If you’re on the hunt for something new and interesting to read, you have plenty of places to go. This week, we’re looking at four of the best book recommendation sites, services, or groups, based on your nominations(提名).
GoodReads
GoodReads is more than just a book recommendation site, although it excels at helping you find new books to read based on the ones you enjoy. You can build a virtual “shelf” of books you own or have already read, share your progress with the books you’re currently reading, rate the books you’ve read, leave reviews, and connect with other readers.
BookBub
While BookBub isn’t strictly a book recommendation service, it does bring you super-low-cost books based on your interests every day. The service is free, and when you sign up, you tell BookBub what kinds of books you like to read. From there, you’ll get an email from BookBub every day with book deals for that day. When we say “deal,” we mean it—many of BookBub’s titles are free entirely, $0.99, or just a couple of bucks.
LibraryThing
LibraryThing has been around for a long time and is still a great user-powered book ratings, review, and recommendation site. The service calls itself the world’s largest book club, and that’s a lot like the overall feel. Once you sign up, you’ll be encouraged to start adding books you’ve read and leave reviews for them. Behind its book ratings and reviews though, LibraryThing is a powerful tool to catalog and organize your entire book collection.
Olmenta
If you’re not interested in registering for accounts, adding your own books, or any of that hassle(麻烦), Olmenta can suggest some solid titles to you based on general popularity and the citation of the people behind the site. It’s a simple list of book covers that the service thinks you should read, and a few genres you can click on if you’re looking for something specific, like business, fiction, children’s, theatre, poetry, or nonfiction, among others.
1.Which of the following two book recommendation sites ask you to rate and leave reviews?
A. Goodreads and BookBub B. BookBub and LibraryThing
C. LibraryThing and Olmenta D. Goodreads and LibraryThing
2.Which book recommendation site can help you get super-low-cost books?
A. GoodReads B. BookBub
C. LibraryThing D. Olmenta
3.If you turn to Olmenta, you __________________.
A. need to pay more B. need to add your own book
C. don’t need to sign up D. don’t need to look for something specific
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Students should be able to show what they know. Many folks take this as a self-evident truth. But I think it demands closer examination.
Possessing a skill or piece of knowledge is not the same thing as being able to show it. This is why many smart young people hate school. Understanding, figuring out, and getting a handle on a piece of knowledge is really exciting, but having to prove to somebody else that you understand is a big fat pain in the neck.
Finding proof of student learning is a huge part of the teacher’s job, and whether it is done poorly or not makes all the difference in that teacher’s effectiveness. There is a huge difference between “How do I figure out if this student understands” and “How do I make this student prove to me he gets it.” The first is a valuable approach; the second is the first step on the road toward wasting everybody’s time.
And there’s the problem. If we start with the assumption (假定) that a student who knows must be able to show his knowledge to our satisfaction, we will be traveling down the wrong road. The more we demand that students prove to us that they know the stuff, the more we will design artificial tasks that demand a set of skills and knowledge entirely different from the skills and knowledge we really want to measure.
As a classroom teacher, I have to remember that the burden is on me to find a way to see what my students know; the burden is not on them to put on whatever trained monkey show I design for my own ease and convenience.
It may not be the worst thing ever to say “Students should be able to show what they know.” But I think it’s far more useful to say, "Teachers should be able to discover what students know."
1.What does the underlined phrase in the second paragraph mean?
A. Very dangerous. B. Very annoying.
C. Very difficult. D. Very frequent.
2.According to the third paragraph, a teacher should have the ability to .
A. discover whether his students know
B. avoid wasting the precious time in class
C. apply various approaches while teaching
D. give students the chance to prove themselves
3.What does the author think of the artificial tasks designed to test students’ learning?
A. They should be limited in number.
B. They are a huge burden on teachers.
C. They should mainly focus on effectiveness.
D. They slide away from their original purpose.
4.What is the main idea of the passage?
A. Students should be able to show what they know.
B. There are many ways to find proof of student learning.
C. Teachers should be able to discover what students know.
D. There should be better understanding between teachers and students.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Scientists are preparing to launch the world's first machine to clean up the planet's largest mass of ocean plastic.
The experts believe the machine should be able to collect half of the detritus in the patch – about 40,000 metric tons – within five years. In the past few weeks they have been busy welding together giant tubes that will sit on the surface of the sea and form the skeleton of the machine, creating the largest floating barrier ever made。
The system, originally dreamed up by Mr. Slat, will be shipped out this summer to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, between Hawaii and California, and which contains an estimated 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic. It will be the first ever attempt to tackle the patch since it was discovered in 1997.
