| A．has been labelling | B．have been labelling, |
| C．has been labelled | D．have been labelled |
2 . We are in the midst of a battle for our attention. Our devices have affected our brains and destroyed our collective ability to concentrate. Journalist Johann Hair’s new book, Stolen Focus, has just joined the voice s complaining about the great influence of the digital age. His and other recent books reflect a public perception that our focus is under attack.
Indeed, in out new research, we found some clear concerns. We surveyed a nationally representative sample of 2,093 UK adults in 2021. Half of those surveyed felt their attention ans were shorter than they used to be, compared with a quarter who didn’t. And three quarters of participants agreed we’re living through a time when there’s non-stop competition for our attention between a variety of media channels and information outlets (渠道).
There has long been a worry about the threat to attention brought by new cultural forms, whether that’s social media or the cheap paperback sensation novels of the 19th century. Even as far back as ancient Greece, the philosopher Socrates complained that the written words created “forgetfulness in our souls”. There has always been a tendency to fear the effects that new media and technologies will have on our minds.
The reality is that we simply don’t have long-term studies that tell us whether our attention spans have actually shrunk. What we do know from our study is that people overestimate some of the problems. There’s no such thing as an average attention span. Our ability to focus varies hugely depending on the individual and the task at hand.
It’s also important not to ignore the many benefits that technology brings to our life. Much of the public surveyed recognized these, so while half thought big tech and social media were ruining young people’s attention spans, roughly another half felt that being easily distracted was more to do with people’s personalities than any negative influence that tech ho logy may or may not have. Also, half of the public believed multitasking at work and switching frequently between emails, phone calls, and other tasks can create a more efficient and satisfactory work experience.
1. What might be the theme of the books mentioned in Paragraph 1?| A．The main focus of social media. |
| B．The great influence of public opinion. |
| C．The attention crisis in the digital age. |
| D．The fierce competition in the digital age. |
| A．They were frequently disturbed by digital devices. |
| B．They felt it hard to acquire useful information online. |
| C．They had shorter attention spans than average people. |
| D．They felt challenged by fierce competition from others. |
| A．To stress new cultural forms have limitations. |
| B．To show worry about attention is an age-old problem. |
| C．To prove the important role he played in literary history |
| D．To explain cultural differences between the past and the present. |
| A．People tend to overestimate their ability es. |
| B．Digital distractions might have potential benefits. |
| C．Technology’s benefits have been largely ignored. |
| D．Switching between different tasks frequently is difficult. |
| A．Digital devices can benefit our work. |
| B．We should say “No” to digital devices. |
| C．We should think highly of new cultural forms. |
| D．Digital distractions really affect us so much. |
One kind of creative writing task is to write an ending for someone else’s story. What you write should match the original story so that it is believable. To finish a story, you should:
Fully understand the content of the original story. This is not just understanding the language used and the basic plot, but also the feelings and motivations of the characters.
Use your creative imagination. Sometimes your creative imagination can be activated (使激活) through brainstorming different ideas and then choosing the best one.
Keep the content consistent with the original story. You are not trying to write a new story; you are trying to write an ending for a story that already exists.
Keep the language consistent with the original story. Your story should match the tone (语气) and style of the original story.
Recycle some of the language from the original story, if you have trouble coming up with the right words to use.
Keep in mind that an ending should wrap up the story and bring it to a close. When working on an ending you should therefore think about what has happened to the main character and how that character has changed or grown because of the events in the story.
1. What is author’s purpose in writing the passage?(no more than 8 words)2. Why do we need creative imagination when writing an ending?(no more than 10 words)
3. Why should we keep the content consistent with the original story?(no more than 18 words)
4. What does the underlined phrase in Paragraph 7 mean?(1 word)
5. What else do you think should be noted when writing an ending? Please give your reason(s).(no more than 20 words)
| A．motivating | B．motivated | C．being motivated | D．to be motivated |
5 . Given the buzz it’s created, there’s a good chance you’ve heard about ChatGPT. It’s an interactive chatbot powered by machine learning. The technology has basically devoured the entire Internet, reading the collective works of humanity and learning patterns in language that it can recreate. All you have to do is give it a prompt (提示), and ChatGPT can do an endless array of things: write a story in a particular style, answer a question, explain a concept, compose an email—write a college essay-and it will spit out coherent, seemingly human—written text in seconds. The technology is both awesome and terrifying.
22-year-old Edward Tian is working feverishly on a new app to combat misuse of ChatGPT.
Over the last couple years, Tian has been studying an AI system called GPT-3, a predecessor to ChatGPT that was less user-friendly and largely inaccessible to the general public because it was behind a paywall. As part of his studies this fall semester, Tian researched how to detect text written by the AI system while working at Princeton’s Natural Language Processing Lab.
