An exhibition of zodiac (生肖) sculptures,
The 12 zodiac signs are
Each sculpture
The expressions of these zodiac sculptures are vivid but calm. Some of them seem to be resting, content in their mediation. Only the snake has
2 . Working at a hotel, I had the pleasure of welcoming a family of five one Friday. As they entered, the youngest child greeted me with a cheerful “hi”. I always
During the check-in process with the parents, the youngest child
The mother
I delivered the
After my shift ended, I didn’t work until Monday. Upon my return, I found a(n)
| A．observe | B．imagine | C．appreciate | D．meet |
| A．Going along | B．Growing up | C．Dropping in | D．Getting out |
| A．behaviors | B．struggles | C．ambitions | D．dreams |
| A．requires | B．permits | C．forces | D．encourages |
| A．gradually | B．proudly | C．uncertainly | D．confusedly |
| A．replied | B．appeared | C．left | D．remarked |
| A．worried | B．insisted | C．argued | D．explained |
| A．arrange | B．host | C．revise | D．discover |
| A．song | B．note | C．wish | D．design |
| A．toys | B．orders | C．gifts | D．machines |
| A．thrilled | B．puzzled | C．shocked | D．frightened |
| A．ceased | B．beat | C．broke | D．melted |
| A．touching | B．interesting | C．bothering | D．convincing |
| A．relief | B．anger | C．sorrow | D．joy |
| A．willing | B．diverse | C．simple | D．flexible |
Brad Howard, a Texas father, had enough of his son’s disruptive (扰乱性的) behavior in physics class. Despite multiple warnings and complaints from the teacher about his son’s excessive (过多的) talking, the situation didn’t improve.
So, Brad decided to take matters into his own hands and gave his son, Bradley, a final warning. Brad made a bold promise to his son, saying, “Hey, if we get another call, I’m going to show up in school and sit beside you in class. ”
The 17-year-old Bradley probably thought his dad was just bluffing (唬人) and continued his chatty (爱闲聊的) ways. But when Brad received another email from the teacher, he knew he had to follow through with his threat.
On the morning of the important day, Brad’s wife woke him up and said, “Brad, it’s time for you to go to school. ” It struck him what he had said. He just couldn’t but a bit regret, “Oh, no, what have I done? ”
Despite his unwillingness, Brad was determined to keep his word and headed to his son’s high school.
The sight of Brad sitting next to Bradley in class was a source of amusement for Bradley’s friends, who found the situation ridiculous. Bradley, on the other hand, was less than thrilled.
He couldn’t believe that his dad had actually gone through with his threat, The embarrassment of having his own father sitting beside him in class was enough to make him regret his behavior. As the class started, Bradley could feel all eyes on him and his dad. He could sense the judgment and the whispers from his classmates.
“Hey, Bradley, it looks like your dad is really serious about this, ” one of his friends whispered across the hallway, trying to hold back a laugh.
“Yeah, this is so embarrassing, ” Bradley whispered, his cheeks turning a deep shade of red.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
But as the class progressed, something unexpected happened.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________After school, Bradley hesitantly approached his dad with newfound appreciation.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________4 . Shop Sustainably
If you have to name one thing that contributes most to your ecological footprints, you may say the energy you use at home, or your car’s emissions.
●
●Avoid unnecessary packing. Buy loose fruit and vegetables instead of pre-packaged produce, and avoid products that contain multiple single packages or double packaging, like grain in a box and a bag. Consider switching from tea bags and coffee pods to tea leaves and ground coffee.
●Go organic when you can. In addition to the benefit organic farming has to insect biodiversity, it’s also considered more sustainable and better for the environment.
