【推荐1】Why do we dream? It’s a question researchers have been studying for years. Now new research suggests that some dreams may result from the brain’s effort to keep learning, even as we sleep.

In a study in Boston, 100 volunteers were trained for an hour on a maze (迷宫). They tried to find their way through the difficult puzzle as quickly as possible. Then half of the volunteers were allowed to sleep for 90 minutes. The other half stayed awake, reading or relaxing. The ones who slept were asked to describe their dreams when they woke up.

After the rest, the volunteers were asked again to solve the maze. Those who hadn’t slept showed no improvement or did even worse after the break. Sleepers who didn’t report any maze-related dreams did better but showed only a little improvement. However, 4 nap-takers who reported dreaming about maze showed a surprising improvement. They scored 10 times higher after sleeping and dreaming about the maze.

Even though the number of dreamers was small, the researchers noted that the gap in learning between the dreamers and the non-dreamers was so wide that the finding was significant.

The dreamers had all performed poorly on the test before dreaming about it. That suggests that struggling with a task might be the trigger that leads the sleeping brain to focus on it and work on how to deal with it.

“It’s almost as if your brain is going through everything that happened today,” Dr. Stickgold, a scientist at Harvard Medical School, said, “The things you are obsessed (着迷的) with are the ones that your brain forces you to continue to do with. ”

1. What’s the best title of the passage?

A．Learning while you dream.	B．What dreams stand for.
C．Dream a good dream.	D．Dreams and health.

2. What were the volunteers asked to do after the rest?

A．To work on a new maze.

B．To continue to do the maze.

C．To talk with each other about their dreams.

D．To tell what they thought about the maze.

3. According to the study, which group showed the greatest improvement?

A．Those who didn’t sleep.

B．Those who slept but didn’t dream.

C．Those who dreamed about the maze while sleeping.

D．Those who thought about the maze before falling asleep.

4. The underlined word “trigger” in paragraph 5 probably means ________.

A．chance	B．idea
C．way	D．cause

5. In which part of a newspaper would you most probably read this passage?

A．Business	B．Science
C．Education	D．Life

【推荐2】“Inspector Sands to the control room, please.” If you ever hear that at a British train station, don’t panic. But you might appreciate knowing that this is a codeword meant to inform staff that there is an emergency somewhere in the building. The idea is to avoid causing alarm among commuters(通勤者), but still get the message out to those trained to deal with the problem.

The subject of secret codewords like this was raised this week on Reddit, and the discussion has attracted thousands of examples. But what codewords and signs are really out there in the wild?

A good place to start is hospital emergency codes. These are often colour-coded, and one health centre in Canada has published its list online. “Code red” announces a fire, “code white” indicates a violent person while “code black” means a bomb threat is active. It’s been reported that hospital staff sometimes refer to the morgue as “Rose Cottage”, in order to avoid upsetting relatives of a patient who has recently died.

“I can see very good reasons for having these codes,” says Paul Baker, a linguist at the University of Lancaster. “It may be that people are unsure when they’re giving the code so there’s no point upsetting members of the public.”

Not all codes are alphanumeric(字母数字混合的). Some are visual, intended to be hidden in plain sight. As BBC Future discovered earlier this year, many banknotes feature a specific pattern of dots placed there to prevent people from photocopying money. Many copiers and scanners are programmed to spot it.

And finally, the spray-painted squiggles(扭曲的线条) you see on pavements in towns and cities all over the world are codes understood by construction workers and engineers. For example, in UK, different colours are related to different types of cable or pipe. Blue meant a water system while yellow indicated gas lines and green labelled CCTV or data wiring.

All of these codes have a purpose — to avoid causing panic, to transmit subtle signals in social groups, or to provide technical information quickly and easily. “People don’t like secrets, do they?” says Baker. “There is a drive to have as much information as possible — we do live in the information age,” he adds.

1. The following are purposes of the secret codes except ________.

A．to avoid causing alarm and panic among the public

B．to send sensitive signals in social groups

C．to provide technical information quickly and easily

D．to make people believe you are wiser

2. The underlined word “morgue” in Para. 3 refers to the room in a hospital ________.

A．where patients are treated

B．where dead bodies are kept

C．where a patient has an operation

D．where a surgeon cuts open the patient in case of emergency

3. How many kinds of secret codes are mentioned in the passage?

A．2.

B．3.

C．4.

D．5.

