1 . It is a question people have been asking for ages. Is there a way to turn back the aging process?

For centuries, people have been looking for a “fountain of youth”. The idea is that if you find a magical fountain, and drink from its waters, you will not age.

Researchers in New York did not find an actual fountain of youth, but they may have found a way to turn back the aging process. It appears the answer may be hidden right between your eyes, in an area called the hypothalamus (下丘脑). The hypothalamus is part of your brain. It controls important activities within the body.

Researchers at New York’s Albert Einstein College of Medicine found that hypothalamus neural (神经的) stem cells also influence how fast aging takes place in the body.

What are stem cells(干细胞)? They are simple cells that can develop into specialized cells, like blood or skin cells. Stem cells can also repair damaged tissues and organs.

Dongsheng Cai is a professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He was the lead researcher in a study on aging in mice. He and his team reported their findings in the journal Nature, Cai explained when hypothalamus function is in decline, particularly the loss of hypothalamus stem cells, and this protection against the aging development is lost. it eventually leads to aging.

Using this information, the researchers began trying to activate, or energize, the hypothalamus laboratory mice. They did this by injecting the animals with stem cells, Later, the researchers examined tissues and tested for changes in behavior. They looked for changes in the strength and coordination (协调) of the animals muscles. They also studied the social behavior and cognitive ability of the mice. The researchers say the results show that the treatment slowed aging in the animals, Cai says injecting middle-aged mice with stem cells from younger mice helped the older animals live longer.

But these results were just from studying mice in a laboratory. If the mice can live longer, does that mean people could have longer lives? The next step is to see if the anti-aging effects also work in.

1. In Paragraph 2 a “fountain of youth” is mentioned to ________.

A．introduce the main topic

B．show a hidden secret.

C．describe scientists research

D．recommend a way to stay young

2. Aging takes place in the body when _______.

A．stem cells develop into specialized cells

B．there are important activities within the body

C．hypothalamus neural stem cells fail to protect against aging

D．the hypothalamus fails to repair damaged tissues and organs

3. What do we know about the researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine from the text?

A．They did experiments to see how stem cells work.

B．They studied mice to find their connection with humans.

C．They have found a possible way to slow the aging progress.

D．They have found no changes in mice s behavior during the experiment

4. What will the researchers probably do next?

A．They will help some animals live longer.

B．They will announce the fountain of youth doesn’t exist

C．They will develop products to help people live a longer life immediately

D．They will do research to see if what they have found in mice will apply to humans.

2 . Most of us have something about us that we’re not 100% in love with, such as an impulsive streak or a short temper. What if those personality traits (个性特征) could be improved with daily use of a smartphone app? That was the focus of a new study from an international research team led by the University of Zurich.

“Personality traits predict several important aspects of life such as success at work, health and even a long.” says first author Mirjam Stieger. PhD. of Brandeis University in Waltham. Massachusetts. “So we wanted to test whether people can actively shape their personality traits with the help of a digital intervention (干预) within a relatively short period of time.”

Around 1.500 participants were provided with a specially developed smartphone app called PEACH for three months. On the app, a virtual companion communicated with the participants daily and provided support to help them make the changes they desired. And participants were divided into two groups — an intervention group and a waitlist control group. Participants in the waitlist control group selected and indicated their change goals before a one-month waiting period, and then they received the same three-month intervention as the intervention group.

The researchers found that participants in the waitlist control group didn't change their personality traits during the one-month waiting period. but participants who received the intervention reported changes in the desired direction. “We also found that friends and family members were able to detect personality changes,” Stieger says. “Another surprising finding was that most participants were able to maintain (维持) their personality trait changes until three months after the end of the intervention.”

While apps could be used to promote personality change, mental health expert Karen Peters warns, it's important to remember they are there for support and not as a substitute for an individual's change. “The use of an app itself isn't going to influence change — change is influenced by internal motivation.” she says. “The new study demonstrates this point by determining that change outcomes were in agreement with the individual's desire to change.”

1. Why does the author ask the question in paragraph 1?

A．To put forward a problem.	B．To recommend a method.
C．To lead in the recent study.	D．To come up with a new concept.

2. What were participants asked to do in the new study?

A．Set their change goals.	B．Detect others' changes.
C．Help their companions.	D．Get rid of daily apps.

