1 . When going shopping with a friend, Gail Heyman found herself quite awkward (令人尴尬的) when her friend asked her which dress she liked best. Her friend had a clear favorite — a dress that Heyman happened to dislike. “In that case, I lied and said that I like the same one,” said Heyman.
As Heyman’s experience shows, it might not matter all that much if you tell a white lie to make a friend feel good at times. But when it comes to the most meaningful relationships in your life, protecting a friend’s feelings at all costs can sometimes make them fail. For example, if a person is practicing for a job interview and it’s a few days before his interview, and he gives an answer that you think is not good at all and you don’t tell him because you don’t want to hurt his feelings, that’s really not very nice to him, right? Because he has an opportunity to fix that thing.
If you know that lies can have results, why do you still lie often? A study carried out by Tali Sharot, a professor at University College London, found that it’s because people just get used to it. One little lie can turn into bigger and bigger lies over time. “If you habituate emotionally, it will change your behavior,” says Sharot.
Sharot notes that if you’re worried about lying a bit too much, try and notice when you want to bend the truth (歪曲事实). She thinks it’s best to do so when you’re not actually responding to those triggers (诱因). Moving your attention away from shame and focusing more on your values can be a healthy way to start looking at this more actively.
1. How does the author start the text?| A．By raising a question. | B．By giving an example. |
| C．By expressing an opinion. | D．By comparing different views. |
| A．Be careful about lying. | B．It’s OK to tell a white lie. |
| C．Never should a person tell lies. | D．A meaningful relationship matters. |
| A．They are used to lying. |
| B．They don’t behave well. |
| C．They lose track of others. |
| D．They don’t want to hurt others’ feelings. |
| A．Try to bend the truth. |
| B．Change our behavior. |
| C．Say sorry to the one we lied to. |
| D．Concentrate more on our values. |
2 . Michael and his wife, new residents in a San Francisco apartment, learned about their neighbor Jeff Dunan’s volunteer work for Bangladesh Relief, an organization that provides food, clothing and essential supplies for disadvantaged people in northern Bangladesh. Inspired, Michael donated $150 to Dunan’s GoFundMe campaign. However, a credit card notification alerted him to an unintended $15,041 charge.
When he saw the five-figure number, he was confused. Soon, it all made sense. Michael’s credit card number started with four and one. Clearly, he accidentally began typing his credit card information while his cursor (光标) was still in the donation box.
Michael planned to call Dunan to explain, but before he had the chance to do that, he started receiving Facebook messages from Shohag Chandra, the charity’s Bangladesh-based program manager, thanking him for his generous donation. After he looked through the photos of people holding thank-you signs that read his name, Michael’s heart sank. He felt terrible that he had to withdraw his handsome donation. Once his original contribution was refunded, he decided to donate $1,500.
Although Michael had told his family and friends about the tale, he decided to share it publicly on social media, after Dunan told him the organization was desperately in need of funds. “The least I could do was take the time to post this story online and see if I could inspire other people to donate to the cause,” Michael said.
Little did he know, though, that the story would be seen far and wide, ending up raising more than $120,000 for Bangladesh Relief in the span of only a few weeks—about eight times Michael’s mistaken donation. According to Dunan, more than 3,700 people have contributed because of Michael’s post. Michael has been stunned (震惊) by the ongoing outpouring of support. “Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine this reaction,” he said. “People can be amazing when they come together for something like this.”
1. How did Michael make the large donation?| A．He input an incorrect amount. | B．He encountered a system error. |
| C．He was greatly inspired by Dunan. | D．He entered wrong credit card details. |
| A．He saw people in despair. | B．He failed to offer enough money. |
| C．He didn’t receive the full refund. | D．He realized the scale of his mistake. |
| A．Dunan’s request for publicity. | B．A desire for personal recognition. |
| C．The organization’s urgent need for funds. | D．Pressure from his family and friends. |
| A．Actions speak louder than words. | B．Many hands make light work. |
| C．Always prepare for a rainy day. | D．A good beginning is half of victory. |
3 . Over the last century, engineers all over the world have made efforts to achieve great success in bridge design.
