Britain’s seed(种子) bank, the only one in the world aiming to collect all of the planet’s wild plant species, has reached its goal of banking 10 percent by 2010.
The Millennium Seed Bank Project, run by Kew Gardens—one of the oldest botanical(植物的) gardens—will officially place the 24,200th species on Thursday, a pink, wild banana from China.
More than 50 countries are now on board with Kew's giant task but vast places of the globe, including India and Brazil, still need to join in and donate seeds, director Paul Smith said.
The seed bank is one of the largest and most diverse(多样的) in the world with more than 1.5 billion seeds. Its goal is to help protect the planet’s bio-diversity during a time of climate change.
The wild banana seed is under threat of extinction(灭绝) in southwest China from agricultural development. It is a vital food source for Asian elephants and important for growing bananas for human eating.
Stored at minus-20 degrees centigrade, so they can last for thousands of years, the seeds await the day that scientists hope never comes—when the species no longer exist in the wild.
It is a race against time, Smith said, because in the last ten years alone, 20 plants held in the bank have already been wiped out in the wild. He estimates that between a third and a quarter will become extinct this century.
"It is pressing and it is happening now. An area, the size of England, is cleared of primary vegetation（植被）every year." Smith said.
Because most of the world's food and medicines come from nature, protecting wild plant species is quite important, scientists say. There are already many other seed banks safeguarding food crops, which only account for 0.6 percent of plant diversity.
For Kew's next goal—to collect a quarter of wild varieties（种类）by 2020—the botanists need 10 million pounds a year, or a further 100 million pounds on top of the 40 million they have already been granted.What’s the final purpose of the Britain’s seed bank?
| A．To collect enough money for the project. | B．To safeguard food crops. |
| C．To protect wild plants from extinction. | D．To help scientists study wild plants. |
We can learn from the passage that _______.
| A．the seeds in the bank can be used now and then all over the world |
| B．India and Brazil haven’t joined in the Seed Bank Project at present |
| C．there is only one seed bank in the world at present |
| D．the wild plants in places like India and China will never die out |
What does the underlined word “it” in paragraph 7 refer to?
| A．The extinction of plant species. |
| B．The Millennium Seed Bank Project. |
| C．Britain’s seed bank. |
| D．Kew Gardens’ next goal. |
Which of the following isn’t spoken about in the passage?
| A．The global partnership of collecting wild plant species. |
| B．The temperature condition of the wild plant species in the bank. |
| C．The government’s support for the seed bank project by giving money. |
| D．Scientists’ concern on the extinct wild plant species. |
Cellphone feels like a part of your body? A global survey has found that most people can’t live without 
their mobiles, never leave home without them and, if given a choice, would rather lose their wallet.
Calling mobile phones the “remote control” for life, market research firm Synovate’s poll said cell phones are so ubiquitous that by last year more humans owned one than did not.
Three-quarters of the more than 8,000 respondents polled online in 11 countries said they take their phone with them everywhere, which Russians and Singaporeans the most attached.
More than a third also said they couldn’t live without their phone, topped by Taiwanese and again Singaporeans, while one in four would find it harder to replace the mobile than their purse.
Some two thirds of respondents go to bed with their phones nearby and can’t switch them off, even though they want to, because they’re afraid they’ll miss something.
Mobiles have changed the nature of relationships, with the survey finding a fifth of all respondents set up first dates via text and almost the same number use the same method to end a love affair.
Apart from the obvious calling and SMS-ing, the top three features people use regularly on their mobile phones globally are the alarm clock, the camera and the games.
As for email and Internet access, 17 percent of respondents said they checked their inboxes or surfed the Web on their phones, led by those in the United States and Britain.
One in 10 respondents log onto(注册) social networking websites such as Facebook and MySpace regularly via mobile, again led by Britain and the United States.
Not everyone is tech savvy(科技通), however,37 percent of respondents said they don’t know how to use all the functions on their phone.
