Chopsticks are a pair of sticks to be used when eating. They were first used in China. Chopsticks have been made from many materials (材料). Bamboo is the most popular. There is lots of it in Asia and it is easy to break and heat. Other materials included wood and bone (骨头). Chopsticks made of silver were common among the rich. The kings used such chopsticks, as it was believed that they would turn black if the food could make people die at once.
In fact, before the invention of chopsticks, Chinese used hands to eat, but how did they eat soup? They had to use sticks. Chinese people started to use chopsticks during the Shang Dynasty (朝). During the pre-Qin period, chopsticks were called “Jia”, and in the Qin and Han dynasties, they were called “Zhu”. By the Ming Dynasty, people began to call them “Kuai”. So we call Chinese chopsticks “Kuai Zi” today.
We are not sure who invented chopsticks, but there are many folk stories about them. One is that Jiang Ziya was pushed to create chopsticks by a special bird that didn’t want him to have the meat. Another one is that Daji, the favorite woman of the King Zhou of Shang, invented chopsticks in order to make the king happy. It is also said that Dayu used sticks to pick up hot food in order to save time to control floods (洪水), so chopsticks formed.
根据短文内容选择最佳答案。1. How many materials are mentioned in the passage?
| A．Two. | B．Three. | C．Four. |
| A．Jia→Zhu→Kuai→Kuai Zi |
| B．Pre-Qin→Ming→ Shang→Today |
| C．Jiang Ziya→Daji→Dayu |
| A．modern | B．traditional | C．international |
| A．To have birds. | B．To make others happy. | C．To save food. |
| A．The Inventors of Chopsticks. |
| B．The Purposes of Chopsticks. |
| C．The Introduction of Chopsticks. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】When people eat, Western people are used to using knives and forks, but Chinese people are used to using chopsticks. More than 3000 years ago, Chinese people ate with chopsticks. Who invented the chopsticks?
Long ago, Chinese people used to eat with their hands. In Shang Dynasty, the last king, Zhou was cruel (残酷的). He always killed people because the food was too hot or too cold. It made people afraid to serve him. His favorite Daji was also afraid.
One day Daji served King Zhou his meal. When she tried the dish for the king, she found that it was too hot. Daji felt very nervous because the king would be angry. Suddenly she had an idea and she used two pieces of her long hairpins (发簪) to put the food to the king’s mouth.
The King Zhou found it so interesting to eat with two long sticks that he forgot how hot the food was. After that, Daji thought it was a good way to solve this problem and asked people to make two long-thin gold sticks. People found it better to eat with sticks than with their hands. But they were too poor to afford the gold sticks. Then they found bamboo was good material to make chopsticks. Since then, people have invented chopsticks.
根据材料内容选择最佳答案。1. When did Chinese people start eating with chopsticks?
| A．Over 3000 years ago. | B．2000 years ago. |
| C．1000 years ago. | D．800 years ago. |
| A．Because King Zhou always beat them. |
| B．Because he was a mad man. |
| C．King Zhou always killed people because the food was too hot or too cold. |
| D．Because Daji asked him to kill them. |
| A．King Zhou was cruel. |
| B．Daji was excited to find the food was hot. |
| C．King Zhou was interested in sticks. |
| D．King Zhou ate with bamboo chopsticks. |
| A．Crazy. | B．Careless. | C．Smart. | D．Impolite. |
| A．Daji’s Hairpins | B．Two Gold Sticks |
| C．The Function of Chopsticks | D．The Invention of Chopsticks |
【推荐2】In the ancient Chinese culture, people believed health came from a balance between the yin and yang life forces. This balance was called qi. When people became sick, they must have an imbalance in the forces. Qi flowed through pathways in the body, which were accessible by certain points. Trained men and women would treat illnesses by inserting very thin needles into various points in a patient’s body. These needles were supposed to re-balance the patient’s energy flow and heal an illness. This treatment was known as acupuncture.
Acupuncture is still used today, and many people have found relief from it. It is mainly used to treat pain, especially from headaches, backaches, muscle aches, and arthritis. Some practitioners use it to help with discomfort that comes from major illnesses such as cancer.
There may be between 360 and 2,000 acupuncture points on the human body. An acupuncturist must know which points are associated with different areas of the body. After discussing a patient’s issues, the acupuncturist will skillfully insert thin needles into different points to reduce the patient’s pain. There is a slight sting (针刺) when the needles go in but beyond that, acupuncture is really painless. The needles stay in for between 5 and 30 minutes.
