A fully electric seaplane has made its first flight over the mouth of the Fraser River near Vancouver, Canada. The flight represents a milestone in the long process of reducing the aviation industry’s emissions and costs by electrifying short-to-medium distance commercial flying.
Several hundred people crowded the river bank on Tuesday morning to witness what they hoped would be a historic moment. They were not disappointed. Among cheers, the battery-powered Harbour Air seaplane lifted off into the sky. The plane flew a short round-trip downriver before landing five minutes later.
“It was magical. It was much quieter than I had expected it to be,” said Nicki Malcom, one witness from Auburn, Washington. “It’s definitely the future,” said Chip Jamison, who came from Portland to see the electric plane he produced parts for. “You can see it with automobiles. Planes are next. It's right in front of us.”
The test pilot was the only person on board the six-passenger DHC-2 de Havilland Beaver. He was the CEO and founder of Habour Air, Greg McDougall. McDougall’s seaplane airline teamed up with a Redmond, Washington-based electric motor maker named Magnix to transform the classic de Havilland Beaver plane. Magnix CEO Roei Ganzarski sees the seaplane's first flight as a milestone, similar to the first jet takeoff.
“Today you witnessed the first shot of the electric aviation revolution,” Ganzarski told the two companies' staff, contractors, media and other celebrators. “Let’s start the revolution.” Ganzarski laid out a case for how battery-powered flight offers lower noise, zero pollution and could reduce fuel and maintenance costs. “Lower operating costs for airlines like Harbour Air will mean lower ticket prices for all of you,” he said. “Lower operating costs mean they can now fly to more destinations that we couldn’t fly to before.”
It will be some time before regular folks can book a ticket on a clean, electric seaplane.
1. According to the passage, the Harbour Air seaplane________.| A．is adapted from the de Havilland Beaver | B．will replace the automobile in the near future |
| C．can carry more than six passengers | D．has investment from the Vancouver government |
| A．Critical. | B．Objective. | C．Optimistic. | D．Ambiguous. |
| A．Electric seaplanes only help cut down air pollution and costs. |
| B．People can fly to more destinations in less time on battery-powered planes. |
| C．The seaplane’s first flight symbolizes the success of the electric aviation revolution. |
| D．People may get cheaper tickets by taking electric seaplanes. |
| A．It is the most effective way to cut down air pollution. |
| B．It promises huge profits for airlines due to lower operating costs. |
| C．It employs more advanced technology compared to automobiles. |
| D．It triggers the electric aviation revolution with regard to low emissions and costs. |
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【推荐1】At Phoenix Bikes, a bicycle shop, students are learning to repair bikes. Phoenix Bikes sells bikes to the public at their business in Arlington, Virginia. But it also teaches teenagers how to repair bikes.
Most students at Phoenix start in its after-school “earn-a-bike program,” at middle and high schools in and around Arlington County. Once a week over a 12-week period, students learn repair skills. They learn how to use tools, fix flat tires, correct the wheels, and change gears (齿轮). The first lesson includes taking the bike apart. By doing this, they learn all the parts of a bike.
In the first few weeks, they work in small groups to repair a bike given to the shop. The bikes often have missing or damaged parts. The finished bike is then given to a person in need from the community. In the last four weeks of the program, students come to the shop to work on one of the given bikes which they can then take home at no cost.
Anthony is a student at nearby Wakefield High School. He just completed his bike. He said it was not in good shape at first but was the kind of bike he was looking for and could be made into something better. He said it had no lights, no front tire, and was without a chain, which controls the gears. He said he joined the program to get better at working with his hands and fixing things.
Phoenix Bikes is teaching 300 to 400 young people this year. Phoenix communicationscoordinator Gage said the classes are fun and let students learn with their hands after sitting in the classroom all day at school. He added that bikes are interesting for teenagers especially because they are a means of transportation and freedom. Learning how to fix a bike can also be a fun challenge, she said.
