1 . You've probably heard it suggested that you need to move more throughout the day, and as a general rule of thumb, that "more" is often defined as around 10,000 steps. With many Americans tracking their steps via new fitness-tracking wearables, or even just by carrying their phone, more and more people use the 10,000-step rule as their marker for healthy living. Dr. Dreg Hager, professor of computer science at Johns Hopkins, decided to take a closer look at that 10,000-step rule, and he found that using it as a standard may be doing more harm than good for many.
“It turns out that in 1960 in Japan they figured out that the average Japanese man, when he walked 10,000 steps a day burned something like 3,000 calories and that is what they thought the average person should consume so they picked 10,000 steps as a number” Hager said.
According to Hager, asking everyone to shoot for 10,000 steps each day could be harmful to the elderly or those with medical conditions, making it unwise for them to jump into that level of exercise, even if it's walking. The bottom line is that 10,000 steps may be too many for some and too few for others. He also noted that those with shorter legs have an easier time hitting the 10,000-step goal because they have to take more steps than people with longer legs to cover the distance. It seems that 10,000 steps may be suitable for the latter.
A more recent study focused on older women and how many steps can help maintain good health and promote longevity (长寿).The study included nearly 17,000 women with an average age of 72. Researchers found that women who took 4,400 steps per day were about 40% less likely to die during a follow-up period of just over four years: Interestingly, women in the study who walked more than 7,500 steps each day got no extra boost in longevity.
1. What does the underlined word "it' in Paragraph 1 refer to?| A．The phone recording. | B．The 10,000-step rule. |
| C．The healthy living. | D．The fitness-tracking method. |
| A．How many steps a Japanese walks. |
| B．How we calculate the number of steps. |
| C．If burning 3,000 calories daily is scientific. |
| D．Where 10,000 steps a day came from. |
| A．Senior citizens. | B．Young short-legged people. |
| C．Healthy long-legged people | D．Weak individuals. |
| A．4,400 steps. | B．10,000 steps. |
| C．2,700 steps. | D．7,500 steps. |
2 . Dubai is the commercial capital of the oil-rich United Arab Emirates in the Persian Gulf. But officials want to turn it into the world’s “smartest” city. Earlier this year, Dubai announced plans to be the world’s first city to use self-driving taxis. In June, it placed the first robot police officer at shopping centers and places popular with visitors. Dubai police officials now say they plan to use self-driving vehicles to patrol (巡逻) city streets by the end of the year.
Dubai will be the first in the world to use the O-R3 vehicle, according to the Singapore company that builds it. The company, OTSAW Digital, recently signed an agreement with the Dubai Police force to supply the driverless robots.
The vehicles look a lot like most other automobiles, but are much smaller. They are equipped with cameras, machine learning tools and 3D technology to help them operate independently. The robots automatically charge themselves when power gets low.
The vehicle’s cameras can scan faces and record registration information to check for criminals and possible illegal activities. A police official said the robot can recognize people in any area. It will be used to “identify suspicious objects and follow suspects.” “We seek to increase operations with the help of technology such as robots,” said Dubai’s police chief. “We always search for the best technology to serve our police work for a safer and smarter city.”
The O-R3 can communicate with computers at police centers in different locations. The patrolling robot is able to send data and video to the centers, where operators can control the vehicle remotely. The vehicles can also work together with drones (无人机) that can be launched from the back of the robot. The drones can then follow the vehicles and provide more support from the air.
The CEO of OTSAW Digital, Ting Ming Ling, says the use of such vehicles is designed to help humans with their jobs, not replace them. “Eventually, robots exist to improve the quality of human lives, where men take on high value jobs while robots perform the low skilled ones,” he said.
1. What does the underlined word “them” in paragraph 3 refer to?| A．Learning tools. | B．O-R3 vehicles. |
| C．Common automobiles. | D．3D cameras. |
| A．To take the place of the work of human beings. |
| B．To gather information of faces in the streets. |
| C．To help investigate criminal activities more effectively. |
| D．To keep an eye on people’s behaviors in the city. |
| A．Gather more information for O-R3 vehicle. |
| B．Protect the vehicle from the sky. |
| C．Show directions for the vehicle. |
| D．Control the vehicle remotely. |
| A．Police in Dubai Have the Most Advantaged Equipment |
| B．Dubai Will Put Self-Driving Police Vehicles on Streets |
| C．You Will Not See Police Officers in the Streets of Dubai |
| D．Robot Police Officers Are Much Smarter than Human Ones |
3 . Beneficial algae (藻类) help feed the corals and give them their color. But higher-than-normal ocean temperatures can cause some corals to bleach (白化), which means they lose those helpful algae. Affected corals can become bone-white and may struggle to survive. But when they bleach, some corals turn from red to blue to purple.
