In my very first job with some archaeologists, I wasn’t digging objects out of the ground, instead I was employed as an artist, drawing what they found. However, I was soon more interested in the stories behind the objects than in drawing them and that’s how my career in archaeology started. I still draw what I find in my work as a specialist on the Silk Road, the old trade route running from Egypt to Mongolia, and I also work on some underwater projects too.
In archaeology, my all-time hero is an American called Raphael Pumpelly. I first heard about him when I was a student on a trip to Turkmenistan, a country right in the heart of Asia. To get around the country, I had to learn Russian so that I could speak to the local people. When I got there I thought, “Wow! I’m one of the first Americans here!” Then an old man told me about an American archaeologist, Raphael Pumpelly, who was there doing the same thing over 100 years ago.
Archaeology’s in my family. My wife’s in the same profession, and, although our two boys aren’t interested in the future in archaeology themselves, we’ve been on some great digs together and they love what we do because they get to travel with us. Last summer, we took them to Lake Titicaca in South America, in the high areas of the Andes mountain range. My best experience was when I was digging on the Egyptian Red Sea coast. There’s very little rain and it’s so dry that everything is kept as it was. In an old house, where the owner used to store goods from the ships that came in, I picked up a 700-year-old mat in front of the house and there, under it, after all that time, was the house key with the owner’s name carved on it. It felt like he could be on his way home any minute! And I thought, “Hey, I do just that. This man’s not much different to me!”
1.While working in Egypt, what did the writer find so interesting?
A. That people from different centuries can be so similar.
B. The fact that the doormat was in such good condition.
C. The way the people managed to live in such a dry place.
D. That there had been so much trade in that area.
2.Which entry will the writer probably make in his diary?
A. Turkmenistan is interesting. I’m the first American to come here but I’m glad this is my last trip away.
B. I have been diving today and found some objects for an exhibition. I’ve just finished drawing them for my records.
C. I wish my children weren’t more interested in archaeology and would not work hard in the open like their parents.
D. It’s nearly dark but Raphael’s still busy digging in that old house. He can be very annoying. He thinks he’s the most important person here.
3.What is the writer’s main purpose in writing the text?
A. To describe the life of an archaeologist he admires.
B. To persuade people to take up archaeology as a career.
C. To explain what he enjoys about being an archaeologist.
D. To show how archaeologists work.
难度: 困难查看答案及解析
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 (茎) 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 disappear—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 describe the shape of dodder plants.
C. To explain where the dodder plants come from.
D. To argue that dodder plants can be used.
2.What will happen if a dodder plant starts growing where there are no other plants around?
A. It will die sooner or later.
B. It will grow deep roots.
C. It will attract other plants.
D. It will cover the entire area of soil.
3.What can be inferred from the passage?
A. Dodder does not produce its own food.
B. Dodder can affect farmers’ income.
C. Dodder can only survive in the shade.
D. Dodder only grows in the warm areas.
4.What is the main topic of the passage?
A. A new variety of farm crops.
B. Plants that are harmful to humans.
C. The special abilities of a dangerous plant.
D. Recent improvements in farming methods.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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 AI, 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 lone 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 (头骨) 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 completely unethical and 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. The Campaign to Stop Killer Robots.
B. 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 AI 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.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
The first drawings on walls appeared in caves thousands of years ago. Later the Ancient Romans and Greeks wrote their names and protest poems on buildings. Modern graffiti seems to have appeared in Philadelphia in the early 1960s, and by the late sixties it had reached New York. The new art form really took off in the 1970s, when people began writing their names, or “tags”, on buildings all over the city. In the mid-seventies it was sometimes hard to see out of a subway car window, because the trains were completely covered in spray paintings known as masterpieces.
In the early days, the “taggers” were part of street crowds who were concerned with marking their territory (领地）. They worked in groups called “crews” and called what they did “writing”-the term “graffiti” was first used by The New York Times and the novelist Norman Mailer. Art galleries in New York began buying graffiti in the early seventies. But at the same time that it began to be regarded as an art form, John Lindsay, the then mayor of New York, declared the first war on graffiti. By the 1980s it became much harder to write on subway trains without being caught, and instead many of the more established graffiti artists began using roofs of buildings.
