2 . “Walt Disney World is banning selfie-sticks from its theme parks because selfie-sticks have become a growing safety concern for both our guests and cast,” Disney World spokeswoman Kim Prunty said.

Under a new policy, which takes effect Tuesday, the poles won’t make it past the bag check at any Disney World theme park. The sticks also won’t be allowed in Disney World water parks or Disney Quest, a gaming attraction at Downtown Disney. Selfie-sticks will also become forbidden at Disneyland Resort in California on June 30. The prohibition begins at Disney’s parks in Paris and Hong Kong on July 1st.

Guests will be checked for the equipment during the routine bag check that happens near the parks’ entrances. They will have an option of turning in their selfie-sticks for pick-up later or to go back to their cars or hotel rooms to keep them. Visitors will be told of the policy in locations such as the parking lots and at the resort’s hotels. The prohibition will be added to the park rules post on Disney World’s website.

The issue has been building at Disney. Previously, the sticks were prohibited from its rides, and “no selfie-sticks” signs were at select rides, such as Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at Magic Kingdom. Cast members have given oral warnings to rule breakers.

Selfie-stick users put smartphones and cameras on the ends of poles to extend their reach, frequently capturing theme-park moments through self-portraits. The tools have been banned in public places-including some museums and stadiums — worldwide for obstructing views or causing safety issues.

Disney World already prohibits items such as skateboards, inline skates, wagon, folding chairs and glass containers, according to its official website, which also lists “other items that we determine may be harmful”.

Universal Orlando has banned selfie-sticks and other loose items from certain thrill rides at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure theme parks, but it has not set parkwide bans.

1. Which of the following objects has already been banned in Disney World before the new policy takes effect?

A．Smartphones.

B．Folding chairs.

C．Cameras.

D．Containers.

2. According to the ban, if the guests are found carrying selfie-sticks during the routine bag check, they may          .

A．abandon them at the bag check	B．get fined and pick them up later
C．turn them in to the police	D．put them in the trunk of their cars

3. The underlined word in the fifth paragraph probably means          .

A．changing

B．broadening

C．blocking

D．narrowing

5 . 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。

A teenage girl     1     name is Jennifer Jones was rushed to hospital after passing out in her morning PE class. Jennifer was found to have dangerously low blood sugar levels because she was so concerned about her weight that she     2     (regular) skipped meals. Fortunately, Jennifer would make a full     3    (recover) in a day or two. Her case reminded other teenagers     4    the dangers of such unhealthy weight-loss habits.     5    (struggle) to slim down quickly, teenagers always turn to some extreme methods. According to the survey     6    (conduct) by health experts, almost one fifth of teenagers frequently skip meals, one in ten over-exercise and four per cent even take weight-loss pills. Much attention needs     7    (pay) to these figures. Currently, health experts    8    (increase) their efforts to educate teenagers about the side effects of such extreme methods. They pointed out that     9     healthy balanced diet and regular exercise can help teenagers to stay energetic and fit. Besides, living well is the safest and most     10    (effect) way to get into shape.

6 . TikTok has pushed a new safety update to its app that allows parents to take more control of their teenager’s accounts, as social media companies come under increasing pressure to make their platforms safer for children.

The company said that its Family Pairing now enables parents to turn off comments on their children’s videos entirely or limit them to friends only. Parents whose accounts are linked to their kids will also be able to set their accounts to private ones, turn off the search function for content or users, and limit who can see which videos their children have liked.

The Family Pairing lets parents see how long their children are spending on TikTok each day and limit the content they can see.

TikTok allows children to register (注册) and create an account if they’re over the age of 13. All they need to do is provide their date of birth. However, because TikTok doesn’t require registrants (注册人) to prove their identities, some children under 13 have registered by lying about their age, according to U.K. regulator Ofcom (英国通信管理局)

Alexandra Evans, head of child safety public policy for TikTok in Europe, told CNBC that Family Pairing has “put itself in parents’ shoes”since it was launched. “If we’re thinking of it as a toolbox, we want to offer more tools,” she said on a video call ahead of the announcement.

1. What is the second paragraph mainly about?

A．The safety tips from TikTok.

B．The limits on Family Pairing.

C．New apps explored by TikTok.

D．The functions of Family Pairing.

2. What is Ofcom mainly concerned about?

A．The low age limit of users.

B．The demand for users’ birth dates.

C．TikTok’s failure to check identities.

D．The difficulty in opening an account.

3. What’s Evans’ attitude toward the new Family Pairing?

A．Uninterested.

B．Objective.

C．Disappointed.

D．Favorable.

4. What might be the best title of the passage?

A．TikTok’s Safety Update

B．New Guidelines for Safety

C．Family Pairing under Debate

D．Controlling Your Kids Online

7 . Smartphone Stress: Are You a Victim of “Always On” Culture?

You are on holiday but secretly check your work emails the moment you wake up.You get anxious if there’s no Wi-Fi in the hotel or mobile phone signal up the mountain.     1     And you secretly worry things will go wrong at work if you’re not there. There are the typical signs of “always on” stress induced by smartphone addiction.

Work-life balance

Pittsburgh-based developer Kevin Holesh was so worried about how much he was ignoring his family and friends that he developed an app — Moment — to monitor his usage.The app enables users to see how much time they’re spending on the device and set up warnings if self-controlled usage limits are offended. His website explains, “    2     Some time on your phone; some time off it, enjoying your loving family and friends around you.” And some employers are acknowledging that getting the work-life balance right isn’t so easy. They need help.

Always stressed

    3     You are not giving your body time to recover, so you’re always stressed. And the more tired and stressed we get, the more mistakes we make.     4     The fact that we can stay connected to the workplace wherever we are in the world is feeding deep-rooted insecurities.

