Years after throwing a bottle-up note into a lake for a class project and just one year after his death, a man’s childhood message was found and returned to his mother.

Eleven years ago, a then 10-year-old boy, Joshua Baker, wrote the message, folded and put it in an empty container, his mother, Maggie Holbrook said. He died last February in a motor vehicle accident in California. He had recently returned after a serving in the Middle East as a US marine. “I think he was just letting us know he was OK and keep doing what we are doing.” Holbrook said.

The message surfaced in White Lake in late April, just days after the 11th anniversary of its being thrown into the lake. It was found by one of Baker’s closest friends, Steve Lieder, she said. Lieder and two friends were chatting near the lake when Lieder looked down and saw the bottle. He broke it open and found the note inside.

“My name is Joshua Baker. I am 10. If you find this, put it on the news. The date is 4/16/98.” They immediately took it to Holbrook, who said she is now having the note preserved and will display it in her home.

She can remember when her son wrote the message for the school project. She said she always wondered why he didn’t put it in the nearby Wolf River, which has a much stronger current.

“I still remember the day he wrote it, ” Holbrook said. “I couldn’t understand why he threw I in the lake. No one would never see it again. Now I know.”

What was Joshua Baker when he died in motor vehicle accident in California?

  A. An official    B. A soldier    C. A worker     D. A teacher

Which of the following statements is correct according to the passage?

 A. The man threw the bottle into the lake without any purpose.

 B. The man didn’t put the bottle into the nearby river because it had a strong current.

 C. Not until recently did his mother understand why he put the bottle into the lake.

 D. The man made the bottle-up note so as to let his parents know he was OK.

The best title for this passage would be___.

 A. A man’s Bottle Message Found After His Death  

 B. A Ridiculous and Unbelievable Bottle Message

 C. A Strange Bottle-up Note Appearing In a Lake

 D. An Important Childhood Message 11 Years After His Death

  Among the four skills in learning English ,which of these is the “Odd-Man-Out”?The answer is speaking. The other three you can do alone on your own. But you can't really speak alone! Speaking to yourself can be “dangerous” because men in white coats may come and take you away!?

Where can you find people to speak English? And how can you practise speaking when you are alone??

At school if you pay to go to a language school ,you should use the chance to speak .If your teacher asks you to speak in pairs or groups with other students ,try to say as much as possible. Don't worry about your mistakes. Just speak!?

Conversation Clubs Many cities around the world have conversation clubs where people can exchange one language for another .Look in your local newspaper to find a conversation club near you .They are usually free although some may charge a small entrance fee.?

Shopping Even if you don't want to buy anything ,you can ask questions about products that interest you in a shop.“How much does this cost?” “Can I pay by cheque?” Often you can start a real conversation—and it costs you nothing!?

Cafe and Bars There are often American, Britain, Irish and Australian bars in many large cities .If you can find one, you'll probably meet many people speaking English as a first or second language.?

Language is all around you Everywhere you go, you find language .Shop names, street names ,advertisements ,notices ,and car numbers....When you walk down the street ,practise reading the words and numbers that you see .Say them to yourself .It's not exactly a conversation ,but it will help you to “think” in English .But don't speak too loud!?

Songs and Video Repeat the words of an English-language song singing with the music until it becomes automatic. It's good practice for your memory and for the mouth muscles that you need for English.?

Above all ,speak as much as possible! Make as many mistakes as possible! When you know that you have made a mistake, you know that you have made progress!?

1.What does “Odd-Man-Out” probably mean according to the passage??

A.Someone or something appearing different from others.?

B.Someone or something standing out of the group.?

C.Someone or something arranged in pairs.?

D.Someone or something easily mistaken for another.?

2.What might happen if you speak to yourself loudly in public??

A.The police will take you away and punish you.?

B.The doctors will force you to stay in hospital.?

C.You will have to pay to escape being punished.?

D.You will be forbidden to be member of the club.?

3.Why does the writer say “Make as many mistakes as possible”?Because _______.

A.everyone will make mistakes in learning English?

B.everyone will meet people speaking English with some mistakes?

C.making mistakes is a must in making progress in learning English?

D.making mistakes can make one realize the importance of speaking?

4.According to the passage,which way is not likely to be accepted by English beginners?

A.Recite poems loudly along the riverside.?

B.Listen to some English pop songs and video.?

C.Find an Englishman to speak English with.?

D.Take to the TV showing programmes at home.?

 

I was asked in an email about learning idioms in a foreign language.Maybe I am different from most people,but I do not bother with them.To me they are kind of dessert of language learning.They come at the end of a meal.Once you have filled up with the solid fare—the key words and phrases that are used in a variety of situations,then you can add a few idioms to spice up things.And by that time you will be able to pick them up naturally anyway.

I find that many learners have an obsession(困扰) with slang and idioms,as if repeating some very colloquial expressions is going to upgrade how they sound in a language.In fact it is the opposite.Idioms are difficult to use correctly.They can easily sound very strange coming from someone who obviously does not have a good sense of the language.

Yes,occasionally you hear idioms or slang and do not understand.But,in my experience,there are always situations where you do not understand.It is best to focus on the most important words,what they mean and how they are used.Certainly,it is best for a non?native speaker to stick to standard speech.

Some teachers even try to teach the “real language”.Then you hear non?native speakers saying things like “I gonna” ,“You wanna” etc.I just cringe(厌烦).

