"What kind of rubbish are you?" This question might normally cause anger, but in Shanghai it has become a special "greeting" among people over the past week. On July 1st, the city introduced strict trash-sorting regulations (条例〉that are required to follow and expected to be used as a model for our country. Residents must divide their waste into four separate categories and toss (投放)it into specific public dustbins. They must do so at specified times, when monitors are present to ensure correct trash-tossing and to ask the nature of one's rubbish. Individuals who fail to follow the regulations face the possibility of fines and worse. They could be punished with fines of up to 200 yuan ( $ 29). For those who repeat to go against them, the government can add black marks to their credit records, making it harder for them to get bank loans or even buy train tickets.
Shanghai government is responding to an obvious environmental problem. It generates 9 million tons of garbage a year, more than London's annual output, which is rising quickly. But like other cities in China, it lacks a recycling system. Instead, it has relied on trash pickers to sift (筛选)through the waste, picking out whatever can be reused. This has limits. As people get wealthier, fewer of them want to do such dirty work. The waste, meanwhile, just keeps piling up.
Many residents appear to support the idea of recycling in general but are annoyed by the details. Rubbish must be divided according to whether it is food, recyclable, dry or harmful, the distinctions among which can be confusing, though there are apps to help work it out. Some have complained about the rules concerning food waste. They must put it straight in the required public bins, forcing them to tear open plastic bags and toss it by hand. What they complain most is the short periods for dropping trash, typically a couple of hours, morning and evening. Along with the monitors at the bins, this means that people go at around the same time and can keep an eye on what is being thrown out; no one wants to look bad.
1. What do we know about the trash-sorting regulations in Shanghai?A.They are the first of their kind. | B.They are tied to one's bank account. |
C.They have the highest fines. | D.They're aided by monitors. |
A.There are fewer and fewer trash pickers. |
B.It aims to build a new recycling system. |
C.It faces more and more serious garbage problems. |
D.People throw the rubbish here and there. |
A.Limited time for tossing the trash. |
B.Confusing distinction among the categories of trash. |
C.Being fined due to improper behavior. |
D.Being watched by monitors when throwing the garbage. |
A.A Good Way of Trash-sorting |
B.A New Era of Garbage Classification |
C.A Great Time in Dealing with Litter |
D.An Effective Solution to Rubbish Problem |
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【推荐1】The giant panda is more than just a cute conservation animal and a beloved media darling. It is also, according to new research, the protector of dozens of other unique Chinese species. The panda itself doesn’t actually defend other wildlife, but it helps to save it all the same by serving as what’s known as an “umbrella species”. In other words, efforts to preserve habitats for the giant panda also protect many other mammals, birds and amphibians (两栖动物) that live only alongside pandas, in the same areas and regions.
Conservationists have expressed this umbrella species theory for years but a paper published recently in Biological Conservation proves it. The research found that most of the forest animals in China live within the panda’s geographic range and the nature reserves set aside to protect them. In brief, most of this range overlaps (与……重叠) with important conservation areas for other local forest species.
Pandas do protect a lot although a few species fall outside the umbrella. The research found about one hundred kinds of animals are not protected by the giant panda’s current reservation. The paper identified 10 locations that might be suitable for new or improved nature reserves to help expand that coverage. Many of these areas, located in Sichuan Province, which is considered the stronghold (大本营) of giant pandas in the wild, are close to existing reserves.
Protecting the newly identified locations, however, won’t save all of China’s unique wildlife. “Pandas are a good umbrella species for forest ecosystems in China but that’s not enough,” says co-author Binbin Li. “In China we have many ecosystems. We need more umbrella species.” For example, she says tigers could serve the same role in the northern part of the country and snow leopards could be an umbrella for grassland species.
“The new findings are important,” Pimm (the other author) and Li say, “because many people doubt whether China’s commitment to preserving giant panda habitats is doing much good.” Other people around the world don’t even realize that wild pandas still live in their native forests. “A lot of the resources in China go to releasing captive (被关住的) pandas back into the wild,” Li says. “The news doesn’t cover that.” She says this paper helps display wild pandas and also shows that the expense in preserving them is money well spent.
The researchers hope their paper helps to set the tone for future discussions not only about umbrella species but also giant pandas themselves, along with all China’s wildlife.