1. What are the students asked to do in the first lesson?| A．Learn how to use tools. | B．Learn about bicycle parts. |
| C．Repair flat tires. | D．Change the wheels. |
| A．They sell them to whoever likes it. | B．They use them in the training. |
| C．They keep them for themselves. | D．They gave them to those in need. |
| A．It was the type of bike he liked. | B．It was a must to finish the training. |
| C．He tried his best to prove his ability. | D．He wanted to get real experience. |
| A．It did good to students’ studies. | B．It offered fun transportation for students. |
| C．It was hard for students. | D．It was valuable to students. |
【推荐2】“Helicopter parent” may not sound pleasant, but given the chance, most parents would probably prefer a vehicle to zoom (快速移动)little ones between school, football practice and piano lessons. Getting children where they need to go is a huge task and expense, especially in homes where both parents work. Hailing rides (专车服务)through firms like Uber and Lyft has made life more convenient for adults. But drivers are not supposed to pick up kids who travels without an adult aside (although some are known to bend the rules).
Children represent a fresh-faced opportunity. Ride-hailing for kids could be a market worth at least $50bn in America, hopes Ritu Narayan, the founder of Zum, one of the startups in want of the prize. These services are similar to Uber's, except they allow parents to schedule rides for their children in advance. Children are given a code word to ensure they find the right driver, and parent sreceive warnings about the pick-up and ride, including the car’s speed. These services promise more careful background checks^ finger printing and training than typical ride-hailing companies.
Annette Yolas, who works in sales at AT&T, says that she spends around $200 a month on Hop Skip Drive, a service that operates in several markets in California, for her three kids to get to the school bus on time and to ballet practice. She says it has been a “life-saver” by allowing her to work longer hours. Meanwhile, kids avoid the embarrassment of a relative pulling up at school. But ride-hailing firms for kids may end up like the children in Neverland, and never fully grown. They face several challenges. One is finding enough drivers. All users need rides during the same limited set of hours: before and after school, which makes it hard to offer drivers enough work. It can also be challenging to persuade parents, who have drilled it into children never to get in a stranger's car.
And while ride-sharing companies can annoy adult passengers by cancelling or being late, such behavior can be a disaster when children are involved. Shuddle, an early entrant in the taxis-for-kids business, which shut down in 2016, had only two out of five stars on Yelp (点网站)for that reason， and lots of negative reviews from parents. It had made money on rides mainly by raising prices ever higher.
Shuddle’s failure has not discouraged Uber itself, which is expected soon to launch a pilot programme for teenagers under 18. Parents may be happier to use services they are familiar with. But Uber’s entrance is likely to add to the struggle of child-focused ride-hailing businesses as they compete for customers and new funds.
1. What does the underlined phrase “a fresh-faced opportunity” refer to?| A．A new market | B．A new company. |
| C．A new service. | D．A new challenge. |
| A．To show the need of the working parents. |
| B．To show the benefits of the ride-hailing service. |
| C．To persuade more drivers into the business. |
| D．To persuade more parents to avoid the service. |
| A．Drivers have towork all day long to meet parents’ needs. |
| B．Some parents are not willing to put their kids into strangers’ cars. |
| C．Small firms are not qualified enough to operate the service for kids. |
| D．Typical ride-hailing companies seldom check the background of their drives. |
| A．They may make a fortune |
| B．They mayeasily get more funds. |
| C．They may struggle to survive. |
| D．They may get better reviews. |
【推荐3】Traffic problems are an everyday concern in many cities, including Washington, DC. A growing number of Washingtonians are turning to bicycles to get to and from work. In fact, the number of commuters who use bicycles has doubled in the city since 2007.
Ralph Buehler teaches urban planning at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, popularly known as Virginia Tech. He has written a book about urban biking, called“City Cycling.’’ He says there is a reason why urban bike tiding is now becoming more popular.
