1 . This past weekend my wife and 1 had the opportunity to be in Colorado for a school reunion.On Saturday, we decided to take a day trip up to the mountains for a hike.The hike started at Echo Lake, near the base of the beautiful Mt Evans.The path would follow a river up the mountain to another lake.
We crossed the river a few times on wooden planks and walked through some thick trees slowly and unsteadily but eventually we made it to the lake.It was absolutely beautiful and definitely worth the hike.But we noticed that the path continued up the mountain further.We had plenty of water and a little more energy so we decided to keep going and see where it led.
The path got steeper from there and sometimes it was hard to find.But we stuck with it because every quarter mile the trees would open up and we’d get an amazing view of the mountains around us.Eventually, the path led us to another lake that was even more beautiful than the first.
We were about to stop and eat lunch, having reached our destination, when my wife noticed a waterfall at one end of the lake.We could see that the path we were on continued up the mountain to what must be the source of the waterfall.Having seen it, we knew we had to try and make it.
During the next mile of hiking we had to trudge through dark, sticky mud and then hop on logs and rocks across rivers.The last half mile was really steep, and we had to hike through the thick snow which was far beyond our expectations.The altitude was starting to affect us as the air got thin and our muscles ached.
Eventually, we made it to the top and found one of the most beautiful sights I have ever had the privilege to see.At the top there was yet another lake, with amazingly blue water, the snow-capped mountains reflected on its surface.It was breathtaking.
I learned a lesson about setting goals that day.
1. Why did the writer and his wife go to Colorado?| A．To hike in the mountain for a day. |
| B．To visit Echo Lake near Mt Evans. |
| C．To attended a get-together with classmates. |
| D．To be reunited with former colleagues at school. |
| A．Tough. | B．Easy. | C．Flat. | D．Even. |
| A．The steep cliff. | B．The thick snow. |
| C．The waterfall. | D．The muddy path. |
| A．Great energy is just for a great purpose. |
| B．The secret of success is to firm the target. |
| C．A person can only address a limited goal. |
| D．We’ll never reach the end of our goals sometimes. |
2 . A 15-year-old scientist and inventor has been named as Time's first ever Kid of the Year.
Rao is a high school student from Colorado. She was chosen from 5,000 U.S.-based nominees ( 提 名 ). Time said in a statement that Rao stood out for her ability to apply scientific ideas to real-world problems and her efforts to motivate other kids to take up their own causes. Rao told the Associated Press that the prize is “nothing that I could have ever imagined. And I'm so grateful and just so excited that we're really taking a look at the upcoming generation and our generation, since the future is in our hands.” She insists that starting out small doesn't matter, as long as you're enthusiastic about it.
It's just the latest recognition for the teenager, who was named last year to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list. Rao won praise in 2017 after she developed a portable device（设备） to detect lead (铅) in water. She went on to cooperate with scientists in the water industry to try to get the device on the market.
The young scientist has also developed an app called Kindly that uses artificial intelligence to help prevent cyberbullying (网络欺凌). It allows teens to type in a word or phrase to find out if the words they're using are hurtful and amount to（等于）bullying, and thus should be avoided.
In an interview with Time, Rao said that her pursuits（追求） in science started early as a way to improve conditions in society. In a world where science is increasingly questioned or challenged, Rao insists that its pursuit is an important act of kindness. It is the best way that a younger generation can better the world. Science and technology are being employed as never before to handle various issues, such as global warming, the outbreak of disease and so on, she noted.
“We have science in everything we're involved in, and I think that's the biggest thing to put out there, that science is cool, invention is cool, and anybody can be an inventor," Rao said.“ Anybody can do science.
1. What is one of the reasons for Rao being honored by Time?| A．The up-to-date ideas she had come up with. |
| B．The large amounts of time she had devoted. |
| C．The influence she has on young generations. |
| D．The optimistic attitude she holds to the future. |
| A．functional | B．environment-friendly |
| C．efficient | D．money-saving |
| A．Her tolerance for problems. | B．Her amazing brain power. |
| C．Her exposure to challenges. | D．Her concern about society. |
| A．High School Student Struggling for Big Dream |
| B．Young Scientist Named TIME's Kid of the Year |
| C．Scientific Achievements Applied to Our Real Life |
| D．Advanced Inventions Used in Bettering the World |
3 . A passion for photography often starts at a young age. The Youth competition, for all photographers aged 12-19, recognizes the next generation of talented young photographers.
