Brad Howard, a Texas father, had enough of his son’s disruptive (扰乱性的) behavior in physics class. Despite multiple warnings and complaints from the teacher about his son’s excessive (过多的) talking, the situation didn’t improve.
So, Brad decided to take matters into his own hands and gave his son, Bradley, a final warning. Brad made a bold promise to his son, saying, “Hey, if we get another call, I’m going to show up in school and sit beside you in class. ”
The 17-year-old Bradley probably thought his dad was just bluffing (唬人) and continued his chatty (爱闲聊的) ways. But when Brad received another email from the teacher, he knew he had to follow through with his threat.
On the morning of the important day, Brad’s wife woke him up and said, “Brad, it’s time for you to go to school. ” It struck him what he had said. He just couldn’t but a bit regret, “Oh, no, what have I done? ”
Despite his unwillingness, Brad was determined to keep his word and headed to his son’s high school.
The sight of Brad sitting next to Bradley in class was a source of amusement for Bradley’s friends, who found the situation ridiculous. Bradley, on the other hand, was less than thrilled.
He couldn’t believe that his dad had actually gone through with his threat, The embarrassment of having his own father sitting beside him in class was enough to make him regret his behavior. As the class started, Bradley could feel all eyes on him and his dad. He could sense the judgment and the whispers from his classmates.
“Hey, Bradley, it looks like your dad is really serious about this, ” one of his friends whispered across the hallway, trying to hold back a laugh.
“Yeah, this is so embarrassing, ” Bradley whispered, his cheeks turning a deep shade of red.
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。
But as the class progressed, something unexpected happened.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________After school, Bradley hesitantly approached his dad with newfound appreciation.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Another school year was beginning. I had thirteen excited first graders eager to learn and ready to fill my classroom with laughs, tears, and everything. I realized that I had a small class size and got excited about the special projects we could do. One project that I had been particularly interested in was finding a doctor in Doctors Without Borders as a pen pal for my students, which could definitely broaden my students’ horizons.
I began by sending out an e-mail to our school district employees asking for names and contact information of any doctor in Doctors Without Borders which they knew of. I sent an e-mail to each one asking if we could communicate with them, but only one reply came: Dr. Denisar, who was in Africa for humanitarian medical work. Since six-year-olds’attention spans were short and many of the students were just learning how to read and write, I thought it would be the best to correspond through e-mail. Dr. Denisar quickly became a reward system. If students practiced and could read a book fluently, I would record it and e-mail it. If they finished a writing assignment, I would scan it and e-mail it. If students were misbehaving, I caught myself saying, “What would Dr. Denisar think about that?”
We also used the information Dr. Denisar included in his e-mails as learning opportunities. As we communicated with him, we learned more about him, as well as his missions from disease outbreaks to malnutrition of the locals. We started to lighten things up by recording songs and jokes, and sending art projects and care packages. He appreciated the communication. After Dr. Denisar returned, we continued to communicate with him, as my students had got quite attached. He promised that he would make a trip to our small town in Illinois to meet my class when he could.
The school year was beginning to wrap up when he contacted me in April about coming up to visit in May. For the first time, we began talking on the phone about his visit.
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。
As the day of his visit approached, the kids began to get nervous.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A whole morning had passed before we knew it.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________3 . Until recently, gravitational waves could have been the stuff of Einstein’s imagination. Before they were detected, these waves in space time existed only in the physicist’s general theory of relativity, as far as scientists knew. Now, researchers are on the hunt for more ways to detect the waves. “The study of gravitational waves is booming,” says astrophysicist Karan Jani of Vanderbilt University in Nashville. “This is just remarkable. No field I can think of in fundamental physics has seen progress this fast.”
Just as light comes in a variety of wavelengths, so do gravitational waves. Different wave lengths point to different types of origins of the universe and require different kinds of detectors. Gravitational waves with wavelengths of a few thousand kilometers—like those detected by the United States, Italy and Japan—come mostly from pairs of black holes 10 or so times the mass of the sun, or from collisions of dense cosmic blocks called neutron stars (中子星). These detectors could also spot waves from certain types of exploding stars and rapidly moving neutron stars.
