1 . Joyce Loaiza lives alone in a community for older people in the American state of Florida. When she is home, the retired office worker often talks with a friendly female voice that asks about her day.
A few kilometers away, the same voice helps 83-year-old Deanna Dezern. In New York state, it plays games and music for 92-year-old Marie Broadbent. And in Washington state, it helps 83-year-old Jan Worrell make new friends.
These women are some of the first in the United States to receive the robot ElliQ made by Intuition Robotics. The company says it is the only device using artificial intelligence (AI) to help older Americans from loneliness.
The device looks like a small table light and it has an eyeless, mouthless head that lights up and turns. It remembers each user’s interests and their talks, helping create a special experience with new discussions. They can be as deep as the meaning of life or as light as a small joke.
ElliQ also plays music and provides creative or spiritual sayings. On a video screen that comes with it, it will show different cities and places of interest. The device leads exercises, asks about the owner’s health, and gives reminders to take medicines and drink water. It can also support video calls and contact family, friends, or doctors in an emergency.
Intuition Robotics says none of the private conversations are heard by the company, with the information only staying on each owner's device.
A robot could fill the space of a friend by adapting to each person and their interests. The average user communicates with ElliQ more than 30 times a day and more than 90 percent report lower levels of loneliness.
The robots are mostly sent out by government departments. But they can also be bought individually for $600 a year plus $250 to set it up.
1. What do Joyce Loaiza and Jan Worrell have in common?| A．They interact with robots. | B．They have many good friends. |
| C．They love advanced devices. | D．They are in bad health. |
| A．They are very inspiring. | B．They have background music. |
| C．They aim to solve users’ problems. | D．They are both serious and humorous. |
| A．To avoid computer viruses. | B．To reduce the costs of production. |
| C．To protect personal privacy. | D．To make communication simple. |
| A．Artificial Intelligence Robots Enter Home |
| B．Talking Robots Help Seniors Fight Loneliness |
| C．Loneliness Is a Hug e Challenge for Old People |
| D．Retired People Receive Attention of Government |
2 . Without three key players, including the former captain, how did 55-year-old Jenny Lang Ping and her girls spent the 20 days before winning against Japan with 3-1? Getting the world title at the 2015 FIVB Women’s World Cup is
Facing this, Jenny Lang Ping, who is called “Iron Hammer”, never
| A．possible | B．unbelievable | C．confusing | D．unique |
| A．mean | B．explain | C．admire | D．master |
| A．honour | B．source | C．medal | D．glory |
| A．place | B．number | C．detail | D．arrangement |
| A．worked out | B．lost heart | C．checked out | D．gave up |
| A．sweating | B．tracking | C．increasing | D．encouraging |
| A．challenge | B．survival | C．match | D．tour |
| A．success | B．fitness | C．failure | D．strategy |
| A．narrowed | B．gathered | C．showed | D．focused |
| A．short | B．flat | C．slim | D．far |
| A．flight | B．end | C．fight | D．solution |
| A．Below | B．Behind | C．Between | D．Beside |
| A．gracefully | B．alone | C．bravely | D．still |
| A．stress | B．agreement | C．determination | D．legend |
| A．made | B．played | C．decided | D．realized |
3 . A 16-year-old girl from Changsha, Hunan province, successfully reached the top of Qomolangma, known as Mount Everest in the West, on Monday morning, becoming the youngest Chinese female to conquer the world’s highest top from the southern slope (坡).
Xu Zhuoyuan is a first year high school student from Hunan province. On April 15, she left Changsha for Nepal. On April 21, she began her long walk from Lukla. On April 28, she arrived at the base camp and started her altitude adaptation training at once. At 10 pm Beijing time on May 14, Xu Started walking from Camp 4 at an altitude of 7,950 meters on the southern slope of Qomolangma. After a punishing 10-hour climb, she successfully reached the summit.
