Louis Braille was born in France in 1809. Sadly when he was a little boy, he had an accident. By the time he was four years old, he was completely blind. However, at the age of ten, Louis was lucky enough to go to one of the first schools for blind children in Paris. At this particular school they had special books. They were written in ordinary French but the letters raised up off the page, so that the students could feel the shape of the words and read them. But there were two problems with this system. First, the letters were huge and difficult to read. Second, the books were very expensive so the school library only had fourteen altogether.
In 1821, when Louis was twelve years old, a soldier came to his school. This man had invented a system for soldiers to send and receive messages in the dark. Although this idea had not worked very well, Louis became very excited and began experiments with it. By the time he was fifteen, he had invented a perfect system which used only six dots. And by 1827 the first book using his system was published.
It still took a long time before people realized what a wonderful invention Braille’s system was. In fact, Louis died in 1852 and did not live to see the success of his system, which has been adapted to almost every language in the world. Thanks to him, blind or weak-sighted people are able to read or write as well as any sighted person.
1. What did books for the blind look like when Louis was a boy?A.No books designed for the blind. |
B.Books with raised dots on each page. |
C.Books with letters raised up off each page. |
D.The same books as those for the able-bodied. |
A.The letters were huge and difficult to read. |
B.Books designed for the blind were too costly. |
C.The number of books for the blind was very small. |
D.A messaging system for soldiers to use in the dark. |
A.In 1821 | B.In 1824 | C.In 1827 | D.In 1852 |
A.It helps make the blind independent to learn. |
B.It is easy and convenient for the blind to live. |
C.It has been adapted to every language in the world. |
D.It contributes to producing more books for the blind. |
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【推荐1】Have you ever wished you could speak a foreign language without taking the classes? Have you ever had trouble while travelling abroad, because of the language? Have you ever dreamed about being able to talk to almost every person in the world? Language barrier should no longer be your concern anymore.
MUAMA Enence, a Japanese high-tech invention that allows you to communicate in more than 40 languages, without wasting your time and money on boring language classes. No more language learning, no more troubles when travelling abroad, no more time and money wasted on language learning programmes that simply do not work.
Enence was built with simplicity in mind so anyone can use it. Although it is armed with the latest technology, using the device is super easy. All you need to do is choose the language in which you want to communicate and record your words or sentences. You can even record really long sentences and Enence will translate everything perfectly!
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The low cost and high quality Enence translator is changing the world. The product has been selling like crazy, but the stock won’t last long as the supplies are limited. We recommend ordering MUAMA Enence Translator while it is still available.
1. What does the author intend to do in Paragraph 1?A.Question some language learning courses. | B.Draw attention to the topic of the text. |
C.Show how to overcome language barriers. | D.Express wishes to learn a foreign language. |
A.It is an instant translator. | B.It is a travel guide. |
C.It is a Japanese learning App. | D.It is a language course. |
A.How to choose a foreign language. | B.How to use MUAMA Enence. |
C.Why MUAMA Enence is casy to use. | D.What to learn with MUAMA Enence. |
A.MUAMA Enence is unavailable to everyone. |
B.The function of MUAMA Enence is limited. |
C.MUAMA Enence is crazily changing the world. |
D.The author thinks highly of MUAMA Enence. |
【推荐2】The study on facial recognition technology (FRT) began in the late 1960s. In the late 1990s, FRT began to enter the market gradually but its accuracy had a long way to go though it cost governments a lot, which made it unpopular at that time. FRT attracted wide attention after September,11, 2001 and it has been widely used now.
Recognizing the potential abuse in the use of FRT, Microsoft is asking the U. S. government to study facial recognition (FR) and keep a dose watch over its use. Personally, I hold this is a positive job that Microsoft is doing. FRT has grown to be so powerful. It can be used to identify people in photos, video feeds,and of course in person, without their permission.
Mr. Bradford Smith, Microsoft’s president, suggests that “governments around the world should examine commercial uses of FR.” The European Union (EU) is ahead of others in this aspect, thanks to its tough new data protection law, which forbids companies to gather the biometric (生物特征) data needed for facial recognition without first obtaining users, permission.
San Francisco has become the first city in the USA to forbid using facial recognition software. And Oakland discussed a similar rule last month. San Francisco has said that police and other public departments cannot use FRT. San Francisco already uses surveillance (监视) cameras for reading car number plates and police officers wear body cameras. San Francisco official Aaron Peskin said FRT was like “Big Brother” from the book 1984 by George Orwell. The phrase Big Brother is now used to describe attempts to increase surveillance and “spy” on citizens. Mr. Peskin said, “We can have good policing without being a police state.”
1. Why was FRT unpopular in the 1990s?A.It was inconvenient to use. | B.It was expensive to produce. |
C.Its accuracy needed improving. | D.Its roles weren’t fully found out. |
A.He says yes to it. | B.He is doubtful of it. |
C.He feels worried about it. | D.He can’t understand it. |
A.San Francisco. | B.Microsoft. |
C.Oakland. | D.The EU. |
A.Big Brother Technology | B.Different Uses of FRT |
C.Strong Protection of FRT | D.FR Data’s Disadvantages |
【推荐3】A small robot may help children who are recovering from long-term illnesses in the hospital or at home. These children may feel isolated from their friends and classmates. The robot takes their place at school. Through the robot, the children can hear their teachers and friends. They also can take part in class from wherever they are recovering.
Anyone who has a long-term illness knows that recovering at home can be lonely. This can be especially true for children. They may feel left out. Now, these children may have a high-tech friend to help feel less lonely. That friend is a robot. The robot is called AV1. AV1 goes to school for a child who is homebound while recovering from a long-term illness. And the child’s school friends must help. They carry the robot between classes and place the robot on the child’s desk.
A Norwegian company called No Isolation created the robot. The co-founders of No Isolation are Karen Dolva and Marius Aabel. Dolva explains how the robot AV1 works. She says, from home, the child uses an iPad or a phone to start the robot. Then they use the same device to control the robot’s movements. At school, the robot becomes the eyes, ears and voice of the child.
‘So, it sits at the child’s desk in the classroom and the child uses an iPad or a phone to start it, control its movement with touch, and talk through it.’
The student can take part in classroom activities from wherever they are recovering — whether at home or from a hospital bed. The robot is equipped with speakers, microphones and cameras that make communication easy.
1. What’s the meaning of the underlined word ‘isolated’?A.Kept apart. | B.Difficult to learn. |
C.Unhappy or stressful. | D.Full of hope. |
A.Taking part in the class. | B.Talking with his friends. |
C.Writing on the blackboard. | D.Hearing their teachers. |
A.By talking with the robot. |
B.By taking part in class activities. |
C.By using the microphones equipped in it. |
D.By touching an iPad or a phone. |
A.Children who have just recovered from illnesses. |
B.Children who can’t go to school for a long time. |
C.Children who are bored with going to school. |
D.Children who can’t see, hear or speak. |
【推荐1】Pablo Picasso was born on October 25 in Malaga. Spain in 1881. Taking after his father, Picasso shared a passion (热爱)for painting and art. Even though he wasn't the best student in school, Picasso excelled at drawing. Noticing his amazing talent, Picasso's father, an artist, taught him everything he knew. Before long, Picasso could paint and draw much better than his father. With this rich talent, Picasso paid less and less attention to his schoolwork and spent the majority of his day sketching and drawing in notepads and sketchbooks.
When he was a little bit older, Picasso moved twice and was accepted into two fine art programs. However, he didn't care very much for the special techniques they taught and often wandered the streets by himself drawing the scenes around him. After moving to these two places, Picasso moved back home to Barcelona and decided that he would develop new techniques of art and painting based on what he saw.
Later, Picasso decided to move to Paris, France, where he began perfecting his own techniques of painting, drawing and other forms of art. His drawings. paintings, and an included pieces about sadness, poverty, classics and self-portraits. One of his major types of work is called cubism (立体 派),which includes art with all sizes of geometric shapes together on the piece of an. This type of art is very important because no other artists had come up with the idea before. Picasso decided to try something new, and as a result, cubism is widely accepted today as a classic style of art.
Picasso inspires us to always be thinking. He tells us to think outside the box and come up with fresh new ideas that can change the world. He surely plays a significant role in the art field.
