1 . There are two species of crocodile in Australia—the saltwater crocodiles and the freshwater ones.
Saltwater crocodiles are among the world's largest crocodiles, with males often reaching five metres. But some can reach six to eight metres. Females grow up to 2.5 metres long.
Saltwater crocodiles live in rivers, and coastal waters in northern Australia and eat a wide variety of prey. The young ones stick to insects, small reptiles and fish. But adults hunt for bigger prey like snakes, monkeys and cattle. And they have been known to attack humans.
Freshwater crocodiles, however, aren't usually dangerous to people. They live in freshwater streams, rivers and large water holes in northern Australia. Freshwater crocodiles aren't as big as saltwater ones either, reaching a length of three metres at most.
Crocodiles first appeared 200 million years ago and lived originally on land. But they soon evolved into aquatic (水生的) animals.
These reptiles are excellent predators (肉食动物) and have few natural enemies. Crocodiles have about 30 or 40 teeth in each jaw. And it is the jaw that gives a unique feature to them.
A crocodile can close its jaws with such force that it can break the bones of some animals. Yet, once the jaws are shut, they're so weak that they can be held together by a person's hand.
To reproduce, crocodiles, like other reptiles, lay eggs. One female can produce between 20 and 90 eggs at a time. Once laid, female crocodiles bury their eggs in sand or mud, where they are left to hatch. Some females stay in the area to protect the nest and look after the young after they hatch, but often other predators eat the eggs.
1. The largest crocodiles in Australia can reash a length of ________.| A．three metres | B．five metres |
| C．eight metres | D．ten metres |
| A．their eating habits |
| B．the law to find a mate |
| C．the key to their strong power |
| D．threat against their reproduction |
| A．Theh have the same size. |
| B．They both live in freshwater streams. |
| C．They are usually both dangerous to people. |
| D．They both live in northern Australia. |
| A．crocodiles close their jaws very quickly |
| B．crocodiles' jaws are easy to control when they are open |
| C．crocodiles are not dangerous to people when their jaws are closed |
| D．crocodiles' jaws are very powerful when closing |
| A．The eggs will be kept under the ground. |
| B．The eggs will be hatched by their parents. |
| C．The male crocodiles will protect the eggs. |
| D．The female crocodiles will leave the nest. |
2 . We have studied in Songpu High school for several months. When I first went into the school gate and saw my new classroom and teachers, I thought I would have a new start. The school life is very busy and exciting. There are many activities in our school, such as Sports Meeting, Science Week, Art Week and so on. We all take an active part in them. I have made many new friends and we often help and learn from each other in study.Our teachers have taught us a lot. They not only teach us how to study but also teach us how to be a useful person in society. They tell us which thing is worth doing.Habit is a second nature.Our teachers often remind us to form a good habit.
People often said: There is no royal to learning. Now I feel it is true. The study now is far more different than before. I often find there is something difficult to understand at once. At this time, you must spend a lot of time studying by yourself or you won't make progress. Of course study is hard but when you make progress you'll find it is interesting.
Our school is clean and beautiful. There are many trees and flowers around it.In order to make our school more and more beautiful we should try our best to keep it clean.
Today we are proud of Songpu. Tomorrow Songpu will be proud of us.
1. ________ is also important besides studying hard according to this passage.| A．Being a useful person | B．Good studying habit |
| C．Taking part in activities | D．Making progress |
| A．thankful | B．enthusiastic |
| C．loving | D．exciting |
| A．boring | B．harmonious (和谐的) |
| C．terrible | D．quiet |
| A．An Attractive School | B．My School Life |
| C．I Like My School | D．My Teacher |
3 . 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 |
| 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. |
| 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. |
| 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. |
4 . A Portland, Oregon man has become the first person to travel across Antarctica by himself without receiving any assistance.
Colin O’Brady has completed the 1,500-kilometer trip. He crossed the continent in 54 days. Friends, family and other people followed his progress through messages and pictures he left on social media.
O’Brady spoke with his wife Jenna Besaw by telephone soon after he completed the journey. “It was an emotional call,” she said. “He seemed overwhelmed by love and appreciation, and he really wanted to say ‘thank you’ to all of us.”
The 33-year-old O’Brady documented the trip on the social networking services Instagram. He called his journey “The Impossible First”. He wrote that he traveled the last 129 kilometers in one big, final push to the finish line. The distance took over one day to complete. O’Brady wrote, “While the last 32 hours were some of the most challenging hours of my life, they have quite honestly been some of the best moments I have ever experienced.”
