1 . Yue-Sai Kan was born in China. In 1972, she moved to New York. When Kan was a child, she was told by her father that she should always aim to (力争) be the first because no one remembered the second. What her father said has been a driving inspiration over the years for her to become a bestselling author and a successful businesswoman.
Her new book Be a Pioneer, which is the tenth she has written and her first Chinese-language autobiography (自传), was produced after three years, inspired by her father’s words.
When writing an autobiography, the biggest challenge is not how to present one’s life, but to remember it. To help with reconstructing her story, Kan asked many friends and colleagues she made over the years to write down their memories of her from earlier times. So besides featuring Kan’s own words, the new book is also filled with those of her friends’s, which gives Kan a new understanding of herself — a woman who works hard, studies hard. and the most important thing is that she is a woman filled with a sense of responsibility.
“My helper Stephanie mentioned that I was worried because we were running out of money for the company. My housekeeper reminded me that before the start of one of my events she found that I had fainted (晕倒) in the bathroom. I was so tired that I was getting sick. They know more about me than myself,” Kan says.
“Writing a book is a good business to be in, not so much to make money but to grow the brain. I believe what I do will benefit the world. All the things I have done in Be a Pioneer — my successes and my failures — can be a good example to young people in particular. That’s the main reason why I wrote the book,” adds Kan.
1. What can we know about Kan’s book Be a Pioneer?| A．It took her 10 years to finish. |
| B．It is full of her father’s words. |
| C．It was completed with her friends’ help. |
| D．It tops the tenth on the bestseller list. |
| A．Being short of money. | B．Having no supporters. |
| C．Having to write it in Chinese. | D．Remembering her past. |
| A．To tell Kan is weak in health. |
| B．To show Kan is a worried woman. |
| C．To report the path of writing is difficult. |
| D．To state how Kan’s story was reconstructed. |
| A．Setting an example. | B．Earning money. |
| C．Making herself popular. | D．Proving herself to her father. |
2 . A lot of people find it difficult to do exercise regularly, even though they know it’s good for their physical and mental (身心上的) health. Yet keeping on a workout routine doesn’t necessarily go to the gym or run around your neighborhood. Gardening is a great example of a popular hobby that can be used as a workout.
Nashville resident Tom Adkinson, 72, is on board with the idea of gardening to stay fit. He has three gardens, which he uses primarily to grow tomatoes, sweet banana peppers and okra. Like traditional exercise, Adkinson does a lot of preparation before gardening, and then he spends hours watering and weeding (除草) all three gardens, involving bending and stretching, which he compares to performing garden yoga.
“It is wise of Adkinson to do so. Even though gardening may not appear difficult, using the body in new ways can make you hurt if you don’t warm up beforehand,” said Zeller, who teaches at the Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Cape May County in New Jersey.
Working in your garden just two hours a week could improve your mood. And the communal gardening, which is done by a number of people as a group in communities and schools, provides social benefits that can reduce stress and help fight against loneliness and even dementia according to studies.
“With all these benefits, gardening for fitness will be a trend (趋势) in the coming year,” announced Mandal, CEO of the fitness coaching app Future, “Our users at Future have already been asking their coaches to add gardening and landscaping activities into their routines because it’s easy to get and fit into their lifestyle.”
1. What do the underlined words “on board with” mean in paragraph 2?| A．In support of. | B．At the risk of. |
| C．Under the control of. | D．In opposition to. |
| A．Having a good rest. |
| B．Getting enough water ready. |
| C．Doing warm-up exercise. |
| D．Preparing tools for weeding. |
| A．Tips for gardening. |
| B．The benefits of gardening. |
| C．The process of garden management. |
| D．The difference between personal and group gardening. |
| A．Running. | B．Yoga. | C．Gardening. | D．Walking. |
3 . We all feel lonely at some point, but long-term social loneliness can damage our mental and physical health. “Loneliness is a signal that you need human connection,” says Dr. Jeremy Nobel.
Know yourself
It’s easier to connect with people if you have shared the same ideas or experiences, so start paying attention to what’s on your mind.
Make something
When someone says make something, you can immediately say, “Well, I’m not Picasso. I don’t know how to do a fancy painting.” And, of course, you’re not! But the opportunities for creative expression are endless. You can plant a garden or try a dance move.
Take a risk by having conversations
Share something about yourself. It doesn’t have to be the biggest or darkest part of your life, but just something you think other people might find interesting and convincing.
