1 . It’s breathtaking to watch the delicate spring wildflowers come out from their blanket of leaves, bloom, develop and disperse (传播) fruit, all in a matter of a few short days or weeks.
Although they look fragile, these are tough little plants, each focusing its efforts on spreading its species. They have evolved to have a wide range of flower structures and colors, some with fragrances, attracting many different insect species to assist them in pollination (授粉).
There is one strategy that a surprising number of spring blooming native plants have evolved in common: seed dispersal by ants. As many as thirty percent of the spring flowering plant species in the forests of eastern North America have evolved to take advantage of this situation to benefit themselves. These species have evolved to provide food attached to their seeds to encourage ants to disperse those seeds. This food, called an elaiosome (油质体), is a specialized fat body whose chemical composition more closely matches that of the insects that ants prefer than it does that of a seed.
When a fruit opens to disperse its seeds, the elaiosomes are an instant attraction for ants. They take the seed with its attached elaiosome back to their nests for consumption there, but they just eat the elaiosome, their preferred food, and dispose of the seed on their trash pile. This tends to be an environment that is rich in nutrients, and will benefit the growth of the new plant. Just to make sure the ants don’t eat the seeds in addition to the elaiosome, some plant species have hard seed coatings that ants can’t really bite through.
This evolutionary adaptation is somewhat similar to the strategy of plants that have evolved to surround their seeds with fleshy fruits to attract birds to assist them with seed dispersal. Given the fact that there are fewer birds available in early spring to help with seed dispersal, it makes sense that the early blooming plants evolved to partner instead with the ants for this service.
Did you ever wonder how your Spring Beauty managed to pop up in new locations in your lawn or garden? Thank an ant!
1. What’s the ultimate purpose of the evolution of wildflowers according to the text?| A．To attract insects. | B．To progress blooming. |
| C．To produce elaiosome. | D．To spread their species. |
| A．It’s hard to digest. | B．It’s impossible for ants to resist. |
| C．It makes the earth rich in nutrients. | D．It’s often thrown into the trash pile. |
| A．Ants are creative and hardworking. | B．Ants are better at dispersing than birds. |
| C．The birds in the early spring are not enough. | D．The birds are not interested in their fleshy fruits. |
| A．Thank Ants for Wildflowers | B．Wildflowers Discover Their Treasures |
| C．New Species of Wildflowers are Found | D．Ants Are Superheroes Protecting Environment |
On Sept. 7, famous Chinese archaeologist Fan Jinshi, 85,
After over 30 years of
1. 自我情况介绍；
2. 告之自己的生活习惯；
3. 询问注意事项。
注意：
1. 词数80左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Peter,
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Your,
Lihua
The Xishuangbanna Wild Elephant Valley is China’s first national theme park for the animal. The valley including a museum claims to be the only place
“We do not keep elephants behind iron fences
It was just another boring day for Jamie, a third-grader. He sat in his English class, mindlessly doodling on his notebook.
“Jamie Turner, please report to the principal’s office immediately.”
Jamie’s heart sank. With his mind racing, Jamie grabbed his backpack and made the long walk down the hallway to the principal’s office, avoiding eye contact with fellow students. As he walked, he searched his brain for any possible explanations for why he was being called.
Jamie finally reached the principal’s office. He took a deep breath and pushed it open, bracing himself for the worst.
To his surprise, he found the principal, Mr. Harrison who was wearing a giant yellow chicken hat on his head, standing on his desk and waving his arms as if he were trying to fly!
Jamie’s mouth fell open at the sight, too stunned to speak.
“Jamie, sit down,” Mr. Harrison exclaimed, gesturing him to take a seat. “I’ve called you here because we’ve been having some complaints about your behavior. You’ve been… too funny.”
Jamie’s jaw dropped further. Was that really the reason he was called to the principal’s office?
The principal continued, his tone serious, “Now, we take our education very seriously here, and while we appreciate a good sense of humor, we have to draw the line somewhere. We cannot have students disturbing the learning environment with their… their humor.”
Jamie couldn’t help it—he burst out laughing, doubling over in his seat as he gasped for breath.
Finally, Jamie managed to compose himself enough to speak. “I’m sorry, sir, it’s just… I can’t stop laughing at the thought of getting in trouble for laughing… and your hat! It’s ridiculous!”
The principal frowned, “Well, I’m glad you find it funny. But your teachers don’t.”
Jamie nodded seriously, trying to contain his laughter. “I understand, sir. I’ll be less funny in class.” “Um, Mr. Harrison, why are you wearing a chicken hat?” Jamie asked, unable to contain his curiosity.
“Oh, today is Animal Day for the first-graders.” Mr. Harrisjon grinned.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________“Really, Mr. Harrison? You think I’m that good for the upcoming school Comedy Festival?” Jamie asked.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________6 . This summer, climate change continues to push Earth’s weather to extremes.
