1 . Serbia is one of the most affordable destinations in Europe. Here are some beautiful places in Serbia that you can pay a visit to.

Mountain Avala

Overlooking Belgrade and topped with the Avala Tower in the Balkans, Mountain Avala is a must-visit spot that makes for a pleasant break from the capital’s busy streets. The Avala Tower is a tall telecommunication tower in this area which was rebuilt in 2010, offering the picture-perfect whole view over Belgrade from viewing platforms and a cafe for visitors.

Museum of Srem

The regional museum in the town of Sremska Mitrovica has a valuable collection in prehistoric, Roman and medieval periods. Its highlights are the numerous archaeological findings from Sremska Mitrovica, including a unique Roman sundial (日晷) with the sculptures of some figures.

The Gallery of Matica Srpska

The Gallery of Matica Srpska is one of the most significant and lasting cultural institutions in Serbia. It’s not a mere gallery but rather a national treasure, with several floors covering priceless Serbian artworks from the late 17th to the 20th century in different styles with countless landscapes and graphic art and more.

Uvac Special Nature Reserve

The spectacular meanders of the Uvac River are the highlights of the Uvac Special Nature Reserve in southwestern Serbia. The incredibly green river snakes through rocks in a zigzag manner—a feat of nature that is best admired from high above. The reserve, which also comprises a 6-kilometer-long cave system, owes its protected status to several hundred plant species, many types of fishes and rare bird species.

1. What can visitors do in the Avala Tower?

A．Visit an art gallery.

B．See a unique sundial.

C．Have a good view of the landscapes.

D．Admire artworks at the viewing platform.

2. What do the Museum of Srem and the Gallery of Matica Srpska have in common?

A．Cultural treasures.	B．Unique rocks.
C．Old floors.	D．Modern sculptures.

3. What makes the Uvac Special Nature Reserve special?

A．A protected statue.	B．A water system.
C．A green river.	D．A wildlife museum.

2 . Language School Advertising Tips:

How to market your ESL(English as a second language)school

Times have changed for the education industry. When it comes to how to advertise a school and utilize marketing strategies to achieve their goals, schools are now on a par with businesses of other industries. And it’s no surprise. The market itself has pushed toward this change —as parents now have a wider range of choices when it comes to selecting a school for their children. As a response, some schools are using smarter techniques in their language school advertising to thrive in the increasingly competitive market. Schools that have failed to develop and implement strong marketing strategies continue to lag behind. The industry does not wait around. That’s why we have created a marketing guide to help with your language school advertising and marketing. Let’s get your ESL school on the right track!
What does marketing look like in ESL schools and language courses? In language schools and language courses, marketing means, “Defining, managing and enhancing the reputation of your school amongst pupils, parents, staff and the community to achieve recruitment, retention and generating income.” In other words, find and refine your school’s purpose, share it effectively with the community, and your school has the potential to benefit academically and financially.
Of course, it’s not always straightforward. For example, language school advertising and marketing may consist of the following features: ·Writing and distributing press releases ·Creating, maintaining and developing a website ·Sharing examination results with the press ·Organizing parents’ events or open houses for prospective pupils ·Setting a uniform policy ·Maintaining the grounds ·Running various alumni campaigns
Your school may already implement some, if not most, of these practices for language school advertising. The key behind marketing and advertising is not only checking off this or any other list, but in finding a defined purpose of each act.
How can marketing help my school or language courses? ·BRANDING YOUR SCHOOL What image does your ESL school or course present to the community? Your brand is not merely a logo, but an entire experience of your school. As you carry out these marketing and advertising efforts, your brand and presence will get stronger. ·RECRUITMENT Recruitment is a vital aspect of keeping your school competitive. What is an ESL school without qualified instructors and promising students? What about knowledgeable office staff and volunteers? Reaching a wide audience and attracting the best in the industry will make a real difference in your school’s future.

1. From the passage, who is the potential target reader?

A．Joey—a website designer working for a language centre.

B．Samantha—a marketing manager of business.

C．Beth—an English teacher in a language programme.

D．Zoey—the founder of a traditional ESL school.

2. What is suggested by the passage if you want to promote your ESL school?

A．To avoid the qualified teacher shortage.

