1 . Early fifth-century philosopher St．Augustine famously wrote that he knew what time was unless someone asked him．Albert Einstein added another wrinkle when he theorized that time varies depending on where you measure it．Today's state-of-the-art atomic（原子的） clocks have proven Einstein right．Even advanced physics can't decisively tell us what time is, because the answer depends on the question you're asking．

Forget about time as an absolute．What if，instead of considering time in terms of astronomy,we related time to ecology？What if we allowed environmental conditions to set the tempo（节奏） of human life？We're increasingly aware of the fact that we can't control Earth systems with engineering alone，and realizing that we need to moderate（调节）our actions if we hope to live in balance．What if our definition of time reflected that？

Recently，I conceptualized a new approach to timekeeping that's connected to circumstances on our planet，conditions that might change as a result of global warming．We're now building a clock at the Anchorage Museum that reflects the total flow of several major Alaskan rivers，which are sensitive to local and global environmental changes．We've programmed it to match an atomic clock if the waterways continue to flow at their present rate．If the rivers run faster in the future on average，the clock will get ahead of standard time．If they run slower，you'll see the opposite effect．

The clock registers both short-term irregularities and long-term trends in river dynamics．It's a sort of observatory that reveals how the rivers are behaving from their own temporal frame（时间框架），and allows us to witness those changes on our smartwatches or phones．Anyone who opts to go on Alaska Mean River Time will live in harmony with the planet．Anyone who considers river time in relation to atomic time will encounter a major imbalance and may be motivated to counteract it by consuming less fuel or supporting greener policies．

Even if this method of timekeeping is novel in its particulars，early agricultural societies also connected time to natural phenomena．In pre-Classical Greece，for instance，people“corrected”official calendars by shifting dates forward or backward to reflect the change of season．Temporal connection to the environment was vital to their survival．Likewise，river time and other timekeeping systems we're developing may encourage environmental awareness．

When St．Augustine admitted his inability to define time， he highlighted one of time 's most noticeable qualities：Time becomes meaningful only in a defined context．Any timekeeping system is valid，and each is as praiseworthy as its purpose．

1. What is the main idea of Paragraph 1？

A．Timekeeping is increasingly related to nature．

B．Everyone can define time on their own terms．

C．The qualities of time vary with how you measure it．

D．Time is a major concern of philosophers and scientists．

2. The author raises three questions in Paragraph 2 mainly to________．

A．present an assumption	B．evaluate an argument
C．highlight an experiment	D．introduce an approach

3. What can we learn from this passage？

A．Those who do not go on river time will live an imbalanced life．

B．New ways of measuring time can help to control Earth systems．

C．Atomic time will get ahead of river time if the rivers run slower．

D．Modern technology may help to shape the rivers’ temporal frame．

4. What can we infer from this passage？

A．It is crucial to improve the definition of time．

B．A fixed frame will make time meaningless．

C．We should live in harmony with nature．

D．History is a mirror reflecting reality．

2 . Adults, ________overly concerned with fame and fortune, sometimes fail to see the joy in simple things ________ children do not.

A．unless … but	B．although … and
C．when … where	D．even if … unless

3 . A study of teenage girls’ selfie-taking (自拍) behaviors found that taking and sharing selfies on social media is not linked to poor body image or appearance concerns. However, when adolescent girls spend too much time struggling over which photo of themselves to post, or rely heavily on editing apps to alter their images, there may be cause for concern.

The study, by researchers at the University of Arizona, found that selfie editing and time invested in creating and selecting the perfect selfie were both related to self-objectification, which led to body shame, appearance anxiety and more negative appearance evaluations in teen girls. “Self-objectification is the idea that you come to think of yourself as an external object to be viewed by other people,” said senior study author Jennifer Aubrey, an associate professor at the UA.

Based on a study of 278 teenage girls, “Our main finding was that we really shouldn’t be too worried about kids who take selfies and share them; that’s not where the negative effects come from. It’s the investment and the editing that yielded negative effects,” Aubrey said. “Selfie editing and selfie investment predicted self-objectification, and girls who self-objectify were more likely to feel shameful about their bodies or anxious about their appearance.”

“Self-objectification is the pathway to so many things in adolescence that we want to prevent,” Aubrey said. “So, interventions really should focus on how we can encourage girls to develop an awareness of themselves that doesn’t only depend on what they look like to other people.” The researchers said parents and caregivers of adolescent girls should be aware that if a teen seems to be obsessed (痴迷的), it might be time for a talk.

