Commercial planes could soon mimic migrating birds by traveling together, with one airliner following close behind the other to gain some free lift. European manufacturing giant Airbus says this project, called fello’ fly, could reduce the follower aircraft’s fuel requirements by up to 10 percent per trip.
Fello’ fly was inspired by the way some birds, typically geese, often fly in formation (编队) to save energy. Like a bird, a moving airplane leaves a wake of disturbed air behind as its wings produce swirling vortices (气旋). These vortices move in a circular motion and expand outward until they disappear, creating an updraft (上升气流) around the wake. If a second aircraft follows the leader at a specific distance and slightly away from the center of the wake, this updraft provides extra lift.
Such a boost allows the follower to cut down on engine thrust, fuel use and emissions. But to reap these benefits, airliners have to position themselves carefully: if the follower gets too close to the center of the leader’s path, the vortices will actually push it downward instead of up.
Aircraft flying so close would need to coordinate (协调) carefully to prevent accidents, and this coordination would need to start on the ground. Airline pilot David Mrak, who is not involved in the fello’fly project, says challenges would likely include setting rules of engagement between the two planes, deciding on the role of air traffic controllers, maintaining communication between all parties involved, creating plans to deal with emergency situations or bad weather, and splitting the economic benefits.
Although the minimal separation might sound potentially dangerous, Mrak suggests that operating planes so near each other may not be out of the question. “As pilots, we undergo extensive training,” he says. “Flying aircraft in formation is a matter of proper training procedures.”
Mrak estimates that if the system works, “it could potentially save the airlines thousands of pounds of fuel per transatlantic trip.” And according to Airbus, every metric ton of fuel saved means roughly three metric tons less carbon dioxide emitted.
1. Which one of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined word “mimic”?| A．support | B．imitate | C．approach | D．discover |
| A．Because it can help save fuel for the two aircraft. |
| B．Because it can eliminate accidents caused by birds. |
| C．Because it can improve air safety for passengers. |
| D．Because it can reduce greenhouse gas emissions. |
| A．maintaining an appropriate distance between the two flights |
| B．figuring out how to handle emergency situations |
| C．deciding on the proper height of the follower flight |
| D．coordinating communication between all sides |
| A．Disapproving. | B．Skeptical. | C．Optimistic. | D．Uninterested. |
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【推荐1】The world’s first fully electric plane has flown successfully for almost 15 minutes. The world’s first fully electric commercial aircraft took its first test flight on Tuesday, taking off from the Canadian city of Vancouver and offering hope that airlines may one day end their polluting emissions.
“This proves that commercial airmail in all-electric form can work,” said Roei Ganzarski, CEO of Seattle-based engineering firm MagniX. The company designed the plane’s motor and worked in partnership with Harbour Air, which carries half a million passengers a year between Vancouver, Whistler ski resort and nearby islands and coastal communities. Ganzarski said the technology would mean significant cost savings for airlines—not to mention zero emissions. “This signifies the start of the electric airmail age,” he told reporters.
Civil airmail is one of the fastest growing sources of carbon emissions as people increasingly take to the skies and new technologies have been slow to make remarkable progress. At 285 grammes of CO2 emitted per kilometre (mile) travelled by each passenger, airline industry emissions far exceed those from all other transport, according to the European Environment Agency.
The e-plane—a 62-year-old, six-passenger DHC –2 de Havilland Beaver seaplane improved on with an electric motor—was piloted by Greg McDougall, founder and CEO of Harbour Air. “For me that flight was just like flying a Beaver, but it was a Beaver on electric steroids (电动兴奋剂). I actually had to turn off the power button,” he said. McDougall took the plane in a short circle along the Fraser River near Vancouver International Airport in front of around 100 onlookers soon after sunrise.
1. What can we know from the first fully electric plane’s success?| A．The flying time of e-plane is 15 minutes at most. |
| B．The fully electric commercial airmail has functioned. |
| C．Airlines may realize the goal of zero emissions. |
| D．The fully electric plane never does damage to the environment. |
| A．Means. | B．Proves. | C．Changes. | D．Follows. |
| A．The pollution caused by passengers. | B．The backward airmail technology. |
| C．The current situation of civil airmail. | D．The growing sources of carbon emissions. |
| A．Shocked. | B．Positive. | C．Doubtful. | D．Objective. |
【推荐2】Each week, the BBC Autos editors select their favourite transport-related news stories, features and videos from around the web. This week, we noticed a trend toward offering creative solutions to global transportation problems.
