1 . Saltwater and dry desert climate may not seem good for growing healthy produce,but that is exactly what a group of scientists has managed to do.Researchers from the UK-based Seawater Greenhouse Company have discovered a good way to farm fruit and vegetables simply by using solar power and salt water for watering and cooling in dry areas.
The company has developed plantation(种植园)projects in dry areas such as Australia, Abu Dhabi, Somaliland, Oman, and Tenerife. Although these places are dry, the plantations are able to grow thousands of pounds of produce simply by making ''cooling houses'' out of thick walls of cardboard(硬纸板).While glass greenhouses are designed to keep gardens wet and warm, the cardboard walls use evaporative cooling(蒸发冷却)to keep the inside of the plantations wet and cool.
An exciting new study says that plants grow well down below solar panels(太阳能板)and they produce more energy. The design of the waving-cardboard panels helps to cool down the wind coming from the outside. At the same time, a small solar-powered machine offers sea water at the top of the panels so at it can drop down through the walls of the cardboard for evaporation. This evaporative cooling skill creates the perfect conditions for farming produce in the dry areas. Additionally, since the seawater is repeatedly collected, the salt can be left onto the outside of the walls. Not only does this help to make the cardboard strong, it can also be collected and sold for increasing income.
According to Seawater Greenhouse founder Charlie Paton，you would only need about 10 square miles of ''cooling houses'' to feed all of Somaliland, which is a country of about four million people. Upon completing the company's Somaliland project in November 2017, it now produces about 300 to 750 tons of tomatoes every year. Paton says that he is very excited for his company to start even more projects in dry areas around the world.
1. What kind of places will welcome plantation projects?| A．Cold areas with less sunlight. | B．Dry and hot areas near the sea. |
| C．Cold and wet places. | D．Dry desert areas. |
| A．It can help plants grow quicker. | B．It doesn't produce waste materials. |
| C．It uses solar energy instead of electricity. | D．It gets extra income by cooling seawater. |
| A．To show the high output of the project. | B．To tell people the need for food there. |
| C．To let people know its agriculture. | D．To introduce its large population. |
| A．The farming conditions of dry areas. | B．The wide use of solar panels in farming. |
| C．Helping solve Somaliland’s food problems. | D．Using saltwater to grow produce in dry areas. |
