2 . Social media scam is a form of phishing in which cybercriminals connect with their victims through social media platforms.     1     After the victim accepts it, they soon form a conversation. They can also publish a link that sounds attractive (“put your data and win a car”). Below, see how to protect yourself from scammers on social media;

Accept friend requests with caution.

    2     You should pay attention to when the account is registered and who accepts their friend request. Also remember to check the kind of information the person publishes.

Avoid links that request personal data.

No social media platform will ask its users to click an outside link to update their personal information. Check with the official customer support if you are unsure. Internet users should apply the principle better safe than sorry.

    3    

Do not use the same password across all your online accounts. If one account gets hacked, all of them will. It is always better to have distinct login details for each platform as well.

Make sure not to reveal personal information.

Do not publish your address, phone number, or place of work on your social media account for your safety.     4     Always be cautious if someone shows too much interest in your personal affairs. Even your friends might have been backed, so be careful.

Check whether the account is verified when approached with offers.

When you get a strange message, or an offer to buy or sell something on social media, first check if the account is verified.     5    

Social media scams can be financially damaging and emotionally distressing. We hope that these tips will come in handy for you. Remember, safety first in the online world just as it is in the real world.

A．Do not send money to anyone before that.

B．It usually starts by sending a friend request.

C．Always use a strong password to improve security.

D．Create a unique login and password for each platform.

E．Also, do not give away this information to strangers in conversations.

F．Be careful of friend requests from unknown individuals, as they may have ill intent.

G．Before making friends with someone that you do not know, carefully examine the account.

3 . As a mother who had three kids in public schools, it always bothered me that the elementary school had a voluntary “reading club” in which students received prizes based on how much reading for pleasure they did each week. The message seems all wrong: We have to bribe (贿赂) you to read for fun.

A survey by the National Assessment for Educational Progress found that the numbers of 9- and 13-year-olds who say they read for enjoyment almost every day dropped from slightly more than half in 1984, to 42% during the 2019-20 school year. The trend among middle schoolers is worse. The percentage who frequently read for fun dropped by more than half, to 17%, while the percentage who seldom or never do more than tripled (增至三倍).

Meanwhile, a British study found that reading for pleasure had much wider benefits, resulting in better vocabulary, spelling and mathematical abilities. According to the nonprofit reading-advocacy group Kids Read Now, readers also learn better empathy (同理心), decision-making and social skills.

One contributor to this disappointing trend seems obvious: Social media and other digital activities are heavy draws and can consume hours of time. But some librarians and students point to other reasons as well: As students advance in school, required reading of textbooks and classroom-assigned literature increases. They may be reading more, but often enjoying it less.

Reading for pleasure isn’t the same as assigned reading because kids need to be able to relax with the reading material of their choice. As a child, my son used to finish his reading for school and then sigh (叹息) with pleasure, saying, “Now I can read.”

Parents play a key role in changing this situation, but many may not realize how important it is to expose their kids to books, magazines and the like. Giving older students more choices in what they read for class would help encourage pleasure reading too. The class could make group choices or students could pick from a menu of options instead of being assigned a single book. When there are just a few choices and we spoon-feed them to kids, we just deprive them of the experience of realizing there’s a bigger world of books out there for them to explore.

1. What made the author annoyed according to paragraph 1?

A．The messages sent by the reading club each week.

B．The lack of reading clubs in the elementary school.

C．The unrealistic reading goals set by the elementary school.

D．The way to encourage elementary school students to read for fun.

2. How does the author present the benefits of reading for pleasure to students?

A．By listing some persuasive figures.	B．By providing some research results.
C．By referring to some experts’ views.	D．By sharing her own parenting experience.

3. What does the author want to show by telling her son’s story?

A．It takes time to finish reading for school.

B．Parents should read together with their kids.

C．The reading for school is hardly fun for children.

D．Children have difficulty choosing reading materials.

4. What does the underlined part “deprive them of” in the last paragraph probably mean?

A．Keep them from.	B．Prepare them for.
C．Lead them to.	D．Fill them with.

5 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入1个恰当的单词或者括号内单词的正确形式。

AI is like a magic force in our world today. It promises big changes in many fields, like making things better and     1     (easy) for people. Nevertheless, this rapid progress also brings about     2     series of challenges and concerns.

In terms of technological advancements, remarkable breakthroughs     3     (make) by AI development recently. It can process tons of data, learn from patterns, and make smart decisions. This has opened up new doors in places like healthcare, finance, and     4     (get) around. AI-powered robots can do complex surgeries with     5     (accurate), while clever algorithms (算法) can predict what’s going to happen in the market and manage money well. Plus, self-driving cars are going to change     6     we get around, reducing accidents and traffic jams.

    7     these advancements, the development of AI has also presented several drawbacks. One significant concern is the potential displacement of human jobs. As AI gets more powerful, it might replace workers in lots of different jobs, leading to people being out of work and messing up     8     global economy. Plus, there exist ethical problems about Al, like privacy issues and the risk of people using AI for harmful purposes. Then     9     (come) the risk of data being stolen with AI.

In conclusion, while AI brings loads of benefits, it also has its challenges and concerns. We need to think     10     (cautious) about the advantages and disadvantages of AI, and make sure it’s used in a way that’s best for everyone.

