Micro-plastics have occupied almost every part of the planet today, including the most distant reaches.
The Arctic is far from clean, though it s rarely stepped in by visitors. Melanie Bergmann, a marine ecologist (海洋生态学家) and her colleagues had been studying plastics on the Arctic seafloor since 2002. In deep sea, they found about 6,0000 particles (微粒) in every 2.2 pounds of mud. In sea ice, there were as much as 12,000 pieces per 34 ounces of melted ice.
Scientists measured micro-plastics in snow from this distant location and found a lot, which could only have caught rides on the wind. The study raises concerns about the pollution that micro-plastics brought to the air, bringing a health risk to people and animals that breathe them in. But they are less worried about the threat that breathed-in pollutants have to wildlife than about polluted snow going into water.
The science on the health effects of micro-plastics is still going on.“For human health, we now now very little," says micro-plastics researcher Chelsea Rochman, “There is a lot of concern. For wildlife, we know that micro-plastics may go into every level of the food chain." Laboratory studies find some physical and chemical effects from micro-plastics, but the findings vary by the plastic type, shape experiments will be carried out soon with use of equipment if financial support approves."
Even worse is the threat from airborne micro-plastics in the area---too small to be noticed and may actually enter cells. Research on that also has been done and it could be a bigger problem, according to Rochman.
1. What can you learn from the data in Paragraph 2?| A．Visitors rarely step into the Arctic. |
| B．Micro-plastics threaten the human beings. |
| C．Micro- plastics are everywhere in the world. |
| D．The Arctic suffers serious micro-plastics pollution. |
| A．Wildlife's threat by micro-pollutants. |
| B．Human beings breathing micro-plastics in. |
| C．Micro-plastics entering the water ecosystem. |
| D．Micro-plastics pollution worsening global warming. |
| A．Damage of micro-plastics to health. |
| B．Appeals for environmental protection. |
| C．Findings about airborne micro-plastics in the Arctic. |
| D．Measures to solve micro-plastics pollution. |
| A．Science. | B．Health. |
| C．Education. | D．Entertainment. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Do you know some surprising innovations (创新) came from World War I? Here are some introductions to you.
1.Daylight Saving Time The idea of fiddling with (拨弄) the clock has been around since ancient times, but it was not until World War I that governments around the globe officially adopted daylight saving time. Why? To save resources such as fuel and extend the workday for the war effort.
2.Blood Banks
3.Hollywood With so much of Europe in the line of fire, the European film industry had to scale back (相应缩减) dramatically.
4.Plastic Surgery
There were other innovations made during World War I, such as wristwatches, modern passports, zippers, drones, etc.
| A．The Germans did it first, in 1916 |
| B．That opened the door for the Americans |
| C．Blood transfusions (输血) date back to the 1600s |
| D．Gillies’ operation became successful immediately |
| E．World War I left thousands of men scarred and maimed (伤残的) |
| F．Gillies became known as the father of modern plastic surgery |
| G．After World War I the blood banks appeared in the United States. |
【推荐2】Our country has been invaded! However, it’s not people who are the invaders. It’s plants and animals.
These plants and animals are native to other parts of the world and were brought to North America. When transplanted out of their native environment, they can damage their new homes. They cause disease, endanger native plants and animals, and cost a lot of money to control or get rid of.
What are some of the plants and animals that are causing trouble, and how did they get here? One such plant is called kudzu, which was brought to the United States from Japan in 1876.
At first, kudzu was a well-liked plant, admired for the color of its flowers. It also appeared to be useful because it could keep soil from being washed away. However, the plant grows too fast. Kudzu covers land that people need for forestry and farming. It can kill trees and bushes by uprooting them or blocking out sunlight.
Similarly, a problematic animal, native to Central and South America, is the giant toad (蟾蜍). The giant toad grows to be six inches long. The people who brought this toad to the United States wanted it to eat certain bugs that were eating crops. Unfortunately, the toads have many babies. These toads are also very poisonous. Other animals that eat toads can become sick or may even die.
Plants and animals that are not native to this environment can be pests. It can cost a lot of money to get rid of them. They can destroy crops and forests. They can also harm the plants and animals that are native to an area. It is better to think carefully before transplanting a plant or animal from its native environment to a new one.
