At dawn on Friday, May 19, 1780, farmers in New England stopped to wonder at the pink color of the sun. By noon the sky had darkened to midnight blackness, causing Americans, still in the painful struggle of a prolonged war of independence, to light candles and tremble at thoughts of the Last Judgment. As the birds quieted and no storm accompanied the darkness, men and women crowded into churches, where one minister commented that “The people were very attentive.” John Greenleaf Whittier later wrote that “Men prayed, and women wept; all ears grew sharp . . .”
A recent study of researchers, led by Richard Guyette from the University of Missouri’s Tree Ring Laboratory, has shown that vast forest fires in the Algonquin Highlands of southern Ontario and elsewhere in Canada brought this event upon New England. The scientists have discovered “fire scars” on the rings for that year, left when the heat of a wildfire has killed a part of a tree’s cambium (形成層). Evidence collected also points to a drought that year. An easterly wind and low barometric pressure (低氣壓) helped force smoke into the upper atmosphere. “The record fits pretty close,” says Guyette. “We had the right fuel, the drought. The conditions were all there.”
Lacking the ability to communicate quickly over long distances, Americans in 1780 remained in the dark about the event, which had disappeared by the next day. Over the next several months, the papers carried heated debates about what brought the darkness. Some were the voices of angry prediction, such as one Massachusetts farmer who wrote, “Oh! Backsliding New-England, attend now to the things which belong to your peace before they are forever hid from your eyes.” Others gave different answers. One stated that a “flaming star” had passed between the earth and the sun. Ash, argued another commentator. The debate, carried on throughout New England, where there were no scientific journals or academies yet, reflected an unfolding culture of scientific enquiry already sweeping the Western world, a revolution nearly as influential as the war for independence from the English.
New Englanders would not soon forget that dark day; it lived on in folklore, poems, and sermons for generations.
New Englanders crowded into churches because they were frightened by .
A. the pink color of the sun
B. the darkened sky at daytime
C. the Last Judgment on Friday
D. the American War of Independence
What can we infer about the event in New England on May 19, 1780?
A. Prayers remained silent and attentive.
B. Night birds no longer came out to sing.
C. People’s ears became sharper than usual.
D. Midday meals were served by candlelight.
According to the researchers, the origin of the event was .
A. an east wind
B. a severe drought
C. some burning fuel
D. low barometric pressure
What can we know about the debates after the dark day?
A. They focused on causes of the event.
B. They swept throughout the Western world.
C. They were organized by scientific institutions.
D. They improved Americans’ ability to communicate.
What can be the best title for the text?
A. New England’s dark day.
B. Voices of angry prediction.
C. There is no smoke without fire.
D. Tree rings and scientific discovery.
科目：高中英語 來源： 題型：閱讀理解
Imagine a world 400 years ago where children were used as chimney sweeps．The pay was low, it was a dirty trade and there was little reward for the men who did the job and even less for children.
Medway’s annual Sweeps Festival recreates the joy and laughter enjoyed by the chimney sweeps at their traditional holiday: the one time of the year the sweeps could leave the soot（煙灰） behind and have some fun．The sweeps’ holiday was traditionally held on 1 May each year．Locally, they used to mark the occasion by staging a procession through the streets of Rochester.
Their fun continued with the Jack-in-the-Green ceremony, a seven-foot character that they used to waken at dawn on Blue Bell Hill, Chatham．The Jack-in-the-Green would walk with the chimney sweeps in their parade．When the Climbing Boys’ Act 1868 made it illegal to employ young boys to carry out the trade, the traditional procession gradually began to fade．The final May celebration was held in the early 1900s.
The modern day Rochester Sweeps Festival is a colorful mix of music, dancing and entertainment with more than 60 Morris sides and entertainers celebrating throughout the three-day festival．The festival was revived in 1981 by local businessman Gordon Newton, a keen historian．He decided it was time to bring it back and over the years he has helped develop the festival into what it is today — an excellent performance of traditional Britain.
Gordon researched the Sweeps’ tradition and organized a small parade, involving local Morris teams．In time, Medway Council took over organization of the festival but Gordon remained actively involved．Today he is festival producer and plays melodeon（簧風琴） for several Morris teams．Doug Hudson is the festival’s music director, a role he has held for many years．Through Gordon’s vision and hard work, Doug’s musical ability and the council’s help, the Rochester Sweeps Festival has become the largest May Day celebration of its kind in the country.
According to the writer, chimney sweeps ____________.
A．were highly respected B．were well rewarded
C．led a hard life in the past D．worked in good conditions
Medway’s Sweeps Festival ____________.
