Giant Panda National Park,
The giant panda is
Connecting the 67 existing reserves and
The combination of these over 60 panda reserves is a commitment by the Chinese government to protect the species. What makes people
2 . Which hand do you use to write your name? Which foot do you use to kick a ball? You probably use the same hand or foot. That’s called your dominant side.
About 90 percent of humans are right-handed. Scientists want to know whether other animals also have dominant sides. So they give simple challenges to zoo animals and pets.
At first, chimpanzees (大猩猩) appeared to be left-handed. Dr. Hopkins watched chimpanzees as they went “ants fishing”, using sticks to pull ants out. Most of the chimps did. The job with their left hand. However, when chimpanzees ate butter from a narrow pipe, they tended to use the left hand to do the easy part (hold the pipe) and a finger on the right hand to do the hard part (reach in for the treat).
Does that mean chimpanzees are left-handed for some tasks and right-handed for others? That’s not likely. Dr. Hopkins says the chimps may have used the weaker hand to pull out the ants and the dominant hand to hit the insects and put them in mouths.
Dr.Wells wondered if cats are right- or left-pawed. At the beginning. he gave the cats the simple task of moving across the floor. The cats showed no preference; they used either paw. Dr. Wells also made the cats perform given movements. The researcher dropped a small fish into a can and wrote down which paw each cat used to fish out the treat. All of the female cats except one used the right paw. For males, 19 out of 21 used the left paw. Dr. Wells tested each cat many times to make sure it readily preferred to use one paw instead of the other.
1. Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined word “dominant” in paragraph 1?| A．gentle |
| B．powerful |
| C．opposite |
| D．unique |
| A．Chimpanzees use right hands for tough tasks. |
| B．About 10 percent of humans are left-handed. |
| C．Chimpanzees get the treat with the weaker hands. |
| D．Left hands are more important in getting the butter out. |
| A．Moving across the floor was a challenging task for cats. |
| B．Various foods were necessary to carry out a scientific study. |
| C．Cats used different paws each time in the repeated tests. |
| D．Male and female cats had the opposite choice to get the fish. |
| A．They saw eye to eye with each other. |
| B．They discovered it was not a simple yes or no. |
| C．They raised different animals to seek the truth. |
| D．They worked together.to perform experiments. |
Green Hills, Clear Water, Blue Sky is a project that was set up
All in all, people and the government should work side by side to take care of the Earth.
4 . Most people feel that dreams are unique to humans, but many dog owners will likely disagree. They have noticed that their dogs at various times during the sleep may shake legs, snort(哼)and sometimes growl (低声吼叫)which gives the impression that they are dreaming. These things may wonder us about whether dogs dream.
Scientists confirm that dogs probably do dream. It turns out that dog brains and human brains have many similarities during sleep cycles. Researchers used special machines to measure electrical activity in a dog’s brain and a human’s brain. Scientists already knew that when humans dream, a certain part of the brain is active during sleep. Researchers discovered that the same part of the brain is active in sleeping dogs. Scientists have other data that back up these findings.
Many people dream that they are trying to move but cannot. Interestingly, part of that experience is not a dream. When people sleep, the brain produces a chemical that causes the dreamer to become temporarily paralyzed(使麻痹). Researchers think this happens so that people cannot physically act out dreams while they are sleeping. Dog brains make the same chemical. In one study during which this chemical was blocked, sleeping test dogs performed physical activities, such as standing up, sniffing around the room for imaginary rabbits, or chasing (追逐)imaginary balls.
Because of these similarities, researchers believe that the content of a dogs dream might come from the same source as a human’s dream. “People’s dreams are usually based on things they did that day, ” says Dr. Samantha Hudspith. “So we have reasons to believe that dogs dream about the things theyve done that day. Of course, there will never be a way to prove this. Dogs cannot describe their dreams the way that humans can. ”
1. Which statement is TRUE?| A．Only humans dream, |
| B．The dogs’ shaking legs during the sleep means that they must be dreaming. |
| C．Whether dogs dream of the things they’ve done that day can not be confirmed. |
| D．The contents of dogs’ dream is the same as those of humans. |
| A．It woke up. |
| B．It acted out its dream. |
| C．It stopped dreaming. |
| D．It couldn’t move its body. |
| A．A magazine. |
| B．A report. |
| C．A guide. |
| D．A brochure. |
| A．Similarities Between Humans and Dogs |
| B．Why Do Dogs Dream? |
| C．Signs of Dog Dreams |
| D．Do Dogs Dream? |
Say you are a 17th century construction (建筑) worker who’s worked long and hard to build a splendid tower for the dead wife of your emperor (皇帝).
Now say that the emperor orders you to cut off your fingertips so you can never build another one. Yes, that is the Taj Mahal, one of the most famous buildings in the world. And the tale (传说) behind the construction is just as impressive (印象深刻的) as the building itself.
