1 . Returning to a book you’ve read many times can feel like drinks with an old friend. There’s a welcome familiarity - but also sometimes a slight suspicion that time has changed you both, and thus the relationship. But books don’t change, people do. And that’s what makes the act of rereading so rich and transformative.
The beauty of rereading lies in the idea that our bond with the work is based on our present mental register. It’s true, the older I get, the more I feel time has wings. But with reading, it’s all about the present. It’s about the now and what one contributes to the now, because reading is a give and take between author and reader. Each has to pull their own weight.
There are three books I reread annually .The first, which I take to reading every spring is Emest Hemningway’s A Moveable Feast. Published in 1964, it’s his classic memoir of 1920s Paris. The language is almost intoxicating (令人陶醉的)，an aging writer looking back on an ambitious yet simpler time. Another is Annie Dillard’s Holy the Firm, her poetic 1975 ramble (随笔) about everything and nothing. The third book is Julio Cortazar’s Save Twilight: Selected Poems, because poetry. And because Cortazar.
While I tend to buy a lot of books, these three were given to me as gifs, which might add to the meaning I attach to them. But I imagine that, while money is indeed wonderful and necessary, rereading an author’s work is the highest currency a reader can pay them. The best books are the ones that open further as time passes. But remember, it’s you that has to grow and read and reread in order to better understand your friends.
1. Why does the author like rereading?| A．It evaluates the writer-reader relationship. |
| B．It’s a window to a whole new world. |
| C．It’s a substitute for drinking with a friend. |
| D．It extends the understanding of oneself. |
| A．It’s a brief account of a trip. |
| B．It’s about Hemingway’s life as a young man. |
| C．It’s a record of a historic event. |
| D．It’s about Hemingway’s friends in Paris. |
| A．Debt |
| B．Reward. |
| C．Allowance. |
| D．Face value. |
| A．He loves poetry. |
| B．He’s an editor. |
| C．He’s very ambitious. |
| D．He teaches reading. |
2 . Recycling Electronic Waste
When Alex Lin was 11 years old, he read an alarming article in the newspaper which said that people were burying old computers in backyards, throwing TVs into streams, and dumping (丢弃) cell phones in the garbage. This was dangerous because e-waste contains harmful chemicals that can leak into the environment, getting into crops, animals, water supplies—and people.
Alex was really worried and decided to make it next project for WIN—the Westerly Innovations Network. Alex and six of his friends had formed this organization to help solve community problems two years before.
But what could they do about this project with e-waste? The team spent several weeks gathering information about the harmful chemicals in e-waste and their effects on humans. They learned how to dispose (处置) of e-waste properly and how it could be recycled. Then, they sent out a survey and found only one in eight knew what e-waste was, let alone how to properly dispose of it.
Alex and his friends went into action. They advertised in the local newspaper and distributed notices to students, asking residents to bring their unwanted electronics to the school parking lot. The drive lasted two days, and they collected over 9, 500 kilograms of e-waste.
The next step was to set up a long-term e-waste drop-off center for the town. After some research, they’d learned that reusing is the best way to deal with electronic devices and it is seven times more efficient than recycling. So, they began learning to refurbish (翻新) computers themselves and distributed them to students who didn’t have their own. In this way, they could help students in the area and protect the environment at the same time.
For a lasting solution to e-waste, the drop-off center wasn’t enough. Laws would have to be passed. In 2016, WIN helped push for an e-waste bill in their town, which required companies that manufactured or sold electronics to take back e-waste. The bill clearly forbids the dumping of e-waste.
Because of the work of WIN, more and more people, like Alex and his team, are getting the message about safe disposal of e-waste. As Alex says, “Today’s technology should not become tomorrow’s harmful garbage.”
1. What was Alex’s worry after he read the article?| A．The littering of e-waste. | B．The recycling of plastic. |
| C．The change of environment. | D．The overuse of old computers. |
| A．Set up WIN. | B．Collect information. |
| C．Ask friends for help. | D．Carry out a survey. |
| A．Traditional. | B．Competitive. |
| C．Scientific. | D．Convenient. |
| A．There is no end to perfection. |
| B．Success comes through failure. |
| C．Every positive attitude has a reward. |
| D．Young people can make a big difference. |
3 . I was standing in the checkout line behind a woman who looked to be in her 60s. When it was her turn to pay, the cashier greeted her by name and asked her how she was doing.
