Do you have imagination? Do you like to solve problems? Can you? If so, you could be the next great inventor. “But I’m just a kid，” you might say! Don’t worry about a little thing like age. For example, one famous inventor — Benjamin Franklin — got his start when he was only 12. At that young age, he created paddles for his hands to help him swim faster. Finally his creation led to what we know is called flippers!
So you don’t have to be an adult to be an inventor. One thing you do need, though, is something that kids have plenty of: curiosity and imagination. Kids are known for looking at things in new and unique ways.
So what should you do if you have what is a great idea for an invention? Talk to a friend or family member about it. Get input from others about your idea. Then ask them to help you create a working model — called a prototype (原型) — of your idea.
Once you have a prototype, you can test it. Sometimes your idea turns out to be not as great as you thought. At other times, though, you realize it is a good idea and your prototype can help you figure out how to make it even better.
If your idea is really a good one, an adult can help you contact companies that might be interested in it. You will also want an adult’s help to get a patent (专利权) for your idea, so that it is protected and can’t be stolen by someone else. If you need some inspiration, consider these kids and their inventions：
Jeanie Low invented the Kiddie Stool when she was just 11. It’s a folding stool that fits under the kitchen sink. Kids can unfold it and use it to reach the sink all by themselves.
At the age of 15, Louis Braille invented the system named after him that allows the blind to read.
Chelsea Lanmon received a patent when she was just 8 for the “pocket diaper”， a new type of diaper that includes a pocket for holding baby wipes and powder.
1. By saying “But I’m just a kid”， you probably mean you ________.| A．are too young to achieve anything |
| B．can do anything though you are young |
| C．are old enough to become an inventor |
| D．have to learn knowledge from other people |
| A．a patent—a prototype—a good idea—an invention |
| B．an invention—a good idea—a patent—a prototype |
| C．a good idea—a prototype—an invention—a patent |
| D．a prototype—a patent—a good idea—an invention |
| A．Jeanie Low. | B．Benjamin Franklin. | C．Chelsea Lanmon. | D．Louis Braille. |
| A．Kids have curiosity and imagination |
| B．There are some world famous inventors |
| C．Kids are exactly like adults in a way |
| D．It is possible for kids to be inventors |
2 . With the explosion of consumer choices in recent history,the latest must-haves would surely need to be upgraded more often than every 10 years.In 2002 a computer and basic mobile phone would have been enough for most people,but now?The public need a trendy notebook computer and a smart phone with WiFi connection to feel they are up-to-date.So when will we have enough things?When will we finally be happy?Well,it looks like the things we buy today will barely keep us satisfied for a few months.
In the eyes of some psychologists,far from making us happy,greater consumer choice creates many serious psychological problems.A fundamental principle of the society is that more freedom is better and more choice in the marketplace means more freedom.Therefore more choice leads to more happiness.This is not the case,however.
Imagine you go to a cafe offering chocolate and vanilla ice cream.You choose the chocolate and eat it happily.But what if the cafe serves 50 kinds of ice cream?You choose chocolate and then start to worry,"maybe blueberry would have been better,and perhaps the half-fat ice cream would have been healthier.Stupid me,all these choices and I didn't make the best one!"
In China's major cities we have now passed the point where more consumer choice is making us happier.We are annoyed by all the options we have,disappointed because our expectations are so high and angered at ourselves when we don't make a perfect choice every time.
A newspaper reporter tells a story about traveling on a plane with high-speed Internet access.He thought this was amazing--the newest piece of technology he had heard of.Then the service went down.The man next to him was angry and swore.The reporter thought,"How quickly the world owes him something he knew existed only 10 seconds ago!"
1. What may some psychologists think of the consumer demand in the cafe?| A．Variety leads to unhappiness. | B．More choice means more freedom. |
| C．The consumer has mental problems. | D．The shop provides too many choices. |
| A．Someone owed him money. | B．The net connection was interrupted. |
| C．The air hostess offered poor service. | D．The pleasure lasted only 10seconds. |
| A．Fell asleep. | B．Made promises. |
| C．Said rude words. | D．Became amazed. |
| A．Hi-tech and consumer needs. |
| B．Computers and smart phones. |
| C．Wireless products and WiFi connection. |
| D．Diverse choices and consumer satisfaction. |
3 . With summer drawing to a dose, parents are helpless.
