PLAYA GRANDE, COSTA RICA? This resort town was long known for Leatherback Sea Turtle (棱皮龟) National Park, nightly turtle beach tours and even a sea turtle museum.However, on a beach where dozens of turtles used to nest on a given night , scientists spied only 32 国leatherbac,ks all of last year.
With leatherbacks threatened with extinction (灭绝), Playa Grande's turtle museum was abandoned three years ago and now sits among a sea of weeds.And the beachside ticket office for turtle tours was washed away by a high tide in September."We do not promote that 'as a turtle tourism destination anymore because we realize there are far too few turtles to please,” said Alvaro Fonseca, a park ranger (管理员).
Even before scientists found temperatures going up over the past decade, sea turtles were threatened by beach development, drift net fishing and Costa Ricans' interest in eating turtle eggs.Btu climate change may cause the most serious harm to an animal that has lived in the Pacific for 150 million years.
Sea turtles are sensitive to numerous effects of warming.They feed on reefs, which are dying in hotter seas.They lay eggs on beaches that are being covered by rising seas and more violent waves.
More uniquely their gender (性别)is determined, not by genes but by the egg's temperature during development.Small rises in beach temperatures can result in ail-female populations, obviously problematic for survival.If the sand around the eggs hits30 degrees Celsius, the gender balance shits to females: at about 32 degrees they are all female.Above 34, you get boiled eggs.
On some nesting beaches, scientists are artificially cooling nests with shade o
r irrigation and trying to protect broader areas of coastal property from development to ensure that turtles have a place to nest as the seas rise.
Why does the resort: town stop promoting its turtle tourism?
A.It decides not to disturb the turtles' normal life. |
B.Tourists have lost interest in watching turtles. |
C.There are only very few turtles now. |
D.The turtle museum was destroyed by a high tide. |
Which of the following is the major factor in the turtles endangerment?
A.The local's eating habit. | B.Drift net fishing |
C.Beach development | D.Global warming |
We learn from the last paragraph that scientists ____.
A.are doing research on the sea rise. |
B.are moving turtles to new homes |
C.are protecting turtles' nests |
D.are getting rid of sea weeds. |
The passage intends to ____.
A.introduce a special kind of sea turtle |
B.explain the mystery of turtles' eggs |
C.show the dangers a certain kind of turtle is facing |
D.attract more visitors to a sea turtle museum |
Every year landslides (滑坡) cause 25 to 50 deaths and $1.5 billion in damage in the United States. They account for 15 percent of the deaths from natural disasters in Europe. And in December, a single event killed more than 200 people in the Philippines. Sending workers to stabilize (加固) mountainsides using steel bars and cement (水泥) can help prevent disaster, but it introduces new difficulties. Shaking drills produce harmful dust and loosen heavy, dangerous debris (岩屑). "It's quite a risky job," says Giorgio Pezzuto of D'Appolonia, an engineering company in Italy.
D'Appolonia, working with eight other companies, may have an answer: a three-ton robot called Roboclimber. "The idea is to operate a machine far away that can drill without a human being on board," says Pezzuto, manager for the project, which is supported by the European Commission. Engineers claim that the machine will be faster and cheaper than manual labor. The robot, a large radio-controlled four-legged mechanical spider, has cost at least $2 million so far. The final product should be able to climb unstable mountainsides, drill holes, insert bars and cement, and collect data on the slope's stability. Testing should begin in May.The underlined word "event"(in Paragraph 1) refers to _____.
A.landslide | B.machine | C.earthquake | D.flood |
The purpose in writing this text is _____.
A.to tell people how serious the damage caused by landslides is |
B.to tell people that sending workers to stabilize mountainsides is a risky job |
C.to introduce a product that can be used to stabilize mountainsides |
D.to show people how to use a new product |
What does the robot look like?
A.A human being. | B.A spider. | C.A truck. | D.A drill. |
The biggest advantage of this product is that _____.
A.it will be faster and cheaper than manual labor |
B.it can climb mountainsides, drill holes, insert bars and cement |
C.it can collect data on the slope's stability |
D.it can drill without a human being on board |
If you were to come up with a list of organizations whose failures had done the most damage to the American economy in recent years, you would probably have to start with the Wall Street firms that brought us the financial crisis. From there, you might move on to the automakers in Detroit.
But I would suggest that the list should also include a less obvious nominee: public education.
At its top level, the American system of higher education may be the best in the world. Yet in terms of its core mission---turning teenagers into educated college graduates--- much of the system is failing.
