Running like the wind, roaring like thunder, tigers have long been feared and respected as a king of the animal world.But last week a report said that there are no more than 30 wild tigers left in south China.

    This was the conclusion of a team of scientists from China's State Forestry Administration and the World Nature Fund.

    The South China tiger, also known as the Chinese tiger, is native to southern China.In the 1950's, there were over 4000 tigers found in mountain forests in the country.But due to the destruction of their natural habitat and uncontrolled hunting, it has been pushed on to the list of the world's top ten most endangered species.

    Sixty-six of the big cats can be found in the cages of a dozen zoos around China.But they are nothing like their wild cousins.They have lost their natural skills such as hunting and killing.If they were set free they could not look after themselves.

    "Breeding has damaged the quality of the species", said Pei Enle, deputy director of the Shanghai Zoo.

    To reintroduce the species into the wild, the country started a programme to send five to ten young tigers to South Africa.Four of them have already arrived.Progress has been made as two elder tigers have recovered some of their instincts(本能)and can hunt wild animals by themselves at the African base.

    " South Africans are very experienced in reintroducing big animals to the wild.The country has very good natural conditions for the tigers to learn in", said Lu Jun, office director of the National Wildlife Research and Development Center." We tried in Fujian Province, but it was not successful as there was not a complete eco-chain(生物链) and there was a lack of space."

The tigers should return to China in 2007 when the reservations in Fujian are ready.

1.What is the main reason for the South China tiger becoming one of the world's top ten most endangered species?

    A.Because it has lost its natural instincts.  B.Because there is not a complete eco-chain.

    C.Because there is no space for it.   D.Because uncontrolled hunting has destroyed its natural living conditions.

2.How is the programme of sending several tigers to South Africa getting on?

    A.Its effect still remains to be seen.

    B.Two tigers can already compete with their wild cousins.

    C.Some of the tigers are already on the road to recovering their natural skills.

    D.The tigers should be able to recover their instincts completely by 2007.

3.By saying " but they are nothing like their wild cousins", the writer means that ______.

    A.they are no longer feared by other wild animals

    B.they don't know how to hunt or kill

    C.a complete change has resulted in the species because of breeding

    D.to reintroduce them into the wild has become an urgent task

4.What is the purpose of sending young tigers to South Africa?

    A.To help the tigers recover their ability to live in the wild.

    B.To provide them with a better environment.

    C.To get the tigers to go on a tour.

    D.To find a complete eco-chain for them.

5.Which one is not the reason for South Africa being chosen as the training place?

    A.Because the tigers can hunt wild animals by themselves at the African base.

    B.Because South Africans are skilled at dealing with the tigers.

    C.Because there is a complete eco-chain and enough space there.

    D.Because the country has good natural conditions for the tigers to learn in. 

The German shepherd runs off and noses around in the grass of Kenya’s Laikipia Plateau. “OK, Oakley,” the dog’s handler orders, “Find it!”

Oakley sniffs (嗅) until he comes to a bush, then stops, sits, and looks up at his handler. She bends to see what he has found: the waste of an endangered African wild dog. “Good dog!” she praises. The handler pulls a tennis ball from her pocket. Oakley jumps for his reward.

“He doesn’t actually want the waste,” says Aimee Hurt, a founding member of the U.S.-based group Working Dogs for Conservation. Hurt is in Kenya to train both Oakley and his handler. “He finds it so he can play with his ball. We’re the ones who want the waste.”

Detection dogs are sometimes taught to locate actual animals. Black-footed ferrets (雪貂) have been studied with their help. But more often the dogs learn to locate the waste of creatures such as bears, wolves and mountain lions.

What the dogs find provides scientists with data about a species. Scientists can use the DNA collected from animal waste to identify individuals, sex, and population sizes — all without ever seeing the animal itself. “It can take years to gather this kind of information if you have to trap animals,” Hurt explains.

Waste analysis might make a huge difference when wild species are accused of attacking domestic livestock (家畜). Hurt says, “A good detection dog will find the waste so we can see what the animal is actually eating.” This may help reduce problems between people and wildlife.

