1 . One day, Amanda was diagnosed (诊断) with cancer of an early stage. During this time, she was admitted to a college. She planned to save money to meet the college expense and then seek medical treatment for the cancer.
Her father, Clint and her friends didn’t want her to put off her treatment due to the expense. They took matters into their own hands and started a GoFundMe campaign. A longtime friend of the family was cofounder of a group named Praynksters, known for random acts of kindness. The friend decided to use their own group to help the family. The group came up with the creative idea to spread the word and invite families, friends, and strangers who wanted to help to take part in a donation activity. The event induced the enormous assistance from the local community.
Clint and Amanda were moved as the crowd passed by and the donations poured in. The event brought the family over $13, 000 in donations to go towards her medical treatments. The generous act of kindness gave the family a comforting, and optimistic feeling during a time when all hope seemed lost. Clint said that Amanda struggled with the idea of asking for help. She felt guilty and undeserving compared to others who are also struggling. She is still humbled by it all.
After several months of treatment, life for the family has started getting back to their normal routine. Once Amanda got her strength back, she returned to school and completed her bachelor's degree. The family is now inspired to volunteer in their local neighborhood and contribute to crowdfunding (众筹) efforts. They are grateful for the opportunity to give back and help others as many have helped them.
1. Why did Amanda postpone her treatment of cancer?A.She didn't care about her disease. |
B.She had to take care of her family. |
C.She was in a bad economic situation. |
D.She couldn’t find an effective treatment. |
A.Brought about. | B.Made up. |
C.Gave away. | D.Set about. |
A.Shameful but caring. |
B.Kind-hearted and grateful. |
C.Curious and warm-hearted. |
D.Hard- working and humorous. |
A.It's quite easy to cure Amanda’s cancer. |
B.Praynksters is a nonprofit organization funded by Clint. |
C.Volunteering is very popular in Amanda's community. |
D.A GoFundMe campaign is actually a crowdfunding activity. |
2 . Every weekend, my father would go to the park to feed the homeless. I really didn't understand my father's
Then, one Friday night I was
"I need your help tomorrow. Some
“Dad. I can't." I
When we arrived, people were already there
Now I
A.attempt | B.development | C.change | D.effort |
A.face | B.stand | C.join | D.stop |
A.celebrating | B.expecting | C.wasting | D.missing |
A.volunteers | B.officials | C.experts | D.athletes |
A.demanded | B.protested | C.recommended | D.added |
A.referring to | B.laughing at | C.waiting for | D.watching over |
A.confused | B.surprised | C.annoyed | D.embarrassed |
A.toys | B.books | C.equipment | D.clothing |
A.realized | B.felt | C.noticed | D.recognized |
A.hardly | B.deeply | C.partly | D.widely |
A.shoes | B.clothes | C.cash | D.fur |
A.threw | B.lent | C.returned | D.handed |
A.shocked | B.lost | C.warm | D.calm |
A.understood | B.wondered | C.heard | D.asked |
A.guess | B.imagine | C.explain | D.tell |
3 . Birthdays at the Canadian Children’s Museum
The perfect place for a memorable birthday party!
Celebrate at the Canadian Children’s Museum with creative and fun-filled activities designed to excite the interest of children aged 3 to 12.
The party includes:
●One hour in a private party room;
●Admission to the museum;
●Unlimited time in the Children’s Museum (until closing);
●One hour animation(动画片)(Only with the “scene-Stealers” and “round the World” themed party. ) Payment is due(到期的)in full upon registration. Registration is required at least two weeks in advance.
Scene-Stealers (Ages 3 to 8)
Step into the spotlight (聚光灯)with a behind-the-scenes trip to the Canadian Children’s Museum Theatre. The Director will help you warm up with some theatre games, and teach you some stage skills to get you ready for the audience!
Cost: $190 for up to 10 kids and 2 adults; $10 for each extra child.
Around the World (Ages 4 to 7)
Take an unforgettable trip around the world to learn a traditional Mexican dance! This unforgettable journey through the International Village is packed with fun and creative activities for young adventurers.
Cost: $190 for up to 10 kids, and 2 adults; $10 for each extra child.
DIY Party (Ages 5 to 12)
DIY Party includes Museum admission, and one hour of free time in one of the Museum’s party rooms. A great choice for parents looking to plan their own activities!
Cost: $100 for up to 10 kids and 2 adults; $8 for each extra child.
1. What should you know about celebrating birthdays at the Canadian Children’s Museum?A.It is for kids aged 3 to 7. |
B.It provides animation in all parties. |
C.It should be booked ahead of time. |
D.It is required to be within one hour in the museum. |
A.Make a new movie. | B.Learn some stage skills. |
C.Visit the International Village. | D.Practice traditional paper-making art. |
A.$100. | B.$116. | C.$190. | D.$210. |
4 . On November 7, Lewis Pugh completed a one-kilometer swim in the freezing waters of King Edward Cove, off South Georgia in Antarctica. He was wearing only his swimming glasses, cap and Speedo !
