1 . The world’s largest ape Gigantopithecus blacki (G. blacki) vanished from Earth between 295, 000 and 215, 000 years ago, more than 100, 000 years earlier than once thought, pushed to extinction as the environment around it shifted, researchers reported recently in Nature.

The fate of G. blacki, twice the size of the largest modern apes and resembling a super-sized version of its close cousin, the orangutan, has long been a mystery. For about 2 million years, G. blacki inhabited a landscape of forests and grasses in what’s now southern China. It left behind only scattered remnants: thousands of teeth and four jawbones, unearthed in cave sediments in the region.

To establish a chronology for the ape’s extinction, paleoanthropologist Yingqi Zhang of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing and his colleagues used different dating techniques to determine the ape’s habits, diet and environment. In the teeth, they looked for data on the ape’s diet, measuring isotopes (同位素) of carbon and oxygen as well as examining the teeth for tiny evidence of wear and tear — which can reveal not only diet, but also give hints of repeated behaviors and stress. The team also analyzed the cave sediments bearing the fossils, hunting for fossil pollen and conducting luminescence dating (光释光测年) on radioactive elements within the sediments.

The team’s reconstruction revealed that — around 700, 000 to 600, 000 years ago, southern China shifted from its forested landscape to a more seasonally-driven environment. Some apes, including the orangutans, were able to adapt to these changes. But G. blacki was unable to change rapidly enough, and its numbers slowly dwindled before going extinct, the team suggested.

The assembled evidence told a convincing story that “the extinction of G. blacki coincided in southern China with a decrease of forest cover and expansion of savanna-like environments,” said Hervé Bocherens, a biogeologist at the University of Tuebingen in Germany. Still, he said, documenting the extinction of this species from the fossil record is tricky — and it’s impossible to rule out the possibility that pockets of G. blacki may have lingered in still-undiscovered caves for longer.

1. What can be known about G. blacki according to paragraph 2?

A． G. blacki shared certain similarities with the orangutan.

B． G. blacki was twice larger than the largest modern apes.

C． G. blacki lived in places full of basins and deserts.

D． G. blacki might have thousands of teeth.

2. What did Zhang and his workmates do to figure out information related to G. blacki ?

A．They checked the situation of G. blacki.

B．They repeated the behaviors done by G. blacki.

C．They applied radioactive elements to the analysis of the cave sediments.

D．They measured isotopes of carbon and hydrogen in G. blacki diet.

3. What is the meaning of the underlined word “dwindled” in paragraph 4?

A．Increased.

B．Reduced.

C．Unchanged.

D．Multiplied.

4. What can we learn from Bocherens’s words?

A．Many hands make light work.

B．One good turn deserves another.

C．Knowledge advances by steps and not by leaps.

D．Experience must be bought.

2 . A Maryland couple stranded (滞留) without food in the freezing cold on a Virginia highway. They were getting ________ and more discouraged by the minute.

After almost 21 hours of being ________ on 95 South, Casey and her husband John slept there overnight and not ________ access to food or water. At that time, they ________ a Schmidt Baking Co. truck ahead of them in the standstill. “People around us were very much ________. Many of them had small children, some were elderly and hadn’t eaten in almost a whole day. ” In a desperate bid for a ________, they decided to call the Schmidt Bakery and see if it could help ________ some much-needed food for them, as well as their fellow highway captives.

“I didn’t think it would ________ work,” said Casey, who left a message with customer service. But to their ________, 20 minutes later, they actually got a ________ from Chuck Paterakis, the owner of the bakery. He told them to walk over to the truck driver, Ron, who was given the go-ahead to start handing out ________ to 50 motorists. Then, the couple joined the driver in making ________. Soon, others joined the effort, in which some 300 loaves were ________.

“It felt incredible just hearing people say thank you and hearing them so ________ to finally have food in their car. This was one of the ________ moments I have ever witnessed.” recalled Casey.

1.

A．farther

B．hungrier

C．poorer

D．angrier

2.

A．hit

B．rescued

C．stuck

D．fined

3.

A．seeking

B．having

C．limiting

D．allowing

4.

A．spotted

B．rented

C．searched

D．repaired

5.

A．cheering

B．begging

C．joking

D．struggling

6.

A．job

B．shelter

C．gift

D．bite

7.

A．provide

B．prepare

C．store

D．select

8.

A．occasionally

B．suddenly

C．actually

D．routinely

9.

A．credit

B．amusement

C．surprise

D．honor

10.

A．loan

B．call

C．request

D．visit

11.

