“In life there is no such thing as complete happiness. Happiness always comes with worry.” These are the words from Yang Jiang’s famous work We Three.
Yang Jiang was a writer and translator. She wrote several successful comedies and novels and was also famous for her translation work.
Yang Jiang was born in Beijing in 1911 and grew up in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province. She started studying at Tsinghua University in 1932 and there she met Qian Zhongshu. They married in 1935. During 1935—1938, they were abroad to study at Oxford University and University of Paris. In Oxford, Yang gave birth to their daughter Qian Yuan in 1937. They came back to China the next year. In 1949, Yang began to teach at Tsinghua University. She passed away in 2016.
The book We Three is a national bestseller (畅销书). It’s about Yang Jiang’s family life with her husband and their daughter. Yang started writing it at the age of 92.
In the book, Yang used simple language to describe all the joyful and difficult times she spent together with her husband and daughter. From her words, you can feel the love between them. The love usually cannot be described with words alone. You can not only understand what the three of them had achieved and how proud Yang was to have her husband and daughter, but also feel how sad she was for having to spend the rest of her life without her loved ones. However, like Yang wrote, “ Although the pains in life hurt so much, it is the light and hope that I see.”
Complete the chart according to the passage with only one word for each blank.
| Yang Jiang | |
| Her achievements | She was a writer and translator. Several successful comedies and novels were She was famous for her translation work. |
| Her | In 1911, she was born in Beijing. In 1932, she studied at Tsinghua University and she met Qian Zhongshu there. Three years later, they got married. During 1935-1938, she and her husband were In 1937, their daughter was born. The next year, they returned to China. In 1949, she began to work as a In 2016, she passed away. |
| Her work We Three | It is a Yang Jiang started writing it at the age of 92. She described all the joyful and difficult times she spent together with her husband and daughter. |
As children grow up, they have a birthday every year. But in modern China, a birthday held at the age of 18 has special meaning. It’s the celebration of coming of age (成年).
In ancient China, the coming-of-age ceremony was very important for the young people. According to the book LiJi (《礼记》), it was the symbol of their right (权利) to get married and their duty (义务) to share family responsibilities. Only after the ceremony could the young people be called “adults” .
At the coming-of-age ceremony, after all the guests sat in the right position, the parents would give a short speech. A respected (受尊敬的) elder that was chosen to hold this ceremony would wash hands and do the guan li or ji li in several steps. Then, the child would kneel on the ground and listen to his or her parents’ expectations and words used to educate the child. After showing thanks to guests, he or she could stand next to his or her parents as a real adult.
In modern China, the coming-of-age ceremony in some universities and senior high schools is getting its popularity. Besides a traditional ceremony mentioned above, some young people may wear traditional Chinese clothing or modern clothing and take professional photos to record this special event. Some choose to make a charitable donation (慈善捐赠) such as money or time to a charity or an organization. They also reflect on their achievements to set better plans for their future education, career (职业生涯) or personal development.
Choose the best choice from A, B or C according to the passage.1. After the coming-of-age ceremony, the young people could get married and had to ________ in ancient China.
| A．give a short speech | B．have a birthday party | C．be responsible for their families |
| A．stand upside down | B．go down on one’s knees | C．lie down on one’s back |
| A．A respected elder. | B．Some friends. | C．The parents. |
| A．Take photos. | B．Get married. | C．Make money. |
| A．the book Li Ji | B．modern clothing | C．the coming-of-age ceremony |
3 . The traditional Chinese lunar calendar(阴历) divides the year into 24 solar terms(节气). Lichun, the first of the 24 solar terms, lifts the curtain(窗帘) of spring. After that everything turns green and is filled with energy. People clearly see that the daytime is becoming longer and the weather is becoming warmer. Here are some things you might not know about Lichun.
As a solar term, Lichun entered people’s lives in the Spring and Autumn period. At that time, there were eight solar terms. According to some experts, the 24 solar terms were used for the first time in books during the Western Han Dynasty, when people set Lichun as the Spring Festival.
Wearing fabric swallows(织成的燕子) is a custom in some areas in Shaanxi. Every Lichun, people like to wear a swallow made of colorful silk on their chests(胸部). The swallow is a sign of spring and a symbol of success, wealth and happiness.
In China, it is said that the egg can be set upright on the first day of Lichun. It is believed that if someone can make the egg stand on the first day of Lichun, he will have good luck in the future.
In many parts of China, people follow the custom of “biting the spring” on the first day of Lichun. They eat spring pancakes, spring rolls(春卷) and so on.
