1 . The joy of giving is real, according to a study. Research presented in the Journal of the Association for Psychological Science shows that those who give gifts are happier — and happier for longer — than those who receive gifts.
Researchers conducted two studies last year. In one，participants were given $5 every day for five days and were required to spend the money on the same thing each day. Some participants were required to spend the money on themselves, while others were required to give to make a donation to charity. In a second experiment that was done online, participants played 10 rounds of a word puzzle game and each won 5 cents per round, which they could keep or donate.
In both experiments, participants reported their overall happiness. Those who donated their money showed that their happiness declined at a much slower rate than those who kept the money or spent it on themselves.
The researchers note that when people focus on an outcome, they can easily compare outcomes, which may diminish their sensitivity to each experience. When people focus on an action, they may focus less on comparison and instead experience each act of giving as a unique happiness-inducing event. Further analyses ruled out some potential alternative explanations, such as the possibility that participants who gave to others had to think longer and harder about what to give, which could promote higher happiness.
The results are especially interesting because according to one of the researchers, Ed O’Brien of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, they conflict with past research. “If you want to sustain happiness over time, past research tells us that we need to take a break from what were currently consuming and experience something new. Our research reveals that the kind of thing may matter more than assumed: Repeated giving, even in identical ways to identical other，may continue to feel relatively fresh and relatively pleasurable the more we do it,” O’Brien said.
So for all the holiday gifts you give this season, expect to feel happy and know that feeling is going to stick around for a while.
1. What’s the function of the first paragraph?| A．To lead to the topic. |
| B．To highlight the importance of the study. |
| C．To recommend a journal. |
| D．To persuade people to give gifts regularly. |
| A．To challenge the past research. |
| B．To rule out different experimental data. |
| C．To show the benefits of donation. |
| D．To make the conclusion more convincing. |
| A．Develop. | B．Show. | C．Reduce. | D．Lack. |
| A．Gift giving will result in longer happiness than receiving. |
| B．Thinking longer and harder on giving will promote higher happiness. |
| C．The feeling of happiness will disappear soon if people just give holiday gifts. |
| D．Taking a break from what were currently consuming will sustain happiness. |
2 . A Bridge Linking Art and the Audience
According to a 2018 report, people aged between 16 and 24 make up about 15 percent of the population but only 10 percent of museum-goers. Similarly, people aged over 35 go half as much as you would expect from their population size. We have reached the point of recognising the disconnection between art and the audience but haven’t yet determined how to bridge the gap. Two answers to tackling this challenge lie in telling a greater diversity of art histories and communicating these stories in more accessible ways.
In 2018, a radio program called Art Matters was started with the aim of discussing art from a pop-culture viewpoint with topics that would engage younger and more diverse audience. It offers an accessible pathway to art history with conversations on different topics. Art history is about storytelling; art content shines when there is an effort to bring audience along for the discussion.
More traditional institutions are paying attention. Recently the Getty Museum issued a social-media challenge for people to recreate paintings using items they had at home. Users displayed incredible creativity, and the museum was flooded with submissions. This reaction proves that there is a potential desire for the audience to engage with art topics if the format is appealing. Since many people feel intimidated and think that there’s a base level of understanding required to join the conversation, the Getty initiative serves as a reminder that there are many pathways to engaging with it.
Another result of the Getty challenge was the exposure given to a diversity of artworks. The famous opera singer Peter Brathwaite, for example, made scores of attractive recreations highlighting centuries of black paintings. His efforts opposed the idea that there were not many historical paintings of black figures. It is extremely important that we do a better job of showing the complex and diverse stories that are represented in art.
Social media have offered a platform for people who have not traditionally had a seat at the table. Anyone can recognise a gap in the field and address it. Accounts have gathered tens of thousands of followers. They are the proof that there is hunger to hear these art histories, and these themes work brilliantly for museum programming.
But there is only so much that can be done without the museums and galleries changing meaningfully from within. We need to see a better balance of these stories represented in permanent collections. We also need a much wider diversity of people and interests represented on board. Ensuring that art-and writing and talking about art-is able to continue on the rising generation of storytellers, inside and outside of institutions, getting the funding and support they need to paint a brighter picture for the part.
