1 . Cheng Cheung Hung, a Chinese sprinter(短跑运动员), says Asia’s fastest man Su Bingtian is his hero, who was the first Chinese to run 100 meters in 10 seconds in 2015.
“Su Bingtian created a new Asian record. His super performance definitely earned him the title of ‘Su-per’. I had the pleasure of shaking his hand, which was a great inspiration,” said Cheng after his competition in China’s first Youth Games on Monday.
Four weeks ago, Su delivered a speech, which attracted many young athletes like Cheng Cheung Hung. Cheng not only shook hands with his hero, but also was inspired by Su’s speech. “It was truly an enlightening experience for me,” recalled Cheng. “Su encouraged us to try and challenge ourselves to break the limit. Combining(结合)talent and hard work together, we can step on the world stage.”
Majored in physical therapy(理疗), Cheng has well balanced his school studies and training at university. “The main thing is to do a good job of time management for studying and training,” he said. “In the classroom and on the sports field, it’s all about learning.”
Through studying physical therapy at university, Cheng got a deeper understanding of human body structure and conducted scientific analysis of sprinting. He said he could be aware of the change in his physical state now and immediately correct his training time based on his knowledge and research.
“It would be a great honor to be involved in sports in the future, and to pass on the experience I have learned now to the next generation. I hope to help the development of sports,” Cheng said.
1. What does Cheng Cheung Hung think of Su?| A．Admirable. | B．Brave. |
| C．Honest. | D．Strict. |
| A．Go abroad for skills. | B．Share experience with each other. |
| C．Spare enough time for rest. | D．Challenge themselves. |
| A．He is poor at study. |
| B．He came first in the 100-meter race in 2015. |
| C．He earned the title of “Su-per” in his performance. |
| D．He has achieved a balance between study and training. |
| A．It cost him much money. | B．It led him to be a scientist. |
| C．It helped him with sports training. | D．It wasted too much time. |
2 . A petting zoo is also called a children’s zoo. It is a place with domesticated (家养的) animals and some wild species.
Petting zoos have a long history. In addition to independent petting zoos, many general zoos have a petting zoo. In 1938, the London Zoo included the first children’s zoo in Europe and the Philadelphia Zoo was the first in North America to open a special zoo just for children.
Some petting zoos are also mobile (流动的) and will travel to a home for a child’s party or event. One of the first mobile petting zoos in Australia was Kindifarm. Because of its popularity, many Australians use the term “kindy farms” to describe petting zoos. In Australia, mobile petting zoos are allowed in schools and child care centers.
Petting zoos are popular with small children, who like feeding the animals. Food is supplied by the zoo.
| A．Not all animals are friendly. |
| B．It may help improve animals’ health. |
| C．After all, some foods don’t suit animals. |
| D．Visitors can feed them and even touch some of them. |
| E．People should protect themselves from the health effects of petting zoos. |
| F．For many children, these petting zoos give them the first chance to see and touch animals. |
| G．During the 1990s, Dutch cities began building petting zoos in many neighborhoods. |
3 . When I first moved to China in 1998, I thought I would impress my class by using some Chinese in my speech about American weddings (婚礼). I told them everyone brings a gift to the wedding for the couple. As soon as I said this, all of the students looked surprised. I knew I had said something wrong. I realized that instead of telling them that everybody brings gifts to the hun li for the couple, I had said people bring gifts for them at the li hun!
I get laughs from some of my students because I often make mistakes and my Chinese sounds strange at times. But I tell them that sometimes their English is really strange too.
One asks, “What are you like to do in your free time?” And the other answers, “I very like basketball.” I find that even good English speakers make such mistakes. The second is by far the most common mistake I have heard among Chinese English speakers. It is a result of first thinking in Chinese and then translating each word in the sentence into English. This, of course, makes some Chinese people’s English sound strange.
“We should get off the car here,” a student told me. My school had asked two students to show me around the city by taxi. In English countries, we “get off” a bike, bus, or train. However, when we leave a car, we say “get out of the car”. Perhaps the student had learned “get off” means xia in Chinese and he thought the phrase (短语) could be followed by any means of transportation. To avoid such mistakes, you should take collocations (搭配) seriously. Only learning vocabulary and grammar is not enough.
Some of my students sound more like a book or machine than a human. Perhaps they have gotten used to depending on books. You can also read English books out loud or use a CD, but you need the real thing. If you have a chance to hear a native speaker from an Englishspeaking country, practice repeating what you hear. They can teach you how to have a conversation.
