What comes to mind when you think of a museum? Perhaps you picture a building in a rather traditional design made of high-quality stone? Perhaps you imagine one of the classic concepts, such as the Museum of Natural History, the Museum of Fine Art, or the National Museum. However, in the UK, some museums are bound to be considered a little unconventional and eccentric . No matter how uncommon your interest is, there’s a museum for you!
What about Neil Cole’s Adventures in Science Fiction? This museum of classic science fiction was opened by founder Neil Cole. Visitors to this Allendale attraction in Northumberland can see items ranging from props used in the BBC series Dr Who to part of Thor’s costume from the Avengers movie. “Science fiction has become more mainstream so I thought people might want to see this,” says Mr Cole.
If clocks are more to your taste, why not visit the Cuckooland Museum? Set up by brothers Roman and Maz Piekarski, this Cheshire collection of over 600 cuckoo clocks is considered to be the largest of its kind in the world – and all from the Black Forest region in Germany.
Finally, you could visit the Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities in London. This offbeat, alternative institution bucks the trend of educating visitors through written explanations alongside its curios. Instead, it displays all of its odd treasures, which include dodo bones, shrunken heads and a collection of McDonald’s Happy Meal toys, with no explanation at all.
These are just a few examples. There are many more wonderful institutions out there that march to the beat of their own drum. All you have to do is go and find them!
1. What does the underlined word “eccentric” in paragraph 1 mean?| A．Wonderful. | B．Unusual . | C．Creative. | D．Popular. |
| A．the Museum of Natural History. |
| B．Adventures in Science Fiction. |
| C．The Cuckooland Museum. |
| D．The Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities. |
| A．To introduce the variety of museums. |
| B．To compare different museums. |
| C．To recommend some unconventional museums. |
| D．To explain the function of museums. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】One-Day Shanghai Mini-Group Tour
A mini group consists of I to 6 persons, with lowest group price and attentive service. Provide free bottled drinking water with unlimited supplies.
Detailed Schedule
| 8:00—9:00 | Hotel Pick-up |
| 9:00—12:00 | Explore Shanghai’s traditional residences and lifestyle in Zhujiajiao Water Town where you can see ancient canals, distinctive bridges and gardens. |
| 12:00—13:00 | Today’s lunch will be at your own expense. |
| 13:00—16:00 | Visit Yu Garden to enjoy the landscape of the classical southern Chinese gardens. Go for a walk in the old street to get in close touch with the local people’s life. |
| 16:00—17:00 | Take in the impressive skylines of Shanghai as you walk along the Bund, the city’s most important modern landmark site. You can see many well-known buildings like the Oriental Pearl Tower and the highest Shanghai Tower. |
| 17:00—18:00 | Hotel Drop-off |
Tour Price(US $ Per Person)
Adult(＞11 years old)$119
Child(3-11 years old)＄109
Price Includes
●Pick-up & drop-off from the hotel.
●Entrance fees
●Professional English-speaking guide
●Experienced driver & air-conditioned vehicle
●Unlimited bottles of drinking water
Price Excludes
●Meals, advice freely available
●Tips for guide and driver
Booking Policy
●Payment：Full payment is required at least two days before the day trip. We accept payment by Credit Card, Alipay, WeChat and Bank Transfer.
●Cancellation：Your payment is fully refundable (可退款的) if you cancel more than 24 hours before the trip. Cancellation within 24 hours or any unused portion after the day trip begins is non-refundable.
●Guests under the age of 80 can participate.
1. What is free in the trip?| A．Lunch | B．Bottled water. |
| C．Accommodations. | D．Downtown parking. |
| A．Visiting a famous garden. | B．Walking along the Bund. |
| C．Wandering on a bridge. | D．Standing on Shanghai Tower. |
| A．It is a guided trip. | B．Anyone can take part. |
| C．It is refund able at any time. | D．It departs every day. |
【推荐2】These children’s museums in New York City are among the best family attractions and offer energy-burning excitement with a little education.
DiMenna Children’s History Museum
Contact: nyhistory.org/ children’s-museum
At the hands-on displays through 350 years of US history, children are encouraged to climb around and interact with exhibits that highlight the lives of kids who grew up to become famous doctors, athletes and political figures. Other family programs include cooking classes, games and story hours.
New York Hall of Science
Contact: nysci.org
Here, hundreds of interactive exhibits and activities bring science，technology，engineering and math to life. Built for the 1964 World’s Fair, it has displays about light, 3-D printing， outer space and robots, plus the Design Lab. Check out “Connected Worlds”, where visitors’ movements influence a digitally-animated (动画的) environment. Kids can also climb on a rope web and play minigolf.
Museum of Mathematics (MoMath)
Contact: momath.org
Rather than being a place to learn math, it’s a place to realize all the remarkable things math can be used to create. In the design studios participants create a 3-D design on a screen, for a chance to have it “printed” into an actual sculpture via a 3-D printer; and at Enigma Cafe, families can sit down at tables to work on digital puzzles.
Sugar Hill Children’s Museum of Art and Storytelling
Contact: www.sugarhillmuseum.org
It celebrates imagination through art，storytelling and education. Kids can explore different exhibits like a collection of art from the 1930s to 1980s from a group of artists who described everyday life in US. The museum hosts a variety of events for kids from story hours to art workshops.
1. Which address can one contact about American history?| A．nysci.org. | B．momath.org. |
| C．www.sugarhillmuseum.org. | D．nyhistory.org/children’s-museum. |
| A．Join an art workshop to do 3-D printing. |
| B．Work on a digital puzzle with other people. |
| C．See his move in a digitally-animated world. |
| D．Interact with famous doctors and athletes. |
| A．At New York Hall of Science. |
| B．At Museum of Mathematics. |
| C．At Sugar Hill Children’s Museum. |
| D．At DiMenna Children’s History Museum. |
【推荐3】Have you imagined spending a night in a museum? Fortunately, your dream may come true.
Spy Museum| Washington, DC
The Spy Museum is about the unseen jobs and displays spy objects in the world! “Operation Secret Sleepover” invites a group of juniors and parents for a night of detective(侦探) training, like inventing a fake name, gathering intelligence(情报), studying questioning techniques, and more. The next mission starts on Friday, September 9.
Ages: 9 to 13
Cost: $ 115 for general admission/$ 105 for members
Baseball Hall of Fame | Cooperstown, New York
Fans of America’s hobbies will take the chance to stay a few extra nights here. Travel along the hallowed galleries; enjoy a screening in the Grandstand Theater; show your respect to honoring legendary players. Dates sell out quickly. To secure your spot, call (607)547-0329.
Ages: 7 to 12
Cost: $ 50 for general admission
Milwaukee Public Museum| Milwaukee, Wisconsin
The overnight at Milwaukee Public Museum is intended for the 21+ crowd. Tickets include dinner, two drinks, snacks, special tours, films in the six-story theater, entry to the new traveling exhibit “Maya: Hidden Worlds Revealed”, and continental breakfast. The next event is October 20. Registration closes two weeks prior(提前).
Ages: 21+
Cost: $ 125 for general admission
Baltimore National Aquarium | Baltimore, Maryland
Ocean and shark lovers will be glad to spend nights at BNA. Dive into the attractive underwater world and discover the importance of these incredible creatures. Join experts for a behind-the-scenes tour, interact with marine life, and watch a 4D film.
Ages: 8+
Cost: $ 120 for general admission/$ 100 for members
1. What can kids do at Operation Secret Sleepover?| A．Try detective activities. | B．Study hunting techniques. |
| C．Improve their intelligence. | D．Change their identity cards. |
| A．The ticket includes all the activities. |
| B．Children will have a good time here. |
| C．Registration closes three weeks prior. |
| D．Only adults are admitted into the museum. |
| A．$ 380. | B．$ 400. | C．$ 420. | D．$ 440. |
【推荐1】Daban town is famous for girls and windmills, while Loulan is a myth (神话) in the desert. Two thousand years ago, beside the beautiful Luobu Lake, there lay Loulan ancient city of the Silk Road. Businessmen from every country gathered here and there were lots of dancing parties. Everything shows that people in Loulan lived a rich life then.
However, two thousand years later, this rich land suddenly disappeared from the map of China. It became an area covered with sand and dead tree trunks.
Loulan was first “discovered” by a Swedish man named Sven Hedin in 1900, and people from America, Britain, Japan and Sweden all set foot here. Then in the 1930s, a Chinese named Huang Wenbi came to Loulan for the first time. He visited and studied this area and found many relics that were beautifully and carefully made. It is recorded that the ancient city of Loulan was the capital of the Loulan Kingdom during the Han and Jin Dynasties, and covered an area of some 10,000 square kilometres. Inside the city, there are the ruins of government offices, temples and other old buildings. Outside the city there are some driedup rivers and much farmland. In the past century many things have been dug up there including Han Dynasty coins, mirrors and many others of Greek and Roman times. All these things show that a lot of business between the East and the West once took place there.
Lying on the northwest of the Lop Nur area, the Loulan Kingdom is now a lifeless area with endless “forests” of mounds (小丘) which aren't easily seen in other parts of the world. Its mystery has been attracting many people from many countries.