1. What challenge is the author trying to tackle?| A．People doubt a great diversity of artworks. |
| B．Fewer and fewer young people go to museums. |
| C．Art appears too distant from common audience. |
| D．Adult audience has a different understanding of art. |
| A．Tired. | B．Worried. | C．Annoyed. | D．Surprised. |
| A．make the art history stories accessible in a traditional way. |
| B．change meaningfully for activities like the Getty challenge. |
| C．limit the number of storytellers both in and out of institutions. |
| D．improve the permanent collections by adding famous artworks. |
| A．lacks the channels to understand and talk about art history. |
| B．prefers to view artworks and hear art stories on social media. |
| C．feels satisfied with people and interests represented on board. |
| D．refuses to engage with diverse art topics and art history stories. |
3 . Experts are warning about the risks of extremely picky(挑剔的)eating after a teenager living on a diet of chips and crisps developed lasting sight loss. Eye doctors in Bristol cared for the 17-year-old after his sight had gone to the point of blindness. Tests showed he had serious vitamin deficiency(缺乏). Dr. Denize Atan, who treated him at the hospital, said, “His diet was basically a portion of chips from the local fish and chip shop every day. He also used to snack on crisps and sometimes white bread and ham, and not really any fruit and vegetables.”
The teenager saw his doctor at the age of 14 because he had been feeling tired and unwell. At that time he suffered from vitamin B12 deficiency, but he did not stick with the treatment or improve his poor diet. Three years later, he was taken to the Bristol Eye Hospital because of progressive sight loss.
He was not overweight or underweight, but he had lost minerals from his bones, which was really quite shocking for a boy of his age. In terms of his sight loss, he met the standards of being blind. “He had blind spots right in the middle of his sight,” said Dr Denize Atan, “That means he can’t drive and would find it really arduous to read, watch TV or recognize faces.”
Dr Denize Atan said that parents should learn about the harm that can be caused by picky eating, and turn to experts for help. For those who are concerned , she advised, “It’s best not to be anxious about picky eating , and instead calmly introduce one or two new foods with every meal.” She said multivitamin tablets can supplement(补充) a diet, but cannot take the place of eating healthily. “It’s much better to take in vitamins through a varied and balanced diet,” she said, adding that too many certain vitamins , including vitamin A, can be harmful ,“so you don’t want to overdo it.”
1. What does Dr Denize Atan imply in paragraph 1?| A．The diet of the boy is not balanced. |
| B．Fruit and vegetables are rich in vitamins. |
| C．Picky eating is common among teenagers. |
| D．The cause of the boy’s disease is unknown. |
| A．To improve his poor diet. |
| B．To get some help to lose weight. |
| C．To be treated for his discomfort. |
| D．To slow down his progressive sight loss. |
| A．Important. | B．Easy. | C．Necessary. | D．Difficult. |
| A．Reasons why the boy is seriously ill. |
| B．Suggestions for the boy’s family to care for him. |
| C．Advice for parents worried about picky eating. |
| D．Ways of taking in enough vitamins and minerals. |
4 . Being trapped in an elevator(电梯) can be one of the worst experiences of one’s life. Some people who have such experiences may be afraid to use elevator again. In fact, there are some useful tips to follow when people are in trouble with the elevator.
First, take deep breaths and keep calm. Too much fear will add to your panic(恐慌) and make you too nervous to think clearly. Tell yourself to be patient and believe that nothing is impossible.
Secondly, use the emergency(急救) call inside the elevator or your mobile phone to let people outside know your are stuck in the elevator. There is an emergency call on the wall of each elevator. You may use your mobile phone to give light and find it. The phone number can be found around it.
Thirdly, putting on messages on Wechat(微信) is also a good idea to allow more people to find you are in need of help. If help hasn’t come, knock the door hard to get attention from other people in the building.
Fourthly, move less and try to relax. Even if the workers have known your situation, it may take them a long time to repair the elevator and bring you back to safety. Instead of keeping moving all the time, you are advised to keep still and relax yourself as much as possible, or you will make yourself tired out. Make sure that you are fine when the door is open.
1. According to the passage, when in trouble with an elevator, you should________ first.| A．Keep calm and think clearly | B．do nothing but wait |
| C．shout out for help | D．try to break the door open |
| A．tired | B．kept |
| C．troubled | D．trapped |
| A．they can spend their time easily |
| B．their situations can be known by more people |
| C．they can become less nervous |
| D．they can make more friends |
| A．To introduce how to use an elevator. |
| B．To teach us how to save ourselves when trapped in an elevator. |
| C．To warn us not to take an elevator. |
| D．To tell us an elevator often goes wrong. |
5 . One of the most traditional British holidays is the “seaside holiday”. Typically, families get on a train or into a car and travel to British seaside towns. They sunbathe on the beach, buy ice creams, eat fish and chips, build sandcastles and so on.
