| A．At a shopping mall. | B．At a bus stop. | C．In a bank. |
| A．By bike. | B．By bus. | C．By subway. |
3 . Vehicles on our roads are now mostly petrol and diesel (柴油) cars, but their days cannot continue for much longer. A recent university study found that current electric cars could be used for 87 percent of daily car journeys in the US. That figure could rise to 98 percent by 2020.
One hurdle to the widespread adoption of electric cars has been “range anxiety” — drivers concerns about running out of electricity on a journey. While petrol stations are conveniently located across national road systems, the necessary network of electric charging stations is still being developed. That said, charging points are becoming increasingly common throughout the USA.
Attitudes towards electric vehicles have changed greatly over the last few years. Not that long ago, electric cars were met with distrust, and their high prices drove customers away. Thanks to improvements in battery capacity, recharging times, performance and price, the current generation of electric cars are starting to persuade picky consumers. Plug-in cars will soon give internal combustion engine (内燃机) models a run for their money.
As well as development on the road, electric vehicles are taking to the seas and skies. Electric boats are among the oldest methods of electric travel, having enjoyed several decades of popularity from the late 19th to the early 20th century before petrol-powered outboard motors took over. Now, the global drive for renewable energy sources is bringing electric boats back. Steps towards electric air travel are also being made, with Airbus and NASA among the organizations developing and testing battery-powered planes. The experiments could soon make commercial electric flight a reality.
Electric vehicles do not produce any emissions (排放). If the US could replace 87 percent of its cars with electric vehicles, it would reduce the national demand for petrol by 61 percent. However, because of the production processes and the generation of electricity required to charge these vehicles, they cannot claim (声称) to be completely emission-free. That said, as many countries continue to increase their use of renewable energy sources, electric vehicles will become even cleaner.
1. The underlined word “hurdle” in Paragraph 2 probably means________.| A．aim | B．difficulty | C．result | D．step |
| A．They were very poorly made. | B．They were not widely promoted. |
| C．They were expensive. | D．They couldn’t travel at a high speed. |
| A．To introduce the history of electric travel. |
| B．To explain why the world needs more electric cars. |
| C．To show why more people have interest in electric cars. |
| D．To describe different ways electric vehicles can be used. |
| A．Driving into a Cleaner Future | B．History of Electric Cars |
| C．Problems with Petrol and Diesel Cars | D．Best Means of Transportation |
4 . A fourth color might be added to traffic lights to better realize the potential of self-driving vehicles, as stated in a recent paper by researchers at North Carolina State University in the US.
Autonomous vehicles can do more than just drive-they are able to sense their surroundings and upload information. A shared network gives orders to stop at a crossing based on traffic conditions.
The added white lights would be used to signal to human drivers that autonomous vehicles are managing the upcoming traffic flow intelligently. Drivers don’t have to check the traditional lights if the white one is on. “The white lights will tell human drivers to simply follow the car in front of them,” one of the study authors Ali Hajbabaie told the university’s website.
Simulated (模拟的) models showed that autonomous vehicles were able to improve traffic flow on their own. Introducing the white light also has a positive effect on reducing fuel consumption. The higher the percentage of autonomous vehicles at a crossing, the faster the traffic moves, reducing about 40 to 99 percent of the total delay time.
What kind of infrastructure (基础设施) is needed as self-driving technology thrives? In an interview with China Surveying and Mapping magazine, Liu Jingnan at the Chinese Academy of Engineering shared his answers.
To begin with, the vehicle’s network that collects data about the environment and shares the data with other vehicles needs to be intelligent. High-precision maps are needed for autonomous vehicles to plan routes in detail. They can provide both updated information on traditional maps and real-time changes, such as accidents.
For example, when driving around a curve, the navigation (导航) system in the vehicle needs to calculate the safe speed based on the map’s information. And if the area is foggy, the network has to alarm the other cars to slow down.
Other elements on the road need to be upgraded too. For example, road markings should be precise and readable for machines. Sensors should be built on sidewalks and roads to allow vehicles to predict potentially dangerous situations.
1. What is the purpose of adding a white light to traffic lights?| A．To signal to self-driving cars when to stop. |
| B．To help driverless cars assess traffic conditions. |
| C．To tell human drivers to go after the cars in front. |
| D．To signal to human drivers to pass the cars ahead. |
| A．Increased road safety. | B．Reduced fuel efficiency. |
| C．Less time stuck in traffic. | D．Unpredictable traffic patterns. |
| A．To calculate a safe speed for vehicles. | B．To provide real-time weather updates. |
| C．To plan routes for autonomous vehicles. | D．To offer real-time data on road conditions. |
| A．The advantages of autonomous vehicles. |
| B．The role of the navigation system in self-driving cars. |
| C．The application of the infrastructure in self-driving cars. |
| D．The efficiency of self-driving cars handling emergencies. |
5 . During the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, foreign journalists not only enjoyed the Chinese athletes’ excellent performance, but experienced “the speed of China” in the development of high-speed rail.
On Feb. 14, 57 journalists from 36 Chinese and foreign media groups were invited by the 2022 Beijing Media Center to visit the city’s rail transit command center to explore the “secret” of Beijing’s high-quality development in the field.
Beijing has formed a safe, convenient, efficient and green rail transit system. It now consists of 27 metro lines, increased from two in 2001 when Beijing won the bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games. Last year, the city’s metro lines together handled nearly 10 million passenger trips per working day, accounting for 57 percent of the total number carried by urban public vehicles.
Compared with car travel, each subway passenger can reduce 77 percent of their carbon emissions, which means the total reduced carbon emissions can reach 7. 38 million metric tons a year. This is equal to the amount of carbon dioxide absorbed by 410 million trees, experts said. In addition to efficiency and ecological protection, the city’s urban rail transit is becoming more intelligent. For example, the west part of Metro Line 11 is known as a line serving the 2022 Winter Olympics, which features a fully automated driving mode under staff supervision at the beginning of the train’s operation.
Although China was behind developed countries in high-speed railway development, it has accumulated abundant experience in constructing all types of railways, including high-speed and railways at high altitudes and carrying heavy loads. The country also has the longest high-speed rail mileage, which accounts for more than 66 percent of the world’s total.
“China’s high-speed trains run across rivers and mountains to reach all directions, from forests and snowy fields in the north to wetlands south of the Yangtze River, and from the desert in the west to the East China Sea,” said Zou Wu, a senior engineer at the China State Railway Group. “The country’s high-speed railway network covers 92 percent of the cities each with a population of more than 500, 000 people.”
1. Why did journalists visit Beijing’s rail transit command center?| A．To enjoy the Chinese athletes’ excellent performance. |
| B．To visit Beijing Media Center with some foreign tourists. |
| C．To figure out Beijing’s rapid development of high-speed rail. |
| D．To explore the “secret” of the cultural development of Beijing. |
| A．Car travel’s carbon emissions are reduced by 77 percent. |
| B．The total carbon emissions are increased because of the railways. |
| C．Passengers completely control their carbon emissions by subway. |
| D．Taking a subway will be beneficial to the environment of the city. |
| A．China’s high-speed trains reach everywhere. |
| B．China’s high-speed trains are applied widely. |
| C．China’s high-speed trains promote the forests’ growth. |
| D．China’s high-speed trains run from the desert in the east. |
| A．High-speed railway depresses Olympics’ journalists. |
| B．High-speed railway impresses Olympics’ journalists. |
| C．High-speed railway improves Olympics’ quality efficiently. |
| D．High-speed railway influences Olympics’ athletes’ careers. |
