A student at Hellesdon High School in Norwich, England, has been called “Trash Girl” by bullies for her environmentally friendly ways, but that has not stopped her from cleaning up the environment. Using the basket on her bicycle, 12-year-old Nadia Sparkes has been picking up trash along her two-mile route to and from school since September of last year, the Eastern Daily Press reports. Despite her good intentions, some of the kids at Nadia’s school have nicknamed her “Trash Girl” and have bullied her for her selfless efforts to help the planet. But instead of letting them bring her down, she’s using their negativity as motivation. “I’m not going to stop doing the right thing because of them, and if they are going to call me trash girl, they can say it with respect,” she said. “I’m doing something to protect the world they also live in. It’s everyone’s job. We are all responsible for keeping this world safe, instead of believing that it’s always someone else’s job.” Questions 3 and 4 are based on the news report you have just heard. 3. Why do some of Nadia’s schoolmates call her “Trash Girl”? 4. What does Nadia do after she was given the nickname? Because she lives in a slum area. Because she often wears dirty clothes. Because she is too poor to buy anything. Because she picks up rubbish on the road.

Over the years, I have had the opportunity to visit nearly every state in the Union, and I never cease to be amazed by our country’s variety of people and places. I can step out of a subway into New York City, go around a Michigan blueberry farm, or dig for clams along a deserted beach in Maine. These places are very different but they represent the land I love. One of the strongest similarities I have found in all of us Americans is the way we treat holidays. We all love holidays. They give us a reason to forget routine, to celebrate, and to make memories. What holiday gives us a better chance to do all of these things than Thanksgiving? Thanksgiving weekend is for most of us the longest, least interrupted weekend of the year. It is the ideal time for family and friends to come together again. It is also the most purely American of all holidays, because it celebrates the settling of our country by the Pilgrims over 350 years ago. For me, Thanksgiving recalls all the things in life for which I am truly thankful. There is the simple beauty of the earth. There is the satisfaction that comes from the working of the crops. And there is the tradition of the day itself: the return to my family homes in the green hills of Maryland and Virginia, the delicious food, and the sharing of holiday rituals. I’ll always remember Thanksgivings. May you all have the same kind of joy. Questions 19 to 22 are based on the passage you have just heard. 19. How does the speaker feel about American people and states? 20. What do Americans have in common according to the speaker? 21. What makes Thanksgiving so particular? 22. Why is Thanksgiving so special to the speaker? Bored. Amazed. Amused. Indifferent.

The tiny eggs of an endangered butterfly, the white-letter hairstreak, have been found in Scotland, suggesting the insect has returned to breed in the country for the first time in more than 130 years. While most butterflies become worms in winter, the white-letter hairstreak spends nine months of the year as an egg, which is smaller than a grain of salt and stuck to slender branches of elm. The eggs were detected by Jill Mills and Ken Haydock, volunteers for Butterfly Conservation who travelled from Bolton to search trees in the Borders. The white-letter hairstreak has suffered a 72% decline over the last decade and is still suffering from the loss of elm trees in the 1970s caused by Dutch Elm disease. A colony of the butterfly is threatened with extinction in Sheffield, where campaigners are fighting to save a rare surviving English elm. Sheffield council wants to drastically prune the tree as part of its controversial PFI contract to maintain the city’s streets. Butterfly Conservation is opposed to the pruning or destruction of the tree. Questions 1 and 2 are based on the news report you have just heard. 1. What is special about the white-letter hairstreak? 2. What is the white-letter hairstreak still suffering now? They become worms in winter. They spend nine months of the year as eggs. They are smaller than a grain of sand. They can live more than 130 years.

A newly installed bridge collapsed on Florida International University’s campus Thursday, killing at least six people. The collapse occurred at about 1:30 p.m. As of 5 p.m., a minimum of eight vehicles were trapped under the rubble. Some workers were on the bridge when it collapsed, but officials did not detail whether any of them were among the dead. Ten injured victims were transported to nearby Kendall Regional Medical Center. More than 100 firefighters were on the scene working to find victims with the help of cranes and search dogs, and officials were working to stabilize the bridge. According to an FIU press release, the 174-foot, 950-ton bridge was just installed “in a few hours” using “accelerated bridge construction” methods, which the university said “reduces potential risks to workers, commuters, and pedestrians and minimizes traffic interruptions.” “Ironically, it’s a project for safety” that was constructed after a student died last year crossing that intersection, Florida Senator Marco Rubio said during an evening press conference. Questions 5 to 7 are based on the news report you have just heard. 5. What is the news report mainly about? 6. How many people were injured in the disaster? 7. What was the purpose of building the bridge? The collapse of a bridge. A traffic accident. A big fire. A shooting incident.

