My husband and I had booked a cruise（乘船游览）to celebrate our tenth anniversary. Having worked hard throughout our married lives, we felt like we needed a break and an adventure. As we had expected, while on board, we enjoyed good food and good company, while each stop brought us chances to explore new places and experience new adventures. My husband’s calmness throughout all these new experiences helped me to keep my nerves and fear of new things under control and enjoy myself too.
We were excited as the cruise ship pulled into its final stop, a small port in Mexico, in April 2020. Ryan and I had been zip lining（飞索）before, so when we saw signs for an ecopark boasting 11 lines in the middle of the jungle, we thought, “Let’s go for it.”
We got off the ship at 8 am and had to be back by 5 pm. We travelled through the thick jungle in an old jeep, enjoying the beautiful views and listening to the calls of the animals. By 10.30am, we were admiring the view from a high platform, waiting to cross the deep gorge（峡谷）by zip line-a distance of 700 metres. Ryan went first. It took about a minute for him to cross. Then it was my turn.
I’m petite, at 5ft 3in and 120lb, so wasn’t worried about putting too much weight on the line. I felt safe: I was wearing all the necessary safety equipment. The guide said, “Have fun!” and sent me out.
I was 150 metres up in the air, enjoying the beautiful view of the ocean to the left and the rainforest below. The first I knew that something had gone wrong was a loud bang, then silence. I suddenly realized that the zip line had broken.
Paragraph 1:
I was halfway across the gorge and began falling through the air.
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When he reached my tree, I shouted, “Please, baby, catch me if I fall.”
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As a man was passing some elephants，he suddenly stopped,
The man was amazed. These animals could at any time break free from their bonds but because they believed they couldn’t, they were stuck right where they were. Like the elephants，how many of us go through life
3 . Science can help you improve your study methods. For more than 100 years, psychologists have done research on which study habits work best. Some tips help for almost every subject. For example, don’t just cram! And test yourself, instead of just rereading the material. Here are 4 tips to tweak your study habits.
1. Space out your studying
Nate Kornell, a psychologist at Williams College, thinks it’s a good idea to study the day before a big test.
2. Practice, practice, practice!
Musicians practice their instruments.
3. Test yourself
That 2010 study backs up one of Nebel’s preferred study habits. Before big tests, her mom quizzed her on the material. “Now I know that was retrieval practice,” she says. “It’s one of the best ways you can study.” As Nebel got older, she quizzed herself. For example, she might cover up the definitions in her notebook. Then she tried to recall what each term meant. “
4. Dig deeper
It’s hard to remember a string of facts and figures if you don’t push further. Ask why things are a certain way. How did they come about? Why do they matter? Psychologists call this elaboration. It’s taking class material and “asking a lot of how and why questions about it,” Nebel says. In other words, don’t just accept facts at face value.
| A．Some experts hold that studying late at night can be really useful |
| B．Of course, nothing can replace studying with your mother |
| C．This helps you combine new information with other things you know |
| D．But then you’ll be able to relearn it and learn more in your next study session |
| E．Create a deck of flash cards every time you learn new information |
| F．But research shows it’s a bad idea to squeeze all your studying into that day |
| G．Athletes practice sports skills |
4 . The voicemail was long and cruel. It was full of
I had been working as an
I had done my best for this woman. I always
I
‘I just left you a very
Suddenly, my blood
The woman responded with lightning speed, ‘You are the best!’
I promised myself I would try to do that more often.
1.| A．accusations | B．encouragement | C．suggestions | D．details |
| A．polite | B．clear | C．necessary | D．hopeful |
| A．experienced | B．diligent | C．online | D．temporary |
| A．smiled | B．worked | C．studied | D．hid |
| A．teacher | B．person | C．parent | D．user |
| A．employing | B．improving | C．discussing | D．checking |
| A．traditional | B．online | C．special | D．virtual |
| A．earn | B．work | C．help | D．rest |
| A．brought up | B．held up | C．followed up | D．cleared up |
| A．career | B．way | C．day | D．ability |
| A．considered | B．opened | C．debated | D．composed |
| A．important | B．precious | C．accurate | D．unkind |
| A．angry | B．frustrated | C．helpless | D．embarrassed |
| A．rushed | B．boiled | C．calmed | D．poured |
| A．Enter | B．Delete | C．Copy | D．Save |
5 . Assassin (暗杀者) bugs live up to their name. The insects expertly hunt and feed upon other small invertebrates (无脊椎动物), giving them a poisonous bite. Some species even hunt spiders and use a strange trick to gain the upper hand.
Using their antennae (触须), assassin bugs tap spiders, which appears to confuse them long enough to let the bugs make a poisonous strike, researchers reported on September 29. The findings provide insight into some of the complex hunting tactics that predators (捕食性动物) evolve when targeting dangerous prey (猎物) .
