1 . At the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, halfway in the women’s slalom (障碍滑雪) race, 18-year-old Mikaela Shiffrin took a commanding lead over the greatest women’s slalom skiers in the world. On her final run, she burst from the start house at a breakneck speed, snaking around the poles in crazy rhythm.
Skiing has always been a significant part of Mikaela’s life. Her mom raced and coached skiing and her dad ski raced all through college. The Shiffrins taught Mikaela and her brother, Taylor, to ski at a very young age. At the age of two and a half, Mikaela made her first ski run on plastic skis. From ages 8 to 11, she worked hard, practicing hundreds of training runs on small hills repeatedly to develop the correct techniques of slalom skiing.
When Mikaela was 11, she attended the Burke Mountain Academy, a Vermont boarding school for skiers. She took classes, studied, and practiced her skiing crazily. According to Kirk Dwyer, Burke Mountain Academy headmaster, “It was the degree of Mikaela’s effort to be the best that distinguished her from others. Her commitment to conditioning, having proper sleep, eating correctly, doing the drills, and watching video was unusual for an 11 to 13-year-old. Mikaela practiced more than anyone and believed in herself then and now.”
By the time she was 17, she had already won her first World Cup race.
Working hard is a full-time job for Mikaela. Even her off-season is work time. In the summer, when Mikaela is off the ski slopes and in the gym, her daily training consists of six to seven hours of weight lifting, swimming, and biking to improve her core strength and flexibility. She does all of this so that she can dash down slopes at speeds topping 50 miles per hour while cutting back and forth around gates with astonishing precision.
“If you have passion for your targets, whatever they are,” she says, “the sky is the limit. Give it your all!”
1. What can we learn from paragraph 2?| A．Mikaela came from a skiing family. |
| B．Mikaela’s mother taught her to ski first. |
| C．Mikaela trained harder than her brother. |
| D．Mikaela’s father coached skiing in colleges. |
| A．To stress Mikaela was a crazy teenager. |
| B．To show Mikaela’s distinct personality. |
| C．To praise the good students in his school. |
| D．To highlight Mikaela’s great devotion to training. |
| A．Talented and wise. | B．Creative and determined. |
| C．Flexible and brave. | D．Determined and self-disciplined. |
| A．Practice makes perfect. |
| B．Not to advance is to go back. |
| C．He who laughs last laughs best. |
| D．Actions speak louder than words. |
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer. He is regarded as one of the greatest composers in the history of music.
In his recovery program, Christopher Reeve an gaged in a wide range of exercises
Even though Tu Youyou is not interested in fame, she has become a scientist
5 . In the past few years, Sam Altman, the father of ChatGPT, has become the most familiar face in the world of AI. Many industry leaders and AI researchers see ChatGPT as a fundamental technological shift, as significant as the creation of the web browser (浏览器). But few can agree on the future of this technology.
Some believe it will create a community where everyone has all the time and money they ever wanted. Others believe it could destroy humanity. Still, others spend much of their time arguing that the technology isn’t as powerful as everyone says it is.
Mr. Altman, a slim 37-year-old entrepreneur and investor from St. Louis, sits calmly in the middle of it all, devoted to making ChatGPT perfect. As chief executive of OpenAI, he in some way embodies (体现) each of these seemingly contradictory views, hoping to balance many possibilities as he strikes this unusual, highly effective but imperfect technology into the longer term.
That means he’s usually criticized. But those closest to him imagine that is normal. “If you’re equally upsetting both extreme sides, then you’re doing something right,” mentioned OpenAI’s president, Greg Brockman.
Mr. Altman believes that this technology will occur one way or another, that it will do wonderful things even he can’t yet imagine, and that we can find ways of making up for the harm it may cause. It’s an attitude that mirrors Mr. Altman’s personal track. His life has been a reasonably regular climb towards larger prosperity and wealth, pushed by an efficient set of private expertise. It makes sense that he believes that the good thing will happen rather than the bad.
Georgeann Kepchar, who taught Advanced Placement computer science courses, saw Mr. Altman as one of her most talented computer science students and one with a rare gift for pushing people in new directions. “He had creativity and vision, combined with the ambition and force of personality to convince others to work with him on putting his ideas into action,” she said.
1. Why is the web browser mentioned in paragraph 1?| A．To highlight the importance of ChatGPT. |
| B．To introduce the inspiration for ChatGPT. |
| C．To show the competition in the world of AI. |
| D．To indicate Sam Altman's promising future. |
| A．He apologizes for its harm. | B．He criticizes them violently. |
| C．He focuses on improving it. | D．He faces them nervously. |
| A．The new technology has brought record profits. |
| B．Sam Altman is optimistic about his technology. |
| C．Greg Brockman shows support to Sam Altman. |
| D．Sam Altman has been suffering for a long time. |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Unclear. | C．Critical. | D．Admiring. |
For the past twenty years, Chen Huili, a cultural heritage monitor and guide, has devoted herself to
While
7 . Lanrick Jr. Bennett holds a unique title in Toronto: bicycle mayor. He led a Halloween Kidical Mass ride recently, which I attended with my daughter, son-in-law, their two dogs, and my granddaughter. He is working towards making cycling mainstream and safe for all residents in the city. I did not know that Toronto had a bicycle mayor; I surely would have voted for him in an election.
