Of the 7,000 languages spoken in the world today, linguists (語(yǔ)言學(xué)家) say, nearly half are likely to disappear this century. In fact, one falls out of use about every two weeks.

    Some languages die out in an instant, at the death of the only surviving speaker. Others are lost gradually in bilingual (雙語(yǔ)的) cultures, as local tongues are edged out by the dominant (占主導(dǎo)地位的) language at school, in the marketplace and on television.

    New research, supported by the National Geographic Society and the Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages, has found the five regions where languages are disappearing most rapidly. They are northern Australia, central South America, North America's upper Pacific coastal zone, eastern Siberia, and Oklahoma and the southwestern United States.

K. David Harrison, an associate professor of linguistics at Swarthmore College, US, said that more than half the languages had no written form and were vulnerable to loss and being forgotten." Their loss leaves no dictionary, no text, or no record of the accumulated knowledge and history of a disappeared culture.

    Harrison and other researchers started their rescue project last year. They have been trying to identify and record endangered languages. They interviewed and made recordings of the few remaining speakers of a language and collected basic word lists. The individual projects, some lasting three to four years, involve hundreds of hours of recording speech, developing grammar and preparing children's readers in the obscure (逐漸沒(méi)落的) language. The research has concentrated on preserving entire language families.

    "These are probably languages that cannot be brought back, but at least we made records of them," said Gregory Anderson, director of the Living Tongues Institute, in Oregon, US.

1.What does the passage mainly tell us?          

A. Many languages are quickly disappearing.

B. Some languages are disappearing because they are hard to remember.

C. Chinese is one of the languages that are disappearing.

D. Thanks to some researchers, many endangered languages have been rescued.

2.What does the word vulnerable in the fourth paragraph mean?  

A. easy to remember.                         B. easy to forget.

C. likely to be damaged.                     D. likely to be protected.

3.Which of the following is true according to the fifth paragraph?  

A. Harrison and other researchers are trying to find out why some languages died out.

B. Harrison and other researchers tried to start a rescue project.

C. Harrison and other researchers have concentrated on preserving all the languages.

D. Harrison and other researchers have done some rescue work on the obscure languages.

4.One of the things that Harrison and other researchers did was         .   

A. to have more people speak the disappearing language

B. to make records of the disappearing language

C. to limit dominant languages

D. to publish a dictionary of the disappearing language

5.What do you think is the suggested reason for some languages disappearing?     

A. Local tongues are gradually edged out by the dominant language at school, in the marketplace and on television.

B. The number of people who speak the languages are small.

C. There are no dictionaries for the languages.

D. No one make records of the languages, so they gradually disappear.

 

【答案】

 

1.A

2.C

3.D

4.B

5.A

【解析】略

 

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：湖南省2010屆高三5月月考英語(yǔ)試題 題型：任務(wù)型閱讀

 

PART FOUR WRITING SECTION A

Directions: Read the following passage. Fill in the numbered blanks by using the information from the passage. Write NO MORE THAN 3 WORDS for each blank. The Chilean earthquake, measuring 8.8 – magnitude, which struck early Saturday morning, released 500 times the energy of the 7.0 – magnitude quake that hit Haiti last month, a geophysicist told CBS’ “The Early Show. ” Tsunami warnings were issued for much of the Pacific, including Hawaii, following the quake that struck near the Chilean coast.

“When the earthquake occurred, it moved the land and then it moved the water causing the tsunami,” said U.S. Geological Survey geophysicist Jessica Sigala. “And the coastal areas of Chile have already noticed the wave heights up to about 7 feet.”

Sigala said Hawaiians can expect to see the waves from this tsunami around 11:20 a.m. local time (about 4:20 p.m. ET). “So we have to wait and see how big the waves will be.”

“It's not so much the height [of the wave] but it's the width, it's how long the duration, and then it's also the speed at which it's traveling,” said co-anchor Kelly Cobiella “Correct me if I'm wrong, but these waves are traveling at the speed of a jetliner, about 500 miles per hour?”

