备战2021年中考英语专题复习——阅读理解 2（真题）

    On February 12, 2019, Brendon Fontaine blew out five candles on a birthday cake. "He loved the cake so much," says his mother, Faith, who lives in Winnipeg with Brendon. "I had to hide it in the back of the fridge. 3

    Brendon's surprise came from Cakes for Kids, a group of home bakers(烘焙师)who know that a simple birthday cake can be uncommon for poor families like the Fontaines.

    The group was set up three years ago by Christy Rogowski, a 40-year-old who works in health care software, and her partner, Wendy Singleton. "Imagining a child who wasn't going to have a birthday cake was really upsetting," Rogowski says.

    A Facebook call-out for volunteers finally added 150 bakers to their name list. When volunteers first apply(申请), they're asked why they want to do so. "Some people have said that they didn't have a cake on their birthday growing up, and they know how important it is," says Singleton. More commonly, though, they say they want families in need to know that their neighbors care about them.

    The names of the cake receivers are provided by community organizations and Winnipeg Child and Family Services. A child might receive a cake because the family is poor. Sometimes a child is sick, leaving the family too busy to make the treat themselves. Cakes also go to children living in foster care（寄养). Jodi Korolyk, a worker with Winnipeg Child and Family Services, has so far ordered birthday cakes for five of the almost 800 kids in their system. "It shows the child they have a lot of people there to support them," she says.

    By the end of last year, Cakes for Kids had baked over 575 cakes to mark kids' birthdays, and the baking continues. Rogowski and Singleton are even considering developing the program nationally and also providing cakes for old people who live alone. After all, there's no age difference when it comes to the positive role of a well-timed cake.

    Basketball, running and swimming are popular events (项目) at the Olympics. But there are also some events that are not as popular. Some are even very strange. Let's see if you have any knowledge about the following events.

	Tug-of-war     This event started in 1900 and left the Olympics in 1920. The team wins if they pull the rope past a certain point first. Interestingly, more than one team from a country can enter in this event. This makes it possible for one country to win several medals
	Rope climbing     It first appeared as an Olympic sport in 1896. The climber who spends the shortest time reaching the top is the winner. The rope used to be 15 meters long. Years later, it was shortened to 8 meters, for some reason. After 1932, there was no rope climbing in the Olympics.
	Race walking     In race walking, walkers have to win the race by walking. To make sure that they do not run, race walkers must have one foot on the ground at all times. Race walking has been an Olympic sport since 1904. Men enter in 20 kilometer and 50 kilometer races; women only race 20 kilometers.

    On a June afternoon in 1752, the sky began to get dark over the city. As the storm broke, most people surely hurried inside, but not Benjamin Franklin. He decided it was the perfect time to fly a kite.

    Franklin had been waiting for a chance like this. He wanted to show the connection between lightning(闪电)and electricity, and to do so, he needed a storm.

    He walked into a field, and flew a kite with a piece of rope tied to it. A key was tied to the rope. The lightning hit the kite, and electricity passed through the rope to the key. Franklin then touched the key with his finger and got an electric shock(电击). This, he said, proved(证明)the electrical nature of lightning.

    For many years, schools have taught the story of Franklin's experiment. Millions of schoolchildren have been amazed by his courage and his scientific spirit of looking for the truth. However, new research suggests that the story may be fiction instead of fact.

    Although Franklin's experiment took place, more than one scientist has questioned what really happened. It's true that he did the experiment with the rope and the key. But scientists all agree that if Franklin had actually touched the key, he would certainly have died from the electric shock.

    Scientists often question accepted ideas because they want to find out the facts. Some have even questioned the story about the apple that fell on Newton's head. Many reports suggest that although the falling apple certainly provided ideas, there is nothing to show that the apple actually hit him on the head.

    In fact, fiction is often more interesting than the truth. People have been more encouraged by Franklin's spirit than by the facts themselves. But in science, facts should be tested by experiments and research, and we should not always believe everything we read or hear— even if it is a great story.

    Do you know a saying about the swan feather (天鹅羽毛)?