●Buy seasonal and native products.
| A．Take reusable grocery bags. |
| B．Select single-use plastic bags. |
| C．It supports local farmers and food producers. |
| D．You can also refill your own containers with loose-packed food. |
| E．When buying organic products, look for those officially certified. |
| F．But it’s what we eat that accounts for up to 60% of our personal demand. |
| G．You’ll find it convenient whenever you buy tea or coffee in the supermarket. |
5 . Until recently, gravitational waves could have been the stuff of Einstein’s imagination. Before they were detected, these waves in space time existed only in the physicist’s general theory of relativity, as far as scientists knew. Now, researchers are on the hunt for more ways to detect the waves. “The study of gravitational waves is booming,” says astrophysicist Karan Jani of Vanderbilt University in Nashville. “This is just remarkable. No field I can think of in fundamental physics has seen progress this fast.”
Just as light comes in a variety of wavelengths, so do gravitational waves. Different wave lengths point to different types of origins of the universe and require different kinds of detectors. Gravitational waves with wavelengths of a few thousand kilometers—like those detected by the United States, Italy and Japan—come mostly from pairs of black holes 10 or so times the mass of the sun, or from collisions of dense cosmic blocks called neutron stars (中子星). These detectors could also spot waves from certain types of exploding stars and rapidly moving neutron stars.
In contrast, huge waves that span light-years are thought to be created by orbiting pairs of bigger black holes with masses billions of times that of the sun. In June, scientists reported the first strong evidence of these types of waves by turning the entire galaxy (星系) into a detector, watching how the waves make slight changes to the timing of regular blinks from neutron stars throughout the Milky Way.
Physicists now hope to dive into a vast, cosmic ocean of gravitational waves of all sorts of sizes. These waves could reveal new details about the secret lives of exotic objects such as black holes and unknown parts of the universe.
Physicist Jason Hogan of Stanford University thinks there are still a lot of gaps in the coverage of wavelengths. “But it makes sense to cover all the bases. Who knows what else we may find?” he says. The search for capturing the full complement of the universe’s gravitational waves exactly could take observatories out into the moon, to the atomic area and elsewhere.
1. What does Karan Jani think of the current study on gravitational waves?| A．It is rapid and pioneering. |
| B．It is slow but steadily increasing. |
| C．It is interrupted due to limited detectors. |
| D．It is progressing as fast as any other field. |
| A．The creation of different kinds of detectors. |
| B．Collisions of planets outside the solar system. |
| C．The presence of light in different wavelengths. |
| D．Activities involving black holes and neutron stars. |
| A．By analyzing sunlight. |
| B．By locating the new galaxy. |
| C．By using the whole galaxy as a tool. |
| D．By observing the sun’s regular movement. |
| A．It’ll exclude the atomic field. |
| B．It’ll focus exactly on the mapping of the galaxy. |
| C．It’ll require prioritizing certain wavelengths on the moon. |
| D．It’ll explore potential places to detect gravitational waves. |
6 . Historical accounts often described the now-extinct California grizzly bears as huge beasts ready to attack humans and livestock at any time. But according to a new paper, scientists say the truth might have been less dramatic: The bears ate a mostly vegetarian diet and were smaller than previously described. California grizzly bears once roamed in the Golden State. But European settlers often hunted, poisoned and trapped the creatures. Over time, because of these human activities, the California grizzly population declined. The last reliable sighting of a California grizzly bear occurred 100 years ago in 1924, and the animals disappeared completely sometime after that.
Researchers wanted to get a better understanding of the factors that accelerated the bears’ extinction. They also hoped to gain more insight into the creatures’ behavior, size and diet. To do so, they turned to documents and California grizzly specimens in natural history collections. They measured the animals’ skulls and teeth and analyzed their bones and pelts. The researchers found that California grizzly bears were much smaller than the 2,000 pounds often reported at the time. Historical accounts might not necessarily have been wrong, but they might have only included the largest bears. In addition, analyses of the animals’ bones and skins suggest the bears were primarily eating plants, which stands in contrast to their fear some hyper carnivorous (超级食肉的) reputation. “The bears likely increased meat consumption due to landscape changes coupled with the arrival of livestock,” says study co-author Alexis Mychajliw. However, researchers found the animals still ate a majority vegetarian diet and killed far less livestock than historical accounts suggested.
