This is the SCIENCE IN THE NEWS, I’m Barbara Klein.
Animal experts say one of the world’s most beautiful and rare kinds of big cat is close to disappearing from the wild. A study earlier this year found that about thirty Amur leopards(豹) still live free. The cats are also called Far Eastern leopards.
Recently, their numbers have been reduced by one. Some person shot a female Amur, then beat her to death. The animal’s body was discovered last month in the Barsovy National Wildlife Refuge in eastern Russia.
An official of the World Wildlife Fund, Darron, said this was the third such killing in the area in the past fives years. Mr. Collins said the death of even one adult female is a huge loss for the endangered cat. He noted that the killing reduces the possibility for cubs(幼兽) or young.
It is not clear how many Amur leopards still live free. One population count was performed in February and March. Wildlife expert Dmitry Pikuuov led this study. It found evidence of seven to nine males. The study identified(确定) three to seven females without cubs. Four leopards were identified as females with cubs. In all, five or six cubs were recorded. Six to eight animals could not be identified.
Most of the land where the Amur leopard once lived was in China. New roads and climate change there threatened(威胁) the animals. So did hunters who kill big cats for their body parts.
Mr. Pikuuov says adult Amurs need about five hundred square kilometers with good forests to survive. He said they also need a large and continuing supply of animals like deer for food. He believes the answer to saving the Amur leopard is for governments to provide protected spaces for wildlife. This passage is probably from____________.
| A．a magazine | B．a newspaper report | C．a TV report | D．a film |
Why is the killing of an adult female a huge loss?
| A．It could lead to the death of an adult male. |
| B．It means it can not give birth to the young any more. |
| C．It is worth more money than a male. |
| D．There is only one adult female in the world. |
The number of the Amur leopards in China is becoming smaller because of all the following EXCEPT
| A．new roads | B．climate change | C．human hunting | D．rare diseases |
According to the experts the Amur leopards ____________.
| A．are living on plants | B．are living in the zoo |
| C．are well protected by people | D．are endangered |
A quick look at an e-reader
New, High-Contrast（高对比度） E-Ink Screen
50% better contrast than any other e-reader. The clearest text and sharpest images.
Read in Bright Sunlight
Unlike LCD screens, its screen reads like real paper, with no glare. Read as easily in bright sunlight as in your living room.
Lighter Than a Paperback
Weighing only 8.5 ounces and 1/3 of an inch thick, it is lighter than a paperback and thinner than a magazine.
Holds 3,500 Books
We doubled its storage so you can carry up to 3,500 books.
Battery Life of Up to One Month
A single charge lasts up to one month with wireless off. Keeping wireless always on, it can go for up to three weeks without recharging.
Books in 60 Seconds
With fast, free wireless delivery, you can start reading books in less than 60 seconds. No computer required.
______
Over 670,000 books, including 107 of 111 New York Times Best Sellers, plus audiobooks, periodicals and blogs. For non-U.S. customers, content availability varies.
Free, Out-of-Copyright Books
Over 1.8 million free, out-of-copyright, pre-1923 books are available such as Pride and Prejudice.
Low Book Prices
Over 550,000 books are $9.99 or less, including 73 New York Times Best Sellers of the present time.
Free Book Samples (样品)
Download and read first chapters for free before you decide to buy.If you want to use the e-reader longer, you should ______.
| A．charge it frequently | B．keep wireless off |
| C．use it in bright sunlight | D．read in a quiet room |
Which of the following can best fill in the blank in the text?
| A．Large selection. | B．Excellent service. |
| C．Reasonable prices. | D．Interesting content. |
What is this text，mainly about?
| A．What an e-reader is. |
| B．Who needs an e-reader. |
| C．How to use an e-reader. |
| D．The advantages of an e-reader. |
Mom noticed that something was wrong when I started getting so thirsty. I’d have a lot to drink before bed, which was unusual for me. One time, I opened a big container of apple juice and kept refilling my glass. Before I knew it, I’d drunk the entire container! My mom called my doctor. I then had a few blood tests, and the results were certain — I had diabetes (糖尿病), which meant that the amount of sugar in my blood was very high. That can be dangerous, so I had to learn how to control my blood-sugar level.
