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21. Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn is probably a        .

A. historian      B. novelist       C. biologist      D. psychologist

22. The book Girt most likely appeals to those who       .

A. long for success    B. are fond of cooking

C. wish to live longer    D. hope to look younger

23. Which of the following books costs most?

A. The Whole30 Cookbook.      B. The Telomere Effect.

C. Hidden Figures.              D. Grit.

Garlic（大蒜） is similar to other bulb-shaped plants, including onions. But garlic is special. For centuries, people have used garlic not only for cooking, but also for medicine.

Researchers at the Cornell University studied the medicinal use of garlic throughout history. They found references to garlic in ancient texts from Egypt, Greece, Rome, China and India. For example, in ancient Greece and Rome, people considered garlic an aid to strength. The original Olympic athletes in Greece ate garlic to improve their performance. Workers who built the pyramids in Egypt ate garlic.

But why is garlic such a healthy food? The answer is that garlic creates a gas called hydrogen sulfide(氢化硫). At first, hydrogen sulfide does not seem very healthy. In fact, it is poisonous. It smells like rotten eggs. But it does an important job in our bodies. Hydrogen sulfide relaxes blood vessels(血管). Relaxing blood vessels, in turn, allows more oxygen to travel to the body’s organs. It lowers high blood pressure and protects the body against cardiovascular disease. “Cardio” relates to the heart and “vascular” relates to blood vessels. Some researchers in China have gone so far as to call hydrogen sulfide the key to a longer life.

In a 2007 study, researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham studied how garlic increased hydrogen sulfide and how that, in turn, affected red blood cells. David Kraus led that study. He and his team performed their study on rats. They found that when garlic compounds changed into hydrogen sulfide, the gas caused the muscles to relax.

  In a 2015 experiment at Penn State University, researchers injected a solution(溶液) that would create hydrogen sulfide in the arms of healthy young adults. They wanted to see what hydrogen sulfide would do to a small area of blood vessels.

24. Which of the following is the best of the passage?

A. Garlic: a Good Cooking Ingredient    B. Health Benefits of Garlic on People

C. References to Garlic in Ancient Texts   D. Health Functions of Hydrogen Sulfide

25. According to the people in ancient Greece and Rome, garlic could make people become        .

A. smarter       B. slimmer      C. stronger    D. crueler

26. What can we infer about hydrogen sulfide?

A. It can cure high blood pressure. 

B. It can improve a person’s emotions.

C. It can repair damaged blood vessels.

D. It can increase the flow of blood.

27. Eating Garlic can help people prevent          .

A. heart disease    B. blood disease    C. skin disease   D. lung disease

Praise, blame, and red carpet rows: What Hollywood’s mothers and daughters say about each other.

28. What does the underlined word “estranged” mean?

A. Cold and distant.    B. Warm and close.

C. Alike and alone.     D. Devoted and harmonious.

29. How did Dakota Johnson feel when her mother admitted not having seen her film Fifty Shades of Grey?

A. Confused.     B. Annoyed.    C. Delighted.    D. Touched.

30. Who starred in Almost Famous?

A. Blythe Danner.     B. Gwyneth Paltrow.

C. Goldie Hawn.     D. Kate Hudson.

31. It can be inferred that Gwyneth Paltrow     .

A. is a famous comedian from the U.S.    B. is busy making a love film at present

C. is now looking after children at home    D. directed I’ll See You in My Dreams

Education has long been the fuel that powered the mighty engine of our nation’s economy. As the number of Americans with college degrees rose rapidly right after World War Ⅱ,our middle class grew dramatically and the United States reached new heights of job creation, productivity and prosperity, becoming the envy of the world.

But today American students are falling far behind those in other nations. One discouraging sign came in early December, with the release of 2015 test scores for the Program for International Student Assessment, or PISA, an exam given every three years to compare the performance of 15-year-olds around the world in math, science and reading. American students dropped from 28^th place in math in 2012 to 35^th place in 2015, among the 60 nations where students took the PISA test in both years. In 2015, among 73 nations where the test was administered to 540,000 students, American students dropped to 40^th place in math, and placed 25^th in science and 24^th in reading.

One major reason is that government at every level in the United States have reduced funding on education. Of 50 states, 35 provided less overall state funding per student in public schools from kindergarten through 12^th grade in 2014 than they did in 2008. In 27 states, local funding per student fell at the same time. These cuts do great harm to students by forcing schools to increase class sizes, keep teacher pay low, reduce the number of electives(选修课) offered, cut back on purchases of education technology and fail to maintain the school buildings.

Allowing this alarming trend to continue by starving public schools, colleges and universities of the money they need to offer the world –class education will have long—term consequences as well. These include a weakened economy, higher unemployment, and, most importantly, a lower American standard of living and reduced national security. This won’t come next month or next year, but it awaits us in the years ahead if our leaders fail act soon to reverse the education funding cuts of recent years.

32. The writer implies in the first paragraph that        .

A. the U.S.A became the center of the world after WW Ⅱ

B. many Americans became wealthy because of the fuel

C. the U.S.A has reached new heights in terms of education

D. a person’s education level is closely related to his income

33. How does the writer support his view in the second paragraph?

A. By assuming results.         B. By asking questions.

C. By quoting the saying.       D. By listing the statistics.

34. How many states provided more overall state funding per student in public schools in 2014 than they did in 2008?

A. About 15.    B. About 20.     C. About 25.    D. About 35.

35. Which of the following is NOT the long-term consequence of funding cuts on education?

A. Bigger class sizes.         B. A weakened economy.

C. Higher unemployment.     D. Reduced national security.

How to rebuild trust after it’s broken

Maybe your partner cheated on you, your best friend stabbed you in the back, or your co-worker took credit for your idea. On the other hand, maybe you lied to your sweetheart, stole the guy or girl your friend had an eye on, or failed to help a co-worker or classmate on an important project. Trust between two people means that they can be vulnerable(易受攻击的) with each other.   36    Here are what you need to do from both angles.

1. Coming clean does work. If you are the one who betrayed someone else, you need to come clean. In interpersonal relationships, it’s especially important to tell the truth when you would benefit a lie.    37 

2. Being defensive or casual about the problem never works. There must be a sincere effort to work out the issues, or the wall will never come down.   38   Be patient with the other person, but be persistent in your own efforts.

3.    39  Trust between two people means that you have to be dependable and consistent over a long period of time.  40  If you can’t be honest in the future, or cannot do all that you promise to do, the person you betrayed will be unable to accept that you are worthy of being trusted again.

A. Talking about what made you do it.

B. Keep your word going forward.

C. You should avoid making the same mistake at all costs.

D. Therefore, losing trust is two-way street, and so is rebuilding it.

E. Denial will only make the other party’s distrust run deeper, especially if the truth is already clear.

F. You should make a promise to do better, but a promise or apology alone will only restore trust short-term.

G. The angrier you are, the less you are able to hear what the aggrieved one has to say, and the worse what they feel will get.