1 . Screen time is often considered the enemy when it comes to teaching kids to be active. However, a new research found that for 9 and 10 years old children greater social media use was related to some positive effects, including increased physical activity, less family conflict (冲突) and fewer sleep problems.
The findings come from an analysis of data from about 4,500 young people and their parents collected by the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study. The study gathered information about how young people’s brains develop.
In the study, children self reported activities like watching TV, texting or visiting social media sites — and the time spent on each. They were also asked about whether they play mature (成年的) video games. They rated their time on them as never, once in a while and all the time. Kids and parents report on family conflict. Parents also kept track of how well the kids slept and filled out a checklist that assessed (评定) their children’s behavior.
The results haven’t been published yet, but are being presented Tuesday at the Research Society on Alcoholism in San Diego. Previous research has been done. largely in older kids or teenagers with less focus on younger kids. Communities and social networks can have beneficial effects, so kids who are using social media to build connections may see positive outcomes.
Do these findings mean that parents should ban TVs and sign their kids up for Twitter? Probably not. Psychologist Chris Ferguson of Stetson University says that the differences identified in the research are small.
1. What does the passage mainly about?| A．More screen time is needed by kids. |
| B．Screen time is the enemy of teaching kids to be active. |
| C．Parents should ban TVs and sign their kids up for Twitter. |
| D．A look at social media may have possible benefits for kids. |
| A．They carried out interviews. | B．They asked kids and parents to report. |
| C．They got the data from other scientists. | D．They downloaded the data from the Internet. |
| A．Objective. | B．Subjective. | C．Supportive. | D．Doubtful.. |
| A．A novel. | B．A travel guide. | C．A news report. | D．A book review. |
2 . He was the last person who should have run into a burning building—he had lung disease. But that didn’t stop him. Michael Surrell and his wife was parking when they got a call from their daughter: “The house next door is on fire!” He went to investigate.
Though the fire department had been called, Surrell ran inside. The thick smoke burned his eyes and made it impossible to breathe. The conditions were life-threatening for Surrell.
After a few minutes, he went outside to catch his breath. Taking a deep breath, he went in again. The house was similar to his, so he made it to the second floor. He couldn’t see anything. Then a soft moan (呻吟声) came. Still unable to see, Surrell crawled (爬行) toward the sound, feeling around for any sign of the trapped.
Finally, he touched something. He pulled the kid toward him and held her into his arms and stood. He fought through the smoke and ran into the blackness. The next thing he knew, he was at the front door, then outside. Surrell put Tiara down on the porch. He started CPR. Soon a cough came from Tiara’s throat. Surrell gave five more breaths. She coughed again, opened her eyes and took a breath on her own.
Surrell woke up in the hospital days later, having suffered severe burns to his lungs. He spent a week in the hospital. The fire worsened Surrell’s condition, and he feels the effects even two years later. “It’s a small price to pay,” he says. “I’d do it again without a second thought.”
1. What was Surrell doing when he got to know the fire?| A．He was parking. | B．He was walking with his wife. |
| C．He was washing his car. | D．He was talking with his daughter. |
| A．Surrell saved Tiara at his first attempt. |
| B．Surrell never regret carrying out his deed. |
| C．Surrell called the fire department before running inside. |
| D．Surrell saw Tiara on the second floor and carried her outside. |
| A．Kind and devoted. | B．Brave and devoted. | C．Generous and kind. | D．Considerate and devoted. |
| A．A Big Fire Broke out | B．A Man Carried out CPR to Save a Girl |
| C．The Last Man Saved Another Person | D．Surrell Suffered Severe Burns to His Lungs |
3 . Although we benefit from deep and meaningful conversations that help us build connections with one another, we often stick to small talk with strangers because we underestimate (低估) how much others are interested in our lives and wrongly believe that deep conversations will be more awkward and less enjoyable than they actually are, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.
Nicholas Epley, a professor of behavioral science at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and his colleagues designed a series of experiments with more than 1, 800 participants. The researchers asked pairs of people — mainly strangers — to discuss either relatively deep or shallow topics. In the first experiment, people received shallow or deep questions to discuss. Before the conversations, participants predicted how awkward they thought the conversations would be, how connected they thought they would feel to their conversation partner and how much they would enjoy the conversations. Afterward, they rated how awkward the conversations actually were, how connected they actually felt and how much enjoyment they actually experienced.
The researchers found that both deep and shallow conversations felt less awkward than the participants had expected. That effect tended to be stronger for deep conversations.
