1 . Sugar cane（甘蔗）contains around 10% sugar. But that means it contains around 90% non-sugar—the material known as bagasse （甘蔗渣）which remains once the sugar-bearing juice is squeezed out. World production of cane sugar was 185 million tonnes in 2017 , which results in a lot of bagasse.
At the moment, most of it is burned. But Zhu Hongli, a mechanical engineer at Northeastern University, in Boston, thinks it can be put into better use. As she, and her colleagues describe, in Matter this week, with a bit of improving bagasse makes an excellent and biodegradable （可生 物降解的）replacement for the plastic used for disposable food containers such as coffee cups.
Dr. Zhu is not the first person to have this idea. But previous attempts tended not to survive contact with liquids. She knew from previous research that the main reason why past efforts fell to pieces when wet is that bagasse is composed of short fibres which are unable to hold the finished product. She therefore sought' to insert a suitably long-fibred substance.
Bamboo seemed to be the best choice. It grows quickly /degrades readily and has appropriately long fibres. And it worked. When the researchers blended bamboo remaining into bagasse, they found that the result had a strong crossing of short and long fibres.
To put their new material through its paces, Dr. Zhu and her colleagues first poured hot oil onto it and found that, rather than passing through the material, as it would have with previous, bagasse products, the oil was resisted by their invention.
They also found that when they made a cup out of the stuff and filled it with water heated almost to boiling point, the cup remained unbroken for more than two hours. Though this is not as long as a plastic cup would Hast, it-is long enough for all practical purposes.
1. What do we know about bagasse?| A．It is widely used. | B．It is usually wasted. |
| C．It can not be degraded. | D．It takes up 10% of sugar cane. |
| A．The cups are not disposable. | B．The fibres of bagasse are short. |
| C．The plastic can not be replaced. | D．The material is not biodegradable. |
| A．It can let oil pass through. | B．It can be boiled in the water. |
| C．It can hold liquid and resist heat. | D．It can reduce the use of bamboo. |
| A．New Bamboo Containers | B．A New Application of Fibres |
| C．Young and Promising Materials | D．A Perfect Mix of Cane and Bamboo |
2 . For years, Hainan, China's southernmost island province, has been an attractive tourist destination for people around the world because of its pleasant environment. Beginning this year, the beautiful island will have a new identity — an open and distinctive free trade port.
The Hainan Free Trade Port will serve as a special functional economic area and its level of openness will be better than any other port in the world. Products and funds from abroad will have free access to the port, and most goods will be duty-free. The decision shows China's willingness to further open up to the world.
The province of Hainan was founded in 1988. Later it became an appointed special economic (SEZ) to attract foreign investment. In 1992, the Yangpu Economic Development Zone, which was the first area in China to be comprehensively developed by foreign investors, was established. After eight years, in 2000, Hainan took the lead in carrying out a policy of visa on arrival. In the following years, a series of similar initiatives have been implemented for Hainan's continuous development, including a pilot zone for free trade founded in 2018.
Apart from an attractive landscape, Hainan's industrial structure features tourism and modern services. Not only will they become the highlights of the free trade port, but also they are in line with the rapid trade growth in global services as well as the development of many ports toward the service sector. In addition, as a free trade zone and port at provincial level, Hainan has a satisfying scale and full experience. All these advantages will enable Hainan to become a global trade center.
From SEZ to free trade pilot zone, and now today's free trade port, Hainan's development and its determination to build an open economy are evident to all. It's hoped that it will seize the chance of free trade and attract more business and experienced professionals from around the world to come to the island.
1. What's Hainan's future plan?| A．To construct a free trade port. |
| B．To boost Hainan's tourism and services. |
| C．To remove the tax on all imports and exports. |
| D．To strengthen environmental protection. |
| A．By analyzing causes. | B．By giving descriptions. |
| C．By following time order. | D．By making comparisons. |
| A．Its slow trade growth. | B．Its traditional services. |
| C．Its development of IT industry. | D．Its distinctive service industry. |
| A．Hainan: A Push for Global Economy |
| B．Hainan: A Witness to China's Opening-Up |
| C．Hainan: An Island Full of Ups and Downs |
| D．Hainan: An Unforgettable Tourist Destination |
3 . When I was 4, our family took the train across the country to visit our grandparents. Because I was so little, I don’t remember much. But I do have a few memories of our stay there.
