XI'AN - China's conservation work for the endangered crested ibis（朱鹮）is facing new challenges, including an increasing mortality rate due to inbreeding, and the conflict between the need to expand natural habitats and local communities' economic interests, bird experts have warned.

The crested ibis, once widespread in Japan, China, Russia and the Korean Peninsula, almost became extinct in the first half of the 20th century.

Before 1981, when seven crested ibis were accidentally found in Yangxian county, in Northwest China's Shaanxi province, academics thought the species had been extinct in China for almost 17 years.

Due to the huge effort put into species protection since 1981, the number of crested ibis in China has risen to an estimated 1,617, including 997 in the wild, the State Forestry Administration said at a meeting on crested ibis protection in Xi'an on Monday.

However, although the ibis population exceeds 1,000, the birds are still not free from the threat of extinction, said Fang Shengguo, director of the State Conservation Center for Gene Resources of Endangered Wildlife at Zhejiang University.

“Ornithologists used inbreeding in the early stages of protection so that numbers of the precious birds could increase quickly, but that method had consequences,” Fang said.

"Studies have proved that as a result of inbreeding, crested ibis have the lowest genetic diversity of all endangered birds," Fang said.

"It means a high mortality rate and more physical defects for hatched chicks."

“The government should collect genetic information from all crested ibis and establish a genetic database as soon as possible, then design a scientific mating plan for the species,” Fang said.

So far, about 90 percent of crested ibis live in Shaanxi province, and fewer than 140 ibis live in three zoos in other parts of the country, including Beijing Zoo, according to Liu Dongping, an assistant researcher at the National Bird Banding Center of China, which is affiliated to the Chinese Academy of Forestry.

The bird has lost the ability to migrate, he said, adding that if an unexpected natural disaster occurred in Shaanxi province or an infectious disease spread through the area, the ibis population could be greatly reduced.

Experts also warned that the increased population of ibis, whether in the wild or in captivity, requires a larger and more varied natural habitat.

Rampant hunting, the massive loss of habitat caused by deforestation and the overuse of pesticides, which killed aquatic insects on which the ibis feed, are believed to be the main reasons for the sharp reduction in the ibis population before 1981.

So, in 1983, a State-level natural reserve was set up in Shaanxi province to protect the bird. But the struggle for living space between human and animal has never stopped, said Lu Baozhong, deputy director of the Shaanxi Crested Ibis Conservation Station.

"For example, ibis often look for loaches in farmers' rice fields. Sometimes their claws trample the rice seedlings. In another case, villagers discovered some land with abundant mineral resources which happened to be a habitat for ibis," said Lu, who has devoted 30 years to ibis protection.

A long-term win-win solution for ibis and local communities needs to be developed, one that would provide ecological compensation for local residents, Lu said.

1..    What’s the best title for the passage?

  A. The Rare Bird in China             B. New Problems for the Crested Ibis

  C. The Way to Save the Crested Ibis     D. The Reason for the Crested Ibis’s Extinction

2. Which of the following statement is TRUE ?

A. The crested ibis is a native of China.

  B. Before 1981, the crested ibis was extinct in China.

  C. The crested ibis is now free from the threat of extinction.

  D. Most of the crested ibis are in Shaanxi province.

3.. Why did the experts adopt the way of inbreeding to protect the crested ibis?

  A. To increase the mortality rate.

  B. To increase the number of the crested ibis.

  C. To get more physical defects for hatched chicks

  D. To have the lowest diversity of the endangered bird.

4.. What may be the reason for the reduction in the population of the crested ibis before 1981?

  A. inbreeding                  B. economic development

  C. over hunting                D. sandstorm

5.. What can we learn from the passage?

