1 . The discovery of the ruined palace in the Mosul Dam reservoir on the banks of the Tigris River inspired an archeological dig that would improve understanding of the Mittani Empire, one of the least-researched empires of the ancient Near East, a team of German researchers said. “The find is one of the most important archeological discoveries in the region in recent decades,” Kurdish archeologist(考古学家) Hasan Qasim said.
The palace would have originally stood just 65 feet from the river on a terrace(梯田). A terrace wall of mud bricks was later added to make the building stable. Ivana Puljiz, an archeologist from the University of Tübingen’s Institute for Ancient Near Eastern Studies, describes the palace, known as Kemune, as a carefully designed building with mud-brick walls up to 2 meters (6.6 feet) thick.
The team also found wall paintings in shades of red and blue, which were probably a common feature of palaces at the time but have rarely been found preserved. “Discovering wall paintings in Kemune is an archeological sensation,” Puljiz said in a press release, “Kemune is only the second site in the region where wall paintings of the Mittani period have been discovered.”
Ten clay tablets covered in cuneiform, an ancient system of writing, were also discovered and have been sent to Germany for translation. “From the texts we hope to gain information on the inner structure of the Mitani Empire, its economic organization, and the relationship of the Mittani capital with the administrative centers in the neighboring regions,” Puljiz added.
Archeologists first became aware of the site in 2010 when water levels in the reservoir were low, but this is the first time they have been able to dig. However, the site was submerged(淹没) shortly after the dig, Puljiz said, adding“It is unclear when it will come out of water again”.
1. The function of the archeological dig is to ________.| A．attract people to travel to the Tigris River |
| B．help people know the Mittani Empire better |
| C．show ways of rebuilding the Mosul Dam reservoir |
| D．provide some clues about research on the Near East |
| A．To make the palace firmly built. | B．To offer tourists a place for rest. |
| C．To give tourists a good view. | D．To make the building better designed |
| A．Kemune is different from any other palace. |
| B．Wall paintings were an important discovery. |
| C．Kemune is famous for its special wall paintings |
| D．Wall paintings were first discovered in the Mittani Empire. |
| A．Translating the cuneiform into English | B．Knowing relationships between regions. |
| C．Waiting for the water level to drop. | D．Understanding the structure of the empire. |
2 . Life is already difficult as a single mother, but for Rebecca Polston, every day is a battle of strength and courage.
Her son, Rhylon, has been on dialysis (透析) since he began his
Rebecca and Rhylon were
Since then, Rebecca has been able to fully meet Rhylon’s needs, which have included at least one
| A．experience | B．plan | C．fight | D．decision |
| A．laugh | B．work | C．love | D．drive |
| A．relies | B．lives | C．travels | D．turns |
| A．disappeared | B．went | C．struck | D．left |
| A．slightly | B．badly | C．formally | D．secretly |
| A．collect | B．borrow | C．accept | D．afford |
| A．funny | B．uncertain | C．promising | D．dull |
| A．discussed | B．debated | C．greeted | D．refused |
| A．station | B．government | C．bank | D．community |
| A．thrown | B．presented | C．lent | D．transported |
| A．life | B．heroics | C．idea | D．kindness |
| A．car | B．toy | C．house | D．radio |
| A．home | B．hospital | C．department | D．ambulance |
| A．removed | B．played | C．posted | D．sold |
| A．arrived | B．given | C．moved | D．poured |
3 . Most of us consider winter a great time to stay inside with a good book. Yet the winter months offer great outdoor events.
The Ice Festival at Lake Khovsgol, March 2, 3
Lake Khovsgol, called the Blue Pearl of Mongolia, freezes up to 1.5 meters deep. Each year local residents have a two-day celebration, sharing their traditional songs and dances. Activities including sled races, skating and much more take place on the frozen lake. Visitors from different countries are always surprised to see how much weight the lake can hold.
Anchorage Fur Rendezvous, February 27~March 8
North America’s largest winter festival takes place in Anchorage, Alaska. In the past, the fur trade was one of the state’s most important industries. The festival’s 86th anniversary this year will celebrate Alaska’s pioneer way of life. People can enjoy nearly 70 different activities. Winter games and sports are a special feature as visitors celebrate the season. Tourists come from around the world to attend the festival.
Troms International Film Festival, January 12~18
If film is your passion, then Norway’s Troms film festival is for you! You will get to meet and interact with people from the international film industry. And you’ll be able to view some of the world’s best international films on Troms’s enormous outdoor screen. More than 50,000 people attend the festival each year.
Grindelwald World Snow Festival, January 19~24
Every January, ice art takes center stage in the beautiful Swiss village of Grindelwald. Artists from around the world arrive in mid-January to accept the ice challenge. They start with meter-high blocks of ice and spend six days creating spectacular sculptures (雕塑). Festival-goers are delighted to see the process as well as the finished pieces.
Don’t let the cold weather keep you inside this season. There are lots of fun and exciting events to attend!
