1 . In this semester, Professor Van Rijnsoever of Utrecht University of the Netherlands is to teach “Dutch Culture in the World”, in English.
The language is the university’s choice. Actually sixty percent of masters’ programs at Utrecht University are in English. At higher degrees' level, no courses are taught in Dutch at all.
Utrecht is not alone.
The University of Eindhoven has even completely kicked the Dutch language out of its campus. Even the sandwiches in the stores there are sold as cheese rather than with the Dutch word “kaas”.
As a result, the Netherlands has one of the world’s highest levels of English proficiency （流利）among non-native speaking countries, second only to Sweden.
But not everyone is happy with that .
“I don't mind. Most of the literature is in English,” says Professor Van Rijnsoever. “As a teacher it’s not that much of a problem because we also do research in English. For the students, you see they are struggling to express themselves properly.”
He added “We aren’t as good at English as they think we are. We shouldn’t use a weaker language in education. If we use just English in higher education, Dutch will get worse. We add a bit of English and we lose a bit of Dutch. We cannot master Dutch and English at the same time.”
Actually, English is so widely used in Dutch universities that a group of lecturers are worried about a possible “linguicide” and demanded that the universities stop creating more courses in English until an official research has been carried out.
“Dutch is our mother tongue. Our culture is based on Dutch,” says Annette de Groot, a lecturer at the University of Amsterdam. “What would happen to our identity（身份）if our mother tongue is no longer the main language of higher education?”
“It is high time for an honest debate.” said a teacher from the University of Erasmus.
1. Which university teaches all its courses in English?| A．Utrecht. | B．Eindhoven. | C．Amsterdam. | D．Erasmus. |
| A．The highest level of English proficiency in the Netherlands. |
| B．The teaching of “Dutch Culture in the World" in English. |
| C．The kick out of the Dutch language from all schools. |
| D．The widespread use of English in the Dutch universities. |
| A．The all- English courses might weaken the mastery of Dutch. |
| B．Students can learn two languages equally well at the same time. |
| C．The stress on English can help the spread of Dutch culture. |
| D．The students of Utrecht are happy with the all-English courses. |
| A．The birth of a language. | B．The loss of one’s cultural identity. |
| C．The war between cultures. | D．The popularity of a language. |
2 . The expression “a thirst for knowledge” may soon have a new meaning for millions of people who have no way to get clean water. Researchers have developed a book with specially treated pages that can turn dirty water into clean and drinkable water. They say their invention could improve the lives of many in the developing world.
About 700 million people around the world are at risk of disease or even death because their drinking water is not clean. The water is polluted by harmful bacteria.
The book contains 25 pages. Each page is about one millimeter thick. The pages contain very small particles of silver. The pages can be used as filters to remove harmful microorganisms that can pollute drinking water. The filter kills the organisms that pass through it.
Pictures on the pages show the dangers of dirty water and how to use the book for those unable to read. The pages are made of filter paper. They are designed to be torn from the book. Water can be poured through the paper to be cleaned.
Ms. Dankovich, the inventor, says each page can treat up to 100 liters of water. She recently presented her invention at the meeting of the American Chemical Society in Boston, Massachusetts. She was asked whether she had considered adding classic literature on the book’s pages.
“The idea of classic texts — that’s of interest maybe later. We have discussed a little bit more exciting text. But we really haven’t had the time to go through that part,” she says.
Teri Dankovich and another researcher tested the drinkable book in Bangladesh, Ghana and South Africa. The tests proved to be successful.
Water for Life, a non-governmental organization, has provided financial support for the project.
1. What do we learn about the book from the text?| A．It sells well around the world. | B．It is about environment protection. |
| C．It has pages with several functions. | D．It can treat about 100 liters of water. |
| A．Classic texts. | B．Invention presentation. |
| C．Exciting discussion. | D．Financial support. |
| A．Researchers have found a way to save those being ill. |
| B．Millions of people are in great need of drinkable water. |
| C．Knowledge is as important as drinkable water. |
| D．Book pages could provide safe drinking water. |
3 . A study of art history might be a good way to learn more about a culture than is possible to learn in general classes. Most typical history courses concentrate on politics, economics, and wars. But art history focuses on much more than this because art reflects not only the political values of a people, but also religious beliefs, emotions, and psychology. In addition, information about the daily activities of our ancestors — or of people very different from our own — can be provided by art. In short, art expresses the essential qualities of a time and a place, and a study of it clearly offers us a deeper understanding than what can be found in most history books.
