In 2004, Moe Hunter was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis (细菌性脑膜炎) in the brain. He went into a coma (昏迷) for over a month, during which his heart even stopped. He awoke from brain surgery with no memory, but instead, a new set of art skills.
“I woke up on Oct. 13, 2004. I don’t remember anything before 2004—everything has been said to me by family and friends,” Hunter, 38, said. “I really wasn’t creative before, in fact, people used to laugh at my drawings,” he said. “I was more interested in going out, football and computer games.”
His friends and family still can’t believe his newfound ability, describing it as “crazy.” “They’re still completely astonished,” he said. “It’s insane, but when I spoke to the doctor, he just said, ‘Enjoy it,’ and said there’s so much about the brain they still can’t understand, and this is just a phenomenon.”
Hunter has sold and displayed his artwork at Comic Con events across the country. He builds complex life-size model of characters from films and TV shows.
“Nobody has really given a medical explanation for it. I just know comas can do crazy things to a human brain. They just kind of said there are many stories and theories over the years and people have woken from comas with skills and even speaking other languages,” Hunter said.
“I remember the first thing I drew afterwards was a Legend of Zelda sketch and my mum turned around to me and said ‘when did you learn how to draw?’ It was crazy, I haven’t stopped since then. I just found I had this passion there which never existed in me before. I just feel incredibly lucky but also shocked as I really don’t know where this came from.”
1. What sort of person was Moe Hunter before 2004?| A．Weak. | B．Outgoing. | C．Creative. | D．Forgetful. |
| A．It’s a normal phenomenon. | B．He had a complex surgery. |
| C．It remains a mystery. | D．He learned it secretly. |
| A．Continue seeing the doctor. | B．Give up his drawing ability. |
| C．Find out why he could draw. | D．Enjoy and keep on drawing. |
| A．Mysterious Artworks. | B．Skills from a Coma. |
| C．A Strange Disease. | D．A Crazy Man. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】When I first entered high school, I knew no one at my school. All my friends in middle school went to other schools. I wanted to make some new friends. However, I was shy and wasn’t good at making new friends.
On my first day at school, I looked at others who were walking in groups happily. How I wish I were one of them! I guess I was very lucky then. At lunch in the dining hall, when I was eating at a table alone, a girl came to me. “Excuse me, is this seat taken？” she asked. I immediately shook my head. She smiled and sat down opposite (对面) to me. I felt a little awkward and didn’t know what to say at all, but I really wanted to communicate with her. It was a good opportunity(机会) to make friends with her. When I looked up, I found she was smiling at me. Her smile calmed me down. “I really like this school. It's beautiful, but I don't know anyone here. All my friends went to other schools,” said the girl. Hearing her words, I immediately said, “My friends are not here, either. Can we be friends？” I was surprised. I couldn’t believe I would say something like that, and to my surprise, that girl immediately said “Yes”. We both smiled. We became very good friends.
Now it’s the beginning of a new term again. Many students may have no friends at their new schools. If you are also as shy as I used to be, please don’t be afraid to talk to others. You may get a surprise and make a new friend. After all, others want to make new friends, too.
1. We know on her first day at school, the author(作者) ________.| A．hoped she could go to her old friends’ schools |
| B．only knew a few people at her school |
| C．hoped she could make some new friends |
| D．met some old friends at her new school |
| A．tired | B．happy |
| C．interested | D．embarrassed(尴尬的) |
| A．immediately shook her hand |
| B．immediately said something to keep calm |
| C．wanted to talk with her |
| D．wanted her to go away at once |
| A．She agreed at once. |
| B．She thought for a long time. |
| C．She felt a little down. |
| D．She sat down in no time. |
【推荐2】In 1977, a dead author of detective stories saved the life of a 19-month-old baby in a most unusual way. The author was Agatha Christie, one of the most successful writers of detective stories in the world.
In June 1977, a baby girl became seriously ill in Qatar, near Saudi Arabia. Doctors were unable to find out the cause of her illness with confidence, so she was sent to Hammersmith Hospital in London. She was then only semi-conscious and on the "Dangerously Ill" list. A team of doctors hurried to examine the baby only to discover that they, too, were confused by the very unusual symptoms (症状). While they were discussing the baby's case, a nurse asked to speak to them.
"Excuse me," said Nurse Marsha Maitlan, "but I think the baby is suffering from thallium (铊) poisoning(中毒)."
