1 . Humanities departments(人文院系)in America are once again being cut down. Earlier this month, the State University of New York(SUNY)StonyBrook announced a plan to abandon several of the college’s well-known departments for lack of fund. The University of Pittsburgh has cut its German and classics.
These are hard times. Instead of Shakespeare or French, there will be(perhaps there already are)college classes in how to cut corporate spending.
I don’t believe that the humanities can make you a decent person.
| A．These subjects are under attack |
| B．Students need practical skills to find jobs |
| C．Defenses of the humanities have appeared |
| D．This problem has also arisen internationally |
| E．Therefore, courses in the humanities are beneficial |
| F．It helps us learn how to think and live in a harmonious society |
| G．But they can expand our sense of what humans can accomplish and create |
2 . It’s well-known that humor can benefit us both physically and mentally. The idea that laughter is the best medicine has been around since ancient times. In his 1905 book, Jokes and Their Relation to the Unconscious, Sigmund Freud argued that humor is the highest of the psyche’s defense mechanism (机制), capable of turning anxiety into pleasure.
There are four humor styles. Affiliative humor refers to jokes about things that might be commonly considered funny, which is usually employed to improve relationships or make others laugh. If you’ve ever shared a funny picture with a coworker, you’ve used affiliative humor. Self-enhancing humor involves being able to laugh at yourself, often used as a way for you to deal with stress or difficulties and feel better as a result. Aggressive humor is laughing at the expense of others, which often involves sarcasm (讽刺), teasing, and criticism. Self-defeating humor is the art of putting yourself down to gain favor from your peers, which is possibly used by someone who’s targeted by bullies.
Each style of humor actually carries a different influence, when it comes to mental health. Julie Aitken Schermer, a psychological researcher at The University of Western Ontario, says people using self-enhancing humor are less likely to show signs of loneliness and poor relationships with others. By contrast, both aggressive and self-defeating humor styles can hint at trouble. “We find that self-defeating humor is the most concerning style as it is also linked with loneliness and feelings of not mattering. Those with an aggressive humor style may not experience loneliness as much, however, since they rely on group dynamics (群体动力) in order to make fun of their peers,” says Schermer.
Even if you tend to favor more negative humor styles, there’s no reason to lose heart. Schermer says people can develop a positive, self-enhancing humor style by concentrating on the lighter and more humorous aspects of life. As author Kurt Vonnegut once wrote, “Laughter and tears are both responses to worries and anxieties. I prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterward.”
1. Why is Sigmund Freud’s book mentioned in Paragraph 1?| A．To show the importance of mental health. | B．To stress the role of humor. |
| C．To persuade people to stay positive. | D．To introduce ancient jokes to us. |
| A．Affiliative humor. | B．Self-enhancing humor. |
| C．Aggressive humor. | D．Self-defeating humor. |
| A．Signal. | B．Explain. | C．Prevent. | D．Solve. |
| A．Humor is difficult to control. | B．Crying is a good way of relief. |
| C．Humor is a double-edged sword. | D．Laughter is the best cure for stress. |
3 . When a group of college students put their sorrows into action, they never imagined the project would fuel a nationwide movement to help deal with hunger and control on food waste.
But that’s exactly what the Farmlink Project has done since 2020, bringing together hundreds of young volunteers to rescue nearly 77 million pounds of excess food and deliver it to those in need. The organization’s efforts help farmers, the environment, and people struggling to feed their families all at once.
“In the United States, 40 million Americans don’t have enough food to eat. They don’t know where their next meal is going to come from,” said Aidan Reilly, who co-founded Farmlink. “Meanwhile, in the United States, we’re throwing out over 100 billion pounds of food every year.”
Back in 2020, Reilly and his childhood friend James Kanoff were reading and watching news about food shortages, and they learned that area farms were forced to destroy excess produce that they couldn’t sell, especially with restaurants, schools and hotels closed. Reilly, Kanoff and a core group of friends worked together over Zoom, texted and e-mailed to contact farms coast to coast. “We didn’t really set out to start a nonprofit,” Reilly said. “We just thought, ‘There’re so many people suffering, if we can figure out one way to help, then that’ll be great.”
In California, they found a farmer who had 13, 000 eggs that could be donated, and Reilly offered to do the pickup and delivery himself. That was the first of many more deliveries. With “we’ll come to you” as their catchphrase (标语), the group rented U-Haul trucks and attempted to do all the food pickup and deliveries themselves.
“We had a lot of small problems in the beginning,” Reilly said. “We broke axles (车轴), loaded in 40, 000 pounds of potatoes in a wrong way and had to try to drag them out by using another truck and a rope. But we made it work.”
