1 . Wildlife experts are asking Australians to drive carefully to avoid unnecessary roadkill as native animal numbers drop following years of natural disasters.
Kristie Newton from WIRES said the recent floods across Eastern Queensland and New South Wales could lead to an increase in animal roadkill accidents with wildlife on the move. “This year it might be even worse because they’re traveling a bit further to find food,” Newton said. “Important food sources like grasses have become less and less, forcing many animals to move outside their habitat in search of food, and turn up in unusual places.”
“The fires killed millions and millions of native animals, and now we’ve had the floods. So it’s important that we try and protect what animals we’ve got left.” the wildlife expert said. The 2019-20 bushfires in Australia have affected nearly three billion animals.
According to AAMI Insurance, more than ten percent of all animal roadkill accidents happen in May. More than 15,500 AAMI animal collision claims last year showed that central Victoria’s Heathcote was the country’s most dangerous place for wild animals. Victoria was also the worst state for animal roadkill, with almost one third of animal accidents taking place on Victorian roads. New South Wales and Queensland followed closely behind.
Newton said moving a dead animal off the road can be a good way to prevent unnecessary death. “Birds also come down and feed on those bodies, and we see a lot of them get hit when doing that.” She is also encouraging drivers to do the right thing if they hit an animal. “Please pull over where it is safe to check whether the animal is injured,” said Newton. “For your own safety never set close to an adult kangaroo, even if it’s injured.”
1. What is the main reason for the increase in animal roadkill accidents?| A．People traveling more than before. |
| B．Animals preferring to feed alongside roads. |
| C．Cities becoming more attractive to animals. |
| D．Animals having to move because of natural disasters. |
| A．What damage Australian bush fires have had. |
| B．Natural disasters make it hard to protect wildlife. |
| C．Why it is high time people protected Australian animals. |
| D．Bush fire s are much more dangerous to animals than floods. |
| A．Most roadkill accidents happened in 2019. |
| B．Animals in New South Wales suffered most. |
| C．Queensland took quick action to end roadkill. |
| D．Heathcote saw most roadkill accidents in Australia. |
| A．Leave the dead animal alone. | B．Stop and check on the hit animal. |
| C．Drive off the birds on the roads. | D．Touch an injured kangaroo to calm it. |
2 . To improve road safety and raise awareness among Russia’s notoriously (臭名昭著地) careless drivers, Russian police have tried to get drivers to slow down at zebra (斑马) crossings by having painted horses as zebras walk across on the busiest streets in some of the big cities.
The light grey horses, painted with black stripes (条纹), carried signs on their backs reading: “Careful, children are on their way to school.” The police sent the “zebras” to several different locations in the Russian capital, where officials in orange vests walked them over zebra crossings and handed out leaflets (传单) to passing drivers.
Some held up rainbow-coloured umbrellas over the painted animals to protect them from the rain. Russian roads are notoriously dangerous and drivers still rarely take steps to avoid pedestrians (行人). Nearly half of all traffic accidents in the country’s big cities are caused by cars hitting pedestrians, and a third of those occur on crossings, according to traffic police figures published last month.
In the first six months of this year, 378 people were killed and more than 6, 600 injured on pedestrian crossings in Russia, according to police. In Moscow alone, 43 people were killed, including two children.
Though police officials said that only safe paint would be used on the animals, animal rights activists still disagreed with the idea, accusing the police of “treating animals like garbage”.
“Children understand that paints are bad for animals,” the Interfax news agency quoted president of Vita animal rights group Irina Novozhilova as saying.
Let’s hope this part of the campaign is over and animals are left out of future attempts to raise pedestrians’ awareness.
1. Why do Moscow police have “zebras” walk across on the busiest streets?| A．To make a call on protecting animals. |
| B．To raise drivers’ awareness of road safety. |
| C．To tell people it is dangerous to cross streets. |
| D．To remind people zebras are in danger of extinction. |
| A．The zebras. | B．The policemen. | C．The horses. | D．The drivers. |
| A．Drivers must slow down at pedestrian crossings. |
| B．Road safety should be improved. |
| C．The paints used on the horses are safe. |
| D．These animals are ill-treated by the police. |
| A．Critical. | B．Confident. | C．Doubtful. | D．Positive. |
3 . In Denmark, bicycling is one of the primary forms of transportation. In sunshine, rain and snow, you will see cyclists on their way to work, to the grocery store, or to social events. The bike is a Dane’s best friend.
