1 . 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. |
2 . WRINKLES are big business. Around the world, people are living longer and populations are ageing. Most people can expect to make it to their 60s at least. As the number of older people increases, so does the desire to cover up one of ageing’s most obvious signs. Recent market research found that consumers in the US spent ＄9. 1 billion on anti-wrinkle creams and moisturisers in 2021 and will be spending nearly ＄13 billion in 2027.
That expenditure is essentially a vanity project driven by a desire or pressure to look younger. There is no shortage of options, often at very high prices. However, there is a growing case for that bill to be picked up by healthcare providers and private insurers.
Wrinkles are much more than a cosmetic(美容的) problem. There is growing evidence that they aren’t just a rough indicator of our biological age, but are also a key driver of ageing. Wrinkled skin seems to release harmful substances that speed up ageing in our brains and bodies. That makes sense when you consider that skin is on the frontline. Because it is exposed to sunlight, pollutants and other insults, it ages faster than the rest of our bodies, and then seems to drag the rest of our bodies with it. Ageing is also a leading cause of illness and, ultimately, death. By the time we are in our 60s, most of us have at least one age-related disease, and they accumulate greatly from then on at huge cost to the health services. Those costs are only going to rise as the population gets older.
The goal of the recent anti-ageing research is to extend health span-in other words, to delay the development of age-related diseases. It looks as though dealing with the causes of wrinkling offers a fairly simple way of achieving this, thereby saving taxpayers billions. And if we all end up looking younger as a result, then that is something worth celebrating.
1. What does the underlined word “that expenditure” in paragraph 2 mean?| A．The beauty cost. | B．The ageing sign. |
| C．The market research. | D．The health concern. |
| A．Because they make people look older. |
| B．Because they help figure out all health problems. |
| C．Because they bring people psychological discomfort. |
| D．Because they somewhat worsen one’s physical condition. |
| A．To save taxpayers money. |
| B．To identify the cause of wrinkling. |
| C．To screen age-related diseases early. |
| D．To slow down the progression of age-related diseases. |
| A．Cosmetic products—Not just for the rich. |
| B．Wrinkles—First sign of ageing. |
| C．Cosmetic products—Price-rocketing business. |
| D．Wrinkles—Not just skin deep. |
3 . A few decades ago, farmers often had the skills and tools needed to quickly make repairs if their machinery (机器) broke down. These days, however, it’s not that simple. Most modern farm equipment is technologically advanced, containing computers and sensors that collect and transmit data. As a result, specific software tools are necessary to deal with mechanical failures.
However, most companies refuse to make those tools available to farmers. They can’t even go to an independent mechanic, since manufacturers (制造商) won’t sell them parts or tools either. This leaves farmers no choice but to take their broken equipment to a licensed dealership (特许经销店).
This isn’t cheap. A farmer might spend thousands of dollars on a simple adjustment. On the other hand, this arrangement has proven lucrative for manufacturers. For example, Deere& Company, a major American manufacturer of farm machinery, can earn up to six times more money with parts and repairs than selling equipment itself.
But money isn’t the only problem-it’s also a matter of time. Oftentimes on a farm, tasks like planting and harvesting have to be done within a window of just a few days when the conditions are just right. If machinery breaks during that window and a dealership can’t make an appointment immediately, the wait can cut severely into the farmers’ annual yields and income.
There’s also the issue of privacy. Equipment manufacturers collect lots of data about soil, weather, and other factors, which they can then share with or sell to others. Even worse are other potential security risks. Because most modern machines can be operated and shut off remotely, some farmers and experts worry that hackers could disable thousands of machines at a time. Such an act could affect the entire country’s agricultural production, threatening livelihoods and food security.
1. What is the major concern of farmers?| A．The poor skills to use farm equipment. |
| B．The rising prices to buy modern machinery. |
| C．The old software to maintain farm equipment. |
| D．The limited choice to repair modern machinery. |
| A．Profitable. | B．Useful. | C．Impossible. | D．Popular. |
| A．They must work extra hours. |
| B．They must handle security risks. |
| C．They may suffer economic losses. |
| D．They may experience staff shortage. |
| A．To comment on the danger of big data. |
| B．To point out the influence of high technology. |
| C．To put forward a method to increase farm yields. |
| D．To argue for farmers’ right to repair their machines. |
4 . The results of a new survey have come out, uncovering young people’s thoughts on climate change (the long-term change in world weather patterns, including rising temperatures, caused by human activities).
