【推荐2】For those who are too young to know what a Tamagotchi is, it’s an egg-Shaped plastic device with a black-and-white screen on which appears a little pixelated (像素化的) pet. With the three buttons below the screen, you can feed the pet, care for it and clean up its mess. And just like a real pet, it gets sick and dies if neglected.

When it was first released by Japanese company Bandai in 1997, this virtual (虚拟的) “pocket pet” was so popular with school children that it was frequently sold out at stores all over the world. For many people, the Tamagotchi was their first ever experience of raising and caring for a “pet”.

A lot has certainly changed in the last 20 years — especially when it comes to technology — so would it be a good idea to reintroduce the Tamagotchi to today’s world?

Bandai obviously thinks so since it’s going to re-release it next month, marking the device’s 20th anniversary. “We are going after that nostalgia,” said TaraBadie, director of Tamagotchi’s brand management, according to The Verge.

Modern features:

Nostalgia is all the rage these days. Just look at Nintendo’s Pokemon Go — the 2016 smartphone game originated from its 1996 version — and Nokia’s 2017 version of the 3310 — the mobile phone released in 2000 that it seems nearly everyone in the world owned. But these companies didn’t just simply copy from the past — they managed to update the old version and adapt it for the modern world.

With Pokemon Go, Nintendo successfully combined cutting-edge (前沿的) argumented reality (增强现实) technology with the game’s original storyline.

“Pokemon Go tells us about the future of software and the nature of reality-and how they integrate (整合) into what we think of as entertainment,” technology writer Om Malik wrote on The New Yorker.

And although Nokia’s new 3310 stayed faithful to the original phone’s design, it added a few modern features like a color screen, camera and internet access. It even kept the symbolic game Snake, which many of today’s adults would have spent hours playing as teenagers.

But while nostalgia is certainly a selling point to many people, not everyone is a fan.

“I'm so sick of nostalgia as a ploy (噱头) for profit. From the ‘Make America Great Again’ slogan, to the endless Star Wars and X-Men movies, we’ve become a world obsessed with looking backward for lazy sources of joy”, wrote tech reporter Thomas Ricker on The Verge.

But will the magic of nostalgia work with the Tamagotchi? According to Julia Alexander, editor for video website Polygon, it seems pretty unlikely.

After trying the new product, Alexander soon found out that little has been changed since the original.

“I grew up and, unfortunately, the Tamagotchi didn’t,” she wrote.

So when it comes to nostalgia, maybe the fond memories of our favourite childhood products are best left as that-fond memories.

1. What is the author’s main purpose in writing the passage?

A．To promote the new Tamagotchi.

B．To compare some hit video games.

C．To explore why “nostalgia” is valued these days.

D．To analyze whether it was wise to bring the Tamagotchi back.

2. According to the text, the success of Pokemon Go and Nokia’s new 3310 lies in the fact that they both_________.

A．use argumented reality technology

B．look exactly the same as the original version

C．made creative adaptations from the old version

D．changed what we think about entertainment

3. Why isn’t Thomas Ricker a fan of using nostalgia for profit?

A．It could make people less inventive.

B．The original products were often bad.

C．It could make people become addicted to the past.

D．It ruins our tonal childhood memories.

4. It can be inferred from the passage that the author__________.

A．isn’t completely supportive of re-releasing old products

B．believes that nostalgia is a great selling point

C．believes the new Tamagotchi will appeal to the public

D．loves products that can help revive her good memories

【推荐3】When it comes to writing work emails, there are many rules to follow. In the past, people always wanted to come across as someone who’s calm and professional, which workplace manners experts say means they wanted to hold back their love for emoticons while on the job.

But language is always changing, and a recent national survey in the US found that 76 percent of Americans said that they had used emoticons in digital communication at work. The most popular emoticon is the happy face.

Lindsey Pollak, a US career coach who works with Millennials (千禧一代), has also noticed that emoticons have gone from being inappropriate for the workplace to being accepted. The reason behind this, according to her, is largely due to the changing of people in a particular age group of the workforce. Millennials are now the biggest generation in the American workforce. “A few years ago, emoticons were absolutely seen as very young and very personal,” Pollak said. “Over the past few years... I've seen emoticons become more acceptable. I see them more frequently not just from Millennials but from all generations at the workplace.”

“People tend to use emoticons to just add that little bit of extra change in the tone when there's something awkward or potentially offensive, or when they might take in things in the wrong way,” explains Lauren Collister, a sociolinguist. In life and work, many of us have used emoticons to send positive atmosphere or soften statements.

Pollak, however, warns against being too casual at work. Her advice is to be aware of who the audience is. “Frankly, I wouldn’t use a happy face with any CEO in the US. I wouldn’t use a happy face with the people of a certain level no matter how commonplace and acceptable it has become,” she said. “You can make or break a relationship with one email these days.”

1. What does the author say about past working people?

A．They avoided using emoticons at the workplace.

B．They used more serious emoticons.

C．They were not fond of emoticons.

D．They were calm and professional.

2. What can people use emoticons to do at the workplace?

A．Make it personal to communicate.

B．Keep up with the trend of the times.

C．Help them share their ideas and feelings.

D．Show a positive attitude to the receiver.

3. What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．Emoticons should be used with caution.

B．There are strict limitations on emoticon using.

C．All the US CEOs are against the use of emoticons.

D．Emoticons can greatly help bring people close.

4. What’s the writer’s attitude towards the use of emoticons at work?

A．Subjective.

B．Objective.

C．Doubtful.

D．Opposing.

