2 . The use of AI (artificial intelligence) is becoming more common in many branches of industry and online shopping. Traditional lines of work, such as goods transport and driving, are developing in a similar direction although mainly out of public view. Scientists at the University of Göttingen have now investigated how efficient (高效的) the use of AI can be in the commercial management of trucks.

“Digital applications—as well as machine leaning, a kind of AI—are increasingly applied to operations and courses in the transport area,” explains Professor Matthias Klumpp from the Faculty of Economics. “The question in the commercial area, however, is whether or not this contributes to achieving goals.”

To answer this question, the researchers compared the work efficiency of truck drivers with their main use of AI applications. Looking at trade delivery by truck, they studied three groups: the first drove completely following human decision-making models; the second used a combination of human and machine; and the third depended completely on fully automated decisions.

The researchers found that an intelligent combination of human work and decision-making abilities with AI applications promises the highest transport and driving efficiency. “On average, the second group achieved the most efficient transport trips, with the fewest interventions (干预) and off-course from the best path.” one researcher said, “Clearly, neither a completely human decision-making structure nor a fully automated driving system can promise to meet current goods transport requirements.” The scientists therefore summarized that despite the progress of AI in the field of transportation by truck, human experience and decision-making abilities will still be necessary in the longer term. However, the challenge is that a wide range of training and qualification (资格) needs will come along by working with Al applications, especially for simple goods transport activities.

1. What does Matthias Klumpp focus on?

A．The efficiency of AI.

B．The advantages of AI.

C．The problems caused by AI.

D．The wide applications of AI.

2. How did the researchers get the finding?

A．By providing examples.

B．By making comparisons.

C．By using different trucks.

D．By listing three experiments.

3. What can we know from the last paragraph?

A．Al is better at making decisions.

B．A balance is needed between human and AI.

C．Human will soon be replaced by AI in driving.

D．Al applications meet the current requirements.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．The future of transport.

B．Artificial intelligence as a co-driver.

C．Artificial intelligence-a better choice in driving.

D．The strengths of artificial intelligence in transport.

3 . Have you ever heard about Black Friday and Cyber Monday? Surely, they are all about finding the best deals on holiday gifts for yourself and family members. And have you heard about GivingTuesday? Here is something about it!

GivingTuesday is observed annually on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, which encourages people to help those in need by making financial donations or doing good in their local community. The “Global Day of Giving” was started in 2012 by New York City nonprofit 92nd Street Y and the United Nations Foundation.

Unlike Black Friday, GivingTuesday serves a more altruistic purpose. In its first year, the movement brought in almost $10 million for charities, and things have only improved since. In 2019, many GivingTuesday social media campaigns worldwide helped raise an amazing $ 1.9 billion from 27 million donors! Over the past five years, many higher education institutions have also been using the Tuesday after Thanksgiving to ask alumni for donations. In 2019, the University of Michigan, which calls it Blueday, received 5887 gifts totaling over $4 million, while Pennsylvania State University raised $710 000 to benefit over 85 University programs.

Though donating money certainly helps, there are many other ways to support the great cause, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. You can video tutor kids struggling with online learning, or team up with an adult to get groceries or medications for an elderly neighbor. Alternatively, call on your peers to help you with a service project that addresses an issue close to your heart, or pick one from the several ideas suggested on the GivingTuesday website. You can also donate your gently-used clothes and toys to local shelters, or mail a handwritten note to a grandparent or a friend you miss seeing.

What are you going to do to make a positive difference in your community on GivingTuesday? Let us know by adding your comments below!

1. Why does the author mention Black Friday and Cyber Monday in Paragraph 1?

A．To make a comparison.	B．To lead to the topic.
C．To arouse readers’ interest.	D．To express his doubt.

2. What’s the aim of GivingTuesday?

A．To promote the development of economy.	B．To attract people to buy more holiday gifts.
C．To call on more universities to donate money.	D．To encourage people to help those in need.

3. What does the underlined word “altruistic” in Paragraph 3 mean?

A．Selfless.

B．General.

C．Specific.

D．Complex.

4. What is Paragraph 4 mainly about?

A．Where people can offer their kind help.	B．What people can do on GivingTuesday.
C．How people can stay safe during COVID-19.	D．Why people need to support the great cause.

