16．Some people keep dangerous animals in their back yards for the reason that ____ ．

A．they want to protect themselves from being killed

B．they want to show the fact that they will protect animals

C．they want to have the feeling of respect from their neighbours

D．they want to make a lot of money from the unusual animals

15．Why do children not get attention from their parents？

A．Because they often make trouble and make their parents disappointed．

B．Because their parents are too busy to take care of them．

C．Because their parents have to take care of their grandparents．

D．Because their parents have been out of work for a long time．

E

The Gabon Viper is a snake that grows to two metres in length．It is black all over and as thick as a strong man's arm．When angry，it barks like a dog and spits poison．It is one of nature's most dangerous gifts to the world．Most people would prefer nature to keep gifts like that to itself．

Others think differently．They think that Gabon Vipers，along with other poisonous snakes，spiders and reptiles are perfect animal friends for their children．They believe that the neighbours will be envied if they keep a lion in the back yard．And they believe that no home is complete without a monkey or a parrot in a cage．That is why the trade in unusual pets is now worth over US ＄10 billion per year in spite of(尽管)being illegal in most countries．

The serious effect of the trade is the damage it does to the natural environment．Hunters catch young parrots by cutting down the trees which the birds use to make nests in．Baby monkeys always stay close to their mothers．So the hunters simply shoot the mothers．

These facts are now well known，but the trade continues．It seems that the strong desire to keep pets has deep roots in the human mind．Some psychologists(心理学家)say that it is a way for people to get closer to nature．People keep cats and dogs as a kind of historical echo(仿效)of the days when dogs were used to control sheep and cats were kept in the home to hunt mice and rats．As technology moves society further away from the natural world，the desire to keep in touch with it grows stronger．Dogs and cats become boring．Only snakes，bears，lions and other dangerous creatures satisfy some people's desire to get personal control over nature．

This is why there are now more tigers kept as pets in the United States than there are living naturally in the world．One result of this is an increase in attacks on humans．According to a report，“There is more chance of a child being killed by a Bengal Tiger in Texas than there is in Bengal．”

14．Seeing a baby，the old people got excited because ____ .

A．they had never seen a baby before

B．the baby was clever and beautiful

C．the baby brought them the image of life

D．the baby's mother would take care of them

13．The fact that the reporter told us shows that ____ ．

A．old people in America lead a hard life

B．old people in America enjoy banana bread

C．she had no time to take care of her children

D．old people are easy to get along with

12．The reason that old people are left alone may be that ____ .

A．the old don't like to live in a big family

B．the young can't get enough money to support the old

C．different generations have different lifestyles

D．the old are too weak to live with the young

11．Now in an American family，people can find that ____ ．

A．children never live with their parents

B．not all working people live with their parents

C．aged people are supported by their grandchildren

D．grandchildren are supported by their grandparents

10．What's the meaning of the last sentence？

A．People can do everything in London．

B．People will feel lonely in London．

C．People in London enjoy living in different ways．

D．People in London enjoy a lawless life．

D

Until late in 20th century，most Americans spent time with people of generations．Now mid-aged Americans may not keep in touch with old people until they are old themselves．

That's because we group people by age．We put our three-year-olds together in day-care centers，our 13-year-olds in schools and sports activities，and our 80-year-olds in senior-citizen homes．Why？

We live away from the old for many reasons：Young people sometimes avoid the old to get rid of fears of ageing and dying．It is much harder to watch someone we love disappear before our eyes．Sometimes it's so hard that we stay away from the people who need us most．

Fortunately，some of us have found our way to the old．And we have discovered that they often save the young．

A reporter moved her family onto a block filled with old people．At first her children were disappointed．But the reporter baked banana bread for the neighbours and had her children deliver it and visit．Soon the children had many new friends，with whom they shared food，stories and projects．“My children have never been less lonely，”the reporter said．

The young，in turn，save the old．Once I was in a rest home(养老院)when a visitor showed up with a baby．She was immediately surrounded．People who hadn't gotten out of bed in a week suddenly were ringing for a wheelchair．Even those who had seemed asleep woke up to watch the child．Babies have an astonishing power to comfort and cure．

Grandparents are a special case．They give grandchildren a feeling of security(安全)and continuity．As my husband put it，“My grandparents gave me a deep sense that things would turn out right in the end．”Grandchildren speak of attention they don't get from worried parents．“My parents were always telling me to hurry up，and my grandparents told　me to slow down，”one friend said．A teacher told me she can tell which pupils have relationships with grandparents：they are quieter，calmer，more trusting．

9．If more people move to a city，the result is that ____ ．

A．people become closer than before

B．the city becomes a wonderful place

C．everything is cheaper than before

D．they have to pay more money to live in a hotel

8．According to people's opinions，we can find that ____ ．

A．Parisians enjoy English food more than their own

B．Londoners seldom travel to Paris on holidays

C．both cities have their advantages

D．young people prefer to live in London

7．What Elizabeth Whelan says means that ____ ．

A．smoking makes people poor and hopeless

B．smoking is very popular with poor people

C．poor people should give up smoking

D．rich people in America never smoke

C

London-A morning's train ride away，across the channel，English kids discuss the fact of Liverpool's football team in a Paris pub．

Some Parisians(巴黎人)even started to travel to work in London．

In the 19th century，Charles Dickens compared the two cities，London and Paris，in“A Tale of Two Cities”．These days，it might be“A Tale of One City”．

As jobs grew scarce(not equal to the demand)at home over recent years，perhaps 250，000 Frenchmen moved across the channel．With an undersea tunnel，they could travel between cities in three hours．The European Union freed them from immigration and customs．

Paris，rich in beauty，is more stylish．But London feels more full of life，and more fun until the pubs shut down．

“For me，the difference is that London is real，alive，” said Trevor Wheeler，a finacial consultant．

Chantal Jaouen，a professional designer，agrees．“I am French，but I'll stay in London，”she said．

There is，of course，the other view．Julie Lenoux is a student who moved to London two years ago．“I think people laugh more in Paris，”she said．

“Both cities have changed beyond recognition，”said Larry Collins，an author and sometimes a Londoner．

Like most people who know both well，he finds the two now fit together comfortably．

“I first fell in love with Paris in the 1950s．Things are so much more ordered，and life is better．”

But certainly not cheaper．

In some parts of London，rents can be twice those on Avenue Foch in Paris．

Deciding between London and Paris requires a lifestyle choice．

Like Daphne Benoit，a French journalism student with perfect English，many young people are happy to be close enough so they don't have to choose．

“I love Paris，my little neighborhood，the way I can walk around a centre，but life is so organized，”she said．“In London，you can be who you want．No one cares．”