A couple had two little boys under the age of 10. They were both always getting into trouble and their parents knew if anything wrong happened in their town, their sons were probably involved.
The boy’s mother heard that the minister in town had been
The minister, a huge man
2 . Going cashless or not
After saving up your allowance, you finally have enough money to buy that toy, game, or piece of clothing you’ve been dreaming of. You go to the store and find the item. But when you get the register to pay, you see a sign: “Hello! We’ve gone cashless.”
Situations like this may become common if more stores and restaurants stop accepting cash as payment. Instead, customers must pay with a credit or debit card, or by smartphone app. Many business owners believe that getting rid of cash has helped them streamline(使效率更高) the way their business runs. Staff members don’t have to worry about having enough money in the register to make change or about delivering bills and coins to the bank.
But a growing number of people think that cashless stores are unfair. According to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, more than 8 million households in the United States don’t have bank accounts. Also, many people, including kids, don’t meet the requirements for a credit card. “A cash-less economy is not an inclusive(范围广泛的) economy,” Tazra Mitchell told National Public Radio. She’s a policy director at the DC Fiscal Policy Institute. In her opinion, cashless stores are “essentially discriminating (歧视) against people”. Plus, people who do have debit and credit cards might prefer paying with cash. “Cash is still very popular with consumers,” Nick Bourke said. He’s a director at the Pew Charitable Trusts’ consumer finance project. “It’s used by almost eight in ten adults in the US every month. That’s more than any other payment type.”
Lawmakers in several places have taken steps to ban cashless stores. A handful of major cities, including New York City and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have already passed laws to address the issue. In San Francisco, California, a law banning cashless stores was passed in May. It says most stores in the city must allow customers to pay with cash. Derek Remski helped write the San Francisco law. He works for the city. “It’s really about fairness,” Remski said. “It’s about understanding that not everyone has equal access to things.”
1. What’s the major function of paragraph 1?| A．To describe a memorable experience. |
| B．To generalize the whole passage. |
| C．To test reader’s reaction to the situation. |
| D．To introduce the theme of the whole text. |
| A．Neutral. | B．Indifferent | C．Supportive. | D．Opposed. |
| A．The requirements for kids to open a bank account. |
| B．The reasons why people think cashless stores are unfair. |
| C．The relationship between cashless stores and households. |
| D．A research done by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. |
| A．To ban illegal trade. | B．To ban cashless stores. |
| C．To protect cashless stores. | D．To ensure business owner’s rights. |
3 . Speed-reading is a crucial skill in the Internet age. We skim over articles, e-mails and tweets to try to
But a new trend calls on people to
A recent story from The Wall Street Journal reported on a book club in Wellington, New Zealand, where members meet in a cafe and turn off their smartphones. They
Unlike traditional book clubs, the
Slow readers, such as The Atlantic’s Maura Kelly, say a regular reading habit sharpens the mind, improves concentration,
Some of these benefits have been backed up by science.
Another study published last year in Science showed that reading novels helps people understand others’ mental states and beliefs, a crucial skill in building
Slow reading means a(n)
| A．highlight | B．grasp | C．determine | D．underline |
| A．Flooded | B．Armed | C．Obsessed | D．Impressed |
| A．unlock | B．uncover | C．unplug | D．unpack |
| A．straighten in | B．rise from | C．shift in | D．sink into |
| A．point | B．cause | C．impact | D．duty |
| A．protected | B．interactive | C．relaxed | D．addictive |
| A．defined | B．urged | C．initiated | D．performed |
| A．increases | B．maintains | C．evaluates | D．reduces |
| A．In brief | B．For example | C．Above all | D．By contrast |
| A．recreational | B．professional | C．intellectual | D．educational |
| A．confidence | B．endurance | C．awareness | D．relationship |
| A．return | B．answer | C．end | D．barrier |
| A．misunderstandings | B．sufferings | C．obstacles | D．distractions |
| A．purposely | B．automatically | C．occasionally | D．leisurely |
| A．Cope with | B．Reach for | C．Believe in | D．Stick to |
4 . We have all experienced days when everything goes wrong. A day may begin well enough,
Things can go wrong on a big scale, as a number of people recently discovered. During the rush hour one evening two cars collided (猛撞) and both drivers began to