According to a new study, those flashy colors may help corals win back their lost algae partners and this can help the corals recover from bleaching.
Elena Bollati, a biologist who carried out the study, turned to experiments to see what conditions cause “colorful bleaching”.
In the lab, she put corals to a slow rise in temperature. As the team turned up the heat, the amount of algae dropped. They also saw a red-colored fluorescence (荧光) the algae gave out when lit with certain wavelengths. A few weeks after the heat stress, this red fluorescence jumped. The team also monitored fluorescence from the coral itself. That light is caused by the pigment (色素) that gives the corals color. The scientists also found that an imbalance of certain nutrients could lead to colorful bleaching.
Healthy, unbleached corals rely on their algae to absorb some sunlight. The algae uses some of this light to make food for the coral. It also helps screen the corals from some of that sunlight. After losing those algae, the corals face exposure to more sunlight. That light — including its blue wavelengths — can enter and bounce around inside the corals. Those reflections boost the coral tissue’s exposure to the blue light, thus making the bleached corals pump out more pigments.
Like the pigments that color skin, coral pigments are protective. They act like a sunscreen. By bumping up pigment production, the corals may be making a friendlier home for returning algae. The team also observed that vividly colored areas of the corals more quickly regained their algae than areas with less pigment.
1. What is the purpose of the experiment in the text?| A．To prove the harmful effect of bleaching. |
| B．To look for effective ways to study corals. |
| C．To show the important effect of pigment on corals. |
| D．To find out the reason for bleaching corals changing colors. |
| A．The pigments. | B．The heat. |
| C．Sunlight. | D．The nutrients. |
| A．The coral. | B．The algae. | C．The food. | D．The light. |
| A．More Corals Are Suffering From Bleaching |
| B．High Temperatures Is Causing Corals to Bleach |
| C．Going Colorful May Be Corals’ Fight Against Bleaching |
| D．Bleaching Is Making Corals Disappear From the Earth |
4 . Japanese businessman Katsuo Inoue chose Italy for his summer vacation this year. He enjoyed the views of Florence and Rome-without ever leaving Japan.
Inoue and his wife “flew” to Italy on First Airlines, a company known for entertainment （娱乐），not transportation. The Tokyo-based new company entered the fast growing online tourism early this year as many countries have stopped accepting foreign tourists.
“I often go to other countries on business, but I haven't been to Italy,” Inoue said. "My impression was really good because I got a sense of actually seeing things there. First Airlines even gave us life jackets and oxygen masks（氧气罩）！”
The “passengers” on First Airlines sit in the first — or business-class areas of an airplane model. Workers serve meals and drinks as large screens show passing clouds and other views outside the airplane. The “travelers“ then receive glasses that provide virtual reality（虚拟现实 的）tours of places like Paris, New York, Hawaii and Rome.
The country's biggest airline, ANA Holdings, said that the numbers of passengers flying to foreign countries fell by 96 percent since June when Japan has stopped most travel in and out of the country. The International Air Transport Association （lAIA ） and The International Tourism Association （ITA） said last month that international travels wouldn't be able to recover until 2024. But they said the online travels have been growing very fast.
The president, Hiroaki Abe, said, “Since we started our online tour this year, our business has been increasing by 50 percent each month. Most of our customers usually travel to other countries every year and they can now experience some of that here when they are unable to go to the real attractions.”
