1 . Experiencing occasional anxiety is a normal part of life. However, anxiety disorders, defined by extreme fear, restlessness, and muscle tension, can increase the risk for ______ and self-murder.

They are some of the most common mental health conditions around the world, ______ around four out of every 100 people and costing the health care system and job employers over US $42 billion each year.

People with anxiety are more likely to miss days from work and are less ______. Young people with anxiety are also less likely to enter school and complete it, leading to fewer life ______. Even though this evidence points to anxiety disorders as being important mental health issues, insufficient ______ is being given to them by researchers, clinicians, and policy makers.

My team and I at the University of Cambridge wanted to find out who is most affected by anxiety disorders. To do this, we conducted a systematic ______ of studies that reported on the proportion of people with anxiety in a variety of contexts around the world, and used accurate methods to keep the highest quality studies.

Our results showed women are almost twice as likely to ______ anxiety as men, and people living in Europe and North America are disproportionately affected.

So why are women more ______? It could be because of differences in brain chemistry and hormone (荷尔蒙) variations. Reproductive events across a woman’s life are ______ with hormonal changes, which have been linked to anxiety. The rise in oestrogen (雌激素) that occurs during pregnancy can ______ the risk for uncontrollable disorder.

This is ______ by disturbing and repetitive thoughts, impulses and addictions that are upsetting and less effective. But in addition to biological mechanisms, women and men seem to experience and react to events in their life ______. Women tend to be more likely to stress, which can increase their anxiety. Also, when faced with stressful situations, women and men tend to use different coping ______. Women faced with life stressors are more likely to think about them seriously, which can increase their anxiety, ______ men engage more in active problem-focused coping.

Other studies suggest that women are more likely to ______ physical and mental mistreatment than men, and this behavior has been linked to the development of anxiety disorders.

1.

A．symptom

B．depression

C．misery

D．frightening

2.

A．infecting

B．stimulating

C．capturing

D．affecting

3.

A．productive

B．progressive

C．positive

D．passive

4.

A．adventures

B．insurances

C．chances

D．programs

5.

A．conclusion

B．attention

C．solution

D．contribution

6.

A．ignorance

B．outlook

C．discovery

D．review

7.

A．suffer from

B．deal with

C．fight against

D．result from

8.

A．superior

B．inferior

C．vulnerable

D．enormous

9.

A．interacted

B．associated

C．disconnected

D．inherited

10.

A．challenge

B．decline

C．eliminate

D．increase

11.

A．characterized

B．confused

C．performed

D．offended

12.

A．equally

B．similarly

C．differently

D．terribly

13.

A．shortcuts

B．strategies

C．standards

D．samples

14.

A．because

B．unless

C．if

D．while

15.

A．experience

B．accept

C．ignore

D．persist

2 . Directions: Fill in the blanks with the proper form of the given verbs.

Robot Chef Learns to Twirl (旋转) Pizza Like a Pro

Pizza has a proud history of fueling late-night lab work, and scientists in Naples—an Italian city famous for its pizza—have easy access to some of the world’s tastiest take-out. But what inspires engineer Bruno Siciliano is not that first bite     1     much as how the dish is made.

“Preparing a pizza involves an extraordinary level of agility and dexterity (敏捷和灵巧),” says Siciliano, who directs a robotics research group at the University of Naples Federico Ⅱ. Stretching a deformable object like a lump of dough (面团) requires an accurate and gentle touch. It is one of the few things humans can handle, but robots cannot—yet.

Siciliano’s team     2     (develop) a robot able to make a pizza pie. RoDyMan (short for Robotic Dynamic Manipulation) is a five-year project     3     (support) by a €2.5-million grant from the European Research Council. Like a human chef, RoDyMan must throw the dough into the air to stretch it,     4     (follow) it as it spins and anticipating how it will change shape.

RoDyMan has been working this spring toward a milestone: stretching the dough     5     tearing it. To guide the robot, Siciliano’s team asked master pizza chef Enzo Coccia to wear a suit of movement-tracking sensors. “We learn [Coccia’s] motions, and we copy them with RoDyMan,” Sciliano says.

RoDyMan uses visual sensors in its head to track the dough in real time. Using software, it can train     6     to handle the pizza like a chef would. The robot     7     (map) the dough’s position and tracks how it moves. Through practice, the robot     8     get better—much like humans develop “muscle memory.” Researchers hope RoDyMan’s technology can lead to a new generation of robots that will perform tasks in ways     9     are accurate and responsive, if not more lifelike.

Yet Siciliano admits that     10     compares with a traditional chef. “I would never eat a pizza made by a robot,” he says. “It would not have the taste a real pizzaiolo, with his soul, would put in it.”

3 . What will the development of quantum computers (量子计算机) mean for our civilizations? Oh sure, better cryptography (密码方式), “more powerful” processing, but bottom line, we just don’t know...yet.

