1 . One icy New Year’s Eve, my mother and father, along with one of their friends, Anderson, were on their way home from a party.
They were driving down a rather icy road with little traffic near St. Charles, Michigan, when suddenly my mother noticed something strange along the side of the road. It seemed that there was light shining up into the pine trees (松树) from the ditch (沟渠). Though my dad had driven past, fearing something bad happened, my mother asked him to turn around.
When they got back, they found a truck upside down in the very deep ditch. The lights my mother had seen were the headlights shining up into the trees.
Seeing this accident, their first thought was to save people. At that time, mobile phones were not as popular as they are now. None of them had one on them. They decided immediately that Anderson would drive into town and ask for help. My father and mother stayed behind.
Since my mother is a nurse, with my father following her, she went down into the ditch to see if she could offer help to anyone down there. When she got to the overturned truck, she could see a young man lying on the driver’s seat, badly hurt. To make matters worse, his right leg was still bleeding (流血). If it wasn’t stopped in time, the young man’s life could be lost at any time. So my mother tied my father’s coat around his injuries to help stop the bleeding. They kept talking and comforting him until the help arrived, and then they went away without telling their names.
One day,20 years later, one of my workmates told a story about her brother. As she talked, the story began to ring bells in my head. I asked her, “Was your brother driving a truck that went into the ditch out on an icy road where there were many big pine trees?” Her mouth dropped open and answered...
1. 根据文本内容，从方框中选择恰当的词并用其正确形式填入文本图示中，每词限用一次，有两词为多余选项。| cold roadside discover wonderful prevent mentioned worried measure keep left hear car |
Looking for Rescuers | ||
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2. Why did the author’s mother ask her father to drive back?
3. How did the author’s parents and Anderson rescue the truck driver?
4. What would happen next?
2 . Happiness is a relative concept, but an annual index (指数) that tracks it in countries around the world has found that the United States is falling in overall well-being because younger people are feeling less and less happy.
The US, for the first time, dropped out of the top 20 of the list, falling to 23rd place from 15th last year, driven by a large drop in the well-being of Americans under 30. The age difference is strikingly evident: The US ranks in the top 10 for those over 60, but for those under 30, it ranks 62nd, pulling down the overall score.
The findings were announced Wednesday to mark the United Nations International Day of Happiness. It’s based on data collected by the research company Gallup and analysis by academics led by Oxford University in the UK.
For the first time this year, the report gave separate rankings by age group. The report found that Lithuania topped the list for people under 30, while Denmark is the world’s happiest country for those of 60 years old and more.
“We had picked up in recent years from scattered (零散的) sources of data that child and youth well-being, particularly in the United States, had seen a drop,” said Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, professor of economics and behavioral science at Oxford, who is one of the editors of the report. “That has pushed us for the first time to really slice and dice the data by these age groups, which we normally don’t do.”
Well-being for people under 30 in the US ranks below the Dominican Republic, and is in line with countries such as Malaysia and Russia. Canada’s unhappy youth rank 58, four spots above the US.
Meanwhile, the report also found that in countries of central and Eastern Europe, younger people are much happier than old people. But these countries have also seen the largest increases in happiness, for all ages. This year, Finland remained on top of the list, and was followed by Denmark, Iceland and Sweden. The lowest happiness scores were registered in war-ravaged Afghanistan.
1. What is the US’s new place based on the overall score?| A．10. | B．20. | C．23. | D．60. |
| A．Lithuania. | B．Denmark. | C．Malaysia. | D．Finland. |
| A．They grouped the detailed facts. |
| B．They rearranged the information in detail. |
| C．They removed the information about ages. |
| D．They analyzed the specific facts in age groups. |
| A．US well-being drops due to unhappy youth. |
| B．Global well-being index sees significant falls. |
| C．UN International Day of Happiness is celebrated. |
| D．Happiness levels are greatly affected by the elderly. |
In a world where parks are often ignored, a rising generation of enthusiasts is leading the way in rediscovering these public green spaces, Gui Qian reports. Cheng Yuyan never expected that the interest group “We Love Strolling in the Park”,
“The growth of this group is the result of the organic
Within this group, there is a tag called “20 minutes for parks”, which comes
Huang Bingbing, coming from Hunan and now living in Shenzhen, is a practitioner of the idea. “On that area of grass, I could connect with living plants and animals,
4 . Nearly one in six adolescents (青少年) have experienced cyberbullying (网络欺凌), an international study has found. More school-aged children have reported being cyberbullied than before the pandemic, according to the report by the World Health Organization (WHO). The study surveyed more than 279,000 young people from 44 countries and regions.
