News Item One

 

The New Year celebration in Thailand was shattered by violence when nine bombs exploded across Bangkok around midnight. Three Thai citizens were killed and more than thirty injured. No terrorist group claimed responsibility for the bombings by Tuesday. Some believe the explosions were the work of Muslim separatists. Bombings and shootings occur almost daily in Thailand's three Southern-most provinces. Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani have a dominant Muslim population and have long complained of neglect and discrimination in the largely Buddhist nation. They have asked for independence and a separate Islamic State. Since 2004, they have carried out numerous attacks in the south and more than 1,900 people have been killed. The Thai government has been unable to curb the violence though thousands of troops have been sent to the south.

 

1.What happened during the New Year celebration in Thailand?

2.What led to the violent situation in the south of Thailand according to the news?

 

 

短篇新闻（一）

 

除夕午夜，泰国曼谷市共发生9起炸弹袭击事件，新年的节日气氛随即烟消云散。爆炸造成3人死亡30多人受伤。截止周二，尚未有恐怖组织宣称制造这起袭击。有人认为袭击由穆斯林分裂主义者制造。泰国最南部三府几乎每天都有爆炸和枪击事件。也拉、那拉提瓦和北大年三府由穆斯林人口主导。生活在以佛教为主流宗教的泰国，他们长期以来心存不满，认为自己受到忽视和歧视。他们要求独立，成立独立的伊斯兰国。2004年以来，他们发起了无数次袭击，造成超过1900人丧生。泰国政府南派数千支军队，但仍然未能控制住局势。

 

1.新年之夜泰国发生了什么事件？

2.根据以上新闻报道可知，泰国南方的战乱局势由什么造成？

 

参考答案：

 

【小题1】D

【小题2】A

 

习题解析：

 

【小题1】新闻开始就提到九枚炸弹在曼谷各处爆炸，破坏了新年庆典。之后的内容是对此次炸弹袭击的背景介绍和对肇事者的猜测，故本题选D。

【小题2】新闻中提到They have asked for independence and a separate Islamic State.他们要求独立并建立独立的伊斯兰国家，这里的they指的是前面提到的泰国南部三省的居民，因为他们大多信仰伊斯兰教，认为自己生活在以佛教为主流宗教的泰国而受到了歧视，因此该地区居民要求独立，故选A。

 

News Item Two

 

U.S. President George W. Bush will lay out his new policy for Iraqi Wednesday night in a TV speech. However, some details of the policy have been leaked to the media.

 

National Oil Law: A date is to be announced for the release of a national oil law in Iraq. The law will give the Iraqi central government the power to distribute current and future oil revenues to provinces and regions based on their population size. The achievement of a fair distribution of oil revenue is seen as a cornerstone of Iraqi security.

 

More Troops: The U.S. now has 132,000 troops in Iraq. The number will temporarily be increased by 20,000. A renewed construction package costing up to 1 billion U.S. dollars is also to be announced. The money is to help create jobs and boost the Iraqi economy. Young Iraqis are to be encouraged to participate in the country's reconstruction by cleaning the streets and repairing schools.

 

3.What is the Iraqi government allowed to do under the national oil law?

4.What is the 1 billion construction package used for?

 

短篇新闻（二）

 

美国总统乔治·沃克·布什周三晚间将在电视演讲中发表美对伊新政策框架。但政策当中的部分细节已被媒体获悉。

 

《国家石油法》：颁布伊拉克《国家石油法》的日期敲定。该法授权伊拉克政府按照各省、各地区的人口数量来分配目前及将来的石油收益。石油收益的合理分配对于伊拉克国家安全来说具有十分重要的意义。

 

增兵：目前美驻伊拉克军队人数达13.2万。该数目将临时被增加至15.2万。布什总统还将宣布一项耗资10亿美元的建设项目。这笔资金将为伊拉克创造就业和振兴经济。并呼吁伊拉克青年通过打扫街道和修整学校等方式参与国家重建工作。

 

3.法律赋予了伊拉克政府什么权利？

4.10亿美元的建设资金将用于做什么？

参考答案：

 

【小题3】C

【小题4】B

 

习题解析：

 

【小题3】新闻中明确提到 The law will give the Iraqi central government the power to distribute current and future oil revenues to provinces and regions based on their population size.即国家石油法授权伊拉克政府按照各省、各地区的人口数量来分配目前及将来的石油收益，故选C。

【小题4】新闻中提到美国将投入10亿美元，且明确提到 The money is to help create jobs and boost the Iraqi economy.即投入资金的目的在于增加就业机会和促进伊拉克经济发展，故选B。

 

 

News Item Three

 

There has been modest growth in tourism worldwide, despite two years of terrorism, war and disease. And China is the engine driving it, according to the World Tourism Organization. International tourist numbers hit a record of 702 million last year, a rise of 2.7% over 2001, the year of the September 11 attacks. France remains the most popular destination, receiving more than 77 million visitors, followed by Spain, United States, and Italy. China, however, marked 11% growth over that period, attracting 36.8 million international visitors. It ranks. fifth among leading tourism nations. 2020, it will be top, with predictions of 130 million visitors per year. Chinese themselves are also becoming a major force as travelers. According to a Xinhua report, over 16.6 million Chinese traveled abroad last year, up 37% from the previous year. Their numbers are expected to grow to 30 million by the end of the decade, and 100 million in 2020.

 

5.Which country receives the largest number of tourists?

6.How many visitors will China be expected to receive annually by 2020?

7.What is the growth rate of Chinese traveling abroad last year when compared with the previous year?

 

 

短篇新闻（三）

 

尽管过去两年里恐怖袭击、战争和疾病猖獗，全球旅游业还是出现了小幅增长。世界旅游组织的数据显示，中国是这一增长的主要推动力。去年，国际旅行人数创下7.02亿人次的新高，较发生911恐怖袭击案的2001年增长了2.7%。法国依然是游客最喜欢的国家，接待游客数量超过7700万，位列其后的分别是西班牙、美国和意大利。然而，中国接待国外游客人数3680万，同期增长11%，该增长率在各大旅游国中排第五位。预计到2020年来中国的外国游客将达1.3亿，中国将成为第一旅游大国。而中国游客也将成为国际旅游大军的主力。据新华社报道，去年中国出境旅游的人数达1660万，比去年人数增加了37%。到2010年，这个数字将有望增加到3000万，并在2020年突破1亿。

 

5.哪个国家接待的游客人数最多？

6.到2020年，预计中国年接待游客数量将达多少？

7.中国出境游客较去年增长了多少个百分点？

【小题5】C

【小题6】B

【小题7】D

 

习题解析：

 

【小题5】新闻中提到France remains the most popular destination, receiving more than 77 million visitors, followed by Spain, United States, and Italy.由此可知，在接待游客数量较多的目的地国家中，法国列第一，位列其后的分别是西班牙、美国和意大利，即法国接待的游客数量最多，故选C。

【小题6】新闻中提到中国是世界上的第五大主要旅游目的地，而后提到By 2020, it will be top, with predictions of 130 million visitors per year.即到 2020 年，每年预计将有1.3亿的游客来中国旅游，故本题选B。

【小题7】新闻结尾部分提到，根据新华社所提供的一项信息，去年共有1660万中国人去国外旅行，与前年相比，增长了37%，故本题选D。