The competition is intended to help young photographers grow into the next stage of their careers. Judges are looking for good composition, creativity and clear thoughts.
The judges want to review the world seen through the eyes of young photographers. In one single image you show the judges your environment, which should be understood in its widest sense. It could be a photograph sharing your culture, the important moment of an issue close to home, a special family moment or a beautiful scene.
In addition to the main prizes, all winning and shortlisted（把……列入入围名单）photographers will be included in a global press campaign, be featured across the World Photography Organization website and exhibit at Somerset House, London in the summer of 2019.
The judges will award:
·1 Youth competition winner
·Up to 10 shortlisted photographers
·Up to 40 recommended photographers
Please note:
You may only enter one competition at a time. Once you have successfully submitted your images to the Youth competition, you will not be able to enter the Professional of Open competition.
The closing date for the Youth competition is Jan.4, 2019.
1. What’s the aim of the Youth competition?| A．To promote young photographers’ career development. |
| B．To help young photographers well plan their life. |
| C．To arouse young people’s interest in photography. |
| D．To discover more beauty through the eyes of young photographers. |
| A．His career. | B．His environment. |
| C．His family members. | D．His successful moment. |
| A．A job in the World Photography Organization. |
| B．An exhibition specially showing their works. |
| C．An opportunity to visit Somerset House. |
| D．A chance to be widely recognized. |
4 . One day when I was 15 years old, I had some friends over to hang out. While we were making food in the kitchen, my brother came in. He placed his beef next to my thick one and said, “Courtney, your beef is bigger than mine. You don’t need to eat; you’re already fat enough.” Then he walked out… laughing.
Nasty comments on my physical appearance were nothing new. Something inside me gave in to his idea that my legs were unacceptable, and that became the last day that I ever willingly wore shorts until I was 30 years old. For the next 15 years, I spent summer after summer roasting in long pants.
But then I met Ragen Chastain, and she changed everything. I couldn’t believe that this woman who, like myself, weighed almost 300 pounds was so energetic and happy in her own skin. I listened as she shared her own journey to recovery and self-love. She talked about how amazing our bodies are, just by virtue of the things they do every day — like breathing, pumping blood to every cell, blinking and walking.
Walking! I was suddenly aware of how foolish I’d been for so long. There’re people who are born without legs, or who lack properly working legs, or who lose their legs, and I’d been hiding my perfectly strong, healthy, beautiful legs in shame because I had allowed someone to convince me that they weren’t good enough. The next day. I bought three pairs of shorts and a sundress and spent the entire summer letting my legs see the sun and feel the breeze.
The next time anyone comments on your body in a negative way, look them straight in the eye, smile and say, “If what you see bothers you so much, feel free to practice the ancient art of looking somewhere else.” That’s Ragen’s original, but I don’t think she’ll mind if you use it.
1. What does the underlined word “Nasty” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?| A．Careless. | B．Unpleasant. | C．Naughty. | D．Impatient. |
| A．To keep herself from the unbearable heat. |
| B．To make her more attractive. |
| C．To follow her brother’s advice. |
| D．To cover her legs. |
| A．She has succeeded in losing weight. |
| B．She likes to make comments on others. |
| C．She pays no attention to others’ advice. |
| D．Once she wasn’t content with her body image. |
| A．Funny. | B．Useful. | C．Unreasonable. | D．Conventional. |
5 . Faster, cheaper, better-technology is one field many people rely upon to offer a vision of a brighter future. But as the 2020s dawn, optimism is in short supply. The new technologies that dominated the past decade seem to be making things worse. Social media were supposed to bring people together, but they are better known for leaking privacy. E-commerce, ride-hailing (网约车) and the gig economy (零工经济) may be convenient, but they are charged with underpaying workers, worsening inequality and blocking the streets with vehicles.
