【推荐1】Yuan Longping, a great scientist, is the first person to develop a kind of hybrid rice (杂交水稻) which helps fight hunger in China.

Food was a big problem in China in the past. This was because China had 22 percent of the world’s population, but only 7 percent of its farmland. In the 1960s, China suffered serious hunger. Millions of people died because they had no food. As an agronomy (农学) teacher, Yuan was very sad to see this. “How can I help them have enough food?” he thought. He decided to work on a kind of hybrid rice. It has a high output.

At that time, other scientists didn’t think hybrid rice was worth studying. But Yuan and his team worked on it every day. They took very good care of their rice seeds. At last, in 1973, they grew a new kind of hybrid rice. This rice is strong. Farmers can grow it in many different kinds of farmland and also in bad weather. It can also fight disease. Its output (产量) was much greater than common kinds of rice. With the new kind, about 70, 000, 000 people could have food every year.

Yuan solved the food problem in China. He hoped to grow rice in the sea before he retired. His lifelong wish was to help people all over the world have enough to eat.

“Everyone is like a seed—we should try to grow into good people,” Yuan once said. Let’s remember this ordinary but great man—Yuan Longping.

1. Why was food a big problem in China in the past?

A．Because farmers didn’t grow nice.

B．Because farmers didn’t have rice seeds.

C．Because China lad no money to buy plenty of food.

D．Because China had a large population but a little farmland.

2. How did Yuan Longping help people have enough food in China?

A．He discovered another kind of delicous food.

B．He borrowed enough food from other countries.

C．He developed a kind of hybrid rice with his team.

D．He started being an agronomy teacher.

3. Which of the following is NOT mentioned about the new kind of hybrid rice?

A．It is able to fight disease.	B．It is grown across the world now.
C．Its output is much higher.	D．It can be grown in different farmland.

4. What was Yuan Longping’s lifelong wish?

A．To help people all over the world have enough to eat.

B．To grow rice in the sea.

C．To be a good agronomy teacher.

D．To help people in Africa.

【推荐2】As we all know, tomatoes are red, the sky is blue, and bananas are yellow. Well, not exactly-color does not really exist (存在). What exists is light. Light is real, but color is not. It is our brain that creates color.

We’re told to trust our eyes, but our eyes have little to do with vision (视觉). We see much more with our brains. You sometimes see different colors because your brain thinks they have a different meaning. The brain does this by looking at what’s around the object. Here is an example. If you see a person wearing a white shirt against different backgrounds, your brain might express the same white color differently. Suppose this person stands in front of a bright yellow background, your brain might think the white shirt is more like gray. If the person moves to a dark blue background, the same white shirt might appear closer to a brighter color.

Color is created according to our past experiences, and sometimes there are optical illusions (视错觉). That is because your brain includes the recent history of what you saw, at least for a brief time. But if you watch the thing for a longer time, your brain may forget the recent history and see the real color.

This raises the question: Do you see what I see? The answer, in short, is no.

Our past and present experiences are different. None of us even sees the world as it really is, but as a meaning that comes from our own experiences. It’s clear that seeing is not always believing.

1. What is real according to the writer in Paragraph 1?

A．Color.

B．Meaning.

C．Light.

D．Mind.

2. How does the writer support his idea in Paragraph 2?

A．By showing a problem.	B．By making a comparison.
C．By giving an example.	D．By making the text longer.

3. What does Paragraph 3 mainly tell us?

A．White is the lightest color.

B．Color comes from our past experiences.

C．Color is changing all the time.

D．Color is influenced by the background of an object.

4. Which word is close to the underlined word “brief”?

A．Short.

B．Quick.

C．Simple.

D．Hard.

5. What can we learn from the passage?

A．You see what I see.	B．Color is   a recent history.
C．Color always stays the same.	D．Seeing is not always believing.

【推荐3】People can’t see you when you’re speaking on the phone, but they can hear you. So, the way you speak is especially important. In fact, researchers have calculated that 80% of communication over the phone is through your tone of voice; and only 20% is from the words you use. Here are our top tips on how to speak over the phone.
1. Facial Expressions
Your facial expression can influence your voice. For example, if you smile, your voice will sound warm and friendly, just the opposite, if you have an angry look on your face, it can make you sound unpleasant.
2. Volume
If you speak too loudly, you could sound angry. And if you speak too softly, it’ll be difficult to hear you. So, speak loudly enough to be heard clearly, but not so loud that you’re shouting.
3. Pace
The pace of your voice is how quickly you speak. And this can show how you feel. For example, an angry person might speak faster than normal. Or a downhearted person might speak very slowly. Try speaking a little more slowly than normal. This will make you sound confident, and it’ll make it easier for the other person to understand you.
4. Gestures
Gesturing can influence the tone of your voice. When you gesture, you bring more air into the lungs, which can make your voice sound warmer. Gestures are also useful to help you stress the right words or even find the words you need. The best thing about gesturing during a phone call is that no one can see what you’re doing, so you can gesture as wildly as you like!
5. Movement
If you’re feeling nervous, stand up and move around. It will reduce the nervousness in your body and help your voice to sound more confident.
6. Pauses (停顿)
Using pauses every now and then can help you to slow down. This will make you sound more confident and in control. Also, if you pause after giving some new information, it’ll give the other person time to understand it. At the same time, listen to how the other person uses pauses. They could tell you something about the speaker’s feeling. For example, when a speaker is really angry, he might use pauses and says, “I... am... so... angry...”
1. How much of telephone communication is from the words you use?

A．20%.

B．40%.

C．60%.

D．80%.

2. What can people do to reduce their nervousness on the phone?

A．Gesture wildly.

B．Move around.

C．Raise their voices.

D．Make facial expressions.

3. How can pauses help people talk on the phone?

A．The speaker can show he is friendly.	B．The speaker can tell more information.
C．The listener will feel confident and in control.	D．The listener will have time to understand the words.

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A．How to control the speed of your speech.	B．Different good ways of talking on the phone.
C．Reasons of making gestures while talking.	D．How to improve communication among friends.

5. What is the writer’s opinion about telephone talk?

A．Your voice on the phone will show what you’re feeling.

B．Using too many pauses while talking will annoy others.

C．Speaking loudly makes it easier for others to understand you.

D．The words you use are more important than the way you speak.

【推荐2】Anna was living in an old rented （租） house in Thailand, which had a tiny garden. In the garden she planted some vegetables. The only problem was the insects （虫）. There were hundreds of them, and the plants weren’t growing properly. Anna had to do something to stop them.

Anna had only been in Thailand about a month, so she didn’t speak the language. She put some of the insects in a plastic bag, and went to the shop. She showed the owner the insects, and then made a sign of cutting her throat to show that she wanted to kill them. The owner didn’t understand it at first, but then his wife made the same sign, and laughed. Then they both laughed, and they sold Anna some insecticide（杀虫剂）, which worked perfectly. After that, each time Ann passed the shop, the owner would smile to her, and make that sign of cutting throats!

1. What is the main idea of Paragraph 1?

A．Anna had some trouble with the garden.

B．Anna liked to plant vegetables.

C．Anna lived in an old house.

2. What can we learn about Anna in Thailand?

A．She was a stranger.

B．She lived a hard life.

C．She was visiting friends.

3. How were the vegetables after Anna visited the shop?

A．They were all right.

B．They were growing worse.

C．They were the same as before.

4. How was the shop owner?

A．Clever and outgoing.

B．Friendly and humorous.

C．Hardworking and strict.

5. What can be the best title for the text?

A．I Have a Garden.

B．I Want to Kill Them.

C．I Need to Buy Something.