1 . You may not pay much attention to your daily elevator (电梯) ride. Many of us use a lift several times during the day without really thinking about it. But Lee Gray, PhD of the University of North Carolina, US, has made it his business to examine this overlooked form of public transport. He is known as the “Elevator Guy”.
“The lift becomes this interesting social space where etiquette (礼仪) is sort of strange,” Gray told the BBC. “Elevators are socially very interesting but often very awkward places.”
We walk in and usually turn around to face the door. If someone else comes in, we may have to move. And here, according to Gray, lift users unthinkingly go through a set pattern of movements. He told the BBC what he had observed.
He explained that when you are the only one inside a lift, you can do whatever you want — it’s your own little box.
If there are two of you, you go into different corners, standing diagonally (对角线地) across from each other to create distance.
When a third person enters, you will unconsciously form a triangle. And when there is a fourth person it becomes a square, with someone in every corner. A fifth person is probably going to have to stand in the middle.
Newcomers to the lift will need to size up the situation when the doors slide open and then act decisively. Once in, for most people the rule is simple-look down, or look at your phone.
Why are we so awkward in lifts?
“You don’t have enough space.” Professor Babette Renneberg, a clinical psychologist at the Free University of Berlin, told the BBC. “Usually when we meet other people we have about an arm’s length of distance between us. And that’s not possible in most elevators.”
In such a small, enclosed space it becomes very important to act in a way that cannot be construed (理解) as threatening or odd. “The easiest way to do this is to avoid eye contact,” she said.
1. Why is Lee Gray known as the “Elevator Guy”?A.Because his business is to sell the elevator to people. |
B.Because he is the inventor of the elevator. |
C.Because he has made it his research to examine the elevator. |
D.Because he has overlooked this form of public transport. |
A.turn around and greet one another |
B.look around or examine their phone |
C.make eye contact with those in the elevator |
D.try to keep a distance from other people |
The point in the chart refers to one person.
A. | B. | C. | D. |
A.judge | B.ignore | C.put up with | D.make the best of |
A.someone’s odd behaviors | B.the lack of space |
C.their unfamiliarity with one another | D.their eye contact with one another |
2 . One of the most important things of the U. S. government’s routine in 2020 is to raise the federal (联邦) legal age for buying tobacco from age 18 to 21.
Beginning in the summer of 2020, it will be against the law to sell tobacco to anyone under the age of 21. Since 1990, the legal age permitted to buy cigarette is at least 18. The law also includes e-cigarette, not just traditional tobacco products like cigarettes and cigars, adding regulation to this industry, which has developed largely unchecked.
The use of E-cigarette has increased sharply among U. S. teenagers. According to the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, 27.5% of U. S. high school students have used e-cigarette in the past month. Raising the age one can buy tobacco is intended to avoid what many people are calling an epidemic, which is doing great harm to the health of American teenagers.
A recent outbreak of the disease related to e-cigarette has raised even more concern about e-cigarette products , although the disease is largely linked to cartridges (药筒) filled with addictive Vitamin E acetate sold in black market.
In a statement to TIME, the American Lung Association considered raising the age one can buy tobacco as an easy way to protect children’s health and prevent them from getting addicted to nicotine.
Those in favor of e-cigarette have made it clear that they support raising the legal age permission for buying and using tobacco, arguing that e-cigarette products are never designed for young people. Some anti-cigarette (反对吸烟) people have expressed their doubt of this opinion.
At present, twenty states have already raised the legal age to buy cigarette to 21.
1. What can we learn about the new law for buying tobacco?A.It’s good for the tobacco market. | B.It also works for e-cigarette. |
C.It aims to stop selling cigarette. | D.It’ll be illegal to buy cigarette. |
A.Crime. | B.Shoplifting. | C.Disease. | D.Burglary. |
A.E-cigarette products are aimed at young people. |
B.Cigarettes only do harm to young people. |
C.E-cigarette should not be allowed. |
D.People don’t have to obey the legal law. |
A.Science. | B.Culture. | C.Health. | D.Economy. |
3 . Yu Pengnian is an 88-year-old real estate Chinese businessman. He amassed a fortune of $1.3 billion dollars during his career but instead of keeping the money and living like an emperor, he decided to give it all away. All of his fortune will be spent on helping poor Chinese students get a better education.
And Yu isn’t the only super-rich person in China who has this spirit of giving. Chen Guangbiao, a Jiangsu recycling tycoon, has given millions of dollars to charity and promises to give all of his money to charity when he dies.
Yu and Chen are among the many businessmen who have become prosperous during China’s economic rise. An American business magazine, Forbes, estimates that there are 117 billionaires in China and hundreds of thousands of millionaires. What sets Yu and Chen apart from the rest, though, is their tremendous generosity when it comes to donating money to charity.
Last week Bill Gates and Warren Buffett came to Beijing. Gates and Buffett, two of the world’s richest men, are also the world’s biggest philanthropists. They invited fifty of China’s richest people to have dinner with them and talk about the spirit of giving. At first, only a few people accepted their invitation. It seemed some of the invited guests were afraid that Buffett and Gates were going to pressure them into giving their wealth to charity.
