Growing up in America, I enjoyed the convenience of eating the most attractive, well-packaged foods of the 20th century, including all the candies we often see near the cash register.

During those times I wasn't aware how bad sugar was, and in fact, neither was anyone around me. So I continued to spread jam on my toast and eat ice cream daily.

Strangely enough, I felt that sweet was some sort of wonderful drug: it gave me the energy to function properly, to feel good and to perform at my best, all of which seemed necessary for growth. So why avoid it?

Years later, huge food companies, like General Mills and Post, began pumping more sugar into their products, and then more and more people appeared with bigger bellies (腹部）。It finally came to my awareness that our society was becoming more miserable and unfit. And from what?

From sugar!

I began to do some research into sugar and what it did exactly to our bodies. To my amazement, I found its damage was just as bad as, if not worse than, what alcohol and cigarettes brought about. You see, when you take in more sugar than you need or burn, your body and brain become over-active. This, in effect, causes your cognitive abilities (认知能力）to slow down, your mood to get to the extremes (极端），your skin to age faster, your blood to become thicker and your liver and kidneys to be worn out.

But what surprised me most, out of all of these horrible side effects, was that sugar adds extra pounds to your waistline, even if you do exercise regularly. And what I've always wanted, for the past few years, is to remove that extra fat around my “love handles" so that I could finally see my abs (腹肌）.

I just didn't know, this whole time, what damage I had been doing to myself and my dreams, but I knew I had to do something. Something I had never done before.

1. What did the writer mean by “wonderful drug" in the third paragraph?

A. Sugar could be a cure for some diseases.

B. He benefited a lot from consuming sugar.

C. Sugar could make his life more convenient.

D. He had a better relationship with his friends.

2. Why did huge food companies add more sugar into their products?

A. To satisfy the taste of the general population.

B. To encourage people to eat more properly.

C. To meet the requirements for food safety.

D. To raise awareness of keeping healthy.

3.What did the writer find in his research?

A. Sugar causes much less harm than alcohol.

B. Sugar lovers gain no weight with exercise.

C. Sugar lovers experience changeable moods.

D. Sugar reduces people's ability to understand.

4.After the passage,the writer will most probably write about

A. how he dreams big B. how he takes exercise

C. how he cuts sugar D. how he stops skin aging

【参考答案】BADC

New research suggests that dogs might be able to help save diseased citrus trees.

A group of scientists trained dogs to use their sense of smell to detect a crop disease called citrus-greening. The disease has affected orange, lemon and grapefruit trees in the American states of Florida, California and Texas.

The dogs can detect the disease weeks to years before it appears on tree leaves and roots, the researchers report. A study on their findings was published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The report says using dogs is also faster, less costly and more exact than having people collect hundreds of leaves for lab analysis.

Timothy Gottwald is a researcher with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and a co-writer of the study. He told The Associated Press, "This technology is thousands of years old-the dog's nose. We've just trained dogs to hunt new prey."

Citrus-greening is caused by a bacteria (细菌）that is spread by a tiny insect that feeds on the leaves and stems of citrus trees. Once a tree is infected (感染），there is no cure. The disease has also hurt citrus crops in Central and South America and Asia. In one experiment involving grapefruit trees in Texas, trained dogs were correct 95 percent of the time in telling the difference between newly infected trees and healthy ones.“The earlier you detect a disease, the better chance you have at stopping an epidemic(流行病）by removing infected trees,"Gottwaldsaid.

Matteo Garbelotto studies plants at the University of California, Berkeley. He says the new research shows that dogs can detect an infection well before current methods. Garbelotto has been involved in similar research but had no part in the new study.

Laura Sims is a plant scientist with Louisiana Tech University. She praised the steps taken to find out if the dogs were detecting the bacteria itself or a plant's reaction to an infection. To do that, the researchers infected different kinds of unrelated plants with the bacteria in a laboratory. The dogs were still able to pick out the infected plants.

Gottwald said, “You've seen dogs working in airports, detecting drugs and explosives. Maybe soon you will see them working on more farms.”

5.According to the research, trained dogs can__________.

A. help infected trees recover from diseases B. recognize a crop disease in its early stage

C. cause fruit trees to grow faster than usual D. reduce the cost of planting some fruit trees

6.What does the underlined part "new prey" in Paragraph 4 refer to?

A. Infected plants. B. Fruit trees. C. Tiny insects. D. Favourite foods.

7.Why did the researchers do experiments on unrelated plants?

A. To further prove the findings. B. To explore the plant diseases.

C. To present different opinions. D. To discover a plant's reactions.

8. How does Gottwald feel about the future use of this new method?

A. Doubtful. B. Confident. C. Uninterested. D. Curious.

【参考答案】BAAB

第二节七选五

根据短文内容,从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项

How to Become a Top Student

Successful students use different techniques to study, which brings them more success. ①__________Here are the four techniques almost all top-performing students use.

They are regular. Almost all successful students study regularly, because they know “what you give is what you get”. If you put in regular hours of studying, then you will learn more and get better grades. ②__________This will help you to study regularly.

They have clear goals. All top-performing students have definite, specific goals. ③__________They motivate you and drive you to study more. But make sure that you do not get carried away. Set realistic goals which can challenge you, but do not seem impossible or too difficult to achieve.

They study without strain (压力). Successful students study a lot. But they study without putting strain on themselves. Most students make the mistake of studying too hard or studying continuously for a long time. ④__________Studying should be done in a balanced manner. Take a break for a few minutes, after studying for 30 or 45 minutes. Relax, walk around your room or house, or drink some water and return to studying. Such short breaks will refresh your brain and you will learn more.

⑤__________Studying is not something you do just because your parents ask you to do it. It’s actually very important for you. Studying gives you knowledge and skills that will remain with you for the rest of your life. It gives you the ability to get a job and earn money. And successful students recognize the value of studying well.
A.This creates tension and actually slows down learning and memory.
B.But to score A grade in English, you should make well-planned efforts.
C.Set aside some hours, each day or each week, for studying.
D.Having such goals gives you a purpose to study better.
E.Learn their techniques, and you will also join their rank.
F.They finish their homework on time.
G.They give importance to study.

答案：1. E 2. C 3. D 4. A 5. G
解析：

1. E项中techniques与上文呼应,学习他们的技巧,你也会加入他们的行列。

2. 本段有规律地学习,所以C项(每天或每星期都留些时间来学习),符合语境。

3. D项中goals与上文呼应，有目标可以让你学得更好。

4. 上文说长时间学习是错误的说法,可知这会产生紧张,会让你学习和记忆力变慢。

5. 本段主要讲学习的重要性,故A项可作为段旨统领下文。