1 . Ever keen to keep you saving, we’ve come up with three more great ideas to keep money in your pockets.
Pay in cash
Pay in cash rather than stick everything on a card to worry about later — that way, money seems more ‘real’. By doing this, you can actually get a sense of what you’re spending. But don’t make repeated trips to the cash - point every day, consuming randomly your hard - earned money bit by bit. Instead, make one withdrawal at the start of the week, then put your cards away and set yourself a cash budget.
DIY
Fancy making your own bookshelves or turning a scarf into a skirt? There are plenty of sites that will teach you clever new tricks with old junk, from threading a string bracelet to building your own shoe containers from recycled tins. These enlightening ideas will transform your home and wardrobe and, even if you’re usually all fingers and thumbs, this can be done easily in less than an hour. A few minutes exploring for ‘DIY crafts’ online provides plenty of cheap creative ideas.
Cut back online shopping
We’ve all done it, surfed the net at lunch or late at night, aimlessly dropping virtual bargains in our virtual basket and hitting the virtual checkout button. However, the resulting damage to your bank balance is all too real. Why do you think online retailers (零售商) keep your credit card details on file? So you can just press ‘Buy’ and they’ve got your cash. Again and again. But all you end up with is loads of stuff you wouldn’t otherwise have bought. If you’re tempted (诱惑), be strict, put the mouse down and ask yourself: “Do I really need this?” The answer is most probably: “No”.
1. Which of the following can help save your money?| A．Visiting a bank constantly. | B．Limiting visits to cash - points. |
| C．Surfing DIY sites for old junks. | D．Relying on a card while shopping. |
| A．Busy. | B．Careless. | C．Nervous. | D．Creative. |
| A．Saving money. | B．Making a good deal. |
| C．Making ends meet. | D．Piling up unwanted items. |
Jiang Yufan, 21, was inspired for the original design of the Olympic Winter Games’ mascot Shuey Rhon Rhon. She was brought up in a small town with red lanterns hanging everywhere, leaving it bathed
The past four years witnessed the most significant period of her life. It was in 2018
Jiang said the process helped her grow and she hoped her lantern would bring
1. Why should the dirt be loose?
| A．To fill the pot more. | B．To let the seed spread. | C．To let more sun in. |
| A．By counting up. | B．By using her finger. | C．By checking the pot. |
| A．Protecting a tree. | B．Growing a plant. | C．Preserving some apples. |
1. What impresses the man most about the house?
| A．The bathrooms. | B．The gym. | C．The kitchen. |
| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Six. |
| A．Remy. | B．Ella. | C．Linda. |
| A．It's too large. | B．It has a small yard. | C．It's too far from the city. |
5 . Ruth Bader Ginsburg spent a lifetime flourishing (茁壮成长) in the face of misfortunes before being appointed a Supreme Court justice. She was born on March 15, 1933 in Brooklyn, New York. Ginsburg's mother implanted a love of education in Ginsburg through her devotion to her brother. She graduated first in her class at Columbia Law in 1959.
Even her exceptional academic record was not enough to shelter her from the gender - based discrimination women faced in the workplace in the 1960s. She had difficulties finding a job until a favorite Columbia professor directly refused to recommend any other graduates before U. S. District Judge Edmund L hired Ginsburg as a clerk for two years. After this, she was offered some jobs at law firms, but always at a much lower salary than her male colleagues. She instead took some time to pursue her other legal passion, civil procedure, choosing to join the Columbia Project on International Civil Procedure.
In 1963, she accepted a job as a professor at Rutgers University Law School. And in 1972, she became the first female professor at Columbia to earn tenure (终身职位). Ginsburg also directed the influential Women's Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union during the 1970s. In this position, she led the fight against gender discrimination and successfully argued six landmark cases before the U. S. Supreme Court. Ginsburg took a broad look at gender discrimination, fighting not just for the women left behind, but for the men who were discriminated against as well. Ginsburg accepted Jimmy Carter's appointment to the U. S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in 1980. She served on the court for thirteen years until 1993, when Bill Clinton nominated (提名) her to the Supreme Court of the United States.
Ginsburg began her career as a justice where she left off as an advocate fighting for women's rights. Overtime, Justice Ginsburg proved time and again that she was a force to count until her death in 2020.
