1 . The following are some of the most recognizable names in art history.
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci, born in 1452 in Tuscany, Italy, was a genius. His one-of-a-kind gift was expressing human emotions, which earned him a name from an early age. He kept painting until his death in France in 1519. His Mona Lisa is a painting that was originally left incomplete but has become the world’s most famous picture.
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent van Gogh, born in the Netherlands in 1853, is widely regarded as one of the finest post - impressionist painters of all time. He did not become an artist until he was in his late twenties. In 1886, he traveled to Paris, where he met Paul Gauguin, who encouraged Van Gogh to develop his own style. He died in 1890 after suffering from mental health problems. Van Gogh became famous after his death.
Claude Monet
Claude Monet, born in Paris in 1840, was a talented French artist who is widely considered as one of the most important painters. He was recognized for his talents when he was young and he was the first to employ oil and outdoor methods. The word “impressionism” was created after his picture Impression, Sunrise. Monet died at age 86.
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso was born in Malaga, Spain, in late 1881. He began drawing at a young age and had gotten his first lessons in the use of oil paints from his father by the time he was seven. In 1900, he moved to Paris and sold his first painting there. He made significant contributions to the progress of modern art. He passed away in 1973.
1. Which of the following painters lives the longest?| A．Leonardo da Vinci. |
| B．Vincent van Gogh. |
| C．Claude Monet. |
| D．Pablo Picasso. |
| A．He inspired Van Gogh. |
| B．He was taught by his father. |
| C．He suffered mental health problems. |
| D．He led to the birth of impressionism. |
| A．They are all impressionists. |
| B．They liked painting outdoors. |
| C．They all had experiences in France. |
| D．They were recognized in their life time. |
2 . One of the world’s most productive wildlife sound recordists (录音师) has released a large collection of his most treasured recordings of wild places to listen to for free on Soundcloud.
“Martyn Stewart has recorded nearly 100,000 pieces, consisting of 30,00o hours of materials. They have been spread across 40 countries and used in 150 films,” Krause, a friend of Martyn said. “Some of these include sounds that can’t be heard anymore, as they belong to extinct animals or disturbed habitats.”
Martyn is one of the key recordists who helped set the standards that gave the work standing in the world of sound. Few can match the quality of his life-long efforts. Throughout his life, since he recorded his first bird at the age of 11, it was easy to record the sounds of faraway places. But times are changing, and the growing presence of noise pollution has made his job a lot harder.
Among his “treasured” recordings include Hurricane Dorian on a remote beach, thunderstorms in Australia, Denali National Park and Arctic Wildlife Home in Alaska, dawn in Zimbabwe, and so much more. He’s also recorded sounds and calls of certain animals, some of which are extinct like the white rhino and the golden frog.
“I hope the free project, called Martyn Stewart’s Listening Planet, is meant to inspire people to try and protect a more delicate part of the world——the auditory (听觉的) part. They have the connection between sound and the animal making the sound,” said Martyn. “I think we have to become the voice of the voiceless. If we can get these beautiful sound recordings out and let people in the world listen to them, maybe we can start protecting what we’ve got left.”
1. What can be learned from Krause’s words?| A．Martyn’s work deserves praising. |
| B．Recording is a time - consuming job. |
| C．Martyn loves to record rare animals. |
| D．The recordings are intended for films. |
| A．The standard of recordings. |
| B．The loss of natural habitats. |
| C．The increase of noise pollution. |
| D．The extinction of certain animals. |
| A．To meet fans’ requests. |
| B．To make himself more famous. |
| C．To stress difficulty of his recordings. |
| D．To raise concern for sounds in nature. |
| A．Determined and humorous. |
| B．Generous and devoted. |
| C．Curious and friendly. |
| D．Creative and honest. |
3 . Nowadays, we know how to work with al old items. Many of them can be reused after being properly processed. Instead of sending them to the trashcan, we have new choices.
Participate in the Give the Gift of Sight Program. Run by Lions Club International, the program makes it easy for you to donate your old eyeglasses and sunglasses to needy people in developing countries. After you drop glasses off, they are cleaned, repaired, and grouped, then distributed.
Donate your used computer to computers for Kids, a non-profit organization.
Recycle sneakers (运动鞋) and athletic shoes. Since 1990, NIKE has sponsored the Reuse-A-Shoe program.
Never throw away books or magazines. Books and magazines are a great aid to help those who’ve been sent to prison. Some of them quit school at an early age.
| A．Recycle holiday and greeting cards. |
| B．Find one near you by searching online. |
| C．So don’t forget the “early reader” books. |
| D．Here are some ways to recycle worn - out items. |
| E．It aims to improve the computer skills of youth. |
| F．It takes in used sneakers and breaks them into pieces. |
| G．Over 1.5 million pairs of shoes are recycled and repaired. |
4 . A young Irishman, Fionn, has come up with a method to solve the microplastic pollution problem, winning Google’s international science fair. He created a kind of liquid magnet (磁铁) by mixing magnetized iron oxide (Fe2O3) and vegetable oil. It can collect microplastics and remove them, leaving only water behind.
