1 . There’s nothing so annoying as a broken bike. If there’s something wrong with your bicycle, stop using it and have it checked and fixed by MacBike’s expert mechanics (机修工).

FIXED WITHIN ONE DAY

Most of our repairs are done by our bike mechanics within one day, so if you bring your bike in the morning you can pick it up at the end of the day.

FREE LOAN BIKE

If repairs are 35 Euros or more, you will find free replacement transport ready and waiting for you. This loan bike will have you back on the road within 10 minutes!

BOVAG CERTIFIED

We are a BOVAG-certified bike repair shop. We follow specialized workshops annually so we can deliver high-quality services to our customers. We handle BOVAG guarantee and BOVAG terms of delivery.

Where

MacBike has three shops for bicycle sales and repair shops in the city centre of Amsterdam: 38th Avenue, 30th Avenue, 45th Avenue.

Business Hours

Monday-Saturday from 09:00-18:00

Closed on

25 & 26 December.

1 January

27 April

Telephone Number

0031 (0)20 428 14 40

Getting There

Bus 9, 14

Subway 51, 53, 54

1. How long will it take for a MacBike’s worker to fix a broken bike?

A．A day.

B．A week.

C．A morning.

D．An afternoon.

2. What can be inferred about BOVAG from the text?

A．It is located in Amsterdam.	B．It has the public recognition.
C．It offers professionals to the shop.	D．It has three shops in the city center.

3. How could a visitor pay a visit to the MacBike’s repair shop?

A．By taking Bus 53.	B．By taking Subway 51.
C．By riding a loan bike.	D．By going there on Christmas.

2 . My mother took an annual vacation all by herself. It was just two ________ visiting an out-of-town family and perhaps a little sightseeing on the way. It ________ when I was thirteen and old enough to look after my younger brother.

Why couldn’t we ________? I couldn’t get across the idea. My mother’s answer was always frank and to the point: “I need a ________ from you guys for a couple of days.” I couldn’t ________ that reasoning until twenty-five years later.

I am ________, responsible for most of the household tasks. I also hold a job and ________ my family and old parents. My husband asks about the vacation this year. I look up at the bathroom sink, ________ again. “Anywhere,” I answer, “as long as it’s ________.” He doesn’t understand, looking ________.

But now I do. I understand the need for every solo (个人的) vacation my mother ever took. My first ________ was to Bermuda. For five days, there were no blocked sinks, grocery lists, work deadlines, or ________ family members. Instead, there was only peace and the opportunity to do ________ what I wanted to do. It was amazing. I ________ three pounds and came home with perfect dark skin and renewed ________. I decide in the future whenever I feel overwhelmed (不堪重负) or like I need a break, I take one.

1.

A．hours

B．weeks

C．months

D．years

2.

A．started

B．appeared

C．grown

D．changed

3.

A．head off

B．help out

C．go along

D．wander about

4.

A．stop

B．break

C．help

D．reason

5.

A．understand

B．bother

C．claim

D．appreciate

6.

A．noted

B．trained

C．married

D．educated

7.

A．care for

B．rely on

C．turn to

D．follow up

8.

A．covered

B．filled

C．blocked

D．stuck

9.

A．independent

B．distant

C．alone

D．convenient

10.

A．concerned

B．annoyed

C．focused

D．puzzled

11.

A．plan

B．trip

C．decision

D．answer

12.

A．demanding

B．depressing

C．aging

D．encouraging

13.

A．generally

B．specially

C．briefly

D．exactly

14.

A．gained

B．bought

C．took

D．lacked

15.

A．body

B．spirit

C．schedule

D．pressure

3 . In 1985, Vanessa Foster and her husband hopped on a flight to Alaska without any plan. When they _________, they used the last of their money to buy an old _________ and started wandering across the state. A little while into their drive, they saw a hitchhiker (搭便车的人) on the side of the road, and her husband decided to give him a _________. A few hours later, they _________ at a rest stop.

“I hopped out and _________ to the ladies’ room. When I came out a few minutes later, my husband was exiting the men’s room,” Foster remembered. “We _________ around the parking lot, and the hitchhiker and our car were gone. So we _________ the hitchhikers,” Foster said.

