I was nearly twenty-two, about to graduate, and unsure which to follow—my head and my long interest in natural science, or my heart and my passion for photography. A job at the museum would be the safe choice. Or I could try to pursue a career in architectural photography, even though I had no specific training in the field. I longed to land that job.
I asked the advisor, John Smith, to recommend someone qualified to give mean objective opinion. His reply: “See Benjamin Moskowitz, a famous architect, NYC. Good luck.”
During the Spring break I booked a cheap room and took the train to New York City. At his office on the twenty-third floor I asked the receptionist for Mr. Moskowitz. “I think Mr. Moskowitz has already left, Miss. I know he was planning a long weekend. Did you have an appointment?”...
She sighed and asked my name and told me to wait while she tried to see if he might still be there. I paced nervously, thinking that my time and money and my best chance for an expert opinion had been thrown away. The receptionist rang his office; no answer. “Sorry, but it looks like you’re out of luck, Miss White,” she said.
Why hadn’t I planned this better? Called for an appointment? Taken an earlier train? How could I have made such a mistake? I was close to tears.
Just then at all, gray-haired man, beautifully dressed, strode (阔步) through the reception area. The receptionist signaled me and mouthed, “That’s him.” I didn’t hesitate. “Oh, Mr. Moskowitz!” I called out. “Just a moment, sir, please! I’d like to speak to you.”
He glanced at his expensive-looking gold watch and kept walking. “Sorry, I have a train to catch,” he said straightforward, “I don’t believe you had an appointment.” I hurried after him toward the elevator. “I apologize, sir, but I was told to talk to you and to show you some photographs.”
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：
Mr. Moskowitz glanced at it, impatiently at first and then more carefully a second time.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2：
One hour later, I walked out of his office with great confidence and excitement
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________2 . Top-down processing is the process of using context or general knowledge to understand what we perceive (感知). In 1970, psychologist Richard Gregory introduced the concept. He claimed that perception is constructive.
The processing plays an important role in our interactions with our environment. Our five senses are constantly taking in information. At any given time, we are experiencing different sights, sounds, tastes, smells, and ways things feel when we touch them. If we paid attention to each one of our senses all the time, we’d never do anything else. It enables us to simplify the process by relying on context and our pre-existing knowledge to understand what we notice. If our brains didn’t employ top-down processing our senses would overwhelm us.
Top-down processing helps us understand what our senses are perceiving in our daily lives. For example, suppose you receive an important letter but a few drops of water have ruined part of the text. A few letters in different words are now just smudges (污迹). Yet, you’re still able to read the letter in its entirety using top-down processing. You use the context of the words and sentences in which the smudges appear and your knowledge of reading to comprehend the meaning of the letter’s message. See a word LO*E, with one letter knocked down, yet you are still able to quickly recognize the word as LOVE.
On the one hand, top-down processing serves a positive function by simplifying the way we comprehend our sensory perceptions. It enables us to shortcut the cognitive path between our perceptions and their meaning. On the other hand, patterns can also prevent us from perceiving things in unique ways. So we may understand the pattern of how to use a mobile phone, but if the manufacturer comes out with a new phone that employs completely unique interaction patterns, we may not be able to figure out how to use it. Besides, as our knowledge is limited and biased (片面的) in certain ways, it can lead to perceptual errors.
1. What is the author’s purpose in writing paragraph 2?| A．To explain main reasons. | B．To give practical examples. |
| C．To draw specific conclusions. | D．To analyse theoretical frameworks. |
| A．Pre-existing knowledge. | B．Active interactions. |
| C．Five physical senses. | D．Lessons from mistakes |
| A．Seeing is believing. | B．Practice makes perfect. |
| C．Every coin has two sides. | D．Experience is the best teacher. |
| A．Introduce a reading method. | B．Deepen underlying meanings. |
| C．Illustrate a cognitive strategy. | D．Clarify a producing process. |
3 . Science is always seen as hard-core and hard to understand. But could you imagine hundreds of people being attracted by the cover of a science magazine?
The achievement was completed after Wang Yixi and his team made the cover of an October issue of Structure, a US-based Cell Press journal. The cover shows a Chinese ink painting that vividly shows the process in which a special enzyme (酶) involved in the biosynthesis (生物合成) of an important organic compound is activated―the latest breakthrough by a Chinese scientific research team. Another one of his popular works that carries distinctive Chinese elements is a composite image, describing a scientist as the folk goddess Nyuwa, carrying her newly discovered compound to fill a crack in the sky.
