题目内容
The Year of the Dragon May Encourage a Baby increase in Asia
Monday marks the beginning of the Year .f the Dragon State news agency Xinhua says China is expecting a 5% increase in the number of babies horn in 2012. The dragon, considered the luckiest sign in Chinese culture, is often associated with good fortune and intelligence and is believed to be the sign of success.
Dragon years typically generate more births than other years in the zodiac cycle, including in 2000, when Hong Kong saw a more than 5% increase in births. The zeal for the lucky sign that ancient Chinese cultures associated with the emperor has not changed. A recent poll conducted in Hong Kong revealed that 70% of couples desired “dragon babies,” CBS reports.
In places like China, an already with 1.3 billion people, the increase might put pressure on parents who must adhere to the country’s one-child policy as well as compete for places in the best schools. But in places like Taiwan, which carries one of the world’s lowest birth rates, parents and government officials are welcoming the baby increase.
Chu Hong-min, 30, told CBS she is excited to give birth to her second child under the dragon sign. But she is worried about the big competition for her baby’s future education. “Many of my friends and colleagues are either expecting or plan to have a dragon baby this year,” she said. “We really have to try harder to make the children do well at school.”
But Asian mothers shouldn’t fret, Zhang Yanxia told the BBC. She said the increase will likely have little influence on long –term birth rates. The year 2013 marks the year of the snake, and my see a fall in births.
Some famous dragon babies include martial arts star Bruce Lee, Spanish artist Salvador Dalí and President Bill Clinton.
72．The dragon is a sign standing for many things EXCEPT .
A． hard work B．good luck C．success D．cleverness
73．Why do many couples in Hong Kong want dragon babies?
A．Because they think this is the last Year of the Dragon.
B．Because they think dragon babies are the luckiest babies
C．Because they want to compete for places in the hest schools
D．Because government officials are welcoming dragon babies.
74．The underlined phase "adhere to" in Paragraph 3 probably means ．
A. give up B. make up C. stick to D．turn to
75．From what Chu Hong-min said we can learn _ ．
A．Taiwan is the world ' s lowest birth rates
B．her friends don't expect her to have a dragon baby
C．she has to try hard for her baby’s future education
D．schools will like dragon babies more than other babies
ABCC
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