1 . Imagine being able to pop to your local park and pick some tomatoes, potatoes or even bananas to take home for dinner. Sounds too good to be true, right? For residents (居民) of Andernach, German, it’s not just a dream — it’s their reality.

In 2010, Andernach began its edible (可食用的) city project that hadn’t been carried out before, planting 101 varieties of tomatoes in public green spaces around the city center. Its 30,000 residents are free to help themselves to whatever grows, as are any other visitors.  The town’s motto of sorts is “Picking is encouraged — help yourself!” Every year a new type of plant is highlighted. In 2011, 100 types of beans were planted, while 2012 saw the introduction of 20 onion varieties. And it has become the phenomenon of the city.

It’s a community effort, as local citizens are encouraged to help plant and maintain the gardens. This offers an opportunity to socialize as well as to learn about planting, cultivating and harvesting food.

An Andernach resident spoke to DW,“I often drop by to pick some herbs that I’m missing at home. Everything is easily accessible. There aren’t any fences. You just take what you need. The only thing is that you have to be quick once the fruits are ripe or they’ll all be gone!”

Andernach may have been the first in German, but it isn’t the only edible city. It’s part of the Edible Cities Network, a project funded by European Union to connect green urban foot initiatives (方案) around the world. Other cities include Carthage in Tunisia, Havana in Cuba and Sempeter-Vrtojba in Slovenia. In February 2022, the first Edible Cities Network Conference took place. Dr Ina Saumel, principal investigator of the Edible Cities Network, called it “a unique opportunity to invite researchers of edible city solutions and practitioners all together.”

Ultimately, the Edible Cities Network aims to give people “greener, more edible and, above all, more livable cities.” It is a response to the pressures of global climate change, and a significant cause full of hope.

1. What can residents do in public green spaces according to the edible city project?

A．Sell the produce they grow there.	B．Learn something about dealing with people and planting.
C．Cook whatever plant as they like.	D．Pay to pick some vegetables and fruits there.

2. Which words can best describe the edible city project in Andernach?

A．Creative and popular.	B．Conventional and costly.
C．Common and fundamental.	D．Rare and unacceptable.

3. What can we know about the Edible Cities Network from Dr Ina Saumel’s words?

A．Andernach is the only city to carry it out.	B．European Union originally established it.
C．It helps combine theories with practices.	D．It invites people to share meals together.

4. What is the purpose of the Edible Cities Network?

A．To help residents relieve their pressure.	B．To involve residents in urban planting.
C．To increase the produce supply in cities.	D．To create environmentally friendly cities.

2 . Gong Linna, well-known Chinese musician and founder of Chinese New Art Music, put her music teaching methods to practice for the first time at the Tracing Roots practice concert and music festival of the Affiliated High School of Peking University on May 23.

The first song of the concert, Search High and Low, is an allusion (暗指) to the classical poem Li Sao(离骚), “The road ahead will be long. I shall search high and low.” “It’s arranged to be sung by all performers, indicating that we should all search high and low for our roots,” Gong says.

To explore the education and the popularization of Chinese music, in 2017, Gong established a research and development team, which includes ethnomusicologist, Du Yaxiong, and music historian, Zhao Zhongming, to introduce her music teaching methods and summarize the vocal skills of Chinese music.

Gong believed that the popularization of Chinese music should rely on primary and secondary schools rather than music academies. The children’s passion for music and their outstanding performance amazed Gong, “When singing, they are completely absorbed in the music. Music brings light and richness to one’s spiritual world. So, learning to sing is never about passing examinations, but about enjoying the music.”

Lu Yueming, instructor of the school’s art center, said, “The children worked really hard and kept in mind Gong’s instructions. Seeing their performance, I know that they truly fell in love with traditional Chinese music.”

Lu Yueming, instructor of the school’s art center, said, “The children worked really hard and kept in mind Gong’s instructions. Seeing their performance, I know that they truly fell in love with traditional Chinese music.”

“Seeing the children perform my pieces, I realized I should write more songs for them,” Lao Luo, Gong’s husband said proudly. “It’s a great encouragement for me to see how much they like the songs, and they really need content related to Chinese culture.” With an international vision, Gong will continue to write songs based on Chinese folk music or ancient poems.

Gong said children should learn about the beauty of Chinese music. Only when you know about your own sounds, can you have cultural confidence.

1. Why is the song Search High and Low arranged at the concert?

A．Because Gong is a famous Chinese musician.

B．Because people are expected to search their roots.

C．Because Gong’s music teaching method is practical.

D．Because Gong wants to introduce her music teaching method.

