1 . Many of our most worrying problems, from overeating to not saving enough for retirement to not working out enough have something in common: lack of self-control. Self-control is what gives us the capacity to say no to choices that are immediately satisfying but costly in the long term — that a piece of chocolate cake (instead of an apple), that afternoon in front of the couch (instead of a visit to the gym).     1    

The problem of self-control has puzzled psychologists and behavioral scientists for decades. A great deal of research has identified situations in which self-control failures are likely to happen and tools to help people exercise better control.     2     These motivating incentives can increase our self-control, at least up to a point.

Entrepreneurs have also become interested in self-control, as is evident from the many diet and exercise apps and gadgets on the market. To take one notable example, on the commitment contract website stickK.com, users put down some money (say, $200) and state a goal they want to achieve (such as to lose ten pounds in a month).     3     If they meet their goal, they earn their money back. If they don’t, they lose the money.

Tools like stickK.com can be effective, but they are often difficult to implement. My colleagues and I conducted a new research to point to a different solution that may be easier to carry out: using rituals.

    4     Players in all sorts of sports have rituals that involve actions such as eating the same foods in exactly the same order before a game. From the way some prepare their coffee to the way people celebrate important life events, like weddings or graduations, rituals are a part of our daily life. And though they may seem useless, or even silly, research has found that rituals are powerful.

A．They have to point out someone to monitor them and ensure they reach the goal or donate the money.

B．Despite our best intentions, we often fail to meet our goals.

C．Rituals are series of steps we take while attaching some kind of symbolic meaning.

D．In the past, my colleagues and I have found that rituals reduce anxiety before stressful tasks, and improve performance.

E．They also need to state what will happen to the money if they don’t stick to their commitments (e.g., it’ll go to a friend or to a charity they do not like).

F．For instance, research has found that people persist for longer on tasks that require self-control when they know they’ll be paid for their efforts, or when they are told that their work will benefit others.

2 . Animal products could produce electricity, one British power company warns — and to give consumers a choice, it's offering what it calls the world’s first vegan electricity.

Ecotricity, a renewable energy provider in the U.K., announced its electricity and gas would be certified vegan after it claimed half of British homes are powered by electricity made from animal byproducts. Company founder Dale Vince accused companies that consider themselves “ethical” or “green” of keeping consumers in the dark about their “secret ingredient.” “We need clear labeling of energy sourcing so that people can make informed choices,” he said in a statement.

The company offers “vegan energy” in wind and solar power, and it’s developing “sea power” produced by wave oscillation and marine currents. None of Ecotricity’s electrical sources contains animal byproducts that the company knew of before it made the announcement, but it registered with the Vegan Society to certify its green status.

Though not widely disclosed, it’s fairly common for power companies to derive electricity from animals through anaerobic digestion (厌氧消化). Animal waste is generally considered a clean, renewable energy source. Turning manure into fuel eliminates a sizeable chunk of carbon pollution and lessens power companies’ reliance on “dirtier” fossil fuels like coal and oil. Plus, animals provide a limitless supply of waste, while Earth’s natural gas stores are finite, so crackers wouldn’t need to drill into rock to extract it.

Cows are pictured at a Wagyu cattle breeding center in June in Petit-Mars, France. A U.K. energy company announced the first “vegan electricity” after warning consumers about animal byproducts in energy production.

After anaerobic digestion, farmers can use the liquid remains of the manure as fertilizer and make chips for animal bedding from the solid leftovers, chemical engineer David Simakov told Popular Science.

“We are talking about producing the amount of renewable natural gas enough to heat thousands of homes from just a single large landfill site,” he said. “We need to stop pumping carbon from underground into the atmosphere and start caring about introducing more and more renewable energy to make our lives more sustainable.”

Renewable energy only accounts for 11 percent of energy consumption in the U.S., according to the Energy Information Administration. Fossil fuels and nuclear energy generate more than 80 percent of the country’s electricity, and that’s unlikely to change: like other clean energy sources, anaerobic digestion is still more expensive than traditional sources of energy.

