With only about 1, 000 pandas left in the world, China is desperately trying to clone(克隆) the animal and save the endangered species. That’s a move similar to what Texas A & M University researchers have been undertaking(承担) for the past five years in a project called “Noah’s Ark”.
Noah’s Ark is aimed at collecting eggs, embryos(胚胎), semen and DNA of endangered animals and storing them in liquid nitrogen(氮). If certain species should become extinct, Dr. Duane Kraemer, a professor in Texas A & M’s College of Veterinary Medicine, says there would be enough of the basic building blocks to reintroduce the species in the future.
It is estimated that as many as 2, 000 species of mammals, birds, reptiles will become extinct in over 100 years. The panda, native only to China, is in danger of becoming extinct in the next 25 years.
This week, Chinese scientists said they grew an embryo by introducing cells from a dead female panda into the egg cells of a Japanese white rabbit. They are now trying to implant(植入) the embryo into a host animal.
The entire procedure could take from three to five years to complete.
“The nuclear transfer(核子移植) of one species to another is not easy, and the lack of available(capable of being used) panda eggs could be a major problem,” Kraemer believes. “They will probably have to do several hundred transfers to result in one pregnancy (having a baby). It takes a long time and it’s difficult, but this could be groundbreaking science if it works. They are certainly not putting any live pandas at risk, so it is worth the effort,” adds Kraemer, who is one of the leaders of the Project at Texas A& M, the first-ever attempt at cloning a dog.
“They are trying to do something that’s never been done, and this is very similar to our work in Noah’s Ark. We’re both trying to save animals that face extinction. I certainly appreciate their effort and there’s a lot we can learn from what they are attempting to do. It’s a research that is very much needed.”
64. The aim of “Noah’s Ark” project is to _______.
A. make efforts to clone the endangered pandas
B. save endangered animals from dying out
C. collect DNA of endangered animals to study
D. transfer the nuclear of one animal to another
65. According to Professor Kraemer, the major problem in cloning pandas would be the lack of _______.
A. available panda eggs B. host animals
C. qualified researchers D. enough money
66. The best title for the passage may be _______.
A. China’s Success in Pandas Cloning
B. The First Cloned Panda in the World
C. Exploring the Possibility to Clone Pandas
D. China —the Native Place of Pandas Forever
67. From the passage we know that _______.
A. Kraemer and his team have succeeded in cloning a dog
B. scientists try to implant a panda’s egg into a rabbit
C. Kraemer will work with Chinese scientists in clone researches
D. about two thousand of species will probably die out in a century
C
The Tasmanian devil is a rare marsupial(有袋动物)that lives only on the Australian island state of Tasmania. The doglike animal is rapidly disappearing. The Tasmanian state government estimates that the number of devils has dropped from around 150,000 in the mid-1990s to between 20,000 and 50,000 at the end of 2007.
The devil was declared an endangered species last week. It is being wiped out by a rare cancer called devil facial tumor(肿瘤)disease(DFTD). It spreads like a cold or flu from animal to animal. The disease is passed when one devil bites another. When the marsupial is infected with DFTD, large tumors develop around its mouth and neck. These growths make it impossible for the devil to eat. Many finally die from starvation within six months of being infected. As the name implies, the disease occurs only in Tasmanian devils and cannot be passed to humans.
You’ve got to remember that devils are scavengers(清扫工). They search through garbage for food. Throughout Tasmania people maintain outdoor dumps. If somebody threw out a carcass(兽类尸体), then the devils might actually consume quite large quantities of it.
The disease has not yet appeared in the devil population that lives in the northwest region of Tasmania. Conservationists have captured some of the healthy devils and sent them to a new home on the mainland of Australia. They hope these DFTD-free marsupials can be used to start a captive-breeding population. Once there are more disease-free devils, they can then repopulate the areas of Tasmania where the species are being wiped out.
Tasmanian devils play an important role in keeping the state’s ecosystem in balance. They keep the population of other predators, such as foxes and wild cats, in check. Ray Nias, head of World Wildlife Federation—Australia’s conservation program, says all Tasmanian wildlife will suffer if the devil becomes extinct. “If the devils go and the foxes and cats increase, it would be all over for a good dozen or more species of mammals, many of which are unique to Tasmania.”
