My family spent one summer vacation enjoying the beaches of beautiful Gulf Shores, Alabama. We bought a boat thinking this would make for a really ______ day at the beach for my two little girls.
I probably became too ______ with my younger daughter on the sand. When I looked up I became ______. The little boat with my older daughter in it had ______ far out from the shore. I called to her to come in ______ to shore and, although she seemed frightened, she was doing all she could to ______ just that. But there were no oars (桨) and her little ______ were too short to reach across the boat and into the ______.
Others on the beach seemed to be doing nothing to help except ______. I was standing as far out ______ the water as I could — ______ instructions to her, but with no ______. At last I thought to myself, “I know I’m a ______ swimmer but my daughter needs my help. I have no
____.” I jumped into the water.
At first my arms started moving very ______. I couldn’t believe I was doing this. I swam until I was breathless. I just kept hoping and ______ her. Finally, I reached the edge of the
____, grabbed the rope and began making my way back to shore. My child was crying so I tried
____ her, even though everything inside me was _______.
My life was forever changed by that ______. I learned if I believe in myself and dive right in I will have all the strength I need.
1.A. lucky B. fun C. moving D. peaceful
2.A. busy B. patient C. angry D. pleased
3.A. excited B. angry C. concerned D. amused
4.A. sunk B. stayed C. lost D. moved
5.A. closer B. faster C. earlier D. safer
6.A. avoid B. accomplish C. claim D. behave
7.A. legs B. fingers C. arms D. clothes
8.A. water B. shore C. board D. sand
9.A. applauding B. noticing C. swimming D. watching
10.A. off B. among C. in D. on
11.A. reading B. taking C. following D. shouting
12.A. hope B. reason C. end D. success
13.A. skillful B. poor C. brave D. new
14.A. choice B. way C. reason D. support
15.A. gently B. slowly C. confidently D. casually
16.A. keeping an eye on B. getting in touch with C. looking back at D. waving over to
17.A. strength B. oar C. boat D. beach
18.A. scolding B. calming C. praising D. helping
19.A. overjoyed B. changed C. missing D. trembling
20.A. point B. story C. experience D. scene
You wait in a long queue in the supermarket, but when it’s finally your turn to pay, you can’t find enough money in your purse. 1. While you are bending down to look for them, the people behind you are getting angry. The cashier is pounding her fingers impatiently on the counter.
2. But the good news is: scientists have thought of a way to make queues shorter and paying for things easier. They have invented an eye scanner. In the future, when you pay for food at the supermarket, an eye scanner will take a picture of your eyes and a computer will identify you. 3.
Students at Venerable Bede School, England, have already got an eye scanner in their cafeteria. After the students choose the food they want, the scanner looks for their information and sends a list of the food to their parents. 4. Also, parents pay for the meals at the end of the week, so the students don’t have to take money to school and wait in long queues to pay for their lunch.
If all shops had eye scanners, shopping would be easier. 5. So, it seems that it will be a while before most of us get our eyes scanned at the cashier.
A. Sometimes shopping can be unpleasant.
B. You take out your credit cards, but they fall on the floor.
C. If students aren’t eating a healthy diet, their parents will know.
D. Stores are trying several new ways to get shoppers to spend more.
E. Parents are urging the government to introduce better security safeguards.
F. However, eye scanners are very expensive and many shops can’t afford them.
G. As soon as the machine finds your information, it will send it to your bank which pays for your food automatically.
You can’t make a call or send a text on your mobile phone in the US town of Green Bank, West Virginia. Wireless Internet is outlawed, as is Bluetooth. As you approach the tiny town on a two-lane road that snakes through the mountains, your mobile phone signal drops out, and your radio stops working. The rusted pay phone on the north side of town is the only way for a visitor to reach the rest of the world. It’s a pre-modern place by design, lacking of the latest technologies that define life today.
The reason for the town’s empty airwaves is apparent the moment you arrive. It’s the Robert C. Byrd telescope, also known as the GBT, a shiny white, 147-metre-tall satellite dish. It’s the largest of its kind in the world and one of nine in Green Bank, all of them government owned and operated by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO).
You don’t look through these kinds of telescopes. They’re radio telescopes, so instead of looking for distant stars, they listen for them. There’s a long line of astronomers all over the world who want to use the telescope which is so sensitive that it could hear a single snowflake hitting the ground 1,000 miles away.
