1.. Why read an article in the newspaper, when the TV news can bring you the information in a few minutes and with pictures? Why read the life story of a famous man, when a short television program can tell you all that you want to know?
2.. Today, newspapers sell in very large numbers. And books of every kind are sold more than ever before. 3.Although some books with hard covers are expensive, many books are printed today as paper books (平装本), which are quite cheap. A paperback collection of short stories, for example, is always cheaper than an evening at the cinema or the theater, and you can keep a book for ever and read it many times. Additionally, 4.. No matter when you are on the subway or you are waiting at the airport, a book in hand is always a good choice.
Books are a wonderful provider of knowledge and pleasure and some types of books should be in every home. 5.. A good encyclopedia (百科全书), though expensive, is useful, too, because you can find information on any subject. Besides, you can have such books as history books, science textbook, cookbooks, and collections of stories and poems. Then from time to time you can take a book of poems off your shelves and read the thoughts and feelings of your favorite poets.
A. Television has not killed reading, however
B. A printed book is a good time killer
C. Every home should have a good dictionary
D. More and more people spend less time doing sports
E. Choosing a good book is just like choosing a friend
F. Books are still a cheap way to get information and enjoyment
G. With the popularity of televisions, some think fewer people will buy books and newspapers
There is plenty of complaints about how social media-texting in particular—may be harming children’s social development. But a new study suggests that constant instant messaging(IM’ing) and texting among teens may also provide benefits, particularly for those who are introverted(内向的).
British researchers studied instant messages exchanged by 231 teens. The researchers analyzed 150 conversations in the study. In 100 of these chats, the study participant began IM’ing while in a negative emotional state such as sadness or anger. The rest were conversations begun when the participant was feeling good or neutral(中立的). After the chat, participants reported about a 20% reduction in their distress—not enough to completely eliminate it, but enough to leave them feeling better than they had before reaching out.
"Our findings suggest that IM’ing between distressed adolescents and their peers may provide emotional relief and consequently contribute to their well-being," the authors write, noting that previous research has shown that people assigned to talk to a stranger either in real life or online improved their mood in both settings, but even more with IM. And people who talk with their real-life friends online also report feeling closer to them than those who just communicate face-to-face, implying a strengthening of their bond.
Why would digital communication trump human contact? The reasons may have something to do with the fact that users can control expression of sadness and other emotions via IM without revealing emotional elements like tears that some may consider as embarrassing. Studies also show that the anonymity(匿名) of writing on a device blankets the users in a sense of safety. Previous research has shown that expressive writing itself can "vent" emotions and provide a sense of relief—and doing so, knowing that your words are reaching a sympathetic friend, may provide even more comfort and potentially be helpful. This is what the Internet offers: the change to connect—but in measured doses(剂量) and from behind a screen.
1.What can we learn from the passage?
A. Teens are more likely to send instant messages when feeling upset.
B. Instant messaging can help completely remove teens’ negative emotions.
C. Chat via instant messaging services makes participants feel happy.
D. Constant instant messaging can help teens value their negative emotions.
2.The underlined word “vent” in paragraph 4 most probably means ________.
A. develop B. maintain
C. release D. hide
3.What does the digital communication enable users to do?
A. Find more sympathetic friends.
B. Share and discuss more information.
C. Produce more expressive writings.
D. Avoid embarrassment and discomfort.
4.What can be concluded from the new study by British researchers?
A. American teens are extensive instant messaging users.
B. Instant messaging will prevent children’s social development.
C. Introverted teens may benefit from constant instant messaging.
D. Teens feeling bad often feel closer to real-life friends than to the net friends.
The answer to protecting and saving marine(海洋) wildlife can start with cutting back on something Americans use every day—plastic drinking straws. Actor Adrien Grenier, best known for playing Vincent Chase in 2015 movie Entourage, has launched a campaign to reduce the amount of single-use plastic usage in this country in order to protect and save marine wildlife and the environment. Plastic drinking straws are among many single-use plastic products contributing to the shocking loss of marine life, but they’re a great place to start because they’re something Americans are using by the hundreds of millions without any awareness that they’re so damaging.
