3 . Pick up any packaged processed food, and there’s a decent chance that one of its listed ingredients will be “natural flavour”. The ingredient sounds good, particularly in contrast to “artificial flavours” since there is a common belief that ingredients from nature are necessarily safer than something artificially made. But it’s not true. Then what exactly does the natural flavour mean? It refers to extracts (提取物) got from natural sources like plants, meat or seafood. When consumers see the “natural flavour” on a label, they are unlikely to assume that someone is squeezing the juice from oranges into their bottles. They know even though natural flavour must come from natural sources, it needn’t all come from the plant or meat. For example, orange flavours might contain not only orange extracts, but also extracts from bark and grass.

So if flavours like orange are needed, why not just use oranges? The answer comes down to “availability, cost, and sustainability”, according to flavour chemist Gary Reineccius of the University of Minnesota. “If you’re going to use all your grapes on grape soda,” Reineccius says, “you don’t have any grapes for wine making; the products are going to be exorbitant; besides, what do you do with the by-products you create after you’ve squeezed all the juice out of the grapes?”

Actually, while chemists make natural flavours by extracting chemicals from natural ingredients, artificial flavours are made by creating the same chemicals artificially. The reason why companies bother to use natural flavours rather than artificial flavours is simple: marketing. “Many of these products have health titles,” says Platkin, professor from Hunter College. “Consumers may be talked to believe products with natural flavours are healthier, though they are nutritionally no different from those with artificial flavours. Natural flavours may involve more forest clear-cutting and carbon emissions from transport than flavours created in the lab.”

Platkin suggests getting more transparent (易懂的) labeling on packaging that describes exactly what the natural or artificial flavours are, so consumers are-not misled into buying one product over another because of “natural flavours”. Reineccius also offers simple guidance: “Don’t buy anything because it says ‘natural flavours’. Buy it because you like it.”

1. Which is misunderstanding about the “natural flavour” juice according to Paragraph 1？

A．It comes from 100% original fruit.

B．It is nothing but advertising tricks.

C．It certainly contains extracts made in the lab.

D．It is absolutely safer than juice with artificial flavours.

2. What does the underlined word “exorbitant” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Popular.

B．Expensive.

C．Favorable.

D．Innovative.

3. Why do companies use natural flavours in the products?

A．To cut the costs.	B．To promote the sales.
C．To advocate a healthy diet.	D．To avoid food safety issues.

4. What can we conclude from the text?

A．Gary and Platkin hold opposite perspectives.

B．Natural flavours are more environmentally friendly.

C．Customers are misled for ignoring labels on packaging.

D．Natural and artificial flavours are more alike than you think.

4 . Age has never been a problem for Thessalonika Arzu-Embry. After all, she’s already got her master’s degree.

The North Chicago-area girl started homeschooling at the age of 4. She began having an influence on others soon after. When she was 6 years old, she was an inspirational speaker at an organization called Tabitha House Community Service, a shelter for people who were forced to leave their homes due to the situations such as earthquakes, flood and other natural disasters.

At the age of 11, she graduated from high school and then earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology in 2013. She completed those classes online as she was traveling for leadership meetings.

She doesn’t stop there, though. The girl plans to take up aviation psychology (航空心理学) for her further study, a decision inspired by her father who is a pilot. She grew up around airplanes and took flights all the time. Her goal is to use it to determine whether pilots are dealing with problems that could have deadly results once the plane takes off — a topic that has been in the news lately. For her, it’s a mix of two of her interests.

In her free time, Thessalonika enjoys playing tennis, swimming and being active in her youth group. She also has three self-published books, which are on her site. Jump the Education Barrier is written to help students finish college, and In the Future aims to help business owners deal with trends. Her third book The Genius Race has a wider appeal. It is designed to help people to be geniuses in various areas of life.

1. What can we know about Thessalonika from the text?

A．She majored in science and technology.

B．She gained her master’s degree at the age of 11.

C．She started homeschooling when she was 6 years old.

D．She got her bachelor’s degree through online courses.

2. What is Thessalonika’s next plan according to the text?

A．Majoring in aviation psychology.

B．Being active in her youth group.

C．Making inspiring speeches for leadership meetings.

D．Writing another book to help people to be geniuses.

3. Why does Thessalonika write the book Jump the Education Barrier?

A．To raise concern about psychology.

B．To help people to be successful.

C．To give students a hand to complete college.

D．To share her own experience with others.

4. What’s the text mainly about?

A．Homeschooling.	B．The way to be a genius.
C．Three published books.	D．The story of Thessalonika.

5 . The Children’s Museum of Manhattan Exhibitions Beginning in 2024

PlayWorks   (Ages: birth years)

We’ve designed every aspect of PlayWorks^TM to help families prepare children to enter school. By combining hands-on games and learning, PlayWorks^TM creates a fun and rewarding experience for children.

For adults, PlayWorks^TM provides an opportunity to observe each child’s unique learning style and appreciate how play creates a strong foundation for later learning. This innovative environment includes Alphie — a giant talking dragon who “cats” letters! Come to get more resources to support your child’s language development.

Adventures with Dora and Diego   (Ages: 3-6 years)

Join Diego on a series of animal rescue missions. Learn facts about animals and their habitats by helping Diego rescue animals in trouble. Explore a cave, a beach and the rainforest or rub animal footprints, even build a bear’s nest! By helping Dora and her friends, kids will learn problem-solving skills, and gain a greater appreciation and awareness of Latin American culture.

