【推荐1】Taylor Ellis was born with an eye disease and has very little vision. When she went in for her 20-week scan and was unable to see her baby, she was left in tears. When doctors found out she was upset, they conducted a special ultrasound(超声) and made a 3D print out of her unborn daughter's face.

26-year-old Taylor and her husband Jeremy, who also has been diagnosed(诊断) with poor eyesight, received the special scan in the hospital a week later. They were able to feel the baby's face as a result, and it was a dream that became reality. Baby Rosalie is now ten weeks old, and mum of three Taylor said the 3D printing technology- most commonly used to make car parts- was “life changing”.

Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore usually uses the technology to create models of unborn babies with spina bifida(脊柱裂). It allows surgeons to get a clear image of the spines of babies to see if they need a surgery. When an ultrasound doctor called David at the same hospital found out the special use of the technology, he suggested the technology be used to help blind parents. It is thought to be the first hospital in the world to offer the service.

Taylor, a stay-at-home mother from Cockeysville in Maryland, said, “I always thought about what my baby would look like and was always saddened to know I wouldn't have the same opportunity as seeing mothers. My sight wasn't so bad with my first two children, so I could see the 2D ultrasound.” When she received the 3D ultra-sound, Taylor said of the exciting moment, “I had the realization that this was my baby's face. It was so heart-warming. I showed off my scan to my daughters and my parents on video chat, ”Taylor added, “This pregnancy has been so scary but so exciting the whole way through. I will tell my daughter this amazing experience.”

1. How did the doctors help Taylor Ellis?

A．They enabled her to “see” her baby.	B．They made a 3D print out of her.
C．They sent her to a better hospital.	D．They cured her of her eye disease.

2. What did Taylor Ellis think of the 3D printing technology?

A．Unreal.

B．Dangerous.

C．Amazing.

D．Affordable.

3. What is 3D technology normally used for in Johns Hopkins Hospital?

A．Building new spines for babies.	B．Assisting with medical diagnoses.
C．Serving blind patients with babies.	D．Creating models of blind patients.

4. The last paragraph mainly shows Taylor Ellis's_____________.

A．interest in knowing about her unborn baby	B．sadness of losing her sight after giving birth
C．excitement of sharing experiences in a video	D．delight in getting the special scan of her baby

【推荐2】Directions: Read the following passage. Fill in each blank with a proper sentence given in the box. Each sentence can be used only once. Note that there are two more sentences than you need.

Car washes have been automated for decades, but companies developing fully autonomous vehicles must rely on a human touch to keep their cars and trucks in working condition.

    1    For example, soap residue or water spots could effectively "blind" an autonomous car. A traditional car wash's heavy brushes could jar the vehicle's sensors, disrupting their calibration and accuracy. Even worse, sensors, which can cost over $100.000. could be broken.    2    Dirt, dead bugs, bird droppings or water spots can impact the vehicle's ability to drive safely.

Avis, which has years of experience managing large fleets of rental cars, has been tasked with cleaning and refueling the self-driving van fleet of Waymo, the self-driving arm of Google's parent company. Avis modified three of its branches in the Phoenix area to tend to the Chrysler Pacifica vans. “There are special processes that definitely require a lot more care and focus, and you have to clean [the vans] quite often.”

    3    But other self-driving car companies such as Toyota, Aptiv, Drive. AI and Uber described to CNN that they use microfiber cloths along with rubbing alcohol, water or glass cleaner for manual cleanings.

    4    This should alleviate some need for manual cleaning. But because autonomous vehicles can have dozens of sensors, Seeva CEO Diane Lansinger doesn't imagine products like this will be able to clean every camera, radar or LIDAR, a laser sensor that most experts see as essential for self-driving vehicles.

A．The sensors on a fully self-driving car require special care.

B．Orduña wouldn't reveal exactly how they' re washing the vehicles.

C．The most advanced cars on the planet require an old-fashioned handwashing.