Whether it’s volunteering for a cause you believe in or just for fun, try to find others who share your interests. And if you follow your natural curiosities, you may find something new. Share your thoughts and feelings in creative ways with other people who have that interest.
| A．Other people’s loneliness matters too |
| B．Find a group that matches your interests |
| C．Since you have shared some of your secrets |
| D．Here are some good tips to make connection |
| E．Even if you’re nervous about being judged or refused |
| F．Knowing yourself can be the first step to bond with others |
| G．Making something can express your thoughts and feelings to others |
4 . I was born in a poor community on the north side of Boston, US, raised by a single mother who didn’t finish 3rd grade, lived each day on food stamps and attended what the media called “the most dysfunctional (功能失调的) public school district”. Not many people expected much of me, so I had to expect.
On my 13th birthday, I bought a poster of Harvard to hang in my room. Being at Harvard became what I dreamt about. Even if my electricity was cut off, I still woke up at 5:30, because I knew that my poster of Harvard was still hanging only two feet away from me.
Reminding myself of my goal each day made it easy to say no to the same choices I saw my peers making, because those paths wouldn’t have had me closer to my goal. Being poor could not take away my power to decide what I choose to do with my day. The poster gave me the courage to send emails to about 50 Harvard students to ask for feedback on my application essays; it gave me the energy to study just one more hour on my SATs when my friends were asleep; and it gave me the determination to submit just one more scholarship application when 180 others had already turned me down.
Every day, I could feel myself getting closer and closer to my goal as my writing got better, my SAT score increased, and my scholarship checks started coming in. Finally, an email arrived from Harvard. The first word was “Congratulations!” A month later, Harvard flew me up to visit the campus where for the first time I stepped onto my dreaming land.
Who you are today is the result of the decisions you made yesterday, and who you will be tomorrow will be the result of the choices you make today. Who do you want to be tomorrow?
1. What can we learn about the author from the first two paragraphs?| A．All people expected too much of him. |
| B．He grew up in a happy family. |
| C．He accepted the greatest education. |
| D．He had high expectation of himself. |
| A．He spent more time preparing for the exams. |
| B．He learnt from his peers from time to time. |
| C．He often wrote feedbacks on others’ essays. |
| D．He turned to his teacher when facing problems. |
| A．Intelligent and humorous. | B．Generous and selfless. |
| C．Determined and hardworking. | D．Courageous and friendly. |
| A．Failure is the mother of success. |
| B．Perseverance can help realize your dream. |
| C．Easier said than done. |
| D．It’s never too late to study. |
5 . Landscape architect Kotchakorn Voraakhom has designed a new green roof on the Rangsit Campus of Thammasat University, about 25 miles north of central Bangkok, Thailand. Her imaginative work challenges the common thinking that urbanization has a negative impact on the planet, whether flooding, excess (过度的) energy use, disrupted (扰乱) biodiversity or the heat island effect.
The 236, 806-square-foot structure, which opened in December 2019, includes a flood water management system and Asia’s largest rooftop organic farm. It combines modern landscape architecture with traditional agricultural knowledge, creating a green and friendly environment.
The green roof, containing an H-shaped landscape, looks like a futuristic hill with a brick building beneath it. The hill features a complex pattern of zigzagging terraces (之字形梯田) of planted beds, leading all the way down to the bottom. When rainwater hits the roof, it flows down the zigzags while being absorbed by the soil in the beds, The excess water is directed into four storage ponds — with a capacity of up to 3 million gallons. The process slows down the flow speed of rainwater runoff compared to a normal concrete rooftop. This keeps the area from flooding during heavy rains.
The roof’s terraces are filled with organically grown crops, including a drought tolerant variety of rice, many local vegetables and herbs. The farm can supply the canteens on campus with a large amount of rice, herbs and vegetables a year. The food waste is composted (把……制成堆肥) to fertilize the farm, and water from the storage ponds is used to water plants, creating an entirely localized and circular system.
The farm serves as an outdoor classroom and a source of local jobs, too. Farmers offer workshops on sustainable agriculture and nutrition as part of the university’s sustainability curriculum. “Students and community members are invited to participate in seasonal seeding, harvesting, and so on,” says Voraakhom. “The urban farm is training a new generation of organic farmers with real-world skills. It also promotes a sense of community.”
1. What can we say about Voraakhom’s work?| A．It’s short-lived. | B．It’s creative. |
| C．It’s demanding. | D．It’s time-consuming. |
| A．To store more water. |
| B．To plant diverse vegetables. |
| C．To slow the speed of water flow. |
| D．To make it look more attractive than other buildings. |
| A．It uses food as fertilizer. | B．It benefits the environment. |
| C．It improves students’ lifestyle. | D．It produces vegetables and fruits. |
| A．Students can learn hands-on knowledge on the farm. |
| B．Farmers working on the farm can become professors. |
| C．The farm prevents government from offering people jobs. |
| D．The farm harms the relationship between university and community. |
6 . I was talking to my friend Sandy about our children. Sandy had recently moved into the neighborhood with her four kids: Jane, Joe, Christopher, and her youngest, eighteen-month-old Kim. She seemed happy to have kids nearby, until she saw our dog, Sam.
