When Lady Gaga releases a new single, it quickly goes around the world.

Now scientists have discovered the same thing happens with the songs of another unusual and interesting creature – the humpback whale.

The mammals become interested in new tunes just like people do, and the most popular original whale songs spread globally like hit singles.

The discovery has astonished experts who say it is the first time such a large, “population-wide cultural exchange” has been seen in the animal kingdom.

Male humpback whales are well-known for the loud, long and complex songs they make during the mating season. Scientists are unsure why the males sing. Some believe it is a way of advertising themselves to females, others that it allows migrating(迁徙)whales to stay in contact.

Each song lasts for 10 to 20 minutes and the males can sing continuously for 24 hours. At any period of time, all the males in a population sing the same song. But a study, published in the journal Current Biology, shows that this song changes over time and spreads around the oceans. Dr Ellen Garland, of Queensland University, said: “Our findings show cultural exchange on a vast scale. Songs move like cultural ripples from one population to another, causing all males to change their song to a new version.”

Researchers recorded songs from six neighboring populations of whales in the Pacific over a decade. They found that new versions of the songs appear over time and always spread from west to east.

It takes around two years for songs that appear in the waters off Australia to be heard in French Polynesia.

Dr Garland believes that a small number of whales may migrate to other populations carrying the new songs with them, or that they are heard by passing whales.

Dr Garland said, “We think this male search for song novelty(新颖)is in the hope of being that little bit different and perhaps more attractive to the opposite sex.”

63. The author mentions Lady Gaga to ______.

A. prove the popularity of her hit singles　　

B. show whales’ songs also spread globally

C. emphasize humpbacks are as famous as her 　　　

D. provide readers with a new way to learn her songs

64. The underlined word “release” in Paragraph 1 means “______”.

A. announce　　　　 　　　　　　　 B. sell　　　　　　　　　　 　　　

C. publish D. record

65. The discovery is very astonishing to experts, because it reveals ______.

A. the existence of cultural change　　　　　　　　　　

B. cultural exchange on a vast scale

C. the reason why male humpbacks sing　　

D. the novelty of the songs of humpbacks

66. According to the passage, Dr Garland wants to tell us ______.

A. male whales adopt new songs to make themselves distinct

B. all female humpbacks also change their song during the mating season

C. whales have their own tunes that spread around the world for a decade

D. whales can sing continuously for 24 hours when migrating from west to east

One day over lunch, I explained to a group of boys that my father was a prince.

“My grandfather, he’s a chief. It’s sort of like the king of the tribe, you know… like the Indians. So that makes my father a prince. He’ll take over when my grandfather dies.”

“What about after that?” one of my friends asked, “I mean, will you go back and be a prince?”

“Well… if I want to, I could. It’s sort of complicated, see, because the tribe is full of warriors. Like Obama…that means ‘Burning Spear.’ The men in our tribe all want to be chief, so my father has to settle these before I can come.”

As the words flew out of my mouth, I felt the boys changed attitudes towards me, more curious and familiar when we bumped into each other in the class, a part of myself even began to believe the story. But another part of me knew that what I was telling them was a lie, something I’d constructed from the information I’d picked up from my mother. However, after a week of staying with my father in the flesh, I had decided that I preferred his more distant image in my mind, an image I could change or ignore when convenient. If my father hadn’t exactly disappointed me, he remained something unknown, something grand and threatening.

My mother had felt my anxiety as the days of his arrival drawing near—I suppose her the same, from her efforts to prepare the apartment we’d rented for him, she would try to assure me that the reunion would go smoothly. She told that she had stayed a correspondence(通信)with him throughout the time we had been separated, she explained, and he knew all about me. Like her, my father had remarried, and I now had five brothers and one sister living in Kenya. He had been in a bad car accident, and this trip was part of his recovery after a long stay in the hospital.

“You two will become great friends,” she decided.

59. Other boys changed attitudes towards me because ______.

A. they were more curious and familiar

B. I told a lie to them which made them respect me

C. my father was a prince and I would be a prince, too

D. I was friendly to them and made friends with them finally

60. It can be inferred from the text that ______.

A. my parents had been divorced

B. father had an accident on the way to meet us

C. my father and I would surely become good friends

D. I would go back to hometown and become a prince

61. The underlined phrase “bumped into” in Paragraph 5 means “______”.

A. came across　　 　　　　　　　 B. crashed into　　　　　　

C. stared at D. talked with

62. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. This reunion was specially planned by father.

B. Father was not what I had always thought in my brain.

C. It was a long time since father and mother kept in touch.

D. I was unwilling to see my father because he abandoned us.

Baby girls make their way directly for dolls as soon as they can crawl, while boys will head for cars, a study has shown. The findings, the first to show differences in very young babies, suggest there is a biological basis to their preferences.

Psychologists Dr Brenda Todd from City University London carried out an experiment involving 90 babies aged 9 months to 36 months. The babies were allowed to choose from seven toys. Some were typically boys’ toys ---- a car, a digger, a ball and a blue teddy. The rest were girls’ toys: a pink teddy, a doll and a cooking set. They were placed a meter away from the toys；and could pick whichever toy they liked 。Their choice and the amount of time they spent playing with each toy were recorded.

Of the youngest children (9 to 14 months), girls spent significantly longer playing with the doll than boys, and boys spent much more time with the car and ball than the girls did. Among the two and three-year-olds, girls spent 50 percent of the time playing with the doll while only two boys briefly touched it. The boys spent almost 90 percent of their time playing with cars, which the girls barely touched. There was no link between the parents’ view on which toys were more appropriate for boys or girls, and the children’s choice.