More than 46,000 young people between the ages of 4 and 18 took part in the survey. Of them, 95% said they were worried about climate change, and 89% said that not enough was being done about it. Meanwhile, 81% said they feel as though young people aren’t being listened to. One young person, aged 14, from Bristol, who took part in the survey, said, “Children have a right to a future with a healthy, safe planet.” Another 14-year-old, from London, said, “Children have to live with the mistakes of adults, their wrongs and opinions. But as we grow up, we, as a generation, understand what is going on with the world and should have a say.”
When asked who has the biggest responsibility to do something about climate change, nearly 35% said world governments. Respondents were also asked what they’d like to see happen. Proposals included that governments should listen to young people more, and that businesses should change the way they work to be more environmentally friendly.
The survey was conducted by VotesForSchools and UNICEF UK. VotesForSchools is an organization that works to make sure young people have their voices heard. UNICEF is short for the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund. The United Nations is a group of 193 countries that work together on the challenges facing human. Both the survey and the COP26 climate change summit (峰会) took place on 31 October.
1. What is the survey on?| A．Teenagers’ voices on climate change. |
| B．Teenagers’ attitudes to human activities. |
| C．Teenagers’ thoughts on weather patterns. |
| D．Teenagers’ concerns about rising temperatures. |
| A．To introduce a topic. | B．To present a fact. |
| C．To make a comment. | D．To support an opinion. |
| A．Improving people’s way of life. |
| B．Getting businesses to go greener. |
| C．Encouraging teenagers’ participation. |
| D．Changing governments’ focus of listening. |
5 . You are on your way to a concert.At a crossroad,you see a group of people, all staring at the sky.Without even thinking about it, you stare upward, too. Why? In the middle of the concert,someone begins to clap and suddenly the whole room joins in.You do,too.Why?
Social proof determines that people feel they are behaving correctly when they act the same as other people. In other words, the more people who follow a certain idea, the better or truer we consider the idea to be. An experiment carried out by the psychologist(心理学家）Solomon Asch shows how peer pressure can influence common sense.A subject is showed a line,and next to it three lines - one shorter, one longer and one of the same length as the original one. He must show which of the three lines similar to the original one. If the person is alone, he gives a correct answer. Now, five unknown actors enter the room.One after another, they give wrong answers. And in one third of cases, the subject will answer incorrectly to match the other people's responses.
Why do we act like this? Well, in the past, following others was a survival method. Suppose that one day 5,000 years ago, you were travelling with your hunter friends. Suddenly,they all ran away.What would you have done? Would you have stood still, weighing up whether what you were looking at was a lion or something that just looked like a lion? No,you would have run, too.We are generations of those who copied others' behaviors. This is so deeply rooted in us that we still use it, though it offers few survival advantages today.
Social proof is the evil behind many things. The advertising industry, for example, often makes use of it.Therefore, be doubtful whenever a company says its product is "the most popular". Remember British novelist W.Somerset Maugham's words, "If 50 million people say something foolish,it is still foolish."So should we always follow the crowd?
1. What's the purpose of the first paragraph?| A．To share the story. |
| B．To describe a scene. |
| C．To introduce the topic. |
| D．To settle an argument. |
| A．Wrong answers driven by unknown cases. |
| B．True ideas followed by surrounding actors. |
| C．Social influence that decides people's psychology. |
| D．Peer pressure that corrects people's common sense. |
| A．rooted behaviors to survive |
| B．natural responses to dangers |
| C．lasting advantages of copying ancestors |
| D．traditional ways of travelling with friends |
| A．Supportive. |
| B．Disapproving. |
| C．Doubtful. |
| D．Objective. |
6 . A 17-year-old Bangladeshi boy has won this year's International Children's Peace Prize for his work to fight cyberbullying(网络欺凌）in his country.
The prize winner, Sadat Rahman, promised to keep fighting online bullying until it no longer exists. “The fight against cyberbullying is like a war, and in this war I am a soldier,"Sadat Rahman said during a ceremony on November 13 in The Hague, the Netherlands.He added,"If everybody keeps supporting me, then together we will win this battle against cyberbullying."
Rahman developed a mobile phone application that provides education about online bullying and a way to report cases of it. He said he began his work on the project after hearing the story of a 15-year-old girl who took her own life as a result of cyberbullying."I will not stop until we receive no more cases through the app,"Rahman said at the ceremony.
The award comes with a fund of over $118,000, which is offered by the KidsRights Foundation. The group chooses projects to support causes that are closely linked to the winner's work.
Past well-known winners of the prize include Pakistani human rights activist Malala Yousafzai.Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg won the prize too. And students who organized the March for Our Lives event in 2018 after a deadly mass shooting at their school in the American state of Florida also won.
