1 . I realized last year that I had lived here longer than my mom. But I thought my mother really
After her
I promised myself that I would
Each day is a fresh beginning. Mom lived by this
A.deserved | B.selected | C.admitted | D.calculated |
A.depressed | B.frightened | C.cheerful | D.upset |
A.aimlessly | B.bravely | C.impatiently | D.recently |
A.regret | B.practice | C.imagine | D.finish |
A.Unluckily | B.Generally | C.Immediately | D.Obviously |
A.desire | B.concept | C.disability | D.death |
A.clicked | B.scared | C.recovered | D.governed |
A.depth | B.energy | C.sympathy | D.sadness |
A.soldiers | B.children | C.witnesses | D.pensioners |
A.in conclusion | B.by accident | C.in pain | D.in time |
A.comfort | B.bother | C.convince | D.protect |
A.carelessly | B.differently | C.angrily | D.closely |
A.presence | B.attitude | C.disappearance | D.guidance |
A.compare | B.combine | C.lecture | D.share |
A.ambitious | B.positive | C.boring | D.negative |
A.tricking | B.urging | C.forbidding | D.warning |
A.lie | B.adventure | C.principle | D.award |
A.preventing | B.spreading | C.explaining | D.losing |
A.better | B.harder | C.smaller | D.larger |
A.protest | B.order | C.opportunity | D.mistake |
2 . You’ve probably followed a few cute dogs and cats on social media. However, are you aware that AI-generated pets are also gaining popularity nowadays? They are just as adorable as real dogs and cats but also show human-like characteristics.
Chai Dada, operates an AI-created dog account on Xiaohongshu, attracting over 10,000 followers. Her AI-generated pet Zhuangzhuang is a fluffy Shiba Inu with a big belly who likes to eat and work out. “Zhuangzhuang is actually a mirror of myself,” Chai said. “Its life and mood basically reflect my own.”
In 2023, AI tools fascinated Chai. She used them to create animal characters behaving like humans, sharing them on Xiaohongshu for joy. Zhuangzhuang, the cutest and most representative, captured her heart.
To bring Zhuangzhuang to life, Chai places it in various daily life scenarios. For instance, during the recent “hui nan tian” — the super humid (潮湿的) weather in southern China — Chai shared images of Zhuangzhuang mopping a wet floor, with the words, “It’s wet everywhere at home”, vividly capturing the mood. In the comments section, many have expressed sympathy for the poor dog.
“Many scenes may seem ordinary, but when a very lifelike and adorable anthropomorphic (拟人化的) pet appears in these familiar scenes, it looks interesting.” Chai said. Since Zhuangzhuang closely is like a human in a dog’s body, many followers have come to believe in its real existence. This popularity has opened doors for Chai to cooperate with brands for product promotions. Aiming to expand her reach, Chai desires to explore deeper into AI to bring her AI pet to life in videos, not just photos. She has noticed a growing trend of AI pet bloggers, making the competition in this industry fierce. To attract more fans, bloggers are constantly learning more AI skills and brainstorming to create more interesting storylines. “I want to develop Zhuangzhuang into an intellectual property and create related cultural and creative products such as dolls and stickers,” said Chai.
1. What do we know about the AI pet Zhuangzhuang?A.It is a digital recreation of Chai’s childhood. |
B.It is a virtual representation of a real Shiba Inu. |
C.It mirrors the life and personality of its creator. |
D.It has gained over one million followers online. |
A.To show the fun Zhuangzhuang brings to Chai. |
B.To describe Zhuangzhuang’s daily struggles. |
C.To suggest Zhuangzhuang’s growing fan base. |
D.To illustrate how Chai humanizes Zhuangzhuang. |
A.Perfect Zhuangzhuang’s features. | B.Cooperate with other AI pet creators. |
C.Write a book featuring Zhuangzhuang. | D.Create lifelike videos of Zhuangzhuang. |
A.AI-generated Pets Find Followers |
B.The Rise of AI Tools in Creating Animal Characters |
C.Zhuangzhuang: A Realistic Dog Captivating Hearts |
D.AI Pet Bloggers: Competing for Attention in the Digital World |
3 . Boomerang kids refer to adult children who return to their parents’ homes after moving out. In July 2020, 52% of young adults in the US lived with one or both of their parents — the highest percentage the US has seen since 1940. In the UK, the number of single, 20-to-34-year-olds living with their parents went up by 55% from 2008 to 2017.
There are many reasons for young people to move back home, says Hipplewith, a family expert. The primary reason is the high cost of living. Everything is so expensive. Staying home means financial support from family as they prepare for starting a career. Usually being a boomeranger is just a transitional period. But it still may last many months or even years to enable boomerangers to establish themselves in a career without worrying about things like rents.