The bicycle mayor program is run by BYCS, an Amsterdam-based global NGO that believes “bicycles transform cities and cities transform the world”. Standing in the strange but wonderful Bentway, a park built under an elevated expressway, Bennett says, “BYCS has 150 bicycle mayors across the world. And through a few friends putting in some really nice letters of encouragement, BYCS offered me a two-year term as an advocate here in the city of Toronto, becoming the first bicycle mayor of the city.”
Bennett says he is boosting the work being done to make cycling more mainstream in Toronto. “I am giving a bit more exposure to the great work that has allowed me to be able to ride a bike throughout the city. It’s getting better, we’re seeing more infrastructure (基础设施), and we’re seeing more people not wanting to depend on cars as their primary piece. I’m happy that I have been part of a fantastic group thus far,” says Bennett.
Since there’s still a lot of work to do, Lanrick Jr. Bennett has been working hard to improve cycling conditions in Toronto, and his efforts have been recognized by the community. He has been advocating for more bike lanes (车道), better lighting, and other safety measures to make cycling a practical option for commuters (通勤者). It’s great to see people like Lanrick.
Jr. Bennett working towards making cycling safe and accessible for all residents.
1. What can we say about the author?| A．She is fond of varieties of outdoor activities. |
| B．She is supportive of efforts to promote cycling. |
| C．She is planning to participate in the election for mayor. |
| D．She is trying to make cycling the mainstream of the city. |
| A．The way Bennett got his position. | B．Transformation of Toronto city. |
| C．Bennett’s ambition to change the world. | D．Mayor’s deeds throughout the world. |
| A．Upset. | B．Challenged. | C．Curious. | D．Satisfied. |
| A．It is the best in the world due to the presence of BYCS. |
| B．It has already well-developed and does not require improvement. |
| C．It is improving, but further work and development are still needed. |
| D．It is virtually non-existent, making Bennett’s job extremely important. |
8 . Jim Henson was born in 1936 in Mississippi. But he grew up in Maryland. His creative talents were
While he was a freshman at the University of Maryland (UMD), Henson
While at UMD, Henson
In 1959, Henson
Henson, who died in 1990 after a brief illness, created not just the Muppets, but also films, TV advertisements and variety shows.
Now a(n)
| A．valuable | B．obvious | C．helpful | D．average |
| A．contests | B．meetings | C．plays | D．lectures |
| A．made | B．changed | C．bought | D．described |
| A．confused | B．relieved | C．inspired | D．impressed |
| A．movie | B．program | C．adventure | D．attempt |
| A．majored in | B．relied on | C．accounted for | D．referred to |
| A．conversations | B．awards | C．assumptions | D．courses |
| A．behaviors | B．plans | C．skills | D．opinions |
| A．married | B．interviewed | C．recognized | D．employed |
| A．dismissed | B．established | C．promoted | D．abandoned |
| A．common | B．unique | C．harmonious | D．popular |
| A．watching | B．checking | C．consulting | D．designing |
| A．competition | B．conference | C．exhibition | D．debate |
| A．similarly | B．vividly | C．temporarily | D．flexibly |
| A．reason | B．right | C．suggestion | D．chance |
9 . In an industry that so often focuses on youth, Carmen Dell Orefice is an inspirational person. At 92 years old, she is considered the oldest working model. Dell Orefice is unique because her career (职业生涯) did not begin to take off in middle age or even her 90s. Amazingly, she has been modeling since she was 15.
Originally from New York City, Dell Orefice was discovered at 13 while riding the bus. Her first photos did not turn out as expected, but two years later, she caught her break when she was brought to Vogue magazine and signed her first modeling contract (合同). After that, she began her modeling career. But at first, Dell Orefice did not make enough money through modeling to support herself, so she and her mother had to do some other jobs. Her hard work offered her a chance to appear on Vogue covers, and she took part in many other activities, among other bookings.
Dell Orefice took a break from modeling after marrying, but finally returned to work in 1978 to support her life. She was 47 years old at the time, and it was then that her career really began to develop quickly. Since then, she has continued working hard, booking both catwalks and advertisements (广告). In 2022, the 91-year-old’s photo appeared on New You magazine. At 92, Dell Orefice appeared on the cover of Vogue Czechoslovakia.
“Men and women should care for themselves and love themselves. One of the secrets to keeping beauty is doing what you do for a baby, raising and feeding the baby with love,” she said. “That’s what we should do with ourselves: Nurture ourselves, love ourselves, and give that kind of energy to ourselves.”
1. When did Dell Orefice start her professional modeling career?| A．In 1944. | B．In 1946. | C．In 1978. | D．In 2022. |
| A．She became famous overnight. |
| B．She was discovered at school. |
| C．She got support from the school. |
| D．Her first photos failed to be well received. |
| A．Self-love. | B．Family background. |
| C．Raising babies. | D．Marriage. |
| A．A travel website. | B．A diary entry. |
| C．A fashion magazine. | D．A TV advertisement. |
1. 简要说明介绍的人；
2. 钦佩的原因。
注意：1. 写作词数应为80词左右；
2. 可适当加入细节，以使行文连贯。
The Chinese Scientist I Admire Most
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