Readers in Grenoble can now nibble (啃) fiction after Publisher Short Edition introduced eight short-story dispensers (自动售货机) around the French city.
The free stories are available at the touch of a button, printing out on rolls of paper like a receipt. Readers are able to choose one minute, three minutes, or five minutes of fiction.
“The feedback we got has been extremely positive. Just two weeks since its launch, more than 10,000 stories have already been printed. We are thrilled to see it working so well,” said the co-founder Quentin Pleple. “There are only eight dispensers in the city of Grenoble for now but we are planning to introduce more. We are getting requests from all over the world-Australia, the US, Canada, Russia, Grace, Italy, Spain and Chile.”
Pleple said he and his team initially came up with the idea a couple of years ago when taking a break at a drink dispenser. “We thought it would be cool to have it for short stories,” said the publisher. ‘Then, we decided to make a difference: the short-story dispenser was born.”
The French publisher hopes the story will be used to fill the “dead time” of a passenger. “In the bus or the subway, everyone can make the most of these moments to read short stories, poems, or short picture books,” said a statement from Short Edition. “And they can be sure to enjoy the quality.”
The dispensers arc now in locations including Grenoble’s town hall, its tourist office and its library. The stories are drawn from more than 60,000 stories on Short Edition’s website. But there is a problem that users are not able to choose what type of story they would like to read. “Right now they can only choose the length. But that is exactly what really counts, isn’t it?” said Pleple.
1.Where can you probably see a short-story dispenser at present?
A. In Chile. B. In Canada
C. In France. D. In Italy.
2.What does the underlined word “launch” in the third paragraph probably mean?
A. Coming into use. B. Being thrown away.
C. Being found out. D. Breaking down.
3.Why did Short Edition provide short-story dispensers?
A. To help people kill time in the journey.
B. To encourage people to write short stories.
C. To attract international tourists to Grenoble.
D. To do research in the field of new technology.
4.In what aspect does the short-story dispenser need to improve?
A. The length of the stories. B. The quality of the stories.
C. The number of the stories. D. The choice of different stories.
It was Saturday morning. I heard loud noises of moving furniture in the next room. I could almost feel the excitement of John who was soon going to get a room of his own. I remember my own feelings when I was 13. I knew how much he longed for his right to privacy when he was sharing a room with his younger brother, Robot. He said, “Mum, can I please have a room of my own? I could use Jeff’s. He won’t mind.”
It was true that Jeff had graduated from college and flown from the nest. But would he mind? The room was the place where I told him a thousand stories and we had a thousand talks. As close as we were, though, the time came when Jeff needed a door between us. His life was spreading into areas that had less to do with family. I no longer could—or should—know everything about him.
It turned out that getting Jeff’s permission was easy. He said, “Of course, Mum, it would be selfish of me to hold on to it.” Then his voice softened, “Mum, I won’t be living at home again— you know that.” Behind his glasses, his eyes were lit with all the love. There were no doors closed here—they had all opened up again.
As John and I were cleaning the room, I fixed my eyes on Jeff’s things around me and could almost touch the little boy I knew was gone forever. I looked at the room and, in my heart, I let it go. To hold on would be, as Jeff said, selfish. Now it was time for John, shouldering through the door, his eyes bright with promise of independence, to disappear behind the door. It was time for letting go to happen again.
1.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. John was eager to get a room of his own.
B. Jeff was moving to live with his brother.
C. Jeff refused to let his brother have his room.
D. Jeff volunteered to give his room to John.
2.The underlined sentence in the second paragraph probably means “Jeff_______.”
A. finally flew out of the house
B. would have less to do with his family
C. needed his right to privacy
D. got tired of those familiar stories
3.How did the author feel about his children’s sense of independence?
A. Delighted. B. Confused.
C. Jealous. D. Embarrassed.
4.It can be inferred from the passage that _______.
A. the children did not like to live with adults
B. all her three kids made the author feel depressed
C. none of the members in the family thought the same way
D. the author loved and missed the time together with her kids
Dear God,
Now that I am no longer young. I have friends whose mothers have passed away. I have heard these sons and daughters say they never fully thanked their mothers until it was too late to tell them.
I am blessed with the dear mother who is still alive. I appreciate her devotion more each day. My mother does not change, but I do. As I grow older and wiser, I realize what an extraordinary person the is. It’s sad that I am unable to say these words in her presence, but they flow easily from my pen.
How does a daughter begin to thank her mother for life itself? For the love, patience and just plain hard work that go into raising a child? For running after a toddler（学步儿童）, for understanding a moody teenager, and for tolerating a college student who knows everything? For wailing for the day when the daughter realizes what her mother really is?
How does a grown woman thank a mother for continuing to be a mother? For being ready with advice when asked or remaining silent when it is needed? For not saying “I told you so.” when she could have voiced these words dozens of times? For being essentially herself－loving, thoughtful, patient and forgiving?
I don’t know how to thank her, dear God, except to bless her and live up to the example she has set. I pray that I will look as good in the eyes of my children as my mother looks in mine.
1.We can infer from the passage that the author is .
