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

A．A salesperson.

B．A student.

C．A shopkeeper.

2. What does the man think of Lana’s dog?

A．Frightening.

B．Lovely.

C．Tiny.

3. Who is Rover?

A．The woman’s friend.

B．The man’s boss.

C．Lana’s pet.

4. Why will the man go to the shopping center?

A．To meet Lana.

B．To have a wander.

C．To buy a pair of shoes.

2 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. How much did the man weigh two months ago?

A．About 150 pounds.

B．About 160 pounds.

C．About 170 pounds.

2. How did the woman know how to lose weight?

A．From a book.

B．From a friend.

C．From a cook.

3. What does the man plan to do?

A．Change his diet.

B．Learn about an author.

C．Start to exercise regularly.

3 . Discovering Your True Self Is Vital to Happiness!

Have you found focusing on yourself is at the bottom of the to-do list, because you feel everyone else in your life comes first?    1     Now is exactly the perfect time to get to know yourself in order to understand yourself.

This isn’t just about identifying your favorite outfit, haircut or flavor of ice cream.    2     It’s an opportunity for personal growth that can help you make better choices for your wellbeing and lifelong happiness.

There are many tools to help you develop a deeper sense of yourself, including journaling and other forms of creative expression. You can use a guided journal to explore your thoughts and feelings or just free write whatever comes to mind. It’s up to you what you want to do.    3    .

    4     Take note of how you respond to people, what makes you happy, and what makes you unhappy. This can help you identify patterns that are holding you back, such as feeling insecure or being easily angered. Once you’ve identified these patterns, you can work to change them.

An often overlooked yet very important factor in self-discovery is having healthy boundaries in your personal life.    5     Clearly communicating your boundaries is also a way to show others that you are in control of your own behavior and can expect the same from them. This is a sign of maturity and respect, two characteristics that are key to having healthy relationships.

A．It’s one thing to know your personality type.

B．It’s a great way to show that you care about others.

C．Taking time for ourselves has been looked down upon.

D．Another way is to observe your behavior in different situations.

E．It allows you to focus on the needs of yourself without ignoring others.

F．But try not to get caught up in the criticism or judgment of your writing.

G．It’s about understanding your inner world and how you fit into the outer world.

4 . Artificial intelligence (AI) is showing promise in earthquake prediction, challenging the long-held belief that it is impossible. Researchers at the University of Texas, Austin, have developed an AI algorithm (算法) that correctly predicted 70% of earthquakes a week in advance during a trial in China and provided accurate strength calculations for the predicted earthquakes.

The research team believes their method succeeded because they stuck with a relatively simple machine learning approach. The AI was provided with a set of statistical features based on the team’s knowledge of earthquake physics, and then instructed to train itself using a five-year database of earthquake recordings. Once trained, the AI provided its prediction by listening for signs of incoming earthquakes within the background rumblings (隆隆声) in the Earth.

This work is clearly a milestone in research for AI-driven earthquake prediction. “You don’t see earthquakes coming,” explains Alexandros Savvaidis, a senior research scientist who leads the Texas Seismological Network Program (TexNet). “It’s a matter of milliseconds, and the only thing you can control is how prepared you are. Even with the 70% accuracy, that’s a huge result and could help minimize economic and human losses and has the potential to remarkably improve earthquake preparation worldwide.”

While it is unknown whether the same approach will work at other locations, the researchers are confident that their AI algorithm could produce more accurate predictions if used in areas with reliable earthquake tracking networks. The next step is to test artificial intelligence in Texas, since UT’s Bureau TexNet has 300 earthquake stations and over six years worth of continuous records, making it an ideal location for these purposes.

Eventually, the authors hope to combine the system with physics-based models. This strategy could prove especially important where data is poor or lacking. “That may be a long way off, but many advances such as this one, taken together, are what moves science forward,” concludes Scott Tinker, the bureau’s director.

1. How does the AI predict earthquakes?

A．By identifying data from the satellites.

B．By analyzing background sounds in the Earth.

C．By modeling data based on earthquake recordings.

D．By monitoring changes in the Earth’s magnetic field.

2. What does Alexandros Savvaidis intend to show in paragraph3?

A．The ways to reduce losses in earthquakes.

B．The importance of preparing for earthquakes.

C．The significance of developing the AI prediction.

D．The limitation of AI algorithms in earthquake prediction.

3. What does the follow-up research focus on?

A．Conducting tests in different locations.

B．Applying the AI approach to other fields.

C．Building more earthquake stations in Texas.

D．Enlarging the database to train the calculation accuracy.

4. Which words can best describe the earthquake-predicting technology?

A．Stable but outdated.	B．Effective but costly.
C．Potential and economical.	D．Advanced and promising.

5 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段,使之构成一篇完整的短文。

When we are little kids, birthday parties are momentous occasions. They are our time to shine, and we love everything about them: the balloons, the games, the cake, the gifts, and so on.