| A．thus | B．but | C．so | D．and |
| A．comes | B．strikes | C．happens | D．works |
| A．exactly | B．possibly | C．practically | D．probably |
| A．fight | B．talk | C．discuss | D．argue |
| A．learner | B．passenger | C．driver | D．instructor |
| A．stop | B．brake | C．burst | D．quit |
| A．upward | B．backward | C．forward | D．sideward |
| A．through | B．over | C．around | D．across |
| A．pulled down | B．pulled up | C．pulled in | D．pulled out |
| A．occupied | B．burdened | C．loaded | D．equipped |
| A．the other | B．other | C．others | D．another |
| A．get | B．have | C．keep | D．take |
| A．empty | B．full | C．dirty | D．broken |
| A．benefited | B．suffered | C．separated | D．differed |
| A．beer | B．vehicle | C．cake | D．bottle |
5 . Kids nowadays are growing up “connected”, learning to use technology at a surprising speed. Technology is a regular part of school now! Kids as young as Kindergarten are using smartboards, IPads, and computers to complete tasks in the classroom. Older children rely on the Internet for research, getting homework, sending work to teachers, and even accessing（ 获得） textbooks. In fact, today’s kids have been given the name “digital（数字）natives” because they are facing technology almost from birth, so new things have never been a greater challenge in the hands of our children. The Internet，Facebook, iPods, pictures and texting on cell phones and all of these are the ways kids communicate today. They have become a central part of their lives. It allows them a private life that most of us know very little about.
Kids just don’t think about the results of the new world of social networking and text messaging. They don’t think that it is dangerous to send a photo of a particular person to a foolish person, who might send it to some friends that may send it to a hundred others and the next thing you know, it’s on many Facebook sites and all over the Internet forever. They don’t think that way because they don’t have the life experience that we do. We have to help them.
The key to knowing how they manage this privacy（隐私） is our “connection” to them. How closely do we connect with our kids and pay attention to what they’re doing? And how often do we talk to our children... and really listen to them? If they believe in us and know that we will be there for them, they are more likely to follow our advice. If we talk openly about what we believe in, what we stand for, those values will become their own before long.
1. What is the author’s opinion about children?| A．They are good at accepting modern things. | B．They are well understood by their parents. |
| C．They almost like to surf on the Facebook. | D．They know the Internet dangers well. |
| A．Kids. | B．Adults. | C．Internet users. | D．Internet teachers. |
| A．They only understand their own private lives. | B．They are badly influenced by new things. |
| C．They do not have life experience. | D．They don’t depend on their parents. |
| A．When they are surfing on the Internet. | B．When they meet some dangerous situations. |
| C．When parents believe in what they are doing. | D．When parents communicate with them deeply. |
6 . For many parents, raising a teenager is like fighting a long war, but years go by without any clear winner. Like a border conflict between neighboring countries, the parent-teen war is about boundaries: Where is the line between what I control and what you do?
Both sides want peace, but neither feels it has any power to stop the conflict. In part, this is because neither is willing to admit any responsibility for starting it. From the parents’ point of view, the only cause of their fight is their adolescents’ complete unreasonableness. And of course, the teens see it in exactly the same way, except oppositely. Both feel trapped.
In this article, I’ll describe three no-win situations that commonly arise between teens and parents and then suggest some ways out of the trap. The first no-win situation is quarrels over unimportant things. Examples include the color of the teen’s hair, the cleanliness of the bedroom, the preferred style of clothing, the child’s failure to eat a good breakfast before school, or his tendency to sleep until noon on the weekends. Second, blaming. The goal of a blaming battle is to make the other admit that his bad attitude is the reason why everything goes wrong. Third, needing to be right. It doesn’t matter what the topic is—politics, the laws of physics, or the proper way to break an egg—the point of these arguments is to prove that you are right and the other person is wrong, for both wish to be considered an authority—someone who actually knows something—and therefore to command respect. Unfortunately, as long as parents and teens continue to assume that they know more than the other, they’ll continue to fight these battles forever and never make any real progress.
