From the Hanging Gardens of Babylon to the orange gardens of Seville, urban planners down the ages have taken inspiration from nature. And those living in the concrete and brick jungle have perhaps never appreciated green space more than during the covid-19 pandemic. During lockdowns, citizens have found parks and gardens an unexpected source of calm and joy.
The evidence of positive effects from nature includes studies on specific psychological conditions.
The evolving understanding of nature’s broad health benefits, plus our ongoing pandemic experience, is a big urge to build the green cities.
| A．How to build green cities is a problem. |
| B．What does an ideal green city of tomorrow look like? |
| C．Actually, the trend for urban greening has already begun. |
| D．This isn’t just a phenomenon in developed countries, either. |
| E．Clean air and water, nutrient recycling and flood defence are the bonuses. |
| F．Access to nature can improve sleep, reduce stress and increase happiness. |
| G．It has a huge impact on people’s perceptions of their health and well-being. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】The four theme parks below offer the most thrilling (刺激的) rides and attractions in the world.
Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Located (位于) in Virginia, USA, this theme park has some of the highest-rated thrill rides in the world. The park’s famous roller coasters include Apollo’s Chariot, Alpengeist, Griffon, the Loch Ness Monster and Verbolten. The park also has thrilling water rides, rides for kids, other rides, shows, tours, animal exhibits and more. Divided into nine areas representing European countries, the park has won an award for the quality of its food.
Everland
One of the world’s most popular theme parks, Everland is located in Yongin, Gyeonggi-do Province, Korea. The park has 40 thrill rides, including a world- famous wooden roller coaster, and many other attractions such as a hunting ride, a zoo, indoor and outdoor water parks, shows and more.
Blackpool Pleasure Beach
This Lancashire amusement park is one of the most visited theme parks in the United Kingdom. Among the park’s 125 rides and attractions are the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the UK, a classic wooden roller coaster, a steel tower ride, the biggest indoor dark ride in the world，a host of rides for kids and more.
PortAventura World
Located on Spain’s Costa Daurada, this park is divided into six themed areas. Five areas represent different locations including Polynesia, Mexico, Far West, China and the Mediterranean. The sixth and newest area has a Sesame Street theme. The park has many rides and attractions suitable for visitors of all ages.
1. What did Busch Gardens Williamsburg win an award for?| A．The highest thrill rides. | B．Good quality of its food. |
| C．A Sesame Street theme area. | D．A host of thrilling water rides. |
| A．Busch Gardens Williamsburg. | B．Everland. |
| C．Blackpool Pleasure Beach. | D．PortAventura World. |
| A．It has a classic wooden roller coaster. |
| B．It has the fastest roller coaster in the world. |
| C．It has the biggest indoor dark ride in the world. |
| D．It has attractions suitable for visitors of all ages. |
| A．In Virginia. | B．In Yongin. |
| C．In Lancashire. | D．On the Costa Daurada. |
【推荐2】The most innovative libraries around the world
Some libraries use unique architecture to encourage visitors to explore the shelves and settle down with a new book, or use roving libraries to bring books to hard-to-reach populations. No matter how they achieve it, these novel libraries are keeping the magic of reading alive.
Beach Library (Albena, Bulgaria)
Reading a book on the beach is a classic, and in Bulgaria, one library encourages tourist to do just that. The white, weather resistant shelves lined up not far from the surf feature 6,000 books in 15 languages so every visitor can find the perfect read to enjoy while bathed in the sunshine.
The Camel Library Service (North Eastern Province, Kenya)
To fight low literacy rates in the desert of Kenya, the government created a movable library composed of nine camels bringing books to villages. The library travels four days a week serving the region. Currently the service focuses on children, but with more funding they plan to increase their reach both in distance and the titles they carry.
Seikei University Library (Tokyo, Japan)
Libraries are usually known for their quiet atmosphere, but this one encourages conversation. The library was designed with space-age, free-standing sound proofed pods (吊舱) to respect those who need uninterrupted study, while also being beneficial to other methods of learning; they serve as perfect spots for study groups and lively discussions.
Macquarie University Library (Sydney, Australia)
A surprising combination of cutting-edge and sustainable, this building, featuring a green roof, was made from recycled and designed to imitate the look of a eucalyptus tree. It is also state of the art, using robots to bring requested books to the front desk.
