The minutes leading up to a vacation are often an exciting time. As people check their homes and pack the last items into their suitcases, they often dream about the fun times that lie ahead. In Russia, however, there’s one final step that people take to ensure a good trip. Before they walk out of the door, Russians take a brief pause and silently sit on their suitcases for a few moments.
This unusual tradition started hundreds of years ago. In the years before Christianity, Russians believed that good and evil spirits lived inside their homes. They thought that the key to living a good life was to keep these spirits happy at all costs. If a person rushed out of their home before a trip, there was a good chance that they would forget something. When that person returned a few minutes later to get it, they would disturb the evil spirits in the home. In response, the spirits might follow them out of the door and accompany them on their trip. Since the spirits were offended by the person, they would bring them bad luck and possibly cause them harm.
Although many years have passed since suitcase sitting began, the practice continues to this day. As the Soviet Empire grew during the Cold War, suitcase sitting even spread throughout Eastern Europe. Although it’s rooted in superstition (迷信), suitcase sitting is actually quite practical. It can prevent people from forgetting passports, plane tickets, or keys. In addition, it also provides a brief moment of relaxation that can help get a journey started on the right foot. Besides that, if someone has packed too many clothes, suitcase sitting can help get it zipped up.
1. What is this passage mainly about?| A．A spirit that haunts anyone who attacks Russia. |
| B．A popular vacation spot in ancient Russia. |
| C．An old tradition that is based on scientific research. |
| D．A habit meant to bring good luck to travelers. |
| A．To keep spirits from following them on journeys. |
| B．To test the strength of their suitcases. |
| C．To invite good spirits to come on vacation. |
| D．To ask spirits to protect their homes. |
| A．It was made illegal during the Cold War. |
| B．It is practiced outside of Russia as well. |
| C．It started in Russia many years ago. |
| D．It is not based on Christian ideas. |
| A．It’s an old practice that should be forgotten. |
| B．It is no longer necessary in the digital age. |
| C．It often makes people stressed out before an important trip. |
| D．It has benefits that everyone can experience. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】How Important Is Alone Time for Mental Health?
People tend to be social creatures, and research has shown that social connections are vital for both emotional and physical well-being.
Creativity
In a 2020 study published in the journal Nature Communications, researchers found that perceived social isolation (loneliness) led to increased activity in the neural circuits related to imagination. When left with a lack of social stimulation, the brain increases its creative networks to help fill the blank.
Social Energy
Sociologist Eric Klineberg notes that one in seven U.S. adults lives alone. Klineberg found that not only were these adults not lonely, many actually had richer social lives.
How to spend time alone?
Pick a time: Figure out when you’d like to spend some time alone. Plan that time into your schedule and make sure that other people know that they shouldn’t interrupt you during that time.
Plan something: Not everyone is comfortable spending time alone, so you might find it helpful to plan out what you want to do.
There’s no correct amount of solo time that works for everyone. Think about things that you might like to do by yourself, then start practicing doing them alone.
| A．Turn off social media. |
| B．Focus on others’ behavior. |
| C．Living alone tends to be seen in a negative light. |
| D．Solo time is an opportunity to strengthen your creativity. |
| E．However, alone time also plays a crucial role in mental health. |
| F．Therefore, there are things you can do to boost social connections. |
| G．This might involve relaxation time, exploring favorite hobbies,or reading books. |
【推荐2】Spider webs are made from silk. And silk is made from something scientists call “proteins”. Proteins are special chemicals made by a living thing like an animal or a plant. You have lots of them in your body. Your hair and your nails are made of proteins (they are both made by a protein called “keratin”). Insects and spiders make silk in a special part of their bodies called a gland (腺), and use their legs to pull it out of their bodies. This is called spinning. Most species of spider have more than one kind of silk gland. Each one has different strength and stretchiness and is used for a specific purpose such as web frame, or covering eggs. The strength and stretchiness of silk depends on the way the spider’s body arranges the silk proteins.
