1 . Every auntie I know has a kitchen drawer containing a carefully maintained collection of yoghurt dabbas. Dabba is Indian word for ‘box,’ but it refers to all manner of containers, too. Dabbas are saved and reused again and again most of the time.
When I was a kid, my mother cut no corners when it came to food, sparing no effort to cook the meals—after a full day at the office. The leftovers would inevitably(必然地) find their way into yoghurt dabbas.
But just as every auntie cherished her dabbas, every uncle hated them. My own father, a generally easy-going man, carefully avoided the drawer of dabbas. When he felt annoyed at the dabbas, my mother would shoot him a look that would surely have killed a weaker man and place her dabba carefully back in its drawer. Occasionally my father would get fed up with the overflowing drawer and clear all the dabbas. But my mother would simply start the process of collecting them again.
When I went away to university, my mom used to cook food and send it back with me with strict instructions to wash the dabbas and bring them home. But when I did so, I felt embarrassed with the eyes of my roommates on me. Eventually, I found my way to a big company and had a family of my own. Like my mother before me, I’m also the proud owner of an extensive dabba collection.
They truly are the most useful of objects, with uses ranging from food storage to toys for my children. It is a source of a strange and indescribable comfort. When I married my husband, my mother was concerned. “You know, you come from very different backgrounds,” she said. Dealing with cultural differences is surely an adventure. But the other night, I heard my husband yelling in the kitchen, and the next morning, I found my dabbas in the recycling bin. I narrowed my eyes a little as I fished them out, washed them up and replaced them in their drawer. I was practising my mother’s death stare.
1. What did the the author’s mother mainly use her dabbas for?| A．Making boxes. | B．Cooking meals. |
| C．Storing food. | D．Collecting yoghurt. |
| A．The author’s mother was cruel to his father. |
| B．Not everyone understands the meaning of dabbas. |
| C．The author’s parents were annoyed with each other. |
| D．The author’s father always threw away the mother’s dabbas. |
| A．She followed in her mother’s footsteps. |
| B．She washed the dabbas for her mother. |
| C．She felt embarrassed when washing the dabbas. |
| D．She brought the dabbas back home for her mother. |
| A．Dabbas—a Way of Recycling. |
| B．Dabbas—a Source of Cultural Differences. |
| C．Dabbas—an Approach to Cherishing Food. |
| D．Dabbas—a Container to Share Food and Love. |
2 . You’re fed up with the never-ending festivals of cinema, theater, music … in place of events you’ll really remember? Unusual, dangerous, or horrible, there’s something for everyone!
The Redhead Festival—Melbourne, Australia
Allowing those who are different to band together, Melbourne annually gathers 2% of the world’s redheads! In reality, redheads are superheroes! I mean, like Spiderman, they have a gene that changed! Calling all redheads: set off and find your fellow carrots in Melbourne on April 29.
Mule Day—Columbia, United States
There’s no reason why horses should be the only one to be appreciated. The lower class of Equidae will have its moment! Ride in on your best mule for races, sales, local products, parades and the election of the Queen of Mules (a real woman, but what bad taste!) await you from March 27 to April 2.
The Mud Festival—Boryeong, South Korea
The last one to get dirty loses! On Daecheon Beach in South Korea, once a year the local people rush into big inflatable (可充气的) rooms filled with mud. There’s magic in this mud because it’s full of nutrients and minerals. It makes the skin as soft as a baby’s bottom! Mud races, wrestling competitions, concerts, mud slides, mud baths, and massages (按摩) await the biggest dirtbags from July 21 to 30.
The Baby-Jumping Festival—Murcia, Spain
On the second Sunday of June every year, Murcia celebrates an interesting tradition: jumping over babies. The basic idea is that a man is dressed up in a red and yellow costume and jumps like a flying eagle over babies lying on a bed in the street. The goal is to purify (净化) the newborns and protect them from the evil.
1. Which festival can you join in if you are free in March?| A．The Redhead Festival. | B．Mule Day. | C．The Mud Festival. | D．The Baby-Jumping Festival. |
| A．Join in a mule race. | B．Enjoy a parade. | C．Attend concerts. | D．Dress up babies. |
| A．To find fellow carrots. | B．To have fun with babies. |
| C．To make baby skin soft. | D．To guard babies against evil. |
3 . In the middle of the night in India, a herd (群) of elephants wandered out of the forest and into a farm looking for food. The elephants came to a deep, muddy ditch (沟).
