Pablo Picasso was born in Spain in 1881. His father was an artist and also an art teacher. He gave little Picasso the first lesson in drawing. The boy showed great interest in it and learned it very quickly. Picasso drew so well that he won a prize – “Science and Charity” for his first important painting at the age 15. Later he studied in several cities in Spain. But no one could teach him because he had known so much.
When he was 19, he visited Paris. At that time, Paris was the center of the world for artists. Everything in the painting world was new to Picasso. When he was 23, he moved to Paris to live and spent the rest of his life in France.
In his 80s, Pablo Picasso still worked like a young man. He kept on looking for new ideas and new ways to work. He never stopped painting all his life.
Pablo Picasso died in 1973 as a great artist in the world. Pablo Picasso was born _____.
| A．in France in 1973 | B．in Spain in 1973 |
| C．in Spain in 1881 | D．in Paris in 1881 |
Pablo Picasso won the prize______.
| A．“Science and Art” at the age of 15 |
| B．“Science and Charity” at the age of 15 |
| C．“Science and Art” at the age of 19 |
| D．Science and Charity” at the age of 23 |
______was the center of the world for artists when Pablo Picasso was young
| A．Spain | B．New York |
| C．London | D．Paris |
Pablo Picasso was good at _________
| A．teacher | B．acting |
| C．painting | D．thinking |
What about Pablo Picasso when he was over 80 years old?________________
| A．He still worked and kept painting all his life |
| B．He gave lessons in drawing |
| C．He studied in several cities in Spain |
| D．He spent the rest of his life with his father |
The National Gallery
Description:
The National Gallery is the British national art museum built on the north side of Trafalgar Square in London. It houses a diverse collection of more than 2,300 examples of European art ranging from 13th-century religious paintings to more modern ones by Renoir and Van Gogh. The older collections of the gallery are reached through the main entrance while the more modern works in the East Wing are most easily reached from Trafalgar Square by a ground floor entrance.
Layout(布局):
The modern Sainsbury Wing on the western side of the building houses 13th- to 15th-century paintings, and artists include Duccio, Uccello, Van Eyck, Lippi, Mantegna, Botticelli and Metaling.
The main West Wing houses 16th-century paintings, and artists include Leonardo da Vinci, Cranach, Michelangelo, Raphael, Bruegel, Bronzino, Titian and Veronese.
The North Wing houses 17th-century paintings, and artists include Caravaggio, Rubens, Poussin, Van Dyck, Velazquez, Claude and Vermeer.
The East Wing houses 18th-to early 20th-century paintings, and artists include Canaletto, Goya, Turner, Constable, Renoir and Van Gogh.
Opening Hours:
The Gallery is open every day from 10 am to 6 pm (Fridays 10 am to 9 pm) and is free, but charges apply to some special exhibitions.
Getting There:
Nearest underground stations: Charing Cross (2-minute walk), Leicester Square (3-minute walk), Embankment(7-minute walk), and Piccadilly Circus(8-minute walk).In which century’s collection can you see religious paintings?
| A．The 13th. | B．The 17th. |
| C．The 18th. | D．The 20th. |
Where are Leonardo da Vinci’s works shown?
| A．In the East Wing. | B．In the main West Wing. |
| C．In the Sainsbury Wing. | D．In the North Wing. |
Which underground station is closest to the National Gallery?
| A．Piccadilly Circus. | B．Leicester Square. |
| C．Embankment. | D．Charing Cross. |
Going green seems to be a fad(时尚) for a lot of people these days. Whether that is good or bad, we can’t really say, but for the two of us, going green is not a fad but a lifestyle.
On April 22,2012, we decided to go green every single day for an entire year. This meant doing 365 different green things, and It also meant challenging ourselves to go green beyond the easy things. Rather than recycle and reduce our energy, we had to think of 365 different green things to do and this was no easy task.
