1 . Directions: Fill in each blank with a proper word chosen from the box. Each word can be used only once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

Protecting friendship

A. appreciation	B. committed	C. marking	D. determined	E. shifted	F. reference
G. coinciding	H. thrown	I. attempt	J. portraying	K. line

For the last 50 years, giant pandas from China have captured the hearts of people in the US.

A “Pandaversary Night” party was    1    on Aug 24 at the Chinese embassy (大使馆) in Washington,    2    the 50th anniversary of giant pandas’ arriving in the US capital. And the Smithsonian’s National Zoo expects the panda craze to last for several more years.

“Giant pandas are worthy ambassadors. They have much longer tenures (任期) than each of the Chinese ambassadors here, and they have many more fans than us,” Chinese Ambassador to the United States Qin Gang said at the reception. “Year by year, giant pandas have become an icon of mutual    3    and friendship between the two peoples. In particular, the arrival of Xiao Qi Ji (Little Miracle) two years ago has brought us a happy surprise.”

He was referring to the cub’s birth in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic,       4    with the deterioration of China-US bilateral relations to its lowest point in four decades.

The ambassador noted that the number of giant pandas in the wild in China has increased from several hundred 50 years ago to more than 1,800, which meant the species is no longer “endangered”, thanks to unrelenting (持续的) efforts at protection and conservation.

“But sadly, ‘panda-huggers’ are endangered. Now they need protection and conservation,” he said, in    5     to China-US relations, with hawkish (强硬的) US politicians increasingly seeking to “outcompete” China by    6    the country as a challenger or even a threat to the US.

“China’s approach to panda diplomacy has    7     to serve more of a tool to project soft power”, New York Times said in a recent article.

In addition to Xiao Qi Ji, another panda – Kung Fu Panda – was also made in the US. “I still remember a/an    8    from it: Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift, that is why it’s called present!” Qin declared. “At present, we get together to cherish the wonderful gift of the panda. We need more pandas, and we also need more ‘panda-huggers’.”

“I’m absolutely    9    to 50 more years of giant panda care and protection, so I look forward to working with our colleagues in China, as we are     10    about the future for our giant panda program,” said Brandie Smith, director of the National Zoo.

2 . 根据段落语义, 从下面方框中选择恰当的单词并以正确的形式填入空格中。

attitude       forgive       concentrate       debate       determine    economy       lecture       observe            senior             solution

I have many good teachers at     1     high school, among whom my favorite teacher is Miss Li, our English teacher. Her     2     are interesting and amazing, so I can always     3     in class. Sometimes she organizes     4     in which we are supposed to     5     problems like environmental pollution or     6    downfall, and then work out possible     7    . Her creative teaching stirs up our     8     to be active thinkers and hold a responsible     9     towards the world. While Miss Li is kind and enthusiastic, she is strict with us—cheating in exams will never be     10    !

3 . Directions: Fill in each blank with a proper word chosen from the box. Each word can be used only once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A.   banned F.   regularly

B. imperfect G. reusing

C. delivered H. throw

D. growing I. victim

E. embrace J. relatively

K. keep

Tips for More Sustainable Living

Making some small changes to your routine can pay off big in various ways:helping the planet while saving your time, money, or both. You will be surprised by how big a difference you can make with     1     little effort. Here’s some suggestions:

Give up throwing certain items. Your coffee grounds, and used tea leaves can be fertilizer (肥料) instead of being thrown in the trash. If you don’t have access to a fertilizer factory, you can hire a company to    2    pick up your leftover food for a fee.

Try to     3     the ugly. The fruit and vegetables that are odd-looking or    4     are actually good to use. It is easy to hide them in soups and yogurt. Don’t     5    away from these foods at the store and do sign up to have them    6     straight to your door through service such as Misfit Market, which offers ugly produce at discounted prices.

Forget fast fashion. The average American throws away 82 pounds of fast fashion clothing each year. Thankfully, there’s a(n)     7    number of companies that prioritize sustainability, producing fewer but longer-lasting articles, often made with organic fabrics and eco-friendly dyes. When clothing is truly at its end, consider     8     it as cleaning duster.

