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Scientists estimate that over 500 million species have died out throughout evolution. Here is a list of 4 incredible extinct animals.
Pinta Island Tortoise
The giant tortoise of Pinta lived on the island Pinta of the Galapagos Islands,Ecuador. By the end of the nineteenth century,most of the Pinta Island tortoises had been wiped out due to hunting. The last known individual was a male named Lonesome George who died on 24 June 2012. In his later years,he was considered the rarest animal in the world.
Falkland Islands Wolf
The Falkland Islands wolf was the only native land mammal of the Falkland Islands. The animal was hunted for his beautiful fur,and the shepherds(牧羊人），considering it a threat to the sheep,poisoned him. On the islands,there were no forests in which the species could take shelter,and its lack of fear towards man made it easy prey to kill. The last known individual died in the late 19th century on the western island.
Caucasian Wisent
The Caucasian wisent which went extinct in 1926 inhabited(栖息）the Caucasus mountains. In 1910 their numbers were estimated in the hundreds. When state authority collapsed after the First World War,the remaining population fell victim to hunters. The decline can also be contributed to an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease that was introduced with cattle.
The Javan tiger is an extinct subspecies of the tiger that was native to the Indonesian island of Java. Very little data was gathered about their behavior before they were driven to extinction. The reduction of its two main prey species,and the modification of its habitat led to the extinction of the subspecies in the 1980s.
1.According to the passage,which shows the correct order of the animals' extinction?
① Pinta Island tortoise ② Falkland Islands wolf
③ Caucasian wisent ④Javan tiger
A.②③①④ B.②③④①
C.③②④① D.③④②①
2.Which of the following is NOT the reason for extinction of the animals?
A.Pollution. B.Disease.
C.Hunting. D.Habitat loss.
3.Where does this article probably come from?
A.A travel brochure. B.A news report.
C.A nature magazine. D.A biology textbook.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
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Shortly before Christmas last year,Brazilian piano player Joao Carlos Martins invited his friends to a bar near his home. He wanted to show them the best gift he had received in many years:a new pair of gloves. They are not just any gloves,however. The specially made bionic(仿生）devices are letting the 79-year-old play with both hands for the first time in more than 20 years.
Martins 'health problems could be traced back to 1965. He suffered nerve damage in his arm from a soccer injury. And while he was on tour,a robber hit him over the head with a metal pipe in Bulgaria. Even his close friends believed that his career as a pianist would come to an end.
By his retirement last March,he had undergone 24 medical procedures to try to reduce pain caused by a series of accidents. As a result,he had been forced to work mostly as a musical conductor since the early 2000s.
However,one designer believed Martins 'retirement had come too early. That designer, Ubirata Bizarro Costa,created special bionic gloves for Martins 'hands. The gloves help move his fingers up after they press on the piano keys. Costa said he created early models based on images of Martins' hands,but that those models were“far from ideal”. He then decided to tell Martins about his efforts and they together spent several months testing different models. The perfect match came in December,and cost only$125 to build.
These days,Martins never takes off his new magic gloves-even when he goes to sleep. Martins said he had received more than 100 devices in the last 50 years as possible solutions to his hand problems. None worked well or long enough. "But these gloves do,"he said.
The new gloves have given Martins a new goal. He hopes to play the piano at New York's Carnegie Hall in October. He has already been preparing a concert celebrating the 60th anniversary of his first appearance there.
1.Which of the following is true about Joao Carlos Martins?
A.A designer who created special gloves for himself.
B.A musician who prefers conducting to playing the piano.
C.A pianist whose career was restricted by health problems.
D.A soccer lover who was hit over the head during a match.
2.What is special about Martins' s new gloves?
A.They have been around for a long time.
B.They are considered to be far from ideal.
C.They enable Martins to play with two hands.
D.They are developed mainly for the disabled.
3.In the process of creation,Costa did the following EXCEPT that
A.he perfected the gloves together with Martins.
B.he spent several months testing different models.
