Traveling to another country is exciting and fun. But if you don’t learn about local customs, your trip may get into trouble. Here are some cultural taboos (禁忌) in several countries.
Mexico
In Mexico, bringing an expensive gift to someone’s home is a no-no. For local people, some simple things like flowers are good gifts. But you shouldn’t take along red flowers, because in Mexican culture, they are symbols of death and can be connected with witchcraft (巫术) .
The US
Americans have a custom of tipping (给小费) . You should tip nearly anyone with a service job, such as waiters, taxi drivers, hotel doormen, etc.
Pay attention when you talk with Americans. Questions like “How old are you?” may be common between friends. But as tourists in the US, it is not polite to ask people’s age.
Britain
From the supermarket to the underground station, queuing (排队) is very common in Britain. Usually, it takes a British person six months of his or her life in queues. If you jump the queue there, you may make them angry.
Japan
You should never wear shoes indoors in Japan. When visiting someone’s home, it is rude to enter with shoes on. Shoes should be taken off at the door and replaced with indoor slippers. This is also the same when you try clothes on in a clothes shop. You should take off your shoes before going into the fitting room. There are indoor shoes prepared for customers inside.
1. What does the underlined word “they” in Paragraph 2 refer to?It refers to “
2. Who should be tipped in the US?
3. How long does it usually take a British person in queues?
It usually takes a British person
4. Which word means “粗鲁的” in the last paragraph?
It’s “
5. What is the passage mainly about?
It is mainly about
相似题推荐
December 25th is Christmas Day. In many countries, it is the most important day in a year. People all come back to their homes. On Christmas Day, people sing and dance day and night. They have a good time.
Most families buy a Christmas tree for their children. And there are some presents in the tree here and there. People also put presents in children’s stockings (长筒袜）. In many places, Father Christmas brings presents to them. He is a kind man in red clothes. There is a big bag on his back. In it there are a lot of presents.
On Christmas Day, people enjoy all kinds of food. But some poor（贫穷的）people have no houses to live in and have no food to eat.
1. December 25th is2. On Christmas Day, people
3. People also put
4. There is
5. On Christmas Day, people enjoy
【推荐2】The epidemic(疫情) changes our lives in many ways—the way we study, work, or even how we greet each other and celebrate holidays. Let’s take a look at the safer greeting ways.
No more kisses
Too many kisses are not good for now. France says that people should not kiss each other on the faces. Just looking into a person’s eyes can be a greeting.
Wink(眨眼) at others
In Italy, a woman makes a video. In her video, if you want to say hello to others, you can wink at them with one eye. It’s a cute way.
Pat(拍打) on the back
It’s usual to shake hands in Australia. But if you do this now, you may get ill. An officer says a pat on the back may be better.
Tap(轻敲) feet together
There is a popular way to greet others in Iran(伊朗). In a video, two Iranian men meet and tap their feet together. They wear masks and put their hands in their pockets. It looks like they are playing a fun game.
Now people around the world stop using the usual styles and try safer ways. We shall all work together to help stop the epidemic.
根据短文内容完成句子(每空不限1词)
1. Our lives now are
2. In France,
3. In Italy, it is cute to
4. In Iran, it is
5. People all over the world
Each culture has its own taboos (禁忌). Wherever you travel, never offend (冒犯) the people who live there by ignoring their customs.
In France, you must speak French. Don’t expect to communicate by speaking English. The French take great pride in their language. 3 They don’t like speaking another language instead of French at home. Don’t rush while eating. If you eat your food quickly, French people will think you are impolite. The French also take great pride in their food, so enjoy what you eat. French lunches are known to last for three hours long!
In Russia, you should leave home without a credit (信用) card.4 You probably won’t find any places where you can use your credit card. Cash is the king. If you bring someone flowers,make sure the bouquets (花束) have an odd (奇数的) number. Even (偶数的) numbered bouquets are prepared for dead people. Besides, a bouquet of roses may scare Russians.
In India, don’t complain about the food. You can just leave the food that you dislike, but don’t offend the people who serve you food.
People usually don’t talk while eating in India, and they may get angry if someone troubles them while they’re eating.
(A) 根据短文内容简要回答问题。1. Why do the French dislike speaking other language instead of French in France?
2. What can’t you do when you are in India?
(B) 将文中划线的句子译成汉语。
3.
4.
(C) 请给短文拟一个适当的标题。
5.
