【推荐1】University summer school courses

Welcome to our university summer school. Summer is a good time to start a course, pursue a degree, participate in a professional development program, or prepare for your future. This summer, we’ll be offering hundreds of undergraduate and graduate courses available online. These include special professional development classes and programs. Take a look at some of our courses below.

Title: Africana Philosophy	Instructor: Ted Karson, PhD
Session: seven-week session	Time: Tues., Thurs., 8:30-11:30 a. m., or on demand	Start Date: June 22, 2020
Notes: This course meets via live web conference. Students must attend and participate at the scheduled meeting time.
Description: This class carries out a research of Africana philosophy as a subject studied by professional philosophers of African background and non-African scholars. Students enrolled will be exploring related issues in a classroom environment mediated by dialogued, debates, and presentations.

Title: Space Law and Policy	Instructor: A. J. Harrison, PhD
Session: four-week session	Time: Tues., Thurs., noon-3:00 p.m.	Start Date: June 23, 2020
Notes: This course meets via live web conference. Students must attend and participate at the scheduled meeting time.
Description: This course shows students the practice of space law and policy in the United States and around the world. Students start by exploring the basics of both fields. Then they take a detailed look at the roles of governance, addressing ongoing debates challenging the space sector.

Title: Introduction to Social Anthropology	Instructor: Adam Mackay, PhD
Session: six-week session	Time: Tues., Thurs., 3:15-6:15 p.m.	Start Date: June 22, 2020
Notes: Open to admitted Secondary School Program students. Required sections for graduate students and optional sections for undergraduate students to be arranged.
Description: The course explores anthropological approaches to society, culture, history, and current events. Students will conduct in-depth studies on a series of themes and try their best to deal with the intellectual and ethical challenges of anthropologists both in the past and at present.

Title: African and African American Religions	Instructor: Danile Evans, PhD
Session: seven-week session	Time: Tues., Thurs., 8:30-11:30 a.m., or on demand	Start Date: June 21, 2020
Notes: This course meets via live web conference. Students must attend and participate at the scheduled meeting time.
Description: This course provides an overview of West African and African American religions from a comparative, transatlantic aspect. Based on up-to-date research, the course explores the historical process by which African religions have become world religions — a trend that is speeding up in the 21st century.

1. By participating in Africana Philosophy courses, students can ______ .

A．attend and participate in some academic meetings in Africa

B．be involved in studying some issues related to African Philosophy

C．have face-to-face communications with some African professionals

D．turn to some African background scholars for help to finish the course

2. How does the instructor in Space Law and Policy help the students learn?

A．By showing students how space law and policy are practised.

B．By showing the students around the United States and the world.

C．By introducing how to explore the basics of space law and policy.

D．By introducing the history of making the space law and policy.

3. If you only have free time in the afternoon from June 22, 2020 to July 20, 2020, which course is suitable for you?

A．Africana Philosophy.

B．Space Law and Policy.

C．Introduction to Social Anthropology.

D．African and African American Religions.

4. Whose course is available for high school students?

A．Ted Karson.	B．A. J. Harrison.
C．Adam Mackay.	D．Danile Evans.

5. What is the purpose of the text?

A．To explore the meaning of a good summer.

B．To make comments on the courses of a university.

C．To discuss the advantages of a university summer school.

D．To introduce the online courses of a university summer school.

【推荐2】Humor is so much more than silly situations and funny words. It is about the places we live in, the people who are with us, the events we experience and the problems we face. These humorous English stories will make you laugh first, then think. Here are some funny stories in English to get you started!

“Hunting the Deceitful Turkey” by Mark Twain

Good for: Intermediate to advanced students

Considered one of the funniest turkey tales in American literature, Twain tells a true incident where he tries to shoot a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner.

The story is a humorous account of his failure. It also relates to the American holiday of Thanksgiving, where turkey is the main dish in the feast (宴会).

Since the story was written in 1906, you might read some words which are not commonly used anymore. For instance, the word “swindler” means “cheat” or “fraud.” It might be helpful to have access to a good English dictionary while you read this.

“Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir” by Jenny Lawson

Good for: Mature intermediate learners

Have you ever felt that you did not fit in, or that you were strange or awkward? The author of this book felt like that throughout her life.

