The poaching，or illegal killing，of rhinos(犀牛) in South Africa is growing worse each year．The government recently reported that a record number of rhinos were poached in 2014，a year which had more rhino killings in South Africa than ever before．
The World Wildlife Fund，or WWF，says about 20，000 rhinos live in South Africa．That is more than 80 percent of the rhinos in the world．Edna Molewa，South Africa’s environmental issues minister，says，“During 2014，we are sad to say this，1，215 rhinos were killed．This is a rise in the number of poached rhinos from 1004 in 2013 and indeed very worrying．”
The animals are hunted for their horns(犀牛角)．Many people in Asia believe the horn has curing power，which drives poachers，at all costs，mad for more horns．But there is no scientific evidence for this belief．The horn is made of keratin．That is the same thing as human hair， fingernails and toenails．
Ms．Mo1ewa said 386 suspected poachers were arrested last year，an increase from the year before．But rhino protection workers say poachers often go unpunished after arrest．South Africa’s legal system is ineffective．Ms．Molewa said more needs to be done and South Africa is taking strong measures to protect rhinos．The efforts include moving some of the animals to secret places in neighboring countries．“Now approximately 100 rhinos have been moved to neighboring states in the SADC region during 2014 and 200 more rhinos will be moved this year”Molewa said．
Jo Shaw，the rhino program manager at the WWF，said，“we’re talking about a loss of a hundred rhinos a month．Or more than three a day．We really need to see effective action not just at a national level but internationally．”She says officials should find the criminal groups responsible for the poaching and punish them．Government officials are to meet in Botswana in March at the Inter-governmental Conference on Illegal Wildlife Trade．
What do we know about rhinos?
| A．Half of the rhinos live in South Africa． |
| B．Less than 1，000 rhinos were killed in 2013． |
| C．The killing reached the highest point in 2014． |
| D．There are only 20，000 rhinos left in the world． |
What is the main reason for people to hunt rhinos?
| A．To get more keratin． |
| B．To protect the farmland． |
| C．To use them for decoration． |
| D．To make money from horns． |
Jo Shaw thinks that_________．
| A．many criminal groups are well organized |
| B．new laws are needed to punish the killers |
| C．rhino protection needs international cooperation |
| D．conferences about protecting rhinos are to be held every year |
What can we infer from the text?
| A．Rhino protection has a long way to go． |
| B．No one would like to buy horns in the future． |
| C．The illegal killing of rhinos will soon disappear． |
| D．Rhinos living in South Africa will move to other countries． |
It’s 5pm on a Friday and I'm standing in a coffee shop above Shibuya crossing - one of the most busiest place in Japan where more than a thousand of Tokyo’s smartly dressed people gather at eight points, ready to cross - then rush straight for each other. It looks like they must bump into each other, but It’s amazing that they all manage to reach the other side safely.
But the real reason I'm here is that I want to see people crash. I want businessmen to knock into each other, their umbrellas flying off their arms, and uniformed schoolchildren hitting grannies. Why may I see this now, but wouldn't have had the chance even a year ago? It’s very simple - smartphones.
Smartphone use is booming in Japan. In 2012, only about a quarter of Japanese used them, most being perfectly happy with their everyday mobiles. But now more than half of all Japanese now own a smartphone and the number is rising fast. But with that rise has grown another phenomenon - the smartphone walk. Those people who're staring at a phone screen adopt this kind of pace- their head down, arms outreached, looking like zombies（僵尸）trying to find human prey(猎食).
Surprisingly, an American named Michael Cucek who has lived here for more than 20 years told me smartphone walk probably wouldn’t be a long-term problem. Japanese phone manner is in fact better than anywhere else in the world - hardly anyone speaks on their phones on trains, and teenagers wouldn't dare broadcast music out of one. If things got truly bad at Shibuya, the police would just start shouting at people to look up.
But really, is the smartphone walk such an annoying problem? There's only one way to find out. So I leave the coffee shop, head down to the crossing and start typing an email, promising myself I won't look up until I get to the other side. When they start walking past me, it's my time to cross. As I step forward, the experience quickly becomes nervous - legs jump in and out of my vision without warning, while shopping bags fly towards my face before being pulled away at the last moment. I'm sure I'm going to get hit, but after a few seconds I relax. It’s OK. Everyone's reacting for me.