6 . South Korean government has tried everything to persuade women to have babies. Among their initiatives: sponsored housing for new couples, discounted after-childbirth care for new mothers, even a “baby payment” for each new born. Corporate South Korea is also getting in action, trying to delay a population crisis that could see the country’s workforce halve within 50 years.

“We will continue to do what we can as a company to solve the low-birth issue,” Lee Joong-keun, the chairman of Booyoung Group, a Seoul-based construction company, said this month after awarding a total $5.25 million to his employees for babies born since 2021. Other companies are offering payments, too. This development has come about as South Korea’s fertility rate (生育率) — the average number of children a woman has over her lifetime — has decreased to 0.78 in 2022. That means the population is aging rapidly. “The main reasons behind the falling birthrate are the financial burdens of child care and challenges of balancing work and family,” Lee said.

South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol praised companies that came up with “tax benefits and other various support measures to boost child birth,” according to his spokes-woman. Despite aggressive efforts, South Korea’s fertility rate is on course to sink further to 0.65 by 2025. This is largely because of the stress put on women, who face fierce workplace discrimination if they want to pursue a career while having children, experts say. South Kore a ranked 105th out of 146 countries in gender equality last year, according to the Global Gender Gap Report.

Whether financial bonus can have a positive impact on fertility remains an unanswered question. “Cash payouts are not affordable nor sustainable options for many companies,” said Yoon In-jin, a sociology professor at Korea University. “More importantly, South Korea’s male-dominated corporate culture has to fundamentally change in favor of working women,” he said. “Korean women will start having more babies if they don’t have to sacrifice their career for it.” Nearly 50% South Korean companies punished workers using parental leave, especially on promotions, according to Labor Ministry statistics.

1. What population problem is South Korea very likely to face in the future?

A．Its fertility rate will continuously decline.	B．Its population will halve within 50 years.
C．There will only be the aged very soon.	D．New-born babies will make up 65% by 2025.

2. What is the author’s attitude towards the current money-awarding measure?

A．Supportive.

B．Critical.

C．Far-sighted.

D．Uncertain.

3. What does academic Yoon In-jin support to do in boosting fertility rate?

A．Provide equal career security to women as men are enjoying.

B．Improve South Korea’s global rank in gender equality.

C．Remove women’s financial burdens and home-work balancing challenges.

D．Offer couples with new born babies more tax benefits and other supports.

4. What’s the main idea of this passage?

A．The reasons why South Korean women are not having babies.

B．The policies South Kare a government applies to persuade women to have babies.

C．The measures corporate South Korea takes to promote birthrate.

D．The severe discrimination South Korean women are facing.

7 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Tianshui,     1     ancient Silk Road city in Gansu Province, became the latest place with a nationwide craze thanks to its iconic dish malatang, a local street dish     2    (feature)a mix of fresh vegetables and meat boiled in a hot, spicy soup. One restaurant owner in Tianshui noted that he has been serving at least 400 customers a day, some of     3     drive here from other provinces to experience this inviting dish firsthand. Based on data from Ctrip, a major Chinese online travel service platform, in the past month, there     4    (be)a significant increase in tourism in Tianshui. The overall number of travel orders has increased by over 20% compared to the same period last year,     5     hotel orders increasing by over 40%.

Local-produced ingredients such as Gangu chili, Qin’an peppercorns, and Dingxi potatoes are the secrets to the unique flavor and attractive appearance of Tianshui malatang. Gangu chili has a bright red color and a spicy fragrance with lingering sweetness. Potatoes     6    (grow)in Dingxi have a high starch content(淀粉含量), making hand-pulled noodles have a chewy texture. It is these authentic ingredients     7     lay the foundation for Tianshui malatang to stand out.

With the drive of the “malatang economy”, the export orders of Gansu local agriculture     8    (product)are also increasing. It seems that food has     9     (apparent)become a new hot spot for small Chinese cities to catch the spotlight on social media platforms. The Tianshui government is also seizing every opportunity     10    (promote)Tianshui development with a small bowl of malatang.

9 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

China is now pursuing high-quality development, which has been boosted by “new quality productive forces” and new innovations. This is not a bolt from the blue; instead, it has been conditioned by internal and external     1     (factor).

Internally, China is pursuing high-quality, innovation-driven development. From the 1980s to the 2010s, China’s GDP grew at     2     average rate of more than 9 percent per year. While the development of China’s agricultural and industrial sectors has reached     3     (high) levels, the development of the service sector has opened the door to grander achievements.

Externally, global tensions have motivated China     4     (focus) on high-quality development, particularly to become self-reliant in key sectors and attain strategic sovereignty.

From 2021 onwards, China     5     (conduct) the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) for Economic and Social Development and Long-Range Objectives through the Year 2035,     6     focuses on innovation-driven development.

The previous five-year plans     7     (build) the base, the 14th Five-Year Plan has set eyes     8     new horizons because it is the first five-year plan after China achieved the goal of building a     9     (moderate) prosperous society in all respects.

China is aware of the importance of boosting domestic     10     (consume), and has taken measures to that end in order to balance the domestic and foreign aspects of development.