It's not quite a rat. Nor is it a squirrel, or a mouse. It's definitely a rodent (啮齿目动物), and it's also a brand-new family of mammals.
The locals of the Southeast Asian country of Laos call the creature a kha-nyou (ga-nyou). The kha-nyou have long body hair, short legs, and a hairy tail less thick than a squirrel's. They're vegetarians living in the rocky hills of Laos, and they come out at night, but for more information, you'll have to ask the Lao people.
"It was for sale on a table next to some vegetables. I knew immediately it was something I had never seen before," said Robert Timmins, a researcher for the Wildlife Conservation Society. Timmins was working in Laos to stop people from selling endangered animals when he spotted the species. Criminals who trade illegal wildlife can make a lot of money, but they also push the animals closer to disappearing from the planet.
The kha-nyou live in karsts, or rough rock. Mark Robinson, a scientist with the World Wildlife Foundation, set out with Lao villagers to find a few more of the rodents for study. They climbed onto a karst, trapped with rice, and caught several.
“To find something so unusual in this day and age is just extraordinary,” said Timmins. “For all we know, this could be the last remaining animal family left to be discovered.”
It’s a big deal to discover an entirely new family of animals. Humans, for instance, belong to the same family as great apes, chimpanzees, and gorillas. So even though kha-nyous look like rats, they’re really very different. The last time scientists discovered a new family of mammals may have been in the 1970s, when they found new bats in Thailand.
Timmins seems to have the gift for finding new animals in Laos—he discovered a new species of rabbit there in 1999.
Scientists call the kha-nyou Laonastes aenigmamus, which means “mysterious mouse that lives among the stones.”But if that's too hard, Timmins and Robinson suggest you call them “rock rats”.Which of the following is not the name for this new creature?
| A．Karsts. | B．Kha-nyou. |
| C．rock rats. | D．Laonastes aenigmamus. |
Which of the following cannot describe the new species of rodent?
| A．They live among the rocky hills of Laos. |
| B．They live on meat of other animals. |
| C．They look like rats but are of different kind. |
| D．They are of the latest discovery of a new species. |
Which of the following is the last discovery of new species of animal except the rodent?
| A．A new kind of bats. | B．Great apes. |
| C．A new kind of squirrel. | D．A new kind of rabbit. |
It implies in the passage that ______.
| A．finding a new animal family in Southeast Asia is easy |
| B．finding a new animal family in modern time is extremely rare |
| C．in Southeast Asia new species of animals are often discovered |
| D．animals that look like the same are of the same family |
It’s a nightmare for Huazhong University of Science and Technology （HUST）: within a week，two students committed suicide by jumping off dorm buildings．对于整个华中科技大学来说，这简直就是场噩梦：一周之内，两名学生在宿舍跳楼自杀。
Officials from the university are reluctant to give interviews．校方官员们不愿接受采访。
“We had a hard time calming down students who were shocked at the suicides,” said Zhang Jingyuan，one official of HUST．
“Media coverage may arouse some students’ negative emotions again．Suicide can be contagious,” Zhang said．他说，“媒体的报道将会再次引发学生的消极情绪，自杀是会传染的。”
