1 . The company SpaceX has already launched hundreds of its Starlink satellites, with plans to put as many as 42,000 of them in the Earth’s orbit. Its goal is to provide high-speed Internet to billions of people. Moving toward that kind of access is important, but it comes at a cost. Shining with reflected sunlight, these first orbiters, sent up in the past year, are brighter than 99 percent of the 5,000 or so other satellites now circling Earth, and obviously there are going to be a lot more. This rapid increase is bad for astronomy: the probability of a Starlink satellite crossing a telescope’s field of view and ruining an observation will be quite high near sunrise and sunset, when the objects are most brightly illuminated. For that reason, more than 1,800 of my fellow astronomers have called for governments to protect the night sky.
This artificial large constellation, and others being planned, will influence more than astronomy. They would then be about as numerous as the brightest stars that are easily seen above the horizon－the same stars used to trace the constellations.
In response to protests, SpaceX has promised to address the visibility problem by, for example, applying experimental coatings—essentially painting the satellites black—but the company’s launch schedule remains unchanged. And the satellites’ illuminated surfaces are mostly their solar panels—exactly the part that cannot be painted over.
Unfortunately, at present no laws govern how bright a single satellite can be, let alone thousands of them together. It has been suggested that the Federal Communications Commission’s attitude that satellites will have no important influence on the environment could be challenged in court, but even then, one nation’s laws do not hinder another country’s launches. Space has no borders, and the sky will need to be protected from orbital illumination at an international level.
When I was growing up in Montana, it was a game to be the first to find a moving satellite among a host of stars in the night sky. Soon it could be a game to recognize the constellations behind a swarm of moving points of light. Astronomy will survive; I am much more afraid that we are all about to lose the very thing that inspired us to become an astronomer.
1. What does the author think of the SpaceX’s painting the satellites black?| A．It is creative. | B．It is impractical. | C．It is difficult. | D．It is unsafe. |
| A．Update. | B．Approve. | C．Prevent. | D．Record. |
| A．His dream of becoming an astronomer. |
| B．His concern about the future of astronomy. |
| C．His prediction of the development of technology. |
| D．His preference for the game of identifying constellations. |
| A．SpaceX has a big plan | B．Preserve the night sky |
| C．Astronomers struggle to live | D．Regain the glory of astronomy |
2 . It’s sometimes said that the US is a “melting pot” of different racial groups living together, but a decision last month set fire to the pot.
On Nov 24, a local court decided not to charge(控告) Darren Wilson, a 28-year-old white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, US. Wilson shot dead the 18-year-old unarmed black teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson on Aug 9.
By Nov 26, people who were against the decision in 37 US states and Canada had taken to the streets, said a newspaper.
Wilson said that Brown had hit him and tried to get his gun. In fear for his life, Wilson shot Brown 12 times and killed him. However, some said that Wilson attacked Brown for breaking traffic laws, and shot him for no good reason.
People are wondering whether the same thing would have happened if Brown had been white. The deep racial divide in the US makes the case more than a crime story, said a New York Times article.
It’s been five decades since legal segregation (种族隔离政策) was banned, but a wide gap remains between black and white Americans. The unemployment gap between them is unchanged in 40 years, while the gaps in wealth, income and educational attainment have widened, according to the newspaper.
The case is the latest reminder for some people that the US judicial（司法的） system doesn’t treat black and white people the same, CNN reported.
Just days before the decision, a white police officer shot and killed a 12-year-old black child, Tamir Rice. Police said that Tamir had an air gun that looked real, according to CNN.
To help with the distrust between police and minority communities, President Obama said that he would ask Congress for $263 million to buy 50, 000 body-worn cameras for police to record themselves, and improve training to make sure law is obeyed.
“For the people who just feel pained because they get a sense that some communities aren’t treated fairly — I understand that, and I want to work with you, and I want to move forward with you,” Obama said on Dec 2.