My eating habits had to change in a big way. With diabetes, I can’t eat a lot of sugar or carbohydrates (碳水化合物). I have to figure out exactly how much sugar I plan to eat, and then I get an injection of insulin (注射胰岛素) before the meal to help my body process the food. Also, I test my blood-sugar level often. I’m always trying to keep my blood sugar at a healthy level. The level can drop when I exercise, but that doesn’t keep me out of gym class or off the basketball court — I just keep some juice boxes around to boost my blood sugar if I need to.
It’s a lot of work — and not a lot of fun — to keep track of everything, but I’ve gotten used to my new habits. I was a little scared at first because I wasn’t sure how my life would change. Once I knew what I needed to do, though, it wasn’t a big deal. My life is different now from what it was before, but it has become completely regular to me. The first paragraph is mainly about _____.
| A．who found the author had diabetes |
| B．the author’s life before having diabetes |
| C．how the author was found to have diabetes |
| D．the author’s eating habits before having diabetes |
What did the author do after knowing she had diabetes?
| A．She stopped playing basketball in the gym. |
| B．She controlled her blood-sugar level strictly. |
| C．She stopped eating food with natural sugar. |
| D．She tested her blood-sugar level before every meal. |
What does the underlined word “boost” in Paragraph 2 mean?
| A．Increase. | B．Control. | C．Absorb. | D．Test. |
What’s the author’s attitude toward her having diabetes now?
| A．Worried. | B．Frightened. | C．Pessimistic. | D．Positive. |
Professor Barry Wellman of the University of Toronto in Canada has invented a term to describe the way many North Americans interact(互动)these days. The term is “networked individualism”. This concept is not easy to understand because the words seem to have opposite meanings. How can we be individuals(个体)and be networked at the same time? You need other people for networks.
Here is what Professor Wellman means. Before the invention of the Internet and e-mail, our social networks included live interactions with relatives, neighbors, and friends. Some of the interaction was by phone, but it was still voice to voice, person to person, in real time.
A recent research study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project showed that for a lot of people, electronic interaction through the computer has replaced this person-to-person interaction. However, a lot of people interviewed for the Pew study say that’s a good thing. Why?
In the past, many people were worried that the internet isolated(孤立)us and caused us to spend too much time in the imaginary world of the computer. But the Pew study discovered that the opposite is true. The Internet connects us with more real people than expected—helpful people who can give advice on careers, medical problems, raising children, and choosing a school or college. About 60 million Americans told Pew that the Internet plays an important role in helping them make major life decisions.
Thanks to the computer, we are able to be alone an together with other people—at the same time!The underlined phrase “networked individualism” probably means that by using computers people.
| A．stick to their own ways no matter what other people say |
| B．have the rights and freedom to do things of their own interest |
| C．do things in their own ways and express opinions different from other people |
| D．are able to keep to themselves but at the same time reach out to other people |
According to the Pew study, what do many people rely on to make major life decisions?
| A．Networks. | B．Friends. | C．Phones. | D．Parents. |
It can be inferred from the Pew study that.
| A．people have been separated from each other by using computers |
| B．the Internet makes people waste a lot of time and feel very lonely |
| C．the Internet has become a new tool for a new kind of social communication |
| D．a lot of people regard the person-to-person communication as a good thing |
Which would be the best title for this passage?
| A．We’re Alone on the Internet |
| B．We’re Communicating on the Internet |
| C．We’re Alone Together on the Internet |
| D．We’re in the Imaginary World of the Internet. |
One of our biggest fears nowadays is that our kids might some day get lost in a “sea of technology” rather than experiencing the natural world. Fear-producing TV and computer games are leading to a serious disconnect between kids and the great outdoors, which will change the wild places of the world, its creatures and human health for the worse, unless adults get working on child’s play.
