President Barack Obama rode a bicycle at the White House Science Fair on April 22. But it wasn’t an ordinary bike. As he pedaled, the President stayed in place, while the energy from his pedaling powered a water filtration (过滤) system. He was testing an invention created by a team of 14 students from Northeast High School, in Oakland Park, Florida.
Payton Karr, 16, and Kiona Elliot, 18, attended the fair as representatives of the project.“We were hoping President Obama would ride the bike, but we didn’t actually expect him to,” Payton told TFK. “ It really meant a lot.” Kiona agreed. “It was pretty awesome to see the invention, which was invented by a group of 14 high school students and one teacher, along with the help of community members, got the interest of the leader of our nation,” she said.
The project was an idea that came about after one of the Northeast students, Kalie Hoke, visited Haiti after the terrible 2010 earthquake and saw how difficult it was to find clean water. The students invented a portable(便携的), bicycle-powered emergency water filtration system, which can provide 20-30 people with drinking water in a 15-hour period. The teens hope their invention will one day be used by relief organizations like the Red Cross. “ They can take it to places after natural disasters so that water can be clean for the people there,” said Payton.
Payton and Kiona were among the 100 students from more than 40 states invited to the third annual White House Science Fair, in Washington, D.C., which is also attended by leaders in science and education. President Obama started the event in 2010 to stimulate students interested in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths).“Well, if you’re a young person and you produce the best experiment or design, you ought to be recognized for that achievement,” Obama said when he first announced the fair.
President Obama praised the projects during a speech to attendees after the fair. “The science fair projects of today could become the products and businesses of tomorrow,” he said. “If you’re inventing things in the third grade, what are you going to do by the time you get to college?”What is special about the bicycle President Obama rode?
| A．It can move very fast. |
| B．It is extremely beautiful. |
| C．It is used to make water clean. |
| D．It is made of eco-friendly materials. |
The representatives of the bicycle-powered water filtration system_________.
| A．were both community members |
| B．graduated from a famous university |
| C．finished the project with the help of their parents |
| D．were surprised that their invention interested Obama |
The bicycle-powered water filtration system was designed ________________.
| A．at the request of the Red Cross |
| B．for city families to get pure water |
| C．during the terrible 2010 earthquake in Haiti |
| D．to provide people in disaster areas with clean water |
The underlined word “stimulate” in Paragraph 4 can be replaced by _________.
| A．help | B．inspire | C．change | D．entertain |
We can know from the last sentence in the passage that President Obama _____.
| A．wanted the youth to have big dreams |
| B．encouraged the youth to go to college |
| C．worried the young inventors would do nothing in college |
| D．believed the young inventors would have a promising future |
Sina Weibo, one of the country’s most popular micro blogging sites,has launched a paid service．For a 10 yuan ($ l．57) monthly fee, users get a membership on their Sina Weibo accounts．
According to Xu Yuanyuan, a member of the marketing team at Sina, themove is to guarantee a more convenient and safer environment for users．But despite the company’s efforts to increase income, it seems that most of its 300 million users still prefer the free version．
The premium membership (高级会员) plans ,announced by the company on Monday, brought about negative comments from its users ．
“The current service is good enough for me”, said a Beijing based micro blogger．“I don’t really need those value added services and it might be a waste of money．I might consider paying for it if some more features are added．”
Dong Xu, an analyst with consulting firm Analysys International, said that Sina shouldn’t expect a great increase in income brought by the new services．The free services are enough for most users, Dong said．“The company has been making attempts at different profit models since last year．A potential source of income could be gaming．Games and advertisements are so far the two biggest sources of income．” she said．
Other micro blogging service providers have not yet followed suit．Fang Gang, vice president of rival Sohu, said via e mail on Tuesday that Sohu’s micro blogging service will never charge users．“It’s good news for us．Users can come to our website if they have to pay for services (at Sina)．” Fang said．
Most of Sina Weibo’s users______．
| A．aren’t satisfied with its free version |
| B．show no interest in its paid services |
| C．are looking forward to new services |
| D．think highly of its new paid version |
What’s Dong Xu’s attitude towards Sina Weibo’s new services increasing income?
| A．Negative． | B．Confident． |
| C．Indifferent． | D．Positive ． |
Why did Fang Gang consider Sina Weibo’s charging its users good news?
| A．Because Sina will make more money． |
| B．Because Sina will lose the whole Weibo market． |
| C．Because Sohu will attract more users． |
| D．Because Sohu will offer free services． |
What can be inferred from the text?
| A．Most of Weibo websites will charge their users． |
| B．Sina Weibo’s new move will be a great success． |
| C．Sina Weibo’s users will enjoy more services． |
| D．A large number of Weibo users like playing games． |
What can be the best title for the text?
| A．Sina Weibo Faces Great Challenges |
| B．Sina Weibo Launches Paid Services |
| C．Sina Weibo Expects Income Increase |
| D．Sina Weibo Becomes More Convenient |
Every day we are exposed to images, videos, music and news．In this age of visual and aural hyper stimulation, the medium of radio is making a great comeback.
