Today, we complete our story about the influential English writer William Shakespeare. He wrote plays and poems during the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, which remain very popular today.

During earlier times, people would probably have learned several ancient Roman and Greek plays. It was not unusual for writers to produce more current versions of these works. For example, in Shakespeare's play "The Comedy of Errors" Shakespeare borrowed certain details from the ancient Roman writer Plautus. For his play "Macbeth", Shakespeare most likely used a work on Scottish history by Raphael Holinshed for information. Shakespeare might have borrowed from other writers, but the intensity（强度）of his imagination and language made the plays his own. While many plays by other writers of his time have been forgotten, Shakespeare and his art live on.

Shakespeare was also influenced by the world around him. He described the sights and sounds of London in his plays. His works include observations about political struggles, the fear of diseases, and the popular language of the city’s tradesmen. Shakespeare's knowledge of the English countryside is also clear. His works include descriptions of deep forests, local flowers, and the ancient popular traditions of rural people.

It would be impossible to list all of the ways in which Shakespeare’s works have influenced the world culture. But the first and greatest example would be his great influence on the English language. During his time, the English language was changing. Many new words from other languages were being added. Shakespeare used his sharp mind and poetic inventiveness to create hundreds of new words and rework old ones. For example, he created the noun forms of "critic", "mountaineer” and "eyeball". Many common expressions in English come from his plays, including "pomp and circumstance（装腔作势）"from "Othello", "full circle（绕圈子地）" from "King Lear", etc. The list of cultural creations influenced by Shakespeare is almost endless. From paintings to television to music and dance, Shakespeare was well represented. Shakespeare's plays have been translated into every major language in the world.

Shakespeare became a well??known writer during a golden age of theater. His years of hard work paid off.

What can we infer from the passage？

       A.Many of Shakespeare's works were influenced by earlier writings.

       B.Shakespeare was hard??working when he was a student.

       C.The experience of living in London helped a lot with Shakespeare's works.

       D.Shakespeare became rich later because of the popularity of his works.

Shakespeare might have learnt some information from ancient Roman works in　　　　.

       A."King Lear"     B."The Comedy of Errors"   C. "Macbeth"    D."Othello"

Why could Shakespeare's works survive his time？

       A.Because there were so few people writing plays in his time.

       B.Because he produced too many works that nobody else could do.

       C.Because he was a rich and influential person of his time.

       D.Because his works were rich in imagination and language.

Shakespeare's greatest influence should be on　　　　.

       A.the English language  B.paintings       C.television    D.music and dance

The passage is mainly about 　　　　.

       A.an introduction to Shakespeare’s life and his works

       B.the main features and styles of Shakespeare's plays

       C.how culture influenced Shakespeare and he influenced culture.

       D.Shakespeare’s greatest influence on the world culture.

1. Summer came early to Middlesbrough yesterday, as temperatures shot up to 22°C (71°F), a record for March. But local NFU agent Jim Wilkes says it could be bad news for farmers. “The crops will think it's summer,” he told our reporter, “and start sprouting (发芽) four weeks before time.”

2. The death toll (死亡人数) of the Burnside train crash rose to four yesterday when John Phillips, 32, of Petersville died in Wallsend Hospital. Another six people are still on the danger list. Mr. Phillips, an electrical engineer leaves a wife and two children.

3. China and the United States reached an agreement on the protection of intellectual property rights (知识产权) yesterday, after difficult marathon talks.

The agreement is good news for all parties concerned. The Chinese Foreign Trade Minister described the agreement as a "turning point" in Sino-US trade relations that "promises further progress" in the future. The agreement will not only favorably influence trade relations between China and the United States. It may favorably influence the overall relations between the two countries.

1.What do you get to know from article 1?

2.How many people have died in the train crash in article 2 ?

3.Who are on the danger list?

4.What agreement did China and the United States reach in article 3?

5.What are relations going to be like between China and the United States?

Among various programs, TV talk shows have covered every inch of space on daytime television．And anyone who watches them regularly knows that each one is different in style．But no two shows are more opposite in content, while at the same time standing out above the rest, than the Jerry Springer and Oprah Winfrey shows．

    Jerry Springer could easily be considered the king of "rubbish talk"．The topics on his show are as surprising as can be．For example, the show takes the ever-common talk show titles of love, sex, cheating, and hate, to a different level．Clearly, the Jerry Springer show is about the dark side of society, yet people are willing to eat up the troubles of other people's lives．

    Like Jerry Springer, Oprah Winfrey takes the TV talk show to its top．But Oprah goes in the opposite direction．The show is mainly about the improvement of society and different quality of life．Contents are from teaching your children lessons, managing your work week, to getting to know your neighbors．

    Compared to Oprah, the Jerry Springer show looks like poisonous waste being poured into society．Jerry ends every show with a "final word"．He makes a small speech about the entire idea of the show．Hopefully, this is the part where most people will learn something very valuable．

