1 . It was meant to connect us, make us smarter and our lives easier. And it has. But there’s at least one comer of life where the Internet has made things so much more difficult: gift giving.

Once upon a time, if you were struggling to find a present for a loved one, there were easy options to fall back on-DVDs, CDs, video games and other physical media. This wasn’t even that long ago, but now it’s been snatched from our grasp by the Internet offering us the chance, at a relatively low cost, to watch, listen to or read whatever we want, whenever we want. With everything already watched, listened to, or read, buying a present has become near impossible.

Therefore, we all have to work at becoming perfect gift givers, taking all factors into consideration and searching high and low to seek out the ideal present. If we go the extra mile, there’s less chance that the person we have in mind has already bought what we’re considering online.

But as I now consider this exact plan of action, I’m thinking perhaps it’s not all that bad. Maybe the Internet is delivering us a lesson, firm but fair: the era of half-baked present purchasing is over and it’s time to go hard or go home.

In this era of immediate satisfaction, if you want to give someone a useful present, you do have to actually go to the effort of sourcing something nice for them. Perhaps that’s making for a more rewarding gift experience for all involved. And perhaps it also means fewer gifts that are given as an excuse and end up being unused.

1. How is the topic of gift giving introduced in Paragraph 1?

A．By demonstrating the prospect of the Internet.

B．By showing the difficulty in using the Internet.

C．By pointing out the shortcoming of the Internet.

D．By arguing about the possible benefits of the Internet.

2. What might be a reason for gift giving being difficult according to Paragraph 2?

A．Numerous gift options.	B．Relative high cost for presents.
C．Limited offer from digital giants.	D．Easy access to the Internet versions.

3. What does the author suggest readers do?

A．Purchase satisfactory gifts.	B．Try to select a present.
C．Buy fewer gifts as an excuse.	D．Make more valuable presents.

4. What might be the author’s attitude towards nowadays gift giving?

A．Confused.

B．Critical.

C．Neutral.

D．Acceptable.

2 . People these days are posting about their lives on social media. But what if you’re a private and introverted person like me? What if you want to live in the moment instead of sharing every bit of your life? To be honest, it’s nobody’s business but your own.     1    

Escaping stalkers (跟踪者).

I’ve been a public person as a jazz vocalist for years. It exposed me to stalkers who felt they knew me, just because I was present everywhere. Needless to say, it brought me much anxiety and stress. At some point I asked myself-is being visible more important than my peace of mind?     2     The answer is a clear NO. I just want to spend life doing what I love with the people I love.

Protecting privacy

    3     I need alone time to process what I’m struggling with and honest real talks with the people I trust. I might share a lesson learned from an experience, but now I won’t. I know that by keeping my life private on social media I may miss out on some connections, but I honor and respect the people in my life who value their privacy, so I am being mindful and protect that.

    4    

Another reason I keep my life private is that I prefer to be in the present moment and appreciate it fully. To be on your phone constantly, or to film everything you do, can be quite disrespectful to the people you spend your time with. You lose out on those spontaneous(自发的) moments and a deeper connection. I choose what I share and when I share it, and the rest is for experiencing life without expectations.

Live your life fully, regardless of whether the world knows it or not!     5     I just want you to know it’s OK if you don’t.

A．Experiencing life

B．Living in the moment

C．Don’t I really care about privacy?

D．Are my followers more important than my friends and family?

E．If you feel like sharing your life openly without hesitation, go for it.

F．Here are my reasons for not sharing my personal life on social media.

G．It can be quite challenging to go through tough moments with everyone watching.

3 . Taking a picture of Mars is not easy. Once light bounces off the planet, it can take between 3 to 22 minutes to travel to Earth - so there aren’t truly “live” images of Mars.

But on Friday afternoon, the European Space Agency will offer the closest thing: the first “livestream” of Mars a rare, almost real-time look into space on YouTube, which posts pictures of the planet every 50 seconds as they beam down directly from the camera mounted (安装) on the agency’s Mars Express orbiter (轨道飞行器). We can get a firsthand look at Mars on Friday.

