1 . 语法填空

Some inventions happen in strange ways. The potato chip is one of them.

Moon’s Lake House was     1     restaurant in New York in the 1850s. George Crum was the cook there. Many rich people often came to the restaurant     2     (enjoy) his cooking.

The one thing that really upset Crum was     3     a customer complained about the food and sent it back to the kitchen to be done over. He would often return it overcooked. He was happy to see the customer walk out of the restaurant     4     (angry).

On August 24, 1853, a customer returned his fried potatoes to the kitchen,     5     they weren’t crunchy (脆的) enough. Crum reacted in his     6     (usually) way. He cut the potatoes very thin and cooked them in hot oil. They were so crunchy and Crum was sure that the man would refuse     7     (eat) them. Instead, the man loved them. He even asked for more.

Now, do you know     8     invented the potato chip? It’s George Crum! He     9     (late) set up his own restaurant. He named it Crum’s House. He put baskets of his potato chips on all the tables. They made his restaurant a very popular place.

Today, potato chips are one of Americans’     10     (favor) foods!

3 . Following Cook’s death in 1779, the Endeavour journal of James Cook is thought to have been held by his wife Elizabeth. There is no record of the journal’s movements following Elizabeth Cook’s death in 1835 until its appearance in 1923 when it was offered at auction (拍卖) by its owners the Bolckow family of Yorkshire. The family were unable to explain how they came to hold the journal. It had apparently been in the family’s library ‘for over fifty years, having been purchased by the late Bolckow’s uncle, but from whom and in what circumstances is unknown’.

On 21 March 1923 the Australian government purchased the Endeavour journal for £5000 for the Commonwealth Parliamentary Library.

The Mitchell Library, Sydney, had been chasing the journal since its discovery with the Bolckow family in 1922 before the auction, and had approached the Commonwealth Government for a financial contribution towards the purchase. Though Interim (临时的) Commonwealth Parliamentary Librarian Arthur Wadsworth had guaranteed the Mitchell that there would be no competition for the item, Kenneth Binns (to be Wadsworth’s successor) felt that the Endeavour journal was more suited to remain within the nation’s library.

Binns put forward an eventually persuasive argument that the Commonwealth could not finance the Mitchell, ‘which was, after all, a private institution’. Prime Minister Bruce telegraphed the officer in London to instruct the Mitchell Library’s Chief Librarian, already in England anticipating the auction, to bid on behalf of the Commonwealth. The Mitchell Library accepted upon the understanding that it would be the keeper of the journal until such time that the Commonwealth Government had a suitable storing place, a National Library.

Upon arrival in Australia the journal was exhibited in Queens Hall, Melbourne, for a month after which it was taken to the Mitchell Library which held it for four years, before it was removed to Canberra.

5 . Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is America’s fifth largest city. Once a major American colonial city, it is the home of America’s first library, its first hospital, and its first zoo. Now it is also the first US city to be named a World Heritage City. On November 6, 2015, Philadelphia joined more than 260 other cities that have been recognized for their influence on the world. These cities include Paris, France, Florence, Italy, and Cairo, Egypt.

The exciting news was announced by Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, Deputy Mayor Alan Greenberger, responsible for economic development and business guidance, and the Global Philadelphia Association. “Today marks the start of a new and exciting chapter in the history of Philadelphia,” remarked Nutter when the announcement was made. “As a World Heritage City, Philadelphia is being officially recognized on the global stage for its wealth of contributions to the world.”

To be named a World Heritage City, a city must be home to a UNESCO World Heritage site. UNESCO World Heritage sites are selected for their universal value and significance. For Philadelphia, the site is Independence Hall.

Independence Hall is where two of the most important documents in US history — the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution — were adopted. The Declaration of Independence, approved on July 4, 1776, united the 13 former British colonies and declared them independent from British rule. From then on, a democratic and free country was born, which changed the course of world history. The US Constitution, signed in 1787, established the American democratic system of government. A democracy is a system of government in which the people elect their leaders. The Constitution later spelled out the basic freedoms American citizens have.

Greenberger says the city’s selection as a World Heritage City also reflects its educational, cultural, and economic achievements. The city is home to dozens of colleges and universities, and many museums, such as the Philadelphia Museum of Art. “Philadelphia has rightfully earned its place as one of the greatest cities in the world. As we celebrate this milestone, we will focus even more on improving Philadelphia’s status as a World Heritage City to attract more guests to visit, invest, work, study and live here.” Greenberger says.

6 . Vasco da Gama, born around 1469 in Sines, Portugal, is best remembered as the first European to sail from Europe to India. The sea ________ he found helped Portugal build a rich empire overseas.

As a young man, studying navigation, he served as an officer in the Portuguese ________. In 1497, he ________ the king of Portugal he could find a sea route to India by sailing around Africa, which would allow Portugal to ________ the rich Indian spice (香料) trade.

Earlier Portuguese expeditions had ________ the southern tip of Africa. But these trips were long, difficult, and ________. Was it possible to travel from Europe to India in a single ________?

