1 . Remembering Maki Kaji, the “Father of Sudoku”
Maki Kaji, a Japanese man who was known as the “Father of Sudoku”, has passed away from cancer at the age of 69. Mr. Kaji was a puzzle lover who helped turn Sudoku from a simple number challenge into a game played around the world.
Though Mr. Kaji finished high school, he dropped out of college. After Mr. Kaji left college, he started Japan’s first puzzle magazine in 1980 with two of his friends. They named their magazine company Nikoli, which has become very popular over the years. It publishes puzzles and books for people all over the world. But Sudoku is probably the puzzle that most people think of when they remember Mr. Kaji.
While it’s not clear where the original number puzzle came from, Mr. Kaji is the one who gave it the name “Sudoku” and made it popular. By 2004, it was one of the most-played puzzles in the world. Now millions of people play Sudoku every day. Nikoli says that roughly 200 million people from about 100 countries have played the puzzle. People even compete in a Sudoku world championship every year.
Sudoku isn’t just popular—it’s also a huge moneymaker, bringing in millions and millions of dollars. But Mr. Kaji never made much money from the puzzle, since he didn’t protect Sudoku legally. He said that didn’t bother him, since he focused on the pleasure it brought for people.
Mr. Kaji believed the secret of making a great puzzle was to make it easy for anyone to play. He said discovering a new puzzle was “like finding treasure”. It’s that kind of spirit that has left many people in the puzzle world so sad to hear that Mr. Kaji has passed away. Puzzle experts and fans around the world have thanked Mr. Kaji for his work, and honored him as a true lover of puzzles.
1. How does the writer show the popularity of Sudoku?| A．By listing numbers. | B．By showing examples. |
| C．By giving explanations. | D．By making comparisons. |
| A．He failed to enter university. | B．He centered on the joy the puzzle brought. |
| C．He was good at playing Sudoku. | D．He earned a large sum of money. |
| A．Making it instructive. | B．Giving it a fun name. |
| C．Keeping the rules simple. | D．Publishing it on magazines. |
| A．A game review. | B．A self-biography. |
| C．A news report. | D．An announcement. |
1. How old was Omar Hegazy when the motorcycle accident happened?
| A．15. | B．24. | C．31. |
| A．To let out his anger. |
| B．To improve his skills. |
| C．To set a world record. |
| A．A coach. | B．A diver. | C．A speaker. |
3 . Wang Shuang was just five when her parents divorced, dropped her at her uncle’s and left. Football, as it often is, became an escape.
At seven, she was spotted by coach Xu Yilong, who found Wang quick in her playful behavior. As the only girl in the boys’ team, Wang’s performances were impressive, earning her the nickname “Iron Girl.” And soon, she sensed the sport’s power. Football allowed her to “release herself” and realize “whatever happens, football never leaves you alone.”
However, life was never smooth sailing. The constant jibes (嘲讽) from some people, who always tried to push her down and destroy her hopes, affected her so deeply that she lost confidence. “They were saying I had no talent at all. Gradually, I felt really so.” Wang once wrote. But never did she stop playing. When she was called up to the national team, aged 17, Wang thought, “Me? Are you sure?” When a world-famous club wanted to sign her, she was “excited that an excellent coach thought I was good.” It was only then that she felt confident in her abilities. “I felt recognized. Perhaps I had a bit of talent after all.”
Not any “bit of talent”; the genius is praised as China’s once-in-a-generation player.
China is a pioneer of women’s football in Asia and has won the continental championship eight times, including seven straight titles between 1986 and 1999. That was their golden age. Gradually, though, the dynasty declined. It is hoped that Wang will inspire the women’s football of the country to its former height.
Coaches are almost always hesitant to speak about individual players. But when coach Shui was asked about Wang before the match against Vietnam, she couldn’t stop mentioning her influence on the team. Unfailingly performing on the big stage, Wang did not let her team down. When they lacked a quality ball, she delivered two high assists that finally led her team into the last-four clash (四分之一决赛).
“Nobody knows how hard it was,” declared Wang after the match. “We overcame difficulties. We also showed our strong spiritual power. I am proud of my team.”
1. What can we infer about Wang from the second paragraph?| A．She earned a living on her own. | B．She was released from the team. |
| C．She was laughed at by the boys. | D．She found a sense of belonging. |
| A．By winning recognition. | B．By obtaining inspiration. |
| C．By playing in the national team. | D．By ignoring other people’s jibes. |
| A．Conservative. | B．Contradictory. |
| C．Favourable. | D．Demanding. |
| A．Wang Shuang: A Steel Rose | B．Wang Shuang: A Child Genius |
| C．WangShuang: A Football Pioneer | D．Wang Shuang: A Golden Age Creator |
1. What do we know about Mary?
| A．She is a hybrid. |
| B．She used to be a pet doctor. |
| C．She lived to the age of 80. |
| A．A hospital. | B．The War Office. | C．A British hotel. |
| A．Her work as a nurse. | B．Her talent as a writer. | C．Her success as a hotel owner. |
Reaching for the stars
Within three years, he won China's top sci-fi award—the Galaxy Awards—twice. Tianrui Shuofu, brought home the Best Online Sci-fi award for his novels, Die On Mars, in 2019 and We Live in Nanjing, in 2021. At only 25 years old, he is already a
Many of these young sci-fi writers started as freelance online writers.
