1 . Life will probably be very different in 2050. First of all, it seems that TV channels will have vanished by 2050. Instead, people will choose a programme from a “menu” and a computer will send the programme directly to the television. By 2050, music, films, programmes, newspapers and books will come to us in the similar way.

In many places, agriculture is developing quickly and people are growing fruit and vegetables for export. This uses a lot of water. Therefore, there could be serious shortages of water. Some scientist predict that water could be the cause of wars if we don’t act now.

In the future, cars will run on new, clean fuels (燃料) and they will go very fast. Cars will have computers to control the speed and there won’t be any accidents. Today, many cars have computers that tell drivers exactly where they are. By 2050, the computer will control the car and drive it to your destination. Also, by 2050, space planes will fly people from Los Angeles to Tokyo in just two hours.

Some big companies now prefer to use robots that do not ask for pay rises or go on strike, and work 24 hours a day. They are also easy to control. And they never argue with people. They can be easily used in a variety of places — factories, schools, offices, hospitals, shops and homes.

Scientists will have discovered how to control genes (基因). Scientists have already produced clones (克隆) of animals. By 2050, scientists will be able to produce clones of people and decide how they look and how they behave. Scientists will be able to do these things, but should they?

1. Which of the following best explains “vanished” underlined in paragraph 1?

A．Settled.

B．Spread.

C．Disappeared.

D．Decreased.

2. What does paragraph 4 intend to show?

A．Robots can work in different places.

B．Robots have much to be improved.

C．Robots work for humans for free.

D．Robots have many advantages.

3. What does the author want to express in the last paragraph?

A．He probably disagrees with the idea of human cloning.

B．He is looking forward to using of cloning technology.

C．The scientists have already discovered how to control genes.

D．The scientists will face many difficulties of controlling genes.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．High-tech Cars	B．Life in the Future
C．Is Cloning Really Good?	D．Are You Ready for the Future?

2 . When it comes to technology, adults won’t be able to keep up with their children. It took radio 38 years to reach 50 million people, but it took only 20 years for the phone to reach the same number, and 13 years for the television. However, it took Facebook 3.6 years and Twitter only needed 88 days. Over the last 15 years, digital communication has brought in more changes than the printing press did in 1570. And those most likely to use them in this world are teenagers, whose brains appear to have a great ability to adapt to the world around them, according to Dr. Jay Giedd, a brain expert.

We are now discovering that our brains during the teenage years are still flexible (灵活的). Having a more flexible brain means that certain functions of it , such as the ability to make long-term decisions, haven’t developed yet, which may also explain why we spend a long period living under the protection of our parents rather than leaving home at the age of 12 or 13. This also means that the teenage brain can adapt to new technology, allowing teenagers to keep up with the increasing pace (速度) of digital technology, giving them an advantage when doing different tasks.

As they look at these screens, they’re dealing with information. There are concerns about how social media is affecting the way in which the brain learns to socialize. Giedd says that a lot of what goes on inside our brains is social. Social interactions are being changed by technology - you could have hundreds of friends, all of whom are real people that you interact with and scientists aren’t sure whether we’ll be able to develop the same skills using social media.

There is an advantage to the growing digital trend (趋势)：YouTube shows that teenagers all over the world are watching the same things and laughing at the same jokes, showing that they are more global-minded than teenagers in the past. They are more open to other cultures, other countries, and other people.

1. How many years did it take for television to reach 50 million people?

A．38 years.

B．20 years.

C．15 years.

D．13 years.

2. What does the underlined word “ This ” in paragraph 2 refer to?

A．Teenagers’ brains are flexible.

B．Teenagers are protected by their parents.

C．Teenagers are good at doing different tasks.

D．Teenagers’ abilities to make decisions haven’t developed.

3. What does the trend of using YouTube show?

A．Teenagers prefer to socialize online.

B．Teenagers spend much time on social media.

C．Teenagers are now more open-minded than those in the past.

D．Teenagers are more likely to be attracted by the Internet than grown-ups.

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

A．Concerns about social media influence	B．Teenage brains in the digital world
C．Teenager-related technologies	D．Development of teenage brains

3 . Every time Oksana Chusovitina competes in a gymnastics event, she catches the audience’s attention. The Hangzhou Asian Games proved no exception. When the 48-year-old Uzbek gymnast took part in the event on Monday, thousands of audiences cheered for “Qiu Ma”, which translates to “Mother Chusovitina”.

“I’m touched by Chusovitina’s story. She tried to save her son and just never gave up. She is beautiful both as an athlete and as a mother,” said Zhang Anqi, a Hangzhou local who attended the event.

After completing her competition, Chusovitina blew a kiss to the audience and formed a “heart” shape with her hands. “It is the love and support of the people that keep me going and give me the strength to achieve more,” Chusovitina said. “I am not very satisfied with my performance tonight. Actually, I was a little over-excited. I will increase the difficulty in the final,” she added.

Chusovitina has a storied history at the Asian Games, having won eight medals, including two golds in 2002. Her Olympic journey began in 1992, representing the former Soviet Union. She later stood for Uzbekistan. When Chusovitina’s son got a serious illness in 2002, she chose to take German citizenship (国籍) to compete at global events for a higher income and better medical treatment. She took her Uzbek citizenship in 2013 again.

Her heartfelt feeling, “I dare not grow old until you are well,” has moved many. After her son’s recovery, Chusovitina continued her gymnastics journey simply out of love for the sport. Though she announced her retirement after the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, she decided to return shortly after. “The biggest power is my desire. I want to perform. I love gymnastics, and it brings me great joy. I’m just doing what I love, so why should I stop?” Chusovitina said.

