The Power and Problems of Eco-Tourism
Eco-tourism gained its popularity over the past two decades. At its core, eco-tourism promotes sustainable travel practices that benefit local communities and protect the environment. However, like any significant trend, it is vital to analyze its impact and understand both its merits (好处) and potential shortcomings.
Eco-tourism emerged as a response to the damaging effects of mass tourism. Coastal towns were being transformed into commercial centers, but the luxury resorts rarely invested back into the community. Over time, ecosystems suffered, local cultures were overshadowed, and the very essence of these destinations was at risk. On the other hand, eco-tourism focuses on smaller groups, environmental education, and local engagement.
One of the primary merits of eco-tourism is its emphasis on environmental conservation. It helps protect endangered species and reforest areas affected by deforestation. Take the mountain gorillas of Rwanda for instance, tourism income has played a crucial role in their conservation efforts, bringing them back from the edge of extinction.
Furthermore, eco-tourism often ensures that local communities benefit economically. Instead of leaving profits to international corporations, the income often stays within the community. Local artisans, guides, and service providers receive a more significant piece of the pie, ensuring that tourism acts as a tool for socio-economic growth.
Yet, eco-tourism is not without its problems. The term “eco-tourism” is sometimes misused or overused. Some businesses might claim themselves as “eco-friendly” purely as a marketing strategy, without truly making sustainable practices.
In conclusion, eco-tourism represents a significant change towards more sustainable travel, placing emphasis on the environment and local communities. However, as with any major movement, it’s essential to approach it with a critical eye. By doing so, we can ensure that our passion for travelling doesn’t come at the cost of our planet or its inhabitants, but rather enriches both the traveler and the destination.
1. How has eco-tourism impacted the mountain gorillas of Rwanda?2. What are the merits of eco-tourism?
3. Please decide which part is false in the following statement, then underline it and explain why.
Eco-tourism places emphasis on the environment and local communities, ensuring that our passion for travelling comes at the cost of our planet and its inhabitants.
4. Do you believe eco-tourism is a sustainable way to promote tourism without causing harm? Why or why not? (In about 40 words)
If you listen to the stream of articles and podcasts telling us how to become a billionaire in 10 easy steps, you might hold the belief that squeezing ourselves dry each second of the day will bring happiness and success.
But this obsession with productivity is costing us. Even a car doesn’t stay in the same gear the whole time. “We are not machines,” says psychologist Professor Drew Dawson. “Performance declines as a function of time, of task and time of day.”
Instead of moments of boredom, where we might let our minds wander and come up with novel solutions to problems and novel ways of thinking, we seek constant stimulation - and have a lowered tolerance for boredom as a result.
“It leads people to a false assumption that the world’s most successful people are literally making good use of every single minute,” Dawson says. “That’s a myth. We’re not hardwired to act that way as humans, and it’s a good recipe for burnout.”
COVID-19, for a variety of reasons, has led people to question and even opt out of this myth. “Who wants to lie on their deathbed going, ‘I wish I’d been more productive’?” Dawson says. “Post-COVID, people are starting to say, ‘what am I losing compared to what am I gaining?’”
So, if not more productivity, what should we be aiming for?
·Get our priorities straight.
A life spent chasing the state of being able to do everything is less meaningful than a life of focusing on a few things that count. We can reflect on five things that matter most to us and lead a life around them. Once clear on them, we also become clear on where to direct our attention and what to say “no” to.
·Enjoy downtime(停工期)for its own sake
Glorifying productivity can blind us to the value of other parts of our lives, including boredom, connection, creativity and play. But activities in our lives don’t need to always be productive or worthwhile-enjoying an activity is reason enough to spend time on it.
We weren’t meant to be productive all the time, so stop constantly struggling, and start chilling.
1. What does “obsession with productivity” refer to in the passage?2. How has COVID-19 changed the situation according to the passage?
