1 . Enjoyable and immersive hobbies have the power to make us happier and healthier. Hobbies lead to better physical health, more sleep, lower stress, greater life satisfaction, a larger social network and improved work performance.     1     We asked experts how to discover the hobbies you don’t yet know you’ll love.

Be open.

“Keeping an open mind and not dismissing potential hobbies even if they seem out of your wheel-house is key,” says Katina, a clinical psychology researcher. “We’re wired as humans to be curious and open, but in a very burned-out world, we forget that,” she says. “It’s the first thing to go.” So next time someone hands you a flier or invites you to an event, seize the opportunity.     2    

    3    

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? The answer could point you towards an appealing hobby. If you wanted to be a major league player, what can you do now that fulfills that urge for you? Joining a softball team or coaching some neighborhood kids could inspire a long-dormant passion.

Go back to school.

Consider auditing (旁听) a class at a university or signing up for a lesson to learn more about a potential hobby.     4     Join a fiction writers group. Fascinated by family history? Take a genealogy class. Plenty of e-courses are available free.

Take an assessment.

Lots of colleges offer career assessments to help students determine what to major in and how to guide their professional lives.     5     If you’re a college graduate, connect with your university’s alumni center; sometimes they make these assessments available for free. Or you can pay a career consultant for access.

A．Take a trip back in time.

B．But where do you start?

C．Turn your dream into a hobby.

D．Always dreamed of writing a novel?

E．It could introduce you to something you never guessed you’d love.

F．You can also use these tools to gather insights about potential hobbies.

G．If a hobby makes you healthier and happier, everyone around you will benefit.

2 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Due to temperature rise and safety concerns, the     1     (huge) popular Harbin Ice and Snow World dropped its curtain on Thursday evening.

Since opening on December 19, 2023, the winter wonderland     2     (draw) record-breaking visitor numbers from around the country and the world, with around 30,000 visitors to the park every day, nearly double pre-pandemic records.

Crowded with people on the last opening day, the winter wonderland became a paradise where both adults and children were immersed in a     3     (joy) atmosphere. Right before closing, the saxophone tune of “Going Home” gently echoed (回响) in the park,     4     many tourists wandering about. Children were spotted     5     (rush) to the gate of the giant ice slide, anxiously asking, “Do we have time for one more round?”

The recent temperature rise and windy weather have worried the park’s management about the safety of tourists. According to videos posted by visitors, some ice sculptures can be scratched and marked by nails. Local residents     6     are familiar with the matter warned that snow sculptures do not melt (融化) inch by inch     7     rather could suddenly collapse.

The Ice and Snow World     8     (build) by thousands of craftsmen every winter in Harbin with care and     9     (affect). Despite widespread unwillingness     10     (link) to the park’s closure, it’s an example of how ice and snow art represents the beauty of disappearance.

3 . When it comes to what shapes me into who I am today, the first things coming to mind are my experiences as a child of immigrant parents. I was _________ in New England, and my family was one of just a handful of people of color in the area.

I remember feeling _________ by trying to _________ my Indian culture and American culture of my hometown. Between speaking Hindi at home and English everywhere else, as well as some other _________ — such as the way I look, the foods I eat —that seem to _________ out like a sore thumb _________ my peers. I neither felt fully Indian nor American, leaving me _________ in a strange balancing act.

_________, there is a _________ line between having a sense of belonging to a culture and feeling isolated (孤立的). I used to hate feeling like I did not belong to a __________ culture, and sometimes I find myself still __________ what it would be like if I was just a little more Indian or American. __________, I have been able to find my communities: people who make me feel welcome and __________ to be who I truly am, and who constantly __________ me to something different from what I used to know.

Like many people __________ by unfamiliar cultures, there is bound to be a mix of belonging and __________, like a tug-of-war. The isolation is uncomfortable, like being behind a glass wall, being able to see in but unable to truly __________ what is going on.

But alongside that isolation, I usually __________ learning something new, whether that is a custom that __________ mine or values that don’t resonate with me. Although a constant feeling of belonging is comfortable, it is always important to remember that if you stay in an echo chamber (回音室) of your own ideas, there is never any __________ for growth.

1.

A．taken in

B．brought up

C．focused on

D．picked out

2.

A．proud

B．upset

C．relieved

D．fun

3.

A．desert

B．remain

C．value

D．balance

4.

A．characteristics

B．interests

C．strengths

D．feelings

5.

A．keep

B．stick

C．stretch

D．break

6.

