14．A.developed B．being invented

　　C．appeared D．discovered

　　解析：选A　句意：大约2 000年前，另一种纸"产生(develop)"了。从上文中writing was developed也能得到暗示。

　　15．A.wood B．silk

　　C．cloth D．bamboo

　　解析：选B　联系上文来看，可以排除bamboo和wood；联系下文来看，以后出现的纸是用cloth做的，所以可排除cloth；根据后面的too expensive可以断定此处为silk。

　　16．A.harder B．convenient

　　C．easier D．slower

　　解析：选C　在丝绸上写和画比在竹片或木头上写和画"更容易(easier)"，故用easier。

　　17．A.cloth B．plants

　　C．animals D．skins

　　解析：选B　从后面的举例"树皮"来看，是用"植物(plant)"纤维造纸，所以选择plants。

　　18．A.hard B．good

　　C．gentle D．different

　　解析：选B　有了树皮和旧衣服当替代品，效果和丝绸一样"好(good)"，但是便宜得多，所以用good。

　　19．A.when B．that

　　C．what D．why

　　解析：选B　It is ...that ...是强调句型。

　　C．house D．building

　　解析：选B　此处指的是"造纸厂"。

　　Ⅱ.阅读理解

　　The Hanging Gardens were one of Babylon's greatest attractions, according to Greek historians. Yet it is still a great secret of how they were built such a long time ago.

　　They were one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, yet no one knows for sure whether they existed. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were a wonder to look at, according to anyone who saw them and wrote about them. Greek writers were certainly impressed by them. Yet where were they, and why were they built?

Historians are fairly certain that they know the answer to the first question: Where were they? Recent excavations (发掘) of the ancient city of Babylon have showed us a likely possibility that the Gardens