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Following the outbreak of the novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP), also named COVID -19 by WHO, there is a general fear of the unknown virus as its full effects remain to be seen. Fever, coughing, sore throat, difficulty breathing – the NCP’s symptoms are similar to the common cold or the flu, but it’s potentially more dangerous.
Viruses could be deadly, like HIV and Ebola. 1. How can they cause so much trouble?
Viruses are non-living organisms approximately one-millionth of an inch long. Unlike human cells or bacteria, they can’t reproduce on their own. Instead, they invade the cells of living organisms to reproduce, spread and take over.
Viruses can infect every living thing – from plants and animals down to the smallest bacteria. 2. Sometimes a virus can cause a disease so serious that it is fatal. Other viral infections bring about no noticeable reaction.
Viruses lie around our environment all of the time, waiting for a host cell to come along. They can enter our bodies by the nose, mouth, eyes or breaks in the skin. 3. For example, HIV, which causes AIDS, attacks the T-cells of the immune system.
But the basic question is, where did viruses first come from? 4. “Tracing the origins of viruses is difficult,” Ed Rybicki, a virologist at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, told Scientific American, “because viruses don’t leave fossils (化石) and because of the tricks they use to make copies of themselves within the cells they’ve invaded.”
However, there are three main theories to explain the origin of viruses. First, viruses started as independent organisms, then became parasites (寄生者). Second, viruses evolved from pieces of DNA or RNA that “escaped” from larger organisms. Third, viruses co-evolved with their host cells, which means they existed alongside these cells.
5. The technology and evidence we have today cannot be used to test these theories and identify the most plausible explanation. Continuing studies may provide us with clearer answers.
A.But what are viruses?
B.For the time being, these are only theories.
C.Once inside, they try to find a host cell to infect.
D.The answer may be even less satisfactory than it now appears.
E.Until now, no clear explanation for their origin exists.
F.Experts are concerned about the bad effect that it had on people’s health.
G.For this reason, they always have the potential to be dangerous to human life.
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Following the outbreak of the novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP), also named COVID—19 by WHO, there is a general fear of the unknown virus as its full effects remain to be seen. Fever, coughing, sore throat, difficulty breathing—the NCP’s symptoms (症状) are similar to the common cold or the flu, but it’s potentially more dangerous.
Viruses could be deadly, like HIV and Ebola (埃博拉). But what are viruses? How can they cause so much trouble?
Viruses are non-living organisms (有机体) approximately one-millionth of an inch long. Unlike human cells or bacteria, they can’t reproduce on their own. Instead, they invade (入侵) the cells of living organisms to reproduce, spread and take over.
Viruses can infect every living thing — from plants and animals down to the smallest bacteria. For this reason, they always have the potential to be dangerous to human life. Sometimes a virus can cause a disease so serious that it is fatal. Other viral infections trigger (引起) no noticeable reaction.
Viruses lie around our environment all of the time, waiting for a host cell to come along. They can enter our bodies by the nose, mouth, eyes or breaks in the skin. Once inside, they try to find a host cell to infect. For example, HIV, which causes AIDS, attacks the T-cells of the immune system.
But the basic question is, where did viruses first come from? Until now, no clear explanation for their origin exists. “Tracing the origins of viruses is difficult,” Ed Rybicki, a virologist at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, told Scientific American, “because viruses don’t leave fossils (化石) and because of the tricks they use to make copies of themselves within the cells they’ve invaded.”
However, there are three main hypotheses (假说) to explain the origin of viruses. First, viruses started as independent organisms, then became parasites (寄生者). Second, viruses evolved from pieces of DNA or RNA that “escaped” from larger organisms. Third, viruses co-evolved with their host cells, which means they existed alongside these cells.
For the time being, these are only theories. The technology and evidence we have today cannot be used to test these theories and identify the most reasonable explanation. Continuing studies may provide us with clearer answers. Or future studies may reveal that the answer is even murkier (含糊不清的) than it now appears.
