4 . Researchers say they have translated the meaning of gestures that wild chimpanzees (黑猩猩) use to communicate. They say wild chimps communicate 19 specific messages to one another with a “vocabulary” of 66 gestures. The scientists discovered this by following and filming groups of chimps in Uganda, and examining more than 5,000 incidents of these meaningful exchanges.

Dr Catherine Hobaiter, who led the research, said that this was the only form of intentional communication to be recorded in the animal kingdom. Only humans and chimps, she said, had a system of communication where they deliberately sent a message to another group member.

“That’s what’s so amazing about chimp gestures,” she said. “They’re the only thing that looks like human language in that respect.”

Although previous research has shown that apes and monkeys can understand complex information from another animal’s call, the animals do not appear to use their voices intentionally to communicate messages. This was a significant difference between calls and gestures, Dr Hobaiter said.

Chimps will check to see if they have the attention of the animal with which they wish to communicate. In one case, a mother presents her foot to her crying baby, signaling: “Climb on me.” The youngster immediately jumps on to its mothers back and they travel off together. “The big message from this study is that there is another species (物种) out there. that is meaningful in its communication, so that’s not unique to humans,” said Dr Hobaiter.

Dr Susanne Shultz, an evolutionary biologist from the University of Manchester, said the study was praiseworthy in seeking to enrich our knowledge of the evolution of human language. But, she added, the results were “a little disappointing”.

“The vagueness of the gesture meanings suggests either that the chimps have little to communicate, or we are still missing a lot of the information contained in their gestures and actions,” she said. “Moreover, the meanings seem to not go beyond what other animal convey with non-verbal communication. So, it seems the gulf remains. ”

1. What do chimps and humans have in common according to Dr Hobaiter?

A．Memorizing specific words.	B．Understanding complex information.
C．Using voices to communicate.	D．Communicating messages on purpose.

2. What did Dr Shultz think of the study?

A．It was well designed but poorly conducted.

B．It was a good try but the findings were limited.

C．It was inspiring but the evidence was unreliable.

D．It was a failure but the methods deserved praise.

3. What does the underlined word “gulf” in the last paragraph mean?

A．Difference.

B．Conflict.

C．Balance.

D．Connection.

4. Which of the following is the best title for the text?

A．Chimpanzee behaviour study achieved a breakthrough

B．Chimpanzees developed specific communication skills

C．Chimpanzees: the smartest species in the animal kingdom

D．Chimpanzee language: communication gestures translated

5 . More than 25 years ago, Saroo Brierley lived in rural（农村）India. One day, he played with his brother along the rail line and fell asleep. When he woke up and found himself alone, the 4-year-old decided his brother might be on the train he saw in front of him-so he got on.

That train took him a thousand miles across the country to a totally strange city. He lived on the streets, and then in an orphanage（孤儿院）. There, he was adopted by an Australian family and flown to Tasmania.

As he writes in his new book, A Long Way Home, Brierley couldn't help but wonder about his hometown back in India. He remembered landmarks, but since he didn't know his town's name, finding a small neighborhood in a vast country proved to be impossible.

Then he found a digital mapping program. He spent years searching for his hometown in the program's satellite pictures. In 2011, he came across something familiar. He studied it and realized he was looking at a town's central business district from a bird's-eye view. He thought,   “On the right-hand side you should see the three-platform train station”—and there it was. "And on the left-hand side you should see a big fountain"-and there it was. Everything just started to match.

When he stood in front of the house where he grew up as a child, he saw a lady standing in the entrance. "There's something about me, " he thought—and it took him a few seconds but he finally remembered what she used to look like.

In an interview Brierley says, "My mother looked so much shorter than I remembered. But she came forth and walked forward, and I walked forward, and my feelings and tears and the chemical in my brain, you know, it was like a nuclear fusion（核聚变）. I just didn't know what to say, because I never thought seeing my mother would ever come true. And here I am, standing in front of her. ”

1. Why was Brierley separated from his family about 25 years ago?

A．He got on a train by mistake.

B．He got lost while playing in the street.

C．He was taken away by a foreigner.

D．He was adopted by an Australian family.

2. How did Brierley find his hometown?

A．By analyzing old pictures.

B．By travelling all around India.

C．By studying digital maps.

D．By spreading his story via his book.

3. What does Brierley mainly talk about in the interview?

A．His love for his mother.

B．His reunion with his mother.

C．His long way back home.

D．His memory of his hometown.

6 . The traffic signals along Factoria Boulevard in Bellevue, Washington, generally don't flash the same length of green twice in a row, especially at rush hour. At 9:30am, the full red/yellow/green signal cycle might be 140 seconds. By 9:33am, a burst of additional traffic might push it to 145 seconds. Less traffic at 9:37am could push it down to 135. Just like the traffic itself, the timing of the signals changes.

