Along with soccer, basketball is a global sport. As you read this. young people somewhere in the world are happily passing, dribbling(运球) and shooting. It’s enormous fun and a joyful way to spend time with others.
Basketball is a game for everyone. Unlike golf or tennis. it doesn't require great wealth or a lot of space to play. After all, not many people have a golf course-sized backyard. and tennis equipment is expensive. Basketball, by contrast, just needs a wall with a hoop and a ball.
So after its invention by Canadian-American physical educator James Naismith in 1891, the sport took off within US citizens, who quickly became attracted to the game because it suited their circumstances. Today, 127 years later, basketball remains one of the most popular sports in the US, and the National Basketball Association (NBA)has an increasing appeal for fans around the world.
The success of basketball as global phenomenon is undoubtedly related to the way African-Americans play the game.” The basketball court reflected some of the major cultural shifts in America, such as from forbidding African-Americans to play basketball to allowing them to play in the NBA, "the LIVESTRONG website noted.
From the 1950s onwards, segregation rules, which had prohibited African-Americans from playing basketball in NBA games, were no longer used in the US. In 1950, when Earl Lloyd started to play for the Washington Capitols, things began to change. Since then, most of the greats of the game have been African-Americans, like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James.
It's not difficult to see that there's a strong link between political liberation and basketball. Something of this is expressed in a quote from the US author John Edgar Wideman. He makes a connection between basketball and hope:" When it's' played the way it's supposed to be played. basketball happens in the air; flying, floating, raised above the floor, letting the oppressed(受压制的) people of this earth imagine themselves in their dreams.”
1.What advantage does basketball have over golf or tennis, according to the author?
A.It can be played everywhere.
B.It doesn't cost much.
C.It doesn't require too much skill.
D.It interests almost everyone.
2.What can we learn about basketball from Paragraph 3?
A.The sport was created by a PE teacher.
B.The sport was not popular with people at first.
C.Its rules have been changed a lot to suit new circumstances.
D.The NBA. with a history of 127 Years. attracts people worldwide
3.The main purpose of Paragraph 5 is to .
A.explain the origin and rules of NBA games in the 1950s
B.prove the popularity of basketball among African-Americans
C.stress the success African-Americans in basketball
D.show how racial integration took place in basketball
4.What do John Edgar Wideman's words mean?
A.Basketball is sometimes a useful tool for politicians.
B.American people usually have a basketball dream.
C.Basketball stands for the freedom and hopes of people.
D.Political oppression is a serious problem in the US.
假设你是晨光中学的李津，你的英国外教Alex打算在寒假里发起“英语经典诵读(English Classics for Recitation)"活动，现就诵读书目征求你校学生的意见。请根据以下提示给Alex写一封电子邮件:
(1)你打算推荐的一本书； (2)推荐的原因； (3)希望从活动中有何收获。
注意:
(1) 词数不少于12()；
(2) 可适当加入细节，使内容充实、行文连贯；
(3) 开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Alex,
I'm Li Jin, a student at Chenguang High School.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Thank you for your time.
Yours,
Li Jin
阅读短文，并按照題目要求用英语回答问题.
In 2013, the carpenter from Schuby, Germany was surfing the Internet when he came across an organization called Be The Match, the largest bone marrow(骨髓)registry in the world. The 19-year-old didn’t think twice about donating, but he never found out who his marrow went to until years later when he received a message from halfway around the world。.
As it turns out. Dennis didn't just save another person. He saved a baby—little Gabriel Smith from Springfield, Illinois. As a little baby, Gabriel was diagnosed(诊断)with aplastic anemia and went into bone marrow failure. At just 14 months old, he received Dennis1 lifesaving transplant.
Fast forward to 20l8, when the Make — A — Wish Foundation contacted Gabriel's family to offer the seven-year-old one wish. "At first, he said, "Take my donor to meet Mickey," Gabriel's mom, Lauren, told CNN. "But we couldn't do that, so he was asked to choose one: Meet your donor or go to Disney. He chose to meet his donor, Dennis, without any hesitation."
Fortunately, Dennis had already agreed to share his identity with his recipient's family. Even so, hearing from them came as a bit of a shock. "I was speechless, Dennis said. "I can't believe that this happened and that he survived the bone marrow transplant." In August, Make — A — Wish arranged for Dennis to travel to the U.S. for the first time ever, where he and Gabriel became conjoined.
