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2025-2026学年上海曹杨第二中学第二学期高二年级3月英语摸底评价试卷
第Ⅰ卷 (共100分)
I. Listening Comprehension (25%)
Section A
Directions: In Section A, you will hear ten short conversations between two speakers. At the end of each conversation, a question will be asked about what was said. The conversations and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a conversation and the question about it, read the four possible answers on your paper, and decide which one is the best answer to the question you have heard.
1. A. Research colleagues. B. Doctor and patient.
C. Teacher and graduate student. D. Supervisor and research assistant.
2. A. At a phone repair shop. B. At a software company.
C. At a store’s service counter. D. At a tech support hotline.
3. A. On July 10th. B. On August 4th.
C. By this Friday. D. By tomorrow.
4. A. Go on the cycling tour. B. Edit his contest video.
C. Attend a film festival. D. Rest at home.
5. A. She thinks it’s perfect. B. She has mixed opinions.
C. She finds it boring. D. She is disappointed.
6 A. It has lower rent. B. It’s near his home.
C. It offers networking opportunities. D. It has better facilities.
7. A. She must study hard. B. She dislikes sci-fi movies.
C. She needs to return some books. D. She plans to buy new textbooks.
8. A. Buy books for a drive. B. Donate his used books.
C. Visit the center with her. D. Organize his own event.
9. A. Legal advising. B. Corporate training.
C. Community service. D. Environmental research.
10. A. It has cozy corners. B. It passed all checks.
C. It’s recently renovated. D. It fell short of standards.
Section B
Directions: In Section B, you will hear two short passages and one longer conversation, and you will be asked several questions on each of the passages and the conversation. The passages and the conversation will be read twice, but the questions will be spoken only once. When you hear a question, read the four possible answers on your paper and decide which one would be the best answer to the question you have heard.
Questions 11 through 13 are based on the following passage.
11. A. Not experiencing failure. B. Having strong technical skills.
C. Paying attention to opportunities. D. Being born into better conditions.
12. A. Surviving accidents is very rare. B. Accidents are impossible to avoid.
C. Painful experiences should be forgotten. D. People react differently to the same event.
13. A. Most scientists believe chance plays no role in life.
B. Scientists agree that all events are decided in advance.
C Scientists have completely explained how chance works.
D. Scientists hold different opinions about whether chance exists.
Questions 14 through 16 are based on the following passage.
14. A. By reflecting sunlight. B. By directing rainwater away.
C. By using chemical coatings. D. By absorbing large amounts of water.
15. A. They were easier to decorate. B. They were lighter than straw.
C. They were cheaper to transport. D. They were strong and waterproof.
16. A. The differences between rural and urban architecture.
B. The historical reasons why thatched roofs disappeared.
C. A traditional roofing method and how it is made and valued.
D. The process and materials used in modern roof construction.
Questions 17 through 20 are based on the following conversation.
17. A. How audiobooks are produced.
B. Why people prefer audiobooks while commuting.
C. Whether audiobooks should replace printed books.
D. Whether listening to audiobooks can be considered reading.
18. A. They improve spelling and visual memory.
B. They are mainly used for academic learning.
C. They allow listeners to enjoy stories and ideas.
D. They require more attention than printed books.
19. A. They are often too expensive.
B Listeners may miss details more easily.
C. They depend too much on technology.
D. They are less popular than printed books.
20. A. Listening should not be called reading.
B. Audiobooks are better than printed books.
C. Printed books should be used in schools only.
D. The value of audiobooks depends on the purpose.
Section C (10%)
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. drowned B. carefully C. tissue D. captured E. release F. steadily G. present H. block I. extremely J. course K. slightly
The Villain in the Atmosphere
The villain in the atmosphere is carbon dioxide.
It does not seem to be a villain. It is not very poisonous and it is ____21____in the atmosphere in so small a quantity — only 0.034 percent — that it does us no harm.
What’s more, that small quantity of carbon dioxide in the air is essential to life. Plants absorb carbon dioxide and convert it into their own ____22____, which serves as the basic food supply for all of animal life (including human beings, of course). In the process they ____23____oxygen, which is also necessary for all animal life.
But here is what this apparently harmless and certainly essential gas is doing to us:
The sea level is rising very slowly from year to year. In all likelihood, it will continue to rise and do so at a greater rate in the ____24____of the next hundred years. Eventually the sea will reach two hundred feet above its present level, and will be splashing against the windows along the twentieth floors of Manhattan’s skyscrapers. Naturally the Manhattan streets will be deep under water. Florida, too, will be gone, as will much of the British Isles, the crowded Nile valley, and the low-lying areas of China, India, and Russia.
Many cities will be ____25____, and much of the most productive farming land of the world will be lost. As the food supply drops, starvation will be widespread.
