The Music of Ray Charles
Master of many styles
Ray Charles, a black singer and pianist, was born in 1930 in Georgia, USA. His relaxed style combined jazz, blues, pop and a type of black music called soul, which comes from the traditional music sung by slaves in the south of the USA. By the time Ray Charles died in 2004, he had won 12 Grammy Awards and performed at 10,000 concerts around the world. Many musicians called him simply “the Genius”.
Childhood poverty
Ray Charles was born into a poor family, without a father. When he was 5 years old, his younger brother died； and around the same time, Charles started to lose his sight. By the age of 7 he was completely blind. He had already been learning the piano for a year, and when he went blind, his mother knew this would be the only way he would earn any money in the future. All his life, Charles remembered her saying: “Do it right, or don’t do it at all”.
Becoming a musician
Later he went to a school for blind and deaf children where the teachers also encouraged him to study music. Sadly, while he was still at school, his mother died. He left school and in the early 1950s Charles formed a group of players. He sang, played the saxophone and the piano and composed music.
Three classic tunes
He made many recordings which are still classics: Georgia on my Mind, I Can’t Stop Loving You, and Hit the Road, Jack are the three best-known songs. He recorded CDs with famous artists like Elton John. Others, such as The Beatles, thought his music was wonderful and said that the music they composed used many of his techniques.
The film of his life
In 2003 a film biography of his life was produced, called Ray. The part of Charles was played by a young actor and musician called Jamie Foxx. The film director brought Foxx to meet Charles. After they had been playing together for two hours, Charles, then aged 73, jumped up and said, “He’s the one……he can do it.” A year later Charles died aged 74. The film of his life has been as popular as his songs and means that the memory of Charles’ music will live on.
1.Ray Charles was a black American singer ______.
A.who sang many different styles of music B.who mostly sang jazz
C.who mostly sang pop music D.who mostly sang soul music
2.Ray Charles’ mother encouraged him to play music because ______.
A.it would help him get used to being blind
B.it was a good way for a blind person to earn money
C.his father was a musician as well
D.she knew she would die soon
3.Ray Charles thought that Jamie Foxx ______.
A.was a good musician
B.was an excellent director
C.was the wrong person to play him in the film
D.was the right person to play him in the film
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Girl with a Pearl Earring
Johannes Vermeer is a Dutch painter of the 17th century. Vermeer’s paintings are realistic pictures of scenes from everyday life. Not many of Vermeer’s paintings still exist. When one was put on sale in London in 2004, someone paid ￡16,000,000 for it, so you can see Vermeer is an artist who is valued very highly.
One of Vermeer’s most beautiful and well-known paintings is the Girl with a Pearl Earring. It shows a pretty young woman with blue cloth around her head and a large, shining pearl earring. We do not know much about Vermeer’s life, and the English writer Tracy Chevalier decided to think of a story to explain who the girl is in this painting. She gave the book the same name as the painting. Chevalier imagines that the girl in the painting works for the Vermeer family. Her name is Griet.
She comes from a poor family and does the cleaning and housework. Some of Vermeer’s family are nice to her, but others are not. The Vermeer family needs him to sell paintings to live. Vermeer works all day in his studio. He does not like anyone else to go into it, but Griet can go in to clean it. A rich man who often buys Vermeer’s paintings thinks Griet is beautiful and suggests Vermeer paint her. This makes trouble for the girl because Vermeer’s wife is unhappy that Vermeer allows Griet in his studio and paints her, and not his wife. She wants to send Griet away but the wife’s mother stops her, as she wants Vermeer to work and earn money.
Griet becomes interested in Vermeer’s work and more friendly with the artist. He asks her to make special colours for him and she spends more time in the studio.
Vermeer is not happy with the painting. Something is wrong-he cannot finish it. Then he remembers his wife’s lovely pearl earring. He asks his mother-in-law（岳母）for it and she gives it to him as she wants the painting finished and sold. When the wife is out, Griet wears the pearl earring and Vermeer paints it. When the painting is nearly finished, the wife sees it and is very angry that this girl she hates has had her earring. Griet loses her job and is sent away, but the butcher’s son loves her and takes care of her. In the end, they marry and lead a happy life.
This is Chevalier’s explanation of the famous painting and the expression on the girl’s face. The book has been made into a film with the same name. Do you think the story matches the picture？
1.Vermeer’s paintings are expensive because ______.
A.there are not many in the world B.they are very large
C.they show everyday life D.they are based on true stories
2.Griet is allowed into Vermeer’s studio because ______.
A.she needs to clean B.she needs to paint
C.Vermeer likes her D.she works as a student painter
3.According to the passage, we know that Vermeer’s mother-in-law ______.
A.wants the painting for herself B.wants Vermeer to make money
C.likes Griet very much D.hates her daughter
4.The ending of the story is ______.
A.happy B.sad C.uncertain D.negative
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
This is What’s Trending Today.
