1 . The distance between ancient Rome and ancient China was about 4,000 miles by land. It was a very dangerous trip because here were terrible deserts and high mountains on the way.
For a very long history, the ancient Romans did not know who was making this wonderful cloth called silk. The Romans first discovered pieces of silk in the goods they took from some of dead people they had conquered (征服). But those people did not know where the silk was made. They only traded for the silk.
The Romans tried to find more traders as they came into villages to trade silk for other goods. But the traders did not know who made the silk, either. In fact, the trading along the Silk Road was a relay (接力) system. One trader would travel for a while, stop and trade, and return home. The next trader would continue, stop and trade, and return home. And so it went, no trader made the whole trip because the trip was too dangerous. The Silk Road shows its trade value between ancient Rome and ancient China.
The Silk Road had a lot of value (价值). As the years went by along the Silk Road that is more valuable, there were even cities built on the oases (绿洲). It was never easy to travel by land from ancient China to ancient Rome. But it was worth it. Ancient Rome traded treasure mainly for ancient China’s silk and spices. In fact, more things traveled along the Silk Road than traders and goods. Ideas traveled along the Silk Road as well. The ideas changed the world.
1. Why was the distance between ancient Rome and ancient China a very dangerous trip according to the first paragraph?| A．Because the silk distance was too far. |
| B．Because the silk distance was very secret. |
| C．Because the silk makers wanted to make more money. |
| D．Because there were terrible deserts and high mountains on the way. |
| A．Because the trip was too long. |
| B．Because the trip was too dangerous. |
| C．Because the traders did not know who made the silk. |
| D．Because the Silk Road couldn’t show its trade value. |
| A．Ancient China’s silk and spices. | B．Ancient China’s culture. |
| C．Ancient China’s thoughts. | D．Ancient China’s tea. |
| A．The discovery of ancient Rome. | B．The importance of the Silk Road. |
| C．The history and value of the Silk Road. | D．The international trade in ancient times. |
How much do you know about the Silk Road? It is a historically important international trade route between China and the Medier-ranean (地中海). It began during the Western Han Dynasty and has been a bridge between East and West for over 2,000 years.
The ancient road started from Chang’an (now Xi’an) and ended in Eastern Europe, near today’s Turkey and the Mediterranean Sea. It was about 6,500 kilometers long and went across one-fourth of the planet.
The Silk Road got its name in the 19th century because Chinese silk used to be carried along this road. Silk, jade, ceramics and iron went west to Rome. And from the west came glass, gems and food like carrots.
The Silk Road was very important to both China and the rest of the world. It was more than an ancient international trade route. Besides trade, knowledge about arts, science and literature, as well crafts and technologies was shared across the Silk Road. In this way, languages and cultures developed and influenced each other.
Today, China is trying to build the “21 st Century Marine (海洋的) Silk Road”. With the help of APEC held in Beijing in November 2014, the dream of One Belt One Road (the “Silk Road Economic (经济的) Belt” and “21st Century Marine Silk Road”) (“一带一路”) is coming true.
1. What does the underlined word “It” in the first paragraph mean?| A．The Western Han Dynasty. | B．The important international trade route. |
| C．The Medier-ranean. | D．The Silk Road. |
| A．It was about 6,500 kilometers long. |
| B．It went across one-fifth of the earth. |
| C．It was about 5,000 kilometers long |
| D．It went across one-third of the planet. |
| A．Because Chinese silk was carried along this road. |
| B．Because Chinese silk was produced along this road. |
| C．Because things were traded from market to market along this road. |
| D．Because the ancient traders bought and sold things along this road. |
| A．The Silk Road was only an ancient international trade route. |
| B．Many new silk roads have been built by the Chinese government so far. |
| C．The Silk Road was a very important line of communication connecting East and West. |
| D．The Silk Road prevented the development of languages and cultures between East and West. |
3 . The Silk Road was an ancient trade route (古代贸易路线) that connected (连接) the East and the West together. It is more than six thousand miles from Asia to Europe. The Silk Road got its name from the silk.
Few traders went along the Silk Road. The route was too long. There were also difficulties along the way. In some places, people along the road didn’t think the traders were right. Some countries would not let traders from other countries go through their countries.
Traders thought of an idea. They made staging points (中转站) on the Silk Road. They put their goods (货物) at one point. Then they traveled to another point. There, they would give the goods to the next group of drivers.
