1 . It was in my first year of work as a doctor. My mouth was dry, my palms sweaty and my voice trembling. The only thing that kept me focused was the thought that things were so much worse for the family I was talking to.
A woman in her early twenties had been brought in after a road traffic accident. She had suffered multiple injuries and had been rushed up to theatre. The surgeons had been unable to save her life and she died on the table. Ashen-faced, the consultant (会诊医生) told the woman's family the news. “Tom, I think it would be nice if it came from you,” my consultant said.
I stared blankly. “What?” I asked.
“About organ donation,” he replied. I swallowed hard. Surely this would be the last thing they'd want to talk about. It felt acutely awkward and ill-timed to be considering this kind of conversation while they were being engulfed in grief. But the problem with organ donation is that every minute counts. The clock is ticking because the sooner organs can be transplanted, the better the chance they will survive in the recipient's (接受者) body.
I began to feel sick. I opened the door and sat opposite them, convinced that I was only going to make things worse for them.
“It's what she'd have wanted,” the mother said before I'd even finished. The father nodded. “She was always so generous,” her father added.
As my consultant and I left them, it occurred to me that I'd been wrong in thinking it would be an awkward conversation. Nothing could take away the pain of having lost their daughter. Yet this last, final act had comforted them and helped them feel that the spirit of their daughter lived on m this act of generosity. Strangely, it is one of the most heart-wanning conversations I have ever had.
1. The first two paragraphs suggest________.| A．the woman died on the scene |
| B．it was hard for the author to face death |
| C．the author witnessed the traffic accident |
| D．the woman's death was told by the consultant |
| A．He was caught in a dilemma. | B．He was seriously ill at that time. |
| C．He failed to transplant the organ. | D．The woman's chance of survival was slim. |
| A．To do the author a favor. | B．To show respect for the doctor. |
| C．To follow then daughter’s will. | D．To end the awkward conversation. |
| A．The consultant’s assistance. | B．The author’s consideration. |
| C．The donor’s kindness. | D．The recipient’s appreciation. |
2 . Doug Falter, an American photographer, returned home, teary-eyed and exhausted. He pouted online that evening, "I lost my baby." That "baby" referred to a surfboard that had been custom-made for him. Hours earlier, a big wave had separated Falter from this prized possession.
Months passed with no sign of the surfboard. Falter saved money to buy a new surfboard for $ 1,500. But Falter never completely forgot the surfboard, which - six months later and more than 5,000 miles away from where it disappeared-floated to the southern Philippines.The local fisherman who found it didn't have much use of his unusual catch of the day, so he sold the board for s 40 to Giovanne Branzuela, an elementary school teacher. Branzuela hoped to learn to surf and one day share the skill with his students,who regularly accompany him on beach clean-ups.
The once-blue board had faded to a pale straw color during its journey, but its distinctive markings were still there: two elephants, one at either end. Underneath the elephants were the words "Doug Falter Surfboard".
Branzuela couldn't believe it on realizing how far the surfboard had traveled. He reached Falter online and sent him a photo of the surfboard. Falter was shocked to learn that his "baby"had drifted(漂流) across the world's largest ocean and survived. He was overjoyed.
But the story was far from over. Falter wanted to thank Branzuela with some surfing supplies for his kind act, but the teacher asked for school supplies instead, such as backpacks for his students and materials to help them learn English.
Falter said it made him raise money for the kids. So far, he has collected $ 2,500,which he has used to buy and ship maps, puzzles, classroom posters, textbooks, and workbooks.
1. What happened to Doug Falter that afternoon?| A．His baby was lost on the beach. | B．The sea carried away his surfboard. |
| C．He took excellent photos of the surf. | D．His custom-made camera was damaged. |
| A．He liked the pale straw color of it. |
| B．He found it belonged to Doug Falter. |
| C．He found the fisherman charged low for it. |
| D．He wanted to learn a new skill to teach his students. |
| A．Branzuela kept it as a prized possession. |
| B．Branzuela's students learned surfing with it. |
| C．It was returned to its owner after a long journey. |
| D．Falter sold it to help Philippine children. |
| A．Selfless. | B．Merciful. |
| C．Generous. | D．Knowledgeable. |
3 . Biofuels (生物燃料), gained from plants and animal matter, are a key solution to the environmental problems caused by fuels like coal. “Bioalcohol (生物酒精) is the most common biofuel and is produced by sugars found in materials such as corn. With some engine redesigned, it can be used directly by cars, buses, etc.,” says Professor Daniel Tan, “12 percent of transport fuel could come from biofuels, especially bioalcohol, by 2030.”