1. Giant pandas are called an umbrella species because ________.A.they never fight for protected species |
B.they help take care of other baby animals |
C.their precious value requires better protection |
D.the protection for them also extends to other species |
A.The number of nature reserves may be reduced. |
B.The coverage of nature reserves may be expanded. |
C.The giant panda lives in important local conservation areas. |
D.Many nature reserves in China are located in Sichuan Province. |
A.Create more kinds of strong species. | B.Find more kinds of umbrella species. |
C.Focus solely on pandas’ conservation. | D.Search for much bigger nature reservations. |
A.showing how well pandas are living | B.blaming the media for their ignorance |
C.proving China’s efforts to protect pandas | D.appealing to organizations to donate money |
A.The umbrella species have a great influence on the ecosystem. |
B.Researchers have done a lot to protect China’s local species. |
C.Giant panda conservation also protects other unique species. |
D.Conservationists expressed a new umbrella species theory. |
【推荐2】After you finish your fries, eat the ketchup packet. When you add your pasta to boiling water, toss the bag into the pot, too. If these instructions sound confusing to you, it’s only because you haven`t yet heard of Notpla, a London-based startup company that is designing a seaweed-based replacement for single-use plastic packaging.
Notpla`s products are meant to be dissolved after use. Current offerings include packet for condiments(调味料), water and even alcohol; a film wrap for products in your bathroom, like toilet paper; and takeaway boxes that replace plastic-based coating with seaweed lining to make them fully biodegradable.
Notpla design director Karlijn Sibbel says they look to nature as inspiration “for the ideal packaging,” like the skin on a fruit. The approach feels especially relevant as the world is coming to terms with the effects of decades of unlimited plastic production. According to the UN, 331 million tons of plastic waste are produced globally each year, and about 60% has been discarded(丢弃)outdoors. Microplastics pollute the ocean, the air and our bodies.
Notpl’s founders initially looked to seaweed as the solution to the world’s plastic problem because it is abundant, grows quickly, doesn’t compete with land crops, and sequesters(隔离)carbon from the air, Sibbel explained. There are also many different seaweed species, and it can be harvested or farmed. “Seaweed doesn`t use land; it doesn`t use pesticides,” Sibbel said. “It can grow into the ocean, where it actually has a lot of positive benefits so it can create new ecosystems for other organisms to thrive in.”
“Our team hopes seaweed could replace single-use plastic in the supply chain broadly,” Sibbel said. But with the volume of plastics used around the world, she understands the enormity(巨大)of such a task. “I don’t think one material or one solution is going to solve everything, but we think that seaweed really ticks the right boxes.” she said.
1. What function is expected of the seaweed-based replacement?A.To serve as containers. | B.To replace alcohol. |
C.To accelerate plastic breakdown. | D.To benefit other organisms. |
A.Introduce a new topic for discussion. |
B.Summarize the previous paragraphs. |
C.Provide some advice for the readers. |
D.Add some background information. |
A.It multiplies rapidly. | B.It can be planted. |
C.It is pesticide-free. | D.It can purify carbon. |
A.Doubtful. | B.Ambiguous. | C.Positive. | D.Worried. |
【推荐3】China will accelerate law-making on making up for ecological damage, as the mechanism (机制) continues to prove its role in helping restore damaged environments across the country, according to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment. From 2018 to 2021, authorities across the country handled about 11, 300 such cases, with compensation (补偿) amounting to almost 11.7 billion yuan.
The department showed statistics demonstrating the mechanism as effective in dealing with ecological and environmental damage.
It said that thanks to the compensation, over 36 million cubic meters of contaminated soil and 300 million cubic meters of polluted surface water have been treated. The mechanism has also helped restore over 61 million square meters of forest.
In a case exposed in late 2019, for instance, a paper company named Meili was found to have illegally dumped a large amount of thick, black waste from papermaking in the Tengger Desert. According to the ministry’s investigation, most of the pollutants were dumped from 2003 to 2007, polluted soil and groundwater, and damaging plants. In March 2021, after a third-party agency was brought in to assess the damage, a court in Zhongwei required the polluter to pay more than 198 million yuan in compensation in two stages.
