New trains run across rocky mountains and the Great Wall to the north of Beijing like bullets( 子弹).They run on a high﹣speed railway line between Beijing and Zhangjiakou. The opening was on Dec 30,2019.
The railway is an important support project for the 2022 Winter Olympics. The 174﹣km railway's trains move at a top speed of 350 km/h. This reduces the travel time between Beijing and Zhangjiakou, the Winter Games will be held there, from over three hours to only 47 minutes. It has 10 stops in total.It will help improve tourism. There are places of interest nearby.
Some of the trains on this railway are smart trains that can run by themselves.
With the help of the Beidou Navigation Satellite System, they can automatically( 自动)start, run between stations, change their timing according to the time table, correctly stop at a station, and open and close their doors. Passengers can also watch live sports programmesduring the Winter Olympics on the train, which is helped with 5G technology.
Some people consider Zhan Tianyou as "the father of China's railways". Who is Zhan Tianyou? In 1872, the Qing government chose 30 young boys to be sent to the US to study.They were the first students in Chinese history to study abroad. Zhan Tianyou was one of them.After graduating from Yale University, Zhan came back to China. In 1905, the Qing government decided to build a railroad between Beijing and Zhangjiakou. Zhan, who studied engineering, led the project. The project is best known for its Y﹣shaped switchback(人字形坡路).There are many mountains along the Being ﹣Zhangjiakou railway. It was difficult for trains to climb the mountains.
He led construction(建设)on the old Bejing Zhangjiakou railway, China's first independently ﹣designed railway. It was not possible to build a railway without foreign help at that time. But Zhan, the head engineer of the railway project, insisted(坚 持) that it could be done. Zhan came up with an idea to reduce the slope(坡度):a Y﹣shaped switchback.Instead of going directly from A to B along a steep( 陡的)slope, the train goes from A to C first and then from C to B. This makes the slope much less steep.
After many difficulties. the Beijing﹣Zhangjiakou line went into operation in 1909. Its trains ran at 35 km/h.
As President Xi Jinping said, the Beijing﹣Zhangjiakou railway stands for the development of China' s railways over more than a century, as well as China' s development in general.
(1)Which is not correct about the Beijing﹣Zhangiakou high﹣speed railway?
A. |
Its construction is of great value for the 2022 Winter Olympics. |
B. |
It was based on the old Beiing Zhangiakou railway that was built by foreigners. |
C. |
Not all of the trains on this railway are conducted by man. |
D. |
The trains on this railway are faster than before. |
(2)Thanks to , the trains on the Bejing Zhangjiakou high speed railway can start automatically.
A. |
the Beidou Navigation Satellite System |
B. |
Zhan Tianyou |
C. |
5G technology |
D. |
Yale University |
(3)Which is wrong about Zhan Tianyou?
A. |
He is remembered as one of the most important engineers in Chinese history. |
B. |
He took the advice of Qing government and designed V﹣shaped switchback on his own. |
C. |
He was chosen and sent to the US to study engineering with other young boys in 1872. |
D. |
Though he went through a lot of difficulties, he succeeded at last. |
(4)What do the underlined words mean? They mean .
A. |
sports programmes that are happening while they are shown |
B. |
sports programmes that are lively |
C. |
sports programmes that are popular |
D. |
sports programmes that last long time |
(5)Why was the old Beijing﹣Zhangjiakou railway designed its Y﹣ shaped switchback? _____
A. |
To help people know more about sightseeing nearby. |
B. |
To make China's first independently﹣ designed railway famous. |
C. |
To make the trains speed up. |
D. |
To reduce the difficulty of building. |
Kindergartens( 幼儿园 ) may teach you very important things you need to know. Dancy, a 5-year-old boy, saved his father’s life with the skills he learned.