The woman looked down, shook her head and said: “Not so good. My husband just lost his job. The truth is, I don’t know how I’m going to get through these days.” Then she gave the cashier food stamps(食品券).
My heart ached. I wanted to help but didn’t know how. Should I offer to pay for her groceries, or ask for her husband’s resume(简历)?
Walking into the parking lot, I spotted the woman returning her shopping cart. I remembered something in my purse that I thought could help her. It wasn’t a handful of cash or an offer of a job for her husband, but maybe it would make her life better.
“Excuse me,” I said, my voice trembling a bit. “I couldn’t help overhearing what you said to the cashier. It sounds like you’ re going through a really hard time right now. I’m so sorry. I’d like to give you something. ”
I handed her the small card from my purse. When the woman read the two words “You Matter” on the card, she began to cry. And through her tears, she said: “You have no idea how much this means to me.”
I was a little startled by her reply. Having never done anything like this before, I didn’t know what kind of reaction I might receive. All I could think to say was: “Would it be OK to give you a hug? ”
A few days earlier, one of my workmates gave a similar card to me as encouragement for a project I was working on. When I read the card, I felt a warm glow spread inside of me. Deeply touched, I ordered my own box of “You Matter” cards and started sharing them.
1. What was the woman’s trouble?| A．She lost her job. |
| B．She needed more food stamps. |
| C．She didn’t know how to get through the hard time. |
| D．She didn’t have enough money to pay for her groceries. |
| A．She inspired the woman with a card. |
| B．She bought some food for the woman. |
| C．She gave the woman a handful of money. |
| D．She offered the woman’s husband a better job. |
| A．Moved. | B．Surprised. | C．Pleased. | D．Annoyed. |
| A．You Decide Who You Are | B．Bad Things Will Go Away |
| C．The Help from a Stranger | D．The Power of a Small Card |
4 . Humans’ overconsumption of resources is a leading contributor to global climate change, says University of Arizona researcher Sabrina Helm. Therefore, it’s increasingly important to understand the choices consumers make and how those decisions affect the health of a planet with limited resources. In a new study, published in the journal Young Consumers, Helm and her colleagues explore how materialistic values influence pro-environmental behaviors in millennials, who are now the nation’s most influential group of consumers.
The researchers focused on two main categories of pro-environmental behaviors: reduced consumption, which includes actions like repairing instead of replacing older items; and “green buying,” or purchasing products designed to limit environmental impacts. The researchers also looked at how engaging in pro-environmental behaviors affects consumer well-being.
More materialistic participants, the researchers found, were unlikely to engage in reduced consumption. However, materialism did not seem to have an effect on their likelihood of practicing “green buying.” That’s probably because “green buying,” unlike reduced consumption, still offers a way for materialists to fulfill their desire to get new items, Helm said.
Study participants who reported having fewer materialistic values were much more likely to engage in reduced consumption. Consuming less was, in turn, linked to higher personal well-being and lower psychological suffering. Green buying—which may have some positive environmental effects, although to a smaller degree than reduced consumption—was not found to improve consumer well-being, Helm said.
The take-home message for consumers: “The key is to reduce consumption and not just buy green stuff. Having less and buying less can actually make us more satisfied and happier,” Helm said. “If you have a lot of stuff, you have a lot on your mind,” she said. “For example, it requires maintenance and there’s a lot of burdens of ownership, and if you relieve yourself of that burden of ownership, most people report feeling a lot better and freer.”
Helm and her colleagues additionally looked at how materialism affects millennial consumers’ proactive financial behaviors, such as budgeting and saving. Examining financial behaviors alongside pro-environmental behaviors provides a picture of how young adults proactively deal with resource limitations in two contexts: environmental and financial, Helm said.
