Students today have an important and wonderful advantage: social media. However, we should know that not all social media platforms are created equal.
Advantage: Twitter is best for conducting quick surveys and advertising. Twitter is also great for keeping up with current events. By following active politicians, we are becoming more familiar with their policies and their faces. Twitter is also better for online debates because of the character limit.
Disadvantage: Twitter’s disadvantage is that you can see so many things you’re not interested in because the people you follow retweet these posts.
Advantage: Its best uses are keeping up with family and high school friends. Also Facebook makes it extremely easy to inform students about concerts and fairs. It’s the only big social media platform—where you can create specific albums for different things.
Disadvantage: Facebook’s biggest downfall is that if you comment on anything, you get notifications for every other comment. Additionally, debates about everything under the sun.
Snapchat
Advantage: The best social media platform for socializing is actually Snapchat. Snapchat works quickly and gives you the freedom to be spontaneous (常心血来潮的) with your posts. It gives you the most insight into the people you follow or are friends with. In high school, my friends would always tell me, You’d probably know more about our lives if you were on Snapchat.
Disadvantage: On Snapchat, stories disappear alter 24 hours and you can miss some great moment if you don’t check it regularly.
Advantage: It’s like an online diary of our best moments. For many of us, posting on Instagram is like the college version of show-and-tell.
Disadvantage: It has too many advertisements. Many times when you just want to see what your friends have recently posted, the app throws in an advertisement that looks like any other post.
1.Why is Twitter considered annoying?
A.It always has various repetitive contents.
B.It almost focuses too much on politicians.
C.It seldom keeps up with current events.
D.It often asks users to do quick surveys.
2.What is Facebook suitable for?
A.Making contents. B.Doing quick surveys.
C.Running advertisements. D.Producing different albums.
3.In which platform will you probably miss some posts after a day?
A.Twitter. B.Facebook.
C.Snapchat. D.Instagram.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
I’m Amanda Gorman, I’ve been crazy about writing poetry since third grade. After polishing my skills for about a decade and having judges review my poetry and videos of my performances, I was named the country’s Youth Poet Laureate in 2017, I’ve read my work at the Library of Congress. It’s been an excellent journey especially since I used to have trouble saying half the alphabet.
My twin sister Sarah and I were born very prematurely, which led to lots of ear infections. I didn’t have as much luck as Sarah and the ear infections left me with a severe hearing problem, making it difficult to understand speech, which caused me to develop a speech impediment. My sister would have to translate when I spoke because people had no idea what I was saying. Writing wasn’t just fun: it was a way to have my voice heard and to stop me from feeling pity for my disability. And I was determined to read my poetry in front of audiences.
Our single mom couldn’t always afford medical help. Sometimes she had to choose: Shall I put food on the table or make sure Amanda can say this word? When we couldn’t pay, I’d spend about an hour a day recording my talking and correcting the mistakes gain and again. But poetry was a constant. I didn’t need expensive materials to train myself to be better at that.
At age 20, I still suffer from self-doubt, but i have got a necklace which my grandmother gave me. When I’m nervous before performing, I hold it and say, “I am the daughter of black writers who fought for their freedom, broke their chains and changed the world” And 100 percent of the time after saying that, I’m ready to go.
1.Why was the visit to the Library of Congress special for Amanda?
A.She received a big award after the visit.
B.She was inspired to write poetry there.
C.She did some reading for an audience.
D.She succeeded in saying the alphabet there.
2.How is Sarah different from Amanda?
A.Sarah is physically healthier.
B.Sarah finds writing much more fun.
C.Sarah likes public speaking a lot more.
D.Sarah didn’t have ear infections as a baby.
3.What did Amanda think of her mom?
A.Her mom didn’t like setting the table.
B.Her mom struggled to support the family.
C.Her mom showed little concern for her.
D.Her mom was good at correcting her mistakes.
4.What can be inferred about Amanda from the last paragraph?
A.She’s a black writer. B.She’s always confident.
C.She has many necklaces. D.She aims to change the world.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Andrew Grey doesn’t fit most people’s idea of an astronomer. He works in a car repair shop, not in a lab or university, yet the Australian repairman discovered a star system hiding in data from NASA’s Kepler space telescope.
Mr. Grey is one of millions of citizen scientists helping researchers to expand collective understanding. For centuries, only a few ordinary people had been contributing to science, but advances in technology have brought a higher level of democratization (民主化) to science.
“This is a collaborative (合作的) effort that anyone could get involved in,” says Chris Lincoln, an Oxford University astrophysicist (天体物理学家) and cofounder of Zooniverse, a platform that hosts dozens of citizen science projects. Citizen scientists can contribute to breakthroughs in almost any field, from ecology to astrophysics.
