1 . Winners of the Broadcom MASTERS

Girls took the top prizes at the Broadcom MASTERS, a science competition for middle school students.

Alaina Gassler

Alaina won the $25,000 Samueli Foundation Prize for the project of reducing blind spots in cars. She was inspired to solve this issue by her mother who didn’t like driving her vehicle because its large A-pillar (A柱) design made her feel in danger. “I started to think about how blind spots were a huge problem in all cars,” said Alaina. So she worked on and solved it.

Sidor Clare

Sidor won the $10,000 Marconi/Samueli Award for Innovation, an honor made by Samueli’s generous donation of his 2012 Marconi Society Prize Award. She developed bricks that could one day be made on Mars, so that humans wouldn’t be required to carry building materials with them in order to build there.

Alexis MacAvoy

Alexis won the $10,000 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Award for Health Advancement, which recognized the student whose work and performance showed the most promise in health-related fields and demonstrated an understanding of the many social factors that affect health. She designed a water filter (过滤器) by using carbon to remove heavy metals from water.

Rachel Bergey

Rachel won the $10,000 Lemelson Award for Invention, awarded by The Lemelson Foundation to a young inventor creating promising solutions to real-world problems. She developed a trap made of tinfoil (锡纸) and netting for the spotted lanternfly, an invasive species causing damage to trees.

1. What is the purpose of Alaina Gassler’s invention?

A．To beautify vehicles.	B．To improve the safety of driving.
C．To decorate the sidewalk for the blind.	D．To reduce the carbon released from cars.

2. Whose invention is related to human health?

A．Alaina Gassler’s.	B．Sidor Clare’s.
C．Rachel Bergey’s.	D．Alexis MacAvoy’s.

3. What is the Broadcom MASTERS about?

A．Art.

B．Sport.

C．Technology.

D．Education.

2 . 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。

An animated series featuring monster-like characters, or yao in Chinese, has won praise online    1    adopting traditional Chinese culture and aesthetics (美学) in its animation and storytelling in a way that has resonated (共鸣) with many.

Yao-Chinese Folktales (《中国奇谭》) is    2    eight-part series inspired by various traditional Chinese literature titles and showcases a range of artistic    3    (style) such as paper cutting, watercolor painting, and computer graphics (绘图). The first episode (集)    4    (base) on the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West,with characters preparing to capture a Tang dynasty Buddhist monk.

It is its plot which shows one of the characters being punished after their leader was dissatisfied with their work    5    has resonated with a wide audience,    6    (remind) them of dilemmas and suffering at the workplace.

The new series is part of the growing trend of Chinese animation turning to ancient Chinese legends and folktales for    7    (inspire). Domestically produced animated films featuring classic figures such as Monkey King,Ne Zha,and White Snake    8    (prove) to be big hits in recent years, with the latest release New Gods: Yang Jian amassing (积累) 550 million yuan in ticket sales last year.

Yao-Chinese Folktales was    9    (joint) produced by Shanghai Animated Film Studio and streaming site Bilibili. Since it aired Sunday, the first two episodes    10    (release) so far have gathered over 10 million views and it currently has a score of 9. 6 out of 10 on rating site Douban.

3 . On a long trip to Brisbane we stopped into a service station in Kilcoy for a bathroom break and some fuel. We went into the shop to the bathroom first and then the _________ to pay. My son was a little eccentric (搞怪的) and life loving, so as he usually did. He was dancing as he walked, twirling (扭动) his hips and _________ to his own moves. Since I was totally _________ to his moves, it didn’t _________ my mind at all until the young gentleman working behind the counter _________ his “brilliant dance routine”.

He told my son that he loved his moves and it was a _________ to see him come into his shop. My boy felt so _________ with himself that he continued to dance around gently as I paid and _________ the gentleman for his kind remarks. As we went to leave, the gentleman gave my boy a lollipop (棒棒糖) as a_________. I was absolutely blown away by his kindness. It might be __________, but to us it wasn’t.