There are tales about her sister going to school in a bird costume, her “message-board” cat, her relationship and more. Her story is equal parts funny and enlightening (something which makes you aware).

The core message is that the moments that embarrass us are really the ones that define (界定) us. If you are still unsure about the book, you can read this article by The Washington Post.

“The Woman Who Went to Bed for a Year” by Sue Townsend

Good for: Intermediate learners

Eva, the main character, is disappointed with her family. When her children leave home, she climbs into bed and stays there.

She refuses to be a dutiful wife to her indifferent (漠不关心的) husband, and she stops being an ideal mother to her careless children. Soon, unexpected things start happening. The true face of every person in the household starts to come out.

The novel is funny but also seeks to question traditional family roles. For a more detailed overview, read this review by The Guardian.

1. Which book is for intermediate learners?

A．Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir.

B．The Woman Who Went to Bed for a Year and Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir.

C．Hunting the Deceitful Turkey and Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir.

D．Hunting the Deceitful Turkey and The Woman Who Went to Bed for a Year.

2. What can we learn about Hunting the Deceitful Turkey?

A．It is not a real story.

B．Twain failed to catch the turkey in the end.

C．The language in this story is simple and easy to understand.

D．You can use this book as a good English dictionary.

3. What is the key information of Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir?

A．The writer’s sister always goes to school in a bird costume.

B．The writer always fails to fit in with society.

C．The writer is always unsure whether she will overcome an embarrassing moment.

D．In difficult or uncomfortable situations, people may reveal their true selves and learn and grow from them.

4. What is the writer’s purpose in writing The Woman Who Went to Bed for a Year?

A．To make fun.	B．To describe Eva’s bad family life.
C．To question traditional family roles.	D．To expect the unexpected.

5. Which of the following is the passage probably taken from?

A．An English stories site.	B．A residency contract.
C．A library brochure.	D．A technical instruction book.

【推荐1】Rachel Carson was a scientist by profession, but the lines from the open chapter of her 1962 book Silent Spring. “A Fable for Tomorrow”, show her talent as a writer. By imagining a world without birds, she aimed to alert (使警惕) not only the scientific community but also the general public to the damaging effects of human activity on natural ecosystem-----in particular, to the harmful use of pesticides (杀虫剂), such as DDT. She believed that the chemical industry was knowingly causing harm to plants, animals and even humans, and wished to see pesticides used in a more responsible, limited and carefully monitored way.

Carson urged people to make themselves aware of the facts and do something about the situation. Silent Spring contains a lot of scientific research and case studies. The book details the programme of removing gypsy moth, which killed birds, in addition to killing gypsy moths. Another case study was the fire-ant programme that killed cows, but not fire ants. The book also gives dozens of other examples of removal programmes that did nothing to reduce the problems they were originally designed to solve. The 50 or so pages at the end of the book list Carson’s source, showing how thorough and precise she was as a scientist.

Silent Spring was not, however, received positively by everyone. Though Carson’s research was strong and was supported by most scientists who reviewed her book, the book quickly became a target for critics in the pesticide industry. They said that Carson did not understand the science behind her arguments because she was a marine biologist rather than a chemist. Some also said that her work was more emotional than scientific.

These were attempts to damage Carson’s reputation (名声) and stop her from influencing public policy, but she remained determined to stand by her research. Carson appeared in public and on television to defend her claims----and today, more than 50 years after it was published, the voice of Silent Spring is still ringing loud and clear.

1. Which of the following is included in the passage?
① Background of the book                  
② Features of the book
③ Purposes of the book       
④ Responses to the book

A．①②③

B．②③④

C．①③④

D．①②④

2. Some people questioned Carson’s ideas because they thought ________ .

A．she lacked sufficient evidence

B．she was ignorant of true science

C．she was anxious to get the credit

D．she was unprofessional in that field

3. Silent Spring is a book that ________.

A．reveals humans to be the ruler of the world

B．charges pesticide industry with immoral act

C．illustrates the potential danger of pesticides

D．requests people to appreciate the beauty of spring

4. Which of the following can best describe Carson?

A．Scientific and forward-looking.	B．Ordinary and responsible.
C．Courageous and well-educated.	D．Intelligent and adventurous.

