1 . Recent studies suggest four out of 10 persons feel lonely at least one or two days per week, with younger persons (Millennials and Gen Z) exhibiting signs of extreme alienation (疏远) and disconnection more than other generations. Even older people, who are frequently regarded as lonely with few persons to speak to and objectively have lost many family members and friends, report less loneliness than Millennials. Why do Millennials report being the most lonely, and what can be done to address it?

Thirty percent of people between 23 and 38 said they often “feel lonely”. “But wait,” you may say. “Aren’t they connected through technology, social media platforms, and various apps?” Yes, but one of the challenges of extensive smartphone and app use today is that we are being trained to stare at screens rather than meet and have face-to-face conversations with people. Still, at the same time, people who spend more than 8 hours a day on screens per day tend to report other issues: depression, anxiety and other serious challenges to their well-being.

A meeting of minds used to happen via religious gatherings and school. So a possible solution is to create spaces and locations where one (and not just Millennials) can meet folks who share additional common interests. One possibility is through regular exercise outside the home. Going to a YMCA or a gym to a Zumba, yoga, or cycling class presents an opportunity to enjoy physical activity and have brief conversations with them before and after the session.

In addition to the obvious positive physical effects of the exercise, it can be surprising how beneficial a quick conversation can be with someone you may have just met. The boost in mood is palpable and can lead to better workouts due to increased available energy and motivation.

In conclusion, spending a little less time on the phone and a little more time walking in the neighborhood, in a park, or going early and staying late at the gym can work wonders for one’s mood and health.

1. Why do Millennials often feel lonelier than other generations?

A．They refuse to open up their inner world.

B．They don’t like to go to religious gatherings.

C．They are less connected with others in real life.

D．They have fewer opportunities to interact with people.

2. What is the possible solution mentioned in the text to address loneliness?

A．Limiting screen time.	B．Going to a nightclub with classmates.
C．Joining a group to exercise together.	D．Strengthening the parent-child bond.

3. What does the underlined word “palpable” in paragraph 4 probably mean?

A．Noticeable.

B．Comfortable.

C．Fortunate.

D．Temporary.

4. What’s mainly talked about in the text?

A．The ways for millennials to make new friends.

B．The importance of face-to-face communication.

C．How to make new friends for Millennials and Gen Z.

D．Why Millennials feel lonely and solutions to address the problem.

2 . The number of universities has grown very fast in recent decades. Higher-education institutions across the world now employ 15 million researchers, up from 4 million in 1980. Governments are also happy to spend on higher education because it is supposed to produce scientific breakthroughs that can be available to all. In theory, therefore, universities should be an excellent source of productivity growth.

In practice, however, the productivity has slowed down during the last decades. In the 1950s and 1960s, workers’ output per hour across the rich world rose by 4% a year. But in the last decade, 1% a year was the norm. Even with the wave of innovation in artificial intelligence (AI), productivity growth remains weak — less than 1% a year, which is bad news for economic growth.

A new paper by Ashish Arora and his team suggests that universities’ rapid growth and the rich world’s slowdown productivity could be two sides of the same coin. The paper suggests that scientific breakthroughs from public institutions “caused little or no response from businesses” over a number of years. A scientist in a university lab might publish brilliant paper after brilliant paper. Often, however, this has no impact on corporations’ own patents, with life sciences being the exception. And this, in turn, points to a small impact on the overall productivity.

Why do companies struggle to use ideas produced by universities?

The paper says that, free from the demands of the market, researchers in university labs focus more on satisfying their curiosity than finding breakthroughs that will change the world or make money. “To some degree, such kind of research is not a bad thing; some breakthrough technologies, such as penicillin, were discovered almost by accident,” it writes, “But if everyone is doing that, the economy suffers.”

Perhaps, with time, universities and the business world will work together more tightly. Tougher competition could force businesses to beef up their internal research. In fact, researchers in companies’ labs, rather than universities, are driving the current AI innovations. At some point, governments will need to ask themselves hard questions. In a world of weak economic growth, huge spending on universities may come to seem an unjustifiable luxury.

