Where did that number come from?

Eleven and Twelve

The reason behind the change in number naming is that eleven comes from the German term ainlif, which translates to “one left”. Twelve follows the same rule. It comes from twalif—“two left”. Why teen is used instead of lif for 13 through 19? There is something sadly lost in history.

911 for US Emergency (急救) Calls

Early phones didn’t use phone numbers—the operator had to connect your call by hand—and this led to the need for an emergency code (信号). But later phone numbers became popular, that changed. In 1967, 911 was chosen as the nationwide emergency call because it was easy to remember and could be quickly dialed (拨) on the phone.

26.2 Miles in a Marathon (马拉松)

The story began with an ancient Greek soldier carrying message from a battlefield (战场) in Marathon to Athens. The modern marathon was born as a flagship event in the first Olympic Games, in 1896, with a distance (距离) of about 25 miles (40 km), as long as the distance from Marathon to Athens. But race organizers for the 1908 Olympic Games in London wanted to add something special. The race began at Windsor Castle and ended at White City Stadium, with runners finishing only after passing the royal (皇室的) box. The distance was 26.2 miles (42.1 km). And since 1924 this distance has been kept in marathon.

28 Days in February

Before using the Gregorian calendar that we use today, one of the first Roman calendars had only 304 days and ten months (March through December), with six months of 30 days and four of 31 days. The second king of Rome improved the old calendar. He added 50 days for January and February. To make the new months longer, he took one day from each of the 30-day months, making 56 days to divide between January and February (or 28 days each). Later January was given one more day to add up to 355 days a year, but February still had 28 days. That’s how it became the shortest month and it stayed that way ever since.

1.Which language do eleven and twelve come from?

A. English. B. German. C. French. D. Russian.

2.When was the number 911 chosen for US emergency calls?

A. In 1896. B. In 1908. C. In 1924. D. In 1967.

3. The marathon distance was made longer at London Olympic Games because ______.

A. the British was a little weak in maths

B. the British didn’t like the Greek story

C. the British loved the royal family very much

D. the British wanted to make the race different

4. How many days were there in each month after the king improved the old calendar?

A. 28, 29 or 31. B. 28, 30 or 31.

C. 28, 29 or 30. D. 29, 30 or 31.

Why is Denmark the “kingdom of fairy tales”? Because it was the home of famous writer Hans Christian Andersen. But there might be other reasons, says a new study.

Denmark is the happiest country in the world, according to the 2013 World Happiness Report by the United Nations (UN). The report ranks（排列）156 countries and regions (地区). All the top five happiest countries are from Europe, and three of them are from Scandinavia.

What makes people there happy? The UN considered several reasons.

Money is one. We are happy if we have money to cover our necessities. But extra (额外的) money cannot bring us more happiness. People in Northern Europe know this. From cars to mobile phones, from clothes to buildings, their designs are quite simple. Luxury (奢华) is not there.

Another reason is health. Nordic (北欧的) people have a healthy diet. They love fresh food. “There is not a big fast-food culture and no ready meals. We sit down with our families to eat our meals,” said Trina Hahnemann, a Danish cook.

A harmonious (和谐的) social life also makes us happy, according to the UN report. How about Nordic people? They live in harmony not only with people around, but also with nature. Night life is not popular in Scandinavia. People go home after work for some quality（高品质的） time with family members. Many families have a backyard. Father and child spend hours there each week, planting flowers and building swings.

Do you want to be happy? Think about the Nordic lifestyle, and happiness is in your own hands.

1.Where does Hans Christian Andersen come from?

2.How many countries of the top five happiest countries are from Scandinavia?

3.Do Nordic people love fresh food or ready meals?

4.What can make people happy according to the passage?

5.What does the writer want to tell us?

The people in Brazil will have to get__________ready before the 2016 Brazil Olympic Games.

A.anything B. nothing C. something D. everything

During her first day in ChinA. Lily was asked__________.

A. whether she could use chopsticks

B. whether could she use chopsticks

C. if she can use chopsticks

D. if can she use chopsticks

Everyone likes living in a clean and comfortable environment.If the environment is bad. it will affect our bodies, and make us not feel well.Sometimes we may be terribly ill.At that time we don’t want to work, and we have to stay in bed and rest at home.So the environment is very important to us.

It’s germ that makes us ill.There are germs everywhere, They are very small and you can’t find them with your own eyes, but you can see them with a microscope（显微镜）.They are very small and there may be hundreds of them on a very small thing, Germs can always be found in the dirty water.When we look at dirty water under the microscope, we shall see them in it.Germs can also be found in air and dust.If you cut your finger, some of the dust from the floor may go into it, and you will have much pain in it.Sometimes the germs will go into all of your body, and you will have pain everywhere.

To keep us healthy, we should try to our best to make our environment become cleaner and tidier.This needs us to act together.

1.The writer tell us that________.

A.germs can’t live in the water.

B.we should rest at home if the environment is bad

C.we feel well when the environment is good.

D.germs like comfortable environment

2.Germs are________.

A.very small things that you can’t see with your eyes.

B.just living in a clean and comfortable environment

C.either big or small depending on where they are

D.clean when they are found in clean water

3.Germs can be found in_________.

A.dirty water B. air C.dust D.A.B and C

4.How will you feel if germs go into the finger that is cut?

A.I will feel nothing. B.I will feel painful.

C.I will feel nervous. D.I will feel frightened .

5.From the passage we know that________

A.environment doesn’t affect our life.

B.germs may make us ill.

C.we don’t need to improve our environment.

D.if the environment is better, germs will be more.

完成句子

1.早上8点之前，这项工作一定要完成。

The work____________ ____________ ____________ ____________8 o’clock in the morning.

2.他们在岛上玩的多么开心啊！

____________ ____________ ____________ ____________they had on the island!

3.他是一个新爸爸，他不知道怎样照顾他的婴儿。

He is a new father. He doesn’t know__________ __________ __________ __________of his baby.

4.我的表哥一回来，就会去美国度假。

My cousin will go to America for a holiday __________ __________ __________he __________ back.

5.你准备好测试了吗？

Did you ____________ ____________ ____________the test?

Oh, you are so clever! You have______ a solution to the difficult problem!

A.gone on with B. made up

C. come up with D. given out

The girl in the classroom ______ be Maria. She called me from the library just now.

A. mustn't B. may not C. can't D. needn't

You can find many ______ about famous film star on the Internet.

A. news B. pictures C. tickets D. information

We should always be _________ the people who have helped us in our lives.

A. thanks for B. thankful for

C. thanks to D. thankful to