Carry on without your carry-on
In an effort to save money and increase customer spending, United Airlines will restrict some passengers’ access to overhead compartments. The Huffington Post reports that United will be the first US airline to limit “basic economy” flyers to a single free carry-on bag that can fit under a seat.
Grandad’s Coke pool rust-removal stunt goes wrong
Not only are fizzy drinks(起泡饮料) capable of rotting teeth, they can also remove rust(锈). One Latvian grandfather decided to put cola to the ultimate rust-removal test by submerging his car in a pool of Coca-Cola. In a video posted online, the unnamed daredevil grandad fills a lined pit with 6,000 two-litre bottles of Coke. He then settles into the driver’s seat and speeds into the hole, smashing the front of his red Audi. Whether or not the rust was removed is unknown, but the Daily Mail contends that “
| A．Improvement in the amount of rust on the car was far less than the damage to the vehicle. |
| B．The problems have stirred up heated discussion on the Internet. |
| C．Some of the suggestions are innovative and intelligent, but others are likely to make travelers feel funny. |
| D．Coca-Cola is already a food giant, which attracts children and adults alike around the world. |
| E．In other words, starting next year, those who purchase the cheapest fares will not only be allowed one personal item that fits under the seat in front of them. |
| F．United’s move to limit carry-on bags and charge more for flying perks (飞行特权) isn’t a new concept. |
Sustainable Transport in Cities
Transporthas always shaped cities. In Medieval times crossroads gave birth to bloomingmarket towns. Many North American cities were created for the car. But how arethe cities of today being shaped by a need for more sustainable transport?
Manylocal governments are speeding up change through policy initiatives such asjoined transport, congestion charges and low emission zones, sustainablegaining and life-cycle costing, and opening data up to companies and academics.And these city level policies can move markets in more sustainable directions.
The least dense cities, for example, Houston, have per capita（人均价）carbonemissions nearly ten times higher than the densest, such as Singapore.
Light weighing and new engine and fuel technologies are helping to make existing road and rail vehicles more efficient.
| A．Many options require city - level investment in new facilities. |
| B．However, it is not yet clear which technologies and fuels cities will back. |
| C．Through their actions, city governments today are helping to shape the cities of the future. |
| D．For example, London is requiring all newly licensed taxis to be zero - emission capable from 2018. |
| E．City planners are using transport - oriented development to increase density while maintaining quality of life and property value. |
| F．Some cities, such as Delhi, are investing heavily in creating the mass transport systems needed to change how citizens travel. |
【推荐1】A 90-year-old may not be typical for a show's narrator（解说员）,but without the voice of English broadcaster Sir David Attenborough,one of the most successful new shows on television just wouldn't be the same.
BBC's Planet EarthⅡis getting good ratings in the United Kingdom.And Sir David,the man behind the show's voice,describes it as "greatly pleasing".The naturalist is the father of nature documentaries（纪录片）,with a television career that started in 1950.Since then,the London-born broadcaster has traveled the world intent on sharing his discoveries through the television in new ways.
Ever since his first wildlife documentary series,1954's Zoo Quest,Sir David's voice has become synonymous（同义）with environmental protection.Concerned with how humans are harming the planet,he attempts to educate viewers on the threats and dangers that are present today.He's used his profile to raise important issues like global warming,deforestation,climate change and overpopulation.
"We can't go on increasing at the rate human beings are increasing forever,because the Earth is finite（有限）and you can't put infinity into something that is finite,"he told The Independent two years ago."So if we don't do something about it then the world will do something about it."
And after almost 30 years of nature-based programming,Sir David's efforts to protect wildlife and the environment have not gone unnoticed.His work has been significant in reconnecting an increasingly disconnected human population with the environment of the planet that we not only come from but also rely on.
1. What can we learn about Planet EarthⅡ?| A．It was made in 1950. |
| B．It is now very popular. |
| C．It is broadcast all over the world. |
| D．It was filmed in the United Kingdom. |
| A．In 1950. |
| B．In 1954. |
| C．When he is 90 years old. |
| D．After 30 years of hard work. |
| A．We will lose control of the worsening of the Earth. |
| B．He will help to deal with some important issues. |
| C．Measures should be taken to protect the Earth. |
| D．Human population should stop increasing. |
| A．Optimistic. | B．Ambitious. |
| C．Generous. | D．Devoted. |
【推荐2】If you’re looking for something fun to do, pack a picnic dinner and take your family or friends to a beautiful place to eat. However, there’s a wrong trend to view picnics as an excuse to transport food in single-use plastic containers. Sure, it means the cleanup is easy at the moment, but it just puts it off to a later point, when it takes the form of volunteer cleanups and landfill management.
