On Sunday, March 11, most Americans will set their clocks forward an hour, as daylight saving time (sometimes wrongly called daylight savings time) begins and most of the United States can enjoy an extra hour of daylight. The spring and fall clock changes continue a long tradition started by Benjamin Franklin to conserve energy.
Benjamin Franklin lakes the honor (or the blame, depending on your view of the lime changes) for coming up with the idea to reset clocks in the summer months as a way to conserve energy. By moving clocks forward, people could take advantage of the extra evening daylight rather than wasting energy on lighting. At the time, Franklin was ambassador to Paris and so wrote a letter to the Journal of Paris in 1784, rejoicing over his “discovery” that the sun provides light as soon as it rises.
Even so, DST (Daylight Saving Time) didn’t officially begin until more than a century later. Germany established DST in May 1916 as a way to conserve fuel during World War I. The rest of Europe came onboard shortly thereafter. And in 1918, the United States adopted DST.
Though President Woodrow Wilson wanted to keep daylight saving time after WWI ended, the country was mostly rural at the time and farmers objected, partly because it would mean they lost an hour of morning light. And so daylight saving time was abolished until at the start of WWII, on Feb. 9, 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt re-established daylight saving time year- round, calling it “War Time.”
After the war, a free-for-all system in which U.S. states and towns were given the choice of whether or not to observe DST led to disorder. And in 1966, to avoid such “Wild West” confusion, Congress passed the Uniform Time Act. That federal law meant that any state observing DST — and they didn’t have to jump on the DST system — had to follow a uniform timing system throughout the state in which daylight saving time would begin on the first Sunday of April and end on the last Sunday of October.
Then, in 2007, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 went into effect, expanding the length of daylight saving lime to the present timing.
1.What is the passage mainly about?
A. What is Daylight Saving Time?
B. How did Daylight Saving Time start?
C. Who proposed Daylight Saving Time?
D. Why Daylight Saving Time is adopted?
2.It can be inferred that .
A. DST was adopted in the US mainly to preserve fuel
B. DST lasted for 24 years in the US before being canceled
C. it is still free for the states in the US to adopt the DST or not
D. farmers in the US rejected DST for losing an hour of evening light
3.What is the meaning of the underlined expression “rejoicing over” in paragraph 2?
A. Taking pride in. B. Taking interest in.
C. Feeling regret for. D. Feeling surprised about.
4.Which country adopted DST earliest, according to the passage?
A. France. B. Germany.
C. England. D. The United States.
In third-world countries such as Swaziland and Haiti, a $ 15-dollar invention is making a world of difference. Nokero, a company started by Brian Rants, sells lamps that do not require kerosene (蓖麻油). These solar lamps have become a staple (主流产品) in countries in Africa, to provide light for reading and safety at night.
Nokcro has sold over 500,000 lamps in over 120 countries since it was first founded in 2010 and Rants thinks the demand for his product will only continue to increase. Most lamps found in third-world countries currently require kerosene to run. but kerosene causes indoor pollution and has been linked to fires that have caused over a million deaths.
Instead of experiencing the effects of smoking 40 cigarettes a day from kerosene lamps, Rants thinks his solar lamps could be the answer for third-world countries. The Economist agrees, calling solar lights “the next big innovation for the world’s poor”. Nokero’s solar lamps are higher in quality and less expensive than a lot of solar technology, making them a practical option for many people in third world countries.
Rather than giving solar lamps to individuals in need. Nokero’s mission is to make them affordable. Through research Rants has realized that individuals who buy a solar product take better care of it and value it more than if they had received it for free. Families who buy Nokero’s solar lamps make up the cost in just a few months of not having to buy kerosene or pay for off-the-grid electricity.
Some activists have attacked companies such as Nokero for selling products to the poor rather than simply giving them out for free. They argue that these companies unfairly profit off the poor. However, Rants disagrees. Families receive a product that is much higher in quality than what they might receive for free and feel a sense of ownership having purchased it for themselves.
1.What do we know about the solar lamps in the passage?
A. They save energy and cause no pollution.
B. They equal the effect of 40 cigarettes a day.
C. They are given to the individuals free of charge.
D. They help to save kerosene in third-world countries.
2.According to Rants, if the poor arc given the lamps for free, they .
A. will have to pay for kerosene or electricity
B. will not take good care or value the lamps
C. will feel a sense of ownership of the lamps
D. won’t help to increase the sales of the lamps
3.What is paragraph 3 mainly about?
