1 . One Concern is an AI company (人工智能公司) in California. It is using machine learning and AI to help firefighters. The company hopes its software (软件) can make exact predictions about earthquake damage. It can tell firefighters how to plan for an earthquake and how to do their jobs better when it happens.

Nicole Hu, a technology officer from One Concern, says the key is to feed the computers a lot of data (数据) about an area. The data may include information about homes and other buildings, the natural environment, and the size of an earthquake. The computers then use the information to make predictions about what would happen if there were an earthquake in the area. It then uses data from past earthquakes to see whether its predictions are any good, and changes its predictive models accordingly.

Gregory Deierlein, earthquake engineer at the Stanford University, says one of the most surprising things about the company’s software is its ability to make use of data from an earthquake as it’s happening, and to change its predictions in real time.

In the past, researchers would collect data after an event and a few years later they’d produce new models, says Deierlein. Now the new models appear in a matter of minutes.

Dan Ghiorso leads the Woodside Fire Protection District (区) near San Francisco, which covers about 32 square miles. He says in the past, when an earthquake hit, he’d have to make educated guesses (based on experience and training) about what parts of this district might be badly damaged and then drive to each place to have a look around. He hopes One Concerns’ software will change that.   “Instead of driving thirty-two square miles, in fifteen minutes on a computer I can get a good idea of the damage,” he says. ‘‘Instead of me taking my educated guess, they’re putting science behind the predictive models.”

1. What do we know about the software’s predictions?

A．They can tell people the size of an earthquake.

B．They are about when an earthquake may happen.

C．They are based on data from many different areas.

D．They can be made before and during an earthquake.

2. What is an advantage of the software according to Deierlein?

A．It can make predictions very fast.	B．It is sold at very low prices.
C．It has many different uses.	D．It can be used by common people.

3. What does the underlined word “that” in the last paragraph refer to?

A．How to save people during earthquakes.

B．How Ghiorso gets to know earthquake damage.

C．How to train firefighters to make guesses.

D．How Ghiorso looks at new predictive models.

4. How does Ghiorso feel about the new technology?

A．Worried.

B．Uncaring.

C．Hopeful.

D．Doubtful.

2 . If someone were to ask me what it is like to be a student now, I would probably answer them like this: being a student in today’s society is not always easy.

Adults often tell us that we don’t know what stress is. But we have our own levels of stress. Many students in their high school years start their first job, so now you have school in the mornings, followed by responsibilities at home and work. By the time you are done there, you are too tired to finish your school work, but you stay up late to finish and return to school feeling sleepy the next day. What good is that?

Let’s not forget about peer (同龄人) pressure. All high school students meet with it at some point in their lives. High school can be a place where students are made fun of, singled out and pointed at.

My point is: it is a whole lot more stressful to be a student in high school than adults believe. Our stress may not include paying bills, but I’m sure if the adults in our lives could go back to school today, they would be surprised at how much it has changed.

I admit that there aren’t good moments and memories while we are students. My mum always tells me to enjoy it while I can. I know that the world outside of school is often hard and that the responsibilities are serious. That’s exactly why I know that the focus I give to my future is important in leading me to a career that will allow me to contribute (贡献) to society.

1. What is the author’s attitude to high school students’ working part-time?

A．He is against it.	B．He feels proud of it.
C．He considers it worth a try.	D．He thinks it does them good.

2. What does the author think of today’s adults?

A．They are proud of high school students.

B．They expect too much of high school students.

C．They are more stressed than high school students.

D．They don’t fully understand high school students.

3. What does the underlined word “it” in the last paragraph refer to?

A．Stress.

B．Schoolwork.

C．Part-time job.

D．School life.

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．The roles of the youth in today’s society.

B．The stressful life of high school students.

C．The way to deal with stress of school life.

D．The differences between parents and high school students.

3 . “A lie can travel halfway around the world before the truth can get its boots (靴子) on.” said Mark Twain. In today’s Internet world of “fake (假的) news,” lies spread even faster and the truth is having trouble finding its boots.

