There are so many breathtaking famous castles in the world and it’s very hard to make a list. Here are some director’s picks. You’re welcome to add a comment with your favorite castles.
Castle Howard, Yorkshire
C. Howard, Yorkshire is one of the grandest and most famous castles as well as the private residence in Britain. This beautiful palace of Europe has been home to the Howard family for over 300 years. It is 15 miles north of York. Today, it is part of the Treasure Houses group of heritage houses.
Location: Castle Howard, York Y060 7DA, UK
Timing: The Garden is open daily from loam－4pm
Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany
This castle is one of the most famous castles in the world. This Castle was built by Ludwig II of Bavaria as a personal refuge. After he died in 1886, Neuschwanstein opens to the paying public and has over 60 million visitors in a year. Neuschwanstein is a 120-year-old luxury Castle, which has a remarkable view of two lakes, two castles, towns, and localities.
Tickets can be reserved online or you can buy at the Ticket center in the village of Hohenschwangau below the castle.
Location: Neuschwansteinstra Be 20, 87645 Schwangau, Germany
Timing: Sunday to Saturday 8am-5pm
Edinburgh Castle, Scotland
This castle is a historic fortress (城堡) which dominates the skyline of the city of Edinburgh. In this castle, different parts of the castle were constructed in different centuries, from the 12th to the 20th century. It is the most famous landmark and one of the most famous castles in the world. The castle is still in use today for ceremonial and military purposes and also rented for wedding receptions.
Location: Castlehill, Edinburgh EH1 2NG, UK
Timing: Sunday to Saturday 9:30am-5pm
1.Which of the following demand(s) admission fees?
A.Castle Howard, Yorkshire. B.Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany.
C.Edinburgh Castle, Scotland. D.All of them.
2.What do we know about Castle Howard?
A.It boasts lake view. B.It is the landmark of the UK.
C.It once served as a private house. D.It has the longest opening hours.
3.Which is NOT available in Edinburgh Castle?
A.Having a good view of Edinburgh.
B.Holding a wedding ceremony there.
C.Appreciating ancient art and architecture.
D.Honoring the nation’s military tradition.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
I’d been trying for weeks to come up with an idea for my next book. And then suddenly the idea came: Why not write about a celebrity reporter signing up as a hospital volunteer so she could gain access to a movie star who was a patient of the hospital? The heroine would be motivated totally by her career until she learned that in helping others, we help ourselves.
Sounded like a romantic comedy with uplifting message, but first, there was the matter of research. I’d have to observe hospital volunteers. I headed over to my nearby hospital and asked the director of volunteers if I might hang around for a day or two just to research my story. Her answer, “No. If you really want to see what it’s like to be a volunteer, you should become one.”
Become a volunteer? I was not wild about being in close to people with germs (细菌). I would just skip the research, I thought, then reminded myself that I did need to spend quality time at the hospital if I wanted to write credibly about my heroine’s journey. So I signed up, was given my uniform and ID badge (徽章), and reported for duty. My “job” was to wheel a magazine cart throughout the large facility and, in the process, be a shoulder to lean on.
At the beginning, my focus was on my novel. And then a funny thing happened: I stopped researching and started realizing that I might actually be making a difference in people’s lives. A woman who’d just been diagnosed with lung cancer thanked me for brushing her hair and applying her lipstick. A man who was wasting away from AIDS called me his “angel”, simply because I took twenty minutes to note down the letter he dictated to his mother.
Now long after finishing my book, I continued to volunteer. Friends would ask, “Isn’t it depressing at that place?” “On the contrary,” I’d say and mean it.
1.Why did the author want to observe hospital volunteers?
A.She intended to write stories about them.
B.She was preparing for her volunteering jobs.
C.She hoped to gain access to a movie star.
D.She wanted to make her heroine’s story realistic.
2.What can we infer from paragraphs 3&4?
A.The author was determined to become a volunteer in the beginning.
B.The author was meant to shoulder the responsibility of the patients.
C.The patients the author met and the appreciation she received changed her.
D.The patients relied on the author to help them survive in the hospital.
3.In what way is the author similar to the heroine of her book?
A.Motivated by their career, they succeed.
B.By lifting other’s spirits, they lift their own.
C.Being volunteers, they spread uplifting messages.
D.By providing support to others, they are appreciated.
4.What can be a suitable title of the passage?
A.My Turn: Life as a Hospital Volunteer.
B.My Discovery: I Can Make a Difference.
C.My Investigation: Celebrities in Hospital.
D.My Identity: a Volunteer in a Hospital.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
NANCHANG - In the Chinese Lunar Year of the Pig, pigs have attracted a large amount of attention as there has been a huge rise in the price of pork, China’s major meat, resulting in high living costs. China’s pig herd(群) has shrunk considerably due to multiple factors including an outbreak of African swine fever(非洲猪瘟) and the bad effect of the last market cycle when low pork prices drove many out of business.
