Text 3
Today, widespread social pressure to immediately go to college in conjunction with increasingly high expectations in a fast-moving world often causes students to completely overlook the possibility of taking a gap year. After all, if everyone you know is going to college in the fall, it seems silly to stay back a year, doesn't it? And after going to school for 12 years, it doesn't feel natural to spend a year doing something that isn't academic.
But while this may be true, it's not a good enough reason to condemn gap years. There's always a constant fear of falling behind everyone else on the socially perpetuated "race to the finish line," whether that be toward graduate school, medical school or lucrative career. But despite common misconceptions, a gap year does not hinder the success of academic pursuits—in fact, it probably enhances it.
Studies from the United States and Australia show that students who take a gap year are generally better prepared for and perform better in college than those who do not. Rather than pulling students back, a gap year pushes them ahead by preparing them for independence, new responsibilities and environmental changes—all things that first-year students often struggle with the most. Gap year experiences can lessen the blow when it comes to adjusting to college and being thrown into a brand new environment, making it easier to focus on academics and activities rather than acclimation blunders.
If you're not convinced of the inherent value in taking a year off to explore interests, then consider its financial impact on future academic choices. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, nearly 80 percent of college students end up changing their majors at least once. This isn't surprising, considering the basic mandatory high school curriculum leaves students with a poor understanding of themselves listing one major on their college applications, but switching to another after taking college classes. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but depending on the school, it can be costly to make up credits after switching too late in the game. At Boston College, for example, you would have to complete an extra year were you to switch to the nursing school from another department. Taking a gap year to figure things out initially can help prevent stress and save money later on.
31. One of the reasons for high-school graduates not taking a gap year is that .
[A] they think it academically misleading
[B] they have a lot of fun to expect in college
[C] it feels strange to do differently from others
[D] it seems worthless to take off-campus courses
解析：[C] it feels strange to do differently from others。高中毕业生不进行间隔年起其中的一个原因是，这会让他们感觉和其他人不一样。这里找不到明显的定位词，但是high school graduates我们还是可以看到第一段的college,而文章的stay back a year也就是题目里的gap year，那么文章里的silly，对应选项宗的strange,之所以不间隔年会让人觉得很蠢很奇怪。
32. Studies from the US and Australia imply that taking a gap year helps .
[A] keep students from being unrealistic
[B] lower risks in choosing careers
[C] ease freshmen's financial burdens
[D] relieve freshmen of pressures
解析：[D] relieve freshmen of pressures。来自于美国和澳大利亚的研究表明了进行间隔年会让新生减少压力。通过美国和澳大利亚，我们可以定位到第二段第一句：从美国和澳大利亚的研究表明，那些进行间隔年的学生通常能更好地准备和表现得更好比那些没有的同学。ABCD四个选项只有D选项最相关。
33. The word "acclimation" (Line 8, Para. 3) is closest in meaning to .
[A] adaptation
[B] application
[C] motivation
[D] competition
解析：[A] adaptation。这个单词的意思是顺应。这个单词定位在第三段，看单词所在的那一句话：间隔年可以缓解冲击，当涉及调整适应大学和被丢到一个新的环境中，让人更容易聚焦在学术和活动的领域，而非_____错误。前面都在说间隔年的好处，拿意味着后面也应该说间隔年的好处，把四个词都代入其中：顺应错误、申请错误、激励错误和竞争错误，而非顺应错误是最符合原文题意的。
34. A gap year may save money for students by helping them .
[A] avoid academic failures
[B] establish long-term goals
[C] switch to another college
[D] decide on the right major
解析：[D] decide on the right major。间隔年可能可以通过帮助他们决定选择正确的专业而省钱。
通过出题顺序和行文顺序一致的原则，我们往下看，原文中的financial和题干中money是同义词。文章说：如果你并没有找到你内在的兴趣，用一年的时间去探索你的兴趣，这会对你今后学术的选择产生经济上的影响。经济上的影响就是题干中的省钱，那么探索你的兴趣就是帮组他们选择一个正确的专业。这里要看懂才能作对题。
35. The most suitable title for this text would be .
[A] In Favor of the Gap Year
[B] The ABCs of the Gap Year
[C] The Gap Year Comes Back
[D] The Gap Year: A Dilemma
解析：[A] In Favor of the Gap Year。文章最好的标题是倡导间隔年。这种标题题就是看每段的首句：第一段说今天社会压力很大，毕业生都忽略间隔年了。第二段说：没有足够的理由去批评间隔年，话锋一转。第三段说美国和澳洲的研究说间隔年能让学生更好地准备和更好地表现。第四段说，如果你没找到自己内在的兴趣，用一年的时间去探索，对你未来的学术选择会有经济方面的影响。所以作者是倡导间隔年的，选A。
Text 4
Though often viewed as a problem for western states, the growing frequency of wildfires is a national concern because of its impact on federal tax dollars, says Professor Max Moritz, a specialist in fire ecology and management.
