What’s delicious to eat and comes in a variety of colors? Eggplant! And no, it has nothing to do with chickens! This strangely named vegetable is, however, as versatile as an egg．It can be steamed, fried, and baked．It can be eaten by itself or combined with meats and other vegetables．
Eggplant was first grown in India in the 5th century BC．Its popularity soon spread to China and then throughout Asia．Finally, during the Middle Ages the vegetable made its way to Europe．At that time, eggplant was not the shiny purple vegetable most people know today．Instead, it’s like a white egg．Due to this egg - like appearance, eggplant got its name．In its early days, the vegetable was so bitter that people often called it a “mad apple.” This nickname started because people believed its bitterness was bad for one' s health．People actually thought eggplant could cause madness and cancer．
Fortunately today people know that eggplant doesn't cause insanity or cancer．In fact eggplant is so healthy that it may prevent cancer．In addition, the brain and the heart benefit from this super vegetable．Since it's high in fibre, eggplant can improve digestion．
Italy, Turkey, Egypt, China and Japan are the leading growers of eggplant in the world today．Depending on its location, eggplant may be purple, green, orange or yellow - white．And it can be as small as a tomato or as large as a cucumber．Dish varieties range from simple to complex, with all of them being delicious．
Today, thousands of people gather in Loomis, Calif, for the annual Loomis Eggplant Festival．The main activity at the festival is eating delicious eggplant dishes．There is plenty more to do and see, though．Recipe contests, arts and crafts, performers, races and children's activities all “egg – cite” festival - goers．Most people at the festival would agree—eggplant is an “egg—cellent” vegetable．
1.Eggplant got its name because of its _____．
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A．appearance |
B．taste |
C．color |
D．value |
2.Which of the following does NOT belong to the qualities of eggplant?
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A．It can be cooked in various ways． |
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B．It is easy to digest． |
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C．It can prevent cancer． |
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D．It is valuable and priceless． |
3.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
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A．Eggplant can be eaten to cure cancer |
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B．Eggplant used to taste bitter． |
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C．India produce the most eggplant in the world today． |
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D．Eggplant has a history of nearly 1,000 years． |
4.Most people come to the Loomis Eggplant Festival to_____．
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A．see arts and crafts |
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B．enjoy food with eggplants |
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C．take part in recipe contests |
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D．promote eggplant |
When Frida Kahlo's paintings were on show in London, a poet described her paintings as “ a ribbon （丝带）around a bomb”. Such comments seem to suggest Kahlo had a big influence on the art world of her time. Sadly, she is actually a much bigger name today than she was during her time.
Born in 1907 in a village near Mexico City , Kahlo suffered from polio（小儿麻痹症）at the age of seven. Her spine （脊柱）become bent as she grew older. Then, in 1925, her back was broken in several places in a school-bus accident. Throughout the rest of her life, the artist had many operations, but nothing was able to cure the terrible pain in her back. However, the accident had an unexpected side effect. While lying in her bed recovering, Kahlo taught herself to paint.
In 1929, she got married to Diego Rivera, another famous Mexican artist. Rivera’s strong influences on Kahlo’s style can be seen in her early works, but her later works from the 1940s, known today as her best works, show less influence from her husband.
Unfortunately, her works did not attract much attention in the 1930s and1940s, even in her home country. Her first one-woman show in Mexico was not held until 1953.For more than a decade after her death in 1954, Kahlo’s works remained largely unnoticed by the world, but in the 1970s her works began to gain international fame at last.
1.What does the phrase “a much bigger name” in paragraph 1 most nearly mean?
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A．a far better artist |
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B．a far more gifted artist |
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C．a much stronger person |
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D．a much more famous person |
2.The terrible pain Kahlo suffered was caused by .
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A．polio |
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B．back injuries |
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C．the operations she had |
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D．her bent spine |
3.Kahlo’s style had become increasingly independent since the .
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A．1950s |
B． 1930s |
C．1940s |
D．1970s |
4.What is author’s attitude toward Kahlo?
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A．Devotion |
B．Sympathy |
C．Worry |
D．Encouragement |
If we were asked exactly what we were doing a year ago，we should probably have to say that we could not remember. But if we had kept a book and had written in it an account of what we did each day，we should be able to give an answer to the question.
It is the same in history .Many things have been forgotten because we do not have any written account of them .Sometimes men did keep a record of the most important happenings in their country，but often it was destroyed by fire or in a war．Sometimes there was never any written record at all because the people of that time and place did not know how to write．For example，we know a good deal about the people who lived in China 4，000 years ago, because they could write and leave written records for those who lived after them．But we know almost nothing about the people who lived even 200 years ago in central Africa, because they had not learned to write．
Sometimes, of course，even if the people cannot write，they may know something of the past．They have heard about it from older people，and often songs and dances and stories have been made about the most important happenings，and these have been sung and acted and told for many generations, for most people are proud to tell what their fathers did in the past．This we may call “remembered history”．Some of it has now been written down. It is not so exact or so valuable to us as written history is，because words are much more easily changed when used again and again in speech than when copied in writing．But where there are no written records，such spoken stories are often very helpful．
1.Which of the following ideas is not suggested in the passage?
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A．“Remembered history”，compared with written history，is less reliable |
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B．Written records of the past play the most important role in our learning of the human history． |
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C．A written account of our daily activities helps US to be able to answer many questions． |
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D．Where there are no written records．there is no history． |
2.We know very little about the central Africa 200 years ago because ___
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A．there was nothing worth being written down at that time |
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B．the people there ignored the importance of keeping a record |
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C．the written records were perhaps destroyed by a fire |
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D．the people there did not know how to write |
3.“Remembered history” refers to ___．
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A．history based on a person’s imagination |
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B．stories of important happenings passed down from mouth to mouth |
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C．songs and dances about the most important events |
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D．both B and C |
4.“Remembered history”is regarded as valuable only when ____.
