Question

    The annual Canadian commercial seal hunt is the world's largest hunt of marine mammals. A few weeks old, the seal cubs are prized primarily for their skins and also for the omega-3-rich oil used in food supplements--products that are shipped around the world.

This month, the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland, is expected to announce whether products from commercial seal hunting can be marketed in Europe. At present, they cannot. Such products have been banned by the European Union (EU) since 2009 to protect ‘public morals’. Canada and Norway have asked the WTO to overturn the ban - the first of its kind -- and the trade body will soon deliver its final decision.

As an official observer, I have seen the hunt from the ice and from helicopters. The details are grisly. That is why the WTO originally agreed that the EU could act to limit trade on the grounds of public morals - the first time that such a restriction had been put in place.

When they are born, seal cubs have white fur. They are abandoned by their mothers at about 12 days of age. Stranded on the unstable ice, they remain alone and unfed for up to six weeks, and during this time their fur changes from white to grey --and the hunters arrive.

The cubs are either shot from boats, or clubbed with a wooden bat or an iron-tipped pole called a hakapik. Some shot and injured seals slide into the water and are lost. Many shot and injured animals could potentially suffer for several minutes while the hunters drive their boats close enough to club them unconscious. If the ice is too unstable for the hunters to cross, shot and injured but conscious and reactive seals can be dragged into the boats with long hooked gaffs (鱼叉) before being clubbed.

As a human and as a scientist I consider the hunt to present real and significant welfare concerns. The available scientific evidence supports that opinion. But science, of course, is only one of the factors at play. Perhaps the final word should go to a statement attributed to Mahatma Gandhi: “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”

1.Why is WTO’s ban introduced in the passage “the first of its kind”?

A.It is the first to take little notice of the economic results.

B.It is the first to take moral standards into account.

C.It is the first to have been overturned in history.

D.It is the first to put animals’ welfare in place.

2.The underlined word “grisly” most probably means          .

A.accurate B.unpleasant C.vague D.available

3.The writer describes the process of seal hunting in detail in paragraph 5 in order to         .

A.prove it requires much experience B.introduce what tools are needed

C.show readers how violent it is D.stress how helpless seals are

4.Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?

A.WTO is going to lift the ban on seal hunting

B.Canada decreases its commercial seal hunting

C.The moral problem with commercial seal hunting

D.How animals are treated vary from country to country

Answer

1.B

2.B

3.C

4.C

【解析】

本文是一篇说明文。本文主要介绍了加拿大商业海豹狩猎的惨烈并说明一个国家的伟大和道德进步可以通过对待动物的方式来判断。

1.细节理解题。根据第三段第三句“That is why the WTO originally agreed that the EU could act to limit trade on the grounds of public morals - the first time that such a restriction had been put in place.”可知，这就是为什么世贸组织最初同意欧盟可以基于公共道德采取行动限制贸易——这是第一次实行这种限制。故选B项。

2.词义猜测题。根据第三段第一句“As an official observer, I have seen the hunt from the ice and from helicopters.”可知，作为一名官方观察员，我从冰上和直升机上看到了狩猎。下文讲狩猎过程的残忍状况，所以此处指狩猎的细节令人毛骨悚然，与B项unpleasant意思相近。故选B项。

3.推理判断题。根据第五段内容可知，详细描述了人类猎豹的残忍过程；再根据上下文尤其，最后一段最后一句“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”可知，作者在第五段详细描述猎豹的过程是为了说明这个有多么惨烈。故选C项。

4.主旨大意题。纵观全文，尤其根据第一段第一句“The annual Canadian commercial seal hunt is the world’s largest hunt of marine mammals.”和最后一段最后一句“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”可知，本文主要介绍了商业海豹狩猎的惨烈并说明一个国家的伟大和道德进步可以通过对待动物的方式来判断。由此可知，C项“商业海豹狩猎的道德问题”概括了本文的核心内容，适合做标题。故选C项。