Too cold for recess? School policies vary as much as temps
When is it too cold for schoolchildren to go outside for recess（课间休息）? The answer varies widely based on where a school is located and what the kids are used to.
Consider: One northern Minnesota school says it has to be 15 below zero before kids are kept inside. But in areas along the East Coast, temperatures below 35 to 40 degrees could keep kids inside. Canceling recess because of the cold is no small issue considering that much of the USA is trembling through what may be its coldest winter in a generation, according to AccuWeather.
There is no national temperature standard for when to keep kids inside during the winter months, the U.S. Department of Education says. Decisions are made at the local level, either by principals or school districts.
Consequently, policies are all over the map:
• In International Falls, Minn., the self-described "Icebox of the Nation," where the average high temperature in January is 13 degrees, Falls Elementary School Principal Jerry Hilfer says, "if it's 15 below (or warmer), they go out, no matter what." "At 20 below, it gets iffy," he adds.
• In Wicomico County, Md., principals typically keep children indoors when temperatures drop below freezing, or if it's raining or snowing, says Susan Jones, the school system's director of elementary education.
"That's the bottom line," says Curtis Twilley, principal of Pemberton Elementary School in Salisbury, Md. Twilley says students get little exercise when recess stays indoors. At Pemberton Elementary, the students will typically play board games or computer games in a classroom because the school's gym is occupied with other classes, he says.
• For schools in Marquette, Mich., which averages about 12 feet of snow per season, school officials acknowledge students are probably a little more prepared than those in some more mild climates.Which of the following is not true according to the passage_________.
| A．No national temperature standard is made for when to keep kids inside during the winter months. |
| B．Susan Jones insists students get little exercise when recess stays indoors. |
| C．In Wicomico County, children are kept indoors when temperatures dip below freezing. |
| D．Mich has about 12 feet of snow per season on average. |
Which place calls itself Box of Ice?
Wicomico County B. Marquette C.Salisbury D. Minn Considering_______, canceling recess In USA because of the cold is a big issue.
| A．different schools have different principles. |
| B．much of the USA has very cold winter. |
| C．physical activity can boost student performance. |
| D．decisions are made at the local level, |
The underlined word iffy means _______.
| A．uncertain | B．surprising | C． serious | D．worse |
What will be talked about next?
| A．More school policies |
| B．The reasons why school policies vary. |
| C．Measures to improve the situation. |
| D．Necessities to improve the situation |
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Japan will hand out its first “Nobel Prize of Manga (国际漫画奖)” for artists in the comic book field abroad. This i
s another step in Japan’s efforts to show the power of pop culture diplomacy.
The International Manga Award, which was compared by manga lover Foreign Minister Taro Aso to a “Nobel Prize” when he first proposed it, will be given to an artist working abroad whose work best contributes to the spread of the manga form worldwide.
Manga, a name used for Japanese style comic books, often combines stories with drawing styles that differ from the overseas superhero comics and cartoon, particularly in their frequent emphasis on cuteness.
The winner will receive a certificate and a cup at an award ceremony, and will spend 10 days in Japan meeting with local comic book artists and publishers.
“Manga has been spreading overseas and are selling quite well,” Aso said when announcing the award to the public. “I want to further improve the communicative power of these so-called ‘pieces of pop culture’.”
Aso has argued that warm feelings for Japanese comics and cartoon can translate into warm feelings for Japanese foreign policy.
He has proposed sending cartoon artists overseas as cultural ambassadors and the government has named some officials to advise ways to promote Japanese cartoon and culture to foreign audiences.
The award committee, consisting of manga artists and publishers, is expected to make its selections quite soon.
According to a ministry official Nobuyuki Watanabe, the prize carries no money reward. The cup’s design has yet to be finished, but it will be something “appropriate”. The International Manga Award will be presented to ____________.
| A．a Japanese who has achieved a lot in creating new methods of drawing |
| B．an artist who makes contributions to introducing manga to the other foreign countries |
| C．the person who is expert at comics and cartoon |
| D．a foreign artist who has contributed to the development of manga |
Which statement is NOT true about manga?
| A．Manga is different from the overseas comic books. |
| B．Manga is popular not only in Japan but also overseas. |
| C．Manga refers to international comics and cartoon. |
| D．There are stories and pictures in manga. |
What has the Japanese government done to show its support?
| A．To propose “Nobel Prize of Manga”. |
| B．To name officials to advise ways of spreading manga overseas. |
| C．To hand out its first “Nobel Prize of Manga”. |
| D．To send cartoon artists overseas as cultural ambassadors. |
The passage is mainly about ____________.
A．Nobel Prize of Mang a |
B．the characteristics of manga |
| C．a brief introduction of manga | D．the development of manga |
Lots of people have hobbies. Some people collect old coins or foreign stamps; some do needlework; others spend most of their spare time on a particular sport.
A lot of people enjoy reading. But reading tastes differ widely. Some people only read newspapers or comics, some like reading novels, while others prefer books on astronomy, wildlife, or technological discoveries.
If I happen to be interested in horses or precious stones, I cannot expect everyone else to share my enthusiasm. If I watch all the sports programs on TV with great pleasure, I must put up with the fact that other people find sports boring.
Is there nothing that interests us all? Is there nothing that concerns everyone—no matter who they are or where they live in the world? Yes, dear Sophie, there are questions that certainly should interest everyone. They are precisely the questions this course is about.
