1 . Obese people experience discrimination (歧视) in many parts of their lives, and the workplace is no exception. Studies have long shown that obese workers, defined as those with a body-mass index (BMI) of 30 or more, earn significantly less than their slimmer co-workers.
Yet the costs of weight discrimination may be even greater than previously thought. “The overwhelming evidence,” wrote the Institute for employment Studies, “is that it is only women living with obesity who experience the obesity wage penalty (薪资损失).” They were expressing a view that is widely aired in academic papers. To test it, The Economist has analyzed data concerning 23,000 workers from the American Time Use Survey, conducted by the Bureau of Labour Statistics. Our number-processing suggests that, in fact, being obese hurts the earnings of both women and men.
The data we analyzed cover men and women aged between 25 and 54 and in full-time employment. At a general level, it is true that men’s BMIs are unrelated to their wages. But that changes for men with university degrees. For them, obesity is associated with a wage penalty of nearly 8%, even after accounting for the separate effects of age, race, graduate education and marital status.
The conclusion — that well-educated workers in particular are penalized for their weight — holds for both sexes. Moreover, the higher your level of education, the greater the penalty. We found that obese men with a Bachelor’s degree (学士学位) earn 5% less than their thinner colleagues, while those with a Master’s degree earn 14% less. Obese women, it is true, still have it worse: for them, the equivalent figures are 12% and 19%, respectively (分别地).
Your line of work makes a difference, too. When we dealt with the numbers for individual occupations and industries, we found the greatest differences in high-skilled jobs. Obese workers in health care, for example, make 11% less than their slimmer colleagues; those in management roles make roughly 9% less, on average. In sectors such as construction and agriculture, meanwhile, obesity is actually associated with higher wages.
These results suggest that the total costs of wage discrimination borne by overweight workers in America are greater than expected. Now, it’s time for our governments to take it seriously.
1. What does the underlined word “it” refer to in paragraph 2?| A．Obese men earn less salary. |
| B．Only obese women earn less salary. |
| C．Both obese men and women earn less salary. |
| D．Weight discrimination may be greater than previously thought. |
| A．A fat woman office director. |
| B．An obese construction worker. |
| C．An obese man with a bachelor’s degree. |
| D．A heavier female doctor with a Doctor’s degree. |
| A．Supportive | B．Objective | C．Subjective | D．indifferent |
| A．Overweight discrimination in other countries. |
| B．The reason of discriminating obese people in their lives. |
| C．American people’s attitude towards overweight discrimination. |
| D．Actions taken against overweight discrimination in workplaces. |
One spring, I was hired as groundskeeper at a Country Inn, a famous bed-and-breakfast located in Washington state. The grand house is in a beautiful place. Many famous people have visited and even had their own rooms there. The owners, Philip and Cecelia, have done a perfect job for the house. However, the gardens were very overgrown. Worse yet, there was another problem: a very persistent doe (母鹿).
Every day when I came to work, there was new evidence of the deer’s big appetite. I tried many preventives: spray, human hair, soap, you name it-but none of those things had effect. Often when I was weeding, I’d look over and there she’d be, munching some tasty pieces. Worst of all, she feasted on the roses, in which Cecelia took great pride. I became so frustrated that I named her “Dinner”— and wanted to serve her on plates.
One morning, I was on my hands and knees pulling out vines and bushes when I caught a movement out of the corner of my eye. There was Dinner, not five feet away, munching a large leaf and staring at me. I felt a connection with this animal. We did have something in common-we were both mothers. I got the crazy idea of communicating with her and it seemed she wanted the same thing.
What’s up? I asked in my head.
I’m here because I feel safe, was the gentle reply I felt I heard. I have my fawns (幼鹿) bedded down nearby, and there is plenty to eat. When the twins are older after summer, I will move them deeper into the forest.
I understand that, I assured her. People come here too, from far away. I guess they’ll be interested to see you. I promise that nobody will harm you or your children. I don’t mind sharing the vegetation but Cecelia loves roses, too. She is very upset when they are all eaten.
A loud crash broke the magic. Our eyes met again briefly before she leaped off across the driveway, disappearing into the forest. Has I really communicated with the deer?
Paragraph1.
I went into the kitchen where Cecelia was preparing the evening meal.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph2.
Every day, I enjoyed watching Dinner with the twins and my presence never bothered them.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3 . Imagine this: You walk into a place and the atmosphere is light and airy. The subtle scent of coffee beans fills the air and everyone that approaches you is friendly and welcoming. You’re comfortable and feel like you belong. As in most cities, it’s a place where people meet, discuss ideas, and conduct business. After taking a few sips of that Caramel Macchiato, you immediately get that feeling of energy and optimism. Perhaps it’s partly due to the caffeine and sugar rush, or maybe it’s that the presence of a Starbucks typically indicates a city on the rise.
