阅读理解专项精讲 8-3

Fleming saw many soldiers die from infections in their wounds as he worked in a hospital during World War Ⅰ. This made Fleming decide to find a way to help the body fight infections.

In September 1928, Fleming left some glass dishes on a bench in his laboratory for two weeks. When he came back, he noticed something puzzling. Bacteria were growing on all the glass dishes except one. On this dish mould had started to grow — the kind found on old bread. The mould seemed to be giving off something that stopped the bacteria from growing. Fleming called it “mould juice”. He tried it on other bacteria, and it killed them, too. Fleming became wild with joy and named it penicillin.

Unfortunately, Fleming’s boss thought he was wasting his time and it was impossible to kill bacteria at that time. Fleming did a few more experiments with penicillin, and he also wrote about it so other scientists could learn about it. However, because no one seemed interested in his discovery, he forgot about penicillin and started to work on other things.

In 1939, Ernest Chain, a scientist, and his boss, Howard Florey, were looking for medicines that could kill bacteria. They discovered Fleming’s notes and decided to test penicillin. In 1940, they gave penicillin to some sick mice, who survived later. But those who didn’t get it died. Florey declared: “It looks like a miracle!” By 1943, the final tests on humans were finished successfully and the world had its first antibiotic medicine.

At the beginning of the school year, each student would be given a special job for which they would be responsible for the whole term. Rita, a quiet and hard-working girl, hoped for an exciting task, like taking care of the class plants. Instead, she received a small box with sand and a small ant.

Even though the teacher explained that this task was very special, Rita could not help feeling disappointed. However, she decided to do her best with her new job. She began to study and care for the ant, learning about its habitat and needs. She made the box a comfortable home for the ant, and it grew much bigger than anyone expected.

Rita’s efforts caught the attention of her science teacher, Mr. Thompson. He turned her work into a class project, and Rita became the class expert on ants. Her hard work helped the whole class learn about ant behavior and habitats. They even built a small ant farm in the classroom to observe the ant closely.

Gradually, Rita’s classmates became more and more interested in the ant project. They started asking her questions and observing the ant’s behavior themselves. Rita organized a presentation where she shared her findings with the whole school during the science fair.

At the end of the year, Rita’s class was recognized as the best of the year. Rita was as well praised for her hard work and how she turned a small task into something big. Rita learned that every task, no matter how small, could make a big difference. She also learned that sometimes the most unexpected things can lead to great success.

Confidence is very important. It can help you develop a healthy attitude. But how can we be more confident? 1C Here are some suggestions.

Speak louder.

When you are not confident, you may speak in a voice so low that other people can hardly hear you. 2E Try to speak loud enough to make people hear you. Your voice can help you become more confident.

3A Play sports.

Taking exercise makes you tired, but relaxed. A strong body helps you be full of confidence.

Encourage yourself.

Write down a list of things you did during the day to see how many things you did well. Did you finish your homework on time? 4D Did you give your friends help? Give yourself praise for the good things you have done.

Don’t be afraid of failure.

5B Failure is part of life. It will be easier for you to become more confident if you understand that. Try to start again and believe you can do better.