3. What is the finding of the new study?

A．Most of the participants' personalities were unstable.

B．Digital intervention made no difference to personalities.

C．The use of an app alone could shape personality traits.

D．The participants, personality changes were noticeable.

4. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．Are Your Personality Traits Out of Control?

B．Are You in Love With Your Personality Traits?

C．Can a Smartphone App Change Your Personality?

D．Can Digital Intervention Determine Personal Desire?

3 . Do you like running enough to make it a habit? Temey Wolfgram does; she has made running a lifelong career and isn’t stopping.

In February, the 16-year-old from Woodbury High School, Minnesota, US, competed at the 2020 US Olympic Trials. She finished the marathon (42,J95 km) with a tune of 2:42:47 as the youngest competitor in the race and ranked 76th out of 390 runners.

Then, in November, Wolfgram, who turned 17, broke the Women's American Junior marathon record with her time of 2:31:49. The old record was 2:34:32, which had stood since 1984. During the run, Wolfgram once hit a wall pretty hard, but she overcame it to finish. ^“I guess I can say I gave it my all,” she told Runner's World. “When I finished, all I was thinking was that I was super happy,” Wolfgram said.

This was only her third marathon. In 2018, when Wolfgram was 15 years old, she ran her first marathon just because she wanted to see if she was capable of doing it. “I believed that I would get faster as the distances got longer... and I'm still glad that I did it.”

When preparing for that first marathon, she ran up to 120 miles （about 190 kilometers） per week. Although her parents didn't have any background in running, they helped Wolfgram train. At first, her dad would take her out in the morning and run about 13 miles. The distance would gradually increase each day. On top of her runs in the morning, she would do cross-country practice after school.

Next, Wolfgram will think about attending the Olympic Games in 2024 after it's scheduled.

1. In which race has Wolfgram broken a record?

A．The 2020 US Olympic Trials.	B．The 2020 Women’s American Junior marathon.
C．Her first marathon in 2018.	D．The 2024 Olympic Games.

2. What does the underlined phrase "hit a wall" in paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．To knock one's head against a wall.	B．To be disappointed.
C．To go smoothly.	D．To be very tired.

3. What inspired Wolfgram to run her first marathon?

A．Her coach's support.	B．Her parents, encouragement
C．Her desire to prove she could do it	D．Her hope to break the national record.

4. Which word best describes Wolfgram?

A．Outgoing.

B．Determined.

C．Honest

D．Smart.

4 . My Favorite Books

Jeffrey Archer, a well-known novelist and playwright in the UK , has spent a very famous and much admired 45-year-long writing career creating bestsellers such as Not A Penny More , Not A Penny Less, Kane and Abel and Paths of Glory. Here he lists his all-time favorite reads.

Sredni Vashtar

BY SAKI （H. H. MUNRO） ,Dover Publications ,150

I put Munro's short stories equal with R. K. Narayan's. They are my favorite short-story writers. Both write beautifully， but they are also pretty good stories. It’s that rare combination of both. This book is a gem（佳作），as is Narayan's Malgudi Days.

The Count of Monte Cristo

BY ALEXANDRE DUMAS, Rupa Publications , ₹ 295

This is a masterpiece. It’s too long by modern standards? of course. If Dumas was around today， he'd write books of 400 pages. With no television, no other distraction, he wrote books of 1，500 pages. And the surprising thing is that he wrote The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers in the same year! You couldn't do that today!

Reunion

BY FRED UHLMAN，Farrar ，Strausand Giroux ，₹ 864

A wonderful insight into two young Germans---one Jewish, one aristocratic — in 1939, when they're both at school. This is a very fine book, which would help anyone understand the problems the Jews were facing in the late 1930s.

A Tale of Two Cities

BY CHARLES DICKENS, Penguin Classics , ₹ 250

I think this is probably a book I have reread the most number of times. I love the idea of him (Dr Manette)sacrificing his life for something bigger and more glorious than himself. Quaintly old-fashioned in the modern world—I love it. This was Dickens' most successful book, possibly because it was story, story, story, and impossible to put clown!

1. Who does "I" refer to in the text?

A．Alexandre Dumas.	B．Fred Uhlman.
C．Charles Dickens.	D．Jeffrey Archer.

