1 . Catfish effect is the effect that a strong competitor has in causing the weak to better themselves. Actions done to actively apply this effect in an organization are termed catfish management.

In Norway, live sardines are several times more expensive than frozen ones, and are valued for better texture and flavor. It was said that only one ship could bring live sardines home, and the shipmaster kept his method a secret. After he died, people found that there was one catfish in the tank. The catfish keeps swimming, and the sardines try to avoid this predator (捕食者). This increased level of activity keeps the sardines active, thus, increasing their survival rate greatly.

Catfish effect has been one of the hottest topics in human resources management. Therefore, I will keep the explanation short and sweet. When an outsider joins a well-established team as a competitor, he causes the weak to better their performance. This method is meant to motivate each of the teammates to feel the competition in order to keep up the competitiveness level of the whole team.

However, adding a catfish in the team can also bring in the downside in the group’s dynamics.

The team would go back to the storming stage. Under-performers would become more negative about the change that the catfish tried to implement (实施) because they would see it as a threat. The failed attempt of implementation of changing will create under-performance in the team as a whole, which will lead to a greater management challenge.

The key employee or backbone employee will feel demotivated because the opportunity to get a more senior job has decreased. If there are too many catfish in the company, this would generate a stressful work environment. The employee would constantly worry if they are being “preyed” by the catfish. The mental burden would create a harmful corporate culture and increase the distrust between employees.

A high standard is required on the catfish. The catfish would eventually turn into a leading role in the team. Lack in leadership skill from the catfish would lead to a bigger chaos in the workplace. Worst situation would be setting up a bad leadership role model to further an unhealthy competitive environment.

1. What is paragraph 2 of the text mainly about?

A．The magic trick of catching sardines.	B．The underlying logic of the effect.
C．The exact origin of the legend.	D．The great wisdom of a catfish.

2. What may a catfish mean to backbones of the company?

A．Unfair corporate culture.	B．Violent work environment.
C．Great management challenge.	D．Reduced promotion chance.

3. Which might be the solution to the downside of a catfish?

A．Qualifying a catfish for a leading role.	B．Setting up a harmonious relationship.
C．Creating a less competitive workplace.	D．Stopping a catfish entering a company.

4. What’s the author’s attitude towards adding a catfish in the company?

A．Subjective.

B．Pessimistic.

C．Objective.

D．Doubtful.

2 . As a boy in the 1960s, David Wagner would run around his family’s farm with a jar held in his hand, catching shining fireflies out of the sky. But that’s all gone; the family farm is now paved over with new homes and lawns. And Wagner’s beloved fireflies have largely disappeared.

In late 2017, a German study showed the total local flying insects had fallen by 80% in three decades. The New York Times published a masterful feature on the decline of insect life in late 2018. The Guardian wrote that “insects could disappear within a century”.

“Not going to happen,” says Elsa from North Carolina State University. “They’re the most diverse group of organisms on the planet. Some of them will make it.” Indeed, insects of some sort are likely to be the last ones standing. Any event sufficiently catastrophic to destroy the world of insects would also endanger other animal life. “If it happened, humans would no longer be on the planet,” says Corrie Moreau from Cornell University.

According to the studies, the major cause of the decline in insects is habitat loss. Next up is pollution from the pesticides and fertilisers. Parasites (寄生虫) and diseases are also playing a role. For instance, the spread of the varroa mite (大蜂螨) is contributing to the decline of honeybees. Finally comes climate change. Insects in tropical regions may be already suffering declines as a result of global heating.

But insects play a critical role in ecosystems. Insects serve as the base of the food web, eaten by everything from birds to small mammals to fish. If they decline, everything else will as well. They also provide invaluable “services” to humanity, including plant pollination (传粉). About three-fourths of flowering plants are pollinated by insects, as well as the crops that produce over one-third of the world’s food supply. Another service: Waste disposal and nutrient cycling. Without insects like dung beetles (屎壳郎) breaking down and removing animal and plant waste, “the result s would be unpleasant”.

1. What’s the bad news for David Wagner now?

A．He is unable to catch the fireflies.

B．He has moved away from his family farm.

C．His favorite insects have disappeared largely.

