1 . The surprising experiment I am about to describe proves that air is all around you and that it presses down upon you. Air pressure is a wonderful force. When you swim underwater, you can feel water push down your body. The air all around you does the same. However, your body is so used to it that you do not notice this. The pressure is caused by a layer of air called the atmosphere. This layer surrounds the Earth, extending to about five kilometers above the Earth’s surface.

The following experiment is an easy one that you can do at home. But make sure that you are supervised, because you will need to use matches. Now for the experiment!

What you need is a hard-boiled egg without the shell, a bottle with a neck slightly smaller than the egg, a piece of paper and a match.

Metheod: check that the paper will sit firmly on the neck of the bottle, tear the paper into strips and put the strips into the bottle, light the paper by dropping a burning match into the bottle and quickly sit the egg on the neck of the bottle.

Astonishingly, the egg will be sucked into the bottle. Your friends will be amazed when you show them the experiment. But be careful when you handle matches.

Do you think it’s a simple and interesting physical experiment? Why did it happen this way? As the paper burns, it needs oxygen and uses up the oxygen (air) in the bottle. The egg acts as a seal in the neck of the bottle, so no more air can get inside. This reduces the air pressure inside the bottle. The air pressure must equalize, so more air from outside must enter the bottle. The outside air presses against the egg and then the egg is pushed into the bottle! This proves that air is all around and that it is pressing down on us.

1. Why is there the need to take care when you are doing the experiment?

A．The bottle could break.

B．The egg needs to be shelled.

C．You need to light the paper with a match.

D．The egg has to be perfectly placed on the neck of the bottle.

2. In the experiment, the burning inside the bottle can________.

A．make a seal in the neck of the bottle

B．finish up the oxygen inside the bottle

C．produce more oxygen inside the bottle

D．equalize the air pressure inside and outside

3. How did the egg get into the bottle?

A．It became salt without the shell.

B．The neck of the bottle was wide enough.

C．The oxygen inside the bottle sucked the egg in.

D．The outside air pressure forced it into the bottle.

4. What does the experiment prove?

A．The air pressure is not equalized around us.

B．The pressure of air around us has a powerful force.

C．Water pushes on your body when you swim underwater.

D．The earth is surrounded by a layer of air called the atmosphere.

3 . It was a cold winter. The wind blew all night and the snow was blinding. When morning came, my three children and I got up and made our way to the windows. As we looked out the window, we saw that the henhouse was gone. Our three hens had been blown away.

I looked at the emptiness outside. Then I saw all three chickens sat around the edge of a white bucket. How was this violent wind not blowing them into the field beyond? I quickly pulled on long snow pants and heavy winter coat, wrapped a scarf and stuck my feet into very large boots.

I shouted at the wind as it blew. I was alone, save for my children. They stared out the window into the vast white sea of snow, their eyes peeled for any sign of movement. Outside I heard the sound of my boots as I walked against the wind.

The snow circling around me, I steadily made my way to the soft cluck-cluck-cluck sound my hens always made. When I reached them, I saw that their little feet were holding on to the edge of the bucket, heads bent forward and away from the wind. I gently lifted each hen and put it carefully into the warm inside. Then I began the freezing walk back to the small shed directly behind our house. One by one I laid my chickens on the cold floor, and they began to cluck softly.

As I shut the shed doors, my eyes went directly to the window where my children were watching. They jumped up and down cheering, and so did I! I wasn’t some dragon slayer (屠龙者) from a fairy tale. I was simply a mom, but the look on my children’s faces told me that they thought I was a hero mom.

1. What was the author’s feeling when seeing all three chickens sitting around the bucket?

A．incredible	B．worried
C．shy	D．confident

2. How does the author reach the hens?

A．By searching for the white bucket.

B．By wearing protective clothes.

C．By following the sound of the hens.

D．By shouting at the henhouse.

3. What can we know from the story?

A．The author’s children liked dragon slayers.

B．The children watched their mother all the way.

C．The author struggled to be a hero.

D．The author enjoyed herself in the snow.

4. What might be the best title for the text?

A．Weather in extreme.	B．Hens in trouble.
C．Kindness in need.	D．Hero in the snow.

4 . Having worked for more than a decade in finance in the oil industry in Canada, Tori Fahey found herself wanting more from life. But it wasn't through desperation that her circumstances changed: “I didn't get fed up and storm off, nothing like that; it was curiosity about other interests and wanting to experience something new.”

Fahey left her job and completed an MBA before setting up a move to New York to begin a degree. However, the opportunity of an open year between the MBA and the degree came up, and as a keen touring cyclist, Fahey realised that a much dreamed-about adventure was now becoming a possibility: "The ride in Africa had been on my fantasy list. It was a moment when I realised that I could do anything, so I should."

