Google has reported progress in its plan called “Project Loon” to provide Internet service to rural (农村的) areas without Internet connectivity around the world. The company has no plans to use traditional wiring, which can be costly. Instead the idea is to float (漂浮) huge balloons (气球) about 20 kilometers above the surface of the Earth.
The balloons would act like telecommunications satellites, providing Internet service to the rural areas. The huge objects would ride air currents (气流) to either stay in place or move to another position high in the skies. At first, the idea was to have a large number of balloons circling the planet. One balloon would move away from an area while another arrived to ensure service in the affected areas. But the company said it has found a way to make balloons float over one area for a long period. In a report published online, the company said its software “can now send small teams of balloons over a specific area where people need Internet access.”
The company said some of the balloons stayed in the same area for as long as three months. The company also said the discovery should speed up the project and reduce costs: “We’ll reduce the number of balloons we need and get greater value out of each one, they said. But Project Loon workers must still find ways to increase the life of the balloons. A British Broadeasting Corporation report said the longest service for a single balloon was 190 days.
Google has also explored the idea of providing Internet service to rural areas using solar—powered drone aircraft (太阳能无人机). However, it gave up that project because of technological difficulties and high costs.
1.What’s the aim of the “Project Loon”?
A.To float huge balloons above the rural areas.
B.To help rural areas have access to the Internet.
C.To increase Google’s income in the rural areas.
D.To advertise Google’s new product in the rural areas.
2.Why wouldn’t Google use traditional wiring?
A.It could be too expensive.
B.It could put off the project.
C.It couldn’t provide greater value.
D.It couldn’t work for a long period
3.What do we know about the balloons?
A.They must be used in a large number.
B.They could provide service as long as 3 months.
C.They’ll be sent up by solar-powered drone aircrafts.
D.They would work like telecommunications satellites.
4.What is the passage mainly about?
A.An unexpected discovery.
B.Some unknown facts about balloons.
C.Google’s using balloons to provide Internet service.
D.The differences between the new and traditional wiring.
阅读下面短文，根据所给情节进行续写，使之构成一个完整的故事。
Everyone likes the beautiful Cinderella, but I like the ugly stepsister. The sidewalk was filled with shoppers as my mother and I hurried to the department store, I raised my neck for a look at the holiday window display, but at the age of six I was too small to see around the grown-ups with their winter coats and packages. When at last we reached the store, I stood with my eyes widened. “Look, Mother,” I shouted, pressing my hands against the glass, “Cinderella.” Before my eyes was the most beautiful doll I had ever seen! She wore a fairy princess suit made of shining red silk. I knew if I lifted her skirt I would find her crystal(水晶) shoes. The tiny tiara(冠状头饰) fastened to her silky golden hair shone.
“If only she were mine,” I dreamed. “We’d have tea parties, share secrets and dance with a handsome prince.” But to my disappointment, my mother guided me away from the window, explaining that she and my father could not afford such an expensive doll. “But there will be a very special gift under the tree for you on Christmas morning, Madge,” she said. “I promise.” Later that week I leaned against Mother’s sewing machine, watching the needle flash up and down. “Bet you don’t know what this is!” she joked, holding up the cloth for me to see.
“My Christmas doll!” I yelled. It was still in the early stages but I could make out the head, neck and body. “So much to my surprise!” Mother laughed as I danced around the room, already pretending Cinderella and I were at the ball. It wouldn’t be long now.
My excitement grew with each passing day. Mother continued to work on the doll, and whenever I walked into the room she would hide it under a pillow. I could tell by her smile she was pleased with her progress. On Christmas morning I jumped out of bed, ran down the hall and quickly arrived at the living room where the Christmas tree was placed.
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语己为你写好；
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1:
There, underneath the tree, was a beautifully packed gift box.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph 2:
But I could see Mother watching me, with an eager look on her face.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
假定你是中国高中生李华，今年暑假将去澳大利亚悉尼南部的Kogarah High School学习一个月，并寄宿在 Silvia家中。请给Silvia写一封电子邮件，询问一下那里的生活情况。具体内容如下：
1. 住宿是否有单间；
2. 房间里是否有网络；
3. 是否可以自己煮饭；
4. 是否有便利的交通。
注意：1. 词数80左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3. 开头语和结束语已写好，不计入词数。
Dear Silvia,
Greetings from China! I am Li Hua, a high school student in China.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I’d appreciate it very much if you could give me a reply.