A．in regard to

B．in charge of

C．in comparison to

D．in company with

7.

A．torn

B．broken

C．energetic

D．mean

8.

A．Therefore

B．Otherwise

C．However

D．Besides

9.

A．straight

B．fine

C．parallel

D．simple

10.

A．traditional

B．certain

C．special

D．universal

11.

A．hesitating about

B．deciding on

C．setting about

D．holding on

12.

A．Sadly

B．Surprisingly

C．Fortunately

D．Hopefully

13.

A．sorry

B．anxious

C．afraid

D．safe

14.

A．expose

B．limit

C．reduce

D．commit

15.

A．inspired

B．attracted

C．shocked

D．surrounded

16.

A．isolation

B．connection

C．relationship

D．division

17.

A．doubt

B．admit

C．believe

D．grasp

18.

A．insist on

B．refer to

C．end up

D．put off

19.

A．resembles

B．copies

C．dislikes

D．favors

20.

A．ability

B．right

C．privilege

D．room

4 . Fingerprints have been used to identify individuals for centuries. But now scientists may have finally figured out how those patterns are formed, according to a paper published in the journal Cell in February.

Previous studies have shown that fingerprints can be influenced by the shape and size of the blood vessels in the skin and how fast the different layers of skin grow. Denis Headon at the University of Edinburgh, UK, and his colleagues started their study from a new viewpoint: how genes affect fingerprint patterns. They identified the genes related to limb (肢体) development, which could serve as the groundwork for print formation, according to their work published in 2022.

However, many genes are not involved in the process. “The key is how they form,” Headon told Nature, a science journal. The team studied the ridges (脊) on mouse toes and human cells grown artificially.

They found two kinds of elements work against each other. A protein called WNT, which is important in skin development, promotes ridge formation. Another molecule (分子), called BMP, impedes the ridges. With the two elements “fighting” each other, they create the patterns of waves. The team also changed the timing and the location of the origins of the waves in experiments. They discovered that the waves would collide in different ways, which helps to create the diversity of print patterns.

Interestingly, the analysis of the fingerprint patterns supported the Turing reaction-diffusion system. It was first proposed by UK scientist Alan Turing in 1952 to describe a self-organizing system that creates patterns in nature, such as the feather patterns in birds and stripes on zebra. The researchers also built a computer model that can recreate print patterns by following the Turing system.

Based on the new study, it may be possible that the structures of human skin might be all generated by the same mechanism, Sarah Millar, a US biologist, told the website Science News. However, more studies on how the skin matures are needed to solve the mystery.

1. What did Denis Headon and his colleagues focus on in their study?

A．The relation between skin growth and fingerprint formation.

B．The influence of blood vessels on fingerprint patterns.

C．The impact of genes on fingerprint patterns.

D．The analysis of mouse toes’ ridges.

2. What approach did the researchers adopt to conduct the study?

A．They experimented with mouse toes and artificial human cells.

B．They compared mouse toes with human hands.

C．They did research on human hand anatomy.

D．They planted human cells in mouse toes.

3. What does the underlined word “impedes” in paragraph 4 most probably mean?

A．Supports.

B．Stops.

C．Generates.

D．Influences.

4. What can be inferred about the study from the last paragraph?

A．It uncovers how the skin is generated.	B．It promotes Alan Turing’s theory.
C．It may further research on skin maturation.	D．It shows the mechanism of skin formation.

5 . My husband made a little two-story house that mirrored our own in color and design for our Little Free Library, while I carefully selected books from our shelves. The idea resonated (引起共鸣) with us immediately — instead of loading boxes into the car for yet another used book sale, we could simply walk them to the roadside.

Fifteen or so years later, it’s safe to say that thousands of books, as well as the occasional DVDs, CDs and jigsaw puzzles have been shared through our little library. Situated on a busy street just a few blocks from a subway station, our little library sees dozens, perhaps hundreds, of passers-by each day.

Many of those who use our library do not hesitate to share their love of this neighborhood resource. One gentleman regularly stops by to pick up books for a nearby retirement home. At other times, we have received cards and gifts, including chocolates and even a personalized drawing from a local artist.

Like the people who use our library, the books that come and go reflect the broad diversity of our city. Arabic, French and Russian books are staples among the dominant English-language books. I’ve even collected favorite books of mine in languages I don’t understand, simply for the joy of adding another edition to my collection. Surprisingly, our library hasn’t dealt with our book storage problem —if anything, we now have more books than ever before.

