The summer I turned 16, my father gave me a car, which permitted Hannah and me to drive around Tucson whenever we wanted to.
Hannah was my best friend. “Hannah’s amazing," my mother always said. And sure enough, that summer she signed with a modeling agency. She was already doing runway work.
One day, Hannah and I went to the movies. On the way home, we stopped at the McDonald's drive-through, putting the fries on the seat between us to share. "Let’s ride around a while," I said. It was a clear night, moonlight shone over the desert. Taking a turn too fast, I hit a patch of dirt and fishtailed.
French fries on the floor. An impossible amount of blood on Hannah’s face. They took us in separate ambulances. In the ER, my parents spoke quietly: Best plastic surgeon in the city. End of her modeling career.
We'd been wearing lap belts, but the car didn’t have shoulder harnesses. I’d cracked my cheekbone; Hannah's forehead had split wide open. What would I say to her?
When her mother, Sharon, came into my hospital room, I started to cry, bracing myself for her anger. She sat beside me and took my hand. “I almost ended my best friend when I was your age,” she said, “I totaled her car and mine.”
“I'm so sorry,”I said.
“You’re both alive,”she said, “The rest is window dressing.” I started to protest, and Sharon stopped me. “I forgive you. Hannah will too.”
Sharon’s forgiveness allowed Hannah and me to stay friends throughout life. I think of her gift of forgiveness every time I want to resent someone for a perceived wrong. And whenever I see Hannah, the scars are a symbol of grace for me.
1. What caused the car accident?| A．Poor visibility. | B．Driving too fast. | C．Hitting a patch of dirt. | D．Not staying focused. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Generous. | C．Optimistic. | D．Helpful. |
| A．It worsened their friendship. | B．It made both of the two disabled. |
| C．It changed Hannah's working career. | D．It ruined the author’s confidence in driving. |
| A．Lucky Survival | B．Lifelong Friendship |
| C．My Best Friend Hannah | D．Learning to Forgive |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Trekking (徒步旅行) 500 miles across Spain is no easy task for anyone, but for the wheelchair user Justin Skeesuck, achieving the dream seemed nearly impossible. However, Skeesuck’s lifelong best friend, Patrick Gray, simply didn’t accept that idea. He said, “We’ve done everything together so far. Why don’t we have one more adventure?”
That’s exactly what he did — pushing Skeesuck across northern Spain’s Camino de Santiago. Though Skeesuck has a muscle disease similar to ALS (肌萎缩侧索硬化) and high blood pressure, he first got the idea to go on the journey after he watched a travel show about the trail. He said, “I knew immediately since my heart was just telling me, ‘You need to do this.’”
With Gray on board and the blessings of their family, the two best friends from Idaho set off to make Skeesuck’s dream of going for the journey a reality. However, neither Gray nor Skeesuck realized how physically and emotionally arduous the trip would be. Not only did they have a strict time limit — about six weeks to get from start to finish, but they also faced extremely difficult obstacles (障碍). With Gray pushing Skeesuck in a three-wheel wheelchair, the pair crossed mountains, rivers and a desert. “I’ve never been that physically exhausted in my entire life,” Gray said. The pair came across countless kind people during their trip who were eager to help them finish their journey, but they refused their help with gentle words. 34 days later, the two best friends finished their journey, realizing a dream that helped them learn about themselves and others. “The adventure has taught me for sure that when you do something with faith, and never give up, amazing things can really happen,” Skeesuck said.
Gray recorded their incredible trip in a book — “I’ll Push You: A Journey of 500 Miles, Two Best Friends and One Wheelchair”, which would be published soon. Skeesuck and Gray are also working on a children’s book that will tell the story of their adventure. They hope that the book will give kids strength when they deal with difficulties.
