More than half of the world’s population live in cities. Traffic and pollution a
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More than half of the world’s population live in cities. Traffic and pollution are becoming big problems in big cities all over the world. In cities like Mexico City, Shanghai or Cairo the quality of air is getting worse every day. In the United States, people spend more time sitting in traffic jams.
Some of the world’s cities have already found the answer to the problem. In Bogota, the capital of Columbia, the government has taken measures to improve the quality of life for the city’s 8 million people. They created over a thousand new parks, a new public transport system, and built hundreds of cycling and walking paths. People who live in the city also joined in making their city one of the most livable (适合居住的) places in South America.
Today city planners around the world are looking for ways to provide more room for living and less room for cars. In America, public transport has increased over 2 % since the mid 1990s — not much but a start. More and more people leave their cars at home and get on buses, trains or even ride a bike to work. Some cities are far better at planning than others. In Amsterdam, for example, only 40 % of the population use their cars to get to work, 35 % ride bikes while 25% use public transport. In Paris, about half of the city’s workers drive their cars to work.
For cities in developing countries, the problems have just started. Traffic is getting worse as more and more people can afford to buy a car.
小题1:The writer listed Mexico City, Shanghai and Cairo as examples of cities of ______.| A．heavy traffic | B．air pollution | | C．rapid development | D．large population |
小题2:What did Bogota do to improve the quality of life for its people?| A．It shut down some factories in the city. | | B．It introduced a foreign public transport system. | | C．It encouraged people to plant trees in the city. | | D．It built new parks and a new public transport system. |
小题3:From the third paragraph, we can learn that ______.| A．35% of the population in Paris ride bikes to work | | B．half of the people in Amsterdam drive their cars to work | | C．a quarter of the people in Amsterdam use public transport | | D．American public transport has increased much since the 1990s |
小题4:What would be the best title of the text?| A．Ways to solve traffic jams | | B．New changes in transport systems | | C．People’s new choice in big cities | | D．Parks instead of cars for cities |
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答案
小题1:B
小题2:D
小题3:C
小题4:D |
解析
试题分析：
【文章大意】本文是一篇说明文。文章讲述了世界一半以上的人口居住在城市，城市的交通、空气质量越来越差。为了改善人们的生活质量，很多城市开始多建公园和自行车、人行道路。减少汽车的使用，少给给汽车留一些空间。
小题1:B考查细节理解。根据文章第一段中的In cities like Mexico City, Shanghai or Cairo the quality of air is getting worse every day. 可知，在墨西哥、上海或开罗，空气的质量越来越差。故选B。
小题2:D考查细节理解。根据文章第二段中的They created over a thousand new parks, a new public transport system, and built hundreds of cycling and walking paths. 可知，他们建了1000多个公园，全新的公共交通系统和建了几百个自行车和步行道路。故选D。
小题3:C考查细节理解。根据文章第三段中的 In Amsterdam, for example, only 40 % of the population use their cars to get to work, 35 % ride bikes while 25% use public transport. 可知，有 25%的人使用公共交通工具。也就是说1/4的人使用公共交通工具。故选C。
小题4:D考查文章的标题。根据文章的整体内容可知，第二段讲述了建更多的公园，提高人们的生活质量。第三段创造更多的生活空间减少汽车的空间。所以，文章的整体说明为了改善人们的生活质量，要多建一些公园少用一些汽车。故选D。 |
举一反三
In 1826, a Frenchman named Niepce needed pictures for his business .But he was not a good artist .So he invented a very simple camera (照相机).He put it in a window of his house and took a picture of his garden .That was the first photo.
The next important date in the history of photography (摄影术) was in 1837.That year, Daguere, another Frenchman, took a picture of his reading room .He used a new kind of camera in a different way. In his picture you could see everything very clearly, even the smallest thing. This kind of photo was called a Daguerreotype.
Soon, other people began to use Daguerre"s way .Travelers brought back wonderful photos from all around the world .People took picture of famous buildings, cities and mountains.
In about 1840, photography was developed .Then photographers could take picture of people and moving things .That was not simple .The photographers had to carry a lot of film(胶片) and other machines. But this did not stop them, for example, some in the United States worked so hard.
Mathew Brady was a famous American photographer. He took many picture of great people .The pictures were unusual because they were very lifelike(栩栩如生的)
Photography has also became one kind of art by the end of the 19th century .Some photos were nor just copies of the real world .They showed feelings, like other kinds of art.
