题目内容
| On one hand, he lost the game; __________________(另一方面), he didn’t lose his confidence. |
| on the other hand? |
New archaeological discovers suggest that trade between Europe and Asia along the Silk Road probably began in some form many centuries earlier than once thought. The findings, coupled with a widening range of scientific and historical research, could add a fascinating new page to the epic of the Silk Road. Anyone who ever wondered why a dying plant, say, a freshly-cut red rose may appeal to a lady friend, might take some comfort in science, which once again offers us a reasonable answer to one of the world’ s great mysteries.
Beyond a common preference in people for blue, “the long history of color preference studies has been described as ‘confusing and contradictory(矛盾的)’,” write scientists Anya Hurlbert and Yazhu Ling of England’ s Newcastle University, authors of a new study in the journal Current Biology. “This fact is perhaps surprising,” they said, “though the popularity of the concept that little girls differ from boys in preferring pink.”
But the scientists believe they have an answer to this scientific mystery, discovering women’s preference for red, hidden above the average liking for blue.
In their study, the pair quickly flashed color cards, displaying many different aspects, at 208 volunteers, mostly Britishers but with a number of Han Chinese, who moved to the United Kingdom recently. Tested in three different experiments, the researchers found out a small but significant preference for reddish colors in the female volunteers.
Puzzled, the authors realized that most of the difference between men and women came in the form of a preference for green VS red in the color cards, regardless of the other slight differences such as the slightly blue ones that everyone liked. Why might this be?
Evolution might offer an answer, they reason. Human color perception(感知), the assessment of three separate color types — red — green — blue— in our vision (视觉) is a relatively recent addition to our line of mammals(脯乳动物)
Adding weight to their argument, they found the women who are most typically feminine(女性的) on a psychological survey also had the biggest preference for reddish colors. “My love is like a red, red rose,” wrote the Scottish poet Rober Burns in 1794.
【小题1】What does the first paragraph probably tell us ?
| A．Scientific research can help people solve the mystery. |
| B．When we are tired, we can turn to science for help. |
| C．Science can make our study interesting and contradictory. |
| D．We should turn to scientific invention for comfortable life. |
| A．boy and girl | B．the two authors |
| C．research and result | D．pink and blue |
| A．boys like blue better than girls |
| B．girls like pink better than boys |
| C．men like red better than women |
| D．men and women both like green |
| A．By asking questions | B．By telephoning the interviewees |
| C．By adding numbers | D．By doing experiments |
| A．To sell products packed in red | B．To introduce the history of color |
| C．To inform us of a research finding | D．To analyze men’s taste for color |
New archaeological discoveries suggest that trade between E
urope and Asia along the Silk Road probably began in some form many centuries earlier than once thought. The findings, coupled with a widening range of scientific and historical research could add a fascinating new page to the epic (史诗) of the Silk Road.
The most surprising discovery is pieces of silk found in the hair of an Egyptian mummy from about 1000 BC, long before regular traffic on the Silk Road and at least one thousand years before silk was previously thought to be used in Egypt. Other research may extend human activity along this route back even further, perhaps a million years to the migration of human ancestors into eastern Asia.
The official origin of East-West trade along the road is usually placed in the late 2nd century BC when an agent of the Chinese Emperor Wu-di returned from a dangerous secret mission（使命）across the desert into the remote high country of Central Asia. The agent, Zhang Qian, travelled as far as Afghanistan and brought back knowledge of even more distant lands such as Persia, Syria and a place known as Lijien, perhaps Rome. Historians have called this one of the most important journeys in ancient times. His journey opened the way for what have been thought to be the first indirect contacts between the ancient world’s two superpowers, China and Rome. Chinese silk, first traded to central Asian tribes for war horses and to the Parthian for acrobats and ostrich eggs, was soon finding its way through a network of merchants to the luxury (奢侈品) markets in Rome.
But the new discoveries show that Chinese silk was apparently present in the West long before the Han emperor started organized trade over the Silk Road. The research could change thinking about the early history of world trade and provide insights into the mystery of just how and when Europe and the Mediterranean lands first became aware of the glorious culture at the other end of Eurasia.
【小题1】The word “coupled” in the first paragraph could best be replaced by .
| A．combined | B．contributed | C．doubled | D．produced |
| A．Egyptians had probably travelled to China to buy silk |
B．new light can now be thrown on ancient trading pr actices |
| C．historical research often achieves fascinating results |
| D．trade along the Silk Road began earlier than once thought |
| A．began a million years ago |
| B．primarily benefited the Egyptians |
| C．originated in the 2nd century BC |
| D．extended human migration into eastern Asia |
| A．he discovered the Silk Road |
| B．he helped establish East-West trade |
| C．he travelled as far as Afghanistan |
| D．he brought back knowledge of Rome to the emperor |