Roughly 8. 5 billion plastic straws are used in the United Kingdom each year, but as a new ban takes effect next April, that number will decrease to zero. One startup (初创企业) is hoping to capture the chance to make a kind of straws as an alternative by using an unlikely material: pasta (意大利面食).
“It has all the function of a plastic straw that everyone has been using,” says Maxim Gelmann, founder of Stroodles, the startup. The straws, made by an Italian company that also produces regular pasta, are the same shape and size as a standard plastic straw.
Unlike a paper straw, they don’t taste like wet paper; they don’t change the flavor of the drink. They last at least an hour, and longer in colder drinks. If you’re nursing a drink for hours and the pasta eventually softens, you can choose to eat it. The raw straw is also eatable, and Gelmann says that some people snack on them.
A handful of other pasta-straw startups also exist, though Stroodles is hoping to feature itself with a smoother, more plastic-like material and its branding.
It’s more expensive to make than a plastic straw, but at large volumes, it can compete with the cost of paper straws. Because of the coming ban, “No one really compares us with plastic anymore,” Gelmann says. “They compare us with paper straw prices, which makes my argument much easier and my expectation brighter.”
Other alternatives, like bamboo or stainless steel, are more expensive and a less elegant solution; some bars say that customers don’t trust the idea that stainless steel straws can be fully sanitized (消毒). Another option—a plastic-like eatable straw made from seaweed—may be more of a competitor.
1.What’s the startup’s main purpose of producing the pasta straws?
A.To reduce the consumption of energy.
B.To take over the market.
C.To answer the call for the ban.
D.To compete with paper straws.
2.What advantage do the pasta straws have compared with other straws?
A.They are cheaper. B.They can be used longer.
C.They can be treated as snacks. D.They are suitable for mass production.
3.What attitude does Gelmann have towards the pasta straws’ future?
A.Controversial. B.Doubtful.
C.Cautious. D.Positive.
4.What can be inferred from the text?
A.The government disagrees with Gelmann.
B.The startup will become a very big company.
C.The pasta straws face fierce competition.
D.The pasta straws can improve drinks’ flavor.
Tests, after-school activities and problems at home can increase stress for students. But research now suggests that the main reason for the students’ rising anxiety levels is something else.
A psychology professor Jean Twenge said “What a lot of teens told me is that using social media and their phones seems forced. This use of phones has led to a loss of sleep and face-to- face interactions.” Last year, in the journal Pediatrics three researchers wrote that too much social media use might contribute to the development of mental health problems in teenagers, such as loneliness, depressive symptoms and anxiety.
Researchers are still not sure whether phones cause student depression or depression causes phone use. Yet 70 percent of teens see anxiety and depression as major problems among their peers, according to a February Pew Research Center report.
Schools are starting to take steps to deal with the problem. Many public schools pay outside companies to watch students’ social media activity for signs of pain. Some schools have organized some events in which people do not use their electronic devices. Belfast Area High School in Maine had one such event in April. About 20 percent of students and school employees took part, demonstrating the influence that the technology has on their daily life.
Emily Mogavero, a 17-year-old student in New York, said “I definitely feel stressed to keep up my information and stuff. It kind of worries me that I’m on my smart phone so long.” Mogavero said she sometimes puts her phone out of reach or powers it down so she doesn’t hear anything.
Some parents are not letting their children get smart phones until they grow up. A teacher, Erin Schifferli, says her 12-year-old daughter, Aeva, won’t get a phone until she is 16 years old. Deirdre Birmingham of Montclair signed on a campaign called “Wait Until Eighteen” because she didn’t think her video game-loving 10-year-old son was ready for a smart phone.
1.What’s the main cause of teenagers’ mental problems according to the text?
A.Being addicted to social media. B.Being lacking in enough sleep.
C.Too much homework. D.Too many activities.
2.What does Mogavero think of using smart phones too much?
A.It is necessary. B.It is worrying.
C.It is reasonable. D.It is meaningless.
3.How can parents deal with the children’s problem?
A.Help their children grow up quickly.
B.Stop their children using smart phones.
C.Pay more attention to children’s study.
D.Sign on more campaigns to make a difference.
4.What can we learn from the text?
A.Over-using phones influences teens’ social interactions.
B.70 percent of people have anxiety and depression.
C.Almost all the students liked the schools’ activities.
D.The findings of the research are very definite.
My youngest son has a severe form of autism (自闭症). Even though he is in his twenties now, he still has the mind of a young child.
He speaks only a few words. He is lost in his own world most of the time. Things I find silly delight him and little changes that wouldn’t bother me at all bother him greatly. He will tear things up and cry for no reason that I can see. He will even hit himself.
