What comes to your mind when you think of music in Austria? You might think of Mozart or the film The Sound of Music, but Austrian music started off quite
In the 18th century the Austrian royal family drew many famous musicians to Vienna, making
Opera has also been popular in Austria. Not only rich Austrians
Austria has a long and rich musical history, from folk songs and dances
2 . What killed King Tut? Historians and scientists have long believed that ancient Egypt’s most famous king was probably murdered. But a recent scientific study claims to have found a different answer to this more than 3,300-year-old mystery. A team of researchers now say that King Tut, the boy ruler, died of complications (并发症) from a broken leg.
Tut’s full name was Tutankhamun. He was just 9 years old when he became the ruler of Egypt. His treasure-filled tomb was discovered almost a century ago. It was filled with royal riches, including a solid-gold coffin, a gold mask, and piles of jewelry.
Unfortunately Tut died at the age of 19. Many experts have thought that Tut was killed by one of his advisers, named Ay, who wanted to be king. But thanks to a major modern science project, it seems Ay is innocent.
Researchers set out to solve the mystery of King Tut’s death by using the tools of science, including DNA tests and electronic scans of his mummy (木乃伊). Scientist Carsten Pusch conducted the tests on Tut for the new study. He thinks a broken leg contributed to the young king’s death.
More than 100 walking sticks were found in King Tut’s tomb. This supports the team’s findings. But how could a person die from a simple broken leg?
Pusch also found DNA evidence in Tut’s body that indicates he had malaria (疟疾), a disease carried by mosquitoes. Malaria severely weakens the immune system.
Pusch and his fellow researchers believe the malaria and the bone disease together caused the king’s fracture (骨折) to become deadly. Finally, the young king was just too weak to recover. So effects of the disease combined with the bad luck of a broken bone — not a jealous adviser — are likely the real causes of King Tut’s death.
1. It has long been believed by historians and scientists that _____.| A．King Tut was the youngest ruler in the world history |
| B．King Tut was the richest ruler in the history of Egypt |
| C．King Tut was murdered by one of his advisers |
| D．King Tut was poisoned by one of his servants |
| A．the king had been dead for 3,300 years |
| B．the king was buried grandly |
| C．the king was born with a bad immune system |
| D．the king’s body was well kept in the tomb |
| A．testing the king’s immune system |
| B．studying the walking sticks found in the tomb |
| C．performing experiments on mosquitoes |
| D．applying DNA tests and electronic scan technology |
| A．a different answer to King Tut’s death |
| B．a famous boy king in ancient Egypt |
| C．a treasure-filled tomb discovered in Egypt |
| D．a team of researchers studying ancient tombs |
Deep in the jungle, the Maya built an empire (帝国). And now, scientists are unlocking more secrets about this ancient civilization with the
The Maya civilization was “far more advanced than we thought”, noted The Washington Post. The new findings showed that they were already busy
The Chinese writing system is one of the main factors that make
In China, the history of people planting and using bamboo can date back as far as 7000 years. As early as the Shang Dynasty, bamboo was being used in ancient people’s daily lives. It was used for food, clothing, housing, transportation,
The
In Chinese culture, bamboo is well-known as
6 . Canada is a very large country. It is the second largest country in the world. By contrast (相比较) it has a very small population. There are only about 29 million people there. Most Canadians are of British or French origin, and French is an official language of Canada as well as English. About 45% of the people are of British origin, that is, they or their parents or grandparents, etc, come from British. Nearly 30% are of French origin. Most of the French-Canadians live in the province of Quebec.
Over the years, people have come to live in Canada from many countries in the world. They are from most European countries and also from China, besides other Asian countries. However, Canada was not an empty country when the Europeans began to arrive. Canadian-Indians lived along the coast, by the rivers and lakes and in forests. Today, there are only about 350,000 Indians in the whole country, with their own languages. In the far north live the Inuits (因努伊特人). There are only 27,000 Canadian-Inuits. Their life is hard in such a difficult climate.