1.What can we learn about viruses from the text?
A.Viruses have nothing to do with the common cold.
B.Viruses are really small living organisms.
C.Viruses can’t reproduce unless they find a host cell.
D.Viruses enter our bodies mainly through the mouth, nose and hair.
2.Which of the following might explain the origin of viruses?
A.They evolved from the fossils of large organisms.
B.They evolved from parasites into independent organisms.
C.They evolved from the T-cells in animals.
D.They evolved along with their host cells.
3.What can we conclude from the text?
A.Viruses live longer in human host cells than in animals’.
B.Viruses will become more like bacteria as they evolve.
C.It may take a long time to understand the origin of viruses.
D.The author is optimistic about future virus research.
4.What’s the best title of this passage?
A.The Mystery of Virus Evolution
B.The Invasion of Deadly Viruses.
C.The Reaction of Viral Infection
D.The Future Studies of Viruses
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Following the outbreak of the novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP), also named COVID-19 by WHO, there is a general fear of the unknown virus as its full effects remain to be seen. Fever, coughing, sore throat, difficulty breathing —the NCP’s symptoms are similar to the common cold or the flu, but it’s potentially more dangerous.
Viruses could be deadly, like HIV and Ebola. But what are viruses? How can they cause so much trouble?
Viruses are non-living organisms (有机体) approximately one-millionth of an inch long. Unlike human cells or bacteria, they can’t reproduce on their own. Instead, they invade the cells of living organisms to reproduce, spread and take over.
Viruses can infect every living thing – from plants and animals down to the smallest bacteria. For this reason, they always have the potential to be dangerous to human life. Sometimes a virus can cause a disease so serious that it is fatal. Other viral infections trigger no noticeable reaction.
Viruses lie around our environment all of the time, waiting for a host cell to come along. They can enter our bodies by the nose, mouth, eyes or breaks in the skin. Once inside, they try to find a host cell to infect. For example, HIV, which causes AIDS, attacks the T-cells of the immune system.
But the basic question is, where did viruses first come from? Until now, no clear explanation for their origin exists. “Tracing the origins of viruses is difficult”, Ed Rybicki, a virologist (病毒学家) at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, told Scientific American, “because viruses don’t leave fossils and because of the tricks they use to make copies of themselves within the cells they’ve invaded”.
However, there are three main hypotheses (假说) to explain the origin of viruses. First, viruses started as independent organisms, then became parasites (寄生者). Second, viruses evolved from pieces of DNA or RNA that “escaped” from larger organisms. Third, viruses co-evolved with their host cells, which means they existed alongside these cells.
For the time being, these are only theories. The technology and evidence we have today cannot be used to test these theories and identify the most plausible explanation. Continuing studies may provide us with clearer answers. Or future studies may reveal that the answer is even murkier (含糊不清的) than it now appears.
1.What can we learn about viruses from the text?
A.Viruses have nothing to do with the common cold.
B.Viruses are really small living organisms.
C.Viruses can’t reproduce unless they find a host cell.
D.Viruses enter our bodies mainly through the mouth, nose and hair.
2.Which of the following might explain the origin of viruses?
A.They evolved from the fossils of large organisms.
B.They evolved from parasites into independent organisms.
C.They evolved from the T-cells in animals.
D.They evolved along with their host cells.
3.The underlined word “plausible” in the last paragraph probably means ________.
A.reasonable B.common
C.creative D.unbelievable
4.What can we conclude from the text?
A.Viruses live longer in human host cells than in animals’.
B.Viruses will become more like bacteria as they evolve.
C.It may take a long time to understand the origin of viruses.
D.The author is optimistic about future virus research.
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Among the outbreak of the novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP), the World Health Organization (WHO) has offered basic protective measures to the public against the virus.
