Heritage is our legacy (遗产) from the past, what we live with today, and what we pass on to future generations. Our cultural and natural heritage are both irreplaceable (无可取代的) sources of life and inspiration. Places as unique and diverse as the Pyramids of Egypt, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Great Wall of China make up our world's heritage.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) seeks to encourage the identification, protection and preservation of cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of outstanding value to humanity. This is embodied in an international treaty called the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, adopted by UNESCO in 1972.
How does a place become a World Heritage Site? It takes a lot of people to decide.
1) If a country wants one of its places to be on the World Heritage List, it has to ask UNESCO. The place must be important and special. UNESCO put the Great Wall on the list in 1987 because, it said, it was a great part of Chinese culture and beautifully made to go with the land. When a country asks, it must also make a plan for taking care of the place.
2) The World Heritage Committee of UNESCO talks about different places and decides whether to put them on the list. The committee meets every June. Many experts help the committee to decide.
3) After a new place goes on the list, UNESCO gives money to help keep it looking good. If a place is in serious danger, it may be put on the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger. UNESCO gives special care and help to those places.
4) Countries have to give UNESCO regular reports about places on the list. If UNESCO thinks a country isn't taking good enough care of a place, the site will be taken off the list.
1. What is the main purpose of Paragraph 1?
A.To tell us what is heritage. |
B.To stress the importance of heritages. |
C.To explain the aims of protecting heritages. |
D.To introduce some places of interest in the world. |
A.identification | B.application |
C.protection | D.conservation |
A.can ask UNESCO for more money and help |
B.should continue to take special care of it |
C.won’t take trouble of caring for it |
D.will try to put it on the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger |
A.to attract more tourists from other countries |
B.to get more money and help from other countries |
C.to have it taken better care of |
D.to make it known to other countries |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Four Largest Art Museums in the World
Art museums offer, the space to display a wide range of art, from sculptures to paintings. They are located all over the world. This article takes a look at the largest four art museums by area.
Located in Paris, The Louvre is the large start museum in the world. It is considered a historic monument. This building first served as a castle before becoming a royal residence. Under King Louis XIV, it was used to house two art academies: The: Louvre Museum was opened with 537 paintings. Today; it is home to around 38, 000 pieces.
State Hermitage Museum
Located in St. Petersburg, Russia, the State Hermitage Museum is the second largest art museum in the world. It has a total area of 719, 480 square feet. This museum, one of the oldest in the world, is home to a collection of over 3 million pieces, including the largest painting collection in the world.
National Museum of China
The third largest museum is the National Museum of China. Located along Tiananmen Square in Beijing, it covers an area of 700, 000 square feet. Its chief objective is.to educate the public and promote the history and arts of China. The National Museum of China houses 1.05 million pieces in its collection, including the heaviest piece of bronze ware-the 1,836-pound Simuwu Ding.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The fourth largest museum in the world is the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New: York City, which covers an area of 633,100 square feet. Today, this museum is in a building that is 20 times larger than the original and located on the border of Central Park. It is home to more than 2 million pieces. Additionally, it is known for its large collection of musical instruments.
1. Which museum has the largest painting collection in the world?A.Louvre. | B.State Hermitage Museum. |
C.National Museum of China. | D.Metropolitan Museum of Art. |
A.Large collection of musical instruments. |
B.The largest painting collection in the world. |
C.Being a castle before becoming a royal residence. |
D.The heaviest piece of: bronze ware-the Simuwu Ding. |
A.To educate. | B.To advise. |
C.To advertise. | D.To introduce. |
【推荐2】When people get old and have difficulty working full time, they retire and begin a new, more relaxing lifestyle. But what about old industrial buildings? Can they start anew?
China seems to find a good solution for them. In recent years, many abandoned factories, railway yards, warehouses and mills have been transformed into cultural and tourist sites. According to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, there are now 194 items on the country’s national industrial heritage list.