"What makes you think that?" Dr. Brown asked. "Thallium poisoning is extremely rare."
"A few days ago, I was reading a novel called A Pale Horse by Agatha Christie," Nurse Maitlan explained. "In the book, somebody uses thallium poison, and all the symptoms are described. They're exactly the same as the baby's."
"You're very thoughtful and you may be right," another doctor said. "We'll carry out some tests and find out whether it's thallium or not."
Tests showed that the baby had indeed been poisoned by thallium, a rare metallic substance(物质) used in making special glass. Once they knew the cause of the illness, the doctors were able to give the baby the correct treatment. She soon recovered and was sent back to Qatar. Later it was reported that the poison might have come from an insecticide (杀虫剂) used in Qatar.
1. The baby was sent to London because _____.| A．she was born there |
| B．the hospitals in Qatar were full at that time |
| C．she was the daughter of a doctor in London |
| D．the Qatar doctors were not sure whether they could cure her |
| A．had never met this baby |
| B．had spent a long time studying the baby's case |
| C．visited the baby in the hospital at Hammersmith |
| D．gave Nurse Maitlan some advice on the phone |
| A．a dangerous pair of glasses |
| B．the water in Qatar |
| C．a harmful substance used to kill insects |
| D．a dead writer |
【推荐3】Our old, artificial Christmas tree was in rough shape by the time we retired it. At least a decade had passed since my wife and I bought the tree, a medium-size fake tree with built-in lights, at a Target in Brooklyn and carried it on the subway to our tiny apartment. Over the years, we dragged that tree from apartment, jammed it onto a moving truck to Los Angeles and later packed the weathered box onto another moving truck, this time to Chicago and our current home. By the end, layers of duct tape (强力胶布) held the box together, the wear and tear of a decade of delivering holiday cheer.
Our little tree looked run down, but it was the only tree our family ever knew. It stands proud and glowing in the background of photos of me and my pregnant wife during our last Christmas in Brooklyn without children. Our oldest was born a month later during a January snowstorm. The tree shows up again in the next year’s photos, this time surrounded by holiday gifts for a boy about to turn 1. Then it appears in photos of our son and his 1-month-old brother, this time with California palm trees just outside the door. And in more recent photos, our tree lights up windows overlooking shining Chicago snow. This year, after much debate, we decided to retire our dear old tree, with its bent branches and the lights that had burned out years ago. Rather than feel depressed, we used the moment to launch a new family tradition: our first real Christmas tree.
So here’s a toast to all your family’s traditions—the old and the new. I hope you enjoy this issue, which we have filled with stories of seasonal joy and holiday cheer. Happy holidays!
1. Where is the author’s present home?| A．In Chicago. | B．In Brooklyn. | C．In California. | D．In Los Angeles. |
| A．His budget was tight. | B．He was attached to it. |
| C．It was in good condition. | D．It was environmentally-friendly. |
| A．An editor. | B．A salesman. | C．A delivery man. | D．A home designer. |
| A．The finest diamond must be cut. |
| B．Out with the old, in with the new. |
| C．Old friends and old wine are best. |
| D．All things in their being are good for something. |
【推荐1】Have you ever been sad because of failure? Please remember, for quite often achieving what you set out to do is not the most important thing.
A boy decided to dig a deep hole behind his house. As he was working, a couple of older boys stopped by to watch. “What are you doing?” asked one of the visitors. “Want to dig a hole all the way through the earth!” the boy answered excitedly. The older boys began to laugh, telling him that digging a hole all the way through the earth was impossible. After a while, the boy picked up a jar. He showed it to the visitors. It was full of all kinds of stones and insects. Then he said calmly and confidently, “Maybe I can’t finish digging all the way through the earth, but look at what I’ve found during this period!”
The boy’s goal was far too difficult, but it did cause him to go on. And that is what a goal is for---to cause us to move in the direction we have chosen, in other words, to cause us to keep working!
Not every goal will be fully achieved. Not every job will end up with success. Not every dream will come true. But when you fall short of your aim, maybe you can say, “Yes, but look at what I’ve found along the way! There are so many wonderful things having come into my life because I tried to do something!” It is in the digging that life is lived. It is the unexpected joy on the journey that really makes sense.
