3 . Should We Create More National Parks to Save Endangered Animals?

Don’t you find it worrying that more and more species of animals are in real danger of becoming extinct?     1     And I think the best way to do this is for governments to create more national parks.

    2     If this environment is destroyed — for example, when farmers clear a forest for new fields, or trees are cut down to make profits — many animals are unable to survive, and more species are likely to become extinct.

On the other hand, some people fight against the creation of national parks because they consider it is wrong to interfere with nature. They believe that wild animals are happier living in their natural environment.     4     They also point out that a few species are more likely to produce young animals in the wild than in national parks.

All in all, these disadvantages are far less important than the benefits of national parks.     5     As a matter of fact, they protect animals from their greatest enemies, that is, human beings.

4 . Think about the different ways that people use the wind. You can use it to fly a kite or to sail a boat. Wind is one of our cleanest and richest power sources, as well as one of the oldest. Evidence shows that windmills (风车) began to be used in ancient Iran back in the 7th century BC. They were first introduced to Europe during the 1100s, when armies returned from the Middle East with knowledge of using wind power.

For many centuries, people used windmills to grind (磨碎) wheat into flour or pump water from deep underground. When electricity was discovered in the late 1800s, people living in remote (偏远的) areas began to use them to produce electricity. This allowed them to have electric lights and radio. However, by the 1940s when electricity was available (可利用的) to people in almost all areas of the United States, windmills were seldom used.

During the 1970s, people started becoming concerned about the pollution that is created when coal and gas are burned to produce electricity. People also realized that the supply of coal and gas would not last forever. Then, wind was rediscovered, though it means higher costs. Today, there is a global movement to supply more and more of our electricity through the use of wind.

5 . Eco-friendly Vauban, located in the southwest of Germany, is a city where less than 20% residents(居民) own cars, since parking spots are a no-no on private property. Most of the residents get around Vauban by walking or biking, according to a report from ABC news. Can an eco-friendly city like Vauban be a model for Americans to stop their over-reliance on the cars?

Sometimes when I watch a news report what’s in the back of my mind is what isn’t being reported or stressed. While this eco-friendly city is inspiring in that it shows residents getting exercise and fresh air through the majority use of bicycles, as well as good old fashioned walking, common sense would tell you that even for a place like Vauban, Germany, it owes its existence to the cars.

Do you think that bicycles were able to transport all the construction materials that were needed to build and maintain the eco-friendly homes and businesses in Vauban? It took cars to help build this utopia. It is one of the paradoxes(矛盾) of life that sometimes in order to get away from relying on something like the car, you actually have to rely on that very thing at the beginning and into the foreseeable future to some degree.

I myself haven’t owned a car for more than 14 years, and mostly get around town running, walking, or using public transportation. There are times I wish I had one, since it would make many things easier, but overall I’m glad not to have to deal with the headaches of owning a car, which caused me to get rid of it in the first place. And all the walking and running has helped to keep me fit and healthy.

To get even close to being like eco-friendly Vauban, Americans will need to absolutely change the way they live. Commuting (乘车上下班) patterns will have to change, public transport will have to be invested in, etc. And though ending our love affair with the car will be impossible during my lifetime, we may at least start to see more Vauban-like areas in the USA.

We can hope that Americans will consider using their feet more to get around, cutting down on pollution, and giving themselves some more exercise.

6 . Sea turtles have been on Earth for millions of years, but they may soon die out. The main_______ to them is people who kill them for food, according to Dr. Wallace J. Nichols of the University of California.

But the latest news may_______turtle hunting: Dr. Nichols has found that sea turtles_______a lot of pollution from the ocean. This pollution is_______ for both turtles and _______It can cause _______damage to their bodies and lead to death. Research shows that many people get sick and even_______eating sea turtle meat.

In the US, most people have_______eaten turtle. This is because turtles are_______by the United States law, which makes it________to harm or kill these amazing animals.“But many people in other countries still eat them,” explains Nichols. “Our first________was to save turtles; now we must save________ too.”

Davis said he also wants to send out a bigger________that we should protect the oceans.“The ________of the ocean, animals in the ocean, and our own health are all________. A clean ocean is really good for us too because of the food we eat from there.”