1. Why did the students feel surprised?| A．American weddings are difficult to organize. |
| B．The author’s Chinese was as fluent as Chinese. |
| C．The author used a completely wrong Chinese word. |
| D．Everyone must bring a gift to an American wedding. |
| A．Spelling mistakes. | B．Direct translation. |
| C．Cultural difference. | D．Wrong pronunciations. |
| A．He might be poor at vocabulary. |
| B．He might mistake “car” for “taxi”． |
| C．He might know very little about the city. |
| D．He might pay little attention to collocations. |
| A．Common mistakes made by Chinese English learners. |
| B．Differences between Chinese and American culture. |
| C．Suggestions on improving conversational skills. |
| D．His experience of learning English. |
4 . With over 70% of the country blanketed in forest, Bhutan is rich in outdoor activities and charming villages that showcase a distinctive culture found nowhere else on the Earth. Here are our picks for the best places to add to your Bhutan traveling list.
ParoLess than 10 minutes away from the airport, the historic riverside town of Paro is known for the National Museum, Rinpung Dzong and symbolic Tiger’s Nest Monastery. Wander along Paro’s streets and the Paro Weekend Market to explore shops and stands offering handmade souvenirs. When you’ve worked up an appetite, step into any restaurant for fresh, handmade momo dumplings.
ThimphuIn Bhutan’s capital city, spend the day creating your own stamps at the Bhutan Postal Museum, touring the massive Thimphu’s museums and watching policemen manually direct traffic(there are no traffic lights in the entire city). When the sun sets below the mountains, enjoy yourself at bars like Grey Area, a popular art bar with live music where you can shout “tashi delek!”, a Xizang’s expression for good luck and health.
PunakhaBeloved for riverside farms where cows eat among rice and pepper fields, Punakha is home to what is its most beautiful temple, which sits along the Punakha River. Punakha’s low altitude means it tends to be hotter and sunnier than nearby towns and districts, which means you’ll need to take precautions to avoid sunburn.
KhomaFashion lovers can expect to visit behind the curtain in Bhutan’s textile center, Khoma. In the eastern district of Lhuentse, this village is home to roughly 1,000 residents—and few cars. Khoma’s artisans spend their days weaving delicate patterns and designs on traditional Bhutanese looms (织布机), creating colors from the area’s minerals and plants.
1. What is recommended for visitors traveling in Thimphu?| A．Acting as a policeman. | B．Enjoying the nightlife. |
| C．Purchasing ancient stamps. | D．Trying handmade dumplings. |
| A．Food. | B．Life jackets. | C．Sunblock. | D．Warming clothing. |
| A．Paro. | B．Thimphu. | C．Punakha. | D．Khoma. |
5 . Top Technology Products at CES 2024
AI for Hyundai and Kia vehicles
South Korea’s Samsung announced it was working with automaker Hyundai to develop “home-to-car” and “car-to-home” services for all Hyundai and Kia vehicles.
This AI-powered system will allow users of Samsung’s SmartThings service to remotely (远程地) set their vehicle’s temperature or open its windows. And users can control lights and connect to electrical equipment inside the home when inside the car.
Car parking robot
South Korean electric automotive company HL Mando showed a parking robot called Parkie. It is designed to operate (运转) by itself in parking lots. The robot can move under parked vehicles, lift the cars up and transport them to different spaces or return them to their drivers.
Transparent televisions
Electronics producers LG and Samsung brought televisions to CES that have a transparent (透明的) screen design. The TVs use OLED technology. They are designed to be hidden in a room when not in use.
When not in the transparent setting, the TVs have a traditional, black background. The companies presenting the TVs did not provide pricing information, but experts say the transparent ones are likely to cost tens of thousands of dollars.
Robotic lawn mower
Chinese robotics developer Mammotion showed a new type of its self-driving lawn mower (割草机). The latest, all-wheel-drive Luba 2 includes new wireless abilities and tools to deal with obstacles (障碍) in the grass. The robot mower can be already got and sells for just over $2,000.
1. What can you do in a car with the AI-powered system?| A．Park your car easily. | B．Control some home equipment. |
| C．Enjoy the fun of driverless ride. | D．Order the machine to cut grass. |
| A．They are wireless equipment. | B．They are cheap to buy. |
| C．They bring driving pleasure. | D．They can work by themselves. |
| A．AI for Hyundai and Kia vehicles. | B．Car parking robot. |
| C．Transparent televisions. | D．Robotic lawn mower. |
6 . Florida shores may soon become a bit safer thanks to the creativity of 13-year-old Kaial Hajik in Panama City Beach. After hearing of several drownings (溺亡) in the Gulf of Mexico over the past few years, Kail worked with his father Joe Hajik to design an emergency kit prototype (原型) called the LifeBoKx.
The LifeBoKx includes basic life-saving equipment and educational materials to be positioned along the shoreline of Panama City Beach. The emergency kit includes two life jackets and visual aids including the “Drowning Chain of Survival,” a visual representation from the International Life Saving Federation (ILS) telling how to safely behave when drowning.
