When it comes to U.S. middle school science a...

When it comes to U.S. middle school science and engineering, girls rule. Girls took the top five prizes at the 2019 Broadcom MASTERS, a competition for middle school students across the country.

The winners were announced last month. The winners were honored for their STEM successes, as well as for showing skills in critical thinking, communication, creativity and team-work. In first place was 14-year-old Alaina Gassler of West Grove, Pennsylvania. She designed a system to make driving safer by reducing blind spots — the areas that drivers cannot see outside their vehicle. Gassler developed the technology while in eighth grade. “She, along with the entire Class of 2019, are already leaders in their fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM),” said Paula Golden, president of the Broadcom Foundation. “These young creators give every one of us hope for the future.”

The Broadcom MASTERS competition is a project of the Society for Science & the Public. It was set up to motivate young people to attend college and pursue careers in STEM fields. It was open to students in grades 6, 7 and 8 across the country.

The top prize winner, Alaina Gassler, says she got the idea for her project after seeing her mother struggle with blind spots in her family’s car. Blind spots lead to many accidents — about 840,000 accidents a year nationwide.

Gassler’s system helps drivers see “through” the A-frame pillar (A柱) — the part of the vehicle, in the front, that joins the top and front window. The A-frame pillar is important for safety, and cannot be removed. Gassler used a camera to help drivers look “through” the structure to see what is blocked. The camera sends video to a device that shows images on the other side of the pillar. The driver then can “see” what’s in the blind spot.

The young inventor won a $25,000 prize for her invention. She told Popular Mechanics she can make improvements on her device with that money. Gassler said she wants to improve the picture — making it easy to see in any weather, or any time of the day. She also told the magazine she hopes to sell her idea.

1.What does the writer try to convey by saying “girls rule” in Paragraph1?

A.Girls tend to break rules.

B.Girls prefer to control others.

C.Girls perform better in the competition.

D.Girls are superior to boys in all aspects.

2.Which best describes Paula Golden’s attitude toward these young creators?

A.Proud. B.Indifferent.

C.Critical. D.Cautious.

3.The purpose of the Broadcom MASTERS competition is to_____________.

A.offer students hands-on training

B.collect money for scientific research

C.arouse students’ interest in STEM fields

D.persuade students not to drop out of school

4.What drives Alaina Gassler to invent the system?

A.Her strong curiosity.

B.Her school’s task.

C.The breakdown of her family car.

D.Her mother’s experience.

5.What can we infer about Gassler’s system?

A.It gets rid of blind spots.

B.It is still far from perfect.

C.It has been put into market.

D.It can avoid accidents automatically.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Good news for middle and high school students． When it comes to sleeping a little longer, physicians are on your side．

On Monday, the American Academy Pediatrics（儿科） announced its recommendation that middle and high schools start at 8:30 a．m．or later． "Doing so will match school schedules to the biological sleep patterns of adolescents," the AAP writes in a press release regarding its new policy statement called “School Start Times for Adolescents" ．

"Chronic（慢性的） sleep loss in adolescents is one of the most common public health issues in the U．S．today," according to Judith Owens, director of Sleep Medicine at Children's National Health System．

"The research is clear that adolescents who get enough sleep have a reduced risk of being overweight or suffering depression, are less likely to be involved in automobile accidents, and have better grades, higher standardized test scores and an overall better quality of life," Owens said in the press release． "Studies have shown that delaying early school start times is one key factor that can help adolescents get the sleep they need to grow and learn．"

Even before the AAP's announcement, school districts across the country have been rethinking start times． Earlier this year The New York Times wrote about Dos Santos, a student at Rock Bridge High School． When Dos Santos learned that school officials were considering starting school 30 minutes earlier than the existing time, she became worried．The student gathered others to her cause． In the end, school officials decided against the earlier start time．

One of the organizations that Dos Santos reached out to for help was Start School Later, a nonprofit organization that focuses on getting public schools to set "healthy school hours．"

"It's going to take collective action, perhaps on a national scale, to get many districts to take on this issue," Terra Ziporyn Snider, PhD, director and co-founder of Start School Later, told Yahoo Health．

"The science is clear, the will to change isn't," she explained． "The reason for that is that community life goes around school schedules, and any suggestion of change - earlier, later, whatever - brings powerful opposition from everyone who fears a change in routine．"

1.What can be learned about Start School Later?