And all because of carbon dioxide. But how does that come about What is the connection
It begins with sunlight. Sunlight travels through miles of atmosphere to reach the earth’s surface, where it is ____26____ . In this way, the earth is warmed. At night, the earth cools by radiating heat into space in the form of infrared radiation. As the earth gains heat by day and loses it at night, it maintains a balance. However, carbon dioxide tends to ____27____such radiation. This is called the “greenhouse effect” of carbon dioxide.
We can be thankful that carbon dioxide is keeping us comfortably warm, but the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is going up ____28____and that is where the villainy comes in. In 1958, when the carbon dioxide of the atmosphere first began to be measured ____29____, it made up only 0.0316 percent of the atmosphere. Each year since, the concentration has moved upwards and it now stands at 0.0340 percent. It is estimated that by 2020 the concentration will be about 0.0660 percent.
This means that in the coming decades, the earth’s average temperature will go up _____30_____. Winters will grow a bit milder on the average and summers a bit hotter. Little by little, the glaciers will retreat, and the polar ice caps will begin to melt.
It is the melting of the ice caps that is the worst change and it is this that demonstrates the villainy of carbon dioxide. Something like 90 percent of the ice in the world is to be found in the huge Antarctica ice cap, and another 8 percent is in the Greenland ice cap. If these ice caps begin to melt, the sea level will rise, with the result that I have already described.
III. Reading Comprehension
Section A (15%)
Directions: For each blank in the following passages there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.
Yu Boya and Zhong Ziqi
The Chinese call a close, sympathetic friend ZHIYIN (knowing the sound) or “one who truly ____31____ the tune played by another.” This is an allusion (典故) to a legend about two friends named Yu Boya and Zhong Ziqi.
Yu Boya ____32____ the famed musician who lived in the State of Chu during the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BCE). He demonstrated a great ____33____ talent at an early age and later became a student of a great master zheng player named Cheng Lian. Zheng is a traditional Chinese stringed instrument of the zither (一种扁形弦乐器) family. Even though he excelled at all the techniques Master Cheng could teach him Yu Boya was still ____34____, because he felt unable to express his feelings when he played. Seeing this, Cheng Lian offered to take him to his own master, who lived on an island in the East China Sea. Once there, Cheng Lian asked Yu Boya to wait for his master; he promised to pick up Yu Boya when he was done. Days passed; ____35____, neither Cheng Lian nor his master appeared.
Now Yu Boya’s only ____36____ were the birds singing in the forest. Their songs, against the backdrop of the pounding waves, sounded as ____37____ as he felt. This struck a chord in his heart; with a sigh, Yu Boya began to pluck his zheng, and it produced the soul-stirring music he had been seeking all along. In fact, this was just what Master Cheng Lian had planned. Later, people observed that Yu Boya played so well that even horses eating at their troughs (饲料槽) would ____38____ their heads and listen. Nevertheless, he still was not satisfied because he felt that no one really understood the beautiful music he could play.
One day, Yu Boya was travelling on a riverboat when it began raining. He had to seek ____39____ at the foot of a mountain. Watching the downpour as it beat on the heaving waters of the river, Yu Boya felt the urge to play a tune ____40____. He was absorbed in the emotions that his melodious music had created when a string on his zheng suddenly broke. Yu Boya lifted his head and caught sight of a woodchopper sitting on the bank. The man, Zhong Ziqi by name, had been listening to Yu’s music so ____41____ that he was even unaware of the rain. Deeply touched, Yu Boya invited Zhong Ziqi to his boat so he could share his music with him. As soon as Yu Boya finished a tune he had named in his own mind “High Mountains,” Zhong Ziqi told him, unaware of Yu Boya’s unstated title for the song, that the melody painted a picture of unbroken ____42____ in his mind. Then, after Yu Boya performed another tune he intended to call “Flowing Waters,” Zhong Ziqi commented that it seemed as if he had heard the torrent (急流) of the Yangzi River while listening to the song. Seeing his zhiyin in front of him, Yu Boya’s joy was boundless. ____43____, they became friends. Before parting, they agreed to meet again in the near future.
A few years later, Yu Boya decided to pay Zhong Ziqi a visit. Unfortunately, when he arrived at his home, he learned that Zhong Ziqi had already passed away. Yu Boya was filled with ____44____, feeling that no one in this world would ever appreciate his music like Zhong Ziqi. Rushing to his friend’s tomb, Yu Boya knelt down and started playing his zheng. Then, rising slowly, he ____45____ it to the ground. After that day, not a single tune ever came out of Yu Boya’s skillful hands again.
This ancient tale raises profound questions for our modern age. In today’s world of social media and instant communication, where we can connect with millions at the touch of a screen, does the concept of zhiyin still exist Has technology fundamentally changed the nature of human understanding and connection Perhaps the real question is whether we are willing to cultivate the patience, empathy, and depth of engagement necessary to become someone’s zhiyin, or to recognize our own when we encounter them.
