1 . Jon Pedley is making a big change. He is giving up his life as a businessman for a life of helping others. He is trading his beautiful farmhouse in England for life in a mud hut (小屋) in Uganda, East Africa.
Pedley admitted that he had not always led a very positive life. At times he drank too much and got in trouble with the law. “I had always put the pursuit (追求) of money in front of everything else. As long as I was all right, I didn’t care who I was hurting,” says Pedley.
But a visit to Uganda in 2007 gave Pedley a new outlook on life. He was amazed at what he saw and how much the people there appreciated the work he was doing. “I worked there for a few days and these people who have nothing were thanking me by giving me bags of potatoes, which are a fortune for them,” he said. Now Pedley is selling his business, his $1.5 million farmhouse, and his expensive car—and moving into a hut made of mud and boards in a small Ugandan village. There he will help run an organisation that hopes to improve the quality of life for people in the village of Kigazi. He will help to build schoolrooms for children and tanks to hold clean water for villagers. Today, people in Kigazi must walk two miles to a hospital, so Pedley will help to build doctors’ offices, too.
Pedley’s organisation will also work with English teenagers who are in trouble. The teens will be sent to a “camp” in Uganda that Pedley will run. The teens will live in mud huts and help to build water, health, and education facilities (设施) for kids in Kigazi, many of whom have lost their parents to poverty or disease. Pedley hopes the teens will see a side of life that might help them turn around their own lives and set them on a new and more positive path.
1. Which of the following best describes Pedley in the past?| A．Negative. | B．Creative. | C．Positive. | D．Selfish. |
| A．Do business with the local people. |
| B．Help farmers increase potato output. |
| C．Help villagers with building work. |
| D．Introduce tools to improve English teaching. |
| A．To encourage them to make friends with locals. |
| B．To inspire them to live a more positive life. |
| C．To train them to become doctors in the future. |
| D．To make them learn about different cultures. |
| A．From a millionaire to living in a mud hut. | B．A life-changing adventure. |
| C．A rich man becoming homeless. | D．More money, more worries. |
2 . If you like the idea of being able to read much faster, remember more easily, and being more creative, this list of Tony Buzan’s books might be inspirational to get you started.
Study Skills Handbook
This book does not focus only on reading efficiency but also covers the subjects of memory improvement and mind mapping. It is an absolute must for students of all ages.
Speed Reading
This popular book explains the principles of efficient reading. It allows you to improve your reading and retention (记忆力) skills immediately. The book gets right down to the practical matter of learning to read fast and remember what you have read.
The Mind Map Book
The Mind Map Book is a ground-breaking work on the basics of mind mapping suitable for everyone and introduces revolutionary techniques for planning and note-taking. It is one of Tony Buzan’s books that have taken the world by storm, selling more than 250 million copies. This guide will teach you how to use your brain properly and to maximum effect and additionally contains numerous practical exercises.
Use Your Head
Use Your Head is for those of you that feel as if you have not been able to reach your full potential. In this book, Tony Buzan teaches you how to think and learn from all possible sources of learning. You will also increase your creativity and your problem-solving abilities. Use Your Head has been translated into 27 different languages and is one of the most popular and best-selling Tony Buzan’s books on every continent. You will most certainly gain valuable advice on how to achieve your mental potential fully.
1. Which book can help students take better notes?| A．Study Skills Handbook. |
| B．The Mind Map Book. |
| C．Speed Reading. |
| D．Use Your Head. |
| A．It offers different sources of learning. |
| B．It is the best-selling book on every continent. |
| C．It helps solve problems in different languages. |
| D．It provides tips on reaching full mental potential. |
| A．Learning motivation. | B．Daily life skills. |
| C．Personal development. | D．Memory skills. |
3 . The British Museum is filled with some of the world’s most famous historical items. If you love history, it’s a good place to visit. It is said to be the top museum in London. The museum has millions of objects, making you worry about your first visit.
Advice on your visit
If you need help in exploring the museum’s displays, about 80,000 objects from a total collection of 8 million items, try joining a guided tour. There are various free tours. You can also rent audio guides.
Ticket information
Entry to the museum is free, but access to some exhibitions will charge you. The museum limits the number of people in the museum to ensure there’s room for you to safely enjoy your visit. You’re advised to book a free ticket to guarantee the entry. Self-led groups of 10 or more people will need to book a group ticket. School groups should contact the box office to book their visit to the museum.