Dr Brenda Todd said, “Children of this age are already exposed to much socialization. Boys may be given ‘toys that go’ while girls get toys they can care for, which may help shape their preference. But these findings agree with the former idea that children show natural interests in particular kinds of toys. There could be a biological basis for their choices. Males through evolution have been adapted to prefer: moving objects, probably through hunting instincts（本能）, while girls prefer warmer colors such as pink, the colour of a newborn baby.”                                

55. Baby boys and girls have different toy preferences probably because ________.

A. baby boys are much more active            

B. baby girls like bright colors more 

C. their parents treat them differently          

D. there is a natural difference between them

56. Both baby boys and baby girls like to play with ________ according to the study.

A. a ball                       B. a teddy      

C. a car                              D. a doll

57. What can we infer from Paragraph 3?

A. Nine-month-old baby boys don’t play with dolls at all.

B. Two-year-old baby girls sometimes play with cars and balls.

C. The older the babies are, the more obvious their preference is.

D. Parents should teach their babies to share each other’s toys.

58. What conclusion did Dr. Brenda Todd draw from the results of the study?

A. Adults purposely influence their babies’ preference.

B. Babies’ preference isn’t affected by social surroundings.

C. Baby boys preferring to moving toys will be good at hunting.

D. Baby girls preferring warmer colors will be warm-hearted. 

    Work Your Mind

Here’s something to think about the next time you ask your teacher for help: struggling with schoolwork on your own can help you learn. According to a recent study, the more you struggle while you are learning new information, the better you can remember it later.

This theory might surprise you. When teachers are presenting new information, they often give students lots of help. But a new study shows this may not be the best way to support learning. “Don't be too quick to get help when learning something new,” education expert Manu Kapur told TFK. “Try to work on it yourself even if it means trying different ways.”

Kapur came up with the idea that struggling can lead to better learning. Then he tested it out on students in Singapore. He separated students into two groups. In the first group, students were asked to solve math problems with the teacher’s help. In the second group, students were asked to solve the same problems by helping one another, instead of getting help from the teacher.

With the teacher’s help, students in the first group were able to find the correct answers. Students in the second group did not solve the problems correctly. But they did come up with a lot of good ideas. The students were then tested on what they had learned. The group without any help from a teacher scored much higher than the group who had help. Kapur said working to find the answers helped students understand the process, not just the solution.

Kapur’s advice for kids is to put a lot of effort into learning something new rather than going to your teacher for help. “Simply doing a little work or nothing at all won’t work,” says Kapur. “The struggle needs to be a genuine attempt to figure out or solve a problem in as many ways as possible.” 

51. When you have doubt on schoolwork, you’d better ____________.

A. ask your teacher for help                         

B. make it clear by yourself

C. ask your classmates to help you               

D. ask your parents for help

52. What’s Manu Kapur educational idea on learning new knowledge?

A. Give students much help as soon as possible.

B. Let students learn it on themselves in one way.

C. Let students learn it by themselves in the same way.

D. Let students learn it for themselves in different ways.

53. How did Kapur check his idea on better learning?

A. By asking questions.                         

B. By solving art problems.

C. By group comparisons.                            

D. By solving science problems.

54. What is most important in learning knowledge?

A. Getting the teacher’s help.                

B. Getting the student’s help.

C. Grasping the learning course.            

D. Receiving the final solution.

We all have storms through our lives. But we have no right to make everyone else suffer with our own   31  .

     The carpenter I   32   to help me restore an old farmhouse had just finished a(n)   33   first day on the job. A flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric saw quit, and now his truck   34   to start.

    While I drove him home, he sat in stony    35   .

    On arriving, he invited me in to meet his family. As we walked toward the front door, he paused   36    at a small tree,   37   tips of the branches with both hands.

    When opening the door, he underwent a(n)   38   transformation. His tanned face was wreathed in smiles, and he   39    his two small children and gave his wife a kiss.

    The next day my   40   drove me to ask him about what I had seen. “Oh, that’s my trouble tree,” he replied. “I know I can’t   41   having troubles on the job, but the troubles don’t   42   to the house with my family. So I just   43   them up on the tree. Then in the morning I pick them up again.”

    “  44   thing ！,” he smiled, “when I come out in the morning to pick them up, there aren’t nearly as   45   as I remember the night before.”

    Putting   46   around our problems is a really good idea --- it prevents our difficulties from spilling over onto loved people, who can’t do anything about our problems. Why    47   them if they can’t help us?

    So, plant yourself a trouble tree outside and use it   48   you come home. Be grateful that you have loved ones to go home to    49   your loved one is simply your beloved dog. And when you picked up your troubles on the way each morning, be   50   that they’re not as heavy as they were the night before.

 In the near future, more ________ in the space technology will be made by scientists, which are playing a more and more important part in our daily life.

A. advantages      B. adventures            C. advances       D. advertisements

 The latest result from the police station is that the __________ of the killer is still a complete mystery.

   A. idea            B. nature           C. character       D. identity

 Though many students fail to pass the National College Entrance Examination every year, they will have learned many ________ lessons such as hard work, devotion, communication etc. during their high school.

    A. reasonable             B. popular         C. amazing        D. valuable

 We all believe in a young man whose name is John because if he promises to do something, he’ll do it. How __________ he is!

    A. active          B. stubborn        C. reliable         D. independent

---How is the result, doctor?

---Well, your health is __________ good, but you do have a few minor problems. Take exercise more and you’ll be all right.

　 A. gradually　　　 B. frequently　　　 C. generally　　　 D. actually