英语国家社会与文化入门练习整理

英语国家社会与文化入门练习

Book1

Exercise One （Book1 Unit1）

1.The Anglo-Saxons began to settle in Britain in the fifth century.

2.King Arthur was legendary hero supposed to have fought against the Saxons.

3.The Romans invaded Britain in 43, and the only area they did not subdue therein was Scotland.

4.The most important part of the UK in wealth is England.

5.Celts were ironworkers, practiced farmers and they drained much of the marshlands and built houses. But they didn't speak Anglo Sanxon English. They have their own language.

6.The real Roman conquest of Britain began in 43AD.

7.The English are mainly decendants of Anglo-Sanxon.

8.Alfred was the national hero during the fighting against Danes.

9.English Channel separate Great Britain from the rest of the Europe.

10.William was crowned King of England on the Christmas Day of 1066.

11.The population of the UK consist of the English, the Welsh, the Scottish and the Irish.

12.William, Duke of Normandy, is now known as William the Conqueror.

13.Scotland occupies the northern portion of Great Britain.

14.Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland.

15.Caelic is mainly spoken in Scotland.

16.In 14th century, Wales was effectively united with England.

Exercise Two（Book1 Unit3）

1.In the English Civil War, the “Roundhead”supported Oliver Cromwell, while the “cavalier”supported Charles I.

2.Parliament in Britain, strictly speaking, consists of three elements: The Queen(The Sovereign), the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

3.The House of Commons is the source of real political power in the United Kingdom.

4.The Great Charter (Magna Carta) was signed by King John in 121

5.

5.The spirit of the Magna Carta was the limitation of the powers of the king.

6.James l clung to the theory of the “Divine Right of Kings”.

7.The Prime Minister of Britain was appointed by Queen.

8.The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is reigned over by the Monarch, but ruled

by the government.

9.The real power of the House of Lords lies in discussing bills.

Exercise Three（Book1 Unit4）

1.A general election is held normally every 5 years in the 650 consituencies of Brirain.（p50）

2.With the help of DECC, the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan was published by the UK goverment.（p56）

3.The majority of the working lords in the House of Lords are life peers, who earned their titles through their outstanding achievement.（p58）

4.By the House of Commons is a “vote of no confidence” decided.（p50）

5.In the general election, an MP candidate must deposit 500 pounds, which is returned if he or she receives 5% or more of the vote cast.（p50）

6.The Labour Party is the primary opposition to the Conservatives.（p52）

7.Mrs. Margaret Thatcher, a Conservative Party leader in 1980s, believed Privatization; the keeping of law and order; self-reliance. Except the strengthening of the trade unions.

8.Margaret Thatcher carried out the economic policy of privatization to revitalize British economy in the 1980s.

9.Political change in England came mainly through gradual reform.

Exercise Four（Book1 Unit11）

1.As far as the religion is concerned, people in Northern Ireland who are loyal to the British goverment are mainly Protestants, while people in the Republic of Ireland are mainly Catholics.

2.Celts' language survived through history and Irish is the first official language of the Republic of Ireland.

3.Christianity was brought to Ireland by Saint Patrick in the 5th century.

4.In 1800, Irish parliament was voted out of existence. The Act of Union was signed, and Ireland was officially

a part of Brirain.

5.In 1870, a constitutional movement seeking Home Rule was instituted up by Isac Butt.

6.The ancestors of the Irish are the Celts.

7.The Celtic invaders came to Ireland in the 6th century.

8.Celts bought a legal system-the Brehon law, to the island of Ireland.

9.The Home Rule Bill was finally passed in 1914.

10.The political party, Sinn Fein, was developed by Arthur Griffith.

11.Under the Celtic Brehon law, women were given more rights in Ireland than in the British colonial period.

Book1 Unit15

1.The first group of English were brought in Australia as convicts in 1788 by the First Fleet.

2.The Dreaming is the oldest religion on Australia.

3.Platypus, kangaroo and koala are unique to the Australia continent.

4.Australia was essentially unknown in the West until the 17th centry.

5.The Dreaming is the most enduring religion in Australia today.（p246）

6.The first industries that were developed after the settlement were the sealing industries.

7.The original natives of Australia are the Aborigines.

8.Under the policy of assimilation, children were taken away from their parents to be placed in church-run institutions and the missionaries on the “protected reserves”.

Book1 Unit16

1.Anglicanism is one of the many forms of Protestantism.（p258）

2.Levels of sports in Australia are high particularly in both water sports and team sports.

3.Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism and Judaism are the major forms of non-Christian religions in Australia except Catholicism.

4.The most popular sport in Australia is football.

