1 . In a recent email to an old friend, I mentioned that our family planned on taking our four-week road trip in our motor home. My friend emailed back and said he thought I was very “brave” to set out on such an adventure with two young children (aged two and five). I laughed when I read his email and wondered if he knew how much he was missing out on by giving up the idea of such a fun RV (旅行房车) trip with one5s family.
My husband and I have been “RVing” for over ten years. When we first started traveling, we certainly had some troubles that were not so funny at the time but seem to be funny now. We forgot our pillows and failed to cook dinner on an outdoor grill for lack of a flashlight. Then we decided to make our dinner in the motor home but could not get the oven lit! So we went to bed a little hungrier than we had planned!
However, that’s nothing compared with the amazing natural wonders we experienced during our RV trips. In addition, we have discovered a new world of family fun and family bonding. We saw the Grand Canyon when our son was only six months old. We play games inside and : out, walk together, talk together, read, solve puzzles, and enjoy music and movies. We have got used to doing things with one another. Our kids love to pick out good, old-fashioned postcards to send off via snail mail to different family members on every trip.
As our world gets more and more overloaded with cell phones, texting, emails and video games, our family sticks more and more tightly to the wonderfully simple idea of unplugging electronic devices for a while and jumping into the seat to take a trip in our motor home. Then we come home with fun pictures of our wandering, and we’re able to build special memories for our kids. Now we want to spread the word and tell families of all kinds what enjoyment can be had from packing up for a trip in the RV.
1. What did the author’s old friend think of her travel plan?A.A family trip should not last for too long. |
B.A family RV trip might bring unexpected troubles. |
C.It was wise of her to let children experience RV trips. |
D.It was a good opportunity to teach children to be brave. |
A.It was a pleasant experience. | B.It was ruined by bad weather. |
C.They didn’t prepare well for it. | D.They lost many things during it. |
A.They learnt how to solve problems. | B.They built a closer family relationship. |
C.They developed a great love for nature. | D.They fell in love with adventure travels. |
A.To show how to make RV trips interesting. |
B.To encourage kids to take part in RV trips. |
C.To advise families to take RV trips together. |
D.To share an unforgettable traveling experience. |
2 . A One-woman Cinderella Show Is Coming to Fairfield
A one-woman show that reimagines the classic fairytale Cinderella is coming to the Fairfield Community Arts Center. The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati will present Cinderella Wore Cowboy Boots for one night only on Jan.26. The traveling show is for children ages 4 and up and promises “knee-slapping” comedic moments and heartwarming life lessons.
“I love children's theatre,” says Rosvic Siason, who plays Cinderella. “Kids are our future and we introduce them to these stories. We all have situations at one point in our life that look like this conversation. It just kind of helps you develop your brain and learn how to think as a developing person. It’s really important to expose kids to theatre and well-rounded actors they can talk to for guidance.”
These one-man, one-woman shows have so much beauty because it is very raw. People actually follow along much easier than you think. It’s easy to share a feeling. They will be expected to interact, deliver lines and repeat after Cinderella throughout the production. Cinderella Wore Cowboy Boots will deliver a funny, meaningful twist on the classic fairytale that encourages audiences to expand their imagination.
“Using imagination helps kids to think of things in more ways than one,” Siason says. “It opens them up and makes them think, ‘Hey, this is one way this could work.’ Or, ‘I could try this way,’ and then see what happens.”
Visit fairfield-city. org for tickets and more information.
1. What is Cinderella Wore Cowboy Boots?A.A book. | B.A theatre. | C.A performance. | D.A lesson. |
A.offer temporary amusement | B.help deal with life’s challenges |
C.allow individuals to avoid reality | D.provide opportunities to make friends |
A.Stick to the rules. | B.Dare to dream big. |
C.Always follow the crowd. | D.Think outside the box. |
这里有一些建议可以帮助你适应新生活,我想这些建议不会让你失望。努力工作。做好分内的事是你的责任。在工作的时候,试着比以前更独立。要乐于助人,友好待人。关心他人对你来说很重要。当他们有困难时,你最好设法帮助他们。永远记住,祸从口出。如果你无意中说了让别人生气的话,你必须向他们道歉,并尽快请求他们原谅你。
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7 . When looking for some vacation ideas to spread out and get some time and space to yourself, check out these great resorts (度假胜地) options.
Hyatt Ziva Cap CanaLocated in Punta Cana, this family-friendly vacation at an all-inclusive resort offers something for everyone in your party. Parents can enjoy relaxing by one of the resort’s swim-up bars in an infinity pool or head out for some deep-sea fishing. Kids, meanwhile, can head over to the kids’ club for a number of activities. Plus, all of the drinks and food across the 14 restaurants and bars is included.
Beaches Turks & CaicosThis resort has become the Caribbean’s popular go-to when it comes to all-inclusive family vacations that provide great value since there’s so much to do for guests of all ages. There’s a 45,000-square-foot water park, 24 restaurants, unlimited PADI-certified scuba diving and water sports, a 12-mile beach, a spa, 10 pools—whew!
The Alisal Guest RanchIf you live in the city and want to get back to nature, this luxury farm over nearly 11,000 acres in California’s Santa Ynez Valley is a perfect fit for a family. All that wide-open space means activities like horseback riding, scenic cycling, hiking, fishing, kayaking and, for the body-and-spirit-minded traveler in your group, yoga.