Xu Zhuoyuan’s father, Xu Jianglei, was the first person from Hunan province to reach the top of Qomolangma. Xu Zhuoyuan has been exploring remote areas with him since she was very young. Despite her young age, Xu Zhuoyuan has already climbed five mountains over 5,000 meters in China. When she was 12 years old, she made a statement on Hunan TV saying, “I will climb Qomolangma.”
Four years later, she achieved her promise. Although Xu Zhuoyuan has rich climbing experience, she has been experiencing high-intensity professional training non-stop to conquer Qomolangma. Last year, she climbed Mount Muztagata, which stands 7,546 meters. “Human beings are small in the face of nature. We should respect nature and get closer to Qomolangma,” said Xu Zhuoyuan.
She brought the gloves her father used when he reached the top with her as a form of inheritance and to bear witness to her own dream coming true. After finishing her university studies, she hopes to continue climbing and achieve the “7+ 2” (7 tops plus the North and South Poles).
1. When did Xu Zhuoyuan arrive at the base camp?| A．On April 15. | B．On April 21. | C．On April 28. | D．On May 14. |
| A．Honest and sincere. | B．Clever and smart |
| C．Caring and devoted. | D．Determined and brave. |
| A．To describe his achievements. | B．To show his impact on his daughter. |
| C．To recognize his support for the girl. | D．To stress girls should be taken good care of. |
| A．A Great Father Shocks the Whole World |
| B．Qomolangma Draws More and More People |
| C．16-year old Girl Tops World’s Highest Mountain |
| D．Father and Daughter Conquer the Highest Mountain |
4 . Last week, three wildfires swept through the island of Maui in Hawaii. The fires have claimed at least 111 lives. Many people are still unaccounted for (下落不明). Some of the fires are still burning.
The wildfires began on Tuesday night, August 8. Soon, extremely strong winds caused the fires to grow out of control. There were around 400 alarms used to warn people about dangers like this, 80 of them in Maui, but none of them went off. People only found out about the fires when they saw them. The historic area of Lahaina on the west side of Maui was hit worst. The wildfire destroyed over 2,700 buildings around Lahaina, most of them homes. The Lahaina wildfire is the deadliest wildfire in the US since 1918.
The causes of the fires haven’t yet been determined, but the National Weather Service had issued warnings for the Hawaiian Islands for high winds and dry weather-conditions ripe for wildfires. It’s worthwhile mentioning that the wildfires in Hawaii burned through grasslands. About 25% of Hawaii is covered with grasses that originally came from Africa. They grow quickly and push out plants that grow naturally in Hawaii. The grasses created huge amounts of dry fuel (燃料) to feed the fires.
Much of the western part of Maui remains without power. Local officials have also warned against drinking tap water — even if it is boiled. Though some cell services have been restored, authorities have also asked residents to text rather than talk over the phone because of restrained bandwidth (带宽).
There are so many questions that need to be answered by the government. People feel like the warnings came too late, and there hasn’t been enough help after the fire. There’s a bad need for power lines to be restored. Plus, shortages of food, water and fuel are growing. Many local people are working together to solve problems themselves. Fortunately, the government has promised to look into the fire and the way it was dealt with.
1. What made the locals fail to find out about the wildfires in time?| A．The fires spread too fast at night. | B．The alarms did not work at all. |
| C．They ignored the dry weather. | D．They were sleeping at that time. |
| A．They favor nature protection. | B．They enrich the local plants. |
| C．They fueled the wildfires. | D．They blocked the wildfire rescue. |
| A．Developed. | B．Damaged. | C．Limited. | D．Recovered. |
| A．Positive. | B．Proud. | C．Unclear. | D．Unsatisfied. |
5 . We have recently heard some interesting ways that 5G technology might change our lives in the future. 5G promises Internet speeds between 50 to 100 times faster than 4G systems. Such improvements are sure to be popular with 5G users worldwide. While it is set to start only in just a few areas of the United States this year, much of the rest of the world is not expected to receive this service until 2023.
One project in Britain, though, is already testing this super-fast technology, but not on humans. Instead, the experimental subjects are an unlikely group of Internet users— cows. The system connects the animals to 5G in an effort to automate (使自动化) the milking process.
