Below are the four most famous bridges in the world.
Ponte Vecchio Bridge
The Ponte Vecchio (literally “old bridge”) is a bridge built in the Middle Ages over the Arno River in Florence, Italy, the only Florentine bridge to survive World War Ⅱ. The bridge is unique for still having shops built along it, as was common in the days of the Medici. Butchers originally occupied souvenir sellers. It is said that the economic concept of bankruptcy originated here: when a merchant could not pay his debts, the table on which he sold his goods was physically broken by soldiers, and this practice was called “bancorotto (broken table)”．
Golden Gate Bridge
The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait between San Francisco and Marin County to the north. It is the masterwork of architect Joseph B. Strauss, whose statue graces the southern observation deck. The bridge took seven years to build, and was completed in 1937. The Golden Gate Bridge used to be the longest suspension bridge span in the world. And today it has become one of the most popular tourist attractions in San Francisco and California. Since its completion, the span length has been surpassed by eight other bridges. The famous red-orange color of the bridge was specifically chosen to make the bridge more easily visible through the thick fog that frequently covers the bridge.
Millau Bridge
Started in 1998 and opened to traffic in 2005, the Millau Viaduct is a huge cable-stayed road-bridge that spans the valley of the river Tarn near Millau in southern France. It is the tallest highway bridge in the world, with the highest pylon’s summit at 343 meters—slightly taller than the Eiffel Tower. The speed limit on the bridge was reduced from 130 km/h to 110 km/h because of traffic slowing down, due to tourists taking pictures of the bridge from the vehicles. Shortly after the bridge opened to traffic, passengers were stopping to admire the landscape and the bridge itself.
Charles Bridge
The Charles Bridge is a famous stone Gothic bridge that crosses the Vltava River in Prague, Czech Republic. Its construction started in 1357 under the support of King Charles IV, and finished in the beginning of the 15th century. As the only means of crossing the river Vltava, the Charles Bridge was the most important connection between the Old Town and the area around Prague Castle. Connection made Prague important as a trade route between Eastern and Western Europe. Today it is one of the most visited sights in Prague with painters, owners of kiosks and other traders alongside numerous tourists crossing the bridge.
1. Of the four bridges, which one has the shortest history?| A．Ponte Vecchio. | B．Golden Gate Bridge. |
| C．Millau Bridge. | D．Charles Bridge. |
| A．The span length ranks the 8th in the world. |
| B．Its color enables travelers to see it easily on foggy days. |
| C．It is the most popular tourist attraction in America. |
| D．It took Joseph B. Strauss 7 years to design the bridge. |
| A．it attracted many famous painters there |
| B．it was supported by King Charles IV |
| C．it was the only stone Gothic bridge crossing the Vltava River |
| D．it promoted the trade between Eastern and Western Europe |
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【推荐1】Translink is the main provider of public transport in Northern Ireland. We are devoted to providing bus and rail services that are easy to use, reliable and comfortable.
Bus Services
Most of our buses are now accessible with the following features:
Non-slip surfaces on floors;
Colour contrasting materials inside and outside;
Frequent and accessible bell push buttons aboard;
Five other priority seats for the disabled passengers;
The specially designed space for one wheelchair user;
Highly visible route information on the front, side and back;
Low-floor with a kneeling facility and a wheelchair ramp (坡道).
Our schedule indicates which routes use accessible buses with a wheelchair user symbol and the message “operated by low-floor vehicles”.
Rail Services
Most of our trains meet current accessibility standards. Features include:
An accessible toilet;
Button activated automatic doors;
A ramp stored on board to assist with access;
Colour contrasting materials inside and outside;
Priority seats for some other disabled passengers;
Audio (音频的) and visual announcements on board;
The specially designed space on board for two wheelchair users.
Our cross border services between Belfast and Dublin do not have all these features but do have two special spaces for wheelchair users, an accessible toilet and audio and visual announcements.
General Assistance
Our staff will carry a pen and notebooks to help with communication.
Translink welcomes guide dogs and other assistance animals on all our services and to our stations.
Our staff provide assistance to help you get to your bus or train or move between transport such as changing trains.
