【推荐1】Ranchers(农场主) and environmental advocates haven’t always seen eye to eye, but the differences between the two aren’t as extreme any more, as more and more ranchers have come around to the understanding that taking good care of the land supports both economic stability and environmental health.

“For some, ranching was pursued in the past with an emphasis on raising beef at the expense of everything else,” says Bill Bryan of the Montana—based Rural Landscape Institute in a recent Christian Science Monitor. “As a matter of necessity, the old way of ranching is giving way to a new pattern. Raising animals for the dinner table isn’t an activity that has to be at odds with the environment.”

According to the nonprofit World Wildlife Fund (WWF), grazing (放牧)—when done right—is key to maintaining biological diversity and ecosystem health across the Northern Great Plains, across 183-million-acre expanse of rangelands spanning five US states and two Canadian provinces.

This vast landscape evolved in harmony with large herbivores (食草动物), such as bison and elk, and must be grazed in order to remain healthy, reports WWF, which works with hundreds of ranchers across the region as part of its Sustainable Ranching Initiative. “Without grazing, woody vegetation, such as juniper and cedar creeps in and kills plants that threatened species, such as grassland birds, need to survive.”

Not surprisingly, many of the ranchers that are following in the forebears’ footsteps have been using what we now call “sustainable ranching practices” for decades already. One example is rotational (轮流的) grazing, that is moving cattle herds more frequently to different pastures(牧场), so they don’t overgraze any one particular patch of land.

A newer “best practice” involves depositing a quarter to half inch of cattle wastes on grazed land to kick-start the soil chemistry below while also absorbing significant amounts of methane (沼气)—the most potent greenhouse gas—before it can head for the atmosphere. This technique is now becoming more commonplace as today’s ranchers care about reducing their carbon footprints like no generation before them.

1. In the first two paragraphs, what does the writer imply about the relationship in the past between ranchers and environmentalists?

A．They worked together to reduce the impact of grazing on the environment.

B．They didn’t look each other in the eyes when they meet.

C．They had great differences between each other.

D．They both agreed that raising animals for food benefits the environment.

2. The underlined phrase “be at odds with” (in Paragraph 2) most probably means ________ from the context.

A．be favourable to

B．be in disagreement with

C．stand a chance with

D．be unusual for

3. Which of the following is TRUE of grazing nowadays?

A．Many ranchers persist in prioritising raising cattle over anything else.

B．Grazing done in the right way helps biological diversity and ecosystem.

C．“Rotational grazing” has been recently employed to raise animals.

D．Grazing contributes to trees competing favourably with plants.

4. The writer mentioned the “best practice” to indicate ________.

A．grazing can be functional in the chemistry field

B．methane is another powerful greenhouse gas besides carbon dioxide

C．ranchers tend to remove their footprints as they are grazing

D．grazing has become more eco-friendly as time goes by

【推荐2】If you think backyard and roof-top beehives (蜂箱) are helping save the bees, think again, experts say.

A recent study conducted in Montreal found that places with the largest increase in honeybees kept by humans had the fewest wild bee species—with small bees, which are only able to fly shorter distances to find food, appearing to be especially at risk.

“The honeybee has been promoted as the symbol of helping the environment and the variety of living species on the earth, and really it’s not that,” says Gail MacInnis, a researcher at Concordia University. “You would never start keeping chickens to help save wild bird species.”

“Honeybees are among the most common insects in the world, but they aren’t native to many of the places where they are found,” says Sheila Colla, a professor at York University. “Honeybees are very successful invaders (入侵者),” Colla says. These bees can fly long distances and are able to effectively communicate with one another through dance language. Introducing honeybee hives to an area can be a problem for local wild bees, which often end up competing for the same food sources.

Should we stop keeping bees in the cities then? Colla gives us an answer in some way. “There is room for it in cities. It’s just right now we’re not managing it very responsibly in certain places,” she says. It is suggested that cities and towns that allow beekeeping should have caps on the number of hives and require people to register their bee hives. Beekeepers also need to understand the responsibility they’re taking on.

1. Why does Gail MacInnis mention “keeping chickens”?

A．To introduce a new topic.	B．To show how to save wild birds.
C．To make her idea easily understood.	D．To share chicken-keeping knowledge.

2. What is the problem for the local wild bees when honeybee hives are introduced?

A．Competition for food.

B．Risk of being killed.

C．Less communication.

D．No habitat.

3. What is the last paragraph mainly about?

A．Saving the honeybees.	B．Building hives in cities.
C．Making room for honeybees.	D．Keeping honeybees responsibly.

【推荐3】Tigers are faced with many threats, including poaching(偷猎), illegal trade and habitat loss to name a few. It’s little wonder that their population has declined from 100,000 a century ago to just 3,500 today.

But despite these challenges, Nepal’s wild tigers have successfully returned from the edge of extinction with a 190 per cent population increase since 2009. According to Nepal’s National Tiger and Prey Survey 2022, there are now 355 wild tigers in the country, compared to 121 in 2010. This amounts to a 190 per cent increase, meaning that the country nearly tripled its tiger population.

Ginette Hemley, Senior Vice President for wildlife conservation at the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), said,“Tigers in Nepal and everywhere else that they live in Asia, about 10countries, were on a steady decline because of two key reasons. The most immediate reason was poaching for the illegal animal trade. The second reason was loss of habitat.”

