1 . Although we're surrounded by millions of them every day, most of us don't think about bricks too often. For thousands of years,the humble clay-fired brick hasn't changed.
They're made from natural materials,but there are problems with bricks at every step of their production. Bricks are made from clay-a type of soil found all over the world.Clay mining harms plant growth.In conventional brick production,the clay is shaped and baked in kilns(窑）heated by fossil fuels,which contributes to climate change.Once made,bricks must be transported to construction sites,generating more carbon emissions.With so many bricks produced globally,their impact adds up.
Gabriela Medero,a professor at Scotland's Heriot-Watt University,decided to find solutions to that.With her university's support,Medero set up Kenoteq in 2009.The company's signature product is the K-Briq.Made from more than 90% construction waste,Medero says the K-Briq- which does not need to be fired in a kiln-produces less than a tenth of the carbon emissions of conventional bricks.With the company testing new machinery to start manufacturing,Medero hopes her bricks will help to build a more sustainable world.
The K-Briq will be comparably priced to old bricks.Additionally,as a new product,the K-Briq has been subjected to strict assessment and authoritative certification.Reusing old bricks is an expensive process and there is no standardized way to check the strength,safety or durability(耐久性）of recycled bricks.Medero says that K-Briqs could solve both these problems.She claims that K-Briqs are stronger and more durable than fired clay bricks.
Over the next 18 months,Medero plans to get K-Briq machinery on-site at recycling plants.＂This will reduce transport-related emissions because trucks can collect K-Briqs when they drop off construction waste,"says Medero.
1. What inspired Medero to reinvent the conventional bricks?| A．The poor quality of the bricks. |
| B．The outdated style of the bricks. |
| C．The high cost of manufacturing bricks. |
| D．The problems with the brick production. |
| A．It won't produce extra waste. |
| B．It brings no pollution to the air. |
| C．The plants occupy much less land than before. |
| D．The products are mainly made from construction waste. |
| A．The popularity of the K-Briqs. |
| B．The advantages of K-Briqs over traditional bricks. |
| C．The special materials used in K-Briqs. |
| D．The advanced technology used for K-Briqs. |
| A．To ensure fewer emissions. |
| B．To speed up the production. |
| C．To lower the production cost. |
| D．To collect more construction waste. |
2 . When I was younger, I was addicted to reading. I could get through a whole book in a day, and used to beg my parents every night to let me stay up late so that I could just finish my chapter. From fairy-tales to thrillers, non-fiction to plays, I enjoyed reading any literature that I could get my hands on.
However, while there are many books for younger children,once you reach your mid-teens the choices become limited. I found myself choosing between books for children that were simple and not that interesting, and adult books that I couldn’t quite understand.
This lack of choice eventually led me to read less and less.When I was in secondary school,the only books I read were ones we were assigned in English class,and I was never very enthusiastic about my teacher’s choices.I thought too much discussion of symbolism and themes ruined the book.Maybe the sky being blue didn’t represent anything;maybe it was just a description!
Fortunately, I realized quickly that deciding to go to university meant I had signed up for four years of reading books. I chose a French literature module in my first year. I started out, thinking I wouldn’t enjoy any of the works we were studying over the course of the year.However,I soon realized that at a university level,the discussion was more fruitful and I found I had a lot to say!And being able to discuss my thoughts with others meant I could better understand the subtle aspects of the plot:yes,even the symbolism and themes.
I began reading again for pleasure, starting with Malcolm X’s autobiography and never looking back. Now, during my year abroad,I spend a lot of my spare time in bookshops and reading in cafes. I’m so happy that I rediscovered my love of books.
1. What does the author intend to say in Paragraph 1?| A．She used to stay up late at night. | B．She read very fast as a young girl. |
| C．She loved reading very much in her childhood. | D．She once bought many different kinds of books. |
| A．She was really tired of reading books. | B．She was too busy with her schoolwork. |
| C．She had no right to choose books herself. | D．She found very few suitable books to read. |
| A．Her reading experiences at university. | B．Her professor of French literature. |
| C．A special bookstore abroad. | D．A book by Malcolm X. |
| A．The importance of discussing a book’s theme. | B．The process of the author picking up reading. |
| C．The ways to form good reading habits. | D．The author’s desire to read widely. |
3 . Sometimes fishing ships disappear: Captains turn off the radios that broadcast their locations, leaving regulators wondering whether the ships are fishing illegally. Now, researchers have shown that albatrosses(信天翁)bearing small detectors can find these doubtful ships, even in the middle of the open ocean. After a 6-month study with the large seabirds, the researchers say that more than one-third of ships in the southern Indian Ocean are fishing illegally.
