1 . Wimbledon is the most important sporting event of the British summer. Since the first tournament (锦标赛) was played in 1877, the competition has become a global sporting event attended by over half a million people, and watched on television by millions.

Although the Wimbledon tennis championship (锦标赛) has been around for more than a century, the sport of tennis has a much longer history. Most experts agree that the modern game has its origins in a courtyard ball game played by French monks in the 11th century.

Much has changed since the first Wimbledon Tournament in 1877. The first champion, Spencer Gore, won a prize of £12;this year the prize money is £630,000. Indeed, success in tennis championships is a very profitable (有收益的) business. 2004 Wimbledon champion, Roger Federer has won nearly $17,000,000 in prize money since 1998. Even more impressive, Serena and Venus Williams have won $30,000,000 between them over the last ten years.

Although Wimbledon has traditionally been dominated by Americans and Europeans, other countries are beginning to produce world-class players. Zheng Jie and Yan Zi won China’s first Wimbledon title on July 9, 2006. They beat Virginia Ruano Pascual of Spain and Paola Suarez of Argentina in the women’s doubles final.

In the future all Chinese competitors will be under pressure to do well; their coach, Jiang Hongwei, has gone on record as saying, “My goal is to lift my players into the top 30.”

1. Where is the origin of the modern tennis game?

A．Germany.

B．China.

C．Britain.

D．France.

2. Who won the least money in the championship according to the text?

A．Spencer Gore.

B．Roger Federer.

C．Serena.

D．Zheng Jie.

3. What does the underlined word “dominated” mean in Paragraph 4?

A．Controlled.

B．Attended.

C．Accepted.

D．Arranged.

4. What is the author’s purpose of writing the text?

A．To explain the history of the Wimbledon Tournament.

B．To give an introduction to the Wimbledon Tournament.

C．To show the development of the Wimbledon Tournament.

D．To discuss the importance of the Wimbledon Tournament.

2 . When was tea first discovered as a drink?

A．About thirty-five centuries ago.

B．About twenty-five centuries ago.

C．About fifty centuries ago.

3 . The Roman Colosseum was built almost two thousand years ago. Despite its age and a 14th century earthquake that knocked down the south side, most of the 150-some foot building is still standing. Scientists and engineers have long suspected a key to the building’s durability (使用年限) is the use of a specific Roman concrete. But exactly how this solid concrete has contributed to the architecture’s strength has been a mystery to researchers across the globe.

A team of researchers recently discovered a potential answer to why these ancient Roman buildings have been able to weather the test of time while many modern concrete structures seem to fall apart after a few decades. The answer is self-healing concrete.

The material has three components: limestone (石灰石), volcanic material and water. What the researchers found was that the self-healing feature might be simply caused by chemistry accidentally. The limestone in the concrete is likely the secret.

When the ancient Romans made mortar (灰浆), they heated up the lime to turn it into a substance called “quicklime”. And, because they introduced water to the quicklime during mixing, the heat it produced set up a chemical foundation that could strengthen the concrete later. When tiny cracks start to form later, the quicklime stops them from becoming bigger. When it rains, the lime reacts with the water to recombine as various forms of calcium carbonate (碳酸钙), quickly filling the crack or reacting with the volcanic ash to “heal” the material.

For materials scientist Ainissa Ramirez, this new understanding of ancient Roman concrete is a welcome discovery. “This is one way that the material can be more environmentally friendly,” says Ramirez. “It’s sort of like a message in a bottle. The Romans made the material. We had to kind of figure out how they did it so that we can make better materials — and then, you know, in turn, be better protectors of our environment.”

1. What can we learn from Paragraph 1?

A．The secret of Roman concrete has been revealed.

B．The Roman Colosseum was built in the 14th century.

C．The whole Roman Colosseum survived the earthquake.

D．Roman concrete is essential to the architecture’s strength.

2. What does the underlined word “weather” in Paragraph 2 mean?

A．Take.

B．Stand.

C．Avoid.

D．Fail.

3. What do we know about the self-healing process?

A．The lime itself could fill the crack later.

B．The quicklime should be made on rainy days.

C．The chemical foundation could weaken the concrete.

D．Combining water and quicklime would produce heat.

4. What can be inferred from Ramirez’s words?

A．People can be inspired to make greener materials.

B．The secret of Roman concrete is hidden in a bottle.

C．Roman concrete has greatly improved the environment.

D．Roman concrete is popular in making modern architecture.