Danish cycling culture is as old as the bicycle itself. Bikes were first introduced to the country in the 1880s, and during the 1920s and 1930s, the bicycle became a widespread symbol of equality and freedom. People of all social classes began biking side by side — in the cities on their way to work and in the countryside on their days off.
The increased economy development of the late 1950s saw some Danes replacing bikes with motorcycles and automobiles. Just like their colleagues around the world, Danish urban planners believed the future belonged to cars, trucks, and ever-wider highways. In the early 1970s, however, the Mideast oil crisis terminated that development. “Car Free Sundays” were introduced in Copenhagen, and movements demanding Copenhagen to become car-free took place. Over time, concerns about air pollution, climate change, and the need for people to get enough exercise have helped bicycles make a big comeback. Denmark’s heavy taxes on petrol and automobiles are a factor, too.
Today, cycling is an inseparable part of Danish culture. Newcomers who do not know how to cycle are encouraged to learn as soon as they arrive. Danish children usually learn to bike before they begin school at the age of six — and often much earlier. In school, children learn about traffic rules, road safety, and the importance of wearing a helmet as well as good cycling habits. Another choice for families with children is the cargo bike — a sort of oversized tricycle with a large wooden box on the front. It’s estimated that a quarter of all Copenhagen families with two or more children own one of these cargo bikes for transporting kids, groceries, and other necessities. Danish cargo bikes have also won design awards and become a Danish export success.
Commuting by bike is the fastest, easiest and most environmentally friendly way to get around the cities of Denmark. And the numbers speak for themselves: Residents who cycle in Copenhagen request 1.1 million fewer sick days. Cyclists reduce CO2 emissions by 20,000 tonnes a year on average.
1. What led to the popularity of bicycles in Denmark during the 1920s and 1930s?| A．The convenience of the bike. | B．The development of the economy. |
| C．The idea that the bike symbolizes. | D．The construction of wide highways. |
| A．Improved. | B．Permitted. | C．Ended. | D．restarted. |
| A．They are owned by about 25% families. |
| B．They are designed for practical use. |
| C．They are the national symbol of Denmark. |
| D．They are unpopular among local residents. |
| A．To prove the effectiveness of cycling. |
| B．To compare cycling with driving. |
| C．To show the popularity of cycling. |
| D．To conclude the financial benefits of cycling. |
4 . I had to say something after reading The Anxious Generation. It is going to sell well , because Jonathan Haidt is telling a scary story about children’s development many parents are led to believe. However, the book’s repeated suggestion that digital technologies are rewiring our children’s brains and causing the epidemic (流行病) of mental illness is unsupported by science. Worse , the rude proposal that social media is to blame might distract (分心) us from effectively responding to the real causes of the current mental-health crisis in young people.
Researchers have searched for the effects suggested by Haidt. Our efforts have produced a mix of no, small and mixed associations. Most data are correlative. When associations over time are found, they suggest not that social-media use predicts or causes depression, but that young people who already have mental-health problems use such platforms more often or in different ways from their healthy peers.
We are not alone here. Several analyses and systematic reviews centralize on the same message. An analysis done in 72 countries shows no consistent or measurable associations between well-being and social media globally. Moreover, studies from some authorities finds no evidence of intense changes associated with digital-technology use.
As a psychologist studying children’s and adolescents’ mental health, I appreciate parents’ frustration (沮丧) and desire for simple answers. As a parent of adolescents, I would also like to identify a simple source for the pain this generation is reporting. There are, however, no simple answers. The beginning and development of mental disorders are driven by a complex set of genetic and environmental factors.
More young people are talking openly about their mental-health struggles than ever before. But insufficient services are available to address their needs. In the United States, there is, on average, one school psychologist for every 1,119 students. We have a generation in crisis and in desperate need of the best of what science and evidence-based solutions can offer. Unfortunately, our time is being spent telling stories that are unsupported by research and that do little to support young people who need, and deserve, more.