2. Which of the following is concerned with the Jews?

A．Reunion.	B．A Tale of Two Cities.
C．Sredni Vashtar.	D．The Count of Monte Cristo.

3. How much will you pay if you buy Charles Dickens' most successful book?

A．₹ 150.

B．₹ 295.

C．₹ 864.

D．₹ 250.

5 . The sea could be the food bowl of the future. In Jervis Bay, south of Sydney, seaweed, which is rich in fibre and omega 3, is grown and harvested.

Pia Winberg is a marine scientist who runs Australia's first food-grade fanned seaweed company. Her crop is grown alongside mussels (贻贝)and is used as an additive in pasta (意大利面)and other products.

Seaweed is also raised in large tanks, where it absorbs carbon dioxide waste from a wheat processing factory. The business is small, but could help to reduce the ecological footprint of traditional farming.

“We used ten percent of seaweed instead of wheat in breads and pastas, we've eliminated a million hectares of land, we've eliminated all of the carbon dioxide emissions associated with that, and we've also reduced the pressures on very precious fresh water.” said Pia Winberg.

Spiny sea urchins (多刺海胆虫)are another blue economy resource. They can destroy marine habitats, but a recent competition for environmental start-ups in Australia, saw them not as a pest but a delicacy (美味).

Martina Doblin, CEO of Sydney Institute of Marine Science, said, “By 2050 we will have some ten billion people on the planet, and about half the food they eat will come from the ocean. So, we really do need to pay attention to the way that we manage the blue economy-generating wealth from the ocean but in a sustainable (可持续的)way.”

Farming at sea has its challenges. Infrastructure (基础设施)has to be sound, as do supply chains and biosecurity. But get these things right, and the ocean might just be the next great economic frontier.

1. What is the function of the first paragraph?

A．To lead to the main topic.

B．To describe a new kind of seaweed.

C．Tell how important the food safety is.

D．To explain the meaning of blue economy.

2. What can we learn from what Martina Doblin said in paragraph 6?

A．Ocean exploration has made little progress so far.

B．More and more people will die of hunger in the future.

C．More work is needed for a better use of the natural resources.

D．Sea farming will be a good way to solve the coming world food problem.

3. Which word can be used to describe the author's attitude towards sea fanning?

A．Skeptical.

B．Objective.

C．Tolerant.

D．Negative.

4. Which can be a suitable title for the text?

A．How to Protect the Marine Animals

B．Measures to Develop Blue Economy

C．Farming the Sea for the Future of Food

D．Traditional Farming is Gradually Disappearing

6 . People walk almost an extra mile each day if they have an activity tracker on their smartphone or watch, a study has found.

Researchers analyzed dozens of studies comparing people's exercise activity with and without a tracking app, and found that being able to keep tabs on progress boosted how far people walked or ran. The studies involved a total of 7,454 people.

Overall, people walked an average of 1,850 more steps if they had an app -- a significant increase in daily workouts. Most people take somewhere around 2,000 steps to walk a mile.

Authors of the study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, said doctors might consider prescribing(开处方) such apps and trackers for patients looking to get fitter.

Just 4,400 steps a day tied to women living longer, study says.

"Interventions(介入) using smartphone apps or activity trackers seem promising from a clinical and public health perspective," the authors wrote.

"Given the wide and increasing reach of smartphones, even modest improvements in physical activity can produce large effects at the population level."

The study looked at research conducted mainly in the United States, and less than a third of the subjects involved were women, so it's unclear how widespread the findings would be.

The average number of steps taken by American adults is between 4,000 and 5,000 per day, previous research has shown.

1. What does the study find about the walking tracker?

A．It speeds up walking.	B．It follows your position.
C．It assists the research.	D．It benefits the walkers.

2. Why do doctors advocate their patients using such apps and trackers?

A．To replace medicine.	B．To help keep healthy.
C．To communicate with them.	D．To record their health condition.

3. Which word best describes the authors’ attitude of the study towards using walking trackers?

A．Indifferent.

B．Ambiguous.

C．Optimistic.

D．Skeptical.

4. What do we know about the study?

A．It involved mainly men.	B．It involved a total of 4,400 people.
C．It was applied widely around the world.	D．It was published in an American magazine.