In the morning, farmers
The forest workers tried to find the
| A．Happily | B．Hopefully | C．Suddenly | D．Stupidly |
| A．faithfully | B．possibly | C．unfortunately | D．difficultly |
| A．win | B．fight | C．scream | D．escape |
| A．fear | B．surprise | C．anger | D．doubt |
| A．tried | B．continued | C．managed | D．happened |
| A．search | B．reach | C．protect | D．drop |
| A．rushed | B．dug | C．stayed | D．kicked |
| A．beat | B．raised | C．discovered | D．helped |
| A．puzzled | B．dissatisfied | C．disappointed | D．frightened |
| A．ditch | B．night | C．forest | D．middle |
| A．arrived | B．passed | C．stopped | D．agreed |
| A．raced | B．struggled | C．rolled | D．pulled |
| A．noticed | B．checked | C．saved | D．hugged |
| A．if | B．unless | C．so | D．but |
| A．sticks | B．farmers | C．food | D．herd |
| A．worried | B．tired | C．gone | D．done |
| A．walk | B．survive | C．change | D．move |
| A．allowed | B．loaded | C．forced | D．rushed |
| A．feeding | B．inviting | C．leaving | D．touching |
| A．dark | B．centre | C．department | D．wild |
4 . When teens feel safe, supported by and connected to parents, they are better equipped to pass the empathy (同情) they receive on to others, according to a new study.
The study, led by Jessica Stern from the University of Virginia, followed 174 teens from the ages of 14 to 18 to track their progress annually. At age 14, the teens were interviewed by researchers and encouraged to share descriptions and stories about their families. Researchers paid attention not only to what the teens said, but also how they expressed it. “Can teens talk about their close relationships in a way that’s calm and clear? Can they take a situation that’s maybe difficult and make sense out of it?” Stern said.
After these initial interviews, researchers went back to the participants at ages 16, 17 and 18 and observed their interactions with a close friend. The researchers noted how the participants responded when their friend presented a problem and confided in them, assessing the participants’ extension of empathy.
Teens who had more secure family relationships showed higher empathy toward their friends at ages 16 and 17 than less secure teens. It’s not all bad news, though, because the less secure teens “caught up” in their empathic behavior by age 18, to Stern’s surprise. This is cause for hope, she said, because it may indicate that those empathic skills can develop over time for teens who don’t have great relationships at home. Stern suggested that having strong friendships or a trusted teacher might make an impact on insecure teens’ empathy.
Since the research focused on averages across the study sample, an examination of individual differences between participants is necessary, said Mary Buckingham, a research assistant professor who didn’t take part in the study. “The article does not show the individual differences that might exist within teens,” Buckingham said. “Future research should examine what specific experiences, for what youth, in what contexts, may lead to attachment and empathy links.”
1. What did researchers do during the initial interviews?| A．They analyzed the participants personality. |
| B．They assessed the participants’ family relationships. |
| C．They measured the participants’ expression ability. |
| D．They evaluated the participants’ empathic skills. |
| A．Spoke secretly to. | B．Relied strongly on. |
| C．Kept an eye on. | D．Lent a hand to. |
| A．Teens’ empathy began with secure relationships at home. |
| B．Friendships mattered for teens’ empathy development. |
| C．Insecure teens’ empathy might improve over time. |
| D．Teachers had little impact on teens’ empathy. |
| A．Its application. | B．Its significance. |
| C．Its reliability. | D．Its limitation. |
Diet and way of life are often a problem for teenagers.
Healthy eating along with regular exercise is
As a teenager, it is important to give your body the energy it needs. Exercise is something
A good amount of sleep every night is also important for your health. When you sleep, your body prepared you for the day to come. As a matter of fact, loss
If you follow the suggestions above, you
6 . Growing up with movies such as “High School Musical” and “Grease”, which presented the ideal(理想的)high school friendships, we sometimes expect a perfect relationship. Indeed, some high school friendships can be real and simple; while still some high school students will meet a friend who causes trouble. With failed friendships come lessons and experiences learned for the future. You will know the influence after you leave high school.
“I was always worried about what my friends thought about me. Sometimes my friends would make fun of what I wore or what I would do. I always tried to get along well with them, but I realized how happy I was once I stopped contacting them after high school,” said Elisha, Class of 2020.
Most teens have not realized the big question when dealing with high school problems. In five years, will this still matter? It is hard looking at the big picture when the problems are in front of you, which is understandable. However, most teens need a moment to reflect (反思) and question if the problem matters in a long time.