Such a sensitive listening tool needs total technological silence to operate, so in 1958 the US government created a National Radio Quiet Zone, a 33,000 km2 area covering Green Bank where, to this day, electronic and radio signals are forbidden every hour of every day.
People who live within a 15km of the Green Bank telescope are allowed to use landline telephones, wired Internet and cable televisions, but microwave ovens, wireless Internet and radios are forbidden. You can have a mobile phone, but you won’t get a signal.
Because of how much its way of life varies from the rest of America, Green Bank seems to be a somewhat isolated (隔绝), even alien place. For locals, the technology ban is annoying. For others who come to Green Bank for a little rest and relaxation, the town has become a refuge.
1.What do we know about the town of Green Bank from Paragraph 1?
A. It’s located at the base of a large mountain.
B. It is geographically and technologically isolated.
C. Its telecommunications are affected by its geography.
D. Many people live in the town and its surrounding areas.
2.How does the GBT work?
A. It traps light waves in its huge dish.
B. It stops all electronic and radio signals.
C. It receives pictures from space satellites.
D. It listens for and receives noises from space.
3.What equipment are locals of the Green Bank allowed to use?
A. Cable TV, wired Internet and radio.
B. Landline phones, wired Internet and cable TV.
C. Public phones, wireless Internet and mobile phones.
D. Landline phones, microwave ovens and cable internet.
4.What does the underlined word “refuge” in the last paragraph most probably mean?
A. A place of escape. B. A source of confusion.
C. An area of interest. D. A sign of danger.
Young people in the United States do not have a strong understanding of the world and their place in it.
Two US-based groups, the Council on Foreign Relations and the National Geographic Society, conducted an online survey last year. They wanted to know what young people in American colleges knew about geography, U.S. foreign policy, recent international events, and economics.
The survey was given to over 1,200 Americans between the ages of 18 and 26 years. All of them presently attending, or having previously graduated from, a 2- or 4-year college or university.
The average test score, out of 75 total possible answers, was 55 percent. The study identifies a few important problems. For example, only 30 percent knew that the only part of the U.S. government that can declare war is Congress. Only 60% of those taking the survey could identify Brazil on a world map.
Part of the problem, argue the organizers of the survey, is the Internet. They say it is becoming harder to find high-quality information about world events amongst all the fake news and trivia which swamp the web. Forty-three percent of those questioned said they read about the news on Facebook.
Another problem is that most college courses do not require students to learn about international issues. If such information is not required, Richard Haass from the Council on Foreign Relations said, then the United States could have leaders like Gary Johnson. He was a recent presidential candidate who did not know about the Syrian city of Aleppo when a reporter asked him about it.
The survey results were not all bad. The young people also demonstrated a good understanding of climate change and renewable energy. And the majority of them said that international issues were becoming more important to them.
Haass says these findings suggest the need to find ways to get good information to students, both in school and online. To help, the Council on Foreign Relations is creating a new program called CFR Campus, designed to help build knowledge about global issues.
1.What do we know about the survey?
A. The participants were all recent university graduates.
B. It was an online survey conducted by two US universities.
C. It was given to over 1,200 American people aged from 18 to 26.
D. It aimed to find out what the young people know about America.
2.What’s one reason survey organizers give for young people’s lack of knowledge?
A. The poor quality of the US university system.
B. Young people’s unwillingness to travel abroad.
C. The sources from which they get their information.
D. Their lack of interest in knowing more about the world.
3.What topic did the young Americans understand best according to the survey?
A. Government organizations. B. Geographic information.
C. Foreign relations. D. Environmental matters.
4.In which column of a newspaper could we find this article?
A. Economics. B. Education.
C. National Politics. D. Entertainment.
I have just returned from a visit to my landlord, Mr. Heathcliff. I am delighted with the house I am renting from him, which suits me perfectly.
Mr. Heathcliff is my only neighbour, and I think his character is similar to mine. He does not like people either.
When I introduced myself, he said nothing, but frowned, and did not encourage me to enter. After a while, however, he decided to invite me in.
“Joseph!” he called. Joseph was an old servant. He looked crossly up at me as he took my horse. “God help us! A visitor!” he whispered to himself. Perhaps there were no other servants, I thought. And it seemed that Heathcliff hardly ever received guests.
His house is called Wuthering Heights. The name means “a windswept house on a hill”, and it is a very good description. The trees around the house are bent by the north wind, which blows fiercely every day of the year. Fortunately, the house is strongly built, and is not damaged even by the worst winter storms.
