【推荐1】There is hope for our planet’s survival. Innovative products are being designed to reduce our dependence on plastic, single-use plastic in particular.

One such innovation comes from international design firm Carlo Ratti Associati with its “Feel the Peel” machine, an experimental rounded juice bar that not only makes freshly squeezed orange juice, but also 3D prints a recyclable bioplastic cup with the leftover orange peels.

Designed with global energy company Eni, the juicer is 10 feet tall and topped with a massive dome (圆顶), feeding the juicer with oranges on demand. The dome is made up of round tracks that hold up to 1, 500 oranges. A 3D printer is set up in the base of the machine.

The machine goes like magic. When an order is placed, the oranges slide down the tracks to a squeezer, and the juice is then deposited into an “orange peel (果皮)” bio-plastic cup, ready to enjoy. Meanwhile, the freshly squeezed peels fall down a tube and gather at the bottom of the machine where they are dried, milled (碾磨) and mixed with Polylactic Acid, creating a bioplastic material. The bioplastic is then heated and melted into a filament (丝状物) and the 3D printer then creates recyclable bioplastic cups, ready to be filled with freshly squeezed juice.

How cool that is! It seems that Carlo Ratti Associati and Eni have plans to take “Feel the Peel’ beyond just orange juice.

“The principle of recycling is a must for today’s objects,” says Carlo Ratti, “Working with Eni, we tried to show recycling in a very tangible (有形的) way, by developing a machine that helps us to understand how oranges can be used well beyond their juice. The next improvement of “Feel the Peel” might include new functions, such as printing fabric for clothing from orange peels.”

1. What is the aim of creating the “Feel the Peel” machine?

A．To make orange juice taste better.	B．To produce single use plastic cups.
C．To increase the output of orange juice.	D．To take something beyond just orange juice.

2. What is the main idea of Paragraph 4?

A．How the new juicer works.	B．What the two companies share.
C．Where the new tool comes from.	D．Why the machine is popular.

3. We can infer from what Carlo Ratti said that __________.

A．recycling can be shown in a very popular way

B．their new machine still has some potential

C．his company is very interested in Eni’s design

D．a product can help us understand our world

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

A．Orange Peels Are Turned Into Treasure

B．Innovative Products Are Being Designed

C．Orange Juicer 3D Prints Bioplastic Cups

D．Carlo Invents A Recyclable Machine

【推荐2】The Maldives faces the threat of extinction from rising sea levels, but the government said on Thursday it was looking to the future with plans to build homes and a golf course that can float.

An increase in sea levels of just 18 to 59 centimeters would make the Maldives --- a nation of a number of tiny coral islands in the Indian Ocean --- not suitable for humans to live in by 2100, the UN’s climate change experts have warned.

President Mohamed Nasheed has declared a fight for survival, and last month he signed a deal with a Dutch company to study suggestions for a floating structure that could support a conference centre, homes and an 18-hole golf course.

The company, Dutch Docklands, is currently building floating developments in the Netherlands and Dubai. Its website said it undertook projects that make “land from water by providing large-scale floating constructions to create similar conditions as on land”.

The Maldives began to work on an artificial island known as the Hulhumale near the crowded capital island of Male in 1997 and more than 30,000 people have been settled there in order to ease crowdedness. The city, which has a population of 100,000, is already protected from rising sea levels by a 30-million-dollar sea wall, and the government is considering increasingly imaginative ways to fight climate change.

Nasheed, who held the world’s first underwater cabinet (内阁) meeting in October to highlight his people’s serious and difficult situation, has even spoken of buying land elsewhere in the world to enable Maldivians to relocate if their homes are completely covered.

He has also promised to turn his nation into a model for the rest of the world by becoming “carbon neutral (碳中和)” by 2020. His plan involves ending fossil fuel use and powering all vehicles and buildings from “green” sources such as burning coconut husks.

