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Who decided that blue jeans and T-shirts are “cool” for kids to wear today? Who designs the clothes you see for sale in stores? All of these questions concern the world of fashion.
Fashion refers to the styles of dress that are currently popular. Fashion goes beyond just clothes, though. It’s important for some people to wear only the latest fashions and styles. For others, though, keeping up with trends isn’t that important. The one thing that stays the same with fashion is this: it always changes!
In the 1960s and 1970s, hippies made bell-bottomed blue jeans popular. In the 1980s, Michael Jackson made parachute pants (降落伞裤) all the fashion. Now try to find these items in today’s clothing stores!
Why do fashions change? The answer is probably as simple as the fact that people change. Over time, the new replaces the old. People are influenced greatly by popular culture, including athletes, musicians, movie stars, as well as popular films, television shows, books and music. We are also influenced by the fashion industry’s advertising.
The stars of popular culture are always searching for a new angle to maintain (保持) their popularity. Often these new angles come in the form of new clothing or hairstyles. When people see these new styles, they often want to imitate their favorite stars. To do so, they seek out the latest fashions to make themselves look like the people they want to imitate. In this way, fashions evolve and change over time.
For years, clothes have been used to separate people into groups. Even today, brand-name clothing that is more expensive than other types of clothing can be used by some people to distinguish themselves from others.
Unfortunately, this can often have the effect of distancing certain groups from others. Don’t forget that it’s always OK to develop your own sense of style that is unique and separate from what the fashion world determines! Stay true to yourself and let your personality — not your clothes — speak for who you are!
1.The examples of bell-bottomed blue jeans and parachute pants in Paragraph 3 suggest that _____.
A. fashion always changes
B. stars are always influential
C. people have different dressing styles
D. hippies and Michael Jackson are good designers
2.Fashions change mainly because _____.
A. advertisements change rapidly
B. popular culture influences people
C. movie stars are changing over time
D. new films and shows replace the old
3.In the last paragraph, the author mainly wants to stress _____.
A. the advantages of staying unique
B. the bad effects of following fashion
C. the good influences of popular styles
D. the importance of having one’s own personality
4.We can learn from the text that _____.
A. fashion is all about clothes
B. the author has gone out of fashion
C. clothes may separate and distance people
D. people like imitating others’ dressing style
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When it comes to purchasing your first bike, the choice is endless, making it tough to know what to go for. Here are the the best buys on the market right now.
1. Boardman CX Comp
This is a cross-country bike, and it’s so multifunctional that you can handle any terrain (地势) on it, making it a great choice for those wanting to try various cycling subjects. If you leave on the thick tires it comes with, it can ride on various paths and can even handle some less demanding mountain bike routes. Alternatively, put on thin, smooth tires and treat it as a road bike. It has a basket and comes with Shimano Sora gears(变速器), which are outstanding for its price.
&650, Halfords
2. Planet X RT-58 v2
Planet X is based in Yorkshire, which means you’d probably have to buy this bike without seeing it. But it’s worth it, because this is an excellent machine at a lower price. Planet X is a highly rated manufacture and this model comes with Shimano Sora gearing.
&585, Planet X
3. Specialized Allez ES
Specialized is one of the biggest and most popular brands in cycling, and this is its hugely popular primary road bike. It comes with solid components from front to back and you’ll look great out on the road.
&575, Evans Cycles
4. Boardman Road Team Carbon
If you can push your budget further still, this bike is worth the extra investment. The frame is made entirely from carbon, which is lighter, faster and more comfortable than the composition metal models above and gives you an all-round more enjoyable ride. It also means that if you get really serious about cycling, you don’t have to upgrade as quickly as you would with a cheaper bike.
&800, Halfords
1.What is special about Boardman CX Comp?
A. Its Shimano Sora gears B. Its various functions
C. Its reasonable price D. Its firm tires
2.Which one has the lowest price but with Shimano Sora gears?
A. Planet X RT-58 v2 B. Specialized Allez E5
C. Boardman CX Comp D. Boardman Road Team Carbon
3.What can we learn about the bikes mentioned in the text?
A. Planet X RT-58 v2 has been sold out so far
B. Boardman CX Comp is actually a mountain bike
C. Specialized Allez E5 is designed for senior cyclists
D. Boardman Road Tram Carbon is made by special materials
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Scientists have solved the mystery of why the overwhelming majority of mammoth fossils(化石)are male.
