1 . Learning a Second Language
Some people learn a second language easily. Others have trouble learning a new language. How can you help yourself learn a new language, such as English? There are several ways to make learning English a little easier and more interesting.
The first step is to feel positive about learning English. If you believe that you can learn, you will learn. Be patient. You do not have to understand everything all at once. It is natural to make mistakes when you learn something new. We can learn from our mistakes.In other words, do not worry about taking risks.
The second step is to practice your English. For example, write a diary every day. You will get used to writing it in English, and you will feel comfortable expressing your ideas in English. Several weeks later, you will see that your writing is improving. In addition, you must speak English every day. You can practice with your classmates outside class. You will all make mistakes, but gradually you will be able to communicate in English.
The third step is to keep a record of your language learning. You can write this in your journal. After each class, think about what you did. Did you answer a question correctly? Did you understand something the teacher explained? Perhaps the lesson was difficult, but you tried to understand it.
You must be positive about learning English and believe that you can do it.It is important to practice every day and make a record of your achievements. You will enjoy learning English, and you will feel more confident in yourself.
1. To feel positive about learning English means ________.| A．if you are patient, you will learn |
| B．you can understand everything all at once |
| C．if you make mistakes, you can learn from your mistakes |
| D．if you believe you can learn, you will learn |
| A．be patient |
| B．make mistakes |
| C．express your ideas in English |
| D．understand everything all at once |
| A．It is very important to learn a second language. |
| B．Some people learn a second language easily while other people do not. |
| C．There are ways to help you learn a second language more easily. |
| D．Don’t worry about taking risks when learning a second language. |
| A．Diary. | B．Composition. |
| C．Poem. | D．Newspaper. |
2 . Self-driving vehicles (车辆) will rely on cameras, sensors and artificial intelligence (AI) to recognize and respond to road and traffic conditions, but sensing is the most effective for objects and movement near the vehicle. Not everything important in a car's surroundings will be caught by the vehicle's camera. Another vehicle approaching at high speed on a collision (碰撞) track might not be visible until it's too late. This is why vehicle-to-vehicle communication is undergoing rapid development. Our research shows that cars will need to be able to chat and cooperate on the road, although the technical challenges are huge.
Applications of vehicle-to-vehicle communication range from vehicles driving together in a row, to safety messages about nearby emergency vehicles. Vehicles could alert each other to avoid collisions or share notice about passers-by and bicycles.
From as far as several hundred metres away, vehicles could exchange messages with one another or receive information from the Roadside Unit (RSU) about nearby incidents or dangerous road conditions through 4G network. A high level of AI seems to be required for such vehicles, not only to self-drive from A to B, but also to react intelligently to messages received. Vehicles will need to plan, reason, strategize(制定策略) and adapt according to the information received in real time and to carry out cooperative behaviour. For example, a group of self-driving vehicles might avoid a route together because of potential risks, or a vehicle could decide to drop someone off earlier due to messages received, like a foreseen crowd ahead.
Further applications of vehicle-to-vehicle communication are still being researched, including how to perform cooperative behaviour.
1. What is the first paragraph mainly about?| A．The reasons for the accidents by self-driving vehicles. |
| B．The research about applications of self-driving vehicles. |
| C．The importance of artificial intelligence of selfdriving vehicles. |
| D．The reasons for developing communication between self-driving vehicles. |
| A．Alarm. | B．Judge. | C．Ignore. | D．Control. |
| A．It can improve bad road conditions. | B．It recognizes the vehicles on the road. |
| C．It takes control of the passing vehicles. | D．It serves as an efficient information station. |
| A．Importance of high-level AI. |
| B．Vehicle-to-vehicle communication. |
| C．Different kinds of vehicle communication. |
| D．Ways to improve our communication with vehicles. |
3 . Among the four skills in learning English, which one of these is the “odd-man-out”? The answer is speaking. The other three you can do alone on your own. But you can’t really speak alone! Speaking to yourself can be “dangerous” because men in white coats may come and take you away!
Where can you find people to speak English? And how can you practice speaking when you are alone?
