What would you think if someone suggested knocking down St Paul’s Cathedral to widen the road? Or pulling down Big Ben to make way for a car park? It would be ridiculous, right? But when it comes to devastation (毁灭) of the natural world, we aren’t so easily shocked. But we should be…or we’ll be in a lot of trouble.
Nature is shrinking by the day. Ancient forests are destroyed. Wetlands are becoming dry. Woodland is disappearing, and all in the name of progress. This is bad in itself, but it’s devastating for biodiversity.
Biodiversity refers to the variety of plants, animals and other living things that are all interconnected. The ecological services provided by biodiversity are vital to everyday life. The air we breathe is a product of photosynthesis (光合作用) by green plants. Insects, worms and bacteria break down waste and make soils rich. And tiny organisms clean the water in rivers and sea. In fact, all life on the earth exists thanks to the benefits of biodiversity. More than 90 percent of the calories consumed by people worldwide are produced from 80 plant species. And 30 percent of medicines are developed from plants and animals. Maintaining a wide diversity of species in each ecosystem is necessary to preserve all living things.
The loss of biodiversity could be devastating. “It is wrong to think that biodiversity can be reduced indefinitely without threatening humans,” said Harvard University biologist Edward O. Wilson, known as the “father of biodiversity”. He warned, “We are about to reach a critical point beyond which biodiversity loss will become irreversible (不可挽回的).”
But what can we do? The present problem is that the concept of biodiversity is so vague (含糊的). People might care about giant pandas, but it is much harder to excite them about the fate of tiny sea creatures which are being boiled to death in the cooling systems of power stations along coastlines. The Guardian newspaper is trying to help. It has launched the Biodiversity 100 campaign to try to convince governments around the world to take action to deal with the widespread concerns about biodiversity. This includes persuading the UK government to create a series of marine reserves to reserve the decrease in the sea-life caused by industrial fishing, stopping fishing sharks by the Japanese fishermen and banning the killing of dingoes (wild dogs) in Australia, among many other things.
There is a lot to do. And we’d better act quickly if we don’t want to end up with a planet that can’t sustain life!The writer thinks it ________ to pull down Big Ben to make way for a car park.
| A．unreasonable | B．necessary | C．difficult | D．reasonable |
The underlined sentence “Nature is shrinking by the day.” means that ________.
| A．nature is badly polluted by humans |
| B．species are becoming fewer and fewer day by day |
| C．rainforests are being cut down every day |
| D．nature is full of mysteries |
Edward O. Wilson thinks that ________.
| A．it doesn’t matter to reduce biodiversity |
| B．people have done enough to preserve biodiversity |
| C．the situation of biodiversity is very serious |
| D．biodiversity loss has become irreversible |
When it comes to biodiversity, the present problem is that ________.
| A．people might not clearly know what is biodiversity and what should be protected |
| B．people are not aware that giant pandas are endangered |
| C．people don’t realize that biodiversity is vital to everyday life |
| D．people hunt sea creatures for food |
What does the underlined word “It” in paragraph 5 refer to?
| A．The UK government. | B．The concept of biodiversity. |
| C．The action to deal with the problem. | D．The Guardian newspaper. |
B
Ever since I was a small girl in school, I’ve been aware of what the school textbooks say about Indians. I am an Indian and, naturally, am interested in what the schools teach about natives of this land.
One day, I read that a delicacy(美味) of American Indian people was dried fish, which , according to the textbook, tasted “like an old shoe, or was like chewing on dried leather.” To this day I can remember my surprise, my anger and my sadness at reading these words. We called this wind-dried fish “sleet-shus”, and to us, it was our favorite delicacy and, indeed, did not taste like shoe leather, and didn’t rot our teeth and bring about the various dietary problem that trouble Indian people in modern times. It took many hours of long and hard work to cure the fish in just this particular fashion. Early fur traders and other non-Indians must have agreed, for they often had this food as they traveled around isolated areas.
I brought the textbook home to show it to my father, leader of my tribe at that time. On this particular day, he told me in his wise and modest manner that the outside world did not understand Indian people, and that I should not let it prevent me from learning the good parts of education.
At a later time in my life, I had brought a group of Indian people to the country fairgrounds to sell Indian-made arts and crafts. My group was excited to make some money by selling Indian handicrafts. We thanked the man who showed us to our booth and told him it was nice of him to remember the people of the Indian community. The man expanded a little and remarked that he liked Indian people. “In fact,” he went on to state, “we are bringing some professional Indians to do the show!”
As we stood there in shock, listening to this uninformed outsider, I looked at my dear Indian companion, an eighty-year-old woman who could well remember the great chiefs of the tribe who once owned all the land of this country before the white man came bringing “civilization”, which included diseases and pollution. My friend said not a word, but took the hurt as Indian people have done for many years.