1. Which of the following differences between black and white Americans isn’t mentioned in the text?| A．income | B．welfare | C．education | D．jobs |
| A．only black Americans care about the shooting |
| B．the case is not about a man but about legal segregation. |
| C．if Brown had been white, the same thing would not have happened. |
| D．many American Media pay attention to the case |
| A．gentle | B．caring | C．angry | D．hesitant |
| A．the shooting and the decision shock the United States |
| B．all American policemen are equipped with body-worn cameras |
| C．all people believe black Americans aren’t treated fairly. |
| D．The police ,Wilson will be charged with the shooting |
In the past，it took a long time for people
One example of this is a man who beat a dog
4 . Japan said Tuesday that it would start pouring treated radioactive water(放射性废水) from the Fukushima nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean within two years. Officials in Tokyo said the water would be filtered and diluted(稀释) to safe levels first, but most residents remain firmly opposed to the plan. Protesters gathered outside Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s residence in downtown Tokyo to criticize the government’s decision.
More than a million tons of radioactive water is currently being stored at the Fukushima power plant in a massive tank farm big enough to fill 500 Olympic-sized swimming pools. The wastewater comes from water pumped in to cool the plant’s damaged reactors(反应堆). The government says it has simply run out of room to store all the water. The plan to dump the water into the ocean first came to light in the autumn of last year, when Japanese news reported anonymous officials said the decision had been taken.
On Tuesday, Suga said that after years of study, his scientific advisors had concluded that ocean discharge was the most possible way to cope with the wastewater. But the decision to pour Fukushima wastewater into the ocean has drawn fire from neighboring Asian countries and local fishermen along Japan’s coast.
China called the decision “extremely irresponsible,” and South Korea summoned(召唤) the Japanese ambassador in Seoul over the matter. “They told us that they wouldn’t release the water into the sea without the support of fishermen,” Kanji Tachiya, who leads a local cooperative of fisheries in Fukushima, told national broadcaster NHK ahead of the announcement on Tuesday. “We can’t support this move to break that promise and release the water into the sea unilaterally(单方面地).”
The actual release of water from the Fukushima plant will take decades to complete. Critics have called on Japan’s government to at least ensure that independent monitoring is in place to check the level of radiation in the poured water is safe for the environment.
1. How do most of the local people react to the plan?| A．Indifferent. | B．Uncertain. | C．Supportive. | D．Disapproval. |
| A．The wastewater is being stored in 500 Olympic-sized swimming pools. |
| B．It was last year that the plan was exposed to the public. |
| C．Ocean discharge is the only way the deal with the wastewater. |
| D．The plan has aroused anger in all the Asian countries. |
| A．The plan is to pull the whole world into the disaster. |
| B．It’s imperative that the plan should be carried out immediately. |
| C．It’s safe and easy to pour the wastewater into the ocean. |
| D．It’s unacceptable to pour the water into the ocean without fishermen’ permission. |
| A．geography textbook. | B．personal diary |
| C．news report | D．fiction book |
5 . What defines (定义) a generation? Often, experts say, members of a generation are defined by the events that shaped their lives as young adults.
“World events like wars, pandemics (大流行病) and racial unrest can be especially formative,” says Meg Jay, a psychologist and author of “The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter — and How to Make the Most of Them Now”. Because our 20s are often when we have our first jobs and first relationships and first moves and first real-world experiences, these big events become important parts of our life stories.
In 2020, it was a pandemic.
For the last three months of 2020, the Monitor followed twelve 2l-year-olds from around the world. We wanted to understand how this global health crisis is encoding itself in the cultural DNA of a generation coming of age in its shadow. Their lives and circumstances as they rolled into 2021 varied wildly. But the lives of the 2l-year-olds we met had many obvious similarities. Separately, for instance, the internet was their collective lifeline to the world. In Mexico, an art student isolating in her family home posted a daily piece of art to Instagram to remind herself that time had not stopped altogether. In Germany, a labor organizer negotiated contracts and planned strikes via Zoom.
