1 . The coast of the State of Maine is one of the most irregular in the world. A straight line running from the southernmost coastal city to the northernmost coastal city would measure about 225 miles. If you followed the coastline between these points, you would travel more than ten times as far. This irregularity is the result of what is called a drowned coastline. The term comes from the glacial (冰川的) activity of the Ice Age. At that time, the whole area that is now Maine was part of a mountain range that towered above the sea. As the glacier declined, however, it applied enormous force on those mountains, and they sank into the sea.
As the mountains sank, ocean water charged over the lowest parts of the remaining land. And the highest parts of the former mountain range, nearest the shore, remained as islands. Marine fossils found here are 225 feet above sea level indicating the level of the shoreline prior to the glacier.
The 2,500-mile-long rocky and jagged (锯齿状的) coastline of Maine keeps watching over nearly 2,000 islands. Many of these islands are tiny and uninhabited, but many are home to blooming communities. Mt. Desert Island is one of the largest, most beautiful of the Maine coast islands left behind by the glacier. Measuring 16 miles by 12 miles, Mt. Desert was very nearly formed as two distinct islands. It is split almost in half by Somes Sound, a very deep and very narrow stretch of water seven miles long.
For years, Mt. Desert Island, particularly its major settlement, Bar Harbor, has afforded summer homes for the wealthy. Recently, though, Bar Harbor has become a new arts community as well. But the best part of the island is the unspoiled forest land known as Acadia National Park. Since the island sits on the border between two different geographical zones, the park supports the plants and animals of both zones. It also lies in a major bird migration lane and is a resting spot for many birds.
1. The large number of small islands along the coast of Maine is the result of ______.A.the drowning of the Maine coastline | B.glacier’s forcing mountains into the sea |
C.the irregularity of the Maine coastline | D.ocean water’s flooding the mountain range |
A.To ask an amount of money. |
B.To accuse someone publicly of doing something wrong. |
C.To rush in a particular direction. |
D.To pass electricity through something. |
A.The wealthy residents of Mt. Desert Island selfishly kept it to themselves. |
B.Acadia National Park is one of the best national parks. |
C.On Mt. Desert Island, there is great tension between the residents and tourists. |
D.Mt. Desert Island supports an incredibly diverse animal and plant life. |
A.the coastline of Maine is ten times longer after the Ice Age |
B.there are more than 2,500 islands along the Maine coastline |
C.Mt. Desert Island has been broken apart by a 7-mile-long water stretch |
D.an arts community gave way to the summer homes on Mt. Desert Island |
To the Editors: I am surprised to read that Dr. Strojnik (“Direct Detection of Exoplanets,” September-October2023) states that we have not yet and cannot directly image exoplanets (外部行星). This is incorrect. NASA/IPAC has a list at exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/docs/imaging.html. One example is an image of 51 Eridani b. The planet is 2.6 times as massive as Jupiter and has the same radius (半径). Gerard Kriss Space Telescope Science Institute |
Dr. Gerard: I am pleased that my article brought a response. The phrase “planet detection” arouses in people’s imaginations beautiful images of planets that are creative artistic representations of novel worlds. But a blur of brightness is not an image. Exoplanet researchers routinely call videos such as the one below of 51 Eridani b “direct images” because the planet’s light has been separated from that of its star. “Directly imaged” is the standard language of exoplanet astronomy. But to an optical (光学的) scientist such as myself, there is a strong distinction between direct detection (the planet’s light separated from the light of its star) and direct imaging (a proven picture of the exoplanet). From an optical researcher’s perspective, a single bright spot simply is not an image. Indeed, even the word “direct” in direct detection is debatable from an optical researcher’s point of view. The detection of the light of the exoplanet requires significant processing, adding multiple images and removing starlight based on theoretical models of the source signal. But the interpretation of a bright spot as a planet is only possible upon visual inspection and optimistic thinking. As an optical scientist, I cannot look at a single spot and call it an image of exoplanets. A trajectory (轨迹), or a series of bright points, is not an image of a planet, although it very likely represents something that nowadays is described as an exoplanet. Marija Strojnik |
1. ________ is the main disagreement between Marija Strojnik and Gerard Kriss.