Book2

Exercise 5（Unit1）

1.In the north, a series of large lakes were formed by huge glaciers.（F）（p3）

2.Now most of New Zealand's forest has been turned into golf course.（F）（p4）

3.In New Zealand, you can see a lot of Kiwi, a symbol of the nation.（F）（p4）

4.Most Maori live on rural areas.（F）（p8）

5.Before Europeans came to New Zealand, Maori had had their own written languages and recorded their history in written form.（F）（p10）

6.In 1642 the Dutch explorer Thomas Cook made the first confirmed Eiropean discovery of New Zealand.（F）（p10）

7.New Zealand's highest peak is Mount Cook in the mountain range called the central Southern Alps.（p3）

8.New Zealand consists of two main lands: North Island and South Island.（p3）

9.The Southern Alps, with Mt Cook in the center, runs almost the whole length of the South Island.（p3）

10.Wellington is the capital of New Zealand.（p4）

11.Nearly three-quarters of the population (including more than 95% of the Maori) live on the North Island.（p6）

12.The first European to visit New Zealand was a Dutchman, Abel Tasman.（p10）

13.The Treaty of Waitangi in 1840 was an agreement between the chiefs of the Maori people and the British Crown.（p10）

14.As the first environmental legislation in the world, the Resource Management Act focuses on the effect of human activities on the environment.（p6）

15.Auckland, the country's largest urban area, is located on the North Island.（p6）

16.In 1975, the Waitangi Tribunal was estabilished to address past wrongs and Maori grievances.（p9）

Unit3

1.Christopher Columbus discovered America in the year of 1947.（F）（p33）

2.In 1607,Britain planted its firat colony, Jamestown, in what is now Virginia.（T）（p35）

3.The second President John Adams completed the Louisiana Purchasr, which more than doubled the size of the United States.（F）（p47）

4.Thomas Jefferson, American Democratic Repubilican statesman, 3rd President of US, made the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.

5.“All men are created equal” is from the document called The Declaration of Independence.（p42）

6.The Treaty of Paris, signed in September 1783, recognized the independence of the United States and granted the new nation all the territory north of Florida, South of Canada and east of Mississipi river.（p42）

7.The principal author of The Declaration of Independence was Thomas Jefferson.

8.The important thing done in the Second Continental Congress was that Washington was appointed commander of the army.（p42）

9.13 continental states are there at the time of independence of the United States.（p42）

10.The U.S.A. is known as a “Melting Pot” for its mixture of nationalities.（p33）

11.John Calvin is the man whose teaching develop into Puritanism.（p33）

Exercise Six

Unit4

1.American president is elected directly by the voters of the nation (all the citizens of the US).

2.The practice of judicial review, an important feature of the American legal system is a crucial weapon in the hands of Congress.（F）（p55）

3.According to the principle of checks and balances, the president has to share power with the legislative and the judiciary branches.（T）（p55）

4.Most of the bills introduced to the Congress can eventually becomes law. （F）（p54）

5.The American government has always been playing an unimportant role in the development of American economy.（F）（p57）

6.Congress can override the president's veto by a two-thirds vote.

7.Like all federal judges, the Supreme Court justices, are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.（p54）

8.The role of American presidents includes command the armed forces, negotiate and sign treaty and appoint certain personnel except pass law.

9.In the United States, a case subject to federal jurisidiction is heard first before a federal district judge, and then appeal may be made to the Federal Court of Appeals, and finally to the Supreme Court.（p55）10.The most important of the US Supreme Court, known as the power of judicial review consists of determining whether congressional legislation or executive action violates the constitution.

11.The Constitution defines distinct powers for the Congress of the United States, the president, and the federal courts. This division of authority is known as a system of checks and balances, and it ensures that none of the branches of government can dominate the others.

Unit8

1.According to US laws, American children must go to school until they are at least 16 years old.（p119）

2.American public schools are supported by taxes and controlled by the federal government.（F）（p119）

