1 . Ecology is a complicated thing. Given the facts that elephant damage often kills trees and bush fires often kill trees, it would be________to assume that a combination of the two would make things worse. Contrary to this assumption, ________, as the recently-published research by Benjamin Wigley shows, if a tree has already been damaged, fire can________help to make things better.

One common way in which elephants harm trees is by stripping(剥) them of their bark(树皮). Dr Wigley, who did indeed start from the obvious________, set off to find out how much worse bush fires would make the effects of this bark stripping. To serve this purpose, he set up a study in the Kruger National Park. Since 1954, the Kruger has been the site of experiments in which plots of land have been burned________, to understand the effects of fire on plain ecology. In these experiments, Dr Wigley looked at trees in three different zones, in one of which, the trees were burned every year; in the second, they were burned every other year, while the third zone, by contrast, was actively________fire. To keep things consistent, he looked at the fate of the same tree species, the marula(马鲁拉树), in all three zones. He picked marulas because they are particular________of elephant activity. Their fruit are delicious, and prized by elephants and people alike. But elephants also seem to enjoy eating their bark. In July 2016 he and his colleagues identified 20 marulas in every zone and used special tools to________from each of them a circular section of bark 5 cm in diameter. Having imposed this damage, they________the wounds over the course of the following two years, to see what would happen. To their________, they discovered that the wounds of trees in fire zones recovered far better than those of trees that had seen no fires at all. Wounded trees in the annual burn zone re-grew 98% of their lost________during the two years of the study. Those living in the biennial(两年一次的) burn zone re-grew 92% of it. But those in the zone where fires were________re-grew only 72%.

The researchers also found something else when they were measuring the trees’ wounds: ants. Ten of the 20 trees in the fire-prevention zone developed ant colonies in their wounds. The ants in question were a species that is known to damage trees and is supposed to________tissue healing. By contrast, only five trees in the biennial burn zone and three in the annual zone developed ants’ nests in their wounds. It looks, therefore, as if bush fires are treating trees’ wounds by killing ants that might________colonize and damage them. Though such fires are surely harmful to healthy trees, it seems, in an example of two negatives making a positive, as if they are actually________to sick ones.

1.

A．difficult

B．reasonable

C．necessary

D．awful

2.

A．however

B．therefore

C．furthermore

D．somehow

3.

A．uniquely

B．barely

C．actually

D．merely

4.

A．phenomenon

B．evidence

C．imagination

D．assumption

5.

A．equally

B．regularly

C．severely

D．purposely

6.

A．burnt with

B．protected from

C．covered by

D．exposed to

7.

A．participants

B．partners

C．victims

D．friends

8.

A．mark

B．remove

C．hit

D．measure

9.

A．regulated

B．checked

C．healed

D．monitored

10.

A．disappointment

B．surprise

C．joy

D．relief

11.

A．vitality

B．height

C．bark

D．strength

12.

A．controlled

B．prevented

C．started

D．boosted

13.

A．disturb

B．promote

C．impact

D．quicken

14.

A．therefore

B．nevertheless

C．then

D．otherwise

15.

A．beneficial

B．unbelievable

C．effective

D．cruel

2 . The expression, "everybody's doing it," is very much at the center of the concept of peer pressure. It is a social influence applied on an individual in order to get that person to act or believe in a(n) ___ way as a larger group. This influence can be negative or positive, and can exist in both large and small groups.

People are social creatures by nature, and so it is hardly ___that some part of their self-respect comes from the approval of others. This instinct explains why the approval of peers, and the fear of ____, is such a powerful force in many people's lives. This instinct drives people to dress one way at home and another way at work, or to answer a simple “fine" when a stranger asks "how are you?" even if it is not necessarily true. There is a(n) _____aspect to this: it helps society to function efficiently, and encourages a general level of self-discipline that ___day-to-day interaction between people.

For certain individuals, seeking social acceptance is so important that it becomes a(n) ___: in order to satisfy the desire, they may go so far as to ___their sense of right and wrong. Teens and young adults may feel forced to use drugs, or join gangs that ____criminal behavior. Mature adults may sometimes feel ___ to cover up illegal activity at the company where they work, or end up in debt because they are unable to hold back the desire to buy a house or car that they can't afford in an effort to ___ the peers.

However, peer pressure is not always negative. A student whose friends are good at ___may be urged to work harder and get good grades. Players on a sports team may feel driven to play harder in order to help the team win. This type of ___can also get a friend off drugs, or to help an adult take up a good habit or drop a bad one.

