1 . Humans are pretty unique among life on Earth. As far as we know, we’re the only living species to evolve the higher intelligence, wear clothes, cook our food, and even invent smartphones. But what if humans suddenly went extinct? What other animals might evolve to have the smarts and skills to create large,complex societies as we have?
With modern genetic technology and our understanding of evolution, “we’re pretty good at making short-term predictions. “Martha Reiskind, an ecologist, told Live Science. For example, we can predict that if humans were to disappear tomorrow, climate change would continue to drive many species to adapt to drought. And species living in cold areas would continue to struggle to live as well.
“A big thing will be the concept of convergence.” Dougal Dixon, a geologist, told Live Science Convergence is an evolutionary process by which two unrelated creatures develop similar features in order to succeed in a particular environment. For example, with their sleek (光滑的) bodies and fins, fish are suitable for living in water. However, dolphins have evolved a very similar body plan—and unlike fish, they are warm-blooded, air-breathing animals with a totally different evolutionary background.
One feature that makes humans uniquely good at building is our skillful hands. In order to fill the same role as humans—that is, building cities and heavily modifying our environment—another species would need to develop a similar ability to control objects. Other primates (灵长目动物), like chimpanzees. our closest living relatives, already can make tools in the wild. It’s possible that if humans disappeared, they might replace us.
But any disaster terrible enough to destroy humans is also likely to destroy chimpanzees, which leaves another tool-using candidate to fill humans place: birds. Birds are very brainy. Some birds can use their feet to form wire into hooks. And trained African grey parrots can learn upwards of 100 words and do simple math, including understanding the concept of zero. Birds can also gather in large groups, and some even build group nesting sites.
Of course, all of these are predictions. Scientists have said it’s almost impossible to truly predict how evolution will unfold. As we go further and further out, the prediction is less accurate. And it’s even more difficult to predict whether another species will develop human-level intelligence, Some think that it could happen. Others, however, are less optimistic because they don’t think nature will make mistakes twice.
1. Why does the author mention fish and dolphins in Para. 3?A.To show how dolphins evolved |
B.To explain what convergence is. |
C.To show the advantage of the fish shape |
D.To explain the feature of animals living in water. |
A.The ability to make tools | B.The habit of group living |
C.The ability to do simple math | D.The close relationship with humans |
A.Sea animals. | B.Chimpanzees |
C.Birds. | D.Dogs. |
A.Hopeless. | B.Challenging. |
C.Promising. | D.Uncertain. |
A.honest | B.generous | C.brief | D.precious |
A.As for | B.Apart from | C.After all | D.Except for |
A.cut off | B.put off | C.take off | D.set off |
A.which | B.where | C.whose | D.that |
6 . The library is the heart of a university——its collections, services, and study spaces are central to every student’s educational journey. Let’s take a look at some famous university libraries around the world.
Magdalen College Old Library
Oxford University is famous for its academic programs, but it’s also known for its outstanding libraries that are said to include more than 11 million books. The Old Library at Magdalen College is the crown jewel of the university’s library system. It contains more than 20,000 rare books and manuscripts. Nearly all of these volumes were published before 1800.
TU Delft Library
The library at the Delft University of Technology was constructed in 1997, which has more than 862,000 books, 16,000 magazine subscriptions and its own museum. But it will only take a glance to be attracted, as it is a sight to remember. The building itself exists beneath the ground, so you can’t really see the actual library. What makes it interesting is the roof, which is a grassy hill.
Trinity College Library
The Trinity College Library in Dublin is the oldest library in Ireland, founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I. It contains more than 200,000 of the library’s oldest books. Treasures of the library’s extensive collection include a rare copy of the 1916 proclamation of the Irish Republic and a beautiful 15th century harp (竖琴).
Joe and Rika Mansueto Library
Opened in 2011, the Joe and Rika Mansueto Library at the University of Chicago is designed with a grand glass roof, perfect for staring out when you are tired. The library can hold around 3.5 million volumes through its underground automatic storage and retrieval system. If you are not already impressed, the librarians, robotic cranes, will knock your socks off. They can locate and bring you any book within an average time of 3 minutes.
1. What do Magdalen College Old Library & Trinity College Library have in common?A.Both house stringed instruments. | B.Both feature attractive designs. |
C.Both boast numerous ancient books. | D.Both gain recognition as crown jewels. |
A.TU Delft Library. | B.Trinity College Library. |
C.Magdalen College Old Library. | D.Joe and Rika Mansueto Library. |
A.The glass roof. | B.The volume of books. |
C.The storage system. | D.The robotic librarians. |
A Little Boy
A little boy selling magazines for school walked up to a house that people rarely visited. The house was very old and shabby and the owner hardly ever came out. When he did come out, he would not say hello to his neighbors or passers-by but simply just glared at them.
The boy knocked on the door and waited, sweating from fear of the old man. The boy’s parents told him to stay away from the house, and a lot of other neighborhood children were told the same thing from their parents.
Dusk found the boy lingering on and hesitating what to do. As he was ready to walk away, the door slowly opened. “What do you want?” the old man said impatiently. The little boy was very afraid but he had a quota (定额) to meet for school with selling the magazines. So he got up the courage and said, “Uh, Sir, I am selling these magazines and, uh, I was wondering if you would like to buy one from me.”
The old man just stared at the boy without a word. The boy could see inside the old man’s house and saw that he had dog figurines (小雕像) on the fireplace mantle. “Do you collect dogs?” The little boy asked. “Yes, I have many collections in my house. They are my family here and they are all I have.” The boy then felt sorry for the man, as it seemed that he was a very lonely soul.
“Well, I do have a magazine here for collectors. It is perfect for you. I also have one about dogs since you like dogs so much.” The old man was ready to close the door on the boy and said, “No, boy. I don’t need any magazines of any kind, now goodbye.”
The little boy was sad that he was not going to make his quota with the sale. He was also sad for the old man being so alone in the house that he owned. The boy went home and then had an idea. He had a little dog figurine that he got some years ago from an aunt. The figurine did not mean nearly as much to him since he had a real live dog and a large family.
注意:1. 续写词数应为150左右;
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The little boy headed back down to the old man’s house.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________From that day on something changed inside the old man.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1. Why does Diana say sorry to Peter?
A.She needs to put off her test. |
B.She has to give up her travel plan. |
C.She wants to visit another city. |
A.Help her with her study. |
B.Teach a geography lesson. |
C.Take a book to her friend. |
If you always hate certain vegetables. you may be more than a picky eater. Instead, you might be a “super-taster”, a person
“We don’t get the taste of food equally,” said Professor Duffy, an export in the study of food taste. “It could explain some of the differences in our food
Food scientists are trying to develop ways
We might also try to use various cooking methods, either by adding me fat, sweetness, strong flavors like garlic