You will learn all the idioms you need just by exposing yourself to the language.In general,you can save any phrase that you find interesting,and if that includes idioms,go to it.But I would not make any special effort to go after idioms.I,in fact,avoid them.If I come across something in Russian that strikes me as a particularly slangy or idiomatic use of words,I just leave it aside; do not even bother trying to learn it.If it keeps on appearing,then I will learn it.But I would certainly be reluctant(勉强的) to try to use it.

 

1.In the writer's opinion,when one learns a new language,one should learn its idioms ________.

A.at the beginning   B.on one's own

C.in the end       D.without help

2.The underlined word “colloquial” in Para.2 means “________”.

A.oral       B.informal

C.formal       D.written

3.It can be inferred from the passage that________.

A.idioms are the most important part in a language

B.the writer is not very willing to use idioms

C.non?native speakers should learn more idioms

D.there are no ways to master idioms

4.Which of the following is the best title of the passage?

A.It's better to avoid idioms in a language

B.Idioms are very charming in a language

C.How to learn idioms in a language

D.Why it's difficult to use idioms in a language

5.How did the writer develop the passage?

A.By inferring.

B.By comparing.

C.By listing examples.

D.By giving explanations.

 

根据短文内容,从下框的A---F选项中选出能概括每一段主题的最佳选项。 选项中有一项为多余选项。

【小题1】                                             
Americans have learnt more about drinks than they were 20 years ago. Now, encouraged by recent studies suggesting that it can cut the risk of cancer and heart disease and slow the aging process, tea is enjoyed by more and more people. Enough fashionable tea houses are appearing to make even longtime coffee drinkers consider changing drinks.
【小题2】                                
Tea is found in more places than ever. The Tea Association of the United States reports that from 1990 to 1999, yearly sales of the drink grew to $4.6 billion from $1.8 billion. “Green tea is seen by people as a ‘functional food’” — bringing health beyond food itself, says Vierhile.
【小题3】                                
Recently published studies point out that only teas that come from the leaves of the plant Camellia sinensis contain health benefits. Other teas may taste good, yet they do little more than warm up the drinker. But for Camellia sinensis, the evidence is powerful. In a 1998 study, Harvard University researchers found that drinking one cup of black tea a day lowered the danger of heart disease by as much as 44 percent compared with non-tea drinkers, and other studies have suggested that the antioxidants (抗氧化剂) in these so-called real teas can also prevent cancer.
【小题4】                                
One such antioxidant in green tea is ECGC, a chemical 20 times as powerful as vitamin E and 200 times as powerful as vitamin C. “When people ask me for something good and cheap they can do to reduce their cancer risk, I tell them to drink real tea,” says Mitchell Gaynor, director of medical oncology (肿瘤学) at New York City’s Strang-Cornell Cancer Prevention Center.

What doomed the Titanic is well known, at least in outline. On a moonless night of April 15, 1912, the ship hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic ,with 1,500 lives lost.

A century later many people presented new theories to explain the real reason for the disaster. Now two new studies argue that rare states of nature played major roles in the disaster.

The first says Earth’s nearness to the Moon and the Sun — a proximity not matched in more than 1,000 years — resulted in record tides that help explain why the Titanic met with so much ice, including the fatal iceberg.

Recently, a team of researchers found an apparent explanation in the heavens. They discovered that Earth had come unusually close to the Sun and Moon that winter, enhancing their gravitational pulls on the ocean and producing record tides. The rare orbits took place between December 1911 and February 1912 — about two months before the disaster came about. The researchers suggest that the high tides refloated masses of icebergs traditionally stuck along the coastlines of Labrador and Newfoundland and sent them adrift into the North Atlantic shipping lanes.

And a second, put forward by a Titanic historian from Britain, contends that the icy waters created ideal conditions for an unusual type of mirage(海市蜃楼) that hid icebergs from lookouts whose duty was to watch carefully for  danger ahead and confused a nearby ship as to the liner’s identity, delaying rescue efforts for hours.

Most people know mirages as natural phenomena caused when hot air near the Earth’s surface bends light rays upward. In a desert, the effect prompts lost travelers to mistake patches of blue sky for pools of water. But another kind of mirage occurs when cold air bends light rays downward. In that case, observers can see objects and settings far over the horizon. The images often undergo quick distortions — not unlike the wavy reflections in a funhouse mirror.

Now, scholars of the Titanic are debating these new theories. Some have different opinions on it. Over all, though, many experts are applauding the fresh perspectives.  (words:353)

1.The underlined word "It" in the title probably refers to _______.

A.the Titanic         B.the record tide     C.the cause of the disaster   D.an unusual mirage

2.According to Theory First, what was the right chain of causes leading to the Titanic’s disaster?

① record tides’ forming and icebergs’ being refloated

② icebergs’ being drifted into the North Atlantic shipping lanes

③the Earth’s strange closing to the Sun and the Moon

④increasing of the gravitational force on the ocean

A.①→②→③→④    B.③→④→①→②    C.④→③→②→①    D.②→③→④→①

3.According to Theory Second, the disaster happened to the Titanic mainly because______.

A.the freezing weather made the watcher not be able to watch clear

B.the mirage on the sea attracted the watcher and made him forget his work

C.the high tides drove the icebergs float so fast that the watcher didn’t respond to them

D.the mirage made the watcher not find icebergs and a nearby ship delay rescuing

4.What is the chief function of the sixth paragraph?

A.to infer the possibility of the mirage appearing

B.to explain to the readers the ways of the mirage forming

C.to summarize the various kinds of the mirage

D.to analyze the conditions of the mirage arising

5.This passage is organized generally in the pattern of________.

A.comparison and contrast                  B.time and events

C.conclusion and proof                    D.definition and classification(分类))

 

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