So, You Want to Be a Writer?
What are some tips on becoming a writer?
1. Read everything you can. Most writers are good readers. They read because they love to lose themselves in books. They like the sounds of language and the way that reading a good description can feel as satisfying as winning a race or eating really good food. 1.. Do you like stories that are fast-paced and full of unexpected twists? Do you prefer to read books with characters who seem like someone you might know? Do you like to feel scared or do you like a story that makes you laugh until you cry? Think about the types of writing you like best, and try to identify the qualities that attract you.
2. 2. It’s easy to forget a good idea if you do not record it immediately. If you get in the habit of carrying a notebook or journal with you everywhere you go, you can write down anything you want to remember. When you are talking to friends in the cafeteria or waiting for the bus, something might give you an idea for a character or a scene in a story. You might have a dream you don’t want to forget, or you might just write down the lyrics of a song you love. 3.
3. Do your homework. If you decide that you would like to submit your work for publication, make sure you do your research. If you are sending your writing to a magazine, look through old issues. 4. If you are submitting to a book publisher, explore their website to make sure your material is similar to (but not exactly the same as) other books they publish.
4. Stay positive. A writer’s life can be frustrating. Sometimes it’s hard to sit down and write. 5. This is why perseverance is an important quality for a writer to have.
A. Talk to friends.
B. Keep a notebook.
C. As you read, pay attention to what speaks to you.
D. You may get many refusals before you receive a single acceptance.
E. Does it seem like your writing fits in with other stories or articles?
F. These everyday thoughts and observations can be material for your writing one day.
G. Writing is a good way to clear your mind and make room for more of the “good stuff”.
For the soldiers, the true technological hero may be the body armor (盔甲).
Capable of stopping most bullets, the body armor worn by all of the troops is being trusted for saving many lives. Soldiers shot at close range are walking away with no more than broken ribs (肋骨).
While the newest smart bombs get more attention, improvements in soldiers’ armor are improving safety on the battlefield. The new body armor in particular, may help reduce deaths in the firefights.
In addition to the lighter and more protective body armor, soldiers now wear more comfortable, stronger helmets.
“Everything they have is much better,” says Robert Kinney, director of individual protection at the Army’s Soldier Center in Natick, Mass. “It means an increase in their quality of life.”
The new equipment is a result of years of research and development at the lab.
The new body armor, named “the interceptor”, is similar to but stronger than ones worn by the police. It can also protect the neck. Two other plates are put into it and cover vital organs. As a result, far fewer deaths arrive at military hospitals with abdomen (腹部) or, chest wounds, says Air Force Maj. Mark Ervin, a surgeon at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany. “That’s remarkable,” Maj. Ervin says.
Altogether it weighs 16 pounds, one-third lighter than the previous armor that protects only against shrapnel (弹片) but couldn’t stop bullets. The lighter weight is a welcome improvement for soldiers already carrying 100 to 120 pounds of gear.
Soldiers’ helmets have also been improved since the first Gulf War. They also offer more protection. They are capable of stopping handgun or small machine gun rounds, but not high-powered shots.
1.Why is the body armor regarded as a hero?
A.It’s able to stop all the bullets. B.It saves a hero soldier’s life.
C.It prevents rib injuries effectively. D.It reduces deaths among soldiers.
2.Which of the following best describes the new body armor?
A.Stronger. B.Heavier.
C.More expensive. D.More attractive.
3.What is the main idea of the text?
A.The new body armor is able to stop most bullets.
B.The new body armor has saved many lives on the battlefield.
C.Soldiers are equipped with improved body armors and helmets.
D.Helmets are as important as the body armor to soldiers.
The foldable smartphone was shown for the first time on Wednesday during a Samsung developer’s conference in San Francisco, California. The company first announced plans to build a fully foldable phone five years ago.
The phone is designed to fold open to make the device the size of a small tablet. It can also perform some operations of a tablet. When folded closed, the device looks and works like a normal smartphone. The device will permit users to keep up to three apps open at one time. With normal size smartphones, users have to keep changing between apps.
Justin Dension is Samsung’s senior vice president. He introduced the device to people at the conference. He said it marked a major breakthrough in future smartphone technology. Denison said the design of the foldable device was very complex. One of the biggest difficulties was finding a material that was not only flexible but also strong enough to support repeated folding and unfolding of the device. Denison said Samsung would be ready to start mass production in the coming months.