    This saying comes from a historic book called Lu Shi. According to the story, a Tang Dynasty official (唐朝官员) in Yunnan wanted to show his respect to the emperor. He sent a man named

    Mian Bogao to bring some gifts to the emperor. One of the gifts was a beautiful swan, and it was a very valuable gift at the time.

    Mian took good care of the swan on his way to the emperor. One day he passed by a lake and wanted to let the swan drink some water. But as soon as he set the swan free, the swan flew away, leaving only some feathers on the ground. Mian was very worried, but he didn't run away. He decided to tell the emperor what happened. He picked up a feather and kept going on his trip.

    When Mian met the emperor, he told him what happened and said, "This swan feather is light, but it carries my deep respect for you. "The emperor was happy with Mian's honesty and sincerity (真诚). He forgave Mian. People now use the saying to show that a good gift doesn't have to be expensive. What matters is the sincerity it carries.

    In China, each year we produce about 150 million tons of city waste according to a report. Where does the waste go? People usually burn or bury (埋) it. On the other hand, we receive waste from some developed countries. We get useful materials from it. What about the useless part? Still burned or buried. But is it a proper way?

    Waste pollutes the environment, harms people's health and causes animals to die. It also gets in the way of green and sustainable development. We can't make money at the cost of the environment.

    We should leave clean water and green mountains to our next generations (一代人).

    China is getting really serious about waste now.

    We are taking less waste from developed countries. From January 2018, China started to stop 24 kinds of waste coming into our country. And more laws and rules about dealing with waste have been made. Anyone who breaks the law will be punished.

    China also tries to put waste into good use. One example is the waste electricity factories. They burn waste to make electricity in a green way. No harmful gases or water will get into the environment.

    The Chinese government is encouraging people to do waste sorting(分类). Cities like Shanghai,

    Chongqing and Beijing have their own sorting systems. More will join them soon. As President Xi Jinping said during a visit to Shanghai, waste sorting is a new fashion (时尚). More and more people are forming the habit of separating their waste.

    "Miss Smith! What rough (粗糙的) hands Mary Jessup has! "said Daisy Marvin, as she walked home from school with her teacher.

    "In my opinion, Daisy, Mary's hands are the prettiest in our class"

    "Why? Miss Smith, they are as red and hard as they can be. How they would look if she tried to play on a piano! "Daisy said.

    Miss Smith took Daisy's hands in hers, and said, "Your hands are very soft and white, just the hands to look beautiful on a piano; yet they don't have one beauty that Mary's hands do .Shall I tell you what the difference is?”

    "Yes, please, Miss Smith." Daisy looked at Miss Smith, with eyes wide open.

    "Will, Daisy, Mary's hands are very busy. They wash dishes; they make fires; they hang out clothes, and help to wash them, too; they are always trying to help her poor, hard-working mother."

    Miss Smith continued, "Besides, they wash and dress the children; they mend their toys and dress their dolls; yet, they find time to bathe the head of the little girl who is so sick in the next house to theirs."

    "They do good deeds (行为) to every living thing. I have seen them patting the tired horse and the homeless dog in the street. They are always ready to help those who need help."

    "I shall never think Mary's hands are ugly any more, Miss Smith." Daisy said that with tears in eyes.

    "I am glad to hear you say that, Daisy; and I must tell you that they are beautiful because they help others gladly and cheerfully."

    "Oh, Miss Smith! I feel so ashamed of myself and so sorry, "said Daisy, looking into her teacher's face with shining eyes.

    “My dear, beauty doesn't lie in how one looks but what he does."

    Robert likes to take a walk in the park after work. One day when he was walking in the park, he heard a woman calling his name. He stopped to look around, but didn't see anything except a little snake. Shortly after Robert saw it, it was gone.

    Though Robert felt a little strange, he did not think about it too much and sat down for a rest on a bench in the park. Then he noticed the snake he had just seen climbing up the bench. Robert was too afraid to move away from the bench. Right at this moment, a woman behind him shouted, "Come here, Robert. You can't stay on the bench like that. People will be scared by you."

