宜昌市协作体高三期中考试
英 语
考生注意：
1.本试卷分选择题和非选择题两部分。满分150分，考试时间120分钟。
2.答题前，考生务必用直径0.5毫米黑色墨水签字笔将密封线内项目填写清楚。
3.考生作答时，请将答案答在答题卡上。选择题每小题选出答案后，用2B铅笔把答题卡上对应题目的答案标号涂黑；非选择题请用直径0.5毫米黑色墨水签字笔在答题卡上各题的答题区域内作答，超出答题区域书写的答案无效，在试题卷、草稿纸上作答无效。
4.本卷命题范围：人教版必修第一册~必修第三册 Unit 2。
第一部分 听力（共两节，满分30分）
第一节（共5小题；每小题1.5分，满分7.5分）
听下面5段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听完每段对话后，你都有10秒钟的时间来回答有关小题和阅读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。
1. Where will the family spend their summer holiday
A. In Japan. B. In Canada. C. In Australia.
2. How much should the man pay
A. $16. B. $20. C. $32.
3. What does the woman suggest the man do
A. Move out of the house. B. Turn down his friend. C. Eat out with her alone.
4. What does the woman mean
A. She will take the job.
B. She doesn’t like the job at all.
C. She will learn more about the job.
5. What are the speakers mainly talking about
A. A book. B. A movie. C. A writer.
第二节（共15小题；每小题1.5分，满分22.5分）
听下面5段对话或独白。每段对话或独白后有几个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听每段对话或独白前，你将有时间阅读各个小题，每小题5秒钟；听完后，各小题将给出5秒钟的作答时间。每段对话或独白读两遍。
听第6段材料，回答第6、7题。
6. What does the man advise the woman to do
A. Order a skirt. B. Take the brown bag. C. Buy a necklace.
7. Where are the speakers
A. At home. B. In a shop. C. In Jane’s house.
听第7段材料，回答第8、9题。
8. What is the woman looking for
A. Her ticket. B. Her luggage. C. Her telephone.
9. What is the woman asked to do
A. Report to the police. B. Book another flight. C. Leave her phone number.
听第8段材料，回答第10至12题。
10. Why does the woman look worried
A. She had an argument with her boss.
B. She is angry with her children.
C. She will be late for work.
11. What did Alice’s boss do in the end
A. He adjusted the new policy.
B. He helped the woman find a school.
C. He asked the employees to arrive earlier.
12. What’s the relationship between the speakers
A. Friends. B. A couple. C. Boss and worker.
听第9段材料，回答第13至16题。
13. What is the man doing
A. Hosting a program. B. Introducing a course. C. Investigating a complaint.
14. How many weeks will the summer course run this year
A. Six. B. Seven. C. Eight.
15. What was wrong with the course last year
A. The assistants were unskilled.
B. The weather was not good.
C. Two schools delayed their holidays.
16. Which activities will be added this year
A. Fun programs. B. Adventure sports. C. Creative classes.
听第10段材料，回答第17至20题。
17. What was difficult for the speaker when she started learning French
A. Grammar， B. Pronunciation. C. Vocabulary.
18. Why did the speaker go to France
A. To visit her friends. B. To look for a job. C. To continue her study.
19. How might the speaker feel after she arrived in France
A. Helpless. B. Amazed. C. Proud.
20. What is the most important in learning a language according to the speaker
A. Mastering the grammar. B. Knowing a lot of words. C. Using it in daily life.
第二部分 阅读（共两节，满分50分）
第一节（共15小题；每小题2.5分，满分37.5分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出最佳选项。
A
Containing half of the world’s geothermal(地热的) features, Yellowstone provides one-of-a-kind classroom-based or experiential education. Here are some you can learn about using the park as a classroom.
A Bear’s Menu
Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade
Subjects: Math, Science
Working in small groups, students examine the feeding habits of bears and paint pictures to show what bears do in spring, summer, fall and winter. Students use a small pattern of a bear and increase its size to construct a full-size one in order to appreciate the bear’s size.
