For many of us, a little time with our smartphones or iPads before sleep is the highlight of the night. But would you still think it is relaxing if you knew that it damages or destroys your sleep? Scientists say that's exactly what it does.
In ancient times, when there were no lamps, telephones or smartphones, the sun was the main source of light. When the sun went down, our brains took that as a signal to start producing melatonin(褪黑素), a chemical that helps us sleep.
However, a healthy amount of melatonin can only be produced in complete darkness.Any light in your bedroom—even the one on the alarm clock or the charging indicator on your cellphone—could disturb the process, not to mention something as bright as smartphone and iPad screens. We tend to hold these much closer than a television or laptop, which allows them to shoot far more light straight into our eyes.
“This is particularly worrisome in populations such as young adults and adolescents, who already tend to be night_owls，” said researcher Brittany Wood at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.“Lack of sleep among teens is leading to depression, self­harm, low concentration and poor performance at school，” she added.
While all lights are the enemy of sleep, not all colors of light have the same effect. Our eyes are particularly sensitive to blue light, which is common during the day. Most of the light coming from electronic screens is blue light and it fools our brain into thinking it's still daytime. By contrast, orange or red light has less influence on melatonin production, because our brains recognize it as a signal that the day is ending, according to The Telegraph.
Asking yourself to keep your hands off your smartphone before bedtime might seem unreasonable, but you should at least remember to dim the screen or hold it farther away from your eyes. You could also wear a pair of orange sunglasses that take away the harmful blue light.
【小題1】According to the passage, we can know ________.

A．it's a good habit to play with smartphones or iPads late into night

B．scientists suggest we should avoid using smartphones or iPads

C．darkness makes a great impact on the amount of melatonin

D．the sun was the only source of light in ancient times

the sun was the main source of light.”可知D項(xiàng)為錯(cuò)誤結(jié)論。
【小題2】Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The darker it is, the more melatonin will be produced.

B．The lighter it is, the more melatonin will be produced.

C．The more melatonin you have, the worse you'll sleep.

D．The more electrical equipment you have, the more melatonin will be produced.

【小題3】The underlined part in Paragraph 4 refers to those ________.

A．who are young adults or adolescents

B．who don't perform well in school

C．who are addicted to a television or laptop

D．who are short of sleep at night and perform poorly in daily life

【小題4】In the writer's opinion, which is a correct suggestion?

A．You should go to bed when the sun goes down.

B．You should use an orange or red light electronic screen.

C．You should wear a pair of blue sunglasses when sleeping.

D．You should avoid blue light as possible as you can before bedtime.

One might expect that the ever­growing demands of the tourist trade would bring nothing but good for the countries that receive the holiday­makers. Indeed, a rosy picture is painted for the long­term future of the holiday industry. Every month sees the building of a new hotel somewhere. And every month another rock­bound Pacific island is advertised as the ‘last paradise(天堂) on earth’．
However, the scale and speed of this growth seem set to destroy the very things tourists want to enjoy. In those countries where there was a rush to make quick money out of sea­side holidays, over­crowded beaches and the concrete jungles of endless hotels have begun to lose their appeal.
Those countries with little experience of tourism can suffer most. In recent years, Nepal set out to attract foreign visitors to fund developments in health and education. Its forests, full of wildlife and rare flowers, were offered to tourists as one more untouched paradise. In fact, the nature all too soon felt the effects of thousands of holiday­makers traveling through the forest land. Ancient tracks became major routes for the walkers, with the consequent exploitation of precious trees and plants.
Not only can the environment of a country suffer from the sudden growth of tourism. The people as well rapidly feel its effects. Farmland makes way for hotels, roads and airports; the old way of life goes. The one­time farmer is now the servant of some multi­national organization; he is no longer his own master. Once it was his back that bore the pain; now it is his smile that is exploited. No doubt he wonders whether he wasn't happier in his village working his own land.
Thankfully, the tourist industry is waking up to the responsibilities it has towards those countries that receive its customers. The protection of wildlife and the creation of national parks go hand in hand with tourist development and in fact obtain financial support from tourist companies. At the same time, tourists are being encouraged to respect not only the countryside they visit but also its people.
The way tourism is handled in the next ten years will decide its fate and that of the countries we all want to visit. Their needs and problems are more important than those of the tourist companies. Increased understanding in planning world­wide tourism can preserve the market for these companies. If not, in a few years' time the very things that attract tourists now may well have been destroyed.
【小題1】What does the author indicate in the last sentence of Paragraph 1?

A．The Pacific island is a paradise.

B．The Pacific island is worth visiting.

C．The advertisement is not convincing.