W: I’m here because there’s something I don’t understand. I set an announcement for an event. And this morning I checked the events section of the university’s website. And nothing, there is no mention of it. M: And when did you submit this request? W: Last Wednesday. I followed the instructions very carefully. I know announcements should be submitted three business days ahead of the posting day. M: And what’s it for? W: A poetry reading. M: Oh, OK. When is it? W: In three days. It is an author from France we have been trying to get for a while. And now that he has finally agreed to come, no one will be there. He is teaching in New York City this year. We were able to sell him on the idea by promising there being a nice size crowd. I felt confident about that because I know how enthusiastic our group is. M: And your group...do you have a name? W: Um...it is kind of a loose group, you know, just a bunch of students in the French Department who are interested in French literature. There’s no formal structure or anything. M: OK. And it is a recognized group? W: No. But the French Department is funding this. M: All right. Hold on a second while I check. Well, it looks like we did receive your announcement last Wednesday. Uh...it looks like the editors must have decided not to include your event in this week’s listings. W: Not included? Why? M: Well, we don’t post things automatically. We get so many requests that we couldn’t possibly post them all. So events that are thought to be too specialized, without the potential for really wide appeal won’t be posted. Questions 8 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard. 8. What problem has the woman encountered? 9. What can we learn about the poetry reading? 10. What can we learn about the audience? 11. Why didn’t the editors post the woman’s announcement? She doesn’t know the latest requirements of posting an announcement. She can’t find her announcement on the university’s website. She doesn’t understand the instructions of submitting a request. She should have submitted her request 3 days ahead of the posting day.

W: Teaching is one of the most complicated jobs today. It demands a broad knowledge of subject matter, curriculum, and standards; enthusiasm, a caring attitude, and a love of learning. With all these qualities required, it’s no wonder that it’s hard to find great teachers. So what makes a great teacher in your viewpoint? M: Well, here are some characteristics of great teachers. First of all, great teachers set high expectations for all students. They expect that all students can and will achieve in their classroom, and they don’t give up on underachievers. W: Fair enough. What is next? M: Great teachers have clear, written-out objectives. Effective teachers have lesson plans that give students a clear idea of what they will be learning, what the assignments are and what the grading policy is. W: Yes. I agree with that. Assignments have learning goals and give students ample opportunity to practice new skills. A good teacher is consistent in grading and returns work in a timely manner. M: More importantly, great teachers are prepared and organized. They are in their classrooms early and ready to teach. They present lessons in a clear and structured way. Their classrooms are organized in such a way as to minimize distractions. W: That is called the art of teaching, isn’t it? M: Yes. Last but not least, great teachers form strong relationships with their students and show that they care about them as people. Great teachers are warm, accessible, enthusiastic and caring. Teachers with these qualities are known to stay after school and make themselves available to students and parents who need them. They are involved in school-wide committees and activities, and they demonstrate a commitment to the school. W: Thank you for your information. Questions 12 to 15 are based on the conversation you have just heard. 12. What are the speakers talking about? 13. What does the man say about effective teachers? 14. Why do great teachers organize their classrooms in a clear and structured way? 15. What do great teachers often do after school? The art of teaching. Qualities of great teachers. Efficient learning methods. Reasonable course arrangements.

A human hand can find a tool without looking, or put down a glass of water without spilling. But for robots, these actions are harder than they seem. That is because using a hand requires a sense of touch. Veronica Santos leads the Biomechatronics Lab at the University of California, Los Angeles. She and researchers are designing robot hands that do not just hold things. The robot hands can also feel when to let go, says Kenny Gutierrez, a graduate student. “It’s waiting for contact with the table before it decides to let go of the box.” The researchers have created a mechanical finger that senses many of the same things human fingers do. Santos says the device is equipped with a sensor that provides information about what the fingertip is touching. The information can include the object’s temperature, internal fluid pressure and movement. Making robots more gentle and sensitive to touch is a popular research area. Engineers at New York’s Cornell University, for example, built a robot that can identify when a tomato is fully grown. Its sense of touch comes from light shining through its clear rubber skin. Cornell engineering professor Robert Shepherd says this technology costs less than high-tech electronic skin. Scientists at China’s Harbin Institute of Technology have made artificial skin with electronic hairs that feel pressure much like human hairs do. It can feel something as soft as a tissue. Researchers are now working to add a sense of touch to artificial arms and legs. Questions 16 to 18 are based on the passage you have just heard. 16. Why cannot robots put down a glass of water without spilling? 17. What are researchers at the University of California doing? 18. What is a popular research area for robot engineers according to the speaker? They are not stable. They are not flexible. They have no sense of touch. They cannot hold things.

Have you ever wanted to grow your own food inside your home? Scientists in Finland have developed a device that may do just that. It lacks soil and does not look like a normal vegetable garden. But, the small device, called the Cell Pod, grows edible plant cells in the home. Lauri Reuter is a biologist with the VTT Technical Research Center of Finland. He says that instead of using the complete plant as food, scientists take only a small part of it—cells— and grow them in a bio-reactor. These plants have much of the same nutritional value that a real plant has. The edible plant cells, once fully grown, do not look very good. The Finnish researchers say they also need to improve the taste. However, the Cell Pod can provide important vitamins and antioxidants, which are substances that help your body to be healthy. Lauri Reuter adds that the new technology will not replace fields for growing fruits and vegetables. However, the Cell Pod can help people eat foods that are hard to find or that cannot be made in a sustainable way. In other words, the device could help save natural resources. All you would need to do is to add the seed culture to the device, sit back and then wait. Reuter says the seed culture looks a lot like a very small container filled with coffee. You put it into the device and give it water. The machine does the rest of the work. The researchers hope to have a version of the Cell Pod on the market in the next 10 years. Questions 23 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard. 23. What does the speaker talk about? 24. What can we learn about the plants growing from cells? 25. What does Lauri Reuter say about the Cell Pod? Growing vegetables without soil. A new method of planting. A new labor-saving device. Improving food production.