A．bread

B．cash

C．flyers

D．permits

12.

A．bookings

B．comments

C．schedules

D．deliveries

13.

A．put away

B．given out

C．cut up

D．hunted for

14.

A．honored

B．concerned

C．generous

D．relieved

15.

A．hardest

B．kindest

C．proudest

D．longest

3 . Beejhy Barhany, growing up in an Ethiopian-Jewish community in Israel, has been cooking for her family as long as she can remember. Now a chef and owner of Tsion Café in Harlem, New York, Barhany continues to pull from cooking traditions, including one that has become the source of much controversy in recent decades: washing raw meat before cooking.

For Barhany, submerging raw chicken in salt and lemon water is both functional and ceremonial, as soaking or rinsing raw meat in salt water and acid-such as lemon juice or vinegar-is a common form of “washing” required by Jewish Kosher rules. And a 2015 survey of over 1, 500 American consumers found that nearly 70 percent rinse or wash their poultry before cooking it, though the U. S. Department of Agriculture( USDA) started telling consumers not to wash raw poultry in the 1990s. Experts including those from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention strongly warned that rather than reducing the risk of foodborne illness (食源性疾病), washing meat increases the likelihood of spreading unwanted pathogens (病原体), like salmonella and campylobacter, around the kitchen.

“Washing meat before cooking is not really helping,” says Betty Feng, associate professor of food science at Purdue University. “The only thing it does is splashing (飞溅) and could cross-contaminate a lot of your kitchen items-your sink, probably your clothes, whatever you have by the sink.” Moreover, Feng cautions against using saltwater, vinegar, or lemon juice, which simply isn’t strong enough to effectively kill foodborne pathogens. “If the acidity is high enough to kill bacteria, then it’s not really likely you can use your bare hand to wash,” she says.

And a 2022 study showed that submerging meat in a bowl of water reduced the splashing but not the spread of germs. “I would treat the entire sink just like the outside of the chicken——it’s a biological hazard,” says Benjamin Chapman, one of the study authors and associate professor in North Carolina State University’s agricultural and human sciences department. “The way that we make meat safe is through cooking, not through the removal of pathogens.”

1. What is the purpose of paragraph 1?

A．To broaden the readers’ horizons.	B．To make a comparison.
C．To introduce the topic.	D．To state the author’s opinion.

2. What is mentioned about the Jewish Kosher rules from this text?

A．Nearly 70 percent of American consumers follow the rules.

B．The rules pay attention to functional and ceremonial aspects.

C．Uncooked meat is submerged in water with salt and vinegar.

D．It warns people of the risk of foodborne illness.

3. What is TRUE about “washing meat before cooking” according to Betty?

A．It has sparked a lot of controversy in recent years.

B．It has decreased the risk of foodborne illness.

C．It can not be directly done/with your bare hands.

D．It may do a favor/ to the transfer of pathogens.

4. Why is the underlined phrase “biological hazard” mentioned in the last paragraph?

A．To emphasize that chickens pose a level/of threat to humans’ life.

B．To show that sinks can be a way to increase splashing.

C．To prove that cooking is a good way to kill pathogens.

D．To stress that the practice people follow is not advisable.

4 . Formula One Lenovo Chinese Grand Prix 2024

From April 19 to 21, the much-anticipated 2024 Formula One Lenovo Chinese Grand Prix will come alive with the roar of engines at the Shanghai International Circuit. Details about tickets for the event are as follows.

Ticket Price:

[Grandstand]              [Session]                                        [Price (RMB)]

A Platinum                    3 Day Ticket                                        3880

• A High                    3 Day/Fri./Sat./Sun. Ticket              2880/490/890/2490

• A Low                    3 Day/Fri./Sat./Sun. Ticket              2280/390/690/1990

• H/K                           3 Day/Fri./Sat./Sun. Ticket              1480/290/590/1290

• C/F/J/L                    3 Day Ticket                                        480

Ticketing Instructions:

• This event adopts electronic tickets with one ticket per person. Children require a full-priced ticket, and children under the age of three are not allowed entry.

• For each session of this event, a maximum of 4 tickets per mobile phone number and 1 ticket per ID card number can be purchased. When purchasing tickets, buyers must provide the audience’s real name, a valid personal ID, and a valid mobile phone number. After a successful purchase, ticket purchasers should retain e-ticket seat information appropriately.

• Ticket refunds can be requested without fees from the date of purchase until 24: 00 on February 29, 2024. From 00:00 on March 1, 2024, to 24: 00 on April 15, 2024, refunds will invite a 10% handling fee. No refunds will be accepted from 00: 00 on April 16, 2024. Returned within 7 working days.

• This event implements real-name verification with ID card and facial recognition for entry.

• The schedule and arrangement of the competition may be subject to changes, and please stay tuned to Formula One Lenovo Chinese Grand Prix official WeChat and Weibo for the latest information.

1. What should be offered to buy a ticket?

A．The audience’s nickname.	B．The audience’s e-ticket seat information.
C．The audience’s WeChat number.	D．The audience’s available phone number.

2. How much will be returned if a couple return their Sat. Ticket of K on March 15?

A．59 yuan.

B．531 yuan.

C．1, 062 yuan.

D．1, 180 yuan.

3. What can we know about Formula One Lenovo Chinese Grand Prix 2024?

A．It will last 7 days.	B．It will be exciting and noisy.
C．It doesn’t limit the audience’s age.	D．It will never be postponed or cancelled.

5 . The innovation is part of research into brain-computer interfaces (接口) to help improve the lives of people with motor disabilities. The researchers included machine learning capabilities with their brain-computer interface, making it a one-size-fits-all solution.

Typically, these devices require extensive adjustment for each user- every brain is different, both for healthy and disabled users- and that has been a major hurdle to mainstream adoption. This new solution can quickly understand the needs of an individual subject and self-adjust through repetition. That means multiple patients could use the device without needing to tune it to the individual.

In a clinical setting, the subjects wear a cap packed with electrodes (电极) that is connected to a computer. The electrodes gather data by measuring electrical signals from the brain, and the decoder translates the brain signals into commands, which are used to control devices or applications. In this case, the decoded signals are translated into actions in a car racing game and a simpler task involving balancing a digital bar. Subjects were trained simultaneously for both the simpler bar game and the more complex car racing game, thus improving their brain function.

The researchers call this work foundational, in that it sets the stage for further brain-computer interface innovation. This project used 18 subjects with no motor disabilities. As they continue down this road, they will test this on people with motor disabilities to apply it to larger groups in clinical settings. “To achieve this, we need to improve our technology to make it easier to use,’ Millan. a professor in the University of Texas says.

On the side of translating the research, Millan and his team continue to work on a wheelchair that users can drive with the brain- computer interface. At the South by Southwest Conference and Festivals this month, the researchers showed off another potential use of the technology. controlling two rehabilitation (康复) robots for the hand and arm. This was not part of the new paper but a sign of where this technology could go in the future. “We’ll continue down this path wherever it takes us in the pursuit of helping people.” Millan says.

1. Who will benefit the most from the Brain-Computer Interface innovation?

A．People with physical disabilities.	B．Businessmen selling wheelchairs.
C．Students seeking academic improvement.	D．Athletes seeking performance enhancement.

2. What is the main advantage of the new solution?

A．Faster adjustment process.	B．Decreased need for tuning.
C．Improved mainstream adoption.	D．Quick understanding of commands.

3. What is the function of electrodes?

A．Translating signals.	B．Measuring brain signals.
C．Controlling devices.	D．Enhancing brain function.

4. What is the probable focus of Millan and his team’s future work?

A．Exploring hand and arm rehabilitation.

B．Showcasing technology at conferences.

C．Translating and publishing research papers.

D．Enhancing brain- computer interface technology.

6 . Spring breakers don’t need to spend a fortune to enjoy life in the sunshine for a week. U. S. News carefully considered everything to bring you the best inexpensive spring break destinations.

Key West

This small island in the Florida Keys is known for its odd residents and best snorkeling (浮潜) opportunities. While you’ll find plenty of spots for partying along rowdy Duval Street, you can also soak up some culture at the Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum. Plus, Key West offers several budget-friendly vacation rentals, so you can save your cash for bars and boat tours.

Panama City Beach

Panama City Beach is a tried-and-true Florida spring break location that is sure to please the masses. Scope out a spot across the town’s 27 miles of white sand beaches to sunbathe, play volleyball or scan the horizon for bottlenose dolphins. Hotel prices are reasonable if you book your accommodations in advance. Just note: This town bans alcohol consumption on the beach during March, so you’ll have to enjoy your adult beverages elsewhere.

South Pad re Island

With hotels offering nightly rates around $200 or less and DJs and celebrities holding court at nightclubs, South Padre Island, Texas, is a hot spring break destination for college students. This South Texas local e is only about 30 miles north of the U. S.-Mexico border, meaning you’ll get to enjoy warm weather without having to leave the country. As an added bonus, the island offers a free public shuttle system, so budget-conscious travelers won’t have to worry about spending money on a rental car.

