1 . 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。

As the Year of the Dragon approached, sales of products with dragon elements have seen explosive     1     (grow) on major e-commerce platforms. Dragon, or long in Chinese,     2     (consider) as an important symbol of Chinese traditional culture, is believed to bring good luck and fortune.

Since January, products with dragon-themed elements, such as clothing, daily necessities and gold jewelry     3     (gain) popularity. Items such as red envelopes, mobile phone cases designed for the Chinese Year of the Dragon have also been favored by consumers, and    4     (they) sales have surpassed those in the Year of the Rabbit last year.

Chinese consumers who buy dragon-themed goods are hoping     5     (live) a better life in the new year and displaying a strong sense     6     national pride and confidence in Chinese culture. The rich cultural meanings and the good wishes     7     the dragon carries have not only stimulated people’s passion for buying, but also satisfied their rising demand for personalized and     8     (create) products with unique cultural symbols.

Spring Festival is the traditional festival Chinese people attach the most importance to, and it’s also     9     peak season for consumption. The shopping craze for dragon-related products ahead of Lunar New Year is essential for     10     (promote) the recovery of the consumer market.

2 . The Role of Crowdfunding in Business Growth

Crowdfunding is a fundraising method that makes use of the power of the Internet and social networks. It involves raising small amounts of money from a large number of individuals or investors, typically through online platforms. These platforms connect entrepreneurs (创业者) with potential backers who contribute funds to support a specific project, business, or idea.

Types of Crowdfunding

Reward-Based Crowdfunding—Backers get a reward, such as a product sample or easy access, in exchange for their contribution. This model is popular for startups and creative projects.   

Equity (股权) Crowdfunding—Investors receive shares or equity in the business in exchange for their funding. This model is ideal for small businesses looking to raise substantial capital and is subject to specific regulations.

Debt Crowdfunding—Entrepreneurs borrow money from backers and agree to repay it with interest over time. This model is similar to a loan and is suitable for businesses with a clear repayment plan.

Tips for a Successful Crowdfunding Campaign

Set clear goals: Define your funding goal, the purpose of the funds, and how you’ll use the money.

Persuasive story: Make an appealing and genuine story about your business. Explain why it matters and how backers’ contributions will make a difference.

Engage your network: Mobilize your existing network of friends, family, and professional contacts to support your campaign. Their initial contributions can build momentum (动力).

Transparency: Be transparent and honest about your project’s progress and any challenges you encounter. Backers appreciate honesty.

Fulfill promises: Once your campaign is successful, fulfill your promises to backers timely and communicate regularly.

1. According to the passage, which of the following is accurate about crowdfunding?

A．Reward-Based Crowdfunding is the most popular type of crowdfunding.

B．Backers can get the same kinds of rewards in the three types of crowdfunding.

C．Crowdfunding is a fundraising technique that relies on offline platforms.

D．Debt Crowdfunding is fit for businesses with a specific repayment schedule.

2. The 4^th tip “Transparency” probably means “________”.

A．carefulness

B．perseverance

C．frankness

D．optimism

3. The owners of Exploding Kittens, a card game corporation established six years ago, plan to raise a large sum of capital to start a promotion campaign. They are highly recommended to ________.

A．prefer Reward-Based Crowdfunding to Equity Crowdfunding

B．draft an attractive story about the campaign based on real information

C．realize their promises to backers on time even if the campaign is a failure

D．compare the initial support provided by different existing contacts

3 . Cafeterias have been filled with challenges — right from planning, purchasing, and preparing, to reducing waste, staying on budget, managing goods, and training staff. Through the tedious process, restaurateurs lacked a unified platform for efficient management. To bring consistency to the unorganised catering (餐饮) industry, childhood friends Arjun Subramanian and Raj Jain, who shared a passion for innovation, decided to partner in 2019 to explore opportunities in the cafeteria industry.

In May 2020, they co-founded Platos, a one-stop solution for restaurants with a custom technology kit to streamline all aspects of cafeteria management. The company offers end-to-end cafeteria management, staff selection and food trials to ensure smooth operations and consistent service. “We believe startups solve real problems and Platos is our shot at making daily workplace food enjoyable again. We aim to simplify the dining experience,   providing a convenient and efficient solution that benefits both restaurateurs and customers and creating a connected ecosystem,” says Subramanian, CEO and co-founder.

