1 . Scientists have been trying to figure out how to alter the genes of humans for many years, and it looks like they’ve finally cracked (破解) the code. But while this may seem like a great step forward in science, some also believe that it’s one step back when it comes to ethics (道德准则). In August, a group of scientists from the USA and South Korea worked together to successfully edit a human embryo (胚胎) and remove a genetic mutation (突变) that would have led to heart disease, reported The Guardian. This was done with the help of CRISPR, a gene-editing tool that allows scientists to “cut and paste” human DNA.
Although this was the first example of an embryo’s genes being changed successfully, the advantages of gene editing have already been tested in living patients. In 2015, a five-month-old girl from the UK was saved after doctors used edited cells to fight off her cancer. As of today, she’s alive and well. And in the USA last year, scientists managed to remove HIV cells from several patients by editing the genes inside their bodies.
Some people hope that in the future, diseases or birth defects could simply be "edited out”. However, others believe this could lead to so-called designer babies, giving parents the option to choose everything from eye color to intelligence. “You could find wealthy parents buying the latest “upgrades” for their children, leading to even greater inequality than we already live with,” Marcy Camovsky, director of the San Francisco Center for Genetics, told BBC News.
In spite of these ethical concerns, experts say it’s not possible to create the “perfect” human being. Despite the progress scientists have made, we don’t understand human genes enough to give all unborn children great brainpower or amazing singing abilities. “Right now, we know nothing about genetic enhancement,” Hank Greely, a director at Stanford University, USA, told The New York Times. “We’re never going to be able to say, honestly, this embryo looks like it would score high on the two-part SAT.”
So it looks like if we want good exam results, or to impress people with our piano skills, we’ll have to stick with the old fashioned method of plain hard work---at least for now.
1. The underlined word “alter” in Paragraph 1 probably means ________.| A．record | B．change | C．remove | D．increase |
| A．A genetic mutation related to heart disease was removed by scientists. |
| B．A newborn baby with cancer was saved by edited cells. |
| C．HIV cells were removed from patients9 bodies. |
| D．Some birth defects were simply edited out. |
| A．They don’t think it is an effective way to fight diseases. |
| B．They are concerned that it could lead to genetic mutations. |
| C．They think it could lead to designer babies and increased inequality. |
| D．They worry that it could make parents abandon children with birth defects. |
| A．Gene editing is regarded as the perfect way to treat birth defects. |
| B．There is still a long way to go to fully understand human genes. |
| C．Gene editing could help enhance human intelligence in the near future. |
| D．Scientists are pessimistic (悲观的) about the future of gene editing. |
2 . By the time Robert Porter Allen was born in 1905, the whooping crane(鸣鹤)was already in trouble. The beautiful bird was once commonly found across North America. By 1941,the whooping crane population had dwindled to the double digits (数字).The tallest species in North America were critically endangered.
In the1940s, the remaining cranes migrate(迁徙)every year from the Gulf Coast of Texas to somewhere in the north of Canada to breed (繁殖). The conservation community didn't know where the birds went. The wetlands where they used to spend winters were growing rarer and rarer.
In 1942, Allen undertook the whooping crane project. Over the next three years, he did almost constant field work that took him from Texas up the cranes' migration route to Nebraska, and on into Saskatchewan in search of the nesting ground of the birds.
In 1952, Allen wrote a report on the whooping crane. The report was a warning call to the conservation community: only 33 migratory whoopers remained, and their nesting site still hadn't been found. Two years later, the whooping cranes breeding grounds in Canada's Wood Buffalo National Park were finally found, and Allen headed north to study them firsthand. Allen’s work laid the groundwork for conservationists lo save the birds.
Their efforts paid off as the numbers reached 57 by 1970 and 214 by 2005.Today, the whooping crane is still listed as endangered, but there are roughly 600 birds alive.