  A. Due to our great efforts, the crested ibis lives in the wild well.

  B. Scientists will choose a better habitat for the crested ibis.

  C. The problems of the crested ibis have not been solved now.

  D. The government has established a genetic database of the crested ibis.

 

 

When former American President Bill Clinton travelled to South Korea to visit President Kim Young Sam,he repeatedly referred to the Korean president’s wife as Mrs.Kim.By mistake, President Clinton’s advisers thought that Koreans have the same naming customs as the Japanese. Clinton had not been told that,in Korea,wives keep their family names.President Kim Young Sam’s wife was named Sohn Myong Suk.Therefore,she should be addressed(称谓) as Mrs.Sohn.

President Clinton arrived in Korea directly after leaving Japan and had not changed his culture gears.His failure to follow Korean customs gave the impression that Korea was not as important to him as Japan.

In addition to Koreans,some Asian husbands and wives do not share the same family names.This practice often puzzles(使困惑) English-speaking teachers when talking with a pupil’s parents.They become puzzled about the student’s correct last name.Placing the family name first is common among a number of Asian cultures.

Mexican naming customs are different as well.When a woman marries,she keeps her family name and adds her husband’s name after the word de(of).This affects(影响) how they fill in forms in the United States.When requested to fill in a middle name,they generally write the father’s family name.But Mexicans are addressed by the family name of the mother.This often causes puzzlement.

Here are a few ways to deal with such difficult situations:don’t always think that a married woman uses her husband’s last name.Remember that in many Asian cultures,the order of first and last names is reversed(颠倒).Ask which name a person would prefer to use.If the name is difficult to pronounce,admit it,and ask the person to help you say it correctly.

1.The story of Bill Clinton is used to ______.

A.improve US-Korean relations

B.introduce the topic of the text

C.describe his visit to Korea

D.tell us how to address a person

2.The word “gears” in Paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to ______.

A.action plans                              B.naming customs

C.travel maps                               D.thinking patterns

3.When a woman marries in Korea,she ______.

A.continues to use her family name

B.uses her husband’s given name

C.shares her husband’s family name

D.adds her husband’s given name to hers

4.To address a married woman properly,you’d better ______.

A.use her middle name

B.use her husband’s first name

C.ask her which name she likes

D.change the order of her names

 

 

When former American President Bill Clinton travelled to South Korea to visit President Kim Young Sam, he repeatedly referred to the Korean president’s wife as Mrs. Kim. By mistake, President Clinton’s advisers thought that Koreans have the same naming customs as the Japanese. Clinton had not been told that, in Korea, wives keep their family names. President Kim Young Sam’s wife was named Sohn Myong Suk. Therefore she should be addressed(写姓名地址) as Mrs. Sohn. President Clinton arrived in Korea directly after leaving Japan and had not changed his culture gears. His failure to follow Korean customs gave the impression that Korea was not as important to him as Japan.

In addition to Koreans, some Asian husbands and wives do not share the same family names. This practice often puzzles English-speaking teachers when talking with a pupil’s parents. They become puzzled about the student’s correct last name. Placing the family name first is common among a number of Asian cultures.

Mexican naming customs are different as well, When a woman marries, she keeps her family name and adds her husband’s name after the word de (of). This affects how they fill in forms in the United States. When requested to fill in a middle name, they generally write the father’s family name. But Mexicans are addressed by the family name of the mother. This often causes puzzlement.

Here are a few ways to deal with such difficult situations: don’t always think that a married woman uses her husband’s last name, Remember that in many Asian cultures , the order of first and last names is reversed(颠倒). Ask which name a person would prefer to use . If the name is difficult to pronounce, admit it, and ask the person to help you say it correctly.