小题1:The first photo taken by Niepce was a picture of ____________| A．his business | B．his house | C．his garden | D．his window |
小题2:The Daguerreotype was____________.| A．a Frenchman | B．a kind of photo | | C．a kind of camera | D．a photographer |
小题3:If a photographer wanted to take pictures of moving things in the year of 1840, he had to__________.| A．watch lots of films | | B．buy an expensive camera | | C．stop in most cities | | D．take many films and something else with him. |
小题4:Mathew Brady______________.| A．was very lifelike | | B．was famous for his unusual pictures | | C．was quite strong | | D．took many pictures of moving people |
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The French word renaissance means rebirth. It was first used in 1855 by the historian Jules Michelet in his History of France, and then adopted by historians of culture, by art historians, and eventually by music historians, all of whom applied it to European culture during the 150 years spanning 1450-1600. The concept of rebirth was appropriate to this period of European history because of the renewed interest in ancient Greek and Roman culture that began in Italy and then spread throughout Europe. Scholars and artists of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries wanted to restore the learning and ideals of the classical civilizations of Greece and Rome. To these scholars this meant a return to human—as opposed to spiritual-values. Fulfillment in life—as opposed to concern about an afterlife—became a desirable goal, and expressing the entire range of human emotions and enjoying the pleasures of the senses were no longer frowned on (不赞同). Artists and writers now turned to secular (非宗教的) as well as religious subject matter and sought to make their works understandable and appealing.
These changes in outlook deeply affected the musical culture of the Renaissance period—how people thought about music as well as the way music was composed, experienced, discussed, and disseminated. They could see the architectural monuments, sculptures, plays, and poems that were being rediscovered, but they could not actually hear ancient music—although they could read the writings of classical philosophers, poets, essayists, and music theorists that were becoming available in translation. They learned about the power of ancient music to move the listener and wondered why modern music did not have the same effect. For example, the influential religious leader Bernardino Cirillo expressed disappointment with the learned music of his time. He urged musicians to follow the example of the sculptors, painters, architects, and scholars who had rediscovered ancient art and literature. The musical Renaissance in Europe was more a general cultural movement and state of mind than a specific set of musical techniques. Furthermore, music changed so rapidly during this century and a half—though at different rates in different countries—that we cannot define a single Renaissance style.
小题1:What is the passage mainly about?| A．The musical compositions that best illustrate the developments during the European Renaissance. | | B．The musical techniques that were in use during the European Renaissance. | | C．The European Renaissance as a cultural development that included changes in musical style. | | D．The ancient Greek and Roman musical practices used during the European Renaissance. |
小题2:According to the passage, Renaissance artists and writers had all of the following intentions EXCEPT _______.| A．to use religious themes | | B．to express only the pleasant parts of human experience | | C．to produce art that people would find attractive | | D．to create works that were easily understood |
小题3:The word "disseminated" in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to _______.| A．played | B．documented | C．spread | D．ignored |
小题4:What can be inferred about the music of ancient Greece and Rome?| A．It expressed different ideals than classical sculpture, painting and poetry. | | B．It was played on instruments that are familiar to modern audiences. | | C．It had the same effect on Renaissance audiences as it had when originally performed. | | D．Its effect on listeners was described in a number of classical texts. |
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Face masks are commonly used in ceremonies and performances. They not only hide the real face of the mask wearer but they often evoke powerful emotions in the audience—danger, fear, sadness, joy. You might think, because so many things vary cross-culturally, that the ways in which emotions are displayed and recognized in the face vary too. Apparently they do not. Recent research on masks from different cultures supports the conclusion that masks, like faces, tend to represent certain emotions in the same ways. We now have some evidence that the symbolism used in masks is often universal.
The research on masks builds on work done by anthropologists, who used photographs of individuals experiencing various emotions. These photographs were shown to members of different cultural groups who were asked to identify the emotions displayed in the photographs. Emotions were identified correctly by most viewers, whatever the viewer’s native culture.
Coding schemes were developed to enable researchers to compare the detailed facial positions of individual portions of die face (eyebrows, mouth, etc.) for different emotions. What exactly do we do when we scowl? We contract the eyebrows and lower the corners of the mouth; in geometric terms, we make angles and diagonals (斜线) on our faces. When we smile, we raise the corners of the mouth; we make it curved.
Psychologist Joel Arnoff and his colleagues compared two types of wooden face masks from many different societies—masks described as threatening versus masks associated with nonthreatening functions. As suspected, the two sets of masks had significant differences in certain facial elements. The threatening masks had eyebrows and eyes facing inward and downward and a downward-facing mouth. In more abstract or geometrical terms, threatening features generally tend to be angular or diagonal and nonthreatening features tend to be curved or rounded, a face with a pointed beard is threatening; a baby"s face is not. The theory is that humans express and recognize basic emotions in uniform (一致的) ways because all human faces are quite similar, skeletally and muscularly.
