1 . Wild animals are equipped with a variety of techniques to avoid becoming lunch for a bigger animal, also known as a predator (捕食者) in nature. The most well-known methods include the classic fight and flight as well as freeze.
A team of researchers wondered whether closeness to people might impact those survival strategies. “We often see that animals are more tolerant around us in urban areas, but we don’t really know why.” says evolutionary biologist Dan Blumstein. “Is it individual plasticity, meaning individuals change their fear of us and that leads to tolerance? Or can there be an evolutionary factor involved?”
To find out, Blumstein and his colleagues combined information from 173 studies of over 100 species, including mammals, birds, fish and even mollusks. It turns out that regardless of evolutionary ancestry, the animals react in a similar way to life among humans: they lose their anti-predator characteristics. That pattern is especially pronounced for plant-eating animals and for social species. This behavioral change is perhaps unsurprising when it’s intentional, the result of domestication or controlled breeding. But it turns out that urbanization alone results in a similar change, though around three times more slowly.
The main point is: we’re essentially domesticating animals by urbanization. We’re selecting for the same sorts of characteristics that we would if we were actually trying to domesticate them. If the urbanization process helps animals better co-exist with people, it could be to their benefit. But if it makes them more defenseless to their nonhuman predators, it could be a real problem. Either way, these results mean that city living has enough of an influence on wild animals that evolutionary processes kick in. Those reductions in anti-predator characteristics become encoded in their genes. We’re changing the population genetics one way or another.
What the researchers now wonder is whether the mere presence of tourists in less urbanized areas can cause similar changes in wild animals. If so, serious questions exist for the idea of ethical, welfare-oriented eco-tourism. If we wish to help animals keep their anti-predator defenses, the researchers say, we might have to intentionally expose animals to predators. It’s just yet one other way that we’re changing the world around us.
1. The research led by Blumstein is aimed at ________.| A．determining how animals’ survival is impacted by individual plasticity |
| B．studying how living among humans affects animals’ survival strategies |
| C．comparing the effectiveness of different survival techniques |
| D．finding out which evolutionary factor impacts animals’ survival methods |
| A．Controlled breeding of animals. | B．Banning the operation of eco-tourism. |
| C．Planned selection of favorable genes. | D．Eliminating domestication. |
| A．Urbanization has made wild animals more alert. |
| B．Urbanization has brought concrete benefits to animals. |
| C．City living has led to animals’ genetic variations. |
| D．City living has helped to preserve animal species. |
| A．expose the fox to the urban environment repeatedly |
| B．train the fox to co-exist with the less aggressive predators |
| C．intentionally get the fox accustomed to the presence of humans |
| D．purposefully adapt the fox to predator related environment |
2 . The vaccine (疫苗) news continues to seem very encouraging. Britain started its mass vaccination effort and the U.S. isn’t far behind.
But there is still one dark cloud hanging over the vaccines that many people don’t yet understand.
The vaccines will be much less effective at preventing death and illness in 2021 if they are introduced into a population where the coronavirus is still severe—as is now the case in the U.S.
A vaccine is like a fire hose (消防龙头). A vaccine that’s 95 percent effective, as Moderna’s and Pfizer’s versions appear to be, is a powerful fire hose. But the size of a fire is still a bigger determinant of how much destruction occurs.
At the current level of infection in the U.S. (about 200,000 confirmed new infections per day), a vaccine that is 95 percent effective—distributed at the expected pace—would still leave a terrible toll (伤亡人数) in the six months after it was introduced. Almost 10 million or so Americans would catch the virus, and more than 160,000 would die.
This is far worse than the toll in a different situation where the vaccine was only 50 percent effective but the U.S. had reduced the infection rate to its level in early September (about 35,000 new daily cases). In that case, the death toll in the next six months would be kept to about 60,000.
It’s worth pausing for a moment on this comparison. If the U.S. had maintained its infection rate from September and Moderna and Pfizer had announced this fall that their vaccines were only 50 percent effective, a lot of people would have panicked.
But the reality we have is actually worse.
How could this be? No vaccine can get rid of a pandemic immediately, just as .no fire hose can put out a forest fire. While the vaccine is being distributed, the virus continues to do damage.
There is one positive way to look at this: Measures that reduce the virus’s spread—like mask-wearing, social distancing and rapid-result testing—can still have great consequences. They can save more than 100,000 lives in coming months.
