【推荐2】Enjoy yourself in the beauty and energy of Havana and the charm and history of Trinidad as we explore these two dynamic Cuban cities. We’ll experience the people, politics, and culture of the island during this important period in the country’s history.

THE HIGHLIGHTS

Learn about housing, infrastructure(基础设施),and restoration(修复)programs in Havana during a lecture with urban planner Miguet Coyula.

Hear from Norma Guillard, a Cuban social psychologist and former brigadista(准将)with the 1961 Cuba Literacy Campaign, about Cuba’s efforts to bring literacy to the entire country.

Attend a discussion about the current process of economic reform with economist Giulio Rioci.

Visit the site of the Bay of Pigs invasion of 196l and the Bay of Pigs Museum. Take a walking tour of Old Havana and feel amazed at the splendid architecture.

Wander the cobblestone(鹅卵石) streets of Trinidad, a UNESCO World Heritage site, with Nancy Benitez, an expert in restoration, architecture, and history.

Tour a second UNESCO World Heritage site—Cienfuegos—and observe wonderful French and Spanish architecture during a walking tour.

These are only a few of the highlights of this extraordinary program. See the full travel guide at the Nation.com/ HAVANA—TRINIDAD.

The whole trip costs $ 5,455 per person ($ 370 extra for a single room) and includes hotel accommodations for 7 nights, all transportation within Cuba, all tours, all lectures, meals, tips, and numerous other events and activities.

100% of the income from our travel programs supports our journal The Nation.

For more information, e—mail us at travels@thenation.com, call 212—209—5401, or visit us at the Nation.com/ HAVANA—TRINIDAD.

1. If you want to know the 1961 Cuba Literacy Campaign，whose lecture will you attend?

A．Miguet Coyula.	B．Norma Guillard.
C．Giulio Rioci.	D．Nancy Benitez.

2. What can we learn about the THE HIGHLIGHTS?

A．The cobblestone streets of Trinidad is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

B．The Bay of Pigs Museum mainly holds world—famous artworks.

C．People can appreciate much European architecture in Old Havana.

D．People can watch a video about the current process of economic reform.

3. How much should you pay for the trip if you want to live in a single room?

A．$ 5,085.	B．$ 5,455.
C．$ 5,825.	D．$ 6,195.

【推荐1】Innovative Designs for Accessibility

Deadline： 2021-11-30

Award： $ 7,500

The Innovative Designs for Accessibility student competition challenges university students across Canada to use their creativity to develop innovative, cost-effective and practical solutions to accessibility barriers for people with disabilities.

Clean Tech Competition

Deadline： 2021-11-13

Award： $ 28,000

The Clean Tech Competition is a unique, worldwide research and design challenge for pre-college youth. The competition is designed to build a deeper understanding of STEM （science, technology, engineering, and math） related concepts, recognize outstanding talent, and prepare the next generation of globally competitive innovators.

Agile Robotics Competition

Deadline： 2021-11-10

Award: .$ 17,500.

Agile Robotics Competition is a simulation-based (仿真）competition designed to promote agility（灵活）in industrial robot systems by employing the latest advances in artificial intelligence and robot planning. The competition will be held virtually, so there is no need to travel to compete. The competition will use the Gazebo simulation                                 tool.

Wearable Robotics Innovation Challenge

Deadline： 2021-11-24

Award： $ 5,000

The Wearable Robotics Association is inviting entries that represent the most innovative new ideas in wearable robotic technology. The review committee will select as many as ten finalists. The one considered to be the most innovative will be announced at the conference and will receive $ 5,000 to accelerate the new technology.

1. Which competition favors competitors with a creative mind in helping the disabled?

A．Wearable Robotics Innovation Challenge.

B．Agile Robotics Competition.

C．Clean Tech Competition.

D．Innovative Designs for Accessibility.

2. Which of the following is the aim of Clean Tech Competition?

A．To improve the research on STEM.

B．To develop teenagers' ability to innovate.

C．To help students go to beloved universities.

D．To encourage university students to be innovators.

3. What can we know a tout Wearable Robotics Innovation Challenge?

A．Competitors with creativity are more likely to win.

B．The final 10 competitors can get awards.

C．Only teenagers can take part in the competition.

D．Competitors can hand in their works in December.

