1 . It’s common knowledge that the woman in Leonardo da Vinci’s most famous painting seems to look back at viewers, following them with her eyes no matter where they are in the room. But this common knowledge turns out wrong.

A new study finds that the woman in the painting is actually looking out at an angle of 15.4° off to the viewer’s right — well outside the range that people normally believe when they think someone is looking right at them. In other words, said the study author, Horstmann, “She’s not looking at you.”

This is ironic (讽刺), because the entire phenomenon of a person’s gaze (凝视) in a photograph or painting seeming to follow the viewer is called the “Mona Lisa effect”, which is absolutely real. If a person is illustrated or photographed looking straight ahead, even people viewing the portrait from an angle will feel they are being looked at. As long as the angle of the person’s gaze is no more than about 5 degrees off to either side, the Mona Lisa effect occurs.

Horstmann and his co-author were studying this effect for its application in the creation of artificial-intelligence avatars (虚拟头像) when Horstmann took a long look at the “Mona Lisa” and realized she wasn’t looking at him.

To make sure it wasn’t just him, the researchers gathered 24 people to view images of the “Mona Lisa” on a computer screen. They set a ruler between the viewer and the screen and asked the participants to note which number on the ruler intersected (相交) Mona Lisa’s gaze. To calculate the angle of Mona Lisa’s gaze as she looked at the viewer, they moved the ruler farther from or closer to the screen during the study. Consistently, the researchers found, participants judged that the woman in the “Mona Lisa” portrait was not looking straight at them, but slightly off to their right.

So why do people repeat the belief that her eyes seem to follow the viewer? Horstmann isn’t sure. It’s possible, he said, that people have the desire to be looked at, so they think the woman is looking straight at them. Or maybe the people who first coined the term “Mona Lisa effect” just thought it was a cool name.

1. It is generally believed that the woman in the painting “Mona Lisa” ________.

A．attracts the viewers to look back

B．seems mysterious because of her eyes

C．fixes her eyes on the back of the viewers

D．looks at observers wherever they stand

2. What did the new study find?

A．The Mona Lisa effect does not really exist.

B．The mystery of the woman’s smile in the painting.

C．The angle of the gaze in Mona Lisa effect.

D．Mona Lisa effect does not occur with Mona Lisa.

3. The experiment involving 24 people was conducted to ________.

A．confirm Horstmann’s belief

B．create artificial-intelligence avatars

C．calculate the angle of Mona Lisa’s gaze

D．show how the Mona Lisa effect can be applied

4. What can we learn from the passage?

A．Horstmann thinks it cool to coin the term “Mona Lisa effect”.

B．The Mona Lisa effect contributes to the creation of artificial intelligence.

C．Feeling being gazed at by Mona Lisa may be caused by the desire for attention.

D．The position of the ruler in the experiment will influence the viewers’ judgement.

2 . What do you want to be when you grow up? My answer has always been a vet.

We didn’t have pets growing up because my mother was scared of animals. She passed on some of this fear to me. It’s not common you find someone who’s scared of animals but wants to be a vet. Still, I knew this is what I wanted.

Vet school was nothing like I had imagined. Within the first few weeks, any fears I had about being a vet vanished (消失). In the fourth year, we were introduced to surgery. I loved it. Stitching (缝) wounds was like a satisfying game of Tetris (俄罗斯方块), where all the pieces fit beautifully together to make something broken whole again. It solidified my belief that this was the right fit for me.

These were the most challenging and rewarding two years of my life, and before I knew it, they were over. I was officially a veterinary surgeon (兽医). Surprisingly, I felt empty after I finished. Why wasn’t I excited to move on? I had completely forgotten to think about what comes next. I panicked! I felt as if I had spent the last decade of my life writing exams and working crazy hours only to come out on the other side, completely clueless.

There were so many options to choose from. I could start a clinic, work at another practice or even pursue further studies. It was my father who suggested I travel to gain some perspective. I hesitantly decided to spend some time in New Zealand with my aunt who also happens to be a vet.

