India has many festivals, with some celebrations that last for weeks. However, none of them come even close to Holi, India’s most colorful and fun festival. Celebrated on the day following the full moon, this year’s festival happens to be on March 19th.
As with most Indian festivals, this one also has many different folk stories. Most of them center around the success of good over evil. The most popular one is about a king, who hates his son Prahlada for loving the creator of the Universe—Lord Vishnu. When every attempt to stop him fails, his sister, Holika believed to be immune(免疫的) to fire, joins in the effort by inviting the young boy to sit with her inside a huge fire. Helped by the power of Lord Vishnu, Prahlada escapes safely, while the evil Holika is burned to death. To remember this event, huge outdoor fires are lit in the night before Holi in order to clean the air of evil spirits and to celebrate the death of the evil.
So what’s so great about this day? While there are some fun parades(游行) and folk songs and dance performances, the most fun of all is walking to the streets and splashing(泼洒) people with water guns and dry colors and even covering them with entire buckets of colored water. On this day, everybody is fair game, no matter how old or how young.
At about midday, the splashing comes to an end and people living close to oceans or rivers usually take a bath in the water to clean themselves before going home to a delicious home-made big dinner and a well-deserved short sleep, following this full day of fun and activities.Why does the king dislike his son Prahlada?
A.Because Prahlada doesn’t love him. |
B.Because Prahlada is rude to Holika. |
C.Because Prahlada loves Lord Vishnu. |
D.Because Prahlada concentrates on his own success. |
Prahlada gets out of danger __________.
A.with the help of Lord Vishnu |
B.because of his good luck |
C.by beating his aunt Holika |
D.using his amazing talent |
The underlined phrase “fair game” in Paragraph 3 refers to a person who __________.
A.fights against others fairly |
B.enjoys splashing people |
C.plays a trick on others |
D.is the aim of splashing water |
After the fun activities, people living close to oceans or rivers often take a bath because __________.
A.they have got dirty with dry colors and colored water |
B.going home with colored water means bad luck |
C.they believe clean water will bring good luck |
D.taking a bath shows their true love for Lord Vishnu |
One evening I went out and left my 17-year-old son in charge of his 8-year-old brother and 4-year-old sister.On this occasion, the work was made less troublesome by the presence of his girlfriend.I left with complete confidence that the older children would do a wonderful job of babysitting the younger children.Later, I discovered that complete confidence was the last thing I should have left home with.
I had decided to return home earlier than planned so that my son and his girlfriend could go out.I called home with this happy news.But instead of hearing his cheerful, grateful voice on the other end of the line, all I heard was the sound of a telephone ringing.
It was, I should point out, after 10 p.m.,when the two younger children should have been in bed, and when the two older children should have been answering the phone.“I’ll give him a lesson,” I said. I decided they must be outside.Why they might be outside at 10:30 on a winter night I had no idea, but it was the only explanation I could come up with.
Finally, in desperation, I called his girlfriend’s house. After what seemed like countless rings, his girlfriend answered.“Yes,” she said brightly, “He’s right here.”
He came on the phone.I was not my usual calm, rational(理智的)self. After all, one of the rules of survival for modern parents is that you can’t trust modern teenagers.“Where are the children?” I said.He said they were with him.They had done nothing wrong.My son had taken the younger children over to his girlfriend’s house just for ice cream and cake.This was too good to be believed. Well, it turns out that I shouldn’t have believed it.It was only part of the truth.
The following Saturday evening we were at my parents’ home, celebrating my birthday.My oldest son gave me the children’s gifts.Mounted and framed were a series of lovely color photographs of my children, dressed in their best clothes, and wearing their most wonderful expressions.They are pictures to treasure a lifetime, all taken by the father of my son’s girlfriend.The author went out and left her eldest son in charge of the younger children because.
A.she knew that her eldest son was a good baby-sitter |
B.she thought it no hard work to take care of the younger ones |
C.she believed he could do well with his girlfriend’s help |
D.she could not find a baby-sitter on that winter night |
When the author called home that evening, she found that .
