1 . Santosh Jadhav, a 28-year-old farmer from Maharashtra’s Sangli district, had never dreamed he would be trending on YouTube tending to his land. But as you watch his videos on Indian Farmer—the channel he runs with his friend, Akash Jadhav, 27—you quickly understand why he is attracting millions of views.
Set up in 2018, Indian Farmer was a result of the two friends’ love of farming, technology and filmmaking. Their videos offer tips, advice and information on various aspects of agriculture, including direct-farming techniques, agriculture-related activities, new farming tools, and agricultural apps. In addition to explaining how agricultural markets function, the channel shares success stories from across the country. A section that draws the most attention features workable solutions to everyday problems and do-it-yourself mechanical quick-fixes.
“We were looking to do something together. Agriculture was something we had in common. Plus, we were young and idealistic—we wanted to do something with a social impact,” says Santosh.
The channel has certainly made a mark, as the numbers show. Since 2018, their channel has built a user base of 21.5 million, thanks to the affordable mobile data revolution and the increasing popularity of smartphones in India. While Akash takes charge of the production side of things, Santosh offers his hands-on knowledge obtained from running his family farm. According to them, the Indian Farmer channel adds an average of 60,000 subscribers and earns between 70,000 and 100,000 in revenue every month.
“Knowledge in this sector is often inter-generational: a farmer is limited to what the others nearby know and do. There was very little by way of books or culture channels that addressed the needs, mistakes and scarcities of farmers. Social media has changed things, enabling cross-sharing of knowledge, all for free,” Akash says.
1. What’s the channel’s most popular section?| A．Inspiring stories. | B．Advanced tools. |
| C．Practical solutions. | D．Agricultural activities. |
| A．Experienced and sociable. | B．Cooperative and devoted. |
| C．Conservative and diligent. | D．Courageous and humorous. |
| A．To show the economic gains. | B．To imply the cooperation relationship. |
| C．To highlight social media engagement. | D．To indicate the success of the channel. |
| A．Resources were available to address farmers’ needs. |
| B．Farming knowledge relies on books and the Internet. |
| C．Agricultural modernization is dependent on technology. |
| D．Social media facilitates free knowledge exchange in agriculture. |
It was a very cold morning as it had been raining very heavily the previous night. As my mother was feeling a little uncomfortable, my sister volunteered to drive me to school. I overslept and as a result, was a bit late for school. We got into the car hurriedly. The roads were already jammed with traffic. It appeared that everyone was late as well.
My sister was a careful driver and despite the fact that I was late, she refused to drive fast on the slippery road. I was lucky she was such a determined and careful person because a few hundred meters away from the school, we witnessed an accident.
It all happened in an instant, as most accidents do. A car took a left turning without signaling and a school bus crashed into it heavily. A few cars behind the school bus hit the bus as they could not stop in time and soon it became a pile-up. The car was damaged badly while the school bus also had some damage. And the already crowded road became more jammed with vehicles, which came to a mess. We wanted to help the victims. My sister drove to a stop at the roadside not too far from the accident spot.
The scene that greeted us was terrible. I first rushed to the car. The driver, a lady, lay trapped behind the wheel, unable to move. Three schoolchildren were in the back seat, their faces white with fear. Two of them were seriously hurt and bleeding from the head and hands. They were conscious although too weak and frightened to realize what had happened. We called an ambulance and while waiting, we tried as much as possible to help the victims. As a result of our joint efforts, the driver and the children were moved to safety and taken care of.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Then, I rushed to the bus filled with children’s cries.
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After the ambulance had left, two policemen asked me about the accident.
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3 . Financial Education-Awareness Dilemma
When it comes to financial education, the majority of today's youth will regard it as a necessity for certain specific people who want to make their career in the financial world.
Suppose you have $100 in a saving account that pays simple interest at the rate of 2%per year. lf you leave the money in the account, how much will you have accumulated after 5 years: more than $102, exactly $102, or less than $102? The test might look simple, but only half of the people surveyed gave the correct answer.
On the contrary, people who have a lower degree of financial literacy tend to borrow more, accumulate less wealth, and pay more in fees related financial products. They are less likely to invest, more likely to experience difficulty with debt, and less likely to know the terms of their mortgages and other loans. Thus, the cost of this financial ignorance is very high.