A. reserved and romantic B. cold and practical
C. stubborn but responsible D. talkative and realistic
2.Compared with her friends, the author feels lucky because .
A. she has her own lovely sons and daughters
B. she is excellent in bringing up her own children
C. it is too late to say thanks to her mother in her presence
D. she still has the chance to express her appreciation to her mother
3.We can know from Paragraph4 that .
A. mothers should offer advice rather than blame
B. the sentence “I told you so.” can be repealed if necessary
C. the author is very thankful to her mother for her education
D. mothers can instruct their children whenever they want to
4.The authors mother has all the following fine qualities except .
A. devotion B. forgiveness
C. consideration D. self-preservation
American researchers say drinking tea may help strengthen the body's defense system against infection．Doctors at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston， Massachusetts， did the study． The team studied a chemical found in black， green， oolong and pekoe tea． This chemical is an amino acid called L-theanine． The scientists say it may increase the strength of gamma delta T cells． That's the letter T， not the drink． Gamma delta T cells are part of the body's defense．
First， the researchers mixed some of these cells with antigens found in the amino acid． Antigens help the body react to infection． Then the scientists added some bacteria． Within twenty-four hours， the cells produced a lot of interferon， a substance that fights infection． Cells not mixed with the antigens did not produce interferon．
In the second part of the study， eleven people drank five to six cups of black tea every day． Ten other people drank the same amount of instant coffee． That is dried coffee mixed with hot water．
Two weeks later， and again two weeks after that， the researchers tested the blood of all twenty-one people． They also looked at what happened when they added bacteria to the blood cells． They found that the tea drinkers produced five times more interferon after they started drinking tea． The coffee drinkers did not produce interferon．
Doctor Jack Bukowski led the study． He says the antigens added to the gamma delta T cells were responsible for the increased reaction to the bacteria． He says that the study also showed that the cells were able to remember the bacteria and fight them again the next time．
Earlier research already has found that tea can help prevent heart disease and cancer． Doctor Bukowski says the new study must be repeated by more people． "If the findings prove to be true，" he says， "then tea drinking might also help protect against bacterial infections．" He says the amino acid L-theanine could be removed from the tea and used as a drug to strengthen the body's defenses．
1.We may know from the text that ______ can be found in different kinds of tea．
A. L-theanine B. Gamma delta T cells
C. interferon D. bacteria
2.Tea may help strengthen the body's defense system because it helps ______ ．
A. to add some bacteria to the blood cells
B. the body to produce more gamma delta T cells
C. the body to produce more interferon
D. to mix antigens with some of the cells in the body
3.According to Dr Bukowski， ______ ．
A. the findings of the study have already proved to be true
B. further study is needed to prove the findings true
C. he has taken some amino acid L-theanine from tea and made a drug with it
D. he is not sure whether tea help prevent heart disease and cancer
阅读下面材料, 根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。续写的词数应为150左右。
Danger at Scituate Lighthouse
Rebecca stood by her father, looking out the windows of Scituate Lighthouse. Low sand dunes(沙丘) with sea grass topped the Massachusetts beach. There were no clouds in the sky—nothing at all to give warning of the danger that was sailing toward them.
"Now, Rebecca, " Mr. Bates began, gazing out across the open sea, "I want you and Abigail to help your mother and take care of things while I go to town for food and supplies. I won’t be gone long. "
"We’ll help, " Rebecca promised.
"I know I can count on you. "
Still, Mr. Bates looked a little worried about leaving the lighthouse. After all, peace between the US and the UK had not yet been declared, even though the war of 1812 was nearly over. Although English warships used to frequently attack towns along the coast—including Scituate—no English soldiers had been sighted for a long time. Besides, Rebecca thought as she watched her father set off, the family would soon starve if he didn’t go for food.
Her father hadn’t been gone long when Rebecca happened to look out the window at the ocean. What she saw nearly made her heart stop. It was an enemy ship: a small, light-gunned British warship. Calling for her mother, she grabbed her father’s telescope and could just make out the name painted on the side: La Hogue.
Rebecca, Abigail, and their mother stood together, frightened, as they watched the ship sail closer. Mother told the girls to watch the ship while she tried to sound the alarm and warn the home guard in the nearby village. The girls watched helplessly as the great ship drew near. Two small boats were lowered off the side, and Rebecca knew the boats would come ashore quickly.
It was time to run. As they ran down the lighthouse stairs, Rebecca suddenly stopped when she saw her fife(横笛). Oh my! She thought. It just might work… Rebecca grabbed the fife and the drum(鼓) that Abigail had been learning to play.
Paragraph 1：
She and her sister hurried out of the lighthouse and over to the large sand dunes that lay behind it.
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Paragraph 2：
The English soldiers looked nervously at one another—the music of “Yankee Doodle” had to be coming from the confident American soldiers.
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假定你是李华，正与你校英国交换生Eric一起参加“规范英文标识(Identifying and Correcting Mistranslations)”系列志愿活动，请你写一封邮件，告知他下一次活动安排。内容包括：
1. 活动时间、地点；
2. 活动内容；
3. 相关准备。
注意：1. 词数80左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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