1. What is presented in The Anxious Generation?| A．Scary stories affect children’s brains. |
| B．Parents are responsible for children’s health. |
| C．Teen’s mental illness results from screen time. |
| D．The epidemic of mental illness is unavoidable. |
| A．Many countries do research in mental health. |
| B．Well-being and social media are closely related. |
| C．The young are trapped in the mental-health crisis, |
| D．Social media don’t necessarily cause mental illness. |
| A．Effective actions need to be taken. | B．Positive stories should be shared. |
| C．Financial support needs to be provided. | D．Broader research should be done. |
| A．To suggest ways to help those in need. |
| B．To encourage parents to brave the crisis. |
| C．To recommend a newly-published book. |
| D．To give a voice to children’s mental issues. |
5 . The Tianjin Binhai Public Library was described by The Daily Mail as “the world’s ultimate library” in 2017, and “breathtaking” was the word chosen for it. One book at the library and you’ll see why. With its futuristic design and walls loaded with books, it’s the dream library of every book lover.
But as the awe continues, there’s a burning question lying in the back of our minds: When physical bookstores are closing down one by one, what makes libraries immune from digitalization? And do we still need libraries as we’ve got the Internet in our hands?
Reporter Ian Clark has the answer. “Libraries are not declining in importance - people are simply changing the way they use them,” he wrote. What Clark means is that libraries have shifted from simply being storehouses of books to a medium to help “bridge the gap between the haves and the have-nots”. According to him, Libraries Are Essential. Since not everyone can afford a smart phone, a tablet or an Internet connection, and not everyone has the know-how to search the internet efficiently, it’s public libraries that make sure that these resources and technologies are available to a larger group of people. And one of the pitfalls that come with online materials is that they’re not always trustworthy. “Google doesn’t tell you what you’re not getting, so people need to evaluate the quality and completeness of what they see on their screens, ” Sarah Pritchard, dean of libraries at Northwestern University, told Northwestern Research Magazine. And libraries are usually where that “evaluation” happens.
But all of these practical functions aside, we still need the physical space that a library provides. It’s something that's called a “third place”, according to the Seattle Times. This is a place in which we can fully concentrate on our study and work without easily getting distracted. And compared to other “third places” like coffee shops, libraries have a “non-commercial nature” that allows you to relax completely. “Nobody is trying to sell you anything in the library. There is no pressure to buy and there is no judgment of your choices,” Anne Goulding, a professor at Victoria University in New Zealand, said. “There are few other spaces that you can just ‘be’ without somebody questioning your presence or your motivation.”
1. The attraction of the Tianjin Binhai Public Library lies in _______.| A．world's ultimate library | B．design and book walls |
| C．every book lover's dream | D．reports on The Daily Mail |
| A．problems | B．functions | C．mistakes | D．trends |
| A．Libraries have changed the way people read. |
| B．Libraries are as important as they used to be. |
| C．Libraries are better used by the poor than the rich. |
| D．Libraries are made more available to more people. |
| A．Libraries make people less likely to get distracted. |
| B．Libraries give people more motivation and inspiration. |
| C．Libraries provide people with a wider range of choices. |
| D．Libraries allow people to read without fear of being judged. |
| A．In a news report. | B．In an introductory speech. |
| C．In a science magazine. | D．In a fashion brochure. |
6 . With the development of society, the choice of food and drinks for children is more diversified than ever before. However, every coin has two sides. Many facts suggest that children are overweight and the situation is getting worse, according to the statistics. I feel there are a number of reasons for this.
Some people blame the fact that we are surrounded by shops selling unhealthy, fatty foods, such as fried chicken and ice cream, at low prices. This has turned out a whole generation of grown-ups who seldom cook a meal for themselves. If there were fewer of these restaurants then probably children would buy less take-away food.
There is another argument that blames parents for allowing their children to become overweight. I agree to this, because good eating habits begin early in life, long before children start to visit fast food shops. If children are given fried chicken and chocolate rather than healthy food, or are always allowed to choose what they eat, they will go for sweet and salty foods every time,and this will carry on throughout their lives.
There is a third reason for this situation. Children these days take very little exercise. They do not walk to school. When they get home, they sit in front of the television or their computers. Not only is this an unhealthy pastime, it also gives them time to eat more unhealthy food. What they need is to go outside and play active games or sports.
The above are the main reasons for this problem, and therefore we have to encourage young people to be more active as well as guiding them away from fast food shops and bad eating habits.