B．To save the popularization costs of the brand.

C．To build parents’ confidence to send their children to school.

D．To keep the teaching administration up to date.

3. The passage most probably appears__________.

A．on a website selling ESL courses

B．in a US report about curriculum evaluation

C．on the New York City board of education websites

D．on a website promoting language pre—packaged services

3 . Children’s Sci-fi Art Predicts Extraordinary Future

More than 80 sci-fi artworks are on display at the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum, showing a beautiful yet puzzling future. The “Brave New Sci-Fi World” exhibition features paintings and art installations (设备) by students from Shanghai, Beijing, Chongqing and other cities. They imagine the future as a world where robots and human beings co-exist.

Ru Chen, from Shanghai New Putuo Primary School, has pictured a robot chameleon (变色龙) to be used in outer space to aid in the search and rescue of human beings in case of danger.

Li Jiaqi from Guangzhou Dongfeng East Road Primary School has painted a city where advanced technologies are everywhere, and even the city itself turns into a large robot.

Huang Yanrui from Beijing Shijingshan Gucheng No. 2 Primary School imagines his rubber, pencil box and such stationery (文具) becoming conscious robots, and beginning to design future human beings.

Wang Zhihan, from Shanghai Shangde Experimental School and her schoolmates, stick electronic components on stone faces as a metaphor (隐喻) for the increasingly unclear boundaries between the reality and virtual world. “We hope to remind people never lose yourself in a world with advanced technologies,” she said.

The exhibition will last till November 4.

Opening hours:

Tuesdays-Sundays 9: 00- 17: 15; legal holidays 8: 45- 18: 30.

Transportation Guide:

Metro: Metro Line 2: Shanghai Science and Technology Museum Station.

Metro Line 4, Metro Line 6 and Metro Line 9: change to Metro Line 2 at the Century Avenue Station.

Bus Routes: Bus 184, 640, 794, 983, 984, 987, 1023, 640 inter-zonal bus will take you there.

1. Whose artwork is related with space?

A．Ru Chen’s.

B．Li Jiaqi’s.

C．Huang Yanrui’s.

D．Wang Zhihan’s.

2. Where does the student with an imagination of stationery robots come from?

A．Shanghai.

B．Guangzhou.

C．Chongqing.

D．Beijing.

3. Which line can directly take you to the museum?

A．Metro Line 2.

B．Metro Line 4.

C．Metro Line 6.

D．Metro Line 9.

4 . We’re excited to welcome you and your child to the world of ABC Reading Eggs!

Your child’s school has provided access to the award-winning online reading program for kids. The highly personalized learning journey will build your child’s reading skills at their own speed on a fun and safe digital platform (平台).

Your child can use ABC Reading Eggs and ABC Reading Eggspress at home on a computer. They’ll also have access to a huge online library of over 2.500 e-books to enjoy whenever they want!

To use ABC Reading Eggs at home, simply follow these steps:

1. Go to app.readingeggs.com/login.

2. Enter your child’s login (登录) details (see below):

Login name: angus13668                  Password: yearl

To create your own parent account, which will let you follow your child’s progress and receive reports, follow these steps:

1. Go to wwwreadingeggs.com.au/liukschool and sign up with your email address and chosen password.

2. At the “Link to School Account” step, enter your child’s login details (provided above).

3. Click on “Start” below your child’s name and you’ re ready to begin your journey!

If you have an existing account, simply select “Add another child” and under Option #2 (“Link a child with a school”), enter your child’s login details and click “Link child”.

If you have any questions, call our friendly customer service team on 02 8585 4020 or email info@readingeggs.com.

We hope you and your child enjoy the ABC. Reading Eggs journey!

1. What can be learned about ABC Reading Eggs?

A．It is famous for its well-decorated library.	B．It offers classes to adults at all levels.
C．It is an online reading program.	D．It owns an international school.

2. What should a parent do if he wants to receive reports?

A．Call his child’s teacher.	B．Create his own parent account.
C．Go to app.readingeggs.com/login.	D．Set up an email account for his child.

3. What is the type of the text?

A．An advertisement.	B．An announcement.
C．A lesson plan.	D．A guide.

5 . In a world where acts of kindness often go unnoticed, a good story that has been discovered reminds us of the power of care and the effect it can have on someone’s life.