Fahey rode across Africa, a 7,500-mile trip that took four months. The whole experience had a life-changing impact. Fahey said: “Bicycles provide a literal freedom. You don't allow yourself to feel like that in everyday life because there are so many distractions. But when you' re out on the bike and there's nothing else, you' re really free to experience what life is.”

Post-degree, Fahey worked on projects with the UNDP(United Nations Development Project) in Montenegro with the aim of bringing investment to rural communities.

It was while working on these projects that the seeds were sown for the next new investment. “It was through my trip across Africa that I discovered pannier and rack systems inconvenient and I was never going to use them again.” Little did she know this would lead her to start up her own company.

In 2013, Apidura was born, producing storage solutions for people looking to travel the world by bike, race across continents and carry all they need to do so. It's now a successful global brand, but Fahey remains reflective about what else the company can do for people.

1. Why did Fahey leave her job in Canada?

A．She was bored with the job.	B．She was disappointed with life.
C．She wanted to add new dimensions to her life.	D．She found it hard to adjust to the circumstances.

2. Which can best describe Fahey's ride experience in Africa?

A．Demanding.

B．Liberating.

C．Eventful.

D．Dangerous.

3. Why did Fahey launch Apidura?

A．To encourage bicycle traveling.	B．To make her investment profitable.
C．To help cyclists carry traveling stuff.	D．To increase the pleasure of riding bikes.

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A．A tough path to fame.	B．An adventure across Africa.
C．The benefits of green travelling.	D．The story behind the birth of Apidura.

5 . The secret to happiness is keeping busy, research has found.

Keeping the mind occupied with tasks — no matter how meaningless — keeps off negative emotions, the study found.

However, the bad news is that humans are seemingly born to be lazy in order to save energy, according to Professor Christoper Hsee, a behavioral scientist at Chicago University.

In a study, 98 students were asked to complete two surveys. After they had completed the first, they were made to wait 15 minutes to receive the next one. They were given a choice of either handing in the first survey nearby or at a more distant location they had to walk to. Whichever option they chose, they received a chocolate bar. It turned out that approximately two-thirds (68 students) chose the lazy option. Those who had taken the walk reported feeling happier than those who had stayed put.

Prof. Hsee concluded that keeping busy helped keep people happy. He said the findings, reported in the journal Psychological Science, had policy implications.

“Governments may increase the happiness of idle citizens by having them build bridges that are actually useless,” he proposed.

At the individual level, he advised, “Get up and do something. Anything. Even if there really is no point to what you are doing, you will feel better for it.” He added, “Incidentally, thinking deeply or engaging in self-reflection counts as keeping busy, too.”

“You do not need to be running around. You just need to be engaged, either physically or mentally.”

1. Keeping busy can make people happy because________.

A．it can help people get rid of laziness	B．it can make people sleep better
C．it can help get rid of negative emotions	D．it can give people a sense of achievement

2. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The finding may contribute to politics.

B．The officials have taken Prof. Hsee’s advice.

C．In the study half students handed in the first survey nearby.

D．Governments can increase citizens’ happiness by building bridges.

3. What can we infer from the passage?

A．Everybody is born to be happy.

B．Only by keeping working all the time can you gain happiness.

C．Prof. Hsee’s finding was published in Psychological Science.

D．Keeping busy goes against human nature.

4. What is the author’s purpose in writing this passage?

A．To explain what happiness is.

B．To advise people not to sit around.

C．To advise people to do what they like to.

D．To show people how to take life correctly.

6 . Smart phones, tablets, fitness trackers, headphones and most of the electronic devices we use today are made of metal, plastic and glass. But electronics don’t have to be. Sala de Medeiros and her colleagues found a way to turn an ordinary piece of paper into a simple electronic keypad. Many teams around the world are working on paper-based electronics. But this new device is different from any other device. It’s the first to power itself and also resist water and dust. The user’s touch gives it all the power it needs to run.

No single moment inspired her paper keypad. Instead, she focused on devices other engineers have been working on. Then she discovered that high cost was a problem with some flexible electronics. So she decided to work with low-cost materials.

Teflon(聚四氟乙烯) is a chemical coating that keeps food from sticking to pots and pans. Similar com-pounds(复合物) can also make paper waterproof. So she started testing the chemical but the one that was sup-posed to do the best job didn’t work at all. After some research, Sala de Medeiros found out that this chemical reacts with air. She had to buy special equipment that forbade any air getting in the way. Now, the chemical works as planned. Then the team placed a stencil(钢板) with the shape of a circuit(电路) onto the back of the paper and sprayed on several layers of materials. Finally, the team flipped over the paper and printed a keypad of numbers on the other side. They also added a tiny Bluetooth chip, which let their paper device talk to a computer. The source of electricity comes from the tap of a finger. When you’re typing we can create the energy by touching or rubbing.

