1 . Born from the accessibility of mass air travel, modern international tourism has been popularized as “holiday-making” in regions that offer comparative advantages of sand, sun and sea. Travel is often portrayed (描绘成) as a tool for personal growth and tourism as an economic motor for destination countries and cities. There is a tendency to assume that tourism is good for everyone involved.
Today the big bang of tourism drives over 1.2 billion tourists across international borders annually. Many popular places are literally being loved to death. Recent protests in ports of call like Venice and Barcelona against disturbances created by cruise ships show the unfortunate consequences of emphasizing quantity over quality in tourism.
Uncontrolled tourism development has become a primary driver of social and environmental disruption (破坏，混乱). Tourism studies provide much documentation of the many negative social impacts of tourism and resulting resentment (怨恨) that local populations direct toward visitors.
Resentment toward tourists typically develops in mature, heavily visited destinations. Protests in heavily visited destinations suggest that traditional tourism has overstayed its welcome.
Residents often become frustrated when the benefits of tourism are not felt locally. Although it can generate foreign exchange, income and employment, there’s no guarantee that multinational hotel chains will allocate (分配) these benefits equitably among local communities.
On the contrary, when people stay at large resorts or on cruise ships, they make most of their purchases there, leaving local communities little opportunity to benefit from tourist spending. These forms of tourism widen economic and political gaps between haves and have-nots at local destinations.
In recent decades, local residents in destination communities also have found themselves negotiating new cultural boundaries, class dynamics, service industry roles and lifestyle transformations. For example, data show that tourism activity corresponds to increased social problems as local residents adopt the behaviors of tourists.
What does all this mean for the everyday traveler?
First, all tourists should make every effort to honor their hosts and respect local conditions. This means being prepared to adapt to local customs and norms, rather than expecting local conditions to adapt to travelers.
Second, tourism is a market-based activity and works best when consumers reward better performers. In the information age, there’s little excuse for travelers being uninformed about where their vacation money goes and who it enriches.
Informed travelers also are better able to distinguish between multinational companies and local entrepreneurs whose businesses provide direct social, environmental, and economic benefits for local residents. Such businesses are in love with the destination and are therefore deserving of market reward. In the long run, being a responsible traveler means ensuring net positive impacts for local people and environments. With the information available at our fingertips, there has never been more opportunity to do so.
1. What is the popular assumption about international tourism?| A．Its benefits may compensate for the adverse environmental consequences. |
| B．Its rapid development is attributed to people’s improved living standard. |
| C．It appeals to people in places with favorable geographical conditions. |
| D．It contributes to the economy of destination countries and regions. |
| A．They fall victim to social conflicts and environmental disturbances. |
| B．They have little opportunity to enjoy themselves on cruise ships. |
| C．They cannot find employment in multinational hotel chains. |
| D．They do not think they benefit as much as they deserve. |
| A．They attempt to adapt to it. | B．They readily adopt new lifestyles. |
| C．They immerse tourists in their culture. | D．They try to upgrade their business models. |
| A．Show interest in local customs and lifestyles. |
| B．Seek possibilities to invest in local companies. |
| C．Use the services provided by local businesses. |
| D．Give favorable comments about their services. |
2 . Everywhere I look, there are new buildings under construction. The neighborhoods that I knew as a boy, filled with beautiful old buildings, have mostly disappeared, and in their place, modern, high-rise buildings have appeared. There is good reason for this. Residents want all the conveniences of modern living. However, how can our children understand and maintain their cultural identity if we erase so much of the physical evidence of it?
The arguments for preserving historic buildings are not simply about an emotional attachment to the past. There are also good economic arguments in favour of preservation. The renovation (修缮) and preservation of historic districts can become an economic engine, drawing tourists and small businesses to the area. For example, in Dubai, the historic Al Bastikiya district draws thousands of tourists every year from all over the world. It also attracts local residents, eager to learn about their city's past.