At school—If you pay to go to a language school, you should use the opportunity to speak. If your teacher asks you to speak in pairs or groups with other students, try to say as much as possible. Don’t worry about your mistakes. Just speak!
Conversation Clubs—Many cities around the world have conversation clubs where people can exchange one language for another. Look in your local newspaper to find a conversation club near you. They are usually free although some may charge a small entrance fee.
Shopping—Even if you don’t want to buy anything, you can ask questions about products that interest you in a shop. “How much does this cost? ” “Can I pay by cheque? ” Often you can start a real conversation—and it costs you nothing!
Café and Bars—There are often American, Britain, Irish and Australian bars in many large cities. If you can find one, you’ll probably meet many people speaking English as a first or second language.
Language is all around you— Everywhere you go, you find language. Shop names, street names, advertisements, notices, and car numbers.... When you walk down the street, practice reading the words and numbers that you see. Say them to yourself. It’s not exactly a conversation, but it will help you to “think” in English. But don’t speak too loud!
Songs and Videos—Repeat the words of an English song singing with the music until it becomes automatic. It’s good practice for your memory and for the mouth muscles that you need for English.
Above all, speak as much as possible! Make as many mistakes as possible! When you know that you have made a mistake, you know that you have made progress!
1. What does the underlined part “odd-man-out” probably mean according to the passage?| A．Someone or something that can be easily mistaken for another. |
| B．Someone or something appearing different from the others. |
| C．Someone or something standing out of the group. |
| D．Someone or something arranged in pairs. |
| A．Because everyone will make mistakes in learning English. |
| B．Because making mistakes is a must in making progress in learning English. |
| C．Because everyone will meet people speaking English with some mistakes. |
| D．Because making mistakes can make one realize the importance of speaking. |
| A．To tell us that English is all around us. |
| B．To tell us that we can speak English alone. |
| C．To give us some advice on how to practice speaking English. |
| D．To tell us speaking is the easiest of the four skills in learning English. |
4 . Polar bears are not the only species in danger from global warming, a new report has warned. The US Center for Biological Diversity (CBD)claims 16 Arctic(北极的)animals are at risk from the melting ice as well as the polar bears.The animals have become a symbol of the environmental movement, as their numbers go down with the melting ice caps.
But they are not the only ones.A new report has warned that other animals are in danger of going extinct as well.Sea ice in the Arctic fell to its lowest level after records began in 2007 and scientists predict the area could be largely ice free in summer within 10 years.
Shaye Wolf, the lead author of the report, said Arctic foxes, whales, musk oxen(麝牛), walruses(海象)and four species of seals were all in danger—as well as polar bears.
“The polar bear is the best-known victim(受害者)of rapid melting in the Arctic, but if we don’t reduce greenhouse pollution, many more creatures will follow it down the path to extinction，” she said. “Some Arctic species have already experienced widespread die-offs and population becomes less after losing key habitats and food sources; others face extreme weather events or suffer new pressures from predators(食肉动物).”
The CBD is also afraid these animals could be in danger if mining for oil goes ahead in this area.It is estimated that eight of the world’s 19 polar bear populations are becoming less as they struggle to raise young and hunt for food on ice.
1. What’s the main idea of the passage?| A．Polar bears are the only species in danger from global warming. |
| B．Why all Arctic species are in danger of dying out. |
| C．We should take measures to protect Arctic animals. |
| D．Arctic foxes, whales, musk oxen, walruses and four species of seals were all in danger—as well as polar bears. |
| A．繁衍 | B．灭绝 |
| C．存在 | D．兴衰 |
| A．Nine of the world’s 19 polar bear populations are becoming less now. |
| B．Polar bears are in danger mainly because their food sources are disappearing. |
| C．If we don’t take any effective measures to protect these animals in Arctic, more and more creatures will die out in the future. |
| D．Sea ice in the Arctic fell to its lowest level before records began in 2007. |
5 . 
UPS (联合包裹) driver Ryan Arens was making his rounds near a pond in Bozeman, Montana, when he heard an unearthly sound. “Like a cry for help,” he told the Dodo. It was December 2019, and about 15 feet from the frozen banks was the source of that cry — a half-submerged brown-and-white wirehaired hound (猎犬), struggling to hold to a thin layer of ice. How she got there no one knows, but an elderly man was already on the scene. He’d entered the pond in a rowboat and was knocked at the ice with a rock to create a path to the dog. It was slow going, and Arens, 44, thought he stood a better chance.