Montage Palmetto BluffThe 20,000-acre community includes a nature preserve with walking trails, but the real stars of the show here are the over 300 species of birds. The resort’s resident naturalist takes families on walks to Bird Island, sharing a history of the area. Plus, kids will love the kayak tours that get up close to the dolphins that live there year-round.
1. Which attracts those interested in horseback-riding?A.Hyatt Ziva Cap Cana. | B.Beaches Turks & Caicos. |
C.Montage Palmetto Bluff. | D.The Alisal Guest Ranch. |
A.They promise good food services. | B.They include various kids’ clubs. |
C.They provide parent-child activities. | D.They have large historic buildings. |
A.To organize some family parties. | B.To highlight some tourist resorts. |
C.To introduce some nature reserves. | D.To stimulate some domestic needs. |
With a history of more than 2,000 years, the Silk Route dates back to Han dynasty. Through this route, the Chinese highly
That route functioned
Throughout all these years, many great figures have made great
9 . In today’s digital era, social media users are increasingly coming across fake news online. This leads to the pressing issue: What causes people to fall for misinformation on the Internet?
According to researchers at the Penn State College of Information Sciences and Technology, users can easily fall into an echo chamber (回声室)—a sort of virtual space where users consume only one-sided news, eventually distrusting any opposing views. “We all tend to agree with the group opinion. Hence, people naturally get together with others who hold the same opinion,” said Dongwon Lee, one of the researchers. “But if you’re not cautious, there is a high risk of falling into an echo chamber.”
To prevent this phenomenon, the researchers have crafted a novel tool, a game named ChamberBreaker, to help players resist echo chambers and reduce the rate of fake news spread. The fundamental approach employed by ChamberBreaker centers around a decision-making procedure that mirrors the creation of echo chambers. In ChamberBreaker, a player is tasked with trying to have community members fall into an echo chamber. To begin, the player is randomly assigned a situation that focuses on a health, political or environmental issue, and is presented with six pieces of news on that topic. Then, the player selects news that could cause the other members to fall into an echo chamber while at the same time maintaining their trust. If successful, the community members will fall into an echo chamber and the player will witness the resulting negative effects on the community.
After developing ChamberBreaker, researchers tested it with over 800 subjects to see if it raised awareness of echo chambers and changed news consumption behaviors. The researchers found that those who played ChamberBreaker were significantly more likely to state their intention to observe online information from more diverse perspectives and showed an increased awareness of the echo chamber phenomenon.
Ultimately, the researchers hope that their methodology can excite a greater interest in the scientific and scholarly study related to information consumption. The application of tools like ChamberBreaker, which focuses on fostering analytical reasoning, may lead us towards a more informed online community.
1. What can be learned about an online echo chamber?A.It encourages well-judged views. |
B.It gathers like-minded individuals. |
C.It functions as a virtual reality platform. |
D.It serves as a tool for identifying fake information. |
A.Assignment of situations. | B.Trust-building exercises. |
C.News selection strategy. | D.Community impact assessment. |
A.The results of scientific testing. |
B.The theoretical framework of the game. |
C.The description of the game procedures. |
D.The common challenges faced during gameplay. |
A.Reducing news inquiry. | B.Encouraging passive reading. |
C.Strengthening prejudiced views. | D.Enhancing critical thinking. |
10 . This question has fascinated behavioural scientists for decades: why do we give money to charity?
The explanations for charitable giving fall into three broad categories, from the purely altruisic (利他的)— I donate because I value the social good done by the charity. The “impurely” altruistic— I donate because I extract value from knowing I contribute to the social good for the charity. And the not-at-all altruistic— I donate because I want to show off to potential mates how rich I am.
But are these motives strong enough to enable people to donate as much as they would want to? Most people support charities in one way or another, but often we struggle to make donations as often as we think we should. Although many people would like to leave a gift to charity in their will, they forget about it when the time comes.
Many people are also aware that they should donate to the causes that have the highest impact, but facts and figures are less attractive than narratives. In a series of experiments, it was found that people are much more responsive to charitable pleas that feature a single, identifiable beneficiary(受益者), than they are to statistical information about the scale of the problem being faced. When it comes to charitable giving, we are often ruled by our hearts and not our heads.
The good news is that charitable giving is contagious—seeing others give makes an individual more likely to give and gentle encouragement from an important person in your life can also make a big difference to your donation decisions— more than quadrupling them in our recent study. Habit also plays a part— in three recent experiments those who volunteered before were more likely to do donate their time than those who had not volunteered before.
In summary, behavioural science identifies a range of factors that influence our donations, and can help us to keep giving in the longer term. This is great news not just for charities, but also for donors.
1. What can we learn about people who do charitable giving?A.Most people support charity as often as they think they should. |
B.Some people don’t want to leave a gift to charity until the time comes. |
C.Those who donate because they can gain an advantage are purely altruistic. |
D.Some people send money to charity simply to tell others they are wealthy. |
A.Not revealing the names of the donors. |
B.Showing figures about the seriousness of the problem. |
C.Telling stories that feature a single, recognizable beneficiary. |
D.Reminding people to write down what to donate in the will in advance. |
A.People will learn from others and follow the suit. |
B.Many people are familiar with charitable giving. |
C.Charitable giving helps the beneficiary in all aspects. |
D.Charitable giving can bring a lot of benefits to donors. |
A.To persuade more people to donate. |
B.To explain the science behind why people donate. |
C.To criticize some false charitable giving behaviours. |
D.To explore approaches to making people donate more. |