1 . The Fuxing train has started running in southwest China’s Tibet along the Lhasa-Nyingchi (拉萨—林芝) Railway.
The 435-kilometer railway links Lhasa and Nyingchi. It’s a great achievement in China, because it’s the first electrified (电气化的) railroad on the “Roof of the World”. It shortens the journey between Lhasa and Nyingchi from over five hours to about 3.5 hours.
The new railway covers an area of 226,000 square kilometers. It goes through 47 tunnels (隧道) and crosses 121 bridges. The train has a top speed of 160 kilometers per hour. It is the fastest train on the high land, but it’s a bit slower than some other Fuxing trains in our country because of the special environment. The railway not only makes local people’s life easier, but also brings more tourists to the area.
“The railway trip is so relaxing and fast. The new train has brought our family members closer than ever before,” said a teacher who lives in Nyingchi. She used to drive more than five hours from Nyingchi to Lhasa to visit her parents during the summer vacation.
Besides carrying passengers, the railway also provides good chances for farmers to sell local products to more places. It’s sure to put new energy into Tibet’s economic (经济的) development.
1. If you leave Lhasa at 8:00 a.m., you can arrive at Nyingchi by Fuxing train ________?| A．about 1:00 p.m. | B．about 12:00 a.m. | C．about 11:30 a.m. | D．about 9:30 a.m. |
| A．160 kilometers per hour. | B．121 kilometers per hour. |
| C．47 kilometers per hour. | D．160 meters per hour. |
| A．克扣 | B．下降 | C．缩短 | D．缺少 |
| A．Because it covers a large area. |
| B．Because it can carry passengers. |
| C．Because the train goes through lots of tunnels and bridges. |
| D．Because it’s China’s first electrified railway on the “Roof of the World”. |
| A．the railway trip is boring and slow |
| B．the railway bring fewer tourists to the area |
| C．the train goes through 121 tunnels and 47 bridges |
| D．it’s a bit slower than some other Fuxing trains in our country |
ChatGPT, a smart AI chatbot (聊天机器人) tool, has swept the education world in the past months. According to a US survey of 1,000 students, about 90% of them have used ChatGPT to help with a homework task.
Developed by US company — OpenAI, ChatGPT is a powerful tool. You can ask it to write stories and e-mails, create recipes (食谱), translate languages and answer all kinds of questions.
Some schools in the US, Australia and France have banned the use of ChatGPT. For example, New York City public schools stopped students and teachers from using ChatGPT on the school’s networks, CNN reported.
The move comes out of worries that the tool could make it easier for students to cheat on schoolwork. Some also worry that ChatGPT could be used to spread incorrect information.
“Critical-thinking (批判性思维) and problem-solving skills are necessary for academic (学术的) and lifelong success, but ChatGPT does not build them,” said Jenna Lyle, the deputy press secretary of the New York City Department of Education.
Apart from bans, teachers are making changes to their classes to prevent the use of ChatGPT. Some college teachers in the US try to include more speaking exams and handwritten papers instead of typed ones, The New York Times reported.
1. In a US survey, about 90% of the students have used ChatGPT to help with their homework.2. ChatGPT can cook for people according to the passage.
3. America, Australia and France allow students and teachers to use ChatGPT.
4. ChatGPT is necessary for academic and lifelong success.
5. Teachers are making changes to their classes to prevent the use of ChatGPT.
3 . Pandas are China’s ambassadors (大使) and loved by many people around the world. In February, pandas including Xiang Xiang and Yong Ming came back home. Before this, they were on loan to Japan.
Since the early 1980s, China has stopped giving away pandas as gifts because of their falling numbers. In the 1990s, China started 10-year loans of pandas to other countries. Today about 60 pandas are living abroad.
Making the pandas feel at home, this may lead you the question: How do overseas (海外的) zoos make sure they have what the pandas need to be comfortable?
Wei Rongping, the head of the Wolong Panda Base in Sichuan says the over-seas zoos need to meet several conditions. For example, there must be a healthy and safe environment for pandas to live in. In 2017, to welcome pandas Xingya and Wuwen, the zoo in the Kingdom of the Netherlands built a Chinese style panda house. It offers a clinic (诊所), a cold bamboo keeping room and a nursery (育婴室) when pandas are ready to have babies.