D．Meanwhile, some companies, such as Cruise, are building sensor cleaning equipment into their vehicles.

E．There are a range of problems with putting a self-driving vehicle through a traditional car wash, experts say.

F．A self-driving vehicle's exterior needs to be cleaned even more frequently than a typical car because the sensors must remain free of obstructions.

【推荐3】Zero-emission (排放) large passenger aircraft powered by hydrogen (氢) will be technically available in five years, according to Airbus, but they will not enter service for at least a decade as the price of the fuel needs to come down.

The prediction comes from Glenn Llewellyn, vice-president of zero-emission technology at the European plane-maker. He said that while Airbus planned to demonstrate hydrogen-powered aircraft in 2025, over the next 10 years, hydrogen won’t be more economic than the fossil fuel. “To make real emissions free hydrogen-powered planes, which give out only water and heat, their fuel needs to come from hydrogen produced via renewable sources such as wind and solar,” he added. “Another barrier is building up the ecosystem that hydrogen aircraft will need.”

However, Mr. Llewellyn predicted that there was enough interest to make this happen. In an interview, Mr. Llewellyn said, “We already see massive increases in the amount of renewable energy being produced across the world. Wind energy production has multiplied by two over the last five years and solar energy production has multiplied by four.” He added, “There are a number of independent institutes that have mapped out how hydrogen costs can come down over the next decades. We see a 30% reduction in renewable hydrogen costs in 2030 compared to where it is today, and a 50% reduction in renewable hydrogen costs by 2050. They are exactly the kind of cost figures that are interesting for us, because it makes zero-emission aircraft commercially viable (可行的) in the 2030s.”

Last month UK-based ZeroAvia conducted the world’s first flight of a commercial-grade aircraft powered by hydrogen. A few days before, Airbus announced a series of design proposals for hydrogen-driven aircraft, including a “blended wing” concept that provides greater storage capacity. This design could be key to hydrogen-powered aircraft as the fuel is less energy dense (密度大) than conventional fuel and so requires more space to match performance of existing airplanes.

1. What does Paragraph 2 focus on?

A．The future to make hydrogen-powered aircraft.

B．The importance of making hydrogen-powered aircraft.

C．The problems with making hydrogen-powered aircraft.

D．The possibility of making hydrogen-powered aircraft.

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

A．Space.

B．Ability.

C．Place.

D．Capability

3. What is Mr. Llewellyn’s attitude towards the future of Zero-emission large aircraft?

A．Cautious.

B．Negative.

C．Doubtful.

D．Positive.

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．The Zero-emission aircraft’s first flight was tested.

B．Zero-emission large aircraft will be available.

C．Zero-emission large aircraft has been mass produced.

D．The production of Zero-emission large aircraft encountered barriers.

【推荐3】Efforts to preserve the Amazon rain forest are growing ever more urgent as the ecosystem’s destruction accelerates. A recent study shows that a new program combining on-the-ground monitoring with satellite data and smartphone technology could help put the brakes on Amazon deforestation (毁林) —and potentially that of forests elsewhere.

The scientists cooperated with 76 local communities, 36 of which participated in using satellite-based “early deforestation alerts” —an early-alert system on a smartphone app, to watch over the forest and to inspect forests and document damage. Over the next two years the participants were paid to work as forest monitors and received monthly alerts via the app when satellite data indicated local forest losses. Monitors investigated alerts and inspected for deforestation in the areas. They reported confirmed losses back to their communities which decided whether to deal with the affairs on their own or inform state authorities.

The researchers analyzed the same forest-loss satellite data from the given time period in all 76 communities. They found the program reduced forest loss by 8.4 hectares (公顷) in the first year—a 52 percent reduction compared with the average loss in the control communities, says Tara Slough, an economist at New York University. “This reduction in deforestation was concentrated in communities facing the largest threat of forest loss,” she adds.

