Australia’s koalas could be wiped out within 30 years unless urgent action is taken to stop the losing in population, according to researchers They say development, climate change and bushfires have all combined to reduce the number of wild koalas sharply. The Australian Koala Foundation said a recent survey showed the population could have dropped by more than half in the past six years. Previous estimates (估计) put the number of koalas at more than 100,000, but the latest calculations (计算) suggest there could now be as few as 43,000.
The foundation collected field data from 1,800 sites and 80,000 trees to calculate the numbers. In one area in northern Queensland estimated to have 20,000 koalas a decade ago, a team of eight people could not find a single animal in four days of searching.
The foundation said besides problems caused by cutting down forests, hotter and drier conditions because of global warming had reduced the nutritional (营养的) value of their staple food, eucalyptus leaves, leading to poor nutrition for them.
Koalas, which live in the forests in Australia’s east and south, are very fussy (爱挑剔的) about what types of the leaves they eat.
Foundation chief Deborah Tabart said: “The koalas are missing everywhere we look. It’s really no tree, no me. If you keep cutting down trees you don’t have any koalas.”
She is hoping the new figures will persuade the government’s Threatened Species Steering Committee (TSSC) to list the koala as threatened. But committee chairman Bob Beeton said a decision was not likely recently and the koala’s status as one of the country’s favourite animals would not be a factor. “There’s a number of species which are attractive and people have special feelings towards them. We don’t consider that,” Mr Beeton was reported as saying by the AFP agency.The writer gives the example of the area in northern Queensland in Paragraph 3 to show that _____.
| A．the forests are being damaged heavily |
| B．the environment is being polluted seriously |
| C．the number of koalas is dropping quickly |
| D．koalas usually live in wild mountainous areas |
Global warming is an important cause of koalas’ reduction because _____.
| A．koalas can hardly stand the hot weather |
| B．koalas cannot get enough water to drink |
| C．the leaves koalas eat are losing nutritional value |
| D．the leaves koalas eat cannot grow in hot weather |
According to Bob Beeton, _____.
| A．koalas are his favourite animals |
| B．a decision will be made to protect koalas |
| C．they needn’t pay special attention to koalas |
| D．koalas needn’t be protected at all |
When I told my father that I was moving to Des Moines, Iowa, he told me about the only time he had been there. It was in the 1930s, when he was an editor if the literary magazine of Southern Methodist University（SMU）in Dallas, Texas. He also worked as a professor at SMU, and there was a girl student in his class who suffered from a serious back disease. She couldn;t afford the operation because her family was poor.
Her mother ran a boardinghouse in Galveston, a seaside town near Houston, Texas. She was cleaning out the attic（阁楼）one day when she came across an old dusty manuscript（手稿）. On its top page were the words, “By O. Henry”. It was a nice story, and she sent it to her daughter at SMU, who showed it to my father. My father had never read the story before, but it sounded like O. Henry, and he knew that O. Henry had once lived in Houston. So it was possible that the famous author had gone to the beach and stayed in the Gainestown boardinghouse, and had written the story there and left the manuscript behind by accident. My father visited an O. Henry expert at Columbia University in New York, who authenticated the story as O. Henry’s.
My father then set out to sell it. Eventfully, he foud himself in Des Moines, meeting with Gardner Cowles, a top editor at the Des Moines Register. Cowles loves the story and bought it on the spot. My father took the money to the girl. It was just enough for her to have the operation she so desperately needed.
My father never told me what the O. Henry story was about. But I doubt that it could have been better than his own story. Who found the O. Henry’s manuscript?
| A．The girl’s mother. |
| B．The author’s father. |
| C．The girl. |
| D．The author. |
Which of the following might explain the fact that the manuscript was found in the attic?
| A．O. Henry once worked in Houston. |
| B．O. Henry once stayed in Galveston. |
| C．O. Henry once moved to Des Moines. |
| D．O. Henry once taught at SMU. |
The underlined word “authenticated” in Paragraph 2 probably means __________.
| A．named |
| B．treated |
| C．proved |
| D．described |
According to the text, why did the author’s father go to Des Moines?
| A．To sell the O. Henry story. |
| B．To meet the author himself. |
| C．To talk with the O. Henry expert. |
| D．To give money to the girl. |
Samuel Osmond is a 19-year-old law student from Cornwall, England. He never studied the piano. However, he can play very difficult musical pieces by musicians such as Chopin and Beethoven just a few minutes after he hears them. He learns a piece of music by listening to it in parts. Then he thinks about the notes in his head. Two years ago, he played his first piece Moonlight Sonata（奏鸣曲）by Beethoven. He surprised everyone around him.
Amazed that he remembered this long and difficult piece of music and played it perfectly, his teachers say Samuel is unbelievable. They say his ability is very rare, but Samuel doesn’t even realize that what he can do is special. Samuel wanted to become a lawyer as it was the wish of his parents, but music teachers told him he should study music instead. Now, he studies law and music.
Samuel can’t understand why everyone is so surprised. “I grew up with music. My mother played the piano and my father played the guitar. About two years ago, I suddenly decided to start playing the piano, without being able to read music and without having any lessons. It comes easily to me ---I hear the notes and can bear them in mind---each and every note,” says Samuel.
Recently, Samuel performed a piece during a special event at his college. The piece had more than a thousand notes. The audience was impressed by his amazing performance. He is now learning a piece that is so difficult that many professional pianists can’t play it. Samuel says confidently, “It’s all about super memory---I guess I have that gift.”
However, Samuel’s ability to remember things doesn’t stop with music. His family says that even when he was a young boy, Samuel heard someone read a story, and then he could retell the story word for word.
Samuel is still only a teenager. He doesn’t know what he wants to do in the future. For now, he is just happy to play beautiful music and continue his studies. What is special about Samuel Osmond?
| A．He has a gift for writing music. |
| B．He can write down the note he hears. |
| C．He is a top student at the law school. |
| D．He can play the musical piece he hears. |
What can we learn from Paragraph 2?
| A．Samuel chose law against the wish of his parents. |
| B．Samuel planned to be a lawyer rather than a musician. |
| C．Samuel thinks of himself as a man of great musical ability. |
| D．Samuel studies law and music on the advice of his teachers. |
What can we infer about Samuel in Paragraph 4?
| A．He became famous during a special event at his college. |
| B．He is proud of his ability to remember things accurately. |
| C．He plays the piano better than many professional pianists. |
| D．He impressed the audience by playing all the musical pieces. |
Some young engineers from the United States have brought the Internet to several areas of rural Kenya. 
Their idea was to connect the communities to the Web by satellite. But there was a problem. The areas are not even connected to Kenya’s electric power supply. The answer: solar panels. Energy from the sun powers the satellite dishes (蝶形卫星天线) and computers that link the areas with the world outside.
Kelly Moran, Joan Ervin and Tricia Donajkowski spent ten days in Kenya in November. The women recently earned master’s degrees in space systems engineering from the University of Michigan.
Another engineer, Drew Heckathorn, did not go to Africa but worked on parts of the project.
Kelly Moran says there was excitement when the team would arrive to connect communities to the Internet. People would sometimes run alongside the car carrying the engineers to welcome them. And local residents would offer to help the team build the Internet stations.
People now have access to educational, medical and all kinds of other information. Farmers, for example, can easily find weather, crop and price information online.
The project began back at the college of engineering in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 2007. That was when twenty-five students in a class taught by Thomas Zurbuchen first talked about the idea.
The goal was to test whether Internet stations could be set up, how much they would cost, and how long they could operate. But the engineers also had to consider other things — like social needs. Students from the public health and business schools offered advice.
The young engineers also had to design the equipment to survive the heat in Africa. Professor Zurbuchen praises his former students for “making something work in a different climate far away from home. ”
Google paid for the final design of the equipment. The company is also supporting the costs of the satellite bandwidth needed for the connections. Google has invested in a new company that wants to put up a system of satellites over Africa. The availability of more satellites would reduce the costs.
Just five percent of Africans have Internet connections. The International Telecommunication Union says one-third of Kenyans have mobile phones. But mobile phones may or may not work well with the Internet.What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Solar energy has been used to operate the Internet. |
| B．Engineers from America help the communities in Kenya. |
| C．The Internet Stations are to be set up in some areas of rural Kenya. |
| D．The Internet plays an important part in people’s life in Kenya. |
Why did Google give the project financial support?
| A．Because it is willing to help to rid Kenya’s residents of poverty. |
| B．Because the use of satellites would benefit a lot its business in Kenya. |
| C．Because the project is one of its investments in Africa. |
| D．Because it wants to test whether its equipment is the best in the world. |
The underlined part in the ninth paragraph suggests that_____ .