1. The older boys laughed at the boy because he was thought to be________.| A．brave | B．impolite |
| C．foolish | D．warm-hearted |
| A．To drive them away. |
| B．To show what he had found in the digging. |
| C．To show how beautiful the jar was. |
| D．To attract them to join him in the work. |
| A．No dream can come true. |
| B．All work will end successfully. |
| C．Goals shouldn’t be set too high. |
| D．Goals will benefit us a lot. |
| A．A Boy Dug a Hole. |
| B．A Brave Boy. |
| C．No Pain, No Gain. |
| D．Failure Is the Mother of Success. |
【推荐2】Last weekend, my husband and I drove a dog to her new home. Typically, when we have a new dog in the backseat, it’s a young dog. But this passenger was a much different story. Magdalen is a 13-year-old dog. Her owner gave her up temporarily when he was sick, but when he fully recovered several months later, he said he didn’t want her back. He had had the dog since she was young but now had no place for her.
The family who had given her a temporary home had children and other dogs and was unable to give her a forever home. When Speak St. Louis, the rescue team I worked with, was contacted about the dog, they offered to take her in. She went to a vet (兽医) for a basic health check. But the vet didn’t have great news. Her mouth was swollen with all sorts of problems. Two teeth fell out during cleaning and eleven more had to be pulled out.
Luckily, a good friend of mine, a dog trainer with a soft heart for seniors, had agreed to adopt Magdalen. On the trip to the trainer’s home, the sweet senior looked so relaxed in our backseat. I felt a great sense of relief and pleasure.
It’s understandable that her owner needed some temporary help when he was sick. But I can’t imagine why he wouldn’t have wanted her back now. I think of my own dog and dogs we lost to old age in the past. We’re family and we stay that way forever. She’d be able to live a good life, I hoped, in her new home!
1. What is paragraph 2 mainly about?| A．The former owner of the dog. | B．Where the dog was treated. |
| C．Why the dog’s mouth was swollen. | D．The problems the dog met with. |
| A．Training old dogs. | B．Looking for homes for dogs. |
| C．Treating sick dogs. | D．Searching for lost dogs’ owners. |
| A．Hopeful and proud. | B．Relieved and happy. |
| C．Nervous and grateful. | D．Surprised and curious. |
| A．She was certain he would regret. | B．She believed it was painful for him. |
| C．She didn’t understand his behaviour. | D．She thought he made a wise decision. |
【推荐3】What do you plan to do in your retirement? Tom Brown—an engineer who grew up in rural North Carolina discovered unexpectedly his retirement passion project in 1998 at a farmer’s market. Brown was introduced to several heritage apples—varieties of the fruit which were standardized in the 18th and 19th centuries. For the past 20 years, he has devoted his time and efforts to hunting down rare and lost heritage apples across the east coast.
The number of apple types has likely numbered over 14,000 across the United States by 1905. At that time, food production and consumption was more localized than the international produce market of today. Some of the richest variety in apples was found along the east coast, particularly in the rural south. Many small farms boasted apple trees.
The consumer and technological shifts of the 20th century reduced American apple offerings. Orchards (果园) were abandoned, destroyed, or lost to growing forest. As a result, thousands of varieties seemingly disappeared from the palate (味觉) of the nation. Brown refers to these varieties as “Lost Heritage Apples,” apples which have not been documented or clearly known since about 1930.
Brown began his website Apple Search in search of these lost pieces of culinary (食物的) history. He spends much of his time driving around, literally knocking on doors and talking about apples. At times, Brown heads off for an old orchard mentioned in historical records. Other times, he follows the word of mouth as people whisper of apple trees they knew in their youth.
When Brown finds a variety of apple, he often donates cuttings to heritage apple orchards. While it may seem like a never-ending task to track down these trees, Brown says, “It is exciting for me to look for rare apple varieties knowing that I am helping restore the agricultural heritage of our country. It feels wrong to just let them die and be lost forever.”
1. What probably caused the disappearance of some apple types in America?| A．Change of climate. | B．Development of times. |
| C．Expansion of forests. | D．Decrease of consumers. |
| A．Brown’s efforts to build his website. |
| B．Brown’s interest in talking about apples. |
| C．Brown’s curiosity about the history of orchards. |
| D．Brown’s struggle to look for the missing apple species. |
| A．Faithful and humorous. | B．Optimistic and modest. |
| C．Responsible and determined. | D．Hard-working and considerate. |
| A．The Apple Hunter | B．The Rare Apple Species |
| C．The Apple Dealer | D．The Lost Heritage Apples |
