Washing machines are one of the greatest inventions of the last few centuries.They have made life easier. Unfortunately, washing machines also contribute to the environmental issues of energy use and micro-plastics flowing into the oceans. That is why the washing machine manufacturer (制造商), Samsung, and the outdoor-wear company, Patagonia, are working together to make a change.
For Patagonia, the issue of micro-plastics has been on its mind for years — its woolen jackets release many microfibers. As for Samsung, new requirements throughout the world have forced many producers to start thinking about ways to help reduce the number of micro-plastics. There are currently more than 14 million tons of micro-plastics floating in the oceans. Though people previously think of things such as plastic bottles and fishing lines when it comes to plastics in the ocean, thousands of micro-plastics are released into seas with every wash.
The issue is a sort of catch-22. In order to reduce energy costs, manufacturers try to make their machines more efficient. These machines use hotter water and are designed to create more friction (摩擦) between the clothing in the machine. However, both of these things lead to the release of more micro-plastics. So, using Patagonia clothes as test cases, Samsung came up with a two-fold solution: One is a technology called Eco-bubbles, which creates more bubbles to make the detergent (洗涤剂) more powerful, and the other is a water purifier that can filter (过滤) out more micro-plastics.
The cooperation between the two companies is proof of how complicated protecting the environment can be. On the one hand, clothing that is well-constructed and durable is a weapon in the fight against fast fashion. On the other hand, the material used to make those clothes and the way they are washed can also add pollutants to the environment.The same goes for washing machines. There is no one-size-fits-all solution. The fight against climate change requires creative thinking and learning how to attack a problem from many angles. This will certainly lead to even more strange and fruitful cooperation between the environmentally conscious companies.
1. What is Samsung’s purpose in partnering the outdoor clothing company?A.To limit the use of micro-plastics. |
B.To solve the issue of energy waste. |
C.To find a solution to micro-plastic pollution. |
D.To produce high-efficiency washing machines. |
A.A tricky situation. | B.A questionable fact. |
C.A possible dream. | D.A practical method. |
A.Using hotter water. |
B.Creating more friction. |
C.Using powerful detergents. |
D.Adding a water purifier to washing machines. |
A.The difficulty in fighting against fast fashion. |
B.The complexity of environment conservation. |
C.The influence of humans’ active action. |
D.The importance of creative thinking. |
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【推荐1】The world celebrates Earth Day every year on April 22.But one school in Potomac,Maryland tries to honor Earth Day every day.Very young children are learning about the environment and taking action to show their love for the Earth.
A child’s world is the world of playing.They love being outside in the open air,running,sliding and swinging on playground equipment.But children at St.James Children’s School also add to that fun by picking up rubbish in the school.Inside,they learn to save water and electricity.They also recycle and reuse things.And every spring they get the soil ready to plant flowers and vegetables in the school garden.
The children at St.James range from six weeks to six years old.The environmental study begins at age two.Rebecca Boker teaches the children the importance of taking care of the Earth.Boker says every day at St.James is Earth Day.She points to books in all the classrooms and in the library.Most contain materials that urge children to do something to help the environment and protect the Earth.
St.James children observe the growth of plants from seeds to sprouts(苗,芽) in cups kept in the classroom.Then they watch the plants continue to grow after placing them in the garden.The students also observe the lifecycle of some insects.After that,they know it is their job to respect their home just like they want others to respect theirs.
But do these very young children really get the message that their teachers try to communicate?Ms Boker says yes.On April 22 the kids at St.James will go out to the school’s garden for the yearly cleanup.But for them,Earth Day will continue for the school days ahead as well.