Also, the zoo must give pandas enough food because a panda may eat 12 to 38 kilograms of bamboo in a day, which means they spend at least 12 hours eating each day. Pandas Sihai and Jingjing traveled to Qatar last year. Every week, the park buys 1,000 kg of fresh bamboo from their hometown, Sichuan. Keepers there also learn the Sichuan dialect (方言) to better talk to the pandas.
1. The underlined words “on loan” mean “________” in Chinese.| A．售卖 | B．征用 | C．出借 | D．送出 |
| A．Because pandas became more expensive. | B．Because more countries wanted pandas. |
| C．Because pandas couldn’t live well abroad. | D．Because there were fewer and fewer pandas. |
| A．In 2015. | B．In 2017. | C．In 2022. | D．In 2023. |
| A．It built a panda house in Chinese style. | B．There was a clinic in the park. |
| C．It offered a nursery. | D．The panda keepers learned the Sichuan dialect. |
| A．Giving pandas a good life | B．Pandas—big eaters |
| C．Countries with pandas | D．Difficulties in keeping pandas |
4 . For primary and middle school students, being able to cook has become a must. They will also need to learn how to plant vegetables, raise chickens or ducks and fix computers or fridges under new requirements for labor education. The MOE (教育部) brought out a new standard for labor education in schools last year. Starting from the 2022 fall term, students in primary and middle schools have to take courses on labor skills at least once a week.
Labor education helps students value hard work. The new standard includes three types of labor tasks: housework, school labor and community volunteer services.
Schools in China have traditionally placed more focus on studying, and many have seen housework as a waste of children’s time. But according to the MOE, labor education must be built up to help students improve social values and develop an interest in labor.
Liu Fang, a mother of 6-year-old twins in Beijing, strongly supports labor education. For the past year, she has trained her daughters to do housework and make simple dishes for the family.
“The main idea is to let them share duty as family members and become independent as they can,” said Liu. “Through doing housework, their hand-eye coordination (手眼协调), time management and organization skills can be trained and it’s also good to help them relax.”
Through such education, Liu said her twins have found fun in doing housework and are more independent.
1. What CAN’T a ninth-grade student learn through labor education?| A．How to plant vegetables. | B．How to be more careful in class. |
| C．How to fix computers or fridges. | D．How to raise chickens or ducks. |
| A．It started in the fall term of 2022. | B．It is for students from primary school to college. |
| C．Students have to take labor courses twice a week. | D．It includes two types of labor tasks. |
| A．let students do housework | B．let students study to cook |
| C．pay more attention to students’ health | D．pay more attention to students’ study |
| A．It’s too simple for students. | B．It is boring for students. |
| C．It helps students develop different skills. | D．It is a waste of students’ time. |
| A．New courses for primary school students. |
| B．Labor education for primary and middle school students. |
| C．New technologies used in primary and middle schools. |
| D．Ways to improve students’ studying skills. |
5 . Guyu is the last solar term (节气) in spring. When it is coming, it means the cold weather has basically ended, and the temperature rises faster. Besides, the amount of rainfall increases much than the day of “Rain Water”, which is very important for the growth of the crops. After this day, the cuckoo starts to sing, trees and grass turn green.
Picking tea is a custom in Guyu in the south of China. It’s said that drinking tea in Guyu will help people clear away heat, drive away evil spirits and improve eyesight. In the north of China, people eat Chinese toon (香椿) as a custom in Guyu. Guyu is also a perfect time or fishing. Fishermen often hold sacrifice ceremony (祭祀活动) for the sea to bless for safety and success on the sea. In some of the northwest areas, people take a shower in the water to be far away from the bad luck during Guyu period.
While we are busy with our outdoor activities in spring, more care is needed to deal with health. The clearest weather feature around Guyu is the big differences between morning temperatures and night temperatures. People should also pay attention to some health problems like catching a cold and so on.
