Dogs are often called as “man's best friend”, MacKenzie, a four-pound Chihuahua (吉娃娃), was named winner of the 2020 American Hero Dog Competition on October 19, 2020.
In its tenth year in 2020 the annual contest is the brainchild of American Humane, the country's first national charitable organization founded for the safety and well-being of animals. Often called the “Oscars for dogs”, the award recognizes dogs who make extremely great contributions to society.
The competition of 2020 attracted over 400 entries(参赛者)from across the country. These heroic dogs have gone above the call of duty, saving lives, comforting the ill and aged and reminding us of the powerful, age-old ties between animals and people. While all were impressive, it was tiny MacKenzie who won the judges' hearts.
MacKenzie's growth was not easy. Born with a mouth disability, she had to be fed through a tube(管子)for the first year of her life. Despite her own struggles, she always seemed to think more of other animals in need. “Never have I seen such a will to live. Though sick, she carefully looked after the baby animals at the rescue(救助)center,” said her caretaker.
A life-saving operation performed in 2014 gave MacKenzie the ability to eat independently. The seven-year-old chihuahua is now working for the Mia Foundation, an organization that rescues and nurses animals with inborn disabilities. The chihuahua does an excellent job and has raised various animals. She plays nurse, cleans, comforts and hugs them, acting as their mother and teaching them how to socialize, play and have good manners.
In addition to her role as an animal caretaker, MacKenzie also visits schools to educate kids about the importance of accepting physical differences in both animals and people. Her heartwarming and inspiring story makes MacKenzie a worthy receiver of America's top dog honor.
1. What can we infer about the American Hero Dog Competition?A.It was first held in 2010 | B.It was held to honor caretakers of dogs. |
C.It takes place every ten years. | D.It was started by a charitable organization. |
A.Talent and bravery | B.Friendliness and care. |
C.Courage and selflessness. | D.Confidence and independence. |
A.Learning from failures. | B.Understanding the disabled. |
C.Valuing physical health. | D.Developing practical ability. |
A.Dogs Are Man's Best Friends. | B.Treat Dogs the Way We Want to Be Treated. |
C.Touching Stories between MacKenzie and People | D.2020 American Hero Dog: A Tiny Chihuahua. |
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【推荐1】The red siskin holds a special place in Venezuela. Pictures of the bird appear on the country’s money, on products and in school textbooks. The “Little Cardinal”, as the bird is affectionately called, is loved by Venezuela.
However, this brilliantly colored songbird is now in danger. It has been vanishing at an alarming rate from the wild because of shrinking habitat and poachers cashing in on its red feathers prized around the world by breeders of exotic birds. Once flourishing in the millions, as few as about 300 remain in the wild in Venezuela.
That threat has brought together an international team that includes scientists from the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D. C., and poor coffee farmers in Venezuela. They are all set on rescuing the red siskin from extinction. “They don’t have many years left, unless we do something right now,” said Miguel Arvelo, a vet for the non-profit organization Provita.
The Red Siskin Initiative began about three years ago. The plan is to persuade farmers to plant organic coffee plants with layers of thick branches that are inviting to the endangered bird. In the meantime, a red siskin breeding center is being built at a private zoo in Venezuela. The zoo expects to hatch 200 of the birds next year, which will be introduced into the coffee plant habitats.
The coffee initiative has been showing positive results. Some 40 farmers in the coastal mountains of Carayaca have stopped cutting down trees — an important first step.
Protecting the red siskin from poachers has been challenging due to Venezuela’s economic crisis. Poor Venezuelan families often capture and sell the threatened bird to illegal traffickers. Researchers and scientists have been robbed or shot by Venezuela’s growing poor population.
Scientists keep the places where the birds are known to live a secret to protect them from poachers. Catching sight of them required arriving before dawn and hiding in tall grass under pouring rain. Then, the sun broke through and they swooped in, landing one by one on tree branches overhead, singing loudly.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen so many together,” said biologist Jhonathan Miranda, a Provita researcher. “It gives us hope.”