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
Did you grow up in one culture, your parents came from another, and you are now living in a 1. (total) different country? If so, then you are a third-culture kid.
The term ''third-culture kid'' 2. (use) in the 1960s for the first time by Dr. Ruth. She first came across this phenomenon while 3. (research) North American children living in India. In general, third-culture kids benefit from 4. (they) intercultural experience and they often reach excellent academic results.
Yet many 5. (difficulty) may arise from this phenomenon. Third-culture kids may not be able to adapt themselves completely 6. their new surroundings. Also, they often find it hard 7. (develop) new friendships. Additionally, for third-culture kids, it is often 8. (easy) to move to a new country than to return to their homeland. For example, after living in Australia for many years, Louis finally returned to Turkey as a teenager. But she felt out of place when she returned to the country 9. she was born. She didn't know anything about current TV shows 10. fashion trends. And she didn’t share the same values as other teens of her age.
A friend of mine is a musician. He _________ seems to be learning new tunes, new _________, and new ways of making music in cool ways. At the weekends, he _________ to go into Central Park in the center of Nagoya during the daytime where lots of bands _________. Some of these bands are really good, but some of them are quite _________. One of the reasons why my friend likes _________ all the bands is that they are _________! And as he says to me, ''_________ expensive things don't necessarily mean that they're good, free things don't necessarily mean they have no _________. You have to listen and look yourself and ____________ what is valuable for you. And ____________, as you listen and look, you may learn different things.''
So my friend goes to the ____________ every week when the weather is fine, and he says he learns ____________ from every single band! When he watches and listens to the really good bands, he learns new concertos (协奏曲) from the ____________ and cool rhythms from the drummers. I guess that it's not ____________ that you can learn a lot by watching ____________ performers. But what really ____________ me are my friend's words — ''You can learn by watching and listening to the bad performers, too. When I watch a bad performer, I think to myself-wow, that's another thing that I'm going to ____________.''
So my friend makes ____________ by learning from both good and bad performers. And he says he also finds ____________ and pleasure in learning and improving in ways that he never even imagined!
1.A.finally B.quickly C.seldom D.always
2.A.games B.systems C.instruments D.languages
3.A.loves B.wishes C.agrees D.affords
4.A.compete B.perform C.study D.succeed
5.A.poor B.shy C.unlucky D.fierce
6.A.forming B.watching C.inspiring D.training
7.A.right B.familiar C.famous D.free
8.A.Since B.For C.While D.Unless
9.A.price B.fault C.soul D.value
10.A.find out B.wait for C.bring out D.call for
11.A.in short B.of course C.at first D.as usual
12.A.park B.club C.studio D.cinema
13.A.nothing B.anything C.everything D.something
14.A.listeners B.learners C.players D.dancers
15.A.touching B.exciting C.surprising D.satisfying
16.A.excellent B.strange C.energetic D.amateur
17.A.embarrasses B.impresses C.comforts D.convinces
18.A.come up with B.get hold of C.look down on D.get rid of
19.A.time B.money C.progress D.way
20.A.duty B.fun C.pride D.respect
After a long day at work, coming home is a breath of fresh air. 1. However, is it as healthy as it can be? Below are a number of things we can do to create a healthy home environment that will help to case the workday stress and promote our physical and mental health.
Cleaning the house regularly is the first thing we should do. It may seem like a tiring thing to clean but there is a reason for doing so. We can remove dust by cleaning the house. Leaving layers of dust everywhere means that there is a build-up of dust. 2. Into our lungs.
Making sure the rooms are full of sunlight is also important. We may not realize it but sunlight is an important part of our growth. We all know that sunlight promotes better working conditions. 3. Think about using a Parans system where sunlight does not reach. This technology gathers the sunlight by using solar panels (板). It can send out sunlight wherever we are.
4. Going green will help to remove toxins (毒素) in the air. They also give off oxygen, which can lower stress and improve our moods.
Along the lines of being green, it can also be vital to think about what things we are bringing into the house. Try to avoid specific plastics that are harmful to health. 5. They may contain poisonous chemicals that can be breathed in, or simply absorbed through the skin.
A.And where do these layers of dust go?
B.Home is a comfortable place to sit back and relax.
C.Is our home as safe as it used to be?
D.The same thing applies to certain carpets and paint.
E.It is also a good idea to add more plants in our house.
F.Besides, it can reduce both stress and high blood pressure.
G.It is acknowledged that a greener lifestyle is linked to better health.
