A man who lives alone in the Rocky Mountains has become a hero for climate scientists because of his unusual hobby. The man is called Billy Barr——he writes his name with small b’s——and for 50 years he has been the only person who kept living in Gothic, a small town in Colorado.
In the summer of 1973, Billy decided he wasn’t happy in the regular world, so he moved to Gothic, where he felt more relaxed. Every summer, scientists come to Gothic’s Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory (生物实验室) ——or RMBL——for research. But in winter, Billy is alone. Having little to do, Billy started keeping records of snow levels, temperatures and animal sightings. For Billy this was fun. He has always liked numbers. So he continued keeping records——for 50 years.
Over time, he started working at the RMBL, looking after the place and keeping records. He made the laboratory his home, and became friends with the scientists. One day, Billy mentioned his hobby to a scientist, who asked to see his records and realized at once how important they were. Those records of fifty years show climate change and its effects very clearly: Winters are getting warmer, and the snow is disappearing earlier. Now Billy’s records have been used in many academic papers and there’s a short film about him called The Snow Guardian. He still keeps his records, but now he uses Excel and a website instead of notebooks.
Although he has other hobbies, like playing cricket and watching Bollywood movies, his records have made him famous among climate scientists. But why does he write his name with small b’s? Well, Billy said that it felt more comfortable. “I live a quiet little life,” he said. “And I enjoy it.”
1. Why did Billy move to Gothic?| A．He didn’t get along with his family. | B．The life there was relaxing. |
| C．He applied for a job there. | D．He dreamed of being a scientist. |
| A．To do his duty. | B．To make a living. |
| C．To fight against loneliness. | D．To study climate change. |
| A．Common. | B．Formal. | C．Useful. | D．Boring. |
| A．Nothing can stop us from realizing our dreams. |
| B．Success means getting personal needs satisfied. |
| C．Life is not perfect, but that’s what makes it interesting. |
| D．With love and patience, everyone can make a difference. |
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【推荐1】Zing! Such is the sound of the towline (拖绳) as it flies from my grasp and the motorboat drags it away. It is also the end of my effort to stand on two blue boards and sail across a lake behind a speedboat. “I’ve had it, Dad. Come get me!” I know he can’t hear me as he rockets off. Besides, I know what he will say—“It’s easy, sweetheart. Just stand up and let the boat do the rest.” Well, I’ve tried to follow his advice, but my shaky legs tell me it’s over. How did it come to this?
My father determined that his group of teenagers should learn to water-ski. He knew little about it, but he saw others on the lake with fast crafts (船) and joyful skiers, and decided to join the fun.
On a hot day, he tied the rope and loaded us into life jackets. One by one, he pulled the boys to and from, waving to neighbors on their docks. Then it was the girls’ turn. I jumped in the lake, wore the two heavy skis, pointed them out of the water, and grasped the towline with trembling hands. I had no idea what to do. My father dismissed my fears with a wave of his hand. “Keep the tips up, sweetheart.”
It’s time to give up. But here comes my dad dragging the line, ready for me to try again. I signal that I am ready to get back in the boat, but he smiles and yells, “This time will be magic!”
Dad guns the engine. The weight of an entire lake is on my chest, pushing me back. Like a light switched on in a dark room, my father’s words show me the way. “Just stand up, angel. Just do it.” And so I did, even though I cried aloud.
I take a deep breath and straighten my legs. My blue skis begin to skim (滑过) the lake, like a seagull scanning for snacks!
1. What scene does the author describe in Para. 1?| A．Her falling out of a speedboat. | B．Her first failure to water-ski. |
| C．Her touring in a motorboat. | D．Her efforts to drive a speedboat. |
| A．To enjoy the pleasure of it. | B．To train them to be players. |
| C．To teach them surviving skills. | D．To win respect from neighbors. |
| A．Her desire to win an honor. | B．Her fear of being laughed at. |
| C．Her dad’s professional skills. | D．Her dad’s encouraging words. |
| A．Drive With Father’s Determination | B．Explore the Outdoors With Family |
| C．Learn to Water-Ski on My Own Feet | D．Overcome Obstacles on the Speedboat |
【推荐2】I must have been about fourteen then, and I put away the incident from my mind with the easy carelessness of youth. But the words, Carl Walter spoke that day, came back to me years later, and ever since have been of great value to me.
