2 . Recently, I was walking with some parents when we came across a five-pound note lying on the ground. We stood around it for a moment, a bit awkwardly, until someone suggested putting it on a nearby bench. Then one of the parents remarked that we’d probably have behaved differently — that is, we would have just taken the money — had we been alone.

This relates to a classic question in studies of human generosity: do we behave more selfishly when we aren’t being observed? The debate goes on across the psychological and biological sciences, as well as in popular culture, about whether kindness can exist in a competitive world.

Yom Kippur is a Jewish (犹太人的) religious holiday when Jewish people fast and ask for forgiveness for the wrongs they’ve committed. One of the points of Yom Kippur is to behave better regardless of who is watching. There’s an evolutionary beauty to the teachings of Yom Kippur, which are the products of thousands of years of cultural changes and evolution.

The Maasai people of Kenya practice osotua: relationships between people that operate based on need. When someone forms an osotua relationship with another, they enter into an unwritten contract to help their partner in times of need. And hunter-gatherer groups, which can represent the circumstances our species evolved in, have many similar examples.

Cultural evolution helps to explain the existence and complexity of these systems. Cultural changes are far faster than biological evolution, allowing intelligent species like humans to develop behavioral adaptations for managing complex social environments. Osotua, or any other practice that helps to maintain good treatment of others in society, is the result of tens of thousands of years of cultural trial and error. The customs passed down over time are those that help us to develop as cultural groups.

The study of those changes has helped us to understand how we successfully spread around the world as cooperative groups. Biological evolution has helped humans be more cooperative, but cultural changes have accelerated this process.

Cultural evolution helps us to overcome our selfish natures. Try to understand rules before you ignore them — and next time you find a fiver on the ground, you might think about the awkward situation your discovery represents.

1. What made the parents feel a bit awkward?

A．The difficulty sharing the money.

B．The difficulty finding the owner of the money.

C．The thought of putting the money on the bench.

D．The thought of keeping the money for themselves.

2. Why is “Yom Kippur” talked about in the text?

A．To highlight a fact.	B．To draw a conclusion.
C．To make a comparison.	D．To support an argument.

3. How is biological evolution different from cultural evolution?

A．It evolves much slower.	B．It takes much less time.
C．It is a more complex process.	D．It makes humans more cooperative.

4. What does the author intend to explain in the text?

A．How cultural evolution takes place.	B．Why people sometimes behave selfishly.
C．Why kindness exists in a competitive world.	D．How kindness spreads throughout the world.

3 . The Mogao Caves form a system of 492 temples 25 km southeast of the center of Dunhuang, which is located at the religious and cultural crossroads on the Silk Road, in Gansu province. Known as Buddhist (佛教) caves, the caves contain some of the finest examples of Buddhist art, lasting a period of 1,000 years.     1    

The Mogao Caves are especially famous for the colored sculptures and murals (壁画), or wall paintings.     2     Rich and varied in forms, they typically have a healthy body, dignified appearance and simple style. The background color is dark red, plus other fresh colors. The color tone is strong and open, and the lines soft and comfortable, which shows the features of western Buddhism.     3    

The painted murals in the Mogao Caves tell stories about Buddhist scriptures (经文), scenery, open halls and scenes about production or flower patterns, reflecting society and civilization in ancient China.

    4     They are the goddesses serving Buddhas, flying in the universe. The artists used the special lines and harmonious interest and charm to show the graceful dream world. The gorgeous color, and lively lines reflect the artists’ passion for the dream world.

In lots of painted murals, the art features of other countries such as India, Iran and Greece can be easily seen.     5     The artistic charm of the painted murals contributes to glorious history of art in China.

A．Many ideas were spread through the Silk Road.

B．The murals were painted to worship the Buddha.

C．They reflected the development of Buddhism in China.

D．Different dynasties also showed different painting styles.

E．The colored sculptures are the main part of Dunhuang art.

F．All these make them a model for colored Buddhist sculptures.

G．In the painted murals everywhere are many beautiful flying Apsaras (飞天).

4 . In the old days, while the American Indian village had no schools such as we know today, boys and girls were taught how to do the necessary things by the _________ Indians in the family.

