It was a cold and rainy day. I had no ______ to drive up the winding mountain road to my daughter Carolyn’s house. But she ______ I come to see something at the top of the mountain.
____as I was, I made the two-hour journey ______ the fog that hung like veils (面纱). By the time I saw how ______it was near the summit, I had gone too far away. Nothing could be worth this, I ______ as I drove slowly along the dangerous highway.
“I’ll stay for lunch, but I’m heading back as soon as the fog ______.” I announced. “But I want you to drive me to the garage to pick ______ my car.” Carolyn said. “How far is it?” I asked. She replied:” About three minutes and I’ll drive you there.”
After ten minutes on the mountain road, I looked at her _______. “ I thought you said three minutes.” She smiled. “ This is a detour (绕行路线).” Turning down a narrow track, we parked the car and got out. We walked a long path that was thick with pine trees. Gradually the peace and silence of the place began to fill my mind. Then we turned a corner and stopped. I was _______.
From the top of the mountain to the folds and valleys ______ several acres of daffodils (水仙花) rich in a variety of colors. It looked as if God had painted something gorgeous in front of us. Many questions ______ my mind. Who created such beauty? Why? How? As we approached the home that stood in the centre of the property, we saw a ______ that read: “ Answers to the Questions I know you are asking.” The first answer was: “One Woman-Two Hands, Two Feet, and Very Little Brain.” The second was: “ One at a Time.” The third: “Started in 1958.”
As we drove home, I was so ______ by what we had seen. I could ______speak. “She changed the world.” I finally said, “one bulb (水仙球茎) at a time. She started almost 40 years ago, probably just the beginning of an idea, and she _____at it.
The ______ of it would not let me go. I said:” Imagine if I’d had a ______ and worked on it, just a little bit every day, what might I have _______? Carolyn looked at me sideways, smiling. “______ tomorrow,” she said. “Better yet, start today.”
1.A. ambition B. desire C. challenge D. way
2.A. invited B. wished C. insisted D. hoped
3.A. Cautious B. Surprised C. Eager D. Unwilling
4.A. through B. over C. across D. beyond
5.A. fresh B. bright C. thick D. cloudy
6.A. doubted B. declared C. hesitated D. thought
7.A. lifts B. cleans C. raises D. sinks
8.A. out B. up C. off D. on
9.A. eagerly B. desperately C. anxiously D. calmly
10.A. shocked B. amazed C. amused D. concerned
11.A. contained B. lay C. presented D. located
12.A. filled B. disturbed C. occurred D. confused
13.A. signal B. symbol C. note D. sign
14.A. encouraged B. inspired C. moved D. thrilled
15.A. hardly B. rarely C. simply D. totally
16.A. brought B. continued C. made D. kept
17.A. wonder B. doubt C. mystery D. idea
18.A. view B. vision C. sight D. scene
19.A. predicted B. expected C. accomplished D. explored
20.A. Behave B. Take C. Set D. Start
I just counted how many foreign languages I've studied so far in my life and it's been twelve!
I always follow my interests and find ways to put my language learning into things I'm already interested in.I like to read blogs(博客)in other languages.1. .For the most part，bloggers tend to write the same way they speak，so I don’t have to worry much about adopting strange terms that are only used in writing.
Movies are also a really good tool，especially if you can find subtitles in the language you’re learning.2.，they will still keep your brain listening and reading in the same language.Music is another way to start listening to things in your new language.Personally，I'm so bad at understanding lyrics(歌词)even in English，so this one doesn’t really work for me，but I have friends who learn a language through lyrics.Games are of course also an excellent way of studying a new language.A lot of language learning computer programs include games.I'm super competitive and if I play any of them，I can be hooked for hours.3. .
When the initial excitement of learning a new language begins to fade，it can be hard to stick with it.The hardest bit for me is when I'm comfortable enough with a language to understand most things and make myself understood.I'm actually stuck at this stage in Norwegian.4. .Ideally I should sign up to take a big language exam.Each time I start getting self-satisfied，it's time to take a new course or sign up for online lessons，or take up some sort of challenge that will require me to level up my skills.
5. .The best language class I've ever taken was my beginner’s Russian course at university where my professor never used any English.It got to the point where I would kind of just forget about English while in Russian class，which helped me to really immerse myself in the Russian language and do a whole lot with the limited Russian I had.