In the first stage, Meili will pay about 44.2 million yuan to cover the cost to investigate andclean up the pollutants. The rest of the compensation will be used in the second stage to carry out compensatory restoration, groundwater monitoring and risk control in the area. In its statement, the department of law, regulation and standards also noted the remarkable progress the country has made in enhancing the institutions for the mechanism.
Bie Tao, director of the department, vowed further efforts to promote law-making for the mechanism. “Aside from striving to include ecological and environmental damage compensationinto the Environmental Protection Law and other relevant laws, we will also make efforts to promote research into a specific law for the mechanism,” he said.
1. What does the underlined word “contaminated” in Paragraph 3 probably mean?A.Dirty. | B.Pure. | C.Tidy. | D.Rich. |
A.How to make the law. | B.How the mechanism worked. |
C.How to monitor groundwater. | D.How the environment was polluted. |
A.Detailed news about global warming. |
B.Clearly defined law for the mechanism. |
C.Further research into the paper company. |
D.Regular process of environmental protection. |
A.Make polluters pay | B.Keep the earth healthy |
C.Stop environmental damage | D.Work harmoniously with each other |
【推荐1】Monkfish are low in calories and they are easy to cook. They can be cut into pieces, mixed with egg whites, cornflour and salt, and then put into boiling water for a few minutes. There is only one problem with monkfish: they are ugly. With their eyes sticking out and wide mouths full of sharp teeth, they are frightening.
In the Netherlands, fishermen who caught them used to throw them back. They are still usually sold without their heads, but the days of throwing them away are long gone. Japanese diners love the fatty liver; while Italians may still call them toad tails, that doesn’t stop them from eating the fish. People have been encouraged to eat more monkfish, as well as other unattractive creatures — in order to ensure the biodiversity of the ocean environment.
There are more examples for sea animals going from “purposely avoided” to “willingly consumed”. In America, lobsters used to be fed to prisoners — a result of their abundance but also, no doubt, because they are difficult to eat and look frightening. Not until the late 19th century did they become fantastic dish. Today they are so desirable that Maine, where most American lobsters are caught, has the images of these creatures printed on many of its vehicles.
Sometimes fashion goes the other way. Turtles were plentiful in early America, but in the 19th century they became fashionable: few foods were more recommended than turtle soup. Americans ate some species of turtle nearly to extinction. Yet today turtle-eating is more closely associated with remote and uncultured areas.
Among cooking choices, people prefer the rare and the beautiful one than the unattractive one. But such narrow-minded food choices can have bad results: some species may not survive human preference for them. Better to stare into monkfish’s eyes than to contribute to the permanent loss of a species.
1. How were monkfish treated in the Netherlands?A.They were abandoned by local fishermen. | B.They were popular due to their fatty livers. |
C.They were called toad tails from time to time. | D.They were considered a danger to the ecosystem. |
A.To stress its abundance in America. | B.To make a comparison with monkfish. |
C.To prove prisoners used to be fed on seafood. | D.To show people’s food habits keep changing. |
A.Turtle-eating has been out of date now. |
B.Turtles have completely disappeared in America. |
C.Turtles were purposely avoided among food choices. |
D.Turtle-eating was against fashion in the 19th century. |
A.To introduce rare undersea wildlife. | B.To encourage people to eat seafood. |
C.To explain why people dislike monkfish. | D.To call for the protection of biodiversity. |
【推荐2】Scientists in Britain have managed to teach bumblebees (大黄蜂) to pull strings to get to food and then pass on what they have learned to others in their colony — showing a high level of intelligence despite their tiny brains.
Researchers at Queen Mary University of London said the experiments, often used to test the intelligence of apes (猿) and birds, showed for the first time that some insects are up to the task, and can also pass skills on through several generations.
The findings add to the evidence suggesting the ability for “culture spread” — the ability to learn and pass on knowledge and skills — may not be exclusive to humans.
In the research, published in the journal PLOS Biology on Tuesday, the scientists were able to train 23 out of a group of 40 bees to pull strings with their legs and feet.
The strings were attached to discs- or artificial “flowers” — containing food at their center but placed under a transparent screen. The bees, spotting the food beneath the screen, learned to pull the “flowers” out by pulling the string with their legs and feet to be able to get to it. From another group of bees given the chance to solve the task without any training, only two of 110 were successful.
