Imagine a city built as a line across the desert. It can run on 100% clean energy and 100% renewable water. That sounds impossible, but it’s becoming a reality.
Saudi Arabia is building such a city called The Line. It starts from the mountains of Northwest Saudi Arabia and pushes its way to the Red Sea. With an area of just 34 square kilometres, it can be home to 9 million people. The Line is 500 metres tall, 200 metres wide and 170 kilometres long, with two huge mirror walls standing on its both sides.
To put living experiences and natural environment first, The Line is designed to have three layers (层) . The top layer has no roads or cars, keeping over 95% of the nature around. Carefully designed environment makes the best balance of sunshine, trees and other natural sights. The middle layer is for services. All of them are operated by AI. Robots and a huge man-made moon make the city a technology paradise (天堂). From shopping malls to sports areas, wherever you go, you will be amazed at how convenient life can be. The lowest layer is the most important pat which shows how fast the city runs. The Line’s high-speed railway powered by electricity makes it possible to travel end to end in 20 minutes.
The plan started in early 2021 and is expected to finish its first stage in 2030. However, not everyone shows enough confidence in the plan. Environmentalists argue that mirror walls of The Line will bring danger to animals. For example, birds may hit onto the glass or even die when they migrate every spring and autumn. Besides, some commentators (评论员) also question whether the city will be built successfully. But Tarek Qaddumi, the director of the plan, seems sure, “We hope to get faster, better and greener results, with less environmental influence. It will set a new standard for future city life.”
1. What’s The Line according to the passage?| A．A city that will lie under the Red Sea. |
| B．A city that will be built in the shape of a line. |
| C．A city that will have a population of 11 million. |
| D．A city that will have stone walls on the two sides. |
A． | B． | C． | D． |
| A．①To travel to a new place or country, usually to find work and live there. | B．②To move from one place to another according to the seasons. | C．③To move information on one computer to another. | D．④To begin using a new computer system. |
| A．To tell who will build The Line. |
| B．To advise people to visit The Line. |
| C．To introduce a future city called The Line. |
| D．To show the difficulties of building The Line. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】It’s common to carry things on bikes, trains and even planes. But do you know small drones (无人机) can help carry packages (包裹) to your home?
For two years, Google has been working hard in their secret research lab. Their latest project is called Project Wing, a drone delivery (送货) service. The drone is half plane and half helicopter (直升机) and is a little bigger than a seagull (海鸥). It can deliver packages to buyer to their doors.
The first drone test was made on a farm in Warwick, Australia. It sent sweets and dog treats to a farmer. The drone flew to the farm, hovered (盘旋), and released the package with a wire. Delivery is here!
The best thing about drone delivery services is that delivery time will be greatly cut down. You’ll be able to order online in the morning and by noontime, the delivery drone will land your package.
Throughout history, there have been some inventions that have helped people move things around, said Astro Teller. lead scientist of Google Wing, to CNN. Teller thinks Google drones will be the next big step in the series.
1. What is the duty of Project Wing?| A．Sending goods to the buyers. | B．Making small drones. |
| C．Building a secret research lab. | D．Carrying packages for sellers. |
| A．In a secret lab. | B．At the seaside. |
| C．On a farm. | D．In a helicopter. |
| A．Using less workers. | B．Saving money. |
| C．Ordering online. | D．Saving time. |
| A．a farm in Warwick | B．drone delivery services |
| C．invention of drones | D．how to move things |
The human population on Earth grows larger each year. As a result,
When farmers tried to grow more food in the past, they would use farming methods that weren’t always healthy for the environment. To solve this problem,
In the past, though farmers did have information about the weather and the earth, they couldn’t track each plant.
