1 . You wouldn’t steal a car. You would never rob a bank or pick someone’s pocket. But you may be another kind of thief.
If you have ever bought a disc for 15 yuan or less, then you have helped to rob artists or musicians of their intellectual properly rights (知识产权).
Last Thursday was World Intellectual Property Day. Activities to tell people about intellectual property rights were held around the country.
Intellectual property includes inventions, literary (文学的) and artistic works, names, and pictures. They are of little value if they are not read, seen and used.
While the cost of copying discs is very small, authors, singers and actors have to spend a lot of money and time making a new product. That’s why they have the right to make money from their work.
So buying pirated (盗版的) music of Jay Chou and Jolin Tsai is like stealing from them, paying them no respect for their hard work.
If Jay Chou cannot make money from his work, he may not make anything else. But those who make pirated goods are becoming rich without doing any hard work.
The authors should ask for a fair price for their work. Earlier this year there was much talk about how much KTV clubs should pay the music companies for using their songs.
The copyright fee also should be fair to the users. That’s good for the music’s popularity and society as well.
1. What is the author’s attitude towards protecting intellectual property rights?| A．He is for it. | B．He is against it. |
| C．He doesn’t care about it. | D．The article doesn’t tell us. |
| A．Inventions. | B．Literary and artistic works. |
| C．Names and pictures. | D．Pirated music. |
| A．Authors should ask for a high price for their work. |
| B．The copyright fee should be fair to users. |
| C．Authors, singers and actors have no right to make money from their work. |
| D．Buying pirated music by Jay Chou is very good. |
| A．Rob a Bank | B．Copyright Fees |
| C．Say No to pirated Music | D．World Intellectual Property Day |
2 . The recent reports of a 4-year-old girl on a Shanghai beach have gone viral on social media platforms, provoking debate about whether China should criminalize negligence in child supervision.
The father of the little girl claimed that he left her alone on the beach for about 12 minutes to fetch his phone. However, she was nowhere to be found when he was back. Surveillance (监控) videos show that she waited for about 10 minutes before walking toward the water’s edge alone, and then disappeared into the water. Two weeks later, her body was discovered about 100 kilometers away in neighboring Zhejiang Province.
The core issue in this case is the father’s leaving his young daughter unattended on the beach, causing her tragic death. Should such behavior, when it causes harm to a child, be seen as a criminal act? In an online survey, more than 90 percent of respondents insisted that the father be held legally responsible and face criminal punishments.
Nevertheless, according to Liu Chunquan, a lawyer, it may not satisfy the criteria for criminal negligence, since the primary focus of Chinese criminal law is on extreme cases of parental neglect, such as physical abuse and mental torture. Rarely do legal authorities charge parents; instead, they are just likely to face penalties consisting of warnings and fines.
In 2022, a 2-year-old baby drowned in a cesspool while in the company of his father. The court ruled shared responsibility between the father and the cesspool’s owner, with a 7:3 proportion. The owner was ordered to pay 20,000 yuan to the child’s family. Unluckily, similar cases do exist nationwide. Roughly, 100,000 children lose their lives in accidents annually in China, which is largely due to negligence, such as parents leaving their children unattended, either in locked cars or at home. Besides, drowning is now the main cause of death for children aged 1 to 14 years old.
It is no wonder that an increasing number of netizens request that specific laws and regulations be passed to ensure the safety of children and their well-being. Hopefully, criminalizing child supervision negligence in China can serve as a warning and precaution.
However, downsides of introducing such legislation may also emerge. For instance, it’s difficult to distinguish between a regrettable accident and criminal negligence, so that over-criminalization can be triggered, in which well-meaning parents making honest mistakes are charged with a crime.
Therefore, a more balanced approach to addressing the issue of infant safety should involve a combination of new legislation, education and support services. The ultimate objective is to prevent similar catastrophes in the future. We must recognize that children are not only their parents’ offspring, but also the nation’s future.
