1 . It is generally assumed that one can’t have too many friends. But it seems that there is a natural limit to the number of people we stay in touch with. A study found that when we make new friends, by starting a new job or going to university, we downgrade or even drop old ones. And while the friends may change, the number stays almost the same.
Oxford University researcher Felix Reed-Tsochas asked 24 students in the final months of school to list all their friends and relatives and say how close to them they were. The pupils filled in the questionnaire (问卷) twice more after starting work or going to university. They were also given free mobile phones and agreed that researchers could use their bills to work out who they called, when and for how long.
Putting the two pieces of information together showed, unsurprisingly, that most people have a small circle of close friends, who they spend most of their time talking to. This inner circle is surrounded by group after group of ever more distant friends. As the volunteers’ lives changed, this overall pattern, including the number of best friends, remained almost the same, meaning that some close friends from childhood were dropped or downgraded as new friendships were built.
Dr Reed-Tsochas said, “Maybe my best friend is no longer the same person but the amount of time I allocate (分配) to my best friend is still the same.” He added that this finding suggests that even with the coming of modern technology we are only capable of forming a limited number of true friendships.
Chester University researcher Dr Sam Roberts said, “Our results are likely to reflect limitations in the ability of humans to keep emotionally close relationships both because of limited time and because the emotional capital (情绪资本) that individuals can allocate between family members and friends is limited.”
1. According to Paragraph 1, what is a popular belief about making friends?| A．A friend in need is a friend indeed. | B．We should treat friends as our family. |
| C．The more friends we make, the better. | D．A friend to everybody is a friend to nobody. |
| A．Checking the volunteers’ call records. | B．Learning about the volunteers’ hobbies. |
| C．Tracking the volunteers’ job performance. | D．Interviewing the volunteers’ schoolmates. |
| A．One’s attitude to friendship remains the same. |
| B．People attach great importance to friendships. |
| C．People rarely drop their old friends to make new ones. |
| D．The number of one’s best friends doesn’t change much. |
| A．To add background information. | B．To give a possible explanation. |
| C．To offer some suggestions. | D．To introduce a new topic. |
2 . Every year around August, millions of teens take their parents to stores to buy new clothes for the start of the school year. Not every parent can afford this, and some teens are forced to go to school in the same clothes they wore last year. The obvious differences in clothes cause differences among students. There is a simple solution to this problem; school uniforms (校服).
I know from personal experience and surveys that wearing uniforms creates a sense of equality among peers (同龄人).
From sixth grade until I graduated from senior high school, I attended a school that required students to wear uniforms. The uniform was very simple: dark brown shoes, green-brown pants, and a white shirt. The uniform left little room for any kind of self-expression, especially through clothes.
However, I learned how to stand out by expressing myself through my personality, art, and sports. I did not know I could draw until the sixth grade. I also would never have learned of my musical abilities if it hadn’t been for my desire to find ways to express myself. Uniforms taught me that I was myself, except what I wore.
Uniforms also contribute to a much safer learning environment. I remember a particular event that happened in my junior high school. A man ran away from prison and wanted to hide in the gym of our school. Luckily, cameras all over the school quickly found the stranger before any danger could ever happen as he was out of place. School officials kept the man locked inside our gym until the police came to take him back to prison.
Uniforms help provide a better educational experience for all students no matter what race, culture, or economic class (经济阶层). In closing, wearing uniforms is good for both schools and students.
1. How does the author introduce the topic?| A．By explaining a basic rule. |
| B．By challenging others’ views. |
| C．By describing a common problem. |
| D．By sharing his parents’ experience. |
| A．Uniforms should be more modern. |
| B．Uniforms can help shape better students. |
| C．Uniforms are popular with students. |
| D．Uniforms are bad for self-development. |
| A．Dressing differently. | B．Standing straight. |
| C．Running fast. | D．Breathing heavily. |
| A．To record his high school life. |
| B．To show his supportive view towards uniforms. |
| C．To ask students to like what they wear. |
| D．To introduce high school uniforms. |
3 . During my university years in the early 2000s, I worked part-time with kids at a neighborhood YMCA, which mainly focused on child care. Each year, we hosted a Christmas party for the community.
Most of the people working there were women, so we had to search for a male volunteer to play Santa Claus. We didn’t have many choices. John was a tall, twentyish man who was much too thin to be Santa Claus. No amount of stuffing (填充物) could possibly make him look like a common Santa Claus. He was, however, available.
On the day of the party, John put on his costume (戏装) and waited for the children. Many of the children who knew John said, “It’s just you, John.” If they didn’t know him, they said, “You’re too thin to be Santa.” We thought it might be a bad decision, but then everyone seemed to enjoy their time there, so it didn’t really matter.
