题目内容
CALCUTTA, India Mar 24, 2006 (AP) — One of the world’s oldest creatures, a giant tortoise believed to have been about 250 years old, has died in the Calcutta zoo where it spent more than half its long life.
Addwaita, which means “the one and only” in the local Bengali language, was one of four Aldabra tortoises brought to India by British sailors in the 18th century. Zoo officials say he was a gift for Lord Robert Clive of the East India Company, who was instrumental in establishing British colonial rule in India, before he returned to England in 1767. Long after the other three tortoises died, Addwaita continued to thrive, living in Clive’s garden before being moved to the zoo in 1875.
“According to records in the zoo, the age of the giant tortoise, Addwaita, who died on Wednesday, would be about 250 years,” said zoo director Subir Chowdhury. That would have made him much older than the world’s oldest documented living animal: Harriet, a 176-year-old Galapagos tortoise who lives at the Australia Zoo north of Brisbane, according to the zoo’s Web site. She was taken from the island of Isla Santa Cruz by Charles Darwin in the 19th century.
Aldabra tortoises come from the Aldabra atoll in the Seychelle islands in the Indian Ocean, and often live to more than 100 years of age. Males can weigh up to 550 pounds. Addwaita, the zoo’s biggest attraction, had been unwell for the last few days, said local Forest Minister Jogesh Burman.
“We were keeping a watch on him. When the zoo keepers went to his enclosure on Wednesday they found him dead,” Burman said.
1.According to the passage, Addwaita ________.
A. was sent to India as a gift by British government
B. was sent to India by British sailors in 1767
C. lived together with three other Aldabra tortoises in India
D. belonged to Lord Robert Clive for some time
2.By now, the oldest animal in the world is about at ________.
A. 176 years old B. 100 years old C. 250 years old D. 200 years old
3.In the last few days before Addwaita died, he ________.
A. had been sent to hospital for treatment
B. had been playing with travelers
C. had been found not better than before
D. had stayed in his enclosure for days
4.What would be the best title for the passage?
A. An Old Aldabra Tortoise Died in India
B. A Remarkable Life: Tortoise Dies at 250
C. A Special Kind of Tortoise — Addwaita
D. The Oldest Animal Aldabra Tortoise Died
1.D
2.A
3.C
4.B
If there is one thing I’m quite sure about, it is that in a hundred years from now we still be reading newspapers. Not those newspapers are a necessity. Even now some people get most of the news from the television or have the radio switched on in the background or in the car. Many buy a paper only on Saturday or Sunday. But for most people a newspaper has become a habit passed down from generation to generation.
The basic British character won’t change, and one of the characteristics of the British is that we don’t much like talking to each other when we get up. So what better way is there to keep yourself thinking in the morning than to wrap yourself in a newspaper?
Over the past couple of centuries, human beings have developed a close relationship with the newspaper. It has become as natural as breathing or enjoying the sun. And it is not just the British who love newspapers. On suburban trains in Calcutta, for instance, just one person in the whole car will buy a newspaper and read aloud the best bits to his fellow passengers, much to everybody’s enjoyment.
The nature of what is news may change. What essentially makes news is what affects our lives and the big political stories, the coverage of the wars, earthquakes and other disasters, will continue much the same. I think there will be more coverage of scientific research, though. It’s already happening in areas that may directly affect our lives, like genetic engineering. In the future I think there will be more coverage of scientific explanations of why we feel as we do, whether it’s love or depression. We develop a better understanding of how the brain operates and what our feelings really are.
It’s quite possible that in the next century newspaper will be transmitted(传送) electronically from the national equivalents of Fleet Street (伦敦的舰队街，以报馆集中而著称) and printed out in our own homes. In fact, I’m pretty sure that that is how it will happen in future. You’ll be probably selecting from a menu, making up your own bespoke newspaper by picking out the things you want to read and say. You might even have an intelligent screening device (装置) to do the job for you.
I think people have got it wrong when they talk about the competition between the different media. They actually have a relationship, feeding off each other. It was once predicted that television would kill off newspapers, which hasn’t happened. What is read on the printed page is more enduring (持久的) than pictures on a flickering screen or sound lost in the sky. And as for the Internet, it’s never really satisfying to read something just on a screen.
【小题1】The author of the passage is most probably from _______________.
| A．Russia | B．India | C．Britain | D．America |
| A．will be mainly connected with scientific research |
| B．will report more important political activities |
| C．will directly cover more on scientific research |
| D．will build a bridge between different people |
| A．a newspaper which dares to report the truth |
| B．a newspaper edited to one’s own interest |
| C．a newspaper edited and published for the public |
| D．a newspaper which only covers the life of family members |
| A．It was centuries ago that newspapers came into being . |
| B．Televisions have taken the place of newspapers . |
| C．The Internet will gradually take the place of newspapers. |
| D．The nature of news may remain the same over generations. |
They once seemed more at home on the busy streets of Asia like Delhi, Calcutta and Bangkok but cycle powered rickshaws (人力车) can now be seen taking people across town in many European cities. Many people believe that rickshaws are a good way of experiencing a city close-up, while also cutting down on traffic jams and pollution. In Berlin, one of the first cities to introduce this new model of transport, more than 200 bike-taxis go along at 15km per hour, past many tourist attractions and city parks.