Waters of Life: Survey of a Riparian Area
Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade
Subject: Science
In this outdoor science activity, students investigate plants and animal life in and around a lake. Students work in groups, with each group member performing a different task: observing, recording, mapping or classifying. Finally, the team put the information together to make conclusions about the ecological connections that exist within the area surveyed.
Expedition Yellowstone: Field School
Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade
Subjects: Literacy and Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies
This 4- to 5-day residential curriculum-based program is offered for teachers and their classes. Students learn about the natural and cultural history of Yellowstone, investigate current issues affecting the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, and promote preservation in the park and in home communities. Emphasis is on learning through direct experience in the outdoors. Students participate with teachers or parents in hikes, field investigations and discussions.
Dueling Mandates(指令)
High School: Ninth Grade through Twelfth Grade
Subject: Social Studies
Using cards describing g some of the issues affecting Yellowstone National Park, students work in small groups to consider management issues that meet both of the conflicting mandates that the National Park Service must follow. Students will explore the complexities involved in making management decisions and discover the far-reaching consequences of park management decisions.
21. What can students do at A Bear’s Menu
A. Feed bears. B. Construct a house.
C. Take an exam. D. Draw pictures about bears.
22. In which activity can students learn about the cultural history of Yellowstone
A. A Bear’s Menu. B. Expedition Yellowstone: Field School.
C. Dueling Mandates. D. Waters of Life: Survey of a Riparian Area.
23. What is special about Dueling Mandates
A. It requires parents’ company. B. It lasts the longest.
C. It targets high school students. D. It has far-reaching effects.
B
Visitors will be able to get close to—and even touch—100 life-size sculptures of Indian elephants which are beginning a cross-country journey that aims to raise awareness about conservation. The real-life elephants of the sculptures are personally known to The Coexistence Collective—the community of around 200 artists in southern India who made them.
The sculptures can be seen in Newport, Rhode Island through early September. From there they will head to New York City, Miami, the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana and finally Los Angeles.
The organization is planning to sell the elephants off to raise funds for 22 conservation organizations around the country as the tour progresses. Organizers said 30 sculptures had already been sold off, with prices ranging from $8,000 for a baby elephant to $22,000 for an adult. In Newport, the profit will go to Save the Bay, which works to remove foreign grasses from local wetlands in order to restore the habitats for the birds there.
The enormous life-like sculptures are made out of lantana—a tough foreign grass that’s been encroaching upon the elephants’ natural forest habitat, pushing the animals onto tea and coffee farms where their coexistence with humans has become a genuine challenge.
“Lantana has displaced animals across huge areas in India, because it takes over from herbs and bushes that are food for animals,” said Tarsh Thekaekara, a wildlife conservationist specializing in human-elephant relations. “40 to 50% of many Indian parks are taken over by it.”
Tarsh Thekaekara also hopes that visitors will learn more about how important it is for animals and humans to negotiate shared space, as more places become uninhabitable for both owing to direct human destruction and the impacts of human-caused climate change.
24. What can we learn about the exhibition
A. Its first stop will be in New York City.
B. It includes 100 real elephants from India.
C. The sculptures will be sold at the same price.
D. All the exhibits are based on identified elephants.
25. Which best explains the underlined phrase “encroaching upon” in paragraph 4
A. Restoring. B. Damaging. C. Dividing. D. Restricting.
26. What is Tarsh Thekaekara mainly worried about according to paragraph 5
A. Public parks in India. B. Impacts of climate change.
C. A harmful foreign grass. D. Human-elephant coexistence.
27. Where is the text most probably taken from
A. A news report. B. A guidebook to an exhibition.
C. An advertisement. D. An introduction to an organization.
C
For the technically minded, GPT-4o is a significant change. Before it, the primary way of interacting with ChatGPT was to type text-based questions and wait for text-based responses. Although a voice assistant was available, it was painfully slow and unnatural. I have tried, in recent months, to get ChatGPT to help me learn German. But the delays between me asking questions and ChatGPT’s response, often in incomprehensible and unaccented American English, made it next to useless.
