1 . ANKARA—The wushu team of Ankara, the Turkish capital, practices hard to win new medals and titles in Turkey.
Wushu has grown in popularity throughout the country. In a sports center, young athletes are training strenuously. “We are committed to martial arts and there is a real interest in wushu, which includes different techniques. Our athletes are ambitious,” Serkan Bakir, a well-known martial arts instructor says. Bakir explains that during the global health crisis, wushu, which emphasizes quickness, power and relaxed movement, provides an excellent opportunity for people who wish to strengthen their bodies.
“There are varieties of Chinese martial arts. Taichi, for example, can be performed from a kid to someone who is 85 years old. It can help people stay in good shape. Everyone can benefit from it especially when we have to stay fit to avoid the coronavirus,” he notes.
Beyzanur Karakaya, a 22-year-old woman, is currently seeking a master’s degree in sports education at university in Ankara. Her goal is to improve in her field and eventually travel to China to master the art of wushu, which she has practiced for about 10 years. “I have never been to China or competed against a Chinese athlete, but if I have the opportunity, I would love to go there and train with masters. That would be wonderful,” she says.
Wearing her traditional Chinese martial arts uniform, 13-year-old Fatma Ulukok says wushu brought some changes to her shy personality. “Since I started practicing this, I became more confident. So it has helped me both physically and mentally, and I plan to improve my abilities in the coming years,” the young girl says. Ulukok adds that she admires the Chinese culture and would like to go to China to see it for herself in the future.
1. What dose the underlined word “strenuously” in Paragraph 2 refer to?| A．energetically | B．patiently | C．inactively | D．passively |
| A．All people in Turkey practice wushu. |
| B．Wushu can cure heart diseases. |
| C．With the help of wushu, Karakaya became more self-confident. |
| D．Neither Karakaya nor Ulukok has been to China. |
| A．She got a master’s degree. | B．She stayed in good shape. |
| C．She was more ambitious. | D．She became more positive. |
| A．Health. | B．Medicine. | C．Art. | D．Travel. |
2 . Some dogs can be really mean. They fight with other dogs and bark (吠) at you on the street when you walk by. Now scientists say that some dogs are badly behaved because they were taken away from their mothers too early. Scientists say this can turn them into aggressive (有攻击性的) dogs.
Researchers at the University of Milan in Italy studied 140 dogs aged between 18 months and seven years, according to the Daily Mail newspaper. Half of these dogs had been taken away from their mothers and given new homes when they were between 30 and 40 days old. The other half were taken away when they were 60 days old.
Researchers asked the owners where their pets were from and what breed (品种) they were. Then they asked owners to write down whenever their dogs behaved badly. Examples of bad behavior included biting furniture and clothes, barking a lot, and being aggressive toward people. Some dogs got angry if other dogs took away their food and toys. Some got terrified when they were walking outdoors or if they heard a sudden noise.
The scientists found that bad behavior was more common in dogs that had been taken away from their mothers between 30 and 40 days old. Behavior was also worse in dogs that had been taken away early and put in pet shops than those that had been removed later.
So if you want to keep a pet dog, think twice before getting one younger than two months old. Your puppy could grow up to be a real troublemaker.
1. What does the underlined word “mean” in paragraph 1 refer to?| A．Curious. | B．Sharp. | C．Unkind. | D．Intelligent. |
| A．Barking less. | B．Behaving poorly. |
| C．Being brave. | D．Being friendly. |
| A．140 dogs aged 1 8 days to 7 months are studied. |
| B．Breeds have a close connection with bad behavior . |
| C．The earlier dogs are removed, the worse they behave. |
| D．All the dogs aren't taken away from their mothers after birth. |
| A．Stopping their bad behaviors. |
| B．Thinking little for a troublemaker. |
| C．Keeping a dog older than two months. |
| D．Keeping a dog younger than two months. |
3 . Confused by food nutrition labels? You’re not alone. Now, researchers have suggested an alternative: labelling the amount and type of exercise needed to burn off the calories.
