1 . The sudden death of the 23-year-old female emplovee of Pinduoduo has sparked a heated debate, with many criticizing the overwork culture. Three experis share their views. Excerpis (节选) follow:
Labor laws compatible (兼容的) with digital era needed
This case should inspire society to reflect on how to better protect employees’ rights in the digital era. The relevant clauses in the Labor Law cannot be specifically applied to charge internet companies suspected of violating laborers' rights and interests.
The blurring (模糊) of the line between social and economic activities in the digital era makes it difficult to define fixed working hours.
Lawmakers should find out the new factors affecting labor relations due to the rapid development of internet and communications technology. This can pave the way for law-making on working hours in the digital era. “996” working schedule is against labor laws.
More than one year ago, it was shocking to hear e-commerce tycoons (巨头) Liu Qiangdong and Jack Ma publicly support the "996" working schedule to push their employees to work harder. A growing number of companies have been using different methods to exercise ever-increasing control over their employees.
To correct the situation, it is vital that the country bring in specific law on internet enterprises, especially in terms of labor contracts and work schedules, and make it clear that the “996” working schedule is illegal.
Death due to overwork needs legally definition
Work pressure and long working hours can seriously affect workers' physical and mental health, making. them more easily hurt by occupational and stress-related diseases.
But it is difficult to prove that a person dies of overwork. Only a person who dies at the workplace or of a sudden illness within 48 hours of getting off work is considered a victim of work.
China should issue guidelines explaining in detail what leads to death due to overwork.
1. What do the three experts agree on?| A．The Labor Law in China is non-effective. |
| B．It is difficult to define fixed working hours. |
| C．Supervision on companies should be tightened. |
| D．Improvement should be made to the current laws. |
| A．To highlight the models of e-commerce. |
| B．To introduce tycoons' attitudes to overwork. |
| C．To confirm their efforts to protect employees. |
| D．To express disagreement on “996” working schedule. |
| A．To make somebody anxious. | B．To do sports or other physical activities. |
| C．To use your power to achieve something. | D．To test or make experimental use of something. |
| A．Someone dies on his way to office. | B．Someone dies of a heart attack in his office. |
| C．Someone dies three days after work. | D．Someone dies after work without symptoms. |
2 . If you think of the jobs that robots could never do, you would probably put doctors and teachers atop of the list. It’s easy to imagine robots and factory workers. But are we underestimating what robots can do?
In some cases, they already do better than doctors at diagnosing illness. Also, some patients might feel more comfortable sharing personal information with a machine than a person. Could there be a place for robots in education after all?
British education expert Anthony Seldom thinks so. He even has a date for the robot takeover of the classroom:2027. He forecasts that robots will do the main job of disseminating knowledge and teachers will be like helpers. Intelligent robots will read students’ faces, movements and even brain signals. Then they will pass the information on to each student in the way he or she can understand.
However, it’s not a popular opinion. Most people think it’s impossible that robots will have the ability to really connect with humans like another human can.
One thing is certain, though. A robot teacher is better than no teacher at all. In some parts of the world, there aren’t enough teachers and 9%-16% of children under the age of 14 don’t go to school. That problem could be partly solved by robots because the owners can teach anywhere.
Being a teacher is a difficult job and teachers often feel overworked. Perhaps the question is not “Will robots replace teachers?” but “How can’t robots help teachers?” Teachers spend a lot of time doing non-teaching work, including more than 1 hour a week marking homework. If robots could cut the time teachers spend marking homework and writing reports, teachers would have more time and energy for the parts of the job humans do best.
1. What does the author mainly intend to show in the first paragraph?| A．Robots can do creative work. |
| B．Robots will replace doctors soon. |
| C．Robots work better than humans. |
| D．Robots can do more jobs than imagined. |
| A．Storing. | B．Spreading. |
| C．Analyzing. | D．Replacing. |
| A．Unacceptable. | B．Uncreative. |
| C．Unconcerned. | D．Reasonable. |
| A．What robots are never able to do. |
| B．What the weaknesses of robots are. |
| C．Whether robots will evolve by themselves. |
| D．Whether robots will completely replace human teachers. |
3 . Think of Japan in the spring, and the image that comes to mind is likely the country’s famous cherry blossoms, which experience a “peak bloom (开花)” that only lasts a few days and have been honored in Japan for more than a thousand years. But this year, the cherry blossom season has come and gone in the blink of an eye, in one of the earliest blossoms on record -- and scientists warn it’s a symptom of the larger climate crisis threatening ecosystems everywhere.