“As long as pattern recognition is involved, there are no limits to what can become a citizen science project,” Dr. Linton says. “Anyone can identify patterns in images, graphs, or even seemingly boring data after a short tutorial. Machine learning allows computers to do some pattern recognition. But humans, particularly amateur scientists, don’t stay focused on what they’re supposed to. And that’s good, because people who do that notice the unusual things in s data set.
“And citizen science doesn’t have to be directed by a scientist,” says Sheila Jasanoff, director of the Program on Science, Technology and Society at Harvard University. “Citizens producing knowledge in places where official organs have failed then can also be citizen scientists,” she says. That’s what happened in Flint, Michigan, when a local mother started drinking water tests that caused a broader investigation of lead levels.
Citizen-powered research is as old as scientific inquiry. For centuries before science became professionalized, regular people looked for patterns in the world around them. Despite a lot of advanced equipment and computer models, scientists still welcome help from everyday people.
As a professional scientist himself, Lintott says, “People think that were intelligent, but science is easy and we need your help.”
1.What made citizen scientists appear?
A.The high level of science projects B.The development of technology.
C.The support of the government. D.The foundation of Zooniverse.
2.What is a human advantage in pattern recognition compared with machines?
A.Humans can identify patterns mare swiftly.
B.Humans focus their attention on data.
C.Humans can observe uncommon things.
D.Humans have stronger emotions.
3.What is Lincon’s attitude towards citizen science?
A.Favorable. B.Cautious.
C.Indifferent. D.Doubtful.
4.What would be the best title of the text?
A.Citizen scientists can be intelligent. B.Science is important to everyone.
C.Anyone can be a scientist. D.Science is everywhere.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Don’t like seeds in your tomatoes? You might be pleased to know that seedless ones have been created by gene editing.
This could create a wide range of seedless fruits, but few may ever be seen in the supermarket if regulators decide to treat gene-edited crops in the same way as genetically engineered ones.
Several seedless fruits, from bananas to grapes, are already available, but have mostly come about by luck rather than design. And although there are a few seedless varieties of tomatoes, they’ve taken researchers many years to create.
Now it can be done very quickly, as Keishi Osakabe at Tokushima University in Japan has shown. His team used the CRISPR gene editing technology to make fruits develop even though no seeds had begun to form. “We haven’t tasted them yet, but in theory they should taste the same,” says Osakabe.
There have been a few efforts to create seedless tomatoes using earlier genetic-engineering techniques. These methods take longer time compared with CRISPR.
Some “seedless” fruits just have very small seeds, and still require pollination (授粉). But completely seedless fruits like the edited tomato do not require pollination at all. Such plants could improve food security by reducing our reliance on smaller bee populations, says Saul Cunningham at the Australian National University. Many fruit growers buy bees to pollinate their crops.
There is a deficiency for farmers, however. Seedless plants usually have to be grown from cuttings, which involves more labor than planting seeds.
CRISPR could be used to develop other types of fruit that don’t require pollinator, as well as introduce beneficial mutations (突变), says Osakabe.
But to make it on to the supermarket, gene-edited plants may have to meet the same standards as genetically engineered plants, which would greatly increase costs. Some argue chat since gene editing is used to introduce mutations already found in some of the plants we eat, it should not require such strict regulations.
1.What has been the problem with tomatoes created in the past?
A.Their taste was not very good. B.They still had a few big seeds.
C.Their genes could not be recognized. D.They took quite a long time to create.
2.What did Keishi Osakabe’s team do?
A.They edited tomatoes’ genes.
B.They changed the taste of tomatoes.
C.They made seedless bananas and grapes.
D.They created genetically engineered tomatoes.
3.Why is CRISPR better than previous methods?
A.It will still require pollination.
B.It will remain unaffected without bees.
C.It will reduce people’s reliance on food security.
D.It will make many growers buy bees for pollination.
4.What does the underlined word “deficiency” in Paragraph probably mean?
A.Danger. B.Disadvantage.
C.Benefit. D.Solution.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
The Millennial Trains Project is a non-profit organization that enables young people to get involved in creative projects. The organization leads crowdfunded train journeys. 1. The organization has already completed two journeys, through the northern and central United States. Twenty-four people are now getting ready to be a part of the third.
To earn a place on the train, each person has to raise $5,000. 2. At each stop, they get off the train to explore a different town or city. The idea is to visit small businesses, community centers, schools -or wherever their projects take them.
3. He knows that universities are becoming more and more expensive each year, and many people think higher education is no longer affordable. Over the next 10 days he is visiting seven universities. He wants to see what they are doing to meet these challenges.
Catherine Tsavalas is planning to explore how bookstores and libraries improve local communities. 4. She also wants to know if they are using social media to connect with people.
Hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, floods—research suggests these are going to happen more and more. Jenny Gottstein thinks she can address these challenges. At each stop, she is planning to interview local leaders, emergency workers, and computer game designers. 5. She believes people are more likely to remember something important when the information is fun and game-like.
These 24 people are strangers now, but not for long. The next week is going to be a life-changing learning experience for many.
