Getting rid of dirt, in the opinion of most people, is a good thing. However, there is nothing fixed about attitudes to dirt.
In the early 16th century, people thought that dirt on the skin was a way to block out disease, as medical opinion had it that washing off dirt with hot water could open up the skin and let illnesses in. A particular danger was thought to lie in public baths. By 1538, the French king had closed the bath houses in his kingdom. So did the king of England in 1546. Thus it began a long time when the rich and the poor in Europe lived with dirt in a friendly way. Henry IV, King of France, was famously dirty. Upon learning that a nobleman had taken bath, the king ordered that, to avoid the attack of disease, the nobleman should not go out.
Though the belief in the merit of dirt was long-lived, dirt has no longer been regarded as a nice neighbor ever since the 18th century. Scientifically speaking, cleaning away dirt is good to h ealth. Clean water supply and hand washing are practical means of preventing disease. Yet, it seems that standards of cleanliness have moved beyond science since World War Ⅱ. Advertisements repeatedly sell the idea: clothes need to be whiter than white, cloths ever softer, surfaces to shine. Has the hate for dirt, however, gone too far?
Attitudes to dirt still differ hugely nowadays. Many first-time parents nervously try to warn their children of touching dirt, which might be responsible for the spread of disease. On the contrary, Mary Ruebush, an American immunologist(免疫学家), encourages children to play in the dirt to build up a strong immune system. And the latter position is gaining some ground.
1.The kings of France and England in the 16th century closed bath houses because ______ .
A.they believed disease could be spread in public baths
B.they thought bath houses were too dirty to stay in
C.they lived healthily in a dirty environment
D.they considered bathing as the cause of skin disease
2.The underlined word “merit” in paragraph 3 means ______ .
A.weakness B.influence
C.strength D.feature
3.How does the passage mainly develop?
A.By providing examples. B.By following the order of importance.
C.By following the order of time. D.By making comparisons.
4.What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?
A.To call attention to the danger of dirt.
B.To stress the role of dirt.
C.To introduce the history of dirt.
D.To present the change of views on dirt.
They aren’t great artists like Leonardo da Vinci or Vincent van Gogh, but their paintings are just as popular on Chinese social media, with millions of Chinese people willing to pay for them.
The 36 works were painted by ordinary Chinese people who live with autism (自闭症) or cerebral palsy (脑瘫), aged from their early teens to late thirties. They all studied art at World of Art Brut Culture (WABC), which is a Shanghai-based non-profit organization (非贏利组织) for art education. The project was started by WABC and supported by the Tencent Charitable Foundation. Users could buy a digital copy of each painting by donating (捐赠) 1 yuan or more. By Aug 29, donations totaled more than 15 million yuan, with about 5.8 million people participating (参与).
“The paintings by these autistic kids and adults are beautiful: the style is similar to that of the Dutch artist Van Gogh. I’m really impressed by their talent,” Feng Li, a customer service officer in Shanghai, told the South China Morning Post.
However, the popular campaign also led to certain questions.
Li Laoxi, an experienced special education teacher in Hangzhou, said that based on his experience, people with autism could only draw a few lines or fill in colors under the guidance of their trainers. “Maybe there are some geniuses out there, but I’ve never met them”. Others questioned where the money would go, as the donations went to WABC instead of the painters. In response to these concerns, Miao Shiming, founder of WABC, said the money would be used to employ art teachers, buy supplies, and rent facilities. Meanwhile, Tencent said that all donation information would be open to the public.
1.What is the text mainly about?
A.An online painting exhibition. B.A non-profit organization.
C.A public donation. D.An online survey about paintings.
2.What does WABC do for people with autism?
A.It helps them cure autism. B.It provides art education for them.
C.It gives them money D.It offers schooling to them.
3.Why did Li Laoxi, an experienced special education teacher question the project?
A.Because he thought autistic people could not draw.
B.Because he doubted about the painting abilities of autistic people.
C.Because he didn’t trust the organization, WABC.
D.Because he believed the paintings were painted only by geniuses.
4.What is the author’s attitude towards the project?
A.Disappointed. B.Appreciated.
C.Worried. D.Objective.
The Green Gathering
Date:15th Aug. —22nd Aug.
Location: Chepstow Center
2018 Music Festivals, UK
Details: Over 100 live bands plus DJs on five private solar-powered stages. A wonderful site in a wooded area of outstanding natural beauty. 8 days of inspiration and relaxation are about traditional crafts, campaign stalls(活动摊位), and a magical kids’ area.
Sport Beat Music Festival
Date: 20th Aug. —29th Aug.