As expected, Helm and her colleagues found that those who reported having more materialistic values engaged in fewer proactive financial behaviors than their less materialistic counterparts (对应的人). The researchers also found that, consistent with previous studies, proactive financial behaviors were associated with better personal well-being, life satisfaction and financial satisfaction, as well as lower psychological suffering.
Understanding how materialistic values impact consumer behaviors, and how those behaviors in turn affect personal and environmental well-being, is important, Helm said. However, she acknowledges that for many consumers, shifting behaviors to be more financially proactive and consume less will be challenging.
1. What do we know about pro-environmental behaviors?| A．They are a cause of climate change. |
| B．They lead to a more satisfying life. |
| C．They vary in different age groups. |
| D．They are affected by materialism. |
| A．ownership of green products brings a sense of happiness |
| B．materialists prefer practicing green buying to buying less |
| C．green buying helps control people’s desire to buy new items |
| D．buying less and green buying have similar effects on people |
| A．Replacing older items. | B．Developing new resources. |
| C．Buying greener products. | D．Being careful with expenses. |
| A．When people develop proactive financial behaviors. |
| B．Which financial behaviors lead to mental well-being. |
| C．Why it is hard to change people’s financial behaviors. |
| D．How materialistic values influence financial behaviors. |
5 . Alzheimer's AI
An estimated 5.7 million people in the U.S. have Alzheimer's disease-the most common type of dementia(痴呆）－and that number is expected to more than double by 2050. Early diagnosis is crucial for patients to benefit from the few therapies available. But no scans can deliver a conclusive diagnosis while a person is alive; instead doctors have to conduct numerous and complicated clinical and neuropsychological tests.So there is growing interest in developing artificial intelligence to identify Alzheimer's based on brain imaging.
Researchers at the University of California,San Francisco, have now successfully trained an AI algorithm(算法）to recognize one of the early signs of Alzheimer's-a reduction in the brain's glucose（葡萄糖）consumption-in positron emission tomography (PET) imaging.
The algorithm accurately predicted an eventual Alzheimer's diagnosis in nearly all the test cases, according to the study. In PET imaging, a very small amount of a radioactive compound are injected into the body, producing three-dimensional images of metabolism(新陈代谢）,circulation and other cellular activities. PET is well suited for an AI diagnostic tool because Alzheimer's leads to subtle changes in the brain's metabolism that begin years before neural(神经的） tissue starts to go downhill, says study co-author Jae Ho Sohn,a radiologist at UCSF. These changes are "very hard for radiologists to pick up,"he notes.
The algorithm was trained and tested on 2,100 PET brain images from about 1,000 people 55 years and older. The images came from a 12-year study that tracked people who would ultimately be diagnosed with Alzheimer's, as well as those with mild memory declines and healthy control participants. The algorithm was trained on 90 percent of the data and tested on the remaining 10 percent. It was then retested on a second, independent data set from 40 patients monitored for 10 years. The algorithm was highly sensitive and was able to recognize 81 percent of the patients in the first test group and 100 percent in the second who would be diagnosed with Alzheimer's six years later, on average. The findings were published in February in Radiology.
The algorithm is based on "deep learning ,a machine-learning technique that uses artificial neural networks programmed to learn from examples. "This is one of the first promising,preliminary(初步的） applications of deep learning to the diagnosis of Alzheimer's," says Christian Salvatore, a physicist at Italy's National Research Council, who was not involved in the study. “The model performs very well when identifying patients with mild or late diagnoses", he says, “but catching it in the earliest stages remains one of the most critical open issues in this field."
1. People are increasingly interested in using AI to identify Alzheimer's because______| A．the number of people suffering from dementia is more than doubling |
| B．diagnostic methods that are both reliable and convenient are in need |
| C．there are only a limited number of effective therapies for the patients |
| D．diagnosing Alzheimer's disease through AI is still an unexplored area |
| A．It recognizes the worsening of the neural tissue. |
| B．It reduces the glucose consumption in the brain. |
| C．It changes the pattern of the brain's metabolism. |
| D．It photographs various kinds of cellular activities. |
| A．90% of the people in the study were trained on the algorithm |
| B．the participants in the study consist of people both young and old |
| C．81% of the people in the first test group were diagnosed with Alzheimer's |
| D．the algorithm managed to recognize all the patients in the second test group |
| A．The algorithm serves as a promising treatment of Alzheimer's. |
| B．Deep learning has been widely applied in diagnosing Alzheimer's. |
| C．To detect Alzheimer's in its earliest stages calls for more exploration. |
| D．Whether to use the model to detect Alzheimer's remains a critical issue. |
6 . Occasions like anniversaries, weddings and reunions call for special event venues （场地）.The following places may have a way out. There's no need to spend money creating atmosphere at special event venues. It's built right in!
