Early in the 18th century, Captain Cook, a famous explorer of Australia, unexpectedly caught sight of an unusual animal during his first visit to Australia. The animal had a large mouse like head and jumped along on its large legs. To his great surprise, the unusual animal carried its young in a special pocket of flesh. Captain Cook pointed to the animal which was eating grass in the distance and asked his native guide what the animal was referred to. The guide seemed not to know that he was pointing at and finally said “Kang-a-roo”, but their requests were met with puzzled looks of the native people. Before long they got to discover that the native guide who made the answer to Cook’s question really meant, “I don’t know what you pointing at. “ Funny enough, the name “ Kang-a-roo”, stuck and it is still in use today.

1.Which of the following sentences best expresses the main idea?

A．captain Cook’s guide made a joke.

B．Native Australians could not speak English in Cook’s time.

C．Some words have rather funny origins (起源).

D．Captain Cook was a lover of wild animals.

2.When the native guide said “Kang-a-roo ”, he really meant “ ______”

A．Ah, it is a special kind of animal

B．I wonder what you have said

C．What do you mean by pointing at that animal?

D．I have no idea of what you are referring to.

3.We can infer from this passage ______.

A．we should learn many different languages

B．Captain Cook made a mistake in understanding

C．Captain Cook was a foolish explorer

D．the importance of a language in common

 

New Zealand

What can you see?   Mountains, volcanoes, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, forests, beaches. Both islands are mountainous. In fact, only 30% of New Zealand is flat.

The Maoris

When the Maoris first arrived in New Zealand, they lived in villages and were excellent fishermen, hunters and farmers. About 50 years ago many Maoris started to live and work in the large cities and took jobs in government, industries, medicine and education. They are proud of their culture and are determined to keep many of the customs which are part of their way of life.

Who can you meet?  Most people live on North Island. Eighty-five percent of New Zealanders are “pakeha” (“white men”), which means their “great grandfathers” came from Europe. Ten percent are Maoris. The Maoris came to New Zealand from the Polynesian islands probably around the tenth century. The “pakeha” started to arrive in New Zealand from Europe about 200 years ago as farmers and traders.                                                                    

Fact box: New Zealand

Position: South of the Equator ;      Nearest neighbour: Australia, 1600 km away.

Size: Two main islands — North Island and South Island: together they are 268.680           sq. km.

Population: 4 million

Capital: Wellington

Languages: English and Maori   

46. Which of the following is a fact about New Zealand?

  A. 20% of the population being Maoris.

  B. Four million white people.

  C. About 1600 km south of the Equator.

  D. Nearly 1/3 of the country being plains.

47. The country’s population is mainly made up of  _________.

  A. the white people and the Polynesians

  B. the white people and the “pakeha”

  C. the Maoris and the white people

  D. the Maoris and the Polynesians

48. When did the white people begin to live in New Zealand?

  A. 1000 years ago.                   B. 200 years ago.

  C. 85 years ago.                     D. 50 years ago.

49. What do the Maoris value most in life?

  A. Living in small villages.     B. Developing farming skills.

  C. Keeping their own culture.   D. Taking up government jobs.

New Zealand

What can you see? Mountains, volcanoes, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, forests, beaches. Both islands are mountainous. In fact, only 30% of New Zealand is flat.		The Maoris When the Maoris first arrived in New Zealand, they lived in villages and were excellent fishermen, hunters and farmers. About 50 years ago many Maoris started to live and work in the large cities and took jobs in government, industries, medicine and education. They are proud of their culture and are determined to keep many of the customs which are part of their way of life.
Who can you meet? Most people live on North Island. Eighty-five percent of New Zealanders are “pakeha” (“white men”), which means their “great grandfathers” came from Europe. Ten percent are Maoris. The Maoris came to New Zealand from the Polynesian islands probably around the tenth century. The “pakeha” started to arrive in New Zealand from Europe about 200 years ago as farmers and traders.		Fact box: New Zealand Position: South of the Equator (赤道); nearest neighbour: Australia, 1600 km away. Size: Two main islands — North Island and South Island: together they are 268.680 sq. km. Population: 4 million Capital: Wellington Languages: English and Maori

1. Which of the following is a fact about New Zealand?
A. 20% of the population being Maoris.     B. Four million white people.
C. About 1600 km south of the Equator.     D. Nearly 1/3 of the country being plains(平原).
2. The country’s population is mainly made up of         .
A. the white people and the Polynesians      B. the white people and the “pakeha”
C. the Maoris and the white people          D. the Maoris and the Polynesians
3. When did the white people begin to live in New Zealand?
A. 1000 years ago.                         B. 200 years ago.
C. 85 years ago.                           D. 50 years ago.
4. What do the Maoris value most in life?
A. Living in small villages.                  B. Developing farming skills.
C. Keeping their own culture.                D. Taking up government jobs.