The 798 Art Zone in Beijing is an iconic example. Built in the 1950s as No 798 Joint Factory, it was gradually abandoned in the 1990s as production slowed down. In 2006, Beijing’s municipal government invested over 120 million yuan and improved its infrastructure condition, turning the factory complex into a cultural and creative industrial base. Now the art zone holds about 200 galleries, art centers as well as fashionable boutiques, cafes and restaurants, which also earns it a place on the bucket list (心愿单) of many tourists, noted The Paper.
Jack Liu is a frequenter of the art zone who visits it every weekend. “In the art zone, you can refresh memories of the development of Chinese manufacturing through its old buildings,” said the 28-year-old to Teens. “However, in art galleries here you will feel pulled into a fashionable, modern world. It’s amazing.”
Industrial heritage sites, which used to be filled with the rumbling of machines, are now “precious pages of the book on the industrial culture of China,” noted People’s Daily.
Since these heritage sites are rich and diverse in content, cities in China also spare no effort to explore new ways and models to protect and utilize them.
For example, a beer museum has been set up inside a century-old plant of the Tsingtao Brewery in Qingdao, Shandong province, bringing people closer to the long history of the brewery. Some abandoned plants in Beijing have also been renovated for city explorers to take adventures in.
Just as the elderly need our care and love, these industrial heritages are also expected to be injected with vitality through protection and development. “It is not only an inevitable trend of the innovation-driven development of cities, but a necessity for fostering (促进) new drivers of development,” noted People’s Daily.
1. What is China’s solution for old industrial buildings?A.Expanding their space and uses. |
B.Upgrading them to become attractions. |
C.Integrating them with new buildings. |
D.Returning them to their original condition. |
A.It was established in the 1990s. |
B.It mainly provides venues for fashion shows. |
C.It’s China’s first cultural and creative industrial base. |
D.It’s a successful example of transforming old industrial sites. |
A.The buildings which are out of date should be torn down. |
B.They are the refreshments of Chinese manufacturing. |
C.The once deserted buildings are full of vitality now. |
D.He is amazed with the mixture of old and new galleries. |
A.To show the popularity of industrial heritage sites. |
B.To explain the importance of renovating old plants. |
C.To introduce the features of industrial heritage sites. |
D.To illustrate how industrial heritage sites can be used effectively. |
A.They deserve to be brought back to life. |
B.They can be drivers for city development. |
C.They should give way to modern buildings. |
D.They are reminders of a city’s development. |
【推荐3】It is reported in the national press that a letter written by Charles Darwin in 1875 has been returned to the Smithsonian Institution Archives (档案馆) by the FBI after being stolen twice.
“We realized in the mid-1970s that it was missing,” says Effie Kapsalis, head of the Smithsonian Institution Archives. “It was noted as missing and likely taken by an intern (实习生), from what the FBI is telling us. Word got out that it was missing when someone asked to see the letter for research purposes, and the intern put the letter back. Then the intern likely took the letter again once nobody was watching it.”
Decades passed. Finally, the FBI received a tip that the stolen document was located very close to Washington, D.C. Their art crime team recovered the letter but were unable to press charges (起诉) because the time of limitations had ended. The FBI worked closely with the Archives to determine that the letter was both authentic and definitely Smithsonian’s property.
The letter is in fairly good condition, in spite of being out of the care of trained museum staff for so long. “It was luckily in good shape,” says Kapsalis, “and we just have to do some minor things in order to be able to unfold it. It has some glue on it that has coloured it slightly, but nothing will prevent us from using it. After it is repaired, we will take digital photos of it and those will be available online. One of our goals is to get items of high research value or interest to the public online.”
It would now be difficult for an intern, a visitor or a thief to steal a document like this. “Archiving practices have changed greatly since the 1970s,” says Kapsalis, “and we keep our high-value documents in a safe that I don’t even have access to.”
