1 . Joshua trees — some of the most unusual and famous plants of the American Southwest — have survived as a species for some 2.5 million years in the Mojave Desert. Now, they may face extinction due to climate change.
In a new study published in the journal Ecosphere, researchers and volunteer scientists surveyed nearly 4,000 trees in southern California’s Joshua Tree National Park to figure out where the oldest trees grew the best during historic periods of extreme heat and drought. Then, the researchers estimated (估算) how many of these Joshua safe areas would survive to the end of the century based on a range of climate change predictions.
The study authors found that if greenhouse gas emissions (排放物) are seriously limited and summer temperatures are limited to an increase of 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit, about 19% of the park’s Joshua tree habitat (栖息地) would survive after the year 2070. If no action is taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and summer temperatures rise by 9 degrees Fahrenheit or more, however, only 0.02% of the tree’s habitat would survive to the end of the century, leaving the tree close to extinction.
One way to save the Joshua trees from extinction is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, even if the habitats survive, these trees will still be in danger because of wildfires, which have also been happening more often as the climate warms. According to the researchers, fewer than 10% of Joshua trees survive when wildfires rush through their habitats.
“Removing grass is a way park rangers (护林员) are helping to protect the area from fire today,” Sweet, a plant ecologist at the University of California, said. “By protecting the trees, they’re protecting a host of other native insects and animals that depend on them as well.”
1. Why did the researchers survey some Joshua trees?| A．To predict the number of Joshua trees. |
| B．To know their past and predict their future. |
| C．To make sure they will be safe from disasters. |
| D．To set up more nature reserves for Joshua trees. |
| A．Their future is in humans’ hand. |
| B．Their numbers are dropping greatly. |
| C．They may adapt to rising temperatures. |
| D．They are suffering most from climate change. |
| A．Another way to save Joshua trees. |
| B．Another threat Joshua trees may face. |
| C．The importance of Joshua trees’ habitats. |
| D．The chance of fire happening to Joshua trees. |
| A．Skilled. | B．Challenging. |
| C．Creative. | D．Worthwhile. |
2 . A couple, Jake Williams and Charlotte Sinclair, were absolutely done with the long isolation (隔离), following a few years of COVID-19, and then they decided to launch (发起) a community plan. They started Talk the Walk and managed to make people get together, explore London on foot, and get to know each other.
The number one mission was to have fun — even if only a few people showed up for the free events. That’s what they expected when they started on Meetup.com. Suddenly they were getting hundreds of people responding with excitement.
200-300 people of various ages now regularly attend each event, which opens with the playing of icebreaker games. The couple designed the games to be easy for shy people, too, with “fun questions” breaking the nervousness. They picked interesting places to visit. Attendees were even surprised with an offer of chocolate.
“I’ve done some crazy things in my time working from home to stop loneliness, like dog sitting for people and joining gyms just so I can have more conversations with people,” Jake said.
“I think that it’s hugely impactful for people who have been affected by COVID-19, by being forced to work from home and having that isolation,” he continued.
They’ve seen older people talking with younger people, and people becoming friends — so much so that the strangers are now meeting on their own after becoming familiar.
Talk the Walk organised their last event last year, but said they’ll be back once it starts to warm up again.
Nearly 2,000 members in their Meetup community and followers on their Facebook Page are waiting for that day, but at the same time, this young couple might serve as your very own inspiration to connect people in your own communities.
