A Teenage Inventor
The world could be one step closer to quick and inexpensive Ebola detection thanks to a teenager from Connecticut.
Olivia Hallisey, a junior at Greenwich High School, was awarded $50,000 in the Google Science Fair for her new method that detects Ebola, a virus that causes bleeding from different parts of the body and usually causes death. Olivia’s method is to ask patients to put their saliva (唾液) onto a testing card. The card changes color if the person is catching Ebloa. Present Ebloa tests take up to 12 hours and cost $1,000. Olivia’s method, however, can be done just in 30 minutes for about $25. Besides, the sample (样本) doesn’t have to be put in a refrigerator thanks to the silk material Olivia uses to produce the testing cards.
Olivia was inspired to deal with this global problem after watching the news that more than 10,000 people died from Ebola in West Africa. She was particularly worried about the fact that, while the acts of involvement can improve survival rates, present detection methods are costly, time-consuming and require complex tools. Olivia got help from her science research teacher. She drew out directions from past research, and figured out detection systems that have proven to work with other diseases, including Lyme disease and yellow fever.
“What affects one country affects everyone,”Olivia told CNBC. “We have to work together to find answers to the huge challenges which cause harm to the global health.” The Connecticut’s teen, who hopes to become a doctor one day, was named the Google Science Fair winner in the competition of 20 competitors from across the globe. The fair is open to young people between the ages of 13 and 18 in most countries.
Olivia hopes her success will inspire other girls interested in science and computers. “I would just encourage girls to try it in the beginning, and remind them that they don’t have to feel naturally drawn or feel like they have a special talent for maths or science,” she told CNBC, “but just really look at something they are interested in and then think how to improve something or make it more enjoyable or relate it to their interests.”
1. According to the passage, present Ebola detection methods______.| A．require samples to be kept in refrigerators |
| B．must use a large amount of samples |
| C．may detect other deadly viruses as well |
| D．have proven to be ineffective in practice |
| A．Admitted. | B．Controlled. | C．Attracted. | D．Exposed. |
| A．inventors | B．students | C．doctors | D．scientists |
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【推荐1】In 2005, IT technician Sujay Nazareth suddenly felt thirsty all the time. The 25 year old began losing weight without trying, and he was tired no matter how much sleep he got. Nazareth described his issues to his GP, who ordered a blood test. The test revealed he had type 2 diabetes (糖尿病).
But it wasn’t a diagnosis he wanted to deal with, so he didn’t. It wasn’t until his daughter was born in 2016 that he decided it was finally time to tackle his disease. “It just struck me that I need to start taking care of myself.” he says. He would rather he’d started sooner.
A type 2 diabetes diagnosis means your body isn’t producing enough insulin (the hormone that controls the amount of sugar in your blood) or isn’t able to use the insulin that it produces. Too much sugar in your bloodstream puts your organs, nerves and blood vessels at risk. Diabetes can reduce your lifespan by anywhere from 5 to 15 years. According to diabetes authorities, the disease is a global problem. Southeast Asians now make up 20 percent of the 450 million diabetes sufferers globally; many live in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Nearly one in two adults (46.5 percent) with diabetes is yet to be diagnosed. These numbers are due to the fact that we’re sitting and living longer.
Some studies showed that obesity and family history are the main reasons of type 2 diabetes. “In my opinion, the primary cause of type 2 diabetes is the natural aging process,” says Dr. Tom Elliott, an endocrinologist and medical director in Vancouver. “As you get older, your hair goes grey, your skin wrinkles and your cells don’t reproduce as quickly.”
Still, a diabetes diagnosis isn’t as serious as it was even five years ago. Thanks to new treatments and technology, not to mention the prospect of additional breakthroughs, many specialists believe we may soon have the science to beat diabetes.
1. What can we learn from the first two paragraphs?| A．Nazareth didn’t have enough water and sleep. |
| B．Nazareth wished he had taken care of himself. |
| C．Nazareth was trying to lose weight. |
| D．Nazareth knew his disease until 2016. |
| A．It can reduce the amount of sugar in the blood. |
| B．It can help produce enough insulin. |
| C．It can damage people’s organs and nerves. |
| D．It can quicken the natural aging process. |
| A．Because someone in their family has ever had this illness. |
| B．Because their physical functions are gradually declining. |
| C．Because they tend to put on weight more rapidly. |
| D．Because they experience more pressure in their lives. |
| A．Positive. | B．Negative. | C．Indifferent. | D．Doubtful. |
【推荐2】It was warm for a Sunday afternoon in early January. Kevin loved being outdoors among the wild rosebushes in front of his house with a view of distant mountains.
