1 . Many western cultures measure their days with the solar calendar. Therefore, they _______ the coming of the New Year on January 1. Cultures in Asia and the Middle East use other calendars and celebrate the New Year at other times. Events and rituals _______ from country to country. But in each place, New Year celebrations are a big _______ .

Most world cultures have been celebrating the New Year for centuries. The earliest New Year celebrations took place during spring or _______ time. With _______weather ahead, or plenty of food to eat in winter, people _______ felt like having a party! As the days became longer and as nature renewed itself, people also felt like they could have a new start. The New Year could bring better fortune, more opportunities and new challenges. Such_______ themes remain the same today.

Some cultures have _______ New Year traditions. Italians throw old things out of their windows at midnight, symbolizing the _______ of the old. Mexicans fire guns into the air to ward off ________. Danes jump off chairs exactly as the clock ________midnight, so they can “jump” into the New Year. Greek children leave their shoes by the fireplace on New Year’s Day. They hope “Santa Claus” will come and fill the shoes with ________. In Vancouver, Canada, some people celebrate the New Year by jumping into the ocean. The weather is freezing cold! As you might expect, most people come to watch the swimmers ________ swim themselves.

London hosts an annual New Year’s Day parade that ________ nearly a million spectators. The largest parade in Europe, it features bands, floats and enormous balloons. These balloons are so huge that they ________ over nearby buildings!

2 . What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the word “culture”？ Do you think of different groups of people across the world with various ____and clothing? What about animals?

Sam Williams,executive director of the Macaw(金刚鹦鹉）Recovery Network in Costa Rica, helps to ___the impact of the decline of macaw populations by taking birds that were born____and releasing them into the wild. But this process is very___

＂In a cage,you can't____them to know where,when and how to find that food, or about trees with good nest sites," Williams told ecologist and writer Carl Safina for the Guardian. In the wild, the parents would be the ones to teach them this important __

This type of knowledge is known as cultural knowledge. Cultural knowledge can be___ from the older generation to the newer one. For many species,cultural knowledge is necessary for ___

Culture helps animals to____different habitats.For example,some crows(乌鸦）have learned to put nuts in the middle of the road for cars to drive over. And in other areas, they have learned to do this at intersections so they can____get the food when the cars stop at red lights.

Other important parts of cultural knowledge include things like group identity, using different tools,taking different____routes and using different socializing methods.

These traditions can especially be seen in chimpanzee communities. Cat Hobaiter,who studies chimpanzees in Uganda,said:"It's not just the____of populations of chimps that worries me.I find____the possibility of losing each population's unique culture. That's permanent.”

Culture isn't just for____.Culture is also an important part of life in the wild from using tools to____.

3 . We should pay attention to different customs in different cultures. For example, in America, if you are invited to a wedding, baby shower, bar mitzvah (成年礼) or other ______, you’re expected to bring a gift. Usually, it should be modest in _______, about $25.

For a ______, the bride will often have “registered” a list of gifts at a local department store, indicating the items she ________. When you buy a registered item, tell the store that you’re doing this, so the couple doesn’t receive the ________ gift twice. For a baby shower, bring a gift ________ for a newborn baby. For a bar mitzvah, bring a gift appropriate for a 13-year-old boy. Because they are such important occasions, gifts for bar mitzvahs tend to be more ________, for example, a lovely pen with the boy’s full name on it is very meaningful and will be ________ by him.

If you wish to give a gift to American friends, choose something that is ________ to your country. It needn’t be valuable or ________, just typical of your home land. Such ________ include a book about your country, an inexpensive souvenir, or something else that reflects the ________ of your country. Young children who like collecting will probably be very ________ with a set of your country’s coins or stamps. Items that are ________ in your country but difficult to find abroad are also good.

If staying with an American family, a good way of ________ your thanks is to take them to a form of ________, such as a basketball game or a concert.

When giving gifts to a business acquaintance, don’t ________ anything too personal, ________ for a woman. A scarf or a hat is okay, but other types of ________ are not. Something fit for the office is also _________.

4 . I have learnt a lot about Chinese life and culture and found them very interesting.

First, family life is quite _______ in China from that in the USA. In the USA, many young people _______ home after they finish their education and start working. However, in China, it is _______ for people to live with their parents until they get married. Also, many of my Chinese friends told me that their _______ lived with them and helped take care of them when they were children. It seems that Americans think independence is more important _______ the Chinese think family relationships are more important.

