The University of Birmingham is the first excellent UK Russell Group university to announce that it will accept the "Gaokao" exam for high-flying Chinese students wishing to join its undergraduate courses in 2019. High school students who complete the "National Higher Education Entrance Examination", or Gaokao, with top grades will be able to apply for direct entry onto Birmingham degree programmes without first completing a foundation year which is a routine for the freshman.
Gaokao is usually taken by students in their last year of senior high school and, every year, each province in China sets the grades required to gain admission to its universities. It is usually held across China in early June. Students are tested in Chinese, Mathematics, a Foreign Language and social sciences or natural sciences.
University of Birmingham Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir David Eastwood said: "The University of Birmingham has been challenging and developing great minds for more than a century. We welcome people from around the globe to study at Birmingham and Chinese students form an integral part of our education and research community. We are further opening access to Birmighamˈs wealth of education opportunities for the brightest and most dedicated Chinese students by accepting this strict and important qualification. I look forward to welcoming these high-flying students to the University of Birmingham. "
Gaokao is increasingly accepted by universities in Australia, the USA, Canada and mainland Europe. Birmingham will only be considering high quality students who achieve a minimum 80% Gaokao score and meet additional academic and English language requirements.
Professor J on Frampton, Director of the University of Birminghamˈs China Institute said: "The University of Birmingham has a long history of educating students from China and one of our most famous graduates is Li Siguang-the founding father of Chinese geology. I am delighted that the University is now accepting the Gaokao. This gives the brightest and best Chinese students an opportunity to move straight into the first year of our undergraduate programmes and experience the benefits of studying at a global Top 100 university, such as Birmingham. "
1.What do Chinese students have to do to enter the University of Birmingham before 2019?
A. Score over 80% of the universityˈs qualification examination.
B. Prepare Birmingham degree programmes.
C. Acquire the right to permanent residency.
D. Go through a foundation year.
2.Who is the announcement intended for?
A. Chinese students.
B. All people living in the UK.
C. The students of the UK.
D. The foreign students in China.
3.Which of the following best explains "integral" underlined in paragraph 3?
A. complete. B. indifferent.
C. necessary. D. unimportant.
4.What does the text mainly talk about?
A. The introduction to the "Gaokao" of China.
B. The University of Birminghamˈs admission to Gaokao.
C. The high quality students accepted by top universities.
D. The history of the University of Birmingham.
When Dekalb Walcott Ш was just 8 years old, his father, a Chicago fire chief, let him tag along on a call. Dekalb says a lot of kids idolized (崇拜) basketball player Michael Jordan when he was growing up in Chicago in the1990s. Not him.
“I wanted to be like Dekalb Walcott Jr, ”he says of his father. So when his dad asked if he wanted to go on that call with him when he was 8, Dekalb was excited. “I'm jumping up and down, saying, ‘Mom, can I go? Can I go?’”
The experience changed Dekalb's life, and he told his dad on a visit to StoryCorps. “My eyes got big the moment the alarm went off, ” the younger Dekalb says. “This is the life that I want to live someday. ”
Now 27, the younger Dekalb is living that life. He became a firefighter at 21 and went to work alongside his dad at the Chicago Fire Department. Before his father retired, the pair even went out on a call together-father supervising (监督)son.
“You know, it's everything for me to watch young row, ”his father says. But he also recalls worrying about one particular fire that his son faced.
“I received a phone call that night. And they said, ‘Well, your son was at this fire. ' I said, ‘OK, which way is this conversation going to go?'”Dekalb Walcott Jr. recalls.
“And they said, ‘But he's OK. And he put it out all by himself. Everybody here was proud of him. ’”
“And the word went around, ‘Who was out there managing that fire? Oh, that’s Walcott!That's Walcott up there!’So, you know, moments like that, it's heaven on earth for a dad. ”
Dekalb Walcott Jr. has retired. The younger Dekalb says he's proud of being a second-generation firefighter. “You know, it makes me look forward to fatherhood as well, because I'm definitely looking forward to passing that torch (火把) down to my son. ”
1.The underlined phrase “tag along” in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to“____________”.
A. put out fire
B. watch basketball
C. follow his father
D. ask his mother's permission
2.Dekalb Walcott Ш determined to become a firefighter at the age of ____________ .
A. 8 B. 21
C. 27 D. 35
3.What can we learn from the last paragraph?
