1 . Have you ever loved a destination but couldn’t figure out why — or even a way ——to express your feelings? That’s my dilemma with Morocco.
In August, I traveled in a country that had long been, on my wish list. I rode a camel, got lost in Medinas, and ate more couscous (粗麦粉) than was humanly possible.
I loved the trip. Our friendly guide introduced us to the helpful locals. I made friends with my tour mates and my roommate (which, on a tour, is a huge blessing). I loved being lost in the smell of different spices, and the chaos of millions of people and the dark red of the Sahara were all I wanted them to be.
There were many moments when I felt like a fish out of water and things didn’t go my way. But I take pleasure in those moments because it’s when you are pushed out of your comfort zone that you grow. Morocco lived up to all my expectations, but for some reason, my experience has been hard to express. Why?
One constant in my travels is that of a touchstone, one defining point where the trip all comes together and acts as a prism (三棱镜) for everything the journey represented . In Costa Rica，it was getting lost in a jungle. In Thailand, it was meeting those five people who changed my life.
I’m so inconsistent about Morocco because I lack that touchstone. There’s no “whoa” moment. But I have thousands of little ones - staring at a million stars in the blackness of the desert, discovering new foods with some amazing Australians on my tour, and befriending the fish sellers.
1. What does the author regard as a huge blessing?| A．Going on a guided trip. |
| B．Having a helpful guide. |
| C．Being warmly received by the local people. |
| D．Getting along well with the fellow travelers. |
| A．To prove Morocco lacks the touchstone. |
| B．To show his reliance on the touchstone. |
| C．To compare Morocco with Costa Rica and Thailand. |
| D．To share his experience in Costa Rica and Thailand. |
| A．The lack of big moments. |
| B．The little “whoa” moments. |
| C．Meeting with five Thai people. |
| D．Making friends with Australians. |
| A．Unpleasant travel in Morocco. |
| B．Finding a touchstone on travel. |
| C．Reflection on traveling in Morocco. |
| D．Lack of special moments in Morocco. |
2 . Ever wondered if dogs can learn new words? Yes, say researchers as they have found that talented dogs may have the ability to grasp new words after hearing them only four times.
While previous evidence seems to show that most dogs do not learn words, unless eventually very well trained, a few individuals have shown some extraordinary abilities, according to a study published in the journal Scientific Reports.
“We wanted to know under which conditions the gifted dogs may learn novel words,” said researcher xuekw Claudia Fugazza from the Eötvös Loránd University in Hungary. For the study, the team involved two gifted dogs, Whisky and Vicky Nina. The team exposed the dogs to the new words in two different conditions.
In the exclusion-based task, presented with seven known toys and one new toy, the dogs were able to select the new toy when presented with a new name. Researchers say this proves that dogs can choose by exclusion when faced with a new word, they selected the only toy which did not have a known name.
However, this was not the way they would learn the name of the toy. In fact, when they were presented with one more equally new name to test their ability to recognize the toy by its name, the dogs got totally confused and failed.
The other condition, the social one, where the dogs played with their owners who pronounced the name of the toy while playing with the dog, proved to be the successful way to learn the name of the toy, even after hearing it only 4 times. “The rapid learning that we observed seems to equal children’s ability to learn many new words at a fast rate around the age of 18 months,” Fugazza says. “But we do not know whether the learning mechanisms(机制) behind this learning are the same for humans and dogs. ”
To test whether most dogs would learn words this way, 20 other dogs were tested in the same condition, but none of them showed any evidence of learning the toy names, confirming that the ability to learn words rapidly in the absence of formal training is very rare and is only present in a few gifted dogs.