I have heard some complaints that Little Free Libraries do not always serve the purpose of building community and may compete with our public libraries and independent bookstores. This has not been our experience. We continue to buy more books than we need and we are fiercely loyal users of the public system. Our Little Free Library has enhanced our love of reading and has connected us to a community of book lovers in the heart of our busy neighborhood.

1. Why did the author and her husband create the Little Free Library?

A．To make friends with book lovers.	B．To deal with their unwanted books.
C．To prepare for used book sales.	D．To make use of community resources.

2. What does paragraph 3 mainly talk about?

A．The multiple resources of the library.

B．People’s contributions to the library.

C．The friendships between library users.

D．The author’s impression of her neighborhood.

3. Which of the following can account for the author’s passion for the library?

A．Its superiority to public libraries.

B．Its close distance to a busy street.

C．Its success in solving book storage.

D．Its reflecting city diversity through books.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．The Cozy Reading Corner: Promoting Reading

B．The Whispering Pages: Tales from a Shared Library

C．The Little Free Library: Contributing to Tighter Bonds

D．The Magic Bookshelf: Account of Neighborhood Harmony

6 . 假定你是某国际学校的学生会主席李华。为了迎接第二届“全国生态日(National Ecology Day)”的到来，你校将于2024年8月12日下午4:00-5:30 在学校礼堂开展一次环保知识竞赛。请你用英文写一则通知。内容包括：
1．竞赛主题、时间及地点；
2．报名方法；
3．鼓励大家踊跃报名。
注意：1．词数100左右；
2．开头和结尾已为你写好。

Notice

Dear fellow students,
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Students Union

7 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

I’ve seen my share of wildfires’     1    (destroy) on communities, but in more than eight years of covering these disasters as a photojournalist, the scene over Hawaii was one of     2     worst.

Based in Las Vegas, I’m used to being sent to wildfires in other places. I flew to Hawaii on Wednesday, and by Thursday morning, I was in a helicopter     3    (fly) over Lahaina, a normally busy west Maui town that draws     4    (visitor) from all over the world.     5    struck me the most was the lack of color of the burned earth sandwiched between the shiny blue ocean and deep green-brown mountains in the distance.

No plants or signs of life in sight. Just gray. Street after street was nothing but ruins. It was hard     6    (imagine) the scenic town that was once here.

One sight     7    (make) me worried and provided a clue of the serious damage of approaching fire: burned vehicles on the road along Front Street. They weren’t parked on the side of the road. They were     8    (obvious) abandoned in a big hurry. What happened     9     their owners? Did they escape or were they     10    (kill)?

8 . Ronald Blythe had not expected his book to be such a success. It had been _________ not only in Britain but also in America. The _________ he wrote in 1967 — 1968 was called Akenfield. It was a collection of conversations gathered from the ordinary people in his _________, Suffolk. Among his major _________ was a shepherd (牧羊人). Although he thought now and then how good it would be to _________ something, rather than looking after the sheep of other men, he firmly believed that he _________ Suffolk.

“Change is not _________ for me,” he once told Mr Blythe. “But it is happening too _________ in the outside world. I prefer to stay in this dreamy town.”

To this view, Mr Blythe was _________. He himself had stayed in Suffolk all his life. His family had been farmers here, and __________ was in his blood. He never saw the point of moving, or __________ jobs far from his hometown, if he could make a(n) __________ in Suffolk. As a boy he would __________ the area on his bike or lie in the grass, __________ clouds. With the encouragement of the artist-and-writer __________ he met in his first librarian job in Suffolk, his desire to be a writer was __________. So he started researching and writing about the __________ folks.

Usually, he chose to be __________. He spent his last four decades by himself in a very old house near a river, where he had a(n) __________ and quiet life. From ten to one, he wrote his books. After work and lunch, he __________ or took care of his farm.

1.

A．forgotten

B．welcomed

C．criticized

D．ignored

2.

A．book

B．person

C．letter

D．case

3.

A．office

B．family

C．library

D．hometown

4.

A．achievements

B．relatives

C．heroes

D．awards

5.

A．own

B．invent

C．find

D．hide

6.

A．focused on

B．relied on

C．referred to

D．belonged to

7.

A．pleasant

B．unacceptable

C．predictable

D．good

8.

A．accidentally

B．hard

C．fast

D．rarely

9.

A．angry

B．disapproving

C．uninterested

D．sympathetic

10.

A．poison

B．ambition

C．agriculture

D．wisdom

11.

