What time is it now?
A. 10:15. B. 10:30. C. 11:00.
What are the speakers talking about?
A. A fire. B. A matchbox. C. A rain.
About a year or two ago, a couple of studies provided much needed encouragement to struggling book publishers. E-book sales had been relatively stable or even begun to drop, according to the Association of American Publishers. It was the only category (种类) to suffer a drop in the AAP survey. Another report revealed that 65 percent of children aged 6 to 17 agreed they would always want to read in print, up from 60 percent in 2012. Seventy-seven percent who had tried e-books said they tended to prefer print books.
写作内容:
1. 用约30个单词写出上述材料反映的内容；
2. 用约120个单词发表你的观点，内容包括:
1)你更倾向于哪一种阅读方式；2)用两到三个理由或论据支撑你的观点。
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For thousands of years, the Yangtze River Basin has nurtured (哺育) countless generations of people in China. With towering mountains, dense (茂密的) forests and beautiful wetlands, the basin is also home to many kinds of wild animals and plants.
According to the World Wildlife Fund, it boasts about 350 types of fish, 762 kinds of bird, 280 mammals and over 14,000 different plants.
One of the most famous creatures is the baiji, or Yangtze River dolphin, which is described as the “Goddess of the Yangtze” in the Erya (《尔雅》), a Chinese dictionary dating back to 200 BC.
The light grey, long-nosed river dolphin first lived in the oceans before settling in the Yangtze River around 20 million years ago. Despite having eyes, it relies on its sonar (声呐) abilities to navigate (导航) through water, according to China Daily.
It’s also a shy creature. That’s why Wang Ding, an expert from the Institute of Hydrobiology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, compared it to the “girl next door”. “The baiji is very beautiful but difficult to get close to,” Wang told the Guardian.
However, the baiji’s cousin, the Yangtze finless porpoise (江豚), seems to have a more lively character. Known for its “mischievous” (淘气的) smile and friendliness with humans, the finless porpoise is nicknamed the “water elf (精灵)”.
Compared to the friendly porpoise, the snow leopard (雪豹), known as the “king of the snowy mountains”, couldn’t be more different. With sharp teeth, the white-coated big cat has strong limbs (四肢), which help the animal to cover about 10 meters in a single leap.
Despite the biodiversity in the Yangtze River Basin, however, its creatures are under threat. For example, the baiji was declared “functionally extinct” in 2006. This means that even if there are some of a species still alive, it still may not survive. The finless porpoise was categorized as “critically endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 2013, while the snow leopard was listed as “vulnerable (易危的)” in 2017.
A major reason for the drop in the number of these creatures is human activity, such as hunting and pollution, according to China Daily.
“In the past, many people relied on fish farming to make a living,” Huang Zehua, an official from Jingzhou, Hubei, told Beijing Review. “Fish farming then was mostly chaotic and disorderly.”
Luckily, measures have been taken to protect the Yangtze River Basin. In 2016, China announced the creation of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, involving nine provinces and two municipalities (直辖市). Environmental protection and green development are considered first in the development of the economic belt, according to China Daily.
“The Yangtze River is China’s mother river, and it’s our duty to protect it,” said Chinese President Xi Jinping during an inspection tour of Hubei in April, 2017.
Saving 1. wildlife | |
China’s mother river | With rich natural 2., the Yangtze River Basin is home to 3. of wild animals and plants. |
The animals living in or along the river | Baiji came from the oceans 20 million years ago, using its sonar to 4. the directions through water. It is shy and beautiful. It is now very 5. to extinction. |
The Yangtze finless porpoise might have the same 6. with baiji but is more friendly to humans. It is under great threat now. | |
The snow leopard is 7. at racing with strong limbs, which was listed as “vulnerable” in 2017. | |
A major factor 8. to the drop in the number of these creatures | The 9. human activity, such as hunting and pollution, has caused great harm to the living chances of these animals. |
Measures taken to protect the Yangtze River Basin. | Nine provinces and two municipalities have joined the Yangtze River Economic Belt and agreed that environmental protection and green development are a 10. in the development of the economic belt. |
The word tolerance is widely used in liberal democracies. It indicates a positive meaning. Politicians urge us to be tolerant towards minorities. Educators teach us to be tolerant towards the other. The press is full of references to the need to display tolerance when faced with individuals or groups espousing a different view or holding a different religious belief. A tolerant society is an objective sought after by anyone who believes in the values of democracy. A tolerant individual is attributed with virtuous qualities(美德).
