1 . Baidu, a Chinese search engine and artificial intelligence firm, announced its latest electric autonomous driving vehicle, Apollo RT6, on Thursday. The new vehicle is a fully electric vehicle with a steering wheel (方向盘) that can be removed when not required. It will cost ¥250,000 per unit.
“The steering-wheel-free design allows more space for extra seating or other additions and the massive cost reduction will enable us to put tens of thousands of autonomous vehicles into operation across China,” Robin Li, co-founder and CEO of Baidu, said at the firm's Baidu World Conference Thursday. “We are moving towards a future where taking a robotaxi will be half the cost of taking a taxi today.”
Baidu already runs Apollo Go and Apollo Moon, taxi services using self-driving robotaxis with safety staff seated in the driver or passenger seat. They have been in operation in big cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, although the service is limited to specific areas. The new vehicle will soon join those robotaxis.
The RT6 has reached the industry's Level 4 out of five possible levels of technology. That means its systems can operate without a driver but must be pre-loaded with a detailed map, thus limiting the areas where the vehicles can operate. Lower levels of self-driving technology have been available for decades. For example, many Level-3 vehicles allow hands-free highway driving. Other kinds of self-driving robot vehicles are already widely used in factories warehouses and other tightly controlled settings.
Compared to previous generations where the technology was mainly used on conventional vehicles, the Apollo RT6 was designed specifically with fully autonomous driving in mind.
Baidu is best known for its search engine and online advertising services, but in recent years it has invested heavily in autonomous driving and artificial intelligence technology, including automated personal assistants and AI chips.
1. What can we know about Apollo RT6?A.It is free to run in any area. | B.It has to operate with a driver. |
C.It will be cheaper to operate. | D.It can work without a detailed map. |
A.Level 2 | B.Level 3 | C.Level 4 | D.Level 5 |
A.A personal assistant. | B.A company. |
C.A search engine. | D.A fully autonomous car. |
A.An Introduction to Baidu's Latest Vehicle: Apollo RT6 |
B.Baidu's Future Plan for Its Electric Vehicle: Apollo RT6 |
C.Limitations of the Level-4 Self-driving Electric Vehicles |
D.The Great Market Potential for Fully Autonomous Vehicles |
Good morning! My name is Sarah Williams. It’s an honour to be here and to share with you the story of how music has had an impact on my life.
(A) Have you ever faced a time when things looked dark and you had no hope at all? Two years ago, I was told I had a serious disease which was difficult to cure. My body ached all the time and thus I thought I didn’t have much longer to live. I was very afraid and I felt so alone and discouraged. Then one day, I had to go through a two-hour medical treatment. The doctor wanted me to relax, so he had me listen to some music, and one of the songs was “Happy”. The song made me feel so much better that from then on I began to listen to music all the time. (B) John A. Logan said, “Music is the medicine of the mind.” And it’s true. Music helped me recover.
(C) Music gave me happiness. When I listened to music, (D) it made my spirits fly like a kite in the wind. (C) Music gave me strength and brought me relief. (E) It was the rock I leant on to become strong and to get through those hard times. Moreover, (C) music gave me hope and a sense of satisfaction. (F) It became my best friend. It spoke words of encouragement to the deepest part of my being.
Of course, I hope none of you have to go through the same kind of suffering that I did. At the same time, we all go through various periods when we feel sad or alone. During those times, music can help you in the same way that it helped me. I hope all of you will somehow begin to treasure music and make it a part of your life.
Thank you!
1. Reading for informationRead the speech and answer the questions.
(1) What was Sarah’s problem?
(2) How did music help her during her difficult time?
(3) What is her advice to others?
2. Reading for structure
Read the speech again and figure out the structure.
3. Reading for language features
Match the names of rhetorical devices to the lettered sentences in the speech.
metaphor
personification
quote
repetition
rhetorical question
simile
3 . Fu Lei’s Family Letters is a book of letters written by Chinese translator and writer Fu Lei to his elder son Fu Cong, who is a famous pianist. Between 1954 and 1966, Fu Cong spent a lot of time away from home training as a piano player. As a result, writing letters became Fu Lei’s usual way of communicating with his elder son. Fu Min, Fu Lei’s younger son edited the letters and the book came out in 1981.