The researchers also note that there can be different motivations for sharing selfies. “Selfies are a part of the media landscape, but you should post them for reasons other than trying to get people to admire your appearance or your body.” Aubrey said. With an estimated 93 million selfies taken each day, they aren’t going away anytime soon, nor should they. The important thing to remember is: Selfies aren’t bad. Just don’t obsess.

1. What behavior of adolescent girls may cause concern?

A．Taking selfies.

B．Caring about their images.

C．Sharing selfies on social media.

D．Overusing editing apps to beautify their images.

2. From the text, what can we learn about self-objectification?

A．It predicts selfie investment.	B．It is linked to selfie obsession.
C．It prevents problems in adolescence.	D．It contributes to objective evaluation.

3. What should interventions center on?

A．When to have a talk with teen girls.	B．When to end selfie-taking behaviors.
C．How to help form a healthy self-awareness.	D．How to prevent teenage girls' craze for selfies.

4. From which is the text probably taken?

A．A travel brochure.	B．A science newspaper.
C．A psychology textbook.	D．An entertainment magazine.

4 . Armed with a toolkit of techniques and tricks to calm the mind and bring focus back to your body, you can stop stressful situations from sabotaging your day, says Katy Georgiou.

GROUND YOURSELF

Making contact with the ground is your baseline go-to response for stress. This technique can be especially helpful if you find your stress regularly turns into panic. Wherever you are, whatever you’re doing, place your feet flat on the ground so that you feel stable, and then close your eyes. If you’re able to sit on the floor cross-legged or to lie down flat, then even better.

Think of this as earthing: really connect with the ground beneath your body. Some studies suggest that this simple act can help reduce or relieve symptoms of stress such as pain and fatigue, reduce blood pressure, and improve sleep. If you’re feeling disconnected from the world, it can also remind you that you belong to it and are a crucial part of it — the ground will always be there for you.

LOVE THYSELF

Adopting regular, daily or weekly routines for self-care can be very containing, creating consistency amid all sorts of stressful life events happening around you. Looking in the mirror each day can actually remind you that you exist, so feel free to factor some reflective gazing into your daily routine, whether it’s while applying moisturiser, shaving, or brushing your hair. Studies have shown that being confronted with your reflection can have powerful effects, taking us out of our heads and into the immediate present. For added effect, pay attention to the way your products interact with your hair and skin as you apply them.

Playing around with smells, colours and textures in your hands will also engage your senses. Using a scented shampoo or smoothing on body lotion after a warm bath can be easy ways to do this.

CLEAR YOUR MIND

Abandon all your thoughts and try to focus only on your surroundings. What can you see, hear, smell, taste and touch? Identify three things you can hear, one thing you can taste, four things you can see and two things you can feel on your skin. Pick out colours in the room you are sitting in, notice textures and different kinds of light. If somebody is with you, tell them what you are experiencing. The point here is that your senses are your best and easiest route back to feeling calm, by coming out of your head and rooting yourself back in the present. This is incredibly helpful if you’re having a panic attack or flop response.

1. If your friend Jane always feels worn out and suffers from sleep deprivation, which of the following techniques will you especially recommend to her?

A．Connect her body to the ground beneath her.

B．Adopt a daily gaze at her reflection in the mirror.

C．Exchange her scentless shampoo for an aromatic one.

D．Focus on what she can see, hear, smell, taste and touch.

2. Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE according to the passage?

A．Lying down flat can better relieve your stress.

B．Grounding yourself can give you a sense of belonging to the world.

C．Brushing your hair while looking in the mirror can remind you of your existence.

D．Those having a panic attack should shut their senses down.

3. The passage is intended to __________.

A．help people understand themselves better

B．introduce some practical methods for stress management

C．emphasize the significance of exploiting multiple senses

D．promote a mindset of living in the moment

5 . Hardly __________ when the waitress __________ sweet mint tea and appetizers for them.

A．had the diners sat down; would serve	B．the diners had sat down; served
C．had the diners sat down; served	D．the diners had sat down; was serving

6 . TikTok, a social media app dedicated to short-form videos, has emerged as a major firer of food trends — from mushroom coffee and pancake cereal to cloud bread and feta pasta. But another trend, the #whatieatinaday trend, is dominating TikTok, which is nearing 9 billion _________.

Even though #whatieatinaday posts may be _________ to serve as healthy inspiration for others, there’s a growing feeling that these video diaries of daily eats will likely do more harm than good — especially among young girls or people with a history of disordered eating.

The _________ message these posts send is that if you eat like them, then you can eventually look like them. Yet what someone else eats in a day doesn’t mean it’s right for you, since these “_________” videos are not a completely accurate representation of what someone typically eats.

