1 . Wonder Plates
A unique, personalized gift!
Wonder Plates offers you a unique gift opportunity-a personalized ceramic(陶瓷的)plate! Each plate contains a special message from you to your best friend or loved one. All you have to do is follow these three steps:
Step 1
On an A4 sheet of paper write a personal message. Write it exactly as you want it to appear on the plate. We recommend a typewritten printout. The message should not be more than 50 words.
Step 2
Select one of our 10 plate color options and a design from one of our 12 design patterns.
Step 3
Sign the attached form, enclose your personal message, and send these to us together with your payment. Please send only money orders or cheques. Do not send cash.
Charges
The charge for a standard-sized plate is $ 20 regardless of the color you choose. A fixed charge of $100 per plate for the design and printing of the message is also payable. For orders of two to four plates, customers may get a 15% discount. For orders of five to ten plates, the cost of per plate is reduced to $12 and the design and printing of the message is just $75 per plate.
Delivery
Once we receive your order and payment, your plate(s)will be sent via regular mail. Delivery can be expected within 14 business days. If you require a faster delivery time, please fill in the Urgent Form and send an additional $30(guaranteed 3-day delivery). We guarantee your satisfaction, but if for some reason you are not satisfied with our product or service, please fill in the Consumer Feedback Form and send it to our Customer Service department. Alternatively, you may call one of our friendly Customer Service Officers at 122523.
1. What are you supposed to do to get a made-to-order plate?| A．Pay in the form of cheques on delivery. |
| B．Type your message and send it by e-mail. |
| C．Write a maximum of 50 words on an A4 sheet of paper. |
| D．Choose your favorite design and color from 12 options. |
| A．$696. | B．$800. | C．$816. | D．$960. |
| A．You can receive your order in two weeks. |
| B．If not satisfied with the plates you’ve received, you need to call 122523. |
| C．Your order will be sent by express once it is received. |
| D．Your order is available within 3 days on condition that you pay another $30. |
2 . It was the coldest winter I had ever experienced, with the trees
A little girl came by with her tiny hand
Time flies and all of us
| A．rolling | B．dancing | C．trembling | D．growing |
| A．laid | B．packed | C．placed | D．wrapped |
| A．cold | B．warm | C．pretty | D．freezing |
| A．beggar | B．farmer | C．worker | D．reporter |
| A．drove by | B．walked by | C．got by | D．knocked by |
| A．poor | B．lonely | C．thirsty | D．mean |
| A．fastened | B．quickened | C．tightened | D．sharpened |
| A．loosely | B．closely | C．quickly | D．tightly |
| A．robber | B．burglar | C．liar | D．thief |
| A．Besides | B．However | C．Hence | D．Furthermore |
| A．biscuits | B．cakes | C．cookies | D．sweets |
| A．fortunately | B．unluckily | C．easily | D．eventually |
| A．provided | B．handed | C．sold | D．made |
| A．innocence | B．loyalty | C．integrity | D．bravery |
| A．frequently | B．rarely | C．forever | D．occasionally |
3 . Why build a house when you can print one instead? Startups around the world are now using 3D printing technology for home construction. They say it’s faster, cheaper and more sustainable than traditional methods. Printing houses can also save huge amounts of scrap wood, metal and other construction materials that would otherwise be wasted by ending up in landfills.
Currently, 3D printing systems can equal the work output of 10 to 20 workers in five or six different trades, said Jason Ballard, CEO and co-founder of ICON, a 3D printing construction startup, according to AP News. The machines can work 24 hours a day as well, saving developers both time and money.
So how do these 3D printers “print” a house anyway? Machines deposit thin layers of material — such as concrete, metal and plastic — until the three-dimensional house is built from the ground up. And a house can be completed within 120 hours, as was the case in the recent completion of the Netherlands’ first 3D printed house, according to CNN.
“The benefits that automation and digitization had brought to so many other industries regarding speed and affordability were completely missing from the construction industry,” Ballard said, adding that 3D printing “was like the most powerful of all the automations we could discover.”
