The Square
Jack Dorsey, the co-inventor of Twitter, is promoting his latest invention called the Square. The square is a small plug-in attachment to your mobile phone that allows you to receive credit card payments.
The idea starting from Dorsey's friend Jim McKelvey who was unable to sell some glass work to a customer because he couldn't accept a particular card being used.
Accepting credit card payments for something you're selling isn't always easy, especially if you are mobile like a tradesman, or delivery service at a trade show.
This latest invention uses a small scanner that plugs into the audio input item on a mobile device. It reads information on a credit card when it is swiped(刷卡). The information is not stored on the device but sent over secure channels to banks. It basically makes any mobile phone a cash register for accepting card payments.
As a payer, you receive a receipt via email that can be instantly accessed securely online. You can also use a text message to authorize payment in real time. Retailers can create a payer account for their customers which speeds the payment process. For example, a cardholder can assign a photo to their card so their photo will appear on the phone for visual identity confirmation. Mobile devices with touch screens will also allow you to sign for goods.
There are no contracts, monthly fees, or hidden costs to accept card payments using Square and it is expected the plug-in attachment will also be free of charge.
As with Twitter, it's expected that Dorsey will direct the company based upon feedback from users. Square Inc. has offices in San Francisco, Saint Louis and New York and is currently beta testing the invention with retailers in the United States.
1.Why is Jack Dorsey promoting his latest invention?
A. To test a plug-in attachment.
B. To identify a particular credit card.
C. To sell some glass work to a customer.
D. To allow people to receive credit card payments.
2.What can we infer from Paragraph 4?
A. The service performs only on special mobile phones.
B. The latest invention is just a small scanner.
C. The Square contains information on a credit card.
D. It is safe for your information to be sent to banks.
3.How can a cardholder receive a receipt?
A. By email online.
B. By oral message.
C. By a payer account.
D. Over safe channels to banks.
4.What does the writer imply in the last paragraph?
A. The invention may be used in the future.
B. The Square has already put into use widely.
C. The invention hasn’t been tested these days.
D. The Square is popular among people in the US.
Twelve years ago, Danny called me from a dark, damp subway station. “A baby!” he shouted. “Get down here, and flag down a police car or something.” By nature, Danny is a remarkably calm person, so when I felt his heart pounding through the phone line, I ran.
When I got to the subway station, Danny was holding a light-brown-skinned baby, about a day old. The baby had been wrapped in an oversize black sweatshirt and left on the ground in a corner behind the gate.
Three months later, Danny appeared in family court to give an account of finding the baby. Suddenly, the judge asked, “Would you be interested in adopting this baby?” The question stunned everyone in the courtroom, except Danny, who answered, simply, “Yes.”
“But I know it’s not that easy,” he said.
“Well, it can be,” assured the judge before barking out orders to allow me to be a parent-to-be.
My first reaction, when I heard, went something like: “Are you crazy? How could you say yes without consulting me?”
In three years as a couple, we had never discussed adopting a child. I was an ambitious playwright working as a part-time word processor. Danny was a respected yet wildly underpaid social worker. We had a roommate, who slept in our living room, to help pay the rent.
We knew how many challenges couples usually faced when they wanted to adopt. And while Danny had patience and selflessness, I didn’t know how to change a diaper(尿布), let alone nurse a child. I didn’t trust the system and was sure there would be obstacles. Also, I couldn’t handle parenthood. So I promised myself I wouldn’t get attached.
The caretaker held him and then placed him in my arms. But when the baby stared up at me, with all the innocence and hope he represented, I, like Danny, was completely hooked.
1.Why did the author rush to the subway station?
A. Because Danny finally found their long lost son.
B. Because she sensed Danny met something urgent.
C. Because Danny was knocked down by a police car.
D. Because Danny wasn’t a remarkably calm person by nature.
2.How did the author react on hearing Danny’s answer to the judge’s question?
A. Surprised by the question.
B. Crazy to be a parent-to-be.
C. Annoyed at Danny’s decision.
D. Interested in adopting this baby.
3.It can be inferred from the last paragraph that_________.
A. the author will adopt the baby
B. the caretaker will take the baby away
C. the couple love each other very much
D. the baby will bring hope to the family
4.What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?
A. To introduce a story of a poor family.
B. To inform people of how to adopt a baby.
C. To call on people to donate money to them.
D. To show human’s kindness and love by nature.
On a cloudless summer day, 13-year-old Charlie Finlayson was ready for a long hike with his father, David.