1. What can we infer from the tragedy of the 4-year-old girl?| A．Her father’s carelessness and negligence should be to blame. |
| B．The beach in Shanghai should not be open to small children. |
| C．Her father has been sentenced to severe penalties by the police. |
| D．She would have survived if she had not waited in the water for a long time. |
| A．Irresponsible adults contribute to children’s death. | B．People can’t be too concerned about child safety. |
| C．Kids shouldn’t be allowed to swim alone. | D．Parents’ constant monitoring is a must. |
| A．the mild penalties in the existing laws | B．parents’ ignorance of potential dangers |
| C．frequent occurrence of such incidents | D．masses of netizens’ urgent appeals |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Negative. | C．Objective. | D．Supportive. |
1. What is the speaker?
| A．A policewoman. | B．A school teacher. | C．A guide. |
| A．3. | B．4. | C．5. |
| A．Over 18. | B．Under 16. | C．Over 16. |
| A．There are so many traffic accidents. |
| B．The traffic moves on the left side of the road. |
| C．We should not move on the left side of the road. |
4 . France is fighting food waste with firm determination. A new law has been passed in the country that will ban grocery stores from throwing away unsold food. If it’s still safe to eat, the food must be donated to charity; if not, it goes to farmers for use as animal feed.
Supermarkets will no longer be allowed to destroy unsold food by intention in order to prevent people from eating it. There are many people who forage for food in dumpsters behind stores, wanting to take advantage of the perfectly safe food that gets thrown away on a daily basis. Food waste is a global problem. It is reported that the average French person throws out 20 to 30 kilograms of food a year — 7 kg of which is still in its wrapping.
Not everyone is happy about the new legislation.
A group of food foragers stated their concerns in an open letter: “Food waste is a deep problem.” They are worried that it creates the illusion of doing one’s part — a “false and dangerous idea of a magic solution” — while failing to address the deeper reasons for such waste.
“The fight against food waste is everyone’s business, but we can’t win it unless we completely change the structures within our food system that are responsible for this waste.”
The supermarkets aren’t pleased because their food waste represents only 5 to 10 percent of the 7.1 million tons of food wasted annually in France. By contrast, restaurants waste 15 percent and consumers 67 percent. “The law is wrong in both target and intent,” argues Jacques Creyssel, head of the distribution organization for big supermarkets. “Big stores are already the major food donors.”
Despite the naysayers, France’s new law is a move in the right direction. Wasting food absolutely needs to become a socially abhorrent thing to do. If legislation is what’s needed to get people thinking about conservation, then it’s not a bad thing.
1. What should we do about unsafe food that is unsold in grocery stores?| A．Sell it at a discount. | B．Donate it to charity. |
| C．Use it as animal feed. | D．Destroy it on purpose. |
| A．They are greatly concerned about the law. |
| B．They have addressed the main cause of such waste. |
| C．They want to change the structures of our food system. |
| D．They think fighting against food waste is their business. |
| A．About 1 million tons. | B．About 4 million tons. |
| C．About 5 million tons. | D．About 7.1 million tons. |
| A．Critical. | B．Indifferent. | C．Supportive. | D．Disappointed. |
1.成都已经在今年3月1日正式实行垃圾分类；
2.简要介绍垃圾分类（厨余垃圾，可回收垃圾，有害垃圾和其他垃圾）；
3.你对该政策的看法。
参考词汇：垃圾分类 trash/waste/garbage sorting
有害垃圾 hazardous waste
厨余垃圾 kitchen waste
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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6 . Bringing goods into the UK
You are allowed to bring some goods for personal use without paying tax or duty.
Arrivals from EU countries
You can bring goods from EU countries without being charged tax or duty if they are:
● transported by yourself; ● a gift or for personal use; ● bought with tax and duty included.
You can bring alcohol and tobacco from EU countries without restriction but an inquiry(调查) might be required depending on the amount of your goods.
Arrivals from outside the EU
You will be free of duty or tax on certain amounts of goods brought from outside the EU, as long as they are for your own use. Any goods that are beyond your allowance should be declared.
Alcohol & tobacco allowance:
| Type of goods | Cigarettes | Cigars | Tobacco | Beer | Wine(not sparkling wine) | Spirits | Alcoholic drinks |
| Amount | 200 | 50 | 250 grams | 16 litres | 4 litres | 1 litre | 2 litres |
Allowance for other goods:
The maximum value of other goods you can bring is £390. Any single item that is worth more than the allowance will be charged duty or tax on its full value.