1. The first person setting foot in Loulan in the 20th century was ________.| A．a European | B．an American |
| C．a Chinese | D．a Japanese |
| A．there was no government in that area |
| B．people from America and Japan had been there |
| C．a lifeless area with lots of mounds could be easily seen there |
| D．much business between the East and the West had taken place there |
| A．Loulan was destroyed by the terrible weather there. |
| B．Wars between the countries made Loulan disappear. |
| C．Too many people gathered in Loulan and destroyed it. |
| D．How Loulan ancient city disappeared is still unknown to us. |
| A．Its pretty girls. |
| B．Its developing business. |
| C．Its mystery. |
| D．Its beautiful scenery. |
【推荐2】The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms, which reflect the Chinese people’s understanding of time. Here several special solar terms are listed.
Rain Water
Rain Water signals the increase in rainfall and rise in temperature. With its arrival, the river water defreezes, wild geese move from south to north, and trees and grass turn green again. Extra care is needed to cope with a returning cold spell in this period. The wet and damp weather during Rain Water period is considered harmful for people’s spleen (脾) and stomach according to Chinese medical practice. Therefore, a bowl of nutritious porridge is the best choice to nourish the body.
Awakening of Insects
As the third solar term in the lunar year, its name implies that animals sleeping in winter are awakened by spring thunder and that the earth begins to come back to life. It is the key time for spring agricultural activities. Modern meteorological science shows that around this period, the earth becomes wet, the hot humid air from the north is strong and creates frequent winds. For this reason, thunder often occurs.
Spring Equinox
Spring Equinox signals the equal length of the day and night time. On the day of the Spring Equinox, the sun is directly above the equator. After the equinox, the sun moves northwards, resulting in gradually longer day time in the Northern Hemisphere. Standing an egg upright is a popular game during this period. It is believed that if someone can make the egg stand, he will have good luck in the future.
Grain Rain
Grain Rain originates from the old saying, “Rain brings up the growth of hundreds of grains", which shows that this period of rainfall is extremely important for the growth of crops and people are busy working on the land. Grain Rain falls between the end of' spring and the beginning of summer, with infrequent cold air moving to the south and lingering cold air in the north. With dry soil, an unsteady atmosphere and heavy winds and sandstorms become more frequent.
1. What can we know about Rain Water?| A．River water starts to freeze. |
| B．Taking off the thick coats is advisable. |
| C．Lively spring-like scenery can be seen. |
| D．It falls between the end of spring and the start of summer. |
| A．Farming season. | B．Animal activities. |
| C．Air temperature. | D．Frequent thundering. |
| A．Rain Water. | B．Grain Rain. |
| C．Spring Equinox. | D．Awakening of Insects. |
【推荐3】New research from the University of Portsmouth has shown a marked increase in shipping in the North East Atlantic. Scientists now warn that more monitoring is required to help protect sea life.
Researchers at the University of Ponsmouth have discovered that rates (率) of shipping in the North East Atlantic area rose by 34 per cent in a five-year period. The research is the first detailed survey of shipping activity in the North East Atlantic. Researchers used data from over 530 million vessel (船) positions recorded by Automatic Identification System(AIS). They looked at the change in shipping between 2013 and 2017 across ten different vessel types. In total the study area covered 1.1 million km², including waters off Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany,Iceland, Ireland, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal. Spain, and the UK.
Lead author, James Robbins said: “This change is likely to put more pressure on the marine (海洋的) environment, and may influence the protection of at-risk species. Renewed monitoring effort is needed to make sure that protective measures are enough to save species under threat in a changing environment.”
Some of the greatest shipping increases were found in areas close to the Spanish coast. The Espacio Marino de la Costa da Morte saw a rise of 413 percent in vessel activity. It is an area used to protect seabirds.
Dr. Sarah Marley, Visiting Researcher at the University of Portsmouth, said: “Shipping is the most widespread human activity in our oceans, carrying a set of threats-from unnoticeable effects like underwater noise pollution to serious results when ships hit whales.”
Professor Alex Ford. from the University’s Institute of Marine Sciences, said: “Given the well-documented effects that shipping can have on the marine environment, it is necessary that this situation continues to be monitored-particularly in areas used to protect vulnerable (脆弱的) species which may already be under pressure.”
1. What can we say about the new research?| A．It started in 2013. | B．It is the first of its kind. |
| C．It was carried out by AIS. | D．It covers the whole Atlantic. |
| A．Rapid population growth. |
| B．Rising global temperatures. |
| C．The huge increase in shipping. |
| D．The disappearance of marine life. |
| A．Shipping plays an important role in the local economy. |
| B．Shipping can be a danger to the marine environment. |
| C．Noise pollution is closely related to human activity. |
| D．Marine areas should be monitored more carefully. |
| A．New waterways across the Atlantic |
| B．The shipping industry in the North East Atlantic |
| C．New research opens windows into life under the water |
| D．Sea life needs better protection from an increase in shipping |
