1 . In a new study published on the Journal of Auian Biology, researchers at the National Autonomous University of Mexico tracked the behavior of house finches(雀) on the main campus of the university, in Mexico City.
The team created an artificial nest lining(内衬), which includes feathers, cotton, hair and cigarette ends. Then, after the birds 'eggs had hatched, they replaced the original lining with the new one, to make sure the nests were pest free. The researchers then added live ticks to the mix, while dead ticks were added to other linings.
It seems that urban house finches use more cigarette ends to line their nests when they've been invaded by ticks. And, those whose nests were given live ticks increased their cigarette end weight by about 40 percent more than those where dead ticks had been used, according to New Scientist. The technique is likely a form of self-medication, the experts explain, as it's thought that the chemicals in cigarette ends can help to keep off the pests.
While this behavior may have its benefits, the researchers say it's also possible that the use of cigarette ends in the nests could have negative effects. "It is a matter of concern that cigarette ends, being poisonous, are part of house finch nests in Mexico City," the authors explain in the paper," but we have not come across evidence of long-term costs of using this material."
According to the researchers, a thorough evaluation will be necessary to determine the real effects of using cigarette ends, whether they are positive or not. But they explain, the findings do suggest that the cigarette ends are linked to the presence of ticks and likely play a role in keeping them away.
1. What does the underlined phrase" the mix" in paragraph 2 refer to?| A．The former nests. | B．The artificial lining. |
| C．The cigarette ends. | D．The original lining. |
| A．The findings of the experiment. | B．The application of the research findings. |
| C．The theory related to the recent research. | D．The reasons for house finches using cigarette ends. |
| A．Eat them out. | B．Dust them off. |
| C．Build firmer nests. | D．Use more cigarette ends. |
| A．Skeptical. | B．Conservative. | C．Objective. | D．Tolerant. |
2 . I just had a snowstorm that piled up eight inches of snow. It truly was a winter wonderland, and there was white beauty everywhere. Since I didn't have anything to do that day, I really enjoyed it.
But then the second snowstorm arrived that night, piling additional inches of snow on top of the snow banks that were already there. And then on the evening news, the weather cast gave us a notice that still another snowstorm was headed our way. Then I felt despondent. I had things to do and places to go. After days of being snowbound, I felt like I was under house arrest. I was stuck.
A place stuck isn't a fun place to be, whether it's from a snowstorm or from life circumstances such as a bad relationship, bills that seem to tower over our heads, or situations where we see no way out. All of us will feel stuck at one time or another, but it's how we respond that makes the difference.
I had a friend named Hannah. She was stuck in the heartbreaking world of infertility (不孕). She longed for a child more than anything. Instead of accepting defeat, she acted sincerely. Think about Nelson Mandela in a dark prison. It was a seemingly hopeless place, but instead of becoming depressed or bitter, he kept fighting for freedom. Yes, he kept fighting to get the success.
Circumstances cannot define us, but our reactions do. Each of those men and women learned important lessons in their "stuck" situations, and we can as well.
1. What does the underlined word" despondent" in paragraph 2 mean?| A．Unhappy. | B．Unusual. | C．Ambitious. | D．Energetic. |
| A．Summarize the previous paragraphs. |
| B．Provide some advice for the readers. |
| C．Introduce some background information. |
| D．Form a connecting link of the context. |
| A．To introduce two great celebrities. |
| B．To introduce the way to be famous. |
| C．To show their different circumstances. |
| D．To show how to respond to difficult situations. |
| A．Don't be defeated by failure |
| B．Don't be trapped by snow |
| C．Enjoy the white beauty |
| D．Keep calm in the winter |
3 . Confucius, a famous teacher , was a politician and philosopher who lived in “Spring and Autumn Period”. During his lifetime, he planted the seeds for China’s transformation by teaching thousands of people. Today, he is thought to be one of the world’s greatest teachers.
Confucius grew up in a poor family. As he grew up, Confucius worked to help his mother earn money. When he wasn’t working, he would read. His favorite thing to do was to learn. His mother saw this and did her best to help him learn. One day, rich families noticed how smart he was and offered him jobs counting their money and keeping track of their crops.
