If you want to help protect the environment and save the planet, we’ve got some easy ways of going green.
·Avoid food waste
Go green and know the important of finishing your meals to avoid food waste. Do your bit to save the planet as well by planning your meals for the week, so you only buy what you need.
·Use reusable bottles
Earth Day is a great time for you to drink from reusable water bottles when you’re out and about. You should form good water-saving habits around the house, too.
·Try more plant-based meals
Try to eat less meat. It’s a surprisingly simple way we can all use to help save the planet. Try with one day a week to get you start, and then expand to more days when possible.
·Cut down on the air conditioner（空调）
Whenever you can, go green and open the window for some natural air. If you can’t live without your air conditioner, set in at between 25℃ and 27℃ for the most energy-efficient（节能的）temperature.
·Wise up to（意识到）recycling
You don’t need us to tell you how important it is to reduce, reuse and recycle. Becoming a less “throw away” society is a great message to pass on. Don’t throw away perfectly good things just because you are sick of them, or no longer use them. Instead, give them to others or list them on a free collection site online.
·Know more about nature
There’s no better way to know about the environment than by getting yourself outdoors and into nature! Whether it’s raining or sunny, you can know about the environment.
1. How many ways of going green are there in the text?2. According to the writer, what can we do to avoid food waste?
3. To save energy, what is the right way to use the air conditioner?
4. Do you think it is necessary for us to get ourselves outdoors and into nature? Why?
5. Why did the writer write this text?
6. According to the text, how green are you in your daily life?
2 . In Pontevedra, Spain, people don’t shout. Since cars are not allowed in the city, there are no horns（喇叭）or noises from car engines. People don’t have to try hard to make themselves heard. What you hear in the street, instead, is the singing of birds.
“Listen,” says Miguel Lores, the mayor（市长）, opening the windows of his office. From the street below rises the sound of human voices. “More than 14,000 cars used to pass along this street every day. There were more cars passing through the city in a day than people living here.
Lores became mayor in 1999. He spent months walking around the city. “The historical city is dead,” he said one day. “It is full of cars. It is heavily polluted. There are a lot of traffic accidents. The elderly and children aren’t able to use the streets because of cars. People who had a chance to leave have done so.”
At first, Lores thought of improving traffic conditions. However, he couldn’t come up with a good plan. After lots of discussions, the government finally decided to get rid of（清除）cars.
The change has brought Pontevedra many benefits. Traffic accidents are now rare（罕见的）. CO2 emissions（排放物）are down by 70%. Many people are moving to the city, making it lively again.
Most local people like the change. Ramiro Armesto, a mother of two young children, said, “In the past, the first thing to see in the morning was traffic jams. Now, the city is cleaner, quieter and safer.” Raquel Garcia, another parent, said she had stayed in many cities around the world. However, she had never lived in a city as “easy to live in” as Pontevedra. “Even if it’s raining, I walk everywhere. The feeling is wonderful,” she added.
1. From Paragraph 1, we know Pontevedra is a(n) ________ city in Spain.| A．ancient | B．quiet | C．busy | D．crowded |
| A．The historical city was dead. | B．There were lots of traffic accidents. |
| C．Many people were leaving the city. | D．There were too many cars in the city. |
| A．choices | B．advantages | C．problems | D．symbols |
| A．To show how people like the change. | B．To let more cities follow the change. |
| C．To explain what people think of the city. | D．To tell why people like living in Pontevedra. |
| A．A city without cars. | B．The path to a city’s progress. |
| C．A good plan for a city. | D．The changes of Pontevedra. |
Weifang in Shandong province has a long history of making kites. It is known as the birthplace of kites.
According to local artisans (工匠), Weifang kite-making appeared 2000 years ago. At first, they were often used by the army for measuring distance and communication purposes. During the Ming Dynasty (1368 —1644), kites started to be popular among ordinary people as entertainment.
Made from bamboo and decorated with traditional Chinese paintings, Weifang kite-making was included in the national-level intangible cultural heritage (非物质文化遗产) lists in 2006. The International Kite Festival has been held in Weifang every year since 1984.