It always hurts me to see him suffer this way especially when there is little I can do. This morning was particularly trying for him. He tore up a new shirt I’d bought him and cried on and off for an hour. Finally he calmed down again. However, I was still feeling stressed and exhausted. I sat down before my computer to see if I could get a little work done.
As I was turning it on, though, I heard my son laugh for the first time all day. I turned my head and saw him standing directly under the glass angel hanging from our ceiling fan. The light from our house lamps seemed to shine all around him like a gold ring. His eyes shone too as the little angel swung gently above his head. He laughed again and smiled at me, saying, “Mom, I love you”.
At that moment my heart opened. I could see that the miracle (奇迹) was reminding me that my son was more than his autism. I instead saw the shining soul within. I saw the love and light of his spirit and knew he was here for a purpose. My eyes watered and I feel grateful for this minor miracle and gentle reminder of his love for me.
Miracles are all around us，but we can’t always see them with our eyes. We often have to see them with our hearts. Keep your heart open to them then. And let yourself be the miracle you were meant to be!
1.What do we know about the author’s son?
A.Little changes seldom bother him.
B.His physical condition is very good.
C.He treats others rudely and impolitely.
D.He isn’t mature for his age.
2.What does the underlined word “trying” in paragraph 3 mean?
A.Interesting. B.Puzzling.
C.Annoying. D.Embarressing.
3.Why were the author’s eyes full of tears?
A.Because she saw her son’s love for her.
B.Because the little angel comforted her son.
C.Because the light from lamps seemed to shine.
D.Because she heard her son’s laughter for the first time.
4.What is the best title for the text?
A.The glass angel is swinging B.Disease can be cured accidentally
C.The happiness lies in waiting D.Miracles come with open heart
On the southern edge of Singapore’s Chinatown, Keong Saik Road has transformed into one of the city’s attractive places. Here are a few places worth going to.
Neon Pigeon
Now two years old, this industrial space with rude touches—exposed pipes and giant pictures of pigeons—is always packed with people and serves contemporary Izakaya-style dishes.
No. 1 Keong Saik Road; 65-6222-3623; neonpigeonsg.com
Meta Restaurant & Bar
Run by Sun Kim, a South Korean chef who has worked at a Singapore’s famous restaurant, Waku Ghin, this cafe opened in late 2015 with an Asian-French menu. Get a front-row view of the kitchen fireworks at the 16-seat bar.
No. 9 Keong Saik Road; 65-6513-0898; metarestaurant.sg
Hotel 1929
Uniting five well-preserved shophouses built in 1929 (hence it’s the name) , this fashionable property has 32 individually decorated rooms. Hotel 1929 started accepting bookings online on February 5, 2010. The hotel mixes contemporary technology (smart phones with free data and free international calls to a number of countries) with antique furnishings (家具陈设) including Eames and Arne Jacobsen chairs.
No. 50 Keong Saik Road; 65-6347-1929; hotel1929.com
Cure
Opened in July 2015, the 1,400-square-foot, softly lit shophouse is a perfect stage for the chef-owner Andrew Walsh’s lunch and dinner-tasting menus. These focus on seasonal ingredients, bought near and far, presented in dishes like Irish beef, cooked and raw.
No. 21 Keong Saik Road; 65-6221-2189; curesingapore.com
1.Which place has the longest history?
A.Neon Pigeon. B.Meta Restaurant & Bar.
C.Hotel 1929. D.Cure.
2.Which number will an Irish beef lover probably dial to reserve seats?
A.65-6222-3623. B.65-6513-0898.
C.65-6347-1929. D.65-6221-2189.
3.What do the four places have in common?
A.They have the native chefs.
B.They are located on the same road.
C.They can offer discounted accommodations.
D.They are famous for the antique furnishings.
假如你是李华，现在国际新型冠状病毒抗疫形式严峻，你得知你的外国朋友Tony所在的国家也受到了影响。请结合我们中国抗疫的一些经验，给你的朋友写一封邮件。内容包括：
1. 对他安危的关心。
2. 给他一些个人防护措施的建议。如：戴口罩，勤洗手消毒，常锻炼等。
3. 提出自己的祝愿。
注意：1. 词数100词左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，使行文连贯。
参考词汇：新冠病毒novel coronavirus 口罩face mask 消毒杀菌剂sanitizer
Dear Tony,
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours sincerely,
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。文中共有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。
Dear Sir,
I am a student from Yucai School in Xi’an, Shannxi Province. Informed that you were looking for a student to serve as a spokesman for pandas, I am very exciting. I hope that I can get the opportunity to do something else for pandas. I have been the panda lover since my childhood. Pandas are so lovely that they bring us comfortable and pleasure. They are regarded as a treasure of our country’s. Unfortunately, such a lovely species is now facing with the danger of becoming extinct (灭绝的) . That I am eager to do is raise people’s awareness of protect pandas. I would appreciate if I could be chosen as a spokesman.
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