The debate over whether graffiti is art or deliberate damage is still going on. Peter Vallone, a New York city councilor, thinks that graffiti done with permission can be art, but if it is on someone else’s property it becomes a crime. “I have a message for the graffiti destroyers out there,” he said recently, “and your freedom of expression ends where my property begins.” On the other hand, Felix, a member of the Berlin-based group Reclaim Your City, says that artists are reclaiming cities for the public from advertisers, and that graffiti represents freedom and makes cities livelier.
For decades graffiti has been a springboard to international fame for a few. Jean-Michel Basquiat began spraying on the street in the 1970s before becoming a respected artist in the 80s. The Frenchman Blek le Rat and the British artist Banksy have achieved international fame by producing complex works with stencils (模板), often making political or humorous points. Works by Banksy have been sold for over £ 100,000. Graffiti is now sometimes big business.
1.Why was the seventies an important decade in the history of graffiti?
A. That was when modern graffiti first appeared.
B. That was when modern graffiti first became really popular.
C. That was when graffiti first reached New York.
D. That was when graffiti first appeared on subway car windows
2.What does the underlined word “taggers” in the second paragraph mean?
A. Names of people who graffitied.
B. Building where paints were sprayed.
C. People who marked surface with graffiti.
D. People who were interested in graffiti.
3.What can we know from the third paragraph?
A. New Yorkers think graffiti is art.
B. Graffiti was accepted by officials completely.
C. Buildings can be covered with graffiti freely.
D. There were once advertisements on city surface.
4.What is the author’s final opinion about graffiti?
A. Graffiti has now become mainstream and can benefit artists.
B. Graffiti is not a good way to become a respected artist.
C. Some popular graffiti artists end up being ignored by the art world.
D. Some graffiti caused inconvenience to the local environment.
难度: 困难查看答案及解析
Language is part of our daily lives, no matter where we live in the world. It is the same with music, whether you listen to it on the radio on your drive to work or sit before an orchestra. Both language and music play a huge role in our culture. 1.
Both language and music have a writing system. In English we record language using the alphabet, which is a collection of letters. In the same way, we use notes to keep a record of music. Just as you are reading this collection of letters on the screen and find meaning in it, musicians read notes and create meaning in the form of music which we can hear.2. By writing pieces of text or music, we are able to share experiences through time. I can read the ideas or hear the composition of someone who lived hundreds of year ago, which is really quite exciting.
3. You can make a good guess at where someone is from by listening to the language they use. In the same way, we know that styles of music are different around the world, giving us the opportunity to explore many different cultures through their music and providing us with music for every situation.4. Even if you don’t like Britpop melodies, you may love the energy of Latin American salsa music.
Both share emotion. How do you know that I am angry? Of course you may be able to see it in my face, but you will know for sure through my words.5. Music can show you exactly how the composer was or is feeling, and allows us to share in that emotion. When you feel happy, you might want to sing and dance to a happy song to celebrate your happiness. In contrast, you have probably also listened to sad music when you were feeling down. I think we have all used music to express or process our emotions, often combining it with language in the form of song lyrics.
A. Both vary with culture.
B. Here are some of their similarities.
C. They have some distinguishing characteristics.
D. So just as you read English, you can read music.
E. Similarly, music can sound angry, sad or happy.
F. This also means that there is something for everyone!
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
The following is a beautiful speech by Sundar Pichai, a senior executive at a big IT company. At a ________, a cockroach (蟑螂) suddenly flew from somewhere and sat on a lady. She started ________ out of fear. With a panic-stricken face and trembling voice, she started jumping, with both her hands ________ trying to get rid of the cockroach. Her ________ was contagious (传染的), as everyone in her group also got ________. The lady finally managed to push the cockroach away but it ________ on another lady in the group.