According to Ecocycle, an international environmental organization, Americans use more than 500 million straws daily, which are enough to fill 127 school buses each day, and they can’t be recycled. They means plastic straws end up in landfills or oceans, where fish and other marine wildlife mistake the small bits for food and swallow them. After seeing a photo of a whale beached on the shore with a belly full of plastic, Grenier felt the inspiration to launch the Lonely Whale Foundation, hoping to inspire and educate others on the challenges facing marine life.
Along with stopping the use of straws, Grenier hopes to educate consumers on the dangers of other single-use plastic items such as grocery bags and water bottles. While many Americans use these plastic products in their daily life, there are more sustainable alternatives that can help protect the environment. Ecocycle recommends the use of straws made from stainless steel, glass, and even bamboo instead of plastic. You can buy a number of these environmentally friendly straws online and in stores.
1.What initially contributed to the start of Grenier’s campaign?
A. Plastic straws in landfills.
B. A picture of a dead whale.
C. The severe damage done to the sea.
D. The disappearance of some species under the sea.
2.What is the primary purpose of the Lonely Whale Foundation?
A. To advocate a green lifestyle.
B. To promote Grenier’s latest movie.
C. To save precious natural resources.
D. To encourage people to protect ocean life.
3.Ecocycle advises people to use straws that are ________.
A. easy to recycle
B. convenient to use
C. special to marine life
D. harmless to the environment
When Regina Spektor moved to the Bronx from Russia as a young child of 9, she could speak no English and her family was so poor that they could afford nothing. Yet she carried with her a love of the piano and music.
"For me, the thing that I loved the most was playing the piano, so when we left Russia I was so afraid I would forget how to play and I would just find a little table and play my pieces," she told "When you spend your life doing something like playing the piano and then you take that away, it's so surreal."(离奇的)
Her father, Ilya Spektor, said that, little by little, the family saved enough money to afford their first apartment.
"I was a photographer and, in six weeks, I found my first job in a big photo lab in Manhattan," he said. On the subway one day, Ilya Spektor spotted a man carrying a violin case. The man also seemed to have an Eastern European accent. A conversation led to a visit and, eventually, Regina Spektor was introduced to Sonia Vargas, a piano teacher. She was a well-known professor who taught piano, took Spektor under her wing and trained her for years, at no cost. "I remember talking to Sonia," Spektor said. "She said that when a student is ready, a teacher appears. So she said that I must have been ready to study piano, and so that's why she came into my life."
"Immediately, how she played," Vargas said. "You can tell the sound. The sound tell you whether the person loves the instrument, loves the music."
Much later, while playing her own music and selling a CD that she'd created, Regina Spektor caught the attention of a music producer. The rest is history, complete with concerts around the world and performance in front of the Obamas at the White House.
Regina Spektor greatly appreciated her parents, piano teachers and friends for helping her become the musician she is. “I love the idea that if you’re walking toward the world, the world will take some steps towards you,” she said.
1.When Regina Spektor was in Russia, she _________.
A. spoke English very fluently B. could afford a new piano
C. learned how to play the piano D. was directed by a famous teacher
2.Why could Ilya Spektor make the acquaintance of Sonia Vargas?
A. Sonia Vargas was very famous. B. They were all Russians.
C. They had a common friend. D. Ilya Spektor was a good talker.
3.What does the author mainly want to tell us?
A. The world welcomes any musician.
B. Life is filled with struggles more than love.
C. Regina Spektor deserves to perform at the White House.
D. The world doesn’t ignore those who fight for their dreams.
假如你是天水市某一中学高一学生李华，一直和你在美国留学的姐姐李花（英文名Flora）练习用英语通信。请用英语写一封电子邮件告诉她近况，内容包括：
1.询问姐姐近况
2.告诉姐姐你的生活、学习状况以及父母健康状况。
注意：1.词数100左右
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；3.开头语和结束语已为你写好。
Dear Flora,
How are you?I am writing to you again because_________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
Looking forward to your reply.Best wishes!
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。
Last Saturday,Mr.Wang is invited to dinner by his friends.He was so glad and he drank a lot of beers.As the result,he got drunk.After the meal,his friends persuaded him not drive,but he insisted on drive home.Fortunately,the car he drove ran into a tall tree a few minute later.Worse still,he was badly injurying.Soon the police came to the scene and sent her to the hospital.Now he has stayed in hospital for several days and is waiting for being fined by the police.How Mr.Wang regrets what he did it!