Current food and drink labels display nutritional information such as the amount of calories and fat. However, researchers led by Prof. Amanda Daley at Loughborough University say that these labels are having a limited effect on changing buying habits. Instead, they propose a labelling system called ‘physical activity calorie equivalent or expenditure’ (PACE) (体育活动热量当量), which shows how many minutes or miles of physical activity are needed to burn off the calories. For example, a small bar of milk chocolate contains 230 calories, which would take about 42 minutes of walking, or 22 minutes of running, to burn off.
They pooled the data from 14 previous studies which compared the impact of PACE labelling with that of other types of food labelling, or with no food labelling at all. They calculated that PACE labelling could cut a person’s daily calorie intake by up to 200 calories. “Public health agencies may want to consider the possibility of including policies to promote PACE food labelling as a strategy that contributes to the prevention and treatment of obesity (肥胖) and related diseases,” said the researchers.
The UK’s Royal Society for Public Health has already called for PACE labelling to replace the current system. However, not everyone is convinced. A spokesperson for the eating disorder charity Beat said: “We believe that anti-obesity campaigns that focus on weight instead of health are ineffective and that recommending more exercise is an ineffective and over-simplistic approach to a complex problem. Most urgently, public health campaigns must consider people’s mental as well as their physical health, moving from obesity-shaming to evidence-based campaigns that build confidence and support healthy eating.”
1. What additional information can you get from PACE labels compared with the current ones?
| A．Exercise advice | B．Fat content |
| C．Nutrition facts | D．Calorie content |
| A．collected | B．distributed | C．deleted | D．proved |
| A．Obesity is a physical problem and can be solved by increasing exercise. |
| B．Obesity is related to eating habits and can be tackled by cutting calories. |
| C．Obesity is no simple problem but can be settled by focusing on weight. |
| D．Obesity is complicated and should be tackled physically and mentally. |
| A．PACE: A new labelling option |
| B．Nutrition: A basic step towards health |
| C．Labelling: A smart advisor for shopping |
| D．Excise: An effective treatment for obesity |
4 . From my kitchen windows, I watch colorful birds responding for black-oiled sunflower seeds, split peanuts, and cut grapes and apples on the ground. The scene is delightful and calming.
About three years ago, I noticed a newcomer to this colorful and happy display. It was a baby chipmunk（花栗鼠）, obviously on its own. Over that summer, I watched it grow. The brown and black stripes（条状）on its back darkened. The next summer, it was back, and I wondered whether it would trust me to feed it by hand or let me pet it. I decided to employ the tricks I used to persuade wild cats to come close for food: patience, a soft voice, slow moves and repetition. Before it would approach, I’d put down its favorite food--sunflower seeds, bend over and keep very still. I’d leave my open hand in place, unmoving, so the animal would know I wouldn’t seize it. I continued doing this for a few weeks. Finally, late in that second summer, it did show more trust. One day as I offered a seed on my fingertips, it approached and carefully took the seed into its mouth. It never bit my fingers. I was elated that we had made a breakthrough of trust. After about two months of this routine, I went further. With one finger, I petted its back once, but it didn’t move away. I then petted with two fingers. Again, it stayed put, eating seeds.
Today, the Chipmunk comes out of hiding when I call its name, and lets me pet its soft, silky body. Whenever I am doing this, I feel calmer. To my surprise, I also feel a sense of greater respect for nature and its creatures and the opportunity to observe, protect and save wildlife. Most of all, I’ve saved the wonderful memories gathered during these glorious summer months in my Long Island garden.
1. What did the writer do before the Chipmunk trusted him enough to get closer?| A．Petted its back. | B．Offered it food. |
| C．Called its name. | D．Watched it play |
| A．disappointed | B．excited |
| C．frightened | D．puzzled |
| A．A furry friend and a bond of trust | B．A lovely animal and an adventure |
| C．A stress reliever and a calm mind | D．A newcomer and its protection |
5 . Waterbuurt is a residential(住宅的) development in Amsterdam, which consists of nearly 100 floating homes on Lake Eimer.
