If you are reading this right now, you are taking part in the wonder of literacy. Because of printed words, people can relay information across both time and space. Much of the credit for this phenomenon can be attributed to one man.

Born in Mainz, Johannes Gutenberg, studied at the University of Erfurt in 1418 and spent much of his young adult life practicing the profession of goldsmithing. In 1439 Gutenberg borrowed money from investors but found himself in financial trouble.

In 1439 the city in which Gutenberg lived was planning to exhibit a large collection of some relics, which was expected to bring many visitors to the town. Gutenberg created many metal mirrors which were to be sold to the visitors. The mirrors probably would have sold well, but due to severe flooding the event was delayed by one year. The investors demanded that Gutenberg return their investments, but he had already spent the money on the mirrors. In order to satisfy the investors, Gutenberg decided to share his secret with them. This secret would forever change the world, all of history, and even the, process of keeping history. He had created the mechanical printing press with movable type.

Gutenberg’s brilliant idea would soon change the world, but he was in financial trouble once again and was accused of mismanaging money. The courts ruled against Gutenberg and Gutenberg lost .the shop he had created.

Before the spread of Gutenberg, s idea, literature was primarily handwritten and thus books were extremely rare and valuable. There was little reason for common people to learn to read or write. Gutenberg’s invention would change all of that. His printing press allowed literature to be produced on a mass scale. His movable metal type could be arranged once to form a page, and his press could print the page again and again.

Though Gutenberg had failed as a businessman, the technologies that he had created spread across Europe rapidly. As these printing technologies and techniques spread, news and books began to travel across Europe much faster than previously possible. The world has not been the same since.

1.Which of the following can replace the underlined word in Paragraph one?

A. referred B. devoted

C. exposed D. owed

2.Why did Gutenberg’s plan to sell mirrors fail?

A. The mirrors were less popular than he had expected.

B. Flooding delayed the event for an entire year.

C. Too many other people had the same idea.

D. Newly invented glass mirrors made his metal mirrors old-fashioned.

3.Which of the following is best supported by evidence from the text?

A. Gutenberg’s idea was a tremendous success that made him incredibly wealthy.

B. Gutenberg’s idea didn’t become popular in his lifetime, but grew very popular after his death.

C. Gutenberg, s idea did not make him rich but spread very quickly.

D. Gutenberg, s idea did not become popular right away but made him incredibly rich over time.

4.Which of the following titles best expresses the main idea of this text?

A. Investing Wisely: Turning Your Good Ideas into Money

B. How to Make Books Using the Gutenberg Method

C. The City of Mainz: Life in Medieval Germany

D. Gutenberg: A Man Who Changed the World

練習(xí)冊系列答案
相關(guān)習(xí)題

科目：高中英語 來源：吉林省長春市2017屆高三質(zhì)量監(jiān)測（四）（有答案） 題型：閱讀理解

When the telephone rings late at night, most women guess it must be one of only four or five people calling. A sister？Maybe. An emergency? Possibly. A mother? Probably not at that time of night. Much more probably it is a close female friend calling to tell you that she is heartbroken because she has split up with her boyfriend again or perhaps simply that a good movie has just started on TV.

At a time when families are spread far and wide and marriages often end in divorce, friendships are becoming more and more important. Erika, a 32-year-old lawyer, is strengthened by her ten-year friendship with her married friend Jane. “I was very sick one night, so I called Jane at about 3:00 a.m. to talk about it,” she says. “She was very supportive and even came over to take me to the doctor’s.”

As American TV shows like Friends have become more popular, many of us are beginning to see the value of such friendships. TV shows like this tell us that our romantic relationships may not last, but we need to keep in touch with our close friends if we want to survive.

With Erika’s family 200 miles away, it is Jane who keeps a spare set of keys to Erika’s apartment and waters her plants whenever she is away. “Having Jane around gives me a certain amount of freedom. It is not the kind of thing that you could ask anyone to do, but she knows I would do the same for her.” Jane, who may move to a different city soon, is worried about leaving such a support system of friends. “My friends have more to do with my life than my parents and, therefore, I don’t have to spend a lot of time explaining things to them. Friends are more up to date with what is happening.”

1.A late-night phone call for most women is probably from ______.

A. a relative B. a friend

C. a doctor D. a stranger

2.What does the underlined phrase “split up” in Paragraph 1 mean?

A. Shown up. B. Picked up.

C. Broken up. D. Taken up.

3.According to the passage, we can learn that Erika .

A. is Jane’s male friend B. treasures Jane’s friendship

C. has been married for 10 years D. lives far away from Jane

4.Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A. Friendship Counts.

B. Friendship Demands Freedom.

C. Friendship Needs Understanding.

D. Friendship Strengthens Romance.

查看答案和解析>>

科目：高中英語 來源：甘肅省天水市2016-2017學(xué)年高一下學(xué)期期中考試英語試卷 題型：單項填空

_______ you have grown up, you can make decisions by yourself.

A. Even if B. Although

C. Now that D. As soon as

查看答案和解析>>

科目：高中英語 來源：2017年高考原創(chuàng)押題卷（一）英語試卷 題型：完形填空

I stopped speaking because I found myself arguing all the time. After witnessing an oil spill in San Francisco Bay, I ______ using vehicles and started walking everywhere as a statement about ______. I often kept getting into ______ about whether one could make a ______ and argued about how everyone should do what I was doing.