1. Why is “pictures of the bird” mentioned in Paragraph 1?A.To draw the attention of the readers. | B.To show the bird is precious and cute. |
C.To emphasize the value of the red siskin. | D.To demonstrate how much Venezuelans love the bird. |
A.The bird favors the thick branches of coffee plants. |
B.The bird prefers to live in a private zoo in Venezuela. |
C.The bird likes to land on tree branches or hide in tall grass. |
D.The bird likes to stay with poor coffee farmers in Venezuela. |
①Venezuelan families has captured and sold the birds to the illegal buyers
②The poachers have been capturing them for their feather to make profits
③Farmers in Venezuela keep them for food in their daily life
④Their living habitat has been disappearing day by day
A.①② | B.①③ | C.②④ | D.③④ |
A.Poachers have robbed or even shot the researchers in Venezuela. |
B.Venezuelan are forced to plant coffee trees for the red siskin to land on. |
C.Protecting the bird seems pointless due to extreme poverty in Venezuela. |
D.Keeping the living habitat of the bird hidden from the poachers is positive. |
【推荐2】The Great Barrier Reef has seen its third mass bleaching (大规模白化) event in five years. For the first time, all three sections of the Australian reef have been badly affected. The damage happened in February when the area was exposed to the hottest month of water temperatures on record.
Surveys conducted by Terry Hughes at James Cook University in Australia and his team during March made it known that 25 percent of the reef had been badly bleached and 35 percent bleached to some degree. The northern, central and southern sections of the reef were all hit.
Terrible bleaching also struck in 1998, 2002, 2016 and 2017, but was limited to one or two sections. This is the first time that all three sections have experienced terrible bleaching at exactly the same time, says Hughes. “It’s heartbreaking.”
Some of the damaged corals(珊瑚)will survive, including more heat-resistant(耐热的) species. But many others were probably “literally cooked” at the peak of the heatwave in early 2020, says Hughes. Others will die more slowly from stress over the next few months, he adds. Hughes has serious concern about the southern reef, which was mostly unaffected in former bleaching events and hasn’t developed the same heat resistance as other parts.
The 2016 and 2017 events killed about half the coral on the reef. It usually takes a decade for even fast-growing corals to recover, meaning the latest damage will seriously weaken the reef’s ability to recover, says Hughes. The high frequency of mass bleaching in recent years has been driven by climate change, which results from human activity and is steadily raising ocean temperatures. The only way to deal with the problem is to immediately reduce the release of greenhouse gases, says Hughes.
1. What can we learn from the surveys by Hughes and his team?A.The entire reef has experienced bleaching. |
B.The surveys about the reef are done once a year. |
C.The hottest month of water temperatures is February. |
D.60 percent of the reef suffered from serious bleaching. |
A.Many corals will die slowly from stress. |
B.It has been badly bleached for several years. |
C.It hasn’t formed the ability to fight against the heat. |
D.The government hasn’t shown any concern about it. |
A.Surveys on reef bleaching. |
B.A report on climate change. |
C.An investigation into global warming. |
D.Warning messages on human activities. |
【推荐3】It’s a popular belief that a fish's memory lasts for only seven seconds. It may seem sad to think that they don’t remember what they’ve eaten or where they’ve been, and they don't identify you or any of their friends- every moment in their life would be like seeing the world for the first time.
But don’t be so quick to feel sorry for them. A new study has found that fish have a much better memory than we used to think. In fact, certain species of fish can even remember events from as long as 12 days ago. In the study, researchers from Mac Ewan University in Canada trained a kind of fish called African cichlids to go to a certain area of their tank to get food. They then waited for 12 days before putting them back in the tank again. Researchers used computer software to monitor the fish’s movements. They found that after such a long break the fish still went to the same place where they first got food. This suggested that they could remember their past experiences.
In fact, scientists had been thinking for a long time that African cichlids might have a good memory. An earlier study showed that they behaved aggressively (挑衅地) in front of certain fish, perhaps because they remembered their past “fights”. But until the latest findings, there was no clear evidence.
Just as a good memory can make our lives easier, it also plays an important part when a fish is trying to survive in the wild. “If fish are able to remember that a certain area contains safe food, they will be able to go back to that area without putting their lives at risks,” lead researcher Trevor Hamiton told Live Science.
For a long time, fish were placed far below chimpanzees, dolphins and mice on the list of smart animals. But this study has given scientists a new understanding of their intelligence.
