1 . Time capsules(胶囊)are small collection of things or information, that are stored somewhere safe. They can _________ by people in many years and give future people a view of life in the past.

They may have newspaper articles, popular music recordings and photos. Historians can use time capsules to _________ more about people that lived in the past.

One of _________ time capsules was the Detroit Century Box. On December 31, 1900, the city put several photos and letters in a box. The box wasn’t opened _________ people took it out on December 31, 2000.

The things inside the capsule _________ us a look at Detroit in the past. There _________ photos of people and places, as well as letters written by local people. some of them even made _________ for the future. For example, one person predicted that Detroit would have a population of 4 million by 2000. But _________ , the population of the city was 951,000 that year , according to historydetroit. com.

Humans have _________ sent time capsules into space! The US sent two capsules into space on the Voyager Spacecraft (航天器) in 1977. They’re called the Voyager Golden Records. They contain sounds and pictures that show human life and culture. For example, they have __________ by classical musician Beethoven and pictures of plants, insects and landscapes (风景). The Voyager Spacecraft has traveled far away from our solar system (太阳系).It is hoped that aliens might find the time capsules some day and learn about humans.

1.

A．open

B．opened

C．be opened

D．be open

2.

A．change

B．learn

C．take

D．worry

3.

A．earliest

B．the earliest

C．the early

D．the earlier

4.

A．until

B．when

C．after

D．since

5.

A．thought

B．made

C．caught

D．gave

6.

A．was

B．are

C．were

D．will be

7.

A．questions

B．inventions

C．predictions

D．suggestions

8.

A．in fact

B．at first

C．in total

D．at last

9.

A．never

B．even

C．hardly

D．seldom

10.

A．sports

B．paintings

C．rock

D．music

2 . There are purple clothes, purple handbags, purple bicycles, purple furniture, and even purple computers! So purple is one of the most popular colors today. But in the past, purple was a very expensive and unusual color. Let's take a look at the rich_________of the color purple.

Some scientists believe that the first plants to appear on Earth over 500 million years ago_________looked purple, not green plants. Today are green because they use chlorophyll（叶绿素）to produce energy. _________these early plants probably used something called retinal, which is a dark purple color.

During the time of the Roman Empire(27 BC-476AD), it was very difficult to make purple dye (染料). The dye came from sea snails（海螺). But 10,000 dead sea snails _________you just one gram of purple dye... as well as a very bad smell! This_______purple dye was called Tyrian purple, and it was the preferred _________of emperors.

In 16th-century England, purple was_______for the king's family members. Queen Elizabeth I's clothes were purple, but ordinary people were not allowed to___________the clothes in this color.

In 1856, William Perkin, an 18-year-old science student noticed something strange while doing an experiment.

The chemicals（化学药品）he used to clean his instruments mixed with the chemicals he used in his experiment and produced a bright purple color. This_________led Perkin to start a company using this chemical mixture to make purple dye. The dye was much__________than sea-snail dye. Thanks to Perkin, now anyone can afford to wear purple clothes.

1.

A．history

B．style

C．research

D．product

2.

A．hardly

B．especially

C．exactly

D．probably

3.

A．And

B．So

C．But

D．Until

4.

A．got

B．passed

C．wasted

D．cost

5.

A．basic

B．harmful

C．special

D．perfect

6.

A．color

B．smell

C．plant

D．animal

7.

A．even

B．never

C．seldom

D．only

8.

A．wear

B．sell

C．change

D．make

9.

A．survey

B．discovery

C．suggestion

D．exam

10.

A．healthier

B．thicker

C．cheaper

D．darker

3 . 根据短文内容，回答下列问题。

No one knows who invented the pencils or when it happened. A Swiss described a pencil in a book in 1565. He said it was a piece of wood with lead (铅) inside it. Pencils weren’t popular. Then, in 1795, someone started making pencils from graphite (石墨), and they became very popular. Today, people still make pencils in the same way. They put it inside a piece of wood.

One pencil can write 50, 000 English words or make a line 55 kilometers long.

Before the pencils were widely used, people used bird feathers (羽毛) as pens. When people wrote with feather pens, they had to put the point into ink after every few letters. Next, someone invented a fountain pen(自来水笔) that could hold ink inside it. A fountain pen can write a few pages before you have to fill it again.

Two brothers, Ladislao and George Biro, invented the ballpoint pen (圆珠笔) that we all use today. They left their country Hungary (匈牙利) and started making ballpoint pens in England in 1943, during World War II. Later, a French company called Bic bought the Biro brothers’company. Some people call the ballpoint pens “Bics.”   Australians call them “biros.” Whatever we call them, we use them every day.