7 . The Summer Food Service Program(SFSP)provides children in low-income areas with healthy meals and snacks for free.By this means children can get the nutrition necessary for learning, playing, and growing when they are out of school for summer vacation.

Sponsors

SFSP is run by local approved sponsors such as school districts, local government agencies, camps, or private non-profit organizations.These sponsors receive payments from the United States Department of Agriculture(USDA)through local agencies for the meals they serve and their documented operating costs.

Feeding locations

There are three kinds of feeding locations in New Jersey-open sites, enrolled sites, and camps.Open sites operate in low-income areas where at least 50% of the children come from families with incomes equal or less than 185% of the federal poverty level, which means they are qualified for free and reduced price meals.Meals are served free to any child at the open sites.

At most sites, children get either one or two reimbursable(可补偿的)meals per day.For locations primarily aiming to serve migrant children, they may be permitted to serve as many as three meals a day to each child.

Eligibility(资格)

Children aged 18 and under can receive free meals and snacks through SFSP.For those over 18, they are also eligible if they are disabled and participate in special school programs for people with mental or physical disabilities.

Enrolled sites provide meals to children participating in an activity program at the sites where at least half of them qualify for free and reduced price meals.Camps are also welcomed to join SFSP.They receive payments only for the meals served to children who are eligible for free and reduced price meals.

1. Which of the following will pay for the free meals?

A．SFSP	B．USDA.
C．Local government agencies.	D．Private non-profit organizations.

2. What can we infer from the text?

A．Only those who are aged 18 and under have across to the free meals.

B．No more than two meals a day are served to each child at all the sites.

C．SFSP offers children in low-income areas free food only on summer vacation.

D．Children with family incomes above the federal poverty level are unqualified.

3. What is the purpose of the text?

A．To persuade children to get help.

B．To introduce a charity campaign.

C．To appeal to the public for donation.

D．To publicize the government's achievements.

8 .

This little South American Magellanic penguin swims 5,000 miles, to a beach in Brazil, every year in order to be reunited with the man who saved its life. It sounds like something out of a fairy tale, but it’s true!

71-year-old retired brick worker Joao, who lives in an island village just outside Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, found the small Magellanic penguin lying on rocks at his local beach in 2011. The penguin was covered in oil and running out of time fast. Joao rescued the penguin, naming it Din, cleaned the oil off its feathers and fed him a daily diet of fish to rebuild its strength. After a week of recovery, Joao attempted to release the penguin back into the wild. However, Din had already formed a family bond with his rescuer and wouldn’t leave.

“He stayed with me for 11 months and then, just after he changed his coat with new feathers, he disappeared,” Joao recalls. “I love the penguin like it’s my own child and I believe the penguin loves me,” Joao told Globo TV.   “No one else is allowed to touch him. He pecks (啄) them if they do. He lies on my lap, lets me give him showers, and allows me to feed him.”

Professor Krajewski, a biologist who interviewed the fisherman for Globo TV, told The Independent: “I have never seen anything like this before. I think the penguin believes Joao is part of his family and probably a penguin as well.”

However, environmentalists warn that, while hundreds of the Magellanic species are known to naturally migrate (迁徙) thousands of miles north in search of food, there has been a worrying rise in the phenomenon of oceanic creatures washing up on Brazil’s beaches. Professor David Zee from Rio de Janeiro’s State University, said the increase is due in part to global climatic changes. Professor Zee added that sea animals face increased danger from leaked tanker oil.

Luckily the ending for Joao and Din has been a happy one, even though it is illegal in Brazil to keep wild animals as pets.

Professor Krajewski said: “Professionals who work with animals try to avoid relationships like this occurring so they are able to reintroduce the animal into the wild. But in this single case the authorities allowed Din to stay with Joao because of his kindness.”

1. What is the purpose of Din swimming a long distance to the beach in Brazil every year?

A．To avoid being killed.	B．To meet his rescuer.
C．To escape from ocean currents.	D．To find much more fish.

2. What happened to him when Din was found in 2011？

A．He was going to die.	B．He was running on the beach.
C．He was resting on a rock	D．He was cleaning oil off his feathers.

3. What can we learn about Joao from the passage?

A．He is not allowed to keep the penguin as a pet by the authorities.

