Ⅱ. Grammar and Vocabulary Section A
Directions：After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passages coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper from of the given word; for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.
Is Hothouse Earth Avoidable?
Nearly 50 years ago, the Club of Rome’s report “Limits to Growth” warned that if economic growth continued fast without regard for the environment, the world could face ecological and economic collapse in the twenty-first century. Yet that is essentially (21) ________ has happened. As new research for the Club of Rome shows --- and the latest report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states --- the world (22) ________ well be headed towards disaster.
Many wrongly (23) ________ (interpret) the “Limits to Growth” as an stack on uncontrolled economic expansion. In fact, the report argued that (24) ________ the unlimited-growth pathway was chosen, it would require complementary policies (including funding) (25) ________ (preserve) the planet’s limited life-support systems.
This argument (26) ________ (ignore). Instead, the world has continued to pursue fast growth, without regard for the environmental consequences. This has enabled us to make enormous progress in reducing poverty, increasing longevity, and increasing wealth. (27) ________ it has come at a high cost to the formation of the society and the restoration of the planet.
As scientists have conclusively shown, in the last decade, we have entered a new geological ear, the Anthropocene, in which human activity – in particular, economic activity --- has been the dominant factor (28) ________ (influence) Earth’s climate and environment. In the Anthropocene, our planet’s life-support system is changing faster than ever.
Climate change now represents a clear and present danger. If our planet becomes just 2℃ Warner than pre-industrial temperatures, we may be placed irreversibly on the path toward “Hothouse Earth” --- a situation (29)_______ temperatures are many degrees warmer than today, sea levels are considerably higher, and extreme weather events are (30) _______ (common) --- and more destructive --- than ever. Section B
Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there in one word more than you need. A. processed B. increasing C. applications D. typing E. interpreting F. reflected G. injected H. transforming I. connections J. remarkable K. superhuman The Next frontier: Using Thought to Control Machines
Technologies are often billed as transformative. For William Kochevar, the term is justified.
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Mr. Kochevar is paralysed below the shoulders after a cycling accident, yet has managed to feed himself by his own hand. This 31 progress is partly thanks to electrodes, implanted in his right arm, which stimulate muscles. But the real magic lies higher up. Mr. Kochevar can control his arm using the power of thought. His intention to move is 32 in neural （神经的）activity in his motor region; these signals are detected by implants in his brain and 33 into commands to activate the electrodes in his arms.
An ability to decode thought in this way may sound like science fiction. But brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) like the BrainGate system used by Mr. Kochevar provide evidence that mind-control can work. Researchers are able to tell what words and images people have heard and seen from neural activity alone. Information can also be encoded and used to stimulate the brain. Over 300,000 people have cochlear（耳蜗的） implants, which help them to hear by 34 sound into electrical signals and sending them into the brain. Scientists have “ 35 “ data into monkeys heads, instructing them to perform actions via electrical pulses.
As our Technology Quarterly in this issue explains, the pace of research into BCIs and the scale of its ambition are 36 . Both America’s armed forces and Silicon Valley are starting to focus on the brain. Facebook dreams of thought-to-text 37 . Kernel, a startup, has $100m to spend on neuroethology. Elon Musk has formed a firm called Neuralink; he thinks that, if humanity is to survive the arrival of artificial intelligence, it needs an upgrade. Entrepreneurs imagine a world in which people can communicate using thoughts, with each other and with machines, or acquire 38 abilities, such as hearing at very high frequencies.
These powers if they ever materialize, are decades away. But well before then, BCIs could open the door to wonderful new 39 . Imagine stimulating the visual region to help the blind, making new neural 40 in stroke victims or monitoring the brain for sighs of depression. By turning the firing of neurons into a resource to be used, BCIs may change the idea of what it means to be human.
Ⅱ. Reading Comprehension Section A
Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.
How comfortable are you around water? Are you a strong swimmer or do you struggle to keep your head above water? Are you comfortable venturing into the deeper water or do you prefer to move into shallow water where the bottom is 41 ?
Most people expose themselves to water and swimming situations according to their 42 levels of skill and comfort. The same might be true as you assess your comfort level with different academic environments 43 a good college “fit”. Just as you might study a body of water to figure out its temperature, depth and current before venturing in, you need to 44 the difficulties, pace and depth of an academic environment --- and your ability to keep your “head above water” if admitted --- before deciding to apply.
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When looking at academic difficulties as a(n) 45 of “fit”, you are likely to find that you have the capacity to “get the job done” academically in a range of college environments. 46 , you are not likely to have difficulty with the “water” itself. You will fit best, however, at colleges and universities where your ability and preparation enable you to rise to new levels of 47 . Your goal should be to find academic environments where your levels of ability and preparation will enable you to achieve well as you stretch yourself 48 . These places represent appropriate “bodies of water” for you academically.
The best 49 of comprehension regarding your preparedness to meet the academic requirements of various colleges and universities are your high school teachers. Because they are very familiar with your capabilities, your teachers can offer 50 help in identifying the colleges where you will find the best academic programs for you.
Assuming you are able to find appropriate environments academically, you then need to assess the 51 of your school reports for admission to those colleges. How does your academic record (grades and test scores) pile up against those of other students who will be 52 , most (about 90%) of whom are just like you in that they can do the work too?
