1 . When I was in second grade, I discovered my parents’ 600 Film Polaroid camera. Somehow, there was still film inside of the camera and the camera worked! I spent that night taking pictures of my family and our pet dog. The next day, I convinced my parents to let me take it to class and took pictures of my friends. I instantly fell in love with capturing memories.
From then on, I would always ask my parents if I could borrow their digital camera during family vacations. I loved taking pictures of everything in sight. When I saw the pictures, I was filled with happiness from the moments I was able to record.
At high school, I took some photography courses furthering my curiosity for this art form. I learned about editing and the wonders of Photoshop. I learned what a great tool it is and I tried my best to practice as often as I could. When I was looking at universities, I was extremely interested in art schools because of photography. I knew deep in my heart that I wanted to do something more with photography. However, I also had a dream and passion to study business. I eventually decided to attend a university where I had the opportunity to study both fields.
During my first year of college, I decided to pursue a photography minor. My love for Business and Marketing helped me to turn my passion into a business. I created Angelica Carrete Photography in 2016 as a way to do more with my hobby. I challenged myself to grow as a creative every day and tried my best to stay motivated through the struggles that come with being a college student. I created this blog as a way to express my thoughts on the many different aspects of photography and to further challenge my creativity. I am so excited about this journey!
1. What does the underlined word “capturing” mean in paragraph 1?| A．Recalling. | B．Shooting. | C．Losing. | D．Spreading. |
| A．He learned some photo-editing skills. |
| B．He was given an offer by an art school. |
| C．He was given a digital camera by his parents. |
| D．He used a camera as a tool to explore the world. |
| A．He took photography as his major at university. |
| B．He got creative thoughts through reading a blog. |
| C．He considered marketing as the biggest challenge. |
| D．He enjoyed the process of turning passion into a business. |
| A．his college days are difficult | B．his parents are not supportive |
| C．he could only use an old camera | D．he failed to be admitted to an art school |
Stretching along the west coast of North America from northern California to Alaska, the forests found along the Pacific Coast Range are the largest area of temperate (温带的) rainforest in the world. The forests are home to the coast redwood, the world’s tallest tree. Across the region, the forest understory (林下叶层) is wet and heavily vegetated.
Taiheiyo Evergreen Forests
Found in southern Japan, they are temperate rainforests of evergreen broadleaf trees. The forests can receive more than 100 inches of rain every year. The forests are covered by Japanese cedar and Japanese stone oak, while moso bamboo comprise the understory. The extent of the Taiheiyo forests has been reduced due to development and agriculture. Today,17%of the remaining forest is protected by national parks and other reserves.
Atlantic Oakwood Forest
The Atlantic Oakwood Forest covers the wettest parts of the United Kingdom. A species of oak tree (橡树) called sessile oak occupies the landscape. Unlike other temperate forests, these forests tend to have an open understory of grasses. Much of the historical range of the forest has given to agriculture and other development, though that has changed in recent decades.
Valdivian Temperate Rainforest
This forest is found on the west coast of Chile and Argentina, on the wet, western slopes (斜坡) of the Andes mountain range. With the coastline to the west, the peaks of the Andes to the east, and the Atacama Desert to the north, the region supports a number of plant and animal species found nowhere else in the world. Uniquely, the forest is covered by evergreen flowering trees, which are native to Chile and little known outside the region.
1. Which of the four forest areas occupies the most land?| A．Pacific Coast Range. | B．Taiheiyo Evergreen Forests. |
| C．Atlantic Oakwood Forest. | D．Valdivian Temperate Rainforest. |
| A．They have open understory grasses. | B．They’re home to extremely tall trees. |
| C．They’re of great historical significance. | D．They used to be affected by agriculture. |
| A．Wet climate. | B．Coastal location. |
| C．Evergreen flowering trees. | D．Well-protected national parks. |
3 . Vel Scott is known for creating a bustling (热闹的) nightlife for Black Clevelanders in the 1960s. But now this grandmother has changed her life’s work into helping others change their eating habits and creating a(n)
In 1963, Vel and her husband Don Scott
Vel took it upon herself to
Dionne Thomas-Carmichael, a friend of Vel who suffered from cancer, said, “Vel has really helped to
Vel brings the farm to the
“The Black community has the highest rates of cancer and the highest rates of diabetes (糖尿病). It’s up to us to change our
Like Carmichael, many people have
| A．active | B．healthy | C．unique | D．green |
| A．visited | B．dreamed of | C．passed by | D．opened |
| A．entertain | B．educate | C．promote | D．contact |
| A．advantageous | B．flexible | C．energetic | D．anxious |
| A．culturally | B．technologically | C．academically | D．professionally |
| A．efforts | B．comments | C．changes | D．demands |
| A．trade in | B．care for | C．experiment with | D．cut off |
| A．needs | B．challenges | C．benefit | D．guidance |
| A．museum | B．road | C．club | D．farm |
| A．options | B．donations | C．collections | D．adaptations |
| A．force | B．permit | C．require | D．inspire |
| A．stage | B．table | C．hospital | D．garden |
| A．attitude | B．schedule | C．goal | D．circumstance |
| A．credited | B．charged | C．occupied | D．satisfied |
| A．working | B．staring | C．starting | D．communicating |
4 . Age has never been a problem for Thessalonika Arzu-Embry. After all, she’s already got her master’s degree.
