With only about 1,000 pandas left in the world, China is desperately trying to clone the animal and save these in a dangerous situation. That's a move similar to what a Texas A & M University researchers have been undertaking 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 these animals and storing them in liquid nitrogen. 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 and reptiles will probably 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 the embryo into a host animal.
The entire procedure could take from three to five years to complete.
"The nuclear transfer of one species to another is not easy, but the lack of available 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. The cooperation between us is very much needed."
67. The final 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
68. According to Professor Kraemer, ___________.
A. the long time lasting cloning research could be successful.
B. the eggs transfers immediately result in having a baby.
C. the lack of nuclear transfer could be a major problem to have new pandas.
D. if species should die out, basic building blocks would heal them.
69. The best title for the passage may be______________.
A. China's Success in Pandas Cloning
B. Helping Ways to Avoid Extinction
C. Exploring the Possibility to Clone Pandas
D. The Practice in Noah's Ark
70. From the passage we know that______________.
A. Kraemer and his team have succeeded in cloning a panda
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 species are to die out in a century
BRITAIN is a popular tourist place. But tours of the country have pros and cons.
Good news
Free museums: No charge for outstanding collections of art and antiquities(古董).
Pop music: Britain is the only country to rival(与……比敌)the US on this score.
Black cabs: London taxi drivers know where they are going even if there are never enough of them at weekends or night.
Choice of food: Visitors can find everything from Ethiopian to Swedish restaurants.
Fashion: Not only do fashion junkies love deeply and respect highly brand names such as Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen; street styles are justly loved, too.
Bad news
Poor service: “It’s part of the image of the place. People can dine out on the rudeness they have experienced,” says Professor Tony Seaton of Luton University’s International Tourism Research Center.
Poor public transport: Trains and buses are promised to defeat the keenest tourists, although the over-crowded London tube is inexplicably(不可解的) popular.
Lack of language: Speaking slowly and clearly may not get many foreign visitors very far, even in the tourist traps.
Rain: Still in the number one complaint.
No air-conditioning: So that even splendidly hot summer become as unbearable as the downpours.
Overpriced hotels: The only European country with a higher rate of tax on hotel rooms is Denmark.
Licensing hours: Alcohol is in short supply after 11 p.m. even in 24-hour cities.What do we learn about pop music in Britain and the US through this passage?
A.Pop music in Britain is better than that in the US. |
B.Pop music in Britain is as good as that in the US. |
C.Pop music in Br![]() |
D.Pop music in Britain is quite different from that in the US. |
When is alcohol not able to get?
A.At 9:00p.m. | B.At 10:00p.m | C.At 11:00p.m. | D.At 12:00p.m. |
Which of the following is true
according to the passage?
A.You have to pay to visit the museums. | B.It’s very cheap to travel by taxi there. |
C.You cannot find Chinese food there. | D.The public transport is poor there. |
Harry’s father bought a magazine which gave its readers information about all kinds of products and helped them make the best choice while buying.
Harry borrowed his father’s magazine when he needed a new computer. “I’ll read it and choose the best one.” He said.
The magazine described these computers.
The DGT PC450 |
The BNK 975XF: AT $3,200 |
The CGP 8PT |
![]() This computer comes with lots of good software. However it does not have much memory and is rather slow. At $2,850 it’s not very good value for money. |
![]() This is the most expensive computer we tested. However it is also the most reliable (可靠的). It is very fast and has lots of memory. It is worth the extra money if you can afford it. |
![]() At only $1,900. It has lots of memory and is quite fast. However it broke down twice while we were testing it and we cannot recommend (建议) it for reliability. |
Harry chose the BNK 975XF. “I know it’s expensive,” he said, “but it will be with me for a long time and do everything I want it to do.” Harry wants to buy a computer, so he borrowed ___________ from his father.
A.a magazine about all kinds of products | B.a computer magazine |
C.a shopping book | D.a book about all kinds of computers |
____________ doesn’t have much memory and is rather slow.
A.The BNK 975XF | B.The DGT PC450 |
C.The CGP 8PT | D.Harry’s computer |
The CGP 8PT is _____________ among the three kinds of computers.
A.the fastest | B.the most expensive | C.the cheapest | D.the slowest |
Harry chose the BNK 975XF because _________.
