B
Charter schools operate with public money but without many of the rues that Sovem tradi-tional public schools．In the Uruted States the rules for charter schools difFer from state to state． But in Seneral these schools havegreater freedom to decide what to teach and how to teach it．
The "charter 'is a perfarmance contract．It establishes thegoals of the school and other details like how student performance will be measured． Forty - seven million students attend traditional public schools．But more than a million students attend charter schools:
And now a group of charter schools have formed the Green Charter Schools Network.The idea is to have environmentally friendly school buildings but toalso go further than that．The schools teach students to become involved in community issues that affect them and the environ-ment． For example, youg children grow crops in a school garden and leam about healthy eat-ing．Older students help recycle waste from the cafeteria．And local schoois share what they grow in community gardens with people in need．
Jim McGrath is president．of the Green Charter Schools Network． He says there are about 200 "green" charter schools across the United States． He says the plan is to also include tradi-tional public schools as well as private schools．
Jim McGrath:  "The most important thing is that every one of us - every child, every adult - has a reaponsibility that their action, every action we make has an effect on the earth  that we live in． And that our natuntl resources are not unlimited． And that if we want a positive earth for future generations, we all need to make comnutments to be agents of change so that we don' t destroy our natural resources．
The Green Clarter Schools Network holds its first national conference this October in Min- nesota．It will include companies and orgaizations like Waste Management and the Uruted States Green Brulding Council． We sincerely hope that their goal is to expand the movement across the country．
61．Charter schools are quitedifent from public ones in that______________
A．they are operated by public money
B．they still use the traditional rules
C．they have more freedom in management
D． they attract more students than others
62．The Green Charter Schools Network is established to______________
A．advise teenagers to attend charter schools
B．paint the school buildings in the color of green
C．measure the students with the same standards
D．get students involved in environment friendly activities
63．Which of the following statements about the Network are true EXCEPT_________
A． It only concernsthe charter schools in the U．S．
B．It holds its first national conference in Minnesota．
C． It will benefit both the schools and the communities．
D．It promotes different schools to share their achievements．
64．According to Jim McGrath,____________
A．people's action plays little part in nature
B．natural resources are abundant for people to use
C． students should be taught to be responsibk for the world
D．everyone should make efforts to change the positive nature
65．What' s the writer' s purpose of this passage?
A．To criticize the traditional education system．
B．To encourage the students to adopt healthy eating．
C．To inspire people to recycle waste from the cafeteria．
D．To arouse the schools to take action to protect the earth．

It seems that there is no middle ground when it comes to cats. People either love them or hate them. These feelings are not new either. All through history, cats have been worshiped or hated. A study of ancient writings and evidence found in tombs indicates that for the past 5,000 years, cats have been kept as pets in China, Arabia, Egypt, and India. However, this isn’t very long compared to dogs, which have been domesticated for 50,000 years. Still, while the period in which cats have been domesticated may be quite short, it has definitely had its high and low points.

Cats were at their highest position of domesticated life in ancient Egypt. There were more cats living in Egypt during the time of the pharaohs than in any other place in the world since that time. This high number of cats was probably due to the laws protecting them. Cats were associated with the moon goddess, Bast, so the Egyptians worshiped them as holy animals. If anyone was caught killing a cat, the person could be put to death. Families in Egypt also mourned the death of a cat and had the body of the dead cat wrapped in cloth before it was finally laid to rest. This respect for cats carried over to the Roman Empire where cats were the only animals allowed into temples. This fact was probably due to the ability of cats to keep the temples free of mice and rats. With the coming of the Dark Ages in Europe, the place of cats in society took a turn for the Empire, Christians began to associate cats with pegan (异教徒) beliefs. Cats had a reputation as helpers of witches. When a person was accused of being a witch, a cat would often be put on trial with the person. The cat would be tortured（拷打） to try and make the person tell the truth, and usually the cat and the person would end up being burned in a bonfire or drowned. Bonfires of collected cats were not uncommon during this time.

The days of hunting witches have ended, but other myths about cats still hold out. For a while, people in some places used to bury live cats under new buildings for good luck. As well, many people today continue to believe that black cats bring bad luck. If a black cat walks in front of a person, that person must take extra care in the near future to watch out for dangerous situations. Regardless of superstition(迷信), cats remain a popular pet today. Some cat experts believe that a cat never truly be domesticated because it may turn wild and run away at any time. However, this claim has not put people off keeping cats in their homes. A third of homes in the United States have cats, and one out of every three of these homes keeps both a dog and a cat. Especially in large cities, many people in small apartments have found that cats make much better pets than dogs.

