【推荐1】Here's why Disney World doesn't have mosquitoes(蚊子)

There is a lot that goes into making Disney World the "Most Magical Place on Earth”. Considering Walt Disney World is in Central Florida, and has various amusement parks at Walt Disney World, there is one thing missing from the huge property that you may not have even noticed: mosquitoes.     1    .

Naturally, this is due to efforts from Walt Disney World staff to ensure health among guests and a uniform consumer experiences.    2    Disney employs a project called the “Mosquito Surveillance Program“ which can avoid the noisy pests and keep visitors safe from the threat of disease.

    3    Mosquitoes are attracted to the gas, which is one reason why they are so good at finding humans, as we breathe it out constantly. Once caught, the mosquitoes are then frozen and studied in labs where experts discover the best ways to keep mosquitoes off of our skin when we arrive on-site.

    4    Due to the birds' immunity to mosquito-borne viruses such as West Nile they can be used to observe the presence of the virus without experiencing any harmful symptoms(症状)after that. The chickens are kept in cages, unlike flying birds that would travel long distances. So, if a virus is detected, it is easy for Disney to find out exactly which part of their parks has been affected by viral mosquitoes.

Occasionally, Disney has had to close certain sections of their park during the busiest times.     5     It's time of year when we can finally get back outdoors in Disney with family and friends without worry.

A．So, how do they manage to do it?

B．Mosquitoes are found throughout the world.

C．The warm damp air attracts a lot of mosquitoes.

D．Additionally, Disney keeps chickens throughout the parks.

E．It is to search for mosquitoes and revise events by moving outdoor equipment inside.

F．Across the numerous parks at Disney World are more than 60 CO2 catching devices.

G．Though mosquitoes haven't been completely swept away, they are really hard to find.

【推荐2】There was a time not long ago when new science Ph.D.s in the United States were expected to pursue a career path in academia (学术界). But today, most graduates end up working outside academia, not only in industry but also in careers such as science policy, communications, and patent law. Partly this is a result of how bleak the academic job market is, but there’s also a rising awareness of career options that Ph.D. scientists haven’t trained for directly—but for which they have useful knowledge, skills, and experience. Still, there’s a huge disconnect between the way we currently train scientists and the actual employment opportunities available for them, and an urgent need for dramatic improvements in training programs to help close the gap. One critical step that could help to drive change would be to require Ph.D. students and postdoctoral scientists to follow an individual development plan (IDP).

In 2002, the U.S. Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology recommended that every postdoctoral researcher put together an IDP in consultation with an adviser. Since then, several academic institutions have begun to require IDPs for postdocs. And in June, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) Biomedical Research Workforce Working Group recommended that the NIH require IDPs for the approximately 32,000 postdoctoral researchers they support. Other funding agencies, public and private, are moving in a similar direction.

IDPs have long been used by government agencies and the private sector to achieve specific goals for the employee and the organization. The aim is to ensure that employees have an explicit tool to help them understand their own abilities and aspirations, determine career possibilities, and set (usually short-term) goals. In science, graduate students and new Ph.D. scientists can use an IDP to identify and navigate an effective career path.

A free Web application for this purpose, called myIDP, has become available this week. It’s designed to guide early-career scientists through a confidential, rigorous process of introspection（内省）to create a customized career plan. Guided by expert knowledge from a panel of science-focused career advisers, each trainee’s self-assessment is used to rank a set of career trajectories（轨迹）. After the user has identified a long-term career goal, myIDP walks her or him through the process of setting short-term goals directed toward accumulating new skills and experiences important for that career choice.

Although surveys reveal the IDP process to be useful, trainees report a need for additional resources to help them identify a long-term career path and complete an IDP. Thus, myIDP will be most effective when it’s embedded in larger career-development efforts. For example, universities could incorporate IDPs into their graduate curricula to help students discuss, plan, prepare for, and achieve their long-term career goals.

1. What do we learn about new science in the United States Ph.D.s today?

A．They lack the skills and expertise needed for their jobs.

B．They can choose from a wider range of well-paying jobs.

C．They often have to seek jobs outside the academic circle.

D．They are regarded as the nation’s driving force of change.

2. What does the author say about America’s Ph.D. training?

A．It includes a great variety of practical courses.

B．It is closely linked to future career requirements.

C．It should be re-oriented to careers outside academia.

D．It should be improved to better suit the job market.

3. Government agencies and the private sector often use IDPs to        .

A．bring into full play the expertise of their postdoctoral researchers

B．help employees capitalize on their abilities to achieve career goals

C．place employees in the most appropriate positions

D．recruit the most suitable candidates to work for them

4. What do me know about myIDP?

A．It is an effective tool for self-assessment for better career plans.

B．It enables people to look into various possibilities.

C．It is an integral part of the graduate curricula.

D．It can promise a long-term career path.

【推荐3】At the start of every working week, millions of people around the world get ready for something they do endlessly, joylessly and badly: a meeting.