1. What was the purpose of the study published in Scientific Reports?| A．To better train dogs’ ability to learn new words. |
| B．To further confirm previous evidence about dogs. |
| C．To prove extraordinary memory abilities of gifted dogs. |
| D．To explore favorable conditions for gifted dogs’ new-word learning. |
| A．Slow to understand. | B．Quick to learn. | C．At a loss. | D．In a panic. |
| A．Learning through playing applied to most dogs. |
| B．The social condition helped dogs learn new words. |
| C．Dogs’ new-word learning turned out to be less effective. |
| D．Dogs shared similar learning mechanisms with children. |
| A．Gifted Dogs Can Learn New Words Rapidly. |
| B．Dogs Identify Newly-named Toys by Exclusion. |
| C．Dogs Can Acquire Vocabulary through Tons of Training. |
| D．Gifted Dogs Have Similar Learning Abilities to Humans. |
3 . Li Bai is regarded as the greatest romantic poet of the Tang Dynasty and a representative of the High Tang culture, combination of realistic Northern culture represented by Confucian philosophy and romantic Southern culture represented by Taoist philosophy. But he could neither realize his Confucian ideal to serve the country nor find spiritual freedom in Taoism, so he could only chant poetry and drink wine to drown his sorrow as described by Du Fu in Eight Immortal Drinkers. Here we see the tragedy of a genuine staying lonely on earth like an angel fallen from Heaven. His poetry is marked by male greatness in the Waterfall in Mount Lu Viewed from Afar, in which we see the mountain cloud from down below and the Silver River, Chinese name for the Milky Way, fall from on high, and heaven and earth seem to merge into one, that is the Chinese way of communion with nature. In his poetry, we can find his love of nature, of freedom, of the people, of his friends, in short, of truth, good and beauty.
Li Bai is best known for the extraordinary imagination and striking Taoist imagery in his poetry, as well as for his great love for liquor. Like Du Fu, he spent much of his life travelling, although in his case it was because his wealth allowed him to, rather than because his poverty forced him. He is said to have drowned in the Yangtze River, having fallen from his boat while drunkenly trying to embrace the reflection of the moon.
1. What is this passage mainly about?| A．The introduction to a famous poet in Tang Dynasty — Li Bai. |
| B．The differences between romantic and realistic culture. |
| C．The extraordinary characteristics of Li Bai’s poems. |
| D．The travelling experiences while Li Bai made poems. |
| A．he is a representative of the combination of realistic and romantic culture |
| B．he could not put his ability to good use in serving his country at that time |
| C．he had a depressed mental state and only drunk wine and chanted poetry |
| D．he made the poems in which complaints and dissatisfaction could be shown |
| A．beautiful nature and feelings | B．criticism of social realism |
| C．relationship between different classes | D．cruelty of the officialdom |
| A．the Silver River ran down from the high mountain | B．Li Bai loved the beauty of nature badly |
| C．Li Bai’s poems were written down by a man | D．the cloud was like waterfall from high heaven |
4 . No human has set foot on the Moon since 1972. Now, after more than four decades of inactivity, interest in putting humans back on the Moon is finally heating up again. But who will get there first?
CHINA
On 14 December 2013, China successfully landed its Jade Rabbit rover(探测车)on the Moon. It is now working on its next exploration mission. Named Chang’e 4, the mission is scheduled to touch down in the Aitken Basin near the end of 2018. If successful, it will be the first landing on the Moon’s far side.
RUSSIA
Russia plans a manned Moon landing in 2030. It is currently working on a project whose idea is that the landers will explore the south pole of the Moon, exploring for resources such as minerals and water ice to be used to provide for a human outpost(前哨站).
INDIA
Following the success of its Chandrayaan-1 in 2008, India announced a follow-on mission. Chandrayaan-2 was meant to cooperate with Russia. But when the Russians failed to deliver the promised lander in 2013, India decided to go it alone. Chandrayaan-2 is about to be sent up in 2018.
U. S. A.
In December 2018, NASA plans to send up the Exploration Mission 1, an uncrewed test of their Orion astronaut capsule in which the craft will circle around the Moon before returning to Earth. All being well, a crewed capsule will follow in 2023. Should the mission prove a success, the astronauts will be the first humans to see the far side of the Moon with their own eyes since Apollo 17 in 1972.
1. What will China do in its next space mission?| A．Improve its Jade Rabbit rover. |
| B．Work with other countries. |
| C．Land Chang’e 4 on the Moon. |
| D．Explore the south pole of the Moon. |
| A．It couldn’t find a partner. |
| B．It didn’t get the lander as planned. |
| C．The Russians refused to work with India. |
| D．It planned to launch Chandrayaan-2 in advance. |
| A．Russia. | B．China. | C．India. | D．U. S. A. |
5 . Every week in China, millions of people will sit in front of their TVs watching teenagers compete for the title Character Hero, which is a Chinese-style spelling bee. In this challenge, young competitors must write Chinese characters by hand. To prepare for the competition, the competitors usually spend months studying dictionaries.
