1 . Sumiel, a 71-year-old, was no stranger to the struggles of kidney (肾) disease. He was on the transplant list (移植名单), but no matches had yet
One day, he took a taxi home after his
Letts was
Fourteen months after they ended up in the same taxi by
| A．happened | B．appeared | C．proved | D．showed |
| A．argument | B．agreement | C．promise | D．appointment |
| A．drive | B．walk | C．chance | D．march |
| A．bargaining | B．complaining | C．chatting | D．reasoning |
| A．struggling | B．volunteering | C．competing | D．wandering |
| A．usually | B．basically | C．extremely | D．normally |
| A．searching for | B．picking out | C．preparing for | D．getting through |
| A．partner | B．game | C．pair | D．match |
| A．predict | B．think | C．learn | D．work |
| A．fair | B．strange | C．true | D．certain |
| A．contacted | B．connected | C．abandoned | D．launched |
| A．decision | B．operation | C．practice | D．process |
| A．solutions | B．results | C．purposes | D．evidences |
| A．arrangement | B．design | C．chance | D．invitation |
| A．success | B．task | C．responsibility | D．glory |
2 . There are thousands of languages in the world. But which language is the oldest? Experts use different methods to find out the age of a language.
Finding the oldest language is a challenging task, according to Danny Hieber, an expert in the study of endangered languages. “If we think that most languages can date back to an original human language, all languages are equally old,” Hieber said. However, it’s impossible to find out such language —the direct ancestor of every language in the world. Accordingly, some experts believe that the “oldest language” should belong to one with a well-established written record.
Many of the earliest recorded examples of writing come from languages that used cuneiform script (楔形文字). Among these languages are Sumerian and Akkadian, both dating back at least 4,600 years. Experts have also found Egyptian hieroglyphs that date to around the same historical period. These hieroglyphs, which can be translated into “He has united the Two Lands for his son, Dual King Peribsen,” are considered the earliest complete sentence ever discovered.
Experts generally agree that Sumerian, Akkadian and Egyptian are the oldest languages with a clear written record. All three are extinct, meaning that they are no longer used and don’t have any living followers which can carry the language to the next generation.
As for the oldest language that is still spoken, several competitors appear. Hebrew and Arabic stand out among such languages for having timelines that experts can reasonably find, according to Hieber. Although these earliest written languages only date back around 3,000 years, Hieber said, “both of them belong to the Afroasiatic language family, whose roots date back to 18, 000 to 8,000 B. C. E. , or about 20,000 to 10,000 years ago.” Even with this wide period of time, it is widely accepted that Afroasiatic is the oldest language family. But the exact point in time when Hebrew and Arabic separated from other Afroasiatic languages is heavily debated among experts.
1. How do experts determine the age of a language?| A．By studying its spoken dialects. | B．By analyzing its basic grammar. |
| C．By examining its written records. | D．By comparing it to other languages. |
| A．They’re an example of cuneiform script. | B．They belong to the Afroasiatic language. |
| C．They provide evidence of the oldest language. | D．They’re the earliest-known complete sentences. |
| A．Gone | B．Ancient. | C．Outdated. | D．Active. |
| A．The reason for their standing out. | B．The exact time of their separation. |
| C．The appearance of their competitors. | D．The roots of earliest written languages. |
3 . As a child, there was nothing I liked better than Sunday afternoons at my grandfather’s farm in western Pennsylvania. Surrounded by miles of stone walls, the house and field provided endless hours of fun for a city kid like me.
Since my first visit to the farm, I had wanted more than anything to be allowed to climb the stone walls surrounding the houses. My parents would never agree because the walls were so old that some stones were loose and falling. However, my idea to climb across those walls grew so strong that finally I had all my courage to enter the living room, where the adults had gathered after Sunday dinner.
“I want to climb the stone walls.” I said. “Heavens, no! You’ll hurt yourself!” The response was just as I’d expected. But before I left the room, I was stopped by my grandfather’s loud voice. “Now hold on just a minute.” I heard him say. “Let the boy climb the stone walls. He has to learn to do things for himself.”
“Go,” he said to me, “and come and see me when you get back.” For the next two and a half hours I climbed those old walls —and had the time of my life. Later I met with my grandfather to tell him about my adventures. I’ll never forget what he said. “Fred,” he said, smiling, “you made this day a special day just by being yourself. Always remember, there’s only one person in this whole world like you, and I like you exactly as you are.”