That is by design. Bellevue, a fast-growing city just east of Seattle, uses a system that is gaining popularity around the US: intersection(十字路口) signals that can adjust in real time to traffic conditions. These lights, known as adaptive signals, have led to significant declines in both the trouble and cost of travels between work and home.

“Adaptive signals can make sure that the traffic demand that is there is being addressed, ” says Alex Stevanovic, a researcher at Florida Atlantic University.

For all of Bellevue’s success, adaptive signals are not a cure-all for jammed roadways. Kevin Balke, a research engineer at the Texas A&M University Transportation Institute, says that while smart lights can be particularly beneficial for some cities, others are so jammed that only a sharp reduction in the number of cars on the road will make a meaningful difference. “It’s not going to fix everything, but adaptive signals have some benefits for smaller cities,” he says.

In Bellevue, the switch to adaptive signals has been a lesson in the value of welcoming new approaches. In the past, there was often an automatic reaction to increased traffic: just widen the roads, says Mark Poch, the Bellevue Transportation Department’s traffic engineering manager. Now he hopes that other cities will consider making their streets run smarter instead of just making them bigger.

1. What does the underlined word “that” in paragraph 2 refer to?

A．Increased length of green lights.	B．Shortened traffic signal cycle.
C．Flexible timing of traffic signals.	D．Smooth traffic flow on the road.

2. What does Kevin Balke say about adaptive signals?

A．They work better on broad roads.

B．They should be used in other cities.

C．They have greatly reduced traffic on the road.

D．They are less helpful in cities seriously jammed.

3. What can we learn from Bellevue’s success?

A．It is rewarding to try new things.	B．The old methods still work today.
C．It pays to put theory into practice.	D．The simplest way is the best way.

7 . Today's world is not an easy adjustment for young adults. Key skill set for success is persistence (毅力), a characteristic that researchers say is heavily influenced by fathers. Researchers from Brigham Young University discovered that fathers are in a unique position to help their adolescent children learn persistence.

BYU professors Laura Padilla-Walker and Randal Day arrived at these findings after following 325 American families over several years. And over time，the persistence gained through fathers led to higher achievement in school.

"There are relatively few studies that stress the unique role of fathers，"Padilla-Walker said. "This research also helps to prove that characteristics such as persistence-which can be taught-are key to a child's life success.”

Researchers determined that dads need to practice an "authoritative" parenting style. Authoritative parenting is not authoritarian:rigid，demanding or controlling. Rather，an authoritative parenting style includes some of the following characteristics:children feel warmth and love from their father；responsibility and the reasons behind rules are stressed children are given an appropriate level of autonomy(自主权).

In the study，about 52 percent of the dads exhibited above-average levels of authoritative parenting. A key finding is that over time，children raised by an authoritative father were significantly more likely to develop persistence，which leads to better outcomes in school.

This particular study examined 11 to 14-year-olds living in two-parent homes. Yet the researchers suggest that single parents still may play a role in teaching the benefits of persistence，which is an avenue of future research.

1. What is special about the BYU professors' study?

A．It centered on fathers' role in parenting.

B．It was based on a number of large families.

C．It analyzed different kinds of parenting styles.

D．It aimed to improve kids' achievement in school.

2. What would an authoritative father do when raising his children?

A．Ignore their demands.	B．Make decisions for them.
C．Control their behaviors.	D．Explain the rules to them.

3. Which group can be a focus of future studies according to the researchers?

A．Single parents.

B．Children aged from 11 to 14.

C．Authoritarian fathers.

D．Mothers in two-parent homes.

4. Which of the following is the best title for the text?

A．Three Characteristics of Authoritative Fathers.

B．Key Skills for Young Adults to Succeed in Future.

C．Children Tend to Learn Determination from Father.

D．Family Relationship Influences School Performance.

8 . Rock music consists of many different styles. Even though there is a common spirit among all music groups, they make very different music.     1     At that time the Beatles entered the world of music from Liverpool.

After they were given an invitation to appear live on BBC, the Beatles quickly became famous in Britain with nationwide tours. By mid-1963, the Beatles had been extremely popular in England.     2     They held large concerts and performed at clubs. They became the hottest thing on the pop music scene in England. They began as a modestly successful musician group and ended the year as show business legends(传说). John Lennon and Paul McCartney were named composers of the year.

