1 . A talented teen painter in Waterbury is helping her very sick father with her love of art. The 15-year-old girl from Waterbury could become a well-known artist one day. For now, though, part of her love for painting is the chance to help her dad, who’s ill. “It’s kind of like an ache-a heartbreak,” she said. “You never want to see one of your loved ones get hurt. ”
Her father is suffering from type-one diabetes (糖尿病) and is having trouble affording his mounting medical bills. “I’m suffering from heart disease, and blindness from my diabetes,” her father said. Angie has decided to put her talent as an artist to good use.
On Saturday, Sept. 23 from noon to 4 p. m., she’s hosting her own one day art exhibition (展览) to sell her paintings and raise money mainly for her father’s medical bills. “Angie’s Art Exhibition” will be at the North End Recreation Centre, located at 262 North Main Street in Waterbury. She’s also using it to help the Fairfield Animal Shelter. Angie loves animals—you see that on many of her paintings.
This isn’t the first time Angie has put her paintbrush to good use helping others. Her mother tells News 8 that Angie has also used her work to help her community: a local family who lost their father, and children who needed school supplies.
“She has an angelic heart. If there were more people like her in the world, there wouldn’t be so much chaos (混乱) and hate. I just look up to her and say ‘I’m very proud of you,’ ”her father said.
“My dad’s a great person. Though he goes through this, he still loves me and supports me in any way he can. It makes me feel important, “she said.
1. What is the main reason why Angie is hosting her own art exhibition?| A．To show her talent as an artist. | B．To raise money to treat her father. |
| C．To sell her paintings to art collectors. | D．To support the Fairfield Animal Shelter. |
| A．He expects her to become a world-famous artist. |
| B．He takes pride in her and considers her to be an angel. |
| C．He is disappointed in her for not concentrating on study. |
| D．He thinks she should focus on helping him instead of others. |
| A．Artistic and caring. | B．Humorous and kind. |
| C．Independent and proud. | D．Knowledgeable and helpful. |
| A．It’s never too late to learn. |
| B．Study first and play afterwards. |
| C．The company of parents is important to children’s development. |
| D．Determination and creativity can be powerful tools to help those in need. |
2 . Robert Chmielewski has had quadriplegia (四肢瘫痪) since his teens. Sensors implanted (植入) in his brain read his thoughts to control two robotic arms, which helps him to perform daily tasks. Now he can use one robotic arm to control a knife and the other a fork.
Modern technology can reach inside someone’s head and pull out what he is thinking. Maybe he intends to move a robotic arm or type something on a computer screen. Such thought-controlled devices can help people who aren’t able to move or perform different tasks and promote the well-being of the disabled.
Decoding (解码) thought usually requires placing sensors directly on or in someone’s brain. Those implanted sensors can catch the electrical signals passing between the person’s brain cells, or neurons. Such signals carry messages that allow brains to think, feel and control the body.
Using brain implants, researchers have picked up electrical signals in the brain linked to certain words or letters. This has allowed brain implants to transform thoughts into text or speech on a computer. Likewise, brain implants have transformed imagined handwriting into text on a screen. Implanted sensors have even allowed scientists to turn the signals they caught that are associated with a song in someone’s head into real music.
In a recent study, scientists decoded full stories from people’s brains using MRI scans (磁共振成像扫描). This did not require any brain implants. But building the thought decoder did require many hours of brain scans for each person. What’s more, the system only worked on the person whose brain scans helped build it and only when that person was willing to have their mind read.
So devices that might let someone secretly read your mind from across the room are still a long, long way off. Still, it’s clear that mind-reading tech is getting more advanced. As it does, scientists are thinking hard about what it would mean to live in a world where not even the inside of your head is completely private.
1. What does the text begin with?| A．A suggestion. | B．A comparison. | C．An argument. | D．An example. |
| A．What principles a thought decoder should follow. |
| B．How MRI monitors the work of the implanted sensors. |
| C．What’s used to catch signals passing through the brain. |
| D．How robotic arms are designed to satisfy different needs. |
| A．Concerned. | B．Confident. | C．Doubtful. | D．Indifferent. |
| A．Mind Reading is Stealing Our Privacy | B．Mind Reading is Hard, but not Impossible |
| C．Mind Reading—Good News for Musicians | D．Mind Reading—a Brain-scanning Technology |
3 . When I was a child, there was nothing I loved more than painting. It was my.
