Researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have found that sleep helps improve brain performance by shrinking synapses in the brain. A synapse is the area where cells pass messages to other cells.

Cirelli is a leading scientist at the school’s Center for Sleep and Consciousness. She found that sleep is when the human brain mixes information it has learned while awake into its general collection of knowledge. However, the brain forgets unimportant details. This forgetting is important. It makes space for new learning and new memories.

Cirelli said that the Center’s research began with this hypothesis: We sleep so that our brain can repair and refresh itself. She said the idea seems simple and reasonable. However, testing and discovering how it works has been extremely difficult. Cirelli and Center director Giulio Tononi have been trying to prove the connection between sleep and the brain’s synapses since 2003. Cirelli said the researchers knew that “stronger synapses are also bigger.” So, they began their study by “measuring the size of the synapses” in the brain.

They also knew that during sleep, the brain checks on all its synapses and resets itself for the next day. The team wanted to see if the synapses of the brain are bigger after being awake all day and smaller after a good night’s sleep. Synapses are only about 20-40 nanometers wide. So, the team looked for changes in these already tiny spaces between nerve cells. The team had lo wail until improvements in laboratory technology made it possible to see these tiny changes.

Cirelli says they found that synapse size and strength are upset by being awake and restored by sleeping. She says our synapses shrink as our brains clean themselves during sleep. We wake up refreshed and ready to fill those synapses with new information.

【1】Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

A. Sleep can only keep us healthy.

B. Sleep can help our brain function better.

C. Sleep can mix all the information.

D. Sleep can take up two-thirds of our life.

【2】What does it refer to in Paragraph 4?

A. The measuring the size of the synapses.

B. The space for new learning and new memories.

C. The way our brain can repair and refresh itself.

D. The connection between sleep and the brain’s synapses.

【题目】用括号内单词的正确形式填空。
（1）George didn't find it difficult at all, but it was really a (challenge) task for me.
（2） (blame) for the breakdown of the computer, Alice was in low spirits.
（3）Your statement is in conflict the rest of the evidence.
（4）The town hall (complete) in the 1800's was the most distinguished building at that time.
（5）I keep my reference books near my desk convenience.
（6）I've been told that the medical team, (consist) of five doctors, is to be sent.
（7）The West Lake is very beautiful and it is beyond (describe).
（8）He was surprised to find the room (furnish) with modern equipment.
（9）Under the (guide) of the local guide, we had a tour of the small town.
（10） (lack) enthusiasm for sports, rejected the invitation to a football game.

【题目】任务型阅读
Today we eat on the go, at our desks and even in front of computers. We eat takeout, delivered and packaged meals.
“Over the past three decades, people have started eating out more than ever before and purchasing more prepared foods at the grocery store, which tend to contain more fat, salt and sugar than their home-made foods,” noted US healthy living website Spark People.
It encourages us to value the time we spend preparing, sharing and consuming food, as a recent USA today article put it. It all started in 1986 with the efforts of Slow Food's founding father, Italian activist Carlo Petrini, who wanted to bring back food varieties and flavors that had gone dark in the face of industrialization.Now his idea is almost the mainstream.
Starting at the table, the movement promotes an unhurried way of life founded on the idea that everyone has a right to cooking pleasure, and that everyone must also take responsibility to “protect the heritage (遗产) of food, tradition and culture that make this celebration of the senses possible”, wrote The Phnom Penh Post.
“ It means turning down the speed at which we eat and increasing the amount of time we spend dining together with other people,” Althea Zanecosky, spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association, told The Huf fington Post.” Dinner table conversations keep families together,” noted the Belgian non-profit organization Greenfudge.
A. It is a way to bring back the social togetherness of yesterday.
B. It seems that we have adapted our foods to our fast-paced lives.
C. So the Slow Food Movement has occurred against this fast-food trend.
D. Slow Food doesn't necessarily mean food that takes a long time to cook.
E. It is based on the idea that we should spend as much time as possible on cooking.
F. It's not only the food itself but also the time we spend dining together that matters.
G. At that time, he asked people to follow a more sustainable (可持续的) living model.

【题目】18、单句改错
每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加，删除或修改。
增加： 在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧）, 并在其右面的横线上写出该加的词。
删除： 把多余的词用斜线（＼）划掉，并在其右面的横线上写出多余的词，并用斜线（＼）划掉。
修改： 在错的词下划一横线，并在该词右面横线上面写出修改后的词。
注意：每句只有一处错误，多改不计分。
（1）They live in a society where there is a serious competition for a place at university.
（2）The normal secondary school day, as in most other countries, last eight hours.
（3）When the school day ends, the children are not allowed relax and enjoy themselves.
（4）Study for up to 17 hours a day is a fact of life for South Korean secondary school pupils.
（5）But after that most parents make their children to stay at school for extra classes.
（6）In the course of this journey they are provided with experience in Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade.
（7）Getting a good degree from a top university is the only way to be sure of get a professional well-paid job.
（8）Most of them have to study all evening in libraries, with private tutor or at private academies.
（9）I've never had a boyfriend and neither has my friends.
（10）After school she has to study for other four hours.

【题目】单词拼写（根据首写字母或者所给汉语意思，完成句子）
（1）On a typical night she gets home at midnight, completely e.
（2）Her eyes slowly grew (习惯于) to the dark.
（3）She has artistic (潜能) for music.
（4）Even in this small village, you can find some (典型的) British clubs.
（5）The two girls stood up (同时).
（6）The coffee (使…能够) me to keep awake during the dull concert last week.
（7）Luckily, the little girl has r from her illness.
（8）I u you to give up smoking, because it is bad for your health.
（9）U, you'll have to make the decision yourself.
（10）No one doubts her (能力) as a manger.