Don’t get cheated. Because of the consumer trend toward more eco-friendly products, many companies make exaggerated (夸张的) claims about their own efforts. For instance, a brand might boast that its products are free of a certain chemical, even though that chemical has been     9     for decades. This is called green-washing. Avoid falling    10    to it by looking for certifications such as “Fair Trade Certified” or “Rainforest Alliance Certified.”

4 . Directions: Fill in each blank with a proper word chosen from the box. Each word can be used only once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. principle   B. ultimately   C. sensitive   D. analyzed   F. sensible E. account   G. principal   H. subjects   I. drawn   J. coats   K. additionally

It is common knowledge that mosquitoes don’t attack everyone equally. Scientists have discovered that the pests are     1     to people at astonishingly different rates, but they have struggled to explain what on earth makes certain people “mosquito magnets” while others survive totally.

In a new essay published on September 16 in the journal Science, researchers indicate that certain body odors are the deciding factor. Every person has a unique scent profile consisting of different chemical compounds, which mosquitoes are quite     2     to, and the researchers found that mosquitoes were most drawn to people whose skin releases high levels of carboxylic acids. And     3    , the researchers found that peoples’ attractiveness to mosquitoes remained steady as time goes, regardless of changes in diet or brushing habits.

The researchers carefully     4     the scent profiles to determine what might     5     for this vast difference. They found a pattern: the most attractive     6     tended to produce greater levels of carboxylic acids from their skin while the least attractive subjects produced much less.

Carboxylic acids are     7     organic compounds. Humans produce them in our sebum, which is the oily layer that     8     our skin; there, the acids help to keep our skin moisturized and protected, Vosshall says. Humans release carboxylic acids at much higher levels than most animals, De Obaldia adds, though the amount varies from person to person. The new study had too few participants to say what personal characteristics make someone more likely to produce high levels of carboxylic acids — and there’s no easy way to test your own skin’s carboxylic acid levels outside of the laboratory, Vosshall says.

But if you think you might be a mosquito magnet, all hope is not     9     lost. Akbari says the study could help researchers develop more effective mosquito repellents in the future. The secret might be in adding new bacteria to the skin’s existing microbiome to alter its scent profile. So next time it will be     10     of you to apply repellents on your skin before you go to the spot.

5 . Choose the suitable word or phrase from A--O to fill in the blanks to make the passage grammatically and coherently correct.

A. down       B. across       C. make       D. pull       E. set out F. terrible       G. explorer       H. strategies       I. carried       J. ran out of K. determined       L. expedition       M. achievement       N. disappointed       O. a pair of

The race to the South Pole is a famous story. Captain Scott and a Norwegian     1     called Ronald Amundsen both wanted to get there first. They both prepared for many months, but in the end their    2     for reaching the pole were very different：Amundsen used dogs to    3     his sleds and Scott used motorized sleds and horses. Amundsen had good weather during his     4    , but Scott had bad weather. When Scott’s team     5     from the hut on 1 November 1911, there were     6     snowstorms and the sleds broke     7    . After a few weeks, the horse died and most of his team turned back. In the end, only five men     8    on to the South Pole: Scott, Oates, Evans, Bowers and Wilson.

On 17 January 1912, Scott’s team reached the Pole and came     9     the Norwegian flag——Amundsen’s team were there before them and were already racing back to tell the world. Tired and     10    , Scott’s team made their way back home, but they     11     food and got lost in snowstorms; they did not     12     it.

In Scott’s Hut, there is still    13     old explorer’s boots. Scott wore these boots for years and they are dirty and broken, but they’re very special too. They tell us Scott’s story--that he was hard-working, ambitious and     14    , and that he pushed himself to the limit. Although the attempt was unsuccessful, Scott never gave up, and that’s an amazing     15    .

