Japan will hand out its first “Nobel Prize of Manga (国际漫画奖)” for artists in the comic book field abroad. This i
s another step in Japan’s efforts to show the power of pop culture diplomacy.
The International Manga Award, which was compared by manga lover Foreign Minister Taro Aso to a “Nobel Prize” when he first proposed it, will be given to an artist working abroad whose work best contributes to the spread of the manga form worldwide.
Manga, a name used for Japanese style comic books, often combines stories with drawing styles that differ from the overseas superhero comics and cartoon, particularly in their frequent emphasis on cuteness.
The winner will receive a certificate and a cup at an award ceremony, and will spend 10 days in Japan meeting with local comic book artists and publishers.
“Manga has been spreading overseas and are selling quite well,” Aso said when announcing the award to the public. “I want to further improve the communicative power of these so-called ‘pieces of pop culture’.”
Aso has argued that warm feelings for Japanese comics and cartoon can translate into warm feelings for Japanese foreign policy.
He has proposed sending cartoon artists overseas as cultural ambassadors and the government has named some officials to advise ways to promote Japanese cartoon and culture to foreign audiences.
The award committee, consisting of manga artists and publishers, is expected to make its selections quite soon.
According to a ministry official Nobuyuki Watanabe, the prize carries no money reward. The cup’s design has yet to be finished, but it will be something “appropriate”. The International Manga Award will be presented to ____________.
| A．a Japanese who has achieved a lot in creating new methods of drawing |
| B．an artist who makes contributions to introducing manga to the other foreign countries |
| C．the person who is expert at comics and cartoon |
| D．a foreign artist who has contributed to the development of manga |
Which statement is NOT true about manga?
| A．Manga is different from the overseas comic books. |
| B．Manga is popular not only in Japan but also overseas. |
| C．Manga refers to international comics and cartoon. |
| D．There are stories and pictures in manga. |
What has the Japanese government done to show its support?
| A．To propose “Nobel Prize of Manga”. |
| B．To name officials to advise ways of spreading manga overseas. |
| C．To hand out its first “Nobel Prize of Manga”. |
| D．To send cartoon artists overseas as cultural ambassadors. |
The passage is mainly about ____________.
A．Nobel Prize of Mang a |
B．the characteristics of manga |
| C．a brief introduction of manga | D．the development of manga |
With only about 1,000 pandas left in the world, China is desperately trying to clone the animal and save the endangered species. That’s more 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) and DNA of endangered 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 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 (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.”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 |
How long will the Chinese panda cloning project take according to the passage?
| A．1 Year. | B．3 to 5 years. | C．2 years. | D．25 years. |
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 |
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 species will probably die out in a century |
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 |
Two American scientists told the people in industrial nations that they would be much healthier if they ate more of the same kind of food eaten by humans living more than 10,000 years ago.
The scientists say that the human body has changed very little since human first appeared on earth, but the way we live has changed greatly. Our body has not been able to deal with these changes in life style and this has led to new kinds of sicknesses. These new sicknesses were not known in ancient times. So they are called “diseases of civilization”. Many cancers and diseases of the blood system, including heart attacks and strokes ( 中风 ) are examples of such diseases.
Scientists noted that early stone-age people used very little alcohol ( 酒精 ) or tobacco, probably none. Ancient people also got a great deal of physical exercise, but a change in food is one of the main differences between life in ancient times and life today.
Stone Age people hunted wild animals for their meat, which had much less fat than farm animals. They also ate a lot of fresh wild vegetables, and fruits. They did not use milk and other dairy products, and they made a very little use of grains. But today, we eat a large amount of dairy products and grain foods. We eat six times more salt than stone-age people. We eat more sugar. We eat twice as much fat but only one third as much protein and much less Vitamin C.
