【推荐1】One of the newest taboos (禁忌) in American society is the topic of fat. Unlike many other taboos, fat is a topic that America talk about often. It is not taboo to talk about fat; it’s taboo to be fat.
The “in” look is thin. In the work world, most companies prefer youthful-looking, slim executives to sell their image and their products to the public. The thin look is associated with youth, vigor and success. The fat person, on the other hand, is thought of as lazy and lacking in energy, self-discipline and self-respect. After all, people think, how can people who care about themselves, and therefore the way they look, allow themselves to become fat? In an image conscious society like the U.S. , fat is “out”.
It is not surprising, then, that millions of Americans have become obsessed (着迷) with staying slim and “in shape”. The pursuit of youthful physical appearance is not, however, the only reason for America’s obsession with diet and exercise.
Recent research has shown the great importance of diet and exercise for personal health. As in most technologically developed nations, the life-style of North Americans has changed very quickly during the course of last century. Modern machines do all the physical labor that people were once forced to do by hand. Cars and buses transport us quickly from point to point. As the result of inactivity and disuse, people’s bodies can easily become weak and vulnerable to disease. In an effort to avoid such a fate, millions of Americans are spending more of their time exercising.
The effects of this new appreciation of the importance of exercise is clear: parks are filled with joggers and bicyclists, physical education programs are enjoying a newly-founded fame and many companies are providing exercise equipment for their employees to use during the work day.
1. In the United States, fat is something ________.

A．people always talk about

B．not regarded as a taboo topic

C．people usually pay no attention to

D．belonging to the same treatment as other taboos

2. What do Americans think of thin people?

A．Their work helps them to look youthful

B．They are energetic and successful.

C．Their appearances affects their behavior

D．They are lacking in self-discipline.

3. According to Paragraph 4, which of the following is an example of “inactivity?

A．Mary does her housework by hand.

B．Celia takes part in a marathon

C．Cecilia goes to her office by car.

D．Margaret plays badminton every Saturday.

4. Why are parks filled with joggers and bicyclists?

A．Because these parks are fit for sports.

B．Because people are enjoying prestigious status in parks.

C．Because people are taking part in physical education programs.

D．Because people now recognize they should do more exercise.

【推荐2】Taking a break during the workday is important but how often do we actually make the time to do it？For most, an eight-hour workday just doesn't seem like enough and we end up sacrificing moments of peace to make room for more moments of productivity, but according to a new study, skipping that lunch break could actually be hurting our performance.

Amazing as it may seem, taking time away from work to enjoy a short walk or a few minutes of mindful thought throughout the day can actually have positive effects on your end of day concentration and help you feel less tired after you are off work.

Scientists tasked workers in intellectually (智力上地) demanding fields-education, engineering and finance-with taking a short 15-minute walk or doing 15 minutes of mindful thinking during their lunch breaks every day for two weeks.The participants were asked to report how they were feeling near the end of the day during, before and after the study.They also filled out a short questionnaire every night, asking how much they enjoyed their lunch break The results：those who took a break to walk or mindfully relax were significantly less stressed and able to perform better at the end of the workday than those who took no breaks.Mindful relaxation in particular helped people feel less anxious at the end of the day.

According to the study, walk in nature can lead to"attention restoration"—recovery from cognitive（认知的）overload after focus and mindful relaxation can increase our positive feelings, relieve stress and start focus.

So the next time you think you should skip your lunch break to get that big project done, take a breath and consider giving yourself a moment of peace. It might just make you a more productive employee.

1. What phenomenon is mainly described in the first paragraph?

A．Overwork for productivity.

B．Better performance on jobs.

C．Inappropriate working ways.

D．Peaceful work environment.

2. What may make people more relaxed after work?

A．Their walk with their colleagues.

B．Their good food for lunch.

C．Their timely relaxation.

D．Their whole devotion.

3. Why did the scientists test the workers?

A．To check their physical health.

B．To see the effect of lunch break.

C．To see how long they relax daily.

D．To check if they live an active life.

4. What is the author's purpose in writing the text?

A．To tell how to perform better.

B．To show the importance of attention.

C．To introduce the life of employees.

D．To advise people to take a lunch break during work.

【推荐3】The Forbidden City is well known for being full of Chinese cultural and historical relics. But Masters in the Forbidden City (《我在故宫修文物》) does not just focus on the stories of the past.

Instead，the documentary movie，which came out in Chinese cinemas on Dec. 16, focuses on ordinary people—the restorers (修复者) of relics and antiquities (古董).

The stories are told at a slow and relaxed pace, reflecting the restorers’ work. Restoration of cultural relics and antiques can be time-consuming, and sometimes boring. Yet these restorers’ patience and peace of mind are especially precious in a society where everything is changing so fast.

