Many scientists find that colors can change people’s feelings. It’s very interesting. Some colors can make people feel relaxed, and some colors can make people feel nervous.
Now, this kind of knowledge (知识) is being used in many places. For example, school walls are always painted green because green makes students feel relaxed. It is also good for the students’ eyes. Some books are also green or light blue for the same reason. Restaurant owners not only have to know how to make food, but also have to know how to make money. Here are some things they’ve learned from scientific (科学的) studies. The colour red makes people hungry. Many fast food restaurants have red furniture or walls. Soft colors like pink and light blue make people feel relaxed, so they spend more time eating. Loud music may be nice at first, but it soon makes people want to leave. Hard seats also make customers want to eat quickly and leave. Many restaurants, especially fast food restaurants, use this knowledge to make customers eat faster.
1. Few scientist find that colors can change people’s feelings.2. The colour green is good for the students’ eyes.
3. The colour red makes most people feel worried.
4. Loud music is nice because it always makes people want to stay.
5. The passage is mainly about using colors to change feelings.
2 . There are 56 ethnic (民族的) groups in China. Different ethnic groups have their own special cultures. Let’s enjoy some of them.
The Bai people use a very old way, tie-dye (扎染), to dye clothes. Tie-dye has a history of nearly 1,500 years. During the Tang and Song dynasties, people chose tie-dyed clothes as gifts.
The Mongolian people live in the Mongolian yurts (蒙古包). These yurts are large round tents and their tops look like umbrellas. They are the traditional homes of the Mongolian people. The yurts are usually white because they’re made of sheep’s wool. And white is a symbol of happiness.
The Zhuang people like singing even more than talking. On the third day of the third Chinese lunar month, they hold a big singing festival. It is exciting and wonderful. All the people can’t help singing happily. Men and women singers sing in pairs. The winners are the “king”, and “queen” of singing.
The Miao people have a special festival, Manghao Festival. It’s in the first Chinese lunar month every year. The Miao people consider Manghao as a hero who helped to protect their homes. At the festival, young men dress up like Manghao and touch others to express good wishes.
1. When did people choose tie-dyed clothes as gifts?| A．During the Yuan and Song dynasties. | B．During the Tang and Ming dynasties. |
| C．During the Tang and Song dynasties. | D．During the Ming and Qing dynasties. |
| A．A big umbrella. | B．A traditional building. |
| C．A sheep’s home. | D．A symbol of happiness. |
| A．The Bai people. | B．The Miao people. |
| C．The Zhuang people. | D．The Mongolian people. |
| A．By choosing tie-dyed clothes as gifts. | B．By protecting their homes like a hero. |
| C．By sending some good wishes to others. | D．By dressing up and touching other people. |
| A．Special Cultures of Some Ethnic Groups. | B．Special Food of Some Ethnic Groups. |
| C．Special Festivals of Some Ethnic Groups. | D．Special Clothes of Some Ethnic Groups. |
Every spring, there are sports meetings at many middle schools. When students on the playground crowd into a circle and shout loudly, “One, two, one, two.” Do you know what game it is? It is tug of war (拔河).
Tug of war is a team sport between two teams at each end of a rope. It first came into being in China 2, 400 years ago. It is very popular in China and many other countries. But in other countries, their tug-of-war match is not the same as ours. They have eight men for each team, while we may have the match between two sides with equal number of men or women players. Of course, they are usually tall, strong and heavy.
For a tug-of-war match, we need a long thick rope. Each team stands at one end of the rope, holding it. There is a white line in the middle of the field. Then they try to pull the center of the rope to each of their own sides. The winning team is the one that pulls the other over the line.
Tug of war was once an Olympic sporting event. It lasted until 1920. Though it isn’t an Olympic sport now, people in many countries like playing it very much.
1. Tug of war first came into being in China 2, 500 years ago.2. In other countries, a tug-of-war team has eight men players.
3. The team that pulls the other over the line is the losing team.
4. Now tug of war is still an Olympic sport and many people like playing it.
5. The passage mainly talks about a popular team sport—tug of war.
Imagine you’re at the supermarket. You pay for some food, then throw one third of it into the trash. This may sound crazy, but millions of us are doing this around the world, although not in such a direct way.
According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, over 30 percent of food produced worldwide goes to waste. Most of it is thrown away by shops that are unable to sell it or by people who buy too much food.
Do we have to do so? Creative minds say no. When we have extra (额外的) money, we save it in a bank. So how about setting up “banks” for food that we can’t eat? Many countries, including China, are trying this out.
Some people in Shanghai recently set up a fridge in their community, filling it with cake and canned (罐装的) food from nearby markets and restaurants. It’s free for anyone to enjoy.
The Real Junk Food Project is a company in the UK. It reminds people that food past its sell-by date (保质期) is still okay to eat. The company collects leftover food from supermarkets and puts it on shelves in cafes (小餐馆).
The food in the cafes has no price label (标签). You can offer as much money as you want, or give back your time as payment. There are now 125 Real Junk Food cafes worldwide.
