1 . Kenya’s EliudKipchoge made history by running the 26.2 miles in less than two hours, faster than any other person in history. His time of 1:59:40 required him to maintain an average pace of about 4:35 per mile!
Upon crossing the finish line, Kipchoge, who spent four months training, said, “That was the best moment of my life. The pressure was very big on my shoulders. I got a phone call from the President of Kenya.”
The Prater Park course in Vienna, Austria, was carefully selected, taking into account factors like temperature and wind speed to ensure the perfect racing. His speed was maintained by 41 medium and long-distance runners. An electric car projected a green laser ahead of the runners to guide them along the best route. To save time, Kipchoge was fed pre-prepared drinks and energy on the course at 3.1-mile intervals.
The historic run was Kipchoge’s second attempt at breaking the two-hour marathon barrier. The Kenyan runner first tried to accomplish the feat on May 6, 2017, at Nike’s Breaking2 event, which took place on a Formula One racetrack in Monza, Italy. However, while Kipchoge’s 2:00:25 time was the fastest ever attained by a human, it was not under the desired two hours. However, the lack of acknowledgement does not bother Kipchoge.
Kipchoge was not the only Kenyan runner to make headlines that weekend. On Sunday, October 13, 2019, Brigid Kosgei made history of her own at the Chicago Marathon. Her time of 2:14:04, outpaced British runner Paula Radcliffe ‘s 16-year-old record by an impressive 81 seconds, earning Kosgei the title of the world’s fastest female marathoner!
1. Why did Kipchoge have bigger pressure?| A．He intended to make history. |
| B．The president of Kenya rang him. |
| C．The coming marathon was fierce. |
| D．His training was harder than ever. |
| A．Tell us Kipchoge’s determination. |
| B．Summarize Kipchoge’s contributions. |
| C．Praise Kipchoge for his thoughtfulness. |
| D．Show Kipchoge planned the marathon carefully. |
| A．Concerned. | B．Astonished. | C．Upset. | D．Calm. |
| A．Beat. | B．Equaled. | C．Stuck. | D．Set. |
1. When did Beckham start his professional career?
| A．At age 13. | B．At age 19. | C．At age 17. |
| A．Beckham got married. |
| B．Beckham met Victoria Adams. |
| C．Beckham was a finalist for Player of the Year. |
| A．Her singing career. |
| B．Her modeling career. |
| C．Her fashion designs. |
3 . It is said that Lincoln’s ghost(幽灵) often appears in the White House. He appears in the room where the Lincoln bed is kept. Harry Truman once responded to a 3 o’clock knock on his door and found no one there. He attributed the knock to Lincoln.
Lincoln is said to return to the White House when the safety of the country is at risk. He walks up and down the second floor hallway, gently knocks at doors, and stands by certain windows with his hands put behind his back. One staff member firmly said that he had seen Lincoln sitting on his bed pulling on his boots.
A guard to President Harrison was kept awake many nights trying to protect the president from strange footsteps he heard in the hall. He grew so tired and worried; he finally attended a séance(降神会) to beg President Lincoln to stop so that he could get enough sleep to properly protect the president!
Abigail Adam’s ghost was seen wandering through the closed doors of the East Room to hang the laundry(洗衣店) during the Taft administration.
A gardener said that he had spoken to the ghost of Dolly Madison, who was angry with him for trying to remove the rose bushes she had planted over a hundred years ago.
In the 1930’s Andrew Jackson’s ghost could be heard laughing in the Rose room.
In 1952, complete repairs were done to the second floor of the White House. Since then, the ghosts have not walked so actively.