1. What can we learn about Patrick Gray from Paragraph 1?| A．He is a wheelchair user. |
| B．He has been to Spain several times before. |
| C．He wanted to challenge what was thought impossible. |
| D．He didn’t think trekking 500 miles was an adventure. |
| A．Relaxing. | B．Disappointing. |
| C．Challenging. | D．Satisfying. |
| A．They set off on foot. | B．They finished it ahead of time. |
| C．They received a lot of help. | D．They met with no difficulties. |
| A．To encourage kids to face difficulties bravely. |
| B．To earn some money by selling books. |
| C．To persuade kids to take a trip to Spain. |
| D．To show kids the beautiful natural scenery. |
【推荐2】I moved to the Phoenix area in my early twenties, and to expand my social life I joined a young adult group at a church. Because I love music, I started singing in the choir (合唱队), where I met Lisa. We were about the same age. Finding people with similar interests helped reduce my feelings of loneliness after moving to a new city.
“Are you going to go on the retreat (静修)?” Lisa asked. Once or twice a year, the young adult group put on a retreat. I hesitated. I had little experience with retreats and I still felt like an outsider. “Come on,” Lisa said. “Everyone goes.” “Okay.” I agreed. After all, some cute guys were in the group. As the retreat weekend approached, I learned that the theme was forgiveness.
In my twenties, the world revolved(旋转)around me and what I wanted. And, as most people do, I learned how to be pleasant enough without giving in and having to apologize any more than necessary. In short, the forgiveness theme made me uncomfortable. I would attend the retreat, but I planned to sit quietly in the background and watch.
The retreat was held at a camp in Prescott, Arizona. The first night we gathered in the common room where we also ate our meals. According to the plan, I found a spot in the back where I could watch, unnoticed. The leader got up and spoke about the healing power of forgiveness. His words were touching. “Now comes the hard part,” he said. “I want to invite you to look into your hearts and if you feel moved to do so, go to a person here in the room and ask to be forgiven for something you’ve done.”
At the beginning, there was total silence. Was he kidding? Then Lisa stood up and made her way through the crowd toward me. Lisa planted her feet firmly in front of me. “Kathleen, I’d like to ask your forgiveness.” I shook my head. Then nodded, not sure how to respond. I felt the heat rise into my cheeks. I could hardly breathe knowing that everyone could hear and see all this. I had no idea what I was forgiving her for. I wanted her to just go away.
“I have been angry at how easily you joined our group. Even though you became my friend when we worked on music together, I still thought you were doing it for yourself. I’ve held that against you and I’m sorry.” “It’s okay,” I choked out. Stunned, I stood up, gave her an awkward hug and then sat back down. Lisa turned and went back to her seat. Lisa’s bravery broke the ice and everyone started to ask forgiveness for various injuries, some big, some small.
The world began to change for me. I learned empathy the day that Lisa asked my forgiveness. I had read To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee several times. But I realized that I had never understood the message Atticus Finch taught his children: “You never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them.” Through the years my friendships were better, stronger and deeper. I apologized and forgave quickly. Lisa allowed me the gift of friendship because her example taught me to forgive.
1. The author joined the adult group because she wanted to .| A．have a better social life | B．practice singing with her friends |
| C．learn the importance of forgiveness | D．get to know more about her neighbors |
| A．Self-confident. | B．Dishonest. |
| C．Responsible. | D．Self-centered. |
| A．The writer didn’t want to join the retreat at first. |
| B．The writer thought Lisa should say sorry to her. |
| C．The writer thought the leader of the retreat was funny. |
| D．The writer knew Lisa before she moved to the new city. |
| A．Scared. | B．Curious. |
| C．Stressed. | D．Satisfied. |
| A．That she made the writer feel lonely. |
| B．That she was envious of the writer. |
| C．That she once took advantage of the writer. |
| D．That she refused to make friends with the writer. |
| A．try to apologize and forgive others | B．get to know people’s true face |
| C．value the friendship with others | D．place oneself in others’ position |
【推荐3】Jack threw the papers on my desk. “Next time you want to change anything, ask me first,” he said loudly. I had changed a long sentence and corrected its grammar—something I thought I was paid to do.
Several days later, he made me angry again. I went to his office, prepared to lose my job if need be, but not before I let the man know how I felt. “What?” he said nervously.
Suddenly I knew what I had to do. “Jack, the way you’ve been treating me is wrong. And it’s wrong for me to allow it to continue,” I said. “I want to make you a promise. I will be a friend.” The next day I brought some cakes to Jack’s office. Every time I saw Jack in the hall, I smiled at him. After all, that’s what friends do.