1. Darwin’s letter was gone from the Archives in the 1970s because ________ .A.someone borrowed it for research purposes | B.it was sent out for careful repair |
C.someone might secretly took it away | D.it was made into a picture and kept in a safe |
A.They arrested the suspect immediately. |
B.They proved that the letter was the original. |
C.They received a tip about the document. |
D.They made criminal charges but failed the case. |
A.Ordinary people will have access to reading it online. |
B.The Archives will arrange an exhibition of the letter. |
C.The letter will be reserved for research purposes only. |
D.Security measures will get improved to protect the letter. |
A.An Intern Was Charged with Theft | B.A Missing Letter Was Returned |
C.An Exhibit Was Repaired with Efforts | D.A Criminal case Was Solved |
Researchers consider that sleeping on a problem in most cases leads to elucidation(解释). They say when a person enters a phase called Rapid Eye Movement (REM) during sleep, it increases the effect. Such phase takes place right before we awake and according to scientists it helps our brain make links between unrelated subjects.
In the study, led by Professor Sara Mednick, scientists made a conclusion that the REM was “important for assimilating(消化) new information into past experience” in order to find solutions to creative problems.
Prof. Mednick is a psychiatrist at the University of California. Her study involved the analysis of 77 adults. Each participant was given several word-associated creative tasks. All tasks were given in the morning, with participants being shown a number of groups of 3 words, for example: cookie, heart and sixteen. They were asked to come up with a word that would be associated with all three given terms—like sweet. Sometime later, after some participants were allowed to sleep, they were asked to perform the same tasks and some new ones. It is worth mentioning that while some people slept, researchers used brain scans to see the type of sleep each participant entered.
When given the same tasks, participants, who took a nap, were able to give more varied solutions, some of which were much better than they gave earlier. But when given new tasks, researchers found that those who entered REM sleep had a 40 percent better result compared to the performance they showed in the morning.
1. What does “it” refer to in the second paragraph?
A.The effect. | B.REM. | C.Sleep. | D.A problem. |
A.Because REM takes place just after you sleep. |
B.Because REM can store more information. |
C.Because REM can help find creative solutions |
D.Because REM can make a creative invention. |
A.Taking a short nap is good for your thinking during the day. |
B.Sleeping has three processes which is good for creativity. |
C.Each adult was allowed to sleep after the task was given. |
D.REM is a process taking place right after we awake when we nap. |
A.to think of a creative word |
B.to show a group of 3 words |
C.to give participants time to think |
D.to let some participants sleep for a while |
【推荐2】One of the biggest topics of the last decade, sustainability has become the beacon (灯塔) of hope to protect the planet. From supermarkets taking action on plastic packaging to the zero waste movement that can be practised from your kitchen, changes made by individuals and organizations across the globe has had an impact on the way we think, shop and live.
So what does that mean for the world of technology? You’d be forgiven for thinking that the words “sustainable” and “tech” don’t usually go hand in hand.E-waste is, after all, one of the planet’s biggest contributing waste streams. Not only that, but the materials that go into tech products are also part of the problem.
But with a challenge comes an opportunity, and there’s already some brilliant progress happening — great news for those of us wanting to be more sustainable with our tech. Firstly, renewed is having its moment. While consumers would previously turn their noses up at the idea of a second-hand device, there’s been a huge surge in demand for renewed tech. The second major step in tackling the problem of e-waste is a change in attitudes from owning a product to subscribing for one. A subscription for a smartphone might sound like a foreign concept, but it’s already gaining momentum. At the forefront of this movement is London-based tech startup Raylo, a pending B Corp which offers a subscription service for the latest iPhone. As customers aren’t paying to own the phone at the end of their contract, the monthly price is significantly lower than average.
Studies show that extending a phone’s lifespan from one to four years can decrease its environmental impact by about 40%.So the next time it comes to refreshing your device — whether a smartphone, laptop, tablet or something else-consider the more environmentally-friendly options that are at your fingertips.
1. What’s the purpose of paragraph 1?A.To change the way we think, shop, and live. |
B.To introduce the topic of sustainability in tech. |
C.To tell us what people have done to protect the planet. |
D.To call on people to do something for the environment. |
A.High-tech products are in short supply. |
B.E-waste contributes to the biggest waste streams. |
C.The two sustainability problems in technology. |
D.Ignoring sustainable technology is unforgivable. |
A.Oppose. | B.Present. | C.Explain. | D.Accept. |
A.By upgrading the old one. |
B.By paying monthly for a smartphone. |
C.By spending less money on a smartphone. |
D.By replacing the old one with the latest one. |
【推荐3】Next time your plane lands, listen to the sound of the tyres hitting the ground. The reason why the tyres don’t explode is that they are made of natural rubber. The tyres of cars, motorbikes and trucks are also often made of the same material.
