【推荐2】Chinese is now the popular language for parents who want their children to learn a second — and sometimes third — tongue.

The sudden rise is likely due to the economic growth of the country as parents want their children to have limitless opportunities in a global economy bringing Asia, the U. S. and Latin America closer together. School districts have expanded Chinese language programmes due to the rise of China in the global economy and students from a variety of backgrounds have joined them.

Parent Karla Godoy, 41, speaks to her son, Paco, in his native tongue English. Her husband talks to him in Spanish and he learns Chinese at his school, Broadway elementary in Los Angeles.

She said, “Mastery of a language spoken by a billion people worldwide will give children an edge in the global economy. With Spanish and Chinese and English, he should be able to do just about anything he wants.”

There are 50 Chinese-language immersion (沉浸式) programs at U. S. schools, compared to a dozen six years ago, said Tara Fortune, immersion project director at the Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition at the University of Minnesota.

To aid teaching, teacher Kennis Wong never speaks English in front of her children, so they get used to only hearing Chinese from her. But that does not stop them from speaking English to each other. In an interview, Wong said she accepts English in her class, but rewards Chinese. And the children are surrounded with Chinese characters on everything from the name cards on their desks to the drawing of a fish on a wall.

The same phenomenon is being seen in other parts of the country. Children from Hmong and Somali immigrant communities are also joining Chinese-language programmes. The number of K-12 public school students in the United States learning a Chinese language rose to nearly 60,000 in 2008, from about 20, 000 in 2005.

1. What is closely related to the economic growth of China?

A．A variety of backgrounds.	B．The rise of learning Chinese.
C．The necessity of studying Latin	D．Limitless learning opportunities.

2. What is Karla Godoy’s attitude towards studying Chinese?

A．Supportive.

B．Unclear.

C．Negative.

D．Unconcerned

3. Compared to six years ago Chinese-language immersion programs’ number at U. S. schools increases by ________.

A．50

B．12

C．6.

D．38.

4. Which language is preferred in Wong’s class?

A．English.

B．Spanish.

C．Latin.

D．Chinese.

【推荐3】At a Loss for Words

Imagine a friend is heading out to face a difficult task. As a last word before they disappear, you want to encourage them. What might you say? If you are speaking English, the likeliest choice is “good luck”.

If you stop to think about it, that is a little odd. Though you might indeed hope luck smiles on your friend, neither they nor you can do much about the probability.     1     That is why the French, in this situation, say “bon courage”, not “good luck”.

English does not allow you to pair any old adjective with any old noun in a fixed expression. You may wish someone “good morning”, “good afternoon” or “good night”, but not “good weekend”.     2     However, in other languages it is perfectly usual.

    3     English-speakers wish each other a happy birthday, but speakers of many other languages say “congratulations” as if the birthday girl had done something impressive merely by surviving another year. The Dutch also say “gefeliciteerd” to members of the family, including the one who really deserves congratulating: the mother. This is close to obligatory(义务的)，while it would come as a strange surprise in English.

It is tempting to draw deep cultural conclusions from the presence of this or the absence of that in a language.     4     For example, the English do say the typical French words bon voyage and bon appétit, and there’s no reason to stop there. Congratulate your mother-in-law on your wife’s birthday, and you can prepare for a delighted smile back. It may seem awkward or tricky at first but you can make it stick if you try.

A．Special occasions are another way in which languages differ.

B．It is natural to be critical of languages that lack expressions you think necessary.

C．What you really want to wish them is courage not fortune.

D．Having no English equivalent is annoying for those who are used to it.

E．You can say that phrase if you like, but your neighbour would look at you strangely.

F．But not having a word for something doesn’t mean you can’t coin one—or borrow it.

【推荐1】Supermarket shoppers could soon be checking the environmental impact of food before putting it in their trolleys, thanks to new research.

Many consumers want to know how their weekly food shop affects the planet. However, reliable information of this kind hasn’t been available because food companies only have to list their main ingredients (原料). The food industry has also been crying out for a new tool and this algorithm (运算法则), which is already being used by some companies to make their meals more eco-friendly, helps fill the gap.

