【推荐3】Explore the Lower Mississippi River

with the Leader in U. S. Cruising (乘船游)

Delight your senses on this amazing journey along the Lower Mississippi River. From the French Quarter in New Orleans to Beale Street in Memphis, be treated to the fine local flavors, including barbecue, bourbon (波旁威士忌酒)and the blues. Enjoy the simple pleasures and unique treasures found in the small southern towns along the way.

Your Lower Mississippi River Cruise Includes:

8-Days/7-Nights aboard the ship

An exploration of 6 ports (港口) of call with guided trip options at each

All onboard meals, breakfast room service, and our evening cocktail hour

Full enrichment package with guest speakers and nightly entertainment

Call today 888-240-4948 to request a free Cruise Guide.

1. How many stops are there during the journey from New Orleans to Memphis?

A．6.

B．7.

C．8.

D．15.

2. What is provided on the ship?

A．Free meals.	B．Art exhibition.
C．Night performance.	D．Marriage service.

3. What can be learned about American Cruise Line?

A．It is the leader in U. S. cruising.

B．It is an airline company.

C．It has branches along the Mississippi River.

D．It offers passengers the best alcohol.

4. Where does this passage most possibly come from?

A．A health magazine.	B．A scientific report.
C．A news report.	D．A travel brochure.

【推荐3】The Guardian

The Guardian, a daily newspaper, sells more in urban areas where it is read more widely by the corporate class, international communities, university students, politicians and government officials. The Guardian targets both local communities and International communities. However, businessmen and politicians are the regular readers of this great newspaper. Besides, the paper is up-in-arms to promote economic and social changes of this growing nation.

The Times

The Times, a daily newspaper published in London, is one of Britain’s oldest and most influential newspapers. Founded by John Walter in 1785 as the Daily Universal Register, it became The Times in 1788, publishing commercial news, politics and notices. The target audience is largely middle class and its readership demographics reveal that more men read the newspaper than women, and that 2.5 million households with children get the daily paper every month.

Metro

Metro, a daily newspaper, gives you all the stories you need to know and all the stories you want to know. The content is written for a young, mobile-savvy metropolitan audience. Metro takes the form of the latest showbiz gossip, the funniest and oddest stories from around the world and the best opinion pieces, without a party political standpoint. You can find what’s trending this very moment here.

The Daily Mail

The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news website published in London. Founded in 1896, it is the United Kingdom’s highest-circulated daily newspaper. You can get the latest breaking news, celebrity photos, viral videos, science & tech news, and top stories from MailOnline.

1. Which of the following may NOT be found in The Times in 1788?

A．Fashion.	B．Notice.
C．Politics.	D．Economy.

2. Which newspaper is the most likely to be read by those who always focus on the trend?

A．The Guardian.	B．The Times.
C．Metro.	D．The Daily Mail.

3. What can be inferred according to the passage?

A．The Daily Mail is the most popular both at home and abroad.

B．The Times is referred to as the Daily Universal Register now.

C．Metro reaches for every young, mobile-savvy metropolitan audience.

D．The Guardian has a great effect on the development of economy and society.

【推荐1】Whaling was once a major industry worldwide. And by the 1940s, more than 30,000 whales were being caught every yean Oil from whales was widely used. In order to make possible the orderly development of the global whaling industry, the international Whaling Commission (IWC) was formed in 1946.

However, in 1986, the IWC voted (投票) for a ban on whaling. The biggest concern was the huge fall in whale populations across the planet. Indeed many people say the ban came too late and that commercial whaling has already driven many species close to extinction. According to Greenpeace, blue whales are less than 1% of their original number in the Antarctic while Sei Whales and Fin Whales are also listed as “endangered species”.

There are many other good reasons to oppose whaling. Whales are extremely intelligent creatures. They have social networks very similar to those of humans, and scientists have recently discovered that whales have brain cells only previously found in humans and great apes (猿) . On top of that, whaling is also a cruel industry. Whales are often caught using explosive harpoons (鱼叉). In some cases, when the harpoon doesn't bit its target properly, whales can take minutes or sometimes hours to die.

Despite this, some countries continue to hunt whales. And currently Japan hunts more than 1,000 whales a year-all of them part of a supposed “scientific research” programme. Many people argue that this “research” is nothing more than a front of commercial whaling — the meat that is left over after samples are taken is sold.

At present, the world is fairly divided on the issue with Iceland, Japan and Norway on the pro-whaling side and the US, Australia, New Zealand and the EU on the anti-whaling side. Asked recently bow difficult his job was on a scale (等级) of one to ten, Cristian Maquieira, the chairman of the IWC said, “About a twelve!”

1. What is the main reason for the IWC, voting for a ban on whaling?

A．Many whale species died out.

B．Whales are highly intelligent creatures.

C．The number of whales dropped sharply.

D．Whales suffer great pain when being caught.

