1 . Binge-watching (刷剧) is when a person watches more than one episode of a show in a row. With developments in the speed and connectivity of the Internet, increases in technology and the rise of on-demand entertainment companies, people can now have their favorite shows stream (流播) directly to their television at their convenience.
This behavior is nothing new. In fact, binge-watching has been officially listed in dictionaries since 2015. The entertainment companies recognize this behavior and many take steps to encourage it. Often, instead of releasing each episode on a week-by-week basis, an entire series will become available concurrently. Once the episode finishes, many platforms will display pop-ups with “you might like” suggestions, or will automatically play the next episode.
However, recent research suggests that out of the more than half of British adults who watch more than one episode of a show back-to-back (一集接一集地), almost a third have admitted missing sleep or becoming tired as a result; and 25% have neglected their household chores (家务活). Next we’ll be missing work!
Bingeing has other connections — binge eating, binge drinking and binge smoking. All of them are often associated with a lack of control and a possible route to addiction. Lindsey Fussell, consumer group director, said, “The days of waiting a week for the next episode are largely gone, with people finding it hard to resist (抗拒) watching multiple episodes around the house or on the move.” If people find binge-watching hard to resist, are we witnessing the birth of a new type of addiction?
The countless number of information and entertainment that television and online media can bring us is, many would say, a good thing. However, when the activity begins to bleed into other areas, causing us to stop functioning, then it becomes a problem. So, what’s the answer? Moderation! Neither a tiny amount, nor too much. After all, as the old proverb says, “A little of what you fancy does you good.”
1. How did the writer develop the first paragraph?| A．By giving a definition. | B．By telling a story. |
| C．By listing some examples. | D．By analyzing the cause and effect. |
| A．For convenience. | B．At the same time. |
| C．In detail. | D．Free of charge. |
| A．people can’t control their feelings | B．people can’t resist the temptation of Bingeing |
| C．people have no patience to do work | D．people are addicted to waiting for a new episode |
| A．To keep online media from stopping functioning. |
| B．To enjoy entertainment as much as possible. |
| C．To learn life lessons from the episodes. |
| D．To watch episodes in a moderate way. |
2 . There is growing interest in East Japan Railway Co. ltd, one of the six companies, created out of the privatized national railway system. In an industry lacking exciting growth
In a plan called “Station Renaissance” that it
The company also plans to introduce
| A．perspectives | B．outlooks | C．prospects | D．spectacles |
| A．creatively | B．originally | C．authentically | D．initially |
| A．displayed | B．demonstrated | C．embarked | D．unveiled |
| A．go beyond | B．set out | C．come around | D．spread over |
| A．applications | B．enterprises | C．functions | D．performances |
| A．districts | B．vicinities | C．resorts | D．locations |
| A．acquired | B．purchased | C．presided | D．attained |
| A．lodgers | B．tenants | C．dwellers | D．boarders |
| A．for | B．in | C．of | D．as |
| A．figures | B．exhibits | C．convinces | D．speculates |
| A．deprives | B．retrieves | C．spares | D．exempts |
| A．conjunction | B．convenience | C．department | D．ornament |
| A．delegated | B．designated | C．devoted | D．dedicated |
| A．clever | B．smart | C．ingenious | D．intelligent |
| A．checking | B．gathering | C．holding | D．accommodating |
| A．as | B．for | C．with | D．of |
| A．but for | B．as well as | C．instead of | D．more than |
| A．unique | B．single | C．unitary | D．only |
| A．devices | B．instruments | C．readers | D．examiners |
| A．reduce | B．narrow | C．dwarf | D．shrink |
3 . Obese people experience discrimination (歧视) in many parts of their lives, and the workplace is no exception. Studies have long shown that obese workers, defined as those with a body-mass index (BMI) of 30 or more, earn significantly less than their slimmer co-workers.
Yet the costs of weight discrimination may be even greater than previously thought. “The overwhelming evidence,” wrote the Institute for employment Studies, “is that it is only women living with obesity who experience the obesity wage penalty (薪资损失).” They were expressing a view that is widely aired in academic papers. To test it, The Economist has analyzed data concerning 23,000 workers from the American Time Use Survey, conducted by the Bureau of Labour Statistics. Our number-processing suggests that, in fact, being obese hurts the earnings of both women and men.
The data we analyzed cover men and women aged between 25 and 54 and in full-time employment. At a general level, it is true that men’s BMIs are unrelated to their wages. But that changes for men with university degrees. For them, obesity is associated with a wage penalty of nearly 8%, even after accounting for the separate effects of age, race, graduate education and marital status.
