《英美概况》练习题.doc

Exercises for the Introduction to the English-speaking Countries英美概况习题集School of Foreign LanguagesShanghai Institute of Technology前 言按照教育部21世纪我国高等学校非英语专业人才的培养目标和规格要求，作为非英语专业的菜单课, 英美概况课程教学内容的学习目标是:在打好扎实的英语语言基本功的前提下，要求拓宽学生的人文学科知识，扩大知识面，对西方地理概貌、历史背景、政治制度、经济概况、科学技术、文化传统、体育娱乐、宗教信仰、风俗习惯及社会生活等方面的基本知识, 有助于学习者了解英美的思维方式、价值观念及生活方式等有较全面的了解，其中重点是对英国和美国情况的掌握和了解，同时也贯穿其它英语国家的介绍。学生在学习本门课程后，可以增强对英语国家尤其是英美国家地理、风土人情、政治经济、宗教文化等方面的了解，可以更好地掌握和运用英语语言，提高英语阅读能力，并且通过语言学习和文化了解的结合，能够正确恰当地使用英语进行交际，提高学生对文化差异的敏感性和宽容性以及处理文化差异的灵活性，从而提高学生跨文化交际的能力。本课程以教师的“导游”为主，要求学生这些“游客”对相关的知识进行阅读、探索，并利用互联网查询相关的知识，并在课堂上进行专题发言，达到与同学互相交流信息。在每章节讲授之后，以课件的形式给学生列出各章节的课外作业与思考题。这就要求学生除了在课堂上认真地听课并做好课堂笔记之外，课外还需阅读有关的必读书目，认真完成所布置的课外作业与思考题，以达到使学生对所学的新知识与新内容能够进一步地消化与巩固的效果的同时，提高阅读速度。传统的英美概况教材的最大特点是集知识性、系统性和科学性于一体, 但却是针对英语专业的学生编写的。其篇幅长，内容多，涉及面广，生词量大，而我院的非英语专业学生的英语水平相对薄弱，由于缺乏社会阅历，对课文涉及的很多内容如经济、政治等常常是一知半解，难以深入领会难以适应。基于上述原因,我们英美概况教学组成员尝试着编辑了非英语专业中英文对照的英语国家概况精讲和英美概况练习集，以适应非英语专业学生的水平层次及课时安排, 同时在适量的理论知识之外增加一些学生动手的环节, 让学生活学活用, 反复操练, 以达到岗位业务要求的水平。本练习集包括以下六种形式：一、选择题；二、填空题 ；三、事件排序；四、把专有名词翻译成汉语；五、简答题 六、阅读理解题。其中阅读理解部分共计50篇。涵盖了英国1-10篇； 美国11-39篇； 加拿大40-42篇； 澳大利亚43-46篇； 新西兰47-48篇； 综合49-50篇。从风光、人物、文化、习俗等各个角度向学生们介绍了英语国家的文化的方方面面，进而对它们的文化有一定的了解。ContentsPreface2I. Multiple Choices.5II. Filling in the blanks.11III. Rearrangement of the following in the order . .12IV. Translation of the following terms. .12V. Answering the following questions briefly .12VI. Reading Comprehensions the English-speaking Countries.14Passage 1 England.14Passage 2 Scotland, Ireland, Wales.15Passage 3 Kilt .16Passage 4 British People Sports Lovers.17Passage 5 Elizabeth I Elizabeth.18Passage 6 William Shakespeare.19Passage 7 Isaac Newton.20Passage 8 Charles Darwin Origin of Species.21Passage 9 Winston Churchill.22Passage 10 Princess Diana.23Passage11 United States: Washington D.C.23Passage 12 United States: New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut.24Passage 13 United States: California, Nevada25Passage 14United States: National Parks26Passage 15 Crossing the US-Canada Border.27Passage 16 The Great Lakes.28Passage 17 The Basic Flag of the United States.29Passage18 September 1lth.30Passage19 Christopher Columbus.31Passage 20 George Washington First President.32Passage 21 Thomas Jefferson 3rd President.33Passage 22 Rosa Parks Mother of the Civil Rights Movement.34Passage 23 Mark Twain Humorist and Novelist.35Passage 24 Ernest Hemingway Novelist36Passage 25 Charlie Chaplin38Passage 26 Thomas Edison Greatest Inventor39Passage 27 Henry Ford Automobile.40Passage 28 Marilyn Monroe Actress.41Passage 29 Elvis Presley Rock and Roll Music.43Passage 30 Bruce Lee (Li Xiao long).44Passage 31 Richard Nixon.45Passage 32 Conddeezza Rice(赖斯), the U.S. Secretary of State.46Passage 33 John Denver Folk Singer.47Passage 34 NBA Basketball Player Alan Iverson.48Passage 35 Michael Jordan Basketball Champion.49Passage 36 Michael Chang Tennis Champion.51Passage37 Apple and Microsoft52Passage 38 American Superman- Christopher Reeve.53Passage 39 Self-made Americans.54Passage 40 Eastern Canada: Toronto, Quebec, Montreal.55Passage 41 Canada：Rocky Mountains Banff, Calgary56Passage 42 Western Canada, Victoria, Vancouver.57Passage 43 Australia: Sydney, Melbourne.58Passage44 Australia National Day.58Passage 45 Swimming Costumes.59Passage 46 An Ad.61Passage 47 New Zealand62Passage 48 Anzac Day62Passage 49 Keep Your Fingers Crossed.63Passage 50 Euromail and Amerimail.64Keys66.I. Multiple Choices: Choose one right answer from the four choices:The highest mountain in Britain is _.A. Scafell B. Ben NevisC. the Cotswolds D. the Forth2. The longest river in Britain is _.A. the Clyde B. the MerseyC. the Severn D. the