1. How many people of all respondents end a love affair via text?
A. About 4,800. B. About 3,600.
C. About 2,400. D. About 1,600.
2. According to the survey, like surfing the Internet with a cellphone most.
A. Singaporeans B. Russians C. Americans D. Chinese
3. Which of the following functions of cellphones is the least used?
A. Calling. B. Playing games.
C. Taking photos. D. Surfing the Internet.
4. Which would be the best title of the passage?
A. People can live better without the cellphone.
B. People would rather lose their wallet than their cellphone.
C. Different uses of the cellphone.
D. New functions of the cellphone.
Why should I teach my children history? That sounds like a stupid question to even ask. But, as I hear different home schooling teachers discuss history, I get the idea that there may be different reasons for teaching history. Let me briefly explain the three good reasons for studying history and two bad reasons for studying history.
The major reason I see for studying history is that we can learn from the past. I am convinced that the world would be a much better place if more people understood the successes and failures of the past and the things that made these successes and failures. However, as the unfortunately true statement goes “the one thing we seem to learn from history is that we don’t seem to learn from history. ”Perhaps at least in teaching history, to my children I can do a small part in changing this.
A second major reason for studying history is that it is hard to understand the current political climate in the absence of an understanding of its historical context. We can not even understand who we are and where we are without history, much less try to figure out where we are going or how we should get where we want to be.
I teach my children history, for one more reason. I purchased a set of historical audio tapes for our children. My seven-year-old son listened to them over and over. It was my hope that he would become inspired by the accomplishments of people like the Wright brothers to accomplish things by himself. I think that it is good that we celebrate the accomplishments of people like Martin Luther King Jr. In doing so, young people are called on to stand for the principles that he stood for and accomplish what he accomplished. I also think that by studying people like Adolph Hitler, people can learn to stand against the things that he stood for.
1. What message can we get from the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2?
A. Many people aren’t clever enough to learn well from the past.
B. Many people fail to make good use of history and make the same mistakes.
C. Many people feel it hard to understand history.
D. Many people have no interest in studying history.
2. In Paragraph 3, the author shows that history is useful because
A. it makes the current political situation go smoothly
B. it helps us realize the importance of historical events
C. it helps us understand why things are the way they are
D. it helps people accept the present situation where they live
3. Some historical figures are mentioned in the last paragraph to show
A. people can be inspired to do good, while also learning to fight against evil
B. people may also learn from bad historical figures
C. more celebrations should be held to honor their achievements
D. today’s people can also achieve what they achieved
4. What would be talked about in the following paragraph?
A. How to teach history effectively.
B. Some negative reasons for studying history.
C. How to get more people to study history.
D. Some bad historical figures.
第三部分 阅读理解(共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分)
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。
Tears are nature’s way of making us feel more comfortable. When our eyes are made uncomfortable by some small pieces of pollution, or when we are cutting onions, or when we are exhausted and “red-eyes” from over work and late hours, tears form in our eyes to clean and refresh them.
Tears are also a sign of strong emotion. We cry when we are sad and we cry when we are happy.
And tears seem to be uniquely human. We know that animals also experience emotion--fear, pleasure, loneliness, but they do not shed (流) tears.
Biologically speaking, tears are actually drops of saline fluid, which is a little bit salty, produced by a gland (腺) in the body. Because salt is an important component, tears may actually constitute the most conclusive evidence that the human animal is the end product of a long evolutionary process that began in the sea.
And it is clear that, in addition to the emotional benefits, the shedding of tears has a specific biological function as well. Through tears, we can eliminate from our body certain chemicals which build up in response to stress and create a chemical imbalance in the body. Crying actually makes us feel better by correcting that imbalance and making us feel good again. And thus the emotional and the biological functions of tears merge (合并) into one and make us even more “human” than we would otherwise be.
1. According to the passage, human beings may have originated in
A. the sea B. the salt C. chemicals D. animals
2. Which of the following is NOT a function of tears?
A. Biological. B. Emotional. C. Political. D. Chemical.
3 According to the article, which of the following is unique to humans?
A. The feeling of loneliness. B. The state of feeling good.
C. The ability to shed tears. D. The feeling of fear.
4. The underlined word "eliminate" probably means
A. add B. produce C. replace D. remove
It is easy to understand the way a culture approaches disagreements by looking at the communication styles in that culture. In societies where open discussion is encouraged, conflict is much more common and accepted. On the other hand, cultures that strive to reduce conflicts and maintain harmony do not see such interaction appropriate, particularly in the workplace.