2. What should the popularization of Chinese music depend on according to Gong?

A．Music academies.	B．The support of the government.
C．Primary and secondary schools.	D．Famous musicians across the country.

3. What is Gong’s vision in music?

A．She will train more children to study abroad.

B．She will perform more concerts to promote Chinese music.

C．She will help children learn about the beauty of various types of music.

D．She will write more songs based on Chinese folk music or ancient poems.

4. What’s the best title of the passage?

A．Creating Music Makes You Confident

B．Gong Linna — Chinese Folk Music Instructor

C．Music Education Helps Gain Cultural Confidence

D．Chinese Music: Development, Instruments

3 . One of the easiest things in the world is to become a fault-finder. However, life can be great when you are not busy finding fault with it.

Several years ago I _________ a letter from seventeen-year-old Kerry, who described herself as a world-class fault-finder, almost always _________ by things. People were always doing things that annoyed her, and _________ was ever good enough. She was highly self-critical and also found fault with her friends. She became a really boring person.

Unfortunately, it took a horrible accident to change her _________. Her best friend was seriously hurt in a car crash. What made it almost impossible to deal with was that the day before the _________, Kerry had visited her friend and had spent the whole time criticizing her _________ of boyfriends, the way she was living, the way she related to her mother, and various other things she felt she needed to _________. It wasn’t until her friend was badly hurt _________ Kerry became _________ her habit of finding fault. Very quickly, she learned to appreciate life rather than to judge everything so harshly. She was able to transfer her new wisdom to other parts of her __________ as well.

Perhaps most of us aren’t extreme at fault-finding, __________ when we’re honest, we can be sharply __________ of the world. I’m not suggesting you __________ problems, or that you pretend things are __________ than they are, but simply that you learn to allow things to be as they are—at least most of the time, and especially when it’s not a really big deal.

Train yourself to “bite your tongue”, and with a little __________, you’ll get really good at letting things go. And when you do, you’ll get back your enthusiasm and love for life.

1.

A．answered

B．received

C．expected

D．rejected

2.

A．threatened

B．interrupted

C．spoiled

D．bothered

3.

A．nothing

B．everything

C．something

D．anything

4.

A．measure

B．plan

C．attitude

D．explanation

5.

A．occasion

B．accident

C．event

D．adventure

6.

A．memory

B．notice

C．choice

D．evidence

7.

A．hear

B．contribute

C．admit

D．express

8.

A．what

B．when

C．where

D．that

9.

A．afraid of

B．aware of

C．curious about

D．confused about

10.

A．life

B．family

C．career

D．education

11.

A．so

B．or

C．for

D．but

12.

A．proud

B．sure

C．critical

D．hopeful

13.

A．face

B．create

C．ignore

D．solve

14.

A．rarer

B．worse

C．stranger

D．better

15.

A．pity

B．speech

C．rest

D．practice

4 . “While extroverts (性格外向者) often make great first impressions with their outgoing manner and lively personalities in interviews, that value and reputation at work diminish (削减) over time.” says Corinne Bender, an associate professor of management.

“Extroverts disappoint us over time when they’re part of a team,” Bender says. “On a team you’re expected to work hard and contribute a lot. But they’re often poor listeners, and they don’t cooperate.”

“On the other hand, introverts (性格内向者) work hard on a team because they care what others think of them. They don’t want to be seen as not pulling their weight or contributing 100%,” Bender says.

So while companies may be attracted to hiring extroverts because they impress managers greatly in job interviews, bosses also may want to consider whether the extrovert they are considering will be a valuable team player, Bender says.

Amy Jen Su and Muriel Maignan Wilkins, two writers, agree and say managers should recognize the strengths of introverted employees, such as their ability to put themselves in others’ shoes.

“These team members are often easygoing, which can make them exceptional mentors (良师益友) to more junior staff or particularly good sounding boards when you interact with them in one-on-one situations,” Su says.

“Managers must try to help introverts find their voice,” Wilkins says. “Help them see that speaking up is not about self-promotion or being in conflict but rather about offering the team key insights, making better decisions or increasing the efficiency for all.”

What about those extroverts who never seem to be at a loss for words? Should managers cut them off? Managers definitely should weigh in on how an extrovert is affecting others. Wilkins suggests saying something in private to make adjustments.

1. What do we know about outgoing people according to Bender?

A．They are often good listeners.

B．They tend to perform well in interviews.

C．They often make great contributions.

D．They are often good at cooperating.

2. Which can best replace the underlined part “pulling their weight” in Paragraph 3?

A．Doing their full share of work.

B．Making good choices.

C．Trusting others.