D．His family farm has been covered by new houses.

2. What does the underlined sentence in paragraph 3 mean?

A．Some kinds of insects will survive.

B．Some kinds of insects will become stronger.

C．Some kinds of insects will be the most diverse group.

D．Some kinds of insects will no longer be on the planet.

3. Why is the varroa mite mentioned in paragraph 4?

A．To explain why insects disappear.

B．To illustrate how insect habitat is lost.

C．To describe a fact that diseases cause the decline.

D．To support the idea that parasites cause the decline.

4. What may be talked about in the following paragraph?

A．What the unpleasant results are.	B．Why the ecosystems are critical.
C．What we should do to protect insects.	D．What the future world will be like.

3 . The most beloved bird in history may very well have been a 29-year-old pigeon by the name of Martha. It was the early 1900s, and Martha was at the height of her fame. Perched on her humble roost at the Cincinnati Zoo, she was an object of fascination to the thousands of visitors who lined up just to catch a glimpse. Martha may not have looked the part of an animal celebrity, but she was hardly average—in fact, she was the very definition of one of a kind. After the death of her companion George in 1910, Martha had become the world’s last-living passenger pigeon.

There was a time not long before when her kind accounted for more than a quarter of the birds in North America and may have been the most abundant bird species on the planet. Passenger pigeons used to travel at 60 miles an hour in flocks a mile wide and 300 miles long. Witnesses compared them to a train rumbling through a tunnel.

Ironically, the passenger pigeons’ very abundance may have spelled their doom. An agricultural pest and reliable source of protein, they became easy targets for hunters who killed them in the tens of thousands. In a matter of decades, a bird that once numbered in the billions was reduced to a few, and then, eventually, to one.

Martha, who’d grown up in captivity, had no offspring of her own. At 1 p.m. on September 1, 1914, Martha fell from her perch, never to rise again—one of the rare occasions in which historians could identify the exact moment of a species’ extinction.

Of course, the real tragedy was that the loss of the passenger pigeon was neither surprising nor unique. For as long as the Earth has sustained life, it has also seen the permanent disappearance of life forms, the dinosaurs being a particularly extreme example. But Martha’s high-profile death trained national attention on an alarming new trend. Close to a thousand animal species alone have died off in the last 500 years, and the trend is only getting worse.

1. What caused the extinction of passenger pigeons?

A．The loss of their habitats.	B．The worsening of global warming.
C．The burning of fossil fuels.	D．Their nutritional value and threat to farming.

2. Why are dinosaurs mentioned in the last paragraph?

A．To illustrate we can do nothing to stop species extinction.

B．To show the extinction of a certain species is not a rare case.

C．To explain human activities are to blame for species extinction.

D．To stress immediate measures should be taken before it is too late.

3. What is the author’s attitude towards the new trend of species extinction?

A．Optimistic.

B．Confused.

C．Relieved.

D．Concerned.

4. What is the main idea of the passage?

A．The most beloved bird George died.

B．Birds are the best friends of human beings.

C．The tragic loss of the last passenger pigeon.

D．The most abundant bird species are endangered.

4 . How to master tricky conversations at work

Many of us struggle to say what we need to at work. Whether it’s asking for a pay rise or facing a co-worker over their behaviour, these conversations can be difficult to have without the other person getting angry.     1    . Here’s my tips on how to tackle your next difficult conversation.

Plan

First, you need to plan what you’re going to say.     2    . Write down what you want out of the conversation and be clear on what you want to happen as a result. For example, you may decide: “I want to get an agreement on deadlines for this project and a clear outline of who will be responsible for each task.”

Prepare

The second thing you need to do is write down the key messages you want to get across in the conversation.     3    . Remember to speak slowly, breathe. If you are particularly nervous, rehearse (排练) what you plan to say in front of a friend so you know you are coming across as you wish to.

Be empathetic

Finally, put yourself in the other person’s shoes — however annoying that person might be. The useless boss who never gives you feedback is simply struggling with her own workload.     4    , the more we can plan how to work with them towards a successful outcome.