The day before, he wrote that he was “in the zone” and thought he could make it to the end without stopping. “I was listening to my body and taking care of the details to keep myself safe,” he wrote. “I called home and talked to my mom, sister and wife. I promised them I would stop when I need to.”
Other people have traveled across Antarctica, but they all had some form of assistance. They either had better, more plentiful supplies or devices that helped move them forward.
In 2016, British explorer Henry Worsley died in his attempt to travel alone across Antarctica unassisted. Worsley’s friend Louis Rudd, also from Britain, is attempting an unaided solo journey in Worsley’s honor. He was competing against O’Brady to be the first to do it. Besaw told the Associated Press that her husband plans to stay in Antarctica until Rudd finishes his trip.
1. What did O’Brady think of his journey in Antarctica?| A．It was pleasant. | B．It was discouraging. |
| C．It was impossible to complete. | D．It was hard to complete. |
| A．Making sure of his safety. | B．Trying to achieve the goal. |
| C．Keeping in touch with them. | D．Stopping the travel halfway. |
| A．To wait for another explorer. | B．To compete with others. |
| C．To help other explorers. | D．To make his victory recognized. |
| A．The Antarctic Continent | B．The Impossible First |
| C．Traveling in Antarctica | D．An Incomplete Journey |
5 . Nowadays technologies benefit us a lot in our daily life, but if not properly used, they can affect our health．The bed is supposed to be reserved as a place for sleep, but people tend to read an iPad a lot in bed before they go to sleep．
Charles Czeisler, a professor at Harvard Medical School, and his colleagues got a small group of people for an experiment．For five days in a row, the people read either a paper book or an iPad for four hours before sleep．Their sleep patterns were monitored all night．Before and after each trial period, the people took hourly blood tests to paint a day-long picture of just how much melatonin（褪黑激素） was in their blood at any given time．
When subjects read on the iPad as compared to the paper books, they reported feeling less sleepy at night and less active the following morning．People also took longer to fall asleep on the iPad nights, and the blood tests showed that their melatonin secretion（分泌） was delayed by an hour and a half．
The researchers conclude in today's journal article that given the rise of e-readers and the increasingly widespread use of e-things among children and adolescents, more research into the long-term consequences of these devices on health and safety is urgently needed．Czeisler and colleagues go on, in the research paper, to note "Reading an iPad in bed may increase cancer risk"．
However, software has been developed that can reduce some of the blue light from the screens of phones and computers according to time of day, and there are also glasses that are made to filter（过滤） short wavelengths．While they seem like a logical solution for the nighttime tech users, it needs more research．
1. In Charles Czeisler's experiment, what were all the subjects asked to do?| A．Sit in a row and receive the strict tests． |
| B．Have their sleep patterns observed all night． |
| C．Read a paper book and an iPad at the same time． |
| D．Have their blood tested per hour during the trial． |
| A．They felt less sleepy and tired in the day． |
| B．They fell asleep more easily after reading． |
| C．They became less energetic the next morning． |
| D．They had a lot more melatonin secretions． |
| A．It can remove the blue light from your devices completely． |
| B．It can help prevent eyes being harmed by short wavelengths． |
| C．It can weaken the harm done by doing nighttime e-reading． |
| D．It can be used in all the e-things widely and safely． |
| A．Wrong behaviors before bedtime． | B．New software for night e-readers． |
| C．No games on the iPad in bed． | D．No e-reading in bed before sleep． |
6 . When I was first married to my wife, I lived and worked in Ontario, moving from small town to big city as I pursued my career as a radio broadcaster. We have two sons, both of whom were born in Toronto, but they moved, with us, to Ottawa when they were quite young. They grew up there, and then, chasing their own careers, they also moved. One went to Canada’s east coast near a city called Halifax and the other headed to the west coast to Vancouver. We had a dilemma; we were left in the middle.
At the time I was still working and my job was in Ottawa. However, as we began to consider retirement we wondered where we should spend our final years. We couldn’t be close to both of our children and there was no telling when they might again relocate. For several reasons we settled on a small town on Vancouver Island. At least we were close to one of them. However, he had his sights set on Hollywood and, when an opportunity presented itself, he left Canada and headed south. I helped him move.
So, there we were, and still are, in our little west coast town. We love our little corner of paradise but we have paid a price. We have not been there for some important events such as the births of two of our grandchildren. We have missed watching each of them grow up; we have missed the normal, noisy households that have young people in them. Our home, while very comfortable, is also very quiet.
Every fall we travel to see the children. We usually fly, first to California to see our son Scott and spend a week or more with him trying to catch up on everything we’ve missed. Then, usually in November, we make the even longer trip east across Canada to see Travis and our grandchildren, who are now teenagers, actually into their twenties. They seldom come to visit us. The distances are just too great and it is costly.
