People have been painting pictures for at least 30,000 years.The earliest pictures were painted by people who hunted animals.They used to paint pictures of the animals they wanted to catch and kill.Pictures of this kind have been found on the walls of caves in France and Spain.No one knows why they were painted there.Perhaps the painters thought that their pictures would help them to catch these animals.Or perhaps human beings have always wanted to tell stories in pictures.

About 5,000 years ago, the Egyptians and other people in the Near East began to use pictures as kind of writing.They drew simple pictures or signs to represent things and ideas, and also to represent the sounds of their language.The signs these people used became a kind of alphabet.

The Egyptians used to record information and to tell stories by putting picture-writing and pictures together.When an important person died, scenes and stories from his life were painted and carved on the walls of the place where he was buried.Some of these pictures are like modern comic strip stories.It has been said that Egypt is the home of the comic strip.But, for the Egyptians, pictures still had magic power.So they did not try to make their way of writing simple.The ordinary people could not understand it.

By the year 1,000 BC, people who lived in the area around the Mediterranean Sea had developed a simpler system of writing.The signs they used were very easy to write, and there were fewer of them than in the Egyptian system.This was because each sign, or letter, represented only one sound in their language.The Greeks developed this system and formed the letters of the Greek alphabet.The Romans copied the idea, and the Roman alphabet is now used all over the world.

These days, we can write down a story, or record information, without using pictures.But we still need pictures of all kinds: drawing, photographs, signs and diagrams.We find them everywhere: in books and newspapers, in the street, and on the walls of the places where we live and work.Pictures help us to understand and remember things more easily, and they can make a story much more interesting.

1.Pictures of animals were painted on the walls of caves in France and Spain because ______.

       A.the hunters wanted to see the pictures    

       B.the painters were animal lovers

       C.the painters wanted to show imagination

       D.the pictures were thought to be helpful

2.The Greek alphabet was simpler than the Egyptian system for all the following reasons      EXCEPT that _______.

     A.the former was easy to write             B.there were fewer signs in the former    

       C.the former was easy to pronounce         D.each sign stood for only one sound

3.Which of the following statements is TRUE?

       A.The Egyptian signs later became a particular alphabet.

       B.The Egyptians liked to write comic-strip stories.

       C.The Roman alphabet was developed from the Egyptian one.   

       D.The Greeks copied their writing system from the Egyptians.

4.In the last paragraph, the author thinks that pictures ___________.

       A.should be made comprehensible           B.should be made interesting

         C.a(chǎn)re of much use in our life           D.have disappeared from our life

 

【答案】

 

1.D

2.C

3.A

4.C

【解析】

 

練習冊系列答案
相關習題

科目:高中英語 來源:2012-2013學年廣東省惠州市實驗中學高一上學期期中考試英語試卷(帶解析) 題型:閱讀理解

Different people use different languages. We Chinese speak Chinese, and, most of us are learning a foreign language. But there is another kind of language we need to know --- the language of the body.
All over the world, people “talk with their hand, with their heads and with their eyes.” When Japanese people meet, they bow. When Indians meet, they put their hands together. What do American and British do? Americans are more imformal(不拘小節(jié)的) than the British. They like to be friendly. They use first names, they ask questions and they talk easily about themselves. When they sit down, they like to relax in their chairs and make themselves comfortable. British people are more reserved(保守的). They take more time to make friends. They like to know you before they ask your name.
When British or American people meet someone for the first time, they shake hands. They do not usually shake hands with people they know well. Women sometimes kiss their women friends, and men kiss women friends (on one cheek only). When a man meets a man, he just smiles, and says, “Hello.” Men do not kiss each other, or hold hands. Even fathers and sons do not often kiss each other.
【小題1】In the passsage, the writer thinks that body language is ______________.