Thames3. The largest lake in Britain is _.A. the Lough NeageB. Windermere WaterC. Coniston WaterD. the Lake District4. Which part of Britain is always fighting?A. England B. ScotlandC. Wales D. Northern Ireland5. The immigrants coming to Britain are mainly from _.A. Europe B. the United StatesC. Africa D. the West Indies, Indies and Pakistan6. The first inhabitants in Britain were _.A. the Normans B. the CeltsC. the Iberians D. the Anglo-Saxons7. British Recorded history began with _.A. Roman invasion B. the Norman ConquestC. the Viking and Danish invasion D. the Anglo-Saxons invasion8. In 829, _ actually became the overlord of all the English.A. John B. James IC. Elbert D. Henry I9. Christmas Day _, Duke William was crowned in Westminster Abbey.A. 1056 B. 1066C. 1006 D. 106010. Henry II was the first king of the _ dynasty.A. Windsor B. TudorC. Malcolm D. Plantagenet11. In 1265 _ summoned the Great Council, which has been seen as the earliest parliament.A. Henry III B. the PopeC. Barons D. Simon de Montfort12. The Hundred Years war stated in _ and was ended in _, in which the English had lost all the territories of France except the French port of _.A. 1337, 1453, Flanders B. 1337, 1453, CalaisC. 1346, 1453, Agincourt D. 1346, 1453, Brest13. The Wars of Roses lasted for _ years and king _ was replaced by king _.A. 30, Richard III, Henry TudorB. 50, Richard III, Henry TudorC. 30, Richard I, Henry Tudor D. 50, Richard I, Henry Tudor14. The Renaissance began in _ in the early _ century.A. England, 14 B. England, 15C. Italy, 14 D. Italy, 1515. The English Civil War is also called _.A. the Glorious RevolutionB. the Bloody RevolutionC. the Catholic RevolutionD. the Puritan Revolution16. In _, a small group of Puritans sailed from _ in the Mayflower to be the first settlers in the New Land.A. 1620, London B. 1620, PlymouthC. 1720, London D. 1720, Plymouth17. In the 18th century, there appeared _ in England, which owed a great deal to the invention of machines. A. the Industrial RevolutionB. the Bourgeois RevolutionC. the Wars of the Roses D. the Religious Reformation18. English colonial expansion began with the colonization of _ in 1583.A. Canada B. AustraliaC. India D. Newfoundland19. _ was famous for his abdication because of his marriage with a divorced American:A. Edward VIII B. Edward VIIC. George VI D. George VII20. In January _ Britain became a member of the European Economic Community.A. 1957 B. 1967C. 1973 D. 197921. Soon after _, Britain not only gave up its economic hegemony but also suffered a deep loss of its position of industrial leadership.A. 1900 B. the First World WarC. the Second World War D. 196022. In the 1970s among the developed countries, Britain maintained the lowest _ rate and the highest _ rate.A. inflation, growth B. growth, inflationC. growth, divorce D. growth, birth23. The following are all reasons of British decline of coal industry except _.A. the exhaustion of old mines B. costly extractionC. little money being invested D. the labor shortage24. Britains foreign trade is mainly with _.A. developing countries B. other Commonwealth countriesC. other developed countries D. EC25. The House of Lords is presided over by _.A. the Lord Chancellor B. the QueenC. the Archbishop of CanterburyD. the Prime Minister 26. A General Election is held every _ years and there are _ members of Parliaments are elected.A. five, 600 B. five, 650C. five, 651 D. four, 65127. The Prime Minister is appointed by _ and he or she always sits in _.A. the Archbishop of Canterbury, the House of CommonsB. the Archbishop of Canterbury, the House of LordsC. the Queen, the House of CommonsD. the Queen, the