness, and only rarely consider how we are more fundamentally affected by them.

Social media, texting and e-mail all make it much easier to communicate, gather and pass information. But they also present some dangers. By removing any real human engagement, they enable us to develop our abnormal self-love without the risk of disapproval or criticism theatrical metaphor (隐喻), these new forms of communication provide a stage on which we create our own characters, hidden behind a fourth wall of tweets, status updates and texts. This unreal state of unconcern can become addictive as we separate ourselves a safe distance from the cruelty of our fleshly lives, where we are imperfect, powerless and insignificant. In essence, we have been provided not only the means to be more free, but also to become new, to create and protect a more perfect self to the world. As we become more reliant on these tools, they become more a part of our daily routine and so we become more restricted in this fantasy.

So it is that we live in a cold era, where names and faces represent two different levels of closeness, where working relationships occur only through the magic of email and where love can start or end by text message. An environment such as this reduces interpersonal relationships to mere digital exchanges.

Would a celebrity have been so daring to do something dishonorable if he had had to do it in person? Doubtful. It seems he might have been lost in a fantasy world that ultimately convinced himself into believing the digital self could obey different rules and regulations, as if he could continually push the limits of what’s acceptable without facing the consequences of “real life.”

1. The author compares e-mail with snail mail to show ________.

A．the influence of high-tech on our life	B．the history of different types of mails
C．the value of traditional communications	D．the rapid development of social media

2. What can we know about new communication tools?

A．Destroying our life totally.	B．Posing more dangers than good.
C．Helping us to hide our faults.	D．Replacing traditional letters.

3. What is the potential threat caused by the novel communication tools?

A．Sheltering us from virtual life.	B．Removing face-to-face interaction.
C．Leading to false mental perception.	D．Making us rely more on hi-tech media.

4. What can be inferred from the last two paragraphs?

A．Technologies have changed our relationships.

B．The digital world is a recipe for pushing limits.

C．Love can be better conveyed by text message.

D．The digital self need not take responsibility.

【推荐3】Starlink, a new satellite Internet system from the company Space X, is changing the world more quickly than many people expected. Before Starlink, most satellite Internet service was based on satellites that constantly remained above one point on Earth. This means signals from farther away need to travel a long distance, causing delays.

Starlink has a web of satellites moving constantly in a low orbit around the earth. Because the satellites are closer, the speeds are faster. This makes the service better for things that need to happen without delay, like holding meetings over the Internet. Space X isn’t the only company competing to provide this kind of satellite Internet service. For example, One Web is a British company developing a similar satellite Internet service. But Starlink is farther along than most others.

Starlink works in 31 countries, but Space X plans to expand the service to cover the whole world. Space X is also planning to offer service on transportation, like planes, trains, and boats. Starlink has over 2,100 satellites in orbit around the earth. Space X has permission from the US government to send up 12,000 satellites, and it has asked for permission to send up 30,000 more.

Astronomers have complained (抱怨) Starlink satellites make it harder to study things in space without satellites getting in the way. Space X has worked to reduce the light from Starlink satellites. But scientists say the satellites still make their work harder. This will get worse as more satellites fill the skies. There are also worries about Starlink satellites crashing into other satellites or spacecraft. In 2019, a European satellite had to move to avoid coming close to Starlink satellites. Last year, China complained its space station had to move twice to avoid Starlink satellites.

Still, Starlink has been useful in emergencies. Starlink service has helped firefighters battling wildfires in remote areas. When the island nation of Tonga lost Internet service after a volcano eruption, SpaceX provided temporary service using Starink.

1. Why is OneWeb mentioned in paragraph 2?

A．To prove the wide popularity of satellite Internet service.

B．To show the competition among satellite Internet service providers.

C．To display the great difficulty in providing satellite Internet service.

D．To praise Starlink’s great success in providing satellite Internet service.

2. What can be learned about Starlink according to paragraph 3?

A．It has provided service globally.	B．It suffers from signal delays.
C．It consists of several thousand satellites.	D．It is mainly designed for transportation.

3. What problems do Starlink satellites cause?

A．Worsening natural conditions in space.

B．Light pollution and space safety concerns.

C．Rising production costs and light pollution.

D．Stricter control and underdevelopment of space.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．Satellite Internet Service Changes the World

B．Working Principles of Satellite Internet Service

C．Satellite Internet Service Uses Too Many Satellites

D．The Huge Potential for Satellite Internet Service