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。

Six decades ago, China and France established diplomatic ties.     1     their differences and multiple challenges, Chinese and French people have shown mutual respect and worked together towards achieving many common goals.

Over the past six decades, this dynamic relationship     2     (witness) numerous historic milestones and tangible accomplishments. China is now France’s largest trading partner in Asia, while France ranks as China’s third-largest trading partner     3     the third-largest source of investment in real terms within the European Union (EU).

Former French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin believes that it is the love for peace that brings them together. As a     4     (culture) ferryman between China and France, he hopes more young people from both nations will venture to the “other side” and know each other better.

Lefevre Michele,     5     18-year-old pre-college student at Fudan University, found that Chinese TV dramas, like Meteor Garden, have been well-received in France,     6     (particular) among many female French viewers. It was her love for these dramas that sparked her initial interest in Chinese culture, leading her to     7     (far) her studies in China.

Oceane Rivoire, now a student     8     (major) in Chinese language and literature at Tongji University in Shanghai, found the homonyms in Chinese extremely interesting, such as the word “bat”,     9     has the same pronunciation as the word “fortune”, and “red dates and peanuts” are usually used     10     (extend) good wishes for the newlyweds to have a baby soon.

5 . 2023 was a good year for archaeological discoveries. Here are some of the most interesting new finds.

A moai

In February, volunteers unearthed a stone head called a moai on Easter Island. The statue is small for a moai — a little over five feet tall, while others of the roughly 900 statues on the island are up to 33 feet tall.

Most of the moai were created between 1250 and 1500, and local people regard them as the living faces of their ancestors. But nothing is known about this new moai, including which ancestor it represents.

Two mummy workshops

Archaeologists announced in May that they discovered two more workshops near the ruins of the ancient Egyptian city of Memphis. One of the workshops features stone beds meant for the preservation of human bodies, while the other one has smaller beds that were used to mummify animals.

A Maya city

In June, Mexican archaeologists discovered a lost city called Ocomtun. They thought it was a major center from about AD 250 until it was abandoned when the Maya civilization collapsed between 900 and 1000, possibly from drought and civil wars.

Ocomtun covers more than 120 acres and features well-preserved homes, raised platforms and pyramid temples. The remains of the largest pyramid are more than 80 feet high.

Roman jewelry

In June, dozens of precious stones were discovered by archaeologists in the ruins of an ancient pipe system that carried water away from public baths in the third and fourth centuries. It’s thought they were worn by wealthy bathers. Some of these precious stones are carved with images of Roman gods, such as Apollo, Venus, and Mars, while others show animals, such as rabbits and birds.

The public baths were found at Carlisle in England. The city was a regional center in Roman Britain, when it was known as Luguvalium.

1. What is the height of the newly found stone statue?

A．About 5 feet.

B．About 33 feet.

C．About 80 feet.

D．About 900 feet.

2. Where were the new mummy workshops unearthed?

A．In Chile.

B．In England.

C．In Egypt.

D．In Mexico.

3. What do the last two discoveries have in common?

A．They are located in North America.	B．They were discovered by volunteers.
C．They were related to religious celebrations.	D．They can reveal ancient urban development.

6 . The periodic table of elements is a common sight in classrooms, campus hallways and libraries. The mode periodic table arranges the elements by their atomic numbers and periodic properties (周期性). Several scientists worked over a century to assemble the elements into this format.

In 1789, French chemist Antoine Lavoisiertried grouping the elements as metals and nonmetals. Forty years later, German physicist Johann Wolfgang Dobereiner observed similarities in physical and chemical properties of certain elements. He arranged them in groups of three in increasing order of atomic weight and called them triads, observing that some properties of the middle element, such as atomic weight and density, approximated the average value of these properties in the other two in each triad.

A breakthrough came with the publication of a revised list of elements and their atomic masses at the first international conference of chemistry in Karlsruhe, Germany, in 1860. They concluded hydrogen would be assigned the atomic weight of 1 and that the atomic weight of other elements would be decided by comparison with hydrogen. For example, carbon, being 12 times heavier than hydrogen, would have an atomic weight of 12.