By the end of 2020, many of the world’s 21-year-olds had lost jobs; others wondered if they’d ever find one. In the U. S, youth unemployment doubled between July 2019 and July 2020. Also, the pandemic opened fault lines, and stressed old ones. In India, Jordan, and South Africa, our 21-year-olds wondered how they’d collect enough money for mobile data for online studies. In Mexico, Canada, and Germany, 21-year-olds reflected on loneliness as a privilege — that they were alone because they could isolate, their lives not dependent on doing otherwise.
We found a generation suspended (悬停) between the world they’d grown up in and uncertain arrival of their future.
1. According to Meg Jay, what determines the future of the people in their twenties?| A．Their fundamental changes of working circumstances. |
| B．Their great efforts of coping with uncertainties in life. |
| C．Their first experiences of the major events then. |
| D．Their deep reflections on the attitudes to life. |
| A．Significant employment challenges. | B．Potential social problems. |
| C．Special individual privileges. | D．Global health crises. |
| A．Approving. | B．Negative. | C．Critical. | D．Concerned. |
| A．The World Children Have Grown up in Defines a Generation |
| B．A Young Generation Was Suspended But Ready to Start |
| C．A Great Pandemic Has Brought Various Global Crises |
| D．World Events Changed the Lives of Young Adults |
According to Xinhua News Agency, the Palace Museum and Huawei signed a strategic cooperation agreement on March 15. The two sides will set an example
The Palace Museum received more than 17 million visitors in 2018,
“The 600-year-old Palace Museum has never been so close to science and technology.” Shan Jixiang said
Shan shared many ideas about the 5G Palace Museum. With the help of advanced technology,
The Students’ Union
7 . Having the option to study abroad is exciting. It's what you call an once-in-a-lifetime experience that you should take full advantage of if you have the chance.
Make new friends.
No matter where you end up studying abroad, take this time to make new friends. That could mean someone from your school in your program or major. It could also mean a native of the city or country you're visiting.
Overcome homesickness.
No matter where you go, you'll probably get a little homesick.
One of the best parts of studying abroad is learning the local language. By doing this, you'll be able to communicate with people in your new home. After all, that is your home for a limited time. Also, speaking the local language is another useful skill. Local employers take interest in that when considering applicants.
The world is full of so many great places. We will support you if you'd like to study in one of them.
| A．Learn the local language. |
| B．Master some useful languages. |
| C．But don't forget to follow these suggestions. |
| D．That is quite normal, especially the beginning. |
| E．Turn to your new friends for help if you feel homesick. |
| F．Remember, even your best friends started out as strangers. |
| G．However, studying abroad is not as simple as you just thought. |
8 . Children born in the past four decades had the luxury of being the center of their parents’ attention. The entire family’s resources were poured into their education and well-being.
However，when the same resources are split between two children，the amount distributed to each one is going to shrink.
According to the Hangzhou Daily，when there are two children in the family，parents tend to choose public schools instead of private schools，which are usually more expensive. Each child is enrolled in fewer after-school training classes.
But having a second child may cure some deep-rooted problems in China’s traditional family education.
Having two children in the family can help to prevent one child being spoiled by too much attention，according to People’s Daily. It also spares the only child from the pressure of shouldering parental expectations all alone. Taking care of a sibling also enables children to gain a sense of responsibility，cooperation，obedience and caring.
China’s public education system is also expected to shift. Currently，there are not enough vacancies in kindergarten and schools to accommodate the potential increase in children.
“It’s not only the enrollment capacity of educational institutions that will feel the pressure. People are also placing more emphasis on the quality of education，”Peng Xizhe， director of the Population and Development Research Policy Center at Fudan University，told China Education Daily.
He predicts the government may have to invest more to support the educational system as a result of the new family planning measure.
