1 . Pierre is a 25-year-old penguin at the California Academy of Sciences. Due to his old age he was going bald which made him feel too cold to swim in the pool. Therefore biologists at the academy had a wetsuit created for this penguin to help him get back in the swimming pool.
Unlike marine mammals which have a layer of fat to keep them warm penguins depend on their waterproof feathers. Without them Pierre was unwilling to jump into the swimming pool and ended up trembling on the side of the pool while his 19 peers played in the water.
"He was cold; he would shake" said Pam Schaller a senior biologist. Schaller first tried a heat lamp to keep Pierre warm. Then she got another idea: if wetsuits keep humans warm in the cold Pacific why not make one for Pierre?
Schaller designed the suit which covered Pierre's body and had small openings for his flippers.
“I would walk behind him and look at where there were any gaps and cut and refit and cut and refit until it looked like it was extremely suitable” she said.
One concern was that the other penguins would reject Pierre in his new suit but in fact they accepted his new look. He swam freely and got along with others well although he was the only penguin with a black stomach.
Schaller couldn't say for sure whether the wetsuit allowed Pierre to recover his fine feathers but “certainly we were able to keep him comfortable during a period of time that would have been very difficult for him to stay comfortable”.
1. Pierre felt too cold to swim in the pool because of ________.| A．not having a layer of blubber |
| B．having few feathers due to old age |
| C．having no wetsuit |
| D．others penguins rejecting him |
| A．total invention | B．the use of heat lamp |
| C．the use of wetsuit on humans | D．waterproof feathers |
| A．if anywhere of wetsuit needed to be cut and refit |
| B．whether other penguins would reject him |
| C．if the wetsuit kept warm |
| D．whether the wetsuit would keep the feathers from recovering |
| A．Old Penguin Getting Bald | B．Unwilling to Swim |
| C．Strange Look of Pierre | D．Wetsuit for An Old Penguin |
2 . A popular saying goes, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." However, that's not really true. Words have the power to build us up or tear us down. It doesn't matter if the words come from someone 's else or ourselves- -the positive and negative effects are just as lasting.
We all talk to ourselves sometimes. We 're usually too embarrassed to admit it, though. In fact, we really shouldn't be because more and more experts believe talking to ourselves out loud is a healthy habit.
This“self-talk" helps us motivate (激励) ourselves, remember things, solve problems, and calm ourselves down. Be aware, though, that as much as 77% of self-talk tends to be negative. So in order lo stay positive, we should only speak words of encouragement to ourselves. We should also be quick to give ourselves a pat on the back. The next time you finish a project, do well in a test, or finally clean your room, join me in saying“Good job!"
Often, words come out of our mouths without us thinking about the effect they will have. But we should be aware that our words cause certain responses in others. For example, when returning an item to a store, we might use warm, friendly language during the exchange. And the clerk will probably respond in a similar manner. Or harsh (刻薄的) and critical language will most likely cause the clerk to be defensive.
Words possess power because of their lasting effect. Many of us regret something we once said. And we remember unkind words said to us! Before speaking. we should always ask ourselves: Is it loving? Is it needed? If what we want to say doesn't pass this test, then it's better left unsaid.
Words possess power: both positive and negative. Those around us receive encouragement when we speak positively. We can offer hope, build self-esteem (自尊) and motivate others to do their best. Negative words destroy all those things. Will we use our words to hurt or to heal? The choice is ours.
1. The main idea of the first paragraph is that| A．negative words may let us down |
| B．inspiring words give us confidence |
| C．words have a lasting effect on us |
| D．not sticks and stones but words will hurt us |
| A．we can benefit from talking to ourselves |
| B．talking to ourselves always gives us courage |
| C．almost everybody has the habit of talking to themselves |
| D．it does no harm to have “self-talk" when we are alone |
| A．remind ourselves |
B．give ourselves amusement |
| C．make ourselves relaxed |
| D．praise ourselves |
| A．encouraging words are sure to lead to kind offers |
| B．it is better to think twice before talking to others |
| C．people tend to remember friendly words |
| D．negative words may inspire us to make more progress |
3 . There are as many kinds of careers as there are people.They vary greatly in the type of work involved and in the ways they influence a person’s life.The kind of career you have can affect your life in many ways.By making wise decisions concerning your career, you can help yourself build the life you want.To do that, you need as much information as possible.The more you know about yourself, the better able you will be to choose a satisfying career.
