Social change is more likely to occur in societies where there is a mixture of different kinds of people than in societies where people are similar in many ways. The simple reason for this is that there are more different ways of looking at things present in the first kind of society. There are more ideas, more disagreements in interest, and more groups and organizations with different beliefs. In addition, there is usually a greater worldly interest and greater tolerance(容忍) in mixed societies. All these factors tend to promote social change by opening more areas of life to decision. In a society where people are quite similar in many ways, there are fewer occasions for people to see the need or the opportunity for change because everything seems to be the same. And although conditions may not be satisfactory, they are at least socially accepted customs.
Within a society, social change is also likely to occur more frequently and more readily in the material aspects of the culture than in the non-material, for example, in technology rather than in values; in what has been learned later in life rather than what was learned early; in the less basic and less emotional aspects of society than in their opposites; in the simple elements rather than in the complex ones; in form rather than in substance(物质); and in elements that are acceptable to the culture rather than in strange elements.
Furthermore, social change is easier if it is gradual. For example, it comes more readily in human relations on a continuous scale rather than on a sharp one. This is one reason why change has not come more quickly to Black Americans as compared to other American minorities, because of the sharp difference in appearance between them and white counterparts.Which of the following factors tends to promote social change?
A.Different points of view | B.Less emotional people |
C.Advanced technology | D.Similar interests |
Why is social change less likely to occur where people are quite similar in many ways?
A.Because the social tolerance in such a society is greater. |
B.Because the social interests are fairly shared. |
C.Because the conditions are generally satisfactory. |
D.Because the present situation is commonly accepted. |
What does the underlined word “one” refer to in the passage?
A.Change | B.Relation | C.Scale | D.Reason |
The passage mainly talks about social change in terms of .
A.why and how | B.where and what |
C.what and why | D.how and when |
Detective Keeling took his client — a good-looking lady into the back yard of the store together. The lady opened a door in the wall and they entered the small room behind the store. They crossed the room to a locked door.
M r. Keeling took some special keys from his pocket. Moments later, one of the keys unlocked the door. The lady went into the store. She said she would hide under the table to keep watch on her husband. Mr. Keeling did not follow her.
The detective went quickly to the policeman’s house. Then the two men hurried to the jewellery store. They looked through the window. The policeman was surprised. He spoke to Mr. Keeling. “I don’t understand. You told me, ‘Robbins took a young woman to a restaurant.’ Where is she?”
“There she is !” said Mr. Keeling. He pointed through the window.
“Do you know the lady with Robbins?” asked the policeman.
“That’s his secret friend,” said Mr. Keeling.
“No! You’re wrong! That’s Robbins’ wife,” said the policeman. “I’ve known her for fifteen years.”
“What ?” the detective shouted. His face became pale. “Who is under the table in the store?”
He started to kick the door of the jewellery store.
Mr. Robbins came to the door and opened it. The policeman and the detective ran into the store.
“Look under that table!” shouted the detective. “Be quick!”
The policeman lifted the cloth and put his arm under the table. He pulled out a black dress, a black veil and a woman’s wig(假发).
“Is this young lady your wife?” Mr. Keeling asked the jeweler. He pointed at the woman.
“Yes! She is my wife !” said Mr. Robbins angrily. “Why did you kick my door? Why are those clothes under my table?”
“Please check all the jewellery in your store, Mr. Robbins,” the policeman said. “Is anything missing?”
Some diamond rings and some expensive necklaces were missing. The missing jewellery was worth $800.
Later that night, Mr. Keeling was sitting in his office. He was looking through a big book of photographs. They were photographs of criminals. The policeman had brought the book to the detective’s office. Suddenly, Mr. Keeling stopped turning the pages. He looked at a picture of a handsome young man with a familiar face.
The next morning, Mr. Keeling paid the jeweler $800, and then closed his office.At the beginning, the lady was able to go into the jewellery store because ___________.
A.she went to the back yard and found the way |
B.she was the owner of the store and had the key |
C.two men helped her together to enter the store |
D.Mr. Keeling unlocked the back door to the store |
The young lady who stayed with Mr. Robbins in the jewellery store was actually _________.
A.Mr. Robbins’ sister |
B.Mr. Robbins’ secret friend |
C.Mr. Robbins’ wife |
D.a clever thief |
It can be inferred from the passage that Mr. Keeling cooperated with his client _____________.
A.so that he could get some jewellery from the store |
B.because he thought he was helping the lady |
C.because he wanted to play a joke on Mr. Robbins |
D.so that he could get a job as a policeman |
The missing jewellery worth$800 was in fact taken away by _____________.