Francie Lubbe of South Africa awoke one morning during her safari trip to an impressive sight. Two female lions were licking（舔）the outside of her tent！The lions were licking small drops of water left over from a rain storm.
Lubbe quickly began taking video of the wild animals. She posted the video on Facebook this week. People from around the world commented about how calm she and her friend in the tent remained when they saw the lions so close. People were also impressed that they decided to take a video.
Lubbe was camping in a tent at a national park on the northern border of South Africa near Botswana. The lions are the most famous creatures in the national park. They are called Kalahari lions. They get their name for their home-the Kalahari Desert. It covers parts of South Africa , Botswana and Namibia. Female Kalahari lions weigh about 150 kilograms.
Lubbe responded to the many comments about her video. She called the experience “very special”, She said the cloth door of her tent was open, but the lions did not enter.
Along with the 36-second video, she posted photos to her Facebook page of the lions exploring her camp. There are images of the lions looking into the tent from outside, and looking at a barbecue grill where campers cook.
People around the world reacted to the video on Facebook.
A netizen named Miller, wrote: “Shocking experience, but I think I would have wetted myself！”
Facebook user Mariana, said that her mother saw the lion video. Her mother then warmed her to not go camping anymore, even though New Jersey is very, very far away from the Kalahari Desert.
And that’s What’s Trending Today.
What would you have done if you woke up to see lions licking your tent？ We want to know. Write to us in the Comments section and on our www.hxen.com
1.What’s Trending Today most probably is ______.
A.an adventure film B.a science fiction
C.an academic magazine D.a radio program
2.What did Lubbe do when she found the lions？
A.She took a video of them at once. B.She opened the tent door to meet them.
C.She broadcast them live on Facebook. D.She closed the cloth door of her tent.
3.What can we learn about the lions from the passage？
A.They came up to Lubbe and asked for help.
B.They weigh about 125 kilograms.
C.They were frightened out of entering the tent.
D.They didn’t hurt Lubbe and her friend.
4.What does the underlined part “have wetted myself” in the 8th Paragraph most probably mean？
A.be terribly frightened B.keep calm
C.feel very cold D.be overjoyed
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
A cat with an accent sounds like a character in children’s tale, but Swedish scientists are trying to figure out if domestic cats actually do have different “dialects” based on their geographical location. They also want to understand if the owner’s voice might have a role to play in the way cats’ meow（猫）. If they’re successful, the team of scientists from Lund University. hope to put together a “dictionary” of cat sounds.
The project will be carried out over the next five years. SchÖtz explained that she and her team will use phonetic（语音）analysis to compare cat sounds from two parts of Sweden-Stockholm and Lund-with different human dialects, and figure out if the cats from these regions also have different dialects. They will focus on tune, voice, and speaking style in the human speech that is addressed to cats, and also cat sounds that are addressed to humans.
While it all sounds rather fanciful, the main idea behind the project is to improve the human-cat relationship. Since their domestication（驯化）about 10,000 years ago, cats and humans have learned to “talk” through audio（声音的）and visual signals. Even today, wild cats have no need for meowing in adulthood, while domestic ones continue to meow as a way of communicating with humans. And by understanding more about this communication, SchÖtz and her team hope to influence the way cats are treated in animal hospitals, shelters, and care homes.
The team will record voices of about 30 to 50 cats in different situations, for example when they want access to desired locations, when they are content, friendly, happy, hungry, annoyed, or even angry-and try to identify any differences in their phonetic patterns. They want to know if cats prefer pet-directed speech or prefer to be spoken to like human adults.
The project is yet to begin officially, but the researchers have already started testing their equipment and techniques by recording a few cats’ meowings. And they’ve already made a few interesting observations. In one of the recordings, they noticed that when a cat is begging for food its meows rise slowly. But the opposite happens when the cat is unhappy. By the year 2021, SchÖtz and her team hope to have entirely broken the cats’ code by interpreting all their meowings.
1.Carrying out the research, Swedish Scientists will mainly investigate ______.
A.how cats vary the melody of meows B.how cats communicate with their owners
C.how cats meow with a funny mood D.how cats are treated around the world
2.The main purpose of the project done by Swedish scientists is to ______.
A.find out where the cats live B.understand the cats’ lifestyle
C.build up the human-cat relationship D.make up a dictionary of cat sounds
3.According to the passage it can most probably be inferred that ______.
A.the owners’ voice plays a key role in the way cats meow
B.the research could bring about the cats’ welfare changes in shelters, for instance
C.the owners understand entirely the cats’ need through their meows
D.domestic cats live a happier life than wild ones
4.What attitude does the author hold towards the prospect（前景）of the research？
A.Optimistic. B.Pessimistic.
C.Unconcerned. D.Skeptical.