To make matters worse, most young people get news from social media sites where facts are mixed with rumors (谣言), half-truths and complete lies. This has led to young people becoming confused. In the latest PISA, which tested 15-year-olds worldwide on academic subjects, fewer than one in ten of the examinees were reported to be able to recognize fact from opinion. A Stanford University study showed that students at all levels of education could not tell teal news from fake news. In one instance, 80 percent thought that a paid advertisement was a real news story.

Fake news is spread by people who have a prejudice (偏见). They want to influence public opinion either for or against something or someone. It is important, then, for young people to recognize when they are being used and to be doubtful about online information.

Traditional media, such as newspapers and television, are still the more credible sources of information. Reporters are professional trained to look for facts, and editors have the job of making sure those facts are correct. However, if you are getting most of your information online, you have to be your own editor. In that case, the first thing to do is to look at the writer of a post. Is this person known to be objective? Does the site where you read the post have a prejudice? Next, look for other sources from mainstream media to make sure the information. In other words, by putting on your truth boots you won’t be fooled into chasing lies.

1. What does the writer say about young people with news around?

A．They make fake news and spread it.	B．They are easily fooled by fake news.
C．They get worried about their education.	D．They can recognize facts from opinions.

2. What does the underlined word “credible” in the last paragraph mean?

A．Primary.	B．Realistic.
C．Believable.	D．Important.

3. According to the writer, what can help us avoid being fooled by fake news?

A．Only look for news through media.

B．Become a professional and trained reporter.

C．Compare the news from different sources.

D．focus on the new instead of the writer.

4. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A．What Should a Reporter Do?

B．Who Makes and Spreads Fake New?

C．How Can We Become a Newspaper Editor?

D．How Can We Stay Objective in Reading News?

4 . Like any new ninth-grader on the first day of school, Joemar Class had ninth-grader- emotion (情绪). He’s not used to school in Hartford. He’s used to going to school in his home town of Florida, used to seeing his friends, used to having class in Spanish.

“Nervioso,” he said in Spanish.

We first met Joemar in mid-October in the San Juan Airport. His father, Guillermo Class, had sold his car to buy plane tickets to get his kids and fly them up from Puerto Rico. The island was almost destroyed (毁坏) by the deadly storm—Hurricane Maria.

Now, they are settling into their new home in Hartford’s South End. A week later, using his wife’s car, Class drove 16-year-old Joemar to his first day at Bulkeley High School. After a short ride, he got out in front of his new school. Inside, he met Gretchen Levitz—the school’s program director.

“I see you have new uniform,” Levitz said. “You look great. Are you ready for a good first day? ”

Then he met couple of teachers.

“Hello” they each said in Spanish. They asked where he was from, and told him they were happy to see him. Then Levitz took him on a quick tour of the school before classes began — to her office, the school store, the library, and the dining hall.

A total of 19 languages are spoken in Bulkeley High School. “We have so many new students coming here from other countries every single day,” Levitz said. “So it’s not like he’s the only one who has that feeling.”

“You could tell he’s little worried,” Guillermo said as we left. “But, at the same time, he’s expecting it.”

1. What kind of feeling did Joemar have on his first day of school?

A．Nervous

B．Excited

C．Annoyed

D．Amazed

2. Why did Joemar leave Florida?

A．His old school closed down.

B．He wanted to see his mother.

C．He expected to have a new life.

D．His town was hit by a terrible storm.

3. What did Joemar do before he walked into his new classroom?

A．He had a long talk with his father.

B．He said hello to some of his classmates.

C．He learned some simple Spanish words.

D．He had a short look around his new school.

4. What can we learn about Bulkeley High School?

A．It has no library.

B．It is an international school.

C．It plans to open Spanish classes.

D．It requires all students to wear uniforms.

5 . 假定你是李华，你班的新同学Peter是一名来自英国的交换生。最近，他发来邮件告诉你很难适应新生活，感到很孤独，不知如何克服文化冲击，并因此感到苦恼。请你用英文回信给他，内容包括：
1．表示安慰；
2．提出建议。
参考词汇：文化冲击culture shock
注意：
1．词数100左右，信的开头和结尾已经为你写好，不计入总词数。
2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear peter,
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Yours,

Li Hua

6 . The whale, as big as a locomotive(火车头) jumped out of the water, spinning(旋转) as though for joy, before jumping back under the waves. We watched the scene(场景) silently in astonishment, never having been so close to such a huge, fast-moving creature. It seemed almost possible to count the small shellfish on the whale’s skin.