A． Dr．Snider is director of this nonprofit organization．

B． It is a commercial organization belonging to Yahoo Health．

C． It helps private schools to set healthy schedules for students．

D． It made a policy called。‘School Start Times for Adolescents"．

2.Which of the following is NOT mentioned as benefit from enough sleep?

A． Students will enjoy a better life．

B． Students might feel less depressed．

C． Students may achieve higher grades．

D． Students are more likely to be on time for school．

3.What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

A． Scientific findings are not convincing．

B． Changing school　 start time is no　 easy job．

C． Most people are willing to change schedules．

D． The revolution of school schedules is under way．

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

When it comes to protecting the privacy of their children, U.S. parents give social networks a failing grade. According to a recent survey, three out of four parents believe social networks are not doing a good job of protecting kids’ online privacy.

The survey was conducted for Common Sense Media, a nonprofit organization devoted to helping families find the right way to deal with the world of media and technology.

Ninety-two percent of parents said they are concerned that children share too much information online, and 85 percent said they are more concerned about online privacy than they were five years ago. In other findings, Common Sense Media found that 68% of parents are not at all confident in search engines keeping their private information safe and secure and 71% of parents said the same about social networking sites.

The survey found a great deal of concern about the online geo-location services which find and show the exact position of somebody through the net. Ninety-one percent of parents said search engines and social networking sites should not be able to share the physical location of children with other companies unless the parents approve.

“The survey results present a clear divide between the industry’s view of privacy and the opinion of parents and kids,” Common Sense Media CEO and founder James Steyer said.

“American families are deeply worried about how their personal information is being used by technology and online companies, yet the companies appear to be keeping their heads deep in the sand,” Steyer said.

IT companies need to step up but parents, children, schools and government also need to do more, he said.

“Parents and kids have to educate themselves about how to protect their information,” he said. “Schools should teach all students and their parents about privacy protection.”

“And finally, policymakers have to update privacy policies for the 21st century,” he said. According to the survey, more than 60 percent of parents want the US Congress to update online privacy laws for children and teenagers.

1. What does the underlined part in Paragraph 6 mean?

A. Refusing to admit the problem.               B. Refusing to work with others.

C. Trying to find a solution to the problem    D. Trying to look deep into the problem.

2. According to James Steyer, the following organizations should make more contributions to protecting

children’s online privacy except __________.

A. IT companies    B. Government   C. Schools    D. Nonprofit Organizations

3.What can be inferred from the passage?

A. Parents are worried about social networks because they lead to the children’s failing grades.

B. Most US parents agree that the online geo-location services should be forbidden.

C. Most US parents will support a law that limits IT companies to using personal information.

D. US Congress has not yet passed any online privacy law for children and teenagers.

4. Which of the following may be the best title for the passage?

A. US Congress to Update Privacy Policies for 21^st Century

B. Common Sense Media Warns Against Social Networks

C. US Parents Want Better Online Privacy Protection for Kids

D. Worry Grows for Problems Caused by Social Networks

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The U.S. is still out in front of global competitors when it comes to innovation (革新), but American universities-where new ideas often spread-have reason to look over their shoulders.

That's especially true for technologies like 5G phone networks and artificial intelligence. In President Donald Trump's opinion, they're exactly the fields where the U.S. has to lead - and also the ones where Asia, especially China, is catching up. Universities from China get more patents than their U.S. peers in wireless communications, according to research firm GreyB Services. In AI, 17 of the top 20 universities and public research organizations are in China, with the Chinese Academy of Sciences topping the list, says the World Intellectual Property Organization in Geneva.

There's a special place for universities in the development of science. Universities educate future scientists and can be incubators (孵化器) for pie-in-the-sky ideas-some of which turn out to be game-changers. The list ranges from Google's search engine to DNA technology that's behind a whole industry of gene-manipulating (基因编辑) treatments.

However, government aids to universities haven't been growing for more than a decade, meaning they've declined in real terms and as a share of the economy, leading to the cost increase for universities and meanwhile somehow discouraging the teaching staff from putting all their hearts into their scientific research.

“If you look at the federal dollars, they've not really changed considerably,” says Stephen Susalka, head of AUTM, a technology transfer association whose members include 800 universities. “Other countries are catching up. We can't be satisfied with what we have achieved.”

1.What does the underlined phrase “look over their shoulders” in Paragraph 1 mean?

A.Watch out B.Take off

C.Stand up D.Hide away

2.The author mentions 5G phone networks in Paragraph 2 to show.