Yasuyuki Aono, a researcher at Osaka Prefecture University, has gathered records from Kyoto back to 812 AD from historical documents and diaries. In the central city of Kyoto, cherry blossoms peaked on March 26, the earliest in more than 1,200 years, Aono said. And in the capital Tokyo, cherry blossoms reached full bloom on March 22, the second-earliest date on record.
The peak bloom dates shift every year, depending on numerous factors including weather and rainfall, but have shown a general trend of moving earlier and earlier. “Cherry blooms are very temperature sensitive,” said Aono. “Flowering and full bloom could be earlier or later depending on the temperature alone,” he said. This year’s seasons in particular influenced the blossom dates, he added. The winter was very cold, but the spring came fast and unusually warm, so “the buds are completely awake after enough rest.”
Their early bloom, however, is just the tip of the iceberg of a worldwide phenomenon that could make natural systems and countries’ economies unstable, said Amos Tai, assistant professor of earth science at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. There are two sources of increased heat, which is the main factor making the flowers bloom earlier: urbanization（城市化）and climate change. With increased urbanization, cities tend to get warmer than the surrounding rural area, in what is called the heat island effect. But a bigger reason is climate change, which has caused rising temperatures across the region and the world.
These earlier dates aren’t just a matter of tourists scrambling to catch peak bloom before the petals all fall-- it could have a lasting impact on entire ecosystems, and threaten the survival of many species.
1. What is the purpose of mentioning the dates and figures in paragraph 2?| A．To present “peak bloom” in Tokyo came earlier than in Kyoto. |
| B．To suggest when cherry blossoms will bloom next year. |
| C．To report the dates of “peak bloom” in different Japanese cities. |
| D．To show cherry blossoms came out earlier this year than in the past. |
| A．The blossom season this year is a sign of a larger global crisis. |
| B．The weather will be too cold for the blossoms to last long enough. |
| C．The earlier peak bloom will threaten the survival of many species. |
| D．The earlier bloom could affect natural systems and countries’ economy. |
| A．Deciding. | B．Managing. | C．Rushing. | D．Marching. |
| A．The Japanese Climate Crisis |
| B．Sooner’s Not Always Better Than Later |
| C．Cherry blossoms and Their Impact |
| D．The Early Blooming of Cherry Blossoms |
4 . Plastic garbage is one of the world’s biggest environmental headaches. Some plastic items like water bottles and shopping bags can last for hundreds of years after being thrown away, with all this plastic rubbish disrupting ecosystems and disturbing the habitats of wildlife.
There have been several projects to help control plastic production, but researchers may have found a natural way to get rid of the products.
Waxworms, which are confusingly classed as caterpillars(毛毛虫), are the honey bee’s worst nightmares, as they lay their eggs inside their hives(蜂巢). Amateur beekeeper Federica Bertocchini decided to use plastic bags to protect the hives, however she was dumbfounded when she discover the insects were able to eat holes into the sides of the bags.
The beekeeper’s surprising findings sparked a study. Bertocchini, from the Spanish National Research Council, teamed up with scientists from Cambridge University to perform some tests.
When the team put about one hundred waxworms into a standard UK plastic shopping bag, they began feasting. After about 12 hours they’d eaten roughly 92 milligrams of the bag.
In all, this isn’t huge amount, but it’s a lot faster than other natural ways. Last year, researchers found a specific type of bacteria( 细 菌 )could eat plastic, but at a rate of 0. 13 milligrams a day, making this is a massive jump in the search for a natural way to dispose(处理) plastic.
The team is still not 100 percent sure how the worms do what they do, but they’re heralding this as an important first step to get rid of pollution.