1. What do most of the buses and trains both feature?| A．Accessible toilets. | B．Seats for the disabled. |
| C．Space for two wheelchair users. | D．A single colour material inside and outside. |
| A．Ride services. | B．Wheelchair repair services. |
| C．Pen and notebook rental services. | D．Guide animal treatment services. |
| A．A book review. | B．A scientific paper. |
| C．A passenger brochure. | D．A competition announcement. |
【推荐2】A quick nap before arriving at your destination is normal, especially when you lack that much-needed sleep. But even if you feel energized, sleeping on buses and trains just seems to be a natural thing.
Although buses and trains are not close to the comfort level of your couch or your bed, just being in a cozy(舒适的) enough position is sufficient to make you nod off. Sitting down, closing your eyes, and leaning your head a bit are enough to get you in a relaxed state.
Long periods of inactivity
On buses and trains, you don’t move around very much.
White noise
Increase in carbon dioxide in public transportation
Buses and trains get crowded every day with people going to and from work. Carbon dioxide increases when there are lots of people in a small space.
| A．Comfortable seats |
| B．Lower the temperature |
| C．How to take a quick nap |
| D．This reduces oxygen to the brain and slows it down |
| E．So why do people fall asleep so easily on public transportation |
| F．Cars and other vehicles are a perfect environment that produces white noise |
| G．You just sit down and enjoy the scenery as the vehicle moves along the road |
【推荐3】We talk a lot about air pollution. Here in Hong Kong we always complain about light pollution as well. Then, there is noise pollution. It's the same in many cities around the world, and in Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal, people have been complaining about the noise made by drivers who continually sound their car horns (喇叭). That is until recently, when something was finally done about it.
The Chief District Officer of Kathmandu had received many complaints about horn pollution. He said that everyone felt the use of the car horn in recent years had become excessive. Researchers in Kathmandu found that for about 80 percent of the time, it really was not necessary for drivers to use their car horns. Sounding the horn to make a noise had become more of a habit. It was no longer being used as it was supposed to be used: to warn people of danger.
At the beginning of the Nepali New Year in 2017, the local government passed a law to ban the use of car horns unless used correctly. Within six months, 11,000 fines had been collected by the local traffic police. The fine was about HK $360. A taxi driver in Kathmandu can make about HK $1,000 per day, so he could lose about one-third of his money if he broke the law.
As usual, there were many complaints from drivers. They said that cows and dogs were free to walk on the roads. They always caused danger. Sounding a car horn was the only way to get them to move out of the way. And while there were quite a few traffic lights in the streets of Kathmandu, very few of them worked. This meant there was often a traffic mess.
The ban on using a car horn went ahead, and within a few weeks the streets of Nepal's capital were quieter — even though they were still just as busy. Because of the ban, drivers are a little more careful when they drive. Fewer accidents have been reported. The local government says the horn ban will now be copied in other areas of Nepal.
1. What do Hong Kong and Kathmandu have in common?| A．Both have been troubled by light pollution. |
| B．Both have succeeded in fighting air pollution. |
| C．Both have been faced with the problem of noise pollution. |
| D．Both have received many complaints about horn pollution. |
| A．Too much. | B．Quite simple. | C．Very correct. | D．More dangerous. |
| A．No traffic lights in the streets can work. |
| B．The traffic on the roads is usually very heavy. |
| C．Animals are not allowed to walk on the streets. |
| D．Drivers are required to drive on one-way streets. |
| A．It is unfair. | B．It is worrying. | C．It is interesting. | D．It is successful. |
【推荐1】Hand gestures are a very useful communication tool because they are easy to learn and simple to perform
Thumbs-up
Is there a more well-known sign of approval than the thumbs-up?