“During Friday’s one-hour livestream, the time between the images being taken from orbit around Mars and appearing on your screen will be about 18 minutes,” James Godfrey, the spacecraft operations manager at the ESA’s mission control center, said in a statement. “That’s 17 minutes for light to travel from Mars to Earth in their current configuration, and about one minute to pass through the wires and servers on the ground. ”

“Normally, we see images from Mars and know that they were taken days before. I’m excited to see Mars as it is now - as close to a Martian(火星人) ‘now’ as we can possibly get!’

In 50-second intervals, the camera shoots across Mars, showing a side of the planet entering night, as well as some clouds billowing out on the comer. The livestream celebrates the 20th anniversary of the Mars Express mission which was launched in 2003 to better understand the planet, as well as search for traces of water.

It’s with this camera, originally meant for engineering purposes, that we’ll get ”live“ images on Friday evening from 18:00 CEST in the first MarsLIVE. What makes this unique, is that it’s a one-hour livestream from Mars   but don’t expect a detailed view of the Red Planet!

1. What can we learn from this text?

A．Watching the MarsLIVE, people will have a completely real-time view of the Mars.

B．The audience can watch the MarsLIVE thanks to the camera on the Mars

C．About 20 years ago, the ESA launched an orbiter to search for Martians.

D．The MarsLIVE is to celebrate the launch of the Mars Express mission in 2003.

2. What does the underlined word ”configuration“ in paragraph 3 mean?

A．Equipment.

B．Orbit.

C．Planet.

D．Spacecraft.

3. What is the text mainly about?

A．The live images taken from orbit around Mars.

B．The 20th anniversary of the Mars Express mission.

C．The first ”livestream“ of Mars to be shown on YouTube.

D．A rare and almost real-time look into space on YouTube.

4. What does the last paragraph imply?

A．The camera was originally used to shoot the Mars.

B．We can get truly live Mars images in the first MarsLIVE.

C．Detailed images about the Mars can’t be ensured.

D．The unique MarsLIVE will live up to viewers’ expectation.

4 . World Literacy Conference

WHAT IS WORLD LITERACY CONFERENCE?

It’s the world’s largest gathering of international literacy experts, which focuses on the vital importance of improving reading and writing levels across the globe. It brings together leaders from 85 countries. Over 600 delegates (代表) in the scene and a further 40,000 people via webinars will watch it.

WHO CAN PARTICIPATE IN THE CONFERENCE?

Anyone who is passionate about education is welcome to take part in the conference. Call for papers and content is open. You can hand in no more than two papers through the Oxford system per person before September 16, 2023. Please click Here for more information

TICKET PURCHASE:

Registration Fees l＄100 per person; 20 percent discount for per group member.

Consumption Tax l Extra 10 percent for each registration fee. Overseas delegates will be charged before attending but can be RETURNED BACK after conference closing.

Pay Channels PayPal or a credit card. (Please email us for other methods)

Refund Policy The Conference ONLY offers refunds when the British Government does not approve you visa, or you need to apply for registration transfers.

Others Accommodation expenses are not covered in the registration fees.

1. Which of the following statements is correct according to the text?

A．The live broadcasting is the only way for participation.

B．Delegates are allowed to submit more than two essays.

C．Accommodation expenses are included in the registration fees.

D．Purchasers can apply to gain other access to official tickets.

2. How much does a 10-person overseas group need to pay altogether before attending?

A．800.

B．880.

C．990.

D．1000.

3. Where is this text most probably taken from?

A．An online website.

B．An educational journal.

C．An activity poster.

D．An economic newspaper.

5 . Bottled water has long been marketed as a safe drink—if it doesn’t come straight from a mountain spring, it’s at least clean and free of chemicals. But a new study demonstrates that bottled water may not be so safe when it comes to microscopic plastic pollutants capable of passing into the bloodstream.

For years scientists have raised the alarm over microplastics, which form when plastics break down into increasingly smaller particles (微粒), ranging from five millimeters down to one micrometer. Previous studies have found that a liter of bottled water can contain tens of thousands of identifiable plastic particles. But they stopped at the one micrometer level due to technological restrictions.