New Zealand was beautiful! I finally had a chance to think about what I wanted. One of the vets there allowed me to observe their practice. Working with vet nurses really stood out for me. We don’t have vet nurses in India! It is a blessing (幸事) to have such experienced and dedicated individuals as a part of your support system. After a whole year of what felt like aimless wandering (徘徊), this experience helped me decide I wanted to work overseas.

So, to all the other confused vets out there who haven’t figured things out: It’s completely okay to feel confused and lost! Most people feel the same way at some point in their careers. Don’t be afraid to try new things even if you feel difficult or impossible.

1. What do we know from the first two paragraphs?

A．The author’s mother was hurt by an animal.

B．Being a vet has always been the author’s dream.

C．The author kept different kinds of pets as a child.

D．Many people in the author’s family work as vets.

2. Why does the author mention Tetris in paragraph 3?

A．To express how she loved being a vet.

B．To prove how challenging vet school was.

C．To explain why she loved the game as a child.

D．To show the complexity of veterinary surgery.

3. What was the main purpose of the author’s trip to New Zealand?

A．To start a clinic there.

B．To get fresh ideas about her career.

C．To visit her aunt.

D．To travel around the country.

4. What does the author want to tell us with her story?

A．Passion is the key to your career success.

B．Travel helps you learn more about yourself.

C．Stick to your dream no matter what happens.

D．It’s important to find yourself again when feeling lost.

4 . All Ric O Barry wanted was to stop the dolphin-killing, so he headed to this seaside Japanese town, Taiji. The American activist, who is the star of a new award-winning documentary that portrays the dolphin-killing here, got an unwelcome reception when he showed up here this week for the start of the annual hunt.

His movie, The Cove (海豚湾), directed by National Geographic photographer Louie Psihoyos, was released in the United States a month ago but has not yet to come out in Japan.

Scenes in the film, some of which were shot secretly, show fishermen banging on metal poles stuck in the water to create a wall of sound that scares the dolphins, which have supersensitive sonar (声呐系统) , and sends them fleeing into a cove.

There, the fishermen sometimes pick a few to be sold for aquarium shows, for as much as $150, 000. They kill the others, spearing the animals repeatedly until the water turns red. The meat from one dolphin is worth about 50, 000 yen, and is sold at supermarkets across Japan.

Greenpeace and other groups have tried to stop the hunt for years. Activists hope The Cove will bring the issue to more people internationally, and eventually in Japan.

Already, the Australian town of Broome dropped its 28-year sister-city relationship with Taiji last month, partly because of the movie.

“Some regions have a tradition of eating dolphin meat,” said fisheries official Toshinori Uoya. “Dolphin-killing may be negative for our international image, but it is not something orders can stop.”

The town government in Taiji, which has made whales and dolphins its trademark, refused to comment about The Cove, or the growing international criticism against dolphin-killing.

Many in Taiji take the dolphin hunt for granted as part of everyday life. They are defensive about The Cove, seeing themselves as powerless victims of overseas pressure to end a simple and honest way of making a living.

1. Viewers can learn from The Cove ________.

A．the beautiful Japanese seaside town Taiji

B．the advanced techniques to catch dolphins

C．the sale of dolphin meat around the world

D．the cruel and bloody dolphin-killing

2. What is the response to The Cove on the Japanese side?

A．Japanese officials decided to ban dolphin-killing.

B．The town government in Taiji kept silent on criticism.

C．Taiji broke up with its western sister-city Broome.

D．Most Japanese people were against eating dolphin meat.

3. What does the underlined word “defensive” in the last paragraph probably mean?

A．Protecting themselves against criticism.

B．Making the determination to change.

C．Attacking those against dolphin-killing.

D．Feeling guilty for killing dolphins.

4. What can we infer from the passage?

A．The Cove has not influenced Japan’s international image.

B．The Cove has brought international attention to dolphin-killing.

C．Taiji’s dolphin-killing industry has been seriously damaged.

D．Many people in Japan have seen The Cove in the cinema.

5 . Mice and rats have long been used in medical research because of their biological similarities to humans. Now, scientists have trained rats to drive small vehicles created for them. One of the main findings of the experiment was that the driving activity seemed to help the rats relax.

Researchers at the University of Richmond in Virginia led the experiment. The team built tiny cars out of plastic and other materials. The vehicles had an opening at one end where electrical wires were attached. By touching one of three different wires, the rat could control the direction of the vehicle.