People today probably do not want to live as people thousands of years ago did, but scientists say that we would be much healthier if we ate as those ancient people did, cutting the amount of fatty, salty and sweet foods.The people in industrial nations would be much healthier if they ate _____.
| A．more food as humans living 10,000 years ago did |
| B．as humans living 10,000 years ago |
| C．more kinds of food eaten by people living 10,000 years ago |
| D．more of the same kind of food eaten by people over 10,000 years ago |
New kinds of sicknesses have been found because _____.
| A．the human body has changed compared with human first appearing on earth |
| B．the way we live has changed a little |
| C．our body can’t deal with the changes in life style |
| D．the way we live today is proper for the human body |
What is the main cause mentioned in the article why people suffer from a lot of new sicknesses?
| A．Ancient people did a great deal of physical exercise. |
| B．People today have a lot of alcohol. |
| C．People today have more tobacco. |
| D．Food is quite different between life today and life in ancient times. |
Stone-age people were much healthier than people today because they ate a lot of _____.
| A．milk and other dairy products |
| B．grain foods and farm animals |
| C．salt and sugar |
| D．wild animals, fresh wild vegetables and fruits |
From this article, we know that the following choices are good to our health except _____.
| A．protein and Vitamin C |
| B．milk and grain foods |
| C．wild animals, vegetables and fruits |
| D．a huge amount of fatty, salty and sweet foods |
Driving to a friend’s house on a recent evening, I was attracted by the sight of the full moon rising just above my friend’s rooftops. I stopped to watch it for a few moments, thinking about what a pity it was that most city people, I myself included, usually miss sights like this because we spend most of our lives indoors.
My friend had also seen it. He grew up living in a forest in Europe, and the moon meant a lot to him then. It had touched much of his life.
I know the feeling. Last December I took my seven-year-old daughter to the mountain jungle of northern India with some friends. We stayed in a forest rest-house with no electricity or running hot water. Our group had campfires outside every night, and indoors when it was too cold outside. The moon grew to its fullest during our trip. Between me and the high mountains lay three or four valleys. Not a light shone in them and not a sound could be heard. It was one of the quietest places I have ever known, a bottomless well silence. And above me was the full moon, which struck me deeply.
Today our lives are filled with glass, metal, plastic and fibreglass. We have televisions, cell phones, papers, electricity, heaters and ovens and air-conditioners, cars, computers.
Struggling through traffic that evening at the end of a tiring day, most of it spent indoors, I thought: before long, I would like to live in a small cottage. There I will grow vegetables and read books and walk in the mountains and perhaps write, but not in anger. I may become an old man there, and measure out my life in coffee spoons. But I will be able to walk outside on a cold silent night and touch the moon.The best title for the passage would be __________.
| A．Touched by the moon |
| B．The pleasures of modern life |
| C．A bottomless well of silence |
| D．Break away from modern life |
The writer felt sorry for himself because ___________.
| A．there was too much pollution |
| B．he usually failed to see the fullest moon |
| C．he didn’t get used to modern inventions |
| D．there were many accidents on the road |
What impressed the writer most in the mountain jungle of northern India?
| A．No modern equipment. |
| B．Complete silence. |
| C．The nice moonlight. |
| D．The high mountains. |
Modern things (Paragraph 4) are mentioned mainly to ________.
| A．show that the writer likes city life very much |
| B．tell us that people greatly benefit from modern life |
| C．explain that people have less chances to enjoy nature |
| D．show that we can also enjoy nature at home through them |
The author wrote the passage to __________.
| A．express the feeling of returning to nature |
| B．show the love for the moonlight |
| C．advise modern people to learn to live |
| D．want to communicate the longing for modern life |
The Yungang Grottoes(石窟) is facing a life or death situation. The Website efaw.cn reported that Yungang Grottoes, located on the southern foot of Wuzhou Hill, 16 kilometers west of Datong in Shanxi Province, has been severely damaged by human activities and natural influences. “If we do not take action, the grottoes will be gone forever,” a researcher from the Yungang Grottoes Research Institute said.
The grotto complex(联合体) is composed of more than 51,000 Buddhist statues, ranging from 3 centimeters to 17 meters in height. Most of them were constructed during the Wei Dynasty in the mid-fifth century.
“Water penetration(渗透) is a major natural destroyer of the grottoes”, said Director Yuan Jinghu. With the downpours directly washing their bodies, and the accumulated(积聚的) water eating out their basements, the statues suffer the most in July, August and September, when large quantities of rainfall hit the region.
