How to Make a Difference to the World
Many people believe that they don’t have what it takes to make a difference to the world. They believe only people like Mother Teresa, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein and Bill Gates are able to do so.1.The following is a guide as to how small people like us can make a difference to the world.
1．It need not be an enormous task.
2.In this case, you already have what it takes to make the world a better place.
Making a difference to the world may seem like an enormous task, but it is in fact the collective effort of everyone to make small contributions. The size of the contribution is not what matters most. The key here is to have the heart to do it.
2．Start now.
There is no one best time to start to make a difference to the world. You don’t need to wait till you have the time to share some love; you don’t have to wait till you earn more money to share a piece of bread. Little efforts count. 3.
3． 4.
As the saying goes, “Give a man a fish; you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” The good that we seek to do will make more of a difference when there is a long-lasting effect rather than a temporary effect. 5. And when more people receive education, they will in turn provide more value to the world.
A.For example, building a school will benefit many people for years to come.
B.Nobody can do everything, but everyone can do something.
C.Seek to make a long-lasting effect.
D.You can start making small contributions today.
E.If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one.
F.The truth is, every one of us can make it in our own unique way.
G.Stop complaining and do something.
Is there a “success personality”—some winning combination of qualities that leads almost essentially to achievement? If so, exactly what is that secret success formula (公式), and can anyone develop it?
At the Gallop Organization we recently focused in depth on success, digging into the attitudes of 1500 brilliant people selected at random (随机) from Who’s Who in America. Our research finds out a number of qualities that occur regularly among top achievers. Here is one of the most important, that is, common sense.
Common sense is the most popular quality shared by the top achievers. Seventy-nine percent award themselves a top score in this quality. And 61 percent say that common sense was very important in contributing to their success.
To most, common sense means the ability to present sound, practical judgments on everyday affairs. To do this, one has to sweep aside extra ideas and get right to the heart of what matters. A Texas oil and gas businessman puts it this way: “The key ability for success is simplifying. In conduction of meeting and dealing with industry, reducing a complex problem to the simplest term is highly important.”
Is common sense a quality a person is born with, or can you do something to increase it? The oil man’s answer is that common sense can definitely be developed. He attributes (归咎) his to learning how to debate in school. Another way to increase your store of common sense is to observe it in others, learning from their and your own mistakes.
Besides common sense, there are many other factors that influence success: knowing your field, self-reliance, intelligence, the ability to get things done, leadership, creativity, relationships with others, and of course, luck. But common sense stands out. If you develop these qualities, you’ll succeed. And you might even find yourself listed in Who’s Who someday.
1.Roughly how many people in the survey listed common sense as the most important quality?
A.80. B.60. C.1200. D.900.
2.In paragraph 4, the example of the oil and gas businessman is used to prove_______.
A.common sense can be judged B.common sense means simplifying
C.common sense can be developed D.common sense is quite complex
3.What do we know about common sense?
A.It’s rooted in common people. B.It is a side effect of mistakes.
C.It is taught by our parents. D.It can be trained by ourselves.
4.What is the best title of the passage?
A.Common Sense B.The Success Personality
C.Personal Qualities D.A Popular Formula
The fast spread of the virus has led most Chinese citizens to wear face masks in public to help reduce infections. The Beijing-based Hanwang Technology Ltd. says it has created a new facial recognition system that is the first to effectively identify people even if they are wearing masks.
China is recognized as a world leader in the development of artificial intelligence and facial recognition system. The new system is based on the existing technologies developed over the past 10 years.
“When wearing a mask, the recognition rate can reach about 95 percent, which can ensure that most people can be identified,” Hanwang’s vice president, Huang Lei, said. He added that the system’s success rate for people not wearing a mask is about 99.5 percent. However, the new system struggles to identify people wearing both a mask and sunglasses. “In this situation, all of the key facial information is lost. In such cases recognition is tough,” Huang said.
Hanwang is now selling two main kinds of products that use the technology. One performs “single channel” recognition and the other is a “multi-channel” recognition, which can identify individuals in a crowd of up to 30 people “within a second”.
Huang said officials can use Hanwang’s technology to compare images with ministry (部门) records on individuals in order to identify and track people as they move about. The system can identify crime suspects (嫌疑人), terrorists or make reports or warnings, he added.
While some citizens have expressed opposition to such tools, more people seem to have accepted the methods as a way to deal with the current health emergency.
So far, Huang says most interest in the new system has come from within China. But he sees the interest likely expanding if the virus continues to spread and the use of face masks increases.
1.What do we know about the new facial recognition system?
A.It has no relation to the existing tech. B.It is being used both at home and abroad.
C.It can record people’s temperature. D.It can be used for many purposes.
2.According to the passage, the new system will probably be most helpful for _______.
A.international companies B.colleges and universities
C.the Ministry of Public Safety D.the Ministry of Manpower
3.What’s most people’s attitude towards the use of the new system?
A.Supportive. B.Disapproving. C.Uncaring. D.Doubtful.
4.What’s the purpose of the passage?
A.To show China’s technological advances. B.To introduce a newly developed system.
C.To demonstrate the innovation of China. D.To advertise a new tech-based product.
Readers who long imagined themselves in Harry Potter’s world have a chance to absorb themselves in another fictional universe created by J.K. Rowling. The author said that she would release (发布) The Ickabog, a new story for young readers, for free online.
