1 . Contribution And Sacrifice

Huang Danian, the renowned Chinese geophysicist, was born in 1958 in Guangxi, China. As a keen and able student, Huang went to the UK in 1993 to further his studies.

By the time Huang moved back to China in 2008, he had been living and working in the UK for 15 years. He had a good job and a life there, but he gave it all up to return to home, driven by the idea that he needed to contribute to his country. As one of the world’s leading experts in deep earth exploration technology, Huang was approached to participate in the “Thousand Talent” programme. He took up a position at Jilin University, Changchun.

Huang was named lead scientist on China’s deep earth exploration programme, developing advanced cameras that can see through the Earth’s crust so that it can be analysed without having to dig into it. He set up a state-of-the-art lab, sometimes paying for equipment with his own money. Some described him as a “lunatic” (a madman). but this passion and drive enabled Huang to propel China’s deep earth exploration technology into a world-leading position. Huang’s dedication contributed to China’s lunar probe Yutu being landed on the moon in 2013 and the launch of the spacecrafts Shenzhou-11 and Tiangong-2 in 2016.

Huang’s health also paid the price for his commitment to his word. He began having fainting fits in 2012, but paid them little attention, stating he did not have time to go to see a doctor – his work always came first. In November 2016, Huang collapsed and was taken to hospital, where he was diagnosed with cancer. The disease was so advanced that he had just a couple of months to live.

Like the true scientist he was, Huang never gave up, but always tried to push forwards. Even from his hospital bed, he continued his work, writing letters of reference for his colleague and replying to questions from his students. He had great faith in the talent of the up-and-coming generation, “Our country is in urgent need of talented people,” he said. “If we spend more time and pay more attention to the young, masters and even Nobel prize winners may rise among them.”

Huang died in January 2017, aged just 58. More than 800 people attended his funeral to celebrate a life that burned so bright, but was so short.

1. Huang moved back to China in 2008, because _________.

A．he would have a good job and a life in China

B．he took up a position at Jilin University, Changchun

C．he had the idea that he needed to contribute to China

D．he wanted to participate in the “Thousand Talent” programme

2. Para.3 mainly talks about _________.

A．Huang’s education	B．Huang’s working experience
C．Huang’s influence on his colleagues	D．Huang’s achievements

3. According to the passage, which words can best describe Huang?

A．Modest and outgoing.	B．Patriotic and committed.
C．Ambitious and disciplined	D．Passionate and considerate.

2 . You know the feeling — you have left your phone at home and feel anxious, as if you have lost your connection to the world. “Nomophobia” (无手机恐惧症) affects teenagers and adults alike. You can even do an online test to see if you have it. Last week, researchers from Hong Kong warned that nomophobia is infecting everyone. Their study found that people who use their phones to store, share and access personal memories suffer most. When users were asked to describe how they felt about their phones, words such as “hurt” (neck pain was often reported) and “alone” predicted higher levels of nomophobia.

“The findings of our study suggest that users regard smartphones as their extended selves and get attached to the devices,” said Dr Kim Ki Joon. “People experience feelings of anxiety and unpleasantness when separated from their phones.” Meanwhile, an American study shows that smartphone separation can lead to an increase in heart rate and blood pressure.

So can being without your phone really give you separation anxiety? Professor Mark Griffiths, psychologist and director of the International Gaming Research Unit at Nottingham Trent University, says it is what is on the phone that counts — the social networking that creates Fomo (fear of missing out).

“We are talking about an Internet-connected device that allows people to deal with lots of aspects of their lives,” says Griffiths. “You would have to surgically remove a phone from a teenager because their whole life is ingrained in this device.”

Griffiths thinks attachment theory, where we develop emotional dependency on the phone because it holds details of our lives, is a small part of nomophobia. For “screenagers”, it is Fomo that creates the most separation anxiety. If they can’t see what’s happening on WeChat or Weibo, they become panic-stricken about not knowing what’s going on socially. “But they adapt very quickly if you take them on holiday and there’s no Internet,” says Griffiths.

1. Which of the following may Dr Kim Ki Joon agree with?

A．We waste too much time on phones.

B．Phones have become part of some users.

C．Addiction to phones makes memories suffer.

D．Phones and blood pressure are closely linked.

2. According to Griffiths, which of the following may be the reason of our getting nomophobia?

A．We worry we may miss out what our friends are doing

B．We fear without phones we will run into a lot of trouble

C．We are accustomed to having a phone on us

D．We need our phones to help us store information

3. Which of the following phrases has the closest meaning to the underlined phrase “ingrained in” in paragraph 4?

A．Approved of.

B．Relied on.

C．Opposed to.

D．Determined by.

4. Where can you probably find the above passage?

A．In a research report.

B．In a science textbook.

C．In a popular science magazine.

D．In a fashion brochure.

3 . A five-­year-­old dog named Kelsey has been praised as a hero for helping to save the life of her owner who slipped in the snow and broke his neck.

The man, Bob, was alone when he left his farmhouse on New Year’s Eve to collect firewood.Expecting a journey of only several meters, Bob was wearing just long johns (衬裤), a shirt and slippers when he went outside, although the temperature was around －4℃.

After the accident, he was unable to move in the snow. Fortunately, Kelsey came to his assistance.

“I was shouting for help, but my nearest neighbor is about 400 meters away, and it was 10:30 p. m.,” Bob explained. “By the next morning, my voice was gone and I couldn’t yell for help, but Kelsey didn’t stop barking.”

Kelsey’s companion kept him warm by lying on top of him. She licked his face and hands to keep him awake. “Kelsey kept barking but never left my side,” Bob recalled. “I knew I couldn’t give up and that it was my choice to stay alive.”

Bob spent 20 hours in the freezing cold. When he finally lost consciousness, his dog kept barking. Finally, hearing the barking, Bob’s neighbor discovered him at 6:30 p. m. on New Year’s Day and called the emergency services at once. When Bob arrived in hospital, his body temperature was below 21℃. However, doctors were surprised to find that he didn’t have any frostbite (冻疮). They believed it was because of Kelsey’s determination to keep him warm. Dr. Chaim Colen, the doctor who treated Bob, said, “His dog really saved him.He was very fortunate.”

Bob said he was very grateful to both Dr. Colen and his Kelsey. “They saved my life. They are truly heroes!”

1. What happened to Bob on New Year’s Eve?

A．He left his dog alone in his farmhouse.

B．He was praised for saving a dog owner.

C．He broke his neck and couldn’t move.

D．He heard his neighbor’s shouting for help.

2. Why did Kelsey keep barking?

A．To keep warm.

B．To stay alive.

C．To keep Bob awake.

D．To seek help from others.

3. How does Dr. Colen feel about Kelsey?

A．Helpful.	B．Fortunate.
C．Grateful.	D．Friendly.

4. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．A Neck­breaking Accident

B．The Magic Night

C．Warmth on a Winter’s Night

D．Determination to Keep Alive

5 . With only about 1, 000 pandas left in the world, China is desperately trying to clone(克隆) the animal and save the endangered species(物种).That's similar to what Texas A&M University researchers have been undertaking(负责) for the past five years in a project called “Noah's Ark”.   

Noah's Ark is aimed at collecting eggs, embryos(胚胎), semen and DNA of endangered animals and storing them in liquid nitrogen(氮).If certain species should become extinct, Dr. Duane Kraemer, a professor in Texas A&M'S College of Veterinary Medicine, says there would be enough of the basic building blocks to reintroduce the species in the future.

It is estimated that as many as 2, 000 species of mammals, birds and reptiles will become extinct in over 100 years. The panda, native only to China, is in danger of becoming extinct in the next 25 years.

Chinese scientists said they grew an embryo introducing cells from a dead female panda into the egg cells of a Japanese white rabbit. They are now trying to implant the embryo into a host animal.

The entire procedure(过程) could take from three to five years to complete.

“The nuclear transfer(核子移植) of one species to another is not easy, and the lack of available(capable of being used) panda eggs could be a major problem,” Kraemer believes. “They will probably have to do several hundred transfers to result in one pregnancy (having a baby).It takes a long time and it's difficult, but this could be groundbreaking science if it works. They are certainly not putting any live pandas at risk, so it is worth the effort,” adds Kraemer, who is one of the leaders of the Project at Texas A&M, the first­ever attempt at cloning a dog.

“They are trying to do something that's never been done, and this is very similar to our work in Noah's Ark. We're both trying to save animals that face extinction. I certainly appreciate their effort and there's a lot we can learn from what they are attempting to do. It's a research that is very much needed. ”

1. According to Professor Kraemer, the major problem in cloning pandas would be the lack of ________.   

A．available panda eggs

B．host animals

C．qualified researchers

D．enough money

2. The best title for the passage may be ________.   

A．China's Success in Pandas Cloning

B．The First Cloned Panda in the World

C．Exploring the Possibility to Clone Pandas

D．China — the Native Place of Pandas Forever

3. From the passage we know that ________.   

A．Kraemer and his team have succeeded in cloning a cat

B．scientists try to implant a panda's egg into a tiger

C．Kraemer will work with Chinese scientists in clone researches

D．about two thousand of species will probably die out in about a century

4. The aim of “Noah's Ark” project is to ________.   

A．make effort to clone the endangered pandas

B．save endangered animals from dying out

C．collect DNA of endangered animals to study

D．transfer the nuclear of one animal to another

7 . Close your eyes for a minute and imagine what life would be like if you had a hundred dollars less. Also imagine what it would be like spending the rest of your life with your eyes closed. Imagine having to read this page, not with your eyes but with your finger­tips.

With existing medical knowledge and skills, two thirds of the world’s 42 million blind should not have to suffer. Unfortunately, rich countries possess most of this knowledge, while developing countries do not.

ORBIS is an international non­profit organization which operates the world’s only flying teaching eye hospital. ORBIS intends to help fight blindness worldwide. Inside a DC­8 aircraft, there is a fully­equipped teaching hospital with television studio and classroom. Doctors are taught the latest techniques of bringing sight back to people there. Project ORBIS also aims at promoting peaceful cooperation (合作) among countries.

ORBIS tries to help developing countries by providing training during three-week medical programs. ORBIS has taught sight­saving techniques to over 35,000 doctors and nurses, who continue to cure tens of thousands of blind people every year. ORBIS has conducted 17 plane programs in China so far. For the seven to ten million blind in China ORBIS is planning to do more for them. At the moment an ORBIS is working on a long­term plan to develop a training center and to provide eye care service to Shanxi Province. ORBIS needs your help to continue their work and free people from blindness.

For just $ 38, you can help one person see; for $ 380 you can bring sight to 10 people; $ 1,300 helps teach a doctor new skills; and for $ 13,000 you can provide a training programme for a group of doctors who can make thousands of blind people see again. Your money can open their eyes to the world. Please help ORBIS improve the quality of life for so many people less fortunate than ourselves.

1. What do we learn about existing medical knowledge and skills in the world?

A．They are adequate.

B．They have not been updated.

C．They are not equally distributed.

D．They have benefited most of the blind.

2. ORBIS aims to help the blind by ________.

A．teaching medical students

B．training doctors and nurses

C．running flying hospitals globally

D．setting up non­profit organization

3. What can be the best title for the passage?

A．ORBIS in China

B．Fighting Blindness

C．ORBIS Flying Hospital

D．Sight­seeing Techniques

4. The first paragraph is intended to ________.

A．introduce a new way of reading

B．advise the public to lead a simple life

C．direct the public’s attention to the blind

D．Encourage the public to use imagination

8 . It happens every spring. Flowers suddenly come out everywhere on the same day, as if they made an appointment with one another. But how exactly do plants “know” when to flower?

It is a question that has puzzled biologists for years. But according to Science Daily, a US research group may have finally answered it —the secret lies in a protein (蛋白质) called FKF1. This allows plants to sense the differences in day lengths so that they can tell the seasons are changing.

Researchers discovered the FKFI protein when they were studying a plant called Arabidopsis. They found that the FKFI protein is a photoreceptor (感光器). This means it is sensitive to, and can be activated by sunlight.

“Plants produce this protein every day in the late afternoon throughout the year. If there is no light at this time, for example, in winter when the sun goes down early, the protein won’t be activated,” explained Takato Imaizumi, the leader of the study. “But when spring comes and the days get longer, the FKF1 protein can be activated by daylight and the plants ‘know’ it is time to flower.”

Although researchers have only studied how the FKF1 protein works in the Arabidopsis, they believe that the process is similar in other plants, including crops like rice and wheat. This could be useful to the agricultural industry in the world.

1. The underlined word “activated” in paragraph 3 probably means__________.

A．woken

B．prevented

C．produced

D．weakened

2. The study may help us to__________.

A．produce more rice and wheat in winter

B．develop the global agricultural industry

C．grow plants that flower the whole year

D．produce more protein to activate plants

3. This text may be taken from__________.

A．a travel brochure	B．a science magazine
C．a medical magazine	D．a personal journal

9 . From a very early age, some children exhibit better self­control than others. Now, a new study that began with about 1,000 children in New Zealand has tracked how a child’s low self-control can predict poor health, money troubles and even a criminal record in their adult years.

