1.重點詞匯

cultural pyramid represent include ruin burn restore rebuild beauty photograph portrait recreate unite artist period vase stone damage ancient project brick official cave pollution carbon breath limit sincerely

2.重點詞組

give in in ruins bring…back to life puu down set up

3.交際用語

(1) 提出意見和建議

What shall we …? Maybe we could…

Shall we…? I’d like to…

Can’t we…? What / How about…?

Should we…? Why don’t you…?

Let’s… Why not…?

4.語法難點

被動語態（1）

1. 描述事物已經受到某種影響或某種處理--使用現在完成時被動語態。例如:

Now, after years of hard work, parts of statues have been put back together and missing pieces have been replaced.

Old paintings, …, have been carefully recreated, and the old palaces have been made as wonderful as in the past.

2. 描述人物已經被動地接受某種行為或某種處理--使用現在完成時被動語態。例如：

The sick woman has been sent to hospital, and now you can’t visit her.

Jack has been told about it, so you needn’t call him up.

5.話題

1. Talk about cultural relics.

2. Talk about ways to protect cultural relics.

3. Giving advice and make suggestions

Tell Me More!（背景篇）

The City of Peter the Great

I love, thee, Peter’s own creation,

I love thy stern and comely face,

Neva’s majestic perfluctation,

Her bankments’ granite carapace,

The patterns laced by iron railing,

And of thy meditative night

The lucent dusk, the moonless paling…

View of the Palace Square and Alexander Column in St. Petersburg (Photo: Cinderellatravel.com)

Thus is the glory of Peter the Great’s city, St. Petersburg, depicted in the poem The Bronze Horseman by Alexander Pushkin. The Bronze Horseman is also the name of a statue that stands in all its granite glory on Senatskaya Plochad facing the Neva River in St. Petersburg.

Created by the famous French sculptor Etienne Maurice Falconet, the statue depicts Peter the Great as a Roman hero. The pedestal is made of a single piece of red granite in the shape of a cliff. From the top of this “cliff” Peter shows the way for Russia as his horse steps on a snake. The snake represents the enemies of Peter and his reforms. Ironically, the “evil” snake also serves as a third point of support for the statue.

The St. Petersburg region was originally inhabited by the Swedes. It was conquered by Russia during the Great Northern War (1700-1721) fought between Sweden and a coalition of countries led by Russia.

In 1703, Russian tsar Peter the Great chose a site on Zayachy Island in the Neva River and began the construction of the Peter and Paul Fortress named after two patron saints. Although the site was cold, damp, and poorly protected, Peter was determined to build a new capital in the Neva delta to replace Moscow, which had served as Russia’s capital since the origins of the Russian state in the 1300’s.

Peter wanted an outlet to the Baltic Sea and intended to make St. Petersburg a modern, Western-style city that would serve as Russia’s “window on Europe.” Although the fortress was originally a primitive earthen structure, stone was brought in when construction of the city began. St. Petersburg was built at great human cost, the Northern Russian climate was very harsh, hunger and cold killed nearly 100,000 people during the first years of its construction. Working from dawn to dusk, they died in great numbers, but the war was on and the fort had to be completed as soon as possible.

On May 16, 1703, (May 27 by the modern calendar) St. Petersburg’s fortress (the Peter and Paul Fortress) was founded and that day became the official birthday of the city. Several days later the wooden Cabin of Peter the Great was built and became the first residential building in the new city. A new capital of the Russian Empire was born.

The imperial capital - including the Russian court, the Senate, and the foreign embassies - was moved to the new city in 1712. Peter and the rulers after him commissioned Dutch and Italian architects to build the city’s magnificent palaces and churches and an influx of Western scholars and artisans helped make St. Petersburg a cultural as well as a political center. Peter also commanded a new dress code for the nobility modeled after the French court. The Boyars were ordered to shave their long beards. Those caught wearing the old heavy unfashionable dress would have their cloth cut off from the knees down.