What is the solution?
| A．Financial education must start early. |
| B．However, they miss an important point. |
| C．Why does each of us have to face a financial challenge? |
| D．Why does financial literacy matter so much in our society'? |
| E．Rich people are generally better educated on financial management. |
| F．Besides, these people have more than double the wealth of people who don’t. |
| G．For example, they frequently make late credit card payments, overspend their credit limit, etc. |
4 . Film Puts Justifiable Defense in Spotlight
The film, Article 20, directed by Zhang Yimou, draws its name from Article 20 of the Criminal Law, which focuses on the sometimes controversial legal concept of justifiable defense. Drawing inspiration from real-life cases of justifiable defense, the film gained widespread attention and struck a chord with the public during the Spring Festival holiday. The movie calls for a de tailed interpretation of legal terms and urges against compromising on unlawful conduct.
According to the Criminal Law, when a person, faced with an unlawful attack, takes action to protect his or her own rights or interests or those of others, and the attacker is thereby harmed, the defender will be considered to have acted in justifiable defense and will not bear criminal responsibility. For some time, justifiable defense has been regarded as a “dormant clause” (沉寂条款), due to the influence of misconceptions, such as “whoever is injured or killed is right”.
But the true meaning of the law should be to increase the responsibility for wrongdoers, rather than burdening good people. Recent cases have shown that, for ordinary citizens, justifiable defense is no longer a pipe dream. A high-profile case in Kunshan, Jiangsu province, in 2018 served as a wake-up call and caught the attention of authorities regarding such cases. In that case, a traffic argument led to a motorist who took a knife with him confronting another man. The motorist was killed, and police and judges determined that the defender’s actions constituted justifiable defense. Since then, the justifiable defense clause has been applied in several places across the nation. The concern over justifiable defense reflects the public’s demand for fairness, justice, security and rule of law.
Luo Xiang, a renowned professor of criminal law at China University of Political Science and Law, said in a recent comment about the film Article 20 that the public and judges should avoid taking a “godlike” perspective. Instead, they should consider the situation in which the defender was involved, empathize with the defender’s position, and stop themselves from making excessive demands on the defender, Luo said.
1. Why did the film Article 20 attract the audience’s attention?| A．It was released during the Spring Festival holiday. |
| B．It is named after one article in the Criminal Law. |
| C．It explores real-life cases of justifiable defense. |
| D．It was directed by Zhang Yimou. |
| A．the victim gave up his legal rights |
| B．the robber kept silent about the robbery |
| C．the robber was hurt worse than the victim |
| D．the victim knifed the armed robber to stop the ongoing crime |
| A．Making comparisons. | B．Listing reasons. |
| C．Explaining misconceptions. | D．Providing evidence. |
| A．Take a “godlike” viewpoint with the public. |
| B．Put oneself in the defender’s shoes. |
| C．Demand more from the defender. |
| D．Side with the attacker. |
5 . There is always a lot of talk about what is fair, and what is not.
We definitely have no choice about how we come into this world. We have little choice early in life. But as we grow older, choices exist around. I have long believed that while we have no control over the beginning of our life, the majority of us have the ability to influence the outcomes we attain. Fairness is a state of mind, and most often, an unhealthy state of mind. Our state in life cannot, or at least should not, be blamed on our parents, our teachers, or our society.
I agree that challenges exist. I agree that many have an uphill battle due to the challenges they face.
| A．Most people tend to insist that life should be fair. |
| B．There is no absolute fairness in life, but it’s relatively fair. |
| C．Life is full of examples of people who complain about life being unfair. |
| D．In fact, it’s largely based on the choices we make, and the attitudes we adopt. |
| E．But I disagree with the attempt to use fairness to solve all problems in the world. |
| F．Stories like this are all around us-they are not miracles, nor are they the rare exception. |
| G．It doesn’t matter whether we are born with a silver spoon, plastic spoon, or no spoon at all. |
6 . Tesla and SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk has joined dozens of CEOs of artificial intelligence companies in signing an open letter urging the United Nations to ban the use of AI in weapons before the technology gets out of hand.
The letter was published Monday—the same day the U. N. was to discuss ways to protect civilians from the misuse of automated weapons (自动武器). That meeting, however, has been postponed until November.
“Automated weapons threaten to become the third revolution in warfare,” read the letter, which was also signed by the CEOs of top high-tech companies such as Cafe X Technologies and PlusOne Robotics. “Once this Pandora’s box is opened, it will be hard to close. Therefore we ask the High Contracting Parties to find a way to protect us all from these dangers.”
The letter’s tones echo those in another open letter that Musk-along with more than 3, 000 AI and robotics researchers, signed nearly two years ago. The letter warned of the dangers of artificial intelligence in weapons, which could be used in assassinations (暗杀), overturning nations, and selectively killing a particular ethnic group.
Many nations are already familiar with drone (无人机) warfare, in which human-piloted drones are used instead of putting soldiers on site. Lower costs, as well as the fact that they don’t risk the lives of military personnel, have contributed to their rising popularity. Future capabilities for unmanned aerial vehicles could include autonomous takeoffs and landings, while underwater drones could eventually “swim” in the seas.
