1 . How to Make a Marathon Feel Easier
Marathon runners get to influence their effort-based decision making in two ways: firstly by increasing their motivation and, once that is maxed out, by reducing perception of effort, which can be better thought of as “making it feel easier”.
Studies have found if we learn to accept unpleasant feelings as something that must be suffered, we perform better and our perception of effort reduces. Before a marathon we do this by “preparing ourselves” for the discomfort ahead. The aim is not to make it too scary but try to control or resist the fears.
You have a long day in front of you, so you may as well try to enjoy it. You can distract yourself from the miles ahead by looking for things to make you smile.
Finally, keeping in mind your technique, create your instructional secret, which is the short phrase you repeat in your head to remind your body how you run at your best.
| A．Keep your head up, look forward and run. |
| B．You can do it each time you pass a drinks station. |
| C．Accept the fact that you are doing something difficult. |
| D．Realizing you have dozens of miles to run can be fearful. |
| E．They can be the best supporter signs, or your favorite costumes. |
| F．It is often the phrase a coach would remind you about in a training session. |
| G．Motivation is usually easy to find but perception of effort needs more thought. |
2 . Ali, an ordinary office worker, was troubled by the shortage of parking spaces in his residential area. One day, he discovered that Mr. Liu was renting out his parking space for one yuan for two months, so he joined the draw and unexpectedly won the spot. However, the next day, his parking space was occupied by a white car. Ali tried to contact the owner Chang, but was met with indifference. In anger, Ali took a series of measures, but Chang remained unmoved.
The situation eventually escalated (不断恶化) into the point where the police got involved, and both Ali and Chang had to pay two thousand yuan each for car repairs. Although Ali was dissatisfied, he decided to avoid further losses by installing a parking lock. However, he found that Chang had also added a lock. After two months of conflict, both sides were exhausted, and Ali finally chose to give up the fight and parked his car elsewhere.
After the summer vacation ended, Ali returned the parking space to Mr. Liu. By chance, he learned the real reason why Mr. Liu rented out the parking space. Ali and Chang had often occupied Mr. Liu’s parking space. By renting out the parking space for one yuan, Mr. Liu made both of them give up due to exhaustion, thus solving the long-standing problem of people occupying others’ parking spaces in the community. Embarrassed, Ali realized that his previous behavior of occupying others’ parking spaces was wrong. He told what he had known to Chang and they both felt ashamed and reflective.
In daily life, wisdom and strategy can solve seemingly unsolvable conflicts. Besides, individual behavior has an effect on community harmony and staying calm and self-reflective when facing conflicts is important.
1. What was Ali’s initial problem in his residential area?| A．The shortage of parking spaces. | B．High rent of parking spaces. |
| C．A lack of security in his community. | D．Noise pollution around his apartment. |
| A．They reported the issue to the police. | B．They moved to a different community. |
| C．They negotiated an accessible solution. | D．They fixed parking locks on the parking space. |
| A．He wanted to make extra money. |
| B．He didn’t care about the community. |
| C．He used a strategy to resolve the parking conflicts. |
| D．He was exhausted to see conflicts in the community. |
| A．Parking conflicts made Ali and Chang cost much. |
| B．Two customers had conflicts because of the parking fee. |
| C．The police played an important role in community harmony. |
| D．Wisdom and strategy can resolve some unsolvable problems. |
3 . “I never could have imagined this is how my life could turn out,” says Melody Mnisi. “Now it’s my dream to introduce young people to nature and to inspire young African women like me to believe anything is possible.” Melody is a 23-year-old South African and has just qualified as a field guide. Despite growing up very close to Kruger National Park, a world-famous safari (游猎) destination, she never had the chance to see or enjoy its wildlife. “This was something for white people, not poor black people like me,” she says. “I always wondered what was on the other side of the fence.” But everything changed for Melody when she completed a Wild Shots Outreach (WSO) photography course, learning how to use a camera and going on her first-ever game drive. “I could not believe my eyes, seeing all this wildlife and capturing my memories and stories,” she says. “It is such an honor to be in nature.”
WSO is the educational outreach arm of Wild Shots, a photography conference in Africa that ran for nine years prior to 2020. Its aim is to engage disadvantaged young Africans in wildlife conservation through photography and by providing an introduction to the natural world, helping to nurture (培育) the conservationists of tomorrow.
The initiative came about in 2015 and was the passion project of Mike Kendrick, a life-science teacher and photographer. Moving to the Greater Kruger area to live in the bush, Mike was discouraged to see the lack of engagement between young South Africans and their natural environment. Not only that, in six years of helping to run Wild Shots, he did not come across a single wildlife, landscape or outdoor photographer of color in South Africa.