Since the age of 12, he has been looking to find a solution for the hard-to-clean microplastics. During childhood, he frequently went beaches where he saw a growing number of plastic garbage. Once, he saw a rock with oil remaining, and stuck to it were small plastic pieces. He then found out that the plastic pieces are what we call non-polar, and oil is non-polar too. In chemistry likes attract likes, which means non-polar things attract non-polar things. He heard of something that was a kind of magnetic water by combining vegetable oil with magnetized iron oxide (Fe2O3). He noticed oil could attract the microplastics and magnet finally cleaned the microplastics. Inspired by it, he made the liquid magnet.
Indeed after 5,000 experiments it was shown that his method could clean 87％ — 93% of microplastics from the water, despite the fact that the microplastics came from a variety of sources like car tires, plastic bottles, and washing water.
Larissa Kelly, Fionn’s science teacher commented,” The invention, based on very Simple components, makes a breakthrough. It has powerful potential to provide solutions that will contribute to the worldwide effort to remove microplastics from the environment,” Fionn showed his method at the 2019 Google Science Fair and won a $50,000 scholarship. After the Google Science Fair, scientists gave him credit for what he had done. Fionn is now trying to fit his method into a device that can be used in home waterpipes, or the pipes at a wastewater plant, allowing the liquid magnet to continuously clean water that moves through it. He also plans to make it used on boats.
1. What does the underlined word “it” in Paragraph 2 refer to?| A．Magnet. | B．Rubbish. | C．Plastic. | D．Oil. |
| A．The effectiveness of the method. |
| B．The creation of the experiment. |
| C．The influences of microplastics. |
| D．The sources of plastic pollution. |
| A．Easy and creative. |
| B．Old and effective. |
| C．Costly and imaginative. |
| D．Reliable and traditional. |
| A．It will be widely used soon. |
| B．It is still at the experimental stage. |
| C．It mainly deals with the sea pollution. |
| D．It has successfully been used in household. |
5 . More than 4.85 billion people have access to the Internet. Online, they can find all the information available to humankind and form their own opinion about anything. This has completely changed society. But what disturbs most is the new technological ability of the large number of people to express themselves. It is not free access to information but access to self-expression that changes the world. We are living through an unexpected explosion of authorship.
Thе book Human as Media gives us a vivid picture of this explosion of authorship. Humankind had 300 million authors in 5,000 years of written civilization and, all of a sudden, this number has risen to 4.85 billion in the space of 40 years. Such authorship has given us opportunities to express ourselves freely, but it has also led to thoughtless self - expression.
Social media such as Facebook and Twitter are commonly blamed for creating cultural mess. People can express this or that opinion as they like. But what really matters is that social media provide chances for billions who can reach out to others beyond their physical and social limits. This itself has become an important factor to shape society, regardless of the content. In reality, social media are specifically taking advantage of our desire to “struggle for recognition”. We humans need to feel a sense of being together. So is our thirst for response. Social media provide, or at least offer, responses to even the smallest activities of a user such as likes, posts, and comments. I click, therefore I am.
But with this great service comes great risks. Those self-expressions are exposed to some extent unseen before. Unprepared and unhesitating judgments regarding someone’s personal matters or public affairs increase incredibly. Personal becomes public and public becomes personal.
1. Why does the author mention the book Human as Media in Paragraph 2?| A．To explain a rule. |
| B．To provide a proof. |
| C．To clarify a concept. |
| D．To make a prediction. |
| A．They blame humans’ desire for fame. |
| B．They offer a platform for self-expression. |
| C．They provide users with different activities. |
| D．They benefit users by judging them carefully. |
| A．Unclear. | B．Favorable. | C．Negative. | D．Hopeful. |
| A．The Internet encourages self-expression |
| B．Social media realize online users’ dreams |
| C．Network mixes personal with public affairs |
| D．Technologies promote network development |
6 . China has the history of more than five thousand years. As a result, there are many traditional arts that have been inherited (传承), such as paper cutting. People can use scissors to cut different shapes, like flowers and animals. Paper cutting has a history of more than 1, 500 years. It was widespread particularly during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Let’s learn about paper cutting.
Wonderful meanings
Paper cutting has some wonderful meanings. In our mind, paper cuttings can always bring us happiness and good luck. At the Spring Festival, people put up “Fu” on doors or windows. At a wedding, people usually put up “Xi”.