1. According to Dale Vince, ____________________.

A．it’s necessary for consumers to know how electricity is produced

B．people don’t need to make choices of whether to use vegan electricity

C．vegan electricity and gas shouldn’t use animal byproducts

D．it’s not certain whether Ecotricity has used animal byproducts

2. In Paragraph 2, “secret ingredient” refers to ___________________.

A．an energy provider

B．vegan energy

C．animal waste

D．energy labelling

3. What can be inferred from the passage?

A．It’s forbidden to get exploited natural gas since it is limited.

B．Clean energy may not replace fossil fuels to be used by families.

C．Power companies can rely on animal waste to produce clean energy.

D．The waste of cows is first used to produce clean energy in the world.

4. What does the author think of clean energy?

A．It has been a mainstream.

B．It has a promising future.

C．Consumers tend to use more clean energy now.

D．Its producing cost has decreased its popularity.

3 . 我们历时三年时间，开发了一款体育器材，既强身健体，又促进心理健康。(commit) （汉译英）
_____________________________________________________

4 . Virtual reality is considered as having the potential to transform how doctors diagnose and treat a number of mental illnesses, and the front lines of this revolution may be forming in China. Its market is wide open for ___________ and developers have an opportunity to leapfrog past traditional care models and make China an early adopter of VR psychiatry (精神病治疗) on a large scale.

VR psychiatric applications include immersing patients in simulations that seem real, exposing their brain—but not their body—to ___________ situations and helping them learn to train their physical and emotional responses. ___________, an alcohol-addicted patient can sit at a virtual bar without drinking, and a person too anxious to fly can ___________ takeoff and landing while staying firmly on the ground. Such treatments can yield fast, dramatic results: in one case a woman calculating heights could calmly ride an escalator after a three-hour course of VR ___________ therapy.

Researchers around the world have been _________ these technologies—with promising results. Through the end of 2016, peer-reviewed journals had published nearly 300 studies on using VR to treat mental health disorders. And then this March, JAMA Psychiatry published what researchers say is the first ever randomized controlled trial of a therapist-free VR ___________ of acrophobia, or fear of heights. It found the technology to be ___________, inexpensive and well-received by patients.

In China, treatment rates of mental disorders are low, which is partially linked to a shortage of trained professionals. World Health Organization data show China’s concentration of psychiatrists is four times lower than the global average, with only 2.2 per 100,000 people (the U.S. rate is 10.5). Another reason for low treatment rates is ___________. While similar biases exist in many countries, studies have shown people with psychiatric problems endure especially high levels of ____________ in China.

Many supporters of mental health VR think it can help ____________ both caregiver shortages and shame. Because the technology can be fully automated, it can easily scale to meet the needs of many people. And many think VR treatments could break through cultural barriers because they can take place in a ____________ place via a gamelike interface(界面), such as at home.

Despite the enthusiasm, however, experts warn that technology is no panacea(灵丹妙药). “VR can only be one part of mental health care and not the whole system,” one expert says. Even some of the technology’s strongest supporters ____________ that important safety and ethical guidelines are still lacking.

Still, with overwhelming demand for services and distrust of traditional care, ____________ health is booming in China. In psychiatry in particular, there is a relatively blank canvas for technological innovation—and VR is poised to fill a big chunk of that void(真空). If it does so, China could make significant strides to ____________ its treatment gap. It might even provide a model for other countries with shortages in their mental health care systems.

1.

A．promotion

B．complaint

C．innovation

D．trade

2.

A．worsening

B．improving

C．relieving

D．challenging

3.

A．For example

B．What’s more

C．By contrast

D．In conclusion

4.

A．prevent

B．experience

C．postpone

D．support

5.

A．group

B．standard

C．exposure

D．relaxation

6.

A．testing

B．adopting

C．exporting

D．transferring

7.

A．maintenance

B．intervention

C．equipment

D．defense

8.

A．effective

B．sensitive

C．complex

D．fair

9.

A．scientific

B．specific

C．cultural

D．diplomatic

10.