When you have the conversation, don’t get blind-sided by fast talkers. If the person you’re speaking to starts to avoid blame or your questioning, ask them what their part is in all of this and what they can take responsibility for.     5    . And finally, if you feel under pressure, remember to respond slowly rather than reacting quickly.

A．Practise saying them out loud

B．Start with the end result in mind

C．The language you use is also important

D．The more careful you’re with the language you use

E．The more we can understand the other person’s worldview

F．To manage your emotions during a difficult conversation, breathe deeply

G．But not being able to have “that conversation” can hold you back in your career

5 . We The Curious

Formerly known as At-Bristol, this harbourside science museum relaunched in 2017 as We The Curious to better reflect its mission to get kids to ask questions and engage in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (Stem subjects) in creative ways.

Best things about it

My kids don’t shy away from telling me if they think a museum is boring but here they were too busy rushing from one hands-on exhibit to the next to have any such complaint. They dressed up as bees to catch pollen (花粉) made cheese, watched ice form, weighed human brains and stretched out strips of DNA to compare the genetic sequence (基因序列) of a monkey and an armadillo.

Value for money?

Given that the science museums in London, Manchester and Newcastle are free, it does jar (不一致) having to pay £14.50 for adults and £9.50 for kids (aged 3—15) to get in. Kids under 3 are free. I did have to push them out the door at the end of the day. Weeks on, they still refer back to things they learnt there.

Getting there

We The Curious is near the National Cycle Network (routes 3, 4, and 33). The museum has lots of bicycle parking. Alternatively, it’s a 10-minute walk from Bristol Temple Meads railway station or a five-minute taxi ride or 17-minute ferry ride. If driving, follow the We The Curious brown signs and park at the Millennium Square car park for free.

Opening hours

Monday to Friday 10 am—5 pm, 10 am-6 pm at weekends and Bristol school holidays; closed 24—26 December.

1. What highlights We The Curious?

A．A long and splendid history.	B．Mental health support for children.
C．Educational and fun activities.	D．A hands-on products exhibition.

2. How much would a couple with their 5-year-old twin sons pay for admission?

A．£29.

B．£33.5.

C．£38.5.

D．£48.

3. What do we learn from the passage?

A．It charges parking fees.	B．It opens all year round.
C．It is conveniently located.	D．It offers many types of bikes.

6 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入一个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Dazu Rock Carvings refers to all of the 102 cliffside carvings in Dazu district, Chongqing. The     1     (construct) of those rock carvings dates back to 650, and continued into the 17th century. The scenic area     2     (add) to the World Heritage List in December 1999.

So far, 50,000 statues and 100,000 carved Chinese characters     3     (identify) and over 75 cliff statue sites are under state protection. The cliff statues are large in size, well carved and among the best     4     (preserve) of their similarities.

The Dazu Rock Carvings have     5     important position in the history of China’s grotto art. Artisans created these rock carvings not simply by replicating (复制) images that their ancestors had made     6     by combining religious figures with ordinary life,     7     recorded the transition (过渡) of society. The statues show the evolution of carving and national features,     8     (break) new ground in religious art and creating dynamic figures full of life. They stand on the peak of Chinese rock carving art with their historical values and aesthetic (美学) quality.

According to the UNESCO description, the Dazu Rock Carvings are remarkable     9     their rich diversity of subject matter and the light they cast on daily life in ancient China. Their existence proved the     10     (harmony) synthesis (结合) of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism during that period.

7 . We may weep for the dodo, but could and should we bring this lovely bird back from the dead? De-extinction is the science of restoring lost species and it has been in the news for decades.

The story in modern times began in 1990 when Michael Crichton published his science fiction novel Jurassic Park, in which he imagined a world where scientists were able to bring dinosaurs back to life. Crichton imagined that polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology could be a way to amplify (放大) tiny quantities of dinosaur DNA and thus build a living embryo.

Sadly, biologists soon realized that DNA in fact breaks down super-fast; even after 100 years, DNA from museum skins of dodos was decayed (腐烂) beyond repair. They could be sequenced (测定序列) using massive computational power, but then only with considerable uncertainty. And even if you capture a DNA sequence, there’s still the problem of how you get living cells to read that sequence and express proteins that make the dinosaur or the dodo.

