When we see babies or pets, we can’t help gently touching them to show our love. And they give us happy feelings back. But a recent study shows that it’s different for plants.
In fact, ▲ . That’s because touching changes their genes and, even worse, can slow their growth. Professor Jim Whelan of the La Trobe Institute in Australia gave an explanation. “The lightest touch from a human, or even plants touching each other in the wind, leads to a huge gene change in the plant.”
In order to test the idea, the scientists did an experiment on plants. They grew a number of plants to the age of four weeks. Then they touched them with a paintbrush every 12 hours over a 36-hour period. They found that as a result, the mitochondria in the plants had been partly hurt. The mitochondria are the “powerhouse of the cell”. The mitochondria produce energy for the rest of the cell in both animals and plants. If this “powerhouse” is weakened, the plants will lose a large amount of energy that should have supported their growth. Whelan further explained, “If the touching is repeated, then plant growth is reduced* by up to 30 percent.” According to Science Alert, repeated touching or moving plants will make them grow shorter than others.
Although the touching does have a strong effect on plants, it’s not always bad. The researches believe, in some way, it could be helpful. It may help plants fight against insects and bad weather. The new research findings have led to a deeper understanding of the plants’ reply to touching. And the research might also “open up new ways to optimize growth in the future.” Science Alert reported.
1. Which of the following is the best for “ ▲ “ in Paragraph 2?| A．people like touching plants | B．plants don’t “like” to be touched |
| C．plants won’t grow if they are touched | D．people should touch plants as much as possible |
| A．shorten the life of plants | B．help plants produce more energy |
| C．make plants grow more slowly | D．cause the death of plants |
| A．improve | B．reduce | C．stop | D．fight |
| A．to touch plants often to show our love |
| B．some ways of helping plants grow better |
| C．advantages and disadvantages of touching plants |
| D．the differences of touching the plants and the animals |
相似题推荐
House fires cause many deaths each year and a large number of these fires are unfortunately set by children.
A smoke alarm warns you of the danger.
| A．Most of these deaths can be avoided. |
| B．But when you hear it, you don’t have much time. |
| C．A smoke alarm is only good if it’s working properly. |
| D．So, it’s important to teach them that fire is a tool, not a toy. |
| E．A smoke alarm greatly reduces your chances of being hurt in a fire. |
| F．You can be saved if you have one. |
【推荐2】Recently, I was having a conversation with a friend of mine who had just come back from a trip to the United States. He was talking about his driving experience over there, and said, “Yes, it was fine. Once I got used to driving on the opposite side, it was no problem.” So why is it that people drive on different sides of the road in different parts of the world?
A few historical records show that the ancient world had left-moving traffic. Why was the left side? In the ancient world, people rode horses or carriages(马车). Well, who used horses the most: warriors who would always draw the sword (剑) with their right hands. This made it almost impossible for warriors to get on their horses from the right side. In Britain, in the 1700s, laws were passed to make traffic flow on the left side of the road, a rule that had to be followed. Britain took its left-side system to all its colonies (殖民地) in the world. As a result of this, countries in East Africa, the South Pacific and Southeast Asia practice this system to the present day. But it is different in the United States. It is said that right-side driving in the United States was heavily influenced by Henry Ford. The car that his company produced could only be driven on the right side of the road.
In the modern world, driving on the right side became more convenient.
1. Where may the writer’s friend come from?| A．The US. | B．The UK. | C．China. | D．Canada. |
| A．People who make laws. | B．People who sell horses. |
| C．People who do business. | D．People who fight in the war. |
| A．In 1700. | B．In the 1700s. | C．In 1770. | D．In the 1900s. |
| A．Because it is only a matter of convenience. |
| B．Because a few historical records are like this. |
| C．Because countries in East Africa were British colonies. |
| D．Because people in countries in East Africa like driving on the left. |
| A．Driving on the left in Britain | B．Driving on the left or right? |
| C．Driving on the right in the US | D．Driving on the right in the modern world |
【推荐3】About one-third of a person’s life is spent in sleep. Studies have shown that a good night’s rest helps us stay healthy. Researchers say sleep is probably the best tool we have for memory and learning.
“Getting a good night’s sleep is important for the learning and memory. It’s important because it stores the training and learning exercises into our memory forever while we’re sleeping 7-8 hours in bed. And then the next morning when we wake up, our mind is better prepared to act on that information,” Twery, an expert on the science of sleep said.
But what about getting rest during the middle of the day? Past studies have shown that napping (打盹) can help babies and young children learn better. In fact, napping can help older adults with their brain to remember things better.
The researchers studied 3,000 people and found that those who took an hour-long nap did much better on mental (智力的) tests. The hour-long nappers also did better on the tests than those who napped for shorter and longer periods. But researchers note that these findings are for those over 65, but for the young and healthy adults, an hour-long nap may be too long.
“At present, we’re suggesting that we try to nap for about 30 minutes or less. Thirty minutes is enough to remove (消除) the pressure and will help us feel more awake. If we nap longer, we will get trapped into the deep sleep, which can be hard to get out of,” Twery said. This feeling is called sleep inertia (迟钝)—the period when you are awake from a very deep sleep. For a time, you are unable to think clearly.