The rate of duty or tax on items above the allowance is:
● 2.5% for goods worth up to £630;
● decided by the type of goods worth above £630 — check by calling the VAT, Customs.
Banned and restricted goods
Goods banned include:
● illegal drugs; ● offensive weapons; ● endangered animal and plant species;
● meat and dairy(乳制的) products from most non-EU countries.
Food and plant products restricted include:
● products containing pests and diseases; ● products grown outside the EU;
● products not for your own use.
1. Which of the following products from outside the EU has the largest duty-free allowance?| A．Beer. |
| B．Wine (not sparkling wine). |
| C．Spirits. |
| D．Alcoholic drinks. |
| A．£ 2.75 | B．£ 12.5 | C．£ 110 | D．£ 130 |
| A．A set of Russian dolls. |
| B．A bottle of French wine. |
| C．A brick of Japanese cheese. |
| D．A package of Spanish cigarettes. |
7 . Suppose your permanent residence, or hukou, was in Chongqing, you worked in Beijing and you needed to get a passport for a business trip abroad. What should you do?
You have to go back to Chongqing, which is 1,500km away, and apply to local public security authorities for the passport, because in China public services are closely linked to hukou. But a new regulation, which is part of the hukou reform, will make this annoying experience a thing of the past.
The regulation targets China’s newly introduced residence permit system, which will take effect on Jan 1, 2016. It allows people who don’t have local hukou to receive more access to basic public services in the cities where they are living. These include education, basic employment services, automobile registration, and passport and ID card application processing.
You can apply for a residence permit at the local police station, which has jurisdiction (管辖权) over the area where you live. The documents needed for the permit application include your ID card, photos and materials that prove that you have a job, a place to live, or that you are studying at an education institution.
To certify that you have a place to live, a house rental contract or property ownership certificate will do. For employment, a business license, job contract, or employment certificate can do the trick. If you are a student applying for the permit, show your student card or other documentation issued by your school.
Despite all this, maybe you are still not happy about not having a local hukou. Don’t worry. People will have a chance, as the country is reforming the hukou system further.
1. What is the purpose of the first 2 paragraphs?| A．To introduce the topic of the passage. | B．To emphasize the focus of the passage. |
| C．To summarize the main idea of the passage. | D．To arouse the readers’ interest of reading |
| A．receive more access to basic public services |
| B．provide proofs of identification |
| C．present a house rental contract |
| D．show your student card or other documentation |
| A．apply | B．prove | C．permit | D．test |
| A．China plans to create a new hukou system |
| B．Getting a hukou may be easier with new policies |
| C．Other reforms that will bring people more happiness |
| D．People will not need hukou in China soon. |
8 . New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has signed an order allowing online marriages, as many weddings are cancelled under lockdown restrictions.
From now on, people in the US state will be able to apply for marriage licences remotely and clerks allowed to conduct ceremonies online
Mr Cuomo joked that the decision meant there was now “no excuse” for couples not to tie the knot.
“You can do it by Zoom. Yes or no?” he said in his briefing on Saturday.
The decision comes after New York state extended lockdown measures until May 15. More than 13,000 people have died of coronavirus in New York city alone.
Social media reaction to the decision was mixed. Some questioned why couples would choose to hold weddings when their families and friends are unable to join them, or criticised the governor for not prioritising other decisions. But others pointed out that during a pandemic (流行病), marriage could offer practical benefits, such as allowing couples to share health insurance coverage.
New York isn’t the first place to turn to the internet to offer a legal solution. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) recently announced that citizens and residents would be allowed to get married online, after the justice ministry created a website for couples to submit required documents. A virtual ceremony, complete with a registrar and witnesses, can then take place. Similar measures have been introduced in the US state of Colorado, where couples are being allowed to apply for marriage licences online.
Meanwhile, one county in Ohio is allowing people to obtain marriage licences online in limited circumstances, such as when one of the partners is a health care worker, suffers from a serious illness or has health insurance issues.
