In my second-to-last semester of college. my favorite professor announced that he would be teaching a study abroad course over the winter break in Cambodia. The more he talked about the opportunity. the more interested I became. I left class thinking I might actually do it.
My immediate excitement gave in to excuses as the weeks passed. The trip would be expensive, I would have less time to spend with my family over the break, and I hadn't really traveled before. Most of all, I was terrified of taking the risk.
On the day when I made my decision, I suddenly felt as if I had finally opened my eyes and seen myself clearly. Why was I so scared to take this chance? I had moved away from home, had almost graduated from college, and had overcome plenty of small-scale fears. How could I let fear get in the way of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity? Besides, I had always dreamed of traveling around the world and studying abroad was a major point on my list.
So took the challenge. I was scared but excited on the plane, and my fears faded as soon as the wheels touched the runway. I soon found myself attracted by ancient mountaintop temples. I spent my days teaching poor orphans(孤儿) simple English, learned little Khmer myself, and became an expert at avoiding terrible traffic and bargaining with Cambodian store owners.
By the end of my stay, I had fallen in love with travel, exploration and life of daily wonders.
My experience in Cambodia was incredible and life-changing. I came back and became a different person, but a better one: a better friend, sister, daughter, girlfriend and student. I came back and became a grown woman instead of a young girl.
After Cambodia, my life clicked into place. Before the trip, I hadn't known what I wanted to do after graduation. Now am planning on teaching English abroad as a volunteer. I am still amazed by my experience and thankful for everything it taught me. I now have a passion for overcoming fears, big or small, and have new faith in myself.
1.The author's excitement to go to Cambodia faded mainly because .
A.she could not afford the expensive trip
B.she had no experience of traveling abroad
C.she was scared of the risk she would be taking
D.she preferred spending time with her family to traveling
2.What was it that made the author decide to go to Cambodia in the end?
A.She had a heart-to-heart talk with her family.
B.She thought about what might have made her scared.
C.She went through every item she had put on her list.
D.She remembered the challenges and fears she had overcome before.
3.What did the author do in Cambodia?
A.She had a pleasant tour to many places.
B.She helped the locals operate stores
C.She helped local children by teaching English.
D.She looked into the causes of traffic problems.
4.What did the author think of her stay in Cambodia?
A.It was relaxing and inspiring.
B.It made her a successful woman.
C.It improved her communication skills.
D.It led her to plan to do voluntary work.
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.