Not many people __________ the time out of their days to talk to children. However, the young gentleman was more than __________ and happy to have a chat. My son felt important and __________ loved his treat. I also personally really appreciated his kind __________. As a parent on a long drive with small kids, it is these small acts that will __________or break our day.

1.

A．company

B．counter

C．apartment

D．hall

2.

A．tending

B．pointing

C．singing

D．adapting

3.

A．used

B．addicted

C．devoted

D．opposed

4.

A．clear

B．change

C．read

D．cross

5.

A．expanded on

B．concentrated on

C．commented on

D．insisted on

6.

A．mistake

B．delight

C．pity

D．comfort

7.

A．frustrated

B．pleased

C．annoyed

D．tired

8.

A．thanked

B．accepted

C．invited

D．assisted

9.

A．prize

B．treasure

C．treat

D．pleasure

10.

A．tough

B．significant

C．typical

D．small

11.

A．take

B．draw

C．waste

D．use

12.

A．outgoing

B．willing

C．optimistic

D．energetic

13.

A．hopefully

B．slightly

C．curiously

D．obviously

14.

A．gesture

B．attitude

C．thought

D．determination

15.

A．help

B．build

C．make

D．ruin

4 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

Two little birds were happily sitting on the rock, just having finished their lunch. Their parents had allowed them, for the first time, to go and hunt for their lunch by themselves. And they had enjoyed every bit of the freedom.

Suddenly, a net came and fell on both. They struggled to pass through it but in vain. Two boys jumped down from the branch above them. They quickly gathered the net. One of the boys, Eric, shouted to his little brother Max. “We have finally succeeded after ten days of waiting.”

“Yes, what luck! They look much more beautiful than ordinary birds. Let’s go home and put them in our cage,” Eric said joyfully. They ran home with the birds.

The two little birds were terribly frightened. They thought of their mother who must be anxiously waiting for them.

When the two boys got to the house gate, the sweet smell came out of the kitchen. Their mother Amla was baking cakes, which were what the boys couldn’t live without.

Hearing the boys’ footsteps, Amla anxiously asked, “Where have you been? I was getting worried. I’m cooking your favorite cakes.”

“Look, Mom, we have caught two beautiful birds! We are going to cage them. They will play with us.” Max proudly showed them to Amla.

Seeing the young birds shivering (发抖) in the boys’ hands, Amla said, “They are indeed beautiful. But they are so young and look so scared! They need their mother. Set them free.”

The boys said, “We will look after them.” Amla insisted that they shouldn’t keep them. They turned to their father John for help. Similarly,” John said, “It is not good to cage these birds. We should not take away their freedom.”

The boys were in tears and begged, “We love them so much. Please let us keep then.” “Well, just put them in the cage for the time being. Let’s enjoy your favorite cakes.” The boys jumped with joy. In the evening, John said to Amla, “The birds look very rare. We’d better do some research. Maybe we should call the police first.”

注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；2. 请按如下格式在答题纸的相应位置作答。
The boys woke up only to find a note, “Mom and Dad go to the police station.”
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Just then Dad and Mom returned. On seeing them, the boys asked, “Why did you see the police?”
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5 . Aeronautics (航空学) specialists from the University of South Australia spent months studying the dragonfly’s flight, creating 3D models from digital images, to build a winged drone (无人机). Study leader Javaan Chahl believes that winged drones based on the dragonfly’s shape and movement will simply be more flexible and energy efficient.

Chahl’s team used a special photography technique to classify the wing shapes of 75 different dragonfly species from museum collections. Their wings are long, light and hard. Plus, their long bodies give them excellent stability and balance, making it possible for winged drones to deliver awkward loads and undertake long observation missions.