This powerful automation has the potential to combat rising prices in the housing market, homelessness and overcrowding. ICON has even teamed up with nonprofit group New Story to develop the first 3D printed neighborhood in the world in Mexico. But the technology behind 3D printing houses is still in its early stages of development. For example, ICON alone has only printed 24 houses in the US and Mexico.
That isn’t stopping futurists from dreaming of larger applications of this technology. AI Space Factory, a New York-based architectural and technology design agency, has set out to design a Mars habitat to be printed from the ground up Martian rocks and a plant-based polymer, according to CNET.
But before we live on other planets, 3D printed houses will change things here on Earth.
“With the 3D printed home, we’re now setting the tone for the future: the rapid realization of affordable homes with control over the shape of your own house,” said Yasin Torunoglu, alderman for housing in the community of the Netherlands’ first 3D printed house.
1. What is an advantage of printing houses?| A．It is cheaper and less wasteful. | B．It helps create manufacturing jobs. |
| C．Its construction materials are safer. | D．It improves the cleanliness of construction sites. |
| A．crazily | B．rapidly | C．completely | D．perfectly |
| A．Cautious. | B．Optimistic. | C．Pessimistic. | D．Suspicious. |
| A．To predict the development of 3D printing. |
| B．To compare different construction technologies. |
| C．To encourage the use of 3D printing technology. |
| D．To report on 3D printing technology for construction. |
An 80-year-old man was sitting on the sofa in his house along with his 45-year-old son. Suddenly a crow (乌鸦) landed on their window.
The father asked his son, “What is this?” The son replied, “This is a crow.”
After a few minutes, the father asked his son for the second time, “What is this?” The son said, “Father, I told you just now. It’s a crow.”
After a little while, the father asked his son the same question for third time, “What is this?” This time, the son was irritated (生气) and said to his father in a low and cold tone, “It’s a crow, a crow.”
After a moment, the father yet again asked his son for the fourth time, “What is this?” This time his son shouted in his father, “Why do you keep asking me the same question again and again? I have told you already, ‘It’s a crow’. Are you not able to understand this?”
A minute later the father went to his room and came back with an old tattered(破旧的) diary, which he had kept since his son was born. On opening a page, he asked his son to read that page. When the read it, the following words were written in the diary:
“Today my little son aged three was sitting with me on the sofa when a crow suddenly landed on the window edge. My son asked me 23 times what it was, and I replied him 23 times that it was a crow. I hugged him lovingly each time he asked me the same question. I didn’t at all feel annoyed, but instead felt a deep affection for my innocent son.”
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右;2. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好;
Paragraph 1:
After reading the diary,the son was in tears and began to reflect on the days when he used to sit together with his father.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2:
Feeling ashamed, the son got down on his knees before his father.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Once upon a time, there stood an apple tree. A little boy loved to come and play around it every day. He climbed to the top of the tree, ate the apples, and took a nap under the shadow. He loved the tree and the tree also enjoyed playing with him.
As time went by, the little boy grew up and he no longer played around the tree.
One day, the boy came back to the tree, appearing sad. “Come and play with me,” the tree asked the boy gently.
“I am no longer a kid; I won’t play around trees anymore”, the boy replied, “I want toys. I need money to buy them.”
“Sorry, but I don’t have money. However, you can pick all my apples and sell them. Then, you will have money.” The boy was so excited that he picked all the apples on the tree and left happily. The boy didn’t come back after that. The tree was upset.
One day, the boy returned and the tree was so joyful. “Come and play with me,” the tree said.
“I don’t have time to play. I have to work for my family. We need a house for shelter. Can you help me?” “Sorry, I don’t have a house. But you can cut off my branches to build your house.” So the boy cut all the branches of the tree and left with delight.
The tree was glad to see him happy but the boy didn’t appear since then. The tree was again lonely and sad.
One hot summer day, the boy returned and the tree was delighted. “Come and play with me!” the tree requested.
“I am sad and becoming old. I want to go sailing to relax myself. Can you give me a boat?” “Use my trunk to build the boat. You can sail and be happy.” So the boy cut the tree trunk to make a boat. He went sailing and did not show up for a long time.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Many years later, the boy finally returned.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The apple tree is our mother, who devotes all herself to us.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
6 . Discoveries at the famous Sanxingdui ruins in Southwest China show that the region’s ancient Shu Kingdom Civilization shared similarities with the Maya.
The Sanxingdui ruins, located in the city of Guanghan, about 60 kilometers from Chengdu, belonged to the Shu Kingdom that existed at least 4,800 years ago and lasted more than 2,000 years, while the Mayan civilization built its city states around 200 AD.
The bronze-made remains of trees unearthed at the ruins of the Shu Kingdom resemble the sacred ceiba tree, which symbolied the union of heaven, earth and the underworld In the Mayan civilization. “They are very important similarities,” says Santos, a Mexican archaeologist, stressing that “the representations of tees in both cultures provide a symbolism that is very similar”.
One notable feature of the recent discoveries at Sanxingdui was the cross-subject work and technology applied by teams of Chinese archaeologists, which allowed the unearthing of artifacts as fragile as silk remains, which other types of less careful digging methods would not have been able to manage.
Cooperation between Chinese and Mexican archaeologists could benefit projects in the Maya world, where the rainy climate and humidity are problematic for the conservation of ruins.
“Every time our cultural knowledge increases, regardless of whether we speak one language or another, what it shows us is that we continue to be sister cultures and, therefore, the exchange of such knowledge is fundamental,” says Santos.
1. What is a similarity between the Shu Kingdom and Maya civilization?| A．Their starting time. | B．Their historical origins. |
| C．Their cultural symbols. | D．Their ceremony traditions. |
| A．Damp weather. | B．Positioning of ruins. |
| C．High latitude. | D．Language barriers. |
| A．The future of the China-Mexico cooperation. |
| B．The benefits of speaking a different language. |
| C．The importance of the exchange of cultural knowledge. |
| D．The increasing sisterhood in culture between China and Mexico. |
| A．Ahistorical novel. | B．A newspaper. | C．A research review. | D．A guidebook. |
7 . Mylea lives in Australia, a country famous for kangaroos, but not for snow. Yet at 12, she
Despite the lack of
The world’s far north is not a blank carpet of soft snow, but Mylea didn’t
When talking about her
To prove women’s place is far beyond the
| A．managed | B．decided | C．offered | D．afforded |
| A．authentic | B．intense | C．comfortable | D．private |
| A．career | B．confidence | C．strength | D．team |
| A．tell | B．feel | C．remember | D．share |
| A．mature | B．reliable | C．available | D．ready |
| A．give in | B．give up | C．give out | D．give away |
| A．working | B．sweating | C．bleeding | D．aching |
| A．progress | B．promises | C．history | D．assumptions |
| A．hobby | B．adventure | C．advantage | D．award |
| A．innovative | B．independent | C．amazing | D．valuable |
| A．mean | B．kind | C．vivid | D．fair |
| A．puzzled | B．small | C．nervous | D．inspired |
| A．gym | B．home | C．kitchen | D．office |
| A．embarrassed | B．annoyed | C．satisfied | D．dared |
| A．ski | B．walk | C．run | D．cycle |
Lang Ping announced on Wednesday that she has stepped down as head coach of China’s national women’s volleyball team.
Since 2013, the 60-year-old legendary coach
“
9 . The scientists who re-engineered the plastic-eating enzyme (酶) PETase have now created a new enzyme called “cocktail”, which can digest plastics up to six times faster.
PETase breaks down PET back into its building blocks, creating an opportunity to recycle plastics and reduce plastic pollution. PET is the most common thermoplastic (热塑性塑料) used to make single-use drink bottles and it takes hundreds of years to break down in the environment, but PETase can shorten this time to days. The initial discovery set up the prospect of a revolution in plastic recycling, creating a potential low-energy solution to deal with plastic waste.