By contrast, the live-streamed demonstration published earlier this week, showed that the new AI model could analyze code, translate languages between two speakers or guide users through a basic math problem written down on a piece of paper, all seemingly in real time. It even laughed in response to a joke. According to its maker, OpenAI, this is the new normal: an AI model that can reason across audio, vision and text in real time. It appears to be another significant step towards turning science fiction into science fact.
That’s great news for OpenAI, a company already valued at more than $ 80 billion. It’s also good news for others in the AI industry who are trying to apply it into every aspect of our lives.
But it’s less good for ordinary users. The ease to use helps us forget its original name, dating back to 1956: artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence is certainly artificial. It’s not yet intelligent—and arguably never will be even if the smooth interactivity that OpenAI has laboured hard to enable does well to paper over the cracks of the underlying technology.
When ChatGPT first made its appearance in November 2022, those who had been following the technology for decades pointed out that AI in its current form was little more than pattern-matching technology.
So try ChatGPT by all means, and play about with its voice and video interactions. But bear in mind its limitations, and that this thing isn’t intelligent, but it certainly is artificial, no matter how much it pretends not to be.
28. What does the author think of the AI models before GPT-4o
A. Dangerous. B. Intelligent. C. Convenient. D. Unhelpful.
29. What is the second paragraph mainly about
A. The new trend of AI models. B. GPT-4o’s improved functions.
C. GPT-4o’s possible applications. D. Doubts about the new AI model.
30. When did the term “artificial intelligence” come into existence
A. In the 1950s. B. In the 1960s. C. In the 2000s. D. In the 2020s.
31. What does the author imply in the last paragraph
A. AI will be smarter than humans. B. We should stay away from ChatGPT.
C. We shouldn’t be too optimistic about AI. D. ChatGPT will be more intelligent in the future.
D
The idea that birth order influences a child’s personality might be as old as people themselves. Many modern scientists still refuse to break up with the popular theory. Frank Sulloway is one of them. In the 1990s and 2000s, he claimed that he found a tendency for conservative research among famous firstborn scientists while more radical(激进的) research, such as the theory of evolution and relativity, was more common among famous scientists born later in their families. He also found similar differences among military and political leaders.
But more recent studies throw cold water on the theory. Rodica Damian, a professor of psychology at the University of Houston, conducted one of the largest such studies in 2015, using data from over 440,000 US high school students. After controlling for socioeconomic status, sex and age, the study showed that the association between birth order and personality was as close to zero. Another 2015 study confirmed Damian’s findings. After analyzing three nationally representative samples from the US, the UK and Germany, the researchers wrote, “We consistently found no birth-order effects on personality.”
However, both teams did find evidence for one quality that would please the firstborns: The studies each showed that they were slightly more likely to have higher verbal intelligence.
“This doesn’t necessarily mean that firstborns are smarter or learn more easily,” Damian wrote. “More likely, it’s because firstborns spend more time around adults in their early childhood.”
Then why does the birth order theory still appeal to the public as well as some researchers
“Part of the reason may have to do with our own experiences that will always appear to support it,” Damian explained. “Firstborns usually seem to be more responsible because they are more developmentally mature.”
Indeed, the science of personality development is anything but settled. Modern research using twin studies suggests that personality formation is about 40 percent due to DNA. The rest may be a matter of a complex combination of environment and cultural practices that help shape the personality with which we’re born.