D．Trying to share their thoughts.

3. What is Su’s attitude towards Bendersky’s words?

A．Critical.

B．Approving.

C．Doubtful.

D．Indifferent.

4. What does Wilkins advise managers to do?

A．Promote more introverts.

B．Learn to work more efficiently.

C．Avoid conflict among employees.

D．Encourage introverts to speak up.

5 . ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence-driven chatbot (聊天机器人) programme that responds to user prompts, has gone viral in social networks in recent weeks. Its ___________ is such that within days of its launch, OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company behind the chatbot, announced that 1 million people had used. In comparison, Facebook and Spotify took months to achieve that ___________of engagement (受人关注) . The attraction is obvious: ChatGPT can produce jokes, essays and computer code from a short writing prompt.

There’s nothing ___________ in software that produces fluent and logical writing. ChatGPT’s predecessor (前身), the Generative Pretrained Transformer 3 (GPT-3), could do that too. Both were trained on an unimaginably large amount of data to answer questions in a/an ___________ way. But ChatGPT has been updated by being given the data on human “conversations”, which significantly ___________ the truthfulness and informativeness(信息准确性) of its answers.

___________, ChatGPT still produces answers that seem reasonable but are incorrect or nonsensical (无意义的). Even the chatbot itself says, “My responses are not intended to be considered as ___________.” This might be a big problem on the Internet, as many web platforms (平台) ___________ the ability to protect themselves against a flood of AI-generated content (AI生成的内容). Such websites as Stack Overflow, where users can find answers to programming-related questions, had to ban ChatGPT-produced posts, as its human moderators (管理员) could not ___________ the volume (大量) of incredible but wrong replies. It is ______________ to give out tools that could be used to produce fake news and messages.

Using ChatGPT too much raises the question of whether content produced by it can be truly trusted. A human author is ______________ their own work but AI is not. Artificial intelligence is not artificial ______________: ChatGPT does not know what it is doing; it is unable to say how or why it produced a response; it doesn’t have human experience, and cannot tell if it is ______________. While OpenAI has safeguards to refuse inappropriate requests, such as to tell users how to commit crimes (犯罪), these can be bypassed. AI’s potential for harm should not be ______________. In the wrong hands, it could be a weapon to harm people and society.

No one knows what will happen to such technologies if the software engineers of the future will themselves be software programs. “Human supervision (监督) and ______________ are required,” OpenAI’s researchers have warned.

1.

A．attempt

B．popularity

C．purpose

D．solution

2.

A．level

B．quality

C．focus

D．goal

3.

A．harmful

B．positive

C．new

D．obvious

4.

A．creative

B．general

C．simple

D．incredible

5.

A．transformed

B．impressed

C．increased

D．limited

6.

A．In brief

B．As a result

C．Even so

D．Generally speaking

7.

A．fact

B．routine

C．law

D．details

8.

A．have

B．lack

C．expect

D．improve

9.

A．answer

B．provide

C．handle

D．collect

10.

A．experimental

B．risky

C．unnecessary

D．reliable

11.

A．scared of

B．open to

C．pleased with

D．responsible for

12.

A．awareness

B．innovation

C．emotion

D．curiosity

13.

A．fitting in

B．hanging on

C．making sense

D．achieving goals

14.

A．refused

B．blamed

C．ignored

D．contributed

15.

A．civilization

B．control

C．loss

D．pressure

6 . About a year ago, my department invited me to submit a 5-minute video clip about my research laboratory to be screened at a secondary-school summer camp. With many ________ under my belt (已获得的) after five years as a main investigator, I was quite ________ about getting this ________.

Three seconds into ________ myself on my phone in my office, I realized that I had been too ________. I had to press ‘Pause’ ________ I couldn’t help looking around the room. And while watching myself on camera, I couldn’t obtain the excitement I brought to the classroom—all my ________ trained teaching method didn’t work well for a video clip. Admitting that my acting career had ________ a wall, I decided to ________ to a directing role and asked my graduate students to help me to film and present the video.

The 5-minute clip ________ taking 2 hours to finish, but it was so well received by the audience that it ________ me to create an account on Bilibili, one of the leading video-sharing websites in China. I got my lab to ________ making short films in Chinese on the main topics of our ________, which include digital fabrication (数字制造) in architecture and adaptive structures that can respond to stimuli (刺激物). In the nine or so months since I created that ________, our lab videos have attracted more than 20,000 subscribers and received nearly 3 million ________, mainly in China.

1.

A．students

B．experiences

C．cameras

D．comments

2.

A．curious

B．nervous

C．confident

D．cautious

3.

