1 . Here’re some of the excellent inventions in 2023. Which one do you like most?

Whiter Paint

The paint on a white building reflects 80 to 90% of the sunlight that strikes it. The rest of the light warms the surrounding area, raising air-conditioning bills. But the Whiter Paint is made of chemicals that better reflect UV rays. It reflects up to 98% of the sunlight, which could reduce AC use by 40%. “The heat is reflected into deep space,” says Xiulin Ruan, who led the Purdue University team that created the paint.

Duolingo app

Now you can take music lessons on a smartphone, using this app, which uses an on-screen piano to teach basics such as harmony and beat. You learn by interacting with more than 200 popular pieces of music. Just match sounds to notes and play along. “You don’t need natural talent to learn music,” says Karen Chow, who’s a learning scientist at Duolingo.

Model A

Model A, developed by Alef Aeronautics, is a two-seat all-electric vehicle with a flight range of 110 miles. And it looks as if it were made to be parked in a garage. In July, 2023, the Federal Aviation Administration gave Ale f permission to take the vehicle on test flights. The company hopes to deliver the first Model A by 2026.

Moonwalkers

They’re actually battery-powered shoes with wheels. They let you walk normally—just faster and more easily. Moonwalkers, made by Shift Robotics, use AI to sense when you’re speeding up or slowing down, and adjust themselves accordingly. With it, you can walk at speeds up to seven miles per hour.

1. What is special about Whiter Paint?

A．It warms our buildings.	B．It powers air conditioners.
C．It makes us feel cooler.	D．It absorbs more sunlight.

2. Which one is being tested?

A．Whiter Paint.	B．Duolingo app.
C．Moonwalkers.	D．Model A.

3. What do the listed inventions have in common?

A．They are supported by AI technology.	B．They can help us live an easier life.
C．They were created by college teams.	D．They are favored by the disabled.

2 . When people in your organization come to you to discuss a problem, you give them your best answer and probably assume you’ve helped them.

    1    . You’re not being much help if you’re not really listening to them. We’re not talking about the mere act of listening, but the art of listening, known as active listening. How can you become a more effective listener? Here are some tips:

Be present.     2    . There’re so many things that make you lose focus in the office many of them tech-related, like instant messaging and email—that you almost can’t help but half listen to anyone who speaks to you, whether it’s in person or by phone. What you need to do is purposefully practice active listening by bringing yourself fully into the conversation.     3    .

Give the other person your undivided attention. It shows respect and can have a positive impact on your entire exchange. It also means you’re less likely to misunderstand, or simply miss, what the person is saying to you.     4     when a customer or coworker is telling you about a problem you already know how to solve before they’ve finished speaking. But part of active listening means you need to let them complete their full “download” to you before you respond.

Understand nonverbal（非语言） changes.     5    , but good listeners will also sense what is not being said, as well as what is verbalized. Learning how to read physical cues, such as facial expressions, takes practice. Improving these active listening skills will help you get the message and resolve problems faster.

A．Well, it may not be that simple

B．Listening naturally means hearing

C．Of course, it’s easy to become impatient

D．Wait for an appropriate moment to politely ask a question

E．Be mindful and concentrate on the message, word for word

F．Truly hearing what the speaker has to say requires your full attention

G．Good active listening skills apply when you’re communicating with others

3 . New research concludes people may struggle to differentiate between medical advice given by chatbots (聊天机器人) and human health care providers. Findings indicate chatbots, like ChatGPT, could be valuable tools in assisting healthcare providers in communicating with patients.

ChatGPT is trained to predict the most probable next word in a conversation using vast amounts of Internet data. It responds to user enquiries, learning from human feedback. However, it’s not without limitations. ChatGPT, like other large language models（LLMs）, can sometimes produce biased information and lacks the ability to perform true reasoning.