In contrast, huge waves that span light-years are thought to be created by orbiting pairs of bigger black holes with masses billions of times that of the sun. In June, scientists reported the first strong evidence of these types of waves by turning the entire galaxy (星系) into a detector, watching how the waves make slight changes to the timing of regular blinks from neutron stars throughout the Milky Way.
Physicists now hope to dive into a vast, cosmic ocean of gravitational waves of all sorts of sizes. These waves could reveal new details about the secret lives of exotic objects such as black holes and unknown parts of the universe.
Physicist Jason Hogan of Stanford University thinks there are still a lot of gaps in the coverage of wavelengths. “But it makes sense to cover all the bases. Who knows what else we may find?” he says. The search for capturing the full complement of the universe’s gravitational waves exactly could take observatories out into the moon, to the atomic area and elsewhere.
1. What does Karan Jani think of the current study on gravitational waves?| A．It is rapid and pioneering. |
| B．It is slow but steadily increasing. |
| C．It is interrupted due to limited detectors. |
| D．It is progressing as fast as any other field. |
| A．The creation of different kinds of detectors. |
| B．Collisions of planets outside the solar system. |
| C．The presence of light in different wavelengths. |
| D．Activities involving black holes and neutron stars. |
| A．By analyzing sunlight. |
| B．By locating the new galaxy. |
| C．By using the whole galaxy as a tool. |
| D．By observing the sun’s regular movement. |
| A．It’ll exclude the atomic field. |
| B．It’ll focus exactly on the mapping of the galaxy. |
| C．It’ll require prioritizing certain wavelengths on the moon. |
| D．It’ll explore potential places to detect gravitational waves. |
1. What is the text mainly about?
| A．Special meanings of some words in English. |
| B．The real meaning about home for Americans. |
| C．Different opinions about home in different countries. |
| A．Luxury. | B．Comfort. | C．Warmth. |
| A．Their personal backgrounds. |
| B．Their personal education. |
| C．Their personal tastes. |
| A．More sofas. | B．More chairs. | C．More bathrooms. |
The Day Mother Cried
Coming home from school that dark winter’s day so long ago, I was filled with anticipation. I had a new issue of my favorite sports magazine under my arm. Dad was at work, my sister was away, and Mother wouldn’t be home from her new job for an hour.
I was shocked into stillness by what I saw . Mother pulled into a tight ball with her face in her hands. She was crying. I had never seen her cry.
I approached cautiously and touched her shoulder. “Mother?” I said. “What’s happened?”
She took a long breath and managed a weak smile. “It’s nothing, really. I’m going to lose this new job. I can’t type fast enough.”
“But you’ve only been there three for days,” I said. “You’ll catch on.” I was repeating a line she had spoken to me a hundred times when I was having trouble learning or doing something important to me. She sobbed in silence .
I felt helpless and out of place. At the age of 16 I still assumed Mother could do anything. To provide enough income for my college two years later, Mother was crazy for ways to save money.
A few months ago, Mother arrived home with an old typewriter. It skipped between certain letters. “That’s all we can afford,” Mother said. “It’s good enough to learn on.” And from that day on, immediately after dinner, Mother would disappear into her sewing room to practice. The slow tap, tap, tap went on some nights until midnight. On Monday, she got a job as a typewriter at a radio station. I was not the least bit surprised but she was excited. But on Tuesday Mother looked drawn. I didn’t care honestly.
My shock and embarrassment at finding Mother in tears on Wednesday showed how little I understood the pressures on her. Sitting beside her on the couch, I began very slowly to understand.
“I guess we all have to fail sometimes,” Mother said quietly. I could sense her pain. I reached out and put my arms around her.
A week later Mother took a job selling dry goods at half the salary the radio station had offered. “It’s a job I can do,” she said simply.
注意：续写词数应为150左右。
But the evening practice routine on the old green typewriter continued.
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The old green typewriter sits in my office now, unrepaired.