V Sign
High Five
On October 2, 1977, after Dusty Baker hit a home run, L.A Dodgers baseball player Glenn Burke raised his hand to greet his teammate.
| A．Not all hand gestures are about communication. |
| B．Without thinking, Baker struck Burke’s hand hard |
| C．In the 1400s, there was a war between Britain and France. |
| D．They allow us to express strong emotions without the need for words. |
| E．However, new studies have shown that a thumbs-up meant that the loser should die! |
| F．In French, V stands for victoire, “victory,” and in Dutch, it stands for vrijheid, “freedom.” |
| G．The origins of this popular gesture actually go back to the bloody games of ancient Rome |
【推荐2】The Great Depression that followed the stock market crash of 1929 saw hundreds of thousands of Americans out of work. In the years of great fear and depression, a lot of American citizens looked desperately to the federal government for assistance. Of all the programs designed by President Roosevelt when he took office in 1932, few were more criticized---or had more lasting impact---than the Work Projects Administration, better known as the WPA.
The intention of the WPA, which functioned from 1935 to 1943, was to design and administer public works projects to help relieve unemployment. The majority of these projects involved historic or artistic attempts. The WPA’s Writers Project, for example, was responsible not only for such practical works as state guidebooks but also for the collection of historically valuable oral histories. Over 2,900 of these records were collected in 24 states. They provide an irreplaceable firsthand account of people’s diets, customs, celebrations, and political and religious beliefs at the time.
The artworks created through the Federal Arts Project are one of the WPA’s most lasting achievements. Out-of-work painters, both famous and unknown, created paintings that beautified schools, libraries, and government buildings, WPA photographers traveled across the country recording the hardships of life on small rural farms. When the United States entered World War Ⅱ in 1941, WPA artists were enlisted to produce posters supporting the war effort. Many WPA artworks, including hundreds of small drawings picturing scenes of everyday life, still exist today.
1. When did the Work Projects Administration begin to work?| A．In1929. | B．In1932. |
| C．In1935. | D．In 1943. |
| A．It was made up of several components. |
| B．It was President Roosevelt’s favorite project. |
| C．It played an important role during World War Ⅱ. |
| D．It trained artists before sending them out to work. |
| A．By examples. | B．By comparison. |
| C．Through a true story. | D．Through a persuasive argument. |
| A．President Roosevelt designed the WPA. |
| B．The WPA helped relieve unemployment. |
| C．WPA artists painted pictures in schools and libraries. |
| D．The WPA produced many valuable and lasting works. |
【推荐3】The Taklimakan (塔克拉玛干) Desert in western China has one of the world' s most difficult environments. With no water, fierce winds and terrible sandstorms, the temperatures get as hot as 40℃ in summer and as cold as -20℃ in winter. Yet, even though it was such a difficult environment, many people in history have traveled through the Taklimakan Desert. Why would anyone want to do this? Cutting through this desert was the famous Silk Road, the main trading route between China and Europe.
In China, the Silk Road ran through the ancient city of Kashgar (喀什) in Xinjiang, then north-east over the Taklimakan Desert to Dunhuang. From Dunhuang, the Silk Road went south-east through ancient Gansu, and then east to Xi' an.
The best-known product traded along the Silk Road was of course silk. Chinese silk was transported to Europeans, who liked it because it was soft. Other goods transported along the Silk Road included gold, ivory, glass, fur and ceramics (陶瓷器). The Silk Road could be quite dangerous: apart from the difficulty traveling through the desert, robbing was a constant problem. Many merchants traveled with guards to protect themselves and the goods they carried.
To westerners, the most famous traveler along the Silk Road was the Italian merchant, Marco Polo (AD 1254- 1324). However, Marco Polo was by no means the first person to travel along the Silk Road and tell others about it. In fact, in 139BC and 119BC, the Chinese explorer Zhang Qian was sent by Emperor Wu to visit the west. Zhang Qian ’s journey helped bring the Chinese people a greater knowledge of the western lands.
1. What is the biggest temperature gap in the Taklimakan Desert?| A．20℃ | B．40℃ | C．60℃ | D．80℃ |
| A．gold and silver | B．glass and fur |
| C．animals and fur | D．ivory and paper |
| A．Zhang Qian was sent to visit the west twice. |
| B．The main product traded along the Silk Road was silk. |
| C．Marco Polo was not the first person to travel along the Silk Road. |
| D．The Taklimakan Desert has the world’ s most difficult environment. |
【推荐1】One of the ocean’s noisiest creatures is smaller than you’d expect — snapping shrimp (鼓虾). They create a widespread background noise in the underwater environment, which helps them communicate, protect their homes and hunt for food. When enough shrimp snap (发出噼啪声) at once, the noise can be deafening.