“Over the last 60 to 70 years. cities in the U. S. have been adapted to the automobile. ”
“Most cities took advantage of the money coming for the interstate highway system, from the federal government, starting in 1956. There was a 90 percent federal match(补贴)so the cities only had to put up 10％. It was very tempting. ”
In the years after World War Two, many Americans moved to suburban communities, just outside major cities, They decided to travel great distances to and from work in exchange for a home in the suburbs. Their cars became a symbol of freedom.
But today, many people believe they can save money by living in the city.
Greg Billing is with the Washington Area Bicyclist Association. “When a person makes a change from 04 using a car to using a bike, they are saving anywhere between 8 or＄9, 000 a year. ”
Ralph Buehler says governments save money when people use bicycles. “Building bicycling facilities is much cheaper than building and maintaining road facilities or public transport. ”
Washington, DC has also taken steps to protect bike riders. It approved a safe passing law and created areas on the road between cars and bikes.
The United States Census Bureau says 4％of the city’s workers ride to work by bike. The only city on the East Coast with more bike commuters is New York.
1. What’s the best title of the text?| A．Traffic problems are an everyday concern in many cities |
| B．Bicycling to work in Washington, DC grows in popularity |
| C．Bikes result in new problems in Washington, DC |
| D．Washington, DC has taken steps to protect bike riders |
| A．The federal government supported building public transport. |
| B．Government invested a lot to build bicycling facilities. |
| C．Cities didn’t use the money from the government wisely. |
| D．Urban biking has been popular in the last 60 to 70 years. |
| A．1ive in the city | B．1ive in the suburbs |
| C．travel great distances | D．rent houses |
| A．Money can be saved when people use bicycles. |
| B．Living in the city is much cheaper than in the country. |
| C．Government should build more bicycling facilities. |
| D．Road facilities and public transport develop rapidly now. |
| A．Traffic problems are the most severe in Washington, DC. |
| B．4％of Washingtonians ride to work by bike in Washington, DC. |
| C．Washington, DC concerns about the safety of bike riders. |
| D．More cities on the East Coast have bike commuters. |
【推荐1】There is such a thing as a free lunch, it turns out, as long as you don’t mind too much what it is. Tamara Wilson found hers a few streets away from her west London home — and as well as picking up some unwanted bread and fruit that would otherwise be thrown away, she made a new friend.
Wilson is one of 3.4 million people around the world using an app designed to encourage people to give away rather than throw away surplus (剩余的) food. “It’s such a small thing, but it makes me feel good and my neighbour feel good. And a lot of small acts can end up making a big difference,” she said.
The last few years have seen an explosion in creative ways to tackle food waste by linking supermarkets, cafes, restaurants and individual households to local communities. Olio, the app used by Wilson, saw a fivefold increase in listings during 2022, and the signs are that this rapid growth is continuing into 2023, said Tessa Clarke, its CEO and co-founder.
About a third of all food produced globally is wasted, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). Almost 1.4 billion hectares of land — close to 30% of the world’s agricultural land — is dedicated to producing food that is never eaten, and the carbon footprint of food wastage makes it the third contributor of CO2. Reducing food waste is one of the most effective ways of tackling the global climate crisis.
Olio, Clarke said, was an attempt to change this on a small, local scale. “The app connects people with others who have surplus food but don’t have anyone to give it to because so many people are disconnected from their communities.” Users of Olio post images of surplus food that others in the neighbourhood might want. Olio also has a network of 24,000 volunteers who collect surplus food from local supermarkets and stores for app users to claim.
Despite the success of the app, it was hard to make a difference to the huge scale of food waste, Clarke added. “Even though we’re doing well, we’ve only scratched the surface (触及表面). But if everyone makes small changes in the world, we’d dramatically reduce the amount of food that ends up in bins (垃圾桶).”