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Acts of kindness have the power to not only brighten our day but also restore our faith in humanity. While young children are often reminded to be kind, real-life examples of young people showing charity prove that kindness knows no age limit.
In the busy city of Detroit, 14-year-old twin sisters, Makhia and Makyla Vincent, were on their usual route to school when something caught their attention. On the snow-covered ground lay a wallet, seemingly out of place. “What do you think we should do?” Makyla whispered, her voice low．Makhia bit her lip, her eyes locked on the wallet. “I don’t know, but we can’t just leave it here. What if the owner needs it desperately?” Finally, worry and curiosity got the better of them, and they decided to take a look inside.
Slowly, Makhia reached out and picked it up. As she opened it, the sisters gasped at the same time. To their surprise, they discovered a large amount of cash, bank cards, and a military ID. It was clear that whoever owned this wallet held great value for these possessions. Instantly, the girls knew exactly what they had to do. Coming from a family with a veteran (退伍军人) grandfather, the sisters felt a deep sense of empathy for the person who had lost the wallet.
The girls looked closer to inspect the military ID. It belonged to a Marc Walsh, a middle- aged man who looked serious. “We have to find this Marc Walsh,” Makhia declared, her voice filled with determination. “But how?” Makyla asked. Makhia thought for a moment, “Maybe there’s an address on one of these cards. Let’s see if we can find any clues.”
They carefully examined the bank cards and discovered that one of them had an address on it. It was located not far from where they stood. With a sense of purpose, the twins decided to make their way to the address, wallet in hand.
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。
The address led them to an old apartment building.
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Upon returning home, Marc’s roommate informed him of the discovery.
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It was a hot day. The sun scorched (炙烤) down and everywhere you looked, you could see the heat waves blowing above the sand. John rolled over, realizing that half of his body was well and truly burnt. He had not meant to sleep in the sun but the heat and late nights studying for his examinations made him miserable. Stretching, he got to his feet, picked up his surfboard and looked around. The beach, which had earlier been crowded in the sun, was now comparatively empty. Seagulls flew down to clean up the food of people’s picnic lunches.
The ice-cream van had gone, and so were the lifeguards who were doing first aid on the beach. John looked up to where the sun was and estimated it was about five o’clock. Time to head home. It was “Mum’s Kitchen Rule” that had him moving homewards. If he did not get home in time for dinner, he would go hungry. Wandering along the water’s edge, he happened to glance out to sea. What made him look up at that particular moment, he never knew, but it was the right time for the swimmer he spotted. His hand was up, signaling distress (险情) and he was calling out something.
Quickly John glanced around the beach — no one else was close enough to help the man, and crucially, no one had noticed. Cupping his hands to his mouth, he shouted “Help” to get the attention of other people on the beach. Someone waved back to him and John pointed to the swimmer. “Get help,” he shouted. Then without hesitation, he jumped into the sea with his surfboard. John was a strong swimmer and had a good skill for distance swimming. His coach had tried hard to persuade him to go into competitions but he was not interested.
注意：1.续写词数应为150个左右；2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Now he was swimming for more than enjoyment or medals.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Fortunately, the sea was not rough and there was no wave.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________8 . Some ants have figured out how to avoid getting lost: build taller anthills, according to a recent study.
Desert ants living in the hot, flat salt pans of Tunisia spend their days looking for food and reach as far as 1.1 kilometers from their nests. To find their way home, desert ants use a navigation system, relying on the sun’s position and counting their steps to track their location relative to their nest.
But this system becomes increasingly unreliable as the distance from the nest increases. “We realized that, whenever the ants in salt pans came closer to their nest, they suddenly pinpointed the nest hill from several meters distance,” says Markus Knaden, a researcher at Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology. “This made us think that the hill serves as a nest-defining landmark.”
So Knaden and colleagues captured ants from nests in the middle of salt pans and from along their shorelines. Only salt-pan nests had distinct hills, up to 40 centimeters tall, whereas the hills on shoreline nests were lower or barely noticeable. Next, the team removed any hills and placed the captured insects some distance away from their nests. Salt-pan ants struggled more than shore ants to find homes. Shore ants relied on the shoreline for guidance and weren’t affected by the hill removal, the researchers concluded.
