题目内容
The first harvest means the death of the crops as grain is gathered, and the thanksgiving of the people to the goddesses who provided them with life sustaining grains.
Late July and Early August mark the middle of summer and the beginning of the harvest season. Famine(饥荒) was common during July as the previous years harvest supplies were almost totally used up. Harvesting grains in August ensured the continuance of life and was recognized by many cultures as a time of thanksgiving.
In ancient Rome the grain goddess Ceres was honored on the first harvest called Ceresalia in her honor. Our modern word cereal comes from her name. Other goddesses celebrated at first harvest are Demeter, Persephone, Venus, and the Corn Mother. Many Native American tribes honor the Corn Grandmother during the Festival of Green Corn. It was held during the full moon when the corn was ready to be harvested. The celebration lasted for several days and was a time to be thankful and a time of forgiveness.
Lughnasadh was a happy time regarded as the first of three harvest festivals. Lughnasadh honors the god Lugh, and his foster-mother Taillte who died clearing the fields of Ireland for agriculture. In Old Irish Lunasa means “August.” The Celts celebrate this day from sunset of August 1 to sunset on August 2 as the wake of Lugh, the Sun-King whose light began to decline after the summer solstice(夏至). At this time oaths(誓言) were taken and contracts were signed.
This day was known to the Saxons as Lammas, or loaf-mass, a time when grains were harvested and baked into bread. The grain was harvested, giving its life so that people might live. The grain was made into bread, and the bread was symbolic of the gods. Christians later adopted this holiday as a day when bread, made from the first fruits of the harvest, was brought to the church to be blessed.
August is a time to reflect on the past year, on things that have come to fruition and things that failed. A time to let go of regrets and say farewell to things that have passed and preserve all the fruits that have been gathered to hold onto for future memories.
1．The passage should be entitled _______.
A．August Harvest Festivals B．August Tradition
C．Gathering Grain D．Special August Time
2．What was the significance of harvesting grains in August?
A．It welcomed the death of the crops. B．It provided the chance of thanksgiving.
C．It guaranteed the continuance of life. D．It marked the middle of summer.
3．Which of the following is NOT a close relationship according to the passage?
A．Ancient Romans – the grain goddess Ceres.
B．Native Americans –the Corn Grandmother.
C．Christians –the god Lugh, and his foster-mother Taillte.
D．The Celts – Lugh, the Sun-King.
4．From the last sentence of the 4th paragraph “At this time oaths were taken and contracts were signed.”, we can infer that the Celts are _________.
A．happy at that time B．serious about the day
C．are full of hope D．thankful at that time
ACCB
Every year mobile phones develop. Imagining what they will look like and be able to do in 2020 is really a challenge. To help, experts have outlined three major mobile trends that they believe will have become reality by then.
Our phones will be so smart in 10 years’ time that they’ll know everything about our situation and warn us when something needs our attention. This is the top prediction of both Nokia and Google. They predict that our cars and home appliances will be able to communicate with our mobile. For example, fridges will tell your mobile to tell you to pick up milk on the way back from work. While driving, your mobile will suggest that you take a different route because there’s a road accident up ahead.
The second trend is in gesture-based controls. People who know the iPhone’s touch-sensitive screen are already familiar with the technology. It translates hand movements into actions on-screen. But gestural communications will make the phone more convenient to use and may completely replace touchpads. According to industry insiders, the most immediate step forward in gestural technology will be in voice recognition. It’s believed voice recognition technology will speed up communications. It is quicker to speak than type. Eventually, phone screens will disappear.
The third major development will change our understanding of a mobile phone. From a single phone, the mobile will be developed into multi-part devices. It is opposite to the current trend in which mobile phones are combining the functions of cameras, music players and game consoles. The prediction is based on the idea that the world will become more wireless and all these—cameras, music players and game consoles—will be wirelessly connected. Mobile phones won’t need to contain these devices because users will be able to control them wirelessly through their phones.
The first paragraph serves as .
A. a lead-in B. a conclusion C. a summary D. a supporting fact
Which of the following is most likely to be the appearance of a mobile phone in 2020?
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From the text, we can learn that the future mobile phones will .
A. drive cars for us
B. be controlled by the users’ voices
C. be controlled by home appliances
D. be very big together with separated multiple parts
The text mainly tells us .
A. three major trends of mobile phones
B. what mobile phones will look like in 2020
C. the future mobile phones are gesture-based
D. some new functions of the present mobile phones