1. How many people’s ghosts appear in the white house?| A．Four. | B．Five. | C．Six. | D．Seven. |
| A．Harrison’s. | B．John Adam’s. | C．Andrew Jackson’s. | D．Dolly Madison’s. |
| A．Harry Truman had heard Lincoln’s footsteps. |
| B．Lincoln always returns to the White House when he misses his people. |
| C．President Harrison was not afraid of Lincoln’s ghost at all. |
| D．The rose bushes were planted by Dolly Madison. |
| A．The White House Ghosts |
| B．American Presidents’ Ghosts |
| C．The White House |
| D．American Presidents |
4 . Six years ago, Jack Bonneau badly wanted the LEGO Star Wars Death Star, which cost $ 400, more than what he had in his wallet at the age of 8. So he set up a lemonade stand at his local farmers’ market. “In 12 weeks, I made $ 900 in profit,” he says. “I never knew anything like that was possible.”
He wanted to make it possible for other kids, too, and launched a one-stop destination for children’s commerce: For a $ 15 fee, Bonneau and his dad will help kids in the Denver / Boulder area set up a branded Jack’s Stands & Marketplaces stand. Over four years, hundreds of these kids have operated thousands of these stands around the city.
As he starts his freshman year of high school, Bonneau is changing Jack’s Stands & Marketplaces to a nonprofit organization; that way, it can partner with larger organizations and grow beyond Colorado, he says. He’s also working on his next big idea: Teen Hustl, an app that gives teens access to the gig economy. “My dad told me that back in the 1980s, millions of teens had their own paper routes and babysitting businesses,” Bonneau says. “ Now, because of the Internet, those jobs are being taken by adults. But teens are the most tech-savvy, so why not plug them into that?
Teen Hustl will operate as a sort of hyperlocal DoorDash or Postmates, serviced exclusively by neighborhood teens making deliveries on bikes or scooters within two to three miles of a store or restaurant. “Teen Hustl’s mission is to provide consumers, business, restaurants and grocery stores with the industry’s best delivery service in America! We’ve seen the challenges that all the delivery platforms have faced and we believe that instead of reacting to challenges that should have been forseen, we have the opportunity to lead the industry. Sometimes it takes youth to lead the way,” Bonneau says.
1. What happened to Jack Bonneau when he was 8?| A．He earned $ 900 within 10 weeks. |
| B．He helped kids to start Jack’s Stands & Marketplaces stand by himself. |
| C．He launched a lemonade stand. |
| D．He didn’t get the Lego Death Star model at last. |
| A．Jack’s Stands & Marketplaces has been a nonprofit organization. |
| B．Teen Hustl is actually a lemonade stand. |
| C．Paper routes and babysitting business are out of date. |
| D．Teen Hustl is helpful to teens for jobs. |
| A．Youth will replace adults in time. |
| B．Jack Bonneau is confident of the future of Teen Hustl. |
| C．Teen Hustl’s delivery service will be the best all over the world. |
| D．Teen Hustl will earn Bonneau a lot of money. |
| A．Ambitious and successful. | B．Brave and cautious. |
| C．Honest and modest. | D．Tough and generous. |
5 . Born in a musical family in 1925 in New Orleans, Renald Richard spent his childhood filled with music. At the age of 13, he went to see a band perform at a church where he fell in love with trumpet(小号). So he started lessons on it, and later played it in the high school band. After high school, he was sent into military service and played his trumpet in the United States Navy Band. After ending up studying music at Xavier University of Louisiana, he played clubs on the famous Bourbon Street and also toured with many bands.
In 1954, Richard was approached by Jeff Brown, the manager of musician Ray Charles. He invited Richard to join Ray Charles’ new band. “To be selected by Ray Charles was an honor to me. Ray Charles was exacting.” said Richard, “He was a perfectionist and was rather demanding about his music.”
Renald Richard toured all over the South and West with Ray Charles. Sitting in the back seat of the car on the way to a concert, Richard wrote the song “I Got a Woman” for Charles, which became Ray Charles’ first number one radio hit. In 1954, Renald Richard left Ray Charles’ band. However, he stayed friendly with Ray Charles over the years. He became the high school’s band director in his hometown until 1962. Four years later, he moved again to New York City. Over the years, Richard has written many other songs that have been recorded by artists including Joe Turner, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and Elvis Presley to name a few. Living now in Southern Florida, Richard is still active at the age of 92. As you can see, Renald Richard’s musical days are by no means near an end.
