1 . Jenifer Mauer has needed more willpower than the typical college student to pursue her goal of earning a nursing degree. That willpower bore fruit when Jennifer graduated from University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and became the first in her large family to earn a bachelor's degree.

Mauer, of Edgar, Wisconsin, grew up on a farm in a family of 10 children. Her dad worked at a job away from the farm, and her mother ran the farm with the kids. After high school, Jennifer attended a local technical college, working to pay her tuition(学费), because there was no extra money set aside for a college education. After graduation, she worked to help her sisters and brothers pay for their schooling.

Jennifer now is married and has three children of her own. She decided to go back to college to advance her career and to be able to better support her family while doing something she loves: nursing. She chose the UW-Eau Claire program at Ministry Saint Joseph's Hospital in Marshfield because she was able to pursue her four-year degree close to home. She could drive to class and be home in the evening to help with her kids. Jenifer received great support from her family as she worked to earn her degree: Her husband worked two jobs to cover the bills, and her 68-year-old mother helped take care of the children at times.

Through it all, she remained in good academic standing and graduated with honors. Jennifer sacrificed(牺牲)to achieve her goal, giving up many nights with her kids and missing important events to study. ''Some nights my heart was breaking to have to pick between my kids and studying for exams or papers,'' she says. However, her children have learned an important lesson witnessing their mother earn her degree. Jennifer is a first-generation graduate and an inspiration to her family-and that's pretty powerful.

1. What did Jennifer do after high school?

A．She helped her dad with his work.

B．She ran the family farm on her own.

C．She supported herself through college.

D．She taught her sisters and brothers at home.

2. Why did Jennifer choose the program at Ministry Saint Joseph's Hospital in Marshfield?

A．To take care of her kids easily.	B．To learn from the best nurses.
C．To save money for her parents.	D．To find a well-paid job there.

3. What did Jennifer sacrifice to achieve her goal?

A．Her health.	B．Her time with family.
C．Her reputation.	D．Her chance of promotion.

4. What can we learn from Jenifer's story?

A．Time is money.	B．Love breaks down barriers.
C．Hard work pays off.	D．Education is the key to success.

2 . According to a recent study in the Journal of Consumer Research, both the size and consumption habits of our eating companions can influence our food intake. And contrary to existing research that says you should avoid eating with heavier people who order large portions(份), it's the beanpoles with big appetites you really need to avoid.

To test the effect of social influence on eating habits, the researchers conducted two experiments. In the first, 95 undergraduate women were individually invited into a lab to ostensibly(表面上)participate in a study about movie viewership. Before the film began, each woman was asked to help herself to a snack. An actor hired by the researchers grabbed her food first. In her natural state, the actor weighed 105 pounds. But in half the cases she wore a specially designed fat suit which increased her weight to 180 pounds.

Both the fat and thin versions of the actor took a large amount of food. The participants followed suit, taking more food than they normally would have. However, they took significantly more when the actor was thin.

For the second test, in one case the thin actor took two pieces of candy from the snack bowls. In the other case, she took 30 pieces. The results were similar to the first test: the participants followed suit but took significantly more candy when the thin actor took 30 pieces.

The tests show that the social environment is extremely influential when we're making decisions. If this fellow participant is going to eat more, so will I. Call it the “I’ll have what she's having” effect. However, we'll adjust the influence. If an overweight person is having a large portion, I'll hold back a bit because I see the results of his eating habits. But if a thin person eats a lot, I'll follow suit. If he can eat much and keep slim, why can't I?

1. What is the recent study mainly about?

A．Food safety.	B．Movie viewership.
C．Consumer demand.	D．Eating behavior.

2. What does the underlined word “beanpoles” in paragraph 1 refer to?

A．Big eaters.	B．Overweight persons.
C．Picky eaters.	D．Tall thin persons.

3. Why did the researchers hire the actor?

A．To see how she would affect the participants.