Investigating the way that dragonflies remain stable during flight actually reveals the techniques they use to get themselves out of tricky situations. Dragonflies are found to be able to perform upside-down backflips to regain balance and normal flight, when they find themselves upside down mid-air. This special skill can even be performed while dragonflies are unconscious, meaning it is a passive stability mechanism similar in concept to planes that are designed to glide to safety with their engines turned off. Engineers are looking to copy dragonfly wings to create safer drones that can right themselves.

Of course, not all attempts to build dragonfly-like drones are successful. TechJet’s air vehicle was supposed to operate as an aerial camera, observation and security drone, but it failed before production got underway. Similarly, Insectothopter, an American dragonfly spy drone built in the 1970 s was deserted.

Yet the principles behind winged drones are solid. In fact, NASA has settled on a nuclear-powered autonomous craft called Dragonfly to explore the surface of Saturn’s moon Titan in 2034. NASA’s project is actually an air vehicle, rather than a winged drone, but engineers are still convinced they can crack the code of nature’s most gifted flying insect and revolutionize unmanned flight along the way.

1. Why did aeronautics specialists spend months studying the dragonfly’s flight?

A．To build 3D models from digital images.

B．To make winged drones modelled after it.

C．To clarify the flexibility and efficiency of drones.

D．To display the shape and movement of the dragonfly.

2. The special skill of dragonflies is their ability to_________.

A．glide to safety	B．avoid tricky situations
C．perform observation tasks	D．adjust themselves to stay stable

3. What is the author’s attitude towards winged drones?

A．Skeptical.

B．Uncertain.

C．Supportive.

D．Conservative.

4. Which can be a suitable title for the text?

A．Winged Drones: Still a Long Way to Go

B．Javaan Chahl: An Innovative Leader of Aeronautics

C．A Dragonfly’s Flying Technique: Perfect for Drones

D．The Code of Nature: A Solution to NASA’s Space Exploration

6 . 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。

A severe cold wave hit many parts of China over the weekend with heavy snowfalls and rapidly declining temperatures.

The cold-air outbreak,     1     is the most widespread early one in decades, is affecting 1.18 billion people and 90 percent of the regions across the country. The cold wave also brought chilly weather     2    (condition) to many parts of the north, along     3    rain and snow, posing serious challenges to transport, agriculture and energy supplies. Authorities warned people to stay inside and reduce outdoor activities.

So, why are we experiencing such a freezing winter on a warming planet?

According to an expert, one reason is that global warming does not appear     4    (equal) and brings about more extreme heat and cold. He said global warming has changed the patterns of atmospheric     5    (circulate) of the Earth,     6    (affect) the local climate via sea-air or land-air interaction. In October, La Nina started to affect China, bringing more cold air to the country. Meanwhile, statistics     7    (release) by the World Meteorological Organization show that 2016, 2019 and 2020 were the three     8    (hot) years on record.

    9    reason for the cold weather is the warming Arctic. The Arctic is warming two to three times as fast as any other place on Earth, he said, adding that the polar vortex (涡旋) weakens as the temperature     10    (go) up, pushing the cold Arctic air southward.

7 . There is an important equation of well-being: happiness equals reality minus expectations. If you ________more from life than you currently have, you'll be unhappy. ________, if your current experience goes beyond your expectations, you'll be happy.

When I ________how my own expectations have influenced my happiness, I recall the ________days of Get Rich Slowly (GRS). Back when I started GRS in 2006, I had a(n) ________. I had high expectations for myself and this website. ________, after the first few months of finding my feet, GRS experienced rapid growth. As my ________grew, I felt pressure to provide as much quality information as possible. Later on, I set a ________schedule. I decided to post two articles every weekday, plus one article each Saturday and Sunday. My ________was to produce twelve articles every week. That's a lot of ________ for one man. And more often than not, I ________ to meet these expectations. Instead of writing twelve articles per week, I usually ________to share ten. It made me really ________. I felt like I was letting people down. ________, I felt like I was letting myself down.