However, after graduating from college, the
One sunny day I found myself
Painting has become a way to
| A．price | B．source | C．flash | D．result |
| A．imagination | B．homework | C．fear | D．confusion |
| A．excitement | B．power | C．pressure | D．expectation |
| A．gradually | B．probably | C．wildly | D．hopefully |
| A．chatting | B．sweating | C．cheating | D．walking |
| A．taught | B．noticed | C．recognized | D．remembered |
| A．waiting for | B．begging for | C．filled with | D．alarmed with |
| A．paper | B．wood | C．books | D．novels |
| A．Watching | B．Holding | C．Helping | D．Checking |
| A．architect | B．soldier | C．adult | D．artist |
| A．free | B．quiet | C．busy | D．boring |
| A．agree | B．adapt | C．refer | D．return |
| A．plan | B．record | C．face | D．recover |
| A．reduce | B．balance | C．relive | D．destroy |
| A．trap | B．appreciate | C．expect | D．hide |
4 . A new song by the famous band The Beatles has been released despite half of the band members no longer being alive, thanks to the help of AI.
The Beatles was a legendary British rock band that remained second to Elvis Presley from the 1960s. It was made up of four musicians—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. The new song, titled Now and Then, is unique because it combined the singing of McCartney and Starr with Lennon, who passed away in 1980, and the guitar skills of Harrison, who passed away in 2001.
The song was initially written and partly recorded by Lennon in the late 1970s and further developed by band mates years later but as technology then was limited, they didn’t release it due to the sound quality not being satisfying.
Peter Jackson, most famous for directing The Lord of the Rings, directed the music video for Norw and Then and it can be watched now online. It was thanks to new Al audio restoration (音频修复) technology that Peter Jackson allowed the four band members to “come together” one last time.
Since its release last week, the song has been well received in the UK. Beatles fans around the world favoured this historic musical event.
”Now and Then is an absolutely heart-warming piece of work, “posted Liam Gallagher, whose hits were affected by The Beatles’ musical style.
Of course, there are those who are not totally interested in the song. ”Now and Then is not terrible. But honestly, it’s kind of boring, “Geoff Edgers wrote in The Washington Post.
The Times in the UK said the song showed Al being used to its best advantage.
1. Why was the song “Now and Then” not released at first?| A．The song was not completed. | B．The sound quality was not good enough. |
| C．The band members did not like the song. | D．The song was let out before its official release. |
| A．He wrote and recorded the song. |
| B．He invented new audio restoration technology. |
| C．He restored the band members’ sound using AI. |
| D．He played the guitar on the recording. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Curious. | C．Unfavourable. | D．Unclear. |
| A．The Beatles Remains Second to Elvis Presley |
| B．Beatles Fans Welcome the New Song of The Beatles |
| C．Peter Jnckson Directed the Music Video for The Beatles |
| D．The Beatles Released a New Song with the Help of Al |
5 . Sierra Leone Tour
Sierra Leone is a country on the rise, with new flights, a first-ever ecotourism journey, and national park accommodations coming in 2024. Visit before everyone else you know catches on. Perhaps the most exciting development is Sierra Leone’s push to protect and show its wildlife, with new experiences for travellers.
It will offer first-ever accommodations at two important sites: A pair of lake hotels have opened at southeastern river island of Jaibui; you can also choose tent stay at Loma Mountains National Park.
Single 1 room | 2 people 1 room | |
Lake hotel | $350/per room | $550/per room |
Tent stay | $200/per room | $400/per room |
The sun shines down on Sierra Leone throughout the year! Set in the southern hemisphere (南半球), Sierra Leone can be quite cold in the dry winter months, with temperatures often dropping below the freezing point (冰点). The time between June and October is best for Sierra Leone.
Sierra Leone is home to Mount Bintumani, the tallest peak (顶峰) in West Africa west of Mount Cameroon with a great number of endangered animal and bird species like the bizarre-looking White-necked Rockfowl, perfect for birdwatchers. But please note that there is no way for you to request changes to the accommodations. And tourists must be above 3 years old.
1. How much shall a person pay for one room in the Lake hotel?| A．$200. | B．$350. | C．$400. | D．$550. |
| A．April. | B．May. | C．September. | D．November. |
| A．It accepts tourists of any age. |
| B．It is suitable for observing birds. |
| C．Tourists can request changes to the accommodations. |
| D．Tourists have a chance to admire the tallest mountain in Africa. |
6 . Scientists have reported that the sea ice in Antarctica (南极) is at a record low level. Antarctica is a great, icy land, surrounded (围绕) by the huge Southern Ocean. The ice in Antarctica doesn’t just cover the land. There’s also a large area of sea ice on the ocean’s surface.
Every year, the sea ice at the South Pole goes through a cycle. In the summer, the huge sea ice melts (融化) to its smallest point. Over the colder winter months, the sea ice grows and grows until it covers a wide area. Usually, the sea ice covers the greatest area around September 23, as winter ends at the South Pole.
