Here are Important Travel Notices from United Airlines, March 20, 2016 7:12 AM. Information is updated as it is received.

◆    1. Travel and the Zika virus

If you have a ticket for travel to a country affected by the Zika virus (as listed on the CDC website) and have concerns, please contact the United Customer Contact Center with any questions or changes to your reservation. Customers advised to avoid the affected regions based on CDC guidance may change their destination or travel date without a fee or may choose to receive a refund（退款）if their tickets were booked before February 29, 2016. The new travel date must be within the validity of the ticket. Additional charges may apply if there is a difference in fare for the new travel route.

◆    2. Longer lines at security checkpoints

Procedural changes at TSA checkpoints throughout the United States may result in longer lines at security checkpoints. Please plan accordingly and allow for extra time at the airport. The TSA advises arriving at the airport two hours before your flight for US travel and three hours before for international travel. To save time at security, we encourage you to visit  www.tsa.gov.com and apply for TSA pre-check.

◆   3. Notice for flights departing the European Union, Norway and Switzerland

EU Regulation 261/2004 requires airlines to provide the following notice: If you are not allowed to board or if your flight is cancelled or delayed for at least two hours, ask at the check-in counter or boarding gate for the form, stating your rights, particularly about compensation and assistance.

1. Travelers have to pay additional fees when they want to        .

A．change their reservation                        B．change travel date

C．receive their refund                               D． change to a dearer route

2. What do we know from Notice 2?

A．Security check possibly takes time in the USA.

B．Security checkpoints are not available.

C．Security check wastes a long time.

D．Pre-check can easily be done online.

3. Compensation can be asked for when         .

A．passengers refuse to board the plane

B．passengers’ trip is cancelled in advance

C．passengers’ flight is delayed at least two hours

D．passengers miss their flight due to traffic jam

    I used to think that life in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, was filled with never-changing routines. I hated that everyone seemed to know everything about everyone else. Everyone seemed to enjoy talking about other people and their lives. I also didn’t like the fact that people seemed very close-minded. I felt trapped. I felt like I was missing out on opportunities. It seemed to me that city life would be the opposite.

Then I took my first trip to New York City. I couldn’t wait to experience the city. However, when I arrived in the Big Apple, it wasn’t at all what I had imagined. I knew it was home to thousands of people, but I hadn’t had the least expectation to see so many people on the street at one time. All the streets were filled with people. I also felt a little surprised to see that everyone was in a hurry and everything moved at such a fast pace. When I took the subway for the first time, I said hello to the middle-aged woman next to me. She looked at me with dislike and didn’t say a word.

After just one day, I realized how important my small town is to me. Now I appreciate the familiar faces I see every day. I like the feeling of security and belonging my town offers. Jim Thorpe gives me a sense of community and togetherness that the city doesn’t provide. I realize just how much a simple hello does for a stranger — it really can make your day a little better.

My big trip showed me that my small town really has instilled(注入) morals and values in me that I didn’t even know I had. I would never have known what a big place my town holds in my heart if I had not taken that trip to New York City.

4. How did the author feel about life in Jim Thorpe at first?

A. People there cared little about others.

B. People there liked to accept new things.

C. Living there was a great disadvantage.

D. There were many chances of career development.

5. What surprised the author most in New York City?

A. The gestures of greeting.

B. The modern transportation.

C. The fast pace of life.

D. The crowded streets.

6. What made the author change his / her attitudes to his /her hometown?

A. Travelling to New York City.

    B. The familiar faces in Jim Thorpe.

    C. A big place in his / her town.

    D. Everybody likes talking about others.

7. What would be the best title for the passage?

A. Love of my small town

B. A sense of community

C. A pleasant trip to New York City

D. Differences between big cities and small towns

The regular use of text messages and e-mails can lower the IQ more than twice as much as smoking marijuana (大麻). That is the statement of researchers who have found that tapping away on a mobile phone or computer keypad or checking for electronic messages temporarily knocks up to 10 points off the user’s IQ. This rate of decline in intelligence compares unfavorably with the four-point drop in IQ associated with smoking marijuana, according to British researchers, who have described the phenomenon of improved stupidity as “infomania”. The research conducted by Hewlett Packard, the technology company, has concluded that it is mainly a problem for adult workers, especially men.

It is concluded that too much use of modern technology can damage a person’s mind. It can cause a constant distraction of “always on” technology when employees should be concentrating on what they are paid to do. Infomania means that they lose concentration as their minds remain fixed in an almost permanent state of readiness to react to technology instead of focusing on the task in hand. The report also added that, in a long term, the brain will be considerably shaped by what we do to it and by the experience of daily life. At a microcellular level, the complex networks of nerve cells that make up parts of the brain actually change in response to certain experiences.

Too much use of modern technology can be damaging not only to a person’s mind, but to their social relationship. 1,100 adults were interviewed during the research. More than 62 per cent of them admitted that they were addicted to checking their e-mails and text messages so often that they scrutinized work-related ones even when at home or on holiday. Half said that they always responded immediately to an email and will even interrupt a meeting to do so. It is concluded that infomania is increasing stress and anxiety and affecting one’s characteristics. Nine out of ten thought that colleagues who answered e-mails or messages during a face-to-face meeting were extremely rude.