The floating homes are not ordinary houseboats but real floating houses. They only move with the changing tide(朝水). Designed by Dutch architect Marlies Rohmer, the houses have a basic design but are also comfortable. Although Waterbuurt is still a work in progress, there are some of the houses where there are already residents.
Two thirds of the Netherlands’ people live below sea-level, and with the flooding(发洪水) becoming a serious concern, there are many who believe that living on water in the European country is much safer than living on land. The prices of land homes in large city centers like Amsterdam has risen in recent years. But water is not that expensive.
“Moreover, houses in the cities have to stay there for 50 or 70 years,” Dutch architect Koen Olthuis said. “And as cities change, the only choice is to demolish these houses and build new ones. But floating buildings can be moved and adapted.”
The floating homes are built atop underwater platforms, and consists of a light steel frame(钢架) and wooden walls and paneling(嵌板). The bedrooms and bathroom are located on the lower floor, which is partially flooded. The kitchen and dining room are located on the raised ground floor, while the main living area and the outdoor terrace are on the top level.
All floating homes are designed with a lot of extras that buyers can choose, like floating terraces, a second entry, or a boardwalk around the house.
Waterbuurt is set to become the largest water settlement in the history of the Netherlands. Apart from floating houses, it will include floating parks and even floating high buildings. It is sure to meet even the most difficult buyers and win more acceptance from local people.
1. What can we infer about the floating houses?| A．They are easy to take down. | B．They are free from flooding. |
| C．The prices are slightly lower. | D．The total completion is done. |
| A．Build. | B．Buy. |
| C．Design. | D．Destroy. |
| A．The structure of floating houses. |
| B．Preferable construction materials. |
| C．Unique functions of floating houses. |
| D．Advantages of buying floating houses. |
| A．The Development of Amsterdam’s Floating Houses |
| B．Waterbuurt — Amsterdam’s Floating Neighborhood |
| C．Reasons for Choosing to Live in the Floating Houses |
| D．Waterbuurt — an Especially Successful Floating Project |
6 . We’ve all heard exercise helps you live longer. But a new study goes one step further, finding that a sedentary(久坐不动的) lifestyle is worse for your health than smoking and heart disease.
Dr. Wael Jaber, a doctor at the Cleveland Clinic and senior author of the study, called the results "extremely surprising."
"Being unfit in an exercise stress test has a worse prognosis(预后), as far as death, than being a smoker," Jaber told CNN. "We've never seen something as noticeable as this and as objective as this. "
"It should be treated almost as a disease that has a prescription, which is called exercise," he said.
Researchers studied 122,007 patients who took exercise stress tests at Cleveland Clinic between January 1, 1991 and December 31, 2020 to measure death rate relating to the benefits of exercise and fitness. Comparing those with a sedentary lifestyle to the top exercise performers, he said, the risk associated with death is "500% higher. "
What made the study so unique, beyond the number of people studied, he said was that researchers weren't relying on patients self-reporting their exercise. "This is not the patients telling us what they do," Jaber said. "This is our testing them and figuring out objectively the real measure of what they do. "
Researchers have always been concerned that "ultra(高强度的)" exercisers might be at a higher risk of death, but the study found that not to be the case.
The benefits of exercise were seen across all ages and in both men and women, "probably a little more noticeable in females," Jaber said. "Whether you’re in your 40s or your 80s, you will benefit in the same way. "
1. Which statement is true according to the study?| A．High levels of exercise can cause higher death rate. |
| B．The death rate of those with lowest exercise is 12%. |
| C．Being unfit has higher risks of death than smoking. |
| D．Sedentary lifestyle is the major cause of heart disease. |
| A．a habit hard to remove | B．a method to solve a problem |
| C．a treatment given by a doctor | D．a plan to take exercise regularly |
| A．The long period of the tests. | B．The number of the researchers. |
| C．The objective tests and calculations. | D．The self-reporting of the participants. |
| A．Ultra exercise does no good to our health. | B．Women should take more exercise than men |
| C．Exercise is the best way to treat heart disease. | D．Patients should be encouraged to exercise daily. |
7 . A strong coffee after a poor night's sleep is the kick-start many people need in the morning but new research suggests that it might be best to have a bite to eat first.
