1 . A few years ago my sister moved from her home in Alabama to Buffalo, New York. Since moving to Buffalo she’s become a big hockey (曲棍球) fan and has encouraged me to start watching it. Unfortunately it’s very difficult to find hockey on television here in Alabama. Since hockey games don’t air very much on television, I’ve had to look for different ways to watch hockey games.

I often see websites that claim if you go to their website you can watch television on your computer. I try out many of these websites, hoping that one of the television stations is a northern station that airs hockey games. Unfortunately, most of them don’t work. Either the site doesn’t really give you what they advertise or their video player doesn’t work properly. But finally I’ve found one websites that actually works.

Free Tube is a site that you can go to and watch Television online for free. You don’t have to download any kind of special software or pay money or even sign up for anything. All you have to do is go to Free Tube, choose your channel and start watching.   

The different channels to choose from are separated into different categories like news, business, entertainment, music and sports. You’re not going to find channels like NBC or ABC, so you can watch the latest episode of Heroes or Grey’s Anatomy but it does include some popular channels like Cartoon Network and ESPN.

There is also a movie section. Each movie channel airs different sorts of films like adventure, classics, comedy or horror and that channel will always air that kind of movies. The movie section also includes my favorite station called Max Trailers (预告片). Max Trailers airs nothing but movies trailers 24 hours a day. Some of the trailers are for movies coming out and some are for movies that have already been released but already released movies don’t go back farther than a couple of months.

So far I haven’t had any problems with Free Tube’s video player either. Whenever I choose a channel the video almost always works and usually loads every quickly. The only problem I have with Free Tube is that there is currently a fault if you’re using Firefox. Once you choose a channel you can’t select another channel to change to, your web browser will freeze up. So if you’re using Firefox, the only way to switch channels is to leave the site and re-enter the site, when choosing what channel you want to go to. However, Free Tube is aware of this fault and is working with Mozilla to get it fixed right away.

If you’re missing some show everyone is talking about like Grey’s Anatomy or Heroes, this isn’t really a solution for that. But Free Tube is a good way to find channels that you weren’t aware of; there are several good stations to be found.

1. The author mainly ________ in this passage.

A．tells us his experience in using the Web.	B．shows us the disadvantages of Free Tube
C．introduces Free Tube to the readers	D．shows us how to enjoy films online

2. The author got interested in watching hockey games ________

A．because he is a sports fan	B．because he has nothing to do all day long
C．since everyone enjoys the games	D．due to his sister’s influence

3. Form the passage we can learn that ______________

A．the author is also very fond of movies

B．Max Trailers airs to-be-released movies

C．ABC is a very famous TV station in America

D．Firefox is the only software used to watch films online

2 . Plastic is everywhere, from the Arctic ice to vital organs in the human body. In fact, previous estimates suggest that the average person swallows a credit card-worth of microscopic plastic particles(颗粒) every week. But new research shows that this could actually be an understatement.

Microplastics are plastics smaller than 5 millimeters, found in industrial waste, beauty products, and formed during the degradation of larger plastic pieces. Over time, they break down into even smaller nanoplastics. These tiny particles can pass through our intestines and lungs into our bloodstreams, reaching vital organs like the heart and brain.

While the idea of eating plastic is unsettling in itself, the major concern here is that these plastic particles contain chemicals that can interrupt our body’s natural release of hormones, potentially increasing our risk of reproductive disorders and certain cancers. They can also carry toxins(毒素) on their surface like heavy metals.

In the past, researchers have shown bottled water can contain tens of thousands of identifiable plastic fragments in a single container. However, until recently, only the larger microplastics were detectable with available measuring tools, leaving the area of nanoplastics largely a mystery.

Using Raman microscopy (显微镜学), capable of detecting particles down to the size of a flu virus, the team measured an average of 240, 000 particles of plastic per liter of bottled water, 90 percent of which were nanoplastics, a revelation 10 to 100 times larger than previous estimates.

