Hearing the news that the Shenzhou XIII manned spacecraft was about to return to the Earth, Pan Xue, a Miao ethnic group girl born after 1995, decided to make
“It’s called a longevity tree in Qiandongnan,
2 . I was at a grocery store trying to pick up some groceries for me and my family. The big store seemed even more
I pushed my cart over to the self check-out section. There was
As I returned to my cart, something was
| A．complex | B．comfortable | C．convenient | D．crowded |
| A．finally | B．actually | C．gradually | D．instantly |
| A．amazing | B．frustrating | C．panicking | D．thrilling |
| A．cared for | B．cut back on | C．depended on | D．put up with |
| A．guards | B．customers | C．employees | D．managers |
| A．obeying | B．giving | C．placing | D．receiving |
| A．accept | B．ban | C．encourage | D．mind |
| A．instead of | B．due to | C．in spite of | D．in addition to |
| A．added to | B．called for | C．brought down | D．took in |
| A．once | B．never | C．ever | D．even |
| A．empty | B．full | C．new | D．old |
| A．assisted | B．explained | C．apologized | D．greeted |
| A．fault | B．idea | C．problem | D．wish |
| A．mentioned | B．noticed | C．proved | D．sensed |
| A．checked | B．fastened | C．grabbed | D．packed |
| A．different | B．familiar | C．strange | D．similar |
| A．lonely | B．puzzled | C．stressed | D．worried |
| A．belief | B．courage | C．desire | D．peace |
| A．so | B．and | C．or | D．but |
| A．chances | B．dreams | C．changes | D．blessings |
3 . Everyone feels anxious or nervous at times. Feelings like these can surface when you face a challenge.
●Start with a growth mindset (思想倾向).
Some people have a fixed mindset. They might think, “This is how I am. I get anxious before speaking in class. So I don’t raise my hand.” With a fixed mindset, people don’t think things can change. But people with a growth mindset know they can get better at just about everything — with effort and practice.
●Notice what anxiety feels like for you.
Get to know the body feelings that are part of anxiety. When you’re anxious, do you feel “butterflies”? Shaky hands? A faster heartbeat? Know that these feelings are part of the body’s normal response to a challenge.
●
When you’re anxious, it’s common to tell yourself things like, “I can’t do this.” Or “What if I mess this up?” Instead, tell yourself something that could help you face the moment with a bit of courage, “It’s OK to feel anxious. I can do this anyway.” It’s facing the anxiety that helps you manage it. This is called exposure.
Learning to cope with anxiety takes time and patience. Most of all, it takes practice and willingness to face it. It starts with one small step.
| A．Give it all of your attention. |
| B．That includes dealing with anxiety. |
| C．Talk yourself through anxiety and face it. |
| D．They’re not harmful and they fade on their own. |
| E．It can help you “reset” and be ready to move forward. |
| F．For example, you might feel nervous before taking big exams. |
| G．The more you practice, the better you’ll get at managing anxiety. |
4 . Teens have a reputation for making some not-so-smart decisions and being easily distracted. Researchers have blamed it on the immaturity of the prefrontal cortex(前额叶皮质). But scientists now find the answer may be the attraction of rewards. Rewards, even small ones, affect teens more than adults. And teens tend to be distracted by things they once found rewarding, even after the actual payoff is long gone.
Psychologist Zachary Roper and his team worked with two groups of volunteers: 13-to 16-year olds and 20-to 35-year-old adults. During a training stage, a computer displayed six circles, each a different color. The players had to find the red or green circle and would be provided with a 10-cent or 2-cent reward. By the end of this training, volunteers had realized the value of each color but they didn’t know it. Then came the testing time. Again, groups of six symbols, one diamond and five circles, appeared on a computer screen. The researchers measured how long it took people to find the diamond and recorded their answers.
When no red or green circles appeared, both adults and teens responded quickly. But when a red or green circle showed up, both groups took a bit longer initially. Adults, though, quickly stopped paying attention to the red or green circles. Teens took longer to respond whenever a red or green circle appeared. Clearly, the red and green circles were distracting teens even though they brought no reward.
“The study demonstrates that the attention of adolescents is especially drawn to rewarding information,” says Zachary Roper. “These data may help explain why teens engage in risky behaviors.”
Some behaviors, such as texting or using social media, start the brain’s reward system. Once the teenage brain has linked a behavior to that reward, it continues to seek it again and again. That’s why teens are likely to use social media when they should be studying. Or why they respond to texts while driving. So researchers suggest physically removing distractions whenever possible.