1. What made Chusovitina a beautiful mother?

A．Her attractive personality.

B．Her determination to save her son.

C．Her being a good example to her son.

D．Her ability to balance work and family.

2. What is the main reason for her return after her retirement?

A．Her love for gymnastics.

B．Her strong desire to win.

C．Her joy of her son’s recovery.

D．Her eagerness for higher income.

3. What is the best title for the text?

A．Deep Love for Gymnastics

B．A Great Athlete and Mother

C．Chusovitina’s Return to Gymnastics

D．A Touching Story of Mother and Son

4 . 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。

29 outstanding Party members were conferred the July 1 Medal, one of     1     was Zhang Guimei. She founded a high school,     2    (offer) free education to girls in a less­developed area of Yunnan Province.

Zhang’s efforts helped nearly 2,000 girls go to college. She visited poor     3     (family) and persuaded them not to let their children drop out of school. This shows     4     educators should work with a greater sense of responsibility.

Another important lesson from Zhang’s story is that we should take a long­term view of rural education. Zhang has been working     5     (improve) education in rural areas because of her high degree of     6     (commit) and making the education of talents as her goal.     7    is because of the very goal that Zhang could overcome difficulties, and help the poor throw off     8     wrong idea that “education is useless”. It also reminds us that more efforts should     9     (make) to develop education in rural areas, and we should focus     10     long­term goals and interests.

6 . 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。

In the Palace Museum, visitors put themselves in an architectural complex full of characteristics of Chinese culture. To improve     1     (it) capacity for cultural exhibition, communication, tourism services and heritage protection, the Palace Museum made great efforts. It makes use of     2     (tradition) restoration (修复) techniques and modern science and technology.

With a research team, the Palace Museum has been finding     3     (variety) ways to protect the heritage. So far,     4    research team has combined 14 types of special monitoring equipment with independent intellectual property rights. The historical risk data is used    5     (study) safety risk assessment index system, risk judgment and early warning systems. After AI was introduced, the museum     6     (establish) a complete monitoring and response system and an emergency platform for the immovable cultural heritage.

And digital technologies     7     (apply) by the Palace Museum to protect cultural relics (遗址) several years ago. It has introduced 1.86 million     8     (piece) of cultural relic information, and has collected 1,500 3D models and high-precision panoramic images (全景图) of all open areas. It brought cultural resources to life and offered better digital services     9     Internet users. The Palace Museum is truly an amazing example     10     connects modern and traditional technologies to preserve the cultural heritage.

7 . Quietly sitting there reading, I found myself suddenly listening to the train guard’s announcements (通知). Train travelers will surely agree that when the guard (列车长) makes an announcement, whether it’s the recorded message or the guard’s message, few people listen to it, because it’s often quite dull or hard to understand. This one was different. I noticed that other passengers appeared to be listening, too. Not only that, everyone was smiling!

Why was so much attention being paid to this message? As best I can recall the guard said something along these lines, “Good Morning Ladies, Gentlemen and Children, this is the 7: 35 a.m. from Penrith to Central and you’ll be pleased to know that we are right on time. And what a lovely morning it is in Sydney today. The sun is shining, birds are singing, and all’s right with the world. I trust you have a great day wherever you’re going. Thanks for catching my train this morning and I hope to see you again soon.”

Quite a few people (obviously previous strangers) started talking to one another about the guards excellent message and how good it had made everyone feel. I started thinking about this, and then I found the young guard and said “Were you the guard on the 7: 35 a.m. from Penrith?” The guard seemed a bit stunned at first, replying, “Yes, yes.” “Well, I really appreciate your announcement. Thank you for your extremely good message, which gave me and the other passengers such a good start to the day. Please keep doing it.” I said.

There are two messages for me in what happened that day. Firstly, when people are happy in their work, it shows in what they do and say. Secondly, the story attaches much importance to the benefits that accumulate (积累) from thanking people for something they’ve done, particularly when it’s not expected. Can you imagine the conversation that guard would have when he got home?

1. Why do few train travelers listen to the announcements?

A．The messages are unattractive.

B．The guard’s voice is not clear.

C．They usually feel sleepy.

D．They are absorbed in books.

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

A．Patient.	B．Frightened.
C．Surprised.	D．Excited.

3. What might the guard talk about with his family when he got home?

A．The beautiful weather.	B．The recorded message.
C．The train from Penrith.	D．The unexpected appreciation.

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

A．An Intelligent Guard.

B．A Boring Train Story.

C．A Different Train Announcement.

D．A Lovely Morning in Sydney.

8 . 假定你是李华，学校英语社要举行“用英语讲中国书法”演讲比赛，你作为社长写一则通知。内容包括：
1．比赛目的；
2．书法的意义；
3．报名时间：12月30日前；
报名地点：学校礼堂。
注意：1．词数100左右；2．可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

Notice

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The English Club

9 . 短文填空

A committee was     1     to limit damage to the Egyptian buildings and     2    the loss of cultural relics. The group asked for     3     from different departments and raised    4     within the international community. Experts     5     the issue,     6     several tests, and then made a proposal for how the buildings could be saved. Finally, a     7     was signed, and the work began in 1960.

10 . 短文填空

Today, the Chinese writing system is still an important part of Chinese culture. As China plays a greater role in global     1    , an increasing number of international students are beginning to     2     China’s culture and history through this     3     language.