【推荐1】Universal Studios Beijing is under construction and will be opened in 2021. It will be the fifth Universal Studios in the word. Universal Studios Beijing will bring in the classical Universal Studios entertainment projects including: The Magic World of Harry Potter, 3D Adventure of Transformers, Minion 3D Roller Coaster, River Adventure of Jurassic Park and so on. In addition, Chinese themed projects will be designed specially for Universal Studios Beijing.

Here are some recommended projects inside:

The Magic World of Harry Potter

The Harry Potter Theme Park which swept the world will come in Beijing. The Hogwarts school, Diagon Alley, Hagrid's pumpkin house and other famous scenes will be reproduced in Universal Studios Beijing.

Besides, the world's top technology- 4D riding equipment and the highest double track roller coaster will be available here.

3D Adventure of Transformers

This project in Universal Studios Beijing perfectly combines 3D media and flight adventure, creating a unique experience that allows people to shuttle through reality and virtual images.

Minion 3D Roller Coaster

Here you can meet with Minion in reality. You can start your adventure from Gru's home and have a wonderful trip with Gru’s daughters and Minion.

River Adventure of Jurassic Park

This adventure is based on the movie “Jurassic Park ”. You can see dinosaurs living in the jungle. You will take a raft and escape from a huge meat-hunting dinosaur.

In order to fit in Chinese culture better, the company will create more Chinese-themed entertainment projects. For example, Kung Fu Panda will be the key attraction of Universal Studios Beijing. What's more, in consideration of Beijing's long winter and some other weather factors, the constructors develop will more indoor amusement projects on the basis of classic projects.

How to get to Universal Studios Beijing

After being opened, the east extension of Subway Line 7 and the south extension of Batong Line will have a stop here.

1. You may meet relatives of movie heroes in ________.

A．Harry Potter Theme Park

B．Transformers Theme Park

C．Minion Theme Park

D．Jurassic Park

2. More indoor amusement projects will be built due to ________.

A．weather conditions	B．safety considerations
C．economic factors	D．tourists’ requests

3. We are likely to find this passage in the ________ section of a newspaper.

A．economy

B．entertainment

C．science

D．sports

【推荐2】It’s July. You’re in a boat gliding through calm water off the Finnish coast, on your way to visit a sauna (桑拿), pick berries, and sleep in a tent. At your side is a “happiness guide,” one of a small group of Finns employed by a national tourism agency to teach international visitors something about why the Scandinavian country ranks at the top of a report ranking nations on happiness.

“One of the uniquely Finnish experiences which contributes to our well-being is our special relationship with nature, especially our forests,” says Hetta Huittinen, a spokesperson for Business Finland, which started Rent A Finn, a new contest that will bring travelers to Finland this summer for a free trip with a Finnish guide.

In Finnish law, the public has the right to wander; in natural areas, even on privately owned land, it’s legal for anyone to make temporary use of the land. You’re allowed to go anywhere and pick berries and mushrooms or whatever you find there, or even stay overnight in a tent without asking permission. Most Finns also spend long time outside in the summer as they rent or borrow cottages in the countryside; the law requires a minimum of five weeks of annual leave.

“People actually are both happier and healthier when they see trees, when they’re walking to work,” said John Helliwell, one of the authors of the World Happiness Report, adding that the slow pace of walking and connecting with others also has a benefit. When I first tried to contact someone for this article, he couldn’t talk because he was headed to the sauna.

It might be difficult for visitors to collect much wisdom from a two-or three-day trip, but Business Finland hopes that the winners chosen to travel will learn something by diving into nature with a Finn.

1. The author gives a vivid picture of Finland in paragraph 1 to ________.

A．show the Finns are the happiest

B．enjoy the scenery of Finland

C．advise people to live in Finland

D．prove Finns are friendly to visitors

2. Which of the following is true of Rent A Finn?

A．It focuses on the protection of nature.

B．Guided tours are provided with no cost.

C．Travelers can rent a guide for a small charge.

D．It allows travelers to go anywhere by themselves.

3. What can people do according to Finnish law?

A．Use the land permanently.

B．Stay in a tent with permission.

C．Enter the others’ cottages freely.

D．Have at least five weeks off each year.

4. Where is the text most likely from?

A．A textbook.	B．A diary.
C．A report.	D．A guidebook.