Although peer pressure is sometimes quite obvious, it can also be so ___that a person may not even notice that it is affecting his or her behavior. For this reason, when making important decisions, simply going with a(n) ___is risky. Instead, people should seriously consider why they feel drawn to taking a particular action, and whether the real ____ is simply that everyone else is doing the same thing.

1.

A．traditional

B．similar

C．peculiar

D．opposite

2.

A．understandable

B．believable

C．acceptable

D．surprising

3.

A．disapproval

B．failure

C．absence

D．independence

4.

A．uncertain

B．practical

C．impossible

D．vague

5.

A．promotes

B．prevents

C．simplifies

D．increases

6.

A．challenge

B．inspiration

C．promise

D．addiction

7.

A．recognize

B．abandon

C．decrease

D．define

8.

A．avoid

B．encourage

C．decline

D．punish

9.

A．pressured

B．respected

C．delighted

D．regretted

10.

A．catch sight of

B．stay away from

C．make fun of

D．keep up with

11.

A．competitions

B．interaction

C．academics

D．adaptation

12.

A．knowledge

B．interest

C．assistance

D．influence

13.

A．abstract

B．ridiculous

C．subtle

D．reasonable

14.

A．consciousness

B．motivation

C．instinct

D．encouragement

15.

A．motivation

B．danger

C．support

D．achievement

3 . Each year, backed up by a growing anti-consumerist movement, people are using the holiday season to call on us all to shop less.

Driven by concerns about resource exhaustion, over recent years environmentalists have increasingly turned their sights on our “consumer culture”. Groups such as The Story of Stuff and Buy Nothing New Day are growing as a movement that increasingly blames all our ills on our desire to shop.

We clearly have a growing resource problem. The produces we make, buy, and use are often linked to the destruction of our waterways, biodiversity, climate and the land on which millions of people live. But to blame these issues on Christmas shoppers is misguided, and puts us in the old trap of blaming individuals for what is a systematic problem.

While we complain about environmental destruction over Christmas, environmentalists often forget what the holiday season actually means for many people. For most, Christmas isn’t an add-on to an already heavy shopping year. In fact, it is likely the only time of year many have the opportunity to spend on friends and family, or even just to buy the necessities needed for modern life.

This is particularly, true for Boxing Day, often the target of the strongest derision(嘲弄) by anti-consumerists. While we may laugh at the queues in front of the shops, for many, those sales provide the one chance to buy items they’ve needed all year. As Leigh Phillips argues, “this is one of the few times of the year that people can even hope to afford such ‘luxuries’, the Christmas presents their kids are asking for, or just an appliance that works.”

Indeed, the richest 7% of people are responsible for 50% of greenhouse gas emissions. This becomes particularly harmful when you take into account that those shopping on Boxing Day are only a small part of our consumption “problem” anyway. Why are environmentalists attacking these individuals, while ignoring such people as Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, who has his own￡1.5bn yacht with a missile defence system?

Anyway, anti-consumerism has become a movement of wealthy people talking down to the working class about their life choices, while ignoring the real cause of our environmental problems. It is no wonder one is changing their behaviours—or that environmental destruction continues without any reduction in intensity.

1. It is indicated in the 1st   paragraph that during the holiday season, many consumers .

A．ignore resource problems

B．are fascinated with presents

C．are encouraged to spend less

D．show great interest in the movement.

2. It can be inferred from Paragraphs 2 and 3 that the environmentalist movement .

A．has targeted the wrong persons

B．has achieved its intended purposes

C．has taken environment-friendly measures

D．has benefited both consumers and producers

3. The example of Roman Abramovich is used to show environmentalists’ .

A．madness about life choices

B．discontent with rich lifestyle

C．ignorance about the real cause

D．disrespect for holiday shoppers

4. It can be concluded from the text that telling people not to shop at Christmas is .

A．anything less than a responsibility	B．nothing more than a bias
C．indicative of environmental awareness	D．unacceptable to ordinary people

4 . Directions: Read the passage carefully. Fill in each blank with a proper sentence given in the box. Each sentence can be used only once. Note that there are two more sentences than you need.

Is Multitasking Always Good?

Not only do smart-phones provide unrestricted access to information, they provide perfect opportunities to multitask. Any activity can be accompanied by music, selfies or social media updates. Of course, some people pick poor times to tweet or text, and lawmakers have steeped in.     1     In Honolulu, it’s illegal to text or even look at your phone while crossing the street, and in the Netherlands they’ve banned texting while biking.