House of Lords28. The ultimate authority for law-making resides in _.A. the Queen B. the CabinetC. the House of Lords D. the House of Commons29. The sources of British law include _.A. statutes, common law, equity law and European Community law B. statutes, common law and equity lawC. statutes, common law and European Community lawD. a complete code and statutes30. In criminal trials by jury, _ passes sentenced and _ decide the issue of guilt or innocence.A. the judge, the jury B. the judge, the judgeC. the jury, the jury D. the Lord Chancellor, the jury31. _ tries the most serious offences such as murder and robbery.A. Magistrates courts B. Youth courtsC. District courts D. The Crown Court32. Londons Metropolitan Police Force is under the control of _.A. the England secretaries B. the Scottish SecretariesC. Northern Ireland SecretariesD. the Home Secretary33. The National Health Service was established in the UK in _ and based at first on _.A. 1948, Acts of Parliament B. 1958, Acts of ParliamentC. 1948, the Bill of Rights D. 1958, the Bill of Rights34. The non-contributory social security benefits include the following except _.A. war pension B. child benefitC. family credit D. unemployment benefit35. Except that _ may not be a Roman Catholic, public offices are open without distinction to members of all churches or of none.A. the Lord Chancellor B. the Prime MinisterC. the Speaker D. the ministers of all departments36. About 90 per cent of the state secondary school population in the UK attend _.A. independent schools B. junior schoolsC. independent schools D. primary schools37. There are some _ universities, including the Open University.A. 900 B. 290C. 90 D. 5038. In Britain, children from the age of 5 to 16 can _ by law.A. receive completely free educationB. receive partly free educationC. receive no free education if their families are richD. receive no free education at all39. With regard to its size, the USA is the _ country in the world.A. largest B. second largestC. third largest D. fourth largest40. In the following rivers, _ has been called the American Ruhr.A. the Mississippi B. the MissouriC. the Hudson D. the Ohio41. Among the following rivers, _ forms a natural boundary between Mexico and the U.S.A. the Potomac B. the ColumbiaC. the Rio Grande River D. the Colorado42. All the following universities and colleges are located in New England, except _.A. Yale B. HarvardC. Oxford D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology43. The nations capital city Washington D.C. and New York are located in _.A. the American West B. the Great PlainsC. the Midwest D. the Middle Atlantic States44. The Midwest in Americas most important _ area.A. agricultural B. industrialC. manufacturing D. mining industry45. In the case of Brown versus Board of Education, the Supreme Court ruled that _.A. separate educational facilities had been illegalB. educational facilities had been separate but equalC. educational facilities had been equalD. separate educational facilities were inherently unequal46. The Chinese Exclusion Act was passed in _.A. 1882 B. 1883C. 1900 D. 192447. The first immigrants in American history came from _ and _.A. Ireland/France B. England/ChinaC. Scotland/England D. England / Netherland48. Uncle Toms Cabin and Roots are two novels which give a vivid description of the miserable life of the _.A. early settlers B. PuritansC. native Indians D. black slaves49. According to American historians and specialists in demography, there are _ great population movement in the history of the United States.A. two B. threeC. four D. five50. Many early Chinese immigrants worked in the mining