While studying chemistry at university, Wang Yixi often came across an experimental preparation process that he had to explain, but the amount of text was too large and abstract. A she had been interested in drawing, and related software like Photoshop, he decided to turn his graphics into a fine art. He went on to study 3D graphics software in order to better display the microscopic structures in his field and improve the presentation of his papers.
It didn’t take long before his classmates and professors noticed his talents and asked him to help them with their papers. By word of mouth, more people beat a path to Wang’s door and were willing to pay for his service. Over the past four years, Wang and his team have come up with more than 10,000 visual works for academic papers across a variety of fields, many of which have made their way to the world’s top academic journals, including Nature, Science and Cell.
“Every scientific paper is innovative, and graphics are an essential part of scientific papers,” Wang says, adding that what he tries to achieve is an explanation of models or methods, to showcase experimental results, visually process data or compare differences among experiments.
1. What play a special role in Wang’s works?| A．Fairytales. | B．Chinese elements. | C．Rich colors. | D．Complex structures. |
| A．He preferred painting to Chemistry. | B．He developed useful mapping software. |
| C．He had an active mind to solve problem. | D．He had trouble conducting his experiment. |
| A．By visualizing them vividly. | B．By showing them accurately. |
| C．By explaining them in detail. | D．By constructing them uniquely |
| A．The power of art | B．Dilemmas of science |
| C．Mysteries of Chemistry | D．Inspiration from science |
4 . I had to say something after reading The Anxious Generation. It is going to sell well , because Jonathan Haidt is telling a scary story about children’s development many parents are led to believe. However, the book’s repeated suggestion that digital technologies are rewiring our children’s brains and causing the epidemic (流行病) of mental illness is unsupported by science. Worse , the rude proposal that social media is to blame might distract (分心) us from effectively responding to the real causes of the current mental-health crisis in young people.
Researchers have searched for the effects suggested by Haidt. Our efforts have produced a mix of no, small and mixed associations. Most data are correlative. When associations over time are found, they suggest not that social-media use predicts or causes depression, but that young people who already have mental-health problems use such platforms more often or in different ways from their healthy peers.
We are not alone here. Several analyses and systematic reviews centralize on the same message. An analysis done in 72 countries shows no consistent or measurable associations between well-being and social media globally. Moreover, studies from some authorities finds no evidence of intense changes associated with digital-technology use.
As a psychologist studying children’s and adolescents’ mental health, I appreciate parents’ frustration (沮丧) and desire for simple answers. As a parent of adolescents, I would also like to identify a simple source for the pain this generation is reporting. There are, however, no simple answers. The beginning and development of mental disorders are driven by a complex set of genetic and environmental factors.
More young people are talking openly about their mental-health struggles than ever before. But insufficient services are available to address their needs. In the United States, there is, on average, one school psychologist for every 1,119 students. We have a generation in crisis and in desperate need of the best of what science and evidence-based solutions can offer. Unfortunately, our time is being spent telling stories that are unsupported by research and that do little to support young people who need, and deserve, more.
1. What is presented in The Anxious Generation?| A．Scary stories affect children’s brains. |
| B．Parents are responsible for children’s health. |
| C．Teen’s mental illness results from screen time. |
| D．The epidemic of mental illness is unavoidable. |
| A．Many countries do research in mental health. |
| B．Well-being and social media are closely related. |
| C．The young are trapped in the mental-health crisis, |
| D．Social media don’t necessarily cause mental illness. |
| A．Effective actions need to be taken. | B．Positive stories should be shared. |
| C．Financial support needs to be provided. | D．Broader research should be done. |
| A．To suggest ways to help those in need. |
| B．To encourage parents to brave the crisis. |
| C．To recommend a newly-published book. |
| D．To give a voice to children’s mental issues. |
Summer vacation was finally coming, and Rose couldn’t wait to have a trip with her parents. She recalled the joyful experiences they shared last summer, which filled her with excitement for the upcoming holiday.
“Girls!” Rose heard her father calling. She raced to her big sister’s room, telling her that Dad was calling them, and they rushed downstairs log either. Dad put his arm around Mom and told them that they were going on a trip to the Virunga Mountains of Africa. There were three national parks that they would visit.
