Art lovers around the world are remembering Leonardo da Vinci who died in France 500 years ago, on May 2, 1519.
A British art expert announced on Thursday that Britain’s royal family has a portrait (肖像) of the famous artist, often known simply as Leonardo. Martin Clayton, a royal art adviser, said the portrait’s owner is Queen Elizabeth II. He added that the image was made by one of Leonardo’s assistants shortly before his death. Clayton said the “straight nose” and other details look very much like the only other known portrait of Leonardo done in his lifetime. That picture was the work of Italian painter Francesco Melzi. It will be on display at the Queen’s Gallery with about 200 drawings from her collection of Leonardo’s works.
On Thursday, the presidents of Italy and France gathered in the French town of Amboise to mark the anniversary of the artist’s death. He spent the final years of his life in the town. Today art lovers around the world are celebrating Leonardo’s work. He is considered a true Renaissance man, working not only as an artist, but as a scientist and inventor. “There really hasn’t been anybody then or since who has combined this extraordinary genius for these totally different areas,” said Gregory Rubinstein. He is the worldwide head of Old Master drawings at Sotheby’s auction house. “I think that’s what’s at the heart of our fascination.”
Sotheby’s announced Thursday that an important Leonardo drawing is going on display in its New York offices next month. The drawing, called “Leda and the Swan”, was painted in 1506. It is based on a story from Greek mythology (神话). It has not been shown in public since 2003. Leonardo appears to have made the painting while he was also working on “Mona Lisa”, his most well-known painting. The Mona Lisa hangs in the Louvre Museum in Paris. Rubenstein said the “very complete and very beautiful” drawing appears to have been preparatory work for a painting that was never made or was lost. “It’s a very mysterious one because there is no surviving record. and no painting survives,” he said.
1. How will the British remember Leonardo this year?| A．By exhibiting a portrait of Leonardo. | B．By holding a party at the royal family. |
| C．By showing Melzi’s work of Leonardo. | D．By displaying Queen’s collection of works. |
| A．To visit the Queen’s Gallery. | B．To remember Leonardo da Vinci. |
| C．To attend the funeral of Leonardo. | D．To celebrate the anniversary of the Renaissance. |
| A．He is a true lover of art. | B．He is a genius in everything. |
| C．He is a person with many gifts. | D．He is a man living in the Renaissance. |
| A．It is about a mysterious Italian story. | B．It is a rarely seen Leonardo drawing. |
| C．It was painted by Leonardo’s assistant. | D．It is a preparatory work for “Mona Lisa”. |
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【推荐1】WISCONSIN WINTER WELCOME EVENTS
The spring semester is here, and we’re excited to welcome both returning and new students to campus. The start of a new semester is an exciting time of the year. It’s the perfect time to step out of your comfort zone, meet new people, and create memorable new experiences.
During the first four weeks of the semester, Wisconsin Welcome offers events for students to meet new friends and find community. We've highlighted just a few of the events offered below:
MSC Comeback Carnival — Thursday, January 23
Ready to get involved in a multicultural student organization? Want to catch up with friends over some free food and fun activities? Stop by the MSC to meet with over 45 multicultural student organizations, have fun, and connect with new and old friends! -6:00 pm to 8:00 pm, MSC Lounge on the 2nd Floor of the Red Gym.
Public Service Fair — Wednesday, January 29
The Morgridge Center for Public Service hosts two Public Service Fairs per year. The fairs draw hundreds of students eager to learn about work and internship (实习) opportunities with local and national organizations. -3:00 pm to 6:00 pm, Gordon Dining &Event Center.
Winter Carnival — Tuesday, February 4 to Sunday, February 9
The Wisconsin Union's Winter Carnival is a long-standing tradition. It challenges you to embrace the cold, snow and play crazily! When you need to warm up a bit, head indoors for hot chocolate and food specials! -Memorial Union.
Spring Student Organization Fair — Tuesday, February 11
The Student Organization Fair is a great opportunity to explore your hobbies and meet different student organizations on campus. Stop by, meet new people, and maybe join a new student organization! - 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm, Kohl Center.
