Creative alarm clocks
Dumbbell（哑铃） alarm clock
It is not a real dumbbell, but you have to shake it up and down 30 times to stop the alarm clock. And there is no stop button. Of course you will be totally refreshed by then. Don’t be lazy and take some exercise in the morning.
Target alarm clock
The alarm is ringing at the time you set it for！Do you see the target？Then hit it to stop the sound with a laser gun（激光枪）. Of course you have to be fully awake if you don’t want to miss the target.
Flying alarm clock
I’m sure you won’t be able to simply ignore this alarm as you usually do, because it flies！Its propeller（螺旋桨）flying off the alarm is the key. Before the frightening alarm sounds drive you crazy， you’d better quickly put the key back.
Banclock
Have you been keeping a pocketful of change for some time without knowing what to do with it？Maybe you can put those coins in your alarm. This is both an alarm clock and a money box. It only stops ringing if you put a coin in it.
IQ alarm clock
What about a brain workout in the morning？ IQ alarm will go off and ask you a set of IQ questions. Don’t even think about removing the battery, because it is hard to open. The only way to shut it off is to answer all questions correctly.
Mr. Bump-off-the-wall alarm clock
An alarm clock is so annoying when you are too tired and sleepy to get up. You can release your anger on Mr. Bump. It looks like a blue ball covered with “bandages（绷带）”. Just throw this alarm at the wall to silence it.
1.How can we turn off Target alarm clock？
A.By shooting at it. B.By shaking it 30 times.
C.By putting the key back on it. D.By answering questions shown on.
2.What is another function of Banclock？
A.Improving people’s sleep. B.Asking people to do exercise.
C.Testing people’s intelligence. D.Helping people to save money.
3.What can we infer about Mr. Bump-off-the-wall alarm clock?
A.It hangs on the wall. B.It is difficult to break.
C.It was invented by Mr. Bump. D.It rings louder than any other clocks.
假设你是红星中学高三学生李华。你们学校上周组织了一次以“感动中国，感动你我”为主题的演讲比赛。请根据以下四幅图的先后顺序，写一篇英文周记，记述你参加本次活动的全过程。
注意：词数不少于 60。
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假设你是红星中学高三学生李华。你的英国好友 Jim 在给你的邮件中提到他今年暑假将来北京参加“外国人朗诵中国诗词大赛”，希望你能为他推荐一首中国诗词。请你给他回复邮件，内容包括：
1. 诗词的题目和作者；
2. 诗词的主要内容；
3. 你推荐该诗词的理由。
注意：1. 词数不少于 50；
2. 开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Jim,
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Yours,
Li Hua
Suppose you were promised $1,440 each day that comes to $525,600 a year. That could never be reduced or changed in your whole life. Sounds great, doesn’t it? Actually, we all do get 1,440 a day—but in minutes, not dollars. 1. It’s possible to get more money, but you can’t make more time.
Many of the management practices that help people make good use of their money can also be applied to your “time currency”. But the question is, are you a good manager of your time? 2.
Find out where your time is going now. Write down everything you do in a day. Include work, study, cooking and meals, cleaning and household maintenance, sleep, family time and mindless activities such as watching TV and getting lost in social media.
3. Ten minutes of planning can save you an hour of time and helps stretch the time you have, and you’ll see pockets of time you can use for things you want to do. “Once people have a clear picture, they actually do have a lot more time than they realize.” Clark, the founder of the Purposeful Planner says.
You can also set limits. Use kitchen timers, phone reminders, apps or other timing devices to stay focused and work more productively, suggests Janine Adams, certified professional organizer of Peace of Mind Organizing.
4. When you have missions to run, instead of making three separate trips on three different days to buy groceries, office supplies or home store products, integrate them—visit all three stores in one trip. It’s more efficient to finish “little one-off” tasks together rather than deal with one at a time throughout the day.
At the end of the day, week, month and year, take a look at how well you’ve managed your time. You’ll see where you could do better and where you’ve completed what you set out to do. Booren compares this progress check to reviewing your annual “financial statement”.
5.Do that over and over and “it forms habit and becomes natural.” Booren says.
A.Try these simple steps to take control of your clock and calendar.
B.Time is one of the most precious and limited resources for people.
C.Grouping small tasks into one job proves to be helpful in daily practice.
D.The most important tasks are not always the same as the most pressing tasks.
E.Focus on what you’re doing and avoid having to repeat the same process twice.
F.Invest a few minutes at the beginning of each day or week to plan and organize.
G.Take time each day to reflect on your achievements and set goals for tomorrow.
Say goodbye to standing in long lines holding boarding passes and other travel documents. Step this way, instead. Look into the camera lens and off you go.
Sound convenient? Technology companies working with travel providers and the federal government to install facial recognition systems at airports hope you think so.
But privacy advocators don’t want you to become too comfortable. They worry that what we’re willing to accept for convenience today will soften our resistance to the idea of filling public spaces with cameras that can identify us and track our every move.
Facial recognition technology came suddenly into modern reality with very few people prepared for it. Facial recognition is a biometric technology that uses distinguishable facial features to identify a person. In many cases, we see it being used by governments and law enforcement agencies—testing its accuracy and value for future purposes.