6 . Directions: Fill in each blank with a proper word chosen from the box. Each word can be used only once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. access       B. basically       C. eliminate       D. fit       E. generate       F. majority G. merely     H. perform       I. power       J. promise       K. preference

Noise-canceling headphones worth the price?

A little bit of silence. Sometimes that’s all we want. Whether it is halfway through a 10-hour flight with a crying baby or trying to sleep through the snoring from the hotel room next door, the     1     of noise-canceling headphones is one that every traveler probably finds charming. Yet are they worth it? These headphones are often expensive, and for some people, they don’t live up to the ads.

I’ve spent a     2     of the last five years traveling, taking dozens of flights and train journeys, and as someone who has reviewed noise-canceling headphones for even longer, I can definitely say maybe.

HOW THEY WORK? Noise-canceling headphones, also called active noise canceling headphones, use electronic processing to analyze nearby sound and attempt to     3     the opposite sound. The result is less noise, over all.

These headphones don’t create silence, nor are they able to     4     noise. The crests and troughs (波峰和波谷) do not perfectly cancel out. The absolute best noise-canceling headphones     5     reduce noise and work best with low-frequency droning sounds.

Two headphone sets could claim to reduce the same amount of noise but     6     completely differently. Only hands-on testing, ideally with objective measurements, can tell the difference.

Noise-canceling headphones require a battery to     7     their electronics. Noise-isolating headphones, which do not require electronics and therefore can be far cheaper, work by creating a seal in your ear canal to block noise. They are     8    like earplugs, but with earbuds. If you can get a good seal, these work reasonably well.

Getting a good seal can be a challenge, however, since everyone’s ears are different, and not all headphones will     9     correctly. And even if you do get a good seal, noise-isolating headphones will not be able to block low-frequency sounds as well as the best noise-canceling headphones. They will reduce a wide range of frequencies, which can help.

WHO REALLY NEEDS THEM? If you are a frequent traveler, good noise-canceling headphones will make any journey in a plane, train or automobile far more pleasant.

In-ear models are easier—though still slightly uncomfortable—to sleep with and are my     10    . Over-ear models reduce a little more noise, as they are able to passively block some sound because of their design. But they are always bulky on your head or in your bag. After I stopped reviewing these headphones for Wirecutter, I bought a pair of Bose QuiteComfort 20s, a long time Wirecutter pick, and I never fly without them.

7 . 选词填空

A. occurred       B. extended          C. tragedy            D. fined            E. ignore F. concerns     G. suspension     H. inevitably        I. illegal     J. must-have     K.limiting

The launch of Apple’s iPhone 14s tempted (诱惑) thousands of buyers to its two outlets in Beijing on the cold winter night of Jan 12th. But the size of the crowds brought a sudden     1     of sales of the iPhone 14s on the morning of Jan 13th and one store in Beijing didn’t open at all, because the growing crowd of eager Apple followers created safety    2    .

This is not the first time Apple’s marketing strategy (策略) has caused such trouble among the buying public, for similar trouble     3     in January last year when the first release launch of the iPhone 14 was made.

Apple’s clever marketing has made the company’s products     4     lifestyle accessories (附件) for many, but this strategy will     5     result in mass rushes and disturbances and if it continues with this marketing strategy, it is only a matter of time before one of its product launches ends in     6    .

Intentionally fuelling demand by     7     a product release to create a state of panic among consumers, who fear they may not get their hands on their objects of desire, is not only immoral but also    8    .

Apple should take the lessons from the experience of Unilever (联合利华). The giant consumer goods company was     9     2 million yuan in May 2011 by the Chinese government for repeatedly spreading rumors (谣言) of price rises.

Apple has the ability to make it easier for consumers to order new products online or by telephone. Apple cannot afford to    10     the Chinese market, so it has no excuse for not changing its strategy so as to avoid such incidents in the future.

8 . Direction: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. labour              B. manner              C. highlighting        D. circumstances              E. updated F. characterised        G. integrated             H. admirable              I. accommodate              J. overseeing       K. flexible

The house of the future? A sun-filled, shape-shifting, shed-share paradise

What will homes be like 10 years from now? Judging by the winners of the Home of 2030 competition, sharing will be key.