We don’t usually notice just how strong they can be because they are amazingly thin. But the strongest silk, such as silk from a golden orb spider, is actually stronger than steel. Even more amazing, it is about 50 times as light. Actually, spider silk is a bit like a cross between steel and rubber. Even with the help of complicated machines and chemicals, humans still don’t know how to make a material this strong, stretchy, and light. Spiders are still the champions at this.
In fact, silk-making animals include crickets, glow-worms, ants, bees, etc. Some of these make silk to protect themselves. Crickets, for example, use silk to sew leaves together to build a nest. Some use silk for hunting, such as spiders and even glow-worms, which use sticky silk to capture flying animals they’d like to eat.
Studies about spider webs could pave the way for creating new materials that could be used in medicine and engineering. But synthetic (人工合成的) spider silk has been difficult to create. In the meantime, researchers hope their work will help us unreel one of the toughest materials of the natural world.
1. What can we learn from paragraph 1?| A．Insects and spiders’ legs can make silk. |
| B．Spider webs are made of keratin. |
| C．All species of spiders have a variety of silk glands. |
| D．Arrangements of proteins determine silk features. |
| A．To stress the strength of spider silk. | B．To describe the advantages of spiders. |
| C．To compare the two materials. | D．To highlight spiders’ advantages over people. |
| A．Remove. | B．Explore. | C．Test. | D．Replace. |
| A．To raise awareness of the research on insects. | B．To explain the knowledge about spider silk. |
| C．To encourage us to focus more on the spiders. | D．To present the application of spider silk. |
【推荐3】In July, 2015, NASA's Kepler mission has confirmed the first near-Earth-size planet in the "habitable zone" around a sun-like star. This discovery and the introduction of 11other new small habitable zone candidate planets mark another milestone in the journey to finding another "Earth"
The newly discovered Kepler-452b is the smallest planet to date discovered orbiting in the habitable zone—the area around à star where liquid water could pool on the surface of an orbiting planet—of a G2-type star, like our sun. The confirmation of Kepler-452b brings the total number of confirmed planets to 1,030.
"On the 20th anniversary year of the discovery that proved other suns' host planets the Kepler has discovered a planet and star which most closely resemble the Earth and our Sun," said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. “This exciting result brings us one step closer to finding an Earth 2.0.”
Kepler-452b is 60 percent larger in diameter than Earth arid is considered a super-Earth-size planet. While its mass and composition are not yet determined, previous research suggests that planets the size of Kepler-452b have-a good chance of being rocky.
While Kepler-452b is larger than Earth, ' its 385-day orbit is only 5 percent longer. The planet is 5 percent farther from its parent star Kepler-452 than the earth is from the sun. Kepler-452 is 6 billion years old, 1.5 billion years older than our sun, has the same temperature, and is 20 percent brighter and has a diameter 10 percent larger.
"We can think of Kepler-452b as an older, bigger cousin to Earth, providing an opportunity to understand and reflect upon Earth's evolving environment," said Jon Jenkins, who led the team that discovered Kepler-452b. "If all the necessary ingredients and conditions for life should exist on this planet, there would be a good opportunity for life to arise."
To help confirm the finding and better determine the properties of the Kepler-452 system, the 'team conducted a series of ground-based observations: These measurements were the key for the researchers to confirm the planetary nature of Kepler-452b and to better pin down(确定)the size of the planet and its orbit.
1. When was the first host planet found in another solar system?| A．In 2015. | B．In 1985. |
| C．In 2005. | D．In 1995. |
| A．Whether there is life on Kepler-452b remains unknown. |
| B．Kepler-452b is 10 percent larger in diameter than the sun. |
| C．Judging from its size, it is very likely that Kepler-452b is rocky. |
| D．Kepler-452b is a planet orbiting in the habitable zone. |
| A．which Kepler-452b resembles more, the earth or the sun |
| B．more mysteries in our solar system |
| C．the planetary nature of Kepler-452b |
| D．the significance of NASA's Kepler mission |
| A．the discovery of a new Earth-like planet |
| B．the discovery of a new solar system |
| C．the origin of the universe |
| D．the comparison, between the earth and Kepler-452b |
【推荐1】Qingming Shang He Tu
No doubt, one of the most admired Chinese paintings of all time is the Qingming Shang He Tu, or Along the River During the Qingming Festival.The painting is on a silk scroll that is 24.8 cm wide and 528.7 cm long, bearing Emperor Huizong’s name.It was painted by Zhang Zeduan, who was a court painter during the Northern Song Dynasty.
