1 . Humans and gorillas (大猩猩) shared evolution (进化) for 23 million years. Their paths separated only six million years ago. New research on how gorillas communicate may help us better understand human language.
Understanding how the brain works helps us see a connection between language development and non-verbal (非言语的) signs. “Gorillas have many kinds of non-verbal communication,” said psychologist (心理学家) Sebestyen Forrester, from the University of Sussex. He thinks humans may have had the same communication skills.
Non-verbal communication includes the ways we move our bodies and the different expressions on our faces. A new study on gorillas showed that right-handedness may have a connection with communication. The right side of the body is controlled by the left part of the brain, which is also where language develops.
Two cameras were used to watch how one gorilla moved. It was shown that gorillas use their right hands more when they are doing actions with their heads or mouths at the same time. This may show that there is a connection between how our brains work and the reason we use one side of our body more than the other.
Forrester said the results could help us understand how children learn languages. For example, some children have a condition called autism (自闭症) in which they have a hard time communicating with other people. This same kind of study may help doctors find autism in children at an earlier age.
1. The shared evolution of gorillas and humans separated about ________ million years ago.| A．6 | B．17 | C．23 | D．29 |
| A．Talking loudly. | B．Reading aloud. | C．Facial expressions. | D．Singing. |
| A．knowledge | B．health | C．communication | D．feelings |
| A．find communication problems early on | B．make people use their right hands more |
| C．develop language abilities in children | D．find a treatment for children with autism |
| A．In a travel guide. | B．In a health magazine. |
| C．In a sports newspaper. | D．In a science fiction. |
2 . 2024 is the Year of the Dragon. Of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac (生肖), the dragon is the only unreal one. But Chinese people love it so much for thousands of years. And they always say they’re the “descendants (后代) of the dragon”. But how much do you know about the animal? Does it have the same meaning in different cultures?
Both people in the east and west think dragons are like snakes. Now in China, we can still find records of dragons. For example, some ancient jade carvings (玉雕) look like snakes in a letter “C”. In the west, people see dragons as big snakes in the old book The Penguin Book of Dragons.
However, stories about dragons are very different between the East and West. Dragons in China have a horse-like head, a long body but no wings (翅膀). People think they are beautiful and smart. And they can also bring good luck. While dragons in the west have shorter bodies and big wings. They often mean bad luck. Some of them can even blow fire from their mouth. For example, the evil witch (邪恶女巫) Maleficent in Sleeping Beauty, can turn herself into a big dragon!
East or west, in the world of fantasy, the dragon will always play an important role!
1. Of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac, which animal is the only unreal one?| A．The cow. | B．The horse. | C．The mouse. | D．The dragon. |
| A．People in China. | B．People in Canada. |
| C．People in America. | D．People in Australia. |
| A．A letter C. | B．A strong tiger. |
| C．Big snakes. | D．Ancient jade carvings. |
| A．Dragons in the west have small wings. | B．Dragons in the west are smart animals. |
| C．Dragons in China have a cow-like head. | D．Dragons in the east can bring good luck. |
| A．Dragons and Snakes | B．The History of Dragons in China |
| C．Dragons in the East and West | D．The Symbol of Western Dragons |
Hangzhou, together with five other cities in Zhejiang, hosted the 19th Asian Games from Sept. 23 to Oct. 8. The Games was very “smart” with the use of many exciting technologies. Let’s have a look!
What if there was an accident during the game and the players needed first aid? Drones (无人机) could be used to send things over. Using a drone saves about 60 percent of the time. Medicine, blood and other things needed for first aid can be sent to people quickly.
Every dish at the Asian Games should be safe and healthy. In the kitchen of the athletes’ village in Hangzhou, there was a special system (系统) that could tell people’s faces. If a “stranger” went into the kitchen, an alarm would go off to let people know. The managers of the kitchen would also get messages on their phones. There is also a system to keep an eye on the temperature of the fridge.
Say that you were in Hangzhou and would watch one of the games. It would be sad if you couldn’t find your way. AR (增强现实技术) was here to help you. There is a mini program called the Hangzhou Asian Games AR service. You could turn on your phone’s camera and it would see where you were and then showed you the way.
1. The 19th Asian Games Hangzhou lasted for seven days.2. The “Drones” could be used to send people quickly in this passage.
3. The alarm in the kitchen can receive food messages from athletes.
4. The AR service can help out people who are lost to find their ways.
5. The passage is mainly about how technology works in 19th Asian Games Hangzhou.
4 . 
As one kind of the most ancient characters, Chinese characters have played an important role in the development of Chinese culture. At first, ancient Sumerian (苏美尔语) and ancient Egyptian symbols existed (存在), but only Chinese characters remain today. The history of the Chinese language can be examined by looking at how these characters developed.
Chinese writing began thousands of years ago. According to an ancient story, a man named CangJie invented Chinese writing. One winter day while he was hunting, he saw the footprints of animals in the snow and noticed that the appearance of each one was different. Then he had the idea that he could use different shapes to represent (代表) different objects. The first Chinese characters were drawings of physical objects. Some characters have been simplified (简化) and others have been made more difficult over time.
