1 . New research from the University of Portsmouth has shown a marked increase in shipping in the North East Atlantic. Scientists now warn that more monitoring is required to help protect sea life.
Researchers at the University of Ponsmouth have discovered that rates (率) of shipping in the North East Atlantic area rose by 34 per cent in a five-year period. The research is the first detailed survey of shipping activity in the North East Atlantic. Researchers used data from over 530 million vessel (船) positions recorded by Automatic Identification System(AIS). They looked at the change in shipping between 2013 and 2017 across ten different vessel types. In total the study area covered 1.1 million km², including waters off Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany,Iceland, Ireland, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal. Spain, and the UK.
Lead author, James Robbins said: “This change is likely to put more pressure on the marine (海洋的) environment, and may influence the protection of at-risk species. Renewed monitoring effort is needed to make sure that protective measures are enough to save species under threat in a changing environment.”
Some of the greatest shipping increases were found in areas close to the Spanish coast. The Espacio Marino de la Costa da Morte saw a rise of 413 percent in vessel activity. It is an area used to protect seabirds.
Dr. Sarah Marley, Visiting Researcher at the University of Portsmouth, said: “Shipping is the most widespread human activity in our oceans, carrying a set of threats-from unnoticeable effects like underwater noise pollution to serious results when ships hit whales.”
Professor Alex Ford. from the University’s Institute of Marine Sciences, said: “Given the well-documented effects that shipping can have on the marine environment, it is necessary that this situation continues to be monitored-particularly in areas used to protect vulnerable (脆弱的) species which may already be under pressure.”
1. What can we say about the new research?| A．It started in 2013. | B．It is the first of its kind. |
| C．It was carried out by AIS. | D．It covers the whole Atlantic. |
| A．Rapid population growth. |
| B．Rising global temperatures. |
| C．The huge increase in shipping. |
| D．The disappearance of marine life. |
| A．Shipping plays an important role in the local economy. |
| B．Shipping can be a danger to the marine environment. |
| C．Noise pollution is closely related to human activity. |
| D．Marine areas should be monitored more carefully. |
| A．New waterways across the Atlantic |
| B．The shipping industry in the North East Atlantic |
| C．New research opens windows into life under the water |
| D．Sea life needs better protection from an increase in shipping |
2 . While screen time is known to affect sleep, new research suggests that interactive (互动的) activities, such as texting friends or playing video games, put off and reduce the time spent asleep to a greater degree than passive (被动的) screen time like watching television, especially for teens.
The team studied the daytime screen-based activities of 475 teenagers using daily surveys. They asked the teens how many hours they had spent that day communicating with friends through social media and how many hours they spent playing video games, surfing the internet and watching television or videos. Finally, the researchers asked if they had joined in any of these activities in the hour before bed.
Next, the team measured their sleep time for one week. The researchers found that the teens spent an average of two hours per day communicating with friends via social media, about 1.3 hours playing video games, less than an hour surfing the internet and about 1.7 hours watching television or videos. For every hour throughout the day that they used screens to communicate with friends, they fell asleep about 11 minutes later averagely. For every hour to play video games, they fell asleep about 9 minutes later. Those who talked, texted or played games in the hour before bed lost the most sleep: about 30 minutes later.
Interestingly, David, lead author of the study, said the team found no obvious relations between passive screen-based activities and sleep. “It could be that passive activities are less mentally exciting than interactive activities,” said Anne, co-author of the study. “It’s a tricky situation,” she said. “These screen tools are really important to everyone nowadays, so it’s hard to put a limit on them, but if you’re really looking out for a teenager’s health and well-being, you might consider limiting the more interactive activities, especially in the hour before bed.”
1. Which of the following belongs to interactive screen activities?| A．Seeing movies. | B．Watching videos. |
| C．Texting friends. | D．Surfing the internet. |
| A．Lucy who watched a three-hour movie before going to bed. |
| B．Jack who had a 30-minute video chat with his brother before bed. |
| C．Sam who played computer games for two hours throughout the day. |
| D．Amy who chatted with her friends on WeChat for one hour in the morning. |
| A．Frightening. | B．Awkward. | C．Hopeless. | D．Encouraging. |
| A．Screen time activities cut down our sleep hours |
| B．Interactive screen use reduces sleep time in teenagers |
| C．Passive screen use is better than interactive screen use |
| D．Parents should prevent children from using social media |
3 . Moving around Bogota can be a bit of a Jekyll-or-Hyde experience. On the one hand, the city is infamous (声名狼藉的)for having the world’s worst traffic. Yet, on the other, its cycling infrastructure is considered a good model of sustainable urban mobility, according to the Copenhagenize Index, which ranks bike-friendly cities. The Colombian capital generated a now-international movement in the 1970s called Ciclovia, which sees 1.5 million people cycle across 128km of car-free streets each Sunday morning.
So, when the pandemic reached its shores in mid-March, Bogota Mayor Claudia Lopez, an avid cyclist herself, introduced one of the world’s first plans to encourage bike travel, using traffic cones to create 76 km of temporary lanes.
