1 . Shadow puppetry, also known as shadow play, is an ancient form of storytelling and entertainment in China. ___①___ Shadow puppets were first made of paper later from the leather of donkeys or oxen. That’s why its Chinese name is piying, which means shadow of leather.
___②___ It became popular in the Tang dynasty and prevalent in the Ming and Qing dynasties.
The following story recorded in The History of the Han Dynasty is believed to be the origin of shadow puppetry.
___③___ More than 2,000 years ago, a beloved concubine of Emperor Wu of Han died of illness. The emperor missed her so much that he lost his desire to reign. One day, a minister happened to see children playing with dolls whose shadows on the floor were vivid. Inspired by this scene, the minister came across an idea. He made a cotton puppet of the concubine and painted it. As night fell, he invited the emperor to watch a puppet show behind a curtain. The emperor was delighted and began to watch it regularly from then on.
___④___ Shadow puppetry wins the heart of an audience by its lingering music, delicate sculpture, natural color and lively performance. Shadow plays from Hua County of Shaanxi Province are the best known. Nicknamed the “Business of the Five” by local people, the drama involves five performers. One is responsible for singing the different roles of a play; one operates the movements of the puppets; one is in charge of percussion instruments such as gongs and bowls; one plays a suona horn, and one plays Banhu fiddle. These five artists keep busy doing their particular work offstage to put on the performance.
In the 13th century, Chinese shadow puppetry was introduced into West Asia, and by the 18th century it had spread to other parts of the world. Famed German writer Geothe spoke highly of it, and the great comedian Charlie Chaplin drew inspiration from it for his legendary silent films. In 2011, Chinese shadow puppetry was added to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
1. According to the passage, shadow puppetry got its Chinese name from ______.| A．historical records | B．puppetry material |
| C．The History of the Han Dynasty | D．the legends of shadow |
| A．① | B．② | C．③ | D．④ |
| A．The performer responsible for singing. |
| B．The familiarity of its lingering music and color. |
| C．The combination of sounds, colors, design and presentation. |
| D．Increasing awareness of traditional culture. |
| A．Shadow puppetry was well received in West Asia. |
| B．Shadow puppetry has spread to all parts of the world. |
| C．Shadow puppetry was the inspiration for Goethe’s works. |
| D．Shadow puppetry made a difference to Charlie Chaplin’s silent film. |
2 . China launched a large robotic spacecraft early Tuesday morning at the Wenchang Space Launch Center in South China’s Hainan province, tasking it with landing on the moon and bringing back lunar samples, 44 years after the last time such extraterrestrial substances were brought back to Earth.
A Long March 5 heavy-lift carrier rocket lifted its 20-story-tall body and soared skyward trailing a spectacular silver flame at 4:30 am from its launch pad, leaving many spectators in awe and excitement. The rocket was tasked with placing the 8.2-metric ton Chang’e 5, which consists of four parts --- orbiter, lander, ascender and re-entry capsule --- in an Earth-moon transfer trajectory. Chang’e 5 will fly in it within the next several days and make some correction operations before conducting a key braking maneuver to avoid accidentally flying past the moon. After its arrival in lunar orbit, the probe(探测器) will fly around the celestial body for a certain period of time and will then separate into two parts, with the orbiter and re-entry capsule remaining in orbit while the lander-ascender combination going down to the lunar surface. The landing combination will make an engine-assisted touchdown on the moon and later conduct such assignments as obtaining underground rocks from 2 meters beneath the surface and gathering surface dirt. If everything proceeds smoothly, about 2 kilograms of stones and soil will be collected and packed in a vacuum metal container inside the ascender. After the two-day surface operations are done, the ascender’s rocket will elevate it to lunar orbit to dock with the re-entry capsule. The combination of orbiter and re-entry capsule will then depart the lunar orbit and return to Earth’s orbit, where the pair will break up and the re-entry capsule will return to a preset landing site in North China in mid-December. Back on the lunar surface, the lander will continue carrying out survey and measurement.
The entire mission is scheduled to last about 23 days, according to the China National Space Administration.
1. What does the underlined word “trajectory” in paragraph 2 probably mean?| A．space | B．capsule | C．path | D．operation |
| A．To transfer samples back to earth. |
| B．To be ready if the lander broke down. |
| C．To obtain underground rocks and surface dirt. |
| D．To help the lander-ascender combination go down to the lunar surface. |
| A．The collection of rocks and dirt will last about 23 days. |
| B．Chang’e 5 will fly at a fixed speed to avoid flying past the moon. |
| C．The vacuum metal container will be delivered to the re-entry capsule after the collection. |
| D．The lander will come back to earth with the ascender to carry out survey and measurement. |
| A．Space Race between Superpowers |
| B．China’s Ambition to Explore Outer Space |
| C．Chang’e 5 Sets out to Collect Moon Samples |
| D．A Successful Mission to Bring back Lunar Samples |
3 . There’s no better way to get to know someone than to travel with them. You see people at their best, and you see them at their worst. If your potential partner sounds like any of the following, maybe rethink that big trip.
The OCD Freak
They’ll have lists of places to visit and a route so full that you won’t have time to breathe. Don’t even try to mess with their timetable or you will face their burst of anger. They are sure to be angry if things don’t go exactly to plan.
The Tightwad
“Twenty bucks? Yeah, I don’t know.” You get a sinking feeling the first time you hear a sentence like that, when you realize your travel partner has short arms and long pocket. Different travelers have different budgets, sure—but there are also people out there who just seem allergic to spending money.
The Faffer
You watch them getting ready in the morning, and you estimate how long it will be before they’ll be set to go. You think they need to put their shoes on, they need to pack a few things in their bag—should be out the door in 10 minutes. And yet, half an hour later, you’re still there sitting on the bed while they wander about the room picking things up and putting them down again, remembering things they’ve forgotten, deciding to change their outfit.
The Whinger
This is the worst. Whingers seem determined to have a bad time when they travel, no matter where they go. They seem to be able to focus on the one thing that might not have gone smoothly and make a big deal out of it. A good travel experience is all about having the right attitude, and whingers definitely do not have it.
1. If you are going to travel with an OCD freak, you will probably ________.| A．visit all the places you want | B．need to make your own plan |
| C．hurry from one place to another | D．lose your temper at your partner |
| A．forget some important things | B．waste a lot of time packing things |
| C．have you waiting half an hour at most | D．be prepared for the trip in the morning |
| A．The OCD Freak | B．The Tightwad | C．The Faffer | D．The Whinger |