But why would anyone want to see mammoths, or something like them, roaming (漫游) present-day Siberia? Well, they were undoubtedly amazing beasts. As well as hunting them, our distant ancestors painted their likenesses in caves across Europe. Fascinating as they may be, there's some ecological justification for the project too.

It was this diversity of land surface, broken up by heavy limbs and randomly fertilised by faeces (排泄物), that supported so much flora (植物群). Without the mammoths, that diversity disappeared. Return them and landscapes would once again be with a variety of species, including flowers and bushes.

True, it’s not de-extinction in the sense of bringing a long-dead species back to life. Instead it’s more like making a “dodo” by engineering a modern pigeon, its closest relative, to become huge and flightless. The result would be a big, fatty pigeon that, whether it looked like a dodo or not, would probably fulfil some of its ecological roles.

As a palaeontologist, I would of course love to see living dinosaurs, mammoths and dodos. In some ways, though, I am relieved that the optimistic claims for cloning and genetic technologies have not been borne out. The slowdown gives us time to consider the outcomes—and hopefully avoid some of Michael Crichton’s more fevered imaginings.

1. What is paragraph 2 of the text mainly about?

A．A science fiction review.	B．The development of DNA.
C．An inspired guess of de-extinction.	D．The application of PCR technology.

2. What’s the barrier to cloning a living embryo?

A．DNA is hard to keep for long.	B．Computational power is limited.
C．Biologists are opposed to it.	D．Living cells can􀆳t be sequenced.

3. Why are people interested in cloning extinct species?

A．They expect to seek hunt fun.	B．They lack sources of modern art.
C．They need them for research.	D．They want to see biodiversity.

4. What’s the author’s attitude toward cloning extinct species?

A．Cautious.

B．Unclear.

C．Dismissive.

D．Approving.

8 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

When my sister, Dona, and I were little kids, my parents both joined the army. They stayed far away from our town and hardly returned home. My grandpa took on the big responsibility of taking care of us. Still, without our parents by our side, Dona and I sometimes felt lonely and sad, especially one winter.

One morning in that winter when Dona and I were sitting in our bedroom, dull and quiet, Grandpa said, “My dear, how about trying skating for fun?” Our faces immediately lit up and we answered together, “Great, we surely like it, Grandpa!”

He smiled and quickly set about building us a skating rink (溜冰场) in our yard. The process of building a skating rink was not easy. First, Grandpa laid out long wooden boards around the yard. Next, he made the base of the rink flat. Grandpa then began spraying the water, lightly at first, until the first layer of ice was established. He would then put some water onto the ice each night. And thus, the ice became thicker and thicker.

In the darkness of the night, from the kitchen window Dona and I watched Grandpa with great expectations. His back and shoulders rounded to protect him from the freezing wind. He stood alone, busying himself creating a perfect skating rink for us. The only light was from the moon and stars.

One night, Grandpa suddenly pressed his waist and the look on his face showed he was painful. Quite concerned, Dona and I rushed out and asked, “Grandpa! What’s wrong?” “My waist is painful. Don’t worry! I’ll be fine just after a little rest,” he smiled. Dona and I offered to help create the rink. But he said it was too cold outside at night and that building the rink needs much experience and lots of skills. Then, we gave up the idea of offering him a hand, but demanded he build the rink a few days later. Seeing we were determined, he walked into the room with us and had warm tea. Before long, Dona and I were tired and went to bed.

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。

When we fell asleep, Grandpa quietly walked out into the yard.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Amazed, we hurriedly put on the skating equipment and rushed out._

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

9 . A team of Dutch researchers has discovered that magpies (喜鹊) are using metal spikes (things with sharp points) designed to keep them away from certain urban areas to make their own nests stronger and keep invaders at bay.

Scientists have known for a while that magpies are some of the most intelligent birds in the world, but even they were puzzled by their amazing ability to adapt to hostile urban environments. It’s not unusual for birds to use human trash as tools and building materials for their nests, but seeing them use the very things we humans use against them was nothing short of puzzling for researchers at the Natural History Museum in Rotterdam and the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in Leiden, in the Netherlands.

