Many people believe sharks (鲨鱼) are dangerous and will always try to hurt or
even kill humans. {{U}} {{U}} 1 {{/U}} {{/U}}A shark exhibition
at the National Aquarium (水族馆) in Baltimore, US, proves this. Visitors can touch
young sharks, see their eggs develop and watch a dozen different species swim
smoothly around a huge tank. Most people fail to realize that
shark attacks don't happen very often. Humans are most likely to be killed by
lightning than by a shark. {{U}} {{U}} 2 {{/U}} {{/U}}There,
kids can learn, from an early age, not to fear sharks. "People
fear what they don't know," said Nancy Hotchkiss, an organizer of the
exhibition. "Sharks have been around for 400 million years and play an important
role in the ocean's food chain. We want people to discover that sharks are
amazing animals that need our respect and protection."
{{U}} {{U}} 3 {{/U}} {{/U}}A study, published in January in the
US magazine, Science, found that almost all recorded shark species have fallen
by half in the past 8 to 15 years. Thousands of sharks are
hunted in Asia for special foods, such as shark fin (鱼翅) soup. And many others
get caught in nets, while fishermen are hunting other fish. {{U}} {{U}}
4 {{/U}} {{/U}} "Some fishing methods are actually
cleaning out the ocean for sharks," said Dave Schofield, the manager of the
aquarium's ocean health programme. {{U}} {{U}} 5 {{/U}}
{{/U}} A. They can watch them develop inside their eggs and feel
the skin of the older swimmers. B. A shocking 100 million
sharks are killed every year around the world by humans. C. In
fact, 94 percent of the world's 400 species are harmless to humans.
D. It is a worrying situation and some areas have put measures in place
to protect these special fish. E. And to make this point clear,
the museum has set up a special touching pool for children. F.
More than half of the sharks caught are smaller than 1 metre long.