英美文化概况练习题韶师2014带答案

Decide the following statements are true or false

1. The commonwealth of Nations includes all European countries. F

2. The United Kingdom includes 3 constituent countries: England, Scotland and Wales.

F

3. Northern Ireland is part of Great Britain. F 4. Scotland was never conquered by the Romans. T

5. Most people in Scotland speak the old Celtic language, called ―Gaelic‖. F 6.Wales is rich in coal deposits. T

7. Cardiff, the capital of Wales, is a large city. F

? 8. Britain is the oldest representative democracy in the world. T

? 9. In Britain, the process of state-building has been one of evolution rather than

revolution, in contrast to France and the USA. T

? 10. The oldest institution of government in Britain is the Monarchy. T

? 11. The term ―parliament‖ was first officially used in 1066 to describe the gathering

of feudal barons and representatives from counties and towns. F

? 12. Britain is both a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy. T

? 13. Britain, like Israel, has a written constitution of the sort which most countries

have. F

? 14. Common laws are laws which have been established through common practice in

the courts. T

? 15. Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492. T

? 16. The first English permanent settlement was founded in California. F ? 17. The state of Pennsylvania used to be inhabited by the Quakers. T

? 18. By the early 1760s, the 13 English colonies in North America were ready to

separate themselves from Europe. T

? 19. George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Abraham Lincoln were regarded

as the founding fathers of the United States of America. F

?20. The purpose of British education is not only to provide children with literacy and the

other basic skills but also to socialize children. T

?21. The state seldom interferes with the decision of when, where, how and what children are

taught. F

?22. In the UK, Public schools are part of the national education system and funded by the

government. F

23. All secondary schools in Britain are run and supervised by the government. F

24. Independent schools get money mainly through the private sector and tuition rates, with some government support. T

25. Grammar schools selects children at the age of 11 and provide them with a general education. F

26. In 1948 President Truman put forward the Truman Doctrine, which is generally regarded as the formal declaration of the implementation of the US containment foreign policy. T

27. When the War of Independence was over, the United States was one unified nation as it is today. F

28. The US Constitution set up a federal system with a strong central government. T

29. The main duty of the congress is to make laws, including those which levy taxes that pay for the work of the federal government. T

30. The idea of checks and balances as a way of restricting governmental power and preventing its abuse is from constitution. T

31. Today, the United States has two major political parties. One is the Democratic Party, formed before 1800. The other is the Republican party, formed in the 1850s, by people in the states of the North and West. T

32. Americans have to join a political party in order to vote or to be a candidate for public office. F

33. One of the things that decides whether an applicant can be accepted by a college is his/ her scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test. T

34. It takes at least four years to get a bachelor’s degree from an institution of higher learning in the US. T

35. Fibre and centre are American English spelling. F 36. dialog and monolog are British English spelling. F

II. Choose the answer that best completes the statement or answers the question. 1. Which of the following is NOT true of London? A the cultural center B the business center C The financial center D the sports center

2.Which of the following is not true about London?

A. it’s a political, economic and cultural center of the country. B it has a larger population than all other cities in England.

C it is not only the largest city in the country, but also the largest in the world. D it has played a significant role in the economic construction of the country. 3. Who are the ancestors of the English and the founders of England? A the Anglo-Saxons b the Normans C the Vikings d the Romans 4. Which is the largest city in Scotland? A Cardiff b Edinburgh c Glasgow d Manchester

5. Where do the majority of people in Scotland live? A in the Highlands b in the Lowlands c in the Uplands d in the west of Scotland. 6. Which of the following is not true? A Wales was invaded by the Romans.

B Wales was invaded by the Anglo-Saxons. C Wales was conquered by the Normans. D Wales was threatened by the English.