The first chapter of the fairy tale about a monster known as the Ickabog was published on May 26, and further chapters will be released every week until July 10. It is targeted to readers aged 7 to 9 and will be published as a book in November. The story concerns rumors (谣言) of a fierce child-eating monster with extraordinary powers which lives in the northern tip of an imaginary land known as Cornucopia.
Rowling said she had started working on the book more than a decade ago, while she was still writing Harry Potter, and originally intended to publish it after Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the last of her seven-book Potter series. But she ended up keeping The Ickabog, which isn’t related to Harry Potter or any of Rowling’s other work, in her family, reading it to her young children and then putting it away until recently. “I’ve decided to publish The Ickabog for free online, so children on lockdown, or even those back at school during these strange, unsettling times, can read it or have it read to them,” Rowling said. Rowling said she would donate her royalties (版税) for the book to causes related to the coronavirus (冠状病毒) diseases.
Readers will have a chance to participate in the process. Rowling’s publishers around the world will hold an illustration (插图) competition, encouraging children to submit (提交) drawings to accompany the story. The best submissions will end up in the book’s final edition when it is published in the fall.
Rowling’s children, now teenagers, are “touchingly ecstatic” about the publication of their childhood bedtime story, Rowling wrote on her site. She started reading chapters to them again recently, which she said was “one of the most extraordinary experiences of my writing life. ”
1.It will take at least ______ for readers to finish reading The Ickabog online.
A.a week B.one month and a half C.three months D.six months
2.What do you know about the The Ickabog?
A.It is the name of an imaginary island. B.It sees teenagers as targeted readers.
C.It is a continuation of the Potter series. D.It was completed a long time ago.
3.Why does J. K. Rowling release the book free online?
A.To collect money for coronavirus research.
B.To involve readers in the illustration competition.
C.To entertain children over the COVID-19 period.
D.To appeal to Harry Potter lovers.
4.What does the underlined word “ecstatic” probably mean?
A.Disappointed. B.Worried. C.Nervous. D.Excited.
Our much-loved museums and art galleries are closing their doors due to the current outbreak of COVID-19. But don’t worry. With the help of the Internet, we can take virtual tours of them around the world. There are some fascinating exhibitions at our fingertips, which you can explore from home free of charge!
Musée d’Orsay, Paris
Fancy a trip to Paris? Oui oui! This grand museum holds the largest collection of impressionist and post-impressionist works in the world, and you can click your way through the very best among them thanks to interactive galleries featuring Van Gogh, Cézanne, Degas and more.
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
Over in the Netherlands, the Rijksmuseum is a treasure house of classical Dutch art, Asian artwork and 17th-century silver and porcelain. The Street View-style tour is fine, but better to stick to the brilliant online exhibitions, like the interactive guide to the master of throwing shade, Rembrandt. You can even get up close and personal with ‘The Night Watch’.
Picasso Museum, Barcelona
As well as a vast online display of Picasso’s best bits, this museum offers a 360-degree tour of some of the best-preserved Medieval architecture in Barcelona. When you’re done getting around the building, you can check out their Twitter hashtag (推特标签）#MuseuPicassoVirtual to keep up with daily news of art.
Hong Kong Heritage Museum
The Heritage Museum has everything from Chinese fine art dating back to the Qing dynasty to cutting-edge Hong Kong contemporary art. The online collection, hosted on Google Arts & Culture, is particularly strong on design, photography, porcelain and sculpture from the past century.
1.In the Rijksmuseum, you will have a better understanding of _________.
A.Van Gogh B.Rembrandt
C.Picasso D.impressionists
2.Which museum can keep you updated with news of art through social media every day?
A.Musée d’Orsay. B.Rijksmuseum.
C.Picasso Museum. D.Hong Kong Heritage Museum.
3.What is special about Hong Kong Heritage Museum?
A.It stresses contemporary art. B.It has porcelain exhibits.
C.It offers visual tours online. D.It features Chinese art.
阅读下面短文, 根据所给情节进行续写, 使之构成一个完整的故事。
Robert and Henry were two friends in the same class. They always played together and went home together. One day Robert and Henry were going home from school, when, on turning a corner, Robert cried out, “A fight! Let’s go and see!”
“No,” said Henry. “Let us go quietly home and not meddle with(插手) this quarrel. We have nothing to do with it and may get into mischief(trouble). Also our parents are expecting to have dinner with us together at home and I don’t want them to worry about me. ”
“You are a coward, and afraid to go,” said Robert, and off he ran. Henry went straight home, and in the afternoon went to school as usual.
But Robert had told all the boys that Henry was a coward, and they laughed at him a great deal. From then on, they looked down upon Henry and didn’t want to play with him together.
Henry was sad but he wasn’t angry with Robert for his rude behavior, because he learned that true courage is shown most in bearing misunderstanding when it was not deserved, and that he ought to be afraid of nothing but doing wrong. Thus, he just ignored the other boys’ laughter and continued to go to school and study as well. However, Robert didn’t invite Henry to go home with him anymore. Instead, he had some other boys who also thought Henry was a coward. Every day after school, they didn’t go home directly but went to the river or somewhere to play games and had a lot of fun.
A few days later, Robert was bathing with his new friends in a river, and got out of his depth. He struggled, and screamed for help, but all in vain. The boys who had called Henry a coward got out of the water as fast as they could, but they did not even try to help him.
注意：
1.所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2.应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3.续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4.续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1:
Robert was fast sinking.
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Paragraph 2:
Thus, Robert’s life was saved.
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