The way we get about has a deep influence on the way we live－affecting where we set up home, work and holiday. So what changes might come in the way we get around? What big ideas are out there, and do they have any chance of coming true?
Personal Air Travel
The idea: flying cars
Developments in light small plane technology will make it possible for everyone to own what are, in fact, flying cars. They will have closed cabins, heating, stereos and room for two people.
You will take off from a field near your home and fly to towns and cities. After landing, you will take off the fixed wing and continue your journey by road just as if you were traveling by car.
Fuel efficient engines and the advantage of being able to travel in the sky will keep costs and the environmental influence down.
Flying for Fun
The idea: Jet Packs
The idea was a hit when a stuntman (特技演员) flew around on one during the opening ceremony of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, which was very successful.
You’ll be able to use the equipment－roughly the size of two scuba tanks fastened to your back－for short journeys.
They will be handy for cleaning hard-to-reach windows, arriving in style at a party and shopping.
Taxis
The idea: driverless taxis
These computer-controlled taxis will take you wherever you want along a fixed route, whenever you want to go.
For the price of one person’s bus fare, several people can ride at speeds of up to 25 mph, and there will be fences to guard against accidents.
There will be little, if any, wait for the use of the taxis, which will leave from stations and will be used by prepaid cards.
The taxis, which will travel on a 1.5 m-wide track, will use 75% less energy per passenger than a car and 50% less than a bus.
1.The passage is mainly about ________.
A. future travel B. big ideas and dreams
C. advanced technology D. the influence of travel
2.We learn from the passage that flying cars ________.
A. will operate only in the sky
B. will be more expensive than common cars
C. will have few bad effects on the environment
D. won’t be equipped with things similar to what cars have
3.With Jet Packs, we can do all the following EXCEPT ________.
A. attend a party B. clean high windows
C. go shopping D. have a long journey
4.As for driverless taxis, we can infer that ________.
A. we can go wherever we want in them
B. they will be both convenient and safe
C. it costs more to take them than to take ordinary cars
D. they will be operated by computers as well as by people
The Peales were a famous family of American artists. Charles Willson Peale is best remembered for his portraits of leading figures of the American Revolution. He painted portraits of Franklin and Jefferson and over a dozen of George Washington. His life-size portrait of his sons Raphaelle and Titian was so realistic that George Washington reportedly once tipped his hat to the figures in the picture.
Charles Willson Peale gave up painting in his middle age and devoted his life to the Peale museum, which he founded in Philadelphia. The world’s first popular museum of art and natural science mainly covered paintings by Peale and his family as well as displays of animals in their natural settings. Peale found the animals himself and found a method to make the exhibits more lifelike. The museum’s most popular display was the skeleton (骷髅) of a huge, extinct elephant, which Peale unearthed on a New York farm in 1801.
Three of Peale’s seventeen children were also famous artists. Raphaelle Peale often painted still lives of flowers, fruit, and cheese. His brother Rembrandt studied under his father and painted portraits of many noted people, including one of George Washington. Another brother, Rubens Peale, painted mostly landscapes and portraits.
James Peale, the brother of Charles Willson Peale, specialized in miniatures (小画像). His daughter Sarah Miriam Peale was probably the first professional female portrait painter in America.
1.What is the main topic of the passage?
A. The life of Charles Willson Peale.
B. Portraits in the 18th century.
C. The Peale Museum.
D. A family of artists.
2.The author mentions in Paragraph 1 that Washington tipped his hat to the figures in the painting to show that _______.
A. Charles Willson Peale’s painting was very lifelike
B. Washington respected Charles Willson Peale’s work
C. Washington was friendly with Raphaelle and Titian Peale
D. the painting of the two brothers was very large
3.Which of the following is NOT the child of Charles Willson Peale?
A. Titian Peale. B. Rubens Peale.
C. Raphaelle Peale. D. Sarah Miriam Peale.
4.The author’s attitude toward the Peales is in general _______.
A. puzzled B. excited C. admiring D. disappointed
A girl became a volunteer in the activities of Deathbed Care, which meant visiting and taking care of a patient suffering from an incurable disease with days numbered.
The girl was assigned to look after an old man suffering from cancer whose children lived abroad. Their living conditions were not satisfactory while the old man had a lot of savings. She was expected to comfort him and keep up his spirits.