A lot of people are angry at the billionaires who are not willing to give away their fortunes. They criticize them for being miserly and not caring about the poor and the less fortunate. But I think this criticism is wrong. A gift, any gift, should come from the heart. Instead of criticism, these reluctant billionaires should be encouraged to follow the examples of Yu Pengnian and Chen Guangbiao. Encouragement is always a better strategy than criticism. As we say in English, “You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.”
1. He amassed a fortune of $1.3 billion dollars during his career… The word “amassed” means________.A.stimulated | B.contemplated | C.immigrated | D.accumulated |
A.helping poor Chinese students get a better education |
B.helping the students in earthquake-stricken area |
C.helping his off-springs lead a rich life in the future |
D.achieve his aim of living like an emperor |
A.Yu Pengnian is the only super-rich person in China who has the spirit of giving. |
B.Chen Guangbiao is a real estate Chinese businessman. |
C.Yu and Chen become wealthy during the rise of China’s economy. |
D.When Bill Gates and Warren Buffett invited fifty of China’s richest people to have dinner with them, they all felt honored and accepted their invitation at once. |
A.When it comes to charity work, they are very generous. |
B.They had dinner with Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, talking about the spirit of giving. |
C.They are pressured into giving their fortune to charity. |
D.They are both businessmen. |
A.The author wants to tell us that flies prefer honey to vinegar. |
B.The author wants to prove that encouragement is always a better strategy than criticism when it comes to charity. |
C.The English saying expresses the main theme of the passage. |
D.The author wants to criticize those billionaires who are not willing to give away their fortunes for being miserly and not caring about the poor and the less fortunate. |
4 . Some children are natural-born bosses. They have a strong need to make
“
Whether it’s inborn nature or developed
When a “bossy child” doesn’t learn limits at home, he is to face lots of troubles
“I see more and more parents giving up their
A.attempt | B.chances | C.decisions | D.money |
A.change. | B.guide | C.instruct | D.follow |
A.old | B.used | C.small | D.new |
A.Examine | B.View | C.Look | D.Notice |
A.aspect | B.generation | C.place | D.level |
A.while | B.even | C.though | D.when |
A.character | B.method | C.means | D.hobby |
A.happy | B.healthy | C.harmful | D.useful |
A.weakness | B.secret | C.protection | D.pressure |
A.outside | B.from | C.upon | D.inside |
A.helping | B.obeying | C.objecting | D.finding |
A.excellent | B.confident | C.lonely | D.proud |
A.study | B.decision | C.interest | D.power |
A.helpful | B.strict | C.polite | D.changeable |
A.eager | B.proud | C.helpless | D.confident |
A. spread B. formal C. chance D. found E. objective F. experience G. divisions H. economical I. respect J. replaced K. classroom |
The idea of the youth hostel(旅社)started with one man: Richard Schirrmann(1874—1961), a German school teacher, who felt that there was a need for overnight accommodation for his students in order that they could see new things and have new experiences outside the
He felt that one learns by observing, and tried to make his dream come true in the year 1909, when he started providing accommodation for his students in inns, farmhouses and the like.
The first youth hostel was opened in Schirrmann’s own school in Altena, after which it was
And then, in the year 1932, a(n)
The idea of the youth hostel is for young people who are on nature trips to get
Youth hostels are also places to meet and make new friends. They have no class
6 . According to a report from the Ministry of Public Security. Yichen (奕辰) and Yinuo (一诺) are the most popular names for newborns in 2020. More than 14,000 boys were named Yichen while over 24,000 girls were given the name Yinuo.
More and more parents are giving their babies longer names to make their names stand out. There are around 3 percent of people with four or more characters in their names.
To help avoid too common names, new parents are able to check how many people are using a certain name on the website of the Ministry of Public Security.
As to the ranking of surnames (姓), the largest group of newborns shared the surname Li, with 726,000 new babies have this surname. Wang, Li, Zhang, Liu and Chen are the top five common surnames in China in 2020, the same as in 2019. 30.8 percent of the total population in China has these five surnames.
Although the common practice is to adopt (采用) the surnames of their fathers, more children have taken their mothers’ surnames because of the country’s second child policy. In 2020, about 7.7 percent of the 10 million newborn babies used their mothers’ surnames.
1. More than 14,000 new born boys are named ________ in 2020.A.Yichen | B.Yinuo | C.Yiwei | D.Yihan |
A.wish a good luck | B.to honor their mothers |
C.make more friends | D.avoid too common names |
A.Zhang | B.Li | C.Wang | D.Liu |
A.they are the second child in their families |
B.their mothers’ surnames are more popular |
C.their parents follow an old tradition in China |
D.their parents want to make their names special |
These days, people who do manual(手工的 体力的)work often receive far more money than people who work in offices. As often as not, people who work in offices
8 . Since COVID-19 outbreak, many women have stepped up in the fight to end the epidemic (流行病).
Guo Xin is a volunteer from Shandong Province. She has been working as a volunteer in Wuhan since February 3. She is mainly responsible for helping to count the goods and materials donated (捐赠) to Wuhan.
