2 . True happiness lies in rewarding relationships, not material wealth, according to new research. Scientists have said that a close circle of friends and family is most important for happiness, and that owning things such as iPhones, computers, being wealthy and owning a sports car do not provide the same level of satisfaction.

The study was done by psychologists at the Sahlgrenska Academy and Lund University, in Sweden. The experts analyzed articles in Swedish newspapers published in 2016 and recorded which words most often occurred in the same articles as the Swedish word for happiness. In this way, they could know our common happiness.

Co-author Dr Danilo Garcia, a researcher at the Sahlgrenska Academy’s Center for Ethics, Law and Mental Health, said, “It’s relationships that are most important, not material things that we possess, and this is in line with other findings in happiness research.”

The study, which contained more than 1.5 million words, showed that terms such as “grandmother” and personal pronouns such as “you”, “me”, “us” and “them” often emerge in the same article as the Swedish word for happiness. Researchers found that words such as “iPhone”, “millions” and “Google” almost never appear with the word “happiness”.

The study is a part of a larger research project on how people describe both positive and negative events in their lives. The researchers believe that the word analysis reflects a common perception among the members of our society as to what should make us happy.

Dr Danilo Garcia said, “Just as the Beatles sang, most people understand that money can’t buy you happiness or love. But even if we can understand the importance of close and warm relationships at a social level, it isn’t certain that everyone is aware that such relationships are actually necessary for our own personal happiness.”

1. New research mainly shows that ________.

A．various things can lead to happiness in people

B．having some close friends is very important to us

C．owning expensive things can actually make us happy

D．rewarding relationships make us happy instead of material wealth

2. How did the experts arrive at their findings?

A．By doing surveys.

B．By doing experiments.

C．By analyzing printed articles.

D．By referring to previous studies.

3. What Dr Danilo Garcia in Paragraph 3 shows that the new findings ________.

A．explain something new

B．are unbelievable to many people

C．prove material things are unimportant

D．confirm previous findings in happiness research

4. What does the underlined word “emerge” in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．Appear.

B．Spread.

C．Start.

D．Unite.

5. Dr Danilo Garcia doubts whether ________.

A．money really buys us happiness or love

B．rewarding relationships really lead to personal happiness

C．close and warm relationships are important at a social level

D．all people know rewarding relationships lead to personal happiness

3 . Exchanging old-fashioned postcards with random strangers around the world is great fun. And for me, it’s sending not just any postcard, but one in particular that seems to resonate (共鸣) with people everywhere.

The Postcrossing project was created by Paulo Magalhaes in 2005. He liked getting mail — especially postcards. He thought others did, too — but how could he connect with them? That’s when he came up with the idea of an online platform (postcrossing. com). There, postcard lovers like me can sign up to send a postcard to someone who has registered (注册) online, and receive a postcard in return.

Along with a randomly selected address, participants get a unique code to put on the postcard. When the postcard arrives, the recipient registers that code with the site, which then causes the sender’s address to be given to another Postcrosser in turn. In practice, this means that for nearly every postcard I send (a few get lost in the mail) I get one back. And since I never know who will be sending me a card or where in the world they live, every trip to the mailbox holds the potential for a wonderful surprise.

At the last count, there were more than 690,000 Postcrossers in 211 countries, representing nearly every race and religion on the planet — and the cards they’d like to receive are nearly as diverse. I’ve seen requests for postcards featuring maps, animals, Benedict Cumberbatch (an actor), and the color green. But no matter how lengthy or unusual a particular Postcrosser’s list of requests may be, somewhere, in nearly every card, is a sentence like this: “Please send me a card that represents something unique or special about your country.”

I love to see that request. To me, the opportunity to share what I love most about my country and to learn what other people love most about theirs is the heart and soul of this activity.

1. Why did Paulo set up the online platform?

A．To show his love to mail.

B．To connect with the author.

C．To get postcards from strangers.

D．To make friends around the world.

2. What does Paragraph 3 mainly talk about?

A．How people sign up for the platform.

B．Why the online platform succeeds.

C．What the online platform provides.