Often the overly stylized (程式化) meals do not _________ a nutritionally adequate diet. The posts are _________ the illusion (幻想) of an ideal day of eating, along with an ideal body size.

Younger audiences, especially girls and young women, internalize the message that they must eat like these creators to achieve and maintain not only health, but also social _________. The biggest harm with this trend is that it normalizes disordered or _________ eating behaviors. This could prevent someone struggling with an eating disorder from _________ support or treatment.

Even if the #whatieatinaday posts are displaying a ____________ day of eating, the subtext message of “eat like me, and you will look like me” is harmful because people will not necessarily achieve the same body size as the ____________ even if they copied their day of eating bite for bite.

____________, what might be a healthy, adequate day of satisfying meals for one person may be inadequate and unsatisfying to another. Even worse, someone looking at these posts may conclude that they need to be eating half as much to ____________.

People making these videos are overwhelmingly thin, young, able-bodied and white. There is a complete lack of body ____________. And this encourages harmful comparisons to unrealistic body standards that are ____________ to the vast majority of people. Therefore, those of us from marginalized communities are once again unable to see positive representations of our varying bodies, foods and cultural representation in these harmful posts.”

1.

A．views

B．statements

C．analyses

D．identities

2.

A．emphasized

B．simplified

C．requested

D．intended

3.

A．moral

B．scientific

C．potential

D．instant

4.

A．modern

B．staged

C．educational

D．labelled

5.

A．prioritize

B．commercialize

C．recognize

D．exchange

6.

A．promoting

B．representing

C．spoiling

D．perfecting

7.

A．welfare

B．equality

C．desirability

D．justice

8.

A．individual

B．instinctive

C．restrictive

D．changeable

9.

A．attracting

B．seeking

C．losing

D．offering

10.

A．fixed

B．balanced

C．relaxing

D．demanding

11.

A．reader

B．advertiser

C．browser

D．poster

12.

A．Therefore

B．Finally

C．Additionally

D．Meanwhile

13.

A．lose weight

B．share interests

C．assume burden

D．make contributions

14.

A．language

B．diversity

C．warmth

D．response

15.

A．available

B．predictable

C．inadequate

D．unachievable

7 . How to recognize cyber attacks

Cyber-attacks may sound like something that happens only in Hollywood movies. You _________a team of talented Hackers gathered around computer monitors trying to break into a secure bank or government server. In reality, cyber-attacks are much less exciting but no less _________.

A/An_________attack involves a cyber-criminal sending out thousands or oven millions of links and flies. They assume that someone will_________ fall for their trap and open an infected file or page. Somebody always does. The best way to protect yourself is to learn how to _________cyber-attacks as well as how to prevent them from happening in the first place.

Cyber-attacks can happen to anybody. It doesn’t matter who you are; cyber criminals can target you. While many often think of hacking victims as_________about digital security best practices, this isn’t always the case. Kickers are smart. True, there are plenty of apparent scams (骗局) like ‘the Nigerian Price" emails. But there are as many attacks that can fool even the skillful computer-users.

Nowadays, cyber-criminals create fake websites and email addresses. You may think you are clicking a link to Dropbox (多宝箱) only to download malware onto your computer, _________may never know when you have visited the wrong site and downloaded a/an_______file. So, it’s up to you to be vigilant (警觉的) and protect yourself.

So you need to lean to recognize the signs of cyber-attacks. First, recognize _________activity on your accounts or devices. ____________ some things may be obvious such as account password changes, others aren’t so easy to spot. Usually, hackers insert pieces of code into valid files and programs. And then, you might receive a file from a trusted sender whose mail has been __________. Sometimes, the data are even real, but the hacker may have inserted a few lines of code that can also infect your computer. You should take the time to check your “Task Manager” to get a sense of what____________are running. Check anything suspicious that’s __________in the background. That’s often the sign of malware.

Other things to ____________for include: random device or internet slowdown; the software you don’t recognize; inability to access your account or unscheduled shutdowns and restarts.

As with everything, ____________ is the best medicine. So, instead of waiting for cyber-attacks to hit you, recognize the signs to protect yourself.

1.

A．gather

B．picture

C．find

D．establish

2.

A．dangerous

B．worried

C．cautious

D．helpless

3.

A．historic

B．typical

C．potential

D．specific

4.

A．halfway

B．originally

C．periodically

D．eventually

5.

A．predict

B．limit

C．warn

D．recognize

6.

A．fearless

B．soundless

C．clueless

D．careless

7.

A．in conclusion

B．and

C．but

D．as if       .

8.

A．empty

B．supervised

C．tracked

D．infected

9.