Today's pessimistic mood is centered on smart phones and social media, which took off a decade ago. Yet concerns that particular technologies might be doing more harm than good have arisen before. The 1920s witnessed a criticism against cars, which had earlier been seen as an answer to the problems caused by horse-drawn vehicles which filled the streets with noise and animal waste and caused accidents. And industrialization was criticized in the 19th century by Romantics who worried about the replacement of skilled workers, the robbing of the countryside and the suffering of factory hands.
However, that pessimism can be overdone. Too often people focus on the drawbacks of a new technology while taking its benefits for granted. Worries about screen time should be weighed against the much more substantial benefits of convenient communication and the instant access to information and entertainment that smartphones make possible. A further danger is that Luddite (反对技术进步者) efforts to avoid the short-term costs associated with a new technology will end up denying access to its long-term benefits-something Carl Benedikt Frey, an Oxford academic, calls a "technology trap". Fears that robots will steal people's jobs may discourage their use. Yet in the long run countries that wish to maintain their standard of living as their workforce ages and shrinks will need more robots, not fewer.
Any powerful technology can be used for good or ill. It is the choices people make about it that shape the world. Perhaps the real source of anxiety is not technology itself, but growing doubts about the ability of societies to hold this debate, and come up with good answers. So as the decade turns, put aside the pessimism for a moment. To be alive in the tech-obsessed 2020s is to be among the luckiest people who have ever lived.
1. What phenomenon is described in Paragraph 1?| A．The seriousness of social inequality. |
| B．The rapid development of technology. |
| C．Problems brought by personal privacy leaks. |
| D．Worries about the influence of new technologies. |
| A．Negative. | B．Uncertain. | C．Sympathetic. | D．Enthusiastic. |
| A．A lack of good jobs in the job market. |
| B．An increase in the number of Luddites. |
| C．A decrease in the number of skilled workers. |
| D．An interruption to the advancement of a new technology. |
| A．Pessimism vs Progress | B．Technology vs Civilization |
| C．2020s: The Age of Technology | D．Robots: Our Future Caretakers |
6 . Understanding cultural body language in other countries is very helpful in communication, especially when we can't speak a foreign language.Here are some gestures and their meanings in different cultures.I hope these will help you when you try to interact with foreigners.
Head movements
In some parts of India, people shake their heads to show they are actively listening or agree with you.In western countries,people nod to confirm. However,in Bulgaria and Greece, nodding actually means the contrary.
Eye contacts
Some countries,such as Japan and Finland, consider constant eye contact awkward.In Caribbean cultures,children and teenagers are taught not to look at adults in the eyes when they are being corrected. Strong eye contact is common among people of the same sex in Spain and
Arabic countries.Hands
The "thumbs up" sign is used in many cultures to mean “OK”。 In France,it can mean No.1, but it has a very rude sexual meaning in Islamic countries,Cerdena and Greece. Interestingly,the＂OK"sign means “zero”or "nothing" in France,while some other European countries such as Greece,Italy,Brazil,and Russia consider it as impolite.
Greetings and goodbyes
Shaking hands is a normal and formal way to greet or say goodbye in western countries. But in Romania, only men usually shake hands.And they do it every time they meet, not just the first! In England, however,it's unusual to shake hands with someone you are introduced to in an informal setting.
Legs
Sitting with crossed legs is common in North America and European countries, but it is considered disrespectful in Asia and the Middle East where a straight and balanced posture is the norm(规范）。Body language varies from country to country. When you communicate with foreigners, one safe way is to understand, respect and follow the culture.
1. Why does the author write the first paragraph?| A．To tell us the writing purpose. |
| B．To show ways of communicating. |
| C．To stress the importance of language. |
| D．To compare the cultural differences. |
| A．Constant eye contact is advisable in Japanese. |
| B．Sitting with crossed legs is popular in the Middle East. |
| C．Shaking hands only happens between men in Romania. |
| D．The "thumbs up" sign can be considered polite in Cerdena. |
| A．Practice makes perfect. |
| B．Actions speak louder than words. |
| C．Seeing is believing. |
| D．When in Rome, do as the Romans do. |
7 . In 1996, Guan came down with a stomach illness. With the aim of strengthening his immune (免疫)system, he started running in a playground near the factory. After a little more than a year of training, he could run 10 kilometers in a very surprising time of 36 or 37 minutes.