The question we must ask is whether we have been using the word tolerance fully aware of its meaning and whether we have applied it correctly to reflect what we really wish to convey?
The word tolerance means to bear, or to bear with. If I tolerate something or someone, I basically say that I am ready to bear it or him. I can tolerate a bad smell or a noisy neighbour. The act of toleration forces me to desist from conveying my objection to the existence of a phenomenon, which I find difficult to bear. A bad smell or a noisy neighbour is considered by me to be an objectionable phenomenon. By tolerating either of them, I am not transforming the bad smell or the noisy neighbour into positive phenomena. Let's be honest: I don't have a different taste when it comes to bad smells. I simply dislike it and wish that it disappears. I don't respect the noisy neighbour. I would rather have him stop at once the noise he is making so I can live in peace.
To try to remove the bad smell or take reasonable action in order for the noisy neighbour to stop bothering me would most probably not be considered an intolerant act by most people.
Now, let's try to apply the word tolerance in reference to a person who is law-abiding and holds a legally acceptable different view from my own. I may have a strong view, which is opposed to his. Quite frankly, I may decide to tolerate his view. By so doing, I would be attributing to it a negative characteristic. I would apply the same attitude to his view as to the bad smell or noisy neighbour. Thus, to try to take action in order to make his view disappear would be considered an intolerant act. To tolerate his view the way I would a bad smell or a noisy neighbour, could hardly be considered virtuous.
The subject tolerating is by nature not equal to the object being tolerated. If I tolerate you, I essentially say that I am above you and am prepared, although unwillingly, to bear with your presence or with your practices or opinions. That may be true in the case of an individual who is ready to tolerate the other. However, this attitude by such an individual, though empirically true, is hardly a virtue. Certainly, the fact that an individual, in reality, may merely tolerate the other or his opinion does not justify a government or any official authority promoting tolerance as a virtue. One cannot tolerate an equal being. True equality involves respect, not toleration. To respect the other as a distinctive person is hardly to tolerate him. This is the true meaning of equality: diversity existing in a mutually-respectful socio-legal setting.
The danger with tolerance is that it can lead to the acceptance of individuals or groups bent on destroying the foundations of democratic systems. We have seen such cases with regard to political parties or destructive religious groups that have been treated in a liberal manner under the guise of tolerance.
A tolerant attitude involves the grant of a favour, not a right. The question we should ask ourselves is whether we would ever wish a parliament to make laws according to us, as individuals and as part of a collective entity or a permission to pursue certain actions interpreted as a favour rather than a right? Indeed, would we ever wish anyone to listen to our views and accept us the way we are simply because he is kind enough to tolerate us?
1.The first two paragraphs are mainly intended to show that __________.
A. tolerance is a symbol of liberal democracies
B. democratic society always advocates tolerance
C. people’s understanding of tolerance is one-sided
D. tolerance can be applied to many situations
2.The underlined part “desist from” in Paragraph 3 can be replaced by ________.
A. deny B. dislike C. stop D. keep
3.The example of a bad smell and a noisy neighbour is raised to indicate that _________.
A. the writer are fed up with them B. most people find them hard to tolerate
C. the writer isn’t prejudiced against them D. tolerating them isn’t a virtuous act
4.The main idea of Paragraph 6 is that _________.
A. tolerance has nothing to do with respect B. most people promote tolerance as a virtue
C. people should show respect for each other D. tolerance shows an unequal relationship
5.Which of the following will the writer probably agree with?
