1 . Avoid These Mistakes in Your Social Interaction
Breaking into an existing conversation
Timing is everything. If you see two or more people actively engaged in conversation, they’re probably not ready for you to cut in. First, wait for a rest.
Starting talking without having something to say
If someone appears distant or lost in thought, moving into their personal space and saying “hello” is hardly a way to start a conversation. Try asking permission (e.g., “Excuse me, do you mind if I ask you something?”) and make sure you have a fully formed question or comment in mind (e.g., “Are you having a good time?”).
Bringing up controversial(有争议的) topics
If you’re talking to someone new, it’s generally best not to talk about weighty or of-putting topics.
Once you’ve made a connection with each other, keep that connection going by making yourself easy to understand. If you speak different languages, for example, slow your speech and pronounce clearly. If they ask you what you do for work, don’t use a lot of technical expressions.
Talking too much about yourself - or about the other person
It’s often said that people love to talk about themselves, and that asking questions is the secret to good conversations.
| A．Being hard to follow |
| B．Making too much connection |
| C．But that’s not true for everyone |
| D．They will lead to a deeper interaction |
| E．Then once you have someone’s attention or receive a nonverbal go-ahead |
| F．Aim for something simple that you and the other person can observe together |
| G．It’s all about creating a comfortable opportunity for the other person to respond |
2 . The days of staring at the computer screen pretending to be interested in an assignment even though you are bored out of your mind may soon be coming to an end. That's because if Dr Harry Witchel, Discipline Leader in Physiology at England's Brighton and Sussex Medical School, has his way, computers of the future will be able to detect boredom and even react to it real-time.
But before you get concerned, the machine is not reading your mind. It is just keeping track of the constant involuntary（无意识的）movements that people exhibit when in front of a computer or even a television. These are not the bigger instrumental actions like moving a mouse or using the remote, but barely noticeable movements like scratching, fidgeting, or stretching. Witchel says the level of movement is directly linked to how absorbed the person is in what he or she is reading or watching. The higher the interest level. the less the movement!
To test the theory, Witchel and his team invited 27 people and exposed them to a variety of digital content for three minutes at a time. The activities ranged from playing online games to reading documents like the banking regulations that most people would find boring.
A video motion tracker monitored their movements as they powered through each assignment. Just as the researchers had expected, the involuntary actions decreased dramatically, by as much as 42%, when the participants were totally absorbed in what they were reading or seeing.
Fortunately, the scientists are not planning to use the findings to create machines that report students who are not focusing at school. Instead, they believe that combining the motion detecting technology with future computers will help enhance the digital learning experience.
The scientists say that being able to measure the students' interest level will enable educators to adjust the materials real-time and re-engage the students. Witchel also believes that the technology can provide filmmakers with honest audience opinions.
1. According to Dr Harry, what will future computers be able to do?| A．Keep a learner from distraction. |
| B．Help a learner with his assignments. |
| C．Read a learner's mind exactly real-time. |
| D．Identify dullness of a learner and respond to it. |
| A．Laugh and shout excitedly. | B．Use less energy in an assignment. |
| C．Perform fewer involuntary actions. | D．Show noticeable movements constantly. |
| A．Bettering their digital learning experience. | B．Introducing more computers into class. |
| C．Finding the absent-minded students in class. | D．Detecting what interests the students most. |
| A．To introduce an upcoming technology. |
| B．To update educators' teaching concept. |
| C．To show what learning will be like in the future. |
| D．To explain how life will be shaped by technology. |
3 . Here are some inspiring and thoughtful books that give you a real thirst for life.
My Family and Other Animals
This is the first book in a much-celebrated trilogy by naturalist Gerald Durrell. The story is about the writer’s childhood spent on the Greek island Corfu. Durrell smartly shares his memories of amazing animals and their curious habits with the reader. This book encourages readers to appreciate the world around them in all its beauty.
Frost and Fire
Extreme weather conditions cause people。age abnormally fast. They now have only 8 days to grow up and get old. These days should be used to learn, get married, and raise children. Through all of that, people manage to fight and be jealous—as if they have decades ahead. This short story teaches the reader that even during a small period of time, one can manage to do a lot …or you could give up and not take any chances.
You Changed My Life
This is a true story that lays at the heart of the French movie The Intouchables. A tale of an inspirational friendship between two people whose roads were never meant to cross-a disabled French aristocrat and an unemployed Algerian immigrant. But they met, and it changed their lives.