Natural rubber comes from trees. Workers cut the trunks of the trees and collect a white liquid called latex(胶乳). In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, huge numbers of rubber tyres were planted in countries including Malaysia, Burma and Brazil. More than a century ago, scientists discovered how to make man-made rubber, but natural rubber is much stronger and can last much longer. Nearly half the rubber which is produced each year is natural rubber and there is always a need for more.
Rubber trees are not easy to grow. They are affected by changes in temperature, too much or not enough rain, high winds and disease. Some trees survive while others die and it’s all down to their genes. Two British organizations, the Tun Abdul Razak Research Centre(TARRC) and The Genome Analysis Centre(TGAC), have been working together to look at rubber trees. They have now discovered the ‘genome’ of the rubber tree. This is the way genes fit together in very long chains of DNA. The genome contains all the information the plant or animal needs to grow. The genome for a plant, such as a rubber tree, is smaller than a human genome but it is still very long, which is why it has been so difficult to find. As Ewan Mollison of TARRC says, the work has been like putting a picture puzzle together where all the pieces show blue sea and blue sky.
Now scientists can use the rubber tree genome to produce stronger trees. In the future, it will be possible to grow trees which survive climate change and disease.
1. Where were the first rubber trees planted?A.In Europe and South Africa. |
B.In Africa and Northeast Asia. |
C.In Southeast Asia and South America. |
D.In North America and Europe. |
A.Disease and soil condition. | B.Climate change and disease. |
C.Soil condition and geographic location. | D.Geographic location and climate change. |
A.To develop stronger rubber trees. | B.To change the DNA in rubber trees. |
C.To grow rubber trees in more countries. | D.To improve the quality of man-made rubber. |
【推荐1】Humans are responsible for 25% to 40% more of the total share of methane emissions(甲烷排放)than previously estimated, according to a new study in Nature.
Methane is one of the most powerful and effective greenhouse gases: about 28 times more effective than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere. It's responsible for about a quarter of global warming. It's produced naturally by animals, volcanoes, and wetlands, but it's also a byproduct of oil and gas production. It's this last form of methane that the study focused on.
Researchers used ice core measurements from Greenland from 1750 to 2013, plus previous data from Antarctica. They melted the ice to let the small quantities of ancient air trapped inside come out. These act a bit like time capsules,allowing us to learn about the methane in the atmosphere at the time. They used carbon-14, which comes from living things, as a substitute(替代物)to determine whether the methane they found came from biological sources. Until 1870, around the time when we started using fossil(化石)fuels, almost all methane came from these sources. After that, there was a rise in methane that didn't have any carbon-14, from ancient fossil sources in which carbon-14 had disappeared. That allowed the researchers to compare natural methane with methane caused by human activity.
If more methane is created by humans, there's an even bigger opportunity to control how much we release. Methane stays in the atmosphere for only a decade(compared with 200 years for carbon dioxide). So efforts to cut methane, which mostly comes from the production and transportation of gas and oil, could bring great benefit right away.
1. Which methane source does the study focus on?A.Animals. | B.Wetlands. | C.Volcanoes. | D.Fossil fuels. |
A.Methane comes mainly from animals and wetlands. |
B.There is more methane than carbon dioxide in the air. |
C.Fossil fuels have been used about a century and a half. |
D.Methane will remain permanently in the atmosphere. |
A.Optimistic. | B.Skeptical. | C.Disappointed. | D.Unconcermed |
A.Fossil Fuels Cause Global Pollution |
B.Humans Produce More Methane than We Thought |
C.Methane Is the Biggest Cause for Global Warming |
D.Carbon Dioxide Has Less Impact on Climate than Methane |
【推荐2】The Great Barrier Reef's outlook remains “very poor” despite coral (珊瑚) recovery over the past year, Australian government scientists said Monday, just days before a UNESCO ruling on the site's world heritage (遗产) status.
