1 . As heat waves continue to ravage the planet, air conditioners are becoming more and more common. However, these "active" cooling devices are posing problems because the electricity consumption which most people are concerned about and the release of ozone-damaging chemicals worsen the greenhouse gas effect, resulting in the creation of heat islands and further thermal pollution. Therefore, "passive" cooling, which doesn't have such effects, has attracted considerable attention from both scientists and ordinary people in recent years.
In a recent study, a team of researchers from China and US presented an eco-friendly, low-cost smart coating to keep buildings cooler while consuming zero electricity. Infrared radiation-based passive cooling has been investigated since 2014, but challenges, mainly the expensive and unsustainable design, have greatly limited their large-scale and widespread application. Besides, the imbalance in cooling ability of these coatings during the day and night tends to lead to great day-night temperature differences as more heat is lost than gained at night.
The solution therefore requires a "smart" mechanism that can both enhance daytime cooling and minimize nighttime heat loss. To do this, the researchers created a new smart coating comprised of conventional building materials, including titanium dioxide nanoparticles, fluorescent microparticles, and glass microspheres that were engineered to reflect most of the sunlight. Specifically, the titanium dioxide particles effectively reflect sunlight through light scattering（撒播）while the fluorescent particles increase the amount of reflection by changing the absorbed sunlight into fluorescence emissions, which drive more heat away from the building. Meanwhile, the glass microspheres re-send mid-infrared broadband radiation, allowing not only heat loss, but allowing heat exchange to take place between the building and the sky.
The coating was tested on a model concrete building. Through this efficient heat exchange with the sky, daytime cooling was strengthened while nighttime cooling was reduced. The building's inside temperature was always maintained at around 26℃, even when the out-side temperature varied from 24℃ to 37℃ during the day. We believe this new coating will make it to commercialization soon, enabling a sustainable, passive cooling technology that could help to fight climate change and the global energy crisis.
1. What is the virtue of passive cooling?| A．It is simple to design. | B．It uses no chemicals. |
| C．It is smart. | D．It uses no power. |
| A．It was hard to design. |
| B．Its material was hard to produce. |
| C．Its heat loss and cooling are imbalanced. |
| D．It wasn't tested on a model concrete building. |
| A．Metal. | B．System. | C．Platform. | D．Building. |
| A．The principle of air-conditioning. |
| B．The differences between active and passive cooling. |
| C．A new coating to keep buildings cool without electricity. |
| D．A new building to maintain its inside temperature without electricity. |
2 . An architecture class at WSU will present their ideas for a small luxury hotel to upgrade Pullman's downtown during the Town and Gown Collaborative meeting which will be held from 7:30-9 a.m. on Oct.22 in the Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories Event Center．The Collaborative is a joint committee between the city of Pullman, Pullman Chamber of Commerce and WSU．Its purpose is to strengthen ties between the city and the university and to foster a strong relationship to create a special college town．
As part of the third-year class, seven student teams each designed a five-star luxury boutique hotel in Pullman located on the former Mimosa Cafe site on Main Street．Out of seven hotel designs produced, the class will put forward three of the most pioneering solutions to the city of Pullman during the Collaborative meeting．
WSU Architecture Professor Paul Hirzel said that the 5-star luxury hotel choice is absent in the Palouse and a rarity in Eastern Washington, giving his students a unique challenge．Features of their projects include 16-luxury rooms, a roof top swimming pool, loft suites with balconies overlooking the river, and a ground level cafe with sidewalk and riverside courtyards．The project explores a current trend in college towns of providing the five-star boutique hotel choice to the more typical franchise hotel choices．
The presentation to the city gives the students a valuable real-world opportunity to present their projects to potential stakeholders and to advocate for their designs to nonarchitects, Hirzel said．Goals for the project also included exposing his students to the realities of structure and material choice as well as a challenging site condition fronting on both a river(that floods) and a main street．
"When students can achieve beyond their expectations in creating a new vision for downtown Pullman, both the students and the Pullman downtown community will benefit．" he said．
1. What does the underlined word "foster" in the first paragraph mean?| A．Prove． | B．Change． | C．Weaken． | D．Promote． |
| A．Beauty． | B．Comfort． | C．Creativity． | D．Convenience． |
| A．Sizes of the hotel rooms． | B．Detailed design requirements． |
| C．Service facilities around the hotel． | D．Lack of 5-star luxury hotels in cities． |
| A．It is a win-win project． |
| B．It is beyond the students' ability． |
| C．It shows the students' intelligence． |
| D．It enables students to realize the challenges． |
3 . Although all Middle Eastern cultures cannot be grouped into one class, they do have similarities in their rules for the appropriateness of eye culture. Eye contact is much less common and considered less appropriate in many of these cultures than it is considered in the United States.