Assassin bugs spend their lives in a place most insects avoid: spider webs. The bugs silently creep along the spider’s silk, taking care to make their movements seem harmless before violently killing the web’s architect, seizing the spiders with their front legs and injecting them with poison.
While watching two species of assassin bugs hunt spiders, ecologists Anne Wignall and Fernando Soley took note of the bugs’ habit of lightly knocking their antennae on spiders once the bugs were within striking distance.
“It struck us early on that tapping prey was a really strange thing to do,” says Wignall. Spiders could easily defend themselves and kill the bugs. “Watching the bugs spend so much time and effort on avoiding detection, only to practically tap the spiders on the shoulder was absolutely fascinating.”
To figure out why the bugs tap, Wignall and Soley tested the behavior of 30 spiders in the laboratory. The researchers copied the bugs’ antennae tapping by gently brushing the spiders’ leg with a dog hair. After the tapping, the team measured the spiders’ responses to movements on the web, copying a struggling insect.
Tapped spiders were far less aggressive than those that weren’t tapped, fully ignoring the movements four times as often. Tapped spiders also attacked about 25 percent as often as their untapped counterparts.
Wignall thinks that the assassin bugs are reducing spiders’ aggression levels by imitating the types of physical touch that these typically solitary (独处的) spiders experience near fellow spiders. “Whenever they do come across another spider, it’s usually because it’s a close relative in the nest, or a potential mate. Both of which are situations in which aggression would not be a good idea,” she says.
Zoologist Ondřej Michálek, who was not involved with the study, says that the researchers have a “completely valid theory.” Many spiders avoid cannibalism (同类相食) by using special touch signals that could be copied by skilful predators, thus tricking the spiders, he says.
1. What is unusual about assassin bugs?| A．Their bite is poisonous. | B．Their movements make little noise. |
| C．They don’t avoid spiders’ webs. | D．They kill their prey violently. |
| A．They used a great deal of time and effort. | B．They were able to defend themselves. |
| C．They deliberately touched the spiders. | D．They were able to kill the spiders. |
| A．They are keen on physical touch. | B．They are pretending to be spiders. |
| C．They are usually solitary. | D．They are looking for a mate. |
| A．Why animals use complex hunting tactics. | B．Why assassin bugs tap their prey. |
| C．Assassin bugs have a poisonous bite. | D．Assassin bugs-a dangerous predator. |
6 . I held them in awe. My supervisors at Cambridge in the 50s were of the generation who had served in the war: codebreakers, that kind of thing. They were fiercely intelligent in a way my schoolteachers had not been. I was full of admiration and fear. It was why I had studied hard to be there, to meet the finest brains in the land. But I was to learn a lesson.
Betty Behrens was formidable: tall, with long legs. She taught European history. In my first essay, about the French Revolution，I poured out my soul. I saw it as a new dawn of freedom and fulfilment such as Cambridge meant to me.
The essay came back untouched. I thought there must be some mistake. I had delivered it as required, on time, neatly handwritten. Now it lay on my table exactly as I had written it: no comments, no corrections of dates or names, nothing. My excitement disappeared. What of my beautiful writing-had it been somehow overlooked?
The truth was worse. On the final page, there was indeed an intervention by Betty Behrens: a line drawn through my writing and a brief paragraph. This piece of work was not worthy of any consideration by her: It was worthless, trite（老生常谈的）rubbish. If I was to continue to study with her, there must be a serious effort to understand what scholarship was.
I was knocked back with the force of her disapproval. There was nothing I wanted more than to impress this wise, clever woman. I was totally destroyed. What is clear now is those professors were not up on the niceties of human relations. There was no empathy in her remarks. In those days, issues of mental health were not considered. You were there to learn; they were there to teach.
In the event, the shock of her criticism paid off. I had nowhere to go but into my own head. The thought of sharing my shame with college colleagues was out of the question. I had some serious thinking to do. I went back to my books: the clear prose of Keynes, the measured tones of Plumb, the steady logic of Butterfield... the standard texts of the day. It proved a turning point for me. I began to examine what shaped my ideas — indeed, what shaped anyone’s ideas. I wanted and intended to do better.
Of course, my student life wasn’t all struggle and regret. I spent much of my time falling in and out of love and enjoying the world of Cambridge theatre. But when I became a journalist, Betty Behrens stood at my shoulder, my ghostly editor, reminding me the bedrock of all good journalism is thorough research, analysis of facts, a willingness to consider all points of view — and only then to let the emotions erupt on to the page.