A.a young woman |
B.a young man |
C.a detective |
D.a policeman |
Sherlock Holmes is considered by many people as the greatest detective in fictional literature. He is, in fact, more famous than his own creator, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In the popular series of stories, Holmes is described as “tall and lean, pope-smoking, always in his cape and speaks in a splendid manner”. Doyle gave Holmes’ address as 221-B Baker Street, London, and to this day some visitors to London still go to Baker Street to search for 221-B. Of course, there never was really any such address. Holmes’ flat was supposed to be shared by the lovable, but sometimes clumsy Doctor Watson who went around with Holmes trying to solve crimes before Holmes did. Poor Dr Watson lost out to Holmes every time.
Doyle gave Holmes a masterly skill of deduction---the ability to come up with interesting conclusion from the simplest clues found at the scene of a crime. Doyle said that the description of Holmes was modeled on one of his lecturers at Edinburgh University where he studied medicine. That man was Dr Joseph Bell. Sherlock Holmes first appeared in Doyle’s A Study in Scarlet published in 1887. Holmes was so loved by all that when his author killed him off in one of his stories, readers wrote in anger to complain. They refused to allow Holmes to die! Holmes was brought back to “life” and appeared in further stories.
The stories of Sherlock Holmes have been reprinted many times ever since then. Today we can watch Holmes at work on cinema and television screens as well as on stage.Sherlock Holmes was________.
A.the greatest detective who ever lived |
B.Dr Joseph Bell |
C.Arthur Conan Doyle |
D.only a character made up by Arthur Conan Dolye |
Dr Watson was________.
A.tall and learn |
B.always in his cape |
C.lovable but sometimes clumsy |
D.lovable but always clumsy |
Holmes was supposed to have lived_______.
A.with Dr Watson |
B.with Dr Joseph Bell |
C.with his readers |
D.with Doyle |
Doyle made up the description of Holmes_______.
A.from his own imagination |
B.based on a famous London doctor |
C.based on Dr Joseph Bell at Edinburgh University |
D.based on a model of Holmes |
Every culture has it own ways to show friendship. On the island of Hawaii, friendship is part of the “aloha spirit”. In the language of the Hawaiians who first settled the islands long ago, aloha had a very special meaning. That is “to be with happiness”.
Hawaiians believe that once somebody loves the land, they are ready to love their people or community. This is the second most important thing of friendship. It is called lokahi in the Hawaiian language, which means “oneness with all people”. To enjoy the land you should not be selfish. The land is for everyone who lives on. Today many different people call Hawaii their home. Indeed, Hawaii is a place where people make one big community from many smaller communities. Each person gives kokua(help) to other people so that all feel stronger. It is believed that the islands can be a paradise(天堂) when people live in peace. People are told that their actions should be as gentle as the wind that blows from the sea. When problems happen, people are asked to solve them with understanding. So when people of Hawaii talk about ohana(family), they are really talking about all those who live on the island.
Living in peace, Hawaiians have developed a third sign of friendship. This personal friendship is shown by giving leis to one another. The lei, a string of flowers, is put over a friend’s neck. Then the friend is given a kiss on the cheek. Visitors to the islands are also given leis. When they hear aloha, visitors began to feel at home. Aloha also means “goodbye”, so visitors will hear it again when they leave. It can mean “our hearts singing together”. Perhaps this is how most visitors will remember their new friendship.Which of the following can be the proper title for this text?
A.People in Hawaii |
B.Visitors to Hawaii |
C.Traveling in Hawaii |
D.Friendship in Hawaii |
How do you understand the underlined sentence in the first paragraph ?
A.Happiness matters most for Hawaiians. |
B.Friendship is always together with happiness. |
C.Friendship is every thing in Hawaiian culture. |
D.Friendship has special meanings for Hawaiians. |
Which of the following proverb can best express the idea of friendship by Hawaiians?
A.Practice makes perfect. |
B.Love me, love my dog. |
C.A penny saved is a penny gained. |
D.An apple a day keeps a doctor away. |
Which of the following is a sign to show friendship by Hawaiians?
A.A warm handshake. |
B.A kiss on the cheek. |
C.A string of flowers. |
D.A big hug. |
According to the text, which of the following Hawaiian word expresses more good wishes?