“Animals are my weakness,” he told the Great Falls Tribune, explaining why he stripped (拆开) down to his boxers and socks, even though the temperature was freezing cold, and commandeered the rowboat.
His heart thumping, Arens slid closer to the dog and used the other man’s rock to smash away at the ice. He gave one strong knock and slipped off the boat, crashing into 16 feet of freezing water.
He resurfaced in time to see the dog going under. Using nervous energy to keep warm, he swam about five feet toward her, grabbed hold of her collar, and pulled her to the ice. He then boosted the dog into the boat and slid it back to the shore, where anxious bystanders carried the dog to the home of the rowboat owner, a retired veterinarian. Once in the house himself, Arens jumped into a warm shower with the dog until they both defrosted (解冻). A few more minutes in the pond, the vet told Arens, the dog would have likely suffered cardiac arrest (心脏骤停).
The next day, Arens was back working the same neighborhood when the dog’s owner came over to thank him for saving Sadie. “Would you like to meet her?” he asked.
He opened the door to his pickup (皮卡), and Sadie rushed out. She made a beeline for Arens, leaping on him and bathing him in wet kisses. That special delivery, says Arens, “was the highlight of my UPS career.”
1. The underlined word “unearthly” most probably means ________.| A．terrifying | B．strange | C．interesting | D．pleasant |
| A．He was skating on the ice. |
| B．He was rowing in the pond. |
| C．He was trying to save the dog. |
| D．He was walking on the path. |
| A．Why Arens fell into the water. |
| B．How Arens rescued the dog. |
| C．How dangerous it was in freezing water. |
| D．Who the dog belonged to. |
| A．She jumped on him. |
| B．She kissed him. |
| C．She ran directly to Arens. |
| D．She remained still. |
6 . America's greatest technological achievement, the Hoover Dam, now has a companion piece, a bridge held up by the longest arch in the Western Hemisphere (半球). The Mike O'CallaghanPat Tillman Memorial Bridge, which opened this month and connects the U.S. states of Arizona and Nevada, crosses the vast chasm (峡谷) 890 feet above the Colorado River that is controlled by the dam.
The striking 1,900footlong structure will improve traffic in the region and help protect the dam from being destroyed. It is the seventh highest bridge in the world, behind four in China, one in Papua New Guinea and one in the US state of Colorado.
“The Hoover Dam is the greatest civil engineering achievement in America's history,” said the bridge project manager Dave Zanatell. “Our goal was not to outdo or outshine it. Our goal was to, in a respectful way, do something that would be great for our generation and that would stand besides the Hoover Dam in a respectful and quality way that would become a part of Hoover's legacy (遗产).”
Just as the Hoover Dam was built in the heart of the Great Depression (大萧条) and was seen as an example of the nation's cando spirit, some hope this project can also provide some uplift.
The bridge is surprising: at 1,050 feet, its support arch holds up a roadway that lies on 300footlong concrete pillars (柱子), some of the tallest in the world. It contains 16 million pounds of steel.
The idea of the bridge came into being in the 1960s because the top of the Hoover Dam has been a narrow twolane road that is the fastest route from Arizona to Las Vegas and then the Pacific Northwest and Canada.
Access to the dam from each direction is a dangerously winding route, but massive trucks and passenger vehicles shared it for decades. During the day, when thousands of tourists travel to the dam from Las Vegas three times as many accidents as on a normal road will happen.
The bridge has a sidewalk on the side facing the dam. The wall on both sides is 54 inches high, so walkers can take photos there.