The United States does a good job enrolling (招生) teenagers in college, but only half of the students who enroll end up with a bachelor’s degree.
So identifying the causes of the college dropout crisis in the world’s largest economy matters enormously, and a new book called “Crossing the Finish Line” tries to do precisely that. Its authors are economists William Bowen and Michael McPherson, and a doctoral candidate Matthew Chingos. The first problem they diagnose is something they call under-matching. It refers to students who choose not to attend the best college they can get into. They instead go to a less selective one, perhaps one that is closer to home or less expensive. About half of the low-income students with a grade-point average of at least 3.5 in high school and an SAT score of at least 1,200 do not attend the best college they could have. “I was really astonished by the degree to which well-qualified students from poor families under-matched,” said Mr. Bowen.
In fact, well-off students attend the colleges that do the best job of producing graduates. Meanwhile, lower-income students -–even when they are better qualified—often go to colleges that excel(擅长)in producing drop-outs. “It’s really a waste,” Mr. Bowen said, “and a big problem for the country.” As the authors point out, the only way to lift the college graduation rate significantly is to lift it among poor and working-class students. Instead, it appears to have fallen.
What can be done? Money is clearly part of the answer. Which of the following would people first think of as a factor responsible for the American financial crisis according to this passage?
A.The government. | B.Public education |
C.The Detroit automakers. | D.The Wall Street firms. |
What is a big problem with American higher education?
A.It is hard to enroll enough students into college. |
B.Many colleges are experiencing low rate of graduation. |
C.Many college students stay away from classes. |
D.It is hard for many colleges to get financial aid from the government. |
The title of the book Crossing the Finish Line probably means______.
A.running to the end of the line | B.going to college |
C.finishing college education | D.working hard in college |
Why do some students under--match ?
A.Because they have financial difficulty. | B.Because they face ambition crisis. |
C.Because they lack confidence. | D.Because they can’t get guidance. |
The passage is mainly about _______.
A.problems with secondary American education and possible solutions |
B.America’s financial crisis, its cause and influence |
C.low rate of American college graduation, its cause and its influence |
D.relationship between American education and its economy |
In this age of Internet chat, videogames and reality television, there is no shortage of mindless activities to keep a child occupied. Yet, despite the competition, my 8-year-old daughter Rebecca wants to spend her free time writing short stories. She wants to enter one of her stories into a writing contest, a competition she won last year.
As a writer I know about winning contests, and about losing them. I know what it is like to work hard on a story only to receive a rejection slip (退稿条) from the publisher. I also know the pressures of trying to live up to a reputation created by previous victories. What if she doesn’t win the contest again? That’s the strange thing about being a parent. So many of our own past scars and ruined hopes can surface.
A revelation (启示) came last week when I asked her, “Don’t you want to win again?”
“No”, she replied, “I just want to tell the story of an angel going to first grade.”
I had just spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously (自发地) told them. Telling myself that I was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer across the hall, I offered suggestions for characters, conflicts and endings for her tales. The story about a fearful angel starting first grade was quickly “guided” by me into the tale of a little girl with a wild imagination taking her first music lesson. I had turned her contest into my contest without even realizing it.
Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks. Because I know very little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade, I had to accept the fact that I was co-opting (借用) my daughter’s experience.
While stepping back was difficult for me, it was certainly a good first step that I will quickly follow with more steps, putting myself far enough away to give her room but close enough to help if asked. All the while I will be reminding myself that children need room to experiment, grow and find their own voices.What do we learn form the first paragraph?
A.Now too many entertainments take up too much time. |
B.Children do find lots of fun in many mindless activities. |
C.Rebecca is much too occupied to enjoy her free time. |
D.Rebecca draws on a lot of online materials for her writing. |
What did the author say about her own writing experience?
A.She was constantly under pressure of writing more. |
B.Most of her stories had been rejected by publishers. |
C.She did not quite live up to her reputation as a writer. |
D.Her way to success was full of pains and frustrations. |
Why did Rebecca want to enter this year’s writing contest?
A.She had won a prize in the previous contest. |
B.She wanted to share her stories with readers. |
C.She was sure of winning with her mother’s help. |
D.She believed she possessed real talent for writing. |
What’s the author’s advice for parents?
