NEW YORK— The band Atomic Tom has scored an Internet hit with its self-created video to the song Take Me Out. In the video, the band members ride a New York City subway while performing entirely on iPhones, with applications linked with broadcasters(播送设备) for each instrument.
Singer Luck White says the production was a top-secret operation. “We didn’t tell anyone about this. It was completely top-secret from our family, from our friends, from management, from everybody. So the first time that people saw this video was last Friday when we put it on YouTube,”explained White.
It has been watched by more than 2 million on YouTube since debuting(首次露面) last week. “All I’ve wanted to do for the past few days is just stare at the YouTube page and keep refreshing(刷新) it to see how far it will go,” said Espiritu, the lead guitarist of the band.
“The Internet changed everything,” Espiritu said. “ It's kind of an exciting time because it forces everyone to be creative and find new ways to get your name out there.”
The idea for the video came from Espiritu’s 24-year-old brother Benjamin, who’s hoping to go to film school. “I've seen a lot of these music applications, and they’re fascinating to me,” Benjamin Espiritu said, “I thought: What would happen if iPhones took over the world? If there could actually be a band that played straight through with iPhones, what would that look like?” So they shot(拍摄) the video —with iPhones also serving as video cameras. The band also tried Union Square but were stopped during playing because they didn't have a permit.
“The YouTube views are translating into album(唱片) sales.” Espiritu said, “We’ve seen the jump.” Their album has been in the top 10 albums on iTunes.
Will their fans start cheering for iPhone-only performances? “We’ve gotten the most exposure(曝光)and the most fans that we’ve ever gotten through this, so I wouldn’t be surprised if fans are going to want to see that.” Espritu said.Who first saw the band’s video to the song Take Me Out?
| A．Their friends | B．Their family |
| C．The people online | D．Their management. |
What did Espiritu mean by saying “The YouTube views are translating into album sales”?
| A．The YouTube views make the album sales increase. |
| B．The band has translated the video on the YouTube. |
| C．People need to pay for the video if they view it on the YouTube. |
| D．People who have viewed the video on the YouTube should buy an album. |
What would be the best title for this text?
| A．Atomic Tom’s iPhone Subway Performance |
| B．Take Me Out—Atomic Tom’s New Song |
| C．A Band’s Performance through YouTube |
| D．A Band’s iPhone Song Take Me Out Hits Big |
These days it’s cheaper to throw that broken DVD player, cell-phone or TV out and buy a new one. This “ replace-rather-than-repair” mentality is polluting the planet with electronic waste. According to the UN Environment Program, we are throwing away an estimated 50 million metric tonnes of electronics waste (e-waste) per year. But this is not ordinary garbage. Our electronics leak harmful heavy metals — such as mercury and arsenic — along with equally poisonous chemicals that end up in our soil and eventually our water.
You’ve probably participated in a community recycling event and left feeling good about shipping off that old computer to be recycled. Chances are it was shipped overseas where it’s polluting someone else’community.
Guiyu city in Southeastern China has become known as the e-waste city where low-paid workers use whatever means available to remove electronics in hopes of recovering the copper, microchips, aluminum, gold and silver and plastic that can be resold. Any leftover waste is simply thrown into the nearby river or piled up high in the streets, poisoning the children growing up here.
So what can you do with your e-waste? Robert Houghton, President and founder of Redemtech, an asset management and recovery firm, recommends you vote with your dollar. Buy from companies who have a take-back program that guarantees your discarde electronics are handled proper.
“ Consumers want to do business with companies who are demonstrably good with corporate responsibility and dealing with e-waste, ” said Houghton.
There are plenty of charitable organizations that will take your used electronics and donate them for charitable causes:
• Electronic Recycling Association (Canada) (ERA) collects old computers for donation to libraries and other organizations across Canada.
• eBay’s Rethink Initiative pairs up consumers with businesses that refurbish (再磨光)old computers for donation.
