【推荐2】A research has shown that nearly 90 percent of traffic accidents are caused by human errors. So our aim is a fully autonomous (自动的) car that gets rid of the cause of most accidents: the driver. Researcher Hodgson points out, “For safety, the faster you can remove humans, the better, even if there are unfortunately a few accidents from new causes. It’s a question of balancing the number injured or killed by autonomous vehicles with the people whose lives are potentially saved.”

It’s an idea that Elon Musk, chief executive of electric car company Tesla Motors, has long believed. His company is determined to be the first to deliver a fully autonomous vehicle to consumers. Last year, Musk announced that Tesla’s 2019 goal was “to do an example drive of full autonomy all the way from L. A. to New York， and have the car park itself.

However, even Tesla admits that there are problems to overcome—the software needs further validation (批准生效) and the appropriate regulatory approval needs to be in place. Indeed, recent crashes of Tesla vehicles and Google cars confirm that the software isn’t ready yet.

The UK government appears committed encouraging the development of autonomous vehicles. It’s supporting four city trials, publishing the Modern Transport Bill to reduce red tape around their introduction and adapting the legal system to take into account problems such as insurance liability when a human isn’t in control of a vehicle.

The insurance industry is similarly eager to help increase autonomy in cars. As the Association of British Insurers points out, “Nearly 90 percent of road accidents are caused by human errors.” This costs motor insurers a shocking $20 million per day in claims.

1. What difficulty does the company Tesla Motors have?

A．The company lacks confidence to make new creations.

B．New inventions may cause more injuries and deaths.

C．The software should be made officially acceptable.

D．The traffic regulation has proved unreasonable.

2. What is the UK government’s attitude to autonomous cars?

A．Cautious.	B．Positive.
C．Ambiguous.	D．Disapproving.

3. What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A．Insurance companies would like to support autonomous cars.

B．Human mistakes may be the key cause of traffic accidents.

C．Traffic accidents waste insurance companies quite a lot.

D．Motorists are surprised to hear about autonomous cars.

4. The purpose of writing the text is to ________.

A．amuse readers with funny examples

B．show his deep love for autonomous cars

C．introduce a new development in technology

D．provide a persuasive argument against autonomy

【推荐1】The average computer user has between 5 and 15 username/password combinations to log in different kinds of accounts. Some demand you use a specific number of symbols and digits, while others require you to change your password every 60 days. The feeling of confusion resulting from memorizing these login information has grown so common that it actually has a name: password fatigue(疲劳).

Having to remember so many different passwords is annoying, but it can also be dangerous. Because it is virtually impossible to remember a unique password for each of these accounts, many people leave handwritten lists of usernames and passwords on or next to their computers.

    1     While these practices make it easier to remember login information, they also make it easier for thieves to hack into accounts.

Single Sign-On (SSO) confirmation and password management software can help solve this problem. With SSO, users only need to remember one password to log in to the main system.

    2     SSO software is typically used by large companies, schools, or libraries.

    3     If a user loses or forgets the password required to log in to SSO software, the user will then lose access to all of the applications linked to the SSO account. Users who rely on password management software face the same problems.

Although most websites or network systems allow users to recover or change lost passwords by providing email addresses or answering a prompt(提示), this process can waste time and cause further frustration. What is more, recovering a forgotten password is only a temporary solution.     4    

Some computer scientists have suggested computers rely on biometrics(生物测定学).     5     The use of biometrics raises questions concerning privacy and can also be expensive to practice.

Software engineers and computer security experts are still searching for the cure to password fatigue. Until they find the perfect solution, however, everyone will simply have to rely on the password system currently in place.

A．It does not address the larger problem of password fatigue.

B．These software programs have been built into many major web browsers.

C．The problem with password management software makes users feel powerless.

D．The SSO software then automatically logs the user in to other accounts within the system.

E．However, SSO confirmation and password management software also have drawbacks.

F．This is a method of recognizing human users based on unique traits, such as fingerprints, voice, or DNA.

G．Others solve this problem by using the same password for every account or using extremely simple passwords.

【推荐2】The sun rises above the Artic Ocean (北冰洋). Across the frozen sea, a white bear moves slowly.

The bear stops and sways (摇晃) his head from side to side. There is nothing to see but endless ice and red sky. Then his powerful nose senses what his eyes cannot: a beluga whale is nearby.

The bear follows the smell and spots a large hole in the ice where a small white whale is swimming. He silently walks towards the hole, then stops, standing still. The whale does not see the bear, whose white fur makes him appear invisible (看不见的) against the ice.

Finally, the whale swims close to where the bear is waiting. With terrifying speed, the bear comes to life and moves towards the whale. In a moment it is over, and the bear eats his first meal in nearly a week.

Polar bears rule the frozen sea, but their ancestors weren’t always built for ice and snow. The first Arctic bears were brown bears, a species that includes grizzly bears. They came to the icy north over a hundred thousand years ago.

No one knows for sure why these bears traveled to such a cold place. Scientists think they might have wandered north looking for food. Maybe they became trapped by glaciers and couldn’t leave. Whatever the reason, the bears never should have survived.