1. What are the statistics in paragraph 2 mainly about?

A．The weak economy around the globe.	B．Universities’ contribution to employment.
C．Governments’ spending on higher education.	D．The slow productivity growth in the rich world.

2. Which of the following is benefiting from university labs’ breakthroughs?

A．The investors.

B．The workers.

C．Life sciences.

D．Al industries.

3. What does the new paper imply about the researchers in university labs?

A．They are very eager to make more money.	B．They are less concerned about applications.
C．They usually find breakthroughs by accident.	D．They should be left alone to do their research.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．A Study Suggests Universities Fail to Increase Productivity

B．Universities and the Business World May Work Together Soon

C．It Is Important for Companies’ Labs to Lead the AI Innovation

D．It Is a Big Waste to Spend So Much Money on Higher Education

3 . Keith Payne realized he was poor for the first time when he was in the fourth grade. The awareness came to him when a new lunch lady in the cafeteria asked him to pay for his lunch.

“Previously, the lunch lady had just waved me on because I’d always been on free lunch,” he says. “But this new lady didn’t know how things worked, and it was the first time that I had been asked to pay for my lunch.”

It was an agonizing moment and all of a sudden, he realized why he got free lunch while many of his classmates were paying for their meals every day.

“It’s not like I was poorer the day after that than I was before. Nothing objective had changed. But because of that subjective awareness, I began constantly comparing myself with my classmates and felt really unhappy,” he says.

Keith Payne is now a social psychologist at the University of North Carolina and shares how the awareness of inequality affects the way that both our minds and our bodies respond.

“As we walk through the world, it is very natural for us to compare our lives with those of others. We think about ourselves in terms of being on a certain ladder (梯子) with some people above us and it can cause serious psychological consequences,” he says.

One is that it makes us more willing to seek out risks and engage in high-risk, high-reward sort of behaviors. It affects us in ways that are similar to physical threats.

“But I think there are wiser and less wise ways to make those social comparisons,” he says. “Upward social comparisons feel terrible, but they can be motivating. Downward social comparisons feel great, and yet they can be demotivating. So one of the things I recommend is that we can be more strategic in making upward and download social comparisons, Neither one is good in itself. It just depends on what your goal is.”

1. Which of the following best explains “agonizing” underlined in paragraph 3?

A．Painful.

B．Brief.

C．Important.

D．Happy.

2. What does the author want to show by telling the story?

A．Poor people should be treated equally.

B．He wants to blame the new lunch lady.

C．There were a lot of poor people in his country.

D．We can be influenced by the awareness of inequality.

3. What does Keith Payne feel about making social comparisons?

A．Unimportant.

B．Acceptable.

C．Annoying.

D．Unnecessary.

4. What will Keith Payne most probably advise us to do if we feel stressed?

A．Talk to psychologists immediately.	B．Hang out with top performers.
C．Compare with less successful persons.	D．Stay alone and enjoy ourselves.

4 . 阅读下面材料, 根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段, 使之构成一篇完整的短文。

When I woke up, I felt pains all over. A pool of sticky blood surrounded my head. I lay trapped in the bottom of n smooth-walled pit (坑) with an empty water bottle.

I thought of what had happened. I was climbing down the mountain as I was admiring the beautiful scenery. Accidentally. I stepped on a loose rock. Then I slipped, fell with the rock and got stuck somewhere below the top. It was getting dark in the pit. Only my mother knew where I’d gone. I promised to have lunch with her. Thinking of this. I took my phone out and dialed her number with shaking fingers. No service. The silence, which earlier I’d valued, was now horrible.

With a sharp pain in my head, I was terrified. I knew I’d fallen far, but I wasn’t sure where I was. I called 911 because I knew by the pain that my back was severely injured, if not broken. My ear was torn badly. There was still no service. I dug through my bag to assess my supplies and found a whistle and some wipes.

I put the whistle around my neck and blew, though I knew no one would hear me. It was 1:15 pm and I was miles from the town where I lived. I used the wipes to clean off as much blood as I could. I rested. Then I screamed, blew my whistle, and let myself think the unthinkable. What if they can’t find me? What if this is it?