The North Chicago-area girl started homeschooling at the age of 4. She began having an influence on others soon after. When she was 6 years old, she was an inspirational speaker at an organization called Tabitha House Community Service, a shelter for people who were forced to leave their homes due to the situations such as earthquakes, flood and other natural disasters.
At the age of 11, she graduated from high school and then earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology in 2013. She completed those classes online as she was traveling for leadership meetings.
She doesn’t stop there, though. The girl plans to focus on aviation psychology(航空心理学) for her further study, a decision inspired by her father who is a pilot. She grew up around airplanes and took flights all the time. Her goal is to use it to determine whether pilots are dealing with problems that could have deadly results once the plane takes off—a topic that has been in the news lately. For her, it’s a mix of two of her interests.
In her free time, Thessalonika enjoys playing tennis, swimming and being active in her youth group. She also has three self-published books, which are on her site. Jump the Education Barrier is written to help students finish college, and In the Future aims to help business owners deal with trends. Her third book The Genius Race has a wider appeal. It is designed to help people to be geniuses in various areas of life.
1. What can we know about Thessalonika from the passage?| A．She majored in science and technology. |
| B．She gained her master’s degree at the age of 11. |
| C．She started homeschooling when she was 6 years old. |
| D．She got her bachelor’s degree through online courses. |
| A．Majoring in aviation psychology. |
| B．Being active in her youth group. |
| C．Making inspiring speeches for leadership meetings. |
| D．Writing another book to help people to be geniuses. |
| A．To help people to be successful. |
| B．To raise concern about psychology. |
| C．To share her own experience with others. |
| D．To give students a hand to complete college. |
| A．Homeschooling | B．To Be a Genius |
| C．Three Published Books | D．The Story of Thessalonika |
5 . As the summer approaches, the difficulty of booking tickets to visit public museums has skyrocketed. As a result, there is scalping (黄牛倒票) and high-cost third-party reservation service providers.
When official channels for reservation fail, people have no choice but to pay sky-high prices to businesses to make reservations on their behalf or pay even higher prices for organized tour services in order to enter the museums. This clearly contradicts the original intention of the nation’s requirement for free access to museums, and there have been widespread complaints from the public. Therefore, it is necessary to simplify the ticketing mechanisms of museums now.
In 2021, the total number of registered museums nationwide reached 6,183, with 5,605 museums offering free admission. The imbalance between supply and demand has resulted in museums being extremely difficult to access, with tickets booked up in seconds after reservations open.
The fact that people are willing to visit museums demonstrates the strong cohesion and centripetal force of traditional culture. As the guardians of these treasures, museums should provide better ticketing services.
The relationship between individual reservations and group tickets for tour groups needs to be handled properly. Currently, many individuals are unable to secure reservations on their own and are forced to join expensive tour groups for visits. There is significant profit potential in the transition from free reservations to costly tour group sign-ups.
This has even become a source of revenue for some travel agencies and is linked to the museum’s own interests, as many group tickets include paid services within the museum.
Should tour groups be allowed to continue? If so, to what extent? This consideration should not merely be based on the museum’s operational purposes but also on benefiting society more broadly. Especially with the explosive growth of student trips during the summer, museums should provide more chances for free admission.
1. What has led to scalping and high-cost third-party reservation service providers?| A．The fact that people are willing to visit museums. |
| B．The rapid growth of student trips during the summer. |
| C．The difficulty of booking tickets to visit public museums. |
| D．The imbalance between supply and demand for group tickets. |
| A．They are efficient and effective. | B．They encourage individual tickets. |
| C．They go against the original purpose. | D．They should be maintained as they are. |
| A．Over 90 percent. | B．Around 50 percent. |
| C．Less than 10 percent. | D．It is not mentioned. |
| A．Entertainment. | B．Information. | C．Worry. | D．Income. |
6 . There are four novels for you.