【推荐3】It's not a new phenomenon, but have you noticed how many nouns are being used as verbs? We all use them, often without noticing what we're doing.
I was arranging to meet someone for dinner last week, and I said “I’ll pencil it in my diary”, and my friend said “You can ink it in”, meaning that it was a firm arrangement not a tentative one!
Many of these new verbs are linked to new technology. An obvious example is the word fax. We all got used to sending and receiving faxes, and then soon started talking about faxing something and promising we'd fax it immediately. Then along came email, and we were soon all emailing each other madly. How did we do without it? I can hardly imagine life without my daily emails.
Email reminds me, of course, of my computer and its software, which has produced another couple of new verbs. On my computer I can bookmark those pages from the World Wide Web that I think I'll want to look at again, thus saving all the effort of remembering their addresses and calling them up from scratch. I can do the same thing on my PC, but there I don't bookmark; I favorite—coming from “favorite pages”, so the verb comes from an adjective not a noun.
Now my children bought me a mobile phone, known simply as a mobile and I had to learn yet more new verbs. I can message someone, that is, I can leave a message for them on their phone. Or I can text them, write a few words suggesting when and where to meet, for example. How long will it be before I can mobile them, that is, phone them using my mobile? I haven’t heard that verb yet, but I’m sure I will soon. Perhaps I’ll start using it myself!
1. “I’ll pencil it in my diary” in the second paragraph probably means         .

A．it was a firm arrangement

B．he prefers a pencil to a pen

C．the arrangement should be written as a diary

D．it was an uncertain arrangement

2. A website address can be easily found if it has been______.

A．favorited

B．messaged

C．emailed

D．texted

3. Which of the following has not been used as a verb yet?

A．message

B．mobile

C．email

D．page

4. The best title for this passage is____.

A．Technology and Language.

B．Development of the English language

C．New Technology and New words

D．New Verbs from Nouns

【推荐1】Music can calm the soul and inspire creativity, but it won’t, according to researchers from Harvard, improve intelligence.

“More than 80 percent of American adults think that music can improve children’s grades or intelligence, “said Samuel Mehr, a Harvard Graduate School of Education doctoral student in a statement. “Even in the scientific community, there’s a general belief that music is important to children’s development — but there is very little evidence（证据） supporting the idea that music classes improve children’s intelligence.”

The view that music improves intelligence can date back to a study published in 1993 in the journal Nature, which describes the “Mozart effect” as the ability for people who play instruments to perform better at spatial（空间的） problems. The study later was proved wrong, but the idea that music could make you smarter remained.

To test the connection between music and intelligence, researchers studied 29 parents and their four-year-olds. It turned out that music training did not improve the children’s intelligence. The children who had music training performed only slightly better at one spatial problem.

The researchers then did the study again, but with 45 parents and children. Half the group were given music training and the other half didn’t receive any. As with the first study, the second round produced no evidence that music training made the participants any smarter.

The researchers limited their research to classical music, and didn’t show whether different types of music made any difference. And while they concluded that the idea that music makes you smarter is a myth（谬见）, they argue that teaching children music is still important, and may have other advantages that aren’t all connected with intelligence.

1. What can we learn from the first two paragraphs?
①Music can encourage creativity.
②Most American parents take music seriously.
③Most scientists believe music has no advantages to children’s development.
④The idea that music can improve intelligence is not true.

A．①②③	B．②③④
C．①③④	D．①②④

2. What can we know about the “Mozart effect” from the passage?

A．It was brought up by Mozart.

B．It proved that music could make children smarter.

C．The idea has been completely accepted.

D．It is the origin of the idea that music can improve intelligence.

3. According to the researchers, ______.

A．music can help one become much cleverer

B．music lessons should be stopped in school

C．music is important to children’s development

D．students should learn different kinds of music

4. What is the best title for the passage?

A．Music — the Key to Your Success

B．The Advantages of Learning Music

C．The Connection Between Music and Creativity

D．Music May Not Make You Smarter

【推荐2】Hampton Court Motor Cruiser

16 Hampton Court Road

TEL：208－977－1728

Hampton Court Motor Cruiser is a boat docked on the River Thames. Facilities (设施) include heating, Smart TV and Wi－Fi. The price per stay also includes the free use of a 4－seat electric boat and barbecue facilities. There is no staff at all on board during your stay.