Dr Mike Clark, who led the research at Oxford University, called the tool “a significant step towards providing information that could enable informed decision-making”. The team estimated the composition of 57,000 foods and drinks in supermarkets. It then assessed the impact of growing methods, processing and transport, against key environmental measures including greenhouse gas emissions and impacts on nature. Finally, an eco-score was worked out.

However, the analysis has limits. Under the algorithm, the higher the score, the higher the environmental impact. As expected, foods containing more meat and dairy score much higher than those with more plant-based ingredients. But there was wide variation within specific types. For example, the highest-impact pork sausage scored about a third higher than the least one. And the impact of biscuits rose the more chocolate they contained.

COOK, a frozen food producer looking to diversify away from meat, has worked with the researchers. It wants to explore whether putting eco-labels on its products would help customers embrace a more sustainable diet.

An official from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs welcomed the plan. “We want to give everyone the information to make healthier, greener and more sustainable choices with the food they buy.” However, the researchers don’t foresee eco-labelling becoming compulsory (义务的) in the near future. They want firms to adopt it voluntarily, something they believe would make a difference to the food industry in cutting their environmental footprint.

1. What does the underlined phrase “the gap” in paragraph 2 refer to?

A．Companies’ lack of requirements to label their ingredients.

B．Companies’ lack of tools to make their meals more eco-friendly.

C．Customers’ lack of habits of checking the environmental impact of food.

D．Customers’ lack of reliable information about the environmental impact of food.

2. What is mainly introduced about Dr Mike’s tool in paragraph 3?

A．Its functions.

B．Its limitations.

C．Its operation.

D．Its significance.

3. What does the author want to tell us by the examples in paragraph 4?

A．Higher score indicates higher environmental impact.

B．There can be varied scores within the same type.

C．Small changes in ingredients could make big differences.

D．Plant-based ingredients score lower than meat and dairy.

4. Why do the researchers agree it is up to firms to adopt eco-labelling?

A．They expect for voluntary actions.	B．Producers are still doubtful about it.
C．They are not confident in their research.	D．The government does not approve of it.

【推荐3】A study led by the University of Granada has made sure for the first time the number of steps at which most people can get health benefits. The study has provided the first scientific evidence for how many steps you need to take per day to reduce the risk of premature (过早的) death: about 8,000 steps. Given the length of a human step, taking 8,000 steps is just like walking about 6.4 kilometers a day.

The researchers conducted a systematic literature review and analysis of data from twelve international studies involving more than 110,000 participants. The results are in line with other recent studies, which show that health benefits are got at about 8,000 steps.

“What makes our study different is that, for the first time, we set clear step aims. It shows that measurable benefits can be got with small increases in the number of steps per day, and that for people with low levels of physical activity, every additional 500 steps improves their health. This is good news because not everyone can walk almost 8,000 steps a day, at least not at first, so you can set small, reachable goals and gradually make progress and increase the number of steps per day,” explains Esmée Bakker, one of the lead authors of the study.

So, should we stop walking when we reach around nine thousand steps? “Absolutely not,”   Francisco B. Ortega, another lead author of the study, said firmly. “More steps are never bad. Our study showed that even as many as 16.000 steps a day does not pose a risk; on the contrary, there are additional benefits compared to walking 7,000-9,000 steps a day.”

The study gives people clear and easily measurable goals. Here lies the importance of the study—to provide simple and concrete (具体的) aims for the number of daily steps that people can easily measure with their phones or smartwatches, and thereby contribute to people’s health.

1. What can we learn about the study according to paragraph 1?

A．Its findings were based on scientific evidence.

B．It explored the length of a human step.

C．It proved the benefits of walking.

D．It found a new way to prevent premature death.

2. What does the underlined word “This”   in paragraph 3 refer to?

A．The number of steps is becoming larger.

B．The number of steps is about 8,000 steps a day.

C．The number of the whole steps is about 500 steps.

D．The number of steps with a small increase can get benefits.

3. What is the purpose of the last paragraph?

A．To recommend a way to keep healthy.

B．To show the significance of the study.

C．To encourage people to walk more steps.

D．To prove the contribution of modern technology.

4. In which section of a newspaper may this text appear?

A．Education.

B．Sports.

C．Health.

D．Environment.