D．The advertisement is not impressive.

【小題2】The example of Nepal is used to suggest ________.

A．its natural resources are untouched

B．its forests are exploited for farmland

C．it develops well in health and education

D．it suffers from the heavy flow of tourists

【小題3】What can we learn about the farmers from Paragraph 4?

A．They are happy to work their own lands.

B．They have to please the tourists for a living.

C．They have to struggle for their independence.

D．They are proud of working in multi­national organizations.

【小題4】Which of the following determines the future of tourism?

A．The number of tourists.

B．The improvement of services.

C．The promotion of new products.

D．The management of tourism.

【小題5】The author's attitude towards the development of the tourist industry is ________.

A．optimistic	B．doubtful
C．objective	D．negative

What's going to happen in the future? Will robots take over our planet? Will computers become smarter than us? Not likely. But here are some things that scientists say are most likely to happen 10 to 30 years later from now, according to the BBC.
1．Digital money
We used to pay with cash for everything we bought. Now when we swipe(刷) our bus pass or use a credit card to shop online, money is spent without us even seeing it. In fact, we are already using one type of digital money.
You have to admit that using a card is much easier than searching your pockets for change. It is also safer than carrying a lot of cash.
When ATM cards were first introduced, they were not accepted everywhere. But now it's hard to live without them. People in Sweden completely stopped using cash last year, according to the Associated Press, and the US might be next.
2．Bionic(能力超人的)eye
It's no longer something only in a sci­fi movie. People who are blind may have a chance to get their sight back—by wearing bionic eyes.
A blind eye can no longer sense light, but a bionic eye can use a camera to “see” the environment and send data directly to the brain.
Although the bionic eye that's out now only allows patients to see lights and unclear shapes, a high­resolution(高清晰度的) version could be just a few years away.
3．Self­driving cars
Everything is going automatic these days—washing machines, ticket selling machines and even cars. Unlike a human driver, a self­driving car won't get distracted by a phone call, the radio or something outside the window. Sensors and cameras on the car would allow it to stick strictly to the rules of the road and keep a safe distance from other cars. This would greatly reduce the number of road accidents. You could even take a nap while the car drives itself.
Many vehicle companies are now planning self­driving cars. “By 2040, driverless vehicles will be widely accepted and possibly be the dominant vehicles on the road，” said Jeffrey Miller, professor at the University of Alaska Anchorage, US, in Wired magazine.
【小題1】The underlined word “distracted” in the article is closest in meaning to “________”．

A．directed	B．discouraged
C．a(chǎn)ttacked	D．disturbed

【小題2】Jeffrey Miller's attitude towards self­driving cars is ________.

A．optimistic	B．pessimistic
C．doubtful	D．cautious

【小題3】Which section is the article most likely to be found in the newspaper?

A．Learning Kit	B．Campus Trends
C．Entertainment	D．Technology

We sometimes think global warming or climate change is a problem very far away from our lives, and that only the government needs to worry about it. But it's hardly possible to completely stay out of it ­ scientists are now 95 percent sure that humans have been the “dominant cause” of global warming trends since the 1950s.
One of the conclusions of a report released on Sept 27 by the United Nations says that human activities have caused global temperatures to rise by 0.89 0C between 1901 and 2012. That might not seem like a lot, but the truth is that a major part of that heat has been absorbed into the oceans, which is not surprising given that they cover two thirds of Earth's surface. Also, water has a much greater capacity (容量) to absorb heat than the air does, according to The Economist.　
While many greenhouse gases occur naturally and are needed to keep the Earth warm enough to support life, humans' use of fossil fuels is the main source of excess (多余的) greenhouse gases. According to CNN, by driving cars, using electricity produced by burning coal and oil or heating our homes with coal or natural gas, we release a large amount of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
Your body can barely feel a difference of 0.89 0C, but the Earth's ecosystems are so sensitive that even small changes can disturb them. It often starts with the smallest creatures at the bottom of the food chain, eventually affecting bigger animals, many of which could end up becoming extinct.
Global warming is also linked to an increase in extreme weather. A larger amount of carbon dioxide traps more energy inside the atmosphere. This changes the patterns of storms and rainfall in many regions and can lead to droughts and floods. Worse still, melting sea ice in warmer oceans is causing sea levels to rise at a speed of more than three millimeters per year, according to The Guardian, which also increases the risk of flooding.
“The report should serve as another wake­up call that our activities today have a profound impact on society, not only for us, but for many generations to come，” French Michel Jarraud, secretary­general of the World Meteorological Organization, said at a news conference.
【小題1】The underlined word “dominant” in the first paragraph means “ ________”．

A．common	B．indirect
C．secondary	D．leading

【小題2】Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Greenhouse gases have been proven to harm merely the Earth .

