President Barack Obama rode a bicycle at the White House Science Fair on April 22. But it wasn’t an ordinary bike. As he pedaled, the President stayed in place, while the energy from his pedaling powered a water filtration (过滤) system. He was testing an invention created by a team of 14 students from Northeast High School, in Oakland Park, Florida.

Payton Karr, 16, and Kiona Elliot, 18, attended the fair as representatives of the project.“We were hoping President Obama would ride the bike, but we didn’t actually expect him to,” Payton told TFK. “ It really meant a lot.” Kiona agreed. “It was pretty awesome to see the invention, which was invented by a group of 14 high school students and one teacher, along with the help of community members, got the interest of the leader of our nation,” she said.

The project was an idea that came about after one of the Northeast students, Kalie Hoke, visited Haiti after the terrible 2010 earthquake and saw how difficult it was to find clean water. The students invented a portable(便携的), bicycle-powered emergency water filtration system, which can provide 20-30 people with drinking water in a 15-hour period. The teens hope their invention will one day be used by relief organizations like the Red Cross. “ They can take it to places after natural disasters so that water can be clean for the people there,” said Payton.

Payton and Kiona were among the 100 students from more than 40 states invited to the third annual White House Science Fair, in Washington, D.C., which is also attended by leaders in science and education. President Obama started the event in 2010 to stimulate students interested in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths).“Well, if you’re a young person and you produce the best experiment or design, you ought to be recognized for that achievement,” Obama said when he first announced the fair.

President Obama praised the projects during a speech to attendees after the fair. “The science fair projects of today could become the products and businesses of tomorrow,” he said. “If you’re inventing things in the third grade, what are you going to do by the time you get to college?”

1.What is special about the bicycle President Obama rode?

A. It can move very fast.                          

B. It is extremely beautiful.

C. It is used to make water clean.                   

D. It is made of eco-friendly materials.

2.The representatives of the bicycle-powered water filtration system_________.

A. were both community members                   

B. graduated from a famous university

C. finished the project with the help of their parents     

D. were surprised that their invention interested Obama

3.The bicycle-powered water filtration system was designed ________________.

A. at the request of the Red Cross               

B. for city families to get pure water

C. during the terrible 2010 earthquake in Haiti      

D. to provide people in disaster areas with clean water

4.The underlined word “stimulate” in Paragraph 4 can be replaced by _________.

A. help       B. inspire        C. change        D. entertain

5.We can know from the last sentence in the passage that President Obama _____.

A. wanted the youth to have big dreams

B. encouraged the youth to go to college

C. worried the young inventors would do nothing in college

D. believed the young inventors would have a promising future

 

One year, my school report made my parents angry. On Christmas Eve, all the presents were stolen, along with our TV. My parents told me that there were no presents because Santa was very angry with my behavior over the past year. The next year on Christmas Eve I slept downstairs with a plastic sword waiting for Santa to make sure that he didn't steal the new TV. The next morning, when I woke up, I saw Santa standing there. As soon as I saw that there were no presents, I grabbed my plastic sword and ran at him, shouting angrily: "THIEF! THIEF!"
Jack
When I was young, we always had a specific room for the Christmas tree. My mom never really liked the location, so one year she moved the tree into another room. I was convinced that Santa would not know where the tree was and would get lost in our house. I was worried that he would be mad and put me on the "bad" list and would not give me any gifts because he couldn't find the tree. I came up with the idea to make signs leading from the fireplace to the tree. They said things like: "Tree this way" or "Santa, put the gifts over here." When my big brother saw them he began to laugh his head off.
Lucy
Does everyone remember going to the mall and sitting on Santa’s lap to have his picture taken at Christmas time?
Well, I used to think that if I did that, Santa would get mad bcause he would have to go all around the world and give every kid the chance to have his picture taken with him. Of course his lap would hurt and he would be very fired. I thought he might keep a copy of the picture and that would be how he decided who would be on his naughty list.
My mom couldn't get me onto Santa's lap until she made him promise I wouldn't end up on his naughty list.
Lydia
【小题1】The real reason why Jack's TV was taken away is that ______________.