That is today’s Celebrity Introduction. Any comments? Please write to us in the Comments Section on this page.
1. How is the passage developed?| A．In order of location. | B．In order of frequency. |
| C．In order of time. | D．In order of importance. |
| A．He attended Xavier University of Louisiana. |
| B．He served in the army. |
| C．He played clubs on the famous Bourbon Street. |
| D．He joined Ray Charles’ new band. |
| A．productive. | B．changeable. | C．considerate. | D．generous. |
| A．A Life Filled with Music | B．Active at an Advanced Age |
| C．The Influence of a Musician | D．Renald Richard and Ray Charles |
6 . Meet the 2019 Class of Young Global Leaders
The Forum of Young Global Leaders, the World Economic Forum’s foundation for remarkable leaders under 40, was founded to fuel new models of leadership. Every year, our organization seeks out change makers with the foresight and potential to improve the state of the world. Here we are proud to share some names from our 2019 class.
Victoria Alonsoperez
Victoria Alonsoperez founded Chipsafer, a platform that helps farmers track the behavior of their livestock (牲畜) to detect anomalies. Her technology provides important data to support effective and sustainable farming, and has been praised with a number of awards for its unique approach to addressing livestock management.
David Moinina Sengeh
A graduate of MIT and Harvard University, David focused his academic work on bio mechatronics and invented technology to improve the lives of people with physical disabilities. He is a youth advocate and innovator across industries.
Richard Walker
Richard Walker is the Managing Director of Iceland Food Warehouse. He has committed to removing plastic packaging from Iceland’s own-label range by 2023. His commitments have encouraged important conversations about the role of business and retailers in advancing sustainability practices.
Ahd Kamel
Ahd Kamel is an award-winning actress and filmmaker, who began her journey15 years ago when cinema was still banned in her native Saudi Arabia. Her personal journey, overcoming various barriers to become a pioneer in her field, is an inspiring lesson. She has written, directed and acted in her own two award-winning short films.
1. Who has been working hard to make life better for the disabled?| A．Victoria Alonsoperez. | B．David Moinina Sengeh. |
| C．Richard Walker. | D．Ahd Kamel. |
| A．An eco-fighter. | B．A tech-enthusiast. |
| C．A pioneer in film-making. | D．An expert on retail business. |
| A．Something is better than nothing. | B．Peace is a journey of a thousand miles. |
| C．Determination is the key to success. | D．Doing is more important than winning. |
1. When did Beckham start his professional career?
| A．At age 13. | B．At age 19. | C．At age 17. |
| A．Beckham got married. |
| B．Beckham met Victoria Adams. |
| C．Beckham was a finalist for Player of the Year. |
| A．Her singing career. |
| B．Her modeling career. |
| C．Her fashion designs. |
8 . As a little girl growing up in Colombia, Diana longed to explore the universe and gain more understanding of it. Her dad thought that being able to speak a second language would give her an advantage. He suggested she live with her aunt in Miami while going to school. Only 17 years old at the time, she accepted his suggestion.
With just $300 in her pocket, Diana took a series of housekeeping jobs to put herself through community college and later the University of Florida. In addition to learning English, she studied aerospace engineering. Sometimes she had to take six buses just to get to class. Other days she was cleaning bathrooms to continue her studies. But Diana saw everything coming her way as an opportunity.
Diana applied to the NASA Academy in her senior year of college, and was the first immigrant Latina woman in the academy. NASA hired her that year, and in 2009, she became a telecom systems engineer for the Curiosity Rover (探测器) that landed successfully on Mars in 2012. During this mission, she developed a dust removal tool to help scientists better explore the Mars’ surface, which earned her recognition as one of the 20 most influential Latinos (拉丁族裔) in the technology industry. Since then, Diana has only kept setting the bar (设定标准) higher. In her second mission, it took her team of engineers two years of long days and nights to create the robotic arm for the Perseverance Rover that would bring back soil samples from the Red Planet to learn whether there once was life there.