B．There is little we can do to prevent global warming.

C．Global warming can increase the chances of droughts and floods.

D．The hugeness of oceans makes them better absorbers of heat than the air.

【小題3】The rise in global temperatures between 1901 and 2012 ________.

A．is more harmful to smaller creatures than bigger ones

B．is not serious because most of the extra heat has been absorbed by the oceans

C．has made the Earth's ecosystems more sensitive to changes

D．is likely to cause many species to become extinct

【小題4】What is Michel Jarraud's attitude toward the report released by the UN?

A．Negative.	B．Supportive.
C．Doubtful.	D．Uninterested.

Nuclear power's danger to health, safety, and even life itself can be summed up in one word: radiation.
Nuclear radiation has a certain mystery about it, partly because it cannot be detected by human senses. It can't be seen or heard, or touched or tasted, even though it may be all around us. There are other things like that. For example, radio waves are all around us but we can't detect them, sense them, without a radio receiver. Similarly, we can't sense radioactivity without a radiation detector. But unlike common radio waves, nuclear radiation is not harmless to human beings and other living things.
At very high levels, radiation can kill an animal or human being immediately by killing masses of cells in vital organs. But even the lowest levels can do serious damage. There is no levels of radiation that is completely safe. If the radiation does not hit anything important, the damage may not be serious. This is the case when only a few cells are hit, and if they are killed immediately. Your body will replace the dead cells with healthy ones. But if the few cells are only damaged, and if they reproduce themselves, you may be in trouble. They can grow into cancer. Sometimes this does not show up for many years.
This is another reason for some of the mystery about nuclear radiation. Serious damage can be done without the victim being aware at the time that damage has occurred. A person can be irradiated(輻射)and feel fine, then die for cancer five, ten, or twenty years later as a result. Or a child can be born weak as a result of radiation absorbed by its grandparents.
Radiation can hurt us. We must know the truth.
【小題1】Which of the following statements is true?

A．Nuclear radiation is just like common radio waves.

B．Nuclear radiation can cause cancer to human beings.

C．Nuclear radiation can be detected by human senses.

D．Nuclear radiation can be safe to human beings if its level is low.

【小題2】How can nuclear radiation kill an animal?

A．By damaging its heart.

B．By killing a few cells.

C．By hitting any place in its body.

D．By killing many cells in important organs.

【小題3】If a human being is hit by nuclear radiation, he may __________.

A．die of cancer after many years

B．die immediately

C．have a child who may be born weak

D．a(chǎn)ll of the above

Password (密碼) strength has been a topic about the Internet lately. I have seen lots of clever methods for generating and remembering strong passwords. Some are better than others, but in my opinion, none are adequate. Here's the problem: It doesn't matter how strong your passwords are if you use the same one on multiple sites. All it takes is for a site to get hacked(侵入), like Gawker media, or even Sony did, and now your super­strong password has been stolen, and every site on which you used that password has been accessed.
So, the bottom line is that no matter how strong your passwords are, and no matter what clever tricks you use to help you remember them, if you surf internet often, the only truly secure password system is what you need.
Enter LastPass. It's not the only password manager out there, but I like it the best. You create ONE strong password that you have to memorize and use it to access your LastPass database. The LastPass database is stored online, on LastPass's servers. LastPass recognizes the site you're on and automatically logs you in (after, optionally, asking you to re­enter your master password). LastPass also has automatic form fill and automatic password generation. This means that you can have a different, unique, very strong password for every site you log into, but you only have to remember one master password. It's the best of both worlds.
One argument against LastPass is that if their database is attacked, then all of your sites are in danger, and that's true, but given that their entire line of work is keeping that information safe, I'm willing to take that chance. The alternative is rolling dice(擲骰子) or picking phrases to create passwords, writing all of them down on a piece of paper or something, and then having to manually type them in when I go to a site. A terrible mess.
There is a free version of LastPass, with some additional features unlocked if you pay a $12 a year subscription.
­Joshua Bardwell 
【小題1】The writer thinks using the same password everywhere is ________.

A．dangerous	B．convenient
C．a(chǎn)ppropriate	D．a(chǎn)dequate

【小題2】When using Lastpass, users have to remember ________.

A．a(chǎn)ll passwords used

B．the last password

C．unique password each time

D．the master password only

【小題3】Critics are against Lastpass because ________.

A．they have better ways to create password

B．they think rolling dice is more convenient

C．they have no faith in Lastpass database's safety

D．Gawker media and Lastpass were hacked once

【小題4】Joshua Bardwell writes the passage to ________.