A. An innovation of the world.
B. Advantages of the solar lights.
C. Solution to world’s poverty problems.
D. Heavy pollution caused by kerosene lamps.
4.Which word describes Brian Rants?
A. Honest. B. Thoughtful.
C. Charitable. D. Greedy.
Like a lot of young people. Joanna Rakoff took the first job she was offered. She decided to work at one of New York’s oldest literary agencies. Yet she had no idea that it would be the first stepping stone on the way to becoming a writer, and later, the novelist she is today.
In the face of the ups and downs, she gave it her all. She can still remember that her boss was very challenging. “The thing that worked when my boss was being difficult was remembering it wasn’t personal. Usually, it’s not about you, it’s them,” she advises anyone in a similar situation.
Being a manager and editor herself later in her career also helped to make sense of what happened years before. “It’s really hard managing a lot of people. I had a lot more sympathy for my former boss after that. You don’t know everything that’s going on with them, and remember: they’re a person, too,” she says.
After only a year, Rakoff realized she was not “an agency person” as her manager had believed, but the seed had been planted. She left with dreams of becoming a writer and a real understanding of the world of glossy (亮丽光鲜的) magazines.
Rakoff rose from writing magazine articles to features editor, and later editor-in-chief. Dreams of one day writing fiction remained. “Writing pieces for magazines really helped me to become an author. It helped make writing less scary. When you write regularly and have deadlines, it really teaches you that sometimes you have to sit down and just do it,” she says.
With all the pressure on young people these days, it is important to remember you don’t have to be in the perfect job right away. What’s more, you don’t need to know what you want to be or do for a career as soon as you finish high school or college. Rakoff explains how many of her very successful friends found different paths toward becoming fiction writers. There is nothing wrong with having a job to keep you busy and pay the bills while you figure out your passions, she says.
1.When Joanna Rakoff was offered the first job. she .
A. gave it up to seek for some better opportunities
B. left it at once because the boss was too demanding
C. agreed to work for the old literacy agency in New York
D. accepted it believing it would lead to her future success
2.How could Rakoff understand her boss in the literary agency?
A. She thought her boss was under great pressure.
B. She believed her boss expected her to work better.
C. She knew her colleagues were doing well enough.
D. She became a manager and editor herself later on.
3.Rakoff left the literary agency with the ambition of .
A. working as a manager
B. writing for magazines
C. becoming a fiction writer
D. being an agency person
4.What can we learn from Rakoff’s experience?
A. The grass is always greener on the other side.
B. Keep on what you are doing until you succeed.
C. Land the best job as soon as you graduate from college.
D. A seemingly imperfect job may as well lead to success.
New Zealand Escorted Tours - A great way to experience New Zealand
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Kirra Tours____day Classic New Zealand Panorama
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1.Which tour will you choose if you wish to cover both the North and South Islands?
A. Kirra Tours. B. AAT Kings.
C. Inspiring Journeys. D. Thrift Tours.
2.Visit to Mt. Cook National Park is available in both .
A. Kirra Tours and AAT Kings B. Kirra Tours and Thrifty Tours
C. Kirra Tours and Inspiring Journeys D. Inspiring Journeys and Thrifty Tours
3.Where do you most possibly see the advertisement?
A. On a travel website. B. In a tour brochure.
C. In a geography text book. D. In a travel magazine.
假设你的一位在外国出生的亲戚要回中国过春节，他想了解我国过春节的情况。请你根据下面要点写一篇英语短文。
1. 春节是中国的重大节日。
2. 节前人们要大扫除。
3. 全家人在一起吃年夜饭。
4. 孩子们会得到压岁钱。
5. 年初一穿新衣服，走亲访友，互道吉利。
词数:100左右
生词:大扫除have a thorough cleaning
评分标准: 内容12分; 书写3分。
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Alice, my closest friend, devotes many energy to her lessons all day long. She is always one of the top student in our class. She loves the music so much that she made it a rule to enjoy some pop songs in her spare time. Alice is always willing to help other, and she often helps us with our lessons. As an enthusiastic volunteer she has successful organized varieties of voluntary activities. We paid visit to nursing home last month, so we picked up rubbish near our school. That we did was warmly welcomed by the staff in the home. Win honour for our school. Alice is admired by our classmates.