I expect to see two smartphone walkers just like me. But instead I find a young couple, very much in love and very much refusing to let each other’s hands go just to give way to a fool on his smartphone. The girl gives me such a look of dislike that I quickly apologize and rush round them. That look was enough to ensure I'll never be smartphone walking again.From paragraph 1, we can know _____________.
| A．people at Shibuya crossing always bump into each other. |
| B．more than a thousand of people gather at Shibuya crossing every day. |
| C．more than a thousand of people are ready to rush in a competition every day. |
| D．more than a thousand of people at Shibuya crossing make it a busy one in Japan. |
Why does the author stand in a coffee shop above Shibuya crossing?
| A．Because he is waiting for somebody. |
| B．Because he can have a good view from there. |
| C．Because he wants to see what would happen because of smartphones. |
| D．Because it’s interesting to see businessmen’s umbrellas flying off their arms |
How does Michael Cucek find smartphone walk in Japan?
| A．He found it by accident when he lives here. |
| B．Japanese pay much attention to their phone manner in public. |
| C．The police in Shibuya are too strict with people’s phone manner. |
| D．Smartphone walk in Japan has a deep root. |
How does the author confirm whether smartphone walk is annoying or not?
| A．By personal experimenting |
| B．By comparing with other way of walk |
| C．By giving example. |
| D．By explaining the traffic rules patiently |
After smartphone walking himself, the author thinks___________.
| A．it’s exciting to walk while sending emails |
| B．it’s really dangerous to walk while sending emails |
| C．there are some others smartphone walking like him |
| D．other passers-by give way to him although they dislike. |
Below is a passage adapted from the network edition of China Daily.
Event
| Li Yang, one of China’s most famous English teachers, apologized for beating his American wife more than a week after she posted photos of her injuries on the web and set off a bomb of criticism. “I wholeheartedly apologize to my wife Kim and my girls for committing domestic violence. This has caused them serious physical and mental damage,” Li said on his microblog at Weibo.com, the country’s most popular social media site, on Saturday. Li, 42, is a mechanics major but is best known for his “Crazy English,” a popular method of language learning that involves yelling at the top of one’s lungs. He was at the center of public criticism after his wife Kim Lee put up posts on the web accusing him of abuse, showing her swollen forehead and knees. |
Voices
| @Xuemanzi, angel investor Anti-domestic violence laws should be made as soon as possible, giving protection to the rights of women and children lawfully. Police should not stand back from domestic violence any longer, even if no one reports them. Society, as a whole, should attach greater importance to the crime. @Zhangxiaomei Chinese are never taught about marital(婚姻的) relations, which mean not merely living together. A good marriage needs to overcome three differences: family background, gender and personalities. In addition to these, there is cultural gap in Li Yang’s case. If the effects of these differences are not well understood, after the honeymoon period, they will turn into conflicts and endanger the marriage. Li’s domestic violence is a reminder that China needs such education. @Wuxiaolong, Sina Weibo user Li Yang’s choice to resort to domestic violence really reflects his character. Students who have attended his Crazy English Camp may know what I mean: Li wants his students to worship him as an idol. I still remember he once had his students kowtow（叩头） to him. He always teaches English by imposition(权威强制), which directly reflects his desire for power. @Sikaozhe, Sina Weibo user In the US, the punishments for domestic violence are even more severe than stealing. If the police arrive at the wife’s call during a fighting between a couple and find injuries on her, they will immediately arrest the husband. Even if the wife doesn’t call the police, they may also show up as neighbors could well do their part. @ykxin Sina Weibo User Don’t blindly worship anyone, because in every closet there may hide a skeleton. As a famous Chinese saying goes, “Only they who do well in their daily routine tasks can fulfills their dreams on great occasions”. Not surprisingly, one who focuses too much on his career and ignores his family, like Li Yang, will fail in both. Don’t judge a person by his career success, wealth, or any other material aspect, because what finally decides a person is his character. |
Aftermath(余波)
| Although Li Yang publicly apologized to his wife, promising to love his daughters even if he and Lee divorce, the damage, perhaps permanently, has been done to his wife, his three daughters and the whole family. Wang Xingjuan, founder of the Maple Women’s Psychological Consulting Center, a non-profit organization, said nearly half of domestic violence abusers are people who have higher education, senior jobs and social status. She said this was probably because such people were usually under more mental stress. |
This passage is focused on Li Yang’s .
| A．microblog article | B．domestic violence |
| C．English-teaching career | D．international marriage |
Zhangxiaomei holds the view that .
