New picture
The National Gallery now has a fine still life by the 18th century Dutch painter Jan van Os.This large picture (89.1 cm x 71cm) of flowers and fruit is painted in light bright colours on wood.It is one of the first pictures of this type in the Gallery.The picture is signed and dated 1777 and 1778.It is not unusual for a picture to be dated two years: the artist waited for particular flowers to come out in their different seasons in order to paint them.This picture was given to the Gallery by Miss Violet Churchman in memory of her sister Ida Nancy. It is now on show in Room 25.
Special exhibition
The exhibition "Painting in Spain During the Late 18th Century" opened in the Sunley Room on 15 March.Recently the Gallery has bought works by three Spanish painters of this period—Paret, Melendez and Francisco Bayeu, who are the focus of the exhibition.These three artists are also joined by Francisco's brother Ramon, by Antonio Gonzalez and two Italians who worked in Spain during these years—Corrado Giaquinto and Giovanni Battista Tiepolo.The exhibition runs until 31 May.
Lecture news Lectures will be given along with the special exhibition every Wednesday.On 8 April, Lizzie Barker will discuss the work of Melendez, while on 15 April, Sarah Symmons will lecture on Luis Patter.On 22 and 29 April, Juliet Wilson will talk about Francisco Bayeu.On 25 April, a Saturday, Erika Langmuir will explain how artists often "tell a story" through their pictures.What does "still life" in Paragraph 1 probably mean?
A.A painting of unmoving objects. | B.A picture of a country scene. |
C.A drawing done in pencil. | D.A portrait shown in a public place. |
How many artists' paintings are on show at the special exhibition?
A.Three. | B.Five. | C.Seven. | D.Eight. |
Which speaker will lecture on a general topic rather than on particular artists?
A.Juliet Wilson. | B.Lizzie Barker. |
C.Sarah Symmons. | D.Erika Langmuir. |
Where will this passage most probably be found?
A.In the booklet of a gallery. | B.In a textbook. |
C.In an academic magazine. | D.In a picture album. |
Norm Pethrick, a 36-year-old man in Australia’s northern city Darwin, was praised on Thursday for jumping onto a crocodile’s back to save his wife Wendy at Litchfield National Park, a popular tourist spot southwest of Darwin, a local newspaper reported.
Ms Pethrick was standing on a river bank Wednesday afternoon when the saltwater crocodile lunged (扑), locking its jaws on both her legs as it tried to drag her underwater.
Norm Pethrick, who with his wife had been collecting water, immediately went to help her. He jumped onto the back, poked (戳) the eyes of the crocodile and finally got his wife free.
Ms Pethrick was later taken to Royal Darwin Hospital for a medical treatment. The doctors said she was suffering eight puncture wounds (伤口) in her right leg, a puncture wound in her left leg and a serious cut to one of her fingers.
“This could have been a fatal and tragic situation,” said the general manager of Royal Darwin Hospital (RDH), Dr Len Notaras, according to a local report.
He said Ms Pethrick was saved by her husband’s “quick and diligent actions”.
Dr Notaras also said she would remain in hospital for three to four days and have an operation to clean the wounds, which are easy to get infected because of bacteria (细菌) on the teeth of the crocodile. This passage is most likely to be found in _____.
A.a travel guide | B.a newspaper | C.a textbook | D.a novel |
The crocodile attacked Ms Pethrick when she was ______.
A.swimming in the river | B.standing on the river bank |
C.watching the crocodile | D.fishing in the water |
Which of the following statements is TRUE about Ms Pethrick?
A.Her eyes were badly poked. |
B.She had eight wounds altogether. |
C.One of her fingers also got hurt. |
D.One of the crocodile’s teeth was found in her leg. |
According to the passage, Norm Pethrick can be described as following EXCEPT ______.
A.brave | B.diligent | C.quick | D.Humorous |
When you enter a supermarket, you see shelves full of food. You walk between the shelves. You carry a shopping basket and your food is in it.
You probably hear soft, slow music as you walk between the shelves. If you hear fast music, you walk quickly. The supermarket plays slow music. You walk slowly and have more time to buy things.
Maybe you go to the meat department first. There is some meat on sale, and you want to find it. The manager of the supermarket knows where customers enter the meat department. The cheaper meat is at the other end of the meat department, away from where the customers enter. You have to walk by all the expensive meat before you find the cheaper meat. Maybe you will buy some of the expensive meat instead of the meat on sale.
The department selling milk and milk products such as butter and milk powder is called the dairy department. Many customers like milk that has only a little butterfat in it. One store has three different jars of low fat milk. One says“1 percent fat”on the jar. The second says “99 percent fat free”. The third says “LOW FAT” in big letters and“1%”in small letters. As you can see, all the milk has the same amount of fat. The milk is all the same. However,in this store the three jars of milk cost three different amounts of money. Maybe the customers will buy the milk that costs the most.
Most of the food in supermarkets is very pleasing. It all says “Buy me!” to the customers. The expensive meat says “Buy me!”as you walk by. The expensive milk jar says “Buy me! I have less fat.”There are three different jars of low fat milk, and ________.
A.one has more fat than the other two |
B.they all cost the same amount of money |
C.one has less fat than the others |
D.they all have the same amount of fat |
Supermarket managers make the food pleasing so that ________.
A.there will be more buyers | B.buyers will be proud |
C.it is good and expensive | D.they can raise the prices |
Low fat milk is in the ________.
A.meat department | B.fruit and vegetable department |
C.sweets department | D.dairy department |
The best title of this passage may be ________.