But a 2016 study of biofuels said, “Bioalcohol presently is mostly produced with food crops. Altogether, the environmentally-friendly biofuels rely on about 2-3 percent of the global water and land used for agriculture, which could feed a large number of hungry people.”
Energy experts have therefore been trying to deal with the problem. Recent research led by an international team found that the agave (龙舌兰) plant might offer a way out. This plant tends to be the right bioalcohol source to supersede others such as sugarcane (甘蔗) and corn.
Daniel Tan explains that the agave can be grown in unfavorable conditions and is not a major food crop. “It can grow in areas that lack water and rainfall without being watered by farmers, and it does not compete with food crops or put demands on limited water. This kind of useful plant is recently being grown in Australia. It can survive Australia's hot summers,” he says.
The study finds that sugarcane produces just a little more fuel per square meter each year than the agave. However, the agave outperforms sugarcane in a range of areas, including pollution to the earth, and water using. The agave uses 69 percent less water than sugarcane and 46 percent less water than corn for the same amount of fuel produced. As for corn，it produces less fuel per square meter each year than the agave.
However, Daniel Tan states: “The first generation of bioalcohol from the agave recently faces a big competition from oil, whose recent low price makes it far more attractive to customers. Without some policy support from the government, bioalcohol production from the agave faces big challenges.”
1. What can we learn about bioalcohol from the first paragraph?| A．It is popular among customers worldwide. |
| B．It is a kind of biofuel made from artificial matter. |
| C．It helps vehicles' engines stay in good condition. |
| D．It can play a big role in making transport fuel green. |
| A．Take the place of. | B．Take advantage of. |
| C．Get away from. | D．Get along with. |
| A．It improves the local weather. | B．It keeps the water in the ground. |
| C．It produces plenty of food for humans. | D．It puts low demands on growing environment. |
| A．Reduce the price of oil. | B．Make some favorable policies. |
| C．Expand agave bioalcohol's production. | D．Introduce competition into agave bioalcohol market. |
4 . On paper, hydrogen（H2）looks like a dream fuel. Coal, oil, and natural gas produce carbon dioxide, which warms the earth when burned, Hydrogen produces pure water. Hydrogen packs more energy into less space than a battery（but certainly less than petrol）. Also, empty tanks（燃料箱）can be refilled with hydrogen much faster than refilling empty batteries with electricity.
While in practice, things are trickier. Storing a meaningful amount of hydrogen gas requires pressing it several hundred-fold. Changing it into the liquid form is another option, but it should be cooled to-253C. Both processes require a heavy and strong tank. While a 700 bar tank is acceptable for a city bus or a truck, adapting it for use in small vehicles is very difficult because the pressure during refilling would be too great.
The solution? Powerpaste.
A German team of researchers, led by Marcus Vogt, have come up with an interesting "powerpaste", which can store hydrogen energy at atmospheric pressure, ready for release when needed. It is so named because it comes in tubes and looks like toothpaste（牙膏）, not in its traditional form of gas.
The main ingredient（原料）of the paste is magnesium hydride, a substance that reacts with water to form hydrogen. The escaped hydrogen can then be directed into a fuel cell, where it reacts with oxygen from the air to produce electric power.
Refueling is very simple, as instead of going to a filling station, drivers and riders can simply replace an empty tube with a new one and refill the water tank.
Given that powerpaste only begins to break down at temperatures of around 250℃ it remains safe even when a vehicle stands in the baking sun for hours.
However, we will have to be patient. Just because researchers have succeeded in developing a new fueling way does not mean that we can expect to see such vehicles on the road anytime soon. It will indeed be several years before this concept is turned into reality.
1. As a fuel, what is the advantage of hydrogen over oil?| A．Refilling empty tanks will be more convenient. |
| B．It is less likely to worsen global warming |
| C．More energy can be packed in the same space. |
| D．It will produce pure water for people to drink. |
| A．The practical difficulties to use hydrogen as fuel in small vehicles. |
| B．The detailed processes of adapting a strong tank in small vehicles. |
| C．The differences in fueling between large vehicles and small ones. |
| D．The tricks of building strong tanks in small vehicles. |
| A．inexpensive | B．powerful | C．convenient | D．environment-friendly |
| A．Powerpaste-driven vehicles sometimes move very slowly on the road. |
| B．Practical use of powerpaste-driven vehicles will not come very soon. |
| C．Powerpaste-driven vehicles can only work after being in the sun for hours |
| D．It will be years before the researchers work out the concept of powerpaste. |
5 . Do you like running enough to make it a habit? Temey Wolfgram does; she has made running a lifelong career and isn’t stopping.