Yousafzai won the International Children's Peace Prize in 2013. A year later, she won the Nobel Peace Prize for campaigning for girls to have a universal right to education. She praised Rahman's work during the ceremony. She spoke through video conferencing. "All children have the right to be protected from violence no matter if it is physical or mental, ofline or online," she said. "Cyberbullying goes against that right."
1. What inspired Rahman to fight cyberbullying?| A．The support of the public. |
| B．The fund from a foundation. |
| C．A case reported through an online project. |
| D．A child's death caused by online bullying. |
| A．his determination to fight for children's safety |
| B．his effort to follow the steps of the past winners |
| C．his contribution to protecting children from online bullying |
| D．his devotion to developing an application for bullying education |
| A．Online Violence Against Children Needs More Attention |
| B．Different Means to Campaigning Against Online Violence |
| C．Bangladeshi Boy Wins International Children's Peace Prize |
| D．Famous Winners Achieve International Fame for Their Fighting |
7 . Ms. O'grady, the head of Britains Trades Union Congress, issued a challenge on September 10th. "We can win a four-day working week, "she told members. The demand is far from new. Shorter working weeks have been tried in New Zealand and Sweden, wherein happier, healthier and more motivated employees. Those who work shorter weeks are also reported to be more productive. Should weekends, therefore, be lengthened?
France’s experience suggests workers may not leap at the chance of working for fewer hours. The government reduced the full-time workers week to 35 hours in 2000. Last year the French worked 38.9 hours a week on average, seeming happy to labor above the required level and pocket the extra pay or holiday allowance.
And businesses may not seize the opportunity either. Working less may be linked to higher productivity (on a per-hour basis), but overall output could still fall because of the smaller number of hours worked. That will not get governments or employers excited.
Advocates of a four-day week could claim that improving people’s quality of life is more important than boosting the economy. In an essay published during The Great Depression,John Maynard Keynes wrote of an"age of leisure and abundance"in which technological advances would allow people to work 15-hour week.
Unfortunately for any readers working hard on a Friday aftemoon, Keynes jumped at his conclusion too soon. Even Ms. O'grady, now demanding a longer weekend, is pessimistic in her timescale. A four-day week is apparently achievable“in this century”.
1. The underlined phrase"leap at "in Paragraph 2 probably means _______.| A．Refuse | B．grab |
| C．abandon | D．obtain |
| A．calls for an urgent attention to her suggestion |
| B．feels confident of making longer weekend a reality |
| C．regrets coming up with the idea of a longer weekend |
| D．realizes the idea of longer weekend remains a distant dream |
| A．A longer weekend isn’t that practical. |
| B．The French oppose a longer weekend |
| C．A longer weekend causes lower efficiency. |
| D．A three-day weekend is a fresh idea in Europe. |
8 . An article describing the attitude of post-1990s generations toward life has recently gone viral on Chinese social media, which resonates with(引起共鸣) millions of youngsters for reflecting their casualness and calmness under gradually increasing social pressure．
The article was first published on WeChat with the title of “The first group of post-90s generation who have become monks”. By using the phrase “Buddha-like youngsters”(佛系青年), it claimed that some of the post-90s generations, who were born between 1990 and 1992, have “seen through the emptiness of life” and kept a casual and calm attitude toward career and life．
“It's fine to have something or not and there is no need to pursue or win anything," said the article, while defining "Buddha-like" people and clarifying that the phrase has nothing to do with the religion of Buddhism. An easy example is that Buddha-like youngsters do not care about taking which way to return home or choosing what to eat for lunch, according to the article．
The phrase has touched the nerves of the Chinese youngsters who are facing the fast-paced life, cut-throat world of career and great mental pressure in China, read a commentary by People's Daily on Wednesday. The phrase was well received by Chinese netizens; the original WeChat post has been viewed by more than 1 million times and then read more than 60 million times on SinaWeibo by Wednesday．
“The phrase properly describes the mentalities and lifestyle of (some of) the post-90s generations in China, who have become less ambitious and more casual toward life due to the great pressure and fierce competition in today's China”, one SinaWeibo user commented．
Are you a Buddha-like youngster?
1. The underlined phrase “gone viral” in Paragraph 1 means "__________"．| A．spread quickly | B．been clearly explained |
| C．appeared secretly | D．been completely confirmed |
| A．get used to life stress | B．struggle hard for their future |
| C．attach much importance to fame | D．take a casual attitude toward competition |
| A．by offering definition | B．by making comparisons |
| C．by using figures | D．by giving examples |