Fortunately, both our boys are doing well and our grandchildren are growing up straight and tall. We love all of them and we are secure in the knowledge that they love us but the reality is that they don’t need us. We have done our jobs and, at least in theory, we can sit back, relax and enjoy the time remaining to us. They have also missed having a set of parents and grandparents around.
Life has been good for our family but we have all paid a price.
1. What does the author mean by saying “We had a dilemma.”?| A．They were not happy about their sons’ absence. |
| B．They were unwilling to separate from their sons. |
| C．They were not yet prepared for retirement at that time. |
| D．They couldn’t decide which son to live close to. |
| A．They have lost lots of money because of his retirement. |
| B．They have to give a large sum of money to their sons. |
| C．They have been absent from their children’s life. |
| D．They have to afford very expensive fare to visit their sons. |
| A．They are quite occupied with their homework. |
| B．It’s not easy for the kids to visit their grandparents. |
| C．They don’t need their grandparents any more. |
| D．The weather of winter in Canada is very awful. |
| A．Grandparents’ Love | B．Suffering Separation |
| C．A Price to Pay | D．Hidden Emotions |
7 . What do you usually do to comfort your friends when they are feeling sad or depressed? You probably pat them on the back or shoulder, or maybe you give them a big, warm hug.
We used to think that knowing when and how to comfort others was an ability that only humans have. But scientists have discovered that apes （猩猩）have this ability, too. Two researchers from Emory University in Atlanta, US, went to an Ape Protection Centre in Congo to study bonobos （倭黑猩猩）,which are closely related to humans.
The researchers analyzed the bonobos' reactions after more than 370 cases of stressful situations, such as fights and losing temper, and found that some bonobos rushed to hug those that were screaming after being attacked, just like humans would have done.
However, researchers said that not all bonobos were able to comfort others. In the protection centre, many bonobos are orphans （孤儿）whose mothers were killed by hunters. They were found to be more anxious in times of tension and have greater difficulty controlling their own emotions, malting them worse at reaching out to help friends in need.
"Orphans, who have not had the benefit of a mother helping them handling their emotions, are much worse al comforting others,” Professor Frans de Waal, one of the researchers, told The Telegraph. "Bonobos with moms were able to curb their negative emotional reactions more quickly. Therefore, they pay more attention to others.” This pattern mirrors the way that human children have been found to react. Those who seem more capable of handling their own emotions—for example, the ones who can calm themselves down more quickly after upsetting experiences—are usually better at expressing their concerns for others .
1. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?| A．Orphan bonobos never give a hand to friends. |
| B．There were 370 bonobos involved in the research. |
| C．Moms play a significant role in handling kids' emotions. |
| D．The ability to comfort others is unique to human beings. |
| A．express | B．observe | C．hide | D．control |
| A．A science journal | B．A travel leaflet |
| C．A literature review | D．A science fiction |
| A．To uncover the mystery of Apes. |
| B．To inform readers of a new study. |
| C．To provide better protection for Apes. |
| D．To compare human behaviors with Apes. |
8 . Green Wave was one of the four apps to be recognized at the recent i-Way hackathon(编程马拉松)hosted in Israel by the car company Hyundai. The goal of the event was to discover new apps that could help improve the driving experience in new connected cars. And the winning apps were chosen for their ability to ensure the driving experience in a safe manner.
City driving means stopping every quarter of a mile at red lights. People tend to drive faster to “make” the next light, a practice that doesn't always work and which can endanger other drivers and pedestrians. Israeli developers Shlomo Shenzitz and Rafael Vianeti say their Green Wave app will tell drivers the suitable speed they need in order not to stop at a red light again.
To determine the right speed, the app would draw information from both the city and from its database of users, once enough people have started to use it. When a car is moving at a speed that guarantees it won't have to stop at a red light, a green wave will appear. When a red wave is shown, the driver needs to adjust their speed.
The “green” in Green Wave may stand as much for the environment as it does for “go”. Stopping at red lights is annoying for drivers and even worse for the environment. Researchers found that carbon emissions(排放)were four times higher when a car was moving away from a red light, compared to when it drove through the green light.
What it comes down to is the old saying --- slow and steady wins the race. You can either hurry up and wait, or slow down and never stop at another red light. Green Wave might not get you to your destination any faster, but it might increase road safety and reduce stress on drivers and the environment.
