Special Bridges Help Animals Cross the Road

―Reported by Sheila Carrick

Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the other side.

Most people know this joke. But recently, some people have been much more worried about how the grizzly bear (灰熊) and mountain lion can cross the road.

“Millions of animals die each year on U.S. roads,” the Federal Highway Administration reports. In fact, only about 80 ocelots, an endangered wild cat, exist in the U.S. today. The main reason? Roadkill.

“Ecopassages (生态通道)” may help animals cross the road without being hit by cars. They are paths both over and under roads. “These ecopassages can be extremely useful, so that wildlife can avoid road accidents,” said Jodi Hilty of the Wildlife Protection Society.

But do animals actually use the ecopassages? The answer is yes. Paul Beier of Northern Arizona University found foot marks left by mountain lions on an ecopassage that went under a highway. This showed that the lions used the passage.

Builders of ecopassages try to make them look like a natural part of an area by planting trees on and around them. Animals seem to be catching on. Animals as different as salamanders (火蜥蜴) and grizzly bears are using the bridges and underpasses.

The next time you visit a park or drive through an area with a lot of wildlife, look around. You might see an animal overpass!

60. The writer uses the example of “ocelots” to show that _______.

A. wild animals have become more dangerous

B. the driving conditions have improved greatly

C. the measure for protecting wildlife fails to work

D. an increasing number of animals are killed in road accidents

61. From the news story, we know an ecopassage is ________.

A. an underground path for cars                       B. a fence built for the safety of the area

C. a bridge for animals to get over a river          D. a path for animals to cross the road

62. When the writer says that animals seem “to be catching on”, he means ________.

A. animals begin to realize the dangers on the road   

60. D 通过“ocelots”的例子来说明前面“Millions of animals die each year on U.S. roads,”这句话，

61. D。 “Ecopassages (生态通道)” may help animals cross the road without being hit by cars帮助动物穿过马路而不被车碰撞

62. B 从 Animals seem to be catching on. Animals as different as salamanders (火蜥蜴) and grizzly bears are using the bridges and underpasses.这句话可知动物在使用这些桥和路

63. D 让人们过马路时注意保护动物，不要碰撞到他们。

C. animals are crossing the road in groups               D. animals are increasing in number

63. The writer asks visitors and drivers to look around when traveling because ________.

A. wild animals may attack cars                       B. wild animals may block the road

C. they may see wild animals in the park           D. they may see wild animals on ecopassages

In Singapore, most of us love window-shopping while some others enjoy having a picnic at East Coast Park or Changi Beach on sunny days. Singaporeans are never bothered by the occasional thunderstorm. However, we know that if it rains for long continuous periods, there will be more serious effects. Just recently the main shopping street of Orchard Road was flooded and some part of Bukit Timah was impassable to traffic. People reacted by writing in to the newspaper to complain about this! We forget that other countries suffer much worse effects. Elsewhere, heavy tropical（热带的）storms often result in floods that ruin crops especially in Thailand and Malaysia. This in turn usually means that the price of rice and vegetables here in Singapore will rise because we import these products from them. If there is a typhoon or tsunami, thousands of lives are lost too. This happened in Indonesia and Phuket in Thailand in 2004 and it serves to remind us of how Mother Nature can cause great damage.

Weather patterns in general have changed dramatically in recent years. Scientists believe that global warming and the resulting melting of the polar ice-cap has caused the level of the ocean to rise. This in turn causes flooding of low-lying areas in countries where the land is rather flat and some parts of which is below water level. It is believed that human activities have caused Mother Nature to show her extreme anger, so it is now important that we really work together to cut down on harmful activities, for example, illegal logging（伐木）or irresponsible forest-burning to clear land for farming.

56.From Paragraph 1, we can see that most Singaporeans love________.

A. making complaints           B. going out for picnics

C. doing window-shopping    D. traveling along the coast

【答案】C

【解析】根据第一段第一句可知。

57.What will happen in Singapore if there are floods in its neighboring countries?

A. Heavy tropical storms will follow shortly.

B. The price of rice and vegetables will go up.

C. Many people will write in to the newspaper.

D. More rice and vegetables will be imported.

【答案】B

【解析】根据第一段倒数三，四句可知。热带风暴导致的洪水会毁掉庄稼，新加坡的蔬菜和大米是从这些国家进口的，所以会导致蔬菜，大米的价格上升。

58.The underlined word“it” in Paragraph 2 refers to___________.

A. the arrival of heavy tropical storms

B. the import of rice and vegetables

C. the rising price of rice and vegetables

D. the loss of lives in natural disasters

【答案】D

【解析】上句提到台风和海啸会导致成千上万的人死亡。这在2004年在印度尼西亚和泰国的普吉岛发生过。自然灾害到这人死亡这件事用来提醒我们大自然可以带来巨大损害。

59.Which of the following shows how the low-lying areas are flooded?

a. global warming

b. the rise in ocean level

c. harmful human activities

d. the flooding of low-lying areas

e. the melting of the polar ice-cap

A. c→a→e→b→d         B. a→c→e→b→d        

C. c→a→b→e→d         D. d→a→c→b→e

【答案】A

【解析】根据最后一段可知。

60.What should we do in order not to make Mother Nature angry?