Xiong Lijiao, a resident in Nanchang, a major pig-breeding region, said her family eats less pork now. “Prices of pork have doubled, making it much more expensive.” said Xiong. The weekly average price of a carcass-weight hog(胭体瘦肉型生猪) in 16 provincial-level regions was 37. 57 yuan($5. 3) per kg in mid-September, up 94. 1 percent year-on-year, according to the information center of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs. It is not only pork prices that are being affected, demand for soybeans, used as food for hogs, as well as other kinds of meat prices are also being affected.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said favorable government policies and market conditions have boosted some farmers’ confidence in restoring production. China has rolled out 17 measures to support hog production since the end of August, and most of them have been carried out. To meet the market gap, China is increasing imports and releasing frozen pork from its central reserves. But eyeing a long-term solution, China is encouraging large-scale pig farming. The industry concentration will further increase with many small and medium-sized breeding companies leaving the business. Despite the current challenges, China’s pig breeding industry is heading toward a more intensive, environmental-friendly and risk-resistant growth model.
1.Which is NOT a cause of the rise of the price of pork?
A.The spread of African swine fever.
B.A supply shortage of pork.
C.The high living cost in recent years.
D.Marketable hogs on the decline.
2.What kind of phenomenon is described in paragraph 2?
A.Butterfly effect—small change leads to great variation.
B.Buckets effect—the weakest influences the whole.
C.Pygmalion effect—expectation influences performance.
D.Anchoring effect—first information affects later decisions.
3.Which of the following measures can get to the root of the problem?
A.Releasing frozen pork from the stock.
B.Importing pork from overseas markets.
C.Establishing industrial-scale pig farms.
D.Encouraging small breeding companies.
4.In which section of the newspaper can you read this article?
A.Editorial & Opinion. B.Health & Wellbeing.
C.Home & International News. D.Celebrities & Social.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
As to the question what is a best age to learn a language, many would rush to the conclusion that it’s best to start young. Though it is true to some extent, now science offers a much more complex view of how our relationship with languages evolves over a lifetime-and there is much to encourage late beginners.
Broadly speaking, different life stages give us different advantages in language learning. As babies, we have a better ear for different sounds s as toddlers(幼儿), we can pick up native accents with astonishing speed. As adults, we have longer attention spans and important skills like literacy that allow us to continually expand our vocabulary, even in our own language. And a wealth of factors beyond ageing—like social circumstances, teaching methods, and even love and friendship—can affect how many languages we speak and how well.
“Not everything goes downhill with age, “says Antonella Sorace, a professor of developmental linguistics and director of the Bilingualism Matters Centre at the University of Edinburgh. She gives the example of what is known as “explicit learning”: studying a language in a classroom with a teacher explaining the rules. “Young children are very bad at explicit learning, because they don’t have the cognitive(认知) control and the attention and memory capabilities,” Sorace says. “Adults are much better at that. So that can be something that improves with age.”
A study by researchers in Israel found, for example, that adults were better at grasping an artificial language rule and applying it to new words in a lab setting. The scientists compared three separate groups: 8-year-olds, 12-year-olds, and young adults. The adults scored higher than both younger groups, and the 12-year-olds also did better than the younger children. They suggested that their older participants may have benefited from skills that come with maturity—like more advanced problem-solving strategies—and greater linguistic experience. In other words, older learners tend to already know quite a lot about themselves and the world and can use this knowledge to process new information.
1.What is the correct understanding of the underlined sentence in paragraph 1?
A.We should stay up late to learn a language.
B.Late beginners strive hard to learn a language.
C.Late beginners can also learn a language well.
D.We should give much encouragement to late beginners.
2.According to the passage, language learning is NOT affected by .
A.our inborn abilities B.our native accents
C.our cognitive control D.our attention spans
3.Why do the adults score higher than both younger groups in the test?
A.They have already known quite a lot about the words.
B.They draw upon their existing knowledge to help.
C.They have been taught the way to learn a language.
D.They are better at learning artificial language rules.
4.What is the purpose of the passage?
A.To compare and evaluate. B.To examine and assess.
C.To argue and discuss. D.To inform and explain.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
You don’t have to break your back to create a yard that’s both beautiful and kind to Mother Nature. These environmentally smart ideas will turn your home turf(草地)into a little slice of Eden. 1.
Let the grass grow. Cut grass less often, so it gets a few inches longer than you’re used to. 2. That’s because roots will grow deeper and grass thicker, which means fewer pests, less disease, and a decreased need for chemical intervention.
Water the grass right way. Water before 10 a. m. , when the air is cool and not as much moisture will be lost to evaporation. 3. Water near the base of plants, slowly delivering the good stuff right to the roots. For lawns, water long and deep once a week.
Get keen on composting(制堆肥). Compost isn’t called gardener’s gold for nothing. It keeps kitchen leftover out of landfills and enriches soil with much-needed nutrients. 4. Veggie and tea bags, eggshells, dry leaves, and untreated grass clippings are all fair game.
