Dr. Marie Curie is known to the world as the scientist who discovered radioactive metals i.e. Radium and Polonium.
Marie Curie was a Polish physicist and chemist. Together with her husband, Pierre, she discovered two new elements and studied the x-rays they emitted. She found that the harmful properties of x-rays were able to kill tumors. By the end of World War I, Marie Curie was probably the most famous woman in the world. She had made a conscious decision, however, not to patent methods of processing radium or its medical applications.
Marie Curie was born on November 7, 1867 in Poland and died on July 4, 1934. Her co-discovery with her husband Pierre Curie of the radioactive elements radium and polonium represents one of the best known stories in modern science for which they were recognized in 1901 with the Nobel Prize for Physics. In 1911, Marie Curie was honored with a second Nobel prize, this time for chemistry, to honor her for successfully isolating pure radium and determining radium’s atomic weight.
As a child, Marie Curie amazed people with her great memory. She learned to read when she was only four years old. Her father was a professor of science and the instruments that he kept in a glass case fascinated Marie. She dreamed of becoming a scientist, but that would not be easy. Her family became very poor, and at the age of 18, Marie became a governess. She helped pay for her sister to study in Paris. Later, her sister helped Marie with her education. In 1891, Marie attended the Sorbonne University in Paris where she met and married Pierre Curie, a well-known physicist.
Marie Curie contributed greatly to our understanding of radioactivity and the effects of x-rays. She received two Nobel prizes for her brilliant work, but died of leukemia, caused by her repeated exposure to radioactive material.The underlined word “emitted” in the 2nd paragraph means_______.
| A．gave off | B．gave away | C．set out | D．set off |
According to the passage, which order of the following is right?
① Marie Curie worked as a governess. ② Marie Curie met and marry Pierre Curie.
③ Marie Curie learned to read. ④ Marie Curie was honored with a second Nobel Prize.
⑤ Marie Curie discovered radium.
| A．①②③④⑤ | B．③①②⑤④ | C．①②③⑤④ | D．③①②④⑤ |
When did Marie Curie win a Nobel Prize for a chemistry?
| A．In her twenties | B．In her thirties | C．In her forties | D．In her fifties |
What does the passage mainly talked about?
| A．Marie Curie discovered radium | B．Marie Curie, a famous chemist |
| C．Marie Curie won two Noble Prizes | D．The brief biography of Marie Curie |
Honey(蜂蜜)from the African forest is not only a kind of natural sugar, it is also delicious. Most people, and many animals, like eating it. However, the only way for them to get that honey is to find a wild bees' nest(巢)and take the honey from it. Often, these nests are high up in trees, and it is difficult to find them. In parts of Africa, though, people and animals unexpected helper一a little bird called a honey guide.
The honey guide does not actually like honey, but it does like the wax (蜂蜡) in the beehives (蜂)finally arrive at the nest, the follower reaches in to get at the delicious honey as the bird patiently waits and watches. Some of the honey, and the wax, always falls to the ground, and this is when the honey guide takes its share.
Scientists do not know why the honey guide likes eating the wax, but it is very determined in its efforts to get it. The birds seem to be able to smell wax from a long distance away. They will quickly arrive whenever a beekeeper is taking honey from his beehives, and will even enter churches when beeswax candles are being lit.Why is it difficult to find a wild bees' nest?
| A．It's small in size. |
| B．It's hidden in trees. |
| C．It's covered with wax. |
| D．It's hard to recognize. |
What do the words "the follower" in Paragraph 2 refer to?
| A．A bee. | B．A bird. |
| C．A honey seeker. | D．A beekeeper. |
The honey guide is special in the way .
| A．it gets its food |
| B．it goes to church |
| C．it sings in the forest |
| D．it reaches into bees' nests |
What can be the best title for the text?
| A．Wild Bees |
| B．Wax and Honey |
| C．Beekeeping in Africa |
| D．Honey-Lover's Helper |
Cars!!! Holidays! Thousands of prizes! Hurry! Free with every packet of splash! Your personal lucky number! Will be among the 500,000 winners! Use splash for the softest…quickest… whitest wash! Don’t delay… buy a packet today!Those who bought a packet of splash________.
| A．are sure to win a prize. |
| B．are sure to be among the 500,000 winners. |
| C．could get $500,000. |
| D．could get the personal lucky number. |
Splash is________.
| A．a certain kind of material used for washing in high quality. |
| B．something like a machine used to wash clothes. |
| C．the softest, quickest, and whitest car to drive. |
| D．one of thousands of prizes for players to win. |
Which of the following diagrams(图解) shows the correct relation?
●：prize：personal lucky number ★：splash ■：cars
| A．■→→★→● | B．★→→●→■ |
| C．●→★→■→ | D．■→★→→● |
If you want to get prize,________.
| A．don’t delay joining us in playing. |
| B．you should buy 500,000 packets of splash. |
| C．please buy a packet of splash. |
| D．please drive a car as quickly as possible. |
Dolphins(海豚) live in a dark underwater world. It’s often impossible to see each other or anything else around them, so sound plays an important role in their survival. To communicate with each other, dolphins produce all kinds of sounds.
Only other dolphins understand what the sounds mean. Scientists haven’t uncovered their secret communication, except for one kind of whistle. It might last less than a second, but this whistle is a big deal. Why? Because these whistles are actually names of dolphins - and every dolphin has one. Scientists call these sounds a “signature whistle.” When other dolphins hear the whistle, they know which dolphin is calling.
Dolphins often hunt by themselves but still need to stay connected to the group. Since they can’t always see each other, dolphins use their signature whistles to check in with other dolphins hundreds of yards away. “In coastal areas, dolphins exchange whistles even when they’re a third of a mile apart,” says Greg Campbell, who studies animals. That means dolphins shout out to group members that might be nearly five football fields away.