The underlined word “She” in Paragraph 2 refers to  “_____”.

    A. the German shepherd                B. an African wild dog

    C. Aimee Hurt                        D. the handler

Oakley is interested in finding the waste because _____.

    A. he wants to study endangered animals

    B. he can get a tennis ball to play with

    C. he wants to eat it   

    D. he wants to play with it

Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

    A. Trapping animals is not difficult.

    B. People are making efforts to protect the environment.

    C. Detection dogs attack domestic livestock frequently.

    D. Collecting animal waste is a good way to gather information.

What is the main idea of the passage?

    A. Detection dogs can help scientists study wildlife.

    B. Detection dogs can defend wildlife.

    C. Detection dogs can help the police catch the criminals.

    D. Detection dogs can help local people defend domestic livestock.

Cultural rules determine every aspect of food consumption. Who eats together defines social units. For example, in some societies, the nuclear family is the unit that regularly eats together. The anthropologist Mary Douglas has pointed out that, for the English, the kind of meal and the kind of food that is served relate to the kinds of social links between people who are eating together. She distinguishes between regular meals, Sunday meals when relatives may come, and cocktail parties for relatives and friends. The food served symbolizes the occasion and reflects who is present. For example, only snacks are served at a cocktail party. It would be inappropriate to serve a steak or hamburgers. The distinctions among cocktails, regular meals, and special dinners mark the social boundaries between those guests who are invited for drinks, those who are invited to dinner, and those who come to a family meal. In this example, the type of food symbolizes the category of guest and with whom it is eaten.

In some New Guinea societies, the nuclear family is not the unit that eats together. The men take their meals in a men's house, separately from their wives and children. Women prepare and eat their food in their own houses and take the husband's portion to the men's house. The women eat with their children in their own houses. This pattern is also widespread among Near Eastern societies.

Eating is a metaphor that is sometimes used to signify marriage. In many New Guinea societies, like that of the Lese on the island of New Ireland in the Pacific and that of the Trobriand Islanders, marriage is symbolized by the couple's eating together for the first time. Eating symbolizes their new status as a married couple. In U.S. society, it is just the reverse. A couple may go out to dinner on a first date.

Other cultural rules have to do with taboos against eating certain things. In some societies, members of a family group, arc not allowed to eat the animal or bird that is their ancestor. Since they believe themselves to be children of that ancestor, it would be like eating that ancestor or eating themselves.

There is also an association between food prohibitions and rank, which is found in its most extreme form in the caste (social class) system of India. A caste system consists of ranked groups, each with a different economic specialization. In India, there is an association between caste and the idea of pollution. Members of highly ranked groups can be polluted by coming into contact with the bodily secretions, particularly saliva(唾液),of individuals of lower-ranked castes. Because of the fear of pollution, Brahmans and other high-ranked individuals will not share food with, not eat from the same plate as, not even accept food from an individual or from a low-ranking class.

1.According to the passage, who will NOT eat together?

A.The English during regular meals.

B.Americans on their first date.

C.Men and women in Near Eastern societies.

D.Newly-married people on the island of New Ireland.

2.In Paragraph 4, the underlined word "taboos" means _____________.

A.favors

B.prohibitions

C.hatred

D.gossips

3. According to the passage, eating together indicates all the following EXCEPT         .

A.the type of food

B.social relations.

C.marital status

D.family ties.

4.What is the main idea of the passage?

A.Different kinds of food in western countries.

B. Relations between food and social units.

C. Symbolic meanings of different kinds of food.

D.Food consumption in different cultures.

 

They leap from helicopters or speeding boats, bringing aid to swimmers who get into trouble off Italy’s popular beaches.

For these dog lifeguards, the doggie paddle (狗刨式游法)does just fine.

These “lifedogs” tow a buoy(救生衣) that victims can grab, or a raft they can sit on to be towed back to shore, and unlike their human counterparts(与对方地位相当的人), they can easily jump from helicopters and speeding boats to reach swimmers in trouble.