A．cut

B．posted

C．passed

D．done

4.

A．filming

B．watching

C．reminding

D．calling

5.

A．anxious

B．optimistic

C．active

D．hard

6.

A．unless

B．though

C．because

D．until

7.

A．badly

B．newly

C．easily

D．finely

8.

A．hit

B．covered

C．destroyed

D．built

9.

A．stick

B．react

C．take

D．switch

10.

A．set about

B．ended up

C．put off

D．went on

11.

A．invited

B．taught

C．motivated

D．required

12.

A．enjoy

B．admit

C．miss

D．continue

13.

A．research

B．video

C．school

D．team

14.

A．website

B．account

C．architecture

D．classroom

15.

A．gifts

B．fans

C．views

D．prizes

7 . Winning a remarkable science award is really a big deal, especially if you are 12 years old. But Shanya Gill, a middle schooler from San Jose, California, won the top award in the Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge for designing a fire detection system that is superior to existing ones, as stated in the press release.

“The top winners have exhibited boundless curiosity,” Maya Ajmera president and CEO of Society for Science, said in the press release. “Their remarkable research not only reflects their talent but also paves the way for an exciting new future.”

Shanya’s inspiration came after a fire destroyed a restaurant in her neighborhood during the summer of 2022, reported The Washington Post. “I had never really experienced something like that before,” she told The Washington Post about the early morning fire at Holder’s Country Inn, which started in the kitchen. “They had smoke detectors, and yet it still burned down,” she added.

After she studied fire statistics, Shaya spent over a year developing a fire detection system that she believes could have prevented the fire. Unlike traditional smoke detectors that sense active fires from the smoke in the air, Shanya’s thermal (热的) imaging device is designed to stop fires from occurring.

With a thermal camera and a tiny computer, the device detects when a heat source has been left unattended for ten minutes and sends a text message warning. Shanya wants to bring the costs down to make it even more common than hardwired smoke detectors.

“Shanya saw a problem, went after it and tried to solve it, and that’s what we need to encourage with all young people,” said Ajmera. She also highlighted the significance of supporting individuals, especially girls and kids of color, in STEM fields.

1. What can we learn about Shanya from the first two paragraphs?

A．She gained a lot of money in the award.

B．She showed a curious nature as a schooler.

C．She set a big stage for young people her age.

D．She was junior to other winners in performance.

2. What motivated Shanya to develop her fire detection system?

A．Her desire to win the science award.

B．Her experience of a destructive fire

C．Her interest in computer programming.

D．Her goal to improve STEM education for girls.

3. What is an advantage of Shanya’s invention?

A．It can send out a warning against a potential fire.

B．It consists of two parts that are easier to conduct.

C．It can detect active fires from the smoke in the air.

D．It functions when a fire breaks out within 10 minutes.

4. Which of the following can best describe Shanya?

A．Reliable.

B．Cooperative.

C．Innovative.

D．Generous.

8 . Life is full of uncertainties, and every activity we do carries some level of ________ . Some activities, like snowboarding (单板滑雪运动), often have a higher possibility of injury. Ian Steger ________ this firsthand when he had a serious snowboarding accident but he was so ________ that Francis Zuber passed by.

In March, Ian and a group of friends went on a snowboarding trip in Washington State. During their ________ , things took a dangerous turn. While moving through the trees, Ian fell backward and crashed into one, finding himself ________ in a deep hole of snow.

Ian explained the ________ , “When we entered the trees, they were so ________ together that we each had to find our own paths. Unluckily, the path I ________ led me straight into a big tree well.” Fearing the worst, Ian thought he was facing his   ________ moments. However, Francis Zuber, a skier, happened to pass by.

Francis saw a flash of red in the corner of his eye. He ________ a snowboard sticking out from the snow, which was ________ considering how far they were from any populated areas. Worried, Francis called out to Ian but didn’t receive any ________

Without hesitation (犹豫), Francis began to dig hard to save Ian from the snowy trap. In the end, he ________ it. Feeling extremely ________ , Ian hugged Francis, telling him, “I’m so glad you ________   my life today.”

1.

A．interest

B．risk

C．boredom

D．success

2.

A．discovered

B．described

C．mentioned

D．guessed

3.

A．glorious

B．nervous

C．creative

D．lucky

4.

A．visit

B．adventure

C．training

D．discussion

5.

A．beaten

B．hidden

C．trapped

D．tested

6.

A．situation

B．method

C．application

D．invitation

7.

A．close

B．equal

C．unique

D．various

8.

A．advised

B．cleared

C．chose

D．saw

9.