    2     You need to self-regulate. Understanding how the brain multitasks and why we find multitasking so appealing will help you realize the danger or pulling out your phone.

Multitasking feels like doing two things at the same time, so it seems the danger lies in asking one mental process to do two unrelated things — for texting drivers, watching the screen and the road.

Twenty states have instituted bans on driving using a hand-held phone while still allowing hands-free calls. Yet hands-free or hand-held makes no difference.     3     The real problem is the switch of attention between the conversation and road, and that affects performance.

Please sense this, and when on the phone they drive slower and increase their following distance, but they are far too confident that these measures reduce risks. This overconfidence extends to other activities. A 2015 survey showed that a majority of students who use social media, text or watch TV while studying think that they can still comprehend the material they’re studying.

People multitask merely because they see no harm in it; they see benefits.       4     Most people will still choose to multitask. But they should, at the very least , be fully aware of how that choice affects them and the potential consequences for themselves and others. They need to pay attention to how much — or how little — they are paying attention.

A．But legislation(法律) won’t ban all situations in which multitasking is unwise.

B．They multitask for efficiency, to fight boredom or to keep up with social media.

C．Forty-eight states have banned texting while driving.

D．However, texting while biking seems so undemanding as to be harmless.

E．They damage driving equivalently as far as external dangers go.

F．Instead of multitasking, they take more rest breaks and get a social media fix during a break.

5 . Directions: Read the following passage. Summarize the main idea and the main point(s) of the passage in no more than 60 words. Use your own words as far as possible.

The Zeigarnik Effect

Have you ever found yourself thinking about a partially finished project for school or work when you were trying to focus on other things? Or perhaps you wondered what would happen next in your favorite TV show or film series. If you have, you’ve experienced the Zeigarnik effect. You tend to remember unfinished tasks better than finished tasks. Knowledge of the Zeigarnik effect can be put into use in everyday life.

The effect is especially well suited for helping overcome procrastination or delaying an action to a later time. We often put off big tasks that seem overwhelming. However, the Zeigarnik effect suggests that the key to overcoming procrastination is to just get started. The first step could be something small and seemingly insignificant. In fact, it’s probably best if it’s something fairly easy.

The Zeigarnik effect can be useful for students who are studying for an exam. The effect tells us that breaking up study periods can actually improve recall. So instead of cramming for an exam all in one sitting, breaks should be scheduled in which the student focuses on something else. This will cause intrusive（侵入的）thoughts, enabling students to rehearse and consolidate the information that must be remembered, leading to better recall when they take the exam.

The Zeigarnik effect also points to reasons why people may experience mental health problems. If an individual leaves important tasks incomplete, the intrusive thoughts that result can lead to stress, anxiety, difficulty sleeping, and emotional distress. Conversely, completing a task can give an individual a sense of accomplishment and lead to a feeling of closure that can improve psychological well - being.

The Zeigarnik effect can actually be used to positively impact your work productivity.

6 . With the coming of big data age, data science is supposed to be starved for, of which the adaption can point a profound change in corporate competitiveness. Companies, both born in the digital era and traditional world are showing off their skills in data science. Therefore, it seems to have been creating a great demand for the experts of this type.

Mr Carlos Guestrin, machine learning professor from University of Washington argues that all software applications will need in built intelligence within five years, making data scientists-people trained to analyze large bodies of information-key workers in this emerging “cognitive” technology economy. There are already critical applications that depend on machine learning, a subfield of data science, led by recommendation programs, fraud detection systems, forecasting tools and applications for predicting customer behavior.

Many companies that are born digital-particularly internet companies that have a great number of real-time customer interactions to handle-are all-in when it comes to data science. Pinterest, for instance, maintains more than 100 machine learning models that could be applied to different classes of problems, and it constantly fields requests from managers eager to use this resource to deal with their business problem.

The factors weighing on many traditional companies will be the high cost of mounting a serious machine-learning operation. Netflix is estimated to spend $ 150m a year on a single application and the total bill is probably four times that once all its uses of the technology are taken into account.

Another problem for many non-technology companies is talent. Of the computer science experts who use Kaggle, only about 1,000 have deep learning skills, compared to 100,000 who can apply other machine learning techniques, says Mr Goldbloom. He adds that even some big companies of this type are often reluctant to expand their pay scales to hire the top talent in this field.

The biggest barrier to adapting to the coming era of “smart” applications, however, is likely to be cultural. Some companies, such as General Electric, have been building their own

Silicon Valley presence to attract and develop the digital skills they will need.

