St Paul’s Cathedral
Ludgate Hill, EC4
Underground: St Paul’s; Bus: 6,8,11,15,22,25
Open: Daily 8:00—19:00 (17:00 from Oct. to Mar.) . Entrance free
Designed by the great architect, Sir Christopher Wren, St Paul’s Cathedral was built following the Great Fire of London of 1666, which destroyed the gothic cathedral on the site at that time. It is crowned by a magnificent dome and its choir (唱诗班) is internationally famous. Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer were married here in 1981.
Buckingham Palace
South end of the Mall (SW1)
Underground: St. James’s Park, Victoria, Hyde Park Corner, Green Park; Bus: 2, 11, 14, 16, 19, 22, 24, 29, 30, 38, 52, 73, 74, 137
Buckingham Palace is the official residence of the monarch (君主) for much of the year. (When the monarch is in residence, a flag flies over the palace.) The Mall is a very impressive wide street, leading from Buckingham Palace to Trafalgar Square.
Note: As the palace is the monarch’s official residence, it is not open to the public.
The Tower of London
Tower Hill, EC3
Underground: Tower Hill; Bus: 42, 78
Open: Mon—Sat.9
Parts of the Tower of London are over nine centuries old, as building began under William the Conqueror in 1078. Famous as a prison in the distant past, the Tower has also been a royal residence, a zoo and an observatory, among other things. It is now a museum and many thousands of people visit it every year in particular to see the Crown Jewels.
Westminster Abbey
Broad Sanctuary, SW1
Underground: Westminster, St James’s Park; Bus: 3, 11, 12, 24, 29, 39, 53, 59, 76, 77, 88, 109, 155, 168, 170, 172, 184, 503
Open: Daily 8:00—18:00 (Mar.—Dec, Tuesday till 20:00)
Entrance free
A Benedictine abbey which already existed on the site was rebuilt by Edward the Confessor and consecrated in 1065. On the way to its present form, the abbey was extended in the 13th—16th centuries, with the two west towers being added in the 18th. There are many famous tombs in the abbey, including that of the unknown Warrior and those of many poets and writers.
71. These texts are most probably taken from ______.
A. a history book about London
B. a guidebook for visitors to London
C. a book about London’s churches and cathedrals
D. a book describing London’s development
No.11 bus can take you to all three of these places:
A. St Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London
B. St Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace
C. St Paul’s Cathedral, the Tower of London and Buckingham Palace
D. Westminster Abbey the Tower of London and Buckingham Palace
73. You can see the inside of all the buildings except ______.
A. St Paul’s Cathedral                        B. The Tower of London
C. Westminster Abbey                        D. Buckingham Palace
74.If you travel by Underground, you can visit two places by getting off at one station. What are the two places?
A. Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey
B. Buckingham Palace and St Paul’s Cathedral
C. Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London
D. The Tower of London and St Paul’s Cathedral
75.Among these four famous buildings, _____ is (are) free of charge.
A. The Tower of London
B. Buckingham Palace
C. Westminster Abbey and St Paul’s Cathedral
D. The Tower of London and St Paul’s Cathedral

At the moment when looking round the world, all kinds of dance performances are being offered. There are competitions that claim to be a World Cup or World Championship, and the young dancer or the dance teacher who wants to enter his students might be quite confused. Which is which? Which is of high standard and good quality, and which is not worth going to? First of all it has clearly got to be distinguished between the different styles of dance and the purpose of such competitions. When a person wants to learn classical ballet, he or she would never dream of going to a ballroom teacher. Such a teacher might even have been world champion in his ballroom dancing, but he would definitely not be qualified in teaching proper classical ballet.
People in Britain and the USA are taking more interest in modern dance. Dance classes of all kinds are popular; the audiences going to watch modern dance companies are also larger. And perhaps the most popular modern dance company in Britain is the Ballet Rambert.
The Ballet Rambert is Britains’ oldest established dance company which began in 1926. In the 60 s the company lacked the money to go on staging big productions. The directors wanted to encourage new talent and to keep up their high standards. A change of direction was necessary. They decided to give the ballet a ‘new look” in 1966. The aim was to provide a chance for new talent – for musicians and designers as well as dancers – and to show dance as a contemporary art form. And although some of the company’s previous fans dislike the change, new audiences came to see the productions.
The modern dance pieces and modern music found unexpected popularity. In the 21 st century the Ballet Rambert was a great success in London’s West End. The company became a focus for new, progressive talent in the art.
Then, the Ballet Ramvert started to introduce young people to modern dance by giving performances at schools, which again, was a success.
The Ballet Rambert has managed to make modern dance popular while creating original and often avant – garde (标新立异) productions. It can claim to be the oldest dance company in Britain and at the same time one of the most modern!
【小题1】If a person wants to learn classical ballet, he or she will go to         .