However, as a whole, the characters have developed from drawings into standard forms. The character for a mountain was at first three mountaintops together. This became one mountaintop and three lines, and over time turned into the character used nowadays.
Sometimes to express ideas, some characters were made by combining (结合) two or more characters together. For example, “rest” was made up of the characters for a man and a tree. The character “prisoner” was formed with a “man” inside a square. Other characters were developed for directions and numbers. It is easy to distinguish (区别) their meanings by looking at them, for example, the characters for “up” and “down”, which are opposites of each other.
Though these kinds of characters indicate (表明) meanings, one of their shortcomings (缺点) is that they do not show how they should be pronounced. Therefore, a method was developed to have one part of a character represent the meaning and the other suggest the pronunciation. Many Chinese characters used today were made this way.
In the 1950s the Chinese government introduced simplified Chinese characters in the hope to make learning to read and write more understandable to the general population, which would increase literacy (读写能力) across the country. And now they have widespread use in China’s mainland.
1. The writer introduced the Chinese characters by ________.| A．giving examples | B．providing causes | C．expressing opinions | D．comparing facts |
Not all characters were developed from drawings of objects.
| A．Paragraph 5 | B．Paragraph 4 | C．Paragraph 3 | D．Paragraph 2 |
| A．亦 | B．竹 | C．明 | D．桐 |
| A．To make Chinese characters popular throughout the world. |
| B．To make people remember Chinese in a new way. |
| C．To make more people fall in love with Chinese. |
| D．To make Chinese easy to read and write. |
| A．Chinese characters have turned into standard forms, which are easier than before. |
| B．The first Chinese characters were invented by Cang Jie hundreds of years ago. |
| C．Chinese characters existed at the very beginning and remain today like other ancient symbols. |
| D．Chinese characters we use today have been accepted by large numbers of Chinese people. |
We have had lots of technology and it has changed our lives a lot. There is no doubt that humans will continue to use more and more technology. Here are some examples of modern technology that will change our ideas and will affect our lives greatly.
Global Positioning System (GPS)
It’s a system that uses radio signals (信号) from satellites (卫星) to show exact information. It tells you where the user is on the earth in all weather conditions. It’s made up of the following parts: satellites, control equipment on land and receivers.
Space Technology
Russian and American scientists have worked together for the International Space Station (ISS) for a long time. They hope the ISS will provide a long-lasting lab. Such a lab will bring humans limitless advantages. It’s even hoped that one day space technology will take humans to their new houses in space.
Underwater Robot
Hercules is a kind of underwater robot with some high-technology equipment. It will be used to search for ancient ships which were destroyed into the deep sea during journey long ago.
1. GPS can’t tell you where the user is on the earth on rainy days.2. Control equipment on land is a part of GPS.
3. The ISS has carried people to other planets.
4. Hercules will be used to search for the ancient ships in the sea.
5. The purpose of the passage is to tell us technology is changing the world.
6 . Most people are afraid of snakes. They may think snakes are dangerous and ugly. With more and more rain falling and the hot weather, it’s time for snakes to be active. Living in the city, it never crosses your mind that we might meet them face to face.
There are more than 2,000 kinds of snakes on the earth. Most of them live in mountains or forests, and in cities sometimes we can find them in grass or other dark places. Snakes can’t walk or run because they have no legs or feet, but these long and thin animals can move very fast on their stomachs. Snakes usually have green, yellow or black skins, which make it difficult for their enemies to find them. In winter they hibernate in holes. They look for a hole to stay inside, on the ground, or in a rock or a tree. They do not wake up again until spring comes. Snakes feed on mice, frogs, bird eggs and so on.
Snakes play an important part in nature. We can make useful medicines with them. Without their help, the rodents (啮齿动物) will be out of control. But many of them are in danger of disappearing. Houses and buildings take up the land where snakes live. Many snakes lose their lives in traffic, and people often kill snakes for their skins or meat.
1. Which season may it be now according to the text?| A．Spring. | B．Summer. | C．Autumn. | D．Winter. |
| A．About 1,000. | B．Over 2,000. | C．A bout 3,000. | D．Over 4,000. |
| A．躲藏 | B．睡觉 | C．冬眠 | D．伏击 |
| A．We never see snakes in cities. | B．Snakes only catch mice as food. |
| C．Snakes are useless to nature. | D．Many snakes are in danger. |
| A．Health. | B．Geography. | C．Biology. | D．Weather. |
7 . Yunnan seems to be everyone’s dream. Many people want to travel to Yunnan. Yunnan’s local customs and a variety of scenery deeply attract everyone. Today we’ll take you to know the top 3 famous places of interest in Yunnan.
Yulong Snow Mountain
Yulong Snow Mountain, located about 15 kilometers north of Lijiang, is one of the most famous tourist attractions in China. It is about 550 kilometers away from Kunming. This is a great place where you can ski. It is named after its shape, which looks like a dragon lying in the snow.
