3 . Recently, I pulled a jacket from my wardrobe, paired it with my red trousers and earrings, and hit the town for a book signing event. That night, I found myself unexpectedly satisfied. I got more praise over this jacket than I had got in years. But what made me feel way better was to respond, “Thank you. I bought it at a second-hand shop.”

Not only did I spend minimal amount on a clearly unbelievable find, but I also joined the ranks of consumers turning to circular fashion”-a growing trend in refreshing our wardrobe and producing new clothes in more planet-friendly ways.

As for the clothing industry; it produces close to 10% of the world's carbon dioxide emissions (碳排放) and is a massive consumer of the world's water supplies. To create a single pair of jeans, for example, requires nearly 2,000 gallons of water. And each year, around 8 billion barrels of oil are used to produce artificial materials.

Consumers also contribute to the problem. They buy cheap new clothes, wear them a few times, and then throw them out. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that Americans threw away 16 million tons of clothing in 2018, with only 15 percent recycled--the rest ended up in landfills or being exported abroad.

Something’s got to give. Scientists are working to develop less harmful carbon-negative fabrics, while some leading brands are shifting from linear take-make-waste economies to circular ones in which fewer clothes are made, waste and pollution are vastly reduced, and the used clothing is given new life.

But there’s also a role for the individual in addressing the problem. “Following the circular fashion, you’ll build an affordable cupboard that's better for the planet,” says Gama, co-founder of a company that helps brands scare their recycling and resale programs.

According to ThredUP, the world’s largest fashion resale platform, the U.S. second-hand market is expected to more than double by 2026. “Our resale report data found that over half of the consumers are more opposed to waste, both financially and environmentally, says ThredUP president Anthony Marino.

1. What amazed the author at the book signing event?

A．People thought highly of her books.

B．People got attracted by “circular fashion”

C．She got others’ recognition for her dressing

D．She had the chance to buy second-hand goods.

2. What do the statistics in Paragraph 3 mainly indicate?

A．The high costs of artificial materials.

B．The seriousness of environmental pollution.

C．The necessity of producing artificial materials.

D．The high environmental costs of the clothing industry.

3. What are some large brand companies’ efforts mainly about?

A．Improving the quality of their clothes.

B．Researching recyclable clothing materials.

C．Promoting a sustainable clothing industry.

D．Making their clothes affordable to consumers.

4. What is Marino’s attitude to the development of second-hand markets?

A．Uncertain.

B．Confident.

C．Objective.

D．Curious.

5 . Since the early to mid-2010s, social media apps have made a permanent home in many people’s phones and spending time on social media has become as much of a daily activity as eating food or drinking water. Since so many people — especially kids, teens, and young adults — are on it for much of their days, there is increased concern over what social media is doing to people with its overwhelming (巨大的) information. Many argue that social media is an unhealthy way to pass the time, and false information from online is causing panic and confusion.

While social media may sometimes be linked to negativity, it is not as bad as many make it out to be. In fact, it has given birth to a whole new way to advocate for important movements, and it’s easy to spread one’s message to reach a large audience. For example, the Black Lives Matter movement started with online advocacy and it eventually reached practically everyone around the world during the civil rights movement over the summer in 2020. Activists online can create informational fliers, post resources to further educate people on any given topic, and interact with like- minded people that want to help as well within a matter of minutes without even having to leave the house.

Honieh Hemati, a social activist, agrees that social media can be extremely helpful. “It can be really educational and inspirational. Sometimes it can open your eyes to a new perspective (视角) you wouldn’t have seen yourself,” she explained.

It is unjust to demonize (使妖魔化) social media, when it seems that most issues around social media are user errors, like anyone complaining there are too many people voicing opinions they don’t agree with, or being addicted to social media. It really is up to the individual— how they think of social media, and how they make use of it. People who have any grasp on reality wouldn’t spend every waking second on the phone, and they are responsible for what they post online.

1. What are people worried about in terms of social media?

A．Confusion and panic it causes to young people.

B．Difficulty to delete apps once they are downloaded.

C．Unhealthy habits of using it while eating or drinking.

D．Bad effects it brings about with too much information.

2. What does Honieh Hemati think of social media?

A．Harmful.

B．Changeable.

C．Beneficial.