Confucius did this until he was 30 years old, but he always wanted to do more. He didn’t like the way rulers treated their subjects. He wanted to find a way to help people who were less fortunate than he was. Later, he founded the philosophy “Confucianism”. Confucianism states that by educating yourself, loving your family, and respecting tradition you could become a better person. Confucius believed a person could achieve these things by practicing self-discipline. For the rest of his life, Confucius traveled and taught the people of China about self-discipline and the importance of education. He even opened China’s first school that taught both the poor and the wealthy as equals. Although he became very famous among China’s lower classes, the rulers of China never accepted his teachings. Eventually, his philosophy of self-discipline helped China unite under one ruler and finally find peace. Today, Confucius is celebrated all over the world for his philosophy of education, equality, and peace over war, money, and injustice.
1. What can we know about Confucius from the passage?| A．He was once a farmer guiding people farming. | B．He was born in a politician family. |
| C．He once acted as a math teacher. | D．He devoted himself to social change. |
| A．themes. | B．courses. | C．people. | D．tests. |
| A．Self-discipline. | B．Self-confidence. | C．Respect. | D．Equality. |
| A．Doubtful | B．Supportive | C．Disappointed | D．Hopeful |
4 . Time spent in a bookshop can be most enjoyable, whether you are a book-lover or merely go there to buy a book as a present. You may even have entered the shop just to find shelter from a sudden shower. Whatever the reason, you can soon become totally unaware of your surroundings.
The desire to pick up a book with an attractive dust jacket is irresistible, although this method of selection ought not to be followed, as you might end up with a rather dull book.
You soon become interested in some book or other, and usually it is only much later that you realize you have spent far too much time there and must dash off to keep some forgotten appointment—without buying a book, of course.
This opportunity to escape the realities of everyday life is, I think, the main attraction of a bookshop. There are not many places where it is possible to do this. A music shop is very much like a bookshop. You can wander round such places to your heart’s content. If it is a good shop, no assistant will approach you with the inevitable greeting: “Can I help you, sir?” You needn’t buy anything you don’t want. In a bookshop an assistant should remain in the background until you have finished browsing. Then and only then, are his services necessary. Of course, you may want to find out where a particular section is, but when he has led you there, the assistant should retire discreetly and look as if he is not interested in selling a single book.
You have to be careful not to be attracted by the variety of books in a bookshop. It is very easy to enter the shop looking for a book on, say ancient coins and come out carrying a copy of the latest best-selling novel and perhaps a book about brass-rubbing-something which had only slightly interested you up till then. This volume of the subject, however, happened to be so well illustrated and the part of the text you read proved so interesting that you just had to buy it. This sort of thing can be very dangerous. Apart from running up a huge account, you can waste a great deal of time wandering from section to section.
1. The underlined phrase “dust jacket” means_______.| A．a kind of clothes | B．a paper cover of book |
| C．a dusty book | D．a title of a book |
| A．the dust jackets are very attractive |
| B．you start reading one of the books |
| C．it is raining outside |
| D．you have to make sure you won’t buy a dull book as a present |
| A．all the books there are interesting | B．the assistant greets you in a warm way |
| C．your heart is satisfied | D．you feel that you are in a music shop |
| A．The Attraction of Bookshops | B．How to Spend Your Time |
| C．Bookshops and Their Assistants | D．How to select Books? |
5 . Today just as technology changed the face of industry, farms have undergone an "agricultural revolution". On the farm of today, machines provide almost all the power.
One of the most important benefits will be the farm computer. A few forward-looking farmers are already using computers to help them run their farms more efficiently. The computers help them keep more accurate records so they can make better decisions on what crops to plant, how much livestock to buy, when to sell their products, and how much profit they can expect. Many computer companies have been-developing special computer programs just for farmers. Programs are being written for hog producers, grain farmers, potato farmers, and dairy farmers. In the future, farmers will be able to purchase computer programs made to their needs. Because of the growing importance of computers on the farm, students at agricultural colleges, are required to take computer classes in addition to their normal agricultural courses. There can be no doubt that farmers will rely on computers even more in the future. While the old-time farm depended on horse power, and modern farms depend on machine power, farms of the future will depend on computer power.