You need to be honest in 53 this part of the picture, especially if you are considering colleges that can be highly selective and tend to admit very small percentages of the students who apply. A lot of students get in over their heads competitively when they fail to consider the real odds of gaining admission. While you might feel you are a 54 candidate at schools that can be very choosy, the reality is that you need to be in the top 25 percent of applicant pools at such schools to have a fighting chance of being admitted. By the way, you don’t 55 your chances of getting into at least one such school by applying to a dozen of them! 41. A. tough 42. A. explosive 43. A. on behalf of 44. A. observe 45. A. indication 46. A. In addition 47. A. continent 48. A. considerately 49. A. sources 50. A. continuous 51. A. reliability 52. A. applying 53. A. appreciating 54. A. flexible 55. A. grasp 49. A 50. B
B. mysterious C. visible B. respective C. potential B. in the place of B. overcome B. implication B. In other words B. contribution B. traditionally B. origins B. invaluable B. alternative B. considering B. assessing B. positive B. change
C. in case of C. investigate C. innovation C. By comparison C. challenge C. influentially C. concerns C. powerless C. comparing C. presenting C. feasible C. create
D. different D. reasonable D. in search of D. complete D. intention D. By contrast D. conscience D. intellectually D. demands D. unforgettable D. persisting D. comprehending D. progressive D. increase
C. competitiveness D. recommendation
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51. C 52. A 53. B 54. B 55. D Section B
Directions: Read the following three passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage you have read.
(A)
In 1888 an Egyptian farmer digging in the sand near the village of Istabl Antar uncovered a mass grave. The bodies weren’t human. They were feline --- ancient cats that had been mummified （木乃伊化的）and buried in holes in astonishing numbers. “Not one or two here and there”, reported English Illustrated Magazine, “but dozens, hundreds, hundreds of thousands, a layer of them, a layer thicker than most coal joints, then to twenty cats deep.” Some of the linen-wrapped cats still looked presentable, and a few even had golden faces. Village children peddled the best ones to tourist for change; the rest were sold as fertilizer. One ship transported about 180,000, weighing some 38,000 pounds, to Liverpool to be spread on the fields of England.
Those were the days of generously funded explorations—that dragged through acres of desert in their quest for royal tombs, and for splendid gold and painted masks to decorate the estates and museums of Europe and America. The many thousands of mummified animals that turned up at religious sites throughout Egypt were just things to be cleared away to get at the good stuff. Few people studied them, and their importance was generally unrecognized.
In the century since then, archaeology has become less of a treasure hunt and more of a science. Archaeologists now realize that much of their sites’ wealth lies in the majority of details about ordinary folks—what they did, what they thought, how they prayed. And animal mummies are a big part of that.
“They’re really displays of daily life,” says Egyptologist Salima Ikram. After peering beneath bandages with x-rays and cataloguing her findings, she created a gallery for the collection --- a bridge between people today and those of long ago. “You look at these mummified animals, and suddenly you say, Oh, King So-and-So had a pet. I have a pet. And instead of being at a distance of 5,000-plus years, the ancient Egyptians become clearer and closer to us.”
56. Which of the following words has the closest meaning to “peddled”(paragraph 1)? A. modernized B. displayed C. illustrated D. demonstrated 57. Why was archaeology once referred to as a “treasure hunt” (paragraph 3)? A. In the royal tombs, there were many treasures made of silver and gold. B. Animal mummies could be made into fertilizer which is very valuable. C. It was hard to find animal mummies since they were buried under dirt. D. People sought the remains of ancient Egypt merely for their material value. 58. Which of the following is TRUE about Salima Ikram? A. She wishes to establish the continuity of pets over history.
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B. She believes that studying the remains can help modern society relate to the past. C. She wants to identify the King’s personal belongings and classify them. D. She doubts if current society will understand the significance of Egyptian remains. 59. This article probably encourages the readers to _______. A. value the past by studying the remains left behind by our ancestors B. make full use of the remains our ancestors have left behind
C. understand that animal mummies are more important than gold and masks D. become more sensitive to the ancient lifestyle of our ancestors
(B)
? Stocky, slow-moving whale, rarely grows beyond 15 metres in length
? Flippers are a third of body length; variable dorsal fin size and shape; saw-toothed trailing edge
on flukes, often raised when diving ? Bumpy tubercles on top of head
? Body colour is dark brown to black; often extensive white on flippers and underside of body
and flukes; such patterns enable individual recognition ? Bushy blow, occasionally V-shaped ? 270-400 olive baleen plates
Humpback whales belong to the rorqual (groove-throated ) family,which includes fin, sei, Bryde’s, minke and blue whales. The big family migrate between winter tropical breeding areas (North West Shelf, Great Barrier Reef, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiii, Tonga) and summer Antarctic feeding areas. Once common in New Zealand waters, humpbacks are now rarely seen and may migrate further offshore. Males compete for mates either by physical fight or by song. Females give birth to their young every two to three years; some non-breeding females probably remain in the southern waters during winter. Young humpback whales return to their area of birth but in later life some wander between breeding areas. Humpbacks eat small shrimps and other schooling prey, such as fish, forming small, cooperative groups of two to three individuals to feed.
Similar species: Easily identifiable due to a ‘hump’ back when submerging, but at a distance may be confused with other species that raise their flukes when diving , such as sperm, right and blue whales.
Protection status: Recovering well from past whaling and now numerous in some former migration and aggregation areas, rarely seen in others. 60. Which of the following is TRUE about humpback whales? A. Their long flippers vary in length, size and shape like dorsal fin. B. They are large and likely to grow longer than 15 metres.
C. The different colors and patterns of the body help to be recognized.
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