1. Why did the speaker go on the tour?
| A．It was the prize of a competition. |
| B．John asked her to go with him. |
| C．It was her travel plan. |
| A．The drinks. | B．The food. | C．The waiters. |
| A．Disappointing. | B．Amazing. | C．Terrible. |
| A．She rode an elephant. |
| B．She went to the mountains. |
| C．She relaxed in the hotel. |
2 . Advances in AI and machine learning have sparked interest from governments that would like to use these tools for patrolling (巡查) purposefully before hand to prevent crime. However, early efforts at crime prediction have been controversial, because they do not allow for systematic biases (偏见) in police enforcement and its complex relationship with crime and society.
University of Chicago (UC) data and social scientists have developed a new algorithm (算法) that forecasts crime by learning patterns in time and geographic locations from public data on violent and property crimes. It has demonstrated success at predicting future crimes one week in advance with approximately 90% accuracy.
The new tool was tested and validated using historical data from the City of Chicago around two broad categories of reported events: violent crimes and property crimes.
The new model isolates crime by looking at the time and spatial coordinates (坐标) of separate events and detecting patterns to predict future events. It divides the city into spatial sections roughly 1,000 feet across and predicts crime within these areas instead of relying on traditional neighborhood or political boundaries, which are also subject to bias. The model performed just as well with data from seven other US cities.
Ishanu Chattopadhyay, senior author of the study, is careful to note that the tool’s accuracy does not mean that it should be used to direct law enforcement, with police departments using it to flock to neighborhoods ahead of time to stop crime. Instead, it should be added to a toolbox of urban policies and policing strategies to address crime.
“We created a digital twin of urban environments. If you feed it data from what happened in the past, it will tell you what’s going to happen in future. It’s not magical; there are limitations, but we tested it and it works well,” Chattopadhyay said. “Now you can use this as a model tool to see what happens if crime goes up in one area, or there is increased enforcement in another area. If you apply all these different data, you can see how the system evolves in response.”
1. What information would data and social scientists in UC collect?| A．Periods of traffic jams. | B．Items of lost and found. |
| C．Thefts and robberies on the street. | D．Casualty (伤亡) in traffic accidents. |
| A．Confirmed. | B．Modified. | C．Classified. | D．Abandoned. |
| A．The advantages and disadvantages of this new tool. |
| B．The principles and good performances of this new tool. |
| C．Positive feedback from some other experts in this field. |
| D．The hard process of Chattopadhyay’s developing this tool. |
| A．He does not think it’s accurate enough to put into use. |
| B．The limitations are to be removed for a better performance. |
| C．The police department can wholly rely on it to prevent criminals. |
| D．It can be of help when the authority make policies concerning crimes. |
Jenny was the only child in her family. She had a quarrel (吵架) with her mother that afternoon and she ran out of the house angrily. She couldn’t help weeping sorrowfully when she thought of the scolding from her mother. Having wandered aimlessly in the street for hours, she felt a little hungry and wished for something to eat. She stood beside a stand (货摊) for a while, watching the middle-aged seller busy doing his business. However, with no money in hand, she gave a sigh and had to leave.
The seller behind the stand noticed the young girl and asked, “Hey, girl, you want to have the noodles?”
“Oh, yes, but I don’t have money on me.” she replied.
“That’s nothing. I’ll treat you today,” said the man, “Come in.”
The seller brought her a bowl of noodles, whose smell was so attractive. As she was eating, Jenny cried silently.
“What is it?” asked the man kindly.
“Nothing. Actually, I was just touched by your kindness!” said Jenny as she wiped her tears. “Even a stranger on the street will give me a bowl of noodles, while my mother drove me out of the house. She showed no care for me. She is so merciless compared to a stranger!”
Hearing the words, the seller smiled, “Girl, do you really think so? I only gave you a bowl of noodles and you thanked me a lot. But it is your mother who has raised you since you were a baby. Can you remember the times she cooked for you? Have you expressed your gratitude to her?”
Jenny sat there, speechless and numb with shock: she remembered her mother’s familiar face and weathered hands. “Why didn’t I think of that? A bowl of noodles from a stranger made me feel grateful. Why haven’t I thanked my mum for what she has done for me?”
On the way home. Jenny made up her mind to make an apology to her mother for her rudeness as soon as she arrived home.