【推荐2】When it came to concealing his troubles, Tommy Wilhelm was not less capable than the next fellow. So at least he thought, and there was a certain amount of evidence to back him up. He had once been an actor—no, not quite, an extra—and he knew what acting should be. Also, he was smoking a cigar, and when a man is smoking a cigar, wearing a hat, he has an advantage: it is harder to find out how he feels. He came from the twenty-third floor down to the lobby on the mezzanine to collect his mail before breakfast, and he believed — he hoped — that he looked passably well: doing all right. It was a matter of sheer hope, because there was not much that he could add to his present effort. On the fourteenth floor he looked for his father to enter the elevator; they often met at this hour, on the way to breakfast. If he worried about his appearance it was mainly for his old father's sake. But there was no stop on the fourteenth, and the elevator sank and sank. Then the smooth door opened and the great dark-red uneven carpet that covered the lobby billowed toward Wilhelm's feet. In the foreground the lobby was dark, sleepy. French drapes like sails kept out the sun, but three high, narrow windows were open, and in the blue air Wilhelm saw a pigeon about to light on the great chain that supported the marquee of the movie house directly underneath the lobby. For one moment he heard the wings beating strongly.

Most of the guests at the Hotel Gloriana were past the age of retirement. Along Broadway in the Seventies, Eighties, and Nineties, a great part of New York's vast population of old men and women lives. Unless the weather is too cold or wet they fill the benches about the tiny railed parks and along the subway gratings from Verdi Square to Columbia University, they crowd the shops and cafeterias, the dime stores, the tearooms, the bakeries, the beauty parlors, the reading rooms and club rooms. Among these old people at the Gloriana, Wilhelm felt out of place. He was comparatively young, in his middle forties, large and blond, with big shoulders; his back was heavy and strong, if already a little stooped or thickened. After breakfast the old guests sat down on the green leather armchairs and sofas in the lobby and began to gossip and look into the papers: they had nothing to do but wait out the day. But Wilhelm was used to an active life and liked to go out energetically in the morning. And for several months, because he had no position, he had kept up his morale by rising early: he was shaved and in the lobby by eight o'clock. He bought the paper and some cigars and drank a Coca-Cola or two before he went in to breakfast with his father. After breakfast—out, out, out to attend to business. The getting out had in itself become the chief business. But he had realized that he could not keep this up much longer, and today he was afraid. He was aware that his routine was about to break up and he sensed that a huge trouble long presaged(预感)but till now formless was due. Before evening, he'd know.

Nevertheless he followed his daily course and crossed the lobby.

Rubin, the man at the newsstand, had poor eyes. They may not have been actually weak but they were poor in expression, with lacy lids that furled down at the corners. He dressed well. It didn't seem necessary—he was behind the counter most of the time—but he dressed very well. He had on a rich brown suit; the cuffs embarrassed the hairs on his small hands. He wore a Countess Mara painted necktie. As Wilhelm approached, Rubin did not see him; he was looking out dreamily at the Hotel Ansonia, which was visible from his corner, several blocks away. The Ansonia, the neighborhood's great landmark, was built by Stanford White. It looks like a baroque palace from Prague or Munich enlarged a hundred times, with towers, domes, huge swells and bubbles of metal gone green from exposure, iron fretwork and festoons. Black television antennae are densely planted on its round summits. Under the changes of weather it may look like marble or like sea water, black as slate in the fog, white as tufa in sunlight. This morning it looked like the image of itself reflected in deep water, white and cumulous above, with cavernous distortions underneath. Together, the two men gazed at it.

Then Rubin said, “Your dad is in to breakfast already, the old gentleman.”

“Oh, yes？Ahead of me today？”

“That's a real knocked-out shirt you got on,” said Rubin.“Where’s it from, Saks？”

“No, it’s a Jack Fagman—Chicago.”

