Hi Sam! Sorry I haven’t emailed recently— I’ve been revising for my exams. I have finished them now and I have got some time to relax and some money to spend on going out. Last weekend, I went to see a great film called Yes Man. If you haven’t seen it, you must go! Jim Carrey plays the main character and it’s very funny--and also quite encouraging. It’s based on a book by Danny Wallace which is also called Yes Man. I read the book a few months ago and that’shilarious, too – I really laughed out loud!
The book is a true story about what happens to the writer, Danny. Basically, he found that he was doing nothing all the time, just worrying about things and complaining about his life. He wasn’t seeing his friends much, so he was lonely and bored. Then one day, he was on a bus in London when he sat down next to a man. The man was a stranger, but they started talking. Danny told him about his boring life and the man just gave him three words: ‘Say “yes” more.’ And for Danny this was a turning point in his life. Those three words influenced everything he did. At that moment, he made a decision: ‘I will say “yes” to everything!’ And he wrote a book about what happened to him in the next year or so. Three years later, the book was made into a hit film.
The film is based on the book although there are some differences. First, it’s set in the US instead of England. Secondly, the main character is based on Danny, but he called Carl in the film. And what’s more, he doesn’t meet a man on a bus. His turning point comes when he goes to a self-help class and they advise him to say “yes” more.
In the film, Carl succeeds in changing his life and doing lots of crazy things: he has flying lessons, he learns to speak Korean and he rides a motorbike with no clothes on! The storyline isn’t very strong. It’s quite weak, I suppose, but all Carl’s stories are very interesting— especially because Jim Carrey is a very funny actor.
I’m really interested in the film because there’s a serious message, too. I believe in making the most of life and I’ve decided I’m going to be more positive. I’ve decided I’m not going to stay at home so much. I’m going to do more things, see my friends more and everything. Actually, that’s why I’m emailing you! It would be great if we could meet up soon. Let me know when you are free.
All the best, Adam
1.The underlined wordhilariousin Paragraph1 most probably means _____.
A. simple B. helpful C. humorous D. meaningful
2.In Paragraph 3, there are_____ differences mentioned between the book and the film.
A. two B. three C. four D. five
3.Adam wrote this email mainly _____.
A. to talk about what he was doing recently
B. to introduce the book Yes Manwritten by Danny to Sam
C. to advise Sam to watch the film Yes Man made in US
D. to talk about why and how he wants to change his life
4.From the email we can infer (推断) that _____.
A. Sam will love Yes Man as much as Adam does
B. Yes Man must be the most popular book in the US
C. Adam used to stay at home a lot before seeing Yes Man
D. Jim Carrey is now a very funny actor because of Yes Man
Getting electricity(电)has always been a problem for the 173 people living in Nuevo Saposoa, a small village in Peru, South America. However, things went from bad to worse in March 2015 after heavy rains damaged(损坏)the only power cables(电缆)in the area. The villagers were forced to use oil lamps, which are not only expensive but also dangerous because of the harmful gases they produce.
Luckily, researchers at the University of Technology(UT)in Lima, Peru heard about their problem and found a wonderful solution(解决方法).They made a lamp that can be powered by plants and soil, both of which can be easily found in the Amazonian rainforest where the village lies. The lamp takes energy from a plant growing in a wooden box and uses it to light up an LED light bulb.
While that may sound amazing and even impossible, the science behind the idea is quite simple. As plants create their food (using the sun's energy, water and chemicals from the soil )，they also produce waste which they return to the soil. Tiny animals in the soil eat this waste and they produce electrons一the building blocks of electrical energy. The UT team put special sticks inside the soil to get the energy and keep it in the lamp's batteries for later use. The researchers say a single charge can power a 50-watt LED light for two hours 一enough time for local villagers to get their evening work done.
The university gave ten Plant Lamps to the villagers of Nuevo Saposoa in October 2015. So far, they have been a huge success! Elmer Ramirez, the UT professor who invented the lamp，believes the Plant Lamp could help improve the lives of many people, especially small rainforest communities. 42% of whom have no electricity.
1.What is true about the Plant Lamp?
A. It can be made by local people.
B. It is much easier to use than oil lamps.
C. It can produce all the electricity the villagers need.
D. The things it needs to make electricity are easy to find.
2.The Plant Lamp's inventor believes it could be most helpful for .
A. rainforest communities B. cars
C. poor people in cities D. farmers
3.What is the purpose of the passage?