32. Which statement might Frank Sulloway agree with according to the text
A. Young scientists are more creative.
B. Firstborns are more likely to take risks.
C. The theory of relativity was once considered radical.
D. We shouldn’t trust radical military and political leaders.
33. What did the two 2015 studies find
A. Firstborns had much higher verbal intelligence.
B. Birth order hardly had an effect on personality.
C. Birth order affected children’s emotional intelligence.
D. Firstborns enjoyed spending more time around adults.
34. What can be inferred about firstborns from paragraph 4
A. They are cleverer and can learn much faster.
B. They are more talkative than the younger ones.
C. They are usually more responsible and successful.
D. They usually get more attention from the family.
35. According to the twin studies, personality is .
A. influenced by a series of factors B. usually decided by the environment
C. decisively shaped by cultural practices D. mainly determined by the biological factors
第二节（共5小题；每小题2.5分，满分12.5分）
阅读下面短文，从短文后的选项中选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。
Staying focused can be a challenge even when you are doing one thing at a time. 36 , concentrating might appear impossible. Here are a few strategies that can really help you.
Unfocus your brain. 37 . It’s a place where your unfocused mind often make better decisions. This involves pairing your daydreaming with some unimportant activities such as walking and gardening. Doing this several times a day can offer your mind a fresh approach to the job at hand.
Block interruptions before diving into important work. Our days are filled with distractions( 干扰),from others and ourselves. To help, turn off text messaging and social media notifications. Pretty basic 38 .When distracting interruptions are shut off, your brain will get a chance to complete full sentences of thought.
39 . Do you feel more sharp-minded in the morning Or are you more clear-minded late in the night Either way, it doesn’t matter as long as you can do the most important tasks when your brain is at its best performance. Avoid spending your best brain hours doing unimportant work. Instead, reserve it for the big tasks.
Try new hobbies. Hobbies not only give you fun, but also help you come up with creative solutions to problems you’re facing at work or home. 40
A. Release your mind occasionally
B. Make friends with your body clock
C. If you purposefully let your mind wander
D. Then with multiple tasks going on in the world
E. Sure, but they are vital when you want a deep dive into focus
F. So occasionally engage in your favorite activities to unload your stressed brain
G. Schedule into your workday some breaks to let your mind wander into a dreamland
第三部分 语言运用（共两节，满分30分）
第一节（共15小题；每小题1分，满分15分）
阅读下面短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
When Karl Goldstein was a kid, he took piano lessons every Saturday morning with a family friend. But when Goldstein was 12, his teacher told his 41 that he needed better instruction. So his mother took him to a music school, and 42 for classes taught by Alice Shapiro who was known for being 43 .On the first day, she told Goldstein that he had to memorize the 44 of the Beethoven Sonata within a week.
“Well, I don’t think I can do that,” Goldstein hesitated.
“But you must do it,” the teacher said 45 .
This was nothing like his 46 Saturday mornings with his former teacher, and it wasn’t 47 before Goldstein decided that he didn’t want to take piano lessons anymore. He 48 he’d pick up another instrument, or maybe just 49 himself the piano after the semester.
But a few words of encouragement from the music teacher changed Goldstein’s 50 . One day, Shapiro turned to him and said something 51 , “I am really happy that you have made remarkable progress within such a short time! I am sure you’re not going to 52 .”
The encouragement transformed their relationship 53 and it was the beginning of a long and 54 relationship.
“Years later, I became a piano teacher and that’s what I’ve been doing for the past 50 years. I 55 it all to the precious moment with my seemingly tough teacher, Alice Shapiro.”
41. A. students B. coworkers C. children D. parents
42. A. dropped in B. signed up C. rushed out D. packed up
43. A. tough B. kind C. generous D. selfish
44. A. vocabulary B. brochure C. music D. address
45. A. sharply B. carelessly C. gently D. patiently
46. A. cold B. lighthearted C. short D. unpleasant
47. A. easy B. acceptable C. long D. affordable
48. A. realized B. acknowledged C. pretended D. figured
49. A. buy B. teach C. give D. tell
50. A. mind B. habit C. tune D. goal
51. A. amusing B. alarming C. surprising D. annoying
52. A. argue B. cry C. run D. stop
53. A. occasionally B. magically C. unwillingly D. eagerly
54. A. fruitful B. difficult C. romantic D. distant
55. A. refer B. prefer C. owe D. bring
第二节（共10小题；每小题1.5分，满分15分）
阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。
Such scenes of excitement—thundering drums, yelling crowds and energetic boatmen— 56 (be)no not rare across China on Duanwu, or Dragon Boat Festival, 57 falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month each year.
