Chrissy had only been in heaven for a few days. She was a (n)1angel there. Even though she was the newest angel, Chrissy had been given a very important task. She was in charge of the2. Every Monday and every Thursday, she had to be3that the clouds get together and spread their raindrops all over the world. Every living thing on the4needed rain. Trees needed rain to grow5and strong. Grass needed rain to6green. All the animals had to have water to7and to take baths in. And of course flowers needed rain to look lovely and smell wonderful. So making the rain come was a very important8! But no one had told Chrissy how to make it rain, and she didn't know what to do at all.
Chrissy asked one of the old angels if he could9her. "The angel that had the job before you used to tell sad stories to the clouds, and that made them cry," said the old one. But Chrissy was a very10little angel and she didn't know any sad stories. So she didn't think that would work.
Thomas Alva Edison is one of the greatest inventors of all times. One of his most famous achievements is the electric light. He tried thousands of times to make a long-lasting light bulb (灯泡) Although the light bulb is not his invention, he is the only one to have made such a successful light bulb. Many people remember him for the invention of the electric light. He held a lot of patents (专利权) worldwide. Many of them were approved (批准) in the USA.
We can find his inventions in many fields. In fact, many of the advanced inventions were based on his ideas. He invented a phonograph (留声机), a film picture camera, a ticket recorder and so on.
Edison was not a good student at school. But he loved to do new experiments. When he was still a child, he built his first lab to perform his experiments.
An amazing story of Edison's childhood is that he almost made his servant die. Edison used to think that birds ate insects and these insects might make them fly. So he collected these insects and blended them to make juice. He then let his servant drink the juice. After drinking the juice, the girl lost her sense. But luckily, she was saved.
No one knows exactly when jazz was invented, or by whom. But it is said that it began in the early 1900s.Jazz was a new kind of music, for America and the world, and New Orleans was its birthplace.
Who were the jazz pioneers? Most were blacks. This music was not written down, and at first only blacks played it. It was hard for white musicians to learn the new style. But soon they, too, were playing jazz.
The popularity of this music spread. From New Orleans, it traveled up the Mississippi to Chicago, then to Kansas City and New York. By the 1920s, there were many jazz musicians, both black and white. Many of them were famous. One man was better than the rest. His name was Louis Armstrong.
Louis Armstrong was a born musician. He was not only talented but also hard-working. He also had a good sense of humour and a big, good-natured smile. These personal qualities were valuable in his rise to fame. After he became famous, he travelled around the world. It seemed that everyone wanted to hear Louis play. But life was not always easy, especially at the beginning.
Louis Armstrong was born in 1900 in New Orleans. His father never went to school and his mother could hardly read. When Louis was still a kid, his parents separated, and Louis lived with Mother. How hard their life was can readily be imagined. And yet Louis smiled through everything. He later wrote, "My whole life has been happiness. Life was there for me and I accepted it. Whatever happened has been beautiful to me. I love everybody."
阅读下列短文，从下面每小题的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出最佳选项。
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Mark Twain (1835-1910) |
●Mark Twain was a great American writer, and he was also a famous speaker. ●Samuel Langhorne Clemens (Mark Twain) was born in Florida and he was not a healthy baby. In fact, he was not expected to live through the first winter. But with his mother's tender care, he managed to survive. As a baby, he caused much trouble for his parents. He used to play jokes on all of his friends and neighbours. He didn't like to go to school, and he constantly ran away from home. |
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Early life experience |
●Born in Florida ●At 11, he lost his father ●At 13, he stopped schooling ●Tramp (流浪汉) printer ●Steamboat pilot on the Mississippi ●Prospector (探矿者) ●Reporter on the far western frontier (边远地区) ●Travel abroad |
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His death |
Mark Twain died of illness on April 21, 1910. When he passed away, newspapers around the country reported, "The whole world is mourning (哀悼). "He was a proud possession of the American nation. |
Generation Show was held in Belgium at first. With the introduction of the foreign hot show mode, Shenzhen TV organized the programme and made it popular.
It is reported that Generation Show includes several programmes. Each programme is made up of five different age groups (60, 70, 80, 90, 00). They show the skills in their own area through the years about their own story.
In the show, the stars from different ages will be invited, and tell stories about their little-known and interesting events of the past. Shenzhen TV spent huge money inviting more than 300 stars and the television production team. It nearly took one and a half years to build it. This show is an entertainment programme, which includes game contests, music performances and fashion shows.
In the show, people will see five generations (一代人). In order to find a deep feeling among different people, guests of these programmes have athletes, artists, singers, actors and so on. On the stage, they will be asked to answer questions, show their special skills and tell their stories of the times.
The host Zhao Yiou, with a good sense of humour, is very popular. His style is also a great change and achieves a great turn in Shenzhen TV.
I loved my mother's desk since I was just tall enough to see above the top of it when mother sat doing letters. Looking at the ink bottle, pens and white paper, I decided that the act of writing must be the most wonderful thing in the world.
Years later, during her final illness, mother kept different things for my sister and brother, “But the desk,” she said again, “is for Elizabeth.”
I never saw her get angry, and never saw her cry. I knew she loved me, and she showed it in action. But as a young girl, I wanted heart-to-heart talks between mother and daughter.
They never happened and a gulf opened between us. I was “too emotional (易动感情的)”, but she lived“on the surface”.
As years went by, I had my own family. I loved my mother and thanked her for our happy family. I wrote to her in careful words and asked her to let me know in any way that she did forgive (原谅) me.
I posted the letter and waited for her answer. It didn't come.
It seemed that nothing happened. I couldn't be sure that the letter had even got to her.
I only knew that I had written it, and I could stop trying to make her into someone she was not.
Now the present of her desk told me that she was pleased that writing was my chosen work, though she had never been able to. I cleaned the desk carefully and found some papers inside...a photo of my father and a one-paper letter. Folded(折叠) and refolded many times.
Give me an answer, my letter asks, in any way you choose. Mother, you always chose the act that speaks louder than words.
One day, Piere, (whom)worked in a government office, received an (invite)to a palace ball. His wife, Mathilde, had no money (buy) jewellery, so she borrowed a (beauty)necklace(项链)from (she)friend, Jeanne. She looked very beautiful. And they had wonderful time that evening.
But after the ball, she (find)the necklace missing. They had to borrow a lot of money to buy a new one for Jeanne. In order to pay back the money, they worked day and night 10 years. Mathilde became very old, so Jeanne didn't recognize her when they met in a park 10 years (late).From this story, we know a person shouldn't be affected by vanity (虚荣心), it will cost him a lot.