A. She then plans to create a game to help people prepare for disasters.
B. Trevor Eagle wants to make s difference to the education system.
C. Besides money, they also need to have an idea for a project.
D. Community leaders will travel by train across American South.
E. These journeys provide the young with the chance to help different communities.
F. Tyson Foods had supported the project for a 10-day journey across the US.
G. She wants to find out what they are doing to encourage more people to read.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
On a Monday morning, back in 2015, I remember parking my car outside my doctor’s clinic in Broadwater, Western Australia. I felt _________ and I carefully practiced what I wanted to tell my doctor. Heartbreak, sorrow and the loss of the idea of a complete family left me not coping well.
I was _________. I had tried to pick myself up, tried to throw myself into my work as an educator in before-and-after school care, and also tried to focus on my art. _________ these efforts, my depression hadn’t gone away. It kept _________ like a cancer in my inner world. I wanted a(n) _________. I wanted to be as healthy as my son, Kai, who was _________ me. I took a few deep breaths and went to my _________.
After I returned to my car, I shut the door and started _________ uncontrollably. My doctor said I had severe depression. I needed to take antidepressant. I had to make some big _________ to get better.
Still sobbing, I was __________ to hear a knock on my car door. A slim lady with short fair hair __________ opened it and began to speak calmingly and kindly to me. “I don’t know what you’re __________ right now. But know this, I will pray for you, you are being __________ and what you are going through will pass,” she Said. “Can I give you a hug?”
There I was, a weeping mess, __________ accepting this kind stranger’s comforting hug. All I __________ to reply in a choked-up (哽咽的) voice was “thank you”.
This was the most significant act of __________ that I’ve ever experienced from a stranger. It gave me hope. My __________ started right there.
About a year later, I bumped into the same kind __________ at the opening of an art exhibition. She __________ me and smiled. She said she could tell I was doing well. We __________ again, and once more I could express my appreciation for her gesture.
1.A.confident B.proud C.nervous D.patient
2.A.ashamed B.astonished C.depressed D.confused
3.A.Without B.Despite C.Beyond D.Through
4.A.growing B.surviving C.moving D.wandering
5.A.excuse B.life C.job D.reward
6.A.looking for B.waiting for C.walking around D.depending on
7.A.school B.neighborhood C.house D.appointment
8.A.coughing B.weeping C.laughing D.shaking
9.A.preparations B.comments C.changes D.contributions
10.A.surprised B.delighted C.disappointed D.excited
11.A.quickly B.madly C.gently D.casually
12.A.describing B.observing C.determining D.experiencing
13.A.left behind B.looked after C.called on D.turned off
14.A.calmly B.eagerly C.unwillingly D.gratefully
15.A.managed B.decided C.failed D.attempted
16.A.courage B.kindness C.wisdom D.devotion
17.A.treatment B.experiment C.recovery D.adventure
18.A.lady B.doctor C.educator D.girl
19.A.recognized B.forgave C.understood D.comforted
20.A.met B.nodded C.acted D.hugged
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
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。将答案填写在答题卡的相应位置。
One place that has left a lasting 1. (impress) on me is the island of Lesvos in Greece, I went there for 2. holiday with some of my friends. We felt that we deserved a bit of sun and a chance 3. (relax) after having studied so hard.
Strangely enough, even though I went there for a well-earned rest. I 4. (actual) worked harder than I had ever done before. Instead of spending my days on the beach sunbathing and swimming in the sea, I ended up 5. (help) the locals deal with the endless arrival of refugees (难民), many of 6. were struggling to get to the beach after their boats had turned over.
Anyway, this holiday turned out to be one of the most 7. (forget) of my life, but for all the wrong reasons. Often, when I’m alone these days, I 8. (disturb) by the memories of the faces of parents who couldn’t find their children, and the sound of people screaming 9. help. 10. the people of Lesvos did to help these people, opening their homes to them and sharing the few possessions they themselves owned, was absolutely amazing. I was completely touched by the generosity of the people of Lesvos.
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。每处错误仅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。
Keeping a good habit are very important, but I’m a little lazy and find that hard to keep a good habit. Last Sunday, I went to play football with some friends as the usual. It was already ten o’clock when I get home. I was so tired that I went straight to bed instead taking a bath first. The next morning, we went to take a bath and then went to school. However, it was very cold that morning and I didn’t dry my hairs, I got a bad cold and felt terribly the whole day and I started to regret how I had done. If I had taken a bath the moment I arrived home, I wouldn’t have got a cold. See, a good habit is true important.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
假定你是李华，作为校英文报的记者，你打算与外教Terry预约一次采访。请你给他写封邮件，内容包括：
1. 采访时间：周五下午三点整；
2. 采访地点：外教办公室；
3. 采访内容：如何提高英语阅读能力。
注意：1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Terry,
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hua
难度: 中等查看答案及解析