Every Saturday the girl came on time to keep him company, telling him stories. When he was having an intravenous drip (静脉滴注), she would help massage his arms. The doctor found the patient much improved mentally. The old man began to involve himself actively in the medical treatment and he seldom shouted at others.
But something that happened made the doctor uneasy and puzzled. Each time the girl left, the old man would give her some money. The doctor did nothing to interfere (干涉), unwilling to offend the old man. A month later the old man showed evident signs of decline after suffering coma (昏迷) a few times.
When rescued from the latest coma, the old man told the doctor his last wish, “I have deep sympathy for the girl. Will you be kind enough to help her finish her studies？”
But the doctor knew that her family was well-off and she had no difficulty pursuing her studies. Sometimes she even came to the hospital in her father’s car.
When the girl came at the weekend after the death of the old man, the doctor told her the bad news. She was very sad and burst into tears. Then she handed $ 500 to the doctor, saying, “The old man had all along thought I came to do the job because of poverty. He gave me money so that I could continue my schooling.” Now he got the answer to the puzzle. In the last period of his life, the old man found it a real pleasure to be able to help a girl badly in need.
1.If you’re a volunteer in the activities of Deathbed Care, what kind of people do you have to attend to?
A. Patients with a lot of money.
B. Patients suffering from cancer.
C. Patients without many days left.
D. Patients living alone.
2.What can we learn from the passage?
A. The doctor told the old man the truth.
B. The old man’s children were wealthy.
C. The girl’s father encouraged her to accept the money.
D. The girl didn’t accompany the old man when he died.
3.What is the real reason resulting in the old man’s mental improvement?
A. The girl’s love and great care.
B. The pleasure of helping people in need.
C. The doctor’s medical treatment.
D. His children’s progress in life.
你的家乡是一个依山傍水的小镇。过去，解放前，这里人们生活极其贫困。但现在人们生活的各个方面都发生了很大变化。
1. 请根据下面表格的提示，写一篇130词左右的短文，介绍该镇的变化情况。
2. 灵活运用连贯词；准确运用时态、语态。
3. 适当运用固定短语、搭配、经典句型。
人 口 | 约20万 |
面 积 | 约360平方公里 |
地理概况 | 坐落在大山脚下，面临一条大河，新建有许多工厂、商店、医院、学校 |
教育状况 | 解放(liberation)前只有一所学校，只有富家子弟可以上学，现在已建起了10所学校，每个孩子都有机会上学了。 |
生活状况 | 生活丰富多彩，人们工作之余，可以逛商店、看电影、跳舞、参加体育活动等。都过上了幸福生活 |
Here, I’d like to introduce my hometown.
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在此处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在其下面写出修改的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线(＼)划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在其下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2．只允许修改10处，多者（从十一处起）不计分。
Recently, our class has held a heated discussion about how evening classes should be cancelled. Some of us in favor of the idea that evening classes should be cancelled. To begin with, cancelling evening classes mean that we have more time to learn by ourselves. Besides, they will have more time to develop our hobby such as reading, playing sports, drawing and so on. However, others are firm opposed to this idea. Comparing with studying at home, studying at school may lead to higher study efficiency. In addition to, the problems in study can be dealing with as soon as possible.
As far as I’m concerned, I prefer studying at home because I want to form the habit of being independence.
Today, after finishing dinner in town, my husband and I were driving back home. As we pulled over, we saw a neighbor couple 1. (paint) their furniture.
I went inside our home, 2. (change), and then went back out again to ask our neighbors if they needed any help. While leaving my home, I was plagued (困扰) by thoughts of embarrassment, denial, or being received but looked down on skeptically. 3. , I gathered the courage to go down and ask them anyway!
Initially, the woman denied. Then, the man said, “Sure”, and he handed me a spray paint (喷漆) bottle. We got into some good conversations 4. painting with great effort. When we finished, I briefly chatted 5. them before leaving.
In the end, not only 6. I enjoy helping them, but also learned about my neighbors. On the way home, I must admit, I couldn’t help 7. wonder what they might be thinking about me. 8. is tough to do a good deed for others and not expect that they will be thinking good about you.
Today’s experience taught me some 9. (value) lessons in my life! 10. (hope), these lessons will help me continue my acts of kindness in future.
