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Task 1

The problem of robocalls has gotten so bad that many people now refuse to pick up calls from numbers they don't know. By next year, half of the calls we receive will be scams(欺詐). We are finally waking up to the severity of the problem by supporting and developing a group of tools, apps and approaches intended to prevent scammers from getting through. Unfortunately, it's too little, too late. By the time these “solutions”(解決方案) become widely available, scammers will have moved onto cleverer means. In the near future,it's not just going to be the number you see on your screen that will be in doubt. Soon you will also question whether the voice you're hearing is actually real.

That's because there are a number of powerful voice manipulation ( 處理) and automation technologies that are about to become widely available for anyone to use. At this year's I/O Conference, a company showed a new voice technology able to produce such a convincing human-sounding voice that it was able to speak to a receptionist and book a reservation without detection.

These developments are likely to make our current problems with robocalls much worse. The reason that robocalls are a headache has less to do with amount than precision. A decade of data breaches (數據侵入) of personal information has led to a situation where scammers can easily learn your mother's name, and far more. Armed with this knowledge, they're able to carry out individually targeted campaigns to cheat people. This means, for example, that a scammer could call you from what looks to be a familiar number and talk to you using a voice that sounds exactly like your bank teller's, tricking you into “confirming” your address, mother's name, and card number. Scammers follow money, so companies will be the worst hit. A lot of business is still done over the phone, and much of it is based on trust and existing relationships.Voice manipulation technologies may weaken that gradually.

We need to deal with the insecure nature of our telecom networks. Phone carriers and consumers need to work together to find ways of determining and communicating what is real. That might mean either developing a uniform way to mark videos and images, showing when and who they were made by or abandoning phone calls altogether and moving towards data-based communications—using apps like FaceTime or WhatsApp, which can be tied to your identity.

Credibility is hard to earn but easy to lose, and the problem is only going to get harder from here on out.

1. How does the author feel about the solutions to the problem of robocalls?

A. Panicked. B. Confused.

C. Embarrassed. D. Disappointed.

2. Taking advantage of the new technologies, scammers can ____________.

A. aim at victims precisely B. damage databases easily

C. start campaigns rapidly D. spread information widely

3. What does the passage imply?

A. Honesty is the best policy. B. Technologies can be double-edged.

C. There are more solutions than problems. D. Credibility holds the key to development.

4. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A. Where the Problem of Robocalls Is Rooted

B. Who Is to Blame for the Problem of Robocalls

C. Why Robocalls Are About to Get More Dangerous

D. How Robocalls Are Affecting the World of Technology

Task 2

What makes one person more intelligent than another? What makes one person a genius, like the brilliant Albert Einstein, and another person a fool? Are people born intelligent or stupid, or is intelligence the result of where and how you live?_____1

We know, however, that just being born with a good mind is not enough. In some ways, the mind is like a leg or an arm muscle.__2__Mental exercise is particularly important for young children. Many child psychologists think that parents should play with their children more often and give them problems to think about.__3__If, on the other hand, children are left alone a great deal with nothing to do, they are more likely to become dull and unintelligent.

____4_According to some psychologists, if parents are always telling a child that he or she is a fool or an idiot, then the child is more likely to keep doing silly and foolish things. So it is probably better for parents to say very positive things to their children,such as “That was a very clever thing you did.”or “__5__”

A. It needs exercise.

B. You are such a smart child.

C. What people want to express is like this.

D. A healthy body contributes to one's intelligence.

E. Parents should also be careful about what they say to young children.

F. The children are then more likely to grow up brightly and intelligently.

G. These are very old questions and the answers to them are still not clear.

Task 3

“Just sign here, sir,” the deliveryman (送貨員) said as he handed Oscar Reyna a package.

The package consisted of a long, narrow box__1__wrapped in brown paper.__2__the box, Oscar saw an umbrella inside—a very old one with a beautifully carved handle.__3__he had not seen it for more than 20 years, he recognized it immediately.

Oscar was 16 when he first saw the__4__umbrella. He had gone to a concert with his grandparents.As they were leaving, he noticed an umbrella on an empty seat. Impressed by its__5__, Oscar felt a strong desire to find its owner.

Oscar__6__the manager to notice the record of advance ticket sales. Just as he thought, a name matched the seat__7__Oscar had found the umbrella. The name was Mrs Katie O'Brien.

Oscar talked his grandparents into going by Mrs O'Brien's house on their way home. He rang the bell;the door opened, and an elderly woman appeared. “May I__8__you?” she asked. “I'd like to return it if it's yours,” Oscar said,__9__the umbrella as if presenting a gift that had long been wished for. “Why,yes! it's mine,” replied Mrs O'Brien with a__10__smile and shining eyes. “It was given to me by my father years ago. Thank you so much for returning it. May I offer you a reward you're your__11__?” “No,ma'am,” he said, “my grandmother says that a good deed is its own reward.” “Well, that's__12__what my father used to say. What is your name, young man?”