“I didn’t expect this. These anti bird spikes are meant to deter birds, they are supposed to scare them off, but on the contrary, the birds just use them.” Kees Moeliker, the director of the Natural History Museum Rotterdam, told The Guardian.

One particularly impressive magpie nest was discovered in the courtyard of a hospital in Antwerp, Belgium. It was made up of around 1,500 anti-bird spikes, most of which seemed to be positioned with the sharp point outwards, as protection against invaders. After discovering it, researchers checked the roof and confirmed that around 50 meters of anti-bird spike strips had been ripped off the building, leaving only the glue used to fix them in place.

Birds have been known to take sharp objects, from point y branches to nails, screws, into their nests as protection, but the use of anti-bird spikes is kind of ironic, as they are the very things used to keep them away. To scientists like Hiemstra, this is a sort of “beautiful revenge”.

A few years back, we wrote about rich people in the UK installing anti-bird spikes on trees to stop birds from pooping on their luxury cars, but I guess the birds had the last laugh.

1. How did the researchers feel when they found magpies made use of metal spikes?

A．Shocked.

B．Amused.

C．Frightened.

D．Disappointed.

2. What does the underlined word “deter” mean in paragraph 3?

A．Attract.

B．Threaten.

C．Raise.

D．Protect.

3. What is paragraph 4 mainly about?

A．Supporting evidence for the research result.

B．Deeper explanation of the research finding.

C．Practical application of the research discovery.

D．Further exploration of the cause of the discovery.

4. What can we infer from the passage?

A．Birds are the masters of architecture.

B．Birds respond wisely in face of anti-bird spikes.

C．Birds use human trash to make for better adaptation.

D．Birds turn out the most intelligent species in the world.

10 . It’s a known fact that emissions from gas-powered vehicles are harming the atmosphere. In response to this, Porsche, the German sports car brand, began a pilot program of producing e-fuels in Chile last year. Currently, e-fuels will be used only in sports cars at Porsche’s performance and experience centers.

E-fuels are made by passing electricity through water. The electricity separates the hydrogen and oxygen molecules. The hydrogen is then mixed with CO2 to produce liquid e-fuels. E-fuels can be produced using many renewable energy sources, such as solar energy and wind. They follow the chemical structure of gasoline, making it possible for gas-powered cars to run on e-fuels with little to no modification.

E-fuels are preponderant (占优势的) over gas. E-fuels can help ease the change away from gas-powered cars, for those who may not be able to afford electric vehicles (EVs). They will also help to reduce waste by keeping gas-powered cars in service. Additionally, the use of e-fuels will not require new infrastructure to be built unlike EVs.

Existing gas stations and cars will be able to stay in use, which is already a big saving. However, opinions differ on whether e-fuels are truly eco-friendly. E-fuels are widely said to be nearly carbon neutral, although an independent study indicates that e-fuels release the same amount of CO2 as gasoline. Since e-fuels are still being developed and tested, their true impacts are still unknown.

E-fuels are very expensive to produce, partly due to energy loss during production. Unfortunately, only about 50% of the energy used in producing e-fuels is actually transformed into fuels. Additionally, only about 16% of the energy used in e-fuel production is actually used to power the car.

Even though the use of e-fuels will keep existing infrastructure, it will still take time and money to include it in everyday life. Currently the price of c-fuels is nearly double the cost of regular fuels. Though opinion is divided on e-fuels, with more testing and development, they have been considered as another way to help fight against the climate crisis by many researchers.

1. What can we learn about e-fuels?

A．They were tested in Germany at first.	B．They are applicable to gas-powered cars.
C．They were produced relying on solar energy.	D．They need to be mixed with CO2 in actual use.

2. What’s paragraph 3 mainly about?

A．E-fuels are greater than gas.	B．E-fuels are rich in gas.
C．E-fuels are dependent on gas.	D．E-fuels are equal to gas.

3. What do the figures in paragraph 5 mainly indicate?

A．EVs have enjoyed much popularity.	B．The cost of e-fuels will go down gradually.
C．There are many difficulties in advertising e-fuels.	D．The efficiency of e-fuels is lower in powering cars.

4. What is the author’s attitude towards e-fuels?

A．Positive.

B．Scared.

C．Objective.

D．Doubtful.