About one percent of all the rainforests in the world are lost every year. We know this because satellites give us true pictures of the rainforests. Satellite pictures tell us, for example, that between 1978 and 1988, 170,000 square kilometers of the rainforests in the Amazon were lost.

When roads are made through the rainforests, people start to destroy the forests. Look at the satellite picture taken in 1976.You can see the new road going through the rainforest. The second picture shows the same forest in 1981.The rainforest in this part of Brazil has been destroyed very quickly.

Without the trees to protect the ground, the heavy rain quickly washes away the soil beside the roads.

The rainforests are rich in trees and animals, but the soil is not rich; it is very poor because it is very old and because the trees and plants contain all the good things that were once in the soil. Without the trees, the rain washes away the soil and nothing can grow there again.

Look at the picture of Madagascar. Thousands of trees once covered these mountains, and thousands of animals lived there. Nothing can grow there now, and no animals can live there.

Are we going to destroy all the rainforests of the world? Perhaps one day you will travel to a rainforest country, but will you see the wonderful plants and animals of the rainforests?

（   ）1. How many rainforests in the world are lost every year?

A．About one billion  B．About ten percent  C．About one percent  D．About ten million

（   ）2. Why does the heavy rain wash away the soil beside the roads?

A．Because the rain is very heavy.

B．Because thousands of trees once covered these mountains.

C．Because people start to destroy the forests.

D．Because there are few trees to protect the ground.

（   ）3. How can we know about the situation of he rainforests in the world?

     A．By watching TV B．By reading books C By the radio  D． By satellite pictures

（   ）4. Can you tell me where Brazil is?

A．Yes. It’s in South America                B．Yes. It’s in North America

C．No. It’s in North Africa                 D．No. It’s in South Africa

（   ）5. What will happen one day when you travel to a rainforest country according to the passage?

A．You will see the wonderful plants and animals of the rainforests.

B．You won’t see the wonderful plants and animals of the rainforests.

C．Thousands of trees will cover these mountains, and animals will live there.

D．You can see the new road going through the rainforest.

‘Who needs a shopping mall if you have Taobao?’ says Wang Lin, 28, a writer in Beijing.
Taobao, China’s largest online shopping site(網(wǎng)站), has become an important part of Wang Lin’s life. She spends lots of money on Taobao.
A growing number of Chinese Internet users like Wang have found the joy of online shopping. Most online shoppers are students or young workers. More women shop online than men. Clothing and home use products (產(chǎn)品) are the most popular online.
It was reported that more than 250 billion yuan was spent on online shopping last year, 80% through Taobao. 
Taobao means ‘looking for treasure’ in Chinese. People can find almost everything they need on Taobao, from clothes to books, from candies to DVD players.
You may question the security (安全) online shopping. Wang Lin said, ‘It is very safe and convenient (便利). Unless you receive the products from the sellers and are satisfied with them, the shop owner will not get the money. You can also get your money back if you want to return the product.’
Taobao: China’s 76. ___________ online shopping center

‘Who needs a shopping mall if you have Taobao?’ says Wang Lin, 28, a writer in Beijing.

Taobao, China’s largest online shopping site(網(wǎng)站), has become an important part of Wang Lin’s life. She spends lots of money on Taobao.

A growing number of Chinese Internet users like Wang have found the joy of online shopping. Most online shoppers are students or young workers. More women shop online than men. Clothing and home use products (產(chǎn)品) are the most popular online.

It was reported that more than 250 billion yuan was spent on online shopping last year, 80% through Taobao. 

Taobao means ‘looking for treasure’ in Chinese. People can find almost everything they need on Taobao, from clothes to books, from candies to DVD players.

You may question the security (安全) online shopping. Wang Lin said, ‘It is very safe and convenient (便利). Unless you receive the products from the sellers and are satisfied with them, the shop owner will not get the money. You can also get your money back if you want to return the product.’

Taobao: China’s 76. ___________ online shopping center

Traveling by train is usually not easy in China. It can be hard to get a ticket. When you’re traveling to the railway station, you look at your watch, for you are afraid you will miss your train.

But there is good news for people traveling between Beijing and Shanghai. Construction (建設(shè)) on the express railway (高速鐵路) between the two cities started just before the Spring Festival of 2008. When it is finished by 2013, taking a train will be as easy as taking a bus.

“There will be trains every several minutes. Buying a ticket, getting through the checkpoint (檢查站) and taking your seat, will take just 10 minutes,” said an engineer.

There may be high-speed trains running at 350 kilometers an hour. The travel time between the two cities will decrease from 10 to about 5 hours. The trains will carry twice the present number of passengers.

The new line will be 1,318 kilometers long and go across specially built bridges. It will run along side the present line. There will be 21 stations in Hebei, Tianjin, Shandong, Anhui and Jiangsu.

“The cost of traveling by the express railway may be around 800 yuan. That will be more expensive than an ordinary train, but cheaper than by air.” Said Zhang Xiaoling, a Jiangsu government official.

According to Zhang, the higher price is caused by the large cost of the railway project. At about 200 billion yuan, the project may be even more expensive than the Three Gorges Project (三峽工程).

1.The express railway between Beijing and Shanghai will be finished _______.

A. at the end of this year????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? B. before the Spring Festival of 2008

C. by 2013????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. in about 5 years

2.Before taking your seat, you should _____ with your ticket.

A. buy a ticket????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? B. get through the checkpoint

C. pack your things????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. make some friends

3.The word “decrease” in the passage possibly means ______ in Chinese.

A. 延長????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? B. 縮短????????????? ????????????? ????????????? C. 提速????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? D. 限速

4.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A. Traveling by train is usually difficult in China because tickets are too expensive.

B. The high-speed trains will have 21 stations in Shanghai, Shandong, Hunan and Jiangsu.

C. Tickets for the high-speed trains will be cheaper than those for planes.

D. The cost of the express railway project is as high as that of the Three Gorges Project.

5.What can be the best title of the passage?

A. An enormous project.

B. Train tickets will get more expensive

C. Specially built bridges

D. Beijing—Shanghai express railway

Is the world too crowded? Well, that’s a hard question to answer. It’s all a matter of perspective(視角).In Montana, you might drive for a mile in any direction and not see another human being. In Macao, 60,000 people live in every square mile!
What is true is that the world’s population doesn’t stay the same. It has been increasing at a very fast rate(比例).That’s in part because in each generation(代) these are more people who then have children than in the last generation.
Five hundred years ago, the population of the world was about 460 million. In 1900,the world’s population was under 2 billion(十億).Right now it is doubling every 40 years. That means, if this rate of growth continues, when you are a parent, there will be twice as many people on earth as there are now. Wow! Now that’s a whole lot of people! Soon the world’s population will probably reach 7 billion. Some people worry about that! But there is a lot of disagreement about just how many people on earth equals(相當(dāng)于) too many people. But everyone agrees that the more people there are, the more resources(資源) the world needs to feed, house and take care of all of them, and the more need there is to think carefully about how we live and use the earth’s resources.
【小題1】From the first paragraph we can know that ­________.