Location: Oxstalls Sports Park
Details: Time for fun in the sun with Sport Beat. The festival is for those who wish there are volleyball and netball games that take place over the weekend. Attractions include: ball coaching, food village, and bars. Please see details for VIP passes on our website.
Creamfields Festival
Date: 26th Aug.—28th Aug.
Location: Daresbury Court
Details: Creamfields is the world’s leading dance music festival. Creamfields is famous for many things, not just its traditional world class dancing but its unbeatable atmosphere! The festival mixes together style breaking pioneers from across the DJ and live music spectrum(声谱).
Wilkestock Charity Music Festival
Date: 27th Aug.—31st Aug. Location: Wilkestock Stadium
Details: With entertainment this year from mystery jets to a huge electronic lineup(阵容), this festival keeps turning up the heat year on year while keeping all profits donated direct to charity.
1.At which festival can children probably enjoy themselves thoroughly?
A.Creamfields Festival. B.The Green Gathering.
C.Sport Beat Music Festival. D.Wilkestock Charity Music Festival.
2.Where can a ball game be watched?
A.At Oxstalls Sports Park. B.At Daresbury Court.
C.At Wilkestock Stadium. D.At Chepstow Center.
3.How does Wilkestock Charity Music Festival differ from the other festivals?
A.It gives its earnings to people in need. B.It offers performance in the open air.
C.It entertains people with live music. D.It has five private solar-powered stages.
阅读下面短文，根据其内容写一篇60词左右的内容概要。
Growing coffee beans is a huge, making-money business. However, unluckily, full-sun production is replacing the industry and causes a lot of damage. The change in growing coffee from shade-grown(荫下栽种) production to full-sun production brings certain animals and birds in danger, and even breaks the world’s ecological balance(生态平衡).
On a local level, the damage of the forest that is required by full-sun fields affects the area’s birds and animals. The shade of the forest trees gives a home to birds and other species which depend on the trees’ flowers and fruits. Full-sun coffee growers destroy this forest home. As a result, many species are quickly in extinction.
On a more global level, the damage to the rainforest for full-sun coffee fields also does harm to human life. Medical research often makes use of the forests’ plant and animal life, and the ruin of such species could keep researchers from finding ways for certain diseases. In addition, new coffee-growing methods are harmful to the water locally, and lastly the world’s groundwater.
Both locally and globally, the continued spread of full-sun coffee plantations(种植园)could mean breaking the balance of the rainforest ecology. The loss of shade trees is already causing a little change in the world’s climate(气候), and studies show that the loss of oxygen-giving trees also leads to air pollution and global warming. Besides, the new growing methods are bringing about acidic (酸性) soil conditions.
It is clear that the way much coffee is grown affects a lot, from the local environment to the global ecology. But coffee users do have a choice. They can buy shade-grown coffee whenever possible, although at a higher cost. The future health of the planet and mankind is surely worth more than an inexpensive cup of coffee.
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根据所给汉语或首字母拼写单词
1.He had completely___________(忽视)her words, preferring his own theory.
2.According to a health report, eating too much junk food a___________ our health.
3.___________(逐渐地), she realized that he wasn’t telling the truth.
4.The expert delivered a wonderful speech, saying that humans should give animals freedom and that caged animals should be r____________ into the wild.
5.In this section, we will____________(简要地)describe possible ways of reducing the costs.
6.The girl felt f____________ because a big dog that looked quite fierce was running at her.
7.I p____________ my father to give up smoking by making him know about its harmful effects on his health.
8.Half of my classmates are ___________(志愿者) of different community service projects.
9.I feel that this lesson has taught me so much and it is extremely __________(有价值) in my life.
10.The articles which are rather difficult should be s__________ to satisfy little children.
阅读下面材料,在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。
A little boy became very ill. Because other children weren’t allowed 1.(come) near him, he suffered greatly and spent his days in bed, feeling sad. There wasn’t much 2. he could do except look out of the window. One day he saw a strange shape in the window. The boy was very 3.(amaze). He was trying to work out what had happened when he saw 4. monkey busy blowing up a balloon outside his window. At first the boy asked 5.(he) what that could possibly be. 6. more and more crazy-looking characters appearing out of the window, he burst out 7.(laugh) and found it hard to stop.
Before long, his health improved so much that he was able to go back to school again. There he told his8.(friend) about all the strange things he had seen. While he 9.(talk) to his best friend he saw something sticking out of his friend’s school bag. The boy asked his friend what it was, and he was so insistent that finally his friend had to show him what was in the bag. There, inside, were all the fancy-dress suits his best friend had been using to try to cheer 10. the little boy!