By collecting information about plants, the robots can help farmers make predictions（预测）about how their plants will grow.
| A．But now, with these robots, they can |
| B．This led to the creation of special robots |
| C．some scientists carried out a research project |
| D．more and more food needs to be grown in order to feed everyone |
| E．By studying each plant, the robots can also help farmers grow plants well |
【推荐3】Everyone knows by now that plastic pollution is a huge problem for the environment. Beijing, for example, has dealt with this by banning (禁止) thin plastic bags, plastic tableware (餐具) and other plastic items in supermarkets, restaurants and hotels since May 1, according to CGTN.
But an even better solution might be on the way. Researchers at a French company called Carbios have discovered a bacterial enzyme (细菌酶) that can break down plastic. The enzyme, which was first found in compost (堆肥) leaves, turns plastic into chemical “building blocks” that can then be used to create new products, according to the Guardian.
The new enzyme was uncovered in research that was published last month in the journal Nature. Researchers studied over 100,000 microorganisms (微生物) to find one that could break down plastic quickly. The leaf compost enzyme was first discovered in 2012. Scientists changed its genes (基因), allowing it to break down 90 percent of one ton of plastic in less than 10 hours.
“It had been completely forgotten, but it turned out to be the best,” said Professor Alain Marty, chief science officer at Carbios.
The enzyme especially breaks down PET, a type of plastic that is most commonly used to produce plastic bottles and food packaging (包装). It is the fifth most common type of plastic that we use.
Carbios said it is working together with companies like Pepsi and Nestle – major consumers of plastic themselves – to develop their research and start using the enzyme on an industrial scale (范围), according to Forbes.
1. What do we know about the enzyme?
| A．It is a type of bacteria. |
| B．It can break down plastic quickly. |
| C．It is the fifth-most common type of bacteria. |
| D．It can break down PVC. |
| A．Where the scientists found the new enzyme. |
| B．How the scientists changed the enzyme’s genes. |
| C．How the scientists found the new enzyme. |
| D．When the scientists found the new enzyme. |
| A．It was too late to find the new enzyme. |
| B．The new enzyme was forgotten by experts. |
| C．They forgot to change the enzyme’s genes. |
| D．Better late than never. |
| A．Carbios will work together with companies that use a lot of plastic. |
| B．Carbios will keep looking for a more efficient enzyme. |
| C．Carbios will turn its focus toward production. |
| D．Carbios will search for more companies like Pepsi to work with. |
| A．How to protect our environment. |
| B．A natural way to recycle plastic. |
| C．Why Beijing has banned plastic items in many public places. |
| D．How Carbios discovered a bacterial enzyme. |
Sunny (阳光灿烂的) English Club For students 16: 00—18: 00 every Saturday 200 yuan a month 9 Zhou Yu Street Tel: 3785290 Foreign teachers, English songs and films and morel! | Ocean (海洋) Museum 9:00—17:00 from Thursday to Sunday Ticket: 50 yuan 132 Xue Yuan Street Tel: 5439871 Show you a full picture of sea lives! |
Health Centre (健康中心) 9:00— 7:30 16 Yong Le Street Tel: 3801451 Free examinations (体检) for those over 70 Give you good advice to keep healthy! | |
1. Sunny English Club is for .
| A．policemen | B．nurses | C．students | D．businessmen |
| A．600 yuan | B．300 yuan | C．2,400 yuan | D．1,200 yuan |
| A．on Wednesday | B．on Saturday | C．anytime | D．on Monday |
| A．17 | B．9 | C．73 | D．67 |
| A．Ocean Museum | B．16 Yong Le Street |
| C．Health Centre | D．Sunny English Club |
【推荐2】Which is the best city in Europe? Each city has something special. Now let’s see four popular cities.
London, England
If you like theatres, or you are interested in history, you will like this city. There are a lot of old buildings. The best time to visit London is from May to October. You can visit the British Museum, Tate Britain, and die Palace of Westminster
Amsterdam, Holland
People who love art will like this city. And it’s a great place to ride bikes. You can ride a bike and go wherever you want to go. Or you can get around the city by bus. In April or May you can see many beautiful tulips (郁金香). July and August are the best months. The Royal Palace and the Van Gogh Museum are great places.