1. Which of the following events took place in 1954?| A．The non-migrating group of whooping cranes disappeared. |
| B．Robert Potter Allen undertook the whooping crane project. |
| C．The whooping cranes breeding grounds were discovered. |
| D．Robert Porter Allen wrote a report on the whooping crane. |
| A．Increased. | B．Reduced. |
| C．Stayed. | D．Limited. |
| A．Loss of living places. | B．Illegal hunting. |
| C．Natural disaster. | D．Deadly diseases. |
| A．It is a story about Allen's searching for a lost bird. |
| B．It is a story about the cranes' long migration flight. |
| C．It is a story about the crane surviving the winters. |
| D．It is a story about conserving the whooping crane. |
3 . There’s actually a famous sort of legend(传说) where everyone has these really, really long chopsticks(筷子), too long for them to feed themselves. And so in hell, everyone goes hungry, because they can’t pick up food and put it in their mouths. But in heaven, people take the same chopsticks and then feed each other.
Chopsticks are used widely. Across much of Asia, about 1.5 billion people use chopsticks in their daily lives. Different cultures have slightly different variations of chopsticks. Chinese chopsticks tend to be long and round, Korean chopsticks are flatter and often made of metal and Japanese chopsticks tend to be round and very, very pointy.
Chopsticks are actually really common in American society today. But there was definitely a time in the late 1800s when Asian men, because they ate rice with sticks, were of a different quality than American men, who ate proper meat with a knife and fork. But when China and the United States began their diplomatic engagement(外交接触) in the 1970s, Richard Nixon, Henry Kissinger, had to practice eating with chopsticks. As Asian cooking has moved from the East into the West, chopsticks have interestingly become part of the experience.
Chopsticks can date from the Shang dynasty which is about 3000 years ago, and they loved tripods(鼎) during that time. So when you cooked with these big tripods, chopsticks were actually really useful, because it was a way for you to reach without getting burned as the water was boiling in these really big pots. Chinese culture has knives and has forks. It uses them in many cases for cooking. But in the dining room, it is the chopsticks.
1. Why does the author mention the legend in Paragraph 1?| A．To give examples. | B．To make comparisons. |
| C．To raise questions. | D．To introduce the topic. |
| A．Forms. | B．Features | C．Changes. | D．Kinds. |
| A．People loved to use tripods because of chopsticks. |
| B．Chopsticks have been used since the ancient times. |
| C．Chopsticks may get you burned by the boiling water. |
| D．People use knives and forks to follow Chinese culture. |
| A．Chopsticks can do the same job as knives and forks. |
| B．Chopsticks have become more popular across the world. |
| C．Chopsticks have caused trouble in diplomatic engagement. |
| D．Chopsticks will be replaced by knives and forks in the future. |
4 . Dolphins have been known to show many human-like behavioral characteristics. These include forming complex relationships to accomplish common goals, teaching one another survival skills, and “babysitting” each other’s kids. Now, some researchers at Largo, Florida have discovered another thing the intelligent animals share with humans — a love for the television!
For their research, Kelly A. Winship and Holli C, Eskelinen observed 11 bottlenose and five rough-toothed dolphins. The animals were treated to two TV shows — Planet Earth and the popular kids’ series, SpongeBob SquarePants. The researchers say the dolphins did not seem to care what was being played. They were equally attracted by both — the realistic imagery of Planet Earth and the cartoon in SpongeBob SquarePants.
Interestingly, however, the male dolphins spent more time staring at the screen than the females. They also responded more strongly to the programming by either showing aggression (indicated by head moves), or interest (shown by raising their heads or pressing their foreheads against the TV), or even blowing bubbles (indicating interest or aggression). Winship and Eskelinen, who published their findings in the journal Zoo Biology, believe the display of aggression was most likely a result of the failure to physically interact with, or manipulate, the TV.
Though there is a lot more to learn about the animals’ television preferences, the scientists believe suitable programming could be used as part of enrichment programs for dolphins unfit to be released in the wild. The researchers also think monitoring their response to different kinds of shows could provide scientists with some insight into the dolphins’ thinking process.
1. What have researchers newly discovered about dolphins?| A．They somewhat behave like humans. | B．They offer help to each other |
| C．They are highly intelligent. | D．They enjoy watching TV shows. |
| A．The time of body moments. | B．Program preferences. |
| C．The strength of response. | D．Interacting methods. |
| A．Have control over. | B．React to. | C．Catch sight of. | D．Turn on. |
| A．Learning about their TV preference. | B．Enriching their life in the wild. |
| C．Monitoring their daily behaviors. | D．Studying how they think. |
5 . Scientists have designed “transparent(透明的) wood” that could replace conventional glass in windows.
