1 . Remember the woman in Port Hood, N. S. whose recipe for meat rolls spread all over the internet? The dog from Quebec that attracted hundreds of thousands of followers for its advice on surviving social isolation? The pilot whose path over Nova Scotia formed the shape of a heart?

All of their stories, and dozens more, are collected in a new book by two Canadian authors. It took Heather Down and Catherine Kenwell just a little more than seven weeks to collect the stories behind the 49 uplifting moments they recorded during the pandemic.

The book includes everything from the tale of Robbie Griffiths, the father from Paradise, N. L. who dressed up as Spider-Man so kids could have something positive in their day, to Carter Mann, the Grade 5 student from Sudbury, Ont, who wrote a poem to encourage front-line heroes including his own father, who is a health carer.

“Not Canceled: Canadian Caremongering in the Face of COVID-19” is a reminder that a lot of positive things happened during lockdown. The book’s title is a nod to the Canadian attitude and reaction to the pandemic, as the word “caremongering” has Canadian roots. Even the number of stories is no accident: it’s a reference to the 49th parallel, along which runs the Canada-U. S. border between Manitoba and B. C.

One of the stories in “Not Canceled” centers on the marriage of a couple in B. C. They may have had to shift their celebrations to a living room, but the ceremony was far from lonely. Friends showed up in their cars outside, with everyone tuned into the same radio station, so the bride and groom could have their first dance in the middle of the street.

Down wanted to document how the nation navigated such dark times with kindness. She told CTV News that “the response has been amazing. I’m so pleased.”

The stories included in the book are just the tip of the iceberg. Down says that there are so many stories left over that she and Kenwell might just have to do a second book.

1. What does the underlined word “uplifting” in Paragraph 2 mean?

A．Inspiring.

B．Embarrassing.

C．Mysterious.

D．Humorous.

2. What is the tale of Carter Mann?

A．He trained hard to become a health carer.

B．He wrote poems with the help of his father.

C．He used words to cheer up essential workers.

D．He dressed up as Spider-Man to please other kids.

3. What can be inferred about the title of the book?

A．It shows Canadian attitude and response.

B．It shows the total number of the stories.

C．It has the new-made word “caremongering”.

D．It contains Canada’s geographical information.

4. What happened during the wedding ceremony in B. C.?

A．It was canceled halfway.	B．It was held completely indoor.
C．It was witnessed by a group of friends.	D．It was broadcast live by a radio station.

2 . The halo effect is a cognitive bias (认知偏见) that affects our opinions of quality in products, brands, businesses or people. It describes our tendency to judge a wider concept on our experience of a single moment or interaction. That is, your experience of using a product may colour your impression of an entire brand.

This is a very surface-level, quick-fire response that’s deep in our mind. If we see a good or bad quality, we really can’t help thinking this “thing” must flow through to the rest of the person, business or brand. Marketers understand this and have been using it against you for years.

Advertisers want to back winners, especially those on big stages. The Olympics, the World Cup and the Super Bowl all attract huge amounts of advertising spend. Why? Because when sports stars win big, they create huge amounts of feel-good factors and a brand can use the halo effect to project some of those feel-good factors onto themselves.

Studies have shown that when a product has a label that it is either fair trade, sustainably sourced or organic in nature, it will receive higher ratings in customer satisfaction and people will pay more for it. In a blind taste test though, that’s not necessarily the case. The product could be considered poor in taste or quality, but the act of adding a certain label to the packaging increases people’s liking for it.

The halo effect is a bias we cannot escape. It is in action everywhere in the modern world. Every high-end product you experience leaves a lasting impression and every advertisement that catches your eye is looking to direct your attention towards something you may not have otherwise been interested in. As a consumer, be careful. There are businesses that will go to any extent to influence your behaviour. Next time you find yourself really wanting something, stop and ask yourself why.

1. How does the halo effect influence our opinions?

A．It helps us see things in a better way.	B．It deepens our understanding of things.
C．It stops us from jumping to conclusions.	D．It works on us through former experience.

2. Why do advertisers back winners of big events?

A．To use halo effect to attract more audience.

B．To contribute to the development of sports.

C．To connect their brands with positive emotions.

D．To drive sports stars to create feel-good factors.

3. What can be inferred about the halo effect from Paragraph 4?

A．It leads to false advertisements.	B．It results in incorrect judgments.
C．It ensures the quality of products.	D．It improves environmental protection.

4. What is the purpose of the last part of the text?

A．To warn of unplanned buying.	B．To summarize the halo effect.
C．To expose the influence of advertising.	D．To show modern marketing strategies.