One year after our talk, I was told that I had breast cancer. When I was in hospital, my friends tried to find the right words to say, but no one could. The last day of my hospital stay, the door opened and Jack walked over to my bed. “Tulips (郁金香),” he placed some bulbs (球茎) beside me and said, “If you plant them when you get home, you’ll be there to see them when they come up.” Tears filled my eyes.
In a moment when I prayed for just the right words, a man with few words said the right thing. After all, that’s what friends do. Now, I have seen those tulips push through the soil every spring for over ten years.
1. Why did Jack throw some papers on the author’s desk?| A．Because he thought her report was very bad. |
| B．Because he received the wrong papers from her. |
| C．Because he wanted her to check the papers again. |
| D．Because he disliked her correction without permission. |
| A．She would treat him like a friend. | B．She would bring him some cakes. |
| C．She would treat him the same way. | D．She would work harder from then on. |
| A．Love. | B．Hope. | C．Honor. | D．Thanks. |
| A．Friends should do anything for each other. |
| B．Friends must help each other to correct mistakes. |
| C．Friends should treat each other with respect and kindness. |
| D．Friends should give advice to each other at the right time. |
【推荐1】Wolfsheim returned to me (Nick, narrator of the story).
“I understand you are looking for a business connection,” he said.
Gatsby answered for me, “No, this isn’t the man. He’s just a friend. We’ll talk about that another time”.
“I’m sorry. I made a mistake.” He seemed disappointed.
Our food arrived and Mr Wolfsheim started to eat hungrily. Gatsby leaned towards me. “I’m sorry, old sport. I think I made you angry this morning.”
“I don’t like mysteries,” I replied coldly. “Why did you involve Miss Baker? Can’t you tell me yourself?”
“Oh, she doesn’t mind,” he said.
Then he looked at his watch, jumped up suddenly and hurried from the room.
“He has to telephone,” Wolfsheim explained. He followed Gatsby with his eyes. “A handsome man and a perfect gentleman, isn’t he?”
“Yes.”
“He is an Oxford man.”
“Oh.”
“He went to Oxford College in England. Do you know it?”
“I’ve heard of it.”
“It’s one of the most famous colleges in the world.”
“Have you known Gatsby long?” I enquired.
“For several years,” he answered. “I met him just after the war. After talking to him for an hour, I knew he was a gentleman---the kind of man you would introduce to your mother, or your sister.”
“Yes.”
“Yeah, Gatsby’s careful about women. He would never look at a friend’s wife.”
When Gatsby returned, Wolfsheim drank his coffee and got up. “I enjoyed my lunch,” he said, “but now I’m going to leave you two young men together.”
“Don’t hurry, Meyer!” Gatsby said, but there was no enthusiasm in his voice.
“You’re very polite, but I’m an old man,” Wolfsheim replied. “You stay here and discuss your sports and ladies.”
After he had left, Gatsby said, “Everyone in New York knows him.”
“Is he an actor?”
“No, Meyer Wolfsheim’s a gambler.” Gatsby hesitated, then added coolly, “He’s the man who fixed the World Series in 1919.”
I was shocked. I had never imagined that only one man was responsible for cheating fifty million people.
“How did he do that?” I asked.
“He just saw an opportunity.”
“Why isn’t he in jail?”
“They can’t get him, old sport. He’s a smart man.”
1. What impression of Gatsby is Mr. Wolfsheim trying to give Nick?| A．Dangerous and should never be trusted. |
| B．On the edge of bankruptcy with bad investment |
| C．Interested in politics other than anything else |
| D．A gentleman who is worthy of people’s trust |
| A．Business partners. | B．Relatives. |
| C．Neighbours. | D．Friends. |
| A．positive | B．supportive |
| C．appreciative | D．sensitive |
【推荐2】Life continually requires that we write down a few words of thanks: for holidays, meals, presents or people’s place in our hearts. However, too often, our messages end up flat or somewhat unconvincing. To make our messages more effective, we might take a lesson from the history of art.
To some extent, what distinguishes great from common art is the level of detail with which the world has been studied. A talented artist is, first and foremost, someone who takes us into the specifics of the reasons why an experience or a place felt valuable. They don’t merely tell us that spring is ‘nice’, they zero in on the particular contributing factors to this niceness: leaves that have the softness of a newborn’s hands, the contrast between a warm sun and a sharp breeze, the soft cry of baby blackbirds....
