1 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

The audience and viewership for this year’s Spring Festival TV gala, which was aired on Feb 9, Lunar New Year’s Eve or Chinese Lunar New Year, both reached record     1    (high), according to ratings statistics.

    2    (support) by ultra-high-definition production, the gala was telecast on TV screens, public large screens, and mobile devices. A total of 250 million people watched the live streaming of the show via     3    (they) mobile phones with the total views reaching 420 million, up by 37.97 percent and 57.58 percent,     4     (respective), compared with 2023. The China Global Television Network (CGTN) worked with over 2,100 media organizations in about 200 countries and regions to live broadcast or report the show in 68 languages,     5    (result) in over 1.5 billion instances of viewing,    6     increase of 12.69 percent year on year.

This year, the gala, in addition     7    Beijing, had four branch venues. Audience enjoyed a diversity of local cultural elements from those places, such as folk     8     (music) instruments and folk dances.

Since its broadcast in 1983, the annual CCTV Spring Festival Gala     9     (become) an essential part of celebrations in the country to greet the Chinese New Year. As a major entertainment during Lunar New Year’s Eve, the gala marks the joyous moment     10     families gather together to celebrate.

2 . “ Humans and machine algorithms (算法) have complementary (互补的) strengths and weaknesses. Each uses different sources of information and strategies to make predictions and decisions, ” said Mark Steyvers, UCI professor of cognitive sciences. “ We show through experiments that humans can improve the predictions of AI even when human accuracy is below that of the AI, and vice versa (反之亦然). This accuracy is higher than combining predictions from two individuals or two AI algorithms. ”

To test the framework, researchers conducted an image classification experiment where human participants and computer algorithms worked separately to correctly identify disorderly pictures of animals and everyday items including chairs, bottles, bicycles and trucks. The human participants ranked their confidence in the accuracy of each image identification as low, medium or high, while the machine classifier generated a continuous score. The results showed large differences in confidence between humans and AI algorithms across images.

“ Human participants were confident that a particular picture contained a chair, for example, while the AI algorithm was confused about the image, ” said Padhraic Smyth, UCI Chancellor’s Professor of computer science. “ Similarly, the AI algorithm was able to confidently provide a label for the object shown, while human participants were unsure if the disorderly picture contained any recognizable object. ”

When predictions and confidence scores from both were combined using the researchers’ new Bayesian framework, the mixed model led to better performance than either human or machine predictions achieved alone.

“ While the past research has demonstrated the benefits of combining machine predictions or combining human predictions, this work shows a new direction in demonstrating the potential of combining human and machine predictions, pointing to new and improved approaches to human-AI cooperation, ” Smyth said.

“ The blend of cognitive science focusing on understanding how humans think and behave and computer science in which technologies are produced will provide further insight into how humans and machines can cooperate to build more accurate artificially intelligent systems, ” the researchers said.

1. Which of the following may the research’s findings agree with?

A．Humans have poor performance in making predictions.

B．Humans and machine algorithms should work together.

C．Machine algorithms have low accuracy in calculation.

D．Machine algorithms failed in the classification experiment.

2. What method did the researchers use during the research?

A．Comparison.

B．Assumption.

C．Giving examples.

D．Analysing reasons.

3. What does the underlined word “ blend ” in the last paragraph mean?

A．Difference.

B．Combination.

C．Contradiction.

D．Advantage.

4. What may be the best title for the text?

A．Humans are confident of their predictions

B．Humans can improve the predictions of AI

C．Develop mixed human- machine model for smarter AI

D．Identify the strengths of humans and machine algorithms

3 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Bacteriophages (phages) and other mobile genetic elements (MGEs) exert an immense selective pressure on     1    (bacterium), which in response have developed a broad arsenal of defence mechanisms.     2     these, CRISPR–Cas (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats–CRISPR-associated proteins) is a group of widespread RNA-guided adaptive immune systems that are classified into two broad classes, six types and numerous subtypes according to their genetic composition and interference mechanism1. The CRISPR–Cas immune response starts with the    3    (acquire) of short DNA fragments (protospacers) from invading MGEs. The protospacers are inserted as spacers between repeats in the CRISPR array to create a memory of the infection. Next, the CRISPR array is expressed    4     a long transcript that is processed into small, mature CRISPR RNAs (crRNAs), each    5    (carry) a spacer sequence flanked by part of the repeat. Finally, the interference complexes, composed     6     a crRNA and one (class 2) or more (class 1) Cas proteins, degrade the complementary nucleic-acid targets that are often found next to a short protospacer-adjacent motif (PAM). The specificity and programmability of the CRISPR–Cas machinery     7    (lead) to the development of various biotechnological applications in genome editing, molecular diagnostics and more.