Around noon, David was inching his way across a cliff 800 feet above the valley, searching for a line of cracks that would lead them to the top. Charlie stood on a rock a dozen yards to the right as he fed rope to his dad. Reaching up, David missed his step. In the next moment, he heard a sharp crack from above as something larger broke loose.
When Charlie saw his father sailing through the air alongside the huge rocks that had struck him, he pulled the rope fiercely.
“Tell me it’s OK,” Charlie begged, struggling to control his fear.
“I think I broke my leg,” David told him. “And we must get off this mountain.” He proposed a plan: Charlie would lower David half a rope length at a time, then lower himself to the same level, and at a new place, begin again.
As hours passed, they came to the base of the cliff, and David was shaking with cold and exhaustion.
Worried that David would die if he fell asleep, Charlie kept the conversation going; they talked about past travels. Eventually Charlie allowed himself to catnap, checking on his father each time he awoke. When the sun rose on their camp, Charlie was relieved to see that his father was awake.
Just after dawn, Charlie headed off on the trail toward the volunteers’ cabin 12 miles away, bringing back a helicopter that would carry his father to safety.
“Charlie’s as strong as anyone I know,” says his father, “I’m so proud of him.”
1.What happened to David when he climbed up?
A. He missed his step and broke his leg.
B. He lost his way across the cliff.
C. He caught sight of a sharp crack from above.
D. He stood on a rock a dozen yards from the cliff.
2.How did Charlie feel at his father’s sailing through the air?
A. Puzzled.
B. Fearful.
C. Relieved.
D. Proud.
3.What does the underlined word “catnap” in Paragraph 7 mean?
A. become less calm
B. continue talking
C. comfort himself
D. take a short sleep
4.What might be the best title for the passage?
A. A Father and His Brave Son
B. An Accident Happened in a Valley
C. A Story on a Cloudless Summer Day
D. A Boy Saved His Father’s Life from Cliff
Teen Conference
Are you ready to explore the University of Idaho campus, learn life skills for beyond high school, meet new friends and get reacquainted with old ones? Then Idaho 4-H Teen Conference is for you.
●June 27---30 , 2017
●Moscow, Idaho
●Grades 8 to 12
At this conference, teens will:
●Gain leadership skills
●Participate in educational workshops
●Experience campus life and learn about opportunities at the University of Idaho
●Learn about state, national and international 4-H opportunities
●Develop a passion for 4-H
●Make new friends throughout the state of Idaho
Adults at Teen Conference
Adults are welcome to attend Teen Conference as chaperones(监护人). Please review adult chaperone position description and discover if this opportunity is for you. To apply, please complete the online chaperone application.
College students may also attend as collegiate(学院的)volunteers. Please review the collegiate volunteer position description. To apply, please complete the collegiate volunteer application.
Scholarships
Please contact your local UI Extension country office to learn how to apply. All participants will be informed by April 1 before registration begins.. Scholarships include:
●Youth scholarships sponsored by the Friends of 4-H
●Adult chaperone scholarships
Conference Proceedings
●Gem State News 2016
Be sure to visit the Idaho 4-H Teen Conference Facebook page.
For more information, contact Shana Codr, 4-H Program Specialist.
1.Who is the Idaho 4-H Teen Conference intended for?
A. Program specialists.
B. Adults as chaperones.
C. College students only.
D. Teens of Grades 8 to 12.
2.How can the participants possibly know about scholarships of 4-H?
A. By calling the Friends of 4-H Teen Conference.
B. By visiting the university’s official website.
C. By visiting the Idaho 4-H Teen Conference Facebook page.
D. By contacting the local UI Extension country office.
3.Where can you probably find this passage?
A. In a personal diary.
B. In an official report.
C. On a campus website.
D. In a tourist guidebook.
假设你是红星中学高三学生李华，你的美国笔友Chris在给你的邮件中提到他最近在准备SAT考试（美国高考），心理压力很大，很苦恼，希望得到你的帮助。请你给他回信，内容包括：
1. 安慰对方；
2. 分析心理压力过大可能导致的后果；
3. 给出相应的建议及其理由。
注意：1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Chris,
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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。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：在错的词下划一条横线，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。
As is known to we all, America’s national pastime is baseball. It has played in the country
since the first settlers arrive. It was a national ball what was liked by many Americans at that time. Although baseball possibly developed from an English game, it is now thought of like an American sport. From the Little League to the Major League, player of all skill levels enjoy testing their power on the “ Field of Dreams”. Famous players, exciting music but the standard stadium food of hot dogs, popcorns and peanuts are popularly among Americans. In a fact, Americans make go to the baseball game a favorite summer outing for many Americans nowadays.
