1 . A night at the movies is always a good idea. But when you leave the theater and realize you just dropped $45 on a ticket and some snacks, you’ll wish you had been patient enough to wait until the movie came out on Netflix. The average movie ticket price in the United States in 2000 was $5.39; now, a ticket is over $9.
The main reason that movie tickets have gotten so expensive is because of inflation (通货膨胀). It was actually more expensive to go to the movies in the 70s than it is now. A ticket in 1978 cost $2.34. If you plug that into an inflation calculator, the same ticket would cost you $9.46 today. According to the National Association of Theater Owners, the average cost for a ticket today is $9.11.
Another reason you need to spend some of your life savings to see a movie on the big screen is that theaters are competing with streaming services that produce their own films, such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon. And let’s be honest, sitting at home on your sofa or in your bed is more comfortable than sitting in a cold theater.
Because of streaming technology, theaters have to do something to bring in customers. Attractions—including alcohol, reclining seats (躺椅), surround sound, and 3-D movies are all examples of that. And those upgrades come at a price, leading to more expensive tickets.
“There’s all that extra cost, and it’s really important for theater owners and companies to make that experience as enjoyable as possible,” Patrick Corcoran, vice president of the National Association of Theatre Owners told Marketplace. “Because you’re offering a superb experience—audience expectations are for the latest and greatest technology. Audiences are willing to pay more for a particular experience.”
1. According to the passage, what makes movie tickets so expensive?| A．The viewers are wealthier than before. |
| B．The movie theatres offer popcorns, alcohol for free. |
| C．Inflation has made the ticket price appear higher than before. |
| D．The popular movies with famous stars deserve the high price. |
| A．Netflix is always a better choice for movie viewers than theatres |
| B．with comfortable seats, theatres are more attractive than streaming services |
| C．the viewers actually pay more for the updates of the movie theatres |
| D．the theater owners and companies update the theaters to make the theatres famous |
| A．It’s unwise for viewers to pay so much to watch a movie in the theater. |
| B．The high price of a movie ticket is supposed to agree with a wonderful experience. |
| C．It’s a waste of money to provide the latest technology in the theatre. |
| D．The viewers would prefer to sit at home on the sofas or in the beds. |
| A．Behind the Increasing Price of Movie Tickets |
| B．Technological Improvement on Movie Theatres |
| C．The Competition between Movie Theatre and Streaming Services |
| D．How to Save the Viewers’ Wallets |
Have you seen people who take pictures of food for more than 10 minutes before eating? How about those who beautify their selfie (自拍) so much that they can’t be
Take my friend Chen for example. Every time we went to a restaurant, she would not take a
Many people care too much about others’ opinions and try too hard to
If they really want an elegant life, they should put more
| A．envied | B．admired | C．defeated | D．recognized |
| A．survive | B．exist | C．flood | D．spot |
| A．how | B．what | C．where | D．whom |
| A．bow | B．bite | C．breath | D．break |
| A．offered | B．served | C．ordered | D．prepared |
| A．cooking | B．washing | C．setting | D．collecting |
| A．arranged | B．messy | C．casual | D．correct |
| A．dishes | B．restaurants | C．pictures | D．tables |
| A．choice | B．chance | C．excuse | D．reason |
| A．months | B．years | C．weeks | D．days |
| A．comfort | B．inspire | C．please | D．discourage |
| A．independent | B．generous | C．responsible | D．confident |
| A．secret | B．healthy | C．peaceful | D．real |
| A．rarely | B．hardly | C．exactly | D．nearly |
| A．change | B．difficulty | C．guidance | D．harm |
| A．question | B．dislike | C．follow | D．doubt |
| A．effort | B．ambitions | C．feelings | D．money |
| A．other than | B．more than | C．rather than | D．less than |
| A．identifying | B．amusing | C．persuading | D．accepting |
| A．simplifying | B．ruining | C．beautifying | D．worsening |
3 . More and more shoppers are buying things online these days, allowing them to avoid aggressive salespeople and long lines at checkout counters. In spite of online convenience, however, there are some items—like clothes—that customers prefer to examine before buying. In light of this, two companies are Ending ways to modernize stores and bridge the gap between online and in-store retail.
Hointer, a software company that also sells designer jeans, has created a fast and painless shopping experience for its customers. Shoppers walk into a Hointer store and select one of the many pairs of jeans hanging down from bars. Then they point their smartphones at the tag and activate the Hointer app, after which they select the size and press “try on” The app then directs them to a specific dressing room. German-made robots search for the desired jeans and deliver them through a chute to the dressing room in about 30 seconds. Immediately after unwanted pairs of jeans are dropped through another chute, the “outbox”, they disappear from the list in the app.