Opening times
Daily: from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm (Fridays: 8:30 pm)
Last entry: 4:00 pm (Fridays: 7:30 pm)
The museum is closed from 24 December to 26 December.
Cafes and restaurants
Court Cafés: from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Great Court Restaurant: from 11:30 am to 5:00 pm
Transport
Bicycle racks are available inside the gates of the main entrance on Great Russell Street. If you’re planning to visit by car, please be aware that the museum doesn’t offer parking facilities. There is a taxi rank on Great Russell Street at the museum’s main gates. Going to the museum by bus or subway is very convenient, which can be your first choice.
For more information, visit the British Museum’s website.
1. What may trouble you when initially visiting the museum?| A．Free access. | B．Abundant collection. |
| C．Beautiful architecture. | D．Breathtaking sculpture. |
| A．4:00 pm. | B．5:00 pm. | C．8:30 pm. | D．10:00 pm. |
| A．The bike. | B．The bus. | C．The subway. | D．The car. |
4 . Personalized medicine changes conventional medicine which typically offers blanket recommendations and offers treatments designed to help more people than they bam but that might not work for you. The approach recognizes that we each possess unique characteristics, and they have an out size impact on our health.
Around the world, researchers are creating precision tools unimaginable just a decade ago: superfast DNA sequencing(排序); tissue engineering, cell reprogramming, gene editing, and more. The science and technology soon will make it possible to predict your risk of cancer, heart disease, and countless other illnesses years before you get sick. The work also offers prospects for changing genes in removing some diseases.
Last spring, researchers at the National Cancer Institute reported the dramatic recovery of a woman with breast cancer, Judy Perkins. The team, led by Steven Rosenberg, an immune(免疫的) treatment pioneer, had sequenced her cancer cells’ DNA to analyze the sudden change. The team also removed a sampling of immune cells and tested them to see which ones recognized her cancer cells' genetic faults. The scientists reproduced the winning immune cells by the billions and put them into Perkins to attack her cancer cells. More than two y cars later. Perkins, a retired engineer from Florida, shows no signs of cancer.
Thirty years ago, scientists thought that it would be impossible to understand our genetic rules and sequence the 3.2 billion pairs of different elements in our DNA. “It was like you were talking fairytales,” Kurzrock said. “The conventional wisdom was that it would never happen. Never And then in 2003, never was over.”
It took the Human Gene Project 13 years, roughly one billion dollars, and scientists from six countries to sequence one gene complex. Today sequencing costs about a thousand dollars. The latest machines can produce the results in a day. The technology, combined with advanced cell analysis, clarifies the astonishing biochemical variations that make every human body unique.
1. What can we know about personalized medicine?| A．It has emerged a decade before. |
| B．It offers blanket recommendations. |
| C．It uses genetic information to help patients. |
| D．It administers treatment intended for most people. |
| A．Promising. | B．Highly risky. | C．Fruitless. | D．Strictly confidential. |
| A．Sequencing her immune cells. |
| B．Reprogramming her cancer cells |
| C．Analysis of her life style changes. |
| D．Identification of cancer-fighting cells. |
| A．Its wide applications. | B．Its recent advances. |
| C．Its major disadvantages. | D．Its attractive prospects. |
5 . Last year in early summer, I was walking to my house when I saw two large birds standing in my yard. They didn’t seem to
A few weeks later, the birds
As I inched towards the birds,
The mother put the baby birds under her wings and carefully crouched down over them so her babies were well
I was watching them with respect when I suddenly
I felt sorry to have disturbed them and left quickly. I am amazed by their
| A．remind | B．confirm | C．notice | D．protest |
| A．immediately | B．familiarly | C．creatively | D．slowly |
| A．feeling | B．sense | C．opinion | D．idea |
| A．investigated | B．removed | C．gathered | D．reappeared |
| A．stuck out | B．put down | C．hang out | D．turned around |
| A．collection | B．discovery | C．conclusion | D．mission |
| A．jumping | B．fighting | C．seeking | D．marching |
| A．curious | B．patient | C．worried | D．careful |
| A．neater | B．simpler | C．longer | D．stronger |
| A．fed | B．hidden | C．raised | D．identified |
| A．tripped | B．moved | C．alarmed | D．responded |
| A．target | B．defence | C．threat | D．escape. |
| A．shooting | B．spilling | C．folding | D．spreading |
| A．military | B．individual | C．brave | D．average |
| A．gratitude | B．respect | C．emotion | D．pleasure |
6 . Family vlogging — the frequent recording and uploading of personal videos of the family, usually on video sharing website — has become big business nowadays, especially among parents of young children. The more viewers such videos can get, the more money the family can make. At first thought, it does seem like an easy way to make money. However, are we doing right by putting their lives up for public attention?