What’s amazing is who names the baby dolphin. Not the mother. Not an auntie dolphin or another group member. Scientists believe the baby dolphin itself comes up with the signature whistle. Like human babies, a baby dolphin plays with sounds throughout its first year. While testing its sound skills, a baby dolphin is doing something amazing. It’s creating or figuring out its signature whistle. How or why it chooses its signature whistle is not clear. Studies show that most of the time the signature whistle is nothing like its mother’s or group members’ whistles.
When the baby dolphin is about a year old, its signature whistle is set. It repeats it often so the other dolphins learn to recognize it.
Deciphering(破译) dolphin names is just the beginning of figuring out what dolphins communicate about. Do they chat about sharks? Discuss the tides? Maybe they even have a name for people. Someday scientists are to decipher the rest of dolphins’ communication.Sound is important for dolphins because of ______.
| A．their poor sense of direction |
| B．their living environment |
| C．their strong enemies |
| D．their big groups |
The dolphin’s signature whistle ______.
| A．lasts along time |
| B．can travel long distances |
| C．is especially helpful in hunting |
| D．can be recognized by other animals |
The author writes the text mainly to _____.
| A．encourage readers to study dolphins |
| B．tell readers how dolphins communicate |
| C．show how lovely and clever dolphins are |
| D．introduce a special sound made by dolphins |
A baby dolphin gets its name ______.
| A．soon after it was born | B．according to its size |
| C．all by itself | D．with the help of its group |
Ask a question! Email it to Letters@Highlights.com.
Gift Giving
I'm going to China and everyone in my class is asking me to buy them something. What should I do?
Reply from the Highlights Editor:
Your classmates are probably just excited about your trip. Most likely they don't expect you to buy gifts for everyone. Sending a few postcards to the entire class during your trip would be a wonderful way to share your experiences. The pictures on the cards and your words of description will be the best gift of all.
Dog Begging
My dog always begs for food at the dinner table. I really want to feed him, but my mom says I can't. I'm afraid he won't like me anymore. What should I do?
Reply from the Highlights Editor:
Your dog loves you for many more reasons than just for what you feed him. You can show him that you care about him by playing with him, by petting him and speaking kindly to him and by making sure he has fresh water. It might be best if your dog is not near the dinner table while you are eating. You could teach him to stay in another room.
Being Bilingual(会说双语的)
My aunt insists that we speak our language(Tagalog) at home and English outside the house. Do you think she is right?
Reply from the Highlights Editor:
It is a great gift to have someone in your family who is willing to take the time to teach you another language. It's a good way to keep family traditions alive, and it helps develop your language skills. Your ability to use both English and Tagalog will help you learn a third and fourth language later in life. So it sounds like a great idea!The Highlights editor suggests the student who is going to China _______.
| A．send postcards as the gifts to the class |
| B．make phone calls to all the classmates |
| C．buy gifts for some of the classmates |
| D．give each classmate a picture as a gift |
According to the Highlights editor, if your dog begs for food at the dinner table, you'd better __________.
| A．feed him immediately |
| B．speak loudly to him |
| C．teach him to stay in another room |
| D．provide him with fresh water |
What is the Highlights editor's attitude towards being bilingual?
| A．Opposed(反对） | B．Tolerant（忍受） |
| C．Supportive（支持） | D．Doubtful（怀疑）. |
The Highlights editors give the replies to __________.
| A．show their readers how to send girls |
| B．tell their readers about their interesting work |
| C．help their readers to solve school problems |
| D．offer their readers advice on personal problems |
I became a teacher at 55 years of age. Things were going on so well during my first two periods. Then came my 3rd period class – the 8th graders with only one girl in the class. I thought the class was bad until the intercom(内部通话系统) came on and the office was asking if I was in my classroom. “Of course,” I responded. A student who knew he was going to be late for class had informed the office I was not in my classroom – 10 minutes after class began.
When the student came in and I walked over to greet him, he said, “Don’t touch me.” He then put his head on his desk and did not seem to listen to a word I said. I did not comfront(使面对) him with the “lie” to the office.
The next day he came into class on time. This time instead of listening or following instructions on keyboarding software, he played Internet games. I walked over to him. He looked at me ready to snap back(没好气地顶撞) at anything I said. I asked him, “Where did you learn to use a computer like that?” he looked at me surprised. I repeated, “You are really good at that. Where did you learn so much?” He began to tell me his father “used to” buy him games to play, but not anymore. I could feel the pain. Instead of blaming him for being off task, I surprised him and praised him for his skills. Then, I asked him to show me what he could do in our software. He was amazed.
On a Friday night at a high school football game, I really got my breakthrough(突破). From about five feet away, in front of his friends he came over to me and gave me a big hug saying, “Hi, Ms. Marie.” We talked for a while and before he walked away, he had hugged me two more times. This was a long way from “don’t touch me” on that first day.How did the boy react(反应) towards Ms. Marie’s greeting on the first day?
| A．Gratefully. | B．Coldly. |
| C．Respectfully. | D．Amazedly. |
From the dialogue between Ms. Marie and the boy in Paragraph 3, we can infer that _____.
| A．the boy was impatient with Ms. Marie’s interruption |
| B．the boy was proud to show how to play games |
| C．Ms. Marie was curious about the boy’s father |
| D．Ms. Marie felt sorry for the boy |
By saying “I really got my breakthrough”, Ms. Marie meant _____.
| A．she finally learned to play games |
| B．she won the boy’s trust in the end |
| C．she scored at the football game |
| D．she made great achievements in teaching |