Grandfather had some tomatoes growing on the north side of his house, just outside the back door to the kitchen. I found a nice green tomato. I picked it and brought it with both hands and came into the kitchen and gave it to Grandpa. “Look, Grandpa, what I found!” He thanked me with a smile, and showed me he was putting it on the window sill(窗台). I was so happy, and I headed back outside, telling Grandfather I’d bring him some more. But my mom caught me and said, “No, no, no, green tomatoes are bad for health!” Grandmother sat in her wheelchair in the living room by the front door. We played games with her.
Soon, our visit ended and we had to go home. We left Grandmother to go back to the train station. It was several hours’ drive away. We all squeezed into Grandfather’s car.
A few years later, our family was living in Colorado. Grandfather came to visit us! He came by plane to Denver, and after a long drive, my father picked him up. During the weeks Grandfather stayed with us like most children, I’d go out and play in the back yard with him every day. I’m sure it was a precious time for Grandfather and my parents, too. I remember that when he was leaving in the airplane, we could see him in the airplane window, looking grieved. I never saw Grandfather again from then on, because we moved even further away. But we didn’t forget him.
1. How did the grandfather react when the author showed him the green tomatoes?| A．He was angry. | B．He looked strange. |
| C．He praised his grandson. | D．He thanked the author. |
| A．By plane and car. | B．By train and car. |
| C．By plane and train. | D．By car and ship. |
| A．Curious. | B．Sad. | C．Cautious. | D．Angry. |
| A．The life of my grandfather | B．The tomatoes of my grandparents |
| C．A lesson from my grandparents | D．The memory of my grandfather |
4 . It may seem as if Mother's Day was invented by a company named Hallmark, but people have been taking time on the calendar to give a shout-out to Mom for a long time. The Greeks and Romans had mother goddess festivals — although their celebrations didn't involve the menfolk taking their underappreciated mothers out to dinner. A more recent tradition was Mothering Sunday, which developed in the British Isles during the 16th century. On the fourth Sunday in April, young men and women who were living and working apart from their families were advised to return to their mothers’ houses.
Mother's Day as it is observed in the United States started in the 1850s with Ann Jarvis, a West Virginia woman who held “Mothers' Work Days” to promote health and hygiene(卫生 ) at home and in the workplace. During the Civil War, Jarvis organized women to improve sanitary conditions for soldiers on both sides, and after the war she became a peacemaker, furthering the cause by bringing together mothers of Union and Confederate soldiers and promoting a Mother's Day holiday.
Jarvis's work inspired another 19th-century woman, Julia Ward Howe. In 1870 Howe published her “Mother's Day Proclamation”, which envisioned(设想) the day not as appreciation of mothers by their children but as an opportunity for women to exercise their collective power for peace. Howe started holding annual Mother's Day celebrations in Boston, her hometown, but after about a decade she stopped footing the bill and the tradition faded away.
It was Jarvis's daughter Anna who succeeded in getting Mother’s Day recognized as a national holiday. After her mother died, in May 1905, Anna started holding yearly ceremony on the anniversary and conducting a tireless PR campaign to have the day made a holiday. In 1908 she succeeded in enlisting the support of John Wanamaker, the Philadelphia department store magnate and advertising pioneer, and by 1912 West Virginia and a few other states had adopted Mother's Day. Two years later, President Woodrow Wilson signed a resolution declaring the second Sunday in May a national holiday.
It wasn't long, though, before whatever ideals the day was supposed to celebrate were buried under an amount of greeting cards and candy. By the 1920s Anna Jarvis was campaigning against the holiday she had been instrumental in creating. “I wanted it to be a day of emotionalism, not profit,” she said.
1. It can be inferred from the first paragraph that .| A．mothers didn't get enough appreciation in the past |
| B．Mother's Day was invented by Hallmark |
| C．young people all returned to their mothers' houses |
| D．Greeks and Romans were the first to celebrate Mother's Day |
| A．Ann Jarvis. | B．Julia Ward Howe. |
| C．Woodrow Wilson. | D．Anna Jarvis. |
| A．Because it was extremely emotional. |
| B．Because the festival was not profitable. |
| C．Because the celebrations went against the original spirit. |
| D．Because the day was celebrated in the form of exchanging greeting cards and candy. |
| A．The Definition of Mother’s Day |
| B．The Argument on Celebrating Mother's Day |
| C．The Story Behind the Creation of Mother's Day |
| D．Different Forms of Celebration on Mother's Day |
5 . A new study looks at how pets provide important support through petting, cuddles（拥抱）, and a frequent physical presence. This is especially key when people feel lonely.
