【正文】 cation. The Shetland horse is one of the smallest breeds—typically reaching only one meter tall. With short, strong legs, the animals were bred to pull coal out of mine shafts (礦井 ) with low ceilings. Huge horses like the Clydesdale came on the scene around 1700. People bred these heavy, tall horses to pull large vehicles used for carrying heavy loads. The domestication of horses has had great effects on societies. For example, horses were important tools in the advancement of modern agriculture. Using them to pull ploughs and carry heavy loads allowed people to farm more efficiently. Before they were able to ride horses, humans had to cross the land on foot. Riding horses allowed people to travel far greater distance in much less time. That encouraged populations living in different areas to interact with one another. The new form of rapid transportation helped cultures spread around the world. 24. Before domestication horses were ______. A. caught for sports B. hunted for food C. made to pull ploughs D. used to carry people 25. The author uses the Shetland horse as an example to show ______. A. it is smaller than the Clydesdale horse B. horse used to have gentle personalities C. some horses have better shaped than others D. horses were of less variety before domestication 26.. Horses contributed to the spread of culture by ______. A. carrying heavy loads B. changing farming methods C. serving as a means of transport D. advancing agriculture in different areas C The Best of Friends The evidence for harmony may not be obvious in some families. But it seems that four out of five young people now get on with their parents, which is the opposite of the popularly held image(印象 )of unhappy teenagers locked in their room after endless family quarrels. An important new study into teenage attitudes surprisingly shows that their family life is more harmonious than it has ever been in the past. “ We were surprised by just how positive today’s young people seem to be about their families,” said one member of the research team. “They’re expected to be rebellious(叛逆的 ) and selfish but actually they have other things on their minds” they want a car and material goods, and they worry about whether school is serving them well. There’s more negotiation(商議 ) and discussion between parents and children, and children expect to take part in the family decisionmaking process. They don’t want to rock the boat.” So it seems that this generation of parents is much more likely than parents of 30 years ago to treat their children as friends. “ My parents are happy to discuss things with me and willing to listen to me,” says 17yearsold Daniel Lazall . “ I always tell them when I’m going out clubbing. As long as they know what I’m doing, they’re fine with it.” Susan Come, who is now 21, agrees.” Looking back on the last 10 years, there was a lot of what you could call negotiation. For example, as long as I’d done all my homework, I could go out on a Saturday night. But I think my grandparents were a lot stricter with my parents than that.” Maybe this positive view of family life should not be unexpected. It is possible that the idea of teenagers rebellion is not rooted in real facts. A researcher ments, “ Our surprise that teenagers say they get along well with their parents es because of a brief period in our social history when teenagers were regarded as different beings. But that idea of rebelling and breaking away from their parents really only happened during that one time in the 1960s when everyone rebelled. The normal situation throughout history has been a smooth change from helping out with the family business to taking it over.” 27. What is the popular images of teenagers today? A. They worry about school. B. They can’t get on well with their parents . C. They have to be locked in to avoid troubles . D. They fight a lot with other family members . 28. The study shows that teenagers don’t want to ___ A. share family responsibility B. cause trouble in their families C. go boating with their family D. make family decisions 29. Compared with parents of 30 years age, today’s parents___. A. go to clubs more often with their children B. are much stricter with their ch