This amazingly detailed painting quickly became a national treasure. Over the centuries that follow hundreds of copies of it were made, many of which became national treasures themselves. Although the original painting was lost for some time, it is now proudly placed in the Palace Museum in Beijing.
The painting is exhibited for only brief periods every few years. However using computer animation, the painting has been remade into an animated digital version for all to enjoy. It contains moving characters and objects, showing life along the Bian River during the Qingming Festival, a time when Chinese people visit their ancestors’ graves.
Flowing from right to left, the painting begins by showing the countryside outside Bianjing City, the capital of China at that time. There are a few houses and a few people traveling back to Bianiing. The scene soon becomes more crowded. The road beside the river becomes packed with restaurants, and the river becomes full of boats. Then we see the Rainbow Bridge arching over the river. On both sides of the bridge are people selling food nd drink, while travellers pass by. Soon, the city begins to emerge. We see temples, inns, and large houses. The roads are now filled with people travelling on foot, and in carts and sedan chairs. Then we come to the first city. Then we come to the first city gate.Through the gate is passing a line of camels carrying goods. In the city, there are butcher shops, doctor’s clinics, hotels, inns, houses, and fabric shops. The streets are still crowded with people,but most of them are relaxing and taking it easy.
The painting ends here, but the scroll does not. About half of the scroll has the seals of its previous owners, along with poems praising the painting’s beauty. There is also a note which gives a short biography of Zhang Zeduan. These seals and poems,along with the note,are the reasons why many experts claim this to be the original painting.
The Qingming Shang He Tu is not only a true work of art, but it also gives us a rare insight into daily life in ancient China. So often, history only contains the stories of emperors, generals, and important events. This painting’s great appeal is that it provides us with a look into ordinary people’s lives in the Song Dynasty.
1. Who painted Qingming Shang He Tu?2. What can we see in the painting?
3. What makes the painting a national treasure?
4. What values of the painting do you think can be uncovered?.
【推荐2】Writing goes back to the earliest humans. It is a way of communicating using markings or signs that we can see to read.
Counting sticks is probably the oldest way of making markings to record something. Shepherds(牧羊人) would count their sheep and then make a mark on a stick for each sheep. Some cultures tied knots(结) in strings for the same reason. Some even made the strings different colours so that they could remember what each piece was for.
Rock drawings are also a very old way of communication. Pictures were drawn on rocks showing animals, hunting scenes and feasting scenes. Some of the drawings are quite colorful. The ancient people had found a way of mixing colours from the soil, leaves and berries(浆果) of their surroundings. The earliest known rock paintings in Southern Africa date back to 27,000 years ago. We have been able to learn a lot about early man from these rock paintings.
Old Indian drawings are called ideographs(表意文字). This is also known as picture writing. It was one of the most important steps in the development of writing. Each drawing communicated an idea rather than a word. The drawings did not only have meanings for people who spoke the Indian languages. Any person from any language group could understand them. This way of communicating ideas rather than words is called ideography.
After this, man learned that he could communicate ideas using certain signs that stood for his words in his language. This type of writing is called logography. Sumerian writing and Egyptian hieroglyphics are both a form of this. A simple example is that the written word ‘eye’ would be a drawing of an eye.
It was Chinese who first developed word writing. Each character in writing Chinese communicates a complete idea. There may be as many as 50,000 word signs in Chinese. Slowly, the way of writing became simpler. The signs for words became fewer and fewer. People began using signs for a letter instead of an idea or word. The Japanese worked out the first type of letter system, borrowing many of the word symbols from the Chinese. The alphabet was the next step. The Greeks were the first people to use an alphabet to write with.