Originally, there were no bridges crossing the mighty Neva River. People had to be ferried between banks by boat - one of the reasons why St. Petersburg became known as the “Venice of the North.” The city itself consists of 101 islands and is miraculously built on mostly their banks. Today, St. Petersburg has the largest number of bridges of any city in the world, numbering 539 with 315 bridges in the downtown area alone.

St. Petersburg is no less of a marvel to visit today. The influx of tourists over the last couple of years has doubled in size. Many visitors say that St. Petersburg is as magnificent as Paris and Venice, that it has an unspoken mystery to it - not entirely European, yet not fully Russian either.

Cathedrals

One of the many architectural wonders of St. Petersburg is St. Isaac’s Cathedral - one of the world’s most beautiful churches.

St. Isaac’s Cathedral was originally the city’s main church and the largest cathedral in Russia. The French-born architect Auguste Montferrend built St. Isaac’s between 1818 and 1858 and expected it to be one of the most impressive landmarks of the Russian Imperial capital.

One hundred and eighty years later the gilded dome of St. Isaac’s still dominates the skyline of St. Petersburg. The cathedral’s facades are decorated with sculptures and massive granite columns (made of single pieces of red granite), while the interior is adorned with incredibly detailed mosaic icons, paintings, and columns made of malachite and lapis lazuli. A large, brightly colored stained glass window of the “Resurrected Christ” takes pride of place inside the main altar.

The church, designed to accommodate 14,000 standing worshipers, was closed in the early 1930’s and reopened as a museum. Today, church services are held only on major ecclesiastical occasions. Going up 300 steps to the cathedral’s colonnade you will be greeted by a breathtaking panoramic view of the city.

Another magnificent church in St. Petersburg is the Church of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, commonly referred to as The Savior on the Blood Cathedral (1883-1907). The church took the latter name as a memorial to Emperor Alexander II who was assassinated on March 1, 1881 on the spot where the church now stands. Alexander II was the first Tsar to give the Russian peasants their freedom and prepared the nation for democratic constitutional rule.

Designed by architect Alfred Parland in the style of 16th and 17th century Russian churches, the Savior on the Blood Cathedral offers an amazing contrast to the Baroque, Classical, and Modernist styles predominant in the Northern Capital. Its unique decorations include icons and panels made from majolica, and mosaics that were created from drawings by the leading Russian artists of the day. Restorers say the church contains more mosaics than any other church in the world.

Many famous Russian architects took part in the competition to build the symbolically important church. Alexander III, the heir to the throne, was unsatisfied with their proposals. He wanted the church to be in the style of Russian churches of the 16th and 17th centuries. Indeed, the church’s final composition borrowed heavily from the architectural forms of St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow and the Vladimir Cathedral in Kiev. The project was estimated to cost 3.6 million rubles, but ended up costing 4.6 million rubles, mainly from the extravagant collection of mosaics. The interior of the church was faced with Italian multi-colored marble and colored stone from different regions of Russia including Ural jasper, porphyry, violet gray Altai jasper, and dark red, pink, and green marble.

One of the most impressive elements of the church is the extravagant shrine, which was constructed on the very spot where Alexander II was fatally wounded, and maintained a special place within the church’s interior.

It was constructed according to Parland’s drawing, and completed in July 1907. Four columns of violet gray jasper serve as the base of the shrine. Above, small rectangular columns unite the carved stone awning and the mosaic icons decorated with images of the protectors of Alexander II’s family - the Romanovs. The columns are supported by a frieze, a cornice, and a stone-carved pediment with vases of jasper along the corners.

The shrine concludes with a high octahedral pyramid - the cross is completed with 112 pieces of topaz. The frame inside the shrine was faced with a magnificently colored lazurite. In fact, the facing of the arch required more than 100 pounds of lazurite. The arch itself was inlaid with stars made from Siberian semiprecious stones and pieces of topaz.

The intricately decorated outside walls of the church rival the magnificence of the church’s interior. The entrances to the cathedral are located at the north and south ends, and was built like closed porches on granite columns. On the place where the main entrance is usually located in churches, the crucifix was arranged on the facade, according to the design of Nesterov.