In December of 2017, Trenton’s first Starbuck’s café was opened to the public at 102 Warren Street. Walking in, people living in Trenton scream at everything about this café, from the diverse but local stuff to the Trenton themed décor (室内装饰) and art. To make things better, this Starbucks also serves as an “opportunity café” which essentially means the young people in our communities are recruited and offered job training and employment. This program not only uplifts our youth, but also increases the amount of minority business in the city.
In the interviews with customers, a trend in responses arose. To many, the Starbucks was a “favorite place to stop in after work” and provided “a very relaxing environment.” The staff were often highly praised, noted as being friendly, helpful, and working in harmony. The interior décor of the café struck a lot of people’s attention, given the familiarity of the atmosphere. Painted on the walls, all around the store, are murals (壁画) with bright, colorful, graffiti-like designs very sui generis in Trenton, showcasing local monuments like the State House and the famous “Trenton Makes” bridge.
This new Starbucks brings a sense of modernity to Downtown Trenton and reminds us that our city is always developing. Open from 6 a. m. until 7 p.m. every day, the building is hardly ever empty. This space is made for everyone in Trenton, even the non-coffee lovers.
1. What is the major function of Paragraph 1 in the passage?| A．To present an introduction to the topic. |
| B．To set a background for the main theme. |
| C．To summarize the main idea of the passage. |
| D．To describe a common phenomenon for the readers. |
| A．People are amazed at the number of job opportunities provided by the Starbucks. |
| B．“Opportunity café” program helps achieve booming economy and bring spiritual benefits. |
| C．Most respondents regarded the Starbucks as a harmonious and entertaining workplace. |
| D．Numerous people are attracted to stop in after work by the murals with original designs. |
| A．Substantial. | B．Delicate. | C．Inspirational. | D．Unique. |
| A．Starbucks Is Designed for Everyone |
| B．Starbucks Gains Popularity in Trenton |
| C．Starbucks Sets an Atmosphere of Progress |
| D．Starbucks Creates More Job Opportunities |
The Save
Instantly Casey raised her hand, she feared she had made an awful mistake.
“OK,” Coach said. “Casey will be goalie (守门员) in the fourth quarter.”
Casey nodded uneasily. She had just joined the Eagles. Now she had volunteered to be goalie, a position that required confidence, which she lacked.
Casey swallowed hard when taking her turn in front of the goal for pre game warm-ups. The goal suddenly looked as big as a movie screen.
When Casey jogged over to her dad near the sidelines, she said quietly, “I cannot do it.”, blinking back tears. “Sure you can,” Dad encouraged her. “Just keep your head up and be aggressive (好斗的). You might surprise yourself.”
The game kicked off and Casey’s teammates scored three quick goals. Clearly, they were the better team mostly because their opponents’ best player was at a piano recital (演奏会). At halftime the Eagles led, 4 to 0. But then she noticed the Comets’ star, number 25 racing toward the field. The piano recital had ended.
Number 25 was flashing across the field, dribbling (带球) past defenders. She zipped past several players and kicked the ball hard into the goal. It was 4 to 1. Two minutes later, number 25 intercepted (拦截) a pass and weaved down (穿行) the field, controlling the ball as if it were tied to her foot. She scored again. It was 4 to 2.
Casey felt her stomach tighten. Soon she would be the one helplessly guarding the goal.
The whistle went. Number 25 scored a third time. The Eagles led by one goal.
“OK, Casey,” Coach said as the Eagles huddled up before the fourth quarter. “You go in goal.”
Casey stood in front of the net. She yelled for her teammates, who were dominating the game again. They hadn’t scored, but Casey hadn’t had to make any saves either. Number 25 appeared to be tired.
Casey’s heart raced whenever the ball came. But each time it was kicked away. Now there were two minutes left. “Hurry up,” Casey thought. “If I never have to touch the ball, we’ll win the game. I’ll never ...”
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Suddenly number 25 had the ball and was racing up the side-line.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Casey backed quickly toward the net as number 25 sent another shot.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. Which department is recently established?
| A．History. | B．Business. | C．Economics. |
| A．It offers students loans. | B．Students can get discounts. | C．The experts offer the funds. |
| A．To do a promotion of a program. |
| B．To explain how to register for the course. |
| C．To emphasize the importance of education. |
6 . Eight scientists were awarded the 2023 Future Science Prize, also called “China’s Nobel Prize”, the first Chinese non-governmental science award jointly initiated by groups of scientists and entrepreneurs (企业家). Since the establishment in 2016, a total of 35 scientists have been awarded the Future Science Prize so far.