Platos guarantees that a technology-driven cafeteria allows customers to order, pay, pick up, and provide ratings and feedback. It also offers goods and menu management to effectively perform daily operations. Additionally, its applications connect all shareholders for a smart cafeteria experience. “We help businesses that are into catering on condition that they have access to an industrial kitchen setup where they’re making food according to certain standards,” Jain states.

Since the beginning, Platos claims to have transformed 45 cafeterias across eight cities in the country. Currently, it has over 45,000 monthly users placing more than 200,000 orders. Despite facing challenges in launching cafeterias across major cities in the initial stages, Platos has experienced a 15% increase in its month-over-month profits.

As for future plans, the startup is looking to raise $1 million from investors as strategic partners, bringing in capital, expertise, and networks. “Finding the right lead investor is the compass that points your startup toward success,” Subramanian says.

1. What does the underlined word “tedious” in Paragraph 1 mean?

A．Time-consuming.	B．Breath-taking.
C．Heart-breaking.	D．Energy-saving.

2. What is the purpose of founding Platos?

A．To connect customers with a greener ecosystem.

B．To ensure food security and variety in cafeterias.

C．To improve cafeteria management with technology.

D．To make staff selection more efficient and enjoyable.

3. What can we learn from the statistics in Paragraph 4?

A．Platos has achieved its ultimate financial goal.

B．Platos has gained impressive marketing progress.

C．Challenges in food industry can be easily overcome.

D．Tech-driven cafeterias have covered most urban areas.

4. What is Subramanian’s future plan for Platos?

A．To reduce costs.	B．To increase profits.
C．To seek investment.	D．To innovate technology.

4 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What is in the woman’s land?

A．Oil.

B．Gold.

C．Gas.

2. How much will the woman receive for the first five months?

A．$1,000 per day.

B．$1,100 per day.

C．$1,200 per day.

3. What are the speakers doing?

A．Buying something.

B．Talking about the land.

C．Signing a contract.

5 . In an increasingly globalized business world, companies demand Human Resources (HR) leaders who can overcome cultural barriers to achieve key goals. This year, students in the Master of Human Resources and Industrial Relations (MHRIR) Program will get hands-on experience leading multicultural teams as they work together with peers (同辈) from all corners of the globe.

“Our students get firsthand experience on global teams, which helps them understand the challenges and the opportunities they will face in the business world,” said MHRIR Program Director Stacy Hove.

Elishka Correa joined the program to explore how HR leaders can help businesses grow quickly in the global marketplace. “Companies appreciate diversity — not only in terms of products and markets, but the people they hire — so that they can expand their business and reach customers in different parts of the world,” she said. “When I go into an organization, I’m not only going to work with Indians or Americans, it’s going to be a mix of people. That trend is beginning to grow, so I think it’s very important to appreciate people from different backgrounds.”

As they progress through the program, the students are discovering unexpected challenges as they work on projects in diverse teams. Each contributor brings a different approach to solving problems, communicating, and challenging one another’s opinions.

Devin Roll, a student from North Dakota, appreciating the unique views his classmates share, said, “The benefits of having cross-cultural experiences go far beyond the classroom. Diverse teams and companies outperform their competitors, and HR leaders act as a vital partner in acquiring and maintaining diversity in the workforce.”

Many of the international students in the program said they would return to their home countries after graduation and bring along connections to their classmates, who would build careers (职业) in countries around the world. They hope to stay in touch, and share their expert knowledge.

1. What is the aim of the program?

A．To help students to set clear goals.

B．To provide jobs for foreign students.

C．To teach students to run their own business.

D．To train students to build multicultural teams.

2. Which statement about cultural diversity does Elishka Correa probably agree with?

A．It prevents social advance.	B．It makes it easy to hire people.
C．It can help business growth.	D．It can put an end to the conflict.

3. What does Devin Roll think of the effect of the program?

A．It is predictable.

B．It is short-lived.

C．It is unidentifiable.

D．It is far-reaching.

4. What do many students expect to do after graduation according to the text?

A．Work for the university.	B．Keep closely connected.
C．Stay in their home countries.	D．Reform teaching methods.

6 . What does the man mean?

A．E­commerce is a double­edged sword.

B．Local specialties should be exported.

C．Commercials are of no use.