Perhaps the show’s popularity should not be a surprise. Along with gunpowder and paper, many Chinese people consider the creation of Chinese calligraphy(书法) to be one of their primary contributions to civilization. Unfortunately, all over the country, Chinese people are forgetting how to write their own language without computerized help. Software on smart phones and computers allows users to type in the basic sound of the word using the Latin alphabet. The correct character is chosen from a list. The result? It’s possible to recognize characters without remembering how to write them.
But there’s still hope for the paint brush. China’s Education Ministry wants children to spend more time learning how to write.
In one Beijing primary school we visited, students practice calligraphy every day inside a specially decorated classroom with traditional Chinese paintings hanging on the walls. Soft music plays as a group of six-year-olds dip brush pens into black ink. They look up at the blackboard often to study their teacher’s examples before carefully attempting to reproduce those characters on thin rice paper. “If adults can survive without using handwriting, why bother to teach it now?” we ask the calligraphy teacher, Shen Bin. “The ability to write characters is part of Chinese tradition and culture,” she reasons. “Students must learn now so they don’t forget when they grow up.” says the teacher.
1. What can we learn about the Character Hero?| A．It’s open to people of all ages and all walks. |
| B．It’s the most-viewed TV programs in China. |
| C．It aims to spread Chinese culture to the world. |
| D．It draws great public attention across the country. |
| A．Chinese people don’t refer to dictionaries very often. |
| B．Chinese people no longer use brush pens or practice calligraphy. |
| C．Chinese people are using the Latin alphabet instead of the characters. |
| D．Chinese people needn’t write by hand as often with the help of technology. |
| A．necessary for adults to survive in China |
| B．a requirement made by the Education Ministry |
| C．helpful to keep Chinese tradition and culture alive |
| D．an ability to be developed only when you are students |
| A．A news report. | B．A science report. |
| C．An advertisement. | D．Children’s literature. |
6 . Most of us marry creativity to our concept of self either we're "creative" or we aren't, without much of a middle ground. "I'm just not a creative person!" a frustrated student might say in art class, while another might blame her talent at painting for her difficulties in math, giving a comment such as, "I'm very right-brained."
Dr. Pillay, a tech entrepreneur and an assistant professor at Harvard University, has been challenging these ideas. He believes that the key to unlocking your creative potential is to ignore the traditional advice that urges you to "believe in yourself." In fact, you should do the opposite: Believe you are someone else.
Dr. Pillay points to a 2016 study demonstrating the impact of stereotypes on one's behavior; The authors. educational psychologists Denis Dumas and Kevin Dunbar, divided their college student subjects into three groups, instructing the members of one to think of themselves as "romantic poets" and the members of another to imagine they were "serious librarians" (the third group was the control). The researchers then presented all the participants with ten ordinary objects, including a fork, a carrot, and a pair of pants, and asked them to come up with as many different uses as possible for each one. Those who were asked to imagine themselves as romantic poets came up with the widest range of ideas, whereas those in the serious-librarian group had the fewest. Meanwhile, the researchers found only small differences in students' creativity levels across academic majors.
These results suggest that creativity is not a fixed individual characteristic but a "malleable product of context and perspective, as long as he or she feels like a creative person. Dr. Pillay argues that, besides identifying yourself as creative, taking the bold, creative step of imagining you are somebody else is even more powerful. So, wish you were more creative? Just pretend!
1. According to the passage， who is more likely to unlock his creative potential?| A．An art major who always believes in himself. |
| B．A math major who has excellent academic performance |
| C．A physics major who likes to imagine himself as a poet. |
| D．A history major who works as a librarian on weekends. |
| A．The creativity of the college students. |
| B．The stereotypes of the college students. |
| C．The impact of stereotypes on one's behavior |
| D．The influence of creativity on one's behavior. |
| A．stable | B．sustainable | C．predicable | D．changeable |
| A．there is no doubt that we are either creative or not |
| B．a student who doesn't do well in art class is not creative |
| C．right brain determines whether a person is creative or not |
| D．if we pretend to be creative， then we might be really creative |
7 . Affordable Beach Vacation in Corfu
Corfu, an island off the coast of Greece, offers visitors sunkissed shores with clear water and lots of beaches.