A.Chinese universities have obtained more patents than other countries

B.the Chinese government provides aids to Chinese universities

C.wireless communications are changed dramatically these years

D.U.S. universities may lose their lead in some high-tech fields

3.What is the main idea of Paragraph 3?

A.Universities can be birthplaces of game programmers.

B.Pie-in-the-sky ideas from universities can be revolutionary.

C.Universities play an important role in science development.

D.Gene-manipulation helps to develop DNA technology.

4.What's Stephen Susalka's attitude towards the future development of U.S universities?

A.Worried. B.Disapproving.

C.Positive. D.Unconcerned.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The U.S. is still out in front of global competitors when it comes to innovation(革新), but American universities-where new ideas often spread - have reason to look over their shoulders.

That's especially true for technologies like 5G phone networks and artificial intelligence. In President Donald Trump's opinion, they're exactly the fields where the U.S. has to lead-and also the ones where Asia, especially China, is catching up. Universities from China get more patents than their U.S. peers in wireless communications, according to a research firm named GreyB Services. In Al, 17 of the top 20 universities and public research organizations are in China, with the Chinese Academy of Sciences topping the list, says the World Intellectual Property Organization in Geneva.

There's a special place for universities in the development of science. Universities educate future scientists and can be incubators(孵化器) for pie-in-the-sky ideas - some of which turn out to be game-changers. The list ranges from Google's search engine to DNA technology that's behind a whole industry of gene-manipulating(基因编辑) treatments.

However, government aids to universities haven't been growing for more than a decade, meaning they've declined in real terms and as a share of the economy, leading to the cost increase for universities and meanwhile somehow discouraging the teaching staff from putting all their hearts into their scientific research.

“If you look at the federal dollars, they've not really changed considerably,” says Stephen Susalka, head of AUTM, a technology transfer association whose members include 800 universities. “Other countries are catching up. We can't be satisfied with what we have achieved?”

1.What does the underlined phrase “look over their shoulders” in Paragraph 1 mean?

A.Watch out. B.Take off.

C.Stand up. D.Hide away.

2.The author mentions 5G phone networks to show .

A.Chinese universities have obtained the most patents

B.Chinese universities get aids from the government

C.wireless communications have changed dramatically

D.U.S. may lose their lead in some high-tech fields

3.What is the main idea of Paragraph 3?

A.Pie-in-the-sky ideas can be revolutionary.

B.Universities can produce game programmers.

C.Gene-manipulation helps to develop DNA technology.

D.Universities play an important role in science development.

4.What's Stephen's attitude to the future development of US universities?

A.Worried. B.Disapproving.

C.Positive. D.Unconcerned.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Let’s Go Fly a Kite…

—at Piedmont Middle School’s celebration of kites!

Come and learn how to build all sorts of kites，from the simplest diamond-shaped kites to the most complex box kites．Stay as long as you like and build as many kites as you want．Once you have finished a kite，get advice on flying techniques from kite expert Lorena Hallsberg．The celebration will be at Piedmont Middle School，151 Piedmont School Drive．

The Piedmont Middle School Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) has organized a refreshment (茶点) tent．All profits will benefit future PTO activities．Take a break from kite flying and drink some lemonade! While you are doing so，why not join the PTO？ Membership is free; you just donate your time．Show your support for Piedmont Middle School by joining the PTO this Saturday!

When: Saturday，April 11，from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm

Where: Piedmont Middle School

Why:　 For fun!

Cost:　 Free，thanks to a generous gift from Bizarco Kite Company!

Schedule

9:00 am — Kite-building booths open．All materials are supplied for kites．

10:00 am — Kite-building shows by Lorena Hallsberg in the courtyard．Come by and learn how to build box kites and kites that look and fly like butterflies．

11:00 am — Kite-flying shows on the school track．Learn all the most important skills．

12:00 pm — Kite-flying competitions on the school track．

1:00 pm — Presentation by Dr．Brian Lehrman in the show tent: “The History of Kites”．

2:00 pm — Best Kite competitions and judging in the show tent．Come see the most artistic kites and the most interesting theme kites．

3:00 pm — Presentation by Dr．Lehrman in the show tent: “Kites and Science”．

3:30 pm — Awards ceremony conducted by Headmaster Seward on the football field．The results of the day’s judging will be announced，with awards such as Best of Show，Most Artistic，Highest Flyer，and others．Winners will receive gifts from the Bizarco Kite Company!