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A．it is written down |
B．no written account is available |
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C．it proves to be time |
D．people are interested in it |
5.The passage suggests that we could have learned much more about our past than we do now if the ancient people had _____
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A．kept a written record of every past event |
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B．not burnt their written records in wars |
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C．told exact stories of the most important happenings |
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D．made more songs and dances |
Although the United States covers so much land and the land produces far more food than the present population needs，its people are by now almost entirely an urban society . Less than a tenth of the people are engaged in agriculture and forestry(林业)，and most of the rest live in or around towns，small and large．Here the traditional picture is changing：every small town may still be very like other small towns，and the typical small town may represent a widely accepted view of the country，but most Americans do not live in small towns any more．Half the population now lives in some thirty metropolitan areas(1arge cities with their suburbs、of more than a million people each—a larger proportion than in Germany or England，let alone France)．The statistics(统计)of urban and rural population should be treated with caution because so many people who live in areas classified as rural travel by car to work in a nearby town each day．As the rush to live out of town continues,rural areas within reach of towns are gradually filled with houses，so that it is hard to say at what moment a piece of country becomes a suburb. But more and more the typical American lives in a metropolitan rather than a small town environment．
1.If now America has 250 million people．how many of them are engaged in agriculture and forestry?
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A．About 25 million． |
B．More than 25 million． |
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C．Less than 25 million． |
D．Less than 225 million |
2.Which of the following four countries has the smallest proportion of people living in metropolitan areas?
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A．United States． |
B．Germany． |
C．France． |
D．England． |
3.What’s the meaning of the word “metropolitan” in the middle of the passage?
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A．Of a large city with its suburbs． |
B．Of small and large towns． |
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C．Of urban areas． |
D．Of rural areas． |
4.According to the passage，what can we learn about small towns in the United States?
A Most small towns become gradually crowded
B．Small towns are still similar to each other．
C．As the traditional picture is changing，towns are different．
D .Small towns are turning into large cities
5.Why is it hard to say when a piece of country becomes a suburb?
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A．Because they are the same． |
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B．Because the rush takes place too quickly |
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C．Because the process is gradual． |
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D．Because more and more Americans live in metropolitan areas． |
There are stories about two U．S . presidents，Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren，which attempt to explain the American English term OK．We don’t know if either story is true，but they are both interesting．
The first explanation is based on the fact that President Jackson had very little education．In fact，he had difficulty reading and writing．When important papers came to Jackson，he tried to read them and then had his assistants explain what they said．If he approved of a paper, he would write “all correct”on it．The problem was that he didn’t know how to spell．So what he really wrote was “ol korekt”．After a while，he shortened that term to “OK”．
The second explanation is based on the place where President Van Buren was born，Kinderhook，New York．Van Buren’s friends organized a club to help him become President .They called the club the Old Kinderhook Club，and anyone who supported Van Buren was called“OK”．
1.The author __________.
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A．believes both of the stories |
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B．doesn’t believe a word of the stories |
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C．is not sure whether the stories are true |
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D．is telling the stories just for fun |
2.According to the passage，President Jackson_____________.
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A．couldn’t draw up any documents at all |
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B．didn’t like to read important papers by himself |
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C．often had his assistants sign documents for him |
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D．wasn’t good at reading，writing or spelling |
3.According to the first story, the term “OK”_______________.
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A．was approved of by President Jackson |
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B．was the title of some Official documents |
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C．was first used by President Jackson |
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D．was an old way to spell “all correct’’ |
4.According to the second story，the term ‘‘OK”_____________.
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A．was the short way to say‘ ‘old Kinderhook Club” |
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B．meant the place where President Van Buren was born |
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C．was the name of Van Buren’s club |
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D．was used to call Van Buren’s supporters in the election |
5.According to the second story, the term “OK” was first used ______________
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A．by Van Buren |
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B．in a presidential election |
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C．to organize the Old Kinderhook Club |
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D．by the members of the ‘‘Old Kinderhook Club” |
Cure for Sorrow
There is an old story telling about a woman whose only son died in an accident. In her 31 , she went to the wise man that is always 32 for his wisdom in her town and said, “What advice or what 33 ways do you have to bring my son back to life? I will 34 you with all I have if you can.”
Instead of sending her away or 35 with her, he said to her, “Fetch me a mustard(芥末) seed from a home that has never 36 sorrow. We will use it to drive the sorrow out of your life.” The woman went off at once in 37 of that magical mustard seed.
She came first to a splendid apartment, 38 at the door, and said in a 39 voice, “I am looking for a home that has never known sorrow. Is this such a(n) 40 that I want? It is very important to me.”
41 , she didn’t get what she wanted, even without a single word of 42 . They told her that she had come to the wrong place. And they began to 43 all the tragic things that recently had happened to them.
The woman said to herself, “Who is better able to help these poor, 44 people than I, though I also have had misfortune of my own?” She 45 to comfort them till they 46 . Then she went on searching for a home that had never known sorrow. But 47 she turned up, in small cottages or in other places, she found one 48 after another of sadness and misfortune. She became so 49 in helping other people out of their sorrow that finally she forgot about her quest for the special mustard seed, in fact, never 50 that it had driven the sorrow out of her life.
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