Danyang-Kunshan Grand Bridge
No bridge is as long as the Danyang-Kunshan Grand Bridge in the world. The 164.8-kilometre-longbridge built in 2011 in China operates as part of the Beijing-Shanghai High-Speed Railway. The trip from Ningbo to Jiaxing that previously took 4.5 hours has been reduced to two, thanks to this bridge.
Rio-Niteroi Bridge
Completed in 1974, the Rio-Niteroi Bridge in Brazil is the second-longest bridge in all of Latin America connecting the cities of Rio and Niteroi across the Guanabara Bay. The Rio-Niterói Bridge is technically known as a “box-girder (箱形梁)” bridge, made of special concrete. It receives an astonishing 140,000(or more) vehicles (车辆) per day, making it better known in the world.
Hartland Covered Bridge
The Harland Covered Bridge is the world’s longest covered bridge. The 1,282-foot-long bridge was opened in 1901 and has been on Canada’s list of National Historic Sites since 1980. Although it was at first built without a roof, the bridge was capped with wooden materials during the repairs in 1921.
Jiaozhou Bay Bridge
The newly-built Jiaozhou Bay Bridgo in Chipa was named “world’s longest bridge over water” by Guinness Book of World Records in 2011, a title previously held by the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway. The dispute was settled when the title of “longest continuous bridge over water” was given to the causeway, with the Jiaozhou Bay Bridge receiving the title of “longest bridge over water”
1. Which bridge is famous as a busy one?| A．Danyang-Kunshan Grand Bridge. | B．Rio-Niteroi Bridge. |
| C．Hartland Covered Bridge | D．Jiaozhou Bay Bridge. |
| A．It is the longest bridge worldwide. | B．It is over 160 kilometers. |
| C．It has a roof. | D．It is a wooden bridge. |
| A．In America. | B．In Brazil. | C．In Canada. | D．In China. |
4 . Languages are dying out all the time. Here are four languages that were once widely spoken but are now considered as “dead” languages.
Old Norse
Old Norse was spoken and written by the Vikings from about the 7th century. It was used in countries like Iceland and parts of Russia. The Vikings were famous for their attacks on neighbouring countries, and so Old Norse had an influence on the languages of the places they attacked, including English. For example, English words such as “egg, gift, anger, want, trust and score” come from Old Norse.
Middle English
Middle English was spoken in England between the 12th and 15th centuries and was very different from the English we use these days. In the past, England was highly influenced by Old Norse. So was its language. There are no manuscripts (手稿) in Middle English as it was much more fashionable to write in French. Middle English gave way to modern English. One example of the wide use of modern English was Shakespeare’s works.
Hunnir
Hunnir is the most mysterious of the languages on our list. The Huns were a community that spread across eastern Europe in the 4th and 5th centuries. Despite the Huns’ success in expanding their empire, their language was never written down. The few words that are known are mainly names-in modern Turkey and Mongolia. Apart from these, only three words are known; kamos, medos (types of drinks) and strava (a big meal).
Ancient Greek
More than 4,000 years ago, the Greeks spoke an advanced language known today as Ancient Greek, and developed the first alphabet. Indeed, the English word “alphabet” is taken from the first two letters of the Greek alphabet: alpha and beta. Although the language is no longer spoken anywhere, it continues to be studied by scholars around the world and is regarded as one of the most important languages of all time.
1. Which language was spoken by the Vikings?| A．Old Norse. | B．Middle English. |
| C．Ancient Greek. | D．Hunnir. |
| A．French was a popular written language then. | B．Modern English replaced Middle English. |
| C．Shakespeare didn’t use Middle English. | D．Middle English was influenced by Old Norse. |
| A．Want. | B．Kamos. | C．Strava. | D．Alphabet. |
5 . In 2005, Calvin Echevarria was on top of his game. He had two jobs, bought a house and was raising a 3-year-old daughter with his wife. But suddenly, it felt like it was all being taken away. He could no longer work as a FedEx driver because he was going blind.