This phenomenon isn’t unique to quantum computing, of course. It’s something we see time and again with all new world-changing technology. In some ways, it’s how we can define a technology as world-changing: everyone agrees it’s going to be hugely important, but nobody can predict exactly what impact it will have.

The internet remains the classic example. Although invented in the 1960s, even by the late 1990s, the internet was still being dismissed as something that is fashionable but unlikely to last. Most commentators thought it nothing more than a curiosity.

There’s a famous 1999 interview between David Bowie and BBC journalist Jeremy Paxman. In it, Bowie predicts that the internet will change the nature of music, and remove the “barriers between creator and audience”. The longer he spoke, the more Paxman said in anger that Bowie could possibly believe this about the internet.

To be fair to Paxman, in 1999, internet at home meant accessing it over a modern. Concepts like WeChat and Netflix and more simply could not work over such limited bandwidth. But there were still some people who assumed that bandwidth would increase and that streaming music and video would be possible soon enough. They were laughed at.

Oddly enough, as the dot-com boom intensified, many turned from doubters to hopeless optimists, and lost serious money building websites to deliver content that simply couldn’t “fit” down the inter-tubes of the day.

Then in the second decade of the 21st century: critical mass. Bandwidth increased massively. Forget showing a nice little video in your browser, today Netflix can serve you a TV show in 4K, as long as you have 25Mbps connection.

Quantum computing isn’t a consumer technology, of course. It’s a much bigger deal than that. Quantum computing is more like the invention of the transistor (电子晶体). Sure, most people have heard of it, but few understand it. Actually, we don’t even really understand it. But we’re reasonably comfortable that when a lab has that many scanning electron microscopes, it must be doing something important, right?

Quantum computing is still at the stage of “hit it with a hammer until it works”. Sure the hammer is microscopic, and also a laser or magnetic field of some kind, but the point is we’re going through the process of turning the idea into reality.

Sooner than you think, though, qubit-based computers are going to get applied to stuff. What stuff? Like always, it will be super secret stuff first. Then it will reach the rest of us.

This is how the world begins. Not with a bang, but with a lot of extremely hard work behind the scenes.

1. What attitude did most people take towards the internet in the 1990s?

A．Optimistic.

B．Unconcerned.

C．Doubtful.

D．Defensive.

2. The example of the internet is intended to illustrate that ______.

A．it is hard to define what is world-changing technology

B．the internet was universally acknowledged as important

C．the influence of new technology is usually unpredictable

D．the internet inspired many debates in the following years

3. By “hit it with a hammer until it works”, the writer means that quantum computing ______.

A．has been questioned	B．has been fully understood
C．hasn’t been heard of before	D．hasn’t been applied to practice

4. What can be concluded about new technology from the passage?

A．Its development is a gradual process.	B．Most is the brainchild of a scientist.
C．Not all is accessible to the public.	D．Its future is often a top secret.

4 . One of the most well-known figures of American history, Thomas Jefferson was the third President of the United States and the author of the Declaration of Independence. His life was an inspiring one and at the same time a little bit contradictory to his statements and way of living life, and thus he has formed the subject of a lot of authors’ books.

Jefferson and his time	This is a Biography of the life of Jefferson published in 6 volumes over a very long period of 34 years staring from 1948 till 1982. Read it For: It is an entire collection introducing all aspects of Jefferson’s life in great details from his childhood till his last days. For history enthusiasts, this is a wonderful book that will give you insight into the life of one of the most memorable American leaders. Don’t Read it For: This series is a biography and strictly a work of non-fiction. It is reading about the life of a person and might get boring for some.
American Sphinx	An interesting yet strange book, this piece of writing is not an attempt to shed light on the life of Jefferson but rather an attempt to understand his mind. Jefferson was one who spoke something but did the complete opposite of it. Read it For: This book tries to analyze Jefferson’s life but does not do it in a way that criticizes him or idolizes him. This National Award winning book perfectly balances the act of examining someone’s acts and general behavior and trying to figure out the reason behind his contradictory statements and acts. Don’t Read it For: If you are searching for a book about Jefferson’s life, this is not for you. It covers a few events of his life, not his entire life. This Political Biography by Meacham takes you on a journey into the world that Jefferson lived in and saw it through his eyes. It shows how Jefferson formed the world around him and handled situations and people to shape the American political system as it is today.
The Art of Power	Read it For: The depth with which this book is written is commendable. It is noted that the work done by Meacham in this book puts you inside Jefferson’s head and makes you understand what it would be like to be Jefferson. Don’t Read it For: While this book shows the genius of Jefferson, it can come off as bias, showing Jefferson in a very positive light and his opponents in a very negative light.