Erhai Lake
Erhai Lake, located in the north of Dali, is one of the seven biggest fresh water lakes in China. It is about 340 kilometers away from Kunming. The lake gets the name because it is ear-shaped. It is like a crescent lying between Cangshan and Dali.
Stone Forest
Stone Forest is only 78 kilometers away from Kunming. In fact, Stone Forest can be said to be the world’s natural heritage (遗产). In the forest, we would be amazed by the different shaped stones like fresh lotus, fighter’s sword, flying phoenix, and big mushroom. One of the stones is the most famous, which is called Ashima. It looks like a Sani girl.
1. Where does Yulong Snow Mountain lie?| A．In Kunming. | B．In Lijiang. | C．In Dali. | D．In Pu’er. |
| A．It is ear-shaped. |
| B．It has different shaped stones. |
| C．It looks like a dragon lying in the snow. |
| D．It is like a stone lying between Cangshan and Dali. |
| A．Fresh lotus. | B．Fighter’s sword. | C．Flying phoenix. | D．Ashima. |
| A．Yulong Snow Mountain is closest to Kunming. |
| B．Erhai Lake is the biggest fresh water lake in China. |
| C．You can enjoy skiing in Yulong Snow Mountain. |
| D．Stone Forest is the biggest forest in the world. |
| A．Travel. | B．Sports. | C．Health. | D．Science. |
8 . Holidays with friends can be great fun and a good way of getting to know each other better. Planning the trip well will help you have a good time. Also it will help you to save money if you start planning earlier.
Going abroad will cost more but be a more exciting experience. Don’t go abroad if this is the first trip you help to organize. Going to a different place in your own country can also be fun and will be cheaper.
Work out how many people you will be able to plan the trip for. Find out how much interest there is for people to go on the trip, and then invite people who you think will enjoy themselves and who you get on well with.
Everyone will have their own idea of what they want the trip to be like, so you should have a meeting. Keep a notebook and write down things to do. If you share ideas with others, you will take a happier trip.
After you decide on your hotel, you’ll know the dates of your stay and be able to book transport, such as bus, train and airplane. Booking transport earlier can save some money, so you‘d better book as soon as possible.
1. If you plan a trip earlier, you will ________.| A．spend more money | B．make more friends |
| C．spend less money | D．save much time |
| A．使用 | B．开发 | C．宣传 | D．组织 |
| A．You should invite someone rich to take the trip with you. |
| B．Think about others’ ideas, and you will take a happier trip. |
| C．It’ good to take your first trip to a foreign country. |
| D．It is best to take a trip by plane. |
| A．To have more fun. | B．To get more information. |
| C．To go to more places. | D．To save some money. |
| A．How to Book Hotels | B．Preparations for a Trip |
| C．A Special Trip | D．The Fun during the Trip |
9 . To most people in the Netherlands (荷兰), bicycle riding is part of everyday life. It’s their first choice to school and work. In cities like Amsterdam, people take almost 70% of all the trips by bike. Why does cycling become popular in the Netherlands?
In the 1970s, the Dutch government (荷兰政府) began to improve its cycling facilities (设施) because many people wanted a much safer cycling condition for children. To make cycling safer, the Dutch built the widest cycling network in the world. The country marked over 40,000 kilometer lines just for bicycles. They have traffic signs and signal lights for cyclists.
Even when both bikes and cars have to share the same road of little space, you can always see a large board saying “Bike Street. Cars are guests”. It means that riders have priority (优先) over drivers. For example, cars must slow down and let bikes pass first if they run face to face.
Bicycle parking facilities are quite common in the country. The central train station in Groningen, a city in the north eastern part Netherlands, has underground space for parking 10,000 bikes.
正确“T”，错误“F”1. People in Amsterdam take all the trips by bike.
2. The Dutch built the widest cycling network in the world.
3. In the Netherlands, if a car and a bike run face to face, the bike must let the car pass first.
4. It’s easy to park bikes in the Netherlands.
5. This passage mainly talks about why cycling becomes popular in the Netherlands.
Travel study—a new way to spend your holiday. Have you ever heard about it?
When you have a travel study, you can see Big Ben, Sydney Opera House, the Statue of Liberty and so many other places. During the travel study, you may go traveling by yourself, or with your family or your friends.
When you travel, you are in a different culture every day. You will be served with different new food and make new friends. You read all these from books in the past, but now it is real and you are part of it. Besides, you may also learn other cultures from your new friends because they are from different countries.
Maybe you already have foreign teachers in your school to teach you English. But he or she will not stay to speak English with you all the time, right? During the travel study, you have to speak it every day and almost everywhere because you are in an English-speaking country!
It also gives you a chance to live alone. That will teach you how to live. “What should I do if I lose my way in a foreign country?” “How can I buy what I want with my poor English?” You have to be clever and find answers for yourself.
In short, you can get a lot from the travel study.
1. Your parents are not allowed to be with you during the travel study.2. Enjoying different cultures is an important part of the travel study.
3. Foreign teachers can stay with you and teach you English all the time.
4. Travel study is a good chance to learn to deal with challenges in a new environment.
5. The writer mainly talks about the advantages of travel study.