Carl Walter was my piano teacher. During one of my lessons he asked how much practicing I was doing. I said three or four hours a day.
“Do you practice in long stretches, an hour at a time?”
“I try to.”
“Well, don't.” he exclaimed. “When you grow up, time won't come in long stretches. Practice in minutes, whenever you can find them five or ten before school, after lunch, between household tasks. Spread the practice through the day, and piano-playing will become a part of your life.”
When I was teaching at Columbia, I wanted to write, but class periods, theme-reading, and committee meetings filled my days and evenings. For two years I got practically nothing down on paper, and my excuse was that I had no time. Then I remembered what Carl Walter had said. During the next week I conducted an experiment. Whenever I had five minutes unoccupied, I sat down and wrote a hundred words or so. To my astonishment, at the end of the week I had a rather large manuscript ready for revision, later on I wrote novels by the same piecemeal method. Though my teaching schedule had become heavier than ever, in every day there were idle moments which could be caught and put to use. I even took up piano-playing again, finding that the small intervals of the day provided sufficient time for both writing and piano practice.
There is an important trick in this time-using formula: you must get into your work quickly. If you have but five minutes for writing, you can't afford to waste four chewing your pencil. You must make your mental preparations beforehand, and concentrate on your task almost instantly when the time comes. Fortunately, rapid concentration is easier than most of us realize.
I admit I have never learnt how to let go easily at the end of the five or ten minutes. But life can be counted on to supply interruptions. Carl Walter has had a tremendous influence on my life. To him I owe the discovery that even very short periods of time add up to all useful hours I need, if I plunge in without delay.
1. What is the best title of this passage?| A．Concentrate on Your Work | B．Good Advice |
| C．How I Became a Writer | D．A Little at a Time |
| A．The writer owes great thanks to his teacher for teaching him to work in long stretches. |
| B．The writer didn't take the teacher's words to heart at first. |
| C．Carl Walter has had a great influence on the writer’s life since he became a student. |
| D．Rapid concentration is actually more difficult than most people imagine. |
| A．expected | B．concentrated |
| C．valued | D．enriched |
| A．can find sufficient time for mental preparations beforehand, so he’s devoted to work instantly |
| B．is always tired of interruptions in life because his teaching schedule is always heavy |
| C．has formed a bad habit of chewing a pencil while writing his novels |
| D．has new books published each year however busy his teaching is |
Rentals are not a big part of the business at either Gotham Bikes or Danny's Cycles. But for Frank's Bike Shop, a small business on Grand St., the bike-share program has been bad news. Owner Frank Arroyo said that his rental business has decreased by 90% since Citi Bike was launched last month. Arroyo's main rental customers are European tourists, who have since been drawn away by Citi Bikes.
However, Ben said the bike-share is good for bike sales at his shop. "People have used the bike-share and realized how great it is to bike in the city, then decide that they want something nicer for themselves," he noted.
Christian Farrell of Waterfront Bicycle Shop, on West St. said at first he was concerned about bike-share, though, he admitted, "I was happy to see people on bikes."
Farrell's early concerns were repeated by Andrew Crooks, owner of NYC Velo, at 64 Second Ave. "It seemed like a great idea, but one that would be difficult to put into use:' Crooks said of Citi Bike. He said he worried about inexperienced riders' lack of awareness of biking rules and strong negative reaction from non-cyclists. However, he said, it's still too early to tell if his business has been impacted (影响) .
While it's possible bike-share will cause a drop in business, Crooks agreed that the idea is a positive step forward for New York City.