The study used a new technology to find even smaller particles, and detected an average240,000 plastic particles per liter of bottled water. About 90% of the particles were considered nanoplastics, smaller than one micrometer. Unlike microplastics, they are capable of passing through some organs like lungs into the bloodstream. From there they can stay in the heart muscle and other organs, pass into the brain, and even into the bodies of unborn babies.

So far, little research shows what nanoplastics exactly do once they enter the bloodstream. But there is much evidence that chemicals used in plastic production are bad for human health. Even if nanoplastics themselves are not deleterious, they can serve as carriers for the dangerous chemicals, increasing the risk of cancer and impacting key organs such as the heart.

“There is a huge world of nanoplastics to be studied,” said the researchers. Even if nanoplastics make up 90% of the number of plastic particles found in bottled water, they make up far less in mass, they said. However, this fact provides little comfort: It’s the numbers rather than mass that matter; and the smaller things are, the more readily they can get inside us.

1. What does the technological barrier in the previous studies concern?

A．The number of microscopic plastics.	B．The quality of water bottles.
C．The distribution of plastic pollutants.	D．The size of plastic particles.

2. What does the text imply about microplastics?

A．They are not very likely to pollute bottled water.

B．Their number per liter of bottled water is constant.

C．They are less potentially risky to health than nanoplastics.

D．Their number in springs is larger than that of nanoplastics.

3. What does the underlined word “deleterious” in paragraph 4 probably mean?

A．Large.

B．Useless.

C．Safe.

D．Harmful.

4. Why do nanoplastics need further research?

A．They are too small to identify.	B．They have easy access to organs.
C．They are dangerous regarding mass.	D．They have a higher percentage in life.

6 . The impact of technology on language is a topic that often causes concern, with many assuming that it is simply ruining it. However, language experts resist such pessimism, noting that there is little evidence to support the view that speech is getting worse. Gretchen McCulloch, in her book Because Internet, focuses on what can be learned about language from the internet rather than talking about its supposed negative effects.

McCulloch compares studying language online to growing bacteria (细菌) in a Petri dish,where trends emerge and disappear quickly, allowing language experts to observe changes that would otherwise take a considerable amount of time. The influence of strong ties like friends or family vs weaker ties on language change is analyzed, with computer simulations (模拟) revealing that having both strong and weaker ties helps spread updates in a community.

The role of social media platforms in language change is also discussed. Twitter, with its mix of strong and weak ties, is shown to drive more language change than Facebook, which is controlled by stronger ties. Emoji is highlighted as a universal digital expression of gestures, not a language. Additionally, there is evidence that the use of internet“innovations”such as“omg”dates back to pre-computer eras.

McCulloch’s book focuses on the birth of a new medium rather than a new language. The rise of mass writing on the internet, characterized by frequent, error-filled, and short-lived communication, challenges traditional ideas about writing’s importance. McCulloch suggests future historians should see this as a return to more casual (随意的) language, paying more attention to the value of tools that improve social interaction online. The book argues against the idea that these changes might lead to the end of “real” writing, advocating for an appreciation of anything that enhances human connection and the enjoyment of each other’s company.

1. How might McCulloch sound in her book Because Internet?

A．Sensitive.

B．Scientific.

C．Pessimistic.

D．Dismissive.

2. What does paragraph 3 focus on?

A．The development of digital language.

B．The difference between social media platforms.

C．The influence of the internet on language change.

D．The connection between humans and the internet.

3. Which of the following would McCulloch probably agree with?

A．Interpersonal bonds play a role in online communication.

B．Formal language is unlikely to improve social interaction.

C．The birth of new media has removed writing’s importance.

D．Mass writing can make web-based conversations effective.

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

A．How to Achieve Network Effect?	B．Technology, Fear or Convenience?
C．What If Faced with Media Terms?	D．Internet Degrades or Helps Speech?

7 . In the joyful summer Chadalavada spent with Jayasree, his grandmother in 2018, the pair watched endless movies. Late one evening, Jayasree, who had recently been diagnosed (诊断) with Alzheimer’s, got up in her nightdress and went to make tea at her home in India. After she returned to her bedroom, Chadalavada went into the kitchen to find that his grandmother had left the gas on!

