The ocean covers over 70 percent of the surface of Earth today, but over 3 billion years ago the entire planet may have been covered in water. To investigate what our planet was like billions of years ago, a team of researchers turned to indirect methods of analysis at a geological site in the Australian Outback known as Panorama(全景画) in the Pilbara Craton. Today, the region is 100 kilometers inland, but 3.2 billion years ago, it was deep underwater.
In fact, there were also once ancient hydrothermal vents (热水口) there where seawater bubbled up through the ocean floor. “There are no samples of really ancient ocean water lying around, but we do have rocks that interacted with that seawater and remembered that interaction,” lead author Benjamin Johnson, an assistant professor at Iowa State University, said in a statement.
The researchers collected over 100 of these rock samples and found something peculiar in them: a slightly higher amount of a particular isotope (同位素) of oxygen. The vast majority of oxygen on Earth is Oxygen-16 and contains eight protons (质子) and eight neutrons. However, about 0.20 percent is Oxygen-18.
Samples from Australia show the region’s ancient water contained more Oxygen-18 than present times. Since continents are covered in clay-rich soil that is efficient at trapping Oxygen-18, the team suggests that without continents covered in soil, more Oxygen-18 would have been present in the ocean. Their discovery indeed suggests there wasn’t much dry land available 3.24 billion years ago.
“There’s nothing in what we’ve done that says you can’t have tiny, micro -continents sticking out of the oceans,” added co-author Boswell Wing. “We just don’t think there were global-scale formations of continental soils like we have today.” The researchers don’t know when and how continents began to emerge out of the ocean but they plan to investigate “younger” rock formations to piece together a more precise timeline.
1.Where is the research site?
A.In a region deep underwater.
B.In a region off Australia.
C.In a region inland Australia.
D.In a region outside the Pilbara Craton.
2.What do the underlined words “interact with” in Paragraph 2 mean?
A.Have an effect on each other. B.Have a one-way effect.
C.Have a mysterious effect. D.Have a negative effect.
3.What’s the researchers’ conclusion after analyzing samples from Australia?
A.Modern earth must have been a water world.
B.Modern earth must have been a continental world.
C.Ancient earth may have been a water world.
D.Ancient earth may have been a continental world.
4.What’s the researchers’ next focus of the study?
A.To research continental soils’ formations.
B.To research the ocean’s formations.
C.To research “older” rock formations.
D.To research “younger” rock formations.
Turtles may be cute, but they are also slow and clumsy, which doesn’t really help them when they are trying to cross train tracks. Luckily, for the turtles in Japan’s Hyōgo Prefecture, railway operators and a local aquarium teamed up to find a solution.
Between 2002 and 2014, disruptions (中断) of train operation caused by turtles were reported 13 times, with many more probably going unreported. That is why, in 2015, West Japan Railway Co. and Suma Aqualife Park in Kobe joint forces to prevent tragic turtle deaths on the tracks and unnecessary train delay. After running a series of tests and experiments, they came up with a U-shaped ditch (沟渠 ) that collects the turtles, preventing them from getting stuck between the metal tracks and getting crushed to death.
Tests showed that turtles trying to cross the train tracks often fall into the space between them, which leaves them with no other option than to walk between them. Sadly, this causes some of them to get stuck between the metal tracks at junctions（交叉口）, and they unavoidably get crushed to death when the points blades（叶片）move.
“The turtles are basically just going about their daily business and have to cross the lines to get to a pond,” a railway spokesperson said. “When the points blades move, unfortunately they get squashed between them and die. They can cause long delays to operations so we consulted with a turtle specialist to find the best way to help them.”
The U -shaped concrete ditches installed at several critical points along the train lines near the city of Kobe catch the turtles at danger of getting stuck between the tracks. They allow the turtles to get past the junctions safely. 10 turtles were reportedly saved in the first month since the U-shaped ditch was put to use in November 2015.
1.What’s the best title of the text?
A.An Important Invention in Japan
B.The U-shaped Concrete Ditches
C.Turtles Crossing Train Tracks in Danger
D.Japan’s Clever Solution to Help Turtles Cross Train Tracks
2.What does Paragraph 2 mainly talk about?
A.Why the U-shaped ditch is invented.
B.The turtles’ terrible conditions.
C.The train delay caused by turtles.
D.How the turtles go through the tracks.
3.What does the underlined word “them” in Paragraph 3 refer to?
A.The turtles. B.The trains.
C.The train tracks. D.The points blades.
4.What can we infer about the ditches?
A.They are installed on the railway tracks.
B.They can prevent turtles from escaping.
C.They are easy to trap the turtles.
D.They are helpful for turtles to cross train tracks.
Myles Kerr knew that being a Marine (水兵) comes with a lot of responsibility, but despite the huge weight he has on his shoulders, he has not forgotten the essence of being a public servant — that of being human.
