阅读理解

Northern Festival of Bands

The Northern Festival of Bands is a yearly weekend wind band festival for high school band students, who perform in bands led by nationally famous conductors. This year the festival will be held from February 13, 2020 to February 15, 2020. The festival includes performances by the UNI Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band on Friday evening, and Saturday afternoon's performance by high school participants.

How to apply

The Northern Festival of Bands offers three festival bands, and students are selected according to the application forms provided. Applications should be made by the school band director. In some cases an individual student may wish to attend even if their school isn't attending. In these cases the application must still be made by the high school band director or by the student with the high school band director's oversight (监督). All applications should be provided by December 2, 2019 on our website.

Auditions (试唱)

Students accepted into either of the festival bands will audition for chair placement between 4:00 pm and 6:45 pm on Thursday afternoon, February 13. Please don't be late.

Concert dress

Performance dress will be the dress normally worn by each school for performances.

Solo Competition

Senior students accepted into the festival are welcome to audition for the Solo Competition. The winner will perform at the final festival concert on Saturday afternoon and receive an offer of a music scholarship of less than $6000 over a four-year period. The award is limited to students who wish to pursue a music degree at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI).

Festival fees

Students-$35. 00 per student

Conductors-$ 30. 00 per person

If you need further information, please get in touch with Danny Galyen at danny. galyen@uni. edu!

1. （1） What can we know about the Northern Festival of Bands?

   A . It is open to only students. B . It is held every other year. C . It will last three days this year. D . It won't accept individual students.
3. （2） What will the participants of the festival have to do?

   A . Provide their application forms on their own. B . Prove that they're a member of a music band. C . Prepare their own performance dress by themselves. D . Join in auditioning on the afternoon of February 13.
5. （3） Who is encouraged to audition for the Solo Competition?

   A . The students who are from poor families. B . The students who want to join the UNI band. C . The students who wish to study music at UNI. D . The students who are especially good at music.

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"Why did the fox steal my shoes?" sounds like the start of a brain teaser (脑筋急转弯). But for people in Berlin, it was a real question that a local fox behind a series of shoe thefts.

About two weeks ago, Meyer, a local person who lives in Berlin, noticed that one of his new running shoes had disappeared from his porch, and he decided to examine the thief.

Meyer quickly learned that he was not the thief's only victim (受害者), and a tip helped him catch the fox. Days later, Meyer spotted the fox again; he followed it and discovered the fox's secret place of more than100 shoes.

Meyer got a photo of the thieving fox and its ill-got shoes, which he shared on Twitter. The shoes contained(包含) sneakers, and slippers of different colors, shapes, and sizes, though the largest number of shoes is Crocs.

This isn't the first time that an urban fox has shown a seeming shoe fetish (恋物). In August 2010, a fox in Melbourne, repeatedly visited a woman's porch and stole three boots over the course of a week. In a small town in western Germany, a female fox stole about 110 to 120 shoes in just one night, presumably " for her babies to play with", according to Reuters.

It's unknown whether all of these foxes were acting independently or whether their actions were linked, perhaps as an international shoe-stealing group with a bad purpose that humans can only imagine.

1. （1） What can we know about Meyer according to the passage?

   A . His shoes were stolen. B . He was physically attacked by a fox. C . He was the thief's only victim. D . His favorite shoes were Crocs.
3. （2） What did Meyer do when he found the fox's hiding place?

   A . He drove the fox away. B . He destroyed the fox's hiding place. C . He took different kinds of shoes back. D . He took a picture and posted it on a social media.
5. （3） Which does the underlined word mean?

   A . Totally B . Partly C . Certainly D . Possibly
7. （4） How does the author sound in the last paragraph?

   A . Delighted B . Serious C . Humorous D . Terrified

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Scientists say they've developed a system using machine learning to predict when and where lighting will strike. The research was led by engineers from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland.

European researchers have estimated that between 6,000 and 24,000 people are killed by lightning worldwide each year. The strikes can also cause power outages, destroy property, damage electrical equipment and start forest fires. For these reasons, climate scientists have long sought to develop methods to predict and control lightning. In the United States and other places, ground-based sensing devices are used to identify strikes as they happen. But, no system has been created to effectively predict lightning.

The system tested in the experiments used a combination of data from weather stations and machine learning methods. The researchers developed a prediction model that was trained to recognize weather conditions that were likely to cause lightning.

