It has become common knowledge that our oceans are filled with garbage. Broken objects, used plastic bottles and so on fill our beaches and cover the ocean floor, doing huge damage to ocean creatures. Many individuals and organizations are working to remove this garbage, and recent technological developments have given them a new tool to do so: the trash-eating robot.
Robots of various shapes have been designed to collect garbage that they find floating in the ocean. For example, the French company IADMEEYS has developed what it calls the jellyfishbot. This small robot gathers up everything it meets, including liquid hydrocarbons (碳氢化合物) such as gasoline and oil. The jellyfishbot is remotely controlled and can clean up to 1,000 square meters per hour. The jellyfishbots’ small size and ability to be easily controlled make them ideal for cleaning up crowded areas such as ports.
For larger, more open areas, a much larger robot called the Interceptor has a similar function. Designed for use on rivers, the Interceptor looks like a boat with a conveyor belt (传送带) that picks up trash. Once a sensor indicates that the rubbish bins are full, the Interceptor automatically sends a text message to onshore operators. These operators collect and empty the rubbish bins, sending the garbage to local waste management facilities.
The Interceptor’s name comes from the verb intercept because its purpose is to prevent trash from getting to the ocean. Most of the garbage in the oceans comes down rivers. Cleaning up trash that litters the ocean is good, but to keep the oceans clean, new garbage must be stopped from getting there. Therefore the Interceptor is used to stop pollution before it enters the ocean.
The Interceptor is completely solar-powered and operates on its own, which minimizes the need for human involvement.
Robots are able to clean up large amounts of garbage without humans struggling through beach cleanup by hand. Hopefully, they can be a big part of the solution to ocean pollution.
1. What’s the purpose of the first paragraph?| A．To introduce the background. |
| B．To set the readers reflecting. |
| C．To state the writer ‘s intention. |
| D．To give supporting details. |
| A．They need no human operation. |
| B．They can clean up crowded ports. |
| C．They are both solar-powered. |
| D．They are controlled in the distance. |
| A．Stop. | B．Check. | C．Sort. | D．Collect. |
| A．They collect all the garbage. |
| B．They save much human labor. |
| C．They get rid of water pollution. |
| D．They empty the rubbish bins. |
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【推荐1】A small device no bigger than a toaster has generated oxygen on the surface of Mars, bringing the chances of surviving on the red planet a step closer.
The Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment, better known as Moxie, has been generating oxygen from the atmosphere on Mars, as part of NASA’s Perseverance rover (漫游者) mission.
Moxie produced breathable oxygen in seven hour-long tests conducted in various weather and atmosphere conditions since landing. During each test, the device produced six grams of oxygen, about the same as a small tree and enough to sustain an astronaut for 15 minutes. It’s also found that even in extreme temperatures and after a Martian dust storm, Moxie continued to produce high-purity oxygen.
“This is the first demonstration of actually using resources on the surface of another planet and transforming them chemically into something that would be useful for a human mission,” said Jeff Hoffinan, a retired astronaut and professor at MIT.
NASA and the MIT team are planning to build a bigger version of Moxie, as they hope advanced models will produce enough oxygen to support a crewed mission to Mars. “We have to bring a lot of stuff from Earth to support a human mission, but oxygen is a big problem. If you can make it there, go for it and you’re way ahead of the game,” Hoffinan said.
The device uses pumps that absorb in carbon dioxide which is heated to 800℃and processed to separate the carbon and oxygen. Carbon monoxide (一氧化碳) is emitted as waste while the pure oxygen is left behind.
Expanding the device to support a human mission to Mars presents challenges. It is needed to run continuously for 400 days, a leap from the one-hour tests and its inner temperature should be controlled stably. Moxie has proved to endure the extreme conditions on Mars, however, and the team plans to assess the machine’s limits in the coming months when atmosphere is thick and carbon dioxide levels are high. They say they just want to set everything as high as they dare and make as much oxygen as they can.
1. What can we learn about Moxie?| A．It works well in a series of tests. |
| B．It is stopped by extreme conditions. |
| C．It aims to purify breathable oxygen. |
| D．It produces oxygen enough for a team. |
| A．To present a plan to further explore Mars. |
| B．To demonstrate Nasa’s ambition to win the game. |
| C．To show the plentiful and useful resources on Mars. |
| D．To highlight the significance of making oxygen on Mars. |
| A．Cautious and ambitious. | B．Practical and independent. |
| C．Confident and intelligent. | D．Courageous and imaginative. |
| A．A Nasa Mars rover landed successfully. |
| B．Challenges for a human mission to Mars. |
| C．A little oxygen on Mars, a great leap forward. |
| D．Human beings survive with oxygen made on Mars. |
【推荐2】Climate change is driving increasing wildfires, and those burns make up a large share of planet-heating pollution. Now, a company in Berlin uses AI with sensors (传感器) in forests to find minor (微小的) burns before they spread into big fires.
With nose-like sensors, fires can be discovered in their early stages, making it easier to put out them before they become too large or difficult to control. The company Dryad has set up 50 sensors across various locations, from the Middle East to California. Recently, the sensors discovered a small fire in Lebanon within just 30 minutes.
Another way to stop big fires is to set “controlled burns” outside of fire season to clean some trees and grass that may become fuel for fires. These controlled burns are usually carefully planned and monitored by burn managers to make sure that they are safe and do not get out of control.
But to do the work, burn managers need to know how the fire might behave so it doesn’t lose control. “They need to know things like the weather patterns, road conditions and the amount of moisture (水分) in the plants,” says Yolanda Gil, a researcher at the University of Southern California.
After interviewing fire scientists, Gil and their team used AI to create a smart assistant to help burn managers decide where and when to make controlled burns. “It’s kind of like Apple’s Siri. But for burn managers, the technology can help them understand the situation in an area and provide a way to make a safe controlled burn.” Gil says.
1. What is the purpose of AI from the Berlin company?| A．To monitor climate change. | B．To work out the causes of a wildfire. |
| C．To cut down on pollution in forests. | D．To prevent fires in their early stages. |
| A．They can promote the growth of trees. | B．They can hurt burn managers anytime. |
| C．They can help clear away fuel for wildfires. | D．They are often carried out during fire season. |
① Road conditions. ② Weather patterns. ③ The number of plants. ④ The temperature of the burns.
| A．①② | B．②③ | C．②④ | D．③④ |
| A．It is difficult to operate. | B．It is a helpful tool. |
| C．It is smarter than Siri. | D．It needs to be improved. |
【推荐3】After bikes and umbrellas are made sharable across China, some companies started eyeing the fitness market, so shared gym rooms have hit the streets in Beijing.
Unlike regular gyms that provide large, open spaces for many members to share at the same time, the newly built shared gym rooms are small, stand－alone rooms for a person to use, often set up near living communities.
Every four－square－meter room is equipped with a treadmill (跑步机), an air cleaner, a mirror, a television and an air conditioner, and users can let down the shades for privacy. When exercising, users can listen to music, watch movies and check emails by connecting to the Internet by the screen fixed on the treadmill. There's no shower or washbasin.
Similar to using a shared bike, users can locate a shared gym room by smartphone application, book a room in advance and then need to scan(扫描) a QR code for use. A refundable deposit(保证金) of 99 yuan is required, and users are charged 0.2 yuan, per minute.
The shared gym rooms are created by Misspao, a Beijing－ based technology company founded in July. Within two weeks since it was founded, the company has already got two rounds of funding valued over 100 million yuan, Yicai Global reports. The idea of the shared fitness experience is not entirely nascent. Last December, the Shanghai－based technology company VRUN set up shared treadmills in office and apartment buildings.
The sharing economy is still becoming popular in China. According to Yicai Global, confident investors are pouring millions into sharing start－ups. In March, the State Information Center published a report which predicts that the total value of China's sharing economy will see a yearly growth of 40% in the coming years, and it is expected to contribute around 10% to the country's GDP by 2020.
1. What makes the shared gym rooms different from the regular one?| A．Being free to be used. | B．Holding one person at a time. |
| C．Standing in the living zone. | D．Having some advanced equipment. |
| A．Users can have a shower in it after exercise. |
| B．Users who want to use it need a smartphone. |
| C．Users who use it first need to pay for 99. 2 yuan. |
| D．Users' privacy can't be protected while they are exercising. |
| A．New. | B．Popular. | C．Satisfying. | D．Shared. |
【推荐1】The longleaf pine (长叶松) tree has deep connections with the history and life of the eastern part of America. Forests of these trees once covered two-thirds of the southeastern United States. About 95 percent of those forests were lost in the past 100 years. Many of the forests were cut for their wood, but now they are returning, with the help of government programs that build ties with private landowners.
