This was the conclusion of a team of scientists from China's State Forestry Administration and the World Nature Fund.
The South China tiger, also known as the Chinese tiger, is native to southern China. In the 1950's, there were over 4000 tigers found in mountain forests in the country. But due to the destruction of their natural habitat and uncontrolled hunting, it has been pushed on to the list of the world's top ten most endangered species.
Sixtysix of the big cats can be found in the cages of a dozen zoos around China. But they are nothing like their wild cousins. They have lost their natural skills such as hunting and killing. If they were set free they could not look after themselves.
“Breeding has damaged the quality of the species”, said Pei Enle, deputy director of the Shanghai Zoo.
To reintroduce the species into the wild, the country started a programme to send five to ten young tigers to South Africa. Four of them have already arrived. Progress has been made as two elder tigers have recovered some of their instincts(本能) and can hunt wild animals by themselves at the African base.
“South Africans are very experienced in reintroducing big animals to the wild. The country has very good natural conditions for the tigers to learn in”, said Lu Jun, office director of the National Wildlife Research and Development Center. “We tried in Fujian Province, but it was not successful as there was not a complete ecochain(生物链) and there was a lack of space.”
The tigers should return to China in 2007 when the reservations in Fujian are ready.
1. What is the main reason for the South China tiger becoming one of the world's top ten most endangered species?
A.Because it has lost its natural instincts. |
B.Because there is not a complete ecochain. |
C.Because there is no space for it. |
D.Because uncontrolled hunting has destroyed its natural living conditions. |
A.Its effect still remains to be seen. |
B.Two tigers can already compete with their wild cousins. |
C.Some of the tigers are already on the road to recovering their natural skills. |
D.The tigers should be able to recover their instincts completely by 2007. |
A.they are no longer feared by other wild animals |
B.they don't know how to hunt or kill |
C.a complete change has resulted in the species because of breeding |
D.to reintroduce them into the wild has become an urgent task |
A.To help the tigers recover their ability to live in the wild. |
B.To provide them with a better environment. |
C.To get the tigers to go on a tour. |
D.To find a complete ecochain for them. |
A.Because the tigers can hunt wild animals by themselves at the African base. |
B.Because South Africans are skilled at dealing with the tigers. |
C.Because there is a complete ecochain and enough space there. |
D.Because the country has good natural conditions for the tigers to learn in. |
2 . Jack lay, quiet and unmoving for thirty minutes while a stranger repeatedly stabbed (刺) him with sharp needles, causing blood to pour steadily out of his leg. Jack was getting a tattoo (纹身). His friend Tony had recently gotten a tattoo, and Jack was so impressed by it that he decided to get one too. Peer pressure, media influence, and personal expression are some of the common reasons for wearing tattoos today.
The desire to be accepted by one’s friends or peers can have a great influence on what a person does. Sometimes, wearing a tattoo can be a sign that you belong to a certain group. Gangs often use special clothes and tattoos to identify their particular group. Some of these groups wear only brand-name clothes. Others wear tattoos. When a person’s friends are all doing something, that person is more likely to do the same thing.
The media is another big influence behind the popularity of tattoos in North America. A wide variety of media images show tattoos-people appearing in commercials selling expensive cars, famous sports heroes with tattoos in magazines, fashion models wearing designer clothes that show their bodies tattooed with detailed and colourful patterns. These media images link tattoos to ideas of wealth, success, and status. As a result, many people decide to get a tattoo for its fashion and status value.
Many people decide to wear tattoos in order to express their artistic nature, their beliefs, or their feelings-in other words, to show their individuality. A musician in a rock band may get a tattoo of a guitar on the arm. Some environmentalists may tattoo pictures of endangered animals on their shoulders. A tattoo can be a public sign to show what is important in a person's life.
As you can see, there are many reasons why young North Americans get tattoos. A tattoo can be part of a group's uniform, a sign of fashion or an expression of individuality. The decision to get a tattoo is most often a result of the influence of friends or media or the desire to express oneself. For Jack, it was a mixture of all three.