The pediments of each of the four porches of the cathedral are decorated in mosaic panels, based on the gospel scenes according to Vasnetsov: “Executing of the Cross,” “Crucifixion,” “Removing from the Cross,” and “Descending into Hell.” All four mosaic panels are magnificent in their composition and colors.

The revolution took a terrible toll on the Church. In 1923, the church became an official cathedral, but this didn’t save it from the barbarian looting of church valuables that took place along with the destruction of the interior of the church.

PETER THE GREAT (PETER ALEXEEVICH) 1672-1725

CZAR 1682-1721 EMPEROR OF ALL RUSSIA 1721-1725

Peter the Great was the fourteenth child of Alexei Mikhailovich, born on May 30, 1672, from his second marriage to Natalia Kirillovna Naryshkina. Having ruled jointly with his brother Ivan V from 1682, with Ivan's death in 1696, Peter was officially declared Sovereign of all Russia.

During his reign, Peter undertook extensive reforms: He created a regular army and navy, subjugated the Church to the state and introduced new administrative and territorial divisions of the country. He paid particular attention to the development of science. He was a far-sighted and skillful diplomat and a talented military leader.

Under Peter's rule, Russia became a great European nation. In 1721, he proclaimed Russia an Empire and was accorded the title of Emperor of All Russia, Great Father of the Fatherland and "the Great."

He married twice and had 11 children, many of whom died in infancy. The eldest son from his first marriage, Czarevich Alexei, was convicted of high treason by his father and secretly executed in 1718.

Peter died from a chill on January 28, 1725, without nominating an heir. He was buried in the Cathedral of the St. Peter and St. Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg.

Key Points（知識篇）

1. Complete the map of each site based on what you hear on the tape.

Quiz

(1) Swan Lake is a famous ballet in four acts, ___________on a German fairy tale.

A. basing B. based C. bases D. to base

(2) In five minutes he ________ drawing a very beautiful horse.

A. completed B. had finished C. was completed D. finished

(3) Before the interview you are asked to _________ the form.

A. complete B. finish C. write D. fill

Rules

(1) complete: vt. 使（某事物）圓滿，完善；完成; 填寫（表格）。adj. 完整的；完全的；全部的。例如：

I need one more stamp before my collection is completed.還差一張郵票我的收藏就齊全了。

The work is not completed yet. 這個工作還未完成。

When will the bridge be complete? 那座橋什么時候能完工?

Complete your application in ink. 用鋼筆填申請表。

I want to buy a complete edition of Shakespeare’s works. 我想買一套莎士比亞全集。

This is a complete story. 這是一個完整的故事。

注意complete 和 finish 在用法上的差異。兩個詞在很多情況下可以通用，但也有下列區別：

a. finish 可以接動詞的-ing形式，表“結束”，而complete 沒有這一用法。例如

I needed to finish doing some work before the game, so I arrived a bit after he did. 比賽前我要把一些事情做完， 所以我比他到得晚了一點。

b. finish 在意義上比complete消極，比較下面兩句話的意義。

I have finished the book. 我看完這本書了。

I have complete the book. 我寫完這本書了。

c. finish 在被動語態時有“全完了”，“沒有希望了”的意思，而complete 沒有這個含義。例如：

Is Saddam Hussein's government finished? 薩達姆的政府完蛋了嗎？

（2）based on what you hear on the tape: 過去分詞短語做狀語，表示謂語動詞complete發生的背景或情況，這種狀語既可以放在謂語動詞的后面，也可以放在謂語動詞的前面。例如：

Fight no battle unprepared. 不打無準備之戰。

Built in 1192, this bridge is about 800 years old. 這座橋是一一九二年修的，已經有約八百多年的歷史了。

（3）base…on /upon: 建于…… 之上，以 …… 為根據。例如：

What do you base your opinion on? 你提這個意見的依據是什么？

John based his hope on the news he had yesterday. 約翰的希望是以昨天所得到的消息為依據。

This news report is based entirely on fact. 這篇新聞報導是完全根據實際情況寫成的。

2. You can select five things that represent Chinese culture, but you cannot put any living things in the capsule.

Quiz

Our shops ____________ only the very best quality produce.