The wood of the tree is very strong. Most buildings built in the southern U.S. from the 1800s contained longleaf pine wood. Today, although buildings made with longleaf pine are no longer wanted, yet people are reusing the wood because it is still good and resists (抵抗) water and insect damage.
The longleaf pine also takes in CO2 in the air. It stores the material in its wood. So, the tree is valuable to the environment as a way to store carbon.
At the same time, the pine forests are places for animals to live. The U.S. government has several programs to protect and increase longleaf pine forests. One is the Safe Harbor Program. It uses voluntary agreements with private landowners to help animals at risk. One such agreement protects the red-cockaded woodpecker and also lets landowners use their land, as long as the birds and other connected animals can safely live on it.
Now, farmers and landowners in the southeastern U.S. are growing new longleaf pine trees. Instead of cutting the trees to use as building materials, they are finding ways to make money from the forest of living trees. One way to get money is by selling the leaves of the trees as a ground cover. Farmers can gather the pine leaves by hand or with the help of a machine. Pine leaves can be used instead of wood pieces or skins as a ground cover. It lasts a long time, is light in weight and stays in place because the needles (针) connect to each other.
1. Which of the following has helped bring back the longleaf pine trees?| A．The government’s efforts. | B．The much money it brings. |
| C．People’s wish to return to the old lifestyle. | D．The great need for their wood. |
| A．Welcome. | B．Cheap. | C．Unpopular. | D．Unclean. |
| A．Providing longleaf pine wood. | B．Protecting animals in danger. |
| C．Enlarging the wood’s market. | D．Collecting longleaf pine needles. |
| A．The Return of Longleaf Pines Gives Home to Animals |
| B．Farmers Benefit from Living longleaf Pine Trees |
| C．New Uses of Longleaf Pine Trees Create Forests |
| D．Longleaf Pine Trees Give More than Just Wood |
【推荐2】From July to October every year, about a quarter of the world’s blue whales feed in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. But the whales currently face a major threat in their favorite feeding area. Ships carrying cargo (货物) sail in the same area at the same time. All too often, the whales’ paths and the ships’ travel lines overlap (部分重叠), and a ship will hit a whale.
According to a new study, these ship strikes have become a serious threat to the overall population of the world’s blue whales. Only about 10,000 of the creatures still exist worldwide. Blue whales are the largest known animals ever to live on Earth. Even so, if hit by a container ship, a blue whale will likely die from its injuries.
In 2007 alone, large ships killed five blue whales in the waters of San Francisco and Los Angeles, California. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says that because there are so few whales already, losing three to five from the California whale population every year is a significant loss. “The estimated population of blue whales in this part of the Pacific is 2,500,” says Sean Hastings, an analyst of NOAA. “So every whale counts toward this species moving off the endangered-species list.”
Now, marine scientists must figure out how to protect the whales from the giant container ships. One very simple program is already underway in the Santa Barbara Channel, a waterway that separates mainland California from the nearby Channel Islands.
The Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary has asked large container ships passing through the area to voluntarily slow down. Sailing slower will allow the ships’ crew (船员) more time to change course before hitting a whale.
Several of the world’s largest shipping lines are set to participate in the new program. For every ship that passes through the Santa Barbara Channel at or below the reduced speed of 12 knots, the company that owns the ship will be paid $2,500.
1. What can we learn from Paragraph 1?| A．People intend to illegally hunt blue whales for money. |
| B．Large ships often carrying goods may pollute the sea. |
| C．The container ships may hit the blue whales frequently. |
| D．There is fewer fish in blue whales’ favorite feeding area. |
| A．Because the number of the blue whales is so small. |
| B．Because other blue whales will be scared away. |
| C．Because blue whales are the largest animals in the world. |
| D．Because many blue whales get killed throughout the year. |
| A．the number of the blue whales is decreasing sharply |
| B．the blue whales are still on the endangered species list |
| C．most of the world’s blue whales live in the Pacific Ocean |
| D．blue whales are often disturbed by other endangered creatures |
| A．The basic responsibility of a sailor. | B．Measures to protect the blue whales. |
| C．The world’s largest shipping lines. | D．Ways to slow down the speed of the ships. |
【推荐3】UK supermarkets are producing more plastic waste despite promises to cut down, new re-search suggests, as sales of bags for life increase to 1.5 billion.
Retailers (零售商)were responsible for more than 900,000 tons of plastic waste in 2018, according to a report from the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) released Thursday. Seven of the 10 largest supermarket chains reported a higher plastic packaging tonnage in 2019 compared to last year, although exact figures for this year have not been released.