The United Nations cultural agency recommended last month that the world's largest reef (珊瑚礁) system be placed on its endangered list because of damage to the corals largely caused by climate change.
The Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) said the corals were now in a “recovery window” after a decade of harmful heat stress and cyclones (旋风). But such opportunities were becoming rarer due to the influence of climate change, the government agency, which has monitored the reef for 35 years, said in its annual report released today. “The increasing emergence of climate-related extreme weather events and starfish outbreaks is causing more severe and frequent pressures, giving the reef fewer opportunities like this to recover,”CEO Paul Hardisty said. The scientists surveyed 127 reef sites in 2021 and found hard coral cover had increased at 69 of the 81 locations surveyed in the past two years.
Separate scientific research released last October found the 2, 300-kilometre (1, 400 miles) system had lost half its corals since 1995, with a series of ocean heatwaves causing mass coral death.
Britta Schaffelke, research program director at AIMS, said the latest findings provided a slight hope that the reef still has the power of recovering. But she added that its future is still very poor because of the dangers of climate change and other factors that are affecting the reef.
UNESCO has urged Australia to take urgent climate action but the government has long resisted calls to commit to net zero emissions (排放) by 2050. The government has said it hopes to meet the target “as soon as possible” without harming its economy, insisting dealing with climate change requires a global effort. The reef was worth about US $4. 8 billion a year in tourism for the Australian economy and there are fears that an “in danger” listing could weaken its tourist appeal.
1. What is the major cause of the damage to the corals?A.The climate change. | B.Lack of money. |
C.Over development. | D.Too many tourists. |
A.The result of the survey. |
B.The efforts AIMS has made. |
C.The slight chance of the recovery. |
D.The terrible situation of the climate. |
A.Unclear. | B.Positive. |
C.Intolerant. | D.Anxious. |
A.Australia wants to put the reef on the endangered list. |
B.The Australian government has ignored UNESCO's demand. |
C.Australia hopes to keep a balance between emission target and its economy. |
D.The Australian government refuses to take its share of responsibility of climate change. |
【推荐3】The following properties which the World Heritage Committee has decided to include on the List of World Heritage are in danger according to Article 11 (4) of the Convention (公约).
Virunga National Park (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
Virunga National Park, covering an area of 790,000 ha., includes an outstanding diversity of habitats, ranging from swamps and steppes (沼泽和平原) to the snowfields. Mountain gorillas are also found in the park.
Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of the Bamiyan Valley (Afghanistan)
The cultural landscape and archaeological remains of the Bamiyan Valley stand for the artistic and religious developments which from the 1st to the 13th centuries characterized ancient Bakhtria. The area contains a number of Buddhist monastic ensembles (佛教寺院), as well as strong buildings from the Islamic period.
Okapi Wildlife Reserve (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
The Okapi Wildlife Reserve occupies about one-fifth of the Ituri forest in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The reserve contains threatened species of primates and birds surviving in the wild. It also has some amazing scenery, including waterfalls on the Ituri and Epulu rivers. The reserve is inhabited by traditional nomadic pygmy Mbuti and Efe hunters.
Historic Center of Vienna (Austria)
Vienna developed from early Celtic and Roman settlements into a Medieval and Baroque city, the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It played an important role as a leading European music center, from the great age of Viennese Classicism through the early part of the 20th century.
1. Which of the following world heritage sites is located in Afghanistan?A.Virunga National Park. | B.Historic Centre of Vienna. |
C.Okapi Wildlife Reserve. | D.Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of the Bamiyan Valley. |
A.It’s closely related to Buddhism. | B.It has some fascinating natural scenery. |
C.It has an outstanding variety of habitats. | D.It plays an important role as a leading music center. |
A.They are all in danger. | B.They are open to the public. |
C.They are inhabited by local people. | D.They are to be removed from the World Heritage List. |