Yang Hongwei, 56, is an inheritor (传承人) of the Weifang kite-making skills. She was born in a kite-making family. Yang often saw kites with bright colors and different shapes in her grandfather’s workshop.
Having a special connection with kites, Yang learned the skills from her grandfather at the age of 16. After she had practiced the skills for 10 years, she started her own shop in 1992.
On Yang’s kites, people can see not only common shapes like butterflies and swallows (燕子), but also some prints telling ancient Chinese tales and history. For example, she once made a kite showing a phoenix (凤凰) head lined with pictures of 50 famous women in Chinese history on each side.
In her spare time, she also travels to different countries including Germany, Australia, the US and New Zealand to tell people about Chinese stories seen on kites and the traditional ways of making kites.
“I’m an inheritor of the culture. It is also an important job of mine to spread the heritage around the world and onto the next generation,” she said.
根据短文内容，回答下列问题。1. Is Weifang in Shandong province known as the birthplace of kites?
2. What were the kites used for at first?
3. When was Weifang kite-making included in the national-level intangible cultural heritage lists?
4. How long had Yang practiced kite-making skills before she opened her first shop?
5. What do you think of Yang’s job? (Give two points.)
Schoolwork is becoming more and more difficult for students now. Recently, some new rules have been made to make them have a happy school life.
These new rules are made for schools in Jiangsu province. They include some parts. For example, teachers of primary and junior high schools can’t reveal(公布) students’ test scores. They should use letters like A and B to grade students’ test results.
Because of COVID-19, students spent a long holiday at home. When giving lessons to students on the Internet, they had less communication with students and didn’t teach as much as they do at school so teachers think students may get bad scores in the future. After the new term starts, some schools might give more homework or classes to students. But the new rules ask schools not to do that. At the same time, students should have music, sports and art classes as usual.
People have different ideas about the new rules. Yin Fei, a college professor, says some students are not good at studying, but they can do well in other things. So it is good to cancel(取消) scores. But Peng Ming, a teacher in Nanjing, worries about that. He thinks scores are still important. Students need to get high scores to enter good colleges and parents care about their children’s scores. So the new rules are not so good for them.
1. Can teachers reveal students’ test scores in Jiangsu province?2. How should teachers there grade students’ test results?
3. What makes some schools might give more homework or classes to students?
4. As a student, do you agree to the new rules? Why or why not?
5 . Lots of scientists are studying robots today. Many robots don’t always look like people. Some are like big machines, and some are nothing but long arms. However, modern robots are smart. Some can solve problems on their own.
Robots are more and more useful and important in our life. They help us a lot. In factories, robots can help people do a lot of work. They work faster and do not need a rest. People will feel bored if they do the same job again and again, but robots will not. They can work in some dangerous places where people cannot.
Robots are useful in our homes, too. They can help us do some cooking. They can help the blind people read newspapers, help the old people move some heavy things and so on. If we have some other problems, we can also ask them for help.
However, robots are not so clever as people. They cannot think like us. If we do not “teach” them how to do things first, they can do nothing.
It’s possible that we will have our own robots, and they will help us to do more things in the future.
1. What can we know from the first paragraph?| A．No robots are like big machines. | B．Robots all have long arms. |
| C．Robots are in different shapes. | D．Robots can’t work out problems by themselves. |
| A．In factories. | B．In banks. | C．In our houses. | D．In libraries. |
| A．They are as clever as people. | B．They will become tired. |
| C．They can think like people. | D．They can work in dangerous places. |
| A．It’s about what robots will be like in the future. |
| B．It’s about what robots can do in many years. |
| C．It’s about how robots are used in our life. |
| D．It’s about how scientists invented robots. |
| A．A science magazine. | B．A guide book. | C．Sports news. | D．A music textbook. |
Rabbit is the fourth of the 12 Chinese zodiac(parts, in the order of Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig). It is the Year of the Rabbit this year. Because rabbits are gentle and smart, they are very popular with people from all over the world.
In China, rabbits are considered to be a lucky sign. That’s because rabbits can have many babies in the nature, even in terrible conditions. In the past, people thought the more children they had, the better their life would be.
