Starting Cycling

We have two services designed to give people the confidence and knowledge to cycle successfully.

Lessons

All our instructors have been trained to National Standards level of “Bike-ability”. This means you will be trained to a standard consistent across the whole country.

There are 3 levels of skills to progress through. Children would start with levels 1&2, progressing from the playground or park to cycle on less busy local roads. Teenager and adult beginners can also learn levels 1&2 in an off-road and quiet environment.

Confident teenagers and adults can broaden their skills by learning level 3, using multi-lane roads and larger roundabouts. We provide both a complete package of lessons for the beginner or individual lessons tailored to the client. Whatever the need we can address and practice until perfect!

Cost is f30 per hour.

Guided Ride

We know that riding on the roads in London can be scary, and if you have to navigate as well it can become a real hard task! The Guided Ride service takes all the stress out of it for you by providing the following:

●Route planned in advance to suit your skill level. Route map provided to you.

●Cycle and equipment checked. We will teach you a simple method to check basic roadworthiness(车辆性能) of your bike that you can perform on a weekly basis.

●Route discussed and focus given to any areas requiring special attention.

●Cycle along with the instructor close behind. Here the traffic can be controlled by the instructor and rider observed.

●We currently cover London Zones 1 & 2. Please contact us if your requirements are outside of these areas.

●Cost £30 per hour.

1. Where can Level 1 &2 lessons for adult beginners be carried out?

A. Off road                                              B. Near large roundabouts

C. On busy local roads                             D. On multi-lane roads

2. What service does the guided Ride provide?

A. They check your cycle and equipment every week.

B. They help you to be familiar with all London roads.

C. They let users experience the busiest road in London.

D. They ensure users ride safely in London Zones 1& 2.

3. Who is the text probably intended for?

A. Bike riding lovers                                B. Children and teenagers.

C. Travelers in London                             D. Parents loving cycling

The setting was a packed gymnasium just before the start of a game against another school. There were five girls who were members of the Danville High School basketball team -all of them starters. They were not in uniform to play that night and would not be on the team for the rest of this season. They were there to admit their breaking of team rules. They were there to support their coach’s decision to take them off the team. They were there to let the town know there was a problem in their little community that needed to be addressed. And they did it with sincere regret rather than defensiveness.

While the school had been out for the New Years holiday, the five girls had gone to the party with several of their friends. There was alcohol there. And they all drank some.

Coach Rainville has a zero tolerance rule on drugs and alcohol for her members though it was a hard decision to make. When classes resumed and accounts of holiday parties were shared, rumors about the five girls began closing in on them. The coach said she couldn’t back down on her rules. And the players-two junior students and three senior students-agreed. That night in the gym was part of their public support of the coach’s decision.

“We hope you will understand that we are not bad kids. What we did was definitely not worth it. We hope this event will make everyone realize that there is a big drug and alcohol problem in our community,” one of the senior students said, “And if you work with us to try to solve this problem, you will help us feel that we have not been thrown off our basketball team for nothing.” The five left the floor to deafening applause.

The team may not win another game this year. But they’ve learnt something about personal responsibility, the effect of one’s action on others, and honesty that will serve them well throughout life.

1. It can be inferred from the passage that the five girls who were kicked off the team were ________.

A. very good players on the team                                     B. addicted to alcohol and drugs

C. three junior students and two senior students                 D. scolded by their parents for drinking alcohol

2. What did the girls do to support their coach’s decision?

A. They didn’t fight for Danville High School any more.

B. They all gave speeches to apologize in the local press.

C. They admitted their mistake in public in the gymnasium.

D. They would never drink any alcohol throughout their life.

3. Which word best describes the coach Rainville?

A. Indifferent                             B. Strict                                    C. Stubborn                        D. Cruel

4. Which would be the best title for the passage?

A. Growing up with pain.                                               B. A bad mistake.

C. Team rules are everything.                                                 D. Basketball girls in high school.

Here is a record of the discussion about AI (artificial intelligence) conducted by several scientists:

Scientist A: I would say that we are quite a long way off developing the Al, though I do think it will happen within the next thirty or forty years. We will probably remain in control of technology and it will help us solve many of the world’s problems. However, no one really knows what will happen if machines become more intelligent than humans. They may help us, ignore us or destroy us. I tend to believe AI will have a positive influence on our future lives, but whether that is true will be partly up to us.

Scientist B: I have to admit that the potential consequences of creating something that can match or go beyond human intelligence frighten me. Even now, scientists are teaching computers how to learn on their own. At some point in the near future, their intelligence may well take off and develop at an ever-increasing speed, Human beings evolve biologically very slowly and we would be quickly substituted. In the short term, there is the danger that robots will take over millions of human jobs, creating a large underclass of unemployed people. This could mean large-scale poverty and social unrest. In the long term machines might decide the world would be better without humans.