But they did. They got used to their new environment. Their bodies changed. Their behavior changed, too. Eventually, the bears developed into an entirely new species: the polar bear. You can see some of the characteristics that polar bears developed to survive.

Sadly, these characteristics may now threaten the polar bear’s survival. As sea ice melts due to global warming, polar bears are frequently forced to come ashore (在岸上). They are poor hunters on land, which means they often go a long time between meals. The polar bear, king of the Arctic, is now classified as a threatened species.

Although the future of the polar bear is unknown, the tale of two bears continues. As temperatures rise, grizzly bears have been spotted moving north into polar bear territory (领地). These long-lost cousins, once forced apart by nature, are coming back together again.

1. What can be inferred about the white bear mentioned in the first four paragraphs?

A．It is noisy.

B．it is smelly.

C．It is starving.

D．It has good eyesight.

2. Why are polar bears struggling to survive?

A．They are threatened by other animals.

B．They are losing their hunting ground.

C．They are spending little time on land.

D．They have difficulty reaching the shore.

3. Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A．The climate change

B．The polar bear’s favorite meal

C．The dark past of the polar bear

D．The mysteries of the Arctic Ocean

【推荐3】Climate change, pollution, overuse of water and development are killing some of the world’s most famous rivers including China’s Yangtze, India’s Ganges and Africa’s Nile, WWF said on Tuesday. At the global launch of its report “World’s Top 10 Rivers at Risk”,the group said many rivers could dry out, affecting hundreds of millions of people and killing unique aquatic(水生的) life.

“If these rivers die, millions will lose their livelihoods, biodiversity(生物多样性)will be destroyed on a massive scale, and there will be less fresh water and agriculture, resulting in less food security,”said Rayi Singh, Secretary General of WWF-India. The report, launched ahead of “World Water Day” today, also cited the Rio Grande in the United States, the Mekong and the Indus in Asia, Europe’s Danube, the La Plata-Parana River in South America and the Murray and the Darling in Australia as in need of greater protection.

Rivers are the world’s main source of fresh water and WWF says about half of the available supply is already being used up. Dams have destroyed habitats and cut rivers off from their flood plains, while climate change could affect the seasonal water flows that feed them. Fish populations, the top source of protein and overall life support for hundreds of thousands of communities worldwide, are also being threatened. The Yangtze basin is one of the most polluted rivers in the world because of decades of heavy industrialization, damming and huge influxes(流入) of sediment(沉淀物) from land conversion.

Climate change, including higher temperatures, also means serious consequences for fishery productivity, water supply and political security in Africa’s arid Nile basin. Tributaries(支流)flowing into the Ganges are drying up because of irrigation.

1. We can infer from the text that ________.

A．higher temperatures couldn’t affect fishery productivity

B．rivers’ dying out could affect food security

C．there are three Asian rivers mentioned in the passage

D．the Yangtze is polluted due to the lack of enough tributaries

2. The top 10 rivers are fast dying as a result of the following EXCEPT ________.

A．climate change	B．pollution
C．wasting water	D．dams

3. WWF is probably a name of ________.

A．a magazine	B．a newspaper
C．an organization	D．a report

【推荐1】The Internet plays a big part in human life. We use it for work and pleasure. We use it to learn a new language. We find advice on it. We use it to connect with family and friends. We use it to stay in touch with events we care about. The list goes on and on.

Well, that train has left the station. But can using the Internet too much be bad for our health?It might be, researchers say. A new study finds that heavy Internet use may be connected to high blood pressure in an unlikely group: teenagers.

High blood pressure makes your heart and blood vessels (血管) work too hard. Over time, this extra pressure increases your risk of a heart attack. High blood pressure can also cause heart and kidney (肾脏) diseases. It is also closely linked to a brain disease.

The Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Michigan did the study. 335 young people, from 14 to 17 years old, took part in it. 134 of the teens were described as “heavy Internet users”. And researchers found that out of these 134 teens, 26 had high blood pressure. The researchers say the study is the first to connect heavy Internet use with high blood pressure. Other research has connected heavy Internet use with anxiety, depression and obesity (肥胖).

The lead researcher is Andrea Cassidy-Bushrow. She said, “Using the Internet is part of our daily life, but it shouldn't ruin us.” Ms Cassidy-Bushrow adds that it is important for teens to take regular breaks from their computers or smartphones and do some kind of physical activity. She also suggests that parents limit their children's use of the Internet to two hours a day, five days a week.

1. What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 imply?

A．The Internet develops rapidly.

B．No one can escape from the Internet.

C．The Internet can provide whatever we want.

D．There is no going back to an Internet-free life.

2. What is Paragraph 3 mainly about?

A．Causes of high blood pressure.	B．The harm of high blood pressure.
C．The disadvantages of Internet use.	D．Ways to prevent high blood pressure.

3. Which of the following statements may Andrea Cassidy-Bushrow agree with?

A．Teenagers shouldn't use the Internet.

B．The Internet will ruin human life in the future.

C．Smartphones are more harmful than computers.

D．Regular breaks are necessary when teens are using the Internet.

4. What does the text mainly tell us?

A．Heavy Internet users are mostly teenagers.

