When I was growing up in the suburbs of New York, our first local Earth Day was organized around a drive to a town field where families were urged to empty items from their basements （地下室）for recycling rather than dropping them in the dustbin. It was an eye opening idea for a kid in 1970.
But as an environmental reporter, I'm bored of the large amount of deals and promotions that arrive by email or in my office or home mailbox on Earth Day. Like Valentine's Day, Earth Day has become a huge marketing opportunity—a way to promote consumption.
In fact, Earth Day is such a good sales opportunity that some shops, like Target, have expanded Earth Day into Earth Month.
There isn't time to give you a variety of the Earth Day shopping opportunities I was informed of this past week. They included deals on buying bottled water and earth-friendly wipes.
My award for the silliest promotion: a plan to gift 25 of the most environmentally conscious stars with unique, useful and “green” products and services, including skin care products, cheese-cake and artwork. My guess is most of the stuff will end up in celebrities' garbage.
Is buying and selling a good way to celebrate and protect the environment? I would argue that Earth Day might be an occasion to consider giving up purchases or habits that are environmentally questionable or that we could happily do without. How about not buying bottled water, but refilling a water bottle? How about not buying foods—even “organic” foods—that are packed in non-recyclable plastic?
Don't get me wrong. The company of Bridgestone is celebrating Earth Day by promising to repurpose a spent tire（利用废旧轮胎）for every tire that it sells. Verizon will plant a tree for each cell phone you trade in. Some coffee stores will even refill reusable cups at no charge. Target is giving out free reusable carrier bags without requiring a purchase.
But few shopkeepers are taking the next step－charging a fee at the cash register for disposable plastic bags, a common practice in Europe－to encourage customers to use those new reusable carriers.
Earth Day is transient（短暂的）. If you only showed love on Valentine's Day, would that really mean anything at all?The author's first local Earth Day was celebrated by ___________.
| A．driving to the town field |
| B．emptying waste for recycling |
| C．looking for good ideas for reuse |
| D．clearing items from their basements |
Why do some people expand Earth Day into Earth Month?
| A．Because many activities are organized for the day. |
| B．Because they intend to make many sales strategies. |
| C．Because they want to have more selling opportunities. |
| D．Because they have to deal with too much waste. |
According to the author, it's environmentally friendly to .
| A．buy packed organic foods |
| B．offer stars green products |
| C．refill water bottles |
| D．ask for free plastic bags |
It could be inferred from the text that Bridgestone and Verizon .
| A．are likely to misunderstand the author |
| B．have a good way to celebrate Earth Day |
| C．are devoted to making money on Earth Day |
| D．make wrong promotion plans on Earth Day |
Dear Guys,
I’d like to talk to you about the shame you subjected to me last night. Let me first refresh your memory: You, a group of fit, young men, were playing soccer on the field across from my apartment building. I, a better - than - average looking young woman, was walking along the sidewalk with my groceries. That’s when your ball came flying over the fence and landed in front of me.
One of you approached and asked politely if I would throw the ball back to you. Fighting the strong desire to drop my bags and run screaming down the street, I unwillingly agreed.
Before I continue, let me explain something that I didn’t have a chance to mention last night: I hate sports. More specifically, I hate sports involving balls. This results from my lack of natural ability when it comes to throwing, catching and hitting. I’m bad at aiming too. So you can understand why I’d be nervous at what I’m sure seemed to you like a laughably（可笑的） simple request. However, wanting to appear agreeable, I put my bags down, picked up the ball and, eyes half-shut, and threw it as hard as I could.
It hit the middle of the fence and bounced（弹跳，反弹）back to me.
Trying to act casually, I said something about being out of practice, then picked up the ball again. If you’ll remember, at your command, I agreed to try throwing underhand. While outwardly I was smiling, in my head, I was praying, Oh God, oh please oh please oh please. I threw the ball upward with all my strength, terrified by what happened next.
The ball hit slightly higher up on the fence and bounced back to me.
This is the point where I start to take issue（争论，不同意见） with you. Wouldn’t it have been a better use of your time, and mine, if you had just walked around the fence and took the ball then? I was clearly struggling; my smiles were more and more forced. And yet, you all just stood there, still.