What is the most important thing in life? If we ask someone living on the edge of starvation, the answer is food. If we ask someone dying of cold, the answer is warmth. If we put the same question to someone who feels lonely and isolated, the answer will probably be the company of other people.
But when these basic needs have been satisfied—will there still be something that everybody needs? Philosophers think so. They believe that man cannot live by bread alone. Of course everyone needs food. And everyone needs love and care. But there is something else—apart from that—which everyone needs, and that is to figure out who we are and why we are here.
Being interested in why we are here is not a “casual” interest like collecting stamps. People who ask such questions are taking part in a debate that has gone on as long as man has lived on this planet. How the universe, the earth, and life came into being is a bigger and more important question than who won the most gold medals in the last Olympics. This text is most probably taken from __________.
| A．a research paper | B．a course schedule |
| C．a personal letter | D．a book review |
Which of the following best states the main idea of the passage?
| A．Philosophical questions are as interesting as collecting stamps. |
| B．Thinking about philosophical questions is a serious interest. |
| C．Figuring out who we are and why we are here is man’s basic needs. |
| D．Philosophy has universal appeal and concerns everybody in nature. |
The author believes that __________.
| A．no existing subject can interest everyone in the world |
| B．different people may have different interests and concerns |
| C．everyone has to figure out who we are and why we are here |
| D．people in modern society pay more attention to philosophical questions |
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| A．Richard, a post-graduate from Quebec, Canada, who sent his design on Dec.20. |
| B．Amy, a 28-year-old Asian-American teacher, who sent her design on Jan. 20. |
| C．Jessie, a 16-year-old student from New York, who sent her design on Dec. 29. |
| D．John, a 68-year-old retired engineer from San Francisco, who sent his design on Jan. 10. |
Which of the following is NOT true about James Surowiecki?
| A．James Surowiecki is the author of The Financial Page column. |
| B．James Surowiecki usually has discussions with people from different fields. |
| C．James Surowiecki speaks with a chairman about issues of medicine this month. |
| D．Visiting newyorker.com/go/vasella, you can watch the conversation of this month between James and an economist. |
___________ can be provided by The Big Apple Circus Care program for sick children.
| A．Excellent treatment and care | B．Trained professional doctors and nurses |
| C．Unique methods to relieve stress | D．Special pediatric facilities |
Which of the following can be used by the Big Apple Circus Clown Care program to promote itself?
| A． We help all children live happy lives. |
| B． Our doctors jump through rings to cure the blues. |
| C． Every life deserves world class care. |
| D． Work together for a healthier world. |
Air pollution is damaging 60% of Europe’s prime wildlife sites in meadows, forests and bushes, according to a new report.
A team of EU scientists said nitrogen emissions(氮排放) from cars, factories and farming were threatening biodiversity. It’s the second report this week warning of the on-going risks and threats linked to nitrogen pollution.
Nitrogen in the atmosphere is harmless in its inert(惰性的) state, but the report says reactive forms of nitrogen, largely produced by human activity, can be a menace to the natural world.
Emissions mostly come from vehicle exhausts(排气), factories, artificial fertilizers(肥料) and animal waste from intensive farming. The reactive nitrogen they emit to the air disrupts the environment in two ways: It can make acidic soils too acidic to support their previous mix of species. But primarily, because nitrogen is a fertilizer, it favors wild plants that can maximize the use of nitrogen to help them grow.
In effect, some of the nitrogen spread to fertilize crops is carried in the atmosphere to fertilize weeds, possibly a great distance from where the chemicals were first applied.
The effects of fertilization and acidification favor common aggressive species like grasses, brambles and nettles. They harm more delicate species like mosses(苔藓), and insect-eating sundew plants.
The report said 60% of wildlife sites were now receiving a critical load of reactive nitrogen. The report’s lead author, Dr Kevin Hicks from the University of York’s Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI), told BBC News that England’s Peak District had a definitely low range of species as a result of the reactive nitrogen that fell on the area.
“Nitrogen creates a rather big problem that seems to me to have been given too little attention,” he said. “Governments are responsible for protecting areas like this, but they are clearly failing.”
He said more research was needed to understand the knock-on effects for creatures from the changes in vegetation accidentally caused by emissions from cars, industry and farms.
At the conference, the representatives agreed “The Edinburgh Declaration on Reactive Nitrogen”. The document highlights the importance of reducing reactive nitrogen emissions to the environment, adding that the benefits of reducing nitrogen outweigh the costs of taking action.The underlined word “menace” is used to express that the reactive nitrogen, largely produced by human activity can be ___________.
| A．frightening | B．threatening | C．unique | D．unusual |
We can infer from the passage that _________.
| A．it’s harmless to have reactive nitrogen existing in the atmosphere |
| B．reactive nitrogen emissions help aggressive species less than crops |
| C．the harm to those delicate species has a negative impact on biodiversity |
| D．reactive nitrogen can fertilize soils and keep their biodiversity |
The team of EU scientists released the second report of nitrogen emissions this week when __________.
| A．no action was taken to stop nitrogen emission |
| B．governments were willing to protect areas harmed by nitrogen |
| C．“The Edinburgh Declaration on Reactive Nitrogen” was agreed |
| D．nitrogen emissions were threatening wildlife sites’ biodiversity |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Keeping Away From Nitrogen Emissions | B．Stopping Nitrogen Emissions |
| C．Air Pollution Damaging Europe’s Wildlife | D．Saving Europe’s Wildlife |