1. If one wants to know Thomas Jefferson’s experience in his whole life, ______ is most highly recommended.

A．“Jefferson and His Time”

B．“American Sphinx”

C．“The Art of Power”

D．none of the above

2. Having read “American Sphinx”, you may ______.

A．learn how Thomas got through his childhood in details

B．understand why Thomas’ words and deeds were not always matched

C．know how ordinary people criticize or idolize him

D．learn how Jefferson formed the world around him and addressed situations

3. One problem about “The Art of Power” is that readers ______.

A．may feel bored while they are reading it

B．cannot get a complete description of Thomas’ life

C．learn Thomas’ political life mainly from historians’ perspective

D．cannot get an objective point of view about Thomas’ gift

5 . Earlier this year I took a trip to England and France to go see some friends. It was a wonderful trip; I really loved it. But one thing that struck me was how different these cultures are from our own. I guess this would strike any traveler because that is the first thing you notice and it is what makes travel so exciting. Of course, these cultures are also similar to ours in many respects, but it’s the differences that really stand out.

One of the things that struck me in particular was the different attitudes towards smoking. As you know, there’s a growing anti-smoking sentiment in Europe. However, when I went to England and France, I got a new perspective on this issue. People seem to smoke anywhere and everywhere, even though anti-smoking signs are all over public places. On the radio, I heard about a member of the World Cup soccer team who smoked. And people were actually saying, “Well, he should not be on the team because he’s a bad example for our children.” I think, if they want to look at bad examples for their children, they should just go out on the street, or go into the subways, or look in the mirror, even, because so many of them are smoking in very inappropriate places. I visited a restaurant buffet in London and saw an English woman scooping up the food with a lit cigarette in her hand. Smoke rising into the air. Actually, when I talked to English people later, they were pretty shocked too, and they said that smoking in a restaurant is rude even by British standards.

This did not give me a bad impression of English people. It gave me, on the contrary, a positive feeling toward American smokers. There are a lot of American smokers who will proclaim their right to smoke whenever they want, but they will follow the rules, generally, because they have consideration for nonsmokers. So this experience in Europe gave me more of a respect for this kind of smoker.

1. What surprised the writer during his trip to England and France?

A．The wonderful trip to England and France.

B．Cultural differences that he noticed during his trip.

C．Similarity between cultures stands out more than differences.

D．Growing anti-smoking views in Europe.

2. What did the speaker find in England and France about the smoking issue?

A．People discuss the smoking issue on the radio.

B．Smokers are allowed to smoke anywhere and anytime.

C．People are encouraged to smoke in inappropriate places.

D．Many smokers pay no attention to the “No Smoking” signs.

3. The word “sentiment” in the second paragraph means ______.

A．feeling

B．movement

C．offense

D．regulation

4. What kind of smokers does the speaker respect?

A．Those who are from America and Europe.	B．Those who respect others’ feelings.
C．Those who defend the right to smoke.	D．Those who set rules of smoking in public places.

7 . Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. marriage       B. hesitation     C. complicated     D. happening       E.   guilty       F. celebrating G. duty            H. performed        I. famous            J. disrespectful       K. profited

Hamlet is the most     1     of William Shakespeare’s plays. While you read this article, somewhere there is an actor on a stage pouring out his heart to the audience.

The character of Hamlet has a personal, painful quality that still draws readers and playgoers today as it did 400 years ago. The problems he faces, such as what is     2    and how he should respond to events, are ones we all face in our lives.

Hamlet is the young prince of Denmark. At the beginning, he is sad about his dead father. Everyone else around him is     3     the marriage of his mother Gertrude to her brother-in-law Claudius, the new king. Hamlet thinks that the short time between the death of his father and the marriage of his mother and uncle is     4     .

Hamlet is told that a spirit has been walking around Elsinore castle. He meets it and it says that his father was killed, and by his brother Claudius — it was “murder most horrid (可怕的)”! Now, the ghost instructs him, it is his     5     to avenge (报仇).

Hamlet is in a terrible position. He does not know whether the ghost is who he says he is, or a being sent by the devil (魔鬼). Matters are     6     because Claudius is suspicious of his nephew. There is a cat-and-mouse game played between the king and Hamlet.

Hamlet has a play performed for the king which stages the way the ghost told him of his father’s murder. Claudius reacts with horror, proving to hamlet that he is     7    . But Hamlet misses the opportunity to take his revenge.

He tells Gertrude he hates her     8     to Claudius. During their meeting he kills Polonius, who is the father of his love, Ophelia. Then, Lacerates comes back to the court. He’s heard that his father, Polonius, has been killed, so he wants to kill Hamlet.

Cunning (奸诈的) Claudius attempts to play Lacerates and Hamlet against each other, and in the final scene it all goes horribly wrong.

One     9     speech in the play begins “to be or not to be”: it is about how Hamlet can’t decide whether to get out of his bad situation by killing himself. Hamlet is a thinking man. One who thinks too much in the world where others, like Claudius, show no     10    .

