Goldfish have pretty boring lives, so maybe it’s a good thing they can only concentrate for nine seconds! But according to new research, humans are becoming like goldfish. Our attention span (时长) is getting shorter...and it’s all because of technology.
“We move quickly from one site to another on the web, ”says Doctor Ted Selker, a computer scientist from Massachusetts, “and we are losing the ability to concentrate.” With millions of websites to choose from, the attention span of the average internet user is just seconds. There are other digital distractions (分心) too: email, instant messaging and quickie movies on websites. Some people are worried about the effect on young people. “You need time to understand and think about what you read,” says Julia Wood, from London. “Young people search the net all the time and their brains become full of useless information but there is no time to make sense of it. I am trying to persuade my pupils to read more books, so that they concentrate on one subject for longer.”
Other teachers are trying more unusual methods to improve students’ concentration. Anne Savan, from Wales, was so worried about her students that she started playing Mozart during her science lessons. She says that it had an amazing effect: “The music made them calmer, and their concentration was much better.”
But not everyone believes that there is a problem. Ray Cole, an educational psychologist says: “On the web, young people learn to make quick decisions about what is and isn’t worth reading.
They might look at five unhelpful websites very quickly, before stopping and reading a sixth useful website more carefully. In a world with so much information available, this is an important skill.”
1.Why does the writer mention “goldfish”?
A.To analyze data. B.To introduce a topic.
C.To settle problems. D.To suggest a way out.
2.What may cause a shorter attention span according to Dr. Ted Selker?
A.Skipping around the internet. B.Time to digest information.
C.Traditional methods of reading. D.Making decisions.
3.What will help students overcome a short attention span?
A.Receiving emails. B.Texting messages.
C.Reading more books. D.Watching quickie movies.
4.What is Ray Cole’s attitude towards looking through websites quickly?
A.Cautious. B.Unfavorable.
C.Skeptical. D.Supportive.
On the first day of school our teacher introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn’t already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder.
I turned around to find a little old lady with a warm smile. She said, “Hi, handsome. My name is Rose. I’m eighty-seven years old.”
“Why are you in university at such a YOUNG age?” I asked. She replied, “I’m here to meet a rich husband, get married, have a couple of kids, and then retire and travel.”
I knew she was joking. I was curious (好奇) what might have encouraged her to be taking on this challenge at her age.
“I always dreamed of having a university education and now I’m getting one!” she told me. We became friends. Every day we would talk nonstop after class. I always enjoyed listening to this “time machine” as she shared her wisdom (智慧) and experience with me. And Rose easily made friends wherever she went.
At the end of the term we invited Rose to make a little speech. She cleared her throat and began, “We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing. I’ve learned a few secrets to staying young, being happy, and achieving success. You have to laugh and find humor every day. You’ve got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die.”
“There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up. Anybody can grow older. That doesn’t take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding the opportunity in change...”
1.When the author and Rose first met, they began their conversation in a ________ manner.
A.polite B.impolite
C.serious D.humorous
2.The author considered Rose as a“time machine” because ________.
A.she always came to class on time
B.she made friends easily at university
C.she enjoyed a long life and had lots of wisdom and experience
D.she knew the difference between growing older and growing up
3.The word “That” in Paragraph 7 refers to ________.
A.growing older B.growing up
C.staying young D.being happy
4.From this passage we know Rose believed ________.
A.Easier said than done. B.Well begun is half done.
C.It is never too late to learn. D.Reading makes a full man.
Chinese Paper Cutting or Jianzhi is the first type of paper-cutting design, since paper was invented in the Eastern Han Dynasty in China.
It’s a very distinguishing visual art of Chinese handicrafts. The art form later spread to other parts of the world with different areas adopting their own cultural styles. After hundreds of year’s development, now they’ve become a very popular means of decoration among country folk, especially women. The paper-cuts are also used to decorate doors and windows, and therefore they’re sometimes referred to “chuang hua”, meaning Window Flower. Paper-cuts are chiefly used as decorations. However, today, Chinese paper-cuts are also used for religious and ceremonial purpose, and they’re buried with the dead and burned at funerals.