B．To test if the participants could recognize her.

C．To find out what she would do in the two tests.

D．To study why she could keep her weight down.

4. On what basis do we “adjust the influence” according to the last paragraph?

A．How hungry we are.	B．How slim we want to be.
C．How we perceive others.	D．How we feel about the food.

3 . For those who can stomach it, working out before breakfast may be more beneficial for health than eating first, according to a study of meal timing and physical activity.

Athletes and scientists have long known that meal timing affects performance. However, far less has been known about how meal timing and exercise might affect general health.

To find out, British scientists conducted a study. They first found 10 overweight and inactive but otherwise healthy young men, whose lifestyles are, for better and worse, representative of those of most of us. They tested the men’s fitness and resting metabolic (新陈代谢的) rates and took samples (样品) of their blood and fat tissue.

Then, on two separate morning visits to the scientists’ lab, each man walked for an hour at an average speed that, in theory, should allow his body to rely mainly on fat for fuel. Before one of these workouts, the men skipped breakfast, meaning that they exercised on a completely empty stomach after a long overnight fast (禁食). On the other occasion, they ate a rich morning meal about two hours before they started walking.

Just before and an hour after each workout, the scientists took additional samples of the men’s blood and fat tissue.

Then they compared the samples. There were considerable differences. Most obviously, the men displayed lower blood sugar levels at the start of their workouts when they had skipped breakfast than when they had eaten. As a result, they burned more fat during walks on an empty stomach than when they had eaten first. On the other hand, they burned slightly more calories (卡路里), on average, during the workout after breakfast than after fasting.

But it was the effects deep within the fat cells that may have been the most significant, the researchers found. Multiple genes behaved differently, depending on whether someone had eaten or not before walking. Many of these genes produce proteins (蛋白质) that can improve blood sugar regulation and insulin (胰岛素) levels throughout the body and so are associated with improved metabolic health. These genes were much more active when the men had fasted before exercise than when they had breakfasted.

The implication of these results is that to gain the greatest health benefits from exercise, it may be wise to skip eating first.

1. The underlined expression “stomach it” in Paragraph 1 most probably means “______”.

A．digest the meal easily	B．manage without breakfast
C．decide wisely what to eat	D．eat whatever is offered

2. Why were the 10 people chosen for the experiment?

A．Their lifestyles were typical of ordinary people.

B．Their lack of exercise led to overweight.

C．They could walk at an average speed.

D．They had slow metabolic rates.

3. What happened to those who ate breakfast before exercise?

A．They successfully lost weight.	B．They consumed a bit more calories.
C．They burned more fat on average.	D．They displayed higher insulin levels.

4. What could be learned from the research?

A．A workout after breakfast improves gene performances.

B．Too much workout often slows metabolic rates.

C．Lifestyle is not as important as morning exercise.

D．Physical exercise before breakfast is better for health.

4 . Pacific Science Center Guide

◆Visit Pacific Science Center’s Store

Don’t forget to stop by Pacific Science Center’s Store while you are here to pick up a wonderful science activity or souvenir to remember your visit. The store is located(位于) upstairs in Building 3 right next to the Laser Dome.

◆Hungry

Our exhibits will feed your mind, but what about your body? Our café offers a complete menu of lunch and snack options, in addition to seasonal specials. The café is located upstairs in Building 1 and is open daily until one hour before Pacific Science Center closes.

◆Rental Information

Lockers are available to store any belongings during your visit. The lockers are located in Building 1 near the Information Desk and in Building 3. Pushchairs and wheelchairs are available to rent at the Information Desk and Denny Way entrance. ID required.

◆Support Pacific Science Center

Since 1962, Pacific Science Center has been inspiring a passion(热情) for discovery and lifelong learning in science, math and technology. Today, Pacific Science Center serves more than 1.3 million people a year and brings inquiry-based science education to classrooms and community events all over Washington State. It’s an amazing accomplishment and one we cannot achieve without generous support from individuals, corporations, and other social organizations. Visit pacificsciencecenter.org to find various ways you can support Pacific Science Center.