Some have argued that historic preservation is too expensive, but many recent projects have demonstrated that this is not necessarily the case. In fact, renovation of an existing structure for adaptive reuse can cost about £40 per square metre less than even the most basic new construction, while preserving the beauty of the original building. And, although it is often claimed that old buildings have a more significant environmental footprint than new construction because they aren’t very energy efficient, architects and environmental experts maintain that the greenest building is the one that is already built. New construction almost always has a more serious environmental impact (影响) because it requires the use of all-new materials that must be transported, often over long distances, instead of recycled materials that are already on site. We recycle so many other things. We can and should recycle buildings, too.
Historic preservation is an option that opens many possibilities; demolition (拆毁), in contrast, is irreversible. Once these treasures are lost, they are lost forever, an important link in our heritage that can never be recovered.
1. What drives people to replace old buildings with new ones?| A．Their dislike of old buildings. | B．Their pride in cultural identity. |
| C．Their concern about young generations. | D．Their desire for modern comforts. |
| A．Historic renovation costs much money. |
| B．Local governments support small businesses. |
| C．Historic preservation brings economic benefits. |
| D．International tourism promises economic recovery. |
| A．It uses green materials. | B．It damages architectural beauty. |
| C．It reduces enviromental impact. | D．It worries environmental experts. |
| A．Positive. | B．Doubtful. | C．Disapproving. | D．Objective. |
3 . “Few articles change owners more frequently than clothes. They travel downwards from grade to grade in the social scale with remarkable regularity,” wrote the journalist Adolphe Smith in 1877 as he traced a coat’s journey in the last century: cleaned, repaired and resold repeatedly; cut down into a smaller item; eventually recycled into new fabric. But with the improvement in people’s living standards, that model is mind-boggling in the era of fast fashion. The average British customer buys four items a month. And it is reported that 350,000 tonnes of used but still wearable clothes go to landfills in the UK each year.
Yet the gradual revival of the second-hand trade has gathered pace in the past few years. At fashion website Asos, sales of vintage clothes (古董衫) have risen by 92%. Clothing was once worn out of necessity, and now it is simply a way of life. Busy families sell used items on eBay, teenagers trade on Depop and some fashion people offer designer labels on Vestiaire Collective. Strikingly, it has become big enough business that mainstream retailers (零售商) want a slice of the action.
For some buyers and sellers, the switch to the second-hand is born of financial difficulties. Only a few have become worried about the impact of their shopping habit on the planet. But the shift is only a partial solution. Some people worry that some mainstream brands may “greenwash” — using second-hand goods to improve their image, rather than engaging more seriously with sustainability.
However, the biggest concern may be that people keep buying because they know they can resell goods, still chasing the pleasure of the next purchase but with an eased conscience (愧疚). Boohoo, a powerful fast fashion company, has seen sales and profits rise, despite concerns about environmental problems in its supply chain that led to an investigation last year.
A new Netflix series, Worn Stories, documents the emotional meanings that clothes can have: Each old item is full of memories. Actually, a handbag from a grandmother and a scarf passed on by a father are both valuable for us. A love of style is not a bad or an unimportant thing. But a committed relationship is better than a quick flash. Can we learn to appreciate our own old clothes as well as others’?
1. What does the word “mind-boggling” underlined in paragraph 1 probably mean?| A．Unbelievable. | B．Popular. | C．Reasonable. | D．Influential. |
| A．old clothes are more popular than new pieces |
| B．the online second-hand markets are booming |
| C．the fashion world begins to favor vintage clothes |
| D．many clothing brands are innovative in their new products |
| A．It makes people feel free to pursue fast fashion. |
| B．It makes people more cautious about their budgets. |
| C．It encourages people to choose eco-friendly clothes. |
| D．It pushes people to be more engaged with sustainability. |
| A．Old items have lost favor with the public. |
| B．Old items are worthy of being long cherished. |
| C．Older generations attach great importance to old items. |
| D．Older generations care about the quality of their clothes. |
4 . My family has a new toy. At every gathering, a Mata Quest 2 virtual reality headset is now carefully unpacked and passed around. The metaverse (元宇宙) that the headsets access sounds like an appealing place. Create your own form, move between worlds and beyond the limitations of reality — what could be better? Yet the headsets are still massive and the apps cartoonist. Even the game my family loves best shows that perfect interaction with the real world and realistic pictures are still years away. After an hour, not even my nephews want to play anymore.