The innovation was developed using wood from the balsa tree, which is native to South and Central America, and claims to be five times more thermally efficient than glass.
The team treated balsa wood in an oxidizing bath that bleaches(漂白) it of nearly all visibility and then penetrated it with PVA - creating a product that is virtually transparent. Unlike traditional glass, the transparent wood can withstand much stronger impacts and will bend or splinter when damaged, instead of shattering(粉碎).
The transparent wood was created by teams at the University of Maryland and University of Colorado, which set out to find a greener alternative to conventional glass – a production that creates 25,000 tons in emissions each year. Along with contributing to greenhouse gases, glass contributes to a loss of energy.
“Residential building windows in particular account for 10–25% of the heat loss due to their poor thermal management capability,” the team wrote in the study.
“Exploring energy efficient window materials is thus highly desirable to address heating costs, energy shortages, and the global impact of climate change associated with increased carbon emissions.”
The team notes that the bonding between PVA and cellulose(纤维素) in the wood, creates a tightly packed structure that allows for more thermal protection and makes it more durable and lighter than glass.
“Switching to transparent wood could prove to be cost efficient as well,” researchers shared in a statement. “It is made from a sustainable, renewable resource with low carbon emissions. It can be produced with existing industrial processing equipment, making its manufacturing an easy prospect.”
1. What does the underlined word “thermally” in paragraph 2 mean?| A．Associated with cost. | B．Connected with heat. |
| C．Associated with emissions. | D．Connected with structure. |
| A．It will shatter when damaged. | B．It has replaced traditional glass. |
| C．It is more durable than glass. | D．It contributes to greenhouse gases. |
| A．To show the disadvantages of conventional glass. |
| B．To show the efficiency of thermal management. |
| C．To explain the importance of building designing. |
| D．To explain the global impact of climate change. |
| A．Its tightly packed structure. | B．Its sustainable, renewable resource. |
| C．Its easy manufacturing prospect. | D．Its industrial processing equipment. |
6 . Have you ever noticed that the stars sometimes appear brighter in December, January and February? There's a link between cold air and the night lights. "Part of it is that it tends to be drier in the winter," said Diane Tumshek, an astronomer at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Even though it's invisible, moisture can change the way light moves through the air. And in the summer, moisture can make stars appear more dull.
Air temperature is also what puts the twinkle twinkle in the little stars. "Even on very clear nights, some of the atmosphere is cooler, and some of the atmosphere is warmer,” said Tumshek, who also works with the Allegheny Observatory. And when the light from a star passes through those bubbles of varying temperatures, "it bends and shifts the light, so that we are seeing stars appear to dance or twinkle,” she said.
For star lovers in the United States, there's another factor that comes into play for bright winter stars, although this is a matter of coincidence. During Earth's journey around the sun, “there are just simply more bright stars visible from the Northern Hemisphere in the winter sky," Tumshek said. If you really want to see a shiny star, just try to find a burning ball of gas called Sirius near the horizon. At 8.6 light-years away, Sirius is relatively close to Earth and the brightest star visible in the night sky. It is also large — nearly twice as big as our sun and 20 times as bright. So this winter, when the world turns cold and it seems like we should be spending more time indoors, consider asking an adult to go exploring outside. With a warm coat and a clear sky, any night can be turned into a treasure hunt. All you have to do is look up.
1. What does the underlined word "dull" in Paragraph 1 probably mean?| A．not shiny | B．not exciting | C．not severe | D．not smart |
| A．By changing the bubbles around them. | B．By putting the twinkle twinkle in them. |
| C．By varying the direction of the light from them. | D．By making the stars dance and twinkle in the sky. |
| A．It can be found at any night. | B．It is 20 times as bright as the sun. |
| C．It is a burning and shiny ball. | D．It is closer to Earth than other stars, |
| A．To advocate stargazing in winter, | B．To call on people to focus on stars. |
| C．To present new research results about stars. | D．To explain why stars are more visible in winter. |
7 . When the German psychologist Kurt Lewin moved to the U.S., he found his new home a little puzzling, especially when it came to friendships. “Compared with Germans, Americans seem to make quicker progress toward friendly relations early in the acquaintance process and with many more persons,” he wrote. “Yet this development often stops at a certain point and the quickly acquired friends will, after years of close relations, say goodbye as easily as after a few weeks of acquaintance.”
