1 . People in most countries have stopped wearing masks (口罩). In Japan, many people are still covering up. Some of those who have gone maskless, or who want to, are taking lessons in how to smile. A lot of adults say they have “forgotten” how to smile naturally after three years of wearing a face covering. They are taking lessons from “smile coaches” to relearn how to smile with confidence. One coach, Keiko Kawano from a “smile education” company, spoke to the Asahi Shimbun newspaper about her work. She said: “Mask wearing became normal, so people had fewer opportunities to smile. Many people developed a complex (情结) about smiling. I want people to smile for their physical and mental wellbeing.”
Smile coaches in Japan may be busy for some time to come. A recent survey(调查) by Laibo Research found that 27.8% of company employees in their 20s to 50s would continue to wear masks. Just over two-thirds of people said they would wear a mask depending on the situation. Only 5.5% said they would go mask-free. Ms. Kawano is well known in Japan. She has coached more than 4,000 people in the art of smiling. She has also trained hundreds of “smile specialists”. She said: “Smiling makes a good impression on others and helps communication. It also has the effect of making yourself feel more positive.” She added: “Moving and relaxing the facial muscles is the key to a good smile.”
1. Who needs to take lessons in how to smile in Japan?| A．People who are still covering up | B．People who have gone maskless, or who want to |
| C．People who knows how to smile | D．People in most countries |
| A．A basketball coach | B．A football coach |
| C．A tennis coach | D．A smiling coach |
| A．1/3 | B．2/3 | C．27.8% | D．5.5% |
| A．Learn again | B．no more study | C．teach | D．rewrite |
| A．A good impression on others and helping communication. |
| B．The effect of making yourself feel more positive. |
| C．Moving and relaxing the facial muscles. |
| D．A complex about smiling. |
2 . On Indonesia’s eastern island of Sumba, a lack of electricity once left many communities in the dark at night. But off-grid(离网) solar energy programs are bringing people there limited electricity years before normal power systems reach them. Such small solar panels(电池板) mean a lot to them. They can work later in the evenings, help their kids with their homework and even hold more social gatherings. Besides, there are experts saying off-grid solar programs could be reproduced across the nation of thousands of islands and that the energy is renewable.
However, off-grid solar energy systems face problems too. Most villagers depend on donators, some international organizations, to pay most of the cost of solar panels, so, villagers without off-grid solar panels have to wait until there is enough money from the donators. And when solar systems break, imported parts are needed, which can be hard to find and costly. While the solar systems can power light bulbs and charge cellphones, they do not provide the same amount of power as a grid and thus cannot operate devices like a sound system for a church.
Despite these challenges, off-grid solar programs have proven successful in Indonesia and other places, such as Bangladesh and Africa, south of the Sahara Desert. These programs, offered by companies like Sumba Sustainable Solutions, help provide electricity for millions. The company has sent over 3,000 solar light systems across the island, reaching more than 3,000 homes. To continue the successful completion of off-grid solar projects, Sumba Sustainable Solutions is seeking support from Indonesia’s Just Energy Transition Partnership Deal, which involves loans and other money from developed nations and international financial companies. By increasing solar use in Indonesia, more people will have access to electricity and improve their livelihoods.
1. What is the first paragraph mainly about?| A．The benefits such programs offer. |
| B．The future solar panels will hold. |
| C．The living conditions of people on Sumba. |
| D．The advantages of normal power systems. |
| A．2. | B．3. | C．4. | D．5. |
| A．Subjective | B．Favorable. | C．Doubtful. | D．Critical. |
| A．Joint efforts are being made to complete them. |
| B．It has bettered people’s lives across the country. |
| C．The government offers financial support for them. |
| D．Many companies are participating for huge profits. |
3 . Maggie Perkins had been working as a teacher in Georgia for nearly five years before she decided to “quietly quit” her job. The decision didn’t mean leaving her position, but rather limiting her work to her contract(合同) hours, nothing more and nothing less.
