1 . Discoveries in Greenland indicate that Vikings ( 维 京 人) lived there for hundreds of years, trading with the European continent before they disappeared.
Settling in Greenland posed an enormous challenge. Shelter, food, and clothing were, of course, essential to survival. There were no trees large enough to produce wood for housing. These settlers had to build homes of driftwood, stone, and sod (草皮). The summer was too short to grow grain crops, so they farmed domesticated animals imported from Europe and mainly relied on secondary products, such as milk and cheese.
At some point during the fourteenth century, Greenland’s climate grew colder. Glaciers (冰川) began moving slowly over the land, bringing with them a runoff of sand, mud, and stones. These things slowly robbed the settlers of valuable grassland.
| A．Who were the Vikings? |
| B．Besides, they netted fish and hunted deer. |
| C．However, the Greenlanders learned to adapt. |
| D．Sports were also widely practiced by the Vikings. |
| E．Well, what became of these early settlers in Greenland? |
| F．Only 14 boats survived the seas, and about 450 people set foot ashore. |
| G．A central figure in this story was Erik the Red, who grew up in Iceland. |
A strong earthquake hit Tangshan, China on 28 July, 1976. The deadly quake broke out at 3:42 a.m.,
Soon after the quake, 150,000 soldiers
Tangshan started to revive itself and get back up on its
A terrible fire began to burn at France’s world-famous Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral (巴黎圣母院)
Notre-Dame
One man said, “Notre-Dame
5 . When the cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris (巴黎圣母院) was on fire, it seemed as if the nation had lost a piece of its soul. A similar tragedy took place in 19th century Russia. And the rebuilding effort of the Russians might offer some inspiration for the French.
Standing in the heart of the Russian capital, with 60,000 square meters of floor space and 1,500 rooms, the Winter Palace was among the world’s grandest building. On Dec. 17, 1837, a fire broke out at the Winter Palace. By the morning of Dec.19, only the structure’s framework remained.
For the czar (沙皇) , the fire presented a political challenge. Fearing that Russia's enemies would cast the fire as a blow to the czarist orders, the czar’s supporters quickly worked together to shape the description of the fire in Russia and abroad. They wanted the country to appear united. And they certainly didn't want despair to become the story.
The first full account of the fire was written in French by the poet Petr Viazemskii. A Russian translation appeared two months later. That text and others painted a highly idealized picture of the response to the tragedy. The accounts noted that the czar forcefully directed the fire’s containment. Soldiers were selfless to save the palace. The Russian people felt the loss just as deeply as the czar.
To erase the shame of the fire, the czar set a nearly impossible goal: rebuild the palace within 15 months, and he ordered that rebuilt palace look exactly as it had before.Thousands of workers labored on the construction site. They made rapid progress. On Match 25, 1839, the czar celebrated the rebirth of the Winter Palace.
Outwardly identical to the old version, the new palace featured more iron and brick in its structures---and less wood. It was far less fire-prone than the original.
Notre Dame hasn’t experienced the same level of destruction as the Winter Palace, if the Russian phoenix of 1839 is any indication, there is hope that a renewed Notre Dame will once again grace the banks of the Seine.
1. What do we know about the fire in the Winter Palace?| A．It burnt down 60,000 rooms |
| B．It lasted more than 24 hours |
| C．It was set by Russia’s enemies |
| D．It completely destroyed the palace |
| A．To secure his power |
| B．To challenge his enemies |
| C．To unite French people |
| D．To celebrate his birthday |
| A．The scene of the fire |
| B．The selflessness of the czar |
| C．The Russians’ joint effort to fight the fire |
| D．The ideal result achieved by the Russians. |
| A．To describe a fire at the Winter Palace |
| B．To praise the renewal of the Winter Palace |
| C．We express sympathy for the Notre Dame |
| D．To inspire confidence in rebuilding the Notre Dame. |
6 . A valuable sketch (素描) from World WarⅠhas turned up in a garage sale in Perth. It’s a sketch of soldiers playing soccer with a tin can during an unofficial truce (停战) between German and Allied soldiers on the Western Front in 1914. The artwork was drawn by an unnamed German soldier during the war on the Western Front.
