Which came first, the chicken or the egg? 1. Philosophers used it as an excuse to argue about cause and effect. What's more, it’s what is known as a paradox—a situation or statement that appears to present contrary facts, both of which can logically be true.
Some might say the chicken came first, since you can’t have an egg without a chicken to lay it. But others might argue the egg came first, since all chickens begin life inside of an egg. A paradox, right? 2. “It’s pretty easy to understand,” said Jasmina Wiemann, a scientist at Yale University. “The egg is much older, evolutionarily(进化地) , than the chicken.”
Chickens, as we all know, probably became domesticated (驯养) about 10,000 years ago. 3. These animals are known as jungle fowl or Gallus.
4. Dinosaurs, birds, reptiles and even mammals that lay eggs evolved about 300 million years ago, Wiemann said. This pushes the origins of the egg back even further.
By the way, if you thought it strange to see mammals are put into a group with egg-laying animals, you should know that egg-laying is part of our evolutionary history. And female humans today still produce eggs through a process called ovulation. The soft eggs without shell stay inside of humans. 5.
A.Eggs existed even long before this.
B.This question has its roots in ancient Greece.
C.The answer remains mysterious even if you ask a specialist.
D.Eatable eggs came into being hundreds of millions of years ago.
E.The answer is rather simple if you talk to an ancient expert about it.
F.But the animals that they developed from date back to 21 million years ago.
G.Even stranger, some mammals still reproduce by laying eggs that survive outside the body.
When I'm surfing the Web, I want to be attracted by articles on Europe's political history, but I end up reading trivia (琐事) such as a menu from a Michelin restaurant. Why am I not curious about the things I want to be curious about? Curiosity feels as if it's outside your control, but if you understand what causes curiosity, you might be able to direct it a little bit better.
Humans will give up the known benefit to explore the unknown. In one experiment, subjects were asked to choose one of four photos, each carrying some chance of paying a cash prize. Photos appeared again and again, so subjects learned to pick the best-paying. But when a novel photo appeared, they chose it quite more often. This preference for novelty is the reason why producers regularly change product packaging and advertising.
We're super curious when we sense that the environment offers new information to add to what we already know. Note that your brain calculates what you might learn in the short-term—your long-term interests are ignored. That' s why a cardiac surgeon (心脏外科医生) who is excited about her job will find a conference presentation on the operation boring if her brain decides that the talk won't add to her knowledge. However, when her friend persuades her to attend a lecture on arts, her brain may calculate that this will be a rich source of information—and she finds herself interested.
Why not just search for topics you truly want to learn about at present? That sounds logical, but a search for a topic like "universe" will lead to thousands of results. And there is no way of knowing which offers the just-right match to your present knowledge that will maintain (维持) your curiosity. You'll probably end up like the surgeon at the boring conference talk.
Albert Einstein advised a young student to "never lose a holy curiosity." But the challenge is changing its focus from something short-lived to something more lasting.
1.What is the first paragraph mainly about?
A.It seems difficult to control our curiosity.
B.It's no hard task to fully understand curiosity.
C.Trivia can always attract everyone's attention.
D.Europe's political history is too boring to focus on.
2.Why does the cardiac surgeon find attending the art lecture interesting?
A.She is tired of her present job.
B.She often attends art exhibition.
C.She finds it can expand her knowledge.
D.She considers it does good to her work.
3.What can we learn from this text?
A.Subjects were more likely to choose repeated photos.
B.Well-matched results offer no way to maintain our curiosity.
C.Einstein suggested it was challenging to awaken the short-term curiosity.
D.Keeping our curiosity focused on the long-term interests is quite an effort.
Soft cries came from the back seat about halfway through road trip home. Allison heard her 2-year-old daughter’s voice asking: “Ruff? Ruff?” She suddenly realized her daughter’s favorite toy dog, Ruff, had been left behind at the Doubletree, a hotel in the capital. Allison said she felt terrible about forgetting her daughter Juniper’s comfort companion. As soon as the family unloaded the car that night, she called the hotel and learned that Ruff was in the lost-and-found and would be mailed to them in a day or two.
