【推荐1】Twenty-four trains, nine countries, 13, 500 miles. They are the numbers behind the heroic round trip one man took from Southampton in the UK to eastern China.

Roger Tyers, 37, used over $2, 500, which was almost twice more than the cost of a return flight, to travel to the Chinese port city Ningbo for academic research in May, 2019. The man spent a month on board 15 trains during the first leg of his round trip. It was the climate crisis, not a love of trains, that drove the sociologist to choose this complicated route over a return flight. He stopped flying when UN climate experts warned that the world had less than 11 years to avoid terrible levels of global warming. Tyers calculated that his train journey to China produced almost 90% less emissions than a return flight.

Tyers is not the only person to avoid air travel in response to climate change. Thousands of people worldwide have publicly promised to stop flying. Activist Maja Rosen launched the “Flight Free” campaign in Sweden with the goal of encouraging 100,000 people not to fly for one year. Although only around 14,000 people signed the online “#flightfree2019” pledge (保证), Rosen, who stopped flying 12 years ago, says that the campaign had made more people worry about the climate crisis and aware of harm of travel by air and motivated them to try new ways of travelling.

According to a survey released in May 2019 by Swedish Railways (SJ), 37% of respondents chose to travel by train instead of by plane where possible, compared to 20% at the start of 2018. An SJ spokesperson said: “Rail travel has been augmented due to the worries.” Domestic passenger numbers in July fell by 12% compared to the previous year, according to Swedavia, a company which operates Sweden’s 10 busiest Airports.

“The collective pledge helps fight the sense of hopelessness many people feel when it comes to tackling climate change”, Rosen said. “One of the problems is that people feel there’s no point in what you do as an individual. The campaign is about making people aware that if we do this together, we can actually bring changes.”

What do you know about the “Flight Free” campaign?

A．It impacted the development of tourism.

B．It was strongly supported by the Swedish.

C．It aimed to warn of the danger of flying.

D．It inspired people’s confidence to make a difference.

【推荐2】For the past five years, Paula Smith, a historian of science, has devoted herself to re-creating long-forgotten techniques. While doing research for her new book, she came across a 16th-century French manuscript (手稿) consisting of nearly 1,000 sets of instructions, covering subjects from tool making to finding the best sand.

The author’s intention remains as mysterious (神秘) as his name; he may have been simply taking notes for his own records. But Smith was struck mainly by the fact that she didn’t truly grasp any of the skills the author described. “You simply can’t get an understanding of that handwork by reading about it,” she says.

Though Smith did get her hands on the best sand, doing things the old-fashioned way isn’t just about playing around with French mud. Reconstructing the work of the craftsmen (工匠) who lived centuries ago can reveal how they viewed the world, what objects filled their homes, and what went on in the workshops that produced them. It can even help solve present-day problems: In 2015, scientists discovered that a 10th-century English medicine for eve problems could kill a drug-resistant virus.

The work has also brought insights for museums, Smith says. One must know how an object was made in order to preserve it. What’s more, reconstructions might be the only way to know what treasures looked like before time wore them down. Scholars have seen this idea in practice with ancient Greek and Roman statues. These sculptures were painted a rainbow of striking colours. We can’t appreciate these kinds of details without seeing works of art as they originally appeared-something Smith believes you can do only when you have a road map.

Smith has put the manuscript’s ideas into practice. Her final goal is to link the worlds of art and science back together: She believes that bringing the old recipes to life can help develop a kind of learning that highlights experimentation, teamwork, and problem solving.

Back when science — then called “the new philosophy” — took shape, academics looked to craftsmen for help in understanding the natural world. Microscopes and telescopes were invented by way of artistic tinkering (修补), as craftsmen experimented with glass to better bend light.

“If we can rediscover the values of hands-on experience and craftwork,” Smith says, “we can marry the best of our modern insights with the handiness of our ancestors.”