After a few months, I ________that my expectations were too high. Then, I ________expected one article every weekday. Do you know what happened? Nothing ________except the stress level in my life. Instead of being ________with myself, I felt pleased because I had gone beyond my expectations. My ________ rate didn't change at all. My expectations changed. With the lowered expectations came increased ________.

1.

A．learn

B．expect

C．donate

D．receive

2.

A．In brief

B．As a result

C．For example

D．On the contrary

3.

A．pay for

B．settle down

C．think back

D．show off

4.

A．early

B．fun

C．long

D．sunny

5.

A．excuse

B．habit

C．problem

D．chance

6.

A．Luckily

B．Strangely

C．Personally

D．Generally

7.

A．team

B．audience

C．confidence

D．profit

8.

A．driving

B．charging

C．training

D．publishing

9.

A．aim

B．doubt

C．secret

D．concern

10.

A．time

B．work

C．money

D．respect

11.

A．stopped

B．waited

C．failed

D．regretted

12.

A．agreed

B．forgot

C．promised

D．managed

13.

A．bored

B．anxious

C．wise

D．popular

14.

A．Closer

B．Fairly

C．Worse

D．Necessarily

15.

A．denied

B．replied

C．insisted

D．realized

16.

A．only

B．still

C．again

D．seldom

17.

A．helped

B．changed

C．mattered

D．remained

18.

A．angry

B．satisfied

C．patient

D．dishonest

19.

A．tax

B．heart

C．breath

D．production

20.

A．demand

B．awareness

C．happiness

D．competition

8 . What would happen if you replace all drinks with water?

We all know what harmful drinks can cause： obesity, heart problems, stomach pain, skin diseases, caries. This list sounds so scary.     1    What would happen with our bodies then?

Chris Bailey, a popular blogger and lecturer, carried out a month-long research about this topic. His conclusion is really impressive and surprising!

You lose weight faster.

Yes, you do! No special diet is required! You replace all drinks with water for 9 days, and you'll lose as equal amount of calories as when jogging for eight kilometers a day!     2    

You speed up your metabolism.

Drinking just 17 fluid ounces (盎司) of water in the morning increases your metabolism (新陈代谢) by 24 percent.     3    And you'll see the impressive result very soon.

Your brain works better.

Did you know your brain is 75 to 85 percent water? Nothing else, just water! So by drinking, you feel it, which helps you concentrate. Drink water to work more efficiently, cope with all daily tasks quickly, and stay energized even late in the evening! Doesn't this sound like a dream?

You eat less.

Sometimes we confuse hunger with thirst.     4    Try it out to drink some water next time you feel hungry. It really works.

Your body releases toxins faster.

Water washes out harmful substances, clearing, moistening your skin and preventing aging. Want to look young and fresh as long as possible? Drink a glass of water right now.

    5    

Five glasses of water a day lower the risk of a heart attack by 41 percent! And there are similar effects on other diseases like bladder conditions, bowel cancer…Want to avoid wasting money on doctors? Just drink more water!

You save a lot of money

How much money do you spend on coffee and juices per week? Well. I don't want to say how much I do because my spending is massive. The price of water is much lower than that of other drinks Think about it!

A．Your heart works better.

B．Your risk of many diseases gets lower.

C．But what if we completely replace all drinks with water?

D．Write it down on your calendar: Drink plenty of water every day!

E．This seems to be a great way to stay slim without much effort.

F．Water prevents you from feeling hungry, which helps you lose weight.

G．Namely, if you suddenly want to eat something high in calorie, maybe all you need is just a glass of water.

9 . If you surf the web with Microsoft Edge, that may be because you use Windows. If you use Safari, that's probably because you are an Apple customer. It's easy to get used to one browser because these apps are all fast, capable and allow us to visit a website.

So if there are no obvious differences, why bother looking for something else? By the end of this article, I hope to persuade you to at least try something else: a private browser. Private browsers, from less-known brands like DuckDuckGo to Brave, have come out over the last three years. What stands out about them is that they minimize the data gathered about us by blocking the technologies used to track us.