A.Cheap Food | B.Buy Me |
C.Low Fat Milk | D.Supermarket Management |
Have you wondered about the amount of time we spend talking about food and been surprised? We are always asking questions such as “Have you ever eaten?” and “What did you have for lunch?”Yet, if you travel from one country to another, you might find that other nations think differently about food. People plan to think that what they eat is normal and what everyone else eats is strange. In most parts of Asia, for example, no meal is complete without rice but in England, rice is the exception and people prefer to eat potatoes, in the Middle East, bread accompanies every meal.
Eating, like so many things we do, becomes a habit that is difficult to change. The Americans seem to like drinking lots of orange juice and coffee; the English prefer to drink tea four or five times a day; the Australians prefer to drink a lot of beer; the French, like wine every day.
People in different countries also like eating different kinds of meat and even within countries, different regions will have different likes and dislikes, especially in large countries like China and the former Soviet Union. In Hong Kong and the south of China, some people enjoy eating snakes but in the north of China, most people refuse to eat them. The French think that horse meat is delicious but most English people are terrified at the thought of eating it. The New Zealanders eat a lot of lamb and mutton, but never goat. The Japanese say that they do not like eating lamb and mutton because of their smell, but that they really enjoy eating raw fish more than anything else.
So it seems that there is often very little common sense about what is nicest to eat or drink in different parts of the world although we may talk on the subject of food for hours. However, as people everywhere enjoy eating what they have always eaten, there seems very little point in trying to change traditional eating habits.The topic people spend a lot of time talking about is ________.
A.lunch | B.breakfast | C.dinner | D.food |
Bread is necessary in every meal in ________.
A.the Middle East | B.America | C.England | D.Asia |
In England, people prefer to eat ________.
A.rice | B.potatoes | C.corn | D.bread |
An American woman Anna Jarvis was the first person to decide the mothers should have a holiday in their honor each year. Miss Jarvis started her campaign in 1906 in her home city Philadelphia. She wrote thousands of letters to congressmen(国会议员), city officials, teachers and newspaper publishers, proposing an official holiday for mothers. She traveled all over America, trying to get support for the idea. Her battle went on for years.
In 1914, the Congress declared the second Sunday in May each year as Mother's Day. Anna Jarvis wanted Mother's Day to be a simple event. She thought children could honor their mothers by spending some time with them as an act of love and respect. However, the holiday turned out to be a major event for department stores, flower shops and greetingcard industry, which Miss Jarvis didn't like.
Americans spend millions of dollars on gifts for their mothers on this day. Younger children often try to prepare and serve breakfast for their mothers. Fathers may offer to take care of children so that mothers can enjoy themselves. The holiday becomes an important time for family gathering.What can be inferred from the text is that ________.
A.the Congress didn't accept Anna's suggestion until the whole country supported her |
B.the battle lasted 8 years |
C.Jarvis didn't enjoy the usual way Americans spend Mother's Day |
D.Mother's Day is an important day for Americans |
Miss Jarvis proposed Mother's Day in order that people could show their love and respect to their mothers ________.
A.by spending some time with them |
B.by offering them precious gifts |
C.by eating in restaurants together |
D.by taking children for them |
On Mother's Day ________.
A.all women, young and old, receive gifts |
B.families gather together |
C.all people stay at home |
D.no one goes to work |
Miss Jarvis proposed Mother's Day, but she didn't like ________.
A.flower shops selling flowers |
B.department stores earning money from greetingcards |
C.greetingcard industry |
D.the way people spend Mother's Day |
Sometimes your biggest weakness can become your biggest strength. Take,for example,the story of one 10-year-old boy who decided to study judo(柔道) despite the fact that he had lost his left arm in a devastating car accident.
The boy began lessons with an old Japanese judo master. The boy was doing well,so he couldn't understand why,after three months of training,the master had taught him only one move.
“Sensei,” the boy finally said,“shouldn't I be learning more moves?” “This is the only move you know,but this is the only move you'll ever need to know,” the sensei replied.
Not quite understanding,but believing in his teacher,the boy kept training. Several months later,the sensei took the boy to his first tournament(锦标赛,联赛).Surprising himself,the boy easily won his first two matches. The third match proved to be more difficult,but after some time,his opponent became impatient and charged;the boy deftly(熟练地) used his one move to win the match. Still amazed by his success,the boy was now in the finals.
This time,his opponent was bigger,stronger,and more experienced. For a while,the boy appeared to be defeated. Concerned that the boy might get hurt,the referee called a time out. He was about to stop the match when the sensei intervened. “No,” the sensei insisted,“let him continue.” Soon after the match resumed,his opponent made a big mistake: he dropped his guard. Instantly,the boy had won the match and the tournament. He was the champion.
On the way home,the boy and sensei reviewed every move in each and every match. Then the boy gathered the courage to ask what was really on his mind. “Sensei,how did I win the tournament with only one move? ”“You won for two reasons,” the sensei answered. “First,you've almost mastered one of the most difficult throws in all of judo. Second,the only known defense for that move is for your opponent to grab your left arm. ”The boy's biggest weakness had become his biggest strength.What's the best title of the passage?
A.No pains no gains. |
B.Weakness can become strength. |
C.Where there is a will there is a way. |
D.A great judo master. |
According to the second paragraph the boy was ______ with his teacher.
A.satisfied | B.pleased |
C.unsatisfied | D.careful |
Why did the referee call a timeout in the finals?
A.Because he thought the boy would be the loser definitely. |
B.Because he thought the boy would give up. |
C.Because he dropped his guard. |
D.Because he was experienced. |
In the last paragraph the author wanted to tell us ______.
A.who was the champion |
B.the reason why the boy won every match |
C.the sensei was very excellent |
D.the boy was very courageous |