1 . In a heartwarming incident that highlights the power of human connection, a woman’s act of kindness saved the life of a struggling homeless man.
During a
Casey went over to engage him in
After
Upon opening the
Casey posted on social media later that day that “this lovely man’s name was Chris, and Chris was one of the most
| A．holiday | B．break | C．gap | D．pause |
| A．recognized | B．dominated | C．spotted | D．consulted |
| A．Basically | B．Repeatedly | C．Eventually | D．Amazingly |
| A．afford | B．deliver | C．abuse | D．guarantee |
| A．experiment | B．reputation | C．argument | D．conversation |
| A．Touched | B．Persuaded | C．Frustrated | D．Criticized |
| A．tea | B．coffee | C．gift | D．seat |
| A．dynamic | B．reliable | C．precise | D．mean |
| A．restored | B．spoke | C．enhanced | D．complained |
| A．realizing | B．convincing | C．disturbing | D．acquiring |
| A．leave | B．wait | C．skip | D．bless |
| A．reward | B．message | C．apology | D．excuse |
| A．book | B．door | C．note | D．essay |
| A．pursuits | B．welfare | C．reasons | D．hope |
| A．sincere | B．negative | C．enthusiastic | D．hardworking |
2 . A total solar eclipse (日食) of the sun will have millions of people from Texas to Maine gazing up at the sky on the afternoon of April 8. If you can’t make it outside, here are some apps to track the eclipse on your computer or mobile device.
Total Solar Eclipse
Solar Eclipse is an “innovative” app developed by the Exploratorium, a museum of science, technology and arts in San Francisco, in partnership with NASA, according to app’s description in the Apple App Store. The app has a 3.8-star rating on the App Store and is designed exclusively for iPads and iPhones. You can download it here.
Eclipse 2024
This app, designed by developer Saira Creations, allows people to tap a marker anywhere on a map to see if that location will experience a total eclipse, in addition to the start time and duration. The app has a 3.1-star rating on the Apple App Store and is designed exclusively for iPads and iPhones. You can download it here.
One Eclipse
One Eclipse is an app designed by Simulation Curriculum Corp in collaboration with Astronomers Without Borders. It has a 4.7-star rating in the Apple App Store and you can download it here.
The NASA App
According to the AAS, the NASA App allows you to watch live streams of the eclipse. In addition to livestreams, the NASA App also offers the latest NASA images, news, mission information, podcasts and interactive augmented reality experiences to explore. It has a 4.8-star rating and you can download it here.
1. Who created the app Eclipse 2024?| A．The Apple APP Store. | B．Saira Creations. |
| C．Exploratorium. | D．Simulation Curriculum Corp. |
| A．Total Solar Eclipse. | B．Eclipse 2024. |
| C．One Eclipse. | D．The NASA App. |
| A．A textbook | B．A newspaper |
| C．A science journal | D．A website |
3 . I like challenges, but this one was almost too difficult. I had begged Mom to take me on a completely new adventure for my sixteenth birthday. Now, here we were, just Mom and me with our guide, Milo, standing on the shore of Lake Arenal in Costa Rica.
Milo helped us onto our horses. Getting on the back of my horse was difficult, but controlling it was a little easier. We started on our ride. The guidebook said we would cross three rivers. As we tried to go through a gentle stream, I asked hopefully, “Is this the first river?” “I don't think so, Katie,” Mom said.
Soon enough, we came to a real river. I felt sick to my stomach when I saw that the far shore was half a football field away! The four-foot-deep river flowed over large rocks. So much for dry shoes or jeans.
After two more rivers, the path got steeper and muddier. The rainforest was splendid and absolutely beautiful. But I wondered whether my horse could keep its balance in knee-high mud. Three frightening hours later, we came to a corral (畜栏). I wondered whether we were stopping. To one side was a wonderful view of the lake and volcano, and to the other, a brightly painted restaurant. “OK,” I laughed nervously. “That was frightening, but I'm so glad we did it! ”
1. Why did the author want to have an adventure?| A．To take up a challenge. | B．To get close to nature. |
| C．To celebrate her birthday. | D．To explore the rainforest. |
| A．The horse always lost its balance. | B．The path became steeper and muddier. |
| C．There was more than one river to cross. | D．She found it difficult to cross the first river. |
| A．It was peaceful but tiring. | B．It was interesting and relaxing. |
| C．It was frightening and unpleasant. | D．It was was dangerous but worthwhile. |
| A．A travel blog | B．A science book. |
| C．A museum guide | D．A news report |
4 . A team at a US university trained an AI tool to examine 60,000 fingerprints to see if it could work out which ones belonged to the same individual. The researchers claim the technology could identify, with 75-90% accuracy, whether prints from different fingers came from one person.
But they are not sure how it works. “We don’t know for sure how the AI does it,” admitted Prof Hod Lipson, a roboticist at Columbia University who led the study.
Graham Williams, professor of forensic science (法医学) at Hull University, said the idea of unique fingerprints had never been set in stone. “We don’t actually know that fingerprints are unique,” he said. “All we can say is that as far as we are aware, no two people have yet to show the same fingerprints.”
The results of Columbia University’s study could have the potential to impact both biometrics and forensic science.
If, for example, an unidentified thumb (拇指) print is found at crime scene A, and an unidentified index (食指) fingerprint at crime (犯罪) scene B, the two could not currently be forensically connected to the same person — but the AI tool could be able to identify this.
The Columbia University study will be published in the journal Science Advances on Friday. But a pair of twins in Cheshire might be ahead of everyone. Their grandmother Carol told the BBC her two grandchildren can open each other’s iPhones using their own fingers.
“They showed me on Christmas day,” she said. “We were told they were identical when they were born but I can tell the difference between them as they’ve got older.”She claimed that her grandchildren can also bypass the handsets’ facial recognition feature.
Fingerprints are formed before birth. Research published last year suggested the genetic process behind them may be similar to the way animals like zebras and leopards get their markings.
1. According to the research, what can AI tools do?| A．Identifying people’s fingerprints. |
| B．Contributing to crime prevention. |
| C．Helping lead scientific studies and experiments. |
| D．Training people to tell the difference of fingerprints. |
| A．Unique. | B．Healthy. | C．The same. | D．Cute. |
| A．All twins share the same fingerprints. | B．People’s fingerprints may not be unique. |
| C．AI will replace humans in every way. | D．Fingerprints will change as people grow older. |
| A．To make an appeal to people to protect animals. |
| B．To tell the difference between people and animals. |
| C．To explain the formation principle of fingerprints. |
| D．To show the similarity of genes between animals and people. |
1. What is the aim of the campaign?
| A．To remind people of Earth Day. |
| B．To encourage people to reduce garbage. |
| C．To warn people of the bad effects of pollution. |
| A．Planting trees. | B．Designing posters. | C．Collecting garbage. |
| A．Paint paper. | B．Stop driving cars. | C．Decorate classrooms. |
| A．Absurd. | B．Hollow. | C．Practical. |
Dunant, a Swiss businessman, formed the International committee of the Red Cross in 1863. The first act of the Red Cross was
Now much of the work
The Red Cross is playing an
7 . In daily life, there exist some nutrition myths (谬见) that people firmly believe.
MYTH 1: Fresh fruits and vegetables are healthier
Despite the long-lasting belief that “fresh is best,” research has found that frozen, canned and dried fruits and vegetables can be just as nutritious as fresh.
MYTH2: All fat is bad
MYTH 3: Potatoes are bad for you
Potatoes have been disliked because of their high GI (升糖指数). However, research has shown that potatoes can actually be beneficial for health. Potatoes are rich in vitamin C, fiber and other nutrients. They are also inexpensive and available year-round.
| A．They can also be a money saver as they are cheaper. |
| B．However, healthy fats can help reduce your health risk. |
| C．For example, plant-based drinks are healthier than dairy milk. |
| D．The healthiest ways to prepare them include baking and boiling. |
| E．If you consume more calories than you burn, you’ll probably get fat. |
| F．Many people replaced calories from fat with calories from added sugar. |
| G．You’d better choose products with simple ingredients and no added sugars. |
8 . Alongside her impressive musical career, Leona Lewis is also the owner of a vegan (素食主义的) coffee shop, Coffee And Plants. She has great enthusiasm for the coffee shop and reveals the drink flavors that they’ve been working on lately. “We’ve just rolled out our new pumpkin drink at the coffee shop. It’s called Pumpkin Pie, and it’s really good! We use all real pumpkin puree, not flavored syrup.”
Coffee And Plants is a real passion project for Lewis, being fully plant-based. She has a long history of animal activism (行动主义), starting with going vegetarian (素食者) at the age of 12 after going on shopping trips with her mum and seeing protesters with animal testing signs. “I was so upset, I said, ‘Mum, I have to help the animals’,” she says. “That became my mission as a kid, and it’s fed into every aspect of my life.”
Her animal activism grew alongside her fame: in 2011 she supported a campaign to ban the use of wild animals in circuses, and in 2013 she released a cruelty-free makeup line with The Body Shop. When it came to opening a coffee shop, making it plant-based was a no-brainer.
“I wanted it to be plant-based because I’m plant-based,” she says. “I would often go into coffee shops and see milk cartons piled up high and think, how many cows are being milked for this? The dairy industry and mass farming—it’s so cruel and harms the environment too.”