Chadalavada decided to invent a wearable device to help people like his grandmother. Now aged 17, Chadalavada is ready to start making the Alpha Monitor. The device, which can be worn as an armband, sets off an alarm when the wearer with Alzheimer’s starts to move and warns a caregiver if the patient falls or wanders off.

Most similar devices run on Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, so when a person moves out of their frequencies’ limited range the connection is lost and with it the monitoring. But the Alpha Monitor can detect a person more than a mile away in cities and three miles in the countryside thanks to the long-range technology, known as LoRa, it uses.

Teaching himself with YouTube videos about robotics and electronics, Chadalavada has developed several prototypes (模型). To understand the needs of people with Alzheimer’s, he spent time in a day centre run by the Alzheimer’s and Related Disorders Society of India. There, the cofounder told him that the device “had to be something light that can be worn on any part of the body”. She says: “Many patients don’t like having to wear a watch and they take it off.”

In March, when Chadalavada’s school exams are over, he will put the finishing touches to the monitor, with the aim of getting the device ready for market by September. He is confident that it should be sold at an affordable price for most people.

Chadalavada hopes to study robotics at a university abroad. His aim is simple: “I want to create products to help people in India for the whole world.”

1. Why did Chadalavada invent the Alpha Monitor?

A．To treat Alzheimer’s.

B．To entertain senior citizens.

C．To improve Alzheimer’s caregiving.

D．To ensure fire safety at the elderly’s homes.

2. What is an advantage of the Alpha Monitor?

A．It is more comfortable to wear.	B．It has a longer service time.
C．It offers a remoter monitoring.	D．It uses higher frequency controls.

3. What did Chadalavada want to explore while he spent time in a day centre?

A．Where his invention could be polished.

B．What people with Alzheimer’s felt like.

C．How Alzheimer’s disease could be cured.

D．Whether his invention would be profitable.

4. What can we learn about Chadalavada from the text?

A．He enjoys living simply.	B．He has an innovative mind.
C．He used to be a health worker.	D．He longs to be a robotics professor.

8 . Each fall, the flu emerges as a terrible force.     1     Influenza viruses cause millions of illnesses and thousands of deaths in the United States each year. So it’s necessary to know more about the flu viruses.

What’s the difference between Type A and Type B?

Influenza A viruses come in many varieties. Four subtypes commonly affect humans. But many more influenza A viruses have been identified in animals, which makes it a potential source of pandemics whenever a new type of influenza A jumps to humans.     2     They are divided into just two lineages (谱系) that cause seasonal outbreaks.

What are symptoms of an influenza infection?

If you do get sick with the flu, you’ll have common symptoms like fever, muscle aches and respiratory ailments. Most otherwise healthy people are sick for three to seven days.     3     The flu can also trigger inflammatory (炎症反应) responses in the body and worsen existing chronic conditions like asthma or heart disease.

    4    

Some rapid tests available at doctors offices can distinguish between influenza A and B, although they tend to have low sensitivity. Doctors can also order more sensitive P. C. R. tests to identify the specific flu virus causing infection.

How do you treat influenza?

To treat the flu, we can take approved antiviral medications that are commonly used to shorten the duration and severity of illness. Stay hydrated, get plenty of rest and use over-the-counter medications to reduce fever as needed. But if you develop a sustained fever of 39℃, you have difficulty breathing or you experience severe chest or stomach pain, it is important to seek medical attention immediately.     5    

A．How do you get tested for influenza?

B．How do you know which type you have?

C．Influenza B viruses, however, only circulate in humans.

D．In some cases, the cough and fatigue can linger for two weeks.

E．These may be signs that you need a stronger influenza treatment.

F．There are two players every flu season: influenza Type A and Type B.

G．Public health officials recommend everyone six months and older get an annual flu shot.

9 . Falling birth rates are a major concern for some of Asia’s biggest economies. Government s in the region are spending hundreds of billions of dollars trying to reverse the trend. Will it work?

