4. We must protect wetlands because _______.

　　 A. they are home for wildlife

　　 B. they can prevent flood

　　 C. they can offer food to the animals and birds

　　 D. all of the above

3. The World Wetlands Day is on _______.

　　 A. April 22　　　 B. June 25

　　 C. February 2　　 D. March 22

2. Usually the weather in the wetlands is _______.

　　 A. hot　　　　　　 B. pleasant

　　 C. cold　　　　　 D. dry

　　 There are many wetlands(湿地) in China and some of them have become the world‘s important wetlands. The Chinese Yellow Sea Wetlands are among them. They are in Yancheng， Jiangsu Province. They are home for many different kinds of birds and animals. The world’s largest Milu Deer Nature Reserve(自然保护区) is in them. More than 700 milu deer live freely there. There are not many red-crowned cranes in the world， but every winter you can see some in the Red-crowned Cranes Nature Reserve in the Yellow Sea Wetlands.

　　 The temperature in the wetlands is usually neither too high nor too low. There is a lot of rain and sunshine， too. They are really good places for wildlife(野生生物)。 Offering food and home for some special kinds of animals and birds is not the only reason why we need to protect wetlands. Wetlands are important because they also prevent flood. But some people want to change the wetlands to make more space for farms and buildings. This means there will be less and less space for wildlife.

　　 Luckily， more and more people are beginning to realize the important of wetlands and wildlife. Every year， on February 2nd， many activities are held to tell people more about wetlands.

　　 根据以上短文内容，然后从每题所给的四个选项中选择最佳选项。

1. The Chinese Yellow Sea Wetlands are in the _______ of China.

　　 A. east　　　　　 B. south

　　 C. west　　　　　 D. north

14.(　 ) Which of the following sentences is NOT TRUE according to the passage?

　　　 A. He was 23 when he won the gold medal at the winter Olympics.

　　　 B. He made two almost perfect jumps and got the highest score.

　　　 C. No one had won the gold before Han Xiaopeng at the winter Olympics.

　　　 D. He never gave up even though he had faced many difficulties.

13.(　 ) What made the coach, Yang Er’qi, choose Han Xiaopeng to be a ski jumper?

　　　 A. He had the agility and wasn’t afraid of the high platform.

　　　 B. He was good at skiing though he was only 12 years old.

　　　 C. He was born in the north of China and liked sports on snow.

　　　 D. He had the talent and he had won a world gold medal before.

12.(　 ) Where did Han Xiaopeng take China’s first gold on snow?

　　　 A. In China　 .　　 B. In Italy.　　　 C. In America.　　 D. In Australia.

11.(　 ) What does ‘dark horse’ mean? It means _____________.

　　　 A. a horse which is dark　　　　　 B. someone who is expected to win

　　　 C. a horse which likes living in the dark　 D. someone whose win is unexpected

10.(　 ) Mr. Brown had quite a good job in Hong Kong but he thought that if he went to Singapore, he might get a much better job with more money and a larger house. His wife didn’t want him to leave his job in Hong Kong and she reminded him that ______.

　　　 A. a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush　　　　　　　 B. too many cooks spoil the broth

　　　 C. you can not get blood out of a stone　 D. To pour oil on troubled waters

C

What’s the meaning of “dark horse”? It’s someone who wins when no one expects it.

Han Xiaopeng took China’s first gold on snow. He became an Olympic “dark horse” last Thursday by winning the gold medal in men’s freestyle aerial skiing(自由式滑雪空中技巧) at Turin in Italy. He made two almost perfect jumps for the highest score. Han had never won a world gold medal before, let alone(更不用说) in the Olympics!

“I never thought this would happen,” said the 23-year-old. “I feel like I’m in a dream.” It’s China’s second gold medal at the Turin Olympics. But more important, Han’s gold was the country’s first ever in a snow sport. In 2002, China’s Yang Yang won the gold for speed skating at the winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, US.

Just because Han’s win was unexpected doesn’t mean that he didn’t work hard.

Han grew up in Jiangsu Province. Before he started his training on snow, he used to be an acrobat(杂技演员) at a circus. In 1995, a coach found his talent(才能). The coach, Yang Er’qi, said Han had the agility(灵活性) and courage to be a ski jumper. When Yang first took the 12-year-old to northern China, the boy couldn’t swim, skate or ski. But he wasn’t afraid of the high platform(跳台) and kept on training.

Han almost left the sport after hurting his knee months before the Salt Lake Games. In that Olympics he only got 24^th. “I was hopeless at that time, but my family and the coach stood firmly(坚强地) behind me, helping me through,” he recalled.

　　 Han Xiaopeng worked so hard that he won the gold medal in the Olympics at last. Because of his success, more and more people in China are becoming interested in skiing. We are proud of him and we hope he will have another big success in the next winter Olympics.