A．powerful

B．suspicious

C．specific

D．frequent

10.

A．While

B．Since

C．If

D．When

11.

A．guaranteed

B．assessed

C．leaked

D．composed

12.

A．mechanisms

B．files

C．programs

D．commands

13.

A．attacking

B．chatting

C．hiding

D．running

14.

A．sum up

B．watch out

C．mark off

D．turn down

15.

A．strategy

B．practice

C．solution

D．prevention

8 . More and more online shopping platforms now offer consumers a detailed look into products’ historical prices. But how does this information influence buying decisions?

To explore this question, we conducted a series of experiments with a total of more than 5,000 business school students and working adults. We measured the impact of different kinds of price shifts on people’s interest in purchasing products and identified several consistent trends:

First, when consumers saw that the price today was lower than it had been in the past, they were more likely to buy now, because the current price seemed like a good deal.

However, the picture gets more complicated when you consider the frequency of historical price shifts: In our studies, we found that if consumers were shown at least three changes in the same direction, they were likely to assume the price would continue to move in the same direction. While if they were only shown one or two changes in the same direction, they expected the price to change in the opposite direction.

So what does this mean for sellers? It may be tempting to slowly lower the price over time. However, our data shows that this can lead consumers to assume that the price will continue to fall, making them hesitant to buy. But if they just see a single price drop, they ‘re more likely to expect a reversal in the near future, pushing them to buy the product now.

Our findings can also help buyers make more informed decisions about whether and when they choose to make a purchase. As with any irrational bias (非理性的偏见), awareness of the natural tendency to expect trends to continue and single large changes to reverse can help consumers question this assumption before acting on it. Instead of letting this arbitrary (武断的) expectation guide buying decisions, consumers may benefit by doing a bit more research around the underlying factors driving price shifts. Buyers may also benefit from learning more about a product’s longer-term price history, fluctuations (波动), and typical industry-wide price ranges, to avoid being disproportionately influenced by near-term price changes. It’s also always a good idea to think about both how urgent your need for a given product is, and your own risk tolerance for a potential price increase, as this can affect whether it’s worth it for you to wait and see if the price falls.

Of course, there are countless factors that influence both consumers’ decisions around whether and when to buy and sellers’ decisions around how to price their products. But it’s important for both sides to recognize the key role that expectations play in influencing these decisions.

1. Which of the following is true about the experiment?

A．It proves that people’s interest in the product drives the purchasing behavior.

B．E-commerce platforms turn to it to connect with customers and boost sales.

C．It’s designed to figure out the purchasing decision process based on pricing.

D．Business school students make up the whole control group for comparison.

2. Which of the following price trends might tempt consumers to buy on May 8^th?

A．	B．
C．	D．

3. Consumers are advised to      .

A．decide on the assumptions that long-term price trend will continue

B．research longer-term price history, price ranges and hidden factors

C．put off the purchase for better deals because of the unsustainable market

D．cooperate with sellers while putting aside the personal risk and urgency

4. What does the passage mainly talk about?

A．How do price changes influence buying decisions?

B．Why should products’ historical prices be shown?

C．When is the best time for consumers to purchase?

D．What do businesses need to price their products?

9 . A recent series of studies examined the role of talent in the sports world. They focused on three different sports: World Cup soccer, professional basketball, and professional baseball. The results are mixed. For soccer and basketball, the studies revealed that adding talented players to a team is indeed a (n) _______ strategy, but only up to a point. Performance _______ when about 70% of the players were considered top talent. Above that level, the team’s performance began to decline. Interestingly, this trend was not evident in baseball, where additional _______ talent continued to enhance the team’s performance. (Figure 1 and 2)

In looking for an explanation for the different results for different sports, the researchers _______one important factor — the extent to which a good performance by a team required its members to coordinate (协调) their actions. This task _______ distinguishes baseball from basketball and soccer.

In baseball, the performance of individual players is _______ teammates than in soccer and basketball. The researchers concluded that when, during the course of play, task interdependence is high, team performance will _______ when there is too much talent in the group. When task interdependence is lower, _______ individual talent will have a positive effect on team performance.

One explanation for this phenomenon is not so far from the pecking order (等级排序) situation among chickens. If a basketball star is pursuing his own personal goals,_______ trying to gather a high personal point total, he may be less ________ than team player. He may take a shot himself when it would be better to pass the ball to a team mate, thus making the team’s overall performance suffer. “There is no________in TEAM,” young children learning to play team sports are often told. Apparently stars ________ follow this basic principle of sportsman ship.