The electronic keypad is regular paper most people could afford but wouldn’t easily get wet or dirty. It also should fit in your pocket.

1. Which of the following is the unique feature of the new device?

A．It’s the first device made of paper.	B．It has little electricity or metal.
C．It gets powered through touch.	D．It has no trouble cleaning itself.

2. Why did Teflon fail to work at first?

A．It was exposed to the air.	B．It was of low quality.
C．It damaged the equipment.	D．It kept food stuck to pots.

3. What is the third paragraph mainly about?

A．The process of creating the device.	B．The significance of the research.
C．The application of the device.	D．The way to develop Teflon.

4. Which of the following can replace the underlined words “flipped over” in Para. 3?

A．Cleaned up.

B．Cut up.

C．Held onto.

D．Turned over.

7 . Research shows students learn better when they’re well nourished. Healthy eating has been linked to higher grades, better memory, faster information processing and improved health leading to better school attendance, according to registered dietitian Elisa Zied, author of Feed Your Family Right. On the contrary, unhealthy eating habits can negatively affect learning. Researchers have studied many areas related to eating and learning.

Skipping breakfast can have a negative impact on learning. A higher percentage of breakfast eaters passed a biology exam in one study of college students. It’s also important to eat a high-quality breakfast. In a study of students between the ages of twelve and thirteen, the average mark increased as breakfast quality improved.

Even with breakfast, the brain can run out of fuel before lunch. In one study of students between the ages of seven and nine, having a mid-morning snack improved memory. The children who ate a smaller breakfast and lunch but consumed a mid-morning snack experienced a smaller decline in immediate and delayed memory. Attention wasn’t affected, however. Zied recommends yogurt with blueberries; this fruit has been proven to be linked to better memory in studies. A hard-boiled egg is also a good snack choice.

Kids who eat healthily are more likely to attend school. Without proper nutrition and adequate calories, students often don’t have enough energy to power the brain, resulting in tiredness and learning problems. In fact, alertness(机敏) improved significantly in students eating breakfast in one study of high school students published in the journal Pediatrics.

A study of public school students published in the Journal of School Health linked high intake of sweetened drinks, such as sugary sodas, to lower scores in math tests. A diet high in junk food and sugary sodas is also linked to childhood obesity, which could result in lower cognitive(认知的) functioning, according to the Yale University research. On the other hand, students with healthy eating habits are less likely to be overweight and more likely to learn well.

1. What is an effective way for students to improve their memory?

A．Eating a big breakfast on a regular basis.

B．Staying away from junk food in daily life.

C．Eating something healthy at about 10:00 am

D．Adding yogurt with strawberries to their daily diet.

2. What can we learn from the fourth paragraph?

A．Students will have better attendance at school after eating healthily.

B．Students will have a good performance as long as they are well fed.

C．A high-quality breakfast will make a difference to students, learning.

D．Every student has a strong awareness of eating breakfast.

3. What would happen to students who eat much junk food?

A．They would become less confident at school.

B．They would grow too overweight to work out.

C．They would become unwilling to attend school.

D．They would fall behind other students at school.

4. What can be the best title for the text?

A．The impacts of eating habits on students’ learning

B．The advantages of healthy eating habits

C．Some suggestions on how to learn better

D．The link between diets and learning

8 . Computer programmer David Jones earns ￡35 000 a year designing new computer games, yet he cannot find a bank ready to let him have a credit card. Instead, he has been told to wait another two years, until he is 18. The 16-year-old works for a small firm in Liverpool, where the problem of most young people of his age is finding a job. David’s firm releases two new games for the fast growing computer market each month.

But David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money. Even though he earns a lot, he cannot drive a car, take out a mortgage (抵押贷款), or get credit cards. David got his job with the Liverpool-based company four months ago, a year after leaving school with six O-levels and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs,” he said. David spends some of his money on records and clothes，and gives his mother 50 pounds a week. But most of his spare time is spent working.

“Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school,” he said. “But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time. I knew what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school. Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway.” David added, “I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement is a possibility. You never know when the market might disappear.”

1. In what way is David different from people of his age?

A．He has a handsome job.

B．He cannot have a credit card.

C．He graduated with six O-levels.

D．He often goes out with friends.

2. What is one of the problems that David is facing now?

A．How to get more spare time.

B．Buying a car suitable for him.

C．How to deal with his income.

D．Releasing two new games each month.

3. Why did David decide to leave school and start working?

A．He received lots of job offers.

B．He lost interest in school studies.

C．He was eager to help his mother.

D．He wanted to earn his own living.

