1 . Left-handed people can find it inconvenient to do certain things, writing in a notebook for example.     1     Research found that they were over-represented (任职人数过多的) among fighters in combat sports. Left-handed fighters also had higher chances to win. This confirms the fighter theory.

    2     The explanation is that the two brain spheres of left-handers are more strongly connected, strengthening memorial ability.

Being left-handed might be a factor in mathematical ability. An Italian study found that for simple arithmetic there was little difference between right- and left-handed performance.     3     No one understands the reason for this.

    4     In one study, researchers showed the participants columns of abstract illustrations and asked them which ones they would prefer. Left-handed people were more likely to prefer the images on the left. Right-handed people preferred the ones on the right. Both groups disliked stuff on their opposite side.

Left-handers are also over-represented in professional, interactive sports. Researchers have looked at the influence of being left-handed on performance and interactive sports.     5     So if you have a left-handed child, you should encourage them to play table tennis, baseball and tennis. Being left-handed maximizes their chances of success in these sports.

A．Left-handed people may think differently.

B．Left-handed people have a gift for sports.

C．Left-handers may also be better at remembering events.

D．But there are a number of advantages of being left-handed.

E．But for more difficult problem-solving, left-handers won out.

F．Interactive sports have great many advantages over right handers.

G．Those that require the fastest reaction give left-handers the biggest advantage.

2 . In 2019, after retiring from her career as a social worker, Ane Freed - Kernis decided to build a home workshop and devote all of her free time to stone carving. “I might be covered head to to e in dust but I’m happy — it was something I needed more of in my life when I hit 60,” she says.

This appeal has its origins in Freed - Kernis’ childhood. Growing up on her father’s farm in Denmark, she used to wander through the fields with her eyes fixed on the ground, looking for stones to add to her collection. “I’ve always been drawn to the shapes and textures (质地) of stones,” she says.

After moving to England in 1977 and training as a social worker, Freed - Kernis soon became occupied with her busy career and the demands of raising her son. Stones were the last thing on her mind, until her father died in 2005. “He took a stone carving course in his retirement, and I always thought stone seemed so fun but never had the time to look into it myself,” she says. “After he died, I became determined to learn in his honour.”

Signing up for a week-long stone carving course at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Freed-Kernis began to learn how to turn a block of rock into well-designed shapes. “It was really scary at the start because you would spend hours just hammering (锤打).”

Now 65, Freed-Kernis has a thriving small business built largely through word of mouth. She creates 12 to 15 pieces a year that can take anywhere from a few days to three weeks to complete, while her prices range from £ 200 to £ 3,000. “I’m making smaller ones,” she says. “I don’t have to depend on the money much, so I want to keep prices in the range that people can afford, mainly just covering costs and labour (劳动力).”

1. Freed-Kernis was first attracted by stones when ______.

A．she was 60	B．she was a child
C．her father died	D．she moved to England

2. What can we infer about Freed-Kernis from paragraph 3?

A．She never cared about her father.

B．She led a disappointing life in Denmark.

C．She spent lots of time studying stone carving.

D．She learned stone carving under the influence of her dad.

3. How did Freed-Kernis feel when she started stone carving course?

A．Hopeful and proud.

B．Confident and satisfied.

C．Nervous and frightened.

D．Impatient and unprepared.

4. Why is Freed-Kernis making smaller pieces?

A．They are easier to move by her.

B．They are more affordable to people.

C．She wants to save costs and labour.

D．She is too old to focus on making large ones.

3 . In San Francisco, a large group of sea lions move themselves out of the bay waters and hang out on PIER 39, which is a popular tourist destination. According to dock (码头) officials, this is the most sea lions seen in the region in 15 years.

“Over 1,000 sea lions have been counted this week,” PIER 39 harbormaster Sheila Chandor told many different media. “The surge in sea lions is usually a good sign of their strong population and healthy living environment,” said Adam Ratner, Director of Conservation Engagement at the Marine Mammal (海洋哺乳动物) Center in Sausalito, California.

“California sea lions are sentinels (哨兵) of the ocean,” Ratner said. Their population to some extent reflects the health of the ocean. Therefore, seeing a large number of California sea lions is clearly a good thing.

For nearly 35 years, the slippery (滑的) residents have been a star attraction for tourists. That autumn in 1989, PIER 39 had just been repaired, but the ships had not yet been moved back. At that moment, the sea lions unexpected arrival not only attracted fans but also created enemies. According to a website, some dock residents and workers were scared away by the strong and very unpleasant smell and noise of their new neighbors, while others saw these animals as a bright spot after the destructive Loma Prieta earthquake.