As they walked down the _________, none of the cars slowed down to _________ them up. __________, an El Camino stopped. Sitting in the driver’s seat was a middle-aged man with bright __________ eyes. He told them to hop in.

“When he heard we were __________ and lost everything, he offered us summer jobs and a place to stay on his farm near Homer, Alaska,” Foster said.

The __________ impacted them to such a degree that Vanesa Foster wrote about it in a book titled More Than Everything. Looking back on that time in her life, all these years later, she says she’ll never __________ that man with the bright blue eyes.

“I really appreciate his kindness toward a couple of __________ on that Alaskan highway,” she says.

1.

A．escaped

B．came

C．won

D．landed

2.

A．car

B．horse

C．pick-up

D．bike

3.

A．lesson

B．treat

C．ride

D．truck

4.

A．gave up

B．pulled over

C．checked out

D．sat down

5.

A．rushed

B．preferred

C．appealed

D．referred

6.

A．wandered

B．searched

C．played

D．drove

7.

A．asked

B．invited

C．became

D．needed

8.

A．hill

B．valley

C．bank

D．highway

9.

A．break

B．pick

C．clean

D．eat

10.

A．Currently

B．Occasionally

C．Finally

D．Frequently

11.

A．little

B．black

C．big

D．blue

12.

A．jobless

B．hungry

C．tired

D．cold

13.

A．drive

B．scenery

C．experience

D．book

14.

A．forget

B．miss

C．hate

D．forgive

15.

A．animals

B．thieves

C．workers

D．strangers

4 . The inventor of the World Wide Web, Tim Bemers-Lee, has won an important award which comes with a prize bag of one million Euros (₤671,000). The “Father of the Web” was named as the first winner of the Millennium Technology Prize by the Finnish Technology Award Foundation. He said he had just been “in the right place at the right time” and did not want his photo taken.

In 1991, he came up with a system to organize, connect and browser (浏览) Net pages which completely changed the internet. The British scientist was knighted (封爵士) for his pioneering work in 2003.

Sir Tim created his program while he was at the particle physics institute (粒子物理研究院), Cem, in Geneva. The computer code he came up with let scientists easily share research findings across a computer network. In the early 1990s, it was called the “World Wide Web”, and is still the basis of the web as we know it.

The famous man never went on to commercialize his work. Instead he worked on spreading the use of the Net as a channel for free expression and cooperation.

“The web is encouraging new types of social networks and opening up new ways for information management and business development. The web has obviously improved many people’s ability to obtain information central to their lives,” said Pekka Tarjanne, chairman of the Millennuim Technology Prize award committee.

Just under 80 people from 22 countries were nominated (提名) for the prize for their work in the areas of health, communication, new materials and the environment.

The Millennuim Technology Prize was set up by the Finnish Technology Award Foundation, an independent body backed by the public and private money which aims to recognize outstanding creations.

Sir Tim currently heads up the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston, where he is now based as an academic.

1. What can be learned from the first paragraph?

A．Bemers-Lee was the first to receive the Prize.

B．Bemers-Lee’s sense of timing led to his success.

C．Bemers-Lee was the one who invented the internet.

D．Bemers-Lee was awarded one million pounds.

2. Which of the following best describes Bemers-Lee?

A．Optimistic.

B．Modest.

C．Humorous.

D．Careful.

3. What is Bemers-Lee’s purpose in inventing the World Wide Web?

A．To enable more people to use the Net.	B．To win more honors and prizes.
C．To earn more money to better his life.	D．To set up a company himself.

4. What would be the best title for the text?

A．The Millennium Technology Prize	B．The History of the Internet
C．The World Wide Web	D．An Honor for the Web’s Inventor

5 . New Space Missions in 2024

ESA’s Hera mission

The European Space Agency (ESA) plans to launch its Hera spacecraft in October on a mission to return to an asteroid (小行星) system visited by NASA’s DART spacecraft in 2022. Hera is designed to collect data on the targeted system, called Didymos. The spacecraft is expected to closely examine the physical properties of Didymos and measure detailed effects of DART’s crash.