1. What is the couple’s purpose in starting Talk the Walk?| A．To reduce the effect brought by COVID-19. |
| B．To encourage people to do physical exercise. |
| C．To find interesting activities in and around London. |
| D．To end loneliness and bring communities back together. |
| A．By giving attendees amazing presents. |
| B．By arranging easy games and activities. |
| C．By making the organised events enjoyable. |
| D．By choosing famous destinations to explore. |
| A．Talk the Walk is really needed. |
| B．New events will take place in no time. |
| C．Talk the Walk is popular with young people. |
| D．The couple moved people in the community. |
| A．Be active to get in touch with people |
| B．Take part in events after the long isolation |
| C．Couple answers loneliness with organised walks |
| D．Thousands of people show up for interesting events |
3 . Miles Hilton-Barber had read books and seen photos and listened to his father’s stories. He dreamed of being a(n)
Miles give up his dream. His heart was filled with
When Miles flew out to Australia to meet his adventurous brother, he was told not to focus on the
In April 2007, after 55 days and 21,000 km in a light small plane, Miles touched down the airport in Sydney. He flew with speech output technology and a co-pilot. In the process he also
“
| A．artist | B．actor | C．policeman | D．pilot |
| A．talent | B．sight | C．mind | D．memory |
| A．dream | B．lifestyle | C．condition | D．concern |
| A．hopelessness | B．pleasure | C．peace | D．hate |
| A．poor | B．strange | C．normal | D．confused |
| A．rowed | B．bought | C．drew | D．built |
| A．basics | B．facts | C．problems | D．benefits |
| A．request | B．job | C．goal | D．idea |
| A．speech | B．video | C．text | D．power |
| A．discover | B．create | C．maintain | D．prove |
| A．studying | B．searching | C．adapting | D．recovering |
| A．taught | B．understood | C．funded | D．attracted |
| A．Reasonably | B．Originally | C．Obviously | D．Fortunately |
| A．limits | B．certainties | C．values | D．purposes |
| A．encourage | B．know | C．respect | D．educate |
4 . European shepherds (牧羊人) and ranchers (大牧场主) are taking the lead in forest fire prevention, by leading their animals to clear away underbrush that allows fires to grow too big, a new study shows.
In thinner forested areas, large herbivores (食草动物) were found in a study to be greatly effective in reducing forest fire risk. “In general terms, it is clear that wild and semi-wild herbivores like horses can reduce wildfire risk through their eating grass,” says Julia Rouet-Leduc, lead author of the study. “Such herbivores can be particularly effective in remote areas, where careful management can prevent wildfire and benefit wild nature in other ways.”
Smaller animals like goats and sheep are ideal for areas that lack natural predators (捕食者). There are no large predators in all of Italy, and without the risk of losing an expensive animal, the eating habits of these smaller animals kept on a farm make them perfect for clearing underbrush and things which larger herbivores can’t stomach.
But there were laws that prevent goats and sheep from entering woods in order to protect them. Since natural numbers of red deer, and other native herbivores have long since disappeared from European forests, the loss of sheep and goats meant that nothing prevented grass from spreading in forests, turning brushfires into dangerous disasters.
That’s why shepherds on Sardinia have written a letter to the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, asking not only to allow their animals to eat grass within the woods, but to create a restoration project of rural areas in Montiferru, where Italy’s worst wildfire in 40 years recently burned its way from the mountain tops to the sea.
Their plan is to bring in more shepherds to better control the fires, and encourage eco-tourism in the area, to incentivize the shepherds to stay. This is already seeing success through both private and public inspiring measures in Catalunya, Spain.