It all started with a “Kindness Week Challenge” given to Brennan by his 8th-grade teacher, Ms. Watkins. Little did he know that this challenge would lead to a wonderful friendship with 84-year-old Ms. Ann.

Brennan’s promise to send his little attractive things every day for a week developed a habit of checking up on Ms. Ann and sending gifts regularly(定期地), long after the challenge was over.

Their friendship has now lasted for over five years, and Brennan still visits Ms. Ann every month with flowers, cakes, chocolates, cards and more.

They talk about everything from his high school life to his college goals. The pair has found that they share a common love of chocolates. Ms. Ann always hopes to hear about what he’s doing and loves to share her own stories from a different time. They have become the best friends, with Brennan treating her as his great-grandmother.

Brennan’s mom, Traci, takes pride in her son. She said, “The best thing a teenager can do is to take care of the elderly. I’m so glad my son has added more sunshine to Ms. Ann’s life. I hope he always remembers the joy he’s brought her, and his fun talks with her, keeps his kind heart, and thinks of others.”

Ms. Ann’s daughter Emma, with her husband Gould, has a 2-year-old son. They are thankful for Brennan’s friendship as they cannot always be with Ms. Ann. Brennan’s kind heart has brought more sunshine into Ms. Ann’s life, and her encouraging words have helped to inspire(启发)him in return.

1. How did the task “Kindness Week Challenge” affect Brennan?

A．He discovered his love of chocolates.

B．He became a good friend of Ms. Ann.

C．He developed a habit of receiving gifts.

D．He learned how to choose attractive things.

2. What do Brennan and Ms. Ann both like?

A．Flowers.

B．Cakes.

C．Chocolates.

D．Cards.

3. What makes Traci feel proud of Brennan?

A．His kindness to others.

B．His talent for telling stories.

C．His good performances at school.

D．His ability to earn money for the gifts.

4. How do Ms. Ann’s family feel about Brennan?

A．Worried.

B．Sorry.

C．Thankful.

D．Surprised.

6 . Orchid Island is a striking travel destination full of natural beauty. Due to popular demand, we’ve assembled two- and three-day tour packages to ensure you’ll see the best the island has to offer.

ISLAND ADVENTURES TRAVEL AGENCY

Package options and prices

Two-day tour $406

Three-day tour $606

What to expect

Our tour begins with a scooter(小型摩托车) tour around the island. In the late afternoon, it’s time to head to the beach for a wonderful snorkeling adventure. Finally, we’ll close out the first day by taking in an Orchid Island sunset over the Qingqing Grassland. The following morning, you’ll witness an unforgettable sunrise at Dongqing Bay. Later, you’ll travel around the island on your scooter and observe traditional Tao fishing boats. You’ll even have the option of rowing out to sea on one of these boats for a small additional expense.

The three-day tour costs an additional $200, but it’s well worth the extra expense. It includes a historical tour of traditional underground houses and a visit to the well-known Lover’s Cave.

• Both packages include round-trip boat tickets from Fugang Port to Orchid Island.

• Snorkeling equipment rental and professional instruction are included.

Reminders

Travelers are required to present ID at Fugang Port.

Travelers must have a scooter driving license for scooter rentals.

1. What can you do at the end of the first day of the tour?

A．Go snorkeling.

B．Camp at Dongqing Bay.

C．Ride a scooter around the island.

D．Enjoy the sunset over the Qingqing Grassland.

2. How does the three-day tour differ from the two-day tour?

A．It features scooter driving.

B．It gives tourists round-trip ferry tickets.

C．It involves a visit to the Lover’s Cave.

D．It includes boarding traditional fishing boats.

3. Which of the following is left out of the tour prices?

A．Receiving professional instruction.	B．Rowing a traditional boat out to sea.
C．Renting snorkeling equipment.	D．Renting a scooter.

7 . When I woke up, I made myself breakfast, sat and listened to the traffic. Some of my friends asked me how I could stand living somewhere so noisy. It’s true that there’s always some kinds of noise in my neighborhood, but to me, these are the sounds of life.

It was Saturday morning, so I decided to go to the park. The taxi was the fastest way to go but I took the bus instead.