Seeing that you weren’t going to let me out of the trouble, I became desperate(绝望的). Memories of middle school softball came flooding back. I tried hard to throw the ball but it only went about eight feet, then I decided to pick it up and dash with ball in hand towards the baseline, while annoyed thirteen-year-old boys screamed at me that I was ruining their lives. Children are cruel.Being a big girl now, I pushed those memories aside and picked up the soccer ball for the third time. I forced a good-natured laugh while crying inside as you patiently shouted words of support over the fence at me.
“Throw it granny-style!” one of you said.
“Just back up a little and give it all you’ve got!” another offered.
And, most embarrassing of all, “You can do it!”
I know you thought you were being encouraging, but it only served to deepen the shame.
Anyway, I accepted your ball-throwing advice, backed up, rocked back and forth a little, took a deep breath and let it fly.
It hit the edge of the fence and bounced back to me.
I surprised myself --- and I’m sure you as well --- by letting out a cry, “DAMN IT!!!” I then willed myself to have a heart attack and pass out in front of you just so I’d be put out of my misery. Alas, the heart attack didn’t happen, and you continued to look at me expectantly, like you were content to do this all night. I had become a sort of exhibition for you. I could feel your collective thoughts drifting through the chain-link: “Can she really not do it? But I mean, really?”
Unfortunately for you, I wasn’t really game to continue your experiment. Three failed attempts at a simple task in front of a group of people in a two-minute period was just enough blow for me for one night. I picked up the ball one last time, approached the fence and grumbled, “Please just come get the damn ball.”
And you did. And thanks to you, I decided at that very moment never to throw anything ever again, except disrespectful glances at people who play sports.
Sincerely, Jen CorderyThe writer agreed to throw the ball because _______.
| A．she needed to have a relax carrying the heavy groceries |
| B．she wanted to refresh her childhood memories |
| C．she could not refuse the polite request from the young man |
| D．she had fallen in love with the young man at first sight |
Why did the writer mention her middle school memory?
| A．To explain why she failed the attempts to throw the ball back. |
| B．To complain that she had not mastered the ball throwing skills. |
| C．To show how cruel those 13-year-old boys were. |
| D．To express her dislike towards softball. |
What the boys said before the writer’s third attempt actually made the writer ________.
| A．inspired | B．encouraged |
| C．embarrassed | D．depressed |
What’s the writer’s purpose in writing this open letter?
| A．To express her regret over what she did the day before. |
| B．To announce that she would never play ball games again. |
| C．To joke on her own inability to throw the ball over the fence. |
| D．To criticize the young men for their cruelty to her pride. |
Researchers found that people become happier and experience less worry after they reach the age of fifty. In fact, they say by the age of eighty-five, people are happier with their life than they were when they were eighteen years old.
Arthur Stone in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at Stony Brook University in New York led the study. His team found that levels of stress were highest among adults between the ages of twenty-two and twenty-five. The findings showed that stress levels dropped sharply after people reached their fifties. Happiness was highest among the youngest adults and those in their early seventies. The people least likely to report feeling negative emotions were those in their seventies and eighties.
The findings appeared in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Researchers say they do not know why happiness increases as people get older. One theory is that, as people grow older, they grow more thankful for what they have and have better control of their emotions. They also spend less time thinking about bad experiences.
The researchers considered possible influences like having young children, being unemployed or being single. But they found that influences like these did not affect the levels of happiness and well-being related to age.
The study also showed that men and women have similar emotional patterns as they grow older. However, women at all ages reported more sadness, stress and worry than men.What is the best title of the passage?
| A．The older a person is, the more stressed he feels. |
| B．The more lighthearted a person is, the happier he is. |
| C．The older a person is, the more clever he grows. |
| D．The older a person is, the happier he grows. |
According to the researchers, what is probably the reason why people grow happier when they get older?
| A．When people get older, they can’t remember bad experiences. |
| B．When people get older, they have no young children to care about. |
| C．When people get older, they learn to adjust their feelings. |
| D．When people get older, they don’t care about their feelings. |
What do you think the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences is?
| A．A Gallup organization. | B．A popular science magazine. |
| C．A university in New York. | D．A research institution |
What would the writer probably deal with in next paragraph?