Another group of bees was then allowed to observe the trained bees pulling the strings, and 60 percent of them successfully learned the skill. Finally, trained bees were put in colonies, and the scientists found the technique spread successfully to a majority of the colony’s worker bees.
Lars Chittka, a Queen Mary University professor who guided the project, said the team is interested in figuring out the brain processes behind the bees ‘learning and teaching skills.
1. What does the underlined word “exclusive” in Paragraph 3 probably mean?A.Ordinary. | B.Unique. | C.Beneficial. | D.Widespread. |
A.Bees learn best in insects. |
B.Bees are as clever as birds. |
C.Bees can be trained to learn skills. |
D.Bees are born good learners. |
A.How bees’ brain work. | B.Where bees learn skills. |
C.How bees teach others. | D.What else bees can do. |
A.Small bees, great abilities | B.Bees can learn and teach |
C.Bees are smarter | D.Let bees learn |
【推荐3】Spring is a fine season. It lights up people’s moods and brings hope. When you bathe in the warm spring breeze(微风), what comes into your mind? Let’s see what Meng Haoran from China and William Blake from the UK wrote about spring.
1. According to the passage spring is .
A.silent | B.useless | C.boring | D.hopeful |
A.sunny | B.rainy | C.snowy | D.cloudy |
A.flowers | B.fruit | C.sky | D.birds |
A.Stories. | B.Novels. | C.Poems. | D.Fictions. |
【推荐1】When you enter a supermarket, you see shelves full of food. You walk between the shelves. You carry a shopping basket and your food is in it.
You probably hear soft, slow music as you walk between the shelves. If you hear fast music, you walk quickly. The supermarket plays slow music. You walk slowly and have more time to buy things.
Maybe you go to the meat department first. There is some meat on sale, and you want to find it. The manager of the supermarket knows where customers enter the meat department. The cheaper meat is at the other end of the meat department, away from where the customers enter. You have to walk by all the expensive meat before you find the cheaper meat. Maybe you will buy some of the expensive meat instead of the meat on sale.
The department selling milk and milk products such as butter and milk powder is called the dairy department. Many customers like milk that has only a little butterfat in it. One store has three different jars of low fat milk. One says “1 percent fat” on the jar. The second says “99 percent fat free”. The third says “LOW FAT” in big letters and “1%” in small letters. As you can see, all the milk has the same amount of fat. The milk is all the same. However, in this store the three jars of milk cost three different amounts of money. Maybe the customers will buy the milk that costs the most.
Most of the food in supermarkets is very pleasing. It all says “Buy me!” to the customers. The expensive meat says “Buy me!” as you walk by. The expensive milk jar says “Buy me! I have less fat.”
1. The manager of the supermarket knows .A.which customers like low fat milk |
B.which customers like slow music |
C.where customers come from |
D.where customers enter the meat department |
A.one has more fat than the other two |
B.they all cost the same amount of money |
C.one has less fat than the others |
D.they all have the same amount of fat |
A.buyers will be proud |
B.there will be more buyers |
C.it is good and expensive |
D.they can raise the prices |
A.Cheap Food | B.Supermarket Management |
C.Low Fat Milk | D.Buy Me |
【推荐2】Mom noticed that something was wrong when I started getting so thirsty. I’d have a lot to drink before bed, which was unusual for me. One time, I opened a big container of apple juice and kept refilling my glass. Before I knew it, I’d drunk the entire container! My mom called my doctor. I then had a few blood tests, and the results were certain — I had diabetes (糖尿病), which meant that the amount of sugar in my blood was very high. That can be dangerous, so I had to learn how to control my blood-sugar level.
My eating habits had to change in a big way. With diabetes, I can’t eat a lot of sugar or carbohydrates (碳水化合物). I have to figure out exactly how much sugar I plan to eat, and then I get an injection of insulin (注射胰岛素) before the meal to help my body process the food. Also, I test my blood-sugar level often. I’m always trying to keep my blood-sugar at a healthy level. The level can drop when I exercise, but that doesn’t keep me out of gym class or off the basketball court — I just keep some juice boxes around to boost my blood-sugar if I need to.