Shared home-working spaces, communal garden sheds and houses built using apps—these are just some of the ideas in the winning proposals for the government’s Home of 2030 competition to develop prototype “homes fit for the future”,    1    the “best of British design”. The aim was to imagine what the best age-adaptable, energy-efficient, healthy homes might look like in 10 years’ time; but, according to the winning architects, most of the best ideas have been around for generations.

“You can’t get much more     2    and adaptable than the Georgian townhouse,” says Jennifer Beningfield of Openstudio, leader of one of the two winning teams announced today. “We’ve taken this very simple model and     3    it for the 21st century. Our idea was to create infinite choice and variation from something very simple.”

Her team’s scheme imagines a terraced (排房的) housing type made from two standard components, a base unit and a loft, joined with “connector” pieces, taking into account multiple configurations (布局) over time as family     4    change. Standing between the homes, the connectors would     5    stairs and a lift, as well as storage and shared workspace. One of the most important aspects since the pandemic, says Beningfield, is providing “space to work from home, without having your laptop on the kitchen table”. Each home would have its own private outdoor space, while they would all back on to large communal gardens, arranged in the     6    of a traditional London square.

Built off-site to demanding Passivhaus standards, with a twin wall timber frame, the homes would be     7    by generous 2.7m high ceilings and tall 2.5m windows and doors, massively increasing the amount of daylight brought into the rooms, compared with most new-build spec housing. Beningfield, who studied and worked in South Africa and the US, says that off-site construction is crucial, given the shocking build quality of so many new homes in the UK – which she fears will only get worse after Brexit, if much of the skilled     8    is forced to leave.

As is so often the case with blue-sky (纯理论的) ideas competitions, the ambitions of the Home of 2030 winning teams are     9    – and, in this case, completely buildable – but there is little evidence to suggest that either the government or the volume housebuilding sector has any intention of putting them into practice. For that, we must look to Sunderland in 2023, and hope that a(n)    10    union of other councils, communities and smaller-scale builders have the imagination to follow their lead.

10 . Directions: Fill in each blank with a proper word chosen from the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. capture          B. guaranteed        C. resume          D. engage        E. multiple        F. tracks   G. issues H. personalized     I. incredible     J. integrated       K. feeds

What Is TikTok(抖音)

TikTok is the destination for mobile videos. On TikTok, short-form videos are exciting, spontaneous, and genuine. Whether you’re a sports fan, a pet enthusiast, or just looking for a laugh, there’s something for everyone on TikTok. All you have to do is watch,     1     with what you like, skip what you don’t, and you’ll find an endless stream of short videos that feel     2     just for you. From your morning coffee to your afternoon errands(差事), TikTok has the videos that are     3     to make your day. We make it easy for you to discover and create your own original videos by providing easy-to-use tools to view and     4     your daily moments. Take your videos to the next level with special effects, filters, music, and more. Watch endless amount of videos customized specifically for you. Personalized video     5     might be based on what you watch, like, and share. TikTok offers you real, interesting, and fun videos that will make your day.

Explore videos, just one roll away. Watch all types of videos from Comedy, Gaming, DIY, Food, Sports, and Pets to Oddly Satisfying, and everything in between. Pause recording     6     times in one video. Pause and     7     your video with just a tap. Shoot as many times as you need. Be entertained and inspired by a global community of creators. Millions of creators are on TikTok showcasing their     8     skills and everyday life. Let yourself be inspired. Add your favorite music or sound to your videos for free. Easily edit your videos with millions of free music clips and sounds. We provide music and sound playlists for your with the hottest     9     in every type , including Hip Hop, Rock, Rap, and Country, and the most viral original sounds. Express yourself with creative effects. Unlock tons of filters and effects to take your videos to the next level. Edit your own videos. Our     10     editing tools allow you to easily cut, merge and copy video clips without leaving the app.