Protect your skin — it’s the body’s cooling system. Your skin and related tissues are incredibly designed to move warm blood away from your core to keep your vital organs cool. Any damage to your skin or the underlying tissue prevents your body from being able to air condition itself. To protect your skin, start with sunscreen.
Wear materials that will help your body breathe.
Hydrate before, during and after exercise. Dehydration can really happen to you.
| A．Don’t eat right before you head out. |
| B．Try more heat-friendly forms of exercise. |
| C．The type of suitable clothing you wear can also help you stay cool. |
| D．But high outside temperatures in a dry climate can also be dangerous. |
| E．Is a daytime run or bike ride in hot summer weather OK for our bodies? |
| F．And consider wearing sun-protective clothing that blocks the sun, and include a hat. |
| G．Make sure you are drinking water at least an hour before you head out to exercise. |
7 . Twenty-five years ago, we were on a family vacation, driving to see family in New York State. Mom and Dad, probably looking for ways to keep their two young kids busy, borrowed a sign about fifteen inches long and three inches high. On one side of the sign was painted “Smile” and on the other side “Thanks”. The sign got a lot of use on the trip. One of us would hold up the sign, so a car behind us could read “Smile”. If they did, we turned the sign over and they got the reward of “Thanks”.
The smile lesson is important, but no more so than the other side, the thanks! Playing this driving game was one of the many ways my parents taught me the importance and value of gratitude, most easily expressed with a simple thank you.
The story goes that a farmer took some of his corn to the State Fair and won the blue ribbon, for the best corn. A reporter asked him what he was going to do with the prized ears of grain he was holding. He said that he would share the seed with his neighbors. The reporter was surprised and asked, “Why would you want to do that?” The farmer calmly answered: “Don’t you know? The wind picks up pollen (花粉) from the ripening corn and blows it from field to field. If my neighbors grow inferior corn, cross-pollination will steadily worsen the quality of my corn. If I am to grow good corn, I must help my neighbors grow good corn.”
So it is with smiling. You are the wind. You can produce smiling faces by spreading your pollen. The cost to you is slight, but the fruits of your pollen will be felt all around.
1. What is the purpose of the author’s family trip 25 years ago?| A．To influence others in a fun way. | B．To play a driving game together. |
| C．To drive to another city to visit family. | D．To go on a family vacation on the road. |
| A．To keep them fit. | B．To teach them a lesson. |
| C．To gain people’s gratitude. | D．To make other drivers laugh. |
| A．the importance of passing kindness | B．the necessity to keep good relationship |
| C．the significance of expressing gratitude | D．the pleasure of sharing with other people |
| A．The influence of smiles. | B．The work you are doing. |
| C．The reason for your smiles. | D．The people you smile at. |
8 . The Florida Aquarium (Meets animal welfare guidelines)
Open hours: 9:30 AM — 5:00 PM
The Florida Aquarium is an educational and fun-filled wonderland, home to thousands of animals and plants. Kids will especially enjoy wearing a wetsuit to walk among the underwater inhabitants and explore coral caves. It’s an immersive learning journey for the whole family. Ticket prices vary based on several factors including weather, day of week, holidays, local events and attendance patterns. Click here for more information.
Monterey Bay Aquarium (Meets animal welfare guidelines)
Open hours: 10:00 AM — 5:00 PM (Tuesday — Friday); 10:00 AM — 6:00 PM (Saturday — Sunday)
Located by the oceanfront, the Monterey Bay Aquarium offers a window into the rich marine life of the area with over 200 exhibits and 80,000 plants and animals on display. Here, you can see leopard sharks weave through kelp forests at one of the tallest aquarium exhibits in the world, sardines swimming past a 90-foot aquarium window, and cute sea otters frolicking.
Tickets are only available online so be sure to book before you go.
Admission: Adult (ages 18 — 69) $59.95; Youth $49.95 (ages 13 — 17); Child $44.95 (ages 5 — 12) Four and under free; Senior $49.95 (ages 70+).
Tennessee Aquarium (Meets animal welfare guidelines)
Open hours: 10:00 AM — 5:00 PM (Sunday — Friday); 9:00 AM — 5:00 PM (Saturday)
This aquarium has two buildings: River Journey, which showcases freshwater habitats from around the globe, and Ocean Journey, where travelers can view magnificent sea creatures. We recommend spending at least three hours at the aquarium as there are over 10,000 animals here. Weekends are the busiest, so consider visiting on a weekday for a quieter and more intimate experience. There’s timed entry to the aquarium, so plan ahead when booking your tickets.
