The fight is on to get rid of air pollution in our cities. While the best solution in the long-term would be to ban fossil-fueled cars, that won’t help the millions who are dying in the meantime, and so some high-tech solutions are now on the cards.
London’s air pollution problem has been getting worse for years. In March 2016, ten London pigeons became famous. These pigeons took to the sky, wearing backpacks monitoring air pollution. Once in the air, the backpacks sent live air-quality updates to the smartphones of the Londoners below.
Another promising approach can be found in Beijing. A seven-metre-high “Smog Free Tower”, designed by a Dutch scientist, Daan Roosegaarde, opened in Beijing’s 751 D Park in September 2016. It is a huge, outdoor air purifier. Airborne particles (颗粒) are sucked into the tower and caught by a dust-removal plate. Finally, clean air is blown out of the other end. “Changing smog particles does not take much power.” Roosegaarde said.
As for what to do with the collected PM waste, he has currently set up a business making jewellery out of the waste. Prince Charles owns a set of “smog free” cufflinks (袖扣). If collected on at a big scale, Roosegaarde believes it could even be used as a building material.
Mexico City has an alternative solution. Looking to Nature to maximize the surface area of a building, Allison Dring, a Berlin-based architect, managed to catch light and wind from all sides. She is now making a building material by burning agricultural crop by-products in the absence of oxygen. “It means that you are actually taking carbon (碳) out of the sky, transforming it into a material, and then using it to build,” says Dring.
The fight against outdoor air pollution is really just starting. Even if none of the ideas take off, at least Prince Charles’ cufflinks, the special building surface and pigeons wearing back-packs will have brought the issue more to the public’s attention.
1.The underlined words “on the cards” in Para.1 probably mean ________.
A.hardly to achieve
B.widely questioned
C.very likely to happen
D.publicly welcomed
2.The ten pigeons in London were used to ________.
A.monitor air pollution
B.warn Londoners
C.update weather forecast
D.promote backpacks
3.What can we learn about the Smog Free Tower?
A.It can catch light and wind.
B.Its power consumption is high.
C.PM waste from it can be reused.
D.It is the first air purifier in the world.
4.What’s the best title for the passage?
A.When can humans get rid of smog?
B.Why is technology used to fight smog?
C.How are the world’s cities fighting smog?
D.What makes smog a worldwide problem?
When the Bayside campus of Shekou International School (SIS) are still kept shut because of the COVID-19 pandemic, teaching activities at the school have been resumed online since Feb. 3rd, 2020.
The school is using popular apps and software for online learning. Video conferencing and office automation are used to help teachers keep track of students’ conditions and communicate with their workmates across the world. Teaching online also offers a new experience to the teachers to update their teaching methods and to step out of their comfort zones.
Staying in Phuket, Thailand, science teacher Riley Laird records videos on a 10-year-old green sea turtle named Marlin and the local turtle sanctuary as part of the online classes on ecosystems for Grade 7 students. “I want to connect our learning with the reality. The sanctuary sends us updates on the turtles’ health and progress. They say that Marlin is likely to be released into the sea in mid-June,” says Laird.
Rebecca Wallace is a Grade 4 teacher at the school, staying in her mother’s home in New York. From 8 p.m. to midnight every day, she starts teaching mathematics and arts to her students living in different time zones. Though teaching nearly around the clock, Wallace says that she is getting to know the students better in terms of their homes, family and even pets.
Greg Smith, head of SIS, names the online teaching period a “new normal” at the school. “Students are now more skillful at using technology than before. They see that communication is the most powerful part of being an effective learner and can use the tools to shrink distance and time. The “new normal” will offer more choices for connection to the world and more focus on creating real solutions,” he says.
According to the school, 68% of its students are staying in Shenzhen while 27% of them are staying abroad for the epidemic.
1.Riley Laird records videos on Marlin to ________ .
A.connect learning with the reality B.rescue the endangered turtles
C.study the ecosystem of the turtles D.show his pet to the class
2.Rebecca Wallace teaches around the clock, because ________.
A.she and her students live in different time zones B.she needs to look after her mother in the daytime
C.she enjoys chatting with her students D.she has many lessons each day
3.According to Greg Smith, online teaching ________.
A.builds up a new relationship among students B.makes teachers step out of their comfort zones
C.results in the skillful use of technology D.helps create new education system
4.What is the author’s purpose in writing this passage?
A.To advertise an international school. B.To evaluate the online learning apps.
C.To suggest effective learning methods. D.To introduce online teaching attempts.
Four teams of mountaineers set out on a race to conquer(征服) an unclimbed mountain peak in the Himalayas. The Canadian team chose a long, but safe route, while the British, Chinese and Russian teams chose a faster but steep and dangerous route up the mountain.
