The mangrove tree might not look very impressive, but it is an essential part of our ecosystem. However, more than half of the mangrove forests have been destroyed in the past century. Several World Heritage Sites have been listed largely because of their mangrove ecosystems. Among them are the Sundarbans across India and Bangladesh, the Everglades National Park in the US, and the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
Being a World Heritage Site requires for the mangroves to be protected. However, one country in Asia has gone further by having a five-year program to protect and conserve all their mangroves. They even have a mangrove museum and observe World Mangrove Day. This country is Sri Lanka. Why are mangrove trees so important to Sri Lanka and to other countries where mangroves grow?
The mangrove tree grows along coastal saltwater shorelines. They have adapted to the harsh coastal weather and have deep roots. This means that they are strong and cannot be easily removed. In countries where natural disasters such as tsunamis and cyclones occur, the forests provide protection. The villages in Sri Lanka with full mangrove forests have suffered less damage when hit by these natural disasters. The reason is that the mangroves break up the force and strength of the waves.
The mangroves also quickly absorb carbon dioxide and send oxygen into the atmosphere. This makes them an important part of the fight against climate change. They absorb far more carbon dioxide than other types of forest, and store it in their structure and even in the soil. This is important as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is believed to be a cause of detrimental changes in the weather, such as global warming.
The strong roots also provide protection for young fish as they grow. With the oceans around the world being overfished, it is important to maintain the ecological balance in the oceans. For Sri Lanka, one of the threats to the mangrove forests is the shrimp farms being set up. To build saltwater ponds for the shrimps, the mangroves are cut down. This has resulted in fewer fish surviving among the mangrove roots and fewer fish being caught by the fishermen. The local fishing communities noticed that they were losing money and it made them aware of how important the mangroves were. They are now helping to conserve the forests.
Sri Lanka is showing that a nation can preserve all of its mangroves. The conservation model they have can be used by other countries. It might take many years of planning, but the benefits of saving mangroves definitely outweigh the costs.
1. What do we know about the mangrove trees from the passage?| A．They are mainly grown in Australia. |
| B．They can prevent young fish from growing. |
| C．They have been damaged by natural disasters. |
| D．They are less impressive but important to the ecosystem. |
| A．A world mangrove festival has been founded. |
| B．Saltwater ponds for the shrimps have been set up. |
| C．A 5-year mangroves protecting program has been started. |
| D．More mangroves along the coastal areas have been grown. |
| A．The mangroves can keep the ecological balance in the oceans. |
| B．The mangroves are essential for fighting against climate change. |
| C．The mangroves have deep roots and hold the soil in place firmly. |
| D．The mangroves can break up the force and strength of the waves. |
| A．Positive. | B．Negative. | C．Doubtful. | D．Unclear. |
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【推荐1】Zoos divide opinion: there are those who think it is cruel to keep animals locked up while others believe zoos are essential for the survival of endangered species （濒危物种）.
To argue that zoos imprison（囚禁） animals is to misunderstand what zoos are about. Without zoos many of the creatures we love and admire would no longer survive. Every single day, over one hundred animal species disappear. Scientists predict that as early as 2050 one quarter of the Earth’s species will become extinct.
Some animals are in danger because they are hunted. The population of tigers has already fallen by ninety-five percent. Other species are in danger because of a lack of food. For example, there are fewer than 1300 giant pandas left in the wild.
Zoos have special breeding programmes（育种计划）to help those animals at risk. These breeding programmes are proving extremely successful. As Irene Shapiro from Zoo and Wildlife Support says, “the Puerto Rican Parrot has grown in numbers from just thirteen to about eighty-five and the Golden Lion Tamarin Monkey, which has almost stopped to exist（存在）twenty years ago, has been reintroduced back into the wild.”
Unfortunately, not everyone understands this important role zoos play. For example, Brian Featherstone from the Anti-Zoo Forum says, “I can’t believe we take animals from the wild and put them in cages for the entertainment of the public! We should view them on film or TV in their natural environment.”
However, this misses the point. A zoo does more than display animals to the public. It ensures their survival. Without zoos you would not be able to see many of these animals on TV or anywhere else!