1. What can tourists do in Key West?

A．Have a good surfing.

B．Bath e in the sun on the beach.

C．Throw a party anywhere on the island.

D．Visit the Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum.

2. What is special about Panama City Beach?

A．The hotel prices are low whenever you go.

B．It is a perfect destination for spring vacation.

C．You can drink some wine on the beach in March.

D．You can see the bottlenose dolphins in person.

3. What do the three travel destinations have in common?

A．They are budget-friendly.	B．They are alive with wildlife.
C．They offer a taste of culture.	D．They offer free public shuttle system.

7 . 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。

Sitting on a lounge chair (躺椅) in her studio in northwest London, Duan Yiran, the     1     (found) of a handcrafts workshop promoting the traditional indigo dyeing (靛蓝染色) technique, admits actually she used to hate the craft. As a member of the Bai ethnic group, she was born and raised in Dali city, Southwest China’s Yunnan province.     2     one time, in her village, nearly every household boasted members who mastered the tie-dyeing (扎染)technique. Duan’s family also ran     3     company that produced handwoven, hand-dyed fabrics.

To tie-dye pieces of cloth, people use needles and threads to create different     4     (fold) in the fabrics before putting them in dye vats (大缸) several times.     5     (typical), the vats contain sky-blue-colored dye     6     (obtain) from plants. Unfolding the fabrics reveals beautiful patterns, such as geometric shapes and flowers. The areas stitched (缝) by threads remain white     7     they were not immersed in the dye, while other areas turn blue. In 2006, the tie-dyeing technique of the Bai ethnic group     8     (list) into state-level intangible cultural heritages.

Duan never thought about     9     (inherit) the craft until she moved to London in 2015 to study costume design. “When making the Victorian-style costumes, I found     10     (I) unconsciously applying the Chinese embroidery (刺绣) stitching and knotting techniques that I learned from my grandmother,” she says. At that time, she realized that a person may not be entirely separated from his homeland and the cultural imprints (印记) that come with it.

8 . Zong Qinghou, the rags-to-riches founder of one of China’s biggest beverage makers, who was once China’s richest man, died of an illness on Sunday at the age of 79, his company Hangzhou Wahaha Group said in a brief statement.

In China, Zong was known as a legendary businessman who grew his soft drinks empire from a tricycle cart hawking (沿街叫卖) ice pops to school kids into a large company selling everything from milk drinks to bottled water and canned porridge.

Zong was also recognized as a national hero for wrestling the full control of Wahaha, which means “laughing child”, from its French partner Danone more than a decade ago. Victory in that bitter battle boosted Zong’s wealth to $8 billion, making him China’s richest man in 2010 and again in 2012, according to Forbes.

His death was mourned across China. Condolences (吊唁) poured in from remarkable Chinese entrepreneurs including Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma and Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun. Wahaha employees and residents in the eastern city of Hangzhou laid flowers outside the company.

The beverage giant’s rise came to represent the can-do spirit of China’s first generation of private entrepreneurs, who helped accelerate the country’s explosive economic growth in the years after they capitalized on market reforms in the late 1970s.

Despite his wealth, Zong was known for his simple lifestyle, which set him apart from many of China’s new rich. He was nicknamed “the richest man in cloth shoes” for always sporting plain black shoes.

In an interview with the state-run People’s Daily in 2010, Zong said the title and wealth had brought little change to his life. “Every day, I still smoke two packs of cigarettes that cost 12 yuan (then $1.80) each, have two cups of tea, and eat my three meals at the company canteen,” he said. He was known for starting work around 7 am and not leaving the office until 11 pm, working for more than 12 hours a day long before the tiring “996” work schedule became common.

1. Zong Qinghou was praised as a national hero because of his ______.

A．stimulating China’s economy

B．becoming China’s richest man in 2010

C．teaming up with the French partner Danone

D．completely dominating Wahaha by beating Danone

2. What can we infer from Zong Qinghou’s rags-to-riches legend?

A．His soft drinks empire was established overnight.

B．Embracing the changes in policies benefited him.

C．His perseverance played a decisive role in China’s economic growth.

D．His family background and people skills contributed to his success.

3. The interview with Zong Qinghou in 2010 can show that ______.

A．he stayed true to himself	B．he brought fame and fortune to people
C．he gave in to the temptation of wealth	D．he pioneered the “996” work schedule

4. According to the text, which of the following best describes Zong Qinghou?

A．Respectful and optimistic.	B．Influential and enterprising.
C．Generous and aggressive.	D．Talented and economical.