Many years have passed since then, and today I host the television program Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, seen by millions of children throughout America. There have been changes over the years, but one thing remains the same: my message to children at the end of almost every visit. “There’s only one person in this whole world like you,” the kids will hear me say, “and people can like you exactly as you are.”
1. Why did the writer enjoy his visits to the farm?| A．There were old stone houses. | B．He was allowed to climb the walls. |
| C．He missed his grandfather a lot. | D．He could experience new fun there. |
| A．He was backed up by his grandfather to follow his heart. |
| B．He didn’t expect his parents’ disagreement on wall climbing. |
| C．He became a TV program host with his grandfather’s help. |
| D．He didn’t know the possible danger of the stone walls. |
| A．Open-minded. | B．Adventurous. | C．Kind-hearted. | D．Dependable. |
| A．Unforgettable Childhood | B．Just Be Yourself |
| C．Do Whatever You Like | D．Like grandfather, like grandson |
4 . When you are a kid, gaining a best friend forever can happen in a single play date. But when you grow up to be an adult, making and maintaining friendships gets harder. So how much quality time (优质时光) do you need before that stranger becomes your friend? A new study recently found that, on average, it takes about 50 hours with someone before you consider them a casual (感情不深的) friend, about 90 hours before you become real friends, and about 200 hours to become close friends.
The study’s author Jeffrey Hall, a communications professor, invited adults who are eager to make friends to take part in two experiments — people who had just moved to a new city in the past six months and college freshmen. He asked them to rate and track the degree of closeness and time spent together with a new person. “Results suggest that the chance of changing from casual friend to real friend is greater than 50% after around 80-100 hours together,” said Hall.
The study found that the amount of time spent talking together, or the fact that you spent time at school or work with them, was unrelated to friendship closeness. “It is really easy to spend a lot of time with people as they are routinely in the same place at the same time as you,” Hall said. “However, my study shows you can have workmates you spend hundreds and hundreds of hours with and still not develop a friendship.”
You do not need to become best friends with your workmates to develop meaningful relationships with them. But for those of us hoping to change from “girl who I eat lunch at work with” to “friend I can depend on,” Hall suggests that you need to take the relationship out of the workplace for it to become a friendship. The participants who did activities outside of work with someone, such as being invited to have lunch in their home, were more likely to develop deeper relationships with them.
1. What is the new study mainly about?| A．Ways of making friends in a new environment. | B．Why people need to make different friends. |
| C．Different levels of friendship. | D．How long it takes to develop a friendship. |
| A．They knew each other before. | B．They had difficulty in making new friends. |
| C．They were in great need of friends. | D．They started their new life in the same city. |
| A．Usually. | B．Actively. | C．Seldom. | D．Confidently. |
| A．Joining the same work team. | B．Having lunch at work with them. |
| C．Inviting them to your home after work. | D．Sharing work experience with each other. |
5 . If you are crazy about paintings, you shouldn’t miss the following four famous masterpieces which have stood the test of time.
The Arnolfini Portrait
Jan van Eyck’s Arnolfini Portrait, an oil painting on wood produced in 1434, in which a man and a woman hold hands with a window behind him and a bed behind her, is undoubtedly one of the masterpieces in the National Gallery, London. This painting is as visually interesting as it is famed. It is also an informative document in fifteenth-century society, through Van Eyck’s heavy use of symbolism—while husbands went out to engage in business, wives concerned themselves with domestic duties.
The Starry Night
Vincent van Gogh painted The Starry Night, oil on canvas, a moderately abstract landscape painting of an expressive night sky over a small hillside village, during his 12-month stay at the mental hospital near Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, France between 1889 and 1890. When the Museum of Modern Art in New York City purchased the painting from a private collector in 1941, it was not well known, but it has since become one of Van Gogh’s most famous works.
The Harvesters
The Harvesters is an oil painting on wood completed by Pieter Bruegel the Elder in 1565. It depicts the harvest time which most commonly occurs within the months of August and September. Nicolaes Jonghelinck, a merchant banker and art collector from Antwerp, commissioned this painting. The painting has been at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City since 1919.
Guernica
Guernica, a large black-and-white oil painting, was painted by the Cubist Spanish painter, Pablo Picasso in 1937. The title “Guernica” refers to the city that was bombed by Nazi planes during the Spanish Civil War. The painting depicts the horrors of war and as a result, has come to be an anti-war symbol and a reminder of the tragedies of war. Today, the painting is housed at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofaí in Madrid.