Bargaining is another _______ that I have tried to learn. In the USA, prices are _______ and you can’t ask for a lower price. However in some small Chinese stores and tourist places, you are _______ to bargain. My Chinese friends taught me to ask for 40 percent or 50 percent _______ the original price. If the salesperson doesn’t agree to my price, I should ________ to leave and he might let me come back and sell me the item. It is a skill that you have to ________ if you live in China.

Tipping hasn’t been easier to adjust to. In the USA, many people in the service industry want to get ________ money for serving customers. Tipping is not a part of Chinese culture. Once I tried to tip a taxi driver. He looked a little ________ and refused to take the money. In dinners, perhaps what surprises an American visitor the most is that some of the Chinese hosts like to put food into the plates of their ________. Actually, this is a sign of true friendship and politeness. My Chinese friend told me if I didn’t want to eat it, I should just ________ the food in the plate.

5 . Fujian puppetry(木偶戏) has a thousand-year history. It is one of the _______ of Chinese performing art to the world’s culture and has_________a set of characteristic techniques of performance and puppet making, as well as a repertoire (全部剧目) of plays and music.

No _______ has yet been reached on the_________and development of Chinese puppetry. _______ the Shang dynasty (16th-11th century B.C.), pottery figurines (陶俑) used as burial objects (随葬品) have been discovered at the Yin Ruins. Wooden figurines _______during the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States Periods (770-221 B.C.). In a Western Han tomb at Mawangdui in Changsha, Hunan province, an army of wooden figurines of singers, dancers and musicians have been discovered. These were a great _______ on those from previous dynasties _______craftsmanship, variety and modeling, which represent the _______Chinese puppets. Over time, figurines as burial objects ________ into puppets for entertainment during holiday__________. ________, just like many other traditional forms of art, Fujian puppetry has fallen out of favour with the younger generations. The number of young people learning puppetry has ________ due to socioeconomic changes ________their lifestyles and the long period of training ________to master the sophisticated (复杂的) performing techniques.

In response, ________ communities, groups and bearers (传授者) worked out the 2008-2020 Strategy for the Training of Coming Generations of Fujian Puppetry Practitioners. The key ________ are to safeguard the spread of Fujian Puppetry and provide professional ________to raise a new generation of puppetry practitioners.

In 2012, the strategy was selected by the UNESCO to be part of the Register of Good Safeguarding Practices. With the wide ________ of practitioners, local people and education institutions, Fujian Puppetry can__________ a brighter future.

6 . Alia Baker is a librarian in Iraq. Her library used to be a_______place for all who loved books and liked to share knowledge. They discussed various matters all over the world. When the war was near, Alia was_______ that the fires of war would destroy the books,   which are more _______to her than mountains of gold. The books are in every language- new books, ancient books, even a book on the history of Iraq that is seven hundred years old.

She had asked the government for _______to move the books to a_______ place, but they refused. So Alia took matters into her own hands. _______, she brought books home every night, filling her car late after work. Her friends came to help her when the war broke out. Anis who owned a restaurant _______to hide some books. All through the night, Alia, Anis, his brothers and neighbours took the books from the library, _______ them over the seven foot wall and _______them in the restaurant. The books stayed hidden as the war ________. Then nine days later, a fire burned the ________ to the ground.

One day, the bombing stopped and the________ left. But the war was not over yet. Alia knew that if the books were to be safe, they must be ________ again while the city was ________. So she hired a truck to, bring all the books to the houses of friends in the suburbs (郊区). Now Alia waited for the war to end and ________peace and a new library.

7 . People give gifts in almost all societies. Some gifts are expensive, as they may take months to create. Others are of less ______ , such as birthday cards. In some cultures, there are certain rules about gift exchange. In Pakistan, for example, there is a tradition called “taking giving”. It ______ this way：You give the newly-married couple a gift, and they “repay（回报）”you with a gift of higher value. Then you give the couple another gift. This one should be worth the difference between the first two gifts.

Today presidents usually bring gifts when they ______ a foreign leader. Leaders bring gifts to strengthen relationships between ______ .

