【推荐1】Nowadays, we can know time very easily. Even a little child may know the time. We always ask "What time is it?".

Then people can tell us the exact time. But before the invention of clocks, knowing the time was very difficult. One way that people told the time was by using sundials, but it was impossible to tell the time on cloudy days or at night.

The first mechanical(机械的) clock was invented in China by Su Sung in 1088. The first clock in Europe was invented at the end of the 13th century.

The first watch was invented in Italy in 1462. Early watches were different from today's in two main ways. First, they only had an hour hand. Second, you could not wear them on your wrist(手腕). You had to keep them in your pocket. That s why they were called "pocket clocks".

The first wrist watch came from Switzerland 328 years later after the first pocket clock came out. But nobody bought them. They did not become popular for a hundred years.

Digital clocks and watches came from the United States and they are the most popular inventions in timekeeping. Shops all over the world started to sell them in 1971.

1. The underlined word "sundials" in the first paragraph may mean "         " in Chinese.

A．太阳

B．日晷

C．手表

2. The first mechanical clock was invented in          .

A．China

B．England

C．Germany

3. The first watch was invented            years later than the first mechanical clock.

A．1,462

B．374

C．328

4. According to the passage, the first wrist watch          .

A．was invented in Italy in 1462

B．was very popular among people when it came out

C．came from Switzerland

5. This passage may be taken from a          .

A．novel

B．comic book

C．magazine

【推荐2】

	Driverless minibus Walk inside Shougang Industrial Park, you can see different kinds of driverless cars. When you feel tired, you can get in a driverless minibus. When you feel hungry, you can buy food from a driverless car store.
	Inspection(巡查)robot The robot can recognize people within five meters. It will automatically(自动的) walk over to a person who is not wearing a mask and advise him or her to wear one. Also, the robot has a contactless hand disinfection(杀菌) device on its head.
	Smart Band-Aid People can wear this thermometer(体温计) on their arms. It looks like a bandage(绷带). Users can check their body temperature through an app on their smart phones. If someone gets a fever, the thermometer will report it.
	Disinfection robot In Wukesong Sports Center, there is a robot named Xiaobai. While working, the robot sprays(喷) a fog of disinfectant(消毒剂) through its head fan. One robot can cover 1,000 square meters and work for four to five hours on a single battery charge.

1. ________ can advise people to wear their masks.

A．Driverless minibus

B．Inspection robot

C．Smart Band-Aid

D．Disinfection robot

2. How can people check their body temperature?

A．Through an app on the phones.	B．By getting in a driverless minibus.
C．Through a battery in the robot.	D．By wearing a bandage on their arms.

3. We can read the passage from ________.

A．a science magazine

B．a novel

C．a story

D．a tour guide

【推荐1】A Chinese man brought his favorite dishes reganmian (热干面) and hot pot to Rovaniemi, Finland. He became the first Chinese to open a restaurant in the Arctic Circle (北极圈).

Hu Liang, from Central Chinas Hubei Province, moved to Finland after graduation at 21. For the last twelve years, he has seen more and more Chinese tourists visiting the country to enjoy the winter holidays.

“Chinese people are becoming richer and more international. What has not changed is their stomachs. So I made the decision to open the restaurant,” said Hu.

Hu’s restaurant serves reganmian, a traditional Wuhan noodle, as well as Chinese hot pot. He orders ingredients (原料) from China online and offers e-payment which is popular among Chinese people such as Alipay.

At a price of $18.45, a bowl of reganmian is not only great comfort for Chinese tourists who have traveled from thousands of miles away, but it also appeals to local Finns.

In Rovaniemi, with a population of around 60,000, Hu receives more than 300 guests in the peak season (最繁忙的季节) to offer people a “hot” experience in the cold, snowy land.

Married to a Finnish woman and father to one child, Hu has got used to the local lifestyle with lots of skiing (滑雪) and ice fishing trips.

He said he would bring his child to Wuhan, and try to switch (转换) between the two cities every half year.

1. Hu Liang moved to Finland ________.

A．with his family	B．to open a restaurant.
C．12 years ago	D．to get a better education

2. Hu Liang’s restaurant ________.

A．makes use of local ingredients	B．receives thousands of guests in the peak season
C．serves both Chinese and Finnish dishes	D．offers customers e-payment

3. What does the underline phrase “appeals to” mean in Chinese?

A．改变

B．吸引

C．帮助

D．影响

4. Which of the following is TRUE about Hu Liang?

A．he built a family in Finland.	B．He will move back to Wuhan.
C．He thinks it is too cold in Finland.	D．He offers his guests ice fishing trips.