A.it is the most expensive | B.it has lots of good software |
C.it has much memory | D.it would work for him for a long time |
Islamabad, Pakistan, June 22nd---Two mountain climbers surprisingly survived (幸免于) a fall of over 500 feet on the 25,530-foot mountain in Pakistan, Saturday. The two climbers were climbing an ice-covered wall of the mountain when they suddenly lost their footing and fell about 560 feet to a narrow snow-covered ledge(悬崖突出部分) below. “We were lucky that ledge was there,” said the climbers, “Otherwise, we would have fallen over 2,000 feet.” If the ledge had not been there, the two climbers almost certainly have met their death. “It’s a wonder,” the climbers said, “that we landed on the ledge, and the snow was loose enough to cushion(缓冲) our fall. We’re thankful that we survived.”
When a reporter asked them if they planned to give up mountain climbing after their narrow escape(九死一生), the two climbers replied, “Not at all. We’ll be going back up there just as soon as we get out of the hospital.”
The mountain climbers survived because _____.
A.they had fallen only 500 feet down | B.of the ledge and the loose snow on it |
C.of their strong bodies | D.they were very good climbers |
If there had not been
the snow-covered ledge, _____.
A.they wouldn’t have fallen down | B.they would have them wounded |
C.they would have lost their lives | D.they would fall into the deep snow |
How high was the ledge from the foot of the mountain?
A.2,560 feet high | B.2,000 feet high |
C.25,530 feet high | D.More than 1,400 feet high |
Choose the right order which shows what happened to the two climbers.
a. talked with a reporter b. lost their footing
c. was sent to a hospital d. fell to a ledge
e. started to climb an ice-covered wall
A.b-d-c-e-a | B.e-d-b-c-a | C.e-b-d-c-a | D.a-c-b-d-e |
Bats are the only mammals(哺乳动物) which can fly properly. Other flying mammals have wings of thin skin which cover their sides between their front and back legs. They can only fly from tree to tree, but they cannot change direction when they want to.
All bats fly at night and most of them hunt for flying insects(昆虫), such as bees. The common bat finds its food by making a constant noise that the human ear cannot
hear. The bat listens for echoes(回声) of the noise as it bounces(反射) off the insects showing the bat their position.
The Fruit bat feeds on many different kinds of fruit. It does not use echoes but instead has very large, special eyes to see even in low light. The largest Fruit bat has a wing length of 0.75 meters. The Vampire bat drinks the blood of large mammals, and a few bats catch fish, birds and even other bats. Some flying mammals are not real flyers because _____.
A.they do not have wings | B.their wings are too thin |
C.they have skin between their legs | D.they cannot turn around in the air |
When common bats hunt for food they _____.
A.use echoes to kill the insects | B.make a noise to draw insects to them |
C.produce a sound and listen to the echoes | D.listen noise made by the insects |
Unlike other bats, the Fruit bat _____.
A.can see very well | B.eats fruit and fish |
C.has very long wi![]() |
D.has excellent hearings |
The word "it" in the second paragraph refers to ____
_.
A.the bat | B.the echo | C.the noise | D.the insect |
You may know the English letters A, B and C. But do you know there are people called ABC? You may like eating bananas. But did you know there is a “banana person”? How strange! Are these people from “another Earth”? No. They are just Chinese people like you and me.
ABC means American-Born Chinese. An ABC is a Chinese, but was born in the United States. S
ometimes, people call an ABC a “banana person”. A banana is yellow outside and white inside. So, when a person is a banana, he or she is white inside—thinking like a Westerner and yellow outside—looking like a Chinese.
Do you know why? Usually, ABCs know little about China or the Chinese language. Some of them don’t speak Chinese.
But if ABCs cannot speak Chinese, can we still call them Chinese people? Yes, of course. They are Chinese. They are overseas Chinese. These people may be citizens(公民) of another country like the US, Canada or Singapore. But they have Chinese blood. Their parents, grandparents or even great-grandparents were from China. They all have black eyes and black hair.
But they are not Chinese citizens. They are not the people of the People’s Republic of China. For example, we all know the famous scientist C.N. Yang(杨振宁). He got the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1957. The Chinese love him, but he is an American citizen.What’s the author’s purpose in writing this passage?
A.He wants to tell us something about “ABC”. |
B.He wants to show that Chinese are well respected in America. |
C.He wants to tell us some knowledge about the English language. |
D.He wants to introduce the American culture to us. |
Chinese in Western countries are called “banana persons” because ____.
A.their bodies are white inside but yellow outside |
B.they think like Westerners but look like Chinese |
C.they were born in China but go to study in America |
D.they like to eat bananas |
C.N. Yang is mentioned here to show that ____.
A. American Chinese are great. B. we love American Chinese
C. The Chinese can win Nobel Prizes D. American Chinese are not Chinese citizens