【推荐1】Are you interested in hi-tech products? Here are some that you might find at the market pretty soon.

CX-1

Tired of dragging your bag through busy airports? Then you might want to consider CX-1. The smart suitcase uses facial recognizing software to follow its owner as he/she is checking in or heading to the gate. Though CX-1 can only move at a speed of up to seven miles per hour, a tiny tool enables the owner to keep track of the suitcase’s location.

Aibo

Sony’s latest version of the Aibo robotic dog is almost as fun as the real thing —but much less work. The pet dog can recognize its owner, obey several commands, and even recall the behavior that pleases its master the most. Aibo can also learn new tricks, take photographs, and over time, develop its own unique personality.

Forpheus

Forpheus, an “athletic” robot developed by Japanese technology company Omron. It teaches users how to play ping-pong. The 10-feet-tall machine uses a camera and artificial intelligence to track the ball’s speed and can predict the ball’s direction correctly. The smart Forpheus can also quickly test its player’s abilities and adjust the playing level, making the game fun.

Black Box VR

Though many people determine to go to the gym once a week, few reach their goal. Black Box VR wants to change that by turning hard exercise into fun video games. Using it, gym users will find themselves fighting enemies, including big creatures—all while getting exercise.

1. What is the feature of CX-1?

A．It can identify and follow its owner.	B．It can sense the suitcase’s location.
C．It can move very fast in busy places.	D．It can be opened by facial expressions.

2. Who would most probably want an Aibo?

A．People who like playing tricks on others.	B．People who want to walk a dog after work.
C．People who like taking high-quality pictures.	D．People who want but can’t look after a real dog.

3. Which product can help people do physical exercise regularly?

A．CX-1.

B．Aibo.

C．Forpheus.

D．Black Box VR.

【推荐3】As vending machines (投币式自动售货机) have a bad reputation generally, they are particularly not allowed to be used in schools. That is because most of them are filled with foods that are thought to be unhealthy for both kids and adults. However, no one will be against JetBlue’s vending machines. That is because they are installed (安装) to give out free books!

The U.S. airline’s program was launched in early July in one of Washington, D. C. ’s historic neighborhoods. It was picked because JetBlue’s research showed that kids in the area had access to only one age-appropriate book for every 830 children. To turn the situation for the better, the company has installed three vending machines in locations that are visited frequently by the locals, and soon they gain their popularity there.

The machines are filled with twelve age-appropriate books for children from birth to fourteen years old. A total of 42 titles are being offered, and the selection is changed every two weeks. Kids can help themselves to as many books as they wish and return for more books as many times as they desire. Maybe you will ask what the best part is. Unlike a library, the books are theirs to keep.

JetBlue and its partners Random House Children’s Books and Magic Tree House’s author Mary Pope Osborne, say they are committed to giving away 100,000 books. As of August 25, about 16,000 books have been claimed. So far, JetBlue has made its plans to extend (扩大) its vending machine program to more poor neighborhoods in Los Angeles, Detroit, Fort Lauderdale, Houston and New York City.

Though the book vending machines are new, this is not the first time that JetBlue and its partners have given away books. Since 2011, the company’s “Soar with Reading” program has collected over one million dollars’ worth of books to kids in need！

1. People’s attitude towards vending machines is usually_____________.

A．positive	B．serious
C．concerned	D．negative

2. Why are JetBlue’s vending machines becoming popular?

A．Because they offer kids in need free books to read.

B．Because they are located in the center of busy streets.

C．Because they help kids develop the good habit of reading.

D．Because they are aimed at bringing a brighter future for kids.

3. What is the best news for the kids about JetBlue’s vending machines?

A．More libraries will be open to the kids.

B．The books will be kept by the kids themselves forever.

C．Kids can exchange these books they keep with each other.

D．Kids under fourteen years old have access to these free books.

4. It is implied in the passage that book vending machines __________.

A．will change the way the books are sold worldwide

B．are going to be installed in economically advanced areas

C．will benefit more kids who have little access to books

D．begin JetBlue’s time to give away books to kids in need

【推荐1】With intelligent systems and new-age networks, life in the big cities will likely be happier and more efficient. After all, more than 60 percent of the world’s population is expected to live in cities by 2050, according to a UN report.

These cities will use 5G networks to make everyday life safer and more convenient. Cities like Boston, Baltimore, Amsterdam and Copenhagen are already using smart technology to improve people’s lives.

But what exactly does a smart city do? Let’s look at a few examples. In the United States cities of Boston and Baltimore, smart trash cans (垃圾箱) can sense how full they are and inform cleaning workers when they need to be emptied. In Amsterdam, the Netherlands, traffic flow and energy usage are monitored and adjusted according to real-time data gathered from sensors (传感器) around the city. And in Copenhagen, Denmark, a smart bike system allows riders to check on air quality and traffic jam as they ride.

