《大学英语三级快速阅读》由会员分享，可在线阅读，更多相关《大学英语三级快速阅读（9页珍藏版）》请在金锄头文库上搜索。
1、Yao Says “Games First, Babies Second“Chinas newly wed basketball sensation, Yao Ming, said babies would take a back-seat to Olympic preparations as the host country began the one-year countdown to the 2008 Beijing Games.The 7ft 6in (2.26 meter) Houston Rockets centre, who wed his 6ft 2in basketballe
2、r girlfriend Ye Li at a private ceremony in Shanghai on Monday, was briefly caught off guard when Chinas Olympic hurdling （跨栏赛跑） champion, Liu Xiang, asked about his family plans on Tuesday.“Having children.theres no plan at present. I will be concentrating on preparing for the NBA season and next y
3、ears Olympics,“ Yao said in comments published on C on Wednesday.“To participate in the Olympics in your home country, its an opportunity I will really cherish,“ Yao said.Yao also revealed that his wedding ceremony, at which dozens of security guards kept a massive media throng at bay outside a Shan
4、ghai hotel, was deliberately timed.“Getting married on August 6 was to use the focus of the Olympics to divert attention away from my wedding,“ he said, keeping tight-lipped about honeymoon plans.On Wednesday, China marked the one-year countdown to the 2008 Beijing Olympics which will start 8.08 p.m
5、. local time on the eighth day of the eighth month. Eight, unsurprisingly, is a lucky number in China.The Custom of Drinking Tea in England Tea Clippers In the early 1800s ships carrying tea from the Far East to Britain could take over a year to bring home their precious cargo. When the East India C
6、ompany was given a monopoly （垄断） on the tea trade in 1832, they realized the need to cut the time of this journey. The Americans actually designed the first “clippers“ （快速帆船）, or streamlined, tall-masted vessels, but the British were close behind. These clippers sped along at nearly 18 knots （航速单位）
7、by contemporary accounts nearly as fast as a modern ocean liner.So great was the race for speed that an annual competition was begun for clippers to race from the Canton River to the London Docks. The first ship to unload its cargo won the captain and crew a big bonus. The most famous of the clipper
8、 ships was the Cutty Sark, built in 1868. It only made the tea run eight times, but for its era it was a remarkable ship. The Cutty Sark is now on exhibition at Greenwich. Tea Customs Afternoon tea is said to have originated with one person: Anna, 7th Duchess of Bedford. In the early 1800s she launc
9、hed the idea of having tea in the late afternoon to bridge the gap between luncheon and dinner, which in fashionable circles might not be served until 8 oclock at night. This fashionable custom soon evolved into high tea （下午茶） among the working classes, where this late afternoon repast （餐） became th
10、e main meal of the day. Tea Gardens The popular pleasure gardens of Ranelagh and Vauxhall in London began serving tea around 1730. An evening of dancing and watching fireworks would be capped by tea. The concept caught on, and soon Tea Gardens opened all over Britain. Usually the gardens were opened
11、 on Saturday and Sunday, and an afternoon of entertainment and dancing would be highlighted by serving tea. Tea Shops That so British establishment can be traced to one person. In 1864 the woman manager of the Aerated Bread Company began the custom of serving food and drink to her customers. Her bes
12、t customers were favoured with tea. Soon everyone was asking for the same treatment. The concept of tea shops spread throughout Britain like wildfire, not in the least because tea shops provided a place where an unchaperoned （无年长妇女陪伴的少女） woman could meet her friends and socialize without damage to h
13、er reputation. Tea and Pottery What connection, you might be excused for asking, does tea have with the growth of the British pottery industry? Simply this: tea in China was traditionally drunk from cups without handles. When tea became popular in Britain, there was a crying need for good cups with
14、handles, to suit British habits. This made for tremendous growth in the pottery and porcelain industry, and the prosperity of such companies as Wedgwood, Spode, and Royal Doulton.1. Yao said he would have a baby after the ceremany of the one-year countdown to the 2008 Beijing Games.N2. Yao Ming got
15、married on August 6 because this day was his lucky day.N3. The ceremony of the one-year countdown to the 2008 Beijing Games was to be held two day after Yao Mings wed ceremony, on August 8.Y4. The Americans were far ahead of the British at making clippers.N5. In the early 1800s high tea became the m
16、ain meal of the day in the fashionable circle.N6. Tea shops were originated in Britain according to the article.Y7. In the 1800s in Britain it was considered improper for the ladies to meet friends and socialize without a qualified woman companied.Y 8. In the annual competetion for clippers racing from the Canton River to the London Docks, the captain and crew on the first ship to unload its cargo won .a big bonus9. An afternoo