These plastics likely originate from the bottle material, filters used to “purify” the water, and the source water itself. “It is not totally unexpected to find so much of this stuff, ” the study’s lead author, Columbia graduate student Naixin Qian, said in a statement. His team hopes to expand their research into tap water and other water sources to better inform our exposure to these potentially dangerous particles. “The idea is that the smaller things get, the more of them I reveal, ” he added.

1. What is the primary focus of the new research?

A．The presence of plastic particles.	B．The use of plastic in everyday products.
C．The detection methods for microplastics.	D．The potential risks of nanoplastics to human.

2. What is the advantage of Raman microscopy?

A．Finding the source of plastic particles.	B．Helping to cure the deadly flu virus.
C．Detecting the smaller plastic particles.	D．Improving the quality of bottled water.

3. Why will the team expand their research into tap water?

A．To focus on areas with higher plastic pollution.

B．To be aware of the dangerous particles in daily life.

C．To further measure the types of particles in tap water.

D．To detect the smaller plastic particles in industrial areas.

4. What is Qian’s attitude towards his research?

A．Skeptical.

B．Objective.

C．Conservative.

D．Positive.

3 . In the weeks leading up to my 18th birthday last year, I was told everything changes when you turn eighteen.     1    

I could vote.

I could get my driver’s license.

I could book a hotel room.

I could get married.

It felt exciting.     2     The second is sixteen because it’s “sweet.” And then there is eighteen. Woo hoo.

I’m about to burst that bubble.

First of all, when I woke up that morning in December, I felt a little rush of excitement and then it ended.     3     I wasn’t a completely new person; I was just a year older. And I was a year older with a load of responsibilities that I would not see coming for a few months.

Over the next few months, I was able to do one of the things that come with being legal. I voted in the New York State primary elections.     4     But it still wasn’t making eighteen as exciting as I thought it would be.

And then I realized: Being eighteen was less about the rights and more about growing up. I was making decisions about when to go out, I was getting more focused on my future and my respect for my parents was growing. I was an adult and I was truly starting to feel it.     5    

So here’s my advice to those about to turn eighteen: Don’t blow it. Accept the responsibility that now falls on you. It’s time to grow up and prepare for the rest of your adult life.

A．I still felt the same.

B．It was worse than I had thought!

C．I was still controlled by my parents.

D．It was a cool experience, and I won’t lie about that.

E．I was going to be legally allowed to do many things.

F．Responsibility was knocking on my door and I had to open it.

G．The first exciting birthday is thirteen because you get to call yourself a teenager.

4 . Must-See Destinations in 2024

Are you ready to explore the world in 2024? Whether you dream of sailing down famous European rivers or exploring unique places, our list of must-see destinations is here to inspire your travels.

Spain

Throw yourself into the rich culture and history of Spain. From the sunny beaches of Tenerife to the Moorish architecture (建筑物) of Andalucía, there’s so much to explore in this lively country. Discover the UNESCO World Heritage (遗产) city of La Laguna and become amazed at the beauty of Cordoba, Seville, and La Alhambra, or relax on a beach holiday to Majorca or Tenerife.

Montenegro

Despite its size, Montenegro has beautiful beaches, rich history, and a breathtaking channel. Experience the beauty of the Montenegrin coast — Dalmatia’s jewel (宝石) is the UNESCO World Heritage listed oasis of Dubrovnik, famously praised by Lord Bryon as The Pearl of the Adriatic.

Croatia

Discover the beauty that is Dubrovnik. Explore the 16th-century city’s defensive walls and red-roofed buildings. Sail along Croatia’s Adriatic Coast, where attractive villages and beautiful towns like Pula, Rovinj, and Poreč are just waiting to be explored...

South Africa

Explore the wonders of South Africa, from the Garden Route’s nature reserves to the thrill of a Safari drive in the Kariega Game Reserve. Discover the different plants and animals while searching for the “Big Five” on an unforgettable South Africa holiday.

With over 25 years of experience creating holidays for the curious, Travel Department ensures that your journey is in good hands. Plus as a trusted Reader’s Digest Travel partner, you can get special deals when you travel with them across lots of different 2024 holidays. If you want to know more information, please click here.

1. What do Spain and Montenegro have in common?

A．They are both praised by tourists.

