Passage 6

Paper is one of the most important products ever invented by man.Wide spread use of written language would not have been possible without some cheap and practical material to write on.The invention of paper meant that more people could be educated because more books could be printed and distributed.Together with the printing press,paper provided an extremely important way to communicate knowledge.

纸是人类发明的最重要的产品之一。没有一些便宜而又实用的材料来写的话，书面语也不可能广泛传播。纸的发明意味着更多的人可以接受教育，因为更多的书可以印出来并分发出去。纸和印刷一起为知识的交流提供了极其重要的途径。

How much paper do you use every year?Probably you cannot answer that question quickly.In 1990 the world’s use of paper was about one kilogram for each person a year.Now some countries use as much as 50 kilograms of paper for each person a year.Countries like the United States,England and Sweden use more paper than other countries.

我们每年用多少纸呢？也许你无法很快回答出这个问题。在1900年，全世界的用纸量是每年人均一公斤左右。现在有些国家的用量达到每年人均50公斤。像美国，英国和瑞典这样的国家的用量远超其他各国。

Paper,like many other things that we use today,was first made in China.In Egypt and the West,paper was not very commonly used before the year 1400.The Egyptians wrote on a kind of material made of a water plant.Europeans used parchment for many hundreds of year.Parchment was very strong;it was made from the skin of certain young animals.We have learnt of the most important facts of European history from records that were kept on parchment.(208words)

像许多其他我们用的东西一样，纸最早发明于中国。在埃及和西方，十五世纪前纸并没有广泛使用。埃及人写字写在一种水生植物做成的材料上。欧洲人用羊皮纸用了好几百年。羊皮纸很牢固，它是用某些幼年动物的皮做成的。从羊皮纸上保存的记录中我们了解到关于欧洲历史的最重要的事情。

11.What’s the meaning for the word“parchment”?____________“parchment”的意思是什么？

A.The skin of young animals.

B.A kind of paper made from the skin of certain young animals.一种用某些幼年动物的皮做成的纸。

C.The paper used by European countries.

D.The paper of Egypt.

12.Which of the following is not mentioned about the invention of paper?____________

关于纸的发明下面哪项没有被提到？

A.More jobs could be provided than before.工作机会比以前更多了。

B.More people could be educated than before.

C.More books could be printed and distributed.

D.More ways could be used to exchange knowledge.

13.When did the Egyptians begin to use paper widely?____________

埃及人什么时候开始广泛地使用纸？大约在1400年。

A.Around 1400.

B.Around 1900.

C.Around 400.

D.Around 900.

14.Which of the following countries uses more paper for each person a year?____________

以下哪个国家每年人均用纸量更大？瑞典。

A.China

 B.Sweden 

C.Egypt 

D.Japan

15.What is the main idea of this short talk?____________

这篇文章的主要内容是什么？

A.More and more paper is being consumed nowadays.

B.Paper enables people to receive education more easily.

C.The invention of paper is of great significance to man.纸的发明对人类非常重要。

D.Paper contributes a lot to the keeping of historical records.