These are just a few of the many events you can check out during Wisconsin Welcome. Go to www.go.wisc.edu/welcome for more events and information, and use WiWelcome on social to stay connected.
We hope you have a great semester!
1. If you want to improve your foreign languages, which event are you expected to join in?| A．MSC Comeback Carnival. |
| B．Public Service Fair. |
| C．Winter Carnival. |
| D．Spring Student Organization Fair. |
| A．make friends | B．develop hobbies |
| C．find jobs | D．purchase textbooks |
| A．It has a quite short history. |
| B．It will be held in the open air. |
| C．It will take place on Monday. |
| D．It will offer free hot chocolate. |
【推荐2】What do Tom Sawyer and Jumping Frogs have in common? Stories about both of them were created by one man: Mark Twain. When Twain was 4, his family moved to Hannibal, Missouri, lying on the west bank of the Mississippi. Twain grew up there and was attracted greatly with life along the river — the steamboats, the big wooden boats, and the people who worked on them.
The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County is one of Twain’s best-loved short stories, and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is one of his most famous novels. Both these works are celebrated by events held during National Tom Sawyer Days. There’s also a fence-painting competition to see who can paint the fastest. The idea for this competition comes from a scene in Tom Sawyer, in which Tom has been told to paint the fence in front of the house he lives in. It’s a beautiful day, and he would rather be doing anything else. As his friends walk by, he persuades them to paint with him for fun, and they all join in the “fun”. By the end of the day, the fence has three coats of paint!
Although the story of Tom Sawyer is not true, it’s based on fact. If you go to Hannibal, you’ll see the white fence, which still stands at Twain’s boyhood home.
1. National Tom Sawyer Days is ______.| A．a short story | B．a great novel | C．a celebration | D．a competition |
| A．Mark Twain's suggestion | B．a story in Jumping Frog |
| C．the life of people in boats | D．a scene in Tom Sawyer |
| A．the story of Tom Sawyer is based partly on Twain’s experiences. |
| B．the story of Tom Sawyer is based totally on Twain’s imagination |
| C．Twain’s old house is painted by the fence painting competitors |
| D．Twain’s old house is visited by people from all over the country |
【推荐3】Christmas came in extravagant(奢侈的) fashion to the Muslim desert emirate(酋长国) of Abu Dhabi as a shining hotel uncovered a bejeweled(饰以珠宝的) Christmas tree valued at more than 11 million dollars on Wednesday.
It is “the most expensive Christmas tree ever” with “a value of over 11 million dollars”, said Hans Olbertz, general of Emirates Palace Hotel, at its inauguration(落成典礼).
The 13-metre (40-foot) evergreen, located in the gold hall of the hotel, is decorated with silver and gold bows, ball-shaped decorations and small white lights. But the necklaces, earrings and other jewellery hung around the tree’s branches are what give it a record value. “It holds a total of 181 diamonds, pearls, sapphires and other precious stones,” said Khalifa Khouri, owner of Style Gallery, which provided the jewellery.
“The tree itself is about 10,000 dollars,” Olbertz said. “The jewellery has a value of over 11 million dollars—I think $1,141,150.”
“This will probably be an entry into the Guinness book of world records,” Olbertz said, adding that Emirates Palace planned to contact the organization about the tree which is to stay until the end of the year.
Asked whether the tree might be against religious sensibilities in the United Arab Emirates, where the vast majority of the local population are Muslim, Olbertz said he did not think it would. “It is a liberal(自由的) country,” he said.
The hotel has had a Christmas tree up in previous years, but this year “we have to do something different”, and the hotel’s marketing team hatched the plan, said Olbertz.