In history books, objective information about the political life of a country is presented: that is, facts about politics are given, but opinions are not expressed. Art, on the other hand, is subjective: it reflects emotions and opinions. The great Spanish painter Franciso Goya was perhaps the first truly political artist. In his well-known painting The Third of May, 1808, he criticized the Spanish government for its misuse of power over people. Over a hundred years later, symbolic images were used in Pablo Picasso's Guernica to express the horror of war. Meanwhile, on another continent, the powerful paintings of Diego Rivera, Jose Clements Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros — as well as the works of Alfredo Ramos Martinez — showed these Mexican artists' deep anger and sadness about social problems.
In the same way, art can reflect a culture's religious beliefs. Four hundreds of years in Europe, religious art was almost the only type of art that existed. Churches and other religious buildings were filled with paintings that depicted people and stories from the Bible. Although most people couldn't read, they could still understand biblical stories in the pictures on church walls. By contrast, one of the main characteristics of art in the Middle East was （and still is） its absence of human and animal images. This reflects the Islamic （伊斯兰教的）belief that statues are unholy （不神圣的；亵渎的）.
1. History books are objective because____.| A．opinions about facts are not expressed |
| B．it will make the viewers angry and sad about history |
| C．it can help us understand historical facts better |
| D．personal and emotional opinions are expressed through it |
| A．art can reflect political life of a country |
| B．artists are very similar even over a hundred years |
| C．art is subjective |
| D．history books present objective information |
| A．Europe | B．Middle East |
| C．Mexico | D．America |
| A．the difference between general history and art history |
| B．what we can learn from art |
| C．the influence of artists on art history |
| D．the development of art history |
4 . Gene therapy (基因治疗) is a revolutionary new technique for treating people with health problems. Up until very recently, the most commonly available methods for treating patients were either through drugs or operations. Gene therapy provides a third option for treatment by transforming or replacing cells with new genetic materials and instructions. Scientists can be very precise in the kinds of changes they make in patients.
Gene therapy works by using a delivery system, such as a virus, to enter a patient's body. Once inside the body, the virus combines with a host cell and delivers the new DNA. The proteins then begin to repair the affected cells. New techniques have focused on removing cells from the patients and transforming them outside the body before reintroducing them to the patients.
The two types of gene therapy are called somatic and germline. Somatic therapy refers to changing or replacing a body cell. In this case, the treatment is restricted to the patient only. This will not affect the patient's future children because the patient's germ (生殖) cells are unaffected. In germline therapy, the patient germ cells are treated, which may affect the patient's future generation.This is highly controversial (有争议的) because it is not clear exactly how this might affect them and further generations. For this reason, many countries have passed laws that prohibit this kind of treatment.
Despite the promise of gene therapy, there are still many barriers that need to be overcome before it comes into widespread use. One of the issues is that the use of viruses to deliver DNA may actually cause unexpected problems in patients if the virus grows and attacks the body. Another problem is the nature of many diseases is very complex and spread throughout multiple genes. The use of gene therapy to change a single gene in the body would probably not be sufficient as a cure. Finally, the costs of gene therapy are high. Some gene therapy procedures may cost over$1 million to undertake and require specialized doctors and equipment.
