What do you do on Christmas when your family is far away? My husband and I didn’t have any ______ nearby, so the holidays always made me feel a little ______. We had friends who weren’t going to see their families either. So why not hold a ______ and create a new tradition?
My husband loved the ______. Hesitantly, we invited friends. Two, three…______ we had a party of eight people. We wondered ______ we’d be able to fit everyone in our tiny dining room. We were so ______ that we hadn’t thought of that at first.
“Who cares?” my husband said. “That’ll be part of the memory.”
Christmas quickly arrived. We got busy ______, decorating and before long we were no longer ______ to be happy about the holidays. We actually were happy. In our excitement we had prepared a ______ feast compared to our normal material dinner. Then we waited for our guests to arrive, hoping they would come ______! However, it was already ten minutes after their ______ arrival time and no one had ______.
As the first guest arrived, we let out a huge sigh of ______. She wasn’t even ______, as she had planned to fly home. Soon our small apartment became ______ with people. Friends introduced themselves to each other. Laughter and love filled our home. Thankfully everyone came. The only one ______ with the arrangement was our cat.
During the dinner, we ______ our favorite Christmas memories and felt how ______ the memories were in our lives. A Christmas that I had been ______ about had become a day to bond, break bread and share experiences.
1.A. family B. friend C. student D. neighbor
2.A. guilty B. lonely C. busy D. excited
3.A. meeting B. game C. party D. race
4.A. belief B. situation C. opportunity D. idea
5.A. naturally B. fortunately C. cheerfully D. eventually
6.A. when B. why C. if D. where
7.A. worried B. kind C. enthusiastic D. convinced
8.A. reading B. cooking C. writing D. crying
9.A. fearing B. pretending C. intending D. hesitating
10.A. spiritual B. separate C. regular D. natural
11.A. in surprise B. on purpose C. as well D. on time
12.A. chosen B. allowed C. planned D. preferred
13.A. taken charge B. shown up C. come back D. got across
14.A. shock B. sorrow C. regret D. relief
15.A. expected B. supposed C. praised D. noticed
16.A. popular B. familiar C. crowded D. covered
17.A. pleased B. puzzled C. tired D. dissatisfied
18.A. escaped B. shared C. collected D. updated
19.A. funny B. reasonable C. embarrassing D. precious
20.A. worried B. angry C. cautious D. happy
Every time the last month of Chinese lunar year nears the end, Chinese communities around the globe are preparing to launch next New Year celebrations. 1. Here’s something you need to know about Chinese New Year:
2.
Chinese New Year is the longest national holiday in China and New Year’s day is the most important date in the Chinese calendar. Chinese New Year is based on the ancient Chinese lunar calendar, falling on the second new moon after winter solstice(冬至)--meaning it changes each year.
Roughly a sixth of the world will observe Chinese New Year, with celebrations in Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia, along with other countries with significant Chinese populations. 3.
How is Chinese New Year celebrated?
Many celebrations take place, including parades(旅行), dragon dances, reunions and wonderful dinners. Red clothing is considered essential, as it is said to scare off the mythical monster Nian. Children are traditionally given red envelopes with money inside which they sleep with under their pillows, which is said to bring them good fortune and happiness.
4. On Day 2 it is traditional to visit friends and relatives; on Day 3 people tend to stay at home as it is not seen as fortunate to socialize. The final day, Day 15, sees the Lantern Festival, where red Chinese lanterns are released into the sky.
What does the year of the rooster mean?
2017 is the year of the tenth Chinese zodiac(十二生肖), the rooster. 5. Those born in 1957 or 2017 are fire roosters, and are considered trustworthy, with a strong sense of timekeeping and responsibility at work. They are also thought to be talkative, popular among a crowd and loyal.
A. What is Chinese New Year?
B. When is Chinese New Year coming?
C. Each day has its own celebration
D. However, this is the year of the fire rooster
E. It is pronounced “Gong Xi Fa Cai” in Mandarin
F. It is the most important holiday in the Chinese calendar
G. London and San Francisco both claim to host the largest celebrations outside of Asia
If you’re wondering when you might get the flu, a new study indicates you should keep an eye on your local weather report.