1. Wash hands frequently with soap and water or use an alcohol-based hand rub if your hands are not visibly dirty.1.
2.2.If you sneeze or cough into your hands, you may contaminate (污染;传染) objects or people that you touch. Throw tissue immediately into a closed bin and clean hands with alcohol-based hand rub or soap and water.
3. Keep at least one- meter distance between yourself and other people, particularly those who are coughing, sneezing and have a fever, because coughs or sneezes of people who are infected with a respiratory (呼吸系统) disease project (喷射) small drops containing the virus.3.
4. Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth because hands touch many surfaces, which can be contaminated with: the virus. If you touch your eyes, nose or mouth with your contaminated hands, you can transfer the virus from the surface to yourself.
5. Tell your health care provider if you have traveled in an area where the epidemic (流行病). has been reported, or if you have been in close contact with someone who has respiratory symptoms.
6. Practice general hygiene(卫生) measures when visiting live animal markets, wet markets or animal product markets.4.. Avoid contact with potentially contaminated animal waste or fluids on the soil Or structures of shops and market facilities.
7.5.. Handle raw meat, milk, or animal organs carefully to avoid cross-contamination with uncooked food.
A.Avoid eating animal products
B.If you are too close, you can breathe in the virus
C.This helps knowing the virus if it's on your hands
D.Avoid eating raw or undercooked animal products
E.This helps removing the virus if it's on your hands
F.Strictly avoid any contact with other animals in the market
G.Cover your mouth and nose with tissue when coughing and sneezing
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During the outbreak of novel coronavirus, cities are locked down and borders are closed. Science, on the contrary, is becoming more open. And this “open science” is already making a difference.
Soon after the epidemic started in China, a research team from Fudan University in Shanghai successfully sequenced（测定序列）the DNA of the virus. But they didn’t keep the information to themselves. Instead, they placed the sequences on GenBank, an open-access data platform, so researchers around the world could download them for free and start studying the virus.
Due to this openness, pharmaceutical（制药的）companies across the globe are now able to work simultaneously to develop a vaccine. “There may be room for multiple different vaccines for different purposes and different age groups,”Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security in the US, told Al Jazeera.“The bigger menu we have of vaccines, the more resilient（有适应力的）well be against coronavirus outbreaks in the future. ”
Major drug companies around the world are also sharing their study results. Remdesivir, a drug originally developed by US company Gilead Sciences to treat Ebola, s found to be promising in fighting against the novel coronavirus. Currently, two trials of the drug are already underway in China, and the results might be available as soon as April, according to The Verge.
This openness in science is going to be even more crucial in the future. With climate change, increasing globalization, and population shifts, epidemics will not go away, and might even become more frequent, Dan Barouch, a Harvard Medical School professor, told Harvard Magazine.
He said, “No one group can do everything. It has to be a coordinated（合作的）approach. But I do think that the world has a greater sense of readiness this time to develop knowledge, drugs, and therapeutics（疗法）very rapidly.
Every epidemic is indeed a crisis, but it can also be a learning opportunity. One redeeming（补偿的）factor of the COVID﹣19 outbreak is that it is helping science adapt for the better.
1.What does the article mainly talk about?
A.Coordinated efforts to fight the epidemic.
B.The significance of openness and sharing of scientific knowledge.
C.Something positive we’ve learned from the epidemic.
D.What needs to be done to prevent future epidemics.
2.What is the positive effect of the research team from Fudan University placing the genetic sequence of the virus onto GenBank?
A.They alerted the world to the danger of the virus.
B.They helped remove people’s fear of the virus.
C.They invited collective efforts worldwide to develop a vaccine.
D.They showed the world how to produce a vaccine.
3.What does the underlined phrase“work simultaneously” in paragraph 3 probably mean?
A.work at the same time.
B.work effectively
C.work continuously
D.work happily
4.What is the author’s purpose of mentioning remdesivir in the text?
A.To introduce a possible cure for the epidemic.