“If you choose this job，you have to stand hours of work sitting on a chair. You need to be quiet and get used to being quiet,” says Wang Jin' an ancient clock repair expert.

A touching part of the documentary is the spirit of craftsmanship (工艺) in the restorers. “Years of humdrum work requires not only skill，but also faith and spirit, China Daily commented. Looking for preciseness and perfection, devoting yourself to work, patience, endurance (忍耐)，loneliness... All these qualities come from the craftsman spirit.”

But unlike the popular idea of serious experts who sit around being serious, the documentary shows off the enthusiasm of the restorers. They play their guitars and make jokes about each other after a long day of restoration work.

One scene that has been very popular with Internet users features a young female restorer riding a bicycle through the empty Forbidden City on a Monday. While she is doing this, a narrator says,”The last person to do this was Puyi, the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty.”

Masters in the Forbidden City has proved wrong many people’s ideas about antique restorers, allowing them to realize that they are not old, dull professors, but people in their 40s, 30s and even 20s who can be quite pleasing to the eye.

1. According to the text，what’s the main purpose of the documentary Masters in the Forbidden City?

A．To show people how antiques are restored.

B．To display relics seldom seen by ordinary people.

C．To draw attention to Chinese antique restorers' lives.

D．To praise the craftsmanship of Chinese antique restorers.

2. Which of the following statements is true?

A．Masters in the Forbidden mainly talks about the story of the past.

B．Masters in the Forbidden talks about the story of serious expert.

C．Masters in the Forbidden shows the enthusiasm of the restorers.

D．The idea of the documentary came out on Dec.16.

3. According to Wang Jin, we can learn that ________.

A．he often gets tired with his work

B．there is no need to do restoration work fast

C．antique restorers need to be patient and peaceful

D．it takes years of hard work to adapt to antique restoration

4. The underlined word “humdrum” probably means ________.

A．boring

B．different

C．relaxing

D．unusual

5. The bicycle-riding scene in the documentary is used to ________.

A．remind the audience of the last Qing emperor

B．show the strange hobbies of young antique restorers

C．encourage the young to consider a career in antique restoration in the future

D．show that the documentary breaks from the old，dull image of antique restorers

【推荐1】Chat GPT is a new AI system that sounds so human in conversations that it could host its own radio programs. Reading between its instantly created, perfectly grammatical lines, people see different visions of the future. Without doubt, Chat GPT is impressive.

Some compare the emergence of Chat GPT to the impact of the iPhone, but that doesn’t do it fair. Chat GPT, as well as the creative AI that will follow and outsmart it, is disruptive. And yet, that doesn’t necessarily mean the end of the world is upon us. On the contrary, Chat GPT, I would argue, might serve to make us more aware of our irreplaceable human qualities.

Take the creative act, writing in particular, as an example. If you want it to, the AI-powered chatbot (聊天机器人) always produces something because it has the whole world of online data to draw from. But unlike us, it lacks the consciousness. Thinking is hard, critical thinking even harder, and Chat GPT isn’t good at either. It just restates what has already been said; it is one big recycling machine.

There is another obvious limitation of Chat GPT. Philosopher Harry Frankfurt once claimed: the difference between a bullshitter (胡说八道的人) and a liar is that the liar knows what the truth is but decides to take the opposite direction; a bullshitter, however, has no idea for the truth at all. Chat GPT will reproduce misinformation from any of its input sources — it is not an intelligent system that tries to balance or weigh different perspectives. In this sense, everything that Chat GPT writes is bullshit.

This is why the so-called AIQ is critical. It is actually an extension and a measurement of our human IQ: our overall knowledge of AI tools, our mastery of information, and our ethical awareness. Chat GPT is going to change everything — and nothing. Creativity, imagination and ethics — these will all remain unique human range. It is the AI’s very limitations that will make us appreciate our own.

1. What can we learn about Chat GPT from the passage?

A．It helps produce an artificial voice.

B．It offers a service for language learning.

C．It provides instructions on writing skills.

D．It produces immediate language responses.

2. What does the underlined word “disruptive” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Evil.

B．Profitable.

C．Revolutionary.

D．Reliable.

3. Why does the author consider Chat GPT as a bullshit creator?

A．It makes up lies constantly.	B．It can’t tell right from wrong.
C．It often makes unfair judgement.	D．It always takes a neutral standpoint.

4. What’s the passage mainly about?

A．Chat GPT is causing panic now.

B．Chat GPT is probable to produce bullshit.

C．Chat GPT should be treated like a toy, not a tool.

D．Chat GPT makes us realize the unique human features.