1. Why is kudzu considered a pest?| A．Because it is not useful to people. |
| B．Because it takes over land and plants. |
| C．Because it costs a lot of money to control. |
| D．Because it makes animals sick when they eat it. |
| A．They are known to cause diseases. |
| B．They can make people sick or may even die. |
| C．They can make animals sick if they are eaten. |
| D．They were brought to the United States to be helpful. |
| A．Plants and animals can damage crops. |
| B．Some plants and animals have become popular in the US. |
| C．Plants and animals transplanted from other places may do harm. |
| D．Plants and animals may cause people to feel sick. |
【推荐3】True happiness lies in rewarding relationships, not material wealth, according to new research. Scientists have said that a close circle of friends and family is most important for happiness, and that owning things such as iPhones, computers, being wealthy and owning a sports car do not provide the same level of satisfaction.
The study was done by psychologists at the Sahlgrenska Academy and Lund University, in Sweden. The experts analyzed(分析) articles in Swedish newspapers published in 2010 and recorded which words most often occurred in the same articles as the Swedish word for happiness. In this way, they could know our common happiness.
Co-author Dr Danilo Garcia, a researcher at the Sahlgrenska Academy’s Centre for Ethics, Law and Mental Health, said, “It’s relationships that are most important, not material things that we possess, and this is in line with other findings in happiness research.”
The study, which contained more than 10 million words, showed that terms such as “grandmother” and personal pronouns such as “you”, “me”, “us” and “them” often emerge in the same article as the Swedish word for happiness. Researchers found that words such as “iPhone”, “millions” and “Google” almost never appear with the word “happiness”.
The study is a part of a larger research project on how people describe both positive and negative events in their lives. The researchers believe that the word analysis reflects a common perception among the members of our society as to what should make us happy.
Dr Danilo Garcia said, “Just as the Beatles sang, most people understand that money can’t buy you happiness or love. But even if we can understand the importance of close and warm relationships at a social level, it isn’t certain that everyone is aware that such relationships are actually necessary for our own personal happiness.”
1. New research mainly shows that .| A．various things can lead to happiness in people |
| B．having some close friends is very important to us |
| C．owning expensive things can actually make us unhappy |
| D．rewarding relationships make us happy instead of material wealth |
| A．explain something new |
| B．are unbelievable to many people |
| C．prove material things are unimportant |
| D．confirm previous findings in happiness research |
| A．money really buys us happiness or love |
| B．rewarding relationships really lead to personal happiness |
| C．close and warm relationships are important at a social level |
| D．all people know rewarding relationships lead to personal happiness |
| A．By doing surveys. |
| B．By doing experiments. |
| C．By analyzing printed articles. |
| D．By referring to previous studies. |
【推荐1】In southwestern Spain, the Donana National Park is known as the nation’s crown jewel. It is a protected wetlands area home to many animals, including hundreds of thousands of birds that visit it for the winter. Many others use it as a stopping place during migration. Five kinds of threatened birds, including the Spanish imperial eagle, live in Donana.
Now, after a summer of record-high temperatures and little rain, the wetlands are dry and smelly. Most fish and birds are gone. Bodies of water called lagoons (泻湖) are at the heart of the park. Most dry up and refill throughout the year. Santa Olalla is the park’s biggest lagoon. It traditionally has water year round. In the summer, it provides water to needy plants and animals. But this year, Santa ODlalla dried up.
Diaz is a biologist who studies the park. She stepped into the park with a little bit of water and said to a reporter, “Seeing this last bit of water makes me think that the entire park is dry. The time to save the park was 20 years ago, but nothing was done.” She added, “The environment always loses against the economy.” According to Diaz, the development of those cities around the park and farms in other areas are putting pressure on the wetlands.
For example, Matalascanas, once a quiet fishing village, now a popular center for beach vacations, requires too much water from Donana, which is making some of the park’s lagoons go dry. Farther away, in the area called Huelva, traditional Spanish olive crops have been replaced by berry farms. The berries bring in more money than olives, but they require more water to grow.