1. What was wrong with the writer’s first essay?| A．It was too emotional | B．It was too short |
| C．There were too many mistakes | D．It was too long |
| A．The writer should rewrite her essay |
| B．The writer should rethink her approach to learning |
| C．The writer should check her work carefully |
| D．The writer should make her work briefer |
| A．She did more reading | B．She suffered mental health issues |
| C．She turned to her friends | D．She consulted her teacher |
| A．A tough but lasting lesson | B．An unsuccessful but promising essay |
| C．A kind and friendly teacher | D．A diligent and successful student |
7 . Julian Murphy has had a successful week. He’s the headmaster of an independent school called Loughborough Amherst school and he seems a bit media-friendly. Do you know what I mean? Those media-friendly headmasters? They’re regularly announcing something and not just in school — in the media. They pop up with some teaching thing: maths should only happen after lunch or they’re replacing physics with farming lessons. Anthony Seldon and Eric Anderson were the pioneers — always ringing up with a theory instead of standing in a playground with a coffee and a whistle.
Murphy first got round to being media-friendly back in 2017 when he said he was getting rid of school reports. His reasons were, he told the Independent, that “they end up using almost politician’s speak, using the same phrases such as ‘very lively and enthusiastic in lessons’, which of course actually means they don’t behave well in class”, and that some teachers, “let’s say PE or maths teachers — find writing 200-word long reports quite challenging”.
I quite like his style. He tells it like it is. Well, actually, not any more he doesn’t. Last week’s theory was a bit different. He’s banned staff, he explained to a newspaper, from using the words “good” and “bad” to refer to pupils’ behaviour. Instead, they should say “skilful” and “unskilful”.
One famous presenter tweeted in reply: “What on earth will these poor kids do when they’re exposed to the real world? This is so... BAD.” This suggests that the most sensible way for a school to prepare its students for the big wide world is simply to copy it. The “sink or swim” approach. “Look at those poor cosseted（宠爱）kids wearing armbands（充气臂圈）.” “In the real world no one’s going to carefully explain to you how to read！” But, surely, the fact that people are often rude, and sometimes violent and criminal, in the real world doesn’t mean that it’s necessarily a sound idea to encourage those things inside a school.
This is how Murphy explained his new rule: “While I don’t want teachers to be soft, I also don’t want them to be shouty and make pupils feel guilty. I think it’s human psychology — if people make you feel guilty, then you get angry.” I think I agree with that.
Still, in the long run, I’m not sure it’ll do any lasting skilful. Words quickly change their meanings and schoolchildren are a major driver of that. Playgrounds have taken every polite expression for disability ever invented and almost instantly weaponised them as terms of abuse between all kids. It won’t be long before “unskillful” is ruder than “bad” ever was. Rudeness, like life itself, will find a way.
1. What does the writer think of Antony Seldon and Eric Anderson?| A．They had a lot of theories | B．Their schools were poorly run |
| C．They were media-friendly | D．They were pioneers in teaching |
| A．They are challenging to read | B．They are lively and enthusiastic |
| C．They give teachers too much work | D．They are of little use |
| A．Opposed | B．Neutral |
| C．Uncertain | D．Supportive |
| A．Kids often use weapons | B．Disabled kids are always bullied |
| C．Rude language is common | D．Kids like to discuss words’ meanings |
8 . Best smartwatches you can buy right now
1. Apple Watch SE
The Apple Watch SE is the best smartwatch money can buy right now, but it’s only the right choice for you if you own an iPhone. If you do have an iPhone, you may wonder why the Apple Watch 6 doesn’t take our title of the very best smartwatch? That’s because the Apple Watch SE does almost everything that smartwatch can, but for a much lower price.
The Apple Watch SE comes with a high-end design and a great range of features that you can’t get on every other smartwatch right now. The battery life isn’t the best on the market based on our tests, and there isn’t an always-on display, but if you’re after a great value for money choice for your next wrist companion you should opt for the Apple Watch SE.
2. Samsung Galaxy Watch 4
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 is a wearable that had a lot of publicity around it. This sees Samsung return to Wear OS, having used Tizen for recent models. But this isn’t Wear OS as you might know it — it’s a new take on the operating system, designed alongside Samsung, and with a very Tizen-like skin on the top.
Add to that great performance, what we found to be a comfortable fit, a lightweight build, and interesting new body composition measurement tools, and this makes for a top smartwatch, especially for those interested in tracking their health and fitness.
But with some of its features requiring a Samsung phone, and no support for iPhones, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 isn’t something we can recommend to everyone. It also arguably isn’t worth upgrading to if you already own a recent Galaxy Watch.
3. Apple Watch 6
The Apple Watch 6 hasn’t taken the top spot in our best smartwatch list, but this is the absolute best device you can get if you own an iPhone. Why isn’t it ranked above the Apple Watch SE? Because it’s a lot more expensive than that option.
It isn’t a huge upgrade over the Apple Watch 5 though. There are new features like blood oxygen monitoring and an upgraded chipset, but largely it’s a similar device with the exact same screen and design.