According to Smith, the reconstruction work is done mainly to ________.

A．restore old workshops

B．understand the craftsmen

C．improve visual effects

D．inspire the philosophers

【推荐1】With alarming regularity, we read about oil tankers having accidents near land and the terrible consequences of the oil spills(泄露) on people, nature, and the environment.
Millions of dollars have been used in developing special chemicals to help dismiss the spills and to clean up the animals, beaches, and land spoiled by the oil. Unfortunately, when many of these chemicals are used, more damage is caused to the environment, especially to lives in the sea.
Of all of today’s environmental disasters, an oil spill may actually be one of the least serious. Although oil is poisonous, it is a natural material. In the end, it breaks down naturally. There are, of course, long-term effects, but it is usually more serious in the short term.
Nature by itself works better than chemical materials, but when there is a spill we demand that governments act immediately with as much hi-tech knowledge as possible. In 1967 the tanker Torrey Canyon sank off the Scilly Isles near the coast of England and spilled 120,000 tones of oil into the ocean. If you go there today, you will find it hard to see any sign that it ever happened.
Governments seem to accept the risk of transporting millions of tons of oil by ship every day so that we can fill up our cars and drive around and cause even more environmental damage. Interestingly, the biggest companies in the world produce cars, and the next biggest supply the gasoline to make them run!
We should be thinking more about reducing our dependency on oil. Governments should be encouraging research into new technologies, such as cars run by solar power(太阳能), electricity, hydrogen, and so on. Much of this research has, in the past, been held back by the oil, gas, and coal.
If the world’s millions of cars were 10% more efficient(高效的) — and the industry could easily produce cars at least twice as efficient — we would need many fewer tankers crossing the oceans each year. If this happened, the risks of oil spills would be reduced, and the air we breathe would be cleaner and fresher, too.
1. What is the passage mainly talking about?

A．Oil spills pollution.	B．What oil pollution is.
C．Oil tanker accidents.	D．How to reduce oil pollution.

2. How does the author support the idea that oil spills are not as serious as people believe?

A．By giving a description.	B．By making an argument.
C．By giving an example.	D．By drawing a diagram.

3. What does the underlined word “risk” in Paragraph 5 refer to?

A．Transportation depending more on oil.	B．Poisonous oil breaking down naturally.
C．Millions of tons of oil spilling into the sea.	D．More environmental damage being caused.

4. Which suggestion is made for reducing oil tank accidents according to the passage?

A．We should build safer oil tankers in the near future.

B．We should develop new technologies to cut oil use.

C．Tankers should not be allowed to sail near the coastlines.

D．Countries should build more oil pipelines under the sea.

【推荐2】Live with roommates? Have friends and family around you? Chances are that if you’re looking to live a more sustainable lifestyle, not everyone around you will be ready to jump on that bandwagon.

I experienced this when I started switching to a zero waste lifestyle five years ago, as I was living with my parents, and I continue to experience this with my husband, as he is not completely zero waste like me. I’ve learned a few things along the way though, which I hope you’ll find encouraging if you’re doing your best to figure out how you can make the change in a not-always-supportive household.

Zero waste was a radical lifestyle movement a few years back. I remember showing my parents a video of Bea Johnson, sharing how cool I thought it would be to buy groceries with jars, and have so little trash! A few days later, I came back with my first jars of zero waste groceries, and my dad commented on how silly it was for me to carry jars everywhere. It came off as a bit discouraging.

Yet as the months of reducing waste continued, I did what I could that was within my own reach. I had my own bedroom, so I worked on removing things I didn’t need. Since I had my own toiletries (洗漱用品), I was able to start personalising my routine to be more sustainable. I also offered to cook every so often, so I portioned out a bit of the cupboard for my own zero waste groceries. Perhaps your household won’t entirely make the switch, but you may have some control over your own personal spaces to make the changes you desire.