In Australia, Great Britain, and the United States, for example, disagreements are considered a natural part of communication. People in these countries typically have open and honest discussions, even if people’s differences of opinion lead to confrontation(对抗，对立). In business setting, this may mean debating with a colleague or a supervisor over the approach to a task. Or, co-workers might have a discussion about whether an agenda(议程)item during a meeting is suitable or not. Conflict is not necessarily negative ，though. And many people feel that debating an issue is as rewarding as resolving it. Successful conflict resolution(冲突解决) is also seen as a valuable skill, most people at the management level are expected to be very good at handling conflicts that arise in the workplace.
The Asian style of communication is quite different. In almost parts of eastern Asia, individuals present their ideas and then wait for others to do the same. They prefer to seek agreement from a group without rejecting another’s opinions out loud. In business meetings, subordinates (下级) will hardly disagree openly with their supervisor. This shows respect for supervisor, and it reflects the cultural importance placed on politeness and building harmony and trust.
1. The best title for this passage is ______.
A. Approaching Disagreements B. Differences of Opinion
C. Culture and Communication D. Conflict Resolution
2. In Australia, people would consider disagreement______.
A. a negative part of communication B. necessary in their communication
C. normal and beneficial D. Unimportant in communication
3. Which of the following is true according to the author?
A. Subordinates in the USA don’t try to show their respect in the supervisors.
B. Asian people at management level are not good at handling conflicts.
C. People in Asia always try to avoid conflicts.
D. People in some western countries like to have conflicts.
4. What does the underlined word “harmony” probably mean?
A. Difference B. Agreement C. Respects D. Communication
The energy crisis (危机) has made people aware of how the careless use of the earth’s energy has brought the whole world to the edge of disaster. The over – development of motor transport, with its increase of more cars, more traveling, has contributed to the near – destruction of our cities and the pollution not only of local air but also of the earth’s atmosphere.
Our present situation is unlike natural disasters of the past. Worldwide energy use has brought us to a state where long – range planning is vital. What we need is not a continuation of our present serious state, which endangers the future of our country, our children, and our earth, but a movement forward in order to work rapidly and effectively on planetary problems.
This country has been falling back under the continuing exposures of loss of morality (道德) and the revelation (揭露) that lawbreaking has reached into the highest place in the land. There is a strong demand for morality to turn for the better and for some devotion that is vast enough and yet personal enough to enlist the devotion of all. In the past it has been only in a way in defense of their own country and their own benefits that people have been able to devote themselves wholeheartedly.
This is the first time that we have been asked to defend ourselves and what we hold dear in cooperation with all the other people of this planet, who share with us the same endangered air and the same endangered oceans. There is a common need to reassess our present course, to change that course and to employ new methods through which the world can survive. This is a priceless opportunity.
To grasp it, we need a widespread understanding of nature if the crisis we and the world are facing is no passing inconvenience, no by-product（副产品）of the ambitions of the oil – producing countries, no environmentalists’ only fears, no byproduct of any present system of government. What we face is the result of the invention of the last four hundred years. What we need is transformed life style. This new life style can flow directly from science and technology, but its acceptance depends on a sincere devotion to finding a higher quality of life for the world’s children and future generation.
1. Which of the following has nearly destroyed our cities?
A. The loss of beliefs and ideas. B. More of law – breaking.
C. Natural disasters in many areas. D. The rapid growth of motors.
2. By comparing past problems with present ones, the author draws our attention to the .
A. seriousness of this crisis B. ineffectiveness of laws
C. similarity of the past to the present D. hopelessness of the situation
3. Which of the following is used as an example to show the loss of morality?
A. Disregard for law. B. Lack of devotion.
C. Lack of understanding. D. Destruction of cities.
4. The author wrote the passage in order to .
A. make a recommendation for a transformed life style
B. limit ambitions of the people of the whole world
C. demand devotion to nature and future generation
D. encourage awareness of the decline of morality
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