For one thing, as the children grow up, they increasingly become aware that what they do needs to be admirable enough for the public to enjoy — Being young children, they also would want to do whatever it takes to please others. They then feel the pressure to be perfect, and as that is something not always possible, they become anxious and stressed. Comments from viewers and the expectations of sponsors (赞助者) can also affect the parents’ reactions towards their children.
Another problem is the lack of privacy in the children’s lives. As the children reach adolescence, there is a greaser need for personal space. At 12 or 13, very few children would appreciate being filmed while eating or having a conversation with their friends. Teenhood is a time of significant change in an individual, both physically and emotionally, and is a time when parents need to protect their children and guide them, instead of exposing them to the eyes of the public.
Family vlogging can be irresistible, given how it allows parents to bring greater fun to their family lives. There is also the easy money and the fame to look forward to. Indeed, all would probably go well, but only as long as parents keep in mind that, if not managed well, making their children live their lives in the unforgiving eyes of the public could prove to be a big mistake.
1. How does vlogging about children’s lives influence the family?| A．Children will get used to public attention. |
| B．Children may suffer from too much pressure. |
| C．Parents may show no concern for their children. |
| D．Parents become addicted to exposing their children to the public. |
| A．By providing examples | B．By listing numbers |
| C．By making comparisons | D．By analyzing causes |
| A．To introduce a new big business |
| B．To show how vlogging influence people’s lives. |
| C．To persuade parents to watch out for comments from viewers. |
| D．To convince parents of the danger of vlogging about children’s lives. |
| A．negative | B．positive | C．neutral | D．uninterested |
7 . The idea that the standard human body temperature is about 98.6℉ (37℃) was first presented by the German physician Carl Reinhold August Wunderlich in 1851. Since then, it’s become so widely accepted that it serves as a touchstone for health—a diagnostic tool used by physicians and parents as a basic indicator if someone is sick or well.
However, it turns out that this well-established fact isn’t, in fact, correct—or, to put it more accurately, human beings have been getting cooler over the years.
Recent studies have shown that temperature records of groups of people have tended to run low compared to the accepted norm (标准), so the Stanford team, led by Julie Parsonnet, MD, professor of medicine and of health research and policy, decided to do a more in-depth study to compare modern measurements with historical records to try to identify body temperature trends and, perhaps, uncover the reason why this cooling is happening.
For their research, the Stanford team looked at three distinct datasets (数据集) from three historical periods. One was military service records, medical records, and pension records from Union Army veterans of the American Civil War that were compiled from 1862 to 1930. The second was from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Ⅰ collected between 1971 and 1975, and the third from adult patients visiting Stanford Health Care from 2007 to 2017.
In all, the team went through 677,423 temperature measurements, making sure that temperatures recorded were accurate rather than the result of poorly designed thermometers (温度计). They did this by looking at the change in temperature inside each group over time to ensure that the curves (曲线) showing a decrease were consistent between the datasets.
At the end of the day, the team found that men born in the 21st century had an average body temperature of 0.59℃ lower than those born in the early 19th century, while modern women showed an average decrease of 0.32℃ compared to those born in the 1890s. Together, this means that human body temperatures have fallen by 0.03℃ per decade.