1. What do we know about Picasso as a student at school?A.He hated doing his homework. |
B.He was very proud of his talent. |
C.He showed great talent for drawing. |
D.He was often praised by his teacher. |
A.He tried his best to help Picasso. |
B.He blamed Picasso for his laziness. |
C.He asked Picasso to finish his work on time. |
D.He encouraged Picasso to do better at school. |
A.He thought highly of them. |
B.He took no interest in them. |
C.He was confused about them. |
D.He was concerned about them. |
A.Picasso has great faith in art. |
B.Picasso has changed the world a lot. |
C.Picasso can do anything he wants to. |
D.Picasso is a highly creative artist. |
【推荐2】When I was a baby, I entertained you and made you laugh.Whenever I was “bad”, you’d shake your finger at me and ask: “How could you?”—— but then you’d give up, and roll me over for a belly scratch and I believed that life could not be any more perfect.
My housetraining was a long process, because you were terribly busy, but we worked on that together. We went for long walks, runs in the park and car rides. We stopped for ice cream. I took long naps in the sun waiting for you to come home at the end of the day.
Gradually, you began spending more time at work and on your career, and more time searching for a human mate. Eventually, you fell in love. She, now your wife, is not a dog person, but I still welcomed her into our home. I was happy because you were happy. Then the human babies came along and I shared your excitement, I was fascinated by their pinkness, how they smelled, and I wanted to mother them too. Your wife was afraid I would bite them. But nevertheless, as they began to grow, I became their friend.
Now, you have a new job in another city and you and they will be moving to an apartment that does not allow pets. You’ve made the right decision for your “family”, but there was a time when I was your only family.
I was excited about the car ride until we arrived at the dog pound. It smelled of dogs and cats, of fear, of hopelessness. You filled out the paperwork and said: “I know you will find a good home for her.” They shrugged and gave you a pained look. The children were in tears as they waved me goodbye. And “How could you?” were the only three words that swept over my mind.
Is it better to live with hope or without hope? At first, whenever anyone passed my pen, I rushed to the front, hoping it was you, that you had changed your mind and that this was all a bad dream.
My beloved master, I will think of you and wait for you forever. I hope you receive more faithfulness from your family than you showed to me.
1. Who tells this story?A.A dog. | B.A child. | C.A dog’s owner. | D.A dog trainer. |
A.He had a newborn baby. | B.His wife did not like the dog. |
C.He was moving into a new building. | D.He thought the dog tootroublesome. |
A.It hoped to be adopted by another family. | B.It continued to love its former owner. |
C.It did not trust humans any more. | D.It was excited about the pound. |
A.relieved | B.aggressive | C.scared | D.loyal |
【推荐3】When presented with a Make-A-Wish grant, most 13-year-old boys would buy a gaming system or take a trip to Disney World. But Abraham Olagbegi is not like most teens.
Abraham is recovering from a bone marrow transplant resulting from a rare genetic blood disorder. Last year was a scary time for him and his family, but the transplant was successful, and he’s now on a path to good health. When he found out he was qualified for Make-A-Wish, he shocked everyone with his request.
“I remember we were coming home from one of his doctor appointments and he said, ‘Mom, I thought about it, and I really want to feed the homeless,’” said Miriam Olagbegi. Abraham’s mother. “I said, ‘Are you sure, Abraham? You could do a lot... Are you sure that you don’t want a PlayStation?’”
Abraham’s whole family thought it was a great idea, especially since they’ve tried to teach their kids to give freely and openly to others whenever possible. In the 13-year-old’s words, “My parents always teach us that it’s a blessing to be a blessing.”
Make-A-Wish granted Abraham’s special request, spending a day in September handing out free plates of food to people experiencing homelessness in Jackson, Mississippi. Local businesses donated all of the food and supplies, and together they managed to feed about 80 people.
Abraham said seeing the gratitude on their faces made his wish come true. Now, the Make-A-Wish team will continue Abraham’s program named Abraham’s Table every month.
“We’re just very excited to be able to continue this program. It’s just so rewarding,” Miriam said. “If I was out there on the streets, having no home, I would want somebody at some point to think of me and to do something special for me. So, that’s what I try to instill (灌输) in my kids and we just try to pay it forward by doing what we were raised to do.”
1. What is Abraham’s Make-A-Wish?A.Having a PlayStation. | B.Helping the homeless. |
C.Visiting Disney World. | D.Recovering from a rare disease. |
A.Relieved. | B.Concerned. | C.Curious. | D.Amazed. |
A.Smart and courageous. | B.Outgoing and determined. |
C.Sympathetic and generous. | D.Hard-working and careful. |
A.His parents’ influence. | B.People’s grateful look. |
C.The desire to set a good example. | D.The eagerness to establish a program. |