Insects could disappear within a century at current rate of decline, says Global Review.
The world’ s insects are moving quickly down the path to dying out, indicating a disastrous collapse（崩溃）of nature’ s ecosystems is likely to happen, according to the first global scientific review. More than 40% of insect species are declining and a third are endangered, the analysis found. The rate of extinction（灭绝）is eight times faster than that of mammals, birds and reptiles.
“It should be of huge concern to all of us, for insects are at the heart of every food web—they pollinate（授粉） the large majority of plant species, keep the soil healthy, recycle nutrients, control pests, and much more. Love them or hate them, we humans cannot survive without insects,” said Prof Dave Goulson at the University of Sussex in the UK.
The analysis, published in the journal Biological Conservation, says intensive agriculture is the main driver of the declines, particularly the heavy use of pesticides（杀虫剂）. Urbanisation and climate change are also significant factors.
One of the biggest impacts of insect loss is on the many birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish that eat insects. A small number of adaptable species are increasing in number, but not nearly enough to outweigh the big losses.
Matt Shardlow, at the conservation charity Buglife, said, “It is alarming to see this collation（整理） of evidence that shows the state of the world’ s insect populations. It is increasingly obvious that the planet’ s ecology is breaking and there is a need for an intense and global effort to stop and reverse（反转）these terrible trends.”
1.What did Prof Dave stress in his speech?
A.Insects are vital to food webs.
B.Not all people love insects.
C.Scientists are concerned about insect loss.
D.Humans need certain conditions for survival.
2.Which of the following is most influenced by insect loss?
A.Animals that feed on insects. B.Adaptable animal species.
C.Pests that are used to pesticides. D.Crops produced by intensive agriculture.
3.How did Matt Shardlow sound when talking about the state of insect loss?
A.Relaxed. B.Uncaring.
C.Humorous. D.Worried.
4.What is the best title for the text?
A.The extinction rate of insects gets slowed down.
B.The failure of nature’ s ecosystems can be avoided.
C.Sharp drops in insect numbers endanger ecosystems.
D.Insect extinction harms the diversity of animal species.
For some years，my mother worked for a charity as President and Secretary.Selling raffle tickets(兑奖券) was her main means of bringing in the charity’s muchneeded funds.We girls would accompany her，selling tickets with great success.My father made and donated beautiful wooden toys，jewellery boxes and other lovely items as prizes.
Now my sister was always coming up with “good ideas”，most of which didn’t work out to plan.But that didn’t deter her.She had many just waiting to be tested.When she was eight and I was just five，we had a wonderful idea for a business adventure.We decided we would sell raffle tickets for charity，and that charity was us!
So one afternoon，we told our mother we were going to play in the park with our cousins as we did most days after school.But instead，we walked around the streets armed with a raffle book，a pen and a large cloth bag to carry the money.
We’d accompanied our mother many times when she sold tickets，so people were familiar with us when we appeared at their doors.Despite the blank looks they received when asking about the prizes on offer，they were very generous.Although there were no actual prizes，our mother’s previous track record enabled us to sell nearly the whole book of raffle tickets.
Like a little pair of lottery(彩票) winners，we walked home and proudly showed off our takings.But our enjoyment of this sudden wealth was shortlived，and our plans for spending it quickly failed.Our angry mother took us back to every ticket buyer，making us apologise and give the money back.Thankfully，our sweet neighbours didn’t make a big deal of our “clever” misbehavior and thus my mother’s
fundraising career could continue safely.We were taught a good lesson by our mother that day.Also I remember my sister’s entrepreneurial(企业家的) spirit dried up a bit after that.
1.What did the author’s father do?
A.He got prizes ready. B.He sold handmade items.
C.He was in charge of a charity. D.He helped design raffle tickets.
2.What does the underlined word “deter” in Paragraph 2 mean?
A.Embarrass. B.Shock.
C.Discourage. D.Mislead.
3.What can be learned about the author and her sister while selling raffle tickets?
A.They ran into their mother.
B.They met some generous strangers.
C.They got lost while walking around the streets.
D.They took advantage of people’s trust in their mother.
4.What lesson did the author and her sister learn?
A.Honesty is the best policy. B.What’s done can’t be undone.
C.Misfortune never comes alone. D.Good advice is beyond all price.
Here are some best sellers of 2018 at Amazon.
The Car
Fourteenyearold Terry’s parents never pay him much attention.So when they both disappear after one of their alltoofrequent arguments，Terry isn’t exactly eager for them to come home.On his own，he fixes an abandoned car.Though he doesn’t know much about driving，he gets behind the wheel and heads west，with the intention of visiting an uncle in Oregon.It’s an exciting and sometimes dangerous journey.Along the way，he learns a lot about people，about America—and most importantly，about himself.
Boy Robot
Seventeenyearold Isaak discovers the truth about his origin：a governmentmade human.But a deadly military force is trying to kill him.He and the other robots can only find protection from the Underground—a secret network of robots and humans working together to ensure a coexistent future.Isaak must decide whether to hold on to his humanity and face possible death or to embrace his true nature in order to survive.
