1 . Biar Kon grew up in a refugee camp in Kenya, after his parents were forced to flee the war in neighboring Sudan. When he was 17, he moved to Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, to ________ school.

Once he arrived, he needed to get some ________ from the Sudanese embassy. But when he went looking for the embassy, he couldn’t find it. Then an older woman ________ him on the back, “Hey, my son, how are you doing?” The woman told Kon that she had seen him asking questions of ________ people as they passed, and she wondered if he needed some help. The woman’s ________ left a deep impression on Kon. And it inspired him to pay it ________, five years later, when he moved to Boston, Massachusetts.

One day, outside a coffee shop, he ________ an interaction between a young woman and a(n) ________ man that troubled her. Kon went up to the man, to see what he could do. “He told me why he was on the street — because he made a mistake when he was in high school, and he couldn’t get a ________ now,” Kon recalled.

Kon bought the man some breakfast, and gave him a little bit of money. Today, it’s an encounter he ________ on often. For him, it was a reminder that you never know what people are ________ unless you make a point to talk to them.

“She kind of sowed a seed of ________ in me. And every time I see somebody who’s in trouble, I always try to ________,” Kon said.

Kon is now a student at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. He hopes to provide housing and social support for people ________ on the streets — an idea partly inspired by his unsung ________.

1.

A．enjoy

B．attend

C．quit

D．teach

2.

A．books

B．documents

C．patents

D．tests

3.

A．blamed

B．seized

C．tapped

D．kicked

4.

A．multiple

B．busy

C．exhausted

D．anxious

5.

A．comfort

B．patience

C．generosity

D．name

6.

A．back

B．forward

C．off

D．up

7.

A．observed

B．created

C．admired

D．ignored

8.

A．evil

B．friendly

C．careful

D．homeless

9.

A．degree

B．hand

C．clue

D．job

10.

A．reflects

B．depends

C．concentrates

D．researches

11.

A．putting out

B．talking about

C．going through

D．holding up

12.

A．wonder

B．passion

C．curiosity

D．kindness

13.

A．cheer

B．figure

C．help

D．tell

14.

A．assisting

B．interacting

C．working

D．living

15.

A．hero

B．man

C．teacher

D．organizer

4 . Long believed to have little social structure, giraffes actually are socially complex, University of Bristol scientists suggest. Their social organization is comparable to that of elephants, dolphins and whales.

Lead author Zoe Miller started research work on giraffes in 2005. “I had noticed that giraffe population numbers were decreasing, and I realized that the tallest of all land animals had hardly had any scientific work done on them, which I just found unbelievable. I decided to devote my career to understanding this species better,” said Muller.

Muller and her team looked at research work done in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. Researchers then considered giraffes very unsociable and that they formed no long-lasting relationships. “However, this was not what I saw in Africa, and I started to question why they were described as having ‘little or no social structure’ when I could clearly observe them always together,” Muller said.

Muller was based in Kenya for five years, conducting research on giraffes and their social organization. She and her team found that giraffes are actually a highly complex social species that may live in matriarchal (母系的) social systems and include shared care of their young.

“Giraffes may take part in shared parenting of the young, and remain in groups of related females. These types of social organization are well-known in other species, for example elephants and whales, but nobody has ever before suggested that the same could be true for giraffes,” Muller said.

The grandmother giraffes stay in their family groups, passing on survival benefits in tough times to the younger members of the group. For example, they may know where there is water or where they can find food. “This is important information, as this means we should focus on protecting the older adult females, since they are important members to aid the survival of younger generations,” explained Muller.

1. What did Zoe Muller think of researchers’ work done in the 1950s-1970s?

A．Questionable.

B．Inspiring.

C．Reliable.

D．Creative.

2. In what way are giraffes similar to elephants according to the text?

A．Their population numbers are dropping.

B．They remain in groups of related males.

C．They have been well protected in the wild.

D．They take part in shared raising of the young.

3. Why are older female giraffes particularly worthy of protection?

A．They can help keep the balance of nature.

B．They can help researchers learn about giraffes.

C．They can pass on life skills to the younger generations.

D．They can help younger giraffes get on well with each other.

4. Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A．Secrets of Giraffes: The Older, The Smarter

B．Social Structure: A Gap in Animal Research

C．Giraffes: More Socially Complex than Imagined

D．Survival of Giraffes: The Role of Older Members

5 . Ralph Street loves maps. Appropriately (相称) for someone with his surname, he studied geography and town planning. And well before that, his parents _________ took him out orienteering (定向运动).