Camp’s over. The kids’ friends have left for warmer places. A trip to the pool doesn't bring the same excitement as it did in June. And so many families have no choice but to go for a trip to the amusement park.
Whether you’re thinking of Six Flags, Sesame Place, Hersheypark or Dutch Wonderland, don't do it—you’ll be sorry. Amusement parks—especially water parks—have never been more popular. More than 26 million people went to Six Flags last year. These parks bring out the worst in kids and parents alike. What starts out as a special treat ends up in disappointment and tears.
As soon as you get to the park, you pay a couple of hundred dollars for a family of four. Already, expectations are unrealistic as parents start to do the math. How many rides will I get for the money? The answer—at least in August—is four.
That’s because of the lines. Time stops as you stand in line leading to even the least exciting ride. Over and over we count the number of people in front of us, wondering how many more rounds there’ll be before our turn. Then there are the other parents—some of whom seem to think the lines are part of the game.
At Dutch Wonderland last weekend, one father walked up to my kids and asked if they were in line. For five minutes, he had his daughter stand behind them. When I turned my head, he had her stand ahead of them. Then he did it to the kids next in line, too.
By the end of the day, you see mothers and fathers buy their kids ice cream again and again to ease the influences of the heat, disappointment and anger.
It’s like they’ve forgotten—it was all the kids’ idea in the first place.
1. Why are parents helpless?| A．Their kids are having little fun. | B．They are not good at planning trips. |
| C．Their kids depend on them too much. | D．They are too busy to play with their kids. |
| A．It is not worth it. | B．It is good for the family. |
| C．It wouldn't be so much in August. | D．It is a waste for those poor at math. |
| A．He was a polite person. | B．He couldn’t find the line. |
| C．He wanted his kid to cut in line. | D．He wanted to teach them a lesson. |
| A．Behave well, little kids! | B．Mind your manners, parents! |
| C．Make your choices carefully | D．Keep away from amusement parks |
4 . Jack Horner is co-author of the book How to Build a Dinosaur. However, he is most famous for his role as consultant(顾问) on all four Jurassic Park films, including the new film Jurassic World.
The original film Jurassic Park tells the story of a theme park where dinosaurs live. In that movie, scientists used DNA collected by ancient mosquitoes that had been trapped in amber shortly after they drank dinosaur blood. The scientists used this dinosaur DNA to create baby dinosaurs. The scientists in Jurassic Park created various types of dinosaurs, but in the real world there is one big problem with the story. It turns out that DNA could not possibly survive the 65 million years since the death of the dinosaurs.
The new movie creates the Indominus Rex. This idea of creating a hybrid species is something Horner has explored before. In 2011, he gave a speech in which he discussed producing a dinosaur by working with the genes of a bird. Modern birds are the closest living relative of dinosaurs.
The concept of using the genes of different animals to create new animals is called transgenic science. And this type of science has already produced some interesting results — goats that produce spider silk in their milk, cows that produce proteins for medicines that can treat diseases, and a pig that produces less-polluting waste thanks to a bit of mouse DNA. However, none of these examples are close to the dinosaurs in Jurassic World. And for a good reason — genetics is a very complex science. Producing a new species is not as simple as just exchanging a few genes around.
In the end, Jurassic World is all about fun.
1. What do we know from Paragraph 2?| A．A theme park is built to protect dinosaurs. |
| B．Mosquito DNA is used to create dinosaurs. |
| C．DNA can be well kept for millions of years. |
| D．Creation of dinosaurs in the film isn’t scientific. |
| A．A modern bird. | B．A goat producing silk. |
| C．A hybrid dinosaur. | D．A cow producing protein. |
| A．Jurassic World proves a big success. | B．Many extinct species will be brought back. |
| C．Hybridizing dinosaurs is no easy job. | D．Transgenic science proves a complete failure. |
| A．He has starred in Jurassic World. |
| B．He has explored a lot about dinosaurs. |
| C．He has directed four Jurassic Park films. |
| D．He has written How to Build a Dinosaur alone. |
5 . Teenagers who travel around the world alone have been making headlines quite often. A young person alone in a dangerous situation attracts attention and sponsors. Young sailors also attract various views. For example, Jessica Watson was asked by the government to cancel her voyage, yet the Prime Minister called her “a hero for young Australians” when she returned. It seemed there is confusion about the competence and independence of young people.