On my 27th birthday, I decided not to speak for one day, as a kind of ______ to my community. When I woke up the next day, I didn't see any ______ to speak, so I didn't.

A week later, people started getting ______. My girlfriend wanted me to stop. My parents even got angry with me. But I didn't change my idea.

On the 10th anniversary of not ______， I spoke for a day. I didn't want it to feel as if it wasn't a ______. I was in California and I ______ my parents. My mother picked up and thought it was my brother ______ around. I had to prove it was me by telling her something only we knew.

______ not speaking for 17 years, I felt I had something to say. People came to ______ me. My first words were, “Thank you for being here.” But I didn't recognize my ______.

Having listened to thousands of people, I realized we had a ______ view of the environment. People always think it's about planting more trees, but it's more than that; it's about how we treat each other, and that also ______ economic equality and civil rights.

Now I give talks around the world. I started using ______ again. I still practise being ______ every morning. It reminds me to listen ______； not to judge what I think I'm hearing, but to try to understand what people are really ______.

1.A. turned to B. thought about C. gave up D. insisted on

2.A. pollution B. waste C. exercise D. support

3.A. fights B. traps C. dilemmas D. debates

4.A. promise B. difference C. plan D. living

5.A. encouragement B. belief C. punishment D. gift

6.A. reason B. sign C. chance D. language

7.A. puzzled B. disappointed C. worried D. interested

8.A. arguing B. riding C. speaking D. failing

9.A. warning B. disadvantage C. strength D. choice

10.A. missed B. called C. visited D. thanked

11.A. walking B. coming C. messing D. hanging

12.A. Though B. Once C. If D. After

13.A. hear B. comfort C. instruct D. help

14.A. parents B. voice C. photo D. handwriting

15.A. valid B. correct C. narrow D. universal

16.A. proves B. includes C. improves D. insures

17.A. phones B. computers C. loudspeakers D. vehicles

18.A. silent B. deaf C. friendly D. patient

19.A. constantly B. properly C. largely D. merely

20.A. worrying B. doing C. advising D. saying

查看答案和解析>>

科目：高中英語 來源：K12教育質(zhì)量保障聯(lián)盟山東省2017屆高三5月打靶卷英語試卷 題型：短文改錯

假定英語課上老師要求同學(xué)們交換修改作文，請你修改你同桌寫的以下作文。文中共有10處語言錯誤，每句中最多有兩處。錯誤僅涉及一個單詞的增加、刪除或修改。

增加：在缺詞處加一個漏字符號（∧），并在其下面寫出該加的詞。

刪除：把多余的詞用斜線（\）劃掉。

修改：在錯的詞下劃一橫線，并在該詞下面寫出修改后的詞。

注意：1.每處錯誤及其修改均僅限一詞；

2.只允許修改10處，多者（從第11處起）不計分。

With time passed by, and my senior high school life is almost over. In a few days’ time, I will be graduating in this school. Now I’m looking back on the past. One of the best memory is the military training, activity in which we performed our best. Another thing that I’m particular impressed with is the school trip. These things are so wonderful, but the highlight is the New Year’s party. We sing songs and played games. I will never forget the time when I spent with my friends and teachers. It is because of his company that I have had such an; amazed experience.

查看答案和解析>>

科目：高中英語 來源：湖北省襄陽市2017屆高三第二次適應(yīng)性考試（5月）英語試卷 題型：短文填空

Wood-block printing first appeared in the early Tang period. During the Song dynasty, the technique of block printing was very advanced. Books were 1. (beautiful) printed. Even today the books 2. (print) at the time are valuable and treasured by libraries and book collectors.

However, block printing 3. (be) not very convenient. Every two pages of a book had to be carved on a wood block, and a big book would require many blocks. Besides, there had to be large places for storing the books. 4. (overcome) these shortcomings, Bi Sheng invented the movable type during the years between 1041 and 1048. One word was carved on one piece of clay, 5. was hardened with fire. Then clay characters were set on 6. iron plate according to the text of a book. Then ink was applied to them and 7. (sheet) of paper spread over them, and the printing was done. Bi Sheng’s invention made printing faster and easier 8. before. Later, movable type of metal and wood was made and widely used.

The technique of printing was gradually known to other Asian countries and Europe. The great influence printing had 9. the advance of civilization is too clear to need any 10. (explain).

