1 . In times of stress, particularly when the water gets too warm, the coral(珊瑚)erupts the algae(海藻), and the coral turns white, causing a state called coral bleaching(漂白). Just a few degrees of heat can lead to coral bleaching, putting the coral on a path to starvation and death.
Driven by climate change, marine heat waves are becoming one of the greatest threats to the existence of coral, which is important to the ocean ecology. But in some rare good news researchers have discovered coral can recover from bleaching even before a heat wave ends, suggesting it has the potential to survive long heat waves. Coral was thought to survive only if a heat wave lasted just a few weeks.
But no one had studied this process during a longer heat wave. Then in 2015, Julia Baum, a marine ecologist at the University of Victoria, began a survey of two common species: brain and star coral around Kiritimati in the central Pacific Ocean. They checked the condition of the coral as the heat wave struck and disappeared.
Starting in May 2015, the temperature rose about 1 ℃ within 2 months. As expected, coral that housed heat-sensitive algae bleached sooner than those housing the heat-tolerant kind of algae. As the water continued to warm, even heat-tolerant algae erupted.
Many brain and star coral on Kiritimati recovered from bleaching while the water was still unusually warm. Baum said, "The unexpected recovery provides new hope, because it means that even under lasting heat waves, there's a path forward for some of them."
An unusual feature of the recovery is that brain coral that started out with heat-sensitive algae had a higher survival rate(82%)than coral that began with heat-tolerant algae(25%). "That finding is surprising," said Baum, expecting that heat-tolerant algae would be better suited for helping coral survive a heat wave. But during a longer heat wave, it might be more advantageous to start with a heat-sensitive algae.
1. What results in coral bleaching?| A．The white algae. | B．The coral's death. |
| C．An attack of waves. | D．A rise in ocean temperature. |
| A．To prove that coral can stop climate change. |
| B．To study how coral bleaching comes about. |
| C．To figure out whether coral survives long heat waves |
| D．To explain why coral bleaching is a big threat to coral |
| A．Ashamed. | B．Confused |
| C．Worried. | D．Astonished. |
| A．Protect the ocean environment. | B．Reduce coral bleaching. |
| C．Grow more different algae. | D．Regulate the heat wave. |
2 . As the effects of climate change become more disastrous, well-known research institutions and government agencies are focusing new money and attention on an idea: artificially cooling the planet, in the hopes of buying humanity more time to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
That strategy, called solar climate intervention (干预) or solar geoengineering, involves reflecting more of the sun’s energy back into space — abruptly reducing global temperatures in a way that imitates the effects of ash clouds flowing out from the volcanic eruptions. The idea has been considered as a dangerous and fancied solution, one that would encourage people to keep burning fossil fuels while exposing the planet to unexpected and potentially threatening side effects, producing more destructive hurricanes, wildfires floods and other disasters.
But. as global warming continues, producing more destructive hurricanes, wildfires floods and other disasters, some researchers and policy experts say that concerns about geoengineering should be outweighed by the imperative to better understand it, in case the consequence of climate change become so terrible that the world can’t wait for better solutions.
One way to cool the earth is by injecting aerosols (气溶胶) into the upper layer of the atmosphere. where those particles reflect sunlight away from the earth. That process works, according to Douglas MacMartin, a researcher at Cornell University.
“We know with 100% certainty that we can cool the planet,” he said in an interview. What’s still unclear, he added, is what happens next. Temperature, MacMartin said, is an indicator for a lot of climate effects. “What does it do to the strength of hurricanes?” he asked, “What does it do to agriculture production? What does it do to the risk of forest fires?”
Another institution funded by the National Science Foundation will analyze hundreds of simulations of aerosol injection, testing the effects on weather extremes around the world. One goal of the research is to look for a sweet spot: the amount of artificial cooling that can reduce extreme weather events without causing broader changes in regional rainfall patterns or similar impacts.