1. Why did some ancient people tie knots in the strings?| A．To make marks for their sheep. | B．To remember the numbers of their sheep. |
| C．To make strings colourful. | D．To make markings to record something. |
| A．the way to raise animals | B．the way to hunt animals |
| C．the way to mix colours | D．the way early man lived |
| A．drawings | B．ideographs | C．hieroglyphics | D．alphabets |
| A．The Egyptians | B．The Chinese | C．The Japanese | D．The Greeks |
【推荐3】A famous Anglican Church stands in a quiet corner of Dunedin in New Zealand's South Island. Built in 1865,it is the city's oldest church still in use.Countless couples have gathered here to marry.It's where morning tears are shared,friendships formed and comfort given during times of loss.
As with many churches,its walls are graced with a collection of beautiful stained-glass windows. Known as the“John Allen window”, one window portrays the short life of a local man,John Allen,who died in 1915 in the Gallipoli campaign in Turkey.
John was the son of Sir James Allen,who as Minister of Defense,helped plan and administer New Zealand's World War I strategy,which saw 100,000 troops sent to fight. With the war over and his son dead, Sir James chose to install a window in the church, with which the Allen family had strong ties.
Divided into two parts，one depicts (描绘) St.George，the patron saint (守护神) of soldiers，while the other has an angel of peace, along with the words at the bottom,“John Hugh All Gallipoli,6th June,1915”. Two trees with local birds on the branches can be seen and a kiwi walks at the bottom- reminders that John was a lover of birds.
“There are many war memorials in the church," says the church. “However the ‘John Allen window' stands out; it touches people because of the beautiful design, the New Zealand birds and because John's story, of a life so full of promise ending tragically in the war,reflects the lives and stories of so many others involved in World War I.”
1. What does the word“portrays”in paragraph 2 most probably mean?| A．Starts. | B．Changes. |
| C．Treasures. | D．Represents. |
| A．celebrate the end of World War I |
| B．honor the troops in the Gallipoli campaign |
| C．remember his son's sacrifice to the country |
| D．show the family's close ties with the church |
| A．Freedom and equality. |
| B．Peace and war. |
| C．Human and nature. |
| D．Marriage and family. |
| A．A Brave Soldier |
| B．Window on a Life |
| C．Cruelty of the War |
| D．A Grand Church |
【推荐1】Scientists did research on about 3,500 people. They asked them to name their favorite kind of music. “We found that the musical styles people like are closely linked to their personalities,” Gosling said.
RAP/HIP-HOP
Known for their quick speech, some rappers can say more than 700 syllables (音节) a minute!
If you like rap/hip-hop, you are energetic (精力充沛的) and have away with words. You put a fresh spin on things, whether it’s new moves on the dance floor or your hip style.
CLASSICAL
In the 18th century, classical musicians were like rockstars. Beethoven and Mozart, for example, played in crowded concert halls.
If you like classical, you are open to new ideas and like debating with friends. Creative and imaginative, you can easily spend many hours writing or painting.
COUNTRY
Country music came from the folksongs of English, Scottish, and Irish settlers of the southeastern United States.
If you like country music, you express your opinions well, which makes you the ideal class president or team captain. Traditional and loyal, you enjoy spending time with your family.
POP
Pop music is designed to appeal to (吸引) almost everyone, and it does. Each year, the industry brings in about 30 billion dollars!
If you like pop, you are attractive to your friends. You can make great difference, like planning for a huge party or inspiring your team to victory.
ROCK/ALTERNATIVE
In the 1950s, rock music created a brand-new culture. Teenagers, for the first time, had an identity (身份) separate from adults and children.
If you like rock / alternative, you are a risk-taker who never accepts no for an answer. You rise to any challenge, like doing very well in a big exam or landing the lead in the school play.
If these personality profiles don’t match you, that’s OK. These are just for fun.