He was diagnosed with diabetic retinopathy (糖尿病视网膜病变). “I lost my sight and the job, but I don’t care about that. All I care is about my wife and my daughter,” he told CBS News. “How am I going to see my daughter grow?”
Echevarria at first worked on developing independent living skills like walking with a cane (手杖). But he wanted to learn more-like skills that would be useful for a job. That’s when he found Lighthouse Works in Orlando, a company that creates jobs for the blind.
“Seven out of 10 Americans who are blind are not in the workforce,” said Kyle Johnson, the president and CEO of Lighthouse Works. “And we knew that people who are blind are the most highly educated disability group on the planet. And so, very capable people, who want to work and contribute. So, we created Lighthouse Works to help them do that.”
At Lighthouse Works, nearly half of the employees are blind. Echevarria works in the call center. In his work, Echevarria uses a system called JAWS to “hear” the computer. The system reads the computer screen to him in one ear a she listens to a customer call in his other ear. Now he has gotten good at it and can listen to JAWS on a dramatic speed. “”It gives me a purpose. It makes me feel better because I can provide for my family.” he said.
His original worry was not being able to be there for his daughter. Now, he is her mentor (导师), because she’s an employee at Lighthouse Works as well. He said, “Little kids come to their parents, and all of a sudden when they become teenagers, they go away. Now, we’re going back again to those days that my daughter used to come to me all the time. And I still feel needed.”
1. What did Echevarria wish to do most after he went blind?| A．Make efforts to buy a new house. | B．Collect money to treat his disease. |
| C．Find a job to provide for his family. | D．Develop independent living skills. |
| A．To found an on-profit charity. | B．To help the blind learn living skills. |
| C．To train advanced computer talents. | D．To get the blind to enter the workforce. |
| A．He is the most capable employee in the company. |
| B．He has better listening ability than others. |
| C．He had no trouble in adapting to the new life. |
| D．He is happy to have a new career now. |
| A．A father’s love to his daughter. | B．A new employee’s achievement. |
| C．A daughter’s promise to her father. | D．A company’s contributions to the blind. |
6 . Science Books for Kids of All Ages
To help you choose the perfect education al books for your child, we’ve created this handpicked list of the best science books for kids. The titles featured here spark curiosity, encourage leaning, and are lots of fun, too.
About Time: A First Look at Time and Clocks
Author: Bruce Koscielniak; Price: US $8.55
Long ago people used the sun, the moon, and the water to tell time. Soon after we began using our knowledge about the natural world to build clocks and to create calendars made up of months and years. Centuries later, we have clocks and calendars all around us. This book tells the amazing story of how it all happened!
Animalium: Welcome to the Museum
Author: Katie Scott;Price: US $8.99
This book opens the doors of the natural history museum for your child all year round! It features 200 full-color specimens accompanied by lively, informative text and more. Discover the animal kingdom inglorious detail with unique illustrations that combine science and art.
Bang!: How We Came to Be
Author: Michael Rubino; Price: US $16.00
“Bang! And that was it, the beginning of everything.” So begins this beautifully illustrated story of evolution. This book conveys not only the facts but also the excitement of the scientific explanation of our world, from the origin of the universe to the present reality of our planet.
Bedtime Math: The Truth Comes Out
Author: Laura Overdeck; Price: US $10.99
This book makes learning about math as fun as dessert after dinner! It combines math and cool facts for one fun and wild adventure. Now kids can discover the science behind all their favorite things: marshmallows, soda, ice cream, and more. With over 100 math problems on a variety of topics, kids will find math isn’t just fun — it can be found everywhere!