The popular psychologists tell us that teenage brains are likely to make wrong judgments. But such ideas often do not apply to specific individuals. Between the ages of 14 and 18, teenagers vary greatly in their abilities. The amount of independence that each is allowed should be determined not simply by their age but by discussion with the related, responsible adults. Some teens are certainly inexperienced and capable of childish mistakes, but the ones who attempt dangerous journeys normally do so by winning the confidence of hard-headed and well-qualified adult supporters.
But it’s also wrong to think that any 16-year-old can desire to get achievements as unusual as Jessica Watson’s. Watson calls herself “an ordinary girl who had a dream”. Her intention is to encourage teenagers but this idea can have the opposite effect of making them feel not good enough because great achievements are beyond them. Should all teens have such dreams? Actually, individuals face varying circumstances that restrict their dreams.
Teenagers who travel around the world alone should not be judged by preconceived (事先形成的) views about young people. Nor should young “ordinary” teenagers feel pressure to long for extraordinary personal goals. In fact, I believe the example of solo sailing overstresses individualism. The teenage years are when most of us “ordinary” people learn that we can achieve great things in cooperation with others.
1. What can we learn about Jessica Watson?| A．She was criticized by the government. |
| B．She eventually canceled her voyage. |
| C．She has traveled around the world. |
| D．She made a successful voyage. |
| A．They have similar abilities. |
| B．They make decisions on their own. |
| C．They always make wrong judgments. |
| D．They need supports of responsible adults. |
| A．Parents. | B．Teenagers. |
| C．Psychologists. | D．Adults. |
| A．Divided Opinions on Young Adventurers |
| B．Problems Faced by Adventurous Teens |
| C．Various Ways to Become Independent |
| D．Pressure to Achieve Personal Goals |
6 . We often hear such statements: “I spilled (洒出) juice, but it wasn’t my fault.”, “I got in trouble at school, but it wasn’t my fault.” or “I was in a car accident, but it wasn’t my fault.” That “It’s not my fault.” is a go-to response for so many people and especially teenagers.
Parents complain they are tired of the “excuse”. The reason why variations of “It’s not my fault.” are so popular is that it lets us off the hook from guilt and blame. I’m a fan of not owning responsibility for things that I can’t control. Teens who often say “It’s my fault.” when something bad happens tend to be highly self-critical, perfectionistic and more easier to be troubled by anxiety and depression.
While it is important to recognize lack of reason to blame oneself, many teens over-rely on “It’s not my fault.” When trying to get them to take responsibility, parents usually attempt to convince their teens that something is their fault. The approach tends to be ineffective and turn into a power struggle. No one wins. A more effective approach can be to stress significant drawbacks to consistently focusing on removing our responsibility with this phrase.
Overuse of the phrase can result in feelings of lack of ability to control their own lives. This sense has been shown to cause low motivation. Besides creating feelings of lack of ability, overuse of “It’s not my fault.” focuses a teen’s attention on what is done as opposed to what needs to be done.
People may not have caused all their problems but they have to solve them anyway. The example I frequently share with teens is the question of what one will do if he is pushed into a deep lake. One can certainly stay in water, yelling, “It’s not my fault.” However, that won’t get him out of water. He needs to swim to the shore, regardless of the fault.
If you take a proper approach to communicating with your teens, you can help them avoid over-reliance on “It’s not my fault.”
1. What phenomenon is described in Paragraph 1?| A．The teenagers’ dislike for school life. |
| B．The common trouble faced by teenagers. |
| C．The reasons for blaming others for accidents. |
| D．The tendency for people not to be responsible for mess in life. |
| A．Those lacking confidence and ambition. |
| B．Those allowing others to find excuses. |
| C．Those unable to get along well with others. |
| D．Those often blaming themselves for some incidents. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Negative. |
| C．Ambiguous. | D．Neutral. |
| A．We should try to avoid troubling others. |
| B．We should focus on how to solve problems. |
| C．We should dare to point out others’ mistakes. |
| D．We should be self-critical as much as possible. |
7 . People generally see themselves through achievements. In doing that, they end up caring more about their image than the reality of who they actually are. Rather than their performance at work, they end up defining themselves by external markers that they hope will earn them respect.
The problem with this is that it encourages both themselves and other people to judge their worth based on some relatively unimportant measure. For example, one day, their educational diploma may overshadow what they actually learned. Therefore, a better way to know a person, I think, is to ask a different set of questions: What motivates them? What makes them ache? What do they long for?
It’s in this spirit that I want to publicly share my values. They are the compass(罗盘) that guides my life. The kindest and most sincere thing I can do is to see, recognize, and understand another person before I make judgments. From there, I can learn to treat others appropriately, depending on the context, learning from my mistakes with time and experience. It's just a reminder that life is hard for all of us, while at the same time accepting that it's important we are all also held accountable for our actions.
I have learned that we are all deeply self-interested. I hope to be self-aware enough to check out of the power and status games. That means I'm not competing with anyone for a shiny object; I'd rather compete with myself. It's about becoming so uniquely different that it would be an insult for me to measure myself against someone else. I believe if I do the work to be internally free from the pull of the power and status games, then I can add value to others based on my unique knowledge and experience.
If this resonates with(与……共鸣) you, I invite you to join me on this journey in understanding and relating to this complex world. It's a wonderful mystery, and I think together we can better define it—not just personally, but also collectively.
1. According to the article, which of the following is TRUE?| A．People generally judge others' worth by what they have achieved. |
| B．The external markers are better ways to know a person. |
| C．The author is someone who is keen on power games. |
| D．Learning from mistakes is the first step of treating others kindly. |
| A．be relatively similar to | B．cause something to be stronger than |
| C．make something less important | D．block off light from something |
| A．People should be self-aware enough and compete with themselves. |
| B．Life is hard, so we shouldn't criticize others when they are not responsible. |
| C．Everyone is unique, so showing off uniqueness is an insult to others. |
| D．One should see and understand another person using a real compass. |
| A．To promote harmonious living. |
| B．To ask people not to judge others. |
| C．To call on readers to learn his values. |
| D．To share his values of understanding the world. |
8 . As a rule, a child who has once been happy with a tale likes to have it retold in almost the same words, but this should not lead parents to treat printed fairy stories as formal texts. It is always much better to tell a story than read it out of a book, and, if a parent can produce what, in the actual situation of the time and the child, is an improvement on the printed text, so much the better.
A charge made against fairy tales is that they harm the child by frightening him or making him sad thinking. To prove the latter, one would have to show in a controlled experiment that children who have read fairy stories were more often sorry for cruelty than those who had not. As to fears, there are, I think, some cases of children being dangerously terrified by some fairy story. Often, however, this arises from the child having heard the story once. Familiarity with the story by repetition turns the pain of fear into the pleasure of a fear faced and mastered.
There are also people who object to fairy stories on the grounds that they are not objectively true, that giants, witches, two-headed dragons, magic carpets, etc. do not exist; and that, instead of being fond of the strange side in fairy tales, the child should be taught to learn the reality by studying history. I find such people, I must say, so peculiar(奇怪的) that I do not know how to argue with them. If their case were sound, the world should be full of mad men attempting to fly from New York to Philadelphia on a stick or covering a telephone with kisses in the belief that it was their beloved girlfriend.
No fairy story ever declared to be a description of the real world and no clever child has ever believed that it was.
1. The author considers that a fairy story is more effective when .| A．it is repeated without any change | B．it is treated as a joke |
| C．some changes are made to it by a parent | D．it is set in the present |
| A．in a realistic setting | B．told in a different way |
| C．repeated too often | D．heard for the first time |
| A．develops their power of memory | B．makes them less fearful |
| C．makes them believe there is more to be afraid of | D．encourages them not to have strange beliefs |
| A．they are full of history | B．they make teachers of history difficult to teach |
| C．they are not interesting | D．they are just made up of unreal stories |
9 . If you could change your child's DNA in the future to protect them against diseases, would you? It could be possible because of technology known as CRISPR- Cas, or just CRISPR.