Chai Jijie and Zhou Jianmin received the Future Science Prize in life sciences for the discovery of resistosomes (抗原小体) and explanations of their molecular structures and functions in plant immune responses against pathogens (病原体). Understanding of resistosome functions will lead to better methods for controlling plant disease and therefore have enormous importance for global food security.
Chai said that he felt extremely honored, excited and happy via a video call at the press conference. He emphasized that this recognition was not only for himself but also for the team’s years of hard work. “My cooperation with Professor Zhou has lasted for nearly 20 years. Our partnership has been productive and enjoyable, and I believe our cooperation will carry on,” he said.
During the video call, Zhou remarked that the Future Science Prize is grounded in the national context. It is heartening to see that the prize places greater emphasis on supporting agriculture.
Zhao Zhongxian and Chen Xianhui received the Future Science Prize in physical sciences for their influential breakthroughs in the discovery of high-temperature superconducting materials and systematic advancements in elevating the transition temperature. Notably, both Zhao and Chen conducted systematic studies to show the underlying physical mechanisms of high Tc materials, positioning themselves at the forefront of superconductor research for several years.
He Kaiming, Sun Jian, Ren Shaoqing, Zhang Xiangyu received the Future Science Prize in mathematics and computer science, for their extraordinary contributions to artificial intelligence by introducing deep residual learning (深度残差学习).
The 2023 Future Science Prize Week and the Award Ceremony were held in Hong Kong from October 14 to 17.
1. For what were the eight scientists awarded?| A．Their never-ending pursuit of knowledge. |
| B．Their long-term partnership in researches. |
| C．Their remarkable contributions to science. |
| D．Their intense efforts to overcome barriers. |
| A．Vision. | B．Passion. | C．Ambition. | D．Cooperation. |
| A．Their discovery is ground-breaking. |
| B．Zhao and Chen have a long way to go. |
| C．Research is certain to be rewarded. |
| D．The real value cannot be overestimated. |
| A．To appeal to many more people to innovate. |
| B．To reveal the recipe for their great success. |
| C．To encourage us to be committed to science. |
| D．To introduce the 2023 Future Science Prize. |
1. What does the speaker work for?
| A．A travel agency. | B．An airline. | C．An airport. |
| A．Puerto Rico. | B．Maldives. | C．England. |
| A．His flight was called off. |
| B．He failed to catch his flight. |
| C．He couldn’t find a flight to his home city. |
| A．Lower prices. | B．Better service. | C．Bigger seating capacity. |
8 . Does a happy person live longer? Many studies have convinced us that happiness brings good health, which has resulted in an increasing demand for speakers and products encouraging positive thinking. However, being happy does not promise that one is going to be healthy. There are other factors that influence one’s health and long life such as a person’s genes or even a person’s socio-economic condition.
Some research even suggests that positive thinking can be dangerous. Positive thinking, when taken to the extreme, can cause a person to be separated from reality. For example, a person who thinks that staying happy and positive can help him recover from an illness like cancer but later fails to recover from it, may blame himself for not being happy. In this case, positive thinking may potentially make the victim disregard other factors. Sometimes the pursuit of happiness is even associated with serious mental health problems such as depression.
All types of happiness are not good for us either. For example, pride, a pleasant feeling, can sometimes rob us of the ability to empathize with others or understand another’s viewpoint. This anti-social behavior can cause people around us to turn away from us, and this could, in turn, make us feel lonely and do harm to our mental and even physical health.
Moreover, unpleasant feelings can be beneficial to a person’s well-being. Researchers believe that unpleasant feelings can help us make sense of our challenges and experiences in a way that supports psychological well-being. For example, if I have behaved badly towards my good friend, the feelings of guilt and sadness might motivate me to apologize and ask for forgiveness. The rebuilding of a broken relationship can be a lift to one’s mental well-being.
In trying to experience happiness, we should remember that seeking for happiness as an end in itself can be self-defeating, and does not necessarily lead to better health. After all, one will surely experience setbacks and conflicts in life. Instead, learning to cope with negative emotions with a realistic positive attitude is key to a person’s good health.