9 . A new color-changing ink could aid in health and environment monitoring — for example, allowing clothing that switches colors when exposed to sweat or a curtain that shifts colors if carbon monoxide (一氧化碳) enters a room. The chemicals could be printed on anything from a T-shirt to a tent.

Wearable sensing devices like smart watches use electronics to monitor heart rate, blood glucose (血糖), and more. Now researchers at Tufts University’s Silklab say their new silk-based inks can respond to the presence of chemicals on or around the body.

The researchers had created an earlier version of the material that inkjet printers could spray on fabric, turning small items, such as gloves, into sensors. For the recent study, published online in May in Advanced Materials, they thickened the ink with certain chemicals and then added various reactive substances. With the new ink, they can now “easily print a large number of reactive elements onto large surfaces,” says Fiorenzo Omenetto, a biomedical engineer at Silklab.

“In the case of a T-shirt, the wearer ‘paints’ the shirt through exercise — with colors correlating to the acidity distribution of their sweat,” Omenetto says. He envisions using the ink to help monitor such activity. It could also be adapted to track environmental changes in a room, he says — or to respond to bacteria and follow disease progression.

Mechanical engineer Tyler Ray of the University of Hawaii at Manoa, who was not involved with the study, notes that most of today’s wearable monitors are rigid, wired and relatively large and heavy. The new in k technology has “the potential to transform consumer wearables from recreational novelty devices into body-worn, clinical-grade physiological measurement tools that supply physician-actionable information,” he says. But “one of the challenges with any colorimetric (比色的) approach is the effect various environmental conditions have on accuracy, such as lighting or the camera used.” Future studies would need to address these issues.

1. What makes the new ink different from the earlier version?

A．It can be printed on large items.	B．It can be used to monitor heart rate.
C．It doesn’t need electronics to work.	D．It can change objects into sensors.

2. What could be inferred from paragraph 4?

A．The wearer paints different colors on his T-shirt.

B．The ink could solve environmental problem one day.

C．The wearer’s T-shirt will get wet and dirty through exercise.

D．Researcher may use the ink to monitor environmental conditions.

3. What does Tyler Ray think about the new in k technology?

A．It can be used in recreational new devices.

B．It may provide useful information for doctors.

C．It can warn people of some disease.

D．It may transform consumers’ ideas about wearable monitors.

4. What will the future studies of the new ink technology focus on?

A．Its approach to environment monitoring.

B．Its effects on people’s health.

C．The environmental influence on accuracy.

D．The development of more accurate wearables

10 . FALL PREVENTION

Autumnal weather can be beautiful. Stunning colors, falling leaves — but wetter pavements call for steady feet, which is why Goldster has teamed up with personal trainer and programme coach James Hilton to create a fantastic free online event to help make sure you stay stable, wherever you’re walking.

James prides himself on helping people improve their quality of life and confidence by encouraging them to consciously think more about how they navigate daily tasks from a movement perspective.

Join James as he leads Goldster’s fall prevention free online event, “Finding Renewed Stability” — and stay confident in putting one foot in front of the other.

Event Details

Date: Tuesday, 22nd Oct.

Time: 2:00 p. m.— 4:00 p. m.

Place: Online via Zoom — join for free

REGISTER NOW FOR FREE AT

https://bit.ly/goldsterfallprevention

Event schedule

2:00 — 2:15 p. m. Welcome with Goldster Presenter Lee Pycroft.

2:15 — 2:45 p. m. James Hilton, Fitness trainer: The basics of movement and the planes of motion plus setting some basic movement assessments.

2:45 — 3:15 p. m. Claudia le Feuvre, Nutritionist and eating psychology coach: Nutrition for muscle and bone health. (Claudia le Feuvre has 16-year clinical experience helping clients with a wide range of health problems.)

3:15 — 3:45 p. m. Andy Yau, Tai Chi expert: Balance and flow of movement. (Andy Yau helps people find their flow and improve their mobility with this gentle, poetic form of movement.)

3:45 — 4:00 p. m. Interactive Q&A.

1. Whom is the text probably intended for?

A．Tough task handlers.	B．Committed naturalists.
C．Autumn outing lovers.	D．Sustainable life activists.

2. From whom can you receive advice on healthy diet?

A．Andy Yau.	B．Lee Pycroft.
C．James Hilton.	D．Claudia le Feuvre.

3. What can be learned about the event?

A．It lasts for a whole day.

B．It charges an entry fee for participation.

C．It combines poetry appreciation courses.

D．It offers the audience a chance to raise questions.