About a quarter of the world drives on the left, and the countries that do are mostly old British colonies (殖民地) like Australia , and Ireland. But Thailand, Indonesia and Japan also do so.

This strange quirk (奇事) puzzles the rest of the world; however, there is a perfectly good reason . Up to the late 1700’s , everybody travelled on the left side of the road because it’s the most sensible option for feudal (封建的), violent societies with mostly right-handed people. Soldiers with their swords under their right arm naturally passed on each other’s right, and if you passed a stranger on the road, you walked on the left to ensure that your protective sword arm was between yourself and him.

Revolutionary France, however, overturned this practice as part of its sweeping social rethink. A change was carried out all over continental Europe by Napoleon. It changed under Napoleon because he was left-handed. His armies had to march on the right so he could keep his sword arm between him and any opponent. From then on, any part of colonized by the French travelled on the right.

After the American Revolutionary War (1775—1783), the US became independent and decided to make traffic drive on the right in order to cast off all remaining links with its British colonial past. As America became the center of the car industry, if you wanted a good reliable vehicle, you bought American right-hand-drive cars. From then on, many countries changed out of necessity.

Today, the EU would like Britain to fall into line with the rest of Europe, but this is no longer possible. It would cost billions of pounds to change everything round. The last European country to change driving on the right was Sweden in 1967. While everyone was getting used to the new system, they paid more attention and took more care, resulting in a reduction of the number of road accidents.

1.Why did people travel on the left before the late 18th century ?

A. They were required to do so.

B. They were mostly left-handed.

C. It was easier to cross the street.

D. They could feel safer from attacks.

2.What was Napoleon’s attitude to walking on the left?

A. Support.B. Disapproval.C. Doubt.D. Sympathy.

3.For Americans, driving on the right was a way to show ________.

A. the connection with France was broken

B. the US was no longer ruled by the UK

C. the American Revolution War had ended

D. America was the center of the car industry

4.What is the main cause of the UK failing to adopt the new system?

A. Its high costs to change.

B. Its increasing traffic accidents.

C. Its influence on colonies.

D. Its fast-developing car industry.

For the Travel section, writers and editors selected special items to profile from a dozen cities.

Brussels: Chocolate.

Nearly half the chocolate consumed in the world is eaten in Europe, and Belgium—with average consumption of 14.99 pounds per person a year—certainly covers its fair share. While Brussels, the country’s capital, is home to hundreds of chocolate makers, what makes a visit necessary is the rich heritage of traditional chocolate makers.

Budapest: Paprika(红辣椒)

The job of preparing Hungarian paprika was once considered too dangerous for mothers to do. A woman who touched her children upon returning from work risked burning them, so only the elderly and unmarried were allowed the delicate task of separating the skin from the flesh. But by the early 20th century, sweeter varieties and a machine turned paprika into a common feature of all Hungarian cuisine.

Lisbon: Tiles(瓷砖)

Is there a bluer country than Portugal? The blue sky and Atlantic Ocean embrace the land. The blue moods of Fado, the dark folk music, form the national soundtrack. And all across Portugal, the typically—blue designs of azulejos—ceramic tiles—are spread across churches, castles, palaces, university halls, parks. The result is a beautiful land of Christian saints, Portuguese kings, historical glories, aristocrats(贵族) at leisure, seascapes and so on.

Madrid: Guitars

Walking into one the Madrid’s storied guitar makers’ workshops can feel like stepping into the past. Curly wood shavings, from the palest pine to ebony, fall onto the floor as artisans(工匠) turn some humble wood into works of art. It’s painstaking work—all done by hand—with classical guitar models and the methods of making them changing little over the last century.

1.What does the job of preparing Hungarian paprika suggest?

A. The popularity of Hungarian peppers.

B. The difficult of processing peppers.

C. The unique tradition in Budapest.

D. The hot level of Hungarian peppers.

2.Which city can be a splendid setting for a film?

A. Brussels.B. Budapest.C. Lisbon.D. Madrid.

3.What’s the similarity of the four items?

A. They’re all treasures of a city.

B. They all date back several centuries.

C. Their production processes are all painstaking.

D. They all win popularity in most European countries.

“We are good mothers,” I said to my friend, as we sat on our comfortable beach chairs under our beach umbrella and watched our children playing in the waves.

Out of nowhere, the children took off running. About fifty yards from us, a man—maybe in his fifties—was fishing. The children stood next to him and watched with their little mouths hanging open as he cast the fishing lines. He smiled at them. They ran back to us—all except my three-year-old daughter, Drew.

My heart beat fast with horror. “Drew! Come here! Play with your friends!” I shouted, very aware that my speeches about not talking to strangers weren’t working. It seemed that many parents heard of horrible stories about children being taken away by strangers. Responsible mothers should teach their children that the world is a dangerous place. So I felt relieved (松口气) when Drew ran towards me and took hold of a shovel (铲子). Then she looked me in the eye: “I want to be with the person.”

Again, she approached the middle-aged man, and started digging next to him.

Several seconds later, she returned, waving something shiny.

“Look, Mommy! A toy fish!”

It was, indeed, a toy fish—yellow and rubber. This must have been what he was using to attract the fish. And he’d given it to Drew. The three other children were deeply impressed, and they didn’t try to hide how jealous(妒忌的)they were—clearly, they all wanted the fish.

“My friend gave me that fish!” Drew shouted loudly. The sand in front of the umbrella turned into a preschool cage match with a yellow rubber fish flying through the air. I felt like I might cry myself.

Unexpectedly, there he was: the man, standing right next to us with three more rubber fish in hand. He handed them to each of the children. By their faces, you would have thought he was actually the really kind big brother.

“Thank you,” I said, realizing that there is good and kindness in strangers.

1. How did the author feel when Drew stood beside the man?

A. Relieved B. Angry C. Concerned D. Calm

2. The author thinks good mothers should _______.

A. be around their kids

B. warn their kids of danger

C. teach their kids to behave well

D. devote themselves to helping their kids

3.The author was at a loss (迷茫)when_______.

A. Drew handed her the toy fish

B. the kids fought for the toy fish

C. the toy fish was covered with sand

D. the stranger appeared from nowhere

4.What would be the best title for the text?

A. Give a kid a fish

B. We are good mothers

C. The world is dangerous

D. Teach kids to be kind

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