B.To prove that many drug companies readily share their discoveries.
C.To compare the treatment of Ebola and the novel coronavirus.
D.To show that the novel coronavirus will soon be contained.
5.Which of the following would Dan Barouch probably disagree with?
A.The increase in globalization may worsen future epidemics.
B.Epidemics will be less frequent thanks to scientific development.
C.No single group can fight against the epidemics independently.
D.The world is becoming better prepared to deal with epidemics.
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While the human world is suffering from the novel coronavirus outbreak, our planet is actually showing certain signs of “recovery” from the damage caused by human activity. According to the BBC, new satellite images released by the European Space Agency showed that levels of air pollutants and greenhouse gases have “fallen sharply” in major cities in Europe and the United States ever since the lockdown started.
This is what happened after recent discoveries in Antarctica. An international team of 89 scientists found that the ice in Greenland and Antarctica is melting six times faster in the 2010s than it was in the 1990s. And in February, Argentina’s Marambio research station in Antarctica recorded a record high temperature of 20.75 ℃ on the continent.
So what exactly will happen if the temperature keeps rising and the ice keeps melting? A third study might give you an idea. A team of scientists drilled a hole into the seafloor in west Antarctica and extracted (提取) material from underground, in which they found traces of roots, spores and pollen—typical products of a rainforest—that dated back 90 million years ago. In other words, Antarctica was very likely a rainforest back when the dinosaurs walked on Earth. But given the fact that the South Pole has four months of darkness during winter—even millions of years ago—scientists believe that the rainforest could only exist if the greenhouse gas concentrations were extremely high back then to keep the continent warm when there was little or no sunlight.
“We didn’t know that this Cretaceous (白垩纪的) greenhouse climate was that extreme,” Johann Klages of the Alfred Wegener Institute in Germany and a co-author of the research told the Guardian. “It shows us what carbon dioxide is able to do.”
Ice or no ice, Antarctica will be—and has always been—fine with extreme changes. The human world, however, may not be.
Now, during the coronavirus lockdown, we’ve seen the changes resulting from less human activity. Hopefully, we’ll hold on to those changes—not for Antarctica or the planet, but for ourselves.
1.What does Paragraph 1 mainly tell us?
A.Our planet is returning to its original state due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.
B.The lockdown of major cities contributed to the decrease of greenhouse gases.
C.The novel coronavirus has a positive effect on the human beings.
D.The novel coronavirus outbreak resulted from human activity.
2.What do we learn from the third study?
A.Typical products of a rainforest were dug out in Antarctica.
B.Traces of dinosaurs living in rainforests were spotted in Antarctica.
C.There was a good possibility of high greenhouse gas concentrations in Antarctica.
D.There used to be enough sunlight for the rainforest in the Cretaceous Antarctica.
3.Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
A.Human activity doesn’t threaten life in Antarctica.
B.The ice in Antarctica is melting faster in the 2010s than now.
C.We should reduce carbon dioxide emissions for our own sake.
D.The lockdown can be carried on to slow down global warming.
4.What is the main purpose of the passage?
A.To encourage us to defeat the novel coronavirus.
B.To explain the effects of greenhouse gases.
C.To draw our attention to ecosystem in Antarctica.
D.To call on us to reduce human impact on the environment.
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—You know how much I am missing the days before the outbreak of the coronavirus.
—School, movies, gatherings, ________. We’ll soon be back on track.
A.no kidding B.come on C.you name it D.go for it
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The coronavirus（冠状病毒）outbreak has sparked panic buying of toilet paper and cleaning products in countries across the world, but one UK businessman is determined to spread some happiness among the anxiety and confusion.
Rob Braddick, 48, who owns Braddick’s Holiday Park in Westward Ho, Devon, in the southwest of England, has filled the toy grabber machines in his amusement park with two of the country’s most sought-after cleaning products.
