Carnival does not take place only in Louisiana. There are many celebrations around the world.
In Brazil, the celebration is supposed to go on from the Saturday before Mardi Gras(四旬斋前的最后一天)to Mardi Gras Day, but in some Brazilian cities the celebration can last seven or eight days. Just like New Orleans, not many important things are decided in Brazil from New Year’s Day to Mardi Gras Day because everyone is preparing for or celebrating carnival. Most Brazilian parades have a subject, which could be political and historical. The parades had to have a subject related to Brazil until 1996. Some cities in Brazil do not have a street carnival but they might have an indoor ball.
Bolivia has carnival parades for children and then more parades for adults. The children dress up in costumes and march in the streets. The adults make traditional dance groups and dance in the streets. But the main part of Bolivia’s carnival is getting wet. Almost everyone gets wet from water balloons and water buckets. In Oruru, Bolivia, their carnival is held in the last ten days of the carnival season. People there participate in crafts and dancing, but their main carnival event is a ceremonial parade that lasts for twenty hours and parades for four kilometers. Over 20,000 dancers are involved as well as 10,000 musicians. This parade attracts at least 400,000 people.
The carnival in Venice, Italy is often regarded as the most carefully prepared carnival and lasts the ten days before Lent (四旬斋). Many events are held in the canals including shows, concerts, dances, and water processions(队列). The official ending to the celebration is the ball held in St. Mark’s Square.What’s the best title of the passage?
| A．Carnivals around the world. | B．History of carnival. |
| C．Customs of carnival. | D．Carnival parades. |
From the passage we learn that in Brazil .
| A．all urban residents celebrate carnival for a week |
| B．people prepare for or celebrate carnival after Mardi Gras Day |
| C．the parades should have a subject related to Brazil |
| D．not all cities have a street carnival |
The most important feature of the celebration of carnival in Bolivia is that .
| A．children wearing costumes march in the streets |
| B．adult dance groups dance in the streets |
| C．people participate in crafts and dancing |
| D．nearly all people are sprayed with water |
Which of the following statements shows that the author pays special attention to the carnival in Bolivia?
| A．The time of celebrating carnival in Bolivia is mentioned. |
| B．There are details and numbers about carnival celebrations in Bolivia. |
| C．Events or performances for carnival celebrations in Bolivia are mentioned. |
| D．Participants in the carnival celebration in Bolivia are mentioned. |
Which of the following areas or countries prepares the most carefully for their carnival according to the passage?
| A．Louisiana. | B．Bolivia. |
| C．Venice. | D．Brazil. |
How do you address (称呼) people in English when you want to talk to them? The following may be some simple rules the beginners should follow.
1. When talking to strangers there is often no special form of address in English. Usually, if you want to catch the attention of a stranger, it is necessary to use such a phrase as “Excuse me”.
2. In British English “Sir” and “Madam” are considered to be too formal (正式的) for most situations. They are used mostly to customers (顾客) in shops or restaurants. While in American English “Sir” and “Madam” are not so formal and are commonly used between strangers, especially with old people whose names you don’t know.
3. When you talk to some people you know, you can use their names. If you are friends, use their first names; if your relationship is more formal, use “Mr.” “Mrs.” “Ms.”, etc before their family names.
4. There are many others forms of address which can be used between friends and strangers. However, many of these are limited in use. For example, “pal” and “mate” can be used between strangers, but are usually only used by men talking to other men.According to the passage, “excuse me” is mainly used to ______
| A．address a person you don’t know |
| B．apologize to others |
| C．catch the attention of a stranger |
| D．suggest good manners |
If John Smith is your best friend, according to the passage you should often call him _______
| A．John | B．Smith | C．Mr. John | D．Mr. Smith |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．“Sir” and “Madam” are used more often in America than in English |
| B．People often use “Mr.” “Mrs.” or “Ms” before the first names of those people who they don’t know very well. |
| C．Pal and mate are usually only used among men. |
| D．While addressing friends, people just use their first names. |
The passage is most likely taken from an English _________
| A．textbook | B．card |
| C．storybook | D．grammar book |
Many people feel that their parents were harder on them than on their brother or sister. And many are quick to blame(责备) negative results in adulthood on it. But results from a Temple University study published this month suggest that it is not necessarily true.
