1 . As vulnerable (易受伤害的) states suffer, US is blamed for not donating its required money for the Green Climate Fund, or GCF.
In Kenya’s countryside, people are facing one of the most serious droughts in memory. Some regions have been without rain for two years, and more than half the crops and most of the farm animals have died. Up to 4 million people may require food aid in the coming months.
Kenya isn’t the only country to suffer the fallout from climate change in recent years. Countries least responsible for the climate crisis are most vulnerable to its effects. In South Asia, Bangladesh already spends $2 billion each year on climate-related damage, according to a report from the International Institute for Environment and Development. A dozen island nations are at risk of disappearing entirely.
The international community has realized the urgency. In 2010, the United Nations created an institution, the Green Climate Fund, or GCF, to support developing countries that aren’t historically responsible for causing the climate crisis to cut their emissions (排放物) and deal with climate impacts.
However, the UN climate fund now has warned that carbon-cutting projects in developing countries would have to be cut without more money coming in.
Campaigners have blamed the United States—one of the GCF’s founders—for the potential cuts. “If the GCF needs to limit its operations in the near future due to lack of funding, it’s hard to find any single country more at fault than the US,” Action Aid’s policy director Brandon Wu told Climate Home News.
In 2014, then-US president Barack Obama promised the GCF $3 billion but gave only $1 billion before the end of his term. His successor, Donald Trump, didn’t give any money to the fund and, so far, neither has President Joe Biden. The US owe s the fund $ 2 billion.
Last year, 46 climate and green groups signed a letter that urged the White House to give the $2 billion to the GCF. The climate and green groups also asked the administration to commit an additional $6 billion to bring the US in step with other donor countries.
In 2019,1 3 countries—mostly in Europe but including South Korea and New Zealand—announced a doubling or more of their contributions to the GCF to help fun d green projects for 2020-23.
1. Why is the situation in Kenya mentioned in the second paragraph?| A．To tell us the impact of climate change. |
| B．To tell us the living conditions in Kenya, |
| C．To tell us how Kenya deals with climate change. |
| D．To tell us how the crops and the farm animals have died. |
| A．Disease. | B．Poverty. | C．Mistake. | D．Consequence. |
| A．$3 billion. | B．$ 6 billion. | C．$8 billion. | D．$9 billion. |
| A．UN creates Green Climate Fund | B．GCF needs to limit its operations |
| C．GCF to help fund green projects | D．UN climate fund starved of cash |
2 . After a magnitude 6.8 earthquake hit Luding county in Southwest China’s Sichuan province on Monday, rescuers from across the province have rushed to the hardest-hit areas to help affected local people.
During the search and rescue operations, the photo of a young rescuer holding a 2-month old baby in his arms has pulled the heartstrings of many people. Zhang Zili and fellow members from the Forest Fire Brigade of Aba Tibetan and Qiang autonomous prefecture (自治区) discovered the baby and her grandmother trapped at their home in a village on Tuesday. The rescuers have carried the baby, who suffered as light head injury, and his grandma to safety. The baby’s father is also a firefighter who was participating in rescue operations after the quake hit the area. His mother and grandfather were seriously injured and sent to hospital.
The photo of Zhang holding the baby moved many people. Zhang was lovingly referred to as “brother Wen chuan” for the characters of “Wenchuan” on his armband, which indicates that he is from the Wenchuan squadron (中队) of the Aba forest fire brigade.
The 20-year-old is a native of Maoxian county, which is close to Wenchuan county, the epicenter(震中) of a 7.8-magnitude earthquake that killed more than 69, 000 people in 2008. 14 years ago, Zhang witnessed the devastating earthquake, which brought down his family’s house. He and his family lived in a temporary, shelter setup at a school playground. “I remembered the tent we lived in was dark, and I was scared,” Zhang said. Here called how emergency supplies were air-dropped from” helicopters and how soldiers of the People’s Liberation Army and rescuers helped locals get over the difficulties. “Then a uncle of the PLA came to me. He taught me songs to sing and played with me. He kept saying, “Don’t be afraid. We are here now.” The words left a deep impression on the boy’s heart.
This year, when he learnt that the local forest fire brigade was recruiting (招聘) firefighters, he did not hesitate to join it. Since then, in less than four months, he has taken part in several forest firefighting missions and rescue operations of the latest earthquake.
