The slogan “a dog is for life, not just for Christmas” has been going strong for 27 years now. Dogs and cats have been popular Christmas gifts in the gifts in the UK and Europe for many years. But some people still haven’t quite got the message.
The slogan still holds good. Some 105,000 dogs were rounded up by local government last year because they had been abandoned, many of them shortly after the festival season.
The main reason given by owners for handing their dogs over to the Dogs Trust is that the dogs need more attention than they can give; behavioral problems and moving home are also reasons given.
But Eleanor Silk, the Trust’s communications director, says, “It’s often four or five months after Christmas, in early summer, when owners find that the dog has got too big and too active, or it hasn’t been trained properly and has caused damage around the home.”
In any case, some organizations that help pets are quick to point out that if you are serious about getting a puppy(小狗) as a pet, Christmas is not the time to do it. Puppies need to get used to their new surroundings, to be introduced to a routine, and to be looked after like small children. It’s hard to meet any of these needs at Christmas. What’s more, pulling a puppy out of a Christmas stocking in itself sends the wrong message to children. It encourages children to think of the puppy as a toy, rather than a responsibility.
Appreciating what you’re taking on with a dog can be a sobering (清醒的) realization. “For life” means thinking about the effect they’ll have on your life. It also infers you will need to care for the dog for its whole life.What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Dogs and Cats—the Most Popular Christmas Gifts. |
| B．A pet is for Life, Not just for Christmas. |
| C．How to Take Care of Your Pets over Christmas. |
| D．Let’s Help Those Abandoned Pets |
According to the passage, which of the following is NOT a reason for pets to be abandoned?
| A．Pets spread some diseases. |
| B．Pets damage some things in the house. |
| C．The owners can’t take good care of the pets. |
| D．The owners have to move to other places. |
The underlined words “rounded up” in Paragraph 2 mean “________”.
| A．given out as gifts |
| B．thrown away |
| C．gathered into one place |
| D．raised to make money |
The fifth paragraph mainly tells us________.
| A．how to take best care of Christmas pets |
| B．the right time to have a puppy as a pet |
| C．the reasons why Christmas is not the time to get a pet |
| D．the worries about Christmas pets from organizations that help pets |
Why is the author against the idea of putting a dog in the Christmas stocking as a Christmas gift?
| A．Because these dogs can still cause damage. |
| B．Because children will not take dogs seriously. |
| C．Because children don’t like to have dogs as Christmas gifts. |
| D．Because a Christmas stocking is not big enough to put a dog in. |
POETRY CHALLENGE
Write a poem about how courage，determination，and strength have helped you face challenges in your life．
Prizes
3 Grand Prizes：Trip to Washington，D．C．for each of three winners，a parent and one other person of the winner's choice．Trip includes round﹣trip air tickets，hotel stay for two nights，and tours of the National Air and Space Museum and the office of National Geographic World．
6 First Prizes：The book Sky Pioneer：A Photobiography of Amelia Earhart signed by author Corinne Szabo and pilot Linda Finch．
50 Honorable Mentions：Judges will choose up to 50 honorable mention winners，who will each receive a T﹣shirt in memory of Earhart's final flight．
Rules
Follow all rules carefully to prevent disqualification．
■ Write a poem using 100 words or fewer．Your poem can be any format，any number of lines．
■ Write by hand or type on a single sheet of paper．You may use both the front and back of the paper．
■ On the same sheet of paper，write or type your name，address，telephone number，and birth date．
■ Mail your entry to us by October 31 this year．
（1）How many people can each grand prize winner take on the free trip？
| A． |
Two． |
| B． |
Three． |
| C． |
Four． |
| D． |
Six． |
（2）What will each of the honorable mention winners get？
| A． |
A plane ticket． |
| B． |
A book by Corinne Szabo． |
| C． |
A special T﹣shirt． |
| D． |
A photo of Amelia Earhart． |
（3）Which of the following will result in disqualification？
| A． |
Typing your poem out． |
| B． |
Writing a poem of 120 words． |
| C． |
Using both sides of the paper． |
| D． |
Mailing your entry on October 30． |
We are the products of evolution，and not just evolution that occurred billions of years ago．As scientists look deeper into our genes（基因），they are finding examples of human evolution in just the past few thousand years． People in Ethiopian highlands have adapted to living at high altitudes． Cattle﹣raising people in East Africa and northern Europe have gained a mutation （突变）that helps them digest milk as adults．
