There’s being a good neighbor，and then there’s going the extra mile.And in one Massachusetts neighborhood，the neighbors are pulling out all the stops.
Two years ago，about a ____ after Samantha was born，Glenda and Raphael Savitz learned their daughter was ____.“She was the first deaf person my husband and I had known，”Glenda，33，told the Boston Globe.“So it’s a surprise.____ .But I think I'm someone who’s ___ :OK.What do we do? She’s a week old.We’re going to be learning sign language.There was no ____ that it was going to be important to her development and her __ .”
But the Savitz family weren’t the only ones who learned how to sign.Over 20 residents of their neighborhood in the town of Newton are __ learning sign language.The residents ___ an instructor on their own and ___ gather together in a living room to learn the language.The neighbors’desire to learn to ____ with Samantha is something that the Savitz family finds extremely ____ .
“One of the most emotional __ having her is that I really learned about how much support and how much love there is here，”Glenda said.“People are ___ so much time and energy to learn a(n) ____ language because they’re dying to ____ my little girl.I don’t have __ for that.”
Baby Sam already has friends all over the neighborhood.Henry Marshall，a 19-year-old Harvard freshman，told the Globe that Sam ___ with her child-size basketball hoop ____ he shoots hoops on his adult-size one.While he plays，she copies his movements and ____ the words for“play”and“friend.”
“It’s a special neighborhood，”Raphael Savitz told the Globe.”It’s just a really ____place.”
1.A. day B. week C. year D. month
2.A. deaf B. blind C. hurt D. dull
3.A. Embarrassed B. Awesome C. Unbearable D. Unexpected
4.A. for B. against C. 1ike D. with
5.A. point B. chance C. question D. possibility
6.A. work B. study C. play D. growth
7.A. still B. also C. yet D. never
8.A. hired B. sent C. trained D. assisted
9.A. suddenly B. regularly C. immediately D. randomly
10.A. share B. stay C. associate D. communicate
11.A. interesting B. surprising C. touching D. demanding
12.A. results B. issues C. improvements D. experiences
13.A. 1ooking for B. giving up C. putting in D. relying on
14.A. oral B. foreign C. 1ocal D. useless
15.A. talk to B. turn to C. attend to D. adapt to
16.A. ideas B. words C. choices D. suggestions
17.A. plays B. 1ives C. helps D. deals
18.A. as B. unless C. until D. because
19.A. writes B. reads C. signs D. says
20.A. challenging B. important C. usual D. welcoming
To an outsider，any culture can seem confusing.And the UK's got a thing or two that raises a few eyebrows.However，understand the why and things might be less puzzling.1..
In a world where 61％of nations drive on the right，Brits drive on the left.Why? Most people think it goes back to Medieval，maybe even Roman times.2. when you remember that right-handed people wear a sword on their left hip.Travelling on the left allowed you to keep your weapon arm toward your opponent，who would be on your right.This practice continued until the 18th century when a law was passed requiring all traffic crossing London Bridge to keep to the left.
Visitors to the UK that have just washed their hands in an old-fashioned sink might be wondering why one tap is only for hot water，the other cold.3..So，why this oddity? It relates to a time when hot and cold water were kept separate to prevent pollution.Drinkable cold water came from a mains supply，but hot water came from attic tanks and was not considered suitable for consumption.So they were kept apart.
Millions of people drink tea worldwide，but the odd Brits put milk in theirs.Why? This mysterious practice relates to the quality of china cup used in the 18th century when tea was first imposed.For the majority of Brits，the cups available couldn’t stand the heat of the boiling water and would break，so milk was added first.4..And this practical tweak soon became a national habit.
5..As you can see，these odd Brits have perfectly clear reasons for left-hand driving，two-tap sinks and tea with milk.Even if they still seem strange，at least now you’re in the know.
A.This makes it difficult to improve
B.There is a method to the madness
C.This unusual behavior makes sense
D.You can know the origins of the practices
E.Either can make washing very uncomfortable
F.This cooled the cup enough to resist the boiling water
G.Here are the reasons for three of Britain’s more puzzling practices
It’s not easy feeling like you’re always under the spotlight being judged for each little mistake you make.Your mind is in an endless circle playing what you said and did over and over again.You wish you had a time capsule to go back and make things fight if you find mistakes.You fear what others will think about you and that they will reject and dislike you.You seek to be socially perfect.