Of course, we all knew that the “professional Indian” were not Indians at all, but dressed in leather and dancing their own dances. And, anyway, how does one become a “professional Indian”?
45．Which of the following statements about “sleet-shus” is true?
A．It tasted like an old shoe.
B．Eating it was like chewing on dried leather.
C．It was delicious but bad for our teeth.
D．It must have brought pleasure to Indians as well as early business men.
46．What does the writer mean by saying “how does one become ‘a professional Indian’”?
A．Only the Indians know how to become professional Indians.
B．The outside civilization can help and Indian become a professional Indian.
C．An Indian is a born professional Indian.
D．The outside civilization can help white people become professional Indians.
47．After reading the passage, you don’t know __________.
A．what the writer’s profession is
B．what upset the writer and her friend at the county fair
C．why the writer went to the county fair
D．the writer’s attitude to the so-called civilization
48．This story is primarily about ___________.
A．customs of native Americans
B．how textbooks describe native Americans.
C．misunderstanding between people from different cultures
D．how an Indian becomes a “professional Indian”
第二部分：阅读理解（第一节 20小题，第二节5小题；每题2分，满分50分）
第一节：阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。
A
What Is a Boy?
Between the innocence of babyhood and the seriousness of manhood we find a delightful creature called a “boy”. Boys come in different sizes, weights, and colors, but all boys have the same belief: to enjoy every second of every minute of every hour of every day and to fill the air with noise until the adult males pack them off to bed at night．
Boys are found everywhere－on top of, under, inside of, climbing on, swinging from, running around, or jumping to． Mothers spoil them, little girls hate them, older sisters and brothers love them, and God protects them． A boy is TRUTH with dirt on its face, BEAUTY with a cut on its finger, WISDOM with chocolate in its hair, and the HOPE of the future with a snake in its pocket．
When you are busy, a boy is a trouble – maker and a noise． When you want him to make a good impression, his brain turns to jelly or else he becomes a wild creature bent on destroying the world and himself with it．
A boy is a mixture – he has the stomach of a horse, the digestion of stones and sand, the energy of an atomic bomb, the curiosity of a cat, the imagination of a superman, the shyness of a sweet girl, the brave nature of a bull, the violence of a firecracker, but when you ask him to make something, he has five thumbs on each hand．
He likes ice cream, knives, saws, Christmas, comic books, woods, water (in its natural habitat), large animals, Dad, trains, Saturday mornings, and fire engines． He is not much for Sunday schools, company, schools, books without pictures, music lessons, neckties, barbers, girls, overcoats, adults, or bedtime．
Nobody else is so early to rise, or so late to supper． Nobody else gets so much fun out of trees, dogs, and breezes． Nobody else can put into one pocket a rusty knife, a half eaten apple, a three-feet rope, six cents and some unknown things．
A boy is a magical creature – he is your headache but when you come home at night with only destroyed pieces of your hopes and dreams, he can mend them like new with two magic words, “Hi, Dad!”
41．The whole passage is in a tone of _________．
A．humor and affection B．respect and harmony
C．ambition and expectation D．confidence and imagination
42．By saying “he has five thumbs on each hand.”, the author means .
A．he has altogether five fingers B．he is slow, foolish and clumsy
C．he becomes clever and smart D．he cuts his hand with a knife
43．According to the writer, boys appreciate everything in the following except _________．
A．ice cream B．comic books C．Saturday mornings D．Sunday schools
44．What does the writer feel about boys?
A．He feels curious about their noise． B．He is fed up with these creatures．
C．He is amazed by their naughtiness． D．He feels unsafe staying with them．
Animals can move from place to place, but plants cannot. When an animal is under attack, it can run away or fight back. Plants certainly cannot run away, and they lack teeth and claws. But plants can defend themselves by using both physical and chemical means.
Some plants have their own ways to keep animals away. For example, the leaves of the holly plant have sharp spines (刺) that discourage grass-eating animals. Holly leaves on lower branches have more spines than leaves on upper branches. This is because the lower leaves are easier for most animals to reach.
Some plants, such as the oak tree, have thick and hard leaves that are difficult for animals to eat. Some grasses may contain a sandy material; eating such grasses wears down the animal’s teeth.
Many plants also have chemical defenses. Some plants produce chemicals that taste bitter or cause an unpleasant reaction. Some plants may fight against an attack by increasing the production of these chemicals. When a caterpillar (毛虫) bites a tobacco leaf, the leaf produces a chemical messenger. This messenger sends to the roots the information to produce more nicotine. The higher levels of nicotine discourage the caterpillar.
Many plants depend on both physical and chemical defenses. A certain plant in China, for instance, has prickly (多刺的) leaves, and each prickle contains poisonous venom (毒液). A single experience with this kind of plant will teach an animal to stay away from it in the future.