4. Which of the following could be the best title of the passage?

A．The Secret Codes You Probably don’t know

B．Where to Find the Codes

C．The Origin of Different Codes

D．Secrets in the Modern Society

【推荐3】Honey from the African forest is not only a kind of natural sugar, it is also delicious. Most people, and many animals, like eating it. However, the only way for them to get that honey is to find a wild bees' nest and take the honey from it. Often, these nests are high up in trees, and it is difficult to find them. In parts of Africa, though, people and animals looking for honey have a strange and unexpected helper - a little bird called a honey guide.
The honey guide does not actually like honey, but it does like the wax in the beehives (蜂房). The little bird cannot reach this wax, which is deep inside the bees' nest. So, when it finds a suitable nest, it looks for someone to help it. The honey guide gives a loud cry that attracts the attention of both passing animals and people. Once it has their attention, it flies through the forest, waiting from time to time for the curious animal or person as it leads them to the nest. When they finally arrive at the nest, the follower reaches in to get at the delicious honey as the bird patiently waits and watches. Some of the honey, and the wax, always falls to the ground, and this is when the honey guide takes its share.
Scientists do not know why the honey guide likes eating the wax, but it is very determined in its efforts to get it. The birds seem to be able to smell wax from a long distance away. They will quickly arrive whenever a beekeeper is taking honey from his beehives, and will even enter churches when beeswax candles are being lit.
1. Why is it difficult to find a wild bees' nest?

A．It's small in size.

B．It's hidden in trees.

C．It's covered with wax.

D．It's hard to recognize.

2. The honey guide is special in the way             .

A．it gets its food

B．it goes to church

C．it sings in the forest

D．it reaches into bees' nests

3. What can be the best title for the text?

A．Wild Bees

B．Wax and Honey

C．Beekeeping in Africa

D．Honey-Lover's Helper

【推荐1】The term “folk song” has been current for over a hundred years, but there is still a good deal of disagreement as to what it actually means. The definition provided by the International Folk Music Council states that folk music is the music of ordinary people which is passed on from person to person by being listened to rather than learned from the printed page. Other factors that help shape a folk song include: continuity (many performances over a number of years); variation (changes in words and melodies either through artistic interpretation or failure of memory); and selection (the acceptance of a song by the community in which it evolves).

When songs have been subjected to these processes their origin is usually impossible to trace. For instance, if a farm laborer were to make up a song and sing it to a couple of friends who like it and memorize it, possibly when the friends come to sing it themselves one of them might forget some of the words and make up new ones to fill the gap, while the other, perhaps more artistic might add a few decorative touches to the tune and improve a couple of lines of text. If this happened a few times there would be many different versions, the song’s original composer would be forgotten, and the song would become common property. This constant reshaping and re-creation is the essence of folk music. Consequently, modern popular songs and other published music, even though widely sung by people who are not professional musicians, are not considered folk music. The music and words have been set by a printed or recorded source, limiting scope for further artistic creation. These songs’ origins cannot be covered and therefore they belong primarily to the composer and not to a community.

The ideal situation for the creation of folk music is an isolated rural community. In such a setting folk songs and dances have a special purpose at every stage in a person's life, from childhood to death. Epic (史诗) tales of heroic deeds, seasonal songs relating to calendar events, and occupational songs are also likely to be sung.

1. Which of the following statements about the term “folk song” is supported by the passage?

A．The International Folk Music Council invented it.

B．It has been used for several centuries.

C．There is disagreement about its meaning.

D．It is considered to be out of date.

2. The author mentions that published music is not considered to be folk music because ________.

A．the songs are generally performed by professional singers

B．the songs attract only the young people in a community

C．the original composer can be easily identified

D．the composers write the music in rural communities

3. What does the passage mainly discuss?

A．The standards of the International Folk Music Council.

B．Themes commonly found in folk music.

C．Influences of folk music on popular music.

D．Elements that define folk music.

【推荐3】Those who make great discoveries must often overcome many challenges along the way — as was the case with the explorer Christopher Columbus. Columbus was born in a port city of Italy in 1451. As a teenager, he loved sailing, and he showed great interest in geography, which inspired him to begin his career as a seaman.

Columbus stuck to searching for a direct sea route to the East Indies by sailing across the Atlantic Ocean. After trying many times, he received financial support from the King and Queen of Spain. On 3 August 1492, he set off from Spain with three ships carrying about 90 crewmen. His adventure was full of challenges: it took longer than expected, they faced the lack of food, and one of the ships was leaking badly, which put everyone on this ship in great danger. The men on board were in panic. Although they faced so many challenges, Columbus managed to keep everyone out of danger with his knowledge and bravery across the ocean. Finally, on 12 October, the crew found land in the distance. Columbus called the natives living on the islands Indians because he believed that he was in the East Indies. However, the shores they had reached were of the Caribbean, not the East Indies.

Between 1493 and 1504, Columbus found more land over the course of the following three voyages. The major contribution of this great explorer is that he “discovered” the New World. His discovery encouraged explorers such as Captain James Cook to explore and discover more vast areas of the world. His voyages opened a new chapter of the Age of Exploration.

1. What’s the main idea of paragraph 2?

A．Introduction to Columbus’ first voyage.

B．Columbus’ preparations for his adventure.

C．The challenges Columbus and his team met.

D．Columbus’ discovery of the New World.

2. According to this passage, many factors contributed to Columbus’ success EXCEPT ________.

A．strong interest in sailing

B．support from the Spanish government

C．rich knowledge and bravery

D．encouragement from other explorers

3. Which of the following words can best describe Columbus?

A．Creative and smart.

B．Determined and adventurous.

C．Caring and patient.

D．Kind and knowledgeable.