I wanted to go to a party. Especially it was a beach party. It had been almost the only thing my friends had been talking about for the last couple of weeks. But My mom had said no. The more desperately I pleaded her case, the more forcefully my mother said no. “I don’t care who’s going,” said coldly my mother, “you are not going.” I was heartbroken. This was my best friend’s party.
Sunday dinner came around and my grandmother joined the family for the meal. Gran noticed my depression but didn’t say a word. It was my turn to wash up and Gran said, “Let me help you.” “What’s up?” asked Gran as I dumped the dishes into the foaming water. Gran wiped a plate with a tea towel. “Mom won’t let me go to my best friend’s party.” I said sadly. “Has mom explained why she doesn’t want you to go?” asked Gran. “No.” I replied. “Then for a moment, put yourself in her position.” said Gran. “If you were mom, what would your objections be?”
I hadn’t stopped to think about my mom’s side. “Well,” I answered, “it’s a beach party. Maybe she doesn’t trust us or thinks we’ll get into trouble.”
“Are there going to be any adults there?” asked Gran. “No,” I said, “who wants their parents hanging around when you’re trying to have fun?” “Might it just be,” said Gran, “your mother doesn’t want anything unfortunate to happen to you.”“Nothing will happen.” I objected. “Maybe you’re right,” said Gran, “but maybe mom’s worried in case it could.”
Gran looked at me gently, seeming to expect my agreement. For a minute or so, I kept silent, pondering for a while about my eagerness for the party. “Maybe, you are right, however, is there no hope?” I inquired. “Not necessarily.” answered Gran, lost in thought.
Paragraph 1: “Then maybe think of a compromise.” suggested Gran.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2: The long-awaited beach party finally came.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1. 元(一)月21日到上海后入住预定酒店；
2. 第二天、第三天去上海各地游玩，如迪士尼乐园、东方明珠、科技馆等；
3. 元月24日乘坐高铁返回。
注意：
1. 写作词数应为120左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
参考词汇：
Disneyland(迪士尼乐园); the Oriental Pearl Tower(东方明珠); Shanghai Science and Technology Museum(上海科技馆); high speed railway(高铁)
Dear Lucy,
How is everything going?
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Yours,
Li Hua
3 . Ann has been severely paralysed (瘫痪)for more than 18 years. She cannot speak and normally communicates. But now, she has been able to speak through an image on the computer using technology that translated her brain signals into speech and facial expressions.
The advance raises hopes that the technology could be on the edge of transforming the lives of people who have lost the ability to speak due to conditions like strokes (中风).
The latest technology uses tiny electrodes (电极) put on the top layer of the brain to detect electrical activity in the part of the brain that controls speech and face movements. These signals are translated directly into a digital avatar’s (化身) speech and facial expressions including smiling, frowning or surprise.
The team put 253 paper-thin electrodes on the top layer of Ann’s brain over an area important to speech. Afterwards Ann worked with the team to train the system to detect her unique brain signals for various speech sounds by repeating different phrases repeatedly. The computer learned 39 distinctive sounds and a Chat GPT-style language system was used to translate the signals into understandable sentences. This was then used to control an avatar with a voice personalised to sound like Ann’s voice before the injury, based on a recording of her speaking at her wedding.
The technology was not perfect, translating words incorrectly 28% of the time in a test run involving more than 500 phrases, and it generated brain-to-text at a rate of 78 words a minute, compared with the 110–150 words typically spoken in natural conversation. However, scientists said the latest advances in accuracy and speed suggest the technology is now at a point of being practically useful for patients. A crucial next step is to create a wireless form that could be put beneath the skull (颅骨).
1. How can Ann speak?| A．By tiny electrodes on her brain. |
| B．Through an avatar using the latest technology. |
| C．Through repeating different phrases repeatedly. |
| D．By a technology that detects her brain signals. |
| A．How the technology works. |
| B．How the technology benefits the patients. |
| C．How the technology translates the brain signal. |
| D．How the technology is put into wide application. |
| A．Ann’s cooperation. | B．Ann’s facial expressions. |
| C．An AI language system. | D．A recording of Ann’s speaking. |
| A．It is a promising way to help patients. |
| B．Its translating speed is too slow. |
| C．It cannot be applied to patients. |
| D．It is not accurate in translating at all. |
Kevin was a “slow” boy. He didn’t learn his ABCs as fast as other kids. He never came in first in the schoolyard races. However, Kevin could get along well with other people. And his enthusiasm for life was quite contagious (有感染力的). So, when he discovered that his teacher, Randy Moss, was putting together a basketball team, his mother could only answer, “Yes, you may join.”
Basketball became the center of Kevin’s life. He liked to stand in a certain spot near the free-throw line and shoot baskets. Patiently, he stood there throwing ball after ball.
