1 . Going from being called a “stupid molecule (分子) ”to “the secret of life”, our discovery and understanding of DNA has come a long way. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the discovery of the structure of DNA----the pivotal (关键的) year when the so-called “secret of life” was uncovered by two scientists: James Watson from the US and Francis Crick from the UK.
Inherited characteristics like eye color, nose shape and even intelligence----scientists found the structure of the chemical which transmits these from one generation to another. “Discovering how these ‘chemical’ cards are shuffled (洗牌) and paired will keep the scientists busy for the next 50 years,” journalist Ritchie Calder commented in 1953 on the discovery. And it certainly has. The study of DNA has led to world-changing advances in many fields.
“DNA makes time fluid (流动的),” said The Irish Times. It lets us redefine the future. For example, in medicine, DNA helps us identify “weak points” in the human genome (基因组) that might be prone to disease. Through a technique called gene therapy, a person’s genes can be modified to treat or cure certain diseases. Another example is agriculture, where work on plant DNA has allowed us to change the way we breed (培育) crops, opening the door for genetically modified plants and advances in food security.
DNA can also shed light on the past. In forensic (法医的) science, DNA analysis has come to serve as a vital form of evidence in crime scenes, with “many millions having been proven guilty or innocent” through its usage, said the website AZoLife Sciences. And DNA in specimens (标本) like fossils and artifacts (文物) can give us vital information on humans and other species.
But what's next for DNA research? Improvements in technology are allowing us to utilize DNA in new ways. As the cost of DNA technologies decreases and related machines become more efficient, it becomes more accessible, reported Wired magazine. In medicine, DNA plays a key role in furthering the development of “personalized medicine” —designing treatment plans based on the genomes and other specific factors of individual patients. As “natural supercomputers”, DNA can store large amounts of data. So scientists are busy learning from DNA to make our computers store more data and work even faster.
1. Why does the author quote Ritchie Calder's remark in paragraph2?| A．To help better understand DNA. | B．To highlight scientists’ efforts. |
| C．To stress the discovery's impact. | D．To stress the importance of DNA technology. |
| A．The diverse applications of DNA. | B．The mysterious aspects of DNA. |
| C．Challenges of DNA research. | D．Ways to expand DNA research. |
| A．protect | B．use | C．correct | D．prevent |
| A．The replacement of medicines. | B．The reduction of medical costs. |
| C．The advancement of self-diagnosis. | D．The improvement of computer performance. |
2 . Happiness, as I see it, comprises five elements: spiritual well-being (meaning and purpose), physical well-being (nutrition, exercise), intellectual well-being (curiosity, deep learning), relational well-being (kindness and generosity), and emotional well-being (cultivating positive emotions). As an interdependent aggregate of these five elements of SPIRE, happiness is about much more than experiencing pleasure.
As Aristotle put it, happiness is the ultimate purpose of life, meaning how we spend our everyday lives is ultimately guided by what we think would make us happier. This is not a good or a bad thing. It simply is, like the law of nature. Even people who are tirelessly working for an important cause, for example, to get rid of world hunger, are doing it because they find their work meaningful. Meaning is an element of happiness.
One barrier to happiness has to do with the expectation that happiness is an unbroken chain of positive emotions. This expectation, however, prevents people from experiencing happiness because painful emotions don’t go away but grow stronger when we reject them.
The second barrier has to do with equating happiness with success. It’s a commonly held belief that happiness can be attained by achieving certain goals, like money or fame. People tend to think if they finally find success, they will automatically become happy.
The third barrier has to do with the way people pursue happiness. We want to be happy for many reasons. After all, we are constantly told that happiness is good for our health, relationships, and work outcomes. Yet, if I wake up in the morning and decide to pursue happiness straight, I will become less happy.
But how? Indirectly. As is known, if you look up at the sun directly, you’ll hurt yourself. But if you take the same sun rays and break them down, you’ll enjoy the colors of a rainbow. Similarly, pursuing happiness directly can hurt us; pursuing it indirectly—by breaking it down into something like the SPIRE elements—can contribute to our well-being. Starting a meditation practice, exercising, performing acts of kindness, learning something new, or expressing gratitude for what we have are all indirect ways of pursuing happiness.
1. What does the underlined word “aggregate” probably mean in the first paragraph?| A．Combination. | B．Conclusion. | C．Accumulation. | D．Association. |
| A．Favorable. | B．Suspicious. | C．Objective. | D．Indifferent. |
| A．Being a success leads one to happiness. |
| B．Refusing negative feelings helps us obtain happiness. |
| C．Going after happiness directly makes one feel happy. |
| D．Pursuing one aspect of SPIRE can boost our well-being. |
| A．To make a contrast. | B．To make an analogy. |
| C．To conclude the argumentation. | D．To answer the previous question. |
1. How does the speaker feel about memory loss?
| A．It’s common. | B．It’s unimportant. | C．It’s worrying. |
| A．Having a good sleep. | B．Doing exercise. | C．Attending social events. |
| A．By recalling the past regularly. |
| B．By taking the same route when driving. |
| C．By doing crossword puzzles. |
| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Five. |
John decided to go skiing with his friend, Keith. So they loaded up John’s car and headed north. After driving for a few hours, they got caught in a terrible snowstorm. The snow was falling harder and harder and it was more and more difficult to go on driving. So they decided to look for a house along the way to protect themselves from the heavy snow. At last they saw a small farm in front of them. Thus they pulled into the farm and asked the middle-aged lady who answered the door if they could spend the night in her house.