“That's correct. It's a big block of water coming onto the land,” Sigala said. 

Chile has already experienced several aftershocks following the quake.

“Aftershocks are definitely a concern,” said Sigala. "We always see aftershocks with a large quake and a shallow quake, which this one was. And as of right now, we've located about maybe 15 aftershocks and those are of the larger kind. I'm sure they felt much more than that.”

“A shallow earthquake just means that it happened pretty close to the surface,” said Sigala. “And because of that the energy is really close to the surface, where all the buildings and people are.”

    50 deaths caused by aftershocks have been reported, according to the national emergency agency, adding the estimate casualties to 960.

Title: Concerns after          71             

I. Tsunami:

●      72       : much of the Pacific, including Hawaii

●Cause: the earthquake moved     73       

●Wave Heights: about      74      

●      75  ____  : about 500 mph

II.      76   _    :

●Reason: the Chilean Earthquake was a      77__   and a    78     earthquake, which always have them after the major one

●Number: at least     79     

●Loss:_____ 80______

 

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：湖南省六校2010屆高三下學(xué)期第一次仿真模擬聯(lián)考（英語(yǔ)） 題型：其他題

PART FOUR WRITING（45分）

SECTION A（10分）

Directions: Read the following passage．Fill in the numbered blanks by using the information for the passage．

Write NO MORE THAN 3 WORDS for each answer．

The Chilean earthquake, measuring 8.8 – magnitude, which struck early Saturday morning, released 500 times the energy of the 7.0 – magnitude quake that hit Haiti (海地) last month, a geophysicist told CBS’ “The Early Show. ” Tsunami warnings were issued for much of the Pacific, including Hawaii, following the quake that struck near the Chilean coast.

"When the earthquake occurred, it moved the land and then it moved the water causing the tsunami," said U.S. Geological Survey geophysicist Jessica Sigala. "And the coastal areas of Chile have already noticed the wave heights up to about 7 feet."

Sigala said Hawaiians can expect to see the waves from this tsunami around 11:20 a.m. local time (about 4:20 p.m. ET). "So we have to wait and see how big the waves will be."

"It's not so much the height [of the wave] but it's the width, it's how long the duration, and then it's also the speed at which it's traveling," said co-anchor Kelly Cobiella "Correct me if I'm wrong, but these waves are traveling at the speed of a jetliner, about 500 miles per hour?"

"That's correct. It's a big block of water coming onto the land," Sigala said.

Chile has already experienced several aftershocks following the quake.

"Aftershocks are definitely a concern," said Sigala. "We always see aftershocks with a large quake and a shallow quake, which this one was. And as of right now, we've located about maybe 15 aftershocks and those are of the larger kind. I'm sure they felt much more than that.

"A shallow earthquake just means that it happened pretty close to the surface," said Sigala. "And because of that the energy is really close to the surface, where all the buildings and people are."

50 deaths caused by aftershocks have been reported, according to the national emergency agency, adding the estimate casualties to 960.

Title: Concerns after 71.             

I. Tsunami:

●72.                 : much of the Pacific, including Hawaii

●Cause: the earthquake moved 73.            

●Wave Heights: about 74.            

●75.          : about 500 mph

II. 76.            :

●Reason: the Chilean Earthquake was a 77.          and a 78.          earthquake, which always have them after the major one

●Number: at least 79.           

●Loss caused: 80.          

 

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PART FOUR WRITING SECTION A

Directions: Read the following passage. Fill in the numbered blanks by using the information from the passage. Write NO MORE THAN 3 WORDS for each blank. The Chilean earthquake, measuring 8.8 – magnitude, which struck early Saturday morning, released 500 times the energy of the 7.0 – magnitude quake that hit Haiti last month, a geophysicist told CBS’ “The Early Show. ” Tsunami warnings were issued for much of the Pacific, including Hawaii, following the quake that struck near the Chilean coast.

