How did the sea horse get its name? It's not hard to guess. The top half of this fish looks like a small horse. But looking at the sea horse's tail, you might think "sea monkey" is a better name. Then there's the sea horse's pouch(口袋). "Sea kangaroo" might also be a good name for this fish.
Sea horse live in warm ocean waters all over the world. They keep safe from other fish by hiding in plants and grasses that grow under the sea. They can also change colors to match their surroundings(环境). A sea horse in one place for hours at a time by winding its tail around a plant. It feeds on live food, such as small shrimp(虾). For a fish that doesn't move around much, the sea horse eats a lot-- in just one day, a sea horse can eat 3,000 shrimp!
A sea horse keeps the same mate for its whole life, and it's the male(雄性的) sea horse that gives birth to baby sea horses. How does this happen? Baby sea horse start out as eggs, which come from the female's(雌性的) body. The male carries the eggs in its pouch for about three weeks until they hatch(孵化). Soon after the babies are born, the female gives her mate a new set of eggs.
Sadly, the number of sea horses is becoming smaller. Why is this happening? Some places where sea horses once lived have been filled in to make new land. Also, many sea horses are caught and sold as aquarium(水族馆) fish. This really is not a good idea because most sea horses don't live long in aquarium. The best place for a sea horse is the ocean.
【小题1】The sea horse got its name because of its_______.

A．pouch	B．head
C．skin	D．tail

【小题2】How does a sea horse keep safe from other fish?

A．It rolls up.	B．It runs away quickly.
C．It remains still.	D．It hides in plants and grasses.

【小题3】We can learn from the text that sea horses_______.

A．like to move around	B．feed on small sea animals
C．live in cold ocean waters	D．change color with the temperature

【小题4】What does a female sea horse do with her eggs?

A．She carries them around.	B．She hides them in sea grasses.
C．She puts them in the male's pouch.	D．She hatches them.

【小题5】Why is the number of the sea horses becoming smaller?

A．They grow at a very low speed.

B．Their food is becoming less and less.

C．They are killed by people for food.

D．Their homes are being destroyed.

阅读P18教材课文，用合适的单词(不超过三个)填入下列表格

Yeti，Bigfoot and the Wild Man of Shennongjia
What they are called	Where they are seen	What they ____3____	What they Why they look the same
Yeti	In the Himalayas	large，____4____ animal that walks on two feet like a ____5____； moving with amazing ____6____ and ___7___； large tracks more than 33 centimetres ____8____	linked to a common ___9___，an animal that lived in ___10___ some 300,000 years ago
Bigfoot	____1____ of the north­west of the USA
Wild Man in Shennongjia	In ___2___Hubei Province，China

 
1. __________
2. __________
3. __________
4. __________
5. __________
6. __________
7. __________
8. __________
9. __________
10. __________

   You probably have a first-aid kit at home for your family—but what about your family pets？You need to be ready if your furry friend faces an emergency at home. What's more，as the weather gets warmer，more pet owners take their pets with them when they leave the house—on vacation，to the park，jogging，hiking and even swimming. That can be fun for you and your pet，but there's a chance that your pet will get hurt there，as well. So，it's important to know some of the basics of first aid for your pet if necessary.

If your pet is exposed to long periods of heat and sunlight，she will be easy to get heat exhaustion（衰竭）or heatstroke. Signs of heat exhaustion are breathless，anxiousness，dry gums and red skin most easily seen on the ears.

If either of these occurs，cool the pet right away and，as always，get her to the vet（兽医）.Put the animal in a shaded or air-conditioned area，and wet the body with cool water. Rubbing isopropyl alcohol（异丙醇）on the belly and fanning the area will help drive away the heat. If a pet is suffering from heatstroke，don't try to give her water. Get her to the vet immediately.

If you see an animal that's been hit by a car，or you hit one accidentally，first be cautious of all oncoming traffic before trying to reach the animal. Approach carefully. Even a severely injured animal can bite you.

As someone helps with directing traffic, cover the animal with a blanket or towel. If the animal cannot stand on her own, there's a good chance that there are neck, back or head injuries, so try to gently transfer the animal to a flat surface. Then transport that flat surface to the nearest vet. Picking up or hand-carrying the animal may worsen the injuries.

【小题1】What is the main idea of the first paragraph?

A．It is dangerous to keep pets outside.

B．It is necessary to prepare for pets' first aid.

C．It is fun to bring pets while you go out.

D．It is possible for pets to run away from home.

【小题2】If a pet suffers from heatstroke, what should you do?

A．Wet her body with cold water.

B．Make her drink some alcohol.

C．Bring her to the vet at once.

D．Freeze her in an air-conditioned area.

