1 . “A fish out of water.” “A bike without a chain.” There are many metaphors for culture shock, all of which attempt to describe the unique experience of being far from one’s home country and culture.
Scientists have studied culture shock for over a century. Rather than focus on the purely negative aspects, psychologists describe it as a process of stress and adjustment. The first stage is the honeymoon phase, when we are filled with excitement about being in another country. Eventually, as daily challenges arise, we enter a state of crisis and anxiety, harboring unfriendly feelings about the host culture. The longer we are immersed in the culture, we adjust and recover from those negative feelings. Finally, after some time we adjust even more and fully accept the new culture.
One of the factors that determines how we react to cultural stress is our personality. Not surprisingly, extraverts (外向者) tend to have an easier time adjusting to new cultures. That is because being in a new country means meeting many new people and spending a lot of time around them, and extraverts thrive in these situations. But introverts simply prefer to be alone after spending time in groups, and only have limited energy to spend in social settings.
Cultural intelligence, or CQ, also plays its part. Cultural intelligence is defined as the capability of an individual to function effectively in situations characterized by cultural diversity. It has to do with our interest in interacting with people from culturally diverse backgrounds, and our ability to adapt to new cultural context. It is argued that the higher our CQ, the lesser the effect of culture shock on our ability to cope in new situations.
Many effective coping strategies are interpersonal. A recent study found that relating to others with empathy is significantly associated with lower stress levels abroad. The more we are able to take on other people’s points of view, the more positive our interpersonal relationships and thus our adaptation to the stress of culture shock.
1. What is the function of the first paragraph?| A．Explaining the quotes. | B．Raising an argument. |
| C．Introducing the topic. | D．Presenting an example. |
| A．Anxious. | B．Thrilled. | C．Shocked. | D．Grateful. |
| A．An active boy interested in anything new. |
| B．A shy boy unwilling to socialize with strangers. |
| C．A quiet girl open to diverse cultural backgrounds. |
| D．A communicative girl fluent in the local language. |
| A．Lowering the stress level. | B．Developing self-awareness. |
| C．Analyzing the cause of discomfort. | D．Understanding others with sympathy. |
2 . ONE CEREMONY, SEVERAL FIRSTS
The Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Olympic Games will be bold, original and unique. On 26 July 2024, Paris 2024 will offer an Opening Ceremony that is certain to join the most memorable moments in Olympic history.
A ceremony outside a stadium
For the first time in the history of the Olympic Summer Games, the Opening Ceremony will not take place in a stadium. Paris 2024 is breaking new ground by bringing sports and the Opening Ceremony into the city, set to be held in the heart of the city along its main river: the Seine (塞纳河).
A ceremony on the river
Taking on a new look, the parade of athletes will be held on the Seine with boats for each national delegation (代表团). These boats will be equipped with cameras to allow television and online viewers to see the athletes up close. Winding their way from east to west, the 10,500 athletes will cross through the centre of Paris.
A ceremony with free admission for many spectators
Holding a ceremony open to a large audience, with no admission fee for most of its spectators, is a major first. Fans won’t need tickets to access the upper quays (码头), but those wishing to access the lower quays will need to buy tickets. Eighty giant screens and strategically placed speakers will allow everyone to enjoy the magical atmosphere of this show throughout Paris.
A ceremony designed for and by athletes
By opening with the parade of athletes, Paris 2024 is breaking with tradition. Athletes will be featured on stage during the introduction to and throughout the ceremony as part of Paris 2024’s constant aim to hold Games created for and by athletes.
1. Where will the Opening Ceremony of Paris 2024 be held?| A．On the quays beside the Seine. |
| B．In the city center along the Seine. |
| C．In a stadium near the heart of Paris. |
| D．On the eastern and western ends of Paris. |
| A．No admission fee is required. |
| B．Access to the lower quays is free. |
| C．Tickets should be bought for the upper quays. |
| D．Some viewers pay for watching the ceremony. |
| A．The history of the Olympics. | B．The procedure of Paris 2024. |
| C．The novel points of a ceremony. | D．The charging rules of a ceremony. |
3 . Independent will is what really makes effective self-management possible. It is the ability to make decisions and choices and to act in accordance with them. It is the ability to act rather than to be acted upon.
The human will is an amazing thing. Time after time, it has won against unbelievable difficulties. The Helen Kellers of this world give dramatic evidence to the value, the power of the independent will. But as we examine it in the context of effective self-management, we realize it’s usually not the dramatic, the visible, the once-in-a-lifetime effort that brings enduring success. Empowerment comes from learning how to use independent will in the decisions we make every day.
