1 . Naturalist Enzo Suma, who is now 40, lives in Puglia, a region in southern Italy whose long coastline faces the Adriatic Sea. Floating waste accumulates in this relatively enclosed part of the Mediterranean, unlike the open ocean, where the waste tends to be spread over a vast area. Feeling concerned about that, Suma makes it a habit to pick up the washed-up waste along the shore, especially after big winter storms.
One day, Suma was walking along the beach near his home when he discovered a bottle of Coke. Suma noticed on the bottle that the price, clearly printed on the bottom, was in lire, a currency (货币) that hadn’t been used in Italy since it was replaced by the euro in 2002. Could a plastic container have well survived in the Mediterranean, he wondered, for about two decades?
That led him to founding the Archeoplastica museum. It has a collection of about 500 unique pieces recovered from Italian shores and the Coke bottle is the first one of them. All collection demonstrates the unsettling life force of plastic waste in the environment. “Seeing that a product people may have used 30, 40, or 50 years ago remains still unchanged, you’ll feel different. It’s a great shock,” Suma said to a reporter. So Suma often exhibits selected pieces from the Archeoplastica collection at local schools around his hometown of Ostuni.
“The playful side of the work allows you to arrive at the less beautiful side of things,” Suma acknowledged. “Plastic is a kind of useful substance. But it’s unthinkable that a water bottle, made from a material designed to last so long, can be used for just a few days—or even minutes—before becoming garbage. Clean the beaches. Clean the oceans. Recycle. But if we are still throwing out plastics, none of those are going to be long-term solutions.”
1. What’s Suma’s concern about his living place?| A．Its long coastline is disappearing. | B．Big storms frequently hit the area. |
| C．Floating waste spreads over a vast area. | D．The waste pollution on shore is worsening. |
| A．They have a history of more than half a century. |
| B．They were quite valuable before turning into waste. |
| C．They’re more like educational exhibits than garbage. |
| D．They have stronger life force than ordinary plastic products. |
| A．Creative, devoted and socially responsible. | B．Enthusiastic, ambitious and adventurous. |
| C．Generous, cautious and humorous. | D．Curious, efficient and playful. |
| A．The birth of plastics has greatly served humans. |
| B．The key to tackling the plastic pollution is to stop littering. |
| C．The plastic problem can be solved by cleaning and recycling. |
| D．People should be more aware of the powerful functions of plastics. |
2 . Chinese scientists have discovered a new water reservoir on the moon in the form of glass beads (珠子), which could have major significance for finding out the water content of the earth’s only natural satellite and potentially extracting them to support future lunar missions.
A study published in the journal Nature Geoscience last week revealed soil samples collected by China’s Chang’e-5 lunar probe contained impact glass beads that held water in the form of hydroxyl——a molecule consisting of one oxygen atom and one hydrogen atom. Hydroxyl ion (离子) is one of the most common ions found in water.
These glass beads are created when meteoroids (流星体) hit the moon’s surface, throwing up hot molten droplets which then cool and turn solid. They function like a sponge, soaking up hydrogen atoms carried by the solar wind to form hydroxyl, thus playing an important role in the water cycle of the lunar surface.
While each bead only holds a tiny amount of water, these glass balls can be seen everywhere on the moon and researchers estimated lunar soils could store as much as 270 billion metric tons of water. For decades, scientists thought the moon was bone dry until discoveries in recent years revealed its soil could hold water. “The moon potentially holding 270 billion metric tons of water is quite substantial, though it pales in comparison to the amount of water in the earth’s oceans,” said Hu Sen, a researcher from the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and one of the key scientists behind the study.
These findings not only provide insight on the origins, storage, and transportation of water on celestial bodies without atmospheres, but they also may prove helpful for planning and building a sustainable human habitat on these planets, he added.
However, the specific origins of the water on the lunar surface remain a mystery. The study presented several potential sources, including solar wind implantation, the release of trapped gas when the moon was hot and volcanically active, and delivery by comets and asteroids.