It had been a good day for his wife, Sharon, too. They spent the morning in front of the house, talking and drinking tea. Sharon felt strong and tried her best to cook, starting a pot of homemade soup — a task that would have been nothing a few years ago, but is a little hard for her now. Her illness had left her weak, often puzzled.
Sharon was the take-charge person in the family. She was seldom sick until 1997, when she began suffering from terrible headaches. One day at work, colleagues said she didn’t look right and urged(敦促) her to go to the hospital. She rose from her chair and fell over. She could hear voices, but couldn’t speak. It looked as if she’d had a stroke(中风).
Other stroke-like symptoms (症状) followed. She had difficulty walking. She ran a fever all the time. The headaches never stopped. She and Kevin spent all their savings seeing doctors and on medical tests.
In 2000, physicians said Sharon had brain damage that left her with symptoms resembling dementia (痴呆症). Once, she visited a familiar store and couldn’t remember where the exit was. Another time, she was making spaghetti, but didn’t know what to do after the water boiled.
After seeing specialists, Kevin and Sharon came to believe that exposure(接触) to mould(霉菌) had caused Sharon’s condition. Her world was certainly getting worse. At times she needed a wheelchair. The woman who never liked asking for help had to stay at home and rely on her husband.
1. Why is it hard for Sharon to cook now?| A．She got seriously ill. | B．She became old. |
| C．She couldn’t speak. | D．She has not cooked for a long time. |
| A．similar to | B．different from |
| C．equal to | D．resulting from |
| A．Working too hard. | B．Exposure to the sun. |
| C．Contact with mould. | D．Cooking too much. |
| A．independent | B．clever |
| C．kind | D．forgetful |
【推荐3】Luke Grenfell-Shaw has developed a rare form of cancer. It started as a pain in his shoulder and the tumor（肿瘤）spread to his lungs, making it stage four. The Oxford graduate was teaching English in Siberia when he suffered shoulder pain and consulted the school nurse. It was her reaction to a lump on his back that sent him back home to Bristol. "I was 24 years old. I had done an ultra-marathon," Luke said. "48 hours later, I was back in hospital in the UK." On 19 June 2018, doctors informed Luke that he had cancer.
"I had kind of worked out that it was cancer, but what kind of blew me away was the fact that it was stage four cancer," said Luke. "That day, I felt like my life was disintegrated. My life had been comfortable and conventional. I worked hard and got rewards in terms of education, jobs, things like that. That was all taken away." On the day of his diagnosis(诊断), Luke had one clear thought in his mind that he wanted to cycle around the world. It was something he had always hoped to do, but the cancer news made him realize that he couldn't put it off.
"I realize that the future had to become now," Luke explained. He decided to cycle from Bristol to Beijing --- more than 5,000 miles --- on a tandem bike, because he wants to bring people along to share the experience with him. Luke will not only be joined by his family and friends for certain legs of his trip, but also by other young people who are living with cancer. "This trip is something I'm going to enjoy," said Luke. "It's bound to be the richest and most fulfilling experience that I can have."
1. What can we infer from what Luke said in paragraph 1?| A．He doubted the previous examination. | B．He had suffered from unbearable pains. |
| C．He regretted running the ultra-marathon. | D．He hadn't expected such serious condition. |
| A．Broken. | B．Controlled. | C．Adjusted. | D．Brightened. |
| A．To realize his dream on the wheels. |
| B．To win the battle against his cancer. |
| C．To enjoy the rest of his life peacefully. |
| D．To draw worldwide attention to cancer. |
【推荐1】Velcro is a hook-and-loop (粘扣的) device that is commonly found on a wide range of products, such as shoes, jackets, and a lot of other equipment in offices, kitchens, and garages. It’s also the name of the company that originally created the “thing”generally known as Velcro.
George de Mestral, a Swiss electrical engineer, is the inventor of Velcro. How he came to the idea of actually making this thing that we call Velcro is a truly incredible story.
One fine morning in 1948, Mestral went for a walk with his dog. After returning from the walk, he found that some seeds got stuck to the dog’s fur. However, the man’s attention was turned to his own trousers, where many similar seeds were also attached.
Upon closer examination, he noticed that there were many small hooks in the seeds that stuck firmly to the loops in the fabric of his trousers. The first idea for what would eventually become Velcro struck him like lightning. If he could artificially recreate the same thing, by making pairs of hooks-and-loops that stick to each other firmly, then there would be almost no need to tie things up all the time to secure them, nor would zippers, which were quite popular in those days, be necessary any longer. He decided to call the product he formed Velcro.