The conclusion — that well-educated workers in particular are penalized for their weight — holds for both sexes. Moreover, the higher your level of education, the greater the penalty. We found that obese men with a Bachelor’s degree (学士学位) earn 5% less than their thinner colleagues, while those with a Master’s degree earn 14% less. Obese women, it is true, still have it worse: for them, the equivalent figures are 12% and 19%, respectively (分别地).
Your line of work makes a difference, too. When we dealt with the numbers for individual occupations and industries, we found the greatest differences in high-skilled jobs. Obese workers in health care, for example, make 11% less than their slimmer colleagues; those in management roles make roughly 9% less, on average. In sectors such as construction and agriculture, meanwhile, obesity is actually associated with higher wages.
These results suggest that the total costs of wage discrimination borne by overweight workers in America are greater than expected. Now, it’s time for our governments to take it seriously.
1. What does the underlined word “it” refer to in paragraph 2?| A．Obese men earn less salary. |
| B．Only obese women earn less salary. |
| C．Both obese men and women earn less salary. |
| D．Weight discrimination may be greater than previously thought. |
| A．A fat woman office director. |
| B．An obese construction worker. |
| C．An obese man with a bachelor’s degree. |
| D．A heavier female doctor with a Doctor’s degree. |
| A．Supportive | B．Objective | C．Subjective | D．indifferent |
| A．Overweight discrimination in other countries. |
| B．The reason of discriminating obese people in their lives. |
| C．American people’s attitude towards overweight discrimination. |
| D．Actions taken against overweight discrimination in workplaces. |
4 . In recent years American society has become increasingly dependent on its universities to find solutions to its major problems. It is the universities that have been to blame for developing the expertise to place men on the moon; for dealing with our urban problems and with our worsening environment; for developing the means to feed the world’s rapidly increasing population. The effort involved in meeting these demands presents its own problems. In addition, however, this concentration on the creation of new knowledge significantly impinges on the universities’ efforts to perform their other principal functions, the transmission and interpretation of knowledge-the imparting of the heritage of the past and the preparing of the next generation to carry it forward.
With regard to this, perhaps their most traditionally acknowledged task, college and universities today find themselves in a serious situation. On one hand, there is the American commitment, especially since World War Ⅱ, to provide higher education for all young people who can profit from it. The result of the commitment has been a dramatic rise in enrollments(登记入学) in our universities, coupled with a striking shift from the private to the public sector of higher education.
On the other hand, there are serious and continuing limitations on the resources available for higher education. While higher education has become a great ”growth industry“, it is also at the same time a tremendous drain(耗竭) on the resources of the nation. With the vast increase in enrollment and the shift in priorities away from education in state and federal(联邦的) budgets, there is in most of our public institutions a significant decrease in expenses for their students. One crucial aspect of this drain on resources lies in the persistent shortage of trained faculty(全体教师), which has led, in turn, to a declining standard of competence in instruction.
Intensifying these difficulties is, as indicated above, the concern with research, with its increasing claims on resources and the attention of the faculty. In addition, there is a strong tendency for the institutions’ organization and functioning to fulfill the demands of research rather than those of teaching.
1. According to Paragraph 1, what should be the most important function of American universities?| A．Sparing no effort to create new knowledge for students. |
| B．Enhancing students’ competence of tackling social problems. |
| C．Making experts on advanced industries out of their students. |
| D．Preparing their students to transmit the knowledge of the past. |
| A．more students and less investment | B．education quality and economic profit |
| C．low enrollment rate and high education demand | D．private ownership and American commitment |
| A．many public institutions have to cut down enrollments of students |
| B．teachers are not competent enough to perform satisfactorily in class |
| C．some institutions are forced to reduce the total expenses on research |
| D．there is keen competition for resources between public and private institutions |
| A．The improper distribution of American universities’ resources. |
| B．The increasing argument over American universities’ primary task. |
| C．The inability of American universities’ organization and fulfillment. |
| D．The growing focus on American universities’ function of research. |
5 . A community canteen at the Zhanongkou Community in Shangcheng, Hangzhou recently launched “happiness blind boxes”, which cost just 6 yuan per box. Sales start at 7 p. m. each evening.
The dishes are packaged in transparent (透明的) containers, but to maintain an element of surprise, stickers are placed over the lid (盖子) of the “main dish” section of each box. The “blind boxes” have become popular since being introduced, and on some nights they sell out by about 8 p. m.
A meal assistance program introduced in Zhanongkou subdistrict ensures the elderly can access meals within a 10-minute walk of their homes or have them delivered within five minutes. The service has also been welcomed by younger people living and working in the area.
