1 . People spend about a third of their life sleeping and cannot survive without it. But while scientists have long understood the importance of getting enough sleep, the key part played by light exposure can sometimes be overlooked (忽视). The reason why light is so important is that it sets our body clock, through specialized light sensors within the eye. Our eye detects the light and dark cycle within our environment and adjusts the body clock so that the inner and outer day coincide (相符). This is so powerful that people who have eye damage can find their body clock is thrown off, leading to sleep problems.
Without any access to light, the human body clock appears to change, adding about half an hour on to its 24-hour cycle for each day of darkness. Jet lag (飞行时差反应) is the most obvious example of the effect light can have. Exposure to light in the new time zone helps reset our body clock to local time, telling us the right time to sleep.
In 1800, most people across the world worked outside and were exposed to the change from day to night. Today, many of us miss out on the natural environment as we mostly work inside. We have become a light-deprived (光照不足的) species, and this has far-reaching consequences for the quality of our sleep, and consequently our well-being. The proper amount varies from person to person, but we do know that our bodies need exposure to very bright light that most indoor lighting does not provide. One notable side effect is Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a form of depression thought to affect 2-8% of Europeans, which is linked to lack of sunlight exposure.
Research in this area could help people make informed choices. Simply by reducing light exposure before going to bed, and trying to get as much morning light as possible, they could improve their sleep and well-being.
1. What does the underlined part “it” in the first paragraph refer to?| A．The sensor. | B．Sleep. |
| C．Light. | D．The eye. |
| A．To show people in different time zones have different sleep patterns. |
| B．To advise frequent fliers to get plenty of sun to avoid discomfort. |
| C．To prove irregular light and dark cycles affect our body clock. |
| D．To explain why our body clock has a 24-hour cycle. |
| A．It comes along with cold temperatures. | B．It results from a lack of natural light. |
| C．It affects people living on islands. | D．It happens mainly in summer. |
| A．Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy. |
| B．Natural light is the key to a good night’s sleep. |
| C．Our body clock is linked to the mood disorder. |
| D．Life is really hard for nightbirds. |
2 . The number of snow geese arriving in the Arctic each spring to breed has risen over the past few decades. At first, wildlife biologists saw this as an environmental crisis, pointing to marshes（沼泽地）where plants were eaten by the hungry birds, and the federal government responded by loosening restrictions on snow goose hunting across the country. But how do the Inuit（因纽特人），in whose backyard this is taking place, and for whom fresh goose eggs and meat are among the pleasure of an Arctic spring, view the situation? A recent study is bringing Inuit wildlife experts and scientists together to look for common ground on managing the species.
The snow goose study asked experts in Coral Harbour and Arviat, on the north and west coast of Hudson Bay, to share their generations of knowledge about snow geese and their views on what should be done. “ The community had concerns about controlling the population," says Ron Ningeongan, a community officer for the Kivalliq Inuit Association in Coral Harbour, "and Inuit snow goose knowledge had never been recorded. People wanted to pass on what they knew. "
The Inuit experts rejected the idea of a cull(选择性宰杀），considering it wasteful of the geese and unnecessary for the environment in general, but felt that hunting more geese in an organized way—for instance, paying local hunters a minimum amount of money and distributing the birds to disadvantaged families or operating a limited commercial hunt that would employ local people—would be appropriate.
The Inuit say that while there may be too many snow geese in some areas, it's not a crisis. Biologists now generally agree that there seem to be plenty of undamaged marshes available and newer research shows that some damaged areas can recover.
Conservation planners for the three migratory bird reserves in the area will use the study's recommendations, which is an excellent example of how indigenous （土著的） knowledge can strengthen wildlife management Johnson says.
“Now that we have recorded and documented Inuit knowledge of snow geese," says Ningeongan. "when facing the crisis again, other people will be able to use the information to help manage the species, which is fundamental to dealing with it effectively. ”
1. Why did the federal government looben restrictions on snow goose hunting?| A．To create more marshes. | B．To protect ecosystem. |
| C．To make more profits. | D．To wipe out the hungry birds. |
| A．Regarding too many snow geese as a crisis. |
| B．Never organizing large-scale commercial hunts. |
| C．Employing poor families to hunt more snow geese. |
| D．Using snow goose hunting to man's best advantage. |
| A．It's unpredictable. | B．It’s hard to get better. |
| C．It's too discouraging. | D．lt's a bit promising. |
| A．The crisis. | B．The species. |
| C．Inuit knowledge. | D．Inuit research. |
3 . In his widely-read book, Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, sociologist Robert Putnam told us a troubling truth: Americans were becoming more disconnected from each other-and in that isolation(孤独 )was deep personal dissatisfaction.
That book came out in 2000, before the age of mobile technology truly took hold Last year, a new book built on the conversation -Ruth Whippman’s America the Anxious: How Our Pursuit of Happiness Is Creating a Nation of Nervous Wrecks Wwhippman looked around at the culture of self-help, self-care and happiness-seeking in today’s America, saying, "Too often, we are told, Happiness comes from within. But what we should understand is, Happiness is other people. Study after study shows that good social relationship is a ‘necessary condition for happiness, ‘meaning that humans can’t actually be happy without it.
Social engagement doesn’t have to mean parties or huge circles of friends. As Whippman writes, "When asked, almost all people consistently report themselves as happier when they are around other people than when they are alone. This can mean a quiet cup of tea shared with a trusted friend, or a small book club, walking group or a movie night with a neighbor.