A. Dekalb Walcott Jr. is proud to be a second-generation firefighter.
B. Dekalb Walcott ШI wants his son to become a firefighter, too.
C. Dekalb Walcott Jr. wants to pass the torch to Dekalb Walcott Ш.
D. Dekalb Walcott Ш is proud that his son has become an excellent firefighter.
4.Which of the following is the best title of the passage?
A. Passing The Torch: A Firefighter Dad's Legacy
B. Putting Out Fire: A Challenging Job For Father And Son
C. Dekalb Walcott Ш: A Second-generation Firefighter
D. Dekalb Walcott Jr. : A Chicago Fire
If you’re still pressing a switch to turn your lights on and off, you’re a bit behind the times. As the rest of your home gets smarter, why shouldn’t your lights? The smart light switch can let you turn your lights on and off from almost anywhere with your smart phone.
Lutron Caseta
The Lutron Caseta comes with a convenient remote control and combines perfectly with most major smart home services. It is an all-around option. Whether your device is Apple HomeKit, Amazon Echo, Google Home, Nest, or IFTTT, you can use the Lutron Caseta fluently, which makes it stand out from its competitors.
WeMo Smart Switch
The WeMo smart switch can be used to control the brightness in a room just by running your finger in the center of the switch. What makes it stand out, though, is its Long Press feature, which allows you to start another smart device by holding the switch for two seconds. For example, you can link it to your robot cleaner, which will start cleaning after you press the button.
TP—LINK Kasa
Like other smart models, the TP—Link Kasa is equipped with plenty of practical features, including timers and voice controls from Amazon Alexa or Google Home. It has an “Away Mode” that randomly turns the lights off and on to give the false idea that you are at home when you’re not, to prevent potential thieves. All in all, it’s an affordable and reliable option you’ll love.
Philips Hue Smart Dinner(调光器) Switch
The Hue allows you dim your bulbs, set schedules, and control the lights with your voice. Best of all, it offers incredibly easy installation—with no wiring necessary.
1.Compared with its competitors, the Lutron Caseta ______________.
A.can apply to many kinds of devices
B.can just be used to control lights
C.has a price advantage
D.is easy to install
2.The “Away Mode” of the TP—LINK Kasa is intended to _____________.
A.be equipped with more practical features
B.guard the house against possible burglar
C.turn the lights off and on when you are away
D.control an app remotely
3.What’s the writing purpose of the text?
A.To ask people to catch up with times.
B.To advise some smart light switches.
C.To introduce a new lifestyle.
D.To compare some smart light switches.
假定你是李华，你的加拿大籍笔友Rex最近因上课注意力不能集中而感到苦恼，来信向你求助。请你给他写封回信，表示安慰，并给出建议。要点如下：
1.写信目的；2.你的建议；3.表达祝愿。
注意:1.词数100左右
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯
3.开头语和结束语已为你写好，不计入总词数;
4.参考词汇：distraction 注意力分散
Dear Rex,
I’m really sorry to hear about your present situation.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Good luck to you!
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。每处错误仅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、每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；2、只允许修改10处，多者不计分。
There is donation box in my neighborhood, in that you can donate clothes and bags. Social workers will collect them regularly and distributes them to people in need. I love for this idea very much, and I want to be one of the donator. It was because I grew so fast what many clothes my mom bought me didn’t fit me any longer. Therefore, they are really new and in good condition. I used to being puzzled about how to deal with these second-hand clothes. But with the donation box, I can share it with other children. My mother likes my idea and takes pride of me.
阅读下面材料,在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词或括号内单词的正确形式
We’ve all turned to sad music to make us feel 1. (good)at some point in our lives, but why does doubling down on the sadness help drag us out of the mire(泥沼 )？
A new study sheds light on what’s going on inside our brains 2.we match our music to our feelings. It looks like sad music can be enjoyable -rather than 3.(simple) depressing- because it triggers positive memories that can help to lift our mood. Psychologist Adrian North from Curtin University in Australia says there 4. (be)two groups of possible5. (explain)for why we enjoy listening to sad music like this: one from social psychology, and one from cognitive neuroscience(认知神经学).
In terms of social psychology, one way of 6.(think) about this is that we feel much better about 7. (we) if we focus on someone who’s doing even worse, a process known as downward social comparison. Everything’s going to be okay, because this person 8.(have) an even worse day than you are.
Another theory from social psychology is that people like to listen 9. music that mirrors the tone of their current life circumstances -the songs act as 10.sort of tuning fork(音叉) for our own situations and they resonate(共鸣) with us.