Compared to 2018, this year the number of sold eco-friendly bags for life rose by about 25%, the report stated. Campaigners said the rise showed that the bags are now being used by many as a replacement for single-use carrier bags.
Campaigners recommend that supermarkets increase the price of bags for life to 70 pence ($0.9). They point to the 90% reduction in bags for life sales in Ireland, where prices are set at 70 cents ($0.77). However, in an ideal world bags for life would be removed completely, enforced by a government ban, said campaigners.
“It's shocking to see that despite unprecedented (空前的)awareness of the pollution crisis, the amount of single-use plastic used by the UK's biggest supermarkets has actually increased in the past year,” said Juliet Phillips, EIA ocean campaigner. He added, “Our survey shows that grocery retailers need to tighten up targets to drive real reductions in single use packaging and items. We need to address our throwaway culture at it's root through systems change, not materials change. Substituting one single-use material for another is not the solution.”
The report reveals that plastic use among suppliers is also to blame, and supermarkets have failed to make them reduce plastic packaging. Tesco has led the way in this area, threatening to delist (退市)products for suppliers who fail to cut excessive plastic. Campaigners are urging other supermarkets to do the same.
Plastic waste is a global issue and various countries have taken action to reduce its impact.
1. What does the new research in the UK find?| A．What results in more plastic waste. | B．Why customers use more bags for life. |
| C．How many plastic bags have been used now. | D．How UK supermarkets cut down plastic waste. |
| A．It decreased slightly. | B．It became more serious. |
| C．It got controlled well. | D．It was out of control. |
| A．Banning the use of bags for life. |
| B．Charging more for producing plastic bags. |
| C．Taking practical steps to reduce plastic waste. |
| D．Changing the materials to make plastic bags. |
| A．It required suppliers to cut down plastic packaging. |
| B．It found out a replacement for single-use carrier bags. |
| C．It called on consumers to use fewer plastic bags. |
| D．It forced supermarkets to fight against plastic pollution. |
【推荐1】Some countries build palaces or temples as monuments to their greatness. Singapore builds hawker (小商贩) centers. Put casually on a plate or banana leaf are the dishes such as Indian roti prata and Singapore laksa which are mixed with what is from Malaysia.
And since one can eat one’s fill in a hawker center at a reasonable price, it is no surprise that eight in ten Singaporeans visit such places at least once a week, according to a survey conducted by the National Environment Agency in 2018. Singapore is so proud of its street food that it hopes UNESCO will include it in its list of humanity’s most precious arts.
The UN’s heritage inspectors (检查员) had better hurry. The average age of the chefs is 60, so maintaining the hawker trade in the long run is hard. When old chefs pass away, many take their recipes with them, says K.F. Seetoh. Only Singaporean citizens can work in hawker centers managed by the government. But young Singaporeans have little appetite for working in piping-hot stalls (摊位) for long hours and little pay.
The few young Singaporeans willing to put up with such conditions often live hand-to-mouth. When Yu Ting Gay and Alex Ho opened their Italian-Japanese mixing stall in 2017, they hoped to earn $1,474 a month each. Most of the time they made half that. “Our pockets were quite tight,” says Ms. Yu.
Older hawkers have an unfair advantage. Many of those pay discounted rents: $200 a month on average. They still account for 55% of the 5, 500 stalls rented by the government. But a report published by the Ministry of Trade in 2015 found that even though younger hawkers have an average 15% higher operating costs, they do not pass them on to their customers, which is discouraged by the government too.
1. What can we know from the first two paragraphs?| A．80% of the Singaporeans visit hawker centers every day. |
| B．Singapore’s street food has already been included in UNESCO’s list. |
| C．The hawker centers were built together with palaces and monuments. |
| D．The street food in Singapore shows the combination of different cultures. |
| A．The young generation are unwilling to take over the job. |
| B．The foreigners are not allowed to work in hawker centers. |
| C．The street food in Singapore will have a promising future. |
| D．Most of the experienced chefs give their recipes to the young hawkers. |
| A．It is easier for older hawkers to run their business. |
| B．The government encourages hawkers to raise food price. |
| C．The young hawkers lead a comfortable life in Singapore. |
| D．The young hawkers charge more money for the higher costs. |
| A．No pains, no gains | B．A young idler (懒汉), an old beggar |
| C．Out with the new | D．The pupil surpasses (超越) the master |
【推荐2】Robots aid in coronavirus fight
Robots have certain advantages compared to humans: They are efficient, tireless, can be repaired when damaged and they never get sick. This last trait has made them the star during our fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. While hundreds of thousands of medical workers have fallen ill dealing with this highly infectious virus and a lot more are forced to stay at home for fear of getting the disease, this isn’t a problem for robots.