Purchases at Hointer are made with a swipe of a credit card. And a salesperson is optional. This allows Hointer to hire fewer people and focus on their goal: developing technology that supports a retail revolution.
Men's clothing retailer Bonobos has come up with a more personalized shopping experience. Although it is in fact an online retailer, Bonobos has decided to open a handful of stores called Guide shops. Shoppers make an appointment online before arriving at a Guideship, where they receive one-on-one attention from a fitting guide. Because these shops have limited stocks, shoppers aren't able to take home the clothes they select. But guides help shoppers make online purchases before they leave, after which the items will be delivered to customers in one or two days. Following the purchase, the Bonobos customer service database keeps a record of each shopper's size, making future online purchases easier.
While Hointer focuses on convenience, Bonobos Guide shops focus on customer service. But both efforts have one thing in common: giving clothing retailers a new look for the 21st century.
1. The two companies are finding ways to modernize their stores because ______.| A．online shopping is losing its popularity |
| B．in-store retail makes higher profits |
| C．people's demand for in-store shopping still exists |
| D．store sales keep declining without high technology |
| A．It's a software company as well as a jean producer. |
| B．Shoppers can turn to a salesperson when necessary in Hointer. |
| C．The Hointer app makes clothes shopping more time-consuming. |
| D．Shoppers are welcomed by German-made robots in Hointer. |
| A．he needs to make an appointment online in advance |
| B．he has to make online purchases in the store |
| C．he should help create the customer service database |
| D．he can receive one-on-one attention from a guide |
| A．High Technology in Stores | B．Advantages of In-store Shopping |
| C．Competition between Two Companies | D．New Experience of Shopping for Clothes |
4 . Life in the Internet age is lonely—or is it? That's what experts in human interaction（交往）are debating（争论) after a new Stanford University survey has been published.
According to the study, the more time people spend online, the less they can spare for reallife relationships with family and friends. The researchers asked 113 people about the Web's influence on daily activities. 36% of those people are online for more than five hours a week. "As Internet use becomes more widespread, it will have an increasingly isolating(孤立的) effect on society," says Robert Kraut, one of the researchers.
Scholars (学者)and Web lovers criticized（批评）the study for stretching its data to make the "isolating" point. While 13% of regular Web users admitted the loss of time with loved ones, 60% reported watching less TV. The survey also shows that email is the most popular online activity. If some of webheads(网虫) spend what was once passive TV time keeping company with friends via emails, "that's a move towards greater connectedness," says Paul Resnick, a professor at the University of Michigan.
This isn't the first claim that the Web should be criticized. A 1998 report monitored 73 Pittsburgh-area families' Net use for a year. People who used the Internet more "talked less to family members and reported being lonelier and more depressed," says Robert Kraut.
"It's true that there have been big declines in social connectedness over the past decades, but those declines began before the Internet was invented," says Thomas Putnam.
As Amitay Etzioni says, the Internet gives us a different kind of social life—not better or worse than before, but just different.
1. Who claimed that the Web had negative influence?| A．Robert Kraut. | B．Paul Resnick. |
| C．Thomas Putnam. | D．Amitay Etzioni. |
| A．the study conducted by Stanford University |
| B．the survey made by the University of Michigan |
| C．the conclusion in a report written in 1998 |
| D．the opinion expressed in Bowling Alone |
| A．watching TV used to take time away from staying online |
| B．36 % of Web users spend more than five hours a week online |
| C．the Web was blamed more than once for causing an isolating effect |
| D．the Web has the same influence as telephones and televisions |
5 . “Nomophobia”, NO Mobile Phone phobia(恐惧) is a 21st-century term for the fear of not being able to use your smartphone. Smartphone addiction is on the rise, surveys show, and a new study released adds to a growing body of evidence that smartphone addiction is harming our minds literally.
Smartphone addiction affects many people from all across the globe. Over 1.8 billion people own smartphones and the average owners check their screens 150 times a day. Considering those numbers, it shouldn’t come as a surprise when 44% of people (compared with 20% in 2011) admit feeling anxious when they can’t have access to their phones.
Researchers from Harvard University used brain imaging to study the brains of 19 teenage boys who were diagnosed with smartphone addiction. Compared with 19 teenagers who were not addicted, the brains of the addicted boys had significantly higher levels of GABA, which decelerates neurons (神经元)， than levels of glutamate-glutamine, which energizes brain signals. That results in poorer attention and control, which you don’t want to have, because you want to stay focused. So that means you are easier to get distracted.
