While shell-like roofs, unlike anything else in the world, make the Sydney Opera House an image of timeless beauty. It is famous for being a symbol, not only of a city, but a whole country and condition too.
Its creator, Danish architect Jorn Utzon , turned 85 last Wednesday. And he was awarded the Prizker Prize, known as the Nobel Prize of Architecture, on April 6. But Utzon has never seen his Opera House.
The story began in 1957 when Utzon won an international competition to design an opera house in Sydney.
But not everyone was enthusiastic (热心的 ) . Utzon left his Opera project in 1966 after an argument with the local government and a storm of public criticism over the building’s design. It was not completed until seven years later and Utzon has never returned to Australia to see the result of his work.
“Utzon made a building well ahead of its time, and he persevered (坚持) through criticism to build a building that changed the image of an entire country,” said Frank Gehry, a Pritzer Architecture Prize judge.
Although the Sydney Opera House was Utzon’s masterpiece, it damaged his career. Upon his return to Denmark, he found work hard to come by , so he become a teacher at a university in Hawaii.
Utzon said he once saw posters of the Opera House. The interiors were different from his design. But, he said, “There is no regret, for it gave me such a wonderful experience in Australia and towards which I only have love and appreciation .”
Britain’s Queen Elizabeth opened the Opera House in 1973, and it now holds around 3000 events every year. It is recognized as one of the great symbolic buildings of the 20th century.
1.The Sydney Opera House was completed_____.
A. in 1957 B. in 1906 C. in 1973 D. in 1980
2.Utzon has never seen his Opera House because _______.
A. it has white shell-like roofs, unlike anything else in the world
B. its creator is Danish architect, who returned to Denmark
C. he was not awarded the Pritzker Prize, known as the Nobel Prize of Architecture
D. he argued with the local government and was criticized over his design
3.The underlined word “come by” in Paragraph 6 means ______.
A. find B. pass C. hire D. develop
If you've been joining in chat room conversations, or trading e-mail with Web pals, you have become one of the millions who write in a peculiarly short form of English.
And you've got a sense of humor about short forms like SOHF(=sense of humor failure) to describe Internet newcomers who don't understand you.
Across the globe, every night teenagers and their elders are “talking” online—many of them are talking at the same time.
It's fast: try talking to six people at once. It's brief: three or four words per exchange. It takes wit, concentration, and quick fingers.
And it requires tremendous linguistic economy. There's neither time nor space for explanations. Why consume precious key-strokes telling six friends you have to leave for a moment to take care of your little brother when BRB(=be right back) will do? Want to enter a conversation? Just type PMFJI(=pardon me for jumping in). Interested in whom you're talking to? Type A/S/L, the nearly universal request to know your pal's age, sex and location. You may get 15/M/NY as a response from your pal.
If something makes you laugh, say you're OTF(=on the floor),or LOL(=laughing out loud),or combine the two into ROTFL(=rolling on the floor laughing).
And when it's time to get back to work or go to bed, you type GTG(=got to go) or TTYL(talk to you later).
People want to write as fast as possible, and they want to get their ideas across as quickly as they can. Capital letters are left in the dust, except when expressing emotion, as it takes more time to hold down the “shift” key and capitals. Punctuation is going, too.
1.In order to talk to several people at the same time on the Internet_______.
A. you have to speak fast and fluently
B. you have to express your ideas in a brief way
C. you should speak with wit and humor
D. one should pay much attention to the accuracy of the words
2.If you get 17/F/NY as an answer to your A/S/L, it means_______.
A. the person on the other end is 17 from New York and he is fine
B. you are talking to a girl who is 17 and lives in New York
C. you are talking to 17 girls who are from New York
D. the person who are talking to you is a 1.7-foot tall New York girl
3.To save time on the Internet_______.
A. some people leave their letters in the dustbin
B. some people never use “shift” in their writing
C. many people leave the capital and punctuation
D. people seldom use capital letters or punctuation
When Lew Alcindor was 13, and obviously still growing, a group of schools began offering him scholarships（奖学金）. The Alcindors decided to send their only child to Power Memorial Academy, a small school on Manhattan’s West Side.
At Power. Alcindor came under the control of Coach Jack Donohue, a strict young man who already gained his fame as one of the best coaches in the city. Donohue brought Alcindor along slowly. As a first-year student, the boy was not able to do much but wave his long skinny arms and shoot a basket now and then. But by the second year, when he was 15 years old and nearly 7 feet tall, Alcindor was quick and skillful enough to make the high school All American team and to lead Power to an undefeated season.