1. Who was injured slightly in the family during the earthquake according to the second paragraph?| A．The baby’s father. | B．The baby’s mother. |
| C．The baby’s grandpa. | D．The 2-month-old baby. |
| A．Rather usual. | B．Quite frequent. |
| C．Extremely harmful. | D．Very weak. |
| A．By treating his injuries. | B．By calming and comforting him. |
| C．By taking him to safety. | D．By offering him some food. |
| A．14 years on, rescuer passes on love and kindness |
| B．A magnitude 6.8 earthquake hit Luding county in Sichuan |
| C．Volunteers rush to Luding county to help affected people |
| D．20-year-oldman takes part in rescue operations in Luding |
3 . Cody McCasland is a double above-knee amputee(被截肢者) .He was born with a rare birth weakness that caused his legs to form both missing tibiae(胫骨) and knees. He has been receiving care at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children (TSRHC) since he was just two months old. After discussions, doctors decided that it was in Cody’s best interests to amputate(截肢) his legs to give him a chance to walk freely using artificial limbs. This surgery was completed when Cody was just 15 months old, and he received his first set of artificial limbs when he was 17 months old.
Over the past few years Cody has continued to challenge himself physically. Cody has competed in many athletic competitions, winning gold medals in running and swimming. He once ran the last part of the Team Cody Relay at, the Dallas White Rock Marathon. He competes as a double amputee on a normal competitive USA swimming team. He also enjoys horse riding, playing baseball and many other sports.
Team Cody was formed in 2014.Through the years, Team Cody has raised nearly $92, 000 for TSRHC, and in 2018, it also raised over $3, 500 for Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF). In 2019, Cody was asked to be a spokesperson for CAF. Cody attends events to help further the mission of CAF by supporting physically challenged persons to reach their athletic goals. Cody also serves as a teacher for new challenged athletes.
Cody has been enable to train, travel, compete in various athletic events and act as an inspiration for others. He has taken opportunities to meet some disabled people, spend time with them and-encourage them.
1. How can we describe Cody according to the text?| A．Funny and gentle. | B．Friendly and strong-willed. |
| C．Honest but shy. | D．Awkward but sympathetic. |
| A．He is quite good at swimming and running. |
| B．He joined a normal USA swimming team in 2014. |
| C．He managed towing old medals in world-class competitions. |
| D．He has been supported by CAF to compete for so many times. |
| A．He gives CAF chances to hold competitions. |
| B．He can train the disabled people to win races. |
| C．His experiences encourage others, especially those who are disabled. |
| D．He offers money to those who are poor or disabled through Team Cody. |
| A．The surgery for his legs was completed when he was just 15 months old. |
| B．He once ran a full Dallas White Rock Marathon by himself. |
| C．He has been disabled since he was a young teenager. |
| D．He became a spokesman for CAF in 2018. |
4 . Many people still remember the magic of Father Christmas from when they were children. As parents, they try to keep that magic alive for their children for as long as they can.
That is why Letters from Father Christmas could be the perfect book for those who regard Christmas as a special time of year. The man who wrote these letters is one of the most famous names in English literature — J.R.R. Tolkien, author of The Lord of the Rings. The letters were Tolkien’s way of keeping Father Christmas alive for his four children, over a period of more than twenty years.
Every Christmas, an envelope with a North Pole stamp arrived. It was addressed to Tolkien’s children. Who could it be from? The children must have been very excited as they opened it. Inside, they would find a handwritten letter from Father Christmas. The letters were also beautifully illustrated—each must have taken its true author, Tolkien, a long time to complete.
The letters told wonderful stories about Father Christmas’s life and adventures at the North Pole. A regular character in the letters was Polar Bear, who once climbed the North Pole (an actual pole in this case) and fell through the roof of Father Christmas’s house. In another letter, Father Christmas complained about how he could not stop his helpers playing games with the toys instead of wrapping them up. Interestingly, the letters did not contain the usual warnings to children that they might not receive their presents if they were not good. The letters did, however, change as Tolkien’s children got older：
...but if you find that not many of the things you asked for have come, and not perhaps quite as many as sometimes, remember that this Christmas all over the world here are a terrible number of poor and starving people.
Letters from Father Christmas tells us that as well as enjoying the adventures of Father Christmas, Polar Bear and other characters at the North Pole, we can all share the true spirit of giving at Christmas time. By expressing love for his children in such a special way, Tolkien may indeed have been the real Father Christmas.
