A MOTHER’S DAY SURPRISE
The twins were filled with excitement as they thought of the surprise they were planning for Mother’s Day. How pleased and proud Mother would be when they brought her breakfast in bed. They planned to make French toast and chicken porridge. They had watched their mother in the kitchen. There was nothing to it. Jenna and Jeff knew exactly what to do.
The big day came at last. The alarm rang at 6 a.m. The pair went down the stairs quietly to the kitchen. They decided to boil the porridge first. They put some rice into a pot of water and left it to boil while they made the French toast. Jeff broke two eggs into a plate and added in some milk. Jenna found the bread and put two slices into the egg mixture. Next, Jeff turned on the second stove burner to heat up the frying pan. Everything was going smoothly until Jeff started frying the bread. The pan was too hot and the bread turned black within seconds. Jenna threw the burnt piece into the sink and put in the other slice of bread. This time, she turned down the fire so it cooked nicely.
Then Jeff noticed steam shooting out of the pot and the lid starting to shake. The next minute, the porridge boiled over and put out the fire. Jenna panicked. Thankfully, Jeff stayed calm and turned off the gas quickly. But the stove was a mess now. Jenna told Jeff to clean it up so they could continue to cook the rest of the porridge. But Jeff’s hand touched the hot burner and he gave a cry of pain. Jenna made him put his hand in cold water. Then she caught the smell of burning. Oh dear! The piece of bread in the pan had turned black as well.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右。2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
As the twins looked around them in disappointment, their father appeared.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The twins carried the breakfast upstairs and woke their mother up.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The Xi’an City Wall is the most complete city wall that has survived China’s long history. It
We accessed the wall through the South Gate. The wall is 12 meters high and from here you can see streams of people moving inside and outside the City Wall.
After
We
3 . The benefits of regular exercise are well documented but there’s a new bonus to add to the ever-growing list. New researchers found that middle-aged women who were physically fit could be nearly 90 percent less likely to develop dementia in later life, and as they did, it came on a decade later than less sporty women.
Lead researcher Dr. Helena Horder, of the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, said : "These findings are exciting because it’s possible that improving people's cardiovascular （心血管的）fitness in middle age could delay or even prevent them from developing dementia. "
For the study, 191 women with an average age of 50 took a bicycle exercise test until they were exhausted to measure their peak （最大值的） cardiovascular capacity. The average peak workload was measured at 103 watts.
A total of 40 women met the criteria for a high fitness level, or 120 watts or higher. A total of 92 women were in the medium fitness category; and 59 women were in the low fitness category, defined as a peak workload of 80 watts or less, or having their exercise tests stopped because of high blood pressure, chest pain or other cardiovascular problems.
These women were then tested for dementia six times over the following four decades. During that time, 44 of the women developed dementia. Five percent of the highly fit women developed dementia, compared to 25 percent of the women with medium fitness and 32 percent of the women with low fitness.
"However, this study does not show cause and effect between cardiovascular fitness and dementia, it only shows an association. More research is needed to see if improved fitness could have a positive effect on the risk of dementia and also to look at when during a lifetime a high fitness level is most important. " She also admitted that a relatively small number of women were studied, all of whom were form Sweden, so the results might not be applicable to other groups.
1. What is on the ever-growing list mentioned in the first paragraph?| A．Positive effects of doing exercises. |
| B．Exercises suitable for the middle-aged. |
| C．Experimental studies on diseases. |
| D．Advantages of sporty woman over man |
| A．To predict their maximum heart rate. |
| B．To assess their cardiovascular capacity |
| C．To change their habits of working out |
| D．To detect their potential health problems |
| A．It aimed to find a cure for dementia. |
| B．Data collection was a lengthy process. |
| C．Some participants withdrew from it. |
| D．The results were far from satisfactory. |
| A．More Women Are Exercising to Prevent Dementia |
| B．Middle-Aged Women Need to Do More Exercise |
| C．Fit Women Are Less Likely to Develop Dementia |
| D．Biking Improves Women's Cardiovascular Fitness |
4 . Are you relatively skinny but growing a “beer belly”?