Lewin thought that this idea of friends as fast fashion might be encouraged by the United States’s high level of residential mobility (居住流动性).
Gillath and Keefer did studies where people took questionnaires about their willingness to things and their history of moving from place to place. They found that people who’d moved around a lot were more willing to get rid of objects, and being willing to get rid of things was connected with being willing to cut social ties.
Moving is a big life change, and not only with regard to place. The social circles they have easy access to are also likely to change. This isn’t to suggest that people view their friends as objects. “Moving also requires making choices about which relationships are worth keeping and which are not, which ties could be replaced and which ties should be kept,” Gillath and Keefer write.
Perhaps this tendency to keep friendships from getting too deep comes not only from an easy-come, easy-go attitude due to mobility, but also the knowledge of how hard it is to leave people. As John Reisman puts it, “Within a changing society, people could, by keeping their friendships at an associative level, protect themselves from the sadness and self-blame that can be brought about when they have to cut close relationships.”
1. What puzzled Kurt after he came to America?| A．Americans were friendly to Germans. |
| B．Americans easily won emotional friends. |
| C．Americans were likely to end friendships easily. |
| D．Americans considered it fashion to make friends. |
| A．Throw away | B．Put away | C．Take over | D．Break down |
| A．keep one’s former social circles |
| B．judge one’s friendship with others |
| C．choose the objects from old friends |
| D．test one’s long-distance relationships |
| A．To be ashamed of living in a changing society. |
| B．To feel less guilty of moving away all the time. |
| C．To keep themselves from being hurt by friends. |
| D．To reduce the pain of ending deep friendships. |
8 . My mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s(老年痴呆症) last summer.Suddenly, it was difficult for me to accept that the roles were now reversed-my mother became my child, and I became her mother.I became impatient, argued with her, once I even yelled at her.Gradually, I was used to this kind of life.Now I am able to deal with her and the situation better.I have learned a lot of life lessons from the experience.
My mother reacts very sensitively to my feelings.That is typical of Alzheimer’s patients.When I visit her, feeling busy and tense, she reacts immediately, takes on my mood, and becomes nervous and negative.But when I appear cheerful and attentive, she is happy.This has taught me to pay more attention to my own feelings when I am with other people.
I was thought I was very tolerant( 容 忍 的 ), but in reality, my tolerance ran out as soon as someone turned away from what I considered “right”.With my mother I can now really be tolerant.Through her illness she has developed a childlike tactlessness(不得体).Eating out in restaurants, for example, is a bit embarrassing when she shouts at the waiter that the food is so bad or talks about people at the next table in a loud voice.Of course I make sure that my mother doesn’t offend(冒犯) anyone, but I’ve stopped complaining about others and have become more tolerant.
I have also learned that everything has special value.When my mother got sick, I didn’t want to burden my two daughters with it.They are young and have enough going on with their education and starting their careers.I felt that it was simply my job as my mother’s daughter.The most wonderful discovery I’ve made through my mother’s disease may be that my children not only offer to help me when they sense that I’m feeling overwhelmed, but that they take care of my mother on their own initiative(主动地).They visit her often, play cards with her, and look at photo albums together with her.It shows me that it’s all worth it.
1. Which of the following is common behavior of Alzheimer’s patients?| A．Curiosity about everything. | B．Sensitivity to other’s moods. |
| C．Fear of strange people. | D．Quick reaction. |
| A．concerned | B．scared | C．embarrassed | D．stressed |
| A．the writer accepted the role change immediately |
| B．the writer only paid attention to her mother’s feelings |
| C．the writer has a great sense of responsibility |
| D．the daughters took over the responsibility to look after their grandmother |
| A．how I cared for my sick mother |
| B．how I became more tolerant |
| C．what I have learned from my mother’s illness |
| D．why I am feeling overwhelmed |
Did you know that the Chinese built the largest canal in the world? Its length of 1,104 miles easily compares with a route linking New York and Florida. Connecting five river systems and four provinces, it ends at Beijing in the North and Hangzhou in the south. For this reason, it is officially called the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal.