“Farmlink has worked with more than 100 farms and 300 communities in the US, rescuing and moving enough food to distribute more than 64 million meals,” Reilly said.
1. What can we learn about Farmlink Project from the text?| A．It was launched by some college students. | B．It helps relieve American poverty. |
| C．It cooperated with the farms worldwide. | D．It is supported by the government. |
| A．The produce was of poor quality. |
| B．Nobody came to purchase the produce. |
| C．The farmers refused to sell it at a low price. |
| D．Food shortages were no longer a problem globally. |
| A．They were lacking in experience. | B．They overloaded the supply. |
| C．Their navigation aids didn’t work. | D．The vehicles were inadequate. |
| A．Americans faced a food shortage crisis. |
| B．Farmers in poor areas worried about food waste. |
| C．Volunteers delivered farm produce to those in need. |
| D．Students took action to tackle hunger and food waste. |
4 . Let’s face it: Life is hard. But it doesn’t have to be, especially if you have the following products. From a workout mirror to a water purifier, your day today routine is about to get a lot easier.
Tempo Move
$495 SHOP. TEMPO. FIT
Tempo makes exercise truly convenient from your own home. You may recognize it as one of the many workout mirrors on the market, but the new tempo move system allows you to easily connect your phone and their apps to a TV, and follow along with all their wonderful classes.
VIVE Flow
$499 AT VIVE. COM
Vive goggles will bring an extremely accessible and refreshing approach to the VR world. The Vive goggles are, well, a pair of goggles not unlike something you’d wear to snowboard. They’re extremely lightweight with a lightning fast set-up that’s suitable for things like watching Netflix, or meditation (冥想). It’s the calmest headset I’ve ever worn and uses cameras to let you control everything with just your hands.
Hisense 75”U 80X0GR 8K ULED Roku TV
$1, 800 AT BEST BUY
8K sounded like a luxury, but now that brands like Hisense, which focus on a more affordable version, have got some time with the tech. You can finally bring the deep color output and astonishing detail into your living room. Calling it “afordable“ may be a little overstate, but compared to most 8K TVs which all run over $5, 000, it’s the most cost-efficient version of the tech we’ve got.
LARQ Water Purifier
$139 AT LIVELARQ. COM
Larq just made your water cleaner with light technology. The best part is that it somehow manages to taste clean and fresh too. And while I thought it may be a trick, I’ve forced friends, family, and strangers to compare, and they all agree. Even if you don’t care about clean water, you’ll care about that, right?
1. What can be inferred about Vive Goggles?| A．They are user-friendly. | B．They help keep track of weight. |
| C．They are intended for snowboarders. | D．They can control everything. |
| A．Its look is luxurious. | B．Its tech is advanced. | C．It is economical. | D．It features deep color. |
| A．A consumer review. | B．A science report. |
| C．An online advertisement. | D．A product introduction. |
5 . My two daughters and I got into the car to spend our weekend in Florida. Autumn, the elder one, offered to drive. I sat next to her, and Amber sat in back. After setting out, the three of us sang to the radio at the top of our voice.
It was a great trip until the rain poured and the rain was too heavy. “I have to pull over.” Autumn said. She tried to enter the far right lane (车道) to find a place to stop, but trucks ran fast, making water onto our car. The car was out of control, then worse — it started to move left and right. Autumn fought to control it but it was too late. We ran into a truck. The girls jumped out of the car. My chest felt much pain.
“Get out, Mom. Come on!” Amber cried. “I can’t.” I said. Autumn took out her cellphone. “There’s been an accident. Send an ambulance (救护车)!” Amber and Autumn pulled me out of the car and helped me lie on my back in the grassy area by the roadside. I had to calm myself and looked up. A man held a large umbrella over me and other kind faces appeared above me. A woman helped to treat a cut over Amber’s eye. Another woman came close to me and said, “No one in the truck was injured. Help was on the way.” The woman mentioned she was a nurse; the other woman who took care of Amber’s cut was an eye specialist. We couldn’t have asked for better care.
In the hospital the pain in my chest began to disappear. Later, the tests at the hospital made sure we had no serious injuries. We’d left all our troubles behind thanks to these kind people, who seemed to be angels (天使) in my eyes.
