1 . Secret shower singers are pleased: a new water-powered Bluetooth speaker from Ampere could help arrange your morning routine.
Shower Power attaches to your shower head, making your water flow power a hydroelectric generator(水力发电机) that charges the battery of its Bluetooth speaker. The device(器件) is similar to earlier water-powered speaker Hyquadio, but Ampere offers more options for controlling its speaker, with physical playback controls on the device and a battery-powered remote if the speaker is out of reach.
When the speaker is attached and water is flowing, its 2500mAh battery should offer over 80 hours of playback at max volume(音量). With water off, that number falls to around 17 hours at max volume. Ampere explains that due to the size of Shower Power’s impeller(叶轮) it’s only able to meet the demands of the speaker’s battery at around 60-70 percent volume.
Droplet, Ampere’s additional speaker accessory(附件), could help create a wider range of possible sounds. It’s the same speaker as Shower Power, but not water-powered. The device can be connected to Shower Power and it can be placed anywhere, filling out the sound in places Shower Power might miss fixed on your shower head, if you’re willing to purchase the device separately of course.
Standalone water-proof speakers can also easily play music in your shower, but unlike Shower Power they’d have to be removed every time you need to charge them. Shower Power never has to leave your shower; its advantage is that it never requires you to remember a wire.
For interested shower singers and podcast devotees, Shower Power launches today on Kickstarter for $59. You can add on the water-proof remote for $15 or an additional Droplet speaker for $20. Pre-orders will follow on Ampere’s site on November 15th and the device will go on sale in December.
1. What differs Ampere Shower Power from Hyquadio?| A．Being water-powered. | B．Being water-proof. |
| C．A playback remote. | D．A physical battery. |
| A．Points when you use it. | B．Places where you fix it. |
| C．Varieties of its sounds. | D．Sizes of its impeller. |
| A．To assist its sounds. | B．To expand its volume. |
| C．To save its energy. | D．To remove it easily. |
| A．$99. | B．$74. | C．$89 | D．$35. |
2 . According to statistics published by the BPI (Buying Power Index) a couple of months ago, digital streaming (流媒体) now accounts for 80 percent of the music consumption in the UK. Despite the incredible growth of online streaming platforms like iTunes, Apple Music and Tidal over the past 15 years, a more traditional medium has also seen a return of interest and sales in the music industry. In 2020, almost one in five of all albums purchased in the UK is vinyl (黑胶唱片), and it has once again become the most popular physical musical medium.
With digital streaming so easy and convenient, why are so many people drawn to traditional records? Some experts claim that vinyl is a physical medium for experiencing music, something tangible (有形的) to hold and own. For most people, having something tangible and interacting with it gives depth to the experience of music. Listening to an album and touching it the way the artist intended can make them feel more connected to the music and the artist. Records are physical products that can be not only displayed but also gifted, shared, traded and passed down through generations.
Sound quality is another hot topic. A lot of music lovers feel that the analogue sound (模拟声音) vinyl offers is superior to modern digital audio, particularly with regards to the compressed formats streaming platforms use. There’s a common belief that old-school analogue audio has a warmer, fuller sound than digitised music. For vinyl followers, the very defect traditional recorders often have, such as the familiar crackle (劈啪作响) when the record starts, bring the music to life in a different way.
There’s a ritualistic aspect to vinyl that a lot of people are drawn to, too. The act of putting a record on—carefully removing the record from the sleeve, placing it on the record player and gently dropping the needle on the right groove (凹槽)—is a more assiduous (一丝不苟的), mindful way of engaging with music. When you’re listening to vinyl, you can’t tap a button and go about your day while the streaming service provides hours of music. You need to stay close to the record player to move the needle and flip the record over.
It’s clear that the vinyl interest is well underway, and vinyl records are truly making a comeback. In an increasingly digital society, there’s something to be said for analogue experiences. Perhaps one of the great things about being alive in the 21st century is our ability to have the best of both worlds—the timeless appeal of physical records alongside the easy access to vast music libraries that streaming offers.
1. What are the statistics published by the BPI used to show?| A．An increase in music consumption. |
| B．The recovery of music industry. |
| C．A comeback of a physical medium. |
| D．The acceptance of online streaming. |
| A．It attracts people by its realistic feel. |
| B．It offers simple access to different music. |
| C．It shares a new way to enjoy music. |
| D．It provides people with perfect sound effect. |
| A．Overlooked by society. |
| B．Updated very frequently. |
| C．Performed as part of a ceremony. |
| D．Kept for a long time without changing. |
| A．Traditional records will get underway. |
| B．The analogue experiences may matter more. |
| C．Vinyl sales will boom with technological advance. |
| D．There should be a good mix of old and new. |
3 . The Rise of Voice Technology
Voice technology has come a long way. Just a few years ago, it would have been unusable. But now, those who follow the technology know that it has got considerably better.