Pugh is an advocate for our oceans and seas, working to protect these ecosystems with their large diversity of marine life. When asked why he doesn't wear a wetsuit(防寒泳衣), Pugh says, "I ask world leaders to do everything they can to protect our oceans. Sometimes the steps they need to take are difficult and unpopular. If I'm asking them to be courageous, I must also be. Swimming in a wetsuit would not send the right message."
It took Pugh about 19 minutes to complete the one-kilometer swim in Antarctica where the water averaged about 1.6 degrees Celsius. He says that his body can only tolerate about 20 minutes in the freezing waters before it starts shutting down. As he swims, his body temperature steadily drops, which in turn causes his muscle control to drop, slowing him down. When he is done with his swim, his support team rushes him to a hot shower and it takes almost an hour for his body temperature to return to normal.
Doctors and Pugh caution that one must receive months of training to swim in such cold waters. Even expert swimmers who are unused to freezing water can drown within minutes because of the physical shock experienced by the body. Pugh says he trained for six months before this swim.
This is not the first time that Pugh has swum in dangerous conditions. In 2007, he swam one kilometer in the North Pole to draw attention to the melting Arctic ice due to climate change. In 2015, he swam in the Bay of Whales in Antarctica's Ross Sea as part of his successful campaign to help set up a marine reserve there.
1. Why did Lewis Pugh swim without a wetsuits ?A.To show his bravery. |
B.To swim faster. |
C.To build up his body. |
D.To have overnight fame. |
A.His body temperature. |
B.His body |
C.The water. |
D.The water temperature. |
A.One should be expert at swimming. |
B.One must be used to long-distance swimming. |
C.One should be ready to take on challenges. |
D.One must be adequately prepared for it. |
A.Lewis Pugh: achieving the impossible |
B.How to survive a swim in cold waters |
C.Lewis Pugh: swimming for a cause |
D.How to prepare for extreme swimming |
5 . Are people happier in nature with blue skies overhead and fresh green grass underfoot? Could noisy streets, crowded with cars and people, make us unhappy?
The possible mental health problems of city living affect a lot of people. The World Health Organization estimates(估计)that 56 percent of the world's population lived in urban areas in 2019. The WHO adds that that amount will increase to 66 percent by 2050. People often move to cities for better jobs and more cultural activities. But are they putting themselves at risk? Maybe. Experts at the American Psychiatry Association say that “natural environments or green spaces” do much good to our mental health.
Many studies have shown that nature can calm us and make us feel happy. Nature, experts say, can also help us learn better. And experiencing nature helps people recover from the mental tiredness that comes from day-to-day work. On the other hand, mental health experts say some research suggests that city living might hurt our mental health. But they cannot say exactly why.
What are the specific aspects of the urban environment which causes some people to develop mental illness? Andrea Mechelli, a doctor at Kings College, London, states, “There have been studies where people were literally taken out of an urban environment into a rural (乡村的) environment and their symptoms would improve. And we also see that the greater the city is, the greater the risk is.” Mechelli say that someone who lives in a city is three times more likely to develop psychological problem than someone living in the country.
Kings College researchers, along with city planners, land and building designers and others wanted to learn more about city living and mental illness. So, they created a smartphone app called Urban Mind. They say they wanted to understand how different parts of the urban environment affect mental wellbeing(健康).
The researchers found that being outdoors, seeing trees, hearing birdsong, seeing the sky, and feeling in contact with nature were associated with higher levels of mental well-being. They also found that these seeming effects of nature were especially strong in those individuals at greater risk of mental health problems. The Urban Mind Project team says it hopes “the results will inform future urban planning and social policy aimed at improving design and health.”
