【推荐1】Exploring somewhere new can bring us adventurous experiences. With the proper technology, we can make full use of our time on the road. Google Maps is just this kind that helps make trips easier. People most commonly use Google Maps for directions from one place to another. It offers   many other kinds of travel tools.And, how do Google Maps work ?     1    

Project and share a road trip route.

When we are traveling on a road trip, we do not have to plan each part of the trip separately with Google Maps.    2    Besides, we can share our journey with others. After we have planned our route, click share or open the menu and click” share or insert map “to share our route with others.    3    

When we are traveling, we may not always have access to the Internet, or we may not want to pay international charges for using our phone in other countries. The good news is that we can still use Google Maps even without the Internet. We can download a map from Google Maps to our phone.

Find the best places in town.

    4    We can ask Google Maps for recommendations. After we search for a city in Google Maps, click” Nearby” to find the top- rated restaurants, hotels, pubs, coffee shops, and more.

Share our current position with friends.

Thanks to a recent Google Maps update,we can now share our position with our friends.     5    For example, using Google Maps for a lonely place, we can share our route with friends so that they can locate a general position where we stay and join us.

A．Is there any place to explore?

B．Want to know the best local places?

C．Here are 4 top tips for using Google Maps.

D．Save our maps for off-line use.

E．Google Maps can offer us all kinds of conveniences.

F．We can search for the whole trip in order to plan our route more efficiently.

G．During exploring a totally strange area, there is no need to worry about losing way.

【推荐2】What if instead of clicking on link after link on a company’s website, you could type a question and get an immediate, customized (定制的) answer? Some companies are working to make this a reality using chat-bots, which are computer programs that can communicate with human beings by phone, on messaging apps or on websites.

Chat-bots can look up information, answer frequently asked questions and collect information from users. They can be used to manage payments for online purchases, to help users decide what they want to purchase and to schedule and manage appointments.

There are two types of chat-bots: open and closed. A closed chat-bot follows a script, which may or may not involve using AI to understand users’ messages. An open chat-bot uses AI both to understand what users want and to generate responses. Open chat-bots are able to learn from their conversations and thus improve their ability to communicate over time. Having a conversation with them feels more natural, but if they have not been correctly trained, users may have a bad experience with them.

One significant advantage of chat-bots is that they are available all the time, even in the middle of the night. Plus, a single chat-bot can serve multiple users at once. Chat-bots have the potential to overcome several technological hurdles people face with ease. These include difficulty in navigating websites and trouble finding basic information and answers to simple questions.

However, in order for chat-bots to work, humans are still indispensable (必不可少的). Someone has to program the chat-bots at the very beginning, train them, and maintain and optimize (优化) the chat-bot system. Further, even open chat-bots may not have the answers to detailed questions, and many people simply prefer speaking to a human rather than a chat-bot. Thus, chat-bots are unlikely to completely replace human agents. Rather, they will help users solve simple problems so that customer service representatives can focus on more difficult issues.

Chat-bots have some limitations, but they are already revolutionizing the way customers interact with businesses and will continue to do so.

1. What is Paragraph Two mainly about?

A．The system of chat-bots.	B．The function of chat-bots.
C．The definition of chat-bots.	D．The management of chat-bots.

2. What does the underlined word “hurdles” mean in Paragraph Four?

A．Phenomena.

B．Innovations.

C．Affections.

D．Barriers.

3. What is the present situation between humans and chat-bots?

A．Chat-bots can totally take the place of humans.

B．As for chat-bots, humans are absolutely necessary.

C．Chat-bots are able to answer all humans’ detailed questions.

D．Humans can trust chat-bots to help them solve difficult problems.

4. How does the author find the chat-bots?

A．Perfect.

B．Honest.

C．Promising.

D．Hardworking.

【推荐1】It is widely acknowledge that cities with some kind of functioning ecosystems make for better place for humans to live. More plants and animals in cities make for happier, healthier people.

A study conducted on green spaces in Sheffield, England, for instance, revealed that the greater the biodiversity (生物多样性), the greater the psychological well-being (健康) of the city’s citizens. In Paris, researchers found that getting citizens to take part in day-long activities involving urban wildlife opened their eyes to the natural world for a time, at least.

Few cities have been associated with urban ecology for as Berlin. “Slow economic recovery after the Second World War meant that reconstruction would take a long time. This provide local ecologist with the ideal conditions to develop an ambitious ecological research program in the bombed-out wastelands of West Berlin,” said Jens Lachmund, a sociologist at the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands.

