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While I was jumping rope, my smartphone took a fall to the floor which created cracks ( 裂缝 ) on my screen. However, the music kept playing 30 minutes later, I could see only one tenth of my screen while the rest was black. The next morning, I decided not to use it for 24 hours. I felt a sense of calm that day, which led to my not using it for one week. One week ended up becoming 60 days in total without my smartphone.

Here are some advantages I noticed in this challenge.

—You’ll become “bored”

Without my phone, I became bored, but my mind went through all kinds of topics. Boredom （无聊 ) is a perfect way to create new ideas on a business or project. When you are bored, you allow your mind to relax to reach all possibilities.

—You’ll be able to reduce your “work” hours

A survey found that adults checked their smartphones 85 times a day, or once every 10 minutes. As I learned in my challenge, by not having my smartphone, I fell into deep work more easily, so I completed my tasks in a shorter time.

—You’ll improve your mental health

Without my phone, I avoided reading negative ( 负面的 ) news and comments. While that helped make a big improvement in my mental health, the biggest reason for it was truly communicating with people. It brought me more connections with humans in the real world. I went to more dinners with friends and asked more questions to strangers.

1 ． What happened to the writer’s smartphone?

A ． It was lost. B ． It had no sound.

C ． Its music stopped playing. D ． Its screen was mostly black.

2 ． How long did the writer stop using the phone in the end?

A ． For 24 hours. B ． For one week.

C ． For one month. D ． For sixty days.

3 ． Boredom is a good way for the writer ________.

A ． to create new ideas B ． to start a business

C ． to set up a project D ． to relax the body

4 ． Without the smartphone, the writer could finish the work ________.

A ． more terribly B ． more quickly

C ． more carelessly D ． more comfortably

5 ． What can improve people’s mental health according to the passage?

A ． Chatting on the phone. B ． Reading negative news.

C ． Communicating in the real world. D ． Avoiding meeting friends and strangers.

In a small village, there was a middle-aged postman, who just turned 20 years old and started delivering ( 投递 ) all kinds of happy or sad stories to each home day after day for 50 kilometers. 20 years flew by, and so many changes took place, but the road from the post office to the village always hadn’t had any trees and nothing but the flying dust ( 尘土 ) could be seen.

“How long shall I go along this lonely road?”

As soon as he thought he must spend his life riding the bike on the dusty road with no flowers or trees, he felt somewhat sorry.

One day, when he finished delivering the letters and was ready to return, he happened to pass by a flower shop.“Right, that’s it!” He walked into the shop, bought a handful of wild flower seeds ( 种子 ), and from the next day on put these seeds along the roadside. Thus, after one day, two days, one month, two months... he always kept putting the wild flower seeds along the roadside.

Before long, on the lonely road, where he had come and gone for 20 years, grew up a lot of little flowers, in all seasons endlessly.

For the villages, the flowers were more enjoyable than any mail the postman delivered in all his life.

On the road without dust but full of petals ( 花瓣 ), the postman rode his bike, losing himself in the sweet smell and not feeling lonely and anxious any more.

1 ． How old was the postman when he started his job?

A ． About thirty years old. B ． About twenty years old.

C ． Over forty years old. D ． Over fifty years old.

2 ． What was the road like before?

A ． Covered with flowers. B ． Covered with trees.

C ． Full of flying dust. D ． Full of seeds.

3 ． What did the postman buy at the flower shop?

A ． Wild flowers. B ． Bikes. C ． Wild flower seeds. D ． Petals.

4 ． According to the passage, which of the following is true?

A ． The villagers showed no interest in the flowers.

B ． The postman enjoyed the road full of flowers.

C ． The villagers helped buy the flower seeds.

D ． The postman still felt lonely in the end.

5 ． What does the writer want to express in this passage?

A ． Little things make a big difference.

B ． Failure is the mother of success.

C ． Practice makes perfect.

D ． Old habits die hard.

After opening a free online Harry Potter center in April, British writer J. K. Rowling brings even more good news.

In May, Rowling started writing a new story called The Ickabog , which was free to read online to help amuse people who stayed at home because of COVID-19.

The new story centers around a monster ( 怪物 ) known as the Ickabog, a fierce child-eating monster who lives in the northern tip of an imaginary land known as Cornucopia and has super powers.

Though the book is written for children, it is also fascinating to adults. It talks about many things, such as weak leadership, and suppression ( 镇压 ) of disagreement.

“ The Ickabog is a story about truth and the abuse ( 滥用 ) of power,” Rowling wrote on the website. “The themes are timeless and could be used in any era or any country.”

Rowling put the first two chapters online on May 26, with daily writing to follow until July 10.