In 2015, the US Forest Service for the first time spent more than half of its $5.5 billion annual budget fighting fires—nearly double the percentage it spent on such efforts 20 years ago. In effect, fewer federal funds today are going towards the agency’s other work—such as forest conservation, watershed and cultural resources management, and infrastructure upkeep—that affect the lives of all Americans.
Another nationwide concern is whether public funds from other agencies are going into construction in fire-prone districts. As Moritz puts it, how often are federal dollars building homes that are likely to be lost to a wildfire?
“It’s already a huge problem from a public expenditure perspective for the whole country,” he says.” We need to take a magnifying glass to that. Like, “Wait a minute, is this OK?” “Do we want instead to redirect those funds to concentrate on lower-hazard parts of the landscape?”
Such a view would require a corresponding shift in the way US society today views fire, researchers say.
For one thing, conversations about wildfires need to be more inclusive. Over the past decade, the focus has been on climate change—how the warming of the Earth from greenhouse gases is leading to conditions that worsen fires.
While climate is a key element, Moritz says, it shouldn’t come at the expense of the rest of the equation.
“The human systems and the landscapes we live on are linked, and the interactions go both ways,” he says. Failing to recognize that, he notes, leads to “an overly simplified view of what the solutions might be. Our perception of the problem and of what the solution is becomes very limited.”
At the same time, people continue to treat fire as an event that needs to be wholly controlled and unleashed only out of necessity, says Professor Balch at the University of Colorado. But acknowledging fire’s inevitable presence in human life is an attitude crucial to developing the laws, policies, and practices that make it as safe as possible, she says.
“We’ve disconnected ourselves from living with fire,” Balch says. “It is really important to understand and try and tease out what is the human connection with fire today.”
36. More frequent wildfires have become a national concern because in 2015 they .
[A] exhausted unprecedented management efforts
[B] consumed a record-high percentage of budget
[C] severely damaged the ecology of western states
[D] caused a huge rise of infrastructure expenditure
解析：[B] consumed a record-high percentage of budget。更多常见的野外火灾成为了国际关心的主题在2015年是因为它花费了大量的预算。根据2015和national concern 可以定位在第一段和第二段，其中第一段重合的关键词更多，nationalconcern . wildfire和because，第二段只是更具体说明，所以真正的原因在第一段：因为它会影响联邦税收。如果你看不懂，再加上第二段说2015年花了一半多的预算，就和B选项对应了。
37.Moritz calls for the use of “a magnifying glass” to ____.
[A] raise more funds for fire-prone areas
[B] avoid the redirection of federal money
[C] find wildfire-free parts of the landscape
[D] guarantee safer spending of public funds
解析:[D] guarantee safer spending of public funds。M倡导使用放大镜去保证安全地使用公共资金。
通过题干中的magnifyingglass 可以定位在第四段的中间：我们需要使用magnifying glass 去做这个。根据that指代上文的原则，我们往上看到第一句话：从公共支出的前景看，对于整个国家，这已经是非常大的问题。这里的意思就是支出比较多，而magnifying glass自然就是控制支出的，选项里的spending和文章中的expenditure是同义转换的。
38.While admitting that climate is a key element， Moritz notes that ____.
[A] public debates have not settled yet
[B] fire-fighting conditions are improving
[C] other factors should not be overlooked
[D] a shift in the view of fire has taken place
解析：[C] other factors should not be overlooked。当承认气候是一个关键因素，M认为其他因素也不能被忽略。通过climate、M这个人名和出题顺序和行文顺序一致的原则，我们可以定位在第七段：当气候是关键因素时，完全对应了题干。M说不能在损坏剩下同等重要的为前提。言外之意就是不能忽略其他因素，这里有个短语at the expense of表示“在损害某事物的情况下”医学全.在.线.提供. www.lindalemus.com
39.The overly simplified view Moritz mentions is a result of failing to ___.
[A] discover the fundamental makeup of nature
[B] explore the mechanism of the human systems
[C] maximize the role of landscape in human life
[D] understand the interrelations of man and nature
解析：[D] understand the interrelations of man and nature。M提到的过度简化的观点其实是没有理解人和自然间的关系。通过oversimplified我们可以定位在倒数第三段的中间。他认为，没有注意到那一点，会导致一个过度简化的解决方案。同样也是考的指代，that指代，第一句的：人类和我们所居住的自然是相联系的。所以原文来了个同义转换。
40.Professor Balch points out that fire is something man should ____.
[A] do away with
[B] come to terms with
[C] pay a price for
[D] keep away from
解析：[B] come to terms with。B教授指出火和人应该和谐相处。通过B教授我们可以定位在倒数第二段，but后是重点：但是，承认火是不可避免地出现在人类的生活中是一种态度，这种态度对法律、政策和实践的发展都非常关键，且可以尽可能地使火变得安全。所以A do way with 废除、C付出代价、D远离都不符合题意，只有come to term表示与…达成协议、妥协、让步的意思才是正确的同义转换。