Finding the Perfect Beach
Our first pick is Sidari Beach. It’s a blue flag beach perfect for couples looking for a more private feel, as it’s far from bigger tourist destinations. Issos Beach makes for the perfect place for watching the sunset. Dassia Bay has a bit more water sports. Paleokastritsa is an amazing West Coast village with six beaches on offer, including Rovinia Beach.
Getting around Corfu
Corfu offers bike rentals and bus service as a cheaper alternative (替代) to taxis. The best time to visit Corfu is during the “shoulder season” in April/May. The weather isn’t as warm as the high seasons but it remains perfect. It is not crowded in this period, but you still need to book ahead of schedule as Corfu stays popular throughout the year.
Eating Out For Less
There are a lot of well-priced restaurants but street food is also a big winner. Some popular choices are Souvlakia and Pita Gyros. There are also many cheeses special to Greece, including Tirokafteri and Ladotyri. Corfu also has many unbelievable desserts (甜食). Stazei Meli is a tourist favourite to give them a try.
1. Which place is probably the best choice for couples?| A．Sidari Beach. | B．Dassia Bay. |
| C．Issos Beach. | D．Rovinia Beach. |
| A．Rent a bike. | B．Book in advance. |
| C．Wear warm clothes. | D．Set off in April/May. |
| A．It cooks popular dishes. | B．It severs well-priced food. |
| C．It produces special cheese. | D．It sells amazing desserts. |
8 . The biggest and the smallest of the world’s animals are most at risk of dying out, according to a new analysis, with vertebrates (脊椎动物) in the so-called “Goldilocks zone”—not too big and not too small—winning out. Action is needed to protect animals at both ends of the scale, they say. The research adds to evidence that animals are dying out on such a scale that a sixth extinction is considered under way.
One clue is body size. Research on birds and mammals has shown that those with larger bodies are more likely to go extinct. Yet, when the researchers made a database of thousands of birds, mammals, fish, amphibians (两栖动物) and reptiles (爬行动物) at risk of extinction, they found disproportionate (不成比例的) losses at the large and small ends of the scale.
“Surprisingly, we found that not only the largest of all vertebrate animal species are most threatened, but the very tiniest ones are also highly threatened with extinction,” Prof. Ripple told BBC News.
Large animals, such as elephants, rhinos (犀牛) and lions have long been the target of protection efforts. However, fish, birds, reptiles and amphibians that are the giants of their kind, such as the whale shark, Somali ostrich (鸵鸟) and the Chinese giant salamander (蝾螈), tend to be overlooked. Meanwhile, small species at risk--such as frogs and shrews (鼩鼱)--receive very little attention.
“I think, for the smallest species, first of all we need to bring higher awareness to them, because the larger ones get a lot of attention, but the smaller ones get very little,” said Prof. Ripple.
In the study, vertebrates with the smallest and the largest bodies were found to be most at risk of disappearing, whether they were on land or living in oceans, streams or rivers.
Heavyweights are threatened mainly by hunting, while featherweights are losing out to pollution and cutting down forests. “Ultimately, reducing global consumption of wild meat is a key step to reduce negative impacts of hunting, fishing, and trapping on the world’s vertebrates,” they write in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
1. What made the researchers feel surprised?| A．A sixth of animals are dying out. |
| B．Small animals are in great danger. |
| C．Great losses of birds and mammals. |
| D．Big animals are at risk of disappearing. |
| A．Transform our habits. | B．Change our concepts. |
| C．Find ways to save small animals. | D．Take measures to stop pollution. |
| A．Loss of forests. | B．Climate change. |
| C．Human activities. | D．Environmental pollution. |
| A．Size Matters When It Comes to Extinction Risk |
| B．Large Animals Are Badly in Need of Protection |
| C．Why a Great Number of Animals Are Dying out |
| D．What We Should Do to Protect Endangered Species |
9 . A survey done by the University of Michigan shows a big drop in the number of teenagers who say they smoke cigarettes.