1. Why was an order allowing online marriage signed by New York governor?| A．Because people preferred to apply for marriage license online. |
| B．Because under lockdown restrictions, many weddings can’t be held. |
| C．Because there was no excuse for couples not to get married. |
| D．Because it was new fashion to conduct wedding ceremonies virtually. |
| A．All people are in favor of the decision. |
| B．No one except young people likes the decision. |
| C．Not all people are for the decision. |
| D．All people are against the decision. |
| A．California. | B．Ohio. | C．Florida. | D．Colorado. |
| A．In New York all people can apply for marriage licenses online. |
| B．In Colorado all people can apply for marriage licenses online. |
| C．In Ohio all people can apply for marriage licenses online. |
| D．In New York state people have to stay home until May 15. |
9 . In England and Wales, motorists will face stronger punishments for driving under the influence of drugs as new laws take effect on Monday.
Drivers will be accused if they are caught going over the new legal limits for eight illegal drugs and eight prescription drugs.
Police will use ‘drugalysers’ to screen for cannabis and cocaine at the roadside, and they will be able to test for other drugs including ecstasy, LSD, ketamine and heroin at a police station. The Department of Transport (DoT) hopes to roll out more comprehensive roadside drugalysers at a later date.
People using prescription drugs, including morphine and methadone, will not be punished as long as levels are below those defined by the new law. The levels for illegal drugs are set much lower, with even a small amount leading to accusation.
The new law will complement existing rules, which make it an offence to drive when influenced by any drug.
A crime for drug-driving will lead to a minimum one-year driving ban, a fine of up to £5,000 ($7,700, 6,860 euros), up to six months in prison and a criminal record, the DoT said.
The offender’s driving licence will also highlight the drug-driving crime for 11 years.
1. What’s the function of drugalysers ?| A．To examine the cannabis and cocaine . | B．To help the police to arrest the criminals. |
| C．To show how dangerous drug-driving is. | D．To help the drivers drive within the limits. |
| A．Which drivers should be fined. | B．Prescription drugs are used legally. |
| C．How long a driver may be stopped driving. | D．In which situation drivers can not be punished. |
| A．They need record the criminal. | B．They can get as much as £5,000. |
| C．They must stop driving for at least one year . | D．They must work in the prison up to six months. |
| A．The laws in England and wales. | B．The drugalysers along the roadside. |
| C．New drug-driving laws have taken effect. | D．The reasons why the drivers will be punished. |
10 . Many cities and towns have laws that require people to recycle paper and plastics. Now some state and local governments have passed laws that require citizens to recycle their food waste as well. California and Vermont have statewide laws about recycling food waste that apply to businesses and homes. The process of recycling food waste and turning it into usable soil is called composting (堆制肥料).
Food waste that can be composted includes fruit and vegetable peels, coffee grounds, tea bags, and eggshells. Garden waste such as stems and leaves can also be composted. Meat, fish, and dairy food waste cannot be recycled.
According to environmental groups, composting reduces the amount of trash going into landfills, and composted waste holds a wide range of nutrients (营养物). When compost is added to the soil in gardens and fields, it helps crops grow.
Reducing the amount of waste that goes into landfills is one reason why cities and states are passing food-waste recycling laws. “Our landfills are far from enough for the creation of new ones is shrinking.” Renee Crowley, a project manager at the Lower East Side Ecology Center in New York City, told TFK.
Officials in Seattle, Washington, say that food waste makes up 30% of the trash going into landfills, and they are looking to reduce that percentage. That city has a law requiring people to recycle food waste. It is banned from all garbage. There is a fine (罚款) for people who put it into regular garbage.
Those who are against food-recycling laws say that the composting process is costly. In addition, it can be difficult for people who live in apartments to store their waste because they don’t have access to outside storage bins. Patti Ferguson from Orange County, California, told her local newspaper that she thought an indoor container containing food waste would get smelly.
1. What do we know about composting from the text?| A．Leaves can’t be reused. | B．Not all food waste can be composted. |
| C．It is cheap to compost food waste. | D．It is usually processed in empty landfills. |
| A．Benefits of recycling food waste. | B．Ways of keeping nutrients in the soil. |
| C．Ways of reducing the amount of trash. | D．Examples of different useful nutrients. |
| A．acceptable | B．shameful | C．required | D．illegal |
| A．Thankful. | B．Negative. | C．Uncaring. | D．Supportive. |
