【推荐1】Dance is one of the most wonderful forms of human communication. In many cultures, dance has both historic and cultural significance, which is communicated through learned gestures and expressions. Here are a bit more details about three of the world’s most beautiful dances.

Kathakali

Kathakali is a storytelling dance, during which performers use a variety of gestures, and eyes and facial expressions to communicate meanings. Costumes, hair styles, makeup and face paint, and jewelry also all hold specific meanings in the performance of kathakali. There are nine facial expressions used to express emotions ranging from sadness and anger to curiosity. Through their expressions, it should be completely clear to the viewer what the performer is intending to convey.

Tango

The dance has its roots in an African slave dance called candombe, which is also a type of music. One key factor of a candombe performance is a partnered dance, which has over time developed into the modern tango. If you can keep your eyes on one part of the tango, just focus on the dancers’ legs and feet. The tango is typically performed low to the ground, with both performers’ step-work often taking place at the same time. It’s complex and communicative.

Flamenco

One of the most interesting facts about the flamenco is that it began as a song. Over time, flamenco developed to include its now-famous passionate accompanying dance. One of the key factors of flamenco is palmas. It may look like simple, rhythmic clapping, but palmas are performed at different speeds, and strengths, and it is essential that the flamenco dancer understands how to make use of his or her hands as part of the performance.

1. What is special about kathakali?

A．It is intended to convey a romantic story.

B．It involves many expressions to attract viewers.

C．It’s a dance to tell a story and express many feelings.

D．It is a dance where people can learn how to exchange feelings.

2. What should you pay attention to in a tango?

A．The dancers’ arms and hands.	B．The dancers’ legs and feet.
C．The dancers’ facial expressions.	D．The dancers’ eyes and hands.

3. In which dance does dancers’ clapping play an important role?

A．Kathakali.

B．Flamenco.

C．Tango.

D．Candombe

【推荐3】Immersion (沉浸) in music is a remarkable way to relax. Now, music lovers he a chance to please your ears. The following four festivals must bring you great surprise.

Moab Music Festival
Where: Moab, Utah
When: Aug. 29 — Sept. 9

This area is better known for mountain biking than for music. But since 1992, it has hosted a private festival that brings classical, jazz, Latin and other types of music to the land. This year there will be 16 concerts, including there “Grotto Concerts”, where guests take a 45-minute boat ride down the Colorado River to performances.

Events start at $25. moabmusicfest.org.

Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival
Where: Becket, Massachusetts
When: June 15 — Aug. 24

Each summer, this influential dance center presents a number of classes and performances by more than 50 companies from around the world. Highlights (最精彩的部分) this season include the Dance Theater of Harlem’s production of Alvin Ailey’s “The Lark Ascending”, which opens the festival.

Many events are free. Ticketed performances start at $22. jacobspillow.org.

Cheyenne Frontier Days
Where: Cheyenne, Wyoming
When: July 19 — 28

There’s something for everyone at this 117-year-old festival, from an “Indian village” and Old West museum to country concerts. But the competition is still the main attraction, with cowboys and cowgirls competing for major money in the world’s largest outdoor stage.

Competition tickets start at $18, and concert tickets at $23. cfdrodeo.com.

The Glimmerglass Festival
Where: Cooperstown, New York
When: July 6-Aug. 24

Each summer, opera lovers from around the country (and the world) travel to upstate New York to watch productions that include stars like Nathan Gunn and Ginger Costa-Jackson. This year’s performances include Wagner’s “The Flying Dutchman” and Verdi’s “King for a Day”, in honor of the 200^th birthdays of both composers (作曲家).

Tickets start at $26. glimmerglass.org.

1. Which date is suitable for you to enjoy a “Grotto Concert”?

A．June 15.

B．September 4.

C．August 24.

D．July 19.

2. You’re advised to go to ________ if you like Verdi.

A．Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival.	B．Cheyenne Frontier Days.
C．The Glimmerglass Festival.	D．Moab Music Festival.

3. Which part of a website is the text probably chosen from?

A．Art.

B．Literature.

C．Business.

D．Education.

【推荐1】If humans were truly at home under the light of the moon and stars, we would go in darkness happily, the midnight world as visible to us as it is to the vast number of nocturnal (夜间活动的) species on this planet. Instead, we are diurnal creatures, with eyes adapted to living in the sun’s light. This is a basic evolutionary fact, even though most of us don’t think of ourselves as diurnal beings. Yet it’s the only way to explain what we’ve done to the night: We’ve engineered it to receive us by filling it with light.