1. Which might be the best title for the passage?A.Earth Days at St.James Children’s School |
B.How to Celebrate Earth Day |
C.How to Protect the Environment |
D.Young Children’s Love and Respect for the Earth |
A.At the age of six weeks. |
B.At two years old. |
C.At age six. |
D.At age seven. |
A.teach the importance of respecting the Earth |
B.help the children write better compositions |
C.enrich the children’s knowledge in agriculture |
D.let the children enjoy the growth of life |
A.Anxious. | B.Surprised. |
C.Negative. | D.Positive. |
【推荐2】The biggest risk to UK forests over the next 50 years is a “catastrophic” collapse of their ecosystems, according to a group of experts. The group of 42 researchers were asked to identify the issues that would have the greatest impact on UK forests in the next half-century. The list was topped by “catastrophic forest ecosystem collapse”, the prospect of a number of risks, from droughts and floods to storms and pests. If action is not taken, the ecosystem will no longer function effectively.
This is the first “horizon scanning” exercise — a technique to identify relatively unknown threats, opportunities, and new trends — of UK forests. The aim is to help researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and society in general, better prepare for the future and address threats before they become critical.
Experts define such a collapse as a “sudden, long-lasting and widespread change in ecosystem state that has major negative impacts on biodiversity and key ecosystem services”. Those ecosystem services include clean air and water. Some species could be pushed to extinction. “Forest collapse will have significant short-and long-term influences on the forest, and wider environment, economy and society,” the researchers said.
The UK is one of the least forested countries in Europe, with 13 percent of land being forested, compared with a European average of 46 percent. The government has a UK tree-planting goal of 30,000 hectares by 2025, but is widely expected to miss it.
A spokesman for the Department for Environment said,“ We will continue to work with partners to tackle the challenges and opportunities raised in today’s report to ensure our trees and woodlands remain healthy, so they can support habitats and a range of wider environmental benefits.”
The Times revealed this year that more than 400,000 trees planted in England to make up for road projects had died since 2018. Experts think an increase in dry spring s and hot summers has made tree aftercare harder.
1. What’s the purpose of the researchers’ making the list?A.To apply more serious laws. | B.To search for potential opportunities. |
C.To learn about the overall situation. | D.To get an insight into natural disasters. |
A.Its definition. | B.Its process. | C.Its consequences. | D.Its causes. |
A.Short-sighted. | B.Time-consuming. | C.Intolerable. | D.Impractical. |
A.It depends on climate. | B.It has a long way to go. |
C.It is bound to be a failure. | D.It needs support from all over the world. |
【推荐3】Artificial cloud technology could soon be used in the fight against environmental damage. Researchers in Australia have used machines to spray salt water into the air, and noted that the reflective qualities of these artificial clouds helped protect the Great Barrier Reef from sun bleaching (漂白).
The so-called cloud brightening project works by thickening existing clouds and reducing sunlight exposure to protect the reef. No artificial chemicals make it into the clouds in the sky. When water droplets steam, they leave only small salt crystals that float up into the atmosphere. This provides a larger surface area for water vapor to be liquids around them, forming thicker clouds.
The past two years have seen uncommon forest fires and droughts triggered by the climate change emergency, meaning that widespread use of this technique may become more commonplace if carbon emissions are not checked.
Drones, unmanned flying vehicles, have also entered the cloud controlling picture, used in the United Arab Emirates, a country desperately in need of more rainfall, to deliver electrical shocks to clouds in order to facilitate rainfall. Zapping (击打) clouds to produce a positive or negative charge within clouds can cause water droplets to form together. The greater the charge, the larger the droplets, which is vital for ensuring that as much rain as possible reaches the surface before steam gives off all the hard-won moisture (水分).
Even if one waves aside climate change, global waterfall shortages are still an increasing concern, given the planet’s booming population. More people means more mouths to feed, and the demand for water in agriculture for animals and crops further increases urgency for cloud controlling technology. An increase in rain also leads to positive economic growth in many countries, as large harvests stabilize financial systems and living standards in all climates.
Increasingly, scientists are looking to our skies in providing solutions to protect our environment. Cloud controlling technologies have promise. However, for this field of science to become practical economically, more research needs to be done in making this process a practicable option in protecting our environment.