1. Why do teens tend to make some not-so-smart decisions?| A．The appeal of rewards affects their decision making. |
| B．Their skills to respond wisely have not been well trained. |
| C．Their prefrontal cortexes have been improperly developed. |
| D．The tendency to keep doing things prevents them thinking clearly. |
| A．The red or green circle. | B．The end of the training. |
| C．The value of each color. | D．The awareness of the color value. |
| A．Adults were not affected by the red or green circles at all. |
| B．Teens were attracted by the red or green circles because of the high rewards. |
| C．Teens were distracted by the rewarding information even after the reward was gone. |
| D．Adults were drawn to the rewarding information only after they were tested repeatedly. |
| A．The Brain Response System | B．The Effects of Rewards |
| C．The Distracted Teenage Brain | D．The Harm of Risky Behaviors |
5 . Every day, across the United States, there are people sitting in towers more than 100 feet in the air alone, scanning the distance for signs of smoke. They are fire watchers, also known as our eyes in the sky.
What is it like to be a fire watcher? Peter Naumann, a former fire watcher, tells about a typical day. “I’d get up at 5:30, eat a quick breakfast, and scan the area for smoke once every hour.” Other duties include reporting to headquarters twice each day, cutting firewood and so on. Aside from these required routines, a fire watcher should have hobbies and like reading, which helps pass the time.
While it might sound like a quiet life to some, at any moment, an adventure could begin. “Rainstorms and thunderstorms were a tough time. I had to be awake all through, looking for where the lightning was striking,” says Naumann. Sometimes, fire watchers also need to act as backcountry dispatchers(调度员). For example, Naumann once aided in the rescue of an injured horse rider.
It may seem surprising that the life of a fire watcher is very much the same all these years. Even much of the technology used in the early days is still used today. For example, the Osborne Firefinder is a tool that gives compass headings for fire locations. This tool has been in use for nearly 100 years. Today, fire watchers have the added help of spotter planes, helicopters and satellite imaging.
With more and more new technology, why do we still need fire watchers? “Ideally, you should have someone who knows the land features and the weather conditions,” says Naumann. Also, fire watchers are able to see things that satellite imaging cannot, such as the difference between cloud-to-cloud lightning and ground strikes.
So the fire watchers still hike to their posts each fire season. Why? They are our eyes in the sky.
1. What do fire watchers do while on duty?| A．They read books to pass the time. | B．They inspect the area regularly. |
| C．They take on rescue work to seek adventure. | D．They carry out multi-tasks frequently. |
| A．To list the added help fire watchers have got. |
| B．To stress the importance of using technology. |
| C．To give an example of how skilled fire watchers are. |
| D．To show the little change in fire detecting technology. |
| A．Technology may fail to perform some tasks. |
| B．Technology has hardly advanced over the years. |
| C．Humans are still needed to report to headquarters. |
| D．Humans are specialists in land features and weather. |
6 . Collin was lying on his back when his sister, Mary, came in. From her red eyes, Collin could tell she felt homesick again.
Their family had moved to the Moon nearly four months ago. It still didn’t feel like home. The houses were cosy, but outside everything was gray and rocky and lifeless. There was even no weather there at all—no rain or snow or even wind.
“I miss everything, even the sound of rain on the roof,” Mary said sadly. “Worst of all, my birthday is in two days, and I don’t think Mom and Dad are planning anything special.”
She’s probably right, thought Collin. Life on the Moon was busy for scientists like their parents. He doubted if they had time to plan a party. If there was no party, maybe he could give his sister a gift. However, with limited room in their transport ship, each child had been allowed to bring only two toys from the Earth. Where could he find the gift?
The next day, as Collin wandered toward the agricultural center, he found some bamboo plants, which made good building materials. An idea flashed across his mind. He took a piece of bamboo plants, made tiny holes into it, then poured a handful of Moon cobblestones inside and sealed the open ends.
When it was done, Collin hurried home, holding the bamboo piece carefully. On seeing his sister, Collin said, “I have a present for you.” He handed his sister the bamboo stick. “Happy birthday!”
“What is it?” Mary asked, looking at it curiously.
“A rain stick,” said Collin. “Whenever you turn it over, the Moon cobblestones fall inside and it sounds like rain.”
Mary turned the stick, and the room was filled with a sound like rain drumming on a roof.
“It’s Moon rain!” she said. “It makes me feel like I’m home.” She smiled at Collin and turned the rain stick over again.
1. According to the text, what do we know about the Moon?| A．Life there is busy. | B．Its weather is changeable. |
| C．Living space there is limited. | D．Its surroundings are dull. |
| A．It created a rain scene. | B．It was her dream birthday gift. |
| C．It alleviated her homesickness. | D．It was made of good materials. |
| A．Curious and careful. | B．Caring and skillful. |
| C．Creative and enthusiastic. | D．Sensitive and knowledgeable. |