Scientist C: I’m a member of the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots. Forget the movie image of a terrifying Terminator stamping on human skulls and think of what’s happening right now: military machines like drones, gun turrets and sentry robots are already being used to kill with very little human input. The next step will be autonomous “murderbots” following orders but finally deciding who to kill on their own. It seems clear to me that this would be extremely dangerous for humans. We need to be very cautious indeed about what we ask machines to do.

1. What is Scientist B worried about?

A. AI technology will destroy the earth.                            B. Computers can’t think by themselves.

C. Robots will take the place of humans.                    D. Humans will be unhappy without machines.

2. What does the underlined word “this” in the last paragraph refer to?

A. I launched the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots.     B. We forget the movie image of a terrifying terminator.

C. “Murderbots” can’ t decide by themselves.             D. “Murderbots” will be against humans’ orders.

3. Which statement is CORRECT according to the record?

A. Scientist A thinks AI technology will never develop.

B. The employment will be affected by AI technology in the future.

C. “Murderbots” will follow the orders of their manufacturers in the wars.

D. All the three scientists agree that Al technology will benefit human beings.

4. Who agree(s) AI has more negative aspects than positive aspects?

A. Scientist A.                            B. Scientist B.               C. Scientists B &C               D. Scientists B &A

Dodder is an unusual and unwanted plant that attacks other plants. Except for its flowers, the plant looks like spaghetti, a kind of noodles in the shape of long thin pieces that look like string when they are cooked. Its almost leafless, thread-like stems hang down on top of other plants that dodder needs to stay alive. Dodder does not produce its own food. Instead, it steals food from other plants. It feeds by sucking juices from the plant which is wrapped around, often making its host very weak or even killing it.

Dodder can find other plants by their smell. When a young dodder plant starts growing, it follows the smell of plants it prefers, like tomato plants, potato plants, or other farm crops. Unlike most plants that usually grow in the direction of light or warmth, a dodder plant will grow in the direction of, for example, tomato smell--if a tomato happens to be growing nearby.

However, a young dodder plant must find a host plant quickly. It no longer needs its root once it is attached to the host and wrapped around it. If it cannot catch a smell of a potential host within a few days, it will dry up and vanish even if there is plenty of water around. Once it finds a host, the young dodder plant will attach itself to it and start growing faster. At that point the dodder plant will drop its root.

Dodder is thus a difficult weed to manage and a real headache for farmers. When it does get out of hand, dodder can greatly reduce a farmer’s harvest or even destroy crops completely. Before sowing their produce, especially farmers in warm parts of the world often check to make sure no unwanted dodder seeds have mixed with their crop seeds. This is a good way to stop dodder plants from making their way to a crop field secretly.

1. Why does the author mention spaghetti in the first paragraph?

A. To analyze the content of some food.                           B. To introduce the topic of this passage.

C. To tell the usage of the dodder plants.                    D. To describe the shape of dodder plants.

2. What does the underlined word “vanish” in the third paragraph mean?

A. invade.                           B. grow.                       C. escape.                     D. disappear.

3. What can be inferred from the passage?

A. Dodder doesn’t produce its own food.                   B. Dodder gives off smell to attract plants.

C. Dodder can affect farmers’ income.                       D. Dodder can only survive in the shade.

4. What is the purpose of the passage?

A. To introduce a new variety of farm crops.                    

B. To introduce plan’s that are harmful to humans.

C. To introduce the special abilities of a dangerous plant.

D. To introduce recent improvements in farming methods.

We’ve all experienced peer pressure (同伴压力). It happens to everybody. However, people have different reactions. Confident people refuse to do things they don’t want to do, but shy and anxious people often give in. It may be because they want to be liked. It may be because they worry that their friends will make fun of them, or perhaps they’re just curious about trying something new.          1         .

It’s hard being the only one who says no and the question is: how do you do it?         2         . If you think that missing maths, or smoking, or going somewhere you know your parents wouldn’t like is a bad idea then the answer is simple: don’t do it. It’s your decision, nobody else’s. You don’t need to be aggressive. You don’t need to shout and scream, but you must be confident and you must be firm. You need to say, “No thanks. I don’t want to do that.”

Being on your own against everybody else is very hard, so it can really help to have at least one other peer, or friend, who will say no too.        3         . You want friends who will support you when you’re in trouble. You don’t want people who will always agree with the majority. Remember, the most popular people aren’t always the most trustworthy.

       4         . You can learn a lot from people your own age. They can teach you great football skills or the best way to do your maths homework. They can recommend music and advise you on fashion. And don’t forget you can tell them things too, and that always feels great. So, find friends who have similar interests. And remember, friendship isn’t about feeling depressed and guilty.        5        .

A. Choose your friends carefully.

B. Firstly, you must decide what you believe in.

C. It’s about sharing experiences and having fun.

D. Of course, peer pressure isn’t completely bad.

E. It may be because they were all born to be stubborn.

F. Depression and guilt will surely give you peer pressure.

G. Whatever the reason, some people end up doing things they really don’t want to.