While Gabriel didn't go to Disney World, he got something even better: adventures with his own personal hero. "He is part of our family now," Lauren said. "We are hoping this experience will inspire others.”
And incredibly, it did! On August 27, Lauren shared on Facebook that Dennis and Gabriel's story has already inspired thousands of Americans to sign up with Be The Match. With one selfless choice, Dennis sparked a wave of potentially lifesaving acts. He's not just a hero to Gabriel and his family: He's a hero to us all.
1.How did Dennis learn about the organization called Be The Match? (no more than 10 words)
______________________
2.What was Gabriel's wish at last? (no more than 5 words)
______________________
3.What does the underlined word in Paragraph 4 mean? (I word)
______________________
4.What is the influence of Dennis and Gabriel's story? (no more than 15 words)
______________________
5.Who is the "hero" in your life? Please explain. (no more than 20 words)
______________________
The world we live in is becoming increasingly complex and uncertain. And with it, the conventional thinking of yesterday is no longer sufficient. Creating real breakthrough opportunities requires a fundamental change in our thinking. As Einstein said, "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”
There's no better example of this than the myth of the four-minute mile.
For centuries, runners had been attempting to run a mile in under four minutes. In the 1950s, the attempt to break the barrier took on renewed importance, and a number of famous runners publicly and unsuccessfully attempted the challenge. Many of the newspapers of the day began to question whether humans would ever be able to run a sub-four-minute mile. Then, in 1954, a man named Roger Bannister did the unthinkable. He broke through the imaginary barrier, running the mile in 3 minutes and 59.4 seconds. It was an amazing achievement.
But here's what's really interesting: it was only forty-six days later that another runner broke Bannister's record. And the following year, two new runners broke the four-minute mark in the same race. Dozens followed, and as of this writing, more than 1,400 runners have accomplished the goal, including one runner who ran two miles in less than eight minutes.
Did something change with respect to human body, track conditions, weather patterns, running shoes, or the human diet between the start of Bannister's race and the few years that followed? No. So what explains the sudden and dramatic explosion of athletic achievement?
The myth's unimaginable power over runners had lifted. What Bunnister had done was not just break the four — minute — mile barrier; he shattered(粉碎)the myth that created the barrier in the first place. This paradigm (榜样)had offered a set of actions available for runners to take. Runners were really free to run through the invented boundary.
Creating breakthroughs requires shattering the myths that limit our imagination and lock us into conventional thinking. Think about your own situation. What myths are you stuck in? And what would be possible if you had the courage to challenge the myths?
1.What is needed to create breakthroughs?
A.Conventional thinking. B.Changes in our thinking.
C.Complex situation. D.Einstein's encouragement.
2.What was the real barrier that kept runners succeeding in the four-minute mile?
A.The belief that it was unachievable.
B.Lack of professional training.
C.The poor track conditions.
D.Lack of sufficient diet.
3.The example of Roger Bannister is used to .
A.list a new record in the race B.prove newspapers are wrong
C.show barrier can be broken D.call on us to learn from him
4.What does the writer try to explain in Paragraph 6?
A.The power of the myth.
B.The achievements of Bannister.
C.The importance of running freely.
D.The significance of breaking barriers.
5.What is the best title of the passage?
A.Creating Breakthroughs B.Accepting the Myths
C.Locking Your Imagination D.Becoming the Best Athlete
Perhaps you spotted them on La Cienega Boulevard, flying north by the thousands near the Westfield mall. Maybe you saw them in Santa Anita crossing a quiet street in a thick line. You may have even driven with hundreds of them along the 105 Freeway, where they violently beat their small wings as if they were trying to catch a flight at Los Angeles International Airport. People may mistake these black — and — orange insects for moths (飞蛾) or monarchs (黑脉金斑蝶)due to the appearance. Actually, they are called painted ladies, and these butterflies are flying by the millions across the state.
The migration((迁徙)itself is nothing new. What's unusual this year is the number of butterflies making the journey. James burg, the director of Palm Desert, came across a pack of butterflies while riding a bike lust week. "They were Hying with me, as I rode," he said. "It was absolutely magical. I felt like a Disney princess."
