1 . Ultra haulers are the world’s biggest trucks. They deal with rocks and dirt at places called surface mines （露天矿山). Workers use mining tools to dig up dirt and rocks, and then pour them into the ultra haulers. The haulers drive away to unload. Then they come back to get filled up again.
An ultra hauler is heavy! It would sink into the road if it were driven to the mines where it would work. So after it is built, it has to be taken apart again. The pieces are loaded onto trains or tractor-trailer trucks, and then delivered to the mine. When the pieces arrive, workers put the truck together again.
Today’s biggest haulers can carry 400 tons. That is the weight of about 243 cars. Even without a load, they weigh between 250 and 400 tons—the weight of about 40 elephants. If two of those elephants stood on top of each other, they would just reach the top of one truck. Hauler drivers have to climb stairs up to the truck’s cabs, nearly 20 feet off the ground.
Larry Conner test-drives （试驾） ultra haulers for a company building giant mining equipment. “Driving an ultra hauler is like driving a two-storey house,” Larry says. “You sit in your upstairs window, take the steering wheel, and start driving. It’s really great. ”
A few years ago, people in Sparwood, British Columbia, got together to save a special ultra hauler. It was the Terex Titan, the longest ultra hauler in the world. The truck had been used at a local mine for 12 years. Its huge engine cost so much to run that it had to be put out of use.
The coal company and the people of Sparwood did not want the Terex Titan to go to the scrap（废料)pile. They collected donations and volunteered their time to make the truck ready for display. Many visitors see the giant truck every year.
1. What’s the function of ultra haulers?| A．Digging in mines. |
| B．Unloading coal from trains. |
| C．Carrying rocks and dirt for mines. |
| D．Helping workers to operate trucks. |
| A．Its weight. | B．Its design. | C．Its pieces. | D．Its height. |
| A．Enjoyable. | B．Demanding. | C．Adventurous. | D．Scaring. |
| A．It was too old to use. | B．It was donated to a company. |
| C．It will be on show for some time. | D．It will end up as waste very soon. |
2 . My daughter Maggie and my husband Mark were united desiring for a dog on Maggie’s 11th birthday. I held different ideas. But why, they argued. “Because I don’t have time to tend a dog.” But we’ll do it. “Really? You’re going to walk her? Feed her? Bathe her?” Yes, yes and yes. “I don’t believe you.” We will. We promise.
They didn’t. From day two, neither of them thought to walk the dog. While I was slow to accept I would be the one to keep track of her shots, take her to the vet （兽医）, feed and clean her, Misty knew this on day one. As she looked up at the three new humans in her life (small, medium, and large), she figured out, “The medium one is the sucker in the pack.”
As the months went on, she and I developed a very comfortable relationship. Even so, part of me continued to complain about walking duty. Mark and Maggie had promised. Not fair.
Then one day about one year later, Mark’s doctor said an unthinkable word： cancer. With that, I spent ten hours a day with Mark in the hospital, doing anything I could to ease his discomfort. During the hospitalizations （住院）, Maggie adjusted to other adults being in the house when she returned from school. However, Misty still needed walking. My friends offered to take her, but I refused. Actually, I realize that I wanted to walk Misty. The walk in the morning was a peaceful time to gather my thoughts and the evening walk was a time to shake off the day’s upsets.
Unfortunately, Mark died with two years in hospital. After years of struggling, the joyous Misty always reminds me no matter how hard life is, there’s always some measure of joy to be gained from the moment.
1. What can we learn about the author from Paragraph1?| A．She was afraid of dogs at home. |
| B．She was crazy about her own work. |
| C．She showed no interest in others’ opinions. |
| D．She liked taking everything into consideration. |
| A．The vet. | B．The author. | C．Maggie. | D．Mark. |
| A．What she was able to do for Mark. |
| B．Who was willing to tend Misty. |
| C．How Maggie would get on with others. |
| D．Who would help her family out. |
| A．How to face a cancer. |
| B．Walking a dog is joyous. |
| C．Time can change one’s attitude to life. |
| D．Never forget enjoyable moments in difficulty |
3 . The ice around Alaska is not just melting. It's gotten so low that the situation is endangering some people's food and jobs.
“The seas are extraordinary warm. It is affecting the ability for Americans in the area to put food on the table right now,” said University of Alaska climate expert Rick Thoman.
Ocean temperatures in the Chukchi and North Bering seas are nearly 5°C above normal, satellite data shows.
“The northern Bering and southern Chukchi Seas are baking. And there are immediate local and economic influences along the state's western and northern coastlines. Birds and sea animals are showing up dead and sea temperatures are warm enough to support algae (藻类) to grow rapidly, robbing sea animals of oxygen and sunshine.” he said.
