Secret Garden

by Johanna Basford, Scottish illustrator

It is a coloring book for adults. Like a treasure hunt, the book features all kinds of creatures, including songbirds, butterflies and sharks. Since its publication in 2013, it has sold more than 14 million copies in 22 languages worldwide.

Fill-Me-In

by Moose Allain, British artist

This book is not just about coloring. It gives you the opportunity to create in your own way and makes your imagination come alive. As it’s designed for both young and old, you can get one for yourself or buy it as a gift for your parents.

The Mindfulness Colouring Book

by Emma Farrarons, French illustrator

If you want to enjoy a kind of on-the-go-relaxation, this pocket-seized coloring book is a good choice. It was published in January 2015 and has been available in 12 languages. The book is filled with beautiful scenes and complicated patterns. They inspire you to think about your artwork, which helps release anxiety and get rid of stress.

The Mandala Coloring Book

by Jim Gogarty, British artist

The mandala is a sacred（神圣的）symbol in Hinduism and Buddhism. It attracts people with its bright patterns and awakens in them a sense of peace. The author began drawing mandalas in 2005 and created this book later. The book features 100 customizable（可定制的）mandala drawings that you can color in.

1.      Which book is related to human beliefs?

A.     Secret Garden.                                        B. Fill-Me-In.

C.     The Mindfulness Colouring Book.         D. The Mandala Coloring Book.

2. What is the feature of Fill-Me-In?

A. It is a book for people of all ages.

B. It is designed by a British novelist.

C. It can make your life full of imagination.

D. It is simply a coloring book.

3. What do Secret Garden and The Mindfulness Colouring Book have in common?

A.     They have been translated into many languages.

B.     They were published in the same year.

C.     They teach how to hunt treasure.

D.     They are the same in size.

It’s a bicyclist’s dream: a bike that can’t be stolen. The Yerka, designed by three young Chilean engineering students, is the latest entry in a trend of bikes. They use their saddle seat as a lock. They can also use their handlebar（手柄）as a lock. But the inventors of the Yerka have made an improvement to it. The bike’s lower frame opens up into two arms that are then connected to the seat post and locked to a post, so thieves would have to destroy a Yerka to get it unlocked.

“That’s why our motto is ‘A bike that gets stolen is no longer a bike’. What we have here is truly an unstealable bike,” said Cristobal Cabello, who came up with the design during a college engineering class with childhood friends Andres Roi Eggers and Juan Jose Monsalve.

      In Chile and elsewhere in Latin America, the spread of cycling lanes, storage racks and bike share programs are encouraging people to change from cars to bikes , which are cheaper and environmentally friendly. Cristobal Galban said a study by his team in 2013 found that the use of bikes has doubled among Chileans in five years.

      The main problem in Chile and elsewhere is robberies. The most effective strategy commonly used in London today is to take the bike into the office with the rider. Other strategies involve using a bike that looks so unattractive that nobody will want to steal it. But now the Yerka can help solve the problem.

      Now, while waiting for the patent（专利）to be approved and carrying out more tests the team plans to raise funds. They’re also looking for a partner who can invest $300,000 needed to produce 1,000 bikes first that they hope will be sold by mid-2016.

4. Which of the following is NOT true about the Yerka in Paragraph 1?

A. It looks very attractive                 B. It aims at not being stolen

C. It leads the new trend of bikes            D. It uses its saddle seat as a lock

5. According to Cristobal Cabello, it can be inferred that the Yerka     

A. will be safe if it is fully used         B. will be broken if it gets stolen

C. will be expensive if it gets repaired      D. will not be stolen even if it is unlocked

6. From the last paragraph, we can learn that the Yerka          .

A. doesn’t need a lot of money        B. can’t be bought in the market yet

C. will be popular with bike riders   D. will be affordable for ordinary people

7. What is the main idea of the passage?

A. Bikes in Chile can easily get stolen            

B. Chile is encouraging the use of bikes

C. An expensive bike drew the world’s attention

D. Three Chileans designed an unstealable bike

To Friend or Not to Friend

We all love our parents and turn to them when we’re in need, but would you like them to hear the conversations you have with your friends on the school playground or lunch queue? Social networking sites have become extensions of the school hallways, so would you add your parents as “friends” and allow them to view your online activities and conversations with friends?

In the past the generation gap included a technology gap, where children were up to date with latest technology and parents were left behind, content to continue their day to day lives as they always had because they had no need to know more about technology. However, more and more parents are beginning to realize just how important social networks are in their lives. This realization has given many parents the motivation to educate themselves about social networking sites.

These days many people are attracted to social networking sites because they can choose who they have around them; there’s also a certain amount of control over privacy that we don’t get in real life. Sometimes we feel that privacy is violated when we must accept a “friend” request from a parent or family member.