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。
Nearing the doorway, Jenny took a deep breath.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________At that time, her mother came back and touched her hair gently, which called her mind back.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________It was my tenth birthday and I would have the biggest party ever. The guest list began with a few close friends. But in the two weeks before that special Friday night, it had quickly grown from seven girls to a total of seventeen. Nearly every girl in my fifth-grade class had been invited to come to my house for a big celebration. I was especially happy when each guest I invited excitedly accepted the invitation. But as I later realized, I would truly treasure only one gift I received that night.
The family room was filled with shouts and laughter. We had just finished a game and were lining up for a dance when the doorbell rang. I hardly paid attention to who might be at the door. What did it matter? Everyone I liked from school was there, in my family room.
“Judy, come here for a minute,” Mom called from the front door.
I walked toward the front door, and then stopped. My mouth dropped open and I could feel my face turning red, for there on the front porch (门廊) stood Sarah Westly — the quiet girl who sat next to me in music class — and she was holding a gift.
I thought about the growing list. “How had I forgotten to invite Sarah?”
I remembered that I only added a name to the list when someone had shown an interest in me. But Sarah had never done that. Never once had she asked me about my birthday party. Never once did she step into the circle of kids surrounding (围绕) me at lunchtime. And once she even helped me carry my schoolbag while I held my science project walking to our third-floor classroom.
I guess I had forgotten to invite her simply because she wasn’t pushing to be invited. I accepted the gift from Sarah and asked her to join the party.
“I can’t stay,” she said, looking down. “My dad’s waiting in the car.”
“Can you come in for a little while?” I nearly begged (恳求). By now I felt pretty bad about forgetting to invite her and did want her to stay.
“Thanks, but I have to go,” she said. “See you Monday.”
注意:1.续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。
I had no choice but to say goodbye to her.
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Now, I realized that Sarah was my true childhood friend.
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5 . Superman Learns How to Ride
It was the summer of 1967, and the moment was nearing when I would cast off my training wheels and learn to ride a bike.
As an adventurous little boy, I sure put my overactive imagination to good use. I would pretend to be the bookish reporter, Clark Kent. Then, at the first sign of something wrong, I disappeared and emerged moments later with a red towel hanging from the collar of my dirty blue T-shirt and an ironed-on letter “S” on my chest.
“This is a job for Superman!” I would cry out as I flew to meet imaginary dangers that threatened the world.
“Hey, Superman, when are you going to learn to ride a bike?” the neighborhood kids would taunt as they rolled past. “The Man of Steel still uses training wheels!” they laughed.
As I watched them ride away, I realized I was being left behind. To claim my place among their ranks, I needed to cast off my training wheels and learn to ride with the big kids. I turned to my father for help.
“Okay, I’m going to let go, and you just remember to balance,” Dad advised patiently on my tenth try. Suddenly I was riding! I dared to smile as my father’s shouts of encouragement faded into the background. My smile widened. Victory was mine.
You are going to fall. The thought was at first a whisper and then grew louder and more convincing until I believed it must be true. After all, I had always fallen before. Why should this time be any different? Fear seized me, and my confidence weakened and I couldn’t grasp the handlebars tightly. Sure enough, I fell to the grass.
“You almost had it,” Dad said, catching his breath. “You are seized with a sense of fear so you fell.”
“I quit,” I said angrily, trying to fight back the tears of frustration. “I don’t want to learn to ride.”
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。
Paragraph 1: However, on thinking of Superman, I decided to behave like a real hero.
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Paragraph 2: I gripped the handlebars with strong determination.
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Holidays are not necessarily for fun or rest. Doing something meaningful can also gain special pleasure. When the final bell rang, the students were reminded that there was no school on Monday—the Labor Day. “Enjoy your extra day off” said the teacher to her class.
An extra day off unsuited Kayla just fine. She loved breaks. She wanted to go out to play with her friends. When the school bus dropped Kayla off, she ran into the house happily.
“How was school, Kayla?” asked her mom.
“It was great, Mom. I am excited about no school on Monday.”
“You just started back to school two weeks ago. Already in need of a break, huh?” asked Kayla’s mom with a laugh.
Kayla slept in the next morning. Saturday was her favorite day of the week. I trained most of the day, so Kayla enjoyed playing videogames inside. On Sunday, her friends came over and they played basketball for several hours.