What do people hope to acquire from a career? Some people desire a high income.Some hope for fame.Others seek for adventure.Still others intend to serve people and make the world a better place.Before you begin to explore career fields, you should determine your values, your interests, and your aptitudes that will make you competent for your future work.Most people are happiest in jobs that fit their values, interests,and skills.Each person has many values, which vary in strength.For example, money is the strongest value and priority for some people—that is, wealth is more important to them than anything else.As a result, they focus their thoughts, behaviour, and emotions on the goal of earning a high income.Other values include devoting to religion, taking risks, spending time with family, and helping others.
Before making a career decision, you can ask yourself what is most important to you and examine your beliefs to better know your values.For example, is it important to you to work as a member of a team? Or would you rather be in charge or work alone? If working alone or being in charge is important to you, independence is probably one of your primary values.
1. How can we make a wise career decision?| A．We learn more about ourselves. |
| B．We stick to our beliefs more firmly. |
| C．We change our interest more often. |
| D．We find more career opportunities. |
| A．Experiences. | B．Abilities. |
| C．Feelings. | D．Families. |
| A．One that brings huge wealth. |
| B．One that meets inner demands. |
| C．One that develops interests and skills. |
| D．One that contributes to forming values. |
| A．The contents of our values. |
| B．The foundations of our values. |
| C．The places to achieve our values. |
| D．The ways to understand our values. |
4 . Life beneath the sea surface can be lovely and lively. But many organisms there produce poisonous chemicals to hunters. Divers are now collecting such poisons as drugs for human medicine.
Sharks aren't the scariest things in the ocean for scientists who dive to work. Powerful currents, creating where the ocean floor drops away, can be just as deadly. But the scientists who work underwater are trained to deal with these dangers. The rewards of research and underwater adventures are greater than the risks.
The sea may seem like a strange place to look for new drugs. But organisms in the ocean have had to adapt to a tough environment. The chemicals they make for survival might help people, too. More than 50 years ago, scientists discovered a new anticancer drug in a sea sponge. Since then, researchers have been hunting for more of such useful natural products in the seas.
With the help of underwater robots and small submarines, scientists are searching the seas—from shallow reefs to the ocean's great depths.
Bacteria living in the Arctic's cold waters break down their food using more different ways than organisms on land do. This process of turning food into energy for growth, activities and reproduction is called metabolism (新陈代谢). These pathways also produce chemicals called “secondary metabolites”. One day they also might help people.
During a fouryear project called PharmaSeas, scientists made thousands of extracts from those seafloor samples. In about a dozen of them, researchers found mixtures that can kill bacteria that some of today's antibiotics (抗生素) cannot kill. Three other newfound chemicals reduce epileptic seizures (癫痫病发作) in mice. Yet another compound may reduce the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease.
1. Why do sea organisms produce chemicals?| A．To warn themselves in the sea. | B．To benefit other creatures. |
| C．To change their environment. | D．To struggle for survival. |
| A．Medicinal value. | B．The way of hunting. |
| C．The way of breaking down food. | D．Importance to humans. |
| A．They have the same effects as today's medicine. |
| B．They have unique functions. |
| C．They can treat most diseases. |
| D．They can kill all bacteria. |
| A．Diving for New Medicines | B．Threats from the Ocean |
| C．Future Sources of Bacteria | D．Danger of Diving in the Sea |
5 . Traveling to a foreign country can make you frightened if you don't know the local language.Mr.Thibault has a number of tips to help travelers manage in a destination when they don't speak the native tongue, based on his own experience.Here are a few of them.
