1 . In a world where nearly 6 million fingerprint records of government employees are stolen in one computer hack, and where millions of people are victims of identity theft every year, the next step in cyber-security may well be mapping your brain.
Researchers at Binghamton University are working on a biometric (生物特征的) system that records how your brain reacts to certain images. With a little more polishing, the scientists’ brainchild could become the way you get into a safe deposit box, your office or past scanners at the airport. It could replace the password for your online banking, your e-mail or your social media accounts.
They started their project by measuring the brain waves of 30 subjects. The subjects were fitted with a cap that had 30 electrodes attached to it, and then shown various images and symbols — celebrity faces, words, pictures of food — on a computer screen in 200-millisecond bursts. The brain’s reaction was recorded.
The idea is that every time a person needs to use a “password”, he or she goes through the same procedure, and the results are matched to their first-time reaction. If the “brainprint” is cracked — like what happened to the fingerprint records — then the system is merely reset by running another set of images and collecting a different set of brain waves.“Even if that was stolen, you could just cancel it and record one to something else”, says professor Laszlo.
Laszlo and her team have shown that their system can be 100 per cent accurate. So one of the most difficult parts of making the system practical already has been overcome. Now, they’re spending much time recording accurate brainprints with as few as three electrodes, which could make recording in the future as easy as wearing a pair of special glasses. They’re also working with cheaper materials and different methods to see if they can bring the cost down.
1. What does the underlined word “brainchild” in Paragraph 2 refer to?| A．The brain function. | B．The biometric system. |
| C．The fingerprint record. | D．The online password. |
| A．To match brainprints with pictures. | B．To check the brain’s reaction. |
| C．To create their brainprints. | D．To connect brain waves to electrodes. |
| A．A new one will be set again. | B．A spare one will be ready beforehand. |
| C．The users’ security will be threatened. | D．The fingerprint record will replace it. |
| A．Improving its accuracy. | B．Making it user-friendly. |
| C．Recording more brainprints. | D．Increasing the number of electrodes. |
2 . Harbin has witnessed a significant boom that has caused it to trend on social media this winter. By December 20, 2023, the city airport’s annual passenger throughput had gone beyond 20 million. According to a new report, during the three-day New Year holiday, Harbin received 3.05 million tourists and made income of 5.91 billion yuan, both of which reached record highs.
Harbin, also known as China’s “ice city”, is famous for its ice and snow culture. For over 60 years, the city has had a tradition of holding an annual ice lantern exhibition, presenting the creativity and skill of its artists. Recently, the Ice and Snow World, recognized by the Guinness World Records as the largest ice and snow park, is just one of many attractions in the city. It features amazing ice and snow sculptures, including replicas (复制品) of famous landmarks, animals, and cartoon characters. In addition, visitors can also enjoy different kinds of snow sports, such as ice skating, ice fishing, and sledding.
Harbin spared no effort to show its sincerity and hospitality to tourists. At the Ice and Snow World, a lot of new experiences have been provided, such as hovercrafts and bicycles on ice, Ferris wheels, and hot air balloons. Tourists were welcomed with live performances at the airport, and dressing rooms were set up for them to change into warm clothing. Local residents supported by traveling during off-peak hours to reduce traffic and offering tourists free rides. For those unable to book hotels, the government opened the Provincial People’s Congress Service Center for low-cost stays.
“For individual travelers, a city’s infrastructure (基础设施) and public services form the foundation of tourism competitiveness. It is only when tourists feel the warmth of the city and the goodwill of its citizens that they fit into the lives of a travel destination nicely,” said Dai Bin, president of China Tourism Academy.
1. The figures in paragraph 1 show that __________.| A．The growth in Harbin’s tourism industry |
| B．The popularity of Harbin’s new attractions |
| C．People’s interest in traveling in icy places |
| D．People’s great passion for the New Year holiday |
| A．It is famous for its annual ice lantern exhibition. |
| B．It is the first ice and snow park in the world. |
| C．It offers various snow-related activities for visitors. |
| D．It holds various snow sports competitions for visitors. |
| A．New equipment added in the Ice and Snow World. |
| B．The measures to ensure tourists’ safety in Harbin. |
| C．Local people’s support for relieving traffic pressure. |
| D．The efforts to improve tourists’ travel experiences. |
| A．A diary of cultural tours. |
| B．A news report on tourism. |
| C．An advertisement for scenic spots. |
| D．A review of newly emerging cities. |
3 . If you have a chance to go to Finland, you will probably be surprised to find how “foolish” the Finnish people are.