31. A. listens B. calls C. enjoys D. appreciates
32. A. objects to B. refers to C. applies to D. points to
33. A. political B. artistic C. musical D. athletic
34. A. unsettled B. unsatisfied C. unconcerned D. unexpected
35. A. therefore B. however C. moreover D. instead
36. A. observers B. companions C. associates D. witnesses
37. A. gloomy B. cheerful C. superb D. victorious
38. A. lower B. raise C. turn D. nod
39. A. refuge B. shelter C. cover D. comfort
40. A. in comparison B. in contrast C. in response D. in sequence
41. A. half-heartedly B. absent-mindedly C. attentively D. passively
42. A. moonlit valleys B. sand dunes C. towering cliffs D. mountain ranges
43. A. Constantly B. Hopefully C. Apparently D. Instantly
44. A. sorrow B. disappointment C. envy D. guilt
45. A. put B. smashed C. pulled D. left
Section B (30%)
Directions: Read the following passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them, there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage you have just read.
(A)
Mr. Bingley had soon made himself acquainted with all the principal people in the room; he was lively and unreserved, danced every dance, and talked of giving one himself at Netherfield. Such friendly qualities must speak for themselves. What a contrast between him and his friend! Mr. Darcy danced only once with Mrs. Hurst and once with Miss Bingley, declined being introduced to any other lady, and spent the rest of the evening in walking about the room, speaking occasionally to one of his own party. His character was decided.
Among the most violent against him was Mrs. Bennet, whose dislike of his general behavior was sharpened into particular anger by his having slighted one of her daughters. Elizabeth Bennet had been obliged, by the scarcity of gentlemen, to sit down for two dances; and during part of that time Mr. Darcy had stood near enough for her to overhear a conversation between him and Mr. Bingley, who came from the dance for a few minutes to press his friend to join it.
“Come, Darcy,” said he, “I must have you dance. I hate to see you standing about by yourself in this stupid manner. You had much better dance.”
“I certainly shall not. You know how I hate it, unless I am particularly familiar with my partner. At such an assembly as this it would be insupportable. Your sisters are engaged, and there is not another woman in the room whom it would not be a punishment for me to stand up with.”
“Upon my honor, I never met with so many pleasant girls in my life as I have this evening; and there are several of them uncommonly pretty.”
“You are dancing with the only handsome girl in the room,” said Mr. Darcy, looking at the eldest Miss Bennet.
“Oh! She is the most beautiful creature I ever beheld! But there is one of her sisters sitting down just behind you, who is very pretty, and I dare say very agreeable. Do let me ask my partner to introduce you.”
“Which do you mean ” And turning round, he looked for a moment at Elizabeth, till catching her eye, he withdrew his own and coldly said, “She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me.”
46. What is the passage mainly about
A. A comparison between two gentlemen’s social behavior at a ball.
B. Mr. Darcy’s gradual acceptance of the local community.
C. The reasons behind Mr. Bingley’s popularity at Netherfield.
D. Mrs. Bennet’s efforts to introduce her daughters to eligible men.
47. Why does Mr. Darcy refuse to dance at the assembly
A. He considers it beneath him to dance with unfamiliar partners.
B. He has already fulfilled his social obligations for the evening.
C. He finds the assembly too crowded to enjoy dancing.
D. He is waiting for a more suitable partner to arrive.
48. Based on the entire passage, why is Mrs. Bennet so offended by Mr. Darcy
A. He publicly refuses to be introduced to her or any other lady.
B. He makes a dismissive comment on her daughter’s appearance.
C. He refuses to dance with any girl despite Mr Bingley’s persuasion.
D. He ignores her repeated attempts to engage her in conversations.
49. What can be inferred about Mr. Darcy’s character from the passage
A. He values social status but is willing to compromise for close friends.
B. He is shy in social situations but polite when directly addressed.
C. He is proud and is selective about his companions.
D. He judges people’s worth primarily by their physical appearance.
(B)
The Role of Technology in the Evolution of Communication
For as long as humans have been on this planet, we have invented various forms of communication — from smoke signals and messenger pigeons to telephones and email — these forms have constantly changed the way we interact with each other.
◎The Telephone
In 1849, the telephone was invented and within 50 years it was an essential item for homes and offices, but wired connections affected the flexibility and privacy of the device. Then, came the mobile phone. In 1973, Motorola created a mobile phone which kick-started a chain of developments that transformed the communication landscape forever.
Early smartphones were primarily aimed at the enterprise market, bridging the gap between telephones and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), but they were bulky and had short battery life. By 1996, Nokia launched phones with QWERTY keyboards. By 2010, the majority of Android phones were touchscreen-only.