The boy’s father became seriously ill on the way home from a father-son shopping. He couldn’t speak and could hardly move, but he tried hard to stop the car safely. At that point, Dancy used his father’s phone to call his mother for help. The 5-year-old boy tried his best to give her useful information and he was able to tell where they were. Just as he had learned in the kindergarten, Dancy read the letters he saw on a nearby store sign: “F,U,R,N,I,T,U,R,E.” But that wasn’t enough for his mother to find them. Then he added that they were near a bridge. Finally, his mother understood he was talking about a store called Furniture 22 on New Jersey’s Route22.The mother called 911 and the father was saved in time.
“He just thought his dad needed help,” Dancy’s mother told the reporter. She also pointed out that her husband was a hero, too. “ It is surprising for him to get off the highway ( 高速路 ) and get himself and his child to safety even when he was so sick,” she said.
Shine, head of the kindergarten, felt proud of his pupil. “ Dancy’s spelling skills helped him seize the moment,” he said. “And that’s the real value (价值 ) of education.”When the father became seriously ill, he and his son were ________.
A.on the highway | B.at home |
C.in a shopping center | D.in a hospital |
Dancy called ________for help when his father couldn’t speak.
A.his mother | B.911 | C.Shine | D.the reporter |
The Chinese meaning of the word “seize” in this passage is probably“________”.
A.成功 | B.抓住 | C.救援 | D.失去 |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Dancy drove his father home. |
B.The reporter was really a hero. |
C.Shine sent Dancy’s father to hospital |
D.Dancy saved his father with his spelling skills. |
Sometimes the easiest way to get somewhere is on the back of a bike.
More and more people are using cars in many places in Africa today. However, things are different in Malawi( 马拉维 ).Bikes are the most popular in this African country.
Bike riding is a way of life in Malawi. People use them to carry heavy things. They also use bikes to carry people, especially tourists. These years, taking a “ bicycle taxi” to travel around Malawi has become quite popular among tourists from all over the world.
If you go to Malawi, you will find a lot of bike taxis waiting on the sides of the roads. The riders make the bikes comfortable for passengers to sit on . You can jump on a bike taxi and get around at a very low cost.
Alice is a 21-year-old student from Canada. She enjoys the special bike riding a lot. “I really like the bike taxi,” she says. “It’s easy and cheap.” Alice usually pays just $1 for going shopping in town.
28-year-old Panjira Khombe began to ride a bike taxi two years ago. The young man enjoys this job.“I used to make boats for a living, but that’s a hard job. Being a bike taxi rider is easy for me and I don’t mind carrying heavy people,” he says.In Malawi ________ are the most popular way for people to get somewhere.
A.cars | B.bikes | C.trains | D.buses |
The passage tells us that Alice enjoys the bike taxi because it’s________.
A.on the side of the road | B.popular and heavy |
C.all over the country | D.cheap and easy |
From the passage we can learn Panjira Khombe thinks that________.
A.going shopping is easy | B.making boats is difficult |
C.riding a bike taxi is cheap | D.carrying heavy people is interesting |
The best title of the passage may be “________ ” .
A.Bike Riders | B.A Special Country | C.Bike Taxis | D.A Cheap Journey |
News Review
Head- on Train Crash On May 18, two trains had a head-on crash(相撞)near New York City. Over 250 people were on the trains then. About 60people were hurt, but no deaths were reported.
Travel Time Tourists came together to the Taishan Mountain, on May1. Over 180,000tourists
visited the place of great interest from April 29 to May 1, during the three-day holiday.
Brave Volunteer Liao Zhi , a dance teacher from Chengdu who lost her 1-year-old daughter and her legs in the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, arrived in Ya’an 13 hours after the earthquake. The dancer said she had had a terrible time herself and knew what people needed most, so she decided to come and offer help.
Tomato Competition A tomato competition was held in Huainan, Anhui Province, on April
16. The best tomatoes were chosen according to their shape, color and taste. The competition hoped to encourage the farmers to grow better tomatoes.About ________ people were hurt in the head-on crash.
A.18 | B.29 |
C.60 | D.250 |
A lot of people visited the Taishan Mountain________.
A.13 hours after the earthquake | B.on May 18 |
C.during the May Day holiday | D.on April 16 |
Liao Zhi, the dance teacher from________, came to Ya’an to offer help.