“We’re at the beginning of a golden age of audio,” said US based podcaster Alex Blumberg in an article in The Sydney Morning Herald．In the last month alone, 15 percent of US adults listened to a radio podcast (播客)．These statistics, released by Edison Research, show the successful evolution of traditional radio broadcasts to the present day’s digital podcast format．The term “podcast” was invented in 2004, but the trend only started gaining mainstream popularity in recent years．With the sharp increase in consumer demand for smartphones and tablets, podcast sales have jumped.
The appeal of the podcast partly lies in its multiplatform delivery and on demand capabilities (功能)．You can listen during those extra minutes of the day when you’re walking to the shops, waiting in a queue or riding the subway．Similar to television shows, podcasts are generally free to download and most offer new content every week.
Donna Jackson, 22, Sydney University media graduate, listens to podcasts two or three times a week, via iTurns．“I listen while I’m wandering around the house doing something else．It makes completing a boring task much more enjoyable… And it’s an easy way of keeping in touch with what’s going on in the rest of the world,” she said, “I mainly listen to BBC podcasts, but recently I’ve also been listening to This American Life and Serial．They have a special skill to really draw you in.”
Unlike television and music, the audio format has the potential to create a deep impression on readers．Blumberg says this owes to the podcast’s ability “to create close relationship and emotional connection.” Sydney University undergraduate Hazel Proust, majoring in social work and arts, agrees．“When you’re listening, it feels as if the voice of the podcast’s storyteller is talking directly to you．It’s comforting, ” said Proust.
It seems the age old tradition of verbal storytelling is very much alive and well.
From the first two paragraphs, we can learn that ________.
| A．traditional broadcast has come back |
| B．Americans love listening to the radio |
| C．podcasts have become very popular today |
| D．smartphones sell well because of podcasts |
The writer mentions Donna Jackson mainly to ________.
| A．tell how young people relax themselves |
| B．explain why young people like podcasts |
| C．introduce what programs podcasts are presenting |
| D．show how popular podcasts are presenting |
Paragraph 5 is mainly about ________.
| A．the influence of radios |
| B．the advantage of podcasts |
| C．readers’ impression on radios |
| D．people’s reaction to the medium |
What is probably the best title of the passage?
| A．Return of Radio |
| B．Opinions of Podcast |
| C．Features of Radio |
| D．Technology of Podcast |
As we grow old, we realize that we have so little time to read and there are so many great books that we’ve yet to get around to．Yet re readers are everywhere around us．For certain fans, re reading The Lord of the Rings is a conventional practice annually．One friend told me that Jane Austen’s Emma can still surprise him, despite his having read it over 50 times．
New sudden clear understandings can be gained from the process of re reading．Journalist Rebacca Mead, a long time Englishwoman in New York, first came across George Eliot’s Middlemarch at 17．Since then, she has read it again every five years．With each re reading, it has opened up further; in each chapter of her life, it has resonated (引起共鸣) differently．Mead evidenced the large number of ways in which really good books not only stand the test of repeat reads, but also offer fresh gifts each time we crack their spines．These kinds of books grow with us.
Scientists have also recognized the mental health benefits of re reading．Research conducted with readers in the US found that on our first reading, we are concerned with the “what” and the “why”．Second time round, we’re able to better appreciate the emotions that the plot continues to express．As researcher CristelRussell of the American University explained, returning to a book “brings new or renewed appreciation of both the great book and its readers.”
It’s true that we often find former selves on the pages of old books (if we’re fond of making notes on the pages)．These texts can carry us back to a time and place, and remind us of the kind of person that we were then．We’re changed not only by lived experience but also by read experience – by the books that we’ve discovered since last reading the one in our hand.
More so than the movie director or the musician, the writer calls upon our imaginations, using words to lead us to picture this declaration of love or that unfaithfulness in life．A book is a joint project between writers and readers, and we must pour so much of ourselves into reading that our own life story can become connected with the story in the book.
Perhaps what’s really strange is that we don’t re read more often．After all, we watch our favourite films again and we wouldn’t think of listening to an album only once．We treasure messy old paintings as objects, yet of all art forms, literature alone is a largely one time delight．A book, of course, takes up more time, but as Mead confirms, the rewards make it adequately worthwhile.
