New methods have allowed researchers and scientists to find a way to reduce heat loss from buildings by about 30%. This new “green” solution is quite literally (确实地) green as it involves fitting a living wall by sticking soil and plants onto the walls, according to a new research.
To see what effects renewing a living wall on an existing building would have on the environment, the scientists decided to test it out on a building at a university in the UK, which was originally built in the 1970s. As a control, part of the building was not fitted with the living wall. Both of the parts of the building were west-facing and the test was conducted over 5 weeks. They found that the part with the living wall lost 31.4% less heat as compared to the side without it. So it took less energy to heat and had environmentally friendly effects.
In the UK, approximately 57% of buildings were built before 1964. They have caused 17% of greenhouse emissions (排放), about 60% of which come from house heating. If people could reduce heat loss from older buildings by 30%, a huge part of greenhouse emissions could be eliminated. While regulations have changed recently to improve the thermal performance (热性能) of new constructions, it is the existing buildings that require the most energy to heat and are a significant contributor to carbon emissions. It is, therefore, essential that people begin to improve the thermal performance of these existing buildings if the UK is to reach its target of net (净) zero carbon emission by 2050, and help to reduce the possibility of fuel poverty.
The new research suggests living walls can also provide significant energy savings to help reduce the carbon footprint of existing buildings. Perfecting these living wall systems, however, is now needed to help increase the environmental benefits.
1. What did the researchers find about the living wall in the test?| A．It protected the building very well. |
| B．It caused serious waste of some fuels. |
| C．It reduced the heat loss of the building. |
| D．It made the building look more beautiful. |
| A．Repeated. | B．Removed. | C．Defeated. | D．Renewed. |
| A．Pulling down the older buildings. |
| B．Cutting down the prices of fuels. |
| C．Reducing heat loss from the older buildings. |
| D．Adding more living walls to new buildings. |
| A．Promising. | B．Doubtful. | C．Expensive. | D．Impracticable. |
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【推荐1】Over a hundred years after it sank near Antarctica, the ship of polar explorer Ernest Shackleton has been found using underwater robots.
In 1914, Ernest Shackleton and his 27 members left England in a wooden sailing ship called the Endurance. Shackleton hoped to become the first to cross Antarctica. But in 1915, the Endurance became trapped in the thick ice over the Weddell Sea. The ice broke the Endurance and later sank it. Then the ship’s captain kept accurate records of the ship’s position, and the ship’s photographer even took pictures of it as it went down. But the ship, deep in the icy waters near Antarctica, had never been found.
On Wednesday, a search team called “Endurance 22” announced it had located the ship. The Endurance was found 3 kilometers below the ocean’s surface, about 6 kilometers south of its last known position. According to the Endurance 22 team’s report, the name can be clearly read on the back of the ship, and its wheel looks ready to be turned.
Though the ship is made of wood, it has survived with little damage. Scientists say that the small organisms(微生物) that normally break down wooden objects underwater don’t live in the cold waters around Antarctica.
The team ran the project from an ice-breaking ship. To locate the Endurance, the team used two underwater robots called Sabertooths. The robots could travel by themselves under the ice and go where the ship could not. For the last two weeks, the Sabertooth robots have been searching the sea floor in a 390-square kilometer area.
The robots were looking for anything above the sea floor. Last Saturday, the ship was found. Once the ship was located, the Sabertooths used high-quality cameras to record the Endurance in detail. Antarctica’s waters are protected by an international agreement, which means the ship can’t be disturbed. So the Endurance 22 team plans to create a digital 3D model of the wreck(失事) site. This will allow scientists to study the ship in detail without disturbing it.
1. Why did the Endurance 22 team know the ship5s possible position?| A．They had first-class robots. | B．The captain kept a good record. |
| C．Polar explorers recalled the details. | D．The icy waters of the ship have changed. |
| A．It is in excellent shape. | B．It is trapped in hard ice. |
| C．It is in poor condition. | D．It has gone beyond recognition. |
| A．Luck. | B．Patience. | C．Weather. | D．Technology. |
| A．“Endurance 22” Announced a Great Discovery |
| B．A Polar Explorers’ Ship Found After Over 100 Years |
| C．Untold Finding of Antarctic Explorer Ernest Shackleton |
| D．New Results of the Sabertooth Robots’ Underwater Search |
【推荐2】As we try to find the answer to climate change, each new solution may bring even more questions about their overall effects. Could the noise from wind turbines (涡轮机) cause cancer? Could the sound from an electric car be good for plant growth, regenerating the environment? That's the hope of Ayax Toyota.
Within the next two years, the U. S. and Europe will require electric cars to create a noise in order to warn pedestrians of their approach, or else these quiet vehicles can take pedestrians and bikers by surprise.
Instead of just creating a sound that is similar to the sound of non — electric vehicles, Ayax, an independent manufacturer, has partnered with a digital innovation agency The Electric Factory, a sound designer, to create a sound that they say could go further to benefit the environment.
