【推荐1】Unlike produce such as peaches or bananas, strawberries begin to decline as soon as they are picked. Scientists have been working on a special protection that delays spoilage by slowing water loss and oxidation (氧化).

Every fruit and vegetable breathes. Once a piece of produce is picked from a tree or plant, it continues to breathe, aging slowly, until it begins to break down. Microorganisms then move in, causing it to spoil. Refrigeration can delay the process, but only so much.

Some scientists now think they can make your bananas, avocados, and other fresh produce last up to twice as long by delaying spoilage. Apeel, a start-up in Santa Barbara, California, has created a way to remove lipids from several popular crops and transform each type into a powder. Dissolved in water and applied to fruits or vegetables, it forms an edible(可食用的) barrier to lock moisture in and microorganisms out.

Farmers can apply a version of the solution in the field, or distributors can use the rinse (冲洗) on the packing line, extending a fruit’s shelf life by days or even weeks. The FDA recognizes the process as safe, and earlier this year it was approved for use on organic produce.

Giving shoppers more time with their fresh food is one purpose. But Apeel’s higher goal is to fight food waste and reduce the number of refrigerated trucks and ships that race between fields and stores to deliver food at its peak. The technology can also allow more crops to be delivered to more places farther and farther from where they’re grown. “You can imagine a world without seasonality of fresh produce,” says James Rogers, Apeel’s CEO and a materials scientist.

In the meantime, who couldn’t use a few extra days before that fruit in the fridge starts to mold?

1. What has the company, Apeel, invented?

A．A strategy to fight food waste by mixing fruits or vegetables with crops.

B．A solution to get rid of what causes fresh fruits or vegetables spoil.

C．A method to remove crop lipids and change them into nutritious powder.

D．A way to lock moisture in and microorganisms out by forming an edible barrier.

2. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?

A．Fruits and vegetables picked from trees can go bad easily without any protection.

B．Scientists are aimed at a new way to prevent fresh produce from molding soon.

C．Farmers and distributors can use what Apeel has created but it proves unsafe.

D．Shoppers are among those who can benefit a lot from Apeel’s new idea.

3. What do James Rogers’s words mean?

A．Every fruit and vegetable will stay fresh all year around in the future.

B．The food fresh keeping technology contributes to long-distance transporting.

C．You can get any fresh produce in any season in the future.

D．You can use the fridge to store the fresh produce for a longer time.

【推荐2】The science of papermaking addresses the methods, equipment, and materials used to make paper and cardboard, these being used widely for printing, writing, and packaging, among many other purposes and useful products. Today almost all paper is produced using industrial machinery.     1    

The method of manual（手工的）papermaking changed very little over time, despite advances in technologies.    2    Separate the useful fibre from the rest of raw materials. Beat down the fibre into pulp（纸浆）.Adjust the color, chemical, biological, and other properties of the paper. Screen （筛选）the resulting liquid. Press and dry to get the actual paper.

    3     It is made of stainless materials and set in a wooden frame similar to that of a window. Then completely bathe it in the liquid and draw it out. Water is removed and the wet mat of fibre is laid on top of a damp cloth. The fairly damp fiber is then dried. Finally, the paper is then cut to the desired shape and packed.

The wooden frame is called a “deckle” （定纸框）.     4     The “deckle edges” are one of the indications that the paper was made by hand. Deckle-edged paper is occasionally imitated today to create the impression of old-fashioned luxury.

    5     It is also used in paper factories to check the quality of the production process. The “handsheets" made according to TAPPI Standard T205 are tested for paper characteristics such as brightness, strength and degree of sizing.

A．Screening the fibre involves using a special net.

B．The process of papermaking is really complicated.

C．It leaves the edges of the paper slightly irregular and wavy.

D．In laboratories handmade paper is prepared to study papermaking.

E．However, traditional papermaking in Asia uses the inner skin fibres of plants.

F．The process of manufacturing handmade paper can be generalized into five steps.

G．But handmade paper is still appreciated for its distinctive uniqueness and the skilled craft.

【推荐3】The race to introduce the first commercial flying taxi is officially on. Google, Boeing and Porsche are among 20 companies testing their machines, laying the groundwork for wider production and starting to encourage government officials to bring autonomous all-electric vehicles into the skies in just a few years. Lilium, a German start-up company, has raised more than US $100 million from investors. Its prototype（雏形）jet—which is still seeking certification from European regulators（欧洲监管机构）—is able to take off and land like a helicopter, and is quiet enough "to land in some areas that are traditionally off-limits to aircraft"—even midtown Manhattan.

However, the possibility of air vehicles over New York already represents a clear and present danger to public safety. New York skies are already filled with helicopters. Since 1983, there have been at least 30 helicopter crashes in the city. "There are several challenges to overcome before commuters（上下班往返的人）are flying through the air," said Dalvin Brown in USA Today. Many of the vehicles now being imagined require "magical electric batteries that doesn't exist—yet." The best that anyone can do right now with an electric battery is 20 minutes of flight. An even bigger obstacle（障碍）is gaining approval（批准）from the FAA（American Federal Aviation Administration）, which has strict rules and guidelines for small aircraft, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

That's why the first practical commercial tests of autonomous taxis are likely to be outside the US, said Jeremy Bogaisky on Forbes.com. "EHang became the first company to receive approval from Chinese aviation regulators to establish an autonomous air-taxi service in Guangzhou." To succeed in the US, air taxi companies will need much more than that. Taking a small aircraft through the regulatory forest of safety certification to production can cost US $75 to US $100 million.