D．How the online platform works.

3. How does the author feel on the way to get his card?

A．Surprised and shocked.	B．Curious and eager.
C．Nervous and expected.	D．Upset and unusual.

4. What does the author think of the Postcrossing project?

A．It’s an activity about sharing and communicating.

B．It’s a request to make people share their cultures.

C．It’s a way of learning about a new country.

D．It’s an opportunity to know more people.

4 . The newly-elected president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro says that his country should withdraw (退出) from the 2015 Paris Agreement, and that Brazil’s rainforest protections are standing in the way of economic success. During the election campaign, he promised to ease protections for areas of the Brazilian Amazon set aside for native people and wildlife. Are Brazil’s rainforests in danger?

The Amazon, the world’s largest rainforest, is called “the lungs of the planet.” Each tree takes in and stores carbon dioxide from the air around it. Billions of trees pull up water through their roots and release water vapor into the air, forming tiny drops of water. The Amazon creates 30 to 50 percent of its own rainfall. Carlos Nobre, a climate scientist, says that it is almost impossible to say Just how important the rainforest is to the planet’s living systems.

Some of Bolsonaro’s support comes from business and farming groups. One supporter, Luiz Carlos, noted that farmers “are not invaders, they are producers.” He blamed the past government for supporting rainforest protections at the cost of farmers. “Brazil,” he said, “will be the biggest farming nation on Earth during Bolsonaro’s years.”

Paulo Artaxo, a professor of environmental physics at the University of Sao Paulo, says that if Bolsonaro keeps his campaign promises, then “deforestation of the Amazon will probably increase quickly — and the effects will be felt everywhere on the planet.”

Other scientists warn that if the Amazon and other tropical rainforests lose too many trees, this could affect rainfall in other areas. Without enough trees to support the rainfall, the longer and bigger dry season could turn more than half of the rainforest into a tropical grassland.

1. The first paragraph is intended to ________.

A．draw people’s attention to the disappearing rainforests

B．ask people to ease the protection of rainforests

C．attract the public to the newly-elected president

D．to complain about the new government's withdrawing

2. According to the passage, rainforests can ________.

A．produce much farmland

B．examine people’s lungs

C．change the earth’s living system

D．destroy farmers’ crops

3. What can be inferred from the passage?

A．The new president’s supporters care less about farmers.

B．Scientists are concerned about the protection of rainforests.

C．The rainforests will stop the economic development in Brazil.

D．The past government is to blame for the destruction of rainforests

4. The passage is probably taken from ________.

A．a newspaper

B．a magazine

C．a guidebook

D．a textbook

5 . I can remember when my daughter Maggie, who is now six, used to crawl into my lap and say, “Daddy, read me a story.” Last year she announced, “Daddy, I’m going to read you a story.”

Maggie was a television child. When she first became conscious of anything beyond eating and sleeping, the TV set was right there, and it soon commanded her attention.

A few years ago, we were worried not only that we’d never get the children away from the set long enough to learn to read, but that we’d forget how to read ourselves. But in 1955 there was not only more reading than before TV, but more reading than ever before in history.

Clearly, reading has survived television as it has survived a lot of other things. When I was six, a wail went up about menaces (威胁) to reading at home: motor cars and cinema. When Maggie came along, there was television. The motorcar, the radio, the cinema and television do take up a lot of time.

Well, we’ve got more time. When my mother was a girl, people worked about 60hours a week. Now it’s 44. When Maggie grows up, it’ll be 30. And there’ll be numerous gadgets to do her housework. She’ll have to read. You can’t watch TV all day. At present Maggie is reading about Johnny Woodchuck. Ahead of her—and I’m a little envious—are her first brush with Black Beauty, Alice stepping through the looking glass, Huck and Jim drifting down the Mississippi, the emotional storms of Shakespeare, the spiritual agonies of Tolstoy. For reading isn’t all joy. Like life itself, it’s mixed with many moods, from ecstasy (狂喜) to despair. Maggie will learn to take the rough with the smooth, gathering from the ancient wisdom of long-dead genius a little fire to enrich her spirit.