A study has found that drinking coffee first can have a negative effect on blood sugar control - a risk factor for diabetes （糖尿病）and heart disease.
“We know that nearly half of us will wake in the morning and, before doing anything else, drink coffee --- subjectively the more tired we feel, the stronger the coffee,“ said Professor James Betts, at the University of Bath in the UK.
For their study, researchers at the University of Bath got 29 healthy men and women to take part in three different overnight experiments, with at least a week between them.
In one, the participants had a normal night's sleep, roughly from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., and were asked to consume a sugary drink on waking in the morning. They then experienced an interrupted night's sleep, where the researchers woke them every hour for five minutes by sending them text messages to which they had to respond — and upon waking were given the same sugary drink.
On another night, participants experienced the same sleep interruption, but this time were first given a strong black coffee 30 minutes before consuming the sugary drink.
They found that one night of interrupted sleep did not worsen the participants' blood sugar and insulin （胰 岛素）responses when compared to the normal night's sleep-- although previous research suggested that losing many hours of sleep or many nights of poor sleep could have a negative effect. However, strong black coffee consumed before breakfast actually increased the blood sugar response by around 50% — suggesting that relying on coffee after a bad night to stop feeling sleepy could limit your body's ability to tolerate the sugar in your breakfast.
1. What does the underlined word “kick-start" in paragraph 1 refer to?| A．A kind of sport. | B．A kind of power. |
| C．A kind of medicine. | D．A kind of belief. |
| A．The duration of sleep. | B．The blood sugar response. |
| C．The sugary drink. | D．The intake of coffee. |
| A．A normal sugary drink. |
| B．A normal night's sleep. |
| C．An interrupted night's sleep. |
| D．A cup of strong black coffee. |
| A．By comparing the results. |
| B．By listing some examples. |
| C．By surveying the participants. |
| D．By referring to some documents. |
8 . A new study, published this week in the journal Frontiers in Veterinary Science, reveals that non-human animals' tears are not so different from our own. The chemical similarities are so great, in fact, that the composition of other species' tears—and how they're adapted to their environments-may provide insights into better treatments for human eye disease.
Previously, scientists had studied closely only the tears of a handful of mammals, including humans, dogs, horses, camels, and monkeys. In the new study, Brazilian veterinarians analyzed the tears of reptiles and birds for the first time , focusing on seven species.
Tears, which are released from tear tubes, form a film over the eye that's composed of three ingredients: mucus, waler, and oil. The mucus coats the eyes surface and helps to attach the film to the eye, the water is a natural salty solution containing crucial proteins and minerals, and the oil prevents the eye from drying out.
Humans are the only known species to produce emotional tears; the expression "crocodile tears," which refers to a person's phony display of emotion, comes from the mysterious tendency of crocodiles to release tears as they eat.
But tears play key roles beyond weeping, notes Lionel Sebbag at Iowa State University, who was not involved in the new research. They help with vision by lubricating and clearing the eye. They also protect the eye against infection and provide nutrition to the cornea, the eye's clear outer layer, which lacks blood tubes, he says.
Learning how reptiles and birds' use tears may also inspire new medications for conditions such as dry eye, which occurs when tear tubes don't produce enough oil. The disease, common in cats, dogs, and people, can sometimes lead to blindness.
1. What is paragraph 3 mainly about?| A．The source of tears. | B．The composition of tears. |
| C．The classification of tears, | D．The definition of tears. |
| A．Tricky. | B．Regretful. | C．Cold. | D．False. |
| A．Weeping contributes to eye disease. | B．The cornea has rich blood tubes. |
| C．Tears oil and clear the eyes. | D．More tears mean better vision. |
| A．Tears, a barrier to eyes | B．A better treatment for eye disease |
| C．Non-human tears promise new cures | D．Other species’ tears are similar to humans' |
9 . When talking about being overcome with emotions, both good and bad, we have a somewhat strange expression to describe that situation：to be beside yourself. So, if I say I am beside myself with joy, I am filled with joy! However, I can also be beside myself with sadness, anger, or any other emotions. The expression is useful and simple，but queer. It sounds as if someone has become two people. How can you be next to yourself? Being “beside yourself ” is technically impossible.