Another possibility is that when there is a lot of talent on a team, some players may begin to________ This is referred to as the Ringelmann effect. Ringelmann conducted an experiment in which he asked two, three, four, and up to 28 people to participate in a game of tug-of-war. He measured how much force each person used to pull the rope. He found that whenever he added a person to the team, everyone else pulled with less force.

________ the ideal team — for sports, business, science, or entertainment — is more complicated than simply hiring the best talent. An A-team may require a________ not just A players, but a few generous B players as well.

1.

A．sensible

B．partial

C．alarming

D．attainable

2.

A．faded

B．peaked

C．evolved

D．proceeded

3.

A．team

B．creative

C．academic

D．individual

4.

A．identified

B．overlooked

C．considered

D．concealed

5.

A．explanation

B．conclusion

C．discussion

D．interdependence

6.

A．more suitable for

B．more critical to

C．less dependent on

D．less involved in

7.

A．swing

B．suffer

C．endure

D．function

8.

A．in principle

B．in a sense

C．in other words

D．on the other hand

9.

A．as a rule

B．by contrast

C．for example

D．as a matter of fact

10.

A．stressed

B．genuine

C．sensitive

D．generous

11.

A．I

B．HE

C．THEY

D．WE

12.

A．closely

B．rarely

C．humbly

D．jointly

13.

A．make less effort

B．cause more trouble

C．take less advantage

D．attach more importance

14.

A．Inspiring

B．Intensifying

C．Gathering

D．Training

15.

A．exploration

B．balance

C．stability

D．flexibility

10 . Delivering life-saving drugs directly to the brain in a safe and effective way is a challenge for medical providers. One key reason: the blood-brain barrier, which protects the brain from tissue-specific drug delivery. Methods such as an injection or a pill aren't as precise or immediate as doctors might prefer, and ensuring delivery right to the brain often requires invasive, risky techniques.

A team of engineers from Washington University in St. Louis has developed a new nano-particle generation-delivery method that could someday vastly improve drug delivery to the brain, making it as simple as a sniff.

“This would be a nano-particle nasal spray, and the delivery system could allow medicine to reach the brain within 30 minutes to one hour,” said Ramesh Raliya, research scientist at the School of Engineering & Applied Science.

“The blood-brain barrier protects the brain from foreign substances in the blood that may injure the brain,” Raliya said. “But when we need to deliver something there, getting through that barrier is difficult and invasive. Our non-invasive technique can deliver drugs via nano-particles, so there's less risk and better response times.”

The novel approach is based on aerosol science and engineering principles that allow the generation of mono-disperse nano-particles, which can deposit on upper regions of the nasal cavity via spread. The nano-particles were tagged with markers, allowing the researchers to track their movement.

Next, researchers exposed locusts' antenna to the aerosol, and observed the nano-particles travel from the antennas up through the olfactory nerve, which is used to sense the smell. Due to their tiny size, the nano-particles passed through the brain-blood barrier, reaching the brain and spreading all over it in a matter of minutes.

The team tested the concept in locusts because the blood-brain barriers in the insects and humans have similarities. “The shortest and possibly the easiest path to the brain is through your nose,” said Barani Raman, associate professor of biomedical engineering. “Your nose, the olfactory bulb and then olfactory cortex: two steps and you've reached the cortex.”

To determine whether or not the foreign nano-particles disrupted normal brain function, Saha examined the physiology response of olfactory neurons in the locusts before and after the nano-particle delivery and found no noticeable change in the electro-physiological responses was detected.

This is only a beginning of a set of studies that can be performed to make nano-particle-based drug delivery approaches more principled, Raman said. The next phase of research involves fusing the gold nano-particles with various medicines, and using ultrasound to target a more precise dose to specific areas of the brain, which would be especially beneficial in brain-tumor cases.

1. This passage is mainly about ________.

A．a novel method of drug delivery	B．a challenge facing medical staff
C．a new medicine treating brain disease	D．a technique to improve doctor's ability

2. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．Doctors prefer using methods like an injection to treat diseases.

B．Locusts were tagged with markers to track their movement.

C．The blood-brain barrier lowers the effectiveness of a pill.

D．The medicine could reach the brain within half an hour.

3. The researchers focused their study on locusts because ________.

A．human and locusts have similar structures that protect brain from foreign substances

B．the delivery process consists of the olfactory bulb and the olfactory cortex

C．locusts have changeable electrophysiological responses to nanoparticles

D．The shortest and possibly the safest path to the brain is through human's noses

4. ________ would most be interested in reading this passage.

A．A lung cancer patient who needs operation immediately

B．A college student who majors in medical technology

C．A senior doctor who is about to retire

D．A high school teacher who is teaching biology