A Swedish couple on holiday were traveling around Italy, and wanted to go to Capri. Capri is an island in the south of the country,1for its beautiful coastline and a popular tourist destination (目的地). The couple put their destination into their car's GPS (全球定位系统), 2 they made a spelling mistake. They 3typed CARPI instead of CAPRI. There is a real place called Carpi in Italy, but it is a small town in the4of the country.
The couple followed the GPS directions. Although they were traveling to an island, it didn't5them that they didn't even cross a bridge or see the sea. When they arrived in Carpi, they went to the tourist office. They asked6they could go to the Blue Grotto, a well-known sea cave in Capri. Of course, the office worker there couldn't 7them. He thought they wanted to go to a 8called the Blue Grotto for dinner.
When the man realized that the couple thought they were in Capri, he 9their mistake. The couple got back into their car and started driving south. The office worker said, "They were10, but not angry."
It was a spelling mistake that took the couple 600 kilometres from their destination.
|
Night Noodle Markets |www.niftynoodlesatnight.com.cn Dreaming of some fantastic family entertainment? The Night Noodle Markets could be just what you and your family are looking for. Tasty food. Delicious smell at the Night Noodle Markets. Enjoy the Asian-style street food. Great locations. Top outdoor dining at all the main squares of your city. Take a look at the menus on offer. Click on the icons below. When? Monday to Saturday, 5 pm to 11 pm. Where? Click HERE to find a Night Noodle Market in your city. |
We all have our favourite music, films or books — but which are the most popular ever?
|
The most popular album (音乐专辑) Thriller by Michael Jackson At the time Jackson started writing his best-selling album Thriller, he hoped that his album would sell 50 million copies. He was wrong — it sold over ten million more than that. Even today around 130,000 copies are sold in the USA every year. |
| The most popular classical music Beethoven's Fifth Symphony When Beethoven was alive, his Fifth Symphony wasn't his most popular piece of music. But now most people know the da da da dah introduction. In the 20th century, the first four notes (音符) were used by other musicians to make different types of music like hiphop and rock and roll. |
| The most popular novel A Tale of Two Cities Many people think the best-selling book of all time is one of the Harry Potter books. It's true that all the Harry Potter books together have sold about 450 million copies. But the most popular single novel is much older. A Tale of Two Cities was written by Charles Dickens in 1859 and has sold 250 million copies. |
| The most popular ________ The Shawshank Redemption The Shawshank Redemption, directed by Frank Darabont in 1994, didn't make much money at the cinema. It only became popular later on video, DVD and TV. It was based on a book by Stephen King. The writer sold the story for only a dollar. |
I think there are several reasons that suggest developing robots is a waste of money.
In San Diego recently $325,000 was spent on inventing a robotic squirrel to do some scientific experiments. The research proved that squirrels are able to scare away snakes by wagging (摇动) their tails. Do you need a robotic squirrel to work this out?
What about AIBO, a robotic pet, developed in Japan? In Japanese aibou means “buddy”. These pets have been developed at huge cost mainly to provide entertainment. They've been used in movies and music videos. Universities have used them for educational purposes. However, in 2006 the company stopped producing these robotic pets in order to save money. Was it worth a lot of money?
Then there's NAO, a robot which has been developed by a French company. Its main purpose is to make life easier for humans. It speaks 19 languages and has its own personality. It can tell children a story, help in the classroom or the home, or act as a companion to those people who need someone to be with. A fully developed one costs $16,000. Is that value for money? Who can afford it anyway?
There may be good reasons why it is worth developing robots, but so far I haven't thought of any.
"This is John," said Mr Turner. The boy standing next to him was tall, with a friendly face. I noticed Adam and Chen give each other the thumbs (大拇指) up. That meant they were going to invite him to join the cool group. They smiled at him and he smiled back.
Mr Turner always gave new students a buddy with the same hobbies as them. I was sure he wouldn't choose me. I wasn't one of the cool kids.
"Hyun, I want you to be John's buddy this term," said Mr Turner. Me? I couldn't believe my ears! Everyone in the class looked in my direction. Adam and Chen even looked unhappy.
John walked over to my desk and sat down beside me. He smiled at me. "Hello," he said in a confident voice.
"Hello," I replied, not looking at him.
All morning I could feel the boys in the cool group looking angrily at me, but John didn't seem to notice.
Finally the bell rang for a break. I had butterflies in my stomach. I knew that Adam and Chen were going to make fun of me in front of John, and that John would decide that he'd rather be buddies with them.
Sure enough, as soon as we got outside, Adam and Chen swaggered (大摇大摆地走) up to us.
"Mr Turner says you're a good basketball player, John," said Adam. "How'd you like to play with us at lunch break? Hyun doesn't know anything about basketball."
"No thanks," said John. "I'd rather play chess with Hyun, if he doesn't mind. Mr Turner says he's an excellent player."
I was walking on air as John and I crossed the playground. I remembered the saying we learnt in class about not judging (判断) a book by its cover. I completely misjudged John.
A: Do you think the Olympics can change a city even after the Games finish?
B: Oh, yes. They can really change a city and help the people who live there.
A:
B: Yes, of course. One example is the Beijing Olympics. They built a new swimming centre.
A: A great example! Can the Games make money for a city?
B: Sure. More people go to those cities even after the Games.
A: What about children?
B: Before the Games, many children preferred to play video games and watch TV.
A: It's really a big change.
A. Tourists make money for a city.
B. Can you give us an example?
C. Now they begin to do more sports outside.
D. Do you play a lot of sports?
E. How can the Olympics change them?
F. Many people think the Olympics cost a lot of money.
G. Now it has become a popular place for people to visit.
Hi, Tom,
Thanks for your message and I am glad that you wrote to me for ideas.
I remember when I was learning English, I felt uncomfortable about speaking. I could remember lots of words and knew grammar rules, but speaking was difficult. I now feel a lot more confident about speaking, so here are some ideas that I have taken from my own experience.
Don't worry about making mistakes. Other people will still know your meaning and they probably won't notice your mistakes.
Use every chance you get to speak. For example, it's a good idea to use only English in class and not to speak to your classmates in your own language. At home, you should also try practicing new words and grammar learnt in class.
Think about extra speaking practice outside the classroom. You can join a conversation group, such as the chat groups in the study centre. They are free to join.
Practice speaking online. There are lots of websites where you can communicate with someone from all around the world.
I hope this helps you and please come to me if you have other problems.
Best wishes,
Eliza
注意：
1）词数90左右。开头和结尾已为你写好，不计入总词数；
2）文中须包括所有要点，每个要点可适当发挥，使文章连贯、通顺；
3）文中不得提及真实的人名、校名等相关信息。
参考词汇: workshop n. 工作坊
Welcome to our school. I'm Lin Tao. I'm glad to introduce our Green Planet Club to you.
Let's work together for a green planet. Thank you!
