The past 10 months has been the most influential months of my life.
As a junior, I left my comfortable home in Illinois and _______ going to the Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona. There I attended a local poorly-equipped school and _______ for an adventure. I experienced so many _______when I arrived, fighting each day to _______ in a new social environment — overcoming racial differences, handling social _______ and being challenged by the polluted environment. However, I _______ that I could create change as well later on.
During the summer vacation I _______ to be a counselor (顾问) at an Easter Seals camp for people with _______ needs who require assistance because of disabilities — improving their ability to do things alone — instead of choosing a _______ teen summer job. It was the most tiring work I’d ever experienced but the most __________ I knew that I’d helped improve over 850 campers’ __________.
As the new school year began, our department had a renovation (翻新). I offered to help clean up all the __________ books. Instead of recycling hundreds of those books, I __________ the department that the books could serve a higher __________. This simple act resulted in an all-out book drive ____________ the schools in Arizona. We currently have boxes of books waiting to be shipped. These books will make a __________ to the entire community’s educational system, enabling teachers and students to get __________ to invaluable resources.
The 10-month experience in Arizona __________ me greatly. It made me become a person with patience, appreciation, determination, and __________ enthusiasm. I trust that it is through enthusiasm, ideas and action that all changes can __________.
1.A.required B.risked C.escaped D.considered
2.A.settled on B.settled back C.settled up D.settled in
3.A.pleasures B.wonders C.blows D.burdens
4.A.survive B.succeed C.recover D.return
5.A.cases B.communications C.conflicts D.responsibilities
6.A.discovered B.expected C.admitted D.remembered
7.A.promised B.decided C.afforded D.learned
8.A.basic B.normal C.special D.natural
9.A.unique B.practical C.popular D.common
10.A.interesting B.rewarding C.demanding D.appealing
11.A.patience B.independence C.intelligence D.confidence
12.A.unturned B.valuable C.useful D.unwanted
13.A.reminded B.comforted C.informed D.convinced
14.A.plan B.target C.purpose D.standard
15.A.benefiting B.satisfying C.representing D.observing
16.A.difference B.point C.request D.reservation
17.A.connection B.permission C.access D.reference
18.A.transformed B.defeated C.tricked D.impressed
19.A.after all B.above all C.at large D.at least
20.A.help B.spread C.matter D.occur
Everyone is born with the ability to learn. There are normally two types of learning in our daily life and study — active learning and passive (被动的) learning. 1. This will help you develop a habit of active learning gradually.
2. I bet that no one sits down to read with the purpose of not getting the contents. But I’m sure that some of you have been in a situation, probably more than once, where you read an assignment, closed the book and thought “what the word was about”. 3. Active readers, on the other hand, set goals and check their understanding as they read. When they finish, they can explain the main points and know that they’ve seen what they have read.
Active learners think about information deeply and critically. Being thoughtful is an important part of active learning, because it means that you are analyzing and absorbing the information. 4. For instance, you may make connections between the new information and what you already know, identify concepts that you may not understand very well, or evaluate the importance of what you are reading. An active learner considers constantly in this way. In contrast, passive learners may read the text and listen to lectures and even understand most of what is read and heard. 5.
All in all, behavior of an active learner and a passive one varies greatly. Equipping yourself with study strategies (策略) of active learners may eventually help you become one of them
A.Passive learners won’t be strict with themselves.
B.You need to know some differences between them.
C.In other words, you are processing what you read.
D.However, that important step of reflecting on it is not taken.
E.Active learners accept much of the responsibility for learning.
F.When interacting with the text in this way, you are doing passively.
G.Active learners study with the purpose of grasping and memorizing information.
Though plastic shopping bags are cheap and useful, they cause widespread pollution. Now, we may have an unlikely helper to help clean up our garbage — a small wax worm.
The worm’s hidden skills were discovered by accident. About two years ago, Federica Bertocchini, a developmental biologist at the Spanish National Research Council and an amateur beekeeper, was cleaning out bees’ nest that had been filled with worms. She removed the worms and put them in a plastic bag while doing the cleaning. After finishing, she went back to the room where she had left the worms, and found they had escaped from the bag. When she checked, she saw that the bag was full of holes.