| A．laws should be passed to protect women and children |
| B．crazy personality accounts for violence and ill temper |
| C．overcoming background gap is necessary for marriage |
| D．Li is wrong to have his students worship him as an idol |
Who thinks that character plays the most important role in one’s life?
| A．@Xuemanzi | B．@Sikaozhe |
| C．@ykxin | D．@Zhangxiaomei |
According to Wang Xingjuan, .
| A．people of higher education won’t easily lose temper |
| B．people under stress tend to have domestic violence |
| C．people in lower social status often beat their wives |
| D．people with senior jobs seldom have family trouble |
Perhaps every old generation since ancient times has complained about young people, and today is no different. Isn’t it clear that compared with our glorious selves, kids these days are self-absorbed social network addicts?
However, this summer, my impression of today’s kids has been restored by the story of Rachel Beckwith. She could teach my generation a great deal about maturity and unselfishness — even though she’s just 9 years old, or was when she died on July 23.
At age 5, Rachel had her long hair shorn off and sent to Locks of Love, which uses hair donations to make artificial hair for children who have lost their own hair because of cancer or other diseases. After that, Rachel announced that she would grow her hair long again and donate it again. And that’s what she did.
Then when she was 8 years old, her church began raising money to build wells in Africa through an organization called charity: water. Rachel was astonished when she learned that other children had no clean water, so she skipped her ninth birthday party. Rachel set up a birthday page on the charity: water website with a target of $300. Instead of presents, she asked her friends to donate $9 each to charity: water. Finally Rachel raised only $220 — which had left her just a bit disappointed.
Then, on July 20, a serious traffic accident left Rachel critically injured. Church members and friends, seeking some way of showing support, began donating on Rachel’s birthday page — charitywater.org/Rachel — and donations reached her $300 goal, and kept rising.
But Rachel couldn’t hear that she had raised beyond the $47,544 that the singer Justin Bieber had raised for charity: water on his 17th birthday. “I think Rachel would have been overjoyed for she secretly had a crush on (迷恋) him,” Rachel’s mom said.
When it was clear that Rachel would never regain consciousness, the family decided to remove the life support system. Her parents donated her hair for the final time to Locks of Love, and her organs to other children.
Word about Rachel’s last fund-raising spread. Contributions poured in, often in $9 each. The total donations soon topped $100,000, then $300,000.
This is a story not just of one girl, but of a young generation of outstanding problem-solvers working creatively. What does the author think of today’s kids after he knew the story of Rachel Beckwith?
| A．They are good at social network. |
| B．They are unselfish as grown-ups. |
| C．They can get problems settled effectively. |
| D．They have narrow minds and care about nothing. |
When was it that Rachel’s hair was donated for the final time to Locks of Love?
| A．At her age of 5. |
| B．After her death. |
| C．Right after the traffic accident. |
| D．Before her ninth birthday. |
Why did each of Rachel’s friends donate $9 to charity: water?
| A．Because she had asked them to do that. |
| B．Because she set up her birthday page on June 9th. |
| C．Because she began to raise money from her ninth birthday. |
| D．Because she died at the age of 9 and they wanted to honor her. |
The singer Justin Bieber was mentioned in the text, mainly because ______.
| A．Rachel collected more than him who she admired |
| B．he had donated on Rachel’s page on his 17th birthday |
| C．Rachel would have been overjoyed for his donation |
| D．Rachel’s mom said she secretly had a crush on him |
What does the text mainly talk about?
| A．Rachel’s hair donations. |
| B．A kind girl, Rachel. |
| C．The author’s impression of today’s kids |
| D．A lesson from Rachel. |
Plastic is everywhere because plastic is an extremely useful material．It is cheap, strong and lightweight．What’s more, it can take on nearly any form or shape, from soft and stretchy （有弹性的） to hard and glasslike.
Plastic, however, is far from perfect．It may even be bad for us．Studies now suggest that poisonous chemicals can get out of some types of plastic, get into our bodies, and cause a variety of health problems, including cancer, birth defects and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder （注意缺陷障碍）.
Two types of chemicals in particular have raised special concern lately．They are called phthalates （邻苯二甲酸盐） and Bisphenol-A （二酚基丙烷）, BPA for short． Not all plastic products contain them．But the ones that do are surrounded by controversy （争议）．That’s because experts disagree on how dangerous these chemicals are.