1. What is the use of the glass beads?| A．Absorbing water. | B．Drying water. |
| C．Creating water. | D．Recycling water. |
| A．The moon was a dry place for decades. |
| B．The moon holds as much water as the earth does. |
| C．Scientists discovered the moon could store water. |
| D．The amount of water on the moon is comparatively large. |
| A．Trapped gas should be released. |
| B．Further research needs to be done. |
| C．Water sources have been identified. |
| D．Solar wind was implanted on the moon. |
| A．Future Habitat for Humans: the Moon. |
| B．New Discovery: Glass Beads on the Moon. |
| C．New Findings: Water on the Lunar Surface. |
| D．Future Missions: China’s Chang’e Lunar Probes. |
3 . Laura Madden is a small business owner and sustainable fashion advocate. “ReFashioned Art is a purpose-driven business, combining style and sustainability (可持续性),” Madden says,“I love fashion, but I also care deeply about the environment.”
She slowly built her network and became an influencer who ran a popular blog. She shares that her passion for sustainability came about in 2015 when she watched a life-changing documentary about the social and environmental issues brought up by the fashion industry. “My guilty pleasures－ shopping and fashion － that I assumed weren’t hurting anyone, were in reality hurting a lot of people,” she says.“I couldn’t stand the fact that something I loved so much was creating so much suffering on the planet. How could something that brought me so much beauty and joy be so dirty and destructive?”
With this realization, Madden became an advocate for sustainable fashion－including purchasing most of her own clothes second-hand and supporting sustainable brands. Although she was busy enough in 2019, she became a professional artist, creating pieces made from sustainable materials.
She notes that ReFashioned Art is first and foremost an art brand. “I am using my work to tell a story and create a narrative that style and sustainability can co-exist,” she says. “By repurposing old items into something more fashionable, elegant, and contemporary, I hope to inspire you to look for beauty where it is not normally found.”
For those interested in supporting sustainable art and fashion. Madden shares,“Get creative and look for beauty. Looking forward, I would love to partner with more designers.”
She adds,“We only have finite resources. The best thing we can all do is ask, ‘How else can I use this item?’”
1. What inspired Madden to be an advocate for sustainable fashion?| A．The popular blog she ran. |
| B．An unforgettable personal experience. |
| C．A documentary that changed her life. |
| D．A business with a specific purpose. |
| A．It focuses on both fashion and humans. |
| B．It’s a combination of fashion and old tradition. |
| C．It’s inspiring and instructive as an art style. |
| D．It cares little about social and environmental issues. |
| A．She partners with many designers. |
| B．She writes as many stories as possible. |
| C．She purchases brand-new clothes all the time. |
| D．She transforms old things into more modern ones. |
| A．Limited. | B．Enormous. | C．Valuable. | D．Fashionable. |
4 . When she was just 8, Sammie Vance thought about a question. What breaks your heart? “For me, it’s seeing people who need a friend,” the seventh grader from Indiana, US. told People magazine. “I’ve been lonely myself, I don’t want others to feel that way.”
Soon after a summer camp. Vance learned about buddy benches(伙伴长椅). These benches are seats at a school playground. A lonely child can sit on it, which shows that he or she is in need of a friend.
She loved this idea. “This would be really cool.” Vance said. Then she got into action at once. She collected 725 kgs of bottle caps and found a factory to turn the caps into benches for her school. According to Vance, these benches cost much less than common park benches and are good for the environment.
Vance collected more for benches at other schools, too. She also made a website page for others to follow her journey and make bottle cap donations(捐赠). She was surprised that her small project had had an influence on people around the world. She even received bottle caps from Germany and Australia. But she has no plans of stopping. She said in an interview that even adults(成年人)can use a buddy bench because people at any age can feel lonely.
“I just look forward to making a difference.” she said, “and inspiring(激励)other people to make a difference.”
