Bali is an Indonesia island that is rich in indigenous (本土的) culture. A lot of people say that Balinese culture is unique and that the people of Bali have always been content with the “now”. If you ask a Balinese person what heaven is like, the probable answer will be “just like Bali”. This only goes to show that most Balinese people are happy to be where they are and never worry.
One factor that contributes to this laidback lifestyle is the culture of close family ties in Bali. In the Balinese culture, support is always available. Balinese extended families are so tightly linked that all members usually live in the same block.
Balinese culture is based on a form of this religion, which is called “Hindu Darma”. This religion reached the island during the eleventh century. Most of the family customs and traditions as well as community lifestyles of the Balinese people are influenced by this. The religious influence even expands widely into the arts, which makes Bali distinct from the rest of Indonesia.
In spite of the fact that tourists flood to the island every year, Balinese people have managed to conserve their culture. Almost every native of Bali is an artist in some form or another. Parents and villagers have passed on their skills to their children, who all seem to have inclinations (爱好) either to music, dance, painting, or decoration.
Another remarkable mark of the Balinese culture is the senses of ceremonies known as the Manusa Yadnya. This marks the different stages of Balinese life. Cremation (火葬) is very popular on this island—and unlike in the West, death is a joyous and colorful event for the Balinese.What do we know about Balinese according to the first two paragraphs?
| A．They lead a very relaxing but unwealthy life. |
| B．They live in large families and are close to each other. |
| C．Their family members are distributed in different places. |
| D．Their extended families live too close together to get along well. |
Bali is distinguished from the rest of Indonesia by ______.
| A．people’s tight family relationship |
| B．the family customs and traditions |
| C．people’s great love for religion |
| D．the influence of religion on their culture |
The underlined word “conserve” in Para. 4 can be replaced by “______”.
| A．preserve | B．spread | C．form | D．expand |
When a person dies in Bali, it is a common practice to ______.
| A．express deep sorrow at his death |
| B．celebrate the death like a great event |
| C．sing and dance joyfully in his honor |
| D．remember what he did in his lifetime |
What is the text mainly about?
| A．Balinese religion. |
| B．The lifestyle of Balinese. |
| C．Balinese culture. |
| D．The tourism in Bali. |
A typical lion tamer (驯兽师) in people's mind is an entertainer holding a whip (鞭子)and a chair .The whip get all of the attention , but it's mostly for show .In reality , it's the chair that does the important work .When a lion tamer holds a chair in front of the lion's face , the lion tries to focus on all four legs of the chair at the same time .With its focus divided , the lion becomes confused and is unsure about what to do next .When faced with so many options , the lion chooses to freeze and wait instead of attacking the man holding the chair.
How often do you find yourself in the same position as the lion ? How often do you have something you want to achiever (e,g. lose weight , start a business , travel more ) -only to end up confused by all of the options in front of you and never make progress ?
This upsets me to no end because while all the experts are busy debating about which option is best , the people who want to improve their lives are left confused by all of the conflicting information .The end result is that we feel like we can't focus or that we're focused on the wrong things , and so we take less action , make less progress , and stay the same when we could be improving .
It doesn't have to be that way .Anytime you find the world waving a chair in your face , remember this :All you need to do is focus on one thing .You just need to get started .Starting before you feel ready is one of the habits of successful people .If you have somewhere you want to go , something you want to accomplish , someone you want to become ….take immediate action .If you're clear about where you want to go , the rest of the world will either help you get there or get out the way .
| 1． |
Why does the lion tamer use a chair?
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| 2． |
In what sense are people similar to a lion facing a chair?
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| 3． |
What is the author's attitude towards the experts mentioned in paragraph 3?
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| 4． |
When the world is "waving a chair in your face", you're advised to.
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Passenger pigeons（旅鸽）once flew over much of the United States in unbelievable numbers. Written accounts from the 18th and 19th centuries described flocks（群）so large that they darkened the sky for hours.