In 1869, Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev created the framework that became the moder periodic table, leaving gaps for elements that were yet to be discovered. Mendeleev predicted the properties of some undiscovered elements and gave them names such as “eka-aluminum” for an element with properties similar to aluminum. Later “eka-aluminum” was discovered as gallium.

German chemist Lothar Meyer produced a version of the periodic table similar to Mendeleev’s in 1870. He left gaps for undiscovered elements but never predicted their properties. The Royal Society of London awarded the Davy Medal in 1882 to both Mendeleev and Meyer. The later discovery of elements predicted by Mendeleev verified (证实) his predictions and his periodic table won universal recognition. In 1955 the 101st element was named mendelevium in his honor.

On UNESCO website, it wrote, “The Periodic Table of Chemical Elements is more than just a guide or catalogue of the entire known atoms in the universe; it is essentially a window on the universe, helping to expand our understanding of the world around us.”

1. What is the breakthrough at the conference in Germany?

A．The atomic weight of carbon was calculated by scientists.

B．A brand-new periodic table was published at the meeting.

C．The elements in the table were rearranged by the properties.

D．The atomic weight of elements was quantified based on hydrogen.

2. How did Mendeleev contribute to the modern periodic table?

A．He made it more complete.

B．He made it easier to understand.

C．He was the first to arrange the elements by atomic masses.

D．He discovered many new properties of some known elements.

3. What is the significance of the discovery of the periodic table?

A．It is a window into chemistry.

B．It is a helper to learn about history.

C．It is a guide to exploring the microworld.

D．It is a description of school curricula’s history.

4. How is the text developed?

A．In order of the elements’ importance.	B．By following the time order.
C．In order of scientists’ achievements.	D．By making comparisons.

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。

A piece of fossil sponge (海绵) that formed during the early Cambrian period was recently discovered in Changde, Hunan Province.

The     1     (discover) fossil sponge can date back to 540 million years ago. It ranges around 4 centimeters in     2     (high) and 3.5 centimeters in width. Paleontologist (古生物学家) Zou Hesi told the Global Times that the size is giant for a sponge from that period of time.

“Sponges become bigger and bigger over time; another fossil piece     3     (date) back to around 300 million years ago was also recently discovered in Ireland, for example. It was about 50 centimeters,” Zou told the Global Times. Found near the Cliffs of Moher, the piece     4     (name) as “Cyathophycus balori”. It is so far the largest known fossil sponge in the world.

    5     4-centimeter Chinese piece was unearthed     6     (unexpected) during a field survey that local researchers were conducting in the Taoyuan District, Changde. Tong Guanghui, a research fellow at the Hunan Museum of Geology,     7     (tell) the media that the team found a piece of rock on their way     8     research destination in the town of Sanyanggang.

“So we stopped, and used a geological hammer     9     (examine) the piece. It was unearthed in such a complete condition,     10     made us all thrilled about the discovery,” said Tong.

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。

When people think of China, silk is among the first things that pop into their mind. The best place in China     1     (discover) the wonder of silk is the city of Suzhou. 90 % of the genuine-silk trade in the world comes from China,     2     one third of the silk products exported from China is from Suzhou. It was in this place     3    some of the first silk embroideries (刺绣) were born. Suzhou Silk can be made     4       a great many products, the most common being clothing and scarves.

Silk is a natural protein fiber. The protein fiber of silk consists mainly of fibroin,     5     protein produced by certain insects to generate cocoons.

Chinese legend gives the title Goddess of Silk to Leizu, wife of the mythical Yellow Emperor in about 3000 BC. She     6       (credit) with the introduction of silkworm ever since. During the Western Han Dynasty, the Emperor assigned special envoys, like Zhang Qian,     7     (routine) to the Western Regions, which facilitated the     8     (form) of the Silk Road.

Silk is the symbol of     9     (distinguish) ancient Chinese culture and the old silk industry formed one of the most splendid chapters in the history of the Chinese culture, remarkably     10     (contribute) to the development of the world civilization.

10 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. When did people first celebrate books?

A．In 1922.

B．In 1926.

C．In 1930.

2. How often is the UNESCO World Book Capital selected?

A．Once a month.

B．Once a year.

C．Once every two years.

3. Which city was chosen to be the second UNESCO World Book Capital?

A．Alexandria.

B．New Delhi.

C．Madrid.