【推荐1】In 2022, Americans spent 8.3 billion hours trapped in traffic. During traffic jams, the average car used an extra 19 gallons of gas. This amounts to $190 billion in lost time and fuel each year. Fortunately,   researchers are working to reduce the traffic jams, whether by the development of driverless cars or the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in traffic lights.

Lack of traffic signal timing is a main cause of traffic jams. A new system uses software to decide when the traffic signal timing is not doing well or when it is making progress. The method was better than all other former approaches in testing.

The researchers built an advanced traffic simulator (模拟器) to train their program, teaching it to deal with different traffic and weather conditions. When the system was tested on a real crossroad, it adapted to real traffic crossings. It could be effective in many real-world environments in the future. The researchers hope to begin testing their system on real roads this year.

Dr. George Vogiatzis, a professor of Aston University, said, “This program can understand the situations it hasn’t experienced before. We have tested this with a physical obstacle (干扰) that causes traffic jams instead of the traffic light waiting time, and the system still works well. As long as there is a cause of traffic jam, the computer will finally find out what the cause is.”

1. Which is Not true according to the first paragraph?

A．The traffic jam in America is serious.

B．Researchers have taken the measure of using AI in traffic lights into practice.

C．An average car can cause an extra waste of gas during traffic jams.

D．The traffic jams can cause $190 billion lost each year.

2. What is the main cause of the traffic jam?

A．The number of vehicles on the road.	B．The light from the signals.
C．The location of traffic signals.	D．Lack of traffic signal timing.

3. When do the researchers hope to begin testing their system on real roads?

A．This year.	B．In the future.
C．It’s hard to know.	D．It depends on the weather.

4. What can we infer from George Vogiatzis’ words?

A．The system can solve all the causes of traffic jams.

B．The program is expected to be available this year.

C．The program can tell different types of causes of traffic jams.

D．The program can only deal with the situations it has experienced before.

【推荐3】While teenagers who are at risk of depression with risky behaviors — drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes and cutting classes often alert parents and teachers that serious problems are brewing, a new study finds that there’s another group of adolescents who are in nearly as much danger of experiencing the same mental symptoms.

These teens use tons of media, get insufficient sleep and have a sedentary (不爱活动的) lifestyle. Of course, that may sound like a description of every teenager on the planet. But the study wars that it is teenagers who engage in all three of these practices in the extreme that are truly in a dangerous position. Because their behaviors are not usually seen as a red flag, these young people have been called the “invisible risk” group by the study’s authors.

The study’s authors surveyed 15,395 students and analyzed nine risk behaviors, including excessive alcohol use, illegal drug use, heavy smoking and high media use. Their aim was to determine the relationship between these risk behaviors and mental health issues in teenagers. The group that scored high on all nine of the risk behaviors was most likely to show symptoms of depression; in all, nearly 15% of this group reported being depressed, compared with just 4% of the low-risk group. But the invisible group wasn’t far behind the high-risk set, with more than 13% of them exhibiting depression.

The findings caught Carli off guard. “We didn’t expect that,” he says. “The high-risk group and low-risk group are obvious, but this third group was not only unexpected. It was so distinct and so larger — nearly one third of our sample — that it became a key finding of the study.”

Carli says that one of the most significant things about his study is that it provides new early warning signs for parents, teachers and mental health-care providers. And early identifications, support and treatment for mental health issues, he says, are the best ways to keep them from turning into full-blown disorders.

1. Which teenager probably belongs to the “invisible group”?

A．A teenager who drinks frequently.	B．A teenager who exercises regularly.
C．A teenager who skips school.	D．A teenager who suffers from a lack of sleep.

2. What can we know about the new study?

A．It was conducted by analyzing and comparing the previous data.

B．It was intended to dig into the reasons for depression.

C．It revealed an alarming rate of the invisible group suffering depression.

D．Its findings were under expectation of the research team.

3. What is Carli’s attitude toward the findings?

A．Unclear.

B．Positive.

C．Doubtful.

D．Indifferent.

4. The author wrote this passage to ______.

A．introduce a new therapy for teens’ mental disorder

B．war about the unobserved signals for teens’ mental problems

C．share a novel psychological experiment with teens

D．caution teens against developing unhealthy habits

【推荐1】As the saying goes, “Without music, life would be a mistake.” Music is very important in our lives and here are four of the greatest musicians in history.