The pioneering work in Berlin had several consequences, especially the formation of significant natural spaces within the city, such as the Sudgelande Nature. “Berlin has indeed benefited a lot from being a case study in urban ecology,” said Lachmund.

The recent research conducted by Mark Goddard, a biologist at the University of Leeds, and his colleagues confirmed the important of natural space within an urban setting. Goddard and his team conducted a striking global analysis of bird and plant diversity, quantifying the influence of urbanization on levels of biodiversity around the world. “Functioning urban ecosystems will be extremely important to human health and well-being,” said Goddard.

Cities take up just 3% of the land surface area, yet according to the most recent figure from the United Nations, some 3.6 billion people (just over 50% of the global population) now live in urban areas. By 2050, this figure is expected it rise to 6.3 billion. Without animals and plants to keep us company, it is a dark future.

1. The findings in Paragraph 2 are mentioned to explain the between_____.

A．citizens and their well-being

B．green spaces and urban wildlife

C．Urban ecology and citizens’ well-being

D．Functioning ecosystems and the natural world

2. What would be Goddard’s attitude towards Berlin’s work?

A．Cautious.	B．Negative.
C．Uncaring.	D．Admiring.

3. The author uses figures in the last paragraph to show______.

A．The negative effect of over population.

B．The important of urban ecosystems.

C．The serious problems of city life.

D．The rapid growth of urban areas.

4. Which of the following can be the best text?

A．Should more people live in urban areas?

B．Should Berlin have more natural spaces?

C．Should cities be for animals and plants too?

D．Should the global population be controlled now?

【推荐2】The deep-sea oil and gas industry has vast and costly facilities to maintain. Wells, other equipment, and thousands of kilometers of pipelines must be inspected and repaired.

Now, cutting-edge underwater drones(无人机)and robots are being developed that could make the work safer and cheaper. Among them is Eelume, a six-meter-long, snake-like robot equipped with sensors and a camera at each end. It can be kept at a station at depths of up to half a kilometer for six months, without being brought back to the surface. The robot can travel up to 20 kilometers before needing to return to its station to recharge.

Maintenance work at many deep-water wells and pipeline systems is already carried out by unmanned vehicles. But these vehicles typically need to be transported to the offshore site on a fully crewed ship and then remotely operated from onboard the surface ship. That can cost up to $100,000 per day, according to Pål Liljebäck, chief technology officer with Eelume Subsea Intervention, which developed the robot. Liljebäck says that by “enabling the robot to become a subsea resident living at a station, it can be mobilized at any time to do inspections, thereby reducing the need for costly surface ships”.

Eelume can work autonomously on tasks assigned from a control room onshore, and send back video and data. Its snake-like design allows it to work in small spaces and wriggle(扭动)its body to stay in place in strong currents. By staying under the sea, it can carry out tasks whatever the conditions on the surface of the ocean.

The global underwater robotics market is expected to be worth around $7 billion in 2025, according to analysts, and other companies are in the process of commercializing new deep-sea drone and robot technology. Eelume Subsea Intervention will carry out final testing on the seabed later this year at the Åsgard oil and gas field. It expects to put its first snake robots into use next year and hopes to have up to 50 in oceans around the world by 2027.

1. What is one feature of Eelume?

A．It can travel nearly 40 kilometers before recharging.	B．It can dive as deep as 1000 meters.
C．It works mainly around the station.	D．It works for 6 months on one charge.

2. What is the problem with unmanned vehicles?

A．They are too costly to maintain.

B．They are hard to operate remotely.

C．They require transportation to and from work.

D．They have to work on a fully crewed ship all the time.

3. What can be expected of Eelume in the future?

A．It will require no further tests.	B．It will be worth around $ 7 billion.
C．It will be put on the market in 2027.	D．It will possibly face some competitors.

4. What is the main idea of the passage?

A．A snake robot is on its way for underwater tasks.

B．Eelume is the new choice for constructing pipelines.

C．Maintenance work on the ocean floor is a risky job.

D．Unmanned vehicles are perfect choices for oil and gas industry.

【推荐1】I spend half of my life with my mother and the other half with my father. My father lives with a twenty-pound cat named Tofu. He calls me his favorite daughter. I am an only child.