I decided to get moving. I climbed through a small opening, but when I peered over the next edge, my heart sank: there was a 30-foot drop. There was no way down. I was trapped.

I knew with that extreme Arizona heat in the day and bitter desert cold at night, I wouldn’t last long. But I thought my mother was sure to call the police for help if she couldn’t get in touch with me. With a little hope, I prayed the police would send a helicopter (直升机) to my resecu.

注意: 1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

Around five hours later, a growing buzz (嗡嗡声) in the air broke the silence.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Though the pilot saw me, it was difficult for the team to get to me.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5 . Stacy Dean, an official at the US Department of Agriculture, was inspired by a visit to Watkins Elementary, in Washington, D. C. Students grow vegetables in their school garden. They also roll up their sleeves in the school’s kitchen to participate in a FRESHFARM FoodPrints class, which integrates cooking and nutrition education.

“Who’s next?” asks instructional coach Regina Green, as kids throw vegetables into the pan and the smell of fresh ginger and onions fills the air. “We grew these in our garden,” Jessie Gibson, one of the students, says proudly. Then he measures and pours dry ingredients into a bowl.

“Our family has tried new things because of the program,” says Catie Kelley, whose two children have participated in the FRESHFARM program. “They come home with the recipes,” Kelley says. “It’s fun because it’s things that we don’t usually make at home,” so it has encouraged them to try novel combinations. She says the kids take more of an interest at the grocery store to identify foods they’ve tried in the program.

Dean wants to have the science around healthy eating integrated. A block to scaling up these types of programs is money. The program relies on grants and receives some federal funding, but it’s not enough to expand the program to all the schools that could benefit.

In fact, there are other problems. At a time when diet-related disease is a leading cause of death, and unhealthy eating habits are rooted in US culture, it’s unrealistic to think that a cooking curriculum could overcome such a sweeping, societal problem. “We know from years of evidence that we need multiple things to come together to support healthy eating,” says Angela Odoms-Young, a professor of maternal and child nutrition at Cornell University.

Despite these challenges, programs like FRESHFARM can help kids expand their choices by introducing them to new tastes. At first, many kids are turned off by the bitter taste of greens. But through the magic of cooking, processing the onions, and blending in fresh ginger, kids can be inspired.

1. What inspired Dean during the visit to Watkins Elementary?

A．The coach’s skillful performance.

B．Students’ getting more access to nature.

C．The integrated hands-on cooking.

D．Students’ gardening and cooking.

2. How does the program benefit Kelley’s family?

A．They pay more attention to healthy eating.

B．They have a more harmonious relation.

C．They show more interest in shopping.

D．They have enriched their recipes.

3. What can be inferred from paragraph 5?

A．Advocating healthy eating needs joint efforts.

B．A cooking curriculum should be promoted.

C．Nutrition helps put students on a healthy path.

D．Food is fundamental to life and good health.

4. What does the author think of the program?

A．Complex.

B．Widespread.

C．Effective.

D．Easily-operated.

6 . "Moja, mbili, tatu…"One, two, three. Juliana Rubashai is counting aloud to show what she has learned in school. Delighted and proud, she counts to 20, but her mother, Zefrina Nandia, adds that Juliana can keep counting, and that she also can do some reading.

Nine-year-old Juliana is one of the children who have received aid through a project run by International Aid Services(IAS)in southwestern Tanzania, where many children stay at home all day, cut off from social contact and schooling. The project improves school facilities and raises local community's awareness about education. They train teachers and lobby(游说)the local authorities. In these ways, IAS is struggling to ensure basic education for everyone.

Zefrina was contacted last year by project coordinator Fortunatus Rafael, who gets in touch with families to get an overview of children's needs and school options. Zefrina had previously asked the local school to enroll Juliana, but was turned down due to lack of resources. Thanks to the project, the school can offer chances to more children.

Part of the project is training teachers in special needs education. Many teachers have received additional training in estimating the degree of a child's disability. During the first year of the project, 270 children with special needs have been evaluated, and of these, 200 got the chance to go to school. The teachers Scolastica Nyoni and Bwigane Mwasipu both appreciate how it has strengthened their skills. "When teaching children with special needs, we know whom to pay extra attention to. This means a closer relation between teachers and students," says Scolastica.