Seven years ago, a photo of a Marine and a young boy running a marathon immediately went viral after it was shared on social media. But what seemed like a simple image packed a much deeper backstory. This story happened in 2013, but its relevance is still as powerful as ever.
The pair were running The Jeff Drench Memorial 5K in Charlevoix, Michigan when Myles Kerr came across Brandon Fuchs, a 9-year old boy struggling to keep up with the rest of his group. Brandon, exhausted and out of breath, asked the Marine: “Will you run with me?”
People who had their eyes on the prize would have refused, but the 19 -year -old was different. Being a Marine, he knew exactly what he should do. Kerr put aside his goal of beating his mates and instead slowed down to accompany the struggling boy to the finish line.
Because he chose to help the boy, the Marine ended up with the slowest time in his age group, according to the 5K results online.
Though he might have lost the race, the Marine won over people’s hearts. His act of kindness was celebrated on social media.
Kerr didn’t expect that his simple gesture would attract so much attention. He responded to a tweet praising his actions saying, “I was just doing what any man would do, but thank you! ” He also tweeted that he received gifts from the Fuchs family for helping out Brandon.
To Kerr, being a Marine was more than just being trained for combat — it also required learning how to be kind and compassionate towards the citizens they serve.
1.What was Myles Kerr seven years ago?
A.A marine. B.A public servant.
C.A marathon runner. D.A Michigan citizen.
2.What is Myles Kerr’s original goal to participate in the marathon?
A.To win over people’s hearts. B.To accompany the boy.
C.To get the best score in his age group. D.To build up his body.
3.Which of the following best describe Myles Kerr?
A.Kind and unselfish. B.Enthusiastic and generous.
C.Responsible and proud. D.Stubborn and helpful.
4.What does the story mainly convey?
A.Being a Marine bears a lot.
B.Kindness matters more than prizes.
C.Being a Marine means a public servant.
D.Good actions spread quickly.
The Future Leaders is a year-round leadership development programme that is changing lives for a diverse range of young people in New Zealand. It is part-time, designed for young people aged 16 -25. You’ll meet amazing people, and attend the national event Festival for the Future. You’ll get access to coaching and mentoring (指导), workshops to help you develop ideas and skills for the future, and make a difference in your community.
Are you aged 16-25? Do you want to be inspired, build your connections and skills for the future? Apply now. Two great ways you can apply to take part.
Option 1 — applying as a Catalyst (a person that causes a change) is the best way to boost your capability. The key difference between this and the wider ‘Future Leaders’ option, is that you’ll attend all three national hui (including Festival for the Future), get access to one- on-one support through mentoring and coaching, and take more of a leadership role working with other Catalysts to develop and lead a project in your community.
Whilst there’s no cost to you, if you’re offered a place as a Catalyst it’s the equivalent of receiving a $5,000 scholarship to support your training and development. Spaces are strictly limited to 4 Catalysts per community.
Option 2 — applying as a Future Leader is the lighter way to experience the programme.
Whilst you won’t attend all three national hui or get one -on -one coaching and mentoring, you’ll still make awesome connections, be inspired and build your leadership skills. You’ll get the chance to attend Festival for the Future in Wellington, attend local events and workshops, and get involved in the project in your community.
Whilst there’s no cost to you, if you’re offered a place as a Future Leaders, it’s the equivalent of receiving a $1,000 scholarship to support your training and development. Spaces are limited.
1.What’s the purpose of the text?
A.To introduce a programme to all ages.
B.To show young people how to apply for the Future Leaders.
C.To list two application positions.
D.To encourage people to be future leaders.
2.What can we know about the Future Leaders programme?
A.It can equip you with leadership skills.
B.It’s designed for successful young people.
C.It supplies activities to help the community.
D.It requires you to take part all year round.
3.What’s the similarity that lies in Option 1 and Option 2?
A.You will attend all three national hui.
B.You can receive no scholarship.
C.The two options are both free of charge.
D.There are a rang of spaces to choose from.
因为新冠疫情（the COVID-19 epidemic）的原因，今年全国高考的时间被迫推迟一个月。假如你是李华，请给英国好友Peter写一封回信，说说你针对高考推迟所采取的应对措施。
注意：1.词数100左右；2.开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Peter,
Glad to hear from you and thank you for your concern about my study.___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
How about the epidemic situation in your country? Best wishes!
Yours sincerely,
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（从第11处起）不计分。
It happened many years ago where my mother took me to Mountain Tai for a trip. We climbed Mount Tai next morning after our arrival in Taian. It was a little cool at first and as time goes by, the high temperature made me uncomfortable and thirsty. As a result, I really wanted to give up. Just then, I saw a disabled man climbing hardly though his face was covered with sweats. Seeing his eyes fill with faith, I felt moved because the man with disability still kept fighting. Finally, he succeeded in getting to the top. My mother smiled on me proudly. Every time we face with difficulty, don’t give up easily.