With the idea of going green every single day for a year, Our Green Year started. My wife and I decided to educate people about how they could go green in their lives and hoped we could show people all the green things that could be done to help the environment. We wanted to push the message that every little bit helps.
Over the course of Our Green Year, we completely changed our lifestyles. We now shop at organic(有机的) stores. We consume less meat, choosing green food. We have greatly reduced our buying we don’t need. We have given away half of what we owned through websites. Our home is kept clean by vinegar and lemon juice, with no chemical cleaners. We make our own butter, enjoying the smell of home-made fresh bread. In our home office anyone caught doing something ungreen might be punished.
Our minds have been changed by Our Green Year. We are grateful for the chance to have been able to go green and educate others. We believe that we do have the power to change things and help our planet.What might be the best title for the passage?
| A．Going Green | B．Protecting the Planet |
| C．Keeping Open-Minded | D．Celebrating Our Green Year |
It was difficult for the couple to live a green life for the whole year because .
| A．they were expected to follow the green fad |
| B．they didn’t know how to educate other people |
| C．they were unwilling to reduce their energy |
| D．they needed to perform unusual green tasks |
What did the couple do over the course of Our Green Year?
| A．They tried to get out of their ungreen habits. |
| B．They ignored others’ ungreen behavior. |
| C．They chose better chemical cleaners. |
| D．They sold their home-made food. |
What can we infer from the last paragraph?
| A．The government will give support to the green project. |
| B．The couple may continue their project in the future. |
| C．Some people disagree with the couple’s green ideas. |
| D．Our Green Year is becoming a national campaign. |
Growing up the daughter of an outstanding educator，Andrea Peterson knew at a young age that she wanted to serve others.It was with this mindset that she started to pursue a degree in medicine.However，while visiting her brothers who were away at college studying music education，she realized that she was drawn to teach music，too.
In her ten years at Granite Falls，she has revitalized the music programs at both the elementary and high school levels，to the extent that an additional music faculty member was hired by the district to assist with the workload.The growth of the music program in Granite Falls School District has encouraged students to participate in country，state and national music competitions，and won numerous prizes for the district.
Teaching music is only a part of Peterson's instruction－it serves as a vehicle to other areas.“Music is an amazing tool to unlock students' potential.The most visible benefit from their success in music is their increased confidence and selfesteem，” Peterson said.“However，I don't believe it is the only benefit，nor the most powerful.It is truly exciting to see how my music teaching can transfer to other classrooms.” With this philosophy，Peterson introduced a crosscurriculum program，wherein she takes lessons taught in other classes，such as English and math，and expands upon them in an eightweek unit.
One of the most popular projects in Peterson's classes is the creation and performance of a musical，and whereby students create a play from one of the books they have read in another class.Students work together to choose the music that best fits with the overall feel of the play and then perform it for the greater community.“Through Andrea's efforts these kids have helped to put Granite Falls，Washington，on the map for musical talents.Parents，staff and community members continue to be in awe of what she is able to bring forth from the children，”said Debra Rose Howell，a colleague of Peterson's at Monte Crisco Elementary School.Initially Andrea Peterson planned to work as a(n) ________.
| A．teacher | B．doctor | C．educator | D．musician |
The 2nd paragraph mainly tells about ________.
| A．Andrea Peterson's life at Granite Falls |
| B．country，state and national music competitions |
| C．the growth of the music program in Granite Falls School District |
| D．Andrea Peterson's contributions to Granite Falls' music programs |
Which of the following is NOT a benefit the students get from Andrea Peterson's class?
| A．Music talent development. |
| B．Increased selfconfidence. |
| C．Ability in learning other subjects. |
| D．Prizes for English and maths. |
What is most special about the way Andrea Peterson teaches?
| A．She has a special way of teaching music. |
| B．She makes her classes lively and interesting. |
| C．She combines her music class with other subjects. |
| D．She comes from a family of professional educators. |
The Cave of Lascaux
It was Thursday, September 12,1940.Four French teens were out exploring in the woods off the northern slopes of the Pyrenees.Many years before, an old pine tree fell and left a large hole in the ground.The teenagers were curious and they started to explore the area and fell into one of the most important archeological(考古的) finds of the twentieth century!