The model was created with data collected over a 12-year period from 12 Swiss weather stations in cities and mountain areas. The data related to four main surface conditions: air pressure, air temperature, relative humidity and wind speed.

The atmospheric, data was placed into a machine learning algorithm (算法), which compared it to records of lightning strikes. Researchers say the algorithm was then able to learn the conditions under which lightning happens.

Amirhossein Mostajabi is a PhD student at the institute who led the development of the method. He said, "current systems for gathering such data are slow and complex and require costly collection equipment like radar or satellites. "

"Our method uses data that can be obtained from any weather station," Mostajabi said. "This will improve data collection in very remote areas not covered by radar and satellite or in places where communication systems have been cut," he added.

1. （1） Why have climate scientists tried to predict and control lighting?

   A . To collect relative data. B . To reduce the destruction lightning has been causing. C . To create a scientific system. D . To do research in relation to machine learning.
3. （2） The four mentioned surface conditions include all the following EXCEPT________.

   A . air pollution B . wind speed C . relative humidity D . air temperature
5. （3） What does the underlined word "it" in paragraph 5 refer to?

   A . Lighting. B . The system being tested. C . The atmospheric data. D . The machine learning algorithm.
7. （4） What can we learn about Mostajabi from the passage?

   A . He developed the method and the system himself. B . He thinks the current systems are too slow and simple. C . He is a professor at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. D . He believes their system does much better in data collection.

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San Francisco — After years of testing with a human backup driver, General Motor's Cruise is launching fully driverless cars onto public streets in San Francisco, the most complex urban environment robocars that have been tested, the company announced.

The company said on Wednesday it was deploying (部署) five self-driving vehicles in San Francisco's Sunset District, an area that bears many of the city's typical traits: narrow and busy streets, steep inclines (坡度) and fog. Cruise said it was confident enough to launch the driverless trials after five years' testing.

The company, which began the driverless testing in November, said it plans to expand to other neighborhoods. But the first tests will not put the driverless vehicle fully in control. Instead, the backup driver will be effectively moved to the passenger seat at early trials. Although those operations will not have access to traditional driver controls, they will be able to stop the vehicle if there is an emergency.

Companies in Silicon Valley and elsewhere are working to make driverless vehicles a reality, saying that they will help decrease motor vehicle deaths, which number around 40,000 annually, and allow cheaper ride-hailing (打车) trips by ridding of the need to pay a human driver.

Companies such as Cruise and competitor Zoox have set their sights on San Francisco, seeing the potential reward of conquering a complex urban environment and the country's second-most populated major city, rather than starting small and gradually making progress.

1. （1） For what reason is San Francisco chosen for the testing place?

   A . Its high technology. B . Its developed economy.    C . Its crowded roads. D . Its complex surroundings.
3. （2） Why the backup drive is placed in the driverless car in testing?

   A . To decide the route of the driving. B . To stop the car in urgent situations. C . To operate some major functions. D . To keep the passenger seat occupied.
5. （3） What benefit will driverless vehicles bring?

   A . lower taxi fee. B . better urban environment. C . less traffic jam. D . greater company profit.
7. （4） What's the best title for the text?

   A . Benefits Brought by Driverless Cars B . Driverless Cars Almost Close to Reality C . Cruise Launching Driverless Cars in San Francisco D . San Francisco: Perfect Testing Place for Driverless Cars

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。

Celebrate Arbor Day (植树节)

People in many countries observe Arbor Day. If you want to make a contribution to our planet, you could start by reminding your family and neighbors of the importance of planting trees. Following are some steps to help you choose and plant a tree.

1 Choose a tree that will grow well in your area. You should consider: how big the tree will grow, how long it will live, whether it produces fruit or flowers, and whether it attracts birds and other wildlife.

2 Decide where you will plant your tree. Remember that the tree's root system and branches will need space to spread out and up, so you do not want to place it too close to your house or other buildings or other trees.

3 Prepare a hole that is twice as wide as the root system of your tree, keeping in mind that it should not be too deep, as the tree needs to be level with or slightly taller than the ground around it. With a shovel, scrape the sides and bottom of the hole-this will help the roots work their way through the soil.

4 If your tree comes wrapped with burlap (粗麻布) around the roots, simply pull the cloth loose enough so that it falls around the root system in the hole.

5 Separate the roots slightly to encourage them to spread. Root tips die when exposed to light and air, so get the tree in the ground as quickly as possible.