Kaial and his father said the story of Richard Stacey Redman made them want to create the LifeBoKx. Redman drowned on Panama City Beach in 2019 trying to save a drowning child. “It’s not just people drowning. It’s actually the people who work to help save these people that are losing their lives,” Joe Hajik said.
The LifeBoKx is just an idea for now, but the father-son team imagines placing the emergency kits throughout the Panama City Beach shoreline.
Wil Spivey is the director of the newly created Beach Safety unit. Kaial and Joe Hajik presented the LifeBoKx to Spivey and his team. When asked about the prototype, Spivey said, “Our main feeling is that we just thought it was really exceptional — that a young man saw a need or problem in his community and tried to take action and stand up and do something meaningful about it.”
Spivey said his team supported Hajik and offered suggestions. The LifeBoKx could not stand as a replacement to lifeguards and trained emergency responders but Spivey said it offered some useful tools, particularly the educational materials, and the possibility to help the progress of emergency response.
1. What do we know about the LifeBoKx?| A．It is supported by the ILS. |
| B．It has been used across the world. |
| C．It provides some life-saving equipment. |
| D．It was created to teach children to swim. |
| A．The increasing number of drownings in their country. |
| B．Redman’s story of being drowned. |
| C．Kaial’s experience of drowning. |
| D．Their shared love of creating. |
| A．It is still in development. |
| B．It has gotten many orders. |
| C．It is popular among children. |
| D．It has not been accepted by officials. |
| A．He didn’t think it was creative. |
| B．He doubted if it would be useful. |
| C．He thought it might replace lifeguards one day. |
| D．He thought it might speed up emergency response. |
7 . Growing up in Kenya, Lesein Mutunkei, together with his family, always celebrated significant occasions by planting trees, which motivated him to protect the environment. It’s what the now 18-year-old soccer player treasures, especially since Kenya has an ongoing problem with deforestation.
Mutunkei follows in the footsteps of the late Kenyan Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai who founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977. This initiative has resulted in the planting of over 51 million trees to date.
In 2018, Lesein decided to start a movement of his own. He started by planting one tree for every goal he scored during a football match. He called it Trees4Goals, and it has grown so much that he now plants 11 trees, one for each member of his team, every time he scores. Through this, he wants to inspire young people, specifically his fellow athletes, to follow in his footsteps, take nature conservation seriously, and promise to plant trees every time they score. As a result, some of them have adapted this practice for their sports. “Seeing that they’re taking that responsibility because of the project I started, for me, that is the biggest achievement,” he said.
The initiative has caught the attention of English football club Arsenal and Kenya’s Ministry of Environment and Forestry, which he now works with regularly and gets advice from.
Like Green Belt Movement, Trees4Goals, which has planted 5,500 trees so far, has made it. While Lesein has received some recognition for his initiative, he sets his sights on making it a worldwide phenomenon. “Football is a universal game, and climate change is a universal problem,” he explains. “It has the power to unite, educate and inspire my generation to create a safer and greener future.” This is why he wants to work with the world’s biggest football federation FIFA.
As for what others can do to fight deforestation or other environmental concerns, the teenager says it’s important to just get involved in some way, no matter how small.
1. What made Lesein get interested in environmental protection?| A．The influence of his family. |
| B．Wangari Maathai’s huge assistances. |
| C．The demand of the football team. |
| D．His fellow athletes’ encouragement. |
| A．To gain Kenya’s support. |
| B．To set an example for others. |
| C．To catch Arsenal’s attention. |
| D．To show his achievements. |
| A．Promoting football’s development. |
| B．Going global with the help of FIFA. |
| C．Beating climate change completely. |
| D．Getting beyond Green Belt Movement. |
| A．Fame is a great thirst of the young. |
| B．A youth is to be regarded with respect. |
| C．Positive thinking and action result in success. |
| D．Success means getting personal desires satisfied. |
8 . Today’s workers are suffering from a burnout. The danger of this is that burnout is linked to under performance and feelings of hopelessness. Would you know how to fight burnout?
Find out the cause.
To fight burnout, you may have to get rid of anything that weighs you down. Remember, the less you have on your plate, the better you may feel.
Separate work from home life.
When you stop working at the end of the day, leave your “office hat” in the office. And while we’re talking about balance and relaxation, make sure you schedule real days off from work. No work emails, no work text messages, and no wok phone calls—a day devoted entirely to you, your family and rest.
Set realistic goals.
Maybe you have short-term and long-term goals for your life. Goals are an excellent motivator.
The best solution to burnout is seeking out rich interpersonal communications, and continual personal and professional development. Find coaches and mentors who can help you identify positive relationships and learning opportunities.