1. Why does the author compare the parent-teen war to a border conflict?| A．Both are about where to draw the line. |
| B．Both can continue for generations. |
| C．Neither has any clear winner. |
| D．Neither can be put to an end. |
| A．The teens tend to have a full understanding of their parents. |
| B．The teens agree with their parents on the cause of the conflict. |
| C．The teens cause their parents of misleading them. |
| D．The teens blame their parents for starting the conflict. |
| A．give orders to the other |
| B．know more than the other |
| C．gain respect from the other |
| D．get the other to behave properly |
| A．Solutions for the parent-teen problems. |
| B．Examples of the parent-teen war. |
| C．Causes for the parent-teen conflicts. |
| D．Future of the parent-teen relationship. |
7 . Staying connected
When Central Bucks South became one of the first Philadelphia-area high schools to close because of the fear of novel coronavirus exposure in early March, 16-year-old sophomore Andrew Chen knew that things were not going to return to normal as quickly as some of his peers hoped.
But still, the change from seeing his friends on the swim team during daily practices to learning alone at home was jarring.
“I only have three years here at South, and it pains me to see one of them being wasted,” Chen said.
The coronavirus has changed everyone’s lives, but for students, the disruption feels particularly serious. Schools closed and graduation ceremonies were put off. Summer plans, such as camps, are up in the air.
But right now, many students are trying to stay connected, struggling with false information, and finding out the best ways they can help – through online method.
For Josh Harycki, 17, a senior student at the Shipley School in Philadelphia, the best way to help was to create a “social distancing promise” for young people.
“I saw a lot of young people not paying attention,” he said. “They were … still going out, hanging out with others. I thought that there had to be a way to reach younger people, who were possibly not watching the news.”
Harycki started a call to action on social media and then built a website with a map that followed and kept the locations of people who’d signed the promise. The site also shares links to accurate sources of information like the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Harycki knows that his peers are worried they can’t connected with their friends in the same way, so he created the social distancing promise to strengthen that although everyone might be physically distant, they’re still connected.
“Part of what we’re showing is that you might feel like you’re the only one taking this seriously, but our map shows that you’re not alone,” he said.
1. What does the underlined word “jarring” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?| A．natural |
| B．necessary |
| C．worrying |
| D．reasonable |
| A．Friends who are worried and bored. |
| B．Young people not aware of the situation. |
| C．Younger students trying to help. |
| D．People taking the coronavirus seriously. |
| A．To order young people to stay at home. |
| B．To follow those infected with the coronavirus. |
| C．To tell young folks of latest news about the coronavirus. |
| D．To show young people that they are still connected. |
| A．To explain what worried students most when schools closed. |
| B．To show the different views of students toward the coronavirus. |
| C．To show how the coronavirus affected students’ lives. |
| D．To explain the proper reaction to the close of school. |
8 . For several months, Cara has been working up the courage to approach her mom about what she saw on Instagram. Not long ago, the 11-year-old girl discovered that her mom had been posting her photos for much of her life. “I’ve wanted to bring it up. It’s strange to see myself up there, and sometimes there are pictures I don’t like of myself,” she said.
Like most other modern kids, Cara grew up under the influence of social media. Facebook, Twitter and YouTube were all founded before she was born. Instagram has been around since she was a toddler. While many kids may not yet have accounts themselves, their parents, schools, sports teams have been organizing an online presence for them since birth. It is a shock to know that details about their lives have been shared online without their permission or knowledge. And this has become a common experience for many teenagers.
Recently a parenting blogger said that despite her 14-year-old daughter’s horror at discovering that her mother had shared years of highly personal stories and information about her online, she simply could not stop doing it.
But it’s not just crazy mommy bloggers who share their children’s information on social media. Plenty of average parents do the same. There’s even a special word for it: sharenting (晒娃). Almost a quarter of children begin their digital lives when parents upload their prenatal sonogram scans (产前超声波扫描) to the Internet, according to a study conducted by the Internet-security firm AVG. The study also found that 92 percent of kids under the age of 2 already have their own unique digital identity.
1. How does Cara feel about her mom’s behavior?| A．It's supportive. |
| B．It's appropriate. |
| C．It's annoying. |
| D．It's favorable. |
| A．Teenage girl. |
| B．School student. |
| C．Daughter. |
| D．Very young child. |
| A．Fathers don’t like to share their kids’ information on social media. |
| B．25% of children begin their digital lives before they are born. |
| C．The word “sharenting” can be found 10 years ago. |
| D．AVG is the name of an internet company. |
| A．Growing up on the Internet |
| B．A New Term Born |
| C．Parents Addicted to Blogging |
| D．The Children’s Horror |
9 . I’ve been teaching college for many years. I’ve long grown used to the torn jeans, slippers, shorts in the dead of the Maine winter, and ball caps worn backward. Still, when one of my students showed up in pajama (睡衣) bottoms, I couldn’t help asking, “Did you just roll out of bed?” He responded: “Five minutes ago.”