The degree to which we have developed our independent will in our everyday lives is measured by our personal integrity. Integrity is, fundamentally, the value we place on ourselves. It’s our ability to make and keep commitments to ourselves—to “walk our talk.” It’s honor with self, a fundamental part of the character ethic, the essence of active growth.
Effective management is putting first things first. While leadership decides what “first things” are, it is management that puts them first, day-by-day, moment-by-moment. Management is discipline, carrying it out.
Discipline stems from disciple (追随者) —disciple to a philosophy, disciple to a set of principles, disciple to a set of values, and disciple to an ultimate. purpose. In other words, if you are an effective manager of your self, your discipline comes from within; it is a function of your independent will. You are a disciple, a follower, of your own deep values and their source. And you have the will, the integrity, to place your feelings, your urges, your moods after those values.
That placement requires a purpose, a mission. It also requires independent will, the power to do something when you don’t want to do it, to be a function of your values rather than a function of the urge or desire of any given moment. It’s the power to act with integrity to your first creation.
1. What is the author’s purpose in mentioning “the Helen Kellers” in paragraph 2?| A．To explain a reason. | B．To highlight a point. |
| C．To make a prediction. | D．To give a definition. |
| A．Put words into deeds. | B．Display confidence. |
| C．Stop talking big. | D．Strike a balance. |
| A．Seeking external support. | B．Undertaking more missions. |
| C．Sticking to one’s own values. | D．Following one’s desires. |
| A．The Secret Behind Self-discipline | B．The Magic of Personal Integrity |
| C．The Power of Independent Will | D．The Road to Effective Management |
4 . Self-learning can help you develop important skills and gain valuable knowledge. Understanding strategies for self-learning is important. They can help you study new concepts with ease.
Determine your learning style. People often prefer to learn new information or a new skill using varied approaches.
Find a purpose. Determine what you want to learn about and why you want to be a self-learner.
Determine a schedule. To create an effective plan, it may be helpful to create an agenda for your self-learning sessions.
| A．Assess your strengths |
| B．Be sure to set reasonable goals |
| C．Identify a skill set you’re interested in learning |
| D．Here’re some tips for effective self-learning practices |
| E．Consider giving yourself a set of achievable deadlines |
| F．You can find the most useful methods and techniques for yourself |
| G．Having a specific goal can also help you set accurate self-learning sessions |
5 . If you’re looking for inspiration to get healthy and stay active, look no further than Edna Giordano.
Edna, who lives in Canada, has become famous for the fitness level she maintains at age 91. The mom of five, grandmother of twenty-one and great-grandmother of four still drives now. “I’ve always had a busy lifestyle because, let’s face it, with that many children, you have to be busy,” Edna said. “So, I never really thought about it. That’s just the way I live.” She said she only really began to focus on her fitness in her 60s, when she was forced to retire from her job at a local hospital. She had to face the fact that she was 60.
To keep herself busy, Edna began gardening again that she had to abandon due to her busy work. She said she also started going to the gym in her 60s, which she still does every other day. “I have to keep my feet to the fire because it’s cold in the morning in winter, and when it’s snowy or icy out there, I don’t really get enthusiastic about going outside,” she said. “But I make myself do it and mark it on the calendar. So I cannot take any shortcuts.”
Edna said she focused on walking at the gym for her cardiovascular (心血管) health and also included lots of weight lifting in her routine to maintain her bone strength. “When in the gym, I don’t try to break any records or compete with anyone else,” Edna said. “I only push myself to do better all the time, and I only compete with myself.”
When it came to her age, Edna said the people at the gym didn’t realize she’s 91. She prefers it that way, because when people do realize she’s in her 90s, they’ll surely demand to help her. “I know them well. But I don’t really want help,” said Edna. “It’s funny to say that, but I like to be independent.”
1. What made Edna leave her job in the hospital?| A．Her turning 60. | B．Her looking after many kids. |
| C．Her wish to live a busy life. | D．Her suffering from a disease. |
| A．She lives in a cold place all year round. | B．She manages to be a regular at the gym. |
| C．She develops a new hobby for gardening. | D．She likes to take shortcuts in her daily life. |
| A．Competitive. | B．Humorous. | C．Humble. | D．Caring. |
| A．The elderly also enjoy trends. | B．Experience beats youth. |
| C．A positive attitude extends life. | D．Fitness is fit for everyone. |
6 . Drugs that could save tens of thousands of lives in Britain should be prescribed (开药) to three times as many patients as at present, medical experts recommended after a study showed these drugs have great effects on heart disease and stroke (中风).
British research has shown that statins, a class of drug that lowers cholesterol (胆固醇), can prevent a third of all cases of heart disease or stroke in patients at highest risk. If statins were given to 10 million high-risk patients, they could save at least 50,000 lives a year worldwide. In Britain, where heart disease is the leading cause of death, statins could save up to 10,000 lives a year.