Download a Language Translation App
Mr.Thibault tends to rely on Google Translate and suggests that travelers find an app that works for them.Ideally, find one that specializes in the language you need to translate especially if the language uses a character set you’re not familiar with, or have difficulty pronouncing.
Speak with Your Hands and Head
Pointing with your hands and nodding or shaking your head, Mr.Thibault said, are easy ways to communicate with locals in the country you’re in.“Gestures are all universally understood，” he said.
Learn a Few Key Words
Knowing basic words and phrases like "hello""thank you” and “I’m sorry，I don’t speak your language.Do you speak English?” is a must, Mr.Thibault said.Showing that you care enough to learn some of the language before you go, and at least enough to acknowledge that you don’t know more, is a form of respect and will make you go a long way to be liked by locals.
Work with a Local Travel Agent
If you feel particularly uncomfortable in the country you’re heading to, and you have to go anyway, relying on a local travel agent who knows both your and your destination's languages can be incredibly useful.
Hire a Local Tour Guide
A tour guide can help you get a better grasp of the local language and is a good person to practice words and phrases with.Whenever Mr.Thibault visits a new country, he books a sightseeing tour with a guide on the first day of his trip.“I use this day to learn about my destination and get familiar with the language,”he said.
1. In what situation should a language translation app be applied while traveling abroad?| A．When you have trouble pronouncing the words. |
| B．When you want to acknowledge your ignorance. |
| C．When you want to practice the local language. |
| D．When you feel uncomfortable in the country. |
| A．Downloading a language translation app. |
| B．Learning a few key words. |
| C．Using body language. |
| D．Working with a guide. |
| A．By speaking with your hands and head. |
| B．By learning a few key words. |
| C．By downloading a language translation app. |
| D．By hiring a local tour guide. |
6 . Every week in China, millions of people will sit in front of their TVs watching teenagers compete for the title Character Hero, which is a Chinese-style spelling bee. In this challenge, young competitors must write Chinese characters by hand. To prepare for the competition, the competitors usually spend months studying dictionaries.
Perhaps the show’s popularity should not be a surprise. Along with gunpowder and paper, many Chinese people consider the creation of Chinese calligraphy(书法) to be one of their primary contributions to civilization. Unfortunately, all over the country, Chinese people are forgetting how to write their own language without computerized help. Software on smart phones and computers allows users to type in the basic sound of the word using the Latin alphabet. The correct character is chosen from a list. The result? It’s possible to recognize characters without remembering how to write them.
But there’s still hope for the paint brush. China’s Education Ministry wants children to spend more time learning how to write.
In one Beijing primary school we visited, students practice calligraphy every day inside a specially decorated classroom with traditional Chinese paintings hanging on the walls. Soft music plays as a group of six-year-olds dip brush pens into black ink. They look up at the blackboard often to study their teacher’s examples before carefully attempting to reproduce those characters on thin rice paper. “If adults can survive without using handwriting, why bother to teach it now?” we ask the calligraphy teacher, Shen Bin. “The ability to write characters is part of Chinese tradition and culture,” she reasons. “Students must learn now so they don’t forget when they grow up.” says the teacher.
1. What can we learn about the Character Hero?| A．It’s open to people of all ages and all walks. |
| B．It’s the most-viewed TV programs in China. |
| C．It aims to spread Chinese culture to the world. |
| D．It draws great public attention across the country. |
| A．Chinese people don’t refer to dictionaries very often. |
| B．Chinese people no longer use brush pens or practice calligraphy. |
| C．Chinese people are using the Latin alphabet instead of the characters. |
| D．Chinese people needn’t write by hand as often with the help of technology. |
| A．necessary for adults to survive in China |
| B．a requirement made by the Education Ministry |
| C．helpful to keep Chinese tradition and culture alive |
| D．an ability to be developed only when you are students |
| A．A news report. | B．A science report. |
| C．An advertisement. | D．Children’s literature. |
7 . That morning, I dropped our eldest at kindergarten and returned home to let our two younger children play while I worked on my medical report. It was a wonderful chance to work from home, but it hit me that my career in hospital wasn't making a difference in anyone's life. I needed something that would stretch my limits and push me to grow. My career enabled me to work from home. I could work from home, and become a foster mother, providing safety for a child who needed it desperately.