In the evolutionary arms race with CRISPR–Cas, phages and other MGEs have evolved diverse strategies to block or circumvent immunity. One widespread evasion mechanism uses protein-    8    (base) CRISPR–Cas inhibitors called anti-CRISPRs (Acrs). So far, more than 100 Acr protein families have been identified    9     inhibit different stages of the CRISPR–Cas immune response, mainly by interacting directly with Cas proteins. For example, Acrs prevent crRNA loading, effector-complex formation, and target DNA binding and cleavage. Notably, the discovery of these natural ‘off switches’ has presented new opportunities    10    (control) the activity of CRISPR–Cas technologies.

4 . General Art Contests

THE SUNNY ART PRIZE

Prize       A total cash fund of £6,000 plus an individual exhibition in London.

Entry Fee       £25 for one artwork, up to £45 for four artworks.

Requirements       Open to artists worldwide aged 18 and over.

Closing Date       June 30, 2024

One of the most diverse art competitions in the UK, the Sunny Art Prize offers unique exposure for both emerging and established artists.

BEAUTIFUL BIZARRE ART PRIZE

Prize       Over $50,000 in cash and prizes to be won. Plus, global exposure through Beautiful Bizarre Magazine. Winners will also participate in Beautiful Bizarre Magazine’s group exhibition at Haven Gallery in New York later this year.

Entry Fee       $40 per entry

Requirements       Open to artists worldwide working in the representational visual arts.

Closing Date       July 17, 2024

The Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize, now in its 5th year, is an annual international art prize that celebrates diversity and excellence in the representational visual arts.

MADE IN CALIFORNIA COMPETITION

Prize       $750 first prize, $500 second prize.

Entry Fee       $20 per entry

Requirements       Open to artists based in California.

Closing Date       February 16, 2024

Hosted by the Brea Gallery, the Made in California Competition provides a promotional opportunity for all artists based in the state of California.

ARTISTS MAGAZINE ANNUAL ART COMPETITION

Prize       Over $29,000 in cash prizes and publication in Artists Magazine.

Entry Fee       $40 ($35 if submitted before April 3)

Requirements       Open to artists over 18 worldwide working in a traditional medium.

Closing Date       May 30, 2024

Artists Magazine’s Annual Art Competition celebrates traditional 2D artistic mediums such as painting, digital art, and much more. All winners’ works will be featured in the January/February 2025 issue of Artists Magazine.

1. Which art contest offers the opportunity for a group exhibition?

A．THE SUNNY ART PRIZE.

B．BEAUTIFUL BIZARRE ART PRIZE.

C．MADE IN CALIFORNIA COMPETITION.

D．ARTISTS MAGAZINE ANNUAL ART COMPETITION.

2. How much should a contestant pay for a January submission to Brea Gallery?

A．$20.

B．$25.

C．$35.

D．$40.

3. What do these general art contests have in common?

A．They are held every year.	B．They are open to emerging artists only.
C．They provide winners with added bonus.	D．They celebrate excellence in traditional arts.

5 . The Benefits of After-school Activities

Your kid is asking for piano lessons, joining a soccer team or taking ballet classes, but you’re not so sure that your money will be well spent.     1     , read these next benefits of participating in hobbies outside the home. It might just convince you to book the first class.

Build confidence through creative hobbies

From arts and poem writing to music and crafts, there are lots of creative after-school activities available out there for kids of all ages. Not only do these classes stimulate your little one’s imagination, but they also encourage curiosity.     2     . Interacting with others, sharing, cooperating and solving conflicts are all added bonuses and they are all extremely helpful tools in building self-confidence.

    3    

These days, the fast-paced world we live in causes stress to us all, including children — and providing fun environments and spaces where they can feel safe and creative is an excellent idea to help your child reduce the stress.    4     . You have to aim to eliminate the stressors in your child’s life, regardless of the type of stress your child is dealing with, be it the case of shyness, social anxiety or pressure from school or home life.

Gain physical and psychological strength with sports

Avoiding childhood obesity has become a real issue in a world where kids spend more and more time indoors, glued to screens. But if your child shows any interest in a sport (even if just by watching it on their iPad), grab the opportunity and introduce after-school activities that focus on said physical activity. In these activities, your kids can also learn important lessons like respecting others and teamwork.     5     .