Technology experts see the new foldable design as a way to get users to buy a new device seen as revolutionary. More people are deciding to hold onto smartphones longer because newly launched models do not offer major improvements and can be very costly. This behavior is one reason for a steady decrease in worldwide smartphone sales over the past year.
It remains to be seen whether foldable phones will become popular quickly. The device is expected to cost more than $1,000. The company has not yet announced when its FlexPai device will be available in America. But it is planning to launch the product in China starting next month, at a price of about $1,300.
1.What did Samsung company do on Wednesday in San Francisco?
A.It announced plans to build a foldable phone.
B.It introduced its foldable phone to the public.
C.It started to sell its foldable phone in America.
D.It held a conference to deal with new challenges.
2.What can we learn about the foldable smartphone?
A.It can run only one app at a time.
B.The material for it was hard to find.
C.It is popular worldwide now.
D.It will take the place of the tablet.
3.What does the underlined part “This behavior” in Paragraph 4 refer to?
A.Recycling their old smartphones.
B.Repairing their old smartphones.
C.Keeping their old smartphones.
D.Replacing their old smartphones.
4.Where does the passage probably come from?
A.A brochure. B.A newspaper.
C.A research paper. D.A shopping guidebook.
A family watching a dolphin from their boat were shocked when it dropped them off a cod (鳕鱼) supper for dinner.
The group were enjoying watching the mammal playing in the water when it suddenly dived down and caught the cod before placing it near to Lucy Watkins, 14.
The dolphin then appeared and began pulling the fish towards the stunned teenager. Lucy and her grandparents wondered whether they should pick up the fish in case the dolphin wanted it for tea.
But the dolphin then appeared seconds later with his own fish, this time a seabass (石斑鱼), and began eating. The family gratefully accepted the cod, which weighed about 10 pounds, before taking it home to cook for their dinner.
Lucy said, “He definitely wanted me to have his fish. He first dropped it 20 feet away but then pushed it to within 5 feet of my boat. Everyone was watching on the beach and we caused quite a stir (激动) when we came back with the cod.”
Grandmother Nina added, “It was as if he was saying to Lucy ‘Don’t worry, now I’ve got a fish to play with and so have you. This is mine for my tea; you have that one for yours.’ ”
“He was just so playful and content to be around us. Lucy was swinging her fingers in the water and he seemed to be attracted by that.”
“If I hadn’t seen it myself, I’d never have believed it. My theory is that he was lonely and wanted human company. He was with us for about two hours.”
“It seemed rude to refuse him so we took the fish and had cod and chips for supper. It was very large. I’ve still got half in the freezer.”
A spokesman from Whale and Dolphin Conservation said, “This is a very interesting account. There are many examples worldwide of dolphins interacting with humans. We would just make our usual appeal for people to generally keep their distance.”
1.What does the underlined word “stunned” probably mean?
A.Astonished. B.Upset.
C.Disappointed. D.Worried.
2.Why didn’t the family accept the cod at once?
A.Because Lucy’s grandparents didn’t like cods.
B.Because they were not sure whether it was a gift for them.
C.Because they didn’t know how clever the dolphin was.
D.Because they wanted to change for another one.
3.According to the text, we can infer that __________.
A.Lucy was afraid when she first saw the dolphin
B.Grandmother didn’t believe what the dolphin had done
C.the fish was delicious so they kept a half in the freezer
D.dolphins should be given their own living space
假如你是李华，目前作为一名交换生在英国一所中学学习。因为学校面积较大，宿舍区到教学区距离较远。请你利用学校英文报栏目给校长写信反映问题，希望引进校园共享单车。内容包括：
1.反映困难；
2.分析原因；
3.提出希望。
注意:1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯：
3.文章的开头和结尾已经给出，不计人总词数。
Dear Headmaster,
We are hoping that you can notice the problem with us students' campus life.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
We would appreciate it if you could reply soon!
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
假定英语课上老师要求同学们交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有 10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写上该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下而写上修改后的词。
注倉：1 .每处错误及其修改均仅限一词：
2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
Last Thursday was the day where I paid a visit for the museum of tea together with some foreign students and showed them around there.
I led them to look through the relics about tea at the exhibition in beginning. They were curious about the stories behind those old mysteriously things. Then I showed them what to make tea. All of them learned carefully and one of them even took out his camera to make a record of every step. Had watched for some time, they tried making tea by themselves. At the end of the activity, we had a photo was taken together. Exhausted and delighted they expressed their gratefulness to me for my detailed explain.
The activity impressed me deeply because it not only helped me improve my skills of communication but also allow me to know more about our traditional culture that day. I enjoyed it very much.