Sam, our shiny black dog, loved to play with the kids and protect them. But Sandy had a fear of dogs, and she started to back away as Sam approached. I grabbed Sam’s collar and made him sit, trying to ease Sandy’s discomfort.
Sandy mentioned that she needed to get her kids ready to go to their grandmother’s house. Just then, her door opened and her kids rushed out. Sandy shouted at them to stay away from Sam.
The kids huddled (蜷缩) around their mom, looking at Sam cautiously (谨慎地). Emma, my daughter, showed the kids how to approach a dog slowly and properly. The kids were won over by Sam’s friendly nature, but I knew it would take some time for Sandy to change her viewpoint.
After that incident, we made sure that Sam didn’t go near our neighbors without me present. One day, when the kids were playing across the street, I noticed the eighteen-month-old baby heading towards a small hill. I saw a car approaching and shouted to everyone to watch the baby. Without hesitation, Sam rushed out the door and ran across the street towards the baby. He ran to the boy in time to gently push the baby away from the oncoming car. The kids cheered, completely unaware of the danger. They thought Sam had come to play.
Within a year, Sam had made friends with all the neighbors. Even Sandy started to warm up to Sam and would occasionally come over to give him a hug.
1. How did Sandy feel when she first saw Sam?| A．Excited. | B．Curious. | C．Fearful. | D．Awkward. |
| A．They looked at Sam with watchful eyes. |
| B．They formed a circle to protect their mom. |
| C．They held him by the collar to make him sit. |
| D．They prepared to escape from the dog. |
| A．By running in front of the car to block it. |
| B．By rushing to Sandy’s house to get help. |
| C．By pushing the baby away from the car. |
| D．By jumping to the front of the coming car. |
| A．Curious. | B．Brave. | C．Funny. | D．Sensitive. |
7 . When you go on vacation next time, make sure to take lots of pictures of the wildlife you see. These photos can help save different types of wildlife because of a new field called “imageomies”. Imageomies uses computers to study pictures of wildlife and learn information from them.
Until recently, scientists didn’t have the technology to analyze (分析) the data in wildlife photos. But now, machine learning and computer vision are helping researchers unlock valuable information hidden in these images.
There are platforms where people can share their wildlife photos, like cBird, iNaturalist and Wildbook. These platforms help scientists keep track of different species and create databases. If you have rare (稀有的) photos of wildlife, it’s a good idea to share them on these platforms.
Scientists have limited time and resources to study all endangered wildlife in the world. By using artificial intelligence (人工智能) to analyze public photos, we can learn more about different species and their behaviors. This technology can even help us find things in photos that humans might miss.
It’s important to use the collected information responsibly and protect it from poachers (偷猎者). If we do that, imageomies can not only help save wildlife but also contribute to other fields like medicine and agriculture.
1. How can imageomies help scientists study wildlife?| A．By offering information from wildlife. | B．By analyzing the data in wildlife photos. |
| C．By analyzing the trend of human population. | D．By knowing the origin of biological processes. |
| A．eBird, iNaturalist and Wildbook. | B．Imageomics, eBird and Wildbook. |
| C．Imageomics, eBird and iNaturalist. | D．Photos of wildlife, iNaturalist and Wildbook. |
| A．To appreciate the beauty of wildlife. | B．To contribute to the public safety. |
| C．To inspire others to protect nature. | D．To help scientists study wildlife. |
| A．Computers help identify the biological features | B．Poachers stop killing threatened animals |
| C．Photos can save wild species | D．Photos can protect our environment |
8 . Are you a fan of outdoor adventures? Do you enjoy scenic views to relax? Look no further, as the following destinations offer all that and more.
Athabasca Falls
Alberta, Canada
Water from the Canadian Rockies flows down into the waterfalls of Jasper National Park, creating a flow with wild energy. The falls are wheelchairs accessible, with a paved path taking admirers to a number of viewpoints. If visitors leave the path, they can explore both the upper and lower regions of the trail.
Akaka Falls Trail
Hakalau, Hawaii
A short half-mile hike is big on sights and low on hard activity. The well-kept ring like trail guide visitors around to see a number of waterfalls, including the 442-foot main attraction, and beautiful local flora (植物群) among the famous landscape. Though there are no hills to climb, there are a number of stairways to go.
Nugget Falls
Juneau, Alaska
Located in Tongass National Forest about 12 miles from Juneau, the Mendenhall Glacier has produced Nugget Falls, a fan-like waterfall that leads into a lake. A series of short hikes allows for different views of the waterfall and icy surrounds, which are also known for frequent brown bear sightings.