The university reacted promptly to the first suicide on October 23．对于今年10月23号发生的第一起自杀事件，华中科技大学迅速做出应急措施。
Advisors and class leaders conducted dorm-to-dorm checks to find students suffering depression．Then psychologists offered one-on-one counseling to them．辅导员和班长们走访了每个宿舍，找出遭遇抑郁的学生。然后，心理咨询师会为这些学生提供一对一的心理咨询。
Notice boards publicizing tips for identifying peers’ mental problems and offering help were set up in front of dorm buildings．Leaflets carrying similar information were handed out to each dorm．宿舍楼前竖起一些布告栏，为同学们普及关于如何发现身边人遭遇心理问题并提供帮助的小贴士。印有类似内容的小册子也被分发给每个寝室。
However，the second suicide came seven days later．然而，七天后，第二起自杀事件发生了。
Both students were described as men of few words．Their schoolmates didn’t see anything to indicate suicide．据周围人描述，这两名学生都很少言寡语。他们的同学都没有觉察到任何自杀前的征兆。
Zhang revealed that the two students had been bothered by mental disorders．But the school didn’t know this until the students’ close friends outside school and their parents unveiled the truth after the suicides．章劲元透露，这两名学生曾经饱受心理疾病的困扰。但是学校对此并不知情，他们校外的好友和家长也是在自杀事件发生后才说出实情。
According to Zhang，there are only three full-time counselors working in the university’s counseling center for its 60,000 students．He complained: “It’s unrealistic to rely only on counselors to detect students’ mental problems．”据章劲元说，全校共有六万名学生，但学校的心理咨询中心只有三位全职心理咨询师。他抱怨说：“仅仅依靠心理咨询师来察觉学生的心理问题，这是不现实的。”
Effective prevention comes from long-term education for life instead of temporary intervention to meet an emergency，said Hu Yi’an．Hu delivers a course of lectures on life and death at Guangzhou University．He worries that universities have paid little attention to education for life．有效的预防来自于长期的生命教育，而并非遭遇紧急状况时的临时干预，胡毅安（音译）说。他在广州大学教授以生命和死亡为主题的课程。他为各大高校给予生命教育的关注少之又少而担忧。
“Education for life helps students respect and love life so they won’t resort to ending their lives when they have difficulties,” said Hu．“生命教育可以帮助学生尊重、热爱生命，这样一来，当他们遇到困难的时候就不会选择结束生命了,” 胡毅安说。
According to Hu，the principles can be incorporated into everyday teaching．胡毅安还表示，这些观念可以融入到日常教学中去。
Hu is also concerned that some universities are conveying discriminatory message that will hold back students from seeking help．胡老师也很担心一些大学传递出带有歧视性的信息会使得学生们不愿去寻求帮助。
When HUST conducted the dorm-to-dorm examination，students with poor academic performance were paid special attention．In March，Peking University also released a controversial policy，which required teachers to have a chat with students “with biased thinking”．当华中科技大学校方挨个宿舍进行走访时，学习成绩较差的学生也被给予了特别关照。三月份，北京大学也推行了一项备受争议的政策，该新规要求教师们要找那些学生中的“激进分子”谈话。
However，Hu suggested that students step out of their comfort zone to seek real-life communication．The underlined word “reluctant” in paragraph 2 probably means “ ”．
| A．willing | B．unhappy | C．refused | D．decided |
Which measure the university took to the first suicide is incorrect?
| A．Conducting checks to find out the students’ depression． |
| B．Offering counseling to the students． |
| C．Setting up notice boards publicizing tips for identifying peers’ mental problems and offering help． |
| D．Handing out leaflets to each student． |
Which of the following is right according to the text?
| A．Officials of HUST were willing to give the details about the suicide． |
| B．HUST didn’t respond to the first suicide． |
| C．What the university about the suicide was a success． |
| D．Their close friends and parents did know the students had mental disorder． |
What’s the main idea of the passage?