The officials sought help from the Marine Mammal Center to find a way to deal with sea lions. Ratner said that the final decision is to let the sea lions stay and coexist with humans. “The fact proves that this is really a good thing,” he said. “This is just a proof of how we can truly work together and think about how we can share our coasts with marine mammals and other wildlife in a way that benefits all the parties involved.”

1. How does the author start the text?

A．By describing a situation.

B．By answering a question.

C．By holding a conversation.

D．By comparing different opinions.

2. What does the underlined word “surge” in paragraph 2 mean?

A．Sharp increase.	B．Tight control.
C．Slow development.	D．Sudden movement.

3. What is Ratner’s attitude to the final decision?

A．Doubtful.	B．Uninterested.
C．Supportive.	D．Unclear.

4. What message does the author seem to convey in the text?

A．Sea lions are pretty cool animals.

B．Animals and humans can live in harmony.

C．Watching sea lions might not be a proper action.

D．Sea lions should be driven out of PIER 39.

4 . Henry Bond was about ten years old when his father died, thus left the family entirely in his mother’s care. His mother found it _______to provide for the support of a large family. However, by good _________, she made great efforts to do organize things well, and also to send Henry, the oldest, to school, and to supply him, for the most part, with such _________ as he needed.

At one time, however, Henry wanted a _________, in order to join a class in that study, and his mother could not _________ him with the money to buy it. He was very much _________ about it, and went to bed with a _________ heart, thinking what could be done.

On waking in the morning, he found that a _________ snow had fallen, and the cold wind was blowing _________. “Ah,” said he, “it is an ill wind that blows nobody good.”

He rose, ran to the house of a neighbor, and offered his __________ to clear a path around his blocks. The offer was accepted. Having completed this work, and received his __________, he went to another place for the same __________, and then to another, until he had earned enough to buy a grammar.

When school __________, Henry was in his seat, the happiest boy there, ready to begin the lesson in his new book.

From that time, Henry, was always the first in all his classes. He knew no such word as fail, but always succeeded in all he __________. Having the __________, he always found the way.

1.

A．tremendous

B．difficult

C．cautious

D．industrious

2.

A．protection

B．ambition

C．management

D．desire

3.

A．books

B．conditions

C．ambitions

D．materials

4.

A．literature

B．masterpiece

C．novel

D．grammar

5.

A．provide

B．promote

C．refuse

D．pay

6.

A．embarrassed

B．random

C．troubled

D．fearful

7.

A．light

B．heavy

C．nervous

D．merciful

8.

A．general

B．slight

C．deep

D．urgent

9.

A．fiercely

B．deliberately

C．obviously

D．temporarily

10.

A．behavior

B．service

C．kindness

D．reaction

11.

A．prize

B．award

C．fame

D．pay

12.

A．purpose

B．possession

C．determination

D．inspiration

13.

A．performed

B．processed

C．attended

D．started

14.

A．affected

B．acquired

C．attempted

D．tolerated

15.

A．wish

B．force

C．courage

D．will

5 . 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。

A few years ago, I stood underneath a red overhanging cliff near my hometown. The day was amazing.     1     deer chewed on the brown grasses, an eagle rode the wind. I was tied in, ready to climb. I was attempting     2     (do) a route first try, “onsight,” which means I didn’t know     3     I was climbing into.

Just as I was about to climb, nerves in my body, which I hadn’t felt yet,     4     (say) hello. That’s not good for any athlete. Desperate, I painted a coat of     5     (confident) on my inner walls of doubt. “You can do this, and success is certain.” I firmly told myself.

It didn’t work. I fell near the top.     6     (defeat), I lowered to the ground and realized powerfully that the desire to climb the route had kept me from doing it. In a flash, I told myself that on my next attempt, success or failure was not important. “Make one move at     7     time. That’s all.” I gave myself a pass from whatever would happen. It worked.

While     8     (stand) on the top, I was deep in thought. At some point, I framed this experience for myself in terms of simple arithmetic: When I added determination, courage, and desire, I failed. When I took away the desire for success, I improved. I enjoyed it more as well, which,     9     an athlete of 30 years, I didn’t think was possible. I     10     (eventual) discovered the power of subtraction (减法).

6 . A recent study suggests that for young soccer players, participating in repetitive technical training activities involving heading during practice may result in more total head impacts, but playing in actual soccer games may cause greater magnitude (程度) head impacts.

