HANS Christian Andersen put Denmark on the map of the world literature with his stories The Emperor's New Clothes, The Little Mermaid(小美人鱼)and The Ugly Duckling．Now Copenhagen, the country's capital, has become the center of the world political map, with 190 world leaders attending the climate talks there, not to mention thousands of reporters．
Just how much do you know about the Scandinavian country?
Denmark is famous for its design culture．At the heat of“Danish Design”is the idea that, as poet and designer Piet Hein puts it：“There is one art, not more, nor less, [and that is] to do all things with artlessness(朴实)”．
Danish design places equal emphasis on practicality and quality．From Lego toys to furniture, Danish products are known for their clean lines, simplicity and functionality．“Remove material where it's not needed．Keep things simple and functional and make them carefully,”explained Hans J．Wegner, the first Danish designer to achieve worldwide fame：“The aim is not to create a work of art, but to produce a good chair．”
“The Danes have done a better job than most in promoting arts in Europe, considering their country's size and population, in the fields of architecture, sculpture and design,”writes Helena Smith, reporter with British newspaper the Guardian．
The simplicity of Danish design may extend to the quality of life there．Some even claim that the Danes have the highest quality of life of any nation in the world．
Kate Vial, a 55-year-old American who has lived and worked in Denmark for more than 30 years, explaining why she chooses to live in Denmark rather than the US, told Germany's biggest news weekly Der Spiegel：“I just chose a simpler lifestyle, one where I could ride my bike all over and where I don't have to make a great living to survive．”
(1)
What's the writer's purpose of mentioning Denmark's literature?
[ ]
A．
To show the readers that Denmark is best known for its stories．
B．
To arouse readers' interest in Denmark．
C．
To tell the readers that this passage is related to literature．
D．
To show why Denmark can attract so many political leaders．
(2)
What is Denmark famous for according to the passage?
[ ]
A．
Design culture
B．
Making chairs
C．
Writing poems
D．
Climate prediction
(3)
Which statement is true according to the passage?
[ ]
A．
Danish design pays more attention to arts than its function．
B．
Danish products don't need much material．
C．
Danish people like to keep a simple life．
D．
Compared with other countries in Europe, Denmark does little in promoting arts．
(4)
In Piet Hein's opinion, the characteristic of Danish culture is．
The Chongyang Festival falls on the ninth day of the ninth month of the Chinese lunar calendar, so it is also known as the Double Ninth Festival．
The festival is held in the golden season of autumn, at harvest-time．The bright clear weather and the joy of bringing in the harvest make for a festival happy atmosphere．The Chongyang Festival is usually perfect for outdoor activities．Climbing a mountain, carrying a spray of dogwood(茱萸)and drinking chrysanthemum(菊花)wine have become the traditional activities of the festival．
The dogwood is a plant with a strong fragrance(香气)，and is often used as a Chinese herbal medicine．People in ancient times believed it could drive away evil spirits and prevent one from getting a chill(寒意)in late autumn．So its history as a medicine goes back many centuries．But the custom of carrying a spray of dogwood during the Double Ninth Festival is slowly dying out and many people in the cities, do not even know what a dogwood spray looks like．
Early in Han Dynasty, about 2000 years ago, people used to climb a high platform outside the capital city of Chang’an on the occasion of the Chongyang Festival．For many, it was the last outing of the year before the onset of winter．The custom evolved(发展成)into present form, when people go climbing to get some exercises as well as enjoy the autumn scenery．
But what about those people who live in plains far from any mountain?The problem is solved by going for a picnic and eating cakes．The Chinese word for“cake”is“Gao”, a homony of the Chinese word for“high”．Mountains are high, so eating cakes can, by a stretch of the imagination, take the place of going for a climb．
(1)
Why do people carry a spray of dogwood on Chongyang Festival?