Then it was Labor Day, you know, the extra day off that Kayla was so looking forward to. But Kayla was awakened early that morning by her dad. He told Kayla that in honor of Labor Day, the family would be cleaning both inside and outside the house. Kayla couldn’t believe it. This was a holiday. A day when she was supposed to be enjoying freshly squeezed lemonade while playing in her tree house. As Kayla wiped here yes, she began to wonder if this was just a bad dream.
“Kayla, your breakfast is ready. We have a lot of work to do today. Let’s get a move on,” said Kayla’s mom. As she sat down at the kitchen table, Kayla asked her parents，
“Are you serious about working today? Isn’t Labor Day a holiday?”
“Yes, Kayla. It is,” replied her dad. “But your mom and I thought working hard today would make you appreciate why Labor Day was observed in the first place.”
注意：1.所续写短文的词数应为150左右;2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
At first Kayla felt disappointed at her parents’ plan for the holiday.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________But things began to change as she was doing the chores.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________注意：词数150词左右。
After school one winter day, Jack’s mother told him to go out and play in the snow.
“But it’s so cold outside, Mother!” Jack said.
“Put on your coat and your hat and your gloves,” his mother said. “You can build a snowman before your father comes home.”
Jack said “I need a carrot for the nose and some things for the snowman’s hat and face.” With a bucket, Jack collected everything needed to decorate his snowman. His mother was watching him build the snowman from the window.
Outside, in his yard, Jack started with a small snowball. On his knees, he rolled the snow into a big ball.
At another window, his new neighbour Naoko was watching Jack play. Naoko asked her mother to allow her to do that. Though her mother was worried about her, Naoko was finally allowed to.
In her winter clothes, Naoko joyfully ran to Jack and offered to help him.
Jack was very glad and told her “My father will be home from work very soon.”
“Okay. What can I do?” Naoko asked.
“I have built my snowman’s body with two snowballs. I need to roll one more for my snowman’s head.”
“But snowmen only have two snowballs. One is for the body and one is for the head,” Naoko said.
“No, snowmen always have three snowballs,” Jack said. “I don’t think I need you to help me after all.”
Leaving Naoko alone, Jack rolled a third snowball away from Naoko to make his snowman’s head.
Naoko walked in disappointment back into her own yard and began to build her own snowman. She thought to herself. “I’m going to make my own.” Soon Naoko finished building her own in her own way, with her hat and scarf to decorate it and sticks and pine cones for her snowman’s eyes, mouth and arms. Her mother clapped from the window.
Jack made a hat for his snowman with his bucket. He used buttons for the eyes and mouth, a carrot for the snowman’s nose. After finishing, Jack’s mother smiled. His father was driving up the street.
Para.1 All of a sudden, the head fell off Jack’s snowman and crashed to the ground!
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Para.2 Together, Jack and Naoko rolled a new snowball.
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8 . You’re in the shower. You grab the showerhead. What do you do? You sing.
Have you ever wondered about this phenomenon? Some of us wouldn’t sing in public if someone paid us. Yet we’ll sing in the shower without embarrassment. Believe it or not, there’s a scientific explanation behind it.
First, let’s look at why we’re relaxed enough in the shower to burst into song. Think about it: you don’t sing when you’re sad (unless you’re singing the blues, of course). For many people, shower time is the only time they’re alone all day. You’re in a warm, small, safe environment. You’re comfortable enough to be yourself! When you relax, your brain releases dopamine (多巴胺), which can give your creative juices an extra kickstart.
Warm water is rushing over you, and now you’re relaxed and feeling good. It turns out that singing makes you feel even better. Singing, because of the breathing you put into it, gets more oxygen into the blood. This gives you better circulation, which in turn improves your body and mood. And because you have to breathe a little deeper to belt out a song, you get some of the same relaxation and mind-clearing benefits as meditation (冥想). Another neat thing is that when you’re singing, you really can’t think about your problems—more stress relief.
But the best thing about singing in the shower? The acoustics (音响效果)! You can never ask for a better sound system than a bathroom. Because bathroom tiles (墙砖) don’t absorb sound, your voice bounces back and forth around the room before fading away, which makes your voice hang in the air longer. And because the shower is a small space, it boosts your voice, making your singing sound more powerful. So you will sound better than you actually are, which is a confidence boost.