1. What does the underlined word ''them'' in paragraph 2 refer to?| A．Techniques. | B．Cells. | C．Patients. | D．Proteins. |
| A．Gene therapy has been put into practice widely. |
| B．The cells of patients are developed in healthy people. |
| C．Viruses entering the body can mix with host cells and form new DNA. |
| D．Both somatic and germline therapy have side effects on later generations. |
| A．The disadvantages of gene therapy. |
| B．The promising future of gene therapy. |
| C．The high costs of treatment procedures. |
| D．The issues related to viruses and complex genes. |
| A．Why Gene Therapy Procedures Are Extremely Expensive |
| B．Gene Therapy: A Dangerous New After-operation Treatment |
| C．Gene Therapy: A Contemporary Progressive Treating Method |
| D．Scientists Are Accurate in Performing the Categories of Surgery |
5 . The Torch Festival (火把节) is a traditional festival which is celebrated among some ethnic groups in southwestern China, such as the Yi, Bai, Hani, Lisu, and Lahu, etc. It usually falls on the 24th or 25th of June, with three days of celebrations. The festival came from worship (崇拜) of fire by ancestors (祖先). For some ethnic groups, it’s a tradition in the festival for elders to share farming experience with young people and educate them about taking care of crops.
During the festival, big torches are made to stand in all villages, with small torches placed in front of the door of each house. When night falls, the torches are lit and the villages are bright. At the same time, people walk around the fields and houses, holding small torches and placing the torches in the field corners. Inside the villages, young people are singing and dancing around the big torches that keep burning throughout the night. Other activities like horse races are also held during the festival.
In a horse race of the Yi people in Yunnan, torches are used to form hurdles for riders to get through. The Hani people in Yunnan traditionally tie fruits to torches with strings. When the strings are broken after the torches are lit, people struggle for the fruits for good luck.
For the Lisu people in Sichuan, the festival is an occasion for holding torch parades. Big torches are carried by teams of people, which is like a fire dragon. If different teams meet, it’s a tradition to exchange the big torches with one another.
1. What can we know about the Torch Festival from the first paragraph?| A．It has nothing to do with farming. |
| B．Its celebrations usually last two days. |
| C．It is a traditional festival of all China. |
| D．It is a festival to show worship of fire. |
| A．ancestors. | B．young people. |
| C．elders. | D．ethnic groups. |
| A．Why the festival is enjoyed. | B．Where the festival is celebrated. |
| C．How the festival is celebrated. | D．What torches are used for the festival. |
| A．Holding torch parades. | B．Tying fruits to torches with strings. |
| C．Struggling for fruits for good luck. | D．Using torches as hurdles for a horse race. |
6 . I love winter birds and I love photographing them in snow. That being said, I admit that I'm a fair-weather birder(猎鸟者).Worse, I'm a lazy, fair-weather birder. I don't like weather extremes, so when it's very hot or really cold, it is hard to get me to leave the comfort of home. In summer, I only photograph hummingbirds(蜂鸟)in my yard, and in winter, I try to only go out on relatively mild days. Most of my bird photography is done within an hour's drive of my hometown of Elmira, Ont. So it's all about finding a balance that works.
The winter of 2014 was a great year for snowy owls(雪枭)here in Woolwich Township. One day in early March, I was on my way home from work when I noticed a beautiful snowy owl sitting in a tree right at the crossing. I pulled over to admire him, and then kept heading home unwillingly.
Two hundred meters or so down the road, there were two more snowy owls in a field by a fence, and in the next field over, another on top of a fence post. I couldn't find words to express my feeling at that moment. Thus I rushed home, grabbed my camera and went right back out to get some pictures. It was one of the most magical local birding moments I've ever experienced.
When I'm looking for excellent opportunities to photograph snowy owls and other birds without spending dozens of hours searching for them-and if I'm lucky, finding one that's semi-cooperative-I head to the Canadian Raptor Conservancy (CRC) or the Mountsberg Raptor Centre. I've attended so many photo sessions at each of these fantastic facilities that I've lost count of.
1. What factor has the most effect on whether the author goes out to photograph birds or not?| A．Road conditions. | B．Personal emotion. |
| C．Weather conditions. | D．Time arrangement. |
| A．Sad. | B．Excited. |
| C．Untouched. | D．Proud. |
| A．Opportunities. | B．Moments. |
| C．Pictures. | D．Birds. |
| A．The author only photographs snowy owls. |
| B．The author can take excellent photos easily. |
| C．The author makes a living by photographing birds. |
| D．The author values each chance to photograph birds. |