“These are animal police,” says Boris Worm of Dalhousie University. “You’re empowering animals to survey their own environment, ”Worm says. “That’s pretty cool.” The method could also help albatrosses themselves, which can be killed when they get caught or accidentally eat fishing hooks. The researchers will be there on time.
Illegal fishing is a major concern for environment biologists, especially in remote areas. Over the past decade, scientists have studied the problem with data from automatic identification systems (AISs) on ships, which send their identity, location, speed, and direction to satellites. But AlSs can be turned off. Researchers suspect that fishing ships turn off AISs when they are fishing illegally or want to prevent competitors from knowing where they are getting a good catch.
Albatrosses make good spies. The birds, which live on fish, can spot a fishing ship from as far away as 30 kilometers. Some species fly hundreds or thousands of kilometers while hunting. Between December 2018 and June 2019, the birds met 353 ships. Those locations were sent to the lab in less than 2 hours. If they did not match the locations of ships with an active AIS, the team knew the ships had switched it off. In international waters, 37% of detected ships had their AlS switched off and fished illegally.
Although the albatrosses can detect ships, they cannot track them over longer distances, one scientist says. He says, “What you need to do is to look for patterns to take pictures as evidence.” More albatrosses will be arranged in March and April around the Prince Edward Islands in the southern Indian Ocean to reveal the illegal fishing.
1. What is the main idea of the first paragraph?| A．Fishing ships disappear sometimes. |
| B．Illegal fishing is very serious in the open ocean. |
| C．Some seabirds are used to monitor the illegal fishing. |
| D．One-third of ships in the southern Indian Ocean are fishing illegally. |
| A．They can get enough food. |
| B．They can get saved when in danger. |
| C．They can protect their own rights of fishing. |
| D．They can avoid being killed or eating fishing hooks. |
| A．By sending locations of ships. |
| B．By turning off AISs of the ships. |
| C．By following the ships as far as possible. |
| D．By taking the pictures of ships fishing illegally. |
| A．Education. | B．Politics. | C．Science. | D．Health |
4 . The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms More than 2000 years ago, ancient Chinese people created this overall framework to mark the annual passage of time based on observations of the sun's motion. In the international meteorological field (国际气象界) the 24 solar terms are honored as “the fifth great invention of China”.
The 24 solar terms begins with Start of Spring followed by Rain Water, Insects Awaken...and ends up with Minor Cold and Major Cold. Summer Solstice and Winter Solstice are two days of the year with the longest and shortest amount of daylight respectively, while Spring Equinox and Autumn Equinox are days with the most balanced amount of daytime and nighttime. Through these four parts, a year is divided into four part: Spring Summer, Autumn and Winter.
In ancient times this system not only guided agricultural production, instructing farmers to expect the changes in temperature, spring planting and autumn harvest but also directed Chinese folk customs. For example, Winter Solstice was the first one set among 24 terms and later developed into a festival to worship Heaven and ancestors. Every year at Winter Solstice, emperors of Ming and Qing dynasties would go to the temple of Heaven to hold a ceremony to worship Heaven, for good weather for their crop, and peace and prosperity for the country.
Nowadays, the 24 solar terms could not only be applied to farming but also guide Chinese everyday life. They remind people to adapt to the changes in the seasons through suitable food and cultural rituals (文化仪式). Seasonal customs are sill the rage such as eating spring pancakes at Start of Spring, sweeping ancestors' tombs at Qing Ming, gaining weight to keep warm at Start of Autumn and eating nutritious food to store energy at Start of Winter. They have actually became important rituals in Chinese life.
The 24 solar terms is a common cognitive system among Chinese. It reflects the emotional bond, the wisdom and creativity of Chinese, who respect and live in harmony with nature.