D．Addictive.

3. What does the author advise people to do with social media?

A．Forbid the young from it.	B．Mind how they see it and use it.
C．Be aware of the errors on it.	D．Make the most and best use of it.

4. Which of the following is a suitable title for the text?

A．Social Media: Now or Never!	B．Social Media: Demon or Angel?
C．Activists: Social Media Are Helpful	D．Teens: Stay Away from Social Media

6 . When we use “okay”, “OK” , “kk” or other similar words at work, we may pass on meanings we don’t intend. “OK” is a basic word of acceptance we say out loud to show agreement, but when you use it in digital work spaces such as Slack, or email, you may be communicating negativity or anger.

In the mind of an anxious employee, an “OK” or “okay” can become roof of Trendiness and

Judgement in text-based communication. When the boss answers a deadline request with just“OK”in an email, the two-letter word can suddenly sound indescribable. When a colleague replies to a paragraph-long question with a one letter on Slack, it can send us into an anxious panic, thinking the sender is mad at us. Why does simply saying “okay” or any of its other forms, such as the briefer “kay“, or “ kk”, not always sound OK online? One expert has an answer.

Gretchen Mcculloch, an Internet linguist and author of the upcoming book Because Internet, said OK is not born to be rude but something else matters. “Anything that’s shorter can sound rude, and anything that’s longer can sound more polite, ”Mcculloch said. This may be one subconscious reason that many of us add our Oks with pleasant expression like OK, great! ”or OK, sounds good “to express that we come in peace. Those extra words can make all the difference. ” Having two things there, listeners may feel you have gone through a bit of an extra effort and it is that extra effort that makes some-thing more polite Mcculloch said, “These real unnoticeable things are often what our vague (模糊的) social impressions are made out of.”

1. Which of the following idea may the writer support?

A．Be careful using “OK ”in online work-place communication.

B．The meaning of OK “varies from person to person.

C．Try to avoid using”OK “in group communication.

D．OK ”may have rich meanings in the work-place.

2. what do the examples in Paragraph 2 probably imply?

A．OK“sometimes shows satisfaction with work.

B．OK”“in written form is hard to express feelings.

C．It’s best to use”OK“less when facing unfamiliar people.

D．Simply replying with “OK” may cause misunderstandings at work.

3. What may influence the impression of a reply according to Mcculloch?

A．The length of it

B．The ending words.

C．the response speed.

D．The pronunciation of it.

4. How to use “OK ”to make a friendly reply?

A．Express more positive feelings instead of only saying OK

B．Take extra time to practice saying OK in a pleasant way

C．Add extra words based on the characters of the listeners

D．Find some more polite words to replace it.

8 . Quantum ( 量子 ) computers have been on my mind a lot lately. A friend has been sending me articles on how quantum computers might help solve some of the biggest challenges we face as humans. I’ve also had exchanges with two quantum-computing experts. One is computer scientist Chris Johnson who I see as someone who helps keep the field honest. The other is physicist Philip Taylor.

For decades, quantum computing has been little more than a laboratory curiosity. Now, big tech companies have invested in quantum computing, as have many smaller ones. According to Business Weekly, quantum machines could help us “cure cancer, and even take steps to turn climate change in the opposite direction.” This is the sort of hype ( 炒作 ) that annoys Johnson. He worries that researchers are making promises they can’t keep. “What’s new,” Johnson wrote, “is that millions of dollars are now potentially available to quantum computing researchers.”

As quantum computing attracts more attention and funding, researchers may mislead investors, journalists, the public and, worst of all, themselves about their work’s potential. If researchers can’t keep their promises, excitement might give way to doubt, disappointment and anger, Johnson warns. Lots of other technologies have gone through stages of excitement. But something about quantum computing makes it especially prone to hype, Johnson suggests, perhaps because “‘quantum’ stands for something cool you shouldn’t be able to understand.” And that brings me back to Taylor, who suggested that I read his book Q for Quantum.

After I read the book, Taylor patiently answered my questions about it. He also answered my questions about PyQuantum, the firm he co-founded in 2016. Taylor shares Johnson’s concerns about hype, but he says those concerns do not apply to PyQuantum.

