Have you ever wondered how your favorite NBA team received its famous name? All NBA teams have an interesting story or a history behind their names. Some of the names reflect the city’s culture or history, others came from previous owners and many were selected through “Name the Team” contests.
For teams like Los Angeles and Utah, the names were not always a reflection of the city. Even though Los Angeles has no lakes, the Laker name has been a city treasure for almost 40 years. Before going to Los Angeles, the team originated in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In 1948, team officials chose the name for its direct relationship to the state’s motto, “The Land of 10,000 Lakes.” The team name went unchanged after moving to Los Angeles in 1960.
Because Utah’s team originated in New Orleans, Louisiana, it was called the Jazz. In 1974, New Orleans club officials chose the name to represent the city for its reputation as the “jazz capital of the world.” The name stayed with the team even after finding a new home in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1979.
The Chicago Bull’s original owner, Richard Klein, named the team the Bulls. He picked the name because a fighting bull is relentless(不屈不挠的), and never quits. Klein, who founded the club in1966, believed these qualities were necessary for a championship team and hoped his Chicago athletes would live up to the team name.
Miami chose the Heat from names such as the Sharks, Beaches, and Barracudas. The name Magic was the winner for the Orlando team because the city’s tourism slogan is “Come to the Magic.”
Tradition played a big part in naming the New York Knicks. Chosen by the club’s founder Ned Irish, the Knicks’name was already important in New York's history. The first organized team in baseball history was named the New York Knickerbockers or the Knickerbockers Nine.
In 1967, the Indian Pacers selected their team name in a different way from most other teams. Their decision was based on what they wanted to accomplish in the NBA. Team officials chose the Pacers name because the organization wanted to set the “pace” in professional basketball.
1.Which of the names reflects the culture of the city New Orleans.
A.The Heat. B.The Indian Pacers.
C.The Jazz. D.The Sharks.
2.According to Paragraph 2, we know .
A.the Laker team was first set up in Los Angeles
B.Minnesota is a state with a lot of lakes
C.Los Angeles is famous for its lakes
D.the Laker team has been in Los Angeles for less than 40 years
3.Richard Klein named the team the Bulls because he hoped his team would .
A.be as strong as bulls
B.set the “pace” in professional basketball
C.be Number 1 forever
D.keep fighting and never give up
4.How did the Heat get the name?
A.It came from the names of other teams.
B.It was named after Miami’s motto.
C.It was named by its original owner.
D.Its owner came up with the name by accident.
Listening to music is considered a good thing for adults. Indeed it is. Scientific studies have proved it. Music has so many good effects on our body, mind and mood that this world will certainly not be a good place without music. Then, is music good for children? Some parents think so and let their children learn or listen to music. But some parents don't know the importance of music to children. Here are some reasons why music is important to children.
First, music is good for children’s intelligence. Studies have proved that children who learn music are likely to have higher intelligence than those who have no interest in or dislike music. This is because the brain gets stimulated (刺激) by the rhythm and tone of music.
Music also has soothing (抚慰的) effect on children and helps remove their stress. Today’s children are under a lot of stress from schoolwork. Being under too much stress impairs children’s health. Luckily，listening to music can help them feel better.
Music can improve children’s moods. Some children are sad by nature. They seem to be lost in their own thoughts and don’t take interest in their surroundings. In such cases，a method known as “music therapy” comes to their rescue. It changes their moods and places a new kind of spirit in them.
Music is also a universal language that children ought to learn. Our world has become a global village. People are getting more and more interested in other cultures and countries. Music can help them in understanding foreign cultures.
Now we can say that music is very important not only to adults but also to children. So children should be encouraged to learn music or listen to music.
1.By mentioning scientific studies in Paragraph 1, the author wants to show .
A.Children should listen to music
B.Why adults should listen to music
C.Listening to music is only good for adults
D.Why scientists are interested in music
2.What does the underlined word “impairs” in Paragraph 3 mean?
A.shows. B.changes.
C.improves. D.harms.
3.The last but second paragraph shows that listening to music means .
A.Understanding foreign cultures better
B.Learning languages better
C.Accepting the fast developing world easily
D.Showing greater interest in other cultures
4.What would be the best title for the passage?
A.Why do Children Love Music?
B.How to Choose Music for Children
C.Why is Music Important to Children?
D.How to Teach Children Music Easily
3 Days Chengdu Visa(签证) Free Tour
Places: Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding,Jinsha Site Museum,Thatched Cottage of Dufu, Jinli Street
Best Travel Time:Suitable for the whole year; the best months are April, May, September and October.
Price: From $248
Tour Itinerary(行程)
Day 1 Arrival in Chengdu
Arrive in Chengdu, the destination of your trip. You will be met at the airport and then transferred to the hotel for check-in. Enjoy your own free time for the rest of the day.
Meals: Not included
Accommodation: Chengdu
Day 2 Chengdu
After breakfast, we will drive to the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding for a half-day close contact with the lovely giant pandas. After that, we will continue to visit Jinsha Site Museum to see the Shang Dynasty and Zhou Dynasty relics.
Details in the Itinerary:
◆At Panda Base, visitors can take photos with small pandas (not included in the entrance ticket, and you need to pay extra expense).
◆You can find more tips on Chengdu Panda Base Tour Tips.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Chengdu
Optional Night Activity: Sichuan Hot Pot (generally 1 hour)
Day 3 Departure from Chengdu
Leave from your hotel in the morning to visit Thatched Cottage of Dufu -the former residence of a famous Tang Dynasty poet. And then, go to Jinli Street to take a leisure walk. After that, we drive to the airport to catch your flight to the next country.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Service Ends
1.The ad is most probably intended for .