●Use food containers smartly
Using reusable containers is the easiest way to reduce waste.
●Choose real cutlery (餐具)
Using washable dishes and cutlery for a picnic does not require much more work than single-use ones.
You’d have to carry the waste out anyway in a trash bag, so why not pack your dirty plates and cutlery into a bag and put them in the dishwasher at home?
●Think about the drinks
Forget the single-use, single-serve drink bottles.
●Put cloth bags to good use
Cloth bags are amazing. I use them for so much more than just buying food at the store. They’re perfect for packing sandwiches, dried or whole fruit, and other snack foods. You can use them to pack glasses or plates to prevent breaking. They can also work as a napkin, tea towel, or trash bag if needed.
| A．Be sure to add a few to your picnic basket. |
| B．There are some healthy dishes you can make or buy. |
| C．To avoid this, a plastic-free picnic can be a brilliant idea. |
| D．If you’re worried about breaking, take some light camping plates. |
| E．Instead, just bring along a cloth tablecloth to spread on the ground. |
| F．These create a huge amount of waste, which can be easily avoided. |
| G．In addition, keep in mind that you don’t have to pre-pack everything. |
【推荐3】As Earth’s climate has been warming, the risk of urban flooding has grown, too. Building ponds to collect rainwater can limit that flooding. But in some places, those ponds may actually add to global warming by releasing greenhouse gases into the air. That’s the finding of a new study.
Earth’s changing water cycle has made many cities and their suburbs wetter. These urban areas have a limited ability to soak up rainwater. Floods hit roads, concrete parking lots, buildings and other features. Ponds can collect the water that runs off. But where nature hasn’t provided enough ponds, cities have been building them. Florida alone has built about 76,000 such stormwater ponds. Many other areas also rely heavily on these ponds for flood control, notes Audrey Goeckner. She’s a graduate student at the University of Florida in Gainesville and lead author of the new study.
Recently, her team compared the uptake and later release of carbon-based gases at five stormwater ponds. All were in Manatee County, Fla. That’s on the state’s central west coast. Along with a lab technician, Goeckner collected samples from the bottoms of the ponds. The samples had a layer of muck (淤泥) above sandy material. Older ponds had deeper layers of muck. Back at the lab, the research team measured the carbon-based compounds in the samples.
In general, older ponds released less of these carbon-based chemicals into the air than younger ponds did. At the same time, “the rate that older ponds were storing carbon in the sediment (沉积物) increased,” Goeckner says. In contrast, younger ponds seem to emit (排放) more carbon than they stored away.
“It’s just really important to take into account how these human-made ecosystems are playing a part in the environment,” she concludes. Some ponds mostly store carbon, it seems. Others mostly release it into the air. Her team shared its findings on March 9 in Communications Earth & Environment.
1. What is the finding of the new research?| A．Earth’s climate is warming. |
| B．Urban flooding is growing. |
| C．Ponds built by humans can collect rainwater. |
| D．Man-made ponds may lead to global warming. |
| A．Absorb. | B．Prevent. | C．Decrease. | D．Increase. |
| A．Older ponds store less carbon. | B．Younger ponds cause less harm. |
| C．Older ponds cause less harm. | D．Younger ponds store more carbon. |
| A．Muck and Sediment | B．Ponds and Water Cycle |
| C．Ponds and Climate | D．Rainwater and Environment |
【推荐1】One of the joys of growing up in the leafy suburbs of London was the freedom of living inside a wood. The street where my parents’ house sits runs through one comer of Epping Forest, a carefully manicured (修剪的) greenbelt to retain a sense of unspoilt wilderness. As a result, my brother and I were immediately able to go out of our back gate to climb trees, build dens in the bushes and swing on ropes hung from boughs.
My three boys also have a place, called Glamis Adventure Playground, where they can easily escape their parents, swing on ropes, and even pitch tents for an overnight camp, despite growing up in one of the UK’s most deprived and densely populated boroughs. It’s an oasis of fun for young people constructed on a wasteland with the aim of enabling children to create their own fun.