industry, especially in the _.A. gold mines B. silver minesC. coal mines D. copper mines51. The Declaration of Independence was drafted by _.A. James Madison B. Thomas JeffersonC. Alexander Hamilton D. George Washington52. On July 4, 1776, _ adopted the Declaration of Independence.A. the First Continental CongressB. the Second Continental CongressC. the Third Continental CongressD. the Constitutional Convention53. The victory of _ was the turning point of the War of Independence.A. Saratoga B. GettysburgC. Trenton D. Yorktown54. Ten amendments introduced by James Madison in 1789 were added to the Constitution. They are knows as _.A. the Articles of ConfederationB. the Bill of RightC. the Civil Rights D. Federalist Papers55. President Jefferson bought _ from France and doubled the countrys territory.A. New Mexico B. the Louisiana TerritoryC. Kansas D. Ohio56. The Declaration of Independence came from the theory of British philosopher _.A. Paul Revere B. John LockeC. Cornwallis D. Frederick Douglass57. During the WWII, the Axis powers were mainly made up by _.A. Germany, France and JapanB. France, Japan and BritainC. Germany, Italy and Britain D. German, Italy and Japan58. The Progressive Movement is a movement demanding government regulation of the _ and _ conditions.A. economy/political B. social/politicalC. economy/social D. political/cultural59. As a result of WWI, _ was not one of the defeated nations.A. Germany B. Austro-HungaryC. Ottoman D. Russia60. The aim of President Roosevelts New Deal was to “save American _.”A. economy B. politicsC. society D. democracy61. The longest war that the United States has fought is _.A. the War of Independence B. the Civil WarC. the Vietnam War D. the Gulf War62. After long and difficult negotiations in Paris, the United States and _ signed a cease-fire agreement on January 27, 1973.A. South Vietnam B. North VietnamC. China D. Vietnam63. President Kennedy inspired many to work to wipe out poverty and to end segregation and voting rights abuses. His Program was called _.A. the New Freedom B. the New DealC. the New Right D. the New Frontier64. _, which was passed by Congress in the spring of 1940, made it unlawful for any group to advocate or teach the violent overthrow of government in the United States.A. The Civil Rights Act B. The War Power ActC. The Smith Act D. The Marshall Plan65. It was this trend of conservatism that brought _ into the White House.A. Kennedy B. JohnsonC. Nixon D. Reagan66. The second busiest port in the United States is _.A. New York B. HoustonC. Los Angeles D. New Orleans67. In the postwar years government involvement was emphasized when the U.S. adopted _ theory in running the economy.A. monetarist B. KeynesianC. McCarthism D. New Freedom68. _ is the countrys leading state in oil and natural gas deposit.A. Alabama B. VirginalC. Texas D. Georgia69. _ is the Pacific Coasts largest and busiest commercial city and the second largest city in population in the U.S.70. Among the following, _ is not within the power of the U.S. President.A. He can veto laws passed by the CongressB. He appoints federal court judgesC. He is the head of the executive branch of governmentD. He is responsible for the interpretation of the Constitution.71. The “winter-take-all” system applies in all states except _.A. Rhode Island B. MaineC. Georgia D. Hawaii72. In the dual process by which the Constitution could be charged, amendments must have the approval of _ of the states before they enter into force.A. one-second B. two-thirdsC. three-fourths D. all73. After the 1828 election of _, the Democratic-Republican Party split.A. Thomas Jefferson B. Andrew JacksonC.