1 . In the genetic age, ecologists’ jobs are made much easier by two things. One is that every organism carries its own chemical identity card, in the form of its genome (基因组). The second is that they drop these ID cards everywhere they go. Urine, bits of fur stuck to a hedge, even shed skin cells: all deposit DNA into the environment. Cheap gene sequencing allows scientists to harvest this “environmental DNA” (eDNA) from soil, sand, water and the like, and use it to keep track of which species are living where.

“Every organism,” of course, includes humans. In a paper published on May 15^th in Nature Ecology & Evolution, a group of researchers from America and Europe report that such eDNA surveys pick up large quantities of human DNA as well as the animal sort. That DNA can be read—and potentially matched with individuals—by anyone with the right equipment.   

The researchers did not set out to study “inadvertent human genetic bycatch”, as they call the phenomenon. The work began at the Witney Sea Turtle Hospital in Florida, during an investigation into a viral turtle disease. The researchers sampled water from the turtle’s tanks, as well as from ocean water and beaches upon which the creatures nested, looking for viral DNA.   

They expected to sweep up DNA from other species during their trawl (拖网). What was surprising, according to Jessica Farrell, a biologist at the Witney Hospital and one of the paper’s authors, was just how much human DNA they found. Even though many of their sampling sites were not near towns and cities, they found human genetic material in every sample they examined.   

Interested, they expanded their search. In both Florida and in Ireland they found human DNA in rivers, with concentrations especially high as they flowed through towns. They found it in beach sand, and even in air from rooms in which humans had been working. Human DNA is not quite everywhere: it was not detectable in deep ocean water, or on remote beaches closed to the public. But anywhere that humans are, their DNA appears to be as well.

In one sense, that is unsurprising. But advances in gene-sequencing meant there was enough information in the samples to deduce plenty of things about the humans in question. The researchers could pick out males thanks to DNA from the Y chromo some. They could infer an individual’s ancestry, and even spot mutations (突变) that affect a person’s disease risk. David Duffy, another of the paper’s authors, said the amount and quality of the DNA they recovered “far exceeded” the minimum necessary to be included in America’s database of missing people. Dr Duffy and his colleagues did not try to identify individuals in their study, for moral reasons. But they had no doubt it could be done.

1. Which of the following about eDNA is true according to the passage?

A．It provides a way to track the migration of animals.

B．It allows researchers to restore individual organisms.

C．It can be easily collected from all types of environments.

D．It contains a wealth of genetic information about various species.

2. In this passage, the word “inadvertent” (paragraph 3) is closest in meaning to “__________”.

A．familiar

B．accidental

C．insensitive

D．regular

3. What can be inferred from the passage?

A．The application of eDNA for identity confirmation has aroused concern.

B．As expected, the researchers detected much human eDNA in their search.

C．An individual’s gender and ancestry can be confirmed by means of eDNA.

D．eDNA is instrumental in upgrading America’s database of missing people.

4. Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?

A．Unintended Discoveries in Turtle Disease Research

B．The Ecological Significance of Environmental DNA

C．Human DNA’s Prevalence in Environmental Samples

D．Using Genetic Information to Identify Missing Persons

2 . On our 20^th anniversary, Susan and I headed off for a few days to a lovely valley about an hour away. We didn’t know much about the town, but that was fine. Our goal was really just to renew our faith in each other.

We began by stocking up at the quirky Village Market in Glen Ellen, California. Within minutes, friendly locals spotted us and started chatting in the aisles with charming tips. You gotta hike to Jack London’s house. Oh, dinner at the Fig Café. Hours later, having followed their yellow brick road all day, we walked, delirious, back from dinner to our creekside inn. “I think I could live here,” Susan said.

It turns out that Glen Ellen’s contagious spirit was not our passing illusion. In October 2017, the Nuns Fire bore down on this town near Santa Rosa. An astounding 183 of Glen Ellen’s 750 or so homes burned down. Among them was Jill Dawson’s place, just across the creek from the inn to which we had returned the next anniversary, and four more in turn. I called Jill after reading her family’s story. She sounded just like the spirited, generous type Susan and I have loved meeting in Glen Ellen.

After the fire, she told me, her family’s prospects for staying in the town looked bleak. But residents mobilized on Facebook and in the Village Market to brainstorm how to house one another.

Hearing of their plight, some neighbors who barely knew the Dawsons placed two new trailers next to their house, which hadn’t burned, for Jill’s family.

“Their name is the Fosters, and I tell them, ‘You just can’t help it,’” Jill says, laughing at her own pun. Jill and her husband, Art, have lived in one of the trailers for a year while sorting through how to rebuild. They are only two of the many residents who were able to remain close thanks to their neighbors’ selflessness. “I’m grateful for little Glen Ellen,” Jill says. “The amount of passionate people and grassroots efforts working to keep this place supportive is amazing. The kindness thing, it’s still huge here.”

In kicking off our annual Nicest Place in America search, let Glen Ellen be just one example. So many cities, workplaces, churches, schools, and other locations thrive because, well, “the kindness thing, it’s still huge.” Please take the time to go to RD.COM/NICEST to tell us about one you love. Thank you!

1. What did the author think of Glen Ellen during his several trips there?

A．He found Glen Ellen to be a dynamic town with rapid development.

B．He had mixed feelings about Glen Ellen, both positive and negative.

C．He thought Glen Ellen was a place which deepened faith in her wife.

D．He developed a positive impression of its welcoming community spirit.

2. How did the Glen Ellen community respond to the Nuns Fire in October 2017?

A．They relied solely on government aid for recovery efforts.

B．They spontaneously formed a neighborhood watch program.

C．They held a series of fundraisers to help the affected families.

D．They largely depended on assistance from distant communities.

