1 . The technology research company International Data Corporation, or IDC, has predicted a huge surge in total worldwide data in the coming years. It predicted world data demand will grow from 33 zettabytes（泽字节）in 2018 to 175 zettabytes by 2025. The world is about to have a serious data-storage problem that will only become more severe over time.
Several companies say they are exploring a possible solution. They suggest using genetic material, DNA, to store data. Experts have estimated data stored by DNA systems could be one billion times as many as those held in traditional electronic devices of comparable size.
Information about living things is stored in DNA using four different kinds of molecules（分子）. They can be represented by the letter codes A, T, C and G. Researchers have discovered that data can also be stored within DNA in the sequences of these letters. Electronic devices, however, store information in a two-letter code that produces combinations of ones and zeroes.
In order to make DNA storage succeed, digital information has to be changed to DNA storage and then back to digital data. One company working on DNA storage development is Microsoft. The company announced earlier last year that it had shown the first “fully-automated” DNA storage system. The research team from Microsoft and the University of Washington reported it had successfully encoded the word “hello” in pieces of DNA and changed it back to digital data. A chemical process is used to get the DNA into a storage device.
Microsoft said DNA storage systems can not only store more data, but also hold data for much longer periods of time. For example, DNA samples from the ancient bones of animals and humans have proven that the material can last thousands of years in tough conditions.
Experts from the World Economic Forum have praised recent developments in DNA storage technologies. But the organization says much more work needs to be completed before DNA storage systems can effectively compete with electronic ones. Currently, the systems are costly and the processing time can be very long.
1. What does the underlined word “surge” in Paragraph I mean?| A．Loss. | B．Exchange. | C．Increase. | D．Share. |
| A．Its bigger size compared with electronic devices. |
| B．Its way of storing information in a four-letter code. |
| C．Its function of combining letters freely. |
| D．Its self-reproduction characteristics. |
| A．Developing DNA storage needs support from big companies. |
| B．The DNA storage system has drawn worldwide attention. |
| C．The DNA storage system faces great challenges. |
| D．Using DNA to store data can possibly be a reality. |
| A．Researchers need to perfect the systems greatly. |
| B．Experts are supportive of the electronic devices. |
| C．Experts are dissatisfied with the recent advance in the systems. |
| D．Researchers need financial support to develop the systems. |
2 . National Parks Recreational Vehicle Trips
Trip 1: Zion, Bryce Canyon, Arches, Canyonlands&Capitol Reef
Visit the five Utah’s national parks. Activities include going boating on the Colorado River, and hiking Angels Landing for an impressive view of Zion Canyon. One thing is guaranteed：you’ll see the Milky Way, the pale white band of stars across the sky at night, like never before in this beautiful area of the country.
Available: Apr. 1 to Oct. 23; Duration: 8 to 13 nights
Price（for up to 4 guests): $4, 990-9, 840
Trip 2: Banff&Jasper
Travel along the Icefields Parkway which connects the parks and towns of Banff in Alberta, Canada, Lake Louise and Jasper Lake. Book a ride in a big snowcoach（雪车）onto the Athabasca
Glacier, and take a flight-seeing tour over the huge icefields that cover the area of the Rocky Mountains.
Available: Jun. 15 to Sept. 15; Duration: 8 to 13 nights
Price (for up to 4 guests): S5, 260-6, 080
Trip 3: Mount Rushmore & Colorado
This trip is perfect for anyone interested in America’s history, from forts to huge rock carvings of historical figures. Starting in Denver, your journey will take you through Colorado and into Wyoming.
Available: Start as early as Feb. 1 to Oct. 10; Duration: 8 to 13 nights
Price（for up to 4 guests): $5, 124-7, 880
Trip 4: Yosemite, Sequoia & Kings Canyon
Start your journey in the Bay Area and then head cast to Yosemite with its impressive waterfalls, and towering cliffs（悬崖）. Combine your visit to Yosemite with stops at Sequoia National Park to see the five largest sequoia trees in the world, and Kings Canyon.
Available: May 19 to Oct 8; Duration: 8 to 13 nights
Price（for up to 4 guests): $5, 224-9, 540
1. What’s special about the five Utah’s national parks?| A．The beautiful starry sky. | B．The impressive waterfalls. |
| C．The rich history of America. | D．The adventurous activities. |
| A．Banff & Jasper. |
| B．Mount Rushmore & Colorado. |
| C．Yosemite, Sequoia & Kings Canyon. |
| D．Zion, Bryce Canyon, Arches, Canyonlands & Capitol Reef. |
| A．The location. | B．The tourist activities. |
| C．The nights included in the trip. | D．The target groups of tourists. |
3 . A few years ago, my father arranged to send me a mail-order fruitcake at Christmas time. Although I had a good job and apartment in Manhattan, he feared my cupboards might be bare. I had recently moved from California, where my parents still lived in their suburban bungalow (平房) of 50 years, the house I grew up in.
He wanted me to have a particular brand of fruitcake. A fruitcake, in his mind, was a perfect Christmas gift. Made in Texas, it was famous among fruitcake lovers — or at least, among people who gave fruitcake to those who were assumed to love them.
I knew there would be plenty to eat in California. For each Christmas, in addition to my mother’s cookies, fudge (乳脂软糖), and other treats, my father always gave my sister and me each a large bag of assorted foods he called, rather plainly, the “Food Bag”. One year, I secretly listed the contents of my Food Bag in a notebook for the day when I might not get a Food Bag for Christmas. That year, my bag contained a can of mixed nuts, a box of whole-wheat crackers, a Belgian chocolate bar, some English breakfast tea 9and many other items.
I was 44 when my father gave me that Food Bag, and he was 72.
That day before my flight to California, the fruitcake still hadn’t arrived. When my father called to wish me a safe trip and he said “Did you receive it?”
“Not yet,” I said. “Maybe it will be there today.” He regretted deeply about the lost fruitcake.
He remained hopefully the fruitcake would come by New Year’s Eve. But January, February and March came and went with no fruitcake. Though my father continued to ask about it. I never considered lying. Instead, I would say, “That cake is orbiting earth and sooner or later will land.”
As time went by, he would bring up the journey of his fruitcake. “I wonder where it is now.” he’d say.
Early last December, nearly a year after my father died, I got a call from a staffer of my apartment building, “You have a package.”
I went downstairs to pick it up. The brown box had a FedEx label with a return address in Texas.
1. What does the underlined word “bare” probably mean in Paragraph 1?| A．Plain. | B．Short. |
| C．Empty. | D．Abundant. |
| A．Treats from his parents. | B．A big Christmas dinner. |
| C．A food bag from his parents. | D．A Special fruitcake. |
| A．In Texas. | B．At Lost and Found. |
| C．In California. | D．In Manhattan. |
| A．Dad’s Mystery Package | B．Disturbing Delivery Service |
| C．My Favorite Food | D．Memorable Food Bags |
