Are you sometimes a little tired and sleepy in the early afternoon? Many people feel this way after lunch. They may think that eating lunch is the cause of the sleepiness. Or, in summer, they may think it is the heat. However, the real reason lies inside their bodies. At that time – about eight hours after you wake up – your body temperature goes down. This is what makes you slow down and feel sleepy. Scientists have tested sleep habits in experiments where there was no night or day. The people in these experiments almost always followed a similar sleeping pattern. They slept for one long period and then for one short period about eight hours later.
In many parts of the world, people take naps in the middle of the day. This is especially true in warmer climates where the heat makes work difficult in the early afternoon. Researchers are now saying that naps are good for everyone in any climate. A daily nap gives one a more rested body and mind and therefore is good for health in general. In countries where naps are traditional, people often suffer less from problem such as heart disease.
Many working people, unfortunately, have no time to take naps. Though doctors may advise taking naps, employers do not allow it! If you do have the chance, however, here are a few tips about making the most of your nap. Remember that the best time to take a nap is about eight hours after you get up. A short sleep too late in the day may only make you feel more tired and sleepy afterward. This can also happen if you sleep for too long. If you do not have enough time, try a short nap – even ten minutes of sleep can be helpful.
1.Why do people feel sleepy in the early afternoon according to the text？
A. They eat too much for lunch.
B. They sleep too little at night.
C. Their body temperature becomes lower.
D. The weather becomes a lot warmer.
2.If you get up at 6:30 am, what is the best time for you to take a nap？
A. About 12:30 pm.
B. About 1:30 pm.
C. About 2:30 pm.
D. About 3:30 pm.
3.Why do employers not allow workers to take naps？
A. taking naps is no good for health.
B. taking naps may lead to heart attack.
C. taking naps may lead to low working efficiency.
D. taking naps takes up the working time and reduces production.
4.What would be the best title for the text？
A. Just for a Rest
B. All for a Nap
C. A Special Sleep Pattern.
D. Taking Naps in Warmer Climate.
Jack Ma, whose Chinese name is Ma Yun, became the richest man in China, when the company he founded floated on the stock market last year with a value of around ￡140 billion. Here are some interesting stories about him.
1. "Beer" was the first word that Jack Ma searched for on the Internet
In 1995 Ma made his first trip to the US and used the Internet for the first time. After searching for "beer" and then "China", he saw that no results came up relating to China. He decided to set up a Chinese website一the seed for Alibaba had been sown.
2. Jack Ma applied to study at Harvard 10 times and was rejected (拒绝) each time
Ma failed the entry exams for colleges in China three times and was also rejected for many jobs in China, including one at KFC. He was turned down by the Harvard 10 times after applying.
3. Jack Ma learnt English by giving tourists free guides一every day for nine years.
Limited resources meant it was difficult to learn English when Ma was young. However, he found that he could learn the language by giving tourists free tours around his hometown of Hangzhou一something that he did during his teenage years every morning for nine years. He found everything they said and did was so different from what he had been taught at school and by his parents, which opened his mind.
4. Jack Ma named his company Alibaba because it's a globally known story
Ma simply wanted his company to have a global and interesting name, and realised that Alibaba is a story known across the world and it begins with A, appearing top of lists.
The company was founded in 1999 and since then has grown from 15 employees to more than 30,000. Ma hopes to keep expanding Alibaba outside of China.
1.Ma Yun decided to set up a Chinese website when _______.
A. he applied to Harvard B. he visited America for the first time
C. he began to learn English D. he wanted to make a fortune
2.Which of the following is not mentioned about Ma Yun in the passage?
A. He took the entry exams for colleges three times.
B. Some employers didn’t offer him a job.
C. Harvard turned down his application for his poor English.
D. He once wanted to work at KFC.
3.Ma Yun’s experience of learning English tells us that ______.
A. he is a man with strong will B. he made a lot of money as a guide
C. he accepted the values of foreigners D. what he had been taught at school was wrong.
4.From the passage we can conclude that Ma Yun will______.