A.two younger children had already been in bed |
B.the children were preparing a birthday gift for her |
C.her son was quarrelling with his girlfriend |
D.there was no one answering the telephone |
What might the children do that evening?
A.They had a birthday party. | B.They framed some photographs. |
C.They had their pictures taken. | D.They made some beautiful clothes. |
What does the author intend to tell us by the story?
A.Modern teenagers are not worth trusting. |
B.It is no easy job to look after young children. |
C.It’s no good to have a girlfriend at an early age. |
D.Her children have a caring and tender heart. |
A three-year independent investigation into the September 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon has yielded new eyewitness evidence which, according to the Southern California-based researchers who conducted the investigation conclusively (and unfortunately), establishes as a historical fact that the violence which took place in Arlington that day was not the result of a surprise attack by suicide hijackers, but rather a military black operation involving a carefully planned and skillfully executed deception."
A CNN Reporter at the scene states that there is no evidence that a 757 hit the Pentagon.
What hit the Pentagon? A Boeing 757 loaded with passengers and fuel right? Who was on Flight 757? According to the Flight Information there were No Arabs on it. That makes me wonder if Flight 757 actually existed at all.
From the pictures and the videos, people can find that there are several doubtful points that need to be taken into consideration, for example the marker line on the grass in the satellite and ground pictures, the different colors of the smoke, the hole which the plane impacted, and the standing pylons (架线塔).
Also, from the comparison of the different pictures, people can find some other strange points. For example, the gear (齿轮) is not the matching one. The wreckage of the plane is not the one from the American Airlines. The glass on the pavement of the pole is another doubtful point. The last thing that need considering is about the collapse. One of the gif video shows the plane impacting the Pentagon. The only problem with this video footage is that it has been altered (改变) and can not be fully trusted.
These crash photos and videos shown here clearly have been doctored (篡改) and don't even match the physics of what happened. So where is the real video? It leaves me many questions. Is this a missile? It is a real enigma.Where can you possibly read this article?
A.In a newspaper. | B.In a book. | C.On a website. | D.In a magazine. |
What the word “yielded” mean in the first sentence?
A.given in | B.surrendered | C.given away | D.produced |
Which of the following doubtful points is not mentioned in the passage?
A.the colors of the smoke | B.the model of the plane |
C.the standing pylons | D.the marker line on the grass |
What is the author’s attitude towards the 911 investigation?
A.Positive. | B.Neutral. | C.Skeptical. | D.Negative. |
Apple Seeds
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Circulation: 1 Year, 12 Issues
Cover Price: $47.88
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Product Description: News China Magazine is the English edition of China Newsweek. The magazine covers the latest Chinese domestic news in politics, business, society, environment, culture, sports and travels, etc. It is the first comprehensive news magazine for readers interested in China.What do we know about Apple Seeds?
A.The soft cover enables it to be read and kept long. |
B.It can be purchased as an award for your children. |
C.It offers the biggest discount among all the magazines. |
D.The magazine is going to surprise you for many years. |
Tom wants to beautify his house, so he may choose _________ .
A.Apple Seeds | B.Better Life | C.Humor Times | D. News China |
What kind of people may buy News China ?
A.People who have an interest in Personal lifestyle of the Chinese. |
B.People who have a strong sense of humor and love to laugh. |
C.People who want to enlarge the knowledge of their kids. |
D.People who are interested in China’s politics, business and culture. |
Which magazine provides the biggest discount if you buy it for the whole year?
A.Apple Seeds | B.Better Life | C.Humor Times | D. News China |
Early last Tuesday, six men carrying machine guns, a pistol and a hunting rifle got on a four—car electric “ milk train” at the Dutch town of Assen. Shortly after it left Beilen, ten miles away, the terrorists stopped the train and seized the passenger as hostages. As police and Dutch soldiers ringed the train, another group of terrorists stuck in Amsterdam, forcing their way into the Indonesian consulate and taking 41 more hostages, including 16 children. By week’s end the terrorists had murdered three people aboard the train, and four more had been wounded in the raid on the consulate.