According to wildlife expert Felipe, there are thousands of illegal wells in the area taking ground water without permission, severely affecting the water resources of the wetlands. He stressed, “Besides the dry weather, the park is also suffering from poor supervision.”
Spain’s government is working on how to close some of the wells and considering projects that would send some water from rivers in other parts of the country to help bring life back to Donana.
1. What message does the first paragraph intend to convey?| A．The beauty of the national park. |
| B．The extreme weather of this year. |
| C．The effective protection of wildlife. |
| D．The good condition of the wetlands. |
| A．It is economic benefit that leads to the water overuse. |
| B．It is too late to take measures to protect the national park. |
| C．The fishing village should be developed into a vacationland. |
| D．Many projects will be launched to dig wells for water resources. |
| A．A diary. |
| B．A magazine. |
| C．A guidebook. |
| D．A novel. |
| A．The Protected Spanish Wetlands Are Drying Up |
| B．The Drying National Park Threatens Rare Birds |
| C．The City Development Puts Pressure on Wetlands |
| D．The Government Helps Bring Life Back to Lagoons |
【推荐2】Sound travels very well through water-much better, in fact, than it does through air. So it shouldn’t be surprising that many ocean animals make noise. They use sound to communicate and hunt. As biologist Brandon Southall says, “Their whole world is related to sound.”
Dolphins whistle, organizing hunts. Lovesick whales sing so loudly they can be heard hundreds of miles away. But these days they aren’t the only ones sounding off. They have more and more competition from human machines.
Every day, thousands of huge container ships sail across the world’s oceans. On top of the engine noise, the ships’ propeller (螺旋桨) make a loud noise all the time. All that can make it hard for ocean animals trying to listen out for friends, or dinner. Animals swimming nearby a ship can be deafened or even killed.
Underwater construction can also be dangerously loud. When construction machines called pile drivers were used during repairs to the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, dead fish appeared.
Geologist (地质学家) pound on the seafloor too, trying to find oil wells and map Earth’s surface. The results are useful lo science, but all that hammering probably gives ocean animal a headache.
As people realize how important sound is to ocean animals, they are looking for ways to reduce human noise. Ships could get quieter just by slowing down. Engineers are also trying to find quieter propeller ships.
Now some companies are using a simple invention called a bubble curtain, which makes sound waves passing through it lose energy and gel quieter. It seems to work - when bubble curtains were fixed on the San Francisco bridge project fish deaths dropped.
We still have a lot to learn about sound in the oceans, but together we can help keep the sea a quieter place.
1. Dolphins and whales are mentioned to show .| A．sound travels very well through water |
| B．they are surprisingly noisy in the sea |
| C．the ocean is filled with sound |
| D．ocean noise is a big problem |
| A．Human noise is causing danger to their safety. |
| B．There is less food in the ocean for them. |
| C．They are being killed in large numbers. |
| D．They are losing their hearing. |
| A．started to die | B．were attracted to it |
| C．got quiet underwater | D．suffered from headaches |
| A．research on fishes underwater | B．build the San Francisco bridge |
| C．stop noisy machines working | D．reduce construction noise |
【推荐3】Half of the world’s coral reefs have died in the last 30 years. Now scientists are racing to ensure that the rest will survive.
“The threat to coral reefs isn’t something that’s going to happen 100 years from now. We’re losing them right now,” Julia Baum told the Associated Press. She is a marine biologist at the University of Victoria, in British Columbia, Canada. “We’re losing them really quickly, much more quickly than I think any of us ever could have imagined.”
Even if global warming were in stop right now, scientists predict that more than 90% of corals will die by 2050. If no major steps are taken to address the issue, the reefs may be headed for total extinction.
The planet’s health depends on the survival of coral reefs. They are often described as underwater rainforests, because they are ecosystems that provide habitats for one in four of all marine species. In addition, the reefs serve as barriers that protect coastlines from the full force of powerful storms. Corals are used in medical research for cures to diseases. They are key to local economies, as well, since the reefs attract tourists, the fishing industry, and other businesses, bringing in billions of dollars of revenue (收入).
“To lose coral reefs is to fundamentally damage the health of the human race,” Ruth Gates, director of the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, said.