Researchers have found that among siblings(兄弟姐妹)in the same family，recalled negative early experiences such as conflicts(冲突) with parents seem to have little influence over psychological(心理的)wellbeing(幸福) in midlife.
“Existing research suggests the importance of early childhood parental treatment on later wellbeing，but respondents in this study who thought they were treated less favorably than their siblings have been found to be just as satisfied in their lives，”said Adam Davey，a psychologist in the College of Health Professions.
Davey's study looked at data collected from 1,369 siblings between the ages of 26—74 from 498 different families to determine the extent(程度)to which different childhood treatment reached into adulthood. Each sibling answered a series of questions about their memories of parental affection(喜爱)，conflicts with their parents when they were young and current wellbeing. Davey and his team found that those who remembered having more conflicts with their parents than their siblings still tended to have generally high levels of wellbeing in adulthood. Not surprisingly，they also found that happier memories，such as memories of affection and warmth，can have positive effects.
Older respondents who were married and had children of their own tended to have a more positive recollection of their childhood. Davey says these findings could suggest that life experience acts as a filter(过滤)for remembering childhood memories. He adds that personality also plays a role：those who were more outgoing tended to have a better recollection of their childhood.
“Even people who grow up in the same environment can have different ways of recalling the past. And it's not necessarily what happens in the past，but the way we remember it that makes a difference to our wellbeing，”said Davey.What's the purpose of the passage?
| A．To show how to improve wellbeing in midlife. |
| B．To teach parents how to give their children a happier childhood. |
| C．To blame some parents for being harder on one of their children. |
| D．To show the link between negative childhood experiences and wellbeing in adulthood. |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a factor(因素) on how people recollect childhood in Paragraph 5?
| A．Having children or not. | B．Being healthy or not. |
| C．Life experience. | D．Personality. |
According to Davey，what influences our wellbeing in adulthood?
| A．What happened in the past. | B．How we remember the past. |
| C．The role we play in society. | D．How much we have. |
I'm a pig，and my son is a rabbit. I have snakes for daughters，and my wife，believe it or not，is a dragon！Do I live in a zoo？No，of course not！I am talking about Chinese zodiac signs(十二生肖)．Depending on the year of your birth，each person has an animal for a sign. That's why I am a pig and my wife is a dragon. If you，like me，were born in the year of the pig，then you are brave，thoughtful and loyal. The year of the pig is filled with good fortune.
Now let's take a closer look at this interesting animal.
Pigs were first raised by man about 9,000 years ago，and are still a very common farm animal in many parts of the world. We don't just use pigs for their meat—almost every part of the animal is used. The hair is used for artists' brushes. The fat is used to make floor wax，rubber and plastics.
Pigs have also been important in the world of entertainment. In 1995 the film Babe starred a loveable talking pig as its main character. The film won an Oscar and was nominated(提名)for 6 more. In England you can even go to watch pig racing. A farmer，Rob Shepherd，has been raising money for charity by holding pig races on his farm. The events have been very successful. People don't just want to eat pigs，it seems!
Pigs also play an important role in the English language. For example，if someone says that he will travel to the sun one day，you can say “Pigs_might_fly！” to him. Hungry？Well then，you can “pig out” and eat lots of food. And what if someone rescues you？Well，you can say that they “saved your bacon”．The writer wrote the first paragraph in a ________ tone.
| A．sad | B．confused |
| C．serious | D．humorous |
According to Paragraph One，his wife was born in the year of the ________.
| A．dragon | B．snake | C．rabbit | D．pig |
We may know from the passage that ________.
| A．people in England like pigs more than other animals |
| B．pigs are more useful than ordinary people imagine |
| C．pigs are the first animals raised by man |
| D．more people don't want to eat pigs now |
Which diagram shows the structure(结构)of the passage?