1. How does the author mainly present his argument?| A．By giving definitions. | B．By categorizing facts. |
| C．By drawing comparisons. | D．By appealing to emotions. |
| A．Improving the effectiveness of the vaccines. |
| B．Producing a greater variety of vaccines. |
| C．Looking at the situation in a positive way. |
| D．Wearing masks and practicing social distancing. |
| A．The vaccines are less effective than expected. |
| B．The US have controlled the spread of the coronavirus. |
| C．The death toll in the next six months will be about 60,000. |
| D．Fewer people will die if the infection rate is lower. |
| A．The vaccine is the hope of wiping out the pandemic. |
| B．The public are optimistic about the effects of the vaccine. |
| C．The public are concerned about the high infection rate. |
| D．The distribution of vaccine will end the pandemic quickly. |
1.表达感谢；
2.许诺寄去冰墩墩；
3.冬奥会对你的影响。
注意：
1.写作词数应为80左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
参考词汇：吉祥物 mascot 冰墩墩 Bing Dwen Dwen
Dear Peter,
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Yours,
Li Hua
I had run away from home after finishing high school. My parents had insisted I go to college, but I was tired of school. I hated it. I was determined not to go. And, besides, my father was too strict. I had too many chores to do around the farm. I haled the work!
There had been a quarrel between my father and me. I threw some things into a bag and left angrily, as my father shouted after me, “If you leave, don’t come back!” My mother cried openly, and I had seen those tears during a hundred sleepless nights.
Then it was time to write a letter to my father.
Dear Dad,It’s been more than a year now. I’ve traveled east to west. I’ve had dozens of jobs. None of them amounted to very much. Always the same questions: “How much education have you got?” It seems they always want college men for the good jobs.
Dad, you and Mother were right about everything. I know now that the work on the farm didn’t hurt me, and I’m convinced I need college. I’m also convinced that both of you loved me.
Dad, I’ve learned a lesson. I want to come home. I know you said if I left, I couldn’t come back, but I’m praying you’ll change your mind. I want to come home and be a part of the family again.
Give my love to Mother and the girls.
Love,Your son
As I folded the letter and put it into an envelope, I felt a refreshing relief. It was as if a heavy load had been lifted from my shoulders. And I had to be on my way home.
I started down the desolate road—the long road home. Fortunately, a car picked me up, and it was good to have someone to talk with. The driver was a salesman and very pleasant.
“Where you going, boy?” he asked good-naturedly.
There was a long silence before I said, “Home.”
“Been away from home long?”
I smiled, a little self-conscious, and said, “One year, one month and two days.”
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。
Having heard my story, he expressed his support for my final decision and told me something surprising.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Finally, I arrived home when. it was completely dark.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The Power of Silence
Joe was an old man aged 75. He lived happily in a beautiful family. His children grew up and moved to different cities in pursue of good career and future. He lived in a small village carrying the memories of his deceased wife.
Joe had four grandchildren. They used to visit him during their holidays. It was now their vacation time and Joe was eagerly waiting for their arrival. He prepared his home for the kids, cleaning the house, mowing the garden, and buying their favourite foods and dresses.
In the busy arrangements, he lost his watch. The watch was gifted by his dead wife when their first child was born. Joe treasured the watch. After his wife’s death, it became his sole companion with its ‘tick, tick’ sound throughout the silent night.
He was happy with the kids at home. He forgot the watch missing. It was only the next day when he was about to take bath, he remembered the watch was lost. He saw it last when he was arranging things in the barn.
He was very upset. His grandchildren asked him why he was so dull and what troubled him. Joe said, “Dear children! I lost the most precious watch I have ever had and ever got in my life. It was a gift from your grandma. I lost it while cleaning the house! I feel like I’m missing my heart.” The children tried to comfort him. One granddaughter asked, “Grandpa, do you remember when you saw the watch last time before it was missing?”
Joe said, “I guess when I was cleaning the barn!”
The children rushed to the barn to search for the watch. The barn was full of waste materials. They searched for more than two hours with the help of Joe, but could not find it. Joe was completely lost, and he asked the children to stop searching.
注意：1. 续写的词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
All went out disappointedly, except Ted, who sat there in silence.
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They were surprised and asked how he was able to find it.
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There are lots of chances in front of us. Whether you can seize them or not depends on the choices you make. This reminds me of one choice I made during my childhood.
Two tickets. Only two tickets to the final basketball game.
