2 . It was December 25, 1914, only 5 months into World War Ⅰ. German, British, and French soldiers already sick and tired of the senseless killing, disobeyed their superiors and fraternized (打得火热) with “the enemy” along two-thirds of the Western Front. German troops held Christmas trees up out of the trenches (战壕) with signs, “Merry Christmas.”

“You no shoot, we no shoot.” Thousands of troops streamed across a no-man’s land filled with dead bodies. They sang Christmas carols, exchanged photographs of loved ones back home, shared rations, played football, and even roasted some pigs. Soldiers embraced (拥抱) men they had been trying to kill a few short hours before. They agreed to warn each other if the Generals (将军) forced them to fire their weapons, and to aim high.

It shocked the high command on either side. Here was disaster in the making: soldiers declaring their brotherhood with each other and refusing to fight. Generals on both sides declared this peacemaking to be wrong. Fifteen million would be killed.

Not many people have heard the story of the Christmas Truce. On Christmas Day, 1988, a story in the Boston Globe mentioned that a local FM radio host played “Christmas in the Trenches” several times and was surprised by the effect. The song became the most requested recording during the holidays in Boston on several FM stations. “Some callers even telephone the host deeply moved, sometimes in tears, asking, ‘What the hell did I just hear?’”

You can probably guess why the callers were in tears. The Christmas Truce story goes against most of what we have been taught about people. It gives us a glimpse of the world as we wish it could be and says, “This really happened once.” It reminds us of those thoughts we keep hidden away, ou of range of the TV and newspaper stories that tell us how trivial (微不足道的) and mean human life is. It is like hearing that our deepest wishes really are true: the world really could be different.

1. What is the main idea of the second paragraph?

A．Troops celebrated their victories.	B．Generals forced their army to fight back.
C．Soldiers made peace with their enemies.	D．Soldiers decided to give in to their enemies.

2. What would the soldiers’ actions result in according to the passage?

A．A fierce war.

B．Many deaths.

C．A peaceful world.

D．Many heroes.

3. Why were the callers in tears?

A．They experienced the war.	B．They lost loved ones in the war.
C．They valued the life in peace.	D．They desired to protect their motherland.

4. What do the TV and newspaper stories probably convey?

A．Being against wars.	B．Cherishing today’s happiness.
C．Remembering heroes.	D．Showing no respect for life.

5 . Dancing until you drop is a well­known saying, but would you really be able to dance until you dropped dead? In 1374, in some European towns, people did exactly that. They were struck by a dancing plague (瘟疫) that forced them to dance.

This phenomenon (现象) was reported to have happened throughout parts of Western Europe, affecting people from the 14th to the 17th century. Hardly stopping to eat or even sleep, they would dance, sometimes for days on end, making this one of the strangest sicknesses in Western history.

Over the next century, there were only a few outbreaks. However, in the summer of 1518, it reappeared in the city of Strasbourg, France. It all began with a woman called Mrs. Troffea, who started to dance crazily in the street.

She was soon joined by 34 people within a week; by the end of the month, the crowd had increased to 400, most of whom were women. Again, people were dancing until they could no longer continue, with some finally dying from heart attacks or exhaustion. One report shows that the plague was killing around 15 people per day.

As the plague worsened, concerned nobles (贵族) turned to the advice of local doctors, who said that the plague was a “natural disease” caused by “hot blood”. So the nobles encouraged more dancing.

The reason behind their actions was they believed the dancers could only recover if they danced continuously night and day. The nobles even paid for musicians to keep the moving.

Then, as before, it disappeared almost as suddenly as it had come.

While these events may sound highly unbelievable, there is clear written evidence that it did happen.

Now, historians and scientists are still trying to find out the true cause of this phenomenon.

1. What do we know about the plague?

A．It cost some people's lives.

B．It took place twice in history.

C．It affected people of all ages.

D．It stopped in the 16th century.

2. Why did the nobles encourage more dancing?

A．To see the hot blood.

B．To kill the dancing people.

C．To free people of the plague.

D．To prove the doctors' words.

3. How did the plague disappear?

A．For no reason.

B．With local doctors' help.

C．With Mrs. Troffea's help.

D．Because of some natural power.

4. What's the purpose of the text?

A．To show the history of dancing.

B．To introduce a well­known English saying.

C．To provide information on the dancing plague.

D．To explain the reason behind the dancing plague.

6 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

The celebrations with the military parade for China's 70th anniversary（周年纪念日）on National Day have clearly shown     1     this nation has developed quickly with confidence in the system     2     (adopt) under the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

On the one hand, National Day     3     (say) that China at 70 has achieved scientific and technological developments. On the other hand, it also reminded     4     (we) of the suffering the country experienced after the Opium War of 1840.

The parade also told the     5     (story) of "Made in China" and "Created in China". The achievements did not fall     6     the sky and nor were they stolen. Instead, they were the result of the hard work,    7    (wise) and courage of the Chinese people.

Under the leadership of the CPC, the Chinese people have created     8     miracle in 70 years. The truth of socialism with Chinese characteristics     9     (prove) by history and practice to be a correct path. It has become evident that China will     10     （sure）achieve the goal of the great renewal of the Chinese nation.

7 . The Egyptian city Thonis-Heracleion was founded in the eighth century B.C. For centuries, its location at the mouth of the Nile River made it a gateway to Egypt which foreign traders needed to pass through. This brought it both wealth and influence. Its name shows the city' s foreign ties: Thonis was its Egyptian name, but the Greeks, who had close contact with the Egyptians, named it Heracleion after the hero Hercules.

The neighboring city Canopus shared Thonis-Heracleion' s wealth and prestige (声望). Both cities appear in the writings of ancient historians and poets. But then they disappeared from all records. For centuries, no one even knew where these once-great cities were located.

In 1933 a British pilot flew over a bay in Egypt and spotted ruins. He reported his find, but nothing came of it. Not until 2000 did anyone research into the bay thoroughly. That year French archaeologist Franck Goddio used a tool that measured variations in the earth's magnetic field ( 磁场 ) to make a detailed map of the ocean floor. The map helped him and his team choose the most promising areas to dig.

At the bottom of the ocean, Goddio’s team found the remains of Thonis-Heracleion and Canopus. They carefully dug the cities out from mountains of sand that had settled over them. They made some amazing discoveries, such as a five-meter-tall statue. A stele, (石碑) records the city' s name and information about laws, such as tax regulations. And 69 ships lay buried in the same bay - the largest group of ancient ships ever found.

For all their glory, these cities were built on a foundation of soft clay ( 黏 土 ). As their populations grew, the weight of people and homes pressed the clay. In A.D. 800 the ground below the city collapsed (坍塌), causing people to run away. The ground collapsed again some time later, and over the course of 1,000 years, the land sank under the waves. Under the water, sand settled gently over the ruins, saving them from being destroyed.

1. What can we learn about the city Thonis-Heracicion?

A．It was less famous than Canopus.

B．It was once an important center of trade.

C．It   was   once under the   control   of the Greeks.

D．It was recorded in more detail than Canopus.

2. Goddio found the sites of Thonis-Heraclcion and Canopus   .

A．completely by chance

B．according to the historical records

C．with the support of the British pilot

D．thanks to the map of the ocean floor he made

3. What do we know about the treasures found by Goddio's team?

A．They are still in good condition.	B．They are of little historical value.
C．They were hidden in the mountains.	D．They belonged to Thonis-Heracleion.