1 . New research into a little-known text written in ancient Greek shows that “stressed poetry”, the ancestor of all modern poetry and song, was already in use in the 2nd century CE, 300 years earlier than previously thought. It has been found sculpted on twenty precious stones and as a graffito (雕画) in Cartagena, Spain.

In its shortest version, the nameless four-line poem reads “They say what they like; let them say it; I dont care.” Other versions extend with “Go on, love me; it does you good.” The poem, unparalleled (绝无仅有的) so far in the classical world, consists of lines of 4 syllables (音节), with a strong accent on the first and a weaker on the third. This allows it to come into the rhythms of numerous pop and rock songs. So it became popular across the eastern Roman Empire and survives.

By comparing all of the known examples for the first time, Cambridges Professor Tim Whitmarsh noticed that the poem used a different form of rhythm to that usually found in ancient Greek poetry. As well as showing signs of the long and short syllables characteristic of traditional “quantitative” poem, this text employed stressed and unstressed syllables. The new study, published in The Cambridge Classical Journal, also suggests that this poem could represent a “missing link” between the lost world of ancient Mediterranean oral poetry and song, and the more modern forms that we know today. A lot of popular poetry in ancient Greek takes a similar form to traditional high poetics. This poem, on the other hand, points to a distinct and rich culture, primarily oral.

1. Where was the “stressed poetry” discovered?

A．In Greece.	B．In Spain.
C．In Britain.	D．In Mediterranean.

2. What does “it” in paragraph 2 refer to?

A．A syllable.	B．A strong accent.
C．The four-line poem.	D．The content of the poem.

3. What can be learned from the last paragraph?

A．A missing link between poems was found finally.

B．A lot of popular poetry in ancient Greek was then popular in the world.

C．The stressed and unstressed syllables distinguished the poem from others.

D．The ancient Mediterranean oral poetry and song was older than the poem.

4. Whats the best title for the text?

A．Ancient Greek “pop culture” discovery rewrites the history of poetry and song

B．The unparalleled poem made ancient Greek culture more attractive

C．Ancient Greek poetry lay the foundation of modern culture

D．Four syllables are still popular in modern poetry and song

3 . Americans grew up with stories of Fionn Mc Cool, Cuchulainn and other legendary heroes who, emerging from the Celtic twilight, would relax after their great deeds in battle and hunting by playing hurling (ariel hockey) and handball. Great was the shock in later years to hear that other countries such as Spain, France and Italy were also claiming credit as the original home of the game.

Strict historical research, rather than myth and legend, turns up few clues as to the origins of the game. The elements involved in the play ball, wall, players and rules must have evolved in many different countries at different times.

The first record of ball games with the hand is from 2000 BC in Egypt. Their priests (祭司) of the temple of Osiris in Thebes were depicted on the tombs, striking the ball with the hand. Such iconographic evidence is also found in America where ball games formed an integral part of Pre-Hispanic culture. Over 700 ball court sites have been identified from Arizona to Nicaragua, with many having sculptures, bas-reliefs and painted vessels that show people engaged in hand-played balls. The oldest are dated as far back as 1500 BC, and interestingly in only one area is there play involving a wall that depicts the land of the Chichimeca people of the Mexican plateau.

Meanwhile, back in Europe, the Greek writer Homer referred to a handball game invented by Anagalla, a princess of Sparta, in his works. Alexander the Great (450 BC) was credited with spreading the game to the Greek colonies in Italy, and from there it went to Spain, France and to other parts of the Roman Empire. Around the year 1000 AD, as Europe stepped deep into the Dark Ages, the mention of handball became more numerous in manuscripts. In France Jeux de Paume(palm play)became popular with both the nobility in their enclosed courts and the ordinary people who played longe-paume on common land. The medieval annual of St. Foix written around 1300AD describes the game, “The exercise consists in receiving the ball and driving it back again with the palm. The game was first played with the bare hand, then with the glove, lined or unlined; afterwards, they bound cord around the hand to make the ball rebound more forcibly.”

So far there is no mention in any of the sources of a rebound game against a wall, the game played was one of hand-tennis and this is still played in parts of Spain, France, Holland and Sweden. The original ball used was made of tightly rolled cloth pieces stitched together and this would have given little bounce against a wall. Meanwhile, the game of Jeux de Paume with the addition of larger and longer gloves — eventually becoming bats — evolved into the game of tennis in the end. The hand versus racquet controversy was commented on by Erasmus, the Dutch Philosopher in 1524, “You may sweat more but the game is prettier when played with the hand.”

1. According to the passage, the origin of handball was ________.

A．America and European countries	B．unknown for lack of historical findings
C．of diverse sources in the world	D．ancient Egypt around 2000 BC

2. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Only by referring to wall paintings can historians identify handball playing before Christ.

B．During the Renaissance, people from upper and lower classes in Europe started to play handball.

C．The introduction of the glove into the handball play was intended for a better rebound of the ball.

D．The development of handball in France finally contributed to the appearance of tennis.

3. Which of the following pictures refers to the underlined word “racquet” in the last paragraph?

A．

B．

C．

D．

4. Which of the following can be the best title of this passage?

A．The Origin of Modern Racquet

B．The Attraction of Palm Games

C．The History of Tennis

D．The Development of Handball

4 . Look at the pictures and answer the questions.

1. What kind of university do you think it is? What do you know about it?
__________________________________________________________________________________
2. How is it different from today’s universities?
__________________________________________________________________________________

5 . 阅读短文内容，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

When it comes to ancient civilizations, most people think of the Greeks and Romans. It’s understandable as both     1     (shape) modern society in some way so far, whether it be their social, cultural, or political influences. However, dozens of civilizations had been around long     2     the Greeks and Romans, the lesser-known Jiahu people     3     (include).

The Jiahu settlement is located in the central plain of ancient China,     4     area known today as the Henan Province. The people created the country’s oldest recognized civilization. The area is rich in artifacts,     5     (make) it an archaeologist’s dream. Apart from the usual finds, people have uncovered records of the earliest examples of Chinese writing and proof     6     they were producers of the world’s oldest wine. Another remarkable discoveries was the oldest working bone flutes (长笛).     7     (typical) carved from the wing bone of a crane, they were most likely used in special ceremonies. Rough weaving tools and bone needles also     8     (unearth) from the site, indicating that Jiahu residents may have possessed basic weaving and sewing skills 8,500 years ago.

The settlement’s end came around 5700 BCE when the nearby rivers overflowed and flooded the area. It is assumed that the Jiahu people left their home     9     (settle) elsewhere, even though there is no indication as to     10     that might have been.

6 . In the fall of 1915, polar explorer Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance (耐力号) sank off the coast of Antarctica. While all of the expedition’s 28 crew eventually were rescued, the ship’s final resting place has remained a much-discussed maritime mystery. That is, until today. A team of researchers has announced they’ve located the wreck at the bottom of the Weddell Sea, almost the northernmost part of Antarctica.

Endurance was backed by the British government and private donors and supported by Winston Churchill to deliver a group of explorers to the coast of Antarctica and then travel overland across the continent via the South Pole.

It set out from South Georgia on December 5, 1914, shortly after the outbreak of the First World War. But the enemy that Shackleton and his men faced was of a different sort. The Weddell Sea, covering an area of more than a million square miles, is one of the most remote and unforgiving environments in the world, littered with icebergs and roiled by strong surface winds. Shackleton called it “the worst sea in the world.”

The expedition made good progress at first, but as the Antarctic winter of 1915 closed in, the men found themselves trapped in the sea ice on Tuesday, October 26. The next day, the men removed tools, instruments, and provisions and set up camp on the ice floe. Endurance finally sank on November 27. Shackleton famously said, “What the ice gets, the ice keeps.” . But Endurance’s story did not end with the ship’s sinking.

In 2019, the Falklands Heritage Maritime Trust began its first expedition to find the ship but had been unable to locate the wreck. This winter, they tried again, organizing and funding Endurance22.

One of the toughest problems, besides the sea ice, was establishing the ship’s location. After Endurance was initially trapped in the ice, it continued to drift as the floes moved with the current. Due to poor visibility on the day the men abandoned the ship, however, the captain had been unable to take proper measurements that would help calculate the direction and speed of the floes.

1. Which can show the positions of Weddell Sea and Antarctica?

A．	B．
C．	D．

2. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．Endurance hasn’t been found since the fall of 1915.

B．Endurance was only supported by Winston Churchill.

C．Ernest Shackleton died and sank off the coast of Antarctica in the fall of 1915.

D．Ernest Shackleton’s goal was to travel across the Antarctica via the South Pole.

3. What is the fundamental cause of the disaster according to the passage?

A．The sea ice.

B．The Antarctic winter.

C．The things they carried.

D．The captain’s unreasonable command.

4. What does the last paragraph mainly talk about?

A．The way how to establish the ship’s location.

B．The reason why locating the ship is difficult.

C．The measurements that the captain took to locate the ship.

D．The time when Endurance22 was organized and funded.