When a Swedish ship that sank in 1628 was recovered from the port of Stockholm, historians and scientists were overjoyed with the chance to examine the remains of the past. The ship construction showed how ships were built and operated during the seventeenth century. In this way, artifacts, objects made by human beings, provided a picture of daily life almost 400 years ago.
Underwater archaeology-the study of ships, aircraft and human settlements that have sunk under large bodies of water-is really a product of the last 50 years. The rapid growth of this new area of study has occurred because of the invention of better diving equipment .Besides the Swedish ship wreck(残骸),underwater archaeologists have made more exciting discoveries such as the 5000-year-old boats in the Mediterranean Sea.
Underwater archaeology can provide facts about the past. In ancient ports all over the world are ships sunken in the past 6,000 years. There are also sunken settlements in seas and lakes telling of people’s way of life and their systems of trade in ancient times. Underwater archaeologists want to study these objects to add to the world's knowledge of history, but they have to fight two enemies. One enemy is treasure hunters who dive for ancient artifacts that they can sell to collectors. Once sold, these objects are lost to experts. The second enemy is dredging machines(挖掘机)often used to repair ports. These machines destroy wrecks and artifacts or bury them deeper under sand and mud. By teaching the public about the importance of underwater “museums” of the past, archaeologists are hoping to get support for laws to protect underwater treasures.What purpose does Paragraph 1 serve in the passage?
A.To provide background information of the topic |
B.To attract readers' attention to the topic |
C.To use an example to support the topic |
D.To offer basic knowledge of the topic |
The aim of underwater archaeology is to _____.
A.exploit water bodies | B.search for underwater life |
C.study underwater artifacts | D.examine underwater environment |
Underwater archaeologists are worried because_____.
A.sea hunters have better diving equipment |
B.their knowledge of world history is limited |
C.dredging machines cause damage to the ports |
D.sold artifacts can hardly be regained for research |
What is the main purpose of the passage?
A.To introduce a young branch of learning. |
B.To discuss the scientists’ problems. |
C.To explain people’s way of life in the past. |
D.To describe the sunken ships. |
IS IT TIME TO GET MP3?
Your computer has been playing music for years, one CD at a time. Now hundreds of songs can be stored in your PC (personal computer) if they’re in the MP3 format.
What is it?
MP3 compresses music into small computer friendly files. You access MP3 music several ways : Music can be downloaded from websites that have converted vast music libraries into MP3. Or you can prerecord CDs into your PC and convert songs in minutes into MP3. Once MP3 music is on your PC’s hard drive, you can play it through your computer’s speakers, “burn” it onto blank CDs or exchange MP3 files with friends using E-mail.
How much?
Software needed to play and convert MP3 music is often free. It comes preinstalled on most new computers or can be downloaded from many websites, including MP3. com. Some MP3 sites are free. Just type “MP3 sites” into any search engine. The popular MP3 players start at around $50and can hold hundreds of songs. A blank CD on which you can record music costs about a dollar.
Advantages
MP3 turns your home PC into a tape recorder. Tiny MP3 players are the size of a card, making it easy to take hundreds of songs with you.
Disadvantages
You may find that music at many sites is limited. And some only allow you to listen rather than download offerings. Others let you download music that then can’t be copied to MP3 players. And a growing number of new CDs make it impossible to copy songs to a computer.How can you get MP3 music?
A.By turning your home PC into a tape recorder |
B.By taking your own music or songs with you |
C.By copying songs to a PC through the speakers. |
D.By downloading from websites which have converted music libraries into MP3. |
Which is NOT true to the passage?
A.Software needed to play and convert MP3 music is often free of charge. |
B.MP3 music can be with friends by e-mail. |
C.MP3 music can be downloaded for free at any site. |
D.A greater number of new CDs make it possible to copy songs to a computer. |
The underlined word “burn” probably means_____.
A.fire | B.change | C.download | D.play |
How much will you pay for a MP3 player?
A.Free of charge. | B.Free downloading. |
C.At least fifty dollars. | D.About a dollar. |
In the early part of the twentieth century, racism was widespread in the United States. Many African Americans were not given equal opportunities in education or employment. Marian Anderson (1897-1993) was an African American woman who gained fame as a concert singer in this climate of racism. She was born in Philadelphia and sang in church choirs during her childhood. When she applied for admission to a local music school in 1917, she was turned down because she was black. Unable to attend music school, she began her career as a singer for church gatherings. In 1929, she went to Europe to study voice and spent several years performing there. Her voice was widely praised throughout Europe. Then she returned to the US in 1935 and became a top concert singer after performing at Town Hall in New York City.
Racism again affected Anderson in 1939. When it was arranged for her to sing at Constitution Hall in Washington, DC, the Daughters of the American Revolution opposed it because of her color. She sang instead at the Lincoln Memorial for over 75 000 people. In 1955, Anderson became the first black soloist to sing win the Metropolitan Opera of New York City. The famous conductor Toscanini praised her voice as “heard only once in a hundred years”. She was a US delegate to the United Nations in 1958 and won the UN peace prize in 1977. Anderson eventually triumphed over racism.According to this passage, what did Marian Anderson do between 1917 and 1929?
A.She studied at a music school. | B.She sang for religious activities. |
C.She sang at Town Hall in New York. | D.She studied voice in Europe. |
Toscanini thought that Marian Anderson .
A.had a very rare voice | B.sang occasionally in public |
C.sang only once in many years | D.was seldom heard by people |
Anderson’s beautiful voice was first recognized .
A. at the Lincoln Memorial B. in Washington, DC.
C. in Europe D. at the United NationsThis passage shows that Anderson finally defeated racism in the US by
A.protesting to the government | B.appealing to the United Nations |
C.demonstrating in the streets | D.working hard to perfect her art |
Chinese people are now spending more time surfing the net than watching TV, according to results of a survey by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) published Thursday.