First, there’s the emperor of northern India, Shah Jehan, also called the King of the World. In 1612, Shah Jehan married Mumtaz Mahal. Madly in love, they had 14 children over the next 19 years. But then sadness came. As Mumtaz was about to give birth to child Number 14, she said she had heard her unborn baby cry out. It was a sign of death. And as Mumtaz lay dying, she asked Jehan to build a lasting memorial (纪念物) to celebrate their love.
When the heartbroken Jehan appeared eight days after his wife’s death, his people were shocked to see that his coal-black hair had turned snow-white.
Putting away his sadness, Jehan ordered his wife’s dying wish be carried out (执行). More than 20,000 workers labored nearly 22 years to complete the construction. In 1653, Jehan placed Mumtaz’s remains in the center under the building.
And then, son Number five, Aurangzeb, murdered his brothers and took over the power from his aging father. Jehan lived the rest of his days — eight years, to be exact — imprisoned not far from the Taj Mahal. Jehan was only allowed to climb onto the top of his prison to see the timeless treasure from a distance (从远处). But never again would he be allowed to visit it — until he was buried next to his wife.
Today 25,000 people visit the Taj Mahal each day. Though the reason for building the tower was a strange, sad story, those who see its breathtaking beauty are reminded (使想起) of the happiness that inspired (激发……的灵感) its construction.
1. The first two paragraphs were written to show that ______.| A．the Taj Mahal is an unusual historic building |
| B．ancient Indian emperors were cruel |
| C．construction workers led a hard life in ancient India |
| D．India has some of the most famous buildings in the world |
| A．a prison | B．a gift to Mumtaz |
| C．a memorial building | D．a tourist attraction (景点) |
| A．1626 | B．1631 | C．1634 | D．1653 |
| A．the married happiness of the emperor and his wife |
| B．the great pleasure Jehan once found in exercising his power |
| C．the happiness Jehan felt on completing the Taj Mahal |
| D．the pleasure tourists experience when visiting the Taj Mahal |
The year 2013 marked a turning point in my life. In June, my husband was offered a new Job in Ghana. Feeling that I had hit a career bottleneck as a photographer and copywriter (广告文字撰写人), I, without any hesitation, made the decision to relocate with him.
While my husband engaged in work, my visa didn’t grant me the same privilege. But that’s okay. I didn’t know what to do anyway. I was left isolated, homesick and lacking purpose. Our new home was a bungalow near a river that cut across expansive grasslands. With few people around our home, I turned to nature, which had been a fondness of mine since childhood. Every day, I would take my camera and wander around, photographing aimlessly.
It wasn’t long before September arrived, bringing the full flow of the rainy season. After one particularly bad thunderstorm, I found a finch (雀) — a poor little thing barely a month old with one wing broken — on the ground. Evidently, he had been abandoned by his flock, his nest blown from a tree. The sight was heartbreaking. He was the size of my lite finger. His eyes were tightly shut and he was shuddering, too young to survive alone. I somehow felt a connection with it. Immediately I scooped him up and cautiously placed him in a cardboard box with towels, mimicking a nest, and stayed up all night researching how to care for him.
The next day, he seemed to regain some energy. He woke with his mouth open, though still too weak to let out a call. I fed him some food and chirped (叽喳) at him. To my amusement, he chirped back and even climbed into my hand. I affectionately gazed at this adorable creature, who was now boldly pecking (啄) my fingers now and then. A surge of warmth ran through me. Tenderly stroking his feathers, I chirped a lullaby, singing him to sleep. Gradually, his eyes drooped and he drifted off. I couldn’t help but chuckle at the scene — as far as he was concerned, I was his mother.
Para 1. “I will take care of you.” I murmured, making my promise to him.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Para 2. At that moment I realized that as I dedicated myself to the finch’s care, something within me changed.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________7 . In the midst of an already record-breaking heat wave, Phoenix, Arizona, set a particularly eye-popping record: the temperature only dropped to 97 degrees Fahrenheit overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday, setting an all-time record high for a nighttime low. When temperatures stay high overnight, they place a particularly heavy burden on the body, raising the risk of heat illness and death.
The U.S. —and the world—has seen a spate of extreme heat so far this year, including the planet’s hottest-ever June and hottest week on record during the first week of July. Rising global temperatures from burning fossil fuels are the main driver of more frequent and more intense heat waves. And an El Niño event is also boosting global temperatures this year.
A heat dome has been in place for weeks over the U.S. Southwest and Texas, and it has fueled many heat records. Phoenix has now seen 20 days in a row with a daytime high of 110 degrees F or higher, a record that is likely to continue for several more days. A heat dome is an area of high pressure that parks over a region. High-pressure ridges, as they are also called, feature sinking air, which compresses and heats up. These ridges’ typical clear skies also allow the sun’s rays to beat down on the ground, further raising temperatures.
