1 . Last Thursday, the French Senate passed a digital services tax, which would impose an entirely new tax on large multinationals that provide digital services to consumers or users in France. Digital services include everything from providing a platform for selling goods and services online to targeting advertising based on user data, and the tax applies to gross revenue from such services. Many French politicians and media outlets have referred 10 this as a "GAFA tax", meaning that it is designed to apply primarily to companies such as Google, Apple. Facebook and Amazon - in other words, multinational tech companies based in the United States.
The digital services lax now awaits the signature of President Emmanuel Macron, who has expressed support for the measure, and it could go into effect within the next few weeks. But it has already sparked significant controversy, with the United States trade representative opening an investigation into whether the tax discriminates against American companies, which in turn could lead to trade sanctions against France.
The French tax is not just a unilateral move by one country in need of revenue. Instead, the digital services tax is part of a much larger trend, with countries over the past few years proposing or putting in place an alphabet soup of new international lax provisions. These have included Britain's DPT (diverted profits lax), Australia's MAAL (multinational anti-avoidance law), and India's SEP (significant economic presence), to name but a few. At the same time, the European Union, Spain, Britain and several other countries have all seriously contemplated digital services taxes.
These unilateral developments differ in their specifics, but they are all designed to tax multinationals on income and revenue that countries believe they should have a right to tax, even if international tax rules do not grant them that right. In other words, they all share a view that the international tax system has failed to keep up with the current economy.
In response to these many unilateral measures, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is currently working with 131 countries to reach a consensus by the end of 2020 on an international solution.
Both France and the United States are involved in the organizations' work, but France's digital services tax and the American response raise questions about what the future holds for the international tax system.
France's planned tax is a clear warning: Unless a broad consensus can be reached on reforming the international tax system, other nations are likely to follow suit, and American companies will face a cascade of different taxes from dozens of nations that will prove burdensome and costly.
1. The French Senate has passed a bill to ________.| A．regulate digital services platforms | B．protect French companies' interest |
| C．impose a duty on tech multinationals | D．curb the influence of digital technology |
| A．may trigger countermeasures against France |
| B．is apt to arouse criticism at home and abroad |
| C．aims to ease international trade tensions |
| D．will prompt the tech giants 10 quit France |
| A．redistribution of tech giants' revenue must be ensured |
| B．the current international tax system needs upgrading |
| C．tech multinationals' monopoly should be prevented |
| D．all countries ought to enjoy equal taxing rights |
| A．OECD's current work on the international tax system has uncertain prospects. |
| B．France's digital services tax mirror in detail Britain's DPT. Australia's MAAL and India's SEP. |
| C．France's digital services tax is targeted on such companies as Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon and their users. |
| D．Other nations are likely to follow the example of France and make a joint effort to impose taxes on American multinationals. |
2 . Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), which means “Doctors Without Borders”, was established in 1971. It is now one of the world’s largest organizations that provide emergency medical relief. In 1999, it won the Nobel Peace Prize. Its aim is to help people who have suffered badly in wars or natural disasters, such as earthquakes or floods.
Each year, about 3,000 people are sent abroad to work in more than 60 different countries worldwide.
One volunteer reports, “Working in politically sensitive areas with limited resources can be frustrating, but there is huge satisfaction in making even a small or temporary difference to people. What better recommendation than to say, “I’m about to leave on a third mission!”
| A．In some countries, there are even more volunteer professionals than locally hired staff. |
| B．The rewards can be enormous. |
| C．MSF relies on volunteer professionals but also works closely with about 25,000 locally hired staff. |
| D．What do volunteers have in common? |
| E．What qualities and skills do you need to become a volunteer? |
| F．The reaction of volunteers returning from MSF speaks for itself. |
3 . Care for a zoom-in observation of animals with no bars between you and the observed opposed to ordinary zoos? Where to have close-up encounters with some of the world’s most rare animals? We are revealing for you.
Right whales, Bay of Fundy, Canada
Northern right whales are on the brink of extinction, but survivors arrive in the Bay of Fundy each summer (May through October) to feed east of Grand Manan Island. They are recognized by a broad back and no dorsal fin, which distinguish them from other whales entering the bay.
Planning: Whale-watching tours operate out of Digby Neck peninsula on Nova Scotia and nearby islands, such as Brier Island, St. Andrews, Grand Manan Island, and Deer Island.
