Ⅰ. Readings
Reading 1 Electric Vehicle Production Drives Zhaoqing’s Development
Directions： There is one passage in this reading followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice.
Over 400 years ago, Matteo Ricci1 (1552-1610), an Italian Jesuit priest, drew the first Chinese map of the world in Zhaoqing city, South China’s Guangdong Province, and the city now wants to make its mark on the map of the electric vehicle industry. In February, the city signed an agreement with Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd.2, the world’s leading company in manufacturing power batteries for new energy vehicles, to open a production base in Zhaoqing. The company’s initial investment of 12 billion yuan ($1.9 billion) is the biggest the city ever acquired in manufacturing.
Zhaoqing is the largest city in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, China’s new economic hub in a dynamic city cluster in the Pearl River Delta. However, it has the lowest GDP among the 11 cities in the area. Starting from this low foundation, Zhaoqing discovered development opportunities in certain sectors, especially new energy, which is now opening up a whole new vista for the city’s future. “We will firmly focus on industrial development, especially accelerating the development of the four main industries, including EV and its components’ manufacturing,” said Lyu Yuyin, the city’s mayor, during a news conference on Sunday.
According to statistics provided by the city’s government, manufacturing accounts for more than 70 percent of the 505 industrial projects introduced to the city in 2020, and of the total 30 billion yuan ($4.62 billion) actual investment last year, with the EV industry contributing 24 billion yuan.
As the country initiated the Greater Bay Area plan in 2017, Chinese Tesla challenger Xiaopeng Motors quickly expanded its commercial layout by investing in construction of an industrial park in Zhaoqing, and within a year, the 600,000-square-meter park was completed. The park, also the world’s first self-built vehicle production base for the company, opened in May last year, and Xiaopeng took only 160 days to make 10,000 EVs, a record in the country’s EV manufacturing. As of March 2021, the company produced over 50,000 EVs, and its third generation EV will be ready to deliver in the next few months.
The rapid development of the new energy industry in Zhaoqing is closely related to the country’s ambition to promote sustainable energy production, as it vows carbon neutrality3 by 2060.
Though the size of its economy is still relatively small compared to other Greater Bay Area cities, in 2020, Zhaoqing’s growth rate in GDP and public budget revenue has become one of the fastest in the area. “The government has a clear plan on economic development and they are facilitating both entrepreneurs and companies to promote their projects here. And I bet people will be more surprised at the city’s development in the near future,” said Zheng Boqu, a businessman who is running a technology company in Zhaoqing.
Exercise
1. What is the passage mainly about?
A） The development of the EV battery industry.
B） The fierce competition in EV manufacturing.
C） Zhaoqing’s strategy for future development.
D） Matteo Ricci’s map of the contemporary world.
2. Which is true about Zhaoqing according to the passage?
A） It is the largest city in the Greater Bay Area.
B） It will invest 30 billion yuan in EV manufacturing.
C） It has a solid foundation for economic development.
D） It has the highest GDP among the 11 cities in the area.
3. What can we infer from the passage?
A） Tesla has challenged Xiaopeng to expand its commercial layout.
B） A large park for EV manufacturing has been built up in Zhaoqing.
C） Zhaoqing will have achieved carbon neutrality by the year of 2030.
D） Zhaoqing will abandon manufacturing to promote sustainable development.
4. The underlined word “initiated” in Para. 4 most probably means “ ”.
A） launched B） promised
C） concluded D） performed
5. What is the author’s attitude towards the economic development of Zhaoqing?
A） Doubtful. B） Optimistic.
C） Pessimistic. D） Indifferent.
Glossary
1. accelerate: /əkˈseləreɪt / v. to happen or to make sth. happen faster or earlier than expected （使）加速；加快
2. dynamic: /daɪˈnæmɪk / adj. (of a process) always changing and making progress 动态的；发展变化的(https://www.daowen.com)
3. initial: /ɪˈnɪʃl / adj. of or at the beginning 开始的；最初的
4. vista: /ˈvɪstə / n. a range of things that might happen in the future （未来可能发生的）一系列情景；一连串事情
5. vow: /vaʊ / v. to make a formal and serious promise to do sth. or a formal statement that is true 起誓；立誓；发誓
Culture Notes
1. Matteo Ricci 利玛窦
Matteo Ricci (1552—1610) was a pioneer of cultural relations between China and the West, and his profound appreciation of Chinese cultural and moral values enabled him to make China known to the West and the West to China.
2. Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd. 宁德时代新能源科技有限公司
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd., abbreviated as CATL, is a Chinese battery manufacturer and technology company founded in 2011 that specializes in the manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage systems, as well as battery management systems (BMS).