Writing with your voice raises several interesting questions. How difficult is it actually? Human speech involves a lot more starting and stopping with errors and the need for repairing broken sentences than you may think. Even gifted speakers make mistakes. To turn the spoken word into reasonable writing requires lots of planning. You’ll need some kinds of notes or other organisers to make it work.
Another question turning speech into writing raises is the style. How would writing make the change that people speak their writing rather than type? Chances are that it would come up with many more short sentences and more concrete language, which is good. It would probably also rely on prepared phrases a lot more often, which is not available when you are speaking quickly.
To confirm this, a column was not written, but dictated (听写). It was composed from brief notes written down for structure only, and it was edited for length, with all of the original errors kept in. Here were the results. The first was that the literal accuracy was extremely high. There weren’t many cases where the software had heard one word incorrectly and written down another. But the other result was that the readability of this column was rather bad. Obviously, the blame is not with the technology at all, which turns out to be rather good. Speaking into writing relies on a better human brain than the one we currently possess. Writing is hard. There’s a reason it can’t be done at the speed of speech, in real time.
To clarify the matter, this time paragraph breaks were added after the whole writing. Punctuations (标点) had to be spoken aloud, and after a full stop, the first word in the new sentence was capitalized automatically. Some minor punctuation marks were added to make it clearer. To improve accuracy, people “trained” the software beforehand, reading a prewritten passage aloud. Actually it turns out to be more effective. All of these ensure the satisfactory completion of turning speech into writing.
Language is the most important tool for human interaction, and voice is one beautiful part of language. With the maturity of modern technology, it has given birth to a great change in the human-computer voice interaction.
1. According to the passage, which helps to turn speech into writing in terms of style?| A．There is careful planning in advance. |
| B．Errors and broken sentences are avoided. |
| C．People type words as fast as they say them. |
| D．The writing contains more prepared phrases. |
| A．processing errors in a column. |
| B．adding minor punctuation marks. |
| C．increasing the number of brief notes. |
| D．integrating short paragraphs in writing. |
| A．human brains are responsible for poor dictated writing. |
| B．writing with voice promises to improve the quality of writing. |
| C．writing is an unnatural act that can hardly be learned and improved. |
| D．technology has a long way to go in the human-computer voice interaction. |
| A．Why people fully intend to turn speech into writing. |
| B．What role voice technology plays in improving readability. |
| C．Where the human-computer voice interaction is at an advantage. |
| D．How voice technology enables the change from speech into writing. |
4 . While many countries love their tea, UK citizens are particularly proud of being "tea people". The average UK citizen consumes nearly 2 kilograms of tea each year.Tea only made its way to England in large quantities in the first years of the 17th century. Tea from China and a few other Asian countries was being sold more widely in England at that time. Then tea became more and more popular among different social classes.
There are many varieties of tea. Black tea mixtures are still the most common type drunk in the UK. Black tea is dark in colour,because the leaves have been allowed to oxidize(氧化）before drying. This is why we usually serve it with milk,although it is not uncommon to drink it black or with lemon.
You may still find tea made with loose tea leaves, served up in a pot, and poured into the best china cups with saucers(茶托）for visitors.
Tea is still a large part of daily life in the UK today, but it seems to be on the decrease . The amount of tea sold in the UK fell by more than 10% in the five years leading up to 2002, and has been dropping ever since. Tea sales fell by 6% in 2014 alone, and most restaurants report selling more than twice as many cups of coffee as they do tea. More than 1 billion was spent on coffee in high street stores in 2013, more than twice what was spent on tea bags.
Still, what goes around comes around ; it's sure to become fashionable again.
1. Which of the following is true according to the first three paragraphs?| A．Tea made its way to England in the early years of the 16th century. |
| B．The UK usually serves black tea with lemon. |
| C．Tea from China is being sold more widely in England now. |
| D．UK citizens take pride in being "tea people". |
| A．Tea sales fell by 6% in 2014 alone. |
| B．The sales of tea have been on the decrease for about 20 years. |
| C．In 2013, the money spent on tea was f 3 billion. |
| D．Most restaurants like selling tea than coffee. |
| A．It can never succeed again. | B．Tea can become popular again. |
| C．Coffee is more popular than tea. | D．Tea is becoming less popular. |
5 . Japanese officials say they are pleased with the quality of the asteroid (小行星) material collected by a spacecraft and returned to Earth.