The survey, of citizens of five Chinese cities, found that 79 percent of interviewees use the internet for information, and 55.1 percent to read news on the internet. About 63 percent of the interviewees use e-mail. The average times spent surfing the net and watching TV were 2.73 hours and 1.29hours, respectively.
Only 10.4 percent reported use the internet primarily to send and receive email; 65.9 percent read online news; 62.2 quite often play games on-line. More and more people have taken an interest in the entertainment opportunities online. Up to 56.5 percent of interviewees quite often download music, and 53.5 percent get entertainment messages from the internet.
Yet the survey found that television is still the dominant mass medium. Seventy-nine percent of interviewees choose to watch TV to get information, and another 75 percent take newspapers as important as TV.
Five major web sites in the Chinese language, namely Sina, Sohu, Netease, Baidu and Yahoo are still ranked top ones by web users, and those that voted for Sina as the best among them were 30.9 percent.
Authorized statistics showed that web users in China have already exceeded 100 million, second to that of the United States.Which of the following is not true?
A.Chinese people are now spending more time surfing the net than watching TV. |
B.There are more Chinese people using the internet for information compared with those reading news on the internet. |
C.There are more people using e-mail compared with those searching information on the internet. |
D.There are more people using e-mail compared with those reading news on the internet. |
The survey shows that .
A.Only 10.4% reported use the internet to send and receive email. |
B.Less than half of the people use the internet for enter fain-ment. |
C.All of the people reported like to play games on-line. |
D.Most of the people reported read online news. |
Which will you choose if you want to chat with your friends on the internet?
A.TV | B.Sina | C.telephone | D.QQ |
The underlined word “exceeded” means .
A.increased to | B.increased by | C.risen | D.decreased |
Woman’s Day
Published by ACP Magazines Ltd, 54 Park St, Sydney
● Manuscripts(稿件) should be type-written and double-spaced (双倍行距),
using only one side of the page.
● Your name and address must be included.
● The manuscripts must be accompanied by a self-addressed envelope with
stamps of the proper value (including registered mail if required).
● Please keep copies of your text, pictures or photos.
● Allow several weeks for acceptance/return.
● ACP Magazines Ltd does not accept responsibility for damage to, or loss of,
material sent to the editor.
● Material content in Woman’s Day is protected under the Commonwealth Copyright Act (英联邦版权
法案) 1968.
● No material may be reproduced in part or in whole without written agreement from the copyright holders.
Subscription(订阅) rate: Australia for one year (52 issues) $150.00 or six months (26 issues) $ 75.00.
Tel: (02) 9213 6116 Fax: (02) 9267 4363
E-mail: womansday@aepmagazines.com.au
Website: www.magshop.com.au
P.O. Box: 5252, Sydney, NSW 2001 (Postage free within Australia) Which of the following is included in the requirements for the manuscripts?
A.They should be handwritten. |
B.They should have no empty lines between lines. |
C.They should be on the front of the page only. |
D.They should include contributor’s (投稿人) age. |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A.The contributors must keep copies of their manuscripts. |
B.Woman’s Day is most probably a monthly magazine. |
C.The editor will pay for the damage or loss of the manuscripts. |
D.It takes several weeks before the manuscripts are published. |
According to the passage the copyright holders are ____ .
A.those who copy the articles in Woman’s Day |
B.the producers of Woman’s Day |
C.the readers of Woman’s Day |
D.those who subscribe Woman’s Day |
Apart from the website, how many other ways can people gain information from the magazine?
A.Three. | B.Four. | C.Five. | D.Six. |
At one time, computers were expected largely to remove the need for paper copies of documents because they could be stored electronically. But for all the texts that are written, stored and sent electronically, a lot of them are still ending up on paper.
It is difficult to measure the quantity of paper used as a result of use of Internet-connected computers, although just about anyone who works in an office can tell you that when e-mail is introduced, the printers start working overtime. “I feel in my bones this revolution is causing more trees to be cut down,” says Ted Smith of the Earth Village Organization.
Perhaps the best sign of how computer and Internet use pushes up demand for paper comes from the high-tech industry itself, which sees printing as one of its most promising new markets. Several Internet companies have been set up to help small businesses print quality documents from a computer. Earlier this week Hewlett-Packard Co. announced a plan to develop new technologies that will enable people to print even more so they can get a hard copy of a business document, a medical record or just a one-line e-mail, even if they are nowhere near a computer. As the company sees it, the more use of the Internet the greater demand for printers .
Does all this mean environmental concerns have been forgotten? Some activists suggest people have been led to believe that a lot of dangers to the environment have gone away. “I guess people believe that the problem is taken care of, because of recycling (回收利用)?” said Kelly Quirke, director of the Rainforest Action Network in San Francisco. Yet Quirke is hopeful that high-tech may also prove helpful. He says printers that print on both sides are growing in popularity. The action group has also found acceptable paper made from materials other than wood, such as agricultural waste. The growing demand for paper in recent years is largely due to ____.
A.the rapid development of small businesses | B.the opening up of new markets |
C.the printing of high quality copies | D.the increased use of the Internet |
Environmentalists believe one possible way of dealing with the paper situation is ____.
A.to encourage printing more quality documents | B.to develop new printers using recycled paper |
C.to find new materials for making paper | D.to plant more fast-growing trees |
Hewlett-Packard Co. has decided to develop new technologies because ____.
A.people are concerned about the environment | B.printers in many offices are working overtime |
C.small companies need more hard copies | D.they see a growing market for printers |
What would be the best title for the text?
A.Computers and Printers | B.E-mail and the Business World |
C.Internet Revolution and Environment | D.Modern Technology and New Markets |