The research had 392 participants aged 18 and above who were presented with ten patient questions. Half of the responses to these questions were given by humans, while the other half came from ChatGPT. Participants then had to identify the origin of each response and rate their trust in the chatbot’s answers from “completely untrustworthy” to “completely trustworthy”. Participants could only correctly identify chatbot-given responses 65.5% of the time. Participants displayed the most trust in chatbots when handling the matters, such as scheduling appointments or addressing insurance enquiries, with an average trust score of 3.94. Preventative care questions, like cancer screenings, came next at 3.52. However, trust decreased for diagnostic (诊断) and treatment advice, registering scores of 2.90 and 2.89 respectively.

The study’s results indicate the potential chatbots possess in aiding patient-provider communications, especially in areas like administrative tasks. But scientists have something to say regarding chatbots assuming more clinical roles. “Providers should exercise picky judgment when it comes to chatbot-given advice due to the limitations of AI models,” researchers said in a statement.

The use of AI into healthcare is no longer a distant possibility but a rapidly evolving reality. This study offers a glimpse (瞥见) into the ways we can expect to see AI platforms team with medical clinics. It also shows us improvements that are needed so that new technologies become effective aids and tools for both doctors and patients. These include the following.

1. Which is closest in meaning to “biased” in paragraph 2?

A．Inaccurate.

B．Indirect.

C．Unnecessary.

D．Unusual.

2. What affected the participants’ level of trust in chatbot responses?

A．Their answers to chatbots’ questions.	B．Their then physical conditions.
C．The origin of each response.	D．The nature of the enquiry.

3. What’s the scientists’ attitude to chatbots taking on clinical medical tasks?

A．Disapproving.

B．Unclear.

C．Conservative.

D．Positive.

4. What might the author continue talking about regarding the study?

A．Possible reasons for its findings.	B．Its major limitations in reality.
C．Its influences on healthcare.	D．Explanations of its methods.

4 . For the second year in a row, the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) has started the program AdoptAxolotl to boost conservation efforts for axolotls, an endangered Mexican salamander (蝾螈).

Most salamanders go through a big change which allows them to live on land instead of in water. But axolotls never do. They live their whole lives in the water. Axolotls are famous for their ability to cure themselves. If an axolotl loses a leg, or even part of its heart, brain, or lungs, it can re-grow them. Scientists have long been interested in how the axolotl does this, thinking the information could help solve some human medical problems.

There’re several different kinds of axolotls in Mexico, all of whom are seriously endangered. The Mexican axolotl, which is the best-known, is only found naturally in Lake Xochimilco near Mexico City. This is not a big, open lake, but a collection of canals and smaller bodies of water.

Sadly, the number of axolotls in Xochimilco has dropped 99.5% in less than 20 years. People don’t hunt them, then, how does this happen? One is that the water in the canals has become more and more polluted. Another is that there’re a number of fish from other places in the lake which are eating the axolotl’s food, and even their babies.

Last year, the UNAM scientists started AdoptAxolotl, asking people to donate to save the axolotl. They raised over $26,000, which is being used to help clean up some of Xochimilco’s canals and for a program to raise axolotls in a safe environment.

This year, the scientists are trying AdoptAxolotl again. The money raised will be used to support the scientists’ work, and help restore the axolotl’s natural home in the canals of Xochimilco. The scientists hope to raise enough money to do a careful count of how many axolotls are left in the wild, which will help them figure out the best ways of protecting these amazing creatures.

1. What is the potential advantage of axolotls?

A．Becoming healthy naturally again.	B．Offering humans some medical tips.
C．Adapting themselves to living on land.	D．Living a normal life though disabled.

2. What is a cause of the axolotl population decline in Xochimilco?

A．Lack of land where they find food.	B．Popularity of people hunting them.
C．Loss of the waters where they live.	D．Presence of many non-native fish.

3. What are the scientists trying to do about axolotls?

A．Count their numbers and classify them.	B．Build more lakes and canals for them.
C．Remove them out of Lake Xochimilco.	D．Improve their living environment.

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

A．Protecting Axolotls Is in Progress	B．Axolotls’ Homes Are Polluted
C．AdoptAxolotl Campaign Is Beneficial	D．Scientists Are Worrying Axolotls

5 . Geoffrey Holt was a “nobody” in the public eye. He worked in his eighties as a caretaker at a mobile home park in Hinsdale, New Hampshire.