When night fell, the teams made camp on the mountainside. But the next morning, the sun rapidly rose air temperature and the strong wind caused a heavy snowfall, which led to a terrible avalanche. The disaster struck and some members of the British, Chinese and Russian teams were swept away and killed. But the Canadians didn’t know what had happened.
It was an hour after the disaster and there was no hope of finding any survivors. The leaders of the British, Chinese and Russian teams, met to discuss how to successfully keep all the survivors alive.
| Britain | Russia | China |
Members | 3 | 2 | 2 |
Tents | 1 two-man | None | 1 four-man |
Sleeping bags | 3 | 2 | 2 |
Rope | 25 metres | 50 metres | None |
Food | 1 person for 3 days | 2 people for 4 days | 2 people for 2 days |
Medicine | None | None | None |
The table above was a summary of what they could collect. The leaders made a final decision that they had to find a way to conquer the mountain and put their flags on the peak.
1.What kind of route did the Chinese team choose?
A.A long but safe route. B.A short but dangerous route.
C.A separate but flat route. D.An unknown but steep route.
2.What disaster struck the three teams?
A.High temperature. B.An avalanche.
C.Strong wind. D.A heavy snowfall.
3.What is the table about in the passage?
A.The supplies and equipment they had left.
B.The plan of their follow up climbs.
C.The survey of their damages and injuries.
D.The difficulties they would meet.
4.The three leaders decided to__________.
A.give up the race B.keep climbing
C.ask for help D.look for the survivors
5.Where is the passage most probably from?
A.A business newspaper. B.A health guide.
C.A culture magazine. D.A nature journal.
Callie heard a knock and pulled open the door. Her favorite neighbor, Mrs. Baker, stood there. “The city is letting us use the empty lot(空地) for a _________,” she explained. “We need help cleaning up our garden on Sunday.” “Sure!” Callie said cheerfully. “I will be there to help!”
The next morning when Callie _________ school, her friend Tamara was waiting for her, who had a _________ for Callie. “My mom bought tickets for us to go to Fun World this Sunday.” Tamara said. The girls had been waiting for months for the new amusement park to open.
Callie’s heart dropped. “But Mrs. Baker is _________ me to help,” she said. Tamara looked _________. “Can’t someone else do it? I want you to go to Fun World with me! ”
Callie worried about her _________ for the rest of the day. Her mother noticed her mood. “I know you want to go with Tamara and also help Mrs. Baker. Think carefully about your _________. You need to make your own decisions, but I know you will do _________ is the best.” Her mother said.
Callie spent the rest of the evening thinking about her decision.
The next day at school, Callie told Tamara that she was _________ to go to Fun World. Tamara tried to understand, but Callie could __________ Tamara was disappointed. The girls hardly spoke for the rest of the week.
On Sunday, Callie met Mrs. Baker at the garden. “Your mother said you made a(n) __________ choice. Thank you for giving a hand today.” Callie smiled as she cleaned with a large trash bag.
“Do you need any help?” a voice behind her asked. Callie __________, surprised to see Tamara. “I know you made a(n) __________ to clean up the garden, and I wanted to come help you. My mom said she could take us to Fun World next weekend.”
With joint efforts, they finished the cleaning __________. Both Callie and Tamara realized that once a promise is made, it needs to be __________.
1.A.match B.garden C.class D.party
2.A.looked for B.graduated from C.arrived at D.joined in
3.A.surprise B.warning C.decision D.suggestion
4.A.following B.expecting C.encouraging D.allowing
5.A.annoyed B.scared C.excited D.disappointed
6.A.problem B.explanation C.challenge D.dream
7.A.chances B.relationships C.choices D.interest
8.A.who B.where C.why D.what
9.A.unsure B.unprepared C.unable D.unwilling
10.A.test B.tell C.accept D.agree
11.A.difficult B.clear C.different D.important
12.A.answered B.turned C.refused D.greeted
13.A.attempt B.change C.guess D.promise
14.A.hurriedly B.slowly C.early D.quietly
15.A.shared B.broken C.given D.kept
假定你是学生会主席李华，你校外教Jack对学生会即将组织的“中国美食节”活动很感兴趣。请你用英语给他写一封信，邀请他参加这次活动，内容包括：
1.活动的目的；
2.活动的时间和地点；
3.活动的内容（至少两项）。
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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下面短文中共有10处语言错误，请在有错误的地方增加、删除或修改某个单词。
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、每句不超过两个错误；
2、每处错误及其修改均限一词；
3、只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）.
Last Monday, we were having our Chinese class while the teacher suddenly slipped and fall. We were all worried about her. One of the boy carried her on the back, under the help of some others, to the clinic immediately. It turned out that her right leg was breaking and she had to stay in hospital. The following day, we went to visit her with flowers. Seeing her lying in bed with leg wrapped in bandages, we felt sorry for her and hoped that she would recover soon. Lucky, this Thursday she returned back to the class in a wheelchair to give us lessons. We were both deeply moved and proud of have such a responsible teacher.