Although tales of its origin differ, the two-thousand-year-old festival is widely celebrated 58 memory of Qu Yuan, a great poet during the Warring States Period (475—221 BC).
When Qu realized his country’s decline was beyond recovery, he became so unhappy that he killed 59 (he) on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. Legend has it that the locals rowed boats to save the poet and threw zongzi, or sticky rice dumplings, into the river to keep fish from eating his body. 60 tradition was passed down in China and even traveled across borders.
A host of other 61 (practice) are also associated with Duanwu. The fifth day of the fifth month is considered unlucky and 62 (poison). To drive away the bad luck, many people, 63 (especial) those in th China, take herbal baths and hang special plants over their doors. Some people even wear little bags 64 (stuff) with Chinese herbs, all with nice smells, 65 (scare) away the bad spirits.
第四部分 写作（共两节，满分40分）
第一节（满分15分）
假定你是李华，在英语学习方面有不少困惑。请你给外教Mr Brown写封邮件寻求帮助。内容包括：
1.简述主要问题；
2.请求给出建议；
3.表示感谢。
注意：1.写作词数应为80个左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Dear Mr Brown,
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
第二节（满分25分）
阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。
“Daddy, I want to ask your permission to study in America,” I said to my father a few months before my graduation from high school. But hardly before I finished, he shouted, “No!”
“But why ” I replied. “If you are worried about money, it will be OK since I have got a scholarship...”
But he refused to give in. At the moment, I didn’t know what to say. For more than two years, I had been working very hard to pass all the necessary examinations. I had not told my father because I wanted to give him a pleasant surprise. I thought he would be very proud of me because it was many of my classmates’ parents’ dream to send their children to study abroad.
“Why do I have to get your permission I am already 18 and I’m not a kid anymore,” I said angrily and rushed to my bedroom, shutting the door violently. Blinded by anger, I found that I could not stay at my hometown any longer. Late that night, I slipped out of the house and decided to take the bus to the railway station to start my own life as far away from my home as possible.
The bus stop was just two blocks away from my home. When I got there, I found that I forgot to take any money with me and missed the last bus. I did not want to go back home, so I sat down on the bench and closed my eyes to have a break.
Suddenly, I was woken up by my phone. I looked around and found the road was deserted and the street was so quiet that I regretted that I had left home in such a hurry. I picked up the phone and answered the phone even without checking the number.
“Have you had a good sleep It’s going to rain. Shall we go home now ”
注意：1.续写词数应为150个左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
It was my father’s voice!
I grabbed my bag and hurried toward him.
宜昌市协作体高三期中考试·英语
参考答案、提示及评分细则
听力部分录音稿
（Text 1）
M: Are you going to spend the summer in Australia
W: No. I planned to go to Canada, but my children begged me to take them to Japan. I agreed.
（Text 2）
M: Excuse me, do you have any tickets left for the concert tonight
W: Yes. They are $ 16 each. Um... how many would you like
M: Two, please.
（Text 3）
W: What’s the matter with you, Jack
M: Brian phoned me today. He was wondering whether I could help him move house on Saturday.
W: I’d rather you didn’t. It’s Mum’s birthday and I thought we could take her out for the day.
（Text 4）
M: Have you decided to take that summer job you were offered
W: Well, I want more information before I accept it.
（Text 5）
M: God! I’m glad that’s over.
W: So you don’t like it It’s based on a novel written by a famous writer.
M: No, I think the story, the dialogue and the whole thing about the war are hard to understand.
W: But the leading actor is my favorite.
（Text 6）
W: Hi, I’m looking for a dress for Jane’s party this evening. Can you give me some advice
M: How do you like this skirt It goes well with your skin.
W: Really OK, I would try it.
M: And I believe this necklace would make you more attractive.