The benefits of this kind of engineering come with consequences—called light pollution—whose effects scientists are only now beginning to study. Light pollution is largely the result of bad lighting design, which allows artificial light to shine outward and upward into the sky. Ill-designed lighting washes out the darkness of night and completely changes the light levels—and light rhythms—to which many forms of life, including ourselves, have adapted. Wherever human light spills into the natural world, some aspect of life is affected.

In most cities the sky looks as though it has been emptied of stars, leaving behind a vacant haze (霜) that mirrors our fear of the dark. We’ve grown so used to this orange haze that the original glory of an unlit night—dark enough for the planet Venus to throw shadows on Earth-is wholly beyond our experience, beyond memory almost.

We’ve lit up the night as if it were an unoccupied country, when nothing could be further from the truth. Among mammals alone, the number of nocturnal species is astonishing. Light is a powerful biological force, and on many species it acts as a magnet (磁铁). The effect is so powerful that scientists speak of songbirds and seabirds being “captured” by searchlights on land or by the light from gas flares on marine oil platforms. Migrating at night, birds tend to collide with brightly lit tall buildings.

Frogs living near brightly lit highways suffer nocturnal light levels that are as much as a million times brighter than normal, throwing nearly every aspect of their behavior out of joint, including their nighttime breeding choruses. Humans are no less trapped by light pollution than the frogs. Like most other creatures, we do need darkness. Darkness is as essential to our biological welfare, to our internal clockwork, as light itself.

Living in a glare of our own making, we have cut ourselves off from our evolutionary and cultural heritage—the light of the stars and the rhythms of day and night. In a very real sense, light pollution causes us to lose sight of our true place in the universe, to forget the scale of our being, which is best measured against the dimensions of a deep night with the Milky Way—the edge of our galaxy—arching overhead.

1. Which of the followings has the similar meaning to the underlined word “diurnal” in Paragraph 1?

A．Everyday.	B．Routine.
C．Daytime	D．Nighttime.

2. The writer mentions birds and frogs to ________.

A．provide examples of animal protection

B．show how light pollution affects animals

C．compare the living habits of both species

D．explain why the number of certain species has declined

3. It is implied in the last paragraph that ________.

A．light pollution does harm to the eyesight of animals

B．light pollution has destroyed some of the world heritages

C．human beings cannot go to the outer space

D．human beings should reflect on their position in the universe

4. What might be the best title for the passage?

A．The Magic Light.	B．The Orange Haze.
C．The Disappearing Night.	D．The Rhythms of Nature.

【推荐3】Architectural history can take you through the evolution of those structures that served as a mark to remote civilizations, like the Egyptians and their architecture, reflected in pyramids, tombs, and many other ancient buildings along the Nile River．

In fact, the first big architectural design recorded in history was the work of Imhotep, Egyptian high priest（主教）, who designed and built the complex（综合建筑群） that took the name of his king, between the years 2630 to 2611 BC．

Ruins of the most varied architecture speak for themselves about the most varied civilizations, traditions, and beliefs around the world．Without architecture, the history of mankind would be incomplete．

Many surviving buildings of the ancient world are examples of the great things that architecture can do for the world．Among them, we can name the Great Pyramid, listed as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, and the great Wall of China, built between the years 221 to 206 BC．

As time passed, all buildings and designs began to take special characteristics, becoming symbols of different eras identified as architectural styles．In ancient Greece, where buildings seemed to always be the same, there were three types of columns to identify each period of time．

The Romans inherited from the Greeks most of their traditions, beliefs, and customs, including architecture, but they also developed their own．

Architectural history was influenced by artistic, economic, politic, and socio-cultural events throughout the centuries, and Europe became the cradle（摇篮） of many well-known architects in the years following the fall of the Roman Empire．

As time passes, the actual architecture differs in shape, materials, construction methods, and designing goals, but the work of the architects will continue for generations to come．

1. Who made the first big architectural design recorded in history?

A．Chinese

B．Indians

C．Egyptians

D．British

2. What's the function of ruins of the architecture according to the passage?

A．They give tourists chances to visit them．

B．They help to satisfy the needs of houses．

C．They can bring in a great deal of money for the local people．

D．They represent different cultivations, traditions, and beliefs there and then．

3. Why does the writer mention the Great Pyramid?

A．To show its strength	B．To tell us its importance
C．To show its special style	D．To prove the function of architecture

4. What can we learn from the passage?

A．Architectural history was only influenced by economic and politic events．

B．The Roman Empire was the cradle of famous architects earlier than Europe．

C．The actual architecture remains the same in shape, material and designing goals．

D．Europe was the cradle of famous architects earlier than the Roman Empire．

【推荐2】As the saying goes, “Without music, life would be a mistake.” Music is very important in our lives and here are four of the greatest musicians in history.