Grizzly bears, Alaska, USA
Grizzlies like salmon. In mid-July and again in mid-August, grizzlies make for Alaskan rivers to hook out the fish with their formidable claws. The bears gather in large numbers at rapids and pools, sometimes fighting for the best sites. Brooks Falls in Katmai National Park, and Fish Creek, near Hyder, have viewing platforms.
Planning: Most fishing sites are accessed by chartered light aircraft and a hike. Hyder is off the Stewart-Cassiar Highway.
Monarch butterflies, Sierra Chincua, Mexico
Each fall, millions of North American monarch butterflies migrate thousands of miles to the oyamel fir forests of the Transvolcanic Mountain Range, in the state of Michoacán. They flock intimately on tree trunks, bushes, and on the ground, fully showing their gregarious nature and occupy Sierra Chincua and four neighboring hills that make up the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve.
Planning: Chincua is one of two hills in the reserve open to the public from November through March.
Komodo dragons, Komodo Island, Indonesia
Landing on Komodo, you would feel like stepping back to a time when dinosaurs ruled the Earth, as park maps reported, “Here be dragons!” This mountainous volcanic island is home to the world’s largest living lizard – the Komodo dragon. Weighing 79 to 91kg, the Komodo dragon has a tail as long as its body. You can hike to a viewpoint at Banugulung and watch as park rangers feed food to the lizards, some of which are more than 10ft long.
Planning: Komodo is reached solely by boat from Bima (on eastern Sumbawa) or Labuan Bajo (on western Flores).
Wildebeest migration, Serengeti, Tanzania
Undoubtedly the world’s most spectacular wildlife sight is the annual wildebeest migration, when 1.4 million wildebeest and 200,000 zebras and gazelles are on the move across the Serengeti plains. The animals are trekking to chase the clean water and fresh grass. Along the way, lions and hyenas stalk them, and crocodiles lie in wait.
Planning: The herds migrate across Tanzania from December through July, and then pass through the Masai Mara in Kenya in August and September.
1. In which place can a variety of types of animals be viewed?| A．Alaska. | B．Sierra Chincua. | C．Komodo Island. | D．Serengeti. |
| A．being able to climb | B．preferring group living |
| C．migrating in huge numbers | D．moderate in temper |
| A．Right whales are distinguished from other whales by unique appearance features. |
| B．Viewing spots for grizzly bears can be reached through air and on foot. |
| C．Komodo dragons are similar to dinosaurs in living period. |
| D．Wildebeest herds travel to pursue favorable food conditions. |
4 . The World Trade Organization (WTO) was formed in January of 1995. It deals with the regulation of international trade.
Here we will focus on two of those aspects: doing business internationally and raising living standards worldwide. Before the WTO, countries relied on independent partnerships to accomplish trade. Doing trade was often expensive, as tariffs were high. With one place for all of these countries to meet, and discuss new trade deals together, it is easier for them to make trade deals that are advantageous for all parties.
How does the WTO raise the standard of living globally? In modern life, we rely heavily on trade to have the things we need and want. For example, China exports a lot of manufactured items to many countries. These frequent international transactions can also raise living standards by introducing new jobs to different countries. Without international business and trade, there would be far fewer jobs in all countries.
There are many benefits of being in the WTO. However, sometimes it leads to international disputes.
| A．It is similar to having an office to accomplish work. |
| B．With jobs, citizens are able to earn income and have a better life. |
| C．The WTO also seeks to increase awareness of unity and cooperation. |
| D．It currently has over 160 participating members. |
| E．The functions of the WTO are constantly changing and developing. |
| F．Some have accused the WTO of promoting too much globalization. |
5 . For years, studies have found that first-generation college students — those who do not have a parent with a college degree — lag behind other students on a range of education achievement factors. Their grades are lower and their dropout rates are higher. But since such students are most likely to advance economically if they succeed in higher education, colleges and universities have pushed for decades to recruit more of them. This has created a ‘paradox’ in that recruiting first-generation students, but then watching many of them fail, means that higher education has ‘continued to reproduce and widen, rather than close’ the achievement gap based on social class, according to the depressing beginning of a paper set to be published in the journal Psychological Science.