When you ride the bus, you get to see so much more of the city. It can be kind of loud on the bus, with some people talking on their phones, some people chatting with their friends, and others playing music. It’s just like the traffic’s sounds, though the noise on the bus represents people working, relaxing and living.

Once I got to the park, I picked a bench over near the play area where kids played while their parents sat nearby. I could see and hear almost everything from there. People­watching is one of my favorite things to do. However, I like listening even better. The only problem is that there’s so much to see and hear in the park!

Usually, I like to close my eyes. That way, I can pay more attention to the sounds and not get distracted by what I see. With my eyes closed, I could pick out parts of two old men’s conversation. One of them was telling the other about something his grandson said. I couldn’t hear the rest, but it must be hilarious because his friend’s laugh was so loud.

When I’m old, I hope that I will also have a friend who will sit in the park with me, and who will enjoy listening to the sounds of the city as much as I do.

1. Some of the author’s friends think “the sounds of life” are very________.

A．unpleasant	B．unique
C．magical	D．interesting

2. The author took the bus to the park because________.

A．there was no other transport to go there

B．he wanted to see more about people’s life

C．it was the most convenient way

D．his friend advised him to do so

3. The author closed his eyes in order to ________.

A．have a good rest

B．hide himself from view

C．enjoy the sounds of life

D．avoid talking with the two old men

4. The underlined word “hilarious” in Paragraph 5 probably means “________”.

A．truly different	B．quite popular
C．rather strange	D．extremely funny

8 . Artificial intelligence (AI ) has been increasingly good at fooling people. A series of photos showing former US president Donald Trump being aggressively arrested by police have caught people’s attention. They were fake but very convincing.

Created by the AI program Midjourney, the photos were highly realistic, from the characters’ movements to the surroundings. However, many details can give away the fact that they are made by AI. The Washington Post’s technology writer Shira Ovide shared her tips. The main idea is to spot the problems anything that would look strange in a photo.

AI software has a history of generating human hands incorrectly. It sometimes can create hands with more than five fingers. This is because AI isn’t sure what a “hand” exactly is, according to Popular Science. The data AI uses to learn often show hands and fingers in various gestures, which can be very confusing for AI.

AI-generated images also usually contain details that are against reality. To spot this, focus on items like accessories. For example, people in an image may be missing earrings or one part of their sunglasses. If there’s text in an image, such as a newspaper or poster, it’s usually garbled (篡改), even though the text may look realistic from a distance.

Another thing AI is terrible at handling is the background. If there’s a crowd in the image, people’s faces in the background are usually blurry - or they don’t have faces at all!

The development of AI-generated art also raises alarm bells about how these fake images could be used to spread misinformation. “I think misinformation is going to hit an all-time high,” Jamie Cohen, a digital culture and AI expert in the US, told New York Post. Generating an AI artwork is to “create reality”, Cohen argued, adding that, being able to tell whether the work is real or not requires high media literacy(素养) skills. “The world may not be ready for how realistic the images have become,” Shane Kittelson, a US researcher, told The Washington Post.

1. Why are Donald Trump’s photos mentioned in the first paragraph?

A．To draw more people’s attention.

B．To make people convinced of the news.

C．To show the AI-generated images were fake.

D．To prove that it’s easy for AI to cheat people.

2. Why does AI generate human hands incorrectly according to the text?

A．It is unable to recognize human hands.

B．The data it uses to learn contain errors.

C．It doesn’t fully understand human hands.

D．It has insufficient data about human hands.

3. Which of the following will Jamie Cohen agree with?

A．AI artworks may not be reflective of true creativity.

B．It’s high time to address the risks posed by AI works.

C．AI artworks will replace traditional art forms in the future.

D．Detecting real art demands strong media literacy competence.

4. Where is the text probably from?

A．A news report.	B．A diary.
C．A research paper.	D．A science fiction.

9 . A new citizen-science project will improve the chances of finding ET

Ever since 1993, when funding from America’s space agency, NASA, was cut, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, which scans the sky looking for radio signals from intelligent aliens, has been inventive in its methods. In particular, it was one of the pioneers of the field of citizen science.    1    

In 1999 it started SETI home, an application that uses spare processing power on volunteers’ computers to filter the information generated by its radio telescopes. These days, SETI home boasts more than one million users.