A．Reduce stress with after-school activities

B．Boost children’s enthusiasm and participation in class

C．When your kids spend 80 percent of their hours at school

D．Besides, they make your child more confident in the process

E．If you can’t decide about sending your kids to after-school activities

F．Choosing activities that don’t put extra pressure on your kids is also essential

G．Most importantly, your children can develop their mental strength while doing sports

6 . The AIDA model is the foundation of modern marketing and advertising practice. It outlines the four basic steps used to persuade potentials to make a purchase. The first three steps lie in creating attention (A), decorating interest (I), and building desire (D) for the product, before the fourth step — the “call to action” (A) — tells them exactly how and where to buy. AIDA can channel the customer’s feelings through each stage toward reaching a sale.

Attracting the customer’s attention is the first challenge and this may be achieved by using an attracting phrase or picture. Once someone’s attention has been clutched, it must be turned into real interest. This is best done by providing a brief description of the product’s benefits to the consumer rather than simply listing the product’s main features or problem-solving claims.

Now, it is time to transform that interest into a desire for a product or service. This is where consumers need to believe their lives could be better by possessing the product. It could be a vital step towards turning a potential into a real customer.

“Call-to-action” is where all of the initial hard work pays off and leads to the action from a potential customer. For example, they might pick up the phone to discuss the idea of a trial of the services or, alternatively, they may just buy that product or service that has been promoted to them all along.

And AIDA is used to great effect in the movie industry. Movie studios begin their marketing campaigns months in advance. The campaigns develop by offering attractive flashes of the movie without giving too much away. Desire is inspired by the release of the full preview which is fully designed to show the exciting moments of the movie, from special effects to humorous lines of dialogue on the opening weekend. Advertisements in newspapers and on television focus on the movie’s release, inviting the consumer to go and buy a ticket.

1. What is the purpose of practising AIDA?

A．To create jobs.	B．To increase sales.
C．To research markets.	D．To introduce products.

2. What does the underlined word “clutched” mean in Paragraph 2?

A．Seized.

B．Freed.

C．Cheated.

D．Affected.

3. In which stage of the AIDA model may a customer call to try the service?

A．Action.

B．Interest.

C．Desire.

D．Attention.

4. Why does the author mention the movie industry in the last paragraph?

A．To design an AIDA model.	B．To display how AIDA works.
C．To show how to make a movie.	D．To advertise the movie industry.

7 . 阅读下面材料,根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段,使之构成一篇完整的短文.

When coming to this city for high school, I moved into the new house with my parents. We were very grateful to the owner for renting us this house at a cheap price. The house was really comfortable to live in. It was warm inside and full of life outside.

A tree in the front yard attracted my attention, and all I could confirm was that it was a fruit tree. My father thought it was a fig(无花果) tree, and sure enough, as the months went by, the tree grew huge leaves and finally bore the fruit—figs, the size of my fist. How wonderful they were! I took many pictures of the fig tree. And then we wondered how to deal with the figs. My mother thought for a while and said, “Why not try making fig jam?” I responded quickly, “That’s a good idea!”

Jack, one of our neighbors, just visited us and asked if he could pick some figs from our tree. Certainly, we encouraged him to take as many as he liked. In fact, Jack was extremely polite and friendly to us. He introduced himself at the first sight of us. He always waved to me as he came home or as he left for work.

When I picked the figs with him, he told me about how he had been living in the house next door for close to twenty years. He said, “Bruce, the owner of the house you live in now, used to be my best friend. And we had planted this very fig tree a few years before he went to the nursing home.” I was amazed to know that we actually enjoyed the fruit of his work. He told me that he was so impressed by the quality of the fruit this year. I found a fruit box for him to put the figs in. Both of us enjoyed the pleasure of sharing.

When Jack set out for his home, I turned to my parents and advised doing something in return for Jack and Bruce’s kindness and friendliness.

注意:
1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答.

Finally, we decided to invite Jack and his family to dinner that night.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The next day, our family and Jack visited Bruce in the nursing home.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

8 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

As a young boy, I was carefree. Every vacation I looked forward to two things—seeing my grandpa and hearing his wonderful stories. My grandpa was a very good storyteller. He had worked various odd jobs when he was young and wove his adventures and misadventures into fantastic tales. These wonderful tales colored my childhood.

As I grew up, I had to admit that Grandpa’s stories went on a little long, even a little boring and gradually lost their magic. However, not wanting to upset him, my brother and I would sometimes take turns sitting in the living room, listening to grandpa tell his stories.