1. What is the purpose of this text?| A．To explain why winter is not a good time to stay inside. |
| B．To show benefits of some exciting winter festivals. |
| C．To tell about the history of the winter festivals. |
| D．To introduce some fun-filled winter festivals . |
| A．It has activities related to ice. |
| B．It is held on the frozen lake. |
| C．Its visitors are from all over the world. |
| D．It is specially fit for film-lovers. |
| A．The Ice Festival at Lake Khovsgol |
| B．Anchorage Fur Rendezvous |
| C．Troms International Film Festival |
| D．Grindelwald World Snow Festival |
A．Health. | B．Science. |
| C．Life. | D．News. |
4 . Herder (放牧人) Buchu Boru has to walk tens of kilometers in search of grassland for his animals during times of drought (干旱)—but he isn’t sure whether he will succeed or not. “Somebody tells you that there is grassland but on arriving, you don’t find any,” said the herder. But when the rains fail next time, he will have a new mobile phone app which will help him move his animals to grassland without too much cost or waste of time.
The Afriscout app, which uses satellite images to find where there is grass and water, claims to be better than what people in Africa are used to. With the app, African herders will be very sure where the grassland with water is and then they will just head there.
Afriscout that reduces the uncertainties associated with the journeys can help protect herds and incomes, making families more adaptable to the severe conditions.
Afriscout, developed by Project Concern International (PCI), a California-based development organization, was first released in Boru’s area in February. The app so far has had about 3,000 users in Kenya, but PCI hopes to increase the number to 4,000 once it finishes mapping Samburu Country, home to the Samburu herding community. It is already used in Tanzania and Ethiopia and PCI plans to expand it in other African countries like Niger soon, said Brenda Wandera, the organization's acting representative in Kenya.
However, the new app faces a few challenges, including limited mobile phone connectivity in some areas, and broad use of old-style mobile phones rather than smart phones. Now, few herders in the region own smart phones—but that may change if they find the app useful.
1. Why dose Boru walk a long distance during drought?| A．To harvest some grass. | B．To move to a new place. |
| C．To search for drinkable water. | D．To find food for his animals. |
| A．It was released in California at first. |
| B．It can take photos of a satellite. |
| C．It will be used in more African countries. |
| D．It eases Kenyan environmental problems. |
| A．Environment. | B．Technology. |
| C．Lifestyle. | D．Economy. |
| A．Hi-tech can protect animals and incomes. |
| B．Afriscout faces some challenges in Kenya. |
| C．An app helps herders cut risk from drought. |
| D．An organization invented an app for the poor. |
5 . A study of violinists found that merely good players practised as much as better players, leaving other factors such as quality of education, learning skills and perhaps natural talent to account for the difference.
This finding challenges the 10, 000-hour rule promoted in Malcolm Gladwell’s 1993 study of violinists and pianists. Gladwell states that enough practice will make an expert of anyone. “The idea has been popular and entrenched in our culture for years. It’s not an idiom but an overstatement,” said Brooke Macnamara, the lead author. “When it comes to human skill, a complex combination of environmental factors and genetic factors explains the performance differences across people.”
Macnamara and her colleagues set out to repeat part of the 1993 study to see whether they reached the same conclusion. They interviewed three groups of 13 violinists regarded as best, good, or less accomplished about their practice habits, before having them complete daily diaries of their activities over a week. While the less skillful violinists reached an average of about 6,000 hours of practice by the age of 20, there was little to separate the good from the best, with each reaching an average of about 11,000 hours. In all, the number of hours spent practising accounted for about a quarter of the skill difference across the three groups.
Macnamara believes practice is less of a driver. “Once you get to the highly skilled groups, practice stops accounting for the difference. Everyone has practised a lot and other factors are at play in determining who goes on to a higher level,” she said. “The factors depend on the skill being learned: in chess it could be intelligence or working memory; in sport it may be how efficiently a person uses oxygen. To complicate matters further, one factor can drive another. Children who enjoy playing the violin, for example, may be happy to practise because they do not see it as a trouble.”
The authors of the 1993 study are unimpressed. Macnamara said it was important for people to understand the limits of practice, though. “Practice makes you better than you were yesterday, most of the time,” she said. “But it might not make you better than your neighhour or the other kid in your violin class.”
1. What does the underlined word “entrenched” in paragraph 2 probably mean?| A．Rooted. | B．Advanced. | C．Changed. | D．Unconfirmed. |
| A．It convinced Malcolm Gladwell. | B．It involved violinists and pianists. |
| C．Its process was similar to the 1993 study. | D．Its result is consistent with the 1993 study. |
| A．Practicing for 11,000 hours is their main driver. |
| B．They enjoy keeping diaries about their progress. |
| C．Environmental factors have little relation to their success. |
| D．More practice makes little difference to their further progress. |
| A．What makes an expert? | B．Does practice make perfect? |
| C．The early bird catches the worm | D．Enthusiasm is the key to success |