Researchers have been studying this group of children for decades now. They observed the level of self-control the youngsters displayed. Parents, teachers, even the kids themselves, scored the youngsters on measures like “acting before thinking” and “Persistence in reaching goals.” The study led by Moffitt of Duke University and colleagues followed 1,000 children from birth to age 32 in Dunedin, New Zealand.

“The children who had the lowest self-control when they were age three to ten, later on had the most health problems in their 30s,” Moffitt said, “and they had the worst financial situation. They were more likely to have a criminal record and to be raising a child as a single parent on a very low income.” Moffitt explained that self-control problems were widely observed, and weren’t just a feature of a small group of misbehaving kids.

Moffitt said it’s still unclear why some children have better self-control than others, though she said other researchers have found that it’s mostly a learned behavior, with relatively little genetic influence. But good self-control can be set to run in families because children with good self-control are more likely to grow up to be healthy and prosperous parents. But the good news, Moffitt said, is that self-control can be taught by parents, and through school curricula that have been shown to be effective.

1. Children with low self-control are more likely to ________．

A．become wealthy in later life

B．get good school performance

C．have better financial planning

D．adopt negative behaviors

2. What can be inferred from the passage?

A．Self-control cannot be taught in schools.

B．The study is restricted within few participants.

C．It’s never too late to deal with self-control problems.

D．Good parenting can improve self-control and life success.

3. Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?

A．Child’s Self­control Predicts Future Health, success

B．Kids are Encouraged to Take Risks at an Early Age

C．Children’s Development Cannot be Changed by Teachers

D．How to Teach the Kids a Bit of Self-control in schools

4. From the first two paragraphs we learn that________．

A．the research has been carried out for five years

B．self-control in kids tends to determine their future

C．self-control was assessed by children’s intelligence

D．children’s self-control is almost the same at early age

10 . Every culture has a recognized (公认的) point when a child becomes an adult, when rules must be followed and tests passed.

In China,   although teenagers can get their ID cards at 16, many only see themselves as an adult when they are 18. In the US, where everyone drives, the main step to the freedom of adult life is learning to drive. At 16, American teens take their driving test. When they have their license (执照), they drive into the grown­-up world.

“Nobody wants to ride the cheese bus to school,” said Eleanor Fulham. 17. “It’s like you’re not cool if you don’t have a car,”   she said.

According to a recent research, 41% of 16 to 19 ­year-olds in the US own cars, up from 23% in 1985. Although, most of these cars are bought by parents, some teens get part­-time jobs to help pay.

Not all families can afford cars for their children. In cities with undergrounds and limited (有限的) parking, some teenagers don’t want them. But in rich areas outside the city, if there are no undergrounds, and bicycles are more for fun than cars, it is strange for a teenager not to have a car.

But police say 16­-year­ olds have almost three times more accidents than 18 and 19 ­year-olds. This has made many parents stop before letting their kids drive. They need to wait until they are more experienced.

Julie Susiana, of Virginia, decided that her son Chad, 15, will wait until he is 17 to apply for his learner’s permit (许可).

Chad said he has accepted his parents’ decision, although it has caused some laughing from his friends. “They say that I am unlucky,” he said. “But I’d rather be alive than driving, and I don’t really trust my friends on the road either.”

In China as more families get cars, more 18 ­year­-olds learn to drive. Will this become a big step to becoming an adult?

1. Which may NOT be taken into consideration when deciding whether to buy a car?

A．How rich the family is.

B．Whether the kid is old enough.

C．What traffic condition there is around.

D．Whether it’s practically needed.

2. The passage mainly gives information about ________.

A．an American culture about teenagers’ driving

B．a change in the Chinese culture

C．a cultural difference between America and China

D．the relationship between driving and a person’s development

3. Which may serve as the best title of the article?

A．Cars Helping You to Grow Up

B．Driving into the Grown­up World

C．Teenagers’ Driving in America

D．Recognized Point of Becoming an Adult

4. 16­year­old drivers have more accidents possibly because ________.

A．they want to show themselves off

B．they are not experienced drivers

C．older people always drive better

D．they never drive carefully on the road