Europa Clipper

NASA hopes to launch its Europa Clipper mission in October. This orbiter is designed to carry out close examinations of Jupiter’s moon Europa. Specifically, the mission will look for signs that the icy moon might hold the right conditions to support life. NASA says the orbiter will fly in orbit around Jupiter and perform repeated close flybys of the icy moon.

Boeing’s Starliner test flight

NASA and Boeing have said they plan to launch the first crewed test flight of the company’s Starliner spacecraft. NASA says it is targeting May 2024 to have Starliner ready for flight. The launch date is to be set later.

The spacecraft completed its first unscrewed flight test to the International Space Station (ISS) last May. But Boeing has experienced several technical difficulties with Starliner during the mission and has worked with NASA to fix the problems as it prepares for the planned crewed flight.

SpaceX Starship test

SpaceX, another NASA’s partner, has been successfully using its rockets and spacecraft to transport astronauts and materials to the ISS since 2020. But the company will be seeking a successful test flight in 2024 for its super-heavy Starship spacecraft.

SpaceX experienced two failed Starship tests in 2023 — one in April and the other in November — which resulted in explosions. The April explosion caused major damage to the launch structure in the state of Texas. SpaceX has said it has been examining the issues related to the explosions and plans to carry out another test of Starship as soon as possible. But it will have to wait until the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) completes its investigation of the launch site damage and approves a new test.

1. Which of the following plans to collect data about Didymos?

A．NASA.

B．FAA.

C．SpaceX.

D．ESA.

2. When is Europa Clipper scheduled to launch?

A．In April.

B．In May.

C．In October.

D．In November.

3. What do we know about SpaceX Starship?

A．The date for its third test flight is unclear.

B．It has succeeded in sending astronauts to the ISS.

C．The reason for its first failure has been identified.

D．Its second test flight damaged the launch structure.

6 . Earlier this week, a mother called Meems posted a video online asking users to help her with a task. ________ four lines of a handwritten melody (旋律), Meems said in the video, “My 10-year-old daughter ________ this. Could somebody ________ this? I want to know if it makes sense.”

This was the first time that her daughter had ________ writing music. And it was clear that Meems was ________ as to what her child’s composition sounded like. After she posted the ________, Meems and her daughter ________ a large number of responses from various musicians from around the world. But perhaps the ________ came when an entire string orchestra (弦乐团) responded to Meems’ callout with a multi-part arrangement of her daughter’s ________.

Last week, Dr Hanson, a conductor and assistant professor of music at Seattle Pacific University, invited Meems and her daughter to attend the National Association for Music Education’s Northwest Division Conference where he ________ a roomful of string educators in a performance of Meems’ daughter’s composition.

Feeling ________ and moved, Meems ________ every musician who helped bring her daughter’s composition to ________. “When I posted the video, I never imagined this ________. This is what ________ does. It connects us. Thank you for creating with us.”

1.

A．Laughing at

B．Throwing away

C．Adapting to

D．Pointing to

2.

A．wrote

B．heard

C．spread

D．found

3.

A．recognize

B．teach

C．play

D．change

4.

A．allowed

B．tried

C．suggested

D．imagined

5.

A．curious

B．humble

C．honest

D．conservative

6.

A．letter

B．report

C．video

D．advertisement

7.

A．showed

B．received

C．recorded

D．estimated

8.

A．highlight

B．noise

C．news

D．decision

9.

A．behavior

B．homework

C．plan

D．composition

10.

A．conducted

B．criticized

C．praised

D．interrupted

11.

A．frightened

B．surprised

C．stressed

D．disappointed

12.

A．forgot

B．thanked

C．refused

D．cheated

13.

A．light

B．mind

C．life

D．market

14.

A．accident

B．business

C．view

D．response

15.

A．friendship

B．hope

C．music

D．knowledge

7 . Conventional chemical fertilizers (化肥) aren’t among the most eco-friendly substances in the world. Not only do they pollute the environment if they get into waterways, but they also reduce nutrients in the soil over time. What’s more, they’re relatively expensive.

Seeking a greener and more sustainable alternative, some farmers have started applying nitrogen-fixing bacteria (固氮细菌) to their crops. These bacteria absorb nitrogen gas from the atmosphere and turn it into ammonia in the soil. That ammonia provides the plants with nutrients, restores poor soil, and boosts the plants’ natural defenses against pest insects.