It's a year since Juliana got into the classroom, and her mother notices definite improvement. "She used to be lonely and unhappy. Now, she's much happier and always wants to go to school," says Zefrina. The teachers also notice big changes have taken place in the local community. "Parents are now coming to us to find teachers to teach their children with special needs. Previously, they didn't think that schooling would be possible for these children," says Bwigane.

1. What is paragraph 2 of the text mainly about?

A．The life of a Tanzanian girl named Juliana.

B．The challenges faced by Tanzanian children.

C．The success story of a school project in Tanzania.

D．IAS's efforts to improve educational access in Tanzania.

2. What does the underlined word "enroll" in paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．Assess.

B．Award.

C．Accept.

D．Contact.

3. What do the teachers think of the IAS's project?

A．It helps the teachers know their students better.

B．It improves the relationship between the teachers.

C．It offers assistance to the teachers with special needs.

D．It provides disabled students with a chance to recover.

4. How does the IAS's project benefit the community?

A．Disadvantaged children receive financial support.

B．The overall awareness of education is raised.

C．More schools are willing to admit local children.

D．Belief in government's policies is strengthened.

7 . Improved mental health is on the agenda for many people in 2024 and being organized is the preferred method of realizing it.

Disorganization is often considered to have a negative impact on the way we see ourselves and the lives we lead. The studied downsides of living in a disorganized environment include memory problems, poor eating habits, and decreased self-control. “There’s an obvious link between increased stress and anxiety disorders and living in a messy space,” says Daniel Levitin, a behavioral neuroscientist (行为神经科学家) at McGill University.

“Disorganization brings a loss of productivity that is difficult to quantify,” says Levitin. He points to the amount of time people lose looking for lost items, missing appointments, or falling behind at work or school because of disordered living. “The average person likely loses 5 percent of their time due to disorganization,” he says. “Take your annual salary, multiply that by 5 percent, and you can measure what disorganization may be costing you.”

Joseph Ferrari, one of the most recognized scholars on disorganization research, says that nearly every mental health downside that comes from disorganization can be improved by getting organized. “You’ll feel more energetic, enhance your productivity in the office, and greatly improve the quality of your life,” he says.

Tidy homes have been found to be a predictor of physical health. “Those whose houses are cleaner are more active and physically healthy,” says Libby Sander, an assistant professor of organizational behavior. Part of this is due to organized people being better at managing their time, but it's also because research demonstrates that less clutter (杂乱) can help improve one's diet. “Studies show an association between clutter and overweight,” says Libby.

Getting organized has also been shown to decrease one's stress levels, increase personal efficiency, and even improve sleep. Another studied advantage of getting organized may be improving the quality of one's relationships. Libby explains that relationships can be negatively impacted when too much clutter affects communication or distracts one's brain from noticing important message from their partner. Research shows this can cause others to feel ignored, misunderstood, or unimportant.

1. What does Levitin say concerning living a disorganized life?

A．It has been well realized. by people.

B．It's many people’s New Year resolution.

C．It has an obvious impact on mental state.

D．It's closely related to the living environment.

2. How does Levitin support his opinion?

A．By giving examples.	B．By making comparisons.
C．By citing other experts' words.	D．By referring to previous studies.

3. What might help people avoid overweight according to paragraph 5?

A．High productivity.	B．Good management of time.
C．Ignorance about others' feeling.	D．An organized home.

4. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．The Neuroscience Behind Healthy Minds

B．The Cost of Chaos—How Disorganization Affects Your Life

C．Mental Health in 2024—Self-control as a Priority

D．Organize for Success—Boosting Health and Productivity

9 . These days, if you hear about the birth of an Olivia or a Liam, you might feel sympathy—the poor child has been cursed (诅咒) with the most popular name of their time and might be at risk of sharing it with a kindergarten classmate. “The name Mary for instance, was the most popular girls name from 1880 to 1961.” said Laura Wattenberg, the founder of the naming-trends site Namerology.