| A．Advice to the young people on how to keep happy. |
| B．Advice to the old people on how to live longer. |
| C．Why women at all ages are more sad, stressed and worried. |
| D．Why people will grow happier with their ages. |
Which tablet computer should YOU be buying: They are this year's must have... and there's a style to suit everyone？
| Best for young children LeapPad Explorer 2, ￡68 Aimed at children between three and nine (though a nine-year-old might find it a little simple), it comes in pink or blue and with five built-in education games (you can buy more). Besides, the LeapPad does not allow access to the internet — so it is impossible for your child to meet with anything inappropriate. Pros: The education games are well-designed, the built-in video camera is a fun way to play at being a film director. Cons: Some of the games are shockingly expensive. And the power adaptor is not included. |
Best for teenagers iPad 4th generation, ￡399-￡659 The iPad is still the market leader, and for good reason. If the teenager in your house enjoys playing computer games, the latest offering from Apple is the one to choose. Pros: No other tablet can compete with the near one million ‘apps’ (the name Apple created for specially-designed downloadable programs) available for the iPad. Simple to use, even for those who usually struggle with technology. Cons: Considerably more expensive than most competitors. |
| Best for working parents Microsoft Surface, ￡399-￡559 Tablets are brilliant for leisure — but what if you want to do a bit of work? No tablet can yet compete with a full-size laptop computer, but this is the only tablet that allows you to use Microsoft Word, Excel and Powerpoint (they are all pre-installed and included in the price) and you can buy a pretty lovely mini- keyboard for typing letters and emails, which also doubles up as the cover. Pros: The Surface is good for watching movies — a bonus when stuck in the airport on a business trip — and surfing the internet. Con: The keyboard is an expensive add-on — costing up to ￡109. It might be cheaper to buy a laptop (though a tablet is much smaller and lighter). |
Best for bookworms Amazon Kindle Paperwhite, ￡109 Nearly all tablets let you download books. It's a great way to take a mountainous pile of hardbacks on holiday without stuffing your suitcase. But most tablets have a shiny screen — which can be very distracting (分心) when you're trying to read. The Paperwhite is different: its matt screen and crisp black lettering imitate the look of words on paper brilliantly. And yet you can still read the words in the dark. Pros: Easy on the eye, excellent battery life, 180,000 free books (if you subscribe to the Amazon Prime customer loyalty service) plus hundreds of thousands more to buy. Cons: No TV, films, games, internet or camera. |
60.With iPad 4th generation, you can ____.
| A．become a film director and have fun |
| B．download more “apps” than any other tablet |
| C．compete with a full-size laptop computer |
| D．read the words clearly in the dark |
Which of the following about LeapPad Explorer 2 is TRUE?
| A．It is designed only for children in the kindergarten. |
| B．The power adaptor I not free of charge. |
| C．You have to pay extra to install Microsoft Word. |
| D．You can surf the internet to find anything interesting. |
You enjoy reading and want to protect your eyesight. You would like to buy_____.
| A．Amazon Kindle Paperwhite |
| B．iPad 4th generation |
| C．Microsoft Surface |
| D．LeapPad Explorer 2 |
If you want to ____, the tablet Microsoft Surface is your best choice.
| A．choose a tablet for your young child |
| B．operate a tablet without any difficulty |
| C．concentrate on what you read without distraction |
| D．add something to your prepared PPT for a presentation |
With his strong interest in national affairs, 37-year-old Song Zhigang was glued to the TV news during the 2014 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. He not only learned all the latest information about the event, he was also inspired to write a song for Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan. Titled Xi Dada Loves Peng Mama, the song tells of the love between the couple, which goes "Xi Dada loves Peng Mama. Their love is like a myth. Peng Mama loves Xi Dada. A nation with love is the strongest".
When the song was released in an online video on Nov 18, it became an instant viral hit, which has been viewed over 40 million times and stirred hot discussion. Many netizens said it's sweet to listen to the song while seeing such photos, and some believe that the couple sets a good example for China's young couples.
Born in Zhengzhou, Henan province, Song works as an independent songwriter along with his team there, including singer-songwriters Yu Runze, Xu An and Wu Bai. Song says that he finished the lyrics within an hour and sent it to his team via cellphone. The team finished composing(作曲) that night. They also made the music video by themselves, which was the first time that they had ever produced a music video and uploaded it online. The video of the song contains 33 photos and 2 cartoon illustrations of the couple, displaying small interactive moments, including tacit eye contact between the couple and hand touching when the couple played a swing. Nine children between 4 and 12 years old were invited to rap and sing along with the team. "When I watched the couple appearing on TV, they seemed just like any other ordinary couple and I felt close to them. With some small sweet moments, I could feel the love between the couple," says Song.