Then, a lovely little girl entered the room. She was dressed beautifully to see Santa and seemed a little shy. Her mother brought her up to our Santa. “She’s deaf,” the mother explained. “If she could just sit on your lap (大腿) and have her picture taken, she would be happy.” John, the skinny Santa, smiled at the little girl, and she sat on his lap.
Then, the skinny Santa began using hand gestures to communicate with the girl fluently, and the little girl smiled happily and answered him quickly with her hands. Their conversation lasted quite a while. When I looked at the mother, I saw that she was crying. In fact, I don’t think there was a dry eye in the room. Santa Claus really was there.
There was so much we didn’t know about what was happening. This girl had never met John before, and few of us were aware that he knew how to sign — it all added up to a magical surprise.
1. Why was John chosen to play Santa Claus?| A．He was tall. | B．He was male. | C．He was young. | D．He was popular. |
| A．Disappointing. | B．Interesting. | C．Surprising. | D．Inspiring. |
| A．She was talkative and lively. | B．She often came to the child care. |
| C．She was friendly to other children. | D．She expected to take pictures with Santa. |
| A．The little girl has a nice character. | B．John’s knowledge of sign language. |
| C．The warm and friendly environment. | D．The participation of the little girl’s mother. |
4 . Some signs of sleep deprivation (匮乏) like dark circles under your eyes might be noticeable, but others can fly under the radar.
You don’t have energy. If you feel so tired and listless at work that you would rather run for your pillow than do even the smallest task at the desk, that could be the result of a lack of sleep.
You find it difficult to concentrate.
●
You feel moody, depressed or angry. Sleep deprivation night mean that you can easily get upset.
| A．Your medical issues are worsening or developing |
| B．20 minutes of shut-eye will make you feel recharged |
| C．There are some tricks that might help you become energetic |
| D．Sleep deprivation might have an impact on your mental performance |
| E．It also leads to reduced patience and discourages you from socializing |
| F．These signs might be an indicator that you aren’t getting the sleep you need |
| G．However, think twice if you tun to a late afternoon coffee to pick yourself up |
5 . This year’s Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to Tu Youyou (co-winner), whose research led to the discovery of artemisinin, a crucial new treatment for malaria. Artemisinin has saved hundreds of thousands of lives, and has led to improved health for millions of people. Over 200 million people around the world get malaria each year, and about 600,000 die from it. Artemisinin has become a vital part of the treatment for malaria, and is thought to save 100,000 lives a year in Africa alone.
Tu Youyou, a committed and patient scientist, was born in Ningbo, China, on 30 December 1930, and graduated from Peking University Medical School in 1955. After she graduated, she worked at the China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Beijing. In 1967, the Chinese government formed a team of scientists with the objective of discovering a new treatment for malaria, and Tu Youyou was among the first researchers chosen. In the beginning, Tu Youyou went to Hainan, where malaria was more common, to study malaria patients. In 1969, she became the head of the project in Beijing, and decided to review ancient Chinese medical texts to find traditional botanical treatments for the disease. Her team examined over 2, 000 old medical texts, and evaluated 280, 000 plants for their medical properties. From their research, they discovered and tested 380 distinct ancient Chinese medical treatments that showed promise in the fight against malaria.
One medical text from the fourth century suggested using the extract from sweet wormwood to treat a fever. Tu’s team tested a collection of dried wormwood leaves but found no effect. They then tried boiling fresh wormwood, and using the liquid obtained from this to treat malaria, but this did not work either. Their project got stuck. However, Tu Youyou would not acknowledge defeat. She analysed the medical texts again, and by chance, she found one sentence suggesting a different way to treat the wormwood. She concluded that boiling the sweet wormwood apparently destroyed its medical properties. Using a lower temperature to draw out the extract, she found a substance that worked. After failing more than 190 times, the team finally succeeded in 1971. Tu Youyou and her team members even insisted on testing the medicine on themselves to make sure that it was safe. Later, the medicine was tested on malaria patients, most of whom recovered. This medicine, which was called artemisinin, soon became a standard treatment for malaria.
According to Tu Youyou, the discovery of artemisinin was a team effort. Upon hearing that she had been awarded the Nobel Prize, she said, “The honour is not just mine. There is a team behind me, and all the people of my country. This success proves the great value of traditional Chinese medicine. It is indeed an honour for China’s scientific research and Chinese medicine to be spread around the world.”