In 2007, Steve Jobs introduced the first iPhone to the world, and Apple paved the way for the aesthetic design of modern smartphones. Before the iPhone emerged, “flip phones” and phones with split keyboards and screens were the norm. A year later, a central application store with an initial 500 downloadable “apps” was launched. Currently, there are over 2 million apps available in the Apple App Store.
◎The Internet
Since the mid-1990s, the Internet has had a revolutionary impact on communication, including the rise of near-instant communication by e-mail, instant messaging, two-way interactive video calls, discussion forums, blogs, and social networking.
The Internet has made communication easier and faster, allowing us to stay in touch with others regardless of time and location. It has accelerated the pace of business and expanded possibilities within the enterprise space. It has allowed people to find their voices and self-expression through social media. The Internet has connected and divided us like nothing before.
◎E-mail
As a byproduct of the World Wide Web, e-mail was introduced to the world in 1991, though it had been in use for many years before that. It has dramatically changed our lives, for better or worse depending on personal perspective. The first users of such messaging platforms were the education system and the military, who used e-mail to exchange information. In 2018, global email users exceeded 3.8 billion, a number that exceeds half of the world’s population. By 2022, it’s expected that we will be sending 333 billion personal and business emails each day.
◎5G
5G, the 5th-generation mobile network, features much faster data upload and download speeds, wider coverage, and more stable connections. These advantages bring about significant improvements in communication. Instantaneous communication becomes a reality, and those patchy, annoying video calls have become a thing of the past.
5G’s transmission speed is 100 to 1,000 times the average transmission speed of 4G currently used by smartphones. The Consumer Technology Association points out that at such speeds, a two-hour movie can be downloaded in just 3.6 seconds, compared to 6 minutes on 4G and 26 hours on 3G. 5G’s impact will extend far beyond smartphones, enabling millions of devices to connect simultaneously.
Looking ahead, there is already buzz about 6G. Although it is still in basic research and around 15 to 20 years away, it is worth noting from an innovation perspective. 6G will build the framework of the interconnected world we aspire to, where communication speed and consistency will reach unprecedented levels
50. According to the passage, the first iPhone ________.
A. was designed primarily for the enterprise market
B. was released together with an application store
C. set a new standard for smartphone design
D. replaced flip phones as the mainstream product immediately
51. Which of the following statements about email is TRUE
A. It was first made available to the public in 1991.
B. It was initially developed for commercial purposes.
C. It has been used by over half of the global population.
D. Its daily usage is expected to decline by 2022.
52. Based on the passage, which of the following is 6G expected to achieve rather than 5G
A. Enabling millions of devices to connect at the same time.
B. Downloading a full-length movie in a matter of seconds.
C. Establishing the foundation for a fully connected world.
D. Providing more stable connections than previous generations.
(C)
Have you ever felt out of place at a party or profoundly misunderstood by a colleague, friend, or partner This feeling of being unable to communicate your intended information is what psychologist Carl Jung referred to when he said that loneliness comes not from being alone, but from being “unable to communicate the things that seem important to you.”
While such a failure to connect is sometimes owed to poor social skills, there are also other reasons. The specific experience — of feeling separate and alone in one’s thoughts and experiences despite having the capacity to share them — is known as epistemic loneliness.
Psychologists define epistemic loneliness as the inability to share “the richer mental aspects” of one’s life. To put it another way, it strikes when a person’s unique cognitive world — formed by their specific abilities and deep intellectual interests — finds no echo in others. This is the profound frustration of being mentally “all dressed up but with nowhere to go”. A musician composing a new piece, an educator polishing their teaching philosophy, or a researcher analyzing groundbreaking data all risk this loneliness when their intellectual excitement is met with disinterest from those around them.
The frustration of such intellectual divorce is profound, yet a genuine connection is possible. For instance, my conversation with an English professor proved to be resonant and meaningful. This published poet and pianist and I discussed the idea of making complex ideas and experiences something more easily understood by our students, clients, and readers. Because we built bridges to meet one another via shared experiences and backgrounds, cognitive isolation was not experienced that evening.
This is not to say that being cognitively connected with others is the only fix to this type of loneliness. Everyone has thoughts, stories, and experiences to share, and as both a nonprofessional and a helping professional, I am happy to hear them. But not everyone in our lives is willing or able to share their thoughts in response to ours. Therefore, a like-minded other, or someone who “gets” it or “gets” us, goes a long way toward eliminating this specific kind of loneliness.
Jung’s insight points the way forward: we must seek out those moments where we can speak about what matters most to us and, in doing so, be seen and known for who we are. Ultimately, dancing in dialogue is key. Having a fellow knower who is willing to meet you halfway and who knows some of the steps, or is interested in learning a few new ones, can reduce this type of loneliness.