8 . Directions: After reading the passages below, fill in the blanks to make the passages coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word; for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.

Despite the popularity of dieting and exercising, more people are bigger than they used to be.

The US is the     1     (overweight) country in the world. But     2     many people’s surprise, China ranks second, with 46 million obese (肥胖的) adults and 300 million overweight.

So why are so many Chinese getting overweight?

According to The Wall Street Journal, China’s weight has grown with its economy. With incomes growing, families     3     afford to eat a lot more food -especially fatty foods like meat. From 1980 to 2013, the average Chinese’s meat consumption       4     (increase) from 12.7kg to 60kg per year.

Unhealthy lifestyles also contribute to China’s obesity problems. Many Chinese families are eating more deep-fried and junk food while exercising little.

It is also likely       5     the family planning policy has created a land of little emperors,       6     are spoiled by their parents and not asked to do any labor at home, commented The Wall Street Journal.

The trend could lead to big problems, as obesity can have severe health consequences. According to the World Health Organization, around 2,8 million adults die each year     7     of obesity-related diseases such as diabetes (糖尿病), heart diseases and cancer.

    8     (encourage) exercise among Chinese, the government is working to increase the nation’ public sporting areas to 1.5 square meters per capita by 2015, Xinhua reported. It is also considering adding PE to the national college entrance examination.

9 . 语法填空

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, more commonly     1     (know) as ‘Mahatma’ (meaning ‘Great Soul’) was born in Porbandar, Gujarat, in North West India, on 2nd October 1869, into a Hindu Modh family. His mother, Putlibai, hadn’t received much education but she knew a lot about social affairs and matters of court, and could participate     2     (intelligent) in the talks that took place among the ladies of the royal court.

She used to visit a temple regularly. Gandhi used to accompany her to the temple.     3    , he admitted he was not attracted by the pomp there. But     4     left a lasting mark on his mind was the genuine piety of his mother and her determination to adhere to even the hardest vows     5     the pursuit of her beliefs. To cite an instance, in the rainy seasons, she would vow not to take her meals     6     she saw the sun, and would often have to go without food by the time her children who spotted the sun shouted to her, and she came out to see the sun     7    .

Both Gandhi and his mother were deeply religious although they were not scholars. Many religious visited their house and     8     (engage) in religious discussions. These discussions and     9     atmosphere of the piety in the house must have sown the seeds of faith and tolerance in the mind of young Gandhi. In     10     (late) years, they became the foundation of Gandhi’s firm belief that all religions deserve equal respect.

10 . Sometimes people recall past events differently from how they happened. Have you ever confused dates and events from your life, or people’s names? Don’t be too hard on yourself if this is the case; it happens to almost everyone. Every day, our brain processes an amazing amount of information. In fact, all our experiences are based on the way our brain interprets the information it receives from our senses. It is impossible to store all of this information, so some of it gets lost. The parts that remain make up our memories. All our thoughts and memories depend on the way our senses work, and we cannot always trust everything our senses tell us.

If you have ever tried to make your own short film on a digital camera, you will have noticed that the images you record are often blurry(模糊不清). To stop the same thing from happening when we see things with our own eyes, our brain is always filling in the blanks. Before our eyes can even focus on an object, our brain has created its own picture of it so that we can move smoothly from looking at one thing to another without the world looking strange. If we are moving quickly or are not focusing properly, our brain may not correctly guess what is around us.

Memory is the way we store the information that our senses have experienced. As we have discussed above, our senses do not always see things accurately, so our memory is just how we store our interpretations of these experiences. When our brain takes in new experiences, it uses the information we retrieve from our memory as a reference. This means that we often do not remember the details of things but just the important parts. When we look at something, we often do not really look closely at it, but we merely look at the different hints that help us identify it.

This also happens with our hearing and speaking. It is natural for students of English to confuse the word “kitchen”, with the familiar word “chicken”. As the sounds are similar, the mind mistakenly identifies the new word with the one that is familiar. This is perhaps the most common reason why people make mistakes when they learn a new language.

1. Sometimes things people remember are quite different from how they really happened because ______.

A．not all people are smart enough	B．the main part of the information gets lost
C．people are too strict with themselves	D．information was processed incompletely

2. Taking the short film on a digital camera for an example, the author means _____.

A．images recorded by cameras could not be accurate

B．brain may form an imagery picture without reference

C．blurry pictures are caused by too fast camera movements

D．the process of vision is an interpretive construct by the brain

3. The underlined word “retrieve” in Paragraph 3 probably means ______.

A．recall	B．change
C．borrow	D．differ

4. Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE in terms of memory?

A．Memory is exactly what senses have experienced.

B．Memories are made up of the information remaining in minds.

C．Memory is the way to store information experienced by senses.

D．Memories sometimes can be obstacles to learning something new.