3 . The middle class in Uganda is on the increase. So is the country’s tourism industry. The growth of restaurants and high-end hotels is evidence that both foreigners and Ugandans are spending money. But the owners of these businesses have often had to turn to other countries to find executive chefs (行政总厨) . The reason: a lack of well-trained chefs and other assistants at Ugandan restaurants. Slowly but surely, this is changing.

Uganda has a problem not normally found in a low-income country. It has a shortage of local chefs. In recent years, the number of restaurants and tourism-related businesses has risen. As a result, the demand for well-trained cooks and other assistants has grown. But experienced chefs are difficult to find. Jean Byamugisha is in the Uganda Hotel Owners Association. “The biggest challenge is capacity building. People really need a lot of training, especially now that we are competing to reach East African level.”

To meet the need, many restaurants have turned to neighboring countries for help. Enock Alumasi is from Kenya. He saw that Uganda had a lack of top chefs. So he helped set up the Impact Chefs Academy in 2013. The academy is the only school in Uganda that offers a full training program for chefs. It offers a number of program-starting with one-week courses for those who already have a career in the restaurant industry, to a year-long training program.

One recent day, several students were learning the different ways to fry an egg. This may sound like something that comes naturally to a chef. But some workers have never cooked an egg before. Brian Kazibe has worked as a chef. He says that some trainees have learned about five different areas of restaurant operations over three months. “By the time they get to the kitchen,” he says, “they only remain for two or three weeks, which is not really enough for them.”

The Impact Chef’s Academy has trained more than 3, 000 people in the past two years. Jean Byaugisha says that the need is still growing. “The impact is not yet felt. One week’s training for a chef is too short. We need somebody who can come for two months, six months, nine months and train the chefs and release somebody who can actually come to the restaurant or a hotel and prepare a meal that everybody will fall over themselves to pay for.” However, the academy has gotten a taste of success; it looks forward to expanding.

1. What can be inferred from the first two paragraphs?

A．Uganda is a high-income country now.

B．Tourism is Uganda’s main source of GDP.

C．Visitors go to Uganda mainly for its foods.

D．Uganda’s economy develops at a high speed.

2. What can we learn about the Impact Chef’s Academy?

A．It mainly trains students to fry eggs.

B．It provides courses different in length.

C．It employs teachers from neighboring countries.

D．It was set up by Enock Alumasi in Kenya in 2013.

3. In the past two years, the Impact Chef’s Academy ________.

A．has gained success to some extent

B．has trained enough experienced chefs

C．has set up a series of chain training schools

D．has only opened short-term classes for 3 months

4. What does the passage mainly talk about?

A．How to solve the difficulties in Uganda.

B．Handling lack of excellent chefs in Uganda.

C．The setting up of the Impact Chef’s Academy.

D．The expanding of the middle class in Uganda.

4 . Why does the giant squid (乌贼) have eyes as large as a football? Why do more than 350 species of fish produce their own electricity? Why do dogs become more optimistic after two weeks of plentiful sniffing (嗅)?

The mysteries and miracles of animal senses are revealed in this year's winner of Royal Society Trivedi science book prize. An Immense World by Ed Yong is an exploration of the unique sensory world of other creatures, from tree hoppers to singing frogs, who sense the world in vastly different ways to humans.

Yong has interviewed many kinds of scientists during his writing but sensory biologists are his favourite. “There's a surprising number of sensory biologists who are themselves neuro-atypical—they have something like face blindness or colour blindness,” he says. “Their different than‘normal’ way of experiencing the world themselves might help them better empathize (共情) with other creatures who have those experiences. The core of this book is curiosity and empathy, understanding and valuing animals for their own benefit, and trying to put ourselves in the shoes of creatures who are very different to us.”

Yong's book carries an important message about how our lack of understanding of the sensory worlds of other animals is hugely destructive. Studies have shown that LED lights are particularly damaging to bats and insects. Flowers illuminated (照亮) by bright lights receive 62%fewer visits from insects. Meanwhile, low-frequency noise in oceans has risen 32-fold since the Second World War because of global shipping-damaging whales' ability to communicate.

Unfortunately, reducing noise and light pollution is nowhere near the political agenda. "It's understandable why it's not on the political agenda because it's not a visceral (强烈的) problem like a plastic-ridden beach or chemicals billowing from a smokestack, ”says Yong. “Light and sound don't produce the same kind of horror. Light especially feels like an entirely good thing-we want more light in our lives; light is knowledge, safety, beauty and goodness. So just raising awareness that these are problems that could be tackled is an important first step and one I hope An Immense World moves people further towards taking."