One day when the famous American scientist Edison was on his way home, a young man stopped him and required to have a word with him. Edison accepted his request.
The young man asked, “How can you invent so many things and achieve your fame(名声, 名望)? ”
The scientist said, “It seems that you have been thinking of becoming famous every day. ”The young man nodded, “Yes. I have been dreaming of being a person as notable(著名的)as you. Every minute I am thinking of how to become reputable. I don’ t know when I can achieve my fame. ”
Edison told him, “Don’ t worry, young man. If you want to be a famous man this way, you will have to wait until you die! ”
“Why should I? ”the young man was puzzled.
Edison said, “What you dream is actually a high building. You never think of how to build it with bricks(砖块). Thus the building will never come into reality(现实). However, your story can serve as a mirror. People will remember you because of your illness and laziness. They will often speak of your name while they give warnings to their children. Aren’ t you a notorious(声名狼藉)person by then? ”
The man asked Edison to tell him .
| A．how to invent new things | B．how to become famous |
| C．how he became a nobleman | D．how to become a scientist |
After hearing Edison’ s talk, the young man was puzzled because Edison told him .
| A．he would die before he was famous |
| B．he would be famous before he died |
| C．he would die after he was famous |
| D．he would never be famous |
The man didn’ t achieve his fame because________.
| A．his wish was too high |
| B．he was too stupid |
| C．he didn’ t learn from others |
| D．he was short of hard-working spirit |
The story mainly tells us .
| A．a person needs high spirit |
| B．one shouldn’ t dream of becoming famous |
| C．only by hard work can one’ s wish come into reality |
| D．one person shouldn’ t be idle and lazy |
Ladybirds (瓢虫) didn't have black spots on their backs at first. Then a storm broke out, and their famous guide, Caius Insectus, disappeared into the flood (洪水), and the few ladybirds who survived had to choose a new leader to guide them out of trouble. They decided that their new leader would be the first ladybird to successfully travel south to the Great Lake and return to describe it.
Many young ladybirds moved off immediately into this adventure. One by one they returned and told of how beautiful the southern lake was at that time of year, with its clear waters and flowers. However, the last of the ladybirds was late in getting back. He hadn't managed to reach the lake. Everyone criticized (批评) him, and they prepared to continue their journey the next day.
Following their new guide, they spent a morning walking northwards until they reached some tall thick grassland, where they stopped. There were no clear waters or flowers in front of them. The heavy rain had turned the place into a huge green puddle (水坑). Everyone understood what had happened. When the ladybirds had gone out looking for the lake, they had gone in the wrong direction. Now they could see that, except that one late ladybird, they had lied in order to get what they wanted.
And so, the late little ladybird was made the Great Guide. They also decided that every time one of them was discovered lying they would paint a black spot on that ladybird's back. From then on, when a ladybird looks at another's back, it can tell whether that ladybird can be trusted.Why did the ladybirds decide to choose a new guide?
| A．They lost their way in the storm. |
| B．They weren't satisfied with Caius Insectus. |
| C．They needed someone to lead them out of danger. |
| D．They needed someone to help prepare for the storm. |
Many young ladybirds lied because they ________.
| A．didn't want to be in danger |
| B．wanted to be the new guide |
| C．wanted to make others happy |
| D．didn't want to get spots on their backs |
How did the ladybirds probably feel when they stopped at the tall thick grassland?
| A．Nervous. | B．Afraid. |
| C．Excited. | D．Angry. |
What's the main idea of the text?
| A．Why ladybirds have black spots on their backs. |
| B．How ladybirds choose their leaders and guides. |
| C．What the black spots on ladybirds' backs mean. |
| D．Why ladybirds lie to each other. |