On February 29th the SETI Institute launched another citizen-science project. This time, though, its researchers are less interested in the digital computers on volunteers’ desks than in the biological ones between their ears.    2    It is expected to distinguish interesting signals from the noise of interference generated by the inhabitants of planet Earth—and to do so in real time.

    3    To do this, the SETI Institute use san instrument called the Allen Telescope Array—a group of 42 small radio-telescope dishes in California, partly paid for by the co-founder of Microsoft.

Unfortunately, some parts of the radio covering scope are full of signals created by Earthlings, rather than aliens. Everything from passing satellites and space junk to ground-based radar and even the starting systems of nearby cars can generate fake radio waves that confuse the software.    4    

But SETILive will bring them into play.    5    It is hoped that they will be able to filter out the noise and spot potentially interesting signals buried behind the radio mass from Earth. “Those interesting signals will not necessarily have come from alien civilisations.” says Chris Lintott, an astrophysicist at Oxford University who helps to run Zooniverse, a citizen-science website that manages several projects, including SETILive.

A．That’s where interested amateurs help professionals process data.

B．Rather than examining on stored data, aliens are hunted on the fly.

C．Volunteers working on SETIhome have found plenty of interesting signals.

D．It will do so by feeding data from these noisy parts of the scope to its users.

E．SETI is to detect distinctive radio-frequency emissions from advanced aliens.

F．Until now, the project has tackled it by ignoring the crowded bits of the scope.

G．SETI Live, as the project is called, uses brain capacity to solve a lingering headache.

10 . A worldwide shift from fossil fuel-powered cars to electric vehicles could significantly reduce the amount of carbon dioxide that humans emit to the atmosphere. But current strategies for vehicle electrification (电气化) can also shift some pollution to communities already suffering under higher economic, health and environmental burdens, researchers warn.

California, which leads the United States by a mile when it comes to EV adoption, offers a window into this evolving problem. The state is aggressively seeking to reduce its carbon footprint and has made substantial increases in wind and solar power generation as well as in the promotion of electric vehicle purchases. One tool the state has used is the California Clean Vehicle Rebate Project, or CVRP, which kicked off in 2010 and offers consumers money back for the purchase of new EVs.

Now, an analysis of the CVRP’s impact on the state’s air quality from 2010 to 2021 reveals both good and bad news, researchers report May 3 in PLOS Climate.

The good news is that the CVRP is responsible for making a dent in the state’s overall CO2 emissions, reducing them by about 280,000 metric tons per year on average. The bad news is that the most disadvantaged communities in the state didn’t see the same overall improvement in air quality. Those communities in fact saw an increase in one type of air pollution, tiny particulates known as PM2.5. That increase may be indirectly related to putting more EVs on the road. Although electric vehicles themselves don’t produce PM2.5 from their tailpipes, increased electricity generation, if it’s not fossil fuel-free, can. Renewable resources, including rooftop solar cells, supplied about half of California’s electricity in 2022. But natural gas-fired power plants still provide a large part of the state’s power.

“Electric vehicles are often incorrectly referred to as ‘zero-emission vehicles’, but they’re only as clean as the underlying electric grid (电网) from which the energy is sourced,” Mejía-Duwan says. The most disadvantaged 25 percent of the state’s communities also contain 50 percent of the power plants, the team found.

1. What do we know from paragraph 2?

A．California takes the lead in environmental protection.

B．Wind and solar power generation has dominated California.

C．California’s carbon footprint has been reduced as planned.

D．The launch of CVRP is intended to promote electric vehicle purchases.

2. What does the underlined “dent” mean in paragraph 4?

A．adjustment.

B．shift.

C．reduction.

D．increase

3. What is the direct cause of an increase in PM 2.5?

A．Putting more EVs on the road.	B．Increased electricity generation.
C．Warming climate.	D．Increased rooftop solar cells.

4. What will Mejía-Duwan probably agree with?

A．Zero emission for EVs can’t be ensured nowadays.

B．‘Zero emission’ isn’t good enough to describe EVs.

C．EVs, with no zero emission, shouldn’t be advocated.

D．EVs have a promising future as zero emission vehicles.