小题1:What does the passage mainly discuss?| A．The techniques for comparing facial expressions across cultures. | | B．The photography of faces. | | C．Cultural variations in mask. | | D．The uniformity of facial expressions in revealing emotions. |
小题2:According to the passage, masks are used in performances to _______.| A．disguise the real emotions of the performers | | B．cause members of the audience to have strong emotions | | C．remind the audience that an illusion is being created | | D．identify the cultural background of the performers |
小题3:What does the author mean by stating, "the symbolism used in masks is often universal"?| A．Masks are sometimes used to hide emotions. | | B．Performers often need help conveying emotions to an audience. | | C．Not all societies use masks in their rituals. | | D．People from different cultures generally express certain emotions in similar ways. |
小题4:The passage mentions "baby’s face" in the last paragraph as an example of a _______.| A．typical human face | | B．source of inspiration in the creation of masks | | C．nonthreatening face | | D．face that expresses few emotions |
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Laptop computers （笔记本电脑）are popular all over the world. People use them on trains and airplanes, in airports and hotels. These laptops connect people to their workplace. In the United States today, laptops also connect students to their classrooms.
Westlake College in Virginia will start a laptop computer program that allows students to do schoolwork anywhere they want. Within five years, each of the 1500 students at the college will receive a laptop. The laptops are part of a ＄10 million computer program at Westlake, a 110-year-old college. The students with laptops will also have access to the Internet. In addition, they will be able to use e-mail to "speak" with their teachers, their classmates, and their families. However, the most important part of the laptop program is that students will be able to use computers without going to computer labs. They can work with it at home, in a fast-food restaurant or under the trees－anywhere at all!
Because of the many changes in computer technology, laptop use in higher education, such as colleges and universities, is workable. As laptops become more powerful, they become more similar to desktop computers. In addition, the portable computers can connect students to not only the Internet, but also libraries and other resources. State higher-education officials are studying how laptops can help students. State officials are also testing laptop programs at other universities, too.
At Westlake College, more than 60 percent of the staff（全体员工）use computers. The laptops will allow all teachers to use computers in their lessons. As one Westlake teacher said, "Here we are in the middle of Virginia and we"re giving students a window on the world. They can see everything and do everything."
小题1:The main purpose of the laptop program is to give each student a laptop to _____.| A．use for their schoolwork | | B．access the Internet | | C．work at home | | D．connect them to libraries |
小题2:Why is the word "speak" in the second paragraph in quotation marks (引号)?| A．They can speak loudly. | | B．They use the computer language. | | C．Laptops have speakers. | | D．They don"t really talk. |
小题3:Which of the following is TRUE about Westlake College?| A．All teachers use computers. | | B．1500 students have laptops. | | C．It is an old college in America. | | D．Students there can do everything. |
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When students and parents are asked to rate(排名) subjects according to their importance, the arts are unavoidably at the bottom of the list. Music is nice, people seem to say, but not important. Too often it is viewed as only entertainment, but certainly not an education priority(优先). This view is shortsighted. In fact, music education is beneficial and important for all students.
Music tells us who we are. Because music is an expression of the people who create it, it reflects their thinking and values, as well as the social environment it came from . Rock music represents a lifestyle just as surely as does a Schubert song. The jazz influence that George Gershwin and other musicians introduced into their music is obviously American because it came from American musical traditions. Music expresses our character and values. It gives us identity(身份) as a society.
Music provides a kind of perception(感知)that cannot be gained any other way. Science can explain how the sun rises and sets. The arts explore the emotive(情感的)meaning of the same phenomenon(现象). We need every possible way to discover and respond to our world for one simple but powerful reason: No one way can get it all.
The arts are forms of thought as powerful as maths and science. They are ways we human beings “talk” to each other. They are the language of civilization(文明) through which we express our fears, our curiosities, our hungers, our discoveries, our hopes. The arts are ways we give form to our ideas and imagination so that they can be shared with others. When we do not give children some important way of expressing themselves such as music, we take away the meanings that music expresses from our children.
Science and technology do not tell us what it means to be human. The arts do. Music is an important way we express human suffering, happiness, the meaning and value of peace and love.
So music education is far more necessary than people seem to realize.
小题1:According to Paragraph 1, students | A．regard music as a way of entertainment | | B．disagree with their parents on education | | C．view music as an overlooked(被忽视的) subject | | D．prefer the arts to science |
小题2: In Paragraph 2, the author uses jazz an example to | A．compare it with rock music | | B．show music identifies(身份) a society | | C．introduce American musical traditions | | D．prove music influences people’s lifestyles |
小题3:According to the passage, the arts and science .
A. approach the world from different angles(角度)
B. explore different phenomena of the world
C express people’s feelings in different ways
D. explain what it means to be human differently
小题4: What is the main idea of the passage ?| A．Music education deserves(值得) more attention. | | B．Music should be of top education priority(优先). | | C．Music is an effective communication tool. | | D．Music education makes students more imaginative. |
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