Some of the reason why great artists are rare is that our minds are not well set up to understand why we feel as we do. But we can be confident if our minds have been affected, the reasons why they’ve been so will be somewhere, waiting to be uncovered. We stand to realise that it wasn’t so much that the food was ‘delicious’; but that the potatoes in particular had a charming rosemary and garlic flavour. A friend wasn’t just ‘nice’; they brought in a hugely sensitive and generous tone to bear in asking us what it had been like for us when we suffered. The details will be there, waiting for us to catch them.
We don’t have to be great artists to send effective thank-you notes. We just need to locate and hold on tightly to two or three highly detailed reasons for our gratitude.
1. What can we infer from paragraph 1?| A．We seldom express gratitude by writing. |
| B．We usually find messages of thanks touching. |
| C．We should take a course for message writing. |
| D．We may draw inspiration for thank-yous from arts. |
| A．Leave out. | B．Clear up. | C．Focus on. | D．Hold back. |
| A．By classification. | B．By example. | C．By definition. | D．By process. |
| A．I am blessed to have such a wonderful week. |
| B．Your caring and warm smile lights up my day. |
| C．Thank you so much for your great present. |
| D．This is the most delicious dinner I’ve ever had. |
【推荐3】My kids sit in Gee's living room and excitedly lit old New Year decorations out of a well-loved cardboard box. She tells me that she and Tom built their decoration collection piece by piece during each year's after-New Year sale. She smiles as we leave with the box
We first met Tom and Gee in the early days of our marriage, someone had been returning our garbage cans to the garage each garbage day, and Jim and I had wondered who. Then one day we spotted him: an elderly man who lived across the street.
I baked cookies and left them on a bench outside the garbage with a thank-you note. When we got home from work that day, a typed letter had replaced the gift. The letter was from Tom and explained how he had come to walk the neighborhood on garbage day, retuning cans for people he barely knew. Back where he'd been fighting a war, his young wife, Gee, had found herself living alone. Neighbors had taken the time to handle her garbage cans so she didn't have to, and he never forgot. Now he paid it forward by doing the same for all of us. Unfortunately a few years after we'd moved in, Tom died.
These days, we're piling up boxes of our own. We're planning a move. The house that seemed so huge six years ago is filled to capacity with furniture and books and toys and, of course, people, We know it's time to go, and yet we can't seem to stick the For Sale sign up on the grassland. Gaining a third bedroom and maybe an office sometimes seems like a lousy trade for all we stand to lose.
It's not just Gee and Tom. It’s the man who lets our kids pick peaches of the tree in his front yard. It's the ladies who call Jim when their pool filter breaks and leave overflowing baskets for our kids on Easter. It's the officer who smiles and waves and makes me feel a little safer when Jim is away. It is they who teach us what it means to be a neighbor.
1. What do we know about the New Year decorations according to paragraph 1?| A．The kids don't like them. |
| B．Gee is willing to give them to us. |
| C．Gee sees them as useless now. , |
| D．Gee and Tom made them by themselves. |
| A．Tom lived across the street. |
| B．Tom liked the cookies the author baked. |
| C．Tom returned the garbage cans for the author. |
| D．Tom shared their decorations with the author. |
| A．they had just moved into the community |
| B．he had been saved by a neighbor during the war |
| C．his wife had been helped by the neighbors during his absence |
| D．there were so many garbage cans in the neighborhood at that time |
| A．Their house couldn't be sold at a high price |
| B．The author didn't want to leave their neighbors |
| C．The author's family was in bad need of a third bedroom |
| D．Their moving out would be a great loss for the neighbors |
【推荐1】A duck has been saved by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals(RSPCA) after getting stuck with a plastic ring around its neck. It is believed that the plastic ring is the same sort used to package cans of beer together.
Animal Collection Officer(ACO) Lauren Bradshaw was one of the three people to find and rescue the duck on the canal near Sellars Square in Manchester on August 23. They entered the water to reach the bird. “Our plan was to round up the duck and get him to a bridge as the width of the canal is smaller there,” Lauren said, “The duck managed to escape from us a couple of times but eventually we managed to net and catch him. Then I freed him and gave him an examination.”