Then don’t be surprised at your next checkup if the nurse measures your waistline to determine your healthy weight. That’s because research is showing that a protruding (鼓出的) belly may be a sign of VAT — a dangerous form of fat around organs deep inside your body. “Studies confirm that visceral (内脏的) fat is a clear health risk,” said Dr. Tiffany Wiley, a senior expert at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. Unlike the fat just under your skin, visceral fat raises your risk for heart disease. Experts think that’s because visceral fat raises blood pressure and inflames (使发炎) tissues and organs.
However, you can’t assume you’re safe from visceral fat if your overall weight is healthy, experts stress. That’s because you can have dangerous visceral fat even if you’re not considered overweight — and not have any visceral fat even if you are overweight.
How do you know if your stomach is protruding into dangerous size? Do a check. Non-pregnant women with a waist size greater than 88 cm and men with a waist larger than 102 cm, are at higher risk according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. If you’re Asian, it drops to 80 cm for women and 90 cm for men. But it is only a rough measure. “The only sure way to know is to check your visceral fat levels on a CT scan or MRI,” say experts.
According to the AHA committee, the most salutary physical activity to “shrink” belly is aerobic exercise. Aerobic means “with oxygen”, so aerobic exercise increases your breathing rate and promotes the circulation of oxygen through the blood. This type of exercise makes the heart work more effectively and improves its ability to move oxygen-carrying blood with every beat. Speed walking, jogging, stair climbing, cycling and swimming are all examples of aerobic exercise.
“However, more studies are needed to determine the best physical activity, food and other lifestyle changes to reduce heart disease risk,” Dr. Tiffany Wiley added.
1. What would a “beer belly” cause?| A．Enlarged organs inside the body. | B．Higher risk of heart disease. |
| C．Raised mental pressure. | D．Inflamed stomach. |
| A．A white man with a waist size of 120 cm. |
| B．A white woman with a waist size of 90 cm. |
| C．An Asian man with a waist size of 102 cm. |
| D．An Asian woman with a waist size of 75 cm. |
| A．Beneficial. | B．Difficult. | C．Enthusiastic. | D．Useless. |
| A．Doing aerobic exercise can remove visceral fat completely. |
| B．Heart ability improves when one does speed walking. |
| C．Further studies are needed to reduce heart disease risk. |
| D．Food and life style determine one’s body shape. |
A group of musicians from China, Germany and Switzerland joined hands in a special concert to celebrate the 100-day countdown to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. The event, also known as China Media Group(CMG) China-Europe Music Festival,
It’s part of a program of special events running up to the Winter Olympics, which will begin on February 4, 2022. Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC),
The concert
Bach added, “The beautiful performances by this talented group of international artists show that inspirational moments are possible when we are dreaming together. This is
CMG President Shen Haixiong said, “Sport and music are the common language of all mankind. Artists from different countries perform wonderfully
6 . Keeping curious kids from disrupting wildlife
Interacting with the wild, naturally curious kids tend to collect seashells at the beach or keep small wildlife as pets.
Take an interest, not things. Kids show interest in picking flowers, rocks, or shells outdoors. They’re part of wildlife's habitat and play an important role.
Admire animal afar, not disrupt nearby. The urge to take a photo with a squirrel, bird, or slow-moving turtle can be strong for kids.
Take well-worn paths, not off-road romps (嬉戏). Kicking piles of leaves, stepping on bushes, and walking through forested areas can unintentionally scare wildlife. If surprised animals defend their homes, everyone could get hurt. Nobody likes having a guest come in and destroy their home and act rudely.
| A．Keep snacks away from animals. |
| B．Share food if animals are hungry. |
| C．Exposure to them develops kids’ love and curiosity. |
| D．The same rule applies to visiting wildlife in their homes. |
| E．Animals rely on plants for hiding; rocks and shells, for homes. |
| F．Approaching animals disrupts what they do for survival, such as eating. |
| G．Despite innocent purposes, kids’ curiosity accidentally damages the wild. |
7 . Are you looking for some informative magazines? The following ones can surely meet your needs.
