Since is was built during the Ming Dynasty, it’s said that the Forbidden City has survived more than 200 earthquakes. For an old building made from wood and stone, that’s really impressive. But what’s even more impressive is the intelligent(智能) design feature(特点) that’s kept it standing for all these years.
According to experts, the answer to the Forbidden City’s strength(牢固), as well as other ancient Chinese buildings’, lies in dougong — a centuries-old building method invented in China. This is the name for special brackets(构件) on building. Although being held together without any nails(钉子) or glue, the brackets are perfect at keeping structures together when the weather gets bad.
“Dougong design is an important earthquake resistant(抗震的) feature of classical Chinese structures, because the framework(框架) changes in shape when under pressure, much like the shock absorbers(减震器) of a car,” according to Chinese National Geography. “Ancient Chinese craftsmen(工匠) created structures that were both lasting and aesthetically(在美学方面) pleasing, showing their advanced understanding of architecture, materials, and structural science.”
A recent television documentary by UK broadcaster Channel 4 put the skills of the ancient building’s designers to the test. A group of Chinese craftsmen and engineers were shown building a scale model(按比例制作的模型) of one of the Forbidden City’s places, at one fifth of the size.
To show how strong ancient Chinese architecture really is, the model went through a simulated(模拟的) earthquake of 9.5 on the Richter scale—equivalent(等同于) to the largest ever recorded quake — and survived. Instead of falling apart, the model was just moved gently during the test.
The Forbidden City draws visitors because of its rich history and cultural importance, but perhaps it should add one more thing to its list of attractions: earthquake shelter.
1.What is the article mainly about?
A.What has made the Forbidden City a popular tourist destination.
B.What has helped the Forbidden City survive so many earthquakes.
C.The characteristics(特点) of Chinese architecture during the Ming Dynasty.
D.Different building methods used in ancient Chinese structures.
2.The aim of the test in the UK documentary was to __________.
A.recreate a real earthquake from the Ming Dynasty
B.discover a long-lost Chinese building method
C.explain the impact(影响) of earthquakes on ancient buildings
D.prove the strength of ancient Chinese architecture
3.According to the article, “dougong” is __________.
A.a paint that gives Chinese buildings an attractive look
B.a tool used by ancient people to measure earthquakes
C.a special building part that keeps a traditional Chinese building together
D.a building piece located in the center of a traditional Chinese house
4.The underlined word architecture in the third paragraph means __________.
A.方法 B.建筑 C.设计 D.应用
5.The Forbidden City is not attractive because of tis__________.
A.earthquake shelter B.rich history
C.ancient Chinese craftsmen D.cultural importance
A computer program that could help catch and even translate messages from aliens in outer space has been developed by a British scientist.
If aliens are discovered one day, scientists fear their language may make it impossible to understand them. But John Elliott of Leeds Metropolitan University in Britain has come up with a program that can figure out the structure(结构) of their language. He thinks that’s the first step in understanding what they are saying.
Dr Elliott’s program would compare an alien language to a database(数据库) of 60 different languages in the world to look for a similar structure. He believes that even an alien language will have its won structure. “Language has to be structured in a certain way, or it will be hard to use,” he told New Scientist Magazine.
Research has shown that it is possible to know if a signal(信号) carries a language rather than a picture or music. Dr Elliott has gone a step further by finding a way to pick out what might be words and sentences. Because languages have different word orders, Dr Elliott has set up a library of the sentence structures of 60 human languages.
If a message is received from outer space, it could be compared against this database. Scientists would then be able to see if it’s similar to any human language, or a mix of the languages.
However, Dr Elliott also said that in order to translate what the aliens are actually saying, it may still be necessary to have a “code(密码) book”.
1.Why did Dr Elliott come up with the program?
A.To learn more about outer space. B.To develop a new language.
C.To help translate messages from aliens. D.To compare an alien language to human languages.
2.According to Dr Elliott, what’s the first step of understanding an alien language?
A.Coming up with a program B.Knowing its structure
C.Understanding aliens D.Discovering aliens
3.What does Paragraph 4 mainly tell us?
A.A way to make the program work.
B.Dr Elliott’s findings about different kinds of languages.
C.Three important functions of the program.
D.The number of sentence structures of human languages.
4.How does the program work when it receives a message from aliens?
A.Mix the message with 60 human languages.
B.Translate the message and send it to the database.