Cats may not be worshiped as gods any more, but there are people who seem to think of their cat as their children. These cat owners will do almost anything to keep their pets healthy and happy. For those cat owners who have always wondered what their pets are trying to tell them, a Japanese company may have come up with the perfect invention. In 2003, the Takara Company announced the Meowlingual, a cat translation device. The Meowlingual uses a microphone, display, and cat voice analyzer to analyze a cat’s meows to determine which of 200 phrases a cat is trying to say.

According to a company spokesperson, “… cat owners all over the world have been telling Takara, ‘ We want a cat translator!’” Now, the company “is making their dream come true by bringing in a new era of communication between cat lovers and their pets.”

1.Which of these is NOT discussed in the passage?

A．the status of cats throughout history

B．the evolution of different species of cats

C．the popularity of the cats today

D．communication between cats and their owners

2.The second paragraph mainly describes_______.

A．how Bast became a goddess.

B．the low point in the history of cats

C．the high point in the history of cats

D．the reason why cats are such good hunters

3.How were cats treated in Europe during the Dark Ages?

A．as farm animals     B．as food           C．as magical creatures D．as honored guests

4.According to the passage, what percentage of people in the United States keep both a cat and a dog?

A．about 10 percent   B．nearly 25 percent   C．about 33 percent   D．close to 50 percent

Sometimes we need both cultural________ and government action—a change in values and a change in policy—to promote the kind of society we want.

It seems that there is no middle ground when it comes to cats. People either love them or hate them. These feelings are not new either. All through history, cats have been worshiped or hated. A study of ancient writings and evidence found in tombs indicates that for the past 5,000 years, cats have been kept as pets in China, Arabia, Egypt, and India. However, this isn’t very long compared to dogs, which have been domesticated for 50,000 years. Still, while the period in which cats have been domesticated may be quite short, it has definitely had its high and low points.
Cats were at their highest position of domesticated life in ancient Egypt. There were more cats living in Egypt during the time of the pharaohs than in any other place in the world since that time. This high number of cats was probably due to the laws protecting them. Cats were associated with the moon goddess, Bast, so the Egyptians worshiped them as holy animals. If anyone was caught killing a cat, the person could be put to death. Families in Egypt also mourned the death of a cat and had the body of the dead cat wrapped in cloth before it was finally laid to rest. This respect for cats carried over to the Roman Empire where cats were the only animals allowed into temples. This fact was probably due to the ability of cats to keep the temples free of mice and rats. With the coming of the Dark Ages in Europe, the place of cats in society took a turn for the Empire, Christians began to associate cats with pegan (异教徒) beliefs. Cats had a reputation as helpers of witches. When a person was accused of being a witch, a cat would often be put on trial with the person. The cat would be tortured（拷打） to try and make the person tell the truth, and usually the cat and the person would end up being burned in a bonfire or drowned. Bonfires of collected cats were not uncommon during this time.
The days of hunting witches have ended, but other myths about cats still hold out. For a while, people in some places used to bury live cats under new buildings for good luck. As well, many people today continue to believe that black cats bring bad luck. If a black cat walks in front of a person, that person must take extra care in the near future to watch out for dangerous situations. Regardless of superstition(迷信), cats remain a popular pet today. Some cat experts believe that a cat never truly be domesticated because it may turn wild and run away at any time. However, this claim has not put people off keeping cats in their homes. A third of homes in the United States have cats, and one out of every three of these homes keeps both a dog and a cat. Especially in large cities, many people in small apartments have found that cats make much better pets than dogs.
Cats may not be worshiped as gods any more, but there are people who seem to think of their cat as their children. These cat owners will do almost anything to keep their pets healthy and happy. For those cat owners who have always wondered what their pets are trying to tell them, a Japanese company may have come up with the perfect invention. In 2003, the Takara Company announced the Meowlingual, a cat translation device. The Meowlingual uses a microphone, display, and cat voice analyzer to analyze a cat’s meows to determine which of 200 phrases a cat is trying to say.
According to a company spokesperson, “… cat owners all over the world have been telling Takara, ‘ We want a cat translator!’” Now, the company “is making their dream come true by bringing in a new era of communication between cat lovers and their pets.”
【小题1】Which of these is NOT discussed in the passage?