Yet this observation runs counter to the steady drumbeat of warnings that have emerged about virtual life over the past year. When Meta whistleblower Frances Haugen spoke out against her employer, addiction to the metaverse was one of the things she claims to be most worried about. Immersive environments would encourage users to disconnect from reality altogether, she said.
You can see why product managers like Haugen might worry. Many of us lost the battle against limiting our Internet use long ago. Tech addiction has tricked our brains into habits that ensure our overconsumption of tech products. For instance, our addiction to checking and rechecking our messaging apps. Or looking out for email notifications (通知). On this point, I agree. I’m guilty of both. I turned my own screentime reminders off months ago. Simply knowing how much time I was spending on my phone didn’t seem to be having any effect on my habits.
In lockdowns, spending hours at a time on the Internet became normalized. Yet this does not mean we are all on the edge of spending hours and hours in the metaverse. In the four years I have spent testing out virtual and augmented (强化的) headsets, I have yet to try one that feels comfortable. “Like tying a brick to your forehead,” as one friend put it. It is possible to buy upgraded head bands that attempt to redistribute the weight, but even so the sets still remain heavy.
1. How did the attitude of the author’s family change towards playing VR games?| A．From being absorbed to bored. |
| B．From being confused to confident. |
| C．From being curious to excited. |
| D．From being casual to interested. |
| A．Confirm. | B．Challenge. | C．Repeat. | D．Ignore. |
① minimizing online use.
② checking messaging apps repeatedly.
③ being addicted to email notifications.
④ silencing the screen-time reminders.
| A．①② | B．②③ | C．③④ | D．①④ |
| A．The addiction to virtual reality. |
| B．The anxiety caused by lockdowns. |
| C．The heaviness of virtual reality headsets. |
| D．The cost involved with buying tech products. |
5 . What comes to mind when you think about chocolate? A candy bar at Halloween? Ice cream on a hot day?
For Ibrahim, a 12-year-old boy from the West African country of Ghana, chocolate is not about sweet treats; it is about bitter work.
To change the harmful practices like this, some farms use an approach called Fairtrade.
Consumers like you can play a role as well. You can buy Fairtrade chocolate if possible, pressure candy companies to change their labour practices, or ask local stores to sell Fairtrade products.
Chocolate has a hidden story that affects children like Ibrahim—children who want a happy future just like you do.
| A．You have the power to change the story. |
| B．The labels on chocolate do not tell his story. |
| C．Fairtrade is a way of doing business that prohibits child labour. |
| D．You can also take action through the Fairtrade Schools network. |
| E．On many farms, children like Ibrahim perform difficult farming tasks. |
| F．Cocoa trees grow in the tropical climates of Africa, Latin America and South-East Asia. |
| G．With more income, farmers can pay adult workers and can send their children to school. |
6 . Amazon sometimes makes us check a box to save money. Those orange “coupon” (优惠券) banners below the price on Amazon’s online store are confusing. Why does Amazon make through the extra step of clicking a box to “save $2 when you apply this coupon?” Why doesn’t the coupon just apply automatically?
The answer lies in the subtle but highly effective way Amazon and other stores use shopping psychology to influence our buying decisions. By making us click a box, Amazon hopes to avoid the “cart abandonment” problem—when shoppers add something to their virtual shopping cart but don’t end up buying it.
That’s a big challenge for online retailers. They miss out on billions of dollars of potential sales annually because of shoppers thinking twice about buying a product. Around 70% of online shopping carts containing at least one item are eventually abandoned, according to the Baymard Institute, an e-commerce consultancy based in Copenhagen.
The top reason customers walk away: They say they were just browsing and weren’t ready to make a purchase. So companies look for persuasion tactics (策略) to get shoppers to follow through and click the “buy” button. Amazon’s tactic to display a coupon option, instead of just automatically showing a discounted price, gives shoppers an extra incentive (动机) to make the purchase right away, say marketing experts.
Customers also want to be rewarded for the effort they put in to shop. It may not feel like much to click a box—but it does make a difference. Amazon’s coupon box puts customers in a more active and engaged role in landing a reward, making it more visceral (发自内心的) for them, said Tamara Masters, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of Utah’s David Eccles School of Business, who studies shopping psychology.