Middle Eastern cultures, largely Muslim, have strict rules regarding eye contact between the sexes; these rules are connected to religious laws about appropriateness. Only a brief moment of eye contact would be permitted between a man and a woman, if at all.
However, western women traveling in Muslim areas should not expect that no man will attempt to make eye contact with them. As a matter of fact, their “differentness“ may draw attention to them, and men may try to make eye contact with them. They should be aware, however, that returning eye contact will be considered the same as saying, “Yes, I'm interested!" So when in the Middle East, care should be taken in making eye contact with anyone of the opposite gender.
On the other hand, in many Middle Eastern cultures, intense eye contact between those of the same gender—especially between men-can mean “I am telling you the truth! I am genuine in what I say!” Try to observe the eye contact between those of the same gender to see if it is important to meet someone's long look when you want to tell them, “Trust me! I'm sincere!”
As you can see, it is vital to know what eye contact communicates before you visit a new culture. Before you travel, you would do well to go to your local public library or bookstore and check out or look through a book about the culture of the country you plan to visit. Learn how to use eye contact and other body language wisely so that you are regarded as polite, and so that you can better connect with people in a culture that is foreign to you!
1. What do most Middle Eastern countries have in common?| A．Dealing with each other properly. | B．Keeping a long distance while talking. |
| C．Keeping looking into the eyes while talking. | D．Making little eye contact between different genders. |
| A．It is their own cultures. | B．It is considered polite. |
| C．The western women are different. | D．It is considered to be appropriate. |
| A．hopeful | B．serious | C．confident | D．reasonable |
| A．To support his conclusions. | B．To show the importance of eye contact. |
| C．To give us some explanations. | D．To teach us to communicate in Middle East. |
4 . Paris is the city of dreams. If you plan to head to Paris for a study period, then perhaps a little reality check is in order. But my experience was a romantic one.
I paved my path to Paris through an exchange program. On arrival in Paris, I was constantly reminded of the official processes I had to complete — forms to be filled in, meetings to attend, the list seemed endless.
Then the real work began. Once classes were underway, I found myself volunteering to do oral presentations and assignments first, rather than last. This method proved to be very helpful.
Once I had finished class for the week, I had an ever-increasing list of museums to visit, neighborhoods to explore, and cafes to sit in. Read books about Paris. Talk to locals and other foreigners living there. But the one thing that reading a book or talking to someone cannot do is to provide you with the experience of wandering Paris on foot. The people watching, the sounds of the city, the colors as the seasons change, they all add to the ecstasy that I experience in Paris as an exchange student.
After spending five months wandering through the charming neighborhoods, I fell in love with the atmosphere that came out from every open door, and with every spoken word. There is something comforting about walking to the market each Sunday to enjoy the beautiful display of fruits, vegetables and dairy products. There is warmth in saying bon jour to the passers-by.
On my last day in Paris, I confidently said, " Bonjour Monsieur," as I passed the little store down the street. I guess the best part about going on exchange in Paris is falling in love with the city in your own way. And I know mine is unique and special to me, my own little pieces of Paris.
1. What does the underlined word "ecstasy" in Paragraph 4 probably mean?| A．Courage. | B．Happiness. | C．Imagination. | D．Reputation. |
| A．A traveling experience. | B．An exchange program |
| C．Charming neighborhoods. | D．An exchange student's life. |
| A．Hanging around in Paris. | B．Buying vegetables in the market |
| C．Enjoying coffee in his spare time. | D．Greeting people in French in the street. |
| A．The presentations he did in class. | B．The friendly people he met in Paris. |
| C．The special culture he experienced in the city. | D．The academic achievement he made in his study. |
5 . What do you do with old stuff? That dress you bought for a party three years ago, for example. You wore it once and put it away somewhere. So, what to do?