The painted lady's appearance is a welcome exception to California's current butterfly crisis. The number of butterflies in the state has been in a loss for decides, reaching historic lows in 2018. A monarch count led by the Xerces Society found only 28,129 of monarchs wintering along the California coast. That figure represents an 85% drop from the previous year and a 99.4% fall compared with 40 years ago. Other butterfly populations have been hit even worse.
No one is certain what is causing butterflies in California to disappear, but researchers have pointed several likely factors. They include the general loss of open spaces, which means fewer flowers and leaves for food, as well as changing agricultural practices that have reduced the number of butterfly-friendly plants along the edges of crop fields. The climate change plays a role, which produces higher temperatures that can dry plants out and make them uneatable.
Scientists say the reason for this year's painted ladies' appearance can be summed up in one word: rain. And more specifically, rain in the desert. “The more plants, the more butterflies," James Burg said.
1.What can learn about painted ladies from Paragraph 1 ?
A.They enjoyed flying in the sky.
B.The liked chasing the drivers.
C.They and moths look much alike.
D.They were big trouble to the airport.
2.What is special about painted ladies' migration this year?
A.Their quantities. B.Their destination.
C.Their flying route. D.Their flying distance.
3.How is Paragraph 3 mainly developed?
A.By giving examples. B.By quoting a statement.
C.By analyzing cause and effect. D.By listing accurate numbers.
4.Which can best summarize the main idea of Paragraph 4?
A.Open spaces in California decrease greatly.
B.Changes on agriculture affected butterflies.
C.Lack of food makes butterflies disappear.
D.Climate change drives butterflies away.
5.In which section of a magazine will you probably read the passage?
A.Travel. B.Nature.
C.History. D.Health.
Swimming across the English Channel is no easy feat. In addition to the strong ocean currents, swimmers also have to endure extremely cold temperatures. However, don't tell that to Sarah Thomas. The 37-year-oki American recently became the first person ever to swim across it not once, hut four times non-stop!
"I just can't believe I did it/' Thomas told the BBC after the swim. "I'm really just pretty numb. There was a lot of people on the beach to meet me and wish me well, and it was really nice of them, but I feel just mostly stunned."
What makes Thomas's achievement even more remarkable is that just a year ago, in 2018, she was undergoing treatment for breast cancer. She said that fighting the strong currents was hard. But even worse was “dealing with the saltwater... it really hurts your throat your mouth and your tongue”, she said. “I got stung(蛰)in the face by a jellyfish. The water wasn't as cold as I thought it might be, but it was still very cold."
Thomas’s record-breaking journey began just past midnight on Sunday, September 15, 2019, when she dove into the waters off the shore of Dover, England. Though the swim was initially meant to be about 80 miles, strong currents forced the athlete to change course several times, lengthening the total distance by about 50 miles. By the time she appeared from the water at 6:30 a.m. local time on Tuesday, September 17, 2019, she had been in the water for 54 hours and 13 minutes and swum a total of 133 miles! Even more impressive, Thomas achieved the astonishing feat in a regular swimsuit. Her only aids were swim goggles, one cap, a nose clip, and earplugs。.
This is not the first time Thomas has swum across the English Channel. She has done it twice before, in 2012 and 2016. She told filmmaker Jon Washer, who is making a documentary about her swim, “As I was doing 20 mile swims, it occurred to me that I could do more and I wanted to see what that more was." The swimmer, who is being praised “an absolute legend" by the CS&PF, has indeed shown the world what she is capable of However, we have a feeling she is not done yet!
1.By mentioning “Swimming across the English Channel is no easy feat", the writer aims to
A.warn people not to swim across it
B.arouse people' interest in swimming
C.set off Sa rah Thomas's achievements
D.stress the difficulties swimmers have to conquer
2.What does the underlined word “stunned" mean in Paragraph 2?
A.Surprised. B.Satisfied. C.Doubtful. D.Regretful.
3.What troubled Thomas most during swimming?
A.Strong currents. B.Sea water.
C.Jellyfish. D.Water temperature.
4.What does Paragraph 4 mainly focus on?
A.The long distance she covered.
B.The ordinary equipment she possessed.
C.The record-breaking time she stayed in water.
D.The impressive determination she displayed.
5.What can we infer from the last Paragraph?
A.A documentary is being made about her achievements.
B.She has swum across the Channel more than once.
C.She will probably plan to swim the Channel in the future.
D.She is capable of doing everything she wants to achieve.