It’s a lot of work and not a lot of fun — to keep track of everything, but I’ve gotten used to my new habits. I was a little scared at first because I wasn’t sure how my life would change. Once I knew what I needed to do, though, it wasn’t a big deal. My life is different now from what it was before, but it has become completely regular to me.
1. What is the first paragraph mainly about?A.How the author was found to have diabetes. |
B.The author’s life before having diabetes. |
C.Who found the author had diabetes. |
D.The author’s eating habits before having diabetes. |
A.She stopped playing basketball in the gym. |
B.She controlled her blood-sugar level strictly. |
C.She stopped eating food with natural sugar. |
D.She tested her blood-sugar level before every meal. |
A.Absorb. | B.Control. | C.Increase. | D.Test. |
A.Worried. | B.Frightened. | C.Pessimistic. | D.Positive. |
【推荐3】Many doors close for those who have ever been in prison for a crime. It can be difficult for former prisoners to reenter society. A number of training programs are aimed at reopening doors for these men and women.
“Together We Bake” teaches cooking and marketing skills to women who have spent time in prison so they can start new lives. It is a 10-week program which teaches women how to bake and sell cookies. Two friends, Tricia Sabatini and Stephanie Wright, created the program.
“I have a background in social work and she is an amazing baker,” Ms. Wright explains. “We discovered that for this population of women, returning from prison into the community, there aren’t a lot of resources for them. So we thought we could combine our passions(激情) and develop this job as a training program. “Stephanie Wright says they started the program earlier this year.” We had two classes so far that have graduated. This is our third class. We have eight women currently in this class. We’ve 16 women graduated in the first two classes.”
Terry Garred is one of the graduates. She says the program helped her turn her life around. Next she hopes to complete her high school studies. She is also working for “Together We Bake” to help other women follow the path she took.
The program includes classes in which the women talk about their experiences and learn communication and job skills. Thirty-six-year-old Jamie White had spent three years in jail, which made her a little puzzled about her future life back into society. But she found those meeting were very helpful. She learned how to open up, and was just trying to better herself. She gained new skills. She sells baked goods at local markets every weekend now.
1. What does “Together We Bake” intend to do?A.It teaches jobless women to learn how to cook. |
B.It earns money by cooking and selling cookies. |
C.It helps former women prisoners to start new lives. |
D.It encourages former prisoners to find jobs they want. |
A.Stephanie Wright is an amazing baker. |
B.There are 3 classes in the program now. |
C.Tricia Sabatini used to be a social worker. |
D.24 women have participated in the program. |
A.New Skills, New Life |
B.Baking for a New Life |
C.“Together We Bake” for You and Me |
D.Former Prisoners Can Also Be Successful |
A.Grateful. | B.Puzzled. |
C.Indifferent. | D.Concerned. |
White has a clean and pure image. That is why doctors, dentists, and nurses usually wear white uniforms. Babies are dressed in white at baptisms(洗礼)and brides wear white wedding gowns at weddings. White in these cases is the symbol of innocence or purity.
Sometimes white is used in expressions that are not good. “Whitewash” is one such expression. At first, “whitewash” meant to paint over something with white paint to make it look better. However, it means something different today: to hide or to cover up mistakes or failures.
A “white elephant” is another example of white used in a negative way. In ancient Thailand, a white elephant was regarded as a sacred animal, but it was very expensive to keep. The kings of those days presented a white elephant to the people they wanted to ruin. Once they received this holy, royal animal as a gift, they were not allowed to sell or kill it. Today, a “white elephant” means something that is big, useless, and unwanted. In America, when people want to get rid of their furniture or clothes, they often have a “white elephant sale”.
1. The text is mainly about________.
A.the meanings of white in English culture |
B.the history of some English idioms |
C.some interesting customs in English culture |
D.some useful English words and expressions |
A.White-wash. | B.White-collar. |
C.White elephant. | D.White elephant sale. |
A.A boy is dressed in white at baptisms. |
B.A bride wears a white wedding gown. |
C.A man whitewashes his crime. |
D.A girl finds a white collar job. |
A.a white-elephant sale is useful to the poor |
B.the white color is important in our daily life |
C.a white-collar job used to be easy to get |
D.expressions with white have different meanings |
A.analyzing its cause and effect |
B.providing typical examples |
C.comparing different ideas |
D.following the time order |
【推荐2】Compared to dogs, cats are often considered to be aloof with respect to their human owners. It is usual for them to be indifferent when humans call their names. Are we sure that they don't understand human voices at all?