1. What is Tolkien famous for?| A．His novel The Lord of the Rings. | B．His letters to Father Christmas. |
| C．His fantasy childhood memories. | D．His introduction to Father Christmas. |
| A．They were sent from Father Christmas. | B．They were wrapped up in good boxes. |
| C．It was hard to write the different stories. | D．The beautiful pictures were hard to make. |
| A．Life will be easy if you work hard. | B．It’s no use complaining about life. |
| C．We should learn to give care to others. | D．Children love presents with pictures. |
| A．He addressed all his letters to Father Christmas. |
| B．He showed his love for his children in a special way. |
| C．He got others to know some people were starving. |
| D．He discovered the spirit of Father Christmas. |
5 . Former UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1874-1965) once said, “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” These are certainly words that millions of volunteers around the world could agree with.
In the US, April is National Volunteer Month, which recognizes and thanks volunteers who lend their time, talent, and support to causes (事业) they care about.
Volunteering means choosing to work without being paid for it. People who volunteer spend their time doing things they feel strongly about. For example, animal lovers may volunteer at an animal shelter to help improve the treatment and well-being of animals.
For students, valuable lessons may also be learned by volunteering. Take Andrew Makhoul, a sophomore (大二学生) at the University of Pennsylvania, as an example. Makhoul didn’t spend the 2012 spring break partying. Unlike his classmates, who planned on relaxing after a term of hard work, the 19-year-old decided to do something for people less fortunate than himself.
He traveled to an orphanage (孤儿院) in Guatemala in Central America. The orphanage is in one of the poorest and most violent parts of the country, and depends on volunteers to stay open.
Makhoul doesn’t speak much Spanish, but he found communication wasn’t a problem: “You communicated with love,” according to an article on his university’s website, “You could see love when you looked in their eyes.”
Makhoul’s first time as a volunteer only lasted a week, but by the end of that week, he knew he’d be back soon – because he saw love and hope.
US author Sherry Anderson once wrote, “Volunteers don’t get paid, not because they’re worthless, but because they’re priceless.” And this is perhaps why volunteers all around the world keep doing what they do.
1. Why is Winston Churchill mentioned in the first paragraph?| A．To teach readers a lesson. | B．To sum up the main idea. |
| C．To lead in the topic. | D．To involve readers in a story. |
| A．To collect money for the volunteers. | B．To offer care about the causes of volunteers. |
| C．To appreciate the work of volunteers. | D．To encourage more to become volunteers. |
| A．He threw a party. | B．He relaxed himself. |
| C．He went to an animal shelter. | D．He visited an orphanage. |
| A．warm-hearted | B．lovely | C．brave | D．energetic |
| A．Worthless. | B．Priceless. | C．Highly-paid. | D．Badly-needed. |
6 . If you need to study while you are in London, then don’ t worry. London has a host of quiet study spots. Here are our top libraries.
The British Library
The British Library is a must for bookworms and history fans. It is free to enter and a Reader Pass is available for students and members of the public over the age of 18. In the reading rooms, water bottles and bags must be left in the cloakroom (寄物处) and pencils are the only writing equipment.
Opening time: Sunday: 10: 00 am-12: 00 am Monday-Saturday: 9: 30 am-8: 00 pm
The BFI Reuben Library
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a favorite on the South Bank cultural scene with its film festivals and stylish cinema on the doorstep of the Thames. Its Reuben Library is free to the public and you simply need to fill in a card to get access to the study spaces. When you get tired of work, you can enjoy the collection of resources about the film world here.
Opening time: Tuesday-Saturday: 10: 30 am-7: 00 pm
Ozone Coffee Roasters
There are many coffee houses in Shoreditch, but Ozone Coffee Roasters stands out among the rest with a good reason. Not only is the coffee delicious but the beautiful light-filled shop has an industrial feel and is equipped with plenty of booths (间隔) and benches for spreading out books and laptops.
Opening time: Monday-Friday: 7: 00 am-10: 00pm Saturday: 8: 30 am-5: 30 pm
The National Art Library
Located in Kensington, the National Art Library provides the best research catalogue (目录) for the fine arts and is free to join for all members of the public by registering online or in person on their first visit.
