For the past three years, I have been working full-time, attending school, and raising a family. To say I am tired is an understatement (保守的陈述）.
My teenage daughter _______to run a 5K this Saturday morning. When we arrived at the start, it occurred to me that I should run with her, _______I believed that I couldn't do it. In fact, I wasn't _______active at all during the last three years. I was not_______for it, nor did I have the proper nutrition and diet. Despite these _______, I found myself _________for the race. “I'll just walk it,” I reasoned to myself.
Standing in a crowd of people in _______clothes, I heard the gun _______to signify the start of the race. Everyone else was running, so I ran too. The sea of runners _______over a hill, and I was left with only one other woman. It wasn't long before I began to ________, and the other woman did the ________. I could tell she was much ________ than me. Then she began to run again. I couldn't let her________me, so I began to run too. We continued this series of running and walking, and ________I got ahead of her. Then I kept running and walking until I ________a group of women running with a small child, my daughter's pregnant teacher, one of my daughter's ________and then I did the same with her another classmate. I managed to ________the finish line finally.
Sometimes, life teaches us a lesson when we least ________it. Through the race, I ________it out that I can complete what seems ________ for me.
1.A.signed up B.gave in C.moved on D.paid off
2.A.unless B.because C.even though D.as if
3.A.mentally B.socially C.politically D.physically
4.A.excited B.known C.marked D.dressed
5.A.advantages B.barriers C.profits D.differences
6.A.searching B.changing C.registering D.blaming
7.A.sports B.school C.formal D.traditional
8.A.go out B.go off C.go across D.go down
9.A.disappeared B.dropped C.flew D.approached
10.A.run B.walk C.jump D.quit
11.A.right B.opposite C.same D.next
12.A.younger B.taller C.stronger D.older
13.A.control B.cheat C.beat D.catch
14.A.deliberately B.fortunately C.eventually D.unconsciously
15.A.passed B.missed C.visited D.admired
16.A.drivers B.classmates C.volunteers D.neighbors
17.A.cross B.remove C.draw D.achieve
18.A.add B.change C.enjoy D.expect
19.A.clear B.figure C.hand D.throw
20.A.practical B.obvious C.unnecessary D.impossible
Every little thing you do really makes a difference! There are classes and clubs focused on various social problems. 1.One cause that has been popular in recent years is helping the environment and preserving our resources. There are several ways that you can help protect this planet we call Earth. Using reusable bags is one of those vital ways to protect the world's resources.
Plastic grocery-type bags that get thrown out end up in landfills or in other parts of the environment. These can make animals stuck in them or mistake them for food.2.
Whether you are shopping for food, clothes or books, use a reusable bag. This cuts down on rubbish and prevents animals from getting a hold of them. There are even some stores that offer discounts for using reusable bags! 3.I have heard of people using reusable bags when they move!
If you forget your reusable bags at home, buy a new one. 4.Just make sure you remember to put them there and never leave home without them!
If you are in a position where you need to use the plastic bags, reuse them next time you go shopping, or use them for something else. Just do not be so quick to throw them out!
There are some states that are outlawing(宣布……不合法）or charging extra for using plastic bags. 5.
A.Also, it takes a while for them to break down.
B.Students are constantly learning what they can do.
C.However, you had better keep a couple of bags in your car.
D.These bags are useful for things other than shopping as well.
E.Using reusable bags helps the environment and your budget!
F.They teach students how they can help deal with these problems.
G.When buying drinks, consider buying those with reusable water bottles.
How the languages of the world appeared is largely a mystery. Considering that it might have taken thousands of years, it is attractive to see how deaf people can create novel sign languages unconsciously. Interestingly, children played an important role in the development of these novel languages. However, how exactly this happened has not been documented.
In a series of studies, researchers attempted to recreate exactly this process. Children were invited to stay in two different rooms and an online connection was set up between them.After a brief familiarization with the set- up, the researchers sneakily (偷偷地）turned off the sound and watched as the children found new ways of communicating that go beyond spoken language.