In Wales, where nearly 37,000 young people were surveyed, 17% reported experiencing cyberbullying. The Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey suggests the percentage of adolescents who reported being cyberbullied has increased since 2018, from 12% to 15% for boys and 13% to 16% for girls. In England, where more than 4,200 young people were surveyed, nearly one in five (19%) reported being cyberbullied at least once or twice in the past couple of months, and 11% reported cyberbullying others. In Scotland, where more than 4,300 young people were surveyed, 18% said they had experienced cyberbullying and 11% reported cyberbullying others.
The report said there was an “urgent need” to educate young people, families and schools of the forms of cyberbullying and its impacts.
Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, said: “Protecting the health and wellbeing of teenagers and young adults is now a top priority, especially when it comes to addressing online peer violence (暴力). Cyberbullying, in particular, must be viewed as a major societal issue. With young people spending up to six hours online every single day, even small changes in the rates of bullying and violence can have deep influences on the health and wellbeing of thousands. This is both a health and a human rights issue, and we must step up to protect our children from violence and harm, both offline and online.”
1. What did the survey by WHO focus on?| A．The reasons for worldwide adolescent cyberbullying. |
| B．Effective anti-cyberbullying measures in schools. |
| C．The seriousness of cyberbullying among adolescents. |
| D．Positive and negative influences of cyberbullying. |
| A．More adolescents are cyberbullied in Wales. |
| B．Cyberbullying has become more common in schools. |
| C．Cyberbullied people often cyberbully others. |
| D．Boys are more likely to be cyberbullied than girls. |
| A．Because it attracts more adolesents to stay online. |
| B．Because it makes young people spend more time online. |
| C．Because it takes many forms and is hard to discover. |
| D．Because it is a kind of violence and harms teenagers a lot. |
| A．The rise of cyberbullying among adolescents. |
| B．Harms of the Internet for young people. |
| C．Cyberbullying’s impact on teenagers’ social skills. |
| D．Measures to prevent online violence. |
5 . Considering irrigation’s importance for global food production and food security and for the quality and quantity of water resources, effective irrigation (灌溉) water management is a global priority. Whether or not current levels of irrigation are sustainable, and whether additional irrigation is possible, irrigation clearly depends strongly on the availability of water supplies. Based on these factors, the company Responsive Drip Irrigation (RDI) created a new type of technology, GrowStream. This is a new irrigation system that communicates directly with plants to understand their needs, delivering water when the plant interacts with the system.
When plants need water, they release root exudates (分泌物) to engage in “dialogue” with microbes (微生物) found in soil. RDI takes advantage of this finding by using these substances to turn irrigation systems on and off. GrowStream’s tubes feature tiny holes made of chemical material that can accept those root exudates indicating when the tiny holes need to open and release water. As plants drink enough water, they stop releasing those substances and this tells the micropores to close the system. The water continuously streams through the tubes but is only released when the plants actually need it. This system can also be used to deliver useful substances directly to the root of the plants with the same innovative sensor system.
In drought-stricken areas, this technology has the potential to increase crop yields, improve food security, save enormous amounts of water and reduce energy consumption. According to the Fast Company report, RDI says that it saves 45-50 percent more water than regular drip irrigation, another small-tubed system that is widely applied in countries that are facing severe drought. Besides, there’s no electricity or controllers to program. It’s simple to build and maintain the system.
The company already has many projects in place around the globe, addressing the threat of drought in farms. GrowStream is more than a technology, related Jan Gould, CEO of RDI, as the company’s number one goal is to create awareness of earth’s limited natural resources and people’s responsibility to care for it in a new way.