Customers could previously try their hand at grabbing “Frozen 2” or “Peter Rabbit” toys from the machines, but no more. “They got removed this morning,” Braddick said of the toys, replacing them with toilet roll and hand sanitizer (洗手液). Visitors can now pay 50p for three goes on the toilet roll grabber, or ?1 a go for Carex, which Braddick described as the “Rolls- Royce of hand sanitizers.”
Braddick said that his decision was born of a desire to make people feel less stressed in uncertain times. “It’s a bit of light relief with everything that’s going on,” he said. “Hopefully it will raise a smile, which I think everybody needs.”
Around the world, travel plans have been severely affected, and tens of millions of people remain at home as part of global efforts to fight against coronavirus. Supermarkets have seen shortages of toilet paper and hand sanitizer as anxious consumers stockpile the products.
Braddick said the family business, which has been running since 1932, has received more than a dozen calls from potential customers who say they don’t want to travel abroad for their holidays and would rather stay in the UK. As for his own measures against coronavirus, Braddick said staff have been told to wash their hands every half hour, which is particularly important for those handling money.
1.What does the underlined word “sought-after” in paragraph 2 probably mean?
A.Practical B.Amusing
C.Popular D.Confusing
2.What is the third paragraph mainly about?
A.Price for a try.
B.Prizes of the game.
C.New practice of the game.
D.People’s love for grabbing toys.
3.What’s the purpose of Braddick’s new idea?
A.To make higher profits.
B.To ease people’s anxiety.
C.To support his family business.
D.To attract more people to play the game.
4.What can be inferred from the passage?
A.Tourism may fall into a decline.
B.Braddick’s business is experiencing a hard time.
C.Cleaning products will be in shortage for a long time.
D.Everyone in the park is told to wash their hands every half hour.
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______ for the efforts of medical staff, the spread of the novel coronavirus would not be controlled, which astonishes the whole world.
A.Were not it B.Were it not C.Had not it been D.If it were
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The number of new deaths from the novel coronavirus(新型冠状病毒)reported in Wuhan, Hubei province, by Monday reaching the lowest in 10 days can indicate a change, said Qiu Haibo, a member on the expert panel of the National Health Commission.
Qiu said in an interview with China Central Television on Tuesday that the number of new infections and new deaths is declining, which means that the measures adopted in the city have gradually taken effect. He said the critically ill patients were treated intensively ① . The 10 appointed hospitals with 8, 000 beds for critical patients had 1, 000 empty beds on Tuesday.
''Moreover, a large number of national medical teams have arrived in Wuhan since the beginning of February, bringing Wuhan's treatment level to a national standard ② , '' he said. ''In general, it can be said with caution and optimism that the treatment of critically ill patients has gradually shown its effect through the previous efforts, '' he said.
He said the declining number is also owing to more timely treatment since February when medical resources have become more sufficient. It may also be related to the nature of infectious diseases ③ . As medical resources are becoming more and more sufficient and the country's medical strength is gathered in Wuhan, they are confident that the number of critically ill patients will continue to drop.
He added that the treatment has become more standardized and general patients can now receive more timely treatment to prevent them from becoming critically ill ④ . The treatment concept has also changed from treating a single organ to multiple organs. ''A series of progress in treatment and knowledge can help reduce the proportion of severe illness and increase the recovery rate, '' he said.
1.What is not the factor contributing the reduced number of new deaths?
A.There are many more beds in hospitals in Wuhan.
B.Medical teams from across the country have come.
C.Diverse resources have become more sufficient.
D.The virulence becomes weak as it gets warmer.
2.Where can ''that the virulence may be decreasing as the disease passes from person to person'' be put in the passage?
A.① B.② C.③ D.④
3.What is the best title of the passage?
A.Ill patients are treated intensively in Wuhan
B.Decline in new Wuhan deaths shows measures work
C.Treatment has become more standardized
D.From treating a single organ to multiple organs