Researchers trained 17 rats over several months to drive around the experiment containers. The animals proved that they could be trained to drive forward as well as in other directions to get to the sweet treats placed inside the containers.

The researchers examined levels of two hormones (荷尔蒙) in the rats—one that causes stress and another that reduces it. All rats that took part in the training had higher levels of the hormone that reduces stress. The research suggests the increased relaxation levels could be linked to the enjoyment of successfully completing a new skill. The team also found that the rats that drove themselves showed higher levels of the stress-fighting hormone than those that simply rode in small cars controlled by humans.

Lambert said the most exciting result of the experiment for her was about the possible effect on humans. The research may open new areas of non-drug treatments for people suffering from mental health conditions.

“There’s no cure for schizophrenia or depression and we need to catch up,” she said. “And I think we need to look at different animal models and different types of tasks and really respect that behavior can change our neurochemistry (神经化学). ”

Speaking to the British-based magazine New Scientist, Lambert said her team is planning to continue experiments to learn more about how the rats learned to drive. The new research will also examine why some activities appear to reduce stress, and which areas of the brain are involved in the process.

1. What did the experiment find?

A．Rats are able to drive vehicles.	B．Rats feel relaxed when driving.
C．Rats can be used in medical research.	D．Rats are biologically similar to humans.

2. The finding of the hormone examination in the rats suggests that ___________.

A．one hormone causes stress and another reduces it	B．acquiring a new skill brings about joy
C．levels of hormone are controlled by stress	D．relaxation contributes to enjoyment

3. The research is significant because ___________.

A．it may lead to a way to treat human mental problems

B．it will affect the way that humans drive their cars

C．it may help people train animals better.

D．it can surely change neurochemistry

4. What Lambert’s team will do next is find out ___________.

A．which parts of the rats’ brain control their emotions

B．why rats have the ability of fighting stress

C．when activities affect the levels of stress

D．why certain activities reduce stress

6 . Parents around the world often urge children over and over-wash your hands! It can be difficult, however, to get children to remember to wash. But what if washing hands was connected to a fun creative activity? What if instead of simply reaching for the soap, a machine could drop it right into your hands?

Well, such a machine was recently built by a boy and his sister in the U.S. state of Maryland as part of a creative competition.The not-for-profit Rube Goldberg Organization is holding the competition.

Every year, the Rube Goldberg competition assigns a specific task, considering inventions that use complex systems to carry out a simple everyday task. At first, the task for 2020 was supposed to be “turn on a light.” But when the COVID-19 happened, the task was changed to “drop a bar of soap into someone’s hand.”

Those taking part in the competition are schoolchildren. But with schools closed to slow the spread of the virus, organizers changed the rules. This year, the team can include any family members and people were asked to send in recordings of the machines to compete. One thing has not changed: The machine must complete the task in less than 10 steps.

In Maryland, the Diel family wanted to enter. So, Caitlin and her brother Ben designed and built their own Rube Goldberg machine. Next, they had to demonstrate that it could complete the task-throwing the soap just right to be caught in someone’s hand. After 106 failed attempts, they finally had success. With their video demonstration, they can now enter the competition.

Dr. Anne Glowinski teaches child psychiatry (精神病学) at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. She said that “creativity and play” connects with children. It is better than the message. “We have to wash our hands because of this horrible virus”. Glowinski added.

1. What might be a task of inventions assigned by the Rube Goldberg competition?

A．Sweeping the floor.

B．Exploring nature.

C．Writing a novel.

D．Painting the house.

2. What change has been made to the rules of the competition this year?

A．All kinds of inventions are admitted.

B．A video of the entry is qualified to enter.

C．Teachers are encouraged to get involved.

D．The task must be finished within 10 steps.

3. What does Glowinski think of the invention?

A．Practical.

B．Unnecessary.

C．Economical.

D．Complicated.

4. What’s the purpose of the text?

A．To advocate the habit of washing hands.

B．To call on schoolchildren to compete in a contest.

C．To encourage more inventions from everyday items.

D．To introduce a contest making handwashing fun for kids.