Hard Rock Cafe Anchorage
415 E. STREET, ANCHORAGE, ALASKA 99501
Events, like great music are born of inspiration. Featuring a 13,600-square-foot facility that will seat 275 guests with private event space, we pride ourselves on delivering an exceptional experience with a rock and roll twist for each of our guests.
Business Expo Center
1960 S. ANAHEIM WAY, ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA 92805
The Business Expo Center is Orange County's premier event venue in Anaheim, California. Our flexible 36,000-square-foot expo center is home to space for conferences, trade shows and celebrations. We pride ourselves on providing a memorable experience with excellent flexibility, services, and cost savings. We won't charge customers for on-site parking and provide high-speed Wi-Fi.
Automobile Driving Museum
610 LAIRPORT STREET, EL SEGUNDO, CALIFORNIA 90245
Centrally located in the South Bay beach community of El Segundo, California, the ADM offers a wonderful venue for private parties and corporate events. Conveniently located 5 minutes south of LAX, right off the 405 and 105 Freeways, the 610 Lairport space has a vintage feel surrounded by our primary automobile collection. We offer several different venues inside and outside our facility for diverse events. To better our service, reservations are needed.
Yamashiro Hollywood
1999 N. SYCAMORE AVE., LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90068
Yamashiro Hollywood is a restaurant and therefore, all food and beverages must be handled in house. However, guests are allowed to bring in outside wine and champagne for a corkage fee.
1. What can you do in Business Expo Center?| A．Enjoy free parking. |
| B．Bring in outside wine. |
| C．Experience a rock and roll twist. |
| D．See some automobile collections. |
| A．Business Expo Center. |
| B．Yamashiro Hollywood. |
| C．Hard Rock Cafe Anchorage. |
| D．Automobile Driving Museum. |
| A．They offer optional places. |
| B．They are open to special events. |
| C．They are located in the same state. |
| D．They enjoy convenient transportation. |
7 . 72 Hours in Beijing
Traveling to China is no longer a luxury for many foreign passport holders. The Chinese government has permitted a 72-hour visa-free policy that offers access to visitors from 53 countries including the US, France and Austria. Let’s start with the capital of China, Beijing. Here’s a pick of the best in Beijing!
Mutianyu Great Wall
Your trip to Beijing isn’t really complete without seeing one of the “New Seven Wonders of the World”, the Great Wall of China. The Mutianyu section of the Great Wall is by far the most well-preserved of all. Taking a one-hour bus ride Mutianyu would be your ideal location for a half day of hiking away from the large crowds in the city. Also the authorities have allowed tourists to paint graffiti on a specific section of the Great Wall since 2014. The Great Wall was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987.
798 Art Zone
This would be on the top of my list! Named after the 798 factory that was built in the 1950s. The art zone is home to various galleries, design studios, art exhibition spaces, fashionable shops and bars. You could easily spend half your day wandering around the complex, feeling the contrast of the present and the past.
Summer Palace
Located in northwestern Beijing, the Summer Palace is by far the city’s most well-preserved royal park. With its huge lake and hilltop views, the palace offers you a pastoral escape into the landscape of traditional Chinese paintings. The Summer Palace was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1998.
Sichuan Provincial Restaurant
While in Beijing, apart from trying the city’s best-known Peking duck the Sichuan provincial restaurant is one of the places where you can enjoy regional delicious food. It offers one of China’s eight great cuisines, Sichuan, which ranges from Mapo tofu to spicy chicken.