When a boy reached _________, his father set tests for him. The boy was asked to bring the first deer he killed to camp and give it to others. He was taught if he so much as tasted any of the meat it would ruin him as a hunter. He had to fast (禁食), going without food, for several days. In some tribes, he had to run a number of miles each of the days he _________. In other tribes, he was _________ on an ant bed. When the ants bit him, as they _________ would, he was not to cry out. In all his testing, he must show no fear.

In almost every tribe, more fuss was made over a girl when she became a woman. There were certain things she had to do. For a time she had to live in a little house all _________ away from her family. She had to fast and _________ no one except her mother and her mother’s mother. These two _________ her food and cared for her. They taught her what she must know to become a good woman and wife. They taught her with songs and stories and prayers.

After the girl’s time of _________ was over, her father and mother and all her relatives made a __________ in her honor. She was dressed carefully for her great day, perhaps in a new buckskin skirt ornamented with shells and beads (珠子). Her hair was washed and braided (编成辫子) and sometimes tied with mink (貂皮). This was a(n) __________ time. There would be a feast and much dancing.

To the Indians, this time of __________ was very important. That is __________ they required each boy to do something hard, even painful. They were testing his courage. They wanted him to be __________. That is why they sent the girl off to live for a time alone and think about the things her mother taught her. They want her to become a good wife and mother. They wanted her to know these things for her own sake and for the good of the whole __________.

1.

A．taller

B．tougher

C．older

D．stronger

2.

A．brotherhood

B．manhood

C．childhood

D．womanhood

3.

A．fasted

B．preferred

C．respected

D．socialized

4.

A．marked out

B．passed out

C．stretched out

D．tried out

5.

A．strangely

B．rarely

C．possibly

D．surely

6.

A．around

B．alone

C．along

D．among

7.

A．see

B．involve

C．tell

D．miss

8.

A．cooked

B．tasted

C．prepared

D．brought

9.

A．learning

B．staying

C．living

D．sleeting

10.

A．promise

B．mistake

C．celebration

D．duty

11.

A．unhappy

B．happy

C．informal

D．marriage

12.

A．bringing up

B．growing up

C．turning up

D．living up

13.

A．why

B．because

C．when

D．where

14.

A．healthy

B．generous

C．respectful

D．fearless

15.

A．country

B．ceremony

C．tribe

D．ritual

5 . “From wearing silly clothes to holding funny ceremonies, such seemingly bizarre rituals (仪式) can be seen everywhere, and most of them do not seem to serve any obvious purpose,” Dimitris Xygalatas writes at the beginning of his new book Rituals: How Seemingly Senseless Acts Make Life Worth Living.

Then why are humans still in love with such rituals?

Some of them are intended to unify the participants. The goose steps practised by the soldiers all around the world area great example. When we all perform the same actions in a predictable way, as rituals often require, it can create a sense of togetherness and cooperation, which maybe a matter of life and death in the face of danger.

Many rituals originated when humans started living in ever bigger groups, which exposed them to all kinds of violence, disasters and diseases. To prevent such risks from occurring, humans created various rituals. In regions where violence was common and the threat of disaster and disease was high, societies tended to emphasize strict ritualized behaviors, such as body-washing and sexual purity. Of course, not all of them were effective because they didn’t always understand what was causing the risks they were trying to control.

Most of the rituals just provide psychological comfort. Earlier this month, people around the world participated in one of humankind’s largest gathering to celebrate the New Year. The rituals included fireworks, gifts as well as some practices unique to specific cultures, such as cooking black-eyed peas and greens in the southeastern United States, or eating a grape with each midnight clock strike in Spain. In the face of uncertainty, such rituals give the participants some kind of control, which helps boost confidence and reduce anxiety.

However, the variety of rituals can also separate people, particularly when the valued practices of one culture strike another as strange and can not be clearly explained. “So here’s the surprising lesson we have to learn from such seemingly senseless rituals: Do in Rome as the Romans do since working isn’t the real point,” concludes Dimitris Xygalatas.

1. What does the underlined word “bizarre” in paragraph 1 mean?

A．Difficult.

B．Strange.

C．Wonderful.

D．Effective.

2. Which ritual just provides psychological comfort?

A．Stressing pure sexual relationship.	B．Practising goose steps in the army.
C．Eating grapes on New Year’s Eve.	D．Washing hands before religious rituals.

3. What is Dimitris Xygalatas’ advice concerning the rituals?

A．Respecting them.	B．Just following the effective ones.
C．Reducing the variety.	D．Introducing better replacements.