| A．Two students of HUST committed suicide． |
| B．What can we do to prevent the student’s suicide? |
| C．The reasons why the students committed suicide． |
| D．The dangers in the universities in China． |
Imagine that the genome （基因组） is a book．The book consists of 23 chapters with thousands of stories made up of paragraphs, words and letters on different levels．There are one billion words in the book, as long as 800 Bibles; if I read the genome out to you at the rate of one word per second for eight hours a day, it would take me centuries; if I wrote out the human genome, one letter per millimeter, my text would be as long as the River Danube．This is a huge volume, a book of great length, but it all fits inside an extremely small cell nuclear（细胞核） that fits easily upon the head of a pin．
The idea of the genome as a book is not, strictly speaking, even a metaphor．It is true to a great extent．A book is a piece of digital information, written in one-directional form and defined by a code that translates a small alphabet of signs into a large dictionary of meanings through the order of their groupings．So is a genome．The only difference is that all English books read from left to right, while some parts of the genome read from left to right while some from right to left, but never both at the same time．
While English books are written in words of different lengthens using twenty-six letters, genomes are written entirely in words of three-letter length, using only four letters, and instead of being written on flat pages, they are written on long chains of DNA molecules （分子）．
The genome is a very clever book, because in the right condition it can both photocopy itself and read itself．How do human genomes read according to the passage?___________
| A．Only from left to right． |
| B．Only from right to left． |
| C．From both directions at the same time． |
| D．From one direction at a time． |
We can learn from the passage that the human genome ________．
| A．is as long as the River Danube |
| B．can be easily placed on the head of a pin |
| C．is coded with an alphabet of four letters |
| D．is smart enough to read and take photos of itself |
It can be concluded that the passage is mainly written for ______．
| A．specialists in the field |
| B．general readers |
| C．natural scientists |
| D．readers with professional knowledge |
The real purpose of the author’s comparison of the genome to a book is _____．
| A．to focus on the differences between the two |
| B．to lay emphasis on the similarities between the two |
| C．to simplify the concept of the human genome |
| D．to give an exact description of the human genome |
It is reported that conservation groups in North America have been arguing about the benefits and dangers of wolves. Some groups believe wolves should be killed. Other people believe wolves must be protected so that they will not disappear from the wilderness (荒野)
For Killing Wolves
In Alaska, the wolf almost disappeared a few years ago, because hunters were killing hundreds of them for sport. However, 1aws were established to protect the wolves from sportsmen and people who catch the animals for their fur. So the wolf population has greatly increased. Now there are so many wolves that they are destroying their own food supply.
A wolf naturally eats animals in the deer family. People in the wilderness also hunt deer for food. Many of the animals have been destroyed by the very cold winters recently and by changes in the wilderness plant life. When the deer can’t find enough food, they die.
If the wolves continue to kill large numbers of deer, their prey (猎物) will disappear some day. And the wolves will, too. So we must change the cycle of life in the wilderness to balance the ecology(生态平衡）. If we killed more wolves, we would save them and their prey from dying out. We’d also save some farm animals.
In another northern state, wolves attack cows and chickens for food. Farmers want the government to send biologists to study the problem. They believe it necessary to kill wolves in some areas and to protect them in places where there is a small wolf population.
Against Killing Wolves
If you had lived long ago, you would have heard many different stories about the dangerous wolf. According to most stories, hungry wolves often kill people for food. Even today, the stories of the “big bad wolf'” will not disappear.
But the fact is wolves are afraid of people, and they seldom travel in areas where there is a human smell. When wolves eat other animals, they usually kill the very young, or the sick and injured .The strongest survive .No kind of animal would have survived through the centuries if the weak members had lived. And has always been a law of nature.
Although some people say it is good sense to kill wolves, we say it is nonsense! Researchers have found wolves and their prey living in balance. The wolves keep the deer population from becoming too large, and that keeps a balance in the wilderness plant life.
The real problem is that the areas where wolves can live are being used by people. Even if wilderness land is not used directly for human needs, the wolves can’t always find enough food. So they travel to the nearest source, which is often a farm. Then there is danger. The“big bad wolf”has arrived! And everyone knows what happens next.Some people are against killing wolves because ________.
| A．there are too many deer in the wilderness |
| B．wolves are afraid of people and never attack people |
| C．wolves help to keep the ecological balance in the wilderness |
| D．there is too small a wolf population in the wilderness |
According to those against killing wolves, when wolves eat other animals, ________.
| A．they might help this kind of animals survive in nature |
| B．they disturb the ecological balance in the wilderness |
| C．they never eat strong and healthy ones |
| D．they always go against the law of nature |
The last sentence “And everyone knows what happens next” implies that in such cases _______.
| A．wolves will find enough food sources on farms |
| B．people will leave the areas where wolves can live |
| C．farm animals will be in danger and have to be shipped away |
| D．wolves will kill people and people will in turn kill them |
Whatever field we are involved in，we always have to look for ways to expand our knowledge.An increase in knowledge in a particular subject can lead to a better understanding，grasp，judgment，intelligence and ability in that area.So how do we go about gaining knowledge?