The team further conducted another study to see if desert ants were deliberately building a taller hill when their surroundings lacked any visible landmarks. So, the researchers removed the hills of 16 salt-pan nests and installed (安装) two 50-centimeter-tall blocks near eight of them. The other eight nests were left without any artificial visual aid. After three days, the researchers found that seven ants from the unaided nests had rebuilt their hills. But only two ants from the nests with man-made blocks nearby had bothered to rebuild.
“It implies that ants regularly assess the complexity of their environment and change their decisions based on their conclusion,” says ecologist Judith Bronstein of the University of Arizona.
1. What aspect of ants is the recent study mainly about?| A．Challenges of survival. | B．Landmarks of habitats. |
| C．Intelligence of navigation. | D．Comparison of varieties. |
| A．Explored. | B．Recognized. | C．Climbed. | D．Crossed. |
| A．To observe different ants’ reactions. | B．To prove impacts of various habitats. |
| C．To disturb desert ants’ navigation system. | D．To test anthills’ functions and significance. |
| A．Evaluate and make changes. | B．Visual aid is a must. |
| C．Cooperation brings victory. | D．No man-made blocks are used. |
Abby Jaramillo never lost her enthusiasm. She believed that with age came courage, vision (远见卓识) and a true appreciation of life — all life. That’s why, at the age of eighty-six, Abby became the only caretaker of a flock of chickens abandoned alongside one of Southern California’s busiest freeways. The chickens were never rescued. Instead, they simply lived in the roadside bushes, becoming known to locals as the Hollywood Freeway Chickens.
Like many seniors, Abby lived alone and survived on a small amount of money. But to her, life was precious and not to be cruelly given up or ignored-not even the lives of abandoned chickens. Abby simply saw creatures in need and without hesitation, stepped into action. For nine years, while others sped past unaware and unconcerned, Abby made two visits a day to provide food and water for the abandoned chickens, using what little money she had available. As the years passed, she worried about the day when she would no longer be able to care for her adopted chickens and her cat Tiffy. Who would look after these poor helpless creatures if she could no longer make her journey?
At ninety-five, just when the cruelties of time began to damage Abby’s body, a heroine (女英雄) appeared. Alice Kahn, a young actress and a founding member of the organization Actors and Others for Animals, was Abby’s neighbor. Alice had observed Abby and noticed that the older woman also fed many of the homeless cats in the neighborhood. Alice approached Abby to see if her neighbor could identify the owner of a stray (走失的) dog that Alice had recently rescued. A quick and lasting friendship resulted.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150个左右；2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Learning of Abby’s concern for the fate of her flock, Alice volunteered to help
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Abby is gone now, but her concern for her fellow creatures lives on.
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10 . As our lives become more closely connected with the digital age, it’s more important than ever to keep the spark of human connections, a key part of which is making small talk.
The cornerstone of effective small talk lies in developing genuine interest. Genuine interest is about actively seeking to understand the other person, valuing their perspectives and appreciating the uniqueness they bring to the conversation.
Small talk extends beyond spoken words; it includes the art of observation. As you engage in conversation, pay attention to the speaker’s body language, facial expressions and tone of voice.
Actually listening and connecting with someone is essential for a conversation. By providing your undivided attention, you convey respect and interest in what the other person has to say.
At the heart of successful small talk lies the authenticity (真实性) of your engagement. Authenticity fosters a sense of trust and connection, making the conversation more meaningful and memorable. Avoid the temptation to project an image or use scripted responses.
| A．Instead, let your true self shine through. |
| B．Some accessible topics are great for small talk. |
| C．Active listening involves fully engaging with the speaker. |
| D．Focus on understanding their viewpoints beyond simply hearing words. |
| E．The signals provide valuable insights into their emotions and intentions. |
| F．Small talk may be a gateway to building rich and meaningful relationships. |
| G．By expressing authentic curiosity, you make the other person feel seen and heard. |