The researchers interviewed 32 people aged 59 to 83 years old. Pets included dogs, cats, birds, etc. More than 90%of the people spoke about touch in the relationship with their pets. "Participants often described touch-based interactions with their pets as being comforting or relaxing in a way that contributed to their overall wellbeing," the researchers say. "For our participants, comfort is the sense of being somehow cared for by another being. "
Many people in the study spoke about how their pets just seemed to "know" when they weren't feeling well and they'd move to get physically near them. Different pets were better at providing comfort, some participants insisted. Many said cats were more relaxing companions than dogs, while others said dogs could be relaxing as long as they were "the right kind of dog". But almost all pets provided some sort of comfort to their owners when it came to touch.
Janette Young, lecturer in health sciences at the University of South Australia, and her team uncovered an interesting thing about the pet-human relationship. People in the study often spoke about how their animals demanded to be petted or seemed to take joy in the interaction. This, in turn, made the humans feel good.
The researchers suggest that pets can be "helpful in reducing touch deprivation（匮乏）" and the benefits can come from all kinds of pets. This connection can be particularly important in health care and senior care settings where patients and workers are less likely to be able to see friends and family; yet touch is important and can improve health and happiness.
Pets can also offer benefits that in some cases people can't offer. "Relationships with pets are different to those with humans," Young says. "Animals don't judge and are always with us. "
1. About what did some participants hold different opinions?| A．What pets were better at providing comfort. |
| B．Whether pets could make them feel relaxed. |
| C．How they felt when their pets touched them. |
| D．When pets could notice their owners' discomfort. |
| A．It is full of judgments. | B．It turns out temporary. |
| C．It benefits both parties. | D．It is determined by pets. |
| A．Encourage pet connection programs. |
| B．Raise pets to reduce human touch. |
| C．Select out the best pet companions. |
| D．Order workers' friends to pay visits. |
| A．Humans need spiritual support. |
| B．Pet-human interactions are common. |
| C．Lonely people like living with pets. |
| D．Pets offer humans touch-based comfort. |
6 . An afternoon nap(午睡)is one of the joys of life, although too much napping could signal all is not well. In some cultures, people will have a daily nap — this is fine. The warning comes when people start sleeping during the daytime, when they did not before. There is certainly a good reason to believe that daytime sleepiness — as in the Alzheimer's study — can be a marker of an underlying condition.
For most people, napping during the day is mainly a sign that you are not getting enough sleep at night, says Dr. Neil Stanley, a sleep expert. "If you feel sleepy during the day, you should think about taking a nap. That is what the body needs — it doesn't need to be kept awake with caffeine, it needs sleep. "The feeling to notice is "sleepiness", he says, not "tiredness", which could be more psychological and linked to stress.
So how do you nap well? The key thing, says Stanley, is how long your nap lasts. Choose either a 20-or 90-minute nap. "When you fall asleep, you'll quickly go through the lighter stages of sleep into your first period of deep sleep. You don't want to wake up in deep sleep because that's when you wake and feel worse than you did before. "Napping for 20 minutes means you will wake up before you go into deep sleep; napping for 90 minutes means you'll complete a sleep cycle.
Once you factor in the time it takes to fall asleep — some people are better at napping than others but, says Stanley, "a healthy adult will fall asleep in between 5 and 12 minutes" — you can set an alarm, allowing a 30- to 40-minute period for a short nap, and up to two hours for a longer one.
A good time to nap is during the body's natural dip in the afternoon, between 2 pm and 4 pm. "You don't really want to be napping much past that because then you are going to be eating into your night-time sleep," Stanley says. The point, he stresses, is to get good night-time sleep, which would ensure you probably don't need to nap at all.