1. What does the underlined part “You put a fresh spin on things” mean in the passage?| A．You can express your idea in a clever way that makes it seem better than it really is. |
| B．You have the ability to attract others’ attention. |
| C．You are always willing to communicate with others. |
| D．You are willing to express your thoughts to others all the time. |
| A．you are traditional and prefer to stay with your family |
| B．you are easy to accept new ideas |
| C．you are welcome and your friends like to be with you |
| D．you have a quick speech and can say 700 words in a minute |
| A．in the 18th century, classical musicians were like pop stars |
| B．country music came from the old songs of the native Americans |
| C．pop music is liked by the largest number of people in the world |
| D．everyone can find his personality in this passage |
| A．When music came into being |
| B．What your favorite music says about you. |
| C．Some basic information about music. |
| D．How to like music. |
【推荐2】The last known eggs of the Great Bustard (鸨) were taken in 1832, and the bird was nearly extinct by the end of the 19th century, a victim of hunters. In 2004, the endangered species was reintroduced to Salisbury Plain, with the aim of establishing a self-sustaining population here.
The Great Bustard Group (GBG), the charity behind the release, was set up in 1997 and it has now been 16 years since the initial 10-year trial began. Long-term volunteers Fred and Rona Andrews have been involved from the start and, working as part of a team, have helped raise over 200 chicks from eggs sourced abroad.
“For the first week the chick needs to have food placed in its bill, so we use a feeding puppet to imitate the behavior of the parent,” explains Fred. “It is quite hard when the bustards are young because they need feeding every hour and it takes a long time to feed one.”
Great Bustards reach maturity at about five years old. “Seeing the first wild bred chick out on Salisbury Plain in 2009, shortly after it hatched, was a proud moment for me,” says Rona. On average, 12 chicks are released each year on to Salisbury Plain and in 2018 the survival rate was 100 percent.
“The aim has been to reach a population of 100 birds,” says GBG executive officer David Waters. “Now we have that number, and we are hoping the population will continue to grow by natural reproduction.”
“Being involved with the world’s heaviest bird alive today that can fly has given us both a greater knowledge of birds, conservation and farming,” states Rona. “We are contributing to an important conservation project that also benefits other species.”
1. Why did the GBG reintroduce Great Bustards to Salisbury Plain?| A．To test their chance of survival. |
| B．To increase species diversity there. |
| C．To help save the threatened species. |
| D．To help the local bustards raise chicks. |
| A．It is dangerous. | B．It is demanding. |
| C．It is interesting. | D．It is fairly costly. |
| A．They will survive on their own. |
| B．They will reach a population of 100. |
| C．They will hatch 12 chicks each year. |
| D．They will live in peace with other species. |
| A．Critical. | B．Conservative. |
| C．Supportive. | D．Indifferent. |
【推荐3】Beijing is a rather strange city to many western people. One of my foreign friends told me that when he came to Beijing, at first he couldn't understand why most people wear masks when spring comes to Beijing. He thought people wanted to keep their appearance a secret. Well, one of the symbols of spring coming to Beijing is that more and more people start wearing masks. The reason for it is the arrival of so called “sandstorms”.
It is said that each year sandstorms hit Beijing 4 to 5 times. The sand is brought to Beijing by wind from the western part of China. Tons of soil and dust travel hundreds of miles and blanket Beijing's streets, parked cars and apartment buildings. You would be amazed to see the ground has turned yellow overnight. The storm is so violent that you do not want to have a conversation with your friend on the road. If you open your mouth and then you close it, you may have the raw taste of sand in your mouth.
People in Beijing hate those storms. Sandstorms make the traffic jam in rush hours even more unpredictable, because the drivers have to drive slowly in order to have a clear view of the road conditions. Young students also hate sandstorms because whenever there is a sandstorm, they are not allowed to have any activities outside the classroom. It is so boring to sit in the classroom all day and the youngsters are so eager to go out and do some sports.
It is said that the closest desert is only 80 kilometers away from the city center.There is definitely much more to do for the local government to deal with the environmental problem.
1. Why do people in Beijing wear masks in the spring?| A．Because they are rather strange. |
| B．Because there are serious sandstorms. |
| C．Because their appearance are not beautiful. |
| D．Because they want to keep their face a secret. |
| A．Dry. | B．Cross. | C．Destroy. | D．Cover. |
| A．Drivers clean the road. | B．They hold some activities. |
| C．Youngsters go out to do sports. | D．Students stay in the classroom. |
| A．People in Sandstorms | B．How to Prevent Sandstorms |
| C．Sandstorms in Beijing | D．What to Do in a Sandstorm |
