3 . Directions: Fill in each blank with a proper word chosen from the box.Each word can be used only once.Note that there is one word more than you need.

A.approaches       B.shape       C.previously       D.evident       E.secrets       F.date G.hardly       H.remains       I.irrelevant        J.potential       K.particularly

Swedish Archaeologists Make New Discoveries

Archaeologists have begun exploring an unknown ancient city at a village called Vlochós, five hours north of Athens. The archaeological     1     are scattered on and around the Strongilovoúni hill on the great Thessalian plains and can be traced to several historical periods.

“What used to be considered remains of some     2     settlement can now be upgraded to remains of a city of higher significance than     3     thought,”says Robin Rönnlund, PhD student in Classical Archaeology and Ancient History at the University of Gothenburg and leader of the fieldwork.

“We came across the site which has never been explored before in connection with another project last year and realised the great     4    right away.”

Working together with the Swedish Institute at Athens and the local archaeological service in Karditsa, the Vlochós Archaeological Project (VLAP) was started with an aim to explore the remains. The project’s research team completed the first field season during two weeks in September 2016.

Rönnlund says that the hill is hiding many     5    . Remains of towers, walls and city gates can be found on the mountaintop and slopes, but     6     anything is visible on the ground below. The ambition is to avoid digging and instead use     7     such as ground-penetrating radar. This will enable the team to leave the site in the same     8     as it was in when they arrived. The success of this method is     9     from the results of the first field season:

“We found a town square and a street network that indicate that we are dealing with quite a large city. The area inside the city wall measures over 40 hectares. We also found ancient pottery and coins that can help to     10     the city. Our oldest finds are from around 500 BC, but the city seems to have flourished mainly from the fourth to the third century BC before it was abandoned for some reason, maybe in connection with the Roman conquest of the area.”

Rönnlund believes that the Swedish-Greek project can provide important clues as to what happened during this violent period in Greek history.

4 . Culture can affect not just language and customs, but also how people experience the world on surprisingly basic levels.

Researchers, with the help of brain scans, have uncovered shocking differences in perception(感知) between Westerners and Asians, what they see when they look at a city street, for example, or even how they perceive a simple line in a square, according to findings published in a leading science journal

In western countries, culture makes people think of themselves as highly independent entities(实体) .When looking at scenes, Westerners tend to focus more on central objects than on their surroundings. East Asian cultures, however emphasize inter-dependence. When Easterners look at a scene, they tend to focus on surroundings as well as the object.

Using an experiment involving two tasks, Dr Hedden asked subjects to look at a line simply to estimate its length, a task that is played to American strengths. In another, they estimated the line's length relative to the size of a square, an easier task for the Asians.

The level of brain activity, by tracking blood flow, was then measured by Brain Scanners. The experiment found that although there was no difference in performance, and the tasks were very easy, the levels of activity in the subjects’ brains were different. For the Americans, areas linked to attention lit up more, when they worked on the task they tended to find more difficult--estimating the line's size relative to the square. For the Asians, the attention areas lit up more during the harder task also--estimating the line's length without comparing it to the square. The findings are a reflection of more than ten years of previous experimental research into east-west differences

In one study, for instance, researchers offered people a choice among five pens, four red and one green. Easterners were more likely to choose a red pen while Westerners were more likely to choose the green one.

Culture is not affecting how you see the world, but how you choose to understand and internalize(使内化) it. But such habits can be changed. Some psychological studies suggest that when an Easterner goes to the West or vice versa, habits of thought and perception also begin to change. Such research gives us clues on how our brain works and is hopeful for us to develop programs to improve our memory, memory techniques and enhance and accelerate our learning skills.

1. According to the passage, Chinese people are most likely to_________.

A．emphasize independent thinking more

B．always focus more on their surroundings

C．focus on the context as well as object

D．think of Westerners as highly independent entities

2. We know from the passage that people's brains will be more active when_________.

A．the task is much easier

B．the blood flow is tracked

C．people begin to choose colors

D．the task is more difficult

3. What do the findings of the experiments mentioned in the passage indicate?

A．They indicate that culture has a great impact on the way people talk and behave.

B．They show that Easterners and Westerners have great differences in perceiving the world

C．They suggest that people's habits of thought and perception can be changed in different cultures.

D．They make it clear that Easterners and Westerners lay emphasis on different things

4. It can be inferred from the passage that_________.

A．Easterners prefer collectivism to individualism

B．East Asian cultures lay more emphasis on independence

C．It took over ten years to find out how to improve our brainpower

D．Americans will change their habits of perception when they're in Britain

5 . Essay

April 12   Rainy Today, I arrived at my friend Worawut’s house outside of Bangkok for the holidays. His family was doing a spring-cleaning of their pretty wooden house in preparation for Songkran Festival. They put their hands together to greet me with a traditional gesture called the wai. April 13   Cloudy         That smells wonderful! The women were cooking Thai foods for the next day’s ceremonies. We men went to the river and brought lots of sand to the village wat. The wat was a beautiful Buddhist temple where the monks lived. We left the sand in piles near the wat. April 14   Sunny We all dressed up and went to the village wat. The monks waited with their bowls at a long table. Monks are used to a life of sacrifice and discipline, but not today. We filled their bowls with rice and all kinds of palatable foods. Everyone smiled and music played as the monks ate. After that, we attended the bathing ceremony. We poured water over little stone Buddhas. Young people poured some sweet water into the hands of older people to show respect for them. Outside, everyone used sand we had brought to make sand pagodas. April 15   Sunny Today was the last day of the festival, and Worawut told me to get ready for some water throwing. We put lots of buckets of water on the truck and drove into the village. Everyone was throwing buckets of water. Nobody escaped dry! On such a hot day, the water felt really good. I can’t wait to come back next year!

1. The passage is most probably taken from _______.

A．a festival poster

B．a traveler’s festival journal

C．a festival brochure

D．a traveler’s festival poem

2. According to the passage, Songkran Festival is held _______.

A．in middle April

B．when the weather turns cold

C．in the beginning of April

D．at the end of April

3. During Songkran Festival, if young people in Thailand want to show respect for older people, they should _______.

A．cook various kinds of foods for older people

B．take sand from the river, and then use the sand to make pagodas for older people

C．pour smelly water all over older people

D．pour the water that smells good into the hands of older people

4. The writer wants to come back to Thailand next year, mainly because _______.

A．the throwing of water made him feel joyful

B．the delicious Thai foods left him with a deep impression

C．his friend Worawut treated him very well

D．dancing with the monks brought him a lot of fun

6 . It is 9:05 a.m. and a group of Chinese businessmen are outside a hotel conference room in Sao Paulo, waiting for their Brazilian (巴西的) hosts. The meeting was scheduled to start five minutes ago, but, like many meetings in Brazil, it did not start on time. The Brazilians arrive, complaining loudly about the morning’s traffic and go immediately to breakfast. Cultural differences between the two countries become clear.

In 2009, China replaced the US as Brazil’s biggest trading partner. As a result，Brazilian companies are keen to understand the Chinese better and find the best way to do business together.

For companies already working with China, getting to know the culture is a priority. At Chinbra, São Paulo’s biggest Chinese language school, students, who mainly work in the import business, take evening classes to learn Chinese. About half the lesson is about culture issues. They ask questions such as “Should I give my business card with two hands?” and “What presents should I give-something Brazilian?”

Some business deals fail because of small things like a misunderstood e-mail. “In addition to language problems, there is also a lack of cultural understanding between the two countries.” says Charles Tang, president of the Brazil-China Chamber of Commerce.

One big issue is timing. For successful deals with the Chinese, it is important to be on time for meetings and to meet deadlines.                                In Brazil, because of high inflation (通货膨胀) during the 1980s and early 1990s and many failed plans, long-term planning was not a priority. Today, many companies still prefer to plan as they go along and fix problems when they happen. The Chinese are totally different. They like to plan everything in advance and in detail.

1. According to paragraph 1, Brazilians are most likely to ________ when they host international conferences.

A．have breakfast	B．make it a priority to arrive on time
C．warn of the bad local traffic conditions	D．be late and keep their guests waiting

2. What do students focus on at Chinbra?

A．Practical tips jellyfish on doing import business.

B．Proper manners in multinational companies.

C．The Chinese language and cultural knowledge.

D．The survival skills needed in Chinese companies.

3. Which of the following sentences best fits in the blank in the last paragraph?

A．Another issue is planning.	B．It’s a matter of principle.
C．Otherwise conflict will arise.	D．Things may differ elsewhere.

7 . Directions: Read the following two passages. Fill in each blank with one proper word or the proper form of the given word to make the passage coherent. Make sure that your answers are grammatically correct.

The Origin of New Year’s Resolutions

Happy New Year! For many in the UK, if the New Year means anything, it means       1     (turn) over new leaf. And to do this, many of us make New Year’s resolutions-a list of ways     2     we intend to improve ourselves in the year ahead. We reflect on our past mistakes and make up our minds not to do them again.     3     (give) up smoking is ever popular, as is a promise to take up more exercise or spend more time with family.

But have you ever wondered when the idea of a New Year’s resolution comes from? The answer might lie in ancient Babylonia, according to History. com. The Babylonians     4     (believe) to be the first to hold recorded celebrations for the New Year. The 12 day-long celebration,     5     (name) Akitu, allowed them not only     6     (show) their loyalty to the King, but also to appeal to the gods to pay their debts and return the borrowed objects.

The ancient Romans too had similar traditions. New Year’s Day was a time     7     all government officers would take an oath(发誓) that they     8     obey the laws and support the city leader. Incidentally, the month of January is named after the Roman god Janus. He is the god of beginnings, transitions and time, among other things and is described as having two faces-one looking to the past and     9     facing forward to the future.