Smart cities will be interactive, allowing their residents to feel like they’re truly shaping their environment, instead of merely existing in it. “One of the most important reasons to have a smart city is that we can actually communicate with our environment in a way that we never had in the past,” Mrinalini Ingram toldTech Republic.

Of course, it will take time and money to turn our present cities into the smart cities of the future. But as we’ve already seen, more cities around the world are already using smart technology in small ways. China, for instance, is making investments in big cities like Shanghai and Guangzhou to make them “smarter”. It won’t be long until even more cities start to develop their own smart infrastructure (基础设施).

1. What can a smart city actually do in people’s daily life?

A．More and more people will live in big cities.	B．A real-time traffic jam can be monitored.
C．It can replace workers to empty a trash can.	D．People can ride bikes in an easier way.

2. What does the author mean by saying “Smart cities will be interactive”?

A．More and more people will be living in big cities.

B．We will be communicating with the environment in a new way.

C．We’ll show a deeper love for our environment.

D．More and more big cities will use smart technology.

3. Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A．People in many big cities have benefited from intelligent systems.

B．Smart trash cans can be emptied every day by cleaning workers.

C．There will be no more traffic accidents in smart big cities.

D．Shanghai and Guangzhou are smarter than any other city in China.

4. What is the author’s attitude to smart cities?

A．Subjective.

B．Objective.

C．Positive.

D．Negative.

【推荐3】A Chinese scientist’s attempt to produce the world’s first gene-edited babies who are immune to HIV has caused floods concern.

In an online video posted on Monday, He Jiankui, a biological researcher, announced that a pair of twin baby girls , Lulu and Nana, was born healthy a few weeks ago with genetic editing technology that can prevent them from being infected with HIV.

He, who was believed to be in Hong Kong on Monday to attend the Second International Summit on Human Genome Editing, could not be reached for comment. But his announcement sparked a heated argument concarning medical ethics（伦理）and effectiveness.

The Shenzhen Health and Family Planning Commission said on Monday evening that it had not received any ethical assessment application for the study , which is required as a prior condition for such experiments.

More than 120 scholars from universities and institutes with high status from China and abroad ,such as Tsinghua University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT),strongly condemned the research in a signed statement, saying the “research” lacks effective ethics inspection, and it amounts to human experimentation ,which is “crazy”.

In the statement, published on Sina Weibo , the scientists said any attempt to make changes to human embryos with genetic editing and give birth to such babies involves high risk as an inevitable part ,due to inaccuracies in existing genetic editing technologies.

“Scientists all over the world dare not make such attempts due to the huge risks and more importantly , ethics. The government must make quick legal moves to strictly supervise（监督）such research. The Pandora’s Box has been opened, and we may still have a chance of closing it before it is too late ,”the statement said.

Tsui Lap-chee, president of the Academy of Sciences of Hong Kong , said a lot of issues may occur in gene editing. If one gene is edited, it will affect others that interact with it . And the whole genome, a collection of genes, may also be affected.

1. Scientists compare baby gene-editing experimentation to Pandora’s Box mainly because ______.

A．existing genetic editing technologies are not accurate enough

B．the baby gene editing experimentation is likely to cause huge risks

C．genetic editing technologies may have a bad influence on the whole genome

D．it is crazy for scientists to do the gene-editing experiment without permission

2. It can be inferred from the passage that ____.

A．it is too late for the Chinese government to take any effective measure

B．He Jiankai didn’t apply for ethical assessment before conducting the research

C．Sina Weibo didn’t approve of such research due to the consequence of high risk

D．MIT doesn’t have strict supervision in the research as to genetic editing technology

3. What is the best title for the passage?

A．Newly-born gene-edited babies are on the way

B．A breakthrough in Human Genome Editing is made

C．A pioneer in genetic editing technology receives credit

D．Birth of gene-edited babies causes widespread concern

【推荐1】Gold Coast family holidays are always great fun whether you are from Australia or from abroad. There are beautiful beaches, adventure parks, nature parks and so many more.

There are so many sights to see here. It is a pity to drive in a car and you’ll miss a great part of it. Australia is home to many animals and birds that can only be seen when moving slowly and going into the areas where they live.

When you are on a bicycle, you have the advantage of being able to stop whenever you want to see an interesting animal or bird that you have never seen before. It is a quieter mode(方式) of transportation as well, so you might even be able to take a picture. When you are on the beach you can breathe that clean air and view the beauty of the water and sand. It is a totally different experience from either simply sunbathing or                    passing it in a car.

There are many choices of hiring a bicycle to experience the Gold Coast attractions. There are stores that will fit a bike perfectly to your size. These bikes for both adults and children are in many styles and colors to please any taste. If you have ever wanted to try a tandem bike(双人单车), now is your chance, because they have those too.

A bicycle hire on Gold Coast is something that everyone should try at least once. This is a wonderful chance for anyone who likes to cycle and it is also a cheap way to travel with your family.

