Hot spots of drones (无人机) in Australia are getting sensors to automatically identify the aircraft and their pilots. Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) said it would fix the equipment at the nation’s airports starting next month. The monitors have been planned for some time, but come in the wake of 72 hours of drone-related disorder at the UK’s Gatwick airport last week.
In 2019, Australia will also start a scheme to register drone owners. The UK is also due to introduce a scheme in November that will require recreational drones weighing 250g (0.55lb) or more to be registered.
Almost 140,000 air travellers were delayed last week after reports of drone sightings caused huge delays at Gatwick Airport. UK police are still searching for the criminals, although they have also raised the possibility that witness reports of the aircraft were mistaken. The incident “highlights” the need for a drone-spotting capability (能力), CASA spokesman Peter Gibson told the news agency Agence France-Presse. The supervision system would be able to spot the types of drone being flown, read their serial numbers and work out where the pilot was located, he said. Efforts to identify pilots would be aided by the introduction of the registration scheme for commercial and casual drone owners, he added. “2019 will witness severe action towards drone safety,” said Mr. Gibson. As well as airports and other sensitive locations, the drone-spotting systems will be fixed in other places known to be popular with drone owners such as the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Authorities in Australia have expressed worries about the number of drones being flown in controlled areas in recent months. Anyone breaking rules could face fines of up to 10,000 Australian dollars ($7,058; £5,600) as well as checks on the safety of their craft. “In 2019 it could be very expensive doing the wrong thing with your drone,” said Mr. Gibson. Events at Gatwick were discussed by ministers in a Christmas Eve phone conference. It is understood that the Cabinet Office “pushed” the Ministry of Defence and the Home Office to update their relevant regulations. They also discussed defence systems across the UK’s airports.
1.What does the underlined phrase “in the wake of” probably mean?
A. indicating. B. causing.
C. preventing. D. following.
2.What helps the system work out the identity of the pilot?
A. Registration scheme. B. The airport.
C. Witness report. D. The government.
3.What do we know from the passage?
A. The recreational drones will be required to register next year.
B. The system will be fixed in all the hot tourist spots.
C. Anyone flying the drones will be fined up to $7,058.
D. There was no solid evidence of drone sights at Gatwick Airport.
4.What’s the best title of the passage?
A. Heavy fines to be given to the pilots
B. Functions of the drone-identifying system
C. Australia to set up drone-spotting system
D. Problems facing drone owners
British chemist David Evans has become an overnight celebrity on Chinese social media. His chemistry experiments have attracted over 2 million followers in just a few months. Evans is a chemistry professor at the Beijing University of Chemical Technology. The 60-year-old always wears a white lab coat, a pair of safety goggles (护目镜), and smiles often. Some web users say he looks just like the “grandpa of KFC”.
Evans has posted videos of various experiments. His most popular experiments have attracted millions of hits on video-sharing apps. Excited children’s cheers and shouts can be heard in his videos. “I hope my experiments can arouse people’s interest in science,” he says.
Evans has been interested in China since childhood. In the early 1970s, before the reform and opening-up, he viewed it as a “country full of mysteries”. He first visited the Chinese mainland in 1987 to attend a chemistry conference in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province. He quit his job in the United Kingdom and moved to Beijing in 1996. Many of his friends thought he was crazy. But Evans says they just saw China’s challenges but not its potential.
Since 2011, Evans has turned to the Internet to popularize science. He learned short-video apps are also popular in small cities and rural areas. And he realized this enables him to reach more students, who lack opportunities to perform fun experiments. But even a one-minute video requires a considerable amount of work. Still, he thinks it’s worth it to fulfill his responsibility to popularize science.
His experiments always fill schools’ lecture halls with laughter. Some viewers call him “a Harry Potter-like magician”, but he disagrees. “A magician never tells the secrets behind his tricks, but a scientist always gives an explanation.” He sees himself as a teacher. He performs experiments to spread knowledge, inspire thinking, remove misunderstandings and show that science can create change. Evans says he looks forward to more “chemical reactions” with China.
1.Who is David Evans according to the passage?
A. A manager of KFC. B. A film celebrity.
C. A chemistry teacher. D. A British magician.
2.What can we learn from the third paragraph?
A. Evans considered UK to be a country full of mysteries.
B. Evans first visited Chinese mainland in the 1970s.
C. Evans was in no mood to move to Beijing.
D. Evans attended a chemistry conference in China in 1987.
3.Why did Evans begin to post videos of experiments on the Internet?