After reading cool stories about police officers solving mysteries, Allen Miller thought the police were awesome, hoping to become one of them! So, when he had to choose a theme for his seventh birthday party—he went with his favorite: the police! And all he wanted for his birthday party was a model police car. He excitedly invited some of his friends and anxiously awaited the day. Unfortunately, none of them could make it to the party due to various reasons,

Allen’s mom Rachel wrestled with the challenging decision: should she cancel the party and save Allen the embarrassment of an empty party room? He had been looking forward to the party and talking about it daily, so it would break his heart to cancel it.

Officer Frank Smith, who had already planned with Rachel and agreed to show up at the party, heard from Rachel that it might be canceled due to low attendance. That’s when he decided to save the day—he is a police officer after all! His duty is to serve and protect, and he decided to protect Allen from having a bad day, and serve him the most amazing seventh birthday party! Officer Smith got the whole local police to join in. “We like to be involved in our community. It’s not just about enforcing (执行) the law. We like to be there in the good times as well,” he explained to Rachel.

On the day of Allen’s party, Officer Smith picked up Rachel and Allen in his police car. The boy didn’t know where they were going, but was excited. They stopped at Town Hall, and officer Smith led them into the meeting room where a group of policemen were waiting to wish Allen a happy birthday.

注意;
1.续写词数应为150个左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

There, a party was waiting for him.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

After they enjoyed the cake, Officer Smith took out a gift bag.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6 . 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。

Incense (香) boasts a long history,    1    its roots in many cultures-ancient China, ancient Egypt, Babylon and beyond. People from all walks of life benefit from its countless qualities, whether they use it for pleasure    2    as medicine.

Since the Tang and Song dynasties, burning incense, hanging paintings, making tea, and enjoying music have been known as the “four arts for literati (文人)”.    3    (make) from seeds, leaves and flowers, incense has been used as an enjoyable     4    (pursue) for scholars.

Moreover, medical incense is an essential part of Traditional Chinese Medicine, which considers preventative healthcare as     5    far superior form of treatment when illness strikes.

    6    (basic), medical incense can kill bacteria in the environment, protecting people against infections. It is also believed     7    (possess) the ability to balance the flow of Qi, a vital energy force within the body. Once the medical elements within incense are breathed in, they soon find    8    (they) way into the bloodstream. From there they go directly to the organs    9    treatment assistance is needed. The specific types of incense    10    (choose) based on the individual’s condition, aiming to restore balance and promote well-being.

7 . Once a year in a small mountain village, the Mande people gather to hear the folk stories of their traditions. The man playing an instrument called Sosso-Bala while singing is the storyteller. He holds all the folk knowledge of the Mande people.

Most of us don’t have a musical instrument that ties us together, but we have someone in our lives who’s the keeper of our folk knowledge. Often it’s a grandmother, who keeps all our stories of wisdom ready to tell upon request.    1     .What’s the best way to get a baby to sleep? Where do I come from? What’s my moral compass? The stories provide an answer, and it’s useful to speak with someone who knows how things are done.

    2     Researchers have documented folk knowledge in other species whales returning to parts of the sea that they’d abandoned a generation before; monkeys that communicate hunting skills to their offspring (后代). Folk knowledge is not only culture, it’s also survival.    3    

Traditionally, we share it in small units—families sharing around a dinner table.    4    Look at any social median, and you’ll see folk knowledge at work and at play. It’s exploded as we’re trained to look for information online, rather than from within. In this case, chances are that our questions can be answered with misinformation.

But we don’t gather once a year to reality check our “folk stories” as the Mande people do; nor do we center our folk traditions around a musical instrument. The internet has no reality except its own and, left unchecked, its wisdom has no rhythm(节奏).    5    

A．It’s just chaos.

B．This is why we do it.

C．Human wisdom has been passed down through generations.

D．The stories can be useful for dealing with all sorts of doubts.

E．Nowadays, folk knowledge has expanded to digital networks.

F．Now the internet has made valuable folk wisdom at your fingertips.

G．Recently, we discovered that this very human practice isn’t limited to humans.

8 . Since the last ice age, humans have cleared nearly half of the earth’s forests and grasslands for agriculture. With the world population expanding, there’s ever-increasing pressure on farmland to produce not only more food but also clean energy. In places such as Yakima County, Washington, it’s created competition for space as land-hungry solar panels (板) consume available fields. Last month, the state approved plans to cover 1,700 acres of agricultural land with solar panels, fueling concerns over the long-term impacts of losing cropland.

A recent study from the University of California, however, shows how farmers may soon harvest crops and energy together. One researcher, Majdi Abou Najm, explains that visible light spectrum (光谱) can be separated into blue and red light waves, and their photons (光子) have different properties. Blue ones have higher energy than red ones. While that gives blue light what is needed to generate power, it also results in higher temperatures. “From a plant angle, red photons are the efficient ones,” says Abou Najm. “They don’t make the plant feel hot.”

A goal of the study is to create a new generation of solar panels. He sees potential in the organic solar cells, which come from carbon-based materials. Thin and transparent, the cells are applied like a film onto various surfaces. This new technology could be used to develop special solar panels that block blue light to generate power, while passing the red light on to crops planted directly below. These panels could also provide shade for heat-sensitive fruits during the hottest part of the day.