1. Driving in a car on Gold Coast is not suggested because ________.

A．you will break the traffic rules

B．you can't enjoy the beautiful scenery well

C．you will cause much noise

D．you can’t drive into some parks

2. What is not mentioned about the following advantages of hiring bikes?

A．It is a good way to do sunbathing.

B．It is a cheap way of travelling.

C．You can get a clearer sight of animals.

D．You can take photos of animals.

3. What is paragraph 4 mainly about?

A．How to hire bikes on Gold Coast.

B．What kinds of bikes there are in stores.

C．What bikes are the most popular.

D．Who can hire bikes on Gold Coast

4. What's the author’s attitude towards a bike hire on Gold Coast?

A．He doesn’t like this way of travelling.

B．He thinks it is a personal choice

C．He supports it very much.

D．He thinks it is only good for adults.

【推荐2】Language is in a constant state of change. British English shows this clearly. Take the word “Cheerio!” for example. It has been a British way to say goodbye for more than a century, but it’s dying out as the English language evolves. These days, many young people simply say “laters”. Or take the word “marvelous”. At one time it was a common British word meaning “wonderful”, but over the last ten years it’s been overtaken by the American word “awesome”.

So how and why do words come into and fall out of fashion? The influence of US culture is only one explanation for why popular words in British English may change or even stop being used over time. “Awesome” is a good example, but also “fortnight”, a term not used in the US, is now falling out of fashion in British English, and in some cases has been replaced by “two weeks”.

New inventions also bring in new words. As old inventions are replaced by new ones, the words which described them also disappear and are replaced. So it’s out with the “Walkman” (a cassette player from the 80s) and in with MP4 players!

Then there’s the influence of social media. Text messages and emails have reduced words for convenience, with something like ICYMI (“in case you missed it”) becoming words in their own right. Where “friend” was once a noun, we now “friend someone on Facebook” and where we used to “love” something, now we’re “loving it”!

1. In what situation do the British use “Cheerio!”?

A．When they give thanks.	B．When they ask for help.
C．When they say goodbye.	D．When they meet new friends.

2. What does the underlined word “evolves” mean?

A．Returns.

B．Develops.

C．Follows.

D．Falls.

3. Why does the writer talk about “Walkman”?

A．To show its importance.	B．To talk about its history.
C．To describe how it came into being.	D．To explain how some words are replaced.

4. What effect is social media having on language?

A．It is changing the way that words are used.	B．It is making language difficult to learn.
C．It is bringing in many long words.	D．It is making meanings clearer.

【推荐3】Tea drinking was common in China for nearly one thousand years before anyone in Europe had ever heard about tea. People in Britain were much slower in finding out what tea was like, mainly because tea was very expensive. It could not be bought in shops. People had it sent from Holland. And even those people who could afford it did so only because of curiosity. Some of them were not sure how to use it. They thought it was a vegetable and tried cooking the leaves. Then they served them mixed with butter and salt. They soon discovered their mistake but many people used to spread the used tea leaves on bread and give them to their children as sandwiches.
Tea remained very expensive in England until the ships of the East India Company began to bring it direct from China early in the seventeenth century. During the next few years so much tea came into the country that the price fell and many people could afford to buy it.
At the same time people on the Continent were becoming more and more fond of tea. Until then tea had been drunk without milk in it, but one day a French lady named Madame de Sevigne decided to see what tea tasted like when milk was added. She found it so pleasant that she would never again drink it without milk. Because she was so famous a lady that people liked to copy everything she did, they also drank their tea with milk in it. Slowly this habit spread until it reached England and today only very few Britons drink tea without milk.
At first, tea was usually drunk after dinner in the evening. No one ever thought of drinking tea in the afternoon until a duchess （公爵夫人） found that a cup of tea and a piece of cake at three or four o'clock stopped her getting “a sinking feeling” as she called it. She invited her friends to have this new meal with her and so, tea-time was born.
1. The word “curiosity” in the first paragraph probably means ________.

A．好奇

B．臆测

C．迷恋

D．决心

2. Which of the following is true of tea-drinking in Britain?

A．The British people got expensive tea from India.

B．The habit of tea-drinking reached Britain from France.

C．The British people were much slower in getting the habit.

D．People in Britain began drinking tea one thousand years ago.

3. Some people cooked tea leaves because ______

A．most children liked to have them

B．they were very good vegetables

C．they didn’t know how to use them

D．sandwiches needed mixing with them

4. People in Britain like to drink tea with milk because of the influence of _______.

A．a famous French lady

B．people in Holland

C．the upper social class

D．the ancient Chinese

5. This passage mainly discusses _______.

A．how tea-time was born in history

B．the history of tea-drinking in Britain

C．the habit of drinking tea with milk in it

D．differences about tea-drinking Europe