3. Which of the following is the right understanding of ““Their name is the Fosters, and I tell them, ‘You just can’t help it,’” Jill says, laughing at her own pun.”?

A．Jim is making a lighthearted comment about the Fosters’ inborn generosity.

B．Jill is implying that Fosters lack competence to give a helping hand to others.

C．Jill is hinting that the Fosters might not always display the same level of kindness.

D．Jill is expressing his sincere gratitude for Fosters’ constant and generous assistance.

4. What is the writing purpose of the passage?

A．To highlight Glen Ellen’s tradition of community support and kindness.

B．To demonstrate the author’s personal perspectives in community building.

C．To present how people in Glen Ellen overcame difficulties with joint efforts.

D．To encourage readers to reflect on and share their own experiences of kindness.

3 . In 1919, in the aftermath of war, the International Labour Organization used its first convention to limit working hours to eight a day and 48 a week. The Depression later prompted employers to __________ a five-day week.

The latest crisis is dealing a __________ shock to how jobs are designed. The pandemic (疫情) forced many employers to implement remote working. It accelerated the use of technology to help them stay productive. As well as struggling with the challenges of hybrid work, some businesses are now __________ paying staff the same salary for a four-day working week, once as weird a concept as an eight-hour day.

Promised __________ include improved wellbeing, better focus, fairer sharing of childcare between men and women, and even a lighter carbon footprint. Fear of missing out on the latest trend must not, __________, blind companies to important obstacles and drawbacks.

Offsetting the cost of a four-day week at a national level looks ___________to achieve. As economic historian Robert Skidelsky pointed out in 2019, in a report for the UK Labour party, “__________ working hours nationwide, like France’s 35-hour working week, is not realistic or even desirable, because any cap needs to be adapted to the needs of different sectors (行业)”.

The Wellcome Trust, the science research foundation, decided in 2019 that even a trial would be __________, partly because its staff performed a mix of roles. Some jobs were hard to confine to four days. Other employees preferred to spread their work over five days. __________ already on a four-day week feared they might lose out.

Lockdowns exposed the gap between flexible homeworking professionals and front-line “__________” staff. A four-day week might __________ it.

Some staff want or need to work extra hours. To the risks of a two-tier workforce and reduced freedom of choice add the danger of __________. The approach fails if improved productivity does not cover the potential increased cost. If leaders’ determination to hit the same targets forces staff to work four 10-hour days, to shift their workload back into their __________ weekends, to rush jobs that require more time, or to hire additional hands to plug gaps, some of the benefits of offering workers more free time will quickly disappear.

For each of these __________, advocates have an answer. One is that companies just need to organise staff more efficiently. In itself, better __________ would improve productivity. Another is to cut working hours, rather than days, allowing greater flexibility.

1.

A．cancel

B．restore

C．back

D．deny

2.

A．similar

B．mild

C．psychological

D．distinct

3.

A．stopping

B．considering

C．continuing

D．forbidding

4.

A．features

B．awards

C．challenges

D．benefits

5.

A．therefore

B．however

C．besides

D．otherwise

6.

A．optimistic

B．essential

C．hard

D．instant

7.

A．capping

B．eliminating

C．revising

D．promoting

8.

A．effective

B．troublesome

C．consequential

D．apparent

9.

A．Professionals

B．Full-timers

C．Amateurs

D．Part-timers

10.

A．industrious

B．goal-driven

C．always-on

D．decisive

11.

A．widen

B．bridge

C．fill

D．leave

12.

A．boredom

B．invasion

C．distraction

D．overload

13.

A．short

B．long

C．early

D．late

14.

A．distinctions

B．impacts

C．objections

D．suggestions

15.

A．judgment

B．standard

C．management

D．method

4 . Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word; for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.

The Impact of Visual Cues on Behavior

During the energy crisis in the 1970s, Dutch researchers began to pay close attention to the country’s energy usage. In one suburb near Amsterdam, they found that some homeowners used 30 percent less energy than their neighbors     1     the homes being of similar size and getting electricity for the same price.

It turned out that the houses in this neighborhood were nearly identical except for one feature: the location of the electrical meter. Some had one in the basement.     2     had the electrical meter upstairs in the main hallway.     3     you may guess, the homes with the meters located in the main hallway used less electricity. When their energy use was obvious and easy to track, people changed their behavior.

Every habit     4     (initiate) by a cue, and we are more likely to notice cues that stand out. Unfortunately, the environments where we live and work often make it easy not to do certain actions     5    there is no obvious cue to trigger the behavior. When the cues that spark a habit are subtle or hidden, they are easy     6     (ignore).

By comparison, creating obvious visual cues can draw your attention toward a    7     (desire) habit. I’ve experienced the power of obvious cues in my own life. I used to buy apples from the store, put them in the crisper (储藏格) in the bottom of the refrigerator, and forget all about them. By the time I remembered, the apples     8     (go) bad. I never saw them, so I never ate them.

Eventually, I took my own advice and redesigned my environment. I bought a large display bowl and placed it in the middle of the kitchen counter. The next time I bought apples, that was     9     they went. Almost like magic, I began eating a few apples each day simply because they were obvious,     10     (facilitate) the formation of a healthy eating habit rather than keeping them out of sight.

5 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。1.

A．Open.

B．Selfish.

C．Friendly.

D．Reserved.

2.

A．They stay quiet.

B．They read a book.

C．They talk about the weather.

D．They chat with fellow passengers.

3.

A．She was always treated as a foreigner.

B．She was eager to visit an English castle.

C．She was never invited to a colleague’s home.

D．She was unwilling to make friends with workmates.

4.

A．Houses are much quieter.

B．Houses provide more privacy.

C．They want to have more space.

D．They want a garden of their own.

9 .

A．Three.

B．Six

C．Nine.

D．Twelve.