In the early 1970s, air travel became affordable for the average family in the UK, and more and more British people started travelling abroad for their summer holidays. After all, the British weather isn't very good, even in summer, so a lot leave the UK for a vacation. Particularly popular with families on a budget is the “package holiday", where the cost of flights and accommodation are offered at a discounted price by travel agents.
In the 1980s and 1990s, young people in the UK became more wealthy, or at least had more disposable income. As a result, young people started to go abroad in groups, to places such as Spain and Greece. Once at their destination, they socialized with other groups of young people and had one long party.
British holidaying habits have begun to change, however. Climate change means that the UK now has a warmer climate than before, so people don't always feel they need to go overseas to find good weather. Also, the world seems a less certain place as interconnected economics rise and fall, which means that the cost of foreign holidays is less predictable than it used to be. As a result, more and more Britons are choosing to spend their summer holidays in the UK.
In the UK, the domestic (国内的) tourism industry---when people go on holiday in their own country---is healthier than it has been in decades. There is now an increased appreciation among Britons for the diversity of the UK. It is not just the geography and the diversity of climate-based activities on offer. It is also the diversity of the cultures in the UK that is beginning to be of interest to domestic tourists
The UK has always been famous for its international explorers, but now it is starting to discover itself.
1. What mainly caused Britons to travel abroad for holidays in the early 1970s?| A．The lower cost of flights. |
| B．The bad weather in the UK. |
| C．The trend of going overseas. |
| D．The rise of tourism industry. |
| A．Easy to handle. |
| B．Steady in amount. |
| C．Flexible to change. |
| D．Available for use. |
| A．Steady interconnected economics encourage more Britons to holiday in the UK. |
| B．Climate change has an impact on the change of British holidaying habits. |
| C．Package holiday was particularly popular with rich families in the early 1970s. |
| D．Both domestic and international tourists are interested in the diversity of the UK. |
| A．Uncertain. |
| B．Optimistic. |
| C．Pessimistic |
| D．Critical. |
6 . It is sometimes jokingly said that you may skip a meal a day without any adverse effect but skip using your WeChat for an hour and you will feel distinctly unwell. It is an acknowledgement of the fact that the app is no longer only a fun tool but an essential part of life for millions.
Launched in January 2011, this messaging, social media and mobile payment app today has more than 1 billion individual users. People use it for everything, from applying for a business license to booking a hospital appointment to keeping up with family and friends, shopping and paying bills—activities that are part and parcel of our everyday life.
When it was first introduced, WeChat was only an app supporting voice, video, picture and text messages between two persons or among a group. But today it has become ubiquitous.
In the past, people carried their wallet and keys with them wherever they went; today, a smart phone with WeChat installed is all they need in daily life. Its functions like Moments and mini programs and the official WeChat accounts of government agencies and companies have made communication and public services accessible and convenient like never before.
WeChat is also widely used by enterprises. Figures from Tencent show there are around 15 million WeChat official accounts, which enjoy 5 billion followers. Most businesses use their WeChat groups as a standard marketing kit. This has immensely reduced advertising, marketing and communication costs, and in the background of the novel coronavirus disease, made operations faster, contactless and safe.
However, there are concerns about the downsides of WeChat, such as addiction among primary school children. Equally serious is the misuse of WeChat for fraud or instigating crimes. However, it has to be kept in mind that these fallouts are not really the fault of WeChat, but due to the misuse of the app.
If we learn to temper our use of messaging apps with prudence and pragmatism, we could be looking forward to yet new conveniences and experience in this decade with the rapid development of 5G technology and artificial intelligence. Ultimately, the choice is ours, whether to use WeChat or any other new invention, wisely or wantonly.