Three days later, a box arrived at the Allison’s home addressed to Juniper. Inside, next to Ruff, she found a tin of cookies, a note and some photos, which showed how Juniper’s toy dog had spent her solo vacation at the Doubletree. “Dear Juniper,” the note read, “thanks for letting us borrow Ruff for a day! Don’t worry, she didn’t work hard and we gave her plenty of playtime! Hope you and Ruff visit us again soon! Love, Doubletree Team.” The funny photos were taken by front-desk clerk Maria. The photos showed her talking on the phone, using a computer, hanging out at the hotel swimming pool and sleeping in the middle of a king-size bed.
“Juniper couldn’t stop laughing as she looked at the photos,” said Allison, who runs a photography business. “The love and care they put into doing this is unbelievable. A lot of times, when kids lose their toys or toy animals at a hotel, they might never see them again.”
She decided to write a post about the hotel’s kind deed on the Internet. She included photos she had taken of Juniper after she was reunited with her dog. “I wanted to do something to cheer people up during the pandemic (疫情), and it seems to have worked,” she said. “People started sharing it almost immediately.”
1.When did Allison find Ruff missing?
A.Half way to the hotel. B.On the way home.
C.When she called the Doubletree. D.After she unloaded the car.
2.What does the underlined word “her” in paragraph 2 refer to?
A.Juniper. B.Allison. C.Maria. D.Ruff.
3.Why did Allison write the post on the Internet?
A.To thank the clerk at the Doubletree.
B.To advertise her photography business.
C.To make people happy during the pandemic.
D.To share the photos of Juniper with the toy dog.
4.Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
A.A Lost Toy Dog B.A Warm-hearted Clerk
C.An Unbelievable Post D.A Careless Mother
For 65 years, Women of Achievement has been shining a spotlight on the outstanding women. Here are 4 out of 10 finalists in 2020.
Susan Katzman
After a 36-year career with Saint Louis Public Schools, Susan Katzman has aimed at improving lives around. She co-founded the CORO Women in Leadership Alumnae program, an effort for program graduates to continue the work in the community on behalf of women. “My final goal is to make sure that there are fair opportunities for everyone, regardless of gender (性别) or race,” Katzman says.
Sherrill Jackson
After defeating her breast cancer (乳腺癌), Sherrill Jackson co-founded the Breakfast Club, Inc., an African American breast cancer support group now in its 22nd year. “Our task is to provide education, awareness, resources and support for our community about breast cancer and its prevention,” Jackson says.
Jennifer Hillman
The past 20 years, Hillman has focused on charity work—providing support in areas of education, health care, and local businesses. In 2015, Hillman set up the Hillman Scholars program for high school students. She is far more creative to organize the program not only providing funding for students, but also filled with special events and networking opportunities.
Carlene Davis
For 37 years, Carlene Davis has developed her days to teaching children from kindergarten to eighth grade. An operation, though, resulted in Davis’ retirement (退休). However, she never stops. After Davis got to feel better, she continued to teach fourth-graders at Montessori Schools and also began volunteering for American Association of Retired Persons.
1.Who is the co-founder of the CORO Women in Leadership Alumnae program?
A.Susan Katzman.
B.Sherrill Jackson.
C.Jennifer Hillman.
D.Carlene Davis.
2.What do we know about Jennifer Hillman?
A.She fights for gender equality.
B.She started a charity program.
C.She enjoyed teaching children.
D.She suffered from breast cancer.
3.What can we infer about the women mentioned in the text?
A.They are truly creative. B.They are highly educated.
C.They work for a better society. D.They open up fair opportunities.
假定你是李华，上个星期你去一家动物园游玩，发现有些游客偷偷触摸大熊猫甚至有些游客给大熊猫投食。请你就此给该动物园的负责人Mr. Charles写一封邮件，内容包括：
1. 自我介绍；
2. 反映情况；
3. 希望园方加强监管，阻制伤害动物的行为。
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
参考词汇：大熊猫giant pandas，细菌bacteria
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假定英语课上老师要求同学们交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏宇符号（∧），并在其下面写上该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写上修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
In my junior year of high school, my English teachers, Mrs. Matthews, was constant encouraging me. One day after class, she praised my work or said, “Jim, you have a real gift with writing.” Mrs. Matthews said after the while, “However, whether you want to make the most of it, you need to stick to your belief and struggle for your profession.Otherwise, you will never develop your full potential.”She added, You’ll find that the more higher you go in the world, the harder you have to work so as to succeeding.”So inspired I that I became certain about my belief. And they set me on the path I have taken ever since.