A．has been organized by the Jack-in-the-Green
B．dated back to the May celebration in the early 1900s
C．is held to honor those chimney sweeps every other year
D．has become a time for chimney sweeps to enjoy themselves
The underlined word “revive” in the 4th paragraph most probably means ___________.
A．realize B．review C．recreate D．recognize
It can be inferred from the passage that ____________.
A．the festival has never been supported by the local government
B．The festival is a good way to see British folk customs in action
C．youngsters has been forbidden to be chimney sweeps since 1981
D．the modern festival lasts five days celebrating the coming of spring
What is the passage mainly concerned about?
A．Sweeps Festival history B．Medway’s traditional holidays
C．Climbing Boys’ Act 1868 D．a procession in Rochester
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科目：高中英語 來源：山東淄博市2010屆高三下學期第二次模擬考試英語試卷 題型：閱讀理解
C
Imagine a world 400 years ago where children were used as chimney sweeps. The pay was low, it was a dirty trade and there was little reward for the men who did the job and even less for children.
Medway’s annual Sweeps Festival recreates the joy and laughter enjoyed by the chimney sweeps at their traditional holiday: the one time of the year the sweeps could leave the soot（煙灰） behind and have some fun. The sweeps’ holiday was traditionally held on 1 May each year. Locally, they used to mark the occasion by staging a procession through the streets of Rochester.
Their fun continued with the Jack-in-the-Green ceremony, a seven-foot character that they used to waken at dawn on Blue Bell Hill, Chatham. The Jack-in-the-Green would walk with the chimney sweeps in their parade. When the Climbing Boys’ Act 1868 made it illegal to employ young boys to carry out the trade, the traditional procession gradually began to fade. The final May celebration was held in the early 1900s.
The modern day Rochester Sweeps Festival is a colorful mix of music, dancing and entertainment with more than 60 Morris sides and entertainers celebrating throughout the three-day festival. The festival was revived in 1981 by local businessman Gordon Newton, a keen historian. He decided it was time to bring it back and over the years he has helped develop the festival into what it is today — an excellent performance of traditional Britain.
Gordon researched the Sweeps’ tradition and organized a small parade, involving local Morris teams. In time, Medway Council took over organization of the festival but Gordon remained actively involved. Today he is festival producer and plays melodeon（簧風琴） for several Morris teams. Doug Hudson is the festival’s music director, a role he has held for many years. Through Gordon’s vision and hard work, Doug’s musical ability and the council’s help, the Rochester Sweeps Festival has become the largest May Day celebration of its kind in the country.
66. According to the writer, chimney sweeps ____________.
A. were highly respected B. were well rewarded
C. led a hard life in the past D. worked in good conditions
67. Medway’s Sweeps Festival ____________.
A. has been organized by the Jack-in-the-Green
B. dated back to the May celebration in the early 1900s
C. is held to honor those chimney sweeps every other year
D. has become a time for chimney sweeps to enjoy themselves
68. The underlined word “revive” in the 4th paragraph most probably means ___________.
A. realize B. review C. recreate D. recognize
69. It can be inferred from the passage that ____________.
A. the festival has never been supported by the local government
B. The festival is a good way to see British folk customs in action
C. youngsters has been forbidden to be chimney sweeps since 1981
D. the modern festival lasts five days celebrating the coming of spring
70. What is the passage mainly concerned about?
A. Sweeps Festival history B. Medway’s traditional holidays
C. Climbing Boys’ Act 1868 D. a procession in Rochester
查看答案和解析>>
科目：高中英語 來源：湖南省高考適應性測試英語 題型：閱讀理解
At dawn on Friday, May 19, 1780, farmers in New England stopped to wonder at the pink color of the sun. By noon the sky had darkened to midnight blackness, causing Americans, still in the painful struggle of a prolonged war of independence, to light candles and tremble at thoughts of the Last Judgment. As the birds quieted and no storm accompanied the darkness, men and women crowded into churches, where one minister commented that “The people were very attentive.” John Greenleaf Whittier later wrote that “Men prayed, and women wept; all ears grew sharp . . .”
A recent study of researchers, led by Richard Guyette from the University of Missouri’s Tree Ring Laboratory, has shown that vast forest fires in the Algonquin Highlands of southern Ontario and elsewhere in Canada brought this event upon New England. The scientists have discovered “fire scars” on the rings for that year, left when the heat of a wildfire has killed a part of a tree’s cambium (形成層). Evidence collected also points to a drought that year. An easterly wind and low barometric pressure (低氣壓) helped force smoke into the upper atmosphere. “The record fits pretty close,” says Guyette. “We had the right fuel, the drought. The conditions were all there.”
