【推荐2】Planning a family trip? Let the professionals handle it.

In the ever-evolving world of travel, using a travel professional to decode your family vacation options can really pay off. Here are several things to bear in mind:

Is it travel time?

Before the pandemic, planning a vacation took time, knowledge, patience and perseverance. While the pace of change has slowed, keeping track of the global landscape can still be incredible.     1     He or she uses his or her experience and skills to make even the most complicated travel schedule a reality.

Know how it works.

    2     Some get paid by travel suppliers such as a hotel or restaurant. Others charge consulting fees sometimes determined by the number of people traveling and the complexity of the trip. Still, others rely on a combination of both. Families also benefit from top agents’ access to upgrades and value-added options. Should your trip take an unwelcome turn, a good agent will have your back to help with canceled flights, health challenges or the need for a last-minute shift in the travel schedule.

    3    

If you are eager to visit a Disney resort; understand the evolving nature of the cruise world; visit a ski resort or explore a specific city, region or country, using an agent with that specialty can give you a bonus.     4     They’ll know how to book the best cabins, sort through meal and activity options and provide insight into how each member of the family might make the most of the sailing.

Spend your time well.

Whether you’re traveling with the kids or with the extended family for a milestone birthday or anniversary celebration, you no doubt hope to return with treasured memories rather than tales of a trip gone wrong.     5    

With more families learning and working from home, a good agent can help zero in on destinations and lodging options that can maximize your current lifestyle.

A．Choose a specialist.

B．Choose a destination.

C．This is where a travel agent can come into play.

D．Travel agents can provide you with a rewarding holiday.

E．Travel agents earn money by offering their service in various ways.

F．Travel agents benefit a lot from their planning the travel route for you.

G．Those professionals can select the brand that best matches your travel expectations.

【推荐3】How to prepare yourself for a super successful Monday

Remember: the best Monday morning begins on a Sunday evening. While all you want to do is rest and relax, there’s something to be done about planning ahead for your week.     1     Not only will it help lower stress and anxiety levels, but it’ll also remind you that you can do anything you put your mind to.

It’s Sunday, so what? Love your career and love yourself when you love your job. Sunday is just another chance to achieve your goals. You need to get in the right outlook to kick mess and make your Sunday to-do list.     2    

Identify your most important tasks. Open your planner and start by identifying your most important task.     3     So it’s better to plan out how you’ re going to achieve them and write them in your planner ahead of time. Sunday evening is the perfect time to do that.

Get it out of your head. Take some paper or a notebook and write down absolutely everything you need to do during the week. Dump your brain. We can’t stress this enough. A brain dump is the only way you’ll get ahead, and if you set down all you need to do and arrange them properly, you can have a successful week.     4     You can decide which you need to keep and which you want to get rid of.

    5     There are always annoying little things that take away from time on a Monday. You can check through your emails, quickly create some reports and do the things that usually take away from your busy Monday. Once you’ve created more time in your schedule by taking a few things out of your Monday to-do list, you’ll have more time to stay on top of the week and get everything done.

A．Create more hours in your day.

B．Organize and clean your life.

C．Follow me to make a few little adjustments.

D．Getting everything ready beforehand helps a lot.

E．Make a list of all the people you need to make more time for.

F．The real beauty in this comes from being able to look at your tasks objectively.

G．There must be one or two things that you really need to get ahead of on Monday.

【推荐2】The Ultimate Guide for a Successful Road Trip

As we all know, the road trip may be the most popular mode of transport.     1     Here are some helpful tips ahead of going away by car, in the near or distant future.

Make a plan

Planning your trip is the key to staying safe and having fun. Although travel restrictions are changing at a quick pace, it is extremely important to do so.     2     This is a great way to break the journey up while providing a taste of adventure as well.

    3    

Since there has been a rise in staycations (宅度假) in the UK, depending where you are going, you may experience more crowds than usual as well as a higher demand for hotels, landmarks, and pubs. To avoid heavy traffic, it’s better to travel outside of peak times and weekends, as this may have a great impact on travel time.