According to a research published in the Journal of Clinical Virology, if you keep your eye on the weather and watch for the first major dip in the temperature, you can essentially mark your calendar in prediction for an outbreak the flu.
To figure out how the weather and flu outbreak may be connected, researchers analyzed statistics of 20,000 people in an area over three seasons. The number of people who caught the flu was then compared with local weather data.
After each season, the team noticed one consistent finding: The first really cold period with low outdoor temperatures and low humidity (湿度) was always followed by a week of a mass influenza outbreak.
The researchers say that aerosol particles (气溶胶粒子) containing virus and liquid are more able to spread in cold and dry weather. So, in theory, if you sneeze or cough and the surrounding air is very dry, the air will absorb the moisture and the particles containing the virus keep spreading through the air for a longer period of time.
Luckily there are ways to keep off the illness regardless of the weather. Washing your hands, coughing into the crook (弯曲) of your arm and getting vaccine (疫苗) are the best ways to prevent the flu from spreading. People over the age of 65, pregnant women and young children are at the highest risk of developing complications (并发症) related to the virus, according to the CDC.
1.From the first paragraph we can infer that .
A. people may easily fall sick
B. nobody can predict when one gets flu
C. flu is often related to weather changes
D. weather report plays an important part in life
2.How did the researchers draw the conclusion of the study?
A. By analyzing the data
B. By doing questionnaires
C. .By carrying out experiments
D. By making observation
3.Why do people catch the flu easily in cold and dry weather?
A. Cold and dry weather helps the spread of virus
B. The colder it is, the more kinds of flu there are
C. Gold and dry weather can prevent people from doing exercise
D. Low temperature can increase the number of aerosol particles
4.What can we learn about from the last paragraph?
A. The vaccines for flu
B. The main ways to cure flu
C. The most common kind of flu virus
D. The people who are easy to get flu
When I graduated from college I dreamed of being a television news reporter. Having no experience, I had to work in a small town until I finally got my big break in the form of a job in Boston. I made it.
Soon, reality set in. I was too often sent to run after accused criminals out of courts, waiting outside of crime scene tape or at the doorstep of a family still crying for tragedy (悲剧). My breaking point came the day I accidentally informed a young woman that her mother died. It was the worst day of my professional life and the day I decided I no longer wanted to shine a light on these stories. My career was ebbing, and at the same time my personal life was too-I divorced.
My mom had always told me “When you’re feeling extremely upset, go help someone else.” So I started seeking out stories of people who had been in the news under tragic circumstances but were doing something inspiring with their lives: a young girl who was paralyzed (瘫痪的) by an accident but was uplifting her classmates with her positive spirit, a blind and autistic (自闭的) musician who learned to play 27 instruments, a disabled soldier who opened his own art studio. I started to tell and promote stories like them.
Over the last 10 years I have discovered my kindness gift: my ability to see the beautiful side of a person and reflect it back to them and the world. In telling stories of people turning their own hurt into acts of helping others I have become more sympathetic, more grateful and kinder. I have learned kindness is who we are, that our power for it is limitless and that, as we shine a light on it, it grows.
1.What changed the author’s working direction in his job in Boston?
A. The tragedy in the society B. The low payment of the job
C. The hurt from his divorce D. The fear of cruel criminals
2.What is the meaning of the underlined word “ebbing” in paragraph 2?
A. taking off
B. getting into trouble
C. unchangeable at all
D. dull but important
3.What the author’s mother said means .
A. helping others is a way to escape from reality
B. helping others can comfort your soul
C. the best way of helping others is telling stories
D. it is difficult to make contributions to helping others
4.According to the last paragraph, what does the author advise us to do?
A. To tell inspiring stories.
B. To fight against criminals.
C. To ignore our own hurt.
D. To do as much kindness as possible.
Ten-year-old Lena Draper decided to reach out to the Marion Police Department on Facebook after getting stuck on the maths questions. Instead of ignoring her request, Ohio officer Lieutenant B. J. Gruber did his best to lend a hand.