For many, a return to home after living away can feel like a regression (倒退) and loss of recently won independence. “For example, you learn to become an adult in university,” says Hipplewith. “You have friends. You can do what you want to do. But now you’re coming back under someone else’s rule.” This can come with anxiety. Still, there are benefits to the boomerangers, say experts. Many of these adults are finding the increased ability to do work they find meaningful, rather than take a job that simply pays the bills. Socially, boomerang kids also have a good opportunity to strengthen relationships with their parents.
In many cultures, moving away from home has traditionally been considered a crucial step in becoming an adult. Now it’s time to change the idea. Adulthood is really just being old enough to take responsibilities; that doesn’t go away if you move in with parents again. Hipplewith hopes that as being a boomeranger becomes more common, young adults will feel less pressure to follow traditional expectations of moving out. He encourages young people to view a return to home as “sane decision-making”.
1. How does the author lead in the topic of the text?A.By analyzing reasons. | B.By raising a viewpoint. |
C.By telling the difference. | D.By presenting a phenomenon. |
A.To buy something expensive. | B.To look after family members. |
C.To hunt for the right career easily. | D.To reduce economic pressure. |
A.Because of the limit of keeping in with friends. | B.Because of the loss of independence. |
C.Because of many years of staying at home. | D.Because of the anxiety about the future life. |
A.Stupid. | B.Rapid. | C.Reasonable. | D.Independent. |
4 . Caring 17-year-old Lauren Schroeder was inspired to help bring healthy food to needy families in her community. Volunteering at a food shelter when she was 14 , and tasked with helping fill boxes for households in need with canned and packaged food, this Iowa teen felt that something was missing from the donated groceries: fresh vegetables. So she shared with her parents her desire to start a garden on their own farm to supply local families in need with fresh produce.
Coming from a farming family, Lauren had some familiarity with agriculture, and had helped raise rabbits and lambs, but had never tried vegetable cultivation at scale, though the Schroeders plant soybeans and corn each year on their 150-acre farm.
The work involved in realizing Lauren’s plan was no walk in the park. Initially, while proud of her daughter’s vision, her mother, Katie Schroeder, admitted to some foreboding about the work involved: “I was wondering, ‘Oh my gosh, how much work is this going to be?’ I wasn’t sure whether this would work.” This was one young change-maker, however! Lauren researched plants online, checking which species needed more shade, how much water was required, and when to harvest each crop. During Iowa’s hot summers, she had to water her crops by hand for around 2 — 3 hours daily. She also checked daily for weeds, and bent down to pick her green bean crop. Thanks to her diligence, Lauren planted half an acre of land, with 15 varieties of vegetables in 2022, harvesting her first crops.
In an interview with a local media channel, Lauren says, “I wanted to have something that’d impact people. I want to impact community members. Many people help you out, but it makes more difference when you help others out. That’s what makes me most happy.”
1. What inspired Lauren to start a garden on her family’s farm?A.Her parents’ encouragement. |
B.Her interest in farming and agriculture. |
C.Her desire to become a professional gardener. |
D.Her experience volunteering at a food shelter. |
A.Satisfaction. | B.Concern. | C.Anger. | D.Pride. |
A.She consulted professional gardeners. |
B.She studied books and manuals on gardening. |
C.She conducted online research on plant species. |
D.She attended agricultural courses and workshops. |
A.The Schroeders’ family farming traditions. |
B.The importance of volunteering at a food shelter. |
C.The challenges of starting a vegetable garden on a large scale. |
D.Lauren Schroeder’s project to provide fresh vegetables to needy families. |
5 . The snowstorm wasn’t supposed to hit until night. I decided to go home from work, snowstorm or not. I wasn’t
Breathe, I told myself. Panicking won’t
I pinned my location on the Google Map app, took a screenshot, and
About 45 minutes later, I saw a tall figure in a yellow raincoat walking hurriedly toward me in the dark, carrying a flashlight. It was André Bouvier, who’d walked about 550 yards through the snowstorm, fighting the
He
The experience has been a game changer for me. I now approach
A.annoyed | B.worried | C.amazed | D.disappointed |
A.meant | B.doubted | C.promised | D.figured |
A.Interestingly | B.Unexpectedly | C.Absolutely | D.Suddenly |
A.fogging | B.clearing | C.showing | D.picking |
A.way | B.situation | C.rescue | D.mind |
A.help | B.remain | C.matter | D.disappear |
A.searched | B.collected | C.attached | D.posted |
A.begging | B.accounting | C.caring | D.applying |
A.in case | B.even if | C.as though | D.now that |
A.go over | B.hold back | C.come through | D.count on |
A.noise | B.temperature | C.wind | D.frost |
A.shaky | B.quiet | C.deafening | D.steady |
A.broke down | B.turned around | C.set off | D.checked out |
A.relief | B.pride | C.duty | D.surprise |
A.freedom | B.appointment | C.excitement | D.challenges |
Weiqi, an ancient strategic game,
Though Go looks quite simple, it is actually one of the most complicated games. In fact, there are so many possible moves in Go
7 . Many actors have famously remarked that they have, time and again, lost themselves in their performances. Now, researchers at University College London (UCL) have found some truth to this statement. A new study suggests actors may suppress (抑制) their sense of self when they take on a new character, hinting at the massive impact theater training may have on fundamental mechanisms of the human brain.
