1 . If sales generally feel hard to to resist, the sale in front of Aarron Schurevich was the ultimate test: new Kia Soul just like the one he’d had and loved, at a dealership he trusted, at a moment when he really needed a car. And it was priced $4,000 off more than a 20% discount. However, after he sped through paperwork and drove the car off the lot, the deal turned soul. Schurevich now jokes that he paid a tax for being a fool.

This big-ticket example shows vividly all the dynamics that play out in a sale. The discount itself often registers as a win, delivering the joy of both getting the product and the reward that we discovered something, and we’ve earned this extra thing. Thus, spotting something we’d like to buy on sale activates our brain’s reward system. Then there’s the fight in the brain between what can be described as its emotional and rational(理性的)parts. A sale lands like the thumb that tips our mental scale toward buying.

Stores, of course, know all this and try to push our buttons.

Experts say we often subconsciously believe popular things to be more valuable or more rewarding. Plus, there’s our urge to avoid loses — the fear of missing out (FOMO). So stores appeal to our crowd mentality: It’s Black Friday, ana everyone’s shopping, buying that thing you’d like. They create urgency: Your favorite car is on sale today only! And they create scarcity: Shop now while supplies last!

Stores also try various pricing tricks. “How do we make more customers go to the more expensive option? We add a decoy,” says Savannah Wei Shi, who researches pricing and decision-making. For example, picture s store shelf where a medium bag of candy sits next to a larger bag of the same candy. The medium-sized bag is much smaller than the other bag, but only slightly cheaper. It makes the big bag look like the best deal, so shoppers buy that one-the most expensive option on the shelf.

1. Why is Aarron Schurevich’s story mentioned?

A．To illustrate why we fall for a sale.	B．To present how our brains are activated.
C．To stress the importance of rational decision.	D．To prove the flexibility of marketing strategies.

2. What can be inferred from paragraph 4?

A．FOMO postpones decisions.	B．Sales play on people’s fears.
C．Subconsciousness determines everything.	D．Scarcity promotion leads to wise purchases.

3. What marketing technique is used by warning about the limited number of available seats left?

A．Using Pricing tricks.	B．Dealing with emergencies.
C．Creating scarcity.	D．Appealing to crowd mentality.

4. What does “a decoy” refer to in paragraph 5?

A．A candy.

B．A shelf.

C．A larger bag.

D．A medium bag.

2 . Every year, as the surface water temperature off the United States mid-Atlantic coast rises steadily from late spring through the summer, a pocket of uncharacteristically cool and crisp water gets trapped at the bottom of the ocean. Packed with nutrients this thick band of cold water, known as the mid-Atlantic cold pool, is a vital home for shellfish species. Extending at its seasonal peak from Nantucket, Massachusetts, to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, the cold poll creates a diverse ecosystem ranging from algae(海藻)to fish — and some of the most valuable shellfish fisheries in the United States.

Now, however, two pressures have scientists worrying about whether the cold pool will last. The first is no surprise: climate change. Over the past five decades, climates change has destabilized the cold pool, causing it to warm and shrink. Compared with 1968, the cold pool is now 13℃ warmer and has lost more than one-third of its area.

The second concern is 1ess certain. In 2023, the US federal government approved plans to install(安装)98 wind turbines(涡轮机)off the New Jersey coast, covering an area of more than 300 square kilometers. Yet putting so many turbines to the seafloor could have unexpected consequences for the cold pool. That’s why Travis Miles, a researcher at New Jersey’s Rutgers University, and his colleagues are investigating. So far, Miles and his colleagues can’t definitively say what will happen to the cold pool, saying more research is needed to assess how climate change and offshore wind, together, could affect the cold pool. However, their initial analyses suggest the cold pool should be fine — at least in normal conditions.

New Jersey’s offshore wind plans are strongly opposed mainly by fossil fuel-industry funded efforts. Miles worries that an overabundance of caution or fear of potential impacts, including on the cold pool, might slow down the development of renewable energy. “...it’s quite clear that climate change is far more damaging than installing wind farms,” he says. “I don’t think any scientist would argue with that.”

1. What do we know about the mid-Atlantic cold pool?

A．It forms in early spring.	B．It’s a band of cold near-bottom water.
C．It serves as a habitat of most sea species.	D．It extends from Nantucket to New Jersey.

2. What does the underlined word “shrink” in paragraph 2 mean?

A．Break down.

B．Get polluted.

C．Dry up.

D．Become smaller.