A. choose B. pick up C. select D. choose from

Rules

（1）select: vt. 選擇, 挑選adj. 精選的。例如：

They were selected from many applicants.他們是從許多報名者當中選出來的。

I want to select a gift for my mother’s birthday. 我想為媽媽的生日挑選一件禮物。

He bought a Select Collection of Shakespeare’s Poems. 他購買了一部莎士比亞詩選。

select 和choose都含有“選擇”的意思。select 強調“在廣泛的范圍內精選、淘汰”，側重“以客觀為標準進行選擇”，表示比choose考慮得更周到；choose 系常用詞，指“一般的選擇”，側重“憑個人意志或判斷進行選擇”，可用于僅在兩者之間進行選擇，后面接不定式時，意為“決定，下決心；愿意，寧愿”。例如

He would choose death before surrender. 他寧死也不投降。

They offer a lot of books to choose from. 他們提供了很多書來選擇。

He chooses to look into the matter till the truth is out. 他決定調查那件事直至真相大白

（2）represent: vt 表現，描寫，描畫；代表；聲稱

This painting represents a storm. 這幅畫描繪暴風雨。

We chose a committee to represent us. 我們選出一個委員會來代表我們。

These stones represent armies. 那些石頭代表部隊。

He represented himself as a philosopher. 他聲稱自己是哲學家。

3. You may also include a short message ( two sentences) in any language in the box.

Quiz

The book _________ 100 stories, _________ some very short ones.

A. contains, includes B. is containing, including

C. includes, contains D. contains, including

Rules

include: 包含, 包括。強調“包括作為整體的一部分”，注意其現在分詞和過去分詞的用法。例如:

The price includes postage charges. 價格包括郵費在內。

The university includes ten colleges. 該大學有10個學院。

The band played many songs, including some of my favourites. 樂隊演奏了許多曲子， 包括我最喜愛的。

They all went, teachers included. 他們都去了，老師也去了。

contain: vt. 包含；容納；裝有

Beer contains alcohol. 啤酒含有酒精。

The speech contained some interesting ideas. 這個講演包括一些有趣的思想。

4. Where there is a river, there is a city.

Quiz

(1) This photo of mine was taken __________ stood the famous high tower.

A. which B. in which C. where D. there

(2) You must be firm, _________ you think yourself to be right.

A. in which B. where C. what D. no matter how

(3) -Don’t look down upon Bob. He has his own advantages.

-Oh, yes. _________ others are weak, he is strong.

A. Where B. When C. Though D. If

(4) I have kept that picture __________ I can see it every day, as it always reminds me of my university days in London.

A. which B. where C. whether D. when

Rules

where there is a river地點狀語從句。由連接副詞where 引導，表示主句謂語動詞的地點。例如：

Where there is a will, there is a way. 有志者，事竟成。

Put the book where you took it. 把書放在你取的地方。

Where others are weak, he is strong. 他在別人不行的地方不錯。

5. Perhaps this is not always true, but it is true that many of the world’s greatest cities have been built on the banks of the river.

Quiz

(1) __________ gone is gone. ___________ no use talking about it any more.

A. That’s, It’s B. What’s, It’s C. It’s, That’s D. That’s, That’s

(2) ________ is known ___________ Beijing will host the 2008 Olympics.

A. As, to B. Which, that C. It, that D. It, to

(3) Tom’s mother kept telling him that he should work harder, but ________ didn’t help.

A. he B. which C. she D. it

(4) ___________needs further discussion whether we’ll build a library or not.

A. We B. He C. It D. The thing

(5) ________ is too cold to go fishing today.

A. The day B. It C. You D. The sky

Rules

it 在句中充當形式主語，代替后面的主語從句that many of the world’s greatest cities have been built on the banks of the river。It作形式主語時一般代替主語從句，不定式和動詞的-ing形式。例如：

It is said that the two leaders will hold secret talks. 據說兩位領導人要進行秘密會談。

It’s impossible for us to get there in time. 我們不可能及時趕到那里。

It’s no use talking to a man like him. 和他那樣的人談是沒有用的。

6. It was under attack for 900 days, but the people of the city never gave in.

Quiz

(1) Whether they will move into the branch school is _________ consideration.