67．The holly plant has more spines on the lower leaves because most animals________.
A．are not tall enough
B．like the lower leaves only
C．are not clever enough
D．can get the lower leaves easily
68．To defend themselves, oak trees use________.
A．chemical means B．physical means
C．bitter chemicals D．sandy materials
69．How does tobacco protect itself against an attack from a caterpillar?
A．Its leaves fight against the attack by physical means.
B．Its roots send a messenger to discourage the caterpillar.
C．Its roots increase the production of nicotine when it is attacked.
D．Its leaves produce poisonous sand to drive the caterpillar away.
70．What would be the best title for this passage?
A．Plants and Animals
B．How Plants Defend Themselves
C．Attacks and Defenses
D．How Animals Eat Plant Leaves
Have you ever had the strange feeling that you were being watched? You turned around and，sure enough，someone was looking right at you!
Parapsychologists(灵学家)say that humans have a natural ability to sense when someone is looking at them．To research whether such a“sixth sense”really exists，Robert Baker，a psychologist(心理学家)at the University of Kentucky，performed two experiments．
In the first one．Baker sat behind unknowing people in public places and stared at the backs of their heads for 5 to 15 minutes．The subjects(受试者)were eating，drinking，reading，studying，watching TV，or working at a computer．Baker made sure that the people could not tell that he was sitting behind them during those periods．Later，when he questioned the subjects, almost all of them said they had no sense that someone was staring at them．
For the second experiment，Baker told the subjects that they would be stared at from time to time from behind a two-way mirror in a laboratory setting．The people had to write down when they felt they were being stared at and when they weren’t．Baker found that the subjects were no better at telling when they were stared at and when they weren’t．Baker found that the subjects were no better at telling when they were started at than if they had just guessed．
Baker concludes that people do not have the ability to sense when they’re being stared at．If
people doubt the outcome of his two experiments，said Baker，“I suggest they repeat the
experiments and see for themselves．”
64．The purpose of the two experiments is to ．
A．prove why humans have a sixth sense
B．explain when people can have a sixth sense
C．show how people act while being watched in the lab
D．study whether humans can sense when they are stared at
65．In the first experiment，the subjects ．
A．were not told that they would be stared at
B．lost their sense when they were stared at
C．were not sure when they would be stared at
D．were uncomfortable when they were stared at
66．What can be learned from the passage?
A．People are born with a sixth sense．
B．People have a sixth sense in public places．
C．The experiments support parapsychologists’ idea．
D．The subjects do not have a sixth sense in the experiments．
We’ve all heard the saying “Go Green”, but is it important? Can one person really make any difference? These may all be questions you’re asking yourself.
Our main source of energy, at the moment, is fossil fuels. We’ve been using fossil fuels for decades now, so why stop? You see, fossil fuels are created over time by the earth, and can only be replaced over time by the earth, but we were using them faster than the earth could produce them. On top of stripping(剥夺)the earth of her natural resources, we’re also damaging the atmosphere by burning things like coal, oil, and natural gases. That’s the greenhouse effect, which occurs when the burning of these fossil fuels help trap the sun’s energy inside the earth’s atmosphere, causing the temperature to rise over time.
With all the people in the world, how could you possibly make a difference? Well, here are a few things to think about.
How many lights do you use in your house?
How many miles do you drive to work?
How many electronics do you use, which you don’t need?
If you were to stop and think about it, you’re able to make a bigger difference than you might realize.
So many times you’ll hear people say, “So what? I won’t be around for it when things go bad.” But bad times are coming quicker than you might like to believe. It’ll be you children, or maybe even your grandchildren. With the temperature ever-rising, the polar ice caps are melting and water begins taking over land, so many people will crowd into so little space.
As you can see, this is no laughing matter. It’s time to take action. Don’t let your children or grandchildren live in a world without hope. One person at a time, we can begin to save this earth.
60. The passage is mainly to _______.
A. introduce what “Go Green is”
B. call on us to “Go Green”
C. warn us of the danger of burning fossil fuels
D. introduce the greenhouse effect
61. According to the author, if we want to “Go Green”, we should _______.
A. use natural resources
B. make the temperature to be lower
C. stop the greenhouse effect
D. try to avoid using fossil fuels
62. According to the author, some people don’t take “Go Green” seriously because they think ______.
A. it will cost them a lot
B. its harm won’t fall on them
C. they haven’t grandchildren at all
D. it is only a laughing matter
63. According to the author, which is the right order of the following things happening?
a. The rise of temperature.
b. The greenhouse effect.
c. The reduction of land.
d. The rising sea level.
e. The melting polar ice caps.
f. The using of fossil fuels.
A. f,b,e,d,a,c B. b,a,f,d,c,e C. f,b,a,e,d,c D. b,a,e,d,c,f
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