No Car Day was first started by 34 cities in France on September 22,1998. It was started to protect the environment. By now, more than 1,000 cities around the world have had a No Car Day.

The first No Car Day in China was in Chengdu in 2001. Other cities,including Taipei,Shanghai and Wuhan, also support the day.

In Bejjing, more and more people are joining the campaign. It asks drivers to leave their cars at home for one day each month and walk or ride a bike to work. It also calls on Beijingers not to use cars on June 5(World Environment Day). The slogan(口号)for the day is,“If we drive for one less day, we can have one more nice day.”

So far more than 200, 000 drivers have shown their support.“We can't control(控制)the weather, but we can choose not to drive, ”said Wu Zonghua, a car club chairman. Beijing is trying to have 238 blue sky days this year. In the first quarter of 2007, Bejjing only had 52 blue sky days. This was 11 days less than the number for the same period last year. Much of the dust comes from the desert, but cars cause most of the air pollution. We must do more for No Car Day.

1.No Car Day was started________.

A.to save money B.to control the weather

C.to make the air cleaner D.to keep out dust from the desert

2.The No Car Day campaign asks Beijing drivers________.

A.to work hard to get fewer blue sky days

B.not to work on World Environment Day

C.to ride a bike or walk instead of driving to work

D.to leave their cars at home for a week each month

3.Which of the following about No Car Day is WRONG?

A.It was first started in France in September, 1998.

B.It was first stared in China in 2001.

C.It is supported by over 1,000 cities around the world.

D.It was first started by a car club chairman in Bejjing.

Chinese A-level has overtaken German for the first time, as it becomes the UK's third most popular language.

This year 3,334 students took Chinese A-level, compared to 3,058 taking German. While entries(报名者)for Chinese have increased by 8.6 percent since last year, the number of German entries has dropped by 16.5 percent. French remains the most popular modern language followed by Spanish(西班牙语),but both have seen a fall in entries compared to last year by eight and four percent separately.

Barnaby Lenon, expert of the independent Schools Council (ISC), said that the teachers used to tell pupils "It will really help your future if you learn German", but this is no longer the case.

In the 1960s, the 1970s and even the 1990s, pupils were strongly encouraged to study German because of the importance of the German economy(经济).Although it is still strong, that argument has disappeared gradually, and China has become known in the last 25 years for the fastest growing economy in the world.”

Mr. Lenon, a former headmaster at Harrow School, said the increase in Chinese A-level is partly driven by private schools. Many of them have put more money in the subject in recent years. "It is not the case that a large number of state schools are now teaching Chinese A-level. They are not," he said. Many of the entries will be Chinese native speakers, adding that independent schools have attracted(吸引)"large numbers" of Chinese pupils in recent years.

Mark Herbert, director of schools and skills at the British Council, welcomed the rise in Chinese A-level entries. Our research shows that Mandarin(汉语)will be one of the most important languages for the UK's future and position-but we mustn't give no attention to Spanish, French and German which will still be important post-Brexit(脱欧后).

Nick Gibb, the school minister, said, "It has never been more important for young people to learn a foreign language than now."

1.The underlined word overtake in Paragraph 1 means _________.

A.catch up and begin to do better than B.be strongly against

C.come suddenly and unexpectedly to D.be in control of

2.Which language has the second largest number of entries in the UK this year?

A.Chinese. B.German. C.French. D.Spanish.

3.Students were encouraged to learn German in _________because Germany's economy was in good condition.

A.the late ninetieth century B.the early twentieth century

C.the late twentieth century D.the early twenty-first century

4.According to Mr. Lenon, the rise in Chinese A-level is, in some ways, caused by _________.

A.private schools B.state schools C.Chinese schools D.German schools

5.What can we learn from Mark Herbert's speech in Paragraph 6?

A.He is against learning Chinese.

B.It's difficult to learn Chinese well.

C.Spanish, French and German are easy to learn.

D.Britain should take all kinds of foreign languages seriously.

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