We don’t sing in the shower simply because we have “Call Me Maybe” stuck in our heads. It turns out we do it for many reasons: stress relief, happiness, great acoustics, or maybe just because we like to hear our own voices. Whatever the reason, keep it up. It’s good for you. And if you’ve never tried it, pick a song, grab the showerhead and put on your own private concert.
1. Why do many people feel comfortable singing in the shower?| A．The acoustics are perfect in public places. | B．Shower time is relaxing and private. |
| C．Singing boosts stress levels. | D．Showering improves vocal abilities. |
| A．Released dopamine due to relaxation. | B．Increased exposure to blues music. |
| C．Enhanced oxygen absorption from water. | D．Strengthened lung capacity. |
| A．The bathroom’s small size encourages relaxation. |
| B．Breathing while singing improves circulation. |
| C．Singing removes the need for deep breaths. |
| D．Tile walls absorb sound and stress. |
| A．Science. | B．Technology. | C．Culture. | D．People. |
A Modest and oveele Thanksgiving Feast
Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action. —W. J. Cameron
We had finally decided to skip our traditional family dinner and make the holy journey to Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade(游行)with our five-year-old daughter, Kerry. We never anticipated what Kerry would take away from the experience,or how it would affect our lives for years to come.
We caught the dawn train from Poughkeepsie to Grand Central along with hundreds of other excited celebrants. Like many other families we packed a small backpack with sliced turkey sandwiches and juice boxes;eating on the fly in New York City is expensive and complicated,unless you settle for pretzels and roasted chestnuts from a street food stand. Kerry was wide-eyed and a little overwhelmed. This was not her ordinary outing with Mom and Dad.
As the train pulled into the terminal(终点站),everyone rose and stood in the passage anxiously waiting to get off and head toward the parade route along Fifth Avenue. Rather than have our little daughter pushed roughly by the crowds,we waited until everyone had stepped off onto the chaos of the platform. As we walked up to the entrance to the terminal,Kerry spotted a homeless woman sitting in the shadows,invisible to all except my curious daughter.
“What’s that?”she asked. We looked at each other,caught off guard(措不及防)by the need to explain something very different than the happy scene we were about to join. During our first years of parenthood we’d discussed how we would explain such nearly ineffable topics as God death,and eventually sex and love. But homelessness?We weren’t prepared. We gave as simple and honest an explanation as we could find and continued on to the parade.
The following year,we decided to attend the parade again. So the night before Thanksgiving we went shopping for sliced turkey for sandwiches.
注意：
1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。
Again, Kerry caught us off guard.
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We arrived and found a homeless man sitting in the same spot as last year.
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In 2017 I graduated from a medical school and started to train the seniors for recovery as a therapist in the Brookdale Lake Senior Living Center where I met Hoffner, who had lived there for roughly the past decade, for the first time.
Hoffner, a lady of 104 years old now, grew up in Chicago and worked as a telephone operator for Bell Company for more than four decades. She never married or had children, but she enjoyed beach vacations and driving her small blue car touring all over the country.
She loved sports and was kind to everyone she met. She watched every Chicago Cubs game on a TV in her room and also enjoyed watching “MASH” runs. She stayed active, walking several blocks to the grocery store multiple times a week and going on walks to have a look at the neighbor’s dogs. She was known for carrying candies — Heath bars, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and dark chocolate — in her walker. She shared her candies with everyone she met, but she always kept some for me.
I remembered that afternoon I and one of my patients were figuring out when the meal was served when Hoffner invited us to eat supper with her in the dining area. Since then, we three ate dinner together almost every night and Hoffner started calling me grandson.
One night two months ago, I carelessly told Hoffner over dinner that I was going skydiving in Ottawa. When Hoffner said she wanted to go, too, I thought she meant as an observer. “No, no, no, I want to jump out of a plane,” Hoffner said. My heart sank because I knew clearly what it meant to jump from an airplane at about 13,500 feet high. It might injure her.
But she made up her mind and started to do everything to prepare for it. She went to the doctor to have a check and asked me to make a training plan. With her walker she kept training every day.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；2.开头已给出。
One day, I went to the dining hall and saw her sitting in a corner, sad and alone.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________“Jump,” with the order of the pilot, I jumped out of the plan e following her.
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