• TechSoup has a thorough listing of resources for those who would like to donate or recycle hardware，buy recycled hardware or find a refurbisher.
• The Charitable Recycling Program accepts all cell-phones and has a listing of charities it helps with its program.
• Call2 Recycle has set up drop off points across Canada in a number of stores. You can drop off your cell-phone and also your rechargeable batteries from handheld electronic products.When there is something wrong with electronics, what is a popular trend among people nowadays?
| A．To keep a DIY way. | B．To put them away themselves. |
| C．To purchase what they like. | D．To donate them to charities. |
Guiyu city in Southeastern China is mentioned here to show us ____.
| A．there is an ideal place in the world for e-waste |
| B．there is a good example in the world for recycling |
| C．the recycling events in Canada benefit people overseas |
| D．people should find a scientific and thorough way to recycle |
In the writer’s opinion, who can first shoulder the great responsibility to guarantee e-waste is handled proper in the future?
| A．The UN Environment Program. |
| B．Consumers who buy electronics. |
| C．President and founder of Redemtech. |
| D．Guiyu city in Southeastern China. |
In Canada, which charity organization will most possibly take all your unwanted electronics?
| A．Call2 Recycle. | B．TechSoup. |
| C．eBay’s Rethink Initiative. | D．Electronic Recycling Association. |
One of my fondest memories as a child is going by the river and sitting idly on the bank. There I would enjoy the peace and quiet, watch the water rush downstream and listen to the singing of birds and the rustling of leaves in the trees. I would also watch the bamboo trees bend under pressure from the wind and watch them return gracefully to their original position after the wind had died down.
When I think about the bamboo trees’ ability to bounce back or return to its original position, the word “resilience” comes to my mind. When used in reference to a person, this word means the ability to readily recover from shock, depression or any other negative situation that stretches the limits of a person’s emotions.
Have you ever felt like you are about to lose control of your emotions? Have you ever felt like you are at your breaking point? Thankfully, you have survived the experience to live to talk about it.
During the experience you probably felt a mix of emotions that threatened your health.You felt emotionally
tired, mentally exhausted and you most likely bored unpleasant physical symptoms.
Life is a mixture of good times and bad times, happy moments and unhappy moments. The next time you are experiencing one of those bad times or unhappy moments that take you close to your breaking point, bend, but don’t break. Try your best not to let the situation get the best of you.
A measure of hope will take you through the unpleasant moments. Will hope for a better tomorrow or a better situation, things may not be as bad as they seem to be. The unpleasant moment may be easier to deal with if the end result is worth having.
If the situation gets tough and you are at your breaking point, show resilience. Like the bamboo trees, bend, but don’t break!What does the underlined word “resilience” mean in Paragraph 2?
| A．The ability to overcome any difficulty. |
| B．The quality of hoping for a better tomorrow. |
| C．The quality of being brave at the breaking point. |
| D．The ability to recover easily and quickly from unpleasant or damaging events. |
Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?
| A．Life is like a bamboo tree that never breaks. |
| B．Whatever difficulties we may meet with in our life, we can bend, but can never break. |
| C．Life is a mixture of good times and bad times, happy moments and unhappy moments. |
| D．If you get over your breaking point, you can survive to live longer and more happily than others. |
According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?
| A．The author was an idle child when he was living near the river. |
| B．We should try our best not to let our bad times get the best of us. |
| C．Our being likely to lose control of our emotions is common in our life. |
| D．We should always believe things may not be as bad as they seem to be. |
Which of the following would be the best title of the passage?
| A．Bend, but don’t break. | B． My wonderful childhood. |
| C．The bamboo trees. | D． Love the bamboo trees and your life. |
Today’s youth seem content to take the easy route and enjoy the ride of life. When tough situations arise, they often get annoyed and complain. How you live your teen years will have a profound influence on the rest of your life.