Plastic is a single word, but plastic isn’t just one thing．What all plastics share in common are plasticizers -- special chemicals that allow the material to be changed into nearly any shape or texture．Plasticizers （塑化剂） are added to plastic during the manufacturing process.
Phthalates and BPA are two types of plasticizers that work in different ways．Phthalates add softness to things like shampoo bottles, raincoats and rubber．They are also used in perfumes and makeup．BPA, on the other hand, gives a hard, clear, almost glasslike feel to products such as infant bottles．BPA also appears in food and soda cans, DVDs and other unexpected places.
How do these chemicals get into us? When plastic is heated in the microwave or dishwasher, chewed on or scratched, the chemicals can seep （渗透） out of the plastic．Even though we can’t see them, we eat them, drink them and breathe them in.
Scientists and parents are especially worried about young children, who tend to chew on everything, including plastic．Dozens of countries, including the European Union, Japan, Canada and Mexico have already banned phthalates from products made for children younger than three．California and Washington have done the same．And a number of other states are considering similar rules．As for BPA, Canada became the first country to ban the chemical from baby bottles．A dozen states are considering it.What can we know about the plastic from the first paragraph?
| A．Its characters and effects． |
| B．Its wide use and bad points. |
| C．Its importance and chemicals． |
| D．Its popularity and advantages. |
Which of the following products contains BPA?
| A．A soft plastic cup． | B．A pencil eraser. |
| C．A baby milk bottle． | D．A new perfume. |
Phthalates and BPA can get into us __________．
| A．through mouth or nose |
| B．through blood transfusion |
| C．by feeling plastic products |
| D．by heating in the microwave |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．A new ban on plastic products． |
| B．Problems caused by the plastic． |
| C．Good points of the plastic． |
| D．The use of plasticizers. |
Marjorie Baer used to joke about her retirement plans．She wasn't married and had no kids, but she didn't intend to be alone—she and all her single friends would move into a fictional home she called Casa de Biddies．Instead, Baer developed terminal brain cancer when she was 52．But just as she'd hoped, her friends and family provided her with love and care to the end．
Ballance was only the first of Baer's friends who became her unofficial caregivers．With her brother Phil Baer from Los Angeles, they worked out a system to watch over their friend and allow her to keep some of the privacy and independence she cherished.
Baer's good friend Ruth Henrich took Baer to doctors' appointments and helped her deal with all the aspects of life —answering machines, TV controls, and even phone numbers．After Henrich sent out an e-mail request, a group of volunteers signed up to ferry Baer back and forth to radiation therapy（放疗）．Others in Baer's circle offered up particular talents: A nurse friend helped Baer figure out how to get what she was due from Social Security and her disability insurance; a lawyer pal helped Baer with her will; a partner who was an accountant took over her bills when she could no longer manage them．"There was this odd sense that the right person always showed up," says Ballance．Their arrangement worked remarkably well．
Unmarried women are one of the fastest-growing groups in America; experts are concerned about how care-giving will be managed for them as they age．If the experience of Baer's friends is a guide, the Internet will play a role．It's already making it possible to create communities of caregivers who may have only one thing in common: the person who needs their help．On personal "care pages" set up through services such as Lotsa Helping Hands, friends and family members can post a list of tasks that need to be done, volunteer to do them, and keep updated on the person's condition．As Baer's cancer progressed, for example, her friends set up a page on Yahoo! where people could sign up to deliver meals or do errands（差事）.
Catherine Fox, one of the friends who were present when Baer died, was deeply affected．"It was so comforting to know that if you're willing to ask for help, the generosity of family and friends can be phenomenal（显著的）．It makes me feel secure and hopeful to know that help is there when you need it．"The most appropriate title of this passage should be ______．
| A．On her own, but not alone |
| B．A friend in need is a friend indeed |
| C．A new practice of American government |
| D．A phenomenal advantage of the Internet |
Who helped Marjorie Baer get her disability insurance?
| A．Ruth Henrich. | B．Her brother. |
| C．A nurse friend. | D．Ballance. |
The underlined part in paragraph four suggests that the Internet will ______.
| A．play a role in American future pension system |
| B．provide online medical care for aged unmarried women |
| C．help manage care-giving for unmarried women as they age |
| D．help those aged unmarried women to kill their spare time |
The writer tells us the story of Marjorie Baer for the purpose of ______．
A．reminding us to be kind and make as many friends as we can
B．informing that there will be a new trend of care-giving for the single elderly
C．persuading us that we can enjoy our retirement even if we don’t have a child
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