1. Why is the Christmas tree said to be “the most expensive Christmas tree ever”?| A．Because the cost pf planting and decorating the tree is too high. |
| B．Because the tree itself has a value of more than 11 million dollars |
| C．Because the tree has unique religious sensibility in the United Arab Emirates. |
| D．Because the jewellery hung around the tree’s branches gives it a record value. |
| A．The tree is located in the gold leaf-bedecked hall of the king’s palace. |
| B．The tree is decorated with jewellery whose value is over 11 million dollars. |
| C．The tree has been an entry into the Guinness book of world records. |
| D．The tree is sure to be against religious sensibilities in the United Arab Emirates. |
| A．worked out | B．turned out |
| C．looked out | D．broke out |
| A．Christmas coming in extravagant fashion |
| B．The precious jewellery hung around a tree |
| C．The most expensive Christmas tree ever |
| D．the United Arab Emirates, a liberal country |
【推荐1】At a large forest park in eastern Beijing, 11 birds on the state-level protection list were recently released.
These birds had recovered after the Beijing Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center rescued and took care of them. “We will speed up our efforts to push the establishment of district-level wildlife rescue centers to jointly guard the health of wildlife,” said Du Lianhai, director of the center.
The center was set up in 2001 and built a wildlife rescue base in the capital’s Shunyi District in 2005. Staff at the base have rescued and rehabilitated over 30,000 wild animals in total.
Wildlife protection has been strengthened in Beijing in recent years. On June 1, the city’s newly adopted regulation on wildlife protection took effect, introducing stricter and more concrete measures to protect the environment and wildlife.
For example, the regulation states clearly that Beijing bans hunting throughout the year, compared with the previous regulation which bans hunting during the periods of March to May and September to November each year. The new regulation also gives severer punishment for poachers.
After years of monitoring, data with the Beijing Gardening and Greening Bureau recently showed ecological reconstruction progress. The species and quantity of wild animals in Beijing are continuously increasing, with the number of terrestrial spinal wild animals (陆地脊椎野生动物) growing from 461 species in 1994 to more than 500. The habitat of the endangered bird has expanded from Fangshan District to the whole city, according to the bureau.
“The enforcement of the new regulation marked a new phase in Beijing’s wildlife protection work,” said Dai Mingchao, deputy director of the Beijing Gardening and Greening Bureau.
“We will step up the publicity of the regulation and raise citizens’ awareness of wildlife protection,” Dai said. “In our integrated protection of mountains, rivers, forests, farmlands, lakes and grasslands, we take into full consideration the requirements of food-chain construction, ecological corridor construction, and wildlife and their habitat protection.”
1. In writing Paragraph 1, the author aims to ________.| A．introduce the topic. | B．present an argument. | C．reach a conclusion. | D．describe a place. |
| A．They have sped up their efforts to recover the birds. |
| B．They have guarded people’s health against danger. |
| C．They have saved wild animals from a dangerous situation. |
| D．They have pushed the establishment of district-level wildlife rescue centers. |
| A．Practical. | B．Temporary. | C．Effective. | D．Specific. |
| A．It is mainly targeted at poachers. |
| B．It is the first such regulation in Beijing. |
| C．It takes many years to come into being. |
| D．It prohibits people from hunting in Beijing all the year. |
| A．Beijing citizens are still not familiar with the new regulation. |
| B．After taking the new regulation, Beijing will enter a new phase. |
| C．They rarely give full consideration to the requirements of food-chain construction. |
| D．The protection of mountains, rivers, forests, farmlands, lakes and grasslands are not in the new regulation yet. |
| A．How to protect wild animals in Beijing. |
| B．Beijing steps up wildlife protection with new regulation. |
| C．More district-level wildlife rescue centers established in Beijing. |
| D．Wildlife protection has been strengthened in Beijing. |
【推荐2】“The atmosphere here at Rio de Janeiro is electric! If China wins this point, they will walk out of the stadium with an Olympic gold medal. Zhang Changning serves. Over the net, Popovic dives for the ball. She only just reaches it... and it’s sent straight back to her by the Chinese spiker Hui Ruoqi. Popovic can’t get the ball back this time... and that’s it! It’s over! It’s gold for China! Look how the crowd has gone wild. You can see the joy and pride on the faces of the Chinese fans. And there we see the Chinese players embracing, with tears of happiness in their eyes... It’s a dream come true for China! The Chinese women’s volleyball team is Olympic champion once again!”
