Throughout the history of the arts, the nature of creativity has remained constant to artists. No matter what objects they select, artists are to bring forth new forces and forms that cause change-to find poetry where no one has ever seen or experienced it before.
Landscape(风景) is another unchanging element of art. It can be found from ancient times through the 17th-century Dutch painters to the 19th-century romanticists and impressionists. In the 1970s, Alfred Leslie, one of the new American realists, continued this practice. Leslie sought out the same place where Thomas Cole, a romanticist, had produced paintings of the same scene a century and a half before. Unlike Cole who insists on a feeling of loneliness and the idea of finding peace in nature, Leslie paints what he actually sees. In his paintings, there is no particular change in emotion, and he includes ordinary things like the highway in the background. He also takes advantage of the latest developments of color photography(摄影术) to help both the eye and the memory when he improves his painting back in his workroom.
Besides, all art begs the age-old question: What is real? Each generation of artists has shown their understanding of reality in one form or another. The impressionists saw reality in brief emotional effects, the realists in everyday subjects and in forest scenes, and the Cro-Magnon cave people in their naturalistic drawings of the animals in the ancient forests. To sum up, understanding reality is a necessary struggle for artists of all periods.
Over thousands of years the function of the arts has remained relatively constant. Past or present, Eastern or Western, the arts are a basic part of our immediate experience. Many and different are the faces of art, and together they express the basic need and hope of human beings. The underlined word “poetry” most probably means __________.
| A．an object for artistic creation | B．a collection of poems |
| C．an unusual quality | D．a natural scene |
Leslie's paintings are extraordinary because .
| A．they are close in style to works in ancient times |
| B．they look like works by 19th-century painters |
| C．they draw attention to common things in life |
| D．they depend heavily on color photography |
What is the author's opinion of artistic reality?
| A．It will not be found in future works of art. |
| B．It does not have a long-lasting standard. |
| C．It is expressed in a fixed artistic form. |
| D．It is lacking in modern works of art. |
What does the author suggest about the arts in the last paragraph?
| A．They express people's curiosity about the past. |
| B．They make people interested in everyday experience. |
| C．They are considered important for variety in form. |
| D．They are regarded as a mirror of the human situation. |
Which of the following is the main topic of the passage?
| A．History of the arts. |
| B．Basic questions of the arts. |
| C．New developments in the arts. |
| D．Use of modern technology in the arts. |
When you leave home to go and live somewhere else, you naturally take your own personality and cultural ways with you. When you arrive in a new country with a different culture you can experience different kinds of feelings and reactions. For example, you may feel confused and nervous, and like to depend on others.
If you do experience these things, then you are probably experiencing culture shock. For example, coming to Australia from another country certainly gives you a chance to face many new things: the buildings look different, and the food is not what you are used to. You may not be able to speak with other people confidently.
Learning to function effectively in a new culture is not easy. Meanings in cross-cultural situations are often unclear. This can be stressful because you are not sure what others expect of you or what you can expect of them. In these situations it is natural to feel anxious and frustrated(挫折). If you recognize that these feelings are a normal part of the experience of living away from “home”, you may be able to deal with them more efficiently. Your sense of humor and openness will also help. As you gain greater understanding of the new culture, you can expect the stress to disappear.
Dealing with culture shock needs a special effort, but it is the most important to remember that you are not alone in your feelings of distress. Most people in their first weeks and months in a new country experience similar reactions.This passage mainly tells us _______.
| A．How to adapt（适应） to a new environment | B．how to live in Australia happily |
| C．how to study in a new environment | D．how to avoid being nervous |
Why do people have many kinds of feelings in a new country?
| A．Because they are surprised at everything they see. |
| B．Because buildings are very beautiful. |
| C．Because culture shock does have a great effect on them. |
| D．Because they have to learn something quickly. |
The stress may disappear slowly as you __________.
| A．have the ability to get along well with others |
| B．can know more about the new culture |
| C．can consider the stress to be normal |
| D．are humorous and have a good mood |
Which of the following is the most important thing in dealing with culture shock?
| A．Your efforts. | B．Your attitude. | C．Your feelings. | D．Your humor. |
We can offer you a place at one of the best universities in Britain. We’ll provide you with a choice of 150 first class courses developed especially to enable you to study in your own time, backed by the Open University’s own special study method—OU supported open learning.
We’ll give you the support of a personal teacher, and the chance to meet your fellow students. You can take one-off courses, diplomas (毕业证), a degree（学位） or a postgraduate degree. Subjects available include: computing, business management, technology, modern languages, social sciences, English law, arts, science, mathematics, education and health﹠social welfare.
Whether you want to study to improve your jobs or for your own personal interest, there’s almost certainly a course for you. If you haven’t studied for a while, we’ll help you get started. No previous training or degrees are required; you just need a lively power of learning and a willingness to learn. It’s real value for money and you can pay by monthly payments.
Open University course materials are of the highest quality and come in a variety of forms, including video and audio tapes as well as texts. The OU leads the world in its use of new technology for learning. A number of courses provide source material on CD Rom. What else can the Open University offer you? The best way to find out is to use the coupon below or phone us today.