A.The definition of a planet | B.The importance of detecting exoplanets |
C.The artistic representation of exoplanets | D.The use of the term “direct imaging” |
A.She supports it, as it is a common practice in exoplanet astronomy. |
B.She approves of it, although it does not provide a clear picture of the exoplanet. |
C.She believes it is only possible through visual observation and positive assumption. |
D.She considers the interpretation to be debatable, as it requires significant processing. |
A.In the textbook. | B.In a local newspaper. |
C.In a published essay. | D.In a science journal. |
3 . It is certainly difficult to make money. But should money be difficult to give away? In The Gilded Age, industrialists such as Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller worried about waste and misuse; Carnegie wrote in 1889 that $950 of every $1,000 that went to charity was “unwisely spent”.
Fortunately, a new generation of donors is once again shaking up the world of big philanthropy (慈善事业). Leading the mission is MacKenzie Scott, who simplified the process of giving and is donating billions of dollars a year with few conditions. This “no-strings giving” is changing mega-donors’ long-held assumptions.
One is the recognition that philanthropists do not have to do everything themselves.
Another lesson from the no-strings crowd is that philanthropists can trust recipients to put money to good use once the proper due diligence is in place. That means analyzing a nonprofit organization’s annual reports and interviewing its leaders and other funders.
A.It offers lessons for those struggling to get money out of the door. |
B.In addition to that, her charity work is too numerous to mention. |
C.However, this idea that charities’ money is wasted has been proven wrong by evidence. |
D.Mega-donors no longer need to endure the trouble of setting up a foundation and hiring staff. |
E.Two decades on, however, it’s become clear that all this paperwork puts the brakes on giving. |
F.Around the turn of the millennium donors looked to data and rules as a way to stop waste. |
4 . The ancient Egyptians thought so little of the brain that when a king died, they removed the brain from his body and threw it away. The Egyptians assumed, like many people before and after them, that consciousness — your mind and your thoughts existed in the heart.
Now we know that the mind is a product of the brain, but how exactly does this 1.5-kilo piece of matter create a mind that allows you to think about yourself, experience happiness and anger, or remember events that happened 20 minutes or 20 years ago? This isn’t a new question. Today, however, powerful new techniques for visualizing the sources of thought, emotion, behavior, and memory are transforming the way we understand the brain and the mind it creates.
Have you ever stopped and thought, “What’s wrong with me today? I just don’t feel like myself”? Perhaps you were more tired or worried than usual — but somehow, you knew that something was different about you. This self-awareness - the ability to think about yourself and how you’re feeling-is an important part of being human.
This part of of your mind has its origins in the prefrontal cortex — a region of your brain just behind your forehead that extends to about your ears. Before this area began to function (around age two), you didn’t understand that you were a separate individual with your own identity. As this part of your brain developed, you became more aware of yourself and your thoughts and feelings.
Though humans may share certain emotions and recognize them in others, we don’t all have the same emotional response to every situation. In fact, most emotional responses are learned and stored in our memories. The smell of freshly cut grass, for example, will generate happy feelings in someone who spent enjoyable childhood summers in the countryside, but not in someone who was forced to work long hours on a farm. Once an emotional association like this is made, it is very difficult to reverse it. “Emotion is the least flexible part of the brain,” says psychologist Paul Ekman. But we can learn to control our emotions by becoming consciously aware of their underlying causes and by not reacting automatically to things in our environment.
For centuries, people have studied the brain, but it is only in recent years that we have really started to learn how it works. Nevertheless, there is still a long way to go before we understand our mind’s many complexities.