It’s a difficult choice whether or not to allow a parent to become a part of our online lives. On the one hand we don’t want to “reject” their request because that might hurt their feelings or make them feel you have something to hide. On the other hand if you do accept, then you could have a sense of being watched and no longer feel free to comment or communicate the way you did before.

A recent survey suggested that parents shouldn’t take it personally if their child ignores their request: “When a teen ignores a parent’s friend request, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are hiding something, but it could mean that this is one part of their life where they want to be independent.”

Perhaps talking with parents and giving explanations would help soften the blow if you do choose not to add them to your friends list.

8. From Paragraph 2, we learn that ______.

A. parents feel secure about their privacy online

B. social networks successfully fill the generation gap

C. parents have realized the importance of social networks

D. social networks offer a platform for parents to communicate

9. Teenagers may refuse a parent’s friend request because ______.

A. they hide something from their parents

B. their parents make negative comments on them

C. their parents tend to fall behind in technology

D. they are unwilling to be watched by parents

10. The passage is mainly about ______.

A. privacy online                                       B. social networks

C. parents’ friend requests                      D. the generation gap

11. The passage is written mainly for ______.

A. teenagers             B. parents            C. teachers           D. researchers

       “Business is war.” The traditional language of business certainly makes it sound that way: winning the competition, getting market share, beating up suppliers, locking up customers. There are the victors and the losers.

       But today in doing business, you have to listen to customers, work with suppliers, keep good relations—even with competitors. That doesn’t sound like war. Besides, there are few victors when business is looked upon as war.

       Most businesses succeed only if others also succeed. Business is competition and cooperation as well. In other words, business is war and peace.

       To bring together competition and cooperation, we turn to game theory. Game theory provides that whether one person wins or loses depends on what other people do. It is particularly effective when there are many interdependent（相互依存的）factors and no decision can be made in isolation（孤立）from other decisions.

       Game theory breaks down the game into key elements（要素）: players, added values, rules, tactics（计谋）, and scope（范围）(PARTS). Every element affects the result of the game. This means that each of the five elements gives you a way to change an existing game into entirely new one. Change one of the PARTS, and you change the whole.

       Why change the game? An old Chinese saying explains: If you continue on the course you’re heading, that’s where you’ll end up. Sometimes that’s good, sometimes not. You can play the game very well, and still suffer great loss. That’s because you’re playing the wrong game: you need to change it. Even a good game can be made into a better one. Real success comes from actively shaping the game you play—from making the game you want, not taking the game you find.

12．The author of this passage is _______ the idea that “Business is war.”

       A．considering          B．in favor of                    C．against           D．doubtful of

13． “PARTS” stands for _______.

       A．the parties in a game

       B．players, added values, rules, tactics and scope

       C．all of the elements in the game theory

       D．the parts that affect the result of the game

14．The correct understanding of the underlined sentence in the last paragraph is _______.

       A．you play the game too well to suffer great loss

       B．you are really good at playing the game, but you still lose it out

       C．you are so competitive that you beat up all of your competitors terribly

       D．the competition is so hard that you have to put all your heart into it

15．The author emphasizes that _______.

       A．we shall play in the right direction

       B．we shall play very hard

       C．we shall continue in the course we are heading

       D．we shall always change no matter the change is good or not

TOP 4 WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR BRAIN FITNESS

Brain fitness has basic principles: variety and curiosity. When anything you do becomes second nature, you need to make a change. If you can do the crossword puzzle in your sleep, it’s time for you to move on to a new challenge in order to get the best workout for your brain. Curiosity about the world around you, how it works and how you can understand it will keep your brain working fast and efficiently.       16     

Play games

Brain fitness programs and games are a wonderful way to tease and challenge your brain. Suduko, crosswords and electronic games can all improve your brain’s speed and memory. These games rely on logic, word skills, math and more.      17      You’ll get benefit more by doing these games a little bit every day -- spend 15 minutes or so, not hours.

Think deeply

Thinking deeply is perhaps the single greatest thing you can do for your mind or body health.      18      By creating a different mental state, you engage your brain in new and interesting ways while increasing your brain fitness.

Eat for your brain

Your brain needs you to eat healthy fats. Focus on fish oils from wild salmon, nuts such as walnuts, seeds such as flax seed and olive oil.      19       Remove transfats（反式脂肪）completely from your diet. 

      20     

Stories are a way that we solidify memories, interpret events and share moments. Practice telling your stories, both new and old, so that they are interesting, attractive and fun. Some basic storytelling techniques will go a long way in keeping people’s interest both in you and in what you have to say. 

A.     These games are also fun.

B.     Learn something from a story.

C.     Eat more of these foods and less fats.

D.     Eat as much as you can.

E.      Tell good stories.

F.      Use the ideas below to help obtain your seek for mental fitness.

G.     It not only relaxes you, but gives your brain a workout.