Holt collected hundreds of model cars and train sets that filled his rooms. He also collected books about history, with Henry Ford and World War II among his favorite topics. Holt had an extensive record collection too, including Handel and Mozart. Very often, he’d find a quiet place and study financial publications.

After retiring, Holt did various jobs for others. Despite having taught driver’s education course to high schoolers, he’d given up driving a car. He opted for a bicycle instead and finally the mower（除草机）. His mobile home in the park was mostly empty of furniture—no TV and no computer, either. The legs of the bed went through the floor.

But Holt did have two things. He had a big secret and an even bigger heart. He passed away in early 2023. In a move that surprised the tiny town of 4,200 people, he left all his worldly goods to the people of Hinsdale.

With his casual lifestyle, no one would have guessed that Holt had a wealth worth up to $3.8million! Holt, who earlier in life had worked as a production manager at a grain factory that closed down in nearby Brattleboro, Vermont, spent his money on communications, hoping to earn more out of it. In the end, it was doing better than he’d ever expected.

Holt grew up in Springfield, Massachusetts. His father, Lee Holt, was a professor who taught English and world literature in a college. His mother, Margaret Holt, was an artist. Holt went to boarding schools and attended the former Marlboro College in Vermont, where students had self-designed degree plans. He graduated in 1963 and earned a master’s degree from the college where his father taught in 1968.

        Undoubtedly, Holt will be remembered forever.
1. What can we learn about Holt?

A．He had a wide range of interests.	B．He had always longed to be a driver.
C．He possessed a mobile home park.	D．He was often out of job while young.

2. How did Holt accumulate his wealth?

A．By gaining his parents’ help.	B．By doing business in a field.
C．By setting up a grain factory.	D．By working hard after retiring.

3. What does the last but one paragraph focus on about Holt?

A．His father’s education concept.	B．His educational experiences.
C．His parents’ love for him.	D．His early work dreams.

4. Which best describes Holt?

A．Simple but other-centered.	B．Serious but straightforward.
C．Daring and demanding.	D．Easygoing and ambitious.

6 . I was once a painfully insecure teenage girl. I felt ________ all day, and rejected by my classmates. My ________ comfort was to be the stage assistant at our school’s theater.

One day, to my ________, actors from the great Oregon Shakespeare Festival came to perform for the school. One of them was Barry Kraft, who was a ________ leading actor. As I ran around backstage ________ him, he treated me with the casual ________ that he would show for friends in his living room. I ________ thought he was just making small talk to ________ the time before the performance.

That summer, I traveled to ________ Kraft’s performance at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. During one performance, I gathered my ________ and dropped him a note at intermission (中场休息), saying that if he ________ he could see me in the 15th row. Almost immediately I ________ sending the note, thinking he was too busy to see me.

After the ________, surprisingly, he was waiting for me! He smiled broadly, saying, “Would you like to visit backstage?” And off we went. Every time we ________ someone, he introduced me and said, “She helped me a lot.” I found him ________ sincere with people. It was then that I ________ I’d been wrong about him that day.

My ________ just increased 800%. After all, a well-known man like Kraft was willing to take the ________ to communicate with me, which ________ I mustn’t be so bad. From then on, I felt like a different person. ________, I successfully entered my dream university.

1.

A．responsible

B．prepared

C．hopeless

D．confused

2.

A．only

B．new

C．extra

D．secret

3.

A．surprise

B．delight

C．curiosity

D．disappointment

4.

A．reliable

B．lucky

C．famous

D．generous

5.

A．interviewing

B．following

C．watching

D．assisting

6.

A．friendliness

B．eagerness

C．forgiveness

D．skillfulness

7.

A．temporarily

B．originally

C．probably

D．finally

8.

A．share

B．save

C．kill

D．find

9.

A．assess

B．see

C．advocate

D．polish

10.

A．memories

B．materials

C．strength

D．courage

11.

A．looked down

B．backed off

C．set out

D．stepped forward

12.

