If anyone had told me three years ago that I would be spending most of my weekends camping, I would have laughed heartily. Campers, in my eyes, were people who enjoyed insect bites, ill-cooked meals, and uncomfortable sleeping bags. They had nothing in common with me. 1.
The friends who introduced me to camping thought that it meant to be a pioneer. 2. We slept in a tent, cooked over an open fire, and walked a long distance to take the shower and use the bathroom. This brief visit with Mother Nature cost me two days off from work, recovering from a bad case of sunburn and the doctor’s bill for my son’s food poisoning.
I was, nevertheless, talked into going on another fun-filled holiday in the wilderness. 3. Instead, we had a pop-up camper with comfortable beds and an air conditioner. My nature-loving friends had remembered to bring all the necessities of life.
4. We have done a lot of it since. Recently, we bought a twenty-eight-foot travel trailer complete with a bathroom and a built-in TV set. There is a separate bedroom, a modern kitchen with a refrigerator. The trailer even has matching carpet and curtains.
5. It must be true that sooner or later, everyone finds his or her way back to nature. I recommend that you find your way in style.
A.This time there was no tent.
B.Things are going to be improved.
C.The trip they took me on was a rough one.
D.I was to learn a lot about camping since then, however.
E.I must say that I have certainly come to enjoy camping.
F.After the trip, my family became quite interested in camping.
G.There was no shade as the trees were no more than 3 feet tall.
Terrafugia Inc. said Monday that its new flying car has completed its first flight, bringing the company closer to its goal of selling the flying car within the next year. The vehicle —named the Transition – has two seats, four wheels and wings that fold up so it can be driven like a car. The Transition, which flew at 1,400 feet for eight minutes last month, can reach around 70 miles per hour on the road and 115 in the air. It flies using a 23-gallon tank of gas and burns 5 gallons per hour in the air. On the ground, it gets 35 miles per gallon.
Around 100 people have already put down a $10,000 deposit to get a Transition when they go on sale, and those numbers will likely rise after Terrafugia introduces the Transition to the public later this week at the New York Auto Show. But don’t expect it to show up in too many driveways. It’s expected to cost $279,000.And it won’t help if you’re stuck in traffic. The car needs a runway.
Inventors have been trying to make flying cars since the 1930s, according to Robert Mann, an airline industry expert. But Mann thinks Terrafugia has come closer than anyone to making the flying car a reality. The government has already permitted the company to use special materials to make it easier for the vehicle to fly. The Transition is now going through crash tests to make sure it meets federal safety standards.
Mann said Terrafugia was helped by the Federal Aviation Administration’s decision five years ago to create a separate set of standards for light sport aircraft, which are lower than those for pilots of larger planes. Terrafugia says an owner would need to pass a test and complete 20 hours of flying time to be able to fly the Transition, a requirement pilots would find relatively easy to meet.
1.What is the first paragraph mainly about?
A.The basic data of the Transition.
B.The advantages of flying cars.
C.The potential market for flying cars.
D.The designers of the Transition.
2.Why is the Transition unlikely to show up in too many driveways?
A.It causers traffic jams.
B.It is difficult to operate.
C.It is very expensive.
D.It burns too much fuel.
3.What is the government’s attitude to the development of the flying car?
A.Cautious B.Favorable.
C.Ambiguous. D.Disapproving.
4.What is the best title for the text?
A.Flying Car at Auto Show
B.The Transition’s First Flight
C.Pilots’ Dream Coming True
D.Flying Car Closer to Reality
Some of the world’s most famous musicians recently gathered in Paris and New Orleans to celebrate the first annual International Jazz Day. UNESCO( United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) recently set April 30 as a day to raise awareness of jazz music, its significance, and its potential as a unifying(联合) voice across cultures.
Despite the celebrations, though, in the U.S. the jazz audience continues to shrink and grow older, and the music has failed to connect with younger generations.
It’s Jason Moran’s job to help change that. As the Kennedy Center’s artistic adviser for jazz, Moran hopes to widen the audience for jazz, make the music more accessible, and preserve its history and culture.
“Jazz seems like it’s not really a part of the American appetite,” Moran tells National Public Radio’s reporter Neal Conan. “What I’m hoping to accomplish is that my generation and younger start to reconsider and understand that jazz is not black and write anymore. It’s actually color, and it’s actually digital.”
Moran says one of the problems with jazz today is that the entertainment aspect of the music has been lost. “The music can’t be presented today the way it was in 1908 or 1958. It has to continue to move, because the way the world works is not the same,” says Moran.
Last year, Moran worked on a project that arranged Fats Waller’s music for a dance party, “Just to kind of put it back in the mind that Waller is dance music as much as it is concert music,” says Moran. “For me, it’s the recontextualization. In music, where does the emotion(情感) lie? Are we, as humans, gaining any insight(感悟) on how to talk about ourselves and how something as abstract as a Charlie Parker record gets us into a dialogue about our emotions and our thoughts? Sometimes we lose sight that the music has a wider context,” says Moran, “so I want to continue those dialogues. Those are the things I want to foster.”
1.Why did UNESCO set April 30 as International Jazz Day?
A.To remember the birth of jazz.
B.To protect cultural diversity.
C.To encourage people to study music.
D.To recognize the value of jazz.
2.What does the underlined word “that” in paragraph 3 refer to?
A.Jazz becoming more accessible.
B.The production of jazz growing faster.
C.Jazz being less popular with the young.
D.The jazz audience becoming larger.
3.What can we infer about Moran’s opinion on jazz?
A.It will disappear gradually.
B.It remains black and white.