1. What is Wunderlich’s achievement?| A．He was the inventor of the thermometer. |
| B．He set up a standard for normal body temperature. |
| C．He discovered humans’ body temperature trends. |
| D．He put forward the theory of normal human body temperature. |
| A．By having interviews. | B．By conducting field research. |
| C．By analyzing historical records. | D．By doing experiments in the lab. |
| A．The quality of thermometers. | B．The backgrounds of the subjects. |
| C．The sorting of the collected datasets. | D．The number of adult patients involved. |
| A．Modern women’s body temperatures have risen over the past century. |
| B．The 19th century saw the greatest increase in men’s body temperatures. |
| C．The 21st century saw the greatest decrease in men’s body temperatures. |
| D．Men’s body temperatures have fallen faster than women’s over the years. |
Summer Culture Welcome a student from France or Spain into your family!Exchange (交换) students from Spain and France are looking for welcoming, fun and loving hosts who will share life and culture with them for a few weeks in June, July and August. Stays can be from 4 to 6 weeks. What to do with your exchange student:Movies/ Museums/ Beach/ Cooking/ Community projects/ Volunteering/ Shopping/ anything you can think of... |
| Requirements to hosts: Loving and active family One stay-at-home host parent Willing to take students to places of interest once a week Contact information: If you are interested and would like more information, please contact: Shirley Wentzell 909-918-6715 Email: Shirley(@uceus.com |
| A．10 days. | B．5 weeks. | C．2 months. | D．1 year. |
| A．be rich and well-educated. | B．have good full-time jobs. |
| C．speak Spanish and French. | D．take students on a trip every week. |
| A．letter | B．notice | C．poster | D．diary |
9 . The expression, “Everybody’s doing it,” is very much at the center of the concept of peer pressure. It is a social influence applied on an individual in order to get that person to act or believe in a(n)
People are social creatures by nature, and so it is hardly
For certain individuals, seeking social acceptance is so important that it becomes a(n)
However, peer pressure is not always negative. A student whose friends are good at contests may be
Although peer pressure is sometimes quite obvious, it can also be so
| A．traditional | B．similar | C．peculiar | D．opposite |
| A．understandable | B．believable | C．acceptable | D．surprising |
| A．disapproval | B．failure | C．absence | D．independence |
| A．uncertain | B．practical | C．impossible | D．vague |
| A．promotes | B．prevents | C．simplifies | D．increases |
| A．challenge | B．inspiration | C．promise | D．addiction |
| A．recognize | B．abandon | C．decrease | D．define |
| A．avoid | B．encourage | C．decline | D．punish |
| A．pressured | B．respected | C．delighted | D．regretted |
| A．catch sight of | B．stay away from | C．make fun of | D．keep up with |
| A．taught | B．argued | C．urged | D．adapted |
| A．knowledge | B．interest | C．assistance | D．influence |
| A．specific | B．ridiculous | C．subtle | D．reasonable |
| A．consciousness | B．motivation | C．instinct | D．encouragement |
| A．motivation | B．danger | C．support | D．achievement |
10 . From political problems to environmental protection, the following books cover all kinds of topics. There is no doubt that they have become a must for young adults who show great interest in these matters.
An Inconvenient Truth by AI Gore
AI Gore caught the attention of the world with his book An Inconvenient Truth, which later was adapted (改编) for a movie. Based on his lecture tour on global warming, the work explains climate change in a user-friendly way and opens the public’s eyes to our planet.
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
When John Steinbeck won the Nobel Prize in Literature, he was praised for his great writings, including The Grapes of Wrath. It focuses on a family of farmers who are forced off their land during the Great Depression. While it touches on the important problems such as agricultural industry changes, it also explores universal themes of power, family and self-interest.
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
Focusing on the meat-packing industry in Chicago, Upton Sinclair’s novel The Jungle explores the life of immigrant workers in the early 20th century. The best-selling work forced President Theodore Roosevelt to pass a law about food safety.
The Conscience of a Liberal by Paul Rrugman
Economist Paul Krugman tells 80 years of American history in The Conscience of a Liberal, which examines the fall and rise of economic and political situations. Many believe the2007 book was a clear call to take control of the country’s economic future.
1. Which book tells something about climate change?| A．The Jungle. | B．An Inconvenient Truth. |
| C．The Grapes of Wrath. | D．The Conscience of a Liberal. |
| A．It was adapted for a movie. |
| B．Its author won the Nobel Prize. |
| C．It is about the economic development. |
| D．It explores the value of a happy family. |
| A．It helped bring a new law into effect. |
| B．It changed the life of immigrant workers. |
| C．It forced people to care about meat-packing. |
| D．It helped develop the meat-packing industry. |
