The Maldives faces the threat of extinction from rising sea levels, but the government said it was looking to the future with plans to build homes and a golf course that float.

An increase in sea levels of just 18 to 59 centimeters would make the Maldives－a nation of tiny coral islands in the Indian Ocean－virtually uninhabitable by 2100,  the UN’s climate change panel(专门小组) has warned.

President Mohamed Nasheed has vowed a fight for survival, and he signed a deal with a Dutch company to study proposals for a floating structure that could support a convention center, homes and an 18-hole golf course.

The company , Dutch Docklands, is currently building floating developments in the Netherlands and Dubai.

The Maldives began work on an artificial island known as the Hulhumale near the crowded capital island of Male in 1997 and more than 30,000 people have been settled there to ease congestion.

The city, which has a population of 100,000, is already protected from rising sea levels by a 30-million-dollar sea wall, and the government is considering increasingly imaginative ways to combat(对抗) climate change.

Nasheed has even spoken of buying land elsewhere in the world to enable Maldivians to relocate if their homes are submerged.   He has also pledged to turn his nation into a model for the rest of the world by becoming "carbon neutral (碳中和)" by 2020.

His plan involves ending fossil fuel use and powering all vehicles and buildings from "green" sources such as burning coconut husks.

What do you know about Maldives?

A. It has a population of 100,000.               B. It has a floating golf course.

C. It is a nation of tiny coral islands.           D. It is located in the Pacific Ocean.

The underlined word "uninhabitable" might mean _________ .

A. 不能居住的    B. 不习惯的        C. 不能改变的     D. 不能忍受的

The floating structure will be used as all the following except ________ .

A. a convention center         B. a sports center

C. homes                         D. a golf course

What are the government's ways to combat climate change?

A. Buy land elsewhere in the world.           

B. Make the nation "carbon neutral" by 2020.

C. Use "green" sources instead of fossil fuel.             

D. All of the above.

The Maldives faces the threat of extinction from rising sea levels, but the government said on Thursday it was looking to the future with plans to build homes and a golf course that float.

An increase in sea levels of just 18 to 59 centimeters would make the Maldives -- a nation of tiny coral islands in the Indian Ocean -- virtually uninhabitable by 2100, the UN’s climate change panel has warned.

President Mohamed Nasheed has vowed a fight for survival, and last month he signed a deal with a Dutch company to study proposals for a floating structure that could support a convention centre, homes and an 18-hole golf course. “It is still early stages and we are awaiting a report on the possibility,” a government official said.

The company, Dutch Docklands, is currently building floating developments in the Netherlands and Dubai. There was no immediate comment from the firm but its website said it undertook projects that make “land from water by providing large-scale floating constructions to create similar conditions as on land”.

The Maldives began work on an artificial island known as the Hulhumale near the crowded capital island of Male in 1997 and more than 30,000 people have been settled there to ease congestion. The city, which has a population of 100,000, is already protected from rising sea levels by a 30-million-dollar sea wall, and the government is considering increasingly imaginative ways to combat climate change.

Nasheed, who staged the world’s first underwater cabinet meeting in October to highlight his people’s dilemma , has even spoken of buying land elsewhere in the world to enable Maldivians to relocate if their homes are flooded. He has also pledged the Hulhumale to turn his nation into a model for the rest of the world by becoming “carbon neutral” by 2020. His plan involves ending fossil fuel use and powering all vehicles and buildings from “green” sources.