A．his parents were too careless

B．his parents thought he had watched too much TV

C．Santa Claus was not satisfied with Jack’s behavior

D．Santa gave the TV to another child as a present

【小题2】Which of the following is NOT one of the reasons why Lucy didn't want the tree to be moved?

A．Santa would not know where the tree was.

B．Santa would be angry and would not give her any gifts.

C．Her big brother might laugh at her.

D．Santa might think she was a "bad" child.

【小题3】We can learn from the third story that _______________.

A．Lydia’s mother was very Strict with her

B．Lydia believed in Santa when she was young

C．Lydia was naughty when she was young

D．Lydia liked taking pictures with Santa

【小题4】Why didn't Lydia want to take pictures with Santa?

A．She was afraid that Santa would get mad with her.

B．She was afraid that Santa would get too tired and hurt himself.

C．She disliked the idea that Santa would keep a copy of her picture.

D．She feared that she would appear in the Santa's naughty list.

One year, my school report made my parents angry. On Christmas Eve, all the presents were stolen, along with our TV. My parents told me that there were no presents because Santa was very angry with my behavior over the past year. The next year on Christmas Eve I slept downstairs with a plastic sword waiting for Santa to make sure that he didn't steal the new TV. The next morning, when I woke up, I saw Santa standing there. As soon as I saw that there were no presents, I grabbed my plastic sword and ran at him, shouting angrily: "THIEF! THIEF!"

Jack

When I was young, we always had a specific room for the Christmas tree. My mom never really liked the location, so one year she moved the tree into another room. I was convinced that Santa would not know where the tree was and would get lost in our house. I was worried that he would be mad and put me on the "bad" list and would not give me any gifts because he couldn't find the tree. I came up with the idea to make signs leading from the fireplace to the tree. They said things like: "Tree this way" or "Santa, put the gifts over here." When my big brother saw them he began to laugh his head off.

Lucy

Does everyone remember going to the mall and sitting on Santa’s lap to have his picture taken at Christmas time?

Well, I used to think that if I did that, Santa would get mad bcause he would have to go all around the world and give every kid the chance to have his picture taken with him. Of course his lap would hurt and he would be very fired. I thought he might keep a copy of the picture and that would be how he decided who would be on his naughty list.

My mom couldn't get me onto Santa's lap until she made him promise I wouldn't end up on his naughty list.

Lydia

1.The real reason why Jack's TV was taken away is that ______________.

A．his parents were too careless

B．his parents thought he had watched too much TV

C．Santa Claus was not satisfied with Jack’s behavior

D．Santa gave the TV to another child as a present

2.Which of the following is NOT one of the reasons why Lucy didn't want the tree to be moved?

A．Santa would not know where the tree was.

B．Santa would be angry and would not give her any gifts.

C．Her big brother might laugh at her.

D．Santa might think she was a "bad" child.

3.We can learn from the third story that _______________.

A．Lydia’s mother was very Strict with her

B．Lydia believed in Santa when she was young

C．Lydia was naughty when she was young

D．Lydia liked taking pictures with Santa

4.Why didn't Lydia want to take pictures with Santa?

A．She was afraid that Santa would get mad with her.

B．She was afraid that Santa would get too tired and hurt himself.

C．She disliked the idea that Santa would keep a copy of her picture.

D．She feared that she would appear in the Santa's naughty list.