1. It’s important for the learning and memory to get ________.| A．good health | B．good food | C．good sleep | D．good tool |
| A．get up | B．stay up | C．get out of | D．fall into |
| A．Young people. | B．Old people. | C．Healthy adults. | D．Students. |
| A．NATURE. | B．SPORTS. | C．HEALTH. | D．CULTURE. |
| A．A Good Night’s Sleep Helps us Stay Healthy |
| B．Good Sleep Improves Learning and Memory |
| C．Students should Have a Good Night’s Sleep |
| D．The Old Man Should Have a Good Nap |
【推荐1】No model has ever received more attention in China than the Xiaomi SU7, which launched (上市) on Thursday March 28th night in Beijing.
It may sound unbelievable but the launch event attracted more than 40 million views on Xiaomi Auto’s Weibo alone. Even guessing its price level had been a popular topic on China’s social media platforms for weeks.
Xiaomi, one of the world’s leading smartphone companies, began accepting orders in China through an app on Thursday night, after founder Lei Jun finished a more than two-hour presentation (发布会) on the SU7 car by stating the much-awaited price range (区间): 215,900 yuan to 299,900 yuan.
Xiaomi said that it received 50,000 orders for the SU7 in the first 27 minutes after sales opened at 10 p.m. Beijing time. Lei mentioned that Beijing-based Xiaomi aims to become one of the world’s top five car makers in the next: 15 to 20 years. “It’s hard to make a car, but it’s cool to succeed,” he said.
Lei said Xiaomi would lose money on the basic model at 215,900 yuan, a price that is lower than the Tesla (特斯拉) Model 3 in China. In his opinion, the SU7 car did better than the Tesla in most areas, but the best type of the SU7 is not as good as the Porsche (保时捷) Taycan.
“There’s still a long way to go for our car to become a Porsche,” he said, but if Xiaomi keeps working hard for another five to ten years, “one day we will finally catch up with and even surpass Porsche.”
1. When could people start ordering the Xiaomi Su7?| A．Before Lei Jun’s presentation. |
| B．When people guessed the price. |
| C．After the two-hour presentation by Lei Jun. |
| D．On the day before Lei Jun’s presentation. |
| A．To produce the best electric cars. |
| B．To catch up with Tesla and Porsche. |
| C．To become the best smartphone company. |
| D．To be one of the world’s top five car makers. |
| A．be larger than | B．be better than | C．be cheaper than | D．be heavier than |
| A．Xiaomi wants to change the car industry. |
| B．Xiaomi aims to be a top smartphone maker. |
| C．Xiaomi SU7 is better than Tesla and Porsche. |
| D．Xiaomi SU7 launch got huge attention and orders. |
【推荐2】Do you know what the BMI (体重指数) is? According to the National Health Service, BMI is a measure (测量方法) that uses your height and weight to work out if you are fit.
Some cities in China have included BMI in the P. E. test for the high school entrance examination, or zhongkao. For example, Beijing in 2021 announced that BMI officially became a subject of the P. E. test for the zhongkao. Chengdu and Shanghai have also started similar actions.
Zhang Yanshu is a grade 8 student from Beijing Chaoyang Foreign Language School. He used to be overweight. “It was this summer that I decided to work on my BMI,” Zhang said. He started by running with his dad, and soon took a stamina (体能) course which trained him for different things like running, pull-ups and so on. “I think BMI and the events for the exam go well together. When I practice the events, my BMI gets better. When my BMI gets better, I feel more energetic doing the events.”
Zhang also paid much attention to his eating habit. “I ate brown rice instead of white rice, and chicken for meat most of the time,” he said. His BMI reached normal after four months’ effort. “My health and willpower have seen a big improvement.”
Chen Kaifei, 14, also from Beijing said that BMI is also a problem for students who are too thin, and has caused some “body anxiety (焦虑)” among students. “Everyone has a better understanding of their body and health conditions. I started to care about my eating habit, simply to keep my BMI at a good level.” Chen said.
根据语篇内容，选择最佳选项。
1. What do we use to work out our BMI?
| A．Length and height. | B．Height and weight. | C．Length and weight. |
| A．In 2021. | B．In 2022. | C．In 2023. |
| A．愿望 | B．权力 | C．意志力 |
| A．He wants to be thin. |
| B．He wants to improve his BMI. |
| C．He wants to have a better understanding of his body. |
| A．To increase the difficulty of the zhongkao. |
| B．To train students by running and doing pull-up. |
| C．To show the importance of BMI. |
【推荐3】With the rapid development in science and industry, our world has changed a lot. Many new things have appeared in our daily life. These make our life more convenient and make our communication easier.
Computers are very important to our modern life. For example, some people hardly go to the shop in their spare time but they buy things on the Internet instead. They think the prices of different kinds of clothes or living things are lower than those in shopping centers and huge markets. What’s more, their qualities are the same. At the same time, people can watch movies by the Internet instead of going to the cinema. People living or working in different places can see and talk with each other by computers, too. Some people are glad about these new ways of shopping and communicating.
