Hoverboards(电动滑板）were among the most popular Christmas gifts of 2015. They may have also been most dangerous gifts of 2015.
A true hoverboard looks like a skateboard without wheels. To “hover” means to float in the air without moving much in any direction. The popularity of hoverboards began in the 1980s, with the “Back to the Future” movies. Characters in the second and third films used hoverboards as transportation.
This year’s popular hoverboards, however, do not actually hover. They have wheels. And? as it turns out, they are not easy to use.
Adults and children around the world suffered hoverboard-related injuries over the weekend. Many posted pictures of the damage on social media. Twitter user David Douglas posted a photo of both him and a young girl with the broken arms they suffered on Christmas Day. And another user Erin Rafferty uploaded a video of her mother falling off a hoverboard, with the caption, “Who let mom on the hoverboard?”
Falling is not the only risk with some hoverboards. They are also a fire risk. At one store in Texas, an employee tried to fix a hoverboard a customer brought in. The hoverboard then caught fire.
Studies suggest that some hoverboard brands have defective batteries or plugs.
Many major airlines worldwide have banned hoverboards because of the fire risk. But some passengers did not hear the news. Australian actor Russell Crowesaid on Monday about his disappointment that Virgin Australia Airlines did not permit his children to take their hoverboards on the plane.
Major retailers (零售商）are also taking steps to improve the safety of the hoverboards they sell. Amazon in the United States now only sells hoverboards from brands that have submitted safety standard documents. The UK’s Amazon no longer sells hoverboards. It has also advised customers who bought unsafe brands of hoverboards to throw them away.
1.What’s the problem with this year’s hoverboards?
A. They don’t have wheels. B. They catch fire in the sun.
C. They are difficult to handle. D. They can’t move in any direction.
2.We can infer from the passage that .
A. the number of hoverboard-related injuries is declining.
B. hoverboards are still enjoying equal popularity as before.
C. hoverboards are still sold on Amazon in the United States.
D. passengers are forbidden to get on planes with hoverboards.
3.The underlined word “defective” in the sixth paragraph probably means .
A. faulty B. spare
C. dead D. dry
4.We can probably read this passage in a .
A. newspaper B. textbook
C. science fiction D. movie review
The World Health Organization (WHO) said that processed meat may be carcipogenic(致癌). Do you still dare eat cancer-linked processed meat Here are some comments on the website.
Bill (Australia) I’d rather live a short, pleasant life than a long, unhappy one, denying(拒绝给予) myself tasty food just because some experts say it’s not healthy. We should all enjoy the one life we have ---if I had listened to every piece of health advice I would never go anywhere, eat anything or enjoy life in any way. So, I won’t change my habit. I am going to have bacon sandwich, glass of wine, burger, can of coke whenever I fell like it.
Tim (America) Is meat really as bad as smoking: I don’t think so. According to the WHO 34,000 people die worldwide per year because they eat processed meat. In 2012, 8.2 million people died of cancer worldwide. That means if you eat a lot of processed meat you have a chance of being among the 0.41 percent of people dying of cancer because of processed meat. I’ll take the chance.
Helen (Switzerland) The WHO doesn’t say that just one bite of meat causes cancer, it is rather saying that people should vary their diet. People who eat more meat often have other unhealthy habits. They usually eat fewer fruits and vegetables and they also often exercise less.
Van (China) Perhaps this report will make people consider becoming vegetarians ( 素食者). So for your health, the environment and future generations, it is not difficult; it just needs a change of attitude. There is a vast variety of other delicious food available to enjoy.
1.What if Bill has to change his habit?
A. He’ll feel unhappy. B. He’ll live a pleasant life.
C. He’ll go on a diet. D. He’ll become a vegetarian.
2.What does Tim think about eating processed meat?
A. Too risky. B. Fairly safe.
C. Popular worldwide. D. Very unhealthy.
3.What may be Helen a response to WHO’s warning?
A. Caring little about it. B. Eating whatever she likes.
C. Varying the diet and doing exercise. D. Taking a diet without meat.
4.Who have the most similar viewpoints?
A. Bill and Tim. B. Tim and Helen.
C. Helen and Van. D. Bill and Van.
The sun is shining when I get on No. 151 bus. We passengers sit jammed together in heavy clothes. No one speaks. That’s one of the unwritten rules of Chicago commuting. Although we see the same faces every day, we prefer to hide behind our newspapers. The phenomenon is striking: people who sit so close together are using those thin sheets of newsprint to keep their distance.
