Forget Cyclists, Pedestrians are Real Danger
We are having a debate about this topic. Here are some letters from our readers.
■ Yes, many cyclists behave dangerously. Many drivers are disrespectful of cyclists But pedestrians are probably the worse offenders.
People of all ages happily walk along the pavement with eyes and hands glued to the mobile phone, quite unaware of what is going on around them. They may even do the same thing while crossing a road at a pedestrian crossing or elsewhere. The rest of us have to evade (避让) them or just stand still to wait for the unavoidable collision.
The real problem is that some pedestrians seem to be, at least for the moment, in worlds of their own that are, to them, much more important than the welfare of others.
——Michael Horan
■ I loved the letter from Bob Brooks about cyclists (Viewpoints, May 29). I am afraid they seem to think they own the roads.
I was walking across Altrincharn Road one morning when a cyclist went round me and on being asked what he was doing he shouted at me.
The government built a cycle lane on the road but it is hardly used.
The police do nothing. What a laugh they are!
The cyclists should all have to be made to use the cycle lanes and wear helmets, fluorescent (发荧光的)jacket and tights at night and in the morning. They should pay some sort of tax and be fined for not wearing them.
——Carol Harvey
■ Cyclists jump on and off pavements (which are meant for pedestrians), ride at speed along the pavements, and think they have a special right to go through traffic lights when they are on red.
I was almost knocked down recently by a cyclist riding on the pavement when there was a cycle lane right next to him.
Other road users, including horse riders, manage to obey the rules so why not cyclists?
It’s about time they had to be registered and insured, so when they do hit a pedestrian or a vehicle, or cause an accident, at least they can be traced and there might be an opportunity to claim.
——JML
Write to Viewpoints of the newspaper.
1.Michael Horan wrote the letter mainly to show that .
A. drivers should be polite to cyclists
B. road accidents can actually be avoided
C. some pedestrians are a threat to road safety
D. walking while using phones hum one’s eyes
2.Carol Harvey suggests that cyclists should .
A. be provided with enough roads
B. be asked to ride on their own lanes
C. be made to pay less tax for cycling
D. be fined for laughing at policemen
3.The underline word “they” in the third letter refers to .
A. accidents B. vehicles
C. pedestrians D. cyclists
4.The three letters present viewpoints on .
A. real sources of road danger
B. ways to improve road facilities
C. measures to punish road offences
D. increased awareness of road rules
Samuel Osmond is a 19-year-old law student from Cornwall, England. He never studied the piano. However, he can play very difficult musical pieces by musicians such as Chopin and Beethoven just a few minutes after he hears them. He learns a piece of music by listening to it in parts. Then he thinks about the notes in his head. Two years ago, he played his first piece Moonlight Sonata (奏鸣曲) by Beethoven. He surprised everyone around him.
Amazed that he remembered this long and difficult piece of music and played it perfectly, his teachers say Samuel is unbelievable. They say his ability is very rare, but Samuel doesn’t even realize that what he can do is special. Samuel wanted to become a lawyer as it was the wish of his parents, but music teachers told him he should study music instead. Now, he studies law and music.
Samuel can’t understand why everyone is so surprised. “I grew up with music. My mother played the piano and my father played the guitar. About two years ago, I suddenly decided to sun playing the piano, without being able to read music and without having any lessons. It comes easily to me — I hear the notes and can bear them in mind — each and every note,” says Samuel.
Recently, Samuel performed a piece during a special event at his college. The piece had more than a thousand notes. The audience was impressed by his amazing performance. He is now learning a piece that is so difficult that many professional pianists can’t play it. Samuel says confidently,” It’s all about super memory — I guess I have that gift.”
However, Samuel’s ability to remember things doesn’t slop with music. His family says that even when he was a young boy, Samuel heard someone read a story, and then he could retell the story word for word.
Samuel is still only a teenager. He doesn’t know what he wants to do in the future. For now, he is just happy to play beautiful music and continue his studies.
1.What is special about Samuel Osmond?
A. He has a gift for writing music.
B. He can write down the note he hears.
C. He is a top student at the law school.
D. He can play the musical piece he hears.
2.Everyone around Samuel was surprised because he .
A. received a good early education in music
B. played the guitar and the piano perfectly
C. could play the piano without reading music
D. could play the guitar better than his father
3.What can we infer about Samuel in Paragraph 4?
A. He became famous during a special event at his college.
B. He is proud of his ability to remember things accurately.
C. He plays the piano better than many professional pianists.
D. He impressed the audience by playing all the musical pieces.
4.Which of the following is the best title of the passage?