B．They both have world heritage cities.

C．They are known for their architectures.

D．They both own beaches and rich history.

2. Which destination will attract people who are interested in creatures?

A．Spain.	B．South Africa.
C．Montenegro.	D．Croatia.

3. Where is this text most likely from?

A．A website.	B．A guidebook.
C．A novel.	D．A magazine.

5 . People duck responsibility for reasons ranging from simple laziness or a fear of failure, through to a sense of feeling frightened by the scale of a problem or a situation. Whatever the reason, if people fail to take responsibility, they’ll fail in their jobs, they’ll fail their teams, and they’ll fail to grow as individuals. All of this makes it important to address the issue.

Signs of not being responsible

There are several signs to watch out for. These include:

Lacking interest in their work, and in the well-being of the team

Blaming others for mistakes and failures

Missing deadlines

Avoiding challenging tasks and projects, and not taking risks

Regularly complaining about unfair treatment by team leaders and members and engaging in self-pity

Avoiding being dependent on others for work, advice and instructions

Lacking trust in team members and leaders

Ways to encourage responsibility

Start by talking

Your first step is to talk to the individuals concerned. Are there circumstances that are contributing to the situation, or problems that you can deal with?

Communicate roles, responsibilities and objectives

Your people need to know clearly what their roles and responsibilities are. Ensure that you have an up-to-date job description for each team member, and be as detailed as possible about every responsibility that they have.

Re-engage people

Your people will be more engaged if their work is supported with their values. Talk to them to find out what they are. Then, illustrate how their daily tasks and responsibilities go with those values.

Give plenty of praise

Finally, be sure to give your people plenty of praise when they do take responsibility. And help them improve by providing them with regular, effective and fair feedback.

1. What will happen if John fails to take responsibility?

A．He can complete his jobs.

B．His teams may suffer.

C．His growth will continue.

D．He will lose his life.

2. Which is the sign of John’s irresponsibility?

A．“It’s not my fault.”

B．“I’ll have it completed tomorrow.”

C．“It’s tough, but I can manage it.”

D．“I need resources to solve the problem. ”

3. What will you do first ifyour team members lacks responsibility?

A．Let him know their specific tasks.

B．Get them to find out the values of work.

C．Praise them for their good jobs.

D．Have a chat with him to find out problems.

6 . Resilience (适应力) is the ability to renew from hardship and possibly also grow stronger in the process.     1     When we face difficulties, instead of giving in to desperation, we can choose, as hard as it may seem in the moment, to accept resilience. This means recognizing our own inner strength and determination to overcome challenges.

    2     Of course it forces us to face our fears and doubts. Each time we tolerate a difficult experience, we build resilience, making us better equipped to handle future challenges.

Turning hardest moments into learning opportunities requires self-reflection. When we encounter difficulties, it’s essential to take a step back and ask ourselves tough questions.     3     What can we learn from it? Reflecting on our experiences allows us to gain valuable insights and wisdom. As long as we obtain learning, understanding, and insight from it, they can become gifts and sources of strength and wisdom over time.

Life’s challenges often bring us into contact with the suffering of others. Experiencing hardship can promote empathy for those with similar difficulties. This newfound empathy can lead to a desire to help and support others. Turning our pain into an opportunity to connect with others on a deeper level can be incredibly rewarding.     4    

As irony as this may sound, life would be incredibly boring and possibly meaningless if we had no problems to solve. Difficult moments often require us to think critically and find solutions to complex problems in ways we wouldn’t otherwise.     5     When we encounter obstacles (障碍)”, we are pushed to explore new views, seek creative solutions. Without obstacles, we wouldn’t ever discover what we’re truly capable of and a lot of our potential would be wasted.

A．Where was I from?

B．What led to this situation?

C．Hardship often reveals our true resilience.

D．By dealing with challenges, we learn how to face hardship.

E．It is a quality to turn hardest moments into learning opportunities.

F．By offering support, we not only help others but also create satisfaction.

G．These challenges can be seen as opportunities to develop problem-solving skills.

