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Imagine the tallest building in the United States. Fill that large building 44 times with rotten (腐烂的)fruits and vegetables．Now you know how much food Americans waste every year．
It is hard to believe, right? About 133 .billion pounds of food get .thrown away. That's one, third of all the food we produce. And a lot of it is thrown away for one simple reason: It's ugly.
The problem is that nature isn't perfect. Apples can get scarred(留下疤痕)by storms. Cucumbers grow in C shapes. Carrots change into unusual fork-like forms. Watermelons get too big to fit on a refrigerator shelf. These crazy-looking fruits and vegetables may .taste great. But most grocery stores refuse to sell them. Store owners say people judge food by how it looks. No one wants a tomato that looks like a two-headed monster. (怪物). But what if you could buy that tomato for half-price?
A new movement is trying to make people see the "beauty" in ugly food. Some stores are selling ugly produce. It tastes the same. And you pay less for it because the. food doesn't, look perfect.
Usually, the stores find a nicer word than "ugly'; A Canadian chain uses "naturally imperfect". In some US stores, it's "misfit produce". Whatever you call it, ugly food helps many .people. Farmers get paid for food they were going to have to throw away. Shoppers get cheaper fruits and vegetables. The ugly-food movement will also help some of the 44 million Americans who don't have enough to eat. Many groups give the ugly produce to hungry people.
So really, who cares if that carrot looks a little ... ugly?
1.We can know from the text that ________.
A. food is thrown mostly because it goes bad
B. food waste is a serious problem in America
C. the uglier the food is, the better it tastes
D. America produces more food than Americans can eat
2.What is the "beauty" in ugly food?
A. It tastes the same but costs much less.
B. It does much good to people.
C. It is useful to hungry people.
D. It tastes just as good as normal-looking produce.
3.The ugly-food movement is intended to ________.
A. call on people to help the poor
B. persuade grocery stores to sell ugly produce
C. prove the value 0fugty produce
D. advise people not to waste food
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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In recent years, little free libraries of all shapes and sizes have popped up. Often built by community members, they could be found on street corners and the sidewalks across the United States, hoping to share their book collections with their neighbors. Minneapolis, Minnesota, even hosted the first Little Free Library Festival, where book fans came together to promote literacy (读写能力)in their communities．
For the most part, little free libraries have more in common with book sharing shelves in hotels, local parks, coffee shops and other public spaces than the traditional public library. Based on the rule of "take a book, leave a book," these little libraries can take many forms from birdhouse-like wooden structures to redesigned newspaper selling machines, Robert Wirsing writes for the Bronx Times.
The little free library organization began when a citizen of Hudson, Wisconsin, named Todd Bol built a little one-room schoolhouse, filled it with books and placed it in his front yard to honor his mother who passed away in 2009. Together with a local educator named Rick Brooks, the two began placing little free libraries across Wisconsin and sharing the idea with people across the country.
"Something we are eager for in this information age is that connection between people," Bol tells Margret Aldrich for Book Riot. "I want to show how Little Free Library is about readers inspiring readers. It goes on and on."
While Little Free Libraries seem like a harmless means to promote literacy by sharing books with neighbors, a few of the roadside landing libraries have caused minor legal problems. officials in Los Angeles and Shreveport, Louisiana, have told some citizens that their homemade libraries broke city roles and that they would have to remove them to avoid being fined.
Still, little free libraries have been well accepted by their commnunities. For anyone interested in making their own at home, the organization has posted helpful tips and guides for building the little book lending boxes in their neighborhoods.
1.What can we know about the little free libraries in America?
A. They are state-owned.
B. They are popular nationally.
C. They are set up to sell books.
D. They help those with no books to read.
2.What is a common character of little free libraries?
A. They lie in many public places.
B. They share a large collection of books.
C. They compete with traditional public libraries.
D. They exist mainly in the form of wooden houses.
3.What is Todd Bol's primary aim of building, a library?
A. To remember his dead mother.
B. To help people form a habit of reading.
C. To set an example to other communities.
D. To share his knowledge, with other citizens.
4.What does Todd Bol think of the little free libraries?
