UK physicist Isaac Newton once said, “Nature is pleased with simplicity and nature is no dummy (傻子).” Indeed, Mother Nature can provide almost everything human beings need if we follow her rules. But if we break the rules, she is likely to be cruel and lash out at (抨击) us.
The outbreak of the novel coronavirus pneumonia (新型冠状病毒肺炎, NCP) in China and some other countries at the beginning of this year is an example. According to Xinhua News Agency, the new coronavirus is similar to a virus found in a bat in 2017 and probably has an intermediate host (中间宿主).
It’s once believed that the virus originated from the Huanan Seafood Market in Wuhan, Hubei province, where live wild animals were sold.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Dr Peter Daszak, president of the US-based health organization EcoHealth Alliance, said, “This outbreak is a lesson for us. On a global scale (规模), human population density (密度), wildlife diversity, and land use change are what drive new pandemics (流行病).”
In ancient times, people needed to rely on nature to survive so they held it in awe (敬畏). For example, the American Indians believed that humans are a part of nature and nature is a part of humans. Chinese ancients always pursued the harmony between nature and human beings.
However, as human beings master more knowledge and make more advanced tools, people try to change and even conquer nature. They use more land to make buildings, genetically modify (改变) plants, capture some wild and rare animals to suit their own needs. In this process, humans gradually lose contact with nature and even throw it out of balance. For example, cutting a large number of forests means carbon dioxide must build up in the atmosphere and it contributes to global warming.
Although we don’t know for sure what first caused the NCP outbreak, Brian Lamacraft at Medium said it’s time for people to “reflect on our relationship with our planet” and “reconnect with this world and everything that we’ve been given”. After all, according to US poet Gary Snyder, “Nature is not the place to visit. It’s our home.”
1.What lesson did Daszak think human beings should learn from the NCP outbreak?
A.Bats are one of the most dangerous wild animals.
B.It’s impossible to prevent new pandemics globally.
C.We should stop the wildlife trade around the world.
D.Humans should live peacefully with nature.
2.What is the main idea of Paragraph 5?
A.How human beings become their own masters.
B.How human activities cause global warming.
C.How human beings break the balance of nature.
D.How humans use technology to improve their lives.
3.What is the author’s purpose in writing this article?
A.To reflect on the NCP outbreak.
B.To explain what led to the NCP outbreak.
C.To describe experts’ predictions on new pandemics.
D.To compare ancient and modern attitudes toward nature.
Eat healthier. Exercise twice a week. Read more books. Lose weight. We make the same resolutions (决心) every year, but most of us fail, dying out after only a few days or, at best, weeks. Even the most successful among us crash and burn when it comes to personal change. President Barack Obama struggles to get out of his cigarette habit.
Professionals who help people make changes in their lives suggest the change is decided not by one’s surroundings, but one’s mind. Beginning with small goals or steps usually leads to a better result later, they say. But they notice that the experience is different for everyone.
“People are more likely to make positive changes in their lives not only when their friends do, but when their friends of friends do, and when their friends of friends of friends do,” said Nicholas Christakis, a professor of medical sociology at Harvard University. “People are better able to make changes in their lives—lose weight, quit smoking, become happy—when they do this with a large number of other people, and so taking advantage of your social network ties can contribute to your own efforts.”
Johnny Augustin understands that well. His resolution for 2008 was to reduce 30 pounds from his 237-pound frame. But the change didn’t come easily. He said, “I’m a huge procrastinator, I kept putting it off until tomorrow. I didn’t get to do it until the summer.” However, Augustin got encouraged when he saw his older brother working out. Today, Augustin weighs 190 pounds.
“Of course, change can happen only if people don’t set their expectations too high or try to deal with too many changes at once; one of the biggest mistakes we make is setting unrealistic goals,” said Dalia Liera, a psychologist at Lesley University. “You can’t accomplish in a few weeks what you haven’t accomplished in a few years,” said Liera.
1.From the first paragraph we can infer that _________.
A.change for a person is challenging
B.famous people have great resolutions
C.most people don’t want to change themselves
D.personal change is beyond belief
2.The word “procrastinator” in Paragraph 4 refers to those who_________.
A.have great determination to make a change
B.put off work especially because of laziness
C.have habitual carelessness and laziness
D.have no desire to do something great
3.According to the passage, Dalia Liera suggested that __________.
A.people should understand their goals well
B.people should try their best to change themselves
C.people should have confidence and positive habits
D.people should start with setting small goals to meet
阅读下面材料,根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段,使之构成一篇完整的短文。续写的词数应为150左右。
Growing up on a small farm, I lived a life that I took for granted. My father worked in the city as a plumber(水暖工).He was not highly educated, but he was smart, looking at problems in an engineer’s way. He was a man made of leather, brass and chewing tobacco who tried to teach my brother and me useful things, including respect. He also had a temper and was strict with us for he would scold us when we made some careless mistakes. Sometimes, my father seemed like a distant enemy to me and I didn’t like him very much.
