Have you ever lost your car on a parking lot? You don’t have a clue where your car is after shopping. Then you start walking around clicking on your car keys so the alarm goes off. It can be annoying, especially on a hot sunny day.

No, you needn’t install(安装) an expensive GPS system to keep track of your car. That’s too expensive. You would need to pay a monthly fee to use it. 

But is there a way to track your vehicle without spending a fortune? Yes, now there is! A California-based company has created a tiny device that works with your smartphone, which could be exactly what you’re looking for!

◆What is it?

It’s called TrackR. It is a state-of-the-art tracking device the size of a coin. It’s changing the way we keep track of the important things in our lives.

◆How does it work?

It’s easy! Install the free TrackR app on your smartphone, connect the app to your device and you’re ready to go! Simply attach TrackR to whatever you want to keep an eye on. The entire process of setting it up only takes 5 minutes or less.

You can attach it to your keys, briefcase, wallet, your latest tech gadgets and anything else you don’t want to lose. Then use the TrackR app to locate your missing item in seconds.

◆What else can I do with TrackR?

The device is small and unnoticeable enough that you can attach it to your pet. Put it on their collar, and the issue of searching for them when they run away to nearby places will be over! You’ll never waste a minute searching the whole house for it.

◆How much does it cost?

You’re probably thinking that this device is very expensive. False! TrackR only costs $29! That’s a small price to pay for peace of mind, isn’t it?

◆Where can I buy one?

You can buy it directly from the company’s website by clicking here https://buy.thetrackr.co/gu/special-offers/15/ .

21. From the passage, we learn that TrackR can ______.

A. help you locate your important things

B. track your wallet through GPS system

C. work better after you pay monthly fee 

D. take good care of your pets at home

22. This passage is mainly developed by ______.

A. answering questions                   B. providing statistics

C. listing advantages                    D. making comparisons

23. Where is this passage most likely taken from?

A. A research report.      B. A website.   C. A personal blog.      D. A journal.

   After finishing my teaching for a school year, I thought that I should go back to Montreal, Quebec, my hometown for a visit. My main goal was to relax in preparation for the challenges of my retirement in the coming year.         

Through my stay in Montreal, I met lots of Chinese who are struggling to succeed and then lead a better life in Canada.

Some travelled thousands of miles to get knowledge. When I spoke with some of them about the major barrier they had to face after they arrived in Canada, they all talked about the two official languages of Canada. But I was impressed by their ability to express their ideas while switching between English and French.

Almost all of those people said they often felt homesick. They miss their families and friends. Though Montreal has lots of Chinese restaurants, they long for a home-cooked meal.

I met some tourists who were trying to realize their childhood dreams of experiencing the life in a developed country. When I asked them if Montreal had lived up to their expectations, they hesitated. They said that reality never agrees with fantasies. However, they were glad to have the opportunity to visit Montreal and didn’t regret taking the trip.

Not all the Chinese people I met were happy. I once met a young lady who met with a gentleman through the Internet. However, to her disappointment, he disappeared after he promised to marry her in Montreal.

I was served by another Chinese person who could not handle the challenges of studying in an English environment and ended up working in a restaurant with minimum pay.

Exploring different parts of the world, without any doubt, is an enriching experience. However, one should be realistic when it comes to leaving his hometown to set up a new life in a foreign country. One should take the time to examine the advantages and the shortcomings of the venture before they decide to chase an uncertain dream of achieving success or leading a better life.

24. The writer went to her hometown to ______.

A. meet her old friends                B. study a new language 

C. go on with her teaching           D. prepare for her retirement life

25. The main barrier for some Chinese to get knowledge in Canada is ______.

A. food           B. homesickness        C. language      D. income 

26. The writer thinks that ______.

A. overseas Chinese are good at communication in Canada 

B. the trip to Montreal is a good chance for people to study

C. overseas Chinese feel disappointed at their life in Canada

D. people should think carefully before chasing the dreams abroad

27. What is the best title for the passage?

A. Improving Life Skills in Canada         B. Exploring Different Parts of Canada 

C. Struggling for a Better Life in Canada    D. Going to Canada—Your Ideal Destination

One of today's hottest topics among women (and to an extent among men too now) is anti-aging and how to reverse the signs of age. The beauty industry has responded to this by offering a wide collection of anti aging creams and other anti aging products aimed at all pocketbooks, ranging from economical to highly priced.

 And the question is "do any of these often much-vaunted (被过度吹嘘的) anti aging creams actually work?" And if they do, how precisely do they perform their miracles? 

Well the appropriate response to that is that they do work - after a fashion. There certainly are anti-aging creams available for a relatively modest price that will reduce the appearance of wrinkles in a comparatively short period of regular application. But this really is the limit of their powers: they won’t actually undo skin damage or get rid of all signs of age; they will simply modify them, some more effectively than others.

The way they work is like so: they remove upper layers of dead skin cells and make deeper layers absorb water, serving to plump(变丰满) them up and make them look fuller and healthier. But since such anti aging creams only go skin deep, as it were, skin damage will reappear once you stop using the anti aging wrinkle cream.

