1 . Getting around Valencia can be exhausting on foot if you want to see it all, but luckily, the city is very bike-friendly.
Valencia Bike Tour From The City To The BeachDuration: 3 Hours
This 3-hour Valencia bike tour takes you on a lovely journey from the historic center to the beach where you’ll enjoy a drink at the end. If you’re looking for a truly personalized experience, this is it. The guide is super knowledgeable and gives lots of inside information about the sites you pass and local culture along the way.
Valencia By Night Bike TourDuration: 2 Hours
With the warm lights of the historic center’s cobbled streets, cycling around Valencia is so different than in the day. The tour takes you through Turia Park to the City of Arts and Sciences which is impressively lit up at night. As you cycle past different tourist attractions, the guide will let you in on the history and culture of the city.
Valencia Bike TourDuration: 3 Hours
Being one of the classical guided bike tours Valencia offers, this takes you to the main tourist attractions in the old town like the Valencia Cathedral, the Silk Exchange, and the Serranos Towers. You’ll bike in Valencia’s longest park, Turia Park, which leads to the City of Arts and Sciences and a must-visit on any trip to the city. On different stops, the guide will fill in with history and anecdotes about the places you pass.
Valencia Group Half-Day Bike TourDuration: 3 Hours
This tour takes you through the old town of Valencia where you’ll see the top tourist spots like the Valencia Cathedral and the Silk Exchange along the way on your own. You’ll pass the City Hall and the complex on your way to Turia Park where Valencia’s bike paths are at their best. Eventually, you’ll reach the City of Arts and Sciences where you can admire the modern architecture and learn more about the impressive complex.
1. What can we know about Valencia?| A．It is a city where you’ll feel tired. |
| B．It has the longest park in the world. |
| C．Its public transport needs improving. |
| D．It is well equipped with bicycle roads. |
| A．Valencia Bike Tour. |
| B．Valencia Group Half-Day Bike Tour. |
| C．Valencia By Night Bike Tour. |
| D．Valencia Bike Tour From The City To The Beach. |
| A．It leads to the Silk Exchange. |
| B．It is a tour without a guide. |
| C．It offers a drink at the end. |
| D．It takes longer to finish the tour. |
2 . Many people love to listen to music while driving. Thanks to the world’s musical roads, drivers now don’t need to turn the radio on.
A musical road can create music when a car tires go over grooves (凹槽) on the road. To produce beautiful music, drivers must pass over the grooves at a certain speed. Signs often tell drivers the right speed.
In Hungary, there is a musical road in honor of one of the country’s most popular musical performers — Laszlo Bodi. Bodi was the lead singer for the band Republic.
| A．Musical roads are also keeping drivers safe. |
| B．There is not any music road in Eastern countries. |
| C．Musical roads help improve the road safety greatly. |
| D．But they can also enjoy music while taking road trips. |
| E．Formed in 1990, the group is one of Hungary’s biggest acts and is still active today. |
| F．The first musical road was created in Gylling, Denmark, in 1995. |
| G．For example, in Japan, there are many musical roads throughout the country. |
3 . In a small, rough shipyard on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, a small team is building what they say will be the world’s largest ocean-going clean cargo ship.
Ceiba is the first ship built by Sailcargo, a company trying to prove that zero-carbon shipping is possible, and commercially available. Made largely of wood, Ceiba combines both very old and very new technology: sailing masts stand alongside solar panels, a uniquely designed electric engine and batteries. Once on the water, she will be capable of crossing oceans entirely without the use of fossil fuels, which sets her apart.
“The thing that is striking is the fact that she’ll have one of the largest marine electric engines of her kind in the world,” Danielle Doggett said. The system also has the means to capture energy from underwater propellers (螺旋桨) as well as solar power, so electricity will be available for the engine when needed. “Really, the only limit on how long she can stay at sea is water and food on board for the crew.”
Despite some hold-ups due to the global disaster, the team hopes to get her on the water by the end of 2024 and operating by 2025, when she will begin transporting cargo between Costa Rica and Canada.
“There are actually loads of innovations happening that could transform shipping emissions, but few companies are willing to apply them to building ships like Ceiba.” says Lucy Gilliam. “So it’s not that we don’t have great ideas. The problem that we have is that fossil fuels are still too cheap. And we don’t have the rules to force people to take up the new technology.”
When it comes to promoting this kind of boat, it has to be said that Ceiba is small for a cargo ship — tiny in fact. She will carry around nine standard shipping containers. She is also relatively slow. Being a world-first, there are some aspects of Ceiba’s design that have yet to be proven at sea.
