1 . It turns out that humans aren’t the only ones taking mathematics tests. A group of cognitive (认知的) scientists are training bees to perform simple addition and subtraction (减法).

For the experiment, the scientists lured individual bees with sugar water. “She flies back to the hive, gives it to the other bees, and two minutes later she’ll come back and do it again,” Dyer said, a scientist from RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. They taught and tested 14 bees over the course of the experiment — one bee at a time.

To learn the rules, a bee first would be shown cards printed with a number of shapes in one of two colors: blue, if they were supposed to add one to the shapes on the card, or yellow, if they were meant to subtract one shape. Then, the bee would choose an answer to the problem by flying to one of two presented solutions. If it chose well, it found itself near a solution of delicious sugar water. If it chose poorly, however, it would be punished with a bad-tasting drink. The researchers found that each bee picked the correct answer in both addition and subtraction trials about 70percent of the time.

Dyer said, “Problem-solving requires both long-term memory and short-term memory. Long-term memory allows the bees to remember that blue and yellow equate to separate mathematical rules. Short-term memory lets them recall the actual numbers in a particular problem.”

“It is assumed that humans are very complex, and there’s a decreasing level of complexity going away from humans,” said Muth, an animal congnition researcher who wasn’t involved in this study. But in fact, complex awareness, like the mathematical problems solved by bees, can be made up of relativlely simple components.

That doesn’t explain why bees might have evolved the ability to figure out mathematical problems, though. One possibility is that bees didn’t evolve to do addition and subtraction. They just evolved to be smart enough to figure it out.

Dyer said that observing a tiny animal with a brain that has less than a million neurons (神经元) learn a very complex task makes him think, “Wow, what can humans achieve?”

1. What are the scientists training bees to do in the experiment?

A．Flying on blue and yellow cards.	B．Adding shapes to different cards.
C．Solving simple mathematical problems.	D．Tasting water of two flavors.

2. What would happen if the bees chose the wrong answer to the problem?

A．They would be punished with a bad-tasting drink.	B．They would be treated with sugar drink.
C．They would be permitted to leave the hive.	D．They would be given a beautiful shape card.

3. What role does memory play in problem-solving?

A．Long-term memory plays a bigger part.

B．Long-term memory contributes to recalling.

C．Short-term memory facilitates remembering.

D．Short-term memory is as important as long-term memory.

4. What can we learn from the passage?

A．Bees are as complex as man in many aspects.

B．Bees are by nature good at mathematics.

C．Complex awareness can consist of simple components.

D．Bees learn to solve maths problems under certain pressure.

5. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

A．Human achievements can be limitless.	B．Human brains deserve good study.
C．Humans must fully develop neurons.	D．Humans are good at observation.

2 . Her parents bought her a new computer, which immediately _______ her mood and brought a smile to her face.

A．lifted

B．suited

C．reflected

D．controlled

3 . Every bookstore in Beijing used to have a massive fiction room piled to the ceiling with great books. These days, you’re as likely as not to find that those rooms have been shrunk down to the size of a solitary (单独的) table thickly covered with the latest releases and best-selling novels. This, however, begs the question: Is fiction dying out, or is print media finally succumbing to (屈服于) its electronic and audio copy rivals (对手)?

Now that Kindle is leaving China, some say that maybe people will get back to traditional reading. I doubt it, however. This downward reading trend has been evident for a long time now. When Jeff Bezos first launched Kindle, Steve Jobs from Apple said it would fail because “people don’t read anymore. It doesn’t matter how good or bad the product is.”

But I don’t think reading itself is dying. It is merely becoming more functional — in other words, something you have to do in order to get some tangible (实际的) benefit. Gone are the days when people just read for fun. Why lumber (迫使担负) through a musty old book when you can watch an action movie or play a video game? Of course, people know that these are poor substitutes (替代品) for a good book.

In fact, there is nothing better than getting lost in a great book. I remember reading Shackleton, the British polar explorer, when I was a boy. After turning over the last leaf of this extraordinary adventure, I felt as if I, too, had just been to the South Pole and back. This imaginary achievement translated into a sense of confidence which must have been infectious, as soon afterwards all of my friends were themselves picking up books to read for fun. Psychologists say that you are the average of the five friends you surround yourself with. We can learn from them and they can also come to have a profound effect on our own habits and mindset. In this way, a book, too, can be a mentor (导师). The ideas, advice, mindset, and experiences of other people living in other times can get transmitted to us down through the pages of a good book.