C.Pick out the sentence structure and translate it.
D.Compare the message to the database of 60 human languages.
5.What can we infer from the story?
A.Not all languages have their own structures.
B.To translate alien languages, there is much work to do.
C.The structure of alien languages is similar to that of human languages.
D.Alien languages are signals carrying pictures and music.
Garbage or trash is a major kind of environmental pollution. Each person produces about two kilograms of trash a day. We are making waste products faster than nature can break them down. And we are using up resources(资源) faster than they can be replaced(取代).
This adds up to trouble for the environment. Where does all that garbage go? What can be done to help dispose of(处理) garbage? How can we make less garbage?
Garbage isn’t just the smelly rotting fruit, vegetables or meat that we throw away in our homes. Those are only a small part of all the stuff we throw away. We create other kings of waste in construction, mining and in our factories.
Did you ever wonder what happens to your garbage? Most is burned or buried in landfills(垃圾填埋场).Less than a quarter of our waste is recycled.
With a population of 1.3 billion, garbage is a big problem for China. Chinese cities create around 148 million tons of garbage every year. The amount is growing at around 10 percent each year.
Once, we used about 3 billion plastic shopping bags every day in China. The result was a great waste of resources and serious pollution. Last year we did something about that. Now we use more cloth bags and shopping baskets when we shop.
In the coming years, China will build waste-to-energy plants in cities to clean up garbage. But there’s a lot more that needs to be done. And you can play a part.
1.What can be learned from the first paragraph?
A.Garbage is the most serious kind of environmental pollution.
B.Each person produces 20 kilograms of garbage a week.
C.We may use up our resources if we don’t take any action.
D.We are doing something to make less garbage.
2.Which of the following places probably produce the most garbage?
A.Homes B.Factories C.Schools D.Farms
3.The underlined word “plants” in the last paragraph means__________.
A.工厂 B.植物 C.垃圾场 D.栽种
4.What is the best title for the story?
A.Garbage on Earth B.How to deal with garbage
C.Environmental D.Let’s make the Earth a cleaner place
5.Who do you think the writer most likely is?
A.An English scientist. B.A Chinese journalist
C.A UN governor D.A garbage collector
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1.Where can you buy these things according to the ad?
A.In a shop. B.In a mall. C.On the Internet. D.In a supermarket.
2.From the ad, you can buy the children bicycle for a child of__________.
A.2 B.5 C.8 D.10
3.The best birthday gift for your grandpa is __________.
A.some buttons B.a handbag C.a tea pot D.a children bicycle
4.You can get all the white objects except__________.
A.a tea pot B.a handbag C.a children bicycle D.a button
5.If you have￥400, you can buy__________.
A.two handbags B.500 buttons
C.a handbag and a bicycle D.a tea pot and a handbag
My grandfather had a small farm. He also worked in a factory.
One autumn, he promised to help his ______ harvest their corn, but after harvesting his own corn, Grandpa’s little corn picker broke. At the same time, the factory______ Grandpa worked in began to require overtime. He had to leave home early in the morning and didn’t get back______ after sunset. It now seemed______ to help out his neighbor.
One night, Grandpa ______ that he wouldn’t let his neighbor’s harvest rot(腐烂) in the field.______ a machine, he’d harvest it by hand.
“When do you think you’d have time to do it?” asked my grandma. “______, it’d be too dark.”
“I know of one night that I could do it!” he said. “There’s still one more full moon in October. If the weather is clear, I think I can do it.”
A few days later, after a long shift(轮班工作) at the factory, my grandpa made his way to the field. The weather was cold ______ clear, and the moon was glowing. He worked through the night to ______ his word.
Sometimes, when I want to ______ off responsibilities(责任), I’d see my grandfather cutting corn in the light of the harvest moon. Behind him, row after cow of corn stocks(玉米秸) stand at attention(立正) in respect for a man who keeps his word.
1.A.boss B.neighbor C.worker
2.A.which B.what C.who
3.A.when B.unless C.until
4.A.unnecessary B.impossible C.important
5.A.wondered B.decided C.noticed
6.A.By B.Through C.Without
7.A.Besides B.However C.Instead
8.A.and B.but C.or
9.A.keep B.act C.speak
10.A.turn B.run C.put
—Frank likes drinking coffee very much.
— _____. It can prevent him from feeling sleepy.
A.So he dose B.So does he C.Neither does he