3. Please decide which part is false in the following statement, then underline it and explain why.
It is more meaningful to focus on a few things that count in life, so we can reflect on five things in our life to say “no” to. 4. Do you agree with the statement “enjoying an activity is reason enough to spend time on it”? Why or why not?(In about 40 words)
People from different generations often live and work together. Sometimes they’re happy being together, other times they’re not. One of the reasons for their unhappiness maybe a generation gap. A generation gap is the difference between two or more generations—not the differences between their years but the differences between the generations’ ideas, attitudes, and interests. Of course, people can have differences and still be happy together, but according to the experts, communication between the generations helps everyone get along.
Good communication between the generations starts in the family. These days many families are changing their communication style. They are moving from a “one-way” style to a “two-way” style of communication. To show this change, let’s compare two families:
The Smith family uses the “one-way” style of communication. Mr. and Mrs. Smith show interest in their children, but they don’t discuss problems of feelings. The parents make all the rules and decisions. They don’t ask for their children’s opinions. They explain their decisions to their children, but they don’t discuss them. The explanation is clear and the children understand. The communication goes one way: from the parents to the children.
The Jones family uses the “two-way” style of communication. Mr. and Mrs. Jones show interest in their children and ask for their opinions. They discuss problems and express their feelings. The family makes rules and decisions together after a discussion. The communication goes two ways: from parents to children and from children to parents.
Better communication between generations at home means better communication between generations at work and in the community. When people from different generations understand each other better, they learn from each other more. This helps them form stronger bonds, work together more easily. As a result, people of all ages can team up effectively and come up with new ideas in different parts of life.
1. What is a generation gap?2. Where does good communication between the generations begin?
3. Please decide which part is false in the following statement, then underline it and explain why.
If Jack’ parents discuss with him where to spend their summer vacation, they use the “one-way” style of communication.
4. To bridge the generation gaps, what other suggestions would you make besides better communication? (In about 40 words)
Dr. Witt is the medical director for the newborn intensive care unit (重症监护室) at Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital. It was 2 a. m. on October 9th,2017, and Dr. Scott Witt was at home with his family when he received a call from the hospital telling him that they were going to evacuate (疏散) the patients because a deadly wildfire was spreading.
Witt sent his wife and four children to safety at a nearby church but decided to head for the hospital since he needed to make sure his patents were safe. “The only way I could get there was to get on my motorcycle,” said Witt because the parts of the roads were impassable to big vehicles.“I had to skirt around (绕开) where the fire had spread to,” he said.
“The intensive care unit already smelled with a lot of smoke when I arrived and I wanted to move everybody to a parking lot without any fire in it,” Witt said. With the hospital staff’s help, Witt managed to evacuate all eight preemie babies (早产儿) into an ambulance that rushed them to a nearby hospital.
Even though Witt had done more than enough, he decided to follow the ambulance to make sure the babies made it to the hospital. “At one point, there was some live wire on the freeway,” Witt said.
After seeing the babies to safety, Witt went back to check on his home, which had been burned to the ground. But Witt is grateful that his family was unharmed. “We didn’t have any injuries; we were just happy to be together.”
Now, Wit t is being hailed as a hero for his bravery, but he insists he just did what be felt was right. “I feel like these babies are like my own babies,” Witt said.“I just wanted to make sure I was there to help them,” he said.
1. Why were patients evacuated from Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital?(no more than 10 words)2. How did D₁. Witt reach the hospital during the wildfire?(no more than 10 words)
3. What happened to Dr. Witt’s home during the wildfire?(no more than 10 words)
4. What does the underlined word in the last paragraph mean?(1 word)
5. What do you think of Dr. Witt? Please explain.(no more than 20 words)
The Forgotten Pages
Once upon a time, there was a small village surrounded by mountains and trees. The villagers were used to their robotic daily tasks and none of them had the imagination or the will to try something new, except for one girl named Hannah.
Hannah was an adventurous spirit with an imagination far beyond her time. She loved to explore and would spend hours in the woods looking for new things.