Another technological advance which is still in the experimental stage is the robot, a real "mechanized hired hand" that will be able to move and, in some ways, think like a human being. Agricultural engineers-believe-that-computer-aided robots will make startling changes in farming before the end of the century. Unlike farmers of the present, farmers of the future will find that many day-to-day tasks will be done for them. Scientists are now developing robots that will be able to shear sheep, drive tractors, and harvest fruit. Ever complex jobs will be done by robots. For example, in order to milk their cows, farmers must first drive them into the barn, then connect them to the milking machines, watch the machines, and disconnect them when they are finished. In the future, this will all be done by robots. In addition, when the milking is completed, the robots will automatically check to make sure that the milk is pure. The complete mobilization of the farm is far in the future, but engineers expect that some robots will be used before long.
1. According to the passage, computers can not help farmers decide ________.| A．what livestock to raise | B．whether to plant a certain kind of crop |
| C．how much money they can earn from their products | D．when to sell their products |
| A．Farmers in the future will depend totally on computers |
| B．Both computers and robots have been in use on today's farms. |
| C．Farmers mainly use machines on their farms at present. |
| D．Students at agricultural colleges must take computer classes because they can do nothing without the help of computers on today's farms. |
| A．most of the farm work | B．milking cows |
| C．all farm work | D．some farm work |
| A．disastrous | B．unbeneficial |
| C．indifferent | D．amazing |
6 . Like you and your pet dog, plants are living things: they eat, drink, and grow. Unlike you and your dog, they can't run away, use fists or teeth, or hide under the covers when they're threatened. But they can fight back.
Why would a plant need to fight back? To avoid being eaten, of course! Plants have several ways of protecting themselves. A plant can grow in a hidden or hard-to-get-to place. Think of plants you've seen growing on steep, rocky cliff (悬崖). Or, a plant could make only some parts of itself attractive to hungry insects and animals. For instance, if a plant produced really tasty leaves, herbivores (creatures that eat only plants) might eat the leaves instead of the seeds, which the plant needs for making more plants. Some plants have sharp or slippery (滑的) parts that discourage insects and other animals from getting too close, like the thorns(刺) on a rosebush.
But the most interesting way that plants fight back is by using chemicals. Plants take minerals from the soil and combine them into chemicals that do a lot of work. For example, plants produce chlorophyll(叶绿素), which helps convert sunshine and water into the sugars that plants eat.
They also produce chemicals to help protect themselves. One kind of tobacco plant releases a chemical into the air whenever small bugs begin to eat it. The chemical signals large bugs, saying "Dinner's ready!" The big bugs come to eat the little ones and save the plant.
Most plants use chemicals in a more direct way against their enemies. In other words, plants make poison.
1. What does the underlined word "convert" mean?| A．Change | B．Separate |
| C．Form | D．Produce |
| A．Some plants hide under the covers when faced with threat. |
| B．A plant grows in a hard-to-get-to place to draw people's attention. |
| C．Some plants produce tasty leaves to protect their seeds. |
| D．Plants produce chemicals to meet the needs of big bugs. |
| A．Different effects that different plant poisons cause on plant eaters. |
| B．Different kinds of plants in the world. |
| C．Why plants make poison? |
| D．How to protect plants? |
| A．Plant information. | B．Plant enemies. |
| C．Plant poisons. | D．Plant protection. |
7 . "When I was 16 years old, I was diving in Greece, but I was disappointed because I saw more plastic bags than fish.” These are the words of Boyan Slat, an engineer who designed the world's first ocean plastic cleanup system.
Every year, more than 8 million tons of plastics end up in our oceans, according to the UN Environment Programme. It is predicted that the weight of ocean plastics will match the weight of all the fish in our oceans by 2050. To prevent this from happening, in 2013 Slat created the Ocean Cleanup, an environmental non¬governmental organization, and put his plan for an ocean cleanup device into action.
After years of research and develop¬ment in the Netherlands, a device called System 001/B successfully started gathering plastics on October 2, 2019. The device uses a 600-meter-long C-shaped tube to gather all the floating rubbish. Unlike other cleanup methods, the system floats freely according to the direction of the waves, which allows waste to flow into and stay within the device. A sea anchor is attached to either end. This slows down the system as it floats through the water and allows the faster-moving rubbish, carried by the waves, to flow into its mouth. System 001/B can also collect waste below the surface using a 3-meter-deep skirt（挡板）attached to the end. After being gathered, the trash will be dragged back to shore by boat and recycled.
