Ben Drake, an expert on air pollution, is being interviewed on the radio. He said that smog was a severe problem in the early 20th century in Britain. At that time, Britain was experiencing a boom in industry. Factories and homes used lots of coal, which created smog. He also mentioned the heavy smog in London was particularly bad and caused over 4000 deaths in 1952. Later the UK government restricted burning coal in homes and forced factories to move away from city centers. As smog is harmful to everyone, the expert advised us to replace coal with cleaner forms of energy, use new energy-efficient vehicles and further develop green technology.
1. The expression “2. Smog became a severe problem in Britain because people at that time burnt lots of
3. The worst smog in British history happened in London in 1942.
4. The Great Smog of London claimed 5,000 lives.
5. Later, the UK government ordered people not to burn
1. What are they doing?
2. What do you think is necessary for bird observation?
3 . I grew up in the 1950s with very practical parents. My mother washed aluminum foil (铝箔纸) after she cooked in it, and then she reused it.She was the earliest recycle (回收利用) queen before people had a name for it.
My father was no different.He preferred getting old shoes fixed to buying new ones.Their marriage was good and their dreams were focused (集中).Their best friends lived just a wave away.Though my parents have passed away,I can see them now-Dad in trousers,a T-shirt and a hat and Mom in a house dress,lawnmower (割草机) in one hand and dishtowel in the other.
It was the time to fix things-a curtain rod (挂帘杆) the kitchen radio, the screen door, the oven door, and so on. They fixed all things we had.It was a way of life,and sometimes it made me crazy.All that re-fixing and renewing made me want to scream.I wanted just once to be wasteful.Waste meant being rich.Throwing things away meant you knew there’d always be more.I often thought like that.
But then my mother died,and on that clear summer night,in the warmth of the hospital room,I learnt that sometimes there isn’t any more.Sometimes,what we care about most gets all used up and goes away and it will never return. So, while we have it, it is the best that we love it,care for it,fix it when it’s broken and cure it when it’s sick.
This is true for marriage,old cars,children with bad report cards,dogs with bad hips and aging parents and grandparents.We keep them because they are worth it and because we are worth it.
1. We can learn that when the writer was young, she________.| A．thought highly of her parents’ habits |
| B．often helped her parents fix old things |
| C．often threw things away without being noticed |
| D．at times hated it when her parents fixed old things |
| A．Her mother truly loved her. |
| B．She had wasted a lot of money. |
| C．Things may never return once they are gone. |
| D．She had hurt her parents for many times. |
| A．To advise us to love what we have. |
| B．To encourage us to recycle old things. |
| C．To explain why her parents recycled. |
| D．To help us know about life in the past. |
4 . China has named the nation’s first Mars rover (火星车) Zhu Rong. For all of us, Zhu Rong is a well-suited name.
In an ancient Chinese story, Zhu Rong had the face of a man and the body of an animal. H rode on two dragons.
When he had a big fight with Gong Gong, the god of water, Zhu Rong won. But after the fight, the human world came into complete darkness. Then he brought fire from heaven to the world.
“Zhu Rong is regarded as the earliest god of fire in traditional Chinese culture,” a space official said. “The first Mars rover was named Zhu Rong. The name symbolizes light and hope for space exploration in our country, and means to guide humans to continue exploration.”
After leaving the earth last summer, Zhu Rong circled Mars for several months and landed on it in May. In recent years, our country has sent up the world’s first quantum satellite (量子卫星), and Chang’e-4 has made a soft landing on the moon. We have made great progress in space technology and will soon start building our own space station.
1. What Zhu Rong brought from heaven to the world was ________.| A．fire | B．wars | C．water | D．animals |
| A．a big fight | B．complete darkness | C．light and hope | D．Chinese culture |
| A．the earth | B．Mars | C．the moon | D．the sun |
| A．Zhu Rong is a bad person in an ancient Chinese story |
| B．China has made great progress in space technology |
| C．the writer is proud of China’s space technology |
| D．the official doesn’t like the name Zhu Rong |
5 . The Lunar Calendar (农历) Modern Chinese use the solar calendar (阳历) as English people do. But at the same time, they use their own lunar calendar. Each lunar year is given the name of one of these animals: the rat, the ox, the tiger, the hare, the dragon, the snake, the horse, the goat, the monkey, the chicken, the dog and the pig. This list lasts for 12 years and then starts again.
Each Chinese month starts on the day of the new moon. And the full moon comes on the 15th day of the month. The New Year always starts between January 21 and February 20. On the last day of the lunar year, there is a big family dinner. All members of the family except married daughters try to be present at this meal, even they have to travel many miles to reach the home of their parents. Old quarrels are forgotten, and everybody is happy. After the dinner, the children keep awake to welcome the New Year.
The New Year celebrations last for 15 days, from the new moon to the full moon. On the first day , children and unmarried people go to visit their elders.