查看答案和解析>>

科目：高中英語 來源：廣東省廣州市2017屆英語高考沖刺題（二） 題型：書面表達(dá)

假定你是李華。從學(xué)校通告欄上看到某公司招聘海外游學(xué)團領(lǐng)隊的廣告，你很感興趣。請寫一封英文電子郵件咨詢此職位的工作職責(zé)、資歷要求及報酬等相關(guān)信息。

注意：1. 詞數(shù)100左右；

2. 可以適當(dāng)增加細(xì)節(jié)，以使行文連貫。

3. 參考詞匯：通告欄 notice board；游學(xué)團 study tour

注：請各校自行制作答題卡，書面表達(dá)內(nèi)容可參考如下：

Dear Sir/Madam,

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Yours sincerely,

Li Hua

查看答案和解析>>

科目：高中英語 來源：黑龍江省哈爾濱市2017屆高三下學(xué)期第四次模擬考試英語試卷 題型：閱讀理解

John H. Johnson was born in a black family in Arkansas city in 1918. His father died in an accident when John was six. He was reaching the high school age, but his hometown offered no high school for blacks.

Fortunately he had a strong-willed caring mother. John remembered that his mother told him many times, “Son, you can be anything you want really to be if you just believe.” She told him not to depend on others, including his mother. “You have to earn success, ” she said. “All the people who work hard don’t succeed, but the only people who do succeed are those who work hard.”

These words came from a woman with less than a third grade education. She also knew that believing and hard work don’t mean everything. So she worked hard as a cook for two years to save enough to take her son, who was then 15, to Chicago.

Chicago in 1933 was not the promised land that black southerners were looking for. John’s mother and stepfather could not find work. But here John could go to school, and here he learned the power of words—as an editor of the newspaper and yearbook at Du Sable High School his wish was to publish a magazine for blacks.

While others discouraged him, John’s mother offered him more words to live by. “Nothing beats a failure but a try. ”She also let him pawn(典當(dāng))her furniture to get the $ 500 he needed to start the Negro magazine.

It is natural that difficulties and failures followed John closely until he became very successful. He always keeps his mother’s words in mind. “ Son, failure is not in your vocabulary!”

Now John H. Johnson is one of the 400 richest people in America—worth $ 150 million.

1.John’s mother decided to move to Chicago because _____.

A. his father died when John was very young

B. life was too hard for them to stay on in their hometown

C. John needed more education badly

D. there were no schools for Negroes in their hometown

2.John’s mother _______.

A. didn’t believe in or depend on others

B. thought one could be whatever one wanted to be

C. believed one would succeed without working hard

D. thought no one could succeed without working hard

3.The underlined sentence “Nothing beats a failure but a try. ”means _____.

A. if you try, you would succeed

B. a failure is difficult to beat, even if you try

C. a try is always followed by a failure

D. no failure can be beaten unless you try

查看答案和解析>>

科目：高中英語 來源：北京市2016-2017學(xué)年高二下學(xué)期期中考試英語試卷 題型：閱讀理解

When important events are happening around the world, most people turn to traditional media sources, such as CNN and BBC for the news. However, during the war in Iraq in 2003, many people followed the war from the point of view of an unknown Iraqi citizen who called himself "Salam Pax" (Salam Pax means peace).

Salam Pax wrote a diary about everyday life in Baghdad during the war, and posted it on his website. Pax's online diary was a kind of website known as a "blog". Blogs are online diaries, usually kept by individuals, but sometimes by companies and other groups of people. They are the fastest growing types of website on the Internet.

A blog differs from a traditional website in several ways. Most importantly, it is updated much more regularly. Many blogs are updated every day, and some are updated several times a day. Also, most blogs use special software or websites, which can help ordinary people easily set up and start writing their own blogs.

There are many different kinds of blogs. The most popular type is an online diary of links where the blog writer surfs the Internet and then posts links to sites or news articles that they find interesting, with a few comments about each one. Other types are personal diaries, where the writer talks about their life and feelings. Sometimes these blogs can be very personal.

There is another kind of blogging, called "moblogging", short for "mobile blogging".

Mobloggers use mobile phones with cameras to take photos, which are posted instantly to the Internet. The use of mobile phones in this way made the headlines in Singapore when a high school student posted a movie he had taken of a teacher shouting at another student on the Internet. Many people were shocked by what the student did, and wanted phones with cameras to be banned from schools.

Many people think that as blogs become common, news reporting will rely less on big media companies, and more on ordinary people posting news to the Internet. They think that then the news will be less like a lecture, and more like a conversation, where anyone can join in.

1.Which statement about Salam Pax was true?

A. He worked for CNN.

B. Salam Pax was not his real name.

C. He was famous as a host in BBC.

D. He used a mobile phone for his blog.

2.What is the biggest difference between blogs and traditional websites?

A. Blogs use special software.

B. Blogs contain personal information.

C. Blogs are updated much more often.

D. Blogs contain links to other websites.

3.According to the passage, in the future it is likely that ________.

A. everyone will have a blog

B. blogging technology will be banned

C. large media companies will be unnecessary

D. people will be able to learn the news from other points of view

4.What is the passage mainly about?

A. The war in Iraq. B. New types of media.

C. The history of the Internet. D. The increase of using computers.

查看答案和解析>>

同步練習(xí)冊答案