“I don’t really remember a time before orienteering,” Street _________. “My parents took me orienteering the first week I was born.” He now _________ internationally as an orienteer. In 2023, he won the first place in Orienteering World Cup. Street remembers a childhood trip with friends who trusted him as they realized his excellent _________ for getting around the new city.

Street _________ the sport of orienteering at the age of nine. As his experiences suggest, childhood exposure shapes people’s comfort and _________ with navigation (导航).

People who grew up outside cities, or in more spatially (空间的) complex cities, also appear to be better able to navigate. “Even as adults, we have good _________ that people who navigate more widely around their environment have better spatial skills,” says Nora Newcombe, a psychology professor at Temple University in Philadelphia.

Misconceptions _________ about human navigation. “One of them is that you think you cannot improve,” Newcombe says. Navigational _________ like maps and compasses can lead to a dependence. People can train themselves to better notice environmental __________ like the wind, the sun and slopes.

For people who can’t imagine wayfinding without a phone app, there are still ways to __________ spatial skills. The system on many apps is that “wherever you’re going is straight ahead, which is a terrible way to learn. I advocate keeping north on the top all the time,” Newcombe __________ . Getting a(an) __________ amount of sleep may help too. One global study found that for participants __________ fifty and older, sleeping seven hours a night __________ the best performance in a navigation game.

1.

A．hardly

B．recently

C．regularly

D．typically

2.

A．recalls

B．repeats

C．regrets

D．responds

3.

A．travels

B．competes

C．visits

D．runs

4.

A．ambition

B．purpose

C．skill

D．task

5.

A．took over

B．took up

C．took on

D．took away

6.

A．confusion

B．confidence

C．happiness

D．sorrow

7.

A．insight

B．news

C．information

D．evidence

8.

A．appear

B．happen

C．consist

D．exist

9.

A．aids

B．aims

C．destinations

D．means

10.

A．situations

B．protections

C．measures

D．signs

11.

A．perform

B．evaluate

C．practise

D．motivate

12.

A．comments

B．suggests

C．states

D．decides

13.

A．obvious

B．same

C．different

D．abundant

14.

A．aged

B．aging

C．to age

D．ages

15.

A．was filled with

B．was satisfied with

C．was linked to

D．was compared to

6 . For the first time in its 100-year history, Walt Disney Animation has cooperated with an outside animation studio on a project. The result is lwájú, an interesting and original six-part series set in a futuristic version of Lagos, Africa. It was created with the Pan-African entertainment company Kugali and premieres (首映) on Disney+ on February 28.

lwájú is a story about Tola, a young girl from a wealthy family, and her best friend, Kole, a self-taught tech expert, and their discovery of the secrets and dangers hidden in their different worlds. The show explores inequality and the idea of challenging society’s standards. Like the Disney+ series Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire, Marvel’s Black Panther films, and the Netflix animated series My Dad the Bounty Hunter, lwájú is part of a genre (体裁) called Afrofuturism. It combines elements of science fiction, the culture and history of Africa and Africans, fantasy, and a vision of a better future.

The series was directed by Adeola, “lwájú was born from my personal inspiration to tell a story about Lagos because one of the unique things I noticed is how the geography actually supports the societal divide in a way that is very obvious,” Adeola told in the interview, “In Lagos, the wealthy people live on the island, and the working class and poor people live on the mainland. So you literally see a body of water separating rich and poor. And so I thought that was a really interesting foundation upon which to build a science-fiction story.”

Adeola called lwájú “a love letter to Lagos” and said every frame praises the city’s diversity and spirit. The characters, he explained, represent typical types of Nigerian people and they wear clothing inspired by traditional African textiles (纺织品).

While the series of films questions the divisions in society, Adeola said it also highlights the bravery required to disrupt them. He added that he hopes lwájú inspires audiences to find strength in unity and the courage to dream of change.

1. What’s the similarity between lwájú and other Disney+ series according to the text?

A．They are adventurous stories.

B．They explore inequality and challenge society’s standards.

C．They combine African traditional culture and futurism.

D．They are produced by Walt Disney Animation independently.

2. What can we infer from paragraph 3?

A．The society is rarely divided by geography.

B．Generally, upper class live on the mainland.

C．Adeola’s friend inspired him to film lwájú.

D．The poor and rich are separated quite clearly.

3. The underlined word “disrupt” can be replaced by ______.

A．Break.

B．Obtain.

C．Estimate.

D．Distinguish.

4. Which of the following can best describe the film lwájú?

A．Imaginary and humorous.	B．Innovative and realistic.
C．Attractive and inspiring.	D．Critical and multicultural.