【推荐2】Peter was driving his car to meet a friend in another city. When he was about halfway there, he got into an accident and his car went into a ditch（沟）. He was still far from the city. Peter tried his best to pull the car out of the ditch, but failed. He felt helpless and didn’t know what to do. Luckily, a farmer happened to ride by on a big strong horse. He called the horse Buddy.

The farmer took Buddy up to the car and called out, “Pull, Nellie, pull!” Buddy didn’t move.

Then the farmer shouted again, “Pull, Buster, pull!” Buddy didn’t move.

Once more, the farmer cried out, “Pull, Coco, pull!” But the horse wouldn’t move.

Then the farmer casually said, “Pull, Buddy, pull!” After hearing his name, the horse gave the car a pull and easily dragged it out of the ditch.

Peter was thankful and very curious. He asked the farmer why he called his horse by the wrong name three times.

The farmer said, “Oh, Buddy is blind. If he thought he was the only one pulling, he wouldn’t even try!”

1. What happened to Peter?

A．His car was stolen.	B．His car broke down.
C．His car fell into a ditch.	D．His car hit a strong horse.

2. Where did Peter meet the farmer?

A．On his way out.	B．In his farm.
C．Near a field.	D．Next to a factory.

3. What do you think of Buddy?

A．Big and shy.	B．Small and gentle.
C．Fierce and strong.	D．Blind and lazy.

4. How many horses helped Peter?

A．One.

B．Two.

C．Three.

D．Four.

5. Why did the farmer call his horse by the wrong name three times?

A．He saw three horses that can help in his farm.

B．He had to fool Buddy who was unwilling to work.

C．He tried to ask other three horses nearby to help him.

D．He had a bad memory in remembering horses’ names.

【推荐3】

On October 30, 2018, the Chinese-speaking world lost a literary giant-Louis Cha Leung-yung who died at the age of 94 after a long illness. It recorded 1.27 billion views on Sina Weibo.

Cha was widely known by his pen name, Jin Yong. He was regarded as one of the greatest Wuxia novelists with over 300 million copies in book sales. Born in Haining in 1924, Cha had planned to become a diplomat. But he began working as a journalist in 1947 to support his studies. He moved to Hong Kong and then founded the local Chinese-language newspaper Ming Pao(《明报》) in 1959 and served as its editor-in-chief until retiring in1989.

In 1955, Cha published his first wuxia novel,The Book and the Sword in the New Evening Past using the pen name Jin Yong. The novel turned out to be a great success. Cha went on to write another 14 hugely popular wuxia novels, ending with The Deer and the Cauldron in 1972. His novels have been made into films, TV and radio series, and deeply influence the cultural development of Chinese-speaking communities around the world.

Among the first to react to Cha’s death was billionaire Jack Ma, a lifelong lover of wuxia. " It’s a huge loss for Chinese people around the world.   And it's especially sad for us as Cha’s wuxia spirit has become a core value of Alibaba, "Ma said. Many of his employees gave themselves nicknames drawn from characters in Cha’s novels. Many stars at home and abroad, including Andy Lau, Jordan Chan and Indian actor Aamir Khan also shared their grief at the news of Cha’s death.

Jin is gone, but he will always be in our hearts. After all, who would want to put down his novels?

1. How many wuxia novels did Jin Yong write totally in his life?

A．13

B．14

C．15

D．16

2. What did Jin Yong do before he became a writer?

A．Diplomat.

B．Journalist.

C．Editor-in-chief.

D．Film maker

3. What is the right order of the events about Jin Yong?
a. He worked as a journalist.
b. He retired from Ming Pao.
c. He published The Deer and the Cauldron.
d. He moved to Hong Kong.
e. The Book and the Sword became a great success

A．e-a-b-c-d

B．e-b-a-c-d

C．c-b-a-d-e

D．a-e-d-c-b

4. What can we know from the last two paragraphs?

A．Jack Ma likes Wuxia because his employees like it.

B．Alibaba values Jin Yong’s Wuxia spirit very much.

C．Only Chinese stars shared their sadness of Cha's death.

D．People will not read Jin yong's novels any more.

5. What's the best title for the passage?

A．China’s most famous wuxia writer.	B．The death of a Chinese literary giant.
C．The influence of Jin's wuxia spirit.	D．Peoples attitude towards Jin’s death.