1. Where can you buy a souvenir at Pacific Science Center?

A．In Building 1.

B．In Building 3.

C．At the the Laser Dome.

D．At the Denny Way entrance.

2. What does Pacific Science Center do for schools?

A．Train Science teachers.

B．Distribute science books.

C．Inspire scientific research.

D．Take science to the classroom.

3. What is the purpose of the last part of the text?

A．To encourage donations.

B．To advertise coming events.

C．To introduce special exhibits.

D．To tell about the Center’s history.

5 . 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.

2. Which course can you take if you are free only in June?

A．Sports Economics.	B．Creative Storytelling.
C．Psychology of Creativity.	D．Case Studies in Neuroscience.

3. Whose course should you choose if you are interested in creative writing?

A．Leah Roesch’s.	B．Edith Freni’s.
C．Marshall Duke’s.	D．Christina DePasquale’s.

6 . Choose Your One-Day-Tours!

Tour A - Bath &Stonehenge including entrance fees to the ancient Roman bathrooms and Stonehenge -￡37 until 26 March and ￡39 thereafter. Visit the city with over 2,000 years of history and Bath Abbey, the Royal Crescent and the Costume Museum, Stonehenge is one of the world’s most famous prehistoric monuments dating back over 5,000 years.

Tour B - Oxford & Stratford including entrance fees to the University St Mary’s Church Tower and Anne Hathaway’s -￡32 until 12 March and ￡36 thereafter. Oxford: Includes a guided tour of England’s oldest university city and colleges. Look over the “city of dreaming spires(尖顶）” from St Mary‘s Church Tower. Stratford: Includes a guided tour exploring much of the Shakespeare wonder.

Tour C - Windsor Castle &Hampton Court: including entrance fees to Hampton Court Palace -￡34 until 11 March and ￡37 thereafter. Includes a guided tour of Windsor and Hampton Court, Henry VILL’s favorite palace. Free time to visit Windsor Castle(entrance fees not included).With 500 years of history, Hampton Court was once the home of four Kings and one Queen. Now this former royal palace is open to the public as a major tourist attraction. Visit the palace and its various historic gardens, which include the famous maze(迷宫) where it is easy to get lost!

Tour D –Cambridge including entrance fees to the Tower of Saint Mary the Great -￡33 until 18 March and ￡37 thereafter. Includes a guided tour of Cambridge, the famous university town, and the gardens of the 18th century.

1. Which tour will you choose if you want to see England’s oldest university city?

A．Tour A	B．Tour B
C．Tour C	D．Tour D

2. Which of the following tours charges the lowest fee on 17 March?

A．Windsor Castle & Hampton Court	B．Oxford & Stratford
C．Bath & Stonehenge	D．Cambridge

3. Why is Hampton Court a major tourist attraction?

A．It used to be the home of royal families	B．It used to be a well-known maze
C．It is the oldest palace in Britain	D．It is a world-famous castle

7 . 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.

2. Which of the following is important for a successful magic trick?

A．Moving stage equipment.	B．Directing the audience's attention.
C．Applying high technology.	D．Keeping the performance in secret.

3. What does the author focus on in the last two paragraphs?

A．Providing examples.	B．Making a summary.
C．Drawing comparisons.	D．Explaining a concept.

4. What can we infer from the text?

A．Mechanical devices are expensive.	B．Most magicians employ assistants.
C．It takes practice to perform magic.	D．Small objects are magicians' favourite.

9 . When the young donkey Daisy May came to us，she was pregnant. With no donkey experience. I was unprepared for what might come next.

After some difficulty，Daisy’s baby was born. I thought the poor thing was dead. I planned to put the loss behind us and make sure she never got pregnant again. Just then，I heard a little noise. I couldn’t believe that baby was breathing and looking at me!We called him Samson，and of course I became his mother as much as Daisy was.