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

Born in Bonn, Germany, Beethoven never held an official position in Vienna. He supported himself by giving concerts, teaching piano, and the sale of his compositions. The last 30 years of Beethoven’s life were filled with a lot of hard times, the first of which was his deafness. Beethoven’s music greatly influenced the next generation of musicians.

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

Bach, “the father of modern music”, was born in Eisenach, Germany. His parents died when he was nine years old, and in 1695 he went to live with his brother Johann Christoph, who was an organist (风琴手) in Ohrdruf. He stayed there until 1700. Seven years later, he moved back to Weimar, where he served as court (宫廷) organist for nine years. His music greatly influenced classical music.

Frederic Chopin (1810-1849)

Chopin was born in Zelazowa Wola, Poland. He showed a talent for the piano at a very young age. Chopin began composing when he was still a child, but some of his early works have been lost. He gave his first public concert in 1818. Chopin was considered as the leading musician of his time.

Franz Schubert (1797-1828)

Schubert was born and died in Vienna. Unlike most of his predecessors (前辈), Schubert was not a great performer. He never had much money but he was very productive. He wrote his first masterpiece when he was only sixteen. However, he died young, before his talents had even been known.

1. Where was Beethoven born?

A．In Vienna.

B．In America.

C．In Germany.

D．In Poland.

2. Who is called “the father of modern music”?

A．Bach.

B．Beethoven.

C．Schubert.

D．Chopin.

3. When did Chopin give his first public concert?

A．In 1707.

B．In 1818.

C．In 1810.

D．In 1828.

【推荐3】Vincent Van Gogh（30 Mareh 1853~29 July 1890）was a Dutch Post-Impressionist artist. He is considered one of the greatest artists with great influence on 20th century art.

Van Gogh spent his early adult life working for a firm of art dealers. After a brief period as a teacher, he became a missionary（传教士）worker in a very poor mining region. He did not begin his career as an artist until 1880; however during the last ten years of his life, he produced more than 2,000 pieces, including around 900 paintings and 1,100 drawings and sketches（素描）.

He worked only with sombre（昏暗的）colours until he met Impressionism and Neo-Impressionism in Paris. Van Gogh incorporated（合并）their bright colours and style of painting into a uniquely recognizable style. Most of his best-known works were produced during his final two years, when he was suffering from serious mental illness.

In 1890, at the age of 37, Van Gogh shot himself in the chest. He died two days later, with Theo, his brother and his best friend, at his side, who reported his last words as “The sadness will last forever”. Theo, unable to come to terms with his brother’s death died 6 months later and was buried next to him. It would not take long before his fame grew higher and higher.

Vincent Van Gogh’s mother threw away quite a number of his paintings during Vincent’s life and even after his death. But she would live long enough to see her son become a world famous painter.

The only painting he sold during his lifetime, The Red Vineyard, was created in 1888. It is now on display in the Pushkin Museum in Moscow, Russia. Several paintings by Van Gogh rank among the most expensive paintings in the world.

On March 30, 1987 Van Gogh’s painting Irises was sold for a record 53.9 million at Southeby’s, New York. On May 15, 1990 his Portrait of Doctor Gachet was sold for $82.5 million at Christie’s, thus establishing a new price record.

1. What’s the right order of Van Gogh’s life experience?
a. worked as a teacher
b. took up drawing
c. worked in an art firm
d. worked as a missionary worker

A．c, a, b, d

B．c, a, d, b

C．b, c, a, d

D．b, a, c, d

2. Which words can best describe Van Gogh’s later years?

A．Sad and boring.	B．Normal and peaceful.
C．Happy but fruitless.	D．Painful but productive.

3. Why did Van Gogh kill himself?

A．Because he was a failure as an artist.

B．Because he had an unhappy family.

C．Because he lost his beloved brother.

D．Because he was suffering from mental illness.

4. What can we learn from the passage?

A．Van Gogh didn’t become famous until he died.

B．Van Gogh drew and sold many paintings in his life.

C．Van Gogh achieved great success during his lifetime.

D．Van Gogh drew most of his paintings between 1888 and 1890.