1. According to the article, people used to believe that ________.A.fish have no memory of their past experiences. |
B.fish can remember all the things that happened long time ago. |
C.fish don't recognize any of their friends. |
D.a fish's memory lasts for only seven minutes. |
A.their enemies and fight. |
B.where to get food and survive. |
C.where to escape to when in danger. |
D.their friends and help each other. |
A.African cichlids can remember things for 12 days. |
B.African cichlids always treat other fish aggressively. |
C.African cichlids are not friendly to their friends. |
D.Only African cichlids have a good memory. |
A.Fish having very bad memories. |
B.What we can learn from fish. |
C.How fish improve their memory. |
D.Fish being smarter than we thought. |
【推荐1】When Ariel Cordova-Rojas rode her bike to Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Queens, New York, last November, she planned to go hiking and bird-watching. A mile into her walk, she found a female mute swan (疣鼻天鹅) near the water’s edge. Cordova-Rojas, 30, who had worked at the Wild Bird Fund rehabilitation centre in Manhattan, knew that mute swans can be angry and ready to attack. But as she approached this one, it didn’t move.
She was certain that the bird needed medical attention. Cordova-Rojas put her jacket over the bird’s head to keep it calm, carefully picked it up, and held it in her arms. And then a thought struck her: What do I do now?
Her best hope was the rehab (康复) centre, but that was across the East River and clear on the other side of town. How was she going to transport a 17-pound swan on her bike all that way? Luckily, some strangers driving by offered her, her bike, and the swan a lift to a nearby subway station.
On the subway, no one seemed particularly frightened by the feathered passenger. One guy, says Cordova-Rojas, was “sitting right in front of me on his phone. I don’t know if he noticed there was a swan in front of him.”
Cordova-Rojas called the rehab centre on the road, and Tristan Higgin-botham, an animal-care manager, picked her up at the subway station and drove the bird, the bike, and the rescuer to the centre. There, staff members determined that the swan might have lead poisoning (中毒), caused by taking weights used on fishing lines.
The staff got the swan back up on her feet. Sadly, even with all that care, the swan got a serious infection (感染). Two months after Cordova-Rojas came to her rescue, she passed away.
It’s a disappointing ending, but the real story is just how far some people are willing to go to save a swan in the big city-literally. In all, Cordova-Rojas travelled two hours by foot, car, and subway while honking (按喇叭) her bike. Says Higgin-botham, “That’s the perfect summary of who she is,”
1. Why did Cordova-Rojas put her jacket over the bird’s head?
A.To catch the swan. | B.To calm the swan down. |
C.To keep the swan warm. | D.To block the swan’s sight. |
A.She rode her bike. | B.She got there on foot. |
C.She took a bus. | D.She was offered a lift. |
A.She had lead poisoning. | B.She was injured on her feet. |
C.She was trapped by a fishing net. | D.She nearly died from hunger. |
A.How to Protect Birds | B.Strangers Kind Action |
C.Honk If You Love Birds | D.The Last Song of the Swan |
【推荐2】One sunny morning, my wife and I piled the kids into the car with a hope that my memory was reliable. We went out looking for my trees.
About 25 years ago, I started working as a tree planter in Northern Ontario. I would have planted several thousand a day, every day, for weeks and weeks. I worked every summer for six years, which added up to over 500,000 trees. While we were planting, we talked about what our trees would be like when they grew taller. The small trees were no longer than my thumb. It seemed unlikely that our trees would last more than a day or two.
Eventually, I stopped the car and stared at the clear blue sky and treetops softly waving. I walked toward them.
They were so tall and solid, much bigger than I thought they would be. There were so many of them, waving soundlessly in the wind like they were welcoming me. Row upon row of fully grown, healthy pines left me speechless. They spoke of that time of my life, in 1995, when I was strong and young in my mid-20s.
I walked among them, listening to the sound of the wind in their high branches. Humbled and moved, I never had such a strong sense of my impact on the world.
I felt a quiet presence and at home among my trees, as if they had been waiting for me. What was unclear and unlikely had grown specific and very real. What I had held in my hands had grown into a towering forest surrounding me.
My kids ran to join me.
“You planted all these?” asked my 10-year-old son, Forest.
“I planted more than this every day. And this is where your name comes from,” I told him.
Together, with my 6-year-old son River, we walked deeper into the woods and spotted a clearing. We emerged suddenly into the open space and I felt even more at home than in the forest I’d planted. It was more familiar, this open space where I had once spent thousands and thousands of hours.