难度: 困难查看答案及解析
To see the world is one thing; to have someone to share it with is another1..A travel partner can be a close friend, a family member, a pal you’ve met online, or a business friend.
You can have someone to talk to
Traveling alone is fun, but wouldn’t you feel lonely？2.. This is especially true if you can get a travel companion who is very familiar with the place you’re traveling to. You don’t have to ask any information from the locals, and you can increase the time you spend in the country.
You can have someone to share the expenses with
3.. You can’t simply ignore the rising price of hotels or plane tickets. You should also think about your daily needs, such as your food. Of course, you can’t simply go back without bringing any souvenirs（纪念品）to your friends and family. All these can ruin your budget. However, when you have a travel friend, you can have someone to share the expenses with.4..
Having a travel mate is a good way of meeting a new friend or even a lifelong partner. You can never count the number of couples who actually found their way into each other’s heart while traveling together in another country.
You can have someone to watch out for you
When you’re in a foreign land, you’ll never be really safe. You don’t know the rules as well as the culture of the people. A travel mate will be perfect to remind you of your duties in the country and to watch your back just in case you get lost. So why don’t you find a travel companion now？5..
A.You can meet a good friend
B.One of the major headaches in traveling is the costs involved
C.How to get along with a travel partner
D.Indeed, travel becomes more interesting when you have a travel partner
E.Let’s find out how to find a travel partner
F.You can enjoy food with your partner
G.Having a travel partner can remove the feeling of loneliness
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Several years ago, my brother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis（多发性硬化）. The disease made him hardly_______or stand-he either used a walking stick or was in his bed. At that time, he was_______and didn’t want to do anything for himself. He was basically_______and letting go. As the saying goes, God helps those who help themselves,_______he wasn’t helping himself.
I then_______to change the situation. I walked to his room and told him how frustrated（泄气）we were about helping him and seeing him making no_______to look after himself.
“Is this how you want me to_______？Giving up at very hard obstacle that comes your way？”
“You don’t understand this_______, and it’s not curable.”
I told him it’s really not_______to live with this type of disease, but he should be,________that he has his body intact（完整的）. Thank God that he still has a________who loves him and gets up every day in order to help him. Although it was________, I wanted to show him that we could make it through this together.
He must have thought________about my words because several weeks later, he________me and parents. We talked for hours that we can make it through this. At last, he said to me:
“I took my family for granted and I’m________. You are a fighter, and I’m________that you are my sister. I’m sorry that I set the wrong example for you. Please________me.”
When he said this, I didn’t want to forgive him because I was so________with him for so long, but________I forgave him.
Nowadays he’s actually trying to help himself and for the________time, he actually looks hopeful for the good things to come.
1.A.walk B.sit C.speak D.sleep
2.A.nervous B.strange C.upset D.tired
3.A.giving out B.giving over C.giving away D.giving up
4.A.if B.but C.although D.or
5.A.advised B.agreed C.forgot D.decided
6.A.efforts B.preparations C.mistakes D.contributions
7.A.pick up B.take up C.grow up D.put up
8.A.feeling B.trouble C.question D.disease
9.A.difficult B.easy C.interesting D.boring
10.A.grateful B.hopeful C.confident D.comfortable
11.A.neighbour B.family C.group D.doctor
12.A.hard B.simple C.unusual D.useless
13.A.carefully B.quickly C.quietly D.differently
14.A.met B.found C.visited D.greeted
15.A.confused B.satisfied C.happy D.sorry
16.A.afraid B.sure C.surprised D.proud
17.A.believe B.forgive C.remember D.help
18.A.familiar B.patient C.angry D.pleased
19.A.immediately B.eventually C.recently D.secretly
20.A.best B.last C.first D.only
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
3.错误类型不涉及单词拼写。
The environment pollution was more and more serious today. We have no clean water to drink it because of water pollution. And when trees cut down, some animals disappear. There is more and more dirty smoke in the air. People’s health has been great affected by air, noise and water pollution Many people have died of diseases causing by pollution. In order to live the better life, it’s time for us to protect our world.
Firstly, we shouldn’t throw away rubbish everywhere. And we should recycle, reduce and reuse things, that saves money and reduces pollution. Use things so long as possible. Don’t use plastic bag. Besides, we must plant more trees and stop people cutting it down. We hope our world will be more and more beautiful.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假如你是南充市某中学高二学生李华，最近你班对“中学生是否应该在网上交友”展开了讨论，同学们持不同意见。请你根据以下要点提示，给中学生英文报“Teens”写一篇短文，讲述讨论情况并发表自己的看法。
1.赞成。理由：表达思想、学习外语。
2.不赞成。理由：浪费时间、上当受骗。
3.你的看法：……
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.短文的开头和结尾已经给出，不计入总词数。
3.可增加适当细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear editor,
Recently, our class held a heated discussion about whether we middle school students should make friends online. Opinions are divided among the students.
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Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
难度: 中等查看答案及解析