In early December, gray whales, blue whales, and others had just started heading around the tip of Baja California, Mexico, moving as a community from the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Cortez. It’s in that protected waterway that pregnant whales give birth to their babies. Other whale babies, born the year before, could be seen sailing behind. All whale babies get two trips like this with their mom before they’re ready to start having babies of their own and making the journey on their own.

We’re in one of several small powerboats, sent out by Scuba Caribe, which carries on such tours in Cabo San Lucas. The whales seemed to be, at times, less than 100 feet from our boat when they rushed out of the water. At other times, they would get much closer and swim beside the boat.

“What if one lands on us?” a woman next to me wondered. Fernando Del Toro, the Destination Manager of Scuba Caribe said, “We haven’t had any incident (事件) of whales jumping over our boats as we always keep our distance. We’re sure they themselves are probably careful not to crash into boats. Such an accident would probably also cause them much harm.”

“Everyone can enjoy this magical trip,” said Del Toro. “However, we do not recommend(推荐) it for kids under 5 years old,” he added.

Though conditions on the water vary, our trip was wonderful. Even when the boat sped up to catch up with the whales, there was little need to “hang on”, and some of us remained standing throughout most of the trip. Still, you may want to pack medicine for those who might get seasick while bouncing(颠簸行进) along the waves.

1. How does the author start the text?

A．By telling a story.	B．By asking questions.
C．By describing a scene.	D．By giving background information.

2. What is Paragraph 2 mainly about?

A．A description of the author’s journey.

B．A list of best places for whale-watching.

C．An introduction to the travelling of whales.

D．A suggestion on taking a whale-watching tour.

3. What does Del Toro say about whale-watching?

A．It is suitable for all ages.

B．It is much too dangerous.

C．It may cause serious damage to wildlife.

D．It should be done from a proper distance.

4. How was the author’s trip?

A．It was smooth in general.

B．It was tiring in particular.

C．It was destroyed by a storm.

D．It was terrible due to his seasickness.

9 . The Intelligent Transport team at Newcastle University have turned an electric car into a mobile laboratory named “Drive LAB” in order to understand the challenges faced by older drivers and to discover where the key stress points are.

Research shows that giving up driving is one of the key reasons for a fall in health and well-being among older people, leading to them becoming more isolated and inactive.

Led by Professor Phil Blythe, the Newcastle team are developing in-vehicle technologies for older drivers which they hope could help them to continue driving into later life.

These include custom-made navigation (导航) tools, night vision systems and intelligent speed adaptations. Phil Blythe explains: “For many older people, particularly those living alone or in the country driving is important for keeping their independence, giving them the freedom to get out and about without having to rely on others.”

“But we all have to accept that as we get older our reactions slow down and this often results in people avoiding any potentially challenging driving conditions and losing confidence in their driving skills. The result is that people stop driving before they really need to.”

Dr Amy Guo, the leading researcher on the older driver study, explains, “The Drive LAB is helping us to understand what the key stress points and difficulties are for older drivers and how we might use technology to solve these problems.”

“For example, most of us would expect older drivers always go slower than everyone else but surprisingly, we found that in 30mph zones they struggled to keep at a constant speed and so were more likely to break the speed limit and be at risk of getting fined. We’re looking at the benefits of systems which control their speed as a way of preventing that.”

“We hope that our work will help with technological solutions to ensure that older drivers stay safer behind the wheel.”

1. What is the purpose of the Drive LAB?

A．To explore new means of transport.	B．To design new types of cars.
C．To teach people traffic rules.	D．To find out older driver’s problems.

2. Why is driving important for older people according to Phil Blythe?

A．It keeps them independent.	B．It helps them save time.
C．It builds up their strength.	D．It cures their mental illnesses.

3. What do researchers hope to do for older people?

A．Ensure their safety with the help of technology.

B．Improve their diving skills.

C．Provide advice on repairing their cars.

D．Organize regular physical checkups.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．A New Model Electric Car	B．Keeping Older Drivers on the Road
C．A Solution to Traffic Problems	D．Driving Services for Elders