1. What is one of the purposes of building the bridge?| A．To protect the dam. |
| B．To save the cultures. |
| C．To outdo the dam. |
| D．To develop the tourism. |
| A．lift of the heavy object |
| B．support in money |
| C．spiritual encouragement |
| D．instruction in technology |
| A．the Hoover Dam |
| B．western America's development |
| C．a tour along the Colorado River |
| D．a recently built bridge |
7 . The way you learn most effectively will impact many different aspects of your life. Visual learners process information best when it’s presented with images drawn on a whiteboard, charts or graphs. Visual learners usually process pictures before they read printed text and are also able to visualize concepts quickly. People who are visual learners prefer when instructions are printed rather than given verbally (口头地), and may often write or draw when conceptualizing (构思、将……概念化) or attempting to make sense of a new topic. Many visual learners remember something better once they’ve written it down or drawn it out.
Auditory (听觉的) learners process information best when it’s said out loud, such as in a lecture setting or spoken presentation. These types of learners can easily recall what others say and prefer to talk through topics they find complex or difficult to understand. People who are auditory learners prefer verbal directions and may use repetition or repeat things aloud to memorize. They may ask questions to understand the subject matter better and may need to hear something repeated more than once before they fully comprehend. Auditory learners also often benefit from listening to recordings as a method of absorbing new concepts.
Kinesthetic (动觉的) learners process information through experience rather than by being shown or told. These types of learners prefer to do things that are more “hands-on.” They prefer to touch and feel items and can easily recall things they’ve done. People who are kinesthetic learners like to make and create things using their hands, and remember information best when they are physically involved. Kinesthetic learners like to participate in the process by shadowing or assisting, and prefer to practice or rehearse concepts as a way to absorb new information.
Take time to consider how you prefer to lake in new information. Think about the last time how you worked to ensure you retained the information? The answer to these questions will help you discover which learning styles work best for you.
1. What do visual learners do to form an idea in mind?| A．Visualize or read. |
| B．Process or present. |
| C．Recall or speak. |
| D．Write or draw. |
| A．Visual learners. |
| B．Auditory learners. |
| C．Kinesthetic learners. |
| D．Lifelong learners. |
| A．Reflect perfectly. |
| B．Watch closely. |
| C．Memorize carefully. |
| D．Inquire constantly. |
| A．To help readers explore learning styles. |
| B．To introduce effective learning methods. |
| C．To arouse readers’ curiosity about learning. |
| D．To inform a new scientific study about learning. |
8 . An extreme sport is a popular term for certain activities regarded as having a high level of danger. These activities often involve speed, height, and a high level of physical effort. In the past, young athletes would play baseball. Today，they want risk and excitement — the closer to the edge, the better. They snowboard over cliffs and mountains, or bike down steep mountains.
Extreme sports started as an alternative to more expensive sports such as golf. A city kid who couldn’t afford expensive sports equipment could get a skateboard and have fun, but now it has become a whole new area of sports, with specialized equipment and high levels of skill. There is even an Olympics for extreme sports, called the winter Xgame, which includes snow boarding. mountainbiking and ice climbing.
What makes extreme sports so popular? People love the risk. City people want to be outdoors on the weekend and do something challenging. The new equipment is so much better that people can take more risks without getting hurt. Sure there’s a risk. Once you go mountain biking or snowboarding, it’s impossible to go back to bike riding or skiing. It’s just too boring.
Now even the older crowd is staring to join in. Every weekend, groups of friends in their early 30s get together. On weekdays they work as computer programmers in the same office. On weekends they rent mountains together.
Extreme sports are certainly not for everyone. Most people still prefer to play basketball or watch sports on TV. But it has been a fact that, extreme sports are gaining in popularity.
Nowadays more and more young athletes are taking part in the risky activities.
1. All the following sports are Xsports EXCEPT _________.| A．ice climbing. | B．snow boarding. |
| C．skiing. | D．mountainbiking. |
| A．Risky. | B．Challenging. |
| C．Exciting. | D．Unskilled. |
| A．replacement. | B．activity. |
| C．equipment. | D．competition. |
| A．all young people like extreme sports. |
| B．playing basketball is still a popular game. |
| C．people prefer extreme sports to traditional sports. |
| D．bike riding and skiing are boring sports. |
9 . What is a hero? We may think of the fictional characters with supernatural powers or great people who can influence world events. Now, as the nation continues its all-out efforts to fight against the Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), medical staff have become heroes in the eyes of the public.
As of Feb. 19, a total of 32,000 medical staff outside Hubei Province have been working to treat patients around the center of the outbreak.