Academically，you work long endless hours just to make those excellent marks.Although most would say“it's good to have high standards，”they have no idea about the internal hell you put yourself through to achieve perfection.If you come up less than your desired goal you feel as though you have failed，but you’re far from failing，you just don’t see it that way.So instead you are telling yourself that you’re stupid，and not smart.The pressure you place on yourself weighs you down and you wear the“not good enough”label each and every day.
You not only have high standards for yourself but you also have them for others.If people don’t perform up to your expectations，then you think them incompetent.This causes a lot of frustration because you can’t trust anyone to get things right.So instead of being a team player you fly solo(单飞)and try to do two or three jobs at once.Your unrealistic expectations cause you to criticize and judge others and that leads to problems in other areas of your life.
The attempt to be perfect is called perfectionism and it's the unachievable American dream that’s damaging our emotional and mental health.We strive for perfection with our body，in our performance，and in our relationships.In a society that overstates mistakes，is it any wonder that so many young people attempt the impossible task of being perfect?
We all have flaws，fears，and make mistakes，and that’s perfectly OK.It’s our imperfections that make life interesting and they help us grow into a stronger more adaptable person.We don’t have to strive to achieve the impossible.We are designed to be perfectly imperfect.
1.What might be the most suitable title of the text?
A. Far from failing B. Perfectly Imperfect
C. Perfectionism Phenomenon D. Unachievable American Dream
2.Which of the following is a perfectionist most likely to agree?
A. Nobody is perfect. B. Be generous with praise.
C. There is no best，only better. D. A contented mind is an everlasting feast.
3.What can we infer from the underlined sentence in paragraph 4?
A. More and more people are tolerating mistakes.
B. The society is partly to blame for perfectionism.
C. Many young people find it impossible to be perfect.
D. It’s unusual for a society to seek perfectionism nowadays.
4.What does the author think of imperfection?
A. It’s part of our life. B. It’s unbearable.
C. It deserves to be overcome. D. It does harm to our mental health.
A freshly baked roll is as delightful as a soft，light cloud on a summer's day.What gives bread much of its appealing texture is gluten，a group of proteins found in wheat.But in people with celiac disease(乳糜泻)，gluten damages the small intestine(肠).Many others may have milder gluten intolerance and avoid foods that contain it.
Most gluten-free bread is made from alternative flours such as rice or potato，so it tastes and feels different from wheat bread.Now，however，researchers say that they have found a way to genetically engineer wheat that contains far less of the most troublesome type of gluten—but still has other proteins that give bread its characteristic taste and springiness.
Genetically modified crops are the subject of fierce debate around the world.The biggest concern involves the practice of inserting DNA from one species into another，says Francisco Barro，a plant biotechnologist.To avoid this genetic crossover，Barro and his colleagues used the gene-editing technique CRISPR／Cas9 to cut selected genes from a wheat genome(基因组).
Their study zeroed in on alpha-gliadins(α-胶质蛋白)，gluten proteins believed to be wheat’s major troublemakers in the immune system.The researchers designed bits of genetic material that directed the scissor-like Cas9 protein to cut out 35 of the 45 alpha—gliadin genes.When the modified wheat was tested in a Petri dish，it produced an 85 percent weaker immune response，the team reported online last September in Plant Biotechnology Journal.
Wendy Harwood，a crop geneticist at the John Innes Center in England，who was not part of the study，notes that the engineered wheat has a long way to go before it can be turned into anything marketable.“I don’t think it's the end of the story.”she says.“This is just a really important step in maybe producing something that is going to be incredibly useful.”To develop a completely safe strain of wheat for celiac patients，the researchers may need to target more of the gluten genes.Barro says his team is working on that.
1.What’s the text mainly about?
A. Making gluten—free bread.
B. Advantages of gluten-free wheat.
C. Debate about genetically modified crops.
D. Developing genetically engineered wheat.
2.Why is bread mentioned in paragraph 1?
A. To advertise a new study.
B. To raise the topic to be written about.
C. To provide some advice for the readers.
D. To popularize some information about medicine.
3.What concerns people most according to paragraph 3?
A. Genetic crossover. B. Gene-editing technique.
C. The practice of using DNA. D. The subject of fierce debate.
4.What’s Wendy Harwood’s attitude towards engineered wheat?
A. A little alarmed. B. Mildly surprised.
C. Somewhat opposed. D. Cautiously optimistic.
Hawking was perhaps the most famous scientist in the world when he died in 2018 at age 76.His 1988 book，A Brief History of Time，sold ten million copies and made him an unlikely superstar even to people who sweated through high school science.