Deep conversations were also more enjoyable and led to a stronger sense of connection. In the second experiment, participants who had a deep conversation with one partner and a shallow conversation with another partner initially expected to prefer the shallow conversation but actually preferred the deep conversation after having both of them.
“Our participants’ expectations about deep conversations were greatly mistaken in a way that could keep people from interacting deeply with others in their daily lives,” Epley said. “As the pandemic (疫情) wanes and social distance restrictions become less strict, and we all get back to talking with each other again, being aware that others also like deep conversations might lead you to have more pleasant interactions.”
1. What were the participants asked to do in the first experiment?| A．Choose some topics they prefer. | B．Avoid discussing shallow topics. |
| C．Make predictions on their feelings. | D．Classify various types of questions. |
| A．preferred to discuss shallow questions with strangers |
| B．felt very awkward when conducting deep conversations |
| C．underestimated how awkward their strange partners felt |
| D．overestimated the awkwardness of talking with strangers |
| A．It is easier to conduct than making small talk. |
| B．It usually causes a weaker sense of connection. |
| C．It is more enjoyable than having shallow ones. |
| D．It is more awkward than previously expected. |
| A．Worsens. | B．Appears. | C．Spreads. | D．Fades. |
4 . Barnaby, the Lawrence family’s cat, had been missing for eight months. On January 11, 2022, Rachel Lawrence was on the phone with her vet (兽医). Her younger cat, Torvi, had just received an operation and she was asking how he was.
During the call, Lawrence heard a meow (喵喵叫). It may have been a standard meow to anyone else’s ears, but to Lawrence, there was something distinct about this sound. She asked the vet if that was Torvi and was told that was just a stray (走失的宠物) that had been brought in a week before.
Lawrence put down the phone and could not stop thinking about that. Could that be long-lost Barnaby? Unable to dismiss that unlikely thought, she called the vet back a few hours later. She asked if that meow came from a black cat and if the cat had a white dot on his back foot. The reply was “Yes”. “That had to be Barnaby,” Lawrence concluded.
When she went to pick up Torvi, she brought photos of Barnaby, nicknamed Fatman by her three kids. When the vet brought Barnaby to her, Lawrence broke down in what she described as tears and cries, but not with sadness.
She couldn’t wait to video-call her three children and said, “Look who I found.”
“Fatman,” they cried out with joy!
Lawrence had previously put a chip into Barnaby, but it did not work and so when he was lost, they had no hope of finding him again. Yet, thanks to the kindness of the person who found Barnaby and took him to the vet, and to the incredible hearing of his pet owner, this cat is back.
Barnaby is safely home with the Lawrence family and Torvi. He returned home thin with little fur and many scars. Barnaby is eating well, and with all the love and attention, the family hopes he will grow back into Fatman.
1. Why did Rachel Lawrence make a second call to the vet?| A．To get more details about the stray cat. |
| B．To check if Torvi was in good condition. |
| C．To confirm the schedule for an operation. |
| D．To seek a way to identify different meows. |
| A．Sad. | B．Frightened. | C．Calm. | D．Thrilled. |
| A．He was safe and sound. | B．He didn’t receive any kindness. |
| C．He became much fatter. | D．He had a really rough time. |
| A．A Kind Vet Took Good Care of a Long-lost Cat |
| B．A Missing Cat’s Meow Led to a Happy Reunion |
| C．A Determined Cat Owner Finally Cured Her Cat |
| D．A Young Cat’s Operation Saved Another Cat's Life |
5 . The Mississippi State University Extension Service is offering the Master Gardener training and certification online again this year,
Participants take 40 hours of instruction in horticulture and related topics to become expert volunteers. Learn more and register for the first Master Gardener class of 2022 from February 1 to February 28 at http://msuext.ms/mg. Instruction for all classes is online and self-paced. The online class material is offered from March 15 to May 15.
About Volunteering
“The Master Gardener program trains active volunteers who exchange the 40 hours of educational training they receive for 40 hours of volunteer service within one year of their training,” said Jeff Wilson, a horticulture specialist of the Master Gardener program. “These Master Gardeners continue to be assets to their communities as, in future years, they continue to receive training and spend a minimum of 20 community service hours a year to maintain their certified status.”
The volunteer work of Master Gardeners helps local Extension offices reach a broader audience than is possible through just the efforts of Extension agents. Volunteers take on a variety of community beautification projects and extend the educational arm of the university to the public by providing horticultural information based on university research and recommendations.