Despite the obstacles, some may master this difficult transition. But companies that were built, from the beginning, with data science at their center, are likely to represent serious competition.

1. Which one is obstacle for many traditional companies to popularize learning operation?

A．Technological problem

B．Expert crisis

C．High cost

D．Customer interactions

2. What can not be inferred from the passage about the machine learning?

A．Machine learning operations are costly in Netflix.

B．Machine learning plays an important role in existent applications.

C．Machine learning experts are not highly paid in some non-technology companies.

D．Machine learning models are not sufficient to solve business problems in Pinterest.

3. Which of the following is the best title for this article?

A．Data science: A forefront force in tech business

B．Corporate competition: An obstacle to the transition

C．Machine learning: A key to smart technology

D．Technique experts: A decisive factor of the coming era.

4. The underlined word in the paragraph “fields” mostly probably means _______.

A．avoids	B．creates
C．solves	D．classifies

7 . Seek out a Unique Beach

VISIT

Oregon. For sun and fun away from the crowed beaches of Florida, check out the Oregon coast and its 363 miles of gorgeous shoreline, stretching from the Columbia River south to the redwood forests of California. Every beach is public and free. “The coast is a perfect place to watch sea lions sun themselves or simply see the mighty Pacific weaves crash in the sunset followed by a seafood feast in one of the busy fishing communities located between the coves（小海湾）,” says Bramblett. July and August aren’t peak gray whale migration season, but there’s still a good chance you could catch a glimpse of some of the 200 whales that spend the summers off the Oregon coast.

SLEEP

Next to a lighthouse. Imagine yourself an ancient mariner when you book a room overlooking the Pacific Ocean at the Heceta Head Lighthouse Bed and Breakfast in Yachats, Oregon. The working lighthouse, which dated to 1894, cast a bright beam 21 miles out to sea, making it the brightest light on the Oregon coast. The cliff-top rooms at the Light Keeper’s home nearby aren’t cheap-you’ll sell out up to $385 for a weekend night during peak season (price includes a seven-course breakfast).

BEWARE

Dangerous currents Unless you love cold water (or wear a wet suit), you may not wait to venture into the sea off the Oregon coast, even during the summer. But if you do, be prepared for the U.S. Lifesaving Association. Swim parallel to the beach until you’re no longer being pulled out to sea, then swim diagonally（成对角线地）toward the shore.

BRING

Baby powder. Use a generous amount of baby powder to remove sand from your hands, feet or hair. The powder quickly absorbs moisture, allowing sand to fall off easily.

1. It can be inferred from the section SLEEP that______.

A．the price of one night shay remains the same all the year around

B．those who stay there can have a free access to the beach and the lighthouse

C．those who want to stay there have to pay more during a tourist season

D．the price includes the breakfast for seven people

2. What is suggested by the leaflet if you want to enjoy your stay at the beach?

A．Avoid wearing wet suits

B．Never dive into the cold water off the coast

C．Bring baby powder to protect your skin from sand scratches

D．Don’t swim straight toward the shore when there’re dangerous currents

3. Oregon coast will provide you with all the following experiences EXCEPT______.

A．a perfect view of sea lions

B．a mariner like stay in the more than 100-year-old lighthouse

C．a seafood feast in the popular local community

D．sun and fun of the less crowed beach

8 . I was standing in the checkout line behind a woman who looked to be in her 60s. When it was her turn to pay, the cashier greeted her by name and asked her how she was doing.

The woman looked down, shook her head and said, “Not so good. My husband just lost his job and my son is up to his old tricks again. The truth is, I don’t know how I’m going to get through the holidays.”

Then she gave the shop owner the food stamps(食品券).

My heart ached. I wanted to help but didn’t know how. Should I offer to pay for her groceries, ask for her husband’s resume?

As I walked into the parking lot, I spotted the woman returning her shopping cart. I remembered something in my purse that I thought could help her. It wasn’t a handful of cash or an offer of a job for her husband, but maybe it would make her life better.

My heart pounded as I approached the woman.

“Excuse me,” I said, my voice trembling a bit,“I couldn’t help overhearing what you said to the cashier. It sounds like you’re going through a really hard time right now. I’m so sorry. I’d like to give you something.”

I handed her the small card from my purse.

When the woman read the card’s only two words, she began to cry. And through her tears, she said, “You have no idea how much this means to me.”

I was a little startled by her reply. Having never done anything like this before, I didn’t know what kind of reaction I might receive. All I could think to say was, “Oh my. Would it be OK to give you a hug?”

After that, I walked back to my car and began to cry too.

The words on the card?