Environmental awareness is also at the heart of Coffee And Plants, with all cups being recyclable. But ultimately, Lewis is hoping for a more widespread mindset shift. “What we really try and get people to do is actually bring in their own bottles to refill, or we encourage them to sit in and have a coffee in a cup instead,” she explains. “We need a mindset shift where we start to think, OK, we shouldn’t really be using stuff that just goes in the bin.”
1. What does the phrase “rolled out” underlined in the first paragraph mean?| A．improved | B．discovered | C．denied | D．launched |
| A．She hated to eat animal meat. | B．She wanted to protect animals. |
| C．She was inspired by her mom. | D．She was given a great mission. |
| A．To show Lewis influence on business. |
| B．To compare Lewis’ different activities. |
| C．To prove that the makeup line is plant-based. |
| D．To give an example of Lewis’ animal activism. |
| A．People have to start using reusable things. |
| B．The mind shift is quite easy to accomplish. |
| C．People shouldn’t use cups in the coffee shop. |
| D．Only vegetarians can go into the coffee shop. |
By the time 18-year-old Amy Waldroop returned to her grandmother’s tiny house, it was nearly midnight and she was exhausted. After a full day’s work at a flower shop, she had put in another six hours waiting tables before heading home. This was her typical weekends.
Pushing the key into the lock, she quietly opened the door so as not to wake her younger siblings. She stepped into the front room, and froze. The house was a mess: plates of half-eaten food were scattered in front of the TV; clothes, shoes and exercise books were everyone.
Amy’s eyes welled with tears. “This is just too much for me.” she thought. Terrible memories began to race through her mind. Two years before, her parents lost their lives in an accident, leaving Amy and her siblings for their grandma, Helen, who had spent half of her life in a wheelchair. The life burden fell on Amy’s shoulders, which was too much for a girl.
Life moved on. One day, walking across the school grounds, Amy found a table littered with university brochures. She browsed through pictures of spacious campuses and happy peers, all of it looking unachievable for her, given the current situation and financial conditions. But her teacher gave her unexpected hope, saying“ You could attend university for free. It would take a scholarship, though, and for that you’d need much better grades.”
During her final year of high school, Amy diligently attended classes, then went to work after school, returned to her grandmother’s house, cared for her sisters and brothers and went through homework till the early hours of the morning, struggling for her dream university.
One afternoon, she walked home from school, holding a sheet of paper tightly. It was a letter from the University of California, informing her that she would be offered a scholarship and was admitted to the university. It was what she’d been longing for, a place where she could study to become someone special-a nurse, perhaps, or maybe even a lawyer.
注意：1．续写词数应为150左右；
2．请按如下格式作答。
Yet the letter only made Amy struggle inside.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The next afternoon, Amy spotted the wrinkled letter she threw into the dustbin on the table when arriving home.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________10 . When Senait Lara, a 28-year-old video producer, was questioned by her friends about her lack of communication in their group chat, the blames were as follows: she only caught up every few days; when she did, it was hardly an interaction — Lara spent time “liking” messages instead of responding with words and sometimes she would never respond at all. Lara didn’t deny it. She knew she sometimes preferred to completely avoid her phone rather than deal with a large number of requests. Actually, in person, Lara felt comfortable talking with people, but when communication came down to a text message or an email, she wanted to tap out.
While social media and messaging apps keep us more connected to each other, many younger users are finding themselves tired out from receiving constant notices and carrying on conversations that can last all day. The after-effect? Delayed responses, forgetting to get back to someone entirely, and a need for frequent breaks.
In fact, a 2023 study exploring the effects of information overload and online conversation dynamics (动态) found that “over-exposure to information can suppress the possibility of response by overloading users.”
Smartphones have quickly changed into handheld storage units for our conversations, thoughts, music and everything else. That shift to feeling constantly attached to our phones as if they were a limb relates to the burnout, says psychologist Emily Balcetis.
As the pressure to be online and always available continues to grow in our society, in-person interactions provide far more real communication than digital ones. From body language to eye contact and all the other social clues that exist in real life that aren’t available in a text message, it’s far easier to be present when you’re face-to-face. As Balcetis notes, “At the end of the day, I think what we’re looking for is not more ways to stay connected, but higher quality ways to be connected.”
1. What dissatisfied Senait Lara’s friends?| A．Lara denying her problems. |
| B．Lara avoiding using her phone. |
| C．Lara’s preference for digital communication. |
| D．Lara’s communication style in the group chat. |
| A．They are starting to have memory problems. |
| B．They refuse to put down their smartphones. |
| C．They are tired of frequent digital contact. |
| D．They feel more connected to each other. |
| A．The need to take a break from digital devices. |
| B．The pressure of always being available online. |
| C．The importance of face-to-face communication. |
| D．The ability to understand clues behind text messages. |
| A．Negative. | B．Unconcerned. |
| C．Supportive. | D．Objective. |
