How do people find their ways? At first, people did it by looking at the sun, the moon and stars. Later, we started to use the compass（指南针）. Today, there are navigation satellite systems.
A navigation satellite system uses groups of satellites. They send information to a receiver, such as your smart phone. Then they can find where you are.
The earliest navigation system is the Global （全球的） Positioning System（GPS）of the United States. The US has put 24 satellites into space to make sure GPS can locate a person correctly and globally. Russia's GLONASS and European Union's Galileo can also work globally.
The BeiDou Navigation Satellite System （BDS）is China's homegrown navigation system. It was set up in 2000. With it, China became the third country to build a navigation system after the US and Russia.
BeiDou can find you wherever you are. It helps you go faster by finding shortcuts and using correct directions. When you are in trouble and call the police, they will know exactly where you are if you have a smart phone that uses BeiDou.
Today, there are more than 20 BeiDou satellites above our head. And the system is able to offer open services to the Asia﹣Pacific area.
China plans to send more BeiDou 3 satellites into space. BeiDou﹣3's position accuracy（精确度） is less than five meters. By 2020, the BeiDou system will have 35 satellites and begin serving Globally.
1. How did people find their ways at first according to this passage?| A．By looking at the sun, the moon and stars. |
| B．By using the navigation satellite systems. |
| C．By looking at the compass. |
| A．Two | B．Three | C．Four |
| A．位于 | B．设置 | C．定位 |
| A．It was set up before GPS. |
| B．It will begin serving globally by 2020. |
| C．There are less than 20 BeiDou satellites today. |
2 . Writing is a much newer invention than talking. Nobody knows when people first began to talk, but so far as we know, they did not begin to write until seven or eight thousand years ago.
In Egypt, Mesopotamia, and China, and later in Palestine and Greece, people began to make marks and pictures with sticks and sharp stones from which others, or they themselves later could see what they had thought.
These early records were the beginning of writing. The first writing was picture writing. Here are some early Chinese picture words. Can you see what they represent （代表）?
Later Chinese writing is less like pictures than the earlier writing was, but we can see the pictures in some of its words. For example：
In picture writing, each picture represents a word; you need a different picture or mark for each word. In present﹣day Chinese writing most of the marks are not pictures of anything, and a reader has to learn how the Chinese write about two thousand of these words before being able to read a newspaper.
With some of these marks you may be able to see what the idea is. For example：
The sun and the moon明Its meanings are："bright" and "open".
A man and two marks仁One of the meanings is "humanity".
1. When did people begin to write?| A．Seven or eight hundred years ago． |
| B．Before people first began to talk． |
| C．Seven or eight thousand years ago． |
A． | B． | C．雨 |
| A．Day and night． |
| B．Bright and open． |
| C．Humanity． |
| A．The history of Chinese writing． |
| B．When Chinese people began to write． |
| C．How the Chinese began to talk． |
Paper cutting is one of the traditional folk arts in China. It is a kind of popular folk arts and has been popular for about 1,500 years. Let's learn about paper cutting.
Wonderful meanings
Paper cutting has some wonderful meanings. In our mind, paper cuttings can always bring us happiness and good luck. At the Spring Festival, people put up "Fu "on doors or windows. At a wedding, people also put up"Xi".
The largest paper cutting in the world
The largest paper cutting was made by Guo Xiaodong. It has an area of about 456 square meters. It is as large as a basketball court.
Why are most paper cuttings red？
In old times, people respected the sun. Red is the color of the sun. We always regardred as the symbol of hope and good luck. Now, we can still see red everywhere in China. The walls of old palaces are red. Lanterns are red. Weddings are always full of red things, too.
Black paper cutting in Shanzhou
It's true that most paper cuttings are red. But paper cuttings in Shanzhou, Henan Province are black. Black is the best color there. Shanzhou is a dry place. The local people make black paper cuttings to wish for rain.
1. What can paper cuttings always bring us in our mind?2. Who made the largest paper cutting?
3. How do the local people in Shanzhou wish for rain?
4. 请把文中划线句子翻译成汉语。
5. 请给短文拟一个恰当的标题。
4 . The Seed Vault(种子地窖)
A lot of countries need different kinds of seeds so that they can plant them again. There is an important reason for this. Sometimes plants can’t grow in a country because of bad weather or disease, so farmers need new seeds.
You can keep seeds in a “seed vault”. It’s a place at a special temperature. The seeds don’t grow, but they can live for a long time. Norway has the biggest seed vault in the world—the Svalbard Global Seed Vault —and it has seeds from a lot of different countries.
The vault is on the island of Spitsbergen. The island is about one thousand kilometers from the North Pole. It’s a very cold place so it’s good for seeds. Above the ground, the doorway is small, but inside, the building is huge. You walk down a long corridor(走廊), which is one hundred and thirty meters inside a mountain. At the end of it, there are three large areas with seeds.
There are about half a million kinds of seeds inside the vault. For example, there are kinds of seeds for nice from Asia and Africa, 32 kinds of seeds for potatoes from Ireland and seeds for different tomatoes from the USA.