1. What instruments for writing are mentioned in the passage?
___________________________________________________________
2. Which was used more often before 1795, pencils or feather pens?
__________________________________________________________
3. Who invented ballpoint pens?
__________________________________________________________
4. Where were ballpoint pens made by Biro brothers?
__________________________________________________________
5. What does the underlined word “them” refer to(指代)?;
__________________________________________________________

4 . The Silk Road went from China to Eastern Europe. It went along the north of China, India, and Persia and ended up in Eastern Europe near today's Turkey and the Mediterranean Sea.

It was called the Silk Road because one of the major products traded was silk cloth from China. Chinese silk was soft and of high quality. So people throughout Asia and Europe loved it very much.    1    . Even the Romans called China the "land of silk".

Besides silk, the Chinese also sold teas, salt, sugar, porcelain（陶瓷）, and spices. Most of the goods was expensive. This was because it was a long trip and traders didn't have a lot of room for goods. They bought goods like cotton, ivory, wool, gold, and silver.

Traders traveled in large caravans. They would have many guards with them.    2    Most of the road was through dry land. So camels were popular animals for transport.

Although there was some trade between China and the rest of the world for some time, the silk trade developed quickly during the Han Dynasty which ruled from 206 BC to 220 AD.    3    During this time the Mongols controlled most of the trade road, and Chinese traders travel safely. Also, traders had a higher social position during the Mongol rule.

    4    It not only helped to develop trade between different countries, but also helped for ideas, culture and inventions to spread across the world.

A．The Silk Road was important.

B．The Chinese sold silk for thousands of years.

C．The Silk Road was full of wealth as well as danger.

D．Traveling in a big group like a caravan helped in protecting themselves.

E．Later, under the rule of the Yuan Dynasty, trade China along the Silk Road was fully developed.

5 . I live in Pennsylvania. It is a     1     （north）state of America, which is the 33rd    2     （large）state in America. You might know some of the cities, like Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Allentown. The state capital is Harrisburg. Now let me tell you a little more about my state.

Several Indian tribes（部落）lived in Pennsylvania before     3    （Europe）came. The Dutch came first,     4    （follow）by Sweden. England started colonies（殖民地） later. After a few fights, they    5    （take）control of the land.

Pennsylvania     6    （give）to the Penn family later. That is how Pennsylvania got its name. Pennsylvania was the    7    （two）to join the nation. The city of Philadelphia     8    （be）an important city since the colony was founded. It was even the capital of America, too!Today, Pennsylvania is sometimes regarded as the snack capital of the country. It is famous for snacks, like pretzels and chips, Heinz ketchup and sauces. There is also Hershey, which is well     9    （know）as the chocolate company.

There are steel companies in the state, as well as a lot of colleges. There are plenty of things     10    （do） in Pennsylvania. There are several major sports teams. Pennsylvania has 121 state parks, and they all have free     11    （enter）. Hunting is popular here, too.

Are you thinking about    12    （visit）the state?

6 . Today almost everyone knows computers and the Internet. If I ask you “What is the most important thing in your life?” maybe you will say “Computers and the Internet”.
The first computer was made in 1946. It was very big but it worked slowly.. Today, computers are getting smaller and smaller, but they work faster and faster. What can computers do? A writer has said, “People can't live without computers today.”
The Internet came a little later than computers. It is about 25 years later than computers. But now it can be found almost everywhere. We can use it to read books, send e-mails, do some shopping, play games or make friends.                      
Young men, especially the middle school students like the Internet very much. They often go into the Internet bars as soon as they are free. They make friends on the Internet and maybe they have never seen these friends. They don't know their names, ages and sex. They are so interested in making the “unreal friends” that they can't put their heart into study. Some of them play the games in the Internet bars all day and all night. Many of them can't catch up with others in many subjects because of that.
Now the government has done many things. Some ___________黑网吧)have been banned. But that's not enough. The teachers and parents are still worrying about their students and children.
We can use computers and the Internet to learn more about the world. But at the same time, we should remember that computers and the Internet could not do all the things.
1. How was the first computers?

A．It was not big.

B．It couldn't work fast.

C．It was very cheap.

D．It was no useful

2. When did people begin to use the Internet?

A．In the 19th century.

B．In the 1980s.

C．In the 1970s.

D．In the 1960s

3. Which of the following is true?

A．Computers can help people do everything.

B．Middle school students aren't allowed to use the Internet.

C．Some students have used the Internet bars to make the “unreal friends”.

D．computer isn’t good to students.

4. Which is the best title of the passage?

A．Computers and the Internet.

B．The Greatest Invention of This Century.

C．Gangster Internet Bars.

D．How to use the Internet

5. What's the meaning of the word “that” in the fourth paragraph ?

A．Students often go into the Internet bars as soon as they are free.

B．And they play the games in the Internet bars all day and all night.

C．Students are so interested in making the “unreal friends” that they can't put their heart into study.

D．All of above