As the bus approaches the Magnificent Mile, a voice suddenly rings out: “Attention! Attention!” Papers rattle (发出细小声). Necks crane (伸长). “This is your driver speaking.”
We look at the back of the driver’s head. His voice has authority.
“All of you put your papers down.”
The papers come down, an inch at a time. The driver waits. The papers are folded and placed on our laps.
“Now, turn and face the person next to you. Go ahead.”
Amazingly, we all do it. Still, no one smiles.
I face an older woman, her head wrapped tightly in a red scarf. I see her nearly every day. Our eyes meet. We wait, unblinking, for the next order from the driver.
“Now, repeat after me…” It is a command, delivered in the tones of a drill sergeant (操练军士). “Good morning, neighbor!”
Our voices are weak and timid. For many of us, these are the first words we have spoken today. But we say them at the same time, like schoolchildren, to the strangers beside us.
We smile and can’t help it. We have said it; the barrier has been broken. Good morning, neighbor. It is not so hard after all. Some of us repeat it. Others shake hands. Many laugh.
The bus driver says nothing more. He doesn’t need to. Not a single newspaper goes back up. I hear laughter, a warm sound I have never heard before on bus No. 151. This day is starting off better than most.
1.On hearing the sudden utterance of “Attention!”, the passengers ___________.
A. stopped reading and put down their newspapers immediately
B. looked up from the newspapers to see who was speaking
C. sat still without response
D. were frightened
2.The underlined word “commuting” in Paragraph 1 most probably means ___________.
A. daily traveling between home and work B. long-distance ride
C. communication technology D. behavior patterns
3.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. The passengers on the crowded bus are so absorbed in reading their newspapers that no one speaks.
B. The passengers are physically close together but mentally they keep each other at a terrible distance.
C. The passengers don’t follow the driver’s instruction at first.
D. When the bus driver says nothing more, the passengers pick up and read their newspapers again.
4.What would be the best title for the text?
A. The Warmth of Communication B. The Exchange of Information
C. The Power of Observation D. The Attitude to Loneliness
1.Modern a________ is doing damage to our beautiful countryside.
2.Felix Baumgartner, an Austrian, has become the first person to skydive 35km across the English C_________ .
3.Their English party turned out to be a c___________.
4.Most of the Amazon r____________ in Brazil is no more than 2 hundred meters above sea level.
5.His i__________ is approximately 8000 dollars a month.
6.His hand shook slightly as he i________ the key into the lock.
7.The judge was in his f_______.
8.It is illegal to read other’s private letter without p________.
9.The sudden thunder f_______ the dog away.
10.I will take it into c________ that I would visit her when free.
It's no surprise that sports can greatly benefit a child physically, psychologically, and socially. A 2008 Women's Sports Foundation Research Report concluded that children’s athletic participation is also associated with increased levels of family satisfaction, great achievement in study, and an overall better quality of life for children. And a study published in last month’s American Journal of Preventive Medicine showed that kids who are active at age 5 wind up with less body fat at ages 8 and 11.
But one hotly debated discussion focuses on the kinds of sports kids should play, with parents mistakenly thinking, "Lizzie is so quiet, we should let her join in basketball and soccer to try to get her to open up." But increasingly, experts are suggesting the healthier instinct (直觉) might be, "Lizzie is so quiet. Maybe we should see if she likes playing with a big team like softball or if she likes ballet or swimming, where she can work more on her own terms."
“Participation in any sport is going to provide kids with life skills----the ability to focus and to concentrate, the ability to handle pressure in tough situations, the ability to stay calm when things aren't going just right,’’ explains Orlando-based youth sports psychology expert Patrick Cohn. Those lessons will carry over into future, non-sports attempts.
Team sports certainly offer benefits not as easily obtained via individual activities, as players leant how to communicate and work with others, and there’s the potential to develop leadership abilities. Team sports also help kids develop their social identity. Our sense of worth is developed through what we achieve and a sense of belonging.
Individual sports offer unique advantages, too, like developing a child’s sense of independence. “Hero, you don’t depend upon teammates," says Cohn. "You take full responsibility, whether you do well or perform poorly." Many of Cohn’s young clients complain about pressure from team mates or coaches to make zero mistakes or carry more of the team than they may want to; these kids may enjoy a solo sport like tennis or gymnastics.