1. We can conclude from the first paragraph that ___________.| A．we can easily skip a meal a day. |
| B．we will be ill by not using WeChat. |
| C．WeChat used to be meant for fun. |
| D．WeChat has become inseparable in daily life. |
| A．everywhere. | B．somewhere. | C．nowhere. | D．wherever. |
| A．WeChat has a mobile payment function. |
| B．The agencies provide better service through WeChat. |
| C．Mini programs are convenient for the agencies. |
| D．People do not have to carry keys and cash with them. |
| A．It has brought more followers. |
| B．It has become a standard. |
| C．It has helped to cut down the costs. |
| D．It has made the businesses healthier. |
| A．WeChat should be held responsibly. |
| B．WeChat should be banned among primary school children. |
| C．The improper use of the app leads to many problems. |
| D．The 5G technology will bring new conveniences and experience. |
7 . Improve Cloud Security
Sensitive customer data has constantly been found exposed on cloud servers without password protection. To ease the problem, database software makers have been trying to make security easier for cloud database managers. At the Enigma Conference in San Francisco, Kenn White, a security manager at database software maker MongoDB, will describe a new technique, called field level encryption, to make data safer on the cloud.
Field level encryption works by scrambling data before it’s sent to a cloud database and rearranging it in order when the data is needed for use. The promise of the product is to protect the contents of a cloud database, even if bad guys access it.
MongoDB’s new feature comes as more and more companies move user data to cloud servers, rather than run their own costly data centers. It was predicted that cloud computing would be a $214 billion industry by the end of 2019. That would be up more than 17% from 2018, when it was $182 billion.
Companies have rushed to the cloud without understanding all of the possible security consequences. Many companies have left countless databases exposed, revealing personal data. A database containing details about who lives in 80 million US households was left unprotected in 2019, just like the data on Facebook users.
Database managers want to store their data in an unreadable form, but they also want to be able to find specific pieces of information in the database with a simple search term. For example, someone might want to look up health care patients by their Social Security numbers, even if those numbers are stored as random characters. To make this possible, field level encryption lets database managers encrypt a search term on their machine and send it to the database as a query. The database matches the encrypted version of the search term with the record it’s storing and then sends it back to you.
This approach only works with specific kinds of data. For example, field level encryption isn’t useful for long text entries, like notes in a patient’s medical chart, because you can’t search for individual words.
Still, for data like account numbers, passwords and government ID numbers, field level encryption protects data and maintains a usable database.
Most importantly, White said, it’s simple to set up. Database managers turn it on with a one-time configuration change when they set up the database. “That’s really powerful,” he said in an interview.
1. The underlined word “scrambling” in paragraph 2 probably means________.| A．mixing | B．collecting | C．hiding | D．storing |
| A．Secure the safety of Internet pages. | B．Protect files with a unique style of storage. |
| C．Stop bad guys from accessing the database. | D．Enable companies to store files on the cloud. |
| A．Companies should move user data to cloud servers. |
| B．Cloud computing achieved a 17% increase in 2019. |
| C．Companies may be unaware of the risks of the cloud. |
| D．No companies were willing to run their own data centers. |
| A．present some facts | B．offer security advice |
| C．introduce a technique | D．recommend a product |
8 . Would it surprise you to learn that, like animals, trees communicate with each other and pass on their wealth to the next generation?
Professor Simard form University of British Columbia explains how trees are much more complex than most of us ever imagined. Although Charles Darwin thought that trees are competing for survival of the fittest, Simard shows just how wrong he was. As far as Simard is concerned, actually the opposite is true: trees survive through their co-operation, passing around necessary nutrition “depending on who needs it”.
Nitrogen (氮) and carbon are shared through miles of underground fungi (真菌) networks, making sure that all trees in the forest ecological system give and receive just the right amount to keep them all healthy. This hidden system works in a very similar way to the networks of neurons (神经元) in our brains, and when one tree is destroyed, it affects all.
Simard talks about “mother trees”, usually the largest and oldest plants on which all other trees depend. She explains how moribund trees pass on the wealth to the next generation, transporting important minerals to young trees so they may continue to grow. When humans cut down “mother trees” with no awareness of these highly complex “tree societies” or the networks on which they feed, we are reducing the chances of survival for the entire forest.
“We didn’t take any notice of it” Simard says sadly. “Trees move nutrition into the young trees before they die, but we never give them chance.” If we could put across the message to the forestry industry, we could make a huge difference towards our environmental protection efforts for the future.