The book shows Fu Lei’s family tradition and value. To Fu Lei, the purpose of education of a person, is to make that person useful to the society. Fu Lei praised his son Fu Cong after winning a piano competition. Fu Lei wrote, “We are happy because you make your country proud. I am so excited when I think about your future. You will make great progress and serve more people, encourage them and heal them.”
In the family letters, Fu Cong was also advised to read famous Chinese texts. When reading these books, Fu Cong was told to connect ideas and feelings together, for that would help him become a better person. To Fu Lei, learning to be a good person comes before any academic training.
Fu Lei’s Family Letters has a great impact on people in China because it helps many young students understand how they should live their lives.
1. Who edited Fu Lei’s family letters?A.Fu Lei. | B.Fu Cong. | C.Fu Min. | D.A translator. |
A.Fu Lei’s family tradition and value are shown in the book. |
B.People in the 1950s communicated with each other by books. |
C.It’s difficult for parents to make their children well educated. |
D.Praising children after taking part in a competition is important. |
A.It would be uncertain. |
B.It would be hopeful. |
C.It would be difficult. |
D.It would be interesting. |
A.To be a richer man. |
B.To do more academic training. |
C.To help more people. |
D.To become a better person. |
4 . As the movie Nomadland revealed to the world, ever since the 2008 financial collapse, people have mowed into vehicles as a way of surviving the high cost of living. The pandemic also fuelled an increase in the nomadic (流浪的) lifestyle.
In 2020, my co-researcher Scott Rankin and I looked at how people who live in vehicles balance work and life. This year, I continued my research to better understand why people live this way.
People of all ages and genders take part in van (面包车) living. The average age of van dwellers (居住者) was 42. After asking respondents to rank the reasons why they chose to live in a vehicle, ranked from top to bottom are: 1) freedom, 2) low cost of living, 3) adventure, 4)connection to nature,5)minimalism,6)avoiding undesirable weather,7)starting a new life, 8)pursuing work in different places, 9)working remotely, 10)to be on their own, 11)to join a partner, 12)to leave a partner.
Above all else, vehicle dwellers sought to be free. Whether they were a re tire n in a $100,000 Mercedes van, or young Canadians working from a $5 ,000 van, respondents wanted to be able to move their home to any place that was best for them. For others, living in a vehicle minimized their costs, allowing them to work less or make the most of their income without paying rent.
As it turns out, van living is not a fad. While many respondents were new to van living, on average, respondents indicated they had been living in a vehicle for an average of 2.5 years. Seventy-eight per cent of respondents permanently lived in a vehicle.
As the housing crisis deepens, we may see more people consider van living as a means of surviving the high cost of living. It will be up to the government to accept this alternative living arrangement, and consider having parking and facilities to support those who choose to live this way.
1. What’s the purpose of the author’s research?A.To advocate a new lifestyle. | B.To produce a scientific theory. |
C.To understand a social phenomenon. | D.To improve some people’s living conditions. |
A.Their top concern is money. | B.They have different motives. |
C.They value family more than work. | D.They are mainly adventurous people. |
A.Something that isn’t suitable for all. | B.Something that isn’t likely to last. |
C.Something that is popular for long. | D.Something that attracts old people. |
A.Uncaring. | B.Tolerant. | C.Approving. | D.Opposed. |
Discuss these questions in groups and then fill in the table.
What festivals do you celebrate with your family each year?
Why do you think people celebrate different festivals?
Names of the festivals | Reasons for celebrating the festivals |
1. Have you ever written a poem before? If so, what did you write about?
2. What might inspire you to write poems?
7 . We sometimes think that everything was much better and easier in the past. It’s one of the tricks our minds play on us, especially when we are in low spirits.
Actually, it’s unlikely that things were objectively better in the past. This form of thinking is called rosy retrospection, which is a well-studied cognitive bias. It happens because when we think about the past, we are more likely to focus on positive generalities than annoying details.