Right now, the system operates in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, an area that is 3 times the size of France. Once operational, the Ocean Cleanup expects a full fleet to be able to clear 50% of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in 5 years.
"It remains to be seen whether this dream will become a reality, but it is undeniable that humanity must work together to reduce our plastic use and repair the damage our waste has caused," Slat said. "We are starting to see a young generation that gets it and is excited about a sustainable （可持续的）future, but the question still comes down to: Are we going fast enough, and how much damage will have been done before we get there?"
1. The underlined word “match” in Paragraph 2 probably means “_________”.| A．compare | B．equal |
| C．measure | D．cover |
| A．To collect ocean plastic waste. |
| B．To help to invent System 001/B. |
| C．To protect the living environment of fish. |
| D．To do research on the ocean environment. |
| A．It can collect and recycle garbage at the same time. |
| B．It can only gather ocean waste which floats on the water. |
| C．It aims to clear up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in five years. |
| D．It is an ocean-cleaning device which has already been put to use. |
| A．Young generations care less about the environment. |
| B．The future ecology of the oceans is deeply worrying. |
| C．People should work hard to decrease plastic pollution. |
| D．It's quite difficult to repair the damage to the environment. |
8 . Laura Sides was a psychology major at the University of Nottingham in 2004. She first noticed signs of her dad’s developing dementia(痴呆) when she moved to Nottingham. She said, "Dad was a doctor, so he knew exactly what had happened to him, but people try to hide it when they are ill. Then, I came home for my 21st birthday and arranged to meet him, but he never showed up as he’d forgotten. That’s when I knew something serious had happened."
So, aged 21, she decided to leave university and look after him herself. She lived close by, popping in every day to make sure he was eating, and that the house was tidy, before heading off to her work.
Besides challenging moments, there was a time when looking after her dad was a pure joy. "We’d wake up, I’d ask what he wanted to do that day, and however ridiculous the adventure is, off we’d go."
Sadly, in 2009, 5 years later, Laura lost her father. Before he died, Laura went to a hospital appointment with him, where doctors mentioned that his form of Alzheimer’s disease was genetic meaning there was a fifty-fifty chance that she had inherited it. For several years Laura agonised over whether to be tested, finally finding out in August 2017 that she has the APP gene, meaning that, like him, she will develop the condition within a decade.
At first, she struggled, feeling as if her life lacked purpose. Then, during a sleepless night in the summer of 2018, she decided at around 2 a.m. to enter the 2019 London Marathon sponsored by the charities Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s Research UK.
She hoped to start the conversation around early-onset Alzheimer’s disease and to encourage people to talk about it more openly. "I remember when Dad was ill, people wouldn’t know how to react, but I want to be honest and open," she added. "The more information we can get, the less of a taboo(忌讳) we will feel. That said, the support I’ve received so far after going public has been amazing — that’s what is carrying me through."
1. Laura noticed her father’s dementia when .| A．her father told her his condition in person |
| B．people nearby informed her of his father’s condition |
| C．her father forgot his own birthday party |
| D．her father forgot to attend her 21-year-old birthday party |
| A．excited | B．struggled |
| C．shocked | D．delighted |
| A．getting people to talk about Alzheimer’s disease openly |
| B．earning some money to help treat her Alzheimer’s disease |
| C．making herself stronger to fight against Alzheimer’s disease |
| D．raising funds for charities Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s disease Research UK |
| A．Caring and positive. | B．Careful and honest. |
| C．Patient and cautious. | D．Devoted and modest. |
9 . Do you still use a power button（开机键）to open your smart phones or computers? You are out of fashion! Now most smart phones ere using facial-recognition system（面部识别系统）, and we already have machines that can know you from your fingers and your voice too. But some companies are still willing to invent other systems to “break”these systems, for example, the eye-recognition system. As is reported, you’ll just have to look at the computers and machines, and this system will be able to tell you who you are by looking at your eyes, even when you are wearing glasses.