7 . As to psychological well-being, the comfort zone is frequently perceived as a haven, a familiar location where individuals feel calm and peaceful. Pushing beyond this psychological state might have benefits.

The comfort zone can be understood as a behavioral metaphor. Within a comfort zone, an individual takes on a state of minimal anxiety without a perception of risk, responding predictably to deliver a consistent level of performance. These include behaviors that people do commonly, find relaxing, or that take them away from high-stress situations. Engaging in the same manner over time leads to a predictable and familiar zone of comfort. As creatures of habit, we become dependent on these routines that we know we can complete well to feel secure. However, by stepping outside of our comfort zone, we learn about our ability to handle new situations and control risks, leading to greater self-confidence, and lower levels of anxiety.

One study found that individuals who are more secure in stepping out of their comfort zone are more likely to be excited by and look forward to new experiences, feeling greater confidence in their ability to take them on.

One behavior that demonstrates the benefits of stepping out of a comfort zone is learning to play a musical instrument. When we consider actions outside of our comfort zone, we must assess our desire to engage in that activity. By weighing the pros and cons, we evaluate how uncomfortable a situation may seem, and whether the danger of entering such an unknown situation will be worth the risk.

Music offers a safe way to step out of your initial comfort zone because you can begin by practicing in an isolated setting, which offers a casual, safe way to build a new skill set. By picking up and practicing a new instrument, you have proven to yourself that you are capable of meeting an unfamiliar objective, thus decreasing anxiety.

1. What does the underlined word “haven” in Paragraph 1 most probably mean?

A．Habitat.

B．Shelter.

C．Community.

D．Destination.

2. Which will not be considered when we step out of our comfort zone?

A．We recall the old experience.

B．We think whether it is worth the risk.

C．We evaluate our thirsty for the activity.

D．We weigh the strengths and weaknesses.

3. What will be probably discussed in the following paragraph?

A．The definition of the comfort zone.

B．The importance of psychological well-being.

C．The process of learning a new musical instrument.

D．The benefits of stepping out of one’s comfort zone.

4. Which of the following is the best title for the text?

A．How to Identify Comfort Zone

B．Staying Inside Comfort Zone is Important

C．Stepping Outside Comfort Zone Promotes Learning

D．How to Take Yourself Away from High-stress Situations

8 . Facial expressions give away whether someone is being honest

Wouldn’t the world be such a simple place if someone’s nose really grew when they told a lie? Then we wouldn’t have to spend so much time trying to determine whether people are telling the   truth. Luckily, there are scientific ways to tell if someone is being honest by judging from their facial expressions.     1    .

They’re holding the right amount of eye contact.

Eyes have the power to be extremely telling at times, particularly when it comes to whether people are telling the truth or not. When I think about it,     2    , but it turns out the opposite is true.

Their rate of blinking doesn’t change.

Stay to the eyes for a moment — blinking is a very easy way to detect if someone is telling you the truth. Those who are being honest will maintain a consistent rhythm of blinking as they’re speaking to you.     3    , and then the blinking speed will increase up to eight time faster than normal after the lie has been told.

You haven’t noticed them touching their nose.

    4    . Are they reaching up and touching their nose as they’re speaking? Nose touching is a sign of lying. This is because certain tissues in the nose usually swell when a person is telling   a lie, making the nose itch. If the person hasn’t been touching their nose at all, take this as a good sign.

    5    .

A fake smile could mean something is up. Liars have an “increased activity of the ‘zygomatic major muscles’, located around the mouth,” and it can force the face into a fake smile.

A．There’s no fake smile in sight

B．Watch the person’s hands

C．Blinking fast is a way to give away one’s lying

D．I assume liars would have a difficult time holding eye contact

E．You have notice there’s a fake smile in their faces

F．Here are some ways to tell if someone is telling you the truth

G．Oppositely, a liar will blink more slowly when they’re telling a lie

9 . A merchant wanted to purchase a good-looking camel in the market and after spotting one began to bargain for it with the seller! There was a long bargain between the merchant and the camel seller, and finally the merchant bought the camel and took it home!