1. What do Julia Rouet-Leduc’s words mainly show?| A．Shepherds should keep large herbivores. |
| B．Herbivores can greatly help reduce wildfires. |
| C．Better management is needed to protect forests. |
| D．Wild and semi-wild herbivores lack natural predators. |
| A．They were not allowed by law. |
| B．They couldn’t feed well there. |
| C．They had been killed by hunters. |
| D．They had been eaten up by predators. |
| A．To ask permission to raise more sheep. |
| B．To protect woods from hungry goats and sheep. |
| C．To offer a way of protecting forests from wildfires. |
| D．To draw attention to Italy’s worst wildfire in 40 years. |
| A．Pay. | B．Prove. | C．Remind. | D．Encourage. |
5 . In the dining room of my grandfather’s house stood a large clock. When I was a child, the old clock interested me very much. I was surprised at how the clock would chime (敲响) three times, six times or more, with a wonderful
It was even more wonderful to me when my grandfather carefully wound that clock with a special key each day. The key was magic to me. It kept the clock running. It kept the clock chiming. How did it do that? I watched as my grandfather took the key from his pocket and opened the door in the old clock and used the key to wind it. He never let that clock wind down and stop. When I got a little older, he
After my grandfather passed away, every time I saw the clock, I couldn’t help
| A．weak | B．noisy | C．clear | D．sharp |
| A．paid attention to | B．crashed into | C．fought for | D．kept up with |
| A．pictures | B．bowls | C．foods | D．spoons |
| A．business | B．tree | C．doctor | D．friend |
| A．dusty | B．scary | C．messy | D．familiar |
| A．personality | B．memory | C．belief | D．evidence |
| A．taught | B．ordered | C．warned | D．forbade |
| A．shy | B．excited | C．confused | D．upset |
| A．crying | B．reading | C．joking | D．wandering |
| A．it | B．them | C．her | D．him |
| A．passive | B．frozen | C．calm | D．alive |
| A．watching | B．shaking | C．avoiding | D．blaming |
| A．arguing with | B．working through | C．falling behind | D．smiling at |
| A．desperately | B．slowly | C．unwillingly | D．nervously |
| A．library | B．classroom | C．house | D．office |
6 . If you mention “voice technology”, most people think of Siri, Alexa or Cortana. While personal artificial intelligence (AI) assistants are becoming increasingly popular in our everyday lives, they are just one use of voice tech, and are primarily designed for adults.
Irish tech company SoapBox Labs wants that to change. The company has developed speech recognition technology designed specifically for children, and it’s already in use across a range of applications, from toys to education apps.
Children’s voices differ from that of adults. “Typically, they have a higher pitch (音高), and may use different language or speech patterns, which regular voice technology cannot always pick up on.” explains Patricia Scanlon, the founder of SoapBox. “It’s understandable that an industry that has spent decades working on technology and only focusing on adults runs into a fairly significant problem when they try to apply it to children.”
Rather than making slight changes to the available voice technology already on the market, SoapBox builds its voice engine from scratch-focusing on children aged 2 to 12. The company says it created a data set to train its AI system, made up of thousands of hours of children’s speech collected in real-world noisy environments-kitchens, classrooms and cars-from kids of all ages, accents and dialects (方言)，from a total of 192 countries.
This opens up a whole new market, for which there’s growing demand. More than 8 billion digital voice assistants are expected to be in use, and there is an increased focus on adapting the tech for children.
SoapBox, which is selling a technology rather than a product, has attracted more than 50 clients from around the world. The technology can help a child learn to read or learn a language. It acts as a helpful adult, reacting immediately to the child and giving them one-on-one time, and it can also help to record a child’s progress and provide recommendations to a teacher or parent.
1. What makes SoapBox different from Siri?| A．Its use of voice tech. |
| B．Its creative use of AI. |
| C．It is designed for children. |
| D．It is used on many applications. |
| A．A lot of effort has gone into developing SoapBox. |
| B．Voice technology has much room for development. |
| C．There has been great demand for a system like SoapBox. |
| D．SoapBox understands adults’ voice better than that of children. |
| A．Recordings of 192 dialects. |
| B．Data from a previous system. |
| C．Speech from people of all ages. |
| D．Newly-collected speech of children. |
| A．Markets. | B．Suggestions. | C．Experiments. | D．Problems. |
7 . The Chinese Students and Scholars Association in the UK held a Spring Festival gala (庆典) on Wednesday in London to count down to the Chinese New Year. More than 900attendees, including representatives from British universities and education institutions, as well as Chinese students and scholars, joined to enjoy a feast of Chinese culture.
This year’s Chinese New Year falls on Saturday, and 2024 is the year of the dragon based on the Chinese zodiac. The dragon is considered by the Chinese people to represent dignity, prestige, and fortune.
The festival gala, with a theme of “Soaring Dragon’s Spring Melody”, featured Chinese folk music, dance, singing, martial arts performance and more.
During the event, Zheng Zeguang, China’s ambassador to the UK, made a speech to the attendees, highlighting major accomplishments achieved in the past year and stating China’s future development focuses.