The day before their first game, Randy gave each player a bright red jersey (运动衫). Kevin had stars in his eyes when he saw his number 12. He quickly put it on and almost never took it off again. Kevin and his whole team truly loved basketball. But just loving the game doesn’t help you win. More balls fell out of the basket than into it, and the boys lost every game that season, except one—the night it snowed. and the other team couldn’t make it to the game.
At the end of the season, they had the misfortune to play against the first-place team-the undefeated first-place team. The game went pretty much as expected, and near the middle of the fourth quarter Kevin’s team stood nearly 30 points behind.
At that point, one of Kevin’s teammates called a time-out. As he came to the side, Randy couldn’t imagine why the time-out had been called. “Mr. Moss, this is our last game and I know that Kevin has played in every game, but he’s never made a basket. I think we should let Kevin make a basket,” said the boy.
With the game completely out of reach, the idea seemed reasonable, so the plan was made. Every time Kevin’s team had the ball, Kevin was to stand in his special spot near the free-throw line and they would give him the ball.
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。
His first shot bounced around but missed.
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Soon, all the players threw the ball to Kevin and clapped for him.
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Neesha, an 8-year-old golden retriever, is a lucky dog. After spending a fortnight on her own without food or real shelter, the tough dog was accidentally spotted by a couple, who in spite of the cold weather, were hiking the range and came across her.
Two weeks earlier, Neesha’s owners had taken her and their other dog, a German shepherd named Harley, for some outdoor exercise. Frightened by a deer, both dogs ram away. Harley found his way back to the parking lot the next day, but Neesha did not.
The family made a thorough search. They left a laundry basket of unwashed clothing near the spot where they’d last seen Neesha in the hope that she’d head straight towards the familiar smell marker. They even turned to the Internet for help in finding Neesha—but there was still no sign of her.
“We posted our experience on social media. Then a weekend later, we were still looking for her. We were starting to give up hope,” said the pet’s owner Erina O’Shea Goetelen told The Irish Times.
Eventually, the family began to accept that Neesha might not be coming home. “We just thought she is 8, and it’s been two weeks. There was no way she could survive.“
Doctors Ciara Nolan and Jean Francois Bonnet must truly be crazy hikers. They braved the elements on the freezing day when the couple decided to reach one of Wicklow’s peaks. As they neared the top, Nolan was shocked to see a dog shaking in the snow.
“She was frightened, freezing cold. She didn’t have enough energy to bark or stand, ”Bonnet said in an interview. “We tried to get her to walk, but she couldn’t stand. So we covered her with our spare clothes and gave her some food.”
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。
Bonnet lifted Neesha onto his back for the long path down the mountain.
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Neesha’s owners could hardly believe it when they learned their dog had been found alive.
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A third-grade class knows exactly what will brighten an older neighbor’s holiday meal-and it isn’t a roast turkey. In October, I told the eight-year-olds I taught in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, about my plan. “I’d like all of you to do extra jobs around the house to earn some money, ”I said. “Then we’ll buy food for a Thanksgiving dinner for someone who might not have a nice dinner otherwise.”
I wanted the children to experience that it’s more blessed to give than to receive. I wanted them to understand that religion is more than nice theological (神学的) ideas; that people somehow have to make it come alive.
Early in Thanksgiving week, the boys and girls arrived in class with their hard-earned money and couldn’t wait to go shopping. After pacing up and down in the supermarket, we put a turkey and decorations in the shopping cart (购物车). At last we headed toward the checkout, and then someone spotted a “necessity” that sent them racing. “Flowers!”
“We have Kristine cried. The group rushed toward the holiday plants. I pronounced, limited money and after all, you can’t eat flowers.”“But Mrs. Sherlock, ” the group replied, looking at me eagerly, “we want flowers.”Defeated, sighed as the children put a bunch of pink roses into the cart.
An organization had given us the name and address of Maria, a needy grandmother who had lived alone for many years. Soon we were bouncing along a rough road to her house. We finally pulled up in front of a small house in the woods. A thin woman with a tired face came to the door to welcome us.
My little group hurried to get the food. As each box was carried in, the old woman kept saying “Thanks”一much to the visitors’ pleasure. When Amy put the pink roses on the table, the woman seemed surprised. She was wishing it was a bag of flour, I thought. Having talked for a while, we returned to the car.
Paragraph 1
As we fastened our seat belts, we could see the kitchen window.
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Paragraph 2
Upon seeing the moving scene, the children became quiet.
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“Sun, sun, sun, here it comes…”
Danny sang while his fingers pressed and pulled skillfully at the guitar strings, delivering a slow and peaceful tune. A circle of audience had formed, nodding and moving slowly to the song.