On reaching home, the merchant called his servant to take out the camel’s saddle. Under the   saddle, the servant found a small velvet bag which upon opening revealed him to be full of precious diamonds! The servant shouted, “Boss, you bought a camel, but look what came with it for free!”

The Merchant was also surprised when he saw diamonds in his servant’s hands which were shining and twinkling even more in the sunlight! The Merchant said: “I have bought a camel and not the diamonds, I should return it immediately!”

The servant was thinking in his mind “How stupid my boss is! Nobody will know who the owner is!”

However, the merchant did not listen to him and immediately reached the market and returned the velvet bag to the shopkeeper.

The camel seller was very happy and said, “I had forgotten that I had hidden my precious diamonds under the saddle. Now you choose any one diamond!”

The Merchant said, “I have paid the right price for the camel, so I do not need any gift and prizes!”

The more the merchant was refusing, the more the camel seller was insisting. Finally, the merchant smiled and said: “In fact, when I decided to bring back the bag, I had already kept two of the most precious diamonds with me!”

After this declaration, the camel seller was infuriated and he quickly emptied the bag and began to count his diamond! But after he counted with a heavy sigh of relief, he said “These are all my diamonds, so what were the two most precious ones that you kept?”

The Merchant said: “My honesty and my self-respect.”

1. If the servant had bought the camel, what would he have done?

A．Giving them to his master.

B．Returning the diamonds.

C．Pocketing the diamonds.

D．Dividing them with his boss.

2. Why did the seller ask the merchant take one diamond?

A．He thought he should reward him.

B．He regretted he had bargained with him.

C．He knew the he had made a big mistake.

D．He volunteered to lower the price.

3. What does the underlined word “infuriated” mean?

A．Content.

B．Funny.

C．Angry.

D．Happy.

10 . In 2011, artist Grimanesa Amorós stepped off a boat made of totora reeds (芦苇) onto an island—also made of totora reeds — in the northwest portion of Lake Titicaca. It’s home to one of the world’s most innovative achievement of human engineering: the Uros Islands.

The man-made floating islands, which are home to the native Uros people, are created by putting layers upon layers of totora roots and reeds. This water-resistant plant grows in the lake and is the lifeblood of the Uros community. It is used to make boats, houses, roofs, mattresses (床垫) and more. The plant is also eaten and serves as medicine, and its flowers are used to make tea.

However, the Uros weren’t always dependent on the totora. More than 500 years ago, the growing Inca Empire began to invade the Uros’ mainland villages. To beat this threat, the Uros began to build the islands, which could be launched deep into Lake Titicaca, away from danger. Hundreds of years later, there are now about 120 of these constructed islands, with around 1,300 people living on them.

To build the islands, the Uros first gather large blocks of totora roots. Multiple blocks are pulled together, and the roots and reeds mix naturally to form a layer about 1 to 2m thick. The totora reed is laid on top of this floating base. The Uros use a long tool to reach deep down into the water and cut the plant above the base. Then, the reeds are dried in the sun for one to four weeks and bundled (捆绑) together using a rope. Once dried, totora reeds are placed in alternating directions on top of the root blocks and become the ground that the Uros walk and build their homes on.

Today, urban influences are evident on the islands: Solar panels power bedroom lights and small TVs; a radio station operates on the main island. It’s evident that these modern changes and tourism have changed the Uros’ life on the lake. One thing remains certain, though. As long as there is totora growing at Lake Titicaca, the islands’ rooted foundation will stay the same.

1. Which word can best describe the role totora reeds play in the Uro’s life?

A．Essential.

B．Symbolic.

C．Protective.

D．Sustainable.

2. What was the original purpose of building the floating island?

A．To develop tourism.	B．To maintain their lifestyle.
C．To escape from enemies’ attack.	D．To be separated from the world.

3. What does the fourth paragraph mainly focus on?

A．The key to selecting building materials.	B．The procedure of building the islands.
C．The difficulty of living on the island.	D．The method of spotting reeds.

4. What might be the best title for the text?

A．Fancy Lifestyles of the Uros	B．Innovative Building Materials
C．Floating Homes on Lake Titicaca	D．A Must-see Tourist Attraction of Lake Titicaca