It’s said that every Irish “mammy” has her own way to cook Irish stew(炖菜). Simple but satisfying, it has fed the poor over centuries, which makes it a national dish.

The ingredients tell the story. First up, there’s the “spud”, as the Irish call the potato. First brought to Ireland in the 16th century, it was an unbelievable food, providing bumper crops that could be stored over the cold winter months. Soon, everyone was eating it — for breakfast, lunch and tea.

With the arrival of the spud, the population increased from one million to eight million in less than three centuries. But this dependence on the vegetable would prove disastrous when crops were struck by disease in the 1840s. The great famine(饥荒)that followed killed over a million people — and forced millions more to run to other countries. It’s hard to believe that during the years of famine, Ireland continued to export huge quantities of food to Great Britain, its colonial master at the time.

Today, Ireland is an independent nation. Nobody thinks about the potato famine as they enjoy their Irish stew but there’s a bone-deep awareness of the country’s long connection with the spud.

Potatoes are all well and good, but the stew gets its taste from the meat. It used to be made with mutton as it was the only meat available to the poor. However, the only way to make it good enough to eat was to stew it in the pot for hours.

Today, most people use lamb. However, this remains slightly traditional among purists, who also criticize(批评)the addition of ingredients like carrots, parsnips, thyme and supermarket-bought materials.

1.Why was the potato called an unbelievable food in the 16th century?

A.It could be accepted by both the poor and the rich. B.It could be cooked into many delicious dishes.

C.It could be kept for a long time. D.It could grow in winter in Ireland.

2.What did the dependence on the potato lead to in the 1840s?

A.The growing population. B.A very serious famine.

C.A war between Ireland and Britain. D.Millions of people rushing to Ireland.

3.What is the most important step when cooking Irish stew?

A.Stewing the dish for hours. B.Using enough potatoes.

C.Picking up the high-quality lamb. D.Adding different kinds of ingredients.

4.What is this text mainly about?

A.Ways to cook Irish stew. B.The present situation of Irish stew.

C.The importance of potatoes. D.An Irish national dish about potatoes.

    The Apollo Programme was set up by NASA, the US space agency, to land a man on the Moon by the end of the 1960s. Once this had been achieved by Apollo 11in 1969, other Moon missions didn’t create the same level of public excitement. The Apollo 13 astronauts were Fred Haise, Jim Lovell and Jack Swigert. Lovell later told the BBC that people were getting bored of the Moon. When the astronauts filmed a message to Earth after 55 hours of space flight, none of the major TV channels in the US took time to show it live.

Nine minutes after filming the message to Earth, one of the ship’s two oxygen tanks exploded. Swigert got in touch with mission control, which was in the city of Houston in Texas, US, and said, “Houston, we’ve had a problem here.” The explosion meant that the astronauts would no longer be able to land on the Moon. Instead, the goal was simply to get back to Earth alive. The crew used the lunar module as a lifeboat.

By now, Apollo 13 had drawn the world’s attention, Millions of people watched television on17 April to see whether the astronauts would get back to Earth. There were fears that damage to the command module might mean that the parachutes needed for landing wouldn’t work. To make matters worse, for four minutes. Mission control lost connection with the astronauts. Luckily, the astronauts landed safely in the Pacific Ocean.

NASA referred to Apollo 13 as a “successful failure”. It didn’t complete its original mission, but the calm and quick thinking of the astronauts and mission control experts prevented a disaster. The tanks were redesigned and a third one added to future spacecraft as backup, to make sure that such an accident never happened again. In 1995, the events of Apollo /3 were made into a hit film starring Tom Hanks.

1.What was people’s attitude towards Apollo 13 at first?

A.They were interested in it. B.They were tired of it.

C.They were excited about it. D.They were uncertain about it.

2.What was wrong with Apollo 13?

A.One of its oxygen tanks blew up. B.It went in the wrong direction.

C.It lost its connection with Earth completely. D.One of its astronauts didn’t operate it properly.

3.Why was Apollo 13 called a “successful failure”?

A.It caused a lot of loss but created a lot of business value as well.

B.It didn’t attract much attention but landed on Earth safely.

C.It didn’t finish its task but a disaster was avoided.

D.It was ruined but speeded up space exploration.

4.What is this text mainly about?

A.The history of space exploration. B.A discussion about space exploration.