Like many inventions, Velcro also faced a great deal of criticism,but Mestral stood by his design and continued to make structural changes to enhance its bonding strength. He worked with a Frenchmah to come up with a perfect hook-and-loop device. Mestral patented Velcro in 1955.
Velcro didn’t do very well initially; much of that was due to its lack of aesthetic appeal. It came in dull colors and often looked quite “unattractive”. But soon, even NASA helped to boost Velcro’s image by using it in a lot of equipment that went into space along with astronauts.
1. What can we know about Velcro according to the passage?| A．It’s been replaced by zippers. |
| B．It’s a nature-inspired product. |
| C．It’s an established shoe brand. |
| D．It’s a hook commonly used in offices. |
| A．Talented. | B．Considerate. | C．Sympathetic. | D．Innovative. |
| A．They were critical of it. |
| B．They paid no attention to it. |
| C．They thought of it as a practical item. |
| D．They were dissatisfied with its function. |
| A．A controversial device. | B．A brilliant creation. |
| C．An unexpected discovery. | D．An unforgettable experience. |
【推荐2】Wind energy provided 7% of the total electricity in the United States in 2019. Since 2008, the use of coal-fired power plants has declined, as the use of renewable energy and natural gas has increased. Wind energy is an excellent way to reduce carbon emissions (排放物), but what happens when the wind turbine blades (涡轮叶片) wear out? Is there a waste management issue?
The design life of wind turbines is about 20 to 25 years. The longest wind turbine blade to date is 350 feet. Although certain parts of wind turbines can be relatively easily recycled, others are not designed for recyclability. Many spent turbine blades are piling up in landfills. However, researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are making progress in this area.
They developed a blade out of thermoplastic resin (热塑性树脂) that is low-cost, lightweight, and seems to be recyclable. If the new blade also proves to be strong, this will be a game changer for the offshore and onshore wind industry. Lower costs also could help improve wind energy efficiency, reducing the use of fossil fuels. A lightweight blade is easier to transport and uses less fuel. It also seems easier to recycle and uses less energy in the production process. “With the traditional material, it’s almost like when you fry an egg. It’s finished and you can’t undo that,” said Derek Berry, a senior engineer a NREL. “But with a thermoplastic resin system, you can make a blade out of it. You heat it to a certain temperature, and it melts back down. You can get the liquid resin back and reuse that.”
Although the research looks promising, progress will be slow. Most wind farms being constructed today will stop working in a few decades. The benefits of recyclable blades are still decades away at least. The associated environmental impact has largely been a bind spot for the industry. Hopefully, recent progress will help make wind power even greener.
1. What is the disadvantage of the current wind turbine blade?| A．Its vast size. |
| B．Its short life. |
| C．Its negative impact on the environment. |
| D．Its inefficiency in producing electricity. |
| A．Why thermoplastic resin is strong. |
| B．How thermoplastic resin is recycled. |
| C．The popularity of thermoplastic resin. |
| D．The production process of thermoplastic resin. |
| A．Pessimistic. | B．Careless. | C．Doubtful. | D．Optimistic. |
| A．A new way to develop turbine blades. |
| B．A fresh approach to using wind power. |
| C．An unknown renewable energy source. |
| D．The urge to tear down old turbine blades. |
【推荐3】Fairy tales perform many functions. They entertain, encourage imagination, and teach problem -solving skills. They can also provide moral lessons, highlighting the dangers of failing to follow the social rules that let human beings coexist in harmony. Such moral lessons may not mean much to a robot, but a team of researchers at Georgia Institute of Technology (GIT) believes it has found a way to turn the instructive fable (寓言) into a moral lesson that artificial intelligence (AI) can take to its cold, mechanical heart.
This, the researchers hope, will help prevent the intelligent robots from harming or even killing humanity, which is predicted and feared by some of the biggest names in technology, including Stephen Hawking, Elon Musk and Bill Cates.
Mark Riedl, an associate professor of interactive computing at Georgia Tech believes that the collected stories of different cultures not only teach children how to behave well but also teach robots how to get rid of violent or dangerous behaviour and help them make choices that won't harm humans and still achieve the intended purpose.
The system is called “Quixote”. The experiment involves going to a chemist to buy some medicine for a human who needs it as soon as possible. The robot has three choices. It can wait in line; it can communicate with the chemist politely and buy the medicine; it can steal the medicine. Without any further instructions, the robot will come to the conclusion that the most efficient means of getting the medicine is to steal it. Quixote offers a reward signal for waiting in line and politely buying the medicine and a punishment signal for taking it without permission. In this way, it learns the “moral” way to behave in that situation.