Humor was always a big part of Hawking’s effort to bring physics to the masses.In his 2010 book，The Grand Design，for instance，he recounts how，in 1277，the Catholic Church declared scientific laws such as gravity to be wrong，since they seemed against God's idea.“Interestingly，”the text adds jokingly，“Pope John was killed by the effects of the law of gravity a few months later when the roof of his palace fell in on him.”
Hawking was only 21 when he was diagnosed with the disease ALS.For most people，the condition would have been a disaster.But Hawking rolled over hardship as if it were just a pebble under his wheelchair.“Life would be tragic，”he once said，“if it weren’t funny.”He kept smiling even though he spent more than 50 years in a wheelchair.
“He loved adventure and fun，”says Mlodinow，who once took Hawking on a punt-boat trip down the fiver Cam in Cambridge，England，despite the obvious danger of the boat turning over.“You know about when he went on the Vomit Comet? It’s a plane that flies in a parabolic(抛物线的)path so you are weightless，like you are in space.A lot of people vomit，but he loved that sort of thing.”And he was 65 at the time.
Hawking’s greatest hit，humor-wise，was probably the cocktail party he threw in 2009.It was a“welcome reception for future time travelers，”he said，so naturally，he sent out the invitations the day after the party.No one showed up yet.“Maybe one day someone living in the future will find the information and use a wormhole time machine to come back to my party，proving that time travel will one day be possible，”Hawking explained.And if that happens，don’t be surprised if Hawking is there too.After all，he never missed a chance to have fun.
1.What does the text mainly tell us about Hawking?
A. He related physics to humor closely.
B. He made great contributions to physics.
C. He went through many funny experiences.
D. He was optimistic about the future of science.
2.What can we learn about Pope John?
A. He was not in favor of God.
B. He was a scientist like Hawking.
C. He was opposed to the law of gravity.
D. He was killed due to the discovery of gravity.
3.What drove Hawking to go on the Vomit Comet?
A. His fondness of adventure.
B. The invitation from his friend.
C. The requirements of his work.
D. His desire for recovery from ALS.
4.What can be inferred from the last paragraph?
A. The cocktail party was a great success.
B. The possibility of time travel was not proved.
C. Hawking was a man who enjoyed holding parties.
D. The wormhole time machine was used at that time.
4 apps to help you make the most of your money
Living on a student budget can be tough.Budgeting is essential and it’s important to make savings in any way possible，so you can make the most of your money.Here aye some useful apps for saving money as a student.
Unidays
Cost to sign up:free
This is probably the most well—received student discount app.It’s easy to sign up to and once you have，all you have to do is use the codes Unidays provides you with when you’re paying in-store or checking out online.Unidays also sometimes increases its discount offers at certain stores and websites.Keep an eye out for these increased discounts to save yourself some extra cash，particularly as Christmas is on the horizon.
Vouchercloud
Cost to sign up:free
Vouchercloud offers some amazing deals that cannot be missed.There’s frequent 2 for 1 deals or discount available at many well-known restaurants such as Pizza Express，Frankie& Benny’s and Giraffe.They also offer deals on hotels，city breaks and a range of items such as Real Techniques products.It's a great way to save on Christmas presents—the regular 40％off at The Body Shop is always worth looking out for!
TopCashback
Cost to sign up:free
You may have seen the TV adverts for TopCashback.With the TopCashback app，you can view all participating stores security cameras.Then，all you have to do is complete your online shopping Via the app to receive cash back on any purchases you make.For example，if you buy online at Amazon you can receive up to 9％cashback into your account.It doesn’t always seem like a lot of money but if you shop online frequently it all adds up!
Tastecard
Cost to sign up:subscriptions costs vary(monthly to annually subscriptions available)
Even though it costs to subscribe to Tastecard，the discounts are worth it.With a Tastecard，you can get 2 for 1 meals or 50％off food at participating restaurants，all of which can be viewed on the app or website simply by typing in your postcode.These discounts are available at chains like Pizza Hut and Bella Italia and also independent restaurants across Manchester.
1.Which of the following is the most popular with students?
A. Unidays. B. Vouchercloud. C. TopCashback. D. Tastecard.
2.What is special about TopCashback?
A. It can only be used in stores.
B. It costs a lot of money to sign up.
C. No ads for TopCashback appear on TV.
D. Online cashback can be stored in your account.
3.What does Tastecard help you to save money on?
A. Hotels. B. Restaurants. C. Tickets. D. Presents.
