There are many benefits of singing in a choir. They range 1.the social: having the opportunity 2.(make)new friends, to the physical benefits of learning to breathe 3.(proper). Research has also shown that young people 4.sing in choirs do better in their studies and have5.tendency to be healthier.
But the first question you should ask6.(you)if you are considering joining a choir is “can you sing in tune?” It might seem obvious, but 7.you can, there is little point in seeking out a choir because you’ll only get rejected. Every choir you apply to join is going to audition(面试)you. Don’t worry if you can’t read music; that can be taught later. If you 8.(accept), you’ll find choir practice to be hard work, but great fun, because they’re social events as much as music training. You will learn to read music and how to sing with confidence. Your voice and technique will develop, probably quite quickly with proper 9.(instruct), and you may just end up10.(wonder)why you didn’t do this years ago.
Columbus returned home with the news of his discovery of “Indian” as Columbus called it. Then he was considered as the hero who had ________a new world to Spain. Never had such great ______ been shown to any common man. But there were some who were jealous（嫉妒）of the ______.“Who is this Columbus?” they asked, “and what has he done? Isn't he a poor _______ from Italy? And could not any other seaman sail across the ocean just as he has done?”
One day Columbus was at ______ and several of these fellows were ______. They tried to make Columbus ______.“You have discovered strange lands beyond the sea,” they said, “But we don't see ______ there should be so much said about it. Anybody can coast along the______ on the other side, just as you have done. It is the ______ thing in the world.”
Columbus made no _______, but after a while he took an egg from a dish and said to the people at the table, “Who ______ you, gentlemen, can make the egg stand on ______?”One by one they tried the ______ .When the egg had gone entirely around and everyone had ______, all said that it could not be done. Then Columbus took the egg and ______the shell of the egg’s small end a little upon the table. After that there was no ______ in making it stand upward. “Gentlemen,” said he, “what is ______than to do this which you said was _____? It is the simplest thing in the world. Anybody can do it--AFTER HE HAS BEEN SHOWN ______.”
1.A. compared B. devoted C. given D. returned
2.A. respect B. mercy C. anger D. regret
3.A. discovery B. inventor C. discoverer D. bravery
4.A. teacher B. editor C. merchant D. sailor
5.A. war B. work C. sea D. dinner
6.A. friendly B. present C. rude D. angry
7.A. enjoyable B. satisfied C. uncomfortable D. disappointed
8.A. why B. what C. whether D. that
9.A. valleys B. islands C. cities D. mountains
10.A. nicest B. funniest C. coolest D. simplest
11.A. sense B. excuse C. effort D. answer
12.A. among B. besides C. including D. except
13.A. fire B. sale C. line D. end
14.A. egg B. experiment C. method D. dish
15.A. left B. failed C. finished D. managed
16.A. touched B. burned C. broke D. removed
17.A. success B. trouble C. help D. interest
18.A. quicker B. smaller C. easier D. longer
19.A. accessible B. impossible C. difficult D. natural
20.A. HOW B. WHEN C. IT D. THAT
Easy Ways to Keep Your Brain Sharp
Everyone is forgetful, but as we age, we start to feel like our brains are slowing down a bit—and that can be a very annoying thing. 1. Read on for some techniques worth trying.
1. 2.
People who regularly made plans and looked forward to upcoming events had a 50 percent reduced chance of Alzheimer's disease (早老性痴呆症), according to a recent study. 3.Something as simple as setting a goal to have a weekly coffee date with a friend will do. There's evidence that people who have a purpose in life or who are working on long or short-term goals appear to do better. In other words, keep your brain looking forward.
2. Go for a walk
Mildly raised glucose (葡萄糖) levels can harm the area of the brain that helps you form memories and physical activity can help get blood glucose down to normal levels. In fact, exercise produces chemicals that are good for your brain. 4.
3. Learn something new
Take a Spanish class online, join a drawing club, or learn to play cards. A study found that mental stimulation (刺激) limits the weakening effects of aging on memory and the mind. But the best thing for your brain is when you learn something new and are physically active at the same time. 5.Or go dancing with your friends.
A. Focus on the future.
B. This can be especially harmful to the aged.
C. It should be something like learning gardening.
D. So take a few minutes each day to do some reading.
E. But don't worry if your schedule isn't filled with life-changing events.
F. Luckily, research shows there is a lot you can do to avoid those moments.
G. In other words, when you take care of your body, you take care of your brain.
A new concept vehicle, Pod was introduced by Toyota and Sony at the Tokyo motor show. The car is intended as a four-wheeled friend. It aims to provide affection, sympathy and encouragement. Like a dog welcoming its master, the car sits up, wags its tail and acknowledges its owner’s presence using hydraulics(液压装置) and a multi-colored LED display panel(引擎) across the front.
While on the road, the car constantly monitors the driver’s mood with pulse and sweat sensors on the joystick(操纵杆). Cameras focused on the eyes keep watch for any sigh of drowsiness. If a driver appears to be losing his or her cool, Pod will display warnings, play soft music and blow cold air at the face. Drivers are shaken awake with loud music and a shaking chair.
To improve driving skills, pod compares acceleration, braking and steering with the best performance recorded by professionals. It uses this comparison to score drivers, offer advice and rank all Pod owners. Toyota claims that the car will eventually be able to learn its owner’s likes and dislikes by monitoring passenger conversations. If the car hears a favorite song being discussed, it will download the track from the Internet and play it without being asked. It will also recommend restaurants that might suit the driver’s taste and take photographs of passengers when they sound particularly happy.
