1 . The award-winning documentary “Feeding Tomorrow” explores the American food system’s shortcomings and the urgent need for change. Directed by Oliver and Simon English, the film dives deep into the complex web of issues surrounding food, climate change, and agriculture, leaving viewers with a clear realization of the challenges ahead.
At its core, “Feeding Tomorrow” raises fundamental questions about humanity’s relationship with the planet and the consequences of our consumption patterns. As the global population reaches up to 10 billion, the film shows the serious reality that our current methods of food production are unsustainable. With agriculture already occupying half of the habitable land and consuming 70% of freshwater resources, the harm on the environment is reaching critical levels.
The documentary reveals the interconnectedness of food, climate, and health, weaving together narratives from diverse voices in the fields of farming, health, and education. Through the stories of innovators like Mark Shepard, Clare Fox, and Lisa McDowell, “Feeding Tomorrow” highlights the urgent need for systemic change.
One of the central themes of the documentary is the importance of regenerative farming practices. By promoting biodiversity and topsoil growth, regenerative agriculture offers a promising path towards sustainability. The film emphasizes the need to transition from conventional, monoculture (单一) farming to more overall approaches.
Moreover, “Feeding Tomorrow” shows the significance of adopting plant-forward diets and reducing meat consumption. With animal agriculture being a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and environmental degradation (恶化), the documentary advocates for a shift towards more sustainable dietary habits.
Ultimately, “Feeding Tomorrow” serves as a cry for collective action and social change. It challenges viewers to reevaluate their relationship with food and embrace sustainable practices that benefit both people and the planet. The documentary reminds us that the power to shape a better future lies in our hands. In the words of Mark Shepard, “What are you going to eat for dinner tonight? Start asking the questions.”
1. What do we know about our current food production methods?| A．They are suitable to feed the increasing population. |
| B．They are inefficient and harmful to the environment. |
| C．They are too focused on producing large quantities of food. |
| D．They are all outdated and need to be replaced with new ones. |
| A．To praise their achievements. | B．To indicate different opinions. |
| C．To stress the necessity of change. | D．To give examples of farming methods. |
| A．Keep the balance of nature. | B．Take up sustainable practices. |
| C．Prioritize economic interests. | D．Invest in agricultural innovations. |
| A．To briefly introduce an award-winning film. | B．To explore American agriculture’s issues. |
| C．To present new food production methods. | D．To show the impact of climate on agriculture. |
2 . A cancer diagnosis will force King Charles III out of the public eye for the foreseeable future. For a highly
The king’s illness is the latest
The answer to it, royal watchers argue, may be
Social media can also be employed to enhance the
Prince Harry, the king’s younger son, fell out bitterly with his family after his
Queen Elizabeth viewed assuming kingly duties as so
| A．apparent | B．controversial | C．visible | D．generous |
| A．project | B．market | C．illustrate | D．propose |
| A．witness | B．blow | C．solution | D．disloyalty |
| A．uncharted | B．unnoticed | C．indefensible | D．inexcusable |
| A．human-initiated | B．strategy-focused | C．technology-driven | D．goal-oriented |
| A．frustrated | B．preoccupied | C．content | D．comfortable |
| A．in-depth | B．in-person | C．in-between | D．in-built |
| A．claims | B．calculates | C．confirms | D．clarifies |
| A．matter | B．contribute | C．relate | D．bring |
| A．dismissal | B．survival | C．withdrawal | D．renewal |
| A．carving out | B．applying for | C．identifying with | D．reflecting on |
| A．connection | B．priority | C．presence | D．privacy |
| A．in parallel to | B．as opposed to | C．on behalf of | D．in honor of |
| A．scarcely | B．effortlessly | C．approximately | D．inevitably |
| A．grave | B．distinct | C．exceptional | D．progressive |
3 . The United Nations food agency is unable to feed most civilians in Rafah, its local director warned Friday, with most border crossings closed amid what he described as “apocalyptic (大灾难的) conditions” and the Israeli military pushing further into Gaza’s (加沙) southernmost city.
The World Food Programme (WFP) is currently serving only 27,000 people in Rafah, according to Matthew Hollingworth, the organization’s country director in Gaza. That’s a tiny proportion of the roughly one million Gazans who have been displaced from the area.