5. Honeybees help pollinate(授粉) 75 percent of our flowering plants and nearly 75 percent of our food crops. There is increasing evidence that many of the vital pollinators are in decline. Creating a garden that includes plants that flower at different times of the year will benefit pollinators throughout the growing season. Whenever possible, choose native plants with a variety of flower colors and shapes.
A.Many will save your money, too.
B.Dry leaves add nutrients to the soil.
C.Give bees the green-carpet treatment.
D.Make the backyard as beautiful as possible.
E.Watering in late afternoon is the next best option.
F.It also reduces dependency on chemical fertilizers.
G.It will help it survive dry periods of time in warmer months.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
A cup of coffee helps for a quieter life.
Last year my children _______ me a stainless steel(钢)coffeepot. I couldn't _______ to use it and looked forward to the following morning's coffee making, knowing that I probably wouldn't break this pot as _______ as I had done so often in the past.
But as I _______ my first cup of coffee, the pot spilled(洒)all over the table. _______ no one was around to see my disappointed face! I kept trying, but each morning would _______ me spilling the coffee. Then I realized that if I poured very slowly there would be no spilling. This was at first a very _______ experience. My normal _______ was to rush through breakfast so that I could get on with my day.
But in time I learned not only to pour slowly but to enjoy the experience: the smell, the taste, and the _______ of a new day.
It reminded me to __________ whether there were other areas of life I was rushing through. __________ of life, it seemed.
I started to leave extra time to do even the most __________ tasks. When shop owners would __________ for keeping me waiting, I'd say. ''Not a problem, I'm not in a hurry. '' Even listening to the __________ singing in the trees around me became part of my __________.
__________, one of my favorite experiences living in the inner city was leisurely __________ time with strangers. We sat on the steps, each of us with a cup of coffee in our hands, listening to each other's stories. It was one of the __________ things about living in a busy land. It was as if the world around us slowed to a pace we could both __________.
Stillness and quietness not only slow the pace of life, but also __________ the soul, helping us to enjoy the world's small pleasure.
1.A.awarded B.gifted C.lent D.threw
2.A.stand B.believe C.spare D.wait
3.A.easily B.rarely C.hard D.far
4.A.ordered B.drank C.made D.poured
5.A.Undoubtedly B.Unfortunately C.Surprisingly D.Thankfully
6.A.bring B.see C.have D.worry
7.A.boring B.interesting C.painful D.frightening
8.A.reaction B.answer C.practice D.use
9.A.preference B.excitement C.hope D.quietness
10.A.reflect upon B.agree on C.look through D.leave behind
11.A.Little B.Most C.None D.Any
12.A.unimportant B.difficult C.ordinary D.challenging
13.A.prepare B.pay C.look D.apologize
14.A.children B.worms C.birds D.strangers
15.A.routine B.influence C.time D.task
16.A.Therefore B.Besides C.However D.Instead
17.A.spending B.wasting C.keeping D.setting
18.A.most hopeful B.most adventurous C.warmest D.kindest
19.A.force B.continue C.improve D.handle
20.A.saves B.ruins C.feeds D.shows
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
With the 70th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China 1. (approach), the younger generation celebrate the country’s birthday through their own 2. (experience). They participate in an online program Me and My Motherland, and have their voices 3. (hear) during the show, the title of 4. comes from a popular song of the same name from 1985.
In each show, after short videos5.(broadcast), a group of guests discuss them. In one video, a young woman plays three roles from different generations to show 6. fashion trends have been changed in China.
“I see many young people7. (admire) traditional culture,” says a well-known singer after he watched a video about overseas Chinese celebrating traditional culture abroad.
“When they voluntarily establish clubs abroad promoting tradition among local communities, they8.(able) Chinese culture to be better understood by the public overseas.”
Many users of Douban. com left messages saying they watched the show9.(initial) because their idols(偶像) were taking part, 10. they soon became absorbed by what was shown.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
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：在错的词下画一横线，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只限一词；
2. 只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。
Our class are discussing what to wear when receive the British students in next month. I recommend the traditional Chinese dress when Li Hua prefers the school uniform.
I would be happy wear traditional Chinese clothes at the welcome ceremony. Firstly, this is exactly that the British visitors are expecting. They come to learn about Chinese culture with our own eyes. Their Chinese peers in the typical Chinese dress would be high impressive. The school uniforms are not special enough to give an unique Chinese flavor. Secondly, the inconvenience is not a problem but a way that display the richness, delicacy and great fascination of Chinese culture with a history of thousand of years.
In my opinion, the traditional Chinese clothes will make the occasion very Chinese and inviting to the British guests.
难度: 困难查看答案及解析
假定你是李华，你的美国朋友Tristan对你校正在举行的“中华好书分享”活动很感兴趣，希望你介绍此活动，并推荐好书。请你写封信，内容包括：
1. 该活动的意义；
2. 同学们参与的情况；
3. 你推荐的书籍及理由。
注意：1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Tristan,
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hua
难度: 中等查看答案及解析