1. How does the cloud brightening project work?A.By creating more water vapor which later becomes liquids. |
B.By spraying chemicals and small salt crystals into the atmosphere. |
C.By expanding the water vapor arca and blocking more sunlight. |
D.By steaming water droplets to provide a larger surface area. |
A.They spread larger water droplets. |
B.They charge clouds to promote rain. |
C.They will be popularized in dry years. |
D.They control the movements of clouds. |
A.Problems of overpopulation. |
B.Solutions to waterfall shortage. |
C.Urgency of economic development. |
D.Additional benefit of cloud technology. |
A.High cost. |
B.Research method. |
C.Environmental impact. |
D.Complicated process. |
The Wealthy Society is a modern classic because it helped describe a new moment in the human condition. For most of history, “hunger, sickness, and cold” threatened nearly everyone, Galbraith wrote. “Poverty (贫穷) was found everywhere in that world. Obviously it is not of ours.” After World War II, the fear of another Great Depression gave way to an economic growth. In the 1930s unemployment had averaged 18.2 percent; in the 1950s it was 4.5 percent.
To Galbraith, materialism (物质主义) had gone mad and would cause discontent. Through advertising, companies conditioned consumers to buy things they didn’t really want or need. Because so much spending was artificial, it would be unsatisfying. Meanwhile, government spending that would make everyone better off was being cut down because people wrongly considered government only as “a necessary bad.”
It’s often said that only the rich are getting ahead; everyone else is standing still or falling behind. Well, there are many undeserving rich — overpaid chief managers, for instance. But over any meaningful period, most people’s incomes are increasing. From 1995 to 2004, people feel “squeezed” because their rising incomes often don’t satisfy their rising wants — for bigger homes, more health care, more education, and faster Internet connections.
The other great disappointment is that it has not got rid of insecurity. People regard job stability as part of their standard of living. As company unemployment increased, that part has gradually become weaker. More workers fear they’ve become “
Because so much previous suffering and social conflict resulted from poverty, the arrival of widespread wealth suggested utopian (乌托邦式的) possibilities. Up to a point, wealth succeeds. There is much less physical suffering than before. People are better off. Unfortunately, wealth also creates new complaints.
Advanced societies need economic growth to satisfy the multiplying wants of their citizens. But the search for growth cause new anxieties and economic conflicts that disturb the social order. Wealth sets free the individual, promising that everyone can choose a unique way to self-accomplishment. But the promise is so unreasonable that it leads to many disappointments and sometimes inspires choices that have anti-social consequences, including family breakdown. Figures indicate that happiness has not risen with incomes.
Should we be surprised? Not really. We’ve simply confirmed an old truth: the seeking of wealth does not always end with happiness.
1. The Wealthy Society is a book ________.
A.about poverty in the past |
B.written by Louis Uchitelle |
C.indicating that people are becoming worse off |
D.about why happiness does not rise with wealth |
A.materialism has run wild in modern society |
B.they are in fear of another Great Depression |
C.public spending hasn’t been cut down as expected |
D.the government has proved to be necessary but ugly |
A.They think there are too many overpaid rich. |
B.There is more unemployment in modern society. |
C.Their material demands go faster than their earnings. |
D.Health care and educational cost have somehow gone out of control. |
A.People with a stable job. |
B.Workers who no longer have secure jobs. |
C.Those who see job stability as part of their living standard. |
D.People who have a sense of security because of their rising incomes. |
A.Stability and security. |
B.Materialism and content. |
C.A sense of self-accomplishment. |
D.New anxiety, conflicts and complaints. |
【推荐2】Young children who have experienced compassionate (有同情心的) love and empathy (认同感) from their mothers may be more willing to turn thoughts into action by being generous to others, a University of California, Davis’ study suggests.