Yosemite Falls
Yosemite Valley, California
Yosemite National Park is one of the oldest national parks in America and home to the fifth tallest waterfall in the world. Hikers can reach it by taking a 1-mile trail from the lodge or the 7.2-mile round-trip Yosemite Falls Trail route. Late spring is best, with the highest water flow. In the winter, the temperatures dip below freezing. A park admission fee applies.
1. Where can visitors expect to see frequent brown bear sightings?| A．Athabasca Falls. | B．Akaka Falls Trail. | C．Nugget Falls. | D．Yosemite Falls. |
| A．Winter. | B．Spring. | C．Summer. | D．Fall. |
| A．In a travel magazine. | B．In a novel. | C．In a history book. | D．In a diary. |
9 . Dan Scarfe, the boss of a new company that has found a way to unlock conversation for deaf people, says the idea hit him over Christmas with his family last year.
Scarfe’s grandfather was 97 years old with hearing problems, so he had great trouble communicating with others in the family. This inspired (激励) Scarfe to find a solution so that his grandfather could “talk” with others. “My grandfather either sits in silence or watches TV all the time with subtitles (字幕),” said Scarfe.
Now, just six months later, his company, with the help of Augmented Reality Classes, has invented XRAI Glasses.
The XRAI Glasses are connected to a mobile phone. Our software receives a sound from the microphone on these glasses and sends it down to the phone. Then the phone turns the sound into subtitles. Finally the deaf people can understand it.
“As a deaf person myself, I think it brings us much convenience,” said Steve Crump, Founder and Chair, DeafKidz International. “When I tried on the glasses, the real time subtitles make me join others in their “talk”. I have never done it before. It’s perfect”.
Though XRAI Glasses haves been considered by the Royal National Institute for Deaf People as a game changer with the ability to change lives, the invention is not without its disadvantages. It can’t understand group conversations well when many people talk together. Scarfe said, “we are doing research to make the glasses serve deaf people better. Hopefully, they are available (上市) by September”.
1. What inspired Dan Scarfe to invent the XRAI glasses?| A．Hoping to change the world. | B．Noticing his grandpa’s condition. |
| C．Seeing many deaf people around him. | D．Believing it as a way to make money. |
| A．Where the XRAI Glasses are made. | B．What the XRAI Glasses look like. |
| C．Why the XRAI glasses are popular. | D．How the XRAI glasses work. |
| A．Annoyed. | B．Anxious. | C．Satisfied. | D．Disappointed. |
| A．The XRAI glasses still need improvements. |
| B．The XRAI glasses are available to customers. |
| C．The XRAI glasses deal with group talking well. |
| D．The XRAI glasses can only be tested by the elderly. |
10 . One cold morning in early 2015, Lauren Passell was on her way to work. Suddenly, she fell down on the sidewalk. As she tried to stand up, a stranger appeared from the crowd and knelt (跪下) beside her.
The woman introduced herself as Sharon Evans. As Evans helped Passell up, all Passell could think about was that she needed to get to work. But she was in terrible pain, and could hardly stand. Seeing this, Evans told Passell to stay still while she called a taxi.
“And I said, ‘No, you don’t have to do that. I’m sure you have places to be, I can do it.’ And honestly, the second time she said, ‘No, I’m getting you a taxi’ I thought, ‘Oh, thank you. I don’t think I can do this alone.’ ”
Once the taxi arrived, Evans got in with her. Passell tried to tell her that it wasn’t necessary. But Evans stuck to it. Once again, Passel was secretly relieved (如释重负) to have Evans’ help.
Evans didn’t just go to the hospital with Passell. She helped her fill out the paperwork, and even took Passell to the bathroom. Each time, Passell tried to advise Evans to leave, to get to work. And each time, Evans refused.
Once it was time for Passell to be seen by doctors, Evans left. It turned out that Passell’s condition was serious. The doctors told her she needed to have an operation (手术) — if not, she could have died due to the blood clots.
Passell not only recovered (恢复), but ran a half marathon the next year. “I might’ve died if Sharon hadn’t shown so much kindness. So thank you, Sharon, for saving my life. And I hope one day I can pick someone off the sidewalk, just like you did for me.”
1. What happened to Lauren Passell on her way to work?| A．She ran a half marathon. | B．She met a traffic accident. |
| C．She talked with her friend. | D．She fell down and hurt herself. |
| A．Strangers. | B．Old friends. | C．Boss and worker. | D．Doctor and patient. |
| A．To run a marathon. | B．To help those in need. |
| C．To show kindness to Sharon. | D．To wait for Sharon off the sidewalk. |
| A．Brave and honest. | B．Clever and humorous. |
| C．Kind and helpful. | D．Outgoing and friendly. |
