It was between 1830 and 1835 ______ the modern newspaper was born.

A how          B that                 C which        D because

 

Have you ever wanted to travel back through time and see what life was like at the dawn（起始） of man? Well, museums can make history come alive. And one museum in particular can take you on an exciting journey from the beginning of human culture to the present day.

    It is the British Museum. Being one of the largest museums in the world, it is home to over 7 million objects from all the world’s continents. While most of us may not have the opportunity to visit London, we can catch a glimpse of the treasures it holds in Beijing. More than 100 cultural relics will be on display in the Palace Museum. Named “Britain and the World”, a range of pencil sketches (素描), watercolor paintings, sculptures and many other objects have traveled to China.

    There will be several Chinese objects on show. But “they were obtained by the British Museum before 1830 mainly by trade,” said Ma Jige, deputy director of the Exhibition Department of the Palace Museum.

    In fact, there are more than 23,000 Chinese relics in the British Museum, including national treasures like gems (寶石), artwork and ancient bronze ware objects.

    The museum is famed for its exquisite Chinese paintings. Picture of Lady Officials (《女史箴圖》) by Gu Kaizhi, a top painter of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (AD 317-420), is there. The British Museum also holds 13,700 Buddhist records from the Dunhuang Grottoes in Gansu Province.

From the passage we can learn that ________.

A. the British Museum will be moved to Beijing

B. pictures of some objects belonging to the British Museum will be taken to Beijing

C. pictures of the British Museum will be on show in Beijing

D. some objects of the British Museum will be on show in Beijing

The Chinese objects on show were mainly _______ by the British Museum.

A. stolen          B. bought       C. borrowed           D. robbed

How many Chinese relics are there in the British Museum?

A. About 100.  B. About 1,830.  C. About 13,700.    D. Over 23,000.

 Have you ever wanted to travel back through time and see what life was like at the dawn（起始） of man? Well, museums can make history come alive. And one museum in particular can take you on an exciting journey from the beginning of human culture to the present day.

    It is the British Museum. Being one of the largest museums in the world, it is home to over 7 million objects from all the world’s continents. While most of us may not have the opportunity to visit London, we can catch a glimpse of the treasures it holds in Beijing. More than 100 cultural relics will be on display in the Palace Museum. Named “Britain and the World”, a range of pencil sketches (素描), watercolor paintings, sculptures and many other objects have traveled to China.

    There will be several Chinese objects on show. But “they were obtained by the British Museum before 1830 mainly by trade,” said Ma Jige, deputy director of the Exhibition Department of the Palace Museum.

    In fact, there are more than 23,000 Chinese relics in the British Museum, including national treasures like gems (寶石), artwork and ancient bronze ware objects.

    The museum is famed for its exquisite Chinese paintings. Picture of Lady Officials (《女史箴圖》) by Gu Kaizhi, a top painter of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (AD 317-420), is there. The British Museum also holds 13,700 Buddhist records from the Dunhuang Grottoes in Gansu Province.

1. From the passage we can learn that ________.

A. the British Museum will be moved to Beijing

B. pictures of some objects belonging to the British Museum will be taken to Beijing

C. pictures of the British Museum will be on show in Beijing

D. some objects of the British Museum will be on show in Beijing

2. The Chinese objects on show were mainly _______ by the British Museum.

A. stolen          B. bought       C. borrowed           D. robbed

3. How many Chinese relics are there in the British Museum?

A. About 100.  B. About 1,830.  C. About 13,700.    D. Over 23,000.

 