1. From the first paragraph, what can we know about Guyu?| A．Guyu is the last solar term in a year. | B．When Guyu is coming, the weather becomes warmer. |
| C．There is less rain after Guyu. | D．After Guyu, the trees turn yellow. |
| A．Take a shower. | B．Plant tea. | C．Eat Chinese toon. | D．Pick tea. |
| A．Because they hope to drive away evil spirits. |
| B．Because sacrifice ceremony can make the fishermen healthy. |
| C．Because they want to be safe and successful on the sea. |
| D．Because sacrifice ceremony is important for the growth of crops. |
| A．do more outdoor activities | B．pay attention to health |
| C．plant trees | D．care about weather feature |
| A．Culture. | B．Environment. | C．Entertainment. | D．Health. |
Many of us don’t pay much attention to the importance of eye care. It is said that if you take care of your body, then you can surely be healthy. That is why our eyes should be given a lot of care. Natural eye care should be put in a number one place.
There are several causes leading to poor eyesight like not enough food, genes (基因) and aging (老化). Televisions, computers and reading are also the causes of having poor eyesight. If you happen to work in front of the computer, it is best to take a break every once in a while. Something dirty can cause redness and they will make you feel uncomfortable. It is bad for your eyes, too. If this happens, the best way is to clean your eyes by using cold water. You must also try your best to protect your eyes from harmful things. For example, sunglasses are not just for fashion but they can also serve as a great way to protect your eyesight from UV rays (紫外线).
Eating healthy food will do good to your eyesight. Remember that vitamins A, C and E are good for eyes. Try to eat food groups that have these vitamins. And you should do eye exercises because exercises protect your eyesight, too. If a person exercises regularly and eats the right kind of food, his eyes will stay in good condition for a long time.
All above are natural ways of eye care that help us keep healthy eyes. In a word, eye care is very important, no matter how old a person is.
1. If you take care of your eyes, you will be surely healthy.2. If you need to work in front of the computer, you’d better take a break every once in a while.
3. Wearing sunglasses is just for fashion.
4. Eating healthy food and doing eye exercises are good for our eyesight.
5. This passage mainly talks about some ways of eye care.
7 . During the 2016 Rio Olympics, people were surprised to see the round, purple marks on the body of the famous American swimmer Michael Phelps. What happened to him? In fact, he just visited a doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and had “cupping” (拔火罐).
Massage (推拿) and acupuncture (针灸) are two other important kinds of TCM. Chinese massage can make you relaxed and fresh. Acupuncture takes away pain, though the look is funny.
TCM is an important part of Chinese culture. The earliest medical classic in China, Huangdi’s Classic on Medicine, came out more than 2,000 years ago. The book is about the relationship between man and nature. Nature keeps balanced if yin and yang work well together. TCM helps to do that Quit especially, for some health problems, a doctor of TCM will not give you medicine. Instead, he may give you just a food plan and right ways to eat.
For example, it is common to eat on the way to school at our desk, or in front of the TV. But TCM thinks it’s wrong. Here are the correct ways: sit down to eat. While eating, turn off the TV and get away from the work desk. Eat seasonal foods. Do not miss any of the three meals. Also, get your body moving often. Just as the saying goes, “Running water is never stale.”
Nowadays, Traditional Chinese Medicine is becoming more and more popular around the world. A government report says that people in 183 countries and areas are now using TCM.
1. Mr. Brown is busy with his work and he feels very tired these days. Chinese ________ can help him feel relaxed and fresh.| A．cupping | B．massage | C．acupuncture | D．culture |
| A．came out over 2,000 years ago |
| B．mainly describes how to take medicine |
| C．is the greatest medical classic in China |
| D．is about the relationship between man and medicine |
①Eat on the way to school.
②Eat seasonal foods.
③Get your body moving often.
④Stay up late.
| A．①② | B．③④ | C．②③ | D．①④ |
| A．绿水长流 | B．水到渠成 | C．水落石出 | D．流水不腐 |
| A．The 2016 Rio Olympics | B．Massage and Acupuncture |
| C．The Story of Michael Phelps | D．Traditional Chinese Medicine |
We live on the planet Earth. The earth is part of the solar (太阳的) system. The solar system is like the earth’s neighborhood. The word “solar” means “related to the sun”. The sun is at the center of the solar system. People used to think the sun moved around the earth. You can understand why. If you look into the sky, it sure looks like the sun moves!