Corals are animals that lack a backbone. They live mostly in tropical waters. The corals release a substance called calcium carbonate (碳酸钙), which forms protective skeletons around them. The skeletons grow and take on vivid colors. This is the result of the corals’ mutually beneficial relationship with algae (藻类) that live in their tissues (组织) and give them energy.
But corals are particularly sensitive to changes in temperature. A rise of just 1 to 2 degrees Celsius can force the corals to drive out the algae. Then the corals’ skeletons turn white in a process called “bleaching”. Corals can survive in these higher temperatures only for a few months.
1. What can we know about the world’s coral reefs?| A．The number of the world’s coral reefs is on the decrease. |
| B．45% of the world’s coral reefs have died in the last 30 years. |
| C．Global warming has no influence on the world’s coral reefs. |
| D．Scientists have taken major steps to address the issue of world’s coral reefs. |
| A．economic value of coral reefs |
| B．the challenges faced by coral reefs |
| C．the medical functions of coral reefs |
| D．the importance of coral reefs. |
| A．Changes in temperature. | B．Ocean waters. |
| C．Algae living inside corals. | D．Protective skeletons. |
| A．there is not enough oxygen. |
| B．there are no algae in the corals’ skeletons. |
| C．water pollution is worsening. |
| D．the ocean temperature is too low. |
Top 6 Unusual Guinness World Records
♦ Fastest 100 m running on all fours
The 2008 Guinness World Records Day was, according to CWR, their biggest day of record-breaking ever, with more than 290.000 people taking put in record attempts in 15 different countries. Kenichi Ito’s record attempt was port of this special day. He is just another example of Japanese with “super powers”. His “super power” is to run with great speed on all fours. Kenichi Ito ran 100 m on all fours in 18.58 seconds. The Japanese set this record at Setagaya Kuritsu Sogo Undojyo, Tokyo, in 2008.
♦ Most people inside a soap bubble
The Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana, Califomia celebrated this year the 15th anniversary of the Bubble (泡泡) Festival. A bubble’s math principles and science were presented and demonstrated at the three-week-long exhibition. The intriguing Bubble Show was also part of the program. Fan Yang and Deni Yang impressed the audience with their awesome skills for bubble making. The Yang family cooperated with the Discovery Science Center to set a new Guinness World Record for mow people inside a scup bubble and they succeeded.
The family that has been working with soap bubbles for 27 years created a huge soap bubble and got 118 people inside it. The record was set on April 4, 2011.
♦ Longest ears on a dog
A bloodhound from Illinois has the longest ears ever measured a dog. The right ear is 13.75 inches long and the left one 13.5 inches. The dog named Tigger earned this title in 2004 and is owned by Christina and Bryan Flessner.
Mr. Jeffries is the previous record holder of this title. Each of his ears measured approximately 11.5 inches long. His grandfather used to hold this amazing world record, but when he died Mr.Jeffries look over.
♦ Most living generations
Did you ever wonder what is the Guinness World Record for most living generation in one family? Seven is the answer.
The ultimate authority on record-breaking mentions on the website that the youngest great-great- great-great grandparent of this family was Augusta Bung “aged 109 years 97 days, followed by her daughter aged 89, her granddaughter aged 70, her great grand-daughter aged 52, her great-great grand-daughter aged 33 and her great-great-great granddaughter aged 15 on the birth of her great-great-great-great grandson on January 21, 1989”.
♦ Most T shirts worn at once
Believe it or not, there is a record also for this category. Krunoslav Budiseli set a new world record on May 22, 2010 for wearing 245 T-shirts at the same time. The man from Croatia was officially recognized as the new record holder by Guinness World Records after he managed to put on 245 different T-shirts in 1ess than two hours. The T-shirts weighted 68 KG and Budiseli said he began struggling around T-shirt No. 120. He dethroned the Swedish Guinness record holder who wore 238 T-shirts.
♦Heaviest pumpkin
Guinness World Records confirmed on October 9. 2010 that a gigantic pumpkin (南瓜) grown in Wisconcin was officially the world’s heaviest. It weighed 1,810 pounds 8 ounces and was unveiled by Chris Stevens at the Stillwater Harvest Festival in Minnesota. Stevens’ pumpkin was 85 pounds heavier than the previous record, another huge pumpkin grown in Ohio. The proud farmer said his secret is a precise of rain, cow mature, good soil, sea grass and fish emulsion. Some of the world’s heaviest pumpkins, including the record bolder, were on public display at the Bronx Botanical Gardens in New Yost for a dozen days.
1. Why is Kenichi Ito described as a man with a “super power”?
| A．He set a good example to all Japanese. |
| B．He made record attempts in 15 different countries. |
| C．He set a new record for “Fastest 100 m running on all fours”. |
| D．He participated in the 2008 Guinness World Records Day activities. |
| A．the owner of the dog with the longest ears |
| B．the grandfather of the dog with the longest ears |
| C．the present holder of the record for “Longest ears on a dog” |
| D．the former holder of the record for “Longest ears on a dog” |
| A．68. | B．120. | C．238. | D．245. |
| A．The record for “Most people inside a soup bubble”. |
| B．The record for “Most living generations”. |
| C．The record for “Most T-shirts worn at once”. |
| D．The record for “Heaviest pumpkin”. |
【推荐2】Velcro® is a hook-and-loop(钩和环, 粘扣的) device that is commonly found on a wide range of products, such as shoes, jackets, and a lot of other equipment in offices, kitchens, and garages. It’s also the name of the company that originally created the “thing” generally known as Velcro®.
George de Mestral, a Swiss electrical engineer, is the inventor of Velcro®. How he came to the idea of actually making this thing that we call Velcro is a truly incredible story.
One fine morning in 1948, Mestral went for a walk with his dog. After returning from the walk, he found that some seeds get stuck to the dog’s fur. However, the man’s attention was turned to his own trousers, where many similar seeds also attached.
Upon closer examination, he observed that there were many small hooks in the seeds that stuck firmly to the loops in the fabric of his trousers. The first idea for what would eventually become Velcro struck him like a lightning. If he could artificially recreate the same thing, by making pairs of hooks-and-loops that stick to each other firmly, then there would be almost no need to tie things up all the time to secure them, nor would zippers(拉链), which were quite popular in those days, be necessary any longer. He decided to call the product he formed Velcro®.
Like many inventions, Velcro® also faced a great deal of criticism, but Mestral stood by his design and continued to make structural changes to enhance its bonding strength. He worked with a Frenchman to come up with a perfect hook -and-loop device. Mestral patented Velcro® in 1955.
Velcro didn’t do too well initially; much of that was due to its lack of aesthetic(美学的) appeal. It came in dull colors and often looked quite “unattractive”. But soon, even NASA helped to boost Velcro®’s image by using it in a lot of equipment that went into space along with astronauts.
1. What can we know about Velcro®?| A．It’s been edged out by zippers. | B．It’s an established shoe brand. |
| C．It’s a nature inspired invention. | D．It’s a hook commonly used in offices. |
| A．Observant. | B．Demanding. |
| C．Overconfident. | D．Weather-beaten. |
| A．Uncaring. | B．Highly critical. |
| C．Positive. | D．Fiercely divided. |
| A．A famous inventor. | B．A remarkable creation. |
| C．An unexpected discovery. | D．An unforgettable experience. |
【推荐3】If a diver surfaces too quickly, he may suffer the bends. Nitrogen(氮) dissolved(溶解) in his blood is suddenly liberated by the reduction of pressure. The consequence, if the bubbles (气泡)accumulate in a joint, is sharp pain and a bent body—thus the name. If the bubbles form in his lungs or his brain, the consequence can be death.
Other air-breathing animals also suffer this decompression(减压) sickness if they surface too fast: whales, for example. And so, long ago, did ichthyosaurs. That these ancient sea animals got the bends can be seen from their bones. If bubbles of nitrogen form inside the bone they can cut off its blood supply. This kills the cells in the bone, and consequently weakens it, sometimes to the point of collapse. Fossil (化石)bones that have caved in on them selves are thus a sign that the animal once had the bends.
