As a young girl growing up in the 1930s, I always wanted to fly a plane, but back then it was almost unheard of for a woman to do that. I got a taste of that dream in 2001, when my husband arranged for me to ride in a hot air balloon for my birthday. But the experience turned out to be very dull. Around that time, I told my husband that I wanted to skydive. So when our retirement community announced that they were having an essay competition and the topic was an experience of a lifetime that you wanted to have, I decided to write about my dream.
In the essay, I wrote about my desire to skydive, stating George Brush Sr. did it at age 80. Why not me? I was just 84 and in pretty good health. A year went by and I heard nothing. But then at a community party in late April 2009, they announced that I was one of the winners. I just couldn’t believe it. Inspired by this, I decided to realize my dream, even though some of my family members and my doctor were against it.
On June 11, 2009, nearly 40 of my family and friends gathered in the area close to where I would land while I headed up in the airplane. My instructor, Jay, guided me through the experience. The plane was the noisiest one I had ever been in, but I wasn’t frightened—I was really just looking forward to the experience. When we reached 13,000 feet, Jay instructed me to throw myself out of the plane. When we first hit the air, the wind was so strong that I could hardly breathe. For a second I thought, “What have I gotten myself into?” But then everything got calmer. We were in a free fall for about a minute before Jay opened the parachute（降落伞）, then we just floated downward for about five minutes. Being up in the clouds and looking at the view below was unlike anything I have ever felt—much better than the hot air balloon. I was just enjoying it.
Skydiving was really one of the greatest experiences of my life. I hope other people will look at me and realize that you don’t stop living just because you are 84 years old. If there’s something you want to experience, look into it. If it’s something that is possible, make it happen.
1.The author mentioned George Bush Sr. in her essay to ________.
A. make her argument persuasive B. show her admiration for him
C. compare their health condition D. build up her own reputation
2.How did the author feel immediately after she jumped out of the plane?
A. Excited. B. Regretful.
C. Nervous. D. Scared.
3.What did the author enjoy most when she was skydiving?
A. The beautiful clouds. B. The wonderful view.
C. The company of Jay. D. The one-minute free fall.
4.What is the best title of the passage?
A. Impossible is nothing B. A dream made come true
C. An unforgettable skydiving D. I Went Skydiving at 84!
Since the 1970s, scientists have been searching for ways to link the brain with computers. Brain-computer interface (界面) (BCI) technology could help people with disabilities send commands to machines.
Recently, two researchers, Jose Milan and Michele Tavella from the Federal Polytechnic schooling Lausanne, Switzerland, demonstrated(展示)a small robotic wheelchair directed by a person's thoughts.
In the laboratory, Tavella operated the wheelchair just by thinking about moving his left or right hand. He could even talk as he watched the vehicle and guided it with his thoughts.
"Our brain has billions of nerve cells. These send signals through the spinal cord(脊髓)to the muscles to give us the ability to move. But spinal cord injuries or other conditions can prevent these weak electrical signals from reaching the muscles," Tavella says. "Our system allows disabled people to communicate with external world and also to control devices."
The researchers designed a special cap for the user. This head cover picks up the signals from the scalp(头皮) and sends them to a computer. The computer interprets the signals and commands the motorized wheelchair. The wheelchair also has two cameras that identify objects in its path. They help the computer react to commands from the brain.
Prof. Milan, the team leader, says scientists keep improving the computer software that interprets brain signals and turns them into simple commands. "The practical possibilities that BCI technology offers to disabled people can be grouped in two categories: communication, and controlling devices. One example is this wheelchair."
He says his team has set two goals. One is testing with real patients, so as to prove that this is a technology they can benefit from. And the other is to guarantee that they can use the technology over long periods of time.
1.BCI is a technology that can _________________.
A. help to update computer systems
B. link the human brain with computers
C. help the disabled to recover
D. control a
person's thoughts
2.How did Tavella operate the wheelchair in the laboratory?
A. By controlling his muscles.
B. By talking to the machine.
C. By moving his hand.
D. By using his mind.
3.The team will test with real patients to .
A. make profits from them
B. prove the technology useful to them
C. make them live longer
D. learn about their physical condition
4.Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A. Switzerland, the BCI Research Center
B. New Findings About How the Human Brain Works
C. BCI Could Mean More Freedom for the Disabled
D. Robotic Vehicl
es Could Help to Cure Brain Injuries
We are seeking for qualified and experienced candidates to join our fast growing team for the following positions at Ratchathewi (Head Office), Pracha – Uthit (site), Pantai Norasing (site), Thepharak (site), and a few other incoming projects in Bangkok.
●Project Managers
－Degree in Civil / Structural Engineering
－Minimum 7 years’ working experience in similar capacity, preferably in building construction.
