【推荐1】Do you know anyone born in the Year of the Tiger? What’s their personality like? Are they brave, strong and sympathetic? If so, then they are a typical “tiger”. In Chinese culture, tigers symbolize power, energy, protection, generosity and unpredictability.     1     . That is why you can see in China images of tigers on the walls of temples and houses to ward off (挡住) disasters and danger.

Tigers have an important cultural significance not just in China, but across Asia. In the book Life of Pi, Canadian writer Yann Martel chose a Bengal tiger as the partner for Indian boy Pi on his survival adventure in the Pacific Ocean.     2     . It takes the tiger as its main theme when it tries to combine Eastern elements with European design.

In the West, lions are considered as the king of all beasts. Brave warriors were given the name “the lion”. But tigers are also seen as a very powerful animal.     3     , you can say to them, “easy tiger” in English. Another famous phrase is “Eye of the Tiger”, which means fierceness and strength.

    4     . If you ask my mom, she will tell you that my most precious toy while growing up was my toy tiger. I first learned about the beauty of tigers as a child, while watching animal documentaries. As a young animal lover, I felt so sad that they were an endangered species and I wanted to protect them. I hope that more people can learn about tigers.     5     .

Just like tigers serve as a symbol of protection in Chinese culture, I do hope my favorite animal will live freely in the eco-friendly environment.

A．Tigers mostly live in Asia

B．They are fearless creatures

C．If you want someone to calm down

D．One of my favorite animals is tiger

E．While you are afraid of this fierce animal

F．Another example is French fashion brand KENZO

G．I also expect to protect their habitats from further destruction

【推荐2】In traditional stick puppet shows in Shanxi, puppeteers hold up and manipulate (操控) the puppets using three rods (杆). The puppets are dressed in traditional costumes and frolic (嬉戏) on stage. They are able to change their facial expressions and perform complicated movements.

Such art can’t be created without the painstaking effort of puppet makers like Wang Maowei, 40, who is from Xiaoyi, Shanxi.

“When I chose puppet-making as a teenager, I gradually fell in love with it and decided to dedicate myself to the craft,” Wang said. In 2008, Xiaoyi’s stick puppet plays were added to the national intangible cultural heritage list.

It takes 40 to 50 days to make a stick puppet. The average height of a puppet is 75 centimeters to 1 meter, and they have different costumes to fit various plays and plots. “To make puppets, you need to have sensitivity and a basic foundation in the fine arts,” Wang said.

Traditional Xiaoyi puppet plays use the style of local operas, which are appealing to the elderly. Years ago, Wang realized that plays must cater to the market. He decided to start with the appearance of the puppets.

Stick puppets are traditionally carved from wood and are both time-consuming to make and heavy to hold. Wang found that a special kind of kraft paper is a perfect substitute (替代品). It means craftspeople can put things inside the puppets’ heads to allow them to be operated — the nose, eyes and mouth of a puppet can all move via the use of rods.

Journey to the West, a classic Chinese novel, has been frequently adapted in puppet shows. In the tale, the Monkey King can use his eyes to distinguish monsters from ordinary human beings. To recreate this power in his show, Wang makes the Monkey King puppet shoot laser beams (激光) from his eyes and spit (喷) fire from his mouth.

“It requires time and energy to create a delicate piece of work... These puppets are like my own children and I always take good care of them,” Wang said.

1. According to Wang Maowei, what specific skills are required for making stick puppets?

A．Creativity and imagination.

B．Patience and physical strength.

C．Sensitivity and a basic knowledge of fine arts.

D．Engineering and technological skills.

2. Why did Wang decide to use kraft paper for making stick puppets?

A．To reduce production time and effort.

B．To make puppets look more beautiful.

C．To reduce the costs of making puppets.

D．To make them lighter and easier to operate.

3. How does Wang make the Monkey King puppet unique?

A．By making it sing and dance.

B．By making it spit fire from its mouth.

C．By making it fly across the stage.

D．By making it shoot laser beams from its ears.

4. What does the underlined word “distinguish” in paragraph 7 most likely mean?

A．tell

B．appreciate

C．enjoy

D．prevent

【推荐3】Traditional festivals have made a comeback. Spring Festival celebrations have just ended, Qingming (Tomb Sweeping) Festival is on the way (April 5), followed by Duanwu (Dragon Boat) Festival (June 14) Later, there will be the Mid-Autumn (Moon) Festival (Sept.22) and Chongyang Festival (Senior's Festival) (Oct, 16).China currently has about 10,000 traditional festivals among is 56 ethnic groups.

Nobody really questioned whether we needed more holidays until 2004 when a pubic debate took place about the popularity of some Western festivals and the waning influence of traditional festivals. The key message was: Traditional festivals are "important and therefore they need protection".

But many people, especially the young, say they are not interested in these festivals. Instead, they are embracing Western Festivals and holidays such 25 Christmas Day, Valentine's Day Halloween, Thanksgiving Day, and even April Fool's Day.

A commonly heard reason for this thinking is: "Traditional festivals are boring, old stuff" while Western festivals are "much more interesting and exciting". Meanwhile, concerned scholars want to preserve traditional festivals that "are vital elements of our unique historical legacy, and cultural identity".

If we really want to save our traditions, we should worry about the lack of content. Take Spring Festival for example, in the past, people did a lot of interesting activities, as shown in popular costume dramas such as Dream of the Red Mansion. But today, most people just eat, let off fireworks, play mahjong or watch gala shows.

To revitalize traditional festivals, we should not blame young people for blindly following Western festivals and Western culture but should change the way we celebrate traditional festivals. For instance, for Qingmng Festival, young netizens are establishing online cemeteries to mourn their deceased family members or deceased pets.

With new forms and novel ideas, I believe traditional festivals can stay forever young and always be appealing, here and abroad.

1. What is the main idea of this passage?

A．People are not interested in our traditional festivals.

B．We should think of new ways to keep our traditional festivals alive.

C．Western festivals and holidays are becoming more and more popular in China.

D．Traditional festivals have been boring for us.

2. The underlined word “revitalize" in Paragraph 6 means        .

A．to cerebrate	B．to know more about
C．to be familiar with	D．to give new life to

3. We can infer from the passage that        .

A．China currently has about 10,000 traditional festivals among its 56 ethnic groups

B．both Chongyang Festival and Valentine's Day are Chinese traditional festivals

C．people celebrate traditional festivals in the same way as people did in the past

D．Chinese traditional festivals are less attractive to the young

4. According to the passage, what's the writer's attitude?

A．We should change the way we celebrate traditional festivals.

B．Western festivals are as important as traditional festivals.

C．It’s not necessary to protect traditional festivals.

D．People can establish online cemeteries to mourn their deceased family members or deceased pets.

5. In which section of a newspaper would you find this passage?

A．Science.

B．Heath.

C．Entertainment.

D．Economics.