1. What can we learn about Melody Mnisi?| A．She helped set up WSO. | B．She was born a photographer. |
| C．She was grateful to be a field guide. | D．She shared photos of wildlife online. |
| A．WSO photography course. |
| B．Her willingness to help others. |
| C．Mike Kendrick’s encouragement. |
| D．Her curiosity about the safari destination. |
| A．To raise money. | B．To prevent illegal hunting. |
| C．To stop wildlife trade. | D．To nurture wildlife protectors. |
| A．Comments from Melody. | B．The promotion of WSO. |
| C．Poor life of South Africans. | D．The details of photographs taking, |
4 . Chichen Itza, Mexico
Price from:£20 Age suitable:8+ When: All year around
The UNESCO world heritage- listed Maya city of Chichen Itza is one of Mexico’s most amazing attractions, where you can see stunning, monumental buildings built between AD 750 and 1200, including the Castillo pyramid and the Temple of a Thousand Warriors.
Getting there & doing itChichen Itza lies 80 miles from Tulum on the road to Merida. Hotels and tour operators organize tours here but it’s better to hire a car and go independently. Understanding a little about the pre-Columbian Maya really brings these site s to life. You could read Michael Coe’s The Maya, and/or Joyce Kelly’s An Archaeological Guide to Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula before you go.
The site can be explored comfortably in 2 hours. For refuelling after, head 40km east to Cancun for authentic Mayan organic foods.
While you’re thereAllow some time to drive on to Merida, the “White City ”, an old and very Mexican city with beautiful churches and great markets. Also stop by Cenote Ik-Kil for a swim with a difference.
When to do itThe site is open all year around, seven days a week. Gates open at 8 am and close at 5 pm. The rainy season from May through October sees the fewest visitors to Mayan Riviera. The dry season — November through April — gets busy: If you can, avoid peak season in December to January, when it gets very crowded, especially around Christmas and New Year.
1. What is recommended to do before visiting Chichen Itza?| A．Hire a local guide. | B．Take a guided tour. |
| C．Watch a documentary about Mexico. | D．Read specific books about the Maya civilization. |
| A．Driving 40km east for Mayan foods. | B．Attending a cultural show in Tulum. |
| C．Paying a visit to the Castillo pyramid. | D．Exploring the Temple of a Thousand Warriors. |
| A．December to January. | B．November through April. |
| C．May through October. | D．All year around. |
5 . Four astronauts headed to the International Space Station (ISS) on Sunday where they will oversee the arrivals of two new rocketships during their half- year stay.
SpaceX’s Falcon rocket was launched from Kennedy Space Center, carrying NASA’s Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt and Jeanette Epps and Russia’s Alexander Grebenkin. The astronauts should reach the orbiting lab on Tuesday. They will replace a crew from the US, Denmark, Japan and Russia, who have been there since August.
“When are you getting here already?” space station commander Andreas Mogensen asked via Twitter, after three days of delay due to high wind. SpaceX Launch Control termed it “fashionably late”. There was almost another postponement Sunday night. A small leak in the seal of the SpaceX capsule’s hatch caused a last- minute flurry (忙乱) of reviews, but it was thought safe for the whole mission.
The new crew’s six- month stay includes the arrival of two rocketships ordered by NASA．Boeing’s new Starliner capsule with test pilots is due in late April. A month or two later, Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser, a mini shuttle, should arrive. It is for delivering supplies to the station, but not passengers yet.
Epps, who is from New York, is the second Black woman assigned to a long station mission. She said before the flight that she was especially proud to be a role model for girls, especially for Black girls, demonstrating that spaceflight “is an option for them, and that this is not just for other people”.
Also new to space are Dominick, a Navy pilot, and Grebenkin, a former Russian military officer. Barratt, a doctor on his third mission, is the oldest full- time astronaut to fly in space. He turns 65 in April. As for his age, he said before the flight, “As long as we stay healthy and fit and engaged, we’re good to fly.”
1. Why were the four astronauts sent to the ISS?| A．To train test pilots for Starliner. | B．To monitor the new rocketships. |
| C．To deliver supplies to the station. | D．To replace the crew on the station. |
| A．The leak in the capsule. | B．Bad weather conditions. |
| C．An interview with the media. | D．Repair work on the rocket. |
| A．He worked as an officer in the army. | B．He was a full- time astronaut from Russia. |
| C．He performed the task for the first time. | D．He was in charge of the space program. |
| A．Females are capable of investigating space. |
| B．Age is a decisive factor in space tasks. |
| C．Her work makes her a role model for girls. |
| D．Space technology is a great challenge for girls. |
6 . When my editors asked me to report on forest bathing, I packed a swimsuit. I assumed it must involve getting in the water. It turns out, my interpretation was too literal.
I met certified Forest Therapy (治疗) guide Melanie Choukas-Bradley at an urban forest in Washington, D. C. Here, I began to get it. Forest bathing isn’t a bath or a hike. We did walk the forest trails, but we wandered with no particular destination in mind.