53. According to the passage, which of the following best describes “epistemic loneliness”
A. The frustration of failing to express complex thoughts clearly.
B. The inability to share intellectual life with receptive audience.
C. The objective condition of having no one to communicate with.
D. The emotional distress caused by a lack of shared social identity.
54. Why does the author mention the conversation with the English professor
A. To contrast academic dialogue with everyday conversation.
B. To advocate for structured solutions to intellectual isolation.
C. To highlight the scarcity of genuine intellectual connections.
D. To illustrate how shared backgrounds eases social loneliness.
55. The metaphor of “dancing in dialogue” is used to suggest that meaningful communication __________.
A. is a mutually responsive and adaptive exchange
B. depends more on one party’s expressive skills
C. functions like a performance for passive audiences
D. benefits from established conversational patterns
56. What is the author’s main purpose in writing this passage
A. To contrast social isolation with psychological loneliness.
B. To analyze the philosophical origins of Carl Jung’s theories.
C. To define a type of loneliness and explore ways to address it.
D. To promote the professional methods of psychological consulting.
(D)
In the late 1990s, my father spent his evenings, weekends and holidays drilling my best friend and me for the SAT. My father was born black in the 1930s in the segregated South and became the first member of his family to go to college, let alone graduate school. Those were lean years for my family. We just managed to rent a small house on the white side of our de facto segregated suburb. My best friend, who was black and Puerto Rican and attended parochial school with me, commuted from a less affluent and more ethnically diverse neighborhood. I scored higher on the test, though my best friend did well enough to attend a selective four-year college, where he flourished. Both of us worked hard, had some advantages and were able to succeed despite being members of a historically oppressed demographic.
I thought of those long hours studying when I heard on Thursday that the College Board, the company that administers the SAT, was appending an “adversity index” to aptitude scores — essentially a handicap to standardize “privilege.” The “overall disadvantage level” will appear on an “environmental context dashboard.” It uses demographic and census data to profile high school students along a scale, from 1 to 100, of relative poverty, opportunity and achievement on the SAT in relation to their classmates. A score north of 50 indicates adversity; below that threshold lies privilege. Colleges will see this number, but students will not. Though there are a near infinitude of ways to experience challenges in life, the adversity index will restrict itself to just three categories: neighborhood environment (including factors like crime and poverty rates and housing values); family environment (the income, education and marriage status of parents in a neighborhood and whether they speak English); and high school environment (aspects like the free-lunch rate and rigor of the curriculum).
Discarding high school environment and race, by these metrics, my best friend would almost certainly have received an adversity bump relative to me because his home was in a poorer neighborhood. Like many of his neighbors, his parents at the time weren’t married and his mother often spoke Spanish at home. (English as a Second Language households are considered an indicator of adversity.) That my family lived, albeit precariously, on the white side of town would have been a further demerit.
Yet what constitutes privilege and disadvantage can be counter-intuitive: There is no metric to take into account the casual racism that I had to navigate in my neighborhood, a difficulty friends of mine on the more socially cohesive black side of town were often able to avoid. No two lives are commensurate, and not all adversity can be taken into account. But the College Board is attempting to dictate which forms matter and which do not. It cannot attempt to assess the mental toll of being called a “monkey” on your walk home. It will not capture the texture of life with an educated but emotionally abusive parent. And so the dehumanizing message of the index is that young people are nothing but interchangeable points of data — and the jagged complexity of an individual life somehow can be sanded down, quantified and fairly contrasted.
As the admissions scandals at elite colleges have shown, the rich enjoy an astonishing array of ways to game the system, and aptitude tests are far from perfect. It is for this reason and others that universities rely on a cocktail of broader considerations — most likely including any and all of the factors on the College Board’s index. The college admissions system already takes into account racial identity, for example. Thus this new score introduces an inscrutable redundancy — one that cannot be disputed or appealed.
That the College Board will now manipulate the outcome with no transparency is a chilling step in the wrong direction. It reifies overly simplistic notions of difference that fall apart under scrutiny and codifies the fallacy that demographics are destiny. The more difficult truth is that a genuinely equitable society requires greater educational opportunities being extended to poor and disadvantaged children long before an adversity rating can be applied on their college applications.
Yet in retrospect it seems inevitable that the social media-fueled rhetoric of comparative fragility has careened here, to a pseudoscientific index of oppression. No matter how well meaning the intentions, we have been conditioning ourselves to interpret the world exclusively through the overlapping lenses of race — or its euphemisms — and privilege. But one of the most valuable gifts a liberal arts education can offer is the jarring, and ultimately liberating realization that differences in money and social background do not, and cannot, explain everything.