2. What does the underlined word “oppose” in paragraph 3 mean?

A．Protest.

B．Maintain.

C．Permit.

D．Improve.

3. Why do some countries continue to hunt whales?

A．To ensure food supply.	B．To do scientific research.
C．To protect other species.	D．To make economic profit.

4. What does Cristian Maquieira mean by saying “About a twelve!”?

A．The IWC will make great efforts to promote the ban.

B．It is rather challenging for the IWC to carry out the ban.

C．There is still much room for the IWC to improve its work.

D．The IWC is confident of stopping all countries hunting whales.

【推荐2】The population of a sea creature known as the sunflower sea star, which was once plentiful along the Pacific coastline from Mexico’s Baja California peninsula to Alaska, has been reduced sharply these years. Approximately 90% of them have disappeared since 2013 due to a mysterious sea star wasting syndrome (海星消瘦综合症).

One of the factors likely to have led to the death of sea stars is rising ocean temperatures caused by climate change, according to some scientists. The ocean absorbs most of the excess atmospheric heat caused by greenhouse gas emissions, which has the effect of increasing the temperature of the water. Many sea creatures can only tolerate very small changes to their environment.

Sunflower sea stars feed on sea urchins. Sea urchins feed on seagrass. Without the presence of sunflower sea stars, their key predator in the food chain, sea urchin populations have boomed. That has led to the death of many seagrasses — which in turn contributes to the climate crisis, as seagrass is a valuable tool to store carbon dioxide.

Scientists at the University of Washington have been working on that. They have been raising a new generation of sunflower sea stars that can be used to repopulate coastal waters. Jason Hodin, a research scientist at the University of Washington’s Friday Harbor Labs, said that they’re hoping the program can help recover the sunflower sea star and, ultimately, recover the health of ecosystems like seagrass that is under threat right now.

To test the sea stars’ ability to tolerate warming seas, scientists have these tiny creatures subjected to fluctuations (波动) in water temperatures in the lab. Some of the young adult sea stars are being raised in water that is slightly warmer than normal, and are showing signs of being able to adjust to the added warmth. “These are not typical ocean temperatures around here, but the success indicates that they at least have the ability to endure the warmer water,” said Hodin.

1. Which could be a possible reason for the death of sunflower sea stars?

A．Habitat loss.	B．Climate change.
C．Food shortage.	D．Ocean pollution.

2. What does paragraph 3 mainly talk about?

A．The living habits of sunflower sea stars.

B．The importance of seagrass to the environment.

C．The key role of sunflower sea stars in the food chain.

D．The consequences of the increasing sea urchin populations.

3. How do scientists help increase the population of sunflower sea stars?

A．By developing devices to cool sea water.

B．By improving the environment of coastal waters.

C．By growing plentiful seagrass to absorb carbon dioxide.

D．By experimenting on raising a new generation of the creature.

4. What does Jason Hodin think of the program?

A．It is meaningful.	B．It is complicated.
C．It is bizarre.	D．It is disappointing

【推荐3】Modern medicine is pretty incredible. A team of scientists from the United States and Hong Kong has developed a “bionic eye” that imitates the human eye in shape and function, media BGR reported. The new “bionic eye” could one clay be used to restore the vision of the blind by imitating the “light sensor” in the human eye.

The eye is one of our most complex organs. In real eyes, the retina (视网膜) is the thin layer of tissue that receives light and sends it to our brains so it can be interpreted as an image. The bionic eye is an artificial eye which provides visual sensations to the brain. It consists of electronic systems having microprocessors, receivers, radio transmitters, some electronic chips and a series of image sensors that capture and rebroadcast real-time images. Technology provided by this helps the blind people to get vision again.

Over the years, scientists and doctors have come up with ways to replace some important parts of the body with artificial means that it can improve people’s quality of life and even save a person’s life. However, the eyes are quite special, and the way they communicate with the brain means that designing a bionic eye is not that simple. Connecting devices to the human brain is a huge barrier, but there is no greater challenge for researchers than cramming (塞入) the technology into a ball that could be used as an implant. And yes, the shape of the retina has historically been a major challenge for bionic devices.

Researchers have begun experimenting with animals and humans, the Daily Mail reported. However, much remains to be done. An artificial replacement for a human body is a risky task as it may cause death or some serious situations may occur and scientists were quick to point out that the current equipment is just the beginning that may appear in a few years.

1. How does bionic eye work?

A．By receiving special signals.	B．By capturing and storing images.
C．By sending visual signals to the brain.	D．By receiving and increasing light intensity.

2. What is the highest difficulty of making a bionic eye?

A．Its shape.	B．Its size.
C．Its weight.	D．Its sensitivity.

3. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A．The research is an easy job.	B．The “bionic eye” is impossible.
C．The current equipment is quite perfect.	D．Testing has begun on live organisms.

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．Modern medicine.	B．New technology.
C．Blind people.	D．Human brain.