    Clean as it is, the Oprah show is not for everyone．The show's main audience are middle-class Americans．Most of the people have the time, money and ability to deal with life's tough problems．Jerry Springer, on the other hand, has more of a connection with the young adults of society．These are 18-to 21year-olds whose main troubles in life include love, relationship, sex, money and drug．They are the ones who see some value and lessons to be learned through the show's exploitation．

Compared with other TV talk shows, both the Jerry Springer and the Oprah Winfrey shows are____．

    A．more interesting         B．unusually poplar

    C．more detailed        D．more formal

Though the social problems Jerry Springer talks about appear unpleasant, people who watch the shows ______．

    A．remain interested in them

    B．are ready to face up to them

    C．remain cold to them 

    D．are willing to get away from them

Which of the following is likely to be a topic of the Oprah Winfrey show?

    A．A new type of robot．    B．National hatred．

    C．Family income planning． D．Street accident．

We can learn from the passage that the two talk shows ____．

    A．have become the only ones of its kind

    B．exploit the weaknesses in human nature

    C．appear at different times of the day

    D．attract different people

Have you ever wondered why birds sing? Maybe you thought that they were just happy．After all, you probably sing or whistle when you are happy．

Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy．However, they sing most of the time for a very different reason．Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory．

Do you know what a "territory" is? A territory is an area that an animal, usually the male, claims as its own ．Only he and his family are welcome there ．No other families of the same species are welcome．Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome．If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten you, you might shout．Probably this would be enough to frighten him away．

If so, you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him．A bird does the same thing．But he expects an outsider almost any time, especially at nesting （筑巢） season．So he's screaming （高声尖叫） all the time, whether he can see an outsider or not．This screaming is what we call a bird's song, and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away．

Birds sing loudest in the spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs．You can see that birds have a language of their own．Most of it has something to do with attracting mates and setting up territories．

1.Some scientists believe that most of the time birds' singing is actually

A．an expression of happiness                        

B．a way of warning

C．an expression of anger                          

D．a language of their own

2.What is a bird's "territory"?

A．A place where a bird may shout at the top of its voice．

B．A place where other bird families are not accepted．

C．An area for which birds fight against each other．

D．An area which a bird considers to be its own

3.Why do birds keep on singing at nesting season?

A．Because their singing helps frighten outsiders away．

B．Because their singing helps get rid of their fears．

C．Because they want to find outsiders around．

D．Because they want to invite more bird friends．

4.How does the writer explain birds' singing?

A．By comparing birds with human beings．            B．By reporting experimental results．

C．By describing birds'daily life．                    D．By telling a bird's story．

You may have heard about the many benefits of yoga, but a recent New York Times story, has stirred up more than a little controversy in the yoga community.

"How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body," by science writer William J. Broad, quotes a long-time yoga teacher who "...has come to believe that 'the vast majority of people' should give up yoga altogether. It's simply too likely to cause harm." He goes on to describe a number of cases where people have been injured doing yoga, including himself.

The research in the article isn't groundbreaking: doing any form of exercise you could potentially hurt yourself. If you look at the injury rates of other physical activities, the number of injuries sustained from yoga would pale in comparison.

Practicing yoga is just like anything in life: You have to push yourself in order to grow. But you also have to know your limits and when you're breaking them. If you stick to your comfort zone, you'll never be able to increase your flexibility. If you push to the point where you're not only uncomfortable, but in real pain, you'll likely injure yourself.

The reasons that yoga causes "serious injury”, according to the Times story, range from students' physical weaknesses to inexperienced teachers pushing too hard to the growing number of inflexible "urbanites who sit in chairs all day" trying hard to twist themselves into difficult postures.

Yoga is called a "practice" for a reason. You don't have to be perfect. You don't have to tackle every pose. It doesn't matter if you can touch the floor with your palms during your first forward bend or your thousandth, or if you never get there.

We go to the mat to learn to better listen to what our bodies are telling us, and to better hear that quiet inner voice drowned out by the noise of our busy lives. It's a shame to discourage the majority of people from practicing yoga and missing out on all of the mind-body benefits that going to the mat has to offer.

1.The underlined word is best replaced by __.

A. Injure    B. Benefit    C. Push   D. Shape

2.What does author mainly want to tell us in the 3rd paragraph?

A. All physical activities are equally harmful.

B. Yoga causes much less injuries than other physical activities.

C. Similar researches have been done before.

D. Yoga, like any other form of exercise, can hurt people.

3.Which is not mentioned among the reasons for yoga being likely to cause injury?

A. Teachers lack the knowledge of students’ limits.

B. Modern lifestyle decreases our flexibility.

C. The body doesn’t tell when you are in real pain.

D. Students themselves might not be in good physical condition.

4.What is the author’s attitude towards practicing yoga?

A. It’s a shame not to practice yoga.

B. One should push the limits in order to be perfect.

C. The majority should give up yoga for it may cause harm.

D. One should enjoy the physical and mental benefit that yoga brings.