A.Children should be given every chance to voice their opinions. |
B.Parents should keep an eye on the activities their kids engage in. |
C.Children should be allowed freedom to grow through experience. |
D.A writing career, though attractive, is not for every child to pursue. |
A study of art history might be a good way to learn more about a culture than is possible to learn in general history classes. Most typical history courses concentrate on politics, economics and war. But art history focuses on much more than this because art reflects not only the political values of a people, but also religious beliefs, emotions and psychology. In addition, information about the daily activities of our ancestors can be provided by art. In short, art expresses the essential qualities of a time and a place, and a study of it clearly offers us a deeper understanding than can be found in most history books.
In history books, objective (客观的) information about the political life of a country is presented; that is, facts about politics are given, but opinions are not expressed. Art, on the other hand, is subjective: it reflects emotions and opinions. The great Spanish painter Francisco Goya was perhaps the first truly “political” artist. In his well-known painting The Third of May, 1808, he criticized the Spanish government for its abuse of power over people.
In the same way, art can reflect a culture’s religious beliefs. For hundreds of years in Europe, religious art had been almost the only type of art that existed. Churches and other religious buildings were filled with paintings that described people and stories from the Bible. Although most people couldn’t read, they could still understand the Bible stories in the pictures on church walls. By contrast (对比), one of the main characteristics of art in the Middle East was (and still is) its absence of human and animal images. This reflects the Islamic belief that statues are not holy.Which of the following statements has the closest meaning to the underlined sentence?
A.General history only focuses on politics. |
B.Art history shows us nothing but the political values. |
C.General history concerns only religious beliefs, emotions and psychology. |
D.Art history gives us an insight (洞察力) into the essential qualities of a time and a place. |
Art is subjective in that __________.
A.it can easily arouse people’s anger about their government |
B.it only reflects people’s anger or sadness about social problems. |
C.a personal and emotional view of history is presented through it. |
D.artists were or are religious, who reflect only the religious aspect of the society. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Francisco Goya expressed his religious belief in his painting. |
B.In history books political views of people are entirely presented. |
C.For centuries in Europe, painters had only painted on walls of churches. |
D.In the Middle East, you can hardly find animal or human figures on church walls. |
What’s the main topic of the passage?
A.The development of art history. |
B.What we can learn from art. |
C.The influence of artists on art history. |
D.The difference between general history and art history. |
Amateur Performance Night
Every third Thursday of the month, aspiring(有抱负的)artists present, read or perform original or existing material, at the Amateur Performance Night -- and anyone can come and watch. So come to the Amateur Performance Night to enjoy presentations and performances on a wide variety of subjects, and practice your languages (Chinese and English) while you do!
7-9 pm, March 15
20 yuan (entrance fee includes one drink and a snack)
Room 109, 2 Dongping Road
amateur.performance.night@gmail.com
Good-Heart Sale
ENO holds a seasonal sale at discounted prices, some more than 50 percent off. When you mention SCAA (Second Chance Animal Aid), 10 percent of the sales income will be donated to the animal rescue group.
Cash only
March 10-24
In Factory, 6F, building A, 1147
Xikang Road, near Wuning Road
Free Coffee for All!
This Friday, March 16, wil be an exciting day for most coffee buyers, especially those who love Starbucks. Between 10 am and 12 noon, Starbucks will hold its second “Coffee Break” and everyone who drops by a local Starbucks outlet can get a free Tall (12-ounce) cup of coffee. The event was first held in America last year and attracted more than 500,000 people. This year the Coffee Break will spread to all Starbucks stores in the US, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia and, best of all, China.
Shanghai BookCrossing
Bring books you want to exchange, take away your next fab read. Books are mostly of English language, and include novels, thrillers, chicklit, biography, non-fiction, travel books, classics magazines, etc. Open to all, no registration necessary. Joining in is fun and FREE.
2 pm, March 17, April 21
Figaro Coffee, 160 Xingye Road
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/shanghaibxers/In which section will the text appear in the newspaper?
A.News reports. | B.Business world. |
C.Different voices. | D.Life events. |
By attending which of the events will it be likely for you to practise your English?
A.Amateur Performance Night and Shanghai Book Crossing. |
B.Amateur Performance Night and Good heart sale. |
C.Good Heart Sale and Shanghai Book Crossing. |
D.Good Heart Sale and Free Coffee for All. |
What can we infer from the passage?
A.Tickets to all the events are free. |
B.Free coffee for all will attract more Chinese than foreigners. |
C.If you want to get any information about the events, you can only surf the Internet. |
D.Both the organizers and participants of Good heart sale show concern about animals. |