Then, as the semester was coming to a close, OpenAI, the company behind GPT-3 and other AI tools, released ChatGPT to the public for free. For the millions of people around the world who have used it since, interacting with the technology has been like getting a peek into the future; a future that not too long ago would have seemed like science fiction.
For many users of the new technology, wonderment quickly turned to alarm. How-many jobs will this kill? Will this empower nefarious (恶意的) actors and further corrupt our public discourse (公共话语)? How will this disrupt our education system? What is the point of learning to write essays at school when AI-which is expected to get exponentially better in the near future-can do that for us?
Tian had an idea. What if he applied what he had learned at school over the last couple years to help the public identify whether something has been written by a machine?
Tian already had the know-how and even the software on his laptop to create such a program. Ironically, this software, called GitHub Co-Pilot, is powered by GPT-3. With its assistance, Tian was able to create a new app within three days. It’s a testament to the power of this technology to make us more productive.
On January 2nd, Tian released his app GPTZero. It basically uses ChatGPT against itself, checking whether “there’s zero involvement or a lot of involvement” of the AI system in creating a given text.
When Tian went to bed that night, he didn’t expect much for his app. When he woke up, his phone had blown up. He saw countless texts and DMs from journalists, principals, teachers, you name it, from places as far away as France and Switzerland. His app, which is hosted by a free platform, became so popular it crashed. Excited by the popularity and purpose of his app, the hosting platform has since granted Tian the resources needed to scale the app’s services to a mass audience.
1. Which of the following statements is TRUE about GPT-3?| A．It’s designed and researched by Edward Tian in Princeton University |
| B．Not many ordinary people have used it because it is not free. |
| C．It is in the same AI system series as ChatGPT and GPTZero. |
| D．It used to be less user-friendly than ChatGPT but has outdone it now. |
| A．AI may replace human beings in the future when it comes to writing essays. |
| B．Actors may turn bad or even evil if the new technology is adopted in acting. |
| C．The education system may be badly impacted by the misuse of the new technology. |
| D．Many people may be out of employment because of the new technology. |
| A．the app is hosted by a free platform which is very popular. |
| B．they know many journalists are also very interested in it. |
| C．they are eager to share the resources Edward Tian is granted. |
| D．they are worried about the possibility of students cheating in writing. |
| A．Harm set, harm get. | B．Birds of a feather flock together. |
| C．Fight a man with his own weapon. | D．Great minds think alike. |
| A．that; convincing | B．what; infectious | C．all; appropriate | D．what; humble |
7 . Technological progress has transformed every aspect of my life. I bank online and learn online. Just like other young people, when I’m hungry and busy, I will order food through a food delivery app, especially during the pandemic. These apps are fast and convenient.
A survey of the food delivery service online conducted in the US shows that 26% of the people surveyed use food delivery service once a week, while 24% order food 2—3 times per week. Some have meals delivered even more often, with 8% ordering 6 times per week.
However, I deleted Uber Eats from my phone two months ago. Not because I didn’t like using it. I loved it. I can order precisely what I feel like eating. And I can have that hot meal delivered to my door within about 30 minutes with only a small fee. It’s the kind of on-demand service that used to be reserved for the ultra-wealthy. Now ordinary people, like me, lying on their couches, working late in their living rooms, or isolating themselves at home during the pandemic can enjoy it, too.
However, I was shocked when I knew that five delivery riders were killed in three months last spring. Some riders sometimes were paid at rates lower than the minimum wage or without much of the basic protection enjoyed by the rest of us. They were also doing their jobs in an unsafe working environment — our city streets. This is particularly the case in Sydney, where some major media organizations have complained about the construction of safe cycling infra-structure(基础设施)for decades and worse still, state governments have previously torn up bike paths.
So I deleted the app and haven’t used it, or any of its competitors, since then. I have no illusions that my standpoint will make a big difference. But I think our governments need to fight against the companies reshaping our lives and our communities for the worse to make our cities safer for everyone, including cyclists.
1. What does the survey conducted in the US tell us?| A．The use of food delivery apps. |
| B．The quality of food delivery apps. |
| C．People’s preference for certain apps. |
| D．Influences of the food delivery service on people’s life. |
| A．It used to deliver hot food. |
| B．It can satisfy different users’ demands. |
| C．It favors a particular group of people. |
| D．It was the most popular app during the pandemic. |
| A．The extra delivery fee. |
| B．The attraction from other apps. |
| C．Delivery riders’ safety problems. |
| D．Heavy traffic jams caused by delivery riders. |
| A．To ask us to rethink the advantages of technological advances. |
| B．To call on us to play a role in the community development. |
| C．To state the problems of commercial companies. |
| D．To appeal to governments to make some changes. |
| A．Why I gave up using food delivery apps |
| B．The rise and fall of Uber Eats |
| C．My addiction to social apps |
| D．How I can live with apps |
Most people want to have a warm family to make them feel safe and secure. For the old with dementia(痴呆), living with their family is of great importance.