1. Jack has got tattoos in order to_______.A.show his great bravery | B.gain a special experience |
C.make himself more healthy | D.be different from others |
A.traditional lifestyle | B.social position | C.cultural background | D.public interest |
A.some people get tattoos out of pressure | B.tattoo is related to religious belief |
C.getting tattoos costs a lot of money | D.most people with tattoos are artists |
CP: Central Point P: Point Sp: Sub-point C: Conclusion
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3 . How Much to Tip
You’re out to dinner. The food is delicious and the service is fine. You decide to leave a big fat tip. Why? The answer may not be as simple as you think. Tipping, psychologists have found, is not just about service. Instead, studies have shown that tipping can be affected by psychological reactions to a series of different factors from the waiter’s choice of words, to how they carry themselves while taking orders, to the bill’s total. Even how much waiters remind customers of themselves can determine how much change they pocket by the end of the night. “Studies before have shown that mimicry brings into positive feelings for the mimicker,” wrote Rick van Barren, a social psychology professor. “There studies show that people who are being mimicked become more generous toward the person who mimics thorn.”
So, Rick van Barren divided 59 waiters into two groups. He requested that half serve with a phrase such as “Coming up!” Those in the other half were instructed to repeat to orders and preferences back to the customers. Rick van Barren then compared their take home. The results were clear-it plays to mimic your customers . The copycat waiters earned almost double the number of tips to the other group.
Leonard Green and Joe Myerson, psychologists at Washington University in St. Louis found the generosity of a tipper may be limited by his bill. After research on the 1,000 tips left for waiters, cab drivers, hair stylists, they found tip percentages in these three areas dropped as customers ‘bills went up. In fact , tip percentages appear to plateau when bills topped $100 and a bill for $200 made the worker gain no bigger percentage tip than a hill for $100 .
“That’s also a point of tipping,” Green says. “You have to give a little extra to the cab driver for being there to pack you up and something to the waiter for being there to serve you. If they weren’t there, you’d never get any service. So, part of the idea of a tip is for just being there .”
1. How many factors affecting the customers’ tipping are mentioned in the passage?A.1 | B.2 | C.3 | D.4 |
A.tipping can be affected by physical reactions to many different waiter’s factors |
B.people who are being mimicked usually tip less to the person who mimics them |
C.the mimic waiters can get almost twice as much money as the other group |
D.mimicry makes the mimicker feel bad |
A.![]() | B.![]() |
C.![]() | D.![]() |
A.object to Mr. Green’s idea about tipping |
B.think part of Mr. Green’s explanation is reasonable |
C.give his generous tip to waiters very often |
D.support the opinions of Mr. Green and Rick van Barren about tipping |
4 . As the economic crisis goes worse, some reader are turning to bookstores for advice on how to manage their own finances. Below are the top-ten selling books in both categories for the week ended Oct.18 at Barnes & Noble Inc., the country’s largest book retailer (零售商). Here readers are buying books whose titles feature such words as “failed”, “crisis” and “danger”.
1. The total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. A primer on how to cut debt, save money and create a financial strategy.
2. Debt Cures ‘They’ Don’t Want You to Know About by Kevin Trudeau. A look into the dangers of credit card spending and how to reduce your expenses.
3. Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny by Suze Orman, Ms. Orman writes about how women can gain better control of their finances by better understanding their relationship with money.
4. The Money Book for the Young, Fabulous & Broke by Suze Orman. A book on what the young need to know now about money management.
5. The Smart Cookies’ Gude to Making More Dough by the Smart Cookies with Jennifer Barrett. The book’s advice: Take charge and get out of debt.
6. The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression by Amity Shlaes. A look at what happened during that other crisis.
7. The Partnership: The Making of Goldman Sachs by Charles D. Ellis. An inside look at the famed investment-banking firm.
8. “Bad Money: Reckless Finance, Failed Politics, and the Global Crisis of American Capitalism by Kevin Phillips. Mr. Phillips documents the unreaveling of the U.S. economy.
9. The New Paradigm for Financial Markets: The Credit Crisis of 2008 and What It Means by George Soros. An analysis of the issue behind the crisis and their implications.
10. The World is Cured: Hidden Dangers to the Global Economy by David M. Smick. An inside look at what went wrong with the banking system here and abroad.
1. What is the best title for the passage?A.A Personal Financial List |
B.The Country’s Largest Book Seller |
C.Serious Economic Crisis |
D.Ten Books to Read in the Financial Crisis |
A.they are discouraged with the serious financial crisis |
B.they are to find advice to get through the financial crisis |
C.they are concerned about failures in the world |
D.they have no choice but to read such books |
A.David M. Smick | B.Suze Orman | C.Kevin Phillips | D.the Smart Cookies |
A.Charles D. Ellis is famous as an investment-banking manager |
B.George Soros has given the detailed root of present economic crisis |
C.Amity Shlaes is only interested in the past economic crisis |
D.Dave Ramsey is the current Minister of the USA. |
Natural Resources:
As a major centre for the global forestry industry, Vancouver is host to many international forestry conferences and events, and the natural home of the massive BC forestry business. Companies such as Canfor and West Fraser Timber Co., the second and third largest lumber(木材)producers in the world, are headquartered in Vancouver. Vancouver is also a major centre for the mining industry.