4:00–5:00 pm — Let’s all go fly a kite! Everyone flies kites at the same time，creating a wonderful sight for all to enjoy．

Come to the kite celebration，enjoy yourself and learn more．

1.The main purpose of Paragraph 2 is to ask people to _______．

A．build a kite

B．support the PTO

C．take a break

D．join the fun

2.Which times are most important for people who want to join in kite competitions？

A．10:00 am and 11:00 am．

B．12:00 pm and 2:00 pm．

C．1:00 pm and 3:00 pm．

D．2:00 pm and 4:00 pm．

3.From the passage，we know that the kite celebration _______．

A．is enjoyable and educational

B．is strict about the shapes of kites

C．gets money from PTO of Piedmont Middle School

D．gives people a chance to see kites from around the world

4.The passage is intended for _______．

A．school staff

B．kite experts

C．students and parents

D．kite companies

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

It seems that there is no middle ground when it comes to cats. People either love them or hate them. These feelings are not new either. All through history, cats have been worshiped or hated. A study of ancient writings and evidence found in tombs indicates that for the past 5,000 years, cats have been kept as pets in China, Arabia, Egypt, and India. However, this isn’t very long compared to dogs, which have been domesticated for 50,000 years. Still, while the period in which cats have been domesticated may be quite short, it has definitely had its high and low points.

Cats were at their highest position of domesticated life in ancient Egypt. There were more cats living in Egypt during the time of the pharaohs than in any other place in the world since that time. This high number of cats was probably due to the laws protecting them. Cats were associated with the moon goddess, Bast, so the Egyptians worshiped them as holy animals. If anyone was caught killing a cat, the person could be put to death. Families in Egypt also mourned the death of a cat and had the body of the dead cat wrapped in cloth before it was finally laid to rest. This respect for cats carried over to the Roman Empire where cats were the only animals allowed into temples. This fact was probably due to the ability of cats to keep the temples free of mice and rats. With the coming of the Dark Ages in Europe, the place of cats in society took a turn for the Empire, Christians began to associate cats with pegan (异教徒) beliefs. Cats had a reputation as helpers of witches. When a person was accused of being a witch, a cat would often be put on trial with the person. The cat would be tortured（拷打） to try and make the person tell the truth, and usually the cat and the person would end up being burned in a bonfire or drowned. Bonfires of collected cats were not uncommon during this time.

The days of hunting witches have ended, but other myths about cats still hold out. For a while, people in some places used to bury live cats under new buildings for good luck. As well, many people today continue to believe that black cats bring bad luck. If a black cat walks in front of a person, that person must take extra care in the near future to watch out for dangerous situations. Regardless of superstition(迷信), cats remain a popular pet today. Some cat experts believe that a cat never truly be domesticated because it may turn wild and run away at any time. However, this claim has not put people off keeping cats in their homes. A third of homes in the United States have cats, and one out of every three of these homes keeps both a dog and a cat. Especially in large cities, many people in small apartments have found that cats make much better pets than dogs.

Cats may not be worshiped as gods any more, but there are people who seem to think of their cat as their children. These cat owners will do almost anything to keep their pets healthy and happy. For those cat owners who have always wondered what their pets are trying to tell them, a Japanese company may have come up with the perfect invention. In 2003, the Takara Company announced the Meowlingual, a cat translation device. The Meowlingual uses a microphone, display, and cat voice analyzer to analyze a cat’s meows to determine which of 200 phrases a cat is trying to say.

According to a company spokesperson, “… cat owners all over the world have been telling Takara, ‘ We want a cat translator!’” Now, the company “is making their dream come true by bringing in a new era of communication between cat lovers and their pets.”

1.Which of these is NOT discussed in the passage?

A．the status of cats throughout history

B．the evolution of different species of cats

C．the popularity of the cats today

D．communication between cats and their owners

2.The second paragraph mainly describes_______.

A．how Bast became a goddess.

B．the low point in the history of cats

C．the high point in the history of cats

D．the reason why cats are such good hunters

3.How were cats treated in Europe during the Dark Ages?

A．as farm animals     B．as food           C．as magical creatures D．as honored guests

4.According to the passage, what percentage of people in the United States keep both a cat and a dog?

A．about 10 percent   B．nearly 25 percent   C．about 33 percent   D．close to 50 percent

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Engineering students are supposed to be examples of practicality and rationality (理性), but when it comes to my college education I am an idealist and a fool. In high school I wanted to be an electrical engineer and, of course, any reasonable student with my aims would have chosen a college with a large engineering department, many famous professors and lots of good labs and research equipment. But that's not what I did.

