1 . So proclaims Scrooge’s nephew Fred as he thinks about the hopelessly hardened heart of his uncle in Charles Dickens’ classic, A Christmas Carol (赞歌). A concern for the “least among us” spread through Dickens’ life and filled his novels. It shines with particular clarity in “A Christmas Carol,” beloved by generations.
Charles Dickens grew up in industrializing London of the early nineteenth century. As a young boy, he knew both well-being and poverty. When his father ended up in prison, so did the rest of the family — except Charles. Twelve-year-old Charles was sent into the London workforce and labored ten hour days at a shoe blacking factory to help make ends meet. Dickens never forgot the degrading conditions and the scorn (蔑视) for the poor that he experienced. He also came to know first-hand the miserable life in London’s slums (贫民窟).
Later, Charles was fortunate enough to be left a modest inheritance by his grandmother, and receive an education. But his concern for the poor, for those who lived in his city’s slums never left him. He fought for the poor and abandoned with what became his sharpest weapon — the pen. His novels, from Oliver Twist (1839) to Great Expectations (1861) artfully memorialized many of the characters and situations he had lived as a boy. Some of his books were responsible for lawmaking and action to improve conditions for the poor.
The lesson of Charles Dickens’ life for children is indeed a Christmas carol: that generosity, charity and service can be practiced in many ways and should depend on one’s talents. Some may go into the slums and attempt to improve lives through better education, housing or nutrition. Others may donate funds. Still others should pick up their pens. But all should be attentive to the needs of fellow passengers on the journey of life. To that end, we can think of no better hero than Dickens.
1. What is Dickens’ lifelong concern?| A．Poor people. | B．His family. | C．His novels. | D．Life in the slums. |
| A．Persistent and caring. | B．Heroic and modest. |
| C．Attentive and generous. | D．Loving and humorous. |
| A．They changed the poor’s conditions. |
| B．They were responsible for legislation. |
| C．They were based on his early experiences. |
| D．They memorialized the miserable life in slums. |
| A．Charles Dickens’ life in slums. |
| B．Charles Dickens’ influence on people. |
| C．What Charles Dickens did for the poor. |
| D．Charles Dickens’ masterpieces in his life. |
2 . When you are communicating, you spend nearly 60% of your time listening to other people, but most people only remember 25% of what they hear.
Do you find yourself looking at your phone or following a TV show during a conversation with a family member or a friend? These little distractions can have much bigger consequences than you might think and you should try to limit them completely. When you are listening to someone, put everything else aside and give your full attention to the person.
Empathize with the person
When you are listening to another person, try to think what they might be feeling or going through at that very moment. Empathy towards other people can be improved by imagining yourself in different situations, as well as by learning more about people and different cultures.
Ask more questions
Being a good listener doesn’t just mean that you sit quietly and let the other person speak, you also need to ask meaningful questions. Try to find an answer to questions “why” and “what”.
Train your emotional intelligence
The way you are able to manage your own emotions influences your ability to listen to other people.
| A．Be more open |
| B．Be more present |
| C．The good news is that you can practice it. |
| D．Don’t hurry or pressure the person into saying anything. |
| E．So how can you listen more and become the person people want to talk to? |
| F．Don’t start listening to someone with a predicted idea of what the person should do or say. |
| G．Don’t be afraid to ask for a clarification because misunderstandings can harm the conversation. |
The Great Wall
The Great Wall, a
The Great Wall resembles a Chinese dragon circling the mountains,
The Great Wall is a symbol of Chinese civilization, It has been put down on the World Heritage List. It is
4 . It would be much more convenient if electric cars could be recharged wirelessly. Some electric toothbrushes and other small devices, such as mobile phones, can already be topped up in this way using a process called electromagnetic induction (电磁感应). This employs some kind of electrical current flowing through a coil (线圈) to create a varying magnetic field, which then generates another current in a second coil placed alongside it, which is used to recharge a battery.
As users of electric toothbrushes and phones will know, device and charger must be both close to each other and precisely adjusted for this process to work. That is tricky to achieve with an electric car, which sits above the ground and requires higher levels of energy transfer.
These problems are being overcome with advances like that made by WiTricity, a firm based near Boston. This company was founded in 2007 to commercialize the work of Marin Soljaèi and his colleagues at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr Soljaëi knew, in theory, that by having the transmitting and receiving coils resonate (共振) at the same frequency it should be possible to transfer greater amounts of energy over longer distances. In practice, he sought to commercialize the system to large companies, such as BMW.
An advantage of wireless recharging is what WiTricity’s boss calls “power snacking”. This is topping up the battery when a car is stationary for a short time. The company provides systems to recharge taxis in this way while they wait in line, and to do the same for electric buses at bus stops. It is also possible to charge vehicles while they are on the move. That might make sense in places where vehicles often queue up, such as at airports.
1. How can electric devices be charged wirelessly?| A．By devices close to chargers. |
| B．By high levels of energy transfer. |
| C．By an electrical current flowing through a coil. |
| D．By a process of electrical currents transformation. |
| A．Commercializing the system to BMW. |
| B．Charging vehicles while they are on the move. |
| C．The transformation of energy over longer distances. |
| D．The good cooperation between the transmitting and receiving coils. |
| A．Moving. | B．Motionless. | C．Firm. | D．Unchanging. |
| A．Various forms of wireless-charging systems. |
| B．Advantages and disadvantages of wireless-charging. |
| C．How to charge a car with a wireless-charging system. |
| D．Wireless vehicle-charging is starting to look promising. |
1. 旅游地点；
2. 描述你的体验和感受。
注意：
1. 词数100左右；
2. 题目已为你写好。
Learning through Traveling
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