My father's apartment is quite different from any other person's living space. Except for my room, there is no furniture. He doesn't like sofas or any comfortable chairs, so he has only a drawing table, a desk and his bed. He spends a lot of time lying on the studio floor. That's how he thinks, he says. Then he does yoga

He has a big kitchen, and on top of the refrigerator is an old clock he winds every week for good luck. The last time the clock stopped, my father's car was towed(被警察拖走) and some other terrible things happened, so he has become very superstitious (迷信的) . When he goes out of town, he hires someone to feed Tofu and wind the clock so it won't stop.

The one thing he has plenty of is house rules. You have to take off your shoes when you come in. He won't allow anyone who wears a baseball cap into his house. He says only baseball players should wear baseball caps and only the catchers should wear them backward. Every time I go to stay in his house, he makes up a new rule. “House rule number 579, no television programs with laugh tracks！”he will say. But then be can never remember the numbers, so they change constantly.

The rule that he always enforces is the one that requires me to write a two-page essay anytime I want something. He didn't speak English until he was sixteen, and he had a hard time learning to write it, so he wants me to become a good writer at an early age. This ritual（仪式）started when I asked him if I could have my ears pierced when I was nine. He said it was very cruel and told me I couldn't do it until I was thirty-five. But l kept asking him, and he finally said that if I wrote an essay and I could persuade him in writing why I wanted holes in my ears, maybe he would say okay. I wrote my first essay for my father, and after one month of writing and rewriting, he finally. gave me his permission.

1. What is unusual about the father's apartment?

A．It has a large kitchen.

B．The father does yoga at home.

C．It is scarcely furnished.

D．The father spends a lot of time on the floor.

2. Which of the following is an example of the house rules?

A．Someone is hired to feed Tofu.

B．You can't wear shoes in the house.

C．Baseball players are not allowed into the apartment.

D．The writer can't watch television programs in the apartment.

3. Which of these statements about the clock is TRUE?

A．It is not an automatic one.

B．Her father doesn't like the clock.

C．It can bring good luck to them.

D．Someone is hired to wind it every week.

4. We can infer that the writer's father____.

A．was a famous writer

B．was born in the United States

C．was a caring and strict father

D．speaks more than one language

【推荐2】Are you familiar with the name Oliver Wendell Holmes ? The name’s master once attended a meeting in which he was the shortest man among the big heads. "Doctor Holmes," joked a friend. "I should think you would feel rather small among us big fellows." "Actually I do," smiled Holmes. "I feel like a dime（一角硬币）among a lot of pennies(便士）."

I ever believed only such a person like Holmes could think that way. But I was proven wrong.

Yesterday I watched a huge flight of geese winging their way south through one of those beautiful sunsets that colored the entire sky for a few moments. I saw them as I rested against the lion statue in front of the Chicago Art Institute, where I was watching the Christmas shoppers hurry along Michigan Avenue.

When I looked sideways, I noticed that a bag lady, standing a few feet away, had also been watching the geese with great attention. Sensing someone was looking at her, she cast a sideways look. Our eyes met and we smiled silently acknowledging（承认） the fact that we had shared an amazing sight, a symbol of the secret of the struggle to survive. I overheard the lady talking to herself as she walked away. Her words, "Life treats me kindly", nearly made my jaw drop.

Was the lady, this homeless street beggar, being kidding or even mindless? No. I believed the sight of the geese had reminded her of, however briefly, the difficult and unpleasant reality of her own struggle. I realized later that moments such as this one provided her with great comfort and encouragement; it was the way she survived the hardness of the street. Her smile was real.

The sight of the geese was her Christmas present. It was proof（证明） that hard work mattered. It was all she needed. I envy her.

1. Why does the author mention Holmes in Paragraph 1?

A．To show his admiration and respect for Holmes

B．To introduce the topic linked to his experience

C．To arouse famous people’s empathy and attention

D．To show self-esteemed（自尊的） Holmes was

2. What amazed the author most the day he watched the geese?

A．The bag lady's comments on her life.

B．The secret of the peace of the geese.

C．People's fondness for Christmas gifts.

D．The beautiful sunset and the colorful sky.

3. What does the author envy the bag lady?

A．Her unusual experiences as a street beggar.

B．Her great pride in what she worked hard at.

C．Her friendly ways of getting on with strangers.

D．Her positive attitude towards her own struggle.

【推荐3】Look for a stress-free company event? Here is a range of our most popular Team Building therned events, all available at Tangalooma.

Scavenger Hunt

8-500 people

1-2 hours

Our most popular event at Tangalooma! This activity encourages teams to work together by problem-solving, being creative and exploring opportunities. Our app leads small teams to complete fun-filled creative missions around the resort. This is not a foot-race, but a game built on strategy and creativity!