W: OK. Should I take a bag with me
M: Of course.
W: How about the brown bag you and I bought last week
M: I can’t agree more. And hurry up, Grandma is waiting for us.
W: OK.
（Text 7）
W: Hi, I just arrived on Flight 245 from London. I waited until all the luggage came out, but my suitcase wasn’t there.
M: Well, I guess it might have been put on the wrong flight. There’s a chance it won’t arrive until tomorrow.
W: Tomorrow
M: I’m very sorry about this. Leave us a phone number so that we can reach you, and the airline will call you as soon as we get your suitcase.
（Text 8）
M: Hi, Jean. You look worried. Is everything OK
W: Well, my new boss is expecting us to start work at 8 o’clock in the morning. But I have to take our children to school. That means
I’ll be late for work. And you can’t spare any time to do it.
M: Oh, dear... er... but not a surprise. My friend Alice had a similar problem last year.
W: How did she settle it
M: She didn’t do anything at first. But in the end she told it to her boss. He said he hadn’t realized the early start would present a problem and he agreed to let them start half an hour late.
W: That’s great. Perhaps I should deal with it the same way.
（Text 9）
M: Hello, everyone. We are lucky to have Molly Taylor here today. Molly is organizing an activity course for the summer holidays. Molly, this is the second year of the course, isn’t it
W: Yes. The summer course operated for the first time last year for a six-week period. We did think about making it longer this year and have a seven-week course, as there’re some schools which finish term a week earlier. In fact, two schools have eight-week holidays. But in the end we decided to keep to the same plan as last year.
M: But, as I understand, last year’s course wasn’t a complete success, was it
W: Well, we were actually very surprised by the number of people interested in the course. We didn’t actually have enough assistants to look after all the children. Besides, there was such a lot of rain that we couldn’t go outside as often as we wanted to.
M: So, what activities can the children look forward to this year
W: Well, once again there’ll be artists and musicians who will lead creative classes. We also considered providing some more exciting adventure sports. But we decided not to, in the end. Instead we’re introducing some fun programs. I think it’ll be good fun for children.
（Text 10）
W: Pleased to be here today. My name’s Joan and I’d like to share with you something about my French learning. I still remember when I first started to learn the language, I didn’t really have a problem with the pronunciation. I just had a hard time memorizing words. But I made a great effort and soon I was scoring ten out of ten in all of the tests. By the time I got to university, I could do some writing and translations without much difficulty, and I actually enjoyed learning the grammar rules. Then as part of my university course I had to go and live in France for a year. As soon as I arrived, I realized I didn’t know how to order the type of coffee I liked, and trying to find somewhere to live or stay was something difficult to deal with. I called people about information in the paper, but I had to keep putting the phone down because I couldn’t understand a word they were saying—they all spoke so quickly! I could see then that there’s no point in just knowing words if you can’t hold a conversation with a native speaker. The ability to speak freely is what helps you get a job, hold a conversation or just buy things you need.