57. According to the passage, what is the “adversity index”
A. A measure designed to eliminate college admission scandals.
B. A standardized score reflecting students’ socioeconomic challenges.
C. A tool to increase diversity in elite college admissions.
D. A comprehensive evaluation of students’ academic performance.
58. The author used himself and his best friend as an example to __________.
A. support the College Board’s reform initiative
B. illustrate that privilege and disadvantage cannot be easily standardized
C. promote the use of “overall disadvantage level”
D. demonstrate the effectiveness of the adversity index
59. The phrase “be sanded down” (paragraph 4,) in the context means the complexity of individual life will be __________.
A. carefully analyzed and categorized
B. generalized or reduced
C. smoothed out and oversimplified
D. refined and improved
60. According to the passage, what is one major challenge of the adversity index
A. It fails to consider students’ academic performance.
B. It cannot capture the complexity of individual experiences.
C. It may increase competition among disadvantaged students.
D. It lacks sufficient data from diverse communities.
61. What is the author’s main argument in the passage
A. The adversity index will help disadvantaged students gain college admission.
B. Educational equity requires systemic changes rather than algorithmic solutions.
C. College admissions should rely more on standardized test scores.
D. Social media has distorted public discourse on privilege and disadvantage.
(E)
In 1751, Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus came up with the novel idea of using flowers as clocks. Morning glories open their trumpetlike petals around 10 a.m., water lilies at 11 and so on through evening primroses and moonflowers. A full array of these blossoms could indicate the time. It was a whimsical notion. But some 350 years later, scientists are seriously interested in the timekeeping mechanism of nature. “They’re so ubiquitous, they’re almost a signature of life,” says molecular neuroscientist Russell Foster of Imperial College, London.
From cockroaches to humans, Foster explores these internal clocks in a fascinating new book, “Rhythms of Life,” co-authored with British science writer Leon Kreitzman. The authors show how the daily patterns known as circadian rhythms — from the Latin circa diem (“about a day”) — influence far more than our sleep. Heart attacks are more common in the morning. Women tend to go into labor in the evening. Severe asthma attacks prevail at night. Although we may jet across time zones, circadian rhythms rule. The book traces the century-long quest to unravel their mechanisms, with some startling outcomes — including the recent discovery that certain genes switch on and off in 24 hour cycles. Even our response to medicines may depend on when we take them.
Nature has devised internal clocks for a simple reason: they aid survival. “The early bird really does get the worm,” says Foster — thanks to a silent wake-up call before the last of the wigglers, burrow underground at around dawn. A mimosa plant spreads its fernlike leaves during the day to create the maximum surface area for photosynthesis, then folds them up at night to reduce water-vapor loss. It’s not a mere response to light. “They do this even when kept in the dark,” says biologist Eugene Maurakis of the Science Museum of Virginia.
In humans, the master clock is a tiny clump of cells in the brain called the suprachiasmatic nuclei. The clock is reset daily by signals from a novel type of photoreceptor in the eye that Foster discovered. “The blind rely on it, too, provided their eyes haven’t been removed,” he says. The result is an orchestrated series of biological events that unfolds in sequence. In the hours before breakfast, the body ramps up digestive enzymes to be ready for the first meal. Temperature and blood pressure rise in preparation for the day’s demands. (This jump in blood pressure helps explain the morning increase in heart attacks.) As the day wears on, cells reproduce at set times. Hormones rise and fall — many of them according to a predetermined schedule.
The implications for medicine are profound. By timing treatments to complement daily changes in biochemistry, the authors argue, we can boost efficacy and reduce side effects. In one seminal trial, medical oncologist William Hrushesky of the Dorn V. A. Medical Center in Columbia, S. C., found that by simply reversing the times when he administered two chemotherapeutic drugs, he could extend survival in women with advanced ovarian cancer from 11 percent at five years to 44 percent. In all, says Michael Smolensky, editor of the journal Chronobiology International, more than a dozen ailments can currently benefit from carefully timed treatments. In one recent study, he notes, something as simple as a low-dose aspirin at bedtime reduced the rate of preterm delivery in pregnant women at risk for hypertension from 14 percent to zero. Aspirin in the morning had little effect. Surprise Not to Foster and Kreitzman. As they show, timing is everything.