Lying at the feet of the street performer was his most adoring fan: One-Eyed, a white stray (流浪) dog with pieces of brown. Danny felt the name was suitable considering its physical disability. Usually, One-Eyed would bark loudly as Danny performed. Much to his annoyance, people often mistook the pair as owner and pet. At this time, Danny would reply, “My dog? No!”, eyes rolling at the idea. How he wished the dog would leave him alone instead!
On a snowy night, while Danny was performing, a bird flew downward, landing into the midst of the crowd. It cooed happily as if to harmonize with Danny. Unfortunately, that did not sit well with One-Eyed, which immediately bounced at it and the bird flew away desperately.
The unexpected chaos upturned Danny's hat, which could have been filled with notes and coins from his appreciative audience, leaving it ignored on the ground. "Argh! The hateful dog!” Danny broke down, thinking to himself, “Either the dog goes or I go!”
On the next night, Danny tried to find a new place and chanced upon the park. For a while his earnings were good unsurprisingly as there was a steady flow of visitors. However, that didn't last long. One-Eyed came along and appointed itself as Danny's guardian. "Argh! Here comes the hateful dog again!" That night, Danny hadn't made enough money he should have, all thanks to the troublesome dog.
Danny was almost mad with One-Eyed. “What should I do? Call an animal shelter?” Torn by this problem, he walked aimlessly by the lake of the park. With all his mind focused on how to get rid of the dog, Danny didn't watch his steps. Suddenly, he slipped and fell into the lake accidentally. Struggling in the icy water, he cried for help desperately, almost choking to death. Sensing the approach of death, Danny got into overwhelming panic.
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。
Just then, a familiar barking was heard in the distance.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________“My hero! Thank you for saving me,” Danny said gratefully with watery eyes.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Ella’s First Fashion Creation
Ella was wearing a new dress and she felt like a famous model, Even better, it was a dress she made! Her very first piece of fashion!
“What do you think?” she asked her family. They were all gathered at the kitchen table for breakfast. “It’s very pretty. I can’t believe you designed and sewed that all by yourself!” Mom said.“I’m so proud of you! How long did that take?”Dad asked. Ella pulled out her chair and sat down.“Two weeks! But I think I could make the next one faster. I had a few problems.
Ella smiled. She had so many problems making the dress, but right now it was all worth it. It was going to be a great day.
The kids at school weren’t quite as excited about her dress as she thought they would be, but she did get some nice comments from some of the girls, so she was happy about that. The day went by quickly, and before she knew it, she was outside for the last break of the day. What a perfect day, she thought to herself as she swung on the swings.
The school bell rang and the break was over. When the swing was close to stopping, Ella jumped off. When she landed, she heard a loud rip (撕裂). She moved her hand to the back of her dress. It was ripped all the way down the back! Her very first fashion creation fell apart! Ella was so embarrassed.
Ella spotted her teacher, Miss Miller, near the door. Ella took one hand from her dress and waved for Miss Miller to come to her. Miss Miller came up and looked at the back of Ella’s dress.“Oh no! And it is such a beautiful dress!” “I made it myself,” Ella said. “You must be very proud! You did a great job!” “Not really. Or it wouldn’t have ripped.” “Well, that happens sometimes. Even with clothes you buy in the store!”
注意：
1.续写词数应为150词左右；
2.请按如下格式作答。
Miss Miller took off her sweater and helped Ella to pull it on.
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“We can’t avoid problems,” said Mom.
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注意：不得透露学校、姓名等任何个人信息。
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"Why did you do this without asking for my permission first? Don't you know it's a total waste of time and it will have a bad influence on your study?" That's what my mother yelled at the ten-year-old me when she found out that I had signed up for an English story-telling competition.
I bowed my head; yes, she was right. By then I was entering Grade Six, faced with the biggest challenge yet to come — the examination to enter my dream junior high school. For that. I had given up my beloved piano lesson, my favourite cartoon program and even the joyful weekend family reunion with my cousins. I wouldn't be surprised at all if my very strict-university-teacher mother got angry at me when I chose to do anything that had little to do with study at that important moment. In her opinion, if I hadn't spent all my time on my study I would have difficulty in entering my dream junior high school.
But that's not all to it. When I was ten, I was nervous, shy, tongue-tied when facing strangers, and essentially a bookworm. These signs looked fatal (致命的) to my mother, and possibly to you, too; she thought that I could be anything but a good public speaker.
Well, I myself actually said no to my English teacher at first, because I had never done anything like that before and I was afraid. But he told me that — since I liked reading so much, why not try to tell a story I love to everyone? He also promised me that the judges were not frightening at all; just think of them as carrots and cabbages in a vegetable garden.
The ten-year-old me was persuaded by my teacher's words.
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Apparently surprised by my determination, my mother looked as if she was close to another explosion-but she only sighed and agreed.
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