Since the beginning of the 21st century, artificial intelligence (Al)
“I think Al is going to be
However, the company also knows some of the fears surrounding Al. “
2 . A single cigarette sold on a street corner may not cost a lot; however, the whole costs of smoking are huge.
First, consider the cost of human life. About 10 people die of a tobacco-related disease every minute. Most of these preventable deaths happen in low-income and middle-income countries. The World Bank says each of these countries has a total national income of less than $ 12,746.
The World Health Organization says tobacco kills 6 million people yearly -a number that is expected to rise to 8 million by 2030 unless immediate action is taken.
But smoking costs more than the life of a person. It can affect the health of the whole country. The World Health Organization says low-income countries depend heavily on taxes from cigarettes. They use the money, in part, to pay the costs of health care for tobacco-related diseases.
But the illegal trade in tobacco products is further testing the economies of low-income countries. WHO officials say the illegal trade earns about $ 31 billion every year.
Douglas Bettcher is the director of the W HO s Department for the Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases. He calls the illegal trade a monster with many heads. He says the trade enables young people to buy cigarettes at low prices, become addicted to tobacco and suffer from serious health problems. It also increases crime and reduces taxes.
The World Health Organization is strongly suggesting that the U. N. member states sign an agreement to end the illegal trade in tobacco products. Eight countries have agreed to the agreement. But the agreement of 32 other countries is still needed for it to become an international law.
If the agreement succeeds, governments could put people who trade illegal tobacco products in prison-another cost to countries budgets.
1. Where are people dying of a tobacco related disease mostly from?| A．Developed countries. | B．Old countries. |
| C．Underdeveloped countries. | D．New countries. |
| A．Destroying the environment. |
| B．Being harmful to human life. |
| C．Affecting the whole country’s economy. |
| D．Causing the illegal trade. |
| A．Some action has been taken by the WHO. |
| B．The illegal trade in tobacco products is harmful. |
| C．Young people who are addicted to smoking may commit a crime. |
| D．An agreement to end the illegal trade in tobacco products is being signed. |
| A．Smoking Costs More than You Think |
| B．Different Ways to Stop Smoking |
| C．The Illegal Trade in Tobacco Products |
| D．Immediate Action to Stop Smoking |
3 . Basketball fans around the world are mourning the death of American superstar Kobe Bryant.
Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash Sunday in California, along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other people. He was 41 years old.
Bryant was an 18-time All-Star player. He won five NBA championships and two Olympic gold medals. He was widely considered one of the greatest basketball players of his generation during his 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers.
The helicopter carrying Bryant and the others crashed into a hilly area in foggy conditions outside Los Angeles. Bryant lived south of Los Angeles and often used helicopters to travel around the area to save time and avoid Southern California traffic.
The cause of the crash is under investigation. It took place about 32 kilometers from Bryant's Mamba Sports Academy, a basketball training center in Newbury Park, California. Bryant was on his way to attend a youth basketball competition on Sunday with his daughter. Bryant and his wife, Vanessa, had four daughters.
When he retired from the NBA in 2016, Bryant was the third-leading scorer in NBA history with 33,643 points. He is widely expected to be elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this year.
The basketball world and the Los Angeles community reacted to Bryant’s death with an outpouring of sadness, disbelief and support.
In a statement, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Bryant was one of the greatest stars in the game. But he added, He will be remembered most for inspiring people around the world to pick up a basketball and compete to the very best of their ability.
On Twitter, U.S. President Donald Trump noted the terrible news. He called Bryant one of the truly great basketball players of all time who was just getting started in life.
1. Where is the passage probably taken from?| A．A science report. | B．A biography. |
| C．A textbook. | D．A newspaper. |
| A．his death | B．his achievements |
| C．his inspiration | D．his talent |
| A．careful examination | B．evidence |
| C．discussion | D．argument |
| A．Hearing the death of Kobe, fans around the world were very sad. |
| B．There were nine passengers on board, including one of his daughters. |
| C．Bryant was to attend a basketball competition with his daughter. |
| D．Bryant used the helicopter to save time and avoid the traffic jam on a fine day. |
4 . Bacteria are an annoying problem for astronauts. The microorganisms(微生物) from our bodies grow uncontrollably on surfaces of the International Space Station, so astronauts spend hours cleaning them up each week. How is NASA overcoming this very tiny big problem? It’s turning to a bunch of high school kids. But not just any kids. It is depending on NASA HUNCH high school classrooms, like the one science teachers Gene Gordon and Donna Himmelberg lead at Fairport High School in Fairport, New York.
HUNCH is designed to connect high school classrooms with NASA engineers. For the past two years, Gordon’s students have been studying ways to kill bacteria in zero gravity, and they think they’re close to a solution(解决方案). “We don’t give the students any breaks. They have to do it just like NASA engineers,” says Florence Gold, a project manager.
“There are no tests,” Gordon says. “There is no graded homework. There almost are no grades, other than ‘Are you working towards your goal?’ Basically, it’s ‘I’ve got to produce this product and then, at the end of year, present it to NASA.’ Engineers come and really do an in-person review, and...it’s not a very nice thing at times. It’s a hard business review of your product.”
Gordon says the HUNCH program has an impact(影响) on college admissions and practical life skills. “These kids are so absorbed in their studies that I just sit back. I don’t teach.” And that annoying bacteria? Gordon says his students are emailing daily with NASA engineers about the problem, readying a workable solution to test in space.
