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

2. From the passage we can learn that _____.

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

3. Researchers uncovered the mystery of King Tut’s death by _____.

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

4. The passage mainly tells us about _____.

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

3 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

In recent months, the China Grand Canal Museum in Yangzhou, set     1    (present) the history and culture of the Grand Canal, has attracted a great number of visitors.    2    the museum providing 15, 000 tickets each day, visitors can book in advance. They usually sell out on weekends, making the museum     3     popular landmark in East China. It takes only 20 minutes to get to the museum by taxi from the Yangzhoudong Railway Station. “My passion    4     (arouse) by those passengers, so I took my children to the museum too. I never knew why it had such great charm     5     I got there.” said one passager.

The museum,     6     appearance resembles a giant ship, covers 80,000 square meters and houses 14 exhibition halls. While telling its story, the museum puts an     7     (emphasize) on improving visitors’ experience. Young people can take part in a live-action role-play game designed by the museum, transporting them back to the Ming Dynasty, and    8     (immerse) them in an amazing world. “It is     9     (true) a very meaningful experience,” said a visitor surnamed Chen, “This is not the first time that I     10    (attract).”

7 . A fresh and gentle wind on your face, soft sand under your feet and blue waters as far as the eye can see. Is there any other Olympic sport that is played in such pleasant conditions as beach volleyball？

“I’ve gone to a lot of beautiful places, and met a lot of beautiful people. That wouldn’t have happened if I had been playing another sport.” said Randy Stoklos, America’s most famous beach volleyball player.

The sport began as a four-a-side game on beaches in Southern California in the 1920s. The first recorded two-man game took place there in 1930, and the first tournament (锦标赛) was held in Los Angeles 18 years later. The winners were awarded a case of Pepsi. In the 1950s, women started playing and the sport soon spread to Europe and South America. Yet at that time, beach volleyball was more an entertainment show than a sport, with beauty contests included. The Association of Volleyball Professionals was founded in 1983 and beach volleyball developed into a fast, athletic sport. Its world-wide popularity won beach volleyball a place at the 1996 Olympics in Atalanta, where 24 male teams and 16 female teams took part. At present, the US and Brazil are the best in the world at beach volleyball.

The game came to China in the early 1990s and there have been national tournaments since 1994. It became an official event at the Eighth National Games in 1997. China’s You Wenhui and Wang Lu finished ninth in the women’s beach volleyball world championships in Brazil.

1. The passage is mainly about ______.

A．the history of beach volleyball

B．how to play beach volleyball

C．the importance of beach volleyball

D．women’s beach volleyball in China

2. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE？

A．Beach volleyball was first played like other Olympic: sports.

B．Beach volleyball has always been an entertainment show rather than a sport.

C．Beach volleyball began on beaches in Souther California.

D．Women started playing beach volleyball in South America in 1945.

3. When did beach volleyball officially become an Olympic event？

A．In 1948,

B．In 1996.

C．In 1950.

D．In 1997.

4. According to the passage, we can learn that______.

A．in 1996, beach volleyball became an official event in China

B．China’s beach volleyball team is the best in the world

C．China’s beach volleyball players won the first place in Brazil

D．beach volleyball came to China in the early 1990s

8 . 阅读下面短文,在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

China is widely known for its ancient civilization     1     has continued all the way through into modern times. There are many reasons why this has been possible.

At the beginning, written Chinese was     2     picture-based language. Ancient Chinese people carved     3    （ symbol） on animal bones and shells. By the Shang Dynasty, a well-developed writing system had come into being. At that time, people lived in different places,    4     （ lead） to many varieties of dialects and characters.

Emperor Qinshihuang united the seven major states into one country where the Chinese writing system began to develop     5    one direction. The writing system was of great     6    （important） in uniting the Chinese people and culture. Even today, wherever Chinese people live or whatever dialect they speak, they can communicate    7     （free） in writing.

Written Chinese has also become an important means by which China's present is connected with    8    （it） past. People in modern times can read classic works that    9    （write） by Chinese in ancient times. The high regard for the Chinese writing system can be seen in the development of Chinese characters as an art form,    10    （ know） as Chinesecalligraphy, which has become an important part of Chinese culture. Today, the Chinese writing system is still an important part of Chinese culture.

9 . Qiang Shuping was so busy making cloth shoes    1     she didn’t even rest during the Dragon Boat Festival holiday. The woman from Baipu County, Jiangsu Province,     2     (make) shoes since she was 19 years old, and this year marks her 31^st year making cloth shoes.

She spends the entire day in her tiny studio, which     3    (measure) less than 10 square meters altogether, filled with cloth shoes in    4    (variety) stages of completion.

Nowadays, many stores make cloth shoes    5     (use) machines, but Qiang sticks to the technique of making shoes entirely     6     hand. She says the shoes     7     (produce) by the machine are not of the same quality as handmade ones. The handmade cloth shoes are more durable and comfortable,     8    (soft), and absorb sweat better.

Some people buy cloth shoes out of nostalgia(怀旧), while others trust     9    (they) quality. Making shoes isn’t a profitable job, but Qiang still insists as she wants to preserve the craft and pass it down to the younger generation.

Handmade cloth shoes are also called qiancengdi (shoes with a thousand layers),     10     can date back to the ancient Zhou Dynasty. In 2009, the making technique of qiancengdi was listed as the national intangible cultural heritage.

10 . The University of Sheffield

Back to its origin

The University of Sheffield is a research university in the city of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It is one of the original “red brick” universities, which are a group of top and famous old universities. The University of Sheffield was originally formed by the combination of three colleges. The Sheffield School of Medicine was founded in 1828, followed in 1879 by the opening of Firth College by Mark Firth, a steel manufacturer (制造商), to teach arts and science subjects. Firth College then helped to provide money for the opening of the Sheffield Technical School in 1884 to teach applied science. In 1897 the three institutions were joined together to form the University College of Sheffield, which in turn became the University of Sheffield by Royal Charter (特许) in 1905. This university is famous for its good education and boasts a number of Nobel Prize winners among its former students.

More information

System:   The University has five departments: Arts and Humanities; Engineering; Pure Science; Social Sciences;   Medicine,   Dentistry   and   Health.   Sheffield   also   has   many   research   programs   in   fields   including aerospace, environmental science, psychology, and biology.

City show: Sheffield is a lively city in the north of England. Sheffield is known as the greenest city in Europe because of its 2 million trees. As a result, there are many parks and woods throughout the city and beyond. Sheffield is the greenest city in England with 150 woodlands and 50 public parks within the city. Once, in Sheffield, the folk hero—Robin Hood lived in Sherwood Forest with 150 of his loyal friends. And Charlotte Bronte, the English writer noted for her novel Jane Eyre was born in Sheffield.

1. Sheffield is in the of England.

A．east	B．west
C．south	D．north

2. Which statement about the University of Sheffield is not TRUE?

A．It has a good fame for many great graduates.

B．It has a long history of more than 180 years.

C．It is one member of “red brick” universities.

D．It owns different departments and research programs.

3. What can we infer from the text?

A．Sheffield has very beautiful scenery.

B．Charlotte Bronte is an English writer.

C．Sheffield is the biggest city of England.

D．Robin Hood is a character in Jane Eyre.