Hilton London Green Park

4－6 Half Moon Street

TEL：207－629－7522

Hilton London Green Park stays in the heart of London. It features modern rooms with air conditioning. Wi－Fi is available in public areas and is free of charge. There is also a cocktail bar on site. All children are welcome.

Arbor City

12 Osborn Street

TEL：207－247－3313

Arbor City Hotel is just next to the White chapel Art Gallery. It offers free Wi－Fi and 24－hour room service. Air－conditioned rooms feature a TV, a safe and a shower. Parking is available on site and costs GBP 24 per day. For an additional charge, the hotel offers various breakfast options: English breakfast, Continental breakfast, Vegan and Dairy－free breakfast. The hotel is 10 minutes' tube ride from the West End.

Abercorn House Hostel

28－0 Bute Gardens

TEL：203－696－0215

Abercorn House Hostel is located just a 3－minute walk from Hammersmith Underground Station, with a 24－hour front desk. Guests can stay in rooms or dormitories fitted with a wardrobe. Some come with a shower, while others offer access to a shared bathroom. They can also use a shared kitchen to prepare their meals. Wi－Fi is available and costs GBP 1 per hour. Non－smoking throughout.

1. Where can guests stay if they have special requirements for breakfast?

A．28－30 Bute Gardens.

B．12 Osborn Street.

C．4－6 Half Moon Street.

D．16 Hampton Court Road.

2. Which of the following can offer a river－view?

A．Arbor City.

B．Abercorn House Hostel.

C．Hilton London Green Park.

D．Hampton Court Motor Cruiser.

3. Which number should a couple with a baby and a dog call if they want to book a room?

A．207－629－7522	B．208－977－1728
C．207－247－3313	D．203－696－0215

4. This passage is   ________.

A．a notice	B．an announcement
C．an advertisement	D．an invitation

【推荐3】Spending over a year in the bleak (荒凉的) Antarctica might change your brain for the worse, according to new research out this month. It seems to show that polar explorers who lived for 14 months at an Antarctica research station experienced brain shrinkage, likely as a result of their loneliness and boredom.

The study’s authors used MRI (核磁共振) to scan the brains of eight members of a team before they began a long stay at the German-run research station. During their mission. the team periodically took tests of their cognition and memory and provided blood samples that allowed the study authors to measure their levels of a protein important for brain health called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). When they returned, they had their brains scanned again.

Finally, compared to themselves before the mission, the explorers' brains appeared to have less grey matter on average. The shrinkage was most apparent in the hippocampus, in area of the brain key to memory and cognition. Their average levels of BDNF also dropped during the trip and didn’t improve significantly even after one-and-a-half months back home.

The study's findings, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, aren't the first to suggest that long time of being separated can change the brain. But practically all of this work has involved animals, according to the researchers.

Of course, an eight-person study is small, so any of its conclusions should be taken with caution. Lead author Alexander C. Stahn, now a researcher at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, said that the effects on the hippocampus are likely temporary, provided the scientists returned back to a life filled with social interaction and interesting things to see.

Still, since people will continue traveling to and from Antarctica for long periods of time, the findings are definitely worth keeping in mind and exploring further. They might even prove relevant for the rare few people who might travel as far as Mars in the future — perhaps the only similarly scientific, months-long mission that would be even more lonely.

1. What will do damage to the brain according to the first paragraph?

A．Doing research in brain shrinkage	B．Traveling to the Antarctica.
C．Working as a researcher in a station.	D．Being in a lonely place for a long time.

2. How did the scientists get the conclusion?

A．By comparing the scanned results.	B．By studying the previous figures.
C．By making a long-term program.	D．By scanning the participants’ brains.

3. What can we infer about the explorers when they returned?

A．They were no longer used to the civilized world.

B．They had some difficulty in remembering things.

C．They became normal after one-and-a-half months.

D．They published their findings in a medical magazine.

4. What can we learn about the study?

A．The scientists are provided with various social activities.

B．Long time of being separated can change the brain of all animals.

C．Other researches have the same findings as the study.

D．Its conclusion may be relevant for those who are fond of travelling.

5. What is the last paragraph mainly about?

A．The importance of the finding.	B．The disadvantage of the finding.
C．The future development of the space.	D．The possibility of travelling to Mars.