Cold Food Festival is a    1     (tradition) Chinese holiday celebrated before Qingming Festival, which usually falls    2     April 4 or 5.

Legend has it that Chong’er, a prince of Jin in the Spring and Autumn Period, experienced many hardships while he moved around the warring states. Once, when the prince suffered from     3     (starve), Jie Zitui, offered him food. Later, when Chong’er became the duke of Jin, he ordered a search for Jie who had gone into hiding in the remote mountains with his mother. The duke wanted Jie    4     ( serve) as one of his ministers. Contrary to    5     many people might assume, Jie, who preferred living a simple life in the Mianshan Mountain to     6     (become) a politician, refused the duke’s invitation. Chong’er ordered the mountain to be burned down to force Jie out of hiding.     7     (fortune), Jie did not give in and the fire ended up killing him and his mother. Feeling extremely sorry, Chong’er required that the setting of fire    8     (forbid) on the anniversary of Jie’s death. This meant all food was eaten cold. Therefore the festival is thus named.

Mianshan Mountain,     9     the tragedy happened, is now a famous tourist destination in Shanxi Province. In many areas of Shanxi, locals still remember this tradition.     10     cold food is not the only choice for people during the celebration, the practices of making typical cold dishes for the event have been preserved.

New research suggests     1     the story of Franklin’s famous experiment with lightning may be fiction instead of fact. More than one generation of school children has been amazed by his bravery and his     2     (science) approach to     3     (look) for the truth. However, neither the story nor the details of the experiment are entirely true. Although it has been proved that Franklin’s experiment     4     (take) place, more than one scientist has questioned what really happened.     5     detail about the string and the key is true. But     6     (science) all agree that if he had     7     (actual) touched the key, he would certainly have died from the electric shock. Fiction is     8     (interesting) than the truth. People have been more inspired by Franklin’s spirit of scientific     9     (explore) than by the facts themselves. But in science, facts should be proved     10     experiments and research.

The Amber Room was given this name because several tons of amber were used to make it. The     1     (select) amber had     2     beautiful yellow-brown colour like honey. The design of the room was     3     the fancy style popular in those days. It was also a treasure     4     (decorate) with gold and jewels,     5     took the country’s best     6     (artist) about ten years to make.

Later, Catherine Ⅱ had the Amber Room     7     (move) to a palace outside St Petersburg where she spent her summers.     8     (sad), the Amber Room     9     (consider) one of the wonders of the world, is now     10     (miss).

Odysseus is a literary figure in Odyssey written by Homer. He rejected the comfortable life of a Greek king and made a promise to help another Greek leader, Menelaus, in the war     1     the Trojans. But the war dragged on and on and he     2     (be) away from his family for ten years. During this period the fortunes of the war were so     3     (change) that no one could predict which side would win.

Odysseus became tired of the war and the delay in Troy. He     4     (desperate) wanted to return home. Hence, on the occasion     5     the Greek kings had their regular weekly meeting, he suggested     6     (trick) the Trojans.

The Greeks built a giant wooden horse so that their soldiers could hide inside     7    . The Greeks then pretended to set out home as if     8     (discourage) by the long-lasting war, leaving the wooden horse behind. The Trojans blessed their God for their good fortune, dragged the horse into the city and prepared to celebrate. That night the Greek soldiers climbed out of the wooden horse and opened the city gates for the Greek army. Then came the sound of the warning bell     9     (announce) a Greek victory. The war ended, but the     10     (punish) of the Trojan people was only just beginning.

It was Sunday, December 7, 1941.     1     usual, the wake-up call came at 5:45 a.m. It looked like it was going to be a normal day on board the ship. Just then there was a huge crashing sound from above. The ship shook       2     (violent) and the men looked at each other in horror. Above their heads, hundreds of Japanese planes circled like eagles. They were diving down to drop bombs on Pearl Harbor. Moments later, a bomb hit the USS Arizona.

The surprise attack came as a great shock to     3     whole nation. The next day, President Roosevelt made his famous Pearl Harbor Speech,     4     (ask) the US Congress to declare war on Japan. In     5     (respond) to the attack and the president’s address, the US     6     (join) World War Ⅱ. Today, the USS Arizona lies     7     it sank: in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Its location     8     (mark) with a memorial shaped like a bridge, which crosses the ship’s sunken     9     (remain). Although about eight decades years has passed, the attack on Pearl Harbor, one of the     10     (dark) episodes in American history, will never be forgotten.

In the summer of 1405, Zheng He set sail from Taicang on his first voyage. His ships     1     (load) with china, silk, tea and other treasures as gifts for foreign rulers. Zheng He's seven voyages had a far­reaching impact     2     China and its neighbours. Zheng He's efforts helped develop and strengthen     3     (harmony) relations with these countries and regions. Zheng He's accomplishments are now     4     (wide) acknowledged, and he is remembered as one of China's most influential explorers.

Columbus was born in a port city of Italy in 1451. As a teenager, he loved sailing, and he showed great interest in geography,     5     inspired him to begin his career as a seaman. Columbus insisted on     6     (search) for a direct sea route to the East Indies by sailing across the Atlantic Ocean. On 3 August 1492, he     7     (depart) from Spain with three ships carrying about 90 crewmen. Regardless of all the challenges, Columbus managed     8     (keep) everyone out of danger with his knowledge and     9     (brave) across the ocean. Finally, on 12 October, the crew spotted land in     10     distance. His voyages opened a new chapter of the Age of Exploration, a period which witnessed many important geographical findings.