A. To popularize science.
B. To rise to fame.
C. To apply short-video apps.
D. To make a fortune.
4.What can we infer from the passage?
A. Evans knows exactly how a magic works.
B. Evans will continue to post videos of experiments in China.
C. Evans’ students like to interrupt his experiments with laughter.
D. Evans’ friends admired his decision to move to China.
Whether it’s music, art, stage, screen, restaurant and bar deals, or the great outdoors – there’s always something interesting going on in Hong Kong
Tim Yip: Blue – Art, Costumes and Memory
What: A well-known visual artist, costume designer, and art director for stage and film (particularly on his work for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, for which he won an Oscar), Tim Yip has been a proud promoter of Eastern aestheticism(唯美主义)for 30 years. For his first large-scale solo exhibition in Hong Kong, Yip explores the nature of human imagination and the depths of the subconscious mind. Organized by Mark Holborn, the exhibition is expected to be praised due to Yip’s vision of “New Orientalism”.
Where: HKDI Gallery, Hong Kong Design Institute, 3 King Ling Road, Tiu Keng Leng, Tseung Kwan O
When: Until March 31, 2019
Alice’s Adventure at Starlight Garden
What: Introduced last year, this exhibition became a huge hit, with more than 6,000 photos and videos posted online every day. Created by 27 multimedia digital artists from Korea, the exhibition features a 30-foot rabbit hole for visitors to explore the fantasy world made famous in the book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. This Christmas, New Town Plaza delivers a brand-new interactive digital version of the literary work. In particular, check out the seventh floor, with its bright lighting, glittering mirrors and rose-shaped decorations.
Where: New Town Plaza, 18 Sha Tin Centre Street, Sha Tin
When: Until January 13, 2019
We Travel in Our Minds
What: This exhibition of sculpture aims to present ideas of theatricality, the fantastical, travel and exchange, with figures that take the forms of humans and animals. Made by artist Ethan Murrow, a professor at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University in Boston, these dream-like objects are inspired by puppetry (木偶戏), music, trade, navigation and beyond, with mixed effects of materiality, sound and imagination.
Where: Duddell’s, Level 3, Shanghai Tang Mansion, 1 Duddell Street, Central
When: Until March 10, 2019
1.Which person mentioned in the passage has ever won a famous film award?
A. Ethan Murrow. B. Tim Yip. C. Mark Holborn. D. Alice Green.
2.What can be learned from the passage?
A. Tim Yip, a well-known visual artist, is devoted to promoting western arts.
B. Alice’s Adventure at Starlight Garden was not greeted with viewers’ approval.
C. Humans and animals sculptures are displayed in We Travel in Our Minds.
D. The exhibition in New Town Plaza explores the depths of the subconscious mind.
3.What is the purpose of the passage?
A. To introduce interesting exhibitions in Hong Kong.
B. To encourage people to go outdoors.
C. To advertise some nice bars in Hong Kong.
D. To attract visitors to go shopping.
听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1.What benefit can students get for publishing materials on the school newspaper?
A. Money from the school newspaper.
B. Extra credit from the English department.
C. Recommendation from the school newspaper director.
2.What skills can students develop for being a volunteer at the hospitals?
A. Teaching skills. B. Communication skills. C. Nursing skills.
3.What might students get from the senior citizens?
A. Letters. B. Free meals. C. Material for writing.
4.How can students join the Green Club?
A. By telephoning Mr. Hill.
B. By growing plants around the library.
C. By signing a paper and leaving their phone numbers.
听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1.What kind of bike does the woman want to hire?
A. A mountain bike. B. An electric bike. C. A touring bike.
2.How much should the woman pay each day if she rents by the day?
A. £5. B. £14. C. £50.
3.What needs extra charge?
A. A bag. B. A lock. C. A pump.
4.How will the woman pay?
A. In cash. B. By cheque. C. By credit card.
听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1.What made Mary decide to start her business?
A. A talk with a friend. B. Unemployment. C. An article.
2.What caused Mary’s problems at the beginning?
A. The weather. B. Customers’ comments. C. Finding customers.
3.How does Mary get most of her customers?
A. She advertises a lot.
B. She looks for jobs door to door.
C. Old customers recommend her to others.