However, Tianrui Shuofu thinks hard-core is just one style and he might include more themes in his works in the future. “Many argue against each other on
“This is a good thing,” Tianrui Shuofu added. “Going cross-boundary means going
6 . American mathematician Dennis Sullivan has been awarded the 2022 Abel Prize, one of the most distinguished awards in math, for his contributions to the fields of topology and dynamical systems. Sullivan has been recognized for his groundbreaking contributions to topology in its broadest sense, and particularly its algebraic (代数的), geometric and dynamical aspects.
Topology is the study of properties of objects and spaces that do not change when they are deformed (变形). The field is sometimes called “rubber-sheet geometry”, because objects can be stretched into different shapes like rubber but cannot be broken. For instance, a square can be deformed into a circle without breaking, but a doughnut shape cannot.
Sullivan, born in Port Huron, Michigan, in 1941, began studying topology as a graduate student at Princeton University in the early 1960s. His 1966 doctoral thesis, called “Triangulating Homotopy Equivalences,” helped revolutionize the study of manifolds, spaces that look flat when viewed from any point on their surface but have a more complicated overall structure.
Subsequently Sullivan taught at several other universities. During this time, he gradually changed how mathematicians perceived algebraic and geometric topology, introducing new ideas and building a new vocabulary. In 1970, he wrote a set of unpublished notes widely circulated and considered hugely influential.
By the late 1970s, Sullivan began investigating problems in dynamical systems, which is the study of a point moving through a geometrical space and a fundamental part of chaos theory. His work united dynamical systems and algebraic topology in ways that had never been done. In 1985, Sullivan proved a 60-year-old assumption that points moving in complex dynamical systems eventually return to their starting point rather than wandering about endlessly.
“Dennis P. Sullivan has repeatedly changed the landscape of topology by introducing new concepts”, said Hans Munthe-Kaas, chair of the Abel Committee. “I’m not sure Sullivan sees the boundaries between different areas of mathematics the same as other people see it.”
1. What is the purpose of the second paragraph?| A．To clarify a concept. | B．To present a fact. |
| C．To explain a phenomenon. | D．To make an assumption. |
| A．Promising and sincere. | B．Committed and pioneering. |
| C．Generous and intelligent | D．Ambitious and considerate. |
| A．Spaces have a more complicated overall structure. |
| B．A doughnut can be deformed into a circle without breaking. |
| C．Dynamic systems and algebraic topology can’t be integrated. |
| D．Points moving in certain systems eventually return to their starting point. |
| A．Sullivian doesn’t normally agree with others. |
| B．Different areas of mathematics have no boundaries. |
| C．Sullivian may have his own way of viewing different areas of maths. |
| D．Hans Munthe-Kaas has prejudice against Sullivian in the areas of mathematics. |
7 . Four Places Named After Scientists in Antarctica
There are many scientific breakthroughs made by women in Antarctic. Here are four landmarks in Antarctica and the female pioneers they’re named for.
Jones Terrace (梯田)
The ice-free terrace in eastern Antarctica’s Victoria Land bears Jones’ name. In 1969, geochemist Lois M. Jones led the first all-female research team from the U.S. to work in Antarctica. Jones and her team studied chemical weathering in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, an ice-free area of Antarctica. Through chemical analyses of rocks they had collected, Jones and her team discovered many geochemical characteristics of the valley’s ice-covered lakes.
Mount Fiennes
8,202-foot-high Mount Fiennes, located on Antarctica’s largest island — Alexander Island — is named for Ginny Fiennes. She established and maintained 80-foot-tall radio towers in the Antarctic. In 1985, Fiennes became the first female who was invited to join the Antarctic Club, a British supper club open to individuals who have spent extended time in the Antarctic region.
Francis Peak
The 3,727-foot-tall peak on Antarctica’s Adelaide Island is named after Dame Jane Francis, who is the first female director of the British Antarctic Survey, the national polar research institute of the UK. Her collection of fossils on Seymour Island helped conclude in a 2021 paper that Antarctica’s abundant plant fossils indicate the continent once had a much warmer climate than it currently does.
Peden Cliffs
Peden Cliffs near Antarctica’s Marie Byrd Land are proof of the labor of Irene Peden. She was the first American female scientist to both live and work in the Antarctic, where she used radio waves to study ice sheets. Peden and her team determined how very low frequency radio waves spread over long polar distances by measuring pathways in the ice. They also used varying radio wave frequencies to measure the thickness of Antarctica’s ice sheets.