The rabbit can make people think of the moon. Ancient Chinese people believed a rabbit was living on the moon. It is called the Moon Rabbit and helps Chang’e, a goddess who is widely known in China, to make medicine.
Similarly, rabbits are seen to be lucky in Western culture. There are some traditions about how to get the rabbit’s good luck for yourself. For example, a rabbit’s foot is one of the most famous symbols of good luck and the person who holds it is supposed to be lucky. Also, people usually say the word “rabbit” on the first morning of every month. They’re looking forward to bringing themselves good luck for this whole month.
Now it’s the Year of the Rabbit. Hope you are always lucky this year!
1. Will it be the Year of the Rabbit in 2033?2. Why are rabbits seen as lucky animals in China?
3. In Chinese ancient folk stories, what did Chang’e and the Moon Rabbit do on the moon?
4. How can Western people possibly get the rabbit’s good luck?
5. Do you like rabbits? Why or why not?
7 . In the year 2070, most of you will be more than 60 years old. The good news is that travel might become smarter by that time. European airline(航空公司) easyJet has made some predictions and released(发布) easyJet 2070—The Future Travel Report. Let’s take a look at some cool ideas.
Heartbeat(心跳) passport
Paper passports will be a thing of the past. You will use “heartbeat passports” instead. According to experts, everyone’s heartbeat is different. So the data(数据) will be used to tell who you are.
More comfortable flight(飞行)
The seats on the plane will no longer be “one size fits all”. You’ll actually be able to book(预定) a seat according to your body type(型). The seat might even be able to cool or warm you to your preferred temperature. There will also be no more screens on the back of your seats. A future device(设备) could show movies straight in front of your eyes.
Printed clothes and food
If you hate packing clothes, you may not need to do it in the future. Before you fly, you will have a body scan(扫描). When you arrive, you’ll find a wardrobe(衣橱) filled with 3D-printed clothes in your size. When you leave, the clothes can be recycled and reprinted for the next person. You can also 3D print whatever you want to eat.
Bring history back to life
If you like to visit places of interest, augmented reality(增强现实) will change the game. Wearing a headset(头戴式耳机), you can see what happened there, such as a famous war.
1. In 2070, heartbeat passports will be used because _________.| A．paper passports are a waste of paper | B．the data of everyone’s heartbeat will tell who they are |
| C．they can be made at a lower price | D．experts don’t allow people to use paper passports |
①A seat according to your body type ②Movies shown straight in front of your eyes
③Big screens on the back of your seats ④A seat with your preferred temperature
| A．①③④ | B．①②③ | C．①②④ | D．②③④ |
| A．have your clothes posted | B．buy your clothes in the store |
| C．recycle clothes for yourself | D．scan your body and your clothes will be ready |
| A．People are watching the Olympic Games. | B．The emperor is talking with the ministers. |
| C．Some people are building the Great Wall. | D．Some students are having a sports meeting. |
| A．Good ideas for future travel | B．Better lifestyles in the future |
| C．Future devices on the plane | D．High technology in 2070 |
8 . 
The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China points out the importance of reading and calls on people to read more books, so shared bookhouses have appeared in many places. Reading has become a trend in our country.
A reading campaign (行动) took place in Shenyang in April, 2023. Many people took part in it. Li Hong, a girl from a junior high school, said, “My mother and I took part in the campaign because both of us like reading. Books are our necessary furniture in our house. I know a lot about Chinese classic (经典的) works. Reading makes my life colourful and will change my dream into reality (现实).”
Reading is one thing, but knowing how to read and what to read is another.
There are mainly three kinds of reading: recreational reading, study-type reading and survey reading. Recreational reading can bring you much fun. You can read at a relaxed speed. Study-type reading usually needs you to read the text very carefully to understand the ideas and details. Survey reading is a way of reading fast to get the main idea or find the information you need.
What kind of books should you read? Emerson, a great writer and thinker, had three rules: never read a book that is not a year old; never read any but famous books; never read a book you don’t like.