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Sigala said Hawaiians can expect to see the waves from this tsunami around 11:20 a.m. local time (about 4:20 p.m. ET). “So we have to wait and see how big the waves will be.”

“It's not so much the height [of the wave] but it's the width, it's how long the duration, and then it's also the speed at which it's traveling,” said co-anchor Kelly Cobiella “Correct me if I'm wrong, but these waves are traveling at the speed of a jetliner, about 500 miles per hour?”

“That's correct. It's a big block of water coming onto the land,” Sigala said. 

Chile has already experienced several aftershocks following the quake.

“Aftershocks are definitely a concern,” said Sigala. "We always see aftershocks with a large quake and a shallow quake, which this one was. And as of right now, we've located about maybe 15 aftershocks and those are of the larger kind. I'm sure they felt much more than that.”

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    50 deaths caused by aftershocks have been reported, according to the national emergency agency, adding the estimate casualties to 960.

Title: Concerns after          71             

I. Tsunami:

●      72       : much of the Pacific, including Hawaii

●Cause: the earthquake moved     73       

●Wave Heights: about      74      

●      75  ____  : about 500 mph

II.      76   _    :

●Reason: the Chilean Earthquake was a      77__   and a    78     earthquake, which always have them after the major one

●Number: at least     79     

●Loss:_____ 80______

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PART FOUR WRITING

SECTION A

Directions: Read the following passage．Fill in the numbered blanks by using the information for the passage．

Write NO MORE THAN 3 WORDS for each answer．

The Chilean earthquake, measuring 8.8 – magnitude, which struck early Saturday morning, released 500 times the energy of the 7.0 – magnitude quake that hit Haiti (海地) last month, a geophysicist told CBS’ “The Early Show. ” Tsunami warnings were issued for much of the Pacific, including Hawaii, following the quake that struck near the Chilean coast.

"When the earthquake occurred, it moved the land and then it moved the water causing the tsunami," said U.S. Geological Survey geophysicist Jessica Sigala. "And the coastal areas of Chile have already noticed the wave heights up to about 7 feet."

Sigala said Hawaiians can expect to see the waves from this tsunami around 11:20 a.m. local time (about 4:20 p.m. ET). "So we have to wait and see how big the waves will be."

"It's not so much the height [of the wave] but it's the width, it's how long the duration, and then it's also the speed at which it's traveling," said co-anchor Kelly Cobiella "Correct me if I'm wrong, but these waves are traveling at the speed of a jetliner, about 500 miles per hour?"

"That's correct. It's a big block of water coming onto the land," Sigala said.

Chile has already experienced several aftershocks following the quake.

"Aftershocks are definitely a concern," said Sigala. "We always see aftershocks with a large quake and a shallow quake, which this one was. And as of right now, we've located about maybe 15 aftershocks and those are of the larger kind. I'm sure they felt much more than that.

"A shallow earthquake just means that it happened pretty close to the surface," said Sigala. "And because of that the energy is really close to the surface, where all the buildings and people are."

    50 deaths caused by aftershocks have been reported, according to the national emergency agency, adding the estimate casualties to 960.

Title: Concerns after 71.             

I. Tsunami:

●72.                  : much of the Pacific, including Hawaii

●Cause: the earthquake moved 73.            

●Wave Heights: about 74.            

●75.           : about 500 mph

II. 76.             :

●Reason: the Chilean Earthquake was a 77.           and a 78.           earthquake, which always have them after the major one

●Number: at least 79.           

●Loss caused: 80.           

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PART FOUR WRITING SECTION A

Directions: Read the following passage. Fill in the numbered blanks by using the information from the passage. Write NO MORE THAN 3 WORDS for each blank.