Bruce Rothschild of the University of Kansas knew all this when he began a study of ichthyosaur bones to find out how widespread the problem was in the past. What he particularly wanted to investigate was how ichthyosaurs adapted to the problem of decompression over the 150 million years. To this end, he and his colleagues traveled the world’s natural-history museums, looking at hundreds of ichthyosaurs from the Triassic period and from the later Jurassic and Cretaceous periods.
When he started, he assumed that signs of the bends would be rarer in younger fossils, reflecting their gradual evolution of measures to deal with decompression. Instead, he was astonished to discover the opposite. More than 15% of Jurassic and Cretaceous ichthyosaurs had suffered the bends before they died, but not a single Triassic specimen(标本) showed evidence of that sort of injury.
If ichthyosaurs did evolve an anti-decompression means, they clearly did so quickly—and, most strangely, they lost it afterwards. But that is not what Dr Rothschild thinks happened. He suspects it was evolution in other animals that caused the change.
Whales that suffer the bends often do so because they have surfaced to escape a predator (捕食动物) such as a large shark. One of the features of Jurassic oceans was an abundance of large sharks and crocodiles, both of which were fond of ichthyosaur lunches. Triassic oceans, by contrast, were mercifully shark- and crocodile-free. In the Triassic, then, ichthyosaurs were top of the food chain. In the Jurassic and Cretaceous, they were prey(猎物) as well as predator—and often had to make a speedy exit as a result.
1. Which of the following is a typical symptom of the bends?| A．A twisted body. | B．A gradual decrease in blood supply. |
| C．A sudden release of nitrogen in blood. | D．A drop in blood pressure. |
| A．how often ichthyosaurs caught the bends | B．how ichthyosaurs adapted to decompression |
| C．why ichthyosaurs bent their bodies | D．when ichthyosaurs broke their bones |
| A．confirmed his assumption | B．speeded up his research process |
| C．disagreed with his assumption | D．changed his research objectives |
| A．failed to evolve an anti decompression means |
| B．gradually developed measures against the bends |
| C．died out because of large sharks and crocodiles |
| D．evolved an anti decompression means but soon lost it |
【推荐1】In my opinion, classical music is a bit like mushrooms! You don't see the link? Let me explain. When I was a young girl, I didn't like mushrooms. They had a horrible texture and no taste at all, and I used to pick them out of every dish in which my mum tried to hide them. But gradually, as I got older, my view changed. I started to enjoy mushroom-flavoured things like soups and sauces, and eventually I found I could eat mushrooms without grimacing. And now I even quite enjoy them! So my mum's prediction that I would "grow into them" has proved quite correct.
Similarly, I always thought of classical music as a boring genre that only grown-ups liked. Whenever my parents played it in the car, I would count down the minutes until we could change it to my preferred genre: pop. But while at university, I found that calming orchestral music was just the thing for library revision playlists—it had no lyrics (歌词) to distract me, and the pieces tended to be very long: perfect for long work sessions!
Recently, my developing relationship with classical music reached a new level when I voluntarily chose to go to a ballet. Admittedly it was the dancing that originally attracted me, but once there I thoroughly enjoyed the music too. It was The Nutcracker, and I was surprised by just how much of the music I recognised! The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, The Russian Dance, The Waltz of the Flowers—they all sounded familiar. I didn't know how I knew them, I just knew that I did! And I loved them. My parents would be proud.
1. Why does the author think classical music is a bit like mushrooms?| A．Because they are both boring. |
| B．Because they both interest grown-ups. |
| C．Because they are both great. |
| D．Because they both take time to get used to. |
| A．Using hands. | B．Changing facial expression. |
| C．Taking care. | D．Feeling extremely embarrassed. |
| A．It was too long. | B．It was very popular. |
| C．It was great background music. | D．It was perfect for relaxation. |
| A．She was familiar with the dance. |
| B．She became a fan of classical music. |
| C．Classical music became her favorite. |
| D．Her parents were unhappy with her change. |
【推荐2】Long the symbolic face of endangered species in China, the giant panda has made significant progress in recent years. In the 1980s, only about 1,216 pandas were left in the wild, but the most recent calculation counted more than 1,800.