She added that the plastic was fortunately not tight around the animal’s neck and did not cause any injuries or difficulty breathing. However, plastic stuck around the neck and throat area is a hazard to many sea animals, as the animals think it is food and, once trapped, are unable to remove it. She suggested that people cut open any plastic rings so that if they are deserted, they will not be able to trap animals like this.
Lauren also reminded people that ducks may starve to death due to litter being thrown away rather than being put in a dustbin. When hungry ducks swallow floating pieces of plastic, they can cut through their organs or trick them into feeling full, causing them to stop eating.
The RSPCA says it has received more than 21,600 reports of animals injured or caught in litter over the past five years.
1. Why did the RSPCA staff drive the duck to a bridge?| A．To catch it easily. | B．To free it conveniently. |
| C．To ask passers-by for help. | D．To make it go to the bank soon. |
| A．She was annoyed at the bird. | B．She felt lucky not to hurt it. |
| C．She was guilty about her delay. | D．She breathed a sigh of relief. |
| A．Danger. | B．Criterion. | C．Shock. | D．Failure. |
| A．Cut plastic rings into pieces. | B．Deal with plastic litter properly. |
| C．Reduce plastic-based food wrappers. | D．Improve the recycling rate for plastics. |
【推荐2】It’s a big change from homeless teen to Yale (耶鲁) medical school student, but perseverance paid off for Chelesa Fearce of Clayton County, Georgia.
Fearce was a fourth grader when her mom was diagnosed (诊断) with Lymphoma (淋巴瘤).That began a hard time for the family. They had to move in and out of shelters, hotels and even the family car.
“I know I have been made stronger. I was homeless. My family slept on the floor and we were lucky if we got more than one full meal a day. Getting a shower, food and clean clothes was an everyday struggle,” Fearce said in a speech she gave at her high school graduation ceremony. Fearce overcame her day-to-day struggles by focusing on a better day. “I just told myself to keep working, because the future will not be like this anymore. And that helped me get through,” she told WSBTV.
Fearce was determined to be a good role model for her younger sister. She found inspiration in her late grandmother, struggling with deadly diseases, who gave Fearce emotional support. In her junior and senior year, Fearce took both high school and college courses, missing out on the free meals she depended on so she could get to her college classes. Despite having to use her cellphone to study after the shelter lights were turned off at night, she not only graduated as valedictorian (毕业生代表) of her 2013 class with a 4.5 grade average, but was also given a ride scholarship—including a meal plan to Spelman College in Atlanta.
After graduation, she worked full time for two years at the National Institutes for Health in Bethesda, Maryland, doing research on drugs. Last fall, she entered Yale and set a course to earn both a PhD and medical degree.
1. What does the underlined word “perseverance” in paragraph 1 refer to?| A．instant passion. | B．continuous efforts. |
| C．great patience. | D．selfless ambitions. |
| A．Sad and disappointed. | B．Stressed and defeated. |
| C．Determined and confident. | D．Joyous and contented. |
| A．Her grandma encouraged her to study medicine. |
| B．Her high school offered her free meals and courses. |
| C．She failed to study late due to frequent power cut. |
| D．She gained remarkable high school achievement. |
| A．From Homeless to Yale | B．Meet American’s Top Girl |
| C．Disabled but not Defeated | D．Chelesa Fearce: A Girl of Many Talents |
【推荐3】“I can’t connect with your characters.”
I kept hearing the same feedback and was unable to understand why and not sure what to do. I was a character-driven writer. How could I mess up the one thing I was supposed to be good at? I was determined to convince my agent that these characters were real. After all, I knew they were real. My main character Lotus had lived inside me for years. I just needed to clarify her on the page.
I wrote and edited for a year, trying to respond to this agent’s feedback. But Lotus’ personality began to disappear. I tried to have her make “better” decisions, wear smarter fashion, and have more friends, as my agent said she acted “immature” and was “isolated”. And when this agent ultimately parted ways with me, I felt like I had failed. Now with time and distance, I realize I tried to fit Lotus into a neurotypical style to please my agent. And as a result, Lotus lost her Lotus-ness.
