The plane is flying at an a________ of 10,000 feet.

We produce 500 billion of plastic bags in a year worldwide and they are thrown away polluting oceans, killing wildlife and getting dumped in landfills where they take up to 1,000 years to decompose. Researchers have been unsuccessfully looking for a solution.
The 16-year-old Canadian high school student, Daniel Burd, from Waterloo Collegiate Institute, has-discovered a way to make plastic bags degrade(降解) in as few as 3 months, a finding that won him first prize at the Canada Wide Science Fair, a ＄10,000 prize, a ＄20,000 scholarship, and a chance to revolutionize a major environmental issue.
Burd’s strategy was simple: Since plastic does eventually degrade, it must be eaten by microorganisms (微生物). If those microorganisms could be identified, we could put them to work eating the plastic much faster than under normal conditions.
With this goal in mind, he grounded plastic bags into a powder and concocted(调制) a solution of household chemicals, yeast(酵母) and tap water to encourage microbes growth. Then he added the plastic powder and let the microbes work their magic for 3 months. Finally, he tested the resulting bacterial culture on plastic bags, exposing one plastic sample to dead bacteria as a control. Sure enough, the plastic exposed to the live bacteria was 17% lighter than the control after six weeks.
The inputs are cheap, maintaining the required temperature takes little energy because microbes produce heat as they work, and the only outputs are water and tiny levels of carbon dioxide.
“Almost every week I have to do chores and when I open the closet door, I have piles of plastic bags falling on top of me. One day, I got tired of it and I wanted to know what other people are doing with these plastic bags. The answer: not much. So I decided to do something myself.” Said Daniel Burd.
【小题1】Daniel Burd won first prize at the Canada Wide Science Fair because      .

A．he found a new kind of microorganism

B．he contributed much to environmental protection

C．he found a way to degrade plastics in shorter time

D．he could encourage microbe growth in an easier way

The Top 4 Lies Girls Hear

  1. “You'll never be good at math.”

  It's generally accepted that boys are good at math while girls aren't. The fact is that it isn't true—at least, it doesn't have to be. When girls reach their teens，most of them lose their interest in math. They're trying to be regarded as female(女性)．They want to stay away from things that are boy things, and math is still considered a boy thing. Math class is hard, but if you gave it a chance you could be great at math, especially beacuse you are a girl.

 2. “Being skinny is good, and how you diet is your business.”

 Lots of web sites tell visitors that losing interest in eating is a beautiful thing. These“skinny is better”sites are lying. Losing interest in eating is a disease, not a fashion statement. It can kill you.

 3. “You don't deserve to make as much money as a guy.”

 It's said that in 2002 women who work full-time earn about 23 percent less than guys earn. Once you see real women succeeding in cool jobs, you'll truly get that you're worth just as much as—or  more than any guys.

 4. “Caffeine(咖啡因)will help you study better.”

 Caffeinated soft drinks have long been advertised as must haves when you have to work very hard. But if you want to do your body a big favor, you'd better give up caffeine altogether.

1.Why do girls lose their interest in math?

A．Because they don't realize the importance of math.

B．Because math class is too hard for girls.

C．Because they aren't interested in the things which are considered boy things.

D．Because girls are not as clever as boys.

2.The word “skinny” means________.

A. pretty              B．strong C．tall  D．slim

3.Supposing in 2002 a man earns $20,000, how much will a woman who doing the same job probably get?

A．$10,000  B．$15,000 C．$20,000 D．$25,000

4.Which of the statement is NOT ture?

A. Girls sometimes do better than boys in math

B. Being skinny is good for girls’ health.

C. Girls than earn as much money as boys do.

D. Caffeine can make people feel more excited.

Rock stars and their money

         Around the world young people are spending unbelievable sums of money listening to rock music. Forbes reports that at least fifty rock stars have incomes between two million and six million dollars per year.

         "It doesn't make sense," says Johnny Mathis, one of the older music millionaires, who made a million dollars a year when he was popular in 1950s. "Performers aren't worth this kind of money. In fact, nobody is."

         But the rock stars' admirers seem to disagree. Those who love rock music spend about two billion dollars a year for records. They pay 150 million to see rock stars in person.

         Luck is a key word for explaining the success of many. In 1972 one of the luckiest was Kon Mclean, who wrote and sang "American Pie". Mclean writes his own music, so he earns an additional two cents on every single record of the song.

         Neil Young who performs in torn blue jeans, sometimes sings to an audience of 10,000, each of whom has paid five dollars for a ticket. After paying expenses, Young leaves with about $ 18,000 in his blue jeans at the end of an evening.

         How do the rock stars use their money? What do they do when the money starts pouring in like water? Most of the young stars simply show the money around. England's Elton John gave someone a $ 38,000 Rolls car and bought himself 5,000 pairs of eyeglasses, then lighted up and spelt ：E-L-T-O-N. He also bought himself two cars, "one for each foot".

         Many rock stars live like Grace Slick and Jefferson Airplane. Those performers return from a tour, pay their bills, and buy new toys. Then when they need money again, they do another tour. They save no money and live from hand to mouth.www.zxxk.com

         In the end the rock stars' life is unrewarding. After two or three years riches and fame are gone. Left with his memories and his tax problems, the lonely star spends his remaining years trying to attract strangers. New stars have arrived to take his place.

1. This passage is mainly about       .

A. the success of a rock star     B. the way rock stars live

C. rich rock stars              D. the admirers of rock stars

2. How much expense does Neil Young pay for a performance?

A.  $10,000       B.$33,000    C.  $32,000            D.$38,000

3.According to passage, the underlined phrase "from hand to mouth" means       .

A. they have to earn money by hand   

B. They know how to spend money in a reasonable way

C. they earn money only for their immediate enjoyment

D. they steal to feed their mouth when they need money

--Why are you so depressed, Lily?
--- I lost the contest narrowly, or I _________ the award of $10,000.