The project was developed by American technology company Cisco Systems. Testing areas were set up at farms in three rural areas of England. The cows are equipped with 5G-connected devices that link up to a robotic milking system. The system uses sensors (传感器) and machine learning to fully automate the process.
System designers say technology takes over after a cow feels ready to be milked and walks toward an automatic gate. The device is designed to recognize each cow. It then positions equipment to the right body position for milking. During the process, machines offer food for the cow as a reward.
One of the test areas is in the town of Shepton Mallet in southwest England. There, about 50 of the farm’s 180 cows are fitted with 5G smart collars and ear sensors. Project officials say the devices do not harm the cows and the sensors help farmers immediately find problems or health concerns.
Duncan Forbes, the project leader, told Reuters that so far, he thinks the project shows the farm’s cow operations can be greatly improved with 5G technology.
Forbes added that the experiment provides strong evidence that 5G technology can be widely used in the future “not just on farms, but in rural communities right across the country”.
1. What do we know about 5G technology from the first two paragraphs?| A．It has changed our lives. | B．It has more users than 4G. |
| C．It has not been widely used. | D．It has been used on cows in the US. |
| A．The introduction of 5G devices. | B．The milking process with 5G technology. |
| C．The purpose of system designers. | D．The way machines provide cows with food |
| A．To recognize every cow. | B．To judge their position. |
| C．To reduce the harm from devices. | D．To find their health problems |
| A．Hopeful. | B．Doubtful. | C．Worried. | D．Uncaring |
6 . British chip maker Walkers is being flooded with mail deliveries of its own packaging. An online petition (请愿) with more than 312,000 signatures so far encourages those who signed to mail their empty chip plastic bags to Walkers as an act of protest against the bags’ non-recyclable design.
As petition organizer Geraint Ashcroft explained, the majority of chip packets, made from plastic coated with metal, are not recyclable and have been found fully undamaged up to 33 years after consumption. The UK alone consumes 6 billion bags of chips a year, and Walkers turns out 11 million bags daily. Ashcroft wrote, “At today’s consumption rate in 33 years’ time, there will be 200 billion packets either sent to landfill or polluting our oceans. Many will be eaten by fish or birds, leading to a slow death.”
Mailing the bags to Walkers is a way to hold the company accountable for its packaging and to pressure it to come up with a better design. But it is controversial. Because the Royal Mail postal service isn’t happy about the sudden in flow of packages, asking people calm down to help with ease of delivery. Critics on Twitter also question the logic of buying a product in order to protest against its producer and suggest that giving up chips altogether would improve one’s health as well as the environment.
Walkers issued a statement on Wednesday, saying it will make its packaging plastic-free by 2025. “We have received some returned packets and recognized the efforts being made to bring the issue of packaging waste to our attention. The returned packets will be used in our research as we work towards our commitment of improving the recyclability of our packaging.”
1. Why do people mail their empty chip bags to Walkers?| A．To oppose Walkers’ plastic packaging. |
| B．To exchange them for some new chips. |
| C．To make Walkers use them once more. |
| D．To appeal to people for not using the bags. |
| A．The production of plastic bags. |
| B．The cause of animals’ death. |
| C．The potential harm of chip bags. |
| D．The opinion of Geraint Ashcroft. |
| A．Explainable. | B．Responsible. | C．Significant. | D．Anxious. |
| A．Doubtfully. | B．Indifferently. | C．Positively. | D．Cautiously. |
7 . Most people hate mosquitoes — but scientists are about to build a “mosquito factory” to release modified (改良的) mosquitoes.
The modified mosquitoes carry a bacterium called Wolbachia pipientis (沃尔巴克氏菌), which can be naturally found in most insect species. However, it’s rarely discovered in mosquitoes. “We actually grow these mosquitoes that contain the bacterium,” Scott O’Neill, an Australian scientist involved in the project, told CBC News. When the modified mosquitoes are released, they slowly spread the bacterium to the population.