Many coastal Alaska towns are facing dire situation since they depend on fishing to support their economy and feed people who live there.
“Much of what the people eat there comes from food they harvest themselves,” said Brian Brettschneider at the International Arctic Research Center. “If people can't get out on the ice to hunt seals or whales, that affects their food security. It is a human crisis (危机) of survival.”
The warming is a sure signal of a warming planet, according to Brettschneider.
“This event is unquestionably a reflection of our changing climate. And this year's conditions will have a lasting effect. These extraordinary warm waters will take a while to cool off as winter approaches, and later and thinner ice is expected in the coming winter.” he said.
“What is happening in coastal Alaska is what is coming in one sense for everybody else,” he said. “Most people are feeling the effects of climate change even if they don't know it. Changes are happening, and changes will be more obvious. ”
1. Why is the food for people in Alaska at risk according to Rick Thoman?| A．The sea water is too warm for creatures in the sea. |
| B．Climate change causes the increasing death of sea creatures. |
| C．Fishers are forced to quit their jobs because of climate change. |
| D．Higher temperature produces poisonous plants that can't be eaten. |
| A．Inconvenient | B．Familiar. | C．Sudden. | D．Awful |
| A．Positive. | B．Curious. | C．Concerned. | D．Unclear. |
| A．People can do nothing to deal with climate change. |
| B．Climate change makes people in Alaska live a hard life. |
| C．More efforts should be made to protect the sea life in Alaska. |
| D．There are many reasons why the ocean in Alaska is warming. |
4 . It may sound a bit “Dr. Doolittle,” but it turns out kangaroos can communicate with humans. Researchers found that kangaroos communicated with humans “on purpose”--a behavior that was thought to only belong to domesticated(驯养的)animals, like dogs, horses or goats.
Experts from London's University of Roehampton and the University of Sydney set up a task. This task was known as “the unsolvable problem task”・ During the task, they presented kangaroos with food trapped inside a plastic container.
After trying, and failing, to open the boxes, the kangaroos turned their gaze(注视)on a nearby human - and sometimes even pushed or scratched(抓) them to ask for help, researchers said.
“Their gaze was pretty powerful, co-author Alexandra Green said. "We've previously thought only domesticated animals try to ask for help with a problem. But kangaroos do it too. If they can't open the box, they look at the human and back to the container. Some of them use their nose to push the human and some get close to the human and start scratching at him asking for assistance.,,
Based on these new findings, the team believe kangaroos - considered social animals, like dogs and goats --may be able to change their behavior to interact with humans.
“Through this study, we are able to see that communication between animals can be learnt and that the behaviour of gazing at humans to get food is not related to domestication lead author Alan McElligott said.
“Indeed, kangaroos showed a very similar pattern of behaviour we have seen in dogs, horses and even goats when put to the same test,“ McElligott added.
1. What have the researchers found about kangaroos?| A．Kangaroos can become domestic animals. |
| B．Kangaroos can communicate with humans. |
| C．Kangaroos can learn from domestic animals. |
| D．Kangaroos have the same habits as domestic animals. |
| A．Removed. | B．Hidden. | C．Kept. | D．Saved. |
| A．Observations. | B．Previous data. |
| C．Making comparison. | D．Making a survey. |
| A．Travel. | B．Education. | C．Technology. | D．Science. |
5 . When Mike Coots was 18, he lost his leg to a shark bite. It was near his home on the island of Kauai - a typical fall morning with friends. The waves were really good. Suddenly a large shark came right up under Mike and sank his teeth into Mike's lower leg and Mike felt no pain.
As he struggled(挣扎), the shark bit down harder. He beat the shark in the face again and again until the shark let him go. As Mike swam back into shore he realized the shark had bit his lower right leg off. Mike's friends rushed to his aid. The doctors later told Mike that's probably what kept him alive during the drive to the hospital.
As soon as Mike was given the OK by his doctors, he started riding the waves again. In fact, his first time back was near the site o£ his attack. Mike was unshaken. He was curious -why was he attacked?
His curiosity led him to research sharks, and while he never figured out why he became a target, Mike did learn something that would change his life: Humans are far more dangerous to sharks than the other way around. "I watched a documentary, and I learned about the fact that 70 million sharks a year are killed for their fins(鳍)alone.