[ ]
A．
Because the dogwood is a plant with a strong fragrance．
B．
Because the dogwood can be used as a Chinese herbal medicine．
C．
Because the dogwood has a long history as a medicine．
D．
Because people believed the dogwood could drive away evil spirits and prevent one from chill．
(2)
In one of ________ poets, we can know the traditions of climbing mountains and carrying dogwood on the Chongyang Festival．
[ ]
A．
Wang Wei’s
B．
Li Bai’s
C．
Du Fu’s
D．
Bai Juyi’s
(3)
People now climb mountains on the Chongyang Festival ________．
[ ]
A．
to have a last outing of the year before the onset of winter
B．
to get some exercises
C．
to enjoy beautiful autumn scenery
D．
both B and C
(4)
People living in plains far from mountains eat cakes because ________．
[ ]
A．
the Chinese word for“cake”is“Gao”
B．
the Chinese“Gao”for cake sounds like the Chinese“Gao”for high
C．
they often take cakes to go for a picnic on the festival
D．
they like eating cakes
(5)
Which of the following is true?
[ ]
A．
The Double Ninth Festival is on September 9th．
B．
People climbed mountains to celebrate the Chongyang Festival in Han Dynasty．
C．
People often celebrate the Chongyang Festival in the open air．
D．
Eating cakes is just like climbing mountains．
阅读理解
CHANGCHUN, China-President Hu Jintao was the surprise guest in the last multi-sports Games to be hosted in the country before the 2008 Olympics with the opening ceremony of the 6th Asian Winter Games on Sunday．
Altogether, more than 1,100 athletes and officials from different countries and regions-including 160 from China and a single skier from Palestine-have registered to take part in the Games, which run until February 4．
“Today for the first time representatives of all 45 OCA members are with us which is a great achievement for the organizing committee．”said Olympic Council of Asia(OCA)chief Ahmad Al-Sabah．
China dominated the main Asian Games in Doha in December but their winter athletes, who have won just four of their country’s 114 Olympic gold medals, are unlikely to do the same．Unsurprisingly, the loudest cheers were reserved for the Chinese party but there were also warm welcomes for the Hong Kong, Macao and Chinese Taipei athletes．
Japan, which has entered 100 athletes, topped the medals table at the last Games on home soil．Their delegation also received plenty of applause despite being in city which served as the capital of the puppet state of Manchukuo after the Japanese army invaded China in the 1930s．
The North and South Korean athletes marched together under the same flag just as they did in Doha, although they will compete separately．South Korea were second in the medals table in 2003 and will need to continue their traditional dominance of the short-track speed skating to retain that position from the Chinese．
There has been a lack of snow at the Beidahu ski resort near Changchun, but organizers have used artificial(人造的)snow to make up the shortfall．
China will be banking on such stars as freestyle skier Han Xiaopeng, who surprised everyone at Turin in 2006 to win China’s first－ever Olympic skiing medal, and women’s 500-meter short track skating Olympic champion Wang Meng．
(1)
Where was the 5th Asian Winter Games held?
[ ]
A．
In South Korea．
B．
In Doha．
C．
In Japan．
D．
In Turin．
(2)
Which of the following countries is weak in sports according to this passage?
[ ]
A．
China．
B．
Japan．
C．
South Korea
D．
Palestine
(3)
The underlined word“dominate”is closest in meaning to _________．
[ ]
A．
have absolute superiority over
B．
be the most important
C．
greatly control
D．
greatly influence
(4)
Which of the following is wrong according to the passage?
[ ]
A．
The relationship between North and South Korea is improving．
B．
Han Xiaopeng is the first to have won Olympic skating medal．
C．
Chinese winter athletes have won just four Olympic gold medals．
D．
Not every Asian country takes part in the Asian Games．
The tombs would help archaeologists with research into the political, economic and cultural exchanges between the Central Plains government and states in the west, and on the cultural influence of the Central Plains on the Western Regions．
Archaeologists from the Xinjiang institute have dug nine tombs since August 22, finding bodies of more than 30 people, some ancient coins and more than 60 pottery(陶器)jars．It is thought there are another three tombs to be dug．
The people buried in the tombs were probably either people from the western regions deeply influenced by the Han culture or the Han residents(居民)in the region．
(1)
How many 1700-year-old tombs have been dug or are to be dug in Xinjiang?
[ ]
A．
3．
B．
6．
C．
9．
D．
12
(2)
According to the passage, the tombs were found ________．
[ ]
A．
by mistake
B．
by chance
C．
on purpose
D．
with plans
(3)
What would the tombs help archaeologists to make a study of?
[ ]
A．
The cultural exchanges between the Central Plains government and Western Regions．
B．
The cultural influence of the Central Plains on Western Regions．
C．
The whole history of Han Dynasty．
D．
A and B．
(4)
What is the best title of this passage?