“Master Gardener volunteers experience the personal satisfaction of serving their community, gaining horticultural expertise and connecting with their local gardening community,” Wilson said.
Fees
The cost for Master Gardener training is $ 125 for those who want to become certified volunteers and provide 40 hours of service. For $ 200, the same material is available for those not interested in the volunteer service component.
For More Information
For questions about the Master Gardener program, contact Jeff Wilson at 662-566-8019 or jeff.wilson @ msstate.edu.
1. When can the participants receive the online class material this year?| A．On February 1. | B．On February 28. | C．On April 15. | D．OnMay30. |
| A．Provide service in communities. | B．Receive one-year-long training. |
| C．Instruct students in universities. | D．Donate money to local offices. |
| A．Choose another learning material. | B．Pay more money for the training. |
| C．Get permission from Jeff Wilson. | D．Complete a beautification project. |
6 . Famous Israeli gastronome (美食家) Michal Ansky is a professional taster and a Master Chef judge. So when she was invited to the world’s first public blind taste test setting lab-grown chicken into competition against a conventionally raised product, she was confident that she would be able to tell the difference.
Surrounded by cameras at a restaurant bar, she tasted from two dishes, labeled A and B. A team of lawyers looked on, tasked with making sure that the tasting truly was blind. Even the chef who sautéed (嫩煎) the meat in sunflower oil—no salt, no seasonings—didn’t know which was which. Both were flavorless, Ansky noted, but she would bet her reputation that sample A was the real thing. It had a richer, more “chickeny” taste.
The tasting was hosted by a meat-tech startup SuperMeat at its in-house restaurant, The Chicken. Ever since 2013, when the first lab-grown hamburger was presented to the public with a $330,000 price tag, alternative-meat companies have been inching closer to a product that is just as tasty and nearly as affordable as the real thing, but without the climate impacts. One new study found high-income countries could cut agricultural emissions (排放物) by almost two-thirds by moving away from animal-based foods.
But one question remains: Would consumers be able to tell the difference? SuperMeat decided to put its product to the test without the deep frying and sauces that are usually used to mask a lack of flavor. Sample B had less flavor, so Ansky reasoned that it had to be the one grown in a lab. She was so convinced of her decision that when SuperMeat founder Ido Savir announced that it was in fact A that was lab-grown, she corrected him. “No,” she said. “A is the real chicken.”
A day later, I spoke to Ansky about the tasting. “It’s one of the only times in my life that I’m really happy that I was wrong,” she admitted.
1. What do we know about the taste test?| A．It was hosted by a chicken-themed restaurant. |
| B．Food samples were made with different flavors. |
| C．Michal Ansky was invited to the test for her reputation. |
| D．Lawyers were involved to ensure the authority of the activity. |
| A．lab-grown chicken tastes as good as raised chicken |
| B．meat eaters turn a blind eye to the taste of chicken |
| C．even a world-famous gastronome can make mistakes |
| D．chicken should be cooked well to appeal to customers |
| A．More chickeny taste. |
| B．More affordable price. |
| C．Less artificial flavor. |
| D．Less carbon footprint. |
| A．She wanted to ease her embarrassment. |
| B．She saw a milestone in the food industry. |
| C．She changed people’s opinion of her job. |
| D．She believed in the power of making mistakes. |
7 . Jose Alberto Gutierrez’s life would never be the same again after finding a copy of Anna Karenina in the trash (垃圾) 20 years ago. It happened while he was driving his garbage truck through wealthier neighbourhoods and seeing books abandoned by the rich. It ignited his desire to start rescuing books from the trash. Eventually, he turned his book collection into a community library.
In Colombia’s capital city of Bogota, libraries tend to be far away from poorer communities. The option of buying new books is non-existent for poor families and having access to a library of books is a luxury. Gutierrez grew up poor, and his family could not afford to educate him beyond primary school. Nevertheless, his mother was a passionate reader and read stories to him every night. Her love for books left a deep impression on Gutierrez, who never let a lack of formal education stop him.
Today, his community library, “The Strength of Words”, occupies most of his home and is piled from floor to ceiling with fiction and non-fiction titles. Everything from school textbooks to storybooks can be found in his collection of over 20,000 books!
The Strength of Words library is open every weekend, and children in Gutierrez’s neighbourhood are allowed to look through the book collection. Adults are also welcome to expand their vision and develop new skills for a better life.
Today, the Gutierrez family doesn’t merely want to start libraries in neighbourhoods. They want to create more safe spaces for school children to spend their time reading. This is important for kids living in Bogota where many young people waste time in the streets.