But the article is actually quite optimistic, as it outlines a potential solution to this problem, suggesting that an approach (which involves a one-hour, next-to-no-cost program) can close 63 percent of the achievement gap (measured by such factors as grades) between first-generation and other students.
The authors of the paper are from different universities, and their findings are based on a study involving 147 students (who completed the project) at an unnamed private university. First generation was defined as not having a parent with a four-year college degree. Most of the first-generation students (59.1 percent) were recipients of Pell Grants, a federal grant for undergraduates with financial needs, while this was true only for 8.6 percent of the students with at least one parent with a four-year degree.
Their thesis — that a relatively modest intervention could have a big impact — was based on the view that first-generation students may be most lacking not in potential but in practical knowledge about how to deal with the issues that face most college students. They cite past research by several authors to show that this is the gap that must be narrowed to close the achievement gap.
Many first-generation students “struggle to navigate the middle-class culture of higher education, learn the rules of the game, and take advantage of college resources,” they write. And this becomes more of a problem when colleges don’t talk about the class advantage and disadvantages of different groups of students. Because U.S. colleges and universities seldom acknowledge how social class can affect students’ educational experience, many first-generation students lack sight about why they are struggling and do not understand how students like them can improve.
1. The authors of the research article are optimistic because _____________.| A．the problem is solvable |
| B．their approach is costless |
| C．the recruiting rate has increased |
| D．their findings appeal to students |
| A．study at private universities |
| B．are from single-parent families |
| C．are in need of financial support |
| D．have failed their college education |
| A．are actually indifferent to the achievement gap |
| B．are inexperienced in handling their issues at college |
| C．may lack opportunities to apply for research projects |
| D．can have a potential influence on other students |
| A．universities often reject the culture of the middle-class |
| B．students are usually to blame for their lack of resources |
| C．social class greatly helps enrich one’s educational experience |
| D．colleges are partly responsible for the problem in question |
6 . Irish dance: The Irish International Dance Company, one of the most dynamic dance troupes in the world, will tour China with its classic production “Spirit of the Dance-the New Millennium.”
The dancers include such famous names as Patricia Murray, one of the Irish dancing champions, and first-rate ballerina Claire Holding.
Sponsored by China National Culture and Art Company Ltd., the dancing troupe will give three performances at the Century Theatre.
Time: 7:30 pm, June 23-25
Place: Century Theatre, 40 Liangmaqiaolu, Chaoyang District Telephone: 6551-8888
Piano solos: Twenty Chinese and foreign piano music works will be played by three young, promising pianists from the China Central Conservatory of Music.
Programmes includes: “Consolation No 3 in D-flat major” by Liszt, “For Elise” by Beethoven, “Turkish March” by Mozart, “Waltz in C-sharp minor” and “A Minute Waltz” by Chopin, and “Hungarian Dance” by Brahms.
Time: 7:30 pm, June 16
Place: Beijing Concert Hall, I Beixinhuajie, Xicheng District
Telephone: 6605-5812
1. How many performances will the Irish dancing troupe give between June 23 and 25?| A．One. | B．Two. | C．Three. | D．Four. |
| A．Chopin. | B．Schumann | C．Beethoven | D．Liszt |
| A．the Irish International Dance Company |
| B．the Century Theater |
| C．China National Culture and Art Company Ltd. |
| D．Art Company Ltd. |
7 . Dr charlotte Uhlenbroek recently returned to London after filming her second series, Jungle. It was difficult, 19-week trip, during which she explored the rainforests of Borneo, the Amazon and Congo, travelling around using variety of means of transport, including hot-air balloons and canoes. “I’m interested in the way animals communicate with each other. It was sometimes dangerous making the program -- I even went swimming with piranha(水虎鱼)fish. But the worst thing was insects. On one occasion I had 70 sand-fly bites on my arm. Luckily I didn’t get sick. I prefer not to take tablets every day, but if I get a fever, take some medicine immediately.”
Filming the series was exciting, but also frightening at times. Her most challenging experience was climbing a 100-meter tree in Borneo, as she has a great fear of heights. “I had to keep pulling myself further and further upwards. All I wanted to do was get down again. Suddenly the safety equipment didn’t look very strong and I thought that my ropes would break and I would crash to the ground.”