1. What makes Sammie Vance sad?| A．Seeing homeless people. | B．Seeing hungry people. |
| C．Seeing lonely people. | D．Seeing lying animals. |
| A．Bottle caps. | B．Glass bottles. | C．Old clothes. | D．Old chairs. |
| A．Make more friends to live a happy life. | B．Try to help others and make a difference. |
| C．Work hard to make our dream come true. | D．Live a green life and protect the environment. |
5 . Reshaping the world for a fossil fuel-free future means working quickly. Climate scientists say carbon emissions must stop by 2025 to minimize environmental damage. And by designing computational materials together with makers who can build and test them quickly, scientists can rapidly develop technologies like more powerful solar cells and car batteries.
Michael is the name of a supercomputer devoted to just one task―discovering the ultimate battery system. Researchers at University College London will use Michael to digitally build and test prototypes (原型) in every new material and type of cell possible to improve battery life, performance and price.
Finding a resilient (弹性的) design for solid-state batteries would be a huge breakthrough for electric vehicles and energy storage. Lighter, longer-lasting and cheaper solid-state technology could vastly improve vehicle range and charging time. And the energy from solar and wind power could be more efficiently stored until ready for use.
Scientists working in the US and the UK led the way in the 1970s in developing the lithium-ion (锂离子) battery used in today’s electric cars, laptops and cameras, But commercial units were only developed once the Japanese electronics giant pushed the technology forward for mass production. Partnerships between companies and universities could ultimately crack solid-state battery design. Oxford University and some companies are looking to win the international race to create a durable product. But they are only one among many.
Replacing liquid used in lithium-ion batteries with a solid conductor may take large digital processing. Electric vehicle makers are working with a computer giant to find successful designs that may include cheap and plentiful materials found in seawater. An electric vehicle maker is partnering with NASA to open a solid-state battery plant that uses no rare or expensive metals. The plan is to create a large database of materials that can be mixed and matched for the best combinations.
But computational materials may be needed in virtually every industry. And by rapidly classifying millions of substances on their ability to conduct electricity, their toughness, or the way they reflect light, AI and supercomputers can speed up the process of creating materials for just about anything.
1. What message does paragraph 1 convey?| A．It’s too fast to design computational materials. |
| B．It’s too late to reshape the fossil fuel-free world. |
| C．Developing green energy can reduce carbon emissions. |
| D．Developing technology can speed up carbon emissions. |
| A．Heavy and solid. | B．Light but breakable. |
| C．Less-costly and workable. | D．Expensive but efficient. |
| A．To show the weakness of mass production. |
| B．To show the good trend of the cooperation. |
| C．To show the difficulty of the battery design. |
| D．To show the development of British technology. |
| A．Michael Is Devoted to Storing Solar Energy |
| B．Companies and NASA Will Push Technology Forward |
| C．Electric Vehicle Makers Are Struggling to Solve Air Pollution |
| D．Supercomputers and AI Can Create Future Low-carbon Industries |
6 . My 5-year-old daughter Kai walked around a bus stop, picking up candy wrappers and plastic bottles and throwing them in the waste bin. We were a visiting family here, but she was cleaning the sidewalk, which didn’t shock me, nor was I
Our cleanup project began when we drove past an empty field one day and Kai
However, it seems we can never
Now Kai hopes to become a marine biologist to protect sharks one day. She still has many years to
The last time our family was at the beach, we still picked up plastic bottles. Most
| A．embarrassed | B．discouraged | C．concerned | D．frightened |
| A．apologized | B．confirmed | C．spotted | D．explained |
| A．loose | B．magic | C．processed | D．abandoned |
| A．trade | B．mistake | C．replace | D．change |
| A．pulled over | B．blew up | C．turned down | D．gave in |
| A．due to | B．ahead of | C．other than | D．instead of |
| A．official | B．serious | C．optional | D．regular |
| A．deliver | B．remove | C．track | D．produce |
| A．stress | B．comfort | C．anger | D．pride |
| A．mess | B．platform | C．court | D．house |
| A．scary | B．pleasant | C．historic | D．real |
| A．decide | B．struggle | C．survive | D．contribute |
| A．safe | B．giant | C．distant | D．sick |
| A．personally | B．memorably | C．technically | D．universally |
| A．promise | B．threat | C．reminder | D．favor |
7 . If you had boarded a passenger plane in 1950, you would have seen five people in the cockpit (驾驶舱): two pilots, a radio operator, a navigator and a flight engineer. Over the years, technical advances have gradually removed the need for the last three, leaving just two pilots. That has been the norm (标准) in commercial aviation for decades.