In the survey, over 44, 000 students in grades 8, 10 and 12, from 424 schools across the country were asked about their smoking habits. The results show that smoking among 8th graders went down from 21 percent in 2002, to 12 percent in 2007. In the same period, smoking dropped from 30% to 21% among 10th graders and from 37% to 30% among 12th graders.
Anti-smoking organisations think educating kids about smoking risks is the cause of the drop. “These important drops in teen smoking did not just happen by chance,” said study director Lloyd D, Johnston, “A lot of individuals and organisations have been trying to bring down the high rates of teenagers.”
Others say the higher price of cigarettes is an important reason teens are cutting back.
Whatever the reason, the drop in teen smoking is news to everyone, even cigarette-making companies warn their product is only for adults, not kids. Health experts are particularly paying attention to teenage smoking habits because lifetime smokers often get hooked on smoking at an early age.
But some say that the new figures aren’t exactly the cause for celebration. While it is true fewer teens are smoking today than five years ago, the rate of teen smoking is still higher than it was.
Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death and disease in this country. “Our survey suggests that a lot of teens still do not understand the dangers of smoking particularly the younger teens,” Johnston said.
1. The rate of teen smoking among 12th graders dropped by according to the survey.| A．7% | B．30% | C．9% | D．21% |
| A．educating kids about smoking risks |
| B．efforts from health experts and organisations |
| C．the higher price of cigarettes |
| D．the cut down of the number of cigarettes |
| A．Become interested in. | B．Get tired of. |
| C．Give up. | D．Take no interest in. |
| A．The rate of teen smoking is far lower than it was. |
| B．Cigarette smoking can be stopped sooner or later. |
| C．There is a different idea about the drop in teenage smoking. |
| D．No younger teens really understand the dangers of smoking. |
10 . Some people say global English is no longer just controlled by British or American English,but is running free and developing uniquely local forms.Can you figure out the following terms?
“I like your smile,but unlike you put your shoes on my face.”This is a way of saying“Keep off the grass.”Or“people mountain,people sea”,which means“very crowded”.
These examples are what we call Chinglish.When it comes to Chinglish,if all you know is“good good study,day day up”,you will be considered“out man”.
Nowadays,more Chinglish words have been created,for example,a Chinese idiom is translated as“smilence”,a combination by the English word smile and silence.
Chinglish usually offers a humorous look at misuses of the English language in Chinese street signs,products,and advertising.They are favoured by some English speaking tourists and visitors.Dominic Swire has been living in Beijing for a couple of years.“I think many Chinese people complain about the Chinglish and badly translated English.But you know,sometimes for us foreigners,it’s actually quite charming to see them.I think if the translations of English in China were all perfect,then something would be lost from Chinese culture.”
However,Chinglish will probably become a“cultural relic”in the near future.Beijing has made a comprehensive plan to improve foreign language services and correct Chinglish within five years.“It is very ridiculous to see Chinglish on the signs in some scenic spots.And they are a kind of barrier for communication between Chinese and people from other countries,”a Beijinger said.
Some Chinese university experts side with Chinglish.They argue that English has absorbed elements from other languages such as French and Spanish in its growth,and now it’s Chinese’s turn.
1. What can we call Chinglish?| A．English words which get new Chinese meanings. |
| B．The Chinese words which are difficult to translate. |
| C．The words combining English vocabulary and Chinese grammar. |
| D．The local words preventing foreigners from learning Chinese well. |
| A．Saying nothing but to smile. | B．Smiling without being noticed. |
| C．Laughing at somebody. | D．Knowing little about speech. |
| A．It can show the humour of Chinese. | B．It will attract more foreign tourists. |
| C．It helps him to learn Chinese well. | D．It seems part of Chinese culture. |
| A．Because it has become a unique bridge between Chinese and English. |
| B．Because Chinglish is a chance to enrich Chinese and English. |
| C．Because it improves the understanding between Chinese and foreigners. |
| D．Because Beijing is determined to get rid of Chinglish signs. |