On Monday morning. I picked up the phone and dialed the number I had Googled for the nearest Department of Children's Services. The man on the other end was receptive to my questions and explained the next step of training, involving eight weeks of classes designed to prepare and educate foster parents. We continued through all the classes, the home visits, background checks, and seemingly endless steps.
Five long months after we were approved, the phone rang. In the middle of the night, I woke my husband and rushed to East Tennessee Children's Hospital. Our placement was waiting for us in the emergency room, sick and lack of nutrition. It didn't take long for us to realize the full depth of her suffering. Six months later, her half-brother came to us by our request. We now had five children under our care.
On August 12, 2016, our family of seven walked into a small courtroom. The children's lawyer and social worker were there. With just a few words, our adoption was finalized. These two amazing children weren't going home, because they were already home. We are their forever family, and they are our forever children. We may not be able to change the entire world, but we have changed the world entirely for our new children.
1. How did the author feel about her hospital work?| A．Lacking of motivation. | B．Filled with challenge. |
| C．Highly motivating. | D．Unusually Demanding. |
| A．She felt sympathetic for abused children she knew. |
| B．She wanted to make a difference in other people. |
| C．She felt confident about her ability to raise children. |
| D．She experienced training to raise children properly. |
| A．The child to be adopted. | B．The need to get trained. |
| C．The approval of adoption. | D．The official at the hospital. |
| A．To put the adopted kids elsewhere. | B．To receive another adopted child. |
| C．To make the adoption officially legal. | D．To begin the kids' adoption in her home. |
8 . Now many young people are traveling around the world on their own, not because they have no one to travel with, but because they prefer to go alone.
Kristina Wegscheider from California first traveled alone when she was at college and believes that it is something everyone should do at least once in their life. “It opens up your mind to things and pushes you out of your comfort zone.” Wegscheider has visited 46 countries covering all seven continents.
In foreign countries, with no one to help you read a map, look after you if you get ill, or lend you money if your wallet is stolen, it is challenging. This is what drives young people to travel alone. It is seen as character building and a chance to prove that they can make it on their own.
Chris Richardson decided to leave his sales job in Australia to go traveling last year. He set up a website, The Aussie Nomad, to document his adventures. He says he wished he had traveled alone earlier. “The people you meet, the places you visit, or the things you do, everything is up to you and it forces you to grow as a person.” said the 30-year-old man.
Richardson describes traveling alone like “a shot in the arm”, which “makes you a more confident person that is ready to deal with anything”. He said, “The feeling of having overcome something on my own is a major part of what drives me each day when I’m dealing with a difficult task. I walk around with my head up because I know deep down inside that nothing is impossible if you try.”
The great 19thcentury explorer John Muir once said. “Only by going alone in silence can one truly get into the heart of the wilderness.
1. Which of the following will Kristina Wegscheider agree with?| A．Traveling alone is a necessary experience for everyone. |
| B．It is more meaningful to travel in foreign countries. |
| C．It is comfortable to travel around without a friend. |
| D．Traveling abroad helps people to find new things. |
| A．you have to make things on your own. |
| B．it is hard for you to prove yourself to others. |
| C．you can only depend on yourself whatever happens. |
| D．it will finally build your character. |
| A．He started traveling alone at an early age. |
| B．He was once shot in the arm. |
| C．He used to work as a salesman. |
| D．His website will inspire others to travel alone. |
| A．Travel Abroad | B．Travel Alone |
| C．Travel Light | D．Travel Wide and Far |
9 . A Portland, Oregon man has become the first person to travel across Antarctica by himself without receiving any assistance.
Colin O’Brady has completed the 1,500-kilometer trip. He crossed the continent in 54 days. Friends, family and other people followed his progress through messages and pictures he left on social media.
