When she was just three years old, Alyssa Carson from the USA took an interest
Alyssa’s goal is to help others understand the potential for human life in outer space. She also wants to be one of the first humans
She is studying astrobiology (天体生物学) at the Florida Institute of Technology. It is the only program in the USA
Alyssa is a(n)
Since 1981, Pat Sajak has been the host of Wheel of Fortune. And the show
“It’s
With Pat Sajak being 75 years old and Vanna White being 65, he shares that their time on the show will not be for much longer.
“Years go by fast,” Pat Sajak acknowledged. “We
In all his time hosting Wheel of Fortune, Pat has only stepped away once, and that was
Back in December 2021, when this
3 . Julian Beever is a well-known British artist. His drawings have appeared on the streets of London, Pairs, Tokyo, New York and many other cities around the world. Beever creates what looks like a three-dimensional design (三维设计). From animals to heroes, to buildings, the paintings are a wonder for our eyes to see.
In his book Pavement Chalk Artist, Beever shares some of his most attractive and humorous pieces. Here are the examples you will find in the book.
Philadelphia Eagle, created in the USA, is a huge drawing with an eagle (鹰) landing on an American national flag. Meeting Mr. Frog was created in Spain and is about a realistic-looking (样子逼真的) frog sitting on a Lily pad (睡莲叶子). Swimming pool in the High Street is about a woman relaxing in a swimming pool sunk into the middle of the street.
Along with an introduction about his background, Beever shares information about his time at home in the UK and abroad. With a funny story coming after each piece of art, this 112-page book is really worth another look.
1. What do people think of Beever’s drawings?| A．Terrible. | B．Ugly. | C．Wonderful. | D．Boring. |
| A．Philadelphia Eagle | B．Meeting Mr. Frog |
| C．Swimming pool in the High Street | D．Sharing information |
| A．a three-dimensional design | B．Julian Beever and his book |
| C．an attractive drawing | D．famous artists in Spain |
4 . Who says only adults can influence the world? Teenagers can too. A good
Medes was once on Time magazine’s list of the most influential teens of the year. He is
Indeed, unlike others, Mendes
From there, he became a
Mendes
He does so in life as well. During his first
“I’m not the
| A．news | B．choice | C．example | D．boy |
| A．seen | B．cared | C．prepared | D．caught |
| A．best | B．strange | C．traditional | D．positive |
| A．introduces | B．uses | C．makes | D．buys |
| A．myself | B．herself | C．himself | D．themselves |
| A．used | B．succeeded | C．paid | D．managed |
| A．singer | B．dancer | C．actor | D．writer |
| A．until | B．since | C．before | D．beside |
| A．never | B．seldom | C．always | D．hardly |
| A．what | B．which | C．who | D．whom |
| A．worked | B．used | C．acted | D．played |
| A．visit | B．concert | C．year | D．speech |
| A．turned off | B．turned on | C．turned up | D．turned down |
| A．name | B．stage | C．room | D．crowd |
| A．last | B．least | C．latest | D．best |
5 . As a navigation (航海) major, Song Yin should have sailed a boat. But a campus career fair changed her career trajectory, and she became one of China’s first two female rescue helicopter pilots.
When she was in third year at Shanghai Maritime University, the Donghai No.1 flying rescue service came looking for female pilots. Song was the hot favorite for career fair. Tall, thin, good-looking, she was a big shot on campus. Also, she is good at sports, especially basketball that requires a considerable level of coordination (协调性)—an important quality for pilots.
She was admitted as a female rescue helicopter pilot. “At first, I thought it was cool and fun.” She said. However, when the job really got started, the reality was totally different from her imagination.
Rescue operations always come with danger. One of her most dangerous missions took place in December 2016 when a boat was involved in flames in the East China Sea, leaving 10 fishermen at death’s door. Song rushed to fly the helicopter to the scene. She was informed that the gas cylinders (气瓶) on the boat could blow up at any time. Without panic, she managed to hover at higher altitude to keep away from the dense smoke. Fortunately, not one of rescuers was injured, and all of the 10 fishermen were rescued from the burning boat. “We are not just saving 10 people but also 10 families,” she said.
Like any other sports fan, she enjoys watching the Tokyo Olympics when she isn’t busy. “My idol is Chinese striker Wang Shuang. She’s so great.” she said. “When the Chinese team was many goals behind the Dutch team, she still didn’t give up, and she encouraged her teammates to fight till the end.” She added, “If you give up, you must lose. But if you push on, you won’t necessarily lose. It’s just the same as my job.”