8 . Zhang Xiqing is an outlier in Chinese society. At 33, she is happily unmarried, has no plans to have children with her boyfriend, and left her job at Tencent for a start-up because she wanted to “try something new”. But Zhang faces immense pressure from her family. She does her best to deal with the pressure to break convention but it can be a lonely path to follow. Now, however, she is drawing inspiration from a reality show that has become a hit on Chinese television.

Instead of giving young girls a shot at fame, Sisters Who Make Waves, produced by Hunan Television, has invited established actresses and performers over 30, and some in their 50s, to compete for a spot in a five-member band. The show has been a hit, especially among women, since it started airing in June. For women like Zhang, the attraction is that it shows more experienced women using their confidence and expertise—rather than youth—to get what they need.

“Seeing them on stage, I am no longer anxious about my age,” one viewer, who is attracted by the show commented on Weibo. A blogger who goes by the pen name Shaoxi said the overwhelming popularity of the show reflected the desperate need for women in China to see themselves pictured in a different light. Other viewers resonated (共鸣) with the setbacks of some of the stars, who battled personal and professional difficulties with the images of sparkling versions of themselves.

But some critics say the show falls short of its ideals. Wu Changchang, an associate professor of journalism at East China Normal University, wrote that the show was “hollow feminism (空洞的女权主义)”. However, Shaoxi said, “judging an entertainment show on what degree of feminism it contained was missing the point.” It’s popularity said something about the female audience. “It means that compared with the past, more are favoring strong, independent women. I hope I can be more like them”, she said.

1. Why does the author mention Zhang Xiqing in paragraph 1?

A．To express a view.	B．To make an argument.
C．To introduce the topic.	D．To provide the evidence.

2. What can we learn about the show?

A．Its winners would form a band.	B．It was produced in Hunan TV in June.
C．It invited famous actresses in the country.	D．It attracted little attention at the beginning.

3. What does paragraph 3 focus on?

A．The various suggestions for the show.

B．The positive comments from viewers.

C．The negative influence of the show on the society.

D．The close connection between the show and the reality.

4. Why did the show become so popular among women?

A．It spoke highly of feminism and self-discipline.

B．It highlighted the importance of beauty and experience.

C．It inspired women to be themselves and pursue their dreams.

D．It stressed the courage to fight against professional difficulties.

9 . Even with the heated water splashing on my shoulders, a chill (寒意) still ran through me. My son was swimming _______ along the bottom of the pool. He surfaced and said, “I’ll show you how to swim underwater.”Usually I was a(n) _______ student, but not this time.

I just couldn’t trust my body to _______.My anxious mind would not let go. Over the years, I had learned not to sink, but I had never found the _______ of swimming that came easily to my friends. Self-doubt hardened into a _______:I couldn’t swim underwater.

But my son George wouldn’t _______ this. “Can you try?” His waiting face was open with possibility. I thought of the_______ things we had asked of him. The days I left him at preschool, he wept bitterly as I _______.The times he bared his arm for shots from the doctor. Earlier times in pools when he, too, _______ deep water.

I couldn’t say no. “Try to swim to me. It’s not very far.” he said, ________ above the water.His voice,calm and encouraging,   ________ me. “When I count to three, you start, OK?” I didn’t move. “Let’s try again,” he said in his teacher voice. “One, two, three!”

After more false starts, I knew I must ________.I sucked in air, squeezed my eyes shut, and aimed like a torpedo (鱼雷) into the dark. I traveled ________ in this liquid world, just pushing forward. I ________ my breath until I couldn’t anymore. I burst up into cool air. “I did it!” I said, tears of ________ streaming down my smiling face.George smiled too. “Now,” he continued, “try to go a little farther.”

I swam farther.I swam.

1.

A．bravely

B．skillfully

C．carefully

D．nervously

2.

A．willing

B．ambitious

C．gifted

D．adorable

3.

A．bend

B．float

C．extend

D．swing

4.

A．knowledge

B．potential

C．freedom

D．chance

5.

A．goal

B．result

C．decision

D．belief

6.

A．realize

B．change

C．accept

D．consider

7.

A．special

B．basic

C．common

D．hard

8.

A．turned up

B．passed by

C．slipped away

D．broke in

9.

A．feared

B．missed

C．enjoyed

D．expected

10.

A．standing

B．towering

C．stretching

D．adjusting

11.

A．comforted

B．surprised

C．puzzled

D．amused

12.

A．continue

B．act

C．win

D．quit

13.

A．blindly

B．quickly

C．elegantly

D．freely

14.

A．lost

B．took

C．caught

D．held

15.

A．relief

B．sorrow

C．joy

D．gratitude