1. What is the first paragraph mainly about?| A．How to manage water sources. | B．What to do about plants’ needs. |
| C．Why to come up with GrowStream. | D．When to keep water supplies available. |
| A．It can turn microbes into soil. | B．It can operate all by itself. |
| C．It can produce enough drinking water. | D．It can protect plants against exudates. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Indifferent. | C．Uncertain. | D．Supportive. |
| A．An Irrigation System That Can “Talk” with Plants |
| B．The Significance of Developing Natural Resources |
| C．The Challenges of Confirming the Global Food Security |
| D．A Responsible Company That Can Take a Lead in Agriculture |
6 . Nowadays most kids live on their digital devices. Some data show that the social media could play a role in their mental health — something that has been on the decrease among teens and tweens. But how big a role it plays also appears to depend on how kids choose to use it.
In recent years, the internet has done some great things. It’s brought people closer together. It’s helped people form big communities in the world. And it can be an important place for people to find support and connection.
But some adolescents (青少年) can be exposed to something harmful. For example, one 2022 survey found that nearly half of all teens have been cyberbullied (网络欺凌) online. The same survey found that nearly two in every three adolescents experienced hate-based content on social media.
Social media is also a space where people are repeatedly comparing themselves to others. Am I pretty enough? Strong enough? One study of kids 13 to 17 years old found that almost half reported that time spent on social media made them feel worse about their bodies. Only about one in every seven said viewing social media made them feel better.
“It’s hard to study the influence of social media on mental health,” Whitlock, a research psychologist studying internet use by adolescents, explains, “because everyone uses it.” There’s no large group of others to which researchers can compare them. Still, one study of nearly 6,600 U.S. teens linked use of social media to depression, anxiety and a poor body image.
There’s still not enough evidence to say social media is safe for kids, but there was plenty of evidence to warn kids that they should take care when using it. The takeaway, Whitlock says, is that social media use needs to be intentional (有意的). By that, she means “used for some purposeful goal”, not just to pass the time.
1. What use of the internet does paragraph 2 mainly focus on?| A．Job hunting. | B．Online shopping. |
| C．Home schooling. | D．Social networking. |
| A．They are so busy with online surveys as not to get relaxed. |
| B．They are very likely to suffer from cyberbullying online. |
| C．They are always compared in looks and strength. |
| D．They are too young to deal with stress properly. |
| A．Not enough comparisons. |
| B．Improper research designs. |
| C．Too many internet users. |
| D．Limited study periods. |
| A．Use it carefully, since it is linked to both good and harm. |
| B．Try not to use it, considering the risk it may cause. |
| C．Use it however you want, as long as there is a purpose. |
| D．Don’t use it to kill time but for some real purpose. |
7 . Roughly 42% of Americans are nearsighted today, compared to 25% in 1971. The World Health Organization predicts that about half of the world’s population will have myopia, or nearsightedness, by 2050. It’s clear that our vision is becoming increasingly blurry, but researchers are only now beginning to understand why.
Generally a childhood phenomenon, myopia happens when the eyeball grows too long from front to back. Eyes have a “stop signal” so that they grow proportionally (成比例地) with the head, explains Gregory Schwartz, an associate professor at Northwestern University. However, that signal can be interrupted by genetic and environmental factors, which leads to our eyeballs growing a bit too much, making them too big for the optics (光学) .
The mismatch between the eyeballs and the optics leads to far-off objects looking out of focus. While our first response is to blame the increased use of screens, experts believe the real reason is not that, exactly, but it’s related: namely less time spent outdoors. Natural light is essential for healthy eye development, says Schwartz.
Exposure (接触) to natural light promotes the release of dopamine, which helps regulate normal growth and development of the eyeball. Indoor lighting doesn’t do the trick. Ideally, kids should get at least two hours of natural light a day.
That said, our increased use of screens is a problem. Most screens are high contrast (对比) — like black text on a white page, or light text on a dark background, says Schwartz. It’s still a theory, but some scientists think that the contrast of reading a book or looking at a bright screen in a darkroom might cause more eye growth in children.