I think people are the biggest source of knowledge for anybody.Right from childhood，we have learned things by watching others.Whatever field you want to gain knowledge in，there must be many who have experience in that field.So make use of this valuable source of information by learning from the experience，success，mistakes and skills of others. Study carefully and associate with people who are experts in the field you want to gain knowledge in.
The next best source of knowledge should be books.There are millions and millions of books in every language and on almost any topic imaginable.Whatever problem you are facing must have been faced by somebody else before，and its solution is likely to have been preserved in the form of a book.If you are serious about gaining knowledge about a topic，then read any book，magazine，article etc.You can lay your hands on the books related to that topic.Read as much as you can.
It is said that experience is a great teacher，so learn from your past experience and the experience of others.Learn from your and others’ past and present achievements as well as mistakes.
Experimenting with new things and observing new things can help you learn very quickly. Keep in mind，though，that while experimenting，you may encounter a few failures , too.Do not become discouraged as failures are a part of the learning curve，especially while attempting something new.Try to earn from failures instead of becoming disheartened.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to this text?
| A．Books are the biggest source of knowledge. |
| B．An expert can teach people everything useful. |
| C．Mistakes are the best source of knowledge. |
| D．People from an early age have learned things from others. |
If a person decides to learn about a topic，he or she should________.
| A．prepare well for the coming problems |
| B．experiment or observe as much as possible |
| C．read as many books related to that topic as possible |
| D．make friends with as many experts in that field as possible |
The author would NOT agree that________.
| A．experimenting with new things is the quickest way to learn |
| B．people can learn from their own experience and others’ |
| C．people can learn from both achievements and mistakes |
| D．failures teach people something |
This text mainly talks about________.
| A．the importance of learning |
| B．means of gaining knowledge |
| C．ways to become successful |
| D．the advantages of reading |
Although credit cards are becoming a more acceptable part of the financial scene, they are still regarded with doubts by many as being a major part of the “live now pay later” syndrome（综合症）．Along with hire-purchase, rental and leasing schemes（租赁项目）, they provide encouragement to spend more money．Of course, it is only the hotheaded who give way to the temptation to live, temporarily at least, beyond their means, and such people would no doubt manage to do so even without credit cards．
Advertising campaigns have, however, promoted a growing realization of the advantages of these small pieces of plastic. They prevent need to carry large amounts of cash and are always useful in emergencies．
All the credit card organizations charge interest on a monthly basis which may work out as high as 25 per cent a year, yet sensible purchasing using a card can mean that you obtain up to seven weeks, interest-free credit．Using the card abroad, where items frequently take a long time to be included on your account, can extend this period even further．
It is worthwhile shopping around before deciding on a particular credit card. It is necessary to consider the amount of credit granted; interest rates, which may vary slightly; the number and range of outlets（经销店）, though most cards cover major garages, hotels, restaurants and department stores; and of course, what happens if your card is lost or stolen．A credit card thief may be sitting on a potential goldmine particularly if there is a delay in reporting the loss of the card．
However, if used wisely, a credit card can cost nothing, or at least help to tide you over a period of financial difficulty．The hotheaded are people who ________．
| A．spend more money than they have |
| B．spend less money than other people |
| C．save money |
| D．make money |
The disadvantage of credit cards is ________．
| A．to enable you to buy things without carrying large amount of cash |
| B．to encourage people to spend more money |
| C．to be always useful in emergencies |
| D．to help people tide over a period of financial difficulty |
Deciding on a particular credit, you do not have to consider ________．
| A．the amount of credit granted |
| B．the number and range of outlets |
| C．the possibility of loss of money |
| D．the department stores where you are going to use your credit cards |
The underlined words in the last paragraph probably means ________．
| A．floating with the tide of | B．going through a difficult period of |
| C．rising and falling with the tide of | D．attempting to go against the tide of |
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