Yan Xuyang, a professor at Beijing Union University’s Tourism College, predicts that by 2035, those born from the 1970s to the 2000s will comprise the main group of customers for such canteens. “This generation has a reasonable level of disposable (可自由支配的) income, and many of its members may also lack the willingness to prepare meals for themselves,” Yan said.
The successful operation of community canteens depends on their ability to integrate into the daily lives and culture of local residents. In addition to serving dishes to suit local tastes and fostering a welcoming environment for diners, it is important to widen the functions of these canteens. They have been used for cultural activities and other events, which helps raise awareness and foster a positive perspective on these canteens among local communities.
In the latter part of last year, the Weikang community canteen in Ziyang subdistrict, Hangzhou, experienced a significant transformation from being a canteen for seniors to catering for the whole community. Its services have been broadened beyond regular operations to include services for hospitals and businesses, complete with home delivery options. Some other community canteens have also made efforts to appeal to more residents.
1. What can we know about the “happiness blind boxes” from the passage?| A．They are sold out every night before 8 p. m. |
| B．They are beautifully decorated with stickers. |
| C．They offer a sense of mystery with the unknown main dishes. |
| D．They are only offered to the residents in the Zhanongkou Community. |
| A．Promising. | B．Cautious. | C．Unclear. | D．Objective. |
| A．Reasonable prices. | B．Fast delivery service. | C．Various functions. | D．Unexpected surprises. |
| A．To highlight the popularity of community canteens. |
| B．To emphasize the importance of community canteens. |
| C．To discuss the wide functions of community canteens. |
| D．To show the innovative reform of community canteens. |
6 . About two months ago, I removed Uber Eats from my phone. Not because I didn’t like using it. I loved it. Like most cheap, modern luxuries though, there are hidden costs.
“Restaurants are barely surviving. Delivery apps will kill them” was a headline in a newspaper, one of many stories exploring the unfair sign-up strategies and high fees taken by these tech companies. Moreover, there were reports about bad working conditions for delivery riders, leading to tragic accidents, even deaths. That’s truly unbearable!
I deleted the app and haven’t used it, or any of its competitors, since. Instead of ordering online, now I either cook something or get takeaway nearby. Cooking better food has been a great motivation for me. On lazy nights, I’ve discovered that I can still make a satisfying meal by using whatever ingredients I have on hand. This approach has also saved me much money. As with lots of online shopping, I’d been ordering food without much thought about the cost. Cooking is almost always cheaper and so is old-school takeaway.
These changes have cost me one thing — time. One reason the apps are so popular is that they meet the needs of the convenience-seeking, time-starved individuals. But rather than adding to my stress, having to plan meals again somehow made life less so. Some days it’s been a good motivation to stop work earlier, and engage in activities like going to the shops, or start chopping onions. Walking to pick up takeaway forces you to go for a walk. The change in habit forced me to be on my devices a bit less and to be in my actual life and neighbourhood a bit more.
The process has made me think about how technological advances do save us time, but time for what? For me, the answer was often just more time working, or more time online. Making my own food feels like taking back time I had given up for things far less nourishing (有营养的).
1. Which might be the reason for the author to remove Uber Eats?| A．Her passion for cooking. | B．Her boredom with online ordering. |
| C．Her preference for another app. | D．Her concern for its negative impacts. |
| A．Addictive and money-saving. | B．Cheap and convenient. |
| C．Time-consuming but rewarding. | D．Motivating but stressful. |
| A．Reflecting on the influence of hi-tech. |
| B．Adapting to life free of delivery apps. |
| C．Getting into a healthy eating habit. |
| D．Rediscovering the fun of cooking. |
| A．My Order Never Arrived |
| B．Why Uber Eats Gets Less Active |
| C．What Delivery Apps Can Not Offer Me |
| D．The Convenience Was Not Worth The Cost |
7 . 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. |
8 . The need for clarity extends beyond how we communicate science to how we evaluate it. Who can really define stock phrases such as ‘a significant contribution to research’? Or understand what ‘high impact’ or ‘world-class’ mean? Scientists demand that institutions should be clear about their criteria and consider all scholarly outputs—preprints, code, data, peer review, teaching, mentoring and so on.
My view about the practices in research assessment is that most assessment guidelines permit sliding standards: instead of clearly defined terms, they give us feel-good slogans that lack any fixed meaning. Facing the problem will get us much of the way towards a solution.
