Thanksgiving is one of those times of year that inspires reflection. For some, it is a moment to think about the meaning of family. But for me, there is a simpler message to take away: We should all have more pie in our lives.
What’s refreshing about Thanksgiving is that, for all the travel delays and the potential for family arguments, the focus is on cooking for once. At Christmas, the feast easily gets overshadowed by the mountain of gifts. At thanksgiving, by contrast, everyone recognizes that the food is what matters. Will the mashed potatoes be smooth enough? And crucially, is there enough pie?
Too many of us spend our lives in a state of pie deprivation (缺少), judging from the hunger with which the pies are greeted on a Thanksgiving table. Few things ins till more of a sense of comfort than the sight of a golden topped fruit pie.
There have been times and places when eating pie was a daily occurrence for American families. Thanksgiving aside, I don’t know anyone who regularly eats pie. This is a bit sad. Think of all that joy we are abandoning.
Thanksgiving pies have a way of living on in memory long after the other dishes are forgotten. Years ago, I made an apple pie for my nieces for Thanksgiving. The following year, I planned to make a cardamom tart instead. But my sister said I had to make the pie exactly the same as the previous year, because the girls had been talking about it for months. I can’t pretend I wasn’t pleased by this.
A pie isn’t just any dessert. It is a sign that care has been taken. I suspect that the single biggest reason we don’t make pies more often is that we don’t have time. Yet there is something about the process of fitting pie into a dish that can actually make you less rushed. “Rest for at least an hour”, reads the instruction in most pie recipes. It’s referring to the pastry, but what if it also means you?
1. What do people attach great importance to at Thanksgiving?| A．Gifts and travel. |
| B．Potatoes and pie. |
| C．Cooking and food. |
| D．Family and friends. |
| A．Most people enjoy eating pie at Thanksgiving. |
| B．Pie is not easily accessible for most of the year. |
| C．Pie was a daily dish for all the American families in the past. |
| D．Most people have realized their hunger for pie in their daily life. |
| A．To show she can really make tasty Thanksgiving pie. |
| B．To show pies played an important role in her nieces’ life. |
| C．To show she was delighted with her niece’s reactions after eating the pie. |
| D．To show pie is more easily remembered than any other Thanksgiving dishes. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Critical. | C．Neutral. | D．Indifferent. |
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【推荐1】People in the United States honor their parents with two special days：Mother’s Day, on the second Sunday in May, and Father’s Day, on the third Sunday in June. These days are set aside to show love and respect for parents. They raise their children and educate them to be responsible(有责任感的) citizens. They give love and care. These two days make us think about the changing roles of mothers and fathers. More mothers now work outside the home. More fathers must help with child care.
These two special days are celebrated in many different ways. On Mother’s Day people wear carnations. A red one symbolizes a living mother. A white one shows that the mother is dead. Many people attend religious services to honor parents. It is also a day when people whose parents are dead visit the cemetery(墓地).On these days families get together at home, as well as in restaurants. They often have outdoor barbecues for Father’s Day. These are days of fun and good feelings and memories.
Another tradition is to give cards and gifts. Children make them in school. Many people make their own presents. These are valued more than the ones bought in stores. It is not the value of the gift that is important, but it is “the thought that counts”. Greeting card stores, florists, candy makers, bakeries, telephone companies, and other stores do a lot of business during these holidays.
1. Which of the following is NOT a reason for children to show love and respect for parents?| A．Parents bring up children. |
| B．Parents give love and care to children. |
| C．Parents educate children to be good persons. |
| D．Parents pass away before children grow up. |
| A．They sell flowers. |
| B．They make and sell bread. |
| C．They offer enough room for having family parties. |
| D．They sell special gifts for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. |
| A．It has only two kinds of colors. |
| B．It refers to the special clothes people wear on Mother’s Day or Father’s Day. |
| C．It’s a kind of flower showing love and best wishes. |
| D．People can wear carnations only on the second Sunday in May. |
| A．Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are both in May. |
| B．Fewer women worked outside the home in the past. |
| C．Not all the children respect their parents |
| D．Fathers are not as important as mothers at home. |
【推荐2】We have come a long way from disliking graffiti to supporting colourful paintings in the streets. Cities such as Budapest are now appreciating urban art as a means to greyness. From 30 July to 31 August dozens of public walls will be painted during a whole festival dedicated to this open-air art.