1. What can we learn about First Airlines?| A．It provides transportation to tourists. |
| B．It is an Italy-based company. |
| C．It has been in business for many years. |
| D．It is a new online tourism company. |
| A．It is very cool. | B．It is boring. |
| C．It is dangerous. | D．It is frightening. |
| A．Customers can have more choices. |
| B．It is able to provide much better services. |
| C．It is much cheaper than the traditional travels. |
| D．People cannot actually travel around this year. |
| A．IATA. | B．ITA. |
| C．First Airlines. | D．ANA Holdings. |
5 . Forced by the COVID﹣19 outbreak， Pooja Chandrashekar spoke to mobile health﹣clinic （卫生所） workers across the city about their needs during the pandemic（大流行病）． The first﹣year Harvard Medical School student discovered that most information about the widespread virus was only available in English and a small number of other languages， leaving those who do not speak those languages in the dark．
"This makes it very difficult for immigrants（外来移民） and non﹣English﹣speaking communities to seek care for COVID﹣19，" Chandrashekar said． "We know from past epidemics like the swine flu（猪流感） that the lack of accessible information in one's native language places these populations at a higher risk of infection．"
She decided to take action， creating the COVID﹣19 Health Literacy Project． Chandrashekar brought together a group of students from more than 30 universities to create fact sheets in languages not commonly represented in the American health care system． She tweeted about her effort on March 14 and included an interest form in a following tweet that collected more than 500 responses． From there， she formed a still﹣growing team of over 175 medical students． Together， the students created seven fact sheets， in 35 languages．
"Our goal is to make sure we're producing accurate， evidence﹣based information，" Chandrashekar said． "When you're putting information out to the public and health care organizations are distributing it to their patients， you really want to make sure the information you're providing is correct．"
Going forward， Chandrashekar plans to keep building the network of partners and expanding the languages offered to serve the greatest number of people．
1. What does "their needs" in paragraph 1 probably mean？| A．The information about the the COVID﹣19． |
| B．The care for people in the dark． |
| C．The medical students coming from other countries． |
| D．The accessible information about the COVID﹣19 in more languages． |
| A．More than 30 universities． |
| B．Followers of Chandrashekar's tweet． |
| C．Students in medical teams． |
| D．Health care providers all over the world． |
| A．Providing correct and evidence﹣based information． |
| B．Offering accessible information in different languages to the people in need． |
| C．Working with health care providers around the world． |
| D．Displaying and distributing fact sheets to patients in their care． |
| A．Entertainment． |
| B．Lifestyle． |
| C．Community． |
| D．Advertisements． |
6 . In 2015, Chennai was destroyed by one of the worst floods in over a century, leaving thousands without food, water and supplies. During the flood, many heroes arose, one of whom was Santosh, a young man who owned a take-out restaurant in Chennai.
When the first flood hit in November, he got a call from a company called Naga Rava. The company asked him to prepare 5,000 packets of food and give them to the flood victims. He, with his partners, took the order, cooked for 14 hours and delivered(递送) them. But that night, as they sat together discussing the event of the day, they actually felt ashamed(羞愧). “Here was a man not even from Chennai and he was going out of his way to help the affected people. We, while living here, had not really done anything ourselves for our own people,” said Santosh later.
He then began the groundwork for a collection to help cook more dishes. Little did he know that the November flood was just the beginning, and the real show was about to begin. The December flood affected them all. His own house got flooded and his family was trapped on the second floor. They lost phone connection and electricity. In spite of this, Santosh went back out into the flood, creating a kitchen and preparing food all by himself for the victims.
He did not sleep for four days, taking a one-hour break every day as he kept on cooking. As word got out about this man’s effort, others stepped out to join him. From children to the elderly, strangers came to help him in cooking, packing and transporting food. Up to 300 volunteers worked together to make it all happen. By the time the fourth day finally came to an end, Santosh and his team had prepared 170,000 food boxes and delivered them to people in need.
1. What inspired Santosh to help the affected people?| A．A call for help. | B．His cooking skills. |
| C．An act of kindness of a stranger. | D．The encouragement from his partners. |
| A．The help and support. | B．The severer flood. |
| C．Santosh’s family suffering. | D．Santosh’s cooking more food. |
| A．Energetic and helpful. | B．Determined and clever. |
| C．Selfless and caring. | D．Kind and wise. |
| A．Many Hands Make Light Work |
| B．Kindness Is Its Own Reward |
| C．Major Floods Brought Challenges To People |
| D．A Man Cooked 170,000 Meals For The Affected |
7 . When most high school students complain about having to wake up extra early，they're usually referring to a swim practice before class or the last minute study before a test. But that was never the case for Corey Patrick，who woke up at 4：30 every morning last year in order to arrive on time at Tarrant High School in Alabama.