Amazing Race

8-500 people

2-3 hours

Inspired by the “Amazing Race” TV show and classic Scavenger Hunts, this activity is the perfect mix of problem-solving, teamwork, leadership and creativity. Teams race around Tangalooma Island Resort, competing against each other in a series of questions, creative photo and video tasks and physical challenges. It’s fast-paced, and ends with a live-voting presentation before the winners are announced and crowned champions!

Island Survivor

8-300 people

2-3 hours

Your group will be split into an even number of tribes, competing in a head-to-head rotation (自转) of exciting and strategic beach challenges. If you want to maximise the time spent “facing off” in challenges, then this is perfect for you. We’ll test physical, mental and problem-solving skills. The strongest players rarely win...

Raft Building

8-120 people

2-3 hours

This is a classic team building activity, where teams work together to gather materials, design, plan and build their own raft. Engage your team, where communication, design and planning, and strategy are critical to your success. Are you ready to test yourself against nature, the wits (智慧) of your team, and your building skills?

1. What might play a role in Scavenger Hunt?

A．Strength.

B．Courage.

C．Adventure.

D．Strategy.

2. What is “Amazing Race”?

A．A film.

B．A novel.

C．A TV show.

D．A game.

3. What do the four items have in common?

A．Figures.

B．Teamwork.

C．Time.

D．Reaction.

【推荐1】When David Hyche was helping his local church plan an annual Easter egg hunt nine years ago, he realized his then 19-month-old blind daughter Rachel would not be able to fully take part in it. He decided to look for a way for his daughter to experience an Easter egg hunt just like her normal-sighted older brother.

David then researched online on how a blind child could do an Easter egg hunt and have fun with it. He found there were people who could make beeping (有哔哔声的) eggs. He then called a man in Los Angeles and the man told him how he did it. David then thought he could spread beeping eggs around the world.

He made forty beeping eggs that year and sold them at a price of $14 per egg. Each egg took him about 20 minutes to make. It contains a switch (开关), a beeper, and a 9-volt battery, joined together by wires (导线).

A handful of blind kids, Rachel included, showed up at the first beeping Easter egg hunt hosted by David in Birmingham nine years ago. Hoping to spread it further, David employed his coworkers and friends throughout Alabama to help him make more beeping eggs. This year, three beeping Easter egg hunts were held in Birmingham alone, with dozens more held across the country.

Around six years ago, David’s idea drew an ally (同盟军) in the International Association of Bomb Technicians and Investigators (IABTI). IABTF’s members collect the eggs and then send them to the requesting groups. Each egg now costs $11.50 to make, according to the IABTI, which posts a step-by-step explainer on its website.

“A lot of schools for the blind use the eggs to teach kids how to locate (定位) things because it teaches them to use a logical mind to search,” said David. “It’s teaching these kids independence,” he said. “It’s not just an Easter egg hunt like it is for other people.”

1. Why did David want to make the beeping Easter egg at first?

A．To plan a special Easter egg hunt.

B．To make his daughter enjoy an Easter egg hunt.

C．To draw people’s attention to an Easter hunt.

D．To provide beeping Easter for blind children.

2. What can we infer from the passage?

A．Rachel is 9 years old now.

B．It is not too hard for David to make a beeping egg.

C．David learned how to make a beeping egg by chance.

D．Few children were interested in the beeping egg at first.

3. David asked his coworkers and friends to help ________.

A．raise money	B．send finished eggs
C．make beeping eggs	D．post an explainer online

4. Why do many schools for the blind use beeping eggs?

A．Because they help blind kids to be independent.

B．Because an egg hunt is a lot fun like it is for others.

C．Because they are easy to locate for the blind.

D．Because a logical mode is used in making them.

【推荐2】Police Officer Tidwell left the station just after 8 a.m. on Sunday June 4. He had spent a boring night on duty and was looking forward to his day of rest. By habit he took a short-cut down the path behind Dugby Hall road and after a minute or two he saw a man climbing down a drainpipe (雨水管)from an open bedroom window of Number 29. In silence, Tidwell crept into the garden. The man reached the ground and was dusting himself down when he felt his arm caught.

“It's 8:15 on a Sunday morning,” said the officer, "and this sort of thing seems an unlikely adventure at such a time. Would you mind explaining?"