1. Why do researchers and government agencies work on cooling the earth?| A．To prevent natural disasters. | B．To win more time to reduce gas emissions. |
| C．To imitate volcanic eruptions. | D．To encourage more people to bur fossil fuels. |
| A．More volcanoes will throw out. |
| B．More solar energy will go into space. |
| C．More disasters will endanger the future of the world. |
| D．People will keep burning fossil fuels to keep warm. |
| A．He thinks more research remains to be done. |
| B．He is optimistic about the effect of cooling the earth. |
| C．He is concerned about the reduction in agriculture production. |
| D．He disapproves of the practice of solar climate intervention. |
| A．The rainfall pattern of a region. |
| B．The modest drop in temperature. |
| C．The number of extreme weather events. |
| D．The injection amount of aerosol. |
3 . Sustainability(可持续性), one of the biggest topics of the last decade, has become the ray of hope to protect the planet. It's a topic we can't ignore and we must act now in a more sustainable way.
What does that mean for the world of technology? E-waste is one of the planet's biggest contributing waste problems.
Not only e-waste, but the materials that go into tech products are part of the problem. Take the smartphone industry for example, dozens of metals, minerals which have to be taken from the earth(including 16 of 17 rare metals) go into making phones. And with demand for mobile phones bigger than ever, it's a problem that needs to be solved.
With a challenge comes an opportunity, and there's already some progress happening - great news for those of us wanting to be more sustainable with our tech. People used to turn their noses up at the idea of a second-hand product, but there's been a huge increase in demand for refurbished tech(翻新技术). For example, refurbished smartphone sales in the US have risen by 28% in the last 12 months while brand new sales have fallen by 21%.
Many communities are making an effort to deal with e-waste as well. Cities, schools, or churches will sometimes hold events to collect e-waste and send it to recycling centers. Some companies even offer buy-back programs where people will be given cash if they turn in old devices.
So the next time you want to deal with your e-waste, whether a smartphone, a laptop, an MP4 player or other, consider the more environmentally-friendly choices. It is possible to be sustainable with your tech after all.
1. What is the main purpose of paragraph 1?| A．To explain what is sustainability. |
| B．To introduce the topic of the text. . |
| C．To give us an example of sustainability. |
| D．To show different topics of sustainability. |
| A．E-waste is the biggest waste problem. |
| B．E-waste can't be dealt with in the end. |
| C．People act in a more sustainable way than before. |
| D．People would choose second-hand products in the past. |
| A．MP4 players | B．e-books |
| C．laptops | D．smartphones |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Unclear, |
| C．Negative. | D．Supportive. |
4 . What limits you from hiking more often? Many complain that they don't have a suitable partner to go with. Why not take a look at the great hiking clubs across Canada?
• Yukon Outdoors Club
Website: yukonoutdoorsclub.ca
Membership cost: $10 for a single membership; $15 for a family membership
Description: The club arranges day hikes, backpacking trips, canoe trips, mountain biking, cross-country skiing trips, snowshoeing trips and various workshops for members to gain new skills and valuable information.
• UBC Varsity Outdoor Club
Website: ubc-voc.com
Membership cost: Students $40； non-UBC students $60
Description: The UBC Varsity Outdoor Club is a social group that hikes, mountaineers, rock climbs and ice climbs. Travel and outdoor-minded UBC students and non-students are welcome to join. The UBC VOC has also constructed a few backcountry cottages in the Coast Mountains.
• Pender Harbor Hiking Group
Website: penderharbourhiking.weebly. Com
Membership cost: Free.
Description: The Pender Harbor Hiking Group offers hikes scheduled two months in advance, so get on the mailing list or check the website regularly to find a hike that's right for you! Hikes are usually one and a half to two hours long, but some full-day hikes are scheduled, depending on members, interest.
• Vernon Outdoors Club
Website: vernonoutdoorsclub. Org
Membership cost: A single membership is $25, and students pay $10, Children are free.
Description: Boasting a membership of close to 200 people, the Vernon Outdoors Club is an active group that enjoys hiking and cycling. The group organizes a Tuesday Rambles event each week and also hosts multi-day trips.
1. Which club has built remote shelters for hikers?| A．The Yukon Outdoors Club. |
| B．The Vernon Outdoors Club. |
| C．The UBC Varsity Outdoor Club. |
| D．The Pender Harbor Hiking Group. |
| A．Make a proper appointment. |
| B．Follow the website or the mail. |
| C．Develop your interest in hiking. |
| D．Arrange two months ahead of time. |
| A．Booking in advance. |
| B．Charging membership fee. |
| C．Providing skill workshops. |
| D．Organizing hiking activities. |
5 . Six weeks before his birthday, Giuseppe Paternò achieved the dream of a lifetime: He got a university degree.