The Code of the Woosters
Anyone who enjoys easy and light reading would find books by P. G. Wodehouse a source of lasting amusement. Stories of Jeeves, Wooster, and all of the chaos around them are written with a brilliant sense of humor. These novels are capable of lining your spirits p from zero to limitlessness.
1. What can we know about Frost and Fire?| A．It is themed by friendship. | B．It is set in an unreal world. |
| C．It focuses on climate change. | D．It’s about the writer’s childhood. |
| A．My Family and Other Animals. | B．Frost and Fire. |
| C．You Changed My Lift. | D．The Code of the Woosters |
| A．Man and nature. | B．Health and sports. | C．Book reviews. | D．Amusement. |
4 . A mirror coated in red paint, a banana stuck to the wall with tape, and an unseen sculpture- these are just a few of the abstract artworks that have recently sold for surprising amounts. Now, Dutch artist Jens Haaning has taken the genre to a whole new level. His appropriately named “TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN” masterpiece, consisting of two empty frames, has set a local museum back $84 000!
Earlier this year, the Kunsten Museum in Aalborg appointed Haaning to create two pieces for their coming “Work It Out” exhibit. According to their written agreement, the artist would use the $84 000 lent to him by the museum to reproduce two of his previous artworks about labor. The first, An Arerage Austrian Year Income, displayed euro bills on a canvas (画布) in a framework, while the second, focusing on Danish incomes, did the same using krone notes. But when the museum opened the boxes the artist sent before the exhibit’s opening on September 24, 2021, they found two blank frameworks titled “TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN”.
The museum officials admit that Haaning’s artwork is unique. But museum director Lasse Andersson expects the artist to fulfill his contractual (合同的) duty and return the money when the exhibition ends. “I absolutely want to give Haaning the right to say that a new work has been created in its own right, Andersson told Danish radio. “But that is not the agreement we had.”
However, Haaning thinks his artwork is perfect for the exhibit, which examines the relationship between art and labor. He argues that the empty canvases stressed the unfair working conditions of many artists, including himself. He says the museum’s $2 300 pay for the artworks was not even enough to cover his costs. “The work is that I have taken their money,” he told Danish radio. “It’s not theft. It is breach (违背) of contract, and breach of contract is part of the work.”
1. What does the underlined word “genre” in Paragraph 1 mean?| A．Theory. | B．Quality. | C．Number. | D．Style. |
| A．To organize “Work It Out” well. |
| B．To produce his former works again. |
| C．To create fine arts about labor. |
| D．To copy An Average Austrian Year Income. |
| A．Approving. | B．Dissatisfied. | C．Unconcerned. | D．Doubtful. |
| A．A Surprising Exhibition | B．A Humorous Artist |
| C．An Unsettled Agreement | D．Two Blank Canvases |
1. 大扫除的过程；
2. 参加大扫除的感受。
注意：1. 写作词数应为80左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Finding Joy in School Clean-up
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Allison stood in line with the rest of her class, waiting for the school doors to open. This was the last day before school closed for Christmas break. She couldn’t wait for secret gift swap (交换) happening in class today. Alison tuned to say something to her best friend, Wendy, then froze. She was surprised to see Wendy looking down at the ground with her books pressed tightly to her chest.
“What’s wrong, Wendy?” Allison asked quietly.
Wendy shook her head, her eyes connecting with Allison’s. Allison could see that Wendy’s face was as dark as a cloud, with no smile in sight.
“My parents didn’t give me anything to bring to the gift swap,” she whispered. “They said they didn’t have extra money for stuff like that.”
Allison looked at Wendy, confused. “But, we weren’t supposed to bring anything expensive. Just something small that didn’t cost a lot of money.”
Allison thought back to the last time she’d been at Wendy’s house. She’d opened the refrigerator looking for something to drink, only to find that it was mostly empty. The furniture in Wendy’s house looked old and beaten up.
“It will be okay, Wendy,” Allison said. “We get to have all that time off for Christmas. Come on, cheer up!”
Wendy gave her a small smile, then looked away. At that moment, a whistle blew, and the kids started walking into the school building. The Christmas party was about to start.
One by one, the kids dropped their gifts into the bag the teacher was holding. Allison looked over at Wendy. Most of the kids were smiling around the bag, eager to get started, but Wendy stood off to the side, looking down at her feet. Allison hated seeing her friend so upset. She wished there were something she could do about it.
“Come on up, Allison. It’s your turn,” the teacher said.
Soon everyone had pulled out a gift and unwrapped it.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
Allison looked down at her gift: a little glass cat.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2:
“Wendy, I want you to have this,” she said.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________7 . If you intend to hold a party for your friend traveling overseas, it is necessary to have the party area decorated to your theme. Here are some useful tips that can help you.