1. Why is the question raised in the first paragraph?A.To introduce the topic of the text. |
B.To show the background of the text. |
C.To ask the readers to learn the study. |
D.To raise the readers' interest in happiness. |
A.People are attracted by the blue skies and green grass. |
B.People are more content with their city life. |
C.More and more people are interested in taking risks in cities, |
D.City people are more likely to develop mental problems than country people. |
A.More people will choose to live in the countryside. |
B.It will bring more concern about people s mental health. |
C.It will contribute to future urban planning and social policies. |
D.People will be helped to improve their mental illness. |
A.Urban Mind measures the level of mental wellbeing. |
B.City living may be harmful to people’s mental health. |
C.Living in the countryside is better than in the city. |
D.Different scientists hold different opinions on the effects of city living. |
6 . Liz Woodward worked as a waitress at the Route 130 diner in Delran, New Jersey. One Thursday morning around 5:30 am, she was serving two firefighters, Young and Hullings. Quite
Touched, Liz decided to honor these two heroes by picking up their
This simple act of kindness meant so much to the
To return the young lady's kindness, upon his arrival home, Hullings posted a Facebook update
The total donations reached $60,000 and went beyond Liz's wildest dreams. She had never expected that her small gesture would be paid in such a/an
A.in private | B.by accident | C.in public | D.on purpose |
A.potential | B.slight | C.rare | D.fierce |
A.money | B.uniforms | C.check | D.breakfast |
A.replied | B.went | C.indicated | D.read |
A.concern | B.courage | C.confidence | D.curiosity |
A.exhausted | B.brave | C.modest | D.anxious |
A.ended up | B.sat up | C.teared up | D.showed up |
A.helping | B.forcing | C.reminding | D.urging |
A.shared | B.collected | C.examined | D.removed |
A.Thus | B.Instead | C.However | D.Besides |
A.raise | B.donate | C.change | D.count |
A.picture | B.link | C.note | D.click |
A.doubled | B.rolled in | C.declined | D.spread out |
A.generous | B.conventional | C.extreme | D.rapid |
A.greedy | B.eager | C.prepared | D.grateful |
7 . Light pollution is blocking a starry view of the night sky for more than half of people across England, a research has found.
Fifty-seven percent of stargazers(观星者)struggled to see more than 10 stars, while just 2% of participants said they experienced a truly dark sky enabling them to count more than 30, according to the research by the Campaign to Protect Rural England(CPRE). People in the countryside were encouraged to count how many stars they could see with eyes within the constellation(星座)of Orion, which is visible only in the winter months.
Campaigners said the results of the star count, supported by the British Astronomical Association, showed the problem of light pollution and how it affected one of the countryside's most magical sights-a dark, starry night sky. They said the results of the research to map England's night skies suggested more could be done by the government, local councils and the general public to lessen the negative effects of artificial light from streets and buildings.
Emma Marrington, dark skies campaigner at the CPRE, said, “We're hugely grateful to the people who took the time to get out and take part in our star count. But it's deeply disappointing that the vast majority were unable to experience the natural wonder of a truly dark sky blanketed with stars. Without intervention, our night sky will continue to be lost under a covering of artificial light, ruining the health of the natural world.”
She added, “The star count results show just how far-reaching the light from street lights and buildings can be seen. Light doesn't respect boundaries, and careless use can see it spread for miles from cities.”
She suggested better-designed lighting, street light dimming(暗淡)systems and partnight lighting where some street lights are turned off during the small hours should provide an opportunity to limit the damage caused by light pollution, reduce carbon emissions and save money.
1. What effect does the light pollution bring about to England?A.It leads the stars to disappear. |
B.It makes the countryside dim. |
C.It makes the environment terrible. |
D.It prevents the people seeing stars. |
A.The overuse of artificial light. |
B.More and more buildings. |
C.Less and less outdoor activities. |
D.The spread of light in the countryside. |
A.Regretful. | B.Surprised. |
C.Appreciative. | D.Disappointed. |
A.Changing the streets' design. |
B.Turning off lights at night. |
C.Spreading light further. |
D.Using street lights wisely. |
8 . A survey said the average Asian dad spent one minute a day with his children. I was shocked. I mean, a whole minute? Every day? Get real. Once a week maybe. The fact is, many Asian males are terrible at kid—related things. In fact, I am one of them.
Child—rearing (养育) doesn’t come naturally to guys. My mother knew the names of our teachers, best friends and crushes. My dad was only vaguely aware there were short people sharing the apartment. My mother bought healthy fresh food at the market every day. My dad would only go shopping when there was nothing in the fridge except a jar of capers and a bay leaf. Then he’d buy beer. My mother always knew the right questions to ask our teachers. My dad would ask my English teacher if she could get us a discount on school fees. My mother served kid food to kids. My dad added chili sauce to everything, including our baby food.
The truth is, mothers have superpowers. My son fell off a wall once and hurt himself all over. I demanded someone bring me a computer so I could google what to do. My wife ignored me and did some sort of chanting phrase such as “Mummy kiss it better,” and cured l7 separate injuries in less than 15 seconds.
Yes, mothers are incredible people, but they are not always right. Yet honesty forces me to record the fact that mothers only know best 99.99 percent of the time.Here are some famous slip-ups.
The mother of Bill Gates: “If you’re going to drop out of college and hang out with your nerdy friends, don’t come running to me when you find yourself penniless.” The mother of Albert Einstein: “When you grow up, you’ll find that sitting around thinking about the nature of time and space won’t pay the grocery bills.” The mother of George W. Bush: “You’ll never be like your dad, who became President of the United States and started his own war.”