As you make your lifestyle changes, you may find yourself wanting to speak up for yourself if others comment on what you’re doing, which can turn itself into a whole household debate. If you have individuals who are not on board, your words probably won’t do much and can often leave you feeling more discouraged.

So here is my advice: Lead by action.

What can we infer about the author?

A．She is quite good at cooking.

B．She respects others’ privacy.

C．She enjoys being a housewife.

D．She is a determined person.

【推荐1】Born with severe hearing loss, Li has found her way to communicate with the world—through painting.

Before learning to paint, Li always felt lonely in a silent world. She knew she was different from her peers because she could not hear. But a painting class in primary school opened for her a door to creativity and a way of expression.

“I still remember my first mural, which was to help a kindergarten to design and paint its wall,” Li says. “The project made me realize how happy I was immersing myself into painting.”

To pursue her passion for art, Li went to study advertising design at a vocational and technical school. “Painting brushes can help me create a colorful world in my imagination, telling my thoughts on paper, instead of through voices,” Li said.

Graduating from college in 2005, Li got a job as a typist at a public institute. But she could not communicate well with her other colleagues. Her husband understood how she felt because he lost his hearing due to medication when he was 1 year old. He is also an art lover. In March 2016, under her husband’s suggestion, Li quit her job and joined her husband’s company, which specializes in 3D wall and ground paintings.

Wall painting is a demanding job because it requires people to work outdoors, whether in extremely cold or hot weather. As all the people are hearing-impaired in their company, communication with clients is the most common challenge that the team faces.

Now in many parks and scenic spots, the couple have created large-scale murals and interactive pavement painting that make onlookers a part of the drawings.

“My husband and I want to introduce painting to more people like us and help them find their own way to make a living,” Li says. Now Li has an apprentice who just graduated from college. While coaching the newcomer, Li is exploring her own style and hopes to become an illustrator and open her own exhibition one day.

“They’re energetic young people with a passion to create new things, and you can feel that in their paintings,” one of their clients said. “They’re also a professional, dedicated team, often working late into the night on the designs for us.”

Li hopes that their stories can encourage more hearing-impaired people to build their own careers and achieve their goals, regardless of how tough it may be.

What can we know from this passage?

A．Li can communicate with her clients easily.

B．Li lost her hearing when she was I year old.

C．Li and her husband have created many wonderful paintings.

D．Li and her husband hope to become illustrators in the future.

【推荐2】An 8-year-old Nigerian, Tani Adewumis, whose family is homeless, won first place at the New York State chess championship without a single defeat at the beginning of 2019 and he says he is not done yet.

“I want to be the youngest grandmaster,” Tani told The New York Times. Tani placed first in the tournament for kindergarten through third grade — an outstanding win for anyone. “It’s unheard of for any kid, let alone one in a homeless shelter,” said Russell Makofsky, who is in charge of the chess program.

Tani hasn’t had an easy life. His family left northern Nigeria in 2017 fearing attacks on Christians, and moved to New York City over a year ago where the boy learned how to play chess at school. School chess coach Shawn Martinez saw Tani’s potential after observing him stand out in the game a few weeks after first learning it early last year. He reached out to Tani’s family about joining in the school’s chess program, and learned they were unable to pay costs associated with membership. Shawn decided to abandon Tani’s fees, which can easily reach thousands with travel and chess camp admissions.

Seven victories later, the elementary school boy is one of the top players in the country for his age group. “He works very hard at his game,” Martinez said, believing Tani could achieve master status in the next year or two. The world’s youngest grandmaster qualified at the age of 12.

As Tani’s story hits national headlines, more people want to help. Makofsky, who set up a GoFundMe for Tani, said the family has received offers for a car, legal services, jobs and even housing. “My hope is that he’ll be in a home tonight,” Makofsky said.

What can we learn from Tani’s story?

A．All things are difficult before they are easy.

B．A good beginning makes a good ending.

C．A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

D．God helps those who help themselves.