He pointed out that China will determinedly pursue high-quality development and Chinese modernization to advance the great rejuvenation (复兴) of the Chinese nation. China will also call for an equal and orderly multipolar (多级的) world as well as for inclusive economic globalization that benefits all, Zheng noted. “Our motherland has bright prospects for future growth,” he said.
The ambassador praised Chinese students and scholars for being hardworking and behaving in a controlled way, saying that the number of Chinese students in the UK has significantly increased due to the transformation of China. “I hope you will carry on the tradition of patriotism. I hope you will ai m high and work hard. I hope you will unit e and help each other, as well as make friends widely. I hope you will grow into the backbone of the nation in the near future,” he said.
Alistair Fitt, vice-headmaster of Oxford Brookes University, extended warm wishes of good fortune and prosperity in the year of the dragon and expressed hope for progress in Sino-British relations. “I am very sure that our two great nations will continue to expand all of our very successful relationships,” he said.
1. What does the underlined word “prestige” in Paragraph 2 mean?| A．The condition of being strange and alone. | B．The condition of being respected and admired. |
| C．The condition of being large and frightening. | D．The condition of being followed and monitored. |
| A．Advertising activities have been organized well in China to promote British universities. |
| B．Chinese students are most attracted by the scenery in the UK. |
| C．The education fees in the UK have been reduced. |
| D．Great changes have taken place in China. |
| A．His suggestions. | B．His surprises. | C．His arrangements. | D．His expectations. |
| A．Spring Festival gala brings joy to Chinese students in UK |
| B．Chinese students in UK count down to Chinese New Year |
| C．Warm wishes of good fortune expressed in year of dragon in UK |
| D．China’s ambassador to UK states China’s future development focuses |
8 . There’s a small brick house I visit from time to time. It’s not the house that is, special, but rather the person who lives inside,
I met Jenny about 45 years ago when she was my sister’s kindergarten teacher. I remember looking into her classroom, wishing I were her student. Jenny created a safe place where we could be whatever we wanted to be during the time. My parents told me I could start school when I was 4. However, when I turned 4iin the spring, I couldn’t understand why I had to wait until: September. For as long as I can remember, I always wanted to be a teacher. When I graduated, I couldn’t wait to invite Jenny to my classroom. She arrived one day, and I saw joy on my students’ faces when they sang the same songs I sang with her as a child. As a new teacher, I was amazed at how she connected with children. For years, Jenny volunteered in my classroom.
Over the years we have shared each other’s ups and downs. She asks me for updates about my family and friends, and she tells me about hers.
I am here for her no was the time to sell her house is near. I bring up boxes from her basement. We go through every painting a student has given to her, every thank-you note a parent has written and her teaching aids. I find papers featuring the letters of the alphabet. I find my own name printed in a green card. Suddenly, my mind goes back to Room 3. More than 40 years ago, Jenny sat on the carpet at her feet. We learned about the letters and their sounds.
Now, Jenny sits on her rocking chair, and I find myself sitting at her feet. Over tea, we talk for hours. I listen carefully because I know I still have more to learn from her.
Our friendship is one that neither one of us expected. Educators know teaching is a profession devoted to the development of young individuals. The lucky ones get to see what their students have done with their lives. The exceptional ones never leave their students’ hearts.
1. How can we best describe Jenny?| A．Skilled in her teaching but impatient with her students sometimes. |
| B．Considerate and often paying a visit to the parents of her students. |
| C．Easy-going and good at communicating with her students. |
| D．Generous and ready to help poor students. |
| A．They are unwilling to visit each other. |
| B．They usually have nothing new to share. |
| C．They are always concerned with each other. |
| D．They have lost contact with each other by now. |
| A．Jenny’s house is to be sold. |
| B．Jenny wants to find her teaching aids. |
| C．Jenny expects to show her achievements in education. |
| D．Jenny intends to offer the papers with the letters to the author. |
| A．Those who can be devoted to the development of young individuals. |
| B．Those who can see how their students experience their lives. |
| C．Those who can be appreciated for their hard work. |
| D．Those who can get in touch with their students. |
9 . Starting a new book can feel like a bit of a commitment (承诺), but it doesn’t have to be! Here are four books you can read in a single day.
