1 . A survey done by the University of Michigan shows a big drop in the number of teenagers who say they smoke cigarettes.
In the survey, over 44, 000 students in grades 8, 10 and 12, from 424 schools across the country were asked about their smoking habits. The results show that smoking among 8th graders went down from 21 percent in 2002, to 12 percent in 2007. In the same period, smoking dropped from 30% to 21% among 10th graders and from 37% to 30% among 12th graders.
Anti-smoking organisations think educating kids about smoking risks is the cause of the drop. “These important drops in teen smoking did not just happen by chance,” said study director Lloyd D, Johnston, “A lot of individuals and organisations have been trying to bring down the high rates of teenagers.”
Others say the higher price of cigarettes is an important reason teens are cutting back.
Whatever the reason, the drop in teen smoking is news to everyone, even cigarette-making companies warn their product is only for adults, not kids. Health experts are particularly paying attention to teenage smoking habits because lifetime smokers often get hooked on smoking at an early age.
But some say that the new figures aren’t exactly the cause for celebration. While it is true fewer teens are smoking today than five years ago, the rate of teen smoking is still higher than it was.
Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death and disease in this country. “Our survey suggests that a lot of teens still do not understand the dangers of smoking particularly the younger teens,” Johnston said.
1. The rate of teen smoking among 12th graders dropped by according to the survey.A.7% | B.30% | C.9% | D.21% |
A.educating kids about smoking risks |
B.efforts from health experts and organisations |
C.the higher price of cigarettes |
D.the cut down of the number of cigarettes |
A.Become interested in. | B.Get tired of. |
C.Give up. | D.Take no interest in. |
A.The rate of teen smoking is far lower than it was. |
B.Cigarette smoking can be stopped sooner or later. |
C.There is a different idea about the drop in teenage smoking. |
D.No younger teens really understand the dangers of smoking. |
2 . The Dangers of Secondhand Smoke
Most people know that cigarette smoking is harmful to their health. Scientific research shows that it causes many kinds of diseases.
Environmental Protection Agency reports that about 53,000 people die in the United States each year as a result of exposure to secondhand smoke.
The smoke that comes from a lit cigarette contains many different poisonous chemicals. In the past, scientists did not think that these chemicals could harm a nonsmoker’s health.
Research shows that children who are exposed to secondhand smoke are sick more often than children who live in homes where no one smokes and that the children of smokers are more than twice as likely to develop lung cancer when they are adults as the children of nonsmokers. The risk is even higher for children who live in homes where both parents smoke.
A.Recently, though, scientists changed their opinion after they studied a large group of nonsmokers. |
B.As a matter of fact, almost all of us breathe tobacco smoke at times, whether we realize it or not. |
C.In fact, many people who smoke get lung cancer. |
D.However, secondhand smoke is dangerous to all people, old or young. |
E.People are becoming very aware of the dangers of secondhand smoke. |
F.No one knows for sure why Mr. Gilson has lung cancer. |
G.Many people, including doctors, parents, teachers, and others, are concerned about the health risks of cigarette smoking. |
3 . “Are personal sad stories a must to win talent shows?” “Shouldn’t talent be judged on the basis of itself without needing a sad story of struggle to win?” These are questions Sanya Malhotra posed on a recent Facebook post.
This morning I came across this interesting post by Sanya Malhotra. She revealed that she loved dancing and dreamt of becoming an actress, but got defeated in “Dance India Dance” because her background story wasn’t sad and inspiring enough. That’s when she started doubting her artistic gift.
This really set me thinking. Why are people attracted to sob stories? Why do we always appreciate only those people who have achieved something after going through a lot of hardships? Why does the headline of a newspaper “Taxi-driver’s Son Stands First In UPSC Exam” find more readers? I think it is because most people, who are in a similar situation, find it comforting that someone has succeeded with so many hardships. I know it is really very difficult for people with financial, health, or family problems to overcome obstacles and succeed. I really feel proud of them and I am often touched and inspired by their stories.
Now come back to what Sanya has said. I think this is a talent show rather than a story-telling competition. When it comes to a competition of singing or dancing or any fine arts, all the competitors should be judged without any bias (偏见). No one should lose because they don’t have a sad story of struggle to tell. It’s very unfair. They can be given opportunities otherwise, but should not be judged because of their stories.
Maybe, the TV channels do it to attract more viewers, because the most important element of any reality show is these touching stories. But as Sanya has said, it’s unfair to those who haven't such a story and are equally talented.