Mr. Heathcliff and I entered the huge main room. We sat down by the fire, in silence.
“Joseph!” shouted Mr. Heathcliff. No answer came from the cellar, so he dived down there, leaving me alone with several rather fierce-looking dogs. Suddenly one of them jumped angrily up at me, and in a moment all the others were attacking me.
“Help! Mr. Heathcliff! Help!” I shouted. My landlord was nowhere to be seen, but luckily a woman, who might be the housekeeper, rushed into the room to calm the dogs.
“What is the matter?” Mr. Heathcliff asked me rudely, as he finally entered the room, accompanied by his man-servant.
“Your dogs, sir!” I replied. “You shouldn’t leave a stranger with them. They’re dangerous.”
“Come, come, Mr. Lockwood. Have some wine. We don’t often have strangers here. I’m afraid neither I nor my dogs are used to receiving them.” I could not feel offended after this, and accepted the wine. We sat drinking and talking together for a while. I suggested visiting him tomorrow. He did not seem eager to see me again, but I shall go anyway. He seems a fascinating man.
1.In which order should the following events be arranged?
a. Mr. Lockwood introduced himself to his landlord.
b. Mr. Lockwood and Mr. Heathcliff sat drinking and talking together.
c. Mr. Heathcliff invited Mr. Lockwood into the house.
d. Mr. Lockwood was attacked by some dogs.
e. Mr. Lockwood and Mr. Heathcliff sat down by the fire, in silence.
f. Mr. Heathcliff appeared in the main room with Joseph.
A. a, c, f, b, d, e. B. c, a, b, e, d, f.
C. a, c, e, d, f, b. D. c, a, f, e, d, b.
2.Why did Joseph say “God help us! A visitor!” when he met Mr. Lockwood?
A. He was very shocked to have a visitor.
B. He thought Mr. Lockwood was a new servant.
C. He had waited for Mr. Lockwood for a long time.
D. He was happy his prayer for guests was answered.
3.Why is the house called “Wuthering Heights”?
A. It is struck by strong winds all the year round.
B. It is protected well by the trees surrounding it.
C. The trees around it are bent by the north wind.
D. It is specially designed to resist strong winds.
4.What was the writer’s impression of Mr. Heathcliff?
A. He was rich but foolish. B. He was rude but interesting.
C. He was handsome but boring. D. He was strange but friendly.
He was the man who inspired the Beat Generation, and nearly half a century after his death Jack Kerouac is still receiving grateful letters from his fans.
Most letters are sent in the post to his last home in St Petersburg, Florida, and the mail box in the front yard is full to bursting. But others are delivered by hand, pushed under the front door or left on the doorstep.
They usually thank the author of On the Road for inspiring them to travel and be independent. “You remind me to stay true to who you are and to encourage a sense of adventure in all of us.” reads one letter, handwritten by “Cindy” on paper covered with pictures of butterflies and flowers. She adds, “I hope you’re writing, liberated and drinking a glass of wine.”
Another, signed “Friend of Jack”, reads, “I prefer to think of myself as a free spirit and a person who follows a path of her own choosing. You have always been my inspiration.”
His home, where he was living with his mother Gabrielle and his wife Stella, has become a destination for hundreds of fans every year.
Kerouac rocketed to fame at the age of 35, with the publication of On the Road in 1957.
But after becoming a symbol and leader of the alternative lifestyle movement, he struggled with that fame and claimed that he only wanted people to read his books.
Kerouac died just 12 years after On the Road was published. He was suffering from liver problem, following years of heavy drinking largely brought on by his love-hate relationship with fame.
Kerouac, the creator of vivid characters such as Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty, died at a St Petersburg hospital in 1969, at the age of 47.
1.Why do people still write to Kerouac after his death?
A. His wife and mother still live in his home.
B. They are also suffering from serious illness.
C. People benefiting from his books want to say thanks.
D. People hope to learn how to deal with overnight fame.
2.What is On the Road probably about?
A. How to deal with becoming famous.
B. How vivid characters can be created.
C. Teaching people to appreciate his books.
D. Getting to know oneself better through travel.
3.What can we learn about Kerouac from the text?
A. He had great difficulty dealing with fame.
B. He was depressed because people didn’t read his books.
C. He drank a lot to celebrate his being famous for his works.
D. He was scolded because he promoted an alternative lifestyle.