Each of us has a place in nature we go sometimes, even if it was torn down. We cannot be the last generation to have that place. At this rate, kids who miss the sense of wonder outdoors will not grow up to be protectors of natural landscapes. “If the decline in parks use continues across North America, who will defend parks against encroachment (蚕食)?” asks Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods.
Without having a nature experience, kids, can turn out just fine, but they are missing out a huge enrichment of their lives. That applies to everything from their physical health and mental health to stress levels, creativity and cognitive (认知的) skills. Experts predict modern kids will have poorer health than their parents—and they say a lack of outside play is surely part of it; research suggests that kids do better academically in schools with a nature component and that play in nature fosters (培养) leadership by the smartest, not by the toughest. Even a tiny outdoor experience can create wonder in a child. The three-year-old turning over his first rock realizes he is not alone in the world. A clump of trees on the roadside can be the whole universe in his eyes. We really need to value that more.
Kids are not to blame. They are over-protected and frightened. It is dangerous out there from time to time, but repetitive stress from computers is replacing breaking an arm as a childhood rite（仪式）of passage.
Everyone, from developers to schools and outdoor citizens, should help regain for our kids some of the freedom and joy of exploring, taking friendship in fields and woods that cement (增强) love, respect and need for landscape. As parents, we should devote some of our energies to taking our kids into nature. This could yet be our greatest cause.The main idea of Paragraph 2 is that __________.
| A．kids missiiiu the sense of wonder outdoors |
| B．parks are in danger of being gradually encroached |
| C．Richard Louv is the author of Last Child in the Woods |
| D．children are expected to develop into protectors of nature |
According to the passage, children without experiencing nature will _________.
| A．keep a high sense of wonder |
| B．be over-protected by their parents |
| C．be less healthy both physically and mentally |
| D．change wild places and creatures for the better |
According to the author, children’s breaking an arm is ___________.
| A．the fault on the part of their parents |
| B．the natural experience in their growing up |
| C．the result of their own carelessness in play |
| D．the effect of their repetitive stress from computers |
In writing this passage, the author mainly intends to ________.
| A．blame children for getting lost in computer games |
| B．encourage children to protect parks from encroachment |
| C．show his concern about children’s lack of experience in nature |
| D．inspire children to keep the sense of wonder about things around |
There are three separate sources of danger in supplying energy by nuclear power.
First, the radioactive material must travel from its form of production to the power station. Although the power stations themselves are strongly built, the containers used for the transport of the materials are not. Normally, only two methods of transport are in use, namely road or rail. Unfortunately, both of these may have an effect on the general public, since they are sure to pass near, or even though, heavily populated areas.
Secondly, there is the problem of waste. All nuclear power stations produce waste that in most cases will remain radioactive for thousands of years. It is impossible to make these waste radioactive, and so they must be stored in one of the inconvenient ways that scientists have invented. For example, they may be buried under the ground, or dropped into deserted mines, or sunk in the sea. However, these methods do not solve the problem, since an earthquake could easily break the containers.
Third, there may occur the danger of a leak or an explosion at the power station. As with the other two dangers, this is not very likely, so it does not provide a serious objection to the nuclear program. However, it can happen.
Separately, these three types of dangers are not a great cause for worry. Taken together, though, the probability of disaster is extremely high.Which of the following is FALSE ?
| A．It is possible that a leak or an explosion occurs at a power station. |
| B．It is unusual for radioactive materials to be transported across land. |
| C．The containers are likely to be broken by an earthquake. |
| D．Nuclear wastes remain dangerous in most cases for many years. |
The author thinks that the ways to store nuclear wastes are ____________.
| A．easy | B．impossible | C．reasonable | D．ineffective |
What do we learn from the last paragraph ?
| A．The power station is a safe place. |
| B．The dangers of nuclear energy can be prepared. |
| C．The general public are strongly against the nuclear program. |
| D．Itself, none of the three dangers is very likely to cause much worry. |
What is this passage mainly about ?
| A．uses of nuclear power |
| B．Dangers from nuclear power |
| C．Public anger at nuclear power |
| D．Accidents caused by nuclear power. |