“You Matter.”

A few weeks earlier, a colleague gave me a similar card as encouragement for a project I was working on. When I read the card, I felt a warm glow spread inside of me. Deeply touched, I came home and ordered my own box of You Matter cards and started sharing them.

1. Which of the following is TRUE according to the first three paragraphs?

A．The woman’s family mainly depends on her son.

B．The cashier helped the woman by giving her some food for free.

C．The woman and her family were having a tough lime

D．The author wondered why the cashier was familiar with the woman.

2. The woman cried when she got the card, probably because______.

A．it greatly encouraged her

B．she could use it to buy food

C．it could solve her present problem

D．it could land her husband a job

3. The underlined word “startled” in Paragraph 10 probably means______.

A．interested

B．grateful

C．ashamed

D．astonished

4. From the article, we can tell that the author is a______person.

A．smart

B．kind-hearted

C．knowledgeable

D．confident

9 . Directions:Read the following passage. Summarize in no more than 60 words the main idea of the passage and how it is illustrated. Use your own words as far as possible.

According to an official report on youth violence.“In our country today, the greatest threat to the lives of children and adolescents is not disease or starvation or abandonment, but the terrible reality of violence.”Given that this is the case, why aren’t students taught to manage conflict the way they are taught to solve math problems, drive cars, or stay physically fit?

First of all, students need to realize that conflict is unavoidable. It is reported that most violent incidents between students begin with a relatively minor insult. For example, a fight could start over the fact that one student eats a peanut butter sandwich each lunchtime. Laughter over the sandwich can lead to insults, which in turn can lead to violence.

If the conflict occurs, students can practice the golden rule of conflict resolution: stay calm.

Once the student feels calmer. Once the student feels calmer. He or she should choose words that will calm the other person down as well. Rude words and accusations only add fuel to the emotional fire while soft words can put out the fire before it explodes out of control.

After that, they can use another key strategy for conflict resolution. Listening allows the two sides to understand each other. One person should describe his or her side: and the other person should listen without interrupting. Afterwards, the listener can ask non-threatening questions to clarify the speaker’s position. Then the two people should change roles.

Finally, students need to consider what they are hearing. An argument doesn’t mean trying to figure out the fault of the other person but means understanding what the real issue is. As the issue becomes clearer, the conflict often simply becomes smaller.(280 words)

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

10 . Directions: Read the following passage carefully. Fill in each blank with a proper sentence given in the box. Each sentence can be used only once .Note that there are two more sentences than you need.

The latest research suggests that the key factor separating geniuses from the merely accomplished is not IQ, a generally bad predictor' of success.     1     Top performers spend more hours practising their craft. If you wanted to picture how a typical genius might develop, you'd take a girl who possessed a slightly above average language ability. It wouldn’t have to be a big talent, just enough so that she might gain some sense of distinction. Then you would want her to meet, say, a novelist, who coincidentally some similar qualities. Maybe the writer was from the same town, had the same family background, or shared the same birthday.

    2     It would give her some idea of a fascinating circle she might someday join. It would also help if one of her parents died when she was 12, giving her a strong sense of insecurity and fuelling a desperate need for success, Armed with this ambition, she would read novels and life stories of writers without end. This would give her a primary knowledge of her field. She’d able to see new writing in deeper ways and quickly understand its inner workings.

Then she would practise writing. Her practice would be slow, painstaking and error focused. By practising in this way, she delays the automatizing process. Her mind wants to turn conscious, newly learned skills into unconscious, automatically performed skills. By practising slowly, by breaking skills down into tiny parts and repealing, she forces the brain to internalize a better pattern of performance. Then she would find an adviser who would provide a constant stream of feedback, viewing her performance from the outside, correcting the smallest errors, pushing her to take on tougher challenges. By now she is redoing problems-how do I get characters into a room-dozens and dozens of times.     3    

The primary quality our young writer possesses is not some mysterious genius. It's the ability to develop a purposeful, laborious and boring practice routine. The latest research takes some of the magic out of great achievement. But it underlines a fact that is often neglected. Public discussion is affected by genetics and what we're "hardwired" to do. And it's true that genes play a role in our capabilities.     4     We construct ourselves through behaviour.

A．But the brain is also very plastic.

B．Most importantly, geniuses all seem to have a mission beyond their individual identity

C．She is establishing habits of thought she can call upon in order to understand or solve future problems.

D．Practicing ambitiously would be a driving force of women approaching the success.

E．This contact would give the girl a vision of her future self.

F．Instead, it's deliberate practice.