Now, the same trans-Atlantic team have combined PETase and its “partner”, a second enzyme called MHETase, to generate much bigger improvements: simply mixing PETase with MHETase doubled the speed of PET breakdown, and engineering a connection between the two enzymes to create a “super-enzyme” increased this activity by a further three times.
The team was co-led by the scientists who engineered PETase, Professor John McGeehan and Dr Gregg Beckham. Professor McGeehan said: “Gregg and I were chatting about how PETase attacks the surface of the plastics and MHETase chops things up further, so it seemed natural to see if we could use them together. Our first experiments showed that they did work better together, so we decided to physically link them. It took a great deal of work, but it was worth the effort -we were delighted to see that our new enzyme is up to three times faster than the separate enzymes.”
The original PETase enzyme discovery indicated the first hope that a solution to the global plastic pollution problem might be within grasp, though PETase alone is not yet fast enough to handle the tons of PET bottles. Combining it with a second enzyme, and finding together they work even faster, means another leap forward has been taken towards finding a solution to plastic waste. PETase and the new combined MHETase-PETase both work by digesting PET plastic. This allows for plastics to be made and reused endlessly, reducing our reliance on fossil (化石) resources.
1. What can we learn about “cocktail” from the text?| A．It doubles the breakdown of plastics. |
| B．It takes hundreds of years to break down. |
| C．It deals with plastic waste three times faster. |
| D．It contributes to breaking down plastics quickly. |
| A．A new study of PET. |
| B．The breakdown of PET. |
| C．The discovery of PETase. |
| D．The function of PETase. |
| A．Combining PETase and MHETase works better than separate ones. |
| B．Conducting experiments requires no diligent work. |
| C．PETase chops things up further. |
| D．MHETase attacks the surface of the plastic. |
| A．PET pollution is no longer a difficult problem to deal with. |
| B．The new enzyme is speeding up our reliance on fossil resources. |
| C．MHETase-PETase makes the world free from plastic pollution. |
| D．Plastic-eating enzyme “cocktail” promises new hope for plastic waste. |
10 . Darius Brown’s passion for animals is matched only by his love of bow ties (蝴蝶领结), and the 12-year-old in Newark, New Jersey decided to combine the two into something useful. Brown’s organization, Beaux and Paws, dresses shelter pets up in fancy bow ties made by himself, so the animals can look good while seeking adoption.
Brown was diagnosed with comprehension delay, speech delay and fine motor skills delay when he was only two years old, and over time, his family encouraged his creativity as he developed his love for animals and fashion.
His mother, Joy Brown, and sister Dazhai Brown Shearz noticed a breakthrough for Brown when he turned eight while his sister was admitted to a cosmetology school. There, he began to cut materials and learned to sew to help make his sister hair ribbons.
“With his fine motor skills delay, he wasn’t able to really use his hands well—tying a shoe was challenging,” Brown-Shearz said. “My mother and I came up with the idea that if he helped us with things like preparing the ribbon or cutting it and sewing materials together, it would help him. And it did—it worked!”
Shortly after, Brown began making his own bow ties and wore one nearly every day. Strangers would stop Brown to ask him where they were sold. It was then that Beaux and Paws achieved success. Brown has since donated hundreds of bow ties to animal shelters throughout the country and is now in the process of fundraising to provide even more of them for dogs and cats who are looking for a home.
The young businessman has even been acknowledged by a famous leader, who sent him a letter speaking highly of him for his work. “Dear Darius,” the letter began. “After hearing your story, I wanted to reach out to commend you for your commitment to community service. From founding Beaux and Paws to lifting up the lives of those around you, it’s clear you are doing your part to look out for your fellow citizens.”
1. What was Brown fond of at an early age?| A．Fancy motors. | B．Speech and sports. |
| C．Animals and fashion. | D．Reading books. |
| A．Tying a shoe. | B．Learning to sew. |
| C．Breaking a record. | D．Being admitted to a school. |
| A．To prove his ability. |
| B．To win respect of others. |
| C．To help animals get adopted. |
| D．To be a successful businessman. |
| A．Praise. | B．Help. | C．Educate. | D．Respect. |