1. What is An Immense World aimed at?

A．Popularizing scientific knowledge.

B．Exploring the origin of the universe.

C．Revealing the unknown lives of animals.

D．Building harmony between man and nature.

2. Why did Ed Yong prefer to interview sensory biologists?

A．They are pleasant to talk with.	B．They are more knowledgeable.
C．They have abnormal behaviour.	D．They identify with the creatures.

3. What is the reason that reducing noise and light pollution is not on the political agenda?

A．Their seriousness is not so obvious.	B．There is a lack of government funds.
C．There is public ignorance about them.	D．They have been brought under control.

4. What is this text?

A．A news report.

B．A biology textbook.

C．A research paper.

D．A book review.

5 . Whatever your reason for feeling blue, know that occasional feelings of sadness are completely normal and to be expected in life.     1    . And while such feelings aren’t fun and can be challenging to overcome, it’s absolutely possible to beat your blue mood with a little effort.

● Spend time with loved ones

Call or visit a friend or family member that you know you can count on. Since moods are contagious (传染的), try to choose someone with a positive perspective on life.     2    . Spend your time with them, recalling good times. Or do something that will make you laugh, such as watching your favorite stand-up comedian or go shopping. Allow yourself to feed off of their positive energy to boost your mood.

●     3    

Take a trip if you’re able to, even somewhere close by. If that’s not in the cards, try something simple like changing your hairstyle, eating dinner at a new restaurant, taking a different route to work, switching up your gym routine, or visiting a local museum. It doesn’t have to be anything significant. Even a small shift in your daily activities can improve your outlook.

● Do a good deed

It may sound counterintuitive (反常的), but perhaps one of the easiest ways to beat the blues is to do something for someone else.     4    . Help a friend or family member or volunteer at your local animal or homeless shelter. You can also perform a random act of kindness. It feels good to make others feel good.

●Change your environment

Your surroundings play a significant role in how you feel. If possible, a change of scenery can help you feel better. Rearrange your furniture, add plants or other pleasing decor to your home. You might also consider who you spend your time with since moods and attitudes are contagious. Negative people can bring you down, and positive people can uplift you.     5    

A．Change your routine.

B．Do something creative.

C．And it doesn’t cost a cent to just be nice.

D．There’s nothing wrong with you for feeling down.

E．Otherwise, you risk feeling worse than you already do.

F．You may try taking a walk or listening to a calming song.

G．Surround yourself with positive people and things to feel your best.

6 . Welcome to Buckler’s Hard

Fun facts about Buckler’s Hard

A former ship-building village on the River Beaulieu in the New Forest. The setting is lovely, two rows of well-preserved red-brick workers’ cottages-separated by a lawn-lead down to the water’s edge where boats glide past. Attractions include a maritime (航海) museum telling the story of warships built for Nelson’s navy and other moments in seafaring history.

Costumed volunteers are on hand to answer questions and entertain children with, say, a game of coits or explain how families lived in the Shipwright’s Cottage. In summer hop on a boat for a cruise(漫游)up the river(extra charge).

Getting there

Take the M27, exit at junction 2 and follow the tourist signs towards nearby Beaulieu motor museum-from there Buckler’s Hard is signposted. The car park is an extra £6-£10. Train to Brockenhurst then taxi-or hire a bike and cycle the three miles through the New Forest.

Value for money?

Yes. The amount of time you take will likely depend on the weather. On a sunny day you could easily spend an afternoon for a reasonable £6.90 (adult), £4.70 (child 5-16) or £21 (family ticket for four).

Opening hours

10 a.m.-6 p.m. every day, except Christmas Day.

1. What can visitors do in Buckler’s Hard?

A．Volunteer in cruise boats.	B．Explore maritime history.
C．Play games with children.	D．Experience the country life.

2. How much would a couple with their 5-year-old twin sons pay for admission?

A．£13.80.

B．£18.50.

C．£21.

D．£ 23.20.

3. What do we learn about Buckler’s Hard from the text?

A．It offers free river cruises.	B．It is conveniently located.
C．It charges no parking fees.	D．It opens all the year round.

7 . African grey parrots (鹦鹉) help their peers complete tasks despite no immediate benefit to themselves, researchers have found in the first study to show that birds display such apparently “selfless” behaviour.