1. Which of the following is true about the Mutianyu Great Wall?| A．You can paint graffiti anywhere. |
| B．You need a half day to get there. |
| C．It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2014. |
| D．It is the most well-preserved part of the Great Wall. |
| A．In1950. | B．In 1987. | C．In 1998. | D．In 2014. |
| A．Mutianyu Great Wall. | B．Summer Palace. |
| C．798 Art Zone. | D．Sichuan Provincial Restaurant. |
8 . New Jersey Botanical Garden Membership
It’s easy to join New Jersey Botanical Garden (NJBG) Membership or renew your membership online, by phone or by mail. And it’s so important to the Botanical Garden! Your membership dollars help to improve the Garden, and provide educational and recreational (娱乐的) activities for the general public. Thank you for your support!
To join or renew, please click on the appropriate section and membership category below for safe and convenient online payment processing by PayPal.
If you prefer to join by phone or mail, call the NJBG office at (973) 962-9534 or download and send in our membership brochure (Adobe Acrobat PDF file).
★Join NJBG Today
Membership Category | Individual | Dual (两人共用) | Student |
Annual Dues | $35 | $60 | $25 |
Special: Save $5 with Biennial Dues(两年会费) | $60 | $100 | $40 |
★Renew Your Membership
Membership Category | Individual | Dual | Student |
Annual Dues | $30 | $50 | $25 |
Special: Save $5 with Biennial Dues | $50 | $80 | $40 |
The Botanical Garden started life as Skylands, a large area in the grand manner. It is famous for a 44-room Tudor Revival granite mansion (公馆) designed by John Russell Pope. Skylands has 96 acres of formal and naturalized gardens and is surrounded by over 1,000 acres of meadows (草坪) and woodlands. Purchased by the State in 1966 and officially named as the New Jersey Botanical Garden in 1984, the gardens contain approximately 5,000 species and varieties of trees and flowers.
For you, the NJBG is an exciting and beautiful place to visit where you may enjoy each season’s best. Members enjoy special events, festivals, lectures, and rewarding educational opportunities for both city and country gardeners.
Your NJBG membership offers you discounts at participating nurseries, garden centers and other fine businesses. Simply present your NJBG membership card when beginning your purchase:
· Goffle Brook Farm and Garden Center, (201) 652-7540
10% off your purchase
· Metropolitan Plant Exchange, (973) 638-7613
12% off your purchase
· Rohsler’s Allendale Nursery & Florist, (201) 327-3156
15% off your purchase
1. The NJBG membership dollars can be used to ___________.| A．offer further education | B．update online payment |
| C．provide better service | D．protect the environment |
| A．(201) 327-3156 | B．(201) 652-7540 |
| C．(973) 962-9534 | D．(973) 638-7613 |
| A．$50 | B．$60 |
| C．$80 | D．$100 |
| A．was officially named in 1966 |
| B．was designed by John Russell Pope |
| C．invites members to organize activities |
| D．gives members discounts for their purchase |
9 . Running on Empty
For almost a century, scientists have assumed, tiredness—or exhaustion—in athletes originates(起源于) in the muscles. Precise explanations have varied, but all have been based on the “Limitations Theory”. In other words, muscles tire because they hit a physical limit: they either run out of fuel or oxygen or they drown in harmful by-products(副产品).
In the past few years, however, Timothy Noakes from the University of Cape Town, South Africa, has examined this standard theory. Tiredness, he argues, is caused not by signals springing from overtaxed muscles, but is an emotional response which begins in the brain. The fundamental nature of his new theory is that the brain paces the muscles to keep them well back from the edge of exhaustion. When the brain decides it’s time to quit, it creates unbearable muscle tiredness. This “Central Governor” theory remains controversial, but it does explain many puzzling aspects of athletic performance.
A recent discovery that Noakes calls the “lactic acid paradox” made him start researching this area seriously. Lactic acid is a by-product of exercise, and the increase of it is often mentioned as a cause of tiredness. But when research subjects exercise in certain conditions created artificially, they become tired even though lactic acid levels remain low. Nor has the oxygen content of their blood fallen too low for them to keep going. Obviously, something else was making them tire before they hit either of these physiological limits.