Aran Mooney, a biologist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, suggested that with increased ocean temperatures, snapping shrimp will snap more often and louder than before. This could raise the background noise of the global ocean. “They make a sound by closing a claw so fast. This makes a bubble (泡泡) and when that bubble bursts, it makes that snapping sound,” said Mooney.
Mooney discovered a strong relationship between warmer waters and more frequent snapping shrimp sounds after experimenting with the shrimp in tanks in the lab and by listening to the shrimp in the ocean at various water temperatures. “As the temperature rises, the snap rate increases,” he said. This makes sense because shrimp are essentially cold-blooded animals, meaning their body temperature and activity levels are largely controlled by their living environment. “We can actually show in the field that not only do snap rates increase, but the sound levels increase as well.”
How the louder snapping shrimp would affect or benefit the surroundings remained to be seen. “We know that fish use sound to communicate,” Mooney said. “If the environment gets noisy, it has the possibility to influence that communication. That’s something we have to follow up on.” There is also the possibility that the change of snapping shrimp affects machines humans use to discover mines, which could lead to unpleasant results.
1. What can we know about the snapping shrimp’s sound?| A．It aims to protect the shrimp. | B．It is important to the ecosystem. |
| C．It has different uses for the shrimp. | D．It is hard to be discovered by other creatures. |
| A．By observing snapping shrimp in the field. | B．By recording the snap rates in the lab. |
| C．By analyzing the way shrimp make noise. | D．By comparing shrimp’s sound in different places. |
| A．Other uses of shrimp’s sound. | B．Influences of the noise on other creatures. |
| C．Means of communication among fish. | D．Methods of stopping shrimp’s snapping. |
| A．Underwater World Is No Longer Quiet | B．Small Animals Make a Big Difference |
| C．Warming Oceans Are Getting Louder | D．Snapping Shrimp’s Noise Speaks Much |
【推荐2】Abandoned around 900 years ago soon after its decoration started, Ta Keo (塔高寺) has been revived by Chinese and Cambodian experts.
The Angkor (吴哥窟) complex spreads over an area of 400 square kilometers. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1992. However, due to heavy rains, stealing and lack of protection for centuries, most temples of Angkor were seriously damaged.
In order to better protect and conserve these pearls of human civilization, China joined ICC-Angkor, an international campaign launched by Cambodia and UNESCO in 1993. From Chausay Tevada to Ta Keo, the Chinese team has earned trust and established a good reputation.
“Its unfinished status shows the construction procedures of temples in Angkor. This gives Ta Keo irreplaceable value in the study of Angkor’s architecture,” said Jin Zhaoyu, an engineer from the CACH (中国文化遗产研究院).
Such uniqueness, however, presented greater challenges. Compared with Chausay Tevada, it covers a larger area and has more risks including unsteady stone structures, a poor drainage system and fallen key parts.
“Because the construction is unfinished, many fallen parts are not carved, leaving little information of its relations with other parts,” said Jin.
Jin showed archives of those fallen parts, each with its ID file, picture and dimensions. He said, “Every stone is unique. If one stone is in the wrong position, the gap will grow wider as you restore it and an accurate restoration will be impossible.”
To better understand the temple’s structure and precisely restore it, the team applied the most advanced technologies, including 3D laser scanning and mapping, structural research and drone recording, to build a complete digital model of Ta Keo.
Jin demonstrated the 3D model system, with which they restored the temple hundreds of times. “I can measure the dimensions of every stone and every gap in computer, and search the right stone that can fit in the gap,” Jin said.
This is much easier said than done. Dozens of Chinese experts from various fields worked together with Cambodian colleagues to overcome a string of obstacles. It took them eight years to restore Ta Keo.