“By consciously seeing and clicking on the coupon box, instead of just having the coupon applied automatically the reward can be felt more acutely,” Masters said. That’s a benefit to Amazon in the long run. “When a consumer feels rewarded after making an effort to purchase something, they are more willing to buy and more willing to pay,” she added.
The coupon box is just one of the ways Amazon targets shoppers looking for bargains. Amazon also has a standalone page on its website for coupons on select brands. If shoppers go to the page, they can clip the coupons virtually and don’t have to take the extra step of checking a box.
This approach is designed to reach the shoppers who will shop exclusively based on which brands are offering coupons, which are different than products on sale, price promotions or discounts.
1. Why does Amazon apply the coupon box to help customers save money?| A．To avoid the abandonment of coupons. |
| B．To ensure customers make wise choices. |
| C．To increase customers’ chance of buying. |
| D．To recommend good products to customers. |
| A．Their effort to get a reward. | B．Their expectations of price. |
| C．Their curiosity about the reward. | D．Their desire to make a difference. |
| A．It is a losing bat in the long term. | B．It can provide much convenience |
| C．It might cause consumers complaints. | D．It’s a reliable way to encourage purchase. |
| A．It will save shoppers’ time to check a box. |
| B．It persuades select brands to offer coupons. |
| C．It tries various means to target different shoppers. |
| D．It plans to reduce unfair competition among brands. |
7 . When someone sets out to improve their health, they usually take a familiar path: starting a healthy diet, adopting a new workout plan, getting better sleep, or drinking more water. Each of these behaviors is important, of course, but they all focus on physical health and a growing body of research suggests that social health is just as, if not more, important to overall well-being.
A recent study found that the strength of a person’s social circle -- as measured by cell phone activity -- was a better predictor of self-reported stress, happiness and well-being levels than fitness tracker data on physical activity, heart rate and sleep. That finding suggests that the “quantified self” presented by endless amounts of health data doesn’t tell the whole story, says study co-author Nitesh Chawla.
“There’s a qualified self, which is who I am, what my activities, my social network, my lifestyle, and my enjoyment are. All of these aspects are not reflected in any of these measurements,” Chawla says. “And they are strong determinants of my well-being.”
A 2019 study set out to determine what’s driving those high rates of loneliness and found that social media, when used so much that it occupied face-to-face quality time, was tied to greater loneliness. Gender and income didn’t seem to have a strong effect, but loneliness tended to decrease with age, perhaps because of the wisdom and perspective afforded by years of life lived, says Dr. Stuart Lustig, one of the report’s authors.
Lustig emphasizes that we should use technology “to seek out meaningful connections and people that you are able to keep in your social sphere (范围). It’s easy enough to find groups such as Meetups, which regularly organize offline gatherings, providing members with opportunities to interact, share, and participate in various activities in real life. Or through social media, you can find places to go where you’ll find folks doing what you want to do.” That advice is particularly important for young people, he says, for whom heavy social media use is common.
Finally, Lustig stresses that even small social changes can have a large impact. Striking up post-meeting conversations with co-workers, or even engaging in micro-interactions with strangers, can make your social life feel more rewarding.
1. What is the author’s purpose in writing paragraph 1?| A．To show social health is ignored by some people. |
| B．To show social people like to do workouts with others. |
| C．To prove many people tend to follow suit to improve their health. |
| D．To prove more and more people have benefited from physical exercise. |
| A．They are out of date. |
| B．They are not scientific. |
| C．They can help realize the “qualified self”. |
| D．They cannot reflect one’s overall health. |
| A．Females feel happy more easily than males. |
| B．Old people felt lonelier than young people. |
| C．The overuse of social media could lead to loneliness. |
| D．Income had a great influence on people’s well-being. |
| A．Avoiding talking to strangers. |
| B．Using social media as little as possible. |
| C．Using technology for meaningful interactions. |
| D．Spending more time with like-minded young people. |
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Despite the efforts made by many companies, instant noodle is less likely
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9 . Ever since I got my e-bike, many people have expressed a desire to try riding it. They have beard about the technology, but haven’t had a chance to experiment because it’s not yet common. And because the bikes are so expensive many don’t want to buy one without having ridden it for a long time.