Several studies have demonstrated the insects’ success. For example, a controlled experiment in Indonesia showed that the modified insect helped reduce the cases of the disease dengue (登革热) by 77 percent, according to a study paper published in 2021.
The World Mosquito Program has announced that it will release modified mosquitoes in many of Brazil’s urban areas over the next 10 years. The aim is to protect up to 70 million people from diseases such as dengue, an infectious disease mainly spread by mosquitoes.
Brazil has one of the highest rates of dengue infection in the world, according to the Nature website. “More than 1,000 people died of dengue in 2022 because of the spread of mosquitoes. It’s going everywhere,” Luciano Moreira, a scientist in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, told CBC News.
Another way to prevent mosquitoes from spreading diseases is by producing genetically modified mosquitoes (GM). In 2022, the US Environmental Protection Agency cleared the release of 2.4 billion GM mosquitoes in California and Florida.
According to the agency, GM mosquitoes carry two types of genes: a self-limiting gene that prevents female offspring (后代) from surviving to adulthood; and a marker gene that allows researchers to identify GM ones in the wild. After being released, GM mosquitoes lay eggs, so the genes are passed on to offspring. In this way, the number of female mosquitoes is reduced, therefore reducing the chance of spreading disease.
1. What is the final purpose of building the “mosquito factory”?| A．To prevent the spread of mosquito-borne diseases. |
| B．To produce massive mosquitoes for scientific research. |
| C．To study the behavior of mosquitoes in different environments. |
| D．To replace the natural mosquito population with a modified one. |
| A．It states challenges facing the program. | B．It provides the background to the program. |
| C．It shows the expected effect of the program. | D．It indicates an opinion on the announcement. |
| A．By limiting their ability to lay eggs. | B．By making them immune to disease. |
| C．By reducing their offspring’s lifespans. | D．By allowing them to be easily identified. |
| A．Releasing GM Mosquitoes | B．Reducing Dengue in Brazil |
| C．Experimenting on Modified Insects | D．Modifying Infectious Mosquitoes |
8 . “I was dead for 67 minutes. It’s a miracle that I’m here today.” Those are the words of Bruce Richardson, who survived a cardiac arrest (心脏骤停) in July 2016 thanks to the quick actions of his friends and the first responders who refused to give up.
It was an early summer morning, a typical Saturday. Bruce volunteered as usual in the community center. “I had no symptoms that there was any problem. It was a completely normal morning; I felt fine,” he shared. “I was visiting with friends. Then, I passed out. What happened next I know from what others have told me.”
Bruce’s friend, Jack, had learned how to perform CPR, and he quickly began chest compressions. Another friend, Doug, dialed 911 and the operator walked him through compressions until first responders arrived. Once the ambulance arrived, the paramedics tried five times to restart Bruce’s heart with an AED. By this time, Bruce had been without a heartbeat for over 30 minutes, often when time of death is called. On the phone with an emergency room doctor. one of the paramedics was instructed to try two AEDs simultaneously (同时). It worked; Bruce’s heart began to beat again. Incredibly, he awoke the next day and was able to communicate. After a week, Bruce made a full recovery and left the hospital.
Since Bruce’s cardiac arrest, he has since been able to resume a normal life with some differences. He now is a passionate CPR advocate. He has shared his story in the news, and last year he was a guest speaker at the Association’s Indianapolis Heart & Stroke Ball to encourage people to spread the message of CPR. Finally, Bruce shared his story in a video now being used to promote American Heart Association Hands-Only CPR kiosks installed around the country.
1. What made Bruce’s survival from a severe heart attack possible?| A．The doctor’s first aid without delay. |
| B．His friends’ proper guidance on performing CPR. |
| C．His volunteer experiences in the community center. |
| D．The instant actions of his friends and the first responders. |
| A．To advocate the application of CPR. | B．To appeal to more people to volunteer. |
| C．To share his struggle for a normal life. | D．To enhance people’s awareness of fitness. |
| A．Hard work will pay off one day. | B．The knowledge of first aid counts. |
| C．Learning to live in the present matters. | D．Ease your mind when panic arises. |
| A．A research paper. | B．A book review. |
| C．A news report. | D．A course advertisement. |
9 . “Baby signing” classes established to improve language skills actually make little difference to children’s development, according to new research. Scholars claimed there was no evidence that the lessons—in which babies are taught simple gestures to communicate their everyday needs—enable children to talk quicker than others.