Opening time: Saturday-Thursday: 10: 00 am-5: 30 pm Friday: 10: 00 am-6: 30 pm
1. What do we know about the British Library?| A．It is just open to students. | B．It closes at 9:00 pm. |
| C．It has a long history. | D．It is free to enter. |
| A．Get film resources. | B．Experience modern art. |
| C．Visit the River Thames. | D．Drink sweet coffee. |
| A．Book a seat on the APP. | B．Prepare your Reader Pass. |
| C．Register on line or in person. | D．Read the research catalogue. |
| A．The British Library. | B．National Art Library |
| C．Ozone Coffee Roasters | D．The BFI Reuben Library |
| A．The BFI Reuben Library is on the north bank. |
| B．The British Library has a strict management system. |
| C．Ozone Coffee Roasters is best known for its coffee. |
| D．The National Art Library often holds art festivals. |
7 . Researchers at the University of Alabama in Birmingham suggest that brainwave-sensing headsets (脑电波耳机), also known as EEG headsets, need better safety after a study which shows hackers (黑客) could guess a user’s bank account passwords by monitoring (监测) his brainwaves.
Nitesh Saxena, professor in the UAB, and his team found that a person who stopped a video game and entered into a bank account while wearing an EEG headset was at a risk of having his passwords stolen by a bad software program. Saxena and his team used one EEG headset that could be bought by customers online to show how easily an ill software program could eavesdrop on a user’s brainwaves. While typing, a user’s reaction corresponds with his hand, eye and head muscle (肌肉) movements. All these movements are caught by EEG headsets.
The team asked 12 people to type passwords into a text box as if they were entering into an online account while wearing an EEG headset, in order for the software to train itself on the user’s typing and the corresponding brainwave. The team found that when a user entered passwords, the ill software program could make educated guesses about the passwords by reading the EEG data recorded. And it just increases the chance of guessing a six-letter password from one in 500,000 to one in five.
“With the growing popularity of EEG headsets and all kinds of ways they could be used, they will become part of our daily life,” Saxena said. “It is important to study the possible risks with this new technology to raise users’ awareness to the risks and develop methods of avoiding the bad attacks.” One method suggested by Saxena and his team is to make noise anytime a user types a password while wearing an EEG headset.
1. How do hackers guess passwords of a user’s bank account (账户)?| A．They use a software program. | B．They use a new-type computer. |
| C．They guess the user’s brainwaves. | D．They talk with the user on the net. |
| A．recover from | B．depend on | C．connect closely | D．acquire secretly |
| A．They made a very exact answer. | B．They got close to the passwords. |
| C．They got a part of the passwords. | D．They failed to get the passwords. |
| A．More and more hackers come about. | B．More people use online bank accounts. |
| C．EEG headsets will become more popular. | D．EEG headsets still have problems in quality. |
8 . The topic “How much privacy can a photo show” has been trending on Sina Weibo, causing concern and heated discussion about privacy awareness.
In group chats, some people may post their original photos. But that may give away your home address and other information. Images often contain a lot of information and various traces left by digital cameras or photo processing software.
This data, called Exchangeable Image File Format (EXIF), is a key tool for many professionals. It can detail whether the photographer used a flash, which digital effects were applied to a picture and when the photo was taken. EXIF can also contain the precise GPS coordinates (坐标) of the location where a photo was taken, according to CNN.
If you take a landscape picture from your window and send the original picture to a group chat, it means that you are releasing your location data to all strangers in the group. They may even accurately infer your house number by analyzing the shooting time and angle.
Not just in a group chat, sending an image in a text message, email, or other delivery tools will also include the accompanying information. So how do we protect our privacy when sending photos?
The most effective way is to avoid sending original photos in group chats. If it’s necessary, try not to tap the “original picture”. However, photos sent by WeChat Moments are automatically compressed (压缩) by the system, and they travel without location and other information, according to the WeChat team.
To tackle the problem at its root, we can delete and remove a picture’s EXIF data on a computer. If you are using an IOS smartphone, you can turn off location services for the camera in the privacy settings. If you’re using an Android, the settings vary. Typically, you can go to the setting menu and switch the services off for the camera, according to CTV News.
There is one more thing you can do—photoshop your photos before you share it. What comes with your edited images is photos without stored location data.
1. What information does EXIF data include?| A．The home address of the viewers. |
| B．How many times a photo has been shared. |
| C．The location where the image is sent. |
| D．A photo’s exact shooting time and location. |
| A．When we attach original photos to emails. |
| B．When we send emojis in group chats. |
| C．When we post pictures on WeChat Moments. |
| D．When we forward images of others on WeChat Moments. |
| A．Send out their EXIF data on our phone. |
| B．Switch off location services for WeChat. |
| C．Edit the photos with photo editing apps. |
| D．Turn off internet connection when taking photos. |
| A．Methods to get personal information from photos. |
| B．Avoiding giving away personal data through photo sharing. |
| C．The importance of protecting our private pictures. |
| D．A tool that can obtain personal data of photos. |
9 . It is difficult for a teacher to decide whether to allow students to listen to music in the classroom. Every time students need to write an essay or work on a problem, they say, “Can I put my headphones on? I think better that way.” But is that really true? Does music help concentrate?