Research has not proven how or even if acupuncture really works. Acupuncture needles may release hormones (荷尔蒙) that give good feelings. When the patient is feeling happier and more relaxed, the pain goes away. Another idea is that the needles help increase blood flow which stimulates (促进) the body’s natural pain killers. Some people believe that the benefits are all in the patients’ minds; they think it will work, so they feel relief.
根据材料内容选择最佳答案。
1. According to the first paragraph, ancient Chinese believed ________.
| A．health came from a balance between the yin and yang life forces |
| B．people became sick because of an imbalance in the forces |
| C．acupuncture could re-balance the patient’s energy flow and heal an illness |
| D．All the above. |
| A．medicine | B．very thin needles | C．yin and yang | D．pain killers |
| A．a sharp end | B．a particular spot | C．an important thing | D．a purpose or goal |
| A．acupuncture effectively treats cancer |
| B．all acupuncture patients believe in yin and yang |
| C．some people do not think that acupuncture actually works |
| D．acupuncture works because it makes patients feel happy |
| A．Some people use acupuncture to relieve pain. |
| B．Ancient Chinese used acupuncture to heal sickness. |
| C．Research shows that acupuncture does not work and should not be used. |
| D．Acupuncture helps some people with pain, even though there is little scientific proof. |
【推荐3】Ancient and Modern Chinese
①In the Beginning
When people write in English, they use letters. People who write in Chinese, however, use characters that stand for words or ideas. Historians believe Chinese writing began as early as 1500 BC. The earliest forms were called “oracle bones” These were animal bones marked with pictures and symbols. Besides writing on bones, the Chinese people also made marks on turtle shells(龟壳). By 1400 BC, the Chinese writing system had become more difficult. It had more than 2,500 characters. Around 200 BC, Chinese characters became standardized. This means that everyone used the same characters.
②Then and Now
Many modern Chinese characters are similar to those from 2,000 years ago. For example, the character that means “man” in the Lishu system from 200 BC is similar to the character that means “man” from the Jiantizi, or modern simplified system, of the twentieth century.
③A Simpler System
People have made efforts to change Chinese characters over the centuries. The most important changes happened in the twentieth century. The Chinese government made many characters easier so that more people could learn to read. This simpler system is used on the Chinese mainland and in Singapore. Traditional characters are used in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan of China. Even with these changes, Chinese writing from 2,200 years ago is still understood today.
1. What do the three headings(小标题) tell?| A．The topic of each part. | B．How Chinese characters changed. |
| C．A list of important Chinese characters. | D．Important events in the development of the Chinese language. |
| A．Symbols. | B．Letters. | C．Oracle bones. | D．Standardized characters. |
| A．Animal bones were used for writing. | B．There were once more than 2,500 characters. |
| C．The ancient Chinese wrote symbols and characters on bones and turtle shells. | D．Many of the characters from 2,200 years ago can still be read today. |
| A．Chinese writing uses an alphabet. | B．Few people in ancient China could write. |
| C．Modern Chinese characters are nothing like those used in ancient China. | D．Modern Chinese characters were developed from symbols used in ancient China. |
| A．Provinces in China | B．The Language of Singapore |
| C．Twentieth-century Changes | D．A Language for Everyone |
【推荐1】Scientists have learned a lot about the kinds of food people need. They say that there are several kinds of food that people should eat every day. They are: green and yellow vegetables of all kinds；citrus(柑橘) fruit and tomatoes；potatoes and other fruit and vegetables；meat of all kinds, fish and eggs；food made from milk；bread or cereal(谷类), rice is also in this kind of food；butter or something like butter.
People in different countries and different places of the world eat different kinds of things. Food is cooked and eaten in many different kinds of ways. People in different countries eat at different times of a day. In some places people eat once or twice a day; in other countries people eat three or four times a day. Scientists say that none of the differences is really important. It doesn’t matter whether food is eaten raw (生的）or cooked, canned (罐装的）or frozen. It doesn’t matter if a person eats dinner at four o’clock in the afternoon or at eleven o'clock at night. The important thing is what you eat every day.
There is a large number of people on the earth. There are two problems in feeding them. The first is to find some ways to make enough food so that no one is hungry. The second is to make sure that people everywhere have the right kinds of food so they can grow to be strong and healthy.