62. According to the passage, what are circadian rhythms
A. Patterns of flower blooming at different times of the day.
B. Daily biological patterns that influence far more than sleep.
C. Internal clocks that exist only in human beings.
D. Mechanisms that help organisms adjust to different time zones.
63. The word “ubiquitous” in the first paragraph most likely means ________.
A. unique and rare in nature B. complex and difficult to understand
C. ancient and well-established D. widespread and commonly found
64. What did Foster discover about the human biological clock
A. It is controlled by the suprachiasmatic nuclei in the brain.
B. It can function normally even in people who are completely blind.
C. It relies on a novel type of photoreceptor in the eye.
D. It causes blood pressure to rise significantly in the morning.
65. The author mentions the chemotherapy study by William Hrushesky (para. 5) primarily to ________.
A. prove that ovarian cancer can be completely cured
B. demonstrate the significant impact of treatment timing on medical outcomes
C. criticize the traditional methods of cancer treatment
D. suggest that all cancer patients should reverse their medication schedules
66. Which of the following statements would the authors most likely agree with
A. Timing plays a crucial role in both biological processes and medical treatments.
B. Flowers are the most reliable tools for measuring time accurately.
C. Circadian rhythms can be easily controlled and manipulated by humans.
D. All medical treatments should be administered at night for best results.
(F)
The purpose of international commerce is to buy things from and sell things to people in other countries. Hundreds and indeed thousands of years ago, this actually worked quite well. People who travelled to foreign lands, often by ship, would take with them items for trade. Agricultural countries would, for example, trade olive oil or wine for weapons or other worked items. All that needed to be negotiated was a “fair price” for the items. (How many axes is a barrel of oil worth, for example ) Currency did not enter into the first deals but, even when it did, few problems existed to complicate matters barring disagreements over the value of goods.
Today, fixing a fair price remains at the center of international commerce. When we look at the deal from the point of view of the seller, market research must determine the price at which the goods will be sold. This may vary greatly from country to country and people are often surprised to see exactly the same item for sale at two or three times the price it sells for in another country. Taxation and local government controls are sometimes behind this, but often it comes down to the fact that people in poor countries simply cannot afford to pay the same amount of money as those in rich countries. These are the things a seller has to bear in mind when preparing a price list for goods in each country.
In most cases, the purpose of setting a suitable price is to sell the maximum number of units. Usually, this is the way to guarantee the biggest profit. One exception is in the selling of luxury or specialist goods. These are often goods for which there is a limited market. Here, slightly different rules apply because the profit margin (the amount of money a producer makes on each item) is much higher. For instance, nearly everyone wants to own a television or a mobile phone, and there is a lot of competition in the area of production, forcing the prices to be competitive too. Producers have to sell a large number of items to make a profit because their profit margin is small. Not everyone wants to buy hand-made jewelry, or a machine for sticking labels onto bottles. This enables the producer to charge a price much higher than the cost of making the item, increasing the profit margin. But at the heart of any sale, whether they sell many items for a small profit, or a few items for a large profit, the prime motivation for the producer is to make as much profit as possible.
At least, that was the case until relatively recently when, to the great surprise of many, companies started trading without profit as their main objective. Ethical trade began as an attempt to cause as little damage as possible to the producers of raw materials and manufactured goods in poor countries. This movement put pressure on the industry to see to it that working conditions and human rights were not damaged by the need for poorer people to produce goods. In short, it drew to the world’s attention the fact that many poor people were being exploited by big businesses in their drive to make more profit.
There have been many examples throughout the developing world where local producers were forced by economic pressure to supply cash crops such as tea, coffee and cotton to major industries. These people are frequently not in a position to fix their prices, and are often forced by market conditions to sell for a price too low to support the producers and their community. Worse still, while the agricultural land is given over to cash crops, it robs the local people of the ability to grow their own food. In time, through over-production, the land becomes spent and infertile, leading to poverty, starvation, and sometimes the destruction of the whole community.
Fair trade policies differ from ethical trade policies in that they take the process a stage further. Where ethical policies are designed to keep the damage to a minimum, fair trade organizations actually work to improve conditions among producers and their communities. Fair trade organizations view sustainability as a key aim. This involves implementing policies where producers are given a fair price for the goods they sell, so that they and their communities can continue to operate.
Although many big businesses are cynical about an operation that does not regard profit as a main driving force, the paradox is that it will help them too. With sustainability as their main aim, fair trade organizations not only help the poorer producers obtain a reasonable standard of living, but they also help guarantee a constant supply of raw materials. This form of sustainability benefits everyone, whether their motive is making a profit or improving the lives of the world’s poorer people.
67. According to the passage, what was the main change in international commerce in recent times
A. Countries began to use currency instead of direct exchange of goods.
B. Companies started to consider factors beyond profit, such as ethics and human rights.
C. Producers began to charge much higher prices for their goods.
D. International trade became focused only on luxury goods.
68. What does the passage say about pricing in modern international commerce
A. The same product may be sold at very different prices in different countries.
B. All countries must charge the same price to ensure fairness.
C. Luxury goods always have lower profit margins than ordinary goods.
D. Producers no longer need to consider market research when setting prices.
69. Why might agricultural communities in developing countries face destruction
A. Because they refuse to adopt modern farming methods.
B. Because wealthy countries impose unfair trade restrictions on them.
C. Because growing cash crops continuously makes the land infertile and unable to support the community.
D. Because fair trade organizations force them to change their traditional practices.
70. What criticism of traditional international commerce is mentioned in the passage
A. It focuses too much on agricultural products and ignores manufactured goods.
B. It uses outdated methods like direct exchange instead of currency.
C. It exploits poor producers in the pursuit of maximum profit.
D. It charges unfairly high prices to consumers in wealthy countries.
71. What is the main message of the passage about international commerce
A. Traditional profit-focused trade is the most efficient system and should be maintained.
B. Ethical trade has completely solved all problems in international commerce.
C. Only developing countries can benefit from fair trade policies.
D. Moving from profit-only focus to sustainable fair trade can benefit all parties involved.
(G)
Directions: Read the following passage. Fill in each blank with a proper sentence given in the box. Each sentence can be used only once. Note that there are two more sentences than you need.