1. What is unique about Ceiba as a cargo ship?| A．It is the world’s largest. | B．It is environment-friendly. |
| C．It is wooden with old technology. | D．It is modern with unique equipment. |
| A．The size of the sail. | B．The weather of the ocean. |
| C．The power of the electric engine. | D．The quantity of the living supplies. |
| A．The rules are disobeyed. | B．The fuels are affordable. |
| C．The bigger ships are preferable. | D．The innovations are distrusted. |
| A．Objective. | B．Doubtful. | C．Critical. | D．Favorable. |
4 . If you frequent any kind of public transportation, then you’re well aware of certain types of passengers and passenger habits that are annoying. But it’s not just other passengers that get angry, there are certain things that drive the train attendant crazy.
We’ve all been there in that moment when someone boards a train trying to take several huge items with them to wherever they’re trying to go. They wind up taking up way too much space and blocking seats.
For some reason, people have a bad habit of talking very loudly to one another to a point where you can hear them from opposite sides of the train cart (车厢). This goes for playing music as well. Some people like to play music through their phone. This really bothers fellow passengers on the train.
| A．Being really loud |
| B．Arguing with others |
| C．Here are some of the most annoying things |
| D．Then who would be in charge of playing music on the train |
| E．It’s one thing if you’re having something small such as an apple |
| F．This can make things uncomfortable for everyone else on the train |
| G．Plus when other passengers complain, guess who has to take care of it |
5 . If you want to travel from Xi’an to Chengdu by train, it will take about 16 hours. But starting this month, the new Xi’an-Chengdu high-speed railway will shorten this travel time to three hours.
The 643-kilometer line is China’s first high-speed railway to run through the Qinling Mountains, which form a natural boundary (分界线) between China’s north and south. With a speed of 250 km per hour, it’s also the first mountain-heavy train line to provide a 4G network. Along the way, the train passes through two areas for rare wild animals — one for pandas and the other for crested ibises (朱鹮).
To reduce the railway’s influence on the animals, workers and experts have designed and built the railway to be environmentally friendly. There were 345 wild pandas living in the Qinling Mountains. China currently has 1, 864 wild pandas in total, according to the Xinhua News Agency.
To avoid disturbing the pandas, the railway was designed to run through tunnels within the area. Protective shields (防护屏) are placed near the entrance of each tunnel to stop animals from going in.
To protect the thousands of crested ibises that fly near one part of the railway, protective nets have been set up to make sure the birds will not fly into a train.
The nets are about 32 km long and 4 meters high. Experts tested different shapes and materials for building the nets before making their final choice.
1. From this month, it will take ______to travel from Xi’an to Chengdu by the high-speed train.| A．16 hours | B．13 hours |
| C．6 hours | D．3 hours |
| A．It runs through the Qinling Mountains. |
| B．It is China’s first high-speed railway. |
| C．It is the best mountain-heavy train line. |
| D．The train passes through many areas for rare wild animals. |
| A．To save money and energy. |
| B．To avoid harming wild animals. |
| C．To avoid damaging the mountains. |
| D．To help the train run through tunnels quietly. |
| A．Protective shields and nets. |
| B．How to protect pandas and crested ibises. |
| C．Qinling Mountains. |
| D．Xi’an-Chengdu high-speed railway. |
6 . The longest rail link in the world and the first direct link between China and Spain is running after a train from Yiwu completed its journey of 8, 111 miles to Madrid. On the way, it passed through Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Germany and France before arriving in Madrid. The railway has been considered as the “21st-century Silk Road” by Li Qiang, the governor of Zhejiang province, where Yiwu is located.
The first train was met by the mayor of Madrid, Ana Botella, and Spain’s minister of public works, Ana Pastor. It consisted of 30 containers carrying 1,100 tonnes of cargo —— mostly toys stationery (文具) and other goods for sale over Christmas across Europe. According to China’s ambassador to Spain, Zhu Banzao, it will return filled with wine, jamon and olive oil in time for the Chinese new year in February.
China is Spain’s biggest trading partner after the EU and it is also Spain’s third largest source of imports (进口产品), after Germany and France. About half of these imports are made up of mobile phones and clothing. The Spanish prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, was in China in September, where he signed deals reported to be worth more than ￡6.3 billion.
A major advantage of the rail route is speed. The train took just three weeks to complete a Journey that takes up to six weeks by sea. It is also more environmentally friendly than road transport, which would produce 1l4 tonnes of CO2 compared with the 44 tonnes produced by the train —— a 62% reduction.
1. What is the main purpose of running the direct train link?| A．To exchange goods. |
| B．To celebrate festivals. |
| C．To improve environment. |
| D．To make sure of the safety of transport. |
| A．Green and fast. | B．Quick and expensive. |
| C．Changeable and productive. | D．Comfortable and fashionable. |
| A．News. | B．Environment. |
| C．Lifestyle. | D．Culture. |
7 . On Feb. 21, four students were standing on the side of Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu when a driver going 110 miles per hour lost control of his car and it crashed into the parked vehicles.12 people were killed at the scene, including 2 drivers.