Take the taxi drivers for example. Taxis in Finland are mostly high-class Benz with a fare of two US dollars a kilometer. You can go anywhere in one, tell the driver to drop you at any place, say that you have some business to attend to, and then walk off without paying your fare. The driver would not show the least sign of being annoyed and worried.
The dining rooms in all big hotels not only serve their guests, but also serve outside diners. Hotel guests have their meals free, so they naturally go to the free dining rooms to have their meals. The most they would do to show their good faith is to wave their registration card to the waiter. With such a loose check, you can easily use any old registration card to take a couple of friends to dine free of charge.
The Finnish workers are paid by the hour. They are very much on their own as soon as they have agreed with the boss on the pay. From then on, they just say how many hours they have worked and they will be paid accordingly.
With so much carelessness in everyday life, surely Finland must be a heaven to those who love to take “petty advantages” (小便宜). But the strange thing is, all the taxi passengers would always come back to pay their fare after they have attended to their business; not a single outsider has ever been found in the free hotel dining rooms. And workers always give an honest account of the exact hours they put in.
As the Finns always act on good faith in everything they do, living in such a society has turned everyone into a real “gentleman”. In a society of such high moral practice, what need is there for people to be on guard against others?
1. What might happen when taking a taxi in Finland?| A．Taxis can be stopped at any time midway. |
| B．The cost of a Benz is higher than other taxis. |
| C．The driver will feel angry if unpaid on time. |
| D．Only Benz can be used as common taxis. |
| A．Your friend’s invitation. |
| B．Your registration card. |
| C．Your identity information. |
| D．Your good behaviour. |
| A．Finns love to take “pretty advantages”. |
| B．Taxi drivers can get paid after constantly asking. |
| C．Outsiders are often invited to have a free meal. |
| D．Finnish workers keep very honest records of their working hours. |
| A．Practice makes perfect. |
| B．High effort always lead to great gains. |
| C．Honesty is a good principle of society. |
| D．Nothing is impossible to a willing heart. |
4 . Living in a foreign culture can be exciting, but it can also be confusing. A group of Americans who taught English in other countries recently discussed their experiences. They found that miscommunication was always possible even over something as simple as “yes” and “no”.
On her first day in Micronesia, an island in the Pacific, Lisa thought people weren’t paying any attention to her. The day was hot. She went into a store and asked, “Do you have cold drinks?” The woman there didn’t say anything. Lisa repeated the question. Still the woman said nothing. She later learned that the woman had answered her. She had raised her eyebrows (眉毛) , which in Micronesia means “yes”.
Jan remembered an experience she had in Bulgaria, a country in Europe. She went to a restaurant that was famous for its cabbage. She asked the waiter, “Do you have cabbage today?” He nodded his head. Jan waited, but the cabbage never came. In that country, a nod means “no”.
Tom had a similar problem when he arrived in India. After explaining something in class, he asked his students if they understood. They answered with many different nods and shakes of the head. He thought some people had not understood, so he explained again. When he asked again, they did the same thing. He soon found out that his students did understand. In India, people nod and shake their heads in different ways depending on where they come from. You have to know where a person is from to understand whether they mean “yes” or “no”.
1. The Americans teaching English in other countries found that they __________.| A．should go abroad for vacations |
| B．needed to learn foreign languages |
| C．should often discuss their experiences |
| D．had problems with communication |
| A．saying “no” | B．raising eyebrows |
| C．shaking heads | D．nodding heads |
| A．In Bulgaria, nodding heads means “no”. |
| B．Jan taught English on a Pacific island. |
| C．Lisa was trying to buy some cabbage. |
| D．In India, only shaking heads means “yes”. |
| A．he didn’t know a nod means “no” in Indian. |
| B．he didn’t explain everything clearly enough |
| C．some students didn’t understand his questions |
| D．he did not know much about Indian culture |
5 . There is a growing hope in the field of earthquake prediction (预测) due to artificial intelligence (AI), which is challenging the widely accepted belief that earthquake prediction is impossible. Through a test carried out in China, a team of researchers from the University of Texas, Austin have developed an AI algorithm (算法) that can predict 70% of earthquakes up to seven days in advance.
The research team believes that their method worked well because they used a simple machine learning method. Based on the team’s understanding of earthquake physics, the AI was provided with a set of data on earthquake, and then taught itself by using a five-year earthquake record database. After the learning process, the AI was able to predict earthquakes by listening and analyzing signs of incoming earthquakes within the background rumblings (隆隆声) in the Earth.