Scientists have been measuring the area of the sea ice in Antarctica since 1979. For most of this time, Antarctica has seemed to be almost unaffected by the changing weather conditions experienced in other parts of the globe. That began to change around 2016. Now, for several years, the area of Antartica’s sea ice has been shrinking.
This year, the US National Snow and Ice Data Centre (NSIDC) reported that Antartica’s sea ice covered its greatest area on September 10 — almost two weeks earlier than normal. And the sea ice was at a new record low-not just by a little bit, but by a lot.
The last time Antartica’s low sea ice set a record at the end of winter was in 1986. And this year, there’s about 398, 000 square miles less sea ice than in 1986.
Scientists are still trying to understand what is driving the change in Antarctica. One likely direct cause for the change is the rising temperatures of the world’s oceans. Ted Scambos, a research scientist at the University of Colorado, says Antarctica’s ice levels have always changed some, but the sharp loss this year is “pointing towards warmer ocean conditions around the continent.”
The new low record has concerned the scientists. Scientists are working hard to better understand Antarctica. They don’t know yet if this is just a short-term problem, or part of a long-term shift (转变) towards less sea ice in Antarctica.
1. What does the underlined word “shrinking” mean in Paragraph 3?| A．Getting smaller. | B．Being flat. | C．Observed. | D．Measured. |
| A．To give an example. | B．To make a comparison. |
| C．To make a summary. | D．To offer an argument. |
| A．The changing weather conditions. | B．Human activities in Antarctica. |
| C．Increased volcanic activities in the area. | D．The increasing temperatures of the global oceans. |
| A．Worried. | B．Annoyed. | C．Excited. | D．Satisfied. |
7 . Vel Scott is known for creating a bustling (热闹的) nightlife for Black Clevelanders in the 1960s. But now this grandmother has changed her life’s work into helping others change their eating habits and creating a(n)
In 1963, Vel and her husband Don Scott
Vel took it upon herself to
Dionne Thomas-Carmichael, a friend of Vel who suffered from cancer, said, “Vel has really helped to
Vel brings the farm to the
“The Black community has the highest rates of cancer and the highest rates of diabetes (糖尿病). It’s up to us to change our
Like Carmichael, many people have
| A．active | B．healthy | C．unique | D．green |
| A．visited | B．dreamed of | C．passed by | D．opened |
| A．entertain | B．educate | C．promote | D．contact |
| A．advantageous | B．flexible | C．energetic | D．anxious |
| A．culturally | B．technologically | C．academically | D．professionally |
| A．efforts | B．comments | C．changes | D．demands |
| A．trade in | B．care for | C．experiment with | D．cut off |
| A．needs | B．challenges | C．benefit | D．guidance |
| A．museum | B．road | C．club | D．farm |
| A．options | B．donations | C．collections | D．adaptations |
| A．force | B．permit | C．require | D．inspire |
| A．stage | B．table | C．hospital | D．garden |
| A．attitude | B．schedule | C．goal | D．circumstance |
| A．credited | B．charged | C．occupied | D．satisfied |
| A．working | B．staring | C．starting | D．communicating |
8 . Emile and the Field is the story of a little boy who spends every season playing in a field by his house, whispering to the trees or playing in the leaves.
Kevin Young, the author of the book, originally wrote Emile and the Field years ago as a bedtime poem for his son. Young’s son is a teenager now — and too old for bedtime stories — but this poem about Emile lives on, now as a children’s book illustrated by Chioma Ebinama, a fine artist living in Greece.
Ebinama wanted to reflect Emile’s love for nature, so she used a sort of romantic palette (调色板) of pinks, blues and sunny yellows. She hand-painted the illustrations in watercolor.
For inspiration, Ebinama says she drew from a variety of influences. One scene, where Emile and his father hold hands and walk through the snow-covered field, reminds us of Snowy Day, Keats’ 1962 children’s book about Peter, an African American boy who explores his neighborhood after the season’s first snowfall.
And — as in Snowy Day — Ebinama drew the little boy in Emile and the Field as a black child. Even though the author and the illustrator never discussed it clearly, Young says the fact of Emile’s blackness was very important to him. The winter scenes were actually the most challenging. Obviously it’s winter so it’s mostly white.
Emile and the Field is a family story for both the author and the illustrator. Ebinama, for example, drew her dog, Luna, into the story as the little dog that follows Emile around. Even though there is no dog in Young’s original poem, Luna came in very handy.
There was a kind of family quality to the book for Young. He named the main character of his poem after his great-grandfather, Emile, a farmer who lived to be 103 years old. He says the story reminds him of running around his family’s fields as a kid in Louisiana.