1. According to the passage, the Maldives is a country ________.

A．that is made up of many small islands

B．which has been covered by water now

C．where people live in underwater houses

D．whose people live in their floating homes

2. Mohamed Nasheed chose Dutch Docklands for his plan probably because it ________.

A．has a good fame throughout the world

B．charged much less than other companies

C．has experience in building floating structures

D．supports building floating structures in the world

3. The Hulhumale was built for the purpose of ________.

A．attracting more visitors	B．making it a new capital
C．fighting against climate change	D．making the capital less crowded

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

A．To promote the idea of low-carbon living style.

B．To tell people that the Maldives is disappearing soon.

C．To discuss the causes why the Maldives faces extinction.

D．To introduce the efforts taken by Maldivians to fight for life.

【推荐3】Bicycle riding has taken the world by storm. Bicycles are typically made of steel or aluminum but now there is a unique company that is growing bikes on trees, literally. These bicycles are made of British grown ash trees by Welsh maker Andy Dix. His Hay-on-Wye company, Twmpa Frames, is making bikes that are of high performance and environmentally sustainable.

Going from furniture to bicycles came about after a conversation with author Rob Penn. Penn was looking for craftsmen to make things from an ash tree that fell for his book: The Man Who Made Things Out of Trees.

“We talked about what I might build, and I suggested a bike,” said Dix. “It seemed like a good fit, but actually I had no experience in bike building, and Rob had a publishing deadline. In the end, I built him a writing desk instead.” But the idea interested Dix, who decided that he had to make it happen just to see if he could.

It took two years to build the prototype (雏形) that was made from ash wood. Dix tested the wooden bike on the roughest roads he could find and discovered that it was comfortable, durable, and excellent at absorbing shakes. He put more than 3, 000 miles on the bike. Dix explained, “I was running along battered roads that would have shaken me to bits on a aluminum bike. The penny dropped. Not only could I make a bike out of wood, but it had inherent advantages over other materials.”

Though cutting down trees can add to more carbon in the atmosphere, sustainable tree farming is possible. Dix said that manufacturing a British tonne of aluminum results in carbon emissions of 4, 532 kg while producing a tonne of wood only emits 457 kg. Currently, the cost of a new Twmpa Cycle is out-of-reach for many bicycle riders; but the idea of using sustainable materials like ash trees could start a new cycling revolution that puts the environment first. Helping the environment could be just a pedal away.

1. Why is Rob Penn mentioned?

A．To tell us he was a great author.	B．To praise him for his contribution.
C．To explain why Dix made the bikes.	D．To promote his new book to readers.

2. What does the underlined part “The penny dropped” in paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．The truth came out.	B．Money was missing.
C．The bike broke down.	D．The efforts were in vain.

3. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

A．Logging trees is a wrong practice.

B．Developing sustainable forestry is a must.

C．Carbon emission calls for urgent attention.

D．The wooden bike does more good than harm.

4. Which of the following is a suitable title of the text?

A．Less Carbon, More Sustainable	B．Amazing? Bikes Grow on Trees
C．No Innovation, No Development	D．Amusing? Bike Riding Is Taking off

【推荐1】The United States estimates that about one out of every 10 people on the planet today is at least 60 years old. By 2050, it’s projected to be one out of 5. This means that not only will there be more old people, but there will be relatively fewer young people to support them.

Professor Richard Lee of the University of California at Berkeley says this aging of the world has a great effect on economics. “Population aging increases the concentration of population in the older ages and therefore it is expensive,” he said.

Aging populations consume (消耗) more and produce less. With more people living longer, it could gel expensive. But Mr. Lee says with continuing increases in worker productivity and wise planning, it can be manageable.

Societies have different methods for caring for the elderly，but each carries a cost Generally, there are three types of support Seniors can live off the wealth they gained when they were younger. They can rely on their family to take care of them, or they can rely on the movement.

In industrialized nations, governments created publicly-funded (公共资助的) support systems. These worked relatively well until recent years, when aging population growth in places like the United States and Western Europe began to gradually weaken the systems’ finances(资金). These nations now face some tough choices. Mr. Lee says the elderly in some of these countries must either receive less money, retire later or increase taxes to make the system continuable.