He began working with the Hawaii state government to help pass a ban on shark-derived products. He also likes using his photos to spread the message about what's happening to sharks and why it matters. ^Sharks are here on earth for a very important reason, holding together the web of biodiversity, and without them, our seas cannot survive.,,
1. In the doctors, opinion, what helped Mike Coots survive?| A．His good swimming skill. |
| B．His struggle with the shark. |
| C．Timely treatment by doctors. |
| D．The first aid offered by his friends. |
| A．Nervous. | B．Strong-minded. | C．Excited. | D．Afraid. |
| A．He worked hard to protect sharks. |
| B．He was curious about many things. |
| C．He found out why he was attacked. |
| D．He made documentaries on sharks. |
| A．Curious and humorous. | B．Honest and confident. |
| C．Brave and caring. | D．Patient and adventurous. |
6 . In India, the country with the world’s second-highest number of Covid-19 cases, some hospitals have started to use robots to connect patients with their loved ones, and assist healthcare workers.
Bangalore-based Invento Robotics has designed three robots to carry out tasks including cleaning surfaces, answering patients questions and enabling video consultations (咨询) with doctors.
Of the eight the company has so far used? the most popular model is Mitra. Using facial-recognition (面部识别) technology, the robot can remember the names and faces of patients it has contacted. Mitra can travel around a hospital independently, helping patients connect with family and doctors via its cameras and a video screen.
“Mitra can be the nurse’s or doctor’s assistant, take readings and vitals, remind them of medicines,” says Balaji Viswanathan, CEO of Invento Robotics.
He says the human-like robot interacts with patients and gains their trust. “It may sound funny but we are using robots to bring humanity (Aft) to hospitals,” he tells CNN Business.
Yatharth Hospital in the city of Noida, northern India? has deployed two Mitra robots --one at its entrance to screen patients and the other in the ICU (intensive care unit).
“Inside our ICU, Mitra helps patients connect with their families through video and gives the patient’s family a look inside,” hospital director Kapil Tyagi tells CNN Business.
“Patients get happy and positive whenever the robot visits them. They are often taking photos with Mitra,” he says.
Viswanathan says Invento uses “best in class security“ for video feeds between doctors, patients and their families. For in-depth telemedicine consultations? a booth is built around the robot to give patients privacy.
1. What does the underlined phrase “carry out” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?| A．Change. | B．Judge. | C．Perform. | D．Design. |
| A．Mitra is very funny. |
| B．Mitra is quite helpful. |
| C．Mitra can act like humans. |
| D．Mitra has the latest technology. |
| A．Satisfied. | B．Lost. | C．Proud. | D．Worried. |
| A．How Can Robots Help Patients in India |
| B．Robots Are Welcomed by Hospitals in India |
| C．Robots Have Brought About Changes in India |
| D．Robots Join in the Fight Against Covid-19 in India |
7 . Having a light electric bike that can be folded(折叠) in to fit your backpack would be very practical, don’t you agree? Well, it seems Smacircle is the answer.
Inventors have created an electric bike called Smacircle which is not only as light as two newborn babies but folds up and fits in a backpack. The ebike can reach speeds of 20km/h and is controlled with a smartphone app.The ebike folds up into a backpack in less than ten seconds, by which time it’s no taller than 49cm. It weighs a little over 7kg and can be suitable for riders of different sizes. Powered by a 240W motor and built-in battery, this ebike allows you to ride up to 20km distance.
The first models have been made and tested, and its makers are seeking further investment with an aim to bring it to the mainstream market. Chinese designers believe it might change the way people commute (通勤) to work. They can avoid crowded public transport, simply go through heavy traffic, perfect to commute in the city when their destination is too far to walk yet too close to drive.
CEO Gavin Yang, from Shenzhen in China, said, Smacircle is a special creative design invented to fill in the gap in short commute personal transportation. Their team has spent countless hours on research and development, and are determined to bring the people the best possible solution for short commutes, he said.
As it has not yet hit the market, there is no price available. We have spent almost two years developing this Smacircle ebike and now we have made the concept a reality, said Mr Yang.
1. What is the main idea for the passage?| A．It mainly introduces Smacircle. |
| B．It advertises for the ebike. |
| C．Gavin Yang looks for business partners. |
| D．Gavin Yang has changed how people travel. |
| A．The bike is 94cm tall after you fold it. |
| B．You can ride within 20km with a full battery. |
| C．The ebike has been made a reality in the market. |
| D．Everyone can commute to work on the ebike. |
| A．Beat. | B．Cross. | C．Reach. | D．Affect. |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Worrying. | C．Unsure. | D．Positive. |
8 . By the rivers and under trees of rural South Auckland, New Zealand’s newest and most special school is in class. The weather is fine, so the students would go fishing, and then they would cook lunch on a wild fire. What about homework and lectures? No. “We are called a school but we look nothing like any school out there,” says Joey Moncarz, co-founder and head teacher at Deep Green Bush School.