Christmas Day is a wonderful time to reflect on the power of community, the real joy that comes from accepting the fact that human beings-whether introverts(性格内向的人) or extroverts- are born social creatures who thrive(茁＃成长) when we develop relationships in ways that work for us.
As Helen Keller once said, "Alone we can do so. little; together we can, do so much. Together, we can make happiness a daily reality for ourselves and others
1. What is the attitude de of Robert Putnam and Whippman towards today’s American society?| A．Confident. | B．Disapproving. |
| C．Unconcerned. | D．Cautious. |
| A．Good social relationship. | B．Whippman’s new book. |
| C．Study after study. | D．The age of mobile technology. |
| A．By attending more parties. |
| B．By making more friends. |
| C．By standing in someone else’s shoes. |
| D．By surrounding ourselves with like-minded people. |
| A．To show the popularity of it. |
| B．To demand more similar festivals. |
| C．To stress the importance of social connection. |
| D．To call on more people to join in the celebration. |
4 . The U. S. Thanksgiving holiday is symbolized (象征) by its traditional food-roast turkey. But turkey is certainly not from Turkey. In fact, its English name is based on one big mistake. We could say it is a case of mistaken identity. The word "Turkey" has meant "the land of the Turks" since ancient times. In the mid-1500s, the word "turkey" was first used to refer to the bird in the English language.
The misunderstanding over the word happened because of two similar-looking kinds of birds.
There is an African bird called the guinea fowl(珍珠鸡). It has dark feathers with white spots and a patch of brown on the back of its neck. Traders brought the guinea fowl to Europe through North Africa. This foreign bird came to Europe through Turkish lands. So, the English thought the bird as a "Turkish chicken".
When Europeans came to North America, they saw a bird that looked like the guinea fowl. This bird was native to the North American continent. But they thought that it was the guinea fowl，which. at that time, was called the “turkey cock"，so they gave it the same name.
Hundreds of years later, we continue to call this North American bird ‘turkey", even though it has no connection at all with the country Turkey, or even with Europe.
But English is not the only language with interesting names for this North American bird.
The Turkish call turkey “hindi”, the Turkish name for India. The reference(涉及)to India probably conies from the old. wrong idea that the New World was in Eastern Asia.
The French call it "dinde", a name that also connects the bird to India. "Dinde" means "from India" in the French language. "Turkey" has similar names in several other languages.
1. What can we know from paragraph 1?| A．The word "turkey" appeared in modern times. |
| B．Turkey's English name is based on correct identity. |
| C．Americans like eating turkey in Thanksgiving holiday. |
| D．Both Turkey and turkey have similar meanings in English. |
| A．Europe. | B．Africa. |
| C．America. | D．Asia. |
| A．Eastern Asia. | B．The French language. |
| C．The New World. | D．The bird turkey. |
| A．How did Thanksgiving "turkey" get its name? |
| B．How did Americans spend their Thanksgiving holiday? |
| C．Why was the guinea fowl so popular with Americans? |
| D．Why was the guinea fowl different from American turkeys? |
5 . It is becoming a growing trend that more and more consumers across the country are using cashless payment methods. The rapid development of third-party mobile payment tools is helping to boost cashless payments across the country, said Dong Ximiao, a researcher at the Renmin University of China.
Transactions (交易) involving third-party mobile payments rose by 46.8 percent in the first quarter of 2017 compared with the previous quarter to 18.8 trillion yuan, according to a report released in May.
Although there were 3.4 billion third-party payment accounts in total in China in 2016, China is not the first country to seek a cashless society. Developed states like Sweden, Denmark and Singapore are also witnessing that increase.
However, the rapid development of cashless payments does not mean there are no challenges and criticisms. Alibaba’s Hema store, where customers can shop, dine and order commodities for delivery from their mobile phones via Alipay, have come into the spotlight recently. Media reports said that consumers can’t purchase goods with cash there, which would be considered illegal.
Alipay and WeChat Pay, the nation’s two major third-party mobile payment tools, also launched campaigns this month to encourage more merchants and customers to use cashless payment methods, which caused concerns over whether cash will soon disappear.
“Some offline sellers refuse to accept cash, which impacts the natural circulation of yuan,” said Dong. He emphasized that a cashless society would not mean that cash would completely disappear. As the economy grows, the circulation of cash is still very huge, noted Dong. Also, it’s important to remember that nearly half of China’s population live in rural areas, especially in undeveloped western regions, unable to enjoy innovation (革新) brought by the Internet, Dong said. And when it comes to China’s senior citizens, most of them prefer to use cash in their daily lives, he added.
“It’s ridiculous to question digital payment tools’ contribution toward financial development. In the long term, various payment methods will be used by consumers, and merchants should respect consumers’ payment habits,” Dong noted.
1. What does the underlined word “that” in paragraph 3 probably refer to?| A．Economic activity. | B．Cashless payment. |
| C．Development of economy. | D．Large amount of payment. |
| A．It fights against illegal activities. |
| B．It provides comprehensive services. |
| C．Customers are not permitted to use cash there. |
| D．It starts campaigns to encourage mobile payment. |
| A．Various payment methods ought to be respected. |
| B．People should be encouraged to use mobile payment. |
| C．Most elderly people have no access to mobile payment. |
| D．Mobile payment isn’t beneficial to a cost-effective society. |
| A．China’s cashless trend. | B．The research on mobile payment. |
| C．The reasons to use mobile payment. | D．China’s cashless future. |