If you think back to a holiday with your family five years ago, you’re likely to recall the beautiful views rather than the uncomfortable bed. In other words, the negative details disappear from our memory over time while the positive ones remain.
Rosy retrospection can influence how we make decisions, and it’s one of the reasons why we easily return into problematic relationships. The longer it is since we experienced the negative influence of a relationship, the more likely we are to let the good memories outweigh the bad memories and to perhaps forgive unforgivable behavior. It’s always a good idea to review our nostalgic (怀旧的) feelings with a healthy degree of doubt.
But rosy retrospection does serve an important purpose. It keeps us in a positive state of mind in the present and is important to our psychological wellbeing. In fact, people who tend to remember negative experiences more than positive ones are likely to exhibit psychological disorders. Research generally suggests that our happiest days are still to come. And even if they’re not, it’s still important to believe that they are. Don’t shy away from looking upon the past with a certain degree of nostalgia. But, for the same reason, don’t use the past as an excuse to be unhappy in the present.
1. When we think about the past, we usually .A.improve present living conditions | B.beautify past experiences |
C.focus on mind mapping | D.play games to forget bad things |
A.Having a preference for good memories. | B.Remembering exactly about the details. |
C.Concentrating on impossible things. | D.Thinking objectively about the past. |
A.Reviewing the nostalgic feelings critically. |
B.Ignoring the nostalgic feelings absolutely. |
C.Forgiving the unacceptable behavior generously. |
D.Getting back to the problematic relationships bravely. |
A.The good excuse for present unhappiness. | B.The accuracy of remembering past details. |
C.The importance of maintaining a positive mindset. | D.The negative impact of recalling past experiences. |
A.Negative. | B.Subjective. | C.Favorable. | D.Objective. |
8 . I was preparing for dinner with my husband when our daughter Rikki stormed into the sitting room and marched to the sofa. I glanced out of the window and saw our neighbor Lexi walking slowly back to her house with her head down, looking so
“I don’t want to play with her,” Rikki complained, “I wish she would stop coming over here all the time. Her dress looks terrible and smells disgusting. Everyone in our class chooses to
“You see, baby,” her father began to say, “I really know how she felt when you showed your
Then we
Rikki began to think
Today, Rikki has a heart of gold. She is always the first to welcome those whom others might
A.funny | B.upset | C.relaxed | D.silly |
A.punish | B.inspire | C.respect | D.ignore |
A.habit | B.attitude | C.fault | D.quality |
A.coldness | B.selfishness | C.strictness | D.nervousness |
A.dream | B.thought | C.feeling | D.smell |
A.honest | B.curious | C.normal | D.helpful |
A.assumed | B.invited | C.reminded | D.warned |
A.laughing | B.arguing | C.crying | D.shopping |
A.actively | B.creatively | C.professionally | D.differently |
A.worry about | B.turn away | C.depend on | D.communicate with |
9 . Umar Fox searched his whole life to look for the firefighter who saved him and his sister from a house fire in 1978. The search
Umar was 3 when the
Umar had always hoped to
Umar said that he and his sister “wouldn’t be
As for Joseph, he considered he was
A.finally | B.normally | C.really | D.easily |
A.change | B.action | C.accident | D.adventure |
A.scene | B.floor | C.surface | D.ground |
A.speed | B.power | C.distance | D.safety |
A.injury | B.rescue | C.loss | D.task |
A.interview | B.meet | C.assist | D.join |
A.related to | B.dealt with | C.resulted in | D.applied for |
A.relaxing | B.satisfying | C.similar | D.enough |
A.visited | B.found | C.accompanied | D.urged |
A.attend | B.organize | C.sponsor | D.chair |
A.listened | B.cared | C.joked | D.worried |
A.special | B.retired | C.alive | D.delightful |
A.explain | B.compare | C.believe | D.agree |
A.brave | B.proud | C.suitable | D.willing |
A.roughly | B.curiously | C.hopefully | D.simply |
2. Do you know where it usually happens?
3. What festival does this picture reflect?