A．share his experience

B．introduce a product of good quality

C．a(chǎn)dvertise his product

D．teach how to use a new product

Seven species of carp(鯉魚) native to Asia have been introduced into United States waters in recent decades, but it's four in particular－bighead, black, grass and silver－that worry ecologists, biologists, fishers and policymakers alike. Introduced in the southeast to help control weeds and parasites in aquaculture (水產(chǎn)養(yǎng)殖) operations, these fish soon spread up the Mississippi River system where they have been crowding out native fish populations not used to competing with such aggressive invaders. The carps' presence in such numbers is also harming water quality and killing off sensitive species.
Asian carp are strong to jump over barriers such as low dams. They lay hundreds of thousands of eggs at a time and spread into new habitat quickly and easily. Also, flooding has helped the fish expand into previously unattainable water bodies. And fishers using young carp as live bait have also helped the fish's spread, as they have boats going through locks up and down the Mississippi.
The federal government considers the Asian carps to be annoying species and encourages and supports “active control” by natural resources management agencies. Federal and state governments have spent millions in tax dollars to prevent the carp from making their way into the Great Lakes, but an underwater electric fence constructed to keep them out has not worked as well as hoped, and policymakers are reviewing other options now.
In the meantime, state and federal agencies are monitoring the Mississippi and its branches for Asian carp and testing various barrier technologies to prevent their further spread. For instance, the National Park Service is cooperating with the state of Minnesota's Department of Natural Resources to construct new dams that are high enough to prevent Asian carp from jumping over. The Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee has funded DNA monitoring in potentially affected water bodies whereby researchers can determine whether the troublesome fish are present just by the biological footprints they leave behind. Individuals can do their part by not transporting fish, bait or even water from one water body to another, and by emptying and washing boats before moving them between different water bodies.
【小題1】Asian carp have been introduced to the USA in order to ________.

A．improve water quality

B．help sensitive species

C．control the number of native fishes

D．control the ecosystem in aquaculture

【小題2】The measure to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lake but proved not good is ________.

A．testing various barrier technologies

B．construction of an underwater electric fence

C．Emptying and washing boats before using them.

D．monitoring the Mississippi and its branches for Asian carp

【小題3】It is suggested from the passage that ________.

A．a(chǎn)quaculture operations are dangerous to the water bodies

B．scientific technology is useless in preventing Asian carp spreading

C．both the state and the individuals can make efforts to keep out Asian carp

D．Asian carp have successfully invaded the Mississippi and the Great Lakes

For the first time, researchers have discovered that some plants can kill insects in order to get additional nutrients. New research shows that they catch and kill small insects with their own sticky hairs near the roots and then absorb nutrients through their roots when the insects are killed and fall to the ground.
Professor Mark Chase, of Kew and Queen Mary, University of London, said: “The cultivated (改良的) tomatoes and potatoes still have the hairs. Tomatoes in particular are covered with these sticky hairs. They do trap small insects on a regular basis. They do kill insects.”
The number of these carnivorous plants is thought to have came up to 50 percent and many of them have until now been wrongly regarded as among the most harmless plants. Among them are species of petunia(矮牽牛), some special tobacco plants and cabbages, some varieties of potatoes and tomatoes, etc. Researchers at Royal Botanical Gardens Kew, which carried out the study, now believe there are hundreds more killer plants than previously realized.
It is thought that the technique was developed in the wild to get necessary nutrients in poor quality soil ­ and even various plants grown in your vegetable garden still have the ability.
The researchers, publishing their finding in the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, said: “We may be surrounded by many more murderous plants than we think.” “We are accustomed to thinking of plants as being immobile and harmless, and there is something deeply frightening about the thought of meat­eating plants，” they added.
【小題1】Tomatoes and potatoes kill insects to ________.

A．get more sticky hairs

B．make themselves grow better

C．make their roots stronger

D．a(chǎn)void falling down to the ground

【小題2】The word “carnivorous” in Paragraph 3 most probably means ________.

A．fast­growing	B．harmless
C．insect­killing	D．nutritious

【小題3】The insect­killing technique of vegetables is  developed most probably through ________.

A．evolution of species

B．helps from other garden plants

C．a(chǎn)rtificial cultivation

D．nutrients preserved in rich soil

【小題4】The text is probably taken from ________.

