The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms (节气). Start of Summer (立夏), the 7th term of the year, begins on May 6 and ends on May 21 this year. Start of Summer signals the change of seasons. On this day, the sun’s rays reach an angle of 45 degrees to the earth. The temperature will rise quickly during this period.
Here are four traditions to learn about the Start of Summer.
Greeting Start of Summer
The term Start of Summer was originated at the end of the Warring States Period (239BC). Since it is a key time for the harvest of summer crops, ancient Chinese emperors in different dynasties attached great importance to the Start of Summer. They encouraged people to seize the key time to do farm work. It’s said that most of the decorations were arranged in the color red in order to show respect for the god of summer and pray for a good harvest.
Checking one’s weight
The custom of weighing people at the Start of Summer originated from the Three Kingdoms Period (220-180) and is still popular in South China today. It was believed this practice would bring health and good luck to the people weighted.
After lunch on this day, people would hang a basket from a beam (房梁). The young and old took turns to get weighed while the person calculating the weight would offer good wishes. It is said that those who were weighed would stay healthy in the hot summer and those who weren’t would suffer illness.
Eating eggs
In ancient China, people believed a round egg symbolized a happy life and eating eggs on the day of Start of Summer was a prayer for good health. They put leftover tea into boiled water together with eggs and the original “tea egg” was created. Later people improved cooking methods and added spices (香料) to the eggs to make them taste delicious. Today tea egg has become a traditional snack in China.
Egg Competitions
As an old Chinese saying goes “hanging an egg on children’s chest can prevent them from getting summer diseases”, parents will prepare boiled eggs and put them in a bag before hanging them on their child’s chest. When at school, children gather together to play egg competitions by hitting each other’s eggs in pairs and the one whose egg is not broken wins.
1.People believe that if one is weighed on Start of Summer, he or she will ________.
A.have a good harvest B.have respect for god
C.be fortunate D.suffer illness
2.Which tradition is particularly designed for children?
A.Greeting Start of Summer B.Checking one’s weight
C.Eating eggs D.Egg Competitions
3.What is the difference between the tradition “Greeting Start of Summer” and the other three?
A.It is very old. B.It has nothing to do with health.
C.It was only popular in Zhou Dynasty. D.It is organized by the emperor.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Knowing Mr I.M. Pei, and establishing the LM. Pei Foundation with his son, Didi Pei, are among the most fortunate things to ever happen to me.
Like many Chinese Americans, I chose to study architecture in 1975, simply because I wanted to be the next I.M. Pei. He was the inspiration for my career and my life. Unfortunately when I applied for a job at his office after graduation in 1980, his associate partner, Kellogg Wong told me that I was too young and inexperienced, and advised me to try again after a few years.
In 1984, however, I set up my own firm, James Jao Associates. It was the heyday of my firm in the late 1980s, designing about 30 percent of new residential family buildings in Queens. The joke at the time was that I.M. Pei was the biggest Chinese American architectural firm with over 2,800 employees, and James Jao with 100 was the second largest.
In the summer of 1990, I had the first opportunity to pay Mr Pei a personal visit at his office. After knowing my age, he congratulated me for breaking what he thought to be the curse (诅咒) that no architect can be famous until after the age of 40. He even said that I had a greater influence than him. I was surprised by his nice words. However, I don’t think anyone, especially me, will ever be as influential as him.
In November, 2018, after my 60th birthday celebrations, I met Mr Pei in his apartment discussing the establishment of the I.M. Pei Foundation, a non-profit organization to promote the philosophy of his works and, most importantly, his spirit of achieving excellence in art and culture.
This morning I was deeply saddened to hear about the passing of a great architectural legend (传奇) of our time. At the age of 102, Mr Pei died with great achievements to his name.
Rest in peace, Mr Pei. We will vow to carry on your torch (火炬) and your sprit because you are the one and only I.M. Pei.
James C Jao,
May 16th, 2019
1.The writer chose to study architecture because ________.
A.she wanted to make as much money as I.M. Pei
B.she wanted to have the lessons of I.M. Pei
C.she wanted to work in I.M. Pei’s office
D.she wanted to be a great architect like I.M. Pei
2.The underlined word “heyday” in the third paragraph probably means ________.
A.the golden period B.the weakest period
C.the darkest period D.the toughest period
3.What did I.M. Pei think of James Jao?
A.She was inexperienced.
B.She was too young.
C.She was very excellent.
D.She was very beautiful.
4.What is the purpose of writing this passage?
A.To introduce I.M. Pei B.To tell her successful experience
C.In memory of I.M. Pei D.To advertise the I.M. Pei Foundation
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Parents may worry that their children aren’t getting enough quality sleep. However, now there’s a smart bed to provide adults with sleep data by a smart app. The SleepIQ bed can alert (发出报警声) parents when their children are asleep, as well as if they are risking out of bed. If a child is tossing and turning (辗转反侧), it can also be adjusted to make it more comfortable.