1. How were the 24 solar terms created in ancient China?| A．They were the results of leaning from each other. |
| B．They were set based on the movements of the sun. |
| C．They were created according to the change of the weather. |
| D．They were gradually developed from the practical experience. |
| A．They both have the same amount of day and night. |
| B．They were set only for guiding agricultural activities. |
| C．They both play the role in dividing a day into day and night |
| D．They are the days on which the length of a day is longer than night. |
| A．Cheer | B．Honor. | C．Appreciation. | D．Fashion. |
| A．The reasons for the recognition of the 24 solar terms. |
| B．The invention of the 24 solar terms in ancient China. |
| C．The origin and influence of the 24 solar terms in China |
| D．The ways to handle the relationship between human and nature. |
5 . Dog owners walked about 23minues longer each day than non-dog owners In a new study, dog owners took 2,760 additional seps—compared to people who didn’t have a dog at home. Bu here’s the real good news: That extra exercise was done at a moderate（适度的）pace, which means it could help adults meet their recommended weekly totals for physical activity.
The research, published in BMC Public Health, focused on adults 65 and older, who tend to be less active than younger people. The study included 43 dog owners and 43 non-dog owners, all of whom were monitored continuously for three week-long periods. When they compared the two groups, the researchers found that dog ownership was associated with a large, potentially health-improving effect.
Dog owners walked about 23 minutes longer each day than non-dog owners, 119 minutes versus 96 minutes on average. They also took an additional 2,760 steps, and had eight fewer continuous periods of sitting down. Most of that extra walking was done at moderate pace, defined as 100 or more steps a minute. Dog owners walked at this pace for 32 minutes a day, versus just 11 minutes a day for non-dog owners.
The World Health Organization（WHO）recommends that adults get at least 150 minutes of physical activity a week. This increased walking time alone could just about satisfy that requirement, say the researchers—so it makes total sense that 87 percent of dog owners in the study met these guidelines, versus just 47 percent of non-dog owners.
Co-author Nancy Gee says that pet ownership may help older adults get more activity or maintain their current activity level for a longer period of time. “This could improve their chances of a better quality of life, improved or maintained cognition（认知）, and perhaps, even overall longevity（寿命）,”she said.
Here at Health, we’ ll add that caring for pets has been shown to have plenty of other physical and mental health benefits, as well. As animal lovers ourselves, we’ re happy to add one more to the list.
1. What can we learn about the research？| A．It was targeted on old people. |
| B．It was sponsored by the WHO. |
| C．It had an undesirable effect on dog owners. |
| D．It took the mental health of dog owners into consideration. |
| A．To present the results of the research. |
| B．To show the guidelines of the research. |
| C．To describe the process of doing the research. |
| D．To explain the reasons for conducting the research. |
| A．It is too expensive. |
| B．It is time-consuming. |
| C．It enables older adults to live a healthy life. |
| D．It helps young adults to keep a healthy routine. |
| A．Non-pet owners enjoy more pleasure |
| B．Animal lovers are more generous |
| C．Young people walk less today |
| D．Dog owners walk way more |
6 . If you were asked to imagine a scientist, what image would come to your mind? The idea that most of the kids have is a man wearing a white lab coat with messy hair, big glasses, and cups of colorful liquids giving off clouds of smoke. As for adults, the majority regard scientists as strange people who spend a lot of time working in a lonely lab. However, the reality is quite different.
Recently I’ve had a chance to take part in a scientific experience far from my lab and into Costa Rica. It has a large amount of wildlife due to its geographical placement between North and South America. It is home to more than 500,000 species (物种), which represents nearly 4% of the species worldwide!
First we worked to protect wildlife at a leatherback turtle (棱皮龟) protection center. We helped the volunteers to remove rubbish from the beach to create a safe environment for turtle eggs to come out. After that we stayed at Mount Arenal where we studied seismic (地壳的) activity relating to earthquakes. During our stay at Arenal, we rode over the mountainous areas and took a long walk through the rainforest. On the last day we got a professional introduction of rocket (火箭) science and learned about new rocket technology that will be used on the international space station.