Filled with self-confidence, he pressed on to improve his performances. Over the past 24 years, he has kept to his training program. He competed in the Beijing Marathon in 2004 and has competed in it every year since 2006. He competed in other marathons, too, His performance in the Xiamen Marathon in 2012 was particularly surprising, with a finishing time of 2:56:42, by which he became one of the most outstanding marathon runners in his age group in the country.
Being a top runner, Guan used to do exercise at least five times a week, and he would run at least 200 kilometers a month. He joined a Yuandadu Marathon Club where members could work together and get a better result with a similar training rhythm(节奏). “Training with others is particularly helpful in improving performance, " he says. As he gets older, his physical fitness has declined, but Guan has developed a stricter training plan so he can realize his 3-hour dream. Every morning he runs for 1 hour in Wanghe Park near his home, he takes part in Yuandadu's systematic running training; and he goes to Olympic Forest Park in the city's north every Sunday to run 25 to 30 kilometers as long-distance training.
“Life is a process of constantly challenging yourself and breaking through your own barriers again and again, " he says. "I'll be running until the day I can't move!”
1. Why did Guan start running?| A．To improve his immune system. |
| B．To prepare the running training. |
| C．To increase self-confidence. |
| D．To take part in a Marathon. |
| A．His particular way of running. |
| B．His strict training program. |
| C．His excellent performance. |
| D．His absolute confidence. |
| A．He trains for at least 3 hours a day |
| B．His hard training makes him outstanding. |
| C．He always fails though he is a top runner. |
| D．He refuses to receive systematic running training |
| A．Determined but mean. |
| B．Confident but careless |
| C．Humorous and helpful |
| D．Confident and determined |
8 . Genetic modification (基因改良) dates back to ancient times, when humans influenced genetics by selectively breeding organisms (培育生物) according to an article by Gabriel Rangel, a public health scientist at Harvard University. When repeated over several generations, this process leads to great changes in the organisms.
Dogs were likely the first animals to be purposefully genetically modified, with the beginnings of that effort dating back about 32,000 years, according to Rangel. Wild wolves joined our hunter-gatherer ancestors in East Asia, where the aggressive canines were kept in the household and bred to become docile and easier to get along with. Over thousands of years, people bred dogs with different desired character and physical characteristics, eventually leading to the wide variety of dogs we see today.
The earliest known genetically modified plant is wheat. This valuable crop is thought to have originated in the Middle East and northern Africa in the area known as the Fertile Crescent, according to a 2015 article published in the Journal of Traditional and Complementary Medicine. Ancient farmers selectively bred wheat grasses beginning around 9000 B. C. to create improved varieties with larger grains and hardier seeds. By 800 B.C., the cultivation (培养) of improved wheat had spread across Europe and Asia. The continued selective cultivation of wheat resulted in the thousands of varieties that are grown today.
Corn has also experienced some of greatest genetic changes over the past few thousand years. The main crop was changed from a plant known as teosinte, a wild grass with tiny ears and only a few seeds. Over time, farmers selectively bred the teosinte grasses to create corn with large ears bursting with seeds.
Beyond those crops, many of the fruit and vegetables we eat today, including bananas, apples and tomatoes, have experienced several generations of selective raising, according to Rangel.
In 1973, researchers also modified bacteria to be used as drugs. In 1982, human insulin (胰岛素) made from genetically engineered bacteria, became the first genetically engineered human drugs approved by the FDA.
1. What does the word “docile” in paragraph 2 most probably mean?| A．Gentle. | B．Loyal. | C．Smart. | D．Ambitious. |
| A．Through selective cultivation. | B．By editing its genes constantly. |
| C．Through mixture with teosinte. | D．By planting it in large numbers. |
| A．It is rarely seen in daily life. | B．It was quite difficult to accept. |
| C．It is hardly influenced by humans. | D．It played a role in medical field. |
| A．Health. | B．Lifestyle. | C．Science. | D．Agriculture. |
9 . If you live in southwest Virginia, don’t be surprised at the sight of a drone(无人机) winging its way, doing airborne delivery over your neighborhood.