With millions flocking(人群) to Italy’s crowded beaches each summer, the Italian Coast Guard says it rescues about 3,000 people every year — and their dog helpers are credited with saving several lives.

It takes three years for the canines to reach expert rescue status, and currently 300 dogs are fully trained for duty, said Roberto Gasbarri, who co-ordinates the Italian School of Canine Lifeguards program at a centre outside of Rome in the seaside town of Civitavecchia.

“Dogs are useful in containing the physical fatigue(疲劳) of the lifeguard, to increase the speed at which casualties(遇难者) are retrieved(找到并衔回), to increase the security of both the casualty and of the lifeguard,” Gasbarri said.

The Civitavecchia centre is one of a dozen around the country for the school founded more than 20 years ago in the northern province of Bergamo by Ferruccio Pilenga, whose first trainee was his own Newfoundland.

The school will train any breed(品种), as long as they weigh at least 30 kilograms, but Labradors, Newfoundlands and golden retrievers are most commonly used because of their natural instinct for swimming. Each dog works in tandem with(同 ……合作) a human lifeguard, who also acts as the animal’s trainer.

1.Which of the following can act as the best title fo the passage?

  A. Dogs to the Rescue                B. Dogs Are Good at Doggie Paddle

  C. The Wonderful Performance of Dogs  D. Dogs: Our Loyal Friends

2.What advantage do these life-dogs have over human lifeguards in a rescue?

  A. Dog can swim very fast                      B. Dogs can finish rescue work with ease.

  C. Dogs can finish the great work free of charge.    D. Dogs can easily be trained

3. Which of the following is TRUE about the Civitavecchia center according to the text?

A. Any breed can be trained there.

  B. The ones who have the gift for swimming are welcomed.

  C. After a better training, the dogs can work alone.

  D. It is the only place for training dog lifeguards in the school.

4.What does the writer want to tell us in the 4th paragraph?

  A. Without the dog lifeguards, 3,000 people would lose their lives every year.

  B. The buautiful beaches attract millions of people every year.

  C. Dog lifeguards play an important part in a rescue.

  D. Italy is a famous place of interest.

 

 

The year 2009 is the Year of Ox. The ox is a representative of the farming culture of China. In the farming economy (经济), oxen are the major animals pulling plows (犁).

Of course, the good of oxen is not limited to plowing.  In fact, they are seen as "boats on land" for their ability to carry loads. Besides, the whole body of an ox is full of treasures. Their meat and milk are food full of nutrition, and their skin can be used to make clothes and shoes. With all these qualities, oxen are regarded as generous creatures.

In the past, oxen played an important role in the spiritual life of the Chinese. Even today, oxen still play a special part in some folk activities. For example, some people who1ive in southwest China will cook cattle bone soup and share it among family members when holding the ceremony for children who reach 13. They believe that the cattle bone soup represents the blood relationship among family members. In order to express their love for oxen, people in some other areas will run to shake off diseases on the 16th day of the first month by the lunar calendar (农历), and during their run they will take their oxen along, which indicates they regard the creature as human.

Because of the contribution of oxen in their lives, the Chinese people are very grateful to the animal. In addition, the use of oxen in ceremonies and the thanks people owe to oxen help to develop various traditional customs, which becomes an important part of the folk culture of the Chinese nation.

1.The words "boats an land" underlined in Paragraph 2 refer to _     .

A. animals for taking goods                 B. creatures for pulling plows

C. treasures of the folk culture              D. tools in the farming economy

2.From the third paragraph, we know that __.

A. oxen are no more important today than in the past

B. ceremonies are held when people cook cattle bone soup

C. oxen are treated as human in some areas of China

D. people run with oxen to shake off diseases every month

3.Which of the following helps to develop traditional customs?

A. The special role of oxen in farming.     B. People's respect and love for oxen.

C. The practical value of an ox's body.     D. The contribution of oxen to the economy.

4. Why does the author write the text?

A. To stress the importance of oxen in farming.   B. To introduce the Chinese folk culture.

C. To describe how to celebrate the Year of Ox.   D. To explain how to develop agriculture with oxen.

 

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