Results for the program were less striking in its second year when forest loss was reduced by only 3.3 hectares compared with that in control communities. The researchers explain that a Peruvian government campaign against coca planting that year may have discouraged deforestation in both experimental and control communities narrowing differences between the two groups in the program.

Experts say this approach to dealing with Amazonian deforestation looks promising. Local groups may continue the work they started in the program. “We want to apply this in other communities. In doing so we are making a contribution to the world,” wrote Francisco, a community member involved in the research.

1. Why did the research team conduct the program?

A．To stop carbon being locked away.	B．To tackle Amazon deforestation.
C．To monitor satellite movement.	D．To control illegal activities.

2. How did the researchers conduct the study?

A．By analyzing the data.	B．By surveying the monitors.
C．By observing the area.	D．By investigating the damage.

3. What can we learn about the new program?

A．It applies to all the forests.	B．It adopts multiple technologies.
C．It involves no human participation.	D．It solves the problem beforehand.

4. Which of the following is a suitable title for the text?

A．Amazon Protecting the Rainforest	B．Experts Testing Early-alert System
C．Communities Dealing With Deforestation	D．Smartphone Watching Over the Forest

【推荐1】Culture can affect not just language and customs, but also how people experience the world on surprisingly basic levels.

Researchers, with the help of brain scans, have uncovered shocking differences in perception(感知) between Westerners and Asians, what they see when they look at a city street, for example, or even how they perceive a simple line in a square, according to findings published in a leading science journal

In western countries, culture makes people think of themselves as highly independent entities(实体) .When looking at scenes, Westerners tend to focus more on central objects than on their surroundings. East Asian cultures, however emphasize inter-dependence. When Easterners look at a scene, they tend to focus on surroundings as well as the object.

Using an experiment involving two tasks, Dr Hedden asked subjects to look at a line simply to estimate its length, a task that is played to American strengths. In another, they estimated the line's length relative to the size of a square, an easier task for the Asians.

The level of brain activity, by tracking blood flow, was then measured by Brain Scanners. The experiment found that although there was no difference in performance, and the tasks were very easy, the levels of activity in the subjects’ brains were different. For the Americans, areas linked to attention lit up more, when they worked on the task they tended to find more difficult--estimating the line's size relative to the square. For the Asians, the attention areas lit up more during the harder task also--estimating the line's length without comparing it to the square. The findings are a reflection of more than ten years of previous experimental research into east-west differences

In one study, for instance, researchers offered people a choice among five pens, four red and one green. Easterners were more likely to choose a red pen while Westerners were more likely to choose the green one.

Culture is not affecting how you see the world, but how you choose to understand and internalize(使内化) it. But such habits can be changed. Some psychological studies suggest that when an Easterner goes to the West or vice versa, habits of thought and perception also begin to change. Such research gives us clues on how our brain works and is hopeful for us to develop programs to improve our memory, memory techniques and enhance and accelerate our learning skills.

1. According to the passage, Chinese people are most likely to_________.

A．emphasize independent thinking more

B．always focus more on their surroundings

C．focus on the context as well as object

D．think of Westerners as highly independent entities

2. We know from the passage that people's brains will be more active when_________.

A．the task is much easier

B．the blood flow is tracked

C．people begin to choose colors

D．the task is more difficult

3. What do the findings of the experiments mentioned in the passage indicate?

A．They indicate that culture has a great impact on the way people talk and behave.

B．They show that Easterners and Westerners have great differences in perceiving the world

C．They suggest that people's habits of thought and perception can be changed in different cultures.

D．They make it clear that Easterners and Westerners lay emphasis on different things

4. It can be inferred from the passage that_________.

A．Easterners prefer collectivism to individualism

B．East Asian cultures lay more emphasis on independence

C．It took over ten years to find out how to improve our brainpower

D．Americans will change their habits of perception when they're in Britain

【推荐2】Green is an important color in nature. It is the color of grass and the leaves on trees. It is also the color of most growing plants.