A.That’s really uncomfortable
B.Whatever languages they’re translated into
C.I also try to think in the language I'm learning
D.It’s time well spent if I'm learning the language
E.Computer games always make me feel worn out
F.Though they don’t always exactly match what’s being said
G.I found them the perfect learning tool because they’re usually written in oral language
What’s small, buzzes here and there and visits flowers? If you said bees or hummingbirds, you got it. You wouldn’t be the first if you mixed the two up. Now a group of researchers even say we should embrace our history of considering the two together in the same group. The way scientists study bees could help them study hummingbird behavior, too.
Scientists first compared the two back in the 1970s when studying how animals search for food. The idea is that animals use a kind of math to make choices in order to minimize the work it takes to earn maximum rewards. Researchers at the time focused on movement rules, like the order in which they visited flowers, and where flowers were located relative to others. It was “almost like an algorithm(算法)” for efficient searching, said David Pritchard, a biologist at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. Hummingbirds and bees had similar solutions.
As the field of animal cognition(认知) appeared, hummingbird and bee research parted. Neuroscientists and behavioral ecologists developed ways to study bee behavior in naturalistic settings. Hummingbird researchers compared hummingbirds to other birds and borrowed methods from psychology to study their ability to learn in the lab. To be fair, hummingbirds and bees differ. For example, hummingbirds have more advanced eyes and brains than bees. Honeybees and bumblebees are social; hummingbirds typically aren’t.
But however they perceive(感知) or process information, they both experience similar information, Dr. Pritchard said. In day-to-day searching for food, for example, hummingbirds may rely on more of a bee’s-eye view than a bird’s-eye view. Like other birds, they rely on landmarks, distances and directions to make maps when travelling long distances, but they don’t use these cues to find flowers. Move a flower just an inch or so away from where a hummingbird thought it was and it will hover over the flower’s original location. Dr. Pritchard is investigating if, like bees, hummingbirds engage in view matching — hovering, scanning snapshots of a place to its memory and using those as references later.
1.What is the center of research on hummingbirds and bees in the 1970s?
A.Memory.
B.Movement rules.
C.Reward calculating.
D.Information processing.
2.Which subject’s research methods were adopted to study the learning ability of Hummingbirds?
A.Math.
B.Biology.
C.Ecology.
D.Psychology.
3.How do researchers find out that hummingbirds are not like birds?
A.By setting them free.
B.By moving flowers.
C.By matching view.
D.By making maps.
4.Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
A.Hummingbirds and Bees
B.Hummingbirds in the Lab
C.New Trends in Studying Bees
D.Thinking of Hummingbirds as Bees
We humans love to stare into our smart devices. We gaze for hours—about 10 hours and 39 minutes a day—at our computers, smartphones, tablets and televisions. Is all this staring bad for us? It might be, mainly because as we stare at our devices we are exposing ourselves to blue light.
Blue light is a type of electromagnetic radiation with a very short wavelength that produces a high amount of energy. While it’s true that light can damage our eyes under certain circumstances, there’s no scientific evidence suggesting that blue light is harmful to our eyes. But many people still think it is, which is why blue—light—blocking glasses are so popular. So, do the glasses work?
“Everyone is very concerned that blue light may be causing damage to the eye, but there’s no evidence that it may be causing serious damage,” Dr.Rahul Khurana, a clinical spokesman, told Business Insider.
Blue light exposure is nothing new. In fact, the sun is the largest source of blue light. Moreover, blue light is also present in LED light. But if blue light isn’t harmful, then why are we constantly rubbing our eyes when we’re looking at our screens? The answer is eyestrain(眼疲劳). More than 60 percent of people experience eye problems associated with digital eyestrain. And blue light, it seems isn’t the cause. Instead, our eyes are so strained because most of us blink less when we stare at our digital devices. So, if eyestrain is the real issue, blue-light-blocking glasses are probably of little use.
1.What do we know about blue light?
A.It has the shortest wavelength.
B.It’s a kind of nuclear radiation.
C.It consumes a great deal of energy.
D.It may come from electronic devices.
2.What causes the popularity of blue-light-blocking glasses?
A.Evidence of their benefits to eyes.
B.Widespread use of smart devices.
C.Belief in blue light’s harmful effect.