AI weapons would take things a step further, removing human involvement entirely, and potentially improving efficiency. But they could also open a whole new box of worms, according to the letter, “lowering the level for going to battle” and creating a global arms race in which horrible technology can be mass-produced and misused. “Artificial intelligence technology has reached a point where the use of such systems is-practically, if not legally-achievable within years, and the risks are high. It will only be a matter of time until they appear on the black market and in the hands of terrorists, dictators or warlords (军阀). ”
1. Why did Elon Musk sign the open letter?| A．To urge UN to ban all the new technology. |
| B．To protect humans from the potential dangers of AI. |
| C．To cut down the cost of automated weapons. |
| D．To ask people to keep curious facing technology. |
| A．Overthrowing a nation. |
| B．Selectively killing an ethnic group. |
| C．Improving efficiency. |
| D．Risking the lives of military personnel. |
| A．give rise to a lot of threats to the world |
| B．lower the level of global arms race |
| C．cut down the mass production of arms |
| D．decrease the deals on the black market |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Supportive. |
| C．Concerned. | D．Regretful. |
7 . One overlooked benefit of lab-grown food is that it may help the UK deal with the crisis in housing affordability. As farming is replaced by precision fermentation (发酵) , the significant amount of land currently used for livestock farming(including parts of the green belt) will be freed up for development in places that people actually want to live.
However, we’d take a different lesson from the promise of lab-grown meat. Free-market environmentalism and harnessing the power of innovative technologies — supported by market-based measures like a border-adjusted carbon tax — can successfully tackle the problem of man-made climate change without fundamentally uprooting the way we run society. Saving the planet doesn’t have to cost us the earth.
It is important to acknowledge that certain types of livestock farming may have issues with sustainability and climate change. But it is not true of all farming systems; and the issues that do exist are being dealt with using the latest research into genetics and biotechnology-for example, recent research has shown that certain types of seaweed can reduce methane emissions from cattle to close to zero.
Farmer data also shows that increased sales of milks have not seen a corresponding reduction in dairy sales.
The global food system, consumer choices and climate change are incredibly complex issues, and anyone who proposes simple solutions is almost certainly not in possession of all the relevant facts and data. Livestock are an important part of humanity’s future food needs.
1. Why does lab-grown food help Britain to solve the housing affordability crisis?| A．As farming is replaced by precision fermentation, the level of agricultural development is improved. |
| B．The significant amount of green belts are used for development in places that people actually want to live. |
| C．Lab-grown food is more environmentally friendly and beneficial to human health. |
| D．A large amount of land used for livestock farming will be freed up for residence. |
| A．Free-market environmentalism can change the way society operates. |
| B．Adjusting carbon tax can successfully solve the problem of climate change. |
| C．Adopting the power of innovative technologies is useful for saving the earth. |
| D．Saving the earth requires changing the way society operates. |
| A．obtain | B．exploit | C．inherit | D．develop |
| A．global food issue is so complex that there are no complete research data. |
| B．sustainability and climate change are common problems in agricultural systems. |
| C．some kinds of seaweed can make the amount of methane emitted by cattle ineffective. |
| D．the sales of substitute dairy products increased, and the sales of dairy products decreased accordingly. |
Ken Scott kicked off the covers and leapt out of bed at his home in the Rocky Mountain town of Mullan, Idaho. He’d just heard on the radio that the nearby Silver Mountain Resort had been blessed with nearly a foot and a half of new snow. As an experienced ski addict, he didn’t want to miss this big golden opportunity. These conditions are what skiers live for.
When Scott reached Silver Mountain’s locker room, he came across his friend Paul, a former ski instructor who had also been a regular on these slopes for more than two decades. Both of them were exhilarated. Before setting off, it was Paul’s routine to check his phone tightly fixed inside his parka (风 雪外套). For the next hour the pair skied on various runs under a lightly dull sky, making fresh tracks. They were both in a playful mood, laughing as they tackled the steep runs.
Almost immediately, the snow beneath their feet gave way. In a millisecond, Paul realized what was happening. “Avalanche! (雪崩)” he yelled to Scott, who was not far behind. Scott responded. The sudden snow slide caused fear in his voice. “This is happening!” Instantly, both were hit by a mass of snow that would hit and carry them some 500 feet down the mountain. Scott felt it surrounding and enclosing him, moving quickly up his back and over his shoulders, then heavy against his neck. Snow filled the space in front of him and piled up around the whole of him. Paul, too, was swept downhill.