1. What does an afternoon nap indicate for most people?| A．Caffeine addiction. | B．Psychological stress. |
| C．Insufficient night sleep. | D．Potential physical illness. |
| A．Duration. | B．Surroundings. | C．Health. | D．Stages. |
| A．A 30- to 40- minute period. | B．Between 2 pm and 4 pm. |
| C．Between 5 and 12 minutes. | D．A 20- to 90-minute period. |
| A．Why to phase a nap | B．When to take a good nap |
| C．What to learn from a nap | D．How to have a successful nap |
7 . We thought we had it all---a beautiful house, three healthy children and one more on the way, two cars, a couple of four-wheelers for entertainment---and we loved it. Then, the market turned and my husband’s job at a construction company was gone. The company was closing down for good.
We both started looking for jobs right away, but there weren’t any to be found. With each passing day we were getting increasingly worried and we continued to work together in order to pull our family through. The more we pulled together, the closer we got. I felt feelings of admiration for my husband that I hadn’t felt in years.
That’s why it was so hard for me to watch him blame himself for our present situation. I continually asked him to stop, but he seemed to want to punish himself for not having a job.
Finally, one afternoon I pulled him aside and said, “We have four healthy children. That's what's important. That makes you a rich man.” “But what if we lose the house? They’ll hate me---you’ll hate me,” he replied.
I smiled at him and put my hands on both sides of his face to make him look me in the eye.
“No matter where we live I will be happy---as long as I have you.” I smiled again. In all the struggling together I had found that deep love for him that I had on the day we said “I do”.
I could see his shoulders and neck relaxed. He held me close and we were able to talk and plan and dream together in a way that we hadn’t for quite some time. It was a turning point for us as a couple and a family.
We are still struggling for our better life, but I consider us well-off because we have something that money can’t buy and no one can take away from us.
1. The underlined sentence in the second paragraph means that ________.| A．they became closer as they struggled together |
| B．they hoped to find jobs in the same company |
| C．both of them had the courage to face difficulty |
| D．they were trying to make their relationship closer |
| A．She thought she should be blamed. |
| B．She thought he had tried his best. |
| C．She thought he would get a job someday. |
| D．She thought it would remind her of sad memories. |
| A．Bitter but quiet. | B．Comfortable and easy. |
| C．Hard but happy. | D．Well-off and relaxing. |
| A．We Have It All | B．We Find It Again |
| C．A Perfect Couple | D．A Hard Time |
8 . BEIJING — A bullying (欺凌) incident at a primary school in Beijing should not be brushed off as "a joke that went too far"; rather, facts should be dug out and action should be taken to prevent similar events from happening in the school again, according to experts.
Huang Zifang, a psychologist specializing in children's growth issues, said schools should be careful about taking bullying incidents as mere pranks (恶作剧).
"Instead, they should work to find out the root cause of the incident in a timely manner, guide the children involved to face and handle the incident in a correct way and teach them to behave properly to avoid similar situations," Huang said.
She made the comments after a mother in Beijing posted a description online on Thursday of how her 10-year-old son was bullied at Zhongguancun No.2 Primary School, a top school in Haidian district.
The mother wrote that her fourth-grade son was the target of bullies who threw a toilet wastepaper basket at him, striking him in the head. The boy was also mocked by his classmates, she said, bringing on acute stress disorder — a mental illness caused by severe anxiety.
The mother also wrote that the school described the incident as "a joke that went too far" and that the parents of the boy who threw the basket believed — their son was "just being naughty".
The article went viral, with many internet users recalling being bullied at school.
Shen Xuan, a volunteer from Beijing who has traveled the country for several years to work with schools to reduce bullying, said schools should take responsibility for such incidents and try to make the bullies understand that their behavior is "vicious and harmful" and "not allowed".
"In the long run, a reporting system should be established to root out bullying in the school. Students should be given specific channels to report what they experience to teachers before further measures are taken to deal with incidents," Shen said.
Huang, the psychologist, said that schools and parents must pay more attention to the ethical (道德的) development and mental health of children, rather than just looking at their academic performance.
On Saturday, Zhongguancun No.2 Primary School released a statement on its social media account saying that it had talked to the parents on both sides and would make further efforts to achieve an outcome satisfactory to all parties.