“Headers are a fundamental component to the sport of soccer. Therefore, it is important to understand differences in header frequency and magnitude between practice and game settings,” said study author Jillian Urban, PhD, from Wake Forest School of Medicine. “Practices are easier to change than games. Therefore, understanding how we can restructure practice to reduce head impact exposure while teaching fundamental skills is critical to improving head impact safety in the sport.”

The study followed eight soccer players who were aged 14 and 15 for two seasons. Players wore a sensor (传感器) during all practices and games. Researchers recorded all activities on the field with a camera, and identified each time head contact was made.

Head impact exposure was evaluated in terms of peak head motion and impacts, or impact rate per player per hour. Researchers then compared impact rates across different activity types.

Researchers amazingly found that technical drills like heading the ball and practicing ball-control, were associated with an average impact rate of 13.7 head impacts per player per hour. Team interaction activities such as small-sided games in practice were related to an average impact rate of 0.5 head impacts per player per hour, which was slightly lower than the 1.3 head impacts observed during actual games.

The study also revealed that games were associated with the highest numbers of average rotational (旋转) head motion, which signified the greatest magnitude head impacts. However, technical training recorded the lowest numbers.

“If the goal is to reduce the number of head impacts a young soccer player may get on the field, our findings suggest the best way may be to rearrange technical training practices,” said Urban. “However, if the goal is to reduce the likelihood of players sustaining head impacts of greater magnitude, then the best bet may be to look at factors related to high-magnitude head impacts that can occur during games.” A limitation of the study is the small number of players involved.

1. Why is restructuring practice critical to improving safety?

A．Because it’s easier to make improvements in practices than in games.

B．Because headers are an essential component to the sport of soccer.

C．Because head impacts during practice are much more serious.

D．Because high-magnitude head impacts in games are unavoidable.

2. Which activity has the highest average impact rate?

A．Small-sided games in practice.	B．Technical training activities.
C．Team interaction activities.	D．Actual soccer games.

3. What’s the author’s attitude towards the scientific study?

A．Critical.

B．Skeptical.

C．Objective.

D．Supportive.

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．Head impacts in training activities and games of soccer.

B．Risks that young soccer players may face on the field.

C．The importance of head impact safety in soccer game.

D．How head impact in different activity types is evaluated.

7 . When we’re really young, our parents are the celebrities of our lives. So, how about imagining them as the star of many famous films? It’s not far-fetched. Matt Bonito has done just that with his series of images that feature his father, Dom Bonito. Matt photoshopped Dom into iconic movie scenes and famous works of art and photographs.

According to Matt, his dad is integral (必要的) to scenes in many films. He’s featured alongside Samuel L. Jackson and John Travolta in Pulp Fiction, and he replaces the character of Rose in Titanic. Dom is also the main character in numerous paintings. He has taken the place of the screaming person in artist Edvard Munch’s The Scream and is just one of the guys playing poker in Cassius Marcellus Coolidge’s Dogs Playing Poker.

In each image, Matt adjusts the look of his father so that he is seamlessly (无瑕疵地) part of any scene he’s in. But there are some things that always remain the same. His dad never changes out of his sweater vest and newsboy-style cap, adding a bit of humor to each image by looking out of place. “It was only ever intended for my friends and family, but it got so popular that we’ve now got dedicated pages for it right across social media,” Matt said.

Matt’s favorite part of his ongoing project is that it allows him to spend more time with his dad. “We can spend hours sitting around the dinner table laughing while we come up with ideas, and it’s never a bad thing to have an excuse to hang out with him,” he shares. “I also just love the creativity of it all. Not everything we try works, but I just love the absurdity of dropping an old man in a ridiculous outfit into—quite often—very serious scenes.”

1. What does the underlined word “far-fetched” in paragraph 1 probably mean?

A．Practical.

B．Unusual.

C．Unlikely.

D．Necessary.

2. Why are the deeds mentioned in paragraph 2?

A．To recommend some good films.

B．To present results of Matt’s work.

C．To introduce some famous artists.

D．To show Dom’s long acting career.

3. Which of the following words can describe Matt’s images?

A．Funny and creative.	B．Pretty but dull.
C．Energetic and serious.	D．Ridiculous but attractive.

4. What can be inferred from the passage?

A．Matt Bonito can gain both fame and fortune.

B．Matt Bonito prefers to spend more time with his father.

C．Dom Bonito is an absurd person.

D．Dom Bonito can show his creativity and artistic talent in the film.

8 . 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。

Walking through his neighborhood supermarket in Australia,     1     packs of Chinese sauerkraut (酸菜) line the shelves, Huang Xiqing feels like he’s shopping in his hometown of Shenyang in Liaoning province. “The sauerkraut soup tastes just like home,” says the 45-year-old Chinese living in Canberra,     2     (sound) a little homesick.