They remembered the avalanche survival lessons they had learned. Keep your head up. Try to swim. Stay on top of the snow. But the snow was too powerful and they felt themselves rolling like a load of clothes in a washing machine. When Scott finally came to rest, he was lying on his left side and completely buried, skis and poles still attached.
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1:
Paul was luckier, ending up partially buried and probably surviving.
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Paragraph 2:
Recalling the terrible experience, Scott thanked his friend and the rescue team.
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9 . Monthly subscription （订阅） educational boxes for students can be a great way to develop an interest in a particular subject. If you want to learn something at home while having fun, you can have educational boxes delivered monthly straight to your house.
Spangler Boxes
The Spangler boxes feature a range of hands-on scientific experiments designed by Steve Spangler, a former TY host of a popular science education program on News for Kids. Projects focus on STEM—science, technology, engineering, and math. Examples of projects include exploring lava（岩浆）science, the sound waves, and physical laws.
Finders Seekers Boxes
After receiving a Finders Seekers box, you’ll explore characters of a new city and culture every month while solving puzzles. Think of Finders Seekers as an escape room challenge that takes place in your living room. Clues and online research tools are available to help in case you get stuck solving the mystery. Each puzzle takes approximately two to four hours to complete.
Creation Boxes
Creation teaches students electronics, digital tips and high-level problem-solving. Each box teaches a lesson and is progressively more challenging. A sampling of the projects includes a mood lamp, an electronic memory game, and a distance detector using an ultrasonic sensor（超声传感器）.
Kiwi Doodle Boxes
Kiwi Doodle Boxes are among the most popular boxes on the market. They feature a variety of themes customized to students aged from 8 to 18. Doodle focuses on art and design with projects such as a felt succulent（肉质植物）garden, a faux（人造的）leather sample set, and handmade soap. Doodle projects introduce students to new crafting materials and techniques and al craft supplies are included in the box.
1. Which of the following is included in Finders Seekers Boxes?| A．Features of cities. | B．Online instructions. |
| C．Historical mysteries. | D．Escape room challenges. |
| A．Creation Boxes. | B．Spangler Science Boxes. |
| C．Kiwi Doodle Boxes. | D．Finders Seekers Boxes. |
| A．A research report. | B．A scientific journal. |
| C．A magazine for kids. | D．An engineering textbook. |
10 . While an analysis of the Global Dietary Database for the years 1990, 2005, and 2018 found overall consumption of sweetened drinks increased—by nearly 16% worldwide over the 28-year period studied—regional intake widely varied, researchers say.
Sugary drinks have been widely associated with overweight and heart related diseases, which are among the leading causes of death and years lost to disability globally. Many national guidelines recommend limiting added sugars to less than 5% to 10% of daily calories, and because sodas (汽水) add no nutritional value, some countries tax their consumption to help their residents meet this goal.
The study, published in Nature Communications, is the latest presentation of how adults in 185 countries drink sugar-sweetened beverages (饮料). Intakes varied widely by world region. In 2018, the average person consumed 2.7 servings of sugary drinks per week, but this ranged from 0.7 servings per week in South Asia to 7.8 servings per week in Latin America. And some of the highest sugary drink intakes in the world were among urban, highly educated adults in Sub-Saharan Africa (12.4 servings per week) and in Latin America (8.5 servings per week). “We were struck by the wide variations by world regions in 2018; that Latin America had the largest intakes at all time points despite an overall decrease overtime; and that Sub-Saharan Africa had the greatest increases across all time points,” says Laura Lara-Castor, a PhD candidate at Tufts University.
“These results suggest that more work is needed such as marketing regulations, food labeling, and soda taxes.” Information from the Global Dietary Database, which gathers hundreds of survey results, also revealed a relationship between sugary beverages and socio-economic status. “Sugar-sweetened beverage intake has increased in the past few decades despite efforts to decrease their appeal,” says researchers. “Some populations are especially easily affected, and our findings provide evidence to inform the need and design of national and more targeted policies to reduce their intake worldwide.”
1. What is the main concern about sugary drinks?| A．They are just a barrier to weight loss. | B．They are linked to health issues. |
| C．They are far from nutrition standard. | D．They are a total waste of money. |
| A．To increase income for the government. | B．To promote the sales of healthier drinks. |
| C．To discourage people from drinking sodas. | D．To set a limit to the price of sugary drinks. |
| A．Sugary drink consumption trends. | B．Impact of soda taxes on purchases. |
| C．Regional variations in dietary habits. | D．Global dietary information analysis. |
| A．Sugary drinks have nothing to do with economic status. |
| B．The appeal of sugary drinks cannot be underestimated. |
| C．Some people are very particular about the sugary drinks. |
| D．National policies on sugary drinks are more than enough. |