The tragedy, however, is that they may be the last generation of inner-city kids to experience such freedom. Adventure playgrounds such as Glamis are now an endangered species, according to recent research by Play England, which found that 15 per cent of the 147 sites in operation just five years ago are now shut. Many of the playgrounds, run by local authorities, would end up getting killed off by funding cuts begun in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.
But even those that still survive today remain at risk due to health and safety concerns and a downplaying by government of play as an essential part of the developmental process, according to Play England chair of trustees Anita Grant.
“Adventure playgrounds are built on trust, autonomy and freedom by children making their own games without the adults telling them what to do,” Grant says. “But there is a new way of discussing play where people talk about learning through play. As soon as you start viewing play like this, as something that needs outcomes, it stops being play for children.”
Another threat to adventure playgrounds is more pernicious than funding cuts: a fear about letting children out on their own to play. Research conducted in 2020 for the British Children’s Play Survey found the average age children were allowed out on their own was 11, two years later than their parents’ generation.
“The professionalization of parenting” — the idea that there is a recipe for children becoming well-rounded adults that has encouraged mums and dads to micromanage their offspring — is to blame. “Taking risks is a really important part of a child’s development but that often conflicts with what people feel is their responsibility as parents,” Dodd says. “Freedom of play is undervalued because we want our children to get a new skill that we can put on social media and brag about.” Typically, children must now play in a way that is being defined by adults.
1. Which of the following is NOT a reason why adventure playgrounds are becoming rare?| A．Parents tend to be afraid of letting kids play outside by themselves for safety’s sake. |
| B．Parents and kids are switching their attention from adventure playgrounds to social media. |
| C．The essential role of play in the developmental process is undervalued by the government. |
| D．the local authorities running these adventure playgrounds have economic difficulties. |
| A．irrelevant to | B．compared with |
| C．coming after | D．independent of |
| A．Parents agree on a standard definition of play, which shouldn’t involve risk-taking. |
| B．Parents think social media can help their kids acquire new skills that they can brag about. |
| C．Parents prefer to consult a professional recipe so that their kids may become well-rounded adults. |
| D．Parents involve themselves too much in children’s play in the name of parental responsibility. |
| A．Children’s play, nowadays a grown-up matter. |
| B．Children’s play, barely an essential part of development. |
| C．Children’s play, definitely a learning process. |
| D．Children’s play, always an undervalued skill. |
【推荐2】The story of chocolate begins with the discovery of America in 1492. Columbus was the first European to come into contact with cacao. Columbus was struck by how much value the Indians placed on them as he did not know the beans were used by currency. It is unlikely that Columbus brought any of these beans back to Spain and it was not until about 25 years later that Cortez grasped the commercial possibilities when he found the Aztecs using the beans to make the royal drink “chocolate”.
The Spanish, in general, were not fond of the bitter drink so Cortez and his followers made it more palatable by adding cane sugar and later cinnamon and vanilla were added. Spanish monks let the secret out back home and, although the Spanish hid it from their neighbors for a hundred years, finally chocolate’s popularity grew until it was their fashionable drink at the French court and the wise choice of customers at London meeting houses.
The cacao tree is strictly a tropical plant only in hot, rainy climates. Thus, its cultivation is limited to countries not more than 20 degrees north or south of the equator (赤道). The cacao tree is very delicate and sensitive. It needs protection from the wind and requires a fair amount of shade under most conditions. This is true especially in its first two or three years of growth. A newly planted young cacao tree is often sheltered by a different type of trees. It is normal to plant food crops for shade such as bananas, plantain, coconuts or cocoyams. Rubber trees and forest trees are also used for shade. Once established, however, cacao trees can grow in full sunlight, provided there are fertile soil conditions and intensive farming. With cutting and careful cultivation, the trees of strains will begin bearing fruit in the fifth year. With extreme care, some strains can be stimulated to produce good crops in the third and fourth year.
The process of turning cacao into chocolate hasn’t changed much since the Swiss made the major breakthroughs in the process in the late 1800s. First the beans go through a process of fermentation ( 发酵 ) and drying. They are then sorted by hand before cleaning and then roasting. Winnowing ( 风 扬 ) follows which removes the hard outer layers and leaves what is as the “grains”. A crushing and heating process known as Hunte’s Process is then used to remove nearly half of the cocoa butter from the nibs. This makes unsweetened chocolate. Basic eating chocolate is made from a mixture of the unsweetened chocolate with some of the cocoa butter along with other ingredients such as sugar and vanilla. The resulting product is then “purified” and this purifying gives chocolate the silky texture that we know so well. The finished result is then shaped, cooled, packaged by machine, distributed, sold and of course, eaten!
