JOHANNESBURG—They say cats have nine lives. Now a Chinese toad(蟾蜍) has joined that club of clever survivors.
South Africans are shocked at the endurance of a toad that got trapped in a cargo shipment from China to Cape Town, after jumping into a porcelain candlestick(烛台) that was made there. South African officials reportedly planned to put down the creature, fearing it would cause harm as an invasive species if it were let go in the wild.
But the toad got a last-minute pardon. Mango Airlines, a South African airline, transported the toad on Friday to Johannesburg for delivery to an animal shelter, after officials decided to find a way to let the toad live. The two-hour flight was a breeze compared to the trip from China, a long way of many weeks and thousands of kilometers across the Indian Ocean.
Airline spokesman Hein Kaiser said the toad got “first-class treatment”, sitting in a transparent plastic container with escort Brett Glasby, an animal welfare inspector. There was even a ceremony, in which the toad’s boarding pass was handed to Glasby.
“He was the star of the show on the flight,” Kaiser said of the amphibious(两栖的) passenger. “I think every passenger stopped to have a look.”
On landing in Johannesburg, the toad was brought out of its container for a celebrity-style photo shoot. Observers said the brown toad seemed like a cool customer. It belongs to the Asian Toad species, which breeds during the monsoon(季风) season. It is believed to have survived the trip from China by hardening its skin to prevent it from drying out, and also by slowing its breathing and heart rate—methods that help the species survive in times of drought.
“We’ve had snakes in imported timber and scorpions(蝎子) in fruit. We were called because the toad was right inside the candlestick, and we had to break it to get it out” Glasby, the inspector, told The Star, a South African newspaper.
1.What is the passage mainly about?
A. Asian toads can’t get used to the life in South Africa.
B. South Africa ignores the protection of animals.
C. An Asian toad gets a new home in South Africa.
D. Workers shipped a toad to South Africa on purpose.
2.If the toad is released into the wild, ________.
A. it will make the locals feel shocked
B. it will lose its life in the wild
C. it might flee into another country
D. it might harm the native species
3.The toad was able to arrive in South Africa alive ________.
A. because it formed hard skin to protect itself
B. because it escaped all attacks and hunts
C. because it used to stop its breath in winter
D. because it was lucky to be given a chance
4.It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
A. a candlestick is the best place for a toad
B. droughts make toads live longer
C. sometimes animals are transported accidentally
D. no one has seen such a big toad in Africa
If a woman has an extra piece of cake, don’t blame it on greed, blame it on her brain.
Scientists have found that women’s brains react to food very differently — and much more strongly — than men’s. Academics found that decades of dieting pressure on women and advertising have programmed certain parts of the female brain to react strongly when faced with any kind of food. Men, on the other hand, are not usually as obsessive about what they eat.
Dr. Rudolf Uher and his colleagues at the Institute of Psychiatry in King’s College London used brain scanning technology, known as functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI), to look at the brains of eighteen men and women. The volunteers were given images of food to look at, as well as food to taste. Their brain reactions were observed by the scientists. They found that the female brains reacted much more strongly than those of males. The same reaction did not happen when they were shown non-food images. The team believe this means women think more about food than men tend to.
Dr. Uher said, “This could be related to biological differences between men and women. But the more likely explanation is that women have a more complicated reaction to food because of social pressure.”
Professor Carey Cooper, psychology and health professor at Lancaster University, said, “for centuries women have had a providing role — preparing and cooking food for their families. And it's part of that role to make sure the food is safe. They will therefore be much more sensitive to food than men are, and I would not be surprised if that was now built into their DNA. If the female brain reacts to food because it historically has developed neural(神经的) pathways to do this, then food will be the way they express their stress. Food actually, is a comfort for women.”
But other experts have said that more research must be done before the results can be proved. American scientist Angelo del Parigi of the John B. Pierce Laboratory in New Haven, Connecticut, said “Looking at an FMRI alone cannot make sure whether the stronger reaction in women is due to innate (天生的）differences or a learned process.”
1.Dr.Uher and his colleagues carried out the research by comparing ________.
A. Volunteers’ reactions to food before and after meals
B. FMRI’s scanning result of scientists
C. women’s and men’s brain reactions to pictures of food
D. volunteers’ imagination on the taste of food
2.In Dr. Uher’s opinion, women react more strongly to food than men most probably because they are ________.
A. born to do so due to biological reasons
B. influenced by advertisements
C. told to do so for a long time
D. forced by powerful social influences
3.According to Professor Carey Cooper, women ________.
A. are satisfied with preparing food for their families
B. turn to food when they feel sad
C. accept their social role from the heart
D. are stressed because of food safety
4.What was Angelo del Parigi’s attitude towards the research results?
A. Curious.B. Surprised.C. Uninterested.D. Doubtful.
A man walked into a small Irish pub and ordered three beers. Bartender was surprised, but he served that man three beers. One hour later the man ordered three beers again. The very next day that man ordered three beers again and drank quietly at a table. This repeated several times and shortly after the people of the town were whispering about the man, who was ordering three beers at once.