1. The tone for the writer to write the passage is ___.A.cruel | B.humorous | C.disapproving | D.critical(批评的) |
A.females love kids more than males | B.males are not good at child—rearing |
C.Males are not interested in child-rearing | D.child-rearing is difficult both for females and males |
A.stories | B.shortcomings | C.mistakes | D.advantages |
A.providing different examples | B.following the order of space |
C.making comparisons | D.analyzing causes |
9 . My sister Alice and I have been trying to get people to stop dropping cigarette (香烟) butts (烟头) for seven years. One day, we were walking in our hometown and saw hundreds of cigarette butts on the ground. They made the town look so ugly that we decided to start a group to make people stop dropping butts. We called it “No Butts About It”.
At first, we drew pictures with “The Earth is not your ashtray (烟灰缸)” written on them. We put the pictures around our hometown—in parks, by beaches, and along roads. We wanted to make people understand that dropping butts hurts the environment. Most smokers don’t think that dropping butts hurts the Earth. But it does, and all rubbish does!
Later, we wrote to companies and asked them for money to help us. We used the money to buy ashtrays to give to smokers. We wanted smokers to carry the ashtrays with them so they didn’t have to drop butts.
At the moment, we are trying to get cigarette companies to put an ashtray in each pack of cigarettes. Some companies want to do it. Many people have started to join our group since it began. Today there are 45 other “No Butts About It” groups in America.
Now there even groups in England, Australia, and India! Many newspapers have written about my sister and me over the last seven years. And we have won many prizes for what we do. But we are not interested in prizes. We just want to make the Earth a better and cleaner place for animals, plants and people.
One day, it will be.
1. What did the writer think about the cigarette butts in the first place?A.They made the town smelly. | B.They made the town unhealthy. |
C.They made the town dirty. | D.They made the town poor. |
A.Give ashtrays to the smokers. | B.Stop people buying cigarettes. |
C.Pick up the cigarette butts. | D.Win prizes for starting groups. |
A.no companies wanted to give money to them |
B.the writer believes that the Earth will be a better and cleaner place |
C.there are only 45 “No Butts About It” |
D.the writer likes to be on newspapers and win prizes |
A.Save our Town From Cigarette Butts. | B.Buy Yourself An Ashtray. |
C.Cigarette Butts Also Destroy Other Countries. | D.No Butts Prize. |
10 . Google previously announced successful tests of machine learning systems designed to assist doctors. In one case, Google reported AI had examined eye diseases with equal accuracy to doctors. Other tests showed that machine learning can be used to study large amounts of patient data to predict future medical events.
Now the company has published two new studies showing a high level of success in identifying metastatic breast cancer. Metastatic means that cancer has spread from its main area to other parts of the body. Metastatic breast cancer is one of the deadliest, causing about 90 percent of all breast cancer deaths worldwide.
In metastatic breast cancer patients, the cancer often travels to nearby lymph nodes(淋巴结). Usually doctors examine lymph node tissue under a microscope to see whether cancer is present. Google notes that previous studies have shown that up to one-fourth of metastatic lymph node classifications end up being changed after a second examination. In addition, studies show that small metastatic material can be missed up to 67 percent of the time when examinations happen under extreme time restrictions.
Google says it created a mathematical algorithm(算法). The algorithm, called Lymph Node Assistant, is trained to find characteristics of tissue affected by metastatic cancer. When the system examined tissue images(图像), it was able to differentiate between metastatic cancer and non-cancer 99 percent of the time. In addition, the Lymph Node Assistant is highly effective at finding the positions of the cancers. Some of these positions would be too small for doctors themselves to identify. The research also showed that the algorithm method can reduce the usual time needed to examine the disease by about 50 percent.
But Google makes clear the AI-based system is not meant to replace the work of medical professionals. Instead, it is designed to reduce the number of false identifications and help doctors work faster and more effectively.
1. What is the main idea of Paragraph 1?A.Google became a pioneer in training doctors. |
B.Machine learning is able to stop future medical events. |
C.Google developed artificial intelligence to help doctors. |
D.Artificial intelligence cured eye diseases with equal accuracy to doctors. |
A.One-fourth of the metastatic breast cancer patients die in the end. |
B.Metastatic breast cancer is very difficult to identify. |
C.It results in 90 percent of deaths of all cancers. |
D.It can be identified after a second examination. |
A.It can offer effective treatment. |
B.It can tell the exact positions of cancers |
C.It costs 99 percent less time than before. |
D.It improves the accuracy of identifying cancers by 50%. |
A.False identification of cancers will be avoided. |
B.More effective prevention of cancers will be found. |
C.The number of medical professionals will be reduced. |
D.Doctors can have a faster understanding of patients’ condition. |