课时跟踪练(一) Introduction & Reading Pre-reading.阅读理解AScientists recently discovered that pictures on cave walls at Creswell Crags are the oldest known in Great Britain. But they didnt find out in the usual way.Archaeologists often date cave art with a process called radiocarbon dating. The technique can measure the age of carbon found in charcoal (木炭) drawings or painted pictures. Carbon is an element (成分) found in many things, including charcoal and even people. But in this case, there was no paint or charcoal to test. People carved the pictures of animals and figures into the rock using stone tools. The scientists had an “aha！” moment when they noticed small rocks stuck to the top of the drawings. The small rocks must have formed after the drawings were made.“It is rare to be able to scientifically date rock art.” said Alistair Pike, an archaeological scientist at Britains University of Bristol. “We were very fortunate that some of the engravings (雕刻) were covered by stalagmites (石笋)”When a test proved that the stalagmites formed 12,800 years ago, the scientists knew the art underneath them had to be at least that old. And some of the animals shown, like the European bison, are now extinct another tipoff (征兆) that the art is quite old.The artists came to Creswell Crags. This place is one of the farthest points north reached by our ancient ancestors during the Ice Age. At that time, much of the North Sea was dry, so people could move about more easily.Some tools and bones found there are 13,000 to 15,000 years old. They show that the travelers hunted horses, reindeer, and arctic hares. Their artwork is similar to art in France and Germany. It tells scientists that the Creswell Crags artists must have had a close connection to peoples several thousand kilometers away another important evidence of understanding how humans spread out across the world.语篇解读：本文是一篇说明文，带领我们探寻英国古老的洞窟美术的历史。1The underlined word “Archaeologists” in Paragraph 2 refers to people .Awho study things left behind by people in the pastBwho have rich experience in paintingCwho are interested in wild animalsDwho are good at using stone tools解析：选A词义猜测题。根据第二段的内容可以看出，archaeologists意为“考古学家”。2Why do scientists say the art is quite old?AThe art was carved into stone with stone tools.BMost animals carved in the stone are extinct.CThe cave is one of the farthest points in the world.DSome pictures were covered by stalagmites more than 10,000 years old.解析：选D细节理解题。根据倒数第三段可知答案。3By studying the cave art, scientists could learn about .Ahow ancient people crossed the North SeaBwhy some of the animals have died outChow humans spread out across the worldDwhat ancient people had for food at that time解析：选C细节理解题。根据最后一段最后一句“another important evidence of understanding how humans spread out across the world”可知。4Which of the following can be the best title for the text?ACave Art About Animals Is Most BeautifulBCave Art Is Found in an Unusual WayCCave Art Turns Out to Be Britains OldestDCave Art Has a Great Influence on Britain解析：选C标题归纳题。本文主要介绍英国克瑞斯威尔峭壁的洞窟艺术为什么是英国最古老的艺术，后半部分给出了证据。BOne week after I started working in Beijing, I decided to visit a place of interest called the Summer Palace. Before setting off, I researched into it on the Internet. The Summer Palace is composed mostly of a lake, but its surrounded by beautiful greenery and a walkway that circles the lake. It is recommended that you give the Summer Palace about three hours. If you try to walk around it, it could take five or six hours. With that knowledge of it, I set off.The highlight of the tour had to be the view from the Tower of Buddhist Incense. It sits on top of a large hill overlooking the lake and that is worth the climb. It was built as a place to worship (敬拜) Buddha. And in the Summer Palace, unlike most of the other places, photography wasnt allowed in most of the buildings. Most of the statues of Buddha and the other artifacts (手工艺品) were offlimits to photos.Another highlight was seeing the stage created for the Dowager Empress where she watched the opera and other theater items. There are box seats that surround the stage and it was the largest stage created in all of Imperial China. You could almost imagine royalty reviewing the actors from the boxes and the stage.I do recommend taking a boat ride if you go, which takes you from one side of the lake to the other side where you can see another set of buildings. And it is fun. You can also rent an electric or paddle boat if you want. But since it was just me, I went on one of the biggest boats with other people.I spent another four hours wandering around the Summer Palace. But I didnt see all of it because it was getting dark. I am looking forward to visiting it again.语篇解读：作者描述了去颐和园游玩的经历。5Before setting off to the Summer Palace, the author .Aasked others about itBdidnt think it was largeCd