There are over a hundred limestone(灰岩) caves in this region of France.Some were inhabited by humans thousands and thousands of years ago.Between 15,000 and 17,000 years ago, humans painted lively creatures such as cows, bulls, horses, and even cats on the walls of the caves.
Why did they mark these walls? Was it to tell a story? Was it to record a famous battle? There are many mysteries and ancient secrets still waiting to be discovered in the cave of Lascaux.There were dots in many of the paintings.What do these dots mean? Were they meant to record time, a calendar? Deep in the cave, there is a drawing of a “birdman”．What does this mean? Was it a place for sacred ceremonies? No one knows for sure.
The actual cave of Lascaux was closed in 1963 due to the overabundance of tourists visiting the site.The carbon dioxide that people were breathing out was causing damage to the fragile(易损的) cave paintings.Up till now the Lascaux cave is still closed for tourists.Only a specialist can visit the cave by a special order that must be made out almost a year in advance.Not more than six persons can enter the cave per day.Two days a week, the cave is completely closed.Due to the great interest of numerous tourists, in 1983 Lascaux Ⅱwas opened for tourism.It is an exact replica of the cave of Lascaux.The Pyrenees are the __________ in France.
| A．mountains | B．forests |
| C．rivers | D．caves |
What does the underlined word “inhabited” in the second paragraph mean?
| A．built | B．explored | C．lived in | D．destroyed |
In the author's opinion, the cave paintings are __________.
| A．old | B．beautiful |
| C．easily damaged | D．interesting |
History is full of cases where dreams have been a pathway to creativity and discovery.A striking example is provided by Dr.Otto Loewi，a pharmacologist and winner of a Nobel Prize.Loewi had spent years studying the chemical transmission of nerve impulses (脉搏)．A tremendous breakthrough in his research came when he dreamed of an experiment three nights in a row.The first two nights he woke up and wrote down the experiment quickly and untidily on paper.But the next morning，he couldn't tell what the notes meant.On the third night，he got up after having the dream.This time，instead of making notes he went straight to his laboratory and performed the crucial experiment.Loewi later said that if the experiment had occurred to him while awake he would have rejected it.
Loewi's experiment gives some insight into using dreams to produce creative solutions.Inhibitions (拘谨) are reduced during dreaming，which may be especially useful in solving problems that require a fresh point of view.
Being able to take advantage of dreams for problem solving is improved if you “set” yourself before retiring.Before you go to bed，try to think intently about a problem you wish to solve.Bury yourself in the problem by stating it clearly and reviewing all relevant information.Then use the suggestions listed in the previous section to catch your dreams.Although this method is not guaranteed to produce a novel solution or a new insight，it is certain to be an adventure.About half of a group of college students using the method for a week recalled a dream that helped them solve a personal problem.The main idea of this passage is that ________.
| A．very little is really known about the meaning of dreams |
| B．it is possible to “catch” one's dreams by planning before going to sleep |
| C．dreams can be useful in producing creative solutions to one's problems |
| D．Loewi's experiment helped in the study of transmision of nerve impulses |
The first paragraph is mainly organized by ________.
| A．classifying types of experiments |
| B．summarizing the work of one researcher |
| C．comparing and exploring historical cases |
| D．telling in time order about one man's research |
If Loewi had thought of the experiment while awake，he would have ________.
| A．asked someone else to do it |
| B．thought it was a bad idea |
| C．tried it out on his own |
| D．thought it was a wise idea |
The author probably thinks that ________.
| A．Loewi should not have conducted his experiment |
| B．dreaming is of very little value to most people |
| C．inhibitions may stop someone thinking of useful ideas |
| D．college students should not try out dream experiments |