1. Which is special about the Lilium prototype jet，according to the passage?

A．It's the most expensive model.

B．It's already available on the market.

C．It's suitable for midtown Manhattan.

D．It's suitable to be used in cities.

2. What is the main idea of the second paragraph?

A．The problems to overcome.	B．Public concerns about safety.
C．Related official policies.	D．Potential market risks.

3. Which of the following best describes the approval process for everything from safety to production?

A．Quick and economical.	B．Strict and expensive.
C．Difficult and time-saving.	D．Unsafe and impractical.

【推荐1】SYDNEY —Australian scientists have designed a system which uses microwaves to break down plastic into an environmentally friendly by-product.

Head of Electrical Engineering at Australia’s James Cook University, Prof. Mohan Jacob revealed on Thursday that by using microwaves, plastic waste can be converted into biochar(生物炭), charcoal that can be used as a soil conditioner.

“We are developing a processing room, which could process many kinds of plastic materials, up to 5 kilograms of waste,” Jacob said. “It will be a typical example system for the development of biochars from different types of plastics under various conditions.” Jacob explained that microwave energy is used to heat the plastic waste above 600 degrees centigrade within the custom-made room, where it ends up as a biochar, which can then be used to improve the properties of soil.

Currently underway is step one of the project, testing the room, after which, step two will involve improving the energy efficiency of the system and maximizing the yield of by-products. If all goes to plan, step three will be to construct a medium scale waste processing system which is customizable and can be installed remotely.

Jacob said that with the average person using 130 kg of plastic every year, there is an urgent need for developing better ways of processing it.

“Perhaps contrary to popular opinion, plastic is an indispensable material in modern life. It is cheap, competent, lightweight, and has many benefits like maintaining food quality and safety and preventing waste,” he said.

However, “abandoned plastics endanger our marine wildlife, and have begun to enter the food chain. There is an urgent need for developing technologies to recover plastic waste.”

1. How does the system function?

A．Microwaves are used to produce plastic.

B．Plastic waste is heated in the microwaves.

C．Plastic waste is cut into pieces and buried into the soil.

D．Microwaves change plastic waste into biochar by heating.

2. Which statement is true according to Jacob?

A．Plastic consumption now is acceptable.

B．Plastic should be abandoned in our life.

C．The system of processing plastic has come into use.

D．Finding better ways to deal with plastic waste is urgent.

3. What does “recover” in the last paragraph mean?

A．Make up for a loss in time.

B．Find or regain lost possession.

C．Extract or recycle an energy source for reuse.

D．Return to a normal state of health, mind or strength.

4. What does the passage mainly tell about?

A．3 steps of processing plastic waste.

B．A way of producing plastic products easily.

C．A new system of breaking down plastic waste.

D．A program designed for plastic use in the daily life.

【推荐2】Given how valuable intelligence and automation are, we will continue to improve our technology if we are at all able to. At a certain point, we will build machines that are smarter than we are. Once we have machines that are smarter than we are, they will begin to improve themselves. The concern is really that we will build machines that are much more competent than we are. And the slightest divergence (分歧) between their goals and our own could destroy us.

Just think about how we relate to ants. We don’t hate them. We don’t go out of our way to harm them. In fact, sometimes we take pains not to harm them. We step over them on the sidewalk. But whenever their presence seriously conflicts with one of our goals, we will kill them without hesitation. The concern is that we will one day build machines that, whether they’re conscious or not, could treat us with similar disregard.

The bare fact is that we will continue to improve our intelligent machines. We have problems that we desperately need to solve. So we will do this, if we can. The train is already out of the station, and there’ no brake to pull. If we build machines that are more intelligent than we are, they will very likely develop in ways that we can’t imagine, and transcend us in ways that we can’t imagine.

So imagine we hit upon a design of super intelligent AI that has no safety concerns. This machine would be the perfect labor-saving device. It can design the machine that can build the machine which can do any physical work, powered by sunlight, more or less for the cost of raw materials. So we’re talking about the end of human labour. We’re also talking about the end of most intellectual work. So what would apes like ourselves do in these circumstances?

But the moment we admit that information processing is the source of intelligence, we have to admit that we are in the process of building some sort of god. Now would be a good time to make sure it’s a god we can live with.

1. Why does the author mention ants in Paragraph 2?

A．To indicate future intelligent machines could treat us without mercy.

B．To show improved machines will escape from us.

C．To stress the presence of machines does conflict with our goals.

D．To compare intelligent machines to ants.

2. Which of the following sayings shares similar meaning with the underlined sentence in Paragraph 3?

A．Time and tide wait for no man.	B．Rome wasn’t built in a day.
C．Tomorrow is another day.	D．Shot arrows will not come back.

3. How is the passage mainly developed?

A．By giving assumptions.	B．By making comparisons.
C．By showing evidence.	D．By analyzing statistics.

4. Which of the following statements can best summarize the author’s viewpoint towards AI?

A．Human beings will no doubt be destroyed by AI in the future.

B．Super intelligent AI will put an end to human labour eventually.

C．We should keep the development of AI within human’s control.

D．Human beings should stop the development of super intelligent AI.