A.the Ballet RambertB.a ballroom teacher
C.a world championD.a qualified school
【小题2】The underlined phrase “new talent” in Para. 3 probably means         .
A.new programsB.new audiences
C.avant – garde productionsD.skilled young dancers
【小题3】From the passage we know that the Ballet Rambert          .
A.has succeeded in making modern dance popular
B.wanted to become the oldest dance company
C.was once a popular dance company
D.changed old dance into new ones
【小题4】This passage is mainly about          .
A.the popularity of modern dance
B.the introduction to new modern dancers
C.the development of the Ballet Rambert
D.the high standard of dance performances

St. Paul’s Cathedral

Ludgate Hill, EC4

Underground: St. Paul’s; Bus: 6, 8, 11, 15, 22, 25

Open: Daily 8:00-19:00 (17:00 from Oct. to Mar.)

Entrance free

Designed by the great architect, Sir Christopher Wren, St. Paul’s Cathedral was built following the Great Fire of London of 1666, which destroyed the gothic cathedral on the site at that time. It is an inescapable attraction for all travellers to this great city and the most recognisable gothic cathedral in England. Its choir(唱诗班)is internationally famous. Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer were married here in 1981.

Buckingham Palace

South end of the Mall (SW1)

Underground: St. James’s Park, Victoria, Hyde Park Corner, Green Park; Bus: 2, 11, 14, 16, 19, 22, 24, 29, 30, 38, 52, 73, 74, 137

Buckingham Palace is Queen Elisabeth II’s official residence(住所), and has been the official residence of Britain’s monarch(君主)since 1837. The State Rooms at Buckingham Palace have been opening to the public for the Annual Summer Opening, in August and September, since 1993. The Queen is not at Buckingham Palace when it is open to the public; she goes to one of her country residences. The State Rooms are extremely grand. You can see many of the treasures of the Royal Collection: paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens and Canaletto; and beautiful examples of English and French furniture.

The Tower of London

Tower Hill, EC3

Underground: Tower Hill; Bus: 42, 78

Open: Mon.— Sat.9:00-18:00; Sun.8:00-19:00

Parts of the Tower of London are over nine centuries old, as building began under William the Conqueror in 1078. Famous as a prison in the distant past, the Tower has also been a royal residence, a zoo and an observatory(瞭望台). It is now a museum and many thousands of people visit it every year in particular to see the Crown Jewels. Only by going inside can you experience nearly a thousand years of history and hear the myths and legends that make it “a day out to die for”.

Westminster Abbey

Broad Sanctuary, SW1

Underground: Westminster, St James’s Park; Bus: 3, 11, 12, 24, 29, 39, 53, 59, 76, 77, 88, 109, 155, 168, 170, 172, 184, 503

Open: Daily 8:00-18:00 (Mar. — Dec., Tuesday till 20:00)

Entrance free

Located next to the Houses of Parliament in the heart of London, Westminster Abbey is a gothic church and place of worship. The building of the present Abbey was started by King Henry III in 1245. The oldest parts of the building date back to 1050. Westminster Abbey has hosted many royal weddings including the wedding of The Queen and Prince Philip in 1947 and the wedding of Prince William and Kate in 2011. It is a traditional place of coronation(加冕礼)and burial for English monarchs—38 monarchs have been crowned at the Abbey. There are many tombs there, including those of Queen Elizabeth I, “Bloody” Queen Mary, naturalist Charles Darwin, many poets and writers.

1.You can see the inside of all the buildings all the year around except ______.

A. St. Paul’s Cathedral                        B. the Tower of London 

C. Westminster Abbey                        D. Buckingham Palace

2.The two places you can visit by getting off at the same underground station are ______.

A. Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey     

B. Buckingham Palace and St. Paul’s Cathedral

C. Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London   

D. the Tower of London and St. Paul’s Cathedral

3.Where is the text most probably taken from?

A. A history book about London.            

B. A guidebook for visitors to London.

C. A book about London’s development.     

D. A book about London’s churches.

 

Pretoria, South Africa – Hundreds of swimmers play in the water along a South Africa beach. Suddenly a huge shark appears off shore and heads for the bathers. Before it can get close to the swimmers, the shark, for some mysterious reason, starts swimming parallel to the beach. Then it turns away from the shore and heads out to sea, leaving the swimmers untouched.