SilviaBo, named after Queen Silvia is a project made by Skanska and IKEA in partnership with Queen Silvia, which is aimed at perfecting the level of dementia care.
BoKlok, a joint venture(合资企业) created by Skanska and IKEA, introduces a new house which is cheap and environmentally friendly.
All of the apartments’ facilities are designed uniformly, like furniture and bathroom equipment, which helps keep the costs down. SilviaBo even offers help to the people with lower income, so they can pay what they couldn’t afford formerly.
H.M Queen Silvia participates in the plan of the new BoKlok project, including the color of the toilet seats and shower design. “She truly devotes herself to this project. This is her baby,” said Jonas Spangenberg, BoKlok’s CEO. That’s because the Queen understands people with dementia are forced to leave their homes and that keeping them in their homes is a better way.
In March 2017, the first SilviaBo home began to be built and Queen Silvia was there to watch it. She said that her mother suffered from Alzheimer’s, one type of dementia. Therefore, SilviaBo homes were important to her.
“To take care of the old, the cost is high,” Spangenberg told CNN. “It’s much cheaper for society and the public to help them at home.” These creative solutions are the key to giving people with dementia a good quality of life. There is no better gift than staying at their homes with their loving family.
1. How does SilviaBo control the cost of its homes? (no more than 10 words)2. What does the underlined part in Paragraph 5 probably mean? (no more than 5 words)
3. Why does the Queen devote herself to the BoKlok project? (no more than 10 words)
4. What’s the purpose of the project --- SilviaBo? (no more than 15 words)
5. What do you think of SilviaBo homes? Please explain. (no more than 20 words)
9 . A couple carved out a life on a small rock island, among the seabirds. The Bass Rock is a small volcanic island just off the east coast of Scotland. Remarkable in the Scottish imagination for its landform and location in the Firth of Forth near Edinburgh, the island has had a thin and intermittent(断断续续)human population across the centuries. Its most notable and sustained inhabitants are the northern gannets that have lived on the island throughout recorded history. With a population of roughly 150,000 birds, their home is the largest in the world.
The English naturalist June Nelson is one of the few people who have lived on the Bass Rock. For three years in the early 1960s. she and her late husband, the ornithologist Bryan Nelson. who was researching gannets at the University of Oxford, made the island their temporary home. Living and working out of a small church, they devoted themselves to observing and recording the behaviors and ecology of the birds. The then-newly-married had little contact with the outside world, but led a happy life together.
In the short documentary Life on the Rocks, Nelson revisits her full and focused years on the Bass Rock. Combining cinematic black-and-white shots of the island with music. the UK director George Pretty creates a vivid account of Nelson’s unforgettable time there, as well as her emotional return. Mining Nelson’s memories and old photographs, the film explores how the husband-and-wife team found happiness on this unique patch of Earth, and among its many birds. But, more than just a fondness for the past, Nelson communicates an urgency to protect the plummeting(暴跌)global sea-bird population, which has declined by 70% in her lifetime, asking “What right have we to deprive(剥夺)future generations of this wonderful place?”
1. What do we know about the Bass Rock from Paragraph 1?| A．It is owned by a couple. | B．It is heavily populated. |
| C．It is gannets’ largest habitat. | D．It is famous for its scenery. |
| A．To research birds. | B．To make their home. |
| C．To live a happy life. | D．To stay away from the outside. |
| A．Nelson’s research about the birds. | B．The couple’s fondness for the past. |
| C．Nelson’s description of the island. | D．Nelson’s concerns about the birds’ situation. |
| A．Tough but worthwhile. | B．Dangerous but admirable. |
| C．Smooth and fruitful. | D．Inspiring and lucky. |
I had many experiences studying in groups. But the most impressive experience for me was an English singing competition.
Last term, we had to sing an English song in groups in the singing competition. The song our team chose was Try Everything.
Although most of the team members quickly learned the melody (曲调), there were still a few students who couldn’t sing it or were too shy to sing it in public. So, we taught those who couldn’t sing and encouraged those who were very shy. Finally, we sang it really well and got first prize.
From this experience, I realized that studying in groups has a lot of superiority. Everyone has advantages and disadvantages. When we work in teams, we can learn from each other and fill in teaming gaps. Also, it’s easy to give up when studying alone. And with each other’s encouragement. We’ll be more likely to be able to persist. What’s more, when we discuss in groups, we can learn how to communicate with others and achieve the team goals together.
Just as the saying goes, “Alone we can run faster, but together we can go further?” So, let’s enjoy group study!
1. Which experience made the author feel it memorable in group learning? (no more than 5 words)2. How did the team members overcome the difficulties? (no more than 10 words)
3. What does the underlined word “superiority” refer to? (1 word)
4. What’s the main idea of the 4th paragraph? (no more than 10 words)
5. Do you like group learning? And give your reasons. (no more than 25 words)
