1 . “When day comes we ask ourselves, where can we find light in this never-ending shade?”
On Wednesday, poet Amanda Gorman read her poem, “The Hill We Climb”, at the inauguration (宣誓就职) ceremony of President Joe Biden.
By Thursday, the 22-year-old was a superstar.
Gorman is the youngest poet in U.S. history to mark the change of presidential power. Past inaugural poets include famous writers like Robert Frost and Maya Angelou.
Gorman is a native of Los Angeles, California, and in 2017 was named the country’s first Youth Poet Laureate (桂冠). She recently completed her studies at Harvard University.
On Wednesday, Gorman offered a hopeful future for a deeply divided country.
“We will not march back to what was, but move to what shall be.
A country that is bruised (瘀紫的) but whole, benevolent but bold, fierce and free.”
Her reading — and the ceremony as a whole — took place exactly two weeks after a violent mob of supporters of then-President Donald Trump attacked and occupied the U.S. Capito Building.
Gorman says she had completed a little more than half of “The Hill He Climb” before the January 6 attack at the Capitol.
“That day gave me a second wave of energy to finish the poem,” said Gorman. She chose not to make direct note of the attack, but her references to the event were clear： “We’ve seen a force that would shatter our nation rather than share it.
Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy (民主).
And this effort very nearly succeeded.
But while democracy can be periodically delayed, it can never be permanently defeated.”
Hours after the inauguration her two books — which are to be released later this year — became number 1 and 2 on Amazon, com’s sales list. Gorman’s poetry collection “The Hill We Climb” and her children’s book “Change Sings” are set to be published in September.
1. Which of the following is true of Amanda Gorman?| A．She is the youngest poet in U.S. history. |
| B．She is now studying at Harvard University. |
| C．She is a graduate from Harvard University. |
| D．She was named American first Poet Laureate. |
| A．National unity. | B．Race equality. | C．True freedom. | D．Free speech. |
| A．Bear…in mind. | B．Set…on fire. |
| C．Put…into practice. | D．Break…into pieces. |
| A．She became a best selling author. | B．She turned superstar in pop music. |
| C．She was attacked by a violent mob. | D．She published her book “Change Sings”. |
2 . NASA’s Artemis program not only hopes to land the next man and the first woman on the lunar south pole by 2024; it also expects them to spend up to seven days in the harsh environment, collecting samples and conducting experiments. To provide future space travelers with a comfortable shelter, two Dutch architects have built a habitat capable of withstanding the Moon's harsh conditions.
The Lanark, designed by Sebastian Aristotelis and Karl-Johan Sorensen of SAGA Space Architects, is made up of a lightweight, aluminum frame that can be efficiently compressed (压缩) for transport to the Moon. Once the astronauts reach their destination, they can easily unfold the mobile home. 328 solar panels on the frame help recharge the battery, ensuring uninterrupted power, while an airtight flexible seam (接缝) protects residents from temperatures as low as-49°F (-45℃) and wind speeds of up to 55 miles an hour.
Though the physical comforts are impressive, even more so are the features dedicated to the astronauts’ psychological well-being. A weather simulator that uses solar panels and built-in speakers to create varying weather patterns, like storms, rain, and a sunny day, helps ease the loneliness and weariness of conducting repetitive tasks and looking at the same environment for extended amounts of time.
Aristotelis and Sorenson recently put their creation to test in Moriusaq, Greenland. Located in an isolated region of Northern Greenland, the area boasts hurricane-force winds, temperatures of -22°F(-30℃)，and 24 hours of darkness during the winter.
The space architects, who spent two months inside the capsule, tried to simulate (模拟) a lunar mission as much as possible. Their daily meals consisted of coffee, cold protein shakes, and hot soups, all made using powdered ingredients and water defrosted from the surrounding ice.
Aristotelis and Srensen say it exceeded their wildest expectations. “The capsule performed really well — we could sustain a comfortable indoor climate even to the very end of the expedition, which got quite a bit colder and windier than we had expected.”
1. What is NASA' s Artemis program designed to do?| A．To send people to the South Pole. |
| B．To land astronauts on the Moon. |
| C．To provide space travel for tourists. |
| D．To supply Dutch residents with the shelter. |
| A．It can be moved easily and quickly. | B．It is powered by winds on the Pole. |
| C．It is used to collect samples on Mars. | D．It was created by NASA scientists. |
| A．cleaner air | B．greener plants |
| C．weaker strength | D．better mental health |
| A．its extreme climate | B．its freezing ocean |
| C．its mild weather | D．its primitive environment |
3 . The summer before my 10th birthday my father and mother moved our family of nine children to a farm! We had always lived in a small city, in the house my dad bought from my grandparents. But he wanted fresh air, healthy food and lots of room for his children to play. He'd worked multiple jobs at a time and saved for many years…and could finally afford a place in the countryside. Now a minor concern: the house had no running water or electricity. But there were 150 acres to run around in, walk through the woods in, swim a stream in, and otherwise yell, sing and laugh in every day!
