1 . Color is fundamental in home design — something you’ll always have in every room. A grasp of how to manage color in your spaces is one of the first steps to creating rooms you’ll love to live in. Do you want a room that’s full of life? Professional? Or are you just looking for a place to relax after a long day?     1    

Over the years, there have been a number of different techniques to help designers approach this important point.     2     But good news is that there’re really only three kinds of decisions you need to make about color in your home: the small ones, the medium ones, and the large ones.

    3     They’re the little spots of color like throw pillows, mirrors and baskets that most of us use to add visual interest to our rooms. Less tiring than painting your walls and less expensive than buying a colorful sofa, small color choices bring with them the significant benefit of being easily changeable.

Medium color choices are generally furniture pieces such as sofas, dinner tables or bookshelves.     4     They require a bigger commitment than smaller ones, and they have a more powerful effect on the feeling of a space.

The large color decisions in your rooms concern the walls, ceilings, and floors.     5     So it pays to be sure, because you want to get it right the first time.

A．While all of them are useful, they can get a little complex.

B．Small color choices are the ones we’re most familiar with.

C．It’s not really a good idea to use too many small color pieces.

D．When looking for room color ideas, start by embracing color theory.

E．Color choices in this range are a step up from the small ones in two major ways.

F．Whatever you’re looking for, color is the key to making a room feel the way you want it to feel.

G．Whether you’re looking at wallpaper or paint, the time, effort and relative expense put into it are important.

3 . Your house may have an effect on your figure. Experts say the way you design your home could play a role in whether you gain or lose weight.     1     Here are some ways to turn your home into part of diet plan.

    2    Dark environments are more likely to encourage overeating, for when people are in poorly-lit places, they are more likely to eat lots of food. If your home doesn't have enough window light, get more lamps and flood the place with brightness.

    3     Research suggests warm colors fuel our appetites. In one study, people who ate meals in a blue room consumed 33 percent less than those in a yellow or red room.     4       However, cold colors make us feel less hungry. So when it’s time to repaint, go blue.

    5     People who eat slowly tend to consume about 70 fewer calories per meal than those who rush through their meals. Begin keeping track of the time, and try to make dinner last at least 30 minutes, and while you're at it, actually sit down to eat.

A．Mind the colors of your room.

B．You will enjoy your home environment.

C．Don’t forget the clock.

D．Open the curtains and turn up the lights.

E．Listen to some light music.

F．Warm colors like yellow make food appear more delicious.

G．You can make your environment work for you.

4 . After a long day at work, coming home is a breath of fresh air. Home is a comfortable place to sit back and relax.     1    Below are a number of things we can do to create a healthy home environment that will help to ease the workday stress and promote our physical and mental health.

    2    It may seem like a tiring thing to clean but there is a reason for doing so. We can remove dust by cleaning the house. Leaving layers of dust everywhere means that there is a build-up of dust. And where do these layers of dust go? Into our lungs.

Making sure the rooms are full of sunlight is also important. We may not realize it but sunlight is an important part of our growth. We all know that sunlight promotes better working conditions.     3    Think about using a Parans system where sunlight does not reach. This technology gathers the sunlight by using solar panels(板). It can send out sunlight wherever we are.

It is also a good idea to add more plants in our house.     4    They also give off oxygen, which can lower stress and improve our moods.

Along the lines of being green, it can also be vital to think about what things we are bringing into the house. Try to avoid specific plastics that are harmful to health.     5    They may contain poisonous chemicals that can be breathed in, or simply absorbed through the skin.

A．However, is it as healthy as it can be?

B．Is our home as comfortable as it used to be?

C．The same thing applies to certain carpets and paint.

D．Going green will help to remove toxins(毒素) in the air.

E．Besides, it can reduce both stress and high blood pressure.

F．Cleaning the house regularly is the first thing we should do.

G．It is acknowledged that a greener lifestyle is linked to better health.

5 . Color is fundamental in home design—something you’ll always have in every room. A grasp of how to manage color in your spaces is one of the first steps to creating rooms you’ll love to live in. Do you want a room that’s full of life? Professional? Or are you just looking for a place to relax after a long day?     1    , color is the key to making a room feel the way you want it to feel.

Over the years, there have been a number of different techniques to help designers approach this important point.     2    , they can get a little complex. But good news is that there’re really only three kinds of decisions you need to make about color in your home: the small ones, the medium ones, and the large ones.

    3    . They’re the little spots of color like throw pillows, mirrors and baskets that most of us use to add visual interest to our rooms. Less tiring than painting your walls and less expensive than buying a colorful sofa, small color choices bring with them the significant benefit of being easily changeable.

Medium color choices are generally furniture pieces such as sofas, dinner tables or bookshelves.     4    . They require a bigger commitment than smaller ones, and they have a more powerful effect on the feeling of a space.

The large color decisions in your rooms concern the walls, ceilings, and floors. Whether you’re looking at wallpaper or paint, the time, effort and relative expense put into it are significant.     5    .

A．While all of them are useful

B．Whatever you’re looking for

C．If you’re experimenting with a color

D．Small color choices are the ones we’re most familiar with

E．It’s not really a good idea to use too many small color pieces

F．So it pays to be sure, because you want to get it right the first time

G．Color choices in this range are a step up from the small ones in two major ways

6 . Should we allow modern buildings to be built next to older buildings in a historic area of a city? In order to answer this question, we must first examine whether people really want to preserve the historic feel of an area. Not all historical buildings are attractive. However, there may be other reasons—for example, economic (经济的) reasons—why they should be preserved. So, let us assume that historical buildings are both attractive and important to the majority of people. What should we do then if a new building is needed?

In my view, new architectural styles can exist perfectly well alongside an older style. Indeed, there are many examples in my own home town of Tours where modern designs have been placed very successfully next to old buildings. As long as the building in question is pleasing and does not dominate (影响) its surroundings too much, it often improves the attractiveness of the area.

It is true that there are examples of new buildings which have spoilt (破坏) the area they are in, but the same can be said of some old buildings too. Yet people still speak against new buildings in historic areas. I think this is simply because people are naturally conservative(保守的)and do not like change.

Although we have to respect people’s feelings as fellow users of the buildings, I believe that it is the duty of the architect and planner to move things forward . If we always reproduced what was there before, we would all still be living in caves. Thus, I would argue against copying previous architectural styles and choose something fresh and different , even though that might be the more risky choice.

1. What does the author say about historical buildings in the first paragraph?

A．Some of them are not attractive.

B．Most of them ate too expensive to preserve.

C．They are more pleasing than modern buildings.

D．They have nothing to do with the historic feel of an area.

2. Which of the following is true according to the author ?

A．We should reproduce the same old buildings.

B．Buildings should not dominate their surroundings.

C．Some old buildings have spoilt the area they are in.

D．No one understands why people speak against new buildings.

3. By “move things forward ” in the last paragraph , the author probably means“      ”

A．destroy old buildings

B．put things in a different place

C．respect people’s feelings for historical buildings

D．choose new architectural styles

4. What is the main purpose of the passage?

A．To explain why people dislike change.

B．To argue that modern buildings can be built in historic areas.

C．To warn that we could end up living in caves.

D．To admit how new buildings have ruined their surroundings.