1. If next year is the year of the goat, what was the name of last year?| A．It was the year of tiger. | B．It was the year of the hare. |
| C．It was the year of snake. | D．It was the year of the ox. |
| A．On February 15. | B．On February 16. | C．On February 14. | D．On February 17. |
| A．the married son | B．the married daughter | C．the unmarried son | D．the parents |
| A．old Chinese use the solar calendar (阳历) as English people do |
| B．each Chinese month starts on the day of the new sun |
| C．on the first day, children and married people go to visit their elders |
| D．each lunar year is given the name of animals |
6 . Keeping kids busy with various activities provides them with a well-rounded social life. Growing up, I knew many teenagers who were actively involved in both sports and student government. Those teenagers all ended up going to college and graduating. This may not be the situation in all cases, but from what I have noticed, teens who stay active and do good in the community are typically the ones who deal with anxiety and depression(抑郁) better.
A 2015 study published by professor of biology Theodore Garland concluded, “If kids exercise regularly through the school years, they may be more likely to exercise as adults, which could have far-reaching positive effects on human health and well-being. Our results suggest that any positive effects of early-life exercise on adult exercise tendencies will require reinforcement(强化) and maintenance if they are to be long-lasting.” This study found that along with physical activity, having a spirit of adventure would also help improve children’s physical and mental health.
Some parents disagree. They feel that pushing a child to stay active and involved causes unnecessary stress and can have the opposite effect, making him/her hate being involved or being active. Parents also fear their children will experience failure, which they believe could lead to low self-confidence.
The key to helping the youth stay motivated is not pressuring them too hard. People who have strict parents typically rebel(反抗) or feel they will never be good enough. Keep in mind that encouraging the youth to be competitive isn’t the best thing. Some of the unhappiest people I have met are competitive. Positive reinforcement is the best way to keep people motivated.
An active and involved youth will show personal qualities that will become useful in the future. Some of these include leadership, teamwork, a healthy lifestyle, educational benefits, respect and trust, which will lead to success in the future.
1. According to the author, active teens _________.| A．get much better education | B．concentrate more on self-improvement |
| C．do well in both sports and management | D．deal with some mental problems better than others |
| A．the positive effect of early-life exercise is not necessarily lasting |
| B．physical activity helps children become more confident |
| C．early-life exercise has positive effects on relationships |
| D．school life experience has a long-lasting influence |
| A．They believe it may take a lot of time. | B．They think it is unnecessary to push kids. |
| C．They are worried about the opposite effect. | D．They are afraid it makes their children feel depressed. |
| A．The importance of trusting the youth. | B．The key to keeping the youth motivated. |
| C．The possible problem faced by the youth. | D．The reasons for helping the youth stay positive. |
Most people know that Charles Darwin was the father of evolutionary biology. However, what is not widely known is what sort of person he was.
In his autobiography (自传), Darwin described himself as a rather “naughty” child. He stole fruit from the trees on the side of his parents’ house, made up wild stories, and tried to be the center of attention in the family.
Even worse, it seemed that Charles Darwin was a lazy young man and a slow learner at grammar school. He was a rather shy student but he did take great pleasure in showing off his athletic skills to the other schoolboys. It is not known how well Darwin did at school, but we could say that he was likely to be an unremarkable student.
When Darwin was nine years old, his father sent him to a boy’s boarding school. At this school, Darwin learned classics, ancient history and Greek, all of which he found boring. He was not inspired much by his schooling. He found his only pleasure there was reading Shakespeare’s historical plays, the poems of Byron, Scott, and Thomson. His increased interest in natural science was encouraged by events outside his formal education.
As Darwin grew older, collecting became his major hobby. It became very clear that Darwin was not taking his studies seriously.
1. We can infer from paragraph 1 that when Darwin was a child, his father thought _____.| A．he was not a common child | B．he would become a great man |
| C．he didn’t care about his family | D．he wouldn’t achieve anything |
| A．had a gift for language | B．liked to be the center of attention |
| C．was “naughty” when he was a child | D．was a very good storyteller |
| A．able | B．honest | C．ordinary | D．ugly |
| A．Darwin thought classics, ancient history and Greek boring. |
| B．Darwin was inspired much by his schooling. |
| C．Darwin disliked reading Shakespeare’s historical plays. |
| D．Darwin’s interest in natural science was encouraged by events in his formal education. |
8 . Famous world film festivals and awards
Venice International Film Festival, Venice, Italy
Held yearly from 1932, it’s the world’s oldest film festival. The awards are lion trophies (奖杯) including the Golden Lion and Silver Lion. Chinese director Zhang Yimou has won the Golden Lion twice.
Festival de Cannes, Cannes, France
It’s held yearly from 1946. Held in May in the beautiful French seaside town of Cannes, it celebrates and awards artistic achievement in film. The highest prize is the Golden Palm trophy (金棕榈奖). Chinese filmmaker Chen Kaige won the prize at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival.
Oscar Awards, Hollywood, USA
The first Academy Awards ceremony was held on May 16, 1929, at the Hotel Roosevelt in Hollywood to honor the outstanding film achievements of the 1927/1928 film season.
Winners had been announced three months earlier. However, that was changed in the second ceremony of the Academy Awards in 1930. Since then and during the first decade, the results were given to newspapers for publication at 11 p.m. on the night of the awards. This method was used until the Los Angeles Times announced the winners before the ceremony began. As a result, the Academy has used a sealed envelope to tell the name of the winners since 1941.
