1 . Bats have long been one of the most feared creatures in the animal kingdom. Many pop culture associations with them are related to vampire (吸血鬼) men tempting women in order to suck their blood or witches putting evil curses on innocent individuals.
Although these associations are complete misunderstandings, bats do have a dark side as a dangerous disease carrier. These flying mammals can carry a number of deadly diseases such as rabies (狂犬病) and more recently Ebola. This has led many to wonder why we should even care about them.
Sure, there is good reason to be exceptionally cautious if you come into contact with bats. However, there is no denying the fact that bats play a significant role in keeping a balanced ecosystem.
Many organic farmers have learned about the benefits of having bats nearby to help manage the pests that show up without pesticides (杀虫剂). One brown bat—about the size of a human thumb can consume about 600 mosquitoes and other unwanted insects within an hour. They make for a fantastic, almost essential, addition to pest management on any farm.
Even large government organizations have realized the economic benefits of bats. The United States Geological Survey estimates that bat contributions to pest management save the country at least 3.7 billion dollars per year. Without them, we would likely experience a sharp drop in food production, which would eventually make its way into our weekly grocery bills.
As if this were not enough of an ecosystem service we receive, bats are also of great importance to a variety of plant species that are preferential to its pollination (传粉). Otherwise these plants would decrease their ability to reproduce by at least 50 percent.
A number of plant products consumed by humans fall into this preferential pollination category. Some popular foods include mangoes, bananas, peaches and guavas. Additionally, the agave (龙舌兰) plant, which is used to make tequila (龙舌兰酒), is completely dependent on bat pollinators for reproduction.
Bats are major contributors to our society. They are in the best interest of the international community to protect and even to promote. Amid significant fears housed by the general public, the fact is that we need them more than most of us imagine.
1. Why should we be cautious when we contact bats?| A．They carry diseases. | B．They are aggressive. |
| C．They bring bad luck. | D．They stay in the dark. |
| A．Our care about bats can never be too much. |
| B．Farming is simply impossible without bats. |
| C．Mosquitoes are a big threat to farming. |
| D．Bats make unusual contributions to us. |
| A．The pop culture lovers. | B．The general public. |
| C．The mass farmers. | D．The environmentalists. |
| A．Bats Are Totally Harmful | B．Creatures Do Wonders |
| C．Protection Is Under Way | D．We Humans Need Bats |
2 . Though it is not good for us to expose ourselves to sunlight for too long, allowing ourselves appropriate amount of exposure to sunlight gives us many benefits and affects us in a number of ways.
Without the sun, life would not have developed. It gives us energy and heats our world. The sun gives us light and thus in turn we are able to see the beautiful colors in our world. It makes us feel good when we feel the warmth of its rays on our shoulders. We store the energy from the sun to help build and heat our houses.
Without sunlight we would not be able to survive. Sunlight gives balance. All living things live in a food chain and at the beginning of the food chain conies the plant which absorbs sunlight and transforms light energy into chemical energy ,which will then be absorbed by another life to be turned into a new kind of energy and so on.
One of the benefits that we can get from sunlight is that we can receive vitamin D from sunlight. It helps us to keep a healthy body, control the amount of minerals in the body, which is needed to help keep our bones and teeth in good condition and helps to keep a well-balanced mind.
Different places on the earth receive varying degrees of sunlight, which will decide the region's climate. For example, the farther away it is from the equator （赤道）,the sharper the angle of the sun's rays that reach it, which means that sunlight coverage will be more spread out, and receive less heat than lower latitude（纬度）areas nearer the equator.