The aim of forest bathing, Choukas- Bradley explained, is to slow down and throw oneself in the natural environment. She helped us be aware of the smells, tastes and sights of the forest. We took in our surroundings by using all our senses. As we passed through a stand of trees, we touched the trunks. We smelled the black walnuts, which give off a lovely fragrance (香气). We got a little shower of ripe mulberries, too. “Close your eyes and just breathe.” Choukas-Bradley told us. After I opened my eyes, the green looked a lot greener. And I began to see things I hadn’t noticed before.
“A forest guide helps us be here, not there,” says Amos Clifford, the founder of the Association of Nature & Forest Therapy, the organization that certifies the guides. They support what the forests could offer us, inviting us into practices that deepen physical presence, pleasure, and partnership with nature. When we connect with nature in this way, we are connecting with ourselves.
Clifford’s goal is to encourage health care proyiders to integrate forest therapy as a stress- reduction strategy. In the United States, work- related stress accounts for up to $190 billion in health care costs each year. “It’s my hope that the health care system will include forest therapy into the range of services,” Clifford says.
1. What is forest bathing?| A．A hike up the mountain. | B．An adventure in the woods. |
| C．A swimming in open water. | D．A guided nature healing practice. |
| A．By improving our awareness. | B．By doing intense training. |
| C．By experiencing nature mindfully. | D．By carrying out eyesight tests. |
| A．Locate and pick ripe fruits. |
| B．Put exercise plans into action. |
| C．Identify different trees and birds. |
| D．Concentrate on the surrounding nature. |
| A．Health care system needs updating. |
| B．Nature- based therapy costs too much. |
| C．Stress- related diseases are commonly seen. |
| D．Forest therapy could be an alternative treatment. |
7 . As AI develops, it becomes challenging to distinguish between its content and human-created work. Before comparing both, it’s good to know about the Perplexity & Burstiness of a text.
Perplexity is a measurement used to evaluate the performance of language models in predicting the next word in a group of words. It measures how well the model can estimate the probability of a word occurring based on the previous context. A lower perplexity score indicates better predictability and understanding of the language, while a higher perplexity score suggests a higher degree of uncertainty and less accurate predictions. The human mind is so complex compared to current AI models that human-written text has high perplexity compared to AI-generated text.
Examples:
High Perplexity: “The teapot sang an opera of hot, wheeling tea, every steamy note a symphony of flavor.”
Low Perplexity: “I pouted hot water into the teapot, and a fresh smell filled the room.”
Burstiness refers to the variation in the length and structure of sentences within a piece of content. It measures the degree of diversity and unpredictability in the arrangement of sentences. Human writing often exhibits bursts and lulls (间歇), with a mix of long and short sentences, while AI-generateo content tends to have a more uniform and regular pattern. Higher burstiness indicates greater creativity, spontaneity (自发性), and engagement in writing, while lower burstiness reflects a more robotic and monotonous (单调的) style. Just like the perplexity score, human-written content usually has a high burstiness score.
Examples:
High Burstiness: “The alarm screamed. Feet hit the floor. The tea kettle whistled. Steam streamed. Heart pounded. The world, awake.”
Low Burstiness: “In the peaceful morning, the alarm clock’s soft ring greeted a new day. I walked to the kitchen, my steps light and unhurried. The tea kettle whistled its gentle song, a comforting tune that harmonized with the steam’s soft whisper.”
Here, I wrote a passage on the “Importance of lifelong learning” myself and also asked ChatGPT to do the same to compare better AI-generated and human-written text.
1. What do Perplexity & Burstiness probably serve as?| A．Complexities of a language. | B．Criteria on features of a text. |
| C．Phenomena of language varieties. | D．References in generating a text. |
| A．Low perplexity and low burstiness. | B．High perplexity and-low burstiness. |
| C．Low perplexity and high burstiness. | D．High perplexity and high burstiness. |
| A．Quoting sayings. | B．Showing examples. |
| C．Giving definitions. | D．Making comparisons. |
| A．Some essays from ChatGPT. | B．An illustration for differences. |
| C．An example of the writer’s own. | D．Analyses of lifelong learning. |
1. Why are these creatures a problem?
| A．They’re violent. | B．They damage things. | C．They eat many crops. |
| A．This spring. | B．This summer. | C．This autumn. |
| A．Another journalist. | B．Some scientists. | C．A farmer. |
1. Why is the man giving the woman the information?
| A．They had a conversation on this topic before. |
| B．She is reading books on this subject. |
| C．He is giving her tasks. |
| A．To clear harmful chemicals. |
| B．To remind people of injuries. |
| C．To produce pleasant feelings. |
| A．Diet. | B．Sleep. | C．Physical exercise. |
| A．Get a pet. |
| B．Cook for friends regularly. |
| C．Do weekly video calls with family. |
1. Where are the speakers?
| A．In a supermarket. | B．At a university. | C．In a house. |
| A．Writing. | B．Accounting. | C．Engineering. |
| A．Whether the man will change majors. |
| B．Whether the man will find a suitable job. |
| C．Whether the man will get good school grades. |