A．suggested

B．stopped

C．regretted

D．finished

13.

A．discussion

B．show

C．travel

D．introduction

14.

A．asked

B．reminded

C．informed

D．met

15.

A．gradually

B．normally

C．merely

D．really

16.

A．agreed

B．predicted

C．forgotten

D．realized

17.

A．contribution

B．confidence

C．competence

D．experience

18.

A．risk

B．chance

C．time

D．measure

19.

A．indicated

B．witnessed

C．expected

D．repeated

20.

A．As a result

B．In that case

C．As usual

D．in contrast

7 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

Mount Fuji seems to be losing its World Heritage status and becoming the victim of over-tourism. The scenic spot was listed as a world heritage site in 2013.     1    , a jump in the number of tourists climbing the majestic mountain is     2     (threat) that listing. With so many visitors     3     (head) towards those trails, Japan is experiencing a post-covid tourist boom. Mt. Fuji is so popular in Japan that many Japanese hope to climb it at least once in their lives.     4     considerable number of climbers is causing environmental damage on the slopes. Litter is left across the volcanic ash, and large parking lots have been constructed to accommodate tourists.

A local official told reporters that: “Fuji is faced     5     a real crisis. Tourism has become uncontrollable, and we fear that Mt. Fuji will soon become an unattractive place     6     nobody would want to go climbing.” He added: “Fuji is screaming in pain. We can’t just wait for improvement; we need to tackle over-tourism now.” The mountain’s fifth base station     7     (witness) a 50 percent rise in visitors since 2013, with about four million visitors this summer. Another headache for local authorities is “bullet climbers”, people who have an     8     (intend) to ascend and descend Fuji in 24 hours. They risk getting altitude sickness and hypothermia.     9     (fortunate), the official climbing season ended on Sunday, preventing Fuji from     10     (far) damage.

8 . Having grown up in northern Arizona with the immortal Grand Canyon and the iron red plateaus of Sedona in my backyard, I believed that the southwestern state is home to the most beautiful landscapes on the planet. Towering mountain titans, a cozy valley and an infinite blue sky promised fantastic potential for exploration. For me, no newly discovered sights or foreign landscapes can compare with its beauty.

That is, until I was invited to explore Guizhou province by the China Storyteller Partnerships Tour. Had someone vividly described how beautiful Guizhou can be in poetic detail, they would not have done it exactly. There is no substitute for seeing with one’s own eyes. I will attempt to do so.

During my trip around the city of Xingyi, in Guizhou, I saw the artwork of the Bouyei ethnic group. They use dyes produced from local plants to make clothing of striking blues and greens. Local elders still practice weaving with artful wooden machines and pass that tradition on to their grandchildren.

My father used to drag my brothers and me on yearly fishing trips around Arizona. We would compete to catch the largest fish, and in the mornings, Dad would cook us a basic breakfast of bacon, eggs, and toast. I sat in a small boat in the middle of the lake, with fishing pole moving slowly in my impatient hands, and held my bored tongue while my father attempted to share with me the whispers of the wind, a fish dancing on the surface of the lake or the majesty of a hawk hunting for prey overhead. On my trip to Guizhou I had the opportunity to paddle on Wanfeng lake. At one point I rested, floating at the center of the lake, listening to the spaces between silence and taking in the surrounding karst (喀斯特) mountains. I thought about my childhood, and wished I had listened more closely to my father while fishing.

I’ve lived away from Arizona for 10 long years, carving my own destiny in China. I’ve managed to build myself a family, a career, a livelihood, and various projects. I feel as though I have everything that I need. For a moment, in Guizhou, I felt home.

1. What do we know about the author’s hometown?

A．Situated in the north of US, it is home to Grand Canyon.

B．It has varied landscapes, ranging from plateau to valley.

C．Apparently, there’s no comparison in terms of beauty.

D．The author spent his childhood and adulthood in his hometown.

2. What does the underlined word “substitute” probably mean in paragraph 2?

A．Experience.	B．Replacement.
C．Objection.	D．Agreement.

3. What is the purpose of paragraph 4?

A．To express his regret not listening to his father attentively.