Pre-trip checks

When going on a long car journey, it is vital that your vehicle is in sound condition beforehand. Ahead of departure, conduct your regular checks by looking over the battery, tyres, and fluids to ensure everything is in order.     4    

Take regular breaks

Drivers should ideally have a rest every 2 hours.    5     Avoid driving for long periods at night-time and try to diversify the scenery, as long straight roads are more likely to cause tiredness.

A．Expect it to get busier.

B．Choose a less taken route.

C．In addition, make sure you have sufficient car fuel.

D．Look ahead for key landmarks or attractions to stop at.

E．What needs to be considered to have a smooth road trip?

F．So planning ahead of time will ensure you get the best price.

G．It includes stretching your legs and getting fresh air, to avoid inflexibility and sleepiness.

【推荐3】Are you a fan of outdoor adventures? Do you enjoy scenic views to relax? Look no further, as the following destinations offer all that and more.

Athabasca Falls

Alberta, Canada

Water from the Canadian Rockies flows down into the waterfalls of Jasper National Park, creating a flow with wild energy. The falls are wheelchairs accessible, with a paved path taking admirers to a number of viewpoints. If visitors leave the path, they can explore both the upper and lower regions of the trail.

Akaka Falls Trail

Hakalau, Hawaii

A short half-mile hike is big on sights and low on hard activity. The well-kept ring like trail guide visitors around to see a number of waterfalls, including the 442-foot main attraction, and beautiful local flora (植物群) among the famous landscape. Though there are no hills to climb, there are a number of stairways to go.

Nugget Falls

Juneau, Alaska

Located in Tongass National Forest about 12 miles from Juneau, the Mendenhall Glacier has produced Nugget Falls, a fan-like waterfall that leads into a lake. A series of short hikes allows for different views of the waterfall and icy surrounds, which are also known for frequent brown bear sightings.

Yosemite Falls

Yosemite Valley, California

Yosemite National Park is one of the oldest national parks in America and home to the fifth tallest waterfall in the world. Hikers can reach it by taking a 1-mile trail from the lodge or the 7.2-mile round-trip Yosemite Falls Trail route. Late spring is best, with the highest water flow. In the winter, the temperatures dip below freezing. A park admission fee applies.

1. Where can visitors expect to see frequent brown bear sightings?

A．Athabasca Falls.

B．Akaka Falls Trail.

C．Nugget Falls.

D．Yosemite Falls.

2. Which season is best for visiting Yosemite Falls?

A．Winter.

B．Spring.

C．Summer.

D．Fall.

3. Where can this text probably be found?

A．In a travel magazine.

B．In a novel.

C．In a history book.

D．In a diary.

【推荐1】Citizen science gives curious people the opportunity to become extra sets of hands, eyes and ears in real scientific research. Bringing many people together to document endangered species, monitor water quality or watch the stars makes it possible to do science on large scales and tackle bigger research questions. Here are just five of the hundreds of citizen science projects that you can participate in.

Nature’s Notebook

Volunteers in this project “take the pulse of the planet” by documenting changes in plants, animals and insects to help scientists understand how ecosystems are being affected by climate change. You can join a regional campaign like Mayfly Watch or Pesky Plant Trackers, or choose from over 1, 400 species to watch in North America. Then, log your observations on the Nature’s Notebook mobile app.

Crowd the Tap

Volunteers test the water and pipes in their homes so researchers can map the pipe infrastructure in the United States and identify polluted water supplies. All you need is a penny and a magnet (to determine whether pipes are made of steel, copper, plastic or lead, which is not always obvious visually) . You can also share observations about your tap water like color, smell and taste. If you live near a participating library or school, you can check out a kit to test your water chemistry.

GLOBE Observer

The NASA-sponsored GLOBE project seeks to understand our changing environment and climate through crowd-sourced observations. The project is app-based, and users can upload observations about clouds, mosquito habitat, trees or land cover to give researchers a global picture of how our planet is changing over time.