According to Guo, her parents didn’t know she was coming to Wuhan. “I wasn’t sure if I should come as I didn’t know how difficult the situation was. I thought about it and decided to come. I have a sister. She is in college. My parents are healthy. If you overthink it, it becomes more difficult. But if you let it go, it’s much easier,” Guo said.
Behind the reports, there are still many unknown women workers. Among them, some businesswomen have spared no expense (不惜一切代价) in the production of protective equipment (设备) at the fastest speed for fighting against the epidemic. There are also women who are active in communities and on the streets, working hard for people. There are also policewomen, women reporters and drivers.
According to a survey, in Shanghai, half of the doctors on the front line of the fight against the outbreak are women and more than 90 percent of nurses are women. Women medical workers are heroes. They are soldiers who should not be neglected in the fight against the epidemic.
1. What is TRUE about Guo Xin?A.She is a college student. |
B.She made her own decision to go to Wuhan. |
C.She comes from a city in Guangdong Province. |
D.Her parents supported her in her decision to go to Wuhan. |
A.Women are as strong as men. |
B.The reports can’t tell all the truths. |
C.A lot of women are trying their best to offer help. |
D.People should pull together when facing difficulties. |
A.Discovered. |
B.Changed. |
C.Admitted. |
D.Forgotten. |
A.Being a volunteer is honorable |
B.The importance of the volunteers |
C.Remember the efforts of people during the epidemic |
D.The important role of women in fighting against the epidemic |
9 . In the third century BC, the full stop, or period, was introduced by Greek literary critic Aristophanes of Byzantium. This punctuation mark is used to show the end of a sentence.
However, the full stop has a different meaning to teenagers and those in their early 20s, who interpret this punctuation mark as a sign of anger. And there is a reason for that.
The younger generation has grown up using the texts as their primary means of communication.
When sending messages, they tend to break up their thoughts by sending each one as a separate message, instead of using a full stop. Some have said the full stop is redundant when used in texting because the message is ended just by sending it.
According to the Telegraph, linguist Lauren Fonteyn of Leiden University in the Netherlands, tweeted: “If you send a text message without a full stop, it's already obvious that you've concluded the message.” “So if you add that additional marker for completion, they will read something into it and it tends to be a falling intonation or negative tone.”
David Crystal, one of the world's leading language experts, argues that the usage of full stops is being “revised in a really fundamental way”. In his book Making a Point, he says that the punctuation mark has become an “emotion marker" that reminds the recipient that the sender is angry or annoyed.
Though the full stop has taken on a different meaning to the younger generation, experts noted that it is important to take context into account. For example, using full stops in an email is perfectly acceptable and is not considered rude.
1. What does the underlined word "redundant" probably mean?A.Clear. | B.Unacceptable. | C.Unnecessary. | D.Old-fashioned. |
A.Using the full stop improves communication. |
B.The usage of the full stop is changing for the worse. |
C.A text message is quite different from spoken language. |
D.The full stop in text messages can show senders' emotions. |
A.Consider different situations. | B.Check who the recipient is. |
C.Take it as an “emotion marker”. | D.Follow the culture of the young generation. |
A.The history of punctuation marks. | B.A new meaning to the full stop. |
C.Correct ways to use the full stop. | D.Different views on punctuation marks. |
10 . Teenagers are in the age group of 13 to 19 years. The age group is thought to be the turning points of both boys and girls. They hardly take any notice of their health and they tend to eat junk food, have less sleep and more dangerously, try smoking, drinking and even drugs. All of these are bringing out many health problems to teenagers all around the world.
Researches show that 17.4 percent of the US teenagers are overweight, and the number of teenagers with diabetes and heart diseases is increasing rapidly. This is mainly due to the lack of proper food intake. Teenagers highly prefer fast and junk food which is the main reason for these health problems. Another problem faced by teenage girls is their need to be thin. This has been put into the teenage minds by the media. Girls tend to eat less and go or an unhealthy diet.
Teenagers are passing the most curious stage of their lives when they are eager to try out everything they see around them. This can be either in sexual activities or trying smoking drinking and drugs. The diseases caused by these factors can be deadly and incurable. Drinking, smoking and drugs can cause cancers and heart diseases. Sexually Transmitted Diseases(STD) are a major problem among teenagers. Diseases such as Hepatitis can be transmitted to another teenager by a simple kiss; AIDS is another high risk for teenagers when having sexual activities.
Teenagers are young; they have very little knowledge of these risk factors. It is up to us parents and teachers to guide them. They must have a good control of their lives, well-balanced diet and good exercise. Staying away from all bad habits such as drinking, smoking and sexual activities will give them a much happier and healthier life. We must help our kids to choose the correct path and become better citizens to the country and better humans to the world.
1. What is the main reason for more teenagers being overweight according to researchers?A.They have less sleep time. | B.They don’t have proper diets. |
C.They smoke and drink too much. | D.They are short of enough exercise. |
A.Diabetes | B.Hepatitis | C.Heart diseases. | D.Hepatitis and AIDS |
A.Parents. | B.Teenagers. | C.Researchers. | D.Doctors |