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
This book takes you through waves of emotion as you start to understand the main character, a 9-year-old boy Bruno. The story taking place during the Holocaust (大屠杀), we witness the horror from the boy’s viewpoint. You will be shocked by some of the surprising aspects of the book as the boy makes friends with a Jewish boy named Shmuel in the concentration camp (集中营). They meet up on their side of the fence each day.
The Book Thief
The story is about a young girl named Liesel who has to live with foster parents (养父母) during World War II. On the way to her new home, her brother dies, setting the sad tone for the story. There is hope, however, when Liesel discovers her love for reading and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing attacks with a Jewish man hidden in her basement.
The Fault in Our Stars
This is probably the most touching book that makes you cry, as it records the experiences of teens who are dying of cancer and living their last days in love. The real tragedy is the love between the main characters, who know that they’re certain to die.
A Child Called “It”
It’s one of the saddest stories of abuse (虐待) in recent decades. A Child Called “It” is based on the true story of Dave Pelzer, a boy from California who suffered at the hands of his cruel mother. The tears will come from both sadness and the inspiration tied to Dave’s fight for survival in an environment where he is considered useless.
1. Which book is a love story?| A．The Fault in Our Stars. | B．A Child Called “It”. |
| C．The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. | D．The Book Thief. |
| A．Liesel’s brother. | B．Bruno. | C．Liesel. | D．Dave Pelzer. |
| A．They have a sad ending. | B．They are connected with wars. |
| C．They are emotionally powerful. | D．They expose the dark side of society. |
7 . 3-D printers are very hot today. They are being put to all kinds of uses, ranging from creating car models for movies to architectural models. However, none of these ideas are as shocking as the one suggested by Anjan Contractor, who believes that they will be the key to ending world hunger.
According to some experts, world population will increase to 10-12 billion by the end of this century. This means that food will become very expensive and possibly, even out of reach, for billions of people.
This is where 3-D printing may save the day. Anjan thinks that the only way to solve the problem will be to equip every kitchen with a 3-D printer and print out meals from tubes of powder and oil. He believes that these meals with a shelf life of over 30 years would result in less food wastage.
Most important of all, it would be easier to make food from things that we now do not consider edible (可食用的). A great example of that is the protein from meat. Most experts believe that as the population grows, the supply is not going to be enough to feed everyone. Anjan believes that we could easily get the same protein from insects. Though all this futuristic food may sound unappealing, the scientists believe that when faced with a terrible food crisis, it will be very welcomed.
While this may sound a little difficult to believe, Anjan seems to have convinced the scientists at NASA, who are looking for a solution to feeding astronauts when they go on really long missions, like the one being planned to Mars. They gave Anjan $125, 000 to start building the first real 3-D printer that creates the food.
Anjan is not the only one with this idea. A group led by Professor Hod Lipson has been experimenting with this idea since 2011 and has even succeeded in printing out cube-shaped creations from powdered milk and cookies with limited sugar!
For more information click here.
1. The passage mainly talks about .| A．whether 3-D printers will have a bright future |
| B．3-D printers will be used in every field in future |
| C．3-D printers will solve the problem of the increasing population |
| D．whether 3-D printers will be the key to ending world hunger |
| A．people get unappealing futuristic cube-shaped creations |
| B．3-D printers can only create powdered milk and cookies |
| C．futuristic food that contains protein can be made by 3-D printers from insects |
| D．insects will be the most popular food in the future, though unappealing now |
| A．The people in Africa. |
| B．The scientists and researchers. |
| C．The astronauts working in space. |
| D．The farmers and off-land workers. |
| A．On a notice board. |
| B．In a college newspaper. |
| C．In an institution brochure. |
| D．On a high technology website. |
8 . A short period of sleep taken during the day is known as a nap. Naps don’t just have benefits for adults at work, though. They could also help pupils to make the most of their school day. Studies have shown that a 20 to 30-minute “beauty sleep” makes people more alert and focused. This improves people’s ability to remember new information, which would help school children concentrate during lessons. Experts say that napping also improves brain functions, such as memory and the ability to complete difficult tasks.
The school day starts early, which means that pupils don’t always get enough sleep because there’s no chance to have a lie-in. Adding naptime during the school day would help exhausted pupils to make up for any sleep they’ve lost from getting up so early.