1. What is the author's chief concern about the increasing use of Citi Bikes in New York?
| A．Whether local bike shops will suffer. |
| B．How non-cyclists will respond to it. |
| C．Whether local bike businesses will oppose it. |
| D．How the safety of bike riders can be ensured. |
| A．It found its bike sales unaffected. |
| B．It changed its business to rentals. |
| C．It saw its bike sales on the rise. |
| D．It rented more bikes to tourists. |
| A．Its customers have been drawn away by Citi Bikes. |
| B．It cannot meet the demand of the bike-share program. |
| C．Its bike prices have to be lowered again and again. |
| D．It has to compete with the city's bike rental shops. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Negative. |
| C．Uninterested. | D．Approving. |
For me, To the Lighthouse was love at first sight or rather at first reading. To translate a book, I first read it from the beginning to the end. Then I started writing each sentence by hand. When I finished the whole book I read my translation from the beginning to the end, checking it with the original, and making corrections. Then I typed it, and read the typed copy, making changes again. All in all that added up to five readings. I started translating the novel in 1943 and submitted it to the Bureau in 1944. It was published in 1945 under the general title of “New English Literature” in the series called “Translations from World Literature” known as the “Classical Series”.
So, the first book by Virginia Woolf in Turkish appeared in 1945, and it was To the Lighthouse. This was eighteen years after its publication in England in 1927. To me the book itself was pure poetry; I read it as if in a dream. Not trying to dive very deeply into it, I sort of swam on it or over it. Now, years later,
In 1982 and again in 1989 I revised it for two new editions and I again did it sentence by sentence checking it with the original. In those years I had thought it was necessary to revise my translations every ten years, but now I think I must do it every three or four years. In a country like Turkey, where we work very hard to clear our language from old and new foreign words, we should try to be up to date as to the words we are using, and of the same importance are the studies being made on the methods or techniques of translation, and new approaches in translation.
While translating, I usually have both the writer and the reader in mind. The novels she wrote after 1920 were especially new for most of the readers. She usually uses very short sentences, followed by rather long ones. I remember sentences of more than ten lines which weren’t easy for me to translate as they were. And in Turkish our having only one word, the word “O”, for “he”, “she”, “it” in English, made me repeat the names of the characters more often than Woolf did. And I changed some long indirect sentences in the original into direct sentences in my translation, thinking it would make an easier reading in Turkish.
When translating, I make use of all kinds of dictionaries. A difficult English word for me is the word “vision”. In To the Lighthouse, the artist Lily Briscoe is trying to finish the picture she has been drawing for some time and the novel ends with the following sentences: “Yes, she thought, laying down her brush extremely tired, I’ve had my vision.” And I’m still thinking about how to translate this remark into Turkish.
1. How and why did the writer come to translate To the Lighthouse?
| A．It was really a piece of good luck. |
| B．She was the only qualified person for it. |
| C．Virginia Woolf was very familiar to her. |
| D．She was a member of the Translation Bureau. |
| A．The writer prefers the work very much. |
| B．The writer likes the sport swimming. |
| C．The writer is aware of her advantages. |
| D．The writer has digested the book very well. |
| A．Readers make new demands. |
| B．Turkish is a language of mobility. |
| C．Many mistakes are spotted in the old edition. |
| D．She wants to make it more popular in the market. |
| A．make full use of the direct sentences |
| B．emphasize all of these characters |
| C．make her translation clearer in Turkish |
| D．make her translation much briefer |
| A．the writer is taking up a difficult job |
| B．the writer’s translation needs improving |
| C．English is a difficult language in the world |
| D．remarks from characters are difficult to translate |
【推荐2】Queen Elizabeth II, who ascended the British throne at 25, has passed away at the age of 96.
On Sept. 8, the official Twitter account belonging to the royal family confirmed the news, writing, “The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.”
The news comes hours after Buckingham Palace issued a statement on Sept. 8, sharing that doctors were “concerned” with the Queen’s health and recommended she “remain under medical supervision.”
While Her Majesty stayed busy with a variety of royal engagements even in the final years of her life, some royal watchers grew concerned about her heath after the Queen started using a cane and was briefly hospitalized in October 2021 for an undisclosed ailment.
In February, the fears grew stronger after she tested positive for COVID-19, just weeks after she celebrated 70 years on the British throne to become the longest-reigning monarch in British history. However, the Queen would make a rare appearance a little over three months later in May at the Royal Windsor Horse Show.
But after the first day of her Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June, the Palace shared at the time that she experienced “some discomfort,” leading her to miss the National Service of Thanksgiving at St. Paul’s Cathedral on June 3.
