1 . The terraced rapeseed(油菜)flower hills of Jiangling, Wuyuan is well-known as one of the four “seas of flowers” in China, attracting thousands of plant-loving tourists to come and appreciate and photograph the vast and endless rapeseed flower fields.
“Rapeseed flowers are the messenger of spring,” said Bin Zhan, manager of Jiangxi Wuyuan Tourism, “Jiangling is the best place for a relaxing spring trip to enjoy the most visually impressive views of golden seas of rapeseed blossoms covering layered terrace fields”.
The rapeseed blossom in the terraced fields of Jiangling, located 45 kilometres to the northeast of Wuyuan County, Jiangxi Province, reached full bloom in the second week of March.
This year. Wuyuan restores ancient farming traditions and practices to give visitors an idea or the history ，culture and folk customs of the county by adding scarecrows(稻草人) in the rapeseed flower fields. The creative scarecrows of Wuyuan County are designed in the shapes of popular cartoon characters, Hui-style architecture and folk customs. They are placed in the rapeseed fields to provide more fun and interactions for visitors on flower viewing tours.
“As flower viewing is becoming more popular in recent years, Jiangling is seeing a growing number of returning visitors, especially professional photograph who come back every year for the dramatic rapeseed blossoms,” Zhan said. “The blossoms only last one to two months. April is the last chance to catch a flower-viewing tour this year.”
In addition to flower viewing, Wuyuan County is also home to the most well-protected ancient Hui-style architecture in China. As one of the most beautiful countryside villages in China, it attracts photographers from around the world every year to document not only the natural scenery, but also the unique farming culture and folk traditions.
1. Which is NOT one of the features of the rapeseed blossoms of Jiangling？| A．The rapeseed fields cover a limited area. |
| B．The rapeseed is planted on layered terraces. |
| C．Rapeseed flowers blossom, at the beginning of spring. |
| D．When the flowers blossom, the fields are like a golden sea. |
| A．Folk customs. | B．Hui-style buildings. |
| C．Creative scarecrows. | D．Models of popular cartoon characters. |
| A．Returning visitors get discount when entering Jiangling. |
| B．Visitors could catch the last flower viewing tour in May. |
| C．It is in March and April that Jiangling has the most visitors. |
| D．Not many professional photographers will go to see the blossoms. |
| A．To introduce Wuyuan County as a tourist destination. |
| B．To report how many people visited Jiangling this year. |
| C．To introduce the history of rapeseed farming in Jiangling. |
| D．To remind visitors the best viewing time for rapeseed blossoms. |
2 . Anyone who commutes(通勤)by car knows that traffic jams are an unavoidable part of life. But humans are not alone in facing potential backups.
Ants also commute—between their nest and sources of food. The survival of their habitats depends on doing this efficiently.
When humans commute, there’s a point at which cars become dense(稠密) enough to slow down the flow of traffic, causing jam. Researchers wanted to know if ants on the move could also get stuck. So they regulated traffic density by constructing bridges of various widths between a colony of Argentine ants and a source of food. Then they waited and watched, trying to find out at what point they are going to have a traffic jam.
But it appears that that never happened. They always managed to avoid traffic jam. The flow of ants did increase at the beginning as ants started to fill the bridge and then levelled off at high densities. But it never slowed down or stopped, even when the bridge was nearly filled with ants.
The researchers then took a closer look at how the behaviour of individual ants impacted traffic as a whole. And they found that when ants sense overcrowding, they adjust their speeds and avoid entering high-density areas, which prevents jams. These behaviors may be promoted by pheromones, chemicals that tell other ants where a trail is. The ants also manage to avoid colliding(碰撞) with each other at high densities, which could really slow them down.
Can ants help us solve our own traffic problems? Not likely. That’s because when it comes to getting from point A to point B as fast as possible, human drivers put their own goals first. Individual ants have to be more cooperative in order to feed the colony. But the research could be useful in improving traffic flow for self-driving cars, which can be designed to be less like selfish humans—and more like ants.
1. What does the underlined word “this” in paragraph 2 refer to?| A．Surviving. | B．Commuting. | C．Finding food. | D．Avoiding jams. |
| A．Through closer observation. | B．By regulating their numbers. |
| C．By finding out the dense points. | D．By controlling the widths of their path. |
| A．They follow a special route. |
| B．They level off at high densities. |
| C．They never stop or slow down on the way. |
| D．They depend on their natural chemicals to adjust their speeds. |
| A．Traffic jams | B．Survival of an ant colony |
| C．Unavoidable? Not for ants! | D．Differences between human and ants |
There is a plan to build a new supermarket on the edge of the Whitefields housing estate（住宅区）, on the land where the local library now is. I live at Whitefields, and I would like to express my concern about this plan. It is not that I am completely against the idea of building a supermarket—I just think that as a community we need to weigh up the advantages and disadvantages before committing ourselves.
