The Spring Equinox (春分)
Standing
As the Spring Equinox comes, farm work starts and both the farmers and the cattle start to become busy. Farmers will reward cattle with sticky rice balls to express their
2 . Jiang Shumei learned her first Chinese character at the age of 60. Now, the 87-year-old grandmother from Northeast China’s Heilongjiang province is the proud author of six books.
“I wasn’t educated as a child. I never imagined, even in my wildest dreams, that I would publish a book one day,” says the resident of Suihua city. Her books detail the chaos of wartime and the hardship during the famine, and vividly retell anecdotes over the decades.
The elderly woman had her own way of learning. She composed lyrics for songs, and asked children to write them down, so that she could read each character as she sang the songs again and again. Whenever she came across characters she didn’t know on pamphlets (小册子), bus stops, or shop signs, she found someone to ask.
She first put pen to paper in 2012, at the age of 75. It was not easy. Sometimes, completing a single sentence could take a day. As a college teacher and a writer herself, Zhang Ailing, Jiang Shumei’s daughter, gave her mother a lot of encouragement and help. She told her that while writing, she should imagine herself telling stories to an audience, so that they would be easier to understand and be full of interesting details.
Zhang was also her first editor. Every time her mother finished writing something, she would discuss the manuscript (手稿) with her and check it over before typing it on the computer. Zhang began publishing her mother’s stories on social media platforms in 2013. When they drew the attention of her writer friends, the pair made the decision to publish them.
The first book, Time of Trouble, Time of Poverty, was published later that year, and proved to be a success. The book earned Jiang a lot of fans and sympathy. So far, the elderly woman has published six books, totaling more than 600,000 characters in length. In her spare time, she is also learning painting and calligraphy. “I would like to be a writer, a painter and a calligrapher,” she says, adding that her dream now is to have her own art exhibition when she is 90.
1. How did Jiang Shumei learn characters?| A．By reading books with her children. |
| B．By asking questions whenever she was free. |
| C．By going to a college to get herself educated. |
| D．By singing lyrics and memorizing characters around her. |
| A．Her hard-work and Zhang’s support. |
| B．The care and attention from the public. |
| C．The help from her friends and editors. |
| D．The popularity of social media platforms. |
| A．At the age of 60. | B．In the year 2012. |
| C．At her 87-year-old. | D．In the year 2013. |
| A．Adversity makes a man wise. | B．Practice makes perfect. |
| C．It is never too old to learn. | D．Still water runs deep. |
3 . The annual South Boston St. Patrick’s Day parade will be held on Sunday, March 17, beginning at 1 p.m. ET. This is the 119th-annual parade for the historically-Irish city, and always falls on the Sunday closest to St. Patrick’s Day. This year, it luckily falls on the day of the holiday itself.
The Route
According to the Allied War Veterans Council, the parade will start at 1 p.m. at Broadway station and move up West Broadway. It will continue on East Broadway, take a right on P Street, then a right onto East Fourth Street.
From East Fourth Street, it will turn left onto K Street, then right onto East Fifth Street, where it will continue until taking a left onto G Street. It will stay left of South Boston High School to Thomas Park, and follow the park until it takes a left at Telegraph Street and another left to Dorchester Street. The parade will stay on Dorchester Street until its end in Andrew Square.
How to participate
If you’re local to the area or traveling especially to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, you can, of course, attend the parade in person. But for everyone else, there are a few options on how to watch it live.
Local stations NBC10 Boston and NECN will air the parade on television or stream on various platforms starting at 1 p.m. ET, including on Peacock, Roku and on its YouTube channel.
USA TODAY is also providing coverage for the parade in Boston, as well as celebration in other U.S. cities over the weekend, including New York City and Chicago. You can watch the parade at the top of this page or on USA TODAY’s YouTube channel.
1. Where will St. Patrick’s Day parade start?| A．Broadway station. | B．Dorchester Street. |
| C．K Street. | D．South Boston High School. |
| A．To call for donations. | B．To recommend a traditional holiday. |
| C．To inform people of an activity. | D．To explain a period of history. |
| A．A magazine. | B．A history book. |
| C．The internet. | D．A travel brochure. |
When I was young, I always dreamed of playing the piano and giving performances to a large audience in a concert hall. However, I struggled to understand the musical notes and the theory. Despite my parents’ encouragement and offer of piano lessons, I pretended not to be interested, too afraid to try.
Many years passed until one day, at 25 years old, I heard that a new piano studio had opened in my neighborhood. The teacher was recruiting (招收) new students. My childhood dream came flooding back.
I remembered I had initially feared becoming a teacher after graduation. However, I overcame those doubts. I refused to let fear hold me back any longer, so I walked into the studio.