This means fairly heavy regular use, which might be costly depending on your choice of product. However, if you can afford it or think it's worth the cost, it won't be such an issue. After all, what woman wants to look older than her years when looking good is so tied up with many women’s self-esteem and sense of identity.

 A compromise (折中) solution for those on a tighter budget is to use the cheaper creams. In addition, it’s always wise to be a little experimental to make sure you end up with the one that suits our skin best.

 So, to sum up: an anti wrinkle face cream will work within limits, depending on your objective. 

28.According to the author, we can infer __________.

A. anti aging creams must reverse the signs of age

B. skin damage must not reappear after using creams

C. anti aging creams should be properly used 

D. skin damage will disappear forever after using creams

29.The benefits from anti aging creams are the following except that __________.

A. they remove upper layers of dead skin cells       B. they make deeper layers absorb water

C. they make layers look fuller and healthier.        D. they make wrinkle faces rough

30.The meaning of the underlined phrase “on a tighter budget” is __________.

A. having a larger amount of money        B. having a smaller amount of money

C. having no money at all                     D. having a lot of money

31.Fairly heavy regular use will make you __________.

A. spend much money on your choice of product 

B. easily afford your choice of product 

C. think your choice of product wrong

D. believe your choice of product right

     Modern inventions have speeded up people's lives amazingly. Motor-cars cover a hundred miles in little more than an hour, aircraft cross the world a day, while computers operate at lightning speed. Indeed, our passion for speed appears endless. Every year motor-cars are produced which go even faster and each new computer boasts (吹嘘) of saving precious seconds in handling tasks.

      All this saves time, but at a price. When we lose or gain half a day in speeding across the world in an airplane, our bodies tell us so. We get the terrible feeling known as jet-lag; our bodies feel that they have been left behind on another time zone. Again, spending too long at computers results in painful wrists and fingers. Mobile phones also have their danger, according to some scientists; too much use may transmit harmful radiation into our brains, a consequence we do not like to think about.

      However, what do we do with the time we have saved? Certainly not relax, or so it seems. We are so accustomed to constant activity that we find it difficult to sit and do nothing, or even  just one thing at a time. Perhaps the days are long gone when we might listen quietly to a story on the radio, letting imaginations take us into another world.

      There was a time when some people's lives were devoted simply to the cultivation of the land or the care of cattle. No multi-tasking there; their lives went on at a much gentler pace, and in a familiar pattern. There is much that we might envy about a way of life like this. Yet before we do so, we must think of the hard tasks our ancestors faced; they farmed with bare hands, often lived close to hunger, and had to fashion tools from wood and stone. Modem machinery has freed people from that primitive existence..

32. The new products become more and more time-saving because ______.

A. our love on speed seems never-ending          B. time is limited

C. the prices are increasingly high                D. the manufacturers boast a lot

33. What does “the days” in Paragraph 3 refer to?

A. Imaginary life.                            B. Simple life in the past.

C. Times of inventions.                      D. Time for constant activity.

34. What is the author's attitude towards the modern technology?

A. Critical.     B. Objective.     C. Optimistic.      D. Negative.

35. What does the passage mainly discuss?

A. The present and past times.               B. Machinery and human beings.

C. Imaginations and inventions.              D. Modern technology and its influence.

Recycling is very important and necessary in today’s world. The most important reason for this is that human progress and industry have made it possible for people to have lots of things, and when people have many material possessions, they are bound to throw some of them away. __36__

Recycling is a way for us to keep the world clean as items are broken down and used again, preventing the littering of the environment. Instead of throwing all your garbage into the dustbin, you should separate paper, metal, glass, and plastic into different containers. _37_ They can be turned into valuable compost(肥料), which is the perfect plant food and soil disease fighter.

__38_ You can see if an item has been made from recycled materials by its label. If it’s been recycled, it will say so. Also instead of always buying new clothes, you can arrange to have a clothing exchange with your friends. You bring clothes you don’t want and pick items you want from what other people have brought. Not only does this save the environment, but it also saves your money. _39_ This saying can be applied to all sorts of things: books, CDs, furniture, etc. Also try shopping at second-hand stores, because they often have lots of items still in good shape for you to choose.

Many countries have made it easy for people to recycle, as alongside the normal garbage trucks, special garbage trucks come and pick up recyclables. However, in some countries the responsibility is left up to the ordinary people to recycle. __40__ Recycling represents just one way in which we can help the environment. But it is an effective one and one that we can actively influence.

A. Fallen leaves can also be recycled.

B. Having too many things causes a lot of garbage. 

C. You should try to buy products that have been recycled.

D. Products made with recycled materials are as good as new products.

E. This creates a lot of garbage which in turn destroys the environment.

F. Remember, what is one person’s unwanted object can be someone else’s treasure!

G. Therefore, it needs attention in society so we can continue to make our environment livable.