许多古老的习俗逐渐地消失了。(die out)

   ____________________________________________________________________________

It is high time for us to take measures to protect these old traditions and customs before they

             .

         A．die out                      B．die away                  C．die off                       D．die down

Here are four pieces of news from China Daily.
United Nations
Picture of your world
A prize of US$5,000 will be awarded to the winner of the Youth category (aged 15 to 24), in the fourth International Photographic Competition on the Environment.
The competition, titled “Focus on Your World”, is being run by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP,联合国环境规划署) from July till December. Both amateur (业余的) and professional photographers of all nationalities and ages are welcome to enter. For more information, go to www.unep-photo.com .
Australia
Goodbye to the bears
Koalas, a symbol of Australia, may die out within 15 years as the growth of towns along the east coast destroys their fragile (易毁坏的) habitats.
A survey of the koala habitats found that about 30 percent were no longer home, while 60 percent had suffered much destruction. The Australian Koala Foundation has written to the government urging it to declare the koala an endangered species. At present, there are about 100,000 koalas in Australia.
Iraq
Rebel attacks worsen
More than 100 people, including three US soldiers, were killed in bloody attacks in five Iraqi cities last Thursday. At least 300 people were wounded.
The violence was part of efforts made by Iraqi rebels (反抗者) and foreign militants to ruin the formal handover to Iraqi rule in six days’ time. A group headed by al-Qaida-linked (和基地组织有联系的) terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi said they were responsible for the attacks.
Shenzhen’s salaries are the best
A survey showed average annual income in Shenzhen last year reaching 25,500 yuan, the highest in the country, followed by Beijing and Shanghai. Shenzhen plans to issue a salary guidebook listing average salaries in different occupations, so people working there can better understand their career situation — or perhaps even argue with the boss.
1. According to the passage, the fourth International Photographic Competition on the Environment will last _______.
A. seven months                        B. six months               
C. six days                              D. seven weeks 
2. According to the survey, in Australia there were about _______ koalas that were no longer home.
A. 1,000            B. 30,000            C. 60,000              D. 100,000
3. According to the passage, over 100 people were killed in bloody attacks by _______.
A. US soldiers                         B. al-Qaida   
C. Iraqi policemen                     D. Abu Musab al-Zarqawi

第二节 语法填空(共10小题；每小题1.5分，满分15分)
阅读下面短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填人一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空，并将答案填写在答题卡标号为11～20的相应位置上。
It is important to fix our eyes on the protection of wildlife, because at present they are in danger. Every day some species of animals or plants are ___31___ (die) out.
On one hand, people hunt ___32___ for food or for clothing, because some have thick furs ___33___ can be made into clothes. On the other hand, man think some animals are ___34___ (fiercely) and attack them to death. For this reason, they can’t get along ___35___ with wildlife. And as a result, what they do ___36___ (danger) the wildlife.
In order to protect the wildlife ___37___ extinction, it is necessary to set up wildlife reserve ___38___ some special zones for wildlife. What’s more, leading the consciousness of wildlife protection to come into ___39___ (be) is the most important. Only when the above has a good effect___40___ wildlife can it be protected and the species develop gradually and safely.

With only about 1,000 pandas left in the world, China is desperately trying to clone the animal and save these in a dangerous situation. That's a move similar to what a Texas A & M University researchers have been undertaking for the past five years in a project called "Noah's Ark".

Noah's Ark is aimed at collecting eggs, embryos(???), semen and DNA of these animals and storing them in liquid nitrogen. If certain species should become extinct, Dr. Duane Kraemer, a professor in Texas A & M's College of Veterinary, Medicine, says there would be enough of the basic building blocks to reintroduce the species in the future.

It is estimated that as many as 2, 000 species of mammals, birds and reptiles will probably become extinct in over 100 years. The panda, native only to China, is in danger of becoming extinct in the next 25 years.

This week, Chinese scientists said they grew an embryo by introducing cells from a dead female panda into the egg cells of a Japanese white rabbit. They are now trying to implant the embryo into a host animal.

The entire procedure could take from three to five years to complete.

"The nuclear transfer of one species to another is not easy, but the lack of available panda eggs could be a major problem," Kraemer believes. "They will probably have to do several hundred transfers to result in one pregnancy (having a baby). It takes a long time and it's difficult, but this could be groundbreaking science if it works. They are certainly not putting any live pandas at risk, so it is worth the effort," adds Kraemer, who is one of the leaders of the Project at Texas A&M, the first-ever attempt at cloning a dog.

"They are trying to do something that's never been done, and this is very similar to our work in Noah's Ark. We're both trying to save animals that face extinction. I certainly appreciate their effort and there's a lot we can learn from what they are attempting to do. The cooperation between us is very much needed."

67. The final aim of "Noah's Ark" project is to___________.       .

A. make efforts to clone the endangered pandas 

B. save endangered animals from dying out

C. collect DNA of endangered animals to study 

D. transfer the nuclear of one animal to another

68. According to Professor Kraemer, ___________.

A. the long time lasting cloning research could be successful.

B. the eggs transfers immediately result in having a baby.

C. the lack of nuclear transfer could be a major problem to have new pandas.

D. if species should die out, basic building blocks would heal them.

69. The best title for the passage may be______________.

A. China's Success in Pandas Cloning

B. Helping Ways to Avoid Extinction

C. Exploring the Possibility to Clone Pandas

D. The Practice in Noah's Ark

70. From the passage we know that______________.

A. Kraemer and his team have succeeded in cloning a panda

B. scientists try to implant a panda's egg into a rabbit

C. Kraemer will work with Chinese scientists in clone researches

D. about two thousand species are to die out in a century