参考答案
1~5ACBCB 6~10BABCC 11~15ABAAB 16~20ACCAC
【答案与解析】
本篇是一篇应用文。文章主要介绍了黄石公园的教育活动资源。
21.D细节理解题。根据A Bear’s Menu中“Working in small groups, students examine the feeding habits of bears and paint pictures to show what bears do in spring, summer, fall and winter.”可知，在A Bear’s Menu活动中，学生可以画有关熊的画。
22.B 细节理解题。根据Expedition Yellowstone: Field School中“Students learn about the natural and cultural history of Yellowstone...”可知，在Expedition Yellowstone: Field School活动中，学生能了解到黄石公园的历史文化。
23.C 细节理解题。根据四个教育活动的介绍可知，最后一个活动针对的是高中生群体，其他活动针对的是初中生。
【答案与解析】
本文是一篇新闻报道。文章主要介绍了即将在Newport展出的一百个大象雕塑。
24.D 细节理解题。根据第一段“The real-life elephants of the sculptures are personally known to The Coexistence Collective—the community of around 200 artists in southern India who made them.”可知，这些艺术家都认识这些大象“模特”。
25.B 31词义猜测题。根据画线词后“... pushing the animals onto tea and coffee farms where their coexistence with humans has become a genuine challenge.”可推断，这些外来植物侵害了大象赖以生存的森林，故画线短语与 Damaging意思最接近。
26.C 细节理解题。通读第五段可知，Tarsh Thekaekara担心的是Lantana这种外来植物的入侵。
27.A 文章出处题。通读全文可知，本文是一篇新闻报道。文章主要介绍了一个即将来Newport的巡回展览。
【答案与解析】
本文是一篇夹叙夹议文。文章主要介绍了作者对AI的态度：以平常心待之。
28.D 细节理解题。根据第一段“But the delays between me asking questions and ChatGPT’s response... made it next to useless.”可知，作者认为此前的版本用处不大。
29.B 段落大意题。根据本段的细节及最后一句“It appears to be another significant step towards turning science fiction into science fact.”可知，这一段主要是介绍新模型的改进之处。
30.A 细节理解题。根据第四段“The ease to use helps us forget its original name, dating back to 1956...”可知，AI这个术语在二十世纪五十年代就出现了。
31.C 推理判断题。根据最后一段“But bear in mind its limitations,... it certainly is artificial, no matter how much it pretends not to be. ”可推断，作者认为人工智能终究只是人工智能，不要过度夸大它的能耐。
【答案与解析】
本文是一篇说明文。近年来的研究表明出生顺序对人的性格几乎没什么影响。
32.C 推理判断题。根据第一段“In the 1990s and 2000s, he claimed that he found a tendency for conservative research among famous firstborn scientists while more radical(激进的) research, such as the theory of evolution and relativity, was more common among famous scientists born later in their families.”可推断，Frank Sulloway可能会认为相对论比较激进。
33.B 细节理解题。根据第二段“After controlling for socioeconomic status, sex and age, the study showed that the association between birth order and personality was as close to zero. Another 2015 study confirmed Damian’s findings.”研究表明出生顺序和个性之间的联系接近于零；2015年另外一个研究证实了Damian的发现，可知答案。
34.D 推理判断题。根据第四段“‘More likely, it’s because firstborns spend more time around adults in their early childhood.’”可推断，第一胎能得到更多的关注。
35.A 细节理解题。通读最后一段可知，人的性格是遗传、环境及文化等多种因素相互作用的结果。
【答案与解析】
本文是一篇说明文。文章主要介绍了几个调整注意力的策略。
36.D根据空前“Staying focused can be a challenge even when you are doing one thing at a time.”及空后“concentrating might appear impossible.”可知，空项应该提到了同时注意多项工作的难处，故D项符合。
37.G 根据空后“It’s a place where your unfocused mind often make better decisions.”的定义可推断，空项提到了某种地方，故G项“每天都安排一些休息时间让大脑进入梦幻之地”符合。
38.E 根据空前的问句“Pretty basic ”可知，空项应该会解答这个疑惑，故E项“是的，尽管这些措施很简单，但却是保持注意力所必须的”符合。
39.B 这一节主要是讲我们应该把最重要的事安排在大脑最清醒的时间做，故B项“和你的生物钟做朋友”适合作本段主题句。
40.F 空前讲到了从事个人爱好活动对提高注意力的好处，故空项应该会呼吁这么做，故F项“因此，偶尔参加一些自己喜欢的活动让紧张的大脑松弛一下”符合。
【答案与解析】
本文是一篇记叙文。本文讲述了Karl Goldstein的音乐老师对他一生的影响。