－Ability to plan and execute works, keep deadlines, control cost and implement continual quality improvement
－Possess leadership attributes, good interpersonal and follow-up skill to motivate subordinates and develop team spirit
－Possess a valid driving license
●Accounting Officer
—Degree in Accounting
—Minimum 1~2 years accounting experience
—Knowledge of accounting packages & spreadsheets
●Account Executive / Finance Executive
—Degree in Accounting
—Preferably 3 years’ accounting experience VAT, Withholding tax compliance & submission
—Knowledge of accounting packages & spreadsheets
—Expert at English and Thai (泰国语) spoken or written
—Ability to handle full set accounts
●Senior Admin. Asst.
—Minimum 5 years experience in Building Construction company is preferable
—Computer literate with knowledge in Microsoft Office
—Good command of both written and oral English compulsory
—Female preferred
●Site Supervisor
—Diploma / Certificate in Building or Civil Engineering
—Minimum 5 years’ working experience in building construction or precast (预制的) concrete manufacturing
—Able to work independently and co–ordinate work effectively
All positions mention above requires candidates with good command of both written and oral English. Interested candidate, please send your application stating full qualification, work experience and expected salary together with a copy of transcript and a recent photograph to the address below:
ASCE Construction Limited.
503/19E K.S.L. Tower (11TH Floor), Sri-Ayudthaya Rd., Thanon Phayathai,
Ratchathewi, Bangkok 10400
TEL: - 02642-6272 , 02642-6120
FAX: - 02642-6273
E-MAIL: asce_construction@hotmail.com
1.If you want to apply for the position of a project manager, you must have ________.
A. the ability to work independently
B. a degree in accounting
C. six years of experience at least
D. the qualification to drive
2.Most of the positions require the following EXCEPT ________.
A. a suitable degree
B. certain working experience
C. professional computer knowledge
D. a good command of English
3.What can we infer from the passage?
A. Candidates can only apply by mail.
B. More companies will be founded in Bangkok.
C. Candidates must be able to speak both English and Thai.
D. You will benefit from your work experience.
Recently my husband had his Achilles tendon（跟腱） cut when feeding a chicken. When sitting in the doctor’s office waiting for surgery stressfully, I decided to treat myself for a minute and start to read about “The Little House on the Prairie”. Suddenly I felt my life seemed like a slack（懈怠） compared to the Ingalls who do all their washing and cooking but they feel so happy. Their every happiness is created from the work with their own hands. Yet I’m walking around feeling sorry for myself because I’m picking up the slack! So I’m thinking “Work it out! Get up and get busy.”
It really is true. I realize that I’m happiest when accomplishing tangible(有形的) productive work—working in the yard and washing my dishes—brings me happiness. This does not surprise Kelly Lambert Ph.D. She has been researching the phenomenon she calls “effort-rewards”. When you do meaningful work with your hands, a kind of neurochemical feedback floods your brain with dopamine and serotonin. These happy brain chemicals are natural antidepressants, and we’ve evolved to release them both to reward ourselves for working with our hands and to motivate ourselves to do it some more. Dr. Lambert says Americans have become more depressed in recent years and at the same time we’ve experienced a decrease in purposeful physical activity. Did we lose something vital to our mental health when we started pushing buttons instead of ploughing the fields?
Dr. Pansinski says she gets that happy look when she prepares a meal at the end of a day. “We are programmed to reward ourselves when we accomplish things with our hands. For so many people, it just feels as though everything’s going so fast—life, kids, hundreds of e-mails a day. There is so little you can really see and hold on to. Working with one’s hands is a way to slow down, to take pleasure in life again.”
1.Before reading “The Little House On the Prairie”, the writer might think the Ingalls were ________.
A. unknown B. hardworking
C. foolish D. unhappy
2.The writer develops the first paragraph in a way of ________.
A. giving an example B. making a comparison
C. analyzing a cause D. asking a question
3.From Kelly Lambert Ph. D, we know that ________.
A. her “effort-rewards” is popular among American people
B. working with our hands makes our brain tired easily
C. a decrease in physical work causes people in low mood.
D. we should work with our hands instead of using machine
4.From what Dr. Pansinski says, we can conclude that ________.
A. time and tide wait for no man
B. we should lower our expectation for life
C. it’s better to leave today’s work to tomorrow
D. we should never hurry our life too much
你校英文报开展“旅游的利弊”专栏，请你根据下列提示，写一箱短文，谈谈你对旅游的看法。
内容提示：
1.放松自己；
2.开阔视野；
3.结交朋友；
4.劳累和费钱。
注意：
1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
When talking about travel, we may immediately think of its advantages.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
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：把多余的词用斜线(＼)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。
I had an amazing experience last Spring Festival. On the second day of the holiday, it was snowing heavily but we had a very importance relative to visit, that lived in a distant mountain village. We have to take risks to drive on our journey. Though the road was bad, but we arrived safe.
The family welcomed us warmly or we said “ Happy new year" to them. We were treated a good dinner. Later in the afternoon, we said goodbye and started back home. Sadly, our car sticking in the snow halfway and wouldn’t move. Just then, the villager walked by, offering to push his car. It was this stranger who helped us out!
