Today, several of the world's nearly 7,000 languages face a serious risk of extinction. "For example, Ainu, a language in Japan, is now seriously threatened, with only 10 native speakers left," said lead study author Tatsuya Amano at the University of Cambridge in England.
The scientists found that 25 percent of the world's languages are threatened. After identifying where the endangered languages were, they looked for any environmental and social or economic factors those languages might have in common, such as rugged terrain or rapid population growth. "We found that at the global scale, language speaker declines are strongly linked to economic growth-that is, declines are particularly occurring in economically developed regions," Amano said.
One important implication of this new study "is that languages in the tropics and Himalayan region are likely to be increasingly threatened in the near future, because these regions still have many local indigenous languages (土语) with a small number of speakers, and at the same time are experiencing rapid economic growth," Amano said.
Economic growth may endanger languages for a variety of reasons. For instance, speakers of endangered languages may view another more dominant language as offering economic opportunities, and thus forego their own languages. There are other important factors that might endanger languages, the researchers said. For instance, policies regarding how languages are used and taught in schools can be very different among countries and even within each country, and these factors may explain more detailed patterns in language endangerment.
Amano suggested it could be possible to forecast future threats to linguistic diversity. "There exists detailed information on projected future changes in the environment, economies and climates," Amano said. "Using such information, together with the findings of this study and further analysis, we would like to understand what will happen to the world's languages, where it will happen and which languages will be threatened in particular."The language of Ainu is mentioned in Paragraph l in order to tell us that _______________.
| A．Japanese is new seriously threatened |
| B．few people speak Japanese in the world |
| C．Japanese is made up of many languages |
| D．it is most likely to disappear in the future |
What may endanger the languages most according to Amano?
| A．The diversity of society. |
| B．The decline of the population. |
| C．The development of economy |
| D．The improvement of the environment. |
The writer shows us the reasons that languages are endangered by ___________________.
| A．offering some examples |
| B．performing some experiments . |
| C．telling some interesting stories |
| D．making a list of important facts . |
It can be inferred from the last paragraph that _______________.
| A．the study is very important to languages |
| B．world's languages are developing rapidly |
| C．it is rather hard for us to protect languages |
| D．future threats to languages can be predicted |
For many of us, printed books are satisfying in ways beyond the words they contain． Billions of printed books have been published, read and saved in the 600 years since movable type was invented, so why mess with a good things?
Sony Electronics is doing just that, betting that readers will be won over by the convenience of readability of its new electronic book devices． Sony's reader, the PRS-505, can hold 160 books in its fixed memory, enough to line the shelves on a good-sized wall in the average American home． The $299 device is about the size of a paperback book, but a half-inch thick and weighs less than a pound．
The Sony book reader is revolutionary not only in its storage capacity． The font（字体） is highly readable and adjustable by size． Unlike laptop computers, you can put the Sony in your purse, read it in direct sunlight and even bookmark the pages． And you can connect it to your PC to download books．
Surprisingly, though the reader has liberated the book from paper, electronic books aren't always a bargain． For example, David Baldacci's "Stone Cold" download retails（零售） for $15．19 at the Sony site, while Amazon（卓越网） will deliver a hard copy to your mailbox for $16．19．
The Sony reader also lets you store and play or display music． So what's not to like about the Sony? Well, for many bibliophiles, a lot． Book lovers like to have, hold and keep their volumes, which don't need charging． You can write notes in the margins, and enjoy the ambience they provide on your book shelves．The need for electronic reading devices is likely to grow as more people worried about the billions of tons of paper used for printed material． Many believe the time will come when devices like the Sony reader are as common as printed newspapers and magazines today．
According to the passage, the Sony book reader _________．
| A．is as light as a laptop computer |
| B．can hold more than 200 books |
| C．is convenient to carry around |
| D．cannot be connected to a PC |
What is the author’s point when he mentions “Stone Cold”?
| A．Amazon’s printed books are very cheap |
| B．“Stone Cold” can be got from the Sony site and Amazon |
| C．The Sony book reader is not very cheap to use |
| D．The Sony book reader can benefit its buyers a lot |
The underlined word “bibliophiles” in Paragraph 5 refers to “__________”．
| A．music lovers | B．book lovers |
| C．electronic reading devices | D．Sony readers |
According to the author, what’s the future for the electronic reading devices?