The bed was first introduced at the International Consumer, Electronics Show (CES). It claims to be the only one in the world, which adjusts with children as they grow. Children don’t need to wear a smart-band or alternative wearable device in bed. Instead, the quality of their sleep is measured by sensors(传感器) in the bed, which monitor (监测) their present, average breathing rate, heart rate and movement. Then it assesses (评定) quality of sleep. They are given a SleepIQ score for each night’s sleep. Using an accompanying app, parents can see it clearly. It also allows parents to monitor routines (常规) that affect sleep, such as exercise, caffeine and screen time, helping them to develop a routine that helps develop a good night’s shut-eye.
The bed sends an alert to the app when it detects (探测) a child is out of bed or is restless, such as if he is having a nightmare. Its firmness can be adjusted to change the level of comfort and support to suit children as they grow. A “head tilt (倾斜)” feature for reading is built in, and parents can remotely turn a light out after reading time using the app. There are also fun features such as a “monster scanner”, which uses a mobile phone to check for and fight monsters under the bed. What’s more, an automatic light will guide children, if they need to get up in the middle of the night.
The bed is available online and at Sleep Number stores in the US from around $499, almost the same as the beds we are sleeping on.
1.What does the text mainly talk about?
A.The smart bed helping sleep better.
B.Risks that children face when sleeping.
C.How parents take care of children.
D.How to get a good sleep.
2.If children sleep on the SleepIQ bed, ________.
A.their sports performance will be improved
B.they no longer need to get up in the middle of the night
C.their health condition will be improved greatly
D.their sleep quality will be improved
3.We can know from the text that ________.
A.the smart bed is as cheap as an ordinary one
B.another smart bed is needed with children growing older
C.children will never fall out of the SleepIQ bed
D.the SleepIQ bed is the best bed around the world
4.Having the SleepIQ bed, ________.
A.children won’t have a nightmare
B.parents can be free from some worries
C.parents don’t need to care for children any more at night
D.children had better not read on the bed
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Why should we never stop learning
Today we often think learning is what we do in school, and once we’ve got our college degree, it’s time to work and stop leaning. In fact, things aren’t really that black and white. We carry on learning in every part of our lives. 1.. Instead, it is about self-growth and enrichment. Here are some reasons why we should keep learning, no matter how old we are.
2.
For me, the first reason to keep learning new things is that I enjoy it. It’s different from what I get from a movie. Although learning something new is not always comfortable, I’m happier in the long run. The more you learn, the more confident you will become, and the more pleased you will be with yourself.
Learning keeps you healthy
Studies have shown that our brains are best developed when we use them often. 3.. Learning how to eat well, and how to prepare and cook food or learning a new sport are all great ways to keep better control of your body.
Learning puts you on the fast track to success
4. If you think that you’ve learned everything that you need to know about about running a business, or managing your team, you’ n fail to compete against those who just love to learn it.
Learning helps you have better control of your life
In your personal life, you’ll want to keep learning too. For example, learning about managing your money—things that we are not often taught in school—can turn your life around. You can spend them on the most valuable things. 5.
So what have you learned this week? Why not make a list of what you want to learn next week?
A. As is known to all, successful people keep lifelong leaning.
B. It brings more friends to us.
C. Learning adds pleasure to your life.
D. You can also learn to manage your time, thus avoiding making you life a mess.
E. It helps you get better prepared for examinations.
F. Learning often doesn’t mean to pass exams.
G. Older people who carry on leaning have more chance to get free from illnesses of aged people.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。
I will now introduce you one great method of self-encouragement. Once a goal 1. (set) up, you begin your long journey. All you need next is 2. (work) as hard as you can. You may run into problems on the way, but do not be afraid of them. Keep to your plans and overcome all the 3. (difficult) you meet step by step.
We all know that Rome was not built in one day. It is the same as our success. We need to prepare well and develop action plans. 4., we also need to put in a lot of hard work. Just be patient and remember that 5. takes time and effort to succeed.
For athletes, it is the Olympic Games 6. they all want to take part in, and are considered as their 7. (high) level of all competitions and the most exciting moments. They train hard every day and never stop. When the athletes won the gold medals, many of them 8. (cry). That’s because so much effort had been made before they went to the competition.
9. (complete) the tasks of each day, you can provide yourself with encouragement such as, “I have done very well today and I feel so powerful and energetic. I am happy with 10. I have achieved today.” Do this every day, and soon your courage will rise.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假如你是李华，你的朋友 Linda刚通过了英语风采大赛（talent show）的初赛，即将参加决赛。她来信请你提供建议，请你写一封回信，内容如下：
1. 表示祝贺
2. 提供建议（至少两条）
3. 鼓励
注意：1. 大约100个单词
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
难度: 中等查看答案及解析