One problem with the bacteria, however, is the fact that they are very sensitive to heat and humidity (湿度). This means they don’t stand up well to being shipped out to farms from a central source.

With these drawbacks in mind, Asst. Prof. Ariel Furst and her colleagues at MIT have created a method of coating the bacteria in tiny “metal-phenol network” (MPN) shells (外壳). The shells contained organic compounds called phenols, which are generally regarded as safe by the Food and Drug Administration.

This new coating technology could make such bacteria more widely available than ever before. On one hand, these coatings don’t block the bacteria’s growth or functions. On the other hand, they do provide protection from heat and humidity. The coated bacteria can even be freeze-dried, then shipped and applied to crops.

Furst’s team created 12 different MPNs which comprised metals such as iron, manganese, aluminum and zinc, all of which are considered safe for use as food additives. When these MPNs were used on nitrogen-fixing bacteria, all of them were found to protect the bacteria from temperatures of up to 50℃ and from relative humidity of up to 48%.

Furst is now commercializing the technology through a company she founded, called Seia Bio. “When we think about developing technology, we need to intentionally design it to be inexpensive and accessible, and that’s what this technology is.” she said.

1. Why are conventional chemical fertilizers mentioned in the first paragraph?

A．To lead in the topic.	B．To show their advantages.
C．To provide an example.	D．To explain how to use them.

2. What can we learn about nitrogen-fixing bacteria?

A．They prefer high temperatures.	B．They are insensitive to humidity.
C．They reduce nutrients in the soil.	D．They are environmentally friendly.

3. What does the underlined word “they” in paragraph 5 refer to?

A．MPN shells.	B．The plants.
C．Chemical fertilizers.	D．The coated bacteria.

4. What does Furst expect of the new coating technology?

A．It may help farmers to ship crops.

B．It can be widely applied.

C．It might be accessible to more companies.

D．It will limit the growth of bacteria.

8 . If your hearing begins to decline, your risk of falling may rise. Though it’s not exactly clear how hearing loss increases the risk, it’s known that falls are the top cause of death from injury among people 65 and older.

Now, new evidence shows that restoring hearing through the use of hearing aids may be protective, especially when people wear them consistently, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

“We found, quite significantly, that individuals that wore hearing aids compared to those that didn’t, did show a significantly lower prevalence (发生率),” explains Laura Campos, the study’s lead author. “They reported fewer falls, and their scores on a fall’s risk questionnaire showed they were at lower risk.”

As part of the study, Campos and her team surveyed about 300 people with hearing loss about their use of hearing aids and asked about their previous falls. The researchers also accounted for factors that could affect fall risk, such as the use of medication that can cause dizziness.

Overall, people who wore hearing aids had about a 50% reduced odds of experiencing a fall, compared to non-users. And the reduction was even greater among those who wore hearing aids at least four hours per day. “The effect size is pretty significant,” Campos says. “These consistent hearing aid users had even lower odds of falling.”

However, one challenge is that many people who get hearing aids don’t use them every day or stop using them altogether. “A lot of people don’t like them,” says Catherine Jewett, 67, who started wearing a hearing aid on one ear about four years ago. “For some people, the sound amplification (放大) can be hard to adjust to, and others are self-conscious of how they will look with hearing aids,” Jewett adds she feels safer when she wears her hearing aid since she can hear the sounds of a car, for instance, when she’s crossing a street.

1. How did the researchers conduct the study?

A．By making observations.	B．By carrying out experiments.
C．By asking questions.	D．By referring to previous studies.

2. What does paragraph 5 mainly tell us about the study?

A．Its purpose.

B．Its process.

C．Its finding.

D．Its subjects.

3. What is Catherine Jewett’s attitude to hearing aids?

A．Doubtful.

B．Positive.

C．Unconcerned.

D．Unknown.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．Selecting Proper Hearing Aids Does Matter

B．People With Hearing Loss Need Special Care

C．Restoring Hearing Is a Long and Complex Process

D．Wearing Hearing Aids May Cut the Risk of Deadly Falls

9 . The National Heritage Responders is a volunteer network of around 100 experts in cultural heritage conservation from around Puerto Rico. They assist individuals and institutions in figuring out how to save important objects and buildings after disasters. Their crisis hotline has been busier than ever in recent years because of more frequent and severe weather brought on by climate change. In 2023, there have been around 70 calls so far, up from fewer than 10 in 2008, when the hotline first appeared.