The children's task was to describe an image with different themes in a coordination game. With concrete things-like a hammer or a fork-children quickly found a solution by imitating the matching action, for example, eating, in a gesture. But the researchers repeatedly challenged the children with new, more abstract pictures. In the course of the study, the images to be described became more and more complex, which was also reflected in the gestures that the children produced. In order to communicate, the children invented separate gestures for actors and actions and began to combine them-thus creating a kind of small local grammar.
How does a language come into being? Based on the present study, the following steps appear reasonable: first, people create reference to actions and objects through signs that resemble things. The precondition for this is a common ground of experience between interaction partners. Partners also coordinate (配合）by imitating each other so that they use the same signs for the same things. The signs thus gain interpersonal and eventually common meaning. Over time, the relationships between the signs and things become more abstract and the meaning of the individual signs becomes more specific. Grammatical structures are gradually introduced when there is a need to communicate more complex facts. However, the most remarkable aspect of the current studies is that these processes can be observed under controlled circumstances and within 30 minutes.
1.How did the researchers carry out the experiment?
A.By making the communication in total silence.
B.By inferring to and copying the documented scene.
C.By observing children communicate face to face.
D.By listening secretly to the communication of children.
2.What should children do in the studies?
A.Show how to do different things with different tools.
B.Take several oral examinations on foreign languages.
C.Describe things to others without spoken languages.
D.Name some abstract objects which they have never seen.
3.What is the process of creating a language?
A.Signs→Accepted meaning→Interpersonal meaning→Language
B.Interpersonal meaning→Accepted meaning→Signs→Language
C.Accepted meaning→Interpersonal meaning→Signs→Language
D.Signs→Interpersonal meaning→Accepted meaning→Language
4.What is the text mainly about?
A.The development of novel sign languages.
B.The first steps of the making of languages.
C.The role children play in creating languages.
D.The circumstances of languages coming into being.
If nothing is done to stop rising sea levels, the homes of 200 million people could be underwater by the year 2100. That's according to a study published in the scientific magazine Nature Communications. The global sea level has been rising for more than a century, and more quickly over the last several decades. That's because climate change is melting glaciers (冰川）and ice sheets. Higher sea levels flood coastlines. If steps aren't taken to protect cities and towns, people could be forced to move inland.
One European country is especially vulnerable to flooding: the Netherlands. More than a quarter of the country already sits below sea level. But the Netherlands has developed tactics (策略）for dealing with water. For that reason, many experts believe that even though it's vulnerable to rising seas, the country is well-equipped to deal with them.
In the region that is now the Netherlands, people have been inventing ways to keep out water for at least 900 years. The country is famous for its dikes (堤坝），which are long walls that prevent flooding. But in recent years, experts there have developed new techniques that go far beyond dikes, some of which are high-tech.For example, the Maeslantkering is a massive storm-surge barrier that protects the city of Rotterdam from seawater. It's controlled by a supercomputer. It closes automatically when Rotterdam is threatened by floods.
Other projects look to nature for inspiration.The DakAkker is a farm located on top of an office building in Rotterdam. The building's roof holds rainwater to prevent runoff. Another example is the Floating Farm. Its designers wanted to make room for agriculture in a waterflooded city. More than 30 dairy cows live on the farm, which floats in Rotterdam's waterways.The farm generates (生产）its own energy using floating solar panels.
“It's not that our solutions are the best,” says Henk Ovink, who works on water issues for the Dutch government. “But we provide ideas for your country's solutions.”
1.What does the underlined word“vulnerable”in paragraph 2 probably mean?
A.Heavily independent. B.Easy to be attacked.
C.Experienced in solving. D.Totally unconcerned.
2.What can we learn about“the Maeslantkering”?
A.It's a tactic to deal with glaciers. B.It's a high-tech life-saving ship.
C.It's a computer-controlled dike. D.It's a high building for escape.
3.Where is the Floating Farm?
A.On the river. B.Under the water.
C.On the long dikes. D.On top of a building.
4.What does Henk Ovink think of Dutch's tactics to fight floods?
A.An outline. B.An instruction. C.An assumption. D.An inspiration.