The two books are mentioned in Paragraph 1 mainly to __________．
| A．attract the attention of readers |
| B．introduce the topic of the passage |
| C．provide some background information |
| D．show the similarity between re readers |
The underlined expression “crack their spines” in Paragraph 2 refers to ________.
| A．recite them |
| B．read them |
| C．recall them |
| D．retell them |
It can be learned from the passage that __________.
| A．reading benefits people both mentally and physically |
| B．readers mainly focus on feelings on their first reading |
| C．we know ourselves better through reading experience |
| D．writers inspire the same imaginations as film directors do |
The purpose of the passage is to __________.
| A．call on different understandings of old books |
| B．focus on the mental health benefits of reading |
| C．bring awareness to the significance of rereading |
| D．introduce the effective ways of reading old books |
Sports are the base of my life, next to my mother who raised me when my dad left us．I have been into sports since I was six years old．I have known many coaches and heard hundreds of their tips, but they usually focused on drills to develop my skills and reach the next level of play.
When I was in Senior Two, I met the new school basketball coach, Brian Pawloski．I thought I was certain to be selected for the school team since I had been in it the year before．I showed up to the tryouts and put out about 90% effort since I thought I’d make it with no problem．That was a big mistake.
Brian Pawloski is the hardest working coach I have ever met．He didn’t expect 100% effort, he expected 200% effort．One example: he once made us do 40 suicide drills for the 40 lay ups (投篮) we missed in a game．Some think this is crazy, but it isn’t．After this conditioning practice, as we were getting a cup of cold water to drink, I said, “coach, that was the best practice I ever had.” I was completely sincere．This man was and is the person who influenced me most at my high school．He expects us to be excellent not just on the court but in the classroom．If I am not working on basketball, I am reading a book that he thinks will help us better understand life’s challenges, including Wooden, Coach, and The Screwtape Letters．
In the first two years I slacked off, not putting forth my full potential．Now, unlike the coaches of my youth, this man was interested in how he did off the court．He always made sure I kept up with my studies and was able to be trusted．I can honestly say that no other coach has given me so much advice on how to succeed in basketball, but more importantly, in life．My school is lucky to have such a great person to teach, coach and influence their students．I will always remember my high school basketball days as one of the hardest times I have ever worked in my life not only in basketball but in my growth as an individual．
Different from other coaches, Coach Brian ________．
| A．concentrated on skill training |
| B．trained the team to the edge of death |
| C．expected the team to do well in their studies |
| D．asked the team to do more reading than training |
The underlined phrase “slacked off” in the last paragraph probably means ________.
| A．paid no attention |
| B．showed no interest |
| C．had less passion |
| D．made less effort |
In the author’s eye, Coach Brian is ________.
| A．strict and helpful |
| B．hardworking and honest |
| C．skilled and cruel |
| D．professional and serious |
What’s on Your Pet’s Mind? In 1977, Irene Pepperberg of Harvard University began studying what was on another creature’s mind by talking to it．Her first experiments began with Alex．Alex was a one year old African grey parrot and Irene taught him to produce the sounds of the English language．“I thought if he learned to communicate, I could ask him questions about how he sees the world.”
At the time, most scientists didn’t believe animals had any thoughts．They thought animals were more like robots but didn’t have the ability to think or feel．Of course, if you own a pet you probably disagree．But it is the job of a scientist to prove this and nowadays more scientists accept that animals can think for themselves．
“That’s why I started my studies with Alex,” Irene said, “Some people actually called me crazy for trying this.”
Nowadays, we have more and more evidence that animals have all sorts of mental abilities．Sheep can recognize faces．Chimpanzees (黑猩猩) use a variety of tools and even use weapons to hunt．And Alex the parrot became a very good talker.
Thirty years after the Alex studies began．Irene was still giving him English lessons up until his recent death．For example, if Alex was hungry he could say “want grape”．Alex could count to six and was learning the sounds for seven and eight．“He has to hear the words over and over before he can correctly say them.” Irene said, after pronouncing “seven” for Alex a few times in a row．Alex could also tell the difference between colors, shapes, sizes, and materials (e.g．wood and metal)．Before he finally died, Alex managed to say “seven”.
Another famous pet that proved some animals have greater mental skills was a dog called Rico．He appeared on a German TV game show in 2011．Rico knew the names of 200 different toys and easily learned the names of new ones．When Rico became famous, many other dog owners wanted to show how clever their pets were．Another dog called Betsy could understand 300 words.
One theory for dogs’ ability to learn a language is that they have ben close companions to humans for many centuries and so their ability to understand us is constantly evolving (进化)．While animals can’t do what humans do yet, some scientists believe that examples like Alex and Rico prove that evolution develops intelligence, as well as physical appearance.
Irene wanted to find out __________.
| A．what a parrot thinks |
| B．why a parrot can speak |
| C．how parrots make sounds |
| D．if parrots speak English |
Alex learnt new words by __________.
| A．singing them |
| B．reading them |
| C．writing them |
| D．rehearing them |
The two dogs mentioned in the article could _______.
| A．understand some words |
| B．recognize strange voices |
| C．copy human gestures |
| D．tell different colors |
The article concludes that ___________.
| A．our pets understand what we say |
| B．dogs may speak to humans one day |
| C．humans are related to chimpanzees |
| D．mental ability can evolve in animals |
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