The Golden Globe Awards, Los Angeles, USA
It was first held in January, 1944 at the 20th Century Fox Studios in Los Angeles, where the winners in five categories received scrolls. The actual Golden Globe award started in 1946, when the statuette of a “golden globe” was introduced. The list of award categories has grown and changed over the times.
1. Which of the following is held in France?| A．Venice International Film Festival. | B．Festival de Cannes. |
| C．Oscar Awards. | D．The Golden Globe Awards. |
| A．He won the Golden Lion twice. | B．He won the Oscar Awards twice. |
| C．He won the Golden Palm trophy once. | D．He won the Golden Globe awards once. |
| A．Chen Kaige won the Golden Palm trophy. | B．The first Oscar awards ceremony was held. |
| C．The world’s oldest film festival was held. | D．The 20th Century Fox studios launched. |
| A．In 1929. | B．In 1930. | C．In 1944. | D．In 1946. |
9 . Good study skills matter now more than ever. Many students study by reading their notes and textbooks over and over again. Research studies show there are more effective ways to use your valuable study time.
Practice, practice, practice!
Musicians practice their instruments. Athletes practice sports skills. The same should go for learning. If you want to be able to remember information, the best thing you can do is practice.
Don’t just reread books and notes
Too often, when students reread material, it’s superficial (浅薄的). Rereading is like looking at the answer to a puzzle, rather than doing it yourself. It looks like it makes sense. But until you try it yourself, you don’t really know if you understand it.
Mistakes are okay as long as you learn from them
It’s vital to test your memory. It doesn’t really matter how many seconds you spend on each try. But it’s important to go the next step. Check to see if you were right. Then focus on what you got wrong. In fact, making mistakes can be a good thing. Mistakes are actually a primary key to learning.
Test yourself
Try to quiz yourself the way the teacher asks questions. Put questions on one side and the answers on the other side. Friends can even quiz each other on the phone.
Find examples
Abstract concepts can be hard to understand. It tends to be far easier to form a mental image if you have a concrete example of something. Indeed, it helps to have at least two examples if you want to apply information to new situations.
1. Which of the following is an effective way of learning?| A．Reading notes and textbooks again and again. |
| B．Practicing what has been learned ever before. |
| C．Answering some questions given by teachers. |
| D．Remembering abstract concepts again and again. |
| A．Be brave to try and learn from your likely mistakes. |
| B．Don’t try unless you can make sure that you are right. |
| C．Try to avoid making mistakes till you can do it all right. |
| D．Try to make mistakes about what you’ve ever learned before. |
| A．Ignoring them if they are hard to understand. |
| B．Reading and understanding them over and over again. |
| C．Forming a mental image by having some examples. |
| D．Applying them to new situations before understanding. |
10 . Volunteering Opportunities for Teens
L. A. Works
River Centre and Gardens
570 W. Ave. 26, Ste. 400 Los Angeles, CA 90 065
From arts and crafts, walking dogs to singing to babies, this organisation offers many opportunities in Los Angeles from one day to long-term projects. Volunteers must first attend a course. Some activities are designed only for adults, so be sure to ask if they’re teen friendly.
Volunteers of America
3,600 Wilshire Blvd. Ste. 1,500 Los Angeles, CA 90 010
National non-profit organisation with volunteer opportunities in programmes for children, the developmentally disabled, families, emergency services, the homeless and more.
Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles
4,650 W. Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90 027
Teens aged 15 and older can volunteer here after completing a three-hour course. Only those aged 18 and older can have direct contact with the patients. Teens younger than 18 can still help out by greeting and recording patients and their families at the front desk. The hospital asks for a minimum(最少)of a six-month period plus 100 hours of service. Teens work at least two to four hours a week, depending on the department, and can choose their schedule.
Food on Foot
1,625 N. Schrader Hollywood, CA 90 028
This is a non-profit organisation that needs volunteers on Saturdays at 3:30 pm in Venice and Sundays at 3:30 pm in Hollywood. Volunteers will distribute clothing and food to the homeless and poor. Teens must be interviewed before volunteering. After service is completed，the organisation will write a letter to give students either high school or college credit.
Library’s Volunteer Corp.
7,400 E. Imperial Hwy. Downey, CA 90 242
There’s no age limit and no experience required for teens interested in volunteering at the library. Volunteers are needed at all branches. All minors must present written parental agreement. Time varies with each task. Teens can shelve books, create displays, tell stories, show films, write reports and more.
1. What can a volunteer aged 16 do at Children’s Hospital?| A．Serve the patients directly. |
| B．Look after the patients’ families. |
| C．Do some office work for patients. |
| D．Keep records of patients and their families at the front desk. |
| A．L. A. Works. | B．Food on Foot. |
| C．Volunteers of America. | D．Library’s Volunteer Corp. |
| A．Some tasks aren’t teen friendly. | B．Teens aged 15 and older can volunteer here. |
| C．Teens need training before volunteering. | D．The volunteering time is different for each task. |