The Colourful City Festival will have concerts, discussions and poetry slams on the program besides the painting, which will be recorded by Hungarian filmmakers.
Gergely Horvath, president of the tourism body, said, “The event supports our aim to call out more to the younger touristic public, so we are backing it. We are hoping that more people will come to stay overnight, also outside the city limits. And we are hoping the event will get more focus in the media.
Megyeri said the movement began by adopting the concept and name from a book by Hungarian-French artist Victor Vasarely with the same title in 1983. In it Vasarely demanded that artists bring out their art to the streets.
Sandor Finta, the Chief Architect of Budapest, added that we should not underestimate new dynamics such as paintings on fire walls. “Artists who make touristic attractions from simple grey fire walls are urban innovators,” he said. “Developing the city is our common cause, so we are happy to cooperate with them.”
District VII will be a central location of the festival. Mayor Zsolt Szikszai said politics must ensure that district is both attractive for tourists and good to live in for its residents.
The curator of the festival, Noemi Nadudvari, said that abroad there is already a long tradition of painting large, empty walls. “Now finally a similar movement is starting here where we have good artists who have already participated at the Urban Art Festival in Munich or Berlin,”she said. “
| A．A film about the festival will be made. |
| B．As the mayor, he is deeply worried about the security of the district. |
| C．He supports the event because it stands for both aims. |
| D．The city will not only become more colourful, but it will be something more for tourists. |
| E．The festival will contribute to the development of all the participants. |
| F．We will let foreign journalists complete some of the paintings. |
【推荐3】Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on Tuesday declared April 25 as La La Land Day in front of the LA City Hall,in honor of this Oscar-winning movie which was filmed across Los Angeles.
The dedication ceremony kicked off by a jazz band,followed by aerial dancers dressed as the characters from the movie,performing a dance medley off the side of City Hall.
"It (La La Land) inspires our heart and inspires our city,"Garcetti said at the announcement,"Have a great La La Land Day!"
Hundreds of citizens joined for the festivities by the film's Oscar-winning director Damien Chazelle,Oscar-winning composer Justin Hurwitz,and a few other filmmakers.
"We made this movie;we wanted to make a love letter to Los Angeles,"producer Jordan Horowitz told Xinhua at the celebration,"thank you for embracing the picture that is about romance and love and lacks any kind of cynicism（愤世嫉俗）,looking the world in a relative clear-eyed way." The movie-musical tells a love story of a jazz pianist and an aspiring actress in Los Angeles.
La La Land swept the 89th Academy Awards' winner list including the Best Director,Best Actress,Best Original Score and Best Original Song among other awards but failed to clinch the Best Film and Best Actor trophy（奖杯）.The film has grossed over 440 million US dollars at the global market.
1. Who acted in the movie La La Land?| A．Eric Garcetti and Damien Chazelle. |
| B．Justin Hurwitz and Eric Garcetti. |
| C．Damien Chazelle and Justin Hurwitz. |
| D．Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone. |
| A．A jazz band didn't appear in the dedication ceremony. |
| B．Many citizens of LA got inspiration from the movie. |
| C．People will not enjoy the songs and dances in the movie. |
| D．The movie succeeded in winning the award—the Best Film. |
【推荐1】Feelings often run high where insects are concerned, with many people even sick when seeing them, let alone touch or swallow them. And yet insects present a huge nutritional opportunity as an increasing global population seeks more sources of food and feed.
Insects have generally high levels of animal protein and key micro nutrients with lower environmental foot prints than traditional alternatives, and they can be raised on leftovers. But cultural, social and economic problems remain, reports an article published today in Nutrition Bulletin.
“Insects present a nutritional opportunity, but it is unclear how their nutritional quality is influenced by what they are fed,” says Darja Dobermann, a researcher at the University of Nottingham. “In ideal conditions, insects have a smaller environmental impact than most traditional western forms of animal protein; less known is how to raise insect production while maintaining these environmental benefits.”