1. Which of the following statements about artemisinin is NOT true according to the passage?| A．It is an extract from sweet wormwood that can treat malaria. |
| B．It has improved people’s health. |
| C．It is a great discovery. |
| D．It has saved 100,000 lives a year in the world. |
| A．Determined. | B．Bold and brave. | C．Easy-going. | D．Polite. |
| A．How was artemisinin discovered and tested to treat malaria? |
| B．What contributions did Tu Youyou and her team members make? |
| C．What was the childhood experience of Tu Youyou? |
| D．Why did Tu Youyou decide to use the extract from sweet wormwood to treat malaria? |
| A．It is the effort of the whole team and traditional Chinese medicine. |
| B．It belongs to her hard work. |
| C．It turns out to be the great luck of her and her team. |
| D．It depends on the big support from the government. |
6 . One night, as I was driving down the road, I found something was sitting in the middle of the road. A few seconds later, I realized I was looking at a large turtle (海龟). Afraid of it being crashed by cars, so I pulled over, ran across the road and dragged the turtle to safety. But I’d made one big mistake.
I had heard that the best way to pick up a turtle without hurting it was picking it by the tail in order not to get bitten. So I’d made that big mistake. While the turtle turned out OK generally, I was determined to figure out how to move a turtle properly. I needed to find someone who dealt with turtles. I found the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre. I talked to Dr. Sue, its Executive and Medical Director.
Dr. Sue told me that the organization dealt with a number of aspects of turtle conservation, including rescue, settlement, birth programs, research, and education. Sue explained that southern Ontario is home to a vast majority of turtles in Canada, but is also one of the vastest road networks of the country.
“Ninety percent of injured turtles brought in are caused by cars. These turtles spend a lot of time on land. And they do travel many kilometers on land for a variety of reasons, to find a nesting spot, or to hang out for the summer or winter. Turtles know where they want to go. So, just keep them going in the direction they want to go and you may have saved a turtle’s life,” Dr. Sue said.
Once an injured turtle arrives at the center, there are medical facilities (设备) ready to go, including an X-ray machine. That’s when the team gets to work with healing injuries, and help their patient.
1. Why did the author stop the car?| A．To help the turtle. | B．To see the thing clearly. |
| C．To prevent a car accident. | D．To find something good. |
| A．It got hurt by people before. | B．It was injured a little bit. |
| C．It was run over by a car. | D．It lost its direction. |
| A．Leaving the turtles alone. |
| B．Making Ontario home to turtles. |
| C．Changing the road conditions. |
| D．Helping turtles find nesting spots. |
| A．The director. | B．The driver. |
| C．The author. | D．The turtle. |
7 . Carbon dioxide emissions from transportation are now thought as the top source of green-house gases. One of the most effective ways to reduce your carbon footprint is to reconsider how much, and how often, you travel.
Going car free for a year could save about 2. 6 tons of carbon dioxide, according to a study from the University of British Columbia. How can you stop using a car? Try taking a train, bus or better yet, riding a bike.
But let’s be realistic. You will likely need to use a car this year. So, when you do, here are some tips to make your trip more climate-friendly. Driving efficiently can help to reduce emissions. Go easy on the gas and brakes and drive like you have an egg under your foot. Regularly service your car to keep it more efficient. Keeping your tires pumped correctly can re-duce emissions. Low tire pressure will hurt your fuel economy. Air conditioning and frequent city driving can make emissions go up. So cut down on these as often as possible. Use cruise control (定速巡航) on long drives-in most cases, this can help to save gas. Don’t weigh your car down with extra things that you don’t need on your trip.
Fly often? Taking one fewer long round-trip flight could reduce your personal carbon footprint significantly. If you use public transportation often and fly less, your carbon foot-print might still be relatively sustainable, but if you drive and fly a lot, your emissions will be sigher. If you can’t avoid flying, you can offset them by donating money to sustainable proacts, such as supplying efficient stoves to rural homes, or projects which help farmers deal with crop waste environmentally.
1. What does the author think of going car free?| A．Efficient. | B．Costly. | C．Impractical. | D．Reliable. |
| A．Maintaining your car properly. | B．Using cruise control in the city. |
| C．Stepping hard on the gas and brakes. | D．Geiting rid of all the necessary loads. |
| A．Make up for. | B．Team up with. | C．Set foot in. | D．Put up with. |
| A．How to save fuel when driving cars | B．How to reduce your carbon footprint |
| C．Reduce carbon footprint by all means | D．Lower carbon footprint in transportation |
8 . The things that you do, words that you say, and feelings that you express, contribute to your children’s level of confidence.
Love and acceptance
We know that you love your children. But do they know that you love them, accept them just as they are, and respect them? Give your children plenty of love even if you are not able to do it all the time.
Nobody is perfect. But to raise a confident child, you should not stress too much on the shortcomings. Positive parenting focuses on developing what is good in a child, and making him or her feel empowered. If your children feel defeated by disappointments in life, help them look at the bright side by talking about their success.