A．quiet

B．final

C．effective

D．historic

10.

A．heard

B．imagined

C．prevented

D．noticed

11.

A．related

B．legal

C．unusual

D．impossible

12.

A．report

B．warning

C．promise

D．answer

13.

A．made

B．got

C．put

D．promoted

14.

A．injured

B．thankful

C．curious

D．satisfied

15.

A．regarded

B．touched

C．spared

D．saved

9 . Every fast-food employee knows that the drive-through window is the worst position. It was a freezing afternoon. Drivers _________ to stand outside in the cold and scream their orders into a speaker box. In such cases, most customers tend to take out their _________ on the employees. This woman was a(n) _________.

“I`ll get the next car’s order as well,” she said as she came up to the window to pay. She _________ outside, gathering snowflakes on her hair and eyelashes. “You can’t take their drinks,” I said, confused and tired. The lady laughed, her cheeks turning red with _________. “No, but I’ll buy them,” she said. “_________ it forward and all that.”

Completely shocked, I _________ her as requested, and when the next customer arrived at the window I _________ what had just happened. His facial expression changed like a chain of photographs on a slideshow—first _________ to be out in the cold, then surprised at the random act of ____________ and finally, delighted by his luck. “I suppose I’ll pay for the next order then,” he replied, nodding and waving at the ____________ driver behind him. He handed over the cash and received his pre-paid ____________.

The trend ____________ throughout the entire rush hour. Customers stood at my window emptying a handful of change to buy coffee for a complete ____________. Actually, it only takes one customer, one person, to change the entire flow of traffic. It only takes one moment, one smile, to ____________ even the coldest days.

1.

A．hate

B．refuse

C．hesitate

D．attempt

2.

A．worry

B．annoyance

C．fear

D．stress

3.

A．exception

B．witness

C．employer

D．victim

4.

A．nodded

B．stopped

C．stood

D．screamed

5.

A．hunger

B．pain

C．tiredness

D．cold

6.

A．Take

B．Pay

C．Put

D．Look

7.

A．charged

B．aided

C．permitted

D．assessed

8.

A．presented

B．recalled

C．explained

D．claimed

9.

A．confused

B．excited

C．discouraged

D．disturbed

10.

A．honesty

B．kindness

C．bravery

D．integrity

11.

A．impatient

B．ashamed

C．polite

D．incredible

12.

A．sandwich

B．drink

C．fries

D．recipe

13.

A．disappeared

B．ceased

C．continued

D．varied

14.

A．rider

B．individual

C．passenger

D．stranger

15.

A．warm up

B．hold on

C．put aside

D．kick off

10 . There’s one patient that Sarah Rose Black still thinks about. Back in 2019, the nursing team at Toronto’s Cancer Center called to ask if she could reach out to a patient who had been there for about a week. The man was struggling, and unwilling to communicate with workers or be part of any activities.

Black isn’t a doctor or a nurse. Since 2013 she has played an important role for patients at the center as a music therapist (治疗专家). On any day, she might see one person who’s anxious about an operation, another who’s in need of a calm moment.

So, Black walked into the patient’s room and introduced herself. She asked if she could sit and offer to play some music. In an effort to persuade him, she said, “If you don’t like it, you can just tell me to leave.” After some gentle urging, the man in his 70s, who had lung cancer, told her a few musicians he liked and then turned away to look out the window. But as she started to play one of his favorites, a change came over him. He turned towards Black and started to cry.

She stopped playing. “Do you want me to continue?” “Certainly,” he said through tears. “It was as if the music went places that nothing else could,” recalls Black. The music showed up at a moment when it felt like a hug.

As Sarah Rose Black says, people have been connecting with music for their whole lives—she is just helping them use it again at a time when they need it most.

“We have a heartbeat, so we have a drum (鼓) inside us; we are wired to be musical people,” she says. She smiles softly as she reflects back on the experience.

1. Why did the nursing team call Black?

A．A struggling patient hoped to meet her.	B．She worked as a nurse in the center.
C．They wanted her to help a patient.	D．They wanted to enjoy her music.

2. What happened when Black played the patient’s favorite?

A．The patient was moved to tears.	B．She gave the patient a warm hug.
C．She was asked to stop playing.	D．The patient looked out of the window.

3. What does the underlined sentence “we are wired to be musical people” mean in the last paragraph?

A．We are born to be musicians.	B．We like playing the drum.
C．We can live without music.	D．We need musical instruments.

4. Which of the following can best describe Black?

A．Strong and talented.	B．Clever and honest.
C．Thoughtful and helpful.	D．Hardworking and humorous.