1. What can we learn about the Angkor complex from the text?| A．It has the largest size of its kind worldwide |
| B．Its significance has been ignored for a long time |
| C．It is in poor condition due to a variety of reasons |
| D．It was abandoned because of its poor decoration |
| A．It covers a very large area. | B．It has a history of over 900 years. |
| C．It tells how the temple was built. | D．It was on the World Heritage List. |
| A．Knowing little about its structure. | B．Building the 3D model system. |
| C．Serious damage it had suffered. | D．Cooperation with Cambodian colleagues. |
| A．Hi-tech Applied to Restore Ta Keo |
| B．Protecting Pearls of Human Civilization |
| C．International Cooperation and Restoration |
| D．China’s Role in Restoring Cambodian Heritage |
【推荐3】When I was going home to India last year, I called up my mother to ask if she wanted anything from China.
When India had not opened up its markets to the world, I carried suitcase loads of dark glasses and jeans. Thankfully, we can get all these anywhere in India now. Still, her answer surprised me, “Green tea”.
As long as I can remember she didn’t even drink Indian tea. I dutifully bought a big packet of Longjing and headed home to hear the story. My mother and her brother, both regular newspaper readers, believed that Chinese green tea was the wonder drug for all illnesses.
At the turn of the century, China was not really familiar to the average Indian. It was a strange country.
How things change! And how soon! Now every town of any size seems to have a “China Market”. And everyone is talking about China.
The government of India has planned to send a team to China to see how things are done. A minister once said that India must open the doors for more foreign investment and such a step would “work wonders as it did for China.”
But it’s a twoway street. I just heard about a thousand Shenzhen office workers who have gone to Bangalore to train in software. Meanwhile, all the Indian IT majors are setting up a strong presence in China.
No wonder that trade, which was only in the millions just ten years ago, was expected to hit about US $15 billion for last year and US $20 billion by 2008, a goal set by both governments.
No wonder, my colleague wrote some weeks ago about this being the Sino-Indian century as the two countries started on January 1st the SinoIndian Friendship Year.
But what is still a wonder to me is my mother drinking Chinese tea.
1. Why did the mother ask for Chinese green tea?| A．She believed it had a curing effect. | B．She had a son working in China. |
| C．She was tired of Indian tea. | D．She was fond of Chinese products. |
| A．The exchanges between India and China benefit both. |
| B．Tea trade works wonders in both India and China. |
| C．Chinese products are popular in both China and India. |
| D．China and India have different traffic rules. |
| A．It will move its head office to Shenzhen. | B．It has attracted an investment of US $15 billion |
| C．It is seeking further development in China. | D．It caught up with the US IT industry in 2008. |
| A．his concern for his mother’s health | B．his surprise at China’s recent development |
| C．his support for drinking Chinese green tea | D．his wonder at the growth of India’s IT industry |
| A．the government of India | B．sending a team to China |
| C．opening doors for foreign investment | D．China market |
【推荐1】Many students think about how to best spend their time while studying, But what comes before study sessions can be important too-especially if you want to improve your memory of what you have learned. There are some useful, no-cost things you can do before you study to improve your memory and learning.
Before you study, doing cardiovascular exercise (有氧运动) may help you better remember what you learn. In a 2018 study, published in the journal Physiology and Behavior, researchers found that a group of young people who did 15 minutes of cardiovascular exercise remembered more words. Some studies have also shown cardiovascular exercise can help improve the memories of older people.
Location is also important for improving your learning. Some research suggests that changing where you study could help you remember more of what you study. Our memories sometimes depend on things in our environment. Researchers found that environmental context played a big part in how well people remembered words. The researchers noted that subjects who learned from a list remembered an average of 15.9 words, while subjects who learned in two different contexts remembered an average of 24.4 words.
Another way you can improve your study session is taking a pre-study test. Students often consider the test the final step to show how much they have learned. But, students need to test themselves often. Testing is one of the best ways to make yourself remember new information. In 2018, researchers found that students who took a test before learning new material did much better after studying the material. The students failed on the tests, but they were better able to remember the material than students who were only asked to read the information.