1. What is the passage mainly about?A.How we create and control emotions. | B.How the mind works. |
C.How human beings are distinct. | D.How emotions are processed. |
A.To illustrate the importance of the heart in ancient Egyptian culture. |
B.To introduce the core theme of the mind-body connection and evolution. |
C.To provide an example of how the brain has been misunderstood throughout history. |
D.To contrast the ancient Egyptians’ views on the brain with the modern one. |
A.Self-awareness develops before the age of two. |
B.The prefrontal cortex affects a person’s emotions. |
C.The prefrontal cortex is located at the front of the brain. |
D.Self-awareness strengthens with the development of the brain. |
A.Emotions are universal and do not change over time or with individual experiences. |
B.Emotions are generally learned and stored in our memories, making them quite flexible. |
C.Emotions are influenced by our personal experiences and can vary from person to person. |
D.Emotions are the least flexible part of the mind, and they cannot be controlled. |
First published on October 15, 1952, “Charlotte’s Web” is a popular children’s book written by well-known American author E. B. White and
While it’s normal in the course of events on a farm for pigs
The ending of the “Charlotte’s Web” is bittersweet, however,
Death and destiny are both themes that the book explores. While Charlotte is willing to help Wilbur avoid a destiny that’s being imposed on him by outside forces beyond his control, she also understands that some fates are inevitable: All living creatures are born,
Charlotte helps Wilbur realize that immortality is not about living forever, but rather,
“Charlotte’s Web” got its inspiration from true experiences that author E. B. White had on his farm in Maine,
For thousands of years, Chinese people have valued the large family with three, four, or even five generations living under the same roof. That's what we call an extended family. Now it is changing. Compared to extended families. nuclear families which involve only two generations living together are becoming the trend. Apart from family size, these families are also featured by reduced dependence on the last generation. Young people are able to make decisions on their own and children are less likely to be brought up by their grandparents.
The reason for the tendency of nuclear families can be reflected as follows. It's a time when young people think highly of individual freedom. Young people like to have personal space that won't be disturbed by the old generations. In this way, they are more likely to avoid conflicts caused by different living habits from their parents.
It's also a time when social welfare institutions are highly advanced for old people to lead a comfortable life . Senior citizens can live together in some nursing homes and be taken good care of by specialized nursing workers, which may base young people's heavy burden of attending their aging parents.
However, the problem concerning attending to children turns up as the number of nuclear families increases. Young people are busy with their work and spend less time with their children. As a result, lacking enough care both from their parents and grandparents during their growth, children may develop mental illnesses like loneliness and depression. Many young people, therefore, hire babysitters to look after and keep company with their children, which adds a financial burden to them.
Facing the problem above, young people can seek help from old generations, communities and government. Old generations are welcomed to take care of their grandchildren, especially when young people are asked to work overtime. Communities ought to organize some volunteers to look after unattended kids. And government can set up special loads for young people to relieve their financial problem. With the joint efforts, nuclear families are expected to fit in well with the development of the society.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________10 . Methane (甲烷) is a greenhouse gas. Over 20 years it has over 80 times the planet-cooking power of carbon dioxide, and is
As COP28, the UN’s climate summit, gets
The reason a deal looks possible is that the politics are promising in all the biggest markets. China has recently announced that it will start including methane in its national climate plans. America will soon finalize regulations to
Since green-washing, the process of conveying a false impression about how some products or measures are environmentally sound, is quite common, if a global methane deal is to be more than that,
A.powerful | B.noticeable | C.responsible | D.possible |
A.cause | B.ingredient | C.agent | D.consequence |
A.quick | B.economic | C.original | D.national |
A.under way | B.in the making | C.on board | D.to the point |
A.stare | B.point | C.come | D.leap |
A.increase | B.stabilize | C.reduce | D.balance |
A.imported | B.localized | C.exported | D.globalized |
A.Revolutions | B.Evolutions | C.Resolutions | D.Innovations |
A.create | B.activate | C.decrease | D.spot |
A.disasters | B.delays | C.emissions | D.examinations |
A.loss | B.punishment | C.abuse | D.defeat |
A.however | B.therefore | C.further | D.once |
A.pay off | B.make out | C.run out | D.take off |
A.noisily | B.admittedly | C.reluctantly | D.accidentally |
A.declined | B.disappeared | C.swung | D.risen |