Sometimes, the word “green” means young, fresh and growing. For example, a greenhorn is someone who has no experience. In the 15th century, a greenhorn was a young cow or an ox whose horns(角) had not yet developed. A century later, a greenhorn was a soldier who had no experience in war. By the 18th century, a greenhorn had the meaning it has today—a person who is new in a job.

Someone who is good at growing plants is said to have a green thumb(大拇指). The expression comes from the early 20th century. A person with a green thumb can make plants grow quickly and well.

Green is also the color used to describe the powerful feeling, jealousy(嫉妒). The green-eyed monster(怪物) is not a dangerous animal from outer space. It is an expression used about 400 years ago by the British writer William Shakespeare in his play “Othello”. It describes the unpleasant feeling when someone has something he wants. For example, a young man may suffer from the green-eyed monster if you get a pay rise and he does not.

In most places in the world, a green light means to move ahead. In everyday speech, a green light means agree to continue with a project.

1. A greenhorn now refers to ________.

A．a person who is new in a job

B．a new soldier

C．a young horse

D．a cow without horns

2. A person with a green thumb is a person ________.

A．who is good at growing plants

B．whose thumbs are of green color

C．whose garden is greener than others’

D．who is younger than his neighbors

3. A man may meet the green-eyed monster if ________.

A．he sees a dangerous animal

B．he reads a sad play

C．his friend gets a prize that he wants

D．he can’t get something

4. The main idea of the passage is ________.

A．a greenhorn

B．a green thumb

C．the Green Revolution

D．the word “green” and its story

【推荐3】We’ve known for years that plants can see, hear, smell and communicate with chemicals. Now, reported New Scientist, they have been recorded making sounds when stressed.

In a yet-to-be-published study, Itzhak Khait and his team at Tel Aviv University, in Israel, found that tomato and tobacco (烟草) plants can make ultrasonic (超声的) noises. The plants “cry out” due to lack of water, or when their stems (茎) are cut. It’s just too high-pitched (音调高的) for humans to hear.

Microphones placed 10 centimeters away from the plants picked up sounds in the ultrasonic range of 20 to 100 kilohertz (千赫兹). Human hearing usually ranges from 20 hertz to 20 kilohertz. “These findings can change the way we think about the plant kingdom,” they wrote.

On average, “thirsty” tomato plants made 35 sounds an hour, while tobacco plants made 11. When plant stems were cut, tomato plants made an average of 25 sounds in the following hour, and tobacco plants 15. Unstressed plants produced fewer than one sound per hour, on average.

Perhaps most interestingly, different types of stress led to different sounds. The researchers trained a machine-learning model to separate the plants’ sounds from those of the wind, rain and other noises of the greenhouse. In most cases, it correctly identified (辨识) whether the stress was caused by dryness or a cut, based on a sound’s intensity(强度) and frequency. Water-hungry tobacco appears to make louder sounds than cut tobacco, for example. Although Khait and his colleagues only looked at tomato and tobacco plants, they think other plants also make sounds when stressed.

If farmers could hear these sounds, said the team, they could give water to the plants that need it most. As climate change causes more droughts (旱灾), they said this would be important information for farmers. “The sounds that drought-stressed plants make could be used in precision agriculture (精准农业),” said Anne Visscher at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in the UK.

Khait’s report also suggests that insects and mammals (哺乳动物) can hear the sounds up to 5 meters away and respond. For example, a moth (蛾子) may decide not to lay eggs on a water-stressed plant. Edward Farmer, at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, is doubtful. He said that the idea of moths listening to plants is “a little too speculative”.

If plants are screaming for fear of their survival, maybe we should be glad we can’t hear them.

1. What did Khait and his team find from their research?

A．Plants made low-pitched sounds when in danger.

B．Plants made ultrasonic noises to communicate with each other.

C．Plants picked up a wider range of sounds when stressed.