Mr. Paternò's graduation has inspired news coverage around the world, partly because of his age. But he has mainly drawn attention because his life story speaks of commitment, a theme that has encouraged as millions of schoolchildren in Italy and elsewhere faces extraordinary uncertainty during the coronavirus pandemic.
Born in Palermo in 1923, the first of seven children in a “very poor family,” Mr. Paternò began working soon after finishing elementary school. “The family was large, there was only one paycheck, we were under fascism, and times were tough,” he said.
Eventually, he ended up at a publishing house where an enlightened boss persuaded his father to send him back to school for a three-year vocational degree. Mr. Paternò then worked for an insurance agency while he took private classes to become a telegraph operator. He used skills from the operator job when he was drafted into the navy in World War II. The job also opened doors to the State Railways Company, where he worked for more than four decades.
It was only after he retired, in the mid-1980s, that he returned to his books, taking theology courses through the Archdiocese of Palermo after a chance meeting with a philosophy professor who urged him to follow his love.
Mr. Paterno's son, Ninni Paternò, said that the family had not expected all the attention. “It's unbelievable!” the vounger Paternò said of his father. “He achieved his goal, but he didn't mean to be famous in newspapers around the world.”
University officials are hoping that Mr. Paternò will continue his studies on waster's course. But he isn't so sure. “I have to admit that in this moment, I don't know whether I would do it with the same spirit,” he said on Wednesday. Still, Mr. Paternò said he would probably continue anyway.
1. What's the main reason for the world to report Mr. Paternò's graduation?| A．His experience shows the spirit of commitment. |
| B．Mr. Paternò achieved his dream at an old age. |
| C．His graduation ceremony was during the coronavirus pandemic. |
| D．His achievement is extraordinary. |
| A．Working for an insurance company. |
| B．Severing in the navy in World War II. |
| C．A telegraph operator. |
| D．The job in the State Railway Company. |
| A．The family had not agreed Mr. Paternò's decision. |
| B．Mr. Paternò didn't want to gain the world's attention. |
| C．Mr. Paternò suffered a lot to achieve his goal. |
| D．Mr. Paternò's achievement is not worth mentioning. |
| A．It's never too late to achieve a dream. | B．No pains, no gains. |
| C．Young at heart. | D．Practice makes perfect. |
6 . A favorite dish for purple sea urchins(海胆) living off the coast of California is kelp(巨藻). The problem is, those kelp forests are shrinking rapidly and that’s hurting the oceanic ecosystem. So a group of scientists carried out an experiment to see if these sea urchins can themselves become a dish.
Just off the coast, three divers get ready to jump in. They’re students from Moss Landing Marine Laboratories. The task: Count purple sea urchins. Their professor, Luke Gardner expects they’ll find plenty of urchins. And that’s not a good thing. “What they do is they just eat everything in sight,” Gardner says. These purple creatures are eating up California’s kelp forests, which provide food and shelter for numerous sea animals.
The problem began around 2014. That’s when Gardner says warmer ocean temperatures began affecting the reproduction of kelp. It’s also when a disease killed off sunflower sea stars, a killer of purple sea urchins. Therefore, the purple sea urchin population grows very fast.
The divers bring Gardner quite a lot of purple sea urchins. What’s inside is the part we eat, the uni (海胆黄) —a type of delicious food in Japanese cuisine. “The problem with these purple sea urchins is that when you open them up, sometimes there’s nothing in there. And they might be a little smaller compared to market-sized urchins,” says Gardner.
Then, it is time for the taste test. The class crowds into the kitchen of the restaurant Aubergine. Here, chef Justin Cogley serves uni from around the world. He opens up the purple sea urchins, taking the orange uni out and prepares it on a fried potato. “Honestly, it’s rich and buttery,” Cogley says. His conclusion? He’ll serve it.
It’s a tasty end to the project. But this could be just the beginning. A company called Urchinomics has been selling its human-raised urchins in Japan. Now, it is working to secure a site in California. It’s all in an effort to save the state’s kelp forests and help the thousands of animals that depend on them.
