Simon Groot of the Netherlands introducing high-quality vegetable seeds (种子) to more than 60 countries, was awarded the 2019 World Food Prize.
He is the sixth generation of the Groot family to develop seeds and began his search to create better vegetable seeds to help farmers in Southeast Asia in 1981. He was 47 and his family's company had just been taken over by a larger professional company.
Sixteen years earlier, he made his first trip to Indonesia. There, Groot learned that vegetable seeds did woefully when planted in the hot tropics (热带). He thought there was a great possibility to introduce hybrid vegetables to the area. The area wasn't suitable for these vegetable seeds which were developed for the moderate (温和的) climate of Europe and lacked vegetable seed developers who were trying to create hybrids for the local climate.
Groot partnered with seed trader Benito Domingo of the Philippines. They put together a team of seed researchers and growers from Wageningen University in the Netherlands and the University of the Philippines. Within a few years, they developed a hybrid bitter gourd (苦瓜) that sold well. Then they changed a tomato plant, followed by eggplants, pumpkins and leafy vegetables. The early successes led to the start of the East-West Seed Company, which now has more than 970 improved seeds of 60 vegetable crops. It is reported that the company's seeds are used by 20 million farmers each year in more than 60 countries, said Kenneth Quinn, the former U.S. ambassador to Vietnam.
Of Groot, Quinn said, “He's a truly excellent person with worthy accomplishments that should be recognized.”
The award was stated during a ceremony hosted by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. "The improvements made in these tropical vegetable seeds helped small farmers in developing nations produce more food and importantly get more income for themselves and their families," Pompeo said.
1.Why was Groot awarded the 2019 World Food Prize?
A.Because he is the sixth generation of the Groot family.
B.Because his family's company is a large professional company.
C.Because he helped create better vegetable seeds to help farmers in Africa.
D.Because he introduced better vegetable seeds to more than 60 countries.
2.What does the underlined word "woefully" in Para. 3 mean?
A.Poorly. B.Well. C.Normally. D.Scientifically.
3.What do you know about the East-West Seed Company?
A.Its business is centered in central Asia. B.Its seeds have benefited many farmers a lot.
C.It was started by Groot and local farmers. D.It is changing the seed industry around the world.
4.Quinn thinks that ________.
A.Groot doesn't care about the award B.Groot deserves the award
C.Groot's contribution is of no value D.Groot will donate his prize to poor farmers
5.How did Pompeo think of the improvements made in tropical vegetable seeds?
A.Positive. B.Doubtful. C.Interested. D.Confused.
Bright Side did some research on many places throughout the world where you can buy a house for 1 dollar or for free!
Roubaix, France
If you like France, Roubaix located in the north of France is just for you. The local authorities want it to be populated and attractive. You can buy a small house in the industrial district for just $1. The buyer is supposed to live in this house for 3 years.
Buffalo, USA
Buffalo offers whoever qualifies to buy a house for $1. All you need is to be a lawful citizen of the city and invest amount of money into its decoration. Doing this, the authorities are hoping to make the city beautiful again without spending money.
Liverpool, Great Britain
In Liverpool, most of houses were abandoned by the working class during the years of unemployment. The government is trying to sell the houses for just $1. If you want to buy such a house, it has to be your first deal on buying property (不动产).
Candela, Italy
If you still have any doubts about spending $1 on a house, you should know: the government will pay you some money, if you move to Candela. In order to be paid, you need to become a permanent citizen and have an income of $7500 per year. If moving alone, you will get $700, and if you are going with your family, the pay can be four times as much as only one person.
For more information of other cities, please Click Here.
1.Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A.It is impossible to buy a house for $1.
B.The houses in some parts of the world are sold for $1 just for the same reason.
C.The authorities of Roubaix want more people to live there.
D.In Liverpool unemployed people have a lot of houses.
2.Why do the authorities of Buffalo provide a house for people with $1?
A.To improve the lives of poor people. B.To solve the problems of employment.
C.To make the city attractive at no cost. D.To attract people to the big cities.
3.What is required to buy a house for 1 dollar in Liverpool?
A.You must be making the first house purchase.
B.You should live in the house for 3 years.
C.You need to be an unemployed citizen.
D.You have to repair and decorate the house.
4.How much money can you get if moving to Candela with a whole family?
A.$1 B.$2800 C.$700 D.$7500
5.Where is this passage most likely to come from?
A.a novel. B.a magazine. C.a letter. D.the Internet.
阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一个完整的短文。续 写的词数应为150左右。
Cold December wind passed right through my worn coat. I might have wished to be at home, but those days it wasn’t much warmer there than it was standing at the bus stop. Mama had written a letter to the electric company explaining that we were late paying our bill because my sister was ill and Daddy had been laid off, but the power was cut off anyway. That’s why we were on our way into town to pay the bill in person.
I sat close to Buddy Earl for warmth on the bus when it finally showed up. The walk to the electric company office from the bus stop was only a couple of blocks, but it was a relief to get inside.