Whether you’re looking at a quick behavioral change     10     a huge personality checkup, you’re taking part in a tradition that goes back centuries. I wish you all the best sticking to your resolutions. Happy New Year!

8 . Most of time black and white appears as opposites. White means light and purity(纯洁),while black is darkness and evil. But it is not always true. Sometimes the words are used differently.

White hats and black hats represent the traditional meaning of the words. The hats are used to tell the “good guys” and the “bad guys” in American western movies. Now the tradition of white hats and black hats is no longer a part of movie making,but you still hear the expression when people talk about good guys and bad guys. “A black sheep” is a person who does things that are not accepted,who breaks tradition. “A black sheep” is rejected(被排斥)because he brings shame to his group. A family may have a member who is thought of as “a black sheep”,a person who is not welcome at family gatherings.

Black is also used in some expressions that describe good things. Being “in the black” for example,is a good thing for anyone. It is a business expression that means a company is making money. When someone says his business is “in the red”,he means it is losing money.

White usually means something good. A “white collar” job,for example,is the kind of job many people want. It is a job where you work at a desk,using your brain instead of your muscles. Sometimes white is used in an expression that is not good. “Whitewash” is such an expression. At first “whitewash” meant to paint over something with a white paint to make it look better. But now “whitewash” has a different meaning: to hide or cover up mistakes or failures.

1. When a person is called “a black sheep”,it shows that______.

A．he is as black as a sheep

B．he always feels on top of the world

C．he will create wonders

D．he is not welcomed by people around him

2. Which of the statements is NOT true according to the passage？

A．People usually think of black and white as opposites.

B．White hats and black hats are only used in movies.

C．White hats and black hats represent the “good guys” and the bad guys.

D．Black usually means something bad while white often means something good.

3. All of the following expressions mean something not good EXCEPT______.

A．a black sheep

B．black hats

C．in the black

D．whitewash

9 . Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct. Use one word that best fits each blank.

The word taboo comes from the Tongan language and is used in modern English to describe verbal and nonverbal behavior that is forbidden or to be avoided.     1     what some may think, taboos are not universal. They tend to be specific to a culture or country, and usually form around a group’s values and beliefs.     2     is considered acceptable behavior in one country may be a serious taboo in another. Therefore,     3     you travel to another country, on business or vacation, it is helpful to learn some of that country’s customs     4     you don’t insult the local people.

Verbal taboos usually involve topics     5     people believe are too private to talk about publicly, or release to one’s manner of speaking. In many cultures, for example, it is considered bad manners to discuss subjects     6     sex or religion in public. In some countries, the volume of one’s voice may annoy people.

Nonverbal taboos usually relate to body languages. One of the biggest difference among many Western Asian, and African cultures is the use of eye contact. In the USA, people make eye contact when talking to others. If a person avoids eye contact, others might think they are being honest or     7     they lack confidence. In many Asian and African cultures, however, children are taught to lower their eyes when talking to their elders, or     8     of higher rank, as a way to show respect.

Certain gestures made with the hands can have very different meanings depending on     9     you are. For example, Crossing your middles finger over your forefinger is the sign for good luck in many western countries, in Vietnam and Argentina, however, it is an unsuitable gesture.

Behavior that is acceptable and non-offensive in one culture can be highly offensive in another. When visiting a foreign country, be aware of some of the basic differences,     10     will help to ensure a more enjoyable trip.

10 . Direction: After reading   the passage below. Fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct

Increasingly, various phrases have been taking over a good old-fashioned "thank you" or "you’re welcome" in daily conversations in the United States. While     1     (dine)at a restaurant, when a waiter comes by to ask Americans     2     .they would like more water or bread, do you notice that they often say " I'm good,” rather than "no, thank you?” When someone thanks them for holding the door open, "no problem "is almost the same response as "you're welcome”.

Are Americans becoming ruder,     3     (abandon) traditional polite phrases, or are the words they use now just updated versions of the same emotion?

According to Lisa Gache, co-founder of Beverly Hills Manners, the decline of these magic words in our everyday conversation has to do with the preference     4     all things casual in our society today. Casual conversation, casual dress and casual behavior are present in all areas of life.

And apparently Americans agree with her. A survey     5     (conduct)by Rasmussen Reports revealed that 76 percent of those surveyed thought that Americans were becoming "ruder and     6     (civil).”

But is using phrases like "no problem"or “you bet"or " enjoy” really rude? Does more casual

phrasing erase the original emotion of gratitude? Doesn’t "no, thank you" sometimes sound a little too formal, perhaps even a little too harsh(刺耳的),     7     it begins with a “no”?

Emily Post Senning,     8     great-grandmother set the standard on manners with the book Etiquette, thought that while the principles of respect and consideration are "universal and timeless, " actual manners change over time and between cultures,     9     do the words used to express gratitude and appreciation.

It's probably not a bad idea     10     (remember)to say "please" and "thank you,” but don’t beat yourself up thinking you're a horrible person if you say "have a good one" instead of "have a nice day.”