Most developing nations haven’t built this type of government-funded support, but have instead relied on families to care for their elderly. These nations also generally have a much younger population, which means their situation is not as urgent as more developed nations. But Mr. Lee says that doesn’t mean they can pat no attention the issue. “Third World countries should give very careful thought to this process, to population aging and how it may affect their economies — now, before population aging even becomes an problem,” he explained.

1. What is one of the likely results of population aging according to the passage?

A．There will be more old people than young ones.

B．More than 20% of people will be at least 60 years old.

C．It will be more difficult to support old people.

D．The world’s concentration will be on old people.

2. What does Professor Lee think of the problem of population aging?

A．It is likely to manage it.

B．It is too expensive to solve it.

C．It depends on how much the old gained when young.

D．It depends on the wealth of the whole society.

3. What problem do the public-funded support system in industrial nations face?

A．They face tough choice,	B．There is not enough money to support the old.
C．Taxes are too low.	D．Their populations grow too quickly.

4. Which of (he following about developing countries is true?

A．So far their economies haven’t been greatly affected.

B．Their government give more money to support the old.

C．They needn’t pay attention to aging population.

D．Their situation is also serious.

【推荐2】A new study published in the journal Reading and Writing shows that reading is closely related to language skills. The piece was written by Sandra Martin, professor of education, and PhD student Stephanie Kozak. They found that people who enjoyed reading fiction for leisure and who saw themselves as readers scored higher on language tests, while those who read to access specific information scored more poorly on the same tests.

Martin and Kozak used a scale called the Predictors of Leisure Reading (PoLR) to investigate reading behavior. They then examined how well the PoLR predicted the language skills of 200 undergraduate students. The researchers note that the age range of the subjects in the study is of key interest. In early adulthood, reading becomes self-directed rather than compelled by others, which means people can choose to read any book they like. So this is a key time for developing one’s own reading habits. But there is a general lack of research on this population, with most existing research mainly focusing on children.

The researchers administered (执行) a series of measures. First, the participants completed the 48-question PoLR scale measuring various reading factors, including motivations, obstacles, attitudes and interests. They were then given language tests similar to those found in the SAT and a measure of reading habits called the Author Recognition Test. This test asks participants to select the names of real fiction and non-fiction authors they are familiar with from a long list of real and fake names. Scores on this test are related to both actual reading behavior and verbal abilities: those who scored higher read more and have better verbal abilities than those who scored lower.

After analyzing the data, the researchers concluded that reading enjoyment, positive attitudes and deeply established interests predicted better verbal abilities and that they were more strongly associated with exposure to fiction than non-fiction.

The many benefits of reading have long been established. Besides having better verbal abilities, lifelong readers are known to be more understanding of others, to attain higher socioeconomic status and even to live longer, healthier lives than non-readers. The findings of the study can give teachers and parents some enlightenment (启发). They can promote a love of reading by letting young people read what they want, without guilt or shame.

1. What plays a key role in improving people’s language skills according to the study?

A．Their reading speeds.	B．Their reading frequencies.
C．Their motivations for reading.	D．Their understanding of the content.

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

A．Forced.

B．Admired.

C．Evaluated.

D．Followed.

3. What distinguishes Martin and Kozak’s study from most existing research?

A．Its research method.	B．Its scoring criterion.
C．Its large sample size.	D．Its selection of subjects.

4. How did the researchers learn about the participants’ actual reading habits?

A．By analyzing their performance in reading and comprehending a given article.

B．By asking them to introduce their favorite writers and books in detail.

C．By letting them choose their familiar authors from a partly real list.

D．By requesting them to do some SAT language tests.

5. What’s the inspiration for teachers and parents while educating kids?

A．Setting an example for kids in reading.	B．Allowing kids to read their favorite books.
C．Asking kids to make friends with lifelong readers.	D．Encouraging kids to start reading as early as possible.