Called the HY Project (short for “harmony") , the sound is inspired by several amusing studies that have looked into the effects of sound frequencies on plants. In one out of India, researchers placed mung bean(绿豆)plants in soundproof (隔音的) rooms, one of which remained silent, another which had ancient songs piped in, and a third which scolded the beans with "discouraging words." The plants exposed to the songs had the "maximum growth of the shoot," the scientists claim.
In another, South Korean researchers compared different types of plants' responses to a variety of frequencies, noting reactions like root-tip bending, an increase in the expression of "defense-related genes," and higher production for crops from cotton to rice to tomatoes. They concluded though the sound may be a “potential new cause” for plant protection, there are still “some major concerns about the use of sound treatment in plant science.”
Other manufacturers are exploring electric car sounds that range from the classic car soundtrack to ones that represent spaceships. Ayax president Alejandro Curcio says that instead of creating an electric vehicle sound that only matters to drivers, they wanted to consider how this sound would affect things beyond the four wheels.
1. What is Europe's requirement for electric cars in the future?| A．Their speed should surprise pedestrians. |
| B．They should be equipped with digital systems. |
| C．Their sound should be loud enough to alarm passers-by. |
| D．They should overcome the drawbacks of petrol vehicles. |
| A．Talking to plants slowed the beans' growth. |
| B．The songs had a positive effect on the beans' growth. |
| C．Silent rooms created a good atmosphere for the beans. |
| D．Some bean plants died suddenly for an unknown reason. |
| A．It will lead to a change in crop varieties. |
| B．It will change the genes of crops. |
| C．It is more complicated. |
| D．It is more convincing. |
| A．To introduce an eco-friendly technology. |
| B．To point out the negative sides of inventions. |
| C．To state the necessity of using electric cars. |
| D．To stress drivers needs for sounds. |
【推荐3】Sales of Apple’s new iPhone 11 in China began on Friday, but were met with a cooler reception from consumers than in previous years. Unlike in previous years, no long lines were seen outside Chinese shops on Friday for the new iPhone, and the product release only made the headlines in a few media outlets.
Huawei unveiled its Mate 30 smartphone series on Thursday night. Its new devices have won consumers’ hearts at home and abroad. Many compared it with Apple’s new iPhone 11, saying that beats the new iPhone in terms of innovation and quality. One customer surnamed Zhao, an IT specialist who pre-ordered a Mate 30 Pro on Friday, said that he chose Mate 30 without hesitation. Zhao said, “It’s obvious that Huawei’s new phone with its advanced 5G mode would lead the future global telecommunications market, and its new innovative features in gesture and side control attracted my attention, too.”
In contrast with iPhone 11’s lukewarm sales, Chinese netizens have engaged in discussions on Mate 30 and Mate 30 Pro. An online poll on the Mate 30 and iPhone 11 on Weibo on Friday showed that more than 60 percent of netizens chose the Mate 30, while less than 20 percent chose the iPhone 11. Many chose Huawei not out of patriotism but for its technology.
Overseas consumers also engaged in vigorous discussions on Huawei’s new flagship devices on technology sites and social media platforms. On Twitter, many netizens said “nice”, “best phone ever” and “my favorite one” on Huawei’s Twitter account. Some netizens in countries like the UK, the Netherlands and Argentina asked when Huawei’s new devices would be released in their countries.
1. How did customers react to Apple’s new product?| A．They thought it was cool to use it. | B．They stood in long lines to purchase it. |
| C．They were less interested in it than former years. | D．They thought its quality was worse than before. |
| A．The price and the weight. | B．The quality and innovation. |
| C．The appearance and the speed. | D．The service life and function. |
| A．Store. | B．Exam. | C．Account. | D．Vote. |
| A．A New Era—5G | B．Huawei Is Better than Apple |
| C．Huawei’s Mate 30 Defeats iPhone 11 | D．Apple’s New iPhone 11 |
【推荐1】Researchers from France and Italy discovered that Canadian parents are less strict with their children than mothers and fathers in France and Italy.
“Our most important finding was the difference between Canadians and the others,” said Professor Michel Claes, the lead author of the study. “Canadians focus on independence and negotiation (商议；谈判). On the other hand, Italians, for example, exercise more control. We found Canadians seem to focus on negotiation in case of a conflict.”
Claes said Canada, France and Italy were selected for the study because they share important cultural and social factors. “We chose French-Canadians because they share the same language as France, and originally came from France and share certain values. Italy was included because it was considered to have similar, strong and important family values,” he explained.
The researchers examined the emotional ties between parents and their children by questioning 1,256 students aged 11 to 19.
Canadian students reported less control and more free actions, according to the study. Italian parents were stricter and French parents were somewhere in the middle.
Claes explains that the differences lie in education in Canada, France and Italy.
“North America has its own educational values, which promote individualization. Tolerance and comprehension are encouraged. Italy, on the other hand, promotes respect of authority, control and the need for permission,” he said.
Children from all three countries described their mothers as warm and communicative. Italian and Canadian children had similar feelings about their fathers, and reported high levels of emotional ties. But French fathers were generally thought by their children to be more distant and cold.