Perkins joins a larger online community of workers who have been sharing their experiences on TikTok. But as “quiet quitters” defend their choice to take a step back from work, company managers and workplace experts argue that although doing less might feel good in the short term, it could harm their career and their company in the long run.
In the wake of the global pandemic and the following Great Resignation, employees began to reimagine what work could look like. Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace report in June found job dissatisfaction being at an all-time high. Disengaged(工作不投入的) workers cost the global economy about $7.8 trillion in lost productivity.
But with worries of an economic slowdown, and falling worker productivity, Johnny C. Taylor Jr., president and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management, warns that anyone who tells their business leader they are a quiet quitter is likely not to have a job for very long. He says companies have become sensitive to worker burnout, especially for employees who are working from home.
Gergo Vari, CEO of the job board Lensa, suggests another choice for quiet quitting: “loudly persisting(坚持)” . That is, allowing employees to speak up about how their organization can serve their goals. “When you loudly persist, you have a sense of belonging and have a share in where the company is going,” he says.
Career coach Allison Peck says she views “quiet quitting” as a sign of employees not connecting to their work or managers. Her career advice for quiet quitters is to take even braver action. “Finding a new job, manager, team, or company that better fits you can improve your attitude towards work,” she says.
1. What will “quiet quitters” do in real life?| A．They quit their jobs. | B．They work part-time. |
| C．They hate their jobs. | D．They refuse extra work. |
| A．A global economic loss. | B．Less competition at work. |
| C．Conflicts between colleagues. | D．A shortage of labor on the market. |
| A．Those working at home. | B．Those taking several jobs. |
| C．Those just returning to offices. | D．Those sticking to their duties. |
| A．Find a more suitable job. | B．Improve their work efficiency. |
| C．Get along with their colleagues. | D．Speak up about their demand for the company. |
4 . The US tech giant Microsoft Corp and the leadership consulting firm DDI worked together on a new project on Thursday, with the goal of helping more than 1 million women in China improve their digital skills and embrace the digital future.
The Women Digital Future project came as reports show that women have been more negatively impacted by the COVID-19 than men, and an improvement in digital skills is expected to help them better deal with the bad results from it.
Microsoft said it will partner with a number of companies and organizations to help women in multiple ways, as COVID-19 has accelerated digital transformation worldwide and women are faced with more challenges in both life and work.
Alain Crozier, chairman and CEO of Microsoft Greater China, said, “Microsoft has always placed a high value on the development of our female employees and strongly promoting the power of women to drive the world forward.”
Mindy Yeh, managing director of Greater China, said the company’s global survey shows that there are nearly double the number of female leaders at the top 20 percent of well-performing companies than in the bottom 20 percent. Moreover, they have clear advantages in terms of teamwork and interaction.
Cecilia Qi, general manager of GSK China, said, “Digital transformation is both an opportunity and a challenge for women. This is especially the case in the new era, which requires companies to provide women with more support to help them achieve better work-life balance and continue to gain success as they continue forward in their career. Success belongs to everyone, and I believe that, in the future, society will be more supportive of women and provide them with more equal career opportunities.”
1. What is the main purpose of the new project?| A．To help women fight against COVID-19. |
| B．To reduce the bad impacts from COVID-19 on women. |
| C．To help women better prepare for the digital future. |
| D．To promote the products of Microsoft Corp. |
| A．speeded up | B．lived up to | C．influenced | D．prevented |
| A．Women are more popular in good companies. | B．Women receive more support from society. |
| C．Women leaders have more advantages over men. | D．Women leaders perform better in some fields. |
| A．Women have no chance to succeed in the digital age. |
| B．Women are treated unfairly in pursuing a successful career. |
| C．Women need support to achieve a balance between work and life. |
| D．The world is too complex for women to achieve their dreams. |
5 . It is reported that 90 million people in China suffer from depression, with around 90% not getting any effective treatment. Other research further suggests that mental disorders have generally become more common across China in the last 30 years.