Zhang Dingyu, president of Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital, is one of these heroes. Since the hospital received the first seven patients in December, Zhang has been so busy that he barely gets any sleep. Even suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (肌萎缩性脊髓侧索硬化症), the 56-year-old doctor is doing his best to quicken his pace to save precious time for infected patients. “I have to run, racing against time to save more patients from the deadly disease, because I don’t have much time left in my life,” Zhang told Xinhua News Agency.
With the duty of saving lives, many medical professionals like Zhang have been working long hours for days, despite their fear and worry.
Lu Jingjing from Wuhan Children’s Hospital works at a temporary mobile hospital. She does not let her parents know that she is now working with 2019-nCoV-infected patients. When her parents ask for a video chat, Lu says she is working and lets her husband and children chat with them instead.
“It‘s dangerous but we should win the battle with the virus as soon as possible, so that medical staff and patients can go back home,” she told China Daily.
US writer Khalil Gibran (1883—1931) once wrote, “Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair, but the manifestations of strength and resolution.” It’s true for the medical workers.
Everyone has fear, especially when it comes to deadly diseases. But for medical staff, saving lives comes first and is enough for them to be brave and stay on the front. They may look like ordinary people in daily life, but in these extraordinary times, they are heroes.
1. What is the author’s main purpose of writing this article?| A．To explain what makes a modern-day hero. |
| B．To praise medical staff for their efforts to fight against the COVID-19. |
| C．To describe what measures China has taken to deal with the virus. |
| D．To show the difficulties faced by medical staff treating COVID-19 patients. |
| A．His illness has turned him into an impatient man. |
| B．His illness makes him work without fear. |
| C．He feels sorry for himself because of his illness. |
| D．He wants to help as many patients as possible. |
| A．She is too busy and has no time for video chats. |
| B．She doesn’t want her parents to worry about her. |
| C．It’s not allowed to make a video call from the hospital. |
| D．There is no Wi-Fi signal at the temporary mobile hospital. |
| A．Results. | B．Differences. |
| C．Signs. | D．Advantages. |
10 . A painting stamped with more than 4.8 million fingerprints and cost over 80, 000 yuan in paper has set the Guinness World Record for the largest fingerprint painting.
The fingerprint painting, named Descendants of the Dragon, was created by Kuang Xianpeng, a 35-year-old painter from Zhuzhou, Hunan Province. It describes a mix of nine Chinese dragons and six arts in ancient Chinese culture.
With a surface area of 1195. 14 square meters, 51. 526 meters long and 23. 195 meters wide, the whole painting used 685 pieces of xuan paper and took Kuang over two years to complete. It also took 40 volunteers two whole days to lay out the painting for Guinness certification officer to measure.
Kuang said it was a very arduous journey, and he had used up all his spare time to finish the work. “It was very hard to master the amount of strength you put in your fingers, ” he said. “You can’t press too hard or too light. Otherwise, your prints will blur. I have wasted over 300 pieces of paper due to blurred fingerprints. ”
The Guinness certification officer Luo Qiong said this world record wasn’t easy to earn. She said each fingerprint must be clear, the painting must have more than four different colors, and the distance between each fingerprint mustn’t be more than 1 centimeter.
The world record for this category had been broken 15 times since 2014, with the previous one set by an Indian with a work measuring 1, 188 square meters.
Before this painting, Kuang had spent 14 years in drawing a pen-and-ink painting of 247 meters long and 1. 6 meters wide, telling stories of historical myths. He also said he would never stop exploring more creative works.
1. What can we know about the painting created by Kuang Xianpeng?| A．It’s worth at least 80, 000 yuan. |
| B．It measures 1, 188 square meters. |
| C．It took him 14 years to complete it. |
| D．It consists of over 4.8 million fingerprints. |
| A．Difficult. | B．Satisfying. |
| C．Thrilling. | D．Frightening. |
| A．The colors of paints. |
| B．The amount of strength. |
| C．The quality of xuan paper. |
| D．The distance of fingerprints. |
| A．He is full of creativity. |
| B．He is full of imagination. |
| C．He is very courageous. |
| D．He is rich in experience. |
