The illegal ivory trade has been a major problem in Africa for decades. Poachers(偷猎者) and hunters have killed off hundreds of thousands of elephants to obtain this precious material. Now, affected areas are taking action. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced on Wednesday that key states where poaching takes place have promised to stop the ivory trade and protect Africa’s elephants.
In the 1980s, as many as 1 million elephants across Africa were killed for their ivory tusks. This continued until 1989, when the Convention on International Trade in Species (CITES) voted to ban all trade in ivory. With trade choked off, demand for ivory fell. Elephant populations slowly began to increase. However, this progress was short-lived.
According to the IUCN, 2011 saw the highest levels of poaching and illegal ivory trading in at least 16 years. Around 25,000 elephants were killed in Africa that year. Preliminary data from the IUCN shows even higher levels of illegal trade may have been reached in 2013. “With about 22,000 elephants illegally killed in 2012, we continue to face a critical situation,” said John E. Scanlon, CITES Secretary-General. “Current elephant poaching in Africa remains far too high, and could soon lead to local extinctions if the present killing rate continues.”
At the African Elephant Summit, key African states where elephants make their home agreed to develop a “zero-tolerance attitude” towards poaching. The deal calls for maximum sentences for poachers and hunters, and increased cooperation between affected states. Officials are determined to classifying wildlife trading as a serious crime — and to making sure that the people who commit it are punished. All participants at the conference agreed to sign the deal. With these states coming together, there may yet be hope for elephants. (293 words)What’s the best title for this passage?
| A．New Hope for Elephants. | B． Elephants are dying. |
| C．Elephants are valuable. | D． How to protect elephants |
The underlined phrase “choked off” in Paragraph 2 can be replaced by “________”.
| A． appreciated | B． prevented | C． admitted | D． explored |
Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．The CITES has helped to improve elephants’ situation ever since 1989. |
| B．Around one million elephants across Africa were killed for their ivory tusks in the 1980s. |
| C．The poaching and illegal ivory trading in 2011 were very serious. |
| D．The situation of elephants in 2012 was still terrible. |
All of the following measures will be taken to protect elephants EXCEPT ________.
| A．to identify wildlife trading a serious crime |
| B．to punish those who buy or sell wildlife belongings |
| C．to sentence all wildlife poachers and hunters to death |
| D．to work together to fight against wildlife hunting |
What’s the main idea of this passage?
| A．The illegal ivory trade has been a major problem in Africa. |
| B．Elephants in Africa may die out because of the illegal poaching. |
| C．Hunting elephants will be recognized as a very serious crime. |
| D．A new agreement aims to develop a “zero-tolerance attitude” towards poaching. |
Long before they became doctors, lawyers, CEO’s or real estate developers, they played in garage bands and maybe even dreamed of becoming rock stars. That’s why they signed up for Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy Camp.
For nearly a week, the mostly middle-aged “campers” had practiced in the West 54th Street studios. They came from as far away as London and Tokyo and as close as Long Island and downtown New York to prepare for their moment of onstage glory.
“I feel like I’m 18 again,” said Jerry Goldberg, a 60-year-old investment banker and guitar player, whose family was in the audience.” I admit that I felt a little uncertain when I first got here, but this has turned out to be a wonderful experience, one of the greatest of my life.”
Everybody has two businesses, their own business and show business. This can be a life-changing experience for them. Mr. Daltrey, who has appeared at several fantasy camps, was asked why he keeps coming back.
“I’ve had people tell me that I shouldn’t be doing this, that it's bad for my image,” he acknowledged. “But that’s rubbish. Look, it’s all so positive, and everybody is having so much fun. So what’s bad about that?”
Jeff Munger, a drummer and rancher(农场主) said. “I’m at a point in my life where I’m going to spend my money on things I’m passionate about, and I’m absolutely crazy about music.”
Most of the campers are successful executives or professionals: a founder of the Oracle Computer Company, a businessman whose father invented the Big Mac, a plastic surgeon, presidents of health care and seafood companies.This text is mainly about________.
| A．a music course for the elderly people |
| B．a pop club for professional musicians |
| C．a rock music camp for music lovers |
| D．a studio for wealthy businessmen |
What do the middle aged campers have in common?
| A．They are all interested in charity. |
| B．They are all passionate about music. |
| C．They are all retired business people. |
| D．They were all rock stars when they were young. |
According to the text, Mr. Daltrey ________.
| A．once played in a garage band |
| B．has come with his family |
| C．has joined in the camp a couple of times |
| D．is very careful about his image |
We can infer from the text that the campers _________.
| A．enjoy their regular jobs | B．come from different countries |
| C．do part-time jobs | D．have a great many fans |
Employees are being flooded with too much information that has little to do with their work, according to a new survey.