I'm familiar with the school of thought that says that how students dress is unrelated, so long as they’re learning. I put it in the same category as “Grammar and spelling don’t matter, so long as they’re expressing themselves”. I wonder about the wisdom of blurring (模糊) the line between bed and desk.
I smile when I think back on the occasions that my parents associated with needing to look respectable. Once, when I was 14 and my brother was 12, my father announced that he was taking us into Manhattan (just a subway ride away) to see the play. My brother and I were excited at the hope, but were shortly discouraged when my father directed us to put on our best clothes, including jackets and ties. “But why?” I begged, not wanting to change out of my comfortable jeans, T-shirt, and sneakers. “Because,” he said, “we’re going to New York.” I can still see the stars in his eyes as he said these words.
So yes, I do want my students to be comfortable. But I also want to pay my respects to those students who believe that appearances count.
I think of the woman — a somewhat older student — I had in class a few years back. She was someone to whom science did not come easily: She worked determinedly for respectable grades on every homework. But I was struck by how tastefully she dressed, day after day.
Once, I said, “You always looked so nice.” Immediately, she answered, “I’ve waited 12 years to return to school, and I dress up to remind myself to be serious about it.”
And, I might add, she seemed perfectly comfortable to me.
1. What phenomenon is described in the first paragraph?| A．Students care little about class attendance. |
| B．Students show their personality through dress. |
| C．Students tend to ignore their personal appearance. |
| D．Students make it a habit to be late for school. |
| A．Ambiguous. | B．Supportive. |
| C．Doubtful. | D．Disapproving. |
| A．They considered personal appearance important. |
| B．They looked after their children with great care. |
| C．They often paid a visit to New York. |
| D．They preferred dressing formally on a subway. |
| A．To feel comfortable at class with others. |
| B．To show her serious attitude towards learning. |
| C．To impress others with respectable clothes. |
| D．To hide her embarrassment at poor homework. |
10 . The year 2020 marks the beginning of the decade of the yold, or the “young old”, as the Japanese call people aged between 65 and 75. One might therefore expect peak retirement for baby-boomers born in 1955-60 in the coming years, but they are not retiring quietly into the background. By continuing to work, and staying socially involved, the yold will change the world, as they have done several times before at different stages of their lives.
The yold are healthier, wealthier and more numerous (众多) than previous generations of seniors. 134million 65-to-74-year-olds account for 11% of the population in rich countries in 2020, up from 99million (8%) in 2000. Health worsens with age, but the yold are resisting the decline better than most: of the 3.7 years of increased life expectancy in rich countries between 2000 and 2015. The yold are also better off: between 1989 and 2013, the median (中位的) wealth of families headed by someone over 62 in America rose by 40% , while the wealth of all other age groups declined.
The yold are not just any group of old people. The over-60s are one of the fastest-growing groups of customers of the airline business. They are also changing education. They are challenging the traditional expectations of the retired as people who wear slippers and look after the grandchildren. That will affect consumer, service and financial markets.
The rise of the yold will be a blessing to themselves, to economies and to societies. But for all this to happen, three big things will have to change. The most important is public attitudes towards older people, and in particular the expectation that 60-somethings ought to be putting their feet up and quietly retiring into the background. Government policies will have to change, too. The retirement age in many rich countries is still below the age to which many people want to work. Public policy makes retirement a cliff edge instead of a ramp (斜坡). Third, higher numbers of healthy yold people will require great changes in health spending although the yold will still be comparative healthy and active over the next decade.
1. Why will the yold not retire quietly into the background?| A．They have a longer life expectancy. |
| B．They are richer than the other age groups. |
| C．They have an increasing population. |
| D．They can still play a vital role in society. |
| A．To stay at home babysitting grandchildren. |
| B．To get further education in universities. |
| C．To travel all over the world by plane. |
| D．To stay socially engaged in the company. |
| A．Bringing forward their retirement age. |
| B．Being age-friendly towards them. |
| C．Reducing their cost in health care. |
| D．Taking good care of them at home. |
| A．Three effective measures should be taken for the yold. |
| B．People hold different opinions over the yold’s retirement. |
| C．The yold continue to make a big difference to society. |
| D．The baby-boomers are changing our society nowadays. |