Right now, her mission is to help more Latina women realize they, too, can be successful in the exploration of science and technology. Last week, she hosted NASA’s first-ever Spanish-language live broadcast for Perseverance’s arrival on Mars and it gained more than 2.5 million views on YouTube.
1. What did Diana do after she turned 17 years old?| A．She helped her aunt with housework. |
| B．She supported herself through college. |
| C．She learned English with her dad’s help. |
| D．She did part-time jobs to make a fortune. |
| A．Her leadership role in the lab. |
| B．Her development of a robotic arm. |
| C．Her design of a dust removal tool. |
| D．Her exploration of the Mars’ surface. |
| A．Fight for their equal rights. | B．Work in science and technology. |
| C．Learn more about the outside world. | D．Make a live broadcast for space missions. |
| A．To stand still is to move back. | B．Man is the soul of the universe. |
| C．Success is shaped by disappointment. | D．Nothing is impossible to a willing heart. |
It can be easy to miss the wonderful performances of Klay Thompson if you watch at the Golden State Warriors (金州勇士) team in the NBA.
NBA Most Valuable Players Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant tend
His 60-point game against Indiana on Dec. 5 was an excellent game in
Even
“I am going to watch the tape of this game and see what I did well and
Klay Thompson already knew a lot about basketball early in his life. His father Mychal Thompson, the 1978 No 1 overall pick (选秀状元) in NBA, had a lot of influence
10 . The next time you have cheese, remember the French scientist Louis Pasteur who discovered that bad milk, and many diseases are caused by bacteria(细菌).
Louis Pasteur is known as the father of microbiology. In his lifetime, he not only proved that bacteria are the cause of diseases, but also discovered the process of vaccination (接种疫苗) which has saved billions of lives.
When Pasteur worked with chickens that were suffering from cholera(霍乱) during his experiments, he accidentally spread cholera to his chickens. Pasteur’s chickens became mildly sick but did not die. This was strange as every chicken that came near cholera earlier had died. He realized soon that the cholera had become weak. By the time he tried again, the chickens he had cured earlier did not get cholera anymore. He realized that a weak cholera helped his chickens develop an antibody against it.
Later, Pasteur went on to try this on cows, pigs and dogs. All his research helped him develop different vaccines. We now know that the process of vaccination introduces a weakened kind of bacteria into our body. Our body reacts by creating antibodies to fight the bacteria. Now, when our body comes across the same bacteria which are much stronger, it can fight them off.
Louis Pasteur received numerous awards for the advancement of biology, chemistry, and medicine. He founded the Pasteur Institute to study diseases. It was the first university to teach microbiology and today there are 32 institutes across 29 countries. For every child vaccinated against a deadly disease, we have Louis Pasteur to thank.
1. What do we know about Louis Pasteur?| A．His discoveries weren’t used at his time. |
| B．He discovered the connection between bacteria and diseases. |
| C．He was a professor at the Pasteur Institute. |
| D．His discoveries brought many profits and awards to him. |
| A．Cholera was not a deadly disease then. |
| B．Pasteur spread cholera to chickens on purpose. |
| C．All chickens suffered from cholera died at last. |
| D．The weakened cholera couldn’t kill the living creatures |
| A．It builds up people’s body. |
| B．Without it, people will die. |
| C．It improves people’s ability to avoid diseases. |
| D．It can kill all the diseases and make the sick bealthy. |
| A．Because he wants to honour Louis Pasteur and his contribution to the world. |
| B．Because he wants to show the discoveries of the vaccination. |
| C．Because be wants to call on children to learn from Louis Pasteur |
| D．Because he wants to introduce an important invention in microbiology. |