That first year my dad put in electricity, because my mom simply announced, “I won't have kerosene lamps with children running around!” Indoor plumbing had to wait another year(an outhouse came with the property). Different friends, who my dad knew from work, asked if he'd take their large dogs who couldn't run free in the city. So we all now played with a big orange-brown boxer and a sporty German Shorthaired Pointer, who we simply named Billy and Molly. Absolutely all our clothes were hand-me-downs, bananas and oranges were “exotic” fruit that we'd see at holidays, and there was ONE birthday party a year! We'd take turns once every 10 years a child would have his/ her own party!
We thought we were rich. My mother was always singing, yelling hugging, or praying. And she told us we were blessed with plenty! To this day, each of my brothers and sisters remember those years as an abundance of chores, laughter, arguing, making peace, and playing together! Every challenge was a game aimed to outwit, and any failure was chance to learn. Money was so scarce, but joy was everywhere.
1. Why did the author's family move to a farm?| A．They had to work on the 150-acre farm. |
| B．They couldn't afford the house in the city. |
| C．They succeeded to a house from grandparents. |
| D．They believed living there was beneficial to them. |
| A．Their life was more comfortable. | B．Their house was short of space. |
| C．Their dogs are quieter than the author's. | D．They greatly envied the author’s father. |
| A．Prepare. | B．Win. | C．Manage. | D．Avoid. |
| A．Simple but happy. | B．Wealthy and cheerful. |
| C．Poor and misery. | D．Rich but disappointed. |
4 . With over 4. 1 billion people, or around 55 percent of the world’s population, living in urban areas, cities and towns worldwide are getting increasingly congested. In addition to spending many hours stuck in traffic, residents are also exposed to high air pollution levels caused by transportation emissions. Now, Saudi Arabia hopes to revolutionize urban living with “The Line”— a city designed around nature, without cars and roads!
“The Line” is designed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS). Located in NEOM — a 10,000-square-mile high-tech planned development on the Red Sea coast in the northwestern Saudi province of Tabu — The Line will be the cornerstone of MBS s Saudi Vision 2030. The plan aims to diversify Saudi Arabia’s oil-dependent economy into other sectors, like tourism, and create exciting job opportunities for its citizens.
The 105-mile-long city, expected to cost between $100 billion and $200 billion, will be built along a straight line and is made up of several self-sustaining communities. To ensure all services are within a short, five-minute walk, each community will feature a three-layer infrastructure (基础设施).
The top “pedestrian layer” will be void of cars and roads, allowing residents to freely walk and bike in the surrounding green spaces. The second “service layer”, will include all essential daily services, such as schools, leisure facilities and grocery stores. The third “spine layer” will house high-speed subway and autonomous vehicles capable of transporting residents across communities in less than 20 minutes. The entire city will be powered with renewable clean energy sources such as solar and wind, and possibly even hydrogen.
If all goes according to plan t construction of this complex project will start before the 1st quarter of 2021. In addition to providing up to a million residents with a clean and stress-free living environment, The Line is expected to create 380,000 new jobs, start economic diversification, and contribute an astounding $ 48 billion to Saudi Arabia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2030. More importantly, MBS believes it will provide governments worldwide a “blueprint for how people and planet can co-exist in harmony.”
1. We can infer that “The Line” will be_________.| A．temporary | B．primitive | C．eco-friendly | D．conventional |
| A．Low crime rates. | B．High unemployment. |
| C．Super communities. | D．Diverse economic sectors. |
| A．Medical clinics. | B．Bus stops. |
| C．Underground trains. | D．Cycling lanes. |
| A．Saudi Arabia Has Created A Green City With No Cars Or Streets |
| B．“The Line” Will Be The Cornerstone Of MBS's Saudi Vision 2030 |
| C．“The Line”— Blueprint Of People And Animals Co-existing In Harmony |
| D．Saudi Arabia Announces “The Line”— A Low Carbon City Without Cars |
5 . COVID-19 Campus Rules Of UBC Okanagan
The rules apply to all students, faculty and staff at UBC’s Okanagan campus.