The seed vault has space for a lot more seeds. You can put about 2.2 billion(十亿)seeds inside. The seeds can live here for thousands of years because of the cold temperature of -180C. So, in the future, humans can grow any seed they want. In other words, the seed vault is the difference between life and death.
1. Why can’t plants grow in a country?(within 6 words)2. Where is the biggest seed vault in the world?(within 2 word)
3. How far is the Svalbard Global Seed Vault from the North Pole?(within 4 words)
4. How many seeds can be put in the seed vault?
5. What place is seed vault? (within 12 words)
 Chinese painting is one of the oldest art forms in the world. Painting in the traditional style is known today in Chinese as Guohua. Traditional Chinese painting is done with a brush dipped(浸) in black or colored ink(墨水).Paper and silk are also needed for painting. The finished work can be put on scrolls(轴).Traditional Chinese painting includes landscape(山水)painting, figures(人物), bird and flowers. Landscape painting is regarded as the highest form of Chinese painting. |
 Chinese folk(民间的) music is an important part of Chinese culture. It has a long history. One of the Confucianism Classics(儒家经典 ) Shi Jing, contains many folk songs. They are much loved by people up to now. Traditional Chinese musical instruments are symbols of Chinese culture, such as guqin, guzheng, pipa, erhu, xiao and chime(编钟). Sheng and suona are also popular in northern villages in China. Xi’an drum music is large traditional drum music. It is a valuable part of Chinese ancient music, and is regarded as the “living fossil(化石) of Chinese ancient music” in the world. |
①brushes ②ink ③color pencils ④paper ⑤silk
| A．①②③④ | B．②③④⑤ | C．①②③⑤ | D．①②④⑤ |
| A．landscape painting | B．figures | C．bird and flowers | D．trees |
| A．hold | B．control | C．prevent | D．include |
| A．Folk music | B．Country music | C．Ancient music | D．Xi’an drum music |
| A．Chinese music | B．Chinese painting | C．Chinese culture | D．Chinese history |
6 . Canada shares the longest international border (边界) in the world with the USA, which is 8,891 km long. The longest part of the border is shared with the US state, Alaska, and it is about 2,475 km long. Here is more information about Canada.
Geography | ★the largest waterfalls, Niagara Falls ★the second biggest country in the world, after Russia ★the highest mountain, the Mount Logan with a height of 5,959 m ★the longest river, the McKenzie River in the northwest, 4,241 km long ★a large country with a small population |
| Attractions for kids | ★going boating in the national parks, enjoying skiing, snow-boarding and other winter fun activities in the mountains ★outdoor activities: riding, climbing and ice-skating in Toronto, Vancouver and so on ★interesting museums and wonderful city parks |
1. How long is the longest border that Canada shares with Alaska?
| A．8,891 km. | B．2,475 km. | C．4,241 km. | D．5,959 m. |
| A．China | B．Canada | C．the USA | D．Russia |
| A．The height of the Mount Logan is 5,959 kilometers. |
| B．The McKenzie River lies in the northeast of Canada. |
| C．Canada is a large country which has a small population. |
| D．Kids can’t go ice-skating in Vancouver. |
7 . Sore necks are very common these days. How to avoid a sore neck? Here are the things you should know.
●Take precautions (预防措施 ) after an unusual activily. Many people report having a pain in their necks after doing something that they don’t often do, such as a new exercise or packing and moving.
lf you know you’ve done something that puts you a risk, massage(按摩)your neck , do it with different exercises and take a warm bath before bed.
●Make sure your workstation is correct. If you work long hours at a desk you may want to make sure that your work environment is set up to be the most relaxing. Make sure that your body is being treated right.
Keep your feet on the floor. This will often depend on how high your chair is, so adjust(调整) it in time to achieve good results.
●Change your posture often. Sitting in one position for long periods of time is nor healthy. Sit with your back straight for most of the rime. Take a 5-minute break if you can and walk around every hour.
●Exercise. Find something — swimming, running or climbing — that makes you excited and feel alive. Make it into a usual way. Your body will feel better and your mind will feel more relaxed.
1. In Paragraph 5, the underlined word “it”refers to(指) .| A．the desk | B．the chair | C．your neck | D．yourbody |
| A．姿势 | B．方向 | C．方式 | D．状态 |
| A．Making your work environment be quiet |
| B．Sitting with back straight for a moment |
| C．Packing and moving for a long time |
| D．Exercising often like swimming or running |
| A．doing it with differeni exercises | B．massaging your neck |
| C．taking a warm bath before bed | D．looking at your phone for too long |
| A．how to do exercise well | B．exercising often is good for people |
| C．how to avoid a sore neck | D．being healthy is the most important |
Huge Waves Destroying Arctic Ice Faster than Expected
Ice covers much of the Arctic Ocean（北冰洋）. Some pieces of ice are huge, like moving islands. As temperatures have increased, however, some of the ice has begun to disappear. Scientists have discovered huge waves（海浪）in the arctic waters.
