Dreaming of summer picnics filled with family and fun? We’ve come up with 4 of the top picnic areas across the US.
Cumberland Islands, Georgia
Just a few hours south of Savannah, this national seashore is a wonderful picnic place. It’s an unspoiled place in the Deep South with over 50 miles of hiking trails (小径). Covered in Spanish moss, the trails are lined with trees and since it’s still a rural area, the stars line up for a grand show at night and create the perfect evening starlit picnic opportunity.
Grant Park, Chicago
If you are looking for delicious food in Chicago, go for a taste of a 20-day, lake-front, foodie festival that happens in October each year. Grab a spot near the fountain to enjoy your picnic, appreciate the city scenery and lake views and relax with family and friends. If you are there on July 4th, be sure to plan the day to include the fireworks display at the Navy Pier.
Cranberry Islands, Maine
Here, you’ll enjoy natural picnics with island views. The islands are a delightful group of islands about 20 minutes offshore from Acadia National Park. You can visit the islands by private boat or ferry service. Bring a picnic basket along for the ride as it’s a romantic picnic area to take your special someone or go for a family outing to visit the islands.
Big Sur, California
The Point Lobos State Reserve is a small gem. Besides the coastal wildlife there are rare plant communities, and unique geological formations. It’s good to have a picnic there. We recommend bringing a telescope, because much of the wildlife can be seen only at a distance.
1.Why does the writer advise us to go to Cumberland Islands?
A.Because they are just next to Savannah.
B.Because they have a grand show every night.
C.Because they are almost covered in Spanish moss.
D.Because they keep their original ecology (生态).
2.Where can you enjoy observing wildlife with a telescope?
A.At the Navy Pier. B.At the Point Lobos State Reserve
C.At Acadia National Park. D.In the Deep South.
3.Where can we most probably read this passage?
A.In a personal dairy. B.In a science report.
C.In a geography textbook. D.In a travel magazine.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
One of my favorite hobbies is exchanging old-fashioned, paper-with-a-stamp-on-it postcards with random strangers around the world.
The Postcrossing Project was created by Paulo Magalhaes in 2005. He liked getting mails—especially postcards. He thought others did, too—but how could he connect with them? That’s when he came up with the idea of an online platform (postcrossing.com): There, postcard lovers like me can sign up to send a postcard to someone who has registered online, and receive a postcard in return.
Along with a randomly selected address, participants get a unique code to put on the postcard. When the postcard arrives, the recipient registers that code with the site, which then causes the sender’s address to be given to another postcrosser in turn. In practice, this means that for nearly every postcard I send (a few get lost in the mail) I get one back. And since I never know who will send me a card or where in the world they live, every trip to the mailbox holds the potential for a wonderful surprise.
Privacy-conscious Americans might worry about sharing their address with strangers overseas. But postcrossers are friendly, polite, respectful folks—in more than 450 cards exchanged, I've yet to have a bad experience.
On days when the international news is depressing, postcrossing is my comfort. There’s nothing like getting a card from a child in China just learning to write in English, or a grandmother in Belarus describing her most recent gardening success to remind me that we truly are members of one global family, far more similar than we are different.
It seems like such a small thing to send out a postcard. But as travel and communication technology continue to shrink the world, it’s important to remember that it isn’t just for diplomats and politicians to represent our country anymore. All of us have the power—and perhaps the responsibility—to be ambassadors, to show the best of your country to the world.
And it's good to know that what you need to accomplish this is not necessarily complicated or expensive. It can be as simple as a postcard.
1.Why did Paulo set up postcrossing.com ?
A.To discuss personal hobbies with strangers.
B.To exchange postcards with others in the world
C.To collect different postcards from other countries..
D.To provide a platform for communication online.
2.According to the passage, postcrossers __________.
A.don't know who will send them postcards
B.are sure to get a postcard back immediately
C.often choose a receiver's address carefully
D.register every postcard they receive online
3.What did the writer learn from postcrossing?
A.The international news is usually depressing.
B.Americans are more conscious about privacy.
C.Postcrossers sometimes describe their bad experience.
D.The whole world is actually a big family.
4.What does the underlined word "this" refer to?
A.Choosing a diplomat to represent a country.
B.Having the responsibility to be an ambassador.
C.Showing the best of your country.
D.Shrinking the world with communication technology.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
City trees grow faster and die younger than trees in rural forestry, a new study finds. Over their lifetimes,then, urban trees will likely absorb less CO2 from the air thah forest trees.
As we all know, the earth would be freezing or burning hot without C02. However, CO2 is a greenhouse gas, meaning it traps energy from the sun as/heat. That makes temperatures near the ground rise. Human activities, especially the widespread burning-of fossil(化石）fuels，have been sending extra greenhouse gases into the air. This has led to a rise in average temperatures across the globe.
Studies had shown forests readily absorb C02，but there hadn’t been much data on whether city trees grow， die and absorb CO2 at the same rate as forest trees do. So some researchers decided to find out.
To figure out how quickly trees were growing, researchers tracked their diameters (the width of their trunks) between 2005 and 2014. A tree’s diameter increases as it grows, just as a person’s waist size increases as they gain weight. About half the weight of a tree is carbon, research has shown. Most of the rest is water. Over the nine years’ tracking, the researchers found city trees absorbed four times as much carbon from the air as forest trees. However, they were twice as likely to die. So over the lifetime of each type of tree, forest trees actually absorbed more C02.
City trees grew faster because they had less competition for light from their neighbors. In a forest，trees tend to grow close together，shading their neighbors. Street trees also benefit from higher levels of nitrogen (氮）in rainwater. Nitrogen helps plants grow. Waste gases from gas-burning cars also contain nitrogen, thus enriching city air with nitrogen. Later, rainwater may wash much of it to the ground. Some street trees may also have better access to water than trees in the country because the underground water pipes can leak.
1.What can he known about CO2 from paragraph 2?
A.It is one of the side effects of greenhouses.
B.It greatly accelerates the process of global warming.
C.It results from the widespread burning of fossil fuels.
D.It prevents the earth from becoming unsuitable to live on.
2.Why did researchers track the diameters of trees?
A.To know about their growth rates.
B.To find out how much they weigh.
C.To check whether they were healthy.
D.To assess the carbon amounts in them.
3.What advantage do city trees have over forest trees?
A.They are more likely to access growth promoters.
B.They can enjoy more water coming from the air.
C.They can enjoy more shade from neighbors.
D.They are better at competing for light.
4.What will probably be talked about if the passage is continued?
A.How urban trees can live longer.
B.Why city living makes trees die young.
C.How trees respond to dry soil conditions.
D.Why faster-growing trees absorb more C02.
难度: 困难查看答案及解析
Artificial intelligence can predict when patients with a heart disorder will die, according to scientists.
The software learned to analyze blood tests and scans of beating hearts to spot signs that the organ was about to fail. The team, from the UK’s Medical Research Council, said the technology could save lives by finding patients that need more aggressive treatment. The results were published in the Journal of Radiology.
According to the researchers, high blood pressure in the lungs damages part of the heart, and about a third of patients die within five years after being diagnosed. There are treatments: drugs, injections straight into the blood vessels, a lung transplant. But doctors need to have an idea of how long patients might have left, in order to pick the right treatment.
The software was given scans of 256 patients’ hearts, and blood test results. When this data was combined with eight years of patient health records, the artificial intelligence predicted when patients would die.
The software could look about five years into the future. It correctly predicted those who would still be alive after one year about 80% of the time. The figure for doctors is 60%.
The team now want to test the software works in other patients in different hospitals before assessing whether it should be made widely available to doctors. The researchers also want to use the technology in other forms of heart failure, such as cardiomyopathy, to see who might need a pacemaker or other forms of treatment.
Dr Mike Knapton, from the British Heart Foundation, said, “This exciting use of computer software in medical practice will help doctors in the future to make sure that patients are receiving the correct treatment before the condition deteriorates and leaves them needing a lung transplant. The next step is to test this technology in more hospitals with heart disease.”
1.What can artificial intelligence do according to the passage?
A.Predicting how long a person with heart disease can survive.
B.Helping doctors diagnose people with heart disease.
C.Obeying orders and reminding heart disease patients to take pills.
D.Producing medicine without side effects for heart disease patients.
2.What can we know about the software from the passage?
A.It can make accurate long-term predictions.
B.It has not yet been widely put into use.
C.It can prevent high blood pressure in the lungs damaging part of the heart.
D.It can help doctors make sure that patients are receiving the correct treatment.
3.The underlined word “deteriorates” in the last paragraph probably means “________.”
A.continues B.worsens
C.exists D.improves
4.The author’s purpose of writing the text is most likely to _________.
A.advertise B.persuade
C.inform D.entertain
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Britain’s high streets are dying slowly
Twenty years ago, the prosperous high street(繁华商业区) was the heart of most cities. It was crowded with customers. 1.Nowadays, high streets are declining, with very few shops and shoppers. With about 14 shops down every day, Britain’s high streets are dying little by little.2.It’s fairly easy to understand. To start with, people are spending less because of the economic recession(衰退). On top of that, more and more people are using the Internet to do their shopping. And it is not easy for shopkeepers in the high streets, either. 3.Finally, there are the out-of-town retail parks with free car parking that sell just about everything at very low prices.What can be done? Prime Minister David Cameron has hired Mary Portas, a British business woman and star of TV show Mary Queen of Shops, to bring some life back into Britain’s high streets. She’s talked about creating “magnets(磁石)” to attract people back to the centre. 4.In one town, a bicycle rickshaw(人力车) service is delivering people’s shopping to their homes. 5.where children can be cared for while parents are shopping.Members of the public have also voiced their opinions. “My ideal shopping center is one where there’s a wide selection of attractive looking shops, with cheap parking and good public transport links,” said a 28-year-old man. “I’d like to see Night Shopping evenings where shops are open through to 10 pm or later,” said a 22-year-old girl.
| A. They have to pay increasing high rents. |
| B. But he is not the only one to solve the problem. |
| C. But that’s all changed. |
| D. In another town, they set up night shopping centers, |
| E. In another town, they set up a nursery, |
| F. They can make a fortune overnight. |
| G. Why are high streets in such a desperate situation? |
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Clara Daly was seated on an Alaska Airlines flight when a flight attendant asked a(n)____________question over the loudspeaker, “Does anyone on board know American Sign Language?”
Clara, 15 at the time, ____________the call button. The flight attendant came by and ____________the situation. “We have a passenger on the plane who’s ____________and deaf.” she said. The passenger seemed to want something, but he couldn’t ____________his message.
Clara ____________to have been studying ASL for the past year and knew she’d be able to finger spell into the man’s palm. So she ____________her seat belt and walked toward the seat of Tim Cook, then 64. ____________taking his hand, she ____________, “Are you OK?” Cook asked for some water.
When it arrived, Clara returned to her seat. She came by again a bit later because he wanted to know the time. On her third ____________, she stopped and stayed a while.
“He didn’t need anything. He was lonely and wanted to ____________.” Clara says.
So for the next hour, that’s what they did. She talked about her plans for the future. Cook told Clara ____________he had gradually become blind over time and ____________stories of his days as a traveling salesman. Even though he couldn’t see her, she “looked ____________at his face with such kindness,” a passenger reported, “We can see she smiled with happiness, ____________she made a difference in someone’s life.”
“Clara was amazing.” a flight attendant told Alaska Airlines in a blog interview. “You could tell Tim was very ____________to have someone he could speak to, and she was such a(n) ____________.”
Cook’s ____________, “Best trip I’ve ever had.”
Life is a continuous learning experience. As for Clara, she said, “I’ve also learned a lot. The best thing for ____________is to learn something. Learning is the only thing that never ____________.
1.A.awkward B.urgent C.challenging D.difficult
2.A.adopted B.lifted C.tied D.pressed
3.A.explained B.faced C.observed D.analyzed
4.A.ill B.blind C.homesick D.thirsty
5.A.get into B.get through C.get off D.get across
6.A.intended B.pretended C.attempted D.happened
7.A.unfastened B.unlocked C.unfolded D.uncovered
8.A.Cautiously B.Secretly C.Gently D.Seriously
9.A.whispered B.asked C.repeated D.signed
10.A.visit B.intention C.journey D.turn
11.A.relax B.talk C.sleep D.cheer
12.A.why B.how C.what D.when
13.A.shared B.conveyed C.transformed D.invented
14.A.surprisingly B.attentively C.crazily D.anxiously
15.A.if B.so C.but D.because
16.A.absorbed B.ashamed C.excited D.touched
17.A.donator B.angel C.sponsor D.translator
18.A.reaction B.relief C.credit D.concept
19.A.appreciation B.consideration C.freedom D.amazement
20.A.discourages B.inspires C.fails D.benefits
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
The Mid-Autumn Day is a very important traditional festival in China. It takes its name from the fact that it 1.(celebrate) in the middle of the autumn season. The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the 2. (eight) lunar month. The day is known as the Moon Festival, as at that time of the year the moon is at its roundest and 3.(bright). It is an evening celebration in 4. families gather together and eat moon cakes. Besides, 5.(make) the house more beautiful, people will hang red lanterns in front of it. On that day, people look back on the past and look forward to the future together. Children will play with their own 6.(toy) and enjoy themselves.
The Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations date back 7. more than 2,000 years. The word “Mid-Autumn” first 8.(appear) in the famous ancient book Zhou Li. However, it was not until the early Tang Dynasty that people celebrated the day as a traditional festival. It became an 9.(official) established festival during the Song Dynasty, and has become as popular as the Spring Festival since the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Celebrations have continued ever since and more customs for 10.(mark) this occasion have been formed.
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处语言错误，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. 每处错误及其修改仅限一词。
2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
I can’t wait to tell you the decision my parents had just made. They plan to give birth to a second child. How excited it is! Being the only child in the family, most teenagers like you grow up lonely, that does harm to our psychological health. However, things will change from now on. I am going to have a sibling to play. I will help my parents looking after my sibling when he/she is born, ensuring that he/she grows up happy with love and affection all around. However, I am afraid that I know little about how to take a good care of a baby and how to set a good example to him/her. I want to get some advices from you but I am looking forward to your early reply.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假定你是李华， 你正在为高考紧张复习， 但最近你遇到了一些问题导致无法集中精力学习。于是你给你校的外籍心理老师Kate写一封求助信寻求帮助。 要点如下：
1. 自我介绍。
2. 求助内容：作业多， 没有时间运动；压力大， 难以入睡……
3. 希望得到Kate的帮助。
注意：1.词数100左右。
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Kate,
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
难度: 中等查看答案及解析