One afternoon, she came upon an abandoned cottage which looked very old. She tip - toed slowly to the door and opened it. In front of Hannah was a room full of books! Hannah’s excitement was visible on her face as she jumped up and down with joy!
Hannah realized she had found a hidden treasure. She shared everything with her friends but heard roars of laughter! Confused and hurt by this reaction, she did not give up. She eagerly read these books full of adventurous tales and was inspired by the characters who struggled for good with their determination, learning the power of love and friendship, and that the true strength lies within one’s own heart!
With the good in heart, she decided to share the tales with the villagers. She knew it would be a difficult journey, but she wanted to share the gold with everyone. Hannah started telling tales every day at the cottage.
From the start, only her very good friend, Sanuki, and her family came to the readings. But the word of her famous tales spread rapidly causing more and more people to come to the readings.
Everyone would gather in the old cottage as she told her stories. They transformed it into a holy place full of adventures and imagination.
Hannah reminded everyone through her tales of the importance of human connection, empathy, and love. She helped the lost find their bright path.
She became a beacon (灯塔)of hope, a reminder for everyone that even in the dustiest corners, there can be a hidden treasure. And that treasure is not always gold, it can be a tale simply waiting to be shared. The forgotten treasure lying in the old cottage transformed Hannah, whose passion and dedication blew life into the tales, and her words breathed new life into villagers’ uninformed（蒙昧的）souls.
1. How did Hannah feel when finding the cottage full of books?2. What influenced Hannah?
3. Why did the villagers laugh at her when Hannah shared her discovery?
4. What’s Hannah’s character?
5. Why did the author consider Hannah as a beacon of hope?
6 . 阅读下面短文，按照要求完成阅读任务。
My love for Rio started on a girl’s holiday in the year 2006. It was love at first sight. Six months after returning to my hometown of London I decided to leave my job as a Board Director at a public relations (PR) company, packed up everything and moved here.
Unable to continue my profession of PR without the required language fluency. I fell into buying and selling properties while enjoying everything that Rio had to offer. One thing led to another and before long, I had become a property agent and in 2010 set up In Town Property, which today is one of Rio’s top property letting and buying companies.
I’ve always had a deep love for dance and I was immediately drawn to samba. I love its exciting rhythm, and the joy and freedom it offers. On arrival I decided it would be necessary to learn Portuguese but just as important would be samba. Within my first few months living here I had begun samba lessons.
In 2011 I paraded in the Rio Carnival festival for the first time. It was a wonderful experience. I’d never felt more happiness than singing loudly as I sambaed all the way down the street. Since then I have been in the parade every year.
Over the last years, I have had the opportunity to parade with some of Rio’s top samba schools, such as Mocidade, Beija-Flor, and Império da Tijuca. In 2017, I had the great honor of dancing for Império da Tijuca on its first float (花车). It was an unbelievable experience!
I’ m so passionate about this city, carnival and samba. They bring joy to the world and I want to share my love and experience with others. I think everyone needs a chance in life to live out their dreams and can’t wait to bring this magic to you!
1. What did the author do before she moved to Rio?( no more than 10 words )7 . We live near a famous hospital in the city. Since our house is big, we rent some rooms to the patients.
One evening, a truly ugly old man came. Extremely politely, he said, “Good evening. I’m wondering if you have a room for just one night. I came for treatment from the eastern shore (海岸), and there’s no bus till the morning.” He told me he’d been searching for a room since noon, but failed because of his face.
For a moment, I hesitated (犹豫), not only because there was no room left. But his following words convinced (说服了) me: “I could sleep on the floor. I’ll leave early in the morning.”
By chatting with him, I knew he fished for a living to support a big family. But what touched me most was that instead of complaining, he was grateful that his disease didn’t bring him terrible pain.
At bedtime, we put a bed in the children’s room for him. The next morning, he got up early and asked if he could come again. I told him he would be welcome.
On his next trip, he arrived early in the morning.