Slowdown in decision

We now consume media for more hours than we sleep.     5     It actually makes it more difficult to make decisions and many are becoming less productive because they’re overwhelmed by it all and feel they can never escape the office.

A．Moment’s goal is to promote balance in your life.

B．You get excited if you receive a text message or an e-mail from a friend.

C．This is leading to a sort of slowdown in decision and it is creating more stress in the workplace.

D．The negative impact of this “always on” culture is that your mind is never resting.

E．Physical and mental health can suffer.

F．Mobile phone companies argue that mobile connectivity is beneficial.

G．You are nervous if your phone is getting low on power.

9 . 【课本原文】

STUDYING ABROAD:

IS IT A GOOD OR A BAD IDEA?

Dear Editor,     
     In the past few decades, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of people studying abroad. Although studying abroad can bring great benefits, I think the disadvantages for young people are greater.
     To begin with, many students who study abroad face great economic pressure. That means studying abroad is just not possible for everyone. Tuition fees and living expenses are much more expensive than at home and could end up costing most families an arm and a leg. Studying in China is much more convenient and can help save money.
     Another important factor to consider is the tremendous pressure that comes with studying abroad. Students must learn how to live in an unfamiliar environment with limited language skills. Some may struggle and suffer from culture shock when learning how to behave in new surroundings. Other students are not mature enough to handle the challenges by themselves and may become depressed. Some students might even encounter problems with personal safety. In addition, different approaches to teaching and learning may come as a shock to many students.
     A final point to consider is that while studying abroad does have potential benefits, young people who study in China also have a great future to look forward to! As China has boomed, the educational environment has improved significantly, with many great universities now available. They have great facilities and outstanding professors, helping to educate young people who will contribute to the economy and further strengthen our country.
     To sum up, one cannot deny the fact that studying abroad has its disadvantages, so when you think about studying abroad, you should consider these many factors.

Kind regards,

Wang Li (mother of twin girls)

Dear Editor,
     Is studying abroad a good idea or not? There are certainly disadvantages, but in my opinion, the advantages are much greater. As I always tell my son, there are no great difficulties for a person who is brave, optimistic, and willing to work hard!
     The first advantage of studying abroad is personal growth. The education you gain and the experiences you have will change you for the better. For example, you will certainly become more independent because you will have to deal with all kinds of difficulties by yourself. Studying abroad also helps you to gain a global perspective and improve your general competence.
     Another advantage is the increased chance for cultural exchange. Chinese students can be seen as cultural envoys promoting friendship between nations. International students in China also bring their colourful cultures here. Cooperating with people from diverse cultural backgrounds helps us view the world from different angles and thus gives us more insight into our own culture.
     Finally, studying abroad provides a great opportunity to contribute to the development of our motherland. China’s global outlook, with projects such as the Belt and Road Initiative, has helped us make connections across the world. Therefore, China needs more talented young people with a global perspective who are highly competent with languages, have leadership and organizational skills, and have strong cultural awareness. Students who study abroad will develop such skills and abilities, and these in turn will provide them with better career opportunities.
     All in all, studying abroad helps to build character and increase people’s understanding of cultural diversity while strengthening China and building a shared future for all. I think this life­-changing experience is certainly worthwhile, and I hope my child will study abroad in the future.

Sincerely yours,

Zhang Yi (father of one boy)

1. In Wang Li’s opinion, the advantage of studying abroad is         .

A．bearing great economic pressure

B．facing an unfamiliar environment

C．having great potential benefits

D．experiencing culture shock

2. Zhang Yi thinks that students studying abroad can         .

A．become more dependent

B．get less chance for cultural exchange

C．lose a global perspective

D．develop organisational skills

3. What can we learn from the two letters?

A．Students studying abroad don’t need to learn how to live in a new environment.

B．Studying abroad helps to increase people’s understanding of cultural diversity.

C．Students studying abroad can’t encounter problems with personal safety.

D．Studying abroad helps students to speak excellent English in a few years.

10 . When you set a foot outside of your door to drop trash, go to a social event or go for a walk, thoughts like “I hope I don’t see anyone I know” or “please don’t talk to me” may run through your mind. I’ve also said such things to myself. Sometimes the last thing you want to do is to talk with someone, especially someone new.

Why do we go out of our ways to avoid people? Do we think meeting new people is a waste of time? Or are we just lazy, thinking that meeting someone new really is a trouble?

Communication is the key to life. We have been told that many times. Take the past generations, like our parents, for example. They seem to take full advantage of that whole “communication” idea because they grew up talking face to face while Generation-Y grew up staring at screens. We spend hours of our days sitting on Facebook. We send messages to our friends and think about all of the things we want to say to certain people and that we don’t have the courage to do in reality.

Nowadays, we are so caught up in our little circle of friends — our comfort zone. We love it that they laugh at our jokes, understand our feelings and can read our minds. Most importantly, they know when we want to be alone. They just get us.

Holding a conversation with someone new means agreeing with things that you don’t really believe and being someone you think they want you to be — it is, as I said before, a trouble. It takes up so much energy, and at some point or another, it is too tiring.

But meeting new people is important. Life is too short, so meet all the people you can meet, make the effort to go out and laugh. Remember, every “hello” leads to a smile — and a smile is worth a lot.

1. What do we learn about the author?

A．He likes to meet someone new.

B．He feels stressed out lately.

C．He’s active in attending social events.

D．He used to be afraid of talking to others.

2. What’s the problem of Generation-Y in the author’s eyes?

A．They are less confident in themselves.

B．They rely on the Internet to socialize.

C．They have difficulty in communicating.

D．They are unwilling to make new friends.

3. Why does the author write the text?

A．To stress the importance of friends.

B．To encourage people to meet new people.

C．To give tips on how to meet new people.

D．To display the disadvantages of Generation-Y.