| A．They’ll replace printed newspapers and magazines |
| B．They’ll still be more expensive than printed newspapers |
| C．They’ll become a must in people’s daily life |
| D．They’ll become more popular as time goes on |
BUKHANNON, West Virginia—Two rescue teams slowly moved along a two-mile path on Monday night to the site of a coal mine explosion that trapped 13 miners, who had not been heard from since the early morning accident． Meanwhile, at a nearby church, more than 250 family members and friends gathered, waiting for updates（最新报道）on the rescuers’ progress．
The miners were trapped at about 6:30 and many families weren’t informed of the accident until about 10 a．m---more than three hours after it happened．“It’s very upsetting, but you’ve got to be patient, I guess,” said John Helms, whose brother, Terry, was trapped in the mine． The trapped miners were about 260 feet underground and about 10,000 feet from the Sago Mine’s entrance, said Roger Nicholson, general counsel from International Coal Group．
At a late night news conference, Nicholson said one team had advanced about 4, 800 feet in the four hours since entering the mine just before 6 p．m．Another team entered the mine about 30 minutes later．
He said the crew was very experienced, with some members having worked underground for
30 to 35 years．The miners were equipped with about one hour of breathable oxygen each．The company has not released the names of the miners．
The teams test the air about every 500 feet, and have to disconnect （remove） the power to the phones they use to communicate with the surface before doing that．“ We don’t want to be energizing anything if it’s in an atmosphere with burnable gases,” Kips said．The cause of the explosion was not immediately known．High levels of carbon monoxide were discovered shortly after the explosion, which delayed rescue efforts, but those levels have since subsided（减退）, authorities said．According to the passage, we can infer that ________．
| A．all the miners who were trapped underground were still alive |
| B．communication with the trapped miners was cut off |
| C．the two rescue teams entered the mine at the same time |
| D．the rescue started as soon as the accident happened |
If the first team advanced at an average speed, they could dig about _______ per hour．
| A．1,000 feet | B．2,400 feet | C．1,200feet | D．4,800feet |
Where can the passage be seen?
| A．In a magazine． | B．In a newspaper． |
| C．In a science book．． | D．On an advertisement． |
Which of the following shows the position where the miners wd?
One warm May day, two eighteen – year – old students from San Francisco State College decided to cool off with a swim at Bakers’ Beach． The two students were named Robert Kogler and Shirley O’Neill． They headed out to sea for a distance of 50 metres． Robert was in front．
“Suddenly, I heard him scream,” Shirley recalls． “I looked round and saw this great grey thing going up in the air． The water seemed to be alive．”Robert screamed again． “It’s a shark! Get out of here!”
An eye – witness, Army Sergeant Leo P． Day was on guard at the nearby army post． He saw exactly what happened next． “I could see this boy struggling with the shark in the water,” he said． “The sea was red with blood． He was shouting and signalling someone to go back, go back． Then I saw the girl． She was swimming towards him． She completely ignored his warning．”Shirley reached Robert, and tried to take his hand．“When I pulled, all I could see was his arm, handing by a thread,” she said．
So she put her arm about Robert’s back, and started to swim towards the shore． She kept praying “Don't’ let it attack again!” That journey to the shore seemed to last for hours． At last, as they neared the shore, a fisherman threw them a line, and pulled them both the rest of the way．The young man had lost a lot of blood, and died two and a half hours later, From the teeth marks, experts identified the attacker as a Great White Shark．For what Sergeant Day called “the greatest exhibition of bravery I have ever seen,” the President of the US gave Shirley a medal for bravery．When Albert was attacked by a shark Shirley ．
| A．was swimming in the sea |
| B．was watching him on the shore |
| C．was on guard at the nearby army post |
| D．was shouting and struggling with a shark, too |
Choose the right time order of the following events in the story．
a． Army Sergeant saw the girl swimming to the boy．
b． Shirley saw a great grey thing．
c． They headed out to sea．
d． Robert died．
e． A fisherman threw them a line．
f． He saw a boy struggling with a shark．
| A．b,c,e,d,f,a | B．c,a,f,d,e,b | C．b,c,f,a,d,e | D．c,b,f,a,e, d |
We can learn from the passage that ．
| A．the two students were brave and considerate |
| B．the fisherman was adventurous and helpful |
| C．the experts didn’t do much research on sharks |
| D．the Sergeant cared too much about his own life |
In the United States, elementary and middle schools are advised to give students two and a half hours of physical activity a week.