International trade:
International trade is a key part for Vancouver's economy.The city has Canada's largest port and is one of North America's major gateways for Pan-Pacific(泛太平洋)trade. The Port of Vancouver ranks first in North America in total foreign exports and second on the West Coast in total goods volume.
Banking and Financial:
The headquarters for HSBC Canada (汇丰银行)is located in the Financial District in downtown. Canada's third largest commercial entity(实体), Jim Pattison Group is also based in Vancouver.
International relation:
Vancouver is a major centre for diplomacy(外交) and foreign relations. Most countries of the world have consulate(领事馆)or general offices in the Central Business District. In fact, many major diplomatic conferences are hosted by the city - including the world famous G7 summit with President Clinton, APEC, and the World Trade Organization. Greenpeace has its world headquarters in the city. Therefore, Vancouver was among the first North American cities to declare itself a Nuclear Weapons Free Zone.
Tourism:
Tourism is a leading industry to Vancouver. The Whistler-Blackcomb Resort is among the most popular skiing resorts in North America, and will be the site of the downhill events of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Vancouver's beaches, parks, waterfronts, and mountain backdrops and its multi- cultural character attract more and more tourists.
Film:
Vancouver was the source of the sobriquet(绰号)"Hollywood North", for hosting the production of about ten percent of Hollywood's movies. Many U. S. television and films series are shot exclusively in Vancouver. This has partly been because of the favorable Canadian dollar exchange rate.
1. Which of the following description about Vancouver is NOT true according to the passage?A.The Port of Vancouver ranks first in North America in total foreign exports |
B.Vancouver is a film production centre and called “Hollywood North". |
C.International forestry conferences and events were held in Vancouver. |
D.Vancouver is a leading centre for the global agriculture and industry. |
A.Jim Pattison Group | B.WHO |
C.Greenpeace | D.The 2010 Winter Olympics |
A.HSBC Canada | B.Its film industry |
C.Its international trade. | D.Its beautiful natural scenery |
A.Vancouver is a major centre for foreign relations. |
B.Vancouver has hosted many major diplomatic conferences. |
C.APEC and WTO are headquartered in Vancouver |
D.Canada is a peace-loving country. |
A.a magazine | B.a geography book |
C.a newspaper | D.an entertainment book |
Tyler was born infected with HIV: his mother was also infected. From the very beginning of his life, he was dependent on medications to enable him to survive. When he was five, he had a tube surgically inserted in a vein in his chest. This tube was connected to a pump, which he carried in a small backpack on his back. Medications were hooked up to this pump and were continuously supplied through this tube to his bloodstream. At times, he also needed supplemented oxygen to support his breathing.
Tyler wasn’t willing to give up one single moment of his childhood to this deadly disease. It was not unusual to find him playing and racing around his backyard, wearing his medicine - laden backpack and dragging his tank of oxygen behind him in his little wagon. All of us who knew Tyler marveled at his pure joy in being alive and the energy it gave him. Tyler’s mom often teased him by telling him that he moved so fast she needed to dress him in red. That way, when she peered through the window to check on him playing in the yard, she could quickly spot him.
This dreaded disease eventually wore down even the likes of a little dynamo like Tyler. He grew quite ill and, unfortunately, so did his HIV - infected mother. When it became apparent that he wasn’t going to survive, Tyler’s mom talked to him about death. She comforted him by telling Tyler that she was dying too, and that she would be with him soon in heaven.
A few days before his death, Tyler beckoned me over to his hospital bed and whispered, " I might die soon. I’m not scared. When I die, please dress me in red. Mom promised she’s coming to heaven, too. I’ll be playing when she gets there, and I want to make sure she can find me. "
1. What is the boy Tyler's attitude towards death?
A.pessimistic. | B.optimistic. | C.sorrowful. | D.fearful. |
A.red is a lucky color | B.red might help to cure him |
C.his mom could spot him easily | D.he could find more mates by wearing red |
A.My unusual profession. | B.A caring mother. |
C.Mother and son. | D.Dying in red. |
A.a promising and helpful youth | B.an extremely energetic person |
C.a rare and beautiful flower | D.a magic and understanding superstar |