1. What does the author want to show by telling Wilson’s story?| A．People tend to use apps to order food. | B．People prefer to make friends on apps. |
| C．People find a high-tech fix to food waste. | D．People show more concern for each other. |
| A．Global warming. | B．Loss of land. | C．World hunger. | D．Poverty and inequality. |
| A．It sells surplus food to those in need. | B．It allows volunteers to slay connected. |
| C．It provides a platform for people to promote food. | D．It fills the information gap between green communities. |
| A．It is a great success. | B．It requires joint efforts. |
| C．It is beyond human power. | D．It has won public support. |
【推荐2】Soda bottles and sour cream containers—these plastics (and many others) typically arrive at recycling plants mixed together in the same bin. But because they are made of different molecular (分子的) building blocks, called monomers, they must be sorted into different streams before they can be melted to make new products. Otherwise, their various monomers tend to separate from one another like oil and water.
“Until about a year ago, everybody thought the only thing you could do is take a plastic, break it down to a monomer and then reform it,” says Sanat Kumar, a chemical engineer at Columbia University. “Now we’ve come up with a different way of doing it.” His team has developed a process that allows different kinds of plastic to be recycled together. Their findings, reported recently in Nature, could give new life to many items that end up in landfills.
The new process solves the problem by adding chemicals called universal dynamic cross-linkers to the mix. Just as soap brings together oil and water, these cross-linkers form covalent (共价的) molecular bonds that tie the diverse monomers together. This process creates materials that can keep certain useful properties of each plastic, such as keeping oxygen from passing through. These materials can then be melted and remade again and again because the cross-linkers can break and re-form their bonds.
The researchers hope the technique could eventually help repurpose more plastic waste, and Kumar says the process consumes less energy than breaking plastics down into their original monomers—but it’s not yet cheap enough to be widely used at existing recycling facilities. Still, showing that it works could lead to profitable markets for less expensive recycled plastics, which Kumar says would be one way to help recyclers eventually address the plastic waste crisis. “The plastics problem is huge,” he says, “and you’re going to have to look for multiple solutions.”
1. What’s the first paragraph mainly about?| A．The recycling method of plastics. |
| B．The present situation of plastic pollution. |
| C．The difficulty of recycling mixed plastics. |
| D．The variety in monomers among different plastics. |
| A．Sorting out plastics. | B．Recycling plastics. |
| C．Breaking down plastics. | D．Melting plastics. |
| A．They can be used as soap to bond oil and water. |
| B．They can keep oxygen from passing through. |
| C．They can maintain their own useful properties. |
| D．They can help bring different monomers together. |
| A．Its relatively high cost. | B．Its low efficiency. |
| C．Its negative environmental effect. | D．Its high energy consumption. |
【推荐3】In mid-2019, an Indonesian design team submitted a plan to an international design competition for a new type of submarine (潜艇). It wasn't designed for military purposes or for exploring the ocean. The main purpose of this submarine was to create ice blocks to replace sea ice in the Polar Regions.
In the summer months of 2019, a massive heat wave shocked Europe and broke a number of high temperature records. As the hot air moved north over the Arctic, the ice sheet covering Greenland melted at an unexpected rate. Ice melt at the poles is normal in the summer months. Lost ice is often regained by refreezing in winter. But the fast melting rate could mean a permanent loss of polar ice, which would have global consequences.
Dealing with such a large-scale problem requires large-scale solutions. While many solutions look at reducing the greenhouse gases, few are aimed at repairing the effects of climate change. The ice-making submarine proposed to do just that.
The ice-making submarine's basic design involves forming a large hexagonal (六边形的) ice block of roughly 25 meters across and 5 meters thick. A large container in the submarine would be filled when submerged under water. Then the slow process of desalination (脱盐) and freezing would begin. After about a month, the submarine would discharge (卸下) the ice block and begin the process all over again. The overall vision would be to have multiple submarines working together, so that the hexagonal blocks could be pushed together to form a single large ice sheet.
The design was beautifully presented and won second place. However, the science behind the design came under criticism. One criticism was how the massive amounts of energy needed to desalinate and freeze the water would be provided. Another was that the amount of heat generated by the freezing process would result in a net warming effect. Additionally, the ice would be too thin to stay frozen for a significant amount of time. The designers couldn't sufficiently answer many of the scientific criticisms. Their inventive idea does, however, indicate the need for creative solutions in repairing the loss of polar ice.