A. for B. under C. within D. by

(2) No matter how the bandits tortured her, Lady Jiang Jie never ________.

A. give in B. give up C. give off D. give out

Rules

(1) under: 在…之中；在…期間。

under discussion. 在討論中

There is a new music hall near here under construction. 附近正在建造一座新的音樂大廳。

Your proposal is under consideration. 你的提議正在考慮中。

(2) give in (to): 屈服, 投降, 退讓。 例如：

Don’t give in to him. 不要向他屈服。

The authorities showed no signs of giving in to the kidnapper’s demands. 當局對綁架者的要求沒有讓步的跡象。

7. The Germans burned many of the palaces as they left.

Quiz

I watched her ______ she combed her hair.

A. while B. as C. because D. since

Rules

as, when和 while的用法比較：這三個詞在引導時間狀語從句時，意為“當……的時候 ”，其用法為：as常接一個持續性動作，多用于主句和從句動作同時發生。when既可引導一個持續動作，又可引導一個短暫動作，用于主句和從句同時發生或從句動作先于主句動作。while 引導的動作必須是持續性的，側重主句動作和從句動作相對比。例如：

As she did her homework, she listened to the music. 她一邊做作業，一邊聽音樂。

He hurried home, looking behind as he went.他匆匆忙忙跑回家去，一邊走一邊回頭望。

When I lived there, I used to go for a walk around the lake. 我住在那里時，常繞著湖邊散步。

Who are the three people you would like to model when you grow up? 當你長大后，你愿意成為哪三個人的樣子？

Please don’t talk so loud while others are working. 別人在工作時別高聲談話。

While two detectives were keeping guard at the door, two others opened the parcel.兩個偵探把著門,另外兩個打開包裹。

8. St Petersburg was almost in ruins.

Rules

ruin: n. “衰敗，毀滅，瓦解；廢墟” vt. (使)破產, (使)墮落, 毀滅 in ruins: 成為廢墟

We saw the ruins of the church. 我們看見了這座教堂的廢墟。

He was ruined by that law case. 他被那場官司搞得傾家蕩產。

She poured water all over my painting, and ruined it. 她把水全倒在了我的畫上，把畫毀了。

The fire ruined the books in the library. 大火毀壞了圖書館的書。

The storm ruined the crops. 暴風雨毀壞了莊稼。

After the earthquake, the beautiful city was in ruins. 地震之后，這個美麗的城市淪為了一片廢墟。

damage, destroy 和 ruin 都含“破壞”、“毀壞”的意思。其主要區別在于：damage 指“價值、用途降低或外表損壞等, 不一定全部破壞, 損壞了還可以修復”；destroy 指“徹底毀壞以至不能或很難修復”；ruin現在多用于借喻中, 泛指一般的“弄壞了”。 如:

The heavy rain damaged many houses. 大雨毀壞了許多房子。

That town was destroyed in a big fire. 那個城鎮在一場大火中被毀了。

He knocked over a bottle of ink and ruined the table cloth. 他打翻了一瓶墨水把桌布弄臟了。

9. Buildings were destroyed, and paintings and statue lay in pieces on the ground.

Rules

piece: n. 在這里是“碎片，碎塊；部件，部分”的意思，常以復數形式出現在介詞in, into 和 to之后。例如：

break /smash /tear sth. to pieces 打碎 / 砸碎 / 撕碎 某物

The vase lay in pieces on the ground. 地上是那個花瓶的碎片。

The boat was smashed to pieces on the rocks. 船觸礁而撞碎了。

The furniture is delivered in pieces and you have to assemble it yourself. 家具送貨時是散件的，得自己裝配。

The table is made in five pieces.這張桌子是五部分組成的。

10. Restoring the city and its cultural relics seemed impossible, but the people of this great city would not gave up.

Rules

（1）restoring the city and its cultural relics 在句中充當主語。動詞-ing短語在句中作主語時有三種主要用法：a. 直接用作主語 b. 用it 代替作形式主語c. 在there be no doing結構中作主語。例如：