Patrick had attended Tarrant City Schools since his fourth grade，but things got difficult when his family moved to a town 14 miles away. Even though his family didn't have any forms of transportation，Patrick didn't want to miss out on his senior year with friends，so he woke up at 4：30 every morning in order to make it to a 5：41 a．m.bus that would help him get to Tarrant on time.And just as he had done every other school day of the year，Patrick got up one morning to start the journey from his home to his high school; the only obvious difference that morning was that he was wearing his graduation gown (毕业礼服)，which made that day's bus driver，DeJuanna Beasley, take some photos of him. She then shared them online with these words，“You tell me this isn't determination.He got on my bus to go to his graduation，and no one was with him.Sometimes it's all in what you want out of life.I was so proud of this young man.”
That was soon shared by many people online，and it caught the attention of radio host Rickey Smiley，who surprised Patrick by giving him a car later. Smiley confirmed that he would make sure that Patrick received help with getting his driver's license. A GoFundMe was also created for Patrick，which has raised over $20,000. And Patrick has got a scholarship (奖学金) to Jacksonville University，where he plans to study computer science.
1. Why was Patrick different from most students when it comes to rising early?| A．It had something to do with study. |
| B．It was a part of daily life for him. |
| C．He was unwilling to get up early. |
| D．He spent more time in studying. |
| A．Patrick dressed poorly on his graduation day. |
| B．It took Patrick an hour to get to the bus stop. |
| C．The driver was moved by Patrick's story. |
| D．There was no school in Patrick's town. |
| A．Patrick's request for help on the Internet. |
| B．The difficulties that Patrick experienced. |
| C．The information about Patrick's university. |
| D．The message published online by the driver. |
| A．GoFundMe. | B．Rickey Smiley. |
| C．Patrick's high school. | D．Jacksonville University. |
8 . Ask people in the UK what the words “Sunday roast” mean to them, and they’ll probably take you back to their grandmothers’ dining rooms -maybe with a few stories of “the greatest puddings” and “the best ever steak”. But now the traditional Sunday roast seems to have been left back in the old days. According to the Daily Mail, just one in 50 British families sits down to this weekly meal together.
There are many reasons why the roast is becoming less popular. In the busy modern world, where breakfast is a slice of toast eaten on the way to work or school and lunch is a quick sandwich in front of the computer screen, people just don’t seem to have the time or patience to make a roast.
And Sunday was once a day when people could easily go to the kitchen to cook. Nowadays, people are often out shopping or at the cinema until it’s far too late to start thinking about heating the oven(烤箱) up.
However, a recent article from The Telegraph warned against being carried away by our tight schedules: “It would be a shame to let this fine old tradition disappear.”
The Guardian further explained that the eating of the big meal is only the half of it. The Sunday roast also makes for relaxed morning activities in the kitchen, and the table becomes the perfect place to share good food and chat with family and friends. “For busy moms and dads, even if you can manage to turn off your mobile phone and the TV only once a week and turn the Sunday roast into a real family event, children can have fun cooking the food and clearing up together.”
1. The best title for the passage is probably _____.| A．Sunday—Best Time for Family |
| B．Sunday Roast Dying Out |
| C．It’s the Perfect Time for Us |
| D．Let’s Sit Down Together |
| A．They have a busy lifestyle. |
| B．They have no interest in cooking. |
| C．They don’t think it worthwhile. |
| D．They are living in the modern society. |
| A．A recent article. |
| B．A traditional kitchen. |
| C．The fine old tradition. |
| D．Sunday morning activity. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Positive. |
| C．Sorry. | D．Uncertain. |
9 . Until recently, several lines of evidence—from fossils, genetics, and archaeology—suggested that humans first moved from Africa into Eurasia (the land of Europe and Asia) about 60,000 years ago, quickly replacing other early human species, such as Neanderthals and Denisovans, that they may have met along the way.
However, a series of recent discoveries, including 100,000-year-old human teeth found in a cave in China, have clouded this straightforward statement. And the latest find, a prehistoric jawbone at the Misliya Cave in Israel dating back to nearly 200,000 years ago, which is almost twice as old as any Homo sapiens(智人) remains discovered outside Africa, where our species was thought to have originated from, has added a new and unexpected twist.