D．Plants were able to produce sounds in response to stresses.

2. How did tomato and tobacco plants react to different stresses according to the text?

A．A plant reacted to different stresses with the same sound.

B．Cut tomato plants produced more sounds per hour than water-hungry ones.

C．Cut tobacco plants seemed to make weaker sounds than drought-stressed ones.

D．Tobacco plants might make louder sounds than tomato plants when short of water.

3. What’s the main idea of Paragraph 6?

A．Challenges faced by farmers in the future.

B．The potential applications of the research.

C．Farmers’ contributions to the research.

D．What the future agriculture will be like.

4. The underlined word “speculative” in the second-to-last paragraph has the closest meaning to “______”.

A．practical	B．unsupported
C．surprising	D．complicated

【推荐1】The study findings about a new blood test have been published this morning in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA Cardiology). The study was conducted smoothly and effectively based on their working together with the Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB), New Zealand, and the Christchurch Heart Institute, which is run by the university of Otago, Christchurch, New Zealand.

Co-lead author, Associate Professor John Pickering of the University of Otago, says, “When a patient comes to an emergency department (ED) with symptoms that suggest a potential heart attack, present laboratory blood-testing procedures can take 1-2 hours to discover the risk level, but with this new test we can get a result in just fifteen minutes, from the bedside, or ‘point-of-care’, freeing up ED and health care staff. The patient can then either be cleared to leave, or quickly progressed to specialist care. The result proves to be true after later observation and other tests.”

Senior author, and Director of Emergency Medicine Research, Dr Martin Than of the CDHB says present point-of-care tests can lack the precision of this new method that is centered around a measurement of cardiac troponin (肌钙蛋白) in the blood. “Our results have extremely exciting potential for not only EDs, but also remote health care providers—such as those in the countryside. Given the great effect heart disease and other related conditions have on not only New Zealand society but also the international community, we have something that could benefit tens of millions of patients globally,” Dr Than says.

The analysis of this observational study, conducted from 2016 to 2017 at Christchurch Hospital’s emergency department, included about 350 patients with symptoms of a heart attack. “So far our testing has shown that close to fifty percent of patients could have the heart attack safely and precisely excluded (排除……的可能性) soon after arrival at the ED. Wider study is required to be in progress and some other study concerned across ten District Health Boards in New Zealand is planned for next year,” Dr Than says.

1. How did the researchers get the findings?

A．By doing effective teamwork.	B．By observing patients with heart disease.
C．By applying the EDs’ advanced technology.	D．By receiving support from other specialists.

2. Which of the following can best describe the new blood test?

A．Convenient and cheap.	B．Quick and reliable.
C．Convenient but expensive.	D．Quick but risky.

3. What problem does the present point-of-care method face?

A．It spends too much to get medical training.	B．It doesn’t have its own health care staff.
C．It can’t check patients’ blood accurately.	D．It needs money to buy medical equipment.

4. What does Dr. Than mean about the new test in the last paragraph?

A．It is being used globally.	B．It can cure heart disease.
C．It’ll make progress next year.	D．It needs further research.

【推荐2】Thirty-two cases of illegal hunting or trading wild animals have been uncovered involving 33 suspects since a crackdown against illegal wildlife trade was launched on April 10.

Beijing police seized 74 wild animals grouped in China into the first-grade and second-grade state protected animals, including African grey parrots and cockatoos, as well as nearly 50 wild birds and 21 pangolin scales.

On April 16, police in the capital city’s Chaoyang district caught two suspects, who were respectively identified as Liu and Wang, for buying wild animals, and recovered more than 40 wild birds, including one cockatoo and one African grey parrot, at their homes, the statement said, adding the two suspects have been detained (拘留).

In another case, a 35-year-old man surnamed Hu was also sentenced to imprisonment in Daxing district after he was found selling wild animals through QQ, a popular instant messaging tool in the country. He was caught on April 14.