In February, the 16-year-old from Woodbury High School, Minnesota, US, competed at the 2020 US Olympic Trials. She finished the marathon (42,J95 km) with a tune of 2:42:47 as the youngest competitor in the race and ranked 76th out of 390 runners.
Then, in November, Wolfgram, who turned 17, broke the Women's American Junior marathon record with her time of 2:31:49. The old record was 2:34:32, which had stood since 1984. During the run, Wolfgram once hit a wall pretty hard, but she overcame it to finish. “I guess I can say I gave it my all,” she told Runner's World. “When I finished, all I was thinking was that I was super happy,” Wolfgram said.
This was only her third marathon. In 2018, when Wolfgram was 15 years old, she ran her first marathon just because she wanted to see if she was capable of doing it. “I believed that I would get faster as the distances got longer... and I'm still glad that I did it.”
When preparing for that first marathon, she ran up to 120 miles （about 190 kilometers） per week. Although her parents didn't have any background in running, they helped Wolfgram train. At first, her dad would take her out in the morning and run about 13 miles. The distance would gradually increase each day. On top of her runs in the morning, she would do cross-country practice after school.
Next, Wolfgram will think about attending the Olympic Games in 2024 after it's scheduled.
1. In which race has Wolfgram broken a record?| A．The 2020 US Olympic Trials. | B．The 2020 Women’s American Junior marathon. |
| C．Her first marathon in 2018. | D．The 2024 Olympic Games. |
| A．To knock one's head against a wall. | B．To be disappointed. |
| C．To go smoothly. | D．To be very tired. |
| A．Her coach's support. | B．Her parents, encouragement |
| C．Her desire to prove she could do it | D．Her hope to break the national record. |
| A．Outgoing. | B．Determined. | C．Honest | D．Smart. |
6 . For most people, graduation is an exciting day the celebration of years of hard work. My graduation day... was not.
I remember that weekend two years ago. Family and friends had flown in from across the country to watch our class walk across that stage. But like everyone else in my graduating class, I had watched the economy turn from bad to worse. What I thought would take a week dragged into two. and then four, and 100 job applications later, I found myself in the exact same spot as 1 was before. And the due date to begin paying back my student loans was creeping ever closer.
You know that feeling when you wake up and you are just consumed with fear? Fear about something you can't control—that sense of approaching failure that remains over you as you hope that everything that happened to you thus far was just a bad dream? That feeling became a constant in my life. And the most frustrating part was no matter how much 1 tried, 1 just couldn't seem to make any progress.
So what did I do to maintain my sanity（理智）？ I wrote. Something about putting words on a page made everything seem a little clearer—a little brighter. Something about writing gave me hope. And if you want something badly enough... sometimes a little hope is all you need! So I channeled my frustration into a children's book. And then one day, without any sort of writing degree or contacts in the writing world — just a lol of hard work and perseverance—I was offered a publishing contract for my first book! After that, things slowly began to fall into place. 1 was offered a second book deal. Then, a few months later, I got an interview with The Walt Disney Company and was hired shortly after.
The moral of this story is... don't give up. Even if things look bleak now, don't give up. Things change If you work hard, give it time, and don't give up, things will always get better Oftentimes all we need is the courage to push beyond the river.
1. From Paragraph 2, we can learn that the author probably.| A．was having an exciting graduation |
| B．was getting into financial difficulties |
| C．missed the life in the university |
| D．had just applied for the student loans |
| A．By sending applications. | B．By offering contracts. |
| C．By keeping writing. | D．By publishing books. |
| A．unattractive | B．hopeless |
| C．thrilling | D．promising |
| A．Success belongs to the persevering. |
| B．A contented mind is a perpetual（长久的）feast. |
| C．A smooth sea never makes a skillful mariner. |
| D．Misfortunes tell us what fortune is. |
7 . Waterbuurt is a residential(住宅的) development in Amsterdam, which consists of nearly 100 floating homes on Lake Eimer.