【小题3】How can you help an animal injured in an accident?

A．By running to help her immediately.

B．By carrying her in your hands to the vet.

C．By picking her up in a gentle way.

D．By sending her to the vet on a flat surface.

【小题4】The underlined word "transfer" in the last paragraph may mean" ________ ".

A．move	B．trap
C．feed	D．drive

   Many years ago in a zoo，I was shocked by finding that chimpanzees could behave in a more civil manner than youths. Great apes（类人猿）are always one of the favourite attractions in any zoo. The main reason for this is that they are so similar to us.

This similarity has persuaded a group called the Great Ape Project（GAP）to campaign for these animals to be afforded“human rights”.

This has resulted in laws in New Zealand，which could mean that great apes would become the first animals in the world with basic rights protected by the law.

Not everybody is happy with this idea，however. Scientists using animals for scientific research fear that this is just the first stage in a process that will lead to a ban on using all animals for research.

The GAP declaration claims great apes should have“human rights”due to scientific evidence about their abilities. But if we compare the abilities of humans and great apes，then why not the abilities of great apes and monkeys，monkeys and lemurs，and so on until insects are granted“human rights”？This is not foolish. There are people without basic human rights. How long ago，for example，did women not have the right to vote？

Yet another argument by those who don't support GAP is that the human-like qualities of great apes have been exaggerated（夸大）for certain reasons，and that this has led people to exaggerate the similarities but ignore the differences between humans and great apes.

In a fascinating book entitled What It Means to be 98% Chimpanzee，Jonathan M. Marks points out that，although a human and a daffodil（水仙花）share the common ancestry and their DNA matches more than 25% of the time，it is plainly ridiculous to claim that we are one-quarter daffodils.

He goes on to demonstrate that，if looked at from one angle，it is true that we are apes phylogenetically. But also fish from another angle！“It doesn't sound quite so profound now，does it？”

【小题1】What does Paragraph 1 mainly talk about？

A．The experience was unforgettable.

B．Chimpanzees are similar to humans.

C．Chimpanzees are very popular in the zoo.

D．Animals could behave better than humans.

【小题2】Which of the following would the Great Ape Project most probably agree with?

A．Animals should be free from any scientific research.

B．New Zealand should do more to protect the rights of great apes.

C．The differences between humans and great apes have been ignored.

D．Great apes have adequate characteristics to be included as our equals.

【小题3】How does the author develop his idea mainly in Paragraph 5?

A．By reasoning.

B．By giving examples.

C．By making comparisons.

D．By providing scientific evidence.

【小题4】What point does Jonathan M. Marks try to make in his book?

A．Humans are more than one-quarter daffodils.

B．Great apes and fish are phylogenetically similar from another angle.

C．Humans are as similar to fish as they are to great apes.

D．Being 98% genetically identical matters less than thought.

   According to a study published last week in the journal Science，scientists have found a way to change a plant's genes（基因）in order to make it use sunlight more quickly. Someday，the results could increase the amount of food produced around the world.

By changing a plant's genes，the scientists were able to increase leaf growth on plants by 14-20 percent. Specifically，scientists changed the plant's protective（保护的）system. “Normally，this system is activated when a plant gets too much sunlight，”said scientist Krishna Niyogi，co-author of the study. “When the plant senses the light，it gets rid of extra energy and creates more leaves. When the plant is in the shade，the protective system is turned off. But the process is slow.”

Stephen Long is the lead author of the study. He compared a plant's protective system to light-adjusting glasses.“When a person wears the glasses outside during the day，the lenses（镜片）darken and lighten depending on how sunny it is. Plants do the same thing，”he said.“But in plants the adjustment can take anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour. This makes it hard for plants to get the right amount of sunlight needed to create food.”

The new study sped up the process. By changing the plant's genes，it's more quickly than normal to turn on and turn off the protective system. As a result，leaf growth on the plants scientists used in the study increased. Leaf growth on two plants increased by 20 percent, while leaf growth on a third plant increased by 14percent. Scientists conducted the study on tobacco plants. But they thought the genetic modification would produce the same results in corn or rice.

【小题1】What does the plant's protective system need to keep activated?

A．Mild shade.	B．Leaf growth.
C．Genetic changes.	D．Enough sunlight.

【小题2】What does the underlined word“modification”in Paragraph 4mean?

A．Development.	B．Decoration.
C．Change.	D．Copying.

【小题3】What can we infer from this text?

A．Changing how a plant uses sunlight could mean more food in the future.

B．When the plant is in the shade, its protective system is turned off slowly.

C．Too much sunlight will damage plants' protective system.

D．It is hard for plants to create food without enough sunlight.