【推荐2】Li Bai holds a wine cup in his hand, while Du Fu sits in front of a desk, writing poems on the paper in front of him. It’s not that we have traveled to the past. Modern technology has brought ancient poets “back to life” .

The two great poets, along with other humanoid robots were presented at the World Robot Conference 2023 in late August in Beijing. They looked similar to real human beings.

“The skin is made of medical-grade bionic silicone (仿生硅胶) which is why the skin looks soft and veins can be seen through it,” CGTN explained in a video about Liaoning-based producer EXROBOTS. Goosebumps (鸡皮疙瘩) and palm lines can also be seen on the arms and hands.

Researchers are also trying hard to create other features of humans on robots. A US robotics company Apptronik brought out its humanoid robot called Apollo on Aug 23. Apollo has around 30 muscles. However, humans have around 300 muscles in our bodies. For now, engineers can only simplify the muscles, allowing them to do basic movements like holding objects and walking.

The robot also contains cameras, helping it map out a 360-degree view of its environment. It also has sensors (传感器) in its head to help keep balance when walking on uncertain surfaces.

Nowadays, bionic human-like robots mostly work with humans, as tour guides or by helping visitors at front desks. There are also robots that share the work of nurses, such as handing out medicine. This could be because people are comfortable living and working with machines that look or act like them. “They can strike a chord (引起共鸣) with people,” a US robotics scientist Marc Raibert told New Yorker.

As more humanoid robots come out, safety will be the key, according to the Robot Reportwebsite. When a 70- kilogram robot breaks down and falls, humans nearby may be hurt.

1. What does brought ancient poets “back to life” mean in Paragraph 1?

A．The robots can create better poems than poets.

B．Technology can make ancient poets back to life.

C．Visitors can experience real ancient life with robots.

D．The robots looked and acted like real ancient poets.

2. What does the skin of robots made by EXROBOTS show?

A．How human-like their robots are.

B．How soft the robots skin is.

C． How the robots’ skin should be made.

D．How different they are from other robots.

3. What can Apollo do with built-in sensors?

A．Wave at humans.

B．Walk stably.

C．Know human faces.

D．See better.

4. What do people worry about with human-like robots?

A．People may be at war with the robots.	B．Human-like robots look scary.
C．The robots weight may cause problems.	D．The robots may get out of control.

【推荐3】1970 was World Conservation Year. The United Nations wanted every one to know that the world is in danger. They hoped the governments would act quickly in order to “conserve” nature. Here is one example of the problem. At one time there were 1,300 different plants, trees and flowers in Holland, but now only 866 remain. The others have been destroyed by modern man and his technology. We are changing the earth, the air and water, and everything that grows and lives. We can’t live without these things. If we continue like this, we shall destroy ourselves.

What will happen in the future? Perhaps it is more important to ask “What must we do now?” The people who will be living in the world of tomorrow are the young of today. A lot of them know that con­servation is necessary. Many are helping to save our world. They plant trees, build bridges across rivers in forests, and so on. In a small town in the United States a large group of girls cleaned the banks of 11 kilometers of their river. Young people may hear about conservation through something called “No one’s going to change our world”, which was made by the Beatles, Cliff Richard and other singers. The money from it will help to conserve wild animals.

1. What does the word “conserve” in the passage mean?

A．serve

B．protect

C．live

D．desert

2. The first paragraph tells us that _______.

A．World Conservation Year was over.

B．animals are being in danger

C．nature is being destroyed in Holland

D．the people of the world face the serious living situation

3. “No one’s going to change our world” was _______.

A．a record calling on people to conserve nature

B．an idea that nobody would accept

C．an important book published in 1970

D．a rule worked out by the United Nations

4. What is the most important thing for us to do to save our world?

A．We should plant more trees and flowers.

B．We should clean the banks of our rivers.

C．We should know what we must do and begin to do it now.

D．We should know what will happen in the future.

5. What’s the main idea of the passage?

A．1970 was an important year.

B．The United Nations wanted everyone to know that the world is in danger.

C．Conservation is necessary.

D．It is the young people who are helping to save our world.

【推荐1】

Protected areas have mixed success in protecting wildlife, according to the largest study on the effects of reserves(保护区).