Traders from the East brought silk, gold and other useful things to the West. People wanted to have treasures from far-off lands very much.
More goods were moved along the Silk Road. Ideas from other lands were moved, too. They heard new languages. Knowledge about science was passed along.
1. It is more than ________ from Asia to Europe.| A．5,000 miles | B．6,000 miles | C．6,000 kilometers | D．5,000 kilometers |
| A．Because the road was too long and there were many difficulties. |
| B．Because they didn’t know how long it was. |
| C．Because it was ended in Europe. |
| D．Because people along the road thought they were wrong. |
| A．The Asian. | B．The European. | C．The traders. | D．The countries. |
| A．many countries were kind to traders | B．some traders worked in the staging points |
| C．clothes were brought from the West to the East | D．people wanted to have silk and gold from Europe |
| A．Traders had many difficulties along the Silk Road. |
| B．Goods were moved along the Silk Road. |
| C．Knowledge were passed along the Silk Road. |
| D．The Silk Road connected the East and the West. |
4 .
It was very cold that night. At about 11:40, a few passengers were talking and playing cards, but most people were getting ready for bed or were already asleep. For Frederick Fleet, he had something more important to do than sleep. High up in the “crow’s nest (桅杆瞭望台)”, he was watching the sea. It was quiet and the stars were shining (闪耀).
The Titanic changed direction (改变方向) right away, but it was moving too fast. The ship was still turning when it hit the iceberg.
Lots of people lost their lives that night.
选择恰当的选项，补全对话。
| A．Then Frederick saw something. |
| B．There were over 2, 200 people on it. |
| C．Unluckily, a long hole opened along its side under the water. |
| D．Frederick was one of the 705 lucky people who survived (幸存). |
| E．The Titanic was the largest and most expensive ship of its time. |
| place; importance; because; successful; end; trade; like; long; each; between |
The Silk Road has been a bridge
The Silk Road got its name
The Silk Road was very
Today,
6 . The Silk Road is the name of different roads that long ago connected Europe, Africa and Asia. People reached these different places along these roads. Scientists believe people began to travel the Silk Road about 3,000 years ago. By the time the Chinese silk trade became important in the world, the Silk Road covered almost 6,500 kilometers. It spread (传播) from Rome to China, which is from the West to the Far East.
Traders travelling along the Silk Road carried silk, of course. They also carried and traded spices (香料), cloth, valuable stones and gold.
There is a famous old story along the old road. It is said that Roman soldiers (士兵) travelled through central Asia. They started to live somewhere near the ancient Chinese village of Liqian. Some of these Romans married local Chinee women and the story of blue-eyed villages of China started.
During its busiest time, the Silk Road allowed people from many different cultures and countries to meet each other and mix (融合). The Silk Road allowed the sharing of valuable goods and new ideas. All these people travelled the Silk Road, and they shared goods, stories, languages, and cultures.
In modern times, People still use the old Silk Road routes, but now they cross by trains instead of camels and horses. There is even a Silk Route Museum in Jiuquan in China. It has over 35,000 objects from all along the Silk Road. In this way, China protects the history of many countries and peoples.
1. How many states (洲) did the Silk Road connect long ago?| A．Three | B．Four | C．Five | D．Six |
| A．Silk, cloth and meat. | B．Cloth, stones and vegetables. |
| C．Gold, silk and fruit. | D．Spices, stones and gold. |
| A．the West, the Far East | B．Australia, China |
| C．the north, the south | D．America, Asia |
| A．The Silk Road covered almost 6,500 meters. |
| B．Silk Road allowed different people to share valuable goods and new ideas. |
| C．People still use the Silk Road on horses and camels. |
| D．Some Americans married local Chinese women and the story of blue-eyed villages of China. |
| A．There is even a Silk Route Museum in Jiuquan in China |
| B．People travelled the Silk Road and shared goods, stories, languages, and cultures |
| C．Chinese silk trade became important in the world |
| D．All of the above |
People often remember what they were doing when they heard the news of important events in history. In America, for example, many people remember what they were doing on April 4, 1968. This was an important event in American history. On this day, Dr. Martin Luther King was killed. Although some people may not remember who killed him, they remember what they were doing when they heard the news.