However, things could be simplified further — one of the two remaining pilots could soon go. Many military aircraft are already manned by a single pilot, and for commercial aviation this would mean stepping into a brave new world.
But how will airlines make this brave innovation come true? One way is to greatly increase automation in the cockpit, devoting more tasks to computers. Another is to shift the same tasks from the cockpit to the ground. “The latter approach seems to be more workable, at least in the short term, because much of what is required already exists,” says Patrick Smith, an airline pilot flying Boeing 767 aircraft. “A trained ground operator could observe a number of flights at once and even fully control the plane remotely if needed.”
It’s true that single-pilot operations could help airlines save money, but there is another reason which makes them quicken their pace for this crucial breakthrough. Boeing predicts a need for 600,000 new pilots in the next two decades, but by some estimates, there will be a deficit (赤字) of at least 34,000 pilots globally by 2025. Reducing the number of pilots on some crews or aircraft could lessen the impact of this.
Perhaps the biggest barrier to a single pilot will be selling the idea to passengers. In 2019, Don Hairis, a professor at Coventry University, conducted a survey on the prospect of flying on an airliner with just one pilot. Just a minority of participants said they’d be willing to take that flight, and the general idea was that removing a pilot increased the possibility of accidents. In the study, Harris concluded that the single-crew airliner would be still probably 20 years away.
1. What is the potential trend in commercial aviation according to the text?| A．It will make air travel eco-friendly. |
| B．It will switch to single-pilot operations. |
| C．It will tighten its flight control for safety concerns. |
| D．It will bring in many military aircraft to the industry. |
| A．Raising the standards in admitting new pilots. | B．Making pilots adaptable to different situations. |
| C．Using computers to automate the flight process. | D．Gaining piloting support from ground operators. |
| A．The shortage of pilots. | B．The need for new airlines. |
| C．The airlines’ brave innovation. | D．The financial problem airlines face. |
| A．The prospect of single-crew airliners is bright. |
| B．It's urgent that airlines reduce airplane accidents. |
| C．Passengers are willing to try new types of airplanes. |
| D．Airlines have a long way to go before the innovation occurs. |
8 . James Warren rides the public bus a lot in his hometown of Denver. Then in January, Warren spotted a woman waiting for a bus. There was no seating at the stop—and no sidewalk—so she sat in the dirt. So he decided to build a bench.
“I just took some scrap wood and went to town,” Warren said. He then realized that one bench was far from enough. There are more than 9,000 bus stops in the Denver metro area, many of them without seating or shelter. Warren carves “Be kind” on each one—each made from scrap wood he finds in construction waste containers.
“I met some ladies the other day who were talking about how they used the benches every day,” Warren added. “It fills me up. It’s air in my tires.”
Warren said many people have hopped on his bench—making bandwagon, which has motivated him to build more. “I’ve had a lot of people reach out to me on Twitter,” he said. “Some people have wanted to come and help me.” Others saw Warren’s work in the local news and decided to take out their tools, too. People also started donating supplies. “That puts me over the moon,” Warren said.
Nica Cave, 26, a Denver mobility advocate, said, “The lack of infrastructure, shelter and seating at transit stops marginalizes(边缘化) those who rely on public transit. People like Warren are really encouraging me to see how people are willing to use their own time and resources to provide these much-needed services.” Cave added that she hopes the local government will see Warren’s benches and get involved.
That is precisely Warren’s goal. Warren—who is planning to organize a bench-building workshop—said his hope is that his benches make a difference in his community and even beyond. “My goal is to make people’s lives just a little bit better.” Warren said.