A team led by researchers from the U.K. examined water bird data from 1,506 protected areas and analyzed more than 27,000 bird populations across the world. The authors write that their study, published in Nature, is the first robust(强有力的), global assessment of protected areas’ influence on bird populations. The scientists found that protected areas with management of water birds and their habitats were more likely to benefit those populations.

“Our study shows that, while many protected areas are working well, many others are failing to have positive effect,” lead author Hannah Wauchope of the University of Exeter says in a statement. The study compared water bird populations before and after the establishment of protected areas and also compared trends of similar populations within and outside of protected areas. Water birds respond quickly to changes in site quality, making them a good group to look at when studying the impact of protected areas.

“In the majority of places we looked at, wildlife populations were still stable or were increasing, but they weren’t doing any better than in unprotected areas,” Wauchope says. “That’s disappointing, but not surprising. There seems to be this disconnect between people talking about how much land is protected and whether those areas are actually doing anything positive.”

This research comes ahead of a United Nations meeting in China to discuss biodiversity goals for the next decade. Several countries have already devoted to protecting 30 percent of the planet by 2030, yet researchers say protection alone does not necessarily ensure positive outcomes for species.

“We are not saying protected areas don’t work,” Wauchope concludes in the statement.” The key point is that their effects vary hugely, and the biggest thing this depends on is whether they are managed with species in mind—we can’t just expect protected areas to work without effective management.”

1. What can we know from paragraph 2?

A．The researchers may come from any European countries.

B．The team analyzed lots of water bird data all over the world.

C．Many readers comment that the study is robust and influential.

D．The protected areas with no management can benefit water birds.

2. Why are water birds chosen as the study subject?

A．They can create significant financial profits.

B．They can quickly respond to environmental changes.

C．They can help change the quality of waters.

D．They can’t be found outside protected areas.

3. What can we know according to Wauchope?

A．Every protected area was doing much better than unprotected areas.

B．It’s unexpected to find out the uselessness of some preserves.

C．Most wildlife population were sill stable or were increasing.

D．The researchers thought that the protected areas don’t work at all.

4. What is the main idea of this passage?

A．Unprotected areas are always better than protected areas.

B．Unprotected areas show no improvement of animal protection.

C．Protected areas need effective management based on a study.

D．Protected areas can greatly contribute to animal protection.

【推荐2】Some of the greatest moments in human history were fueled by emotional intelligence. When Martin Luther King Jr. presented his dream, he chose language that would stir the hearts of his audience. Delivering this electrifying (展性的) message required emotional intelligence — the ability to recognize, understand, and manage emotions.

Emotional intelligence has been highly recommended by leaders, policymakers, and educators as the solution to a wide range of social problems. If we can teach our children to manage emotions, the argument goes, we’ll have less bullying and more cooperation. If we can cultivate emotional intelligence among leaders and doctors, we’ll have more caring workplaces and more compassionate healthcare.

Emotional intelligence is important, but the uncontrolled enthusiasm has obscured (掩盖) a dark side. New evidence shows that when people sharpen their emotional skills, they become better at manipulating (把持) others. When you`re good at controlling your own emotions, you can hide your true feelings. When you know what others are feeling, you can motivate them to act against their own best interests.

Social scientists have begun to document this dark side of emotional intelligence. In a research led by University of professor Jochen Menges, when a leader gave an inspiring speech filled with emotion, the audience was Jess likely to scrutinize (细察) the message and remembered of the content. Ironically (讽刺的是) audience members were so moved by the speech that they claimed to recall more of it.

The authors call this the awestruck effect, but it might just as easily be described as the dumbstruck effect. One observer reflected that Hitler’s persuasive impact came from his ability to strategically express emotions — he would “ear open his heart — and these emotions affected his followers to the point that they would stop thinking critically and just emote.”

Leaders who master emotions can rob us of our capacities to reason. If their values are out of step with our own, the results can be destructive. New evidence suggests that when people have self-serving motives (动机), emotional intelligence becomes a weapon for manipulating others. In a study led by the University of Toronto psychologist Stephane Cote, university employees filled out a survey about their Machiavellian (不择手段的) tendencies, and took a test measuring their knowledge about effective strategies for managing emotions. Then, Cote’s team assessed how often the employees deliberately undermined (逐渐削弱) their colleagues. The employees involved in the most harmful behaviors were Machiavellians with high emotional intelligence. They used their emotional skills to lower the dignity of their peers for personal gain.