A. make more profit (利润) abroad. B. settle in America
C. merge (合并) with other companies D. expand his business in China
Can dogs and cats get along well in the same home? People who are thinking about getting a dog as a friend for their cat are worried that they will fight. A recent research has found that if the cat is taken back home before the dog, and if they are introduced when still young (less than 6 months for cats, a year for dogs), it is highly probable that the two pets will get along swimmingly. In two-thirds of the homes cats and dogs have a good relationship.
However, it wasn’t all sweetness and light. There was a reported coldness between the cat and dog in 25% of the homes, while aggression(侵略，好斗) and fighting were found in 10% of the homes. One reason for this is probably that some of their body languages are just different. For example, when a cat turns its head away it means aggression, while a dog doing the same means submission(顺从).
In homes with cats and dogs living peacefully, researchers found a surprising behavior. They are learning how to talk each other’s language. It is a surprise that cats can learn how to talk “Dog”, and dogs can learn how to talk “Cat”.
What’s interesting is that both cats and dogs have appeared to become smarter. They can learn to read each other’s body languages, suggesting that the two may have more in common than was expected. Once familiar with each other’s body language, cats and dogs can play together, and enjoy sleeping together on the sofa.
The importance of this research on cats and dogs may go beyond pets — to people who don’t get along well, including neighbors, colleagues at work, and even countries. If cats and dogs can learn to get along, surely people have a good chance.
1.The underlined word “swimmingly” in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ________.
A. early B. mostly
C. quickly D. smoothly
2.Some cats and dogs may fight when ________.
A. they are cold to each other
B. they look away from each other
C. they misunderstand each other’s body languages
D. they are introduced at an early age
3.It is suggested in Paragraph 4 that cats and dogs ________.
A. have common interests
B. are less different than thought
C. have a common body language
D. are not so smart as expected
4.What can we human beings learn from cats and dogs?
A. We should learn to get along well with others
B. We should know more about animals.
C. We should live in peace with animals.
D. We should learn more body languages.
It is easier to float in the ocean than it is to float in a swimming pool. Do you know why?
Ocean water is full of salt— and salt water can hold up more weight than fresh water. See for yourself!
You Will Need:
● 3 cups of warm water
● Measuring cup (量杯)
● Wide-mouthed jar
● Salt
● Spoon
● Raw (生的)potato
You Will Do:
1. Pour 1.5 cups of warm water into the jar.
2. Add 1/3 cup of salt.
3. Stir(搅拌) until the salt is completely dissolved.
4. Add another 1.5 cups of water. Pour it slowly over the back of the spoon into the jar so that the two liquids will not mix together.
5. Gently place the potato into the jar. Do not drop it.
What Will Happen:
The potato will sink— but only halfway!
Why?
Salt water is heavier than fresh water, so it will stay on the bottom. The fresh water will remain on top.
The potato is heavier than the fresh water, but it is lighter than the salt water. That is why the potato will sink halfway down.
1.In the experiment, what should you do right after you pour the water over the spoon?
A. Add the salt to the water. B. Stir the salt into the water.
C. Place the potato in the jar. D. Pour warm water into thejar.
2.In Step 4 of the experiment, why do you pour the water over the spoon “slowly”?
A. It is easier to see what you are doing.
B. It pushes the fresh water to the bottom.
C. It will keep the water from coming out.
D. It will keep the liquids from mixing together.
3.In which step of the experiment do you add the salt?
A. Step 1 B. Step 2
C. Step 3 D. Step 4
请认真阅读下面文字，并按要求用英语写一篇150词左右的文章。
Authorities have called for nationwide enforcement of food standards in schools amid an ongoing investigation into a Shanghai-based food supplier accused of serving low-quality lunches with expired ingredients at a private school in the city.
The Shanghai Municipal Food and Drug Administration confirmed in a statement on Tuesday that students at the SMIC Private School in the Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park were served expired food, including rotten and moldy produce. Expiration dates on the packaging of some products had been altered. The investigation confirmed what the students’ parents reported during a surprise inspection of the school’s kitchen on Friday.