A．a(chǎn) student book	B．a(chǎn) science fiction
C．a(chǎn) scientific repot	D．a(chǎn) bulletin board

When you tidy your messy bedroom，it gets a lot easier to find things.Dreams may work the same way for a messy brain，helping you learn by organizing memories and ideas.
To test how much dreams can help learning，Robert Stickgold had some students play a shape­fitting game called Tetris (俄羅斯方塊) for a few hours and then go to sleep.Soon they were dreaming of falling Tetris shapes.Interestingly，the worst Tetris players had the most Tetris dreams and improved their game the most.Similar tests have shown the same results for all kinds of skills.
As we dream，many important tasks are getting done.The brain decides what to keep and what to forget.It is connecting new experiences to older learning.In fact，the brain is learning all night long.
Another important task of dreams may be to help us deal with emotions (情緒)．At night，emotions are in the driver’s seat.People who have had an upsetting experience often dream  about  it  afterward.Often  the  dream event  changes somehow—another way the brain tries to make the memory less upset.So if your best friend moves away，you might dream that you’re the one who’s moving.In fact，dreams have a proven power to improve mood，and people who dream about what’s bothering them usually feel better sooner than those who don’t.
Everybody dreams for a couple of hours every night—in the course   of your life，you’ll spend about 25 years asleep and 6 years dreaming.There’s probably no single answer to the question why we dream，but there doesn’t have to be.One dream might help you remember your math facts，while another might lead to a new invention，or give you a fun，crazy story to tell your friends.It’s all in a night’s work for our busy，mysterious brains.
【小題1】Robert Stickgold’s test shows that________.

A．games are useful for memory

B．dreams can help improve skills

C．players stop learning in dreams

D．tasks can only be settled through dreams

【小題2】We can learn from Paragraph 4 that________.

A．dreams can get rid of sufferings

B．only drivers can deal with emotions

C．one may be less upset after a dream

D．dreams can copy what one experienced

【小題3】Which of the following does the author probably agree with?

A．Dreaming does harm to one’s mood.

B．Dreaming affects the quality of sleep.

C．It’s hard to find out the secrets of dreaming.

D．It’s not so important to know the cause of dreaming.

【小題4】What does the text focus on?

A．Dreams and memories.	B．Dreams and emotions.
C．The benefits of dreams.	D．The patterns of dreams.

【小題5】In which part of a magazine can this text be found?

A．Entertainment.	B．Tourism.
C．Science.	D．Advertisement.

Depression (抑郁癥) is a serious problem today.Depression causes workers to be unproductive，causing companies and countries to lose billions of dollars.One expert says that depression is like cancer because it is “widespread，costly and deadly”．Depression hits one person in five around the world.
Although people have believed depression to be a problem among the rich and educated，studies show that depression is a problem among everyone.Over any six­month period，between five to seven percent of the world’s population will be suffering from a serious depression.Suicide rates among people suffering from the disease in its extreme，or clinical form were 80 percent higher than in the population at large，and sufferers were four times more likely to have heart attacks.People who suffer from depression often have problems sleeping，getting up on time，and doing work productively.
Depression，which researchers agree has its origin in the genes，brings loss of confidence and ability to concentrate—making it impossible for employees and managers to work efficiently.
Depression is made more serious in China by Chinese’s inability to face it.Many people believe that depressed people are either weak or lazy.Besides，there is no good treatment，with few specialists available.“Most patients in China just don’t get help，”a Chinese doctor says.“In my hospital，I have to see 30 or 40 patients in a morning，just have time to say ‘Hello，how do you feel？’”
In Western countries，people are not afraid to admit that they have depression，but most do not tell it to their boss，because they fear that they will be stricken_off_the_rolls.“In my experience，aging bosses are the most willing to admit they have it.Because they feel the most secure about themselves，” an American doctor says.
Hopefully，in the near future，people around the world will be able to admit that they have depression so that they can get the right treatment.
【小題1】Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A．It is widely believed that everyone may suffer from depression.

B．Depression brings great problems to its sufferers in their life and work.

C．Depression is a commonly­existing problem only in rich countries.

D．The poorer and the less educated a person is，the less he will suffer from depression.

【小題2】．Compared to normal people，the depressed people are likely to be________.

A．very unconfident and often absent­minded

B．easy to avoid being hit by heart attacks

C．working efficiently and productively

D．either weak or lazy

【小題3】Depression becomes more serious in China because of________.

A．the understanding of the problem

B．the lack of treatment and doctors

C．their unwillingness to tell it to their boss

D．the doctors’ careless work

【小題4】What can we infer from the passage?

A．People are suffering from depression because of the shortage of specialists.

B．The aging bosses around the world dare to say they are depressed.

C．More and more patients will turn to specialists for help.

D．Western people are braver than Chinese people.

【小題5】What does the underlined words in the 5th paragraph mean?

A．Hired.	B．Dismissed.
C．Promoted.	D．Recommended.