1. What do we know about the bacteria in the International Space Station?| A．They are hard to get rid of. | B．They lead to air pollution. |
| C．They appear in different forms. | D．They damage the instruments. |
| A．To strengthen teacher-student relationships. |
| B．To sharpen students’ communication skills. |
| C．To allow students to experience zero gravity. |
| D．To link space technology with school education. |
| A．Check their product. | B．Guide project designs. |
| C．Adjust work schedules. | D．Grade their homework. |
| A．NASA: The Home of Astronauts |
| B．Space: The Final Homework Frontier |
| C．Nature: An Outdoor Classroom |
| D．HUNCH: A College Admission Reform |
5 . Don’t be afraid! We are not encouraging people to steal. It’s one of the most popular topics currently talked about by people in cities, together with，“How many vegetables did you steal today?” or, “It’s harvest time for your peaches,” and，“I bought you a new car today.”
Listening to a conversation like this, you do not have to feel strange. These people don’t really have their own farms or so much money that they can casually (随意地) buy someone else a car.
They are just playing games on Social Networking Sites(SNS) like kaixin001.com. Can you imagine millions of people in China spending lots of time on SNS playing games and talking to friends? This is especially true of white-collar workers in cities. Take kaixin001.com for example — the number of current members has already hit 38 million.
However, the large number of people using SNS highlights another problem. That is, lots of people choose to escape from reality. NSN just offers them a virtual(虚拟的) environment where they can escape from reality.
Different games provide netizens with different experiences: dreaming, chatting and playing. It offers people the opportunity to escape from reality. But the virtual world is not the real one; no one can live in it forever, and reality is not as surfing on the Internet.
Since this kind of social networking sites have become so popular, people have started to think about moving it into the real world. And as far as we know, a farmland of this kind exists in Shanghai where it has reached its first base.
After playing the “Happy Farm” game on kaixin001.com, would you like to put yourself among the real world while smelling the fragrances (芳香) of the countryside? Recently a farmland service called “Happy Farm in Reality” was opened in the suburbs of Shanghai where white-collar workers can experience the real farmers’ life for themselves.
1. What’s the writer’s purpose for the first paragraph?| A．To encourage readers to be brave. |
| B．To tell the readers not to steal. |
| C．To tell the readers some shocking news. |
| D．To introduce some game. |
| A．The real world. | B．Farmland in Shanghai. |
| C．The virtual world. | D．An expensive car. |
| A．Millions of people in China are spending lots of time on SNS. |
| B．People steal vegetables on SNS for a living. |
| C．Lots of people play games on SNS to escape from reality. |
| D．White-collar workers can have the real farmers’ life. |
| A．politics | B．entertainment |
| C．economy | D．sports |
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
Our government is trying hard to build an energy-saving society. It is somebody’s duty to work hard and reach this goal. However, not everybody has realized the important of it. Take our school for example. Sometime we can see that lights and computers are still on after class. Some students even forget to turn off the tap after using it and have water running all the time. Our papers are primed on only one side, caused much waste. It’s time we did something to avoid this kind of waste. Firstly, make sure that all the light and other electric facilities turned off when we leave the rooms. Try to forming the habit of turning off the tap immediate after using it What’s more, papers should not be printed on both sides and reused if possible. In a word, if everybody reduce the waste and takes action, we can contribute to our society.
7 . Chinese students always complain that they’re under great pressure and don’t get enough sleep. But they may be surprised to learn that they’re much luckier than their peers (同龄人) in South Korea and Japan, according to a recently published report, conducted by Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences on the physical and mental health of senior high school students in the three Asian countries.
According to the study among nearly 6,000 high school students in the three countries, Chinese students are the tallest but poorest in physical fitness. Chinese students are on average 168.17cm, compared with 167.61cm for South Korean students and 164.70cm for Japanese students. Chinese students asked for sick leave more than students in other countries. About 72 percent of Korean students never asked for sick and injury leave during high school, compared to 53 percent for Japanese students and 45 percent for Chinese students. Moreover, Chinese students drink alcohol and smoke earlier than Korean and Japanese students. Around 70 percent of Chinese students have drunk alcohol, compared to 50 percent for Korean and Japanese students.
According to the survey, Japanese and South Korean students suffer more pressure than their Chinese peers. Statistics (统计) show 16 percent of students in China said they experienced mental pressure often over the past year, while the numbers in Japan and South Korea were 33 percent and 47 percent respectively. Their worries come from “study”, “future after graduation”, “friendships” and “relationship with their parents”. To go with stress, 57.9 percent of Korean students sleep the least, less than six hours a day, compared with 46.6 percent of Japanese students and 30 percent of Chinese students.
More Chinese students were satisfied with their physical appearance, double that of students in the survey from Japan and South Korea. The report said that over half of students in South Korea had tried to lose weight in the past year, while in China the figure was only 22 percent.
In measures of self-worth, such as “I think I am valuable” and “I think I am successful”, “I can complete many things”, “I won’t give up to failure,” Chinese students showed greater self-confidence than students in Japan and South Korea.
1. What’s the main idea of the passage?| A．Chinese students always complain that they’re in bad condition. |
| B．Chinese students are much luckier than their peers in the Republic of Korea and Japan. |
| C．Chinese teenagers drink alcohol and smoke earliest and smoke earliest among the three countries. |
| D．There is a report on the physical and mental health of senior high school students. |
| A．the height | B．the percentage |
| C．the weight | D．the number |
| A．study and career | B．physical appearance |
| C．friendships | D．family relationship |