4. What was David’s attitude towards the computer market in the future?

A．Positive

B．Critical

C．Worried

D．Hopeless

9 . Galapagos Giant tortoises (巨型陆龟), sometimes called Gardeners of the Galapagos, are creatures of habit. In the cold dry season, the highlands of the volcanoes are covered in cloud which allows plants to grow despite the absence of rain. In the lower areas, however, plants are not available all year round. Adult tortoises thus spend the dry season in the higher areas, and go back to the lower, relatively warmer areas where there are plentiful eatable plants when the rainy season begins. The tortoises often take the same migration routes over many years in order to find perfect plants and temperatures. The timing of this migration is important for keeping their energy levels high.

Researchers used GPS to track the timing and patterns of tortoise migration over many years. They expected the migration to be timed with current environmental conditions because many other migratory animals do it that way. However, tortoise migration is weakly related to current conditions such as rain and temperature. It is unclear at this point whether they are basing their migration decisions on memories of past conditions or if they are simply incorrectly assessing current local conditions.

Luckily, probably because of their long lives of up to 100 years and large body size, bad timing of migration has smaller effects on giant tortoises compared to small, short-lived animals. Giant tortoises can go up to a year without eating and survive, while other migratory animals might eat more often to keep their energy levels high.

Giant tortoises are important ecosystem engineers in the Galapagos, and their migration is key to the survival of many plants. How the difference in tortoises' migration time will affect the rest of the ecosystem is still unclear. It is quite possible that the mistiming of migration will keep increasing in the future. "One concern is that at some point in the future," says Bastille-Rousseau, lead author of the study, "migration may not be a perfect strategy for tortoises. There may be a reduction in the number of tortoises doing these long travels. This would likely have great effects on the whole ecosystem."

1. What do we know about Galapagos giant tortoises?

A．They prefer low temperatures.

B．They like living in the highlands.

C．They always hate the rainy season.

D．They seldom change migration routes.

2. What have researchers found out about the timing of giant tortoise migration?

A．The weather has much to do with it.

B．It disagrees with current conditions.

C．The research has strong effects on it.

D．It is decided by the tortoises' memories.

3. What might help giant tortoises survive the migration at the wrong time?

A．Their restless energy.	B．Their different body shape.
C．Their habit of eating healthily.	D．Their ability to go without food.

4. What can we infer from Bastille-Rousseau's words?

A．Migration is the only choice for giant tortoises in the future.

B．Damage to the ecosystem will reduce the number of giant tortoises.

C．Giant tortoise migration plays a major role in Galapagos’ ecosystem.

D．Giant tortoises protect the ecosystem by their different migration time.

10 . Robots are now being employed not just for dangerous tasks, such as discovering mines or rescuing people in disasters. They are also finding application as household helps and as nursing assistants. As the number of machines increases, which are equipped with the latest artificial intelligence and take on a growing variety of specialized and everyday tasks, the question of how people see them and behave towards them becomes ever more urgent.

A team led by Sari Nijssen of Radboud University and Markus Paulus, Professor of Developmental Psychology at Ludwig-Maximilians- Universitat (LMU), have carried out a study to determine the degree to which people show concern for robots and behave toward them based on moral principles.

According to Sari Nijssen, the study set out to answer the following question: "Under what circumstances would adults be willing to sacrifice robots to save human lives?" The participants were faced with a hypothetical (假设的) moral dilemma:Would they be prepared to put a single person at risk in order to save a group of injured persons? The intended victim presented in the situations was either a humanoid robot that had been humanized (人性化的) to various degrees or a robot that was clearly recognizable as a machine.

The study suggested that the more the robot was humanized, the less likely participants were to sacrifice it. Situations that included vivid stories in which the robot was described as a merciful being or as a creature with its own understandings, experiences and thoughts, were more likely to stop the study participants from sacrificing it in the interests of anonymous (无名的) humans.

"This result indicates that our study group attached a certain moral status to the robot," says Paulus. "One possible suggestion of this finding is that attempts to humanize robots should not go too far. Such efforts could come into conflict with their intended function—to be of help to us."

1. What has become a concern about robots?

A．How to treat them in life.	B．How to humanize them.
C．How to use them effectively.	D．How to find more applications.

2. In the study the participants probably have to decide _______.

A．where to experience risks.	B．when to sacrifice a robot.
C．which robot to work with.	D．what robots should be like.

3. What can be inferred from Paulus' words?

A．Humanized robots offer less help to people.

B．Certain moral status should be attached to robots.

C．Humanizing robots too much may be improper.

D．Conflicts often happen between humans and robots.

4. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

A．Robots, a Must for Future	B．Robots Saved, People Take the Hit
C．Humanized Robots, a New Trend	D．Humanized Robots Replace Human