1. What can kids learn in the book About Time?| A．The tough life of ancestors. | B．The origin of the sun and the moon. |
| C．The old ways to measure time. | D．The wildlife in the natural world. |
| A．They are children’s novels. | B．They are popular for cheap price. |
| C．They are collected in the museum. | D．They are illustrated stories for kids. |
| A．Bang. | B．Bedtime Math. | C．Animalium. | D．About Time. |
7 . Solar stills (蒸馏器) provide a clever and simple means of purifying dirty or salty water, but they work at a rather slow rate. A new material has been shown to boost their performance, and it’s made from fruit waste which would otherwise be thrown away.
In its most basic form, a conventional solar still consists of a basin of undrinkable water that is set beneath a cover. The water evaporates (蒸发) as it’s heated by the sun, condensing (凝结) on the inside surface of the cover. That condensation—which is pure, clean water-drops down the cover and is collected in a separate container for drinking. In order to warm the dirty/salty water at a faster rate, scientists have developed materials that float on its surface, transforming sunlight into heat. They commonly use carbon obtained from coal.
To seek a less costly and more environmentally-friendly alternative, Prof. Edison and colleagues at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University looked to something that is free for the taking—fruit waste. More specifically, the scientists tried out coconut peels, orange peels and banana peels.
In a simple carbonization process, the fruit waste was heated at 850℃for a few hours, and mixed with a kind of chemical substance. Doing so transformed the fruit waste into a new material which has a very highlight-to-heat transforming efficiency.
When tested in a small solar still, this new material proved to be very effective at transforming sunlight into heat, causing the dirty/salty water to evaporate much more rapidly. And because the material is full of holes, the waters team is able to rise right through it, subsequently condensing on the inside of the still’s cover.
Prof. Edison and his team found material obtained from the coconut peels worked best, as it transformed sunlight to heat with an efficiency rate of 94%. They are now developing the technology further, and are seeking industry partners to help with its commercialization.
1. What is the paragraph 2 mainly about?| A．The working principle of solar stills. |
| B．The advantages of conventional solar stills. |
| C．The new materials of building a solar still. |
| D．The different ways of purifying dirty water. |
| A．To solve the problem of environmental pollution. |
| B．To find out more eco-friendly materials. |
| C．To expand the applied range of the solar still. |
| D．To make solar stills much easier and less costly. |
| A．Get more wastewater from the solar still. |
| B．Test chemical substances in the solar still. |
| C．Obtain an efficient water-purifying material. |
| D．Take measures to improve water quality. |
| A．Scientists are transforming sunlight into heat |
| B．Simple process turns fruit waste into new material |
| C．Solar still s are the best way to get drinking water |
| D．New technology helps, solar stills reach the customers |
8 . Tidying your desk, watering your plants, folding clothes — these household chores are hardly the height of pleasure. Yet I often find myself
If I’m stuck in writer’s block with a deadline
I’m not
Psychologists suggest there are many potential mechanisms (机制) that can explain the pleasure from these tasks and their benefits — these may well encourage you to
Little chores may be useful because they
In one of the few studies to examine the mental health benefits of washing the dishes, researchers at Florida State University divided 51
Afterwards, the participants were asked to take a questionnaire about their
| A．ignoring | B．enjoying | C．avoiding | D．simplifying |
| A．agreed | B．established | C．passing | D．approaching |
| A．relaxed | B．bored | C．worried | D．annoyed |
| A．confident | B．fit | C．alone | D．stuck |
| A．opening up | B．looking after | C．returning to | D．setting up |
| A．sum up | B．give up | C．learn about | D．engage in |
| A．occupy | B．broaden | C．motivate | D．challenge |
| A．interest | B．bother | C．delight | D．surprise |
| A．focus | B．hope | C．pressure | D．happiness |
| A．dishes | B．households | C．participants | D．tasks |
| A．entirely | B．quickly | C．slightly | D．initially |
| A．sure | B．proud | C．glad | D．aware |
| A．interests | B．abilities | C．feelings | D．habits |
| A．continued | B．increased | C．unexpected | D．reduced |
| A．slipped | B．refreshed | C．developed | D．exhausted |
9 . Dopamine (多巴胺) is often considered as the source of pleasure. But that’s not quite what it does. Dopamine is what makes us desire things. And it’s that desire that gives us the motivation to get up and do things.