The teacher, Deb, welcomed me warmly. I was relieved to find we were contemporaries (同时代的人) and expressed my desire to play the works of Bach and Beethoven if I could overcome my fear. Deb understood and seemed sincere, so I signed up for 3 months of classes. Still doubtful about my commitment, I bought a small, tabletop electric organ to practice with at home. It wasn’t the same as a real piano, but enabled me to learn some basics.
Week by week, I attended lessons in Deb’s studio. I often passed young students on their way out from their lessons before mine. One day, noticing the textbooks in my bag, a child stopped me and asked, “Where’s your boy?” After some hesitation, I finally answered I was the student. The children then welcomed me and I sat in the studio and listened to a piece a child was working on.
Soon, I gained confidence and upgraded to a full-size piano at home for daily practice. After three rewarding years of lessons with Deb, she announced it was time for me and other students to prepare for a recital (钢琴演奏会) on stage. I was thrilled at the chance to finally fulfill my childhood dream, yet also anxious at the thought of performing before the audience. But Deb believed in me. “Look how far you’ve come,” she encouraged. “It’s time to share your gift with others.”
Paragraph 1:I shook my head and told her, “No, thanks.”
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2:
When I finally finished my performance, I faced the audience and bowed.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________In recent years, climate change has had a great impact
According to climate scientists, a key climate process,
Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere trap some of the heat,
The evidence shows that the rise in temperature has led to an increase in extreme weather and natural
6 . J. K. Rowling frequently shows there is magic every day. Her Harry Potter series has helped people through times of stress and depression and she is always there to deliver wise words of encouragement.
She is one celebrity who is very active on Twitter. So when a single dad named Matt Burke sent her a message thanking her for the series, she noticed. Her series had helped strengthen his relationship with his 9yearold daughter Bailey.
He included a link to his article titled Being a Broke Parent. He explained how he hadn’t found a level of financial stability that allowed him to pay bills on time and take his daughter on more activities and events. The family also doesn’t have the Internet or TV, which means there’s no “digital babysitter” and he has to rely on his own creative ways to bond with his daughter. Since he received the series, the main thing that has occupied them these days is reading books together.
Burke admits that he thought he was “too cool” for the books when they first came out and he was in his twenties, but he’s loving reading them now. “We switch off chapter by chapter reading them out loud，“Burke explains.” This not only allows her to get more used to reading aloud in front of someone, but it gets me directly involved in something she loves, and it gives me the chance to be very dramatic when I read my chapters and bring myself into the characters in the book, which has proven to be a ton of fun.”
After hearing Burke’s story, Rowling said how honored she was when Harry Potter was a part of his family’s life and offered Burke more books. Besides, people are also offering to send Burke more books as gifts. For Burke, this experience, far more than gifts, will be what he treasures.
1. Why did Burke thank J. K. Rowling according to the text?| A．She guided him how to write a good story. |
| B．She encouraged him when he was in trouble. |
| C．Her books helped him through times of confusion. |
| D．Her books helped him improve his bond with his daughter. |
| A．He has found it interesting to read the series. | B．He was too old to understand the series better. |
| C．He has chosen a better way of reading the series. | D．He hopes to play a role in the drama in the future. |
| A．Useless. | B．Normal. | C．Valuable. | D．Boring. |
| A．J. K. Rowling chooses to help improve kids’ health. |
| B．J. K. Rowling gives a magical gift to a single father. |
| C．J. K. Rowling has a deep influence on others’ growth. |
| D．Burke comes to know J. K. Rowling through her series. |
7 . A family of six is happy to be back home in Quebec after spending a year traveling the globe. Edith Lemay and Sebastien Pelletier organized this
The Canadian couple
The family set out in March 2022,
When things don't go as
| A．program | B．journey | C．campaign | D．exploration |
| A．remove | B．restore | C．fill | D．treasure |
| A．noticed | B．confirmed | C．regretted | D．concluded |
| A．negotiation | B．familiarity | C．combination | D．consultation |
| A．common | B．seasonal | C．rare | D．mental |
| A．As a result | B．More importantly | C．In a sense | D．Worse still |
| A．short | B．super | C．visual | D．early |
| A．idea | B．rule | C．task | D．excuse |
| A．entering | B．crossing | C．circling | D．approaching |
| A．marking out | B．looking back on | C．taking in | D．watching out for |
| A．adapt | B．refer | C．respond | D．agree |
| A．faults | B．challenges | C．conflicts | D．choices |
| A．discovered | B．promised | C．expected | D．mentioned |
| A．prefer | B．advocate | C．acknowledge | D．escape |
| A．fearlessly | B．modestly | C．gratefully | D．honestly |
8 . Neerja wakes up at 7 o’clock. She finds that she has a birthday cap over her head. She’s both
Things are getting more and more
She comes forward to
On her way to school, she continuously
She goes to him and says, “I’m really sorry. I just
| A．angry | B．surprised | C．calm | D．relaxed |
| A．checks | B．sells | C．repairs | D．answers |
| A．difficult | B．important | C．discouraging | D．unclear |
| A．clean | B．find | C．enter | D．book |
| A．worried | B．certain | C．honest | D．careful |
| A．cut | B．buy | C．make | D．store |
| A．boring | B．special | C．possible | D．understandable |
| A．realize | B．remember | C．imagine | D．regret |
| A．cake | B．gift | C．phone | D．title |
| A．forgets | B．hears | C．lies | D．thinks |
| A．dream | B．idea | C．question | D．message |
| A．patiently | B．sadly | C．nervously | D．hopefully |
| A．failed | B．refused | C．managed | D．wanted |
| A．looking into | B．talking about | C．laughing at | D．dealing with |
| A．training | B．studies | C．friendship | D．problems |
9 . That artificial food dyes (染料) are unhealthy is not news. Some are known to cause hyperactivity (多动症) in some children, affecting their ability to learn. But regulatory agencies (监管机构) around the world don’t necessarily agree on which food dyes are a problem, or why. That may soon change. A 2021 peer-reviewed report by California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment concluded that artificial food dyes “cause or worsen neurobehavioral (神经行为的) problems in some children” and that the current levels that are regarded safe for consumption by the federal government are too high.