In a threeyear study, it was claimed that the method could make mothers more responsive to their children’s behaviors but failed to actually increase babies’ vocabulary. An active home environment in which parents regularly talk to their children was much more effective, researchers warned. The findings will cast doubt on the movement—born in the United States—which has proved hugely popular among middleclass parents.
Baby signing is now a multimillion pound industry, with thousands of mothers and fathers paying for classes, books and DVDs. Young children are taught simple gestures for words and phrases to communicate their everyday needs, such as “milk” “more” “all gone” “food” and “tired”. It is claimed that the technique brings great benefits, including improving the relationship between mother and child, helping language development and even increasing a child’s intelligence.
But research from Hertfordshire University has found no evidence that using baby signing helps to improve their language development. The scholars added, “Baby signing has become big business and mothers, particularly firsttime mums or less confident parents, feel the pressure to do it. Some even think ‘if I don’t do it and everyone else does, I must be a bad mother’.”
However, baby signing experts hardly sustained the findings. Wendy Moat, 45, who has been running baby signing classes for three years, said that the classes encouraged speech development, and may help develop a higher IQ. She said, “So many mums say that their children talk so well because they did baby signing when they were babies. Parents wouldn’t say it if they didn’t believe it.”
1. Which of the following may help improve children’s language skills?| A．Using simple words and phrases. | B．Talking to them as much as possible. |
| C．Buying them more books and DVDs. | D．Creating a serious home environment. |
| A．they are influenced by others | B．they are sure of the effects of them |
| C．they don't want to be looked down upon | D．they don't know how to teach their children |
| A．found | B．got rid of | C．supported | D．quit |
| A．How to teach children to communicate effectively. |
| B．Baby signing classes increase children’s intelligence. |
| C．How to improve the relationship between mother and child. |
| D．Baby signing classes fail to improve children’s language skills. |
10 . On January 27, in order to win the new pneumonia Resistance War(抗击新型肺炎战),the Ministry of Education issued(教育部公布)a notice on putting off the start time of school in spring 2020. It was said that school should not start before February 17. The exact start time of school will depend on situations and further notices.
However, many parents are very worried that putting off the start of school may affect children's studies. If they have such a long winter vacation, children will not learn any knowledge, read books or study at all. They may forget what they have learned before. Staying at home for a long time will make them keep eating. Sleeping and playing, which seriously affect their physical and mental health?
In short, the close of school influences learning and develops bad habits, so how should we avoid these problems? Local education departments have also issued a notice, that is, to organize on create a network platform(平台),where necessary courses will be shown every day, and online teaching will be given by excellent teachers of the subject, and students can learn at home through computer or mobile network.
It should be said that such a method is very good. It can not only keep students indoors and not worry about the infection(感染) of the disease, but also make them study at home, improve their learning ability, and truly achieve "no suspension of classes". Both the platform itself and the recorded lesson resources are more useful, and are welcomed by parents and teachers. Of course, except for learning at home, it is also necessary to teach children about health knowledge, specially how to keep away from touching virus and also necessary for children to do some physical exercises or some games, which is good for physical health at home.
1. Parents worried about putting off the start of school because________.| A．children may be infected by virus |
| B．they don't like the idea of online learning |
| C．children's study may be affected |
| A．teach children about health knowledge |
| B．do some physical exercises outside |
| C．keep touching different people |
| A．计划 | B．改变 | C．停止 |
| A．All the students would rather go to school. |
| B．The exact start time of school will start before February 17 |
| C．Online teaching will help students study. |
| A．A Special Way to Learn at Home |
| B．A New War with a New Chance |
| C．A Way to Keep Mentally Healthy |