The Chinese women’s volleyball team holds a very special place in the nation’s heart. In the 1980s, the team burst onto the international volleyball scene with several major world titles, and an amazing three-set victory over the United States in the final of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. They became national heroes overnight. There was gold once more at Athens in 2004. But winning gold in Rio paints the most vivid portrait of the team’s competitive spirit.
In Rio, the Chinese women’s volleyball team needed all of its fighting spirit after it was assigned to the “group of death”, where it faced several strong opponents in the group stage matches. Despite reaching the quarter-finals as the fourth team in the group, with just two wins in preliminary matches, they were not going to give up. Every single member of the team gave their all to the fight, including Hui Ruoqi who had had heart surgery less than five months previously.
Their perseverance paid off with an epic comeback against the defending champion Brazil in the quarter-finals. Next, the Chinese team defeated the Netherlands in the semi-final matches, having lost to them in the preliminaries. At last, showing a strong will and the steeliest nerves, they played a close match against Serbia to seize gold in the final.
But fighting spirit alone was not enough to guarantee victory. Strong team spirit also contributed greatly to their success. Cooperation between team members is essential. If each individual does her job and works well with others, then the end goal can be achieved. In fact, strong team spirit is more important than the skills of individual players. Zhu Ting, named Most Valuable Player at the Rio Olympics, also identified this as the special ingredient in the team’s success: “Teamwork is the key to China’s victory. Thanks to my teammates’ hard efforts, I had the opportunity to show my spiking skill.”
Together, the Chinese women’s volleyball team has fought their way through ups and downs. Led by well-known Chinese volleyball player and coach Lang Ping, they have continued to aim high. Lang is only too aware that as soon as a team steps off the victory podium, they need to start from zero to prepare for new challenges ahead. In this way, the team begins its journey to the next Olympics.
1. What is the function of the first paragraph?| A．To show how the audience went excited when watching the game. |
| B．To describe the scene of the Chinese women’s volleyball team winning. |
| C．To attract people to watch the volleyball game. |
| D．To introduce the main topic of the passage. |
| A．1 | B．2 | C．3 | D．4 |
| A．a strong will | B．good luck |
| C．teamwork and cooperation | D．the steeliest nerves of the players |
| A．The Chinese women’s volleyball team won gold medal with three-set victory over the United States in 2004. |
| B．The Chinese women’s volleyball team won gold medal easily in Rio Olympics. |
| C．It can be a long time before the Chinese women’s volleyball team prepare for the next Olympics. |
| D．The Chinese women’s volleyball team narrowly went into the quarter-final in Rio Olympics. |
【推荐3】Many adults rely on caffeine to get them through the day. But that’s the last thing kids need, according to the governments of England and South Korea.
England woke up to the news that the government is preparing to ban the sale of energy drinks like Red Bull to children.
The ban only applies to England, but Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can all follow suit if their administrations wish. In March, several major supermarket chains announced they would ban the sale of energy drinks to children under 16. Meanwhile, South Korea announced plans to ban the sale of coffee in schools by September 14.
The first reason for the ban is the high level of caffeine in the energy drinks, which has been linked to health problems for children, including head and stomach aches, as well as sleep problems.
A 250ml can of Red Bull contains about 80mg of caffeine, roughly the same as a similarly sized cup of coffee, but three times the level of Coca-Cola. Monster Energy, which is often sold in larger cans of 500ml, contains 160mg of caffeine.
Energy drinks often also have higher levels of sugar than soft drinks. Sugared energy drinks have 60% more calories and 65% more sugar than normal soft drinks and sugar is one of the largest causes of obesity (肥胖症).
British national official for education, Darren Northcott, described the drinks as “legal highs” that helped to fuel bad behavior in schools.
In addition to limiting kids’ access to caffeine and energy drinks, the South Korean government has also banned TV commercials for fast food, sugary snacks and high-caffeine beverages during times when most children’s programs air.