C.The big events of the Apollo programme. D.An introduction to a space survival incident.

    I teach online and have been doing so for years .I understand the value of traditional face-to-face course offerings for certain courses and certain subjects. I doubt an online course in chemistry can ever be as effective (有效的) as a face-to-face course held in a lab. Fortunately, I teach writing, and the Internet is an effective place for teaching subjects that call for careful reading and discussion.

It is true that there are things I cannot do in my classes on the Internet. It is also true, however, that there are things I cannot do in my classes held in traditional classrooms. So the question we should ask is: What works better or worse in face-to-face classes rather than in online courses, and vice versa(反之亦然)?

One of the things I value most in my online classes is the necessity for everyone to take part in order to show their presence. In my face-to-face classes, a student can sit quietly and appear to be engaged in(积极参与) the discussion without ever offering a thought or opinion. Online, I consider a student who sits quietly but who does not join in the discussion to be simply not present. Further, students in face-to-face classes who are too shy or who are talked over by quicker and louder voices have the chance to take part in an online discussion.

When I teach online, my students and I can be inside or outside and we can sit wherever and however we want. In Michigan, where a winter storm can make going to campus dangerous or even impossible, the ability to learn in class from the comfort of wherever you live is a big advantage. When the weather is not nice, I often teach while sitting in a local coffee shop. When the weather is nice, I often teach while sitting in my backyard.

I agree that online education is not a “recipe (秘诀)for personal success.” Then again, I’m not sure traditional face-to-face education is such a recipe, either.

1.What does the author think of online courses and traditional courses?

A.Chemistry courses can be done online.

B.Online courses are more popular.

C.Traditional courses are more helpful.

D.Both have their advantages.

2.How can shy students benefit from online discussion?

A.They can do a better job than louder students.

B.They can sit quietly to listen to others opinions.

C.They can think independently and take an active part.

D.They can appear to be engaged in online discussion.

3.Which advantage of online teaching is mentioned in Paragraph 4?

A.It is much safer. B.It is less affected by weather.

C.It is more comfortable. D.It happens anytime.

4.What would be the best title for the text?

A.Why I teach online. B.I’ m online.

C.A recipe for success. D.A new teaching style.

Sand Safari Arts Festival 2020

Date: 14 February—1 March, 2020

Price: Free

Address: Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast

Once upon a time, in the magical Surfers Paradise, 15 world-famous artists turned a famous beach into a wonderful place of large sculptures(雕塑). Running over 17 days from mid-February to early March, the Sand Safari Arts Festival (SSAF) now brings together art installations(现代雕塑装置), larger than life art pieces and sand sculptures.

In 2020, the main subject of the festival fairy-tale (童话) classics. Visitors can watch the sculptures take form between Friday, 14 February and Sunday, 16 February, with the SSAF Award presentation to take place at 5: 30 pm on 16 February. For the rest of the festival, the public can vote on the People’s Choice Award by making a gold coin donation, with the winner to be announced publicly on Saturday, 29 February.

The festival will provide a host of public art and entertainment in addition to the sand sculptures. American artists Joseph Burgess and Joshua Wilkinson will present“The Harps(竖琴) of the City”, eight giant harps hand-carved from wood, each with a different sound, while local artists Clayton Blake and Courtenay McCue will take over the beach with their sculptures inspired by sea animals.

During the festival people can go to the Artist Plaza, a centre where all kinds of artworks are shown and visitors can buy their favourite art pieces, and The Castle of Ever After, which offers readings, live music, games, and a chance for people to get their hands dirty and create their own sand art.

The festival will take place at Surfers Paradise beach and along Cavill Mall. After the festival, why not go to enjoy delicious food, check out the markets, play a round of mini golf or explore the unknown?

1.Which of the following can enter the competition held by the festival?

A.Artworks on nature. B.“The Harps of the City”.

C.Sand sculptures of fairy-tale characters. D.Clayton Blake’s wooden sculptures.

2.When will the best sculpture chosen by visitors be made public?

A.On 29 February. B.On 16 February.

C.On 14 February. D.On 1 March.

3.What can visitors do in the Artist plaza?

A.Meet famous artists. B.Enjoy public concerts.

C.Make sand sculptures. D.Buy some artworks.

假定你是李华. 你的美国朋友Peler获邀参加中国大使馆举办的"中美小大使"交流活动，特发邮件就交流话题和相关礼节等向你咨询. 请回复.

注意：1. 词数100左右；

2. 可以适当增加细节. 以使行文连贯.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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，每句中最多右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：I. 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。

When I was young, I dreamed of becoming many things. Sometimes, I wished I was a astronaut going up into space, finding new planets but jumping around in a cool space suit. Other times, I imagined that being a cowboy in the Wild West, wearing stylish cowboy boots. On other occasions, I pretended to being a famous footballer, using my skills score lots of goals for my favourite team. Growing up with siblings also helps, combining our ideas and putting our thought into action. I was even able to create entirely plots in my head, using nothing more than my brain.

Looked back, I realize the imagination is a wonderful thing in your life.

    It was the homecoming parade in Rockwall, Texas, and Tyra Winters was riding on top of one of the school's floats. As it slowly made its way down the street, the 17-year-old excitedly_______ at the crowd.

All of a sudden, there was a terrible_______. Looking down. Winters saw a two-year-old_______ on the sidewalk, his frightened mother crying for_______. The child had been sucking on a piece of candy_______ it slid down the back of his mouth, stuck in his_______. There was no coughing. He was_______ having difficulty breathing. No one seemed to_______ how to help.

Except for Winters. A senior with_______ of becoming a surgeon, she had learned________ in school. Knowing that the clock was________, she jumped off the moving float and ran to the child. By the time she got to the child, his________ had turned purple. She grabbed him from the mother. Then she________ him and gave three back pushes. Soon, the boy________ the piece of candy and began breathing again.

Without another word, Winters________ him back to the mother and went back to her float________ before it could leave her behind. It all ________ so fast that the mother never had time to________ the teen. “She didn't need to,” says Winters. “I knew what she was ________. I saw her tears. I saw her face.”

A good thing, because Winters's heroic actions________ the mother speechless. “I don't really have any words,” the mother says. “The words that you would say to anyone who does something for you is 'thank you. ' But that doesn't seem good enough.”

1.A.jumped B.laughed C.waved D.stared

2.A.accident B.scream C.storm D.mistake

3.A.breathless B.homeless C.hungry D.alone

4.A.food B.work C.help D.rest

5.A.when B.once C.though D.because

6.A.finger B.throat C.nose D.mind

7.A.never B.just C.still D.yet

8.A.decide B.notice C.know D.ask

9.A.dreams B.chances C.choices D.opinions

10.A.sign language B.physics C.psychology D.first aid

11.A.changing B.dropping C.striking D.ticking

12.A.hair B.brain C.body D.face

13.A.tapped B.dragged C.tipped D.tied

14.A.coughed up B.picked up C.gave up D.fixed up

15.A.kept B.handed C.brought D.held

16.A.firmly B.privately C.directly D.quickly

17.A.managed B.happened C.proved D.continued

18.A.thank B.visit C.catch D.comfort

19.A.enjoying B.imagining C.touching D.feeling

20.A.showed B.surprised C.left D.required

Prevent Viruses From Infecting Your Computer

The number one way to prevent viruses from infecting your computer is to have an anti﹣virus software on your computer, which can detect and block viruses before they have a chance to cause any harm. 1. If it finds any viruses, it can separate them and delete them safely from your computer. Because there are new viruses that are created on an almost daily basis, your virus protection needs to be updated regularly.

2. This way if your computer should ever get hit by a virus, which corrupts some of your system. you will have a back up copy available. 3. This will allow you to restart your computer using an earlier configuration （配置）before you got infected by the virus. This method is not always reliable but it is something that you can try.

An important rule of thumb is do not open attachments in emails from people you do not know. You have no idea what those attachments might contain and no idea who sent them. You should also be careful about opening attachments from people you do know if you are not sure what the attachment is about. 4.

Downloading is a good way to catch a computer virus. It's like opening the door and saying "Come on in! " Yes, if your virus protection is updated, it will hopefully catch the virus. 5. When downloading, make sure the site you are downloading from is reliable with a lot of traffic. Stay away from unreliable sites that have few visitors.

A.Not all viruses act immediately.

B.But then again, it might not.

C.Operating without a firewall is risky anyway.

D.Attachments are a good way for viruses to sneak into your systems.

E.A good anti﹣virus program can scan any program, files, or documents.