In American English，you can simply say “I’m beside myself ” to mean you are very upset. For example，if you have a bad quarrel with a close friend, you might be beside yourself. You might shout, write an angry letter to your friend, or just go somewhere by yourself and cry.
Here’s another situation. A high school student applies to several colleges. If all her applications are refused, she could be beside herself. She might stay up all night worrying about what to do next.
If a person becomes seriously ill, he could start talking in a way that does not make any sense. The patient may also start behaving strangely, walking around the room—back and forth. A doctor might say, “He is beside himself.”
We have another expression that is very similar to “being beside yourself”.We can also be “out of our minds”. We use this expression in the same way we use “beside oneself ”. So we can be out of our minds with fear, with love, with happiness，or with any other emotions. And just like “beside oneself”.we also use this expression on its own without a specific emotion. So, if someone says or does something crazy—like learning how to ride a motorcycle on a dark, rainy night, you can simply say, “She is out of her mind!” You could also say the person is crazy or has lost her mind.
1. What does the underlined word “queer” probably mean?| A．Easy. | B．Difficult. | C．Common. | D．Strange. |
| A．Excited. | B．Unhappy. | C．Relaxed. | D．Frightened. |
| A．By asking some questions. |
| B．By telling some stories. |
| C．By giving some examples. |
| D．By listing some data. |
| A．The usage of the phrase “out of one’s mind”. |
| B．The difference between the two expressions. |
| C．An example about “being beside yourself ”. |
| D．More expressions about different feelings. |
10 . Telephone calls in the UK and USA are very similar, with most differences being minor and almost everything being mutually (相互) understandable. However, there are a few interesting differences in how British and Americans speak on the phone, including some potential misunderstandings.
Answering the phone in the UK and USA
The standard way of answering a work phone in English is some part of "Good morning/ afternoon/ evening…Limited/ Corp…Department…Section…speaking. How can/ may I help you?" The only thing that differs in that is that "How can I help you?" is more common in Britain and "How may I help you?" is more standard in the US.
With a home phone or mobile, just answering the phone with "Hello?" is standard in English. If you can see who is calling and know them well, it has become more common to greet them by name straightaway instead, e. g. "Hi Steve. Thanks for calling me back". More informal greetings in that situation would be "Yo, Steve" or just "What's up?" in the US and "Alright Steve?" in the UK, with Americans perhaps more likely to use these kinds of more informal phrases. Americans are also more likely to use affectionate phrases like "Hi Honey" or "What's up, bro?", with the British phrase "Alright, mate" being both less common and not actually being so friendly.
Polite language at the beginning of calls in the UK and USA
"Thanks for…" and "Sorry for…" are not only equally likely in different forms of English, but seem to be very popular at the start of phone calls worldwide. The only small UK/USA difference is the rather cute British verb "ring" in "Thanks for ringing me back" and "Sorry to ring again so soon, but…". The more standard language "Thanks for calling me back" and "Sorry to call again so soon, but…" are used in both the UK and USA.
1. Which of the following is the American way of answering a work phone?| A．Good morning. Bibury Systems. How can I help you? |
| B．Hello. This is Bibury Systems. How can I help you? |
| C．Good morning. Bibury Systems. How may I help you? |
| D．Hi. Friend. This is Bibury Systems. How may I help you? |
| A．Tom and Steve are good friends. |
| B．They must be from America. |
| C．They are both at home. |
| D．Tom is very polite to Steve. |
| A．Being happy and polite. |
| B．Showing love and care. |
| C．Being loosely connected. |
| D．Showing care and concern. |
| A．How to Answer the Phone Politely |
| B．Misunderstandings in Answering the Phones |
| C．Small UK/USA differences in Answering the Phones |
| D．The Differences between British and American English |