“The sounds, the smells, the everyday life are horrific and apocalyptic.” Hollingworth told journalists Friday after returning from a trip to Gaza. “People sleep to the sounds of bombing, they sleep to the sounds of drones, they sleep to the sounds of war, as now tanks roll into parts of central Rafah, which is only kilometers away.”
Rafah had previously been the central artery (干线) for aid to flow into Gaza, as the only border crossing not controlled by Israel. But since Israel seized control of the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing on May 7, aid has been blocked, with supplies piling up in Egypt and the critical path falling close to famine. “From the 7th of May to the 20th, not a single WFP truck crossed from the southern corridors of Egypt into Rafah,” he said.
Israel’s military has continued to push further into Rafah, defying international concern and anger over its operations in the city. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Friday that its troops were in central Rafah – confirming what eyewitnesses told earlier this week, when tanks were spotted there for the first time since it entered the city in May.
The IDF’s operations in Rafah have prompted a 67% drop in the amount of humanitarian aid getting through, according to the UN.
Gaza is now receiving a daily average of 58 aid trucks – down from the daily average of 176 trucks between April and May, which itself is far from the 500 trucks that used to enter Gaza each day before the war broke out in October.
Hollingworth added that the WFP’s warehouse in Rafah, which was once capable of storing 2,700 tons of food, is no longer operational.
“We do not have the supplies available to provide significant numbers of ready-to-eat ration boxes. We don’t have significant supplies of wheat flour to hand out to those families that have a stove to cook on,” Hollingworth said – but added they are providing around 400,000 hot meals to families in central Rafah.
1. What are the primary challenges faced by the World Food Programme (WFP) in providing aid to Rafah?| A．The tiny proportion of the roughly one million displaced Gazans. |
| B．Inaccessibility due to closed border crossings and military operations. |
| C．Insufficient food supplies and international attention. |
| D．Intense local conflict and transportation difficulties. |
| A．Poverty. | B．Starvation. |
| C．Conflict. | D．Death. |
| A．International concern and anger arise over Israel’s operations in the city. |
| B．It has solved the 67% drop in the amount of humanitarian aid getting through. |
| C．Aid supplies are accumulating in Egypt and cannot reach Gaza. |
| D．WFP is providing around 400,000 hot meals to families in central Rafah now. |
| A．Supportive and peaceful. | B．Objective and indifferent. |
| C．Critical and sorrowful. | D．Concerned and urgent |
Nearly a week passed
5 . Research has shown that using mobile phones, especially for social media, can be an escape from our regular lives. In an increasingly hectic and fast-paced world, our phones provide a way to focus on something else. They offer an instant diversion (转移), a way to temporarily ease discomfort or avoid the problems in our lives.
The research also noted that this behavior is linked to the fear of missing out (FOMO), social anxiety that exciting or interesting events are happening somewhere else and that we are not to take part. People who experience high levels of FOMO have been found to be more likely to give in to urges to write and check text messages while driving, as well as to use social media more often directly after waking, while going to sleep and during meals.
This FOMO can lead to an unhealthy attachment to the phone, resulting in an inability to resist the urge to reach for it. This dependency is further fueled by the instant satisfaction provided by social media, games, and other apps.
Using our phones, particularly for social media, stimulates the release of dopamine(多巴胺), a neurotransmitter(神经递质) associated with pleasure and reward. This feeling can be irresistible, leading to a cycle where we constantly check our phones for that next “hit” of dopamine. These personality features include low self-control and high attention impulsiveness(冲动), which is the tendency to act on sudden impulses.
Research is ongoing, but some studies suggest that overuse of mobile phones can negatively affect sleep quality, social relationships, and even mental health. Our teenagers are not immune to mobile phone dependency either. While our phones provide us with many benefits, it’s important to maintain a balanced relationship. It’s not about removing screen time but understanding its impact and healthily managing our usage.