Luckily, while that team works out the answer, plastic manufacturers have found a way to make their products much more environmentally friendly. There are three types of environmentally friendly plastics: bioplastics(which are made from corn starch), biodegradable plastics(which break down quicker) and recycled plastic.
Hopefully with these new products, we will get closer to a society that is less harmful to the environment.
1. Why is plastic garbage a huge environmental headache?| A．Because some plastic bottles can stay on the street for many years. |
| B．Because this kind of rubbish will do great damage to the environment for years. |
| C．Because more and more plastic bags will make the environment look dull and ugly. |
| D．Because the plastic rubbish will make the wild life get worse than before. |
| A．Shocked. | B．Frightened. | C．Embarrassed. | D．Uncomfortable. |
| A．They make the plastic into honey. |
| B．They help scientist develop new plastic. |
| C．They eat the plastic in an environmentally friendly way. |
| D．They work with some plastic factories to deal with plastic faster. |
| A．The author is optimistic about the environment. |
| B．There will be more plastic products. |
| C．The waxworms will play a major role in the future. |
| D．No one is 100 percent sure what the future will be like. |
5 . After two nights of staying in her apartment in Houston without power, Felicia Maten had no running water, her fingers and toes hurting from the cold. She huddled under blankets with her mother and daughter, together using their breath to warm themselves against freezing temperatures that weren't letting up.
She drove around looking for a hotel. But she couldn't find an available room, and the roads were dangerous. Finally, a neighbor suggested she go to Gallery Furniture. The owner, Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale, opened one of his local stores as a shelter for Texas residents displaced by the winter storms.
During the three days the makeshift shelter was open, thousands of people came in for food and warmth and hundreds slept over. "It meant so much to have somebody who doesn't even know us care that much," Maten said. "That man is full of love."
This isn't the first time McIngvale has opened his doors to people in weather emergencies. He did so during Hurricanes Katrina in 2005 and Harvey in 2017.
McIngvale began preparing for the winter storm a week in advance by buying 15,000 gallons of diesel to power the store's generator for a week or so. He took Covid---19 precautions by providing security hand sanitization（杀菌）and masks.
McIngvale got the word out about the shelter through the business' social media following and news coverage. He and his employees made specific accommodations for people, such as those with babies who need bottles warmed or senior citizens who need oxygen tanks plugged in.
"He was serving food, handing out water, going around checking on people." said Jacy Wadhams, another Texas resident living in the area for 15 years. "He really takes pride in what he does. He's an amazing person."
"We believe that we all have responsibility for the wellbeing of the community and when times get tough we try to open our doors and let people come in and regroup," said McIngvale.
1. What does the underlined word "huddled" in paragraph 1 mean?| A．Warmed up. | B．Stayed hidden. |
| C．Kept calm. | D．Crowded together. |
| A．She had power failure and no running water at home. |
| B．The extreme freezing weather would continue. |
| C．Gallery Furniture opened for the residents. |
| D．Her mother and daughter asked her to find one. |
| A．He is always ready to help others. |
| B．He has a talent for managing. |
| C．He is a very considerate man. |
| D．He is a low---key person. |
| A．To be a businessman with conscience. |
| B．To be a loving and responsible person. |
| C．To create a well- known brand of product. |
| D．To fight bravely against bad weather. |
6 . People who play drums regularly for years differ from unmusical people in their brain structure and function. The results of a study by researchers from Bochum suggest that they have fewer, but thicker fibers in the main connecting tract between the brain hemispheres(半球). In addition, their motor brain areas are organized more efficiently. This is the conclusion drawn by a research team headed by Dr. Lara. It was published in the journal Brain and Behavior, online on 4 December 2019.
The researchers were interested in drummers because their movement control far surpasses that of untrained people. "Most people can only perform fine motor tasks with one hand and have problems playing different rhythms with both hands at the same time," explains Lara, "Drummers can do things that are impossible for untrained people."
The team intended to gain new insights into the organization of complex motor processes in the brain by identifying the changes in the brain caused by this training. The researchers tested 20 professional drummers who have played their instrument for an average of 17 years and currently practice for more than ten hours per week. They examined them using various MRI imaging techniques that provide insights into the structure and function of the brain. They then compared the data with measurements of 24 unmusical control subjects. Both groups had to play drums to test their abilities and were then examined in the MRI scanner.