When Samson was nine months old，I had to separate Daisy and Samson for a few hours a day to wean(使断奶)him，but otherwise he went wherever she did. I think she would be lost without him. His donkey stepdad Bernard taught him to always be ready to have fun. They enjoy playing football together and going for a roll on a hot summer day.

I asked a worker to make a harness(马具)for my three little donkeys. When I brought it home I taught them one by one how to pull a cart. Samson watched and freely followed Daisy. When he was three，I put the harnness on him and he knew exactly what to do.

That was 15 years ago. Now，the most exciting thing about Samson is that he has become a little renowned. People come from all over to see him perform. The neighbors bring their grandchildren，and my sons bring their friends.

Samson shakes hands，unties my shoe，picks up a hat and more. And when I ask him if he has any bad habits，he tries to pick my pocket!He surprisingly learned these tricks himself. I just ask him to do them and he understands.

The relationship I have with my“baby”Samson has been an amazing experience. Every day is a fun day with this superstar donkey.

1. Why was the author at a loss for what might happen next at first?

A．She wasn’t ready to be a mother.

B．She never raised a donkey before.

C．The donkey was pregnant by accident.

D．The donkey gave birth to a dead baby.

2. What can we learn about Samson when he was little?

A．He was surrounded by love.

B．He was separated from his family.

C．He was unwelcome to the neighbors.

D．He was skilled in entertaining people.

3. Which of the following can best describe Samson?

A．Friendly and courageous.	B．Intelligent and lively.
C．Carefree and creative.	D．Patient and fortunate.

4. What does the underlined word“renowned”in Paragraph 5 probably refer to?

A．Strange.	B．Proud.
C．Humorous.	D．Famous.

10 . Decision-making under Stress
A new review based on a research shows that acute stress affects the way the brain considers the advantages and disadvantages, causing it to focus on pleasure and ignore the possible negative (负面的) consequences of a decision.
The research suggests that stress may change the way people make choices in predictable ways.
“Stress affects how people learn,” says Professor Mara Mather. “People learn better about positive than negative outcomes under stress.”
For example, two recent studies looked at how people learned to connect images(影像) with either rewards or punishments. In one experiment, some of the participants were first stressed by having to give a speech and do difficult math problems in front of an audience; in the other, some were stressed by having to keep their hands in ice water. In both cases, the stressed participants remembered the rewarded material more accurately and the punished material less accurately than those who hadn’t gone through the stress.
This phenomenon is likely not surprising to anyone who has tried to resist eating cookies or smoking a cigarette while under stress –at those moments, only the pleasure associated with such activities comes to mind. But the findings further suggest that stress may bring about a double effect. Not only are rewarding experiences remembered better, but negative consequences are also easily recalled.
The research also found that stress appears to affect decision-making differently in men and women. While both men and women tend to focus on rewards and less on consequences under stress, their responses to risk turn out to be different.
Men who had been stressed by the cold-water task tended to take more risks in the experiment while women responded in the opposite way. In stressful situations in which risk-taking can pay off big, men may tend to do better, when caution weighs more, however, women will win.
This tendency to slow down and become more cautious when decisions are risky might also help explain why women are less likely to become addicted than men: they may more often avoid making the risky choices that eventually harden into addiction.
1. We can learn from the passage that people under pressure tend to ______.

A．keep rewards better in their memory

B．recall consequences more effortlessly

C．make risky decisions more frequently

D．learn a subject more effectively

2. According to the research, stress affects people most probably in their ______.

A．ways of making choices	B．preference for pleasure
C．tolerance of punishments	D．responses to suggestions

3. The research has proved that in a stressful situation, ______.

A．women find it easier to fall into certain habits

B．men have a greater tendency to slow down

C．women focus more on outcomes

D．men are more likely to take risks