China’s resources for dealing with mental health have not always been at the same level as other countries. A 2020 WHO report showed that there were only 1.7 psychiatrists per 100,000 people, compared with 15 per 100,000 in the European countries.
In the past, mental health support was largely focused on specific groups such as “left-behind children”. However, many now recognize the need to make support more widely available.
One issue that has helped bring mental health into the spotlight on a national scale is that of “996” work culture. The term refers to jobs in which employees are required to work six days per week from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. With the 996-work culture, more and more people are starting to realize that actually, mental health can affect a whole number of people. As we all know, long hours of overtime may cause many health problems, even leading to sudden death.
Our government is indeed designing policies to deal more effectively with mental health challenges. The country’s National Health Commission plans to introduce screening (筛查) for vulnerable groups and require medical institutions as well as universities, colleges and high schools to re evaluate mental health policies. The government plans to set up mental health outpatient services in 40% of the general hospitals in pilot areas by the end of 2022, a move catalyzed by the pandemic.
Whether said policies will be effectively implemented remains to be seen. However, what is clear is that mental health is now very much taken seriously across China.
1. What do we know from the first two paragraphs?| A．China’s medical level is quite backward. |
| B．Mental health problems are getting more serious. |
| C．China has the largest population with depression. |
| D．Many people with depression refuse to be treated. |
| A．Doctors. | B．Professors. |
| C．Researchers. | D．Patients. |
| A．It is well received by employees. | B．It severely affects people’s health. |
| C．It can make people work even harder. | D．It does harm to “left-behind children”. |
| A．Cooperating with medical institutions. | B．Establishing more voluntary organizations. |
| C．Setting up outpatient services in pilot areas. | D．Designing policies to deal with the challenges. |
6 . Over the years, there has been a rising trend in the popularity of volunteer vacations and a rapid increase in the number of people interested in volunteering while traveling. Here are a few established organizations for you to choose.
The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) program is a United Nations organization that contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide. Based in Bonn, Germany, UNV is active in around 130 countries every year. Anyone who is concerned about world peace and development is welcome.
Contact online: https://www.onlinevolunteering.org/en/ opportunities
Volunteers In Asia (VIA) is an independent, non-profit organization aimed to increase understanding between the US and Asia. Based in San Francisco, VIA provides two kinds of programs. VIA’s Asia Programs offer Americans the chance to live and volunteer in Asia. while VIA’s Programs enable East Asian university students to participate in programs in the US.
Contact online: https://viaprograms.org/contact/
Meals on Wheels originated in the UK. It’s a program that delivers meals to individuals at home who are unable to purchase or prepare their own meals. This type of service requires many volunteers with a good knowledge of basic cooking to prepare the meals.
Contact online: https://www.mealsonwheelssa.org.au/
Big Brothers Big Sisters offers a range of mentoring programs (指导计划) to meet the needs of Canadian children and families. In the traditional one-to-one mentoring programs, one youth and one adult mentor meet twice a month for at least one year. Big Brothers Big Sisters also operates group mentoring programs for teenagers and clubs for newcomer Canadian youth. Volunteers are in demand all the year around.
Contact online: https://bigbrothersbigsisters.ca/
1. Which might one choose to promote the understanding between the US and Asia?| A．The United Nations Volunteers. | B．Volunteers in Asia. |
| C．Meals on Wheels. | D．Big Brothers Big Sisters. |
| A．One youth and one mentor meet at least once a month. |
| B．It operates clubs for children from local communities. |
| C．It works with schools to operate group mentoring programs. |
| D．Volunteers can register at any time of the year. |
| A．A college student in the gap year. | B．A traveler on a one-week tour. |
| C．A government official working in the UN. | D．A newcomer to Canada to make money. |
7 . Years ago it was popular to speak of a generation gap, a disagreement between young people and their elders. Parents said that children did not show them proper respect and obedience (服从), while children complained that their parents did not understand them at all. What had gone wrong? Why had the generation gap suddenly appeared? Actually the generation gap has been around for a long time. Many people argue that a gap is built into the fabric (结构) of our society.