【推荐3】A spoonful of pickles (腌菜) can sometimes make a meal taste better. Recently, a new type of pickle is being discussed: “digital pickled vegetables”. It refers to the videos people watch while eating that make their food more appetizing.

The topic received more than 16 million clicks on Sina Weibo and about 100,000 people participated in the discussion. Instead of being accompanied by friends and family during a meal, many young people in China are kept company by TV shows or short videos. Many believe that their food is tastier with the “digital pickles”.

Can this habit affect your diet? According to a research paper published in 2019, you may eat more unconsciously. The international research team asked 62 volunteers to follow different eating patterns on four different days. The patterns included eating while looking at the mobile phone, reading magazines and without distraction. After analyzing their diets, the team discovered that eating with a distraction increased caloric intake by about 15 percent.

To explore the reason, the team also invited two groups of people: one group ate while listening to an audio clip about another person eating and the other listened to a clip that helped them imagine themselves eating. The results showed that the second group ate less since they were more focused on their meals. When eating with the “digital pickles”, our attention can be distracted, which leads to eating more than expected.

This works not only for eating meals but other demanding tasks as well. A research project led by the University of Sussex, UK, pointed out that activities which require lots of attention trick many participants into overeating. The team invited 120 participants to do various tasks while providing them with drinks and snacks. “Our study suggests that if you’re eating or drinking while your attention is distracted by a highly engaging task, you’re less likely to be able to tell how full you feel” one of the authors Martin Yeomans explained.

1. What do “digital pickles” refer to?

A．A new type of vegetables.

B．Electronic products popular online.

C．Videos people watch while eating.

D．Digital games suitable for families.

2. Why do people eat more with “digital pickles’ according to the text?

A．They are more focused on their meals.

B．They are distracted by “digital pickles”.

C．The food tastes better with “digital pickles”.

D．The “digital pickles” make them feel hungrier.

3. What can we learn from the experiment carried out by the research team?

A．It explores the reason why people prefer “digital pickles” while having meals.

B．Eating while hearing another person eating can keep one more focused on his meal.

C．Eating while imaging oneself eating can keep one more focused on his meal.

D．When eating without the “digital pickles”, we are bound to eat less.

4. Why does the author mention a different study in the last paragraph?

A．To give another case that causes overeating.

B．To describe the effects of “digital pickles”.

C．To explain how to judge you are full.

D．To present how to avoid being distracted.

【推荐1】Selah Thompson shares her love of reading and even creates her own stories.

Books have the power to transport you to another place and make you feel like you are part of the story. A love of reading should be developed at a young age so children can benefit a lot. That’s a gift 8-year-old Selah Thompson from Atlanta, Georgia, received from her parents and wants to pass on to other children.

When Selah was five, she came home from her first day at kindergarten and told her parents that a lot of her new friends at school didn’t know their ABCs, which really bothered Selah and she wanted to do something about it.

She then asked her parents to give away 20 hundred thousand books. Her parents began to do research and found that there is a huge amount of illiteracy (文盲) in America and that two-thirds of students who cannot read skillfully by the end of the fourth grade will end up in prison or on welfare.

After understanding the need for books and establishing a love for reading, Selah’s parents were on board. In 2018, they created the nonprofit Empowered Readers Literacy Project. This organization promotes families to create solid reading habits so children see books as something positive.

More than 2,400 kids and their parents participated in the reading activities in Atlanta in the first year. They also run an adventure time readers club and the 500 books project to get books into children’s hands.

Over the past two years, the literacy project has donated 8,000 books, including Selah’s own series. Although her goal of “20 hundred thousand books” is still quite far, Selah is on the right track. She is ambitious and a true role model for children and adults. Hopefully her love for books is contagious and children will be more willing to read when the main character actually looks like them.

1. How did Selah feel when knowing some kids were illiterate?

A．Surprised.	B．Relieved.
C．Concerned.	D．Embarrassed.

2. What can we infer from Paragraph 4?

A．Selah’s parents have the habit of researching literature.

B．Poor reading skills might cause one to fail in life.

C．Only a small number of parents teach kids at home.