Rose and Gina looked at each other. “What?” they said with one voice. Mom told them it would be really exciting to go there on a trip. At 12 years old, Rose would prefer going to an amusement park or a beach. She thought it important to let her parents know she didn’t want to go there but to the beach for a week or two.
“Well,” said Dad, “I have to go for an assignment for the paper. We’re covering the mountain gorillas (大猩猩) because they’re critically endangered these years. So, I thought it’d also be a great place to take a vacation. I’m sure it’ll be very educational for you girls.”
Gina let out a sigh, unable to contain her disappointment. She wanted to say something but Mom interrupted and announced that the trip was set on the next Monday.
“Sit down, both of you.” Dad had on his severe look. “Girls, it’s important for you to know about the world around you. This is a wonderful chance for you to experience and learn an amazing place. Do you know anything about the mountain gorillas?”
The sisters shook their heads.
“Well, get your laptop computer, Gina. I want you to look them up right now,” said Dad, “Rose, there is a book on the bookshelf about the cute mountain gorillas. Find it and read it.”
注意：1.续写词数应为150个左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The girls dragged their feet upstairs.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The next Monday came and the family set out excitedly.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________6 . It was dinner time, yet I hadn’t finished my work for the day. Cheery people who were enjoying their holiday time buzzed around me. But with my head down and headphones in, I had interacted with very few of them. The day passed more like a fast-forwarded video than something that I actually fully experienced.
This was my first week living the digital nomad lifestyle. I had left my corporate role and found freelance (自由职业的) writing work online to afford me the freedom to travel.
I had prepared excitedly, surfing online about digital nomadism.
But that’s not all that’s waiting for new digital nomads.
| A．And my surroundings looked different. |
| B．But this wasn’t at a tiring nine-to-five office job. |
| C．This was a typical day back in my office I managed to escape. |
| D．New surroundings may also make you fully engaged in your work. |
| E．Should you choose to become a digital nomad, your environment will change. |
| F．You’ll still wake up with emails in your inbox and to-dos begging to be handled. |
| G．Yet somehow I unknowingly over-consumed expectation and under-consumed realism. |
Jack was new to Woodberry Forest School this year. He carried a secret burden: a stutter (口吃) that often brought about laughter from his classmates. This made him very upset. Shy and reserved. Jack chose to fade into the background rather than draw attention to himself. He felt like an outsider, never quite fitting in.
Jack was eager to exchange ideas with his classmates, but afraid of getting into trouble. Jack's science teacher, Katherine, a warm and caring woman often wearing a smile, noticed Jack's stutter and shyness. She observed how Jack struggled to express himself in class and how he would shy away when called upon to speak.
Determined to lend a hand, Katherine took Jack under her wing, encouraging him to embrace bravery and believe in his own abilities. Subsequently, Katherine adopted a set of systematic methods to help him. She was glad to find the potential in him, the intelligence and creativity that lay hidden beneath his stutter. Whenever possible, Katherine was always ready to praise his efforts, always declaring, "You are so great!” Whenever Jack stumbled over his words, Katherine always smiled at him encouragingly, providing him with the strength to continue. Day by day, Jack found himself speaking with greater confidence and fluency.
One day, Katherine announced that each student should give a presentation of a science project in front of the class. Jack's heart sank, the familiar fear and anxiety wrapping around him. How could he possibly stand before his classmates to give his ideas clearly, knowing that they would laugh at him? As the presentation drew near, Jack's anxiety mounted. Then came the big day. He watched his classmates take turns to walk up to the front. They gave their presentation with confidence and backed to their seats with satisfaction. However, while Jack was waiting for his turn, his heart beat so violently that he felt as if he were sitting on pins and needles.
注意：1．续写词数应为150个左右；
2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
It was finally his turn.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2:
When Jack finished his presentation, the room erupted into applause.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________8 . Our brains are “programmed” to learn more from people we like—and less from those we dislike. This has been shown by researchers in cognitive neuroscience (认知神经科学) in a series of experiments.
Memory serves a vital function, enabling us to learn from new experiences and update existing knowledge. We learn both from individual experiences and from connecting them to draw new conclusions about the world. This way, we can make inferences about things that we don’t necessarily have direct experience of. This is called memory integration and makes learning quick and flexible.
To examine what affects our ability to learn, and make inferences, Ines Bramao, associate-professor of psychology at Lund University, along with his co-workers, set up experiments where participants were tasked with remembering and connecting different objects. It could be a bowl, ball, spoon, scissors, or other everyday objects. It turned out that memory integration was influenced by who presented it. If it was a person the participant liked, connecting the information was easier compared to when the information came from someone the participant disliked. The participants provided individual definitions of “like” and “dislike” based on aspects such as political views, majors, eating habits, favorite sports, hobbies, and music.