The koala(考拉) is possibly one of the best known Australian animals, and is found in four states: Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. The word “koala” comes from an Australian aboriginal word meaning “no drink”.
Sometimes people call them “koala bears” but koala is not a bear. It belongs to a special group of Australian mammals, called marsupial(有袋類). Female marsupials have a pouch where the baby animals live after they are born.
Koalas have soft, thick, grey or brown fur on their backs. The fur on the stomach is white. Koala that live in the south have thicker fur than those in the north because of the cold winters, whereas the koalas in the northern part of the country live in warm to hot weather most of the year so have thinner fur. A koala has a large hairless nose and round ears. Koalas don’t have tails. Adult koalas measure between 7 and 14 kilograms.
Koalas spend nearly all their time in the trees using their sharp, curved claws and long toes to climb about and to hold on to the tree branches. They sleep most of the day, and feed and move from tree to tree mainly at night.
The reason koala sleep for much of the day is because their food eucalyptus(桉樹) leaves are very tough so they use a lot of energy to digest. Sleeping saves energy. Eucalyptus leaves are poisonous to almost every other animal. Koalas rarely drink water; they get water from the leaves they eat.
Each koala has a home range made up of several trees that they visit regularly. They normally do not visit another koala’s home trees except that a male is looking for a female to mate with.
【小題1】Which of the following statements is NOT true about the name “koala bear”?

A．The name was given by the native in Australia

B．The word “koala” is an original English word

C．The name describes one of its living habits

D．The name is partly false

【小題2】Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined word “punch”？

A．House

B．Cave

C．Pocket

D．Nest

【小題3】Why do the koalas live in the south have thicker fur than those in the north?

A．The thicker fur can protect them from the colder weather

B．It’s always hot in summer in the north

C．It’s always cold in the winter in the south

D．They have to move to the north in the winter

【小題4】Why do koalas sleep much in the day?

A．Their foods are poisonous

B．They want to save energy for the activities at night

C．They can’t get enough energy from their tough foods

D．They can’t get enough water from their leaves

New Zealand

What can you see? Mountains, volcanoes, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, forests, beaches. Both islands are mountainous. In fact, only 30% of New Zealand is flat.		The Maoris When the Maoris first arrived in New Zealand, they lived in villages and were excellent fishermen, hunters and farmers. About 50 years ago many Maoris started to live and work in the large cities and took jobs in government, industries, medicine and education. They are proud of their culture and are determined to keep many of the customs which are part of their way of life.
Who can you meet? Most people live on North Island. Eighty-five percent of New Zealanders are “pakeha” (“white men”), which means their “great grandfathers” came from Europe. Ten percent are Maoris. The Maoris came to New Zealand from the Polynesian islands probably around the tenth century. The “pakeha” started to arrive in New Zealand from Europe about 200 years ago as farmers and traders.		Fact box: New Zealand Position: South of the Equator (赤道); nearest neighbour: Australia, 1600 km away. Size: Two main islands — North Island and South Island: together they are 268.680 sq. km. Population: 4 million Capital: Wellington Languages: English and Maori

1. Which of the following is a fact about New Zealand?

A. 20% of the population being Maoris.     B. Four million white people.

C. About 1600 km south of the Equator.     D. Nearly 1/3 of the country being plains(平原).

2. The country’s population is mainly made up of         .

A. the white people and the Polynesians      B. the white people and the “pakeha”

C. the Maoris and the white people          D. the Maoris and the Polynesians

3. When did the white people begin to live in New Zealand?

A. 1000 years ago.                         B. 200 years ago.

C. 85 years ago.                           D. 50 years ago.

4. What do the Maoris value most in life?

A. Living in small villages.                  B. Developing farming skills.

C. Keeping their own culture.                D. Taking up government jobs.