Last week, officials from Japan described the samples (样品), which were collected from the Ryugu asteroid in July 2019. Ryugu sits more than 300 million kilometers from Earth. Japan’s unpiloted Hayabusa2 spacecraft removed the material after making a hole into the asteroid.
The space agency said the July 2019 mission (任务) aimed to collect samples from below the surface of Ryugu. During an earlier operation in February 2019, Hayabusa2 collected material from a different part of the asteroid. The second collection effort resulted in sample pieces as big as 1 centimeter. The black material looked similar to charcoal and was very hard. It did not break apart when picked up or poured into another container.
Earlier this month, space officials described the samples Hayabusa2 removed on its first mission as smaller, sandy pieces. They were collected from the surface of Ryugu. Hayabusa2 was launched in December 2014 and arived near Ryugu in June 2018. The Japanese space mission aims to use the samples to learn more about how our solar system formed.
To get the second set of samples in July, Hayabusa2 used an impactor to knock the asteroid’s surface. The aim was to collect material unaffected by space radiation or other environmental conditions. The size differences suggest different hardness of the bedrock of the asteroid. One possibility is that the place of the second touchdown was a hard bedrock and larger particles broke and entered the container.
Hayabusa2 is now on another mission to a smaller asteroid, called 1998KY26. The Japanese government expects the aircraft to take 11 years to reach that asteroid. Hayabusa2’s new mission aims to study possible ways to prevent large meteorites (陨石) from hitting Earth.
1. What are these asteroid materials used to do?| A．Study how the solar system was born. | B．Determine the movement of asteroids. |
| C．Study the environment on the asteroid. | D．Uncover when the asteroid was formed. |
| A．To discover new planets. | B．To fetch more materials in space. |
| C．To travel around the solar system. | D．To explore ways to protect the earth. |
| A．They were collected in the same place. | B．They both were black and hard. |
| C．They came in different shapes. | D．They were of equal weight. |
| A．Japan Makes Progress in Studying Solar System |
| B．Japan Is Pleased with Latest Asteroid Samples |
| C．The Secret of an Asteroid Comes to Light |
| D．The Earth Faces Threats from Space |
6 . In recent years, the Yi Jin Jing exercise has gained great popularity among Chinese of all ages, thanks to Jin Yong’s novels and the Shaolin Temple in Central China’s Henan province, which has promoted kung fu techniques, including Yi Jin Jing, vigorously(蓬勃地) at home and abroad. There are more than 60 types of Yi Jin Jing exercises spreading in contemporary China, differing in lengths, gestures and movements. Thousands of health and fitness clubs in the country have been teaching classical techniques, Yi Jin Jing being the most favored course.
In ancient times, average people did the Yi Jin Jing exercise for health and longevity(长寿) , But kung fu masters do it in different and more difficult ways, hoping to hugely improve their physical abilities. For example,when it comes to breathing, a normal person, especially a beginner, would be advised to take a safe and comfortable approach. But kung fu masters would use an opposite deep breathing technique when doing Yi Jin Jing. They would breathe in deeply, then hold their breath while trying to lengthen certain muscles and tendons(筋), and in the end they would relax and breathe out very slowly.
It is widely believed that Zong Heng, a monk in Ming Dynasty, invented the Yi Jin Jing qigong exercise while he lived in a cave on Mt. Zining, where Zhangjiajing village is located.
In 2016,the Tiantai county people’s government in East China’s Zhejiang province officially declared Pingqiao, a mountainous town, as “Yi Jin Jing Township”, with Zhangjiajing village at its center. At least 30,000 local residents in and around the “Yi Jin Jing Township” have learned to perform the so-called Zining YiJin Jing qigong exercise. They put on massive performances for tourists. Yi Jin Jing training courses, coupled with hillside camping, sightseeing, local foods, have brought great benefit to the previously poor county.
1. What do we know from the first paragraph?| A．Yi Jin Jing is mentioned in Jin Yong’s books. |
| B．Shaolin Temple is the origin of Yi Jin Jing. |
| C．Health and fitness clubs have many kung fu masters. |
| D．Yi Jin Jing is the most popular qigong exercise. |
| A．By giving an example. |
| B．By following time order. |
| C．By listing the differences. |
| D．By analyzing cause and effect. |
A． | B． |
C． | D． |
| A．Yi Jin Jing, the Most Powerful Qigong Techniques. |
| B．The Origin of Yi Jin Jing. |
| C．Learn Yi Jin Jing, Be Superman. |
| D．Try Classic Qigong Exercise: Yi Jin Jing. |
7 . There are around 100 tribes(部落)that live in global isolation, mostly in South America and India. The Sentinelese have lived on one of the Andaman Islands in Eastern India for 60, 000 years. They protect their island by fighting against people from outside. Their language is different from any other known language. Another Andaman tribe is the Jarawa. In the past, they were independent and fought against anybody trying to make contact with them. But in 1998, the Indian government built a road across their land, and since then, they’ve had more contact with the outside world.