Realizing she may have made an important discovery, Bertocchini teamed up with other researchers to conduct further research. They began by placing 100 worms on some plastic bags and discovered that over a 24-hour period, the worms managed to chew through 92 milligrams of plastic. The researchers make an appropriate judgment that at this rate, the group of worms could degrade (降解) an average-sized 5.5-gram plastic bag within a month. To rule out the possibility that chewing was causing the degradation, the researchers spread the soft wet substance inside the body of some recently dead worms on a sheet of plastic. Sure enough, even the liquid was able to eat through the material, confirming that the worms have plastic-digesting enzymes (酶).
While the news is certainly encouraging, not everyone is convinced. The Michigan State University’s Ramani Narayan believes the tiny pieces of microplastics released by the plastic-eating worms would pick up harmful substances and transport them up the food chain, causing, even more, harm to the environment and human health. Susan Selke, director of Michigan State University School of Packaging, is concerned that the worms will not be able to survive in an oxygen-free landfills where large amounts of waste material are buried under the earth.
However, Bertocchini is not planning to transport worm armies to landfills. Instead, the researcher wants to identify the enzyme that helps degrade the plastic. The researcher says, maybe we can find the molecule (分子) and produce it on an industrial level, rather than using a million worms in a plastic bag.
1.What did the experiment of using dead worms find out?
A.Worms’ chewing may cause the degradation.
B.A plastic-eating chemical exists in wax worms.
C.Dead worms are effective in dealing with plastic.
D.It takes a long time for worms to degrade plastic.
2.What is Ramani Naravan's attitude to Bertocchini's finding?
A.Objective B.Convinced C.Questioning. D.Optimistic.
3.What might Bertocchini focus her later research on?
A.The structure of plastic-degrading enzymes.
B.The use of other worms in disposing plastic.
C.Wax worms’ adaptability to the landfill environment.
D.The chance of producing wax worms on a large scale.
4.What is the best title for the text?
A.Can wax worms save the environment?
B.Wax worms have an appetite for plastic.
C.Why do wax worms have plastic-eating skills?
D.Hungry worms join the fight against plastic pollution
It’s common knowledge that some countries have higher life expectancies (预期寿命) than others, but the city you live in can also affect your health.
Some cities are hard on their citizens. In places with poor city planning — Lagos was called out recently by the Economist Intelligence Unit — public spaces are few and far between, making outdoor activities hard. Lack of infrastructure (基础设施) jams the streets with cars and the air with pollutants, and people work long hours for little money
These are just some of the factors concluded by Spotahome, a rental agency. They’ve analyzed data from a range of sources, including the World Health Organization, Tripadvisor and the CIA World Factbook to score each city on health, gym availability and quality, life expectancy, obesity (肥胖), green space and other elements to work out a list of the world's healthiest cities
The list is certainly Euro-centric but continuous sunshine is seen as a positive thing, even if it may be more of a disadvantage in other regions. But it does go some way towards suggesting which cities are getting it right in providing a good life for their inhabitants.
It may not be surprising to learn that most of the healthiest cities are in northern Europe, known for its people-first approach to city planning. Australia and Canada also do well — but Alaska, the first U.S. city is only in 34th place. The U.K. doesn’t fare too well either — its only city in the top 50 list is London, in 40th.
Whether you’re planning a wholesome holiday, or simply wondering what your city can do better, this list of the 50 healthiest cities will give you pause for thought. Here are the attractive, healthy-eating, clean-aired cities that are getting it right.
1.Why are some cities difficult to live in according to the text?
A.The air is heavily polluted. B.There is no city planning.
C.Outdoor activities aren’t available. D.Public places are limited.
2.How did Spotahome list the world’s healthiest cities?
A.By figuring out the city’s green area.
B.By gaining information via various people.
C.By analyzing different aspects of the cities.
D.By selecting those with the highest life expectancy.
3.What does the list aim to help people do?
A.Form healthy eating habits.
B.Choose a right place for a holiday.
