【推荐2】If someone said they’d pay you $1,800 to stay off social media for six years, would you do it? Could you? Sivert Klefsaas did just that.

In 2016, Lorna Goldstrand Klefsaas challenged her 12-year-old son Sivert to stay off social media until he was 18. If he completed the challenge, she’d award him the cash on his eighteenth birthday. On February 19, 2022, Sivert claimed his prize.

Lorna once listened to a radio program called the “16 for 16”, where a mother gave her daughter $1,600 when she turned 16 if she stayed off social media. She decided to up the ante (提价) to two extra years and $200 more.

Sivert said it wasn’t too difficult to live without social media, and he didn’t think about it much during the six years. As a 12-year-old, Sivert said he wasn’t using social media much anyway. “I got to avoid all the unnecessary drama that was on there,” Sivert said. Lorna said she never had to check for any sneakily (偷偷地) downloaded apps. “He’s so competitive; it was definitely more for proving a point,” she said. “It also meant he had more time to focus on his grades and sports instead.”

After Sivert’s success, Lorna took to Facebook to share the challenge. She said it was some of the best money she ever spent. Other parents have seemed interested in trying it out too.

“We are certainly not against social media, but it’s the healthy using of it,” Lona noted. “It’s about not letting yourself get weighed down by (被……拖累) it, or addicted to it, or affected by things that people post.”

Sivert is the youngest of four children, and his three older sisters all used social media growing up. Lorna said there were times she felt her daughters “got too engrossed (沉迷的)” in their apps and feeds. “Social media was affecting their mood, their friendships and was kind of a depressant (镇静剂),” she said. When one of her daughters was 16, Lorna took away her phone because of it. Lorna says her daughter later thanked her for doing so, as it improved her mood.

1. How did Lorna get the idea of challenging her son to stay off social media?

A．Her son was heavily addicted to the Internet.

B．She was inspired by a radio program.

C．Her son failed to focus on his grades.

D．Her son was affected by things that people posted.

2. Why did Lorna refuse to check for sneakily downloaded apps?

A．Because her son had difficulty in using social media.

B．Because she was unwilling to affect her son’s mood.

C．Because she had confidence in her son.

D．Because her son had no interest in the latest trends.

3. What was the reaction of other parents to Lorna’s action?

A．They thought it was worth promoting.

B．They tended to follow her example.

C．They expressed their disagreement with her.

D．They thought it was too challenging.

4. What does the last paragraph indicate?

A．Social media is a great way to establish friendships.

B．Social media helps young people improve their mood.

C．Lorna’s daughter benefits greatly from social media.

D．Social media has a negative influence on teenagers.

【推荐3】A policeman was questioning 3 blondes who were training to become detectives． To test their skills in recognizing a suspect, he shows the first blonde a picture for5 seconds and then hides it．
“This is your suspect, how would you recognize him?"
The first blonde answers, "That's easy, we'll catch him fast because he only has one eye!" The policeman says, "Well．．．uh．．．that's because the picture shows his profile．"
Slightly confused by this ridiculous response, he flashes the picture for 5 seconds at the second blonde and asks her, "This is your suspect, how would you recognize him?"
The second blonde giggles, flips her hair and says, "Ha! He'd be too easy to catch because he only has one ear!"
The policeman angrily responds, "What's the matter with you two? Of course only one eye and one ear are SHOWING because it's a picture of his profile!! Is that the best answer you can come up with?"
Extremely frustrated at this point, he shows the picture to the third blonde and in a very testy voice asks "This is your suspect, how would you recognize him?" He quickly adds, "Think hard before giving me a stupid answer．"
The blonde looks at the picture intently for a moment and says, "Hmmmm…the suspect wears contact lenses．"
The policeman is surprised and speechless because he really doesn't know himself if the suspect wears contacts or not． "Well, that's an interesting answer．．．wait here for a few minutes while I check his file and I’ll get back to you on that．" He leaves the room and goes to his office, checks the suspect's file in his computer, and comes back with a beaming smile on his face． "Wow!   I can't believe it．．．it's TRUE! The suspect does in fact wear contact lenses． Good work! How were you able to make such an acute observation?"
"That's easy," the blonde replied． "He can't wear regular glasses because he only has one eye and one ear．"
1. Why did the policeman show a picture to the three blondes?

A．To inquire about their relationship with the suspect．

B．To test their potential of being detectives．

C．To train them as qualified police officers．

D．To show the skills in recognizing a suspect．

2. What's the policeman's attitude towards the first blonde's answer?

A．Angry．	B．Puzzled．
C．Embarrassed．	D．Satisfied．

3. What did the second blonde think of the task?

A．Demanding．	B．Easy．
C．Ridiculous．	D．Confusing．

4. How did the third blonde know that the suspect wore contact lenses?

A．By coincidence．

B．By random guess．

C．By logical and reasonable analysis．

D．By checking the file in the computer．

【推荐1】A famous doctor once received a little child who was badly ill. Thanks to his skill and care, his young patient got well and was soon able to get up and run about again.
The child's mother was very much obliged（感谢的） to the doctor, and she called on him to thank him for what he had done for her child. "Doctor," she said, "you have saved my little son. I don't know how to thank you enough. I feel that money alone cannot repay（回报） you, so I have made this little purse with my own hands, as a sign of my gratitude. I hope you will accept it." The doctor stood up and said coldly, "Madam, a little present like that is very nice between friends, but a doctor needs to be paid properly for what he has done." The lady was so surprised and hurt so much that she could not reply for a moment. Then she said quietly, "Perhaps you will tell me how much your fee is?"
"Fifty pounds", he answered.
The lady opened the little purse and took out four fifty-pound bank notes. She handed one of them to the doctor, and put the other three back into the purse. She put the purse into her handbag and, saying good bye to the doctor, went out of the room.
1. The lady was thankful to the doctor because ________.