3. Miles’ attitude toward installing wind farms can be described as ______.

A．supportive

B．dismissive

C．overcautious

D．skeptical

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．The Cold Pool Plays a Role on species

B．Opinions Divide on Offshore Wind Farms

C．Scientists Eye Potential Risks to the Cold Pool

D．Renewable Energy Helps to Race Against Climate Change

3 . General Art Contests

THE SUNNY ART PRIZE

Prize       A total cash fund of £6,000 plus an individual exhibition in London.

Entry Fee       £25 for one artwork, up to £45 for four artworks.

Requirements       Open to artists worldwide aged 18 and over.

Closing Date       June 30, 2024

One of the most diverse art competitions in the UK, the Sunny Art Prize offers unique exposure for both emerging and established artists.

BEAUTIFUL BIZARRE ART PRIZE

Prize       Over $50,000 in cash and prizes to be won. Plus, global exposure through Beautiful Bizarre Magazine. Winners will also participate in Beautiful Bizarre Magazine’s group exhibition at Haven Gallery in New York later this year.

Entry Fee       $40 per entry

Requirements       Open to artists worldwide working in the representational visual arts.

Closing Date       July 17, 2024

The Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize, now in its 5th year, is an annual international art prize that celebrates diversity and excellence in the representational visual arts.

MADE IN CALIFORNIA COMPETITION

Prize       $750 first prize, $500 second prize.

Entry Fee       $20 per entry

Requirements       Open to artists based in California.

Closing Date       February 16, 2024

Hosted by the Brea Gallery, the Made in California Competition provides a promotional opportunity for all artists based in the state of California.

ARTISTS MAGAZINE ANNUAL ART COMPETITION

Prize       Over $29,000 in cash prizes and publication in Artists Magazine.

Entry Fee       $40 ($35 if submitted before April 3)

Requirements       Open to artists over 18 worldwide working in a traditional medium.

Closing Date       May 30, 2024

Artists Magazine’s Annual Art Competition celebrates traditional 2D artistic mediums such as painting, digital art, and much more. All winners’ works will be featured in the January/February 2025 issue of Artists Magazine.

1. Which art contest offers the opportunity for a group exhibition?

A．THE SUNNY ART PRIZE.

B．BEAUTIFUL BIZARRE ART PRIZE.

C．MADE IN CALIFORNIA COMPETITION.

D．ARTISTS MAGAZINE ANNUAL ART COMPETITION.

2. How much should a contestant pay for a January submission to Brea Gallery?

A．$20.

B．$25.

C．$35.

D．$40.

3. What do these general art contests have in common?

A．They are held every year.	B．They are open to emerging artists only.
C．They provide winners with added bonus.	D．They celebrate excellence in traditional arts.

4 . A two-year-old girl in Newberry County had last been seen at about 3: 00 p. m., but she was missing later in the day. The situation took a _________ turn around 6: 00 p. m. when a hunter in the area heard the cries of the missing child. Reacting immediately, the hunter _________ an emergency call telling authorities the child’s location.

The operators _________ immediately, applying advanced mapping technology to locate the position. This crucial information was then _________ sent to a South Carolina Law Enforcement Division(SLED)and the county’s first _________.

With the location data in hand, a search team was quickly _________ to the wooded area. The tireless efforts of these rescue workers ultimately _________ a heartwarming reunion. The missing two-year-old was found in the forest, safe and sound except some slight injuries. Despite her _______ experience, she was found to be in surprisingly good _______, except her understandable tiredness, thirst and fear.

The ________ rescue was the result of the _______ between different departments and the community as a whole. The Newberry County Sheriff’s Office expressed their ______ for the efforts of everyone involved, including citizens, and those ______ their thoughts and prayers during the search. And they showed their relief at the _______ of the little girl in the care of family. Their heroic actions will be ______ as a heartwarming success story in Newberry County for years to come.

1.

A．disappointing

B．hopeful

C．reasonable

D．challenging

2.

A．placed

B．received

C．missed

D．answered

3.

A．appeared

B．escaped

C．acted

D．arrived

4.

A．optionally

B．carefully

C．entirely

D．rapidly

5.

A．discoverers

B．rescuers

C．operators

D．survivors

6.

A．adapting

B．returning

C．heading

D．pointing

7.

A．paid for

B．set up

C．took on

D．led to

8.

A．frightening

B．regretful

C．annoying

D．shameful

9.

A．shape

B．mind

C．order

D．faith

10.

A．risky

B．remarkable

C．traditional

D．joyful

11.

A．respect

B．cooperation

C．balance

D．discussion

12.

A．blessing

B．kindness

C．concern

D．gratitude

13.