Lena informed the policeman that she was stuck on the problem(8+29)×15. He quickly responded: ”Do the numbers in the parentheses(括号) first so in fact it would be 37×15.”
After settling the first question, Lieutenant Gruber was given a more difficult task. Lena asked him for the answer to (90+27)+(29+15)×2. The confident officer responded with what he believed to be the correct answer, advising: ”Take the answer from the first parentheses plus the answer from the second parentheses and multiply that answer by two. Work left to right doing the work in parentheses first.”
But embarrassingly, Facebook users were quick to notice that his maths solving didn’t quite add up. To solve the problem, you must actually add the numbers in the second parentheses and multiply the answer by two, before adding the numbers in the first set of brackets.
Lena’s mum Molly said, ”I didn’t believe her at first. I thought it was pretty funny. I was happy, but not surprised that they responded so quickly. They are wonderful with their communication with the community.”
After Lieutenant Gruber was told about the mistake, he joked: “Hoping it is truly the thought that counts since obviously I can’t! Especially since the answer was wrong, it was very nice for Molly to recognize our attempt to help her daughter with some maths homework.”
It’s not the first time that adults have been left feeling trapped by a maths assignment aimed at kids.
1.What is the text mainly about?
A. A new job is added to the police
B. A new approach to maths problem-solving
C. The Marion Police Department’s Facebook page
D. A policeman helps a girl with her maths problems
2.According to the policeman, the result of the second problem is .
A. 205 B. 322
C. 456 D. 555
3.What can we infer from the last paragraph?
A. Some adults are too stupid to help kids with their homework
B. Some homework for children is not as easy as it appears
C. It is stupid for Lieutenant Gruber to make the mistake
D. Kids often ask the police to help them with their homework
Now it is time to go out to explore foreign lands and experience the different beaches that the world has to offer.
Anse Sourced’ Argent, Seychelles--With beautiful pale pink sand, clear blue waters, and rock formations that have been shaped by waves and time, this beach’s beauty is enough to land itself on the cover of a travel magazine. And it is one of the most photographed baeches in the world. And don’t worry about any waves as the shores and shallow waters are protected by a nearby reef(礁).
Maldives--Maldives is an island nation off the coast of Sri Lanka and one of the lowest nations of the world, Enjoy the soft sandy beaches, coconut-bearing palm trees, and a diverse sea life that surrounds you. But due to coral dying and rising sea levels, Maldives is expected to sink within the next 10 years. Freedom Beach, Thailand--Privacy(隐私) isn’t always so easy to find at a beach, but Freedom Beach in Thailand provides a much less crowded, more relaxing location to spend your time. With swimming, snorkeling(浮潜), and beach-side refreshments(点心,茶点), you are able to have the vacation that you deserve! Its neighboring beach, Patong, can get a little crowded and a bit crazy with the large number of tourists present, so escape via water taxi to enjoy yourself and a much cleaner shore.
Matira Beach, Bara Bora--The island's economy is driven by tourism, so you know that all of the locals want you to have a great time and come back soon with all of your friends. With a beach like Matira, that sounds like a great idea! You may recognize the island from Couples Retreat. Remember all of the over-the-water bungalows(平房) that were in the movie? Those were actually first produced at the beach and are standard features for resorts(度假胜地).
1.What is Anse Sourced’ Argent famous for?
A. Its travel magazines B. Its beautiful coral reef
C. Its picture-like scenery D. Its dangerous waves
2.What can we know about Maldives?
A. It is an island nation under the sea surface
B. It may disappear in 100 years
C. It shares the same coast with Sri Lanka
D. It lies at the lowest altitude of the world
3.What is Freedom Beach described as according to the text?
A. One where privacy is hard to find
B. One whose shore is bigger than Patong’s
C. One where visitors can enjoy private space
D. One where visitors can land on the coral reefs
4.What can we learn about Matira Beach from the text?
A. Many films were set in the beach
B. Too many tourists disturb the locals
C. The over-the -water bungalows first appeared there
D. It is a place that you don’t want to share with others