The largest paper cutting in the world
The largest paper cutting was made by Guo Xiaodong. It has an area of about 456 square meters. It is as large as a basketball court.
Why are most paper cuttings red?
In old times, people respected the sun. Red is the color of the sun. We always regard red as the symbol of hope and good luck. Now, we can still see red everywhere in China. The walls of old palaces are red. Lanterns are red. Weddings are always full of red things, too.
Black paper cutting in Shanzhou
It is true that the color most frequently used in paper cutting is red, which symbolizes health and prosperity. But paper cuttings in Shanzhou, Henan Province are black. Black is the best color there. Shanzhou is a dry place. The local people make black paper cuttings to wish for rain.
1. How long has paper cutting been popular in China?| A．More than five thousand years. | B．About 1, 500 years. |
| C．456 years. | D．Not mentioned. |
| A．Flowers and animals. | B．Happiness and good luck. |
| C．Hopeless and bad luck. | D．Health and prosperity. |
| A．Paper cutting is one of the modern folk arts in China. |
| B．At the Spring Festival, people put up “Xi” on windows. |
| C．The largest paper cutting is as large as a baseball court. |
| D．We always regard red as the symbol of hope and good luck. |
| A．By planting more trees. | B．By making black paper cutting. |
| C．By holding a wedding. | D．By putting up “Fu” on doors. |
| A．Traditional arts. | B．The red lanterns. |
| C．Paper cutting. | D．A dry place |
7 . I was filled with doubts and worries until my grandfather told me to stand tall.
For me, height was my trouble. I was much taller than other girls, so I often bent (弯曲) my body at the back of the line. I had always felt unsafe as the tallest student of my class in Bala Cynwyd. And I wasn’t looking forward to entering the ninth grade.
My grandfather didn’t laugh at me. Instead, whenever I tried to bend myself in order to appear shorter, he would tell me “Stand straight and tall, Alisa”. I trusted my grandfather more than anyone else in my childhood. And whenever I was afraid of something, he always told me stories of his life.
My grandfather grew up in war-torn (战乱的) Europe. “Stand straight, stand tall” meant something else then. After the war, he went to America. He lived a hard life. “If they could do it, why couldn’t I?” “Stand straight, stand tall,” he often reminded himself. Thanks to the help of a friend, my grandfather got a job. He once told me that he was very nervous at first. He was not only trying to learn this hard new job but also a new language.
“Stand straight, stand tall,” he would always tell himself. I am so proud of my grandfather. After listening to my grandfather’s unusual experiences, I have changed the way I look at my own life.
“Stand straight, stand tall” has become not only a piece of advice to improve my posture (身姿). It also tells me to be proud of who I am.
And I do.
1. Why did Alisa often bend her body?| A．She lived hard with her grandfather. |
| B．She was much taller than other girls. |
| C．She always stood at the back of the line. |
| D．She didn’t want to enter the 9th grade. |
| A．Europe. | B．Asia. | C．America. | D．Africa. |
| A．They made her feel unsafe. |
| B．They taught her to accept herself. |
| C．They changed her attitude to her grandfather. |
| D．They told her his success completely depended on friends. |
| A．Making yourself look beautiful. | B．Taking care of yourself. |
| C．Being proud of yourself. | D．Reminding yourself. |
| A．Stand Straight, Stand Tall | B．My Grandfather’s Life Stories |
| C．My Colorful Experiences | D．The Help of a Friend |
8 . LEM 
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WIN a brand new car.
WIN a free trip to BANGKOK (曼谷) for 3 days/3 nights.
WIN a wonderful LEMONADE T-shirt!
1st Draw (抽奖): 100 wonderful “Lemonade” T-shirts to be given away.
Date/Place: 25 June 2023 Score Villa.
LEMONADE LUCBY DRAW Name: ______ Address: ______ Tel: ______ Age: ______ Occupation: ______ Closing date: 23 June 2023 |
2nd Draw: 2 free trips to Bangkok to be won.
Date/place: 27 June 2023 Mode Shopping Center.
3rd Draw: 1 brand new car to be won.
Date/Place: 29 June 2023 Rose City.
To enter, just buy $10 worth of “Lemonade” products and e-mail your completed entry form and receipt to: whluckydraw@qq.com.
