In 1826, a Frenchman named Niepce needed pictures for his business. But he was not a good artist, so he invented a very simple camera. He put it in a window of his house and took a picture of his garden. That was the first photo.

The next important date in the history of photography (摄影) was in 1837. That year, Daguerre, another Frenchman, took a picture of his reading room. He used a new kind of camera in a different way. In his picture you could see everything very clearly, even the smallest thing. This kind of photo was called Daguerreotype.

Soon, other people began to use Daguerre’s way. Travelers brought back wonderful photos from all around the world. People took pictures of famous buildings, cities and mountains.

In about 1840, photography was developed. Then photographers could take pictures of people and moving things. That was not simple. The photographers had to carry a lot of film and other machines. But this did not stop them, for example, some in the United States worked so hard. Mathew Brady was a famous American photographer. He took many pictures of great people. The pictures were unusual because they were very lifelike (栩栩如生的).

Photography also became a kind of art by the end of the 19th century. Some photos were not just copies of the real world. They showed ideas and feelings, like other art forms.

Answer the following questions according to what you read.

1.Who took the first photo? (不超过四个单词)

2.The Daguerreotype was a kind of photo, wasn’t it? (不超过三个单词)

3.If a photographer wanted to take pictures of moving things in 1840, what did he have to carry? (不超过七个单词)

4.Why was Mathew Brady famous? (不超过八个单词)

5.When did photography become a kind of art? (不超过七个单词)

The Double Ninth Festival

The Double Ninth Festival, also named the “Chong Yang Festival”, is celebrated on the ninth day of the ninth month of the Chinese lunar calendar.

The festival began as early as the Warring States Period (475-221 BC). In ancient time, numbers were mysterious and were divided into yin and yang. Yin means something of darkness and yang means life and brightness. The number nine is regarded as yang. The ninth day of the ninth month is a double yang day, so it is called “Chong Yang Festival”. (Chong means “repeat” in Chinese)

People always climb mountains and drink chrysanthemum wine on the Double Ninth Festival. It is hard to say when the customs were created. But there are many stories which are closely related. As recorded in a historical book of the sixth century, in ancient times, there lived a man named Huang Jing. He was learning the magic arts from Fei Changfang. One day, they were climbing a mountain. Fei Changfang suddenly stopped and looked very upset. He said to Huang Jing, “On the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, a big trouble will come to your hometown”. You must go home immediately. Remember to make a red bag for each one of your family members and leave home quickly and climb to the top of a mountain. Most importantly, you must all drink some chrysanthemum wine. Only by doing so can your family members avoid the big trouble.

On hearing this, Huang Jing rushed home and asked his family to do exactly as his teacher said. The whole family climbed a nearby mountain and did not return until the evening. When they got back home, they found all their animals dead, including chickens, sheep, dogs and so on.

Since then, climbing a mountain and drinking chrysanthemum wine became the traditional activities of the Double Ninth Festival, to avoid evil spirits and bad luck. Nowadays, the Double Ninth Festival is also a time for family get-togethers to do some exercise as well as enjoy the autumn scenery.

1.The Double Ninth Festival began around ______.

A. 475-221 BC B. 435-231 BC C. 337-221 BC D. 245-213 BC

2.People usually climb mountains and ______ on the festival.

A. cook meals B. feed the animals

C. drink chrysanthemum wine D. learn magic art

3.Fei Changfang is ______.

A. Huang Jing’s cousin B. Huang Jing’s teacher

C. Huang Jing’s friend D. Huang Jing’s neighbor

4.Nowadays the Double Ninth Festival is also a time to ______.

A. make dumplings B. buy some wine

C. wear new clothes D. do some exercise

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