Inside Art   (Ages: 4-10 years)

The exhibition continues our tradition of providing families with access to beautiful, complex, and challenging art, as well as access to working artists and opportunities for art making. Come to celebrate art as a vehicle for building healthy communities and explore ideas of home and identity.   

Superpowered Metropolis: Early Learning City   (Ages: 2-6 years)

The exhibit invites children and their grown-ups to feel like heroes, building their learning brain skills together. These skills, known as executive functions, include self-control and mental flexibility. Children practise these learning “superpowers” with Zip, Zap, and Zoom, who guide families on a series of city adventures exploring the subways, parks, music, travel, tree houses, and more.

1. Which exhibition is suitable for a boy aged 3 who is learning spelling?

A．Adventures with Dora and Diego.

B．Inside Art.

C．Superpowered Metropolis: Early Learning City.

D．PlayWorks.

2. What is a child expected to learn after attending Adventures with Dora and Diego?

A．Learn more about nature and culture.

B．Draw a map of city subways and parks.

C．Graduate with a specific qualification.

D．Get resources for language learning.

3. What do the four exhibitions have in common?

A．They are free of charge for kids.

B．They are only designed for kids.

C．They improve kids’ academic performance.

D．They provide kids with hands-on experience.

6 . The turn of the year is the time for reviewing one’s life, and for making some resolutions about what to concentrate on in the coming year; and for many years I have taken advantage of the holiday to review my own ambition.

One thing I decide on this year is to give up writing the Grumpy (暴躁的) Old Bookman column in this magazine. It’s not that I’ve lost interest in the book world. But Leonard Woolf, husband of American writer Virginia Woolf (1882—1941), used to say a man should change his career every seven years. Though I would say that changing your whole career frequently is going a bit far, I do find that it serves as a great refresher if you can occasionally try a new job within the same line of business.

It is over 15 years since our editor wrote to me and asked if I would be interested in writing a regular piece about what was, even then, a rapidly changing publishing scene. He approached me because since 2004 I had been writing a regular blog called Grumpy Old Bookman.

As my monthly survey of developments in both traditional and digital publishing continued, in this magazine, I began to realize that writers in this century, of both fiction and non-fiction, are living in something close to a paradise (天堂). Once, you struggled for years to find a publisher—or an agent if you wanted one—but now you can publish your own stuff, either digitally or in paperback, without it costing you a penny piece.

After about five years of producing such columns, it occurred to me that, rather than let these essays fade away on the seas of time, it might be valuable to publish my thoughts and comments in book form to potential readers. Hence, in 2014, I published the first 69 GOB columns in paperback format, using Amazon’s Create Space facilities. Title: Writers Rejoice! A monthly diary of the dawn of the digital age, which was my first trial. And now I sincerely wish a new 2024.

1. Why does the author want to give up writing the column?

A．He is fed up with the career linked to books.

B．He is very keen on trying something new.

C．He follows Leonard Woolf’s suggestion.

D．He’s used to changing his job every seven years.

2. According to the author, what can be inferred from Paragraph 4？

A．It is a golden time for writers in terms of publishing.

B．Publishing industry is a profitable business.

C．It is rather hard to publish books nowadays.

D．Now it is amazing to find a publisher easily.

3. What do you think of the author?

A．Emotional and good at controlling himself.

B．Dedicated but easy to doubt himself.

C．Purposeful and good at self-adjustment.

D．Ambitious but unwilling to change himself.

4. What does the author mainly want to tell us?

A．Giving up timely is a virtue.	B．Often changing jobs means new chances.
C．The beginning of a year is a new start.	D．Reflection can drive us to push forward.

7 . One day when I was 15 years old, I was making food in the kitchen. My brother came in. He placed his beef next to my thick one and said, “Courtney, your beef is bigger than mine. You don’t need to eat; you’re too fat.” Then he walked out laughing. From then on, I was unwilling to wear shorts until I was 30 years old. For the next 15 years, I spent summer after summer roasting in long pants.

But then I met Rage n Chastain. I couldn’t believe that this almost 300-pound woman who, like myself, was so energetic and happy in her own skin. I listened as she shared her own journey to recovery and self-love. She talked about how amazing our bodies are, simply because of the things they do every day—like breathing, pumping blood to every cell and walking.

Walking! I suddenly realized how foolish I’d been for so long. There are people who are born without legs, or who lack properly working legs, or who lose their legs, and I’d been hiding my perfectly strong, healthy and beautiful legs in shame. The next day, I bought three pairs of shorts and a sundress and spent the entire summer letting my legs see the sun and feel the breeze.

The next time anyone comments on your body in a negative way, look them straight in the eye, smile and say, “If what you see bothers you so much, feel free to practice the ancient art of looking somewhere else.” That’s Ragen’s own creation, but I don’t think she’ll mind if you use it.

1. What can we know about the author when she was a teenager?

A．She was fat.	B．She disliked beef.
C．Her parents loved her more.	D．Her brother always helped her.

2. Which of the following can best describe Rage n Chastain?

A．Honest.

B．Clever.

C．Positive.

D．Responsible.

3. Why did the author buy three pairs of shorts?

A．The shorts were on sale.	B．She was inspired by Rage n Chastain.
C．The shorts were suitable for the weather.	D．She wanted to give them to Ragen Chastain.

4. What does the author want to tell us?

A．Dress whatever we want and ignore others’ judgement.

B．There are many people who are as fat as us in the world.

C．Love ourselves and don’t care about others’ negative opinions.

D．Eat as you like and there’s no need to care about our bodies.