Such a scene will soon become common along shark-in-fasted (鲨鱼成群的) shores. An electrical engineer from the University of Pretoria has developed an electrical system that repels (击退) sharks by controlling their movements. Confused by this action, the sharks end up turning away from the beach.

In this unusual shark-repellent method, an insulated (绝缘的) cable is buried on the bottom of the sea around a beach where people swim. When an electric current is sent through the cable, an electric field is produced in the water above the cable.

When shark swims into the electric field, nerve cells just below the shark' s skin will sense the field. The electricity produces a reflex (反射作用) action in the shark' s muscles, causing the dangerous animal to swim parallel to the cable. Confused by increasing loss of control of its muscles, the shark suddenly changes its direction and heads seaward, away from the electric field.

In a test of the invisible new shark-repellent system, a cable was placed around a beach in St. Lucia, an island around the beach a long time ago to keep sharks away from swimmers, and a net was left in place during the experiment.

When the electric field was left on for more than a year and a half, no sharks were found in the net. However, when the power was turned off,89 sharks ended up in the net.

Using the electric-wall method instead of net to protect bathers would avoid the needless death of many sharks, said biologists. Currently, thousands of sharks die each year when they become trapped in protective nets that surround holiday resorts in Africa and Australia.  About 10 to 15 humans are killed by sharks annually.

1.Why doesn' t the shark attack the swimmers according to the passage?

A.Because there are so many swimmers in the water.

B.Because the shark isn’t so hungry as to eat the swimmers.

C.Because of some mysterious power from the heaven.

D.Because there is an invisible electric field confusing the shark.

2.An electrical engineer from the University of Pretoria has developed __      .

A.a protective net   

B.a new shark-repellent system

C.the electric field        

D.an insulated cable

3.An electric field is produced in the water above the cable         .

A.only when a shark swims into the electric field

B.only when an insulated cable is buried on the bottom of the sea around a beach where people swim

C.only when an electric current is sent through the cable

D.only when the sharks are trapped in protective nets

4.Which of the following is NOT TRUE according to the passage?

A.Protective nets had been fixed earlier than the new shark-repellent system.

B.The new shark – repellent system will probably replace the protective nets.

C.Thousands of sharks have died each year since this new system was put into use.

D.Using the electric-wall instead of nets would avoid the needless death of many sharks.

 

At the moment when looking round the world, all kinds of dance performances are being offered. There are competitions that claim to be a World Cup or World Championship, and the young dancer or the dance teacher who wants to enter his students might be quite confused. Which is which? Which is of high standard and good quality, and which is not worth going to? First of all it has clearly got to be distinguished between the different styles of dance and the purpose of such competitions. When a person wants to learn classical ballet, he or she would never dream of going to a ballroom teacher. Such a teacher might even have been world champion in his ballroom dancing, but he would definitely not be qualified in teaching proper classical ballet.

People in Britain and the USA are taking more interest in modern dance. Dance classes of all kinds are popular; the audiences going to watch modern dance companies are also larger. And perhaps the most popular modern dance company in Britain is the Ballet Rambert.

The Ballet Rambert is Britains’ oldest established dance company which began in 1926. In the 60 s the company lacked the money to go on staging big productions. The directors wanted to encourage new talent and to keep up their high standards. A change of direction was necessary. They decided to give the ballet a ‘new look” in 1966. The aim was to provide a chance for new talent – for musicians and designers as well as dancers – and to show dance as a contemporary art form. And although some of the company’s previous fans dislike the change, new audiences came to see the productions.

The modern dance pieces and modern music found unexpected popularity. In the 21 st century the Ballet Rambert was a great success in London’s West End. The company became a focus for new, progressive talent in the art.

Then, the Ballet Ramvert started to introduce young people to modern dance by giving performances at schools, which again, was a success.

The Ballet Rambert has managed to make modern dance popular while creating original and often avant – garde (标新立异) productions. It can claim to be the oldest dance company in Britain and at the same time one of the most modern!

1.If a person wants to learn classical ballet, he or she will go to         .

A.the Ballet Rambert                       B.a ballroom teacher

C.a world champion                         D.a qualified school

2.The underlined phrase “new talent” in Para. 3 probably means         .

    A.new programs                         B.new audiences

    C.avant – garde productions            D.skilled young dancers

3.From the passage we know that the Ballet Rambert          .

    A.has succeeded in making modern dance popular

    B.wanted to become the oldest dance company

    C.was once a popular dance company

    D.changed old dance into new ones

4.This passage is mainly about          .

    A.the popularity of modern dance

    B.the introduction to new modern dancers

    C.the development of the Ballet Rambert

    D.the high standard of dance performances

 

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