The company, he says, is closer than any other firm “by a very large margin ( 幅度 )” to building a “useful” quantum computer, one that “solves an impactful problem that we would not have been able to solve otherwise.” He adds, “People will naturally discount my opinions, but I have spent a lot of time quantitatively comparing what we are doing with others.”

Could PyQuantum really be leading all the competition “by a wide margin”, as Taylor claims? I don’t know. I’m certainly not going to advise my friend or anyone else to invest in quantum computers. But I trust Taylor, just as I trust Johnson.

1. Regarding Johnson’s concerns, the author feels ________.

A．sympathetic

B．unconcerned

C．doubtful

D．excited

2. What leads to Taylor’s optimism about quantum computing?

A．His dominance in physics.	B．The competition in the field.
C．His confidence in PyQuantum.	D．The investment of tech companies.

3. What does the underlined word “prone” in Paragraph 3 most probably mean?

A．Open.

B．Cool.

C．Useful.

D．Resistant.

4. Which would be the best title for the passage?

A．Is Johnson More Competent Than Taylor?

B．Is Quantum Computing Redefining Technology?

C．Will Quantum Computers Ever Come into Being?

D．Will Quantum Computing Ever Live Up to Its Hype?

9 . Putting cash in the hands of mothers can help shape the brains of their babies, according to a study in the United States.

Family income has been linked to child development numerous times in the past in observational studies, but this is the first time researchers have found direct experimental evidence of how poverty drives such changes.

The findings come from an ongoing study known as Baby’s First Year, which is attempting to assess how poverty reduction can impact the cognitive and emotional growth of very young children. “We have known for many years that growing up in poverty puts children at risk for lower school achievement, reduced earnings, and poorer health,” explains neuroscientist Kimberly Noble from Columbia University. “However, until now, we haven’t been able to say whether poverty itself causes differences in child development, or whether growing up in poverty is simply associated with other factors that cause those differences.”

A thousand low-income mothers in the US were recruited (招募) for the study shortly after their babies were born. These parents, who came from either New York City, New Orleans, Omaha or Minneapolis/St. Paul, were then randomly offered either $333 a month in unconditional cash payments or $20 a month in unconditional cash payments for the first four years of their baby's life—no strings attached.

The data show that giving low-income mothers financial support can directly change infant brain activity in the first year of life. Infants (婴儿) whose mothers had received the higher cash payments, for instance, had higher frequency brain activity than those infants whose mothers had received less.

Further research is needed to see whether these changes in brain activity last or whether they translate to improved cognitive development, but there’s good reason to suspect they might.

1. How is the current study different from previous ones?

A．It didn’t get expectant result.	B．Its result is obtained by observing.
C．There is no evidence to support it.	D．Its result is based on direct experiment.

2. What’s the purpose of the current study?

A．To find other factors that impact young children.

B．To find if poverty has negative effects on child development.

C．To prove if relieving poverty contributes to child brain development.

D．To prove family income has nothing to do with child development.

3. What can you infer from paragraph 4?

A．The cash was offered without conscious decision.

B．The study gave away money to low-income mothers.

C．Thousands of low-income mothers were involved in the study.

D．Low-income mothers received cash payments for four years.

4. What is the passage probably going to talk about next?

A．Why further research is needed.

B．Studies contrary to the current findings.

C．Whether these changes in brain activity last.

D．Other similar studies that support the current findings.

10 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Smartphones have made people's life much easier over the last decade. People can     1    (simple) download apps that allow them     2    (make) free video calls and send messages to other people around the world. You can travel without fear that you will get lost in an unknown city     3     the navigation (导航) system on your smartphone can guide you to your destination. Children don't have to go to the library to find important information; all the knowledge they need can     4    (acquire) by clicking on a search site.

Life goes on     5     a fast pace these days and it seems that the young generation has no problem with that. However, smartphones and technology do come with certain     6     (disadvantage), too. On the one hand, for many teenagers, they seldom have a real,     7    (meaning) face-to-face conversation with anyone as the social connection now is just a few clicks away at any     8    (give) moment. Teenagers today are less likely to go outside and seek connections in real-life interactions. On the other hand, the use of smartphones and other devices before bed affects people's body clock,     9    (prevent) the release of melatonin (褪黑素). This makes     10     difficult to fall asleep.