1 . The Taj Mahal(泰姬陵)is a love story, a sad and beautiful one. If it didn’t exist, we would easily imagine that the story of its construction was simply a fairy tale. Three hundred years ago, there lived an Indian emperor called Shah Jahan. His wife was a beautiful and bright woman whom he loved greatly. Her title was Mumtazl
Mahal: its shortened form Taj Mahal, means “pride of the palace”. In the year 1630 this beloved wife of the emperor died. He was so brokenhearted that he thought of giving up his throne(王位). He decided out of his love for his wife, to build her the most beautiful tomb that he had ever seen.
He summoned the best artists and architects from India, Turkey, Persia and Arabia and finally, the design was completed. It took more than twenty thousand men working over a period of 18 years to build the Taj Mahal, one of the most beautiful buildings in the world.
The building itself stands on a marble platform 29 meters square and 6—7 meters high. Towers rise from each of the four comers. The Taj Mahal itself soars another 61 meters into the air. It is an eight-sided building made of white marble.
The emperor planned to build an identical(相同的)tomb of black marble for himself on the other side of the river connected by a silver bridge. However, his son put him into a prison in the palace before he could finish, and for the rest of his life, he could only gaze across river at the tomb of his beloved wife.
1. Why was the Taj Mahal built according to the passage? Because________.| A．Shah Jahan was heartbroken after the death of his wife |
| B．Shah Jahan loved his wife greatly |
| C．his wife was a beautiful and bright woman |
| D．his wife was the “pride of the palace” |
| A．the Taj Mahal was completed quickly owing to the efforts of the best artists and workers |
| B．a lot of people took part in the building of the Taj Mahal |
| C．the Taj Mahal and Shah Jahan’s own tomb were built at the same time |
| D．the Taj Mahal is the most beautiful tomb in the world |
| A．four-sided | B．eight-cornered | C．black-colored | D．white-colored |
| A．he died soon after his wife’s death | B．he was killed by his son |
| C．he gave up his throne | D．he was put into prison by his son |
| A．the story of the Taj Mahal |
| B．a beautiful fairy tale |
| C．white and black marble tombs made for two emperors |
| D．the love story of Emperor Shah Jahan and his wife |
2 . That the Leaning Tower of Pisa no longer leans quite so much after a ￡20 million project to save it has proved to be a great success.The tower,which was on the edge of collapse,has been straightened by 18 inches,returning it to its 1838 position.
“It has straightened a little bit more than we expected,but very little helps,”said Prof.John Burland,the only British member of the rescue committee.“The tower is still very slightly moving towards being upright.”
The tower,which has been leaning almost since building work first began in 1173,was closed to the public in 1990 because of safety fears.The 183-foot tower was nearly 15 feet off vertical and its structure was found to have been weakened by centuries of strain(作用力).
Prof.Burland said it could have collapsed “at any moment”.However,it took nine years of quarrelling before any work was done.The last attempt at straightening the tower was carried out.Concrete(混凝土) was poured into the foundations,but the result was that the tower sank further into the soil.
The straightening work involved digging out around 70 tonnes of earth from the northern side of the tower,causing it to sink on that side.Before the digging started,the tower was fixed with steel ropes and 600 tonnes of lead weights.
However,halfway through the project,concerns at the ugliness of the lead weights led to their removal and the tower leaned greatly.The weights were hurriedly reattached.One night,the tower moved more than it had averaged in an entire year.The tower’s stonework has also been restored.
The Italian government stepped in after a tower collapsed in Pavia in 1989,killing four people.Experts suddenly realized that the tower at Pisa,which was similarly built and on the same sort of earth,could do the same.
1. What would be the best title for the passage?| A．The Building of the Leaning Tower of Pisa |
| B．Saving the Leaning Tower of Pisa |
| C．The Collapse of the Leaning Tower of Pisa |
| D．The History of the Leaning Tower of Pisa |
| A．closed for the straightening work in 1990 |
| B．began to lean more than 800 years ago |
| C．has a history of more than 1,000 years |
| D．has become vertical |
| A．The development of new technology. | B．The advice of Prof.John Burland. |
| C．The expectation of the rescue committee. | D．The collapse of a tower in Pavia. |
| A．The lead weights fixed to the tower. |
| B．Restoring the stonework. |
| C．Pouring concrete into the foundations. |
| D．Digging earth from the southern side of the tower. |
| A．The position of the tower has been restored to what it was 182 years ago. |
| B．Hundreds of years of strain has weakened the tower’s structure. |
| C．The tower doesn’t lean any more after the straightening work finished. |
| D．People spent nine years in discussing about the straightening work. |
Where there has been coffee, there has been the coffeehouse. From the 15th century Middle Eastern establishments where men gathered to listen to music, play chess, and hear recitations from works of literature, to Paris' Cafe le Procope where luminaries of the French Enlightenment such as Voltaire, Rousseau, and Diderot came to enjoy a hot cup of joe, coffeehouses have traditionally served as centers of social interaction, places where people can come to relax, chat, and exchange ideas.
The modern coffee shop is modeled on the espresso and pastry-centered Italian coffeehouses that arose with the establishment of Italian-American immigrant communities in major US cities such as New York City's Little Italy and Greenwich Village, Boston's North End, and San Francisco's North Beach. New York coffee shops were often frequented by the Beats in the 1950's. It wasn't long before Seattle and other parts of the Pacific Northwest were developing coffee shops as part of a thriving counterculture scene. The Seattle-based Starbucks took this model and brought it into mainstream culture.
Although coffeehouses today continue to serve their traditional purpose as lively social hubs in many communities, they have noticeably adapted to the times. Rediscovering their purpose as centers of information exchange and communication, many coffee shops now provide their customers with internet access and newspapers. It has become extremely common to see someone sitting at a Starbucks listening to music or surfing the web on his or her laptop. Coffee stores today also maintain a fairly identifiable, yet unique aesthetic: wooden furniture and plush couches, paintings and murals drawn on walls, and soft-lighting combine to give coffee shops the cozy feeling of a home away from home.
Today, big business retail coffee shops are expanding quickly all over the world. Starbucks alone has stores in over 40 countries and plans to add more. Despite its popularity, Starbucks has been criticized and labeled by many as a blood-sucking corporate machine, driving smaller coffee shops out of business through unfair practices. This has even spawned an anti-corporate coffee counterculture, with those subscribing to this culture boycotting big business coffee chains. Increasingly popular coffee stores such as The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf are also giving Starbucks some stiff competition. In any case, it seems pretty clear that coffee has weaved itself into the fabric of our consumer-oriented culture.
1. Which of the following is the correct order of coffee spreading in history?
①Egypt ②America ③the Middle East ④Netherlands ⑤Venice
| A．①③④②⑤ | B．③①⑤④② | C．①⑤④③② | D．③②⑤④① |
| A．Starbucks has beaten all the competitors |
| B．there are no changes in the development of coffee culture |
| C．the taste of coffee has changed a lot |
| D．Starbucks has some effect on the development of coffee culture |
| A．Seattle | B．Ethiopia | C．Java | D．France |
| A．play chess with other customers |
| B．enjoy delicious dishes from South America |
| C．surf the internet |
| D．watch a TV play |
