1 . Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word; for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.

Gray Hair Can Return to Its Original Color

Few signs of old age are clearer than the sight of gray hair.     1     we grow older, our strands of hair lose their youthful color. Although this may seem like a permanent change, new research reveals that gray hairs     2     miraculously regain color — at least temporarily.

In one 1972 paper, the late doctor Stanley Comaish reported an isolated case of a 38-year-old man, with his three strands     3    (be) light near the ends but dark near the roots. This signaled a reversal in the normal graying process,     4     begins at the root.

A new study from researchers at Columbia University is the first     5    (offer) quantitative evidence linking psychological stress to graying hair in people. Having analyzed individual hairs from 14 volunteers, researchers compared the results with each volunteer’s stress diary, in which individuals’ review of their calendars and each week’s level of stress rated are included.

When hairs were aligned with (与……对照) stress diaries, striking associations between stress and hair graying     6    (reveal) and, in some cases, there was a reversal of graying when stress was removed. There was one individual who went on a long vacation, and five hairs on that person’s head returned back to dark during the vacation.

Although it may seem easy to understand     7     stress can speed up graying, the researchers were surprised to discover that hair color can be restored when stress is eased. We could picture hair as a powerful tool to assess the effects of     8    (early) life events on aging — because hair provides a kind of physical record of past events, much    9     the rings of a tree. It’s pretty clear that the hair encodes part of your biological history in some way. Hair grows out of the body, and then it crystallizes into     10     hard and stable that holds the memory of your past.

2 . Read the passage and answer the questions.

Of all the workings of the human body, there is one organ that produces the most intrigue amongst scientists. The brain is the centre of the nervous system and controls most of the body’s activities. Interestingly, it is the back part of the brain that is involved with our vision. The sides of the brain are involved in memory, speech and rhythm. Although the brain amounts to only about 2% of total body weight, it uses up to 20% of the body’s energy—more than any other organ. Scientists have been conducting research in order to seek greater understanding of the brain, especially since the 1950s. Nevertheless, there is still a long way to go before we can completely understand the workings of this complex organ.

1. What functions of the brain are mentioned in the passage?
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2. What is the current research situation concerning the brain?
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3. Do you know any other interesting facts about the brain? Share them with the class.
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3 . 最近一项调查显示，全国大约有四分之三的学生戴眼镜，这一结果令人担优。针对这个问题，你们学校正在开展“保护视力”的宣传活动，作为学生会主席，为了缓解近视问题，学校请你写一份倡议书，内容要点包括：
1. 倡议的原因和目的
2. 倡议的具体内容
3.发出倡议
要求：词数 80-100

How To Protect Our Eyes

Dear fellow students,
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6 . How tall are you? Do you tower over your friends and family - or are they people you literally have to look up to?     1     But do you know that there’s a possibility that we’re all getting taller?

Of course, our height is out of our control.     2     The idea that being taller gives you more power and authority might be a tall story, but according to David Robson, writing for BBC Future, “on the basis of first impressions alone, taller people may have the edge.” He adds that various studies have found that the greater your height, the higher you score on measures of happiness and enjoyment of life.

    3     Scientists have known for a long time that humans with good diets and reliable access to food tend to grow taller and mature more quickly. Adult height in some countries has rocketed as they transformed into a developed society.

In a recent study scientists have discovered a brain receptor, called MC3R, linked to our growing process.     4     “It tells the body we’re great here and we’ve got lots of food, so grow quickly, have puberty (发育期) soon and make lots of babies. This discovery could lead to drugs to improve muscle mass and treat delayed growth,” UK researchers say.

For those eager to be taller, we need to look at the Dutch, who stand head and shoulders above the rest of us as the tallest people in the world. But, of course tall people have to stoop (俯身) through doorways and struggle to fit in cars and can have joint and cardiovascular problems.     5    

A．Are you getting as tall as you want to be?

B．It’s a biological fact influenced partly by genetics.

C．So maybe we should be careful for what we wish for.

D．Obviously, we’re not all the same, and size doesn’t really matter.

E．It’s thought to be the crucial link between food and sex development and growth.

F．There is a ceiling for height, and it’s reached when people achieve their genetic potential.

G．If this makes you want to be taller, it’s good to know we are taller than we were 150 years ago.

7 . Perhaps you use your headphones to enjoy music and peace and quiet during the day. But you may be neglecting the dangers of hearing loss with headphones.     1     This is 30% higher than just 20 years before, and experts are pinning it on headphones.

In fact, headphones are not a bad thing. They can bring peace, allow for better musical enjoyment, and even protect your ears from higher decibels(分贝).     2    

How long should you wear your headphones every day? The answer is, according to the World Health Organization, one hour per day.     3     But the fact is that the longer you listen, you’re going to lose your hearing sooner. To keep hearing loss from happening to you, you should follow the recommendation in place by the WHO that you keep your time with headphones on limited to one hour per day.

Then, how do you set the safest volume for your headphones? With headphones, it depends on the type you’re using and your environment. To test things out, you should take them off your ears and extend them in your hands out in front of you.     4     If you are using open-back headphones, you should try to have a conversation with someone nearby. When you’re able to carry on the conversation clearly, you’re listening at a proper volume. But do remember that never raise the volume on your listening device over 60% of the maximum!

    5     At others this loss will build up over time. It usually isn’t noticeable in the beginning. It’s not until it’s too late that most people realize that the damage has been done. The only way to know for sure is to consult your doctor.

A．This might seem unreasonable to you.

B．At times, hearing loss isn’t permanent.

C．l in 5 teens will have some types of hearing loss.

D．What’s more concerning is what that means for children.

E．It’s the duration and volume that cause the problem, however.

F．If you still hear your music clearly, you need to turn them down.

G．It’s a wonderful thing to shut out the rest of the world and enjoy your music.

9 . As time goes on, neuroscientists learn more about the wonders of human brains. The deeper understanding offers ways to enhance your brain to work in your favor. You don’t have to be a brain scientist to do it!     1    

When you hear the word hack, you might be reminded of the snaky computer science term. Computer hackers need to understand the inner workings of a computer to break into its system.     2     They need to know how the brain works to change its neural network. With this knowledge, people have come up with ways to optimize brain performance and stick to healthier habits.

Neurohackers use their knowledge of how the brain works to change though patterns, like daily habits. Doing this requires understanding the way habits form in the brain. Whenever you repeat a task, the brain connects its wires together between brain cells. Over time, these habits become hardwired into the brains.     3     They help carry out simple everyday tasks without much thought or attention. The trouble comes up when your brain wires unhealthy habits, such as negative self-talk.

    4     You need to rewire! And that requires mindfulness — a conscious awareness of your brain’s behaviors and patterns at the very moment when they occur. In this way, you can change those habits in the direction that you want.

Below the conscious mind lives the subconscious, a deeper mental space that hosts what you have previously engraved into your mind.     5     Then, you can “hack” brain patterns, train thoughts toward positive circuits, and slowly develop healthier habits over time.

A．Find out what neurohacking is.

B．The same goes for neurohackers.

C．Just learn how to hack your brain.

D．How can you improve your mindfulness?

E．How do you change those undesirable habits?

F．Habits free up our brains so that we can learn new things.

G．With proper practices, you’ll build a deeper awareness of your own brain.