China has a history of over 5000 years and has created a wonderful traditional culture. And cooking has taken an important place in Chinese culture.

China started the cooking as early as the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. From the Spring and Autumn Period to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the Chinese dishes began to divided into Southern and Northern tastes.

During the period of Tang and Song Dynasties, people began to care for the medical uses of different plants. Many kinds of “medicinal (药用) food ” had been cooked to cure diseases for health care.

?? As time went by, local tastes were added to the Chinese dishes, such as the Northern food, the Southern food, the Chuan food and so on. Records about each kind of dishes have been handed down. The four oldest types of Chinese food were those of Sichuan, Guangdong, Shandong and Huaiyang. Later on, eight types by little after the Dang Dynasty. Each of these groups had its own long history and special traditional techniques.

The Chinese cooking culture has been developed for many centuries. With the growth and development of society during different periods, people have been always working on new way of cooking.

1.When did China start cooking?

From the ________ and _______ Dynasties.

2.What happened during the period of the Tang and Song Dynasties?

People began to ________ the medical uses of different plants.

3.What does the underlined phrase “handed down” mean in Chinese?

It means “___________”in Chinese.

4.How many types of Chinese food were there during the Yuan Dynasty according to the passage?

There were ______ types of Chinese food during the Yuan Dynasty.

5.How long has the Chinese cooking culture been developed?

It has been developed for _______________.

Changsha has various performing arts and entertainment industry for all tastes. The bar culture is the symbol(象征) of entertainment(娱乐) culture in Changsha.
The bar culture is designed to promote sociability(社会交往)in a society. For many adults, they usually go to different kinds of bars to relax after a day’s work with their friends or colleagues. They can not only enjoy the various music but also release stress and pressure. Meanwhile, they can make acquainted(使熟悉) with strangers after communicating with each other in a bar. Every coin has two sides. Although the bar culture has advantages, it also has disadvantages. Some of the adults addict to staying up in bars and lost themselves. We should know of the spirit of bar culture.
Nowadays, there are totally over 300 bars on large or small scales. Jiefang West Road is the birthplace of the first bar in Changsha. The fast catching up Golden Times Bar is an upsurge, which pushed Changsha's bar culture to another high.
【小题1】What’s the aim of the bar culture?
A.To promote sociability in a society.
B.To push the culture to another high.
C.To release pressure.
【小题2】 What is the meaning of the underlined word “release”?
A. 释放          B. 发行           C. 汇集
【小题3】 How many bars does Changsha have?
A. About 300     
B. More than 300   
C. Under 300
【小题4】 Which road is the birthplace of the first bar in Changsha?
A. Jiefang East Road
B. Jiefang Middle Road
C. Jiefang West Road
【小题5】What’s the best title of this passage?
A. Changsha bars
B. Culture of Changsha bars
C. Symbol of entertainment

My interest in Chinese food started many years ago, when I had my first job. I was a young reporter for the Daily Journal in San Francisco. Our office wasn’t far from Chinatown. I usually managed to arrange my time so that I could go there at least two or three times a week for a good meal.

The first time I ever ate Chinese food I loved it. And since then, it just tastes better and better to me. The first thing I noticed was the fresh tastes of the meat and vegetable. When I learned more about the food, I began to understand why it has this special feature.

 About 5000 years ago, China lost much of its wood because of over population and poor management of its forest. This loss was very bad for the country, of course, but it turned out to be very good for the food. Wood became very expensive and hard to get, so the Chinese had to learn how to use it better.

 In order to use less wood in cooking, they started to cut their meat and vegetable into small pieces before they put them in the hot oil. That way, the food cooked faster and they saved their fuel. The food prepared in the manner kept its fresh flavor(风味)--- and its this flavor that attracts people to the art of Chinese cooking.

 I often wonder if the Chinese appreciated their solution to that ancient energy problem as much as I do now --- whenever I eat Chinese food.

1.This passage is mainly about ___________.

A. why Chinese food tastes fresh

B. what Chinese food tastes like

C. how Chinese food is cooked

D. what makes Chinese food special

2.The author got to know Chinese food _______________.

A. when he worked as a reporter in China

B. from a news story in the Daily Journal

C. after he got a taste of it in the Chinatown

D. before he got his first job in San Francisco

3.The author thought the Chinese cut meat and vegetable into small pieces in order to _____________.

A. keeping its fresh flavor

B. saving their hard –to-get wood

C. producing a different kind of food

D. attracting westerners to their food

4.The word “ fuel” in the 4th paragraph most probably means ____________.

A. fresh flavor              B. meat and vegetable

C. hot oil                  D. firewood

5.According to the passage, the special freshness of Chinese food is the result of _______________.

A. the wood used to make the cooking fire

B. the fast speed at which it is cooked

C. the high quality of Chinese meat and vegetable

D. the well –developed art of Chinese cooking

My interest in Chinese food started many years ago, when I had my first job. I was a young reporter for the Daily Journal in San Francisco. Our office wasn’t far from Chinatown. I usually managed to arrange my time so that I could go there at least two or three times a week for a good meal.
The first time I ever ate Chinese food I loved it. And since then, it just tastes better and better to me. The first thing I noticed was the fresh tastes of the meat and vegetable. When I learned more about the food, I began to understand why it has this special feature.
About 5000 years ago, China lost much of its wood because of over population and poor management of its forest. This loss was very bad for the country, of course, but it turned out to be very good for the food. Wood became very expensive and hard to get, so the Chinese had to learn how to use it better.
In order to use less wood in cooking, they started to cut their meat and vegetables into small pieces before they put them in the hot oil. That way, the food cooked faster and they saved their fuel. The food prepared in this manner kept its fresh flavor(风味)—and it’s this flavor that attracts people to the art of Chinese cooking.
I often wonder if the Chinese appreciated their solution to that ancient energy problem as much as I do now –whenever I eat Chinese food.
【小题1】This passage is mainly about _________.