“Our findings indicate that cooperating with the theater industry could be helpful in producing theories about social interaction that could also be investigated in the real world,” said Dwaynica Gteaves, lead author of the study. In particular, the researchers are hoping that future work in this space can focus on how participation in theatrical activities might help people with autism (自闭症).
The actors in the study were fitted with brain imaging technology while they rehearsed scenes from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night s Dream. When they heard their names while performing, their response was suppressed in the brain region associated with self-awareness. While they were not performing, the actors responded normally when called by name. The study also looked at interpersonal coordination between pairs of actors. The researchers noticed that two actors rehearsing together had similar brain activity in the regions of the brain associated with social interaction and action planning, revealing “specific brain systems that are coordinated during complex social interactions”.
In fact, drama therapy has been considered a beneficial practical strategy for improving social communication in children with developmental or learning disabilities. A preliminary (初步的) study found students with autism who underwent theater experiences showed significant positive changes in the development of social and language skills.
In the future, researchers at UCL aim to include both trained and untrained actors as subjects. The recent study, admittedly, lacked a control group of people without theater training and had a small sample size of only 6 actors. But the researchers remain hopeful of the possible future applications of their findings in aiding social communication, including in individuals with autism.
1. What effect may taking on a new character have on actors, as suggested by the study?A.They may forget their identities. | B.Their self-awareness may weaken. |
C.They may lose themselves completely. | D.Their brain mechanisms may be damaged. |
A.By interacting with the actors. | B.By observing the actors’ behavior. |
C.By surveying the actors’ responses. | D.By monitoring the actors’ brain activity. |
A.Improved physical health. | B.Enhanced cognitive abilities. |
C.Strengthened interpersonal skills. | D.Increased academic performance. |
A.The researchers lacked expertise. | B.It can be used to train child actors. |
C.It is a major breakthrough in medicine. | D.It is promising despite its limitations. |
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(\)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。
Last week, our school hold a friendly basketball match with students from a high school in the United States. The event took place at our school gym in Friday afternoon. All teams displayed excellent sportsmanships during the match. It was a close and exciting game, with each team showing determine and teamwork. The crowd roared with each successful shot, filled the gym with sense of expectation and energy. This friendly match provided a great opportunity for cultural exchange and friendship-building between students from the different backgrounds. The event, it cultivated friendship and mutual respect through the shared love of basketball, was a huge success. Overall, such events help to foster international relations and create well memories for the students involved in it.
China ramps up space ambitions with record launch schedule
China has ambitious plans for its space industry in 2024, with
CASC will be responsible for nearly 70% of the planned missions,
Experts highlight that
In 2023, China was the second-ranking country in terms of launch numbers, having carried
The company laid
10 . Madison Baloy was a normal twenty-something a year ago, with a positive attitude on life. However, a
A year later, her health condition became worse, and she
Even though it was hard, Baloy
Before Baloy dies, she has many
A.doubtful | B.critical | C.curable | D.mild |
A.lost | B.carried | C.weighed | D.spent |
A.amazing | B.remaining | C.frightening | D.exciting |
A.keep up | B.take up | C.bring in | D.turn to |
A.secret | B.appropriate | C.final | D.sincere |
A.combine | B.absorb | C.sense | D.satisfy |
A.expression | B.inspiration | C.commitment | D.contribution |
A.space | B.way | C.occasion | D.state |
A.happily | B.barely | C.bravely | D.deliberately |
A.maintain | B.demonstrate | C.recognize | D.comfort |
A.Naturally | B.Particularly | C.Regularly | D.Surprisingly |
A.assumed | B.recalled | C.approved | D.convinced |
A.driven | B.drawn | C.attached | D.opposed |
A.use | B.give | C.make | D.change |
A.proud | B.generous | C.curious | D.lively |
A.items | B.alternatives | C.restrictions | D.definitions |
A.Keeping | B.Passing | C.Adopting | D.Viewing |
A.belongs | B.matters | C.applies | D.relates |
A.without | B.except | C.through | D.despite |
A.energetic | B.ambitious | C.typical | D.humble |