In the UK, we might take it to a charity shop. The first charity shops appeared in Britain in the 19th century. The Salvation Army was one of the first to run a second-hand clothing shop to provide the needy with affordable clothes. This was followed by charities such as the British Red Cross, who also relieved hardship and raised money for the war effort during World War Two. In 1947, Oxfam opened a charity shop in High Street, Oxford, which is the modern form we know today. These days, charity shops are a common sight with around 11, 200 shops across the UK, according to the Charity Retail Association. During business hours the public can donate their unwanted items to a charity shop-clothes, books, electronics, furniture. These items are checked for wear and tear and if found still serviceable, priced up to be sold at a heavily discounted price.
For many, this is a win-win situation. To the charity, it means a valuable source of income. To the consumer, it provides the opportunity to buy, often extremely cheap items and clothes. To the donator, it may help to assuage consumer guilt. “You can make a pretty good case to yourself that you are doing good, because what you are doing is going towards a charitable cause and you are saving stuff from landfill(垃圾堆),” Clare Press, fashion journalist and sustainable style advocate, tells the Guardian.
There are sometimes hidden treasures for the buyers, too. Take a screen print for example. It was bought for 99p and later found to be by English artist Ben Nicholson. It was sold for￡4, 200. So next time you need to rid yourself of something, spare a thought for the charity shop-after all, charity begins at home!
1. The text is mainly written to________.| A．comment on the benefits of charity shops |
| B．analyze the popularity of the UK charities |
| C．list the names of the first UK charity shops |
| D．introduce something about UK charity shops |
| A．British Red Cross | B．The Salvation Army |
| C．Oxfam | D．Charity Retail Association |
| A．Ease. | B．Add. | C．Mix. | D．Increase. |
| A．Get rid of unwanted items. | B．Start charity from daily life. |
| C．Be environmentally friendly. | D．Make a difference for the future. |
6 . Ghina Ghaliya of Indonesia says a stranger’s visit to her house led to a campaign to help students affected by the COVID-19. Ghaliya remembers when a garbage collector come to her house in Jakarta, the Indonesian capital. The man asked if she had an old mobile phone that his children could use to get on the Internet. Even ugly phones were okay.
“He said it does not matter if it is the ugly one, as long as his children can use it for learning from home,”she said. “I thought there must be many people who need second-hand mobile phones out there.”
Ghaliya works for a national newspaper. Shortly after the COVID-19 hit Jakarta, she and 11 other journalists organized a group to provide food and money for poor people. They started hearing from parents who wanted their children to study online but lacked a way to use the Internet. Ghaliya thought of her meeting with the garbage collector when she and her group decided to donate mobile phones to poor students.
Many of these children were not able to do face-to-face learning when the new school year started in July. When the journalists announced their campaign through social media, the reaction was overwhelming. Many people donated second-hand phones, while others gave cash donations. As of November, the journalists had collected more than 200 mobile phones and the donations of more than $35,000. They used the money to buy more phones. They also paid for Internet use for those needing it.
Qayran Ruby had also been using his father’s mobile phone to attend three video calls a week with his teachers and get homework. But the 11-year-old boy sometimes sent his homework late because he had to wait for his father to return from work in order to get back online, which made him upset. But a big smile appeared on his face when he received the mobile phone sent by Ghaliya’s group. “I will use the phone to do online school every day.”Ruby said.
1. Why did the garbage collector go to Ghaliya’s house?| A．To collect the garbage in the house. |
| B．To get on the Internet for a phone. |
| C．To help her with some housework. |
| D．To ask for the second-hand mobile phone. |
| A．She started a campaign to help out-of-school children. |
| B．She is kind journalist who is dedicated to the charity. |
| C．She and her colleagues donated much money to poor children. |
| D．She provided online lessons for students with other journalists. |
| A．sensitive | B．confusing | C．fierce | D．dull |
| A．He couldn’t hand in his homework online on time. |
| B．His father didn’t allow him to use his mobile phone. |
| C．He had to attend three video calls a week with his teachers. |
| D．He was asked to use the phone to do online school every day. |
7 . Days after Argentina canceled all international passenger flights to protect the country from the new coronavirus, Juan Manuel Ballestero began his journey home the only way possible: He stepped aboard his small sailboat for what turned out to be an 85-day odyssey across the Atlantic.