C.It should keep up with the times.
D.It changes every 50 years.
4.Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
A.Exploring the Future of Jazz.
B.The Rise and Fall of Jazz.
C.The Story of a Jazz Musician.
D.Celebrating the Jazz Day.
Benjamin West, the father of American painting, showed his talent for art when he was only six years of age. But he did not know about brushes before a visitor told him he needed one. In those days, a brush was made from camel’s hair. There were no camels nearby. Benjamin decided that cat hair would work instead. He cut some fur from the family cat to make a brush.
The brush did not last long. Soon Benjamin needed more fur. Before long, the cat began to look ragged（蓬乱）. His father said that the cat must be sick. Benjamin was forced to admit what he had been doing.
The cat’s lot was about to improve. That year, one of Benjamin’s cousins, Mr. Pennington, came to visit. He was impressed with Benjamin’s drawings. When he went home, he sent Benjamin a box of paint and some brushes. He also sent six engravings（版画） by an artist. These were the first pictures and first real paint and brushes Benjamin had ever seen. In 1747, when Benjamin was nine years old, Mr. Pennington returned for another visit. He was amazed at what Benjamin had done with his gift. He asked Benjamin’s parents if he might take the boy to Philadelphia for a visit.
In the city, Mr. Pennington gave Benjamin materials for creating oil paintings. The boy began a landscape(风景) painting. William Williams, a well-known painter, came to see him work. Williams was impressed with Benjamin and gave him two classic books on painting to take home. The books were long and dull. Benjamin could read only a little, having been a poor student. But he later said,＂Those two books were my companions by day, and under my pillow at night.＂While it is likely that he understood very little of the books, they were his introduction to classical paintings. The nine-year-old boy decided then that he would be an artist.
1.What is the text mainly about?
A.Benjamin’s visit to Philadelphia.
B.Williams’ influence on Benjamin.
C.The beginning of Benjamin’s life as an artist.
D.The friendship between Benjamin and Pennington.
2.What does the underlined sentence in paragraph 3 suggest?
A.The cat would be closely watched.
B.The cat would get some medical care.
C.Benjamin would leave his home shortly.
D.Benjamin would have real brushes soon.
3.What did Pennington do to help Benjamin develop his talent?
A.He took him to see painting exhibitions.
B.He provided him with painting materials.
C.He sent him to a school in Philadelphia.
D.He taught him how to make engravings.
4.Williams’ two books helped Benjamin to _____________.
A.master the use of paints
B.appreciate landscape paintings
C.get to know other painters
D.make up his mind to be a painter
Pacific Science Center Guide
◆Visit Pacific Science Center’s Store
Don’t forget to stop by Pacific Science Center’s Store while you are here to pick up a wonderful science activity or souvenir to remember your visit. The store is located(位于) upstairs in Building 3 right next to the Laser Dome.
◆Hungry
Our exhibits will feed your mind, but what about your body? Our café offers a complete menu of lunch and snack options, in addition to seasonal specials. The café is located upstairs in Building 1 and is open daily until one hour before Pacific Science Center closes.
◆Rental Information
Lockers are available to store any belongings during your visit. The lockers are located in Building 1 near the Information Desk and in Building 3. Pushchairs and wheelchairs are available to rent at the Information Desk and Denny Way entrance. ID required.
◆Support Pacific Science Center
Since 1962, Pacific Science Center has been inspiring a passion(热情) for discovery and lifelong learning in science, math and technology. Today, Pacific Science Center serves more than 1.3 million people a year and brings inquiry-based science education to classrooms and community events all over Washington State. It’s an amazing accomplishment and one we cannot achieve without generous support from individuals, corporations, and other social organizations. Visit pacificsciencecenter.org to find various ways you can support Pacific Science Center.
1.Where can you buy a souvenir at Pacific Science Center?
A.In Building 1.
B.In Building 3.
C.At the the Laser Dome.
D.At the Denny Way entrance.
2.What does Pacific Science Center do for schools?
A.Train Science teachers.
B.Distribute science books.
C.Inspire scientific research.
D.Take science to the classroom.
3.What is the purpose of the last part of the text?
A.To encourage donations.
B.To advertise coming events.
C.To introduce special exhibits.
D.To tell about the Center’s history.
Lots of people find it hard to get up in the morning, and put the blame on the alarm clock. In fact, the key to easy morning wake-up lies in resetting your body clock.1.Here’s how to make one.
● 2.In order to make a change, you need to decide why it’s important. Do you want to get up in time to have breakfast with your family, get in some exercise, or just be better prepared for your day? Once you are clear about your reasons, tell your family or roommates about the change you want to make.
● Rethink mornings. Now that you know why you want to wake up, consider re-arranging your morning activities. If you want time to have breakfast with your family, save some time the night before by setting out clothes, shoes, and bags. 3. That’s a quarter-hour more you could be sleeping if you bought a coffee maker with a timer.
● Keep your sleep/ wake schedule on weekends. If you’re tired out by Friday night, sleeping in on Saturday could sound wonderful. But compensating (补偿) on the weekends actually feeds into your sleepiness the following week, a recent study found. 4.
● Keep a record and evaluate it weekly. Keep track of your efforts and write down how you feel. After you’ve tried a new method for a week, take a look at your record. 5. If not, take another look at other methods you could try.
A.Get a sleep specialist.
B.Find the night motivation.
C.A better plan for sleep can help.
D.And consider setting a second alarm.
E.If the steps you take are working, keep it up.
F.Stick to your set bedtime and wake-up time, no matter the day.
G.Reconsider the 15 minutes you spend in line at the café to get coffee.