Make full use of colors for the decoration. Use colors that match the country your friend is leaving and the country your friend is going to.
Streamers (饰带) are always good decorations. Get streamers in the person’s favorite colors, or ones symbolic of something to do with the farewell.
Think about including a special area where you can place a book or card for everyone to sign and write a note. You can also tailor this to your theme. If your friend is moving overseas, maybe you get a bottle and small roles of paper. Thus people can write notes on the paper.
| A．Notes are important to deliver messages. |
| B．You can even use streamers to make a map. |
| C．Maybe you can divide the party area in half. |
| D．And then they can place the notes into the bottle. |
| E．How about providing a bookshelf to attract your guests? |
| F．Have little clocks or similar work items for someone retiring. |
| G．Why not decorate a corner of the room to look like a reading area? |
8 . I was on my way home when I saw two old men sitting and talking in the sun near the bus stand. What stuck me about them was not their position, but rather her clothes. Both were wearing
Recently, I’ve been
The men were absorbed in
“Luckily, the sun shines in the day and offers some heat in the cold, but how can we
Knowing that they would
Again, they did not see me approach. “Here you go, uncles. It’s cold these days. These might be
Words can’t describe the
“No, I am not. But angel sent me here to answer your
| A．thick | B．old | C．fancy | D．clean |
| A．smiling | B．jumping | C．trembling | D．waving |
| A．missing | B．creating | C．seeking | D．seizing |
| A．changing | B．moving | C．declining | D．expanding |
| A．urgently | B．gradually | C．permanently | D．constantly |
| A．work | B．game | C．conversation | D．thought |
| A．bowed | B．inched | C．rushed | D．drove |
| A．deal with | B．struggle for | C．take advantage of | D．break away from |
| A．consideration | B．security | C．space | D．protection |
| A．hesitate | B．wander | C．argue | D．stay |
| A．shoes | B．pillows | C．quilts | D．shirts |
| A．worthwhile | B．useful | C．adoptable | D．precious |
| A．surprise | B．mercy | C．puzzlement | D．fright |
| A．escaped | B．survived | C．succeeded | D．appeared |
| A．prayer | B．call | C．letter | D．question |
Herbal medicine (草药) is
Reishi, or Lingzhi in Chinese, is known as the “king of mushrooms” because of its health benefits. In TCM,
With a rate of about 1 in every 4 000 mushrooms
10 . Max Woosey, an l1-year-old from the United Kingdom, has spent his time during COVID-19 doing something pretty meaningful. He slept in a tent for over 500 nights in a row. And he did this not only because he loves the outdoors but in service to others.
Max’s father is a Royal Marine (皇家海军陆战队员), so he has courage and love for outdoor activities in his blood. Max’s family was looking after their neighbor, Rick, who was dying of cancer. Before Rick passed away he gave Max a tent and had him promise to have an adventure.
So, after Rick died, Max had an idea. He decided to raise money for Devon Hospice (救济院) , which cared for Rick in his final days. When the first lockdown happened, Max had realized that much of the hospice’s fundraising (筹资) also came to a stop. But outside the hospice, a number of people were waiting for help. So Max set a goal to raise 100 pounds by camping out in his front garden.
On March 29th, 2020, Max started his camping adventure in, Rick’s tent. As he passed hundreds of days camping out, he attracted national attention from the media and even the Prime Minister, who later paid him a visit. More people have donated to Devon Hospice.
Now, 500 days later, he is still camping! Through storms，rain, high winds and cold, he stuck to it. The lessons his dad taught him from the Royal Marines, to never give up, show kindness, honesty and try hard helped support him in tough times.
In all, Max has raised more than 750 000 pounds for Devon Hospice! This made up for about half of the donations they had lost for the year! Max even organized a huge camp at his school playground to show people what children can achieve if they all work together.
1. What made Max decide to raise money for Devon Hospice?| A．Government’s requirement. | B．His father’s influence. |
| C．Rick’s death. | D．Devon Hospice’s instruction. |
| A．Arousing more public concern for Devon Hospice. |
| B．Being awarded a medal by the Prime Minister. |
| C．Improving the reputation of Devon Hospice. |
| D．Starting a worldwide camping activity. |
| A．It used to raise about 1.5 million pounds a year. |
| B．It received more donations during COVID-19. |
| C．It was specially built for cancer sufferers. |
| D．It helped Max go through difficult camping times. |
| A．Active and easy-going. | B．Kind and strong-minded. |
| C．Humorous and considerate. | D．Clever and aggressive. |
