1 . 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。

Curly the robot beats athletes at curling

A robot has beaten top-class humans at the sport of curling (冰壶运动). Klaus-Robert Muller at the Berlin Institute of Technology in Germany and his workmates built the robot,    1    (call) Curly, to master the sport.

In curling, players slide heavy stones down an icy path towards a target (宫垒). Players compete in two teams of four, with most players    2    (take) turns to “throw” a stone or to use brooms (冰壶刷)    3    (sweep) the ice in front of a moving stone. Points are given for stones closest    4     the centre of the target and a team wins by having the highest score.

Curly won three out of four     5    (match) against top-class South Korean women’ s curling teams. The robot throws stones, but doesn’t sweep.

Placed on wheels, the robot has     6     long neck with a video camera to check     7     stones are. Curly’s     8    (power) learning program takes into consideration the position (位置) of other stones and the state of the ice when deciding the next moves. Once the game     9    (begin), Curly continuously learned how to improve on    10    (it) earlier moves, based on the errors it had made.

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。

Kjell Lindgren wanted to be an astronaut for as long as he could remember. He spent much of his childhood abroad with his family on several U. S. Air Force     1     (base). “The idea of becoming an astronaut by serving as an Air Force test pilot seemed like the path     2     I needed to follow,” says Lindgren.

Lindgren’s hopes of becoming an astronaut, though, would come to     3     sudden stop when he was diagnosed with asthma (哮喘), a serious disease, after     4     (graduate) from the U. S. Air Force Academy. The Air Force decided to     5     (medical) fire him.

So Lindgren came to a medical school, eventually specializing in emergency medicine. As part of his training, he     6     (test) for asthma again. This time, the tests said that he didn’t have the condition. Lindgren was     7     (please) because his dreams of spaceflight returned.

Lindgren worked as a flight doctor at NASA, treating crews that were preparing for spaceflight. Then, in 2009, he was selected as a NASA astronaut. Since then, Lindgren     8     (fly) into space twice. On his trip aboard the International Space Station in 2022, he served as the commander for SpaceX Crew 4     9     170 days. Lindgren is now a member of the Artemis Team, a group of scientists and astronauts working together     10     (send) people back to the Moon in 2024.

3 . 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。

In many ways, friendship     1     (natural) comes to kids. However, it is also a skill to learn and manage, particularly as kids get older.

It is important for teens to choose friends wisely. They might choose friends with shared interests or look for people     2     have different backgrounds. The most important things are whether or not the person will be a good friend and whether they enjoy     3     (spend) time with each other. If it’s a yes on both counts, then that person is likely     4     (play) the role of a friend.

It can take time to make a good friend, but it is often worth the effort. Doing things together, whether it’s homework or kicking a soccer ball,     5     (build) closeness. Considering the other person’s     6     (feeling) in different situations is also important. It’s true that you should stand by good friends in the hard times, but you don’t want to give and give without anything     7     return. Healthy friendships are     8     two-way street.

    9     (honest) and trust are important in friendships. Teens need to learn about the importance of being frank (坦率的) with their friends. Friends sometimes hurt each other, but they can always apologize (道歉) and forgive each other. Good relationships are worth the work to repair the damage     10     (cause) by any miscommunications.

4 . 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。

Wildlife protection is     1     global issue, as illegal hunting and habitat loss continue to threaten the balance of ecosystems (生态系统). The decrease in species has caused concerns among individuals and organizations all over the world.     2     (recognize) the serious need for actions, people are making efforts to raise awareness to fight     3     these harmful practices.

To deal with the threats faced by wildlife, building reserves and habitats plays an important role. These areas provide a safe place for various species to survive, allowing     4     (they) to live and grow without the effect of human activities. By     5     (create) these protected spaces, we can ensure the     6     (preserve) of their natural habitats and protect their populations for future generations to enjoy. However, the challenge     7     (lie) in keeping the balance between conservation and economic development. Practical practices, such as responsible tourism and the promotion of environment-friendly industries, can create income without doing harm to the well-being of wildlife and their habitats. By carrying out these practical practices, we can develop a     8     (harmony) relationship between human activities and the natural world.

    9     (true), wildlife protection is a necessary issue     10     requires efforts from governments, organizations, and individuals. By rising awareness and applying stricter management, we can reduce the threats faced by endangered species.

5 . 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 young man seemed to take an     1     (unusual) long time to place his order at the flower shop. When the clerk asked how she could help, he     2     (explain) that his girlfriend was turning 19 and he couldn’t decide     3    to give her a dozen roses or 19 roses, one     4       each year of her life.

The woman advised, “She may be your 19-year-old girlfriend now,     5     someday she could be your 50-year-old wife.”     6     young man bought a dozen roses. He made his decision from both his head and his heart.

Too many people get it the other way around. They have hot heads and cold hearts. They react in the heat of anger or passion. They are cold. And they always make comparatively much     7    (poor) decisions.

A cool head asks the hard questions and thinks them through.     8     fairly weighs the choices and asks, “What is the logical thing to do?” A warm heart considers feelings and relationships. It asks, “What is my spirit telling me to do?”

Some decisions     9     (make) with our heads. Others with our hearts. But I think it takes both     10    (get) it right.

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。

Today’s Teens in No Hurry to Start Driving

The legal age to drive a car in the United States is 16. Obtaining a driver’s license on the day you turn 16 has long been     1     major life event for many young people in America.

But interest in driving among today’s teenagers     2    (drop) sharply over the past 35 years. In 1983, 80 percent of 18-year-olds in America had a driver’s license. By 2018, that number had reduced to 61 percent. Among 16-year-olds, the number decreased from 46 percent in 1983    3     25 percent in 2018. Those    4    (figure) come from the U.S. Federal Highway Administration.