On Thursday in an article published in Cell，a team of researchers reported a new kind of adaptation ﹣ not to air or to food，but to the ocean．A group of sea﹣dwelling people in Southeast Asia have evolved into better divers．The Bajau，as these people are known，number in the hundreds of thousands in Indonesia，Malaysia and the Philippines．They have traditionally lived on houseboats；in recent times，they've also built houses on stilts（支柱）in coastal waters．"They are simply a stranger to the land，" said Rodney C．Jubilado，a University of Hawaii researcher who studies the Bajau．
Dr．Jubilado first met the Bajau while growing up on Samal Island in the Philippines．They made a living as divers，spearfishing or harvesting shellfish． "We were so amazed that they could stay underwater much longer than us local islanders，" Dr．Jubilado said．"I could see them actually walking under the sea．"
In 2015，Melissa Ilardo，then a graduate student in genetics at the University of Copenhagen，heard about the Bajau．She wondered if centuries of diving could have led to the evolution of physical characteristics that made the task easier for them．"It seemed like the perfect chance for natural selection to act on a population，" said Dr．Ilardo．She also said there were likely a number of other genes that help the Bajau dive．
（1）What does the author want to tell us by the examples in paragraph 1？
| A． |
Environmental adaptation of cattle raisers． |
| B． |
New knowledge of human evolution． |
| C． |
Recent findings of human origin． |
| D． |
Significance of food selection． |
（2）Where do the Bajau build their houses？
| A． |
In valleys． |
| B． |
Near rivers． |
| C． |
On the beach． |
| D． |
Off the coast． |
（3）Why was the young Jubilado astonished at the Bajau？
| A． |
They could walk on stilts all day． |
| B． |
They had a superb way of fishing． |
| C． |
They could stay long underwater． |
| D． |
They lived on both land and water． |
（4）What can be a suitable title for the text？
| A． |
Bodies Remodeled for a Life at Sea |
| B． |
Highlanders' Survival Skills |
| C． |
Basic Methods of Genetic Research |
| D． |
The World's Best Divers |
With the young unable to afford to leave home and the old at risk of isolation（孤独），more families are choosing to live together．
The doorway to peace and quiet，for Nick Bright at least，leads straight to his mother﹣in﹣law：she lives on the ground floor，while he lives upstairs with his wife and their two daughters．
Four years ago they all moved into a three﹣storey Victorian house in Bristol ﹣ one of a growing number of multigenerational families in the UK living together under the same roof．They share a front door and a washing machine，but Rita Whitehead has her own kitchen，bathroom，bedroom and living room on the ground floor．
"We floated the idea to my mum of sharing a house，" says Kathryn Whitehead．Rita cuts in："We spoke more with Nick because I think it's a big thing for Nick to live with his mother﹣in﹣law．"
And what does Nick think？ "From my standpoint，it all seems to work very well．Would I recommend it？ Yes，I think I would．"
It's hard to tell exactly how many people agree with him，but research indicates that the numbers have been rising for some time．Official reports suggest that the number of households with three generations living together had risen from 325，000 in 2001 to 419，000 in 2013．
Other varieties of multigenerational family are more common．Some people live with their elderly parents；many more adult children are returning to the family home，if they ever left．It is said that about 20% of 25﹣34﹣year﹣olds live with their parents，compared with 16% in 1991．The total number of all multigenerational households in Britain is thought to be about 1.8 million．
Stories like that are more common in parts of the world，where multigenerational living is more firmly rooted．In India，particularly outside cities，young women are expected to move in with their husband's family when they get married．
（1）Who mainly uses the ground floor in the Victorian house in Bristol？
| A． |
Nick． |
| B． |
Rita． |
| C． |
Kathryn． |
| D． |
The daughters． |
（2）What is Nick's attitude towards sharing the house with his mother﹣in﹣law？
| A． |
Positive． |
| B． |
Carefree． |
| C． |
Tolerant． |
| D． |
Unwilling． |
（3）What is the author's statement about multigenerational family based on？
| A． |
Family traditions． |
| B． |
Financial reports． |
| C． |
Published statistics． |
| D． |
Public opinions． |
（4）What is the text mainly about？
| A． |
Lifestyles in different countries． |
| B． |
Conflicts between generations． |
| C． |
A housing problem in Britain． |
| D． |
A rising trend of living in the UK． |
When "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" was first shown to the public last month，a group of excited animal activists gathered on Hollywood Boulevard．But they weren't there to throw red paint on fur﹣coat﹣wearing film stars．Instead，one activist，dressed in a full﹣body monkey suit，had arrived with a sign praising the filmmakers："Thanks for not using real apes（猿）!"