46. It can be inferred that the Tasmanian devil is __________.
A. a hard-working street-cleaner B. a grass-eating animal
C. a meat-eating marsupial D. A DFTD origin
47. What’s the reason for making the Tasmanian devil endangered?
A. A rare disease called DFTD occurs in Tasmanian devils.
B. Dogs like to attack Tasmanian devils.
C. Tasmanian people try to wipe out Tasmanian devils.
D. The region of Tasmania is becoming hard for Tasmanian devils to breed.
48. To which question does the last paragraph give the answer?
A. How should people protect the devils?
B. What do the Tasmanian people do with the devils?
C. What happens if the devils disappear?
D. Which animal is closely related to the devils?
49. What measures do Tasmanian people take to stop the devils from being wiped out?
A. Trapping disease-free devils in a new place to breed more young devils.
B. Searching the cause of the disease and finding an effective treatment.
C. Developing new chemicals for the infected animals.
D. Moving all the devils to a new home on the mainland of Australia.
50. What’s true about DFTD?
A. It’s a disease that can be spread to human beings.
B. It’s a cold that occurs only in Tasmanian devils.
C. It’s a flu that Tasmanian devils get from their companions.
D. It’s a cancer that can be passed from one Tasmanian devil to another.
B
The first step for the accomplishment of every act is the attitude of the person who wants to do something with his life. If you are the type of person who is always optimistic and has faith in your strengths then half of the job is already taken care of.
It is quite difficult to change the way you think or how you perceive(发现) reality and all the things
around you. It is useless if your friends keep pushing you to see life in another way, to be always optimistic, to laugh more and always think at the “pink” version of things. You get annoyed by everybody giving you pieces of advice. It is only you who can decide to have this great change of personality. Not only will you see things from another perspective(角度) but life itself will come to be different, meaning more exciting and more interesting.
For me every age has its beauty and one should always know how to live to the full every aspect of it. When you are a child you spend all your time playing and you don’t have anything to worry about; as the years pass you become more concerned with whatever goes around you, with the problems you have to take care of. You should always keep your sense of humor and never forget to smile. Not only the smile makes you more beautiful but it also makes you see life with other eyes.
You only have one life and you have to live it to the full every day, as if it were the last day of your existence so as not to get the point in which you are sorry you didn’t know how to live.
41. The most important thing for a person to make his dream come true is _________.
A. to try to work hard B. to do something with his life
C. to have a strong belief D. to face difficulty bravely
42. In the author’s opinion, which is the best way to see life correctly?
A. Getting help from friends. B. Finding a way yourselves.
C. Always being optimistic. D. Seeing life in different ways.
43. Paragraph 3 mainly tells us ___________.
A. not worrying too much is very important to people
B. keeping humor and smile is very important to children
C. how to deal with problems
D. how to find beauty in life
44. Which of the following best agrees with the passage?
A. Helping others is a good quality.
B. People’s advice always makes you angry.
C. The life you live depends on the way you see it.
D. The author has nothing to worry about in his life.
45. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. Could we change our attitude? B. Do you enjoy life?
C. Ways to live happily. D. Find beauty in life.
第二部分阅读理解（共20小题：每小题2.5分，满分50分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
A
Edinburgh Zoo makes plans to bring a pair of giant pandas from China to Scotland. Representatives from Edinburgh Zoo have recently returned from China, where they signed a letter of intent(意向书)making a promise to bring giant pandas to the zoo.
It has been suggested that the breeding pair should be on loan(暂借)to the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) for 10 years and it is hoped they would give birth to babies during that time. Edinburgh Zoo would be the eighth zoo in the Western hemisphere(半球)to care for the species if the project goes ahead.
Zoo chiefs said that looking after the endangered animals could benefit conservation. David Windmill, chief executive(主管)of RZSS, said, “It is an opportunity to work on a global level with other conservationists to gain a better understanding of the giant panda, the threats they face, and what we can do to ensure their survival.”
At present, there are currently only around 1,500 giant pandas in the wild. RZSS has been working on the project for almost a year, and hopes to have giant pandas at Edinburgh Zoo by 2009, the year of the society’s centenary(一百年纪念日).
Mr. Windmill said that the project has received strong support from the UK and Scottish Governments and that this must continue if the zoo is to reach an agreement with the Chinese. As part of the proposed agreement with the Chinese government, Edinburgh Zoo will cooperate on research projects benefiting conservation in the wild.
RZSS will also provide considerable money to support giant panda conservation projects in the wild. Giant pandas live in a few mountain ranges in central China and feed almost wholly on bamboo, which makes up 99% of the their diet.