A．refusing

B．seeking

C．creating

D．cutting

12.

A．living

B．impression

C．fortune

D．appointment

13.

A．measure

B．manage

C．explore

D．occupy

14.

A．expecting

B．watching

C．classifying

D．gathering

15.

A．students

B．activists

C．doctors

D．friends

16.

A．strengthened

B．satisfied

C．destroyed

D．lost

17.

A．rich

B．smart

C．local

D．lazy

18.

A．proud

B．polite

C．natural

D．alone

19.

A．regular

B．uncomfortable

C．short

D．unrealistic

20.

A．chatted

B．wandered

C．drew

D．danced

9 . Creativity is advocated everywhere these days. But most of us don’t know how to set it off. Here are some ways to start the process.

Work in a blue room. As we grow up, colors take on specific associations. Red means danger, and blue relates to peace.     1    . In one experiment, people facing a red computer screen did better at detail-oriented tasks like proofreading. Volunteers who faced a blue screen did better at creative tasks. That study appeared in 2009 in the journal Science.

Why the difference?     2    . Blue, on the other hand, tells us we can relax and let the imagination run free.

Sleep on it. Sleep helps generate new ideas in several ways. During sleep, the brain strengthens memories. That act of strengthening actually reorganizes thoughts, much like reorganizing books on a shelf.     3    . And that half-awake period right before we fall asleep or when we wake up may also help us focus on a problem.

    4    . The sleep-on-it solution only works best when people feel that they are getting close to an answer that is most likely to be solved by waiting a day.

Live in a foreign land. People who had lived abroad performed better on creative problems and tasks. A week in Paris isn’t enough to light the creative spark, delightful though that trip may be.     5    .

A．Watch a funny video

B．Such associations affect how we think

C．However, don’t expect this to work every time

D．Red makes us anxious, and anxiety causes us to focus

E．The new arrangement can help generate new associations

F．If we can let our mind wander, we are more likely to solve the problem

G．It has to be long enough to challenge our habitual ways of thinking and living

10 . The Zero Energy Building in Singapore, which has been entirely powered by sunlight since it began operating in 2009, is the first of its kind in Southeast Asia. Transformed from a former workshop, the three- story building may hold the key to the island’s effort to reduce its dependence on imported fuel.

Generally, green building strategies can be categorized into passive and active solutions. Active solutions involve improving lighting and the HVAC(Heating, Ventilation (通风) and Air-conditioning)systems that consume most of the energy in buildings. Passive solutions aim to provide more energy-efficient architectural improvements (such as building envelopes and roofs) to reduce the reliance on active solutions. Research has shown that passive strategies are much less costly compared to active solutions. Therefore, passive design is recommended in many green and sustainable design guidelines.

“However, passive solutions, such as daylight and natural ventilation, are sensitive to climatic and outdoor conditions and therefore have their limitations of application,” said project officer Letchimi Palanisamy. “For example, buildings in the tropics (热带) usually have a North-South direction to avoid facing the sun directly. But the Zero Energy Building has an East-West orientation, which made the task more challenging.”

Innovations that are being tested at the Zero Energy Building include personalized ventilation and a new air-conditioning system patented by the National University of Singapore (NUS). Different plants have also been planted on the roofs and along the walls of the building to reduce heat absorption, yet allow maximum natural ventilation and daylight into the building to lower the need for air-conditioning and artificial lighting. The biggest improvement is the addition of a new roof that can turn sunlight into 500,000KWH of electricity each year.

“The Zero Energy Building is a test bed for the green building technologies in the tropics,” Letchimi Palanisamy said. “If they are successfully commercialized, they will help Singapore cut its energy consumption in the buildings by 50%.”

1. What does the second paragraph mainly focus on?

A．Methods to improve the HVAC systems.

B．Ways to classify green building strategies.

C．Major innovations adopted in green buildings.

D．The benefits and limitations of green technologies.

2. What can we learn from Letchimi Palanisamy’s words?

A．Buildings in the tropics usually face the sun directly.

B．Passive designs depend heavily on the natural conditions.

C．Active strategies are much less expensive than passive solutions.

D．The energy consumption in the Zero Energy Building is cut by 50%.

3. Which of the following is an active strategy?

A．Natural ventilation.	B．Plants grown along the walls.
C．Innovations for maximum daylight.	D．NUS’s air-conditioning system.

4. Where is the text most probably taken from?

A．A project profile.

B．An on-site test.

C．An advertisement.

D．A government plan.