1. Why does sunlight give balance?| A．It helps to pass energy. | B．It helps to absorb energy. |
| C．It helps to form new lives. | D．It helps to protect new lives. |
| A．Reducing the amount of minerals. | B．Improving the nerve system. |
| C．Keeping the bones and teeth healthy. | D．Obtaining a well-balanced diet. |
| A．Which place is the hottest. | B．How sunlight affects the climate. |
| C．How to get more sunlight. | D．How much sunlight a place needs. |
| A．Avoiding Being Exposed to Sunlight Too Long |
| B．Varying Degrees of Sunlight on the World |
| C．Benefits of Sunlight on the World |
| D．Making Full Use of Sunlight |
3 . If you are planning a tour to France, September is one of the best choices. Not only will you get to enjoy plenty of sunshine and warm weather, but the tourist season is beginning to wind down-which means cheaper airfares, lower prices at hotels, and fewer crowds. If this is your first trip to France , here is some handy information to help you!
Visiting Museums
Many museums in France have extended opening hours during the summer to adapt to the extra tourists from home and abroad, and some museums also have extended opening hours into September. Wandering around the Louvre（卢浮宫）will take you into a wonder world, where you can enjoy world- famous art. Going out of the Louvre, you can walk to the modern and fashionable Chumps Elysees to do some shopping.
Taking a Cruise（乘船游览）
The temperatures are slightly lower, but plenty of sunshine makes for perfect conditions to enjoy a barge cruise on the canals of France. Willi such comfortable weather and beautiful scenery at this time of year, nothing equals hanging out on the deck of a barge.
Wine Tasting
September is the beginning of the grape harvest season in France meaning there are plenty of wine- related events and festivals around the country. So September is a great time to visit the vineyards(葡萄园） around the country and go wine tasting. The Bordeaux, Loire and Burgundy regions are all lovely and great places to visit vineyards. Besides that, going to the castles of the Loire region between visiting vineyards on such warm and sunny days is also very enjoyable.
Besides the above, riding a bike through France's villages is also a welcome activity for young visitors in September. So, don't hesitate and start to plan your September trip to France now.
1. When do many French museums extend their opening hours?| A．In Jan. & Feb.. | B．In Apr. & May . |
| C．In Aug. & Sep.. | D．In Nov. & Dec.. |
| A．Bordeaux. | B．Loire. | C．Burgundy. | D．Champs Ely sees. |
| A．Warm but crowded. | B．Cool but much noisy. |
| C．Cold and less noisy. | D．Sunny and less crowded. |
4 . US and Canadian researchers recently calculated the total amount of the world's groundwater and estimated that it is equal to a lake 180 metres deep covering the entire Earth. This makes groundwater the largest active freshwater resource on the planet. The team also investigated its age. How did they do this?
Humans introduced a convenient time signature on the Earth when we started testing atomic (原子的) weapons. This leaves a time stamp which can be found in water, rocks and living organisms. By seeing if radioactivity (放射性) from atomic bomb testing was present in the groundwater, the researchers could estimate that about 6% of this groundwater is younger than50 years old. If this water was spread evenly over the continents, then there is just three metres depth of "modern" groundwater spread equally over the continents.
It could be argued that if we use only this "modern" groundwater, then this is sustainable, as we know that it has been replaced (or recharged) by natural processes over the last 50years. But how quickly groundwater recharges changes over time.
Water has to reach the inside of rocks, either now or in the past. This means that the amount of rainfall has to be more than the amount of water evaporating (蒸发) from the land surface, and more than the amount of water used by all the plants. Whenthisoccurs, fresh water can recharge the groundwater from either water "leaking" from the beds of rivers or from rainwater that passes through the soil.
In many parts of the world we know that groundwater recharge varies due to natural climate variability such as El Nino. Groundwater recharge will also change with global warming.
1. In order to know the age of groundwater, we can ________.| A．find its time stamp | B．test atomic weapons |
| C．examine its freshness | D．spread groundwater equally |
| A．It's fresh. | B．It's limited. | C．It's vital. | D．It's sufficient. |
| A．Water evaporating. | B．Water leaking from river beds. |
| C．Water getting into rocks. | D．Water being used by all the plants. |
| A．Climate variability. | B．Global warming. |
| C．Groundwater exploration. | D．Groundwater sustainability. |
5 . A 15-year-old Colorado high school student and young scientist who has used artificial intelligence (AI) and created apps to address polluted drinking water, drug addiction and other social problems has been named Time Magazine’s first-ever “Kid of the Year”.