This achievement undoubtedly marks a milestone (里程碑) in the field of AI-powered earthquake prediction research. “Earthquakes arrive without warning,” explains Alexandros Savvaidis, a lead researcher at the Texas Seismological Network Program (TexNet). “It’s a matter of milliseconds, and the only thing you can control is how well you are prepared. Even with the 70% accuracy, this is a huge achievement which could help reduce economic and human losses and contribute to earthquake preparation worldwide.”
Although it remains to be seen whether this method will be as effective in other areas, the researchers believe that if used in areas with more earthquake tracking networks, their Al algorithms deliver even more accurate predictions. The next step is to test AI in Texas, since UT’s Bureau TexNethas 300 earthquake stations and a continuous recording history of over 6 years, making it an excellent testing ground for these purposes.
In the long run, the authors hope to combine the AI system with physics-based models. This combined strategy could be particularly important in situations where data is poor or lacking. “There’s still a long way to go, but many advances like this, taken together, are what drive science forward,” said Scott Tinker, the bureau’s director.
1. How does the AI algorithm predict earthquakes?| A．By using algorithms to collect data. |
| B．By identifying data from the satellites. |
| C．By analyzing background sounds in the Earth. |
| D．By understanding earthquake physics. |
| A．The ways to reduce losses in earthquake. |
| B．The significance of developing the AI prediction. |
| C．The importance of earthquake preparation. |
| D．The limitations of current earthquake prediction methods. |
| A．Combining the system with physics-based models. |
| B．Applying the AI approach to other fields. |
| C．Improving earthquake tracking networks in Texas. |
| D．Conducting tests of AI in Texas. |
| A．AI: Reducing Earthquake Losses |
| B．AI: Stopping Earthquake from Happening |
| C．AI: Rewriting the Earthquake Preparation Rules |
| D．AI: Predicting 70% Earthquakes |
6 . Twelve-year-old Catherine has a lot of friends—632, actually, if you count up her online friends. And she spends a lot of time with them.
But is it possible that Catherine’s online friendships could be making her lonely? That’s what some experts believe. Connecting online is a great way to stay in touch, they say. However, some experts worry that many kids are so busy connecting online that they might be missing out on true friendships.
Could this be true? During your parents’ childhoods, connecting with friends usually meant spending time with them in the flesh. Kids played Scrabble around a table, not words with friends on their phones. When friends missed each other, they picked up the telephone. Friends might even write letters to each other.
Today, most communication takes place online. A typical teen sends 2,000 texts a month and spends more than 44 hours per week in front of a screen. Much of this time is spent on social media platform.
In fact, in many ways, online communication can make friendships stronger. “There’s definitely a positive influence. Kids can stay in constant contact, which means they can share more of their feelings with each other,” says Katie Davis, co-author of The App Generation.
Other experts, however, warn that too much online communication can get in the way of forming deep friendships. “If we are constantly checking in with our virtual world, we will have little time for our real-world friendships,” says Larry Rosen, a professor at California State University. Rosen also worries that today’s kids might mistake the “friends” on the social media for true friends in life. However, in tough times, you don’t need anyone to like your picture or share your blogs. You need someone who will keep your secrets and hold your hand. You would like to talk face to face.
1. What is the purpose of the first paragraph?| A．To tell about true friends. | B．To start a discussion. |
| C．To encourage online friendships. | D．To summarize(总结) the text. |
| A．In any case. | B．In public. | C．In person. | D．In advance. |
| A．Unconcerned. | B．Positive. | C．Worried. | D．Confused. |
| A．Teenagers need to focus on real-world friendships. | B．It’s easier to develop friendships in real life. |
| C．It’s wise to turn to friends online. | D．Social media help people stay closely connected. |
7 . Extremely authentic-looking prosthetic (假体的) eyes can now be 3D-printed in a fraction of the time it would normally take to produce the eyes by hand, scientists demonstrate in a new study.
The new technology can create a prosthetic eye in just 90 minutes, compared with the eight hours it would normally take a skilled technician, or ocularist, to produce one by hand. The 3D-printed eyes require five times less labor to make than traditional methods, the scientists behind the technology wrote in a new paper published in the journal Nature Communications.
The 3D-printed eyes also look more natural than traditional prostheses; this could help improve a patient’s self-confidence in using the devices. “Patients are very conscious about wearing a prosthesis, and they don't want others to notice,” Johann Reinhard, lead study author and a researcher at the Fraunhofer
Institute for Computer Graphics Research in Germany, told us. “With these more realistic eves, it might help them to participate more in society,” he said.