Travel in BC
A Public Health Order for all health regions in British Columbia calls on all individuals, places of work and businesses in BC to significantly reduce social interactions and travel. The current order is in effect until February 1, 2021.
As many are currently making plans for the upcoming Winter Break, all members of the campus community are reminded all non-essential travel should be avoided. The current orders suspend all events and social gatherings to significantly reduce COVID-19 transmission related to social interactions. The order allows for university students to join family for the holidays as this is not considered a social gathering, but it is important to maintain a narrow household bubble.
International travel
If you plan to travel out of Canada during the Winter Break, make sure you are aware of current travel restrictions and are prepared for your trip. Carefully review the updated Travelling to Canada Guide for important information on who is eligible to travel, documents to prepare, ensuring you have health insurance, making a quarantine (self-isolation) plan, and more.
Measurement of body temperature and daily self-assessment when coining to campus
UBC's COVID-19 Campus Rules require that all students, faculty and staff must have their temperatures taken and assess themselves daily for COVID-19 symptoms prior to attending UBC premises. Please use the BC self-assessment tool at https：//bc. thrive, health/. Anyone experiencing symptoms should follow the guidance provided in the self-assessment tool.
Maintaining physical distancing and wearing non-medical masks
Public Health Orders require all members of our community maintain physical distance and wear non-medical masks. As a reminder, UBC (University of British Columbia) students, faculty, staff and visitors are required to wear non-medical masks, when indoors on our campuses.
Be well, be safe and thank you for following public health and campus rule guidance.
1. According to the current orders, a university student is allowed to________.| A．attend a concert | B．host a party |
| C．organize a football match | D．get together with his family |
| A．To stand in line. | B．To wear medical masks. |
| C．To have temperatures taken. | D．To show health insurance. |
| A．in December | B．in February | C．in August | D．in September |
6 . Amanda Kofoeds had found a strange lump in her arm one day and visited a doctor at a friend's urging. During this time, she was enrolled in school for education and was currently uninsured due to the expense. She planned to save money so she could get on her husband' s insurance and then seek medical treatment for the cancer.
Her friends and family didn't want her to postpone her treatment due to the expense. They took matters into their own hands and started a GoFundMe campaign. The friend came up with the creative idea to spread the word and invite family, friends, and strangers who wanted to help to participate in a donation flash mob (快闪行动).The event started an outpouring of enormous generosity from the local community.
Amanda and her husband Clint teared up as the crowd passed by and the donations poured in. The generous act of kindness gave the family a comforting, and optimistic feeling during a time when all hope seemed lost. Clint said that Amanda struggled with the idea of asking for help. She felt guilty and undeserving compared to others who are also struggling.
In the time since, Amanda has enrolled in an insurance plan and has finished chemotherapy. Life for the family has started getting back to their normal routine.
Once Amanda got her strength back, she returned to school and completed her bachelor's degree in education. She is now a teacher. She said the experience motivated her to instill (灌输) the value of charity in her children. The family is now inspired to volunteer in their local neighborhood and contribute to crowdfunding (众筹) efforts. They are grateful for the opportunity to give back and help others as many have helped them.
The couple said they feel blessed by the strong support. PassItOn wants to celebrate those heroes during the family's darkest time. These individuals perfectly demonstrate the value of community. It is with the help of their generosity that the family is now happy, healthy and whole.
1. Why did Amanda Kofoeds postpone her treatment?| A．She was admitted to a school. |
| B．Her family couldn't afford the medical cost. |
| C．No good doctors could treat her cancer. |
| D．Her friends and family refused to assist her. |
| A．They started a donation flash mob. |
| B．They founded a community school. |
| C．They supported her through local hospitals. |
| D．They fought for assistance from the whole country. |
| A．Guilty. | B．Satisfied. | C．Anxious. | D．Grateful. |
| A．Hard work pays off. |
| B．The value of charity is great. |
| C．Education is the key to success. |
| D．A friend is never known till a man has need. |
7 . About 12 million tons of plastic wastes are entering the oceans every year. This garbage pollutes the water, kills wildlife and breaks down into small pieces that fish and other creatures eat.
Now a group of Spanish fishermen will receive economic support to catch plastics. It is part of a new project. Carlos Martin is one of the fishermen taking part in the project. He and his partners collect the plastic in the ocean and bring it back to land every week. Martin thinks rivers carry a lot of plastics to the sea. He says his most concern is no more than that the plastics often get caught in the nets, which makes nets not work properly. They take on mud（泥）, causing the nets to break because they weigh so much.