California is now considering requiring warning labels on food products and dietary supplements containing the seven most commonly used artificial dyes. The warning label requirement would put California on par with the European Union, which since 2010 has required food products containing certain artificial food dyes to carry warning labels about their negative effect on activity and attention in children.
Artificial dyes are used in foods for one reason: to make products look prettier. Bright colors make candies appealing, especially to kids. But dyes are also in chocolate cake mixes, salad dressings and other products that don’t seem to cry out for a color boost.
In Europe, it was the 2010 label lawmaking that triggered (引发) companies’ decisions to reformulate. “If you’re a company, you do not want to put a warning label on your product.” says Lefferts, an environmental health consultant. Warning labels are why European Starburst Fruit Chews are now colored with natural products, not the artificial dyes that brighten their North American counterparts (同类商品).
Given that artificial food dyes are used far more than needed, we need to be more cautious. After all, we don’t dye fresh fruits and vegetables, but we do dye candy and sprinkles, points out Joe Schwarcz, a chemistry professor at McGill University in Montreal. “The foods in which you find food dyes are foods that are poor in nutrition,” he says. “If you limit foods that contain food dyes, you automatically make your diet better.”
1. What can we learn about artificial food dyes from paragraph 1?| A．A 2021 report confirmed their negative effects. |
| B．The fact that they are harmful is newly revealed. |
| C．Regulatory agencies consider them a serious problem. |
| D．The Federal government thinks their current standard too high. |
| A．In opposition to. | B．In line with. | C．Ahead of. | D．Behind. |
| A．Food companies will stop coloring their products. |
| B．More fresh fruits and vegetables will appear in the market. |
| C．Food companies may replace artificial dyes with natural products. |
| D．It will be hard to find packaged foods without warning labels of dyes. |
| A．Approving. | B．Neutral. | C．Tolerant. | D．Concerned. |
10 . Flea market is an outdoor market that sells old or used goods at low prices. Here are four best ones in Europe.
Braderie de Lille--Lille, France
Dating back to the 12th century, Braderie de Lille is larger than any other flea market in Europe at nearly 100 kilometers of vendors (摊贩) as far as the eye can see. This market is annually held on the first weekend of September, and approximately 10, 000 exhibitors sell items from cheap articles to treasures.
EI Rastro Flea Market--Madrid, Spain
El Rastro Plea Market is a popular market in Madrid, with a history of over 400 years. It is held every Suinday and public holiday during the year. You can find second-hand articles for daily use, yet it can be difficult to find the perfect rare items.
Vrijmarkt Amsterdam--Amsterdam, Holland
This flea market is actually a car boot sale organized on King's Day. Since 1890, King's Day is a day of the year when the Dutch government allows sales on the streets without the payment of value-added tax. At the Vondel park, you can see kids selling their cast-off toys and books. Most of the time, these kids are handsomely paid by visitors.
Arezzo Flea Market—Arezzo, Italy
This market has been going on since 1968 and happens on the first Sunday of every month. If you are looking for a collection of antiques like old furniture, old-fashioned telephones, stained silverware, Roman coins and grandfather clocks, this is the perfect market to visit.
1. Which of the following is the largest flea market?| A．Arezzo Flea Market. | B．Braderie de Lille. |
| C．El Rastro Flea Market. | D．Vrijmarkt Amsterdam. |
| A．In Madrid. | B．In Lille. | C．In Amsterdam. | D．In Arezzo. |
| A．It was set up the earliest. | B．Its vendors sell antiques. |
| C．It appeals to children most. | D．Its stands deal in everyday items. |