The new printing approach involves taking a specialized image of a patient’s empty eye socket and of their healthy eye. These images are then processed and used to draft blueprints that can be sent to be 3D-printed in the lab. These 3D-printed eyes closely replicate the color, size and structure of the patient's healthy eye and are particularly good at capturing the colored part of the eye, known as the iris, and the white part of the eye, called the sclera. Once finished, the eyes take 15 to 30 minutes to be installed by an ocularist, Reinhard said.
“About 80% of adults in need of prosthetic eyes could theoretically have one made this way, either due to a birth defect that causes an eye to be small or missing or because they’ve lost an eye,” the team said. “However, this wouldn’t be possible for all patients, such as those who have a very complex eye socket, as the software wouldn’t be able to find a matching shape for the prosthetic eye,” Reinhard said.
“More data are needed to see if this technique could also be used to make prosthetic eyes for children,which would require more regulation,” Reinhard said.
1. Which of the following words can be best used to describe the 3D-printed eyes?| A．Eco-friendly. | B．Time-consuming. | C．Fit-of-all. | D．Realistic-looking. |
| A．By justifying an idea. | B．By giving examples. |
| C．By providing evidence. | D．By making a comparison. |
| A．The patients prefer to show off their prosthetic eyes. |
| B．Every adult in need of a prosthetic eye can’t possibly have one. |
| C．It normally takes a skilled technician, or ocularist, to produce one. |
| D．The installment of one is 5 times faster than a traditional prosthetic eye. |
| A．3D-printed Eyes——a Better Alternative |
| B．3D Printing—a Promising Technology |
| C．3D-printed Eyes—a Source of Confidence |
| D．Prosthetic Eyes—the Hope for all Blind People |
8 . The age-old chore of dusting could soon be a thing of the past. Scientists are developing “self-cleaning” surfaces that make dust particles unable to stick to them. Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin say the particles instead stick to each other and simply roll off the surfaces with nothing more than the assistance of gravity.
The scientists altered the geometry (几何构造) of flat surfaces at a level invisible to human eyes. The team made a tightly-packed nanoscale (纳米级) network of pyramid-shaped structures on the surfaces which made it difficult for dust particles to stick to the material. Instead, the particles stick to each other before rolling off the material due to gravity.
The study, funded by a grant (拨款) from NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research program, tested the material by piling lunar dust on their engineered surfaces before turning them on their sides. The team found that just two percent of the surface remained dusty, compared with more than 35 percent of an unaltered smooth surface. The new surface could provide a passive solution to removing dust, as opposed to more active methods like using wipers and fluid to clear dust from a car windscreen.
“What we’ve demonstrated here is a surface that can clean itself,” says lead study author Chih-Hao Chang. “Particulates aren’t able to stick to the surface, so they come off using just the force of gravity.”
Study authors hope the material provides a solution to space dust, which can be extremely harmful in such a high-risk environment and is almost impossible to clean out. Space dust has previously caused great damage to NASA’s human spaceflight Apollo missions and has even caused rovers on Mars to malfunction and fail. “There’s not much you can do about lunar dust in space—it sticks to everything and there’s no real way to wipe it off,” says Samuel Lee, a lead author of the study. “Dust on solar panels of Mars rovers can cause them to fail.”
However, the researchers also believe the discovery could prove useful on Earth, preventing solar panels from collecting dust and losing efficiency. These surfaces may even protect our screens and windows from irritating dust.
1. How did the scientists alter the flat surfaces?| A．By putting thin paint on them. | B．By creating a special network on them. |
| C．By making particles stick to each other. | D．By making them invisible to human eyes. |
| A．Over 35% of the surfaces were dusty. |
| B．Just two percent of the surfaces remained dusty. |
| C．The surfaces still needed to be cleaned with wipers and fluid. |
| D．The surfaces attracted more dust particles than common ones. |
| A．To show the material can be very helpful. | B．To prove irritating dust exists everywhere. |
| C．To show the importance of space exploration. | D．To explain why NASA supported the research. |
| A．Dust threatened missions in space. | B．Scientists developed self-cleaning surfaces. |
| C．Self-cleaning surfaces proved useful on Earth. | D．Scientists developed a material for rovers on Mars. |
9 . In an ideal world, we would be able to devote as much time to sports as we feel we need. But in reality, with growing demands in both work and family, we can only jump at the chance for our physical exercise when we can. Making the most of that time to practice Yin Yang yoga, which mixes the dynamic and slow-paced elements of yoga, helps keep you active and relaxed.