A. The Qualities of a Musician
B. The Story of a Musical Talent
C. The importance of Early Education
D. The Relationship between Memory and Music
When I was nine yean old, I loved to go fishing with my dad. But the only thing that wasn’t very fun about it was that he could catch many fish white I couldn’t catch anything. I usually got pretty upset and kept asking him why. He always answered, “Son, if you want to catch a fish, you have to think like a fish”, I remember being even more upset then because, “I’m not a fish!”I didn’t know how to think like a fish. Besides, I reasoned, how could what I think influence what a fish does?
As I got a little older I began to understand what my dad really meant. So, I read some books on fish. And I even joined the local fishing club and started attending the monthly meetings. I learned that a fish is a cold-blooded animal and therefore is very sensitive to water temperature. That is why fish prefer shallow water to deep water because the former is warmer. Besides, water is usually warmer in direct sunlight than in the shade. Yet, fish don’t have any eyelids(眼皮)and the sun hum their eyes... The more I understood fish, the more I became effective at finding and catching them.
When I grew up and entered the business world, I remember hearing my first boss say, “We all need to think like salespeople.” But it didn’t completely make sense. My dad never once said, “If you want to catch a fish you need to think like a fisherman.” What he said was, “You need to think like a fish.” Years later, with great efforts to promote long-term services to people much older and richer than me, I gradually learned what we all need is to think more like customers. It is not an easy job. I will show you how in the following chapters.
1.Why was the author upset in the fishing trips when he was nine?
A. He could not catch a fish.
B. His father was not patient with him.
C. His father did not teach him fishing.
D. He could not influence a fish as his father did.
2.Why did the author’s father really mean?
A. To read about fish.
B. To learn fishing by oneself.
C. To understand what fish think.
D. To study fishing in many ways.
3.According to the author, fish are most likely to be found .
A. in deep water on sunny days
B. in deep water on cloudy days
C. in shallow water under sunlight
D. in shallow water under waterside trees
4.After entering the business world, the author found .
A. it easy to think like a customer
B. his father’s fishing advice inspiring
C. his first boss’s sales ideas reasonable
D. it difficult to sell services to poor people
Choose Your One-Day-Tours!
Tour A - Bath &Stonehenge including entrance fees to the ancient Roman bathrooms and Stonehenge -￡37 until 26 March and ￡39 thereafter. Visit the city with over 2,000 years of history and Bath Abbey, the Royal Crescent and the Costume Museum, Stonehenge is one of the world's most famous prehistoric monuments dating back over 5,000 years.
Tour B - Oxford & Stratford including entrance fees to the University St Mary's Church Tower and Anne Hathaway's -￡32 until 12 March and ￡36 thereafter. Oxford: Includes a guided tour of England's oldest university city and colleges. Look over the "city of dreaming spires(尖顶）"from St Mary’s Church Tower. Stratford: Includes a guided tour exploring much of the Shakespeare wonder.
Tour C - Windsor Castle &Hampton Court: including entrance fees to Hampton Court Palace -￡34 until 11 March and ￡37 thereafter. Includes a guided tour of Windsor and Hampton Court, Henry VILL's favorite palace. Free time to visit Windsor Castle(entrance fees not included).With 500 years of history, Hampton Court was once the home of four Kings and one Queen. Now this former royal palace is open to the public as a major tourist attraction. Visit the palace and its various historic gardens, which include the famous maze(迷宫)where it is easy to get lost!
Tour D –Cambridge including entrance fees to the Tower of Saint Mary the Great -￡33 until 18 March and ￡37 thereafter. Includes a guided tour of Cambridge, the famous university town, and the gardens of the 18th century.
1.Which tour will you choose if you want to see England’s oldest university city?
A. Tour A B. Tour B
C. Tour C D. Tour D
2.Which of the following tours charges the lowest fee on 17 March?
A. Windsor Castle & Hampton Court B. Oxford & Stratford
C. Bath & Stonehenge D. Cambridge
3.Why is Hampton Court a major tourist attraction?
A. It used to be the home of royal families B. It used to be a well-known maze
C. It is the oldest palace in Britain D. It is a world-famous castle
假如你是李华，高考后想出国留学，但担心不适应国外生活，请给外籍教师Peter写一封信，告诉他你的担忧，请他介绍美国大学生的学习和生活并给出相关建议。
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Peter,
____________________________________________________________________________________
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短文。短文中共有10处错误，每句中最多有两处。错误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（∧），并在此符号下面写出该加的词。
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。
When I was in the Grade One,I was terrible poor in English.Be sleepy in class was one of the reasons why I rarely did well in school.Once I even failed in a mid-term exam.While I got the papers,I realized that things would be better if I listened to the teacher attentively.My teacher told me,"Yesterday is history.Today is a gift.If you bury you into English now,you'll make it."I can't agree much.From then on,I began to study harder.Out of my expectation, I made great achievement soon.Today,English is which my strength lies.And I'm grateful for my English teacher.