1. What does the underlined word “trajectory” mean in the first paragraph ?| A．Devotion. | B．Path. | C．Platform. | D．Commitment. |
| A．She graduated from a top university. | B．She has a well-built figure. |
| C．She has a high level of coordination. | D．She is very popular on campus. |
| A．Brave and calm. | B．Optimistic and humorous. |
| C．Caring and patient. | D．Sensitive and ambitious. |
| A．To appeal to young people to join in sports. | B．To compare two similar challenging jobs. |
| C．To expect people to learn from failure. | D．To motivate people to be persistent. |
1. What kind of lessons did Florence Nightingale take in her early years?
| A．Music lessons. | B．English lessons. | C．Medical lessons. |
| A．In Germany. | B．In Britain. | C．In France. |
| A．She went to learn nursing abroad. |
| B．She built a hospital in a war field. |
| C．She looked after soldiers at the front hospitals. |
| A．Before the Crimean War. | B．During the Crimean War. |
| C．After the Crimean War. | |
7 . What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word “Hollywood?” Fame or maybe money. Each actor or actress has their own way of becoming famous. But some
“I can prove what UNICEF means to children,
Audrey was born in Belgium on May 4th, 1929. When she was young, she
Audrey helped children throughout the world by supplying them with love and courage. Most of Hollywood’s stars only think about what will make them
Audrey is
| A．shine | B．revise | C．wander | D．respond |
| A．memorized | B．described | C．saved | D．followed |
| A．unless | B．because | C．until | D．while |
| A．training | B．relief | C．science | D．equipment |
| A．laugh over | B．defense against | C．doubt about | D．appointment as |
| A．went through | B．got across | C．made up | D．adapted to |
| A．cured | B．freed | C．shot | D．hidden |
| A．formally | B．independently | C．regularly | D．unfortunately |
| A．unable | B．curious | C．eager | D．likely |
| A．golden | B．tough | C．limited | D．free |
| A．discouraged | B．frightened | C．satisfied | D．stressed |
| A．danger | B．pain | C．note | D．test |
| A．questioned | B．addicted | C．admired | D．retired |
| A．trouble in | B．pressure from | C．selection from | D．devotion to |
| A．passed away | B．set off | C．broken down | D．dropped out |
8 . In a clinic room filled with medical staff lining up to get Covid vaccines (疫苗), a woman finds herself in tears. Yet, those are not tears of fear or sadness, but tears of joy and pride. It dawns on her that her decades of hard work have finally paid off. The mRNA vaccines she helped develop have saved millions of lives and helped the world find a way out of the worst of the pandemic.
That remarkable woman is Professor Katalin Karikó, a Hungarian-American biochemist, who together with her colleague American immunologist Drew Weissma, was awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their groundbreaking work on the development of mRNA-based vaccines.
Born in 1955 in Hungary, Professor Karikó had a childhood marked by hardship. In 1985 when the Biological Research Centre of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences lost its funding, she made a daring and risky decision to start a journey to the US. However, the American dream was hardly plain sailing, and the challenges facing Professor Karikó were only just beginning. Despite the promising results in RNA-related therapy trials, she was told her research was going nowhere. Her applications were repeatedly rejected, and in 1995 she lost her position in the University of Pennsylvania and was forced to retire.
Professor Karikó refused to give up easily. She persevered, forming a partnership with the university's immunology professor Drew Weissman, and eventually they made their big breakthrough, finding a way to modify mRNA so that it could trigger an immune response, laying the groundwork for what would become the Covid mRNA vaccines. When the Covid pandemic hit, the use of mRNA was the reason why vaccines were developed so quickly at unprecedented speed.
Professor Karikó’ s journey, from her humble beginnings to her groundbreaking research, stands as a testament to her unwavering perseverance and determination.
1. What challenges did Professor Karikó face during her career in the US?| A．She did have enough money. |
| B．She couldn't understand the language. |
| C．She didn't know how to carry out her research. |
| D．Her research was not accepted by other scientists. |
| A．Gave up. | B．Kept trying. | C．Changed her mind. | D．Put it aside. |
| A．Professor Karikó should retire earlier. |
| B．Professor Karikó's determination made all the difference. |
| C．American dream made everything easy for Professor Karikó. |
| D．The research of mRNA is only valuable when Covid pandemic hit. |
| A．Karikó's American dream. | B．Challenges in Karikó's research. |
| C．The development of the vaccine. | D．Karikó's life and her achievements. |
For ages, embroidery (刺绣) has been known as a woman’s job. However, like any other good fashion designer, Zhang Yan dares to be different. In the last three months, the 25 year old’s work
In
The reason why singer-songwriter Zhang Gasong’s music is unique lies
He talked about his experience and
Born in the countryside of Jingyuan county, Baiyin city, Northwest China’s Gansu Province, Zhang, 34, has become famous for his songs that
Some video works of his singing, dressed in traditional Chinese clothing and playing traditional musical instruments, have spread
One of such videos is