Nineteenth-century writers in the United States, whether they wrote novels, short stories, poems or plays, were powerfully drawn to the railroad in its golden years. In fact, writers responded to the railroads as soon as the first were built in the 1830’s. By the 1850’s, the railroad was a major presence in the life of the nation. Writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David saw the railroad both as a boon(要求) to democracy(民主國家) and as an object of suspicion. The railroad could be and was a despoiler(掠奪者) of nature, furthermore, in its manifestation of speed and noise. It might be a despoiler of human nature as well. By the 1850’s and 1860’s, there was a great distrust among writer and intellectuals of the rapid industrialization of which the railroad was a leading force. Deeply philosophical historians such as Henry Adams lamented the role that the new frenzy for business was playing in eroding traditional values. A distrust of industry and business continued among writers throughout the rest of the nineteenth century and into the twentieth.
　 For the most part, the literature in which the railroad plays and important role belong to popular culture rather than to the realm of serious art. One thinks of melodramas, boys’ books, thrillers, romances, and the like rather than novels of the first rank. In the railroads’ prime years, between 1890 and 1920, there were a few individuals in the United States, most of them with solid railroading experience behind them, who made a profession of writing about railroading—works offering the ambience of stations, yards, and locomotive cabs. These writers, who can genuinely be said to have created a genre, the “railroad novel”, are now mostly forgotten, their names having faded from memory. But anyone who takes the time to consult their fertile writings will still find a treasure trove of information about the place of the railroad in the life of the United States.
【小題1】The underlined word “it” in the passage refers to______.

A．railroad

B．manifestation

C．speed

D．nature

【小題2】In the first paragraph, the author implies that writers’ reactions to the development of railroads were______.

A．highly enthusiastic

B．both positive and negative

C．unchanging

D．Disinterested

【小題3】 According to the passage, the railroad played a significant role in literature in all of the following kinds of books except_______.　

A．thrillers

B．boys’ books

C．romances

D．important novels

【小題4】 The phrase “first rank” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to______.

A．largest category(類別)

B．highest quality

C．earliest writers

D．most difficult language

【小題5】 Which of the following topics is the main idea of passage?

A．The role of the railroad in the economy of the USA

B．Major nineteenth century writers

C．The conflict between expanding industry and preserving nature

D．The railroad as a subject for literature

Nineteenth-century writers in the United States, whether they wrote novels, short stories, poems or plays, were powerfully drawn to the railroad in its golden years. In fact, writers responded to the railroads as soon as the first were built in the 1830’s. By the 1850’s, the railroad was a major presence in the life of the nation. Writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David saw the railroad both as a boon(要求) to democracy(民主國家) and as an object of suspicion. The railroad could be and was a despoiler(掠奪者) of nature, furthermore, in its manifestation of speed and noise. It might be a despoiler of human nature as well. By the 1850’s and 1860’s, there was a great distrust among writer and intellectuals of the rapid industrialization of which the railroad was a leading force. Deeply philosophical historians such as Henry Adams lamented the role that the new frenzy for business was playing in eroding traditional values. A distrust of industry and business continued among writers throughout the rest of the nineteenth century and into the twentieth.

　 For the most part, the literature in which the railroad plays and important role belong to popular culture rather than to the realm of serious art. One thinks of melodramas, boys’ books, thrillers, romances, and the like rather than novels of the first rank. In the railroads’ prime years, between 1890 and 1920, there were a few individuals in the United States, most of them with solid railroading experience behind them, who made a profession of writing about railroading—works offering the ambience of stations, yards, and locomotive cabs. These writers, who can genuinely be said to have created a genre, the “railroad novel”, are now mostly forgotten, their names having faded from memory. But anyone who takes the time to consult their fertile writings will still find a treasure trove of information about the place of the railroad in the life of the United States.

1.The underlined word “it” in the passage refers to______.

　　A. railroad 　　B. manifestation　　 C. speed 　　D. nature

2.In the first paragraph, the author implies that writers’ reactions to the development of railroads were______.

　　A. highly enthusiastic 　 B. both positive and negative　  C. unchanging　 　D. Disinterested

3. According to the passage, the railroad played a significant role in literature in all of the following kinds of books except_______.　

A. thrillers 　 B. boys’ books　　C. romances　　D. important novels

4. The phrase “first rank” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to______.

A. largest category(類別) 　B. highest quality　  C. earliest writers 　D. most difficult language

5. Which of the following topics is the main idea of passage?

A. The role of the railroad in the economy of the USA　

B. Major nineteenth century writers

C. The conflict between expanding industry and preserving nature

D. The railroad as a subject for literature