1. What’s the writer’s attitude towards zoos?| A．He shows no opinion either for or against them. |
| B．He thinks that they are unnecessary and cruel. |
| C．He believes they play an important environmental role. |
| D．He expresses a desire that more of them be built. |
| A．will rise by 5% next year | B．is relatively stable |
| C．is 95% smaller than in the past | D．has fallen to 95% |
| A．are too expensive to run | B．put animals in danger |
| C．do not provide enough food | D．keep animals locked up |
| A．make a lot of money | B．entertain visitors |
| C．ensure animals’ survival | D．educate the public |
【推荐2】A snow leopard stared down from a steep rock high in the peaks of Mongolia. She was on the lookout for a snack. Noticing a wild goat below, the snow leopard rocketed down the mountainside. The wild goat struggled to escape. But with one 30-foot leap, the cat caught up. Seconds later, she was secured her meal and looked for a place to enjoy it.
These endangered cats are nearly impossible to see. Their spotted coats act as invisible cloaks(披风)by mixing into the rocky mountains of the 12 Central Asian countries where the cats live. The mountains the snow leopards call home are rough and extremely cold in the winter. But these cats have some amazing body parts that make living in the area no big deal. In addition to hiding them, a snow leopard’s soft, thick fur keeps it warm in the bitter cold.
Few humans have seen snow leopards in real life, but hunting scenes like the one above have been recorded on video. Snow leopard experts need to gather more information about the secretive cats’ lives to help protect them. To do that, researches use high-tech tools to spy on the shy animals. They gently trap the wild cats to put on satellite radio collars to know where the cats wander.
Even though snow leopards live in some of the most rugged mountains on Earth, people pose the biggest threat to their survival. Poachers(盗猎者)can sell a snow leopard’s hide and bones for thousands of dollars. Sheepherders(牧羊人)often kill any snow leopard that attacks their sheep. Hunters target goats, wild sheep, and other animals for food-removing important snow leopard food. The more scientists can learn about snow leopards, the better they can protect these rarely seen cats from humans who harm them.
1. What’s the function of the first paragraph?| A．To lead to the theme of the passage. |
| B．To describe how snow leopards hunt. |
| C．To show the main food of snow leopards |
| D．To show snow leopards have a good ability of adaption |
| A．They don't go out in winter. |
| B．They have unique body characters. |
| C．Their living regions are large enough. |
| D．Their thick fur can help camouflage (伪装). |
| A．Spending more time searching for them. |
| B．Trapping snow leopards to examine them. |
| C．Using advanced technology to track them. |
| D．Surfing the internet to get more information. |
| A．The process of researchers’ job. |
| B．The snow leopards, awful living conditions. |
| C．The threat that humans pose to snow leopards. |
| D．The reasons why some persons kill snow leopards. |
【推荐3】After decades of work trying to save the giant panda, Chinese officials have announced the species is no longer endangered. The pandas have been reclassified in the country from endangered to vulnerable after efforts to increase the population. Now the number has risen to 1,800 in the wild.
“China has established a relatively complete nature reserves system,” Cui Shuhong, director of the Department of Natural Ecological Protection of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, said on Wednesday. “Large areas of natural ecosystems have been systematically and completely protected, and wildlife habitats have been effectively improved.”
The latest classification upgrade reflects their improved living conditions and China's efforts in keeping their habitats integrated, Cui added.
Bamboo makes up 90% of pandas' diets, and the animals would likely starve without the shoots. Experts believe China’s efforts to replant bamboo forests have been the key to the increase in the population of pandas.
Generally speaking, a panda has to eat at least 26 pounds of bamboo every day to maintain its energy, so large areas of bamboo forests are primary to their survival.
Planting bamboo also has advantages for the planet, as the bamboo is grass, not a tree, and is incredibly efficient at absorbing carbon dioxide, as well as emitting 35% more oxygen than trees.
“The Chinese have done a great job in investing in panda habitats, expanding and setting up new reserves,” Ginette Hemley, senior vice president of conservation at the World Wildlife Fund. told the media. “They are a wonderful example of what can happen when a government is committed to conservation.”