Yet many schools across the country have reduced their physical education programs. Criticism（批评） of the cuts has led in some places to efforts to give students more time for exercise, not less.
A study reported that life expectancy（寿命） has fallen or is no longer increasing in some parts of the United States. The situation is worst among poor people in the southern states, and especially women. Public health researchers say it is largely the result of increases in obesity（肥胖）, smoking and high blood pressure. They also blame differences in health services around the country.
A study found that only four percent of elementary schools provided daily physical education all year for all grades. This was true of eight percent of middle schools and two percent of high schools. The study also found that twenty-two percent of all schools did not require students to take any P.E.
Charlene Burgeson is the executive director of the National Association for Sport and Physical Education. She says one problem for P.E. teachers is that schools are under pressure to put more time into academic subjects. Also, parents may agree that children need exercise in school.
But experts say P.E. classes have changed. They say the goal has moved away from competition and toward personal performance, as a way to build a lifetime of activity. These days, teachers often lead activities like weight training.
Some parents like the idea of avoiding competitive sports in P.E. class. Yet others surely dislike that idea. In the end, schools may find themselves in a no-win situation. . How many reasons have caused some Americans’ life expectancy to fall?
| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Five. | D．Six. |
The underlined part “that idea” (the last paragraph) refers to _______.
| A．competitive sports | B．a lifetime of activity |
| C．no-win situation | D．uncompetitive exercise |
. From the passage we can infer that _______.
| A．physically active children have more chances to be fit when growing up |
| B．most American schools let students take physical activity enough |
| C．the older a student is, the less exercise he gets |
| D．not all parents think exercise is good for students |
. The passage mainly tells us about _______.
| A．school and students’ health | B．how to make children healthy |
| C．American schools’ physical education | D．American students’ health |
“Buy-A-Something” Campaign
One way to request for general donations is to tie it into a campaign like “Buy-A-Brick to Help Build a School in Bolivia”. Make sure you have some literature to give people as well as a registration form(登记表) that includes name, address, and how many bricks the person purchased.
University Funds
If you are a student, one major source of funding is your own college or university. Many school clubs can raise a certain amount of funds through student activities. See if your club is suitable.
Letter Writing
One of the most effective ways of raising money is to do a letter campaign to as many relatives, friends, former teachers, etc. as possible. Sending a detailed letter to over 100 friends and relatives explaining the program and what you hope to accomplish while you’re on it will help you reach your goal.
Parties, Dances, Music
Use the “Who Do You Know” principle. Do you have a friend in a band? Do you know the owner of a bar or restaurant? Some simple events include playing in a band at a club, and your group gets the cover charge or a percentage of the drink sales.
Exhibitions
This is limited to people with professional art genius. If you are an artist, you can ask friends to help you hold exhibitions and donate your profit to charity or give people who need financial help.
Note: Please remember there are some people who are not so lucky as we are and it’s our duty to help them. . What is the best title for the passage?
| A．Activities in your spare time | B．Ways to raise more |
| C．What can you do? | D．Holding exhibitions |
. What is the “Who Do You Know” principle?
| A．Involve people you know in your activity. |
| B．Try to know more people. |
| C．Never get in touch with strangers. |
| D．Always play with people you know. |
Which is the best way for Albert, a pianist in a small band, to raise money?
| A．Exhibitions. | B．Parties, Dances, Music. |
| C．“Buy-A-Something” Campaign. | D．University Funds. |
What will the money collected be used for?
| A．Some important architects. | B．People who need financial help. |
| C．Festivals like Valentine’s Day. | D．People with professional art genius. |
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