Moncarz used to be a teacher in the traditional schools. After five unhappy years there in New Zealand, he stopped to found Deep Green Bush School, which was kind of inspired by the Sudbury Valley School in the US. Now It has a roll of eight students, and no classroom walls or tests. Most importantly, he considered that traditional schools were not preparing children for the global problems of the future – such as climate change, so Moncarz founded Deep Green Bush School, a completely different kind of education, based on the skills of hunting, gathering and survival.
The more traditional school skills, such as reading, writing and maths, are learned at students’ own pace, after they begin showing an interest in them. Not, says Moncarz, when the teacher orders it is time to learn.
“We don’t have what you’d traditionally consider problem kids,” says Moncarz. “Our parents saw their kids were unhappy and stressed in traditional education and they started questioning: is it normal or right for kids to come home stressed and unhappy?”
Moncarz insists that the school isn’t an “experiment” in education, and is based on two million years of evidence of how parents have raised their kids.
1. Where do students in Deep Green Bush School study?| A．In the classroom. | B．At home. | C．In the wild. | D．On the Internet. |
| A．To stop his unhappy teaching years. |
| B．To compete with the traditional schools. |
| C．To research how parents raise their kids. |
| D．To prepare children for the future global problems. |
| A．After teachers order study time. |
| B．After students have interest in them. |
| C．As soon as students come into the school. |
| D．As soon as students finish learning the basic skills. |
| A．All the students in schools are stressed. |
| B．Moncarz had fun teaching in traditional schools. |
| C．Deep Green Bush School is the first special school. |
| D．Some parents may be unsatisfied with traditional schools. |
9 . Welcome to the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival. Traditionally, the festival opens from Dec. 24th and lasts to the middle of February. But its official opening ceremony is usually held on January 5th each year. Here is a three-day-trip for you.
Day 1 Activities: Airport to hotel transfer
Driver Service (one-way airport to hotel): Fly into Harbin Taiping International Airport. Be greeted by our Chinese speaking driver who will take your luggage to your hotel. The rest of the day is yours to know about the city.
Day 2 Activities: Sun Island Snow Sculpture Art Expo, Harbin Ice and Snow World
Driver & Guide Service: At 09:00 am, we will drive you to the Sun Island, where the International Snow Sculpture Art Expo is held every winter. You can see different wonderful snow sculptures and choose to pay and enjoy some activities, like playing snow tubing, going dog sledding etc. Then visit the most important theme park of the ice festival – Ice and Snow World, which features interesting winter activities, evening shows and ice sculptures.
Day 3 Activities: Heilongjiang Provincial Museum, Central Street, airport transfer
Driver & Guide Service: At 09:00 am, we will pay a visit to Heilongjiang Provincial Museum. Then enjoy a free walk on the historical Central Street. Later, head to the airport for the flight to your next destination.
1. When can we go to the ice festival?| A．On December 20th. | B．On March 5th. |
| C．On February 28th. | D．On January 15th. |
| A．every day | B．on Day 1 | C．on Day 2 | D．on Day 3 |
| A．Playing snow tubing. |
| B．Heading to the airport by car. |
| C．Seeing all kinds of snow sculptures. |
| D．Visiting Heilongjiang Provincial Museum. |
10 . We are often told to pay attention to what our mothers tell us. Most of us enjoy listening to our mothers speaking. Scientists at Stanford University, US have found that compared to other people’s voices, our brains react strongly to our mother’s voices.
The scientists examined 24 children aged 7 to 12 and asked their mothers as well as two mothers whose children were not studied to record three nonsense words.“In this age period, most children have good language skills. We didn’t want to use words that had meaning because that would have involved(涉及) many different parts in the brain,”said Professor Menon.
The children’s brains were scanned while they listened to the nonsense-word recordings, produced by their own mother and other mothers. Even from very short recordings, less than a second long, the children could make sure of their own mother’s voice with greater than 97 percent accuracy(正确率). Hearing their mother’s voice makes many parts of children’s brains more active, including those about positive emotion and social communication.
Years of study has shown that children prefer their mothers’ voices and it starts even before they’re born. When children are still in the womb (子宫) or have just been born, they hear their mothers talking. This makes babies feel comfortable and safe and teaches them language and social skills, even though they are still very young. Later, when this sound is heard again, more attention is paid to it.
1. How many mothers were invited to enter the study?| A．12. | B．24. | C．26. | D．48. |
①Scientist scanned children’s brains.
②Children made sure of their mother’s voice.
③Mothers recorded nonsense words.
| A．①②③ | B．③①② | C．①③② | D．②③① |
| A．Because they can get a prize for doing so. |
| B．Because they enjoy listening to their mothers’ voices. |
| C．Because they can learn something and feel comfortable. |
| D．Because they can make sure of their voices more accurately. |
| A．Science. | B．Sports. | C．Family. | D．Health. |