As the three of them approached the waterfalls late in the afternoon of the third day of their camping trip, Curtis Whitson could tell from the increasing roar (轰鸣）of water in the narrowing valley that they were in serious trouble. Heavy snow and spring rains had turned the usually manageable falls into something fierce. There was no way they'd be able to sail down the waterfall as planned.
“We've got to do something!” Whitson yelled to his wife, Krystal Ramirez, and his 13-year-old son, Hunter. Then he noticed and grabbed his bright red water bottle and carved “Help!”on it. Ramirez also reminded him that Hunter had a pen and paper in his backpack, with which they played a game. Whitson wrote “We are stuck here@the waterfall. Get help please!” on the paper, put the note into the bottle and threw it over the waterfalls.
They had thought they probably weren't going to get rescued that night. However, at midnight, they heard a helicopter above them. Unfortunately, the pilot didn't find a good place to land. The crew announced that they would come back the next day.
The next morning, the helicopter returned and lowered a crew member on a cable. Then rescuers lifted Hunter, Ramirez, and Whitson out of the valley one by one and put them and their gear (装备）on the closest cliff （悬崖）where the helicopter could safely land.
When the officers dropped them back at the campground, they learned more about the events that had saved them:Two men had seen the water bottle floating in the water. When they picked it up, they noticed the writing on it-“Help!” -which inspired their curiosity. Then they realized there was a note inside. After they read it, they brought it to the campground, turned the bottle in, and took off without leaving their names.
1.What trouble did the Whitsons meet with?
A.They were trapped at the top of waterfalls. B.They were lost in the travel in a small boat.
C.They were flooded by the rising river water. D.They had run out of all their drinking water.
2.Whitson used his water bottle to________.
A.play games B.send a message
C.make a time reminder D.defend the family
3.What can we infer about the place where the Whitsons stayed?
A.It was on a flat hillside. B.It was on the wide water.
C.It was between steep cliffs. D.It was at the top of a mountain.
4.How were the Whitsons finally saved?
A.They got back to the campground by themselves.
B.They were guided to climb from the valley safely.
C.They were rescued by two passers-by accidentally.
D.They were found and saved by professional rescuers.
The USA's Best Drive-in Movie Theatres
Gather your friends, pile into the car, and enjoy an evening of America at these classic theatres.
Fort Lauderdale Swap Shop-Fort Lauderdale, Florida
The Fort Lauderdale Swap Shop holds the title for the world's largest drive-in theatre. The drive-in theatre opened on 22 November 1963 with one screen. Now, the theatre has 13 new screens and nearly 12 million people visit it annually. The original screen is still up in running, although it's now called screen nine. Thanks to Florida's amazing weather, the theatre is open 365 days a year.
Harvest Moon Twin Drive-In-Gibson City, Illinois
Built in 1954, this two-screen drive-in is making a name for itself thanks to a decision to switch to wind power. The owners at Harvest Moon Twin Drive-In started using wind power as a way of keeping the costs of running the theatre down. By doing so, the drive-in is able to keep their prices consistent and if you want to catch a film at this green theatre, it's open from March until October.
Coyote Drive-In-Fort Worth, Texas
Opened in 2013, Coyote Drive-In was built with the goal of bringing back the drive-in magic to the community (社区）. One ticket will give you access to nightly double features-two movies back to back- available on four different screens. A unique feature of the theatre is that pets of all shapes and sizes are welcome, including horses.
Field of Dreams-Liberty Center, Ohio
Paying honour to the film Field of Dreams, Rod and Donna Saunders built the Field of Dreams drive-in theatre on their farmland in Liberty Center, Ohio in 1989. The Saunders' project provides cost-effective family entertainment for the locals of their countryside community.
1.What is special about Harvest Moon Twin Drive-In?
A.It has the most screens. B.Its ticket price is steady.
C.It has a quiet environment. D.It has newly imported equipment.
2.What inspired the Saunders to build the Field of Dreams?
A.A wonderful film of the same name. B.Their famous farmland in the countryside.
C.The locals'demands for entertainment. D.The cultural promotion of their community.
3.Which drive-in theatre has the shortest history?
A.Fort Lauderdale Swap Shop. B.Harvest Moon Twin Drive-In.
C.Coyote Drive-In. D.Field of Dreams.
