1 . Today about 70 countries use Daylight Saving Time (DST). Daylight Saving was first introduced during World War I in Australia. During the world wars, DST was used for the late summers beginning January 1917 and 1942, and the full summers beginning September 1942 and 1943.
In 1967, Tasmania experienced a drought. The State Government introduced one hour of daylight saving that summer as a way of saving power and water. Tasmanians liked the idea of daylight saving and the Tasmanian Government has declared daylight saving each summer since 1968. Persuaded by the Tasmanian Government, all states except two passed a law in 1971, for a test use of daylight saving. In 1972, New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria joined Tasmania for regular daylight saving, but Queensland did not do so until 1989.
Tasmania, Queensland and South Australia have had irregular plans, often changing their dates due to politics or festivals. For example, in 1992, Tasmania extended daylight saving by an extra month while South Australia began extending daylight saving by two weeks for the Adelaide Festival. Special daylight saving plans were made during the sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
The differences in daylight saving in Australia continue to cause serious problems in transport and many other social activities. It also reduces the number of hours in the working day that are common to all centers in the country. In particular, time differences along the east coast cause major difficulties, especially for the broadcasters of national radio and television.
1. Daylight Saving Time was introduced in Tasmania ________.| A．to save water and electricity | B．to support government officials |
| C．to pass a special law in the state | D．to stop the drought in 1967 |
| A．Victoria. | B．Queensland. |
| C．South Australia. | D．New South Wales. |
| A．It lasts for two weeks. | B．It is not used in festivals. |
| C．Its plan was changed in 2000. | D．It doesn't have fixed dates. |
| A．There exist some undesirable effects. |
| B．It helps little to save energy. |
| C．It brings about longer working days. |
| D．Radio and TV programs become different. |
2 . The Canadian red and white maple leaf (枫叶) flag is officially called the National Flag of Canada. The Canadian flag shows a stylized red maple leaf with 11 points on a white background, with red borders down each side. The Canadian flag is twice as long as it is wide. The white square containing the red maple leaf is the same width as the flag.
The red and the white used in the National Flag of Canada were proclaimed the official colors of Canada in 1921 by King George Ⅴ. Although the maple leaf did not have its official status as a symbol of Canada until the announcement (宣告) of the national flag in 1965, it had historically been used as a Canadian symbol, and was used in 1860 in decorations for the visit of the Prince of Wales to Canada. The 11 points on the maple leaf have no special significance.
In the early days, the Royal Union Flag, or the Union Jack, was still flown in British North America. In 1925 and again in 1946, the Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King tried to get a national flag of Canada adopted, but failed. In 1964, Prime Minister Lester Pearson appointed a 15-member, all-party committee to come up with a design for a new flag. The committee was given six weeks to complete its task.
The committee studied 2,000 submitted (提交的) designs as well as 3,900 that had been gathered as a result of the 1946 committee’s study. Those designs with a chance of being accepted were given to the full committee for further study.
The suggestion of a red and white single maple leaf design for the Canadian flag came from George Stanley, a professor at the Royal Military College. After a heated discussion, they finally decided on his suggestion.
1. How many colors are there in the National Flag of Canada?| A．One. | B．Two. |
| C．Three. | D．Four. |
| A．In 1921. | B．In 1860. |
| C．In 1964. | D．In 1965. |
| A．The officials of the government. |
| B．The professors from the Royal Military College. |
| C．The members of the 1946 committee. |
| D．The members of the 1964 committee. |
| A．the designer of the National Flag of Canada |
| B．the history of the National Flag of Canada |
| C．the meaning of the National Flag of Canada |
| D．why the red and white single maple leaf was chosen as the design for the National Flag of Canada |
May 5,1884
Isaac Murphy , son of a slave and perhaps the greatest horse rider in American history , rides Buchanan to win his first Kentucky Derby . He becomes the first rider ever to win the race three times .
May 9 , 1754
Benjamin Franklin’s Pennsylvania Gazette produces perhaps the first American political cartoon （漫画）, showing a snake cut in pieces, with the words “ Join or Die” printed under the picture.
May 11,1934
The first great dust storm of the Great Plains Dust Bowl , the result of years of drought，blows topsoil all the way to New York City and Washington , D.C. .
May 19, 1994
Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis , former first lady and one of the most famous people of the 1960s , died of cancer in New York City at the age of 64 .
May 24, 1844
Samuel F.B. Morsr taps out the first message , “ What Hath God Wrought ,” over the experimental long-distance telegraph line which runs from Washington, D.C. , to Baltimeore , Md .
1. We know from the text that Buchanan is_____________.
| A．Isaac”s father |
| B．a winning horse |
| C．a slave taking care if horses |
| D．the first racing horse in Kentucky |
| A．Join or Die | B．Pennsylvania Gazette |
| C．What Hath God Wrought | D．Kentucky Derby |
| A．1934 | B．1960 |
| C．1964 | D．1994 |
| A．Washington , D. C. | B．New York City |
| C．Kentucky. | D．Pennsylvania |