Noakes conducted an experiment with seven cyclists. It has long been known that during exercise, the body never uses 100% of the available muscle fibres(纤维). The amount used varies, but in some tasks such as this cycling test the body calls on about 30%. His team found that as tiredness set in, the electrical activity in cyclist’s legs declined—even when they were making a great effort to cycle as fast as they could.
To Noakes, this was strong evidence that the old theory was wrong. “The cyclists may have felt completely exhausted,” he says, “but their bodies actually had considerable reserves that they could theoretically tap by using a greater amount of the resting fibres.” This, he believes, is the proof that the brain is regulating the pace of the workout to hold the cyclists well back from the point of extreme tiredness.
1. Which of the following is supported by “the Limitations Theory”?| A．Tiredness is caused by signals from brain. |
| B．Athletes feel tired when they use up all their energy. |
| C．The body uses 100% of the muscle fibres in exercise. |
| D．Athletes become tired though lactic acid levels remain low. |
| A．muscle fibres control athletes’ movements |
| B．Lactic acid levels remain high in cycling test |
| C．mental processes control the symptoms of tiredness |
| D．different exercises use different amount of muscle fibres |
| A．lactic acid is produced in muscles during exercise |
| B．the oxygen content in blood may rise after sports |
| C．tiredness is a harmful by-product of exercise |
| D．the energy in human bodies can be balanced |
| A．The description of a new test. |
| B．The explanation of the theory. |
| C．The puzzling evidence of a study. |
| D．The whole process of the research. |
10 . At university, when I told people I was studying for a history degree, the response was almost always the same, “You want to be a teacher?” No, a journalist. “Oh. But you’re not majoring in communications?”
In the days when a university education was a privilege, perhaps there wasn’t the assumption that a degree had to be a springboard directly into a career. Those days are long gone. Today, a degree is all but a necessity for the job market, one that more than halves your chances of being unemployed. Still, that alone is no guarantee of a job—and yet we’re paying more and more for one.
Given those costs, most of us want to maximize that investment — and that can lead to a plug-and-play type of approach to higher education. Want to be a journalist? Study journalism, we’re told. A lawyer? Pursue pre-law. Not totally sure? Go into STEM (Science, Technology, Engineer and Maths) — you can become an engineer or an IT expert. And no matter what you do, forget the humanities, such as history, philosophy and languages.
It’s true that the humanities come with a higher risk of unemployment, but the risk is slighter than you would imagine. For young people in the U.S. , the unemployment rate of those with humanities degrees is four percent, just a little more than that of engineering degree holders. Lower salaries may not be caused by the degree itself either. The gender pay gap persists in the humanities, whose graduates are more likely to be female. Is it any wonder then that language teachers tend to make less than engineers?
According to LinkedIn’s research on the most sought-after job skills by employers for 2019, the ability to communicate and get along with people, to understand what’s on other people’s minds, and to do full-strength critical analysis were all valued and appreciated. It goes without saying that you can be an excellent communicator and critical thinker without a humanities degree. And any good university education, not just one in English or psychology, should sharpen these abilities further. But few courses of study are quite as heavy on reading, writing, speaking and critical thinking as the humanities — whether that’s by debating other students in a seminar, writing a thesis paper or analyzing poetry.
The whole question of whether a student should choose STEM versus the humanities might be misguided to begin with. The headlines most of us see don’t help. Whatever a student pursues in university, it must be something that they are not only good at, but interested in. Even if it means pursuing a “useless” degree — like one in humanities.
1. Why are people paying more and more for a degree?| A．Because people need a degree to further their career. |
| B．Because university education is considered a privilege. |
| C．Because a degree is viewed as a must for landing a job. |
| D．Because their interest can be developed in university. |
| A．a tip for choosing a major |
| B．the importance of higher education |
| C．a problem that exists among STEM graduates |
| D．the reason why people overlook the humanities |
| A．A comparatively high salary after graduation. |
| B．Better chances of getting rid of gender prejudice. |
| C．A better communicative skill than science students. |
| D．More exposure to the training of language and thinking. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Optimistic. |
| C．Objective. | D．Concerned. |