A.uselssB.difficultC.quite easyD.important
【小題2】Which of the following is right?
A.different countries hav the same body language.
B.different countries have different body anguages.
C.people in Asia share the same body language.
D.many people only use their body language.
【小題3】If an American friend visits you, he probably _____________.
A.sit straightB.never sits downC.makes fun of youD.sits freely
【小題4】If you want to make a British friend, you may feel it ________________.
A.imopssibleB.too easyC.too difficultD.slow
【小題5】Generally speaking, ____________ kiss more often.
A.menB.womenC.BritishD.Americans

查看答案和解析>>

科目:高中英語 來源:2015屆廣東省惠州市高一上學期期中考試英語試卷(解析版) 題型:閱讀理解

Different people use different languages. We Chinese speak Chinese, and, most of us are learning a foreign language. But there is another kind of language we need to know --- the language of the body.

All over the world, people “talk with their hand, with their heads and with their eyes.” When Japanese people meet, they bow. When Indians meet, they put their hands together. What do American and British do? Americans are more imformal(不拘小節(jié)的) than the British. They like to be friendly. They use first names, they ask questions and they talk easily about themselves. When they sit down, they like to relax in their chairs and make themselves comfortable. British people are more reserved(保守的). They take more time to make friends. They like to know you before they ask your name.

When British or American people meet someone for the first time, they shake hands. They do not usually shake hands with people they know well. Women sometimes kiss their women friends, and men kiss women friends (on one cheek only). When a man meets a man, he just smiles, and says, “Hello.” Men do not kiss each other, or hold hands. Even fathers and sons do not often kiss each other.

1.In the passsage, the writer thinks that body language is ______________.

A.uselss            B.difficult           C.quite easy         D.important

2.Which of the following is right?

A.different countries hav the same body language.

B.different countries have different body anguages.

C.people in Asia share the same body language.

D.many people only use their body language.

3.If an American friend visits you, he probably _____________.

A.sit straight         B.never sits down     C.makes fun of you    D.sits freely

4.If you want to make a British friend, you may feel it ________________.

A.imopssible         B.too easy           C.too difficult        D.slow

5.Generally speaking, ____________ kiss more often.

A.men             B.women           C.British            D.Americans

 

查看答案和解析>>

科目:高中英語 來源: 題型:閱讀理解

Different people use different languages. We Chinese speak Chinese, and, most of us are learning a foreign language. But there is another kind of language we need to know --- the language of the body.
All over the world, people “talk with their hand, with their heads and with their eyes.” When Japanese people meet, they bow. When Indians meet, they put their hands together. What do American and British do? Americans are more imformal(不拘小節(jié)的) than the British. They like to be friendly. They use first names, they ask questions and they talk easily about themselves. When they sit down, they like to relax in their chairs and make themselves comfortable. British people are more reserved(保守的). They take more time to make friends. They like to know you before they ask your name.
When British or American people meet someone for the first time, they shake hands. They do not usually shake hands with people they know well. Women sometimes kiss their women friends, and men kiss women friends (on one cheek only). When a man meets a man, he just smiles, and says, “Hello.” Men do not kiss each other, or hold hands. Even fathers and sons do not often kiss each other

  1. 1.

    In the passsage, the writer thinks that body language is______.

    1. A.
      uselss
    2. B.
      difficult
    3. C.
      quite easy
    4. D.
      important
  2. 2.

    Which of the following is right?

    1. A.
      different countries hav the same body language
    2. B.
      different countries have different body anguages
    3. C.
      people in Asia share the same body language
    4. D.
      many people only use their body language
  3. 3.

    If an American friend visits you, he probably______.

    1. A.
      sit straight
    2. B.
      never sits down
    3. C.
      makes fun of you
    4. D.
      sits freely
  4. 4.

    If you want to make a British friend, you may feel it______.

    1. A.
      imopssible
    2. B.
      too easy
    3. C.
      too difficult
    4. D.
      slow
  5. 5.

    Generally speaking, ______kiss more often

    1. A.
      men
    2. B.
      women
    3. C.
      British
    4. D.
      Americans

查看答案和解析>>

同步練習冊答案