Writing in the journal Current Biology, Brucks and colleagues report how they tested African grey parrots in a task that involved the birds passing a token, in the form of a metal ring, through a hole in their section to a neighbouring bird of the same species. This token could then be passed by the second bird to a human, via another hole, who would exchange it for a piece of nut.

The team found African grey parrots helped their neighbours by passing tokens to their neighbour when a human held out their hand, allowing the second bird to drop it through-the hole and receive a tasty treat.

The same behaviour was seen when the roles of the birds were reversed (颠倒). The more tokens a bird had previously given, the more they received in return.

However, the team stress previously the birds did not know that their favour would be rewarded, suggesting it is something of a “selfless” act.

The team say it may be due to African grey parrots gathering in huge flocks at night but splitting into smaller groups during the day to forage (觅食). Brucks said such behaviour is thought to require strong social cognitive (认知) abilities, adding that being helpful might help the birds gain a good reputation with their peers, making it more likely they would team up for foraging and other tasks.

Dr Manon Schweinfurth, an expert in animal behaviour, said evidence of reciprocal (互惠的) behaviour in African grey parrots is quite interesting. “It has been thought that it is so cognitively demanding that only humans can show it. But we now get more and more evidence from other animals that they are able to show reciprocity,” she said.

1. What is paragraph 2 mainly about?

A．The methods of observation.	B．The comparison of the species.
C．One feeding behaviour of parrots.	D．One example of Brucks’ experiments.

2. Brucks’ study found that grey parrots help their peers complete tasks even if           .

A．there was no human signal	B．there was no neighbor request
C．they received no instant reward	D．they got punished for a selfish act

3. What does paragraph 6 mainly focus on?

A．Possible reasons for the research finding.	B．Potential application of the research result.
C．A further explanation of the research method.	D．A reasonable doubt about the research process.

4. What does the text mainly talk about?

A．A scientific discovery about grey parrots.	B．The development of parrots’ selfless spirit.
C．A practical experiment on animal behaviour.	D．The protection of parrots’ living environment.

8 . I was annoyed that my mom had even scheduled the appointment with a doctor for me. As doctors so often do, when he arrived he went straight into the basic small talk about my _______ history.

But then he _______ a question that took me off guard. “So Robin, what are you going to do after high school?” He wrote something at his notes, with not even a glance in my _______. “I don’t know,” I mumbled(嘟哝). I was seventeen. I had no _______ what I was going to do after high school. My high school guidance counselor told me that I wasn’t “college material” and I believed her. Education wasn’t exactly _______ in my family.

“You don’t know? Well, why don’t you go to college to become a _______ like me?” He smiled as he glanced at his watch. I thought he was _______ for even suggesting it. No one in my family had even graduated from college, let alone become a doctor. “I’m not smart enough to be a doctor.”

He looked me straight in the eyes when he _______ said, “Let me tell you something; you don’t have to be smart to be a doctor. You just have to be persistent(坚持不懈的).” Then the doctor hurriedly gathered his things and _______ to his next appointment.

I ________ to think about it when I was at school. What would I do after high-school? Even though I wasn’t college material, that doctor made a(n) ________ on me. I applied to a college and soon found myself walking in the ________ as a new student. I often questioned what I was doing there. Maybe I wasn’t smart enough for college, but I could be persistent.

I was ________ to find that with each individual achievement came newfound ________ in myself. I graduated with a master’s degree in September 2014, two decades after that ________ with my doctor.

1.

A．career

B．health

C．credit

D．growth

2.

A．threw in

B．took in

C．consisted in

D．broke in

3.

A．account

B．activity

C．direction

D．movement

4.

A．idea

B．evidence

C．reason

D．discovery

5.

A．protected

B．explored

C．provided

D．emphasized

6.

A．professor

B．doctor

C．lawyer

D．lecturer

7.

A．crazy

B．anxious

C．violent

D．greedy

8.

A．casually

B．automatically

C．seriously

D．doubtfully

9.

A．got away

B．passed out

C．put down

D．rushed off

10.

A．continued

B．hesitated

C．intended

D．pretended

11.

A．comment

B．conclusion

C．impression

D．burden

12.

A．park

B．campus

C．workshop

D．stadium

13.

A．frightened

B．annoyed

C．surprised

D．discouraged

14.

A．anxiety

B．sympathy

C．guilt

D．confidence

15.

A．argument

B．conversation

C．conflict

D．negotiation

9 . Shortly before he turned 60, Mark Fuhrmann realized what he wanted. He, now, at 65, has just returned from a second voyage. His 6,835 mile-round trip from Nova Scotia took in the great lakes of the US, the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic.