Robert Allen is now over 50, but he was a school pupil at that time. “I was at home with my parents,” Robert remembers. “We were eating dinner in the kitchen when we heard the news on the radio. The news reporter said, “Dr. King died just 10 minutes ago”. My parents were completely shocked! My parents did not talk after that, and we finished the rest of our dinner in silence.
More recently, most Americans remember what they were doing when the World Trade Center in New York was taken down by terrorists. Even the date—September 11, 2001—has meaning to most Americans.
This was a day Kate Smith will never forget. She remembers working in her office near the two towers. “My friend shouted that a plane just hit the World Trade Center! I didn’t believe him at first, but then I looked out of the window and realized that it was true. I was so scared that I could hardly think clearly after that.”
1. The event that happened on April 4, 19682. The way that Robert’s family knew the death of Dr. King
3. The way that they finished eating their dinner
4. The reason why Americans specially remember the date—September 11, 2001
5. The place where Kate Smith was working on September 11, 2001
The first Starbucks coffee shop opened in 1971 in downtown Seattle, Washington, in the USA. It was a small coffee shop created (创建) by Jerry, Zev and Gordon, and the shop cooked its own coffee beans. The coffee shop’s business (生意) did well, and by 1981, there were three more Starbucks stores in Seattle．
Things really began to change for the company in 1981. That year Howard Schultz met the three men who ran Starbucks. Schultz worked in New York for a company that made kitchen equipment (设备). He noticed that Starbucks bought a large number of special coffee makers, which caused his great interest. Schultz went to Seattle to see what the Starbucks did. In 1982, the three Starbucks owners hired Schultz as the company’s head of marketing．
In 1983, Schultz traveled to Italy. The special environment (环境) of the coffee bars there caught his eyes. Back in the USA, Schultz created an environment for Starbucks coffee shops, and customers everywhere seemed to like it. Starbucks began opening more stores across the USA. Then the company opened coffee shops in other countries as well. Today, there are more than 16, 000 Starbucks coffee shops all over the world．
However, that does not mean Starbucks has not had problems. In fact, many Starbucks stores have closed over the past few years. On the one hand, this is because there were too many coffee shops competing for business in one small area. On the other hand, stores in some countries closed because the coffee culture there did not match with the “feel the same everywhere” environment offered by Starbucks．
1. From Paragraph1 we know that ________.| A．the first Starbucks coffee shop was very big |
| B．Starbucks’ business grew quickly in the first ten years |
| C．Howard Schultz created the first Starbucks coffee shop |
| D．more coffee shops opened all over the USA in the first ten years |
| A．买 | B．丢弃 | C．经营 | D．参观 |
| A．all of the coffee tasted the same |
| B．the coffee in these places was too expensive |
| C．there were too many coffee shops in one place |
| D．the people in these countries didn’t drink coffee |
| A．what the culture of Starbucks is |
| B．how Starbucks makes its coffee |
| C．why Starbucks is so popular |
| D．how Starbucks has developed |
The chocolate was
At first only dark chocolate was made. Milk chocolate came later and it was made by
Did you know that tea, the most popular drink in the world (after water), was invented by accident? Many people believe that tea was first drunk about 5,000 years ago. It is said that a Chinese ruler called Shen Nong was the first to discover tea as a drink. One day Shen None was boiling drinking water over an open fire. Some leaves from a tea plant fell into the water and remained there for some time. It produced a nice smell so he tasted the brown water. It was quite delicious, and so, one of the world’s favorite drinks was invented.
A few thousand years later, Lu Yu, “the saint of tea”, mentioned Shen Nong in his book Cha Jing . The book describes how tea plants were grown and used to make tea. It also discusses where the finest tea leaves were produced and what kinds of water were used.
It is believed that tea was brought to Korea and Japan during the 6th and 7th centuries. In England, tea didn’t appear until around 1660, but in less than 100 years, it had become the national drink. The tea trade from China to Western countries took place in the 19th century. This helped to spread the popularity of tea and the tea plant to more places around the world. Even though many people now know about tea culture. The Chinese are without doubt the ones who best understand the nature of tea.
1. The way that tea was invented (in two words):2. The person who invented tea:
3. List three countries that tea was spread to in the passage:
①
4. What the book Cha Jing talks about:
①
5. The role of the tea trade played:
