1 . What’s the Silk Road? In history, it was an important international trade route（商路） between China and the Mediterranean（地中海）. The Silk Road began in the Western Han Dynasty and has a history of more than 2000 years.

In the past, the road started in Chang’an （now Xi’an） and ended in Eastern Europe near the Mediterranean. It was about 6500 kilometers long and went across 1/4 of the world.

The Silk Road got its name in the 19th century because Chinese silk was famous, and the traders also carried China’s porcelain（瓷器） and other things to the West. And glass, gems and food like carrots from the West came to China.

The Silk Road was very important to both China and the rest of the world. It was more than an international trade route. Lots of arts and science of other countries came to China through the Silk Road. In this way, languages and culture influenced each other. Today, China is trying to make the dream of the Belt and Road come true.

1. When did the Silk Road begin?

A．In the 18th century.	B．In the 19th century.
C．In the Eastern Han Dynasty.	D．In the Western Han Dynasty.

2. How long was the Silk Road in the past?

A．It was about 6500 meters long.	B．It went across 1/3 of the world.
C．It went across 1/4 of the world.	D．It was about 5000 kilometers long.

3. Traders carried China’s ________ to the West.
①silk
②glass
③porcelain

A．①②

B．①③

C．②③

D．①②③

4. Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?

A．The Silk Road was only an international trade route in the past.

B．China is trying to sell everything to other countries through the road now.

C．The Silk Road got its name because traders carried silk along this road.

D．Through the Silk Road, traders only brought the food of other countries to China.

5. Where can we most probably find this passage?

A．In a history book.	B．In an art magazine.
C．In a health book.	D．In a PE magazine.

2 . 根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

Can you imagine life without French fries (炸薯条)? Potatoes are very popular today.     1     Potatoes grew in South America five thousand years ago. They only became popular in other places two hundred years ago.

In the 16th century, the Spanish took the potato from South America to Europe.     2     Some people thought that if you ate the potato your skin (皮肤) would look like the skin of a potato. Other people could not believe that you ate the underground part of the plant. So they ate the leaves instead.     3    

In the 1800s people started to eat potatoes. In Ireland potatoes became the main food. Then, in 1845, a disease killed all the potatoes in Ireland.     4     At least another million were forced to leave their homeland.

    5     Germans eat potato salad, and the United States has the baked (烤) potato. And, of course, the French invented French fries. Now French fries are popular all over the world. The English and the French eat them with salt, and the Americans with tomato sauce.

A．One million people died of hunger.

B．But in the past this was not true.

C．You can’t eat this type of potato leaves.

D．Today, each country has its potato dish.

E．Now the Europeans eat potatoes in different ways.

F．But the people in Europe did not like this strange vegetable.

G．This made them sick because there are harmful things in the leaves.