1. Which of the following paintings was produced earliest?| A．The Arnolfini Portrait. | B．The Starry Night. |
| C．The Harvesters. | D．Guernica. |
| A．It was painted on wood in oil. |
| B．It wasn’t widely recognized before 1940s. |
| C．It described the painter’s life in hospital. |
| D．It was given away to the museum by a private collector. |
| A．Pieter Bruegel the Elder. | B．Vincent van Gogh. |
| C．Jan van Eyck. | D．Pablo Picasso. |
6 . One day, I was standing on the boat when a very large female leopard seal swam by. I put on my diving gear and got my camera. I was
I jumped into the freezing water. Immediately, the seal swam toward me. Then she put my entire camera—and much of my
By now, she didn’t seem very
Those four days were the most incredible experience I ever had as a wildlife
| A．amused | B．enthusiastic | C．cautious | D．frightened |
| A．approach | B．rescue | C．treat | D．hunt |
| A．leg | B．head | C．body | D．neck |
| A．feel | B．arouse | C．reveal | D．overcome |
| A．attacked | B．threatened | C．disturbed | D．confused |
| A．disappeared | B．communicated | C．returned | D．competed |
| A．digest | B．eat | C．seize | D．injure |
| A．mouth | B．eyes | C．nose | D．stomach |
| A．discipline | B．adopt | C．observe | D．feed |
| A．powerful | B．dangerous | C．sensitive | D．gentle |
| A．come across | B．come back | C．come over | D．come up |
| A．drove | B．directed | C．took | D．waved |
| A．manager | B．painter | C．advocate | D．photographer |
| A．demand | B．work | C．expect | D．react |
| A．intelligent | B．accessible | C．primitive | D．anxious |
7 . Ecofriendly replacement products for single-use plastics are appearing everywhere. But have you heard of edible (可食性的) straws? Now EQUO, a new eco-friendly company in Vietnam has come up with a natural edible solution to plastic or paper straws.
The edible straws are completely plastic free, nontoxic, chemical free, and 100 percent biodegradable according to a company press release.
“It’s well known that plastic straws are harmful to the environment. Most of the 500 million used every day in America end up in oceans where they pollute water and harm marine life. Currently over eight billion straws pollute the world’s beaches,” said Marina Tran-Vu in the press release. “Although there are some plastic and paper straw alternatives on the market, most are environmentally harmful, and we were also unsatisfied with the quality and lasting of paper straws.”
All of the materials are locally from regions that support sustainable farming according to the company’s website and they struggle to have zero-net influence by” using the power of mother nature”. The name of the company was created by combining “ECO” — meaning environmentally friendly — with “STATUS QUO” — meaning the existent state. EQU stands for creating products that have minimal influence on the environment. The company was first shown on Kickstarter on May 18 and hit their funding goal in only 30 days.
Many countries are banning single-use plastics. The EU banned 10 single-use plastic products including straws that will take effect in 2021. Other items that will no longer be made of plastic include cutlery (餐具), and balloon sticks. These 10 items make up a large percentage of ocean waste that harms marine life.
So do your part, use biodegradable cutlery — you can carry your own , edible straws, and reusable water or coffee cups. These small items can contribute to reducing plastic waste.
1. What is the third paragraph mainly about?| A．The popularity of plastic straws. |
| B．The harm of plastic straws. |
| C．The pollution of beaches. |
| D．The necessity of change. |
| A．It means the original aim. |
| B．It means the existent state. |
| C．It means how to create products. |
| D．It means being good for the environment. |
| A．Plastic straws will be forbidden. |
| B．Edible straws will be sold cheaply. |
| C．Ocean waste can be rid completely. |
| D．Single-use plastic products will disappear. |
| A．Skeptical. | B．Objective. | C．Tolerant. | D．Approving. |
8 . As we close out the final days of this year, treat yourself to a deliciously distracting new book —a book that you can dip into and out of throughout the holidays. Read up, rest up, and enjoy yourself.
Yoga for Pregnancy, Birth and beyond
A must-have guide for yoga-loving mamas, Yoga for Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond offers helpful relaxation techniques and breathing exercises that are tailored to each pregnant woman. The book also lays out valuable techniques for labor and staying in touch with your body as it continuously changes.
Mindfulness Activities for Kids
We could all use a little more peace in our lives. Uniquely suited for children and parents to do together, the 40 mindfulness exercises recommended here —from pausing to fully enjoy a tasty sandwich to taking chalk walk together—will not only teach children calm and gratitude, but also bring grown-ups and their littles closer together.
Before She Disappeared
Frankie Elkin is a recovering alcoholic who devotes her time to solving cold cases, especially those involving people of color. A new investigation brings her to Boston, searching for a Haitian teenager who disappeared months ago. But as Frankie starts asking questions, someone else will stop at nothing to keep the answers hidden.