Admission: Adult $39.95; Youth (Ages 5 — 17) $29.95
1. What do the three aquariums have in common?| A．They never abuse animals. | B．They offer underwater activities. |
| C．Tickets are only available online. | D．Ticket prices vary based on visitors’ ages. |
| A．8:00 AM — 10:00AM, Tuesday. | B．4:00 PM — 6:00 PM, Thursday. |
| C．2:00 PM — 5:00 PM, Friday. | D．9:00 AM — 12:00 AM, Saturday. |
| A．A geography textbook. | B．A travel website. |
| C．A trade journal. | D．An animal encyclopedia. |
9 . Conflict in communities is usually about the task or the person. Of course, sometimes it’s hard to separate one from the other.
Task conflict happens when people have different ideas of what needs to be done. It points to potential differences in opinion about everything you can imagine that is essential for a group: mission, priorities of tasks, compensation mechanism (机制), decision-making mechanisms, etc. Task conflict is not a problem when people realize the source of the conflict is the task and not the people. Community members must resolve tension inclusively with everyone’s voice being heard and acknowledged. However, this does not mean that the solution must include everyone’s opinion. After the conversation, everyone should feel that they had a fair chance to express their opinion and that it was taken seriously by others and not brushed aside.
Conflict between people is tricky because it’s attacking a person’s essence and self-worth. Often this form of conflict, relationship conflict, happens when two conditions are met: First, people have different values or are holding different assumptions, and secondly, neither party can see beyond their own biases. With relationship conflict, the person is perceived to be the problem and is being attacked by others. Each party assumes that most people are on their side and that the other person is acting out of self-interest. This eventually leads to people disagreeing with each other, not for the task’s sake but to prove the other person is wrong.
Sometimes conflict originates in a task. People might prefer different tools or different approaches. If this initial controversy is ignored or not dealt with appropriately, the relatively easy task conflict turns into a more complex relationship conflict. When relationship conflict occurs, a lot of things are reactive rather than reflective. People stop thinking and act impulsively (冲动地).
All in all, remember that every culture has its own way of handling conflict. Some people consider it dishonest if an argument is not addressed openly, while in other cultures, such a discussion will not be acceptable. It comes down to “Don’t assume everyone thinks like you”.
1. What does the underlined phrase “brushed aside” in Paragraph 2 mean?| A．Approved. | B．Ignored. | C．Swept. | D．Denied. |
| A．Eric has a quarrel with his girlfriend in shopping mall. |
| B．Group members are debating which approaches to be used. |
| C．Tom is criticized by his best friend for being irresponsible. |
| D．Two neighbors have a big argument over community health issues. |
| A．Relationship conflict originates from task conflict. |
| B．Task conflict is easier to resolve than relationship conflict. |
| C．Conflict in communities causes people to make impulsive decisions. |
| D．Task conflict can be sometimes transformed into relationship conflict. |
| A．Give a warning. | B．Offer a suggestion. |
| C．Make an assumption. | D．List a misconception. |
10 . Going through life can be very challenging at times. When we were young, no one told us how hard it would be in the future. But here we are. One of the biggest problems of adult life is having self-doubt. It is tiresome and can kill your confidence levels if not controlled from the get-go.
We will all experience self-doubt. That is natural. It happens to us during normal days or whenever we are going to start a new task, or a new relationship, anything new in life will make you self-doubt. This sort of feeling forces you into a dark abyss (深渊) where nothing seems to go right and you might feel like giving up. That is the time to be strong.
There are some people out there that mistake self-doubt for something else. Self-doubt is when you are unsure about one or more parts of yourself. For example, when starting a new job, you might feel inexperienced or might think that you are not fit enough for the job, this is an example of self-doubt.
Self-doubt isn’t all that bad. A low level of self-criticism is actually good for you. It motivates you and pushes you to be better in life, to become greater than yesterday. This type of feeling will push you to work harder and faster than before and will also increase your productivity, but it should be a low level of self-criticism. You don’t want to punish yourself over things that are beyond your control.
In order to be a better version of ourselves, tough love can be a good motivator but we don’t need to become drill sergeants (教官) while doing that. Over-criticizing ourselves actually does more harm than good, and I say this from experience. Overworking and a fear of failure only lead to self-damage.
1. What is the author’s view about self-doubt in paragraph 2?| A．It can happen anywhere at any time. |
| B．It is an unnatural thing for all of us. |
| C．It only makes us weak and disappointed. |
| D．It can be easily avoided with our efforts. |
| A．To state how hard it is to start it. |
| B．To stress it needs previous experience. |
| C．To cite a situation where self-doubt starts. |
| D．To show the common reactions to get it. |
| A．you overwork yourself |
| B．you keep it in a proper level |
| C．you feel sorry for your deeds |
| D．you increase your productivity |
| A．Disapproval. | B．Doubtful. |
| C．Dismissive. | D．Tolerant. |