I chose to study engineering at a small liberal-arts (文科) university that doesn't even offer a major in electrical engineering. Obviously, this was not a practical choice; I came here for more noble reasons. I wanted a broad education that would provide me with flexibility and a value system to guide me in my job. I wanted to open my eyes and expand my vision by communicating with people who weren't studying science or engineering. My parents, teachers and other adults praised me for such a wise choice. They told me I was wise and grown-up beyond my 18 years, and I believed them.

I headed off to the college and sure I was going to have an advantage over those students who went to big engineering "factories" where they didn't care if you had values or were flexible. I was going to be a complete engineer: technical expert and excellent humanist all in one.

Now I'm not so sure. Somewhere along the way my noble ideas crashed into reality, as all noble ideas finally do. After three years of struggling to balance math, physics and engineering courses with liberal-arts courses, I have learned there are reasons why few engineering students try to reconcile engineering with liberal-arts courses in college.

The reality that has blocked my path to become the typical successful student is that engineering and the liberal arts simply don't mix as easily as I supposed in high school. Individually they shape a person in very different ways. The struggle to reconcile the two fields of study is difficult.

1.Why did the author choose to study engineering at a small liberal-arts university?

2.According to the author, by communicating with people who study liberal arts, engineering students can ___________.

3. Which word below can replace the underlined word “reconcile”?

4.The underlined sentence in 1st paragraph means ___________.

5. The author suggests in this passage that ___________.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Science, to many school-aged children, seems 1.(bore) and difficult. Most do not realize it is 2. (extreme) important and amazing. Bill Bryson’s book A Really Short History of Nearly Everything 3.(cover) many different aspects of science, such as what happened to dinosaurs, why the oceans are salty, how heavy the earth is, and a chain of life, genetics, planets, weather, atoms and etc. from his point of view, the Big Bang was the start of 4.universe and it only took less than a second 5.(happen). Filled with countless illustrations and photographs that accompany facts 6.are short and to-the-point, the book gives a rather detailed but short history of the science of the world.

For any science lover, the book is perfect. Bryson writes in a 7. (humour) manner, but he is very informative, I love the book’s 8. (organize). The vocabulary fits perfectly with the subject matter, and unfamiliar terms 9.(explain) finely. This book has done me, and every curious kid burdened by a dull textbook or a brain-dead science teacher a huge favor. It is a great resource 10.a classroom, home school setting, or library to use.

高三英语语法填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

Faces show emotions. Psychology; computer science, and engineering researchers are joining forces to teach machines to read expressions. If they succeed, your computer may one day "read" your mood and cooperate. Machines equipped with emotional skills could also be used in teaching , robotics, gaming, security, and for psychological diagnoses(诊断).

"Mind Reader", a system developed by Rosalind Picard at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US, uses input from a video camera to do real-time analysis of facial expressions. It reports on whether you seem "interested" or “agreeable” or if you're "confused".

The system can help people detect others' emotions. Picard says this means we could teach a machine to be as sensitive as a human. In fact, a machine can be even smarter: than people since it can tell if a person is lying or just "performing" by analyzing one's facial movements. Jeffrey Cohn, a psychologist at the University of Pittsburgh, uses the Facial Action Coding System to detect human emotions. "The face is always visible," Cohn says, "People communicate a lot about feelings and thoughts through facial expression."

Cohn studied a videotape of criminal who professed to be sad about the murder of several family members and tried to pin the blame on some one else． But Cohn saw no real sadness in the woman's face. Sadness is a combination of facial action units that are difficult to do voluntarily. This means, even though your mouth lies, your face doesn't, and the machine will know it all.

1．People can know a person's emotions from his _____.

A．body movement             B．facial expressions

C．psychological reactions   D．mood and attitude

2．Recent technology development makes ______ by machines possible.

A．mind reading          B．body reading

C．face reading           D．mood reading

3．According to the passage,______.

A．people can no longer tell lies before the new machine

B．people still can tell lies in front of the new machine

C．people have different emotions before the new machine

D．sadness is often difficult to be seen

4．The underlined word "professed" most probably means_______.

A．to pretend something as true B．to acknowledge

C．to show           D．to prove

5．From the passage we can infer that ________.

A．the technology still needs improvement.

B．people can do everything with the new machine .

C．face reading technology is nothing new.

D．face reading technology will be widely used in the future.

高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析