Individual activities keep kids away from comparing themselves to the best players on the team, a habit that does little to help confidence levels. Instead, it encourag
es them to compare their skills to their own past performances. With individual sports like swimming or track, it’s easier for the child to participate on his own, at his leisure(闲暇), without having to round up a bunch of like-minded peers.
Above all, while some children enjoy the excitement of competition, others are more likely to benefit from the freedom of individual sports, and finding the right balance can be necessary for children’s enjoyment. What parents think is encouragement, children often consider as pressure. So try to understand what they want from sports.
Title | Team sports and individual sports |
Sports benefit children | • Sports can greatly benefit children physically, psychologically, and socially. • Sports are associated with increased levels of family satisfaction, 1. achievement and better quality of life for children. |
2. ideas | • Parents usually want their children to lake part in the team sports which don’t 3.their children’s character. • Experts think that any sport will 4. children to focus, handle pressure, stay calm when things are going 5.. |
Team sports | • Children can learn how to communicate and work with others. • Children will have the potential to develop leadership abilities. • Children will develop their social 6.. |
Individual sports | • Individual sports may help develop children’s sense of independence and 7.. • Children tend to compare their skills to their own past performances and are likely to 8. comparing themselves with the best players. • Individual sports also seem to be more 9. to children. |
Conclusion | • Finding the right balance is a 10. for children’s enjoyment. • Parents should try to understand what their children really want from sports. |
Many of us remember being in awe(敬畏) when we saw cloned dinosaurs running wild in the film Jurassic Park. And the idea of using technology to revive(恢复) extinct species has long fascinated not only writers and directors, but scientists as well.
According to The Telegraph, woolly mammoths(长毛猛犸象), which featured in the popular Ice Age animated movie series, “may walk the earth once more” now that scientists have taken another step toward realizing a long-held dream—recreating their DNA.
Mammoths became extinct around 10,000 years ago. However, since the discovery of near-perfect preserved remains in Arctic permafrost(北极冻土带) in May 2013, a variety of research studies have been carried out since.
Geneticists from Harvard University analyzed DNA from the remains, looking for genes which separated mammoths from elephants, such as hairiness and ear size. They then used the results to reproduce exact copies of 14 mammoth genes. “It is the first time that mammoth genes have been alive—although so far it has only been done in the lab,” George Church, lead researcher of the project, told the Sunday Times.
Church then used a new technique which allows scientists to edit DNA carefully, replacing sections of elephant DNA with the mammoth genes. So “we now have functioning elephant cells with mammoth DNA in them,” he said.
However, Church ruled out the possibility of bringing the mammoths back to life via cloning from frozen remains. He said he “preferred to focus on rebuilding the full mammoth genome(基因组) by analyzing DNA from preserved remains and putting it into the cells of its closest living relative – the Asian elephant,” reported The Telegraph.
Church argued that the return of the woolly mammoth—or rather, the return of something very similar—could help bring back fragile(脆弱的) ecosystems. However, some scientists believe that bringing back the mammoth would be unethical.
Professor Alex Greenwood, an expert on ancient DNA, said: “We may face the extinction of African and Asian elephants. Why bring back another elephant from extinction when we cannot even keep the ones that are not extinct around?” he told the Sunday Times. “What is the message? We can be as irresponsible with the environment as we want. Then we’ll just clone things back?”
“Money would be better spent focusing on conserving what we do have than spending it on an animal that has been extinct for thousands of years,” he said.
1.We can learn from the article that ______.
A. cloned mammoths followed cloned dinosaurs to get revived
B. the technology to revive mammoth genes is already mature
C. George Church and his colleagues tried to reproduce mammoth DNA
D. Church and his team managed to list all the genes that separate mammoths from elephants
2.According to Church, what is the significance of his study?
A. It could help prevent the extinction of the Asian elephant.
B. It could help people better tell elephant DNA from mammoth genes.
C. It could help bring back some extinct species and save fragile ecosystems.
D. It could help bring mammoths back to life via cloning from frozen remains.
3.The underlined word “unethical” in Paragraph 7 is closest in meaning to ______.
A. unacceptable B. misled
C. impractical D. illegal
4.According to the article, Professor Alex Greenwood believes that _______.
A. there is no need to worry about the extinction of African and Asian elephants at present
B. it’s necessary to bring back species that are beneficial to human beings from extinction
C. the return of the woolly mammoth would help to balance ecosystems
D. it’s more important to protect present species than to bring back extinct ones
