1 . Chinese scientists have identified a new protein that restricts HIV infection, a discovery that could pave the way for the development of new drugs against the virus. The protein, P-selectin glycoprotein ligand 1 (PSGL-1), which exists in human cells, can inhibit (抑制) the process by which HIV reproduces, according to research published in the science journal Nature Microbiology this month.
However, the study also showed that PSGL-1 can be negatively affected by Vpu — an accessory (附属) protein of HIV — which can neutralize the ability of PSGL-1 to resist HIV. Further research is under way to develop a drug that can inhibit the HIV protein so that PSGL-1 can restrict HIV, according to Tan Xu, a researcher at Tsinghua University's School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, a leading author of the study.
Several other proteins in human cells that could resist HIV have been discovered over the past 10 years, but the virus can also evade (避开) them. PSGL-1 shows particular promise in that it can inhibit HIV in multiple ways — especially by blocking the infectiousness of virus offspring, Tan said.
“We are starting to research into small molecule (分子) compounds in the hope of finding one that can restore PSGL-1’s anti-HIV function. In this way, we can develop a very effective antiviral drug for people with HIV/AIDS,” he said. Tan said it will require at least three to five years for the research to reach the preclinical stage, and more time after that before a clinical trial is possible. The research was conducted by researchers at Tsinghua University in Beijing, Fudan University in Shanghai and George Mason University in the United States.
Existing treatment methods for people with HIV/AIDS, which mostly rely on a combination of different drugs, can prevent the disease from progressing but cannot cure it, and long-term use of drugs can result in drug resistance.
An estimated 37 million people in the world live with HIV, according to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS. The study provides new leads to developing antiviral drugs, Tsinghua University said in a statement.
1. What can we learn about PSGL-1 from the passage?| A．Both the protein PSGL-1 and the protein Vpu are HIV proteins. |
| B．PSGL-1 can restrict the function of the protein Vpu. |
| C．PSGL-1’s molecule compounds have been identified. |
| D．The protein PSGL-1 functions better than others in resisting HIV. |
| A．The existing treatment for AIDS are far from perfect. |
| B．It will be a decade before the antiviral drugs is put on the market. |
| C．American scientists played a leading role in the research. |
| D．HIV/AIDS will no longer be a deadly problem owing to the new discovery. |
| A．There is a long way to go before curing AIDS. |
| B．More people are faced with the threat of HIV. |
| C．Chinese scientists are leading the way in curing AIDS. |
| D．A new protein to resist HIV was confirmed by scientists. |
| A．A guidebook. | B．A fiction. | C．A magazine. | D．A brochure. |
2 . Many people think that the world is about to step into the fourth industrial revolution. This time, machines can do a lot of work in the charge of human beings, even better than human beings. In the future, the world can be more efficient and enjoy cheaper services, but unemployment will become more common.
It raises a troubling question for all of us — when will a machine be able to do my job? Katja Grace, a research associate at the University of Oxford’s Future of Humanity Institute, and her colleagues from the AI Impacts project and the Machine Intelligence Research Institute, have surveyed 352 scientists and compiled (汇编) their answers into predictions about how long it may take for machines to outperform humans on various tasks.
The good news is that many of us will probably be safe in our jobs for some time to come. The researchers predict there is a 50% chance that machines will be capable of taking over all human jobs in 120 years.
“One of the biggest surprises was the overall lateness of the predictions,” says Grace. “I expected the amazing progress in machine learning in recent years, plus the fact that we were only talking to machine learning researchers, to make the estimates earlier.”
“I am a bit sceptical of some of the timelines given for tasks that involve physical manipulation (操纵),” says Jeremy Wyatt, professor of robotics and artificial intelligence at the University of Birmingham. “It is one thing doing it in the lab, and quite another having a robot that can do a job reliably in the real world better than a human.”
Manipulating physical objects in the real world — figuring out what to manipulate, and how, in a random, changing environment — is an incredibly complex job for a machine. Tasks that don’t involve physical manipulation are easier to teach.
Perhaps the hardest jobs for machines to perform are those that take years of training for humans to excel at. These often involve intuitive (直觉的) decision making, complex physical environments or abstract thinking — all things that computers struggle with.
1. Why did the researchers conduct the survey on the future role of machines?| A．To make it clear how machines can replace humans. |
| B．To find why machines can take the place of humans. |
| C．To explain humans will be substituted by machines. |
| D．To learn when machines may be superior to humans on jobs. |
| A．She thought the time would be totally uncertain despite the survey. |
| B．She thought the time would be later than predicted. |
| C．She thought the time would be earlier than predicted. |
| D．She thought machines would take over all the jobs in 120 years. |
| A．A robot can do a job reliably in the real world better than a human. |
| B．Tasks that don’t involve physical manipulation are quite complicated. |
| C．It is difficult for robots to finish the jobs related to physical manipulation. |
| D．He is sure of the timelines given for tasks that involve physical manipulation. |
3 . With nations preparing to spend billions to redesign their cities with a new focus on cycling, it's worth remembering how the invention of the bicycle changed societies all over the world.
The person generally credited with inventing the modern bicycle was an Englishman named John Kemp Starley. In 1885, the 30⁃year⁃old inventor began experimenting in his workshop with a chain⁃driven bicycle featuring two much smaller wheels. When it first appeared at a bicycle show in 1886, his invention was regarded as a curiosity. But two years later, when the next model was paired with the newly invented rubber tire—which not only cushioned the ride but also made the new bicycle about 30 percent faster—the result was magic.
For a few years in the 1890s, almost anyone wanted to learn to ride, and almost everyone did. The sultan of Zanzibar took up cycling. So did the czar of Russia. But it was the middle and working classes around the globe that truly made the bicycle their own. For the first time in history, the masses were able to come and go as they pleased. No more need for expensive horses and carriages.
The rocketing demand led hundreds of new companies around the world to offer their own versions. At the Stanley Bicycle Show in London in 1895, about 200 bicycle makers exhibited 3,000 models. One of the biggest makers was Columbia Bicycles, whose factory in Hartford, Connecticut, could turn out a bicycle a minute thanks to its automated assembly line (流水线)—a pioneering technology that one day would become the backbone of the automobile industry. By 1898, a third of all patent applications in the US were bicycle⁃related.
The bicycle even improved the human gene (基因) pool. Newly liberated young people rode around the countryside at will, meeting up in distant villages. Women were especially enthusiastic. They abandoned their troublesome skirts and took to the road in groups. Marriage records in England show a marked rise in inter⁃village marriages during the bicycle craze of the 1890s.
1. What can we know about John Kemp Starley's first model?| A．It was invented in 1888. | B．It had two bigger wheels. |
| C．It did not have rubber tires. | D．It was accepted immediately. |
| A．In the 1860s. | B．In the 1870s. | C．In the 1880s. | D．In the 1890s. |
| A．The fast⁃growing demand for bicycles. |
| B．The huge success of the bicycle industry. |
| C．The great convenience offered by bicycles. |
| D．The popularity of the newly invented bicycles. |
| breathe life into sound the alarm far and wide pass down clear up |
1. “Know thyself” is an old saying
2. You should
3. They searched
4. They
5. This video
7 . 假定你是李华，你的英国朋友Phil得知你的学校附近新开了一家餐厅“Mum’s Restaurant”，来信询问相关情况。请给他回信，主要内容包括：
①餐厅简介；
②餐厅特色；
③相关营销活动。
注意：
①词数：80左右(开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数)；
②可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Phil,
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Looking forward to hearing from you soon
Yours,
Li Hua
8 . Who works only one day in a year but never gets fired?
9 . Why is the library the highest building?