By digging beyond the bears’ reputation, the researchers gained a more accurate understanding of the California grizzly’s biology and natural history. And since scientists and land managers often rely on historical accounts when reintroducing animals to their former habitats, the study serves as a reminder that those old newspapers and journals do not tell the whole story.
1. What does the underlined word “roamed” in paragraph 1 mean?| A．Disappeared. | B．Declined. | C．Fought. | D．Wandered. |
| A．They mainly fed on livestock. |
| B．Their diet consisted mostly of plants. |
| C．They ate a balanced diet of plants and meat. |
| D．The absence of livestock changed their dietary habit. |
| A．They are unique. | B．They are one-sided. |
| C．They are accurate. | D．They are comprehensive. |
| A．The natural habitats of California grizzly bears. |
| B．The extinction process of California grizzly bears. |
| C．The reveal of the truth of California grizzly bears. |
| D．The significance of the arrival of California grizzly bears. |
7 . What will you do when you feel like a failure? Feeling like a failure is part of the human experiences. Treat yourself with kindness and understand that failure does not define you, but it is a stepping stone on your journey. When you’re ready, take action and challenge yourself.
As some friends were deeply lost in the world of yoga and mindfulness, I’ve personally struggled with the feeling of failure, not on the yoga mat, but on the road to my entrepreneurship(创业). It all began several years ago when I threw myself into the business, driven by my passion and a dream.
In the early days, optimism flowed freely, but financial struggles and sleepless nights soon followed. I questioned my decision and felt like the biggest failure. However, every difficulty became a stepping stone towards growth. I learned more from my failures than from my successes, adapting and growing stronger with each obstacle. I reached out to instructors, friends and family, sought advice and slowly saw a ray of hope. One defining moment came when I gained my first long-term coaching partnership. It was a breakthrough, and my hard work paid off. Over the years, I faced many more failures, but I refused to let them define me.
Today, looking back at my journey, I realize that moments of feeling like a failure were essential to my success. They taught me humility, perseverance and the value of hard work. They shaped me into a successful entrepreneur I am today—someone who doesn’t fear failure but embraces it as a necessary part of the path to success. As we approach the end of the year of graduation, remember that success is not about avoiding failure, but about how we rise after we fall. Let’s support each other on this journey called life. Stay positive, stay inspired and stay true to ourselves.
1. What is the function of paragraph 1?| A．To give the definition of failure. |
| B．To list some examples of failure. |
| C．To introduce the topic of the story. |
| D．To stress the importance of experience. |
| A．Internal motivation. | B．Advice from a coach. |
| C．Family financial crisis. | D．Encouragement from friends. |
| A．To teach is to learn. |
| B．A word spoken is past recalling. |
| C．Constant dropping wears away a stone. |
| D．Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched. |
| A．Inspire us with his lessons. |
| B．Persuade us to major in business. |
| C．Recall the key moments of his entrepreneurship. |
| D．Advocate avoiding obstacles on the way to success. |
8 . The oceans play a crucial role in lightening global warming by absorbing carbon dioxide emissions. However, in a study conducted by the University of Texas, researchers found that the oceans’ capacity to absorb carbon dioxide (CO₂) would reach its maximum by 2100 and decrease to half of its current efficiency by 2300, based on a climate simulation (模拟) that was set for a worst-case emissions scenario (设想).
The decline happens because of a surface layer of low-alkalinity (碱度) water that can hinder the ability of the oceans to absorb CO₂. Alkalinity affects how much CO₂ can dissolve in seawater. Although the emissions scenario used in the study is unlikely because of global efforts to limit greenhouse gas emissions, the findings reveal a previously unknown tipping point that if activated would release an important brake on global warming.