B．He overprotects the penguin by keeping him away from others.

C．His contact with the penguin is encouraged by professionals.

D．His kindness wins the complete trust from the penguin.

4. What does the story in the passage mainly shows us?

A．The environmental impact on wildlife.

B．The love between humans and wildlife.

C．The tendency of wildlife to bond with humans.

D．The protection of threatened wildlife by mankind.

9 . Most polar bears could disappear by the end of the century, scientists say. Global warming is to blame. According to a study published this month in Nature Climate Change, most polar bear populations will be in serious decline by 2080. The cause is melting sea ice.       

Polar bears hunt seals on the ice. Without ice, the bears must wander on the shore, where they are spending more and more time away from their main food source. That means the animals could starve.

“There’s not enough food on land to sustain a polar bear population,” Péter K. Molnár told the New York Times. He is the study’s lead author.

Lack of food leads to another problem: Mother bears may not be fat enough to produce milk for their cubs. Some bear populations could stop having babies, leading to a rapid decline in numbers.

Arctic sea ice usually melts in the spring and summer, then grows in the winter. But now, the ice is taking longer to grow back. Weather statistics say the Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet. Ice in the region has declined 13% every 10 years since the 1970s.

The Arctic is home to roughly 25,000 polar bears. Scientists have long known that the animals are in danger. This study, which looked at 13 of the world’s 19 polar bear populations, is the first to identify when they could disappear.

But the study also notes that it is still possible to slow Arctic melting. The world can reduce the burning of fossil fuels and lower the greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. It would have to be a drastic reduction. Bringing emissions to only a moderate level will still mean the loss of some polar bears.

Saving the bears is up to us, Holland says. “I believe that there is hope,” she says. “But humans need to act quickly to turn that hope into a reality.”

1. Why are polar bears in danger of disappearing?

A．Lack of seals.	B．Global warming.
C．Less milk for cubs.	D．The loss of home.

2. What does the underlined word “ sustain” in paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．Reduce.

B．Suffer.

C．Support.

D．Increase.

3. What is Holland’s attitude toward saving the polar bears?

A．Doubtful.

B．Neutral.

C．Negative.

D．Positive.

10 . Spending time outdoors, especially in green space, is an effective way to improve your health and happiness. It’s been shown to lower stress, blood pressure and heart rate while encouraging physical activity and keeping mood and mental health.

A recent study published in the International Journal of Environmental Health Research adds to the evidence and shows how little time it takes to get the benefits of being in the park Spending just 30 minutes in a park — even if you don’t exercise while you’re there — is enough to improve well-being, according to the research.

For the study, researchers surveyed 94 adults who visited one of three urban parks, over the summer and fall. They were given fitness trackers to measure physical activity but were not told what to do in the park or how long to stay. Each person also answered questions about their life satisfaction and mood — which were used to calculate the score of subjective well-being before and after their park visit. The average park visit lasted 32 minutes and well-being scores rose during the park visit in 90% of people. “People may go to the park and just enjoy nature. They relax and reduce stress, and then feel more happy.” study co-author Hon Yuen says.

It is for all of these reasons that the medical community is increasingly viewing green space as a great place where their patients can obtain physical and mental health benefits. Some physicians, like Robert Zarr, are even writing prescriptions for it. By writing nature prescriptions — alongside medical prescriptions, when necessary — physicians are encouraging their patients to go outdoors and take advantage of what many view to be free medicine. He said, “It’s about making a positive choice in their life rather than a discouraging choice like ‘they’re sick; take a pill. It just seems so much more supportive.”

1. What can we learn from the study?

A．Park visit increases our life satisfaction.

B．The length of park visit affects our health.

C．Outdoor activity improves our blood pressure.

D．Physical activity increases our mental health.

2. Which word best describes Hon Yuen’s attitude to park visit?

A．Supportive.

B．Conservative.

C．Uncaring.

D．Tolerant.

3. Why do some physicians write nature prescriptions?

A．To force patients to make a choice.

B．To make patients free from medicine.

C．To encourage patients to see physicians.

D．To benefit patients physically and mentally.

4. Which can be a suitable title for the text?

A．Outdoor Satisfaction	B．Outdoor Benefits
C．Park Visit for Fun	D．Love for Parks