D．Two-thirds of kids receive good school education.

3. What does the underlined phrase “on board” in Paragraph 5 mean?

A．Deeply moved.	B．Ready to take action.
C．In a group as a member.	D．Riding on or in a ship, train, airplane.

4. What do the last two paragraphs mainly focus on?

A．What they have done to help local schools.

B．How kids have formed the habit of reading.

C．How Selah has turned her dream into reality.

D．The influence Selah and her parents have brought.

【推荐2】A food additive (添加剂) is any substance that is added to food. Many people are put off by the idea of “chemicals in food.” The truth is that all food is made up of chemicals. Natural substances (物质)like milk, as well as man-made ones like drinks on sale in the market, can be described by chemical formulas. Some chemical substances are indeed harmful, but a person who refused to consume any chemicals would find nothing to eat.

The things we eat can be divided into natural and man-made substances. Some people feel that only natural foods are healthy and that all man-made ingredients are to be avoided. But many natural chemicals, found in plants and animals, are harmful when eaten, and some laboratory-made substances increase the nutritional value of food. Other chemicals have natural and man-made forms that are exactly alike: vitamin C is vitamin C, whether it comes from a test tube or from an orange. Like “chemical”, “man-made” doesn’t necessarily mean “not fit to eat”.

Food additives are used for many reasons. We add sugar and salt and other things to foods we prepare at home to make them taste better. Food producers have developed a range of additives that stabilize, thicken, harden, keep wet, keep firm, or improve the appearance of their products.

Additives can make food more convenient or nutritious, give it a longer shelf life, and make it more attractive to the consumer, thus increasing the sales and profits of the producers.

Food additives are presently the centre of a storm of serious argument. Food producers have been known to use additives that have not been proved safe; some substances in common use have been proved unsafe and have been taken off the market. Many people feel there’s a risk of eating food to which anything has been added. But food additives are now regulated by the FDA of the federal government, and new additives will go through strict testing before they can be placed on the market. For most people, the chances of developing serious side effects from the long-term use of presently approved (批准) food additives are very small.

1. From the passage we can learn that   ______   .

A．it is right to refuse chemicals in food

B．all foods have chemical substances

C．food additives are harmful to our health

D．natural foods are much safer than man-made ones

2. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Foods without additives can keep a much longer shelf life.

B．Foods with more additives have higher nutritional value.

C．To ensure food safety, the FDA will stop food additives.

D．Food additives can improve the quality of foods in many ways.

3. According to the writer, the food additive is ______     .

A．poisonous

B．worrying

C．avoidable

D．acceptable

【推荐3】China's hot word, tuhao, may be in Oxford English Dictionary.

​In Chinese, tu means rude and hao means rich. In recent years, people use this term to describe those who spend money in an unreasonable way. The word became more popular with Apple's gold-colored iPhone, which is loved by China’s rich people. The color became known as “tuhao golden”. The word is now often used to refer to people who have money but lack taste.

​There are two other Chinese hot words: dama and No Zuo No Die, which may also be taken in the dictionary. Dama, meaning middle-aged women, was first used in the Western media by the Wall Street Journal. Thousands of Chinese women were buying a large amount of gold when the gold price had gone down. Another phrase No Zuo No Die, meaning if you don't do stupid things, they won't come back to bite you, is also very popular. Other words, such as Maotai, Chinglish and dim sum have also been included in the dictionary.

​BBC World News recently made a special program called “Tuhao, let’s be friends!”“ The frequent use of Chinglish by foreign media suggests that foreign people are looking more to the lifestyle and popular culture of China,” says Zhang Yiwu, professor of Beijing University.

​What does this trend suggest about the Chinese language’s influence?

​Xing Hongbing, a professor from Beijing Language and Culture University (BLCU) said “These show that Chinglish is now being accepted by the rest of the world and they play important roles in daily life of Chinese. Behind these Chinglish words and phrases are the Chinese culture. They are reflections of the changes and trends in the Chinese society and they help people from other countries to understand what’s happening in China.”