Japan began introducing policies to encourage couples to have more children in the 1990s. South Korea started doing the same in the 2000s, while Singapore’s first fertility (生育) policy dates back to 1987. China, which has seen its population fall for the first time in 60 years, recently joined the growing club.

While it is difficult to quantify exactly how much these policies have cost, South Korean President YoonSuk-yeol recently said his country had spent more than $200bn (£160bn) over the past 16 years on trying to boost the population. Yet last year South Korea broke its own record for the world’s lowest fertility rate, with the average number of babies expected per woman falling to 0.78. In neighbouring Japan, which had record low births of fewer than 800,000 last year, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has promised to double the budget for child-related policies from 10tn yen ($74.7bn; £59.2bn).

Having a bigger population who can work and produce more goods and services leads to higher economic growth. And while a larger population can mean higher costs for governments, it can also result in bigger tax revenues (税收). Also, many Asian countries are ageing rapidly. Japan leads the pack with nearly 30% of its population now over the age of 65 and some other nations in the region are not far behind. Compare that with India, which has just overtaken China as the world’s most populous nation. More than a quarter of its people are between the age of 10 and 20, which gives its economy huge potential for growth. And when the share of the working age population gets smaller, the cost and burden of looking after the non-working population grow. “Negative population growth has an impact on the economy, and together with an ageing population, they won’t be able to afford to support the elderly,” said Xiujian Peng of Victoria University.

1. Which Asian country first took measures to increase population in this passage?

A．Japan.

B．South Korea.

C．Singapore.

D．China.

2. What can we learn about the population of Asian countries from the passage?

A．Japan hit the lowest record of new-born babies last year.

B．India has the largest and youngest population in the world.

C．China’s population has been decreasing in the recent 60 years.

D．South Korea had the lowest population record last year in the world.

3. What can we infer from paragraph 4?

A．The economy of India will overtake that of Japan.

B．Negative population growth leads to an ageing population.

C．The larger the population is, the better the economy will be.

D．A bigger share of working age population helps support the elderly.

4. What’s the main idea of this passage?

A．Low birth rate is a negative factor for economy.

B．China is joining the countries of low birth rate.

C．Many Asian countries came to negative population growth.

D．Many Asian countries are trying all out to battle low birth rate.

10 . Opening Notice for the National Museum of China (NMC)

Admission:

NMC is open from Tuesday to Sunday,9:00-17:30(no entry after 16:30), and is closed on Mondays(except for public holidays). All visitors are required to book online 1-7 days in advance via the NMC official website or WeChat platform.

Audio Guide Rental:

Audio guide devices are available at the West Hall Service Desk for RMB40, with a RMB100 deposit. A valid ID is necessary. Damage to an audio guide causes a fee based on the level of damage. Lost devices are subject to payment of the full purchase cost.

Facilities:

Wheelchairs and strollers are available for free use on the day of visit at the Service Desk. A valid ID card and a deposit of RMB500 are required.

Photo Policy:

Photography is allowed in the NMC collection exhibitions without using flash, selfie sticks, or tripods. Temporary exhibits may have specific photo policies, indicated by clear signs put up at both the entrance and the corresponding exhibit halls.

Transportation:

Bus Route:

You can take the No.1, No.2, No.52, No.82, No.120 buses, or Sightseeing Line 2, Tourist Bus Line 1 and Line 2 and get off at Tian’an men East Station.

Metro:

You can take Metro Line 1, get off at Tian’anmen East Station, and exit the station through Exit C.

1. What happens if a rented audio guide device is damaged?

A．An additional fee of RMB40 is charged.	B．The visitor is excused from any charges.
C．Its full price is charged regardless of the damage.	D．Compensation is based on the extent of the damage.

2. What can you do during your visit to NMC?

A．Borrow a wheelchair with a deposit of $500.

B．Use a stroller provided by the museum for free.

C．Take photos with flashlight, selfie stick or tripod.

D．Take pictures of the collections on all exhibitions.

3. Which of the following can take you to NMC?

A．The No.82 Bus.	B．Sightseeing Line 1.
C．Tourist Bus Line 52．	D．Metro Line 2.