Does the food that you have bought, but can’t eat, have to become junk? You decide.
1. Every year, about one-third of food produced around the world goes to waste.2. The same banks that save your money can help you save food.
3. In the Shanghai community, people can get free food from a fridge.
4. Food that is past its sell-by date can’t be eaten, according to the Real Junk Food Project.
5. The passage mainly talks about some creative ways to save food.
5 . Humans and gorillas (大猩猩) shared evolution (进化) for 23 million years. Their paths separated only six million years ago. New research on how gorillas communicate may help us better understand human language.
Understanding how the brain works helps us see a connection between language development and non-verbal (非言语的) signs. “Gorillas have many kinds of non-verbal communication,” said psychologist (心理学家) Sebestyen Forrester, from the University of Sussex. He thinks humans may have had the same communication skills.
Non-verbal communication includes the ways we move our bodies and the different expressions on our faces. A new study on gorillas showed that right-handedness may have a connection with communication. The right side of the body is controlled by the left part of the brain, which is also where language develops.
Two cameras were used to watch how one gorilla moved. It was shown that gorillas use their right hands more when they are doing actions with their heads or mouths at the same time. This may show that there is a connection between how our brains work and the reason we use one side of our body more than the other.
Forrester said the results could help us understand how children learn languages. For example, some children have a condition called autism (自闭症) in which they have a hard time communicating with other people. This same kind of study may help doctors find autism in children at an earlier age.
1. The shared evolution of gorillas and humans separated about ________ million years ago.| A．6 | B．17 | C．23 | D．29 |
| A．Talking loudly. | B．Reading aloud. | C．Facial expressions. | D．Singing. |
| A．knowledge | B．health | C．communication | D．feelings |
| A．find communication problems early on | B．make people use their right hands more |
| C．develop language abilities in children | D．find a treatment for children with autism |
| A．In a travel guide. | B．In a health magazine. |
| C．In a sports newspaper. | D．In a science fiction. |
6 . 2024 is the Year of the Dragon. Of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac (生肖), the dragon is the only unreal one. But Chinese people love it so much for thousands of years. And they always say they’re the “descendants (后代) of the dragon”. But how much do you know about the animal? Does it have the same meaning in different cultures?
Both people in the east and west think dragons are like snakes. Now in China, we can still find records of dragons. For example, some ancient jade carvings (玉雕) look like snakes in a letter “C”. In the west, people see dragons as big snakes in the old book The Penguin Book of Dragons.
However, stories about dragons are very different between the East and West. Dragons in China have a horse-like head, a long body but no wings (翅膀). People think they are beautiful and smart. And they can also bring good luck. While dragons in the west have shorter bodies and big wings. They often mean bad luck. Some of them can even blow fire from their mouth. For example, the evil witch (邪恶女巫) Maleficent in Sleeping Beauty, can turn herself into a big dragon!
East or west, in the world of fantasy, the dragon will always play an important role!
1. Of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac, which animal is the only unreal one?| A．The cow. | B．The horse. | C．The mouse. | D．The dragon. |
| A．People in China. | B．People in Canada. |
| C．People in America. | D．People in Australia. |
| A．A letter C. | B．A strong tiger. |
| C．Big snakes. | D．Ancient jade carvings. |
| A．Dragons in the west have small wings. | B．Dragons in the west are smart animals. |
| C．Dragons in China have a cow-like head. | D．Dragons in the east can bring good luck. |
| A．Dragons and Snakes | B．The History of Dragons in China |
| C．Dragons in the East and West | D．The Symbol of Western Dragons |
Hangzhou, together with five other cities in Zhejiang, hosted the 19th Asian Games from Sept. 23 to Oct. 8. The Games was very “smart” with the use of many exciting technologies. Let’s have a look!
What if there was an accident during the game and the players needed first aid? Drones (无人机) could be used to send things over. Using a drone saves about 60 percent of the time. Medicine, blood and other things needed for first aid can be sent to people quickly.
Every dish at the Asian Games should be safe and healthy. In the kitchen of the athletes’ village in Hangzhou, there was a special system (系统) that could tell people’s faces. If a “stranger” went into the kitchen, an alarm would go off to let people know. The managers of the kitchen would also get messages on their phones. There is also a system to keep an eye on the temperature of the fridge.
Say that you were in Hangzhou and would watch one of the games. It would be sad if you couldn’t find your way. AR (增强现实技术) was here to help you. There is a mini program called the Hangzhou Asian Games AR service. You could turn on your phone’s camera and it would see where you were and then showed you the way.
1. The 19th Asian Games Hangzhou lasted for seven days.2. The “Drones” could be used to send people quickly in this passage.
3. The alarm in the kitchen can receive food messages from athletes.
4. The AR service can help out people who are lost to find their ways.
5. The passage is mainly about how technology works in 19th Asian Games Hangzhou.
8 . 