Mr. Slat was 16 and still at school when he was diving in Greece and first saw for himself the amount of plastic polluting the sea. “There were more bags than fish down there,” he recalls. Two years later he came up with a solution, quit university after six months and set up The Ocean Cleanup as a company. Mr. Slat, 23, says the first plastic to arrive on shore will be a major milestone. “We as a humanity created this problem, so I think it's our responsibility also to help solve it,” he said.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) spans 617,763 sq miles - more than twice the size of France, and contains at least 79,000 tons of plastic, research found last month. Most of it is made up of “ghost gear” – parts of abandoned and lost fishing gear, such as nets and ropes – often from illegal fishing vessels.
Ghost gear kills more than 100,000 whales, dolphins and seals each year, according to scientific surveys. Seabirds and other marine life are increasingly being found dead with stomachs full of small pieces of plastic. Creatures eat plastic discarded in the sea thinking it’s food but then starve to death because they are not feeding properly. Others are trapped and die of starvation or are strangled or suffocated by ghost gear.
1.What does the underlined word in the first paragraph probably mean?
A. waste. B. ocean.
C. system. D. machine.
2.According to the passage, most of the Garbage in Pacific is made up of _____ .
A. fishing vessels
B. dolphins and seals
C. giant tubes
D. abandoned fishing gear
3.why do some creatures in The Great Pacific Garbage Patch die of starvation?
A. because they were killed by Ghost gear.
B. because they were suffocated by ghost gear.
C. because they didn't like eating plastic.
D. because they are not feeding properly.
4.What is the main idea of the Passage?
A. news about the first machine to clean up ocean plastic.
B. report about the death of marine life
C. information about ocean plastic.
D. the reason for inventing a machine.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Traditionally, robots have been hard, made of metal and other rigid material: But a team of scientists at Harvard University in the US has managed to build an entirely soft robot-one that draws inspiration from an octopus (章鱼).
Described in science journal Nature, the “Octobot” could pave the way for more effective autonomous robots that could be used in search，rescue and exploration. “The Octobot is minimal system which may serve as a foundation for a new generation of completely soft, autonomous robots” the study’s authors wrote.
Robots built for precise, repetitive movements in a controlled environment don’t do so well on rough terrains (地形) or in unpredictable conditions. And they aren’t especially safe around humans, because they’re made out of hard and heavy parts that could be potentially dangerous to their users.
So researchers have been working on building soft robots for decades. They’re taken inspiration from nature, looking to animals from jellyfish to cockroaches, which are often made up of more flexible matter.
But creating a completely soft robot remains a challenge. Even if engineers build a silicone (硅酮) body, it’s still a grand challenge to construct flexible versions of essential parts, such as a source of power.
“Although soft robotics is still in its early stage, it holds great promise for several applications, such as search-rescue operations and exploration,” Barbara Mazzolai and Virgilio Mattoli of the Italian Institute of Technology’ Center for Micro-BioRobotics, wrote in a comment. “Soft robots might also open up new approaches to improving wellness and quality of life.”
1.What’s the special feature of “Octobot”？
A. It’s soft. B. It’s made of metal.
C. It’s very small. D. It looks like an octopus.
2.What’s the disadvantage of traditional robots?
A. They’re hard to control. B. They’re too heavy to move.
C. They can’t predict conditions. D. They can’t behave well all the time.
3.One of the biggest challenges is to build Octobot’s ________.
A. silicone body B. complex components
C. precise movements D. flexible power source
4.What can we infer about the application of “Octobot”？
A. It has been used in various fields
B. It has not been put into use on a large scale.
C. It has been used in the field of rescue
D. It has not been improved yet .
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Living abroad will make you a different person and it will change you forever in a good way. I lived abroad for more than four years. 1.. Here are the most important four reasons why you should study abroad and make the most of your stay abroad.
Improve your job chances. 2.. HR managers value international experience highly, as candidates with experiences of studying abroad are considered to be adaptable, independent, problem-solving and open.
3.. Getting out of your home is certainly not easy, but it will help you grow. Go out there and experience the world. See it as an adventure that you will tell your grandkids about. Sometimes you have to push yourself and then you will be rewarded with this awesome feeling of accomplishment.
Create a memory of a lifetime. Spending time abroad will be an adventure and those memories will last for a lifetime. I know a lot of people that once lived abroad and none of them regrets the time they spent abroad. Yes, there will be difficult times. When you don’t understand the people around you everything is foreign and nothing makes sense. Everyday tasks seem like a major problem. 4..