“It is completely environmentally friendly; we have new models with an engine to help the driver up the hills but they use renewable energy.” said a spokesman for VELOTAXI, the leading rickshaw company which has carried a quarter of a million people this year.
While the city still has 7,000 motor-taxis, rickshaw company officials say their taxis’ green ideas, speed and safety make them more than just a tourist attraction. While now increasingly out of fashion in Delhi, Berlin people have eagerly accepted the new fleet since their launch in 1997.
“It’s better than a taxi, better than a bus, better than the train,” said ULF Lehman, 36, as he leapt out of a rickshaw near the world famous Brandenburg gate. “ It feels so free.”
“This is something out of the ordinary, you feel you are on holiday in Bangkok instead of Berlin,” said another traveler.
In Amsterdam, driver Peter Jancso said people like to be driven around in his bright yellow rickshaw and pretend to be a queen in a golden carriage. "I like my passengers to feel important," he said as he dropped off another passenger. Another visitor noted how cheap it was compared with a normal taxi.
Although increasingly popular in Europe, it is the opposite in India, where hand-pulled rickshaws are considered inhuman and a symbol of India's backward past.
Nearly 500 bike-rickshaws are running in London and are not required to pay the city's road tax but things may change as other taxi drivers complain of unfair treatment.
【小题1】Where are rickshaws becoming more popular?
| A．Delhi, Berlin, Paris. | B．Amsterdam, Bangkok, Delhi. |
| C．Athens, London, Berlin. | D．Berlin, Amsterdam, London. |
| A．They are a reminder of a bad period in India's history. |
| B．They have been banned because they are inefficient. |
| C．The streets of India are too crowded for them to move through easily. |
| D．Indians now prefer to travel by car because they are richer. |
Bangkok instead of Berlin" suggest?
| A．The passenger didn't like taking a rickshaw as it reminded him of Bangkok. |
| B．The passenger enjoyed being on holiday in Berlin more than in Bangkok. |
| C．The passenger was impressed when taking a rickshaw and considered it unusual. |
| D．The passenger disapproved of rickshaws because they were not original to Berlin. |
| A．He gives no personal opinion. |
| B．He believes they will be of no use. |
| C．He thinks they will reduce pollution. |
| D．He thinks they are old-fashioned. |
Hallmark arrived in my hometown of Calcutta, India when I was 16. On Valentine’s Day(情人节), I waited in line with many other teenagers just for a chance to get into the store. I remember wishing two things. One of them is that the good-looking boy whom I could see through the store window was picking out a gift for me. Unfortunately, Valentine’s Day passed and I received nothing but a lecture from my father on how Western capitalism(资本主义) was ruining your culture.
The next Valentine’s Day, I still didn’t have a boyfriend, but I did receive a greeting card from a secret admirer. I can’t remember what it exactly said inside the card, but it hardly mattered. I know I’m not the only one who’s had the blues because of being single on Valentine’s Day.
It’s not just on Valentine’s Day that I’m reminded of these feelings. One night, my friend and I were at the subway station in New York City waiting for the local to arrive. The station was mostly full of college students, and later an older couple walked in. Just at that moment, a street musician started playing She’s Only a Woman to Me. The couple began dancing around the station and lost in their own world. On the train, I found myself recalling the time when I was with a date at the subway station, and there he picked me up in his arms like I was a ballerina(芭蕾舞女演员).
My view of romance has changed from when I was 16 in Calcutta to now, 23, and living in Manhattan. This year, I won’t focus all my romantic expectations on one particular day. I’ll spend Valentine’s Day with friends in New York City. But I won’t try to hide somewhere or turn off my cellphone. Instead, I’ll help my coupled-up friends pack for their weekend trips to Rome.
1.The underlined word “Hallmark” in Paragraph 1 probably refers to a .
|
A．city |
B．street |
C．store |
D．man |
2.We can infer that in the opinion of the writer’s father .
|
A．his daughter should have received a gift |
|
B．people in India shouldn’t celebrate Valentine’s Day |
|
C．people in India should welcome Western culture |
|
D．his daughter should know more about capitalism |
3.According to Paragraph 2, if someone has the blues, he or she is probably .
|
A．lucky |
B．angry |
C．excited |
D．sad |
4.What is implied in the passage?
|
A．The writer now has a boyfriend. |
|
B．The writer now is afraid of Valentine’s Day. |
|
C．The writer will go to Rome with her coupled-up friends. |
|
D．The writer’s attitude towards Valentine’s Day has changed. |