1. What’s the writer’s opinion in this passage?| A．Negative thinking can be dangerous. |
| B．Staying happy can bring good health. |
| C．Unpleasant feelings cannot be beneficial. |
| D．Happiness cannot ensure one’s good health. |
| A．When we use it with a realistic attitude to solve problems. |
| B．When we focus on it as an only determinant of happy life. |
| C．When we think it one of the necessary factor for good health. |
| D．When we realize it may rob us of the ability to understand others. |
| A．They rebuild a broken relationship. |
| B．They lead to self-reflection and personal growth. |
| C．They help keep the problems and challenges away. |
| D．They prevent long-term negative effects on mental health. |
| A．An ultimate goal. | B．An individual plan. |
| C．A final decision. | D．A great start. |
9 . Lying in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, the fishing village Huatulco is home to nine bays, 36 beaches and thousands of baby turtles that apparently needed me. I had three open days on my calendar, and a desire to save some turtles. And so, away I went to Huatulco with Wildcoast, a group of champions-for-change who were protecting coastal and marine ecosystem in the U. S. and Mexico.
I was taken to La Escobilla to experience Wildcoast in action. Just one hour north of Huatulco, this protected beach is where mass turtle nesting happens. This natural phenomenon lasts just four days during rainy season, hundreds of thousands of female sea turtles swinging their way ashore to lay their eggs.
Between threats of dogs, crabs, development and oil spills, the little creatures have the whole world against them. As recently as 2002, turtles hunting was not only a common practice, but an important part of the culture and diet in the Oaxaca communities. Luckily, Wildcoast rescues turtle eggs and recreates habitats by monitoring temperatures and humidity. Thanks to their efforts, the sea turtles have made a major comeback, with now over 72 million turtles being born on the beaches that Wildcoast protects.
I got to hold 50 of the tiny creatures in a bowl. Despite an average laying of 100 eggs, just one in 1, 000 baby turtles will make it to adulthood. Gazing into the bowl, I so badly wanted them to taste the sea and find shelter somewhere deep in the ocean. Finally, it was time to liberate those little creatures. Out spilled the creatures, some moving full steam ahead while others barely paddled in place. Literally, hundreds of them began to spread out across the beach.
With each set of waves, we witnessed the survival of the fittest, some pushing past the whitewash while others crashed back to shore. Their fight for life made my eyes wet. A flock of birds were ready to dive into the sea for their moving targets. “One in 1, 000.” Nature was cruel and compassionate at the same time. After 30 long minutes, the last creature made his way to the sea.
1. The baby turtles are threatened by various factors except ________.| A．the cruel hunters | B．the rapid development |
| C．the extreme weather | D．the oil-polluted ocean |
| A．With slow pace and fear. | B．With all energy and enthusiasm. |
| C．With full caution and curiosity. | D．With great satisfaction and responsibility. |
| A．One baby turtle in 1,000 can make his way to the sea. |
| B．Thousands of baby turtles were crashed back to shore. |
| C．The struggle of baby turtles for life touched the author. |
| D．Baby turtles can hardly survive the harsh living conditions. |
| A．Think twice before you leap. | B．God helps those who help themselves. |
| C．Cease to struggle and you cease to live. | D．When the buying stops, the killing can too. |
Rahul was a hard-working and determined individual who believed that success could only be achieved through perseverance and effort. He had big dreams of becoming a renowned musician, and he knew that it would require countless hours of practice and dedication to reach his goal.
Rahul’s family was not wealthy, and they couldn’t afford to buy him a musical instrument. However, Rahul’s unwavering determination pushed him to find a solution. He began working odd jobs in the village, doing chores for neighbors, and saving every penny he earned. He even started waking up early in the morning to help the local farmers with their work.
After months of saving, Rahul finally had enough money to buy a second-hand guitar, It was old and worn, but to Rahul, it was a treasure. He spent hours each day practicing, strumming the strings and experimenting with different melodies. His fingers grew calloused (起茧的), but he never complained. Instead, he saw it as a sign of progress, a proof to his hard work.
Despite his talent, Rahul faced numerous challenges along his journey. People would often discourage him, telling him that he was wasting his time pursuing his dreams. But Rahul remained determined, using their skepticism as fuel to work even harder.
One day, news spread throughout the village about a music competition being held in the nearby city. The competition promised the winner a chance to perform in front of renowned musicians and industry professionals. Rahul saw this as an opportunity to showcase his talent and prove to everyone that hard work pay s off. With great anticipation, Rahul prepared for the competition. He practiced day and night, fine-tuning his skills and perfecting his performance.
注意:
1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1: Finally, the day of the competition arrived.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph 2: Days went by, and the results of the competition were announced.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