Complete the chart according to the passage with only one word for each blank.Lichun | |
Facts | It is the Everything turns green and is The daytime is becoming longer and the weather is becoming warmer. |
| It appeared in the Spring and Autumn period. It was | |
Customs | People like to wear a swallow made of colorful silk on their chests. If someone can set the egg upright, he will be People eat spring pancakes, spring rolls and so on. |
4 . Vicuna, a small town in the north of Chile, is a great place for watching stars all year round. Although it is near the sea, the cold, wet air from the coast does not bring clouds. Instead, dry winds from the desert keep the clouds away at night. In fact, the sky is so clear in Vicuna that it is possible to see many stars that can be seen only with advanced（先进的）instruments in other parts of the world.
In Vicuna, distant（遥远的）star systems such as Magellanic Clouds can be seen without the help of an instrument. That is why the town was chosen as the home of a number of sky observatories (天文台). One of them, the Mamalluca, is quite different from the typical observatories used by scientists. This observatory was built for tourists who like to look at the stars. During the year, Vicuna’s hotels accommodate thousands of tourists who come from all over the world to see the night sky as they have only seen it in books. The cloudless sky is clearly a moneymaker for the town, which plans to set up even more observatories. It was recently decided that building observatories would go on for another few years.
At one point, however, the town faced a serious problem. As the town grew, more streetlights were added, making it more and more difficult to see the stars at night. The town saved the night sky by building a new system of lights that lit up the streets without influencing the view of the sky.
Choose the best choice from A, B or C according to the passage.
1. What can we learn from Paragraph 1?
| A．Vicuna is a small town far from the ocean. |
| B．We can see wonderful clouds in the sky over Vicuna. |
| C．The sky in Vicuna is clear all year round. |
| A．Its size | B．Its location | C．It serves tourists |
| A．容纳 | B．建议 | C．控制 |
| A．The old streetlights used lots of electricity. |
| B．The old streetlights made it hard to see the stars at night. |
| C．The new streetlights would make streetlights more beautiful. |
| A．Vicuna Has a Problem |
| B．A Town to Watch the Stars |
| C．Pictures of a Cloudless Sky |
5 . What would the world be like if cars could drive themselves? Imagine seeing an empty car passing by on its way to pick up its owner, or a car full of passengers who are reading, listening to music or even sleeping. But none of them are worried about the road ahead.
Well, all of this could be the future of driving. There are several companies, including Google, working on driverless cars. So far, no Google self-driven cars have gotten a traffic ticket (罚单), but some of them have been in accidents when other cars hit them.
These cars are now still in the testing stages (阶段). But, if the tests are successful, these electric self-driven cars could be put into use very soon.
The cars are so special that they can take the place of drivers during certain situations. They are able to park themselves, or slow down when they notice objects close by. They can also control the speed if there is danger.
Scientists and engineers believe, with the help of wireless signals (无线信号) , cameras and GPS, creating a safe self-driven car might be possible. The cause of deadly (致死的) road accidents is usually careless drivers or bad conditions. The self-driven car may be able to prevent these. However, some people don’t like the idea. American lawyer Whit Drake does not believe these cars are safe. He thinks that technologies can also be mistakes.
Complete the chart according to the passage with only one word for each blank.
Self-driven cars | |
| The future of driving | An empty car can drive |
| The situation | They are in the |
| The | They can park themselves, slow down and control the speed. |
| Different ideas about them | Scientists think they can prevent road |
6 . The Chongyang Festival is a traditional Chinese festival. It is celebrated on the ninth day of the ninth lunar(阴历) month. It's also called the Double Ninth Festival.
The festival started as early as the Warring States Period (475-221BC). It has a history of more than 1, 700 years. Among the numbers from zero to nine, nine is the highest odd number(奇数). People believe that two "ninths" meeting together stand for a long life. So it is a special holiday for Chinese people to show love and respect for their elders. They hold many kinds of activities in honor of old people to wish them good health and a long life.
The festival comes during the golden time of fall. On the day, people traditionally drink Chrysanthemum(菊花)wine, eat Double-Ninth Cakes and climb mountains. They also carry a kind of plant, its name is dogwood, People in ancient times believed that the plant could drive away evil(邪恶的) spirits and prevent them from catching an illness in winter.
Answer the questions according to the passage.
1. When is the Double Ninth Festival?
_____________________________________________________
2. Does the Double Ninth Festival have a history of 1, 700 years?
_____________________________________________________
3. What do two "ninths" meeting together stand for?
____________________________________________________
4. Who do people celebrate the Double Ninth Festival for?
____________________________________________________
5. What do people traditionally drink and eat on the festival?
____________________________________________________