【题目】阅读理解
When I graduated from college I dreamed of being a television news reporter. Having no experience, I had to work in a small town until I finally got my big break in the form of a job in Boston. I made it.
Soon, reality set in. I was too often sent to run after accused criminals out of courts, waiting outside of crime scene tape or at the doorstep of a family still crying for tragedy (悲剧). My breaking point came the day I accidentally informed a young woman that her mother died. It was the worst day of my professional life and the day I decided I no longer wanted to shine a light on these stories. My career was ebbing, and at the same time my personal life was too-I divorced.
My mom had always told me “When you're feeling extremely upset, go help someone else.” So I started seeking out stories of people who had been in the news under tragic circumstances but were doing something inspiring with their lives: a young girl who was paralyzed (瘫痪的) by an accident but was uplifting her classmates with her positive spirit, a blind and autistic (自闭的) musician who learned to play 27 instruments, a disabled soldier who opened his own art studio. I started to tell and promote stories like them.
Over the last 10 years I have discovered my kindness gift: my ability to see the beautiful side of a person and reflect it back to them and the world. In telling stories of people turning their own hurt into acts of helping others I have become more sympathetic, more grateful and kinder. I have learned kindness is who we are, that our power for it is limitless and that, as we shine a light on it, it grows.
（1）What changed the author's working direction in his job in Boston?
A.The tragedy in the society
B.The low payment of the job
C.The hurt from his divorce
D.The fear of cruel criminals
（2）What is the meaning of the underlined word “ebbing” in paragraph 2?
A.taking off
B.getting into trouble
C.unchangeable at all
D.dull but important
（3）What the author's mother said means .
A.helping others is a way to escape from reality
B.helping others can comfort your soul
C.the best way of helping others is telling stories
D.it is difficult to make contributions to helping others
（4）According to the last paragraph, what does the author advise us to do?
A.To tell inspiring stories.
B.To fight against criminals.
C.To ignore our own hurt.
D.To do as much kindness as possible.

【题目】What a helpful girl she is! ___________. Which sentence can Not be best used to praise the girl highly?
A.She always helps others.
B.She is continually helping others.
C.She is constantly helping others.
D.She is always helping others.

【题目】阅读理解
English is a very interesting language. It has borrowed words from many other languages. Immigrants(移民) coming into the United States have contributed many words to the language, which have kept their original pronunciation. “Coolie” and “kowtow” were taken from the Chinese language, “kamikaze from the Japanese, “shampoo” from India, “blitz” from German, “amigo” and “Los Angeles” from Spanish and so on.
Many students have studied English for years, some as many as eight. However, some students still have difficulty in speaking fluent English. Some know many words but are unable to discern them when native speakers use them. In our Oral English classes we will focus on speaking and listening to native English speakers. For this reason, because we are trying to train your ears to hear English and your mouths to speak intelligible (易理解的) English, we will have a rule that ONLY ENGLISH will be spoken in our English classes. Anyone speaking Chinese in class will be required to pay a fine in order to encourage the speaking and understanding of English. If teachers enter a classroom and discover that anyone is speaking Chinese, they will require everyone in the room to pay the fine. It is everyone's job to follow the English-Only rule. It is for your benefit. It is because we want to accustom (使习惯于) your ears to hearing English.
Other subjects may be learned only from books but the only way to learn a foreign language is to SPEAK IT! Students are often nervous about speaking in class at first but we hope to make the classes fun, so you will forget your nervousness and learn to speak out. Enjoy your classes.
（1）The first paragraph is mainly about________.
A.the difficulty of learning English.
B.how interesting and various English is
C.different words in different languages
D.the immigrants' contributions to America
（2）The underlined word “discern” in Para 2 can be replaced by___________.
A.understand
B.notice
C.hear
D.speak
（3）In the author's opinion, the only way to learn a language well is to__________.
A.listen to it on the radio
B.learn it from books
C.play games with it
D.speak it often
（4）The article is probably aimed at________.
A.Japanese students
B.German students
C.Chinese students
D.Indian students

【题目】12、单词拼写（用单词的正确形式填空））
（1）The only clue to the （身份）of the killer was a half-smoked cigarette.
（2）The extremely weak patient had great trouble r from his serious illness.
（3）Hindi and English are the o languages of India.
（4）Taking plenty of exercises every day, he is always (充满活力的).
（5）It is generally required that a English-Chinese translator have a good c of both Chinese and English.
（6）The （航行）from America to France used to take two months.
（7）The old lady was g to the young man who had helped her.
（8）Though I haven't met him for many years, I could (辨认出) him immediately when I saw him in the crowd.
（9）The girl used to be shy, but is g getting active in group work and is more willing to express herself.
（10）Of these two basketball teams, the former comes from the US; the l comes from England.

【题目】阅读下面短文，在空白处填入一个适当的词，或填入括号中所给单词的正确形式。
Lake Titicaca, a famous lake in South America, lies on the border between Bolivia and Peru. But the lives of the ancient people, who once lived around the lake and culture was thought to be highly developed, have long remained a secret. Recently, however, scientists (take) part in an exploration project at the lake have found 1000-year-old temple beneath the water.
Divers from the study group have discovered a building that scientists think is the remains of a temple (build) by the people who once lived beside the lake. The project leaders hope to begin raising (value) materials from the site later this week bad weather forces a change in their plans.
"The scientists have not yet had the chance to study the materials (careful)," said the project (found), John Aubi. "But some have put forward the idea that the remains date from this period because they are similar those found elsewhere."
So far, they (make) more than 200 dives into water 30 metres deep. During these dives, they have been recording the ancient remains on film. There will be a meeting, starting later this year to review the film.