In July, Gama ________ from Lisbon with four ships. By January 1498, the expedition ________ Mozambique on Africa’s southeaster coast. But Arab traders in Mozambique ________ disliked Portuguese. They ________ Gama away.

Farther north, on the coast of Kenya, Gama hired an Arab to ________ his ships across the Indian Ocean. In May 1498, for the first time, they arrived at Calicut in India, where pearls, jewels and wonderful spices were ________ for sale. But the king and local merchants refused to ________ with Portuguese.

Then in 1502, Gama made a ________ voyage to Calicut with warships and soldiers. After many ________ battles, Gama ________ the enemy’s warships and killed many locals ________ the king of Calicut surrendered (投降). Gama sailed home ________ with lots of spices. In 1524, Portugal built a valuable trading empire in India. ________. the Portuguese king named Gama the governor of Portugal’s possessions there.

On January 24, 1848, gold was discovered in the Sierra mountains about 160 km from San Francisco. Everyone     1     (convince) that they could find their fortunes. Thousands of people from all over the country rushed to the hills. So many people came that there existed a critical     2     (short) of food. Even when supplies arrived, their goods were dumped on the beach because there was no place     3     (store) them. As many sailors left their ships to hunt for gold, their ships were pulled to shore and made into stores and hotels.

No one obeyed the law and everything was     4     chaos. People out fighting fires came back to find their house robbed. Many thought the fires were     5     (purpose) set. Angry citizens took the law into their own hands. They     6     (hang) without trial people who they thought were robbers.

But with powerful measures     7     (adopt), the place finally returned to a     8    (harmony) community. Many fortune-hunters did find their fortunes. Some of those,     9     managed to keep their money, built huge houses on Nob Hill. But the fortunes could be lost just as easily. Many lost their money on betting.

By 1855, the gold rush was over. Today, San Francisco is one of the major cities in the United States. And it is all     10     they found gold in those hills.

The word hutong was borrowed from the Mongolian word to mean, “water well”, about 700 years ago. Later it referred to a place     1     people live. Hutong we see today are made up of small lanes     2     (form) by walls of siheyuan. They were built during     3     Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties.

When the People’s Republic of China     4     (found) in 1949, there were more than 3,000 hutong. Most of the city’s population lived in this traditional housing.

    5     with the modernization of the city in the 1980s and early 1990s, many hutong were pulled down to build     6     (road), skyscrapers and modern houses. The government has     7     (ultimate) recognized the importance of hutong as Chinese cultural heritage. In 2002, Beijing listed 40 protected historical zones and increased its efforts to restore some key relics and older streets in the city. Nearly 500 hutong     8     (survive) so far.

Hutong that still exist are like oases (绿洲) of calm surrounded by the     9     (noise) city. Walking through them, it is common     10     (see) groups of elderly citizens sitting together playing cards, mahjong or Chinese chess. In the early mornings and evenings, they gather to practice traditional forms of exercise such as taijiquan as well as dancing and singing folk songs or Peking Opera. Hutong have become a museum of Beijing’s folk customs and history.

Zhaobi, a wall that can be found outside the entrance of a building, has a long and storied history in China.

The earliest form of zhaobi    1    (appear) in the Western Zhou dynasty. Constructed to serve the function of the status symbol, zhaobi was only owned by     2    (high) members of society.    3    (see) zhaobi outside a building would let passersby know that this was the residence of someone of extreme    4    (important). Zhaobi also served the function of protecting privacy by blocking the entrance from any prying eyes.

With the passing of time, zhaobi took on a more abstract purpose, coming to play    5     role in the principles of fengshui, a practice which focused    6     achieving harmony and balance in all things.

Moving further forward in time, zhaobi became more of a form of artistic expression and creativity, with poetry,    7    (painting) and characters representing luck and good fortune appearing on the wall. Some families even used zhaobi as a canvas (画布)    8    (tell) their family history and achievement.

By evolving and adapting its functions, zhaobi has been a silent spectator of China’s long history since    9    (it) birth. This longevity through transformation is much like China itself, a country which shows great respect to its history    10     has also embraced modernization and progress.

Paper lanterns are beautiful decorative lanterns,     1    (original) made of rice or silk paper, covering a light source. They have been used to decorate rooms during festivals and other important     2    (occasion) for hundreds of years. Nowadays,     3    (hang) lanterns is still one of the traditional customs in many places.

Due     4     the thin covering of paper lanterns, the lanterns are very beautiful when they are lit. Different paintings and designs       5    (attach) to the thin covering, making the lantern more attractive.

The only color not traditionally used in making paper lanterns is white; it is often used in memory of     6     dead in many Asian cultures. Paper lanterns have     7     (vary) shapes and sizes. A common design is the ball or globe design,     8     holds its shape by being stretched (伸展) over bamboo strips.

It is very unusual today to see paper lanterns that hold candles, unless the paper     9    (use) is fire resistant (耐火的). It’s simply too easy for them to catch fire, otherwise. So in modern times, for safety, people often use a small electric light instead of a candle     10    (avoid) possible fires.