Gifts can also send special messages. For example, gifts can tell people that we are thinking of them and that we want them to feel_______ . Sometimes a gift makes us remember the giver. The gift keeps the_____ of a special person and a special relationship alive．

There is no doubt about the good side of gift giving. That is why some people don’t ______ the idea that modern gift giving is very wasteful. It is ______ that there is an emotional benefit for people who exchange gifts. That is surely enough of a reason for the tradition to continue.

8 . The other day I shared knowledge on several aspects of Hindi (印地) culture with you. Today I’m hoping to paint a better picture of _______ it means to give in Hindi and how their generosity differs from_______of Western culture.

I was_______when we learned the expression “thank you” doesn’t really exist in Hindi. In the mountains, it is _______used, and people often seemed _______when we tried to thank them. They _______ either turn their heads, or shake their hands at us.

When we asked our Indian friends why this is so, they _______ that giving and generosity are vital parts of their culture. Giving is more of a_______of “changing hands” than an act of generosity. In their eyes, the foods they would give us were _______ really “theirs”. They see them as something passed along to them and now they are ________ passing them along to us.

The villagers were eager to ________ their best cucumbers to a passing stranger. ________, people in the U.S. tend to________old, used, or unwanted things ________their treasured ones.

________, during a coffee break, a friend told me about how he donated his ________clothes and shoes — just for the ________of giving up the possessions he likes most. Giving is ________Westerners can certainly do. We can practice ________giving away the things we value most — not only actual physical possessions, but also perhaps even more ________, our time and attention.

9 . I’d never been to a Day of the Dead festival before. As my dad and I looked around for seats, I _______ Marco, my best friend, hurrying toward us. “Hi, Mr. O’kane,” he _______ my dad. Then he turned to me. “Nate! Will you help me?"

“Whatever you need,” I said.

Marco threw me parts of a _______ : Mexican sandals（凉鞋）, a straw hat, a cane(手杖), a gray wig, and an“ old man” mask（面具）. “My cousin couldn’t_______ !” Marco’s voice rang with worry.

“It’s part of a traditional dance” he said.

“You expect me to dance? ” I _______ . “I don’t dance!”

Marco smiled. “It’ll be fun. And hurry! We’re _______ late.”

“ We’re going to do a lot of stomping(跺脚). Slow at first. Keep one hand _______ on your back, like an old man with an ache.” added Marco.

The speakers _______ : “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time for The Dance of the Little Old Men!”

“Be quick,” Marco _______ to me to follow his lead.

We all began stomping slowly to music. I could only see ________ the small holes of the mask. I continued to stomp, trying to ________ what to do. I leaned on my cane and kept a hand low on my back. After a few minutes of dancing like that, my back ________ started to ache.

The music ________ . And we stomped quickly. Performing with Mexican sandals was ________ . People laughed as we hopped and kicked, but after a moment the laughter turned into cheers.

Marco gave me a thumbs-up. As the audience clapped for our group, I said to him happily, “You were right. That was ________ .”

10 . April Fool’s Day is a western festival. No one _______ exactly when and how April Fool’s Day began.

However, there are some stories about _______ it came into being. One story _______like this: in the sixteenth-century France, the start of the new year was on April first. It was celebrated _______much the same way _______it is today with parties and dancing into the late hours of the night. Then in 1562, Pope (教皇) Gregory introduced a new calendar (日历) for the Christian world, and the new year fell on January first. There were some people, _______, who hadn’t heard or didn’t believe the _______in the date, so they _______to celebrate New Year’s Day on April first. _______played tricks on them and called them “April fools”. They tried to make them believe that something false was ________. In France today, April first is called “April Fish”. French children fool their friends by taping a paper fish to their friends’ ________. When the “young fool” ________this trick, the prankster (恶作剧者) shouts “April Fish!”

Today Americans play small tricks on friends and strangers alike on the first of April. One ________trick on April Fool’s Day is ________to a friend’s shoe and saying, “Your shoelace is united (开了).” School children might tell a classmate that school has been canceled. ________the trick is, if you fail for the joke the prankster shouts “April Fool!”

In Britain today, on the first of April, even ________newspapers, radio and TV programs tell big lies. You ________read a science ________showing that doctors have found a way to cure AIDS, ________you would probably listen to a piece of news about an UFO________on an island.