Much like wild elephants today, young male Ice Age mammoths probably travelled around alone and more often got themselves into risky situations where they were swept into rivers, or fell through ice or into mud, lakes or sinkholes that preserved their bones for thousands of years, scientists say.
Females, on the other hand, travelled in groups led by an older matriarch who knew the landscape and directed her group away from danger.
"Without the benefit of living in a herd led by an experienced female, male mammoths had a much higher risk of dying in natural traps such as mud holes, rock cracks and lakes, "said co-author Love Dalen of the Swedish Museum of Natural History in a report published on Thursday in the journal Current Biology.
The study used genetic data to determine the sex of 98 woolly mammoth fossils in Siberia Researchers found that 69% of the samples were male, a heavily unbalanced sex ratio, assuming that the sexes were fairly even at birth.
"We were very surprised because there was no reason to expect a sex bias in the fossil record," said first author Patricia Pecnerova, also of the Swedish Museum of Natural History. Therefore, researchers believe that something about the way they lived influenced the way they died.Most bones, tusks, and teeth from mammoths and other Ice Age animals haven't survived," explained Dalen.
"It is highly likely that the remains that are found in Siberia these days have been preserved because they have been buried, and thus protected from weathering."
These giant, tusked plant eaters disappeared about 4,000 years ago. While there is no scientific agreement about the causes of their disappearance from the planet, most believe that climate change, excessive hunting by humans and the spread of other animals into mammoth feeding grounds were influential factors.
1.The underlined word "matriarch" in paragraph 3 means _______.
A. figure head B. female leader
C. experienced animal D. mature mammoth
2.Why do the majority of mammoth fossils come from male animals?
A. Scientists find it easier to study male fossilized bones.
B. There were more male mammoths in comparison to females
C. Male mammoths were better able to adapt to the changing circumstances.
D. Male mammoths more frequently died in places where fossils could form.
3.Which of the following is suggested as a reason for mammoths dying out?
A. The increasing competition for food.
B. The cooling of the earth's temperature.
C. The disappearance of male mammoths.
D. The risky behaviour of younger mammoths.
4.What is the text type of the passage?
A. A newspaper article. B. An academic essay.
C. A historical description. D. A science fiction story.
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It‟s no secret that American infrastructure is aging. Concrete(混凝土) structures, in particular, are in desperate need of repair.
Cracks (缝隙) are very common due to various chemical and physical phenomena that occur during everyday use, which can be quite harmful as they provide an easy route in for liquids and gasses and the harmful substances they might contain. But continuous repair work is difficult because it usually requires a huge amount of labor and investment. So since 2013, I‟ve been trying to figure out how these harmful cracks could heal themselves without human involvement. The idea was originally inspired by the amazing ability of the human body to heal itself of cuts, bruises and broken bones. In the same way, can we provide necessary products to concrete to fill in cracks when damage happens?
My colleagues from Binghamton University and I have found an unusual candidate to help concrete heal itself: a fungus (真菌) called Trichoderma reesei. We initially screened about 20 different species of fungi in order to find one that could stand the difficult conditions in concrete. Of all the fungi we tested, only T. reesei could survive this environment. Despite the sudden PHincrease, its spores (孢子) developed into threadlike things and grew equally well with or without concrete.
We propose including fungal spores, together with nutrients, during the initial mixing process when building a new concrete structure. When the unavoidable cracking occurs and water finds its way in, the sleeping fungal spores will start to grow. They then will work as an activator within the calcium-rich conditions of the concrete to promote precipitation (析出) of calcium carbonatecrystals. These mineral deposits can fill in the cracks. If cracks form again and environmental conditions become favorable, the spores could wake up and repeat the process.
Our research is still in the initial stage and there’s a long way to go to make self-healing concrete practical and cost-effective. But the scope of American infrastructure’s challenges makes exploring creative solutions like this worthwhile.
1.Why does the author mention the self-healing of human body?
A. To show how amazing human body is.
B. To prove everything will turn out to be fine.
C. To provide a possibility of concrete healing itself.
D. To stress that it’s unnecessary to have medicines.
2.What do we know about T. reesei?
A. It has been applied to building a new concrete.
B. It can bear the tough conditions in concrete.
C. Its spores will be useless after one repair.
D. It poses potential risks to environment.
3.What does the underlined word “this” in the last paragraph refer to?
A. The challenges of American infrastructure. B. The research on self-healing concrete.
C. The process of cracking. D. The promotion of spores.
4.Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
A. The Danger of Cracks B. The Aging of American Infrastructure
C. The Most Powerful Fungus D. Concrete Filling Its Own Cracks
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