1. The ice-making submarine was designed to ________.| A．explore the ocean | B．achieve military purposes |
| C．record rates of melting polar ice | D．make up for the decrease of polar ice |
| A．the limitation of the new design | B．the process of making ice blocks |
| C．the features of the ice-making submarines | D．the challenges that the designers encountered |
| A．The design introduces a unique angle for dealing with climate crisis. |
| B．The designers are confident about the effectiveness of the submarine. |
| C．The lost ice can be regained by refreezing in spite of fast melting rate. |
| D．The ice-making submarine is one of the solutions to reduce greenhouse gases. |
| A．doubtful | B．disapproving | C．supportive | D．unconcerned |
【推荐1】In 2015, the town of Carefree, in the USA was seeking a pumpkin carver to help their newly-planned Enchanted Pumpkin Garden Festival become an instant success. Luckily for them, the sculptor Ray Villafane fell in love with the four-acre Carefree Desert Gardens and agreed to carve pumpkins for the tourists. Then, the festival became a hit in 2015. Now the annual event, which took place from October 19-28, in 2008, includes many fun activities for both kids and adults. However, it is the pumpkin carvings that remain the star attraction.
This year, Villafane and his team reached the garden in early October to carve the popular “pickled (腌制的) pumpkins”. Placed inside tanks resembling a kind of plants to fit in with the environment, the 3D pumpkin artworks were put in a special liquid that helped preserve them for a longer period of time.
Throughout the festival, Villafane and his team also held several live demonstrations, adding to the impressive carved pumpkins on exhibition. They also volunteered to give many pumpkin-carving fans valuable tips.
Besides the wonderful carvings, guests had the chance to go into a pumpkin world, complete with tales. The tales featured pumpkin dead bodies running through the grass, and a group of helpless pumpkins attempting to free their peers imprisoned by a scary-looking figure with only bones. Then, there were the hard-working rats who were sewing a pumpkin.
The highlight of the festival came on October 27, when Villafane transformed a huge pumpkin into a dinosaur. The festival also featured activities including pie-eating matches, story-telling, face painting, and pumpkin-carving matches.
Villafane’s skill first came to light in 1993 after he sculpted a pumpkin for his students during Halloween. In 2004, while still teaching, he decided to use his skills to create action figures for Marvel Comics. Over the next two years, the artist created numerous popular characters. In 2006, Villafane accepted a full-time position about carving toys at DC Comics. In 2010, he finally decided to go after his true love—pumpkin carving. Since he first began carving, the expert has sculpted 2,576 pieces of outstanding works in 102 cities around the world.
The expert using basic carving tools for his most complex creations stands out in the festival.
1. What can we learn about the annual Enchanted Pumpkin Garden festival?| A．It has been held three times so far. |
| B．It was organized by Ray Villafane. |
| C．It aims at teenagers interested in arts. |
| D．It has gained Ray Villafane’s support. |
| A．To prevent them from going bad quickly. |
| B．To make them fit in with the environment. |
| C．To make them much more delicious. |
| D．To make them appear more beautiful. |
| A．They were created by Ray Villafane. |
| B．They were centered on the theme of friendship. |
| C．They were all full of imagination and terror. |
| D．They were probably most attractive to those fond of magic. |
| A．The popularity of Ray Villafane’s works. |
| B．The gradual improvement of Villafane’s skills. |
| C．The interest of Ray Villafane in pumpkin carving. |
| D．The introduction of Ray Villafane’s career of carving. |
| A．Reliable and brave. |
| B．Confident and modest. |
| C．Talented and helpful. |
| D．Enthusiastic and cautious. |
【推荐2】The love story between John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jackie, was far from perfect and was tragically cut short in 1963 by a sniper’s(狙击手) bullet.