“Studies overall show that insects could make valuable economic and nutritional contributions to the food or feed systems, but there are no clear regulations in place to bring insects into such supply systems without them turning into a more expensive version of poultry (家禽) for food,” says Dobermann.
The article highlights how insects have been a source of food for hundreds of years in more than 100countries with over 2,000 species that can be eaten; in central Africa, up to 50% of dietary protein has come from insects, with their market value higher than many alternative sources of animal protein.
Insects need to be large enough to make the effort of catching them worthwhile and easy to locate, preferably in predictably large quantities. They are consumed at various life stages, as raw, fried, boiled, roasted or ground food.
1. Which of the following is the advantage of raising insects for food?| A．It will offer people work opportunities. |
| B．It is environmentally friendly. |
| C．It will replace traditional food. |
| D．It will result in less leftovers |
| A．Raising insects for food has become popular. |
| B．Raising insects can’t solve food problems. |
| C．More should be done to raise insects for food. |
| D．More money can be made by raising insects. |
| A．Insects. | B．Regulations. |
| C．Feed systems. | D．Supply systems. |
| A．How to Raise Insects | B．Raising Insects for Money |
| C．Insects Seem No Longer Ugly | D．A New Source of Food |
【推荐2】Thanks to globalization (全球化), we can find all sorts of fruit and vegetables from all over the world in supermarkets. But we have four different seasons and each season has different weather conditions.
Eating seasonal and locally sourced foods is good for the local economy.
Buying seasonal and locally sourced foods benefits the environment. Choosing seasonal fruit and vegetables will help reduce the number of miles your foods have to travel before they reach your plate. Moreover, local fruit and vegetables in season are usually not packed in plastic.
Eating seasonal and locally sourced foods is cheaper. Common misunderstandings about seasonal foods are that they are expensive.
| A．Buying local foods helps create jobs. |
| B．Fruit and vegetables in season and locally sourced are healthier. |
| C．Today it’s much easier to get fresh, seasonal and locally sourced foods. |
| D．Avoiding packaging waste contributes to reducing our impact on the planet. |
| E．That’s why different foods grow better at different times of the year in a specific country. |
| F．As a result, very few people know which fruit and vegetables are native to their homeland. |
| G．Instead, eating seasonal and locally sourced fruit and vegetables will save you money. |
【推荐3】You know the feeling--your ears start to warm up, your tongue goes numb (麻木的), and you start sweating and taking deep breaths. You’ve just eaten something spicy, knowing it would be painful, but you chose to do it anyway. Are humans just masochistic (自讨苦吃的), or is there something else going on?
Spicy isn’t actually a taste like salty, sweet, sour and bitter-- it’s a sensation.
This is what is happening chemically, but there is also a conscious side to choosing spicy food. Dr Tamara Rosenbaum, Cognitive Neuroscientist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, explains in an interview with the BBC that this is
This masochistic relationship with capsaicin started in the Andes of South America, where chilli peppers originate. Humans were one of the few mammals on Earth that developed a taste for capsaicin. As archaeological evidence suggests, they started cultivating chilli peppers about six thousand years ago. Human intervention changed the chilli pepper to suit human tastes and needs--including the pepper’s colour, size and capsaicin content-helping to explain the many different types of chilli peppers now available.
| A．It lies in both science and history |
| B．This is caused by a chemical compound called ‘capsaicin’ |
| C．where we get pleasure from a seemingly negative sensation |
| D．It has something to do with human nature and body composition |
| E．why Chop Bell Pepper Fish Head enjoys great popularity among Hunanese |
| F．Fast-forward to today, and our love affair with the chilli pepper is going strong |
| G．because we know that the burning sensation of chilli does not physically harm us |
A
1. According to the Code, visitors should act _______ .
| A．with care and respect |
| B．with relief and pleasure |
| C．with caution and calmness |
| D．with attention and observation |
| A．Take your own camping facilities. |
| B．Bury glass far away from rivers. |
| C．Follow the track for the sake of plants. |
| D．Observe signs to approach nesting birds. |
【推荐2】A prisoner picked up 1,000 yuan in the course of building the road outside the prison. He handed it out without hesitation. However, someone who was in charge of the prison said to him in contempt, "Stop cheating! With your own money, play such a trick to bribe me; what you want to gain back is the reduced sentence; people of your sort are not honest."