South Koreans drink an average of 181 cups of coffee a year, by far the most in Asia. That is more than the 151 consumed per person in the UK but less than the average of 266 cups in the US.
1. Which country will be the first to ban the sale of energy drinks to children under 16?| A．Scotland. | B．Japan. | C．the US. | D．England. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Negative. | C．Indifferent. | D．Optimistic. |
| A．England and South Korea Ban Caffeine for Kids |
| B．Energy Drinks Lead to Health Problems for Kids |
| C．Red Bull Says Goodbye to Kids |
| D．Caffeine in Energy Drinks Comes in |
【推荐1】Samuel Osmond is a 19-year-old law student from Cornwall, England. He never studied the piano. However, he can play very difficult musical pieces by musicians such as Chopin and Beethoven just a few minutes after he hears them. He learns a piece of music by listening to it in parts. Then he thinks about the notes in his head. Two years ago, he played his first piece Moonlight Sonata（奏鸣曲）by Beethoven. He surprised everyone around him.
Amazed that he remembered this long and difficult piece of music and played it perfectly, his teachers say Samuel is unbelievable .They say his ability is very rare, but Samuel doesn’t even realize that what he can do is special. Samuel wanted to become a lawyer as it was the wish of his parents, but music teachers told him he should study music instead. Now, he studies law and music.
Samuel can’t understand why everyone is so surprised. “I grew up with music. My mother played the piano and my father played the guitar. About two years ago, I suddenly decided to start playing the piano, without being able to read music and without having any lessons. It comes easily to me ---I hear the notes and can bear them in mind---each and every note,” says Samuel.
Recently, Samuel performed a piece during a special event at his college. The piece had more than a thousand notes. The audience was impressed by his amazing performance. He is now learning a piece that is so difficult that many professional pianists can’t play it. Samuel says confidently,” It’s all about super memory---I guess I have that gift.”
However, Samuel’s ability to remember things doesn’t stop with music. His family says that even when he was a young boy, Samuel heard someone read a story, and then he could retell the story word for word.
Samuel is still only a teenager. He doesn’t know what he wants to do in the future. For now, he is just happy to play beautiful music and continue his studies.
1. What is special about Samuel Osmond?| A．He has a gift for writing music. |
| B．He can write down the note he hears. |
| C．He is a top student at the law school. |
| D．He can play the musical piece he hears. |
| A．Samuel chose law against the wish of his parents. |
| B．Samuel planned to be a lawyer rather than a musician. |
| C．Samuel thinks of himself as a man of great musical ability. |
| D．Samuel studies law and music on the advice of his teachers. |
| A．received a good early education in music |
| B．played the guitar and the piano perfectly |
| C．could play the piano without reading music |
| D．could play the guitar better than his father |
| A．He became famous during a special event at his college. |
| B．He is proud of his ability to remember things accurately. |
| C．He plays the piano better than many professional pianists. |
| D．He impressed the audience by playing all the musical pieces. |
| A．The Qualities of a Musician |
| B．The Story of a Musical Talent |
| C．The Importance of Early Education |
| D．The Relationship between Memory and Music. |
【推荐2】As a teenager working at part-time jobs in New York City in 1939，Stan Lee never expected to become a legendary talent behind some of the world’s most memorable super-heroes．
“I never looked that far ahead，”says Lee．“In fact，I never thought I’d get into the comic book business．I applied for a job at a publishing company and I thought they published regular magazines，which they did also．But the one place they had an opening was in the comic book department，so that’s where I went．”By the time the company became known as Marvel Comics，in the 1960s，he was art director and about to revolutionize comics．
Unlike the perfect comic book superheroes of other companies，Lee made Marvel’s new characters faulty，more human．“And I tried to show that even though they had super power，everything wasn’t perfect in their lives．They still had to worry about earning a living．About their relationship with other people，about their families and their health and so forth，”Lee says．The characters that Lee and the Marvel artists created are so popular，more than two billion comic books based on their adventures have been published，in 75 countries and 25 languages．