Gutierrez’s journey to give treasure back to his local community is an amazing example of how every one of us can improve the lives of those around us by identifying needs, investing time and finding a simple solution. How might we take a leaf out of Gutierrez’s book?
1. What does the underlined word “ignited” mean in paragraph 1?| A．Satisfied. | B．Ignored. | C．Excited. | D．Expressed. |
| A．It aims to recycle and reuse the garbage. |
| B．It is sponsored by wealthier communities. |
| C．It is in the charge of his passionate mother. |
| D．It makes knowledge accessible to poor kids. |
| A．We should value Gutierrez’s spirit of paying back. |
| B．We can follow Gutierrez’s example to help others. |
| C．We should go to visit Gutierrez’s library personally. |
| D．We can donate deserted books to Gutierrez’s library. |
| A．From Trash to Treasure | B．The Books of Gutierrez |
| C．From Home to Community | D．The Strength of Reading |
8 . Discover all the great Sydney attractions. You’ll find many memorable things to do and fascinating museums to visit in Sydney, Australia.
Australian Museum
The Australian Museum (AM) was founded in 1827 and is well-known as the nation’s first museum. The AM has been transformed and visitors can now enjoy transformed spaces and updated facilities. Free general admission includes entry to all permanent exhibitions and Prehistoric Playground, which is open daily on Level 2 and features a variety of activities for children of all ages including a fossil lab and interactive dinosaur design station.
Art Gallery of New South Wales
Explore five levels of art at one of Australia's most popular art museums, located within beautiful parklands overlooking Sydney Harbour, just 10 minutes’ walk from the city.
See an extensive collection of Australian art，including one of the largest galleries of aboriginal (土著的) art in the country, alongside Asian treasures and leading local and international contemporary art.
Museum of Contemporary Art Australia - MCA
The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia is Australia’s leading museum dedicated to exhibiting, interpreting and collecting contemporary art from across Australia.
Located at Circular Quay, the MCA is housed in the former Maritime Services building, a fine example of late Art Deco architecture.
Australian National Maritime Museum
Located at the waterfront of Darling Harbour, the Maritime Museum is an indoor/outdoor attraction and great entertainment for the whole family. The museum has one of the largest and most diverse in-water fleets (舰队) in the world. The museum hosts six permanent galleries, an ever-changing program of temporary exhibitions, and a 3D cinema, ensuring that there is something for everyone.
1. What is Australian Museum famous for?| A．The lowest price. | B．Contemporary art. |
| C．Outdoor attractions. | D．The longest history. |
| A．Australian Museum. |
| B．Art Gallery of New South Wales. |
| C．Australian National Maritime Museum. |
| D．Museum of Contemporary Art Australia — MCA. |
| A．A 3D cinema. | B．A design station. |
| C．Local contemporary art. | D．Late Art Deco architecture. |
9 . A very frightening thing happened on the weekend, but luckily a hero saved all. A New Jersey police officer safely caught a one-month-old baby dropped off a second-floor balcony over the weekend, authorities said.
The Hudson County prosecutor’s office said Officer Eduardo Matute was among those called to the Jersey City residence Saturday morning after reports that a man was threatening the baby.
NorthJersey.com reports that he and several officers were positioned below the second-floor balcony as the child was dangled over the balcony fence. Officials said the man dropped the baby after a long negotiation with the officers leader, and to the relief of everyone present, Matute caught the child on the spot.
City spokesperson Kimberly Wallace-Scalcione said the child was taken to the hospital. Mayor Steve Fulop later posted a photo on social media of the officer holding the child, who was wrapped in a white blanket.
“Thankfully the baby wasn’t harmed physically,” Fulop said.
It wasn’t immediately clear what charges he would face. Other details weren’t available.
“Kudos to the JCPD and all the officers involved for their heroics and for bringing a safe conclusion to this dangerous situation,” the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement.
1. What is the probable meaning of the underlined word “dangled” in Paragraph 3?| A．Hung. | B．Fastened. | C．Exhibited. | D．Thrown. |
| A．Amazed. | B．Relieved. | C．Frightened. | D．Disappointed. |
| A．It lost its father. | B．It was seriously hurt. |
| C．It was completely safe. | D．It was without physical damage. |
| A．An Unknown Hero | B．A Lucky Dog |
| C．A Police Officer Saving a Baby | D．A Policeman Making a Breakthrough |
For most of us, Hawaii begins to weave her spell with some little glimmer of