Continuing China's success will be dependent on the country protecting land from agricultural and urban development. As land becomes rarer, measures will need to be extended to protect more land, to ensure bamboo forests can thrive and as a result, protect the future of the world's most lovable, lazy, and monochrome (black and white) creature.
1. What do we know about the giant panda according to paragraph 1?| A．It is an endangered species. | B．It increases by 1,800 each year. |
| C．It has seen a decline in population. | D．It has got a classification upgrade. |
| A．Social media makes a difference. | B．Panda habitats are getting smaller. |
| C．Government's commitment is crucial. | D．Setting up new reserves is impossible. |
| A．Lazy and monochrome animals. |
| B．Lack of support from the World Wildlife Fund. |
| C．The emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. |
| D．The influence of agricultural and urban development. |
| A．A news website. | B．An official report. | C．A travel magazine. | D．A biology textbook. |
【推荐1】How many people really suffer as a result of labour market problems? This is one of the most critical yet debatable social policy Questions.
In many ways, our social statistics overstate the degree of hardship. Unemployment does not have the same horrible consequences today as it did in the 1930s when most of the unemployed were primary breadwinners, when income and earnings were usually much closer to the margin of survival, and when there were fewer effective social programmes for those failing in the labour market. Increasing wealth, the rise of families with more than one wage earner, the growing dominance of secondary earners among the unemployed and improved social welfare protection have unquestionably relieved the consequences of joblessness. Earnings and income data also overestimate the scale of hardship. Among the millions with hourly earnings at or below the minimum wage level, the majority are from multiple-earner, relatively well-off families. Most of those counted by the poverty statistics are elderly or handicapped or have family responsibilities which keep them out of the labour force, so the poverty statistics are by no means an accurate indicator of labour market problems.
Yet there are also many ways our social statistics underestimate the degree of labour-market-related hardship. The unemployment counts exclude the millions of fully employed workers whose wages are so low that their families remain in poverty. Low wages and repeated or long-time unemployment frequently interact to weaken the capacity for self-support. Since the number experiencing joblessness at some time during the year is several times that unemployed in any month, those who suffer as a result of forced idleness can equal or exceed average annual unemployment, even though only a minority of the jobless in any month really suffer. For everyperson counted in the monthly unemployment records, there is another working part-time because of the inability to find full-time work, or else outside the labour force but wanting a job. Finally, income transfers in our country have always focused on the elderly, disabled, and dependent, neglecting the needs of the working poor, so that the dramatic expansion of cash and non-cash transfers does not necessarily mean that those failing in the labour market are adequately protected.
As a result of such conflicting evidence, it is uncertain whether those suffering seriously as a result of labour market problems number in the hundreds of thousands or the tens of millions, and, hence, whether high levels of joblessness can be tolerated or must be counteracted(抵消)by job creation and economic stimulation. There is only one area of agreement in this debate—that the existing poverty, employment, and earnings statistics are inadequate for one of their primary applications, measuring the consequences of labour market problems.
1. In paragraph 2, the author contrasts the 1930s with the present in order to show that ________ .| A．more people were unemployed in the 1930s |
| B．income level has increased since the 1930s |
| C．social programmes are more in need now |
| D．unemployment is more intolerable today |
| A．Many unemployed people are from families where other members are working. |
| B．Repetition of short-term unemployment mainly contributes to people’s loss of working capacity. |
| C．The majority of low-wage workers receive earnings from more than one job. |
| D．Labour market hardship is understated because fewer individuals are jobless than counted. |
| A．workers who have just retired | B．children in single-earner families |
| C．those doing a low-paid, part-time job | D．full-time workers who become unemployed |
| A．What causes labour market problems that result in suffering. |
| B．Why income statistics are imprecise in measuring degrees of poverty. |
| C．When poverty, employment, and earnings figures agree with each other. |
| D．How statistics give an unclear picture of the labour-market-related suffering. |
【推荐2】As aging population gets bigger and dementia(老年痴呆症) more common, more families are struggling with a complex question: How do you support a love done with dementia, especially when you have a full-time job and several kids?
Reg Urbanowski may have an answer to this pressing issue—robots.
