3 . WHY SHENNONGJIA?

As we know, in 2016, Shennongjia made it on to the UNESCO World Heritage List. But there are so many important places not yet on this list. So you might ask: why Shennongjia?

UNESCO awarded Shennongjia this status because it meets two criteria required by the list. It contains a naturally-balanced environment that allows the many and various species to live and prosper. It is also one of the rare locations in the world where scientists can observe in real time the ecological and biological processes that occur as the plants and animals develop and evolve.

For the first criterion, Shennongjia is apparently one of the most “complete” natural areas in the world. The region rises from about 400 metres to over 3, 000 metres above sealevel, giving it the name the “Roof of Central China”.

For the second criterion, we can see that Shennongjia has incredible biodiversity. Look at this slide. According to official statistics, over 3, 000 plant species have been recorded there. This represents more than ten percent of China’s total floral richness.

It is a challenge to look after so many species. In winter, scientists brave heavy snow and freezing temperatures to supply food to the Golden Snub-nosed Monkey. Thanks to their efforts, the monkey’s population has doubled since the 1980s.Their number reached over 1, 300 in 2015 and continues to grow.

But the most impressive aspect of Shennongjia is the local people, who take things from nature without causing damage. I visited a local village which is known for its home-made honey. What is special about the honey is that it is produced by the earliest species of Chinese bee. All of this explains why Shennongjia earned—and deserves—its place on the UNESCO World Heritage List, as well as highlighting how understanding, awareness and hard work have contributed towards protecting a unique and wonderful part of our natural world.

1. Why is Shennongjia included in the UNESCO World Heritage List?

A．Because its forests stretch on and on like great green seas.

B．Because it is the legendary father of Chinese herbal medicine.

C．Because it satisfies the two requirements for the status.

D．Because it has the mysterious creature called “Yeren”.

2. Shennongjia is also called the“          ”.

A．Roof of Central China	B．Roof of Northern China
C．Roof of Eastern China	D．Roof of Southern China

3. How does the author think of the scientists in Shennongjia?

A．Patient.

B．Careful.

C．Confident.

D．Hard-working.

4. According to the text, what impressed the author most?

A．A local village.	B．The local people.
C．Some special monkeys.	D．The wild bees.

4 . 我期待参加更多像这样的活动。
I ________________ taking part in more activities like this.

5 . 从下面的方框中选择合适的短语并用其正确形式填空。

come across; make the most of; in panic; give sb. a hand; over and over again be different from; speaking of; be short for; turn around; go all out

1. We students should learn to ________________ our potential by wisely managing our time.
2. My neighbour is always willing to ________________ when I am in trouble.
3. ________________ the part-time job, I think it’s important for college students to put their studies in the first place.
4. When walking down the street, I ________________ Losang, whom I hadn’t seen for years.
5. WTO ________________ World Trade Organization.
6. ________________, I saw a white-haired man.
7. American English ________ significantly ________ British English.
8. I read the letter ________________, but I couldn’t simply understand its meaning.
9. You will be a lot happier if you ________________ to pursue your dream.
10. The customers all rushed out of the store ________________ because of the sudden accident.

7 . Four Cool Languages

Chinese

Around 1.4 billion people speak Chinese. Chinese is a tonal (声调的) language, meaning that changing the tone of just one syllable (音节) can affect a word’s meaning. Chinese writing has ancient roots, which is thought to have developed starting around 2000 B. C.

Arabic

Over 370 million people speak Arabic. Written Arabic uses a cursive-style font (连笔) that looks more like artworks than writing. Arabic is written from right to left rather than left to right, making it different from many other languages.

English

Around 379 million people speak English as a native language. It’s an official language in a huge number of other countries.

English is the most widely spoken second language, with over a billion people speaking it as a non-native language. That means around twice as many people speak English as a second language than people who speak it as a first language.

Italian

Nearly 68 million people speak Italian. If you play music or sing, chances are that you already know a lot of Italian because many familiar musical terms are actually Italian.

Not only will learning Italian help you pick up vocabulary, but it will also help you understand the meanings of musical terms in greater depth.

1. What is a feature of Arabic?

A．It doesn’t have cursive-style fonts.	B．It helps artists with their artworks.
C．It is written from right to left.	D．It is closely related to music.

2. Which language is the most widely used as a second language in the world?

A．Arabic.

B．English.

C．Chinese.

D．Italian.

3. What’s the number of people who speak Italian?

A．Nearly 68 million.	B．Around 370 million.
C．Over 379 million.	D．Around 1.4 billion.