Looking back over his 70 years in comics，Lee sees other changes，too．“When we did the comics years ago，we tried to make them so they were suitable for every age．We had a lot of action，but we didn’t really have what we’d call violence，”he says．“I tried to write them，so they were intelligent enough for an older reader，but a young kid could also understand them and enjoy them．”
Interest in stories about Marvel’s superheroes is growing，especially in Hollywood．Next year，Captain America and The Mighty Thor will bring their adventures to the big screen．following in the super-footsteps of The X-Men and Spiderman．
Lee is no longer surprised at the popularity of the characters he helped create．“Now I expect it．In fact，if people talk about some of the great characters in the world today and they don’t mention Marvel’s characters，I get very upset”
1. What do we know about Stan Lee?| A．He is not satisfied with his characters． | B．He will appear on the big screen． |
| C．He is noted for the gift for comic artwork． | D．He wrote over two billion comic books． |
| A．Stan Lee happened to enter comics industry and made it． |
| B．Stan Lee applied for a job at a publishing company but failed． |
| C．Stan Lee got into the comic book department with large goals． |
| D．Stan Lee ran Marvel Comics and reformed comics in the 1960s． |
| A．were perfect comics heroes |
| B．1ed readers to live a perfect life |
| C．satisfied the taste of readers of all ages |
| D．exposed the violence and darkness of the world |
| A．Comic Superheroes of Marvel Comics |
| B．Comic Films Created by Marvel Comics |
| C．Superheroes Comics Company in Big Screen |
| D．Father of Greatest Comic Super Heroes—Stan Lee |
【推荐3】Sakamoto Ryuichi, who died on March 28 after a long battle with cancer, once described his musical method thus: “I open my ears to the world.” But what Mr. Srakamoto heard, few others could. As a member of the Japanese techno-pop band Yellow Magic Orchestra, he helped pioneer modern electronic music. As a composer, he brought the work of directors such as Bernardo Bertolucci to life. His passing brought about mourning from the whole music world.
Mr. Sakamoto was born in Tokyo in 1952 and took to music early. He graduated from one of Tokyo’s top colleges of music, where he studied Western classical music, and explored an interest in the traditional music of Japan’s Okinawa as well as in that of India and Africa. Early in his career, Mr. Sakamoto trained his ears on the sound of technology. Yellow Magic Orchestra, a group he formed in 1978,used synthesisers(合成器)in instrumental songs intended for dancing - a novel combination at the time. “Errors or noises absorb me and I wonder if new musical currents could come from this imperfection,” Mr. Sakamoto said. That was exactly what happened: Mr. Sakamoto’s music helped inspire what would later become techno and hip-hop. Then he turned towards the sound of nature. He listened to the wind blowing, the water dropping, the rocks moving and the leaves falling, which he introduced into his music.
Unusually for a Japanese musician, Mr. Sakamoto used his fame to speak out on social and political issues, including environmental preservation and nuclear(原子核的)power. In 2011, an earthquake and tsunami rocked northeast Japan and set off a nuclear meltdown in Fukushima. In the wake of the disaster, Mr. Sakamoto travelled often to the region to support local residents.
In 2014, the cancer shook Mr. Sakamoto’s life. But even that could not weaken his longing to hear more. In the next few years, he composed the score for “The Revenant”, and produced a film about sound called “Coda”.
1. What’s paragraph 1 mainly about?| A．The style of Sakamoto Ryuichi’s music. |
| B．Sakamoto Ryuichi’s comments on music. |
| C．Sakamoto Ryuichi’s contributions to music. |
| D．The influence of Sakamoto Ryuichi’s music. |
| A．He liked nature scenery. |
| B．He got inspired from noises. |
| C．He created techno and hip-hop. |
| D．He became interested in music at college. |
| A．Intelligent and frank. | B．Talented and caring. |
| C．Generous and enthusiastic. | D．Determined and humorous. |
| A．A musician: making sounds into music |
| B．Sounds of nature: sources of music composition |
| C．Yellow Magic Orchestra: memories of generations |
| D．Sakamoto Ryuichi: speaking out for the common people |