O’Brady spoke with his wife Jenna Besaw by telephone soon after he completed the journey. “It was an emotional call,” she said. “He seemed overwhelmed by love and appreciation, and he really wanted to say ‘thank you’ to all of us.”
The 33-year-old O’Brady documented the trip on the social networking services Instagram. He called his journey “The Impossible First”. He wrote that he traveled the last 129 kilometers in one big, final push to the finish line. The distance took over one day to complete. O’Brady wrote, “While the last 32 hours were some of the most challenging hours of my life, they have quite honestly been some of the best moments I have ever experienced.”
The day before, he wrote that he was “in the zone” and thought he could make it to the end without stopping. “I was listening to my body and taking care of the details to keep myself safe,” he wrote. “I called home and talked to my mom, sister and wife. I promised them I would stop when I need to.”
Other people have traveled across Antarctica, but they all had some form of assistance. They either had better, more plentiful supplies or devices that helped move them forward.
In 2016, British explorer Henry Worsley died in his attempt to travel alone across Antarctica unassisted. Worsley’s friend Louis Rudd, also from Britain, is attempting an unaided solo journey in Worsley’s honor. He was competing against O’Brady to be the first to do it. Besaw told the Associated Press that her husband plans to stay in Antarctica until Rudd finishes his trip.
1. What did O’Brady think of his journey in Antarctica?| A．It was pleasant. | B．It was discouraging. |
| C．It was impossible to complete. | D．It was hard to complete. |
| A．Making sure of his safety. | B．Trying to achieve the goal. |
| C．Keeping in touch with them. | D．Stopping the travel halfway. |
| A．To wait for another explorer. | B．To compete with others. |
| C．To help other explorers. | D．To make his victory recognized. |
| A．The Antarctic Continent | B．The Impossible First |
| C．Traveling in Antarctica | D．An Incomplete Journey |
10 . Stories are shared in many ways. They are described in books and magazines. They are read around the campfire at night. They are randomly distributed from stand-alone booths. But what else?
To revive literature in the era of fast news and smartphone addiction, Short Edition, a French publisher of short-form literature, has set up more than 30 story dispensers (分发机) in the USA in the past years to deliver fiction at the push of a button at restaurants, universities and government offices.
Francis Ford Coppola, the film director and winemaker, liked the idea so much that he invested in the company and placed a dispenser at his Cafe Zoetrope in San Francisco. Last month, public libraries in some other cities announced they would be setting them up, too. There is one on the campus at Penn State. A few can be found in downtown West Palm Beach, Fla. And Short Edition plans to announce more, including at the Los Angeles International Airport.
“Everything old is new again,” said Andrew Nurkin, director of the Free Library of Philadelphia, which is one of the libraries that set up the dispensers. “We want people to be easily exposed to literature. We want to advance literacy among children and inspire their creativity.”
Here’s how a dispenser works. It has three buttons on top indicating choices for stories that can be read in one minute, three minutes or five minutes. When a button is pushed, a short story is printed.
The stories are free. They are chosen from a computer category of more than 100,000 original submissions by writers whose works have been evaluated by Short Edition’s judges, and transmitted over a mobile network. Offerings can be tailored to specific interests, like children’s fiction or romance. Short Edition gets stories for its category by holding writing contests.
Short Edition set up its first booth in 2016 and has 150 machines worldwide. “The idea is to make people happy,” said Kristan Leroy, director of Short Edition. “There is too much unhappiness today.”
1. What do we know about the stories sent by dispensers?| A．They are easily read. |
| B．They are short in form. |
| C．They can be bought from booths. |
| D．They can be found in magazines. |
| A．Paragraph 3. | B．Paragraph 5. |
| C．Paragraph 6. | D．Paragraph 7. |
| A．To introduce French literature. |
| B．To get rid of smartphone addiction. |
| C．To make people have access to literature. |
| D．To reduce the financial stress of libraries. |
| A．Everything Old Is New |
| B．Online Reading: a Virtual Tour |
| C．Short Edition Is Getting Popular |
| D．Taste of Literature, at the Push of a Button |