4 . China has just officially opened its FAST radio telescope to international scientists. Scientists across the world can submit proposals for astronomical observations using the telescope.

FAST is short for Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (球面射电望远镜) and it is also believed to be the world's largest radio telescope and the most sensitive single-dish radio telescope. The receiving surface area of FAST is 250,000 square meters, about the size of 30 standard football fields. Its construction was completed in September 2016 and it officially began operating in January 2020.

The major scientific task of the telescope is the observation of pulsars (脉冲星) – the rotating neutron stars. The study of pulsars can help to confirm the existence of gravitational radiation and black holes, and help solve many other major questions in physics. Another scientific goal of FAST is to search for outer space civilization.

The telescope is located in a naturally deep and round karst depression in southwest China's Guizhou Province. The first advantage of the selected site is the altitude. The average altitude of Guizhou is about 1,100 meters, which maximizes the effectiveness of the observation equipment. Secondly, the radio telescope needs to have a “big pan” to receive better signal. The huge natural depression could reduce the amount of excavation (挖掘) and difficulty of construction. Moreover, the selected site in Guizhou is far away from cities, and has a small population, which reduces the interference (干扰) caused by wireless devices such as TVs, mobile phones and radios from human activities.

FAST has identified over 300 pulsars. Experts predict that the number could reach 1,000 in five years and that the telescope could locate and identify the first pulsar outside the galaxy. With the opening-up to international scientists, China's FAST is expected to make more contribution to astronomical research in the future.

1. What do we know about FAST?

A．It is opened to global scientists.	B．It is a project under construction.
C．It has provided service since 2016.	D．It has found a pulsar outside the galaxy.

2. What is the main task of FAST?

A．To study black holes.	B．To observe the pulsars.
C．To explore the sun.	D．To seek space civilization.

3. What's special about the selected site?

A．It's close to urban areas.	B．It reduces engineering amount.
C．It possesses a shallow depression.	D．It's at the highest altitude in China.

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

A．Major Scientific Tasks of FAST	B．Ways to Select the Site for FAST
C．Contributions FAST Has Made	D．Facts about FAST Radio Telescope

5 . The world has seen many inventions. While most people are proud of those associate with their names, there are things making inventors feel the other way.

The pop-up (弹出) advert, by Ethan Zuckerman

Pop-up ads are convenient for those who are interested, but most people get annoyed when they are on computers. They may contain computer viruses. Just as we would blame the inventor, the man humbly accepted his invention isn’t one of the best. In his essay, Zuckerman wrote about the most hateful thing, “I wrote the code to launch the window and run an ad in it.”

The emoticon, by Scott E. Fahlman

Emoticons began to occupy screens crazily in 2011 and gained great popularity, especially with young men. It had been four years since Fahlman first used a “smiley face” in a computer message. He created the emoticon as a joke marker. But things are different. “It has gone to places I don’t approve of,” he complained to The Wall Street Journal in 2013. “It shouldn’t have been created.”

The office cubicle (隔间), by Bob Propst

In 1968, Bob Propst came up with the idea office cubicles, something that “would build a futuristic and tidy office style with no real walls or doors and provide a more comfortable environment”. But the man has come to hate what he has invented, as Propst recalled to Fortune at age 80, “They’ve changed and just become cubicles”.

The K-Cup, by John Sylvan

It seems everyone has a Keurig coffee maker for K-Cups. John Sylvan invented the K-Cup, aimed at facilitating office life of white-collar workers. Now it’s common in houses and companies. However, the single-serve plastic coffee cups aren’t eco-friendly. “I feel bad sometimes that I ever did it”, Sylvan admits. But! Good news for Mr. Sylvan: Keuring now offers varieties of recyclable K-Cups.

1. When was the emoticon invented?

A．In 2007.

B．In 2009.

C．In 2011.

D．In 2013.

2. Which one was created for office workers’ convenience?

A．The pop-up advert.

B．The emoticon.

C．The office cubicle.

D．The K-Cup.

3. What do the above inventions have in common?

A．They benefit human life greatly.

B．Their creators are blamed by the public.

C．Their inventors feel regretful.

D．They are very popular with young people.