Lacking the ability to communicate quickly over long distances, Americans in 1780 remained in the dark about the event, which had disappeared by the next day. Over the next several months, the papers carried heated debates about what brought the darkness. Some were the voices of angry prediction, such as one Massachusetts farmer who wrote, “Oh! Backsliding New-England, attend now to the things which belong to your peace before they are forever hid from your eyes.” Others gave different answers. One stated that a “flaming star” had passed between the earth and the sun. Ash, argued another commentator. The debate, carried on throughout New England, where there were no scientific journals or academies yet, reflected an unfolding culture of scientific enquiry already sweeping the Western world, a revolution nearly as influential as the war for independence from the English.
New Englanders would not soon forget that dark day; it lived on in folklore, poems, and sermons for generations.
1.New Englanders crowded into churches because they were frightened by .
A. the pink color of the sun
B. the darkened sky at daytime
C. the Last Judgment on Friday
D. the American War of Independence
2.What can we infer about the event in New England on May 19, 1780?
A. Prayers remained silent and attentive.
B. Night birds no longer came out to sing.
C. People’s ears became sharper than usual.
D. Midday meals were served by candlelight.
3.According to the researchers, the origin of the event was .
A. an east wind
B. a severe drought
C. some burning fuel
D. low barometric pressure
4.What can we know about the debates after the dark day?
A. They focused on causes of the event.
B. They swept throughout the Western world.
C. They were organized by scientific institutions.
D. They improved Americans’ ability to communicate.
5.What can be the best title for the text?
A. New England’s dark day.
B. Voices of angry prediction.
C. There is no smoke without fire.
D. Tree rings and scientific discovery.
查看答案和解析>>
科目：高中英語 來源：山東淄博市2010屆高三下學期第二次模擬考試英語試卷 題型：閱讀理解
C
Imagine a world 400 years ago where children were used as chimney sweeps. The pay was low, it was a dirty trade and there was little reward for the men who did the job and even less for children.
Medway’s annual Sweeps Festival recreates the joy and laughter enjoyed by the chimney sweeps at their traditional holiday: the one time of the year the sweeps could leave the soot（煙灰） behind and have some fun. The sweeps’ holiday was traditionally held on 1 May each year. Locally, they used to mark the occasion by staging a procession through the streets of Rochester.
Their fun continued with the Jack-in-the-Green ceremony, a seven-foot character that they used to waken at dawn on Blue Bell Hill, Chatham. The Jack-in-the-Green would walk with the chimney sweeps in their parade. When the Climbing Boys’ Act 1868 made it illegal to employ young boys to carry out the trade, the traditional procession gradually began to fade. The final May celebration was held in the early 1900s.
The modern day Rochester Sweeps Festival is a colorful mix of music, dancing and entertainment with more than 60 Morris sides and entertainers celebrating throughout the three-day festival. The festival was revived in 1981 by local businessman Gordon Newton, a keen historian. He decided it was time to bring it back and over the years he has helped develop the festival into what it is today — an excellent performance of traditional Britain.
Gordon researched the Sweeps’ tradition and organized a small parade, involving local Morris teams. In time, Medway Council took over organization of the festival but Gordon remained actively involved. Today he is festival producer and plays melodeon（簧風琴） for several Morris teams. Doug Hudson is the festival’s music director, a role he has held for many years. Through Gordon’s vision and hard work, Doug’s musical ability and the council’s help, the Rochester Sweeps Festival has become the largest May Day celebration of its kind in the country.
66. According to the writer, chimney sweeps ____________.
A. were highly respected B. were well rewarded
C. led a hard life in the past D. worked in good conditions
67. Medway’s Sweeps Festival ____________.
A. has been organized by the Jack-in-the-Green
B. dated back to the May celebration in the early 1900s
C. is held to honor those chimney sweeps every other year
D. has become a time for chimney sweeps to enjoy themselves
68. The underlined word “revive” in the 4th paragraph most probably means ___________.
A. realize B. review C. recreate D. recognize
69. It can be inferred from the passage that ____________.
A. the festival has never been supported by the local government
B. The festival is a good way to see British folk customs in action
C. youngsters has been forbidden to be chimney sweeps since 1981
D. the modern festival lasts five days celebrating the coming of spring
70. What is the passage mainly concerned about?
A. Sweeps Festival history B. Medway’s traditional holidays
C. Climbing Boys’ Act 1868 D. a procession in Rochester
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