The clock rules our lives. The more we try to save time, the less time we seem to have. In every area of our lives we are doing things faster. And many of us live in towns and cities which are getting noisier and more stressful as each day passes. But now a worldwide movement, whose aim is to slow life down, has started. Its supporters are people who believe that a happier and healthier way of life is possible.
The Slow Food movement was founded the day that an Italian journalist, Carlo Petrini, saw that McDonald’s had opened a restaurant in a beautiful square in Rome. He thought it was sad that many people today live too quickly to sit down for a proper meal and only eat much fast food. He decided that he had to try to do something about it and so he started the Slow Food movement. Slow Food has bee a global organization ever since and now has more than 80,000 members in 100 countries.
Slow Food also encourages people to eat local and regional food, to use local shops and markets, to eat out in small family restaurants, and to cook with traditional recipes.
The idea of Slow Cities was inspired by the Slow Food movement. The aim of Slow Cities is to improve people’s quality of life. Towns which want to bee a Slow City have to reduce traffic and noise, increase the number of green areas, plant trees, build pedestrian zones, and promote local businesses and traditions. Now it has spread to other countries all over the world, from the UK to Japan and Australia. There are now 135 Slow Cities in 24 countries across the world that have been named since founding of the organization in 1999. Gao Chun County, in east China’s Jiangsu Province, is expected to be named the first “Slow City” in China next year.
“Slow Cities are about having a munity life in the town,” said a local resident. “It is not ‘slow’ as in ‘stupid’. It is ‘slow’ as in the opposite of ‘worried’ and ‘stressful’.”
But not everybody is happy. For teenagers, who have to go 25km to Norwich, the nearest city, to buy CDs, living in a Slow City is not very attractive. “It’s all right here,” says Lewis Cook, 16. “But if you want excitement, you have to go to Norwich. We need more things here for young people.”
【小题1】What’s the aim of the Slow Food movement?A．To call on people to eat out.B．To make people enjoy cooking.C．To drive McDonald’s out of RomeD．To encourage people to slow down.【小题2】All the following are necessary to be a Slow City EXCEPT . A．reducing traffic and noiseB．increasing the number of green areasC．building more department storesD．promoting local businesses and traditions【小题3】From the fourth paragraph, we know that .A．the Slow Food was founded in 1999B．there is no Slow City in China nowC．Slow Cities are mainly in the UKD．there are about 24 Slow Cities in the world【小题4】What’s Lewis Cook’s attitude to living in a Slow City?A．PositiveB．NeutralC．NegativeD．Indifferent【小题5】What would be the best title for the passage?A．Slow down and you’ll move fastB．Time flies never to be recalled.C．Eat slowly and you’ll be healthy.D．Pay attention to the quality of life.D
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(答案→)D
解析：
【小题1】D 推理题。根据第二段2,3,4行He thought it was sad that many people today live too quickly to sit down for a proper meal and only eat much fast food. He decided that he had to try to do something about it and so he started the Slow Food movement.说明他看见了麦当劳的快餐店，认为现代人的生活节奏太快了，于是就创立了这个组织，目的在于鼓励人们过一种慢生活。故D正确。
【小题2】.C 细节题。根据第四段2,3,4行The aim of Slow Cities is to improve people’s quality of life. Towns which want to bee a Slow City have to reduce traffic and noise, increase the number of green areas, plant trees, build pedestrian zones, and promote local businesses and traditions.说明ABD都提及了，只有C不是，故C正确。
【小题3】B 推理题。根据倒数第三段最后一句Gao Chun County, in east China’s Jiangsu Province, is expected to be named the first “Slow City” in China next year.说明高淳有希望成为第一个这样的中国城市，说明现在中国还没有这样的城市，故B正确。
【小题4】C 推理题。根据文章最后一段第一句，说明不是每个人都同意这样的观点，举了Lewis Cook的例子，说明他不同意，故他对这样的观点持反对的态度，故C正确。
【小题5】.A 主旨大意题。文章关于一个让我们生活慢下来的一个运动，故A正确。