During my Costa Rica experience, I know that being a scientist doesn’t mean working in a lab all day and night. A scientist is the one who loves learning and getting a better understanding of the world from helping protect wildlife, learning about earthquakes or inventing rockets. I think that science is so much more than wearing a lab coat and mixing chemicals. Kids need to be aware of the excitement and adventures science can bring!
1. According to Paragraph 1, scientists are often believed ________.| A．to do experiments in messy labs | B．to spend too much time in labs |
| C．to wear clothes in a different way | D．to work in dangerous conditions |
| A．experienced an earthquake | B．took part in rocket experiments |
| C．picked up rubbish on the beach | D．helped the volunteers collect turtle eggs |
| A．Science is full of boring experiments. |
| B．Science is related to chemical liquids. |
| C．Science is more than working in a lab. |
| D．Science is about wildlife and earthquakes. |
| A．What a Scientist Is Like | B．Where a Scientist Works |
| C．How I Traveled in Costa Rica | D．Why I Chose to Study Science |
7 . Smart cities promise to bring better lives, faster transport, cleaner air and lower crime, all through the intelligent use of connected technology, said experts, and after huge investment in the field, China is leading the way.
“China’s smart cities market increases about 30 percent year-on-year in 2018, and all the provinces have begun development and construction for smart cities, with more to follow,” said an expert.
“Although most cities have started a smart city project, there is no globally unified thinking on the concept and operation of smart cities,” said Franco.
Alibaba is now involved in dozens of pilot projects across China, with its open AI (人工智能) platform Tianqing for the ET City Brain system officially launched in September. Set up by its cloud computing subsidiary (子公司), the Brain looks to make the city “think” through AI and cloud computing technologies, and help make the best of public services in real time.
Since introducing the technology, Hangzhou’s traffic jam has fallen from the fifth-worst in China in 2016, all the way to 57th place this year. “Now our experiments are mostly for government use, but we truly expect our open AI platform to enter more areas and help citizens live, work and entertain better,” said Hua.
In McKinsey Global Institute recent report Smart cities: Digital solutions for a more livable future, they find cities can use smart technologies to improve some key quality life by 10 to 30 percent — numbers that translate into lives saved, fewer crime incidents, a reduced health burden, and carbon emissions.
1. What can we say about the smart city?| A．Its concept has not been accepted by people. |
| B．It can be achieved only by lots of investment. |
| C．The worldwide standard for it has been established. |
| D．Its progress in China is among the best in the world. |
| A．Traffic jam. | B．Traffic flow. |
| C．AI platform. | D．Public services. |
| A．its traffic problem has been settled |
| B．the city has become more intelligent |
| C．its public services have greatly improved |
| D．it has made achievements in smart city construction |
| A．Smart Cities are on the Way |
| B．Outline of the Future Smart Cities |
| C．Hangzhou’s Construction of Smart Cities |
| D．Alibaba Contributes More to Smart Cities |
8 . Recently, I experienced a wonderful lesson in how little things still mean a lot. My brother, mother and I live in Hawaii. Our farm is at least a dozen miles from even the most basic of services. Therefore, I take weekly trips to the shop to get supplies. About a month ago, I finished loading up the car and was about to leave, when a piece of paper on the ground caught my eye. I picked it up and read it carefully.
It was a receipt from the State Motor Vehicle Division, recording the owners payment of her Vehicles Registration fees. At first I thought that I could find the owner. So I waited there for about an hour. Although the receipt had been borne on the wind, where in the busy, crowded parking lot would I find the owner? I looked over the receipt for contact or any personal data, perhaps a license tag or telephone number. I checked the date, the fees paid, noted the name of the owner and pocketed the paper. I concluded that the best and easiest step to take was to put the receipt in an envelope and send it to the owner first the next morning.
By the end of the week, I received a beautiful "thank you " letter from a very grateful and happy woman containing a handwritten message and a gift card. In the letter, the woman explained how the wind snatched (夺去) her receipt from a pocket in her car’s passenger door. She had searched everywhere for quite some time before giving up.
It felt great to know I had helped someone avoid a loss by doing something that at first glance(一瞥) seemed little and unimportant.