“I realize it’s terrible weather out there but I have this house only big enough for my five children, and I have no spare room for you,” she explained. “I’m afraid that I can’t offer you a comfortable place to spend the night and you have to continue to look for your shelter.”
John and Keith felt disappointed. It was late and they were not sure of finding a safe shelter for the night. They didn’t know what they should do next. John looked at Keith, who kept silent. Just then, he looked around and found an empty storehouse in the yard. An idea struck him. He was determined to beg the lady to permit them to stay in the storehouse.
“Don’t worry,” John said. “We’ll be happy to sleep in the storehouse. And if the weather breaks, we’ll be gone at first light.” The lady agreed, and the two men found their way to the storehouse and settled in for the night.
But there was little furniture in the storehouse, and it was such freezing weather. They were trembling with cold and they might be most likely to freeze at night. It seemed that they would have to sleep in their clothes. Just then, three children walked into the storehouse, with something in their hands.
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。
It turned out that they came to help John and Keith go through the freezing night.
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Waking up the next day, John and Keith found their door blocked by heavy snow.
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13-year-old Ryan was a lazy video game addict who always required the help of the housekeeper for everything. His father, Alex, noticed how spoiled(宠坏的) his son was, so he decided to set things right.
One day, Ryan was running late for school, but he was still busy playing video games. He was so distracted that he had no time to put on his socks and shoes, so the housekeeper did it for him.
“Dad, I’m ready. Let’s go!” he finally shouted, taking his school bag. Alex had always driven him to his school even though it was just a seven-minute walk from their home. For Ryan, that would seem like a hundred tiring miles.
That morning, to Ryan’s surprise, Alex asked him to walk to school instead. “What? No! I can’t carry this heavy bag to school on foot. Please drop me off, Dad,” Ryan said. But Alex turned a deaf ear. “You’re a grown-up boy now, Ryan! Just walk. Get used to it,” he said.
Ryan had no choice but to walk along the road. He was out of breath when he got to the school gate. He came into his classroom and sat on the chair quickly. He was tired. He wasn’t used to walking, even for a few minutes. What a lazy and weak boy Ryan was!
When Ryan was still resting, he found a boy he didn’t know entering the classroom in a wheelchair. The boy was Mike, who was new to Ryan’s neighborhood and lived very close to Ryan’s house. He moved in with his grandparents recently after he lost his ability to walk in a car crash that killed his parents. Regardless of his extremely bad luck, Mike decided to be strong, optimistic, confident, brave and independent.
Although Mike was new in class, all classmates welcomed him warmly. Ryan never made a single friend all these years. Nobody liked him because he was lazy. The attention Mike got that day made him more upset.
The next day, Ryan begged his dad to drive him to his school again. But Alex just shook his head. Quite disappointed, Ryan had to walk to school,
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
Just as he left home, he saw Mike alone on the road, pushing his wheelchair.
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Paragraph 2:
Encouraged by Mike’s words, Ryan decided to try to be independent.
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6 . Many people don’t take much time for lunch or if they do, they eat at their desks while checking emails. But lunch breaks are more than just a time to eat a meal. Taking lunch breaks can make you more productive and reduce stress.
You may consider spending time in nature. Go outside! Even spending a short time in nature has a positive effect on your mood.
Reading can also be a good choice.
Eat mindfully. Good nutrition plays an important role in your physical and mental health. Make your lunch count by eating nutritious foods. Make an everyday eating plan for yourself.
| A．You can try a lunchtime workout. |
| B．It makes you learned and less stressed. |
| C．Nothing can take effect better than that. |
| D．Read to find more benefits of lunch breaks. |
| E．So take time to do something good for yourself. |
| F．It will keep your body and brain conscious of careful eating. |
| G．Find a park or other green space nearby and eat your lunch there. |
Brett Bacon, along with his wife Lindsay and their newborn child, was out boating on the lake near their house in Lake Windermere in British Columbia when he saw something strange in the water.
At first Bacon just thought it was a carpet (地毯) in the water. As soon as he realized it was a bird and saw its wide wings and even its head popping up, he knew what it was.
It was a giant eagle. Eagles can actually get waterlogged (浸水的) as compared to other large birds that can go in the water and get out. It’s not strange to see eagles go into the water to catch fish and then pop back up, but this thing was wet through and struggling to stay above the water. It was trying to swim and trying to fly away, but it just couldn’t get out of the water at all. The large bird’s only chance to get out itself was by swimming but it was about a kilometer to shore (岸边) in any direction.
Seeing the state of the bird, Bacon knew he needed to do something to help it out. Lindsay started recording and caught what happened next on video, while their son lay on a seat across from Bacon.