41.D这位老师应该是向Karl Goldstein的父母（parents）提出建议的，因为Karl Goldstein那时候还小，教他的又是父母的朋友。而且，Karl Goldstein 的母亲马上就报名参加了（signed up）一所音乐学校的课程。
42.B 见上题解析。
43.A 根据下文“I it all to the precious moment with my seemingly tough teacher, Alice Shapiro.”可知，这位新老师以严厉（tough）著称。
44.C一入学，她就要求Karl Goldstein 背贝多芬奏鸣曲的乐谱（music）。
45.A 根据空前“But you must do it，...”可知，Alice Shapiro的口气非常严厉（sharply）。
46.B 毫无疑问，这和之前的轻松愉快的（lighthearted）学习气氛没得比。
47.C 不久（long），Karl Goldstein就不想上她的钢琴课了。此处考查句式“It was not long before...”，表示“没过多久就……”
48.D 他琢磨着（figured）另选一门乐器，或是自己教（teach）自己。figure在此意为“认为”，此题考查熟词生义。
49.B 见上题解析。
50.A 根据下文可知，Karl Goldstein不久就改变了主意（mind）。此处考查短语change one’s mind，为固定搭配。
51.C 因为这位严厉的老师说了一句让他吃惊的（surprising）话：“我非常高兴你能在这么短的时间内取得如此明显的进步!我深信你不会止步（stop）的。”
52.D 见上题解析。
53.B 根据最后一段可知，Karl Goldstein和Alice Shapiro之间的关系发生了神奇的（magically）变化：以前的紧张关系变成了终身受益的（fruitful）的关系。
54.A 见上题解析。
55.C Karl Goldstein 甚至把自己的职业选择都归结于（owe）那位严师的教诲。
【答案与解析】
本文是一篇说明文。文章主要介绍了端午节的来历及风俗。
56.are 考查动词的时态和主谓一致。根据时间状语each year可知，此处用一般现在时，又因为主语是scenes，故此处用are。
57.which 考查定语从句。分析该句结构可知，该句是一个非限制性定语从句，从句中缺少主语，且先行词为节日，故用关系代词which。
58.in 考查介词。“in memory of”意为“为了纪念……”，为固定短语。
59. himself 考查代词。根据句意“他感到很绝望就自杀了”可知，此处用反身代词himself。
60.The 考查冠词。此处的tradition为特指，故与定冠词the连用。
61. practices 考查名词复数。根据空前短语a host of及下文内容可知，此处填所给名词的复数形式，practice 在此处表示风俗习惯，为可数名词。
62. poisonous 考查词形转换。分析该句结构可知，所填词与unlucky并列，作主语补足语，故用所给名词的形容词形式 poisonous。
63.especially 考查词形转换。此处用所给形容词的副词作状语。
64.stuffed 考查非谓语动词。分析该句成分可知，所填词在此处作后置定语，修饰bags；而且stuff与bags之间存在逻辑上的动宾关系，故用过去分词stuffed。
65. to scare 考查非谓语动词。分析该句成分可知，此处用所给动词的不定式作目的状语。
第一节
One possible version:
Dear Mr Brown,
I’m writing to seek your guidance on some challenges I have been facing in my English study.
Firstly, I have trouble with grammar. I often get confused about the proper use of tenses. Secondly, expanding my vocabulary is another challenge. I struggle to find the right words to express myself accurately. Lastly, I feel that my speaking skills need improving. I find it difficult to speak English fluently.
I’d appreciate it if you could give me some suggestions. Your guidance will undoubtedly contribute significantly to my progress in English learning.
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
第二节
One possible version:
It was my father’s voice! I rubbed my sleepy eyes and looked around. There, about one hundred meters from the stop stood my father in the shadows. Then I realized that my father had been standing there all the time. Perhaps, he knew it would be useless to argue with his stubborn little girl. What he could do was waiting for my anger to die away. At first, I wanted to ignore him, but his voice sounded so assuring in the frightening quietness of night!
I grabbed my bag and hurried toward him. On the way home, my father explained apologetically that he was caught off guard by the news and that he was very worried about my safety if I would go so far away alone. “Now I have realized that you have grown up and it is time for you to chase your dream. I will give my permission as long as you promise to live on campus and will not slip away when you are angry in the US,” my father said with resignation.