One important cause of the generation gap is the chance that young people have to choose their own ways of life. In more traditional societies, when children grow up, they are expected to live in the same area as their parents, to marry people that their parents know and agree to, and to continue the family occupation. In our society, young people often travel great distances for their education, move out of the family home at an early age, marry or live with people whom their parents have never met, and choose occupations different from those of their parents.
In our easily changing society, parents often expect their children to do better than they did: to find better jobs, to make more money, and to do all the things that they were unable to do. Often, however, the strong wish that parents have for their children is another cause of the disagreement between them. Often, they discover that they have very little in common with each other.
Finally, the speed at which changes take place in our society is another cause of the gap between the generations. In a traditional culture, elderly people are valued for their wisdom, but in our society the knowledge of a lifetime may become out of date overnight. The young and the old seem to live in two very different worlds, separated by different skills and abilities. No doubt, the generation gap will continue to be a feature of American life for some time to come. Its causes are rooted in the freedom and changes of our society, and in the rapid speed at which society changes.
1. What is the text mainly about?| A．The concept of generation gap. |
| B．The reasons for generation gap. |
| C．Ways to reduce generation gap. |
| D．Attitudes towards generation gap. |
| A．depend on their parents to make a life |
| B．live with their parents in the same area |
| C．ask their parents for the best advice |
| D．have very little in common with their parents |
| A．Parents should be strict with their children. |
| B．The generation gap is partly caused by the older generation. |
| C．Parents couldn’t do things well themselves. |
| D．The young never want to satisfy their parents. |
| A．Parents are not strict enough with their children. |
| B．The young value the old too much for their wisdom. |
| C．Young people don’t have the knowledge of a lifetime. |
| D．The society develops too fast. |
8 . Haley Curfman, 25, of Blackwell, Oklahoma, is a teacher at Blackwell Public School and last year she bought a plain(朴素的) white dress, which she set up a station in her classroom for her students to decorate, encouraging them to go and draw on the dress whenever they had free time. Haley set up a station at a table with the dress and some colored markers so that her students could draw on it, having first seen the idea on Pinterest.
After the kids had finished the design, she then surprised them all by wearing the dress to class, sharing pictures of herself in it on Facebook in a post that has since been shared over 200, 000 times.
For teachers looking to do something similar for their own students, Haley said that she bought the dress off Amazon for less than $ 20 about six months ago and pre-washed the dress before she started the project. She used markers from Walmart. But she said these things can be bought in other places. She said, “To do the project, I set up a station at a table with the dress and markers. It takes anywhere from two weeks to a month to complete as we just work on it here and there when time allows. You'd better give the students enough time so they don't have to hurry.”
“Teachers have been sharing their dresses, T-shirts, etc. with me that they've been creating since the 1950s with the same idea. It is amazing, and I love the fact that you are sharing them with me! Thank you all so much for your kindness and support,” she wrote on Facebook.
Asked why she came up with the idea, Haley told Scary Mommy. “We don't have art in our school, so, I always try to do little creative projects when possible.”