“There’s nothing better than being read to or reading to someone,” Young says. “It really connects you to this long story-telling tradition.”
1. Why did Young write Emile and the Field at first?| A．To satisfy his love for nature. | B．To read it as a bedtime poem. |
| C．To encourage his teenage son. | D．To tell the story of a Greek boy. |
| A．To give us a good understanding of Keats. |
| B．To introduce the life of an African American boy. |
| C．To provide us with an example of children’s books. |
| D．To tell us where Ebinama got her inspiration to paint Emile. |
| A．It’s Emile’s pet in real life. | B．It’s a character created by Young. |
| C．It gives Ebinama a sense of family. | D．It has the colors of black and white. |
| A．To report an important event. | B．To help readers appreciate a book. |
| C．To tell about a personal experience. | D．To advertise for a publishing house. |
9 . When I was in second grade, I discovered my parents’ 600 Film Polaroid camera. Somehow, there was still film inside of the camera and the camera worked! I spent that night taking pictures of my family and our pet dog. The next day, I convinced my parents to let me take it to class and took pictures of my friends. I instantly fell in love with capturing memories.
From then on, I would always ask my parents if I could borrow their digital camera during family vacations. I loved taking pictures of everything in sight. When I saw the pictures, I was filled with happiness from the moments I was able to record.
At high school, I took some photography courses furthering my curiosity for this art form. I learned about editing and the wonders of Photoshop. I learned what a great tool it is and I tried my best to practice as often as I could. When I was looking at universities, I was extremely interested in art schools because of photography. I knew deep in my heart that I wanted to do something more with photography. However, I also had a dream and passion to study business. I eventually decided to attend a university where I had the opportunity to study both fields.
During my first year of college, I decided to pursue a photography minor. My love for Business and Marketing helped me to turn my passion into a business. I created Angelica Carrete Photography in 2016 as a way to do more with my hobby. I challenged myself to grow as a creative every day and tried my best to stay motivated through the struggles that come with being a college student. I created this blog as a way to express my thoughts on the many different aspects of photography and to further challenge my creativity. I am so excited about this journey!
1. What does the underlined word “capturing” mean in paragraph 1?| A．Recalling. | B．Shooting. | C．Losing. | D．Spreading. |
| A．He learned some photo-editing skills. |
| B．He was given an offer by an art school. |
| C．He was given a digital camera by his parents. |
| D．He used a camera as a tool to explore the world. |
| A．He took photography as his major at university. |
| B．He got creative thoughts through reading a blog. |
| C．He considered marketing as the biggest challenge. |
| D．He enjoyed the process of turning passion into a business. |
| A．his college days are difficult | B．his parents are not supportive |
| C．he could only use an old camera | D．he failed to be admitted to an art school |
Stretching along the west coast of North America from northern California to Alaska, the forests found along the Pacific Coast Range are the largest area of temperate (温带的) rainforest in the world. The forests are home to the coast redwood, the world’s tallest tree. Across the region, the forest understory (林下叶层) is wet and heavily vegetated.
Taiheiyo Evergreen Forests
Found in southern Japan, they are temperate rainforests of evergreen broadleaf trees. The forests can receive more than 100 inches of rain every year. The forests are covered by Japanese cedar and Japanese stone oak, while moso bamboo comprise the understory. The extent of the Taiheiyo forests has been reduced due to development and agriculture. Today,17%of the remaining forest is protected by national parks and other reserves.
Atlantic Oakwood Forest
The Atlantic Oakwood Forest covers the wettest parts of the United Kingdom. A species of oak tree (橡树) called sessile oak occupies the landscape. Unlike other temperate forests, these forests tend to have an open understory of grasses. Much of the historical range of the forest has given to agriculture and other development, though that has changed in recent decades.
Valdivian Temperate Rainforest
This forest is found on the west coast of Chile and Argentina, on the wet, western slopes (斜坡) of the Andes mountain range. With the coastline to the west, the peaks of the Andes to the east, and the Atacama Desert to the north, the region supports a number of plant and animal species found nowhere else in the world. Uniquely, the forest is covered by evergreen flowering trees, which are native to Chile and little known outside the region.
1. Which of the four forest areas occupies the most land?| A．Pacific Coast Range. | B．Taiheiyo Evergreen Forests. |
| C．Atlantic Oakwood Forest. | D．Valdivian Temperate Rainforest. |
| A．They have open understory grasses. | B．They’re home to extremely tall trees. |
| C．They’re of great historical significance. | D．They used to be affected by agriculture. |
| A．Wet climate. | B．Coastal location. |
| C．Evergreen flowering trees. | D．Well-protected national parks. |