From then on be simply got better. Some rival coaches（对方教练）used to take their teams quickly away from the floor before Power warmed up so that their players would not see him any sooner than they had to. Wearing size 16D shoes and sucking a lollipop（棒棒糖）, Alcindor would loosen up by starting his leaping lay-ups（擦板球）. Then he would casually shoot the ball with either hand, to the delight of the fans.
When reporters and photographers began to follow Alcindor closely, Donohue protected his boy firmly. He simply ordered Lew to talk to no member of the press, and this suited Lew fine. He was not comfortable talking to grownups, perhaps because he towered over them. Discouraged photographers began following him in secret as though he were an easily-frightened giraffe. “People want you not for yourself,” Donohue warned him, “but because you’re a basketball player. Don’t forget that.”
1.Many schools offered Alcindor scholarships because_______.
A. he was young B. he was hardworking
C. he was tall for his age D. he was skillful at playing basketball
2.Which of the following best describes Donohue as a young coach?
A. serious, popular and slow B. tall, skillful and successful
C. kind, powerful and undefeated D. well-known, strict and experienced
3.Why did some rival coaches take their teams away from the floor before Power warmed up?
A. Their teams refused to play Power. B. Their teams feared to see Alcindor.
C. Their teams would lose courage. D. Their teams would lose interest.
4.What does the last paragraph mainly discuss?
A. How Donohue protected Alcindor from the press.
B. How Alcindor disliked meeting reporters.
C. Why the press followed Alcindor closely.
D. Why the public wanted Alcindor badly.
Several years ago, we moved into the apartment where we live now. When my friends helped me move in, the downstairs neighbors began to 36 about the noise. I could do 37 about it. After all, noises are unavoidable(不可避免的).How can anyone move in 38 .
Still 39 ,the complaints continued on a daily basis—well after the first day. We walked “too loudly”down the stairs, we laughed too often, we opened and closed the door too many times…They had many 40 to complain.
Nobody can stand the endless complaints and quarrels. I soon learned that they had 41 the last few families who lived above them by the same way. So I had the information I needed and I tried to 42 every situation carefully.
I tried to walk in 43 to avoid any possible noises. Whenever they called 44 came to the door with a complaint, no matter how unreasonable, I simply listened. From their confused expressions, I could imagine that they had never expected to get a 45 attitude from me.
Of course, it was hard to keep calm but my sister and I 46 . I told my sister that we were going to be pleasant and 47 them to change their attitude to neighbors. I explained to her that they probably felt 48 in their lives because they are common people. 49 , they were always looking for a 50 to show their power so that nobody could look down upon them. I continued smiling and greeting them as I saw them, much to their 51 .On more than one occasion(不止一次), I ended up 52 them. They thanked me before they left.
Unexpectedly, the next time I saw them, they all smiled and 53 friendly. We had a short but pleasant 54 . Ever since then, they’ve been very pleasant neighbors, and we’ve become good 55 .
1.A. worryB. talk C. care D. complain
2.A.everything B. nothing C. something D. anything
3.A.quietly B. quickly C. suddenly D. slowly
4.A.angrier B. less C. better D. worse
5.A.purposes B. times C. reasons D. persons
6.A.come across B. driven off C. knocked into D. taken in
7.A.treat B. allow C. keep D. accept
8.A.fashion B. trouble C. doubt D. peace
9.A.but B. so C. or D. as
10.A.funny B. positive C. gentle D. satisfying
11.A.continued B. decided C. began D. stopped
12.A.order B. ask C. forbid D. encourage
13.A.stupid B. powerless C. unfortunate D. dangerous
14.A.Besides B. Therefore C. Otherwise D. However
15.A.task B. chance C. challenge D. job
16.A.surprise B. worry C. taste D. expect
17.A.frustrating B. annoying C. helping D. joining
18.A.sounded B. felt C. phoned D. looked
19.A.discussion B. quarrel C. conversation D. journey
20.A.friends B. workmates C. partners D. classmates
The reason ____ he explained to us was ____he overslept.
A. why; that B. why; because C. that; because D. which; that
— Are you still going to Shanghai for the Spring Festival?
— Yes, but I really _____ because I have a lot of things to deal with.
A. can’t B. mustn’t C. won’t D. shouldn’t