1. What can be the best title for the text?| A．A Lesson I Will Never Forget | B．Never Lose Heart or Give up |
| C．Little Things Still Mean a Lot | D．Think Carefully Before You Act |
| A．He lives downtown in Hawaii. |
| B．He goes to the shop to get supplies once a week on foot. |
| C．He is too poor to have basic supplies for his family. |
| D．He is patient and willing to help others. |
| A．the receipt | B．the license tag |
| C．the telephone number | D．the personal data |
| A．She forgot where she had put it. | B．A strong wind blew it away. |
| C．A thief took it away. | D．She left it in the parking lot |
9 . October 15th is Global Hand Washing Day. Activities are planned in more than twenty countries to get millions of people in the developing world to wash their hands with soap.
Experts say people around the world wash their hands but very few use soap at so-called critical moments. These include after using the toilet, after cleaning a baby and before touching food.
Global Hand Washing Day is the idea of the Public-Private Partnership for hand washing with soap. The goal, they say, is to create a culture of hand washing with soap. The organizers say all soaps are equally effective at removing disease-causing germs. They say the correct way to wash is to wet your hands with a small amount of water and cover them with soap. Rub it into all areas including under the fingernails. Then, rinse well under running water. Finally, dry your hands with a clean cloth.
The Partnership says soap is important because it increases the time that people spend washing. Soap also helps to break up the dirt that holds most of the germs. And it usually leaves a pleasant smell, which increases the chances that people will wash again. It also says that washing hands with soap before eating and after using the toilet could save more lives than any medicine. It could help reduce cases of diarrhea（痢疾）, which is the second leading cause of children deaths. Do remember October 15th-Global Hand Washing Day!
1. What's the best title for this passage?| A．Say no to washing hands. |
| B．Hand washing: so important—it gets a day of its own. |
| C．Find out why washing hands carefully is so important. |
| D．Want to live a longer life?—wash your hands. |
| A．to dry your hands | B．to clean your fingers |
| C．to rub your hands carefully | D．to wash away the soap |
| A．why washing hand with soap is so important |
| B．how to wash your hands correctly |
| C．the dangers of washing hands without soap |
| D．when we should especially wash our hands with soap |
| A．Entertainment | B．Health report |
| C．Public service | D．Advertisement |
10 . The connection between people and plants has long been the subject of scientific research. Recent studies have found positive effects. A study conducted in Youngstown，Ohio，for example, discovered that greener areas of the city experienced less crime. In another，employees were shown to be 15% more productive when their workplaces were decorated with houseplants.
The engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT)have taken it a step further changing the actual composition of plants in order to get them to perform diverse，even unusual functions. These include plants that have sensors printed onto their leaves to show when they’re short of water and a plant that can detect harmful chemicals in groundwater. ＂We’re thinking about how we can engineer plants to replace functions of the things that we use every day,＂explained Michael Strano, a professor of chemical engineering at MIT.
One of his latest projects has been to make plants glow(发光)in experiments using some common vegetables. Strano’s team found that they could create a faint light for three-and-a-half hours. The light，about one-thousandth of the amount needed to read by，is just a start. The technology, Strano said, could one day be used to light the rooms or even to turn trees into self-powered street lamps.
In the future，the team hopes to develop a version of the technology that can be sprayed onto plant leaves in a one-off treatment that would last the plant’s lifetime. The engineers are also trying to develop an on and off＂switch＂where the glow would fade when exposed to daylight.
Lighting accounts for about 7% of the total electricity consumed in the US. Since lighting is often far removed from the power source(电源)-such as the distance from a power plant to street lamps on a remote highway-a lot of energy is lost during transmission(传输).Glowing plants could reduce this distance and therefore help save energy.
1. What is the first paragraph mainly about?| A．A new study of different plants. |
| B．A big fall in crime rates. |
| C．Employees from various workplaces. |
| D．Benefits from green plants. |
| A．To detect plants’ lack of water |
| B．To change compositions of plants |
| C．To make the life of plants longer. |
| D．To test chemicals in plants. |
| A．They will speed up energy production. |
| B．They may transmit electricity to the home. |
| C．They might help reduce energy consumption. |
| D．They could take the place of power plants. |
| A．Can we grow more glowing plants? |
| B．How do we live with glowing plants? |
| C．Could glowing plants replace lamps? |
| D．How are glowing plants made pollution-free? |
