A recent study of ancient and modern elephants has  come up with the unexpected conclusion that the African elephant is divided into two distinct (不同的) species

The discovery was made by researchers at York and Harvard universities when they were examining the genetic relationship between the ancient woolly mammoth and mastodon to modern elephants—the Asian elephant, African forest elephant and African savanna elephant

Once they obtained DNA sequences (序列) from two fossils (化石)，mammoths and mastodons， the team compared them with DNA from modern elephants. They found to their amazement that modern forest and savanna elephants are as distinct from each other as Asian elephants and mammoths.

The scientists used detailed genetic analysis to prove that the African savanna elephants and the African forest elephants have been distinct species for several million years. The divergence of the two species took place around the time of the divergence of Asian elephants and woolly mammoths. This result amazed all the scientists.

There has long been debate in the scientific community that the two might be separate species but this is the most convincing scientific evidence so far that they are indeed different species.

Previously, many naturalists believed that African savanna elephants and African forest elephants were two populations of the same species despite the elephants’ significant size differences. The savanna elephant has an average shoulder height of 3.5metres while the forest elephant has an average shoulder height of 2.5metres. The savanna elephant weighs between six and seven tons, roughly double the weight of the forest elephant. But the fact that they look so different does not necessarily mean they are different species. However, the proof lay in the analysis of the DNA.

Alfred Roca, assistant professor in the department of Animal Sciences at the University of Minois, said, “We now have to treat the forest and savanna elephants as two different units for conservation purpose. Since 1950 all African elephants have been conserved as one species. Now that we know the forest and savanna elephants are two very distinct animals, the forest elephant should become a bigger priority (优先)for conservation purpose .”

1.One of the fossils studied by the researchers is that of ________.

A. the Asian elephant                   B. the forest elephant

C. the savanna elephant                D. the mastodon elephant

2.The underlined word “divergence” in paragraph 4means “________”

A. evolution        B. exhibition       C. separation         D. examination

 3.The researcher’s conclusion was based on a study of the African elephant’s _____

A. DNA           B. height          C. weight            D. population

4.What were Alfred Roca’s words mainly about?

A. The conservation of African elephants.      

B. The purpose of studying African elephants

C. The way to divide African elephants into two units

D. The reason for the distinction of African elephants

5.Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?

A. Naturalist’s Belief about Elephants.     

B. Amazing Experiment about Elephants

C. An Unexpected Finding about Elephants   

D. A Long scientific Debate about Elephants

The temperature of the sun is over 5000 degrees Fahrenheit at the surface, but it rises to perhaps more than 16 million degrees at the center．The sun is so much hotter than die earth that matter can exist only as a gas, except at the core．In the core of the sun, the pressures are so great against the gases that, despite the high temperature, there may be a small solid core．However, no one really knows, since the center of the sun can never be directly observed．

Solar astronomers do know that the sun is divided into five layers or zones．Starting at the outside and going down into the sun, the zones are the corona, chromosphere, photosphere, convection zone and finally the core．The first three zones are regarded as the sun's atmosphere．

But since the sun has no solid surface, it is hard to tell where the atmosphere ends and the main

body of the sun begins．

The sun's outermost layer begins about 10000 miles above the visible surface and goes outward for mllions of miles．This is the only part of the sun that can be seen during an eclipse（日食） such as the one in February 1979．At any other time, the corona can be seen only when special instruments are used on cameras and telescopes to shut out the glare of the sun's rays．

The corona is a brilliant, pearly white, filmy light, about as bright as the full moon．Its beautiful rays are a sensational sight during an eclipse．The corona's rays flash out in a brilliant fan that has wispy spikelike（一束束穗状） rays near the sun's north and south poles．The corona is thickest at the sun's equator．

The corona rays are made up of gases streaming outward at tremendous speeds sad reaching a temperature of more than 2 million degrees Fahrenheit．The rays of gas thin out as they reach the space around the planets．By the time the sun's corona rays reach the Earth, they are weak and invisible．

1.Matter on the aim can exist only in fee form of gas because of the sun's ___．

     A．size          B．．age              C．location        D．temperature

2.All of the following are parts of the sun's atmosphere EXCEPT the ___．

     A．corona             B．chromosphere           C．photosphere     D．core

3.According to the passage, as the corona ra5,'s reach -die plaasts, they become ___．

     A．hotter         B．clearer          C．thinner            D．stronger

4.Which of 'die following do the paragraphs following the passage most likely discuss?

