Read “The Write Stuff” and answer questions 1 to 6.

　　Throughout history people have written with many different tools and on many different surfaces.

　　PAPYRUS

　　Papyrus was one of the earliest known writing surfaces. For almost 4000 years papyrus was the main writing material used in the Middle East and around the Mediterranean. The Egyptians first made papyrus from the stem of the papyrus plant which grew along the banks of the River Nile.

　　1．Papyrus was made by cutting a papyrus stem into thin strips.

　　2．Two layers of strips were then pressed together until they stuck.

The Egyptians wrote on papyrus with brushes.

　　ANIMAL SKINS

　　When papyrus became scarce, people used animal skins to write on. This was called parchment. It was made from sheep skin which was washed, scraped, stretched and dried.

　　Parchment had a very smooth writing surface. It was used in Europe until the late Middle Ages.

　　Scribes wrote on parchment with quill pens made from goose feather.

　　PAPER

　　Around AD 105, a Chinese official called Cai Lun invented a new writing material made from old rags. This was known as paper. Paper is still made approximately the same way today as it was by Cai Lun, except that now machines are used.

　　The problem with quill pens and later metal pens was that they had to be dipped in ink every few seconds. In the 19th century fountain pens were invented. These had a container for ink inside them－no more dipping or dripping!

　　The nib of a modern fountain pen is very similar to the point of the reed pen invented by the Ancient Greeks.

1．According to the information, in which order were the following surfaces developed?

[　　]

A．Paper→Parchment→papyrus

B．papyrus→parchment→paper

C．parchment→papyrus→paper

D．papyrus→paper→parchment

2．The information states that parchment was used by the ________.

[　　]

3．Parchment was made instead of papyrus mainly because ________.

[　　]

A．parchment was easier to make

B．parchment had a better writing surface

C．papyrus became scarce

D．papyrus was more suited for use with quill pens

4．The writer suggests that compared to a quill pen, using a fountain pen is more ________.

[　　]

5．Which of the following statements is TRUE?

[　　]

A．The Ancient Greeks wrote with brushes.

B．Papyrus was first used in the late Middle Ages.

C．Reed pens have similar points to fountain pens.

D．The first paper was made using machines.

6．The best word to replace “approximately”, as it is used in the passage, is ________.

[　　]

D
Graffiti is a common feature of most Western cities. The word graffiti was from the Greek word, graphein, which only meant writing. These days, however, the word means drawing or writing on the walls of buildings, or the public transportation, such as trains or buses.
Graffiti, as a form of expression, was born in New York during the 1960s and 1970s. At that time, a new modern culture about city life appeared. Graffiti was a written form of expression of that life. Later, it was mixed with a musical form called hip-hop that was another expression of the city life.
At first, graffiti artists used pens. But then, with the development of graffiti, they became experienced. They turned to using spray paint (喷漆罐). Spray paint allowed them to draw a greater area. And it also allowed them to work quickly.
At present, different people have different ideas about graffiti. Some people say it makes the cities dirty. It isn’t allowed by many local governments in America. The governments spend more than a million dollars a year cleaning graffiti. The money, they say, could be better spent on health or education. Other people think it is a form of art. In fact, the works of some famous graffiti artists can be found in museums, galleries, and art books.
【小题1】Which is the present meaning of the underlined word “graffiti” now?