A.Japanese tourists
B.American tourists
C.Chinese tourists from Hong Kong
D.Chinese tourists from the Mainland
2.How much will a person pay if taking photos with small pandas is included?
A.$ 248.
B.At least $ 248.
C.Over $ 248
D.No more than $ 248
3.Where can a visitor learn about some of the Chinese history before the Tang Dynasty?
A.At Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.
B.In Thatched Cottage of Dufu.
C.In Jinsha Site Museum.
D.On Jinli Street.
Translation
1.近年来，旅游业对环境的影响引起了人们的关注。 (effect)
2.即使你不吃早餐也无助于减肥。 (lose)
3.你的数码相机与我的功能相似。 (similar)
4.据我所知，她各门学科都比班上其他同学好。 (ahead)
5.图书馆不仅仅是个可以借阅图书的地方。实际上，它更像是一个待探索的宝藏。 (treasure) (more than, remain)
Obesity is a problem often associated with North America. However, China is providing that East Asians are having issues battling the problem as well. In fact, it is estimated that there are over 40 million obese people in China. To address weight problems of its students, Nanjing Agricultural University is offering weight reduction classes in which the students who loses the most weight gets the highest mark. 1.
Given the many complications that come with it, it’s not hard to realize that obesity is a problem that needs to be acted upon. It was not long age that a plus size student in Nanjing University fainted during a 1,000-meter race and died tragically. He was 168 centimeters and 92 kilograms, which was not exactly an ideal shape for competitive racing. 2. In fact, depression and social anxiety often go hand in hand with obesity along with heart and breathing problems.
In terms of motivation, signing up for a course like the one offered in Nanjing Agricultural University is very likely to inspire individuals. It’s like signing a contract for a goal that promises rewards and recognition. 3. Meanwhile, students get college credits for completing course by submitting a paper related to weight loss at the end of the semester.
However, there’s also a dark side to offering a course that resembles the plot of a reality television show. While entertaining and possibly inspiring for students, this course could lead to an extreme lifestyle change. As a result, there is no guarantee that students will still keep their newfound good habits with respect to eating and exercising after the course is completed.
4. The goal should be to find out the reason why people become overweight and change people’s habits in general instead of focusing on the effects.
A.Apart from influencing athletic ability, being overweight affects young people’s mental health.
B.There are currently a few initiatives in place that could help combat this problem.
C.While it sounds like a good idea, the course should only be a part of a larger movement to maintain a healthy body through changes in diet and lifestyle.
D.Aside from that, working out with like-minded people can provide moral support.
E.With this in mind, we can see that such classes should only be the first step of many when it comes to solving the obesity problem in China.
F.Due to the current cultural views on obesity there is a significant need for anti-obesity education.
The number of devices you can talk to is multiplying-first it was your phone, then your car, and now you can boss around your appliances. Children are likely to grow up thinking everything is sentient(有感觉能力的，有知觉的), or at least interactive: One app developer told The Washington Post that after interacting with Amazon’s Alexa, his kid started talking to coasters. But even without chatty gadgets, research suggests that under certain circumstances, people anthropomorphize everyday products.
We personify things because we’re lonely. In one experiment, people who reported feeling isolated were more likely than others to give free will and consciousness to various devices. In turn, feeling attached to objects can reduce loneliness. When college students were reminded of a time they’d been excluded socially, they made up by lying abut their number of friend on social networks- unless they were first given tasks that caused them to interact with their phone as if it had human qualities. The phone apparently stood in for real friends.
When we personify products, they become harder to cast off. After being asked to evaluate their car’s personality, people were less likely to say they are intended to replace it soon. And anthropomorphizing objects is associated with a tendency to accumulate.
So how do people assign characteristics to an object? In part, we rely on looks. On humans, wide faces are associated with dominance. Similarly, people rated cars, clocks, and watches with wide faces as more dominant-looking than narrow-faced ones, and preferred them-especially in competitive situations. An analysis of car sales in Germany found that cars with grilles(格栅) that were upturned like smiles and headlights that were slanted(倾斜的) like narrowed eyes sold best. The purchasers saw these features as increasing a car’s friendliness and aggressiveness, respectively. It’s little wonder so many companies use mascots(吉祥物) to bring brands to life. An analysis of 1151 brand characters found symbols that were human or humanlike to be common.
Personifying products and brands can backfire, however. When a coffee maker was anthropomorphized in an ad (“I am Aroma” versus just “Aroma”), consumers felt betrayed by increases in its price. Now that speech-enabled coffee makers are on the market, maybe the machines can sweet-talk their way back into consumers’ hearts.
1.The word “anthropomorphize” (in paragraph 1) most probably means ________.
A.think highly of something B.find a better way to rate something
C.see something as humans D.use something as often as possible
2.The writer mentions an analysis of car sales in Germany in order to ________.
A.show that friendliness is better received than aggressiveness
B.highlight that a symbol looking like a smile appeals more to people
C.explain why so many companies use mascots to promote their brands
D.illustrate that people will judge something according to its appearance
3.What can be inferred from the last paragraph?
A.Consumers should know more about a product before it is on the market.
B.Products with a mascot are more likely to win consumers’ hearts.
C.Increases in a product’s price may be accepted with a good advertisement.
D.The personification of a product may not always work.