The waves were discovered by accident in May, 2010. Scientist Aleksey Marchenko and his students set out on a trip. They wanted to study the icy waters.
On May 2, the ship traveled east and stopped next to a large chunk of ice around 50 miles from the small island of Hopen. Marchenko prepared to lead his students out onto the Ice.
"We were ready to go but when I went out, I discovered many cracks（裂缝）around," he remembers.
He decided to move the ship deeper into the ice to keep safe. The farther in they went, he thought, the harder the ice would become. As they pushed forward, however, the ship experienced small waves, and then bigger ones. Soon, the waves broke up the ice around the ship into thousands of smaller pieces．
Within an hour, Marchenko and his team saw a wave that was about 13 feet high. The ship's navigation（航行）system finally recorded the largest waves. They were more than 20 feet in height. The waves were so strong that they forced huge pieces of ice to jump up and down, breaking the ice into smaller pieces within just one hour. Scientists had never imagined that the process could happen so fast. The waves in these areas used to be small.
The speed and force of the huge waves there makes it impossible to know in advance when they are coming. That could be dangerous for navigators and local communities who are unprepared for huge waves or depend on sea ice to protect them. Wildlife like polar bears and walruses that depend on sea ice to live is also in danger.
Some scientists think people will soon see even bigger waves in these icy waters. As waves break up ice, the seas will become more open, and the waves will get even stronger. There are stormy times ahead.
1. When did Marchenko and his students discover huge waves in the arctic waters?___________________________________________________________
2. Why did Marchenko and his students set out on the trip?
___________________________________________________________
3. What did Marchenko decide to do to keep safe?
___________________________________________________________
4. How high were the largest waves recorded by the navigation system?
___________________________________________________________
5. What is Paragraph 7 mainly about?
___________________________________________________________
In many places the weather changes during the year. These changes are called seasons. In the north and south there are four seasons in a year. At the North and South Pole, there are only two seasons. In tropical（热带）places near the Earths equator（赤道）, there are two seasons a wet season and a dry season. Each season brings changes. They are important for plants and animals that live in different parts of the world.
Spring starts when the day and night are the same length. The weather gets warmer and sunnier. Trees and plants start to grow. Many animals have their babies in spring.
Summer begins on the longest day of the year. In the north this is on June 21 or 22. Summer is usually the warmest and sunniest time of the year. Fruit grows faster on trees and plants. Young animals grow bigger and stronger.
Autumn starts when the day and night are the same length again. During autumn, the leaves change color and fall down from the trees. Some animals collect food before winter comes.
Winter begins on the shortest day of the year. In the north this is on December 21 or 22.The weather is colder and in some places there is lots of snow. Plants and trees stop growing. Some animals, like bats and bears, find places to hide and sleep. This is called hibernation.
1. There are seasons on Greenland（格陵兰岛）at the North pole.| A．four |
| B．three |
| C．two |
| D．one |
| A．have babies |
| B．change color |
| C．collect food |
| D．stop growing |
| A．spring |
| B．summer |
| C．autumn |
| D．winter |
| A．迁徙 |
| B．寒冷 |
| C．储藏 |
| D．冬眠 |
| A．Spring and summer |
| B．Summer and autumn |
| C．Autumn and winter |
| D．Spring and autumn |
10 . A myth is something that is not correct, but many people believe. There are a lot of myths about the human brain.
One of the biggest myths is that we only use 10 percent of our brains. The next part of the myth is that if we can learn to use the rest of our brains, then we'll be much smarter. People say this all the time, but it's absolutely not true! The truth is that although we don't know everything about the human brain, we know that each part of it has an important function (功能) . Modern scientists think the "10 percent myth" ridiculous (荒谬的) .
The other most popular myth is about being "right brained" or "left brained". According to this myth, people who use the right side of their brains are more artistic and creative. People who use the left side of their brains are better at math and science. This is as popular as the 10 percent myth, and it's also wrong. In 2013, a study at an American university examined the right brain and left brain myth. According to the study, we use both sides of our brains equally (相等地). "
It's true that we use different parts of our brains for different things. We use our left side for language more, and our right side when we need to pay attention. But there is no evidence (证据) that creative people use the right side more or that scientific people use the left side more.
We've talked about myths, so let's look at a few interesting facts about the brain. First of all, the brain feels no pain. Second, about 75 percent of the brain is made of water. It's also the fattest organ in your body. Here's another interesting fact about the brain. Around the time you turn 18 years old, it stops growing.
1. The underlined word "This" 1fParagraph 3 refers to ______________.| A．the left brain myth | B．the right brain and left brain myth |
| C．the use of human brains | D．the study of an American university |
| A．Robert, who is learning English | B．Kate, who is drawing pictures |
| C．Jenny, who is designing clothes | D．Jacob, who is doing research |
| A．It is growing all life long. | B．The right side is used more by artists. |
| C．Some parts of it are not used at all. | D．Three quarters of it is made of water. |
| A．the growing of the brain | B．different functions of the brain |
| C．right brain and left brain | D．myths and facts about the brain |