After settling the bill Mama brought us over to Rich’s department store. There was Santa in a big wooden chair. “You two go talk to him,” she said. “Just don’t expect to get all you ask for.” Buddy Earl and I joined the line of children waiting, and Mama sat on a bench nearby.
Then Santa started talking with us and asked us what we wanted. Santa reached in his pocket, pulled out a notepad and scribbled something with a pencil. “Is your mother with you two?” he asked. I pointed to the bench. “That’s our mama over there. She’s waiting for us to finish.” Santa lifted Buddy Earl off his knee. “Could you ask her to come and talk to me?” he said.
Later, Mama and Santa talked for a few minutes. Santa took a couple more notes. Then Mama brought us home. We didn’t dare ask about their private conversation. Christmas morning Mama and Daddy gathered us around our tree to give thanks for all we had. There were no toys from Santa under the tree. No presents at all, really. But that was okay, especially since we had electricity again. I felt pretty good as I took my seat at the kitchen table.
Paragraph 1:
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph2:
Mama and Daddy looked at each other, and she unpacked the food from the box.
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假定你是李华，你校学生会拟于暑假期间组织一次英语夏令营活动，请给你的外教Mr. Tony发一封邮件，邀请他参加。要点如下：
1. 时间：8月2日—8月10日 ；
2. 主要活动：练习英语口语，朗诵英语诗歌，唱英文歌曲等。
注意：
1. 词数80左右；
2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
参考词汇：夏令营Summer Camp
Dear Mr. Tony,
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hu
A couple of months ago, I was texting a friend in Australia during their widespread bushfires, begging her to come back to New York. “It’s just not _________” I said. “You can’t even breathe!”
She simply replied, “No. I need to bear witness (见证),” _________ the way her government poorly handled the problem, ignoring scientists’ _________ about global warming. Her need to “see” was _________ in her deep love for her people and country.
Now here I am, _________ my own city on “fire”. A fire that should have taken no one by surprise. This isn’t just about Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd or any black citizen. This is about a _________ that exists within this country that makes our lives seemingly less valuable to the people in power who _________ most times, to be white.
In all this good trouble, we can’t keep looking away. We can’t keep _________. If we don’t bear witness to these moments of unfairness, they have the chance to _________ themselves.
If we’re afraid and confused, that’s __________, because we are only human. But on the other side of fear is __________. On the other side of __________ is knowledge and power. Maybe we are unsure what to do or really what we can do in this moment __________ there are so many confusing suggestions. But the only thing we __________ have to do is keep being our unique selves.
I’m Black. My father, mother, brother, and everyone in between are Black. I __________ being Black. Friends and family from all over have asked me to leave. And I say no.
I, too, need to bear witness.
1.A.harmful B.important C.safe D.beautiful
2.A.referring to B.cheering up C.defending against D.carrying on
3.A.limits B.warnings C.manners D.wishes
4.A.absorbed B.filled C.rooted D.buried
5.A.setting B.putting C.making D.watching
6.A.support B.statement C.schedule D.system
7.A.happen B.promise C.manage D.intend
8.A.alive B.balanced C.silent D.bored
9.A.hurt B.repeat C.beat D.win
10.A.unbelievable B.enjoyable C.reliable D.understandable
11.A.interest B.bravery C.luck D.sadness
12.A.confusion B.fool C.loss D.news
13.A.when B.where C.what D.that
14.A.nearly B.gently C.hardly D.truly
15.A.regret B.avoid C.love D.try
Even for native speakers, the English language is full of traps. That’s why people are so hesitant to use whom instead of who, and why thinking about the differences between lay and lie gives even language professors a headache. 1.
Both words describe similar situations, with only one letter separating them. Though they’re often used interchangeably(可交换地), there is a difference between them. For anyone who struggles with grammar, it seems really hard to make a choice.
2. Farther and further are both used in relation to progress, but the type of progress they describe differs. Farther is used for physical distance, such as “he can run farther than before”.
3. For example, “she was interrupted before she could go further in her speech.” This can remind you to use farther when describing things like trips and walks, and save further for concepts like projects, education, and dreams.
This distinction is clear enough, but it is hard to decide when it’s not totally obvious whether it is dealing with physical or abstract distance. 4. If the progress being referred to is lines on a page, farther works just fine, but if the speaker is talking about the poem as a piece of art, further may be more appropriate. In such instances, it’s usually safest to use further, usage for farther is slightly stricter, and since further deals with situations that are hard to define, you can get away with using it in more contexts (语境).
5. After all, lots of great writers have been using farther and further interchangeably for centuries.
A.However, further is used for abstract concepts.
B.With the tips above, you will never be confused.
C.Similarly, further is used to describe specific things.
D.Luckily there’s an easy trick to remember the difference.
E.One more common trap is when to use farther and further.
F.If you still get them mixed up, don’t let it bother you too much.
G.Take the sentence “the writer got farther in her poem” for example.