But weather is not the only source of the damage. Datong, the city where the statues sit, is a longtime industrial city famous for its coal production. The floating coal dust, mixed with the sulfur dioxide(二氧化硫) produced from coal burning, is another murder. Although the government has spent over one hundred million yuan for the construction of a new coal transport route far from the Yungang Grottoes and a large annual sum to maintain the grottoes, there is still another threat, in the form of increasing numbers of tourists.
“Besides the intentional damages, such as littering and touching or improper climbing, the carbon dioxide that humans breathe out is also harmful to the statues,” the director said. Yuan is concerned for the future of the statues, and said that as humans, visitors should understand and respect the statues’ importance. The statues have lives like human beings, and if we protect them, they will live. If not, they will die, and later generations will never have the chance to take a look at such glorious art.
The text is mainly about ________.
| A．the history of Yungang Grottoes |
| B．the ways to protect Yungang Grottoes |
| C．the situation of Yungang Grottoes |
| D．the importance of Yungang Grottoes |
How many causes of the damage to Yungang Grottoes are mentioned in the text?
| A．2 | B．3 | C．4 | D．5 |
All of the following may contribute to the damage of Yungang Grottoes EXCEPT______.
| A．touching too much | B．throwing rubbish there |
| C．improper climbing | D．taking photos of the statues |
What can be inferred from this text?
| A．Many people want to destroy the grottoes in Yungang completely. |
| B．The government has taken measures to protect Yungang Grottoes. |
| C．The grottoes in Yungang will disappear forever on the earth soon. |
| D．No people will be allowed to visit Yungang Grottoes in the future. |
Which of the following statements would the writer probably agree with?
| A．The tallest Buddihist statue in Yungang Grottoes is 17 meters high. |
| B．All the statues in Yungang Grottoes were built in the Wei Dynasty. |
| C．The statues will suffer the most in winter because of coal production. |
| D．There are at most 51,000 Buddhist statues in all in Yungang Grottoes. |
Few people would question the value of taking part in sportsfor young people. With proper training, supervision, protectiveequipment and techniques, and a proper emphasis on winning, sports can develop a healthy body and spirit and a life-long interestin being active and fit. Without such measures, childhood sports canlead to injuries and even paralysis or death.
Even in the best conditions, no activity can be risk-free. Butmost serioushazardsare preventable. Cyclists and football playerscan reduce their risks by wearing helmets ； hockey players by wearing masks ； basketball and tennis players by wearing eye guards ；baseball players by wearing batting helmets.
Besides, risks to individual players can often be found, andthus prevented, through a properly performed medical exam before achild plays. For accidents that may not be preventable, having anemergency plan and first-aid equipment, and someone trained to usethe equipment, can be lifesaving.
Still, each year, according to the American College of SportsMedicine, more than 775，000 children under 14 are treated inemergency rooms for sports injuries, nearly half of them preventable. An estimated 300，000 athletes experience exercise-relatedhead illnesses each year, and almost all of them should have been avoided.
Further, from half to three-fourths of sports-related concussions(脑震荡）are never even diagnosed ；the injured are often sent backto play too soon and put at risk of another more serious brain-damaging concussion. To help reduce these risks, the National Center forSports Safety, with the National Athletic Trainers' Association, offersa three-hour online safety course for coaches for 28 at www. SportsSafety.org. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．All the accidents can be prevented. |
| B．All the accidents cannot be prevented. |
| C．Lives can be saved so long as there is proper equipment. |
| D．Lives cannot be saved even if there is proper equipment. |
What does the underlined word "hazards " (in Paragraph 2 )mean?
| A．Mistakes. | B．Diseases. |
| C．Dangers. | D．Situations. |
It is implied in the passage that __________.
| A．prevention of injuries is not paid enough attention to |
| B．children under 14 are more easily hurt in sports |
| C．most head illnesses are related with exercise |
| D．none of the head illnesses should have happened |
What can coaches mainly learn from the online safety course?
| A．How to cure brain-damaging concussion. |
| B．How to diagnose brain-damaging concussion. |
| C．How to predict the possibility of brain damage. |
| D．How to deal with the injured properly. |