Yin and Yang are the Taoist concepts representing a balance of opposite forces which are also interconnected. Yin is inactive, cooling, and negative, associated with the female force. Yang is active, warming, and positive, associated with action and movement. They are complementary to one another, as one cannot exist without the other.
Yin Yang yoga is a combination of high-energy movement which builds energy, increases strength and promotes stamina (耐力), followed by the more restful practice of Yin to give us a deeper stretch (拉伸) and calm the nervous system.
If you have a busy and active life you may feel more in Yang, so taking some cooler, slower Yin yoga practice into your routine may help you feel calmer and more balanced.
If you are practicing for an hour, divide the time in half, Warm up with sun salutations (拜日式瑜伽), continue into a dynamic flow and then move on to some standing postures. After half an hour your heart will be pumping, muscles tighten up and you are hopefully feeling energetic, but ready for a rest. Then pick five Yin postures to hold for 3-5 minutes, or even longer if you are enjoying them!
As ever with yoga, if you are a beginner or have health issues, always attend a class with a trained instructor first to guide you safely through the yoga practice and avoid injury.
1. What can be inferred from paragraph 1?| A．Most of our sports time should be spent on Yin Yang yoga. |
| B．We’d better devote as much time to physical exercise as we can. |
| C．Busy schedule makes it impossible for us to do any form of sports. |
| D．Yin Yang yoga can be a choice of physical exercise when time is tight. |
| A．Independent from one another. |
| B．Competitive against one another. |
| C．Similar to each other but unable to work together as a whole. |
| D．Different from each other but together making a good combination. |
| A．Relaxing muscles. | B．Building stamina. |
| C．Strengthening the body. | D．Quickening the heartbeat. |
| A．Hold each Yin posture for longer than 5 minutes. |
| B．Do not practice yoga when you are not in good health. |
| C．Start your yoga practice under the guidance of a trainer. |
| D．Spare half an hour for five Yin postures in every yoga practice. |
10 . Cultural heritage sites are a nonrenewable resource. Today architectural heritage sites are being destroyed at an alarming rate. They’re threatened by rising seas, pollution, overtourism, conflicts and so on. Recently, Notre Dame Cathedral has attracted international attention.
Since its main construction from 1163 to 1350, Notre Dame Cathedral repeatedly has been damaged and repaired. On April 15, 2019, the landmark’s roof caught fire, causing the collapse of its spire (尖顶) and upper walls severely damaged. Work on the site began quickly. Through the work of photographer Tomas van Houtryve, writer Robert Kunzig, and artist Fernando Baptista, people will see restoring scenes where ruins are cleared and statues saved. Even the COVID-19 pandemic caused only a two-month delay. Architects have said the expensive project is on track to be completed in 2024.
And thorny questions arise. What duty do we owe the creations of our ancestors? What lesson can we draw from their presence?
Humankind has answered that differently. In Dresden, Germany, the Frauenkirche, an 18th-century baroque church, was famous for its bell-shaped dome (穹顶). In February 1945, one of the most destructive bombing attacks of World War II reduced the city to ruins. After German reunion, the church was reconstructed using many of its original stones, as a symbol of peace and harmony. Berlin’s Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church also fell to bombing but had a different story. Its spire has been left a ruin on purpose to be a “warning monument” against war and destruction.
Like the Frauenkirche, Notre Dame is being rebuilt as close as possible to how it was before, including using the original, toxic metal — lead (铅) — for the roof, causing the debate about how to restore and maintain historic buildings. Actually, no one claims to have the “right” answers on preservation; there may not even be right answers. What people could do is to continuously monitor the global care of cultural heritage sites, as a matter of significance to humanity’s past, present, and future.
1. What do we know about Notre Dame Cathedral?| A．It was once threatened by conflicts. |
| B．It collapsed totally during a fire decade ago. |
| C．It has undergone repeated repairs since 1163. |
| D．It was not influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| A．Simple. | B．Tough. | C．Accurate. | D．Attractive. |
| A．To remind people the value of peace and harmony. |
| B．To warn people the influence of war and destruction. |
| C．To demonstrate different solutions to heritage site preservation. |
| D．To introduce reconstruction methods such as using original materials. |
| A．Cultural heritage sites are nonrenewable so that they are worth protecting. |
| B．Notre Dame Cathedral has been the most attractive heritage site globally. |
| C．The reconstruction of cultural heritage sites seldom causes disagreements. |
| D．The reconstruction of Notre Dame Cathedral after fire has been completed. |