The artwork was given to Private Jack Shelley, a British soldier, when he was defending the town of Frelinghien, France. The sketch is an important historical document, as it provides evidence that the tales of enemy soldiers socializing together are true. But for Private Shelley’s descendants(后代) it has even greater value, since it was his prized possession. Jessie Shelley, Jack’s great-granddaughter, has fond memories of the old man sharing stories about his experiences in the war when he came to live permanently in Australia in 1930. the family lost track of the artwork after Jack’s possessions were moved during the sale of his house when he died in 1984.
‘Great-grandpa had a tobacco tin with a dozen or so buttons from the uniforms of men from both sides. He told us all the details of every one of those buttons. To Great-grandpa they represented real people he had known, some of whom hadn’t come home from the war. He had at least two buttons from German uniforms that he told us were exchanged between the men involved in the Christmas Day Truce.’
On Christmas Day of 1914, the soldiers came out of their trenches(战壕) into no-man’s-land and shared food, drinks and cigarettes. Some even exchanged small gifts. The men even played football games together. Later, this spirit of cooperation continued in unofficial agreements between the sides to stop shooting at mealtimes and even at times when soldiers were working in the open.
This fascinating image of peace and humanity during the war has continued through the years. The sketch is a symbol of the potential for humanity, hope and kindness to exist in even the most violent circumstances.
1. In what situation was the sketch done?| A．It was done in a garage |
| B．It was done on the front line. |
| C．It was done during a formal soccer match. |
| D．It was done by a soldier fighting in Germany. |
| A．It explains the specific reason for the war. |
| B．It shows the war on the Western Front came to an end. |
| C．It proves enemy soldiers could live in peace sometimes. |
| D．It is evidence that soldiers could adapt quickly to society. |
| A．They were from German uniforms. |
| B．Some of them represented his honor. |
| C．Some of their owners didn’t survive the war. |
| D．They were collected during Christmas Day in 1914. |
| A．It brought about more truces. |
| B．It started wide information exchanges. |
| C．It led to no agreement between the sides. |
| D．It resulted in more celebrations between the sides. |
7 . When you think of a typical American, who do you picture? A pretty blond white American like Taylor Swift? Or a handsome black American like basketball star Kobe Bryant? In fact, there was a time when the average American looked like neither of these people.
Back in the year 1500, the average American was a brown-skinned hunter-gatherer who probably rode a horse and wore clothing made from animal skins. Today, these people－who usually identify themselves based on their individual tribes such as Iriquois, Apache and Navajo－are broadly referred to as “Native Americans”, “American Indians” or simply “Indians”.
There’s a chance that you’ve never even heard of American Indians. That‟s because there aren’t very many left. When the European settlement of North America began, there were fierce conflicts between the settlers from overseas and these native peoples. After the British government and military were expelled (驱逐) in the Revolutionary War, conflicts with natives continued as the states were created that would later make up the US. In these conflicts, millions of natives were killed.
In 1830, president Andrew Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act. This act required all Indians to migrate to the west of the Mississippi River to allow for the expansion of the US. American Indians were treated as a military “enemy” until 1924, when the few Indians still alive at that point were granted （准予）US citizenship. That was the first time that the US government formally recognized the rights of Indians.
While the story of the American Indians has been a sad one, these peoples’ legacies (遗产) are still felt every day in the US. Many US geographical names come from Indian languages, such as Ohio, Topeka, Kansas, and the Potomac River. At the same time, there are numerous successful academics and other important US leaders who are descended（是……的后裔）from Indians. And nowadays, more and more history classes in US public schools are educating students about how Indians suffered during the settlement of the US.
Although what happened cannot be undone, we can learn at least one thing from the sad history of the Indians: If we want a better future, we must look carefully and honestly at the past.
1. What is the article mainly about?| A．The history of the settement of the US. |
| B．What a typical American is like. |
| C．The sad story of American Indians. |
| D．American Indians‟ economic impact on the US. |
| A．were driven from the US by the British government |
| B．were regarded as a military “enemy” of the US |
| C．were finally granted US citizenship |
| D．were required to live along the Mississippi River. |
| A．There are few influential American Indians in US history. |
| B．Some of their languages are still used today. |
| C．The majority of them lived in the states of Ohio and Kansas. |
| D．American youths are becoming more informed of the suffering of the Indians. |
| A．It’s miserable to be reminded of it. |
| B．It’s important to learn from it. |
| C．He doesn’t have much interest in it. |
| D．Every school should teach classes about it. |
