Before the 1830s, most newspapers were sold through yearly subscriptions(订阅) in America, usually $ 8 to $ 10 a year. Today $ 8 or $ 10 seems a small amount of money, but at that time the amounts were unaffordable to most citizens. Accordingly, newspapers were read almost only by rich people in politics or the trades. In addition, most newspapers had little in them that would appeal to a large audience. They were dull and visually unpleasant. But the revolution that was taking place in the 1830s would change all that.
The trend, then, was toward the “penny paper”---a term referring to papers made widely available to the public. It meant any inexpensive newspaper; perhaps more importantly it meant newspapers that could be bought in single copies on the street.
This development did not take place overnight. It had been possible（but not easy） to buy single copies of newspapers before 1830, but this usually meant the reader had to go down to the printer’s office to buy a copy. Street sales were almost unknown. However, within a few years street sales of newspapers would be commonplace in eastern cities. At first the price of single copy was seldom a penny ---usually two or three cents was charged --- and some of the older well-known papers charged five or six cents. But the phrase “penny paper” caught the public’s fancy soon there would be papers that did indeed sell for only a penny.
This new trend of newspapers for “the man on the street” did not begin well. Some of the early ventures（企业）were immediate failures. Publishers already in business, people who were owners of successful papers, had little desire to change the tradition. It took a few youthful and daring businessmen to get the ball rolling.
1. Where does Thomas Manning work?
| A．In the Guinness Company. |
| B．At a radio station. |
| C．In a museum. |
| A．A bird-shooting trip. |
| B．A visit to Europe. |
| C．A television talk show. |
| A．In 1875. | B．In 1950. | C．In 1955. |
| A．More records of unusual facts. |
| B．The founder of the company. |
| C．The oldest person in the world. |
3 . Lost cities that have been found
The White City
In 2015, a team of explorers to Honduras in search of"the Lost City of the Monke God"led to the discovery of the White City. They found the ruins in the Mosquitia region of the Central American country which is known for poisonous snakes, vicious jaguars and deadly insects. It is believed that local people hid here when the Spanish conquerors(征服者) occupied their homeland in the16th century.
Canopus and Heracleion
Modern researchers were teased by the ancient writings about the Egyptian cities Canopus and Heracleion- where Queen Cleopatra often visited. But the cities weren’t found until 1992, when a search in Alexandria waters found that the two cities had been flooded for centuries. Artifacts(史前器物) showed that the cities once highly developed as a trade network, which helped researchers piece together more about the last queen of Egypt.
Machu Picchu
A Yale professor discovered "the Lost City in the Clouds"in 1911. A combination of palaces, plazas, temples and homes, Machu Picchu displays the Inca Empire at the height of its rule. The city, which was abandoned in the 16th century for unknown reasons,was hidden by the local people from the Spanish conquerors for centuries keeping it so well preserved.
Troy
The ancient city of Troy in homer's The Iliad was considered a fictional setting for his characters to run wild. But in 1871, explorations in northwestern Turkey exposed nine ancient cities layered (层叠) on top of each other, the earliest dating back to about 5,000 years before. It was later determined that the sixth or seventh layer contained the lost city of Troy and that it was actually destroyed by an earthquake, not a wooden horse.
1. Why did people hide in the White City in the 16th century?| A．To survive the war |
| B．To search for a lost city. |
| C．To protect their country. |
| D．To avoid dangerous animals |
| A．The White City |
| B．Canopus and Heracleion |
| C．Machu Picchu |
| D．Troy |
| A．It was built by Homer. |
| B．It consisted of nine cities |
| C．It had a history of 5,000 years |
| D．It was ruined by a natural disaster. |