Rao told The Associated Press in an interview from her home that the prize is nothing that I could have ever imagined. And I’m so grateful and just so excited that we’re really taking a look at the upcoming generation and our generation, since the future is in our hands.
Time said Rao stood out for creating a global community of young innovators and inspiring them to pursue their goals. Rao insisted that starting out small doesn't matter, as long as you're passionate about it.
She told Time contributing editor Angelina Jolie in an interview that her science pursuits started early as a way to improve social conditions. The drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan, inspired her work to develop a way to detect pollutants and send those results to a mobile phone, she said.
“I was like 10 when I told my parents that I wanted to research carbon nanotube (纳米管) sensor technology at the Denver Water quality research lab, and my mum was like, A what?” Rao told Jolie. She said that work is going to be in our generation’s hands pretty soon. “So if no one else is gonna do it, I’m gonna do it.”
In a world where science is increasingly questioned or challenged, Rao insisted that its pursuit is an act of kindness, the best way that a younger generation can better the world.
“We have science in everything we’re involved in, and I think that’s the biggest thing to put out there, that science is cool, innovating is cool, and anybody can be an innovator.” Rao said, “Anybody can do science.”
1. What did Rao think of the award she received?| A．It was a mark of social progress. | B．It was a recognition of her work. |
| C．It was an inspiration to the youth. | D．It was a title beyond her expectation |
| A．To encourage people to aim high. | B．To pursue her passion for research. |
| C．To change the society for the better. | D．To stop science from being questioned. |
| A．Cool. | B．Kind. | C．Independent. | D．Creative. |
| A．To report a young genius. | B．To introduce new inventions. |
| C．To improve social conditions. | D．To present artificial intelligence. |
6 . My husband jokes with me that my midlife crisis was having my now 11-year-old daughter in my 40s.
I started my career as Associate Editor at Woman’s World magazine in the late 1990s. Then I was a magazine editor-in-chief for five national consumer publications and also contributed to magazines like Longevity and New Woman.
Four years after getting married in 2005, I eventually gave birth to my daughter, Crystal. As I wrote on Parenting.com: “As the doctor checked her vital organs and my husband counted her 10 perfect fingers and toes, I realized that my body had produced a wonder.”
While my peers were dealing with the stresses of kids in school, I focused my creative energy on carving out my new identity. I was excited when I was offered a “Mom’s Talk” column where I wrote about toys, breastfeeding, and my ongoing(追求) for “baby-free” time.
When Crystal was 3 years old, I wrote an essay about watching her dance at a toddler(学步的小孩) reading group at the library, instead of sitting down with the other children. I expected her performance to annoy people, but her joyful dancing attracted them and made me consider my own possibilities.
“Had I ever been that way, I wondered. If so, could I be like that again? Could I become as free as a child with her whole life ahead of her, ready and willing to be the star of her own production?”
As my daughter transformed from a toddler into a young girl, she continued to be my inspiration. I wrote about the new rules for babysitting and shared research showing that fathers who participated in housework had a positive impact on their daughter’s future success on The Washington Post.
I focused on providing Crystal with resilience-building(韧性) when she neared her teens. I wrote about powerful phrases for The Week, like “no one is the judge of your self-worth”.
As my daughter continues to grow during this messy time, there is one certainty: I will continue to tell my stories, through the eyes of my midlife wisdom. I can’t wait to see her next chapter----and for you to read mine.
1. How did the author feel when giving birth to her daughter?| A．Frightened. | B．Pleased. |
| C．Puzzled. | D．Disappointed. |
| A．she had to deal with more stress from being a mom |
| B．she left all the babysitting work to her husband |
| C．she combined the new identity with her career |
| D．she adopted a creative method of raising her baby |
| A．Living the same free life as her daughter’s. |
| B．Giving performance in front of a crowd |
| C．Her previous life before having the baby. |
| D．Pure pleasure during “baby-free” time. |
| A．Crystal has inspired her to take a writing career. |
| B．She has started writing in the tone of Crystal. |
| C．Her writing keeps developing as Crystal grows. |
| D．Many of her stories are centered on her daughter. |
7 . On the way to his home the child turned many times and beat the dog,declaring with childish gestures that he held him in contempt(茂视）as an unimportant dog.the dog apologized for being this quality of animal and expressed regret in fine form,but he continued stealthily to follow the child.