The Happiness Project

Help psychology researchers understand the relationship between happiness and decision-making by playing games. All you need to participate is the project’s smartphone app to access games that subtly investigate how players approach risky decisions, while periodically asking them to rate their happiness level. Game and happiness scores become data that researchers use to figure out how expectations contribute to happiness.

Exoplanet Watch

Experiment time on big telescopes like Hubble is precious, so NASA needs backyard astronomers to help researchers narrow down when and where to turn their sights to find planets outside of our solar system. Every day, the project posts new exoplanet targets for volunteers to keep an eye on. If you don’t have a telescope, you can still aid the search by analyzing data from others’ observations.

1. What is the primary purpose of citizen science projects, as described in the article?

A．To provide volunteers with opportunities to learn about scientific research.

B．To allow scientists to rely on volunteers for data analysis.

C．To engage curious individuals in scientific research.

D．To highlight the importance of citizens’ contribution to science.

2. What does the underlined phrase “take the pulse of the planet” mean?

A．Monitor the heart rates of endangered species.

B．Record changes in ecosystems to assess the impact of climate change.

C．Observe the behavior of insects and animals.

D．Launch a campaign to raise awareness about climate change.

3. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Crowd the Tap aims to raise people’s awareness about water-related diseases.

B．Exoplanet Watch relies only on professional astronomers to search for exoplanets.

C．The Happiness Project investigates the relationship between happiness and games.

D．GLOBE Observer collects observations about our changing environment through an app-based platform.

【推荐3】ATTN (Attention): Customer Service

I am writing to you seeking assistance with a problem I have run into with my Mommy. I received my Mommy in 2019 and was immediately pleased with the model. The first year, she worked great and satisfied my needs. However, over the last year, I’ve noticed some changes in her quality.

For example, she used to jump to rescue me whenever I cried and we'd rest in her room until morning. Now I receive a “Go back to sleep!” yell every time I attempt to enjoy her big bed for just one night. I understand the daily use of the big bed is a free gift in a limited period, but I thought that period was automatically extended until YEAR Three! Did I misunderstand the contract (合同)?

I’ve also noticed an increasing delay in my Mommy’s responses during daylight hours. Previously, a tearful scream would bring an immediate reaction and possible solutions including hugs and various funny faces intended to make me laugh, but now she only sighs and rolls her eyes at me when I throw myself on the floor. Have you found this to be a common problem with continued use?

Another cause for concern is my Mommy’s “translation ability”, which I find is increasingly problematic. She will ask me questions like, “Are you ready to wash your hair?” and I’ll always say, “No,” but somehow I still end up with a face full of shampoo every time. This is very frustrating!

Clearly, I’ve raised serious problems. I would suggest that you expand your research to improve the Mommy. In addition, I would appreciate it if you could remove some of the Mommy's most hurtful phrases like, “Just a minute,” “You need to wait,” and “Don’t eat that.”

I anxiously await any information about the automatic updates that might address the issues in my Mommy in the near future.

Sincerely,

Reese

1. We can infer from the text that the letter is written from the perspective (视角) of __________.

A．a child reaching primary school age.

B．a teenager going to high school.

C．a young child no more than three years old.

D．an adolescent having problems with Mommy.

2. How will the Mommy probably react now if the “writer” falls on the floor and cries?

A．She may leave the “writer” alone.	B．She may give some hugs.
C．She may make funny faces.	D．She may laugh at the "writer".

3. Why does the “writer” think the Mommy’s “translation ability” is problematic?

A．Because the Mommy keeps asking questions.

B．Because the Mommy doesn't do as the “writer” desires.

C．Because the Mommy always make mistakes in translating.

D．Because the Mommy doesn’t understand their conversation at all.

4. Which of the following might be a suitable title for the text?

A．A contract that is mistaken.	B．Help! My Mommy is broken!
C．A study on the usage of the Mommy.	D．Can I return the Mommy?