When we want to look our best，we dress up in our nicest clothes．We are using the clothes to decorate ourselves．
The Nubas in the African country of Sudan do not dress up in fancy clothes．They use another kind of decoration．They have scars①which form designs on their skin．
You may wonder how a Nuba gets these scars． First，a design is cut into the skin．Then a kind of oil is rubbed into the wounds．When the wounds heal，scars are left．The scars rise in bumps above the skin and form designs．
The scarring of a Nuba girl begins when she is seven or eight．Sometimes a woman's entire body is covered by designs．
The Nuba men also decorate themselves．Their cuts are deeper，so their scars stand out more．
The Nubas use many different designs，and some are favorites．A young woman likes to have three rows of scars across her left shoulder．A Nuba man sometimes has the figure of an animal carved②on his chest．
The Nubas are proud of their decorations．They want to look their best．
Notes：①scar伤痕②carve刻
※Nuba：努巴人（非洲苏丹中南部山区的居民）
1．The Nubas decorate themselves with．
a．scars b．clothes c．beads d．fancy hats
2．The words“form designs on their skin”in paragraph 2 refer to the Nubas'．
3．The story does not say so，but it makes you think that ____ ．
a．women have more designs than young girls
b．men do not scar themselves
c．all the scars are made at a time
4．The Nubas make designs on their ____ ．
a．clothes b．skin c．shirts d．houses
5．On the whole，this story is about ____ ．
a．long-headed women
b．Nuba men
c．Nuba decorations
KEYS: 1．a 2．scars 3．a 4．b 5．c