【推荐1】Every kid wishes to be an adult. Do you remember playing house as a child-pretending to be a grownup like your parents? Did you imagine you were a doctor, a soldier or a teacher? At that time, anything seemed more exciting than being young. But now some grownups become “kidults”（kid+adult), who participate in the culture and activities traditionally intended for children.     1    

Some kidults collect toys they once played with.     2    It is not unusual to see a 20- something woman with a big, Snoopy-shaped cushion(坐垫）on her sofa or a Hello Kitty mobile phone accessory(配件）。

    3     For example, Bloomsbury even published the Harry Potter novels with an adult cover. That way, no one else on the subway will know that an adult is actually reading a children's book!

“Kidults can be like vitamins to society. Adults who value their childhood and hold on to pure, childlike emotion may be needed in such a rough and dry society,”said Lee Sojung, professor of Foreign Studies at Hankuk University.     4    It could give children and their parents books; movies, and cartoon shows to enjoy together. He may be right.

Tim Greenhalgh, a professor in London explained that some kidults just refused to grow up.    5     Kidults would like to forget their age and openly show their fear of society and adulthood. “So, they can escape from increasingly complex and stressful lives that are hard to deal with,” Greenhalgh said.

A．They find they cannot leave childhood behind

B．Other kidults still enjoy children's stories and fairy tales.

C．Kidults often run into the problem of finding a job at their level.

D．They do so because life in a busy and stressful city frightens them.

E．Hello Kitty, Garfield, and Snoopy have many adult fans around the world.

F．He added that kidult culture may fill the generation gap between adults and kids.

G．They may not be great parents as well as able to take on adult responsibilities.

【推荐2】Food waste is a huge problem, especially in grocery stores. Americans waste about 40% of their food every year.     1       There are several factors that contributed to   this colossal amount of waste.

Misleading labels

There is a big difference between a sell-by date and a use-by date. When a sell-by date passes, it doesn’t mean that the food is unsafe to eat. However, many people still think that they have to toss it. Grocery stores sometimes throw away food simply because it’s getting close to the sell-by date.    2     The Daily Table is a non-profit grocery store in Massachusetts that collects food from other grocers that is close to its sell-by date and sells it at a deeply-discounted price. This both provides food to people at low costs and keeps it from being thrown away.

    3       Denmark has a volunteer-run food waste supermarket and is planning       on opening two more. The Real Junk Food Project in the UK just opened its first food waste supermarket, where items have no set prices. Shoppers are allowed to pay what they can for the food.

Imperfect produce

    4     Yet   in grocery   stores   most produce looks identical.   Some food in     grocery stores gets thrown out because it’s imperfect, or it doesn’t “look good.” The food is still fine to eat, but often ends up in the trash. The non-profit End Food Waste has a list of retailers all over America that sell imperfect produce. They also have a petition that you can sign which asks major grocery stores to consider selling imperfect food.

There are also subscription services where you can get “ugly” produce delivered to your door. Imperfect Produce and Hungry Harvest are both organizations working to recover food that would otherwise be thrown away.    5    

Consumer action

Not all the blame for food waste belongs to grocery stores. As consumers we can help to influence the type of food that stores sell. By buying food in less excess, food that is close to the sell-by date, and imperfect produce, we can help reduce food waste.

A．This idea has been gaining ground in Europe, as well.

B．Produce rarely grows in a way every plant looks the exact same.

C．There are several companies working to recover out-of-date food.

D．In 2008, 43 billion pounds of perfectly good food were thrown out of grocery stores.

E．This is a great way to reduce the waste of short-lived foods, which food banks often can’t accept.

F．A new law passed by the Senate makes it illegal for supermarkets to throw away or destroy unsold food.

G．Just one quarter of all wasted food could feed the 795 million people around the world who suffer from hunger.

【推荐3】Traffic Regulation and Accident Prevention

We live in a remarkable time, and many of the once fatal diseases can now be cured with modern medicine and surgery.     1     Expectations of life have greatly increased. But though the possibility of living a long and happy life is greater than ever before, every day we witness the incredible killing of men, women and children on the roads. Man fights against the motor-car. It is a never-ending battle which man is losing.     2    

Nothing can seriously increase your risk of potentially fatal car accidents other than speeding and failing to pay due attention to weather conditions.     3     There is no doubt that the motor-car often brings out a man’s very worst qualities. Usually quiet and pleasant people, when they are behind the steering wheel, will become unrecognizable. They are impolite, aggressive, self-willed like two-year-old, completely selfish. All their hidden frustrations, disappointments, and jealousy seem to be caused by driving.

    4     It’s all for his own convenience. Due to a serious tragedy, the city is almost uninhabitable and the huge parking lot makes the town ugly. The destruction of rural areas and the annual mass killings are just a statistic, easily forgotten. With regard to driving, the laws of some countries are not strict and even the strictest are not strict enough.

Traffic rules are for everyone to follow under any circumstances, and no one can make an exception unless you make a joke of your own life. Universally accepted standards can only have a significant beneficial on the incidence of accidents. Governments should develop safety codes for manufacturers.     5     These measures may sound cruel. However, if these measures result in a reduction in the loss of life every year, they should certainly not be considered serious. After all, the world belongs to humans, not cars.

A．There are five reasons for the accident and you are guilty.

B．Every year thousands of people are horribly killed, and we sit still and let it happen.

C．Surprisingly, society should smile at the driver and forgive him.

D．Someone has rightly said that when a person is sitting behind the steering wheel, his car becomes an extension of his personality.

E．All advertisements that emphasize power and performance should be banned.

F．It is time to develop a universal norm to reduce this senseless waste of human life.

G．It is almost certain that one day a cure will be found for the rest of the diseases.