A.aloha |
B.lokahi |
C.kokua |
D.ohana |
Given Australia’s size and the fact that early settlements were far apart, Australian society is remarkably homogeneous (同种的). Its citizens are fundamentally prosperous and the way of life in the major cities and towns is much the same however many miles divide them. It takes a sharp ear to identify regional accents. However, there is some difference in lifestyle between city dwellers and the country people. Almost 90 per cent of the population lives in the fast-paced cities along the coast and has little more than a passing familiarity with the desert. The major cities preserve pockets of colonial heritage, but the overall impression is modern, with new buildings reflecting the country’s youth. In contrast, the rural communities tend to be slow-moving and conservative. For many years, Australia was said to have “ridden on the sheep’s back”, a reference to wool being the country’s main money earner. However, the wool industry is no longer dominant. Much of Australia’s relatively sound economy is now achieved from natural coal and wheat, and by being the largest diamond producer in the world. Newer industries such as tourism and wine making are also increasingly important. Australians are generally friendly and relaxed, with a self-deprecating sense of humor. On the whole, Australia is a society without hierarchies (等级制度), an attitude generally held to stem from its prisoner beginnings.
Yet, contrary to widespread belief, very few Australians have true prisoner origins. Within only one generation of the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788, Australia had become a nation of immigrants. Originally coming almost entirely from the British Isles, today one in three Australians comes from elsewhere. Australia’s liberal postwar immigration policies led to an influx of survivors from war-torn Europe, most notably Greeks, Italians, Poles and Germans.
The emphasis has shifted in recent years and today the majority of new immigrants are from Southeast Asia. Today Australia is a ‘blend of nations’ and although some racism exists, it has generally been a successful experiment and the country is justifiably proud to have one of the most harmonious multicultural communities in the world.What does the writer mean by saying “It takes a sharp ear to identify regional accents.” in the first paragraph?
A.Australians speak Standard English with no local accents whatsoever. |
B.You have to practice a lot to learn to understand the different accents. |
C.The Australian regional accents are very difficult to understand indeed. |
D.There is not much difference between the accents in different areas of Australia. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Most Australians have ancestors who were prisoners. |
B.The Australian economy is dependent on sheep exports. |
C.The majority of people living in Australia come from Europe. |
D.The pace of life is different in the city and in the country. |
The underlined pronoun ‘it’ in the final paragraph refers to “_______”.
A.community |
B.racism |
C.blend of Nations |
D.Southeast Asia |
We can infer from the passage that _____.
A.there are no signs of Australia’s colonial past in its modern cities |
B.Australia’s recent immigration policy encourages immigrants from Southeast Asia |
C.immigrants from Southeast Asia have brought racial problems |
D.“riding on sheep’s back” resulted in slow development in rural communities |
This passage mainly focuses on Australia’s ______.
A.society |
B.economy |
C.racial problems |
D.history |
Machu Picchu is considered to be a truly extraordinary archaeological(考古学的) discovery and is one of South America’s largest tourist sites. As many as one thousand visitors visit the ancient Incan(印加文化的) ruins daily. What draws vacationers and adventurers to this remote location high in the Andes Mountains of Peru(秘鲁)? A large part of the attraction is the mysteries that surround Machu Picchu. For example, Machu Picchu is considered “the lost city” of the Incas because it was never found by Spanish invaders and was known to only a few local peasants for almost four hundred years.
The “city in the clouds”, Machu Picchu’s lasting beauty comes from the careful blending of its striking architecture with its mountaintop environment. Its greatest skill shows are in the stone structures, which equals that of the ancient Egyptians. The stone blocks were so appropriately cut that they fit together without the need for mud. The largest stones at Machu Picchu weigh as much as fifteen tons! It has been difficult to explain how the huge blocks were transported. The buildings, including many that have survived lots of earthquakes, contain stones which interlock so perfectly that a knife cannot be forced between them. When compared to other ancient civilizations, it is difficult to understand how Machu Picchu could have been missed by the Spanish and lost from history for four hundred years.
For many of the mysteries of Machu Picchu being unsolved, it is clear why Machu Picchu remains “the most famous ruins in all of South America”. Which of the followings is NOT a mystery of Machu Picchu?
A.Machu Picchu is called the “city in the clouds”. |
B.Machu Picchu remains “the most famous ruins of South America”. |
C.Machu Picchu is “the lost city” of the Incas. |
D.Machu Picchu is the largest stone city of the world. |
The underlined word “interlock” probably means _________
A.put |
B.fit |
C.meet |
D.lie |
From the passage we can learn that __________.
A.Machu Picchu has gone through lots of earthquakes |
B.all of the mysteries of Machu Picchu have been solved |
C.the city has never been discovered by people outside |
D.Machu Picchu is the most valuable ruins in history. |
The purpose of writing the passage is to __________.
A.ask us to pay a visit to Machu Picchu |
B.show us the beauty of Machu Picchu |
C.introduce Machu Picchu’s mysteries |
D.make the ancient Incan ruins known |