Drummers presented clear differences in the front part of the corpus callosum(胼胝体)responsible for motor planning. The data indicated that the drummers had fewer but thicker fibers in this important connecting tract. This allows musicians to exchange information between the hemispheres more quickly than the controls.
Although drummers might be good at motor coordination, they are less active in motor tasks than that of control subjects. This phenomenon indicates that a more efficient brain organization in the areas leads to less activation in professionals.
1. Which has the closest meaning with the underlined word in Paragraph 2?| A．Correspond with. | B．Go beyond | C．Differ from. | D．Fall behind. |
| A．By analyzing previous study. |
| B．By organizing complex motor tasks. |
| C．By testing their abilities and scanning the brains. |
| D．By comparing amateur drummers and unmusical people. |
| A．They are more active in motor tasks. |
| B．They can play rhythms more quickly. |
| C．They have better imagination and insights. |
| D．They have more efficient brain organization. |
| A．Playing drums changes the brain. |
| B．Playing drums can be trained. |
| C．Playing music makes you active. |
| D．Playing music brings benefits. |
7 . Have you ever had the feeling that you can't think when there is too much noise around? Did you ever think a fish could experience that feeling too? A recent paper published in Science titled “Soundscape(声景)of the Anthropocene Oceans”, combined over 10,000 scientific papers, confirming that undersea life knows that exact same feeling, more often than not. Anthropogenic(人为的)ocean noise, also known as underwater noise pollution, has created a dramatic impact on marine life due to “human-caused” activity within and neighboring our oceans.
Disney Pixar's animated film Finding Nemo educated us about the ocean, and specifically within the ordinary world of a clown fish. A fact many may not know is that clown fish spend the first part of their lives as larvae(幼体), drifting with the current(洋流)of the ocean until they become strong enough to swim against it. Once they are powerful and strong, they head home in sheltered coral reefs. There is only one disadvantage-the fish can't physically see the reef, but they can hear it. The only problem is, if they can't hear it, will they ever make it home?
Our anthropogenic ocean noise, such as cargo ships, ship and boat propellers, surfing, deep sea mining. etc. are causing destruction of marine life. According to Time, sound is the sensory signal that travels the farthest through the ocean. Anthropogenic noise drowns out the natural soundscapes, putting marine life under immense stress. Altogether, this stress then affects their general health, disturbs their behavior, physiology. reproduction and, in extreme cases, causes death. Marine life can adapt to noise pollution, however, only if they can escape it. This only renders further complications(困难, 问题)of straying(使偏离)species from their traditional breeding regions or separating them from their families.
Now, what if we told you there is already a solution? Multiple remedies, ideas and designs are currently in the works or already exist to get rid of and change the damage of anthropogenic ocean noise. As Time explains, from wind-powered ships to noise-reducing propellers(螺旋桨)，floating wind turbines(风力发电机)and “bubble curtains” that muffle construction noise, the solutions are already available and in some cases, cost-effective(划算的). The authors of the paper hope it will catch the attention of policymakers, who historically speaking, have ignored the mater still to this day.
Of all the challenges ocean creatures are battling, luckily sound pollution is the easiest compromise humans can make. Once the noise has decreased, marine life will be able to better manage everything else it is up against.
1. What do we know about “Soundscape of the Anthropocene Oceans”?| A．It analyses how sound travels in the ocean. |
| B．It discusses different types of ocean pollution. |
| C．It explores the effects of noise pollution on sea life. |
| D．It studies how sea animals communicate with each other. |
| A．To present their life cycles. |
| B．To show how terrible their living conditions are. |
| C．To introduce a famous animation about the ocean world. |
| D．To stress the importance of natural soundscapes to sea life. |
| A．Causes. | B．Reduces. |
| C．Reveals. | D．Prevents. |
| A．The management of ship traffic. |
| B．The restriction of human activities. |
| C．The adoption of noise control techniques. |
| D．The application of relevant laws. |