C.Become aware of attractiveness of cities.
D.Reflect the future of the city planning.
4.Where is this text most likely from?
A.A diary. B.A guidebook. C.A novel. D.A magazine.
Chandler Smith grew up being told that he would never accomplish his dream of being a Division 1 athlete. At 5'8" tall and 195 pounds, Chandler was on the small side to be one of the “greats”. Yet even as a high school athlete he decided to work nonstop to achieve his goals. After being accepted onto the University of Houston football team, Chandler continued to try to make a name for himself on the field.
Chandler sat on the bench for his entire freshman year in college. Sophomore year he saw more action. “I didn’t think I was going to play last year, but I had to always be ready,” he said. At the start of Chandler’s junior year the team’s management pulled him aside and dropped a life-changing, and career-confirming offer in his lap: After three years on the team as a walk-on running back, Smith was being given a full scholarship! “My heart dropped,” Smith said. “I didn't even know what to feel or what to think. It was a feeling of ‘wow’. This is really happening. All my hard work has paid off.”
Chandler called his mother Shawn to tell her the news, but when his father Richard wasn't available, he told her not to spill the beans. Later he went home, and chatted about the football season with his father. “I could be getting the first kickoff,” he told his dad. Without missing a beat, Chandler then slipped in the real news: “Something else dad, they told me they put me on a full scholarship.”
“What?” Richard yelled, jumping from the sofa and wrapping his son in a tight embrace. “Congratulations! Hard work.” Then he walked around the living room, clearly too excited to sit still. “Seeing his reaction, I just broke down in tears because I know this is something we have been talking about and expecting for a long time,” Chandler said. “To finally get it and see the benefits of your hard work felt really good.”
1.How did Chandler make it to the University of Houston football team?
A.He showed his talent. B.He had strong determination.
C.He earned his name. D.He used physical strengths.
2.What was Chandler's feeling on receiving the good news?
A.He was thrilled. B.He was controlled.
C.He was confused. D.He was satisfied.
3.What do the underlined words “spill the beans” in paragraph 3 mean?
A.Give away the secret. B.Throw off the beans..
C.Prepare for the celebration. D.Hold back the feelings.
4.Which of the following best describes Richard as a father?
A.Humorous. B.Ambitious. C.Supportive. D.Demanding.
We look ahead to London’s art and exhibition openings and select the must-see shows.
Double science
It's a big month for the Science Museum, with a new gallery and an exhibition opening. The Science City gallery tells the story of London between 1550 and 1800 when major scientific breakthroughs were happening across the city—from Newton’s laws of physics to the birth of microscopes allowing us to see the tiny creatures that live among us. If that isn’t enough there’s also an exhibition on how art and science have worked closely together over the centuries and continue to do so today.
Science City 1550—1800: The Linbury Gallery at the Science Museum. Opens 12 September—13 October, free.
The Art of Innovation: From Enlightenment to Dark Matter at the Science Museum. 25 September—26 January, free but ticketed.
Are you worried yet?
We all suffer from anxiety. Artists look into this through artworks that bring to light their own anxieties or how people living with anxiety manage. The exhibition also covers what anxiety would look like if it could be visualised in light or sound—something we imagine to be impossible.
On Edge: Living in an Age of Anxiety at Science Gallery. 19 September—19 January, free.
Climbing the walls
No artist has made a bigger career out of placing sculptures of human figures all over the place. Antony Gormley, the artist behind the Angel of the North and sculptures standing all over London, takes over the Royal Academy of Arts with a blockbusting (轰动一时的) exhibition. This is the hot art ticket in town.
Antony Gormley at Royal Academy of Arts. 21 October—3 December, £18—22.
1.What is on show in the Science City gallery?
A.Some of the greatest physicists. B.The stories of the London development.
C.The prediction of the future science. D.Some of the great achievements in history.
2.Which exhibition allows visitors to get a feeling in a new way?
A.The Art of Innovation. B.On Edge.
C.Royal Academy of Arts. D.Science City 1550—1800.
3.When can visitors see these four exhibitions altogether?
A.In January. B.In September. C.In October. D.In December.
