Jia Sixie, author of China's first agricultural encyclopedia, was one of the leading agronomists (农学家) in Chinese history. In the late years of the Northern Wei Dynasty, he wrote Qimin Yaoshu, the 【小题1】 (early) and most complete agricultural encyclopedia still in existence in China.

Jia Sixie was born in Yidu County in Shandong Province. During his childhood, Jia's family wasn't wealthy, but had 【小题2】 rich collection of books. This provided the young Jia with an opportunity: to read ancient Chinese literature 【小题3】 (wide) on agriculture. He completed Qimin Yaoshu during the wars, 【小题4】 he saw the sufferings of the poor farmers. 【小题5】 he firmly believed was that the development of agriculture could help those farmers out.

The book, which has 92 chapters in 10 volumes and nearly 120,000 characters, 【小题6】 (cover) a wide range of topics and records on production experiences and methods. It includes advice on farming, fishery and sideline occupations. In the book, he emphasized the importance of seed breeding in order to cultivate better 【小题7】 (variety).

Qimin Yaoshu was first distributed mainly among common people. In the late Tang Dynasty, the book was introduced to Japan. So far, the book 【小题8】 (translate) into several languages. Qimin Yaoshu is considered 【小题9】 an important summary of farming knowledge. At present, it is still studied by Chinese farmers and students 【小题10】 (major) in agriculture.

The Antonine Plague (瘟疫)

The year was 166 C.E., and the Roman Empire was in its prime. The triumphant Roman troops, under the command of Emperor Lucius Verrus, returned to Rome victorious after 【小题1】 (defeat) their Parthian enemies. As they marched west toward Rome, they carried with them more than the spoils of plundered Parthian temples; they also carried an epidemic that 【小题2】 (ruin) the Roman Empire over the course of the next two decades.

The Antonine Plague, 【小题3】 was known later, would reach every corner of the empire and is 【小题4】 most likely claimed the life of Lucius Verrus himself in 169 — and possibly that of his co-emperor Marcus Aurelius in 180.   

The effect of the epidemic on Rome’s armies was apparently devastating. Closeness to sick fellow soldiers and less-than-optimal living conditions made it possible for the outbreak to spread rapidly throughout the troops, such as those 【小题5】 (base) along the northern frontier at Aquileia. Troops elsewhere in the empire were similarly stricken. 【小题6】 (reverse) their shrinking soldiers, they sent the sons of soldiers to troops. Army discharge certificates from the Balkan region suggest that there was a significant decrease in the number of soldiers who were allowed to retire from military service during the period of the plague.

The effect on the civilian population was evidently by no means 【小题7】 (severe). In his letter to Athens in 174, Marcus Aurelius loosened the requirements for membership to the ruling council of Athens, 【小题8】 there were now too few surviving upper-class Athenians who met the requirements he had introduced prior to the outbreak.

It has been estimated that the death rate over the 23-year period of the Antonine Plague was 7—10 percent of the population. 【小题9】 the practical consequences of the outbreak, such as the destabilization of the Roman military and economy, the psychological impact on the populations could by no means be ignored. It is easy to imagine the sense of fear and helplessness ancient Romans 【小题10】 have felt in the face of such a ruthless, painful, disfiguring and frequently fatal disease.

A group of students from England, who are interested in archaeology, have come to the Zhoukoudian caves for a visit. An archaeologist 【小题1】 (warm) gives them a brief introduction 【小题2】 the life and habits of the earliest people there.

Early people lived in caves and they made fires in the centre of caves 【小题3】 (keep) themselves warm, cook the food and scare their enemies away, such as tigers and bears. They might have kept the fire burning all winter because layers of ash almost six metres thick have been excavated.

Early people did wear clothes made from animal skins. They used sharpened stone 【小题4】 (tool) to cut up animals and remove their skins. Smaller scrapers 【小题5】 (use) to remove the fat and meat from the skin. Finally using needles 【小题6】 (make) of animal bones, they would sew the pieces together.

Early people also paid attention to their 【小题7】 (appear) and wore necklaces. Some of the necklace beads were made of animal bones but some were made of shells, 【小题8】 told us that all the fields around Zhoukoudian caves used to be part of 【小题9】 large shallow lake. They moved around, following the herds of animals. They didn’t grow their own crops, but picked fruit when it 【小题10】 (ripen) and hunted animals.