Now, it was the ________ of the other lady in the group to ________ the drama. The waiter rushed forward to their ________. In the relay of throwing, the cockroach next fell upon the waiter. The waiter stood ________, calmed himself and observed the behavior of the cockroach on his shirt. When he was ________ enough, he grabbed it with his fingers and _________ it out of the restaurant.
Sipping my coffee and watching the amusement, I picked up a few thoughts and started wondering ________ the cockroach was responsible for their behavior. If so, then why was the waiter not ________? He handled it near to perfection, without any ________. It was not the cockroach, but the ________ of the ladies to handle the disturbances caused by the cockroach that disturb the ladies. I ________ that, it is not the shouting of my father or my boss or my wife that disturbs me, but my inability to handle the disturbances ________ by their shouting that disturbs me. It’s not the traffic jam on the road that disturbs me,________ my inability to handle the disturbances caused by the traffic jam that disturbs me.________ than the problem, it’s my reaction to the problem that creates chaos in my life.
1.A. hotel B. zoo C. school D. restaurant
2.A. pointing B. jumping C. checking D. screaming
3.A. separately B. elegantly C. desperately D. carefully
4.A. reaction B. surprise C. settlement D. excitement
5.A. angry B. anxious C. ready D. steady
6.A. stepped B. died C. landed D. took
7.A. turn B. right C. power D. interest
8.A. finish B. continue C. improve D. increase
9.A. side B. scene C. rescue D. relative
10.A. back B. alone C. firm D. aside
11.A. confident B. certain C. brave D. strong
12.A. pushed B. threw C. brought D. helped
13.A. how B. that C. whether D. why
14.A. defeated B. overcome C. welcomed D. disturbed
15.A. panic B. hesitation C. pause D. delay
16.A. inability B. fear C. trouble D. doubt
17.A. expected B. realized C. included D. argued
18.A. ignored B. concerned C. caused D. dealt
19.A. and B. but C. or D. just
20.A. Better B. More C. Worse D. Truer
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Chopsticks are shaped pairs of equal-length sticks that have been used in the kitchen and on the table in almost all of East Asia for over 6, 000 years. First 1. (use) by the Chinese, chopsticks later spread to other locations 2. (include) Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
In ancient China, chopsticks signified far more than tools 3. take food to the mouth, and they also signified status and rules “can” and “can’t”. During the Northern Song Dynasty,4. official named Tang Su once had dinner with the emperor. He was not well informed in noble table manners and 5. (lay) down his chopsticks horizontally on the table before the emperor did. As a result, he was sent to a frontier area as a 6. (punish).
Actually, there were over a dozen taboos concerning chopsticks. For example, they could not be placed 7. (vertical) into a dish, as this was a way of making sacrifices to the dead. Diners could not tap 8. push a dish with chopsticks, nor use a chopstick as a fork. When taking food, they could not let their chopsticks go from one dish to another or cross over 9. of others. When diners wanted 10. (put) down their chopsticks during a meal, they would place them lengthways on a chopstick holder or on the plate on their right-hand side. Many of these chopstick taboos are valid to this day.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误,每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
Last week I visited my friend Li Lei. His mother sincerely asked us to stay for lunch with them, and I agreed. There was only three people for lunch all altogether. However, my friend’s mother prepared eight dish and we couldn’t finished the food at all. As a result, the food that was not finished thrown away in the end. When I went back home I saw some homeless people beg the street, where reminded me of the wasted food. I felt really sad. What I wish that no food will be wasted from now on! In this way, nobody on the earth will be hungry.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假设你是李华，你的好友Peter今天上午来你家找你陪他练习汉语口语。你因临时有急事外出，让他扑了个空。请根据以上情景，给Peter写一封信。内容如下：
1. 表示歉意；
2. 解释具体原因，并希望他能谅解；
3. 告诉他下次练习的时间、地点及话题。
注意：1.词数100左右；
2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3. 书信的开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Peter,
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Yours,
Li Hua
难度: 中等查看答案及解析