The findings can be applied in real life, according to the researchers. Ines explained: “Suppose a politician argues for raising taxes to benefit healthcare. Later, you visit a healthcare center and notice improvements have been made. If you side with the politician that wanted to improve healthcare through higher taxes, you’re likely to credit the improvements to the tax increase, even though the improvements might have had a completely different cause.”
There’s already vast research describing that people learn information differently depending on the source and how that characterizes polarization and knowledge resistance. “What our research shows is how these significant phenomena can partly be traced back to fundamental principles that govern how our memory works,” says Ines. We tend to form new connections and update knowledge from information presented by groups we favor.
1. Which of the following can best replace the underlined word “programmed” in Paragraph 1?| A．Enhanced. | B．Organized. | C．Desire-driven. | D．Nature-decided. |
| A．It’s easier to absorb favorable information. |
| B．It’s beneficial to focus on everyday objects. |
| C．Presenters matter in connecting information. |
| D．Life experiences affect people’s inferences. |
| A．By introducing a concept. |
| B．By making an assumption. |
| C．By employing an expert’s words. |
| D．By referring to another experiment. |
| A．How brains function in learning | B．Who impacts memory integration |
| C．How brains learn from experiences | D．What improves long-term memory |
The Champion of No Score
Maggie hated Tuesdays—Tuesdays meant gym class, gym class meant picking teams and picking teams meant Maggie would be picked last.
As a newcomer, she’d come up with a special title for each classmate to remember the other kids. There was Kevin, Champion of the Clean Desk. Lynnie, Champion of Knowing the Answer First… Thinking hard, she finally decided her own title: Champion of Quiet.
Maggie felt blue as Tuesday fell again. Mr. Murphy, the gym teacher, asked for volunteer captains to pick their own basketball teams. The usual hands shot into the air. Maggie sighed and glanced to her right. She caught the eye of Jasmine. Champion of Awkward, a girl who was sometimes picked last, too. Then Maggie had an idea. So when Mr. Murphy asked if anyone else wanted to volunteer, Maggie felt her hand slowly rise. Looking again at Jasmine, she took a big breath. Maybe it was time for her to use her voice.
“Maggie?” Mr. Murphy smiled. “You want a turn?”
“Yes,” she said.
The class whispered. Maggie leading a team?
“Yes,” she answered again, louder this time.
Mr. Murphy waved Maggie to the front, where the other three captains—Champion of Jumping Rope, Champion of Never Misses a Shot, and Champion of Doesn’t Know How to Lose—stood, ready to choose their teams.
“Maggie, you get first pick,” said Mr. Murphy. “Jasmine,” announced Maggie. The class snickered. A joke? More than once, Jasmine had tried to score on the wrong basket. Eyes wide, Jasmine took her place beside Maggie. The other three captains called out familiar names—the best players on the basketball court. It was Maggie’s turn again. “I choose Frank.” Frank (Champion of the Untied Shoelace) could not throw, or catch. He knew what it felt like to be the last pick. But not today.
Three very talented teams took shape. And then there was Maggie’s team. Maggie looked at her teammates. There stood Jasmine and Frank, plus Gillian (Champion of Chatter) and George (Champion of Sleepy). “I have chosen the worst team in the history of the world,” Maggie thought to herself.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150个左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Hand in hand, the Maggie team walked onto the court.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________They did lose big, but something positive began to unfold in them.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________10 . Providing feedback is an essential part of personal and career development.
If you are seeking to enhance your career growth, learning about the feedback sandwich can be a game-changer.
The feedback sandwich technique is a highly useful method. It can help soften the blow of criticism. By starting and ending with positive feedback, it’s easier for the recipient to receive the constructive criticism without feeling attacked.
| A．It’s essential to be aware of its limitations, though. |
| B．Similarly, it is also easier for the giver to offer feedback. |
| C．The manager then ends the feedback session with positive feedback. |
| D．The technique may lead to unclear and indirect personal communication. |
| E．Delivering constructive criticism, however, can be challenging if not done correctly. |
| F．It may not be for every situation, but it can make negative feedback more digestible. |
| G．This technique involves using constructive feedback wrapped between two layers of positive feedback. |