1. What is the scientists’ experiment about?| A．Turning purple sea urchins into a dish. | B．Finding new food for purple sea urchins. |
| C．Discovering the causes of a poor ecosystem. | D．Studying the ecosystem of the coast of California. |
| A．By presenting research findings. | B．By following time order. |
| C．By analyzing causes. | D．By making comparisons. |
| A．Their uni tastes like bad butter. | B．They don’t all have uni inside. |
| C．They can’t be raised by humans. | D．Their size is beyond the market standard. |
| A．Save California’s Kelp by Eating Purple Sea Urchins. |
| B．A Scientist’s Cooking Dream Comes True in California. |
| C．Kelp Forests Suffer Because of Japanese Cuisine. |
| D．Clean Up the Sea by Restoring Kelp Forests. |
7 . A Journey to China
10 days from just A$1,590
Fully inclusive from Australia
Price covers: international airfares, departure taxes, fuel charges, local transportation, accommodation, all meals, entrance fees, guides, daily tours and visas for Australian citizens.
◆Days 1-3: Australia—Beijing
Fly to Beijing for three nights stay and try Peking Duck. During the stay, stroll through Tian’anmen Square to the Forbidden City, the largest and best preserved collection of ancient buildings in China, and visit the Summer Palace. Next day take a walk on the Great Wall, tour the unique Temple of Heaven and enjoy an attractive Chinese Acrobatic show.
◆Days 4-8: Beijing—Yangtze River Tour—Chengdu
Fly to Yichang and change (approx: one hour) to board your Yangtze River ship for the next four nights. Enjoy a tour of the Three Gorges Dam (三峡大坝) before sailing on the grand Yangtze River, passing through the impressive Three Gorges. Take a side trip to the Lesser Three Gorges or travel up the Shennong Stream in a peapod boat and enjoy various shore trips along the way. Get off in Chongqing and drive to Chengdu for an overnight stay.
◆Day 9-l0: Chengdu—Shanghai
Fly to the great city of Shanghai and in the evening sample traditional Shanghai food. Visit the beautiful Yu Garden, Old Town, cross the Great Nanpu Bridge and tour the Pudong area. Also explore Xintiandi with its 1920’s style Shikumen buildings and end your stay in Shanghai with an amazing Huangpu river evening tour.
◆Day11: Shanghai—Australia
Fly back to Australia, arriving home later the same day filled with happy memories.
Por more information:www.traveltochina.org
1. The underlined word “sample” in the text probably means “________”.| A．book | B．sell | C．taste | D．make |
| A．take a side trip to the Three Gorges Dam | B．visit the Great Nampu Bridge in Chengdu |
| C．have to pay extra for accommodation and meals | D．arrive in Australia on the eleventh day of the trip |
| A．encourage the Australians to travel in China |
| B．offer service of booking air tickets to tourists |
| C．attract the Australians to traditional Chinese food |
| D．provide Australians with a better understanding of China |
8 . Crossing your legs is an extremely common habit; most people don’t even notice that they’re doing it when they sit down. While you may find it comfortable to sit with one knee crossed over the other, it might be causing health problems that you are not aware of.
A study published in Blood Pressure Monitoring stated that sitting with your legs crossed can increase your blood pressure. The reason is that the blood in your legs has to work against gravity to be pumped back to your heart and that crossing one leg over the other increases resistance, making it even harder for the blood to circulate. This causes your body to increase your blood pressure to push the blood back to the heart. You won’t feel any immediate effects, but repeated, drawn-out increases in blood pressure can cause long term health problems. So, panning to sit for a long period of time? Don’t keep your legs crossed.
Crossing your legs at the knee can also cause pressure on the major nerve in your leg that passes just below your knee and along the outside of your leg, explains Richard Graves, a medical expert. This pressure can cause numbness and temporary paralysis of some of the muscles in your foot and leg, preventing you from being able to raise your ankle. While the feeling of discomfort may only last a minute or two, repeatedly crossing your legs until they feel numb can cause permanent nerve damage.
So next time you sit down, try to get yourself in the habit of sitting with both of your feet on the floor. Not only will it help your posture and stability, but it will also save your health in the long run.
1. What can we learn about crossing one’s legs?| A．It is a very bad social habit. | B．It is usually practiced by design. |
| C．It can make others feel uncomfortable. | D．It has a negative effect on people’s health. |
| A．improve the function of legs | B．help your blood resist gravity |
| C．effect your blood pressure | D．cause health problems instantly |
| A．paralyze all of your muscles | B．preventing you from standing up |
| C．damage your nerve in the leg in the end | D．reduce the pressure on the major nerve |
| A．To blame a bad habit. | B．To provide suggestions. |
| C．To introduce research methods. | D．To show effects of an experiment. |
9 . Do your children love to play in the virtual (虚拟的) online worlds? If so, don’t worry. Instead, you should be happy to know that.