As one kind of the most ancient characters, Chinese characters have played an important role in the development of Chinese culture. At first, ancient Sumerian (苏美尔语) and ancient Egyptian symbols existed (存在), but only Chinese characters remain today. The history of the Chinese language can be examined by looking at how these characters developed.
Chinese writing began thousands of years ago. According to an ancient story, a man named CangJie invented Chinese writing. One winter day while he was hunting, he saw the footprints of animals in the snow and noticed that the appearance of each one was different. Then he had the idea that he could use different shapes to represent (代表) different objects. The first Chinese characters were drawings of physical objects. Some characters have been simplified (简化) and others have been made more difficult over time.
However, as a whole, the characters have developed from drawings into standard forms. The character for a mountain was at first three mountaintops together. This became one mountaintop and three lines, and over time turned into the character used nowadays.
Sometimes to express ideas, some characters were made by combining (结合) two or more characters together. For example, “rest” was made up of the characters for a man and a tree. The character “prisoner” was formed with a “man” inside a square. Other characters were developed for directions and numbers. It is easy to distinguish (区别) their meanings by looking at them, for example, the characters for “up” and “down”, which are opposites of each other.
Though these kinds of characters indicate (表明) meanings, one of their shortcomings (缺点) is that they do not show how they should be pronounced. Therefore, a method was developed to have one part of a character represent the meaning and the other suggest the pronunciation. Many Chinese characters used today were made this way.
In the 1950s the Chinese government introduced simplified Chinese characters in the hope to make learning to read and write more understandable to the general population, which would increase literacy (读写能力) across the country. And now they have widespread use in China’s mainland.
1. The writer introduced the Chinese characters by ________.| A．giving examples | B．providing causes | C．expressing opinions | D．comparing facts |
Not all characters were developed from drawings of objects.
| A．Paragraph 5 | B．Paragraph 4 | C．Paragraph 3 | D．Paragraph 2 |
| A．亦 | B．竹 | C．明 | D．桐 |
| A．To make Chinese characters popular throughout the world. |
| B．To make people remember Chinese in a new way. |
| C．To make more people fall in love with Chinese. |
| D．To make Chinese easy to read and write. |
| A．Chinese characters have turned into standard forms, which are easier than before. |
| B．The first Chinese characters were invented by Cang Jie hundreds of years ago. |
| C．Chinese characters existed at the very beginning and remain today like other ancient symbols. |
| D．Chinese characters we use today have been accepted by large numbers of Chinese people. |
We have had lots of technology and it has changed our lives a lot. There is no doubt that humans will continue to use more and more technology. Here are some examples of modern technology that will change our ideas and will affect our lives greatly.
Global Positioning System (GPS)
It’s a system that uses radio signals (信号) from satellites (卫星) to show exact information. It tells you where the user is on the earth in all weather conditions. It’s made up of the following parts: satellites, control equipment on land and receivers.
Space Technology
Russian and American scientists have worked together for the International Space Station (ISS) for a long time. They hope the ISS will provide a long-lasting lab. Such a lab will bring humans limitless advantages. It’s even hoped that one day space technology will take humans to their new houses in space.
Underwater Robot
Hercules is a kind of underwater robot with some high-technology equipment. It will be used to search for ancient ships which were destroyed into the deep sea during journey long ago.
1. GPS can’t tell you where the user is on the earth on rainy days.2. Control equipment on land is a part of GPS.
3. The ISS has carried people to other planets.
4. Hercules will be used to search for the ancient ships in the sea.
5. The purpose of the passage is to tell us technology is changing the world.
10 . Most people are afraid of snakes. They may think snakes are dangerous and ugly. With more and more rain falling and the hot weather, it’s time for snakes to be active. Living in the city, it never crosses your mind that we might meet them face to face.
There are more than 2,000 kinds of snakes on the earth. Most of them live in mountains or forests, and in cities sometimes we can find them in grass or other dark places. Snakes can’t walk or run because they have no legs or feet, but these long and thin animals can move very fast on their stomachs. Snakes usually have green, yellow or black skins, which make it difficult for their enemies to find them. In winter they hibernate in holes. They look for a hole to stay inside, on the ground, or in a rock or a tree. They do not wake up again until spring comes. Snakes feed on mice, frogs, bird eggs and so on.
Snakes play an important part in nature. We can make useful medicines with them. Without their help, the rodents (啮齿动物) will be out of control. But many of them are in danger of disappearing. Houses and buildings take up the land where snakes live. Many snakes lose their lives in traffic, and people often kill snakes for their skins or meat.
1. Which season may it be now according to the text?| A．Spring. | B．Summer. | C．Autumn. | D．Winter. |
| A．About 1,000. | B．Over 2,000. | C．A bout 3,000. | D．Over 4,000. |
| A．躲藏 | B．睡觉 | C．冬眠 | D．伏击 |
| A．We never see snakes in cities. | B．Snakes only catch mice as food. |
| C．Snakes are useless to nature. | D．Many snakes are in danger. |
| A．Health. | B．Geography. | C．Biology. | D．Weather. |