Bacon brought the boat close to the eagle. It took a few tries. But after about fifteen minutes, Bacon was actually able to take hold of the bird and bring it into the boat. “People must have just thought I had a dog on my lap, but from my bottom to my head, he was the same height as me,” said Bacon.
As soon as the bird was in the boat, it immediately took off and dropped into the water again.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为 150 左右;
2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。
“We need to pick it up again, so let’s turn around,” said Bacon.
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The whole community just came down to watch this eagle.
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8 . There’s a good reason people say laughter is the best medicine. In a recent study from Rehabilitation Nursing Journal, researchers looked at changes in loneliness for older adults in nursing homes after receiving laughter therapy (疗法). Each of the 31 participants received laughter therapy twice a week for six weeks, while the same number of controls only received usual care. At the end of the six weeks, those who participated in laughter therapy reported less loneliness than the control group.
Laughter therapy is a low-key option that you can practice in many ways. Jenna Pascual, a laughter yoga teacher, hosts group and one-on-one classes with seniors. She starts by guiding people through warmups to get comfortable with stimulating laughter. These may involve deep breathing exercises, clapping and light stretches paired with laughter, and call-and-response laughter. She then transitions (转变) to laughter around a theme, such as a Hawaiian beach party or Star Wars, pairing laughter with small movements.
Many forms of laughter therapy are available to all. “Laughter therapy is great for people with disabilities,” says Katie Ziskind, a marriage and family therapist. Pascual also works with people in wheelchairs or hospital beds.
Rehabilitation Nursing’s study is one in a long line of research confirming laughter’s ability to improve well-being in older adults. In a 2015 study from the International Journal of Nursing and Midwifery, people aged 60 or older at a retirement center attended two 90-minute laughter therapy classes a week for six weeks. At the end of the experiment, participants had improved general health. In a 2016 study from Nursing Open, older adults at an elderly daycare center had laughter therapy once a week for four weeks. The participants experienced reduced depression, along with increased sociability.
While you can try laughter therapy alone, there are advantages to doing it with others. “I want to stress the power of simply hearing laughter and watching others enjoying themselves laughing,” says Pascual. “I’ve worked with seniors who were not in the mood to laugh, but after hearing and watching others laugh in my classes, they ended up laughing with us.”
1. How did the researchers do the recent study?| A．By offering participants different types of laughter therapy |
| B．By controlling the time of laughter therapy for the same participants. |
| C．By studying the effects of laughter therapy on disabled people. |
| D．By comparing participants having laughter therapy with those not having. |
| A．Why laughter is the best medicine. | B．How seniors react to laughter therapy. |
| C．What Pascual does to help disabled people. | D．How Pascual teaches her laughter yoga classes. |
| A．To compare them with the recent study. | B．To show the benefits of laughter therapy. |
| C．To state the popularity of laughter therapy. | D．To talk about old people’s health problems. |
| A．Making a person laugh is hard. | B．Laughter helps reduce loneliness. |
| C．People may laugh at different things. | D．Laughter can spread among people. |
9 . Fig trees are native to Europe around the Mediterranean Sea, Asia and Arica, but they can grow in much cooler climates.
Once big enough, fig trees can accept temperatures even a few degrees below freezing. Some kinds of fig trees do better in such environments than others.
Depending on the weather and pruning (修剪), a fig can grow into a bush or a tee. Bushes with several stems (茎) growing from the ground do best if covered for the winter.
One popular method for burying trees for their protection involves digging a narrow, shallow area.
Next, push a shovel (铲子) into the soil about a half-meter from the trunk (树干) on the side opposite the hole. Lift that side of the tree’s root ball out of the ground. Then, gently push the tree toward the hole.
Pack soil around the exposed side of the roots, and around the length of the tree. Load soil over the tree. Make it at least 30 centimeters deep. You will need more soil than you removed from digging.
| A．And in this area the tree can be laid. |
| B．All kinds of the trees could use protection. |
| C．You can also cover, or wrap, the tree instead. |
| D．And bend it around the bottom part of the tree. |
| E．When it is lying fat, cover the tree with plastic. |
| F．Trees with a single trunk can be buried or covered. |
| G．Remove the cover on the tee on a cloudy day in early spring. |
10 . You’ll probably be familiar with the North American spelling of the word “airplane”. However, if you’ve ever been on an international flight leaving the United States and going to another English-speaking country like the United Kingdom, you’ve probably noticed that there are a few differences between the American and British spellings of words with the same meaning.
Let’s look at the root of the phenomenon.
There’s a good reason why words that mean the same thing are spelled differently, and why that will continue to happen. “
| A．Every country has different culture |
| B．Your spelling tells people where you’re from |
| C．The word “airplane” happens to be an example |
| D．Airplane is a much better word than aeroplane |
| E．American English and British English have similar historical origins |
| F．There’s a lot of history that goes beyond words and dives deep into politics, government, and science |
| G．A lot of words in the English language are borrowed from other languages, like Latin, Greek, and French |
