Back in Brisbane, Australia, for the Christmas break, I found myself in a public transport dead zone. Bikeless, 7 kilometers from where I was meeting friends and unwilling to get a taxi, I decided to borrow an electric scooter. The trip took far longer than it would have by bike, mainly because of a major spill halfway there. A rock, hit at speed, is a terrible thing: weeks later, I still had the red knees of a primary schooler.
In the UK, they are legal (合法的) only on private land, but the Department for Transport is discussing how to control them on public roads and pathways, with the possibility for legalization later this year. Other cities that have e-scooter rental programs have had problems in the early period. In Paris, Mayor Anne Hidalgo described the situation last year as messy. She has announced that the city is reducing its number of e-scooters to 15,000 and plans to create laws forbidding them from pavements (人行道). France has put into force laws limiting e-scooter speeds to 25 kilometres per hour.
Similar to dockless (无桩的) hire bicycles, e-scooters are parked on pavements and people leave them up trees or throw them into rivers. Wild treatment shortens their lifetime, which is bad for both profitability (盈利) and the environment. Analysis suggests that the average e-scooter’s lifetime is just three months.
I think e-scooters are an basic part of the effort to make city transport greener. They are seen as a key to the “last mile” problem—a potential way to reduce transport jam by rapidly getting someone to their final goal. Cars can take up 28 times the space of a person riding a bicycle. As far as the environmental effect goes, recent research suggests that e-scooters are not as green as walking or cycling, but they are still better than cars. And though there are still many reports of serious accidents, scooting is about as safe as cycling. Stephen Gossling at Lund University in Sweden has suggested we build car-free “micromobility” streets, where cyclists, pedestrians (行人) and e-scooters could share the road. He thinks this will reduce accident risks and invite more vulnerable (易受伤害的) traffic participants, such as children, to become active transport users. If more e-scooters mean fewer cars on roads, an improvement in local air quality is also a likely result. When 20 kilometers of roads in central London closed for World Car-Free Day last September, the air quality was greatly improved according to the report.
1．What does the underlined part “a major spill” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?| A．A serious fall. | B．A sudden illness. | C．A legal reaction. | D．A terrible breakdown. |
| A．They are illegal on pavements. | B．They are already out of fashion. |
| C．They are facing more limits. | D．They are more common on private land. |
| A．They are not as safe as cycling. | B．They always cause the traffic jams. |
| C．They are as green as cycling or walking. | D．They play a big role in the “last mile” problem. |
| A．To set up more care-free days. | B．To invite more cyclists to use e-scooters. |
| C．To get vulnerable pedestrians off the road. | D．To separate cars from e-scooters on the road. |
The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms. In China, the 24 solar terms were created thousands of years ago to guide agricultural production.
Rain Water stands for the increase in rainfall and rise in temperature. With its arrival, lively spring—like scenery starts: the river water melt, wild geese fly from south to north, and trees and grass turn green again.
Here are four things you may not know about Rain Water.
Rain in spring is as precious as oil.
According to an old Chinese saying, the rainfall in spring is as precious as oil. In northern China the spring drought is common and the rain of this season is only 10 to 15 percent of yearly average(平均) rainfall.
Return of a cold period
Extra care is needed to deal with a returning cold time in the late spring that often happens during Rain Water. The fast increase in air humidity(湿度) can result in lower temperature and wet weather.
Visit to in-laws(姻亲)
One of the main customs during Rain Water is sons-in-law visiting their in-laws and giving gifts. According to the tradition, gifts are usually two cane chairs with four meters of red belt which represents good health and long life. Another typical gift is a pot of cooked dish that contains pig’s knuckles(蹄) with soya and kelp. The son-in-law expresses his respect and thankfulness this way.
Nutritious porridge
The wet and damp weather during Rain Water is considered harmful to people’s health according to Chinese medical practice. So a bowl of nutritious porridge is the best choice to keep the body alive and healthy.