Studies have found that safety issues surrounding statins were so tiny that they were significant. The risk of muscle problems was only about one in ten thousand. Fears that statins could increase deaths from other diseases, such as cancer, were assuaged by the study. At present, only people with high cholesterol are prescribed statins, but the eight-year study found that anyone at risk of heart disease or stroke could benefit. Statins are now given to fewer than one in twenty people aged over 40, mostly men with heart disease or high cholesterol. Under the recommendation, this would increase to one in eight.
A total of 20,000 volunteers aged 40 to 80 took part in the study, which looked at the effects of statins on patients for whom the benefits were uncertain. The guidelines previously said that female patients aged over 65 would not benefit from the drug, but the five years of monitoring all types of patients at high risk of heart attacks and stroke showed that everyone benefited as much from statins. The new recommendations will be easy to put into practice because statins are readily available and the patients who benefit from them most are already known to doctors.
1. What does paragraph 2 focus on?| A．Main diseases in Britain. | B．Side effects caused by statins. |
| C．Positive effects of statins. | D．The numbers of heart disease cases. |
| A．Eased. | B．Discovered. | C．Ignored. | D．Compared. |
| A．The effects of the drug are unclear. | B．The drug can be widely prescribed. |
| C．The drug hardly benefits female patients. | D．The drug should be limited in application. |
| A．To call for the monitoring of drug studies. | B．To explain different ways of testing drugs. |
| C．To seek improvement in the drug research. | D．To spread medical experts’ recommendation. |
7 . A recent survey of British parents found that in all, 7% of respondents give their baby a made-up name and 65% are at least willing to consider such a move in new age.
A few examples of these new age baby names include Jaspin, Elisobelle, Wrenlow, and Maevery. Don’t see any names you like? How about Evabeth? Even if they themselves aren’t willing to choose such a name, a surprising 94% of respondents admit that made-up baby names are very much “in” these days.
Apparently, these parents believe they are helping their kids by selecting a rarer name. The survey noted that 72% of all respondents believe a unique name will help their child stand out from the crowd. Another 2% choose a made-up name for their baby with social media in mind, thinking a more unique name means their child’s social media account will be much easier for potential followers to find. But 16% also believe that a strange name may reflect poorly on the parents.
A popular strategy for parents to decide on a name is taking two names that both parents like, and combining them into one name（10%）. Another 9% combine the names of older relatives as a way to honor family. Similarly, many parents（30%） are drawing inspiration from popular movies and books.
However, the majority of surveyed parents（92%） at least admitted that giving their child an odd name is bound to result in a few drawbacks. For example, two-thirds worry that an odd name will be hard to spell and pronounce, and a third worry that their child’s teachers will judge them based on their unusual name. Of course, for those parents who are confident they’ve picked a winning made-up name, 13% actually worry about other parents stealing their child’s name.
1. How does the author illustrate the new trend?| A．By making comparisons. | B．By asking questions. |
| C．By listing statistics. | D．By stating opinions. |
| A．To make their children feel less special. | B．To reflect their higher social status. |
| C．To draw others’ attention more easily. | D．To attract more followers online. |
| A．It will be advised by teachers. | B．It can actually be double-edged. |
| C．It should be protected carefully. | D．It surely makes parents confident. |
| A．Ordinary Names Are Parents’ New Pursuit | B．An Odd Name Can Influence One’s Life |
| C．Trendy Names Appear on Social Media | D．Newborns’ Unique Names Are Coming |
8 . Organizations design courses to help you learn new skills or improve your current skill set. Here’re the best course providers of 2024.
Codecademy
It provides information technology (IT) and other technical users with courses in coding and other software engineering areas. You can choose from several subscription plans or choose a free option to explore the website’s course collection.
Memrise
It’s a website and an application created to help you learn another language. It’s free to use and offers up to 23 languages to pursue. It aims to work on developing your long-term memory to support your learning journey and make it more effective. Additionally, it provides video examples of individuals using the language’s terms and phrases in everyday life.
Pluralsight
It’s a paid subscription site but offers a free trial, so you can try a few classes to determine if it fits your needs. You can take a Skill IQ assessment to know your skill levels and help you determine a plan to improve your abilities. It employs certified experts as the course instructors, which benefits you as a learner.
Alison
It’s a free learning platform offering classes, including fields such as personal development, health, language, finance and science. It offers learners the flexibility of taking the courses anywhere and anytime, so users can fit it into their schedule. And the platform is for individuals with various skill levels, from beginner to expert. Additionally, the site has two types of courses, allowing you to choose between earning a certificate or getting a diploma.