By 2050, we’ll have two billion more people, and we’ll need more food and more energy. By maximizing the solar spectrum, “we’re making full use of an endlessly sustainable resource,” says Abou Najm. “If a technology kicks in that can develop these panels, then the sky is the limit on how efficient we can be.”

1. What problem does the first paragraph focus on?

A．Losing cropland to solar panels.

B．Distribution of the world population.

C．Reduction in forests and grasslands.

D．Competing for land between farmers.

2. What does the underlined word “that” in paragraph 2 refer to?

A．Generation of solar power.

B．Hot weather increasing efficiency.

C．Blue photons having higher energy.

D．Separation of visible light spectrum.

3. What do we know about the organic solar cells?

A．They make fruits heat-sensitive.

B．They can cool down in hot days,

C．They allow red light to pass through.

D．They can store carbon-based materials.

4. What does Abou Najm think of the future of the new solar panels?

A．Limited.	B．Promising.
C．Uncertain.	D．Challenging.

9 . Emest Owusu was 13 in 1980 when he was given the opportunity to appear in the audience of a BBC show, and ask Thatcher how she felt about being called the Iron Lady. This encounter re-emerged in a BBC’s programme recently.

At the time of their meeting, Owusu was on free school meals, living on a public estate in Brixton, south London, where he and his sister were being raised by their mother Rose, a struggling hairdresser.

Now 57, Owusu looks remarkably similar even with a greying beard. But his life has been transformed. The father of three is a human resources director, and the first black captain of the Addington golf club in its 110-year history. As a black guy, it is about breaking the glass ceiling. Speaking in its clubhouse, Owusu describes his rise in social status (地位) as a “Thatcherite Journey”. And he says it began by asking the woman herself. “To this day it still has an impact. My confidence changed from that sliding-door moment. Something about her connected with me.”

Thatcher told Owusu she enjoyed being called the Iron Lady. “I think it’s rather a praise, don’t you?” she said, “Because so often people have said to me if you’re in your job you’ve got to be soft and warm and human, but you’ve got to have a touch of steel.” Owusu recalls the moment, “I just remember her eye contact. She was answering me, not the camera. She welcomed the question saying you’ve got to be firm in this world. And that stuck with me.”

After the show was broadcast, Owusu said he became “a little hero in Brixton for a good three months”. Owusu added, “It all gave me extra confidence. Doors might not have opened so quickly. It was one of those key moments to make you do things maybe you wouldn’t otherwise have done.”

1. What do we know about Owusu when he was 13?

A．He met with Thatcher twice.

B．He joined a famous golf club.

C．He hosted a BBC’s programme.

D．He lived at the bottom of society.

2. What do the underlined words “sliding-door moment” in paragraph 4 probably mean?

A．Turning point.	B．Important decision.
C．Social status.	D．Remarkable achievement.

3. Based on the text, what made a big difference to Owusu?

A．Others’ treating him equally at work.

B．Others’ voting him a hero in Brixton.

C．Thatcher’s efforts to preserve his dignity.

D．Thatcher’s faith in the necessity of toughness.

4. Which of the following is a suitable title for the text?

A．The Art of Dialogue	B．The Power of Confidence
C．A Life-changing Meeting	D．A Status-improving Tale

10 . Katherine would never forget the day when her daughter brought a plate from kindergarten, with a drawing of mouse-like creatures on it.

“Emma, what are these little characters? What do you _________ them?” Katherine said. “Mom, they’re my _________. They come to children who are lonely or who were meant to have a _________ life,” Emma said. It _________ the unemployed 36-year-old mom’s heart during a time when she wasn’t feeling too good about her job _________.

All this eventually _________ a new project for Katherine, unemployed for months—making a line of stuffed animals for sale based on her daughter’s _________. “Every day, I would work on it,” she said. “Over time, it felt like this is what I really _________.” In her basement, Katherine cut patterns, wrote storylines and _________ prototypes (原型样品) to turn “The Representatives” into dolls (玩偶).

Today she has four __________ doll prototypes and specific storylines to go with each main character. She hopes to__________ the dolls to parents going through hard times, or maybe those preparing to work overseas, leaving their __________ behind with relatives.

She said even if the dolls don’t __________, she’s taught her daughter __________ to keep moving even in down times. It’s really a __________ for those unemployed right now, she said.

1.

A．leave

B．call

C．bring

D．feed

2.

A．representatives

B．classmates

C．supporters

D．guides

3.

A．longer

B．tougher

C．better

D．fairer

4.

A．broke

B．closed

C．touched

D．won

5.

A．descriptions

B．reports

C．duties

D．prospects

6.

A．led to

B．referred to

C．adapted to

D．belonged to

7.

A．memories

B．drawings

C．toys

D．feelings

8.

A．learned

B．imagined

C．wanted

D．promised

9.

A．tested

B．labeled

C．copied

D．sewed

10.

A．advertised

B．completed

C．marked

D．printed

11.

A．return

B．donate

C．market

D．expose

12.

A．kids

B．parents

C．jobs

D．stories

13.

A．turn up

B．catch up

C．break off

D．take off

14.

A．on purpose

B．by example

C．at will

D．in detail

15.

A．tradition

B．dream

C．wonder

D．lesson