A recent study published in the journal of Scientific Reports suggests that we've been fooled. Japanese scientists found that cats can recognize their names if their owners regularly use them. In the study, scientists recruited 78 domestic cats. They played recordings of voices of their owners saying five words: the first four words were random nouns that sounded similar to their names while the final word was the cat's name. Then they observed the cats' responses, if there were any.
Most of cats moved their ears or heads when they heard their names, while they made no response to other words. That suggested, "cats were paying attention to you, what you say and what you do," John Bradshaw, an expert on human-animal interactions at the University of Bristol, UK, told The Times. "And cats were just as good as dogs at learning," she added.
In the study, when people called their names, cats often associated the words with rewards, such as food or play, on with "punishments" such as having a bath or going to the vet. This made cats sensitive to words. After the cats had been called several times, they could respond to the words. But the scientists added that while dogs have evolved to follow their owners' orders, cats have not. Although cats appear to be aloof, they do have special relationships with their owners.
According to study co-author Atsuko Saito, cats have evolved not to show their emotions as a survival method. One example is illness, which they tend to hide because "in the wild, no one can rescue them" and predators are more likely to pay attention to them, Saito explained.
However, technology may help bridge the communication gap between cats and us. There are now mobile apps available to explain what their meows mean. So, the next time you hear "meow, meow", your cat may be telling you: "Hi, you haven't cleaned my litter box recently.”
1. What did the recent study find about cats?A.Cats can recognize their names. | B.Cats are cleverer than dogs. |
C.Cats learn more slowly than dogs. | D.Cats are willing to follow orders. |
A.They don't pay much attention to their surroundings. | B.They associate words with punishments |
C.They are not sensitive to the human voice. | D.They want to protect themselves from harm. |
A.It is difficult to understand cats' meows. |
B.Interaction with your cats is very important. |
C.Cats do have good relationships with their owners. |
D.We may know cats bettor with the help of technology. |
【推荐3】It is the stock response to a parent struggling with a crying baby or a bad-tempered teenager: “Treasure every moment because they grow up so fast.” Now researchers have found there may be something in the old saying. Watching children grow up really does seem to make time fly. Scientists have found that parents feel time passing more quickly than non-parents.
The findings could be due to the fact that children change fast. “Over ten years, children go through dramatic changes not only in their physical appearance, but also in their understanding abilities and their status, ” the researchers said. The results could also be a consequence of parents spending a large amount of their time on their children, they said, even though they found no difference in the time pressures recorded by parents compared with non-parents in the study.
For the study, published in the journal Timing & Time Perception (感知), the researchers asked 431 people aged from 20 to 59 to fill in a subjective time questionnaire, a tool used by psychologists to measure time perception. They were asked: “How fast did the last ten years pass for you?” An answer of very slowly gave a score of-2; slowly was-I; neither fast nor slow was 0; fast was I and very fast scored 2. So the higher the score, the faster they felt time had passed. The parents had an average score of I. 22, compared with 0. 76 for the non-parents.
Participants were also asked how quickly the last year, month and week had passed, but there were no differences between the groups for these shorter intervals (间隔). Previous studies have suggested that time also seems to speed up when we get older. Research published in 2019 by Duke University in North Carolina suggests this could be due to physical changes in our bodies, with a slowdown in image processing speeding up our perception of time passing.
Days that seemed to last forever in our youth were “not due to experiences being much deeper or meaningful”, the researcher Adrian Bejan said, “but due to the fact that they were being processed rapidly.”
1. What probably makes parents feel time passing more quickly than non-parents?A.The pressure of raising children. | B.Devoting much time to children. |
C.The slowdown in image processing. | D.Noticing children’s daily physical growth. |
A.Time seems to speed up for the young. |
B.Parents responded differently to the old saying. |
C.Non-parents have deeper experiences. |
D.The older people are, the higher scores they may get. |
A.Experiences. | B.Researchers. | C.Days. | D.Youths. |
A.The perception of time passing. |
B.Teenagers experience dramatic changes. |
C.Time really flies when you are having children. |
D.Comparison between parents and non-parents. |