When my grandpa was approaching 91, he suffered from serious memory-loss. It was kind of what doctors called dementia (痴呆), probably the earliest stage of Alzheimer’s disease. Following the doctor’s directions, we moved him into a Sunrise Assisted Living Community, where he could get a better care. After that, grandpa hardly came to our house.

One weekend before my grandpa’s birthday, I came to visit him. Seeing grandpa sitting in his armchair, dull-looking, I was consumed with mixed feelings. I wheeled grandpa to the sunshine in the courtyard, talking to him. He couldn’t express himself clearly and spoke in short bursts, but I listened to him patiently and carefully just as I used to be a little boy.

It was then that I noticed a shadow box with some old and yellowish photos in it. I picked one up, in which my brother, several boys in our neighborhood, and I were playing basketball with grandpa cheering us on twenty years before. My mind flashed back to those beautiful memories. Back then, Grandpa was in good physical condition and we were all wearing basketball jerseys, playing and laughing with abandon. I presented the photo to my grandpa, pointing at each member and reminding him of their names. Incredibly, grandpa could speak out the name of every player. I even caught a soft light in grandpa’s eyes and a smile on his lips.

注意：
1. 续写词数应为150 左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

A bright idea for grandpa’s birthday came to my mind.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Seeing “the same players” playing there, grandpa seemed to have thought of something.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

9 . Once upon a time, my father and I got lost in a forest in France. I must have been about twelve or thirteen. Anyway, it was before the time when most people ______ a mobile phone. It was in the Loire Valley. About half an hour, my dad ______ the truth. “Oh, it seems that we’re lost.” We walked around and around in circles, trying to find the path, ______ with no luck. I could tell my dad was starting to ______, even as he was trying to hide it from me. We had been in the forest for hours then and both knew my mom would be in a state of absolute ______. At school, I had just been told the story of the hikers who had died in the wilderness and I found it easy to ______ that would be our fate too. “If we keep going in a ______ line we’ll get out of here,” my dad said.

And he was right. ______ we heard the sound of cars and ______ a main road. We were eleven miles from the village where we had ______, but at least we had signposts. And I often think of that strategy, when I am totally ______ — literally or metaphorically (比喻). I thought of it when I was in the middle of a ______, when my heart beat rapidly with ______ and didn’t know how I could carry on living. Walking one foot in front of the other, in the same ______, will always get you further than running around in circles. It’s about the ______ to keep walking forward.

1.

A．owned

B．borrowed

C．invented

D．promoted

2.

A．revealed

B．realized

C．told

D．faced

3.

A．all

B．if

C．yet

D．so

4.

A．complain

B．erupt

C．regret

D．panic

5.

A．terror

B．anger

C．disappointment

D．loss

6.

A．decide

B．announce

C．imagine

D．clarify

7.

A．simple

B．short

C．straight

D．similar

8.

A．Regularly

B．Eventually

C．Surprisingly

D．Generally

9.

A．chose

B．missed

C．followed

D．reached

10.

A．set off

B．passed

C．called at

D．lived

11.

A．lost

B．sensitive

C．angry

D．stuck

12.

A．term

B．race

C．performance

D．breakdown

13.

A．excitement

B．surprise

C．fear

D．interest

14.

A．way

B．cycle

C．direction

D．distance

15.

A．ambition

B．determination

C．inspiration

D．cooperation

10 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

China is a country with a rich cultural heritage (遗产)     1     (stretch) back thousands of years. However, with the passage of time and other factors such as natural disasters and wars, many of its cultural treasures have been damaged or destroyed. In recent years, China has used technology to protect its cultural heritage through digitalization so that it can     2     (preserve) for future generations to enjoy and study.

One of the most notable     3     (example) of China’s digital preservation effort is the Dunhuang Mogao Cave Project, the goal of which is     4     (create) a digital profile of the Mogao Caves with the help of 3D scanning and virtual reality software. Another example is the Palace Museum Project. Through the use of technology, the Palace Museum is now able to showcase the relics to visitors from all around the world     5     risking damage to the precious artworks.

Digital technology has the potential to aid in the restoration of damaged artworks. A 3D printing technology enabled Chinese researchers to recreate the cultural relics, including ancient Buddha statues and     6     bronze (青铜) lion from the Qing Dynasty.

    7     (additional), China’s digitalization of cultural heritage has been instrumental in research and education. The digital achievements have enabled researchers to study the artworks in greater detail     8     ever before.

Digitalization has made cultural heritage more     9     (access) to the public, particularly to people living in rural areas     10     would otherwise be unable to visit these sites in person.