1. What does the underlined word “hectic” in Paragraph 1 mean?| A．Independent | B．Commercial | C．Busy | D．Odd. |
| A．Checking social media constantly. | B．Fearing of socializing with others. |
| C．Taking an online course in literature. | D．Uploading food photos on social media. |
| A．Smartphone dependency is a universal problem. |
| B．Constant smartphone use leads to social anxiety. |
| C．FOMO is the primary cause of smartphone dependency. |
| D．FOMO is linked to low self-control and high attention impulsiveness. |
| A．To convince us of the dangers of FOMO. |
| B．To persuade us to put our smartphones down. |
| C．To tell us to use smartphones wisely and healthily. |
| D．To remind us to rise to many urgent matters instantly. |
The past summer in Antarctica, Elaine had spent long hours inside the plain, practical buildings of the McMurdo research station. With winter coming, she’d be heading home soon. But before she left, there was one more thing Elaine wanted to do. She was determined to see a penguin (企鹅) — up close. That night after dinner, someone said there was a lone penguin on the ice on the far side of the station. Elaine rushed out, hoping to get a closer look.
The day had been sunny and warm. But a frosty wind circled, which was a warning. Elaine knew the weather could change in a heartbeat. A sudden storm could drop the temperature by 50℃ in just a few minutes.
A biting wind blew, and she suddenly found that she had left her hat and radio back at McMurdo! But hearing about the penguin, she’d rushed out without them. This was trouble. She was out on the ice alone, without her gear (装备).
Maybe the cold had slowed down her brain, but Elaine didn’t consider the danger. All she could think of was the penguin. Watching the swinging penguin shape coming closer, she saw a flash of yellow. It was an emperor penguin!
It was against the rules to approach a penguin, she knew. So she had to wait and see if the penguin would come to her. Elaine held her breath, concentrating on the penguin walking towards her. Soon the penguin stood right in front of her: Its eyes were level with hers, its beak (喙) almost touching her nose.
She admired the golden-orange designs edging the penguin’s beak. She tried not to close her eyes as the penguin eyed her closely. Then it reached out its beak, leaned in, and tapped her cheek. Elaine’s heart beat with the thrill. The penguin bent forward, then reached its beak inside her collar. Elaine couldn’t help it — she giggled (咯咯笑). Her laugh scared the penguin. And it slipped away.
A storm was already coming, and it was past time to head back to McMurdo. Suddenly, a strong wind knocked her off her feet.
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。
She was pulled by the wind onto a thin skin of ice above an large ice crack (裂缝).
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Realizing the penguin was leading her out of danger, Elaine decided to follow the penguin.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________7 . The key to a happy life has nothing to do with getting ahead at work, making money, or traveling the world. Instead, living your best life and creating meaning are all about one thing: relationships.
A study of adult development has been running at Harvard since 1938, and is now on its second generation of participants — the children of the original study’s subjects. Over decades, the research team have collected data about their lives, including their physical and mental health, marital status and quality, career happiness, and more.
They found the most important factor in how happy and healthy these men were over time was their relationships. In other words, finding happiness in life is all about the people you love.
The research doesn’t only include romantic relationships and marriage. Quality, close relationships are important whether they are in the context of romantic relationships or closeness between friends or family members. The kind of relationship you have is less important than how close you feel with them.
However, the study only included men, and there’re important gender differences in how people experience relationships. Some research suggests that men may benefit more from marriage. But they tend to have a harder time keeping friendships; as men get older, they are more likely to say they have nobody to discuss important subjects with. So it’s possible that having close relationships throughout their lives might affect men differently from women.
However, the findings line up with empirical (以试验为依据的) research on the effects of loneliness. People who are socially isolated have a greater likelihood of strokes (中风), heart attacks, and higher blood pressure, not to mention mental health issues.
Unfortunately for the youngest generation, recent surveys found that young Americans are lonelier than older generations. That will likely have a big impact on how healthy and happy people feel throughout their lives.
1. What lesson can we learn from this passage?| A．Travel far and wide to learn a lot. |
| B．Keep an open mind to be creative. |
| C．Treasure your time with your loved ones. |
| D．Work hard to be the best of your profession. |
| A．Because they have nobody to talk to. |
| B．Because they are more socially isolated. |
| C．Because they can’t keep their relationships. |
| D．Because they suffer physically and mentally. |
| A．Close Relationships Make a Happy Life |
| B．Men Look Forward to Close Relationships |
| C．Close Relationships Ensure People’s Health |
| D．Men and Women Differ in Keeping Relationships |
8 . Having picked up a call from a number she did not recognize, Jennie unexpectedly heard what sounded like her daughter crying for help, along with the voice of an unknown and threatening man. But while she kept the man on the phone, her friends managed to reach her daughter, discovering that she was, in fact, free and well on a skiing trip in Arizona. The voice used on the phone was cloned (克隆).