1. Why didn’t Columbus bring beans back to Spain at once when he found cacao?| A．Because he couldn’t afford to buy the cacao bean. |
| B．Because he didn’t know how to turn cacao bean into chocolate. |
| C．Because he was not aware of the monetary value of cacao bean then. |
| D．Because Spaniards then didn’t favour the chocolate that the Aztecs originally drank. |
| A．affordable | B．agreeable | C．patent | D．portable |
| A．Cacao trees need a lot of looking after to be used commercially. |
| B．Cacao trees require hot, rainy climates and adequate sunlight. |
| C．Cacao trees won’t produce fruit until the fifth year. |
| D．Cacao trees can grow well in all continents. |
① The chocolate is reheated to melt it, put into patterns and then cooled to make its final shapes.
② The beans are harvested on the farm.
③ Some cocoa butter is then obtained using Hunte’s Process to make cooking chocolate.
④ The cooking chocolate is then mixed with other ingredients to make the various types of eating chocolate available today.
⑤ The beans are winnowed after fermentation and drying and these two processes produce the grains.
⑥ The finished product is wrapped, sent to shops and then sold.
| A．②①③④⑤⑥ | B．②③①⑤④⑥ | C．②④⑤①③⑥ | D．②⑤③④①⑥ |
【推荐3】In 1969, when Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the moon . the astronomical body was for Chinese just a glowing orb （圆形物）overhead to stare at and muse about. Now, fifty years later, China has become the first nation to land a robotic spacecraft on the far side of the moon.
As the world celebrates the historic US moon landing on July 20, 1969, Chinese lunar explorers said their moon exploration program, including plans for a robotic lunar research station prototype （原型）by 2030 to prepare manned missions, is open to international cooperation.
The lunar research station will become a base for astronauts to visit briefly and ultimately for a long-term stay, according to Li Chunlai, director of the Ground Research and Application System of the Chinese Lunar Exploration Project, and three of his colleagues. "International cooperation is an important element in China's strategy of lunar and deep space exploration," they wrote in an article published on Friday in a special issue of the US journal Science to mark the anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.
In 2004, China unveiled a three-phase robotic lunar exploration program —orbiting, landing and returning- naming it the Chang e Project. Four missions were conducted between 2007 and 2019, with Chang e-4 deploying（部署）a lander and the Yutu-2 rover on the surface of the far side of the moon in early January. The fifth mission, scheduled for early next year. is to return rocks to Earth from a lunar area that has not yet been sampled（取样），according to the article s authors.
The authors wrote that China is open to cooperation with NASA on lunar exploration. "Both sides can start cooperating on aspects such as exchange of scientific data and space situational awareness information," the article said. "China also looks forward to exploring more opportunities to cooperate with NASA to preserve the space environment for generations to come. ”
Already, China's latest lunar mission Chang e-4 has carried out experiments from Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands （荷兰), it said. In April, the China National Space Administration announced cooperation opportunities for China s sixth lunar mission and its asteroid（小行星）exploration mission. It also signed lunar exploration cooperation agreements with the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs. Turkey, Ethiopia and Pakistan.
1. What does the underlined phrase "muse about" in Para. I mean?| A．Worry about. | B．Complain about. |
| C．Doubt about. | D．Think about. |
| A．To explore the asteroids of the moon. |
| B．To bring rocks to the earth from the moon. |
| C．To build a robotic research station prototype. |
| D．To carry out experiments from Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands・ |
| A．China hasn't decided whether to explore more opportunities to cooperate with NASA. |
| B．China signed lunar exploration cooperation agreements with Turkey, India and Pakistan . |
| C．China's latest lunar mission Chang'e-4 has done experiments from some European countriess. |
| D．Chang'e-4 deployed a lander and the Yutu-2 rover on the surface of the near side of the moon in early January. |
| A．China invites nations to join in moon exploration |
| B．The world celebrates the historic US moon landing |
| C．China's present and future lunar exploration programs |
| D．China unveils a three-phase robotic lunar exploration program |