All unclaimed prizes will be given away to Children’s home. (All prizes to be claimed by 30 July 2023)
1. How many times can you draw?| A．Two. | B．Three. | C．Twenty-five. | D．One hundred. |
| A．23 June, 2023. | B．25 June, 2023. | C．29 June, 2023. | D．30 July, 2023. |
| A．Score Villa. | B．Charity. | C．Rose City. | D．Mode Shopping Center. |
| A．A free trip to Bangkok. | B．A brand new car. |
| C．A lemonade T-shirt. | D．A wonderful card. |
| A．If you get a brand new car, you must claim it in a month. |
| B．To enter the draw, your entry form and receipt should be e-mailed. |
| C．You should buy $10 worth of “Lemonade” products to enter the draw. |
| D．If the prize is not claimed, it will belong to the Lemonade company. |
9 . Language gives us the power to describe countless actions, properties and relations that compose our experiences, real or imagined. As for how languages were created, scientists found iconicity might play a key role.
People can’t bridge language gap and understand each other without iconicity. When playing a game of charades (猜字谜) , we act out our meaning, using our hands and bodies to describe the sizes and shapes of objects. The key to this process of forming new symbols is the use of iconicity. Not limited to gesturing, iconicity appears in our visual communication too. Traffic signs, food packaging, maps. . . wherever there are people communicating, you will find iconicity.
According to our research, iconicity might also exist in our voices. We organized a contest in which we invited contestants to record a set of sounds to express different meanings. The winner of the contest was determined by how well listeners could guess the intended meanings of the sounds based on a set of written options. Critically, the sounds that contestants submitted couldn’t include actual words or onomatopoeias (拟声词) .
Listeners were remarkably good at interpreting the meanings of the sounds. Yet, all of the contestants and listeners were speakers of English. Thus, it was possible that listeners’ success relied on some cultural knowledge that they shared with the speakers. Did the listeners also understand the speakers from completely different cultural backgrounds?
Later, an Internet survey translated into 25 different languages was carried out. Participants listened to each sound from the English speakers and guessed the meaning by choosing from six written words. Guessing accuracy for the different groups ranged from 74 percent for English speakers to 34 percent for Portuguese speakers. It is far from perfect, but well above the chance rate of eight percent expected by us.
Taken together, these studies show that our capacity for iconic communication has played a critical role. Without this special talent, language would likely never have gotten off the ground.
1. Which of the following can explain “iconicity” ?| A．A skill in foreign language learning. | B．The process of acting out our meanings. |
| C．The connection between form and meaning. | D．A barrier between different language speakers. |
| A．It required sounds containing meanings. | B．Its winners were creative in recordings. |
| C．It aimed to prove iconicity in words. | D．Its entries were familiar to listeners. |
| A．English pronunciations differ. | B．The research has a limitation. |
| C．The cultural gap is narrowing. | D．Listening skills vary in cultures. |
| A．Clarifying the influence of sounds. | B．Proving the necessity of exchanges. |
| C．Uncovering the origin of languages. | D．Identifying the function of gestures. |
10 . Over 40 students with low vision study at a school in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. It was designed by Anand Sonecha, founder of an architecture company. Featuring a bright yellow entrance door, which stands out against the white walls, the school is decorated with a variety of sweet-smelling plants everywhere. Inside the classrooms, the walls feel smooth in contrast to the rough outside of the building. These all help students familiarize themselves with the area straightforwardly, without any trouble.
The school provides an open space serving as a platform for the visually-challenged students to play, perform, or celebrate festivals and the students are easy to orient themselves according to the sound, smell, sight and touch. “The idea behind the design was to make the school more accessible to the students,” Sonecha says, “They come from remote villages and towns in Gujarat, and I am eager to help them.”
During the construction, Sonecha used contrasting colors so that students could easily distinguish between the elements. Blue was used for all classroom doors, yellow for the entrance gate, black for switch buttons, and yellow and green for the furniture. All these colors contrasted with the white walls of the school, helping the students locate different elements. Different areas are of different height and width, which makes the sounds and noises change according to the echo (回音) produced in these spaces. Furthermore, he cooperated with fellow landscape architect Lokendra Balasaria to plant more than 1,000 plants of 37 species. These sweet plants have been grown not only to lead the children to move in the school through smell but also to attract butterflies and birds, and provide shade.
“The structure of the building is designed similarly to any other school building, only with a few clever elements. My intention was to avoid making it look distinct from other schools,” Sonecha explains, “I hope that there are no different schools for such students. Instead, all these elements should be added to public spaces for them. And my follow-up efforts may be there.”
1. Why did Sonecha design the school in Gandhinagar?| A．To explore architecture styles. | B．To raise funds for his company. |
| C．To offer convenience to the students. | D．To improve students’ learning ability. |
| A．Relax. | B．Waken. | C．Cheer. | D．Direct. |
| A．By expanding activity areas. | B．By stimulating multiple senses. |
| C．By offering behavioral guidelines. | D．By strengthening safety measures. |
| A．Promote accessibility in the public regions. | B．Modernize architecture with smart devices. |
| C．Build special schools for disabled students. | D．Decorate schools with traditional elements. |