In keep with the moodiness that is the car’s main selling point, Pod expresses a form of road anger. If a driver brakes or swerves(转向) suddenly, the LED panel shows an angry red and the tail rises at the back.
Anger is one of the car’s ten “emotional states”. Another is sadness --- a blue front with tear-shaped lights seemingly dropping from headlights --- which appears after a flat tire or when gas is low.
“We wanted to show that the cars can be cheerful and entertaining,” said Yasunori Sakamoto, part of the Toyota design team. Mr Sakamoto said Toyota has no plans to put Pod on the market. Sad, really.
1.The underlined word “drowsiness” in Paragraph 2 means _________.
A. fear B. boredom
C. excitement D. sleepiness
2.According to the text, Pod can ___________.
A. rank the restaurant nearby B. test the driver’s driving skills
C. have a conversation with drivers D. recommend a song to passenger
3.If the new concept vehicle is running out of gas, __________.
A. the Led panel turns red
B. the tail rises at the back of the car
C. the front light turn blue and look like tears
D. the car stops and shake with loud music
4.What is the author’s attitude towards Pod?
A. Supportive. B. Doubtful.
C. Pessimistic. D. Tolerant.
The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco，California is one of the world's most beautiful bridges. It is also one of the most visited places in the world. More than 1800 hundred million vehicles have used the bridge since it opened more than 70 years ago.
The bridge was painted “International Orange” because that color went well with the natural surroundings. The color also is easier to see in the heavy fog that often covers the area. But the Golden Gate Bridge was not named for its orange color. It was named for the body of water that it crosses, the Golden Gate Strait, which is the entrance to the San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean
Planning for the bridge began in the 1920s when the area around San Francisco was growing. People living in the area needed another way to get to the city besides small ferries. Joseph Strauss was the chief engineer for the project. Work began in 1934.Mr.Strauss demanded the strongest safety protections in the history of bridge building. These included the first use of “hard hats” to protect the workers' heads and special glasses to protect their eyes. A special safety net was suspended under the bridge. This net saved the lives of 19 men during the construction.
The Golden Gate Bridge opened in 1937.It extends 1280 meters across the water. The total length is 2737 meters. It was the largest suspension bridge(吊桥)in the world until 1964.That is when the Verrazano Narrows Bridge opened in New York City. Today, the Golden Gate Bridge is the ninth longest suspension bridge in the world.
1.What was the Golden Gate Bridge named after?
A. The Strait it crosses B. The color of a paint
C. The local climate D. Its natural surroundings
2.How did people cross the Golden Gate Strait before the bridge was built?
A. By plane. B. By train.
C. By road. D. By boat.
3.Why was a special safety net suspended under the bridge?
A. Because it can protect the environment
B. Because it can prevent workers from falling
C. Because it can make construction easier
D. Because it can save building materials from falling
4.What do we know about Joseph Strauss?
A. He built the first suspension bridge in the world.
B. His safety measures were not of practical value.
C. He attached importance to the workers' safety.
D. He demanded strong measures to ensure the safety of the bridge.
Uncle Tom gave little Vicki Black a birthday gift one week before her birthday. He told her not to open it until her birthday. She knew her mother wouldn’t tolerate any disrespect to the kind man who helped them out after Vicki’s father passed away; besides, Vicki didn’t want Uncle Tom to get angry. But little Vicky didn’t want to just hold it and guess what was in it. After all, she looked forward to his coming to show her interesting things, like how to turn an old sock into a doll.
All the day, Vicki couldn’t stop thinking about the gift while her teacher was giving a lecture. Vicki sat still in her seat, drawing paper dolls inside the box. When school was done, she raced home. Walking into the room, again, she shook the present, but she heard nothing. Holding her breath, she opened the box and looked inside. Seconds later, she cried. When Mrs. Black saw the box, she said angrily, “Didn’t I tell you to leave it alone?” Vicki sobbed and said, “Mommy, you don’t understand.”
“Don’t cry to me. You have missed everything now, just because you couldn’t wait,” Mrs. Black accused. “What will Uncle Tom think now?”
“Uncle Tom gave me nothing,” Vicki cried and handed the empty box to her mother. “He played a trick on me.”
Mrs. Black said doubtfully, “Uncle Tom is not like that. You must have dropped it.”
Vicki kept crying. Only a rapid knock on the door made the house quiet. It was Uncle Tom. He looked at the empty box. “You have already done it? I told you to wait for your birthday.”
“You didn’t give me a gift.” Fresh tears filled her eyes.
“I try to give you something. I know your birthday is a special day. I tell myself to give you something valuable to last your whole life. I think hard and get the idea to give you an important lesson. If you open it on birthday, I see you learn. Then I will make a big party to celebrate. Maybe next year you listen and then you will understand the gift better.
1.We can learn from the text that Vicki___________.
A. often received gifts from her father
B. liked and respected Uncle Tom
C. was sad because of her father’s death
D. expected Uncle Tom to give her a doll
2.What does the underlined sentence “You have already done it” refer to?
A. You have already opened the box
B. You have already guessed the result
C. You have already realized Uncle Tom’s purpose
D. You have already known what the birthday gift was
3.What kind of person is Uncle Tom?
A. Mysterious B. Humorous
C. Thoughtful D. Generous
4.What did Uncle Tom want to teach Vicki?
A. How to respect others B. The value of a promise
C. How to deal with gifts D. The meaning of gifts