    3     They were not sure how the Americans would react to the new type of music. Beatlemania hit New York on February 7, 1964. Hundreds of fans jammed the airport to greet them.     4     The concert was broadcast live and attracted the largest one night audience in the history of television up to that time. The Beatles were described as a British invasion(入侵) by local and nationwide newspapers at that time. Their victory in America was still remembered as a major turning point in the history of rock and roll. Thanks to the Beatles, a lot of opportunities were opened up to new faces on the market.     5    

A．They decided on a tour to the United States in 1964.

B．Even their hairstyles became major trends at that time.

C．Rock music developed in the 1950s and the early 1960s.

D．However, their songs changed the lives of generations to come.

E．Many rock bands were able to follow in the footsteps of the Beatles.

F．They appeared in the films A Hard Day's Night(1964)and Help！(1965).

G．They performed their first concert in America at CBS television’s 53rd street studio.

9 . Money with no strings attached. It’s not something you see every day. But at Union Station in Los Angeles last month, a board went up with dollar bills attached to it with pins and a sign that read, “Give What You Can, Take What You Need.”

People quickly caught on. And while many took dollars, many others pinned their own cash to the board. “People of all ages, races, and socio-economic(社会经济的) backgrounds gave and took,” said Tyler Bridges of The Toolbox, which created the project. “We even had a bride in her wedding dress come up to the board and take a few dollars.” Most of the bills on the board were singles, but a few people left fives, tens and even twenties. The video clip(片段) shows one man who had found a $ 20 bill pinning it to the board.

“What I can say for the folks that gave the most, is that they were full of smiles,” Bridges said. “There’s a certain feeling that giving can do for you and that was apparent in those that gave the most.” Most people who took dollars took only a few, but Bridges said a very small number took as much as they could.

While the clip might look like part of a new ad campaign, Bridges said the only goal was to show generosity and sympathy. He added that he hopes people in other cities might try similar projects and post their own videos on the Internet.

“After all, everyone has bad days and good days,” he said. “Some days you need a helping hand and some days you can be the one giving the helping hand.”

1. What does the expression “money with no strings attached” in paragraph 1 mean?

A．Money spent without hesitation.

B．Money not legally made.

C．Money offered without conditions.

D．Money not tied together.

2. What did Bridges want to show by mentioning the bride?

A．Women tended to be more sociable.

B．The activity attracted various people.

C．Economic problems were getting worse.

D．Young couples needed financial assistance.

3. Why did Bridges carry out the project?

A．To do a test on people’s morals.

B．To raise money for his company.

C．To earn himself a good reputation.

D．To promote kindness and sympathy.

10 . Zachariah Fike has an unusual hobby. He finds old military(军队的) medals for sale in antique stores and on the Internet. But unlike most collectors, Zac tracks down the medals’ rightful owners, and returns them.

His effort to reunite families with lost medals began with a Christmas gift from his mother, a Purple Heart with the name Corrado A. G. Piccoli, found in an antique shop. Zac knows the meaning of a Purple Heart—he earned one himself in a war as a soldier. So when his mother gave him the medal, he knew right away what he had to do.

Through the Internet, Zac tracked down Corrado’s sister Adeline Rockko. But when he finally reached her, the woman flooded him with questions: “Who are you? What antique shop?” However, when she hung up, she regretted the way she had handled the call. So she called Zac back and apologized. Soon she drove to meet Zac in Watertown, N.Y. “At that point, I knew she meant business,” Zac says. “To drive eight hours to come to see me.”

The Piccolis grew up the children of Italian immigrants in Watertown. Corrado, a translator for the Army during WWII, was killed in action in Europe.

Before hearing from Zac, Adeline hadn’t realized the medal was missing. Like many military medals, the one Zac’s mother had found was a family treasure. “This medal was very precious to my parents. Only on special occasions(场合) would they take it out and let us hold it in our hands,” Adeline says.

As a child, Adeline couldn’t understand why the medal was so significant. “But as I grew older,” Adeline says, “and missed my brother more and more, I realized that was the only thing we had left.” Corrado Piccoli’s Purple Heart medal now hangs at the Italian American Civic Association in Watertown.

Zac recently returned another lost medal to a family in Alabama. Since he first reunited Corrado’s medal, Zac says his record is now 5 for 5.

1. Where did Zac get a Purple Heart medal for himself？

A．In the army.

B．In an antique shop.

C．From his mother.

D．From Adeline Rockko.

2. What did Zac realize when Adeline drove to meet him？

A．She was very impolite.

B．She was serious about the medal.

C．She suspected his honesty.

D．She came from a wealthy family.

3. What made Adeline treasure the Purple Heart?

A．Her parents’ advice.

B．Her knowledge of antiques.

C．Her childhood dream.

D．Her memory of her brother.