On average, white-collar workers spend 51 percent of their work time receiving and processing information. Only one third of it was relevant to their work, the survey found. Information overload for white collar workers has become a global issue. The huge amount of information has already affected their efficiency in management as well as their performance at work.
Buried with e-mails
Every morning, a secretary at the human resources department of an auto parts company opens her e-mail box, only to find it crammed with at least 50 unread mails. For her, even scanning through these e-mails every day takes at least half an hour. Some of her colleagues are not so lucky — they have to read at least 100.
Bothered with calls
Telephone calls are also causing a problem. More than 40 percent white-collar workers chose mobile phones as the preferred way to communicate important and urgent business matters.
Talking saves time and energy over the clicking, reading and replying to e-mails, but phone calls are also more distracting(分心的). While answering a call, a clerk is likely to put away a much more important task at hand and start the business being talked about on the phone.
Solution? Not yet.
Many companies start with providing staff with better computers, better Internet access and more advanced gadgets(装置). For example, staff members above a certain level in one company will be provided with a blackberry phone for easier access to their e-mails. The company has also organized many lectures on efficient ways of e-mail management. Yet most white-collar workers think their companies can do more.What does the new survey find about white-collar workers?
| A．They spend 51% of their work time on meetings. |
| B．Only half of the information they receive is useful. |
| C．Over 60% of them prefer to use the telephone. |
| D．Some of them have to read at least 100 e-mails every day. |
Telephone calls cause a problem because ________.
| A．they take up the time to receive and send e-mails |
| B．they are often not answered |
| C．they are mostly not about business |
| D．they may lead to the changing of work schedule |
How do some companies try to solve the problem of information overload?
| A．They start to give staff a pay rise. |
| B．They plan to employ more people. |
| C．They provide employees with more advanced equipment. |
| D．They organize lectures on how to reduce stress. |
What is the major issue discussed in this text?
| A．Poor management leads to inefficiency at work. |
| B．Junk mail is causing big trouble. |
| C．White-collar workers suffer from information overload. |
| D．Better computers are in need in workplaces. |
If teens could reduce the salt they take in every day by 3,000 milligrams (mg), they would cut their risk of heart disease and stroke(中风) greatly in adulthood, researchers say.
Based on the results of a computer modeling analysis, researchers found that a 3,000 mg reduction in sodium(钠) by teenagers could reduce hypertension by 30 percent to 43 percent when they become adults.
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a common condition that may have no symptoms for years, but can eventually cause serious health conditions, including heart attack and stroke.
Other benefits over time as teens hit 50 years of age include a 7-12 percent reduction in coronary heart disease(冠心病), an 8-14 percent reduction in heart attacks, and a 5-8 percent reduction in stroke.
Fast food typically contains too much sodium. One bag of Nacho Cheese Doritos has 310 milligrams. Pizza is one of the biggest problems for teens when it comes to sodium, according to data from the National Center for Health Statistics.
“The additional benefit of lower salt intake early is that we can hopefully change the expectations of how food should taste, ideally to something slightly less salty,” says Dr. Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, the lead author of the study and associate professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.
“Most of the salt we eat is not from our salt shaker(盐瓶), but salt that is already added in food that we eat.” she added.Which is a benefit of a low sodium diet according to the text?
| A．No risk of heart disease. | B．Smaller chance of stroke. |
| C．Low blood pressure. | D．Slightly more heart attacks. |
According to the text, 3,000 mg less salt intake daily will reduce hypertension by ________ in adulthood.
| A．7%-12% | B．8%-14% | C．30%-43% | D．5%-8% |
What does Dr Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo mean in the last two paragraphs?
| A．A lower sodium diet can get teenagers used to less salty food. |
| B．A good eating habit can help teens have less junk food. |
| C．Teens should avoid pizzas and other salty foods. |
| D．We can add more salt from our salt shaker to the food. |
Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
| A．Teens Cutting Salt for Healthier Adulthood |
| B．Diet and Health |
| C．Sodium Brings Health Concerns |
| D．A Cause of Hypertension |
As the forceful king of Macedonia(马其顿), Alexander the Great overthrew the Persian Empire, becoming a hero that would survive centuries after his death.