F.Another good way is to make backup copies of important documents and files.

G.You can even set a system restore point anywhere from a week or a month earlier.

    After at least five years of transporting you around the country, car batteries will now spend their retirement making you tea and toast and running your washing machine.

Used electric car batteries are being changed into home energy storage units which can be linked to rooftop solar panels to keep lights on and devices running when the sun goes down. The plan between Honda and Snam, an Italian energy infrastructure company, will reuse or recycle thousands of batteries from electric and hybrid cars and trucks across Europe, with single batteries installed（安装）in homes and lines of them linked to wind farms to store electricity.

They will also be used by homes and businesses on "time of use" electricity rates—to be charged up when electricity is cheap and used when the rate increases at times of peak demand. The plan will help solve one of the biggest challenges for the rapidly growing electric car industry —how to deal with large batteries which contain valuable metals such as lithium and cobalt but are expensive to break down and recycle.

Most have a warranty（保证）lasting five to eight years depending on how well they are managed and how often recharged. Used batteries have 50 to 90 per cent of their original capacity, according to Aceleron, which makes batteries that are easier to reuse and recycle.

Amrit Chandan, its founder, said："Transport is the largest source of carbon emissions in the UK, and in order to reduce carbon emissions, million electric vehicles are sold each year. But we are currently solving one environmentally friendly issue while ignoring another. Waste is the elephant in the room. By designing batteries for the circular economy from the start, we can prevent mountains of battery waste from being created worldwide. "

1.What can be inferred about used batteries from paragraph 2？

A.They will be taken apart.

B.They will soon disappear.

C.They can be given a second life.

D.They are used to produce electricity.

2.What is the biggest problem facing electric car industry？

A.The solution to battery waste.

B.The production of electric vehicles.

C.The invention of cheap batteries.

D.The creation of fast electric cars.

3.What does the underlined word "they" in paragraph 4 refer to？

A.Used batteries.

B.Cars and trucks.

C.Homes.

D.Hosts.

4.What is the main idea of the text？

A.Battery waste has become a big concern.

B.Transport is responsible for carbon emissions.

C.Used electric car batteries will soon power homes.

D.New reusable battery can get rid of battery waste.

    For over a century, native Asian honeybees have been steadily pushed aside by the European species, which were introduced to China by beekeepers because the female workers are more focused on their job and produce more honey, which is also sweeter.

However, the European species also carries a number of deadly diseases that can damage the natural habitat. Some researchers calculate that up to 80 per cent of China's native honeybee population has been lost since the first European bee farm in the country was established in the late 19th century.

The sweeping expansion of Asia's European honeybee population causes an ecological crisis. After more than 70 million years of evolution, native Asian honeybees could pollinate（对……授粉）a wide range of plant species in the region. However, many Asian bee species across the region are now close to extinction, and that's a cause for concern as the flowers of many Asian plants are not recognised by European honeybees, which will cause fundamental changes in the ecological balance.

A solution put forward by bee scientists was to draw a border between European and Asian honeybees. In some parts of China, bee farms are not allowed to use the European species, giving the native bees some breathing space.

After years of decline, the Eastern honeybees are gaining a foothold, especially in mountains and warm, tropical areas. It is because they can deal with the real hardship of life. The Western honeybees. on the contrary, rely very much on the protection and care of humans. Without caretakers, they have little chance to survive in Asia, where hornets（大黄蜂）alone could wipe them out.

The decline of Asian honeybees was alarming because of their important role in the food chain. Fewer bees mean fewer plants, fewer plants less food and less food fewer humans. We must take positive, sustainable steps towards protecting China's Asian honeybees.

1.What made China's native honeybees endangered？

A.Overdevelopment of the land.

B.Introduction of European bees.

C.Pollution from cars and factories.

D.Lack of a variety of plant species.

2.What can be inferred about many Asian plants from the third paragraph？

A.They will not flower.

B.They might grow slowly.

C.They might not be pollinated.

D.They will harm the environment.

3.What is basically typical of China's honeybees？

A.Sociable.

B.Aggressive.

C.Productive.

D.Adaptable.

4.What is the author's purpose in writing this passage？

A.To analyse influence of European bees.

B.To urge protection of native Asian bees.

C.To suggest ways of limiting European bees.

D.To introduce comeback of native Asian bees.