C.he made early models based on images of Martins 's hands.
D.he insisted on building the new gloves despite the high price.
4.What's the best title for the text?
A.Technology Improves People's Life
B.Martins Receives the Best Christmas Gift
C.Costa Creates the Special Gloves for Martins
D.Magic Gloves Let Brazilian Pianist Play Again
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Over the past months,dozens of carmakers have launched models online,and tens of thousands of dealerships across the country are selling cars via livestreaming(直播）.
As Chinese customers always have their smartphones at their side,they have been accustomed to shopping online. Moreover,the sales are made better received by virtual showrooms where customers can see the vehicles and interact(互动）in real-time about their prices and equipment.
To cater to the new trend,car salespeople need new skills in this world. Good product knowledge remains the basis,but if you want to be successful,you have to appear in livestreams like a type of TV presenter.
“Car salespeople are becoming entertainers,"said Michael Mayer,head of sales and marketing for Volkswagen brand in China. “The competition is tough,"he added. "Those who want to be found must always offer something new. "
The contest soon escalated. In March,British brand Land Rover came up with a 30-hour livestreaming event,during which its new Discovery Sport was launched. GM' s Cadillac invited online celebrities(名人）to help sell vehicles in April.
In China,a young man named Li Jiaqi is believed to know lipstick better than anyone else. Almost every night,millions of girls and ladies wait for him to appear online and introduce new lipsticks. Li was invited in April to help market Cadillac' s CT4. Despite the huge number of online viewers,none of them placed an order on the vehicle priced around 200,000 yuan.
Another online celebrity named Weiya helped attract orders for Roewe RX5 plus:4,180 were sold in 30 seconds. The key,said industry insiders,was the discount. Christine,a marketing manager of an international carmaker tells China Daily that she believes livestreaming with online celebrities won't help sales. "In fact,if you give dealers the same discount,they may sell even faster,"she said. "A lipstick is affordable for anyone,while a car is different. But bosses do not want their brands to remain silent,especially when others are seemingly having a good time. "
Some bosses decided to try it themselves. Nio Chairman Li Bin explained products. The 40-minute live show on May 18 brought in a total of 320 orders,5,288 test-drive appointments and sales valuing 128 million yuan. Orders continued to grow after the show and sales reached nearly 150 million yuan by the next day. WM President Shen Hui rapped unskillfully. Its online launch on May 10 obtained 1,400 million views. In two days it received over 4,000 orders,and more than 30,000 people showed interest in the model.
He Xiaopeng,founder of Xpeng Motor,said“Many people ask me when Xpeng will do livestreaming. I am worried that it will become a data-falsifying show. Everyone knows that the data is exaggerated(夸张）。But if you do not do it,you will feel you fall behind. "
Mayer said digitalization will continue,but that does not mean Volkswagen will make online sales the standard. He said it is more important to digitalize further process steps and thus work in a more customer-friendly and cost-effective manner.
1.Why is selling cars via livestreaming so popular according to the passage?
A.It is an avoidable trend that all car companies applaud.
B.Companies can make the biggest profit via livestreaming.
C.Vehicles sold online work in. a more customer-friendly manner.
D.Real-time interaction via livestreaming caters to customers' needs.
2.As car salespeople,what basic skill should they own?
A.Entertaining audience well.
B.Knowing the cars for sale well.
C.Making themselves famous.
D.Appearing like TV presenters.
3.The underlined word"escalated”in Paragraph 5 probably means
A.became less serious
B.sprang up everywhere
C.became increasingly fierce
D.disappeared gradually
4.All of the following have done livestreaming EXCEPT
A.Volkswagen
B.Xpeng Motor
C.Land Rover
D.Cadillac
5.What can be inferred from Christine's words?
A.Discount rather than celebrities counts in selling cars.
B.Car salespeople can sell better than online celebrities.
C.The lipstick and the car share the same target customers.
D.She thinks highly of livestreaming with online celebrities.
难度: 困难查看答案及解析