1. What is the downside about the diversified choices of food and drinks for children?| A．Children don't know how to choose from the food and drinks. |
| B．Children don't have so many coins for food and drinks. |
| C．Children are becoming more and more overweight. |
| D．Children are getting worse because of many food and drinks. |
| A．Some people blame that shops are surrounded by unhealthy food. |
| B．Shops selling cheap but unhealthy foods can be found everywhere. |
| C．Grown-ups are a generation who can't cook for themselves. |
| D．There are fewer restaurants that sell children take-away food. |
| A．Because parents allow their children to visit fast food shops. |
| B．Because parents allow their children to go for sweets. |
| C．Because parents allow their children to carry on eating habits throughout their lives. |
| D．Because parents allow their children to develop bad eating habits from early on. |
| A．Children should be encouraged to take exercise and eat less. |
| B．Children should be guided to stay away from food shops. |
| C．Children should be encouraged to be more active. |
| D．Children should be guided to go and eat outside |
7 . Hiring processes can be considered as a battle between honesty and dishonesty. You might imagine this is a simple fight between truth — seeking companies and self-promoting applicants, and to a certain extent it is. But companies sometimes deliberately twist the truth in a way that is self-destructive.
Let’s start with job applicants. The point of a CV or a LinkedIn (领英) profile is to make reality as appealing as possible. If anyone who has reached a certain level of experience is a leader who is personally responsible for generating millions in revenue (收入), the world economy would be about 15 times bigger than it actually is. The average Briton spends four and a half hours a day watching TV and online videos. But the average job applicant uses their spare time only for worthy purposes, like volunteering in soup kitchens or teaching orphans to code.
The companies also tend to magnify the truth as applicants do. The typical firm will write a job description that describes the work environment as fast -paced and innovative, and then lays out a set of impossible requirements for the “ideal applicant”, who almost does not exist. Sometimes-as when ads demand more years of experience in a programming language than that language has existed for-these requirements include an ability to go back and change the course of history.
Tracey Franklin, a fan of “realistic job previews” (RJPs), says that one effective strategy is, in text or video, to give would-be employees a genuine sense of the negatives and positives of the job, as well as a clear idea of the company’s corporate culture. Such honesty can be its own reward. A paper in 2011 by David Earnest of Towson University and his co-authors concluded that RJPs lead to lower turnover (人事变更率) and higher employee satisfaction.
1. What do we know about a CV or a LinkedIn profile according to the passage?| A．They highlight relevant volunteer work. |
| B．They demonstrate genuine interests and hobbies. |
| C．They exaggerate one’s achievements and skills. |
| D．They accurately represent one’s qualifications and experiences. |
| A．Ironical. | B．Concerned. | C．Serious. | D．Humorous. |
| A．RJPs lead to higher turnover. |
| B．RJPs contribute to the stability of the employees. |
| C．Companies should avoid sharing corporate culture. |
| D．RJPs fail to influence turnover and employee satisfaction. |
| A．Hire, liar | B．Apply, liar | C．Labor, liar | D．Fire, liar |
8 . We sometimes think that everything was much better and easier in the past. It’s one of the tricks our minds play on us, especially when we arc in low spirits.
Actually, it’s unlikely that things were objectively better in the past. This form of thinking is called rosy retrospection,which is a well-studied cognitive bias. It happens because when we think about the past, we are more likely to focus on positive generalities than annoying details.
If you think back to a holiday with your family five years ago, you’re likely to recall the beautiful views rather than the uncomfortable bed. In other words,the negative details disappear from our memory over time while the positive ones remain.
Rosy retrospection can influence how we make decisions, and it’s one of the reasons why we easily return into problematic relationships. The longer it is since we experienced the negative influence of a relationship, the more likely we are to let the good memories outweigh the bad memories and to perhaps forgive unforgivable behavior. It’s always a good idea to review our nostalgic (怀旧的) feelings with a healthy degree of doubt.
But rosy retrospection does serve an important purpose. It keeps us in a positive state of mind in the present and is important to our psychological wellbeing. In fact, people who tend to remember negative experiences more than positive ones are likely to exhibit psychological disorders. Research generally suggests that our happiest days are still to come. And even if they’re not, it’s still important to believe that they are. Don’t shy away from looking upon the past with a certain degree of nostalgia. But, for the same reason, don’t use the past as an excuse to be unhappy in the present.