7 . For many parents, raising a teenager is like fighting a long war, but years go by without any clear winner. Like a border conflict between neighboring countries, the parent-teen war is about boundaries: Where is the line between what I control and what you do?

Both sides want peace, but neither feels it has any power to stop the conflict. In part, this is because neither is willing to admit any responsibility for starting it. From the parents’ point of view, the only cause of their fight is their adolescents’ complete unreasonableness. And of course, the teens see it in exactly the same way, except oppositely. Both feel trapped.

In this article, I’ll describe three no-win situations that commonly arise between teens and parents and then suggest some ways out of the trap. The first no-win situation is quarrels over unimportant things. Examples include the color of the teen’s hair, the cleanliness of the bedroom, the preferred style of clothing, the child’s failure to eat a good breakfast before school, or his tendency to sleep until noon on the weekends. Second, blaming. The goal of a blaming battle is to make the other admit that his bad attitude is the reason why everything goes wrong. Third, needing to be right. It doesn’t matter what the topic is—politics, the laws of physics, or the proper way to break an egg—the point of these arguments is to prove that you are right and the other person is wrong, for both wish to be considered an authority—someone who actually knows something—and therefore to command respect. Unfortunately, as long as parents and teens continue to assume that they know more than the other, they’ll continue to fight these battles forever and never make any real progress.

1. Why does the author compare the parent-teen war to a border conflict?

A．Both are about where to draw the line.

B．Both can continue for generations.

C．Neither has any clear winner.

D．Neither can be put to an end.

2. What does the underlined part in Paragraph 2 mean?

A．The teens tend to have a full understanding of their parents.

B．The teens agree with their parents on the cause of the conflict.

C．The teens cause their parents of misleading them.

D．The teens blame their parents for starting the conflict.

3. Parents and teens want to be right because they want to ______.

A．give orders to the other

B．know more than the other

C．gain respect from the other

D．get the other to behave properly

4. What will the author most probably discuss in the paragraph that follows?

A．Solutions for the parent-teen problems.

B．Examples of the parent-teen war.

C．Causes for the parent-teen conflicts.

D．Future of the parent-teen relationship.

8 . Nowadays, to work remotely, all you need are a computer and an Internet connection. According to a new study, employees who can work from anywhere else are generally happier than those who work onsite(现场的)in an office.

Video conferencing company Owl Labs surveyed 1,202 full-time US workers from the ages of 22 to 65, and discovered that 62 percent of the respondents worked remotely at least some of the time and 38 percent worked onsite. Of the remote workers, 49 percent worked remotely full-time.

As it turns out, working remotely—or the idea of it—makes people happy, 83 percent of the survey respondents agree that the ability to work remotely would make them happier, and 71 percent of workers who do get to work remotely said their job makes them happy, compared with 55 percent of office-only workers.

In the study, full-time remote workers said they're happy in their job, 22 percent more than people who never work remotely. The reasons why respondents said they decided to work remotely were better work-life balance(91 percent), increased productivity/better focus(79 percent), less stress(78 percent), and to avoid a commute(通勤)(78 percent).

One reason why remote workers might be happier is that they were more than twice as likely to earn more than $100,000 per year. And the higher they were on the corporate(公司的)ladder, the more likely survey respondents were to have the privilege of working remotely: The job levels with the greatest percentages of remote workers were founder/CEO-level(55 percent)and vice president(46 percent).

Loyalty is another factor: Remote workers are 13 percent more likely than non-remote workers to stay with their current job for the next five years—making remote work a win-win for employees and employers alike.

Not only are remote employees happier, but they are prepared to work longer hours, according to the report. Remote workers said they work over 40 hours per week, 43 percent more than on-site workers do.

1. What can he learned about the respondents in the survey by Owl Labs?

A．49 percent work remotely full-time.

B．55 percent are not satisfied with their work.

C．83 percent prefer to work in an office.

D．About 40 percent are office-only workers.

2. Compared with remote workers, onsite workers are         .

A．less loyal	B．more productive
C．less creative	D．more hardworking

3. It is more likely for those with higher job levels to          .

A．live freely	B．have double income
C．work remotely	D．work less time

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．The choice of working sites.	B．The benefits of working remotely.
C．The tendency of future jobs.	D．The qualities of offsite employees.