What did she enjoy most about returning to London? “When I’ve been away in hot uncomfortable conditions for a long time I dream about an ice-cold drink and my bed at home! But the thing I look forward to the most is nice long showers. There wasn’t much water in some of the places we visited and I worried that I was using it all up and not leaving any for my colleagues on the camera team! ”
1. Charlotte found climbing the tree in Borneo so frightening because________.| A．she hates being in high places | B．she was unable to get down |
| C．her equipment suddenly broke | D．she slipped and fell to the ground |
| A．Air-conditioning. | B．An unlimited water supply. |
| C．A comfortable bed. | D．Iced drinks. |
| A．The forest floor has hundreds of different insects-let Charlotte be your guide to these fascinating creatures. |
| B．Making her first television appearance, Charlotte explores some of the wildest places on earth. |
| C．Charlotte looks at ways in which the animals of the rainforest manage to live beside their human neighbors. |
| D．Insects, piranha fish, hot-air balloons--it’s all in one day’s work for Charlotte in her latest series. |
8 . Gone are the days when a mother’s place was in the home: in Britain women with children are now as likely to be in paid work as their unburdened sisters. Many put their little darlings in day care long before they start school. Mindful that a poor start can spoil a person’s chances of success later in life, the state has intervened ever more closely in how babies and toddlers are looked after. Inspectors call not only at nurseries but also at homes where youngsters are minded; three-year-olds follow the national curriculum. Child care has increasingly become a profession.
For years after the government first began in 2001 to twist the arms of anyone who looked after an unrelated child to register with the schools, the numbers so doing fell. Kind but clueless neighbours stopped looking after little ones, who were instead herded into formal nurseries or handed over to one of the ever-fewer registered child-minders. The decline in the number of people taking in children now appears to have halted. According to data released by the Office for Standards in Education on October 27th, the number of registered child-minders reached its lowest point in September 2010 and has since recovered slightly.
The new lot are certainly better qualified. In 2010 fully 82% of nursery workers held diplomas notionally equivalent to A-levels, the university-entrance exams taken mostly by 18-year-olds, up from 56% seven years earlier, says Anand Shukla of the Daycare Trust, a charity. Nurseries staffed by university graduates tend to be rated highest by inspectors, increasing their appeal to the pickiest parents. As a result, more graduates are being recruited.
But professionalization has also pushed up the price of child care, defying even the economic depression. A survey by the Daycare Trust finds that a full-time nursery place in England for a child aged under two, who must be intensively supervised, costs £194 ($310) per week, on average. Prices in London and the south-east are far higher. Parents in Britain spend more on child care than anywhere else in the world, according to the OECD, a think-tank. Some 68% of a typical second earner's net income is spent on freeing her to work, compared with an OECD average of 52%.
The price of child care is not only eye-watering, but has also become a barrier to work. Soon after it took power the coalition government pledged to ensure that people are better off in work than on benefits, but a recent survey by Save the Children, a charity, found that the high cost of day care prevented a quarter of low-paid workers from returning to their jobs once they had started a family. The government pays for free part-time nursery places for three-and four-year-olds, and contributes towards day-care costs for younger children from poor areas. Alas, extending such an aid during stressful economic times would appear to be anything but child’s play.
1. Which of the following is true according to the first paragraph?| A．Nursery education plays a leading role in one’s personal growth. |
| B．Pregnant women have to work to lighten families’ economic burden. |
| C．Children in nursery have to take uniform nation courses. |
| D．The supervision of the state makes child care professional. |
| A．the registered child-minders are required to take the university-entrance exams |
| B．the number of registered child-minders has been declining since 2001 |
| C．anyone who looks after children at home must register with the schools |
| D．the growing recognition encourages more graduates to work as child-minders |
| A．prevents mothers from getting employed |
| B．may further depress the national economy |
| C．makes many families live on benefits |
| D．is far more than parents can afford |
| A．Objective. | B．Skeptical. | C．Supportive. | D．Biased. |
| A．The professionalization of child care has pushed up its price. |
| B．The high cost of child nursing makes many mothers give up their jobs. |
| C．The employment of more graduates makes nurseries more popular. |
| D．Parents in Britain pay most for child nursing throughout the world. |
9 . An interesting question in humankind’s development is, when did we begin to think critically? In other words, when did we turn from animals focused only on the daily struggle to avoid starvation to humans who could think symbolically about the word around us? However, answering this question is not easy as thinking leaves no fossils to discover.