A couple of weeks later, the bartender decided to clear this out and inquired: “I do not want to pry, but could you explain, why do you order three beers all the time?” The man replied: “It seems strange, isn’t it? You see, my two brothers live abroad at the moment, one — in France and another — in Italy. We have made an agreement, that every time we go to pub each of us will order extra two beers and it will help keeping up the family bond”.
Soon all the town have heard about the man’s answer and liked it a lot. The man became a local celebrity. Residents of the town were telling this story to newcomers or tourists and even invited them to that pub to look at Three Beer Man.
However, one day the man came to pub and ordered only two beers, not three as usual. The bartender served him with bad feeling. All that evening the man ordered and drank only two beers. The very next day all the town was talking about this news, some people pray for the soul of one of the brothers, others quietly grieve.
When the man came to pub the next time and ordered two beers again, the bartender asked him: “I would like to offer condolences to you, due to the death of your dear brother”. The man considered this for a moment and then replied: “Oh, you may be surprised that I order only two beers now? Well, my two brothers are alive and well. It’s just because of my decision. I promised myself to give up drinking.”
1.The man ordered three beers all the time because ________.
A. he missed his two brothers living abroad very much
B. this would help him become a local celebrity
C. people were fond of drinking beers in this pub
D. it was an agreement with his brothers to keep up the family bond
2.We can infer from the passage that ________.
A. the man’s brothers liked drinking beer very much
B. news traveled fast in the town
C. the man became famous in the town because he was a heavy drinker
D. the man was strong-minded to give up drinking
3.The bartender served the man with bad feeling because ________.
A. the man decided to drink two beer
B. he thought the man should order three beers
C. he would earn less money
D. he thought one of the man’s brothers had passed away
4.The underlined word “condolences” in the last paragraph can be replaced by ________.
A. sympathyB. surpriseC. gratitudeD. appreciation
International Robotics Forum (论坛）
Tokyo Big Sight，Tokyo, Japan, December 4-5
The Robotics Society of Japan (RSJ), to provide opportunities for young robot lovers to learn more about industrial and service robots, is going to hold the International Robotics Forum that will cooperate with this year’s International Robot Exhibition.
The lectures and explanations throughout the Conference will be given in Japanese but will be interpreted into English at the same time. The Conference will offer a great opportunity for senior high school students from all around the world to communicate with each other through robots. Therefore, we look forward to your active participation.
The event will take place two days. On the morning of Day One, Prof. Shinichi Yuta of the Shibaura Institute of Technology will give a lecture on basic mobile robotics and learning through robots. This will be followed by a talk by Mr. Kazuhiko Yokoyama of Yasukawa Electric Corporation who will explain the mechanism and control of robots and also point out the highlights of the International Robot Exhibition.
We will prepare a challenge for all the participants. We will send you themes for robot research. You will study them in advance, and on the afternoon of Day One, you will visit the Tokyo International Exhibition Center and investigate real robot. You will be able to experience fun and excitement of advanced robot technologies. On the morning of Day Two, you will present your study and investigation results.
On the afternoon of Day Two, as the final event, awards will be given by the RSJ to groups that have given outstanding presentations.
We hope that many future robot researchers and engineers will be born today.
1.Who is the Conference intended for?
A. Japanese robot researchers.
B. Senior high school students worldwide.
C. The RSJ professors.
D. Robot lovers of all ages.
2.When can the participants study the real robots?
A. On the afternoon of December 4.
B. On the morning of December 5.
C. On the morning of December 4.
D. On the afternoon of December 5.
3.What type of writing is this text?
A. A research paper.
B. An announcement.
C. An exhibition guide.
D. The robotics introduction.
假如你是李华，你的美国笔友Mike来信询问你的家乡是否有雾霾天气，情况如何。请你按照以下提示给他回一封e-mail. 内容如下：
1. 由于大气污染程度十分严重，自去年年底以来发生数次雾霾天气。
2. 人们已经意识到雾霾天气的危害，正在采取各种措施减少其发生。
3. 你在日常生活中打算为此做些什么。
要求：
1.参考词汇：雾霾haze；雾霾天气 hazy weather
2.词数在100词左右。开头、结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Mike,
I’m glad to receive your letter, and thank you for your caring for the weather and my health. Now I’d like to tell you something about the haze.
_______________________________________________________________________________
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Yours,
Li Hua
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，每句中最多有两处。错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(
)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用(＼)划掉。
修改：在错的词下画一横线，并在该词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（从第11处起）不计分。
Life is always full of something that you can not expect. Bob is very sorry to have missed the first two lesson this morning. He got up early as usually in the morning, but when he was ready to leave he find his bicycle’s front tyre (轮胎) flat. He wanted to take taxi to school, and he didn’t have any money on him. He had to look for a place along the street to get his bicycle repairing. Unluckily, there were not any bicycle repair shops was open in the early morning. So he had to walk to school, carrying his bicycle all the way. That was the reason how he was late for school. He told Mr. White not to worry with his lessons, for he would make up for it and turn to his teachers for help if necessary.