9 . It is generally believed that people act the way they do because of their personalities and attitudes.They recycle their garbage because they care about the environment.They pay $5 for a caramel brulee latte because they like expensive coffee drinks.

It’s undeniable that behavior comes from our inner character,but in many instances we also draw inferences about who we are,as suggested by the social psychologist Daryl Bern.By observing our own behavior,we can be strangers to ourselves.If we knew our own minds,why would we need to guess what our preferences are from our behavior? If our minds were an open book,we would know exactly how much we care about the environment or like lattes.Actually,we often need to look to our behavior to figure out who we are.

Moreover,we don’t just use our behavior to learn about our particular types of character—we infer characters that weren’t there before.Our behavior is often shaped by little pressures around us,which we fail to recognize.Maybe we recycle because our wives and neighbors would disapprove if we didn’t.Maybe we buy lattes in order to impress the people around us.We should not mistakenly believe that we always behave as a result of some inner character.

Whatever pressures there can be or inferences one can make,people become what they do,though it may not be in compliance with their true desires.Therefore,we should all bear in mind Kurt Vonnegut’s advice:“We are what we pretend to be,so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.”

1. According to the text,personalities and attitudes ______.

A．result from one’s habits

B．affect one’s surroundings

C．reflect one’s taste

D．determine one’s behavior

2. Which of the following would Daryl Bern most probably agree with?

A．The return of a wallet can indicate one’s honesty.

B．A kind person will offer his seat to senior citizens.

C．One recycles plastics to reduce the carbon footprints.

D．One buys latte due to his deep affection for coffee.

3. Which of the following best explains the underlined word “compliance” in Paragraph 4?

A．Harmony.	B．Challenge.
C．Strength.	D．Memory.

4. What does the author mainly discuss in the text?

A．Preferences and habits.

B．Behavior and personalities.

C．Attitudes and preferences.

D．Personalities and attitudes.

10 . When you start working on something but don’t finish it, thoughts of the unfinished work continue to jump into your mind even when you’ve moved on to other things. Psychologists refer to this psychological phenomenon as the Zeigarnik effect. The effect was first observed by a Russian psychologist named Bluma Zeigarnik. While sitting in a busy restaurant in Vienna, she noted the waiters had better memories of unpaid orders. Once the bill was paid, however, the waiters had difficulty remembering the exact details of the orders.

In one of her studies, participants were asked to complete simple tasks such as putting together puzzles, or solving math problems. Half of the participants were interrupted halfway through these tasks. After an hour-long delay, Zeigarnik asked the participants to give an account of what they’d been working on. She discovered that those who had their work interrupted were twice as likely to remember what they had been doing as those who had actually completed the tasks.

We can use this effect to our advantage. For example, if you’re struggling to memorize something important, momentary interruptions might actually work to your advantage. Rather than simply remember the information over and over again, review it several times and then take a break. While you’re focusing on other things, you’ll find yourself mentally returning to the information you were studying.

We often put off tasks until the last moment, only completing them in a rush at the last possible moment. Unfortunately, this tendency can lead to heavy stress and even poor performance. One way to overcome this is to put the Zeigarnik effect to work. Start by taking the first step, no matter how small. Once you’ve begun，but not finished your work, you’ll find yourself thinking of the task until, at last, you finish it. You might not finish it all at once, but each small step you take puts you closer to your final goal.

1. What does the Zeigarnik effect refer to ?

A．Waiters tend to have good memories.

B．Once interrupted, one will forget things easily.

C．Most people can’t focus on one thing for a long time.

D．People remember unfinished tasks better than completed ones.

2. What were all the participants required to do in the study?

A．Describe their tasks.	B．Express their feelings.
C．Test their intelligence.	D．Design simple activities.

3. How should we study according to the Zeigarnik effect?

A．Repeat over and over again.	B．Divide up our study session.
C．Focus on several tasks at a time.	D．Have enough rest before studying.

4. What’s the main idea of the last paragraph?

A．How to get rid of heavy stress.

B．Why we should set a final goal.

C．How to break the habit of delaying work.

D．Why we always complete tasks in a rush.