A．anxiety

B．shame

C．endurance

D．competition

11.

A．bring

B．address

C．create

D．face

12.

A．secret

B．safe

C．quiet

D．private

13.

A．caution

B．require

C．protest

D．explain

14.

A．financial

B．environmental

C．digital

D．public

15.

A．widen

B．close

C．discover

D．avoid

5 . Directions: Read the following two passages. Fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper from of the given word. For the other blanks, fill in each blank with one proper word. Make sure that your answers are grammatically correct.

It’s a Friday morning in Boston, which means Dr. Jim O’Connell is making his rounds. He might be more comfortable inside an exam room, but that’s not where his patients are. O’Connell is one of a handful of physicians making house calls to the homeless in the city.

More than 550,000 Americans are homeless, and many have health problems but no access to care. O’Connell and his team,     1     (make) up of psychiatrists, internists, a nurse practitioner, a case manager, and a recovery coach, are doing something about it. They spend their days walking around     2     the homeless live—in parks, under bridges, and on the outskirts of town. They treat about 700 regular patients. During these rounds, O’Connell     3     usually sees about 20 patients. He knows where most of them sleep and whom to ask     4     they are missing. “I feel like I’m a country doctor in the middle of the city, you know?” he said.

O’Connell went to Harvard Medical School and was on his way to a prestigious oncology (肿瘤学) fellowship when his chief suggested he     5     (take) what was supposed to be a one-year position as the founding physician of a new health-care program for Boston’s homeless. That turned into a 33-year career at the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, one of the country’s     6     (large) of its kind.

“You realize, ‘You know what, I’m just a doctor. And what I can do is I can get to know you and ease your suffering, just     7     I would as an oncologist,’” O’Connell said. “You could not find     8     more grateful population.”

And his patients are grateful. “This man is unbelievable!” one remarked. “He’s like Jesus,” another added.

When asked about     9     his life might have turned out had he become a highly paid oncologist, O’Connell said, “I never think about it anymore.” Some things are more valuable than money. Just ask the man     10     gets everything from patients with nothing material to give.

6 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。1.

A．Friends.	B．Brother and sister.
C．Husband and wife.	D．Estate agent and customer.

2.

A．The size of the garage.	B．The color of the house.
C．The design of the house.	D．The number of the bedrooms.

3.

A．The house has four bedrooms.

B．All the bedrooms are very small.

C．All the bedrooms are on the second floor.

D．The master bedroom has an attached bathroom.

4.

A．Look at more pictures of the house.

B．Find out the problems that the house has.

C．Go to have a look at the house personally.

D．Call the agent and get the house right now.

7 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。1.

A．He was more intelligent than others.	B．He had a closer touch with the river.
C．He was quite ambitious at a young age.	D．He was cut off from the outside world.

2.

A．It is full of hopes and opportunities.

B．It is well known for the poetic beauty.

C．It is connected with poverty and hunger.

D．It has a great reputation for its great poets.

3.

A．It is something inherited from his ancestors.

B．It reminds him of his childhood memories.

C．It concerns his daily life in the village.

D．It provides material for his writing.

8 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。1.

A．In the mid-nineteenth century.	B．In the late nineteenth century.
C．In the mid-eighteenth century.	D．In the late eighteenth century.

2.

A．Because Chinese cooks made it less spicy.

B．Because Chop Suey was introduced in America.

C．Because Chinese food was altered to suit American tastes.

D．Because Chinese immigrants had made themselves accepted.

3.

A．It was first cooked to help miners get over cold weather.

B．Some hungry miners requested a new dish to be served.

C．A chef used the wrong recipes and produced it by chance.

D．A chef created the dish from the leftovers for some miners.

9 .

A．The article was actually longer.

B．The article was not good enough.

C．His publishing career has just begun.

D．He didn’t know his article was published.

10 .

A．She showed no interest in any news about exams at all.

B．She couldn't believe that the news about James was true.

C．She felt sorry for James' being caught cheating by teachers.

D．She thought James shouldn't have cheated in the final exam.