3.Religious doctrines can be taught in American public schools.（F）（p119）

4.Harvard University was founded in 1636.（p121）

5.Junior college in America is two-year college.（p123）

Exercise seven（unit14）

I. True or False

1. The most dramatic crisis of the Cold War was the Cuban Crisis.T

2. In the aftermath of September 11 terrorist attack, President Bush ordered the invasion of

Iraq in 2001, and then Afghanistan in 2003.F（p225）

3. The credibility of the Bush administration was significantly improved when the Saddam

regime was found possessing weapons of mass destruction (WMD).F（p226）

4. Mr. Barack Obama is the first Hispanic American president ever elected in the US

history.F

5. Most significantly, Obama visited Turkey and Iran to show that the US wanted to improve

its relations with the Muslim world.F（p227）

II. Multiple Choice

1. Which of the following did NOT take place in the Nixon administration?C

A. Vietnamization.

B. Cuban Missile Crisis.

C. Watergate Scandal.

D. Re-establishing US relations with China.

2. The formal diplomatic relation between China and the US was established under President

________.A

A. Nixon

B. Bush

C. Carter

D. Reagan

3. Who is the founding leader of the terrorist organization al-Qaeda, wildly known as the

culprit behind the terrorist attacks on the United States?C

A. Adolf Hitler.

B. Saddam Hussein.

C. Bin Laden.

D. Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

4. Which of the following US administrations launched the first Gulf War?

A. The Clinton administration.

B. The Bush (Jr.) administration.

C. The Obama administration.

D. The Bush (Sr.) administration.

5. The two Germanys, which had been separated since the end of Word WII, were reunited in

____A____.

A. 1990

B. 1991

C. 1989

D. 1999

6. In which of the following year did September 11 Attacks happen in the United States and

kill more than 3,000 people?B

A. 2000.

B. 2001.

C. 2002.

D. 2003.

7. Who was supported by Obama as the Secretary of Energy in July 2009?C

A. Gary F. Locke.

B. Maya Lin.

C. Stephen Chu

D. Elaine Chao.

8. Where did President Obama make his historical speech whereby he announced a major

change in US policy towards the Muslim world?D

A. Damascus, Lebanon.

B. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

C. Ankara, Turkey.

D. Cairo Egypt.

III. Blank Filling

1. The Cold War ended after the Soviet Union disintegrated in 1991, leaving the United

States as the dominant military power.

2. Unilateralism, faith in military strength, regime change formed the core elements of Bush

Doctrine.

3. By the end of his first year in office, views on Obama’s foreign policy record proved

more positive than negative.

IV. Matching

Match the US president with the event that took place in his presidency.

Exercise Eight

I. True or False

(Unit 17)

1. The Group of Severn refers to a group of painters in the 1900s.F

2. Quebec is the largest province in area and population.F

3. The first major waves of immigration happened in the first half of the 20th century.G

(Unit 18)

4. Governor Generals represent the Queen of England in Canada and usually serve for one

term of seven years.F

5. British and French political traditions have an important influence on the formation of the

Canadian political system.F

6. The Senate is also an elected body of men and women, representing four main regions in

Canada.F

7. In Canada, local governments are subordinate to the provincial governments, and

provincial governments are subordinate to the federal government.F

(Unit 19)

8. The Métis played an important role in fur trade between the First people and the

Europeans.T

9. The major economic activity during colonial times was the fur trade.F

10. In Canada, immigration remains an explosive political issue.T

II. Blank Filling

(Unit 17)

1. Most of the inhabitants in the North of Canada are Aboriginal peoples.

2. The western-most province is British Columbia, which has three major mountain ranges

running through it, among which the largest one is the Rockies.

3. Lake Louise, located in the Rockies, is probably the most famous image of the Canadian

landscape.

4. The prairies are flat and featureless and have a harsh continental climate.

5. The prairies are called Canada's breadbasket because the terrain is well-suited to farming.

6. Ontario and Quebec are the most densely populated provinces. Over half of Canada's

population live in the two provinces.

7. Newfoundland was the last province to join Canada in 1949.

(Unit 18)

8. Canada’s political system reflects the two major foreign forces on the historical

development of the country: Britain and the United States.

9. Canada's system of government was based on the British system of parliamentary

democracy. This is often referred to as “West-minster-style” democracy.

10.Canada was the first political community to combine federalism with a British system of

government.

11. The Canadian parliament is divided into a lower house, the House of Commons, and an

upper house called the Senate.

(Unit 19)

12. The Inuit used to be called the non-Indian peoples.

13. Canada’s aboriginal peoples were forced to live on reserves.

14. During the 1930s, the period of the Great Depression, Canada’s immigration market was

open only to Britons and Americans.

15. In more recent years, the federal government encouraged Asian immigration, offering

passports to those with capital and / or entrepreneurial skills, by passing the Immigration Act of 1976.

16. Because of the racist, overtones and the purely economic concerns in its immigration

policies, Canada looks hardheaded rather than humanitarian.

III. Multiple Choice

(Unit 17)

1. ________ is the capital of Canada.C

A. Vancouver

B. Toronto

C. Ottawa

D. Montreal

2. Canada ranks ________ in land area in the world.A

A. second

B. first

C. third

D. fourth

3. ________ are the two official languages in Canada.B

A. French and Indian

B. English and French

C. English and Italian

D. Italian and French

4. Almost half land area of Canada is covered by ________.A

A. forests

B. deserts

C. swamps

D. bogs

5. The majority of French-speaking Canadians live in ________.C

A. New Brunswick

B. Ontario

C. Quebec

D. Nova Scotia

(Unit 18)

6. In Canada the Head of State is ________.A

A. the prime minister

B. the governor-general

C. Queen Elizabeth II

D. the leader of the majority party

7. The parliament of Canada is made up of all the following except ________.A

A. the Crown

B. the Senate

C. the House of Commons

D. the National Assembly

(Unit 19)

8. Indigenous peoples make up about 4% of the Canadian people. They are ________.B

A. Indians and Africans

B. Aborigines and Indians

C. Eskimos and Aborigines

D. American Indians and Inuit

9. Immigrants from central and eastern Europe were encouraged to settle the prairies and

develop the ________.B

A. agriculture

B. mining industry

C. forestry

D. fishing industry

10. After World War II, Canada opened its doors again to immigrants from aboard, but

restriction on ________ persisted.D

A. Briton

B. Americans

C. Northern Europeans

D. Asians

11. The city of ________ is home to the second largest Chinese community in North

America.B

A. Ottawa

B. Vancouver

C. Toronto

D. Montreal

（2014141418整理）