When the child reached his door-step,the dog was a few yards behind,moving slowly toward him.He became so anxious with shame when ho again faced the child that he forgot the dragging rope . He tripped(绊倒） upon it and fell forward.
The child sat down on the step and the two had another interview. During it the dog greatly exerted himself to please the child. He performed a few playful jumps with such abandon(尽情地） that the child suddenly saw him to be a valuable thing. He made a swift,greedy charge(猛冲）and seized the rope.
He dragged his captive(俘虏） into a hall and up many long stairways in a dark building. The dog made willing efforts, but he could not walk very skillfully up the stairs because he was very small and soft,and at last the pace of the child grew so energetic that the dog became panic-stricken. In his mind he was being dragged toward somewhere unknown. His ayes grew wild with the terror of it. He began to wiggle his head wildly and to brace his legs.
The child redoubled his efforts.They had a battle on the stairs.The child was victorious because he was completely absorbed in his purpose,and because the dog was very small.He dragged his acquirement to the door of his home,and finally with victory across the doorway.
No family member was in.The child sat down on the floor and made overtures to(向....示好） the dog.These the dog instantly accepted.He smiled with affection upon his new friend.In a short time they were firm and abiding(矢志不渝的）comrades.
1. What might have happened before the first paragraph?| A．The child had wanted to own the dog for a long time. |
| B．The dog had been someone else' s pet but lost his way. |
| C．The child had been looking for the lost dog for a long time. |
| D．The dog had been driven out of home by the child's family. |
| A．The dog's apology. |
| B．His first interview with the dog. |
| C．His pity on the dog. |
| D．The dog's pleasing performance. |
| A．The boy was naughty. |
| B．The dog was foolish. |
| C．The boy was a devoted friend. |
| D．The dog was a faithful friend. |
| A．Frightened-relieved-anxious-happy. |
| B．Worried-angry-scared-delighted. |
| C．Guilty-anxious-nervous-pleased. |
| D．Angry-regretted-scared-puzzled. |
8 . Magic is a form of entertainment that is based on pretending to do things that are impossible. The magician is a specially trained actor. He tries to make the audience believe that he has the power to do things which are against the laws of nature.
Magic shows are entertaining as long as the audience does not discover how the tricks are done. The magician usually depends on his skill with his hands, on his knowledge of psychology, and, sometimes, on mechanical devices(机械装置). Since magic performance is meant to trick people, the use of psychology is important. The magician must keep people from noticing all the movements of his hands and from thinking about the secret parts of his equipment. He must also lead the audience to draw false conclusions. The magician's success depends on the fact that many things seen by the eye are not the things that matter.
Two basic magic tricks are making objects seem to appear and making objects seem to disappear. A combination of these two tricks makes for some interesting effects. For example, the magician puts a small ball under one of several cups. The ball then seems to jump from one cup to another or to change colour. What actually happens is that the magician, employing quick hand movements or a mechanical device, hides one ball. While doing this he talks to the audience and waves a brightly coloured cloth with one hand. The audience is too busy watching the cloth and listening to the magician's words to notice that his other hand is hiding the ball.
Another favourite trick is to cut or burn something, and then make it appear whole again. What actually happens is that the magician makes the cut or burned object disappear by quickly hiding it while the audience watches something else. Then he “magically” makes it appear whole again by displaying(展示)another object that has not been cut or burned.