“Everyone started using a bicycle, and they already knew how to get around on one because we have this bike culture thanks to the Ciclovia,” says Carlos Pardo, a local cycling advocate and senior advisor at the New Urban Mobility Alliance. Pardo got involved at the beginning of the pandemic by partnering with a local bikeshare company to provide 400 free e-bikes to health workers. Now, he’s busy persuading the public that the government’s new bike lanes should become permanent fixture (固定设施).
“Some drivers say, ‘you took away our lane’, but we’re saying, we took one car lane and made a two-lane bidirectional bike lane,” he explains. “So, you’re duplicating the effectiveness of the space, and moving more people per hour, per direction.”
Biking has enjoyed a renaissance (复兴) around the world as urban citizens avoid public transport for the relative safety of a two-wheeled commute. Now, many advocates like Pardo are working with local governments in the hope of turning these pandemic-response measures into lasting changes—ones that are more plausible now than ever after lockdowns provided an unprecedented (空前的)opportunities to fast-track infrastructure trials. The results of these urban planning experiments could not only radically shape the way we commute across global cities, but also make them more adaptable to future shocks.
1. What can best illustrate the underlined sentence?| A．Much knowledge that is of help in learning about a new place. |
| B．A mixed feeling that is too confusing to express themselves. |
| C．An understanding that everything has both advantages and disadvantages. |
| D．An idea that human beings are born somewhere between good and evil. |
| A．The outbreak of the pandemic in mid-March. |
| B．The worldwide bike culture dating back to the 1970s. |
| C．The government’s support for the temporary bike lanes. |
| D．The local bike company’s contribution to health workers. |
| A．The increasing number of cyclists. | B．Duplicated effectiveness of road use. |
| C．A well-rounded city expansion plan. | D．The growth of car ownership. |
| A．Urban life. | B．Politics. | C．Sports | D．Advice column. |
4 . My phone was an extension of myself. I couldn’t go anywhere
When I was watching TV shows or movies and there was a boring part, I
I have welcomed silence into my life with open arms and am enjoying the increased
As much as having a smartphone was
| A．through | B．without | C．despite | D．upon |
| A．updates | B．instructions | C．assessments | D．decisions |
| A．symbol | B．responsibility | C．reality | D．addiction |
| A．conscious | B．shameful | C．foolish | D．random |
| A．sell | B．pull | C．throw | D．mind |
| A．avoided | B．denied | C．missed | D．allowed |
| A．assist | B．improve | C．associate | D．occupy |
| A．requests | B．thoughts | C．directions | D．comments |
| A．instead of | B．regardless of | C．but for | D．apart from |
| A．creativity | B．productivity | C．knowledge | D．independence |
| A．routine | B．necessity | C．loneliness | D．temptation |
| A．genuine | B．grateful | C．direct | D．desperate |
| A．naturally | B．certainly | C．seemingly | D．gradually |
| A．wonder | B．imagination | C．interest | D．authenticity |
| A．depressive | B．comfortable | C．stressful | D．boring |
5 . Janet, now 37, was playing with her new pet dog, Stitch, who jumped up, grabbed her sleeve, and tore several holes in her sweater with its sharp teeth. Instead of throwing the sweater away, Janet decided to repair it.
She turned to “visible repairing,” an idea of repairing clothes that leaves an obvious fix. She added bright flowers and other small designs to damaged clothes. “Every time you do a repair, it’s like having bought a new piece of clothes,” says Janet.
Actually, repairing is a great opportunity to realize the urgent (迫切的) need to reduce waste. Sadly, we have become used to replacing things instead of repairing them — and the rubbish is piling up. Worldwide, we throw away 92 million tons of cloth every year. Electronic waste is another growing problem: About 50 million tons of it is created each year around the world.
The good news is that fixing things can help deal with the waste problem. There are some solutions. Due to information online, the popular how-to site iFixit.com , a database (数据库) with nearly 100,000 repair brochures for everything from electronics to clothing, has promoted more than 100 million repairs. In addition, since the first Repair Café opened in2009 in Amsterdam, more than 2,700 cafés have been set up to offer in-person fix-it help in various countries. Organizers set up events, and volunteers with repair knowledge bring their tools. They will try to fix whatever people bring in, for free, and teach visitors how to do repairs themselves.
Fixing things is part of a larger change toward a circular economy —the idea that instead of throwing away things once they are broken or out of date, we reuse or repair them, keeping them out of the landfill (垃圾填埋场) for as long as possible. According to a 2023 report from Circle Economy, a Netherlands-based NGO, if the world changed to a circular economy, we could lower the amount of waste by a third.