A research report says that virtual worlds can be important places where children practice what they will do in real life. They are also a powerful and attractive alternative to more passive adventures like watching TV. The research was done with children using the BBC’s Adventure Rock virtual world, aimed at those aged 6-12. It surveyed and interviewed children who were the first to test the game.
The online world is a theme island built for the BBC’s children channel by Belgian game maker Larian. Children explore the world alone but they use message boards to share what they find and what they do in the different creative studios they find around the virtual space.
At times children were explorers and at others they were social climbers eager to connect with other players. Some were power users looking for more information about how the virtual space really worked. The children could try all kinds of things without having to be afraid of the consequences that would follow if they tried them in the real world. They learned many useful social skills and played around with their identity in ways that would be much more difficult in real life.
According to the study what children liked about virtual worlds was the chance to create content such as music, cartoons and videos.
The publishers of the report urges creators of virtual spaces for children to get young people involved very early on because they really do have good ideas to add and they are very good critical friends.
1. What’s the function of the first paragraph?| A．To introduce the topic of the passage. |
| B．To make a conclusion on virtual worlds. |
| C．To give comfort to parents for children’s misbehavior. |
| D．To arouse parents to pay more attention to their children. |
| A．appears to be more passive | B．distracts one’s attention |
| C．does good to one’s real life | D．has potential dangers to one’s mind |
| A．need to share their findings | B．may improve their creativity |
| C．work alone without any help | D．bear in mind real-life consequences |
| A．Children’s mental development. | B．Parents’ worry on virtual games. |
| C．Young people’s designing virtual games. | D．The advantage of playing virtual games. |
10 . One day, I was in class, when all of a sudden my heart started racing. I broke out into a sweat, feeling hot and cold all over. My chest hurt, I was dizzy, and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. I jerked up from my desk and ran from the room, terrified. I didn’t care what the teacher thought, or that the eyes of the entire class were on me. I just had to get out of there.
I ran to the water fountain and drank some water. For several minutes, I just stood there holding on to the fountain. What was happening? Was I having a heart attack? Slowly, the lightheadedness went away. My heart stopped racing. I still had no idea what had happened.
And then, an hour later, once again it did the pounding heart, the dizziness, the feeling that I was dying. I burst into tears and ran for the hallway again. My teacher ran after me asking what was wrong. Panicking, I managed to choke out, “I need an ambulance, please.”
To my surprise, my teacher didn’t grab her phone for help. Instead, she put her hand on my arm and told me to slow down. “Breathe,” she said. “You’re going to be okay. You just need to calm down.”
Finally, my teacher explained that she was pretty sure I was having a panic attack. (They are also called anxiety attacks.) She knew, she said, because the same thing had happened to her when she was my age. She told me how she’d felt, and it was almost exactly how I was feeling now. She also explained that panic attacks are caused by anxiety.
My teacher talked to my parents, and they found me a counselor to deal with my anxiety. I’d been going through a tough time that year. My best friend had moved to a new school, and I wasn’t sure how to fit in with the girls in my class. I’d never told anyone, though—I just kept it to myself. My counselor helped me understand that not dealing with my feelings can lead to panic attacks, and that I need to talk to someone when my life is stressful. They all helped me sort things out.
By sharing my story, I want other girls my age to know that you’re not as alone as you feel, and that talking about it really does help.
1. What’s wrong with the author at the beginning of the story?| A．She caught a cold. | B．She couldn’t breathe. |
| C．She had a heart attack. | D．She suffered from a terrible anxiety. |
| A．Writing to a friend to tell him you are worried about the exam. |
| B．Calling your mom and tell her you are in a bad mood. |
| C．Keeping the quarrel between you and your classmate to yourself. |
| D．Visiting your teacher to tell her you could not catch her in class. |
| A．inform people of an anxiety attack |
| B．give advice on how to overcome an anxiety disorder |
| C．describe her feelings when suffering from a panic attack |
| D．help other girls who are going through what she went through |
| A．Chicken soup. | B．Teen Life. |
| C．Read for Fun. | D．Literary World. |