It was calculated that when its population reach its highest point, there were more than 3 billion passenger pigeons – a number equal to 24 to 40 percent of the total bird population in the United States, making it perhaps the most abundant birds in the world. Even as late as 1870 when their numbers had already become smaller, a flock believed to be 1 mile wide and 320 miles (about 515 kilometers) long was seen near Cincinnati.
Sadly, the abundance of passenger pigeons may have been their undoing. Where the birds were abundant, people believed there was an ever-lasting supply and killed them by the thousands. Commercial hunters attracted them to small clearings with grain, waited until pigeons had settled to feed, then threw large nets over them, taking hundreds at a time. The birds were shipped to large cities and sold in restaurants.
By the closing decades of the 19th century, the hardwood forests where passenger pigeons nested had been damaged by Americans’ need for wood, which scattered（驱散）the flocks and forced the birds to go farther north, where cold temperatures and spring storms contributed to their decline. Soon the great flocks were gone, never to be seen again.
In 1897, the state of Michigan passed a law prohibiting the killing of passenger pigeons, but by then, no sizable flocks had been seen in the state for 10 years. The last confirmed wild pigeon in the United States was shot by a boy in Pike County, Ohio, in 1900. For a time, a few birds survived under human care. The last of them, known affectionately as Martha, died at the Cincinnati Zoological Garden in September 1, 1914.In the 18th and early 19th centuries, passenger pigeons _______.
| A．were the biggest bird in the world |
| B．lived mainly in the south of America |
| C．did great harm to the natural environment |
| D．Were the largest population in the US |
The underlined word “undoing” probably refers to the pigeons’ _______.
| A．escape | B．ruin | C．liberation | D．evolution |
What was the main reason for people to kill passenger pigeons?
| A．To seek pleasure. | B．To save other birds. |
| C．To make money. | D．To protect crops. |
What can we infer about the law passed in Michigan?
| A．It was ignored by the public. | B．It was declared too late. |
| C．It was unfair. | D．It was strict. |
The Cambridge Science Festival Curiosity Challenge
Dare to Take the Curiosity Challenge!
The Cambridge Science Festival (CSF) is pleased to inform you of the sixth annual Curiosity Challenge. The challenge invites, even dares school students between the ages of 5 and 14 to create artwork or a piece of writing that shows their curiosity and how it inspires them to explore their world.
Students are being dared to draw a picture, write an article, take a photo or write a poem that shows what they are curious about. To enter the challenge, all artwork or pieces of writing should be sent to the Cambridge Science Festival, MIT Museum, 265 Mass Avenue. Cambridge 02139 by Friday, February 8th.
Students who enter the Curiosity Challenge and are selected as winners will be honored at a special ceremony during the CSF on Sunday, April 21st. Guest speaker will also present prizes to the students. Winning entries will be published in a book. Student entries will be exhibit and prizes will be given. Families of those who take part will be included in the celebration and brunch will be served.
Between March 10th and March 15th, each winner will be given the specifics of the closing ceremony and the Curiosity Challenge celebration. The program guidelines and other related information are available at: http://cambridgesciencefestival.org.Who can take in the Curiosity Challenge?
| A．School students. |
| B．Cambridge locals. |
| C．CSF winners. |
| D．MIT artists. |
When will the prize-giving ceremony be held?
| A．On February 8th. |
| B．On March 10th |
| C．On March 15th.. |
| D．On April 21st. |
What type of writing is this text?
| A．An exhibition guide. |
| B．An art show review. |
| C．An announcement. |
| D．An official report. |
People aren’t walking any more---if they can figure out a way to avoid it.
I felt superior about this matter until the other day I took my car to mail a small parcel. The journey is a matter of 281 steps. But I used the car. And I wasn’t in ay hurry, either, I had merely become one more victim of a national sickness: motorosis.
It is an illness to which I had thought myself immune(), for I was bred in the tradition of going to places on my own two legs. At that time, we regarded 25 miles as good day’s walk and the ability to cover such a distance in ten hours as sign of strength and skill. It did not occur to us that walking was a hardship. And the effect was lasting. When I was 45 years old I raced –and beat—a teenage football player the 168 steps up the Stature of Liberty.