The effects on IQ were studied by Dr Glenn Wilson, a psychologist at University of London. “This is a very real and widespread phenomenon,” he said. “We have found that infomania will damage a worker’s performance by reducing their mental sharpness and changing their social life. Companies should encourage a more balanced and appropriate way of working.”

8. We can learn from the passage that “infomania” ________.

A. has a positive influence on one’s IQ                 

B. results in the change of part of the brain

C. lies in the problem of lack of concentration

D. is caused by too much use of modern technology

9. The research mentioned in the passage is most probably about ________.

A. the important function of advanced technology

B. the damage to one’s brain done by unhealthy habits

C. the relevance between IQ and use of modern technology

D. the relationship between intelligence and working effectiveness

10. The underlined word “scrutinized” probably means “________”.

A. copied patiently            

B. corrected quickly  

C. answered hurriedly       

D. examined carefully

11. What is the main idea of this passage?

A. Modern technology can damage a person’s mind.

B. Electronic messages have side effects on the user’s life.

C. The regular use of text messages and e-mails can harm your IQ.

D. The regular use of text messages and e-mails can be compared to smoking marijuana.

Finally, the long-awaited flying car is almost here.

AeroMobil, a Slovakian company, plans to start selling its creation, the AeroMobil3. 0, in 2017. The company claims on its site that the vehicle “transforms in seconds from an automobile to an airplane"by using “existing infrastructure created for automobiles and planes."The vehicle is petrol-powered and has wings that fold, which allows it to be parked like a car, though it is nearly 20 feet long.

The company's website features a video where the AeroMobil 3. 0 drives out of a hangar (飞 机棚 ）and goes down a highway, sharing the road with ordinary cars until it arrives at an airstrip. The car then unfolds its wings and takes off from a stretch of grass, rather than a paved tarmac (柏油路面), and flies through the air like any other small airplane.

AeroMobil spokesman Stefan Vadocz said his company hasn't decided on an exact price because it's not ready yet."The prototype is a work in progress," he said in an email. But he said the price would be several hundreds of thousands of euros---somewhere in between a sports car and a light sports aircraft.

The vehicle seats two people---the pilot and a passenger---and its single propeller (螺旋桨) is located at the rear of the plane. The company said the car's top speed on the road is at least 99 mph and while flying it is at least 124 mph. It can fly for 435 miles before running out of fuel. It has a steel framework and carbon coating and is powered by a Rotax 912, a four-cylinder (气缸) aircraft engine from BRP of Austria.

Flying cars aren't exactly new. The concept has been around since long before The Jetsons popularized the idea in the 1960s. It has been a regular topic in Popular Science ever since World War I ace, Eddie Rickenbacker, wrote about it in 1924.

But getting a practical, reliable flying car off the ground has been a serious challenge.

Glenn Curtiss discovered this in 1918 when he developed the Curtiss Autoplane. It turned out to be more of a hopper than a flyer, so it failed to become popular with the public.

12. What allows the AeroMobil3. 0 to be parked as a car?

    A. Its steel framework and folding wings.

    B. Its petrol-powered engine and folding wings.

    C. Its 99mph top speed and petrol-powered engine.

    D. Its ordinary car engine and folding wings.

13. What is the biggest difference between the AeroMobil 3. 0 and other airplanes?

    A. It is powered by aircraft fuel.     B. It can fly as fast as airplanes.

    C. It has a propeller.               D. It can take off from a stretch of grass.

14. What can be inferred from the passage?

    A. The AeroMobil3. 0's price will fall very soon.

    B. The design work on the AeroMobil 3. 0 is still in progress.

    C. The price of the AeroMobil 3. 0 will be higher than a light sports aircraft.

    D. The price of the AeroMobil 3. 0 will be the same as a sports car.

15. What is the main purpose of the fifth paragraph?

    A. To describe some of the features of the AeroMobil3. 0.

    B. To explain why the AeroMobil3. 0 is better than an airplane.

    C. To explain the difference between the AeroMobil3. 0 and other airplanes.

    D. To explain why the price of the AeroMobil 3. 0 is high.

Some Helpful Tips for a Happier You

I've been one of sad people before. It wasn't easy. But fortunately, I was able to get out of it in one piece. I want you to experience that too. Here are some simple tips that I found very effective and useful in finding my own kind of happiness. 16.

Exercise whenever you get the chance

 17. It's more likely that you won't feel happy if you're having breathing problems when you're climbing the stairs, right? Bum those fats away and live a healthier and much happier life! Your happiness is not going to be served on a silver platter(毫不费力地). You've got to work for it and, give it your all.

Embrace the “real" you

I love the LEGO Movie because it emphasizes the importance of being happy with who you truly are. This is a very important thing to remember when you're in pursuit of happiness.18 . You don't need to be the same with another person just to feel good. You can be happy just by being you.

Avoid expecting anything from anyone

As pessimistic as this claim might sound, learned that there are some people out there who just won't give you a hand when you really need them to. 19

    If a friend or a loved one is constantly disappointing you then stop hoping for them to get their act together. Instead, do the work and feel satisfied with what you've accomplished.

20.

Stay too long and the four corners of your room will only turn you into a gloomy version of yourself. Go outside and feel the sun. Indeed, the Internet is a wonderland filled with useful information, crazy people and your everyday drama but there's more to life than sitting in front of your computer screen.