1. What do we know about the author when he was in his mid-20s?A.He volunteered to plant trees in Northern Ontario. |
B.He planted several thousand trees every day for six years. |
C.Most of the trees he planted didn’t survive a week. |
D.He planted over 500,000 trees within six years. |
A.Fulfilled. | B.Worried. | C.Confused. | D.Disappointed. |
A.a fallen tree | B.an empty place |
C.a cutting tool | D.a clean cottage |
A.Memory of planting trees. | B.Planting trees with families. |
C.A reunion with my trees. | D.Making for a greener future |
【推荐3】It's easy to understand why early humans domesticated dogs as their new best friends. Domesticated dogs can guard against fierce animals and provide warmth during cold nights. But those benefits only come following domestication. Despite more than a century of study, scientists have struggled to understand what it was that caused the domestication process in the first place.
A new theory given by Maria Lahtinen, a senior researcher, might be able to explain this puzzle. She made this theory when studying the diet of late Pleistocene hunter gatherers in Arctic and sub-Arctic Eurasia. At that time, around 20,000 to 15,000 years ago, the world was in the coldest period of the last ice age.
In cold environments then, as today, humans tended to gain the majority of their food from animals. Nutritional deficiencies came from the absence of fat and carbohydrates, not necessary protein. Indeed, if humans eat too much meat, they can develop protein poisoning and even die. “Because we humans are not fully adapted to a diet that is carnivorous, we simply cannot digest protein very well,” Lahtinen says.
During that time, animals that humans killed for food would have been struggling to live, barely having fat and composed mostly of lean muscle. Using previously published early fossil records, Lahtinen and her colleagues calculated that the animals killed by people in the Arctic and sub-Arctic during this time would have provided much more protein than they could have safely consumed.
Under the tough circumstances of the Arctic and sub-Arctic ice age winter, sharing excess meat with dogs would have cost people nothing. The descendants of wolves that took advantage of such handouts would have become more gentle toward humans over time, and they likely went on to become the first domesticated dogs.
1. What has been confusing scientists in the past century?A.How domesticated dogs benefited humans. | B.When humans began to domesticate dogs. |
C.What led to dog domestication originally. | D.Why early humans made friends with dogs. |
A.All-meat | B.Low-fats | C.Fast-changing. | D.Over-cooked. |
A.They struggled with wolves. |
B.They shared meat with dogs. |
C.They existed on the earth for about 5,000 years. |
D.They had trouble adapting to the cold environment. |
A.were al dangerous animals. | B.provided enough fat for humans. |
C.became a food source for some dogs. | D.lacked protein needed for a healthy diet. |
【推荐1】In Central America, scientists have made some recent discoveries about the ancient Maya people. These findings show that the Maya developed their civilization centuries earlier than experts thought. While Europe was still in the midst of the Dark Ages, these Maya had charted the heavens, evolved the only true writing system native to the Americas and were masters of mathematics and calendar. Without advantage of metal tools, beasts of burden or even the wheel, they were able to construct vast cities. Their legacy in stone, which has survived in an impressive fashion at places, lives on as do the seven million descendants (后嗣) of the classic Maya civilization.
Scientists have made some recent discoveries about the ancient Maya people. Experts call the time between the year 250 and the year 1900 the Classic Maya Period. It was a period of great civilization. Until now, scientists think that earlier Maya people were simple farmers. The discoveries show that they used writing, drew pictures and built complex structures. Three separate teams made the discoveries in the rainforest of Guatemala (危地马拉).
Scientists have found some things they say are more than 2000 years old. For example, a team found two masks inside the main pyramid in a city. These masks are three meters tall. They are cut in the image of a sun god. The Maya used the pyramid as a temple. The masks may have been a part of ceremonies led by a king.
At Waka, scientists found the burial place of a woman they think was a Maya queen. They believe she ruled more than 1,200 years ago. Her bones were lying on a stone table. Many jewels surrounded her remains. The team also found pieces of green stone that appeared to be the remains of the kind of war helmet worn by rulers. Scientists say the discovery will help them understand how Maya women shared power with men. Not many burial places of important royal women have been found. Also in northern Guatemala, scientists found a stone showing an 8th-century king playing a game of ball with visiting rulers. It is the third such stone found at the city of Cancuen. They also found large pieces of stone with writing and pictures of leaders. A Guatemalan expert called it one of the greatest masterpieces of Maya art ever discovered in Guatemala.