1. Which of the following words is NOT a hot Chinglish word?

A．Dama	B．Karaoke
C．Tuhao	D．Dim sum

2. The word “dama” becomes so popular because ________.

A．they are wealthy middle-aged women

B．they bought gold crazily when the price was down

C．they made the gold price up

D．they worked on the Wall Street

3. According to the passage, Xing Hongbing agreed that _________.

A．Foreigners want to know more about the culture of China from Chinglish.

B．Chinglish hot words tell some funny things about China.

C．Chinglish plays important roles in daily life of Chinese.

D．Chinglish hot words are so vivid that people like using them a lot.

4. What’s the purpose of writing this article?

A．To describe the hot words in Oxford English Dictionary.

B．To explain the meanings of some Chinese hot words.

C．To describe the use of Chinglish hot words and their influence.

D．To show the different opinions about Chinglish hot words.

【推荐1】If your parents were to surprise you with a present on your birthday, which one would you prefer, a trip to the amusement park or a new pair of shoes?

According to Science Daily, about one-third of the people are likely to prefer shoes to a fun trip. These people are called "materialists", namely, those who value material goods more than experiences. But which of the two choices makes people happier?

Back in 2009, Ryan Howell, a professor at San Francisco State University, found that in the long run, experiences make people happier than possessions. This is because the joy of receiving a new object fades over time as you get used to seeing it every day. Experiences, on the other hand, can continue to bring you joy in the future through happy memories.

But materialists should at least be happy when they first buy something, shouldn't they?

To figure it out, Howell did another study. He classified a group of adults according to their personality types, ranging from less materialistic to more materialistic. Each person was asked different questions to see how they felt about spending money on material goods versus spending money on experiences.

As expected, the more materialistic participants got less happiness from purchases than the less materialistic, because such purchases didn't fit with their personalities and values. But to Howell's surprise, he found that materialists weren't any happier even if they spent money on material items.

This is because materialists worry that others may criticize or look clown on their choices. "There are certain value systems that are rejected by society," said Howell. "When we find out someone is materialistic, we think less of them, and that drives their happiness down.”

Another reason is that materialistic people always focus on what they don't have instead of what they have now. This makes them feel less satisfied and grateful.

If you happen to be a materialistic person, there's something you can try. "If materialists make more accurate purchases, rather than trying to impress others, they will be happier, “Howell said.

You should also remember what an ancient Greek philosopher once said, “Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for."

1. What did Ryan Howell find in his studies?

A．Material goods bring people less happiness than experiences.

B．About one-third of the people prefer material goods to experiences.

C．Materialists have more fun spending money on goods than on experiences.

D．Receiving a new object brings lasting joy while the joy of an experience fades soon.

2. What did Ryan Howell want to find out by doing another study?

A．How to judge whether a person is a materialist.

B．Why materialists are not happy with their purchases.

C．How materialists feel when they spend money on goods.

D．Whether materialists are happy when they first make purchases.

3. Why does the author use the ancient Greek philosopher's words in the last paragraph?

A．To advise materialistic people not to try to impress others.

B．To persuade people to be satisfied with what they have.

C．To prove it's unwise to be materialistic and desire too much.

D．To tell readers what they desire now might one day become theirs.

4. What can be the best title for the passage?

A．Are You a Materialist?

B．How To Acquire Happiness?

C．The Best Present For the Birthday

D．Which Can Make People Happier?

【推荐2】Atlantic puffins (海雀) spend most of their life at sea. When it's time to lay eggs, the birds gather on seaside cliffs. They dig into the ground to build nests. After a chick was born, it spends six weeks in the nest, feasting on fish supplied by its parents. Then the young bird must look after itself. It leaves the nest and flies to the sea.

But on Heimaey, an island off the coast of Iceland, human-made objects have disrupted the chicks’ trip to the ocean. Luckily, they are getting help from the children of Heimaey.

Instinct tells chicks to follow the light of the moon to the sea, but they are confused by Heimaey’s bright lights. Each year, a large number of them end up lost, or worse. Often, the birds are hit by cars or caught and eaten by cats.