The Running Dream
Jessica thinks her life is over when she loses a leg in a car accident.
As she struggles to cope with her prosthesis(义肢) and many other difficulties，Jessica develops a close relationship with Rosa，a girl who has a cancer and sees right into Jessica’s heart.With the support of family，friends，a coach，and her teammates，Jessica is able to run again.But that’s not enough for her now.She doesn’t just want to cross finish lines herself—she wants to take Rosa with her.
Have a New Teenager by Friday
Do you know this person?
His bedroom looks like a garbage dump.
She changes clothes three times before breakfast.
It seems that he/she never agrees with you.
Congratulations! You have a teenager in your home.But you needn’t feel helpless.In fact，you’re just five days away from your teenager asking，“What can I do to help？”Internationally recognized family expert Dr.Kevin Leman will help you get real results—really fast.
If you are interested in any of the books，click here for further information：
https：//www.amazon.com/.
1.Which book is a science fiction?
A.The Car. B.The Running Dream.
C.Have a New Teenager by Friday. D.Boy Robot.
2.Which of the following isn’t conveyed in The Running Dream?
A.Friendship. B.Modesty.
C.Bravery. D.Determination.
3.Who is the book Have a New Teenager by Friday intended for?
A.Experts. B.Teenagers.
C.Parents. D.Teachers.
短文改错
Dear Jamie,
I am more than glad to know that you were interested in the tradition Chinese literature. It’s never easy to learn Chinese characters and essays. Even though Chinese may find that hard to learn them good, you don’t have to feel upset. I’ll give you some useful advices. First, turn to the Internet for help when you have a problem, there you can learn how read and write the characters. Second, you can learn for Chinese people around and I’m always here to help. But the most important is to keep on learn and reading. You are sure to make a progress!
Best wishes!
Yours,
Li Hua
Many young kids have trouble sitting still and staying focused. But as students get more homework, they need to be able to stick with a task and finish it. 1..
Turn off screens and cell phones
Before your kid does homework or anything that takes concentration, turn off the television. If others are watching it, make sure your child is far enough away that he can’t be distracted by it.2.. If your child has a cell phone, make sure that’s off too.
3.
Having a lot of chores and homework can he difficult for kids. Help your child focus on getting things done by making a list — everything he needs to do for the day or week. Then let him cross off each task as he finishes it.
Use signals
4.. To cut out distracting talks altogether, you and your child can even come up with a few basic signals. For example, when you point to his work, that means he needs to go back to what he was doing. Or when you raise your hand, that means he should stop what he’s doing and get to work.
Take short rests
During homework time, make sure your child takes a few breaks. After he works for 10 or 20 minutes (depending on his age), have him get up and move around, get a drink, and then go back to work.5.. Just make that time relaxing.
A. Work with kids
B. Make a to-do list
C. Here are some ways to help your child stay focused
D. Also, turn off or move him away from the computer
E. Try to avoid conversations when your kid is working
F. It is better to let your kids play games during the rest
G. But don’t let him get involved in something else during the break
Have you ever thought about why malls, restaurants, and even theaters have music? Well, to understand this, you simply just look back at how you felt when you heard music in these places. Music is known to improve the mood of people. Often music helps us pay attention to what we are doing. Music helps patients feel good and helps them recover faster and better.
Depression（沮丧) is a state of mind that most of us experience at some point of time. There are some periods in our life when everything seems difficult. It seems that everything is getting worse and we have no control over our life. Studies have shown that music can be an important mood lifter in such situations. Music also plays a great role in making us feel less nervous or worried. Anxiety(焦虑) can often cause loss of sleep and other illnesses.
Music is often known as an international language. We may not know the language another person is speaking, but most of us respond to music in the same way. Music can often be the best way to connect with someone.
Music is one of the best ways to improve your moods, but this can depend largely on the kind of music you listen to. While happy music can certainly make you feel better, sad music can further lower your spirits. Listening to classical music can often make you feel a lot more powerful, while soft music can be the perfect way to relax at the end of a long way. If you want to use music to change the way how you are feeling, you need to understand the role of it, learn to recognize the kind of music that lifts your mood and helps you feel better. Once you realize the kind of music you can use, you can use it to change the way you feel. The right kind of music can be the perfect way to help us feel happier.
1.The passage is mainly about __________.
A.what meanings music has
B.how we control our moods
C.how music affects our moods
D.what kind of music we listen to
2.According to the passage, playing music in restaurants is to __________.
A.welcome the customers
B.make customers feel good
C.make customers dance
D.make customers feel powerful
3.From the passage, we can know that __________.
A.most of us suffer depression all the time
B.most of us respond to music in different ways
C.music can be a good way to connect with others
D.any kind of music will help us improve our moods
4.According to the passage, which kind of music can relax ourselves from a long day’s work?
A.Soft music. B.Classical music.
C.Sad music. D.Rock music.