In fact, your brain considers something more important than others mainly depending on how much dopamine it’s expecting to get. If an activity releases a lot of dopamine, you’ll be motivated to repeat it, over and over. So which behavior releases dopamine? Any activity where you expect there’s a possible reward releases it.
And in today’s digital society, we are flooding our brains with unnaturally high amounts of dopamine on a daily basis, even if we don’t know it. Some examples of high dopamine behavior include: visiting social media websites, playing video games, etc.
And you might think, “Oh so what? It’s not like it’s harming me in any way.” But you’d be wrong. Our bodies have a biologically balanced system. Whenever an imbalance occurs, our body adapts to it. Basically, your brain gets used to having high levels of dopamine and those levels become your new normal. Thus, you develop a dopamine tolerance. This can be a huge problem because the things that don’t give you as much dopamine don’t interest you any longer. That’s why people tend to prefer playing video games or surfing the Internet, compared to studying or working on their business.
But it is possible to make doing difficult things feel easier. Separate yourself from the unnaturally high amounts of dopamine, or at least expose yourself to it far less frequently. Only then will normal, everyday, low dopamine activities become exciting again and you’ll be able to do them for longer. That’s why you might want to limit your phone and computer usage, along with other high dopamine-releasing behavior.
We are all dopamine addicts to a certain extent. And that’s a good thing because dopamine motivates us to achieve our goals and improve ourselves. But it’s up to you to decide where you’re going to get your dopamine.
1. When is dopamine released?| A．When tough things come into being. | B．When we are encouraged to do things. |
| C．When we take pleasure in the behavior. | D．When possible rewards can be obtained. |
| A．Dopamine does great harm to our body. | B．It’s difficult for our body to keep the balance. |
| C．Video games produce more dopamine than study. | D．Dopamine tolerance keeps us away from social media. |
| A．To explain why dopamine is harmful. | B．To introduce the effects of dopamine. |
| C．To stress the importance of dopamine. | D．To offer solutions to dopamine tolerance. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Objective. | C．Concerned. | D．Negative. |
10 . Canada is diverse and vast, and the festivals celebrated there reflect this. Here are some exciting ones that attract visitors worldwide.
Vancouver Celebration of Light
The largest fireworks competition in the world is held every summer in Vancouver. It consists of concerts, food stalls, and the Seawall Challenge, a popular urban adventure race. The festival, which lasts about a week, makes for a great way to get to know the city from a local standpoint.
Edmonton Folk Festival
From its humble beginning in 1980, Edmonton Folk Festival has grown to be one of the world’s famous folk festivals. Held each August, the lineup of the 10-day-long festival is always outstanding and ticket prices stay reasonable. Edmonton is also a gateway to Jasper and the Canadian Rockies, about two hours away in case you have extra time to explore after the festival.
Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) is one of the leading film festivals in the world, ranking closely with Cannes and Sundance. Films such as Hotel Rwanda, American Beauty, and The Big Chill made their premieres (首映) at this famous star-filled event held each September. The 11-day-long festival is also known as the kick-off of awards season, with many films that make their first public performance at TIFF going on to get nominated for Oscars and Golden Globe awards.
Montreal Comedy Festival
Since 1983, Montreal Comedy Festival, or, Just for Laughs as it is more commonly known, has been inviting people to get together just for fun, just for entertainment-just for laughs. The festival, which takes place every year for two weeks in July, has grown in popularity and reputation and today features some of the world’s greatest comedians and it also resulted in a television show that is broadcast internationally.
1. What do Vancouver Celebration of Light and Edmonton Folk Festival have in common?| A．They feature fireworks. | B．They require admission tickets. |
| C．They consist of concerts | D．They are held annually. |
| A．Edmonton Folk Festival. | B．Montreal Comedy Festival. |
| C．Vancouver Celebration of Light. | D．Toronto International Film Festival. |
| A．Vancouver. | B．Edmonton. | C．Toronto. | D．Montreal. |