    In surprise, Robert turned around and said to the woman." Excuse me, but that's not a very nice thing to say, and in fact some people say I'm handsome."

    "I'm not talking to you, "said the woman." I'm telling Robert, my pet snake, to get down from the bench, not you."

    Wearing a white blouse, Ai-Da studies her subject and begins to draw. She looks like any artist at work. However, the "beep ... beep ... beep" noise from her arm gives her away. Ai-Da is, in fact, a robot.

    Ai-Da has been described as the world's "first Al (人工智能) robot artist". She takes her name from Ada Lovelace, the world's first female computer programmer. Scientists at Oxford University developed Al systems (系统) for Ai-Da. The robot has cameras in her eyeballs. After she has studied a subject, she will use her left arm to draw. Now, Ai-Da can only use a pencil for sketches (素描).The plan is for her to paint.

    Ai-Da is not the first Al system to produce artworks. Since 2006, scientists have been developing software (软件) to turn photos into drawings. Last year, an artwork created using Al was sold in New York for$432,500. However, Ai-Da's human-like appearance." brings something new to the field.

    In June, Ai-Da opened her first exhibition at Oxford. Then were about 30 drawings by the robot. Ai-Da, standing next to her artworks, attracted (吸引) many visitors.

    Ai-Da's inventor, Aidan Meller, talked about the importance of the robot. "Ai-Da bring a new voice to the art world," she said "Al is going to be the big thing of the 2020s. That influences us greatly." Meller hopes the exhibition was just the start and that more will follow to show how AI is influencing human life.

    Can a one-armed person still play basketball? You might not think so when you The single-armed 13-year-old from Guangdong has recently become an internet sensation (引起轰动的人). Featuring his dribbling (运球) skills and powerful underarm shot, his basketball videos have been viewed by more than 50 million people. Zhang even drew the attention.

    "You are an inspiration, you don 't take 'no' for an answer, you find the way to go through difficult times and get out there on the basketball court (球场) "Curry said in a video posted on Sina Weibo.

    However, it wasn't easy for Zhang to step onto the court. At the age of five, Zhang lost his right arm in an accident at an oil mill. Although it was difficult at first, Zhang gradually got used to eating and getting dressed on his own. He also keeps up with his studies in school and helps his family with chores.

    In the summer of 2018, Zhang first discovered his love for the sport when he attended a basketball course in his school. Soon, he was rarely seen without a ball in his hand, even dribble at home in the living room. He also practiced basketball in PE class. When the class was learning how to skip rope, which takes two hands, he asked his teacher to permit him to do basketball instead.

    He's gotten a lot of attention since then. Zhang said, "With the encouragement of all these people, I feel like I have to try harder to live up to people's expectations.     I will do better and become better."

    How do you feel about nature? After spending hours indoors, do you feel better when you visit your local park? Most people think that nature is good for our bodies and brains. However, humans are spending more time inside and less time outside. For example, the number of visitors to Canada's national parks is getting lower every year. And in countries such as the USA, only 10% of teenagers spend time outside every day. Many doctors feel that this is a problem in the twenty-first century.

    As a result, some doctors are studying the connection between nature and health: one example of this is the work of Dr Matilda in Sweden. The doctor gave people a maths test. During the test, their heart rates (心率) were fast. After the test, one group of people sat in a 3D-virtual-reality (虚拟现实) room for fifteen minutes with pictures and sounds of nature. Their heart rates were slower than people's in the other group.

    The virtual touch with nature helped them feel more relaxed. Another good example of how nature is good for health comes from Canada. In Toronto, researchers studied 31,000 people living in the city. In general, they found that healthier people lived near parks.

    Because of studies like these, some countries and cities want nature to be part of people's everyday life. In Dubai (迪拜), for example, there are plans for a new shopping mall with a large garden so shoppers can relax outside with trees, plants and water. In Switzerland, "forest schools" are popular. Schoolchildren study their subjects in the forests and do lots of exercise outside. And South Korea (韩国) is another good example: it has new forests near its cities and around 13 million people visit these forests every year. So after building cities for so long, perhaps it's now time to start rebuilding nature.