Born in 356 B.C., Alexander III was the son of Philip II and Olympias. Alexander’s parents wanted him to receive the finest education, and arranged for him to study under Aristotle, regarded as one of the greatest scholars.
Alexander’s father was a strong leader. Philip II built an impressive army and established the Macedonian kingdom; he was even planning to attack Persia shortly before his death.
In 336, Philip was murdered by one of his guards. Although it was obvious that the guard had a personal hatred, there are clues that other people were related to it.
After Alexander was cleared as a suspect, he succeeded his father without opposition, and killed those said to be responsible for his father’s murder, as well as all rivals. He was then just 20 years old. He then prepared to attack Persia.
In the spring of 334, Alexander led the army made up of nearly 50,000 soldiers into Asia, which is called “the most powerful military expedition ever to leave Greece”, He soundly defeated the Persian army at the Granicus River, sending a strong message to Darius III, leader of the Persian Empire.
In 333, Alexander faced Darius at Issus, a mountain pass. The Macedonian army was greatly outnumbered but able to work the narrow mountain passageway to their advantage. Darius managed to escape. Continuing down the Mediterranean Coast, Alexander took every city in his path.
In 332 Alexander declared Egypt to be part of the Greek Empire and was crowned Pharaoh(法老).
When Alexander left Egypt in 331, he defeated the Persians again and was crowned leader of Asia.
In 323, however, Alexander developed a fever on the way back home and died 10 days later at Babylon. He was just 33 years old. What can we know about Philip’s death?
| A．He was killed by someone intending to take power from him. |
| B．Alexander sent someone who hated Philip to kill him. |
| C．His death was related to his plan of fighting Persia. |
| D．The murder might be organized by a group of people. |
The Macedonian army could defeat the Persians at Issus mainly because _________.
| A．Darius didn’t command his army in the battlefield |
| B．Macedonian soldiers were more than the Persian soldiers |
| C．Macedonian soldiers could fight better at the mountain pass |
| D．Macedonia was more powerful than the Persian Empire |
In which order did Alexander do the following things?
a．Totally overthrew the Persian Empire.
b．Defeated the Persian army at Issus.
c．Was crowned Pharaoh of Egypt.
d．Defeated the Persian army at the Granicus River.
e．Became the leader of Macedonia.
| A．e, d, b, c, a | B．d, e, a, c, b |
| C．e, b, d, c, a | D．d, a, c, e, b |
According to the passage, we can infer _________.
| A．Aristotle taught Alexander how to defeat other nations |
| B．Alexander was happy about his father’s death |
| C．Persia is tougher to defeat than Egypt |
| D．Macedonia soon declined after Alexander died |
It is six o’clock in the morning. You are asleep in my left arm and I am learning the art of one-handed typing. Your mother, more tired yet more happy than I’ve ever known her, is sound asleep in the room next door.
When you’re older we’ll tell you that you were born in Hong Kong in the lunar year of the pig. “It's a boy, so lucky,” our neighbours told us. They said you were the first baby to be born in the block this year. This, they told us, was good Feng Shui, in other words, a positive sign. Naturally your mother and I were only too happy to believe that.
Your coming has turned me upside down and inside out. I am pained by the memory of each suffering child I have come across on my journeys as a journalist. To tell you the truth, it’s nearly too much for me to even think of the children being hurt and abused and killed.
Last October, in Afghanistan, when you were growing inside your mother, I met Sharja, aged twelve, motherless, fatherless, guiding me through the grey ruins of her home. Everything was gone, she told me.
There is another memory of Rwanda, and the churchyard where I found a mother and her three young children huddled(蜷缩) together where they’d been beaten to death. The children had died holding on to their mother.
Daniel, these memories explain some of the protectiveness I feel for you, and the occasional moments of blind terror when I imagine anything bad happening to you. We can see that this text is written to ________.
| A．the author’s wife | B．the author’s neighbour |
| C．Daniel | D．a suffering child |
The author mentions some of his painful memories because ________.
| A．he wants his son to care for others |
| B．he feels more pain thinking about them as a father |
| C．he hopes to forget the tragedies he witnessed |
| D．his experience has affected his mental health |
The underlined word “blind” in the last paragraph means ________.
| A．unable to see | B．meaningful |
| C．not clear | D．not based on reason |
Which of the following words best describes the author’s feeling when typing this text?
| A．Relieved. | B．Regretful. | C．Loving. | D．Calm. |
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