1. What can be learned about Ginsburg from the first paragraph?| A．She was a successful lawyer. | B．She was a top student of law. |
| C．She got inspired by her brother. | D．She studied law due to her mother. |
| A．They faced racial discrimination. | B．They were offered legal guidance. |
| C．They loved to teach at a law school. | D．They got less paid than male colleagues. |
| A．Devoted and competent. | B．Organized and tolerant. |
| C．Skilled and independent. | D．Determined and imaginative. |
| A．A Promising Chief Justice | B．An Influential Legal Figure |
| C．An Inspiring Political Power | D．A Courageous Freedom Fighter |
“Are we really planning on staying here?” Sophie asked me. “I feel like we have no choice!” I responded to her. The place in question was the Starfish Holiday In, a motel (汽车旅馆) of doubtful character on the beach in Jacksonville, Florida. We ended up here because of our own irresponsibility. It was our freshman year of college, and being eager to escape the cold and upsetting weather for spring break, we decided to travel to the sunny south, for we had frequently been told in TV programs and movies about the fascinating scenery of its beaches. Florida’s natural beauty and lively cities make it the top destination in the world. With more than 1, 200 miles of sand beaches and 160 state parks, tourists can find a corner to enjoy all to themselves.
However, it was a last minute decision; we did not make reservations anywhere ahead of time. When we arrived in Florida, we tried to book a room in a good but affordable hotel. After going to six hotels and finding no room left at all, we stopped at an information centre. A kind and helpful woman delivered the discouraging news that, if we didn’t have reservations anywhere, it would be very difficult for us to find a safe place to stay. She recommended that we check a couple of places, but they all seemed too expensive for us. Then she said that the Starfish Inn provided rooms that were reasonably priced, but that she would not want her daughters to stay there!
So that is how we got into our difficult situation. After paying the owner of the motel, we dragged our luggage to the room, where we opened the door with great shock. Everything in the room was in shades of blue and green, with real and painted starfish on nearly every surface; the place looked like it hadn't been redecorated since 50 years ago! It looked like a mess. How could we spend the whole night in such a room?
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。
We looked at each other and then decided to further check out the place.
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All these problems challenged us.
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7 . Tomorrow’s menus could feature items prepared with complex cooking techniques and presentation — all at the push of a button. Columbia University mechanical engineers have designed a 3 - D printer that can produce and cook dishes at the same time with details at the millimeter scale.
The design combines a multiwavelength laser (激光) cooker, roughly the size of five smart phones piled together, with a microwave - oven - sized food printer. The system uses various light wavelengths to cook in different ways: a short - waved blue laser goes deep inside meat, for example, while infrared beams (红外线光束) brown the surface. As the device’s robotic arm places fine layers of chicken puree (酱, 糊), a high - powered beam moves over them and cooks the meat — with literally laser - focused precision. Thus, users can achieve perfect results — say, a machine - made burger that varies between rare and well done in a checkerboard pattern.
“It gives you a lot more control and customization,” says Jonathan Blutinger, lead author of the paper and a digital - cooking researcher at Columbia. The researchers tested only chicken for this study, but the system can work with other foods as well.
Beyond applying diverse materials and presentation patterns, this type of software - controlled setup could someday scan a QR code to automatically prepare dishes tailored to individual eating habits and dietary restrictions, Blutinger says.
The new technology is “astonishing”, says Megan Ross, a food scientist who studies 3 - D printing at Ireland’s University College Cork. Ross notes that the design is still at a beginning stage and that many technical challenges remain, such as preventing cross pollution between layers of raw and cooked meat. Still, Ross is impressed by the device’s ability to produce foods outside the field of conventional cooking. “Is this going to be sold in shops everywhere in the next few years? No,” she says. “But everyone has to start somewhere.”