The man was obviously scared but tried to keep calm. He said, "I know what you are thinking, officer, but it isn't true. This is a funny mistake.”

“It's part of my job to take an interest in unusual events. I think you've just left this house in a manner other than the customary one. That may be quite innocent, but I'd like to make sure." Tidwell took out his notebook and a pen. “Name, address and occupation and then, please, tell me your story..."

“Charlie Crane, lorry driver, from Nottingham, 51 Breton Street. My story...”

"Yes. What were you doing like a fly on that wall, Mr. Crane?”

“Well, I had a breakdown yesterday and had to stay the night here. Bed and breakfast. The land-lady's name is Mrs. Fern. She gave me breakfast at seven, and I was out of he: mthe right way and down at the lorry by half past seven. Only when I felt around for a cigarette did I realize I'd left $80 in my envelope under the pillow here at number 29. I always put it un er my pillow at night. It's a habit I've got into. I even do it at home...

“I see. Why didn't you miss it when you went to pay Mrs.... What's her name?”

“I'd paid her last night. You've got to pay when you take the room, see? So I came rushing back, but it's Sunday, and she'd gone back to bed, and could I wake her? I rang the bell and banged on the front door for ten minutes before I came round here to the back and spotted my bedroom window still open. Up I went, then, up this pipe. It's a trick I learned in the army. She didn't make the bed、and money was still there. You know the rest, I hope you believe it because... ”

"Mr. Crane, whatever are you doing here? I thought you'd gone an hour ago." It was Mrs.   Fem, speaking from the kitchen at the corner of the house.

1. Why was Tidwell walking along the path behind Dugby Hall road?

A．He usually discovered something suspicious along that way.

B．He knew he would get home quicker that way.

C．He chose to go that way by chance.

D．He had an appointment with a man at number 29 there.

2. The police officer questioned the man because .

A．the man had fallen and needed attention

B．he thought he knew him

C．he had seen him do a strange thing

D．the man had tried to escape from a window

3. Crane stayed the night at number 29 because .

A．he had lost his way in the dark

B．he had suddenly fallen ill that night

C．Nottingham was too far for him to drive that night

D．there was something wrong with his lorry

4. Why didn't the man realize he had left his money at the landlady's earlier?

A．Because he had no occasion to remember the money thing.

B．Because he had put the money under the pillow.

C．Because he trusted the landlady.

D．Because he was in such a hurry that morning.

5. In the end, Officer Tidwell would probably .

A．take Crane back to his office

B．accuse Crane of misbehaving

C．force Crane to pay Mrs. Fem some money

D．just let Crane go

【推荐3】''I get so frustrated. I end up hitting the desk. '' ''I feel very unwell and I am really scared. '' These are how students feel about one of the basic but important subjects being learnt in school-mathematics. These also reflect a phenomenon where children as young as six may feel fear, anger and despair as a result of ''mathematics anxiety'', a condition which can cause physical symptoms and behavior problems in class, according to a study.

Researchers from the center for neuroscience in education at Cambridge University worked with 2,700 primary and secondary students in the UK and Italy—including detailed one-to-one interviews —to explore maths anxiety and its causes.

Researchers say maths anxiety should be treated as a ''real concern'' because of the damage it does to a child's learning. Pupils in both primary and secondary school can find themselves locked in a cycle of despair, suffering from anxiety which harms their maths performance, which in turn leads to increased anxiety.

The children interviewed provided vivid descriptions of their fears about maths. One primary school student described his reaction during a math lesson. ''Because my table's in the corner I kind of tried not to be in the lesson. ''

Researchers found there was a general sense that maths was hard compared with other subjects, which led to a loss of confidence. Yet the study points out that most children with high levels of maths anxiety are also high achievers in the subject.

It was also found that key triggers for anxiety included poor marks, test pressures, tease from fellow pupils and a confusing mix of teaching methods. National State tests taken in the final year of primary school were another cause of anxiety for some, while the transition to secondary school was challenging for others.

1. What can we learn about maths anxiety?

A．It is a typical condition of primary students.

B．It is the root of students' strange daily behaviors.

C．It does damage to students' math performance.

D．Only teenagers can suffer a lot from it in class.

2. What does the underlined word mean in the last paragraph?

A．Problems.	B．Reasons.
C．Phenomena	D．Consequences.

3. What will be possibly talked about next?

A．How students respond to maths learning.

B．What makes maths learning difficult.

C．Why students suffer from mathes anxiety.

D．How to deal with the maths frustration.