1. What is the author’s purpose in mentioning Janet?| A．To praise her way of protecting pets. |
| B．To introduce special clothing designs. |
| C．To call for attention to repairing things. |
| D．To market the products of fixed clothes. |
| A．The action of replacing things is wise. |
| B．The behaviour of repairing things is popular. |
| C．The need for reducing clothes is urgent. |
| D．The problem of producing waste is serious. |
| A．By teaching volunteers repair knowledge. |
| B．By sharing tips on opening repair cafés. |
| C．By providing information to the repair database. |
| D．By offering online and off line help to encourage repairs. |
| A．Jim threw away a used bike. | B．Jackson mended a torn sofa. |
| C．Sue replaced a worn carpet. | D．Windy removed a broken vase. |
6 . 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. |
| 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. |
| A．It leads to false advertisements. | B．It results in incorrect judgments. |
| C．It ensures the quality of products. | D．It improves environmental protection. |
| 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. |
7 . 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. |
| 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. |
| 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 |
| 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. |
1. 描述调查结果;
2. 分析其原因并给出建议。
1. 写作词数应为80左右;
2. 短文的题目和首句已为你写好。
Students’ Time Spent on Physical Exercise Weekly
Nowadays, many students are aware of the significance of physical exercise, although the time they spend on it varies.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________9 . You see a shopper trip over in a busy street. Someone else can help. That’s what you tell yourself. This is the bystander effect in action — the dilution (淡化) of responsibility in the presence of others — and it has been demonstrated in many past studies.
But life is complicated and psychologists have seen exceptional circumstances. Two experiments were conducted by Marco van Bommel and his team using an online chat room for people with extreme emotional problems. Eighty-six students were logged into the forum (论坛) and shown five messages from troubled users. They were told to write a reply if they wanted, but it was entirely up to them.
Basically, participants could see their names on the screen alongside others’ names. A counter also told them if the forum was quiet, with just one other person logged in, or busy, with 30 others online. This arrangement reproduced the classic Bystander Effect-participants were less likely to post replies with more people logged in. However, when the researchers cued (提示) self-awareness by highlighting participants’ names in red on the screen, they posted more replies on a busy forum.
A second study was built on these findings, but this time self-awareness was raised by the presence, or not, of a computer web-camera. Over 100 participants took part. Although told the camera wouldn’t be used until later, those with cameras were asked to check the camera’s indicator-light during the study. The Bystander Effect was reproduced when web-cameras were absent-on busy forums participants posted fewer replies to needy users. By contrast, those cued to be self-aware by the web-cam actually wrote more replies.
Nearly any online community can benefit from the research. The ability to turn hesitant bystanders into eager helpers is a recipe for engagement and collective benefit. As in the research, simple design cues could be integrated to help online users remember they are visible to the community. For example, the size of profile images and specific on-site reminders can be used to highlight how users see themselves within the community.
1. What does the underlined word “it” in paragraph 1 refer to?| A．The hidden danger of a busy street. |
| B．The bystander effect in action. |
| C．The dilution of responsibility. |
| D．The presence of other people. |
| A．there were more emotional problems |
| B．the counter indicated the forum was quiet |
| C．their presence was reminded on the screen |
| D．more individuals were logged in the forum |
| A．To encourage more replies. |
| B．To reproduce the bystander effect. |
| C．To further test participants’ mindset. |
| D．To better record participants’ actions. |
| A．Working together to attract more users. |
| B．Combining designs to boost users’ memory. |
| C．Building more platforms for public promotion. |
| D．Exploring ways to change bystanders into upstanders. |
10 . Many Silicon Valley parents are becoming more concerned about preventing their children from using screens. Some parents think that even a little screen time can be extremely addictive, so it is better if their children avoid using or seeing these devices completely. However, it is difficult for working adults in the 21st century to give up using a phone at home. So, it’s simpler to employ someone to do this.
“Silicon Valley nanny (保姆)”, who takes children back to a time without screens every day is widely needed. From Cupertino to San Francisco, it’s widely agreed that screen time is harmful to youngsters. Therefore, parents are requesting nannies to keep phones, tablets and computers in a hidden place. Others even offer no-phone agreements.
Research shows that spending too much time on technology can harm young minds. For example, teenagers who use social media frequently are more likely to feel depressed and anxious. Insomnia (失眠) rates have also increased amongst this age group, and an increasing number of children display the signs that they can’t focus attention. These seemingly minor (轻微的) problems could become significant challenges for future generations.
“Many parents come back home and focus on their smartphones, ignoring whatever their children are trying to say,” said Shannon Zimmerman, who works as a nanny in San Jose for families that forbid screen time. “As a nanny, I also call on more parents to spend more time with their kids.”
1. Why are the Silicon Valley nannies greatly needed according to the text?| A．To help parents and children balance work and life. |
| B．To teach children how to use technology responsibly. |
| C．To keep children away from screens. |
| D．To encourage children to exercise. |
| A．Feeling confused. | B．Feeling anxious. | C．Feeling bored. | D．Feeling nervous. |
| A．Encourage their children more. | B．Play games with their children. |
| C．Stop using smartphones at home. | D．Spend more time with their children. |
| A．Parents concern about screen time for children. | B．Children are addicted to screen time. |
| C．All parents limit children to phones. | D．Science has no effects on young minds. |