The creative team behind "Apes" used motion﹣capture（动作捕捉）technology to create digitalized animals，spending tens of millions of dollars on technology that records an actor's performance and later processes it with computer graphics to create a final image（图象）．In this case，one of a realistic﹣looking ape．
Yet "Apes" is more exception than the rule．In fact，Hollywood has been hot on live animals lately．One nonprofit organization，which monitors the treatment of animals in filmed entertainment， is keeping tabs onmore than 2，000 productions this year．Already，a number of films，including "Water for Elephants，" "The Hangover Part Ⅱ" and "Zookeeper，" have drawn the anger of activists who say the creatures acting in them haven't been treated properly．
In some cases，it's not so much the treatment of the animals on set in the studio that has activists worried；it's the off﹣set training and living conditions that are raising concerns．And there are questions about the films made outside the States，which sometimes are not monitored as closely as productions filmed in the States．
（1）Why did the animal activists gather on Hollywood Boulevard？
| A． |
To see famous film stars． |
| B． |
To oppose wearing fur coats． |
| C． |
To raise money for animal protection． |
| D． |
To express thanks to some filmmakers． |
（2）What does paragraph 2 mainly talk about？
| A． |
The cost of making "Apes．" |
| B． |
The creation of digitalized apes． |
| C． |
The publicity about "Apes．" |
| D． |
The performance of real apes． |
（3）What does the underlined phrase "keeping tabs on" in paragraph 3 probably mean？
| A． |
Listing completely． |
| B． |
Directing professionally． |
| C． |
Promoting successfully． |
| D． |
Watching carefully． |
（4）What can we infer from the last paragraph about animal actors？
| A． |
They may be badly treated． |
| B． |
They should take further training． |
| C． |
They could be traded illegally． |
| D． |
They would lose popularity． |
Journey Back in Time with Scholars
Classical Provence（13 days）
Journey through the beautiful countryside of Provence，France，with Prof．Ori Z．Soltes．We will visit some of the best﹣preserved Roman monuments in the world．Our tour also includes a chance to walk in the footsteps of Van Gogh and Gauguin．Fields of flowers，tile﹣roofed（瓦屋顶）villages and tasty meals enrich this wonderful experience．
Southern Spain（15 days）
Spain has lovely white towns and the scent（芳香）of oranges，but it is also a treasury of ancient remains including the cities left by the Greeks，Romans and Arabs．As we travel south from Madrid with Prof．Ronald Messier to historic Toledo，Roman Merida and into Andalucia，we explore historical monuments and architecture．
China's Sacred Landscapes（21 days）
Discover the China of "past ages，" its walled cities，temples and mountain scenery with Prof．Robert Thorp．Highlights（精彩之处）include China's most sacred peaks at Mount Tai and Hangzhou's rolling hills，waterways and peaceful temples．We will wander in traditional small towns and end our tour with an exceptional museum in Shanghai．
Tunisia（17 days）
Join Prof．Pedar Foss on our in﹣depth Tunisian tour．Tour highlights include the Roman city of Dougga，the underground Numidian capital at Bulla Regia，Roman Sbeitla and the remote areas around Tataouine and Matmata，unique for underground cities．Our journey takes us to picturesque Berber villages and lovely beaches．
（1）What can visitors see in both Classical Provence and Southern Spain？
| A． |
Historical monuments． |
| B． |
Fields of flowers． |
| C． |
Van Gogh's paintings． |
| D． |
Greek buildings． |
（2）Which country is Prof．Thorp most knowledgeable about？
| A． |
France． |
| B． |
Spain． |
| C． |
China． |
| D． |
Tunisia． |
（3）Which of the following highlights the Tunisian tour？
| A． |
White towns． |
| B． |
Underground cities． |
| C． |
Tile﹣roofed villages． |
| D． |
Rolling hills． |