More and more people in America are celebrating the Indian holiday Diwali. Diwali is Hindi for “row of lights”. It is the most important holiday in India.
Many people around the world are beginning to celebrate it as well. The United States is one of the places where the festival is becoming more common. Diwali celebrations can now be found at American landmarks like Disneyland in California and New York City’s Times Square. They are also held in many parks and museums.
Neeta Bhasin created the Times Square event. She said Indian immigrants have found great success in America. But, she said, many Americans still do not know much about India. So, she decided to act. “I felt it’s about time that we should take India to mainstream America and show India’s rich culture, heritage, arts and variety to the world,” she said, “and I couldn’t find a better place than Times Square.”
Bhasin came to the United States from India 40 years ago. She is president of ASB Communications, the marketing firm behind Diwali at Times Square. Tens of thousands of people attend the event, now in its fourth year.
In India, Diwali is a five-day harvest festival held just before the Hindu New Year. The exact dates change from year to year but Diwali is always in the fall. Celebrations include lighting oil lamps or candles called “diyas”.
A Diwali celebration will light up Disney California Adventure Park in Anaheim this year. Visitors can watch performances of traditional Indian dances and take part in a Bollywood dance party. The event is part of a Festival of Holidays program at the theme park to show cultural traditions from around the world. The program takes place on November 10th through January 7th.
San Antonio, Texas, also holds a Diwali celebration. And it is one of the nation’s largest celebrations, with more than 15,000 people in attendance each year. Visitors can enjoy Indian dance, food and fireworks. Organizers also plan to float hundreds of lighted candles in the San Antonio River, along the city’s famous River Walk.
1.Which is the main symbol in the Indian holiday Diwali?
A.Dances. B.Lamps.
C.Food. D.Clothes.
2.Why did Neeta Bhasin set up the Times Square event?
A.To make the American culture richer.
B.To create a new business for the firm.
C.To make Indian culture better known in the US.
D.To show the achievements of Indian immigrants.
3.What do we know about Diwali?
A.It is held in autumn in India.
B.It lasts five days in America.
C.It has been held for 40 years in America.
D.It happens from November 10th to January 7th in India.
4.What is the main idea of the text?
A.Diwali is mainly celebrated in Disney Parks.
B.Many American cities compete to hold Diwali.
C.Indian Holiday Diwali lights up America, too.
D.Diwali has become the most important holiday in India.
Recently whenever I turned on my computer or my mobile phone, news about the great effect of Hurricane Harvey on thousands of people caught my eyes. We saw many unfortunate events. However, there were also the bright news that confirmed the goodness of mankind. As a journalist, I wrote many human interesting stories during my career. That's why the story about the guys in the bakery caught my eyes.
When the staff at a Mexican bakery chain in Houston were trapped inside the building for two days, they didn't sit there feeling sorry for themselves. They used their time wisely after flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey. While they were waiting for the eventual rescue that came on Monday morning, four decided to make as many loaves of bread as possible for their community.
The flood water rose in the street outside. They took advantage of their emergency power supply to bake bread. They used more than 4,200 pounds of flour to create hundreds of loaves and sheets of sweet bread. Although the water kept rising, they continued baking to help more people. By the time the owner managed to get to them, they had made so much bread that we took the loaves to loads of emergency centers across the city for people affected by the floods.
The store manager, Brian Alvarado, told The Independent，“Whenever a disaster occurs, nobody should just feel _forlorn_. Instead，we should take positive action to save ourselves and help others. Our acts of kindness will make a big difference.”
1.What did the bakery store workers do after flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey?
A. They volunteered to make bread for their community.
B. They managed to live by selling more bread in the store.
C. They felt sorry that they couldn't escape from the store.
D. They ate nothing but to wait for their community to rescue them.
2.Which of the following best explains“forlorn”underlined in the last paragraph?
A. Fortunate. B. Hopeful.
C. Shallow. D. Desperate.
3.What can we infer from the text?
A. Alvarado organized his workers to bake much bread.
B. Hurricane Harvey caused a power failure in Houston.
C. The staff in the bakery sent enough flour to emergency centers.
D. The author preferred to write stories about people facing disasters.
4.What can be the best title for the text?
A. A Popular Mexican Bakery Chain in Houston
B. Wait for the Eventual Rescue in a Big Disaster
C. All Kinds of Disasters Caused by Hurricane Harvey in Houston
D. Bake Bread to Make a Difference in Face of Hurricane Harvey
Hawaii, 2nd Edition
Original price: $ 22.95
Sale price: $ 20. 95
Summary: Hawaii is one of the world s premier vacation destinations, and this practical and fact- packed book shows why. Like other Traveler guides，it's a treasure of special features - walking and driving tours, in-depth Hawaiian history, a sample of the best of each island' s activities, plus a selection of hotels and restaurants in every price range.
Be the Pack Leader
Original price: $ 25.95
Sale price: $ 18. 95
Summary: Bestselling author Cesar Millan takes principles of dog psychology a step further, showing you how to develop the calm energy of a successful leader and use it to improve your dog' s life and your own life. With practical tips and techniques, Cesar helps you understand and read your dogs energy as well as your own energy so that you can take your connection with your dog to the next level.
Celebrate Hanukkah
Original price: $ 15. 85
Sale price: $7. 85
Summary: The US astronaut Jeffrey Hoffman brought a menorah(烛台) and a dreidel(陀螺)on his Space Shuttle mission in 1993. Hoffman observed the traditional spinning of the dreidel, but wisely left the menorah unlit in several thousand liters of rocket fuel. Also included is the author 's sure-to-please potato pancakes' recipe.
A New Perspective of Earth
Original price: $26. 85
Sale price: $ 20. 85
Summary: The author Benjamin Grant describes a unique collection of satellite images of the earth that offer an unexpected look at humanity. More than 200 images of industry, agriculture, architecture and nature highlight incredible patterns while also revealing a deeper story about human influence. This extraordinary photographic journey around our planet captures the sense of wonder gained from a new, aerial point and creates a perspective of the earth as it has never been seen before.
1.Who is Be the Pack Leader most beneficial to?
A. Dog lovers. B. Human psychologists.
C. People who love travelling. D. Adults who highlight family connections.
2.What is A New Perspective of Earth mainly about?
A. A space journey. B. The earth's satellite.
C. Our home planet. D. Photography techniques.
3.Which book offers the maximum discount?
A. Hawaii, 2nd Edition. B. Be the Pack Leader.
C. Celebrate Hanukkah. D. A New Perspective of Earth.
假设你是高中生李华，有感于校园中存在的随意涂写(to scribble) 和乱丢垃圾(to litter) 的行为，请用英语给校英语报编辑写一封信。信中应包括以下内容：
1. 说明写信目的；
2. 对这些行为进行批评；
3. 提出建议。
注意：开头已给出，不计入总词数。（本次考试开头和信首及落款将不在答题纸上体现）
Dear Editor,
I am Li Hua, a student from Class 1, Senior 3.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours faithfully,
Li Hua
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅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（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线( \)划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：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。
Today I was having a PE lesson while I fell down and hurt my foot. I was in greatly pain at that moment, but I tried to act as if nothing has happened until the class was over. Though I had difficulty walk back to my classroom, I still didn’t tell anyone but even refused the offer of help of my classmates. As a result, hurt in my foot became bad. Now I know I’m wrong. We can tell others our need for help and accept his help. Some day we can not help others in return. In this way, we can get along to each other happily and peacefully.
It is the only place ______ the earth to have been visited by humans.
A.beneath B.below C.beyond D.behind