Let them make decisions
Praise when they deserve it
It is easy to blame a child when he or she does something wrong. And we never forget to do that. But when the child does something right, we don’t always praise him or her. We are not talking about praising the child for every little thing he or she does well.
| A．Make full use of the advantage |
| B．Focus on strengths, deal with weaknesses |
| C．Your children need to know that they are loved and accepted |
| D．Decision making is an important life skill that children need to learn to be confident |
| E．If you want to do and say the right things to help build confidence in your children |
| F．But if the child has put in the effort and achieved something, appreciate it |
| G．When you are not aware of the importance of making yourself confident |
9 . Two weeks ago, a 5-year-old girl named Sunshine Oelfke emptied out her piggy bank (存钱罐) onto the living room floor and immediately started counting. Her grandmother, Jackie Oelfke, thought she was playing as she carefully lined up the coins, but then she saw the girl put the coins into a plastic bag and place it in her backpack.
“What are you doing with that money?” Jackie asked her granddaughter.
“I’m taking it to school,” Sunshine replied. “I’m going to take it for milk money. My friend Layla doesn’t get milk— her mom doesn’t have milk money and I do.”
Jackie’s heart melted at Sunshine’s words. Choked with strong feelings, Jackie held her sweet granddaughter tightly in her arms.
Last week, Jackie and Sunshine met with her teacher, Rita Hausher, and handed her the $30 the kindergartner had saved. There are 20 kids in Sunshine’s class and about half don’t get milk. It costs $ 0.45 a carton (纸盒). The total adds up to about $180 a month for every child in the class to have milk every day.
After dropping Sunshine off at school, Jackie posted a tearful video on Facebook to explain her granddaughter’s plan. To her surprise, many people offered to donate toward the cause. Within a week, Jackie raised more than $1,000. Now every student in Sunshine’s class can get free milk for the rest of the year.
Jackie said Sunshine doesn’t see her kind act as a big deal. She was just trying to look out for her friends. “She doesn’t understand the effect she’s brought about,” Jackie said. “But now she knows she can do whatever she puts her mind to.”
1. Why did Sunshine empty her piggy bank?| A．She hoped to show off her savings in class. | B．She needed to train her counting skills. |
| C．She wanted to play with the coins. | D．She intended to pay for her friend’s milk. |
| A．Relieved. | B．Touched. | C．Curious. | D．Proud. |
| A．Two heads are better than one. | B．A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
| C．Nothing is impossible to a willing heart. | D．There’s no such thing as a free lunch. |
| A．Small Coins, Big Changes. | B．Jackie’s Piggy Bank. |
| C．Piggy Bank and Carton Milk. | D．A Moved Grandmother. |
10 . My husband is more a kid at heart. He insists we find gifts for the grandkids while on a trip to Savannah.
I can be a kid at heart, too, but I also can be a mathematician — and even cheap, ugly gifts add up quickly when you have 11 grandkids.
Children like gifts and they want them. So we are digging through piles of cheap key fobs (钥匙链), plastic sun hats, chocolate treats that will melt in the heat, and funny T-shirts, finding nothing.
We go with two hats for the boys but are still empty-handed for the nine girls. Then I spot small bracelets (手链) in a rainbow of colors. He turns one over a couple of times and says, “Nice.”
The bracelets are made of small balls shaped like starfish and turtles. They all look like rock candy, which can be eaten and was popular when we were kids. We buy nine and make a mental note: tell the girls not to eat them.
As the clerk wraps the bracelets, I remember a gift I had as a girl. Once we could choose one thing in a shop to remember our trip. What I selected was a blue plastic soapbox with the lid (盖子) and topped with a pink flamingo (火烈鸟). It was cheap and tacky (俗气的) and I believed it was the loveliest thing a girl could own. It was too beautiful to put soap inside, so it sat in a dresser drawer year after year, slowly aging, yellowing, as a reminder of a family trip long ago.
The girls are married and have families of their own, and those gifts are still in the dresser drawers in their old bedrooms, but I have came to realize that every gift may have its worth and value, saying we are together even though we were apart. That’s always a good deal.
1. Why did the author say she was a mathematician?| A．Because their family was not rich enough to buy gifts. |
| B．Because she was good at choosing gifts for kids. |
| C．Because she ever studied mathematics in university. |
| D．Because she found it expensive to buy 11 gifts. |
| A．Shiny and costly. | B．Foreign and attractive. |
| C．Beautiful and ordinary. | D．Useful and cheap. |
| A．The great family memories. | B．The experience in giving gifts. |
| C．The best gift she ever had. | D．The trip when she fell in love. |
| A．Good reminders of our life. | B．How to choose gifts for kids. |
| C．The meaning of a gift. | D．What to expect on a family trip. |