1. What makes the new design different from a common cooker?| A．It works automatically. | B．It is attached to a printer. |
| C．It cooks the whole of food. | D．It can process various materials. |
| A．By customizing the dishes. | B．By accessing 3 - D technology. |
| C．By turning the food upside down. | D．By using beams of diverse wavelengths. |
| A．It is more flexible to operate. | B．It can process meat. |
| C．It avoids cross food pollution. | D．It can be applied to QR code. |
| A．It makes a meaningful start. | B．It will be well received soon. |
| C．It goes well with technology. | D．It is well thought of by the public. |
8 . The Free Books Campaign was set up in July 2020 by Sofia Akel, a race equality researcher, when she decided to launch a fundraiser to get as many books as possible by authors of color to people that can’t afford them across the UK and Ireland. So far over 1, 700 books have been sent by the Campaign to people who can’t afford them, and it has even caught the attention of the footballer Marcus Rashford who donated 400 copies of his children’s book You Are a Champion.
Some of the beneficiaries of the campaign include children from working class backgrounds who have not been exposed to literature from Black or Brown authors at school or at home. “I’ve had emails from parents who weren’t aware of just how many amazing authors of color there are, and who have said how much their child lit up seeing a book that reflected them,” Sofia says.
Explaining the need for the campaign, Sofia says: “Sadly, reading has become a luxury in today’s world. If you’re working two jobs just to put food on the table, having that time to sit down and read can be difficult. So, there is an element of celebration when it comes to even just finding the time to read. On top of that, the typical adult hardback book might cost you upwards of £ 15, which could put food on the table for a week if you were counting every penny.”
This is where the campaign hopes to step in. It operates on a trust basis, whereby the campaign doesn’t exist to police people’s financial circumstances. “No one has to prove that they’ve not got money — even if some people volunteer personal information, we never ask for it. Everyone deserves to read books that they love,” Sofia adds.
1. Who is the Free Books Campaign intended for?| A．Footballers keen on charity. | B．People under employment. |
| C．People with financial problems. | D．Parents with children at school. |
| A．Puzzled. | B．Amazed. | C．Delighted. | D．Surprised. |
| A．By joining a fundraiser. | B．By proving their poverty. |
| C．By showing love for reading. | D．By providing personal documents. |
| A．It costs nothing to read today. | B．People on the job are poor readers. |
| C．People save every coin to buy books. | D．The campaign somehow activates reading. |
9 . Work - related anxiety can have a harmful effect on some people. Anxiety at higher levels can leave some people feeling defeated by their work tasks, to the point they freeze.
Check in with yourself regularly
Some people get well caught up with their daily responsibilities. So they don’t consider whether the level of anxiety they feel is proportional (成比例的) to whatever situation they’re worried about.
Accept uncomfortable feelings
Get up and move
It’s common to feel like your body is filled with extra energy when you’re anxious. That can create cognitive (认知的) disagreement.
Seek help from your employee assistance program
If you’ve tried various relaxation techniques and still aren’t able to shake continuous anxiety, it may be time to seek help.
| A．When you’re hungry, angry or tired |
| B．Every time you stand up from your chair |
| C．Using unhealthy options is a bad approach |
| D．If you’re feeling restless, go for a walk around |
| E．Rather than try to deny uncomfortable feelings |
| F．Talk to trusted friends, relatives and spiritual leaders |
| G．Fortunately, there are strategies for coping with this stress |
10 . I live in a poor but pretty town where I know all my neighbors. One day I found I suffered a theft. I was
I asked the police to
Jared registered a note of regret. I
To Jared’s credit, he
Friday after Friday we sat, we chatted, I listened. With my money repaid, he was finally set free.
| A．skeptical | B．positive | C．uncertain | D．concerned |
| A．suspect | B．lawyer | C．teacher | D．murderer |
| A．fire | B．punish | C．catch | D．charge |
| A．hold on | B．hold off | C．get involved | D．take action |
| A．key | B．link | C．approach | D．response |
| A．aim | B．proposal | C．step | D．stop |
| A．fear | B．surprise | C．shame | D．anger |
| A．reasoning | B．smiling | C．adding | D．threatening |
| A．expected | B．seized | C．ignored | D．missed |
| A．meet | B．call | C．contact | D．accompany |
| A．offer | B．treat | C．lesson | D．trick |
| A．hid | B．reflected | C．wandered | D．appeared |
| A．dangerous | B．broken | C．caring | D．well-off |
| A．argument | B．competitions | C．connections | D．sharing |
| A．In return | B．In reality | C．After all | D．Above all |