When that agent discouraged me from writing Lotus as autistic(自闭的), he said that would make Lotus seem more “vulnerable(脆弱的)” or an “obvious victim”. I didn’t want Lotus to seem vulnerable. Lotus’ autism is what makes her powerful, I tried to explain. But from a neurotypical perspective, Lotus’ autism could only be seen as a weakness.
Unsure of how to convince my agent of the strength and power autistic women hold, I began to write Lotus as “neurotypical”. And I failed miserably. After all, what do I know about being neurotypical? My whole life, autism was my default. Not being diagnosed until 2020, I assumed the way I saw the world was “normal”.
My current agent encourages me to write from my neurodivergent(神经多样性的) experience. With this invitation, I revisited Lotus and saw her the way I first wrote her. And when I did, the characters and the entire narrative began to make more sense.
Identifying my characters as neurodivergent not only gives me joy as a writer, but it has produced my strongest writing. For so long, I’ve combatted the advice to “write what I know”, in part because I didn’t know what I actually knew. I didn’t know I was neurodivergent. But as I mine the specificity of my lived experience, my writing is stronger. There is a power to our lived experience. It’s not a limitation on our craft, but a swinging open of the gates.
1. How did the author feel when receiving the repeated response from the first agent?| A．Confused. | B．Convinced. | C．Determined. | D．Disappointed. |
| A．Lotus no longer lived inside the author | B．the author attempted to please the agent |
| C．the agent failed to sympathize with Lotus | D．Lotus was considered childish and lonely |
| A．She regretted parting with the agent. |
| B．She owed her success in life to autism. |
| C．She was aware of her autism in the early years. |
| D．She was empowered by her autistic experience. |
| A．Stick to your dream despite discouragement. |
| B．Be true to yourself and write from your heart. |
| C．Giving in to authority is the barrier to success. |
| D．Everyone is born an original instead of a copy. |
【推荐1】The British poet John Donne once said: “No man is an island; every book is a world.” As an enthusiastic reader, I can’t agree with the latter part of the sentence more. Every summer, I endeavor to find some peaceful places where I can attack some classics without being disturbed. Thomas Hardy wants to live far from the crazy crowd. I am no friend to chaos, either.
I read George Orwell’s 1984 in a New England beachside cottage with no locks on the doors, no telephones or televisions in the rooms. 1984 is a good book that needs deep reflection. Attempting The Sound and the Fury lying on the bed of a poorly-occupied motel, however, was less fruitful: I made it through one and a quarter volumes, but then my eyelids were so heavy that I couldn’t keep my eyes open.
But this summer I find myself at a loss. I’m not quite interested in J. D. Salinger, say, or Frankenstein. There’s always War and Peace which I’ve covered some distance several times, only to get bogged down in the “War” part, set it aside for a while, and realize that I have to start over from the beginning again, having forgotten everyone’s name and social rank. How appealing to simply fall back on a favorite — once more into The Call of the Wild or Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, which feels almost like cheating, too exciting and too much fun to belong to serious literature.
And then there’s John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath (愤怒). This title does not amaze but confuse. We’re never short of sour grapes, but we’ve never heard of angry grapes. Anyway grapes are my favorite fruit in summer. These stone fruits can always make me feel cheerful and peaceful all at once.
1. What can we infer from Paragraph 2?| A．The author has a cottage in New England. |
| B．Both of the reading attempts were fruitful. |
| C．1984 is a book that needs careful thought. |
| D．The Sound and the Fury was set in a poorly-occupied hotel. |
| A．Get confused. | B．Be carried away. |
| C．Be disturbed. | D．Make no progress. |
| A．He finishes them quickly. | B．He hardly understands them. |
| C．He should read something serious. | D．He gets amazed by their titles. |
| A．To share his reading experience. | B．To encourage readers to read books. |
| C．To introduce good books to readers. | D．To condemn(谴责)the chaotic world we live in. |
【推荐2】Every year, over 7.72 trillion kilograms of plastic is washed into the oceans. There are five huge areas in the world’s oceans that are a “soup” of floating rubbish. One of these areas, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP), is three times as large as France.