A commonsense assumption is that higher levels of thought go hand-in-hand with verbal language, because higher thinking, such as creative thought, would naturally seek a means of expression. So tracing the development of language could give an approximate idea of when humans began to think critically.
Interestingly, we do have some fossil evidence related to speech. Animals whose larynx (voice box) is placed high in their throats are unable to produce the variety of sounds necessary for speech. Fossil bones tell us that in early humans, the larynx was originally high in the throat. However, by about 200,000 years ago, it had moved lower in the throat. This lowering provided a larger sound chamber (the space in the throat and the mouth) in which passing air could be controlled by the tongue, making a wide range of sounds and rhythms possible.
So humans were physically able to speak around 200,000 years ago, but when did they actually start doing so? Estimates range from 35,000 to 100,000 years ago. But with no physical evidence of ancient language use, we need another approach to determine more precisely when humans began to speak - and to think critically.
Professor Richard Klein of Stanford University suggests that art may be the key. After all, ability to create or appreciate art is a uniquely human train. If ancient humans had the imagination to create a work of art (which in itself is a means of communication), then it seems highly likely that they would possess the primary means of communication: language. This suggests that the first works of art can be considered indicators of when language and critical though began.
Until recently the earliest art was believed to be cave paintings, carved figures, and jewelry found in southwestern Europe and thought to data from about 40,000 years ago. This suggested that humans first became capable of critical thought about 40,000 years ago. However, this time frame was recently overturned by an exciting discovery in South Africa. Anthropologist Christ Henshilwood spent more than ten years exploring a cave there. He found many well-made tools, but more intriguing were the 8,000 pieces of ochre, a soft stone that can be turned into paint. Hensilwood’s breakthrough came in 1999 when he found an ochre piece with lines cut in a careful pattern. In other words, it was deliberate artistic design. Henshilwood had found the oldest piece of art yet, its date of origin set at 70,000 years — nearly 30,000 years before the art in Europe.
Based on Henshilwood’s discovery, it seems that humans began to speak and think critically at least 70,000 years ago.
1. ______ made humans physically able to speak.| A．The evolution of the tongue |
| B．The lowering of the larynx |
| C．The appearance of various sounds |
| D．The higher thinking |
| A．No other animals than humans can enjoy art. |
| B．Before 1999, Africa was thought to be the origin of art. |
| C．Without creative though, humans would be unable to speak. |
| D．Evidence of ancient language use was once found in Europe. |
| A．30,000 |
| B．40,000 |
| C．70,000 |
| D．200,000 |
| A．How did humans stop struggling for starvation? |
| B．When did humans become able to create art? |
| C．How did humans communicate more freely? |
| D．When did humans begin to think? |
10 . The Best Language for Math
What’s the best language for learning math? Hint: You’re not reading it.
Chinese, Japanese and Korean use simpler number words and express math concepts more clearly than English. The language gap is drawing growing attention as confusing English number words have been linked in several studies to weaker counting and arithmetic skill in children in English-speaking countries.
Chinese has just nine number words, while English has more than two dozen. The trouble starts at “11”. English has a unique word for the number, while Chinese (as well as Japanese and Korean, among other languages) have words that can be translated as “ten-one” – spoken with the “ten” first.
English number words over 10 don’t as clearly label place values. Number words for the teens reverse the order of the ones and “teens”, making it easy for children to confuse, say, 17 with 71. As a result, children working with English number words have a harder time doing multi-digit addition and subtraction (减法)
It also feels more natural for Chinese speakers than for English speakers to use the “make-a-ten” addition and subtraction strategy. When adding two numbers, students break down the numbers into parts and regroup them into tens and ones. For instance, 9 plus 5 becomes 9 plus 1 plus 4.
Now, you should feel lucky that you are learning math in China. Thanks to your mother tongue, all math problems just come less confusing and difficult to you!
| A．So it’s not easy for English speakers to label place values clearly. |
| B．The additional mental steps needed to solve problems cause more errors. |
| C．Differences between Chinese and English, in particular, have been studied for decades. |
| D．This method is a powerful tool for solving more advanced multi-digit addition and subtraction problems. |
| E．Different languages indicate different ways of thinking, causing people to solve math problems differently. |
| F．That makes it easier for children to understand the place value as well as making it clear that the number system is based on units of 10. |
