Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage:

African elephants have been slaughtered² at alarming rate over the past decade, largely because they are the primary source of the world’s ivory. Their population has been dwindled³ from 1.3 million in 1979 to just 625,000 today, and the rate of killing⁴ has been accelerating in recent years because many of the older, bigger tusked⁵ animals have already been destroyed. “The poachers now must kill times as many elephants to get the same quantity of ivory,” explained Curtis Bohlen, Senior vicepresident of the World Wildlife Fund.

Though its record on the environment  so far,the government last week took the lead in a major conservation issue by imposing⁶ a ban on ivory imports into the US.The move came just four days after a consortium of conservation groups,including the World Wildlife Fund and Wildlife Conservation International,called for that kind of action, and it made the US the first nation to forbid imports of both raw and finished ivory.The ban,says Bohlen,sends avery clear message to the ivory poachers that the game is over.

In the past African nations have resisted an ivory ban, but increasingly they realised that the decimation of the elephant herds⁷ poses a serious threat to their tourist business. Last month Tanzania and several other African countries called for an amendment⁸ to the 102nation Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species that would make the ivory trade illegal worldwide. The amendment is expected to be approved at an October meeting in Geneva and to go into effect next January. But between now and then, conversationists contend, poachers may go on a rampage, killing elephants wholesale⁹, so nations should unilaterally forbid imports right away. The US government brought that argument, and by week’s end the twelvenation European Community had followed with its own ban.

21.Which of the following is the best
A) African Elephants and the Ivory Trade.
B) A Bid to Save the Elephant.
C) The Poachers.
D) Elephants In Danger.

22.According to the passage, “dwindle” means ____.
A) decreaseB) enlargeC) weakenD) elimilate

23.Since many of the older, bigger- tusked animals have already been destroyed, what did the poacher do
A) They gave up poaching.
B) They killed more elephants to get the same quantity of ivory.
C) To them, game is over.
D) They realized it was illegal to slaughter¹ elephants.

24.Why did the African nations welcome an ivory ban
A) The rate of killing has been accelerating.
B) The US government forbids imports of both raw and finished ivory.

C) They realised that the killing of elephants is a serious threat to their tourist business.
D) African people advocated an ivory ban.

25.What’s the author’s attitude
A) Subjective¹⁰. B) Neutral.C) Possimistic. D) Active.

内容概要:在过去十年中，非洲大象被大量屠杀，主要因为他们是世界上象牙的主要来源，大象的数量锐减，近年来，屠杀大象行为在加速，因为成年大象越来越少，要得到同样多的象牙，偷猎者就会杀更多的大象。美国是禁止象牙进口的第一个国家。愈来愈多的国家将步其后尘。

21.【答案】B。【译文】下面哪个是最佳标题。【试题分析】标题。把握中心大意。【详细解答】文章首先提到非洲象所面临的困境，接着提到国际组织及美国的反应--禁止象牙进口来拯救大象，终结偷猎行为。由此可见B是最佳选择。

22.【答案】A。【译文】根据原文，文中第一段出现的“dwindle”的意思是：【试题分析】本题测试词义，根据上下文，猜测某个词在文中的意思。【详细解答】根据原文可知，大象的数量在急剧减少，而表示“减少”之意的，答案A最合适。

23. 【答案】B。【译文】既然成年的，有大的象牙的大象已经越来越少，偷猎者将来取什么措施【试题分析】细节题，在文中相应的段落就能找到答案。【详细解答】文中提到“The poachers now must kill times as many elephants to get the same quantity of ivory”.由此可知，答案B是最佳答案。

24. 【答案】C。【译文】为什么非洲国家最终欢迎禁止象牙进口【试题分析】细节题。在文中相应位置即可找到答案。【详细解答】文中有“...but increasingly they realised that the decimation of the elephant herds poses a serious threat to their tourist business.”由此可知答案C是对的。

25.【答案】B。【译文】文中作者的态度是什么【试题分析】态度题。须通篇考虑。【详细解答】文中作者只是叙述事实，并没有表示赞成或反对。因此最佳选择是B。