The Development of Ballet Ballet is a dance form that has a long history. The fact that it survives to this day shows that it has adjusted as time have changed. Ballet began in the royal courts during the Renaissance. At that time it became common for kings and queens, as well as other nobility (贵族),to participate in pageants that included music, poetry, and dance. As these entertainments moved from the Italian courts to the French ones, court ladies began participating in them. Though their long dresses prevented much movement, they were able to perform elaborate (复杂的)walking patterns. It was not until the 1600s that women dancers shortened their skirts, changed to flat shoes, and began doing some of the leaps and turns performed by men. It was also in the 1600s that professional ballet began. King Louis XIV of France, himself a devoted dancer, founded the Royal Academy of Dance. The five basic feet positions from which all ballet steps begin were finalized. In the late 1700s another important change occurred. Ballet began to tell a story on its own. It was no longer simply dance to be performed between acts of plays, Elaborate wigs(假发)and costumes were eliminated. By the early 1800s dancers learned to rise on their toes to make it appear that they were floating. Classical ballet as we know it today was influenced primarily by Russian dancing. The Russians remained interested in ballet when it declined in other European countries in the mid-1800s. One of the most influential figures of the early 20th century was Sergei Diaghilev. His dance company,the Ballets Russes,brought a new energy and excitement to ballet. One of his chief assistants , George Balanchine, went on to found the New York City Ballet in 1948 and to influence new generations of dancers. This passage deals mainly with{pz_填空}.

Puerto Rican Cuisine (菜肴） Puerto Rico, a Caribbean (加勒比海地区)island rich in history and remarkable natural beauty, has a cuisine all its own. Immigration (移民)to the island has helped to shape its cuisine, with people from all over the world making various contributions to it However, before the arrival of these immigrants, the Taino people lived on the island of Puerto Rico. Taino cuisine included such foods as rodents (啮齿动物),fresh shellfish and fish fried in corn oil. Many aspects of Taino cuisine continue today in Puerto Rican cooking, but it has been heavily influenced by the Spanish, who invaded Puerto Rico in 1508，and Africans, who were initially brought to Puerto Rico to work as slaves. Taino cooking styles were mixed with ideas brought by the Spanish and Africans to create new dishes. The Spanish extended food choices by bringing cattle, pigs, goats, and sheep to the island. Africans also added to the island’s food culture by introducing powerful, contrasting tastes in dishes. In fact, much of the food Puerto Rico is now famous for—coffee , coconuts, and oranges — was actually imported by foreigners to the island. A common assumption many people make about Puerto Rican food is that it is very spicy (辛辣的).It’s true that chili peppers are popular;aij caballero in particular is a very hot chili pepper that Puerto Ricans enjoy. However, milder (微辣的)tastes are popular too, such as sofrito. As the base of many Puerto Rican dishes, sofrito is a sauce made from chopped onions, green bell peppers, sweet chili peppers, and a handful of other spices. It is fried in oil and then added to other dishes. Who lived in Puerto Rico first?

The view from my bedroom window was absolutely spectacular.

The love of money is the root of all evil.

He inspired many young people to take up the sport.

How Technology Pushes Down Price 1 Prices have fallen in the food business because of advances in food production and distribution technology. Consumers have benefited greatly from those advances. People who predicted that the world would run out of food were wrong. We are producing more and more food with less and less capital. Food is therefore more plentiful and cheaper than it has ever been. Spending on food compared with other goods has fallen for many years，and continues to drop. 2 Supermarkets have helped push down prices mainly because of their scale. Like any big business，they can invest in IT systems that make them efficient. And their size allows them to buy in bulk. As supermarkets get bigger，the prices get lower. 3 Huge retail companies such as Wal-Mart have tremendous power and they can put pressure on producers to cut their margins. As a result，some producers have had to make cuts. In recent years，Unilever has cut its workforce by 33，000 to 245,000 and dropped lots of its minor brands as part of its “path to growth” strategy. Cadbury has shut nearly 20 per cent of its 133 factories and cut 10 per cent of its 55，000 global workforce These cuts help keep costs down，and the price of food stays low. 4 Does cheap food make people unhealthy? Cheap food may encourage people to eat more. Food companies certainly think that giving people more food for their money makes them buy more. Giving people bigger portions is an easy way of making them feel they have got a better deal. That is why portions have got larger and larger. In America，soft drinks came in 8oz (225g) cans in the past，then 12oz (350g)，and now come in 20oz (550g) cans. If a company can sell you an 8oz portion for $7，they can sell you a 12oz portion for $8. The only extra cost to the company is the food, which probably costs 25 cents. 5 Now companies are under pressure to stop selling bigger portions for less money. But it is hard to change the trend. Paragraph 4

I have little information as regards her fitness for the post.

The Changing Middle Class The United States perceives itself to be a middle-class nation. However, middle class is not a real designation, nor does it carry privileges (特权).It is more of a perception, which probably was as true as it ever could be right after World War II. The economy was growing, more and more people owned their own homes, workers had solid contracts with the companies that employed them, and nearly everyone who wanted a higher education could have one. Successful people enjoyed upward social mobility. They may have started out poor, but they could become rich. Successful people also found that they had greater geographic mobility. In other words, they found themselves moving to and living in a variety of places. The middle class collectively holds several values and principles. One strong value is the need to earn enough money to feel that one can determine one’s own economic fate. In addition, middle-class morality (道德观)embraces principles of individual responsibility, importance of family, obligations to others, and believing in something outside oneself. But in the 1990s those in the middle class found that there was a price for success. A U.S. News World Report survey in 1994 indicated that 75 percent of Americans believed that middle-class families could no longer make ends meet. Both spouses (配偶)now worked, as did some of the children , long commutes (通勤)became routine, the need for child care put strains on the family, and public schools were not as good as they once were. Members of the middle class were no longer financing their lifestyles through earnings but were using credit to stay afloat (透支).The understanding of just what middle class meant was changing. In the years after World War Il，the middle class were {pz_填空}.

My doctor said I should vary my diet more.

The frame needs to be strong enough to support the engine.