Question

Fireworks are exciting, but also hard to control. The Chinese artist Cai Guoqiang，though, has developed a way to harness the visual and physical power of fireworks to make art He recently used them to create a burning sculpture that stretched high into the sky. Guoqiang fittingly named the work Sky Ladder.

Guoqiang built Sky Ladder by making a frame out of metal. He coated the frame with gunpowder，the main chemical material in fireworks.

The artist tried one end of the frame to the ground and attached a large weather balloon to the other end. The balloon was filled with helium 一 a gas that is lighter than air. When released，the balloon floated upward, pulling the top of the ladder 500 meters into the sky. That’s higher than the top of the Empire State Building.

Guoqiang set fire to the bottom of the ladder，and the crackling（啪啪作响） flames raced skyward up the frame. The sculpture burned for two-and-a-half minutes before its flames began to die out from the bottom up.

Dealing with explosive (炸药）is challenging, and conditions had to be perfect for Guoqiang to achieve his desired effect. He first attempted Sky Ladder in 1994，but bad weather prevented him from successfully completing the work. Guoqiang put Sky Ladder aside so that he could work on other projects, perhaps most famously the fireworks display that opened the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

Finally，after two more failed attempts，Guoqiang successfully sent his flaming ladder skyward last year. He presented Sky Ladder in his hometown, a quiet fishing village near Huiyu Island, Quanzhou. He offered the work as a gift to his 100-year-old grandmother，other family members，his friends and his town.

“Behind Sky Ladder lies a clear childhood dream of mine，"Guoqiang explains. “Despite all life’s twists and turns, I have always been determined to realize it. The ladder rose toward the morning sun, carrying hope. For me, this not only means a return, but also the start of a new journey."

1.Which of the following can replace the underlined word “harness” in Paragraph 1 ?

A. control and use    B. find and collect

C. save and develop    D. count and produce.

2.What can we learn about the work Sky Ladder Cai Guoqiang built last year?

A. It proved to be a failure.

B. It could fly free in the sky.

C. It kept burning for 2.5 minutes.

D. It was sent skyward in the evening.

3.When did Cai Guoqiang first imagine a ladder of fire?

A. When he was a young boy.

B. When he saw the Empire State Building.

C. When the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games opened.

D. When his grandmother had her 100th birthday. ，

4.What may be the best title for the text?

A. Living with hope    B. A birthday gift

C. Burning man    D. Art on fire

Answer

1. A

2. C

3. A

4. D

【解析】

本文是一篇记叙文，讲述了中国艺术家蔡国强利用烟花的视觉和物理力量来创作艺术——“天梯”烟花表演。

1.词义猜测题。根据画线词前的“Fireworks are exciting, but also hard to control.”可知，烟花很难控制，不过，中国艺术家蔡国强利用烟花的视觉和物理力量来创作艺术，由此可知画线词词义为“利用、运用”，故A项正确。

2.细节理解题。根据第四段中的“The sculpture burned for two-and-a-half minutes before its flames began to die out from the bottom up.”可知，“天梯”可以燃放两分半钟，故C项正确。

3.细节理解题。根据最后一段中的“Behind Sky Ladder lies a clear childhood dream of mine”可知，“天梯”的背后是蔡国强儿时的梦想，由此可知他小的时候就有这个想法，故A项正确。

4.主旨大意题。通读全文，特别是根据第一段中的“The Chinese artist Cai Guoqiang，though, has developed a way to harness the visual and physical power of fireworks to make art.”可知，本文讲述了中国艺术家蔡国强利用烟花的视觉和物理力量来创作艺术——“天梯”烟花表演，D项Art on fire（火上艺术）最能概括出文章内容，故D项正确。