1. What do we know about Warren’s benches?| A．They are carved with his name. | B．They can be found at any bus stop. |
| C．They are specially designed for women. | D．They are made of recycled materials. |
| A．It is the source of my effort. | B．My tires are almost flat. |
| C．I need to fill air into my tires. | D．Praise is the best reward for me. |
| A．The good sales of the benches. | B．The assistance from other people. |
| C．The comments on Twitter. | D．The awards from the local government. |
| A．To earn more money to live a better life. |
| B．To set up his own bench-building workshop. |
| C．To encourage people to use more public transit. |
| D．To make people live a little bit better. |
9 . Mid-Autumn Festival, a typical agricultural harvest and get-together festival, falls on lunar August 15. I disliked it not because it’s
Last year, finding I had little in common with my classmates, I felt
Later, in spite of my unwillingness, I was still invited to
In brief, I
| A．originally | B．immediately | C．previously | D．horribly |
| A．experience | B．atmosphere | C．belief | D．joy |
| A．romantic | B．lonely | C．capable | D．selfish |
| A．disappearing | B．harvesting | C．passing | D．approaching |
| A．significant | B．inner | C．medium | D．autonomous |
| A．church | B．wedding | C．classroom | D．branch |
| A．awarded | B．decorated | C．removed | D．observed |
| A．rolled | B．battled | C．surfed | D．cheered |
| A．represent | B．greet | C．figure | D．prove |
| A．features | B．envelopes | C．regions | D．congratulations |
| A．talent | B．impact | C．respect | D．philosophy |
| A．settled down | B．marched on | C．broke away | D．gave up |
| A．charge | B．cure | C．enjoy | D．defend |
| A．click | B．reflect | C．press | D．depend |
| A．beautiful | B．effective | C．generous | D．legal |
10 . The wonderful multiple-award winning producer, writer, and director Norman Lear, who is 100, was recently interviewed by a TV host, who asked him what advice he would give to younger people as a successful man. Without missing a beat, Lear said, “Learn to let things that bother you go.”
Those few words are some of the most powerful in the world. I know that if people could just learn to do it, murder and divorce rates would fall dramatically, and I would be out of a job.
Learning to let go of what bothers you is a dream for many people, each of us has our own personal demons (魔鬼) to fight. The big question is: how do you let go of them? There is no one solution that works for everyone, because we’re all different. Psychotherapy(心理疗法) may help some people who hold on to negative thoughts, while others don’t respond to such treatments.
Even after you’ve worked on this, you may have to deal with the after-effects of a traumatic experience. It’s hard to forget, for example, that someone held a gun to your head or broke your heart. Truly letting go means not forgetting what happened but rather leading to live with it, because no one can completely forget their past and it’s no use avoiding the unfortunate past. But each day is a chance to start anew.
Elvira, an actress, was disturbed by PTSD, a mental disorder. Medication didn’t help. She got counseling from some good people and did her own work, but she would still wake up in a state of anxiety every morning. When we started working together, I asked her to imagine, as often as she could, that the discomfort she was feeling was the negativity leaving her body. Whenever a negative thought entered her mind, she would repeat this visualization exercise and would soon begin to feel okay again.
Learning to let go of things that bother you frees you from the feeling that you don’t deserve good things coming your way. It takes effort, but it’s worthwhile.
1. What advice did Norman Lear share with younger people?| A．Being professional in multiple fields. | B．Being enthusiastic about one’s career. |
| C．Having an optimistic attitude to bad things. | D．Showing great love and caring for the young. |
| A．Annoying dreams share certain similarities. | B．Strategies for letting go vary between individuals. |
| C．It’s necessary for us to let go of negative thoughts. | D．It’s normal for us to receive psychological treatments. |
| A．Move forward with bad memories. | B．Avoid things related to past traumas |
| C．Try hard to forget unpleasant experiences. | D．Mark the boundary between the present and the past. |
| A．An effective technique for battling against anxiety. |
| B．The way how mental disorders affect people’s life. |
| C．The process of treating mental disorders is painful. |
| D．Actresses are more likely to suffer mental disorders. |