There are long-term benefits to taking a short nap, too. According to a recent study from University College London, the brains of people who have regular naps are bigger than those who don’t. People’s brains naturally shrink when they grow old, and the results showed that little sleeps can help people’s brains to age more slowly.
Although a nap can seem like a good idea, going to sleep for too long can actually make you feel worse. It’s not very pleasant to wake up from a daytime nap feeling confused and sleepy. Napping during the day can also have a negative impact on how well you sleep at night. This can create a cycle of not being able to sleep as well at night, leaving you feeling even more tired in the daytime. Sleep expert Dr Clete Kushida said, “It’s generally recommended to maximize sleep at night.”
Another consideration is that there really isn’t time in the school day for pupils to go to sleep. Some parents and teachers are concerned that it would cause children to miss too much lesson time. Pupils might take advantage of the system and use their need for a nap as an excuse to get out of lessons.
So, what do you think? Should school allow kids to have naps, or should you wait until the evening to catch up on your sleep?
1. It can be inferred from the passage that ________.| A．children need more naps than adults do |
| B．naps improve memory, efficiency and beauty |
| C．both children and adults are equally in need of naps |
| D．naps can bring more benefits to children than to adults |
| A．it may affect a healthier cycle of sleep |
| B．school kids will feel too sleepy to wake up |
| C．it can’t make up for the sleep lost from waking up early |
| D．it extends the school day for kids to have enough lessons |
| A．It’s better for babies to have as many daytime naps as possible. |
| B．Regular naps can slow the rate at which brains shrink with age. |
| C．There’s no need to guarantee night sleep if one has regular naps. |
| D．Different from teachers, parents want their kids to have naptimes. |
| A．Should Schools Have Naptimes? | B．How Could Naptimes Benefit Kids? |
| C．Are Kids Losing Too Much Sleep? | D．Do You Get Enough Daytime Sleep? |
9 . As the Chinese saying goes, a seed can change the world; a variety can benefit a nation.
Zhang Daorong, who has spent the last 26 years
The research into new varieties requires strict standards and
“Generally speaking, a good new
“Agricultural research work is
| A．advertising | B．developing | C．discussing | D．observing |
| A．journalist | B．teacher | C．researcher | D．manager |
| A．precise | B．efficient | C．simple | D．expensive |
| A．way | B．attempt | C．step | D．question |
| A．encouragement | B．support | C．management | D．experiment |
| A．begin | B．continue | C．follow | D．repeat |
| A．practice | B．application | C．declaration | D．invitation |
| A．environment | B．machine | C．farmland | D．variety |
| A．produce | B．improve | C．show | D．develop |
| A．Besides | B．However | C．Therefore | D．Otherwise |
| A．watered | B．bought | C．protected | D．planted |
| A．reporting | B．designing | C．conducting | D．studying |
| A．normal | B．tough | C．varied | D．specific |
| A．end up | B．run out | C．break up | D．pay off |
| A．answers | B．comfort | C．dreams | D．courage |
10 . Ways to Improve Vocabulary in Just One Day
The average American has a vocabulary in the thousands. Try these tricks to make sure yours builds up.
Watch movies
“If you see the movie version of your favourite book you’re likely to have a deeper understanding and knowledge of the words in it,” says Neuman, professor of Childhood and Literacy Education at New York University. “Seeing and reading something on the same topic is really important.”
Read magazines
If you want to improve vocabulary, don’t just flip through your favourite magazine, really read it.
Listen to how words sound
Many people won’t remember tricky words unless they come across them frequently. But if you hear a word that you think sounds interesting, you become word conscious (有意识的) and start using it yourself, says Neuman.
Join a book club
“Book clubs are a wonderful strategy to learn new words,” says Neuman. Not only will it force you to set aside time in your day to read, but it’s also a good way to discover books you might not normally be drawn to.
Listen to the radio
Those types of programs can expose you to topics you may not be familiar with. Don’t miss these middle school vocabulary words adults still don’t know.
Pay attention to your surroundings
Next time walk down a busy street or take a walk in the park, try to describe what you’re seeing as much as possible inside your head.
Read, read, read
Even if you don’t stop to look up every single foreign word, chances are you can improve vocabulary simply by figuring out (想出) their meaning based on the context.
1. How many tricks mentioned above are through hearing?| A．1. | B．2. | C．3 | D．4. |
| A．By listening to the radio. | B．By joining a book club. |
| C．By walking around. | D．By watching movies. |
| A．A novel. | B．A science report. | C．A sports magazine. | D．A website. |