Over a year ago, a group called Ocean Cleanup began using a huge floating screen to try to clean up plastic pollution in the ocean. After several failures, the group is now collecting plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. But the plastic is spreading out over a large area, so it's impossible to collect it piece by piece. So, the Ocean Cleanup had a plan. They got a long floating U-shaped tube with a screen hanging below it. As the tube and screen are pushed by the water and the winds, the U is meant to collect plastic rubbish, making it easy for a ship to collect and remove the plastic. The system uses the power of the wind and ocean, so it doesn’t need fuel.
The group began testing the first version, called “System 001”, last September. But it soon became clear that the screen was just moving with the plastic, not collecting it. Sometimes plastic would wash over the top of the tube. Even worse, System 001 got broken by surging seas and had to be towed to Hawaii for repairs.
But Mr. Slat, who got the idea for the Ocean Cleanup system, sees the project as an experiment, which means a failure is a chance to learn. The team collected and studied lots of information about what worked well and what didn’t. Then they changed the design. In June, an improved version, called “System001/B” was towed back to the GPGP.
The new version has a parachute (降落伞) attached to it. This makes the system move slightly slower than the plastic, allowing the plastic to be collected inside, as planned. But this success is still just the beginning of the work of the Ocean Cleanup. They want a better and larger system.
1. What does the author want to show in Paragraph 1?| A．Humans should try to prevent plastic waste. |
| B．The GPGP is facing different kinds of pollution. |
| C．Plastic pollution in the oceans has become a serious problem. |
| D．A series of problems has been caused by plastic pollution. |
| A．To make use of the water and the winds. |
| B．To create a ship to collect waste in the oceans. |
| C．To collect the floating plastic waste piece by piece. |
| D．To gather up the floating plastic waste in the oceans. |
| A．It was a failure. | B．It was a great success. |
| C．It worked with a parachute. | D．It needed to be fueled regularly. |
| A．vast | B．rough | C．calm | D．peaceful |
【推荐3】Feel tired and want to have a break? People have many different ways to relax during break time at work or school. Smartphones are probably the number one choice for a quick mental vacation.
Although it might seem like a good time, looking at your cellphone may damage your mental power, according to a recent psychological study from Rutgers University in the United States.
For the study, more than 400 students were asked to finish a set of 20 word puzzles. Halfway through the task, the students were divided into three groups. One group was allowed to take a break and use cellphones to buy things online. The second group was asked to have a rest and buy things using a computer. The last group didn’t take any break at all.
Interestingly, the group that used their cellphones during the break went back to work feeling the most tired and least motivated to continue. They also had the hardest time solving the remaining word puzzles.
The cellphone group took 19 percent longer to finish the rest of the task, and solved 22 percent fewer problems than those in the other break conditions combined.
Terri Kurtzberg, co-author of the study, explained that they assumed looking at cellphones during a break would be no different from any other break – but instead, the phone may cause increasing levels of distraction that make it difficult to return focused attention to work tasks.
“Cellphones may have this effect because even just seeing your phone activates thoughts of checking messages, connecting with people, access to ever-refilling information and more, in ways that are different than how we use other screens like computers, and laptops,” Kurtzberg told Science Daily.
This is echoed (呼应) by a 2017 study from the US University of Chicago. It found that even if cellphones are turned off or turned face down, their mere presence reduces a person’s cognitive capacity (认知能力).
So, during your next break, try putting your smartphone away. Go out for a walk, get to know your classmates or even take a nap (小憩). You may be surprised by the result.
1. What did the study find about using cellphones during breaks?| A．It could make people more motivated at work. |
| B．It could reduce one’s ability to solve problems. |
| C．It could be beneficial both physically and mentally. |
| D．It could affect one’s relationships with others. |
| A．motivate | B．associate. | C．appreciate | D．imitate. |
| A．They may influence people in the same way as computers do. |
| B．They may make it hard for people to concentrate on work. |
| C．Their negative influence is almost impossible to avoid. |
| D．They have become a necessary part of people’s lives. |
| A．Turn off their cellphones. | B．Keep their cellphones face down. |
| C．Replace cellphones with laptops. | D．Keep their cellphones out of sight. |