This kind of traffic death shouldn’t be called an accident. In Los Angeles, we seem to have accepted constant carnage (屠杀) in our streets in exchange for maximizing driver speed and convenience. The official responses to proven traffic dangers are mere gestures, if even that.
Los Angeles is a uniquely deadly city with a death rate that is four times the national average. Unsurprisingly, it’s also a city that has been designed with one thing in mind: a concept called level of service, which grades streets on how well they serve those in automobiles. To many Angelenos, that makes sense — to design our streets for car traffic, which is the way many get around the city. Unfortunately, we don’t recognize that there’s a trade-off. We can either have streets bettered for free-flowing traffic, or we can design streets for people to move around safely outside of cars.
City leaders consistently choose for the easy but deadly option. In one recent example, a resident asked the city’s Department of Transportation to block drivers from using Cochran Avenue at Venice Boulevard as a cut-through street, as they were speeding through a quiet residential neighbourhood. The department responded by suggesting a “speed awareness campaign” in which neighbours put up yard signs urging drivers to slow down.
People don’t drive based on signage, but they drive on the design of the street. The trunk roads of Los Angeles such as Venice Boulevard all need to be revised so that people are prioritized over cars. This would include narrowing travel lanes (道), building bike lanes, and banning right turns at red lights. These measures would make drivers feel like they’re in a city and not on a highway. A recent John Hopkins study says this would have substantial safety benefits.
With more than 7,500 miles of streets in the city of Los Angeles, they won’t all be rebuilt anytime soon. But with each road construction project, or each crash, we should be revising streets to make them safer for all road users.
The solution to traffic jam isn’t to make more space for cars. It’s to design the streets to be safe enough for alternatives such as biking, walking and mass transit, especially for the 50% of trips daily in Los Angeles that are less than three miles. The solution to protecting people dining outdoors isn’t crash barriers. It’s a street design that forces drivers to go slowly. The problem is carnage in the streets, and we know the solutions.
1. Why should the traffic death in Los Angeles be called “constant carnage”?| A．The traffic accidents happen quite often. |
| B．Too many people are killed in the traffic accidents. |
| C．The drivers’ speeding is to blame for the traffic death. |
| D．City leaders’ consistent choice contributes to the traffic death. |
| A．Balance. | B．Guideline. | C．Conflict. | D．Resolution. |
| A．To widen travel lanes. | B．To add more crosswalks. |
| C．To arrange more traffic police. | D．To punish speeding drivers. |
| A．Drivers first or walkers first? | B．Traffic death or constant carnage? |
| C．More warning signs or safer designs? | D．More narrow lanes or speedy highways? |
8 . It’s a known fact that emissions (排放物) from gas-powered vehicles are harming the atmosphere. In response to this, Porsche, the German sports car company, began producing e-fuels at a pilot plant in Chile last year. Currently, the fuel will be used only in sports cars at Porsche’s performance and experience centers.
E-fuels are made by passing electricity through water. The electricity separates the hydrogen and oxygen from water. The hydrogen is then mixed with CO₂ to produce a liquid e-fuel, which can be produced using many renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power. E-fuels follow the chemical structure of gasoline, making it possible for gas-powered cars to run on e-fuels almost without any change.
E-fuels can help ease the transform away from gas-powered cars, for those who may not be able to afford electric vehicles (EV). It will also help to reduce waste by keeping gas-powered cars in service, instead of throwing them away prematurely. Additionally, the use of e-fuels will not require new facility to be built unlike EVs. Existing gas stations and cars will be able to stay in use, which is already a big saving.
Despite the many benefits, opinions differ on whether e-fuels are truly eco-friendly. E-fuels are widely said to be nearly carbon neutral (碳中和), although an independent study indicates that e-fuels release the same amount of CO₂ as gasoline. Since e-fuels are still being developed and tested, their true impacts are still unknown. Meanwhile, e-fuels are very expensive to produce, partly due to energy loss during production. Unfortunately, only about half of the energy used in producing e-fuels is actually transformed into fuel. Additionally, only about 16% of the energy used in e-fuel production is actually used to power the car. Whereas, about 70% of energy is preserved when powering an EV. Even though the use of e-fuels will preserve existing facility, it will still take time and money to integrate it into everyday life. Currently, the price of e-fuels is nearly double the cost of regular fuel.