1. What’s the main idea of the passage?

A. The Maldives plans to build floating homes for the rising sea level.

B. The Maldives’s president signed a deal with a Dutch company.

C. The Maldives staged the first underwater cabinet meeting.

D. The Maldives is considering ways to fight against the global warming.

2. Which statement is true about the Hulhumale?

A. The Hulhumale is a natural island near the capital of Male.

B. The Hulhumale is an artificial island to be built near the capital.

C. The Hulhumale was built in 1997 and has settled over 30,000 people.

D. The Hulhumale is protected by a 30-million-dollar sea wall.

3. According to the passage, the underlined word congestion means _______.

A. being endangered                     B. being crowded   

C. being flooded                        D. being disappearing

4. Which of the following is NOT Nasheed’s idea?_______

A. To purchase land elsewhere in the world to help Maldivians to relocate if their homes are flooded.

B. To make his nation a model for the rest of the world by becoming “carbon neutral” by 2020

C. To stop using fossil fuel and power all vehicles and buildings from “green” sources.

D. To build more artificial islands for people to settle there.

5. We can infer from the passage that ________.

   A. By 2100, all the the Maldives will live on artificial islands.

B. The plans to build homes and a golf course that float have been carried out

C. Maldive has been greatly affected by the global warming.

D. . Dutch Docklands is the president of Maldive.

Every culture in the world has marriage and wedding ceremonies . Usually marriages are between one woman(the bride) and one man ( the groom). However, in other parts of the world a man may have several wives, or, as in some areas of India, a wife may have more than one husband..

There are also many different kinds of wedding ceremonies practiced around the world. These ceremonies can be very short and simple, or very long and complicated.

One of the largest and most expensive wedding ceremonies in recent times was held in Dubai in 1981. The couple tying the knot at this wedding were the son of Sheik ( a male Arab ruler) Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum and Princess Salama. The wedding ceremony took seven days and cost $44 million. It was held in a large building which was specially built for the ceremony and looked like a stadium. The bride and groom needed a large place for their wedding because more than 20,000 guests were invited.

The reasons why a man and woman get married also vary. Sometimes they marry because they are in love, sometimes they marry because someone they meet through a matchmaker, and sometimes they marry because their parents tell them that they must marry.

One unusual example of an arranged marrige took place in Bangladesh in 1986.  The groom was an eleven-month-old boy and the bride was a three-month-old girl. They were the youngest married couple ever.

The parents of the bride and groom arranged the marriage as a way of ending a fight between the two families who had been arguing over a farm for twenty years. Both families thought they owned the farm, but no one knew exactly . The fight ended for good when the young boy married the young girl. By arranging this marriage, neither famlily was forced to lose face. The two families agreed to give the farm to the young people.

1.What is the best title for this passage?

A. An Unusual Wedding Tradition        B. A Short History of Marriage

C. Common Western Wedding Trations.   D. Interesting Wedding Around the World

2.Who got married in the large Wedding Ceremony described in the passage?

    A. a farmer and a neighbor             B. the son of a sheik and a princess

    B. a king and a queen                 D. two babies.

3.Why was the wedding ceremony in Dubai held in a building like a stadium?

   A. The ceremony was very long       

 B. The groom loved to play sports.

C, Many people came to the wedding.  

 D. People in Dubai usually get married in stadium.

4.Why did the families in Bangladesh make their children get married?