The Chilean earthquake, measuring 8.8 – magnitude, which struck early Saturday morning, released 500 times the energy of the 7.0 – magnitude quake that hit Haiti last month, a geophysicist told CBS’ “The Early Show. ” Tsunami warnings were issued for much of the Pacific, including Hawaii, following the quake that struck near the Chilean coast.

“When the earthquake occurred, it moved the land and then it moved the water causing the tsunami,” said U.S. Geological Survey geophysicist Jessica Sigala. “And the coastal areas of Chile have already noticed the wave heights up to about 7 feet.”

Sigala said Hawaiians can expect to see the waves from this tsunami around 11:20 a.m. local time (about 4:20 p.m. ET). “So we have to wait and see how big the waves will be.”

“It's not so much the height [of the wave] but it's the width, it's how long the duration, and then it's also the speed at which it's traveling,” said co-anchor Kelly Cobiella “Correct me if I'm wrong, but these waves are traveling at the speed of a jetliner, about 500 miles per hour?”

“That's correct. It's a big block of water coming onto the land,” Sigala said.

Chile has already experienced several aftershocks following the quake.

“Aftershocks are definitely a concern,” said Sigala. "We always see aftershocks with a large quake and a shallow quake, which this one was. And as of right now, we've located about maybe 15 aftershocks and those are of the larger kind. I'm sure they felt much more than that.”

“A shallow earthquake just means that it happened pretty close to the surface,” said Sigala. “And because of that the energy is really close to the surface, where all the buildings and people are.”

    50 deaths caused by aftershocks have been reported, according to the national emergency agency, adding the estimate casualties to 960.

Title: Concerns after        1.

I. Tsunami:

●      2.: much of the Pacific, including Hawaii

●Cause: the earthquake moved     3.

●Wave Heights: about        4.

●      5.___  : about 500 mph

II.      6.:

●Reason: the Chilean Earthquake was a      7.__   and a    8.earthquake, which always have them after the major one

●Number: at least     9.

●Loss:       10.

SECTION B

Directions: Read the following passage. Answer the questions according to the information given in the passage and required words limit. Write your answers on your answer sheet

From bankers to factory staff, employees in the west face the bleak prospect of losing their jobs as a global recession starts to bite. For colleagues in the East the pain is more likely to come through a pay cut.

Human resource experts say cultural differences explain why Asian firms try harder to keep jobs in difficult times, which will stop unemployment and may help keep Asian economies afloat at a time of slowing exports.

The East Asian attitude may also make it easier for firms to recover quickly from the economic downturn since they will not need to rehire or train new staff, leaving some experts predicting Western shift to Eastern flexibility.

“In the Confucian attitude, the right thing to do is to share the burden. There is the sense of collective responsibility whereas in the west, it’s more about the individual survival,” said Michael Benotlel, associate professor of organizational behavior at Singapore Management University.

Steven Pang, Asian Regional director for Aquent, a headhunting firm, said in many East Asian companies there was an responsibility “ to take care of the members of the family and go through the pain together” even if that meant causing losses.

Us firms from General Motors to Goldman Sachs plan to lay off workers by the thousands. But at the Asian units of Western multinationals, jobs cuts will probably less severe.

Japan’s jobless rate was 4 percent in September, up from 3.8 percent in January, while Hong Kong’s was flat at 3.4 percent. But US unemployment is expected to have jumped to 6.3 percent last month from below 5 percent in January.

Experts say that while there are noticeable differences in labor practices in East and West, the gap will narrow as more firms become more multinational and competition forces firms to adopt the best practices of rivals from abroad.

11.According to the passage, what does “to share the burden” mean?

(no more than 6 words)

____________________________________________________________________

12.Why would firms in the west lay off workers when facing a bleak prospect?

( no more than 5 words)

____________________________________________________________________

13.Why is it easier for the East Asian firms to recover quickly from the economic downturn? (no more than 12 words)

____________________________________________________________________

14.What’s the passage talking about? (no more than 15 words)

   ____________________________________________________________________

 

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