| A．what Kelly and her partners to do will make a difference to the residents in Kenya |
| B．it is difficult for Kelly and her partners to build the Internet stations in Kenya |
| C．the climate in Kenya is so bad that Kelly and her partners will have difficulty in building the Internet stations |
| D．to help Kenya build the Internet stations, Kelly and her partners have to leave their homes |
From the passage we can learn that______ .
| A．the idea of building the Internet stations in Kenya was put forward by Professor Zurbuchen |
| B．the Internet stations are powered by solar energy |
| C．the project hasn’t got any support from Kenya’s government |
| D．Professor Zurbuchen is giving the project the technical direction |
I will never forget what my old headmaster told me. Normally when you are only 15 years of age you do not remember most of the things that are preached by your teachers. But, this particular story is one such lesson that I will never forget. Every time I drift off course, I get reminded of this story.
It was a normal Monday morning at an assembly, and he was addressing the students on important things in life and about committing ourselves to what is important to us.
This is how the story went:
An old man lived in a certain part of London, and he would wake up every morning and go to the subway. He would get the train right to Central London, and then sit at the street corner and beg. He would do this every single day of his life. He sat at the same street corner and begged for almost 20 years.
His house was filthy, and a stench (恶臭) came out of the house and it smelled horrible. The neighbours could not stand the smell any more, so they summoned the police officers to clear the place. The officers knocked down the door and cleaned the house. There were small bags of money all over the house that he had collected over the years.
The police counted the money, and they soon realized that the old man was a millionaire. They waited outside his house in anticipation to share the good news with him. When he arrived home that evening, he was met by one of the officers who told him that there was no need for him to beg any more as he was a rich man now, a millionaire.
He said nothing at all. he went into his house and locked the door. The next morning he woke up as usual, went to the subway, got into the train, and sat at the street corner and continued to beg.
Obviously, this old man had no great plans, dreams or anything significant for his life. We learn nothing from this story other than staying focused on the things we enjoy doing, commitment(专心，敬业). We should remain true to our course, although it may mean committing ourselves to things that people around us would normally disapprove. Just keep it in mind that commitment attracts wealth. Why did the headmaster tell us the story?
| A．To enjoy ourselves. |
| B．To teach us how to make money. |
| C．To tell us the importance of commitment. |
| D．To tell us not to look down upon beggars. |
According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?
| A．The old man made a living by begging. |
| B．The old man was excited to be a millionaire. |
| C．The old man became a millionaire by begging every weekday. |
| D．The old man planned to become a millionaire. |
Why did the police officers clean the old man’s house?
| A．Because the old man hired them to. |
| B．Because they wanted to know how much money the old man had begged. |
| C．Because the old man wanted to live comfortably. |
| D．Because the neighbours could not stand the smell coming out of the old man’s house. |
CWU
The communication union
Head of Research
Salary:￡55.271
We are looking for a Head of Research to manage the CWU Research Department and Information Centre. You would be required to exercise control of all research work of the department and manage a team of three researchers and four support staff.
The person appointed would be expected to carry out research work of a strategic nature across the range of businesses in which the CWU has or seeks membership and to contribute to the strategic thinking and direction of the union as a whole.
You will need: proven line management skills, especially in managing and motivating a team; good research skills, holding a good degree in a related subject or other similar experience; a high level of mathematical and calculating skills; the ability to produce high quality work under pressure; a commitment to and knowledge of the trade union movement and social democratic politics; and knowledge and/ or experience of the postal and/ or telecommunications industry.
To apply, please request an application pack by emailing hr@cwu.org or by telephoning HR( Human Resources ) on 020 8971 7482. When applying please state your source.
Closing Date for Applications: 4th August 2010
Anticipated interview date: 17th August 2010
No agencies pleaseIn which column of a newspaper could we find this advertisement?
| A．Arts. |
| B．Sales. |
| C．Jobs. |
| D．News. |
One of the duties of the person to be appointed is .
| A．taking charge of research work. |
| B．seeking membership for the trade union. |
| C．managing a team of three or four members. |
| D．running a telecommunications company. |
If you want to apply for this position, you can do all EXCEPT .
| A．ask an agency for an application form. |
| B．dial 020 8971 7482 for more information. |
| C．email hr@cwu.org for an application pack. |
| D．send in your application before 4th August 2010 |
Which of the following applicants is most likely to be employed?
| A．A school teacher with a master’s degree. |
| B．A university graduate majoring in computer science. |
| C．A director from a research centre with a master’s degree. |
| D．A clerk from a telecommunications company. |