“Addicted teenagers in the study also had significantly higher scores in anxiety, depression and levels of impulsiveness (冲动) ,” said Dr. Leslie Perlow, who led the study.
If you seem to have the symptoms of smart device addiction, experts have some suggestions in addition to mindfulness training. First, turn off your phone at certain times of the day, such as in meetings, when having dinner, playing with your kids, and of course, driving. Remove social media apps, like Facebook and Twitter from your phone, and only check-in from your laptop. Try to stop yourself to 15-minute intervals at set times of the day when it won’t affect work or family life. Don’t bring your cellphone and its harmful blue light to bed, and use an old-fashioned alarm to wake you. And last, try to replace your smart device time with healthier activities such as meditating or actually interacting with real people.
1. What is the conclusion of the research?| A．Smartphone addiction leads to distraction. |
| B．Smartphone addiction easily causes anger. |
| C．Smartphone addiction is harmful to the mind. |
| D．Smartphone addiction brings about anxiety and depression. |
| A．In Paragraph 2. | B．In Paragraph 3. |
| C．In Paragraph 4. | D．In Paragraph 5. |
| A．Speeds up. | B．Slows down. |
| C．Adds to. | D．Cuts down. |
| A．To use an old-fashion cellphone. | B．To participate in more social activities. |
| C．To stop fifteen-minute intervals. | D．To turn off the blue light on bed. |
6 . Hundreds of children are being treated for sleep problems in Wales every year. In some cases，babies，infants (婴儿)and teenagers have been admitted to hospital in north Wales alone.
The Children’s Sleep Charity said many children were suffering from lack of sleep mainly because of technology use. Public Health Wales said sleep was as important to a child’s health as healthy eating and exercise，and children with poor sleep patterns were more likely to be fat.
Statistics obtained (获得) under the Freedom of Information Act by BBC Wales found at least 408 children have been admitted to hospitals across Wales suffering from sleep disorders since March 2013.
Children aged between 0 and 4 made up the highest number of inpatients (住院病人)，with some newborns being treated for sleep-related problems from the day of birth.
Vicki Dawson，who set up the Children’s Sleep Charity (CSC)，said sleepless nights were putting both children and parents in anxiety. “Their weight and growth may also be affected as well as their mental health，”she said.
Teachers said children showing signs of sleep shortage and tiredness in class were a concern as they couldn’t concentrate for long periods.
Psychologist Amy McClelland，of Sleep Wales，saida common problem was that children were “over excited”before bed and that families should get back to basics. “Think 1950s family home. Dinner as a family，read，chat，a film maybe，lights off and then bed. ”She added.
1. What’s the main reason why children are short of sleep？| A．Less exercise. | B．Eating habits. |
| C．Technology use. | D．Sleep patterns. |
| A．Infants. | B．Teenagers. |
| C．Teachers. | D．Parents. |
| A．Chatting and films make children sleep more. |
| B．It is difficult for children to read before bed. |
| C．Being too excitedis good for sleep habits. |
| D．Relaxation has a bad effect on children. |
| A．Ways to Treat Sleep Problems | B．Sleep Problems of Welsh Children |
| C．Sleep Habits of Welsh Children | D．The Problems of Welsh Children |
7 . People are less willing to rely on their knowledge and say they know something when they have access (接近) to the Internet, suggesting that our connection to the web is affecting how we think.
Professor Evan Risko, of the Department of Psychology at the University of Waterloo, led a recent study where the team asked about 100 participants (参与者) a series of general-knowledge questions, such as naming the capital of France. For half of the study, participants had access to the Internet. They had to look up the answer when they responded that they did not know the answer. In the other half of the study, participants did not have access to the Internet.
The team found that the people who had access to the web were about 5 percent more likely to say that they did not know the answer to the question. Furthermore, in some cases, the people with access to the Internet reported feeling as though they knew less compared to the people without access.
“With the popularity of the Internet, we are almost frequently connected to large amounts of information. And when that data is within reach, people seem less likely to rely on their own knowledge,” said Professor Risko.
Studying the results, the researchers thought that access to the Internet might make it less acceptable to say you know something but are incorrect. It is also possible that participants were more likely to say they didn’t know an answer when they had access to the web because online searching offers an opportunity to confirm their answer, and the process of finding out the answer is rewarding.
“Our results suggest that access to the Internet affects the decisions we make about what we know and don’t know,” said Risko. “We hope this research helps us understand how easy access to large amounts of information can influence our thinking and behaviour.”