Under the new programs, one million pounds will support ocean cleanup efforts for fishermen like Martin. The money is coming from the European Union and the Catalan government. Sergi Tudela, the General Director of Catalonia Fisheries, is responsible for the cleanup project. He said, "We are hopeful that if we are successful in this project, we can apply it to other areas in the Mediterranean（地中海）."
Government reports show that the amount of plastic wastes washing up along the Spanish coastline has grown by 65 percent in just six years. Fishing equipment makes up a large part of the about 8 to 12 million tons of plastics left in the world's oceans every year.
Martin says the fishing community now understands how big the problem is. He says, "In the past we didn't see it that way. We took the plastic garbage and threw it back into the water. I think that after a few year here we have realized the problem. Nothing is thrown into the water; we collect everything and bring it to shore.
1. What worries Martin most about plastic wastes at the beginning?| A．They pollute the sea environment. |
| B．They affect the quality and taste of fish. |
| C．They prevent the fishing nets from working well. |
| D．They kill wildlife and reduce his fishing amount. |
| A．Getting more money to support the project. |
| B．Getting help from other European countries. |
| C．Spreading the cleanup project to more places. |
| D．Praising the European Union for their helping to the oceans. |
| A．Its members do a lot of work for free. |
| B．It has stopped using plastic fishing equipment. |
| C．It has made positive changes to fight plastic wastes. |
| D．Its members find people sill throw the garbage carelessly. |
| A．New programs are changing fishermen's life |
| B．Money is given to Spanish fishermen to clean up oceans |
| C．Traditional fishing equipment causes a lot of plastic wastes |
| D．Spanish fishermen are encouraging people to clean up oceans |
8 . The 2020 Nobel Prize in literature has been awarded to former U.S. Poet Laureate（桂冠诗人）Louise Gluck. The prize committee cited “her unique poetic voice that with plain beauty makes individual existence universal”. Gluck is the first American woman to win the award since Toni Morrison in 1993. Gluck, 77, joins a list of literary giants and previous Nobelists who include, in this century, Canadian short-story master Alice Munro, Chinese magical-realist Mo Yan, etc.
Gluck’s work includes 12 collections of poetry and a few volumes of essays on literary writing. “All are characterized by a striving for clarity（清晰）. Childhood and family life, the close relationship with parents and siblings, is a theme that has remained central to her,” Anders Olsson, the chairman of the Nobel Committee for Literature, said. “She seeks the universal, and in this she takes inspiration from myths and classical motifs,” Olsson added, citing her 2006 collection Averno, which the committee described as “masterly” for its “visionary interpretation of the myth of Persephone’s (珀尔塞福涅) fall into hell in the captivity (囚禁) of Hades(哈得斯), the god of death”.
Being a professor at Yale and a resident of Cambridge, Gluck also served as U.S. Poet Laureate from 2003 to 2004 and is no stranger to awards. She won the Pulitzer Prize in 1993 for her collection of poems titled The Wild Iris, in which “she describes the incredible return of life after winter in the poem Snowdrops,” the Nobel literature committee said Thursday. She also won the 2014 National Book Award for the poem Faithful and Virtuous Night. In 2016, President Obama awarded the National Humanities Medal to Gluck in a White House ceremony.
The publicity-shy Gluck did not immediately issue any comment about the latest honor for her body of work, which spans more than half a century. In a 2012 interview, she acknowledged that prizes can make “existence in the world easier” but did not amount to the immortality(不朽) of a true artist.
1. What can we know about Gluck from Paragraph 1?| A．She is as popular as the Chinese novelist Mo Yan. |
| B．She won the Nobel Prize for her special literary style. |
| C．She is the first American to win a Nobel Prize in literature. |
| D．She is the only Poet Laureate in modern American history. |
| A．Daily life. | B．Nature. |
| C．Careers. | D．Classical myths. |
| A．To show Gluck’s contributions to literature. |
| B．To prove Gluck’s great passion for writing. |
| C．To present Gluck’s outstanding achievements. |
| D．To stress Gluck’s influence on other poets. |
| A．She is content with it. |
| B．She takes it very seriously. |
| C．She deserves a higher honor. |
| D．She doesn’t attach great importance to it. |
9 . Teenage sailors have been making headlines. A young person alone in a dangerous situation attracts attention — and sponsors. Young sailors also attract divided opinions. For example, Jessica Watson was asked by the local government to cancel her voyage; yet the Prime Minister called her “a hero for young Australians ”when she returned. It seems there is confusion about the competence and independence of young people.