Mental Foss is a magazine full of bite-sized（small bits） trivia（琐事）and mostly short articles with really interesting facts that you'll want to share with others. The writing is fun and friendly, so it’s easy to understand the answers to the more difficult questions, like: What does outer space smell like? Why isn't cat food mouse-flavored? While the print edition of the magazine stopped publishing in 2016, you can still read Mental Floss online.
Reader's Digest is not actually about books reading. Instead, it is about people. Inside you'll find anecdotes—short, personal articles about things that have happened to people. There are stories in simple writing about everything from funny celebrity moments and inspiring personal store to funny jokes and articles.
Cricket and Cicada are easy-to-read literary magazines aimed at teenagers. Each issue is full of wonderful short stories and poems, and beautiful illustrations. Even though these are technically children's magazines, they are perfect for learning English because they have high quality writing.
Time is one of the most well-known magazines in the world. Inside you'll find news, beautiful photographs and everything you need to get a" deeper understanding of the world in which we live. "Since Time is very high quality and provides deep insight on many serious topics, it can also be difficult for English learners to read. If you have trouble understanding Time, try Time For Kids, which has similarly great content but is written in a simpler way.
1. What can readers obtain from Mental Floss?| A．They can be inspired by the comments on the magazine. |
| B．They can understand some tough facts in a funny way. |
| C．They can enjoy a variety of eye-catching pictures. |
| D．They can have a deep understanding about the current events. |
| A．The language is easy and friendly to readers. |
| B．The articles are mostly adapted from books. |
| C．The stories are all based on private experiences. |
| D．The topics are serious and difficult to comprehend. |
| A．It's of great help for English beginners. |
| B．It has two editions for readers to choose from. |
| C．People can have an access to it online. |
| D．It is perfect for teenagers who love anecdotes. |
8 . Ellie was a skilled gymnast（体操运动员）. But she liked showing off（炫耀））. At the gymnastics tryout（选拔赛）, she put on a perfect performance. "See who can do that! " she said proudly.
The next Friday, the list was posted announcing who had made the team. Ellie's name wasn't on it. "It's unfair. I'm better than all the other girls! " she said. She went to see the coach.
"You are quite talented, but your attitude is terrible, " the coach said. "Making the gymnastics team isn't just about gymnastics. It's also about being on a team. " That night Ellie complained to her parents. Her mother was angry, but her father said that the coach had a point. They had a big argument. Ellie couldn't sleep. She kept thinking about what the coach had said.
Ellie couldn't stay away from the gym, so she practiced alone. One day, after watching Ann fall off the parallel bars（双杠）again and again, Ellie ran to her and explained to Ann what she was doing wrong. Ann did as Ellie suggested and improved. Ellie didn't notice the coach was looking at her. Over the next few months, Ellie always helped the other girls. They did better and better. "We couldn't have done this without Ellie's help, " the girls said.
The following year, Ellie tried out for the gymnastics team again. This time, she was modest. When the girls praised her, she just smiled and thanked them. When the coach posted the list of who had made the team, her name was on it. Ellie and the other girls were all very happy.
1. How did Ellie feel when she went to see the coach?| A．Angry. | B．Happy. | C．Proud. | D．Nervous. |
| A．she slept too much in the afternoon |
| B．she had an argument with her mother |
| C．she was worried about the gymnastics tryout |
| D．she was thinking about the meanings of the coach's words |
①Ellie practiced alone. ②Ellie's parents argued.
③Ellie coached other girls. ④Ellie showed off at the gymnastics tryout.
| A．③①④② | B．③④②① | C．④②①③ | D．④①③② |
| A．A serious coach | B．A gymnastics team | C．Gymnastics tryouts | D．Gymnastics competitions |
Last week, a grand ceremony paying respect to Huangdi,
The ceremony,
The
Peru, a county
If you are to visit Peru, you may consider spending a day or two