Wind power is a very clean source of energy. This is how wind power works. Wind makes windmills spin (旋转). When the windmills spin, they make electricity. Then we can use the electricity.
A lot of people think that wind power is new, but that’s not true. For thousands of years, people have used wind to sail boats and move water. We still do those things today, but these days we mostly use wind power to make electricity.
Wind power is a very popular source of energy. Most people think that we should use it more and more. First of all it’s clean. Windmills don’t pollute the environment at all. Second, we can use wind power forever. After all, we will always have wind. Also, wind power is cheap, and it’s getting even cheaper.
A lot of people don’t understand wind power very well. They believe that there are problems with wind power, but many of those problems are not real. For example, some people say that windmills are dangerous for birds. That used to be true, but it isn’t true anymore. Old windmills killed birds because they spun very fast. New windmills spin slowly, and they aren’t dangerous for birds.
However, there are real problems with windmills. One problem is that many people think windmills are very ugly. This is a problem for some people because windmills are often in very pretty areas. Also, wind doesn’t blow all the time, so we can’t use wind power all the time.
Wind power is becoming more and more common. Right now, more than 80 countries use wind power. About 2. 5 percent of the world’s power comes from the wind. For some countries, that number is a lot higher. Wind power gives Denmark (丹麦) more than 25 percent of its electricity.
1—2题完成句子；3—5题简略回答问题。1. Wind power can be turned into
2. New windmills are
3. What have people used wind to do for a long time?
4. How many countries use wind power today?
5. Do you think wind power is good? Why or why not?
With the development of the television and the Internet, many people have changed their hobbies and the way they enjoy their spare time. Because of the television and the Internet, many people spend less time reading, the aim of this article is to give reasons why people should read just for pleasure. The reasons that I give you are quite simple: to improve your knowledge, to have more fun, to make your imagination fly, to find new ways to express your ideas, and to have a better understanding of life.
Firstly, you can improve your knowledge when you read. There are all kinds of good books to choose from. People who read more usually have a better idea at life than those who do not read often.
Secondly, you can have fun and increase your imagination by reading books. Children have very good imagination, so parents need to read lots of stories that feed their imagination. Adults should try to develop their imagination by reading books that make them think amazing things.
Finally, no matter how old you are, it can help you have a better understanding of life and express your ideas to others in a simple and correct way.
So I suggest that you read more. I know that many of us like to play on the Internet when we are free, but we could also not forget to read books. Try to choose good books at the beginning, and then I’m sure that you will never stop reading.
1. 完成句子：The aim of this passage is to give reasons why people should read
2. What would people who read more have according to this passage?
3. 简略回答问题：How can parents feed their children’s imagination?
4. 找出并写出第二段的主题句：
5. 将文中画线句子译成汉语：
No artist required
One day, Ammaar Reshi was playing around with a chatbot called ChatGPT, a computer program using artificial intelligence (AI) to copy the way human beings think and write. Reshi then came up with an idea to use the AI program to make a children’s book. The story of the book came from a conversation Reshi had with the chatbot, about a girl called Alice. And then he used another AI program, Midjourney, to make illustrations(插图)for the book. Midjourney is a new AI-powered tool that can turn words into amazing artwork, like pictures.
The book, Alice and Sparkle, was done in just a couple of days. “Anyone can use these AI tools,”Reshi said. “And they’re not hard to use.”
Reshi posted about the book online after it was finished. Heated argument about it started at once. Some people liked the lovely story as well as the beautiful illustrations and praised Reshi for his smartness. But not everyone welcomed the birth of the special book. Among them, artists were especially critical of it. They think the way the illustrations were made was a big problem. Midjourney searches through millions of pictures created by artists on the Internet. And then it manages to find patterns (式样) in those pictures and create new ones based on the patterns. Artists often upload their work online for people to enjoy. But Midjourney could be using their work without permission (允许).
“The main problem to me about AI is that it was taken from artists’ work,” illustrator Adriane Tsai says. “It’s our creations, our personal styles that we did not permit them to use. ”
Many artists and writers are nervous about the future. Will people pay for their work if it can be done cheaper by using AI programs?
Some companies are already choosing AI over human talent. The San Francisco Ballet used pictures made with Midjourney to improve its production of the classic The Nutcracker. At a funny performance club, an AI-powered robot told jokes that made people laugh out loud. Journalist Abraham Riesman said, “It’s deeply troubling to see people looking for cheap alternatives(替代品) to actual human writing. ”
Reshi says technology companies should protect artists and writers whose work might be used by AI tools. He suggests that they should involve artists and writers in the process of creation.