Years later, Oscar was staring at the finely carved handle of the umbrella as he remembered Mrs O'Brien. It was in perfect condition, considering how__13__it was. Why had it arrived here today? As if__14__, a note fell from the paper. It read: Mrs O'Brien wanted you to accept this umbrella as a present for a kind,__15__gesture long ago.

1. A. strictly B. carefully C. seriously D. carelessly

2. A. Opening B. Seizing C. Watching D. Searching

3. A. After B. When C. Since D. Although

4. A. ordinary B. unusual C. simple D. typical

5. A. beauty B. shape C. size D. history

6. A. persuaded B. forced C. encouraged D. advised

7. A. until B. before C. which D. where

8. A. invite B. help C. bother D. know

9. A. putting up B. turning out C. picking up D. holding out

10. A. wide B. confident C. proud D. shy

11. A. patience B. kindness C. courage D. determination

12. A. clearly B. naturally C. exactly D. probably

13. A. old B. rare C. valuable D. nice

14. A. in turn B. in vain C. in exchange D. in answer

15. A. attractive B. mean C. selfless D. thoughtful

Task 4

Ⅰ. 語法填空

China has become the first country to land a spacecraft on the far side of the moon. The unmanned Chang'e-4 probe (探測器)—the name was inspired by an ancient Chinese moon goddess—1.________(touch)down last week in the South Pole-Aitken basin. Landing on the moon's far side is 2._________(extreme)challenging. Because the moon's body blocks direct radio communication with a probe, China first had to put a satellite in orbit above the moon in a spot 3._________it could send signals to the spacecraft and to Earth. The far side of the moon is of particular 4._________(interesting) to scientists because it has a lot of deep craters (環形山), more so 5._________the familiar near side. Chinese researchers hope to use the instruments onboard Chang'e-4 6.__________(find) and study areas of the South Pole-Aitken basin. “This really excites scientists,” Carle Pieters, a scientist at Brown University, says, “because it 7._________(mean) we have the chance to obtain information about how the moon 8._________(construct).” Data about the moon's composition, such as how 9._________ice and other treasures it contains, could help China decide whether 10._________(it) plans for a future lunar (月球的) base are practical.

Ⅱ. 書面表達

假定你是李華，你與同學王明約好去他家討論將要舉行的英語演講比賽，但因在路上目睹了一起交通事故，并把傷者送往了醫院，所以沒能赴約。 請你給他寫一封道歉信，信的內容如下：

1. 向王明表示歉意；

2. 解釋未能赴約的原因；

3. 約定下次討論的時間。

注意：

1. 詞數100左右；

2. 可以適當增加細節，以使行文連貫。

Dear Wang Ming,

Sincerely yours,

Li Hua

Task 5

閱讀下面的短文，根據所給情節進行續寫，使之構成一個完整的故事。

“Wanted: A violin. Can't pay much. Call...”

Why did I notice that? I wondered, since I rarely looked at advertisements. I laid the paper on my lap,remembering what had happened many years before. When my family struggled to make a living on our farm, I, too hard wanted a violin, but we didn't have the money.

It was not a good year. At harvest time the crops did not bring as much as we had hoped. Yet, even though times were hard, I couldn't wait any longer to ask, “Daddy, may I have a violin of my own?” Daddy's face looked sad.

One evening, we all sat around the table. Daddy wrote a letter to his friend Mr Finkle, in Columbus.As he wrote, Daddy read a part of his letter out to Mother. Weeks later, I discovered he'd written lines he didn't read aloud: “Would you look for a violin for my daughter? I can't pay much, but she enjoys much,and we'd like her to have her own instrument.”

When Daddy received the letter from Columbus a few weeks later, he announced, “We will be driving to Columbus to spend the night with Aunt Alice as soon as I can find someone to care for the farm.”

At last the day arrived and we drove to Aunt Alice's. After we arrived, Daddy made a phone call. He hung up and asked, “Mary, do you want to go with me to visit Mr Finkle?” “Sure,” I answered.

He drove into a residential area and stopped in the driveway of a fine house. A tall man, older than Daddy, opened the door. “Mary, I've been hearing things about you. Your daddy has arranged a big surprise for you.” Mr Finkle led us into the living room. He picked up a case, opened it, lifted out a violin, and started to play. The melody(旋律) surged and flowed like waterfalls.

注意:

1. 所續寫短文的詞數應為150 左右；

2. 續寫部分分為兩段，每段的開頭語已為你寫好。

Paragraph 1：

“I found it in a second-hand shop for seven dollars,” Mr Finkle said, handing the violin to me._____

Paragraph 2：

I forced my thoughts to the present and read again the advertisement.__________________________