1. What did Haley use the plain white dress to do?| A．To teach her students painting. |
| B．To prepare for her presentation. |
| C．To ask her students to draw on it. |
| D．To help her students with their homework. |
| A．It took Haley by surprise. | B．It is kept by Haley at home. |
| C．It is the product of a new idea. | D．It has enjoyed popularity online. |
| A．Buy the same dress online. | B．Give the kids enough time. |
| C．Buy the same markers in Walmart. | D．Leave the finished work untouched. |
| A．To teach art to her students. | B．To show her idea on Pinterest. |
| C．To share it with other teachers. | D．To excite her students' creativity. |
9 . Why do you check social media? Is it to keep up with everything that your friends and family are doing? Is it to find new trendy spots to eat? Regardless of the reason, you may find yourself with different degrees of envy or discomfort after a quick look at your phone. Then you might be suffering from a phenomenon known as “Fear of Missing Out (FOMO). ”
While the phenomenon of FOMO can be traced back for centuries, it had never been the issue as it is today, causing widespread discussion and research. This rise in checking social media is naturally connected to the increasing leading position that social media holds over our lives. Every time someone opens their WeChat Moments, Facebook, Twitter... etc. , they are bombarded with the highlight reels of other peoples' lives. A sunny beach, delicious-looking food, a super cute kitten-they are all uplifting photos, yet they're very likely to bring about more unhappiness than joy. You see, the first thought to come out of your mind may be “Wow, that's so cool/delicious/cute”, but then it takes a hard U-turn. You're thinking: “I wish I were there” or “my life is so boring compared to his/hers.” The more you see, the more likely you are to have these negative feelings.
What's worse is the habit many people have of turning to social media in search of happiness when they are feeling down, not realizing that they are just going to end up in a negative cycle of endless disappointment. Montesquieu once said: “If one only wished to be happy, this could be easily accomplished; but we wish to be happier than other people, and this is always difficult, for we believe others to be happier than they are.”
FOMO will go hand in hand with dissatisfaction and envy. Appreciate what you already have, because someone else out there in the world would gladly give everything to be you.
1. What is the purpose of the questions in paragraph 1?| A．To introduce the topic of the passage. | B．To explain the function of FOMO. |
| C．To describe the features of FOMO. | D．To give the reasons for checking social media. |
| A．Joyful. | B．Admiring. | C．Comfortable. | D．Envious. |
| A．We could turn to social media for happiness. |
| B．We couldn't realise our dream without hard work. |
| C．We couldn't harvest happiness through comparison. |
| D．We could live better than others by showing ourselves online. |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Objective. | C．Doubtful. | D．Hopeful. |
10 . People from all walks of life tend to become more personal and hide less of themselves when using email. Researchers from Open University in Britain have found in a recent study that there are good reasons for this.
The team of researchers asked 83 pairs of students, all strangers to each other, to solve a problem. They had to discuss this question: If only five people in the world could be saved from a world disaster, who should they be? The pairs of students had to talk over the problem either face to face or by computers. Dr. Johnson said, "They told their partners four times as much about themselves when they talked over the Internet as when they talked face to face. When the computers were fitted with cameras so that students could see each other, this limited the personal side of the conversation."
Generally the information was not extremely personal. It was mainly about things such as where they went to school, or where they used to live. But some students discussed their love stories, and personal childhood experiences.
Dr. Johnson believes that emailing encourages people to focus on themselves. And when they do this, they become more open, especially if there are no cameras. "If you cannot see the other person, it becomes easier to talk about yourself. This is because you are not thinking what the other person is thinking of you. So emailing has become the modern way of talking," said Dr. Johnson. However, this style of talking is not completely new. "In the 19th century people started to use the ‘telegraph’ to communicate. Now the same kind of thing has happened and people ended up speaking more freely."
Dr. Johnson thinks that emailers need to know about these effects of emailing, especially when they start work in a company. " If you don’t know about it, you could find yourself saying more about yourself than you wanted to."
1. What is the subject discussed in this passage?| A．How to communicate using email. |
| B．How to solve a problem using email. |
| C．How people open up when emailing. |
| D．How people do research studies when emailing. |
| A．They couldn’t see each other |
| B．They didn’t talk about very personal things |
| C．The cameras on the computers were turned on |
| D．They had to discuss a question |
| A．The telegraph. | B．Emailing. |
| C．The computer. | D．Face-to-face talk. |
| A．We should focus on ourselves when emailing. |
| B．We should talk more freely in emails than usual. |
| C．We should discuss any subject when emailing. |
| D．We should consider how to use email at work. |