This is an advertisement of ___________.
| A．inquiring(询问) English learning | B．setting Open University |
| C．introducing famous teachers | D．attracting students |
As a student of the Open University, you don’t need to ________.
| A．buy any course materials | B．have lessons all the time at the university |
| C．choose which course to learn | D．pay any money for your study |
The Open University can supply you with _________.
| A．a course for training your English | B．a classroom and a library for study |
| C．different kinds of free instructions | D．different jobs to choose from |
We can learn from the text that ________.
| A．OU courses are popular in Britain |
| B．money for learning must be paid off at one time |
| C．we can’t telephone the university during the night |
| D．people can’t be employed without finishing OU courses |
A friend of mine was in low spirits one day. He usually dealt with this state of mind by avoiding people until the mood passed. But on that day Fred had an important meeting with his boss, so he decided to put on a false front. During the meeting Fred smiled, joked and played the part of a happy, good-natured person. To his surprise, he soon discovered he was no longer depressed.
Without realizing it, Fred chanced to find an important new principle of psychological research: acting a part can help us feel the way we want to feel — more self-assured in a trying situation, more cheerful when things go wrong.
How can you put this principle to work in your own life? There’s more involved than simply mimicking a few expressions. You have to be systematic about it. Here’s how:
Smile to cheer yourself up.
Relax to reduce anxiety or fear.
Look your best to increase your self-confidence.
Keep cool in a crisis.
Using our bodies and actions to change the way we feel can be a useful tool in helping us through life’s difficult times. As novelist George Eliot wrote more than a century ago, “Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds.” People who remember that — and act upon it — can only be richer and happier for the experience.In paragraph 1 the underlined phrase “to put on a false front” means ______.
| A．to wear a wrong coat |
| B．to act a part unsuccessfully |
| C．to show a pretended happy appearance |
| D．to put on airs |
According to Paragraph 1, Fred ______before the meeting.
| A．had very few spirits |
| B．had many spirits |
| C．was in bad mood |
| D．was in good mood |
The underlined phrase “mimicking” in Paragraph 3 most probably means ______.
| A．learning quickly |
| B．making faces |
| C．behaving well |
| D．imitating others |
In the last paragraph, the quotation “Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds” may show that ______.
| A．actions speak louder than words |
| B．the more we do, the happier we are |
| C．our feeling cannot change our behavior |
| D．actions are very important for us to beat bad moods for good |
Sports can help you keep fit and get in touch with nature. However, whether you are on the mountains, in the waves, or on the grassland, you should be aware that your choice of sport might have great influence on the environment.
Some sports are resource-hungry. Golf, as you may know, eats up not only large areas of countryside, but also tons of water. Besides, all sorts of chemical and huge amounts of energy are used to keep its courses in good condition .This causes major environmental effects. For example, in the dry regions of Portugal and Spain, golf is often held responsible for serious water shortage in some local areas.
There are many environment-friendly sports．Power walking is one of them that you could take up today. You don’t need any special equipment except a good pair of shoes; and you don’t have to worry about resources and your purse. Simple and free, power walking can also keep you fit. If you walk regularly, it will be good for your heart and bones. Experts say that 20 minutes of power walking daily can make you feel less anxious, sleep well and have better weight control.
Whatever sport you take up, you can make it greener by using environment-friendly equipment and buying products made from recycled materials. But the final goal should be “green gyms”. They are better replacements for traditional health clubs and modern sports centers. Members of green gyms play sports outdoors, in the countryside or other open spaces. There is no special requirement for you to start your membership. And best of all, it’s free.What do we know about golf from the passage?
| A．It is not played in Portugal and Spain at all. |
| B．It causes water shortages around the world. |
| C．It pollutes the earth with chemicals and wastes. |
| D．It needs water and electricity to keep its courses green. |
The author uses power walking as an example mainly because ________.
| A．it is an outdoor sport |
| B．it improves our health |
| C．it uses fewer resources |
| D．it is recommended by experts |
The author writes the passage to ________
| A．show us the function of major sports |
| B．encourage us to go in for green sports |
| C．discuss the major influence of popular sports |
| D．introduce different types of environment-friendly sports |
When I learned that 71-year-old mother was playing Scrabble —a word game, I knew I had to do something. My husband suggests we give her a computer to play against herself. I wasn’t sure whether my mother was ready for it. After all, it had taken 15 years to persuade her to buy an electric cooker. Even so, we packed up our old computer and delivered it to my parents’ home. And so began my mother’s adventure in the world of the computers.It also marked the beginning of an unusual teaching task for me. I’ve taught people of all ages, but I never thought I would be teaching my mother how to do anything.She has been the one teaching me all my life: to cook and sew; to enjoy the good times and put up with the bad. Now it was my turn to give something back. It wasn’t easy at the beginning. There was so much to explain and to introduce. Slowly but surely, my mother caught on, making notes in a little notebook. After a few months of Scrabble and other games, I decided it was time to introduce her to word processing. This proved to be a bigger challenge to her, so I gave her some homework. I asked her to write me a letter, using different letter types, colors and spaces.“Are you this demanding with your kindergarten pupils?” she asked.“No, of course not,” I said.”They already know how to use a computer.”My mother isn’t the only one experiencing a fast personal growth period. Thanks to the computer, my father has finally got over his phone allergy(过敏). For as long as I can remember, any time I called, my mother would answer. Dad and I have had more phone conversations in the last two months than we’ve had in the past 20 years.What does the author do?
| A．She is a cooker |
| B．She is a teacher |
| C．She is a housewife |
| D．She is a computer engineer |
The author decided to give her mother a computer _____.
| A．to let her have more chances to write letters |
| B．to support to her in doing her homework |
| C．to help her through the bad times |
| D．to make her life more enjoyable |
The author asked her mother to write her a letter _____.
| A．because her mother had stopped using the telephone |
| B．because she wanted to keep in touch with her mother |
| C．so that her mother could practice what she had learned |
| D．so that her mother could be free from the housework |