The root of the rotten meeting is simple, says Madeleine de Hauke, a meeting coach and teacher in an Antwerp Management School. “We spend our lives and huge sums of money in meetings, but there’s very little investment (投入) into helping people run them effectively.”

Madeleine is correct. Running a meeting well takes skill. People need to know ahead why they are meeting, what they are supposed to achieve, who really needs to be there and how they should contribute. That sounds obvious but it is not, as anyone who has been to a pointless meeting knows. Yet meeting leaders are expected to learn all this on the job. I cannot remember ever being taught how to organize a meeting, and I have rarely had a job requiring me to do it.

I also like Madeleine’s descriptions of what she calls the Meeting Monsters: people who destroy meetings with all sorts of annoying behaviors. There is the cruel off-topic speaker. The non-stop noise in the background. The confusing rambler (夸夸其谈者). The rude multi-tasker. The mute who says nothing but emails later to say what was decided will never work.

The trouble is, we are all meeting monsters sometimes, says Madeleine. A good meeting leader knows how to stop this behavior, or make sure it never starts by making it clear what will and won’t be allowed.

A bad meeting is like a virus. By failing to produce good decisions it often requires another meeting to be held, then another and another. Luckily there is no need for a vaccine, just a bit more care and preparation, and an understanding that there is no shame in being taught how to lead a meeting well.

1. How does the author introduce the topic?

A．By showing specific numbers.

B．By telling his own experience.

C．By mentioning an expert’s words.

D．By describing a common activity.

2. What causes bad meetings according to Madeleine?

A．Boring meeting activities.	B．Untrained meeting leaders.
C．Incompetent meeting coaches.	D．Unreasonable meeting schedules.

3. Which is a typical behavior of a “Meeting Monster”?

A．Always raising questions.	B．Scaring meeting attenders.
C．Never stopping his chatter.	D．Refusing to finish his tasks.

4. Why does the author say “a bad meeting is like a virus”?

A．It makes the attenders sick.

B．It results in more meetings.

C．It fails to produce decisions.

D．It requires care and preparation.

5. Which can be the best title for the text?

A．Kill the Meeting Monsters

B．Get Ready for Bad Meetings

C．Start the Week with A Meeting

D．Invest More for Meeting Attenders

【推荐1】An economist, Adam Smith, famously wrote that “it is not from the benevolence (慈善)of the butcher, the brewer or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own self-interest.” Like Smith, many economists today believe that one’s self-interest is what drives competition and growth in market economies. Yet, in an increasingly interconnected society, it is even more crucial to have collaborative skills. Thus we should encourage cooperation to better prepare children for the future.

Firstly, in the present age marked by the transformative potential of technology to facilitate interactions, cooperation is an especially prized soft skill to have. As a research study proves, soft skills such as good communication and empathy consist of qualitative indicators of outstanding employees as compared to technical skills or knowledge. In contrast, excessively (过分地)competitive and individualistic behaviour may fracture social relations in the community of co-workers and since no man is an island, even the most competent employee will not be able to pursue his goals effectively without the help of others who are able to share a common vision and understanding.

Moreover, encouraging cooperation increase a healthy sense of self-esteem in children that better prepares them for the competitive working world. Many modern societies today are consumed by an obsessive drive for success and the pressure to perform has infiltrated both classrooms and offices alike. The consequences of the fierce competitive culture include higher rates of anxiety and depression among university students and office workers, which are all counterproductive. Teamwork can help a maturing individual realise that each has his or her own unique set of abilities to bring to the table and that another person’s strengths do not in any way diminish (降低)the value of his or her talents. Thus, cooperation can affirm the self-worth of children by correcting the violent insight that winning or paper achievement is an exclusive (唯一)measure of success in life.

However, critics may claim that in a cutthroat world, adapting to competition should be of supreme priority in education and parenting. To achieve one’s deepest ambitions, such as to become a medical student, or to create a tech start-up, one has to adopt competition by actively fighting for opportunities and distinguishing oneself from others. Nevertheless, since passion can already stimulate children to work hard to fulfill their ambitions, the need to encourage competition may be at the end of the day. As much as external competition can drive people to pursue excellence, internal motivation is at least equally or arguably even more essential, and collaboration plays an instrumental role in helping one uncover one’s tendency and motivations.

1. What can be inferred from Adam Smith’s words?

A．Our society is increasingly interconnected.

B．Our dinner is made out of the regards to markets.

C．Self-interest pushes the development of economies.

D．The butcher, the brewer or the baker is not sympathy.

2. What does the underlined word “fracture” mean in paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Deepen.

B．Establish.

C．Maintain.

D．Damage.

3. Which of the following might the author agree with?

A．Paper achievement is an exclusive measure of success.

B．Confidence and ambitions can be achieved through cooperation.

C．Actively fighting for distinguishing oneself is a healthy competition.

D．Competition is not essential for people to pursue excellence.

4. What is the author’s purpose of writing this passage?

A．To introduce parents the advantages of cooperation.

B．To inform parents to balance cooperation and competition.

C．To persuade parents to care about their children’s education.

D．To tell parents to encourage their children to learn to cooperate.