1. Which statement would Simard agree with?| A．Trees support each other. |
| B．Trees compete for nutrition. |
| C．Trees depend on their needs. |
| D．Trees co-operate with the fittest. |
| A．To explain the importance of fungi networks. |
| B．To introduce the function of neurons networks. |
| C．To illustrate how Nitrogen and carbon are shared. |
| D．To show how the forest ecological system works. |
| A．Energetic. | B．Ancient. | C．Previous | D．Dying |
| A．Protect tree societies. |
| B．Cut down oldest trees. |
| C．Get nutrition from nature. |
| D．Improve our environment. |
9 . Sweetest Day is celebrated on the third Saturday in October as a day to make someone happy. It is an occasion which offers all of us an opportunity to remember not only the sick, the aged, and children who have lost their parents, but also friends, workmates, relatives and neighbors whose helpfulness and kindness we have enjoyed.
Over 60 years ago, when a Cleveland man noticed that some people, such as children who lost their parents and patients who lay in bed, too often felt forgotten and neglected, he developed in his mind the idea of showing them that they were remembered. He did this by giving them small gifts. With the help of his friends and neighbors, he gave those people small gifts on a Saturday in October. During the years that followed, other Clevelanders began to take part in the celebration, which came to be called "Sweetest Day". Over time, the Sweetest Day idea of spreading cheer to the poor, the sick and children who had lost their parents was broadened to include everyone, and became an occasion for remembering others with a kind act or a small gift. Soon the idea spread to other cities all over the USA.
Sweetest Day is not based on any single group’s religious beliefs or on a family relationship. It is a reminder that a thoughtful word or deed enriches life and gives it meaning. Because for many people remembering takes the form of gift giving, Sweetest Day offers us the opportunity to show others that we care, in a positive way.
1. What group of people is the Sweetest Day intended for?| A．The sick. | B．The aged. | C．The orphans. | D．All the people. |
| A．Ignored. | B．Forgotten. | C．Remembered. | D．Loved. |
| A．He felt lonely and wanted to be noticed. |
| B．He wanted to be helpful to those who need love. |
| C．He needed someone to give out some small gifts. |
| D．He was helped by his friends and neighbors. |
| A．A gift is always needed on Sweetest Day. |
| B．Only those sick and children need to be remembered. |
| C．Sweetest Day is limited to families and friends. |
| D．It's a chance for everyone to express your care. |
10 . Coffee is an essential part of Italian culture and since arriving here over six months ago, I have definitely drunk a lot of it!
Of course, coffee is also very popular in the UK but coffee culture in Italy is a completely different story. In Italy, when you order a coffee in a cafe or bar, you are presented with a tiny, bitter espresso. This is' normal coffee for Italians and they are not so interested in the huge coffees that we drink in the UK. In addition, while take-away coffee is extremely popular among the British, it is not very common at all in Italy, especially in non-touristy areas. Generally, Italians prefer to drink their tiny coffees while standing at the bar and,for many, this short break is an important part of their day.
Typically, breakfast in a bar in Italy involves a coffee and a pastry. I have been attracted by the lovely cafes in the Italian town I'm living in. These cafes sell all sorts of mouth-watering pastries, either plain or filled with cream, chocolate, jam or Nutella, as well as delicious coffee. Cappuccinos are very popular at breakfast time and, for me, a creamy cappuccino and a pastry full of Nutella is the perfect way to start the day. I think it's nice to head to a bar to grab a coffee and pastries for breakfast before work and it's luxury to take more time to enjoy such a breakfast at the weekend.
Finally, I have found that coffee in Italy is so much cheaper than coffee in the UK. Normally, an espresso or a macchiato(an espresso with a small amount of milk added)costs around a euro and a cappuccino about 1.50! They are small, of course, but this means that in Italy it is possible to go out for coffee regularly without breaking the bank.
1. What does the author intend to tell us in Paragraph 2?| A．Espresso is very popular in Italy. |
| B．Italians prefer small coffees to large ones. |
| C．Coffee culture in Italy is very different from that in the UK. |
| D．Italians have more time spent in cafes than the British people. |
| A．a container to provide cream | B．some attractive fruit |
| C．a powder to be mixed with coffee | D．a dessert served for breakfast |
| A．Drinking coffee in cafes is expensive. |
| B．Coffee is not allowed to be taken out. |
| C．Italian coffee is mainly imported from the UK. |
| D．Coffee often comes along with other food as breakfast. |
| A．Positive. | B．Disapproving. | C．Doubtful. | D．Uncertain. |