1. How is the text organized?A.Supporting examples—Argument—Explanation. |
B.Opinion—Discussion—Important description |
C.Main idea—Conclusion—Supporting examples |
D.Introduction—Supporting examples—Comparison |
A.Maya people lived a simple life in Guatemala in the midst of the Dark Ages |
B.The Maya developed their civilization centuries earlier than experts thought |
C.Maya people succeeded in their legacy from generation to generation |
D.The classic Maya civilization that their ancestors created is attractive |
A.Two masks inside the main pyramid in a city |
B.A burial place of a woman |
C.A stone showing an 8th-century king |
D.Large pieces of stone with writing and pictures of leaders |
A.Earlier Development of Maya | B.The Greatest Discovery |
C.A Research on Maya | D.A Scientific Adventure |
【推荐2】Recently, a new kind of tourism has sprung (出现) up in China. Called “special forces (特种兵) style tourism”, this new kind of tourism is mainly about visiting many places of interest in a short period, most often on weekends. Most of these visitors are college students.
Yu Yinghua, a college student in Shanghai, is one of them. The 22-year-old started the “special forces style tourism” in March after she was attracted by such experiences of some travel bloggers. “After staying a long time at school, I’m hungry to take trips in my spare time,” said Yu, “Now it’s time! Spring has come and we can go out to enjoy the beautiful natural scenery.”
Most of her trips were inspired by understanding from her daily life, such as a place mentioned in a chat with friends. “But making a plan spot in the city, she was able to find a lot of information and learn more about these sites. That would help her save time when traveling on-site and enjoy the sites better.”
Unlike Yu who traveled in nearby cities, Chen Junjun, a doctoral student in Shanghai likes to travel far to get rid of academic stress. In April, the 24-year-old took a two-day trip to Xi’an, Shaanxi province. During her trip, she visited all the scenic sites in the city. “With many academic responsibilities, such a trip can bring color to my life.” said Chen.
Even so, the 24-year-old added that such tourism is not suitable for everyone. Chen said that it’s labor-consuming (耗费体力的) as visitors have to visit as many sites as possible in a short period. To some degree such trips are not as flexible (灵活的) as days-long trips in which you can change your plan as you like. “Thus, a great deal of energy and a calm mind are needed for this kind of tourism,” said Chen.
1. What do we know about Yu Yinghua?A.She was hungry in her travel. | B.She only visited one site in a trip. |
C.She used to serve in special forces. | D.She made a travel plan in advance carefully. |
A.To use up her energy. | B.To paint some colorful drawings. |
C.To reduce her study pressure. | D.To take some academic responsibilities. |
A.Stressful. | B.Time-consuming. |
C.Frightening. | D.Money-consuming. |
A.A travel guidebook. | B.A report on special forces. |
C.A guidebook to a city. | D.An introduction to a travel style. |
【推荐3】A 47 year-old woman who went missing almost half a year ago in a valley in Utah was recently found living in a small tent, surviving mostly on a diet of grass.
The woman was declared missing last November after her car and camping equipment were found in a parking lot near Spanish Fork valley. Police searched the area, but could not locate her, and the attempts to get in touch with her relatives proved unsuccessful. Still, rescue teams continued to search the area both on foot and from the air.
Technically, a search party located the woman by mistake. A volunteer group had brought in a drone (无人机) to help with the operation, but when it crashed in the valley, the pilot and a police officer went out to find it. That’s how they came upon a tent that appeared abandoned but actually proved to be the missing woman’s home.
The unnamed woman lost a significant amount of weight and was obviously weak. She told her rescuers that she had lived in the tent since her disappearance, bearing the winter temperatures and surviving mainly on grass and fresh water from a nearby river.
Police brought the woman back to civilization and took her to a hospital for a mental health evaluation. However, they made sure to clarify that what she did was not illegal.
“We want to be clear that while many people might choose to not live in the conditions as this woman did, she did nothing against the law,” the police officer said.
Police added that the woman might choose to return to the same area, and there was nothing they could do to stop her. Just in case that happens, they’ll provide her with some extra food to make sure she doesn’t have to survive on grass.
1. What did the woman live on before she was found?A.Grass and river water. |
B.Food donated by volunteers. |
C.Food that she carried along. |
D.Food given by the local police. |
A.She played with her family. | B.She walked in the valley. |
C.She took a package tour. | D.She traveled alone in her car. |
A.The rescue teams’ intelligence. | B.Her family and relatives’ efforts. |
C.The drone dropping in the valley. | D.The police’s careful search. |
A.Dangerous but colorful. | B.Tough and struggling. |
C.Surprising and wealthy. | D.Painful but enjoyable. |