Prolonged heat extremes pose a major public health threat because heat is the number-one weather-related killer in the U.S.; it causes more human deaths than hurricanes, tornadoes and floods combined. Heat can cause dehydration, which leads the blood to thicken and makes the heart pump harder. That organ and others can be damaged by too much exposure to heat.
The soaring, triple-digit high daily temperatures grab the headlines, and they definitely are a concern—but when temperatures only drop into the 80s and 90s at night, the body doesn’t get a chance to cool down. This is particularly a concern for those who lack air-conditioning, including unhoused populations. And heat is especially a health risk for the very young, the elderly and those with preexisting health conditions such as asthma and heart disease.
1. What can be inferred from the first two paragraphs?| A．Extreme temperatures can cause damage to our hearts. |
| B．Burning fossil fuels contributes to the hottest-ever June and July. |
| C．El Nino is the dominant cause of soaring global temperature. |
| D．The temperature at night has reached a record high in Phoenix, Arizona. |
| A．It’s a weather phenomenon that contributes to high temperatures. |
| B．It’s a peak that the low pressure should reach. |
| C．It’s the damage caused by too much exposure to heat. |
| D．It’s the extra heat trapped in the sinking air. |
| A．It is the top one killer in America. | B．Exposure to heat contributes to heart diseases. |
| C．Human organs might be impaired. | D．People accommodate to 80s and 90s Fahrenheit at night. |
| A．Soaring temperatures are hitting the headlines. | B．Anew eye popping overnight low record is set. |
| C．Hot overnight temperatures threaten human health. | D．Global heat waves are causing concerns. |
8 . “I like pigs,” Winston Churchill supposedly once said. “Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” Whether Churchill’s contemporary George Orwell also liked pigs is less clear. But he, too, surely saw something in them that was lacking in many domestic (驯养的) animals, for it was they who ended up running the show in his novel, Animal Farm. Pigs, then, are intelligent social creatures.
And, like all animals, they sometimes fight. Some pigs tend to be attackers; others tend to be victims. Who is what depends largely on weight. Among pigs, pounds mean power. The attacker might bite, kick or push the victim. Most conflicts end in seconds, but some last a minute or two.
In most animal species fights would be like that. However, many of the conflicts among pigs Dr Norscia, a biologist, observed had interested parties beyond the fighters. He therefore wanted to understand the role of these bystanders in solving conflicts—and what this says about pigs’ cognitive (认知的) abilities.
Since there was usually not enough time for a bystander pig to become involved in the heat of a conflict, though this did occur, Dr Norscia looked at what happened in the three minutes immediately following a fight. Sometimes, he found, the fighters reconciled with each other on their own. The more distantly related the fighters were, the more frequently this happened. Dr Norscia guessed that relations between close relatives are more secure to start with, so rebuilding friendly relations rapidly is less necessary for them.
On other occasions, however, a third pig stepped in. Sometimes this bystander interacted with the attacker, which reduced the number of attacks coming after. Sometimes, the bystander interacted with the victim. This appeared to calm the victim down, for it reduced anxiety-related behavior.
Social intelligence need not, though, be entirely selfless. Pigs are more likely to step in after a conflict if they are closely related to either the attacker or the victim. This is probably an example of kin selection (亲属选择), which favors the development of behavior.
1. Why are Churchill and Orwell mentioned at the beginning?| A．To show their preference for pigs. | B．To add some related backgrounds. |
| C．To introduce the topic of the text. | D．To present their attitude to animals. |
| A．They aim to show power. | B．They have audiences. |
| C．They last a little bit longer. | D．They happen more often. |
| A．Caught up. | B．Kept in touch. | C．Made up. | D．Changed in tune. |
| A．Offering comfort to victim pigs. | B．Forming special bonds with strangers. |
| C．Sticking to their behavior. | D．Caring for others with selfless devotion. |
1. What is the relationship between the speakers?
| A．A couple. | B．Colleagues. | C．Classmates. |
| A．Cans. | B．Paper. | C．Plastic bottles. |
| A．Stop using paper cups. |
| B．Prepare boxes for different wastes. |
| C．Reduce the use of paper, plastic and cans. |
A civilian rescue team of named Ramunion from Hangzhou, East China’s Zhejiang Province is expected to arrive in Turkey on Wednesday, with an advance team
The advance team is equipped with
Deng Boqing, vice chairman of the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA),said in an interview that Chinese government
China announced 40 million yuan ($5.8 million) of emergency assistance to Turkey and the dispatch of a rescue and medical team. It will also provide Syria
Chinese
More than 4,000 people have been killed and nearly 20,000 people injured after two