1．When Rain Water arrives, what happens?| A．①② | B．②③ | C．①④ | D．③④ |
| A．building houses in the countryside |
| B．providing land or crops with water |
| C．keeping sheep, horses, hens and other animals |
| D．spending all days on farming |
| A．not to take off thick clothes too early |
| B．not to stay up late all night |
| C．to exercise more |
| D．to protect them from the heat |
| A．Some food, two cane chairs and desks. |
| B．Chairs, pigs, soya and kelp. |
| C．Delicious dish, four can chairs with two meters of red belt. |
| D．Two chairs and a pot of cooked dish. |
How to spend our time properly
Where has our time gone? How should we spend our time properly?
If so, I’m sure we will live a happier school life.
Mr. Black is the best doctor in a hospital. He is quite busy at work during the day. So he
One day, Jeff was ill. He had to go to the hospital and Mr. Black was just his doctor. “If you stop
| A．hopes to | B．needs | C．can’t | D．hopes |
| A．early | B．late | C．quick | D．quickly |
| A．His all neighbors | B．All his neighbors | C．Neighbors | D．Neighbors all his |
| A．live | B．lives | C．lived | D．to live |
| A．sold | B．buys | C．bought | D．buying |
| A．in the morning | B．in the afternoon | C．in the evening | D．in the daytime |
| A．needn’t | B．can’t | C．shouldn’t | D．can |
| A．ever | B．never | C．many times | D．often |
| A．play | B．playing | C．to play | D．played |
| A．at the moment | B．no time | C．in time | D．soon |
| A．read; to read | B．to read; to read | C．to read; read |
Can plants talk? Modern research has found something amazing: they do communicate with each other through certain “language”.
It has been known for some time that plants use chemicals (化学物质) to communicate with each other. This happens when a plant gets attacked (攻击) by insects. The plant gives out chemicals from the leaves that are being eaten. This is like a warning, or a call for help: “I’m being attacked!” When another plant gets the chemicals, it starts to give out its own, different chemicals. Some of these chemicals drive insects away. Others attract (吸引) the wasps (黄蜂)! The wasps kill the insects that are eating the plants. Scientists hope to learn more about this plant warning system (系统), so that we can use it to grow more crops.
More surprisingly, plants also use sound to communicate. People can’t hear these sounds; but plants are making them. Some plants make noises with their roots.
Most surprisingly of all, plants have an amazing system of communication that can connect nearly every plant in a forest. Scientists call this system the “wood wide web”. The wood wide web is connected underground by fungi (霉菌). It connects the roots of different plants to each other. It is in some ways similar to the Internet we use. Using the wood wide web, plants can share information and even food with each other. However, it may cause bad effects. Plants may use it to steal food from each other, or spread chemicals to attack other plants. Perhaps one day scientists will learn how to create a “firewall” to help stop these attacks within the wood wide web.
1．What will plants do when they are attacked by insects?| A．They will ask people for help. |
| B．They will kill the insects by themselves. |
| C．They will control the wasps to kill the insects. |
| D．They will produce chemicals as a warning or a call for help. |
| A．Sound. | B．Wasps. | C．Food. | D．Forest. |
| A．By making noises with their roots. |
| B．By spreading chemicals to each other. |
| C．By sharing food and information with each other. |
| D．By connecting the roots of different plants to each other. |
| A．corners | B．courses | C．results | D．forms. |
| A．The Plants that Give Warnings. | B．The Secret “Language” of Plants. |
| C．Why Scientists Do Research about Plants. | D．The Study about the Plant Warning System. |
| A．Nothing; none | B．None; nothing | C．Neither; none | D．Nothing; none |
| A．needn’t, do | B．don’t need to, need | C．need not to, needn’t | D．don’t need to, do |
| A．a few | B．a little of | C．a bit | D．plenty of |
It was the last day for Teddy in the company. After he packed up all his personal belongings, he started back home. An old lady stood on the side of the road. He a
Even with the smile on his face, she was w
He said, “I am here to help you, Madam. Why don’t you wait in the car where it is warm? By the way, my name is Teddy.”
Well, all she had was a flat tire(爆胎), but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Teddy lay down and moved under the car changing the tire. But he had to get d
As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down the window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from St. Louis and was only just passing though. She was grateful for his help.
Teddy just smiled as he finished the work. The lady asked how much she owed him. Any amount would be all right with her. She already i
He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could do him or her a favour w
He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold day and he had felt d
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