CRISPR involves a piece of RNA, a chemical messenger, designed to work on one part of DNA; it also uses an enzyme that can take unwanted genes out and put new ones in, according to The Economist. There are other ways of editing DNA, but CRISPR will do it very simply, quickly, and exactly.
The uses of CRISPR could mean that cures are developed for everything from Alzheimer's to cancer to HIV. By allowing doctors to put just the right cancer-killing genes into a patient's immune system, the technology could help greatly.
The US' National Academy of Sciences plans to discuss questions about CRISPR s ethics(伦理问题). For example, CRISPR doesn't work properly yet. As well as cutting the DNA it is looking for, it often cuts other DNA, too. In addition, we currently seem to have too little understanding of what DNA gives people what qualities.
There are also moral questions around playing God. Of course, medicine already stops natural things from happening-for example, it saves people from infections. The opportunities to treat diseases make it hard to say we shouldn't keep going.
Also, according to The Economist, gene editing may mean that parents make choices that are not obviously in the best interests of their children: “Deaf parents may prefer their children to be deaf too; parents might want to make their children more intelligent at all costs.”
In the end, more research is still needed to see what we can and can't do with CRISPR. “It's still a huge mystery how we work,” Craig Mello, a UMass Medical School biologist and Nobel Prize winner, told The Boston Globe, “We're just trying to figure out this amazingly complicated thing we call life.”
1. What is the passage mainly about?| A．What we can and can't do with CRISPR. |
| B．The advantages of CRISPR and arguments about its ethics. |
| C．How CRISPR was developed by scientists. |
| D．Scientists' experiments of using CRISPR to edit human embryos. |
| A．Playing jokes on religious people. |
| B．Asking God to help deal with moral questions. |
| C．Following the instructions of God. |
| D．Doing things that go against nature. |
| A．is very safe because it only cuts the DNA it is looking for |
| B．is very helpful to cure people of any disease |
| C．could cause parents to make unwise choices for their children |
| D．could help us understand how complicated life is |
| A．Objective. | B．Worried. |
| C．Negative. | D．Supportive. |
10 . Stories play a vital role in the growth and development of children. The books they read and the characters they get to know can become like friends. It's also good for children to understand that books are a useful source of information and that good reading skills are important for success in their future lives.
Children who can read well are more likely to have higher confidence levels. This will benefit them in school as they’ll feel able to participate fully in activities. Another part of building confidence is to know where you fit into the world. Stories can help with this process by showing children what people's lives are like where they live and in other parts of the world.
Stories are a great way to introduce new words and ideas into a child's language--starting with picture books for the very young, working up to more complex novels for teenagers. Fiction based on real life can also help children with their own life experience--it shows them how diverse the world is and that some people's lives are vastly different from theirs. And the process is done in a natural way. There's no actual teaching involved at all, but they learn from simply reading the story.
Reading helps children understand that there are other children who feel the same way and they are not alone. This helps children understand that feelings are normal and should be expressed. Watching their responses to the feelings of the characters in the stories will give you some idea of how a child feels about certain situations and emotions. For example, how the child responds to the character in the story feeling sad or scared will give you some idea of how the child thinks.
As you can see, children's stories are important for a number of reasons and form a vital part of the growing process. Being part of that process can bring children a sense of satisfaction as well as being great fun. So, go and get your children some wonderful books to allow them to enjoy a relaxing bedtime story.
1. What can we know from Paragraph 1?| A．Reading stories benefits children a lot. |
| B．Reading is the best way to gain information. |
| C．Reading stories helps children make more friends. |
| D．Reading skills should be developed at a young age. |
| A．Inspiring children to get good grades. |
| B．Supporting children's language development. |
| C．Aiding children with living in a better family environment. |
| D．Allowing children to explore their suitable positions in society. |
| A．Unrealistic. |
| B．Effective. |
| C．Time-saving |
| D．Expensive. |
| A．Most teenagers are fond of complex novels. |
| B．Picture books are lacking in real life situations. |
| C．Most children have difficulty in expressing themselves. |
| D．Parents can know kids better from kids' reading responses. |