Good books can lift you to a higher plane (境界). Whatever you read, read with interest, with the whole mind. Try to be a best reader. If you are getting the most out of a book, you will do things more confidently. Reading is rewarding (有益的)!
1. What can we infer (推断) about Li Hong from the second paragraph?| A．There is no other furniture in her house but books. |
| B．Her mother teaches Chinese in a junior high school. |
| C．She has probably read the book Journey to the West. |
| D．She has changed her dream because of the campaign. |
| A．Learning a long poem at a relaxed speed. |
| B．Reading a novel carefully to write a report. |
| C．Enjoying interesting comic strips as you like. |
| D．Searching newspapers quickly for something. |
| A．Books that are well known. | B．Books that cost a lot of money. |
| C．Books that are about rules. | D．Books that come out within a year. |
| A．To introduce a reading campaign. | B．To advise us to build bookhouses. |
| C．To encourage people to read books. | D．To tell us about some classic works. |
9 . Have you ever heard of Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park? It is our own “Amazon”. If you travel there, what can you enjoy?
AnimalsThe park is home to Hainan gibbons (长臂猿). They look like monkeys, but have no tails. They eat fruits and leaves from over 130 kinds of plants. In the 1980s, there were fewer than 10 gibbons in the park. In 2022, there were 36 because people protected their homes and planted trees. |
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The park is a “live museum” of plants. It is also the home to 133 kinds of national key protected plants. Cycas hainanensis (海南苏铁) is an example. It has big, feather-like leaves. It grows slowly, but can live as long as 200 years. It probably won’t grow flowers or fruits in North China. But in Hainan, cycas hainanensis over 10 years old blossom (开花) and bear fruits almost every year. |
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Miao and Li people have lived in the park for generations (世代). Their houses look like upside-down boats. They are built above the ground to keep away animals. Li people make clothes from bark (树皮). Their history of tree bark clothing dates back to about 10,000 years ago. Some people still use bark clothing nowadays. |
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| A．Less than 10. | B．More than 30. | C．Nearly 130. | D．Only 133. |
| A．It can grow very quickly. | B．It never grows flowers. |
| C．It can live up to 200 years. | D．It has very small leaves. |
| A．To avoid animals. | B．To build houses. | C．To produce boats. | D．To make clothes. |
| A．Art. | B．Travel. | C．Health. | D．Sports. |
10 . Have you ever imagined going inside of a video game? That dream may soon become real. It’s called the “metaverse（元宇宙）”.
The metaverse is a shared virtual（虚拟的）3D world. The word is made up of “meta”, which means beyond, and “verse” which refers to “universe”. The word first appeared in a science fiction book called Snow Crash in 1992. In this story, people wear virtual reality（VR）headsets to see and join the metaverse.
Now, what happens in the book is becoming a reality. Wearing a VR headset, you can meet other people wherever they are. You also can work and play with them. It will feel real because the technology can simulate（模拟）our senses: vision, hearing, touch and even smell.
“The metaverse is about creating another reality, another world, which is as rich as the real world. So, what can you do inside the metaverse? Your location will no longer matter, ” says VOA News. It means that in the metaverse, people will be connected at all times. You can meet friends from other countries and go on a virtual beach vacation together. You can go to the beach on the moon, or anywhere else you can imagine. Can’t find a friend to play basketball? Jump into the metaverse and find some friends to play with or go to a concert!
Cathy Hackl, an expert in metaverse technology, said her son’s first concert was inside a video game. “Although it happened in a video game, it didn’t make it less real for him, ” she said.
Perhaps the metaverse will change our idea of what is real.
| A．how to join the metaverse |
| B．what happened in the book Snow Crash |
| C．where the word “metaverse” comes from |
| D．when the book Snow Crash came out |
| A．VR headsets | B．other people | C．our senses | D．video games |
| A．The technology still needs to be developed. |
| B．It is not good for kids to join the metaverse. |
| C．The metaverse will hardly change our lives. |
| D．The metaverse is a different kind of reality. |
| A．A Virtual 3 D Movie | B．Metaverse Is Happening |
| C．Metaverse in the Books | D．Snow Crash |