A. The children were in love         

B. The families wanted to end the fight

 C. The families wanted to buy a farm.  

 D. The bride’s family wanted to sell their farm.

5. What was strange about the wedding in Bangladesh ?

A. The bride and groom were young.     B. The wedding was on a farm

C.  It was an arranged marriage.      D. More than 20,000 guests came to the wedding

The Maldives faces the threat of extinction from rising sea levels, but the government said on Thursday it was looking to the future with plans to build homes and a golf course that float.
An increase in sea levels of just 18 to 59 centimeters would make the Maldives -- a nation of tiny coral islands in the Indian Ocean -- virtually uninhabitable by 2100, the UN’s climate change panel has warned.
President Mohamed Nasheed has vowed a fight for survival, and last month he signed a deal with a Dutch company to study proposals for a floating structure that could support a convention centre, homes and an 18-hole golf course. “It is still early stages and we are awaiting a report on the possibility,” a government official said.
The company, Dutch Docklands, is currently building floating developments in the Netherlands and Dubai. There was no immediate comment from the firm but its website said it undertook projects that make “land from water by providing large-scale floating constructions to create similar conditions as on land”.
The Maldives began work on an artificial island known as the Hulhumale near the crowded capital island of Male in 1997 and more than 30,000 people have been settled there to ease congestion. The city, which has a population of 100,000, is already protected from rising sea levels by a 30-million-dollar sea wall, and the government is considering increasingly imaginative ways to combat climate change.
Nasheed, who staged the world’s first underwater cabinet meeting in October to highlight his people’s dilemma , has even spoken of buying land elsewhere in the world to enable Maldivians to relocate if their homes are flooded. He has also pledged the Hulhumale to turn his nation into a model for the rest of the world by becoming “carbon neutral” by 2020. His plan involves ending fossil fuel use and powering all vehicles and buildings from “green” sources.
1. What’s the main idea of the passage?
A. The Maldives plans to build floating homes for the rising sea level.
B. The Maldives’s president signed a deal with a Dutch company.
C. The Maldives staged the first underwater cabinet meeting.
D. The Maldives is considering ways to fight against the global warming.
2. Which statement is true about the Hulhumale?
A. The Hulhumale is a natural island near the capital of Male.
B. The Hulhumale is an artificial island to be built near the capital.
C. The Hulhumale was built in 1997 and has settled over 30,000 people.
D. The Hulhumale is protected by a 30-million-dollar sea wall.
3. According to the passage, the underlined word congestion means _______.
A. being endangered                     B. being crowded   
C. being flooded                        D. being disappearing
4. Which of the following is NOT Nasheed’s idea?_______
A. To purchase land elsewhere in the world to help Maldivians to relocate if their homes are flooded.
B. To make his nation a model for the rest of the world by becoming “carbon neutral” by 2020
C. To stop using fossil fuel and power all vehicles and buildings from “green” sources.
D. To build more artificial islands for people to settle there.
5. We can infer from the passage that ________.
A. By 2100, all the the Maldives will live on artificial islands.
B. The plans to build homes and a golf course that float have been carried out
C. Maldive has been greatly affected by the global warming.
D. . Dutch Docklands is the president of Maldive.

The Maldives faces the threat of extinction from rising sea levels, but the government said on Thursday it was looking to the future with plans to build homes and a golf course that float.

An increase in sea levels of just 18 to 59 centimeters would make the Maldives -- a nation of tiny coral islands in the Indian Ocean -- virtually uninhabitable by 2100, the UN’s climate change panel has warned.

President Mohamed Nasheed has vowed a fight for survival, and last month he signed a deal with a Dutch company to study proposals for a floating structure that could support a convention centre, homes and an 18-hole golf course. “It is still early stages and we are awaiting a report on the possibility,” a government official said.

The company, Dutch Docklands, is currently building floating developments in the Netherlands and Dubai. There was no immediate comment from the firm but its website said it undertook projects that make “land from water by providing large-scale floating constructions to create similar conditions as on land”.

The Maldives began work on an artificial island known as the Hulhumale near the crowded capital island of Male in 1997 and more than 30,000 people have been settled there to ease congestion. The city, which has a population of 100,000, is already protected from rising sea levels by a 30-million-dollar sea wall, and the government is considering increasingly imaginative ways to combat climate change.

Nasheed, who staged the world’s first underwater cabinet meeting in October to highlight his people’s dilemma , has even spoken of buying land elsewhere in the world to enable Maldivians to relocate if their homes are flooded. He has also pledged the Hulhumale to turn his nation into a model for the rest of the world by becoming “carbon neutral” by 2020. His plan involves ending fossil fuel use and powering all vehicles and buildings from “green” sources.

1.What’s the main idea of the passage?

A. The Maldives plans to build floating homes for the rising sea level.

B. The Maldives’s president signed a deal with a Dutch company.

C. The Maldives staged the first underwater cabinet meeting.

D. The Maldives is considering ways to fight against the global warming.

2.Which statement is true about the Hulhumale?

A. The Hulhumale is a natural island near the capital of Male.

B. The Hulhumale is an artificial island to be built near the capital.

C. The Hulhumale was built in 1997 and has settled over 30,000 people.

D. The Hulhumale is protected by a 30-million-dollar sea wall.

3.According to the passage, the underlined word congestion means _______.

A. being endangered                     B. being crowded

C. being flooded                        D. being disappearing

4.Which of the following is NOT Nasheed’s idea?_______

A. To purchase land elsewhere in the world to help Maldivians to relocate if their homes are flooded.

B. To make his nation a model for the rest of the world by becoming “carbon neutral” by 2020

C. To stop using fossil fuel and power all vehicles and buildings from “green” sources.

D. To build more artificial islands for people to settle there.