1. Who is more likely to visit the Camel Library?| A．The government officials. | B．Kids in the desert of Kenya |
| C．The local villagers in the region. | D．Fundraisers of this service. |
| A．Its quiet reading atmosphere. | B．Its unique design of space-age. |
| C．Its freedom of lively discussions. | D．Its weather resistant shelves. |
| A．Beach Library. | B．The Camel Library Service |
| C．Seikei University Library. | D．Macquarie University Library |
【推荐3】A heated debate is currently going on in our town.Should we allow the cinema to be constructed in the Havenswood Shopping Center? There is just one large lot left to build on,and the theater would use up all of that space.Some people are excited at the idea of finally having our own movie theater.Others would rather travel ten miles to the nearest theater to keep our quiet town the way it is.They say it is enough to have Marvin’s Movie Video Rentals.After all,Marvin’s store keeps thousands of the latest videos.
There are certainly benefits to renting videos.For one thing,you can plan your own schedule when it is convenient for you.You can relax on your sofa,and take a break whenever you need one.You can also talk to others without bothering any strangers seated nearby.In additional,it is a less expensive way to view a movie compared to going to a theater.
On the other hand,seeing a movie in a theater is an experience all its own.First,you can see the movie on wide screen as the filmmaker intended.To be viewed on a television screen,a film must be changed in some way to make it smaller.One is the “pan-and-scan” method,which involves removing some of the details in the picture.The other way,called “letterboxing”,keeps the image the way it is on the big screen,with one annoying exception; because the big-screen version is wide,the same picture on a television screen must be long and narrow.
Another problem is sound.The sound from a television cannot compare to the sound system in a theater.Your experience of a movie improves when you can clearly hear all of the sounds.Furthermore,at home,viewing companions often talk during a movie,which makes you miss out on what’s happening in the film.
Besides,having a movie theater will not mean that you can’t still go to Marvin’s! You will just have a choice that you didn’t have before.Isn’t it time for Havenswood residents to enjoy a little progress?
1. The underlined word “lot” in Paragraph 1 means “__________”.| A．a great number | B．a complete group |
| C．an area of land | D．a result of chance |
| A．By using examples. | B．By making a comparison. |
| C．By carrying out a survey | D．By presenting different people’s view. |
| A．Marvin’s store stocks lots of recent videos. |
| B．It’ very convenient to go to Marvin’s store. |
| C．the owner of the store is friendly and helpful. |
| D．It is more comfortable to see films at home than in the theater. |
| A．Cautious. | B．Approving. | C．Doubtful. | D．Worried. |
【推荐1】It was a perfect summer morning on the beach in Rio De Janeiro. A man set up his umbrella and chair near the water and was ready to read his book. Just then, when he looked toward the sea, he noticed a small shape that came out of the water. It slowly made its way out onto the sand and began to flap its wings. It was obviously weak and tired.
When the animal was just a few feet away, the man couldn’t believe his eyes. A penguin(企鹅)? Penguins don’t live in Rio. The man was amazed. He looked around to see if there was anyone else noticing this strange sight.
A jogger soon appeared, followed by another. They stopped and stared. It was clear that the penguin was having trouble breathing. The first jogger looked at the sea and said, “Poor thing, so far away from home.”
The penguin fell to its side. It had swum 2000 miles, trying to find the tiny fish that penguins like to eat. Why did the penguin need to travel so far? Perhaps it was confused (使糊涂) by moving ocean currents (水流) and temperatures—common effects of global (全球的) warming. The penguin needed help. It would not survive on the hot sand.
One of the joggers phoned for help, and soon some firemen arrived. The man was glad that the penguin would soon be safe, although he felt a little sad too.
The event on the beach at Rio happened some time ago. It was only the beginning of penguin migration (迁移) to Brazil. Since that time, hundreds of penguins have appeared on the coasts of Brazil. They come all the way from Patagonia and the Straits of Magellan, southern parts of South America. They land on the sands very tired and hungry, and many of them die. Some are shipped or flown back to colder waters farther south.
Perhaps the experience of the penguins will help us better understand the serious effects of human activities on climathte change and on the condition of our planet.
1. What is the meaning of flap?| A．拍打 | B．开心 | C．喜欢 | D．卧倒 |
| A．hopeful | B．happy | C．surprised | D．worried |
| A．tell us the experience of the penguins |
| B．call on us to save the penguins on the beach of Rio |
| C．show people in Brazil are friendly to penguins |
| D．remind people to mind human activities and protect our planet |
| A．Brazil Beach. | B．South American Culture. |
| C．Unexpected Guests. | D．Human Activities. |
【推荐2】Solar. Wind. Hydropower(水力发电). These renewable energy sources are all much better for the climate than fossil fuels, right? Well, yes for wind and solar. But it turns out that the picture for hydropower is more complicated than we think.