Back in 1952, Elizabeth became queen upon the death of her father, King George VI. In 2015, she surpassed the previous longest-reigning British monarch, her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria, and also became the longest-serving female head of state in world history.
Her extraordinary reign included countless overseas visits with world leaders, but the Queen always viewed public and voluntary service as one of the most important elements of her work.
According to the Palace, Elizabeth had links — as President or Royal Patron — with over 600 charities, military associations, professional bodies and public service organizations.
“I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service,” Elizabeth shared on her 21st birthday, back when she was still known as Princess Elizabeth.
Elizabeth was married to the late Prince Philip for 73 years before he passed away in April 2021 at the age of 99.
At the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral, a card was seen atop of the late royal’s coffin. The note, written on the Queen’s stationery and placed alongside flowers, appeared to read in part, “I love you”.
The Queen carried out all of her duties while raising four children: Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward. During her incredible life, she would also welcome eight grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren to the Royal Family.
At the time of Philip’s passing, Prince Harry reflected on his grandparents’ incredible love story.
“The two of them together were just the most adorable couple,” he shared. “I don’t know if anyone’s ever described them as adorable but, to me, knowing the cheekiness of him and knowing that behind what the world sees you have two individuals who were very much in love, and both at a very young age, dedicated both of their lives to service. The places these two travelled, the things they saw, the experiences they went through. That is an incredible bond between two people.”
1. What is the best title of this article?| A．The love story between Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip |
| B．The Queen’s legacy would live on |
| C．Long live the Queen |
| D．Queen Elizabeth II passed away at the age of 96. |
| A．The Queen has become the longest reigning monarch in British history. |
| B．The Queen was forced to miss several events in the final stage of her life due to some health issues. |
| C．The Queen reigns longer than her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria and even longer than any other leader in the world. |
| D．The Queen is always dedicated to public and voluntary service, even at the end of her days. |
| A．The Queen and her husband both dedicated their lives to service. |
| B．The Queen and her husband forms a special bond and shared a lot of common experiences. |
| C．The Queen and her husband’s love story has become an exemplar for the whole royal family. |
| D．The only person who understands Prince Philip is the Queen. |
【推荐3】I turned 8 years old the day I skipped school for the first time. It was easily done: Both my parents left for work before my school bus arrived on weekdays, so when it showed up at my house on that cold winter morning, I simply did not get on. The perfect crime!
And what did I do with myself on that glorious stolen day, with no adult in charge and no limits on my activities? Did I get high? Hit the mall for a shoplifting extravaganza (狂欢)?
Nope. I built a warm fire in the wood stove, prepared a bowl of popcorn, grabbed a blanket, and read. I was trilled and transported by a book — it was Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises — and I just needed to be alone with it for a little while. I ached to know what would happen to Jake Barnes and Lady Brett Ashley and Robert Cohn. I couldn’t bear the thought of siting in a classroom taking another exam when I could be traveling through Spain in the 1920s with a bunch of expatriates (异乡客).
I spent that day lost in words. Time fell away, as the room around me turned to mist, and my role — as a daughter, sister, teenager, and student — in the world no longer had any meaning. I had accidentally come across the key to perfect happiness: I had become completely absorbed by something I loved.
Looking back on it now, I can see that some subtle things were happening to my mind and to my life while I was in that state of absorption. Hemingway’s language was quietly braiding itself into my imagination. I was downloading information about how to create simple and elegant sentences, a good and solid plot. In other words, I was learning how to write. Without realizing it, I was hot on the trail of my own fate. Writing now absorbs me the way reading once did and happiness is their generous side effect.
1. Why did the author skip school on that day?| A．Because she’s fascinated by a novel. | B．Because it’s a biting cold winter morning. |
| C．Because her parents left home early. | D．Because she’s anxious to take the exam. |
| A．Reading a fiction by the fire. | B．Travelling with a bunch of expatriates. |
| C．Being occupied by one’s passion. | D．Breaking the rules and regulations. |
| A．Mending. | B．Destroying. | C．Entering. | D．Blocking. |
| A．The author was tired of his roles in the real-life. |
| B．Becoming a writer is the author’s childhood dream. |
| C．The author skipped school when he was 8 years old. |
| D．Writing has a horrible effect on the author’s life now. |