One interesting company solves some of the difficulties in entry; the unfamiliarity and the cost. Called Zoomo, it now operates out of several major cities in the United States, offering e-bikes on a monthly subscription (订购费) basis. This model makes it highly accessible to anyone who wants to try out an e-bike without having to pay a lot in advance.
Zoomo began as a side hustle (制业) in 2017 when cofounders Mina Nada and Michael Johnson saw a need for riders to have a safer, more efficient and dependable mode of transportation. The pair went full-time in 2019 and saw strong growth throughout the pandemic (流行病). Its mixed users of both delivery men and riders grew rapidly as delivery orders increased and people wanted to avoid public transport. Companies are also encouraged to choose greener means of transportation, all of which have translated into a significant rise in e-bike use.
Zoomo offers several different plans for riders. The plan for starters goes for S29/week with a 50-mile weekly limit Subscribers get an e-bike with a battery and charger, two styles of lock, and full support for repairs and tune-ups. The plan for delivery men designed to suit their delivery needs starts at $45/week with several different bike options and unlimited weekly kilometres. Both of them have no lock-in contracts (合同).
With the weather warming up and people slowly returning to their places of work, Zoomo could be a great option for anyone in the United States. You can join what Nada describes as the “extraordinary” uptake of e-bike technology and “enjoy the wonders of micro-mobility”. Chances are, you’ll wonder how you survived so long without it, and you’ll never want to take your car anywhere again.
1. What prevents many people buying an e-bike?| A．Their worry about its safety. |
| B．Their refusal of its appearance. |
| C．Their unwillingness to spend much on it. |
| D．Their unfamiliarity with its subscription system. |
| A．The rise of Zoomo. | B．The future of Zoomo. |
| C．The benefits of e-bikes. | D．The features of e-bikes. |
| A．It charges less | B．It has no mile limits. |
| C．It has no lock-in contracts. | D．It offers more support for repairs. |
| A．Worried. | B．Hopeful. | C．Critical. | D．Tolerant. |
10 . It was a quiet morning in the library, and we librarians were enjoying a rather loud chat. Suddenly, a patron (常客) marched up to us, gave us an annoyed “Shush!” and went back to her seat. How strange for a group of librarians to be shushed by a patron! Shouldn’t it be the other way around?
Well, it’s complicated. If you’re like me, a middle-aged woman, you probably remember libraries as places of silent reading. These days, however, libraries are more like active community centers.
In the past, most libraries didn’t focus much on programs for kids whose age made it impossible for them to be quiet on demand. But growing knowledge about the importance of kids and teens learning through hands-on experiences has since caused a sea change in how libraries connect with young readers. Now libraries begin offering interactive programs for kids, including crafts, board games, and story times. These types of programs certainly aren’t designed to be silent.
Along with more programs for ever-younger children, technology today has played a part in the transformation of libraries into places where both kids and adults can use computers, make something on a 3D printer and more. In addition, many libraries now offer programs for adults, who can participate in in book discussion, learn calligraphy, and even take college classes.
Of course, libraries still need peaceful phones. These days, many libraries have glassed-off study rooms or quiet areas. They are also less noisy in the early afternoons, after morning children’s programs and before the after-school kid crowd arrive.
It’s clear to me now that on the day my colleagues and I were shushed by a patron, we should have been using our “library voices” as we talked. Still, it’s unlikely that libraries will ever return to the days when they were places of silence. There’s just too much fun and learning happening.
1. How did the author respond to the patron’s behavior?| A．She approved of it. | B．She was disappointed at it. |
| C．She hesitated about it. | D．She was astonished at it. |
| A．The past and the present of libraries. | B．The reason for the change of libraries. |
| C．The activities for young children in libraries. | D．The connection between libraries and readers. |
| A．They heavily depend on technology. | B．They offer online programs for adults. |
| C．They still provide silent reading places. | D．They care much about time arrangement. |
| A．Libraries Should be Loud | B．Reading Can be Fun in Libraries |
| C．Libraries Make Learning Happen | D．Library Programs Target Children |