Today, it’s used in a variety of ways from allowing you to unlock your phone, go through security at the airport, purchase products at stores. It checks the identities of ride-hailing drivers, permits tourists to enter attractions and let people pay for things with a smile. Airports are increasingly adding facial recognition technology to security checkpoints. It’s even said that past footage of unsolved mysteries would benefit greatly from this technology as it would help identify the criminals of crimes long forgotten.
However, there has been a serious clash between the government and citizens in general over the technology’s use cases. At an airport, travelers are requested to present their passports, from which the software will determine whether the person standing in front of the camera matches the identity. If it matches, then they can get through quickly. However, the surveillance system searches a large database for the face presented to the camera. Editing such a big database, many worry, will inevitably lead to privacy concerns down the road. The biggest drawback for facial recognition technology in most people’s opinions is the threat to an individual’s privacy.
Some say that it’s the most powerful tool as they fear for their privacy being invaded almost on a daily basis, while the government tries to push it as something necessary for better civil control and crime prevention. Overall, talks usually boil down to whether facial recognition technology should be banned or if it should be regulated.
According to IBM, the banning of facial recognition technology would be a step backward for human scientific advancement. However, restricting it within light regulations could yield just as many gains as it would in a “free market”.
There are many useful applications of facial recognition technology—both at the consumer level as a matter of security and convenience, and for governments and law enforcement agencies. The challenge is finding the balance between those benefits and the expectation of privacy. Banning facial recognition is not the answer. Regulating it, however, may be necessary to put an acceptable framework of rules around its use.
1.With the help of facial recognition, we can _______.
A.purchase products at home
B.figure out unsolved mysteries
C.reduce the number of criminals
D.pass the security at the airport faster
2.What does the underlined word “clash” in paragraph 6 probably mean?
A.Conflict. B.Crisis.
C.Challenge. D.Consequence.
3.Facing the use of this technology, citizens _______.
A.have no idea of its benefit
B.have already got well-prepared
C.worry their information is misused
D.refuse to accept the convenience
4.Which point of view may the author agree to?
A.Banning facial recognition.
B.Debating with the government.
C.Maintaining the current situation.
D.Regulating facial recognition with rules.
The research from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that food allergies ( 过 敏 ) in children have increased about 50 percent. Common symptoms of allergic responses include itchy mouth, throat tightening, and difficulties in breathing.
Food allergy is a medical condition of exposure to certain foods. It occurs when the immune system attacks the protein in food that in normal cases is harmless. According to reports, more than 170 foods cause allergic reactions. The major food allergens are in eggs, milk, peanuts, wheat, soy, fish, tree nuts, and crustacean shellfish.
There are several reasons behind the rise in food allergies. The food being produced these days is high in sugar, unhealthy fats, genetically modifies and some food farms have pesticides ( 农 药 ) and other food have been injected drugs. All this can have a negative impact on our microbiome (微生物群), which is the basis of good health and immunity.
In a study comparing two children, a 15-year-old who lived in urban Italy and a 14-year-old child from rural Africa, it clearly showed a significant difference in the diversity of bacteria in their guts. The reason lies in their diet. The child from rural Africa has his diet low in fat and rich in plant-based foods which are grown and harvested locally by villagers. In contrast, the Italian kid’s diet was rich in animal protein, sugar then low in fiber. Ultimately, the microbiome of the kid from Italy was less than that of the kid from Africa.
Besides, the so-called ‘hygiene hypothesis’ suggests that decreased exposure to microbes in early life can lead to an increased chance of allergies in later life, because of individuals not having built up immunity at a young age.
Yet another reason for the explosion in allergies may be environmental changes. The environment has seen a rise in temperature and is estimated that in the coming decades the temperature could rise even further by 10 degrees. As a result of this warm climate, the growing seasons will be longer, increasing allergen count thus making allergies even worse. According to scientists, climate change is a contributing factor that needs immediate attention.
Dr. R. Sharon, researcher of Allergy and Asthma Research Centre at Stanford University, believes the cause of allergies will ultimately come down to a combination of many factors.
Food allergies have no cure but can be managed by avoiding food that brings the reactions. Scientists are studying food allergies medical methods for general use. They are all trying to actively understand a certain part of the puzzle when it comes to allergies.
1.What can we learn from the passage?
A.Scientists have found an effective method to solve food allergies.
B.There could be many reasons that combine to lead to food allergies.
C.Environmental changes are the most important reason for food allergies.
D.To decrease children’s allergies, we should make them eat less every day.
2.In paragraph 4, the two children are mentioned to show that
A.pesticides have bad effects on people’s food
B.a person’s daily diet can affect his microbiome
C.food allergies have no cure but can be avoided
D.climate change is another factor for food allergies
3.What is the main purpose of this passage?
A.To explain the causes of food allergies.
B.To stress the influences of food allergies.
C.To introduce the solutions to food allergies.
D.To tell people the symptoms of food allergies.
4.What’s the author’s attitude to the treatment of food allergies?
A.Indifferent. B.Positive.
C.Doubtful. D.Critical.