Such enterprises today are regarded by many middle-aged persons as bad for the heart. But a well-known British physician, Sir Adolphe Abrhams, pointed out recently that hearts and bodies need proper…… is more likely to have illnesses than one who exercises regularly. And wlaking is an ideal form of exercise--- the most familiar and natural of all.
It was Henry Thoreau who showed mankind the richness of going on foot. The man walking can learn the trees, flower, insects, birds and animals, the significance of seasons, the very feel of himself as a living creature in a living world, He cannot learn in a car.
The car is a convenient means of transport, but we have made it our way of life. Many people don’t dare to approach Nature any more; to them the world they were born to enjoy is all threat. To them security is a steel river thundering on a concrete road. And much of their thinking takes place while waiting for the traffic light to turn green.
I say that the green of forests is the mind’s best light. And none but the man on foot can evaluate what is basic and everlasting.What is the national sickness?
| A．Walking too much |
| B．Traveling too much |
| C．Driving cars too much |
| D．Climbing stairs too much. |
What was life like when the author was young?
| A．People usually went around on foot. |
| B．people often walked 25 miles a day |
| C．People used to climb the Statue of Liberty. |
| D．people considered a ten-j\hour walk as a hardship. |
The author mentions Henry Thoreau to prove that
| A．middle-aged people like getting back to nature |
| B．walking in nature helps enrich one’s mind |
| C．people need regular exercise to keep fit |
| D．going on foot prevents heart disease |
What is compared to “a steel river” in Paragraph6?
| A． A queue of cars |
| B．A ray of traffic light |
| C．A flash of lightning |
| D．A stream of people |
What is the author’s intention of writing this passage?
| A．To tell people to reflect more non life. |
| B．To recommend people to give up driving |
| C．To advise people to do outdoor activities |
| D．To encourage people to return to walking |
"Dad," I say one day …..take a trip. Why don't you fly and meet me?"
My father had just reired……….. His job filled his day, his thought, his life. While he woke up and took a warm shower, I screamed under a freezing waterfall Peru. While he tied a tie and put on the same Swiss watch, I rowed a boat across Lake of the Ozarks.
My father sees me drfting aimlessly, nothing to show for my 33 years but a passport full of funny stamps. He wants me to settle down, but now I want him to find an adventure.
He agrees to travel with me through the national parks. We meet four weeks later in Rapid City.
" What is our first stop?" asks my father.
"What time is it?"
"Still don't have a watch?"
Less than an hour away is Mount Rushmore. As he stares up at the four Presidents carved in granite(), his mouth and eyes open slowly, like those of little boy.
"Unbelievable," he says, "How was this done?"
A film in the information center shows sculptor Gutzon Borglum devoted 14 years to the sculpture and then left the final touches to his son.
We stare up and I ask myself, Would I ever devote my life to anything?
No directions, …… I always used to hear those words in my father's voice. Now I hear them in my own.
The next day we're at Yellowstone National Park, where we have a picnic.
"Did you ever travel with your dad? I ask.
"Only once," he says. " I never spoke much with my father. We loved each other---but never said it. Whatever he could give me, he gave."
The kast sebtebce----it's probably the same thing I's say about my father. And what I'd want my child to say about me.
In Glacier National Park, my father says, "I've never seen water so blue." I have, in several places of the world, I can keep traveling, I realize--- and maybe a regular job won't be as dull as I feared.
Weeks after our trip, I call my father.
"The photos from the trip are wonderful," he says." We have got to take another trip like that sometime.
I tell him I've learn decided to settle down, and I'm wearing a watch.
| 1． |
We can learn from Paragraphs 2 and 3 that the father.
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| 2． |
What does the author realize at Mount Rushmore?
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| 3． |
From the underlined paragraph, we can see that the author.
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| 4． |
What could be inferred about the author and his father from the end of the story?
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| 5． |
What could be the best title for the passage?
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