Young people say they have many reasons for delaying or avoiding     5    (get) a driver’s license. Some choose more environmentally friendly transportation choices. Others find driving     6    (stress). And some     7    (simple) do not care about cars at all.

Carmakers want to make their vehicles more appealing to young people. They seek to make cars more interesting to a generation     8    (bring) up on technology. Some believe a big screen is     9    today’s teen drivers want. The vehicle is an    10    (extend) of their iPhone or their screen device.

7 . 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.

Chinese high school principal Zhang Guimei has been honored     1     the title “Role Model of the Times” in recognition of her dedication to education for girls.

With the support of the Party and the government, she helped establish the country’s first senior high school to offer free education for girls from poor families. Since it opened in 2008, it     2    (see) more than 1,800 students progress to universities and colleges.

About 20 years ago, while on the way to visit a student’s house, Zhang Guimei, then a rural teacher in Huaping county, Lijiang, Yunnan province, noticed a girl     3    (sit) on the hillside. She was staring     4    (blank) into space. The girl, 13, told Zhang she was about to get married and it was arranged by her parents.

That fateful encounter(邂逅) persuaded Zhang     5    (build) a free high school for girls, aiming to help break the spell (魔咒)     6     women drop out of education, marry early and spend     7    (they) whole life in the remote mountain.

After years of trying to raise funds, in 2008, Huaping High School for Girls, a free public high school,     8    (found) at the foot of the Shizi Mountain in Huaping, where Zhang is the principal. Over the decades, More than 1,800     9    (graduate) have been admitted to college,     10     is regarded a “miracle” in the remote area, as most students didn’t perform well in academic study before the school was established.

8 . 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。

August 3rd is Watermelon Day, an annual holiday that celebrates everyone’s favorite summer fruit.     1     (make) of almost 92% water, the fruit is full of vitamin A and vitamin C and antioxidants (抗氧化剂). So what are you waiting for? Get yourself a few slices of watermelon     2     (celebrate) this delicious holiday.

Watermelon is an ancient food that     3     (believe) to have originated in Africa. Historians have found evidence of watermelon planting as far back as 4,000 years ago. Today,     4     (variety) of the fruit are grown in warm parts of the world.

Because of     5     (it) high water content, watermelon is a kind of thirst -quenching (解渴的) fruit. In fact, in the Kalahari Desert,     6     watermelon is called “tsamma”, it is one of the main sources of water during the dry, hot season. In the past, people     7     (go) across the desert only during a good tsamma season.

Some studies have shown that the antioxidants in watermelon can reduce the risk of some types of cancer. Moreover, all parts of the fruit are eatable. Its flesh can be eaten     8     (direct) or juiced. In many parts of the world,     9     thick green outer covering of the fruit serves     10     a dish, and its seeds are dried, roasted and enjoyed like nuts.

9 . 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。

Science and Technology Change Our Life

In the past decades, with the rapid development of science and technology, our daily life     1    (change) a lot. New technological inventions begin to play     2     essential role, for example, the robot can help us clean up and finish much housework. As a result, we can spare more time to be dedicated to our job, and we are able to be     3    (full) exposed to our hobbies.

Two Lithuania (立陶宛的)designers are to design a special fiber. They declared that clothes     4    ( make) of it can be used to transform the temperature of the human body     5     electrical energy, which can drive       6    (electricity) devices.

In spite of that, some     7    (advantage) of technological inventions may appear. The excessive use of high technology can also make our life passive,     8    will make the majority of us become lazier, and we are unwilling     9    (explore) minds any longer. All in all, the improvement of science and technology can smoothly increase the standards of people's life. On the other hand, it may lead to the     10    (lazy) of people's behavior and mind.

10 . Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word; for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.

    1     I think about the beauty and appeal of Chinese culture, one of the first things that enter my mind is images of complicated Chinese calligraphy. I love to watch the older folks in the park dip and sweep their brushes across the stones. I imagine as they swing their arms that their movements are part of     2     dance and the watery messages left behind are the words to the song playing in their head. Unfortunately, just as the water slowly evaporates from sight, so, too, the art of Chinese calligraphy seems     3     (fade) away gradually.

This is the fear of Cui Zhiqiang, a senior calligraphy master with the China Calligraphers Association. “The style of writing among Chinese people today has been changed or ruined,” he laments. He explains this as the unavoidable effect     4     the everyday use of cellphones and computers. With the help of the pinyin system, people     5     “write” the characters by simply spelling out the phonetic equivalent. Skillful strokes have been replaced with tapping and typing.

It isn’t just the written form of Chinese that is being impacted by this phenomenon, though. The English language has been impacted, too. Computer skills are now considered so basic that the time once spent     6     (teach) cursive writing in elementary school is now being used to teach keyboarding. Furthermore, people have become so dependent on the spellcheck and autocorrect features     7     their ability to spell is suffering.

Language and culture are inextricably linked. The written form of the Chinese language     8     (carry) with it the stories of the traditional characters and the reasons for each and every change through the years. In light of its value, many people celebrated CCTV’s summer show,     9     brought together groups of Chinese youth to compete in a dictation contest. The show was well received and generated an interest in young people to improve their handwriting skills and encouraged parents to enroll their children in calligraphy classes.

Not all see the changing forms of our written languages as a negative thing. If you look at language solely as a tool for communication, then perhaps you might agree. Modern ways of writing are efficient and effective. But if you also see language as an art form, then we are truly losing something     10     (beautiful).