Researchers are working on ways to slowdown rising myopia rates. You can also reduce eye tiredness by making a few simple lifestyle changes, such as ensuring that you are reading or working in good light (soft background light, plus a task light) , choosing non-glare screens for your computer or TV and taking frequent breaks.
1. What does the underlined word “blurry” in Paragraph 1 mean?| A．Bright. | B．Normal. | C．Unclear. | D．Important. |
| A．It reduces eye tiredness. | B．It leads to more eye growth. |
| C．It helps the development of the head. | D．It controls the overgrowth of the eyeballs. |
| A．High contrast of light. | B．Increased use of screens. |
| C．Overly outdoor activities. | D．Lack of natural light exposure. |
| A．Tips to protect eyesight. | B．Reasons for eye tiredness. |
| C．Features of background light. | D．Problems we are faced with. |
8 . Newly discovered damage to part of Glen Canyon Dam (大坝), which holds back America’s second-largest reservoir (水库), makes the 40 million people who rely on the Colorado River worried about their ability to get the water they need.
The dam is a giant concrete construction between towering walls of desert red rock in just south of the Utah-Arizona state line. Inside it, where the bottom of the dam meets the Colorado River, there are four huge pipes (管道).
“When these are turned on, the water will shoot three quarters of the way across the river here,” says Bob Martin, the U.S. Department of Reclamation’s deputy power manager for Glen Canyon Dam. “It’s amazing how far this water will shoot out.”
But now, with Lake Powell, the reservoir behind the dam, at a near-record low due to climate change and steady demand for water, these pipes could be a lot more important. If Lake Powell continues to shrink, they may be the only way to get water out of it and into the Colorado River.
Water managers are now worried because the recently discovered damage was inside those important tubes. “This is a really big problem. And it really has a big impact on how water is managed throughout this whole area,” says Eric Balken, executive director of the nonprofit Glen Canyon Institute.
The dam itself remains structurally sound, and federal water managers plan to repair the pipes late this year or early next. They have not yet figured out how much it will cost. Zach Frankel, executive director of the Utah Rivers Council, says fixing them doesn’t solve the problem, and much bigger changes are needed. “We have to stop pretending like we’re in a short term drought, and reservoir levels are going to recover,” Frankel says.
1. What problem would the damage cause?| A．Shortage of power supply. | B．Difficulty in getting water. |
| C．Possibility of serious floods. | D．Threat to the environment. |
| A．Get smaller. | B．Freeze over. | C．Dry up. | D．Be polluted. |
| A．They will be replaced by experts at once. |
| B．The budget of repairing them remains unclear. |
| C．They caused damage to the structure of the dam. |
| D．Fixing them is the key to solving the water shortage. |
| A．Glen Canyon Dam contributes to water storage. |
| B．Climate change results in damage to the Glen Canyon Dam. |
| C．Newly-discovered damage in Glen Canyon Dam brings about concern. |
| D．Water managers work together to make adjustments to Glen Canyon Dam. |
9 . Labor Day is observed on the first Monday of September in the US. It is a holiday meant to honor the contributions of US workers. It has been an official holiday since 1894.
Labor Day has had a profound impact on American society. It promotes a greater appreciation for workers and their rights.
| A．People call September harvest-month. |
| B．People celebrate this holiday in various ways. |
| C．Many towns and cities host fireworks on this day. |
| D．It also develops a sense of unity and respect for the labor force. |
| E．Besides, Labor Day has become an important day for shopping. |
| F．As a holiday, Labor Day is filled with both happiness and concerns. |
| G．On this day, government offices including post offices and schools are closed. |
1. What did the woman do to what the man said?
| A．She wrote it down. | B．She repeated it. | C．She typed it out |
| A．Riding a bike. | B．Listening to music. | C．Getting on a car. |
| A．At 7:20 a.m. yesterday. | B．At 7:20 a.m. today. | C．At 7:20 p.m. today. |
| A．Record their conversation | B．Copy his ID card. | C．Sign his name |