The 47-year-old sailor could have stayed put on the tiny Portuguese island of Porto Santo, but the idea of spending what he thought could be “the end of the world” away from his family, especially his father who was soon to turn 90, was unbearable. So he loaded his 29-foot sailboat with canned fish, fruit and rice and set sail in mid-March.
“I didn’t want to stay like a coward (懦夫) on an island where there were no cases,” Mr. Ballestero said. “I wanted to do everything possible to return home. The most important thing for me was to be with my family.”
Friends tried to dissuade Mr. Ballestero from starting the perilous journey, and the authorities in Portugal warned him he might not be allowed to re-enter if he ran into trouble and had to turn back. But he was determined, “I bought myself a one-way ticket and there was no going back,” he said.
Sailing can be a lonely passion, and it was particularly so on this voyage for Mr. Ballestero, who each night tuned into the news on a radio for 30 minutes to assess how the virus was spreading across the globe. “I kept thinking about whether this would be my last trip,” he said.
When he made it to his native Mar del Plata, on June 17, he was surprised by the hero’s welcome he received. “Entering my port where my father had his sailboat, where he taught me so many things and where I learned how to sail, gave me the taste of a mission accomplished,” he said. A medical professional administered a test for Covid-19 on the dock. Within 72 hours, after the test came back negative, he was allowed to set foot on Argentine soil.
While he didn’t get to celebrate his father’s 90th birthday in May, he did make it home in time for Father’s Day.
1. Why did Juan Manuel Ballestero start his journey?| A．To be reunited with his family. |
| B．To avoid being infected by the coronavirus. |
| C．To realize his dream of sailing. |
| D．To prove his bravery. |
| A．He was forbidden to enter Mar del Plata port. |
| B．He didn’t receive any information about the outside world during the journey. |
| C．He failed to celebrate his father’s birthday. |
| D．He was not allowed to leave Porto Santo by the authorities in Portugal. |
| A．distant | B．tiring |
| C．boring | D．adventurous |
| A．The man was born in Porto Santo in Argentina. |
| B．His friends encouraged him to start his journey. |
| C．A test for Covid-19 was given to him the moment he arrived. |
| D．The man was not worried at all during the trip. |
8 . A music talent show launched by Mango TV has caught the attention of domestic TV channel viewers recently. This entertainment program, whose Chinese name translates to “Sisters Who Brave Winds and Waves”, invited 30 established actresses in their thirties, put them up in an apartment where they competed against each other and then selected five among them to form a new star group.
While young hopefuls are commonly considered to be the protagonists of music talent show, “Sisters Who Brave Winds and Waves” turns out to be an outlier. Apart from showcasing female stars musical talent, this show tries to deliver a positive message that age should not be the barrier for female entertainers to chase their dreams. The reality that most female entertainers have a short “shelf life” needs to be changed.
Attracted by the unique theme of Mango TV’s new show, many Chinese viewers were desperate for the show’s debut. The first episode aired last week received 10 million views within the first 20 minutes. Following the initial success, Mango Excellent Media’s stock rose by nearly 9% on Friday and another 7% on Monday. The company’s market value has now surpassed 100 billion yuan ($ 14 billion).
The value of this show was not only recognized by the market, but also the majority of Chinese viewers. Many netizens made good comments on the new show as it encouraged them to explore their inner potential no matter how old they are. One wrote, “Of course, young stars in their late teens and early 20s are beautiful. But I feel more impressed by these celebrities over the age of 30.” She went on to say that their confidence and ambition make them shine, and that age is just a number.
The Mango TV’s new show comes as a welcome relief, which demonstrates that charm and ambition is not limited to the young age. In fact, such age equality should extend to all professions to ensure that people with all ages could be treated equally in pursuit of their career goals.