One day I came home from primary school and his car was already there. Once inside, I was told by my mother that he didn’t feel well. His back hurt. My father never missed work; in fact, when he came home, he went to the barn to work even more. I remember looking at him secretly around the corner as he lay on his bed in the middle of the day.
Later, my mother told me he got multiple myeloma(多发性骨髓瘤),a type of cancer. As the cancer grows, the person will shrink because the disease destroys the body’s energy and the abnormal antibodies cause problems for other cells and tissue. Bones eventually look like Swiss cheese, and when they break, they may never heal. But I didn’t realize that my father’s time was rather limited and just treated him the same way I used to.
For the last year of my fathers life, his entire day consisted df rising from his hospital bed in the living room and walking to his chair to sit and think. He was predictably in that chair when I came home one day during the ninth grade. I do not remember where my mother and brother were, but the two of us were alone.
Paragraph 1 :
He asked me to sit down and what he told me still moves me these decades Later.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph 2 :
At that moment, I realized that he was doing more than telling.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
假定你是李华，你的美国笔友 Max 给你写了一封信，针对美国疫情严重的情况，征求你的建议。请你给他回封信，要点如下：
1. 合理安排居家学习生活；
2.做好个人防护措施；
3.调整好心态。
参考词汇：novel coronavirus 新冠状病毒
注意：1. 词数 100 左右，格式已给出；
2. 适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Max,
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。
A 90-year-old has been awarded “Woman Of The Year” for 1.(be) Britain’s oldest full-time employee—still working 40 hours a week. Now Irene Astbury works from 9am to 5pm daily at the pet shop in Macclesfield, 2. she opened with her late husband Les. Her years of hard work have 3.(final) been acknowledged after a customer nominated(提名) her to be Cheshire’s Woman Of The Year.
Picking up her “Lifetime Achievement” award, proud Irene 4.(declare) she had no plans 5.(retire) from her 36-year-old business. Irene said, “I don’t see any reason to give up work. I love coming here and seeing my family and all the friends I 6.(make) over the years. I work not because I have to, 7. because I want to.”
Granddaughter Gayle Parks, 31—who works alongside her in the family business—said it remained unknown as to who nominated Irene for the award. She said, “We don’t have any idea who put grandma forward. When we got a call 8.(say) she was short-listed, we thought it was 9. joke. But then we got an official letter and we were blown away. We are so proud of her. It’s 10.(wonder).”
When I was ten, my father brought home a sailboat, and almost each Sunday in summers we would go sailing. Dad was quite skilled in sailing, but not good at_______. As for me, I learned both before twelve because of living close to Lake Ontario.
The last time Dad and I set sail together is really _______ . It was a perfect weekend after I graduated from university. I came home and invited Dad to go sailing. Out we set soon on the_______ lake. Dad hadn’t sailed for years, but everything_______well with the tiller (舵柄)in his hands.
When we were in the middle of the lake, a strong wind came all of a sudden .The boat was hit_______ Dad was always at his best in any danger, but at this moment he _______ .
“John!_______!” he shouted in a trembling voice ,with the tiller still in his hands. In my memory he could fix any problem. He was the one I always_______for strength and security. Before I could respond, a_______of water got into the boat. I rushed to the tiller ________ it was too late. Another huge wall of water________ the boat in a minute. We were thrown into the water, and Dad was struggling aimlessly .At that moment, I felt fiercely ________ of him.
I swam to Dad________ and assisted him in climbing onto the hull(船壳) of the boat. Upon sitting on the hull, Dad was a little awkward about his flash of________. “It’s all right , Dad, we are safe now.” I comforted him.
That was the first time Dad had counted on me in a moment of emergency. More importantly, I found it was my turn to start________ for my father.
1.A.boating B.running C.teaching D.swimming
2.A.unforgettable B.unforgivable C.cheerful D.regretful
3.A.stormy B.calm C.thundery D.icy
4.A.finished B.seemed C.went D.sounded
5.A.lightly B.violently C.hardly D.repeatedly
6.A.froze B.suffered C.fell D.withdrew
7.A.Look B.Run C.Help D.Jump
8.A.lived with B.argued with C.objected to D.turned to
9.A.fountain B.stream C.wave D.shower
10.A.if B.for C.after D.but
11.A.get through B.turned over C.poured into D.lifted up
12.A.ashamed B.tired C.protective D.afraid
13.A.quickly B.hopelessly C.slowly D.helplessly
14.A.pain B.anger C.fear D.shame
15.A.making up B.getting ready C.paying off D.looking out