The bureau highlighted the importance of protecting the wildlife, noting Chinese laws and a new decision adopted by the nation’s top legislature (立法机关) have also shown the country’s determination against illegal trade of wild animals.

The Chinese Criminal Law clarifies that those illegally hunting, buying, selling or transporting wild animals on the state protection list, endangered animals or the wildlife-related products will face an imprisonment of more than 10 years and fines if their behaviors are identified as “extremely serious”.

On Feb 24, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, the country’s top legislative body, also passed the decision that clearly states all wildlife on the protection list of the existing Wild Animal Protect Law or other laws, and all wild animals, including those artificially bred and farmed, are not permitted to be hunted or traded.

With the strict crackdown campaign against illegal trade of wild animals on the go in Beijing, the whole nation is attaching great importance to wild life protection.

1. The author mentions the cases at the very beginning of the passage to ______ .

A．explain the new laws on wildlife protection

B．show the present situation of wildlife extinction

C．highlight the problem of illegal trade of wild animals

D．introduce Beijing’s campaign against illegal wildlife trade

2. What can we learn from the first three paragraphs?

A．The number of wild animals is decreasing sharply.

B．Hunting and trading wildlife has become a nationwide concern.

C．Effective actions have been taken to prevent wildlife from illegal trade.

D．The strong action to stop trading illegal wild animals has a long way to go.

3. According to the Chinese Criminal Law, ______ .

A．serious actions of trading wild animals will face fierce punishment

B．people risk heavy fines but no imprisonment for trade of wildlife

C．the trade of wildlife-related products will receive no punishment

D．those who hunt illegally may face 10 years of imprisonment

4. Which best describes the author’s tone in the passage?

A．Determined.

B．Hopeful.

C．Unconcerned.

D．Doubtful.

【推荐3】You might think male models lead glamorous lives, filled with endless travel and invitations to socialize with the rich and beautiful. Almost everyone has formed an unrealistic picture of their lives, believing that they spend one afternoon beside the Mediterranean Sea sipping coffee and getting suntanned and the next moment they are on board flying to Rome. However, according to a 2016 documentary made by the pop culture news site Fusion, the financial reality of male models is not very pretty.

The main subject of the documentary, titled Unglamorous, is a male model named Cameron Keesling who went to New York to start his career, hoping to make a fortune in the world of models. Keesling is not a supermodel but he has certainly made his name known in the industry. He was “working in the industry for about a year before landing the cover of Italian Vogue” in 2014. But “Keesling and his companions were paid nothing for the efforts”, Fusion reporter Nikita Redkar wrote.

Keesling also appeared at Paris Fashion Week and won lots of praise, while his compensation wouldn’t even cover the cost of traveling to and from Paris.

According to the documentary the most common way models get paid is by receiving free clothes, rather than money. In order to make ends meet, consequently, many of them have to take another job simply to make a living. Many of these models are in debt. Once they find an agency to represent them, a living income is provided by the agency to accommodate their rent, food, clothing and other expenses. Models are expected to pay off these costs once they find work, but many of the industry’s jobs don’t pay at all. Believe it or not, there is a pay gap between male models and female counterparts. Based on a survey conducted by Fortune.com, female models can make millions more than males, especially if you compare the top ten earners of each gender.

1. In common people’s eyes, male models are living __________.

A．a busy and simple life	B．a tiring and dull life
C．an easy and comfortable life	D．a hard and embarrassing life

2. Why does the author mention Cameron Keesling in the second paragraph?

A．To introduce his real life

B．To explain why he went to New York

C．To illustrate the hardship of male models’ lives

D．To encourage models to make a fortune in New York

3. What does the underlined word “counterparts” mean in the last paragraph?

A．Friends	B．Peers
C．Schoolmates	D．Opponents

4. What is the writer’s attitude towards the lives of the male models?

A．Supportive	B．Doubtful
C．Critical	D．Objective