He and his team managed to develop a new type of robots named TP robots. Looking like stand-up vacuum cleaners attached to an iPad, they can be activated remotely via a smartphone and guided remotely by a controller app similar to the way a mouse is used on a desktop computer. All possess audio and visual communication capabilities, allowing the operator to be “in the room” to interact with Mom or Dad.
He believes that caregivers and family members can use a TP robot to “look in” on people with mild dementia. He says, “TP robots provide an effective solution for minimizing caregivers’ burden, especially for those who have career or other out-of-home activities.”
Urbanowski and his team have carried out a study that involves providing TP robots for 15 Toronto families. These robots are programmed to provide reminders of necessary daily routine like turning off the gas, taking medicine and having dinner. They will also help ensure patients are getting the exercise they need to maintain their health and well-being.
Erin Crawford, Program Director with the Alzheimer Society of Manitoba, says she has faith that TP robots will prove beneficial, particularly when it comes to reminding people with dementia to do certain things at certain times. “It means that family members that can’t be there, for whatever reason, know that those things are still happening,” she says.
1. What can we infer about TP robots from Paragraph 3?| A．It’s easy to operate. | B．It can clean the room. |
| C．It’s convenient to carry. | D．It can be used on a computer. |
| A．By having dinner with them. | B．By turning off the gas for them. |
| C．By doing activities with them. | D．By reminding them to take pills. |
| A．Optimistic. | B．Pessimistic. | C．Indifferent. | D．Doubtful. |
| A．TP robots provide a new solution to dementia. |
| B．TP robots help to take care of dementia patients. |
| C．Caregivers of dementia will be replaced by TP robots. |
| D．Urbanowski and his team are developing a new robot. |
【推荐3】Vegemite (维吉米特黑酱) has been produced in Port Melbourne since the 1920s, with the former Kraft factory recently given heritage protection. The National Trust wanted the Vegemite smell that came from the factory to be included in a “statement of significance” on the site. “The smell is an excellent example of intangible (非物质的) cultural heritage and allows the purpose of the building to be understood.”
However, the City of Melbourne council stopped short of declaring the Vegemite smell “significant”. This is in an effort to ensure no “future development of Fishermans Bend” is put in danger, said the mayor. The historic Fishermans Bend district is being transformed in a project that will see the area house up to 80,000 residents and host tens of thousands of jobs.
He acknowledged the “attachment many people have towards the special smell of the beloved spread (酱)” that comes from the Fishermans Bend factory, but said the council sought to avoid tying “a smell to the ongoing use of the land”. “Vegemite might be the spread that starts the nation, but it shouldn't be the smell that stops the future development of Fishermans Bend.” But he said the smell would be recorded as a “recognised part of the site's history” in the City of Melbourne's heritage study.
“We see this as an appropriate outcome. We are pleased the smell will still be recognised,” said Felicity Watson, head of advocacy at the National Trust. “Our campaign for the smell to be recognised is about acknowledging that the significance of this place goes beyond the bricks of the factory building.”
The idea of recognising smells as having heritage significance was unusual, Ms Watson conceded, and it was the first time the Trust had proposed it in relation to a heritage place.
Internationally, however, the importance of intangible aspects of cultural heritage such as smell is being recognised through the emerging field of “olfactory (嗅觉的) heritage”. Ms Watson said that in recent years countries such as Japan and France had acted to protect areas of “fragrant scenery” and certain sounds and smells of the countryside.
1. Why did the council turn down the National Trust's request?| A．Vegemite has not received official recognition as a heritage. |
| B．The Vegemite smell makes some people feel uncomfortable. |
| C．The former Kraft factory would not produce Vegemite any more. |
| D．They want to secure the future development of Fishermans Bend. |
| A．Puzzled. | B．Disappointed. | C．Reserved. | D．Satisfied. |
| A．Complained. | B．Predicted. | C．Admitted. | D．Recommended. |
| A．Vegemite smell is recognised for its heritage value |
| B．Emerging fields of intangible cultural heritage |
| C．Vegemite's popularity in Fishermans Bend |
| D．The former Kraft factory is transformed |