6 . Experts are warning about the risks of extremely picky(挑剔的)eating after a teenager living on a diet of chips and crisps developed lasting sight loss. Eye doctors in Bristol cared for the 17-year-old after his sight had gone to the point of blindness. Tests showed he had serious vitamin deficiency(缺乏). Dr. Denize Atan, who treated him at the hospital, said, “His diet was basically a portion of chips from the local fish and chip shop every day. He also used to snack on crisps and sometimes white bread and ham, and not really any fruit and vegetables.”

The teenager saw his doctor at the age of 14 because he had been feeling tired and unwell. At that time he suffered from vitamin B12 deficiency, but he did not stick with the treatment or improve his poor diet. Three years later, he was taken to the Bristol Eye Hospital because of progressive sight loss.

He was not overweight or underweight, but he had lost minerals from his bones, which was really quite shocking for a boy of his age. In terms of his sight loss, he met the standards of being blind. “He had blind spots right in the middle of his sight,” said Dr Denize Atan, “That means he can’t drive and would find it really arduous to read, watch TV or recognize faces.”

Dr Denize Atan said that parents should learn about the harm that can be caused by picky eating, and turn to experts for help. For those who are concerned , she advised, “It’s best not to be anxious about picky eating , and instead calmly introduce one or two new foods with every meal.” She said multivitamin tablets can supplement(补充) a diet, but cannot take the place of eating healthily. “It’s much better to take in vitamins through a varied and balanced diet,” she said, adding that too many certain vitamins , including vitamin A, can be harmful ,“so you don’t want to overdo it.”

1. What does Dr Denize Atan imply in paragraph 1?

A．The diet of the boy is not balanced.

B．Fruit and vegetables are rich in vitamins.

C．Picky eating is common among teenagers.

D．The cause of the boy’s disease is unknown.

2. Why did the boy go to see his doctor at the age of 14?

A．To improve his poor diet.

B．To get some help to lose weight.

C．To be treated for his discomfort.

D．To slow down his progressive sight loss.

3. What does the underlined word “arduous” in paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．Important.

B．Easy.

C．Necessary.

D．Difficult.

4. What does the last paragraph mainly talk about?

A．Reasons why the boy is seriously ill.

B．Suggestions for the boy’s family to care for him.

C．Advice for parents worried about picky eating.

D．Ways of taking in enough vitamins and minerals.

7 . As a classic love movie of the twentieth century, Titanic makes one scene a long-lasting cinematic shot: Jack let go of his hand and sank in the icy seawater, leaving the chance of living to his lover Rose, who finally survived on a wooden door debris (残骸).

More than 100 years since the disastrous event and more than two decades after the earliest release of the movie Titanic, there have been many “door theories”. Audiences debate heatedly over whether or not Jack and Rose could have both fit onto the wooden debris and survived. So, was there room for Jack?

In a TV program, hosts Jamie and Adam even did an experiment using an exact replica       (复制品) of the wooden piece from the movie, and the two proved that if they had tied Rose’s life jacket to the bottom of the door to strengthen its buoyancy ( 浮 力 ), they would have managed to stay afloat.

However, their conclusion was debunked when director Cameron said that the freezing water and Jack’s high temperature would have made the life jacket solution impossible. He also said that the debate is beyond the point the movie was trying to make, which is focused on the tragic love story of Jack and Rose, not physics.

The largest debris recovered from the real Titanic is now displayed in the Maritime Museum. The museum’s website states that a replica was once built for the movie based on the museum’s Titanic collection which was known as the “door” used in the death scene. Unfortunately, the size of the debris coupled with the weight of Rose on top could work, but not if Jack’s additional weight was added to it.

In a word, science has proven that Jack didn’t die for nothing and did indeed sacrifice himself to save the love of his life.

1. What’s the purpose of paragraph 1?

A．To lead into the topic.

B．To introduce a movie.

C．To raise a question.

D．To highlight characters.

2. What is the conclusion of Jamie and Adam based on?

A．The development of the plot.

B．A physics experiment.

C．The theme of the movie.

D．A heated debate.

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

A．Confirmed.

B．Opposed.

C．Approved.

D．Concerned.

4. We can infer that the movie’s ending is       .

A．unrealistic

B．confusing

C．reasonable

D．surprising

8 . Accompanied by her father, using a combination of aid and free climbing and taking advantage of some special equipment and ropes for protection, 10-year-old Selah made it to the top of El Capitan on June 12 after five days of big wall climbing.

