题目内容
If you live in Europe or the Americas, you likely pick up a fork every day and give no thought to it. Using it probably seems as natural as breathing. Yet compared with the knife and the spoon, which appeared very early, the fork is a latecomer to the table.
Researches show that the fork was first used in Ancient Egypt, China and Greece. Since the 4th century BC, the fork managed to become common on the tables of upper society in Eastern Europe and by the 9th century, it travelled to the Middle East and started being used by the upper class under the name “barjyn”. This enabled the fork to slowly become popular in these areas.
In the 11th century, the fork came to Italy in the dowry of a princess (王妃的嫁妆) from the Middle East who married an Italian official. After seeing the princess use the fork, the church strongly criticized her, saying that the fork disrespected the practice of using the fingers. Then the fork disappeared from the table for nearly 300 years. It began to get acceptance in Italy by the late 16th century, because the upper-class Italians expressed renewed interest in cleanliness. However, most European countries accepted the fork only by the 18th century and United States didn’t welcome it until the early 19th century.
During its life, the fork has changed in terms of appearance. In its early use, the fork had only two tines (齿). As the centuries went on, its design slowly started taking on a modern look. The fork that we know today, which has four tines, was introduced in the 18th century in Germany. By the early 20th century, the invention of stainless steel(不锈钢)enabled the fork to be made more easily. Since then, the fork hasn’t changed much in design.
1.Which is a latecomer to the table, the knife, the spoon or the fork?
2.In what countries was the fork first used?
3.When did most European countries accept the fork?
4.What enabled the fork to be made more easily?
5.What’s the passage mainly about?
阅读下面短文, 并根据所读内容在文章后的表格中填入恰当的单词, 每空一词。
Shopping is a very important part of life but shoppers are faced with a confusing and rapidly changing situation. The prices of clothes, shoes, and make-up have gone sky high, so it is important that you do not waste your money and that you shop carefully for value. There are traditional ways of shopping: shopping in a department store, in a boutique, in the market People shop around for the best price and quality. "To shop till you drop" is an American idiom (习语) which means to buy things from shop to shop until you are tired and can’t walk any more However, with the continuous development of society, the way of shopping for Americans has changed a lot today.
Catalog (目录) Shopping
People in the United States often shop from catalogs. There are special catalogs for almost every need, which include clothing, furniture, health and beauty products, footwear and so on and so forth. People also order about 40% of their music from music club catalogs. Customers say that music stores are too noisy.
Television Shopping
Television shopping began in 1986. About 5% to 8% of the American public now shops by television. Some popular shopping channels are the Home Shopping Network and QVC. Customers say that television shopping is easier than shopping in a store. How do they buy things? They make a phone call and use their credit card to buy things. And TV shopping channels are on late at night, so people can "go shopping" anytime.
Online Shopping
Online Shopping is a form of electronic business which allows customers to directly buy goods or services from a seller over the Internet using a web browser, Now more and more customers go online shopping because of the convenience. As of 2017, customers can shop online with the help of different computers and devices, including desktop computers, laptops, tablet computers and smart phones.
Shop Till You drop | |
1. ways of shopping | In the past, Americans used to shop around for the goods with the best quality but the lowest price. The meaning of "shop till you drop" is that you don't stop shopping until you are tired out. |
Catalog Shopping | Special catalog 2.almost everyone's need. Special catalog offers different kinds of things which 3. clothing, furniture, health and beauty products, footwear and so on. |
Television Shopping | Customers say that shopping in a store isn't as easy as the television shopping. They can do shopping 4. they turn on TV. The number of online shoppers is getting larger and larger. |
Online shopping | Customers can shop online by 5.different computers and devices. |