Quixote would work best on a robot that has a very limited function. It's a baby step in the direction of teaching more moral lessons into robots. We believe that AI has to be trained to adopt the values of a particular society, and in doing so, it will strive to avoid unacceptable behavior. Giving robots the ability to read and understand our stories may be the most efficient means.
1. What is the main idea of the passage?| A．The moral lessons learned by a robot. | B．The coexistence of human beings and AI. |
| C．The new function of the fairy tales on AI. | D．The different applications of the fairy tales. |
| A．The potential threat from robots. | B．The problems with moral lessons. |
| C．The high costs of AI development. | D．The difficulties of the GIT scientists. |
| A．By offering the robot rewards. | B．By sending the robot different signals. |
| C．By helping the robot make right choice. | D．By giving the robot specific instructions. |
| A．The development of robots is still in a baby step. |
| B．Robots should have the ability to understand the fairy tales. |
| C．The more functions the robot has, the better Quixote works. |
| D．It is necessary to train robots to follow the social values. |
【推荐1】I work as the reception manager at my hotel.
A booking came in a few weeks ago with a note attached that a guest would be travelling with her deaf father. This note helped us in preparing for their arrival. As they would be here for a number of days, his daughter wanted to make his trip to Ireland as smooth as possible.
Upon seeing this note and knowing I would be the one to check them in, I decided to learn some very basic sign language. I greeted the guest in my usual fashion, asking for the surname on the booking. Once I heard the name，I immediately realized who was standing in front of me.
I had been learning for two weeks how to say: “Welcome to Ireland. My sign language is terrible, but please, if you need anything during your stay, just let me know and we will help you.”
I smiled at the father and daughter in front of me. Turning to the father, I greeted him in ASL (American Sign Language) and began the bit I had learned for him. His daughter broke down crying and told me I was sweet. But the father just smiled and was so happy. Honestly, seeing his reaction was enough for me. It was absolutely worth the last few weeks of learning basic ASL.
Sadly, I wasn’t working the day they checked out, but they left a gift for me, a small box with some chocolates and a book on ASL. Inside was a note saying: “Thank you very much for what you did. My father has been in amazing spirits from the time you checked us in and insisted we get you a gift before we left. You have no idea how much this meant to my father and me, and we can’t thank you enough. You've made his trip very special with one simple gesture.”
I cried for a solid five minutes when I came into work the next day and found this gift in my locker.
1. The daughter left a note when booking the hotel in order to __________.| A．ask for special service for herself |
| B．give some useful advice to the hotel |
| C．express gratitude to the hotel manager |
| D．make her father’s trip more comfortable |
| A．the author’s sign language was really terrible |
| B．her father was unwilling to live in that hotel |
| C．she appreciated what the author had done for her father |
| D．the author wouldn’t be working when they checked out |
| A．thankful | B．satisfied |
| C．disappointed | D．regretful |
| A．the author made the daughter’s check-out smooth |
| B．the author was deeply moved by an unexpected gift |
| C．the daughter cried for five minutes before they left |
| D．the daughter asked the author to learn sign language |
【推荐2】I stumbled on a wallet someone had lost in the street. Wanting to find the owner, I opened it, but it only contained 3 dollars and an old crumpled envelope. I opened the letter and saw a return address and dateline...1924.It had been written 60 years ago. It was a "Dear John" letter that told the recipient, whose name appeared to be Michael, that the writer could not see him any more because her mother forbade it. Even so, she wrote that she would always love him. It was signed Hannah.
I called information, maybe there was a phone listing for the address. The operator hesitantly told me there was a number, but the best she could do was call it and see if they wanted to be connected. I learned that Hannah was now living in a Nursing Home and was given the number.
It seemed silly ,wanting to contact someone over a letter written 60 years ago, but I felt impelled.I was told that Hannah was there and though it was fairly late, I followed my instinct and went to see her.
She was a sweet silver-haired lady with a warm smile and a twinkle in her eye.I told her about finding the wallet and showed her the letter. She took a deep breath and said. "Young man, this letter was the last contact I ever had with Michael."
She said softly, "I loved him very much. But I was only 16 at the time and my mother felt I was too young. If you should find him, tell him I still love him." With tears in her eyes she told me she had never married because no one had matched up to him in her heart.
I thanked her and left. As I was waiting by the elevator , the nurse there asked. "Was Hannah able to help you?" I'd taken out the wallet as she was speaking and she said "Hey, wait a minute That's Michael Goldstein's wallet. I'd recognize it anywhere; he's always losing it."