The House on Mango Street
Released in 1984 and written by Mexican-American author Sandra Cisneros, The House on Mango Street is only 103 pages long. It’s a rapid read for those looking to dip their toes into the water, but it still deals with complex themes and important subject matters, including language, race, ageing, and troubles.
The Midnight Library
The Midnight Library from the English author Matt Haig was released in 2020. It has 288 pages, which makes it a little more challenging but still absolutely doable (可做的) in a single day. The novel is all about storytelling, with Nora Seed exploring the “what ifs” of her life.
The Perilous Life of Jade Yeo
Released in 2012 and written by the fantastic Malaysian-English author Zen Cho, the page count is an extremely manageable 76 pages, which makes this another effective first read in one day. The novel is set in London in the 1920s and follows the life of another writer, Jade Yeo. There is even enough time for readers to appreciate a film adaptation of the book after reading it.
Stardust
The 1999 novel by English author Neil Gaiman is a perfect presentation of the writer’s fantasy styles at their best. Stardust, which became a major motion picture, sits at 256 pages, It’s epic (史诗般的) in its scale, but the reader can fit the novel into a single day, giving them a true sense of absolute escapism to the fantasyland of Stormhold.
1. Which book can make you feel like escaping from reality and being in a kind of dreamland?| A．The Perilous Life of Jade Yeo. | B．The Midnight: Library. |
| C．The House on Mango Street. | D．Stardust. |
| A．It’s supposed to be made into a film soon. |
| B．The book tells the life of its author, Zen Cho. |
| C．Its background is in London about a century ago. |
| D．It is a bit more challenging to finish reading it in two days. |
| A．It is a perfect presentation of the writer’s own experiences. |
| B．It involves complex themes and important subject matters. |
| C．It was written by a well-known Malaysian-English author. |
| D．It is all about storytelling, with Nora Seed exploring the“what ifs”of her life； |
10 . If you want to know something about British life, their spirit, and even their humor, watching some classic British films will certainly help. Here are some recommended to you.
Notting Hill
After the success of his film Four Weddings and a Funeral, writer and producer Richard Curtis captured the essence of being British in 1999’s Notting Hill. Set against the background of West London, the film became popular for its charming and funny portrayal (刻画) of a British nobody trying to impress a Hollywood star.
The Full Monty
This 1997 film is a Sheffield-based comedy about six unemployed men who form a group to make money for a better life. Despite its humor, the film dives deeper into some serious issues surrounding working-class culture. The Full Monty is an uplifting film that gives an insight into the work and life of the working class in Britain.
Trainspotting
Danny Boyle’s 1996 comedy-drama Trainspotting is about a group of Scots in the 1980s, based on the book by Irvine Welsh. With a cast of truly great actors including Ewan McGregor, the tale impressed the audience globally. It rapidly became a critical success.
Monty Python’s Life of Brian
Featuring a jam-packed cast of comedic stars. Monty Python’s Life of Brian tells the story of a young man who is in a case of mistaken identity. The film reflects the unusual and wonderful British sense of humor. As a film guaranteed to entertain, Monty Python’s Life of Brian is not to be missed by those looking for an insight into what makes the British laugh.
1. How can we best describe the film The Full Monty?| A．Fun but serious. | B．Horrible but thrilling. |
| C．Unrealistic and boring. | D．Breathtaking and uncommon. |
| A．It is a serious film with a sad ending. |
| B．Ewan McGregor directed the film in the 1980s. |
| C．It was unpopular with most people in the beginning. |
| D．It was adapted from a book written by Irvine Welsh. |
| A．Daily life of the working-class. |
| B．Reflection of rich West London. |
| C．Unique experiences of some Scots. |
| D．A youth mistaken for another man. |