The kidnapping, and the subsequent cold—blooded murders, virtually rocked the Netherlands. While the Cabinet met in emergency sessions, television and radio station paused normal programming in favor of solemn music and news bulletins.
The terrorists were Indonesians from the South Moluccan Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and they were demanding that the Dutch help them gain independence from the Jakarta regime.(雅加达政权)
The twin acts of violence were not the first signs of South Molucca anger. Just before a 1970 visit to the Netherlands by Indonesia’s President Suharto, they attacked the Indonesian embassy in the Hague, killing a Dutch policeman. Last week’s kidnappings are two days before the Dutch Appeals Court was to trial 16 South Moluccan’s who were implicated in a plot last April to kidnap Queen Juliana and other members of the Royal family. They planned to storm the palace at Soestdijk after attacking the gates with an armoured car(装甲车).
The Moluccan headache is a heritage(遗留问题) of the old days of empire. A chain of islands at the eastern of the Indonesian archipelago, the Moluccas were once known as the Spice Islands. When the Netherlands gave up its East Indies colonies in 1949, the Moluccans wanted to set up a South Moluccan Republic, some 12,000 islanders were allowed to settle to the Netherlands. Their number swollen by Dutch—born children now reached 35,000. the young Moluccans here are demanding that the Dutch help them gain independence from the Jakarta regime.Which of the following is not mentioned in the passage?
A.Dozens of people were seized by the terrorist as hostages. |
B.The Indonesian consulate was located in Amsterdam. |
C.The terrorists were Indonesians living in the Netherlands. |
D.The terrorists all surrendered(投降) to the police and soldiers. |
Why did television and radio stations pause normal programming?
A.The acts of violence shocked the whole country. |
B.The terrorists destroyed necessary equipment. |
C.the Cabinet needed to think quietly. |
D.Their men were too sad to produce good program. |
The last paragraph __________.
A.is mainly about the history of Indonesia |
B.tells us how Indonesia won its independence |
C.tell us how the Netherlands gave up its rule |
D.briefly accounts for the acts of violence |
As people slowly learn to cure diseases, control floods, prevent hunger, and stop wars, fewer people die every year. As a result, the population of the world is becoming larger. In 1925 there were about 2 billion people in the world; today there are over 6 billion.
When the number rises, extra mouths must be fed. New lands must be brought under development, or land already farmed must be made to produce more crops. In some areas the land is so over-developed that it will be difficult to make it provide more crops. In some areas the population is so large that the land is divided into too tiny units to make improvement possible with farming methods. If a large part of this farming population went into industrial work, the land might be farmed much more productively (多产地) with modern methods.
There is now a race for science, technology, and industry to keep the output of food rising faster than the number of people to be fed. New types of crops, which will grow well in bad weather, are being developed, so there are now farms beyond the Arctic Circle in Siberia and North America. Irrigation (灌溉) and dry-farming methods bring poor lands under the plough. Dams hold back the waters of great rivers, which can provide water for the fields in all seasons and provide electric power for new industries. Industrial chemistry provides fertilizer to suit different soils. Every year, some new methods are made to increase or to protect the food of the world. The author says that the world population is increasing because _____.
A.there are many rich valleys and large fields |
B.farmers are producing more crops than before |
C.people are living longer due to better living conditions |
D.new lands are being made into farmlands |
The author says that in areas with large populations, land might be more productively farmed if _____.
A.the land was divided into smaller pieces |
B.people moved into the countryside |
C.industrial methods were used in farming |
D.the units of land were much larger |
We are told that there are now farms beyond the Arctic Circle. This has been made possible by _____.
A.growing new types of crops | B.irrigation and dry-farming means |
C.providing fertilizers | D.destroying pests and diseases |
Why do some people use dams to hold back waters from great rivers?
A.To develop a new kind of dry-farming methods. |
B.To prevent crops from floods. |
C.To provide water and electricity in all seasons. |
D.To water poor lands in bad weather. |