She is also planning to publish ( 出版 ) the book in print later this year and then give away the money from its sales to projects and organizations helping the groups most influenced by COVID-19.

1 ． When did Rowling begin writing the new story The Ickabog online?

A ． In April. B ． In May. C ． In June. D ． In July.

2 ． What does the underlined word “fierce” in Paragraph 3 probably mean?

A ．凶猛的 B ．失落的 C ．善良的 D ．兴奋的

3 ． Which theme is mentioned in the story The Ickabog ?

A ． COVID-19. B ． Good leadership. C ． The abuse of power. D ． Working together.

4 ． How did Rowling finish The Ickabog ?

A ． She finished the whole story in one go. B ． She wrote part of it every day online.

C ． She printed the story by herself. D ． She told the whole story twice.

5 ． From the end of the passage, we can most probably learn Rowling is ________.

A ． helpful B ． famous C ． hard-working D ． powerful

Boyan Slat has been dreaming of cleaning up the world’s oceans for a long time.

In 2010, he went on a diving ( 潜水 ) vacation in Greece and was shocked. “I saw more plastic bags than fish in the water,” he said.

From then on, Slat began to pay more attention to ocean pollution. He decided to give up higher education and set up the Ocean Cleanup, a non-government organization. Its purpose is to clean up ocean rubbish. He has set up the world’s first ocean cleanup system ( 系统 ) with his team.

Every year, over 8 million tons of plastic end up in our oceans, and it can take up to 500 years to break down. In 2018, the World Economic Forum predicted that the weight of ocean plastic would match that of all the fish in our oceans by 2050. Sea animals easily get caught in plastic. They can’t move. They can even die if they eat it. Smaller plastic pieces can also enter the food chain ( 链 ) and end up in our bodies.

Slat’s plan was to create an environmentally-friendly, large system to clear out plastic rubbish from the ocean.

After seven years of tests, on October 2nd, 2019, a machine called System 001/B came out. It successfully caught and collected a large amount of plastic rubbish floating in the ocean.

Slat and his team are working to improve System 001/B ． Their dream is to clear out 90 percent of all the ocean plastic by 2040.

1 ． What did Boyan Slat care more about after his vacation in Greece?

A ． Diving. B ． Plastic bags.

C ． Ocean pollution. D ． Higher education.

2 ． How long does it take to break down 8 million tons of plastic?

A ． More than 7 years. B ． Up to 30 years.

C ． Less than 40 years. D ． About 500 years.

3 ． From the prediction of the World Economic Forum in 2018, we can learn ________.

A ． little pollution ends up in the ocean B ． ocean plastic pollution is serious

C ． animals prefer plastic D ． people like sea food

4 ． How did System 001/B work?

A ． It collected much plastic rubbish in the ocean.

B ． It dealt with all the rubbish in the ocean.

C ． It cleared out rubbish everywhere.

D ． It cleared out 90% of the plastic.

5 ． What’s the main idea of the passage?

A ． Animals and humans. B ． Plastic problems.

C ． Life in the future. D ． Ocean cleanup.

Aunt Jia had a snack stand ( 摊位 ) in our neighborhood. Her snacks never failed to satisfy my stomach. What’s more, she was always patient with her customers. Even COVID-19 didn’t influence her business.

One day, during the last Spring Festival, I saw a large family visiting her stand. It formed a heart-warming picture: Each family member was enjoying being together. As they were leaving, I noticed Aunt Jia felt a bit sad.

I was amazed. In my experience, she was always smiling. I went forward and ordered my favorite snack. When she was wrapping ( 打包 ), I couldn’t help saying, “Happy New Year, Aunt Jia! Why don’t you take a break?” Aunt Jia looked surprised, but she soon replied,“Happy New Year! I love working here in this city. It’s too cold and snowy in my hometown.” I became more curious ( 好奇的 ). “Where do you come from? Aren’t your family waiting for you to come home for the celebration?” Aunt Jia stopped for a few seconds. “They sure are”, she answered gently. “But I have to stay here. I’m from a mountain area, where it would not be easy to make money. I’d be comfortable if I were home now. But in order to live a better life, I must work hard.” I froze thinking about her words. Having noticed my shock, Aunt Jia smiled.

To get something better, sacrifice ( 牺牲 ) is a must. This is a rule that people from all walks of life must follow.

1 ． What business did Aunt Jia have in the neighborhood?

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2 ． How did Aunt Jia feel after a large family visited her stand?

_________________________________________

3 ． Where did Aunt Jia come from?

_________________________________________

4 ． Why did Aunt Jia work hard?

_________________________________________

5 ． What rule can we learn from Aunt Jia’s experience?

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