Take short breaks during the day.
When you’re working throughout the day, schedule short 10-minute breaks every hour or every hour and a half.
| A．Seek out social connections. |
| B．Social support can be beneficial. |
| C．Maybe the problem is not your job itself, but rather a specific task or project. |
| D．But If you reach too high too fast, burnout is unavoidable. |
| E．Close your eyes for a few minutes, leave your computer, grab something drink, or simply sit in your quiet office and clear your mind. |
| F．Here are some methods you can follow to solve the problem. |
| G．If you are overwhelmed with work, you probably don’t have a lot of time to sleep |
9 . Retired Army Col. Farrell Patrick taught computer science at West Point during the 1970s and then at two private universities through the 1990s, so he isn’t surprised by the progress technology has made over the decades. But when the 91-year-old got his first virtual reality (VR) experience recently, he was amazed.
Sitting in a conference room at John Knox Village, Patrick sat up straight as his eyes and ears experienced what it would be like to be in a Navy fighter jet flying off the Florida coast. John Knox Village was one of 17 senior communities around the country that participated in a recently published Stanford University study.
During the study, the seniors were picked from seven-minute virtual experiences such as riding in a tank, watching stage performances, playing with dogs and cats or visiting places like Paris or Egypt. The participants wore headsets that gave them 360-degree views and sounds, making it seem like they had been all but dropped into the actual experience.
The study, working with the company Mynd Immersive, found that almost 80% of the seniors reported having a more positive attitude after their VR session and almost 60% said they felt less isolated socially. The enjoyment lessened somewhat for older respondents whose sight and hearing had deteriorated (恶化). Those who found VR less enjoyable were also more likely to dislike technology in general.
The company has worked on the biggest complaints the seniors in the study had about VR—the headsets were too heavy and the heat they generated made the seniors’ foreheads sweat. The new headsets weigh about six ounces (189 grams) instead of a pound (454 grams). Besides, they have a built-in fan for cooling, and the videos aren’t as jumpy.
Patrick says he hopes to live to 100 because he believes the next five years will see momentous changes in VR. Still a technology enthusiast, he believes the cost of systems will drop dramatically and become part of everyday living, even for seniors.
1. What is the function of the first paragraph?| A．To lead in the topic. | B．To reach a conclusion. |
| C．To present an argument. | D．To make a definition. |
| A．To illustrate the two cities’ support for VR. |
| B．To explain why seniors are crazy about traveling. |
| C．To compare the differences between the two cities. |
| D．To show the VR experiences the seniors can choose from. |
| A．Most seniors enjoyed VR. | B．Old people preferred socializing. |
| C．Seniors’ sight and hearing became worse. | D．Most retired people disliked high-tech products. |
| A．Its products hardly appeal to seniors. | B．Its goal is to produce high-quality videos. |
| C．It has made improvements on the headsets. | D．It has got a lot of complaints from teenagers. |
10 . As Teachers’ Day approached, I received an interview assignment to talk with a very special figure about teaching. President Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam talked with me about life’s toughest lessons and his mission of being a teacher to the Indian youth. He was now a leader and a wise old man. There was still a child in him though, and he was still curious about learning new things. To this day, he still remembered his first lesson in life and how it had changed his life.
“I was studying in fifth grade and must have been 10 years old. My teacher, Sri Sivasubramanialyer was telling us how birds flew. He drew a diagram of a bird on the blackboard, drawing the wings, the tail, the body and the head and then explained how birds flew into the sky. At the end of the class, I said I didn’t understand. Then he asked the other students if they had understood, but nobody had understood how birds flew.” he recalled.
“That evening, the entire class was taken to Rameshwaram shore by our teacher,” the President continued. “My teacher showed us sea birds. We saw wonderful formations of them flying and how their wings waved. Then my teacher asked us, ‘Where is the bird’s engine and how is it powered?’ I knew then that birds are powered by their own life and motivation. I understood all about birds’ dynamics. At last, he said to us with relief that we were very good.”
“That day from not understanding to the final understanding, as well as the gratitude to the teacher, has always impressed me. A proper education would help develop a sense of dignity (尊严) and self-respect among our youth,” said President Kalam.
1. What does the author probably do?| A．A reporter. | B．A president. | C．A teacher. | D．A painter. |
| A．It was a drawing class. | B．The teacher’s diagram was not complete. |
| C．What the teacher taught was quite difficult. | D．The students were too stupid to understand it. |
| A．By asking other teachers for help. | B．By taking them to see the real birds. |
| C．By bringing a bird to explain again. | D．By drawing another diagram for them. |
| A．Disappointed. | B．Stressed. | C．Angry. | D．Grateful. |