1. According to the scientists, which of the following groups of food is the healthiest for your lunch?| A．Oranges, bananas, fish and tomatoes. | B．Chicken, apples, cereal and cabbage. |
| C．Beef, pork, fish and milk. | D．Potatoes, carrots, rice and bread. |
| A．different kinds of food every day | B．dinner at eleven o'clock |
| C．cooked food all the time | D．three times a day |
| A．have the right kinds of food to eat | B．cook their food in the same way |
| C．eat food in different ways | D．have their meals at the same time |
| A．People in some places don't have enough food to eat. |
| B．There are too many people in the world. |
| C．The scientists are trying to make people grow to be strong and healthy. |
| D．One of the problems is that no one is hungry. |
| A．When people eat their lunch. | B．How to cook food in different ways. |
| C．What to do with the two problems. | D．Why people cat different kinds of food. |
When things around the house stop working, what do you usually do with them? If you’re like a lot of people, you probably just throw them away.
This trend (趋势) has caused the throwaway culture. There are many reasons for it. In some areas, it’s difficult to find people who can make repairs, and fixing things can be quite expensive. Also, some small appliances (电器) are so cheap that it’s often easier to just buy a new one.
In 2009, Martine Postma from the Netherlands came up with a better way: Repair Cafes, where people can get broken items (物品) repaired. There they will find tools and volunteer experts who are ready to help with repairs for free. Postma’s first Repair Cafe opened on Oct. 18, 2009 in Amsterdam. It was a huge success.
Today, there are about 2, 000 Repair Cafes around the world. They not only provide help with repairs, but also improve community relationship. Neighbors get to know one another as they work together on projects. Besides, valuable knowledge is preserved and passed along. Items are also kept and reused rather than thrown away, meaning less litter. If a broken item weighs a kilo, it’s been predicted that 2, 000 Repair Cafes prevent 35, 000 kilos of litter every month. That adds up to about 420, 000 kilos per year!
Ginko Lee is the organizer for a repair group in Pasadena, California. In an interview, she told how exciting it was watching people who really wanted to help one another. She often hears visitors say, “This is the kind of world I want to live in!” Ms. Lee describes the mission of Repair Cafes best in the following words, “Everyone is a giver and a receiver.”
1. What is NOT a cause of the throwaway culture?| A．The cost of fixing things can be high. |
| B．People can afford to buy expensive items. |
| C．It’s difficult to find people who can make repairs. |
| A．更新 | B．保存 | C．测试 |
| A．Because people open their own Repair Cafes. |
| B．Because volunteer experts help with repairs for free. |
| C．Because neighbors know each other when working together. |
| A．More Repair Cafes will be opened around the world. |
| B．They are the best places for people to live in. |
| C．They can help protect the environment. |
| A．Don’t Replace, Repair |
| B．How to Stop Throwaway Culture |
| C．Repair Cafes Improve Social Relationships |
【推荐3】Why do you remember Hello Kitty, Snoopy and all the other cartoon animals? What makes you love them? Well, maybe because they’re like the people around you. Think about it! You may just find a friend or classmate who is like them. Is he or she:
 As sweet as Hello Kitty: She likes to eat cakes. She loves to make new friends. She likes to ask friends to her tea parties. She is warm and sunny and will always help you. |
 As clever as Snoopy: He once went to school for dogs. He learned to use a typewriter to write! He thinks a lot. He is so clever that you like to be with him. |
 As sarcastic(讽刺的) as Garfield: He sits happily in the seat and says hard words to you. Sometimes he is not nice. He doesn’t really like you? Does he think you are a fool? No, in his heart, he loves you. He is a friend with hard words but a warm heart. |
 As naughty (淘气的) as Mashimaro: He doesn’t look like a good boy. He has sleepy eyes and looks naughty. He always plays tricks on people. So you may get angry with him and don’t like him very much. His mind is active and full of ideas. He tries to be big and catch your eyes. But he’s still a child. |
1. If you want to make friends like Snoopy, he or she must be ________ at least.
| A．clever | B．funny | C．sarcastic | D．sweet |
| A．Hello Kitty | B．Mashimaro | C．Snoopy | D．Garfield |
| A．plays games with | B．plays jokes on |
| C．makes friends with | D．makes money with |
| A．they are the animals that often make people laugh |
| B．they are like the people around them |
| C．the cartoon animals are sunny, warm and full of ideas |
| D．they always help people, think a lot and try to be big |
