A. parents should be strict with their children

B. parental controls reflect only the needs of the parents and the values of the community 　　

C. parental restrictions vary, and are not always enforced for the benefit of the children alone

　 D. parents vary in their strictness towards their children according to the situation

26. The word "precept" (Line3, Para.3) probably means "_______".

A. ideas B. punishment　　C. behavior D. instructions

27. In moral matters, parents should ________.

A. observe the rules themselves

B. be aware of the marked difference between adults and children

C. forbid things which have no foundation in morality

D. consistently ensure the security of their children

　　Once, African lions were the kings of the jungle. But every day, they lose more and more of their home to humans. A new study done by Duke University shows that humans have taken over much of the lions habitat.

　　Lions live on the African plains, which are called savannas. In the past 5 years, the number of people living on the Savannas African plains has grown rapidly. At the same time, the number of lions has dwindled quickly.

　　The research team at Duke University used detailed pictures taken by satellite to carefully examine the African landscape. They were able to see very small farms and towns that are taking over the once-open plains. Lions need wide-open spaces to hunt. As the number of people and towns has increased, the African plains have become less welcoming to lions. The number of lions has dropped from about 100, 000 in 1960 to 32,000 today. West Africa has seen the largest drop --fewer than 500 lions remain there.

　　Researchers worry that the number of lions will decrease even more as the number of humans moving onto the savannas increases. People and lions living closely together have to compete for natural resources like water and food. Towns and farms that take over hunting grounds could force the lions out of those areas completely. Often, lions with no other sources of food will kill farm animals. Farmers will then kill the lions to protect their animals. African lions are also threatened by poachers, who hunt animals illegally. Many poachers hunt lions for sport or to take their fur.

　　One of the authors of the Duke University study is conservationist Stuart Pimm. Pimm believes the group's research can be helpful in planning ways for people and lions to share the African plains. One solution is to build higher fences to keep lions away from farm animals. African countries can also expand and better protect their wildlife reserves so that lions have safe places to hunt.

28. The underlined word"dwindled"in Paragraph 2 can be best replaced by______________.

A. grown B.changed C. doubled D. decreased