On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was seated beside his smartly dressed wife, who was wearing a pink Chanel-like suit and matching pillbox hat and holding an armful of red roses that had been presented to her by fans. They were seated in the back seat of a dark blue 1961 Lincoln with John Connally, the Governor of Texas and his wife, Nellie.
And then came the dark moment. As the motorcade(车队) passed the Texas School Book Depository on Elm Street, a loud noise—like the sound of a firecracker—cracked the air. President Kennedy slumped(耷拉) forward, Jackie putting her arms around him.
The look on her husband’s face after he was shot would haunt Jackie for the rest of her life. The last words she ever got to say to him were, “I love you, Jack. I love you,” according to Anderson, although Jackie herself recalled it slightly differently in a 1963 interview. All the way to Parkland Hospital, where President Kennedy would eventually be pronounced dead, as she recalled it, she was bent over him, asking “Jack, Jack, can you hear me? I love you.”
Jack Kennedy’s final words to his wife of 10 years were far more mundane, of course. He had no way of knowing what was about to happen. It’s been reported that Jack’s final words were, “My God, I’ve been hit,” but physicians have said this was impossible given Jack’s injuries. Well, historians have now clarified that the last words Jack spoke before the fatal shot were, “No, you certainly can’t.”
No, you certainly can’t?
He was making small talk in the car. “You certainly can’t say that the people of Dallas haven’t given you a nice welcome,” the Texas Governor’s wife had just remarked to Jack, referring to the huge, adoring crowd. “No, you certainly can’t,” Jack replied, milliseconds before the bullet from Lee Harvey Oswald gun struck.
John F. Kennedy never spoke another word after that fateful day, but many things he said during his lifetime are incredibly inspiring.
1. When the gunshot incident happened, ______________.| A．it suddenly went into darkness |
| B．Kennedy was giving a speech to his fans |
| C．the motorcade was on the way to Parkland Hospital |
| D．Kennedy and his wife were seated next to each other |
| A．unforgettable | B．ordinary |
| C．excellent | D．humorous |
| A．The people’s love for Kennedy. |
| B．The love story of Kennedy and his wife. |
| C．The final words before Kennedy was murdered. |
| D．The inspiring speeches during Kennedy’s lifetime. |
【推荐3】Most people associate space with silence. But the story of how we came to understand the universe is just as much a story of listening as it is by looking. And yet despite this, hardly any of us has ever heard space. How many of you could describe the sound of a single planet or star?
And you may wonder: How do we know what these sounds are? How can we tell the difference between the sound of the sun and the sound of a pulsar (脉冲星)? Well, the answer is the science of radio astronomy. Radio astronomers study radio waves from space using sensitive antennas (天线) and receivers, which give them precise information about what an astronomical object is and where it is in our night sky. And just like the signals that we send and receive here on earth, we can convert these transmissions into sound using simple analog techniques (模拟技术). And therefore, it’s through listening that we’ve come to uncover some of the universe’s most important secrets—its scale, what it’s made of and even how old it is.
In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell worked with Thomas Watson on the invention of the telephone. A key part of their technical set-up was a half-mile long length of wire, which was thrown across the rooftops of several houses in Boston. The line carried the telephone signals that would later make Bell a household name. But like any long length of charged wire, it also inadvertently became an antenna. Thomas Watson spent hours listening to the strange crackles and hisses and whistles that his accidental antenna detected...
As he correctly guessed, some of these sounds were caused by activity on the surface of the sun. So while inventing the technology that would usher in the telecommunications revolution, Watson had discovered that the star at the center of our solar system emitted (发射) powerful radio waves.
1. How do the radio astronomers discover the universe’s secrets?| A．By watching. | B．By calculating. | C．By listening. | D．By measuring. |
| A．By chance. | B．On purpose. | C．In surprise. | D．On average. |
| A．Antennas and receivers. | B．Telephone signals. |
| C．Activities of the sun. | D．Radio waves. |
| A．Society. | B．Nature. | C．Culture. | D．Entertainment. |