A. To report on a new invention
B. To explain a new scientific theory(理论)
C. To describe how electricity is made
D. To discuss the problems of poor villages
The film Alice Through the Looking Glass is on. Millions of people go to cinemas to see it. The little girl Alice, with long hair of gold, is alive in people's mind again after the film Alice in Wonderland was shown in 2 010.
These two popular films was adapted from the novels Alice's Adventure in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. Both of them were written by Lewis Carroll，a famous English writer, who himself was as interesting as his books.
Lewis Carroll was a math teacher and talented writer. In 1856，he met Henry Liddell and his three lovely daughters. His friendship with the family became an important part of his life over the following years. He liked the girls very much, especially the youngest one, Alice Liddell. He often told stories to make them happy. One day he took the girls to a boat trip. To make the time more enjoyable, he began a story about the adventure of a little girl named Alice in Wonderland. Many other strange characters such as the Mouse, the March Hare, the Cheshire Cat and the Queen of Hearts were brought to this wonderful world，too.
Alice Liddell loved the story and she begged Carroll to write it down for her. After Carroll finished the manuscript(原稿)of the story Alice's Adventure in Wonderland , he gave it to the girl as a Christmas present. When the book was published in 1865，it was an immediate success, and soon was famous around the world.
1.Lewis Carroll was the three lovely daughters' .
A. friend B. teacher C. relative D. coach
2.Lewis Carroll wrote down the story he told on the boat trip because .
A. he thought it was a very interesting story
B. he could improve the story and publish it
C. Alice enjoyed the story and asked him to do so
D. Alice thought others also wanted to read the story
3.According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?
A. Carroll finished the book and gave it to the three girls.
B. The two novels became famous after the films were shown.
C. Carroll created Alice and many strange characters in his stories.
D. The friendship between Carroll and the Liddells lasted until 1856.
If you travel by air across the center of Africa or South America, you fly over forests for thousands of kilometers. These great forests are the seas of trees. They are full of thousands and thousands of different kinds of plants and animals. However, the world's forests are getting smaller all the time. We are cutting down the trees because we need wood, and we need more farmlands as well. Some people say that there will not be any forests like these in 20 or 30 years. What will happen if they disappear? If we cut down our forests, a lot of plants and animals will disappear from the world. In a lot of places the new farmland will soon look like the old deserts. For example, crops will not grow there. What's worse, it will not rain very often. and the weather will get very hot. Perhaps the weather of the world will change，which will be dangerous for everyone in the world. That is why we must take care of our forests.
1.Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined word "deserts"?
A. Farmland. B. Sands. C. Green fields. D. Villages.
2.Which fact does the passage provide
A. Only Africa and South America are the oceans of trees.
B. Forests are homes to different kinds of animals.
C. Forests are usually several square kilometers large.
D. Different plants can't be found in the same forest.
To most of us, school means classes, teachers. schedule，grades and tests. But for the children at Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts, school is very ______ .
Firstly, there are no ______ . All the children, aged between 4 and 19，do whatever they want. There are no teachers, only "staff members(管理人员) ". The idea behind this is that you do not need to make children learn because children want to learn anyway. "You do not need to say to three-year-old kids, Go to ______ the secrets of nature. You can't stop them!" says Daniel Greenberg, a founder(创始人)of the school. "But if you make children do what you want all day, they will lose all ______ for learning. "
At Sudbury Valley School，you will find children talking, reading, painting, playing the piano, climbing trees, ______ just running around. Two boys spent three years just fishing!
The other way that Sudbury Valley School is different is that the children can ______ the rules. Every week, there is a school ______ where both children and staff have one vote each-even the four-year-olds. They decide the school rules. ______ to spend the school budget(预算)，and even which staff they want and do not want any more.
When the school first opened in 1968，people said it would ______ work. But today, the school has 200 students, and 80% of its students ______ to college. Even the two boys who went fishing all the time have become successful today. One of them is a musician and the other is a computer scientist.
1.A. boring B. important C. common D. different
2.A. lessons B. students C. books D. playgrounds
3.A. create B. discover C. hide D. represent
4.A. value B. taste C. importance D. energy
5.A. and B. but C. or D. so
6.A. break B. keep C. decide D. obey
7.A. meeting B. experiment C. experience D. club
8.A. when B. how C. that D. why
9.A. never B. always C. often D. sometimes
10.A. go up B. go down C. go on D. go back
—This apple pie is too sweet，don't you think so?
— . I think it's just right，actually.
A. Mot really B. I hope so C. Sounds good D. No wonder