1. How did the author and her two daughters feel after setting out?| A．They were worried about the weather. | B．They enjoyed themselves greatly. |
| C．They thought it was a long journey. | D．They felt lucky to take the journey. |
| A．To stop by the roadside. | B．To follow the truck closely, |
| C．To get into the fast traffic lane. | D．To move the car left and right. |
| A．The author herself drove the car. | B．It was raining heavily. |
| C．A nurse held a large umbrella to help. | D．The truck driver was badly injured. |
| A．Unexpected heavy rain | B．Leave our troubles behind |
| C．Kind angels saved the day | D．My two kind daughters |
For beach vacations that get you out of town and invite you and your family to dive into culture, consider a trip to Panama City. Here, you will enjoy beaches and city exploring. Book your stay at the Westin Playa Bonita, where you can book a room starting at $222 a night. There are various programs, including beach Olympics, star observation and Spanish lessons.
Jupiter, Florida
This place offers you quality time you can spend with your loved ones. Book your stay at Jupiter Beach Resort & Spa, with rates for a family of four starting at $207 a night. Here, you can shoot baskets at the basketball courts, take a dip in the pool or teach your children beach yoga.
San Diego, California
The West Coast is a great spot for cheap beach vacations, so tell your family to pack their bags for a visit to San Diego. A cheap $10 Uber ride from the airport will have you pull up at the Kona Kai Resort & Spa. Here, a family of four can stay in a Deluxe Guest Room starting at $159 per night. Your kids can practice cannonballs at the pool after a visit to the world-famous San Diego Zoo.
Kihei, Hawaii
For west coasters who are growing bored with their background, fly to the islands of Hawaii. Stay at the Aston at the Maui Banyan, with a charge of $179 a night for a family of four. Here, you’ll see some of the best sunsets of your life while your kids play in the Pacific. And if you set about cooking a fancy meal, you’ll enjoy suites that come with a full kitchen.
1. Which of the following charges you least a night?| A．The Westin Playa Bonita. |
| B．The Kona Kai Resort & Spa. |
| C．Jupiter Beach Resort & Spa. |
| D．The Aston at the Maui Banyan. |
| A．Observe fantastic stars. |
| B．Visit a world-famous zoo. |
| C．Admire beautiful sunsets. |
| D．Play some beach sports. |
| A．They are all intended for family trips. |
| B．They all offer rooms with a full kitchen. |
| C．They all pick up visitors from the airport. |
| D．They all provide basketball courts on the beach. |
7 . Taste in music varies considerably, but whatever people enjoy listening to, they often report an emotional response that has a touch of the physical to it. Maybe you feel beautiful music gives you the feeling of being cold, or makes your hair stand on end.
By studying a rare person, named BW, who does not like or respond to music at all, psychologist Psyche Loui of Northeastern University has discovered that connectivity patterns in the brain link finding music rewarding with finding social interaction enjoyable.
“BW said he had never understood why people enjoy music,” Loui says. BW is not someone who doesn’t like art, Loui says. “He goes to museums. He’s an enthusiastic photographer. He likes good food. He likes long walks on the beach. He just doesn’t like music.” He told Loui that when he saw a person at the grocery store with headphones in their ears dancing to music, he could never understand why anyone would do that. “This really seems to be a somewhat socially weakening experience,” Loui says.
“Given that music is important for social bonding across different cultures and that music is a way for the hearing system to connect to the reward system, one strong prediction is that music reward sensitivity can partially explain individual differences in sensitivity to social reward.”
This newly discovered connectivity between the hearing and reward systems may be why we feel emotions in response to music, Loui says. “I think that there’s a role of music for social bonding.” She also thinks there are influences from this work for other conditions with low social reward. “If people who don’t love music have differences in specific systems in the brain, then that shows these specific systems are related to the love of music. Then we can examine what else engages these same systems and what other abilities or human capacities are linked to music.”
1. Why are “being cold” and “hair stand on end” mentioned in Paragraph 1?| A．To develop the plot. | B．To draw a conclusion. |
| C．To make comparisons. | D．To support the argument. |
| A．He thinks music is important in social bonding. |
| B．He enjoys music while wandering on the beach. |
| C．He figures music is less important than art and food. |
| D．He takes little interest in and is unresponsive to music. |
| A．What role music plays in social bonding. |
| B．How people respond to music emotionally. |
| C．Whether specific music influences brain system. |
| D．What other human abilities are linked with music. |
| A．People’s emotional and physical reactions to beautiful music. |
| B．Connections between enjoyment of music and social interaction. |
| C．Relationships among social bonding, diverse cultures and music. |
| D．Links among music sensibility, hearing system and reward system. |
8 . An elevator (电梯) can be an uncomfortable environment when the riders do not observe (遵守) the basic rules of common politeness. Good elevator etiquette (礼节) is mostly common sense.