A new study by the Environmental Defense Fund analyzed the climate effects of 1,500 hydropower facilities across the globe. That accounts for about half of hydropower generation worldwide. The researchers looked at whether the facilities behave as a greenhouse gas sink or as a source. To figure this out, they investigated all the different components that help determine a hydropower facility’s greenhouse gas emissions(排放).
“There are so many factors that contribute to greenhouse gas emissions from hydropower — but essentially, the majority of greenhouse gas emissions arise from the reservoir(水库) itself, as plants and soils are submerged underwater in the dam that is used for the hydropower generation.” Ilissa Ocko said, a senior climate scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund and co-author of the study. “As the submerged vegetation rots, it releases methane or CO2.”
“The larger the surface area of the reservoir, the more greenhouse gases are going to be emitted from that reservoir. Also, the temperature plays a role as well — how warm the reservoir is will affect how much greenhouse gases are produced and emitted from the reservoir.”
Through their analysis, Ocko and her co-author Steven Hamburg, also with the Environmental Defense Fund, discovered that the climate effects of hydropower include all these. The good news is that some facilities perform just as well as wind and solar. But shockingly, more than 100 facilities are actually worse for the climate than fossil fuels. The study is in the journal Environmental Science & Technology.
This finding doesn’t mean we should forget about hydropower. “But we just need to be careful to make sure that we have climate benefits. There are a lot of situations where hydropower can be on par with wind and solar. So it really depends on the specific facility.”
1. What do the researchers expect to figure out through this new study?| A．The climate effects of the hydropower facilities. |
| B．The greenhouse gas emissions of a hydropower facility. |
| C．The distribution of the hydropower facilities across the globe. |
| D．The relation between the hydropower facilities and the greenhouse gas. |
| A．They consume too much power to run. |
| B．They cause great damage to local ecosystem. |
| C．Many plants are in store under the reservoir. |
| D．The water level in the reservoir is uncontrollable. |
| A．equal to | B．senior to |
| C．harmful to | D．beneficial to |
| A．Approving. | B．Doubtful. |
| C．Objective. | D．Opposed. |
【推荐3】They give us paper and fuel, as well as vital ecological set-vices—like cleaning the air, storing carbon and providing home. We’re talking about trees, of course.
But human changes to the environment appear to be causing great changes to trees around the world. In a new study, scientists reviewed global research on trends in tree seedlings (幼苗)，growth, and death. They combined those data with an analysis deforestation (森林采伐). And they found worldwide, older trees are dying at a higher rate than in the past, due to reasons like rising air temperature, wildfires, drought(干旱) and pathogens (病菌).
“ And most of the drivers of that decrease in large, old trees are increasing themselves, such as temperature going up, droughts are more severe, wildfires, windstorms, and deforestation are all—although variable across the globe—they’re generally increasing. And so both the loss has already occurred, but we expect more continued loss of big, old trees,” said Nate McDowell, an earth scientist at Pacific Northwest National Lab, who was one of the study’s authors.
“So if we have an increasing rate of death, particularly of the larger, older trees, what’s left are the younger trees. So that’s why on average, through the loss of bigger, older trees, our forests are becoming younger and shorter. This trend is a problem, because old trees are vitally important.”
“The increase in death does limit the carbon storage of an ecosystem, and can force the system to become a carbon source to the atmosphere. The second reason is from a biodiversity viewpoint—old trees tend to house a higher biodiversity. And the third reason is linked with beauty: as a society we care about these trees. We have national parks named after these big trees.” Nate McDowell added.
1. What’s the purpose of the author in writing the passage?| A．To warn us to care about old trees. |
| B．To call on us to plant more trees. |
| C．To tell us why old trees are dying out. |
| D．To prove forests are becoming smaller. |
| A．There’ll be a larger number of older trees. |
| B．Older trees will disappear in the world. |
| C．Young trees will be cut down by people. |
| D．Trees will become younger and shorter. |
| A．They are beautiful. |
| B．They can shelter a variety of wildlife. |
| C．National parks have access to them. |
| D．They limit the carbon storage of an ecosystem. |
| A．Temperature Destroys Forests. |
| B．Forests Gets Younger and Shorter |
| C．The Reasons of the Loss of Old Trees |
| D．The Driver of the Decrease of Old Trees |