It is clear that the library is under-used and in poor condition. It is also clear that there are very few shops near here and a supermarket would be a good thing to have. But the people who want to build the supermarket seem to think that no one wants the library any more, and that it isn’t a must because of the Internet and so on. Is this necessarily true, especially for elderly people? What about young people who don’t have the Internet at home and need to go to the library to do their homework? Where can they study if they have to share a room with a younger brother or sister?
On the other hand, there is an argument that a new supermarket would not only bring more choice of shopping and more convenience for local people, but it would also bring some much-needed jobs for younger people in the town—and this is a good point. What we need to do is consider the effect a supermarket will have on our quality of life. Certainly local people, including me, will find shopping a lot easier and more convenient. But there will also be extra traffic. In a few years from now, the roads in and around will be full of cars in the daytime and delivery lorries at night, and not only that—we will have got used to it, too. Are more jobs and more convenience worth such an influence on our daily lives? Perhaps, but this is what we have to ask ourselves.
I believe that all the people of Whitefields, and the authority, need to discuss this question in an open-minded way—and I hope that by the time a decision is taken, we will have had a full and fair discussion of the issues involved, and that the local authority will have really listened to everyone’s view. Is that too much to ask?
Yours faithfully,
Tom Watkins
1. The supporters of the supermarket probably think ________.| A．the library is no longer needed |
| B．the library is too poor to be rebuilt |
| C．the supermarket brings down goods price |
| D．supermarket increases local workers’ income |
| A．Shopping convenience. | B．Job opportunity. |
| C．Life quality. | D．Traffic condition. |
| A．Approving. | B．Neutral. |
| C．Negative. | D．Confident. |
| A．To promote effective public reading. |
| B．To call for concern over an urban project. |
| C．To discuss ways of improving life quality. |
| D．To express dissatisfaction with public equipment. |
4 . One of the greatest sources of unhappiness, in my experience, is the difficulty we have in accepting things as they are.
When we see something we don’t like, we wish it could be different. We cry out for something better. That may be human nature, or perhaps it’s something ingrained(根深蒂固的) in our culture. The root of the unhappiness isn’t necessarily that we want things to be different. However, it’s that we decided we didn’t like it in the first place. We’ve judged it as bad, rather than saying, “It’s not bad or good, and it just is it.”
In one of my books, I said “You should expect people to mess up and expect things to go differently than you planned”. Some readers said it’s too sorrowful to expect things to go wrong. However, it’s only negative if you see it as negative and judge it as bad. Instead, you could accept it as the way the world works and try to understand why that is.
This can be applied to whatever you do: how other people act at work, how politics works and how depressing the news media can be. Accept these things as they are, and try to understand why they’re that way. It will save you a lot of sadness, because you’ll no longer say, “Oh. I wish bad things didn’t happen!”
Does it mean you can never change things? Not at all. But change things not because you can’t accept things as they are, but because you enjoy the process of changing, learning and growing.
Can we make this world a better place? You can say that you’ll continue to try to do things to help others, to grow as a person, to make a difference in this world. That’s the correct path you choose to take, because you enjoy that path. Therefore, when you find yourself judging and wishing for difference, try a different approach: accept, and understand. It might lead to some interesting results.
1. The author believes that we feel unhappy maybe because ________.| A．it is our natural emotion in the life |
| B．culture asks us to be different from others |
| C．everyone has their own opinions on things |
| D．we dislike something in the beginning |
| A．Acting well at work and in politics. |
| B．Feeling depressed for the news media. |
| C．Accepting and understanding what has happened. |
| D．Saying something negative when bad things come. |
| A．Help others and make a difference. |
| B．Enjoy what you have to do in the work. |
| C．Judge yourself and make a wish for you. |
| D．Try a new way when making the world better. |
| A．Accepting can make our life happier and better. |
| B．Expecting things to be different gives us hope. |
| C．Traditional culture becomes root of unhappiness. |
| D．Judging good or bad is important for our world. |
5 . Some of the world’s most famous musicians recently gathered in Paris and New Orleans to celebrate the first annual International Jazz Day. UNESCO( United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) recently set April 30 as a day to raise awareness of jazz music, its significance, and its potential as a unifying(联合) voice across cultures.
Despite the celebrations, though, in the U.S. the jazz audience continues to shrink and grow older, and the music has failed to connect with younger generations.
It’s Jason Moran’s job to help change that. As the Kennedy Center’s artistic adviser for jazz, Moran hopes to widen the audience for jazz, make the music more accessible, and preserve its history and culture.
“Jazz seems like it’s not really a part of the American appetite,” Moran tells National Public Radio’s reporter Neal Conan. “What I’m hoping to accomplish is that my generation and younger start to reconsider and understand that jazz is not black and write anymore. It’s actually color, and it’s actually digital.”