Shining a light on this dark side of emotional intelligence is one mission of a research team led by University College London professor Martin Kilduff. According to these experts, emotional intelligence helps people disguise (伪装) one set of emotions while expressing another for personal Professor Kiiduit’s team writes, “The strategic disguise of one’s own emotions and the manipulation of others’ emotions for strategic ends are behaviors evident not only on Shakespeare’s stage but also in the offices and corridors where power and influence are traded.”

Of course, people aren’t always using emotional intelligence for nefarious ends. More often than not, emotional skills are simply instrumental tools for goal accomplishment. A research team discovered that founder Anita Roddick used emotional intelligence to inspire her employees fundraise for charity. As Roddick explained, “Whenever we wanted to persuade our staff to support a particular project, we always tried to break their hearts.”

There is growing recognition that emotional intelligence-like any skill-can be used for good or evil. So if we’re going to teach emotional intelligence in schools and develop it at work, we need to consider the values that go along with it and here it’s actually useful.

1. Why does the author mention Martin Luther King, Jr?

A．To honor the great leader for his courage.

B．To recommend his speech to other leaders.

C．To impress the readers with a major topic.

D．To advocate a society with fewer problems.

2. Which of the following belongs to a dark side of emotional intelligence?

A．Developing the capability to control one’s own emotion.

B．Inducing people to do what brings disadvantages to them.

C．Appealing to the audience to concentrate and remember more.

D．Encouraging the moved audience to a more of the speech.

3. What is the dumbstruck effect of Hitler’s emotional intelligence?

A．His followers would tear open their hearts to him.

B．His followers would express emotions strategically.

C．His followers would lose the ability to reason properly.

D．His followers would develop the self-serving motives.

4. How do people use their emotional intelligence for personal gain?

A．They disguise their emotions to earn others’ trust.

B．They help their colleagues to build up confidence.

C．They present their strategic behaviors on the stage.

D．They lower their own dignity to gain popularity.

【推荐3】There are millions of used cell phones in the world today, the most of them just lay in our houses without any purpose. Everyday dozens of new cell phone models appeared. Today, you can find what was regarded as a fantasy yesterday in a store and you will buy it tomorrow. But what to do with the old phones, which work well enough and not so old?

Just get some money! Simply Sellular is buying almost all models of cell phones: LG, Motorola, HP, Siemens, Samsung, Sanyo, Nokia and many others cell phones. Also they accept phones produced in every country, and in every condition. Simply Sellular can offer a good price for your old cell phone in cash. Their mission is giving you a simple way to get money for an old phone, as simple and profitable(赚钱), as it’s possible. Also they offer a trade-in scheme(折价方案) to get another model instead of your phone, providing a good service after the sale.

Also Simply Sellular works with the so-called 911 cell phone program. So you can donate(捐赠)your cell phone to them to help some people who need it. They know what to do with your old phone! You can be interested in their recycling programs, where every used cell phone could be easily recycled for a few times. Some phones, which are good for refurbish(翻新), Simply Sellular donates to people who need it, for example women or military personnel. If the refurbish is impossible they just recycle cell phones.

Just think a minute: it’s a good deal to get some money for your old cell phone, good deal to help somebody with your phone and really important to recycle all techniques after use. Working with Simply Sellular you get every possibility absolutely free. And they will pay to you! That’s a really good deal!

1. When you want a new cell phone, you are advised to ________.

A．keep the old one in house to add your collections

B．throw the old one into the dustbin to protect your health

C．sell the old one to Simply Selluar on a reasonable price

D．return the old one to the producer to get some money

2. The underlined sentence really tells us that ________.

A．every one loves the new and hates the old (喜新厌旧)

B．people are soon able to enjoy what was the most advanced yesterday

C．people rush to buy what is regarded as a fantasy

D．what was a fantasy yesterday will no loner be good for tomorrow

3. Selling a used cell phone to Simply Sellular, you will get ________.

A．a cost-free service provided by it	B．another new model without any pay
C．a good price for the phone in cash	D．a profitable plan after the sale

4. The cell phone donated by you is probably ________.

A．refurbished and sold again	B．still in use by others
C．collected and on show	D．sent to a poorer country

5. This passage is written aiming to ________.

A．warn people of the risks by using cell phones

B．advise people not to change cell phones frequently

C．introduce to us what to do with old cell phones

D．encourage us to keep up with new technologies