Oak Flat
Lauren Redniss’ Oak Flat tells the story of the land near the San Carlos Apache Reservation through an Apache family fighting to protect the land which the U. S. government and two world-power mining enterprises are attempting to seize and destroy for its copper resources. Visually striking and deeply reported, Oak Flat tells a larger story of endless westward expansion and native resistance.
1. Which book can help to improve family relations?| A．Oak Flat. |
| B．Before She Disappeared. |
| C．Mindfulness Activities for Kids. |
| D．Yoga for Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond. |
| A．It’s a brief account of mining enterprises. |
| B．It centers on an Apache family’s struggle. |
| C．It sings high praise of the US government. |
| D．It supports westward expansion and native resistance. |
| A．Teenagers. | B．Men. | C．Kids. | D．Grown-ups. |
9 . Must-See Destinations in 2024
Are you ready to explore the world in 2024? Whether you dream of sailing down famous European rivers or exploring unique places, our list of must-see destinations is here to inspire your travels.
SpainThrow yourself into the rich culture and history of Spain. From the sunny beaches of Tenerife to the Moorish architecture (建筑物) of Andalucía, there’s so much to explore in this lively country. Discover the UNESCO World Heritage (遗产) city of La Laguna and become amazed at the beauty of Cordoba, Seville, and La Alhambra, or relax on a beach holiday to Majorca or Tenerife.
MontenegroDespite its size, Montenegro has beautiful beaches, rich history, and a breathtaking channel. Experience the beauty of the Montenegrin coast — Dalmatia’s jewel (宝石) is the UNESCO World Heritage listed oasis of Dubrovnik, famously praised by Lord Bryon as The Pearl of the Adriatic.
CroatiaDiscover the beauty that is Dubrovnik. Explore the 16th-century city’s defensive walls and red-roofed buildings. Sail along Croatia’s Adriatic Coast, where attractive villages and beautiful towns like Pula, Rovinj, and Poreč are just waiting to be explored...
South AfricaExplore the wonders of South Africa, from the Garden Route’s nature reserves to the thrill of a Safari drive in the Kariega Game Reserve. Discover the different plants and animals while searching for the “Big Five” on an unforgettable South Africa holiday.
With over 25 years of experience creating holidays for the curious, Travel Department ensures that your journey is in good hands. Plus as a trusted Reader’s Digest Travel partner, you can get special deals when you travel with them across lots of different 2024 holidays. If you want to know more information, please click here.
1. What do Spain and Montenegro have in common?| A．They are both praised by tourists. |
| B．They both have world heritage cities. |
| C．They are known for their architectures. |
| D．They both own beaches and rich history. |
| A．Spain. | B．South Africa. |
| C．Montenegro. | D．Croatia. |
| A．A website. | B．A guidebook. |
| C．A novel. | D．A magazine. |
10 . India, as a country with plenty of resorts (旅游胜地), is popular with different kinds of travelers. If you’re planning to visit the country, the followings are the places that may interest you.
Delhi
Delhi is a perfect place for those who love history, and there are plenty of attractions here to keep tourists of all interests entertained. It’s often the first city that many tourists visit on a trip around India. There are many resorts including India Gate, the Lotus Temple, Qutub Minar, and Humayun’s Tomb.
Agra
Agra is most well known for the Taj Mahal, which draws a large number of tourists to the city. Built in the 1600s, the Taj Mahal is still standing strong today and is admired by tourists as an important part of India’s heritage (遗产).
Kashmir
Kashmir is one of the most beautiful cities in India. With flower gardens, amazing water-falls, and snow-topped peaks, it’s a simply unforgettable place that tourists want to return to time and time again. Kashmir is especially popular with honeymooners and loved-up couples, because a lot of romantic trips are on sale in Kashmir.
Goa
Though Goa is small in size, it’s one of the top resorts for young tourists and those who love taking beach vacations. The golden sands and coconut palm trees are the charm (吸引力) here, and the sunrises and sunsets are so gorgeous that you’ll never forget them.
1. What do we know about Delhi from the text?| A．It is the highest city in India. |
| B．It is known for the Taj Mahal. |
| C．It is attractive to history lovers. |
| D．It is the coolest city in India. |
| A．It is the smallest place. |
| B．It is the capital city of India. |
| C．It offers many tours attracting couples. |
| D．It drives young people crazy. |
| A．Delhi. | B．Goa | C．Kashmir. | D．Agra. |
