4 . Each food product in the United States must show a “best before” date on its container. The goal is to tell the buyer when the food will be at its freshest. Most people believe it is unsafe to use the food product after that date. But some observers say “best before” labels have nothing to do with safety. They worry that the information will lead consumers to throw away food good to eat.

Some food sellers in Britain recently removed “best before” labels from prepackaged fruit and vegetables. The European Union may soon announce changes to its labeling laws. It may even end the requirement to include a date.In the US, there is no similar effort. Some big food store owners and food companies are pushing for the US Congress to pass new laws on the subject.

Studies have found as much as 35% of available food goes uneaten in the United States.That adds up to a lot of wasted energy. It also means more greenhouse gases coming from landfills. 7% of US food waste comes from people’s misunderstanding of “best before” labels. That percentage is equal to about 3. 6 million tons each year.

Richard Lipsit owns a store called Grocery Outlet in Pleasanton, California. He said we can safely eat canned goods and many other packaged foods for years after their “best before”date. People should look for changes in color, thickness, or feel to learn if foods are all right to eat. “Our bodies are very well equipped to recognize the signs of decay,” Lipsit said. “We’ve lost trust in those senses and we’ve replaced it with trust in these dates.”

If new laws are approved in Congress, food could be donated to food rescue organizations even after its quality date has passed. Food rescue is making efforts to find uses for outdated food. Currently, at least 20 states ban the sale or donation of food after its quality date has passed.

5 . According to a recent article in The Wall Street Journal, we might all be braggarts (大话王) in this competitive society addicted to social networking.

Take a close look at your social-networking sites. Do you like to post photos of yourself in restaurants to show others what an exciting life you have? Or do you like to write about how happily in love you are? Or perhaps you are of the subtle type who constantly complain about jobs but really just want to impress others with your important position.

According to the results of a series of experiments conducted by Harvard University neuroscientists (神经科学家), the reward areas of our brain — the same areas that respond to “primary rewards” such as food — are activated when we talk about ourselves. We devote between 30 to 40 percent of our conversation time to doing just that. Unfortunately, Bernstein says, some people can’t tell the difference between sharing positive information that others might actually want to know and direct bragging. She suggests that bragging involves comparison, whether stated or implied.

“We are expected to be perfect all the time. The result is that more and more people are carefully managing their online images,” says Elizabeth Bernstein, a columnist with the Wall Street Journal.

But the issue is not limited to the Internet. In a fiercely competitive job market we must sell ourselves on multiple platforms and show that we are better than others. In fact, we have become so accustomed to bragging that we don’t even realize we are doing it, says Bernstein. This is harmful to our relationships and puts people off.

Bernstein talked to some experts who said that people brag for all sorts of reasons: to appear worthy of attention; to prove to ourselves we are doing fine and that people who said we would fail are wrong; or simply because we’re excited when good things happen to us.

“Feel sorry for them, because they’re doing this unconscious, destructive thing that won’t help them in the long run,” said Professor Simian Valier, a research psychologist at Washington University.

6 . 现今，大城市普遍存在着交通问题。它不仅给人们的生活和工作带来不便而且还威胁到了人们的生命安全。请以“Traffic Problems in Big Cities”为题，根据以下内容提示完成作文：

1. 描述两个常见的交通问题；

2. 简要分析导致这些交通问题的主要原因；

3. 根据你的分析，从社会规范（rules and regulations）和个人行为两方面谈谈你得到的启示（不少于两点）。

注意：词数120左右，开头已给出，不计入总词数。

Nowadays, traffic problems are common in big cities.

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10 . In 2012, fewer than 7% of Americans had read poetry, which was down from 17% in 1992. In 2015, poetry was one of the least popular art activities for American grown-ups, with under 10% picking up a book and reading for pleasure. Just when it seemed to be on its deathbed, Instapoetry — easy-to-understand poems that are short enough to fit in your Instagram description — came to save the day.

Instapoetry appeared thanks to social media and Instapoems are usually no longer than a few lines and very direct. The influence Instapoetry has made in the poetry world is great. In 2017, poetry sales were twice what they were in 2016. In 2018, 28 million Americans were reading poems, which was the highest percentage (百分比) of poetry readership in nearly twenty years.

Many people have raved about the new type of poetry. The fact that it’s direct while also being touching is what interests many readers. Before the appearance of Instapoetry, many people thought of poetry as being long and difficult to understand. With Instapoetry, it is easy to understand what the author is trying to say. Readers don’t feel stupid or think the poetry needs to be studied carefully. It’s just simple beauty.

It’s not all sunshine and rainbows, though. Instapoetry has been criticized (批评) for having no meaning and for seeming like passing thoughts thrown on paper, packed up (包装) all pretty and given to the general public. Instapoetry has also been seen as a disgrace (耻辱) to writers who have worked tirelessly to improve their skills and achieve recognition.

In a world filled with a huge amount of entertainment (娱乐活动), people often choose things that are more showy, eye-catching and don’t take up too much time. Instapoetry fits the bill perfectly. While poets who choose to stick to traditional poetry should certainly keep writing, Instapoetry could be just what the poetry world needs to get it back on its feet.