It is said that walking on the moon is more difficult. 據說在月球上行走更困難。

It is no use talking about it here. 在這里談這事沒用。

There is no joking about such matters. 這樣的事情是不能看玩笑的。

There is no knowing whether he will come or not. 不知道他會不會來。

（2）give up: “放棄(念頭、希望等), 停止, 拋棄, 認輸, 把...送交”。例如：

She doesn’t give up easily.她做任何事都不輕易放棄。

The doctors had given her up but she made a remarkable recovery.醫生們已經放棄了治愈她的希望，而她卻恢復地很好。

You ought to give up smoking.你應該戒煙。

Why don’t you give him up? 你為什么不和他一刀兩斷呢？

I give up; tell me what the answer is. 我認輸，告訴我答案吧。

He gave up his seat to an old lady on the bus. 在公共汽車上他把座位讓給了一位老太太。

11. We’ll do everything we can to save our city!

Quiz

We must do as much as we can _______ our community better and more beautiful.

A. make B. possible C. to make D. making

Rules

這是一個帶定語從句的復合句，we can 在句中是定語從句，其完整形式應該是that we can do,在主句中to save our city是do everything 的目的狀語。

12. Painters and workers had to be very careful when they were trying to bring the city back to life.

Rules

bring… back to… “使…恢復…” 例如

A week by the sea brought her back to health.她在海邊呆了一周后恢復了健康。

bring 可以構成許多短語，例如: bring about 引起; 致使; 造成; 達成。bring back恢復；回憶。bring down 使落下；減低； 降低 bring in 產生(利益)；賺到；引進；推廣 bring up 養育；提出；嘔吐。

13. With the help of old paintings and photographs, the people of St Petersburg were able to bring back the beauty of their culture and history.

Rules

(1) with the help of = with one’s help: “在……的幫助下”例如：

With the help of government programs aimed at helping low income individuals and families own their own home, more people can improve their living conditions within this year.在政府協助低收入個人和家庭安居的項目幫助下，更多人的居住條件將在年內得到改善。

With the teacher’s help , he has made rapid progress in his English study. 在老師的幫助下，他的英語學習進步很快。

(2) be able to do sth. “能夠”有各種時態變化，而can只有現在時和過去時。若表示過去有能力并實際上做到了某事，要用was / were able to do sth.，而不能使用could。例如：He was able to pass the test. 他考試及格了。而He could pass the test.并不意味著考試已經及格了。

14. Like their hero Peter, the people of St Pertersburg have shown that dreams can come true.

Quiz

(1) To my brother’s delight, his wish ___________ at last.

A. realized B. came true C. carried out D. was ruined

(2) Nothing _______ after the terrible fire which had been caused by someone smoking in bed.

A. remained B. continued C. left D. kept

(3) I’m 50 this year, but many of my friends say I don’t ________ my age. Don’t you think so?

A. look B. seem C. appear D. go

Rules

come“變成，證實是”在這里為連系動詞，后面接形容詞作表語。連系動詞可以分為三類：a. 表示人或事物的特征的，如feel, look, seem, appear, sound, smell, taste等；b. 表示由一種狀態轉為另一種狀態的，如 become, grow, get, turn, turn out, go, fall, run, come, make, prove等；c. 表示保持某種狀態的，如keep, remain, continue, stand, lie, sit等。例如：

Everything will come right in the end. 一切問題終會解決。

He looked worried. 他看起來很擔心。

It seems that something has gone wrong. 看來出問題了。

The soldier stood quite still. 那個士兵站著不動。

15. 現在完成時的被動語態

Quiz

1. This story ________ into many languages.

A. has translated B. has been translated C. had translated D. had been translated

Rules

現在完成時的被動語態由“has / have + been +及物動詞的過去分詞”構成。表示說話之前已經完成或者影響仍然存在的被動動作。使用時注意以下幾點：

（1）使用被動語態的條件：一般說來，為了強調動作的承受者或者不知道動作的承受者時就需要使用被動語態。

All the CAAC offices have been joined by new computers. 民航局所有的售票處都用計算機連接起來了。

His works have been translated into many languages. 他的作品已經被翻譯成了很多種語言。

(2) 帶雙賓語的動詞，如ask, borrow, bring, buy, get, give, hand, lend, make, offer, pass, pay, promise, read, sell, send, show, sing, take, teach, tell, write等，變為被動語態時，可將其中一個賓語變為主語，另一個保留不動，但如一個賓語是“人”時，通常把這個賓語變為主語。