Parts, France
People who love art or traditional food will like this city. Spring is the best time to visit it Summer is also a good time. The Louvre, the Eiffel Tower and the Montparnasse Tower are the great places you should visit.
Copenhagen, Denmark
People who love listening to fairy tales (童话故事) will like this city. If you come to visit Copenhagen, you will know more about Andersen’s fairy tales. Summer is the because the weather is sunny but never too hot.
1. If you want to visit London, the best time is _________ .| A．January. | B．November | C．August | D．February. |
| A．people in Amsterdam have tulips the whole year |
| B．people in Amsterdam like riding bikes |
| C．It’s not easy to travel around Amsterdam by bus |
| D．tourists would like to visit Amsterdam in January |
| A．Five | B．Four | C．Three | D．Two |
| A．arts | B．traditional food | C．tulips | D．fairy tales |
| A．London, a city with a long history | B．the differences among four cities |
| C．four different cities in Europe | D．the cities that people like |
【推荐3】We visited Hallstatt on a Monday in August. Hallstatt is a small but beautiful town in Austria(奥地利). It was once a quiet place with few European(欧洲的) visitors. However, in recent(近来的) years, Hallstatt becomes one of the most popular places in Austria. The town has fewer than 1,000 people, but 80,000 visitors come here every year.
However, years ago, it was most famous(著名的) for the salt(盐) mountain. Salt was quite precious, so this town was quite rich. In Hallstatt, people can visit one of these salt mountains.
We walked across the town and enjoyed the beautiful views(风景). The houses and hotels were very beautiful. We loved cute towns, so we spent most of our time here.
We also visited the Alps, because it was just a few minutes’ walk from Hallstatt to the Alps. This is a great place to go climbing, try paragliding, visit the Giant Ice Cave, enjoy beautiful views across the Alps, and even keep away from those Hallstatt crowds(人群). We spent just a few hours here. We hoped to have more fun next time!
根据短文内容，选择最佳答案。
1. From Paragraph 1(第一段), we can know Hallstatt is now.
①small ②beautiful ③quiet ④ popular
| A．①②③ | B．①②④ | C．①③④ | D．②③④ |
| A．常见的 | B．神秘的 | C．珍贵的 | D．便宜的 |
| A．Enjoy the beautiful views. | B．Go climbing. |
| C．Try paragliding. | D．Visit the Giant Ice Cave. |
| A．go climbing | B．try paragliding |
| C．enjoy beautiful views | D．A, B and C |
| A．About 8,000 visitors visit Hallstatt every year. | B．The writer visited Hallstatt in summer. |
| C．The writer spent all of his time in Hallstatt. | D．The Alps was far from Hallstatt. |
【推荐1】How do you feel about nature? After spending hours indoors, do you feel better when you visit your local park? Most people think that nature is good for our bodies and brains. However, humans are spending more time inside and less time outside. For example, the number of visitors to Canada’s national parks is getting lower every year. And in countries such as the USA, only 10% of teenagers spend time outside every day. Many doctors feel that this is a problem in the twenty-first century.
As a result, some doctors are studying the connection between nature and health: one example of this is the work of Dr Matilda in Sweden. The doctor gave people a maths test. During the test, their heart rates (心率) were fast. After the test, one group of people sat in a 3D-virtual-reality (虚拟现实) room for fifteen minutes with pictures and sounds of nature. Their heart rates were slower than people’s in the other group.
The virtual touch with nature helped them feel more relaxed. Another good example of how nature is good for health comes from Canada. In Toronto, researchers studied 31,000 people living in the city. In general, they found that healthier people lived near parks.