1. How can Green Wave help drivers?| A．By guiding a clear way. | B．By warning away pedestrians. |
| C．By missing the red traffic lights. | D．By improving the driving speed. |
| A．He is green with envy. | B．Try to adopt a green lifestyle. |
| C．The new workers are still very green. | D．Frightened, many passengers looked green. |
| A．To reduce traffic accidents. | B．To guarantee an average speed. |
| C．To stop drivers from falling asleep. | D．To remind drivers of road conditions. |
| A．Drive at a Faster Speed | B．Improve Your Driving Skills |
| C．Never be More Comfortable in a Car | D．Never Get Delayed by Traffic Lights Again |
9 . Peter Shankman travels for a living, delivering speeches around the country. The last thing he wants to do in his spare time is travel from his home in New York.
So for the fifth year in a row, Shankman is donating hundreds of thousands of miles to people in need-----those who can’t afford to buy a flight, but intend to be with sick loved ones, or a parent who would like to see a faraway child.
Shankman posts his contest on the social media site Imgur, and other Imgur users vote for winners of Shankman’s miles. After the initial year of the giveaway, other travellers started seeing Shankman’s posts on Imgur and began donating their miles to his contest, multiplying the gift.
One of those donors is Rhys Ford, whose reason for donating her extra miles to Shankman’s “Home for the Holidays” giveaway is simple and heartfelt. “ There are many of us who have so much, and there are others who are far away from their family and can’t make it back for financial reasons,” she said.
Shankman said one of the big advantages of giving away his miles is that it allows him to pass along a lesson about giving to his son. Shankman’s goal, he said , is to help children and adults with ADHD(多动症) realize that they are not broken, but gifted.
“They just need to learn how to channel and use that power. I have ADHD, but I believe it is a huge part of my success,” said Shankman.
“People ask me how I verify the stories of people who win the free miles,” Shankman said. “And I tell them, ‘I can’t.’ But if someone goes to all this trouble to get a free trip somewhere, maybe this will help them in some way. As long as my miles keep adding up, I’m going to continue to give them away.
1. How are the winners of Shankman’s miles chosen ?| A．People vote on them on the Internet. |
| B．Shankman chooses them by himself. |
| C．The social media site decides on them. |
| D．They ask for Shankman’s help in person. |
| A．Shankman’s speech | B．Her kindness. |
| C．Her own experience | D．Her simple mind. |
| A．His ADHD gets treated. | B．He becomes more famous. |
| C．He can stay at home much longer. | D．he gets a chance to influence his son. |
| A．Tell | B．Collect | C．Check | D．Know |
10 . What if we had the power to control time, instead of moving from the past to the present to the future? What if we could jump, loop and travel through time in a machine? What if we could go wherever and whenever we pleased?
This ability would allow us to witness historic wonders, change decisions and see people from the past. We could right wrongs and stop wars from starting.
The mysterious puzzle of time has kept people debating its nature for hundreds of years. Science fiction writers have turned it into imaginative stories. Some scientists have even attempted to explain it using math. This math tries to make the dream of time travel come true.
The scientist Albert Einstein said that time and space are one thing. He called it “spacetime.” Einstein said that there are three dimensions in space: height, width and depth. A scientist named Hermann Minkowski added time as a fourth dimension.
Einstein introduced two ideas that have led to theories about the possibility of time travel. The first is relativity. The idea of relativity is that the force of gravity causes space to bend, which causes time to twist. The second idea focuses on special relativity. The idea is that a traveler moving super-fast through flat spacetime will enter the future. Einstein considered time “relative” because it is measured based on where we are on Earth or in space.
Stephen Hawking is a famous scientist. He believes that a time machine will never be built. If it were possible, he thinks we would already know. If a time machine could be built, how come no one from the future has invaded us?
The first science fiction story with this theme is The Clock That Went Backward by Edward P. Mitchell, which was published in 1881. Since then, thousands of books, films and television shows have explored the idea of time travel, in which some tools such as phones, watches, photographs and old books take travelers backward and forward.
Will time travel ever happen? Who knows? Most important is to keep your eyes open and have a sense of wonder.
1. What is the author’s purpose of writing the first paragraph?| A．To show time and space are connected. |
| B．To show people’s interest in time travel. |
| C．To draw readers’ attention to time travel. |
| D．To make people believe time travel is possible. |
| A．Time travel is possible in the future. |
| B．People can’t move faster than light. |
| C．Time travel is against scientific rules. |
| D．Spacetime is not a real thing in theory. |
| A．The first science fiction story. |
| B．Some tools used in time travel. |
| C．Edward P. Mitchell, the pioneer. |
| D．Different works about time travel. |
| A．cautious. | B．pessimistic |
| C．sceptical | D．optimistic. |
