1 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What did the man think of their trip to Iceland?

A．Great.

B．Boring.

C．Expensive.

2. What problem did the man probably have in Iceland?

A．The language.

B．The route.

C．The accommodation.

3. What is worth buying according to the man?

A．Fashionable bags.

B．Wool sweaters.

C．Warm gloves.

2 . Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. disapproved        B. negative        C. national        D. appreciation        E. socially F. tendency        G. approach        H. fitted        I. enhanced        J. unpopular K. namely

What are the things that first come to your mind when you think of the UK? Are they nonstop rain, polite manners, boring food and tea drinking?

Some of the UK’s     1     stereotypes are true, a new survey has found. For example, British people do have a (n)     2     to drink lots of tea.

The research polled 1, 402 foreigners living in the UK on their opinions about the British way of life. Unsurprisingly, the majority of them, almost 70 percent, said they enjoyed living in the country—good manners, especially UK people’s extraordinary ability to queue, are the main reasons for foreigners’     3    . More than one-third said they liked British people’s restrained     4     to emotion.

However, there are aspects of British culture that are     5     of. The heavy alcohol drinking culture ranked as the least favorite trait, followed by the British sense of humor and the country’s bad weather.

It may not be too hard to understand why heavy drinking and bad weather are     6    , but what’s wrong with the British sense of humor?

British humor is known for being dry and satirical (讽刺的), so it is generally more     7    . When it comes to making the British laugh, there is nothing more effective than a     8     inappropriate joke, noted the BBC. “Britons are more comfortable with life’s losers,” wrote English actor Ricky Gervais in an article published in Time magazine.

“The majority of nationalities have stereotypes     9     around them and Britons don’t escape this,” said Liam Clifford, the founder of Global Visas, the website that conducted the research. “People probably come here with a stereotype-based preconception of what to expect. It’s good to see from our survey, though, that, in the majority of cases, this reputation is actually     10     upon living here.”

3 . Liu Xiangping, a Chinese-Canadian artist and stamp designer, recalls his remarkable experiences in designing the stamps which develop friendship between China and Canada.

It was 1997, the year when Hong Kong was returned to China, and Canada Post, along with the then-Hong Kong Postal Administration and China, celebrated the Chinese New Year with a stamp.

In January 2017, special 45-cent stamp designed by Liu and two other Chinese Canadian artists was issued. Since then, Canada Post has been issuing zodiac(属相) stamp for the Chinese Lunar New Year each year. “Many traditional customs related to the Chinese New Year are indeed transnational(跨国的). They are beyond political and cultural differences. They powerfully reflect the close connections of the overseas Chinese to their ethnic roots,” Liu said.

Liu said that what he was most proud of last year was the creation of a stamp for China Post on the theme of fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

When China Post issued a set of special stamps in 2003 to mark the victory over SARS, Liu was one of the designers.

In January 2020, Liu left Toronto for Beijing. With the influence of COVID-19 drawing the attention of the entire country, China Post invited him once again to be one of two chief designers of a set of anti-pandemic-themed stamps.

On May 11, 2020, China Post issued the two stamps. One featured the phrase “Pursue Together, Combat the Pandemic” to pay admiration and respect to the Chinese people in the fight against the virus. Liu said the most important principle for the designs is to present the Chinese spirit of solidarity(团结) as well as that of human nature in tough times. “I tried to express the sense of perseverance, anxiety and sorrow at the same time through people’s eyes,” Liu said.

To memorize the centennial(百年纪念) of Norman Bethune’s birth and his accomplishments, Canada and China jointly issued a pair of commemorative stamps in 1990. Bethune devoted his life to medicine and humanitarianism in China in the late 1930s. Jean Morin and Wanda Lewicka of Canada designed the stamps, and Liu illustrated(加插图)them.

“The stamps are the product of close cooperation and cultural exchanges between Canada and China. They symbolize the fundamentals(基本原则) of the friendship between the two countries,” said Liu. “We’ll never forget that Chinese and Canadian people were committed to the common values of justice and peace in WWⅡ.”

1. When did Canada Post begin issuing a zodiac stamp for the Chinese Lunar New Year?

A．In 1997.

B．In 2003.

C．In 2017.

D．In 2020.

2. Which word can replace the underlined word “tough” in paragraph 7?

A．Wonderful.

B．Difficult.

C．Busy.

D．Common.

3. Which of the following is NOT right about Liu according to the news report?

A．He designed a stamp to celebrate the Chinese New Year with a stamp in 1997.

B．He designed a stamp to honor the Chinese people fighting against the pandemic

C．He designed a set of special stamps in 2003 to mark the victory over SARS.

D．He designed the stamps to memorize the centennial of Norman Bethune’s birth.

4. What can be the best title for the news report?

A．Stamps develop friendship between Canada and China.

B．Stamps show cultural exchanges between Canada and China.

C．Liu Xiangping is a Chinese-Canadian artist and stamp designer.

D．Liu Xiangping enjoys designing stamps reflecting Chinese customs.

4 . More than 2 million immigrants from Africa live in the United States. A new study from the Pew Research Center finds that they are, on average, college-educated and employed. In fact, they are more likely than native-born Americans to have gained advanced degree. And they are employed at about the same rates as the general population.

The study is important for several reasons. It shows that most Africans living in the U.S. are not struggling, out-of-work persons with little schooling. It also shows that the African immigrant population is different in the U.S. than in Europe. In addition, African immigrants in the U.S. are more likely than those in Europe to be working.

Monica Anderson is a researcher at Pew and one of the writers of the report. She told VOA that the research team wanted to compare the backgrounds of African immigrants in the U.S. to those in Europe. "What we found is that the African immigrant population really stands out and that they are a very highly educated group," Anderson said.

The Pew study is based on 2015 data from the U. S. Census Bureau and Eurostat's Labor Force Survey. One reason for different backgrounds among African immigrants is how close things are to each other. Europe is much easier to reach than the U. S. for low-income Africans. They can come by boat or other ways. In contrast, African immigrants coming to the U.S. often have the money to travel by plane as well as permission to enter the country.

But previous research found that higher education and employment levels do not always mean a higher quality of life. In 2015, researchers at Pew looked at black immigrants from Africa, the Caribbean, Central America and South America. They found that their average household income was more than $ 8,000 lower than the U.S. average.

1. What did the researchers intend to do?

A．Compare the backgrounds of African immigrants.

B．Find out why African immigrants come to America.

C．Get to know how African immigrants make a living.

D．Figure out how African immigrants come to America.

2. Why are African immigrants to America better educated than those to Europe?

A．America is richer.	B．America is harder to reach.
C．America requires more employees.	D．America values education more.

3. What problem do African immigrants face according to the research?

A．They are badly treated.	B．They are looked down upon.
C．They live in poor areas.	D．They earn less than the average of Americans.

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．African immigrants come to America for different reasons.

B．African immigrants in America work harder than other groups.

C．African immigrants in America are well-educated and employed.

D．African immigrants in America live a better life than other immigrants.