Chinese sauerkraut, a pickle which     3     (make) of Chinese cabbage, is a traditional specialty of the northeastern region and is now sold around the country     4     exported overseas. Chinese cabbage has gained     5     (popular) with ordinary household, because it is cheap and can be stored for a relatively long period of time.

During the last decades, Chinese businessmen have set     6     several sauerkraut companies. Among them, the Xinmin agricultural product company of the Heilongjiang Cuihua Group has sold its Chinese sauerkraut not only     7     (domestic), but also to countries including Canada, Japan and the United States. When people were making purchases for Spring Festival, sales of Chinese sauerkraut on Douyin increased more than10-fold,     8     (compare) to the previous year.

But for Huang, Chinese sauerkraut is an everlasting link to home. “Although I have tried delicacies from across     9     globe. Chinese sauerkraut is still one of my     10     (favourite), and reminds me of my hometown,” Huang says.

9 . Lying in my hospital bed, I was flicking through (快速转换) the channels when I suddenly paused. Muscular women were competing in a body sculpting competition on the _______ . “Wow, they are _______ ,” I thought in amazement.

It was 2004, and I’d been hospitalized with asthma, which gave me the desire to _______ a more healthy lifestyle. I didn’t know how to exercise correctly and found it hard to _______ healthy diets. But now at 49, it was time for a _______ . Therefore, the day after I left the hospital, I joined the gym with one _______ : to look like the women I’d seen on TV.

The first sessions were so _______ that I could barely walk back down the stairs afterwards. But I kept _______ for several hours, four days a week, slowly building my strength. After six months of training, I _______ my first competition—Masters Over Forty. Standing on the stage, my heart nearly leapt from my chest when they ________ I was the winner.

Over the next 14 years, I ________ 35 titles in body sculpting competitions worldwide. During this time, I decided to use my experience to help other women over 40 achieve their ________ goals. I became a personal trainer and wrote a book to help people eat ________ food during their training. With the right diet, everyone can stay healthy and strong longer.

I know many older women have never been in the ________ or picked up a weight. But it’s never too ________ to make changes.

1.

A．screen

B．bed

C．way

D．mind

2.

A．intelligent

B．reliable

C．wealthy

D．incredible

3.

A．abandon

B．continue

C．adopt

D．alter

4.

A．mix up

B．stick to

C．show off

D．put aside

5.

A．rest

B．celebration

C．chat

D．change

6.

A．suggestion

B．goal

C．order

D．bonus

7.

A．hard

B．dull

C．ridiculous

D．dangerous

8.

A．staying up

B．standing by

C．working out

D．passing out

9.

A．organized

B．sponsored

C．hosted

D．entered

10.

A．announced

B．whispered

C．predicted

D．assumed

11.

A．witnessed

B．lost

C．defended

D．won

12.

A．career

B．fitness

C．education

D．finance

13.

A．tasty

B．fresh

C．appropriate

D．abundant

14.

A．gym

B．hospital

C．session

D．building

15.

A．soon

B．young

C．late

D．fun

10 . Food labels seem to provide all the information a thoughtful consumer needs, so counting calories should be simple.     1     They say how many calories a food contains, and yet what they don’t say is that how many calories you actually get out of your food depends on how highly processed it is.

Food-processing includes cooking, mixing and mashing (捣烂).     2     It can also be completed in your home when you prepare a meal. Highly processed foods are more digestible, whose effects can be big. If you eat the food raw you will tend to lose weight. If you eat the same food cooked, you will tend to gain weight.     3    

As a result, when we are losing weight, we should reject processed food. And to do so would be much easier if our food labels gave us some advice about how many calories we would save by eating less-processed food.     4     The problem lies in a shortage of information. They find it hard to predict precisely how many extra calories will be gained when our food is more highly processed.

    5     The first gives a precise number of calories but takes no account of the known effects of food-processing, and therefore mismeasures what our bodies are actually harvesting from the food. The second would take account of food-processing, but without any precise numbers. Faced by this difficult choice, every country has opted to ignore the effect of processing and the result is that consumers are confused.

A．Same calories, different outcomes.

B．Processed foods should be given more restrictions.

C．It can be done by the food industry before you buy.

D．Food labels fail to offer a specific number of calories.

E．So why do our nutrition advisers keep silent on the topic?

F．But things get tricky because food labels tell only half the story.

G．Our food labeling therefore faces a choice between two systems.