“We need to think about these worst-case scenarios to understand how our CO₂ emissions might affect the oceans not just this century, but next century and the following centuries. Climate simulations had previously shown that the oceans slow their absorption of CO₂ over time, but none had considered alkalinity as an explanation. We recalculated pieces of a 450-year simulation until we hit on alkalinity as a key cause of the slowing.” said Megumi Chikamoto, who led the research at the University of Texas Institute.
The effect begins with extreme climate change, which slows ocean currents. This leaves the surface of the oceans covered in a warm layer of fresh water that won’t mix easily with the cooler, more al kaline waters below it. That means more of it is left behind in the atmosphere. This in turn produces faster warming, which sustains and strengthens the low-alkalinity surface layer. Co-author, Pedro DiNezio, said that the discovery was a powerful reminder that the world needs to reduce its CO₂ emissions to avoid crossing this and other tipping points.
1. What may happen after the year 2300?| A．More CO₂ will be absorbed by the oceans. |
| B．The oceans will lose all their current efficiency. |
| C．The world will face even more severe warming. |
| D．The oceans will be less crucial to global warming. |
| A．Improve. | B．Weaken. | C．Protect. | D．Control. |
| A．Finding why they slow CO₂ intake is hard. |
| B．Their ability to absorb CO₂ is at their maximum. |
| C．They will decide on the future of human beings. |
| D．They will slow down CO₂ absorption very quickly. |
| A．A biology textbook. | B．A government report. |
| C．Science fiction. | D．An environmental journal. |
9 . The US military wants to build artificial reefs (礁) to protect coastal bases from rising seas and climate change. Its “Reefense” programme has awarded three contracts with the goal of using both artificial and natural defences to support the protection provided by human-built sea walls and concrete breakwaters alone.
A first line of defence envisioned by Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)’s Reefense programme would consist of an artificial structure capable of removing some of the power of incoming waves. That would pave the way for corals (珊瑚) to grow on the artificial foundation and further strengthen the coastal protection capabilities.
While natural reefs usually start shaping up over five to ten years, DARPA is aiming for these artificial reef structures to inspire coral settlement within just a few years. Its vision could take advantage of new lab techniques for growing corals.
As part of the programme, one team at Rutgers University in New Jersey has received $4.5 million to develop defences based on reefs in the Gulf of Mexico near Tyndall Air Force Base. Another team, at the University of Hawaii, received more than $7.3 million to experiment with structures that encourage coral reef to grow in the Pacific Ocean. The third team, at the University of Miami, was awarded almost $7.5 million to develop an artificial reef solution with different species of coral for the Atlantic Ocean.
The research teams must first build artificial reefs, starting at 50 metres in length, before eventually extending them to 150 metres. Early testing in wave tanks is set to eventually lead to a three -year-long project offshore between 2023 and 2026.
Researchers will also selectively breed (繁殖) corals at seawater temperatures 3℃ higher than surrounding temperatures, so the animals can better survive in a warming world. “All the teams have skills in growing corals in their laboratory environments, selecting for higher temperatures or disease resistance,” says Catherine Campbell at the US DARPA.
1. What can we know about the US military’s plan to build artificial reefs?| A．It has been put into practice. | B．It aims to protect sea animals. |
| C．It hasn’t been well received. | D．It focuses on natural defences. |
| A．They are stronger than natural ones. | B．Their expense is less than natural ones. |
| C．They need less time to grow perfectly. | D．They can be built anywhere we want to. |
| A．Different species of coral should be protected. |
| B．Different teams will develop artificial reefs soon. |
| C．Universities are facing intense competition. |
| D．Many companies are willing to provide finance. |
| A．Corals live better in colder surroundings. | B．The research teams need more experience. |
| C．Campbell is positive about the programme. | D．“Reefense” programme is on its first stage. |
What’s been the most successful film at the worldwide box-office this year? James Bond, Disney cartoons and Marvel logo remain a license to print money. But none of them have taken as much