Boarding an elevator etiquette means that you should wait until everyone who is getting off has left the elevator before you step inside.You should not try to block the doors of the elevator to hold them open.
While in an elevator, you should not eat, smoke, or talk on your cell phone.
If you are trapped in the back of a crowded elevator and you need to get off, call out “my floor” to warn other riders to the fact that you wish to get off.
| A．Stay in the front if you plan to get off soon. |
| B．This behavior is rude and potentially dangerous. |
| C．Then move slowly but firmly through the crowd. |
| D．Many people prefer to ride an elevator in silence. |
| E．In short, always keep everyone comfortable on an elevator. |
| F．But being aware (意识到) of it will make your elevator rides more comfortable. |
| G．It is polite to stand as close to a wall or corner as possible to make room for other riders. |
9 . A recent study from a team of South Korean researchers suggests that eating alone often may lead to poor eating habits and poor food choices. Specifically, the study found that men who ate alone more than twice a week had a greater risk of developing high blood pressure and other diseases.
For children, eating with their families is not only about preventing bad results—it is also about developing good ones.
In 2014, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) looked at data from nearly three-quarters of the world’s countries. Among its findings was the fact that students who shared a main meal with families were less likely to skip school(逃学). Children who eat a main meal with their families are also less likely to use drugs and alcohol(吸毒酗酒).
In the report, named “The Importance of Family Dinners”, researchers say that “teens who have frequent family dinners are more likely to say their parents know a lot about what’s going on in their lives”. They also say that when teens say they feel closer to their parents, they are less likely to use drugs and alcohol.
Another study from the University of Montreal found that children who ate with their families experience long-term physical and mental health benefits(好处). These children were physically in better shape and drank fewer sugary soft drinks. These children also seemed to have better social skills and they were less aggressive(好斗的).
Professor Linda Pagani says that mealtimes shared with parents “likely provide young children with first-hand social communication, discussions of social events and day-to-day matters”. She adds that they may likely help the child have better communication skills with others.
1. What is the main idea of the text?| A．Advantages of eating with parents. | B．Benefits of eating alone. |
| C．Ways of developing social skills. | D．Dangers of using drugs and alcohol. |
| A．Abuse drugs and alcohol. | B．Drinking more sugary soft drinks. |
| C．Get on well with their parents. | D．Be more socially active and aggressive. |
| A．To introduce a famous person. |
| B．To offer background information. |
| C．To further explain the benefits of eating with parents. |
| D．To show the disadvantage of eating with parents. |
| A．A popular novel. | B．A travel magazine. |
| C．A science report. | D．A biology book. |
10 . Ireland has had a very difficult history. The problems started in the 16th century when English rulers tried to conquer (征服) Ireland. For hundreds of years, the Irish people fought against the English. Finally, in 1921, the British government was forced to give independence to the south of Ireland. The result is that today there are two “Irelands”. Northern Ireland, in the north, is part of the United Kingdom. The Republic of Ireland, in the south, is an independent country.
In the 1840s the main crop, potatoes, was affected by disease and about 750,000 people died of hunger. This, and a shortage (短缺) of work, forced many people to leave Ireland and live in the USA, the UK, Australia and Canada. As a result of these problems, the population fell from 8.2 million in 1841 to 6.6 million in 1851.
For many years, the majority of Irish people earned their living as farmers. Today, many people still work on the land but more and more people are moving to the cities to work in factories and offices. Life in the cities is very different from life in the countryside, where things move at a quieter and slower pace.
The Irish are famous for being warm－hearted and friendly. Oscar Wilde, a famous Irish writer, once said that the Irish were “the greatest talkers since the Greeks”. Since independence, Ireland has revived (复兴) its own culture of music, language, literature and singing. Different areas have different styles of old Irish songs which are sung without instruments. Other kinds of Irish music use many different instruments such as the violin, whistles, etc.
1. What does the author tell us in Paragraph 1?| A．How the Irish fought against the English. |
| B．How Ireland gained independence. |
| C．How English rulers tried to conquer Ireland. |
| D．How two “Irelands” came into being. |
| A．food shortages and a lack of work in the 1840s led to a decline in population |
| B．people are moving to the cities for lack of work in the countryside |
| C．it is harder to make a living as a farmer than as a factory worker |
| D．different kinds of old Irish songs are all sung with instruments |
| A．the Irish character | B．the Irish culture |
| C．Irish musical instruments | D．a famous Irish writer |
| A．Life in Ireland | B．A Very Difficult History |
| C．Ireland, Past and Present | D．The Independence of Ireland |