But some early astronomers (天文学家) were against this idea. Nicolaus Copernicus was an astronomer in the 1500s. He was the first person to say that people were wrong. He believed the earth moved around the sun. In the 1600s, another astronomer named Galle o Galilei agreed. He built telescopes (望远镜) and observed the sky. He was sure that the earth moved around the sun. This caused quite a stir (骚乱)! Galileo was arrested (逮捕) .
It turns out that these early astronomers were right! The earth moves around the sun.
So do seven other major planets. These are Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. That makes eight major planets.
1. The earth is part of a neighborhood called the solar system.2. The sun is at the center of the solar system.
3. Not all early astronomers agreed that the sun moved around the earth.
4. Nicolaus Copernicus was the first person to build telescopes and observed the sky.
5. The passage is mainly about seven major planets in our solar system.
9 . After work, you go back home, open an app, place your order, and wait for your food to be delivered your home. This is how lots of young people eat in China these days. According to the latest report from the China Internet Network Information Center, 421 million Chinese people use online food delivery services. That’s just half of the total number of Internet users in China.
Which group of people is ordering food online the most? For sure, it is mainly young people. A recent report by Meituan, a food delivery service, showed that 86.3% of the service’s users are between 20 and 34 years old. These people are the main force driving the development of the food delivery industry.
Small families depend largely on food delivery services. Chinese families have changed in size over the past ten years. In 2002, only 7.7% of families have only one person. But this number increased to 15.6% in 2017. Two-person families rose from 18.4% in 2002 to 27.2% in 2017. For small families, cooking always takes a lot of time and energy, so ordering food online has become more popular.
The improvement of China’s food delivery services has also made more customers interested. According to Meituan’s report, the average time it takes to make a food delivery dropped from 38 minutes in 2016 to 28 minutes in 2022. Many delivery apps are also offering more services, delivering products such as fruit, vegetables, medicine and even flowers. As their services continue to improve, it’s certain that the food delivery industry will keep growing some day.
1. The writer introduces the topic by ________.| A．giving an example | B．telling a story |
| C．making a comparison | D．answering a question |
| A．86.3% of Internet users order food online. |
| B．Food delivery has developed rapidly. |
| C．Food delivery is popular with young people. |
| D．Most Internet users like to order food on Meituan. |
| A．Because people are lazier than before. | B．Because families are becoming smaller. |
| C．Because people aren’t good at cooking. | D．Because families prefer different food. |
| A．Food and vegetables. | B．Medicine. | C．Fruit and flowers. | D．All of the above. |
| A．It will be growing well. |
| B．Its service badly needs improving. |
| C．It shouldn’t offer other services. |
| D．Its development will slow down. |
In ancient China, willow branches (柳枝) were often used as a gift to friends and family members who would leave. Do you know why willow branches are a symbol of saying goodbye?
One reason is that willow trees are strong. They can live in any soil, wet or dry, north or south. Because of this special feature, when saying goodbye to loved ones, giving a willow branch is a way to tell them you hope they will easily get used to their new living environment.
Another reason is that, in Chinese, the pronunciation for the willow tree “柳” is similar to the character “留”. So giving a willow branch in ancient China was like asking the others to stay, even though you know that they must leave.
It is said that this custom became popular during the Han Dynasty. At that time, Baqiao, a bridge in Chang’ an, today’s Xi’an, was a common place to say goodbye. People often stopped there and handed willow branches to people who were going to depart.
willow branches, as a symbol of saying goodbye, were often mentioned in poems, especially at the time of the Tang and Song dynasties.
1. Willow branches were often used as a gift to friends and family members who would come back after being away for a long time in ancient China.2. Willow trees can live in any soil because they get used to new living environment easily.
3. People often stopped at Baqiao, a village in Chang’ an, and handed willow branches to people who were going to leave.
4. Willow branches were often mentioned in poems, especially at the time of the Han dynasties.
5. The passage mainly tells us the symbol of willow branches in ancient China.