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

A．To argue against Dimitris Xygalatas.	B．To review a recently published book.
C．To show the side effects of some rituals.	D．To explain the origins and impacts of rituals.

7 . Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word; for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.
“Party Cries” In Ireland
Mark Twain

Belfast is a peculiarly religious community. This may be said of the whole of the North of Ireland. About one-half of the people are convinced Protestants (清教徒) and the other half Catholics (天主教徒). Each party does all it can     1    (make) its own doctrines (信条) popular and draw the affections of the irreligious toward them.    2    hears constantly of the most touching instances of this passion. A week ago a vast crowd of Catholics assembled at Armagh to dedicate a new church; and when they started home again the roadways     3     (line) with groups of meek and lowly Protestants who stoned them     4    all the region round about was marked with blood. I thought that only Catholics argued in that way,    5    it seems to be a mistake.

Every man in the community acts like a minister and carries a brick to argue against     6    holds different ideas. The law has tried to break this up, but not with perfect success. The law says that persons uttering (说) irritating “party cries”    7    be fined forty shillings (先令) and costs. And so, in the police court reports every day, one sees these fines     8     (record). Last week a girl of twelve years old was fined the usual forty shillings and costs     9    claiming in the public streets that she was “a Protestant.” The usual cry is, “To hell with the Pope!” or “To hell with the Protestants!” according to the utterer's system of salvation.

One of Belfast's local jokes was very good. It referred to the uniform and inevitable fine of forty shillings and costs for uttering a party cry--and it is no economical fine for a poor man, either, by the way. They say that a policeman found a drunken man lying on the ground, up a dark alley,    10     (amuse) himself with shouting, “To hell with! To hell with!” The officer smelt a fine--informers get half.

“What’s that you say?”

“To hell with!”

“To hell with who? To hell with what?”

“Ah, ye can finish it yourself--it's too expensive for me!”

I think the seditious disposition (倾向), restrained by the economical instinct, is finely put in that.

9 . 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。

A major fire broke out at Notre-Dame Cathedral in central Paris on Monday, one of France’s most visited landmarks. Flames burst     1     the roof of the cathedral, live TV pictures showed. Firefighters cleared the area around the cathedral,     2     marks the very centre of the city.

    3     (build) in the     4     (twelve) century, Notre Dame is the     5     famous of the Gothic cathedrals of the Middle Ages. “It’s been 800 years that the Cathedral watches over Paris”, Pascal,     6     French historian said. “Happy and unfortunate events for centuries     7     (mark) by the bells of Notre Dame.” The cathedral is home to incalculable works of art and is one of the world’s most famous tourist     8     (attract), immortalized by Victor Hugo’s 1831 novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Its     9     (price) treasures include a Catholic relic, the crown of thorns, which is only     10     (occasional) displayed.

10 . In the traditional religions of Africa, life doesn’t end with death.     1     Some African groups believe these spirits dwell (栖居) underground in a world much like that of the living—but upside down. Other groups believe the sky is the permanent resting place of the dead. For instance, the Bushmen of southern Africa believe that the spirits of the dead go up to the sky and become stars.

Among the spirits, the ancestors comprise a special category of their own.     2     To become an ancestor is the best that one can hope for after death. However, not everyone who dies will turn into an ancestor. For one to become an ancestor, there are conditions to be fulfilled while the person is alive—living an upright life and fulfilling all social and religious duties, for example.

Many African groups believe that the spirits of ancestors remain near their living descendants as guardians of the family and their traditions.     3     But they punish people if certain ceremonies have not been performed properly or if there are some violations of community laws.

    4     For example, the people of Buganda in present-day Uganda say that their first ancestor was Kintu, who came from the land of the gods and married Nambe, daughter of the king of heaven. Another example is the Dinkas of Sudan, who believe they are descended from Garang and Abuk, the first man and woman created by God as tiny clay figures in a pot.     5    

A．As ancestors, they have some extra powers.

B．After death, humans continue to live on as spirits.

C．Ancestors have an indispensable significance for some Africans.

D．Some of the dead will become spiritual ancestors living in their descendants’ hearts.

E．Ancestor worship also plays a very significant role in the mythologies of some African peoples.

F．They help in times of trouble as long as their descendants perform proper rituals and pay them due respect.

G．For these Africans, the honored dead have become not only objects of worship but also subjects of tales and legends.