Although we thrill to the romances of Jane and Rochester, I think we crave friendships as much as we do a good love story. ____72____
There are many excellent examples of friendship in The Lord of the Rings, but I find Merry and Pippin's relationship especially interesting. Unlike many of the other characters in Tolkien's series, Merry and Pippin are already friends when the story begins. While other characters form surprising friendships during their journey, Merry and Pippin are likely friends who share an unlikely story. Of all the members of the Fellowship, Merry and Pippin have the least idea of what the journey will involve. They stumble into heroism by virtue of their loyalty and friendship — to each other, to Frodo, and to many others they meet along their journey.
Topping my list are also Ronald Weasley, Harry Potter, and Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter series. ____73____ Although there are various themes in Harry Potter, friendship seems to be one that Rowling is particularly interested in. At the series' climax, it's Harry's love for his friends, that enables them to face Lord Voldemort.
Besides, Little Women is one of the best examples of strong female friendships in literature. Alcott chronicles the girls' friendship from childhood through early adulthood. We get to watch their homemade theatricals and their Pilgrim's Progress role playing, we watch them fight and learn to forgive, and we see the way their friendships change but remain strong as they relate to each other as adults. ____74____
While it would be silly to try to emulate a character's love story, it makes more sense to cultivate similar friendships. ____75____ In a technology-saturated world, these old-fashioned friendships — developed over tea or spells or adventures — are both refreshing and timeless.
A. Friendship in literature often mirrors the social norms and cultural values of the time in which the story is written.
B. I identify with these sisterly friendships more than other literary friendships because growing up, my three sisters were usually my best friends.
C. There's something very satisfying about literature that celebrates the tight bonds of friendship.
D. The best friendships in fiction satisfy us and, hopefully, also inspire us to be more intentional about our own relationships.
E. Reading about fictional friendships can sometimes make us more aware of what we lack in our own social lives.
F. And this trio's friendship gets some serious development, not only because it's solidified during such formative years, but because the stakes the kids are up against are so high.
第Ⅱ卷 (共50分)
IV. Summary Writing (10’)
Directions: Read the following passage. Summarize the main idea and the main point (s) of the passage in no more than 60 words. Use your own words as far as possible.
76. Directions: Read the following passage. Summarize the main idea and the main point(s) of the passage in no more than 60 words. Use your own words as far as possible.
Can Automated Driving System Make Driving Safer
Last week, I encountered a traffic accident, which was later carried in the newspaper. According to the news report, the driver told local crash investigators she’d been using the Autopilot driver-assist system on her Tesla. It wasn’t until later they learned from the automaker that her hands were off the wheel for 80 seconds before impact. Automated steering is currently available in many vehicles, but does that really contribute to road safety
Supporters of autonomous driving argue that an intelligent system is more reliable than a human. On the one hand, by removing human error from the equation, these vehicles could significantly reduce the number of accidents caused by fatigue or distraction. Autonomous systems are designed to make split-second decisions based on real-time data, potentially improving reaction times and reducing the likelihood of collisions. On the other hand, the integration of autonomous cars into smart city infrastructure could lead to more efficient traffic flow, further reducing the risk of accidents.
Despite the promise, the current state of autonomous driving technology is not without its limitations. Autonomous vehicles rely heavily on sensors and cameras to interpret their surroundings. However, these systems can struggle with harsh weather conditions and the complexity of urban road environments. The reliance on technology also raises concerns about potential cyber-attacks, which hackers may launch to create chaos.
While the potential benefits of autonomous driving are undeniable, the leap to a fully autonomous future is not without its hurdles. The technology must evolve to handle a broader range of scenarios. There’s still a long way to go.
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V. Guided Writing (25’)
Directions: Write an English composition in 120-150 words according to the instructions given below in Chinese.
77. Directions: Write an English composition in 120-150 words according to the instructions given below in Chinese.
假设你是明启中学高三学生李华。你校英语报“Youth Voices”栏目正在征集主题为“Role Models in My Eyes”的文章。
请你写一篇短文投稿，内容须包括：
1．你认为真正的榜样应该具备哪些品质；
2．用具体的人物事例支撑你的观点；
3．总结榜样对你的启发。
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