Briana, a high school teacher, said, “Now, I am in contact with two high school friends. I think the friendship experiences I had in high school shaped who I am because I learned to be open minded and befriend all kinds of people. I learned to see people for who they are, not what they wear or who they play with. I learned most of all how to be a good friend.”
High school is a small part of your life, but it has a huge influence on who you will become and where you will go. Friendships and relationships help shape who you are, whether they are good or bad. Lessons are brought, and lessons are learned.
1. Why did the author mention the two movies in the first paragraph?| A．To introduce the topic of the passage. |
| B．To explain what a high school friendship is. |
| C．To recommend these two movies to readers. |
| D．To attract readers’ attention to these two movies. |
| A．They made her unhappy. | B．They cared about her behavior. |
| C．They got along well with her. | D．They were always worried about her. |
| A．She learned to play with her friends. |
| B．She learned to make different friends. |
| C．She learned to shape her friends’ minds. |
| D．She learned to wear just like her friends. |
| A．Failed friendships made teens worried. |
| B．Good friendships greatly influenced teens. |
| C．High school friendships help to shape teens. |
| D．Friendships are difficult for teens to deal with, |
7 . After returing from his job as a cultural relics protection worker 10 years ago, Wang Yongxian kept his love for ancient Chinese architecture (建筑) through teaching.
Now aged 73, he still teaches a course named “Conservation and Restoration of Ancient Chinese Buildings” at a University in Shanxi province. His main interest is Dougong, a construction method that uses interlocking (紧密连接的) wooden pieces to form structures. The method is one of the most important features of ancient Chinese architecture.
Wang also started online classes to better explain Dougong to those who showed a strong interest in his course. Following a suggestion from his students, he became a vlogger using the account name “Dougong class”. The account is regularly updated with short video clips Wang produces himself. He is surprised that his classes are so popular on social media. The first six lectures on ancient Chinese buildings that he uploaded over a six-month period have received 1.6 million views.
To make it easier for newcomers to the subject to understand, Wang made a wooden Dougong model. Each part is marked with a number or name, and the model can be taken apart and put together, a process that Wang filmed and put online. Some viewers said that they had long been puzzled by Dougong structures, but finally understood how they work after watching the video of “Dougong grandpa”.
Wang said when he was young, the beautiful ancient temples in his hometown had ignited his interest in ancient wooden buildings and finally led him to turn his interest into a lifelong career. What makes him happy today is not only that the government set aside more money for the research and protection of cultural relics, but also that society is more aware of the importance of such work.
To his surprise, about 90 percent of his more than 100,000 viewers online are below age 30. That fact makes him more confident that as long as the story of Chinese ancient architecture is told in the right way, it can attract more people.
1. What can we learn from the first two paragraphs?| A．Dougong is a well-protected Chinese building structure. |
| B．Dougong is a traditional Chinese wooden building method. |
| C．Dougong is a course which Wang teaches after retirement. |
| D．Dougong is the most important feature of ancient architecture. |
| A．The advice from his students. |
| B．The online course he attended. |
| C．The popularity of social media. |
| D．The awareness to attract viewers. |
| A．It is updated by his students. |
| B．It proves to be a great success. |
| C．It is intended for newcomers. |
| D．It has puzzled some viewers. |
| A．Ignored. | B．Widened. | C．Started. | D．Changed. |
8 . COVID-19 is just one example of a disease that has jumped from a wild animal to people. In hopes of preventing future outbreaks, scientists are working to understand what led to the jump, also known as a spillover event. A group working in Australia thinks it may have one answer: Keep wildlife well-fed.
All animals carry germs. Some viruses don’t harm the animals in which they are typically found. That’s because the host species has encountered this virus so often that its immune system(免疫系统) has developed a way to keep the germ under control. But if this virus later finds its way into a new species, it may cause serious disease.
From 1996 to 2020, Peel and her group tracked where bats spent their time. For the first six years, there were no spillover events. But starting in 2003, the team noticed the bats’ ecosystem was changing. Soon after, spillovers started to show up. Peel’s group linked these events to periods when the bats couldn’t find enough food.
This happened in years that followed strong El Niño events. This climate event causes trees that normally flower in spring may now fail to do so. Hungry bats will then leave their forests in search of food. Some may end up near farms where they can infect horses and they may stay there until the following winter.
But some spillovers happened even during non-El Niño years. The researchers suspect this might be due to changes in tree cover. Over the course of the study, large sections of forest were cut down for farming and housing. This reduced the number of trees that flower in winter. Without their main food source, hungry flying foxes shifted their behavior. Just as they did after El Niño years, they now spent more time near farms in search of food. It was after this shift that spillover events occurred.
