Stephen Hawking, who is one of the famous physicists, was born in Britain on January 8th, 1942. As a child, he was enthusiastic about 1. (design) complicated toys but 2. (fortune), in his twenties, he suffered 3. a disease that was impossible to be cured,4. was a great challenge for him. However, he was not only positive about the misfortunes, and eventually he 5. (defeat) all the obstacles but also he was absorbed 6. his research in the universe. In 1988, his best-seller A Brief History of Time 7. (publish), in which he put forward the idea 8. time itself has a beginning, and that it will have 9. end. In 10. (conclude), he has made outstanding contributions to the fields of cosmology and quantum gravity.
History has some very special qualities about it. It is a ______ of what has happened in the past, and the really interesting thing is that much of history has been ______ time and again. It allows us to learn from the past, both the ______ made and the successes achieved.
One of the ______ of history is that it allows us to know how famous people ______ when they were faced with challenges in their life.______ these challenges happened at a certain time in the past or in a ______ country or culture, all of them can always teach us something ______.
Take for example the ______ of Thomas Edison and how many times he ______ while on the road to finally inventing the light bulb. He could be held out as an example of a person who ______ stopped trying. I am sure he was ______ by those difficulties but he did not let them stop him. He had a ______ and he just kept trying until he reached success.
Or, think about the story of Abraham Lincoln who ______ to become President of the United States even though he suffered ______ losses. Most of us only know about his success.______, his life was not an easy one. His story makes us keep moving forward no matter what ______ we have in life.
These true history stories will make you stop to reconsider ______ or going after your dreams even though you may not think you have the courage or the ______ for now to get what you have always wanted. They could help you make decisions and ______ when you have no idea what to do. They could inspire you to be all that you can be.
1.A. note B. belief C. chance D. record
2.A. repeated B. expected C. reported D. corrected
3.A. agreements B. jokes C. mistakes D. challenges
4.A. events B. advantages C. problems D. periods
5.A. studied B. explored C. competed D. reacted
6.A. Unless B. Because C. Although D. Whether
7.A. different B. poor C. developed D. popular
8.A. clear B. useful C. special D. simple
9.A. name B. character C. position D. story
10.A. traveled B. watched C. escaped D. failed
11.A. never B. often C. still D. also
12.A. shocked B. discouraged C. beaten D. controlled
13.A. job B. duty C. dream D. power
14.A. happened B. prepared C. managed D. pretended
15.A. hearing B. weight C. slight D. personal
16.A. After all B. As usual C. In all D. In fact
17.A. difficulties B. improvements C. permissions D. directions
18.A. giving up B. passing by C. setting off D. calming down
19.A. habit B. ability C. goal D. choice
20.A. introductions B. conversations C. judgments D. impressions
As most of us know, talking and listening don't go smoothly every time.Will your parents take you seriously, believe what you say, listen to and respect your opinions？1.But some of what happens depends on you, too.Since communication is a two－way street, the way you talk can influence how well a parent listens and understands you.So here are some guidelines to consider when talking to parents：
●Be clear and direct.Be as clear as you can about what you think, feel, and want.2.They can listen better or be more helpful if they understand what you mean and what's really going on.
●Be honest.If you're always honest, a parent will be likely to believe what you say.If you sometimes hide the truth or add too much drama, your parents will have a harder time believing what you tell them.If you lie, they'll find it hard to trust you.
●Try to understand their point of view.If you have a disagreement, can you see your parents' side？3.Telling your parents you understand their views and feelings helps them be willing to see yours, too.
●Try not to argue or complain.Using a tone that's friendly and respectful makes it more likely that your parents will listen and take what you say seriously.4.If you think your emotions might get the better of you, do something to blow off steam before talking: Go for a run.Cry.5.Do whatever it takes to sound calm when you need to.
A．Hit your pillow.
B．If you can, say so.
C．A lot depends on your parents.
D．Think twice before you make a decision.
E．Your parents won't always see things in your way.
F．Give details that can help your parents understand your situation.
G．Of course, this is hard for any of us when we're feeling heated about something.
See a cell phone cover that you like on Taobao? Forget about placing an order, paying the bill online and waiting for days for it to be delivered to you. In the near future, you’ll be able to get it in minutes just by hitting "print" on your computer. You might find it hard to believe that you could actually "print" an object as you would a picture. But it is not that hard to understand how it would work. Just as a traditional printer sprays (喷) ink onto paper line by line, modem 3-D printers spread material onto a surface layer by layer, from the bottom to the top, gradually building up a shape.
Instead of ink, the materials the 3-D printer uses are mainly plastic, resin (树脂) and certain metals. The thinner each layer is — from a millimeter to less than the width of a hair —the smoother and finer the object will be. This may sound like a completely new technology, but the truth is that 3-D printing has been around since the late 1980s. Back then, it was barely affordable for most people, so few knew about it.
Last year, though, saw a big change in the 3-D printing industry — printers became much cheaper. For example, 10 years ago a desktop 3-D printer might have cost £20,000, while now they cost only about £ 1,000, according to the BBC. Taken out of the factory and introduced to more diverse and common uses, 3-D printing can create just about anything you can think of --- flutes (笛子), bikinis, jewelry, aircraft parts and even human organs. In fact, scientists from Cornell University in New York have just made an artificial ear using a 3-D printer, according to Science Daily. The fake ear looks and acts exactly like a natural one.