A.Huainan | B.Chengdu | C.Taishan | D.New York |
The tomato competition in Anhui Province was held to________.
A.help the people in Ya’an | B.save the people on the trains |
C.forget the terrible time | D.help grow better tomatoes |
San Francisco has many museums. You can visit one and learn something new. We have art, science, history and other special museums. Some museums are open every day. Some are only open on certain days. Many museums are expensive, and others are free. But some of the expensive ones have free days . Many museums have websites. The websites usually have information about the things you can see in the museums.
On a museum’s website you can get information about ticket prices and free days. You can also know where the museum is and when it is open. Sometimes the information is on the first page, and it’s very easy for you to find. But sometimes you have to click(点击) on the words like Visit Information, or About to find the information. That will be hard work for you.San Francisco has many museums for you visit and________.
A.learn something new | B.play computer games |
C.watch the movies | D.click on Information |
Some museums in San Francisco are open every day, but some are only open ________.
A.on weekdays | B.on weekends |
C.on certain days | D.on holidays |
Many museums have________ with information about the things you can see in them.
A.ticket prices | B.their websites |
C.open hours | D.free days |
“Would you tell me which way I should go from here?” asked Alice.
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get,” said the Cat.
“I really don’t care where” replied Alice.
“Then it doesn’t much matter which way you go,” said the Cat.
--- from “ Alice in Wonderland ”
My name is David. And I have a brother called Mike.
One day, my brother called me and asked me for some advice. He was trying to decide between two job offers:
Job 1 – The first job was your typical 40 hour a week “office” job.
Job 2 – The second job was more of a career in the insurance industry(保险业), where he would start at the bottom, and after many years and many long hours eventually rise to the top (if he was good).
The second job did not pay as well as the first job (at the beginning), but the pay-off of the second job (in the future) was much greater than the first job. So which job should my brother take? Well the answer is…it depends.
Just like the Cat was trying to tell Alice, which road you take depends a great deal on where you want to end up.
Begin with the End in Mind
I asked my brother what was his life’s purpose. He said his purpose was to “teach,” but he wanted to make a lot of money first. I told my brother to forget about the money, and I advised him to focus on his purpose. I then asked him which job best supported his end result of “teaching.” He said the first job best supported his goal because he would only have to work 40 hours a week, which would give him spare time to teach. He continued on to say, “but if I take job number two, I can work hard and make more money, then I can retire early and “teach” later in life.” I again advised him to “focus” on his purpose, not money. Things don’t end wrong, they begin wrong!
You Can’t Ride Two Horses Well
It would be very difficult to have a successful teaching career while you’re working 70-80 hours a week in the insurance business; no one can ride two horses well. As they say, you can do anything, but not everything. I advised him to get started today by choosing the job that best supported that decision.
Tomorrow Never Comes
My brother was thinking that he could always start teaching later in life, but the reality is, tomorrow never comes. Unless you decide right now to follow your feelings, they will probably never be completed. You only live once, don’t go to the end of your life with one regret.
The Money Will Come
My brother seemed to be overly concerned with making money. I told him not to be anxious about making money. You will always have greater money when you’re doing what you love.
In a word, whenever you’re at a cross-road, be sure to make the decision that best supports the goal of your life. If you do, then you will be well on your way.Mike ___________ David one day.
A.visited | B.met | C.made a telephone call to | D.found |
Mike was trying to ____________.
A.look for a job | B.start a career |
C.wok in an office | D.decide between two job offers |
As for the life’s purpose, Mike ______________.
A.wanted to teach first | B.wanted to make a lot of money first |
C.wanted to work in the insurance industry | D.wanted to work 40 hours a day |
You Can’t Ride Two Horses Well means _____________.
A.you’d better have two horses |
B.you can only ride one horse well |
C.you can do everything well. |
D.you can’t do two things well at the same time |
The best title of the passage is ______________.
A.How to choose a better job |
B.It is more important to begin than to end |
C.How to make a better decision |
D.Make more money because tomorrow never comes |