D.Scientific understanding of blue light.
3.What can be inferred from Paragraph 4?
A.Rubbing eyes makes people strained.
B.Blue light exposure is hardly avoidable.
C.Blue light may connect with tired eyes.
D.Eye problems are not easy to deal with.
4.According to the text, wearing blue-light-blocking glasses may be _______.
A.useless B.harmful C.tiring D.beneficial
Today show's Kathie Lee Gifford is hoping to bring the story of David to a new generation with her latest musical project, The Little Giant.
The 13-song album tells the story of the shepherd (牧羊人) boy who defeated a giant with five stones and a slingshot and became a king. The idea of the record came after Gifford and her husband Frank went on a life-changing trip to the Holy Land in 2012.
Gifford hoped to shine light on David's story to help a new generation find their own purpose; it's why she decided to compose this album that invites kids to hear the tale of the shepherd in a fun and educational way. Gifford based the record's opening track What is Your Stone on bravery and faith. She hopes the songs can help children find confidence in themselves.
Though the album is aimed towards families and children, Gifford found recording the story of David to be an exercise in healing after the death of her beloved husband Frank who passed away two years ago.
"I catch myself saying that I lost him sometimes," Gifford says, "No, he hasn't been gone. The trip took root in my husband's life, because he truly came to understand exactly what David did."
Gifford says the trip and the teachings stayed with her husband until his death. For the next three years, when people came to visit us, they’d always see Frank's trophy (奖杯) room because it's like a museum," Gifford explained. "He would take them over. Instead of all of his trophies, he would point to the stones we brought back from the travelling destination and talk about them. "
Gifford expects her own journey, her new album and her commitment to bringing a bit of joy to people through her show can help inspire children to discover their own faith and purpose.
1.What was Gifford's main intention of making the album?
A. To honor the meaningful trip.
B. To show her love to her husband.
C. To help children find faith and purpose.
D. To make children understand David's story.
2.How did the album benefit Gifford?
A. It made her become a superstar.
B. It made her win lots of trophies.
C. It helped her plan to have a trip to the Holy Land.
D. It helped her recover from the pain of losing Frank.
3.What does the underlined word "them" in paragraph 6 refer to?
A. The visitors. B. The stones. C. The trophies. D. The trips.
4.What do we know from the text?
A. David was the hero of many children.
B. Gifford finished recording the album in 2012.
C. Frank had won much glory when he was alive.
D. The author liked Gifford's songs very much.
In an effort to inform our citizens to clear the street snow, the city adopts a snow removal plan.
Routes used by City Emergency Services come first. Secondly, connector streets will be cleared which allow citizens the greatest access to public roads. And thirdly, roads within neighborhoods will be cleared.
Snow removal and ice control will start when:
* Snow accumulates 4 inches or more.
* Weather conditions do not endanger the safety of road crew.
* Snow falls during peak traffic periods of heavy use of main streets.
Snow and ice removal will be delayed or cancelled when:
* There is severe cold, significant wind and limited visibility.
* The snowfall occurs on the weekend or a holiday and is not considered a threat to public safety. In that case, snow and ice removal may take place on the next normal weekday.
* Snow and ice may be left on roadways if melting is obvious.
Your cooperation is requested during snow removal and these suggestions may apply:
* Limit travel during storms. Travel is possible once roads have been cleared or salted by the road crew
* Avoid removing snow from your driveway into the road. Pile the snow in your yard.
* Park your vehicles in your driveways and off the road or walkwalks.
* Keep public sidewalks next to your house clear of snow and ice.
* Be responsible for removing this snow which is thrown by the snow plough(犁) from your driveways. Hopefully, you can understand this inconvenience.
1.When will the snow have to be removed______.
A.If it reaches a certain thickness.
B.If the main streets are not busy.
C.If the snow and ice begin to melt.
D.If extreme weather makes roads dangerous.
2.What should citizens do to cooperate in the snow removal?
A.Help to put the salt on the road.
B.Pile the snow nearby to the road.
C.Throw the snow into the driveways.
D.Clear the sidewalks close to their houses.
3.Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
A.clearance of emergency routes has a priority.
B.Snow and ice must be removed on the weekends.
C.Citizens play the most important tole in snow removal.
D.The poster is to inform citizens of an oncoming heavy snow.