Even when his spirits were low, Wilhelm could still wrinkle his forehead in a pleasing way. Some of the slow, silent movements of his face were very attractive. He went back a step, as if to stand away from himself and get a better look at his shirt. His glance was comic, a comment upon his untidiness. He liked to wear good clothes, but once he had put it on each article appeared to go its own way. Wilhelm, laughing, panted a little; his teeth were small; his cheeks when he laughed and puffed grew round, and he looked much younger than his years. In the old days when he was a college freshman and wore a beanie(无檐小帽)on his large blonde head his father used to say that, big as he was, he could charm a bird out of a tree. Wilhelm had great charm still.

“I like this dove-gray color,” he said in his sociable, good-natured way. “It isn’t washable. You have to send it to the cleaner. It never smells as good as washed. But it’s a nice shirt. It cost sixteen, eighteen bucks.”

1. Wilhelm hoped he looked all right on his way to the lobby because he wanted to________.

A．leave a good impression	B．give his father a surprise
C．show his acting potential	D．disguise his low spirit

2. Wilhelm had something in common with the old guests in that they all ________.

A．lived a luxurious life	B．liked to swap gossips
C．idled their time away	D．liked to get up early

3. How did Wilhelm feel when he was crossing the lobby(Para.2)?

A．He felt something ominous was coming.	B．He was worried that his father was late.
C．He was feeling at ease among the old.	D．He was excited about a possible job offer.

4. What can we learn from the author's description of Wilhelm's clothes?

A．His shirt made him look better.	B．He cared much about his clothes.
C．He looked like a comedian in his shirt.	D．The clothes he wore never quite matched.

【推荐3】It was 2 o’clock in the morning when Gatsby called at Nick’s.

“Let’s go to Coney Island, old sport, in my car. ”

“It’s too late, ” Nick replied.

“Well, what about a swim in my pool! I haven’t used it this summer yet. ”

“I must go to bed. ”

“All right. ”

He appeared to be waiting for something, looking at Nick.

“I’m going to phone Daisy tomorrow and invite her to tea. How about the day after tomorrow?”

Gatsby paused before answering. “I must cut the grass first. ”

He then said, “Well, I run a little business that might interest you… You might earn some money. ”But Nick refused his offer.

It was raining on the day they had fixed to have tea at Nick’s. At three o’clock, the front door opened and Gatsby hurried in. )

They went into the living room where Gatsby sat down. From time to time, he looked through the windows at the rain. Finally, he got up and said he was going home.

“Nobody’s coming to tea. It’s too late! I can’t wait all day. ”

“Don’t be silly. It’s only two minutes to four. ”

He sat down miserably and, at the same time, Daisy’s car drove up to Nick’s house.

They went in. What a big surprise! The living room was empty. Then there was a knock at the door. Gatsby was standing there in the rain. He disappeared quickly into the living room.

Gatsby was standing and staring at Daisy. She was sitting, frightened but composed, on the edge of a chair.

“We’ve met before, ” Gatsby said.

“Not for many years, ” Daisy added quickly.

“Five years next November, ” said Gatsby automatically.

Gatsby was quiet but his eyes moved continuously from Nick to Daisy. Nick left them together after a while.

When he went back in, Daisy and Gatsby were sitting on the couch, looking each other in the eyes. All their embarrassment had gone. Daisy’s face was covered with tears. But there was a change in Gatsby that really surprised Nick. He radiated a feeling of joy that filled the room. He hadn’t stopped looking at her once, as if nobody else was there.

1. Why did Gatsby call on Nick at 2 am?

A．To fix the date with Daisy.

B．To offer Nick a well-paid job.

C．To drive to Coney Island with Nick.

D．To invite Nick to swim in his pool.

2. What surprised Nick when he and Daisy went in?

A．Gatsby had Nick’s house emptied.

B．Gatsby was standing in the rain.

C．Gatsby left Nick’s house somehow.

D．Gatsby should make a “casual meet”.

3. Which shows the dramatic change of Gatsby’s feelings in the story?

A．Frightened-composed-happy.

B．Anxious-embarrassed-joyful.

C．Tired-surprised-disappointed.

D．Impatient-amazed-dedicated.

4. What’s the clue that runs through the story?

A．Gatsby’s visit.	B．Gatsby’s offer.
C．Nick’s grassland.	D．Nick’s tea.