Another example, computers can help us improve our reading a lot. Some people needn’t read books made paper. Instead. they read them on small pocket computers because the computers can keep many different books in them at the same time. They don’t need to turn lots of pages and paper is saved as well. More and more electronic books are being used.
根据材料内容选择最佳答案，并将其标号填涂在答题卡相应的位置上。
1. From the second paragraph we can know that computers are used for ________.
| A．buying things, watching movies and talking with people |
| B．playing games, watching movies and buying things |
| C．watching movies, talking with people and reading |
| D．Reading, playing games and learning |
| A．科学书 | B．课外书 | C．电子书 | D．故事书 |
| A．The clothes are beautiful and their price is high. |
| B．The price is low and the qualities are good. |
| C．The living things are expensive. |
| D．The food is fresh and the price is low. |
| A．The computers can keep many different books in them. |
| B．Some people are satisfied with these new ways of shopping and communicating. |
| C．The books on the computers are expensive. |
| D．Some people read books on small pocket computers. |
| A．computers are used in our daily life |
| B．computers will replace shops and markets |
| C．computers can do anything |
| D．computers can’t change our life |
【推荐1】“Come with me. I’ll show you something amazing.”
After we had lunch, my friend Zhu decided to give me a tour of his childhood neighborhood. Finally, he stopped in front of a small garden on Yongtai Street.
“Here we are.” he said.
“Excuse me, but where is the amazing thing?” I asked.
My friend pointed at a tall ginkgo (银杏) tree in the garden. “Isn’t it beautiful?”
“Yes.” I answered, “But golden ginkgo trees are everywhere this time of year.”
“This one is different.” said Zhu, “It’s over 700 years old.”
According to my friend, although the tree looked healthy, luck hadn’t always been on its side. During the Kangxi years, someone wanted to cut it down. Zhang Xiyi, a government official, saved it from the axe (斧头). And in its early years, the tree was attacked by termites (白蚁) and hit by lightning. Many people believed that the tree had magic powers. They used to pray (祈祷) under it, hoping it would bring them good luck. I stared wide-eyed at the “magic” tree and its fan-shaped leaves. “Amazing!” I exclaimed.
Last weekend, I visited the ginkgo tree again. It looked as healthy as ever. The street was very quiet. A food deliveryman flew past and broke the silence. Few passers-by paid attention to it. The tree was like a lonely old man who is always ready to tell its stories-if anyone would like to stop and listen.
1. What is special about the ginkgo tree?
| A．Its leaves | B．Its color | C．Its age | D．Its height |
| A．The ginkgo tree didn’t bring any luck. |
| B．The ginkgo tree had painful experiences. |
| C．The ginkgo tree wasn’t healthy any more. |
| D．The ginkgo tree was like a lonely old man. |
| A．Zhu, the author’s friend. |
| B．Zhang Xiyi, a government official. |
| C．The food deliverymen who passed by. |
| D．The people who want to get its magic power. |
| A．They hoped the tree would bring them good luck. |
| B．They felt the tree could make them recall the old days |
| C．They accepted the tree had magic powers to keep healthy. |
| D．They thought the tree recorded their memories of childhood. |
| A．The ginkgo tree was no longer as healthy as it used to be. |
| B．The author was interested in the ginkgo tree and visited it again. |
| C．People paid more attention to the ginkgo tree because of its beauty. |
| D．The place where the author had lunch had many beautiful ginkgo trees. |
The human population on Earth grows larger each year. As a result,
When farmers tried to grow more food in the past, they would use farming methods that weren’t always healthy for the environment. To solve this problem,
In the past, though farmers did have information about the weather and the earth, they couldn’t track each plant.
By collecting information about plants, the robots can help farmers make predictions（预测）about how their plants will grow.
| A．But now, with these robots, they can |
| B．This led to the creation of special robots |
| C．some scientists carried out a research project |
| D．more and more food needs to be grown in order to feed everyone |
| E．By studying each plant, the robots can also help farmers grow plants well |
【推荐3】Every living thing needs to reproduce(繁殖). Reproducing means creating more members of your group. In order for plants to reproduce, they have to spread their seeds to other areas.
The simplest way is gravity(重力). Many seeds are inside of fruit. When fruit gets too heavy, it falls from a tree to the ground. Sometimes animals will pick up the fruit and drop it in another area.
Other plants use wind to spread their seeds. Dandelions(蒲公英) are a good example of this. Dandelion seeds are so light that when wind blows, it carries dandelion seeds to new places. Maple (枫树) seeds also use wind. Their seeds are connected with long, thin leaves that look like wings. When the seed falls from the tree, its “wings” help it fly farther from the tree.
Ants also help spread seeds. Some seeds have a special smell that appeals to ants. The ants bring the seeds back to their home, which of course is underground. They only eat part of the seed.
根据短文内容，从方框中选出四个选项填入文中空缺处，使短文内容通顺完整。
| A．They leave the rest of the seed underground. |
| B．Some animals help plants spread their seeds. |
| C．That helps move the seed even farther away. |
| D．Planting seeds is very important. |
| E．Plants have developed all kinds of ways to do this. |