Become independent. Living in a foreign country all by yourself will surely make you independent. You are forced to make decisions by yourself as you don’t have other choices. 5.. Show them that they were all so wrong about your being a mama’s boy (or girl)! It will feel great!
A. Get away from home.
B. Improve your language skills.
C. It was and still is the biggest adventure in my life.
D. Show yourself, your parents and friends that you can do it.
E. Different cultures have different values, traditions and customs.
F. But I can tell you from my experience that it is definitely worth it.
G. Experience abroad will give you an advantage over other applicants in the job market.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Two years ago，I donated my kidney(肾)to my brother.I considered it a complete lifechanging experience，not only for the two of us ______ for the entire family.We ended up ______ from surgery(外科手术)at a friend's home in Baton Rouge，LA．His ______ to us was unforgettable.We had received so many _______.We had gotten food donation from so many people who ______ us something beyond physical comfort.
Now my brother is back on his feet and is living life ______ normal.Last April，he ______ to give back to the community(社区)by ______ money for the Medical Association through cycling 180 miles from Houston to Austin.I felt greatly moved，tears in eyes，______ that my kidney gave him a second chance in life and that he is now living beyond what he imagined ______ to be.Recently，our mother suffered from breast cancer.______ she was the one who took care of me and my brother，we wanted to do something in her ______.My brother，my sister and I are going to ______ next year for the Cancer Society，______ my brother and I will be joining in the half marathon in honour of our mother and this will be our good chance to be kidney donation ______ as well.
We ______ during our surgery that several thousand people die from kidney disease every year.Patients would be on the ______ list for kidney donation and many of them end up in death because of the ______ of kidney donors.If my brother and I can ______ others to do the same thing I did，maybe more lives will be saved.______ only I had more kidneys，I would do it again for other people.
1.A. and B. but C. so D. or
2.A. rebuilding B. reusing C. recovering D. reserving
3.A. kindness B. courage C. power D. manners
4.A. friends B. people C. patients D. doctors
5.A. devoted B. contributed C. delivered D. gave
6.A. against B. under C. beyond D. for
7.A. decided B. urged C. demanded D. insisted
8.A. earning B. lending C. donating D. raising
9.A. knowing B. expecting C. hoping D. reporting
10.A. future B. life C. success D. luck
11.A. If B. Though C. Because D. Before
12.A. place B. job C. health D. honour
13.A. run B. study C. cheer D. fight
14.A. as B. when C. while D. however
15.A. sellers B. collectors C. volunteers D. advocates
16.A. figured out B. found out C. learned from D. looked into
17.A. working B. waiting C. sending D. growing
18.A. delay B. common C. lack D. help
19.A. encourage B. support C. order D. affect
20.A. But B. Not C. Just D. If
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面材料，用不多于 1 个单词的正确形式填空
Night after night, she came to tuck me in（给…盖好被子）, even long after my childhood years. 1. (follow) her longstanding custom, she’d lean down and push my long hair out of the way, then kiss my forehead.
I don’t remember 2. it first started annoying me — her hands pushing my hair that way. Finally, one night, I shouted out at her, “Don’t do that anymore —your hands are too rough!” She didn’t say 3. in reply. But never again 4. my mother close out my day 5. that familiar expression of her love.
Time after time, with the passing years, my 6. (think) returned to that night. By then I missed my mother’s hands, missed her goodnight kiss on my forehead.
Now those hands I once thought to be so rough were still doing things for me and my family. I frequently recalled the night my young voice complained. One night, catching Mom’s hand in hand, I blurted out how sorry I was for that night. I thought she’d remember, 7. I did. But Mom didn’t know what I 8. (talk) about. She had forgotten — and forgiven — long ago.
That night, I fell asleep with a new 9. (appreciate) for my gentle mother and her caring hands. And the guilt（内疚感）that I had carried around for so long was nowhere 10.(find) .
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假如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限一词。
2、只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
John went shopping in a store, and he forgot to bring a bag. So he buys a shopping bag. After arriving home, it occurred him that he could make a bag by using his old trousers. Several hours earlier, he made himself a very nice bag. His mother was amazing at what he had done. Avoiding spending money unnecessarily is a way of saving. And making a good use of things is an approach to protect the environment. What's more, it is helpful for you to improve the ability to make things by hands. It not only brings us pleasure but reduce waste around us.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假定你是李华，你的英国朋友Tom对中国古诗（Chinese poetry）很感兴趣。他来信请教有关知识。请给他回信，内容包括：
1.介绍中国古诗；
2.你学习中国古诗经历和感悟；
3.如何推广中国古诗？
注意：1. 词数 100 左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯的；
3. 开头语已为你写好。
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难度: 中等查看答案及解析