1 . The sun is setting. I’m sitting on a rock top on the Jurassic Coast with my family. We are
Out in the wild, I have
After resting, with packs returned to our
As I walk ahead, I reflect on why we want to be out here. Mostly, I think it’s because it slows us down and
A.disappointed | B.tired | C.surprised | D.annoyed |
A.difficulty | B.assumption | C.goal | D.effort |
A.promoted | B.arranged | C.missed | D.observed |
A.energized | B.centralized | C.knowledgeable | D.teachable |
A.covering | B.planning | C.cycling | D.designing |
A.desire for | B.prepare for | C.complain about | D.talk about |
A.frightens | B.supports | C.amazes | D.disturbs |
A.different | B.lucky | C.impressive | D.fresh |
A.destinations | B.vision | C.shoulders | D.memory |
A.calmly | B.cautiously | C.wildly | D.aimlessly |
A.involves | B.traps | C.expresses | D.influences |
A.offered | B.challenged | C.promised | D.pretended |
A.refused | B.invited | C.stopped | D.expected |
A.lessons | B.interaction | C.comparisons | D.progress |
A.guidance | B.reward | C.greeting | D.pleasure |
2 . From the deserts of Southern California to the forests of Alaska, the U.S. possesses a diversity of nature. For most of her life, Joy Ryan never saw the scenery beyond her home state of Ohio. Then, when she was in her mid-eighties, her grandson Brad Ryan decided to take her on a journey to all of the U.S. National Parks, which took eight years to complete. At the age of 93, Grandma Joy has finally seen all 63 parks, ending her journey in the National Park of American Samoa.
“When I learned she had never seen the great wildernesses of America — deserts, mountains, oceans, I decided to intervene (干预) in some way,” Brad says. This idea sparked their first trip to the Great Smoky Mountains. However, once they were on the road, Brad realised that they could visit more parks that were nearby. Over the years, they managed to see all of the famous sights at Yosemite, the Redwoods, and so on. But Brad values the time spent with his grandmother just as much as the breathtaking places they were able to visit.
Despite Grandma Joy’s older age, she was able to hike mountains. Brad regards her love for life as the key to her good health. She is grateful for each new day and is always Excited for the next journey. Finally, their long journey across the U.S. came to an end with American Samoa. “It’s about 6,700 miles from Ohio, where we live,” Brad explains. “We can enjoy the beach and the beautiful tropical paradise. But as we’ve learned from the rangers that work there, American Samoa is an island community firmly rooted in family. And I think that there’s a bit of a poetic beauty to ending it there, too.”
“I am thankful every morning for giving me another day,” Grandma Joy shares. “And it is your choice whether you’re going to have a rainy day or a sunny day. So, smile at everybody, and let everybody know you’re having a whale of a time.” While her tour of the U.S. has come to a close, she and her grandson are not done traveling. Next up, they have their sights set on Kenya.
1. Why did Brad decide to travel across America with his grandma?A.To celebrate Grandma Joy’s 93rd birthday. |
B.To complete a task he promised Grandma Joy. |
C.To enrich Grandma Joy’s travelling experiences. |
D.To realise Grandma Joy’s dream of visiting parks. |
A.Free and adventurous. | B.Tiring but educational. |
C.Stressful but eye-opening. | D.Amazing and worthwhile. |
A.The friendly locals. | B.The family bond. | C.The special culture. | D.The beautiful sights. |
A.Stay Curious, Stay Young | B.It’s Never too Old to Hit the Road |
C.Laughter is the Best Medicine | D.Travelling Contributes to Long Life |
要点如下:
概括:位于中国南部;广东省的省会:全市面积超过7434平方千米;人口1500多万。
历史:拥有2000多年历史的文化名城,古代海上丝绸之路的重要港口城市
气候:温暖湿润,年平均气温大约20度。
旅游:风光旖旎,旅游资源丰富。
Ladies and gentlemen,
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4 . Imagine living in a cool, green city alive with parks and threaded with footpaths, bike lanes and buses which transport people to shops, schools and service centers in a matter of minutes.
This fancy dream is behind the idea of the 15-minute city, where all basic needs and services are within a quarter of an hour’s reach, improving public health and lowering vehicle emissions.
Artificial intelligence could help urban planners realize that vision faster, with a new study from researchers at Tsinghua University in China demonstrating how machine learning can generate more efficient spatial layouts (空间布局) than humans can.
Automation scientist Zheng Yu and his colleagues wanted to find new solutions to improve our cities which are fast becoming blocked. They developed an AI system to tackle the tough tasks of urban planning and found it can produce urban plans that outperform human designs by about 50 percent in three aspects: access to services, green spaces and traffic levels.
Starting small, Zheng’s team tasked their model with designing the urban area only a few square kilometers in size (about 3×3 blocks). After two days of training, the AI system searched for the ideal road designs and land use to fit with the concept of the 15-minute city and local planning policies and needs.