1. What can children benefit from a two-child family?| A．They can have less pressure. |
| B．They can study in private schools. |
| C．They can get much more attention. |
| D．They can take more after-school training classes. |
| A．hold | B．adapt | C．solve | D．consider |
| A．People are placing more emphasis on the quality of education. |
| B．The government may have to invest more to support the educational system. |
| C．The new family planning measure will challenge the current educational system. |
| D．The educational institutions will feel the pressure that their capacity is not enough. |
| A．To show benefits of owning two children. |
| B．To persuade people to bear more children. |
| C．To encourage people to have only one child. |
| D．To introduce the impact of two-child policy. |
9 . Sandra was a businesswoman in Orlando. Approaching her 50th birthday, she decided to
As a lifelong cat fan, Sandra's main goal in opening the cafe was to help
“The most
Plus, Sandra's cat-adoption
“My cafe and Axum Coffee have a(n)
Maybe the next time you visit Orlando，you'll
| A．compare | B．combine | C．confirm | D．clarify |
| A．match | B．cut | C．hold | D．wake |
| A．manage | B．understand | C．realize | D．expand |
| A．controversial | B．awkward | C．optional | D．wonderful |
| A．disapprove | B．win | C．compromise | D．leave |
| A．careless | B．generous | C．mysterious | D．regular |
| A．unlikely | B．occasionally | C．permanently | D．merely |
| A．interacting | B．competing | C．reasoning | D．agreeing |
| A．influences , | B．efforts | C．difficulties | D．reasons |
| A．in debt | B．out of date | C．on sale | D．in no way |
| A．help | B．change | C．reward | D．praise |
| A．cheap | B．widespread | C．scarce | D．accessible |
| A．risks | B．costs | C．resources | D．profits |
| A．quality | B．efficiency | C．stages | D．theories |
| A．false | B．easy | C．similar | D．debatable |
| A．clean up | B．seek out | C．set up | D．point out |
| A．trade : | B．discussion | C．check | D．adoption |
| A．founders | B．experts | C．owners | D．pets |
| A．ends | B．fails | C．appears | D．works |
| A．abandoned | B．ran | C．reduced | D．switched |
10 . September is an exciting month in every college freshman’s life. For many, it’s the first time that they’ve left home to live in a new environment. But after the hustle and bustle of a few weeks, excitement gives way to a less enjoyable emotion—homesickness.
Homesickness manifests itself in many ways. You may miss mum’s cooking, your pets, or even your old bed. All this becomes a fond memory of the past. Homesickness can be a bitter feeling for many students, especially when faced with the challenges of settling into an unfamiliar environment.
But remember, you’re not alone. According to a recent BBC article, 70 percent of British college students experience homesickness. In this increasingly globalized world in which people migrate to faraway places for a relationship, education or work, homesickness is a feeling shared by many adults.
Homesickness can have similar symptoms to depression and in extreme cases it can develop into a panic attack. As for the term, homesickness or nostalgia wasn’t invented until the 17th century. It was considered a disorder by a Swiss physician, who attributed soldiers’ mental and physical discomfort to their longing to return home, “nostos” from Greek, and the accompanying pain, “algos”.
Studies in recent years, however, have shown that nostalgia may have some benefits to our mental health. After a decade of surveys and researches, Constantine Sedikides, a US social psychologist, found that nostalgia is what makes us human. He explains that nostalgia can resist loneliness, boredom and anxiety. Therefore, it’s necessary for college students to learn some ways to overcome the uncomfortable feeling.
1. From the first two paragraphs, we can infer that ________.| A．homesickness means a fond memory of the past |
| B．only a few students will experience homesickness |
| C．homesickness is an enjoyable emotion among freshmen |
| D．college freshmen usually suffer from homesickness after weeks |
| A．negative | B．supportive | C．skeptical | D．critical |
| A．Some benefits about homesickness. |
| B．Other problems in college freshmen’s life. |
| C．How to make campus life more meaningful. |
| D．Some tips on how to cope with homesickness. |
| A．Let’s embrace homesickness |
| B．How to fit into the college life |
| C．A harmful emotion—homesickness |
| D．The disadvantages of homesickness |