1. What’s the author’s purpose in writing the text?| A．To tell you doing exercise is good for health. |
| B．To introduce some good ways to deal with a test. |
| C．To teach you how to best spend time while studying. |
| D．To introduce several ways to do before study to improve your memory. |
| A．By studying in the same environment. | B．By studying in different contexts. |
| C．By reading aloud when remembering words. | D．By remembering the things in our environment. |
| A．The students who took a test after studying the material did much better. |
| B．The students failed on the tests for they didn’t take a test before leaning. |
| C．Cardiovascular exercise helps improve the memories of both the young and the old. |
| D．Young people doing cardiovascular exercise remembered more words than older people. |
| A．Entertainment. | B．Sports. | C．Business. | D．Education. |
【推荐2】Darrell Blatchley, a marine biologist and environmentalist based in the Philippine city of Davao, received a call from the philippines’ Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (渔业与水产资源局) early Friday morning reporting a death of a young whale.
When the necropsy (尸检) was performed, Blatchley told NPR, he was not prepared for the amount of plastic they found in the whale’s stomach. “It was full of plastic- nothing but nonstop plastic,” he said. “It was filled to the point that its stomach was as hard as a baseball.” “That means that this animal has been suffering not for days or weeks but for months or even a year or more.” Blatchley added.
Blatchley is the founder and owner of the D’ Bone Collector Museum, a natural history museum in Davao. In the coming days, the museum will display all the items found in the whale’s system.
Blatchley and his team work with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and other organizations to assist in rescue and recovery of marine animals.
“Within the last 10 years, we have recovered 61 whales and dolphins just within the Davao Gulf,” he said. “Of them, 57 have died due to man --whether they took plastic or fishing nets or other waste, or gotten caught in pollution-- and four were pregnant.”
Blatchley said he hoped that the latest incident would launch the issue of plastic pollution in the Philippines and across the globe. “If we keep going this way, it will be more uncommon to see an animal die of natural causes than it is to see an animal die of plastic.” he said.
1. What can be inferred from the second paragraph?| A．The whale was starved to death. |
| B．Blatchley didn’t make preparations for the necropsy. |
| C．The dead whale must have swallowed a baseball. |
| D．Blatchley was shocked at what he found. |
| A．Uncommon. | B．Inspiring. |
| C．Worrying. | D．Puzzling. |
| A．Natural Death or Merciless murder. |
| B．Stand Up for Protecting Whales. |
| C．Plastic Threatening Our Existence. |
| D．A Whale Found Dead of Plastic. |
【推荐3】Kielder Forest in Northumberland, England, is home to birds of gray and red squirrels. Around 90 years ago, it was also home to the pine marten(松貂). The 0.5 meters animal was driven to dying out in England by 1926 because gamekeepers wanted to secure the safety of their game birds, according to The Guardian.
However, the martens thrived in Scotland, and the animals appear to be crossing back into England. A pine marten was spotted in Kielder Forest by John Hartshorne, a volunteer who monitors the red squirrel population in the forest, part of an effort to stop gray squirrels from further invading(入侵) the red squirrels’ territory.
The pine marten is one of the animals receiving a helping hand from Back from the Brink, one of the conservation groups working together to help save 20 species from dying out in England. Their efforts aim at helping the pine marten and other at-risk species.
Red squirrels are threatened by invasive gray squirrels, which out-compete the native squirrels for food and pass on a deadly virus. Martens keep gray squirrel numbers in check, especially since the invasive animals aren’t used to having a predator like the pine marten around. A 2018 study found that the presence of pine martens can be enough to push the gray squirrel population out of an area. So the pine marten returning to Kielder is a win-win: The pine marten returns to part of its historic range and by doing so, helps red squirrels continue to survive.
1. Why was the pine marten forced to leave Northumberland?| A．To attract more hunters. |
| B．To protect local animals. |
| C．To keep game birds safe. |
| D．To keep game birds from hunters. |
| A．Died out slowly. | B．Evolved rapidly. |
| C．Had difficulty adapting. | D．Increased in population. |
| A．To help the pine marten to thrive. |
| B．To free the red squirrels of danger. |
| C．To monitor the population of birds. |
| D．To stop gray squirrels from dying out. |
| A．the role of the pine marten |
| B．the importance of a 2018 study |
| C．the promising future of red squirrels |
| D．the harmful effects of gray squirrels |