Do you wonder if this system will work well? The answer is YES. All you need is just look at your machines. The eye scanner（扫描仪）is put in the cameras of your machines. The eye-recognition system is safer and easier then other systems. This is because everyone’s eyes are different Since the system works easily, you won't have to remember a group of code when you want to open your computer or take money out of a bank in the future. Eye-recognition system is better than other kinds of systems because your eyes don't change as you get older, and don't get dirty like hands or fingers. Even twins' eyes are not the same. So the eye-recognition system can be up to 94 percent correct, but it depends on how good the technology is. Some systems may only 51% right. In Britain, it was found that 91 percent of the people who had tried it said that they liked the idea of eye-recognition. So scientists think it will become more popular than other systems.
The eye-recognition system has already been tested in shops in the USA, Britain, Spain, Italy and Turkey. Soon it will become a popular way among public. In the future, your computer will be opened by looking at your eyes.
1. How does the eye-recognition system work?| A．You put your fingers on the machine and look at it. |
| B．You say something to the machine and look at it |
| C．You turn on the power button and stand before it. |
| D．You look at the machine and it can recognize who you are. |
| A．密码 | B．按钮 |
| C．符号 | D．钥匙 |
| A．The eye-recognition system doesn’t work if you wear glasses. |
| B．You must remember the code as well as looking at the machine. |
| C．If you get older, the eye-recognition system can still remember you. |
| D．The eye-recognition system is so good that it will never go wrong. |
| A．Your eyes never get older with age. |
| B．Your eyes don’t get dirty easily like your hands. |
| C．Your machines must be good. |
| D．Everyone’s eyes are different from others. |
10 . People often ask which is the most difficult language to learn, and it is not easy to answer because there are too many factors to take into consideration. Firstly, in a first language the differences are unimportant as people learn their mother tongue naturally, so the question of how hard a language is to learn only makes more sense when learning a second language.
A native speaker of Spanish, for example, will find Portuguese much easier to learn than a native speaker of Chinese, for example, because Portuguese is very similar to Spanish, while Chinese is very different, so first language can affect learning a second language. The greater the differences between the second language and our first, the harder it will be for most people to learn. Many people answer that Chinese is the hardest language to learn, possibly influenced by the thought of learning the Chinese writing system, and the pronunciation of Chinese does appear to be very difficult for many foreign learners. However, for Japanese speakers, who already use Chinese characters in their own language, learning writing will be less difficult than for speakers of languages using the Roman alphabet.
Some people seem to learn languages easily, while others find it very difficult. Teachers and the circumstances in which the language is learned also play an important role, as well as each learner's motivation for learning. If people learn a language because they need to use it professionally, they often learn it faster than people studying a language that has no direct use in their day to day life.
Obviously , British diplomats and other embassy staff have found that the second hardest language is Japanese, which will probably come as no surprise to many, but the language that they have found to be the most problematic is Hungarian, which uses a similar alphabet to English but has 35 cases (forms of a nouns according to whether it is subject, object, genitive, etc). This does not mean that Hungarian is the hardest language to learn for everyone, but it causes British diplomatic personnel, who are generally used to learning languages, the most difficulty. However, Tabassaran, a Caucasian language has 48 cases, so it might cause more difficulty if British diplomats had to learn it.
Different cultures and individuals from those cultures will find different languages more difficult. Therefore, it is impossible to say that there is one language that is the most difficult language in the world.
1. What can we infer from the first paragraph?| A．The question of how hard a language is to learn is only applicable to first language acquisition |
| B．The question of how hard a language is to learn is only applicable to second language acquisition |
| C．The question of how hard a language is to learn is applicable to both first and second language acquisition. |
| D．There are too many languages in the world so it’s difficult to say which one is the most difficult to learn. |
| A．Chinese , because Portuguese use Chinese characters in their own language . |
| B．Japanese , because it is similar to their own language. |
| C．Spanish , because it also uses Roman alphabet . |
| D．Any one but Chinese, because its pronunciation is very difficult. |
| A．A particular situation or environment. |
| B．The degree of education that somebody has obtained |
| C．Teachers’ encouragement. |
| D．Professional training. |
| A．Not Hungarian’s writing system but its grammatical complexity causes problems for native British speakers. |
| B．Tabassaran is the hardest language to learn in the world for native European speakers. |
| C．Many British diplomats learn Tabassaran. |
| D．Learning a different writing system is easy. |