1. What is Midjourney?2. How long did it take the AI programs to create the book Alice and Sparkle?
3. What is Reshi’s advice to technology companies to protect artists and writers?
4. Do you think it is a good idea to use AI programs in the process of creation? Why or why not?(Give at least two reasons)
【推荐1】With the holidays coming up, many people will have parties. Want to make sure you are a good host (主人) or guest (客人)? Now it’s time to learn about some party manners (礼仪).
Be a host
Don’t start any activity before all your guests arrive. If the people at the party don’t know each other, make sure you introduce (介绍) everyone.
If your guests bring gifts to you, thank each gift-giver when you open his (her) present. After the party, be sure to send a hand-written thank-you card to each guest. It’s a good idea to let them know you enjoy their gifts.
Be a guest
You should arrive on time. It’s not good to come late. Bring a gift to a birthday party. It can be some flowers, a cake or some chocolate. If it’s a holiday party, ask the host if there’s anything you can bring.
Remember to say “Please” and “Thank you” to other guests! They are magic (神奇的) words. When you leave, please say “Thank you” to the host.
根据上面短文的内容完成表格，每空一词。
| Be a host | Be a guest | |
| At the party | ● Wait for all your guests to ● Be sure to introduce everyone ● Say “Thank you” to the gift-givers for the presents when you | ● Don’t be ● ● Be |
| ● Write a thank-you card to each guest. ● Tell them you enjoy | ● party when leaving. | |
You may have already forgotten the days when you had to learn how to use chopsticks. Every Chinese kid struggles with them for some time. But chopsticks are not just simple tools to pick up food. They come with their own special rules and traditions.
Generally, people should not make noise with chopsticks. Playing with chopsticks is seen as bad manners, just as playing with forks and knives in a Western country would be rude.
There are also some superstitions（迷信）related to chopsticks. For example, some people believe that chopsticks should not be left standing upright in a bowl. It looks like the incense（香）that Chinese use to honor（祭奠）the dead. Doing it at the dinner table is believed to bring bad luck.
You should not tap chopsticks on the edge of the bowl either, as beggars do this to ask for food. Parents might get angry if children do this as they don’t want their children to be as poor as beggars in the future.
Apart from（除了）being tableware（餐具）, chopsticks can also be a great gift. In Chinese, “chopsticks” are known as “kuaizi”, which means to have babies soon. Newlyweds（新婚夫妇）sometimes receive chopsticks as a wedding gift. Skilled craftsmen（手艺人）paint beautiful images on chopsticks to make them look like fine artwork.
根据短文内容，回答下列问题。
1. What might people think if you play with your chopsticks?
2. Why shouldn’t we leave chopsticks standing upright in a bowl?
3. Why shouldn’t you tap your chopsticks on the edge of your bowl?
4. What else are chopsticks used for, according to the last paragraph?
5. What is the story mainly about?
【推荐3】You probably know you should say “please” and “thank you” at restaurants. You probably know the rules of a library. You know you should respect and be nice to your classmates. But do you have music manners?
Keep It Down! You have to notice the volume of your music. You should not play your music so loud that everyone around you can hear it. Some people might even get angry. Usually, very loud music can also be harmful for your ears, so even if you are alone when listening to our MP3 player, you shouldn’t have it turned up too high.
Take Them off! You need to know when to turn your MP3 player off and put it away. Places like libraries, schools and museums don’t allow MP3 players. So you should keep your MP3 players off.
Take One Out! Once in a while, it’s okay just to take out one earphone and not the other. Imagine you are listening to your MP3 player when someone asks you the way. It would not be rude to take out one earphone, tell him the way, and put back the earphone and continue listening. You can also do this when you order food at a fast-food restaurant or when you answer the telephone and it’s not for you.
It’s Your Choice! There are times when you need to decide what is best. For example, some people can listen to music on their MP3 players when reading books while others think it makes them do things without full attention. In cases like this, you need to do what seems right for you.
Proper music manners | |
Keep It Down! | Your loud music might make some people around you get Very loud music can also be |
Take Them off! | Turn your MP3 player off and put it away because MP3 players are not |
Take One Out! | It’s okay just to take out one earphone. You can continue |
| At some times, it is your | |