To achieve this comeback in tiger numbers, Nepal laid ban on poaching, with anti-poaching groups patrolling protected areas. Another factor in the country’s success was the restoration of corridors to promote the safe passage and genetic distribution of tigers in protected areas.

Hemley said,“ Nepal really does stand out as a leader in conservation,especially for tigers. There is support for conservation of tigers at the highest level of government. That has translated into really effective habitat conservation, bolstering the protection of tigers in national parks, the wildlife reserves.” As well as government support, she pointed to community involvement in conservation projects as a reason for Nepal’s success. Hopefully, we will continue to see a recovery in the tiger population, as well as measures taken to protect local communities.

1. What does the author think of the decrease of the tiger population?

A．It’s surprising.

B．It’s puzzling.

C．It’s expected.

D．It’s abnormal.

2. What do the figures in paragraph 2 mean?

A．The success of tiger conservation.

B．Efforts made by a few Nepalese.

C．The serious decrease of tigers.

D．Challenges of protecting tigers.

3. Which can best replace the underlined word “patrolling” in paragraph 4?

A．guarding

B．walking

C．trapping

D．judging

4. What does the last paragraph mainly tell us?

A．The specific reasons for protecting tigers.

B．The government’s attitude to tiger conservation.

C．The author’s ambiguous attitude to tiger conservation.

D．The work local communities have done to protect tigers.

【推荐2】Climbers targeting peaks above 5,000 meters in the Tibet autonomous region, including the north side of Qomolangma, now have to apply for a permit, according to a rule issued by Chinese sports authorities.

To make climbing safer, or at least less deadly, the General Administration of Sport and the sports bureau of Tibet released a notification (通知) requiring climbers to send an application to the bureau at least a month in advance of their planned climb. It said climbing without permits will be strictly forbidden.

“In recent years, cases of injuries, missing people and deaths have been witnessed as a result of illegal climbing,” the notification said. “Climbing is a highly professional sport with high risk. Most illegal climbers lack professional skills, facilities and tour guides. Such activities will interfere with orderly climbing and bring risks, not only to the climbers themselves but also rescuers. They will also lead to a loss of personal or national property.”

Applications will need to detail each individual climber’s personal information, proposed climbing routes and related plans. Climbers are also being asked to obey related rules to protect mountain environments. The notification also urged regional government departments to strengthen safety checks and the prohibition of illegal climbing, encourage residents to join regular patrols near major climbing routes and promote public education on climbing safety.

In a previous interview with China Daily, Kul Bahadur Gurung, general secretary of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, said difficult weather conditions, lack of experience and support personnel, and the commercialization (商业化) of expeditions were the main reasons for the high death toll on the world’s highest peak. “Since the number of people reaching the summit of Everest is increasing, everyone thinks it is easier to climb and everyone can climb, which is a totally false idea,” he said.

1. Why is a permit needed for Qomolangma climbers?

A．To stop illegal climbing.	B．To provide training ahead.
C．To limit the number of climbers.	D．To collect climbers’ information.

2. Which word can best replace the underlined “interfere with” in Paragraph 3?

A．Test.

B．Change.

C．Replace.

D．Disturb.

3. What does Paragraph 4 focus on about the notification?

A．Its content.

B．Its purpose.

C．Its background.

D．Its impact.

4. What does Kul Bahadur Gurung think of the Everest climbing?

A．It’s a totally false idea.	B．It should be eco-friendly.
C．It’s highly professional.	D．It should be non-profitable.

【推荐3】John Banville has received three major literary prizes. In 2005 he won the Man Booker Prize for his novel The Sea (his 14th book). He has been proposed repeatedly as a candidate (候选人) for the Nobel Prize in Literature.

The writer had been resting on his couch when he received a call from a man half an hour before the true winners would be revealed at an awarding ceremony on Thursday. The man on the phone claimed to be Mats Malm, the secretary of the Nobel Prize Committee and he told Banville he would be awarded the prize of this year. And then he also read Banville a formal statement of the achievements he would print about the writer’s work.

“He was so convincing that I rang everybody I could think of to tell them about this good news.” Banville recalled. But 40 minutes later Banville received a phone call from his daughter who had seen the live announcement. She told her father, “It’s not you!”

“I realized then that it must have been a hoax. I rang everybody again and said, ‘Don’t buy the champagne and stop throwing your hats in the air!’” said Banville. A voicemail left on Banville’s phone shortly after the announcement explained that there had been a last-minute disagreement among decision-makers. But, after a close listen to the message, Banville noticed that voice was “deeper” than that of the real Mats Malm and lacked the same “smooth” grasp of English. He has since shared the message with the Swedish Academy to investigate the incident.

1. The underlined word “hoax” in the last paragraph probably means_______.

A．trick

B．game

C．event

D．joke

2. John Banville assumed that the news was true at first because _______.

A．many people considered John Banville was a talented and productive writer

B．he has been proposed repeatedly as a candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature

C．the man who called claimed to be the secretary and sounded very convincing

D．the so called secretary called half an hour before the awarding ceremony

3. How did Banville possibly feel when he received the second call?

A．suspicious and worried	B．shocked and disappointed
C．sad and ashamed	D．angry and guilty

4. We can learn from the passage that _______.

A．who was responsible for the hoax will soon be revealed

B．the Nobel Prize Committee planned the incident behind the scenes

C．the voicemail left on Banville’s phone was probably a cheat

D．John Banville will one day be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature