1 . Animals can express their needs using a lot of ways. For instance, almost all animals have distinct vocals (声音) that they rely on to either ask for help,   scare away any dangerous animals or look for shelter. But cats are special creatures who possess amazing vocalization skills. They are able to have entire conversations with humans using meows and you're able to interpret it. If a pet cat is hungry, it will keep meowing to attract attention and find food. However, when a cat is looking for affection, they tend to produce stretched and soft meows. Meowing starts as soon as a baby cat is brought to life and uses it to get the mother's attention and be fed.

Cats have many heightened senses, but their sense of smell is quite impressive. They use their noses to assess their environment and look out for any signs of danger. They will sniff out specific areas before they choose a place to relax. However, another way the cats are able to distinguish between situations is by looking for familiar smells. Your cat will likely smell your face and store the smell in its memory and use it to recognize you in the future. That's why most pet cats are able to tell immediately if their owners were around any other cats, which they don't usually like.

Dogs are known for their impressive fetching habit, but cats take this behavior up a notch. Many cats will find random objects outside and bring them to their owners. This is a very old habit that's been present in all kinds of predators (食肉动物). Cats bring gifts for their owners to show they love you. These adorable little hunters are just doing something that it's been in their nature since the beginning of time. So just go along with it!

1. What can be learned about cats' meowing from the first paragraph?

A．It's a survival skill.	B．It's taught by mother cats.
C．It's hard to interpret.	D．It's getting louder with age.

2. How does a pet cat assess different situations?

A．By listening for sounds.	B．By touching familiar objects.
C．By checking on smells.	D．By communicating with other cats.

3. Which best explains the phrase "take. . . up notch" in paragraph 3?

A．Perform appropriately.

B．Move faster.

C．Act strangely.

D．Do better.

4. What is a suitable title for the text?

A．Tips on Finding a Smart Cat	B．Understanding Your Cat's Behavior
C．Have Fun with Your Cat	D．How to Keep Your Cat Healthy

2 . 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。

Heatherwick Studio recently built a greenhouse at the edge of the National Trust’s Woolbeding Gardens. This beautiful structure, named Glasshouse, is at the centre of a new garden that shows how the Silk Road influences English gardens even in modern times.

The latest     1     (engineer) techniques are applied to create this protective     2     (function) structure that is also beautiful. The design features ten steel “sepals (萼片)” made of glass and aluminium (铝). These sepals open on warm days     3     (give) the inside plants sunshine and fresh air. In cold weather, the structure stays     4     (close) to protect the plants.

Further, the Silk Route Garden around the greenhouse     5     (walk) visitors through a journey influenced by the ancient Silk Road, by which silk as well as many plant species came to Britain for     6     first time. These plants included modern Western     7     (favourite) such as rosemary, lavender and fennel. The garden also contains a winding path that guides visitors through the twelve regions of the Silk Road. The path offers over 300 plant species for visitors to see, too.

The Glasshouse stands     8     a great achievement in contemporary design, to house the plants of the southwestern part of China at the end of a path retracing (追溯) the steps along the Silk Route     9     brought the plants from their native habitat in Asia to come to define much of the     10     (rich) of gardening in England.

3 . Not all great writers are great spellers. If you want to be published, it's vital to submit a perfect, professionally presented manuscript (原稿).     1     No editor is likely to tolerate a writer who does not take the trouble to spell words correctly.

I keep two reference books close-by on my desk: dictionary and thesaurus (同义词词典). I don't trust my laptop's spellchecker.     2     Of course, these days there are plenty of online dictionaries and thesauruses, but I'm old-fashioned enough to prefer a hard cover and pages I can leaf through with my fingers. I use the Concise Oxford Dictionary and the Collins Thesaurus.

    3     It should give you a precise definition of each word, thus differentiating it from other words whose meanings are similar, but not identical. It will also usually show how the word is pronounced.

In addition, I have an old two-volume copy of the Shorter Oxford Dictionary, picked up a few years ago in a bookshop sale for just 99 pence. Of course, with its 2,672 pages, it's not exactly short. It contains around 163,000 words, plus word combinations and idiomatic phrases.     4     However, if I need to check the origin of a word or to look up examples of its usage, there's nothing better.

For well over a hundred years the most influential English dictionary was Samuel Johnson's Dictionary of the English Language published in 1755. "To make dictionaries is dull (乏味) work," wrote Johnson, illustrating one definition of "dull".     5     A few minutes spent casting your eye over a page or two can be a rewarding experience.

A．I don't often use this dictionary.

B．It takes no account of the context.

C．But I still don't want to replace them.

D．But a dictionary can be a pleasure to read.

E．Of course, a dictionary is not only for spelling.

F．That means good grammar and no spelling mistakes.

G．Dictionaries don't always give you enough information.

4 . In the race to document the species on Earth before they go extinct, researchers and citizen scientists have collected billions of records. Today, most records of biodiversity are often in the form of photos, videos, and other digital records. Though they are useful for detecting shifts in the number and variety of species in an area, a new Stanford study has found that this type of record is not perfect.

“With the rise of technology it is easy for people to make observations of different species with the aid of a mobile application,” said Barnabas Daru, who is lead author of the study and assistant professor of biology in the Stanford School of Humanities and Sciences. “These observations now outnumber the primary data that comes from physical specimens (标本), and since we are increasingly using observational data to investigate how species are responding to global change, I wanted to know: Are they usable?”

Using a global dataset of 1.9 billion records of plants, insects, birds, and animals, Daru and his team tested how well these data represent actual global biodiversity patterns.

“We were particularly interested in exploring the aspects of sampling that tend to bias (使有偏差) data, like the greater likelihood of a citizen scientist to take a picture of a flowering plant instead of the grass right next to it,” said Daru.

Their study revealed that the large number of observation-only records did not lead to better global coverage. Moreover, these data are biased and favor certain regions, time periods, and species. This makes sense because the people who get observational biodiversity data on mobile devices are often citizen scientists recording their encounters with species in areas nearby. These data are also biased toward certain species with attractive or eye-catching features.

What can we do with the imperfect datasets of biodiversity?

“Quite a lot,” Daru explained. “Biodiversity apps can use our study results to inform users of oversampled areas and lead them to places — and even species — that are not well-sampled. To improve the quality of observational data, biodiversity apps can also encourage users to have an expert confirm the identification of their uploaded image.”

1. What do we know about the records of species collected now?

A．They are becoming outdated.	B．They are mostly in electronic form.
C．They are limited in number.	D．They are used for public exhibition.

2. What does Daru’s study focus on?

A．Threatened species.	B．Physical specimens.
C．Observational data.	D．Mobile applications.

3. What has led to the biases according to the study?

A．Mistakes in data analysis.	B．Poor quality of uploaded pictures.
C．Improper way of sampling.	D．Unreliable data collection devices.

4. What is Daru’s suggestion for biodiversity apps?

A．Review data from certain areas.	B．Hire experts to check the records.
C．Confirm the identity of the users.	D．Give guidance to citizen scientists.

5 . Is comprehension the same whether a person reads a text onscreen or on paper? And are listening to and viewing content as effective as reading the written word when covering the same material? The answers to both questions are often “no”. The reasons relate to a variety of factors, including reduced concentration, an entertainment mindset (心态) and a tendency to multitask while consuming digital content.

When reading texts of several hundred words or more, learning is generally more successful when it’s on paper than onscreen. A large amount of research confirms this finding. The benefits of print reading particularly shine through when experimenters move from posing simple tasks — like identifying the main idea in a reading passage — to ones that require mental abstraction — such as drawing inferences from a text.

The differences between print and digital reading results are partly related to paper’s physical properties. With paper, there is a literal laying on of hands, along with the visual geography of distinct pages. People often link their memory of what they’ve read to how far into the book it was or where it was on the page.

But equally important is the mental aspect. Reading researchers have proposed a theory called “shallowing hypothesis (假说)”. According to this theory, people approach digital texts with a mindset suited to social media, which are often not so serious, and devote less mental effort than when they are reading print.

Audio (音频) and video can feel more engaging than text, and so university teachers increasingly turn to these technologies — say, assigning an online talk instead of an article by the same person. However, psychologists have demonstrated that when adults read news stories, they remember more of the content than if they listen to or view identical pieces.

Digital texts, audio and video all have educational roles, especially when providing resources not available in print. However, for maximizing learning where mental focus and reflection are called for, educators shouldn’t assume all media are the same, even when they contain identical words.

1. What does the underlined phrase “shine through” in paragraph 2 mean?

A．Seem unlikely to last.	B．Seem hard to explain.
C．Become ready to use.	D．Become easy to notice.

2. What does the shallowing hypothesis assume?

A．Readers treat digital texts lightly.	B．Digital texts are simpler to understand.
C．People select digital texts randomly.	D．Digital texts are suitable for social media.

3. Why are audio and video increasingly used by university teachers?

A．They can hold students' attention.	B．They are more convenient to prepare.
C．They help develop advanced skills.	D．They are more informative than text.

4. What does the author imply in the last paragraph?

A．Students should apply multiple learning techniques.

B．Teachers should produce their own teaching material.

C．Print texts cannot be entirely replaced in education.

D．Education outside the classroom cannot be ignored.

6 . I’ve been motivated — and demotivated — by other folks’ achievements all my life.

When I was a teenager, a neighborhood friend ________ a marathon race. Feeling motivated, I started running ________, but then two things happened. First, a girl I met one day told me she was ________ for a “super,” referring to a 52.4-mile double marathon. Then, the next day I went on my longest run — 15 miles. To be honest, I ________ it! Between the girl making my ________ seem small and the pure boredom of jogging, I decided that the only ________ I’d ever run again is if a big dog was running after me!

So I ________ cycling. I got a good bike and rode a lot. I ________ of entering cycle races until I flew to San Diego to visit my sister. While she was at work one day, I ________ her bike and went for a ride. The ________: the roads there went through large valleys where I’d be riding uphill for miles at a time. I’d never faced such ________. That day, I got ________ by about 100 “local” bikers who were used to such roads. When I got back home, suddenly riding my bike didn’t seem quite as ________.

I’ve ________ a lot since then. I’ve come to accept that whatever ________ I set for myself, they just have to be my own.

1.

A．knew

B．held

C．won

D．quit

2.

A．regularly

B．silently

C．proudly

D．recently

3.

A．asking

B．looking

C．waiting

D．training

4.

A．made

B．believed

C．hated

D．deserved

5.

A．advantage

B．achievement

C．contribution

D．influence

6.

A．way

B．risk

C．place

D．reason

7.

A．gave up

B．went on

C．turned to

D．dealt with

8.

A．heard

B．dreamed

C．complained

D．approved

9.

A．painted

B．borrowed

C．bought

D．parked

10.

A．problem

B．secret

C．principle

D．advice

11.

A．dangers

B．events

C．opponents

D．challenges

12.

A．passed

B．convinced

C．admired

D．stopped

13.

A．reliable

B．convenient

C．familiar

D．appealing

14.

A．traveled

B．matured

C．missed

D．worried

15.

A．limits

B．dates

C．goals

D．tests

7 . “I am not crazy,” says Dr. William Farber, shortly after performing acupuncture (针灸) on a rabbit. “I am ahead of my time.” If he seems a little defensive, it might be because even some of his coworkers occasionally laugh at his unusual methods. But Farber is certain he’ll have the last laugh. He’s one of a small but growing number of American veterinarians (兽医) now practicing “holistic” medicine-combining traditional Western treatments with acupuncture, chiropractic (按摩疗法) and herbal medicine.

Farber, a graduate of Colorado State University, started out as a more conventional veterinarian. He became interested in alternative treatments 20 years ago when he suffered from terrible back pain. He tried muscle-relaxing drugs but found little relief. Then he tried acupuncture, an ancient Chinese practice, and was amazed that he improved after two or three treatments. What worked on a veterinarian seemed likely to work on his patients. So, after studying the techniques for a couple of years, he began offering them to pets.

Leigh Tindale’s dog Charlie had a serious heart condition. After Charlie had a heart attack, Tindale says, she was prepared to put him to sleep, but Farber’s treatments eased her dog’s suffering so much that she was able to keep him alive for an additional five months. And Priscilla Dewing reports that her horse, Nappy, “moves more easily and rides more comfortably” after a chiropractic adjustment.

Farber is certain that the holistic approach will grow more popular with time, and if the past is any indication, he may be right: Since 1982, membership in the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association has grown from 30 to over 700. “Sometimes it surprises me that it works so well,” he says. “I will do anything to help an animal. That’s my job.”

1. What do some of Farber’s coworkers think of him?

A．He’s odd.

B．He’s strict.

C．He’s brave.

D．He’s rude.

2. Why did Farber decide to try acupuncture on pets?

A．He was trained in it at university.	B．He was inspired by another veterinarian.
C．He benefited from it as a patient.	D．He wanted to save money for pet owners.

3. What does paragraph 3 mainly talk about?

A．Steps of a chiropractic treatment.	B．The complexity of veterinarians’ work.
C．Examples of rare animal diseases.	D．The effectiveness of holistic medicine.

4. Why does the author mention the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association?

A．To prove Farber’s point.	B．To emphasize its importance.
C．To praise veterinarians.	D．To advocate animal protection.

8 . Do you ever get to the train station and realize you forgot to bring something to read? Yes, we all have our phones, but many of us still like to go old school and read something printed.

Well, there’s a kiosk (小亭) for that. In the San Francisco Bay Area, at least.

“You enter the fare gates (检票口) and you’ll see a kiosk that is lit up and it tells you can get a one-minute, a three-minute, or a five-minute story,” says Alicia Trost, the chief communications officer for the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit — known as BART. “You choose which length you want and it gives you a receipt-like short story.”

It’s that simple. Riders have printed nearly 20,000 short stories and poems since the program was launched last March. Some are classic short stories, and some are new original works.

Trost also wants to introduce local writers to local riders. “We wanted to do something where we do a call to artists in the Bay Area to submit stories for a contest,” Trost says. “And as of right now, we’ve received about 120 submissions. The winning stories would go into our kiosk and then you would be a published artist.”

Ridership on transit (交通) systems across the country has been down the past half century, so could short stories save transit?

Trost thinks so.

“At the end of the day all transit agencies right now are doing everything they can to improve the rider experience. So I absolutely think we will get more riders just because of short stories,” she says.

And you’ll never be without something to read.

1. Why did BART start the kiosk program?

A．To promote the local culture.	B．To discourage phone use.
C．To meet passengers’ needs.	D．To reduce its running costs.

2. How are the stories categorized in the kiosk?

A．By popularity.	B．By length.
C．By theme.	D．By language.

3. What has Trost been doing recently?

A．Organizing a story contest.	B．Doing a survey of customers.
C．Choosing a print publisher.	D．Conducting interviews with artists.

4. What is Trost’s opinion about BART’s future?

A．It will close down.	B．Its profits will decline.
C．It will expand nationwide.	D．Its ridership will increase.

9 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. How did Jack go to school when he was a child?

A．By bike.

B．On foot.

C．By bus.

2. What is Jack's attitude toward parents driving their kids to school?

A．Disapproving.

B．Encouraging.

C．Understanding.

3. What is the problem with some parents according to the woman?

A．Overprotecting their children.

B．Pushing their children too hard.

C．Having no time for their children.

10 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What is probably the woman?

A．A teacher.

B．A journalist.

C．An athlete.

2. What does Victor find difficult as a member of the basketball team?

A．Adapting himself to the intense training.

B．Dealing with the pressure from the coach.

C．Regaining the skills learned in high school.

3. What does Victor say about the players on the team?

A．They are of the same age.

B．They are similar in character.

C．They are from different countries.

4. How does Victor feel about his team now?

A．It’s about to break up.

B．It’s the best in Indiana.

C．It’s getting stronger.