Some Amazon tribes avoid contact because of unhappy memories. The Mashco-Piro left their vegetable gardens after rubber companies killed most of their tribe at the beginning of the 20th century. Those who survived became nomadic(游牧的)and started hunting animals in the forest.
The Awa live in the Amazon forests ofBrazil. Out of 350 members, 100 have no contact with the outside world. They left their villages and adopted a nomadic lifestyle around 1850 to escape attacks by Europeans. In the following years, farmers in nearby communities started cutting the trees to expand their farmland. The Awa lost most of their hunting land. The few Amazon tribes that still exist are fighting to keep their traditional way of life.
Survival, an organization that fights for the rights of tribal people, says that uncontacted tribes are the most vulnerable(弱势的)humans on the planet and that’s why their environment should be unavailable to the rest of us. After years of pressure, the organization got Brazil’s government to clear non-natives from the Awa land. All non-Awa people are leaving so the tribe can get their forest back.
But some think it's impossible for tribes to stay isolated forever in a connected world. Contact will be made one day. So the question is：Whose choice should it be, ours or theirs?
1. What can we learn about the Sentinelese from the first paragraph?| A．They resist contact from the outside world. |
| B．They speakthe same language as the Jarawa. |
| C．They are wild about fighting with other tribes. |
| D．They have got help from the Indian govemment. |
| A．To protect their hunting land. | B．To search for food sources. |
| C．To avoid threats from Europeans. | D．To maintain their original way of life. |
| A．The tribes should be left undisturbed. |
| B．The tribes should fight for more living space. |
| C．The cribes should live in harmony with nature. |
| D．The tribes should adapt to the connected world. |
| A．The Nomadic Tribes in the World | B．Seeking Survival of Tribes |
| C．The Unavailable Tribal Environment | D．Protecting the Tribal Forests |
8 . Hikers, soldiers and school children all know the burden of a heavy backpack. But now, researchers from three Chinese institutes have developed a prototype(雏形) that not only makes loads feel about 20% lighter, but also harvests energy from human movements to power small electronics.
The new backpack, reported in ACS Nano, could be especially useful for athletes, explorers and disaster rescuers who work in remote areas without electricity, the researchers say.
Backpacks are widely used in everyday life for the hands-free carrying of loads. Over time, however, walking or running with a heavy bag can cause back and neck pain. Also, backpackers in wilderness areas or even those in cities who don’t have ready access to a charger might wish for a bag that could harvest the mechanical energy of walking to power portable electronics or health-monitoring sensors.
Previously, researchers have used triboelectric nanogenerators(TENG) –– small devices that convert mechanical energy into electricity –– to make energy-harvesting backpacks, but those bags had relatively low power outputs and they didn’t provide added benefits, such as load lightening or shock absorption. Zhong Lin Wang, Jia Cheng and their colleagues wanted to design a prototype that overcame these limitations.
To save labor and absorb shock, the researchers installed two elastomers(弹性体) into the backpack that stretched and shrank, keeping the bag steady as the wearer walked. This resulted in about a 20% reduced force on the wearer. Meanwhile, the movement between the frame of the backpack and its load during walking drove a TENG to convert mechanical energy into electricity, with 14% efficiency.
“The researchers showed that the bag could power LEDs, an electric watch and fluorescent tubes. Once some challenges, such as improving the energy conversion efficiency, are overcome, the backpack has promising potential as a power source for small-scale wearable and portable electronics, GPSs and health care sensors,” the researchers say.
1. Who will be the most probable users of the new backpack?| A．Doctors in the hospital. | B．Workers in the factory. |
| C．Researchers in the science lab. | D．People traveling to unknown places. |
| A．Provide some background information. |
| B．Make comments about the new invention. |
| C．List the disadvantages of the new backpack. |
| D．Compare TENG and the new backpack. |
| A．TENG. | B．Two elastomers. |
| C．Fluorescent tubes. | D．Health care sensors. |
| A．The new backpack could hit the market soon. |
| B．The new backpack needs further improvement. |
| C．Consumers are in need of chargeable backpacks. |
| D．The researchers have difficulty meeting challenges. |
9 . Google Cloud is racing to roll out new features and services aimed at helping its customers maintain business during the coronavirus pandemic, including a new security product expected to launch Tuesday. The new security product includes technology that could attract more businesses, especially those in highly regulated industries, to adopt cloud services. The technology protects data while it is being processed. “We wanted people comfortable in knowing they can move to the cloud and don’t have to worry about the security of their data,” said Mr. Kurian, chief executive of the unit.