A. They cause minor legal problems.
B. They should continue to exist.
C. They mean a lot to community members.
D. They should be supported by the government.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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JOHANNESBURG—They say cats have nine lives．Now a Chinese toad(蟾蜍)has joined the club of clever survivors．
South Africans are shocked by a toad that got trapped in a ship from China to Cape Town, after jumping into a candlestick(烛台)that was made there．South African officials reportedly planned to put down the creature, fearing it would cause harm as an invasive species if it were let go in the wild.
But the toad got a last-minute pardon. Mango Airlines, a south African airline, transported the toad on Friday to Johannesburg to an animal center, after officials decided to find a way to let the toad live. The two-hour flight was comfortable compared to the trip from China, a long way of many weeks and thousands of kilometers across the Indian Ocean.
Airline spokesman Hein Kaiser said the toad got "first-class treatment", sitting in a plastic container together with Brett Glasby, an expert looking, after animals. There was even a ceremony, i
n which the toad's boarding pass was handed to Glasby."He was the star of the Show on the flight. He was the unusual passenger, I think every passenger stopped to have a look." Kaiser said.
On landing in Johannesburg, the toad was brought out of its container for a photo shoot. Observers said the brown toad seemed like a cool customer. It belongs to the Asian Toad species. It is believed to have survived the trip from China by hardening its skin to prevent it from drying out, and also by slowing its breathing and heart rate—-methods that help the species survive in times of drought(干旱).
"We've had snakes in imported wood and insects in fruit. We were called because the toad was right inside the candlestick, and we had to break it to get it out." Glasby, the expert, told The Star, a South African newspaper.
1.The underlined phrase "an invasive ~species" in second paragraph may refer to ________.
A. something which is not used to the local conditions
B. something which is probably harmful to the native creatures
C. something which has never appeared in local areas
D. something which is greatly good to the local people
2.The toad was able to arrive in South Africa alive ________.
A. because it slowed it
s breath on the wayB. because it used methods in times of drought
C. because it formed hard skin to protect itself
D. because many people looked after it carefully
3.It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
A. sometimes animals are transported by accident
B. no one has seen such a big toad in Africa
C. a candlestick is the best place for a toad
D. droughts make toads live longer
4.What is the best title of the text?
A. A journey-loving toad. B. An amazing China toad.
C. A toad that has nine lives D. A toad in a candlestick.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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You may probably recognize most of the powerful graduation speakers, who are welt-known people in their fields, but I think the schools couldn't have picked better speakers than them, because the most important inspiration anyone can ever get is someone who lives his living by example.
Steve Jobs, Stanford University:
"Remembering you are going to die, the best way I know is to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. There is no reason not to follow your heart. Your time is limited so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice..."
Oprah Winfrey, Stanford University:
I consider the world, this Earth, to be like a school... And the secret I have learned to get ahead is being open to the lessons from the grandest universe of all. Don't react against a bad situation. And the solution will arise from the challenge.
Bono, University of Pennsylvania:
"For .four years, you've been buying, trading and selling everything you've got in this marketplace of ideas, Your pockets are full even if your parents' are empty and—and now you've got to figure out what to spend it on. The world is more flexible than you think and it's waiting for you to hammer it into shape..."
Michael Dell, University of Texas at Austin:
"Now it is time for you to move on to what's next and obtain your desire. But you must not let anything prevent you from taking those first steps. Don't spend so much time trying to choose the perfect opportunity but you missed the right opportunity. Recognize that there will be failures and obstacles. But you will learn from your mistakes and the mistakes of others."
1.Who wants to express "Don't be affected by what other people say."?
A. Michael Dell. B. Bono.
C. Steve Jobs. D. Oprah Winfrey.
2.Which of the following can best describe what Oprah Winfrey says?
A. To break some of the rules.
B. To overcome the fear of loss.
C. To try hard to achieve our goals.
D. To meet challenges in your life.
3.What Michael Dell said is to encourage people to ________.
A. listen to our heart B. be open to new ideas
C. create our own journey D. learn from our mistakes
4.What can we be likely to gain from these powerful: graduation speeches?
A. Some life lessons. B. Some personal experiences.
C. Some social skills. D. Some creative ideas,
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
n which the toad's boarding pass was handed to Glasby.
s breath on the way