Stephen Hawking was born in England in 1942． He is one of the most well﹣known scientists on space and time in the world． Hawking is researching how the universe began and how it ends． He is called the King of the Universe．
When he studied math and science at Oxford University， he became seriously ill， which made him unable to speak or breathe without the help of machines． Till now， he can't move or feed himself and he is helped to dress， eat and wash by a nurse． However， he has a wheelchair with a special computer， with which he can communicate with others．
In spite of all these difficulties， he refused to give up his hope of living and went on to study at Cambridge University after graduating from Oxford University． In 1965， he got a Doctor's Degree of philosophy（哲学）． Because of his serious illness， it was difficult for him to draw diagrams or to write． So he started to think in pictures． With this new way of thinking， he is respected by people in the world． Then in 1988， he wrote his first important book， A Brief History of Time． It has been sold more than 5.5 million copies in 33 different languages． He was once invited to China to give lectures． His self﹣confidence and humorous conversations impressed us deeply．
From Hawking's unusual experiences ， we learn that nobody should lose hope， no matter how bad the situation is．As he once said， "Life is not fair， you just have to do the best you can in your own situation．"
（1）Is Hawking one of the most famous scientists in the world？
（2）Why was Hawking unable to speak or breathe without the help of machines？
（3）When did Hawking get a Doctor's Degree of philosophy？
（4）What's the name of Hawking's first important book？
（5）What can we learn from Hawking's unusual experiences？
Stories and Art of Chinese Fans
You may think you cannot live through summer without air conditioners． But in ancient China，hand fans were almost the only ones to help people keep cool．
Chinese people started to use hand fans over 2，000 years ago． The fans came in different shapes，such as round and square． They were also made from all kinds of materials．Palm leaf fans were cheap and easy to make． Feather fans（羽毛扇） showed the owner's high status．Sandalwood（檀香）fans could send out a sweet smell．
Later， hand fans became far more than just something that could cool you down． They developed into art works，in which tuanshan （round fans）and zheshan（folded fans）were the most common．
In the shape of a full moon，tuanshan was usually made of silk．They had beautiful birds and flowers on them．Women especially those in the imperial palace（皇宫），liked to use them．Meanwhile，men，especially the literati（文人），used zheshan．The literati liked them because zheshan were usually made of paper and they could paint and write poems on them．It was a way for them to show off their ability in literature，painting and handwriting．Almost anything can be painted on zheshan．
Today，Chinese people still use these fans，only not many people write or paint on them any more．Next time when you are waving a fan， you may think of the stories behind it．
Name |
Features（特征） |
Palm leaf fans |
（1） and easy to make |
（2） |
Show the owner's status |
Sandalwood fans |
Send out（3） |
Tuanshan |
In the shape of（4） |
Zheshan |
Paint and write （5） |
Mr． White lived in a house less than two miles from his office， so he could（1） home for lunch every day． Every time he drove back home， （2） cars were parked outside his house and there was no room for his car． He had to park his car somewhere else， and then walked back home． This made him very （3） ．
Then he wrote "NO PARKING"（4） a small board． In the garden facing the road， but it didn't work． People seem to obey only a public notice．
Mrs． White asked him to （5） a police notice． But he was afraid to do so． Then Mrs． White asked him to make（6） just like a police notice． But he said he was not a （7） and couldn't use the word "police"． However， after a few days， Mr． White made a notice board．
"Oh， dear!" Mrs． White looked at the board and said． "You told me you couldn't use the word‘police'， （8） why do you use it？"
"（9） at it again， please．" Mr． White said． Mrs． White looked at it （10） this time and found it was a "polite" notice． She started to laugh， "You are really clever．"
（1）A． drive |
B． walk |
C． fly |
（2）A． some |
B． many |
C． no |
（3）A． angry |
B． happy |
C． excited |
（4）A． in |
B． on |
C． under |
（5）A． buy |
B． bring |
C． steal |
（6）A． one |
B． it |
C． that |
（7）A． policeman |
B． teacher |
C． worker |
（8）A． or |
B． so |
C． but |
（9）A． Look |
B． Looking |
C． Looked |
（10）A． quietly |
B． carefully |
C． quickly |
What does a cake look like？ Maybe you've got lots of different answers in mind， but Zhou Yi and his team's cakes will certainly make you feel amazed!
Zhou is called China's "Sugar King"． Last November in the UK． he and his team won three gold medals and two bronze medals（铜牌） at the International Cake Competition， the world's largest cake competition．
Zhou and his team's cakes show not only their great cake﹣making skills， but also traditional Chinese culture and art． For example， one of the gold medal﹣winning cakes shows China's first and only female（女性的） emperor Wu Zetian as a young woman． （4）Someone said that the cake showed the beauty of Chinese art to the world!
But don't think creating such amazing works of art is very easy． "Some parts were made eight times just because the result was not quite what I wanted，" Zhou said． "You need to build every single part over and over again until you find the perfect fit．" （5）他希望能通过他让人们更多地了解中国．
（1）How many medals did Zhou Yi and his team win last November？ 5
（2）Was it easy for Zhou Yi and his team to make these cakes？ No，it wasn't．
（3）If you were Zhou Yi， what would you make to join the competition？ I want to do some cake with Chinese characteristics．
将短文中划线的两个句子翻译成中文或英文．
（4） 有人说蛋糕向世界展示了中国艺术之美！
（5） He hopes to let people know more about China through him．
（A： John B： Alan）
A： Good morning， Alan! Long time no see．
B： （1） ．
A： Did you come back to Loudi yesterday？
B： （2） ． It was crowded on my way home yesterday．
A： Oh! Today is Dragon Boat Festival． Do you have any activities？
B： I've no idea． （3） ？
A： Yes， there is a boat race in Loudi this morning．
B： （4） ？
A： I'd love to， but I have an important English exam this morning．
B： （5） ．
A： Thank you very much．
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