1. What does Shen Xuan stress according to the text?| A．Parents should make the bullies understand their behavior is harmful. |
| B．Schools should pay more attention to children's academic performance. |
| C．A reporting system should be set up to root out bullying in the school. |
| D．Police should be often involved in dealing with bulling incidents at schools. |
| A．They didn't take it seriously. |
| B．They blamed the bullies quickly. |
| C．They reported it to the police station at once. |
| D．They called the parents on both sides immediately. |
| A．Taught the skills for an activity. |
| B．Laughed at in an unfriendly way. |
| C．Made healthy again after an illness. |
| D．Inspired to do something new or unusual. |
| A．Try to care about children's ethical development |
| B．School bullying must not be treated as a joke |
| C．How a 10-year-old child was bullied in the school |
| D．Mental health of children should be paid attention to |
9 . Some people are using old books to create works of art, including sculptures. They can change the shape of a hardcover book so it becomes 3-D. The resulting sculpture has not only a length and width, but depth. The process can be very simple, and the result is often beautiful.
There are many kinds of book folding. Artists fold, bend, and sometimes, cut a book's pages while keeping them together. The art works can be hung on a wall or placed on a table. "They look impressive on the wall," says writer Candice Caldwell. "A group of six of these on the wall together can look really beautiful, and they're just really simple folds."
In 2003, Caldwell started making clocks from old books when she saw plans for a simple book-folding project in a do-it-yourself magazine. She has since taught several friends and her mother how to create wall art from books.
Caldwell operates a blog. She writes about reshaping everyday objects like books for uses other than what they were designed for.
Clare Youngs, who is an illustrator (插图画家), has written a book called Folded Book Art. She says book folding is easy. From her home in England, she told the Associated Press by email that "It looks as if it is complex and unachievable, but it is really easy to do. You just don't tell anyone how easy it is and they will be amazed at your creations."
Youngs began making art from book pages several years ago when she saw pictures of folded books at the website Pinterest com. She also watched some videos on You Tube that tell how to create art from books.
Youngs suggests folding cooking recipe and photography books. She says that "If it's really visual and really colorful when you start to fold them, you get a whole new look on the wall."
1. What does Caldwell write about online？| A．Creating everyday objects. |
| B．The works of art on the wall. |
| C．A project in a do-it-yourself magazine. |
| D．Changing the shape of daily items for other purposes. |
| A．It is boring. | B．It is dangerous. |
| C．It is unnecessary. | D．It is not complex. |
| A．In the library. | B．From friends. |
| C．On the internet. | D．From cooking recipes. |
| A．Recycling old things. | B．Ways to fold various books. |
| C．a new use for old books. | D．The goal of book folding. |
10 . Now many young people are traveling around the world on their own, not because they have no one to travel with, but because they prefer to go alone.
Kristina Wegscheider from California first traveled alone when she was at college and believes that it is something everyone should do at least once in their life. “It opens up your mind to things and pushes you out of your comfort zone.” Wegscheider has visited 46 countries covering all seven continents.
In foreign countries, with no one to help you read a map, look after you if you get ill, or lend you money if your wallet is stolen, it is challenging. This is what drives young people to travel alone. It is seen as character building and a chance to prove that they can make it on their own.
Chris Richardson decided to leave his sales job in Australia to go traveling last year. He set up a website, The Aussie Nomad, to document his adventures. He says he wished he had traveled alone earlier. “The people you meet, the places you visit, or the things you do, everything is up to you and it forces you to grow as a person.” said the 30-year-old man.
Richardson describes traveling alone like “a shot in the arm”, which “makes you a more confident person that is ready to deal with anything”. He said, “The feeling of having overcome something on my own is a major part of what drives me each day when I’m dealing with a difficult task. I walk around with my head up because I know deep down inside that nothing is impossible if you try.”
The great 19thcentury explorer John Muir once said. “Only by going alone in silence can one truly get into the heart of the wilderness.
1. Which of the following will Kristina Wegscheider agree with?| A．Traveling alone is a necessary experience for everyone. |
| B．It is more meaningful to travel in foreign countries. |
| C．It is comfortable to travel around without a friend. |
| D．Traveling abroad helps people to find new things. |
| A．you have to make things on your own. |
| B．it is hard for you to prove yourself to others. |
| C．you can only depend on yourself whatever happens. |
| D．it will finally build your character. |
| A．He started traveling alone at an early age. |
| B．He was once shot in the arm. |
| C．He used to work as a salesman. |
| D．His website will inspire others to travel alone. |
| A．Travel Abroad | B．Travel Alone |
| C．Travel Light | D．Travel Wide and Far |