1. What does the underlined word “outlier” in paragraph 2 mean?| A．Surprise. | B．Success. |
| C．Failure. | D．Exception. |
| A．The company’s market value has now exceeded 14 billion dollars. |
| B．Mango Excellent Media’s stock rose by nearly 16% over the weekend. |
| C．Nearly 10 million viewers watched the first episode within the first hour. |
| D．The debut of the new show did not affect the company's market value. |
| A．She thinks young celebrities are not attractive to the audience. |
| B．She holds the view that Mango TV’s new show is conventional. |
| C．She believes charm could make the celebrities shine no matter their age. |
| D．She complains about age discrimination in the entertainment industry,. |
| A．He/She aims to purse gender equality. |
| B．He/She protests against age discrimination. |
| C．He/She is a fan of musical shows. |
| D．He/She dreams about being an actor/actress. |
A lodestone compass was used in China during the Han Dynasty between the 2nd century BC and 1st century AD, where it was called the “south-governor” (sīnán). It was not used for navigation, but rather for geomancy and fortune-telling. The earliest reference to a magnetic device used for navigation is in a Song Dynasty book dating to 1040-1044, where there is a description of an iron “south-pointing fish” floating in a bowl of water, aligning itself to the south. The device is recommended as a means of orientation “in the obscurity of the night.” The first suspended magnetic needle compass was written by Shen Kuo in his book of 1088.
For most of Chinese history, the compass that remained in use was in the form of a magnetic needle floating in a bowl of water. According to Needham, the Chinese in the Song Dynasty and continuing Yuan Dynasty did make use of a dry compass, although this type never became as widely used in China as the wet compass.
The dry compass used in China was a dry suspension compass, a wooden frame crafted in the shape of a turtle hung upside down by a board, with the lodestone sealed in by wax, and if rotated, the needle at the tail would always point in the northern cardinal direction. Although the 14th century European compass-card in box frame and dry pivot needle was adopted in China after its use was taken by Japanese pirates in the 16th century (who had in turn learned of it from Europeans), the Chinese design of the suspended dry compass persisted in use well into the 18th century.
1. What was sīnán used for?| A．Trade. | B．Orientation. | C．Fortune-telling. | D．Navigation. |
| A．alarming | B．adjusting | C．reminding | D．forcing |
| A．The wet compass was widely used in China. |
| B．The needle of the dry compass would always faced the south. |
| C．Japanese pirates in 16th century knew little about compass. |
| D．The first compass was mentioned in a book of 1088 written by Needham. |
| A．Great Scientists | B．The Famous Dynasties in History |
| C．The Unforgettable Centuries of China | D．The Great Invention of Ancient China—Compass |
10 . Dry Ice is a unique substance which has many uses. Essentially, dry ice is frozen CO2. The first report of what we now call dry ice came from the French chemist Charles Thilorier in 1834. In 1924, the Drylee Corporation of America named the solid form of CO2 as "Dry Ice", which is what it is popularly called today.
At normal atmospheric pressure, CO2changes directly from solid to gas. It skips the liquid phase（阶段）which makes regular ice wet. Frozen CO2is also much colder than regular ice. But regular ice freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit, CO2 changes from gas to solid at -109.3 degrees Fahrenheit. This extremely cold temperature makes it very dangerous to handle with bare hands. It can cause frostbite in a very short period of time.
Dry ice has been used for a variety of purposes throughout the past century. Its primary use is to refrigerate food when electrical refrigeration isn't available. Through the process of sublimation (when CO2 changes from solid to gas), it can maintain cold food for a long time.
If you've ever been to a play and seen heavy fog on the ground, it is likely that you have seen dry ice in action. This effect can be achieved because CO2 is heavier than air, so evaporated （挥发的）CO2 will sink and accumulate on the ground.
Another interesting use for this substance is to bait（诱杀）insects like mosquitoes. These insects have sensors which guide them to CO2. They find the high concentration of CO2 in dry ice quite attractive.
Mars has long been a mystery for human beings. We have been looking for evidence of life on Mars. In the 1960s scientists guessed that the polar ice cap of Mars was made of frozen CO2. More recent observations have shown that while the topmost layer consists of frozen CO2, the most of it is probably regular frozen water.
1. Frozen CO2 gets its name of "Dry Ice" mainly because______.| A．it is very easy to make it dry |
| B．we can't melt it and it doesn't get wet |
| C．it looks like ice at a low temperature |
| D．it is solid like ice at -109.3 degrees Fahrenheit |
| A．the shakes caused by cold |
| B．damage caused by freezing |
| C．a fever caused by being cold |
| D．a sharp pain caused by bums |
| A．freeze most of food in the next century |
| B．increase the production of farming |
| C．make a vivid fog effect on stages |
| D．help to improve the environment |
| A．Dry ice on Mars is near the polar. |
| B．Not much dry ice has been found on Mars. |
| C．The polar ice cap of Mars is unique. |
| D．No frozen CO, on Mars can be melt. |