The floating homes are not ordinary houseboats but real floating houses. They only move with the changing tide(潮水). Designed by Dutch architect Marlies Rohmer, the houses have a basic design but are also comfortable. Although Waterbuurt is still a work in progress, there are some of the houses where there are already residents.
Two thirds of the Netherlands’ people live below sea-level, and with the flooding(发洪水) becoming a serious concern, there are many who believe that living on water in the European country is much safer than living on land. The prices of land homes in large city centers like Amsterdam has risen in recent years. But water is not that expensive.
“Moreover, houses in the cities have to stay there for 50 or 70 years,” Dutch architect Koen Olthuis said. “And as cities change, the only choice is to demolish these houses and build new ones. But floating buildings can be moved and adapted.”
The floating homes are built atop underwater platforms, and consists of a light steel frame(钢架) and wooden walls and paneling(嵌板). The bedrooms and bathroom are located on the lower floor, which is partially flooded. The kitchen and dining room are located on the higher ground floor, while the main living area and the outdoor terrace are on the top level.
All floating homes are designed with a lot of extras that buyers can choose, like floating terraces,a second entry, or a boardwalk around the house.
Waterbuurt is set to become the largest water settlement in the history of the Netherlands. Apart from floating houses, it will include floating parks and even floating high buildings. It is sure to meet even the most difficult buyers and win more acceptance from local people.
1. What can we infer about the floating houses?| A．The prices are slightly lower. | B．They are free from flooding. |
| C．They are easy to take down. | D．The total completion is done. |
| A．Build. | B．Destroy. | C．Design. | D．Buy. |
| A．Waterbuurt can exist for 50 to 70 years in total. |
| B．Waterbuurt is very common in Amsterdam now. |
| C．People are unwilling to accept this new kind of house. |
| D．Floating houses have as many functions as traditional houses. |
| A．Curious. | B．Optimistic. | C．Indifferent | D．Pessimistic. |
8 . There are nearly 2,800 working satellites in space, which we depend on for technology we use every day, such as video calls, online maps, satellite TV, and weather tracking. Scientists use them to study space and learn more about our planet.
But there are many other satellites in orbit (轨道) that are no longer working. They're among the objects cluttering (使杂乱) up space. Some of these eventually fall back toward Earth, either landing or burning up in the atmosphere. But much of this space junk (垃圾) circles Earth for years. Space junk is a problem. Debris (残骸) floating around Earth puts technology and future space tasks at risk. Experts are working on ways to solve it.
Orbital debris, a type of space junk, is any human-made object that has slopped working but continues to float around the Earth. This includes satellites that are no longer used and pieces of spacecraft, such as rocket stages. It has been a large problem since the 1960s.
Space junk also includes broken pieces of objects. These occur when satellites hit against things. They also result from an object crashing into an old rocket stage that still contains fuel, causing an explosion (爆炸) . There have been more than 250 space explosions since the 1960s. These tiny broken pieces can damage working satellites, which can affect research in space.
Companies all over the world are working to clean up the area surrounding our planet. A company based in Japan will test the method of using magnets (磁石) to collect space debris. Another mission is led by a company based in Switzerland. It plans to carry out a debris-removal spacecraft in 2025. The craft will get hold of a piece of an old rocket, slow it down, and move it back to Earth. Eventually, the debris will burn out like a shooting star.
Governments are trying to help too. Some are updating their country's space guidelines to limit the amount of debris created. Space is so large that the problem won't be solved by a single organization or a single country. We have to work on this together.
1. What is the biggest harm that space junk does to human beings?| A．It will fall back toward the Earth. | B．It circles the Earth for years. |
| C．It puts other space objects in danger. | D．It will burn up in the atmosphere. |
| A．By making the orbital debris fall back to Earth. | B．By putting the pieces all together. |
| C．By collecting space junk with magnets. | D．By sending space junk into deep space. |
| A．Strict laws. | B．Global efforts. |
| C．Stopping in space exploration. | D．Setting up professional organizations. |
| A．Earth and its satellites. | B．The problem of space junk. |
| C．Ways of cleaning up space junk. | D．The various uses of man-made satellites. |
9 . In an effort to fight the “throw-away culture” and promote reuse and repair, the city of Berlin has taken the unique step of opening its own secondhand department store.
