107 年 - 2018嘉義市市立北興國中九年級107 上學期英文第一次段考(期中考)康軒#89749　

(I) Dubai is like no other place on Earth. It is a city of big business, luxury hotels, skyscrapers, and huge shopping malls. In the early 20th century, Dubai was a successful trading port. People from all over the world stopped in Dubai to do business. But it was still a small city, and most people lived as fishermen, merchants, or by raising animals. Then in 1966, people discovered oil. Oil brought a lot of money into the region, and soon Dubai began to change.

Today Dubai is one of the world’s most important business centers. In fact, each year most of the city’s annual earnings come from business, not oil. The city is also a global trading port. 

 These days Dubai has become a popular place for tourists. People from abroad come to relax on its beaches and every year, millions of people visit just to go shopping! 

 Dubai is also one of the world’s fastest growing cities. Construction is everywhere. Buildings ( some of the tallest on Earth) are built in months. The city also has a number of man-made islands. One of these, the Palm Jumeriah, is shaped like a palm tree and is very beautiful. 

The city is still an amazing mix of people from different backgrounds. People from 150 countries like and work in Dubai, and foreigners now outnumber Dubai natives eight to one.

 luxury 豪華 merchant 商人 discover 發現 region 地區 annual earnings 年收入 construction 建造, 施工 background 背景 outnumber 比…多 native 本地人

In May 2005, two giant pandas named Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan were given to Taiwan as a gift from China. But it wasn’t until the end of 2008 did these two pandas finally find their new home in the Taipei Muzha Zoo. On January 26, the new stars of the zoo made their debut to people of all ages. 

 A common question asked about pandas concerns their Chinese name—“Is it a ‘cat bear’(貓熊) or a ‘bear cat’(熊貓)?” The official name given by China’s Wolong Nature Reserve, home to the giant pandas, is “bear cat”(熊貓). This term might have been derived from the panda's special eyes, which are vertical slits like cats. Other commonly asked questions include, “Are giant pandas bears or another kind of animal ?” “Why are some parts of their body black and other parts white?” and “Why do they like to eat bamboos?”

 In many ways, the giant panda is a mystery to us; perhaps this is why we find them so interesting. And also, giant pandas look so cute and cuddly; it’s no wonder, in the few zoos around the world that exhibit giant pandas, they soon become one of the favorites.

 debut 初次亮相 concern 有關係 official 官方的 reserve 保育區 derive 溯源 vertical 垂直的 slit 細縫 bamboo 竹子 mystery 謎 cuddly 逗人喜愛的 exhibit 展覽