Ann Frellsen, the Atlanta-based book and paper conservator, is a longtime heritage responder volunteer with more than three decades of experience in helping out cultural institutions after disasters. She was among those sent to Puerto Rico over several visits starting a couple of months after two hurricanes hit it in 2017.

After providing initial support via the phone, Frellsen and her team came in to help La Casa del Libro and other local institutions in crisis with equipment, supplies and advice. In fact, much of the advice the hotline provides is via phone or video-chat; volunteers are sent out into the field in certain cases, on an as-needed basis.

“There were no stoplights and signs on the highways because they’d all been blown away,” Frellsen said. She added that figuring out how to reach the more than 20 institutions that needed assistance in Puerto Rico was challenging—not to mention the on-the-job hazards.

When Frellsen isn’t heading into disaster zones to help save artifacts (文物) from fires, hurricanes and floods, she trains others in the heritage conservation field to do the same. Some of the participants may eventually take the test to become National Heritage Responders. But at this moment, they are deep in a hands-on training exercise, based on an imaginary situation cooked up by Frellsen and her co-trainers.

1. What can we say about Puerto Rico?

A．It calls on people to keep in contact.	B．Natural disasters are increasing there.
C．It works hard to build highways.	D．The weather is really nice there.

2. What can be learned about the National Heritage Responders?

A．It teaches individuals how to protect themselves.

B．New volunteers can join it with no tests required.

C．Victims all over the world can contact it by hotline.

D．It sends experts to the disaster areas when necessary.

3. What does the underlined word “hazards” in paragraph 4 mean?

A．Dangers.

B．Skills.

C．Trainings.

D．Rights.

4. What are Frellsen and her team busy doing at present?

A．Taking various tests.	B．Entering a new disaster area.
C．Conducting a practical exercise.	D．Restoring priceless artifacts.

10 . As the world faces extinction crisis and severe climate change, a growing body of scientific research has found that we should set aside more protected areas and manage them well.

Protected areas are extremely important for conservation and can help protect against habitat loss and other human activities. In many areas they may be the only places that can support the survival of some species.

Globally we’ve protected nearly 17% of our lands and 7% of the ocean, but a study published in Nature found that current protected areas on their own are too small or poorly connected to ensure the long-term survival of about half of all mammals studied — between 1,700 and 2,500 species.

If current protected areas don’t do enough, how do we do it better? The researchers suggest that first we need to increase the size and number of protected areas and improve the connectivity between them. But above all, they need to be managed with a clear understanding of the animals’ habitat needs.

In a recent research, after studying 1,500 protected areas with 27,000 waterbird populations in 68 countries, researchers found that areas that were actively managed for waterbirds — such as by preventing hunting or restoring wetlands — were more successful, and often those that were larger had better results, too.

If protected areas are well taken care of, we can not only protect biodiversity (生物多样性) but also achieve other benefits. One of those benefits is to avoid runaway climate change. As we know, the earth is becoming warmer and warmer. Protecting 30% of lands could provide one-third of the reductions needed to limit global warming emissions to under 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Of course, this work won’t be easy. The next step, according to researchers, is to promote understanding and communicating the multiple benefits of increasing protected areas, and drive more support from government and local communities.

1. Why are protected areas of great importance?

A．They contribute to conserving wildlife.

B．They can influence the researches of scientists.

C．They are the only places for species to survive.

D．They strengthen the animal-human relationship.

2. What’s the most important in managing protected areas?

A．Increasing animal species.

B．Connecting with nearby areas.

C．Enlarging the size of protected areas.

D．Knowing the animals’ habitat needs well.

3. What can we infer from Paragraph 5?

A．Protected areas helped avoid severe climate.

B．Suitable measures brought about better results.

C．Waterbirds were protected well in protected areas.

D．Restoring wetland was the best protection for waterbirds.

4. What is the last paragraph mainly about?

A．Measures to be taken.

B．Responsibilities of governments.

C．Benefits to be gained.

D．Support from local communities.