The increased numbers could be due to improved survey methods or true growth from better protection measures. In either case, pandas still face plenty of threats, of which habitat loss is the main one to survival. Human growth in their areas, combined with climate change has led to the loss of livable land. In addition, pandas have been facing dangers from illegal hunting.
Because pandas are now distributed across China in groups, with each group separated from the others due to habitat destruction, the Chinese government is creating a huge national park in southwestern China to protect them. Giant Panda National Park will cover 10,476 square miles (27,132 square kilometers), which is nearly three times the area of Yellowstone National Park. The new park will make an effort to reunite populations that have become separated from one another.
This project “takes the long view,” Bob Tansey, China policy adviser for The Nature Conservancy, tells National Geographic. “Generally, pandas are doing well. But what will they need in the future? Connectivity.”
The park’s connectivity should give isolated(独居的)pandas a better chance to breed. Giant pandas have a very low reproductive rate, with females generally usually giving birth every two years, the WWF reports. The new park eventually should give them room to find mates, thus resulting in more young pandas. After all, habitat will remain patchy until degraded lands are restored and stronger land-use restrictions come into effect that make wildlife corridors(廊道) possible.
The park also aims to promote the local economy, the Associated Press reports. An official involved in the park’s planning tells the state-run China Daily this project would help ease poverty among the 170,000 people living within the park’s proposed territory. The government is offering financial support to encourage people living in the area to relocate, according to National Geographic. Some areas of the park also eventually will allow tourism.
1. What’s the main idea of the second paragraph?| A．The main challenges pandas still face. |
| B．The dangers humans bring to the pandas. |
| C．The reason for the loss of pandas’ habitats. |
| D．The protection measures taken to pandas. |
| A．It has been used for many years. | B．It has reunited different pandas. |
| C．It is set up by the local government. | D．It is larger than Yellowstone National Park. |
| A．It’ll house more isolated pandas. |
| B．It’ll favor female pandas with babies. |
| C．It’ll benefit the process of reproducing. |
| D．It’ll serve as a comfortable habitat for pandas. |
| A．Tourism helps gain high profits. |
| B．Tourism accelerates the speed of allocation. |
| C．Tourism results in economic boom absolutely. |
| D．Tourism contributes to lessening the economic pressure. |
【推荐3】Kids spend a lot of time looking at screens. And some parents worry. But a new study argues against the anxiety parents may feel.
“Parents are hearing a message that social media, digital technology use is causing very serious and harmful problems like depression, like suicide-related behaviors,” Candice Odgers, professor of psychological science at the University of California said. “But the idea is that if you shut off social media, you could in fact be making a situation worse. Parents are really being sent a message that is not supported by anything scientifically.”
Odgers and her colleagues looked at the screen-related behavior of 400 public school students in North Carolina aged 10 to 14. The researchers found that the kids spent between almost five hours to seven hours per day on their devices. That’s a lot of hours but the researchers didn't find connection between the amount of time that young people spent online using digital technologies and mental health signs like depression, or anxiety. They found that young people who sent more text messages actually reported better mental health.
This was a small association, but it reflects what other people have found: the people who are very connected offline, who use technology in the positive ways to stay connected, often are more connected online as well and experiencing better mental health.
So why the fears about screen time? Odgers argues that the methods for previous studies may have led to false conclusions. When given a survey, the kids were often asked to recall, over the past six months, “How often are you online?” and “Have you ever felt depressed”. And the relation between those two things has been used to spread a lot of fear around the connection between social media use and things like depression, yet 99.5% of the reasons that kids differ in their depression is due to something other than the time they spend online.
1. The new study is mainly about the relation between ________.| A．kids, screen time and their eyesight | B．kids’ screen time and their depression |
| C．social media use and kids’ mental health | D．Internet environment and kids' mental health |
| A．It misleads people. | B．It makes much sense. |
| C．It was confirmed by science. | D．It reveals parents, ignorance. |
| A．Kids spending less time online. | B．Kids staying unconnected offline. |
| C．Kids shutting off social media. | D．Kids positively using digital technology. |
| A．To present a social phenomenon. | B．To challenge a common belief. |
| C．To draw attention to kids, health. | D．To encourage more screen time. |