 

Mark Twain left school when he was twelve. He had little school education. In spite of this, he became the most famous writer of his time. He made millions of dollars by writing. His real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens, but he is better known all over the world as Mark Twain, his penname.
Mark Twain was born in 1835 and he was not a healthy baby. In fact, he was not expected to live through the first winter. But with his mother’s care, he managed to survive. As a boy, he caused much trouble for his parents. He used to play jokes on all his friends and neighbors. He didn’t like to go to school, and he often ran away from home. He always went in the direction of the nearby Mississippi(密西西比河). He was nearly drowned nine times.
After his father’s death, Mark Twain began to work for a printer, who only provided him with food and clothing. Then, he worked as a printer, a river-boat pilot and later joined the army. But shortly after that he became a miner. During this period, he started to write short stories. Afterwards he became a full time writer.
In 1870, Mark Twain got married. In the years that followed he wrote many books including Tom Sawyer in 1876, and Huckleberry Finn in 1884, which made him famous, and brought him great fortune.
Unfortunately, Mark Twain got into debts in bad investments(投资) and he had to write large numbers of stories to pay these debts. In 1904, his wife died, and then three of his children passed away.
At the age of 70, his hair was completely white. He bought many white suits and neckties. He wore nothing but white from head to foot until his death on April 21, 1910.
【小题1】In his childhood, Mark Twain, ________.

A．learned a lot at school

B．he often went swimming with other boys

C．his mother often worried about his safety

D．he often played games with other boys

【小题2】Which of the following shows the right order about Mark Twain?
a. He became a miner.           b. He worked as a printer.
c. He got into debts.           d. His father died.
e. He became a full-time writer.    F. He joined the army.

A．a—d—b—c—e—f	B．d—b—f—a—e—c
C．d—a—f—e—b—c	D．c—b—d—f—e—a

【小题3】In order to make a living, Mark Twain _______.

A．first worked as a printer	B．did many kinds of work
C．wrote stories in the beginning	D．joined the army after he worked in a mine

【小题4】From the passage we can see that Mark Twain _______.

A．had a happy childhood

B．was a good boy and always did what he was asked

C．was very naughty when he was young

D．lived a pleasant life

【小题5】Before his death, Mark Twain _______.

A．became a white man	B．was in low spirits
C．liked to buy all kinds of clothes	D．had nothing on

Mark Twain left school when he was twelve. He had little school education. In spite of this, he became the most famous writer of his time. He made millions of dollars by writing. His real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens, but he is better known all over the world as Mark Twain, his penname.

Mark Twain was born in 1835 and he was not a healthy baby. In fact, he was not expected to live through the first winter. But with his mother’s care, he managed to survive. As a boy, he caused much trouble for his parents. He used to play jokes on all his friends and neighbors. He didn’t like to go to school, and he often ran away from home. He always went in the direction of the nearby Mississippi(密西西比河). He was nearly drowned nine times.

After his father’s death, Mark Twain began to work for a printer, who only provided him with food and clothing. Then, he worked as a printer, a river-boat pilot and later joined the army. But shortly after that he became a miner. During this period, he started to write short stories. Afterwards he became a full time writer.

In 1870, Mark Twain got married. In the years that followed he wrote many books including Tom Sawyer in 1876, and Huckleberry Finn in 1884, which made him famous, and brought him great fortune.

Unfortunately, Mark Twain got into debts in bad investments(投资) and he had to write large numbers of stories to pay these debts. In 1904, his wife died, and then three of his children passed away.

At the age of 70, his hair was completely white. He bought many white suits and neckties. He wore nothing but white from head to foot until his death on April 21, 1910.

1.In his childhood, Mark Twain, ________.

A. learned a lot at school                                       

B. he often went swimming with other boys

C. his mother often worried about his safety    

D. he often played games with other boys

2.Which of the following shows the right order about Mark Twain?

a. He became a miner.                          b. He worked as a printer.

c. He got into debts.                       d. His father died.

e. He became a full-time writer.         F. He joined the army.

A. a—d—b—c—e—f                   B. d—b—f—a—e—c

C. d—a—f—e—b—c          D. c—b—d—f—e—a

3.In order to make a living, Mark Twain _______.

A. first worked as a printer

B. did many kinds of work

C. wrote stories in the beginning

D. joined the army after he worked in a mine

4.From the passage we can see that Mark Twain _______.

A. had a happy childhood

B. was a good boy and always did what he was asked

C. was very naughty when he was young

D. lived a pleasant life