In 486 B.C., the leader of the State of Wu, to transport goods to the northern areas of China, constructed a man-made channel using already existing waterways to link the Yangtze and Huai rivers. It was this channel that laid the foundation for the future longer Grand Canal. More than 1000 years later, Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty had the old canals rebuilt and connected to form what we know today as the Grand Canal.
Then in 1403,Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty transferred his capital from Nanjing to Beijing. In order to feed all those moving North, he had to transport grain from the south along the Grand Canal. To restore the Canal, more than 47,000 men were employed.
The canal soon became the economic lifeline of the empire. Grain was not the only trade goods transported North on the waterways. Salt was another, as well as wine and tea. Goods traded from the North included cotton, wool, coal, flour, precious stones, and dried meat. At times, more than 120,000 soldiers and officers were needed to operate the almost 12,000 ships that annually travelled the Grand Canal.
With the expansion of the railway system in the mid-1800s, the Grand Canal became less and less important to traders. Today, few goods are transported along its waterways. Still, the current South-North Water Transfer Project proves that the Chinese government still sees the Grand Canal important to the welfare of China. The aim of this costly project is to divert huge amounts of water every year from the Yangtze River to the drier regions in the north.
1. What is special about the Grand Canal?| A．It can date back to the Sui Dynasty. |
| B．It has a history of less than1, 000 years. |
| C．It runs from New York to Florida. |
| D．It is the longest canal across the world. |
| A．It was first constructed to convey officers. |
| B．It was employed for wars by Emperor Yongle. |
| C．It used to transport goods between south and north. |
| D．It is now carrying more goods than the railway system. |
| A．Transfer. | B．Recycle. | C．Conserve. | D．Clarify. |
| A．A diary. | B．A magazine. | C．A novel. | D．A biography. |
10 . Whenever she was having a tough day, Selena Berry would look at the sky and imagine herself, flying high in the clouds above her troubled neighbourhood and challenging school life. "Flying makes you feel big, "Betty said. "You’re on top of everything. You look down and all you see is the view, the beauty. "
This summer, Berry and seven other African-American students in the Chicago area participated in a program to learn how to fly. The program is new and challenging for participants. In the end, successful students will graduate with a private pilot’s license.
The unique program is called Tuskegee Next. "It is a special effort to increase the number of African-Americans who can work as pilots. "said Stephen L. Davis, who owns a big company Wheaton , lllinois and founded the organization. The main mission of the group is to help students follow in the footsteps of the country’s first black military pilot Tuskegee. It costs about $25, 000 to take the lessons and pay for the flying time. But it is free for these students. Davis donates his own money and raises funds to cover the costs.
For much of his early life, Davis wanted to become a pilot. But growing up, he could not afford the expensive schooling. By the time he could afford lessons, he had a wife and children and did not want to take the risk. For the students, the benefits of learning to tly are greater than being pilots. "When you don’t see black pilots, you don’t think you can do it, he said. "Even if these kids don’t become pilots, learning to fly will give them confidence to do other great things. "
Tuskegee Next targets African-American teenagers from rough communities who might never have such a chance. The experience will change their lives and let them see a happy future. Some of the students in the program will receive a small stipend, which makes up for the summer jobs they would have otherwise.
All eight of the students have passed the written exam. Now they are spending hours piloting a Cessna airplane with an instructor. Some are already flying the planes alone. On a recent sunny afternoon, 20-year-old Quiana White spent about an hour alone in a Cessna airplane practicing turns. This was her first solo flight and her classmates crowded around her after she landed. "You’re not the same person once you go up on your own, "she said. "No matter what happens, I know I’m a pilot. "
1. Thinking of being in the sky brought Selena Berry_____| A．some relief from her daily life |
| B．some memories of her school life |
| C．some trouble her neighbours made |
| D．the beautiful view she saw from the sky |
| A．It encourages teenagers to serve in the army. |
| B．It aims to find another Tuskegee in the country. |
| C．It helps black teenagers build hope for their future. |
| D．It is a commercial organization founded by Davis. |
| A．Chance. | B．Fine. |
| C．Job. | D．Pay. |
| A．It quotes community leaders who see the difference this program has made. |
| B．It quotes students who have experienced its positive influence on their lives. |
| C．It quotes family members who have noticed the progress made by their kids. |
| D．It quotes a study that shows the program has positively changed the lives of teenagers. |