1. What does the underlined phrase “rosy retrospection” in Paragraph 2 mean?| A．Having a preference for good memories. | B．Remembering exactly about the details. |
| C．Concentrating on impossible things. | D．Thinking objectively about the past: |
| A．Reviewing the nostalgic feelings critically. |
| B．Ignoring the nostalgic feelings absolutely. |
| C．Forgiving the unacceptable behavior generously. |
| D．Getting back to the problematic relationships bravely. |
| A．The good excuse for present unhappiness. |
| B．The accuracy of remembering past details. |
| C．The importance of maintaining a positive mindset. |
| D．The negative impact of recalling past experiences. |
| A．Negative. | B．Cautious. | C．Favorable. | D．Objective. |
9 . For many young students, the school break is not a time for play, but rather a period of intense working out at weight loss camps. The extreme popularity of these camps is a sign of the alarming trend in China — childhood obesity (过度肥胖). According to a report published by the National Health Commission in 2020, one in five Chinese youth aged 6 — 17 years is overweight or obese, up from just one in 20 in 1995.
This increase is driven by multiple social factors. For instance, heavy coursework at school and a ready availability of digital devices are fixing the country’s younger generations in a more inactive lifestyle. Also, an age-old belief that more food consumption equals better growth has led many parents to spoil their children with an unlimited supply of junk food and late night snacks. Besides, weight gain during their mother’s pregnancy, regularly skipping breakfast, high intake of sweet foods and drinks, and insufficient sleep can all add to the risk of becoming overweight.
Extra weight gained in childhood may likely be carried into adulthood and increase the risks of high blood pressure, heart disease, sleep disorders and cancers. What’s more, the strong feeling of social disapproval related to obesity can also have a dangerous effect on a child’s emotional well-being and self-esteem (自尊). Some of overweight teenagers can’t even finish their primary education.
Therefore, parents should closely monitor their children’s weight from an early age so that they can intervene without delay when signs of obesity show. That does not mean that parents should rely on dietary restriction or slimming pills for dramatic transformations. A balanced diet, regular physical activity, limited screen time and sufficient sleep are enough to help children maintain a healthy weight.
1. How did the obesity rate for Chinese youth change from 1995 to 2020?| A．It more than doubled. | B．It became four times. |
| C．It stayed the same. | D．It dropped by half. |
| A．A drop in physical activities. | B．An limited supply of snacks. |
| C．Reduced intake of sugary drinks. | D．Right amounts of restful sleep. |
| A．They should stop their children having sweet foods. |
| B．They should limit their children's time spent indoors. |
| C．They should keep close track of their children’s weight. |
| D．They should ask their children to take slimming pills. |
| A．Childhood Obesity in China | B．Concerns about Public Health |
| C．Increase in Children’s Height | D．Healthy Lifestyle Recommended |
10 . Talking to your children about the misinformation (错误信息) they may find online is a great idea. Children don’t always have the judgment or critical thinking skills to test what they read or watch, but they’ll develop these abilities quickly if you help them figure out how to separate fact from fiction. We’re here to help you do just that!
Don’t wait for your kids to approach you with questions-instead, take a few minutes to sit down with them. Let them know that there’s a lot of content out there on the Internet, and not all of it is true. With everything going on in the world, remind your kids that they might be seeing a lot of confusing, false information going around on social media and other parts of the web.
It’s a good idea to turn news reports and TV shows into teachable moments. Look for small opportunities to start helpful conversations about misinformation with your kids. Take a TV show or newspaper article and transform it into a helpful, easy way to understand what misinformation is and how to avoid it.
Misinformation can be really upsetting and stressful for your kids to think about. Let them know that you’re always available to listen and answer their questions if they’re feeling confused. Reassure your kids that there are no stupid questions, and that you’re always willing to explain something to them.
Teach your kids a few tricks to fact-check misinformation online. Remind your kids to be on the lookout for strange-looking website like those ending with co. Tell them to read through the headline. If it has a lot of mistakes, or if it’s written in all capital (大写的) letters, there’s a good chance that it might be misinformation. Additionally, introduce your kids to official websites, which are quick and easy ways to fact-check information.
1. Why should people talk to their children about online misinformation?| A．There is no information holding true online. |
| B．There is no one else willing to teach the children. |
| C．Children lack the ability to judge the information sometimes. |
| D．Children can’t develop the judgment on their own. |
| A．To relieve children’s financial burden. |
| B．To discourage children from asking stupid questions. |
| C．To remind parents to seize every chance to teach. |
| D．To encourage children to communicate with parents. |
| A．A passage on the website www.i21st.cn. |
| B．A passage on the website www.pep.com.cn. |
| C．A passage titled with “Origins of the Mandela Effect”. |
| D．A passage titled with “SHOK! GAS RAN OUT YESTERDAY”. |
| A．Parents. | B．Teenagers. | C．Students. | D．Teachers. |