36. What result did zoo representatives get from China?
A. A breeding pair is on loan to RZSS for ten years.
B. China promised to sell two giant pandas before 2009.
C. They signed a letter of intent about giant pandas to be loaned to Edinburgh Zoo.
D. China promised to offer the money but not the experts for research into giant pandas.
37. If Edinburgh Zoo can borrow giant pandas, what will happen?
A. RZSS will celebrate its centenary in 2009.
B. Scotland will be the eighth country to have giant pandas.
C. RZSS will have a better understanding of living habits of giant pandas.
D. Edinburgh Zoo will be the eighth zoo to have Chinese pandas in the world.
38. The underlined part “the project” in Paragraph 4 refers to “__________”.
A. the celebration of RZSS’s centenary
B. introducing giant pandas to RZSS’s collection
C. the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland itself
D. borrowing giant pandas from China for conservation
39. At present what seems to be the key factor for giant pandas to successfully go to Edinburgh Zoo?
A. RZSS’s attitude. B. The Chinese government’s attitude.
C. Edinburgh Zoo’s support. D. The Scottish government’ attitude.
40. The best title for this passage would be “___________”.
A. Edinburgh Zoo expects giant pandas from China
B. Edinburgh Zoo does research into giant pandas
C. Scotland supports giant panda conservation
D. Giant pandas live happily at Edinburgh Zoo
(B)
Discover
News magazine of science devoted to the wonders and stories of modern science, written for the educated general readers. Published by Disney Magazine Publishing Co., Discover tells many of the same stories professionals read in Scientific Actually. Actually delightful family science magazine, each issue brings to light new and newsworthy topics to make dinnertime and water-cooler conversations interesting.
Cover Price: $ 59.88
Price: $19.95 ($1.66/issue)
You Save: $ 39.93 (67%)
Issues: 12 issues / 12 months
Self
Published by Conde Nast Publications Inc., Self is a handbook devoted to women’s overall physical and mental health. Every issue contains usable articles such as “Style Lab,” in which wearable clothes are mixed and matched on non-model and the “Eat-right Road Map,” with tips on how to eat properly.
Cover Price: $35.86
Price: $15.00 ($2.5 / issue)
You Save: $20.86 (58%)
Issues: 10 issues / 12 months
Instyle
Instyle is a guide to the lives and lifestyles of the world’s famous people. The magazine covers the choices people make about their homes, their clothes and their free time activities. With photos and articles, it opens the door to these people’s homes, families, parties and weddings, offering ideas about beauty, fitness and in general, lifestyles. Publisher: The Time Inc. Magazine Company.
Cover Price: $47.88
Price: $23.88 ($2.38 / issue)
You Save: $24.00 (50%)
Issues: 10 issues / 12 months
Wired
This magazine is designed for leaders in the field of information engineering including top managers and professionals in the computer, business, design and education industries. Published by Conde Nast Publications Inc., Wired often carries a
rticles on how technology changes people’s lives.
Cover Price: $59.40
Price: $10.00 ($1.00 / issue)
You Save: $49.40 (83%)
Issues: 10 issues / 12 months
46. Which of the following magazines is published monthly?
A. Discover. B. Self. C. Instyle. D. Wired.
47. Which two magazines are published by the same publisher?
A. Wired and Instyle. B. Discover and Instyle.
C. Self and Discover. D. Self and Wired.
48. Which magazine offers the biggest price cut?
A. Instyle. B. Wired. C. Discover. D. Self.
49. The “Style Lab” in Self provides readers with articles which ______.
A. offer advice to ordinary women on clothes
B. show how a woman can become famous
C. introduce places with the best food
D. discuss ways of training models
50. Those who are interested in management and the use of high technology would probably choose ______.
A. Instyle. B. Self. C. Wired. D. Discover.
第三节：阅读理解 (共10小题；每小题2分, 满分20分)
(A)
It is difficult for parents of nearly every family to teach their children to be responsible for housework, but with one of the following suggestions, you really can get your children to help at home.
If you give your children the impression that they can never do anything quite right, then they will regard themselves as unfit or unable persons. Unless children believe they can succeed, they will never become totally independent.
My daughter Carla’s fifth-grade teacher made every child in her class feel special. When students received less than a perfect test score, she would point out what they had mastered and declared firmly they could learn what they had missed.
You can use the same technique when you evaluate your child’s work at home. Don’t always scold and give lots of praise instead. Talk about what he had done right, not about what he hasn’t done. If your child completes a difficult task, promise him a Sunday trip or a ball game with Dad.
Learning is a process of trying and failing and trying and succeeding. If you teach your children not to fear a mistake of failure, they will learn faster and achieve success at last.
41. The whole passage deals with ______.
A. social education B. school education
C. family education D. pre-school education
42. The author thinks that ______.
A. there is no way to get children to help at home
B. the more encouragement and praise you give, the more responsible and helpful children will become
C. it is very difficult to make children responsible for housework
D. children can be forced to help with housework
43. The article gives us a good suggestion about how to evaluate your child’s work at home. That is to ______.
A. praise his success B. promise him a trip
C. give him a punishment D. promise him a ball game
44. The author advises readers to ______.
A. learn from himself, for he has a good way of teaching
B. take pride in Carla’s fifth-grade teacher
C. do as what Carla’s teacher did in educating children
D. follow Carla’s example because she never fails in the test
45. Having read the last paragraph, we can conclude that ______.
A. pride goes before a fall B. practice makes perfect
C. no pains, no gainsD. failure is the mother of success