Fuhrmann started these journeys “to kickstart retirement” from the maritime PR business he ran in Oslo for the past 30 years. Before he set off, in June last year, he swapped (交换) his house for a flat, and greatly reduced his possessions. “It was good to get rid of all of those things and say: ‘This isn’t a phase; this is a new season,’” he says.

Amazingly, he didn’t plan his trip, beyond committing to fundraise for Medecins Sans Frontières. “I thought: ‘I’ll try to do 40km each day.’ But I never knew where I was going to lay down my head.”

The challenges were psychological, physical, and sometimes life-threatening. In Florida, he was chased by an alligator (短吻鳄), but narrowly escaped from it. In the Boston area, he saw “a black fin moving towards me like a snake”. He lay his oar (划桨) across his lap and waited. “If a great white shark can swim leisurely, that’s exactly what it did. It just passed me,” he says. Ten minutes later, Fuhrmann pulled his kayak (小艇) into a cove, where he ran into a man who invited him into his home for coffee and apple pie. His whole trip was filled with these switchbacks and moments of connection with strangers, which Fuhrmann experienced as “a call to authenticity”.

What does he mean? “Nature is born within us. If you avoid that, you avoid experiencing something that is vital to who you are as a person. I want real things — life isn’t about having more. I think we need to accept where we are at this stage of life, at 60 or 65.”

“I look at retirement as a season,” he says. He started his latest voyage because “I wanted to have a better understanding of who I was. I wanted to have time for my thoughts to wander, to restart, to discover the value and power within myself.”

1. Why did Fuhrmann get rid of most of his possessions?

A．To make donations to charity.	B．To start a new life in retirement.
C．To make up for his business loss.	D．To collect money for the journey.

2. What does the underlined word “switchbacks” in paragraph 4 probably mean?

A．Blessings.

B．Ambitions.

C．Defeats.

D．Challenges.

3. Which of the following might Fuhrmann agree with?

A．The meaning of life is achieving more.

B．Old people should take things as they are.

C．It is good to have nature-based experience.

D．It is advisable for aging people to play safe.

4. Why did Fuhrmann start his latest voyage?

A．To reflect on his past.	B．To discover his true self.
C．To relax his mind and body.	D．To be free from the noisy world.

10 . When you think of a new place for growing food, you might think of Mars. But one Italian family believes one possible place is right here on the Earth: the ocean.

Nemo’s Garden is the world’s first underwater system of land plants. Located off the coast of Noli, Italy, it consists of several greenhouses called biospheres, each of which is attached to the seafloor. “The aim of it is to change agriculture, and add a possibility for growing produce in the ocean,” says co-founder Luca Gamberini.

His father Sergio Gamberini came up with the idea by combining his two passions — diving and gardening. In 2012, the project began with planting basil (罗勒) underwater. Now Nemo’s Garden is growing strong.

“Our limited number of resources can not promise sustainable (可持续的) development,” Luca says, “and we believe that underwater gives us some advantages over traditional agriculture.”

Floating six to ten meters underwater, plants in Nemo’s Garden are separated from any outside pathogens (病原体). Also, the temperature of the ocean water is an ideal environment for plant life. Besides, Nemo’s Garden uses a technique that uses water-based nutrients (养分) instead of soil. “Also, there is little interaction with the underwater environment and related ecosystems, which means no harm is caused to sea creatures,” adds Luca.

Everything is monitored on land through cameras and sensors, and settings can be adjusted. When it’s time to harvest, a diver will cut the vegetation, place it in bags and float them to the surface.

The team at Nemo’s Garden has plans for even bigger biospheres in the future, as well as other locations. Luca believes the future of Nemo’s Garden will be mostly along the coastlines where communities could benefit from the added space it offers.

1. What does the underlined word “it” in paragraph 2 refer to?

A．The greenhouse.

B．The seafloor.

C．Underwater system.

D．Nemo’s Garden.

2. Why did Luca start the underwater system?

A．To combine his two hobbies.	B．To feed the growing population.
C．To seek sustainable farming.	D．To develop healthy ways of life.

3. What’s the main idea of paragraph 5?

A．The advantages of Nemo’s Garden.	B．The construction of Nemo’s Garden.
C．The structure of Nemo’s Garden.	D．The techniques used in Nemo’s Garden.

4. Where is the text most probably taken from?

A．A research paper.

B．A science magazine.

C．A journal entry.

D．A science fiction.