"Xi Dada" and "Peng Mama" have both become Internet buzz words, referring to the Chinese president and his popular wife. Song notes that the couple has attracted worldwide attention and even what Peng wears becomes headlines.
Yu Runze, 32, is one of the singers and also comes from Zhengzhou. She says the team started to release songs online around four years ago, mostly pop love ballads(歌曲，歌谣). Though they could make ends meet by making music, they remained unknown before this song. "We didn't expect that the song would gain so much popularity online. People share the same feeling we have about the couple, which is warm and sincere," says Yu, who is a graduate of the Qilu Conservatory of Music, Shandong province, and has released five albums since 2006.
"We want to sing the song at 2015's CCTV Spring Festival Gala."What does the underlined word “hit” mean?
| A．something that is successful but confusing. |
| B．something that is popular but complicated. |
| C．something that is popular and successful. |
| D．something that is popular and instructive. |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．The video “Xi Dada loves Peng Mama” has been watched 4 million times. |
| B．It took Song just an hour to finish the lyrics and the composition of the song. |
| C．Song and his team started to release songs online around four years ago, mostly folk songs. |
| D．Many netizens think that President Xi Jingping and his wife are the model couple. |
What might be the author’s purpose in writing the passage?
| A．To introduce something about the song and its writer. |
| B．To show the influence of the couple on young people. |
| C．To introduce the team that produced the song. |
| D．To show the importance of true love. |
Which section of the newspaper is the passage taken from?
| A．Politics | B．Health |
| C．Entertainment | D．Economy |
Many environmentalists and entrepreneurs are looking for ideas on how to “capture gold” ― that is, how to collect and convert plastic waste into new plastic or fuel.
OK, describing plastic waste as potential “gold” may be overdoing it. But the campaigners say that publicizing the notion that plastic is worth something may help reduce the amount of waste that ends up in oceans and the bellies of sea creatures.
To that end, they have set up a competition inviting members of the public to submit ideas online. Organizers will take the best ones to the Rio+20 Earth Summit (峰会) in Rio de Janeiro next month, where they are planning a daylong side event called Plasticity focusing on issues related to plastic pollution.
The plastic waste problem is gaining broader attention as environmentalists, scientists, manufacturers and the public become more aware of the sheer volume of the stuff that finds its way into the sea.
More than 260 million metric tons of plastic are now produced per year, according to the trade association PlasticsEurope. The majority of that is not recycled. Most of it ends up in landfill, and a significant amount ends up as litter on land, in rivers and in the oceans.
Technological advances have made clear that it is possible to reuse much of this plastic by turning it into fuel or new products. Yet the companies that have come up with such solutions have not achieved the economies of scale that would allow them to function profitably. Insufficient waste-collection and recycling systems in most countries also stand in the way of “ trash to cash” concept, said Doug Woodring, an environmental entrepreneur in Hong Kong who is among the organizer of the Plasticity forum(论坛) in Rio.
Rather than breast-beating, the form aims to highlight some of the technologies and ideas out there for collection and reuse. My personal favorite for now is a vacuum cleaner with plastic parts made from plastic waste.
What do the campaigners like to do exactly?
| A． To describe plastic waste as potential “gold”. |
| B． To invite members of the public to their forum. |
| C． To collect ideas on how to recycle plastic waste. |
| D． To hold a competition on how to deal with environmental pollution. |
The underlined part “trash to cash” most probably means “ ”.
| A．applying modern technology to recycling systems |
| B．collecting sufficient plastic waste for future use |
| C．establishing many environmental businesses |
| D．turning plastic waste into fuel or new products |
According to Doug Woodring, the companies that want to reuse plastic waste .
| A．have collected enough waste to be used |
| B．have no practical solutions |
| C．haven’t reached profitable scale |
| D．lack technological advances |
What can be the best title for the text?
| A．Earth Summit =" Way" Out? |
| B．Plastic Waste =" Great" Wealth? |
| C．Waste Recycling =" Green" Life? |
| D．New Technology =" Little" Waste? |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号