“We were surprised by this,” Claes admitted. “It seems as though the relationships between French mothers and their children were becoming closer over time, while fathers maintain a form of distance and coldness, which is more of a source of conflict in France than in the other countries.”
1. How did the researchers carry out the study?| A．By collecting answers of parents from Canada, France and Italy. |
| B．By collecting answers of children from Canada, France and Italy. |
| C．By questioning parents and their children from Italian-Canadian families. |
| D．By questioning children from French-Canadian families. |
| A．Educational opportunities. |
| B．Traditional ideas. |
| C．Educational values. |
| D．Historical events. |
| A．French children have troubled relationships with their parents. |
| B．Canadian children have close relationships with their parents. |
| C．Italian children have good relationships with their parents. |
| D．Kids from Canada, France and Italy have closer ties with their moms. |
| A．have the same family spirit |
| B．have some similar cultural traditions |
| C．have experienced some similar social changes |
| D．have experienced similar cultural developments |
【推荐2】Never play games with a bot（robot）—it will find a way to cheat if it can. A team from OpenAI, an artificial intelligence lab in San Francisco, has developed artificially intelligent bots that taught themselves to cooperate by playing hide-and-seek. The bots also learned how to use basic tools to help them win.
Bowen Baker at Open AI and his colleagues wanted to see if the team-based dynamics of the OpenAI Five could be used to produce skills that could one day be useful to humans.
The researchers set their bots loose in a simulated（模拟的）environment filled with fixed walls, movable boxes and ladders, and left them to play team games of hide-and-seek. The bots each had their own view of the world and couldn't communicate with each other directly.
At first, the hiders simply ran away. But they soon worked out that the quickest way to stop the seekers was to find objects in the environment to hide themselves from view. The seekers learned that they could move boxes around and use them to climb over walls. The bots then discovered that being a team-player-passing objects to each other or cooperating on a hideout—was the quickest way to win.
But the real surprise came when the bots started making use of problems or faults. Seekers found that if they pushed a ladder towards a wall, they could launch themselves into the air and spot hiders from above. Hiders found that they could get rid of the ladders by pushing them aside.
It shows that AIs are able to find solutions that humans miss, says Baker. "Maybe they'll even be able to solve problems that humans don't yet know how to." However, it is a large leap（跳跃）from virtual hide and seek to real problem-solving. "The main limitation is that it is in simulation," says Chelsea Finn at Stanford University.
1. Why did Bowen and his colleagues conduct the research?| A．To teach bots to play games. | B．To see the potential of robots |
| C．To find if bots may cheat like humans. | D．To train bots to use basic tools. |
| A．The design of the research. | B．The tools of the research. |
| C．The competitors of the game. | D．The environment of the game. |
| A．Passing objects. | B．Moving boxes around. |
| C．Hiding themselves from view. | D．Making use of faults. |
| A．It can bridge a gap in the AI research. |
| B．It will not be influenced by the real world. |
| C．It may not be realized in the real world. |
| D．It will definitely help the real problem-solving. |
【推荐3】In the world of Chinese archaeology (考古学), a sign of a dig's importance is the sight of Zhou Mingsheng at work. A field technician who has worked at archaeological sites all around China. Master Zhou is credited with the gentlest touch in his profession. Born into a farming family, he is a “national-level craftsman” with a talent for using simple tools to get relics (遗物) that would crumble in other hands, says his current boss, Wang Xu, director of an archaeological site at Shuanghuaishu, a Neolithic (新石器时代的) settlement near the Yellow River in the central province of Henan.
It is not beauty that attracts visitors to Shuanghuaishu. At 5, 300 years old, the settlement is the work of a culture too simple to have left behind many buried treasures. The single most precious find, to date, is a finger-length sculpture of a silkworm. Nor is the setting lovely: an area surrounded by deafening insects, between a highway and two power stations. Rather, the site's importance is historical. For since the birth of Chinese archaeology in the 1920s, it has been inseparable from claims that China has the oldest unbroken civilisation on Earth.
Leading archaeologists say that the site has the right combination of location, age and distinctive cultural elements to be the capital of an early Chinese kingdom. That would make it a bridge between China's written history and the era of the Yellow Emperor, who is said to rule over these central plains almost 5,000 years ago, though many foreign scholars doubt his existence. Chinese media call the site proof of China's 5,000 years of history.
Foreigners complain about a lack of written records, Mr Wang notes. Perhaps they are missing symbols that will one day be understood, for instance in patterned pottery. Outsiders "can't keep using Western standards to apply to Chinese ruins," he argues.
1. What does the underlined word “crumble” in paragraph 1 mean?| A．Result. | B．Break. | C．Wait. | D．Shine. |
| A．It is of great historical significance. | B．It has various precious treasures. |
| C．It has appealing scenery. | D．It is easily accessible. |
| A．Ambiguous. | B．Tolerant. |
| C．Disapproving. | D．Sympathetic. |
| A．Chinese history amazes the world | B．Chinese archaeology catches on |
| C．China follows its tradition | D．China digs its past |