Chinese people believe the red paper-cuts on the door can bring good fortune and happiness to the whole family. The paper-cuts are more often seen during traditional Chinese festivals, particularly in Chinese New Year, the Spring Festival. They’re also given as gifts to friends or other family members.
Paper-cuttings aren’t produced by machine, but by hand. There’re two methods of manufacture (制造): one uses scissors, the other uses knives. Knife cuttings are fashioned by putting several layers of paper on a relatively soft foundation (衬底). Following a pattern, the artist cuts the motif into the paper with a sharp knife he usually holds vertically. The advantage of knife-cuttings is that considerably more paper cuttings can be made in one operation than with scissor cuttings.
It’s easy to learn about cutting a piece of paper but difficult to master it with perfection. One must grasp the knife in an upright fashion and press evenly (均匀地) on the paper with some strength. Flexibility is required but any hesitation will damage the whole image.
People find hope and comfort in expressing wishes with paper-cutting. For instance: for a wedding ceremony, red paper-cuttings are a traditional decoration on the tea set, the dressing table glass, and on other furniture. A big red paper character ‘Xi’ (happiness) is a traditional must on the newlywed’s (新婚夫妇) door.
1.It can be learned from the second paragraph that ___________.
A.paper-cuts are mainly used as presents
B.females are better at paper-cutting than males
C.paper-cutting varies from area to area
D.paper-cuts are used in various ceremonies but funerals
2.What is the fourth paragraph mainly about?
A.Forms of paper-cutting. B.Means of paper-cutting.
C.Advantages of knife cuttings. D.Characteristics of paper-cutting.
3.From the fifth paragraph, we can learn that ___________.
A.paper-cutting requires great strength
B.pause in paper-cutting makes no difference
C.it is by no means easy to acquire paper-cutting skills
D.it is fashionable to learn paper-cutting
4.The author develops the last paragraph by ___________.
A.using examples B.making comparisons
C.analyzing causes D.describing processes
Basketball Statistician Help Wanted
The Athletic Department is looking for students to help assist staff during the Fall 2016, Winter 2016-17 and Spring 2017 semesters. Students in this position will be keeping live statistics during basketball games. Students must meet all of the following requirements:
•Good computer skills
•Available evenings and weekends
•Knowing basketball rules and statistics
Students interested in working for the Athletic Department should contact the Athletic Coordinator at their respective(各自的) campuses.
•TP/SS Athletic Coordinator, Michael Simone, 240-567-1308
•Rockville Athletic Coordinator, Jorge Zuniga, 240-567-7589
•Springfield Athletic Coordinator, Gary Miller, 240-567-2273
•Germantown Athletic Coordinator, Gauri Chavan, 240-567-6915
1.When will the job start?
A.In May 2016. B.In May 2017.
C.In September 2016. D.In September 2017.
2.Who is more likely to get the job?
A.Sam, English major, member of the college basketball team.
B.Judy, IT staff with night classes, children’s basketball team coach.
C.Ted, computer major, basketball fan, free on evenings and weekends.
D.Molly, part-time programmer, high school basketball player, new mother.
3.Whom should you contact if you want to apply for the job in Rockville?
A.Michael. B.Jorge.
C.Gauri. D.Gary.
假如你是李华，你们班同学打算本周六去爬长城，请你给外教Chris写一封信，邀请他参加此次活动。请包括以下内容：
1. 介绍活动的相关信息（时间、集合地点、交通工具等）；
2. 携带物品（午餐、相机、雨伞等）。
注意：1. 词数100左右；2. 开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Chris,
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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作文。文中共有10处语言错误，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（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
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）每处错误及其修改仅限一词；
2）只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
Dear Janice,
It’s been a month since I came to this new school and I really want share with you some problems. As I tell you last time, I made three new friend here. We’ve been spending a lot of time sing in karaoke bars. It’s been three Saturdays now and it really costs me many money. And I started to see this as a time-wasting activity! In fact, I don’t like to go anymore, so I’m afraid I’ll lose their friendship. How do you think I should do? If you are me, would you talk to him?
Please help with me and give me some advice.
Yours,
Grace