[ ]
A．
Archaeologists are working in Xinjiang
B．
1700-year-old tombs were found in Xinjiang
C．
There are many ancient tombs in Xinjiang
D．
An introduction of Western Regions
阅读理解
NANNING
Motor wreck(失事)
Eighteen people died and 16 were injured yesterday when a farm vehicle left a mountain road and plunged(冲入)100 meters into a valley．The accident happened in Fenshan country, in South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region．Police said 17 people, including the driver, died instantly and another died on the way to hospital．Fifteen of the injured passengers are in serious condition．
BEIJING
New Library
A new library named after Hong Kong industrialist Xu Rongmao opened yesterday at the Beijing Chemical University．Xu donated(捐款)5 million yuan(US＄604 594)for the building of the Rongmao Library, which covers 8 000 square meters and has over 900 seats．
Xu's Overseas Investment Group has also donated US＄1.21 million to set up an education fund(基金)for the university．
BEIJING
Empty Tomb
A live broadcast of the opening of the ancient Laoshan Tomb of the Han Dynasty(206BC～220AD)was cancelled(取消)when the tomb was confirmed(证实)to be empty．Experts believe that most of the relics in the tomb had been taken by grave robbers．A previous live show of digging part of the tomb attracted a large audience, but few cultural relics were found．That the television stations have not been ready for the live show scheduled around September 20 also was a reason for the cancellation, officials said．
(1)
These items of news belong to ________ section in a newspaper．
[ ]
A．
News In Brief
B．
International Affairs
C．
Weather Report
D．
Advertisement
(2)
Ho many passengers died instantly when the motor accident happened?
[ ]
A．
18．
B．
17．
C．
16．
D．
34．
(3)
What's the meaning of the underlined word“previous”?
[ ]
A．
Expensive in value．
B．
Large in size．
C．
Proper in order．
D．
Early in time．
(4)
How much has Xu's Overseas Investment Gorup donated to set up an education fund for the university?
[ ]
A．
A bout 10 million yuan．
B．
About 11 million yuan．
C．
About 8 million yuan．
D．
About 5 million yuan．
阅读理解
“Hey, little buddy, will you support me when I'm getting old?” Han Wenshan, 35 years old, asked his new-born baby as he picked him up at home．
The Chinese tradition of raising sons to support parents in their old age has been weakened by the rapidly growing economy and improved standard of living．As is the case with developed countries, China faces an aging society．People are living longer and having fewer children．Therefore many Chinese families are falling into a 4-2-1 family pattern：a couple raises one child and supports four elderly parents．But few realize this problem．
The aging of the population is a trend that now affects a growing number of countries．Not long ago, the Information Office of the state council, China's cabinet, issued a white paper on measures China is taking to help its elderly population．The paper said China's population entered the aging phase(阶段)at the end of the 20th century as the proportion of people aged 60 and above accounted for over 10 percent of the entire population．By the end of 2005, China had nearly 144 million people over 60, accounting for 11 percent of the population, according to the white paper．
An expanding aged population inevitably means that many issues must be settled, as the problem concerns every aspect of society．It puts more pressure on each family, causing disturbing economic consequences and serious social problem concerns every aspect of society．It puts more pressure on each family, causing disturbing economic consequences and serious social problem．It also challenges the labor force supply and the pension(养老金)system．
“I used to think that it's not an issue for me to provide for the aged．” said Han, whose parents and parents-in-law all enjoy pensions and medical insurance．But last year Han's father suffered a serious illness and afterward Han began to feel the pressure on his shoulders．
(1)
Which of the following is not caused by an aging society?
[ ]
A．
Social problems．
B．
The problem of the pension system
C．
Unemployment
D．
More pressure on the family．
(2)
From the passage we can infer ________．
[ ]
A．
children will not support their parents in an aging society
B．
China will encourage young couples to have more than one children
C．
many people haven't realized the problem of an aging society
D．
the aging problem is one of the concerns for the Chinese government
(3)
Which of the following can be used to replace the underlined w ord “inevitably?”
[ ]
A．
Naturally．
B．
Surprisingly．
C．
Hopefully．
D．
Unluckily．
(4)
From the passage we can see that ________．
[ ]
A．
China is the only country to face an aging society
B．
most of the developing countries face an aging society
C．
developed countries face an aging society
D．
countries with a large population face an aging society