In the age of fragmented (碎片化的) information, the winners will be those who can stay focused. However, in a world that easily gets distracted, deep reading seems to be getting further away from us. Our biggest problem is not Kindle’s departure from China, but our own departure from reality. Great books transmit universal truths; get them read. How exactly you do so is up to you.

1. The author mentioned Kindle in the text to _______.

A．praise its convenience and popularity in reading

B．explore the reason for the decline of print media

C．highlight the decreasing trend of traditional reading

D．show our regret for its departure from China’s market

2. Which of the following statements is true about Shackleton according to the passage?

A．He is famous for imaginary writing.	B．He finds nothing better than an old book.
C．He visited the South Pole many times himself.	D．His adventure story influenced the author a lot.

3. We can benefit a lot from reading according to the author except that _______.

A．we can be influenced by positive ideas	B．we’d surround ourselves with good friends
C．we can learn from other people’s experiences	D．we can develop good habits and ways of thinking

4. The author probably agrees that _______.

A．great books are more popular than action movies

B．we should avoid being distracted by modern technology

C．reading great books can help us stay focused

D．traditional reading will eventually disappear

5. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

A．It’s necessary to find a better substitutes for books like Kindle.

B．We should read more in order to escape from reality.

C．We need to face the reality that reading is becoming less popular.

D．We have to accept the fact that Kindle is leaving China.

6. What is the author’s main purpose in writing this passage?

A．To discuss the future trend of reading.	B．To advocate the benefits of reading.
C．To analyze the reasons for the decline of reading.	D．To compare different forms of reading.

4 . To better understand how animals like spiders communicate with pattern and color, Jenny Yi-Ti Sung, a biology doctoral student at the University of Cincinnati, is turning to ancient dramatic art. Sung is studying how Beijing operas convey details about characters to their audiences through the performers’ colorful masks (脸谱).

Like jumping spiders, Beijing opera masks have unique patterns and colors that convey information to their intended audience. For spiders, the unique characteristics broadcast species, sex or even romantic intentions to possible mates. Similarly, in Beijing opera, the masks give the audience clues about a character’s motives, character or virtue.

“I’m interested in understanding how male spiders might use their patterns and colors to tell a female spider they’re the same species and are a good mate,” Sung said. “I saw a parallel in Beijing opera masks. How do these visual patterns evolve to tell a specific identity?”

Sung is investigating whether Beijing opera masks within a particular opera are more similar or different compared with masks in unrelated operas. Her computerized analysis involves scanning and resizing 76 masks for uniformity, employing the Eigenfaces (特征脸) method to identify common or unique facial features. This investigation aims to reveal the importance of differentiation among characters within the same story in the Beijing opera.

Nathan Morehouse, Sung’s advisor, thought highly of Sung’s creative approach, describing it as a delightful marriage of cultural and scientific interests in evolutionary biology. “I think it enriches science and opens up new ways of thinking’ about things,” he said.

Facial patterns, as observed in jumping spiders and various animal species, hold biological significance in conveying information about species, sex and mate suitability. Besides spiders, facial pattern recognition is found in many other animals. “When they live in mixed-species communities, their facial patterns evolve to be distinct so they can distinguish members of the same species at a distance,” Morehouse said.

Sung hopes that her study will shed light on evolutionary divergence (差异), exploring the point at which members of the same species take different genetic paths. “Of course, there’s no punishment to the audience if they don’t recognize the Beijing opera faces properly. But in the wild, you’d get eaten,” she said.

1. What is the aim of Sung’s investigation of Beijing opera masks?

A．To identify the colors used in different masks.

B．To find similarities among masks in unrelated operas.

C．To understand the features of Eigenfaces in opera masks.

D．To uncover the significance of distinguishing characters in operas.

2. According to Morehouse, what is special about Sung’s study?

A．It applies to many animals.	B．It involves biological sciences.
C．It combines science with culture.	D．It involves wildlife conservation.

3. What is one way that facial patterns help animals, according to the text?

A．They confuse their enemies.	B．They promote species harmony.
C．They enable species recognition.	D．They facilitate cross-species interaction.

4. What can we know about Nathan Morehouse?

A．He is a famous scientist in evolutionary biology.

B．He supports Sung’s research on Beijing opera masks.

C．He thinks the study of masks has little value.

D．He doesn’t like the idea of combining culture and science.