A. Clear more land for farming.           B. Reduce harmful human activities.

C. Bring down the price of food.          D. Improve the quality of weather.

【答案】B

【解析】根据最后一段It is believed that human activities have caused Mother Nature to show her extreme anger, so it is now important that we really work together to cut down on harmful activities,“人们认为是人类的活动导致了大自然极端愤怒， 因此，现在我们真的应该团结合作减少有害活动。”

根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

　　1. It is a new term in today's tourism industry．But in an age of growing environmental awareness, it is not too difficult for us to imagine and understand this new form of holiday．

　　Ecotourism, which is considered as a kind of responsible tourism, is typically defined（定义）as travel to places where special and unusual plants, animals and cultural heritages （遗产） are the main ttractions．  2. Therefore, programs concerning the protection of some natural and cultural spots also form'a part of ecotourism．　　Ecotourism is developing at great speed．According to a recent report by the World Tourism Organization, ecotourism in recent years has enjoyed an annual growth of about 5% worldwide． 3.  They include bird watching, hiking, diving, photography and taking part in various kinds of local cultural events．　　4.  However, it looks like some smaller towns and country areas may well become the new destinations for people to visit tomorrow because they are rich in ecological, cultural and historical resources （资源）．

　　Ecotourism has been gaining increasing recognition and popularity mainly for the relaxing, natural and vivid experience it offers to tourists．People are attracted to nature  and long to be close to it．However, a conflict between nature and human beings is unavoidable． 5.

　　A．The definition of ecotourism is beyond words．

　　B．It takes ecology and culture into consideration．

　　C．You may not be very familiar with "ecotourism"．

　　D．More than 80 activities have been listed for ecotourism．

　　E．People can have great fun enjoying nature through ecotourism．

　　F．Big cities are still the major places that attract tourists in our society today．

　　G．How to protect natural resources while taking advantage of them is of great importance．

完型填空（共20小题；每小题1．5分，满分30分）
阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从36—55各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上涂黑。
My mother knew that she could not send me to college and pay for it．If I wanted to go to college, it was up to roe to find out how to get there．I found that I 36   for some grants （助学金）.There was enough to 37  school and books, but not enough for room and board．I accepted a job as part of a work-study program．I washed dishes in the school cafeteria．My grades went   38   ．It was the hardest work I had   39   done．
Just when I thought I was going to 40  of my college career, a friend told me that his grandmother needed help on the weekends． 41   that was required of me was cooking meals． Now I would have time to study．I went to meet his grandmother and accepted the job．My first   42 was his grandmother' s great love of music．One day, she told me I didn't have enough   43  in my life and decided to teach me the art．Grandma was 44  with my ability and encouraged me to continue．Weekends became more than just books and cooking; they were   45  the wonderful sounds of the piano and two singers．
When Christmas break came, Grandma got a chest cold 46  I was unwilling to leave her．I hadn't been home since Labor Day, and my family was 47  to see me．I said my good-bye, 48  for her temporary care and returned home． 49   I was loading my car to go back to school, the phone rang and my friend told me Grandma died．I hung up the phone feeling like my world had ended．I had 50  my friend, and that was   51  worse than knowing I would have to return to dishwashing．
Four weeks later, I asked to begin the work-study program again．The financial aid advisor looked at me   52  I had lost my mind．I   53 my position, then he smiled and slid me an envelope which was from Grandma．She had known how sick she was．In the envelope was enough money to pay for the rest of my school year and a request that I take piano lessons in her   54  ． Now, years later, when I walk by a piano, I   55  and think of Grandma．She is playing the piano in heaven, I am sure．

根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。（★★请将答案填涂在答题卡上。 E=AB   F=AC   G=AD）

  In our modern society, we have to rely on different kinds of services. 1________.Without packaging, many goods, especially food, could not reach consumers. Packaging prevents perishable(易坏的) food from early rot. As a result , it makes shelf life longer and makes distribution possible to a greater distance .

The function of waste reduction is also evident in food packaging. According to a scientific report, food wastage can be as high as between 20% and 50% in some areas because of poor or lack of packaging . 2________.It is estimated that for every 1% increase in packaging materials ,food wastage decreases by about 1.6%.

Apart from practical functions, modern packaging also has aesthetic(美学的) value. 3_______.And for the consumers, this makes shopping more enjoyable.

4________.Sometimes, people cannot help but feel puzzled by the huge packaging of some goods, which often prove to have nothing to do at all with the protection of the goods inside. Such packaging can only lead to misunderstanding and waste of money of the part of the comsumers. 5_______

Perhaps it is difficult to decide whether the service of packaging has more advantages or disadvantages. It seems quite obvious that modern packaging , to a certain degree, reflects the inner quality of the people or company who produce the products.

A. Appropriate packaging can cut this number down to only 2 to 3%.

B. Packaging is just one of them.

C.Goods are made more attractive and inviting.

D. People are sometimes unwilling to spend more money on packaging.

E. And more seriously, it can cause a great deal of damage to the environment.

F. However, the service of packaging does not always enjoy a good reputation.

G. Advantages and disadvantages of packaging have been well argued.