This isn’t your grandma’s thrift shop (旧货商店). It resells perfectly good items that would otherwise be thrown away. A pun on the German words for “department store” and “conserving house”, B-Wa(h)renhaus sells a wide variety of products. Far from simply selling old items, the electronic goods have been fixed by expert technicians and come with a year’s guarantee. And, to reach more secondhand shoppers, the store was set up right in the middle of the famous Karstadt department store.
With the success of its initial six-month trial run, the city plans to open four more similar operations in other parts of Berlin. By 2030, it hopes to have at least one location in each of Berlin’s 12 districts. Since 2008, city policies and educational campaigns have reduced average annual household waste by about 25 pounds per resident. It also recycles about 49% of its mineral construction waste. Currently, the city estimates that 8% of abandoned electronic goods and 6% of huge items thrown away can actually be reused. The goal is to expand the market for these items beyond the usual bargain hunters and eco-conscious consumers.
“Three years ago, we started collecting all kinds of used goods,” city spokesperson Dorothee Winden said. “There are lots of things that are well-preserved and functioning but aren’t being used anymore. The goal is to give these things a new life with somebody who can use them.” The store also includes an education center to encourage more sustainable lifestyles — and also gave an award to a project that recycles school uniforms, so that parents don’t have to buy new ones every year.
1. Why has Berlin opened its own secondhand department store?| A．To attract more shoppers. | B．To promote recycling. |
| C．To foster traditional culture. | D．To expand secondhand market. |
| A．The variety of the goods. | B．The location of the store. |
| C．The quality of the products. | D．The operation of the store. |
| A．Berlin currently has 4 second-hand stores in construction. |
| B．Berlin has been successful in cutting its waste since 2008. |
| C．It is not easy to make the goal to expand the market a reality. |
| D．It is estimated that Berlin will be a zero-waste city by 2030. |
| A．To introduce Berlin’s new reuse shop operation. |
| B．To raise people’s awareness of reasonable shopping. |
| C．To persuade people to become eco-friendly shoppers. |
| D．To encourage more people to donate to secondhand shops. |
10 . As an astronomer(天文学家)，I am accustomed to observing the universe in quiet places. I observe galaxies in the deep universe-places so far away that their light takes billions of years to reach our eyes.
Sometimes I wonder what our own galaxy looked like billions of years ago, before solar system was born. I often stare at the Hubble Deep Field(哈勃深空区)searching for clues∶galaxies colliding(碰撞)，stars exploding，and stellar nurseries. Can looking to the stars bring us closer together?
A couple of months ago，Betelgeuse，a bright star in the Orion constellation(猎户座) started to get dimmer and dimmer. Astronomers all over the world thought this might be a signal that the star was about to explode. Though it might not happen for another 1000 years or more, still I went outside every night to check it out. I was hoping that it would explode. Imagine seeing a star shining as bright as the full moon even during the day.
I started dreaming about using such an event to remind everyone that stars produce nearly all of the chemical elements in the universe, which came directly out of the Big Bang. Everything we breathe, touch and see was made inside of stars. The iron in our blood, calcium bones, and almost the entire periodic table are products of stellar evolution.
Betelgeuse did not explode, and more recent observations note that it is actually returning to normal. But nothing is normal here on Earth now. I am beginning to realize that we did not need a star to explode to unite us. All we needed was a common problem.
I am hoping that everyone on the planet is saving some time to contemplate（凝视，沉思)the universe and to realize we are not alone. No matter where we are or who we are, we are on this planet together. Since we are all made of stars, looking up at the night sky gives us a glimpse of our past and our future, and we can contemplate both together.
1. Why does the author write this article?| A．To advise others to stare at a potentially exploding star recently. |
| B．To research into the scientific mystery in the universe with readers. |
| C．To discuss the proper relationship between human and the universe. |
| D．To suggest us thinking about the way human beings live in this world. |
| A．is a star the author tracked for years |
| B．will produce chemical elements if it explodes |
| C．is a normal star which is disappearing |
| D．will explode in ten thousand years |
| A．Betelgeuse's potential explosion |
| B．Betelgeuse's getting dimmer and dimmer |
| C．the author's checking out every night |
| D．a star's shining as bright as the sun |
| A．What should an astronomer do? |
| B．Should we know more about the universe? |
| C．Looking to the stars can bring us closer together. |
| D．Getting united is a problem impossible to solve. |