On October 20,2019,wing,an American multinational company, began the most advanced trials of commercial drone delivery in Virginia. Residents can now use a smartphone app to order items from Wing partners such as Sugar Magnolia. A Wing drone never sets down at destinations, instead gently lowering the package with a rope outside the customer's door.
Though Wing is the first American company to receive Federal Aviation Administration(FAA)approval to use commercial drones as a widespread service. it is not the only one. On October 22,2019,multinational delivery company UPS, which had also received FAA approval for its drone fleet, announced it would soon begin trial deliveries of goods from health care company CVS. Meanwhile, ridesharing company, Uber, which had partnered with McDonald's, hoped to use its drones to deliver food to hungry customers in San Diego, CA, before the end of 2019. Amazon also plans on testing its trial deliveries of goods in a yet-to-be-determined location in the upcoming months.
Every company's drones can carry packages weighing up to five pounds, and the series of trial are hortative, but widespread drone delivery still has many challenges. These include basic issues like finding places for drones to land, reducing noise pollution, and even ensuring the drones don't run into each other while airborne.
To help sped up the process, NASA announced the Urban Air Mobility Grand Challenge. The competition challenges airspace service providers to find creative solutions to the issues, so that drone deliveries can become a reality soon. “We are moving fast,” said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. “We want to see by 2028 at least one city--maybe more than one--have the ability to control hundreds of drone delivery systems. They could be carrying goods, doing thousands of missions every day.”
1. What can be inferred from the passage？| A．It's impossible to crash other drones during the delivery. |
| B．People can order items from Wing directly with an app. |
| C．More companies are expected to try out their drone delivery. |
| D．Drones deliver items by gently bringing them down to the ground. |
| A．Encouraging. | B．Relaxing. |
| C．Creative. | D．Relative. |
| A．To increase the speed of airborne delivery. |
| B．To see drone delivery systems widely used. |
| C．To be able to control the airline system. |
| D．To provide more solutions to goods delivery. |
| A．The Future of Drone Delivery |
| B．How to Achieve Drone Delivery in 2028 |
| C．The Advantages of Using Drone Delivery |
| D．Drone Delivery May Become a Reality in the US |
10 . Last year, Wolf Cukier, who is 17 years old, spent his summer vacation as few other rising seniors have：he helped discover a planet-TOI 1338b, the newly identified world orbiting two stars which are more than 1, 300 light years away.
Last July， just after he finished his junior year at Scarsdale High school in Scarsdale, New York, Wolf started an internship(实习期) at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
During the first week of the internship, as be combed through data that had been flagged by citizen-scientists. he fixed attention on s system that included two orbiting stars. He identified a body in that system that was later proved as a planet about 6.9 times as large as Earth. while knowing this inspiring discovery, his colleagues immediately gave the system a name, TOI 1338b.
According to scientific research, any dip in the brightness of a single star is a good indication that a planet has crossed in front of it. However, TOI 1338b was particularly complicated because it involved two stars-a large star ere the planers track was easy to detect, and a smaller one where the planet's track was so small that it was not observable.
Many people think that wolf is a lucky dog, but as a matter of fact, it is not just a coincidence. When he studied in Junior High School, he had shown great passion on astronomy and was devoted to studying it. Wolf plans to study astrophysics(天体物理学) when he starts college in September. When it came to his contribution to the discovery of the new world. he emphasized it was the team work in the verification process rather than his own effort that counted.
1. What did Wolf do last year?| A．He was employed by NASA. |
| B．He finished his senior year in High School. |
| C．He spent his summer vacation like other seniors. |
| D．He helped find a new planet named TOI 1338b. |
| A．Modest and hardworking. | B．Ambitious and casual. |
| C．Considerate and lucky. | D．Optimistic and helpful. |
| A．The planet was named by Wolf. |
| B．The planet is the same size as the Earth. |
| C．The planet was easy to discover as there are two stars involved. |
| D．Team work in the verification process was highly valued by Wolf. |
| A．A diary. | B．A magazine. |
| C．A guidebook. | D．A scientific novel. |