A．offering

B．praising

C．advocating

D．assessing

14.

A．performance

B．virtue

C．recovery

D．courage

15.

A．edited

B．perfected

C．performed

D．celebrated

5 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

“You should throw me in the bin, Mummy.”

Those are the words my son say to me, words a mother should never hear their child say. When I asked him why, he told me that like his digger, he was broken and could not be fixed. My heart cracked a little more at that and I knew that, I had to try and find a way to bring back the joy into our world.

At age two, he was diagnosed with type two diabetes and he was “just losing his puppy fat”. My son grew sicker and sicker until eventually, he was admitted into hospital.

Motherhood changed in that moment. I went from “Mummy” to nurse, always keeping a watch for signs he might be in danger from his own body. It can be hard to find the balance between the demands of being a full-time carer for a child with illness and being a mother. In those early days, it broke me to hear him beg and cry for me not to hurt him with needles again. The risks that come along are as big as they can be: blindness, organ failure, coma, death. His life is, and always will be, dependent on the monitoring and assessment of all these factors.

Yet, I had to find a way to raise him to know that he could live it fully and with all his dreams within reach. I had to learn how to live with these two roles, just as he had to learn to live with the demands his body would place on him. What I had not expected was to find the way through in the mud and rubble (瓦砰) of a new-build social housing estate.

My husband, son and I moved to the new estate in Cumbria when my son was four. The back garden was nothing more than a patch of newly sown grass, and a thin layer of topsoil. Underneath that was rubble and rock. The site was a former industrial stoneworks, and but to us, it was a place of hope.

注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Soon after we moved in, my son and I decided to plant a garden.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
This small garden let us both live again.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Cloisonné (景泰蓝) is the technique of creating designs on metal containers with colored-glass paste     1     (place) within enclosures (外壳) made of copper     2    (wire), which have been bent or hammered into the desired pattern.

Known as cloisons, the enclosures generally are either stuck or soldered onto the metal body. The glass paste, or enamel,     3     (color) and painted into the contained areas of the design. The container is usually fired at    4    relatively low temperature, about 800°C. Enamels commonly shrink after firing, and the process is repeated several times     5     (fill) in the designs. Once this process is complete, the surface is rubbed until the edges of the cloisons are visible. They are then covered with a thin layer of gold paint.

Cloisonné objects were intended     6     (primary) for the furnishing of temples and palaces, because their splendor was considered appropriate to the function of these structures     7     not well suited to a more simple and plain atmosphere, such as     8     of a scholars home. This opinion was expressed by Cao Zhao in 1388 in his     9     ( influence) Gegu Yaolun, in which cloisonné was dismissed as being suitable only for lady’s bedrooms. However, during the period of Emperor Xuande, Cloisonné     10     (come) to be greatly prized at court.

7 . The format you save your photos in comes down to a choice between convenience and excellence, the short-term ease of JPEG versus the creation in RAW of your best photo possible. Of course, it is not either-or.     1    . But for those times that are special, that demand greater care and effort, a simple setting on your camera will help you take the best possible photograph.

    2    . They determine how much data is stored when you press the shutter. RAW typically captures either 12-bit or 14-bit files, meaning they can represent billions of colour shades and tones. JPEGs (limited, to 8 bits) reproduce, about 16 million colour variations—plenty for a god basic shot, but when shooting for something special, it’s always better to have more colour, more light and more control.

It is in the editing that you discover RAW’s edge. After uploading to your computer, tablet or phone, the images can be “developed” in a basic photo editing program. It doesn’t take long to learn to fine-tune the images. Even under- and overexposed images can be enhanced to enliven shadows and highlights without any of the graininess (颗粒) that comes with inadequate light.    3    Because the editing process is “lossless”, the original RAW file is unaffected by your edits and can be stored or edited again for a different effect.

To make sure you don’t run out of space to store all that data, bring along lots of memory cards that you can swap in to your camera as you go.     4    

Wondering how to get started? Dig into your camera or smartphone settings to change format and explore RAW.     5     Then it’s time to play. In a flash, you’ll see just what difference you can make to your photos.

A．Take a few shots in both JPEG and RAW.

B．They are cheap and light, so there’s no need to ever run out.

C．Digital cameras have two basic shooting formats, JPEG and RAW.

D．Various camera brands have their own unique RAW image formats.

E．But learning how to edit photos requires plenty of practice and creativity.

F．There are times when a few shots are all you need to capture the moment.

G．Once edited to your standard, the image is easily shared as a JPEG or other formats.