E-fuels are still a work in progress. Though opinions are divided on e-fuels, with more testing and development, they have been considered another way to help fight against the climate crisis. “There are currently more than 1.3 billion vehicles with combustion (内燃) engines worldwide. Many of these will be on the roads for decades to come, and e-fuels offer the owners of existing cars a nearly carbon-neutral alternative. With the e-fuels pilot plant, Porsche is playing a leading role in this development,” said Michael Steiner, member of the Executive Board for Development and Research at Porsche AG.
1. What can we learn from this passage?| A．E-fuels release no CO₂. |
| B．E-fuels were tested in Germany at first. |
| C．E-fuels are applicable to gas-powered cars. |
| D．E-fuels need to be mixed with CO₂ in actual use. |
| A．draw a conclusion. | B．present an opinion |
| C．further a discussion | D．provide a solution |
| A．Positive. | B．Dismissive. | C．Doubtful. | D．Objective. |
9 . Getting Around Washington, DC by Public Transportation
Washington, DC, is not an easy city to drive in. If you’d rather avoid the headache of driving, consider taking advantage of the city’s public transportation system during your visit.
Public transportation
When Washingtonians say “Metro” or “Metrorail”, they mean the subway. The bus system is called Metrobus, and is usually simply referred to as the bus. Six rail lines (Red, Yellow, Blue, Silver, Green, and Orange) and an extensive bus system (more than 15,000 stops on 400 routes) connect DC to Maryland and Virginia.
Rail station entrances are marked with towers topped with the letter“M”. Stripes (线条)of color indicate, the lines traveling down below. Each, train, displays the name of its farthest destination.
Operating hours
Metro Operating Hours
DAY | TIME |
Monday-Thursday | 5 am-12 am |
Friday | 5 am-1 am |
Saturday | 7 am-1 am |
Sunday | 7 am-12 am |
Metrobus schedules vary by route. Free transfers (转乘) to use within two hours are available, and they are accepted on most local buses in addition to Metrobuses.
Fares
Metrorail fares run $1.35 to $3.90 based on distance traveled. A $6.50 One Day Pass is valid (有效的) for unlimited Metrorail travel on weekdays after 9:30 am or all day Saturdays or Sundays. Bus fares are $1.25, and 60 cents for seniors and people with disabilities, and $3 for express buses. The DC Circulator primarily serves visitors. This bus service connects major tourist attractions and parts of town. Each ride is $1.
1. What does a color represent in the DC Metro?| A．A rail line. | B．The subway. | C．A rail station. | D．A day of the week. |
| A．Weekdays and weekends. | B．Distances and departure times. |
| C．Starting points and destinations. | D．Fares and the number of passengers. |
| A．From 5 am to 12 am. | B．From 7 am to 12 am. |
| C．From 9:30 am to 1 am. | D．From 5 am to 1 am. |
10 . Suspension bridges, with their high towers and elegant spans (跨度), are achievements of engineering. This list covers the longest main spans of suspension bridges around the world, not longest total lengths, as those main central spans are where the real engineering magic happens.
Osman Gazi Bridge, TürkiyeThe Osman Gazi Bridge is a splendid suspension bridge. The bridge was finished on July 1, 2016, and at the time, it was the longest suspension bridge in Türkiye and the fourth longest in the world by the length of its main central span, which measures 1,550 meters. It reduced travel time between Istanbul and Izmir from six hours to around five.
Great Belt Bridge, DenmarkThe Great Belt Bridge connects the Danish islands Zealandand Funen. The suspension bridge has a total length of 6,790 meters and a main central span of 1,624meters, making it the world’s sixth longest main span — for now. It enabled a direct driving route from mainland Europe to Sweden through Denmark.
1915 Çanakkale Bridge, TürkiyeThe bridge’s construction, which began in March 2017 and concluded in March 2022, was ambitious from the get-go. Spanning the historic Dardanelles Strait in northwestern Türkiye, the 1915 Çanakkale Bridge is a symbol of national pride. Officially the world’s longest suspension bridge, it stretches a remarkable 2,023 meters in its main central span.
Yangsigang Yangtze River Bridge, ChinaOpened to traffic in October 2019, the Yangsigang Yangtze River Bridge in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, is the longest suspension bridge in China and the third longest suspension in the world. It spans 1,700 meters across the famous Yangtze River. The bridge notably has the world’s longest double-level bridge span, accommodating various forms of transportation on its two levels.
1. What is the author’s purpose in writing the text?| A．To praise the engineers of suspension bridges. |
| B．To introduce some suspension bridges fit for tourism. |
| C．To present the challenge of building suspension bridges. |
| D．To show suspension bridges with the longest main spans. |
| A．Osman Gazi Bridge. | B．Great Belt Bridge. |
| C．1915 Çanakkale Bridge. | D．Yangsigang Yangtze River Bridge. |
| A．Its name’s origin. | B．Its double-level design. |
| C．Its splendid views. | D．Its construction difficulties. |