Broad language increases room for misunderstanding. ‘High impact’ can be code for where research is published. Or it can mean the effect that research has had on its field, or on society locally or globally—often very different things. Yet confusion is the least of the problems. Words such as ‘world-class’ and ‘excellent’ allow assessors to vary comparisons depending on whose work they are assessing. Academia(学术界) cannot be a fair and reasonable system if standards change depending on whom we are evaluating. Unconscious bias(偏见) associated with factors such as a researcher’s gender, ethnic origin and social background helps the academic injustice continue. It was only with double-blind review of research proposals that women finally got fair access to the Hubble Space Telescope.
Many strategies exist to improve fairness in academia, but conceptual clarity is paramount. Being clear about how specific qualities are valued leads assessors to think critically about whether those qualities are truly being considered. Achieving that conceptual clarity requires discussion with faculties, staff and students: hours and hours of it. The University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands, for example, held a series of conversations, each involving 20-60 researchers, and then spent another year revising its research assessment policies to recognize social impacts.
Frank conversations about what is valued in a particular context, or at a specific institution, are an essential first step in developing concrete recommendations. Although ambiguous(模棱两可的) terms, for instance ‘world-class’ and ‘significant’, are a barrier when performing assessments, university administrators have said that they rely on flexible language to make room to reward a variety of contributions. So it makes sense that more specific language in review and promotion must be able to accommodate varied outputs, outcomes and impacts of scholarly work.
Setting specific standards will be tough. It will be inviting to fall back on the misleading standards such as impact factors, or on ambiguous terms that can be agreed to by everyone but applied wisely by no one. It is too early to know what those standards will be or how much they will vary, but the right discussions are starting to happen. They must continue.
1. Regarding the current practices in research assessment, the author is ________.| A．supportive | B．puzzled |
| C．unconcerned | D．disapproving |
| A．Bias on assessors can cause inequality. | B．Frank conversations harm scholarly work. |
| C．Specific qualities need to be clearly stated. | D．Broad language ensures academic fairness. |
| A．primary. | B．recognized. |
| C．optional. | D．accomplished. |
| A．Fix research assessment. Change slogans for clear standards. |
| B．Fix research assessment. Change evaluations for conversations. |
| C．Define research assessment. Change simplicity for specification. |
| D．Define research assessment. Change broad language for flexible one. |
9 . The need of plus-size consumers has long been the elephant in the room of the fashion industry until body positivity and fat acceptance movements promoted that large-bodied people are not those who are left behind. This trend has become so popular that it is influencing mainstream culture. As a result, fashion brands have finally decided to expand their size ranges. In 2022, the plus-size market grew twice as fast as the standard size market in both North America and the UK.
Yet, many consumers say fashion brands broadening their ranges are not truly inclusive (包容的). “Inclusive sizing means that all bodies are included in fashion, not just the ones who fit in standard sizes,” says Marie North, a UK-based journalist who covers body-image issues. “However, what many designers do right now is pick a number that they think is big enough to include plus sizes and stop. This is even more disrespectful.”
Researchers also criticize (批评) that some brands are just taking advantage of the trend. “Brands that used to promote so-called perfect bodies in their advertisements are now trying to get in on the trend by adding a few sizes. It doesn’t feel like they really care about plus-size people,” says Michael Burgess, analyst in fashion industry. “If brands cared about large-bodied consumers, then it wouldn’t have taken until now to acknowledge that they exist,” he says. “It gives the impression that companies are just trying to gain a share of the market without a real devotion to the community.”
The fashion industry must go beyond merely producing clothing in a range of sizes if they hope to succeed with a body-diverse world. The whole industry has to connect on a personal level with consumers. That involves showing shoppers that they are seen, understood and important to brands. “Consumers care about values, and so they want to buy from brands that reflect the values they believe in. Everyone should enjoy the same range of fashion choices,” says Ludovica Ospina, professor of marketing at the College of Business.
1. What do the underlined words “the elephant in the room” in paragraph 1 mean?| A．Hardly satisfied. | B．Socially accepted. |
| C．Widely promoted. | D．Obvious but ignored. |
| A．Unclear. | B．Negative. | C．Puzzled. | D．Cautious. |
| A．Their motivation. | B．Their promotion. |
| C．Their devotion. | D．Their advertisement. |
| A．Provide more fashion choices. |
| B．Show respect to the consumers. |
| C．Produce clothes in various sizes. |
| D．Build private relationships with customers. |
1. What is the talk mainly about?
| A．Old people’s lives. | B．A supermarket chain. | C．Services for the elderly. |
| A．She lost her phone by accident. |
| B．She was cheated through phone. |
| C．She was unable to make calls. |
| A．True Call. | B．Safeway. | C．Red & Yellow Care. |
| A．Businessmen. | B．Sick people. | C．Senior customers. |