7 . Step aside, blue collar. And white collar, pink collar and green collar. There’s a new collar in town. “New collar” jobs are those that require advanced skills but not necessarily advanced degrees, especially in emerging high-tech fields like artificial intelligence, cybersecurity (网络安全), electric vehicles and robotics.

There are real fears that workers will lose jobs to technology, especially artificial intelligence, in the coming years. But “new collar” optimists think in a more positive way: There are also real opportunities ahead for skilled workers who know how to handle machines.

“Somebody has to program, monitor and maintain those robots,” said Sarah Boisvert, the founder of the New-Collar Network.

Even if millions of high-tech jobs are created in the coming years, the impact on workers who lose jobs may be significant. For many Americans without four-year college degrees, according to census (人口普查) data, the new job market will require training.

Ginni Rometty, a former chief executive of IBM, is believed to have created a “new collar” in 2016. At the time, she said, IBM was having trouble filling cybersecurity jobs, partly because outdated criteria required that candidates have college degrees.

“Due to our high qualifications in these online jobs, we overlooked a large number of qualified and available candidates,” she wrote in an email. “Unless millions of people are trained in the skills employers need now,” she added, “they risk being unemployed even as millions of good-paying jobs go unfilled.”

Christopher M. Cox, a researcher who has written about the new-collar economy, said, “The alternative model of four-year universities is really great.” However, he added that “new collar” may also be a clever term that relieves the anxiety of workers by defining the constantly changing labor market and technology companies as more ideal rather than “terminators (终结者).”

1. What does “new collar” mean?

A．People engaged in cybersecurity.

B．People working at electric vehicles.

C．People closely connected with artificial intelligence.

D．People with advanced skills regardless of degrees.

2. What made IBM’s cybersecurity jobs unfilled?

A．Much stress.	B．Low salaries.
C．High qualifications.	D．Few candidates.

3. What is the benefit of the “new collar” economy to the society?

A．It gives more opportunities to the workers.

B．It helps artificial intelligence develop better.

C．It rebuilds the confidence of the white collar.

D．It changes the system of technology companies.

4. What is the purpose of the text?

A．To explain the anxiety of workers.	B．To state the electric vehicle industry.
C．To emphasise the college education.	D．To introduce the new-collar phenomenon.

8 . 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。

BEIJING — The 2024 Spring Festival box office (票房) in China, within the holiday’s first three     1    (day), has achieved 3.5 billion yuan ($492.7million), which marks a     2     (strike) increase of nearly 17 percent compared to last year.

Running from Feb.10 to Feb. 17 this year, the Spring Festival period traditionally serves as a profitable period for movie ticket sales. The extended holiday contributes     3     drawing more movie-goers to cinemas,     4     (ensure) a successful start to the Chinese film market in 2024.

On Feb.10, eight films were put on, eager     5     (draw) audience attention. Among them, the domestic comedy-drama YOLO, directed by and starring famous comedian Jia Ling, has appeared as the highest-grossing title so far, adding over 1.3 billion yuan to     6     (it) profit account until Tuesday morning, according to box office tracker Dengta Data.

This success narrowly beat the comedy Pegasus 2     7     earned nearly 1.2 billion yuan in the first period of release.     8     (write) and directed by writer-turned-director and racing driver Han Han, the film serves as a sequel (续篇) to his 2019 Spring Festival holiday hit Pegasus.

During the Spring Festival, the animation Boonie Bears: Time Twist     9     (enjoy) great popularity, winning the third place in the Spring Festival box office rankings and bringing     10     large amount of box office profit.

9 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。

1. What’s the topic of the conversation?

A．The news media.

B．The food production.

C．The economic situation.

2. What does the man think of the TV report?

A．It sounds funny.

B．It tells the truth.

C．It’s encouraging.

3. What will probably happen this summer according to the man?

A．The prices of certain goods will decline.

B．The materials will cost even more.

C．The workers will get higher wages.

10 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。

1. What was the woman doing?

A．Preparing for her midterm.

B．Learning geography.

C．Going over physics.

2. What’s the most valuable business in the world?

A．The oil trade.

B．The food trade.

C．The coffee trade.

3. How does the ICO keep the price of coffee at a normal level?

A．By controlling the quantity of coffee at the market.

B．By controlling the type of coffee at the market.

C．By controlling the cost of coffee producing.

4. Where are the two speakers probably talking?

A．In a cafe.

B．At home.

C．In a restaurant.