Google Cloud accelerated the development of several features for its virtual meeting product, Google Meet, in April, including one that automatically filters out background noises such as keystrokes and dog barks. Another feature automatically adjusts a user’s video with lighting variations. In 2018, the company launched an AI tool for manufactures that automatically inspects products for quality.
Google Cloud also benefited from the protocols(协议) for Black Friday, when shopping websites see a rush of online shoppers, to deal with sudden more demand for cloud services. The protocols benefited the customers in online videogames, government services, education and shopping, who needed assistance in more computing capacity.
Also, the protocols benefited many companies. Godbole, chief information officer for home improvement company Lowe’s Cos., worked with Mr. Kurian and his team in March and April to manage increased business. Lowe’s customers were doubling on projects such as those related to home offices during those months, and “Our company saw tremendous demand,” Ms. Godbole said.
The coronavirus pandemic presented a new opportunity for Google Cloud to prove its value for customers, said Plummer, chief of research for cloud computing. “Google Cloud aims to differentiate itself by being known as a provider that can handle unpredictable events,” Mr. Plummer said. It aims to do that by offering secure remote-work tools and software development tools that require minimal coding. “Trust is built in times of crisis,” he said.
1. During the coronavirus pandemic, Google Cloud is working hard to ________.| A．start more highly regulated businesses. |
| B．help customers to save more money. |
| C．make people move to the cloud more safely. |
| D．remove data while it is being processed. |
| A．Produces. | B．Breaks. | C．Matches. | D．Removes. |
| A．To show the market needs the new products of Google Cloud. |
| B．To share the experience of Ms. Godbole’s company. |
| C．To offer an example of running a company in times of crisis. |
| D．To encourage people to follow the step of Godbole. |
| A．Insufficient. | B．Reliable. | C．Unpredictable. | D．Complex. |
10 . After Scott Kelly spent a year in space, his genetic expression changed, according to a NASA study that compared the bodily changes between the astronaut and his identical twin, who stayed on Earth while Kelly was aboard the International Space Station. About 7 percent of Kelly’s gene activity has yet to “return to normal” — almost two years after his yearlong spaceflight mission came to an end. Kelly has since retired from NASA.
The Twins Study，as it’s been called，looked at what happened to Kelly — both physiologically and psychologically :— before，during and after his trip in space，and then compared that data to Kelly’s twin brother，Mark Kelly，also a retired NASA astronaut.
Unlike his brother who spent months at a time in space，Mark’s missions were on the shorter side. His last — and longest — mission，which took place in 2011，lasted 15 days.
“By measuring large numbers of the brother’s metabolites，cytokines (代谢物、细胞活素）and proteins，researchers learned that spaceflight is associated with oxygen deprivation (匮乏）stress， increased inflammation (炎症），and nutrient changes that affect gene expression，” NASA said.
Although most of the biological changes Kelly experienced in space disappeared in the hours and days (and in some cases? weeks) after his return to Earthy, NASA said some changes appear to have continued. While 93 percent of his genetic expression has returned to normal, several hundred “space genes” still have changed activity levels，the data suggests， which, NASA said, could indicate “longer-term changes” in genetic expression caused by the stresses of spaceflight.
NASA said the research could provide important knowledge of the effects of long-term spaceflight on the human body, and that it will influence its planning for a mission to Mars, which would see astronauts spending some three years in space.
Reacting to the news of the study results, Kelly expressed amazement at his body’s changes， and also used the opportunity to make fun of his brother. “This could be good news,” he joked on Twitter. “I no longer have to call Mark my identical twin brother anymore.”
1. What can be learnt about Mark Kelly?| A．He’s still working for NASA. |
| B．He has only been to space once. |
| C．He hasn’t gone on a spaceflight mission yet. |
| D．He never stayed in space for a whole month. |
| A．They’re dangerous to astronauts. |
| B．Most of them won’t last very long. |
| C．They’re mainly caused by psychological stress. |
| D．Some can occur during short-term spaceflight. |
| A．It involved many twin participants. |
| B．It ended soon after Scott Kelly’s last spaceflight. |
| C．It only studied Scott Kelly’s physical changes. |
| D．It will be valuable to NASA’s Mars mission. |
| A．Mark Kelly will lose his twin brother soon. |
| B．Scott Kelly always looks on the bright side. |
| C．Scott Kelly doesn’t like his twin brother. |
| D．Scott Kelly seems to have a sense of humor. |