In the past 60 or so years, American parents’ approach to naming their kids has undergone a deep shift. Today, many parents seek out less popular names to help their kids stand out. But in the past, parents typically picked common names, consciously or not, so that their kids would fit in.

In 1880, the percentage of babies who got a top-10 most popular name was in the neighborhood of 32 percent, according to Wattenberg’s calculations. In 1950, it was about 28 percent. And in 2020, it had fallen to an all-time low of 7 percent. “We are deep in an era of naming individuality, where parents assume that having a name sound distinctive and unique is a virtue,” Wattenberg said.

There came a turn toward novelty and distinctiveness in the 1960s. It was driven by many broader shifts in daily life. As family sizes shrunk and kids stopped doing labor, Americans “started to focus on the uniqueness of each child,” as the sociologist Philip Cohen has written, and “individuality emerged as a project—starting with naming of creating an identity.”

Another crucial change is that in the 1960s, parents started gaining access to data on baby naming trends, according to Evans, a professor in Bellevue University. Books informed parents which names were popular—and, by extension, which overexposed names they might want to avoid. As this information became more widely available, Evans argues, parents felt more social pressure not to pick the same name as everyone else for fear of not following the latest fashions.

1. Which of the following was the most welcome as a girl’s name from 1880 to 1961?

A．Olivia.	B．Liam.
C．Laura.	D．Mary.

2. Why did parents typically pick common names for their kids?

A．To help their kids stand out.

B．To help their kids develop a virtue.

C．To help their kids integrate with others.

D．To keep names in circulation for a long time.

3. What do the last two paragraphs mainly talk about?

A．The uniqueness of each child.	B．The reasons for baby-naming shift.
C．Enormous shifts in American society.	D．The importance of creating an identity.

4. Where is the text probably taken from?

A．A column in a newspaper.	B．A review of a bestseller.
C．A story in a magazine.	D．A chapter of a science book.

10 . In France, a lot of energy goes into one’s personal appearance. Clothing is a big part of Parisian culture; after all, this is one of the world fashion capitals.

Parisians like simple, classic pieces that are timeless. Must-have pieces such as a good pair of jeans, a trench coat, and basic knitwear are always good to have on hand. Parisians don’t really like clothing to be colorful or ostentatious, especially not something to be worn for an ordinary day out. Black, white and different shades of beige are common sightings around Paris’ streets.

Classic goes for shoes, too. A quality pair of leather boots, loafers (休闲鞋) or heels can be paired with anything, provided they are in a shade of black or brown. Comfort is key, since most Parisians do a lot of walking. However, you’ll rarely notice Parisians wearing open-toed shoes. Younger generation Parisians are becoming part of sports shoes culture, though it is unlikely to see an elder Parisian wearing any form of them in public.

Speaking of berets (贝雷帽), a decent beret is an important item for most Parisians. It would be far too general to say that all Parisians are fond of the beret, but the vast majority can appreciate their place in fashion history. They also love having a way of covering their hair when unexpected wind or rain happens in the city of light!

Parisians are not about logos (商标). Contrary to Italians, Parisians prefer not to see any kind of printed logo on clothing, handbags or shoes, unless it is extremely small and subtle. Hoodies with an oversized logo printed down the front is a no-no. Something to keep in mind is that just because Parisians are not into logos, this does not mean they are not into name brands (名牌). On the contrary, the French love luxury fashion and name branded clothing. Parisians know their brands, and they don’t need logos to tell them when something is of a particular fashion house, or when something is real or fake.

1. What does the underlined word “ostentatious” mean in the second paragraph?

A．Simple in design.	B．Of an old style.
C．Enhancing creativity.	D．Attracting attention.

2. What will an elder Parisian probably wear in public?

A．White boots.	B．Black loafers.
C．Open-toed shoes.	D．Comfortable sports shoes.

3. How do Parisians like the beret?

A．Most of them like to have one.

B．They think it too old-fashioned.

C．They think it goes well with long hair.

D．Most of them wear it for an ordinary day out.

4. What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．Parisians don’t like name brands.

B．Parisians aren’t into oversized logos.

C．Parisians don’t care about what is in fashion.

D．Parisians prefer not to see any logo on clothing.