Climbing the challenging and adventurous Nose route of El Capitan was a labor of love for Selah in more than one way. Her parents , Mike and Joy Schneiter, fell in love on this 3,000- plus-foot huge rock and she has always wanted to feel the way that her parents felt when they were up there together. Selah showed great interest in rock climbing at an early age. She wore her first rock-climbing equipment shortly after she learned to walk. She first dreamed of climbing El Capitan when she was 6 or 7.

El Capitan is a famous mountain-sized rock in Yosemite National Park. Getting to its top is no easy task. It's taller, as reported, than the tallest building in the world-Dubai^’s Buri Khalifa. El Capitan and its difficult Nose route, which runs more than 3,000 feet high up the center of the rock's face, is considered one of the world's hardest big wall climbs and has attracted the best climbers over time. But never before had a youngster accomplished it.

Selah's achievement caught national attention. Outside Magazine called her the youngest documented person to climb the Nose. Ken Yager, president of the Yosemite Climbing Association, said he also couldn't think of anyone younger who has done it.

Selah is humble about her El Capitan accomplishment. "I'm not necessarily a special kid or anything like that, she said. "There were a few times when I would be so worn that it would kind of discourage me from holding on. But overall, it was just great to keep plugging away.”

Selah shared this advice for other young climbers dreaming of big walls, "It doesn't take necessarily a super special person to do something like that. You just have to put your mind to it.”

1. What do we learn about Selah climbing El Capitan?

A．She began her climbing on June 5.

B．She got inspired by her family history.

C．She managed without any external help.

D．She was the first female to reach the top.

2. What is the purpose of paragraph 3?

A．To state El Capitan's height.

B．To prove El Capitan's popularity.

C．To introduce El Capitan's location.

D．To stress the challenge of climbing El Capitan.

3. Which of the following best describes Selah?

A．Determined.	B．Generous.
C．Warm-hearted.	D．Fortunate.

4. What may be Selah's advice for other young climbers?

A．Dream big and aim high.

B．Be committed to your ambition.

C．Chance favors the prepared mind.

D．Nothing is impossible for a genius.

10 . Bangladesh's floating gardens, built to grow food during flood seasons, could offer a continuous solution for parts of the world which are likely to suffer from flooding because of climate change, a new study has found.

Bangladesh's floating gardens began hundreds of years ago. The gardens are made from native plants that float in the rivers and operate almost like rafts (筏), rising and filling with the waters. Historically, they were used to continue growing food during rainy seasons when rivers were filled with water.

The farmers layer the plants about three feet deep, creating a version of raised-bed gardens that float in the water. Then, they plant vegetables inside those rafts. As the raft-plants rot away, they release nutrients, which help feed the vegetable plants.

But as climate change affected the volume of water in those rivers, the researchers wanted to understand whether Bangladesh's floating gardens could be a continuous farming practice. They interviewed farming families and found strong evidence that floating gardens provide stability, both in the amount of food available to feed rural populations and in a farming family's income.

They found that farmers typically use hybrid (杂交) seeds, which must be repurchased each year, to grow a diverse range of vegetables in the floating gardens. The gardens are also sensitive to pests, so farmers end up spending some money on both pesticides and fertilizers. But even with those expenses, they found, benefits outweighed costs. One farmer told the research team that he earns up to four times as much money from the gardens as from traditional rice fields.

However, before gaining profits, farmers often take out high-interest loans (贷款) to cover the investment costs of filling the beds and stocking them with plants. Luckily; there are also lower-interest loans from responsible government or non-governmental organizations, which could ease that burden.

1. How do vegetable plants grow according to the text?

A．By absorbing nutrition from raft-plants.	B．By taking shelter from climate change.
C．By living together with hybrid seeds.	D．By moving up and down with raised beds.

2. What might be a reply from farming families interviewed?

A．“Our life becomes tough when rivers flood.”	B．“Fewer vegetables are planted when water rises.”
C．“We harvest much more food during rainy seasons.”	D．“Climate change has little influence on our income.”

3. What does the underlined word “outweighed” in paragraph 5 mean?

A．Affected.

B．Brought.

C．Beat.

D．Equaled.

4. What can be inferred from the text?

A．A solution to climate problem has been found.	B．The gardens are built with rotted native plants.
C．Farmers earn more from traditional rice fields.	D．Low-interest loans lighten the stress of farmers.