7. When did Scotland join the Union by agreement of the English and Scottish Parliaments? A in 1715 b in 1688 c in 1745 d in 1707

8. Which of the following kings was executed in the civil war? A. James I B. James II C. Charles I D. Charles II

9. What happened in 1215?

A. It was the year of Norman Conquest in British history.

B. Forced by barons, King John signed the Magna Carta. （大宪章） C. Henry IV granted the Commons the power to review money grants.

D. King Egbert united England under his rule.

10. Which of the following is Not related to the Constitution?

? A. It is a written document which lists out the basic principles for government. ? B. It is the foundation of British governance today

? C. Conventions and Laws passed by Parliament are part of the Constitution. ? D. The common laws are part of the Constitution.

11. Which of the following is Not a feature of the House of Lords?

? A. Lords do not receive salaries and many do not attend Parliament sittings. ? B. It consists of the Lords Spiritual and the Lords Temporal. ? C. The Lords are expected to present the interests of the public. ? D. Most of the Lords in the House of Lords are male. 12. Which of the following is NOT based on the fact?

A. Members of Parliament elect the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. B. MPs receive salaries and some other allowances.

C. MPs are expected to represent the interests of the public. D. Most MPs belong to the major political parties.

13. In Britain, the great majority of parents send their children to ___. A. private schools B. independent schools C. state schools D. public schools.

? ?

?14. In Britain, children from the age of 5 to 16 ___. ?A. can legally receive partly free education. ?B. can legally receive completely free education. ?C. can not receive free education at all.

?D. can not receive free education if their parents are rich.

?15. If a student wants to go to university in Britain, he will take the examination called___. ?A. General Certificate of Education — Advanced. ?B. General Certificate of Secondary Education ?C. the common entrance examination

?D. General National Vocational Qualifications. ?16. Which of the following is NOT true?

?A. Parents send their children to public schools because they are rich.

?B. Parents send their children to public schools because their children can get better jobs

when they leave school.

?C. Parents send their children to public schools because their children can have a better

chance of getting into a good university.

?D. Parents send their children to public schools because their children prefer to go to public

schools.

?17. Which of the following is Not a characteristic of the open University? ?A. It’s open to everybody

?B. It requires no formal education qualification.

?C. No university degree is awarded.

?D. University courses are followed through TV, radio, correspondence, etc.

18. In the examination called ―the 11 plus‖, students with academic potential go to ___. A. grammar schools B. comprehensive schools C. public schools D. technical schools

?19. Which of the following is NOT included in the National Curriculum?

?A. Children must study the subjects like English, mathematics, science and so on. ?B. Children must sit in A-level exams. ?C. Children must pass national tests.

?D. Teachers must teach what they are told.

20. Which of the following schools would admit children without reference to their academic abilities?

A. Comprehensive schools B. Secondary schools C. Independent schools D. Grammar schools

21. ―No taxation without representation‖ was the rallying cry of ____. A. the settlers of Virginia B. the people of Pennylvania C. the colonists in New England.

D. the people of the 13 colonies on the eve of the American Revolution.

22. which of the following statements is NOT correct? When the War of Independence was over,___.

A. each new state had its own government.

B. each new state made its own laws and handled all of its internal affairs. C. the national government was called the Congress with little power.

D. the relationships between the states and the national government were clearly defined. 23. Which of the following is the only branch that can make federal laws, and levy federal taxes?

A. the executive B. the legislative C. the judicial D. the president

24. Which of the following is NOT a power of the president? A. The president can veto any bill passed by Congress.

B. The president has the authority to appoint federal judges as vacancies occur. C. The president can make laws.

D. The president broad powers, with the executive branch, to issue regulations and directives regarding the work of the federal departments.

25. The American foreign policy before WWI can be described as ___. A. containment B. swinging between containment and interventionism C. isolationism D. unilateralism 26. What did the US mean by containment?

A. It would use whatever means to prevent the Soviet Union from breaking out of its sphere of influence.

B. It wanted to reverse the situation in which the Soviet Union reached parity with the US in nuclear force

C. It planned to drag the the Soviet Union into another round of arms race