Moran says one of the problems with jazz today is that the entertainment aspect of the music has been lost. “The music can’t be presented today the way it was in 1908 or 1958. It has to continue to move, because the way the world works is not the same,” says Moran.
Last year, Moran worked on a project that arranged Fats Waller’s music for a dance party, “Just to kind of put it back in the mind that Waller is dance music as much as it is concert music,” says Moran. “For me, it’s the recontextualization. In music, where does the emotion(情感) lie? Are we, as humans, gaining any insight(感悟) on how to talk about ourselves and how something as abstract as a Charlie Parker record gets us into a dialogue about our emotions and our thoughts? Sometimes we lose sight that the music has a wider context,” says Moran, “so I want to continue those dialogues. Those are the things I want to foster.”
1. Why did UNESCO set April 30 as International Jazz Day?| A．To remember the birth of jazz. |
| B．To protect cultural diversity. |
| C．To encourage people to study music. |
| D．To recognize the value of jazz. |
| A．Jazz becoming more accessible. |
| B．The production of jazz growing faster. |
| C．Jazz being less popular with the young. |
| D．The jazz audience becoming larger. |
| A．It will disappear gradually. |
| B．It remains black and white. |
| C．It should keep up with the times. |
| D．It changes every 50 years. |
| A．Exploring the Future of Jazz. |
| B．The Rise and Fall of Jazz. |
| C．The Story of a Jazz Musician. |
| D．Celebrating the Jazz Day. |
6 . A new study, conducted by British company Mindlab International, has found that listening to music at work increases accuracy and speed, The Telegraph reported. Perhaps, some parents disagree with this idea, saying, "Switch off the music and concentrate!" Well, if that's the case with your parents, you might now be able to convince them that you have science on your side.
The company gave 26 participants a series of different tasks for five days in a row, including spell checking, mathematical word problems, data entry, and abstract reasoning. The participants completed these tasks while listening to music or no music at all.
The results showed that while music was playing, 88% of participants produced their most accurate test results and 81% completed their fastest work. David Lewis, chairman of Mindlab International, told The Telegraph, "Music is a very powerful management tool if you want to increase not only the efficiency of your workforce but also their emotional state... they are going to become more positive about the work."
However, you may have a list of your favorite songs, but not all kinds of music match all homework. For maths or other subjects involving numbers or attention to detail, you should listen to classical music, the study found. In the study, pop music enabled participants to complete their tasks 58% faster than when listening to no music at all. If you are reviewing your English writing, pop music is the best choice, as it is the best kind for spell checking. It cut mistakes by 14%, compared to listening to no music. After finishing your homework, do you often take time to check your answers? Maybe, some dance music is suitable for you.
1. Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?| A．Music helps us to learn |
| B．We cannot live without music |
| C．Different music, different lives |
| D．Music in the classroom. |
| A．Persuade their parents to listen to music. |
| B．Listen to the same music together. |
| C．Try their best to choose the most suitable music. |
| D．Finish tasks with music or without music at all. |
| A．tools | B．results |
| C．tests | D．participants |
| A．Classical music | B．Dance music |
| C．Pop music | D．Rock music |
7 . Too many people want others to be their friends, but they don’t give friendship back. That is why some friendships don’t last very long. To have a friend, you must learn to treat your friend the way you want your friend to treat you. Learning to be a good friend means learning three rules: be honest; be generous(宽宏大量的); be understanding.
Honesty is where a good friendship starts. Friends must be able to trust one another. If you do not tell the truth, people usually find out. If a friend finds out that you haven’t been honest, you may lose your friend’s trust. Good friends always rely on one another to speak and act honestly.
Generosity means sharing and sharing makes a friendship grow. You do not have to give your lunch money or your clothes. Naturally you will want to share your ideas and feelings. These can be very valuable to a friend. They tell your friend what is important to you. By sharing them, you help your friend know better.
Sooner or later everyone needs understanding and help with a problem. Something may go wrong at school. Talking about the problem can make it easier to solve. Turning to a friend can be a first step in solving the problem. So to be a friend you must listen and understand. You must try to put yourself in your friend’s place so that you can understand the problem better.
No two friendships are exactly alike(相同的)．But all true friendships have three things in common. If you plan to keep your friends, you must practice honesty, generosity and understanding.
1. Some friendships don’t last long because ________.| A．there are too many people who want to make friends. |
| B．those who give others friendship receive friendship from others. |
| C．some people receive friendship but don’t give friendship back. |
| D．they don’t know friendship is something serious. |
| A．something countable |
| B．the base of friendship |
| C．as important as money |
| D．more important than anything else |
| A．generosity and friendship |
| B．generosity and sharing |
| C．your ideas and feelings |
| D．your clothes |
| A．How to Be a Friend |
| B．Honesty Is the Best Policy |
| C．A Friend in Need Is a Friend Indeed |
| D．Three Important Points in Life |