While the AI model has some capabilities that could extend its use for planning larger urban areas, designing entire cities will be more complex. Drafting a neighborhood consisting of 4×4 blocks contains twice as many planning decisions as designing 3×3 blocks, the researchers said. But automating even a few steps in the planning process can save huge amounts of time: the AI model can compute in seconds certain tasks that take human planners between 50 to 100 minutes to work through.
Rather than AI replacing people, Zheng and his colleagues think their AI system can work as an “assistant” to urban planners, who could generate concept designs optimized (优化) by the system, and reviewed, adjusted and evaluated by human experts based on community feedback.
1. According to the text, which of the following is NOT a benefit of the “15-minute city” concept?A.Better public health. | B.Lower vehicle emissions. |
C.Decreased access to green spaces. | D.Fast and convenient service. |
A.High levels of pollution. | B.Limited access to public services. |
C.Shortage of affordable housing. | D.Rising crowding and traffic problems. |
A.It can design entire cities efficiently. |
B.It takes longer to train for larger urban areas. |
C.It can complete tasks much faster than human planners. |
D.It is limited to planning only a few square kilometers at a time. |
A.Designing better cities with AI |
B.The 15-Minute City: A Dream or Reality? |
C.Improving Public Health with Greener Cities |
D.The Role of Machine Learning in Urban Design |
1. What will the weather be like in London next week?
A.Rainy. | B.Sunny. | C.Foggy. |
A.Toothbrushes. | B.Free breakfast. | C.Airport bus service. |
A.Bring their passports. |
B.Have fish and chips. |
C.Wear sunglasses. |
1. What does the man want to do?
A.Go fishing. | B.Go shopping. | C.Go sightseeing. |
A.In Texas. | B.In Florida. | C.In Nevada. |
A.Set off early. | B.Rest in a hotel. | C.See the launch. |
A.Excited. | B.Bored. | C.Confused. |
The recent hit in China is all about Harbin, Helongjiang. Numerous netizens have expressed their longing for this northern ice city, declaring
Among those highlights, the journey of 11 kids from Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region has melted hearts across the Internet. Fondly (深情地)
This study tour, under the spotlight of the entire Internet,
1. 邀请并欢迎亚历克斯(Alex)来到你的家乡;
2. 家乡的地理位置、面积、人口、历史、名胜、特色小吃、风土人情等;
3. 希望他早日到来并祝愿旅途愉快。
注意:
1. 词数80左右;
2. 可以适当增加细节,以使行文连贯。
参考词汇:长江(Yangtze River)
Dear Alex,
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Yours,
Li Hua
9 . There are some unusual wonders of our world places that most people haven’t heard about and probably don’t want to visit. But it’s good to take a step away from everything else we’ve known and see something new!
Library of Celsus, TürkiyeThe Library of Celsus was a public library built by Tiberius Julius Acquila in ancient Ephesus, now in modern-day Türkiye. It was built on the Mount Koressos and its construction began in 114 AD and ended in 117 AD. It is one of the best-preserved ancient buildings due to its Roman-time structures, which were built using marble, a type of hard, decorative stone.
Meteora, GreeceMeteora is a group of monasteries (修道院) in Greece located on top of tall rock pillars (柱子). Meteora contains 24 monasteries built on natural sandstone rock pillars between the 11th and 15th century AD. Meteora is one of Greece's most popular tourist destinations and has been a World Heritage Site since 1988.
Tower of Hercules, SpainThe Tower of Hercules is a Roman lighthouse built in 14 BC on the coast of Spain. You may be wondering how a place that was built much earlier than some of the other wonders of the world can still be considered a wonder today. Well, it was, once one of lighthouses in Europe. The tower has been rebuilt several times, but it still stands today.
Toruń, PolandToruń is one of the oldest cities in Poland and is the capital of the province of Kujawsko-Pomorskie. Toruń was founded by Teutonic Order in the mid-13th century as an important city on the trade route between Kraków and Gdańsk. The name “Toruń” comes from two German words — “tor” means gate or tower and “tun” means settlement; therefore, “Tower settlement”.
1. What makes Library of Celsus one of the best-preserved ancient buildings?A.Its special purpose. | B.Its geographic position. |
C.Its preservation skills. | D.Its construction materials. |
A.Library of Celsus. | B.Meteora. |
C.Tower of Hercules. | D.Toruń. |
A.The origin of its name. | B.The theory of its design. |
C.The time of its visit. | D.The ways of its construction. |
1. What was Clara’s worst travel experience?
A.Losing her way in Paris. | B.Losing her passport abroad. | C.Waiting for ages in a café. |
A.Calling the police. | B.Asking her friends for help. | C.Asking the embassy for help. |