B．To recall the most unforgettable experience with his family.

C．To compare the trip on Wangfeng lake with his former fishing trips.

D．To suggest that his trip in Guizhou takes him back to his childhood.

4. What does the author think of his life in Guizhou?

A．Inevitable.	B．Favorable.
C．Demanding.	D．Astonishing.

9 . The recent reports of a 4-year-old girl on a Shanghai beach have gone viral on social media platforms, provoking debate about whether China should criminalize negligence in child supervision.

The father of the little girl claimed that he left her alone on the beach for about 12 minutes to fetch his phone. However, she was nowhere to be found when he was back. Surveillance (监控) videos show that she waited for about 10 minutes before walking toward the water’s edge alone, and then disappeared into the water. Two weeks later, her body was discovered about 100 kilometers away in neighboring Zhejiang Province.

The core issue in this case is the father’s leaving his young daughter unattended on the beach, causing her tragic death. Should such behavior, when it causes harm to a child, be seen as a criminal act? In an online survey, more than 90 percent of respondents insisted that the father be held legally responsible and face criminal punishments.

Nevertheless, according to Liu Chunquan, a lawyer, it may not satisfy the criteria for criminal negligence, since the primary focus of Chinese criminal law is on extreme cases of parental neglect, such as physical abuse and mental torture. Rarely do legal authorities charge parents; instead, they are just likely to face penalties consisting of warnings and fines.

In 2022, a 2-year-old baby drowned in a cesspool while in the company of his father. The court ruled shared responsibility between the father and the cesspool’s owner, with a 7:3 proportion. The owner was ordered to pay 20,000 yuan to the child’s family. Unluckily, similar cases do exist nationwide. Roughly, 100,000 children lose their lives in accidents annually in China, which is largely due to negligence, such as parents leaving their children unattended, either in locked cars or at home. Besides, drowning is now the main cause of death for children aged 1 to 14 years old.

It is no wonder that an increasing number of netizens request that specific laws and regulations be passed to ensure the safety of children and their well-being. Hopefully, criminalizing child supervision negligence in China can serve as a warning and precaution.

However, downsides of introducing such legislation may also emerge. For instance, it’s difficult to distinguish between a regrettable accident and criminal negligence, so that over-criminalization can be triggered, in which well-meaning parents making honest mistakes are charged with a crime.

Therefore, a more balanced approach to addressing the issue of infant safety should involve a combination of new legislation, education and support services. The ultimate objective is to prevent similar catastrophes in the future. We must recognize that children are not only their parents’ offspring, but also the nation’s future.

1. What can we infer from the tragedy of the 4-year-old girl?

A．Her father’s carelessness and negligence should be to blame.

B．The beach in Shanghai should not be open to small children.

C．Her father has been sentenced to severe penalties by the police.

D．She would have survived if she had not waited in the water for a long time.

2. What are the figures in paragraph 5 intended to prove?

A．Irresponsible adults contribute to children’s death.	B．People can’t be too concerned about child safety.
C．Kids shouldn’t be allowed to swim alone.	D．Parents’ constant monitoring is a must.

3. Updated legislation in child supervision is in demand for the following reasons except _______.

A．the mild penalties in the existing laws	B．parents’ ignorance of potential dangers
C．frequent occurrence of such incidents	D．masses of netizens’ urgent appeals

4. What attitude does the author hold to criminalizing child supervision negligence in China?

A．Indifferent.

B．Negative.

C．Objective.

D．Supportive.

10 . 文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（＼）划掉。
修改：在错的词下画一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。

I’m still a ordinary Senior 3 student, struggling to balance school work and my personal life under great pressures. I’m always wondering how my life will be like when I’m 30 years old. Encouraging by a famous professional interpreter, I have always dreamed becoming an interpreter. I suppose that after 14 years of hard work, you will definitely achieve this dream. I know that taking on this job meant taking on a great deal of responsibility. Serving as a bridge of communication, and I’ll work to improve the relationships between countries and making China's voice heard by the world. I’ll do my share to contribute to a peace world.