You must learn to use your time wisely. You may not see it now, but developing leadership characteristics at a young age is very important. As we get older, it becomes harder to overcome bad habits and replace them with good ones. Possessing leadership qualities is essential, both in this life and in the world to come. There are certain qualities that one needs to develop in order to become a leader: justice, judgment, dependability, initiative, decisiveness, tact, integrity, enthusiasm, poise, unselfishness, courage, knowledge and loyalty. You may recognize these as good qualities to have, without realizing how they apply to leadership. The more these qualities are part of your nature, the more productive and enjoyable your life will be. All of these are qualities that one must possess to one degree or another.
Contrary to popular opinion, leadership is something that is learned. No one is born a leader. We are all capable of exhibiting the leadership qualities mentioned above — some just choose not to. Of course, not veryone can be the “top dog”, let alone all the time. However, everyone does have the capacity to lead in some way — but action is required! Understand that learning is a fact of life—learning to ride a bike, learning to drive, learning to type, learning mathematics, etc. All of these activities require action. While we are born with many different abilities, if we do not use and develop them, those abilities will never come to fruition. Youth is an excellent time to start developing leadership characteristics. Take the time to study each one in detail. Put them into practice as you interact with other people. Determine which areas you are weak in, striving to always improve. Observe the leaders, and how they handle situations and carry themselves. Also, study the lives of great leaders. The results will serve you in this life — and beyond!The purpose of the second paragraph is to show that .
| A．one must overcome bad habits at first |
| B．all leaders have the mentioned leadership characteristics |
| C．the earlier and the more you develop leadership characteristics, the better it is |
| D．one must know how to apply the mentioned leadership characteristics first |
Not everyone can be a leader because______.
| A．they are lazy | B．they don’t learn |
| C．they don’t have the qualities mentioned | D．they don’t develop their abilities |
What does the underlined sentence mean?
| A．Everyone can be a leader all the time. |
| B．Everyone can not be a leader all the time. |
| C．Nobody can be a top leader all the time. |
| D．Nobody can not be a leader all the time. |
What is the best title for this passage?
| A．Learn to be a leader. | B．Everyone can be a leader. |
| C．Leadership characteristics. | D．Leadership is something that is learned. |
One morning, teachers arrived to find the little country schoolhouse swallowed in flames. They dragged an unconscious little boy, who went to start the fire in the old-fashioned coal stove to heat, out of the flaming building more dead than alive. He had major burns over the lower half of his body and was taken to a nearby county hospital.
From his bed the dreadfully burned, semi-conscious little boy faintly heard the doctor talking to his mother. The doctor told his mother that her son would surely die — which was for the best, really — for the terrible fire had ruined the lower half of his body.
But the brave boy didn’t want to die. He made up his mind that he would survive. Somehow, to the amazement of the physician, he did survive. When the deadly danger was past, he again heard the doctor and his mother speaking quietly. The mother was told that since the fire had destroyed so much flesh in the lower part of his body, it would almost be better if he had died, since he was doomed to be in a wheelchair all lifetime with no use at all of his lower limbs (肢体).
Once more the brave boy made up his mind. He would not be a disabled man. He would walk. But unfortunately from the waist down, he had no motor ability. His thin legs just hung there, all but lifeless.
Ultimately he was released from the hospital. Every day his mother would massage his little legs, but there was no feeling, no control, nothing. Yet his determination that he would walk was as strong as ever.
When he wasn’t in bed, he was confined to a wheelchair. One sunny day his mother wheeled him out into the yard to get some fresh air. This day, instead of sitting there, he threw himself from the chair. He pulled himself across the grass, dragging his legs behind him.
He worked his way to the white fence bordering their lot. With great effort, he raised himself up on the fence. Then he began dragging himself along the fence，resolved that he would walk. He started to do this every day until he wore a smooth path all around the yard beside the fence. There was nothing he wanted more than to develop life in those legs.