Three pairs of eyes focused on the tickets in Dad’s out-stretched hand. Mike, the oldest, asked the question running through everyone’s mind, “Only one ticket for us three? But, Dad, which of us will go with you?” Avery, the youngest, repeated the question quietly. I asked Dad if there was any chance to get more tickets. I might be the middle sister, but I was just as eager as my basketball-crazy brothers for a night out with Dad. Dad said he’d got the tickets from a friend and there were only two available.
Seeing that none of us would give up the chance, Dad told us he would choose which of the three of us deserved to go by the following morning.
The next morning, we hurried into the kitchen and looked for Dad, only to find that he had gone out. We were told to get started on our Saturday cleanup as soon as we finished breakfast. Mike complained that he couldn’t concentrate on chores with the game a mere eleven hours away. He slurped the last of his milk, grabbed the basketball and headed towards the back door. Avery dashed after his brother. Before I realized it, the door snapped shut. I glanced out the window and saw Mike practicing his shot while Avery cheered him on.
Seeing the mess on the breakfast table—the leftovers on the sticky plates and dirty cups, I felt frustrated. I approached the window and knocked on it. When the boys looked at me, I held up a kitchen sponge and dishtowel. Mike casually nodded to me and held up five fingers. Sure, five more minutes! I didn’t believe they would return to do the cleanup in five minutes, especially in Dad’s absence. Apparently, they had made their choice.
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右;
2. 续写部分分两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。
Paragraph 1:
Anyway, I chose to do the Saturday morning chores on my own.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2:
Dad was happy to know I found the ticket he had hidden in the cupboard.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1. 很高兴他对中国文化感兴趣。
2. 介绍其中一个节气——立春Beginning of Spring
3. 欢迎他亲自来中国感受传统文化。
1. 注意：词数80左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，使行文连贯。
Dear James,
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Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
Kuppan was a good badminton player. His rise within the ranks of the badminton players of the school was impressive but unusual. One day he was nothing, the next he was a member of the school team.
In the School Championships, he sprang a surprise by knocking out the top seed, Richard Lee, in the semi final. In the final, he easily beat another competitor Abdul Rauf by 15-3 and 15-10. He was the School Champion. It was unbelievable. The previous year he did not even get past the first round, This year he was the champion.
Success got into his head, He began to think he was really good, In fact, he arrogantly (傲慢地) told Richard Lee and the others that they would never beat him again. He claimed he was simply too good for them, in a league of his own.
Well, it was true that Kuppan was a good and skillful player. He had natural ability and talent. So he picked up the game very quickly and soon became the best. However. he did not realize that nobody can remain at the top all the time. What goes up must certainly come down. Kuppan thought he could stay up indefinitely.
The other players were annoyed by Kuppan’ s declaration. They resolved to train harder to beat the guy who had insulted (羞辱) them, They even trained on their own every day while Kuppan wandered around talking with pride about his success. The State Individual Championships were coming up，So was the Interschool Tournament. The school’s coach worked hard to improve the school players. All of them trained hard, except Kuppan. He would miss training or perform half- heartedly. He was more interested in entertaining the admirers that had gathered around him. He thought he was too strong to be defeated.
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 State Individual Championships reached us in time.
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Kuppan tried to make a difference in the second round,
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9 . AL's friend Rachel invited him to go to the lake for the day with her family. Rachel really hoped he'd say yes.
AL turned Rachel down.
The truth about guys.
Many people think of guys as being carefree when it comes to their appearance.
Why is body image important?
Body image is a person's opinions, thoughts, and feelings about his or her own body and physical appearance.
How does puberty （青春期）affect body image?
Although body image is just one part of our self-image, during the teen years, and especially during puberty, it can be easy for a guy's whole self-image to be based on how his body looks.
It could be in your genes （基因）.
Lots of guys can have high expectations for puberty, thinking they'll develop quickly or in a certain way.
| A．You may hear a lot about being a tough guy. |
| B．He like Rachel, too, but was self-conscious about taking off his T-shirt. |
| C．Having a positive body image means feeling pretty satisfied with the way you look. |
| D．The good news is that self-image and body image can be changed. |
| E．But the reality is that a lot of guys spend plenty of time in front of the mirror. |
| F．The best way to approach your own growth is to look at everyone in your family. |
| G．That's because our bodies are changing so much during this time that they can become the main focus of our attention. |
1. 你印象最深的艺术作品
2. 观看作品的感受。
注意:
1.写作词数应为80左右
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Dear George,
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Yours,
Li Hua