That said, if you’re after an Apple Watch this is the best from the company ever, we just found the lack of any major upgrades a slight disappointment.
1. What is a disadvantage of the Apple Watch SE?| A．It has a poor range of features | B．The display is always on |
| C．It is poor value for money | D．The battery life is not outstanding |
| A．It doesn’t support iPhones | B．It is comfortable |
| C．It can’t be recommended to everyone | D．It uses a different operating system |
| A．The blood oxygen monitor | B．The screen |
| C．The price | D．The chipset |
9 . A few years ago, I stood in a small classroom, watching a high schooler named Serena Stevenson answer math questions. An instructor read out numbers-7447, 7089, 9842-and Stevenson added them in her head. For each question, she closed her eyes, and then the fingers of her right hand began to move. She answered most of the problems correctly.
The key to her success was an ancient technology called the abacus (算盘). For much of that evening, Stevenson used a practice called "mental abacus", imagining the abacus in her mind and then using her fingers to work through the problem.
From watching Stevenson, I knew that gaining skills on the abacus was more than a matter of counting beads (珠子), so I decided to sign up for an abacus course with my two daughters to see if we could also improve our math skills. I was one of the many who held some math doubts and I felt a touch of fear of math. My typical solution was simple-just escape, and if I had to calculate something like percentage change, I would go online.
Then after a few abacus classes-and a lot of practice-math seemed a little less frightening. I hadn't become Euclid. But the practice brought my numerical fears down a level. This is long-demonstrated power of the abacus. Confidence grows easily on the device, and abacus students are less likely to be nervous about an upcoming math test, according to one study. Part of the reason, it seems, is practice and results appear to move in step, with hard work about performance.
My kids had gained some math confidence as well. My youngest daughter would smile broadly after getting math problem correct, while my older child brought her abacus to school to show to her classmates and teachers. These were small successes. But that's how they eventually develop confidence.
1. What is the main purpose of the first paragraph?| A．To prove the difficulty of math. | B．To introduce the topic of the abacus. |
| C．To suggest teaching abacus in schools. | D．To tell an interesting story of Stevenson. |
| A．He was not good at math. | B．He had no interest in the abacus. |
| C．He considered math really useful. | D．He learned mental abacus from Stevenson. |
| A．All roads lead to Rome. | B．Practice makes perfect. |
| C．Many hands make light work. | D．He who laughs last laughs best. |
| A．Finally. | B．Thoroughly. | C．Flexibly. | D．Slightly. |
10 . Speaking a foreign language is a high demand skill nowadays. Foreign language skills can help you get jobs. It even matters if you’re a social worker—the ability to communicate with customers in their own language is a huge advantage.
Learning a foreign language takes years of hard work. Luckily, two famous Japanese inventors took language translation to the next level and created an instant translator called MUAMA Enence. It can easily translate real-time speech into over 40 languages using only a few finger-taps. Thus, you don’t need to learn another language to be able to communicate in it. Difficulties caused by language barriers will soon be a thing of the past!
MUAMA Enence can transform you into an able-communication instantly. With its lightweight design and small size, MUAMA Enence is easy to carry in any pocket and is right there when needed. MUAMA Enence is inexpensive. An experienced professional translator or interpreter can be costly, and you need to pay more than once. MUAMA Enence requires just a one-off payment for a huge selection of languages. Its built-in advanced technology can support a 2-way language translation. Moreover, a text translation is also available.
Though MUAMA Enence was created mainly for travelers, it started gaining massive popularity among people of different occupations. All of a sudden, it became a must-have device! What surprised us is that more and more social workers and volunteers are choosing MUAMA Enence to make their work easier. We asked people who have used MUAMA Enence to explain how it works for them. The results showed that people have increased their job quality after using the Translator.
Language barriers should no longer be your concern anymore, and the answer is definitely YES! Now it’s the best time to do it, because MUAMA Enence may run out of stock soon due to its high popularity worldwide.
1. What can we learn from the text?| A．MUAMA Enence is easy to carry and use. |
| B．MUAMA Enence is popular only in Japan. |
| C．MUAMA Enence was created mainly for businessmen. |
| D．MUAMA Enence can translate speeches into 40 languages. |
| A．The popularity of MUAMA Enente. | B．The functions of MUAMA Enence. |
| C．The advantages of MUAMA Enence. | D．The importance of MUAMA Enence. |
| A．Because it can translate texts. | B．Because it can do their work for them. |
| C．Because it uses advanced technology. | D．Because it makes their work easier and better. |
| A．Doing Your Work Easier And Better | B．Learning Foreign Languages-No Need! |
| C．MUAMA Enence-Learning Foreign Languages Faster | D．Speaking a Foreign Language-More Job Opportunities |