A．he had saved her life

B．he had saved her son's life

C．he had lent her some money

D．he often called on her

2. The doctor refused the lady's purse because he thought ______.

A．the purse should be given between friends

B．the purse was too small

C．the lady was not kind to him

D．the lady just gave him that purse and wouldn't give him the medical fee

3. The money in the purse _______.

A．was only 150 pounds

B．was less than 200 pounds

C．was much more than the medical fee

D．was not enough for the medical fee

【推荐2】A few days ago, my husband, Russ, and I lost our house of 28 years to a California wild fire.

On that night, we had to leave our house and sleep in the back seat of our Ford. The next morning, we had to drive three and a half hours to find a hotel that had a room available. Only later, in the local newspaper, did we see photographs of the destruction. Our house had been consumed by the fire along with most of our neighborhood.

“How are we going to rebuild our house after this?” I thought, rounding a corner on the sidewalk on my walk back to the hotel. “Is it even possible?”

I noticed something up ahead—a pair of nickels, shining like precious jewels. They were just nickels, but they somehow felt special. I bent down and picked them up. If these were lucky coins, I could use all the luck I could get.

A few days later, I made a trip to the store to buy essentials. The enormous task of replacing everything we’d lost put a heavy weight on me. I was about to leave when I felt the urge to stop and turn my head to the right. I could hardly believe it—there on a shelf, was a nickel! “Okay, maybe this is more than luck,” I thought and put the nickel in my pocket.

I told myself that I had found the nickels just by chance. Then I found one next to my plate at a restaurant—on Thanksgiving, when I was missing our house more than ever. It seemed that a nickel appeared whenever my spirits sank.

Whenever I reached my breaking point, I’d find another nickel. In the grass at the park, or near the tire of my car in a parking lot. Once, my change for a quick lunch was given entirely in nickels. “I’m sorry,” the cashier said. “It’s all we have.” “It’s all I need!” I said.

One day, I was sitting at the desk when my phone rang. It was a real-estate agent I’d been working with. “I have a new listing,” she said. “When can we see it?”

A few hours later, Russ and I were following the agent down the driveway toward the house. I didn’t think long. Because there, in the driveway...

1. What can be inferred from the first two paragraphs?

A．The hotel was rather far away from their destroyed house.

B．The author took some photos of the destruction after the fire.

C．The couple saved most of their precious items from the house.

D．The couple spent the night sleeping in a temporary tent after the fire.

2. Where did the author find the first pair of nickels?

A．In front of the hotel.	B．Among the ashes of his house.
C．In the corner of the hotel room.	D．At the corner of the side of a road.

3. How did the author react to the cashier’s giving her change in nickels?

A．She laughed at the cashier.	B．She refused to accept them.
C．She expressed her satisfaction.	D．She threw them on the counter.

4. What might the nickels represent on the author’s mind?

A．Not only victory but also something else.	B．Not only fortune but also something else.
C．Not only strength but also something else.	D．Not only promotion but also something else.

【推荐3】Fifteen years ago, when darkness used to fall in Yobe Nkosi, a remote village in northern Malawi, children did their school homework by candlelight: There was no electricity. But that started to change in 2006, when villager Colrerd Nkosi finished secondary school in Mzimba, and returned home—and found he could no longer live without power.

Aged 23 at the time, Nkosi soon figured out that a stream gushing past the house where he grew up had just enough force to push the pedals on his bicycle. He created a makeshift generator (临时发电机) that brought power into his home. Word spread quickly among the cluster of brick houses and neighbours began paying regular visits to charge their mobile phones. “I started getting requests for electricity and decided to upgrade,” said Nkosi, now 38.

With no prior training, he turned an old fridge compressor into a water-powered turbine and put it in a nearby river, generating electricity for six households. Today, the village is supplied by a bigger turbine, built from the motor of a disused maize seller (玉米剥粒机). The power is carried along metal cables strung from a two-kilometre line of tree trunks topped with wooden planks.

The users pay no fee for the power but give Nkosi some money for maintenance—slightly more than $1 per household per month. “The electricity is basically free,” Nkosi said, speaking in local Chichewa. He admitted that the maintenance income was too small to cover repair costs, which he mainly funded from his own pocket.

Despite the challenges, he is determined to expand his mini-grid to surrounding areas. “Once more villages and schools have electricity, people will no longer cut down trees for charcoal,” he said. “Students will have a lot more time to study.”

As dusk settles over Kasangazi Primary School, chatty groups of learners file into a classroom for a night-time study session. “Before we had electricity here, we used to use candles to study,” said student Gift Mfune, “Now we all have no excuse but to pass our examinations,” he exclaimed.

1. Why did the temporary generator need updating?

A．To make much more money.	B．To meet more people’s needs.
C．To attract more people’s visits.	D．To charge more mobile phones.

2. What can we know about the students in Kasangazi Primary School?

A．They show no concern for their exams.

B．They take little interest in their studies.

C．They feel grateful to Nkosi for his help.

D．They’re sure to have a promising future.

3. Which words can best describe Nkosi?

A．Determined and generous.	B．Easy-going and courageous.
C．Open-minded and tolerant.	D．Intelligent and cooperative.

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

A．The Founding of a Power Station	B．The Contribution of a Young Man
C．The Situation of a Primary School	D．The Development of a Poor Village