5 . 阅读短文，并按照题目要求用英语回答问题。

There are two ways that I often hear the term “hobbyist” being thrown around. The first is by professional woodworkers and is usually in a disparaging (贬低的) tone, like “a hobbyist couldn’t possibly be as good, fast, and talented as a pro”. The other way is by hobbyists themselves and having a beginning like the words “I’m just a... ”. In either case, I don’t understand why this is.

To my way of thinking, being a qualified and skilled woodworker can mean that you are a slave to the hard work. I’ve done the work and it isn’t always fun and pretty. It’s not often that you get to do the kind of woodworking that you want and often you are left begging to be paid for the work that you do complete. The other thing to keep in mind that even the most successful furniture makers often supplement their incomes with teaching and writing. Making woodworking courses is well-paid.

A few years ago I turned furniture making into a hobby, and this ended up being the best decision I could have made for my overall welling-being. For some time I was starting to dislike woodworking because of all the other stuff I mentioned earlier. Add more pressure to the situation by having a young family and wanting to contribute to the household income, and the stress wasn’t good. Getting a job outside of furniture making allowed me the freedom to build what I wanted, when I wanted. I’ve stayed in the woodworking industry all these years, but what I make in my hobbyist shop simply brings in some money to help feed a healthy tool addiction.

So please don’t be ashamed of your hobbyist name. Hobbyists get to explore as many aspects of the craft as they want. They don’t have the pressure of putting food on the table and paying the rent, so they can do whatever they want. No rabbit holes (未知的世界) are off limits for the hobbyist because in the end it’s just your personal time and some materials. So, go ahead, be a proud hobbyist, and hold your chest out with pride.

1. According to the passage, why do professionals sometimes look down upon hobbyists? (no more than 10 words)
_____________________________________________________________________________________
2. According to paragraph 2 what things make the author a slave to the hard work? (no more than 20 words)
_____________________________________________________________________________________
3. Why did the author decide to turn furniture making into a hobby? (no more than 15 words)
_____________________________________________________________________________________
4. How do you understand the underlined part? (no more than 1 words)
_____________________________________________________________________________________
5. Do you think being a hobbyist is a good thing? Why or why not? (no more than 20 words)
_____________________________________________________________________________________

6 . Alone in my office one afternoon, I unpeeled (打开) the wrapper from a square of chocolate with a deliberate curiosity. The words printed inside the wrapper _______ “Accept a compliment.”

I would normally not say yes to _______ from strangers who work in the marketing department of Dove Chocolate. But they aren’t _______ in their advice: Come on women. Quit being apologists. _______ accept the compliments you deserve—without any self-deprecation (自我贬低) or changing of the subject. Until this point, I would have responded to a compliment with half _______ and half distraction—“Thanks, but…”. However, a simple “thank you” was not my style, I decided to _______ it.

Walking home from work, I _______ a neighbor on the street. I smiled and waved as we neared each other. She waved back and shouted, “I like your dress!” I assumed this was an opportunity to _______ the new way to accept compliments and simply said, “Thank you.”

An awkward _______ followed. When we started again, Her eyes acquired a(n) ________ look. “It’s appropriate,” she said. “I like it when people dress appropriately.”

“Oh. Ugh,” I was ________ for words and continued my walk home, embarrassed. What had I ________ by failing to add a remark about how old or inexpensive my clothing was?

The answer: a coded linguistic (语言的) invitation.

Up until that candy wrapper advice, I hadn’t ________ the purpose of. compliments. According to experts, two-thirds of the time, people ________ to compliments with something in addition to “Thank you.” We   ________ credit( “My mom picked this dress out for me.”), make a historical comment ( “I bought it on sale.”), or question the complimenter ( “Hmm; you think/so?”). Other times we ________ the compliment ( “This thing is so old I was about to give it to Goodwill.”), or treat the compliment as a ________ ( “You want to borrow it?”) ________ , the compliment is a coded invitation to chat, and “Thank you” linguistically slams the door in the complimenter’s face.

In trying out the supposed right way to accept a compliment, I learned what such a pleasant commentary really signals for people: connection and ________ . I have since returned to my previous ways, which is to add a little P. S. after saying “Thank you.” ________ , I would be missing the big point of small talk.

1.

A．read

B．inform

C．perform

D．sign

2.

A．invitations

B．presentations

C．predictions

D．suggestions

3.

A．afraid

B．alone

C．ready

D．serious

4.

A．Fully

B．Partially

C．Shortly

D．Specially

5.

A．congratulation

B．acknowledgement

C．instruction

D．judgement

6.

A．forget

B．deny

C．try

D．review

7.

A．promised

B．challenged

C．imagined

D．encountered

8.