6 Create a shallow depression (凹地) around the tree to collect water. Thoroughly water the tree and add mulch around its base to help keep the ground around the tree moist (潮湿的).

Because keeping your tree alive and thriving is an ongoing task.

A. It's time to dig.

B. It's time to water the tree.

C. Then organize your own tree-planting event!

D. If your tree comes in a container, be sure to move it.

E. Then fill in the space around it with soil and pat it down.

F. Keep in mind that you should water it regularly and take good care of it.

G. And if you want to plant in a public space, make sure to get permission first from the local town board.

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

Thousands of people online are involved in efforts to help an 8-year-old, cancer-stricken (患癌症) boy from the United States to realize his dream. Dorian Murray of Westerly, Rhode Island, has been receiving1from around the world in recent days.

Dorian has been2 cancer since he was 4. 3 the disease had been brought under control after a series of4 treatments, a medical checkup early this month found that cancer cells (细胞)had 5 to the boy's brain. The family decided to6 treatment.

Dorian then told his father that before going to heaven, he wanted to be 7 in China because it had the Great Wall, which he called "a bridge for people to walk on". The 8 between the boy and his father was posted on Facebook, where it was 9 and commented upon by thousands of Internet users, including many from China.

Some responded with 10 taken at the Great Wall in Beijing, in which they held signs with words of 11, reading "D-Strong" and "You are very famous in China." Some left messages below the post, saying "I hope you will 12 soon." Or "We are delighted to make your dream come true."

Dorian's mother wrote that she was 13and deeply moved by the responses to Dorian's 14. "Dorian has brought so much inspiration to people around the world! I couldn't be more 15my son." she said.

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。

Zhoukoudian is a small village situated about 50 kilometers to the southwest of Beijing. In the 1920s, archaeologists discovered some prehistoric human bones there which changed people's view of China's history. They came an unknown species of man and were the first evidence of human life in China thousands of years ago. The remains were three (tooth)!

In 1929, a complete skull (dig) out. Eventually, archaeologist found almost 200 items, including six skulls and more than 150 teeth. These discoveries proved the (exist) of a human species who lived in the area between 700,000 and 200,000 years ago. Four sites Beijing Man and his relatives lived were discovered on the northern face of Longgushan.

Zhoukoudian was listed a World Heritage Site in December 1987. It has not only given (we) important information about prehistoric Asian societies, but also provided amazing evidence about the process of evolution. Today, parts of the caves have been badly affected by rain. Some areas are almost (complete) covered in weeds, causing serious damage. Pollution (cause) by the nearby factories has also contributed to the problem. This is a very serious matter and the Chinese Academy of Sciences is doing all it can (raise) public awareness of it.

假定你是李华，想邀请你校交换生Allen一同参观正在市艺术中心举办的以My People, My Country为主题的书法绘画展（calligraphy and painting exhibition)。请给他写一封电子邮件，内容包括：1）参观目的；2）参观内容；3）约定时间。

注意：1）词数80左右；2）可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

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。

It was the middle of the day with the bright sun, blue sky, green grass, and a soft breeze (微风). It was a great day to play outside and the best day of my life because I got a new ball and a new bike as my sixth birthday presents, and I was visiting my cousin, Kristy, at her house.

"Here I go!" shouted David while kicking my new ball. David lived next door and was older than me. I thought he was a wild child, but he was actually very kind. The ball went flying as if it were going to space. "That was high!" Kristy said in surprise and we went after the ball. We all had a great time.

Later we had supper and the food my aunt made was good. While Kristy was helping do the dishes, David and I ran outside to play! We started taking turns riding my bike. David suggested that we ride it to the forest. And I agreed. David and I got on the bike and David started riding fast!

As we rode through the forest, I felt the wind brushing my face! It felt so great and free. Suddenly the bike hit a fallen branch and we went flying off the bike. Lying on the ground, I felt dizzy (眩晕的). I checked myself for injuries and saw some but they didn't upset me.

"David!" I shouted out anxiously.

"Hey," said a voice. I turned my head and it was David, who was standing behind me holding my broken bike! At the sight of my disabled bike, I was so sad that I couldn't hold back my tears. It took David some time to calm me down.

注意：

1）续写词数应为150左右；

2）请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

When we realized it was time to walk home, we found ourselves lost.

……

It was completely dark when we saw fireworks (烟花) being set off in the distance.