The State Administration for Market Regulation and the Ministry of Education urged local education and food authorities on Tuesday to strengthen inspections of campus canteens to ensure their safety. On Saturday, SMIC Private School apologized to students, staff and parents and promised to take full responsibility for failing to supervise the vendor, according to its website. The principal of the school has been dismissed.
（写作内容）
1.用约30个词概述所给信息的主要内容；
2.简要分析校园食品安全的重要性。
3.就如何保障学校食品的安全性提出你的建议（不少于两条建议）。
（写作要求）
1.写作过程中不能直接引用原文语句；
2.作文中不能出现真实姓名和学校名称；
3.不必写标题。
（评分标准）
内容完整，语言规范，语篇连贯，词数适当。
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“Whatever your job is, the chances are that one of these machines can do it faster or better than you can.”
As innovation accelerates, thousands of jobs will disappear, just as it has happened in the previous cycles of industrial revolutions. Machines powered by narrow AI algorithms can already perform certain 3-D tasks (“dull, dirty and dangerous”) much better than humans. This may create enormous pain for those who are losing their jobs over the next few years, particularly if they don't acquire the computer-related skills that would enable them to find more creative opportunities. We must learn from the previous waves of creative destruction if we are to lessen human suffering and increasing inequality.
For example, some statistics indicate that as much as 3% of the population in developed countries work as drivers. When automated cars become a reality in the next 15 to 25 years, we must offer people who will be “structurally unemployed” some sort of compensation income, training and re-positioning opportunities.
Fortunately, the Schumpeterian waves of destructive innovation also create jobs. History has shown disruptive innovations are not always a zero-sum game. In the long run, the loss of low-added-value jobs to machines can have a positive impact in the overall quality of life of most workers.
The ATM paradox is a good example of this. As the use of automatic teller machines spread in the 1980s and '90s, many predicted massive unemployment in the banking sector. Instead, ATMs created more jobs as the cost of opening new agencies decreased. The number of agencies multiplied, as did the portfolio of banking products. Thanks to automation, going to the bank offers a much better customer experience than in previous decades. And the jobs in the industry became better paid and were of better quality.
This optimist scenario assumes, however, that education systems will do a better job of preparing our children to become good at what humans do best: creative and critical thinking. Less learning-by-heart and more learning-by-doing. Fewer clerical skills and more philosophical insights about human nature and how to cater to its infinite needs for art and culture.
To become creative and critical thinkers, our children will need knowledge and wisdom more than raw data points. They need to ask “why?”, “how?” and “what if?” more often than “what?”, “who?” and “when?” And they must construct this knowledge by relying on databases as cognitive partners as soon as they learn how to read and write.
Thus, the future of human-machine cooperation looks less like the scenario in the Terminator movies and more like a Minority Report-style of “augmented intelligence”. There will be jobs if we adapt the education system to equip our children to do what humans are good at: to think critically and creatively, to develop knowledge and wisdom, to appreciate and create beautiful works of art. That does not mean it will be a painless transition. Machines and automation will likely take away millions of low-quality jobs as it has happened in the past. But better-quality jobs will likely replace them, requiring less physical effort and shorter hours to deliver better results.
No, artificial intelligence won’t 1. your children’s jobs | |
Passage outline | Supporting details |
A 2. phenomenon | With the rise of AI, machines 3. threaten the security of people’s current jobs, making the future of the workforce look rather dark and gloomy. |
An objective analysis | Those not skilled in computer using need to plan 4., for they are at a higher risk of losing their jobs to machines. Drivers, faced with the increasing popularity of automated cars, need to be compensated, 5. for re-employment. ATMs, though, create well-paid jobs as well as increase customers’ 6.. |
A practical solution | Adjustments need to be made to education systems by 7. our children for the jobs 8. creative and critical thinking. 9. of learning philosophy and change in the way of learning styles will be introduced for developing critical thinkers. |
A safe conclusion | AI won’t cost your children their jobs. Instead, it will make them more creative and 10.. |