In lab studies, children tested at ages 4 and 6 showed more willingness to give up the tokens (代金券) they had earned to fictional children in need when two conditions were present—if they showed bodily changes when given the opportunity to share and had experienced positive parenting that modeled such kindness. The study initially included 74 preschool-age children and their mothers. They were invited back two years later, resulting in 54 mother-child pairs whose behaviors and reactions were analyzed when the children were 6.
“At both ages, children with better physiological regulation and with mothers who expressed stronger compassionate love were likely to donate more of their earnings,” said Paul Hastings, UC Davis professor of psychology. “Compassionate mothers likely develop emotionally close relationships with their children while also providing an early example of satisfying the needs of others,” researchers said in the study, published in November in Frontiers in Psychology” Emotion Science.
In each lab exercise, after attaching a monitor to record children’s heart-rate activity, the examiner told the children they would be earning tokens for a variety of activities, and that the tokens could be turned in for a prize. The tokens were put into a box, and each child eventually earned 20 prize tokens. Then before the session ended, children were told they could donate all or part of their tokens to other children.
Taken together, the findings showed that children’s generosity is supported by the combination of their socialization experiences—their mothers’ compassionate love—and their physiological regulation, and that these work like “internal and external supports for the ability to act prosocially that build on each other”.
In addition to observing the children’s propensity (习性) to donate their game earnings, Hastings suggested that “being in a calmer state after sharing could reinforce (加强) the generous behavior that produced that good feeling.”
1. How do young children loved by their mother tend to become in later years?A.Considerate. | B.Emotional. |
C.Generous. | D.Optimistic. |
A.The process of the research. | B.The result of the experiment. |
C.The reactions of the children. | D.The importance of Mom’s love. |
A.Their moms love them deeply. | B.They donate the tokens easily. |
C.They behave physiologically. | D.They are calmer after sharing. |
A.What Contributes to Generosity? |
B.The More You Give, the Calmer You Will Be |
C.Do You Prefer to Receive or Give? |
D.More Giving, Less Receiving |
【推荐3】Businesses are finding more uses for Virtual Reality(VR) as the technology develops.
VR is no longer only for gaming or enjoyment. An American company called Blue Goji is using VR to improve one’s health by making exercise more fun.
Blue Goji has offices in Austin, the capital of Texas. The company showed its workout machine, called the Infinity treadmill (跑步机) at the recent South by Southwest festival. A person using the treadmill wears a virtual reality headset when exercising. Before starting, the user is connected to a belt to prevent falls. Then, the user plays a VR game while running on the machine. The game can transport the user into the virtual world, where he or she can be racing against virtual people.
The cost of the hardware and computer software program is $ 12,000.That is a lot of money for most people. But Kyra Constam of Blue Goji says the virtual reality treadmill is ideal for places where people go to exercise, like high-end gyms or recreation centers.
Recently, Leonardo Mattiazzi tested the Infinity treadmill. He thought the experience was surprisingly realistic. Mattiazzi said he had a strong feeling to actually get running and do something that pushed his limits. He said the experience was more interesting than running inside the gym without actually going anywhere.
Lots of VR experiences cause motion sickness because people are in motion during the game, but not moving in real life. But when the user is moving on the treadmill and in the game, the chances of motion sickness are reduced, Constam said.
After carefully studying the users’ experiences, Blue Goji plans to begin selling the Infinity treadmill to the public in 2019.
1. After running on the Infinity treadmill, what are users most likely to do?A.Make more new friends. |
B.Gain more useful skills. |
C.Be more fond of exercising. |
D.Find the games more enjoyable. |
A.Users can not run on it. |
B.It is too expensive for most people. |
C.Users can race against their friends. |
D.It can be bought in high-end gyms. |
A.He. was content with it. |
B.He was a bit disappointed with it. |
C.He fell in love with it almost at once. |
D.He thought it realistic to sell it to the public. |
A.To promote a new product. |
B.To call on people to take more exercise. |
C.To introduce a new application of virtual reality. |
D.To discuss the relationship between life and modern technology. |