1. The study by Professor Risko shows that ________.| A．we are easily cheated by the web |
| B．the web is making our life harder |
| C．we are becoming dependent on the web |
| D．the web helps us make correct decisions |
| A．They were funny. | B．They were simple. |
| C．They were personal. | D．They were difficult. |
| A．made more progress | B．showed less confidence |
| C．gave wrong answers | D．showed more optimism |
| A．Goal. | B．Dream. |
| C．Distance. | D．Information. |
Merrigan, a former college professor, is making stops at universities across the country in hopes of encouraging more students to think about careers in agriculture. Aside from trying to stop the graying of America’s farmers, her work is made tougher by a recent blog posting that put agriculture at No. 1 on a list of “useless” college degrees. Top federal agriculture officials are talking about the posting, and it has the attention of agricultural organizations across the country.
“There couldn’t be anything that’s more incorrect,” Merrigan said. “We know that there aren’t enough qualified graduates to fill the jobs that are out there in American agriculture.”
In addition, a growing world population that some experts predict will require 70% more food production by 2050, she said.
“I truly believe we’re at a golden age of agriculture. Global demand is at an all-time record high, and global supplies are at all-time record lows,” said Matt Rush, director of the Texas Farm Bureau. “Production costs are going to be valuable enough that younger people are going to have the opportunity to be involved in agriculture.”
The Department of Agriculture has programs aimed at developing more farmers and at increasing interest in locally grown food. The National Young Farmers’ Coalition has also been pushing for state and federal policy changes to make it easier for new farmers.
Ryan Best, president of Future Farmers of America, has been living out of a suitcase, traveling the country and visiting with high school students about careers in agriculture. The 21-year-old Best hopes his message—that this is a new time in agriculture—will motivate the next generation to turn around the statistics. “Never before have we had the innovations (创新) in technology which have led to agriculture in this country being the most efficient it has ever been,” he said. “There’s really a place for everybody to fit in.”
1. What is the new challenge to American agriculture?
| A．Fewer and older farmers. | B．Higher fuel prices. |
| C．More natural disasters. | D．Lower agricultural output. |
| A．To draw federal agriculture officials’ attention. |
| B．To select qualified agriculture graduates. |
| C．To clarify a recent blog posting. |
| D．To talk more students into farming careers. |
because__________..
| A．the government will cover production costs |
| B．global food supplies will be even lower |
| C．investment in agriculture will be profitable |
| D．America will increase its food export |
| A．To re-analyze the result of the national census. |
| B．To increase agricultural production. |
| C．To bring down the average age of farmers. |
| D．To invest more in agriculture. |
9 . Keeping a busy social life among lots of friends may keep people thinner than spending hours doing some exercises, according to scientists. They say that socialising and meeting with friends help increase levels of brown fat in the body which burns calories(卡路里)to produce heat.
Living in an exciting social environment was found to reduce fat in mice's belly by half over four weeks, even if they ate more. US researchers say that social excitement aids weight loss by turning white fat into brown. White fat stores calories and makes us fatter, while brown burns energy to produce heat. Turning white fat into brown is extremely difficult，normally requiring long- term stay in cold conditions or exciting part of the body's nervous system.
However, scientists from Ohio State University now think that having a busy social life is an even more effective way of changing white fat into brown. The team came up with their theory by studying the effects of various living environments on mice. Those, who lived alongside a greater number of mice, had more space and toys to excite themselves and then lost far more weight over the course of the study than their “couch potato" fellows.
Study author, Dr Matthew During, whose team's findings appear in the journal Cell Metabolism, said, "I'm still amazed at the degree of fat loss that occurs." Explaining how new technology had threatened face-to-face socialising, he added, "It's not just a sedentary(久坐 的)lifestyle and high calorie foods, but an increasing lack of social activities." Co-author Dr Lei Cao said，"Loneliness is a potential factor for cancer and death; it's equal to cigarette smoking to a certain extent. Social activities are very vital.，，
1. What information can we get from the first two paragraphs?
| A．Brown fat stores calories and makes us fatter. |
| B．It doesn't take long to turn white fat into brown. |
| C．Social excitement helps gain more weight. |
| D．Brown fat can burn energy to produce heat. |
| A．Levels of brown fat can be increased by socialising. |
| B．The mice lacking social life lose more weight. |
| C．The research findings haven't been published so far. |
| D．Dr Matthew During wasn't convinced of the result. |
| A．the fat in mice's belly was reduced because of the relaxing environment |
| B．a sedentary lifestyle and high calories foods influence people's social life |
| C．surfing the Internet may influence people's face-to-face communication |
| D．cancer and death are mainly caused for lack of social life |
| A．Brown fat is beneficial to people's health. |
| B．Socialising is unnecessarily important in people's daily life. |
| C．White fat can be changed into brown fat. |
| D．Socialising contributes to people's losing weight. |