However, as 3-D printing becomes more common, it may bring about certain problems —such as piracy. "Once you can download a coffee maker, or print out a new set of kitchen utensils (餐具) on your personal 3-D printer, who will visit a retail (零售的) store again?", an expert in 3-D printing told Forbes News. Even more frightening, what if anyone in the world could use a 3-D printer to print out a fully functioning gun?
1.According to the article, in the future, the 3-D printing technology will .
A. enable people to make better purchases online
B. change the way we make many products i
C. be applied as widely in our daily lives as computers
D. shorten the time it takes for people to get what they buy online
2.What happened in the 3D printing industry last year?
A. The 3-D printing technology was taken out of the factory.
B. The 3-D printer was used for medical treatment for the first time.
C. The 3-D printer became more affordable for consumers.
D. 3-D printing technology began to be used in various fields.
3.How is the last paragraph developed?
A. By giving examples.
B. By making comparisons.
C. By analyzing the cause and effect.
D. By using figures.
4.What is the best title of the passage?
A. Online Shopping Disappearing
B. Technology in the Future
C. Printing out Everything
D. Great Demand for 3-D Printers
In 1863, the great novelist Jules Verne wrote a novel called Paris in the Twentieth Century. In the book he used the full power of his great ability to forecast the coming century. Unfortunately, the manuscript (手稿) was lost until his great-grandson happened to discover it lying in a safe where it had been carefully locked away for almost 130 years. Realizing what a treasure he had found, he arranged to have it published in 1994, and it became a bestseller at once.
Back in 1863, kings still ruled the ancient world in Europe, with so many poor people working in the fields. And steam power was just beginning to change the world. But Verne predicted that Paris in 1960 would have glass skyscrapers, air conditioning, TV, high-speed trains, gas-powered vehicles, and even something similar to the Internet. Verne descibed life in modem Paris almost without any mistakes.
Just two years later Verne made another amazing prediction. He wrote From the Earth to the Moon, in which he predicted the details of the task that sent several astronauts to the moon 100 years later in 1969. He correctly predicted the size of the space capsule, the number of astronauts who would carry out the task, the weightlessness that the astronauts would experience, and the final landing in the ocean.
How was Jules Verne able to predict 100 years into the future successfully? Although he was not a scientist himself, Verne often turned to scientists, asking them questions about their opinions of the future. He collected a vast amount of information about the great scientific discoveries of his time. Verne realized that science would make it possible for many amazing things to appear in the future. The secret of his successful prediction was his belief in the power of science to change society.
1.Paris in the Twentieth Century is a novel that .
A. was published long after it was finished
B. didn’t sell well when published at first
C. took Jules Verne five years to finish
D. people thought badly of at first
2.The third paragraph is mainly about .
A. the requirements of being an astronaut
B. how From the Earth to the Moon was created
C. what From the Earth to the Moon is about
D. the differences between the earth and the moon
3.According to the text, Jules Verne .
A. could predict what would happen to someone
B. was a great scientist and novelist
C. had Paris in the Twentieth Century published in 1994
D. showed strong interest in writing and science
4.What would be the best title for the text?
A. The early life of Jules Verne
B. Jules Verne: A writer ahead of his time
C. Jules Verne’s opinions about science
D. Jules Verne’s inventions came true
Balancing work and school is not an easy task for me. My first term in college has come and gone and I’ve had to balance a job there, too. I want to cut one loose. Honestly, many times I thought I wanted to drop out of school and just do my job because I needed the money. For a long while I made myself believe that school was getting in the way of my job and money. Not only was I trying to do work and school, but also I was trying to have a social life. Many times I thought that there were not enough hours in the day but I wasn’t managing my time right. Hanging out with friends may have been wonderful but it wasn’t putting money in my pocket or knowledge in my brain. Friends would have to wait. I was back on the see-saw (跷跷板) of balancing work and school.
Scheduling and planning became the key to my success. Setting deadlines and meeting them were important to my college experience. Planning was going well and I felt ready to try and throw a social life back there. I tried to make plans with friends that didn’t conflict with my deadlines. That was actually harder than I thought. So once again my social life had to be put on hold (搁置). My friends were very understanding and encouraged me to do my work. The extra motivation really proved helpful in the end. Some friends would joke that I was all work and no play but sometimes that’s what has to happen to get work done.
As the last term came to an end I can say I learned a lot about college life. Planning is necessary for organization. Drawing up a list of all things I had to do at the beginning of the week and actually completing them made me feel good. Not only have I learned something new about organization, but also I acquired a new tool that I can take everywhere with me and use effectively.
1.The author wanted to drop out of school because .
A. he wanted to earn money
B. he wasn’t good at managing his time
C. he wanted to live an active social life
D. he couldn’t do well in his studies
2.Why did the author stop hanging out with his friends?
A. He had to wait for them. B. It was a waste of time.
C. He didn’t need a social life. D. They didn’t understand him.
3.How did the author succeed in balancing work and school?
A. By putting his studies first. B. By making plans with his friends.
C. By following his friends’ advice. D. By sticking to his schedule.