My hands began to shake. "Who's Michael Goldstein?" I asked." One of the residents on the 8th floor. That's his wallet for sure." I dashed up to the 8th floor and the nurse on duty told me he was still in the day room.
We went into the day room and as soon as Michael saw the wallet, a smile of relief crossed his face. I confessed I'd read the letter in an attempt to find the owner of the wallet. The smile on his face disappeared.
＂But I think you'll be happy I did," I said. I think I know where Hannah is. He grew pale. "Where is she? How is she? Please tell me." he begged. "She's fine," I said quietly. "I was so in love with that girl and when that letter came, my life came to a halt. I never married. I guess I've always loved her."
I asked him to come with me and took him down to the 3rd floor where Hannah was sitting alone, watching television. The floor nurse pointed to Michael. "Do you know this man, Hannah?" She adjusted her glasses but didn't speak. Michael whispered. "Hannah. it's me, Michael. Do you remember me?"
She gasped."Michael. Michael, I don't believe it. It's you! My Michael." They walked towards one another and embraced. The nurse and I left with tears streaming down our faces.
About three weeks later I got a call from the nursing home. "Can you break away on Sunday to attend a wedding? Michael and Hannah are going to tie the knot!"
It was a beautiful wedding with all the people at the nursing home joining in the celebration. I was the best man! The hospital gave them their own room and if you ever wanted to see a 76-year-old bride and a 79-year-old groom acting like two teenagers, you had to see this couple. A perfect ending for a love affair that had lasted nearly 60 years.
1. What does the author mean by saying "I felt impelled" in paragraph 3?| A．He felt great sympathy for the old man and women. |
| B．He was interested to know the woman who wrote the letter. |
| C．He was forced and driven by his instinct to find Hannah. |
| D．He called the information to kill his boring time. |
| A．Hey, wait a minute that's Michael Goldstein's wallet. I'd recognize it anywhere; he's always losing it. |
| B．I was so in love with that girl and when that letter came, my life came to a halt. I never married. I guess I've always loved her. |
| C．As soon as Michael saw the wallet a smile of relief crossed his face. |
| D．Where is she? How is she? Please tell me. |
| A．Positive. | B．Indifferent. |
| C．Doubt. | D．Negative. |
| A．A love story | B．The lost wallet |
| C．Love in the nursing home | D．The best man |
【推荐3】Our wedding was about to begin. My throat was tight and my cheeks got red, but I didn't care. I was ready to marry David Sanchez. We’re a "nontraditional" couple: getting married not at a church but in a bookstore that supports a charity to fight H.I.V. and homelessness.
“Kim! I could walk you down the aisle（走廊）if you like!” David's father offered gently.
"I'm OK. But I appreciate that,” I said with a smile. And I was reminded, again, of my dad's absence.
My father died of cancer six weeks ago. For the last two months, we tried to make him feel comfortable and loved as he departed from this world. He always told us that he didn't like a funeral （葬礼）and insisted our wedding go forward as planned. But how could we honor him since the wedding would be the first time the family would gather after his death and some even didn't know he was sick?
During the ceremony, my dear friend Eva delivered a reading entitled "When Things Go Missing” by Kathryn Schulz. She paused and got everyone on the same page: “When we are experiencing it, loss often feels like confusion in the usual order of things. In fact, the entire plan of the universe consists of losing, and life amounts to a reverse（逆向的）savings account in which we are eventually robbed of everything.
I felt the energy full of the room. Everyone was listening. By choosing to accept the pain, we knew what a wedding does to join two families and mark the next chapter for a couple. Loss became a compass that pointed us away from a fantasy and toward celebrating the difficult realities of life.
After rings were exchanged, fried chicken was served, our friends offered so many funny and touching toasts, and finally David sang "Married” on my father’s guitar. I felt joy filling all the holes in my soul. Celebrating my father’s life at our wedding made me grateful for all the time I had spent with him, because it all goes by so fast.
1. Why did David's father offer to walk the author down the aisle?| A．To relieve her tension. |
| B．To welcome her to his family. |
| C．To play the author's late father's role. |
| D．To contribute something to the charity. |
| A．She got a compass as a wedding gift. |
| B．She enjoyed David's promise for their marriage. |
| C．She received more sympathy from families and friends. |
| D．She recalled the days spent with her father and understood life better. |
| A．Because she could keep from the pain. |
| B．Because she knew everyone was listening. |
| C．Because she got more courage for marriage and life. |
| D．Because she could read a piece of Kathryn Schulz's works. |
| A．It was held at a church. |
| B．It was a touching and happy one. |
| C．Kim and David turned it into a funeral. |
| D．There was no other activity except reading. |