A．handle

B．neglect

C．practice

D．share

9.

A．gesture

B．silence

C．manner

D．sound

10.

A．determined

B．strict

C．worried

D．innocent

11.

A．meant

B．intended

C．prepared

D．lost

12.

A．applied

B．changed.

C．mentioned

D．missed

13.

A．given much thought to

B．put an end to

C．taken a look at

D．made every effort with

14.

A．respond

B．object

C．attend

D．answer

15.

A．obtain

B．ignore

C．loosen

D．shift

16.

A．downgrade

B．highlight

C．update

D．underline

17.

A．method

B．request

C．permission

D．discipline

18.

A．In other words

B．A’s a result

C．In addition

D．After all

19.

A．appreciation

B．conversation

C．expression

D．inspiration

20.

A．Besides

B．However

C．Otherwise

D．Therefore

7 .

REF: 099085177/ 400093140 /4056F 18.05.2023 Mr. Wallace No.451 Ning Xia Road Graduate School Heping District, Tianjin, 201700 Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences China	Graduate School Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Newcastle University 7th Floor, Daysh Building NE1 7RU
Dear. Mr. Wallace, Application for Postgraduate Study-Master in Applied Linguistics and TESOL (full time) I am pleased to confirm that your application to Newcastle University has been successful. I enclose details of your offer. This letter also contains information that you may find helpful at this stage. Acceptance of Offer The Terms and Conditions of your offer are given in the Annex (附录) of this letter. Please secure your place at the University by accepting your offer as soon as possible. There are two ways to accept your offer: ①Log on to the portal(官网) and accept your offer online. Go to the Application Status tab, select this program and click the Accept button. The portal is accessed http://www.nel.ac.uk/postgraduate/apply/forms. ②Alternatively, sign and return the Annex, given at the end of this letter. If your offer is conditional, please ensure that you send any necessary documents to the Graduate School as soon as possible. Please note that international applicants will need to be issued with a visa at least one month in advance of the start of the course. Also, you should ensure that the visa covers the duration (持续时间), of the course, allowing extra time for possible: deadline extensions. See your expected end date in Annex. * Under normal circumstances you will not be permitted to start the course beyond this date. If you foresee any problem which may affect your arrival in Newcastle please notify the Graduate School immediately so we can make further arrangements. For queries contact: Graduate School, Newcastle University 7th Floor, Daysh Building, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, United Kingdom Email: hss.gradschool@ncl.ac.uk Phone: +44(0) 1912225503 Fax: +44(0)1912227001

1. According to the passage, Mr. Wallace is most probably _______.

A．a student selected for an overseas exchange program

B．a high school senior about to study in the UK

C．a college graduate wishing to further his study overseas

D．an international student applying for a travel visa

2. Which of the following is true about Mr. Wallace according to the passage?

A．He can by no means start the course after 17th September 2023.

B．He won’t be admitted unless he submits required documents.

C．He should make sure his visa is valid for at least 15 months.

D．He may accept his offer at Newcastle University via phone.

3. If the applicant’s offer is conditional, what should they do?

A．Sign and return the annex.	B．Log on to the portal and accept email.
C．Send required documents to School.	D．Pay total tuition fee in advance.

4. When shall an international applicant obtain a visa?

A．At least one month before the start of the course.	B．Before the expected completion date.
C．Two days after your offer confirmation.	D．As soon as you accept the offer letter.

5. What is the subject of this letter?

A．An application letter for a job.	B．An admission to postgraduate study.
C．A request for course information.	D．An advertisement for a Staff recruitment.

8 . 假设你是晨光中学的李津。你的英国朋友Chris计划今年暑假来中国研学旅行（study tour），正在考虑选择哪所大学、参加科技项目还是文化项目，特写信向你征求建议。请你给他回信，内容包括：
（1）支持他来研学旅行：
（2）阐述需要考虑的因素（如地域，课程特色等）；
（3）研学期间相约游玩。
参考词汇：特色，专长：specialty
注意：
（1）词数不少于100；
（2）可适当加入细节，使内容充实、行文连贯。
Dear Chris,

I'm glad to hear that you’re coming to China for a study tour this summer.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Yours,

Li Jin

9 . — Is your baby any better now?
—_______. She just ate too much and brought up all the things she ate.

A．Nothing serious

B．Nothing special.

C．Nothing else

D．Nothing better

10 . _______ must go to addressing immediate needs and ensuring the safety of all individuals in the community during this crisis.

A．Measures

B．Targets

C．Functions.

D．Priorities