One misunderstanding at least should be cleared up: children are not going to sea in an unregulated way. Consider the case of the Dutch girl, Laura Dekker. When her father agreed to her making a solo (独自的) voyage at age 13, the Dutch Council for Child Care prevented it. The World Sailing Speed Record Council also moved to discourage very young sailors by abolishing their age-based records in early 2009. So community control of children under 16 years already happens. But the case for controlling older teenagers as if they were children is weak.
Teenage brains, so the popular psychologists tell us, are likely to make faulty judgements. But such generalisations often do not apply to specific individuals. Between the ages of 14 and 18, teenagers vary greatly in their abilities. The amount of independence each is allowed should be determined not simply by their age but by negotiations with the relevant, responsible adults. Some teens are certainly inexperienced and capable of childish mistakes, but the ones who attempt dangerous journeys normally do so by winning the confidence of hard-headed and well-qualified adult supporters.
But it is also wrong to think that any 16-year-old can gain achievements as unusual as Jessica Watson's. Watson seems to suggest they can when she calls herself “an ordinary girl who had a dream”. Her intention is to encourage teenagers but this can have the opposite effect of making them feel incapable because remarkable accomplishments are beyond them. Should all teens have such dreams? In reality, individuals face varying circumstances that restrict their dreams.
Teenage sailors should not be judged by preconceived (事 先 形 成 的) views about young people. But nor should “ordinary” teenagers feel pressure to achieve extraordinary personal goals. In fact, I believe the example of solo sailing over stresses individualism. The teenage years are when most of us “ordinary” people learn that we can achieve great things in cooperation with others.
1. What do we know about Jessica Watson?| A．She made a voyage successfully. |
| B．She wants to attract potential sponsors. |
| C．She was discouraged by the Prime Minister. |
| D．She works as a sailor for the local government. |
| A．To praise her for her bravery. |
| B．To stress she was overprotected. |
| C．To show community control of teenage sailors. |
| D．To explain why there is a misunderstanding of teenage sailors. |
| A．It is closely related to their age. |
| B．It often leads to faulty judgements. |
| C．It is developed through independent journeys. |
| D．It differs hugely from individual to individual. |
| A．Be engaged in teamwork. |
| B．Work under certain pressure. |
| C．Avoid having preconceived views. |
| D．Make every effort to achieve their personal goals. |
10 . Parking in the CBD of any Australian city is expensive, hard to come by and often an unavoidable headache. But Rylan Kindness, a 16-year-old entrepreneur (企业家) from Brisbane, thinks he might have the answer to this problem.
It was after Rylan realized his parents were spending hours to try and find parking deals in the city that he came up with the idea for a centralized system. This system shows users the best price for parking in the area they want and offers users a daily deal with a discount .
Rylan now doubles as a high school student and the CEO of Parking Deals Australia, a role he took on four months ago. Parking Deals Australia isn't even Rylan's first business. When he was barely 11, Rylan came up with an idea to sell wholesale scooter parts online, purely because he just wanted some extra money. On the side, he's succeeding in other passions as well. However, he admits it hasn't always been smooth sailing.
“I've learned so many crazy things through trial and error. Every day I fail somewhere but I always try to get better. My biggest failure was when I first set up everything and thought it was what everyone else would like but it's a shock when I see people not enjoying what I’m doing. It makes me want to cry a little bit but then I polish the product and keep going.”he said.
While Rylan didn't want to say exactly how much his now-bustling company is worth, he did admit he's making a tidy profit.“I earn more in one day than I was earning for three months working in a cafe but I'm investing it all back into the business.... what I've learned is that if you're starting a business just to make money, you're definitely going to fail. I'm there to help millions of people and that's what really gets me going,”he said.
Rylan's goal with Parking Deals Australia is to take it countrywide and save millions of people millions of dollars.
1. According to the article, the centralized system can .| A．analyze users' parking habits | B．recommend the cheapest parking spaces |
| C．show the nearest parking lot | D．show available parking spaces |
| A．He got the idea for the parking system from his parents directly. |
| B．He left school to run his own company four months ago. |
| C．He displayed a talent for business when he was about 11. |
| D．He started his business purely for profits. |
| A．To assist people while making a profit. |
| B．To earn some extra money and make bigger investments. |
| C．To get improvement by working through failures. |
| D．To expand his influence on a national scale. |
| A．Hardworking and humor. | B．Bright and curious. |
| C．Generous and cautious. | D．Ambitious and insistent. |