Research offers little to back up the idea that listening to music improves concentration. In one small study, 133 students performed reading tasks while listening to either light music, hip hop, or no music at all. Students who performed the reading tasks in silence scored the highest. Music with a higher intensity (强度) like hip hop was more distracting and had a bad effect on task performance.
Volume (音量) plays a more important role than the type of music. The study found that the louder the music, the worse the performance in concentration. The type of music didn’t matter. Data from the study showed once again that silence was the best environment to improve concentration.
However, music has a positive effect on work performance. Studies have showed that listening to music leads to positive changes in mood, as well as creativity. In fact, in music-listening cultures, which students are certainly part of, there’s actually a change in mood when the music is taken away.
It’s hard to convince my students that music doesn’t help with their concentration. Taj, a senior told me, “I wouldn’t be able to concentrate if I were listening to music and trying to read. However, when I write, I feel like music helps me concentrate deeply. I don’t have writer’s block. It’s easy for me to put my words on paper.”
“Maybe not with reading, but when it comes to math, listening to music certainly helps,” Danela told me. “You could actually be singing along with what you’re listening to and doing well in math.”
1. What does the underlined word “distracting” in paragraph 2 probably mean?| A．Making it difficult for someone to concentrate. |
| B．Causing great excitement. |
| C．Making someone want to do something. |
| D．Making someone feel frightened. |
| A．Students do well in reading tasks while listening to music. |
| B．Music can’t improve people’s mood and creativity. |
| C．Different types of music lead to different performances. |
| D．The volume of music affects concentration. |
| A．They believe music doesn’t help concentrate. |
| B．They use music to help with their paper-writing. |
| C．They can’t focus on reading while listening to music. |
| D．They don’t listen to music while doing math problems. |
| A．Should Students Listen to Music? | B．Does Music Help Concentration? |
| C．Is Music Related to Reading? | D．Can Music Change Mood? |
10 . Jim Thorpe is one of the greatest athletes of all time. He had amazing athletic abilities and was well-known during his lifetime, yet that did not make Thorpe a stranger to adversity.
Thorpe was an American Indian from Oklahoma who developed his extraordinary athletic skills in his youth through hard labor. It was also in his youth that he learned to endure hardship brought upon by racial prejudice. Many would say his childhood was not easy. He grew up poor and at age 9 his twin brother passed away and a few years later he lost both of his parents.
But that did not stop him from doing what he loved and pursuing his dreams. Nothing seemed to stop him, not even stolen shoes. Just hours before Thorpe was going to compete in the 1912 Olympics, somebody stole his shoes. Thorpe improvised (临时拼凑) by getting shoes out of the garbage. The shoes were two different sizes. He wore an extra pair of socks on one foot to even them out.
He still went on to win two gold medals—winning each event he competed in except for one, the javelin (标枪). The javelin was the only event he didn’t win, probably because he had never competed in that event before. It is interesting to note that Thorpe had tried to throw the javelin once before in the Olympic trials. At the time, he didn’t know that he could throw it with a running start. He threw it standing still and was placed second.
At the Olympics，he also took part in the decathlon (十项全能运动). He finished first in two events, third in four events, and fourth in two more. Thorpe ended up finishing third in the world. He was undoubtedly a dominating force that couldn’t be stopped and just kept on going.
I think Paul Dughi said it best, “It’s hard to imagine now that pro athletes get paid millions of dollars just to wear a particular brand of shoes. For Jim Thorpe, it didn’t matter what kind he wore.”
1. What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 1 mean?| A．The adversity Thorpe met with led to his success. |
| B．Thorpe’s success was no guarantee of a better life. |
| C．Thorpe’s career brought him both gains and losses. |
| D．Thorpe suffered many hardships despite his success. |
| A．To prevent the foot from injury. | B．To make the shoe fit the foot. |
| C．To stop the shoe from being stolen. | D．To show his problem-solving skills. |
| A．Loss of his own sports shoes. | B．A casual attitude towards the event. |
| C．Lack of experience in the event. | D．A shortage of talent for the event. |
| A．Loyal and enthusiastic. | B．Genuine and creative. |
| C．Tough and strong-minded. | D．Selfless and good-tempered. |