Ultimately through his daily massages, his iron persistence and his resolute determination, he did develop the ability to stand up, then to walk slowly, then to walk by himself — and then to run.
He began to walk to school, then to run to school, to run for the pure joy of running. Later in college he made the track team.
Still later in Madison Square Garden this young man, the great athlete, Dr. Glenn Cunningham, ran the world’s fastest mile!Which word can best describe Glenn Cunningham according to the author?
| A． Miserable | B．Unfortunate | C．Determined | D．Disabled |
Glenn got seriously burned _____.
| A．when he was playing near the stove |
| B．when he went to set fire to the schoolhouse |
| C．when he was probably younger than ten |
| D．when his teachers were lighting the fire |
Which cannot be inferred from the passage?
| A．Glenn didn’t catch what the doctor told his mother so he didn’t worry about his burns. |
| B．Glenn decided to survive though his lower part of body had lost the sense of feeling. |
| C．Glenn struggled to stand up by dragging along the fence and other supportable matters. |
| D．Glenn never stopped practicing walking and running, even after he ran first in the race. |
The doctor advised Glenn’s mother to let Glenn die because the doctor was too______.
| A．unskillful | B． practical | C． subjective | D． irresponsible |
Cyclist Jia Yanmei and a fellow enthusiast covered more than 2,200 kilometers from Beijing to their individual hometowns in Sichuan to celebrate the Lunar New Year with their families, Xu Lin reports.
While others rushed home on high-speed trains or airplanes for the annual Spring Festival, Jia Yanmei spent 16-plus days cycling more than 2,200 kilometers from Beijing to her hometown, Nanchong, Sichuan Province.
Thanks to social media, cycling fans from different cities were able to follow her progress, and some even offered food and accommodation if she happened to be nearby.
“It’s not that I failed to buy my train ticket home. I just want to bring the spirit of cycling to everyone — to do whatever you want to do bravely. As long as you are on the road, you will enjoy yourself, ” says Jia, 26, an English teacher at an educational institution in Beijing.
She started her adventure at 8:30 am on Jan 12, with Wang Yujiang, 47, who works in architecture in Beijing. A cycling friend introduced them because Wang also wanted to cycle to his hometown, Guangyuan, Sichuan Province.
Jia says Wang treated her like his daughter and took care of her on their way. After Wang arrived in Guangyuan, she cycled two days on her own to reach her home.
“I must say that I admire her. She’s not like others. No matter how tired she is, she can soon recover after meals,” says Wang, who is cycling back from his hometown to Beijing now.
“ I’ve improved myself a lot after the cycling. No matter what difficulties I will meet with in the future, I will
have confidence to face them, ” Jia says.
When she posted her plan online on Christmas Eve, many cycling fans supported her, lent her equipment and gave her gifts. She updated her social networks, such as Sina Weibo and WeChat, with news of her cycling adventures, as well as a cycling-related applications that recorded her route.
Four days after her departure, one of her friends learned about the trip in a newspaper and told Jia’s parents. Her mom was so worried about Jia’s safety that she cried and called Jia several times.According to the passage, Jia Yanmei and Wang Yujiang have much in common EXCEPT_______.
| A．They shared the same departure time. |
| B．They work in the same city. |
| C．They had the same arrival time. |
| D． They enjoy the same adventurous spirit. |
She chose to cycle home because _____.
| A．Wang Yujiang invited her to keep company |
| B．Wang Yujiang offered to look after her all the way |
| C．She couldn’t book a train ticket or air ticket in time |
| D．She wanted to do what she liked to do bravely |
Paragraph 3 is used to illustrate .
| A．where she was warmly welcomed |
| B．what happened to her on the way |
| C．how cycling fans supported her adventure |
| D．why social media paid attention to her action |
Which would be the best title for the passage?
| A．The Long Way Home. | B．A Cycling Companion. |
| C．Benefits from Cycling. | D．The Power of the Media. |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号