1. What is the author's main purpose in writing the text?| A．To promote a magic show. | B．To teach people to be magicians. |
| C．To explain the art of magic. | D．To praise the talents of magicians. |
| A．Moving stage equipment. | B．Directing the audience's attention. |
| C．Applying high technology. | D．Keeping the performance in secret. |
| A．Providing examples. | B．Making a summary. |
| C．Drawing comparisons. | D．Explaining a concept. |
| A．Mechanical devices are expensive. | B．Most magicians employ assistants. |
| C．It takes practice to perform magic. | D．Small objects are magicians' favourite. |
9 . The average bear, it seems, is getting ever smarter. First, it turned out that at least one can use a comb. Now it appears that some can count, too.
Jennifer Vonk, of Oakland University, in Michigan, and Michael Beran, from Georgia State University, set three American black bears the task of distinguishing between numerically larger and smaller groups of dots(点)on a computer screen. In return for a food reward one bear, Brutus, would touch the more heavily dotted pattern with his nose. The others, Bella and Dusty, would touch the screen with their claws(爪子).
As the researchers report in Animal Behavior, the bears did best with patterns where the coloured dots did not move and where more of them also took up a larger coloured area. This could be explained by the bears' distinguishing the different areas of colour rather than truly counting the dots. However, the three bears managed to pick out the bigger number of dots even in pairs of patterns where fewer dots took up a larger area.
Moving patterns, where each dot followed its own path around the screen, were more of a challenge. But Brutus, at least, was not defeated. He seemed to be counting mobile dots even when the scientists tried to mislead him by moving the total coloured area of the dots at the same time.
It is not entirely surprising that bears should have a high degree of intelligence. They face a lot of challenges when trying to get food. They are, however, always alone, and so do not have the complex social systems that contribute to animal smarts. Perhaps, then, their maths skill developed because they cannot count on their friends for help.
1. What task did the scientists set for the three bears?| A．Distinguishing different dot patterns. |
| B．Figuring out different colours of dots. |
| C．Putting the dots into differently coloured groups. |
| D．Picking out the group with a larger number of dots. |
| A．the coloured dots were moving slowly |
| B．the dot patterns were regular in shape |
| C．the dots followed a path on the screen |
| D．more dots covered a larger coloured area |
| A．They learn skills from other animals. |
| B．They face life challenges on their own. |
| C．They feed on a diverse range of food. |
| D．They have complex social networks. |
| A．Bears Taught to Distinguish Colours |
| B．New Evidence of Bear Intelligence Found |
| C．Three Bears Learned How to Count |
| D．The Smartest American Black Bear Brutus |
10 . Non-Credit Courses
The Pre-College Program offers non-credit courses. Students will experience college-level courses given by some of our college’s leading experts and will receive written feedback (反馈) on their work at the end of the course. Pre-College students will also receive a grade of Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory and a certificate of completion at the conclusion of the program.
All non-credit courses meet from 9:00 a. m.-11:30 a. m. daily and may have additional requirements in the afternoons or evenings.
COURSE: Case Studies in Neuroscience
·June 11— July 2
·Leah Roesch
Using student-centered, active-learning methods and real-world examples, this course is designed to provide a fuller understanding of how the human brain works.
COURSE: Psychology of Creativity
·June 15—June 28
·Marshall Duke
Why are certain people so creative? Is it genetic (遗传的), or a result of childhood experience? Are they different from everyone else? This popular psychology course highlights the different theories of creativity.
COURSE: Creative Storytelling
·June 21 — July 3
·Edith Freni
This college-level course in creative storytelling functions as an introduction to a variety of storytelling techniques that appear in different forms of creative writing, such as short fiction and playwriting.
COURSE: Sports Economics
·July 19 — August 1
·Christina DePasquale
In this course we will analyze many interesting aspects of the sports industry: sports leagues, ticket pricing, salary negotiations, discrimination, and NCAA policies to name a few.
1. Who is the text intended for?| A．The general public. | B．College freshmen. |
| C．Educational experts. | D．High school students. |
| A．Sports Economics. | B．Creative Storytelling. |
| C．Psychology of Creativity. | D．Case Studies in Neuroscience. |
| A．Leah Roesch’s. | B．Edith Freni’s. |
| C．Marshall Duke’s. | D．Christina DePasquale’s. |