While some browsers like Safari and Firefox also include tracking prevention, the smaller brands have been focused on even more privacy protections. We have also reached an inflection point in digital privacy. The online advertising industry is on the edge of stopping using web cookies that follow us from site to site and help target us with advertisements. Google, whose Chrome browser is the world's most popular, has been trying to develop a new way to target us with advertisements without the cookie.

Private browsers rely on something called private mode, which is a browsing process that does not record a history of the websites you have visited. Private browsers also use tracker blockers, which can often be downloaded as an add-on for a browser. Whenever you load a website, the software then discovers those trackers and prevents them from following you from site to site. The big weakness of this approach is that blocking them can sometimes cause parts of websites, like shopping carts and videos, to break down.

But private browsers do no prevent your Internet provider from seeing what websites you visit. So if you are on vacation and using a hotel's Wi-Fi connection, a private browser will not keep your browsing information private from the hotel's Internet provider.

In the end, though, you probably would be happier using a private browser. Even if you don't make one your default browser, it is useful for certain situations, like a sensitive web search on a health condition.

1. What is the author's view on Microsoft Edge and Safari?

A．They work quite differently.	B．They are small brand browsers.
C．They serve the same purpose.	D．They are popular with Apple customers.

2. Why are web cookies being used?

A．To prevent tracking	B．To collect information about Internet users.
C．To get rid of online advertisements.	D．To increase Internet speed

3. What is the problem with private browsers?

A．They have many add-ons.	B．They refuse tracker blockers.
C．They increase the risk of online surfing	D．They affect the smoothness of online surfing.

4. What is the author trying to do in the last paragraph?

A．To call on people to try private browsers.

B．To show people how to use private browsers.

C．To remind people to check their health condition.

D．To encourage people to use their default browsers.

10 . China has announced that couples will be permitted to have up to three children in a major policy shift from the existing two-child limit, after recent data showed a dramatic decline in births in the world's most populated country.

"To actively respond to the ageing of the population…a couple can have three children," state media Xinhua reported on Monday, citing a committee meeting hosted by President Xi Jinping

Early this May, China reported the slowest population growth since the early 1960s, despite scrapping its one-child policy in 2015 to encourage more births and avoid a potential population crisis.

A once-a-decade survey showed that the overall population of China grew to 1,41178 billion in the 10 years to 2020, up by 5. 38%. The increase reflects an average annual rise of 0.53%, down from 0.57% reported from 2000 to 2010.

The announcement drew a chilly response on Chinese social media, where many people said they could not afford to have even one or two children. "I am willing to have three children if you give me 5 million yuan (£554,350)," one user posted on Weibo. As a matter of fact, experiment of the three-child policy in Heilongjiang province in the last few years also resulted less effectively than expected.

It is not only China that is facing such a population challenge. Across east Asia, authorities have, for years, been struggling to persuade couples to have more babies. South Korea and Japan both have used allowance to encourage.

The policy change will come with "supportive measures, which will be beneficial to improving our country's population structure, fulfilling the country's strategy of actively coping with an ageing population and maintaining the advantage of human resources", Xinhua said. It did not specify the support measures.

1. Why did China announce the three-child limit this May?

A．To completely stop the population from ageing.	B．To show concern over the ageing population.
C．To increase the birth rate of the country.	D．To remove the two-child limit.

2. What's the meaning of the underlined word scrapping in para 3?

A．Issuing.

B．Changing.

C．Adopting.

D．Canceling

3. What can we infer from para 4 to para 6?

A．China has a smaller population in 2020 than in 2010.

B．Many couples can't afford to raise two or more children.

C．Hei Longjiang has the smallest population among the provinces.

D．Korea and Japan have managed to cope with ageing population.

4. Where is this text most probably from?

A．A book review.

B．An online newspaper

C．A travel brochure.

D．A biology textbook.