1. What do we know about Sanya Malhotra?A.She entered a talent show. | B.She won “Dance India Dance”. |
C.She had a sad story to tell. | D.She was rejected in a film. |
A.experienced many hardships | B.is a famous actress in Indian |
C.has a great gift for gymnastics | D.used to be confident in her artistic talent |
A.A Millionaire Donated Money To Harvard University. |
B.A Gifted Indian Teenager Won “Dance India Dance”. |
C.An Armless Girl Was Admitted To Harvard University. |
D.A Freshman Paid Off Loans By Getting A Part-time Job. |
A.Winners Should Be Determined By Public Judges |
B.Sanya Malhotra Displayed A Great Artistic Gift |
C.Competitors Should Not Be Judged By Sob Stories |
D.Talent Shows Competitors Can Tell Their Stories |
4 . Living with your parents has its benefits at least when it comes to raising your kids― their grandkids. Two new studies add to the evidence that grandmothers can enhance the survival of grandchildren. That is, unless grandma's too old or lives too far away.
Humans are unusual in that the females live long past the age at which they stop having babies. Patrick Bergeron, professor of biology at Bishop's University in Quebec, said that most of the organisms will reproduce up to their very last moment. This increase is often explained by the so-called "grandmother effect". He thinks there could still be a benefit for women who stop having babies to increase their genetic footprint by helping their daughters to raise larger families.
To explore the "grandmother effect" hypothesis (假设),Bergeron and his colleagues examined nearly 200 years' worth of French-Canadian population records from the 17th and 18th centuries. "At the time, life was tough. In some years, a third o£ the kids were not even making it to one year of age.” But the researchers found that having a grandmother still alive was a definite plus."Families with grandmothers alive were larger by about two and the survival of these grandchildren to age 15 was much improved."
This beneficial effect was only seen when the matriarchs (女家长)lived nearby. That role is tougher for them to fulfills as they get older in poor health, which brings us to the second study. The researchers found that the benefits associated with having a grandmother on hand depended on her age. Once manna hit 75, the grandchild survival benefit disappeared. This was almost certainly due to some form of indirect resource competition, though, rather than wickedness (邪恶)on the part of co- resident grandmothers.
So a healthy grandma helps make for a healthy grandchild. If ',over the river and through the woods to grandmother's house" isn't too long a trip.
1. What's the second paragraph mainly about?A.Differences between animals and human beings. |
B.Disadvantages of living with grandmas |
C.Grandmothers' influence on the kids. |
D.What's called“grandmother effect”. |
A.By voicing opinions. | B.By providing facts. |
C.By giving examples. | D.By telling stories. |
A.Society should be concerned about the old women. |
B.Grandmothers over 75 years old are unwilling to help. |
C.Some grandmothers may occupy kids' relative recourses. |
D.Some grandmothers are getting wicked after they are old. |
A.A healthy one living nearby. , |
B.A healthy one living abroad. |
C.An old one living in a nursing home. |
D.A knowledgeable one living together. |
5 . When HarmonyOS, the Chinese self-developed operating system for Huawei mobile devices, was released on Aug 9, it quickly became a hot topic on social media. Many believe it not only represents the rise of the country as a tech power, but also pays tribute (致敬) to classical Chinese culture by naming the system “Hongmeng” in Chinese. “Hongmong” is a classical word from the Taoist (道家) text Zhuangzi. In the ancient times of Chinese myths and legends, “Hongmeng” was used to describe the original state of the universe before matter existed.
For HarmonyOS, “Hongmeng” indicates the developers’ aim to make an innovative operating system, unlike any other. Besides “Hongmeng”, Huawei has also registered many of its products under the names of legendary creatures from Chinese mythology, such as “Qilin”for the Kin mobile chip, and “Kunpeng” for the server chip. Many Chinese internet users and media have praised Huawei’s use of these names, “as they stand for Chinese wisdom and ancient people’s imagination and spirit of exploration”, Global Times noted.
In fact, Huawei is not alone in using traditional culture for modern ventures. Ne Zha, the new film, also portrays traditional culture in a modern context. Earlier this month it became the biggest animated movie in China and was called “the glorious light of domestic anime”. The movie is loosely based on the well-known work of classical Chinese mythology The Investiture of the Gods. Unlike his attractive heroic character in previous cinematic works, Ne Zha is shown as a rebellious underdog, who has to overcome hardship and his dark fate to become a hero. Many young Chinese people can relate to Ne Zha, who encourages them to become dream-chasers and fate-changers. As Global Times put it, today by revisiting and incorporating a modern context, “ancient mythology has the power to stir up contemporary imagination in young people”. After all, imagination is the beginning of creation.