While people have paid much attention to large-language models like ChatGPT, there is also a heated discussion about potential threats posed by voice-cloning, a technology that can be trained to speak any given text sounding like that person, which might result in “voice crimes”.
Take Eleven Labs, an AI start-up, as an example. It offers users the chance to create their own clones in minutes and the results are shockingly accurate. The system allows users to choose between variability and stability. Select “variability”, and the voice will have a lifelike intonation (语调), including pauses like “er…”. Choose “stability” (稳定性), and it will come across more like a calm newsreader who will not be affected by emotions.
Voice cloning’s influences will be huge. For several years, customers have been able to identify themselves over the phone via bank's voice recognition software. Even a gifted mimic (巧于模仿的人) could not fool the detection system. But now banks are forced to adapt in order to prevent crime or misuse.
The other industry that will have to deal with the rise of clones is journalism. Now who will trust a story based on an audio clip (音频)? The term “fake news” had existed long before voice cloning. Now, more people caught in a crime are likely to defend themselves “It wasn’t me.” It is hard to prove that a clip is genuine and perhaps impossible. Journalists will need to show how they obtained and stored audio files.
1. What does the first paragraph serve as?| A．A comment. | B．A proof. |
| C．An explanation. | D．An introduction. |
| A．It is more influential than ChatGPT. |
| B．It has contributed to lots of voice crimes. |
| C．It can be adjusted to express required emotions. |
| D．It can produce as many voices as possible in minutes. |
| A．Voice cloning will be increasingly used in Journalism. |
| B．People no longer trust the story reported by journalists. |
| C．Journalists tend to facilitate a wider adoption of video news. |
| D．The journalism will defend itself against negative comments. |
| A．Cloned voices are changing the journalism. |
| B．AI technologies do harm to people's safety. |
| C．People should make the most of voice cloning. |
| D．Voice cloning raises concerns about its potential risk. |
1. Where are the speakers?
| A．On a plane. | B．In an office. | C．In a hospital. |
| A．Rest at home. | B．Do Nick’s work. | C．Go on a business trip. |
10 . Thirteen-year-old Kaylee has a lot of friends — 532, actually, if you count up her online friends. And she spends a lot of time with them.
But is it possible that Kaylee’s online friendships could be making her lonely? That’s what some experts believe. Connecting online is a great way to stay in touch, they say. However, some experts worry that many kids are so busy connecting online that they might be missing out on true friendships.
Could this be true? During your parents’ childhoods, connecting with friends usually meant spending time with them in the flesh. Kids played scramble around a table, not Words With Friends on their phoned. When friends missed each other, they picked up the telephone. Friends might even write letters to each other.
Today, most communication takes place online. A typical then sands 2, 000 texts a month and spends more than 44 hours per week in front of a screen. Much of this time is spent on social media platforms (平台).
In fact, in many ways, online communication can make friendships stronger, “There’s definitely a positive influence. Kids can stay in constant contact, which means they can share more of their feelings with each other,” says Katie David, co-author of The Ape Generation.
Other experts, however, warn that too much online communication can get in the way of forming deep friendships. “If we are constantly checking in with our virtual words, way will have little time for our real-world friendships.” says Larry Rosen, a professor at California State University. Rosen also worries that today’ kids might mistake the “friends” on the social media for true friends in life. However, in tough times, you don’t need some on c to like your picture or share your blogs. You need some one who will keep your secrets and hold your hand. You would like to talk face to face.
1. What is the purpose of the first paragraph?| A．To summarize the text. | B．To tell about true friends. |
| C．To bring up a discussion. | D．To encourage online friendship. |
| A．In person. | B．In advance. |
| C．In any case. | D．In full measure. |
| A．Worried. | B．Positive. |
| C．Confused. | D．Unconcerned. |
| A．It’s wise to turn to friends online. |
| B．It’s easier to develop friendships in reality. |
| C．Social media help people stay closely connected. |
| D．Teenagers need focus on real-world friendships. |