Ludwig van Beethoven（1770-1827）

Born in Bonn, Germany, Beethoven never held an official position in Vienna. He supported himself by giving concerts, teaching piano, and the sale of his compositions （作品）. The last 30 years of Beethoven’s life were filled with a lot of hard times, the first of which was his deafness. Beethoven’s music greatly influenced the next generation of musicians.

Johann Sebastian Bach （1685-1750）

Bach, “the father of modern music”, was born in Eisenach, Germany. His parents died when he was nine years old, and in 1695 he went to live with his brother Johann Christoph, who was an organist（风琴手）in Ohrdruf. He stayed there until 1700. Eight years later, he moved back to Weimar, where he served as court organist for nine years. His music greatly influenced classical music.

Frédéric Chopin （1810-1849）

Chopin was born in Warsaw, Poland. He showed a talent for the piano at a very young age. Chopin began composing when he was still a child, but some of his early works have been lost. He gave his first public concert in 1818. Chopin was considered as the leading musician of his time.

Franz Schubert （1797-1828）

Schubert was born and died in Vienna. Unlike most of his predecessors, Schubert was not a great performer. He never had much money but he was very productive. He wrote his first masterpiece when he was only sixteen. However, he died young, before his talents had even been known.

1. Beethoven did not make a living by ________.

A．teaching students	B．giving concerts
C．selling his works	D．holding an official position

2. Bach worked as an organist in Weimar until ________.

A．1765

B．1707

C．1750

D．1717

3. What do we know about the four musicians?

A．They all lived a hard life at their old age.

B．They all made great contributions to the world.

C．They became famous at a young age.

D．They were all good at playing the piano.

【推荐2】Enrique Iglesias is a most successful singer! Born in 1975 in Madrid, Spain, Enrique is the child of the famous singer Julio Iglesias. Enrique’s mother is a journalist. His parents divorced in 1978. Although Enrique lived with his mother, she sent him to live with his father because of concerns about her son’s safety. Enrique wanted to be a singer secretly, he didn’t wish his father to know that and didn’t want to live under his shelter. He sought his dream on his own.
Enrique released(发行) his first album “Enrique Iglesias” in 1995. This album had a collection of rock ballads(民谣) and five singles from it went straight to the top spots in Latin music. This album was followed by another “Vivir” in 1997. Three singles from this album occupied the top spots on the Latin charts yet again! Enrique also found himself nominated(提名) for the “Favorite Latin Artist” at the American Music Awards. By 1998, he had released his 3^rd album, “Cosas Del Amor”. This year Enrique won the “Favorite Latin Artist”. “Bailamos” got him great fame. One of the songs in this album was also used in a movie. With the success of “Bailamos”, Enrique now already had many loyal fans. The album, “Enrique”, was released in 1999.
The year 2001 brought more success for him. His album, “Escape” had a few singles that reached the top spots. Enrique became a household name. This album is his biggest successful album so far. “Hero” and “Don’t Turn Off the Lights” soon turned Enrique into a super star. His next release in 2002 was a Spanish album “Quizas”. This album brought Enrique a “Latin Grammy Award” for the Best Pop Vocal Album. In 2007, he released another album “Insomniac” and the song “Do You Know” became an instantly popular song.
1. After his parents divorced, Enrique was sent to his father’s because _________.

A．he could be protected from some dangers

B．he could learn singing from his talented father

C．his mother would be able to focus on her career

D．his father could teach him how to behave correctly

2. Enrique didn’t tell his father about his dreaming of becoming a singer because he __________.

A．wanted to try a new singing style

B．hated his father for his carelessness

C．didn’t want to benefit from his father’s fame

D．planned to give his father a surprise when he succeeded

3. Which of the following albums has a song adopted in a movie?

A．“Vivir”.	B．“Bailamos” .
C．“Enrique Iglesias”.	D．“Cosas Del Amor”.

4. The third paragraph is developed mainly by _______.

A．following the order of his albums’ influence

B．analyzing the style of his albums

C．making comparisons of his albums

D．following the order of time

5. What would be the best title for the passage?

A．Enrique Iglesias’ lucky life

B．Biography of Enrique Iglesias

C．Enrique Iglesias’ secret to success

D．Enrique Iglesias’ wonderful singing skills