1. About ______ live in Quebec.| A．30% of the French-Canadians | B．45% of the Canadians |
| C．29,000,000 people | D．8,700,000 French-Canadians |
| A．Chinese and Inuits | B．French and English |
| C．Indian and French | D．English and Chinese |
| A．血统 | B．后裔 | C．先驱 | D．起源 |
| A．England | B．China and some other Asian countries |
| C．France | D．some other countries except France and Britain |
| A．45% | B．30% | C．1.2% | D．0.09% |
Terracotta Army it is amazing sight in Xi’an. There are more than 8, 000 statues
8 . For archaeologists (考古学家) in Israel, eight prehistoric ostrich (鸵鸟) eggs-thought to be between 4,000 and 7,500 years old-proved as valuable as treasure when they were dis-covered near an ancient fire pit in the Negev, a desert region in the south of the country.
They were discovered during an archaeological excavation (挖掘) in the agricultural fields of Be’er Milka, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced on Thursday. The eggs’ location suggests that they were collected by the prehistoric (史前的) desert nomads (游牧民) who used the campsite, according to a press release from IAA, and further lab analysis will provide more information about their uses and ages. Although the nomads did not build permanent structures at this site, the finding allows us to feel their presence in the desert. The campsites were covered by sand, keeping the eggs exceptionally well-preserved.
Ostriches were common in the region until they became extinct in the wild during the 19th century. Their eggs were beautifully decorated and were prized items during the Bronze and Iron Ages (青铜和铁器时代). As well as being used as decorative items, ostrich eggs were also used as a source of food. One ostrich egg has the nutritional value of about 25 normal chicken eggs.
While ostrich eggs are not uncommon in excavations, the bones of the large bird are not found. This may indicate that in the ancient world, people avoided dealing with the ostrich and were content with collecting their eggs.
1. What did archaeologists find in Israel?| A．Ostriches. | B．Burnt tools. | C．Ostrich eggs. | D．The bones of ostriches. |
| A．The trees. | B．The fire pit. | C．The campsites. | D．The sand. |
| A．To provide shelter for them. |
| B．To protect agricultural fields. |
| C．To get food or decorations. |
| D．To do some research on them. |
| A．Ostrich eggs have high nutritional value. |
| B．Ostriches were found near an ancient fire pit. |
| C．People tended to hunt ostriches as food sources. |
| D．Ostriches were common in Israel in the 20th century. |
9 . Although English is not as old as Chinese, it is spoken by many people around the world every day. English speakers are always creating new words, and we are often able to know where most words come from.
Sometimes, however, no one may really know where a word comes from. Did you ever think about why hamburgers (汉堡包) are called hamburgers, especially when they are not made with ham (火腿)? About a hundred years ago, some men went to America from Europe. They came from a big city in Germany called Hamburg. They did not speak good English, but they ate good food. When some Americans saw them eating round pieces of beef, they asked the Germans what it was. The Germans did not understand the question and answered, “We come from Hamburg.” One of these Americans owned a restaurant, and had an idea. He cooked some round pieces of beef like those which the men from Hamburg ate. Then he put each between two pieces of bread and started selling them. Such bread came to be called “hamburgers”. Today “hamburgers” are sold in many countries around the world.
Whether this story is true or not, it certainly is interesting. Knowing why any word has a certain meaning is interesting, too. This reason, for most English words, can be found in any large English dictionary.
1. About a hundred years ago, Hamburg was .| A．An American city | B．a Chinese city |
| C．the name of a village | D．a city in Germany |
| A．beef, bread | B．only made with beef |
| C．bread, potato | D．only made with bread |
| A．Where all the new words come from |
| B．Where those Germans came from |
| C．The reason why an English word has a certain meaning |
| D．The reason why English is spoken around the world |
| A．China because it has a long history |
| B．England because Germans don’t speak good English |
| C．the round pieces of beef which those people from Hamburg were eating |
| D．English speakers because they always create new words |
The Silk Road was a passage for the transportation of silk in ancient times. Lots of relics on the road can still
The Silk Road is a long route,
If you are an
Along the Silk Road route, Xi’an and Gansu are suitable to visit all year round. The best time