     A．The remaining layers of the sun．

     B．The evolution of the sun to its present form．

     C．The eclipse of February 1979．

     D．All the above．

单词：根据中文提示或单词首字母提示，填入恰当的单词，使句子完整。（共10小题，每小题1分，满分10分）

56. She won a prize again yesterday. It's ___________ (难以置信的)how lucky she's been.

57. After he called 120, the ambulance arrived ___________ (在……之内) 10 minutes. 

58. It's a method of education that is ___________ (独一无二的)to this school. 

59. Though he has made a mistake, I still ___________ (尊敬) him for his honesty.

60. The boy was asking his teacher something about Darwin's ___________ (理论) of Evolution.

61. Every nation, big or small, has its s___________ and weaknesses.

62. We all know that Shakespeare was a famous writer, but what n___________ was he?

63. I'd love to join you in the party, but u___________ I have to work that day.

64. The crosses on the map r___________ churches.

65. The flight was delayed for the heavy rain. The pilot a___________ to passengers for that.

The people below are all looking for someplace to enjoy some kind of activity in Beijing. After the description of these people, there is information about places A—F. Decide which place would be most suitable for the person mentioned in questions 61---65 and then mark the correct letter (A---F) on your answer sheet. There is one extra paragraph about one place which you do not need to use.

_____ 1. Stephen studies art in Beijing University. He shows great interest in paintings and he is especially interested in those oil paintings that reflect the variety of life.

______2. Mark has just come to China and he is very interested in Chinese culture. He has been waiting for a long time to have a chance to see a wonderful Chinese acrobatic performance in China.

______3. Oscar is a student from Yangzhou University, visiting his friends who share the same interest in music. They are planning to find someplace to enjoy rock and roll and pop songs.

______4. Charles works in Philips Company, Shanghai Branch. He is going to Beijing on business in middle September. He will be free in the evening, so he wants to go to someplace to enjoy some music performed by foreign bands.

______5. Carol studies Chinese in Beijing. She is free recently during the day time, so she would like to find someplace where she can attend some kind of activity so that she can learn some details about Chinese modern literature.

A. Capital Theatre:

To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the China Acrobatic Troupe will present “The Soul of China”, where the seemingly impossible is made real. Chills (寒战 ) will run down your spine (脊柱 ) as you watch breathlessly as performers take their art ant the bodies to the edge. Time: 7:30 p.m., September 13-19.

B. Huangshicheng Gallery:

A group ink pain ting exhibition is running. About 50 works by 25 young artists including Ge Yun and Yu Yang are on display. Time:9 a.m.—5p.m. until September 10.

C. The Wangfung Art Gallery:

A joint show of oil paintings by 10 young and middle-aged artists will be hosted by the gallery. On display are more than 30 of their latest works, which capture the  wonderous variety of life in unique (独特的) styles.

D. Anyuan Museum:

The National Museum of Modern Chinese Literature offers an indepth study of the evolution of Chinese contemporary literature from 1919 to 1949. Time: 9a.m.---4p.m., daily.

E. The Olympic Center:

 “The Fashionow Night of Chinese Rock” is set to bring back fans out by the thousands next month. Nine Chinese rock bands will perform at the concert, including older generation bands, middle generation bands, middle generation and some recent arrivals. The audience will be given a chance to decide what songs they want to hear, which is sure to bring a storm. Time: September 16.

F. Grand Theater of the Cultural Palace of Nationalities: La Petite Band, the Baroque Orchestra of Belgium, will perform as part of activities across the world to commemorate(纪念) the 250th anniversary of Bach’s death. Time: 70:30p.m. September1 1-14

Since the gene, called DAF-16 in worms, was found in many animals and in humans, the finding could open up new ways to affect aging, immunity(免疫)and resistance in humans, the scientists said.?
“We wanted to find out how normal aging is being governed by genes and what effect these genes have on other traits, such as immunity,” said Robin May of the University of Birmingham, who led the study.?
Populations across the world are aging at a surprising pace, bringing potentially big challenges for health and social care systems. A study by Danish scientists last year found that half of babies born in the rich world today will live to celebrate their 100th birthdays. Scientists are eager to find out how people age to try to develop drugs to help them stay healthier as their lives extend.?
“What we have found is that things like resistance and aging tend to go hand in hand,” May said in an interview.?
May’s team compared longevity, stress resistance and immunity in four related species of worm. They also looked for differences in the activity of DAF-16 in each of the four species, and found that they were all quite distinct.?
May said DAF-16 was active in most cells in the body and was very similar to a group of human genes called FOXO genes, which scientists believe play a role in the aging process.?
“The fact that subtle（微妙的）differences in DAF-16 between species seem to have such an impact on aging and health is very interesting and may explain how differences in lifespan and related traits have arisen during evolution,” May said.?
71. In which section may the text appear in a newspaper? ?
A. Education.              B. Science.          C. Entertainment.         D. Culture.
72. According to May_________,.?
A. resistance has a lot to do with aging?
B. FOXO genes can be found in worms?
C. genes play the same role in different species?
D. new drugs will change the genes in older people
73. What can we know from the third paragraph??
A. New ways have been found to affect aging. ?
B. Babies in the rich world will all live longer. ?
C. Present social care systems are poorly managed.?
D. Aging populations are causing more challenges.
74. From the text we know that DAF-16.?
A. is a gene that is only found in worms?
B. can make people live longer?
C. has an effect on aging and immunity?
D. has been quite familiar to scientists
75. What can be the best title of the passage??
A. Scientists Find Gene Linked to Aging?
B. Population Aging Faster than Expected?
C. How to Make People Live Longer?
D. Gene Determines How Long We Live