This is why the COVID-19 outbreak is seen as the “tipping point” —noted The Independent science reporter Anthony Cuthbertson – for robots to start to replace humans in certain jobs.
In areas like hospitals and healthcare facilities, robots are used to perform high-risk tasks. In China, for example, a hotel in Hangzhou employed a robot named “Little Peanut”to deliver food to people under quarantine. In Spain, robots are about to be used to test people for the coronavirus. Ultraviolet-light-disinfection(紫外线消毒) robots are also being widely used to clean hospital corridors and wards(病房).
“Hospitals around the world are waking up to autonomous disinfection.” Per Juul Nielsen, CEO of Denmark’s UVD Robots, a leading company manufacturing(制造) disinfection robots, told Forbes. “We can’t build these robots fast enough.”
In non-medical companies, robots are also replacing human employees since they don’t have the problem of social distancing and will never take sick leave. Walmart and Amazon, for example, where robots are already used in sorting, packing and shipping, are planning to increase the number of robots in their facilities. Fast-food chains like McDonald’s are not only delivering food with robots in some areas, but also looking to use them as cooks and servers.
According to futurist Martin Ford, using more robots than human employees can prove to be rewarding for companies – even when the pandemic is over. “People will prefer to go to a place that has fewer workers and more machines because they feel they can lower overall risk, ” Ford told the BBC.
But this sudden surge(激增) in robot demand doesn’t mean that they triumph over humans in every aspect. According to Bill Smart, a roboticist at Oregon State University, the human contact between doctors and patients is still important. Doctors comfort the patients and guide them through hard decisions while robots are only doing routine tasks, like cleaning and giving tests, just to free up doctors and nurses.
It might be true that robots have certain advantages over humans. But they are still secondary to human interaction.
1. What is the text mainly about?| A．The advantages of robots compared to humans. |
| B．Different views toward applying robots to fight COVID-19 |
| C．Why the COVID-19 outbreak has fueled robot demand. |
| D．Whether robots will replace humans in certain areas one day. |
| A．They can be repaired when damaged. |
| B．They test people for coronavirus more precisely. |
| C．They never get tired and can replace doctors and nurses. |
| D．They are not vulnerable to the coronavirus. |
| A．Its benefits are appealing and lasting. |
| B．Machines are less disturbing than humans. |
| C．It poses a threat to human employment. |
| D．There are some risks with the use of robots. |
| A．The demand for robots is too great to meet. |
| B．Doctors can make more accurate judgments than robots. |
| C．Humans interactions are essential in some areas. |
| D．Robots need updating to improve contact with humans. |
Christmas in South Africa is a summer holiday. There is no snow, but it has many flowers, many beautiful varieties of wild flowers being in their full pride.
In Ghana, most churches announce the coming of Christmas by decorating the church and homes beginning with the first week in Advent, four weeks before Christmas. This season happens to be the cocoa harvest time, so it is a time of wealth. Everyone returns home from wherever they might be, such as farms or mines.
In Africa, it is the traditional dinner of turkey, roast beef, mince pies, suckling pig, yellow rice with raisins, vegetables, and plum pudding, or crackers. In the afternoon, families go out into the country and usually there are games or bathing in the warm sunshine, and then home in the cool of the evening. Boxing Day is also a public holiday of real relaxation usually spent in the open air, which falls on December 26.
1. The writer of this passage mainly wants to _________.
| A．persuade us to have a holiday in Africa |
| B．introduce to us when Christmas came into being |
| C．tell us how people celebrate Christmas in Africa |
| D．describe some important holidays in Africa |
| A．Christmas→ Boxing Day→ Advent |
| B．Boxing Day→ Christmas→ Advent |
| C．Christmas→ Advent→ Boxing Day |
| D．Advent→ Christmas→ Boxing Day |
| A．everyone returns home to harvest cocoa |
| B．people enjoy a traditional dinner |
| C．the church and homes are being decorated |
| D．it is snowing heavily everywhere |
| A．pumpkin pies | B．yellow rice |
| C．crackers | D．turkey |