3. carbon neutrality 碳中和
Carbon neutrality, or having a net zero carbon footprint, means having a balance between emitting carbon and absorbing carbon from the atmosphere in carbon sinks. Removing carbon oxide from the atmosphere and then storing it is known as carbon sequestration. In order to achieve net zero emissions, all worldwide greenhouse gas emissions will have to be counterbalanced by carbon sequestration.
Reading 2 Dinghu Mountain National Nature Reserve 
Directions： In this reading, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.
Dinghu Mountain National Nature Reserve1 is China’s first nature reserve. It was established in 1956 near Zhaoqing city of Guangdong Province in south China.
Dinghu Mountain is rich in flora and fauna. In June 1956, a group of experts led by Professor Chen Huanyong2 from the Chinese Academy of Sciences3 proposed to (1) the natural vegetation in the Dinghu Mountain area for scientific research. Four months later, the forestry department (2) the draft and a national nature reserve surrounding the area was constructed.
Xie Fuqi started working on the forest fire prevention team after the nature reserve was established. He recalled that he was having hard days at the beginning as local people’s (3) of fire prevention was comparatively weak. People had no (4) to gas supplies some decades ago. As a result, they often snuck into the reserve to collect firewood and hunt animals. Xie said that local people used to play firecrackers while climbing high in the Double Ninth Festival, a (5) Chinese festival that is part of the lunar September, or burn incenses in and out of the temple. But now, the public awareness regarding the protection of (6) has been substantially enhanced. Some locals (7) participate in fire prevention and firefighting work. Working for more than 30 years for the Dinghu Mountain preserve, Xie Fuqi said he paid more attention to the forests there than himself, and even stopped smoking.
In 1980, Dinghu Mountain National Nature Reserve was included into the UNESCO’s4 Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB)5, setting a good (8) for nature reserve development throughout China and elsewhere.
Now, Zhaoqing has become the most (9) city in the Pearl River Delta, with the forest coverage rate standing around 70.6 percent. About 600,000 visitors travel to the Dinghu Mountain (10) since it opened to tourism.
Glossary
1. coverage: /ˈkʌvərɪdʒ / n. the amount or way that sth. covers an area 覆盖范围
2. flora: /ˈflɔːrə / n. the plants of a particular area, type of environment or period of time （某地区、环境或时期的）植物群
3. fauna: /ˈfɔːnə / n. all the animals living in an area or in a particular period of history （某地区或某时期的）动物群
4. incense: /ˈɪnsens / n. a substance that produces a pleasant smell when you burn it, used particularly in religious ceremonies 香（尤指宗教礼仪用的）
5. snuck: /snʌk / v. （past simple and past participle of sneak）to go somewhere secretly, trying to avoid being seen （sneak的过去式和过去分词）偷偷溜走；溜
6. vegetation: /ˌvedʒəˈteɪʃ(ə)n / n. plants in general, especially the plants that are found in a particular area or environment 植物；草木
Culture Notes
1. Dinghu Mountain National Nature Reserve 鼎湖山国家级自然保护区
As the first nature reserve in China, Dinghu Mountain National Nature Reserve was established in 1956 near Zhaoqing city in Guangdong Province mainly to protect evergreen monsoon rain forests of the south subtropical zone. The Reserve lies between east longitude of 112°30'—112°33' and north latitude of 23°09—23°11' with an area of 1,133 hectares. The natural forest of the region is one of the special natural forest types in the world, and therefore it is of high scientific and research value.
2. Chen Huanyong 陈焕镛
Prof. Chen Huanyong (1890-1971) was a leading botanist and taxonomist, who started a new era for the modern plant science in China and made a great contribution to the plant taxonomy, botany and horticulture of China, especially in southern China.
3. Chinese Academy of Sciences 中国科学院
The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS ) is the linchpin of China’s drive to explore and harness high technology and the natural sciences for the benefit of China and the world. Comprising a comprehensive research and development network, a merit-based academic society and a system of higher education, CAS brings together scientists and engineers from China and around the world to address both theoretical and applied problems using world-class scientific and management approaches.
4. UNESCO 联合国教科文组织
UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. It contributes to peace and security by promoting international cooperation in education, sciences, culture, communication and information. UNESCO promotes knowledge sharing and the free flow of ideas to accelerate mutual understanding and a more perfect knowledge of each other’s lives. UNESCO’s programmes contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals defined in the 2030 Agenda, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015.
5. Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) 人和生物圈计划
The MAB Programme develops the basis within the natural and social sciences for the rational and sustainable use and conservation of the resources of the biosphere and for the improvement of the overall relationship between people and their environment. It predicts the consequences of today’s actions on tomorrow’s world and thereby increases people’s ability to efficiently manage natural resources for the well-being of both human populations and the environment.