He has been given the book. 已經給了他那本書。

（3）帶有復合賓語的動詞變為被動語態時，只能將賓語變為主語，原來的賓語補足語仍然保留在原處，改稱為主語補足語。若原來的賓語補足語是省掉了to 的不定式，在被動語態中做主語補足語時要加to。

He has been made to work hard. 他被迫努力工作。

（4）謂語動詞如果是短語動詞，在變為被動語態時，要注意短語動詞的完整性，不能漏掉動詞后面的副詞或介詞。

The children have been taken good care of since their mother came back.自從媽媽回來，孩子們就得到了很好的照顧。

Just Read! （拓展篇）

Protection of Cultural Relics

Since the beginning of the 1990s, China has protected a huge number of cultural relics and achieved remarkable success. The special subsidies appropriated by the Central Government for the protection of cultural relics in more than 1,000 projects have reached about 700 million RMB yuan. As a result, a large number of cultural relics have been saved from destruction. Prominent successes in the maintenance and protection of historical sites are the Potala Palace (Lhasa, Tibet), the Kumbum Monastery (Huangzhong County, Qinghai Province), the Caves at Mount Sumeru (Guyuan County, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region), the Kizil Thousand-Buddha Cave (Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region), the Longmen Grottoes (Luoyang City, Henan Province), the Yungang Caves (Datong City, Shanxi Province), the Goddess Hall (Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province), the Mountain Summer Resort (Chengde City, Hebei Province), the Thatched Cottage of Tang Poet Du Fu (Chengdu City, Sichuan Province), and the Tianyi Pavilion (Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province). In 1996, the State Council announced the fourth batch of national important cultural relics protection units, numbering 250 and bringing the total to 750. There are 99 national historical and cultural cities. In 1995, the UNESCO placed on the World Heritage List the Potala Palace in Tibet, the Mountain Summer Resort, together with its adjacent temples in Chengde City, Hebei Province, the Confucius Temple, the Confucius Family Mansion and the Confucius Woods in Qufu City, Shandong Province, and the ancient architectural complex on Mount Wudang in Hubei Province.

The planned scientific excavation of cultural relics has laid a good foundation for the improvement of archeological theory and practice, and research into ancient Chinese history. Aeronautical, underwater and desert archeological studies have provided important historical information and data for economic construction, and new techniques of and approaches to the development of cultural relics protection.

In recent years, China has been taking an unprecedentedly active part in foreign exchanges and cooperation in terms of cultural relics. About 150 cultural relics exhibitions have been held in the U.S., Argentina, France, Britain, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Japan, Republic of Korea, Australia, and Singapore. The Exhibition of Tombs of Chinese Emperors held in the U.S., the Exhibition of Tibetan Treasures and the Exhibition of the Yellow River Civilization held in Italy, and the Exhibition of Laolan’s Cultural Relics and the Exhibition of the Terracotta Legion of the First Qin Emperor held in Japan presented the splendors of the great ancient Chinese civilization to large and appreciative audience.

Have Fun! （趣味篇）

A group of managers were given the assignment to measure the height of a flagpole. So they go out to the flagpole with ladders and tape measures, and they're falling off the ladders, dropping the tape measures - the whole thing is just a mess. An engineer comes along and sees what they're trying to do, walks over, pulls the flagpole out of the ground, lays it flat, measures it from end to end, gives the measurement to one of the managers and walks away. After the engineer has gone, one manager turns to another and laughs. "Isn't that just like an engineer, we're looking for the height and he gives us the length."

Answers to quiz

1. (1) B (2) A (3) A

2. C

3. D

4. (1) C (2) B (3) A (4) B

5. (1) B (2) C (3) D (4) C (5) B

6. (1) B (2) A

7. B

11. C

14. (1) B (2) A (3) C

15. B