In total despair, the prisoner believed that no one in the world would trust him any more. So he escaped from prison that night.
On his way to flight, he robbed money and values without restraint(无拘无束地). After robbing enough money, he took a train bound for the border. The carriages were so crowded that he had to stand close to a water closet. At this moment, a quite beautiful girl walked into the closet, and found that the latch was broken when she closed the door. She stepped out and whispered to him, "Sir, could you guard the door for me?"
In a daze for a second, he, looking into the pure eyes of the girl, nodded his head. The girl went into the closet with a blush; and he guarded the door tightly like a' loyal guard.
At that very moment, he changed his mind suddenly. At the next stop he got off the train, and went to give himself up to the police at the train station.
Trust is the most precious thing in this world. It cannot be bought, or gained by lure or force. It comes deep from one's soul, and lives in the clear spring of the soul. It can redeem(拯救) the soul and make the soul and make the heart full of purity and confidence.
1. Why did the prisoner escaped from the prison?| A．In order to get freedom. |
| B．He wanted to reduce sentence. |
| C．He planned to make more money by stealing. |
| D．Because he thought no one in the world would trust him any more. |
| A．He wanted to hunt for a job at the train station. |
| B．He was going to hand in the money to the police. |
| C．He was determined to mend his ways and turn over a new leaf. |
| D．He went to the police station to tell the police what happened on the train. |
| A．The girl thought the prisoner was a bad man. |
| B．The prisoner was set free because of his honesty. |
| C．The prisoner finally decided to help the girl because of trust. |
| D．The man escaped from the prison to reduce sentence. |
| A．Trust is the most valuable thing in this world. |
| B．It is certain that honesty is important at any time. |
| C．Anyone who helps others in time is well worth praising. |
| D．There is no doubt that we should believe in ourselves all the time. |
As the time for the Olympics neared, it became clear that Bill’s wife would give birth to their first child about the time that the US team would be competing in the Paris games. In 1924, there were no jet airliners from Paris to the Unites States, only slow ocean-going ships. Bill found himself in a dilemma. Should he go to Paris and risk not being at his wife’s side when their baby was born? Or should he stay with his family?
Bill’s wife insisted that he go to Paris. But after much soul searching, Bill decided to stay at home, where he could support his wife when the child arrived. As it turned out , the Unites States four-man canoe team won the gold medal in Paris. And Bill’s wife was late in giving birth to their child. In fact, Bill could have competed in the event and returned home in time to be with her when she gave birth. People said ,” what a shame!”
The child finally born to Bill and his wife was a boy, whom they named Frank. Twenty-eight years later, in 1952, Bill received a telegram from Frank. It was sent from Helsinki, Finland, where the 1952 Olympics were being held. The telegram read, “Dad, I won. I am bringing home the gold medal you lost while waiting for me to be born.” Frank had just won the gold medal for the Unites States in a rowing event, a medal his father had dreamed of winning but never did. When people asked Bill about his decision he made twenty-eight years ago, he said he would make the same choice if he was in such a situation again.
1. If we say some is in a dilemma, we probably mean he/she _____.
| A．lives a very hard life |
| B．has to make a difficult choice |
| C．has to give up all that he/she has |
| D．doesn’t know what he/she wants |
| A．knew the baby would be born late |
| B．knew what her husband really wanted |
| C．wanted to support her husband to win the gold medal. |
| D．was not understanding enough to support her husband |
| A．Bill didn’t give his wife any support at home. |
| B．Bill’s decision caused the team to perform badly. |
| C．Bill didn’t know what was more important to him. |
| D．Bill could have returned home with the gold medal in time. |
| A．Bill received a gold medal from Finland. |
| B．Bill’s son helped make his dream come true. |
| C．Bill earned the respect of all the American people. |
| D．Bill took part in the Olympic Games and won. |
| A．Bill thought his decision was right. |
| B．Bill trained his son to win the medal. |
| C．Bill loved fame more than his family |
| D．Bill hated his decision very much |