Each breeding season, the children of Heimaey form search parties. They carry flashlights and cardboard boxes. “When you see a bird, you try to corner it and herd it into the box,” said Eldur Hansen. Eldur is 14 and he has caught several puffins this way. Each year, they rescue thousands of chicks. Children take rescued birds home. The next morning, they take them to the beach for release.

Before releasing the chicks, the children make a stop at the local aquarium, where the birds are weighed and tagged for tracking purposes. This helps scientists learn more about puffins.

Atlantic puffins are now listed as a rare species. That means they are likely to become endangered. The main reason is that the ocean’s supply of small fish is diminishing. This is tied to overfishing and rising ocean temperatures.

Erpur Hansen, Eldur Hansen’s dad, is with the South Iceland Nature Research Center. He said the children’s action was more important than ever. Thanks to data gathered with the children’s help, researchers have learned that chicks now weigh less than in previous years. That means they have a lower chance of survival. Researchers worry that puffins will die out if ocean temperatures continue to rise, but the children’s rescue inspires them.

1. What will a mother puffin do after a chick was born?

A．Catch fish to feed the chick.	B．Stay in the nest for six weeks.
C．Leave the nest and fly to the sea alone.	D．Lead the chick back to the sea at once.

2. What may disturb the chicks’ sense of direction on their way to the sea?

A．The cars.

B．The children.

C．The animals.

D．The lights.

3. What does the underlined word “diminishing” in Paragraph 6 mean?

A．Changing.

B．Decreasing.

C．Accumulating.

D．Abandoning.

4. How do the researchers compare the chicks’ weight?

A．Getting information from the library.	B．Researching the colors of the chicks.
C．Studying the data collected by the children.	D．Weighing the chicks adopted at the local aquarium.

【推荐3】We all know that little excitement from creating a popular post on Facebook. Watching the number of likes can be both attractive and addictive.

That same buzz (兴奋) can have its disadvantages, though. We all know the feeling of watching other people’s posts get unending positive feedback. We tell ourselves that the only reason why these people are getting attention is that they’re popular and good-looking. We sink into self-loathing (自我讨厌) and comparison. Therefore, after experimenting with hiding likes on Instagram in select countries, Facebook is exploring doing the same on its main platform.

That Facebook is considering this is encouraging. After years of appearing to ignore criticism about its effects on society, the company finally seems to be listening. However, there is a basic conflict between Facebook’s business model and its new-found altruism (利己主义). Relying on Facebook to look after its users’ mental health is a bit like asking McDonald’s to keep its customers’ blood pressure under control: At some point, a company’s need to make money is not in line with its supposed desire to do good.

The problem with likes is that they mark out how successful or happy others are, which in turn can promote a feeling of envy and insecurity. It’s a real phenomenon. However, Facebook would certainly want you to post things that get more likes. The company’s success relies upon you posting more and encouraging more “engagement” from other people so that the value of Facebook’s targeted ad business increase.

Facebook’s reliance on engagement is deep-rooted, and it destroys a supposed desire to prevent the platform from encouraging envy. Without a doubt, hiding likes can have some benefit, but the way Facebook is built means that this will always be a small step at best.

1. Why does Facebook try hiding likes on its main platform?

A．To catch more users’ eyes.

B．To reduce envy from other people.

C．To speed the operation of the platform.

D．To encourage users’ posting positive things.

2. What can we infer from the comparison between Facebook and McDonald’s?

A．Facebook focuses more on the users’ interests.

B．Facebook cares less about users’ mental health.

C．Facebook makes a lot of money from the users.

D．Facebook does better than McDonald’s in service.

3. What does more “engagement” mean to Facebook according to paragraph 4?

A．The growth of value.	B．More users’ needs.
C．The increases of desire.	D．More users’ security.

4. What is the author’s attitude towards Facebook’s hiding likes?

A．Critical.	B．Positive.
C．Objective.	D．Indifferent.