B．We should prevent teenagers from the Internet.

C．Too much Internet use may be bad for teenagers.

D．Every coin has two sides — so does the Internet.

【推荐2】Most e-bikes have rechargeable lithium-ion (锂离子) batteries, the same as those in smartphones and laptops. All these batteries have the potential to fail when damaged, overcharged or operated in extreme temperature conditions. E-bike batteries, though, are much bigger—between 50 to 100 times more—than the ones in our personal electronics, and thus pose a greater risk.

On May 20, a folding bike in a South London apartment began smoking, and within seconds a big flame erupted. According to Dom Ellis, deputy commissioner for the London Fire Brigade, the bike’s owner purchased it second-hand and bought an aftermarket battery from an unappointed online marketplace.

Lithium-ion batteries are popular because they’re easily rechargeable. But if something fails, they can overheat, said Anna Stefanopoulou, professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Michigan. This kicks off a bad cycle called thermal runaway. The melting battery materials fuel the flames, giving off more heat, and that heat also creates a flammable gas, she said. In other words, when a battery breaks down, the fire is self-sustaining and hot.

Electric cars also contain lithium-ion batteries, but fires are less common compared with e-bikes. Cars have cooling systems and their batteries are more protected, she said. E-bikes, on the other hand, don’t have temperature regulators (调节器) and their batteries are more exposed to the environment and possible impact, so minor flaws (缺陷) can become problems, Stefanopoulou added. She said the cheaper batteries can suffer from problems and low-quality control.

E-bike riders also tend to use their batteries more aggressively. A huge battery in an electric car can last more than 200 miles, and drivers top them off regularly. E-bike owners are used to draining (耗尽) their batteries again and again throughout the week, which can add to the stress.

1. Why are e-bike batteries much more dangerous than the ones in our phones?

A．They use different materials.	B．They are easy to overcharge or damage.
C．They are much larger in volume.	D．They need more frequent recharging.

2. What may be the main problem with the folding bike mentioned in the text?

A．It was purchased from another user second-hand.

B．It was provided by an unqualified producer.

C．It was already out of date when bought second-hand.

D．Its original battery was replaced with an aftermarket one.

3. What is mainly discussed about lithium-ion batteries in paragraph 3?

A．Why they are popular.	B．How they are recharged.
C．Why they cause big fires.	D．What often causes their failure.

4. What are e-bike buyers or users recommended to do?

A．Recharge the battery every day.

B．Never choose cheaper batteries to save money.

C．Select a battery with a temperature regulator.

D．Use the battery as often as possible.

【推荐3】Batik is a traditional Indonesian coloring method used to make designs and drawings, usually on cloth and finished textiles. Batik makers use dyes— colors added to cloth and other materials— to create the colorful designs.

In central Indonesia, many batik makers are using natural dyes instead of manufactured ones. The natural dyes used come from mangrove forests that grow along the coast. The trees grow in salty water on a complex system of tall roots.

Mangrove forests serve an important purpose. They provide a barrier against destructive (破坏性的) ocean waves called tsunamis. They also are important to water life like fish and crabs. And the forests are more effective in taking in carbon dioxide gas, a gas linked to climate change, than rainforests or similar environments.

Erwin Ardli is a mangrove ecologist at Indonesia’s Jenderal Soedirman University. He says the natural dyes may not be as bright as manufactured ones. But they are better for the environment. Ardli said, “We’ve seen the interest for natural dyes increasing, and especially for middle-to upper-class people, they seem proud to wear clothes using these natural dyes rather than synthetic (合成) ones.” Iiting Budiarti, who owns an art gallery that shows Batik designs, agreed with Ardli, adding that objects with natural dyes can cost two or three times more than the synthetic ones.

Forty-eight-year-old Sodikin is a batik maker. Over the past four years, he and his group of batik makers have changed from using chemical materials for dyes to mangrove-based products. The change has reduced their costs and helped the environment.

Harvesting involves gathering a handful of what looks like string beans-seeds within a covering. Sodikin then takes the mangrove fruit home to make natural dye from them.

“We use natural materials so as to preserve the mangrove forest at the same time,” Sodikin said, as he processed dried fruits before boiling them to extract the colour for use as a dye. “We do not cut down the trees,” he added, “and we only take fruits or leaves that have fallen.”

1. Where do the natural dyes used by Indonesian batik manufacturers come from?

A．Some string beans.

B．Salty water.

C．The roots of coastal trees.

D．Mature seeds or leaves of mangrove forests.

2. Which is NOT mentioned in the passage about the role of mangrove forests?

A．Resisting harmful ocean waves.

B．Preventing carbon dioxide emissions better.

C．Providing more high-quality wood products.

D．Providing a growth environment for marine organisms.

3. What does paragraph 4 focus on?

A．The development trend of Batik.

B．People’s attitude towards synthetic dyes.

C．Advantages and disadvantages of natural dyes.

D．The relationship between natural dyes and people’s identity.

4. Where is this text most likely from?

A．A biology textbook.

B．A tourist guide to central Indonesia.

C．A report concerning traditional culture.

D．An assessment report on ecological balance.