The find suggests that there were multiple waves of migration across Europe and Asia and could also mean that modern humans in the Middle East were interacting, and possibly mating, with other human species for tens of thousands of years. “Misliya breaks the mould (模式) of existing assumptions of the timing of the first known Homo sapiens in these regions,” said Chris Stringer, head of human origins at the Natural History Museum in London. “It’s important in removing a long-lasting constraint(限制) on our thinking.”
Prof. Hershkovitz, who led the work at Tel Aviv University said, “What Misliya tells us is that modern humans left Africa not 100,000 years ago, but 200,000 years ago. This is a revolution in the way we understand the evolution of our own species.” He also added that the record now indicates that humans probably travelled beyond the African continent whenever the climate allowed it. “I don’t believe there was one big departure from Africa,” he said. “I think that throughout hundreds of thousands of years humans were coming in and out of Africa all the time.”
The discovery means that modern humans were potentially meeting and interacting during a longer period with other ancient human groups, providing more opportunity for cultural and biological exchanges. It also raises interesting questions about the fate of the earliest modern human pioneers. Genetic data from modern-day populations around the world strongly suggest that everyone outside Africa can trace their ancestors back to a group that left around 60,000 years ago. So the inhabitants of the Misliya Cave are probably not the ancestors of anyone alive today, and scientists can only guess why their branch of the family tree came to an end.
1. What does the Misliya discovery suggest?| A．Our ancestors were powerful and kind of agreesive. |
| B．Our ancestors left Africa much earlier than thought. |
| C．The origins of modern humans are from Europe. |
| D．Homo sapiens, Neanderthals and Denisovans once lived together. |
| A．Early human species living in Europe |
| B．Neanderthals and Denisovans. |
| C．People first moving from Africa into Eurasia. |
| D．Ancient people living in Africa all the time. |
| A．Climate was a big factor in human migration from Africa. |
| B．There was a large-scale human migration from Africa. |
| C．Human migration was occasional in Africa 200,000 years ago. |
| D．The Misliya find is against our understanding of human evolution. |
| A．They were ancestors of people living in China. |
| B．They left evidence for their mysterious disappearance in history. |
| C．They probably contributed little to present-day people genetically. |
| D．They could be traced by their remains left on their travelling route. |
10 . In the first days after a team of 25 delivery robots landed on George Mason University's campus in January,they appeared to cause curious glances and many photos but not much else.
It was clear,officials said,that more time and more data would be necessary to understand whether the robots would change the campus culture or become forgettable.Two months later,an extra 1,500 breakfast orders have been delivered autonomously,according to the technologists of Sodexo,a company that manages food service for GMU and works closely with the robots.
Research has shown that up to 88 percent of college students skip breakfast,primarily because of lack of time,but that number is starting to turn around when delivery robots arrive on campus.They're constantly seen making the 15 minute trip from campus restaurant to a handful of nearby dorms,as well as to other buildings across campus,where students meet them.Two months later,breakfast has replaced dinner as the go-to meal for robot delivery.
Sodexo officials have noted that college students are main users of food delivery apps and place a high value on convenience and multiple options when they dine.During the morning hours,restaurant experts say,there is generally more emphasis（强调）on speed than any other part of the day.Combine college students'love of food delivery with messy morning routines,and perhaps they have a perfect recipe for robots to deliver in the campus.
The robots also provide campus officials with valuable data showing how meal plans are being used,which could lead to changes in how the university serves students over time.Sodexo technologists also announced Monday that a new team of more than 30 robots is launching at Northern Arizona University
.
| A．They are on diets. |
| B．They have a tight schedule. |
| C．The food doesn't agree with them. |
| D．GMU doesn't offer delivery services. |
| A．College students. | B．Campus officials. |
| C．College professors. | D．Restaurant managers. |
| A．They make timely deliveries. |
| B．They were ignored at first. |
| C．They mainly carry dinner at present. |
| D．They have changed the whole campus culture. |
| A．Delivery services grow fast in college. |
| B．Breakfast in necessary for college students. |
| C．Robots help with GMU's campus management. |
| D．Delivery robots are changing students'eating habits. |
