2 . The British Museum is one of the biggest museums in the world. Inside, you feel smaller than usual. There are many things to see.

The story of the British Museum dates back three hundred years or so to one unusual man, Sir Hans Sloane, a doctor of King George II. The doctor collected books, drawings, clothes, money, animals, and flowers from all over the world. The doctor wanted everything to stay together before he died, so that people could come and have a look. The British Museum began. King George II gave away his library, and the museum started to grow.

The British Museum opened in 1759, six years after Sir Hans Sloane died. At first, the museum was only open three days a week and only ten people could enter in an hour. There wasn’t much time to see things. Visitors had to run through the rooms.

By about 1800, things began to get better. Wonderful statues, three thousand years old, arrived from Egypt. King George IV sold all his books to the museum secretly. A hundred years ago not only old books but also new ones arrived at the museum, and more people came to read them. Since then many famous men have written and studied there. And the library is growing faster and faster. There are four kilometers of new shelves every year and there are about six million visitors each year.

5 . 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(扩散) 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 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 travelled through Central Asia. They started to live somewhere near the ancient Chinese village of Liqian. Some of these Romans married local Chinese women and the story of blue-eyed villages of China was started.

During its busiest period, the Silk Road allowed people from many different cultures and countries to meet each other and mix. The Silk Road allowed the sharing of valuable goods(货物) and new ideas. These included people and trading goods from the Mediterranean, Persian, Magyar, Armenian, Bactrian, Indian and Chinese areas. All these peoples travelled the Silk Road, and they shared goods, stories, languages and cultures.

In modern times, the old Silk Road routes(路线) are still used but now they are crossed 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.

6 . People often remember what they were doing when they     1     (hear) the news of important events in history. In America,     2     example, many people remember what they were doing on April 4, 1968. This was     3     important event in American history. On this day, Dr. Martin Luther King was     4     (kill). 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     5     (compete) 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     6     (terrorist). Even the date — September 11, 2001 — has     7     (mean) to most Americans.

This was a day Kate Smith will never forget. She remembers     8     (work) 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     9     (be) true. I was so     10     (scare) that I could hardly think clearly after that.”

On Sept. 30, I watched a film on the Chinese People’s Volunteers who joined the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea（抗美援朝）（1950-53）— The Battle at Lake Changjin. It was directed ________ Chen Kaige, Hark Tsui and Lin Chaoxian. The release of this film has   ________ a chance for the young people of China to remember history and heroes, ________   the reality that China’s prosperity（繁荣）and strength cannot be separated from dedication（奉献）. It is the best movie I have seen. When ________, my eyes were wet. It is ________ a touching film. “You are only tough enough when your enemies take you ________” is my favorite actor’s line.

More than 70 years ago, many Chinese ________ to fight for our homeland in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. With the ________ of the nation and people, the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army crossed the Yalu River and won a great victory after two years and nine months of fighting. For more than half a century, China has never ________ its heroes. We are ________ of them and we will remember them forever.

9 . We see humans all around us. But when was the first human seen? Early humans did not leave behind any written records. However, they left behind many paintings on the walls of the caves (洞穴) where they lived. These paintings tell about their life, and we know these early humans walked on four limbs (四肢) like apes (猿). Also, they did not live at one place but moved from place to place in search of food and water.

Without any tools, early humans used stones, bones of animals, and sharp pieces of wood to dig, hunt and cut their food. They also used these to protect themselves from animals. Since stones were used to make tools, this age was called Stone Age.

With time going, tools made of bones and stones were replaced with metal ones which were stronger, sharper, and longer-lasting. Metals were also used for farming and making knives. Copper (铜) was the first metal to be used.

The first fire that early humans noticed was natural fire caused by lightning. With fire, early humans could now light up dark caves. They could keep themselves warm during cold weather and cook meat. Also the fire could drive animals away.

Early humans noticed new trees growing from the seeds that fell to the ground from the fruits. This gave them the idea that they could make their own food by planting seeds, which led to farming. With the beginning of farming, early humans began to settle down. They moved out of the caves and lived on farms and near the fields together, then the first villages came up.

Raising animals was a big event in human history that changed the life of early humans. The wild dogs were probably the first animal to be raised. As time went, goats, sheep, cows, donkeys, and horses were kept, too. This led to herding (畜牧业). Milk, meat and wool came from these animals.