1. Which is most likely to be the course provided on Codecademy?| A．Computer Science. | B．Drawing for Beginners. |
| C．Advanced Parenting Skills. | D．Civil Engineering. |
| A．Codecademy. | B．Pluralsight. | C．Alison. | D．Memrise. |
| A．They are designed for adults. | B．They require learners to pay. |
| C．They offer no certificates. | D．They are self-paced. |
9 . Twenty-five years ago, we were on a family vacation, driving to see family in New York State. Mom and Dad, probably looking for ways to keep their two young kids busy, borrowed a sign about fifteen inches long and three inches high. On one side of the sign was painted “Smile” and on the other side “Thanks”. The sign got a lot of use on the trip. One of us would hold up the sign, so a car behind us could read “Smile”. If they did, we turned the sign over and they got the reward of “Thanks”.
The smile lesson is important, but no more so than the other side, the thanks! Playing this driving game was one of the many ways my parents taught me the importance and value of gratitude, most easily expressed with a simple thank you.
The story goes that a farmer took some of his corn to the State Fair and won the blue ribbon, for the best corn. A reporter asked him what he was going to do with the prized ears of grain he was holding. He said that he would share the seed with his neighbors. The reporter was surprised and asked, “Why would you want to do that?” The farmer calmly answered: “Don’t you know? The wind picks up pollen (花粉) from the ripening corn and blows it from field to field. If my neighbors grow inferior corn, cross-pollination will steadily worsen the quality of my corn. If I am to grow good corn, I must help my neighbors grow good corn.”
So it is with smiling. You are the wind. You can produce smiling faces by spreading your pollen. The cost to you is slight, but the fruits of your pollen will be felt all around.
1. What is the purpose of the author’s family trip 25 years ago?| A．To influence others in a fun way. | B．To play a driving game together. |
| C．To drive to another city to visit family. | D．To go on a family vacation on the road. |
| A．To keep them fit. | B．To teach them a lesson. |
| C．To gain people’s gratitude. | D．To make other drivers laugh. |
| A．the importance of passing kindness | B．the necessity to keep good relationship |
| C．the significance of expressing gratitude | D．the pleasure of sharing with other people |
| A．The influence of smiles. | B．The work you are doing. |
| C．The reason for your smiles. | D．The people you smile at. |
10 . The Florida Aquarium (Meets animal welfare guidelines)
Open hours: 9:30 AM — 5:00 PM
The Florida Aquarium is an educational and fun-filled wonderland, home to thousands of animals and plants. Kids will especially enjoy wearing a wetsuit to walk among the underwater inhabitants and explore coral caves. It’s an immersive learning journey for the whole family. Ticket prices vary based on several factors including weather, day of week, holidays, local events and attendance patterns. Click here for more information.
Monterey Bay Aquarium (Meets animal welfare guidelines)
Open hours: 10:00 AM — 5:00 PM (Tuesday — Friday); 10:00 AM — 6:00 PM (Saturday — Sunday)
Located by the oceanfront, the Monterey Bay Aquarium offers a window into the rich marine life of the area with over 200 exhibits and 80,000 plants and animals on display. Here, you can see leopard sharks weave through kelp forests at one of the tallest aquarium exhibits in the world, sardines swimming past a 90-foot aquarium window, and cute sea otters frolicking.
Tickets are only available online so be sure to book before you go.
Admission: Adult (ages 18 — 69) $59.95; Youth $49.95 (ages 13 — 17); Child $44.95 (ages 5 — 12) Four and under free; Senior $49.95 (ages 70+).
Tennessee Aquarium (Meets animal welfare guidelines)
Open hours: 10:00 AM — 5:00 PM (Sunday — Friday); 9:00 AM — 5:00 PM (Saturday)
This aquarium has two buildings: River Journey, which showcases freshwater habitats from around the globe, and Ocean Journey, where travelers can view magnificent sea creatures. We recommend spending at least three hours at the aquarium as there are over 10,000 animals here. Weekends are the busiest, so consider visiting on a weekday for a quieter and more intimate experience. There’s timed entry to the aquarium, so plan ahead when booking your tickets.
Admission: Adult $39.95; Youth (Ages 5 — 17) $29.95
1. What do the three aquariums have in common?| A．They never abuse animals. | B．They offer underwater activities. |
| C．Tickets are only available online. | D．Ticket prices vary based on visitors’ ages. |
| A．8:00 AM — 10:00AM, Tuesday. | B．4:00 PM — 6:00 PM, Thursday. |
| C．2:00 PM — 5:00 PM, Friday. | D．9:00 AM — 12:00 AM, Saturday. |
| A．A geography textbook. | B．A travel website. |
| C．A trade journal. | D．An animal encyclopedia. |
