The idea of being able to walk on water has long interested humans greatly. Sadly, biological facts prevent us ever accomplishing such a thing without artificial aid --- we simply weigh too much, and all our mass pushes down through our relatively small feet, resulting in a lot of pressure that makes us sink.
However, several types of animals can walk on water. One of the most interesting is the common basilisk Basilicus basilicus, a lizard（蜥蜴）native to Central and South America. It can run across water for a distance of several meters, avoiding getting wet by rapidly hitting the water’s surface with its feet. The lizard will take as many as 20 steps per second to keep moving forward. For humans to do this, we’ll need huge feet that we could bring up to our ears in order to create adequate “hitting.”
But fortunately there is an alternative: cornflour. By adding enough of this common thickening agent to water (and it does take a lot), you can create a “non-Newtonian” liquid that doesn’t behave like normal water. Now if the surface of the water is hit hard enough, particles（粒子）in the water group together for a moment to make the surface hard. Move quickly enough and put enough force into each step, and you really can walk across the surface of an adequately thick liquid of cornflour.
Fun though all this may sound, it’s still rather messy and better read about in theory than carried out in practice. If you must do it, then keep the water wings handy in case you start to sink --- and take a shower afterward!
1.Walking on water hasn’t become a reality mainly because humans _______.
A. are not interested in it
B. have biological limitations
C. have not invented proper tools
D. are afraid to make an attempt
2.What do we know about Basilicus basilicas from the passage?
A. It is light enough to walk on water.
B. Its huge feet enable it to stay above water.
C. It can run across water at a certain speed
D. Its unique skin keeps it from getting wet in water
3.What is the function of the cornflour according to the passage?
A. To create a thick liquid.
B. To turn the water into solid.
C. To help the liquid behave normally.
D. To enable the water to move rapidly.
4.What is the author’s attitude toward the idea of human’s walking on water?
A. It is risky but beneficial.
B. It is interesting and worth trying
C. It is crazy and cannot become a reality
D. It is impractical; though theoretically possible
Personal Robot Make your parents and teachers happy ! Are you having problems finishing your homework on time? Do you avoid tidying your room until your mom shouts at you? You don’t need to worry if you buy a Mr. Helping Hand personal robot. Mr. H can be programmed to organize your homework. Your own personal robot will follow you around, putting away books and objects that you have left on the floor or bed. Mr. H also has these features (特点)： • weighs only 500 grams • includes long-lasting batteries • comes with a 5-year guarantee • remembers simple instructions Originally (最初) sold for $499 NOW ONLY 299 |
WATCH CONTROL This is a watch that James Bond would be proud to wear! This is NOT a watch for ordinary people! Your electronic PENGO WATCH CONTROL • acts as a remote control for TVs and videos. • gives you a daily weather forecast. • reminds you when to hand in your homework. • sets off a silent warning alarm when parents or teachers are near. Besides, your PENGO WATCH CONTROL will always tell you the time accurately! Originally sold for $199 NOW ONLY $99 For further information, click here. |
1.With help from a Mr. H, you can ________.
A. stop using batteries
B. finish your homework on time
C. remember your teacher’s instructions
D. get your room tidied on your way home
2.A PENGO WATCH CONTROL can help you to ________.
A. repair your TV B. organize your homework
C. be a James Bond D. know what the weather is like
3.You can get your Mr. H far ________.
A. $499 B. $299 C. $199 D. $99
4.Where would you be most likely to find the two texts?
A. On a notice board B. In a company brochure
C. On a teenage website D. In a college newspaper
TaIL Spin
Two dolphins race around in a big pool in the Ocean Park. The smaller dolphin Grace, shown off a few of her tricks, turning around and waving hello to the crowd. The most amazing thing about her, however, is that she’s even swimming at all. She doesn’t have a tail.
Grace lost her tail as a baby when she got caught up in a fish trap. When the dolphin arrived at the Ocean Park in December 2005, she was fighting for her life. “Is she going to make it?” Her trainer, Abbey Stone, feared the worst. Grace did make it --- but her tail didn’t. She ended up losing her flukes and the lower part of her peduncle.
Over the past six years, she has learned to swim without her tail. Dolphins swim by moving their flukes and peduncle up and down. Grace taught herself to move another way---like a fish! She pushed herself forward through the water by moving her peduncles from side to side.
The movement put harmful pressure on Grace’s backbone. So a company offered to create a man-made tail for her. The tail had to be strong enough to stay on Grace as she swam but soft enough that it wouldn’t hurt her.
The first time Grace wore the artificial tail. She soon shook it off and let it sink in the bottom of the pool. Now, she is still learning to use the tail. Some days she wears it for an hour at a time, others not at all. “The tail isn’t
necessary for her to feel comfortable,” says Stone, “but it helps to keep that range of motion(动作) and build muscles(肌肉).”
Now, the dolphin is about to get an even happier ending. This month, Grace will star in Dolphin Tale, a film that focus on her rescue and recovery. Her progress has inspired more than just a new movie. Many people travel from near and far to meet her. Seeing Grace swim with her man-made tail gives people so much courage.
1. When Grace first arrived at the Ocean Park, her trainer worried about her .
A. physical build B. potential ability
C. chance of survival D. adaptation to the surroundings.
2.A man-made tail is created for Grace to _.
A. let her recover faster B. make her comfortable
C. adjust her way of swimmingD. help her perform better tricks
3.The story of Grace inspires people to_ .
A. stick to their dreams B. treat animals friendly
C. treasure what they have D. face difficulties bravely
假如你是红星中学的李华，收到来自英国学生Mark的电子邮件，咨询你校暑期为外国学生举办的汉语夏令营活动，请通过电子邮件向Mark介绍本次活动，其内容如下：
1. 活动时间：7月10日到7月30日；地点：红星中学。
2. 活动内容：
学习日常汉语，可与当地人交流；
举办各种晚会，了解中国历史和中国传统文化，例如节日等；
参观博物馆，长城等。
3. 活动意义。
注意：
1. 词数100左右；
2. 可适当增加细节，以使内容充实，行文连贯；
3. 开头已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Mark,
I feel delighted to get your email,
_____________________________________________________________________________
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Yours,
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。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。
My dream is to become a school teacher in the future. In fact, I had the dream of becoming a teacher since my childhood. In my opinion, without teachers, no society could make progresses. There is no doubt whether teachers play an important role in children growth. Not only do teachers pass on knowledge for children, but they also teach children how to behave themselves. Comparing with other jobs, teaching is hard and the pay is lower. And to me, what great fun it is to be with children! They make me to feel young forever because I’ll study harder and try my best to realize my dream.
Taking a taxi in a certain Eastern European country can be a shocking experience. 1. is said that some taxi drivers have metal wires stuck into the passenger seats. And2. a button is pushed, the seat will give you 3. electric shock. These taxi drivers don’t do this 4. fun. They do it to tourists 5. argue about the ridiculous(可笑的，荒谬的) fares they charge. Some drivers charge as much 6. ten times the legal fare.
They have a secret switch which makes the meters run faster. If the tourists refuse to pay, 7. are really in for a shock.
In one case, a German woman had no 8. (choose) but to pay $120 for a $ 20 ride from the airport. She said that she was "really taken for a ride," but what could she do? Besides the electric shock, she 9. (threaten) with physical violence. She has only one piece of advice for tourists, “Take the bus 10. stay at home.”