63. The story of Bill Clinton is used to ________________.          

A. improve US-Korean relations         B. introduce the topic of the text

C. describe his visit to Korea            D. tell us how to address a person

64. The word “gears” in Paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to _________________.          

A. action plans     B. naming customs   C. travel maps      D. thinking patterns

65. When a woman marries in Mexico, she ____________________.       

A. continues to use her family name      B. uses her husband’s given name

C. shares her husband’s family name      D. adds her husband’s name to hers

66. To address a married woman properly, you’d better ________________.       

A. use her middle name                 B. use her husband’s first name

C. ask her which name she likes          D. change the order of her names

 

When former American President Bill Clinton travelled to South Korea to visit President Kim Young Sam,he repeatedly referred to the Korean president’s wife as Mrs.Kim.By mistake, President Clinton’s advisers thought that Koreans have the same naming customs as the Japanese. Clinton had not been told that,in Korea,wives keep their family names.President Kim Young Sam’s wife was named Sohn Myong Suk.Therefore,she should be addressed(称谓) as Mrs.Sohn.
President Clinton arrived in Korea directly after leaving Japan and had not changed his culture gears.His failure to follow Korean customs gave the impression that Korea was not as important to him as Japan.
In addition to Koreans,some Asian husbands and wives do not share the same family names.This practice often puzzles(使困惑) English-speaking teachers when talking with a pupil’s parents.They become puzzled about the student’s correct last name.Placing the family name first is common among a number of Asian cultures.
Mexican naming customs are different as well.When a woman marries,she keeps her family name and adds her husband’s name after the word de(of).This affects(影响) how they fill in forms in the United States.When requested to fill in a middle name,they generally write the father’s family name.But Mexicans are addressed by the family name of the mother.This often causes puzzlement.
Here are a few ways to deal with such difficult situations:don’t always think that a married woman uses her husband’s last name.Remember that in many Asian cultures,the order of first and last names is reversed(颠倒).Ask which name a person would prefer to use.If the name is difficult to pronounce,admit it,and ask the person to help you say it correctly.
【小题1】The story of Bill Clinton is used to______.

A．improve US-Korean relations

B．introduce the topic of the text

C．describe his visit to Korea

D．tell us how to address a person

【小题2】The word “gears” in Paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to______.

A．action plans	B．naming customs
C．travel maps	D．thinking patterns

【小题3】When a woman marries in Korea,she______.

A．continues to use her family name

B．uses her husband’s given name

C．shares her husband’s family name

D．adds her husband’s given name to hers

【小题4】To address a married woman properly,you’d better______.

A．use her middle name

B．use her husband’s first name

C．ask her which name she likes

D．change the order of her names

阅读理解

The Pentagon

五角大楼

    美国号称世界头号军事大国，其武力干涉几乎渗透到全球，有人开玩笑说：“只要五角大楼打个喷嚏，整个地球都会震动。”五角大楼是什么? 让我们揭开它神秘的面纱，好好地认识一下这座建筑的运作职能吧。

    The Pentagon，or the headquarters of the US Department of Defense，is one of the largest office buildings in the world，taking up a total land of 583 acres．The five-sided structure itself occupies an area of 29 acres．Each of its five outside wails is 921 feet long．It has three times the floor space as the Empire State Building or half again as much space as either of the New York's World Trade Center towers．

    Working inside this huge building are over 25 000 employees，one half of them being civilians and the other half members of the U．S． armed forces．During the last year of the Second World War there were 37 000 people，both military and civilian，working inside the Pentagon．In the Korean and Vietnam War periods，31 000．The employees are scattered among hundreds of offices that occupy a floor space of 3705793 square feet．

While inside the building they tell time by 4 200 clocks，drink from 685 water fountains，utilize 280 rest rooms，consume 30 000 cups of coffee，6 000 tins of milk and 5 000 bottles of soft drinks of various kinds every day，with a total staff of 600 persons preparing and serving food and drinks to the Pentagon employees，daily．

    Notes

    Pentagon n．五边形；五角大楼　　  civilian n．平民

    military n．军人　　　　　　　　  scatter v．分散

    utilize v．利用；应用　　　　　　 consume v．消耗

    Comprehension question

The building is called “the Pentagon ”because________．

A．it is the largest building in the world

B．it lies in the U．S．A．

C．it has five sides

  D．it is a secret place