1. What makes the viruses relatively safe to the host animals?| A．They are not affected by all viruses. | B．They are more experienced. |
| C．They are able to control the viruses. | D．They always have enough food. |
| A．Widespread forest clearing. | B．Serious pollution in the air. |
| C．Increase in food and water. | D．Genetic changes in animals. |
| A．Ignored | B．Experienced | C．Avoided | D．Changed |
| A．Relationship between spillovers and El Niño. |
| B．Impact of climate change on bat behavior. |
| C．How to ensure enough food supply for wildlife. |
| D．The history of spillover events in Australia. |
9 . The latest additions to its World Heritage （遗产）list. The following are some of the recent additions.
Churches of the Pskov School of Architecture（(Russia）)
The structures, many of which are churches, were all designed by the Pskov School of Architecture. It was a leading school of building design in the country, especially in the 15th and 16th centuries. Some elements common to Pskov architecture date back to the 11th century.
Babylon（(Iraq）)
The ancient city of Babylon is gaining World Heritage Site status. The city was once a main tourist site before Iraq suffered several wars. The 4, 300-year-old city is where dynasties have risen and fallen since the earliest days of settled human civilization. UNESCO Says the site "offers a look into one of the most influential empires of the ancient world".
Writing-on-stone（Canada）
Canada^ Writing-on-stone monument has a large number of protected rock paintings and rock carvings. Some of them are 2, 000 years old. The markings were left by Blackfoot Native Americans, who lived in parts of Western Canada and the far northern United States. The land that makes up Writing-on-Stone is filled with rock posts that have been formed into "spectacular shapes" by erosion （侵蚀）.
Party and Ilha Grande（Brazil）
The historic coastal town of Party and the island Ilha Grande are already popular places for visitors to Brazils Rio de Janeiro state. Party was the final stop along the Gold Route, along which gold was shipped to Europe in the 1600s. The area is also home to a huge number of animals, some of which are in danger now.
1. What do we know about the buildings in Pskov?| A．Their designs came from the same school. |
| B．They are merely churches. |
| C．They are a group of ancient schools. |
| D．Their paintings are about 2,000 years old. |
| A．It is the best-preserved monument in Canada. |
| B．It enjoys great popularity with visitors. |
| C．It reflects the culture of the natives. |
| D．It was formed by nature. |
| A．Shipping activities. |
| B．Coastal scenery. |
| C．Gold mining equipment. |
10 . Walk around the city of Ann Arbor, Michigan, and you may see a green animal named Sluggo and a flying pig named Philomena. You might even see street artist David Zinn drawing them using only sidewalk chalk and charcoal (炭笔).
At the age of 12, David began working as an artist. His dad was writing a computer instruction and worried that it would be boring to read. So he asked David to draw pictures of turtles (the name of the computer program) to explain it. The publisher liked his drawings, and soon David had the job of drawing more turtles in action. “I learned a great lesson, which was that, to make money as an artist, I couldn't always draw what I wanted,” he says. “I had to figure out how to draw a turtle drinking tea and other things like that.”
David worked for 20 years as a commercial (商业的) artist, but he often felt cooped up (禁锢) sitting at a computer for 10 hours a day. Then, on a sunny afternoon about ten years ago, he brought some chalk and started drawing on the sidewalk. That's when Sluggo came to life.
“One of the reasons I like to put art on the street is to take people by surprise,” he says. “I can have fun drawing, and knowing it will be washed away helps me not think too much. It frees me up.”
It takes David about two hours to complete one drawing. He uses a lot of sidewalk characteristics in his street art. It can be difficult to draw on surfaces that are not flat. He has to notice where shadows will land so they won't destroy the 3D drawings he creates.
Today, more and more people are accepting and looking for his work. David's artwork can also be found across the country and even throughout the world. Photos of his drawings have been shown at many universities and museums.
1. What did David learn from drawing turtles for his father?| A．Work hard. | B．Follow your heart. |
| C．Draw what you like. | D．Draw in a creative way. |
| A．Relaxed. | B．Worried. |
| C．Unhappy. | D．Surprised. |
| A．It shows his real life. |
| B．It is drawn on the flat sidewalk. |
| C．It needs a very long time to finish a drawing. |
| D．It is 3D street art created by simple painting tools. |
| A．They are becoming popular. |
| B．They are too difficult to understand. |
| C．They are found mainly at museums. |
| D．They are hardly accepted by adults. |