Because of studies like these, some countries and cities want nature to be part of people’s everyday life. In Dubai (迪拜), for example, there are plans for a new shopping mall with a large garden so shoppers can relax outside with trees, plants and water. In Switzerland, “forest schools” are popular. Schoolchildren study their subjects in the forests and do lots of exercise outside. And South Korea (韩国) is another good example: it has new forests near its cities and around 13 million people visit these forests every year. So after building cities for so long, perhaps it’s now time to start rebuilding nature.
1. What does Paragraph 1 mainly talk about?| A．Teenagers’ problem in the 21st century. |
| B．How much time we spend outdoors. |
| C．Feeling about nature. |
①the USA a. Children study in the forests and do lots of activities outside.
②Dubai b. About 13 million people visit new forests near its cities every year.
③Switzerland c. A new shopping mall with a large garden will be built.
④South Korea d. 10% of teenagers spend time outside every day.
| A．①-a ②-d ③-b ④-c | B．①-d ②-c ③-a ④-b | C．①-d ②-c ③-b ④-a |
| A．Nature can help people feel more relaxed and be healthier. |
| B．The maths test is difficult and makes people nervous. |
| C．People's heart rates get slower in a 3D-virtual-reality room. |
| A．Nature is more important than cities. |
| B．Nature should be part of people’s daily life. |
| C．People have lived in the cities for so long. |
【推荐2】No matter how old your kids are, you can take steps to improve a healthy diet and to encourage good eating habits.
Tip One: Family Meals
Family meals are nice for both parents and kids. Children like to guess what they are going to have and parents get the chance to introduce new foods to children. Parents can also use the mealtime as a chance to talk with their kids about their life.
Tip Two: Healthy Snacks
Kids, especially younger ones, will eat mostly what they can get at home. That’s why it’s important to have enough healthy snacks, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, yogurt and whole-grain biscuits.
Tip Three: Being a Good Example
The best way for you to encourage healthy eating is to eat well yourself. Kids will follow the lead of the adults they see every day. By eating fruits and vegetables and avoiding fast food and sweet drinks, you are sending the right message.
Tip Four: No Shouts about Food
Parents might find themselves shouting at children to get them to have healthy foods in fount of them. This in fact can make children dislike what they are asked to eat. You need to work a bit on different cooking methods.
Tip Five: Get Kids Included
Most kids will enjoy making the decision about food. Talk to them about making choices and planning a healthy meal. It can help them to make good decisions on their own about the foods they want to eat.
1. What is the author’s attitude (态度) towards snacks?| A．Snacks shouldn’t be eaten. | B．Healthy snacks can be accepted. |
| C．Kids can only have snacks at home. | D．It’s not necessary to have snacks at home. |
| A．to have family meals | B．to eat healthy snacks |
| C．to be a good example | D．to get kids included |
| A．Explain how healthy it is. | B．Try cooking it in a different way. |
| C．Never cook the same food. | D．Ask kids to get used to its taste. |
| A．To let kids eat anything they like. |
| B．To help kids become a wonderful cook. |
| C．To help kids make good choices by themselves. |
| D．To set a good example of eating healthy food. |
Here is the Lost and Found Office. Many people pick up others’ things and bring them here. They are watches, pencils, erasers, books, balls, ID cards, keys and so on.
Do you often find others’ lost things? If you do, for example (例如), you pick up a lost pencil sharpener, you can take it to the Lost and Found Office, or you can write a notice on the board (公告板), “Found: Pencil sharpener. Is this yours? Please call xxx at xxx.”
Do you often lose things? If you do, for example, you lose your backpack, you can go to the Lost and Found Office to get it back. Or you can write a notice. “Lost: My black backpack. My name is xxx. Please call me at xxx.”
1. You can buy some pencils in the Lost and Found Office.2. Many people take their old things to the office.
3. Many people find others’ things and bring them to the Lost and Found Office.
4. You often pick up a pencil sharpener in the Lost and Found Office.
5. If you lose things, you can go to the Lost and Found Box for help.