And some day, if she’s lucky, she’ll get the biggest thrill of all, when a little girl climbs into her lap and announces, “Mummy, I’m going to read you a story.”

1. Which of the following things used to catch Maggie’s attention too much?

A．The motorcar.

B．The radio.

C．The cinema.

D．The television.

2. Why do the young generation like Maggie have more access to reading?

A．They face less working pressure.

B．There is more time available for reading.

C．Their parents encourage them more often.

D．They have a stronger desire for knowledge.

3. What makes the author envious of Maggie?

A．Her exposure to classic reading.	B．Her productive works in writing.
C．Her wild imagination in daily life.	D．Her spiritual reflection on the books.

4. What does the underlined sentence in paragraph 6 imply?

A．Maggie has rich experiences.

B．Maggie has a good plan for reading.

C．Maggie will benefit a lot from reading.

D．Maggie is on the road to becoming a genius.

5. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

A．It is a blessing that reading can be passed down.

B．More girls like Maggie enjoy telling stories.

C．Maggie’s daughter brings her the biggest thrill.

D．Reading makes Maggie a fortunate girl.

6 . Many great basketball players had clever nicknames, usually describing the player’s overall style on the court. Below are some of the colorful nicknames among popular NBA players.

“Tiny”

Nate Archibald, at six feet one inch tall, was small for a basketball player. Still, Archibald used speed and his brains to control the court in the 14 seasons that he played in the NBA. Interestingly, his nickname originated off the court: he was named after his father, “Big Tiny”.

“Magic”

Earvin Johnson was called “Magic” by a sportswriter who saw him playing basketball in one high school game. Johnson was a skillful player, often doing the unexpected, to the chagrin of his competitors and the delight of the audience. He also won a gold medal as part of the U.S. “Dream Team”in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.

“The Mailman”

Karl Malone earned his nickname because on the court he delivered consistently. Malone spent most of his career with the Utah Jazz, gaining a reputation as one of the best power forwards of all time. He also won two Olympic gold medals, as part of the U.S.“Dream Team” in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain and in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia.

“The Iceman”

George Gervin made the most difficult shots look easy. He was also famous for keeping cool in every game, playing in a relaxed way under pressure. Gervin, who played most of his 14 years in the NBA with the San Antonio Spurs, was unequalled in many ways as a shooting guard.

1. Whose nickname has nothing to do with basketball?

A．Nate Archibald’s	B．Earvin Johnson’s.
C．Karl Malone’s.	D．George Gervin’s.

2. Why was George Gervin called “The Iceman”?

A．He was always as cold as ice.

B．He was always able to keep calm on the court.

C．He had a glass of iced beer every day.

D．He didn’t get along well with his teammates.

3. The author’s purpose in writing the text is to ______.

A．uncover the secrets of NBA players’ success

B．talk about how to give others a lovely nickname

C．show how to become an excellent basketball player

D．introduce some NBA players and their nicknames

7 . It was one of those moments every new parent dreads (恐惧). My baby son was screaming as if I’d just dipped him in a bucket (桶) of battery acid. It felt as if he’d been screaming like that for years, though he was only two months old. Even worse, this was happening in public— I was sitting with my howling baby in the food court of a Los Angeles mall, despairing (绝望) as other diners silently judged me while watching us over plates of food.

Until, that is, one woman— a complete stranger— did something and taught me a lesson about kindness that lingers to this day. She walked over to me and put her hand on my shoulder. “This won’t last forever,” she said. “I know it doesn’t seem like it right now, but things will get better. He’ll stop crying. You’ll get some sleep.”

It was such a small thing, a tiny kindness, really, but it made all the difference. It was 2001 and I was living in a foreign city with a newborn, without friends or family, and I was terribly lonely. This woman had seen me, if only for a moment, and taken the time to make a human connection. It was just a minute out of her day, but it has stayed with me for nearly two decades.

We all want to be better in the world and more giving to others. But we can easily get hung up on the sheer (完全的) importance of that challenge— making time to regularly volunteer or finding money to donate to a cause. Doing good doesn’t have to be an important task, though; it can be incremental (递增的). It can be as quick as a smile, a word, a phone call, an email. It can be the note you send to a friend who is feeling blue or the baby carriage you help carry down the subway stairs for a parent on their own, even though you’re late for work.

I’m reminded of a line from Brian Goldman’s bestseller, The Power of Kindness: “The opposite meaning of empathy is apathy (冷漠).” That is, the opposite of doing good isn’t doing harm; it’s doing nothing. Every tiny act of generosity— every door held open, every coffee bought for a stranger— builds a bridge to another person. It says, “I see you.” Today, when we spend most of our time looking at our phones, and not at people’s faces, that’s invaluable.

So, while I’m not particularly good at regularly volunteering or running marathons to raise money for charity, I’m committed to small gestures. I try to send a note of praise every day to someone whose work I admire. I’ve become phone friends with a lonely 87-year-old woman who contacted me about something I wrote, and who lives in a city far from her own children and grandchildren. On airplanes, I find the new parents with panicked eyes and offer to hold their babies. I remember what it felt like when the screaming baby was mine. I remember when a tiny kindness felt monumental, enough to change the world.

1. Why did the author mention her baby son’s crying in Paragraph 1?

A．To create a disappointing atmosphere.	B．To prove her opinion.
C．To show her helplessness.	D．To introduce the topic.

2. What holds people back from being more giving to others?

A．Always trying to do important deeds.	B．Being short of time.
C．Being lacking in money.	D．Keeping looking at their phones.

3. A line from Brian Goldman’s The Power of Kindness is used in Paragraph 5 to show that ________.

A．doing harm to others is better than doing nothing

B．people are supposed to pay more attention to others’ faces

C．every small gesture counts in connecting people

D．spending most of our time looking at our phones is invaluable

4. What can be the most suitable title for the passage?

A．The Kind Strangers	B．The Small Mercies
C．The Power of Words	D．The Power of Kindness

8 . A fresh and gentle wind on your face, soft sand under your feet and blue waters as far as the eye can see. Is there any other Olympic sport that is played in such pleasant conditions as beach volleyball？

“I’ve gone to a lot of beautiful places, and met a lot of beautiful people. That wouldn’t have happened if I had been playing another sport.” said Randy Stoklos, America’s most famous beach volleyball player.

The sport began as a four-a-side game on beaches in Southern California in the 1920s. The first recorded two-man game took place there in 1930, and the first tournament (锦标赛) was held in Los Angeles 18 years later. The winners were awarded a case of Pepsi. In the 1950s, women started playing and the sport soon spread to Europe and South America. Yet at that time, beach volleyball was more an entertainment show than a sport, with beauty contests included. The Association of Volleyball Professionals was founded in 1983 and beach volleyball developed into a fast, athletic sport. Its world-wide popularity won beach volleyball a place at the 1996 Olympics in Atalanta, where 24 male teams and 16 female teams took part. At present, the US and Brazil are the best in the world at beach volleyball.

The game came to China in the early 1990s and there have been national tournaments since 1994. It became an official event at the Eighth National Games in 1997. China’s You Wenhui and Wang Lu finished ninth in the women’s beach volleyball world championships in Brazil.

1. The passage is mainly about ______.

A．the history of beach volleyball

B．how to play beach volleyball

C．the importance of beach volleyball

D．women’s beach volleyball in China

2. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE？

A．Beach volleyball was first played like other Olympic: sports.

B．Beach volleyball has always been an entertainment show rather than a sport.

C．Beach volleyball began on beaches in Souther California.

D．Women started playing beach volleyball in South America in 1945.

3. When did beach volleyball officially become an Olympic event？

A．In 1948,

B．In 1996.

C．In 1950.

D．In 1997.

4. According to the passage, we can learn that______.

A．in 1996, beach volleyball became an official event in China

B．China’s beach volleyball team is the best in the world

C．China’s beach volleyball players won the first place in Brazil

D．beach volleyball came to China in the early 1990s

9 . Kids and science seem to be made for each other!

The basic science is a combination of thought and experiment called the scientific method. It’s where you start with an idea, create a way to prove or disprove your idea, and show what you learned based on facts. Learning to follow this process helps you think logically and carefully. These important thinking skills can be used in many areas of study. To give a child practice with these thinking skills is like giving vitamins to a developing mind.

One of the greatest things we can teach our children is to love learning. Learning science is a great way to do so. Children are easy to be interested in science. Because much of science is hands-on, it attracts most children. Nothing makes a child sit up and take notice like the “WOW!” of a great science showing.

Science opens doors to many subjects at school. Building love for science can be helpful in other areas of study. For example, one cannot love science for very long without becoming good at its language-math! So science encourages children to study math. An interest in science is an interest in how things were once understood compared to how they are understood now. Thus studying science lends itself easily to studying history. And after you do an experiment, you need to write a lab report. Therefore, writing becomes an important part of science.

Science is the basic thing for much of our life. The science of farming shows how our food is produced; biomedical science keeps us healthy; even our beds these days are designed according to scientific facts. We almost eat, sleep and breathe with the help of science! When we prepare the next generation of voters, creators and policy makers, it is important to make sure they are not only comfortable but also good at science.

1. According to Paragraph 2, what does learning the scientific method mean to kids?

A．Learning to do experiments.	B．Learning many areas of study.
C．Helping them develop thinking skills.	D．Refusing any ideas that are not logical.

2. Which of the following statements would the author agree with?

A．Science is too difficult for children.	B．Children usually consider science boring.
C．Science can arouse children's interest in learning.	D．Children who are careless shouldn't learn science.

3. What happens to a child who works hard at science at school?

A．He usually has no time for other subjects.	B．He usually loses interest in other activities.
C．He is usually bad at such subjects like history.	D．He is likely to learn many other subjects well.

4. What would be the best title for the text?

A．Why Kids Should Learn Science	B．Why Science Is Important
C．How Kids Can Make Use of Science	D．What Kids Should Learn at School

10 . More and more English-educated Chinese Singaporean parents are realizing the importance for their children to be not only good at the all important English language, but also good at Chinese. China has become a great political and economic superpower and they want their children to become bilingual.

It is common knowledge that, to master any language, especially one's mother tongue, one must begin from childhood. But there are challenges and barriers for children of English-speaking homes to succeed in their journey towards bilingualism.

Take my family as an example. While my wife and I are products of English education, we had some foundation(基础）in Chinese which we kept up in our working life. But the language of communication in our home is mainly English.

We are glad that our three children, had between eight and eleven years' Chinese schooling before switching over to English schools. Their foundation in Chinese has become an advantage in their adult life. They can hold their own in the spoken language, but would find it hard to write a business letter in Chinese for lack of usage.

We have a grandson who will be two years old shortly. His parents have given my wife and I the unenviable(令人为难的，令人不愉快的）task of making him bilingual. It is a very tough assignment, as we are with him for only a couple of hours on most days. For the rest of the time, he is being surrounded by English sounds by his busy parents.

Fortunately, our perseverance is paying off. After eight months, he has been used to hearing Chinese sounds, and even he can now quite comfortably identify common everyday objects in Chinese.

1. Why is it becoming necessary for some Chinese Singaporean children to learn Chinese?

A．Because most of the Singaporeans come from China.

B．Because their parents are missing their motherland.

C．Because China has become a great political and economic superpower.

D．Because China is the official language in the UN.

2. The underlined word “bilingual” in Paragraph 1 probably means

A．a person who knows English	B．a person who knows Chinese
C．a person who knows only one language	D．a person who knows two languages

3. What do we know about the author and his children?

A．He lives in China now.	B．His children hate learning English.
C．He usually speaks English at home.	D．His three children master Chinese very well.

4. The author used the example of teaching his grandson mainly to prove that ________ .

A．there are challenges for children of English-speaking homes to learn Chinese

B．his foundation in Chinese is a big advantage in teaching his grandson

C．he is quite good at teaching little children Chinese

D．learning Chinese is very popular in Singapore