1. Which place is named after a builder of radio towers in the Antarctic?| A．Jones Terrace. | B．Mount Fiennes. |
| C．Francis Peak. | D．Peden Cliffs. |
| A．Lois M. Jones. | B．Ginny Fiennes. |
| C．Dame Jane Francis. | D．Irene Peden. |
| A．She could judge the thickness of Antarctica’s ice sheets. |
| B．She discovered a lot of ice-covered lakes in the Antarctic. |
| C．She was the first female American to explore the Antarctic. |
| D．She correctly measured the spreading speed of radio waves. |
Hockey (冰球) goalkeepers are the rare athletes in team sports who can try to show their history, family and personality through the
China’s goalkeeper Zhou Jiaying caught the attention of the world when she showed
“She always
Her notice to Joswiak and his team read, “I hope that immediately we Chinese people see the pads, they think, ‘That’s the Gold Dragons in the Forbidden City!’”
Zhou Jiaying helped create the pads by
The design team worked up multiple
To meet her deadline, the pads that
Wearing her dragon pads, Zhou Jiaying stopped 22 of 23 shots in China’s win over Denmark on Friday. The Chinese team is scheduled
9 . Wang Shuang was just five when her parents divorced, dropped her at her uncle’s and left. Football, as it often is, became an escape.
At seven, she was spotted by coach Xu Yilong, who found Wang quick in her playful behaviour. As the only girl in the boys’ team, Wang’s performances were impressive, earning her the nickname “Iron Girl.” And soon, she sensed the sport’s power. Football allowed her to “release herself” and realize “whatever happens, football never leaves you alone.”
However, life was never smooth sailing. The constant jibes (嘲讽) from some people, who always tried to push her down and destroy her hopes, affected her so deeply that she lost confidence.” They were saying I had no talent at all. Gradually, I felt really so. “Wang once wrote. But never did she stop playing. When she was called up to the national team, aged 17,Wang thought, “Me? Are you sure?” When a world-famous club wanted to sign her, she was “excited that an excellent coach thought I was good.” It was only then that she felt confident in her abilities. “I felt recognized. Perhaps I had a bit of talent after all.”
Not any “bit of talent”; the genius is praised as China’s once-in-a-generation player.
China is a pioneer of women’s football in Asia and has won the continental championship eight times, including seven straight titles between 1986 and 1999.That was their golden age. Gradually, though, the dynasty declined. It is hoped that Wang will inspire the women’s football of the country to its former height.
Coaches are almost always hesitant to speak about individual players. But when coach Shui was asked about Wang before the match against Vietnam, she couldn’t stop mentioning her influence on the team. Unfailingly performing on the big stage, Wang did not let her team down. When they lacked a quality ball, she delivered two high assists that finally led her team into the last-four clash (交锋).
“Nobody knows how hard it was,“ declared Wang after the match. “We overcame difficulties. We also showed our strong spiritual power. I am proud of my team.”
1. What can we infer about Wang from the second paragraph?| A．She earned a living on her own. | B．She felt the power of sports. |
| C．She was laughed at by the boys. | D．She found a sense of belonging |
| A．By winning recognition. | B．By getting encouragement. |
| C．By playing in the national team. | D．By ignoring other people’s jibes. |
| A．Caring. | B．Unwilling. | C．Favorable. | D．Demanding |
| A．Wang Shuang: A Steel Rose | B．Wang Shuang: A Child Genius |
| C．Wang Shuang: A Football Pioneer | D．Wang Shuang: A Golden Age Successor· |
10 . Thanks to hours of training, gymnasts seem to effortlessly fly through the air at impossible heights. However, a psychological condition, known as “the twisties”, can affect even the most experienced gymnast. The condition, resulting from stress, causes athletes to lose awareness while they’re in the middle of a routine. It can lead to serious injury.
For Simone Biles, the twisties appeared while competing in the vault (跳马) at the Tokyo 2020 artistic gymnastics team finals on July 27, 2021. Biles had planned on performing an Amanar, a challenging routine that requires two-and-a-half twists in the air. Instead, she completed only one-and-a-half twists. Later Biles explained her condition, “Actually I cannot tell up from down. It’s the craziest feeling ever. Not having an inch of control over your body.”
Over the next week, Biles stopped taking part in five of the six finals she’d spent four years training to compete in. On August 3, 2021, she felt strong enough to compete in her last individual event—the balance beam, and won a bronze medal.
While fighting her emotional disorder, Biles remained a struggling cheerleader for her teammates. They weren’t disillusionary. After winning a silver medal in the artistic gymnastics team final, they also got good results in their separate individual events. Jade Carey took home the gold in the individual floor exercise, while Suni Lee placed first in the gymnastics all-around event.
Biles’ decision to put her health first has been welcomed by people worldwide. “At the end of the day, we’re not just athletes,” Biles said. “We’re human, too, and we have real emotions, and sometimes people don’t realize that we have things going on behind the scenes that affect us whenever we go out and compete.”
1. What does the author intend to do in paragraph 1?| A．Start a topic. | B．Present a fact. |
| C．Make a prediction. | D．Explain a concept. |
| A．She injured her eyes. | B．She kept her balance. |
| C．She was under a lot of pressure. | D．She did less skilled movements. |
| A．Active. | B．Lazy. | C．Disappointing. | D．Surprising. |
| A．Her attitudes to competitions. |
| B．Her great efforts in training. |
| C．Her spirit of never giving up. |
| D．Her achievements at the Olympics. |