A. Too much tolerance will endanger the foundations of democratic systems.
B. By tolerating people can transform something negative into the opposite.
C. People tolerating others are likely to consider them as their equals.
D. Being tolerant should be regarded as a right instead of a favour
6.The best title for this passage should be ___________.
A. Tolerance and respect B. What is to be tolerated?
C. Is Tolerance a Virtue? D. Should people be tolerant?
China suffers choking smog, mass destruction of habitats and food poisoned with heavy metals. But ask an environmentalist what is the country’s biggest problem, and the answer is always the same. “Water is the worst,” says Wang Tao, of the Carnegie Tsinghua Centre in Beijing, “because of its shortage, and because of its pollution.” “Without water，”agrees Pan Jiahua, of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, “people cannot survive in a desert.” Wang Shucheng，a former water minister, once said, “To fight for every drop of water or die. That is the challenge facing China.” He was not exaggerating (夸大).
China uses 600 billion cubic meters of water a year. The national average hides an even more alarming regional difference. Four fifths of China’s water is in the south, particularly the Yangtze river basin. Half the people and two thirds of the farmland are in the north, including the Yellow River basin. Beijing has the sort of water shortage usually associated with Saudi Arabia: just 100 cubic meters per person a year.
China is using up water at an unsustainable (无法可持续的)rate. As if that were not bad enough, ______. The Yellow River is often called the cradle of Chinese civilization. However, a third of the water is unfit even for agriculture. Four thousand petrochemical factories arc built on its banks.
The water available for use is thus so bad. Song Lanhe, chief engineer for urban water quality monitoring at the housing ministry, says only half the water sources in cities are safe to drink. More than half the groundwater in the north China plain cannot be used for industry, while seven tenths is unfit for human contact, even for washing.
The best answer would be to improve the efficiency with which water is used. Only about 40% of water used in industry is recycled，half as much as in Europe. The rest is dumped in rivers and lakes. Wang Zhansheng of Tsinghua University argues that China is neglecting its urban water infrastructure (基础设施)、leading to more waste. Water prices in most cities are only about a tenth of the level in big European cities, yet the government is unwilling to raise them, for fear of a popular criticism. The result is that China’s “water productivity” is low.
Rather than making wise reforms in pricing and water protection, China is focusing on increasing supplies. The best known such project is the Three Gorges dam on the Yangtze. But this year an even vaster project 一 the South North Water Diversion Project (南水北调工程)-is due to start. It will link the Yangtze with the Yellow River, taking water from the wet south to the dry north. When finished, it is intended to deliver 45 billion cubic meters of water a year and to cost a total of 486 billion yuan ($79.4 billion).
The environmental damage could be huge. The Yangtze is already seriously polluted. The project so far has reduced the quantity of underwater life in the Yangtze by over two thirds. And that was before it even opened. Ma Jun. China's best known environmental activist, says the government’s preference for giant engineering projects only makes matters worse, “causing us to hit the limits of our water resources”. The water crisis is driving China to desperate but eventually unhelpful measures.
1.From the first two paragraphs we know that ___________.
A. water is badly polluted in most of the area of China
B. the water in China is unfit for people to survive in a desert
C. Wang Shucheng was sad about China’s future
D. people in North China are facing a more serious water shortage
2.Which of the following may help complete the missing sentence in Paragraph 3?
A. China is polluting what little water it has left.
B. The biggest damage of the water shortage could be political.
C. 300 dead bodies were found floating in the Yellow River near Lanzhou.
D. The Chinese government has reacted, to water problems by huge but harm fill projects.
3.According to the author, the South North Water Diversion Project is ______.
A. a vast and significant project B. a huge and promising project
C. a giant but unsuccessful project D. a costly but effective project
4.By saying “The water crisis is driving China to desperate but eventually unhelpful measures” in the last paragraph, the author implies_________.
A. there is no good way for China to solve the problem of water crisis
B. more giant projects like the Three Gorges should be built
C. it is urgent for China to deal with the crisis of water shortage and pollution
D. China should put forward other efficient ways instead of those giant engineering projects