1. Why did Huawei name the new system “Hongmeng” in Chinese?A.Huawei was interested in describing the original state of the universe. |
B.Huawei targeted at designing a unique operating system in the world. |
C.Huawei aimed to develop classical culture. |
D.Huawei was fond of Chinese myths and legends. |
A.Admirable. | B.Indifferent. |
C.Neutral. | D.Critical. |
A.Not all the plot is based on the popular Chinese mythology. |
B.The new film Ne Zha means a lot to domestic anime in China. |
C.The character of Ne Zha is a failure at first in previous works. |
D.The film Ne Zha encourages many youth to achieve dreams. |
A.Huawei’s new names for its products and their influence. |
B.A brief introduction of a new successful movie Ne Zha. |
C.Imagination is important and the beginning of creation. |
D.Ancient cultures come into new life and inspire imagination. |
6 . The World Happiness Report, a United Nations agency report, measures (估量) how happy people are, and why. Norway is the happiest place on Earth—beating neighbour Denmark from the number one position.
Denmark, Iceland, Switzerland and Finland round out the top five, while the Central African Republic came last. Western Europe and North America took up most of the places at the top of table, with the US and UK at 14th and 19th.
The World Happiness Report mainly depends on asking a simple question of more than 1,000 people every year in more than150 countries. “Imagine a ladder (梯子), with steps numbered from 0 at the bottom to 10 at the top,” the question asks, “The top of the ladder is the best possible life for you and the bottom of the ladder is the worst possible life for you. On which step of the ladder would you say you personally feel you stand at this time?”
The average result is the country’s score—from Norway’s 7.54 to the Central African Republic’s 2.69. But the report also tries to explain why one country is happier than another. It looks at reasons including economic strength (经济实力) social support, freedom of choice, and generosity.
This year’s report also has a text titled “restoring (恢复) American happiness”, which examines why happiness levels in the United States are falling, despite continually-increasing economic improvement. “The United States can and should raise happiness by solving America’s social problems- rising inequality and distrust-rather than focusing mainly on economic growth,” the authors said.
Jeffrey Sachs, the director of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, which published the report, said President Donald Trump’s policies were likely to make things worse.
1. Which of the following is the correct order of the countries in terms of happiness levels?A.Denmark, the UK, the US, the Central African Republic |
B.Denmark, the US, the UK, the Central African Republic |
C.the US, Denmark, the UK, the Central African Republic |
D.Denmark, the US, the Central African Republic, the UK |
A.By asking a question. | B.By having a conversation. |
C.By doing scientific research. | D.By carrying out an online survey. |
A.Its people live an unhappy life. |
B.Its economy is going downhill. |
C.Its social problems are hard to solve. |
D.It has a lower happiness level than before. |
A.To explain the reason for being happy. |
B.To introduce the World Happiness Report. |
C.To talk about America’s social problem. |
D.To discuss the policies by Donald Trump. |
增加:在缺词处加一个漏字符号(/\), 并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除:把多余的词用斜线(\)划掉。
修改:在错的词下划一横线, 并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意:1、每处错误及其修改均仅限一词;
2、只允许修改10处,多者(从第11处起)不计分。
More than one and half million kids live in homes without the Internet. The UK government want to do something to change this. It says it was important for kids to learn online skills in order to keep up to the modern world. Have the Internet can also help people save money, let them to search for bargains and pay bills online. So they’re setting up specially online centers. People don’t have the web at home can get online in those centers. As well as saving money, the Internet is now one of the main way that people communicate with each other. The government also believes that people who don’t have the Internet can get leaving behind their friends who do.
8 . Since the first Earth Day in 1970, Americans have gotten a lot “greener” toward the environment. “We didn’t know at that time there even was an environment, let alone that there was a problem with it,” says Bruce Anderson, president of Earth Day USA.
But what began as nothing important in public affairs has grown into a social movement .Business people, political leaders, university professors, and especially millions of grass-roots Americans are taking part in the movement. “The understanding has increased many, many times,” says Gaylord Nelson, the former governor from Wisconsin, who thought up the first. According to US government reports, emissions (排放)from cars and trucks have dropped from 10.3 million tons a year to 5.5 tons .The number of cities producing CO beyond the standard has been reduced from 40 to 9. Although serious problems still remain and need to be dealt with, the world is a safer and healthier place. A kind of “Green thinking” has become part of practices.
Great improvement has been achieved. In 1988 there were only 600 recycling programs; today in 1995 there are about 6,600. Advanced lights, motors, and building designs have helped save a lot of energy and therefore prevented pollution.
Twenty –five years ago, there were hardly any education programs for environment. Today, it’s hard to find a public school, university, or law school that does not have such a kind of program. “Until we do that, nothing else will change!” says Bruce Anderson.
1. According to Anderson, before 1970, Americans had little idea about ___.A.the social movement | B.recycling techniques |
C.environmental problems | D.the importance of Earth Day |
A.The grass –roots level. | B.The business circle. |
C.Government officials. | D.University professors. |
A.They have cut car emissions to the lowest. |
B.They have settled their environmental problems. |
C.They have lowered their CO levels in forty cities. |
D.They have reduced pollution through effective measures. |
A.Education. | B.Planning |
C.Green living | D.CO reduction |