1. 根据文本内容从方框中选择恰当的词并用其正确形式填入文本图示中，每词限用一次，有两词为多余选项| ask polite agree accept change complain move sleep hard welcome ignore strong | ||
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3. What may the old man do for the writer’s family when he came the next time?
4. How would the writer feel about knowing the old man? Why?
When you look at the map of the Tengger Desert (腾格尔沙漠), you will see a “green wall” in the southwest. It products Wuwei City of Gansu Province from sandstorms.
With an area of over 8,000 mu, the “green wall” was planted by Wang Tianchang and his family. They have done this great job for over 20 years.
In his seventies now, Wang Tianchang is an ordinary farmer from Gansu Province. He and his family live in a small village close to the Tengger Desert. People there once suffered a lot from sandstorms for a long time. They destroyed their farms and houses. To hold back sand, Wang Tianchang decided to do something. In 1999, Wang planted his first plant in the desert and started his life of sand control.
It is never easy to bring life on the desert. In the beginning, Wang had no experience with desert plants. The sand covered the holes he dug very soon. The wind rooted out the seedlings he planted even on the second day he had done. It was challenging, but he never gave up.
His family helped him a lot, especially his son Wang Yinji. To plant more trees, the two of them even lived in the desert for about six years. They found grass to sleep on as their beds.
Thanks to Wang’s “green wall”, Wuwei City sees much fewer sandstorms. Wang has brought back not only green to the desert but also hopes to the people there. He is our hero!
1. How long have Wang Tianchang and his family planted the “green wall” ?2. Why did Wang Tianchang want to control the sand?
3. Who helped Wang Tianchang a lot when planting the “green wall”?
4. 把短文划线句子翻译成汉语。
5. 给短文拟一个恰当的标题。
Today you could get a ticket if you don’t drive on your side of the road. Worse yet, you could have a head-on collision(正面碰撞). But in 1917, Dr. June McCarroll could not get drivers to understand what seems so obvious today.
June McCarroll was born in New York in 1867. Unlike most young women of her age, she attended medical college in Chicago. After her husband became ill, the couple moved to Southern California in 1904.
In 1917, while driving down a familiar road near Indio, California Dr. McCarroll had a driving accident. In order to avoid a head-on collision with a truck going in the opposite direction, her car was driven off the road and into a ditch (沟). This gave Dr. McCarrolla new idea—paint lines on the road, separating lanes(车道) with a center line.
“My car and I found ourselves face-to-face with a truck on the highway. It did not take me long to choose between a sandy ditch to the right and a ten-ton truck to the left! Then an idea struck me.”
McCarroll wrote to the local government. However, the government didn’t take McCarroll seriously. After receiving no response to her letters, McCarroll took her idea and matters into her own hands. She painted a white line down the center of the street to make two separate lanes of traffic as a way to prevent future collisions.
Dr. McCarroll then asked women’s groups through the state of California to organize letter writing campaigns to state and local politicians and in 1924 California approved of the practice of painting traffic lines on highway roads. The safety practice quickly spread to other states, then other countries. By virtue of the lines, thousands of accidents are prevented and an untold number of lives are saved each year.
1. What is the text mainly about?(no more than 10 words)2. What encouraged the idea of painting lines on the highway
3. How did the local government treat McCarroll’s suggestion at the beginning? (no more than 10 words)
4. What do the underlined words “By virtue of” in Paragraph 6 probably mean? (no more than 5 words)
5. According to the last two paragraphs, what do you think of McCarroll?(no more than 20 words)
The morning of my daughter’s first school play I had an important business meeting. I went to the play, getting a seat in the front row. I even brought my mum along in case it overran. But, not wanting to be late for my appointment, I moved quietly to the back. My daughter, who was just three at the time, noticed my empty seat and started to cry. Outside the doorway, I heard one mum say loudly and angrily, “She’s gone to work.” I watched as some of the others rolled their eyes. My stomach went cold.
It’s OK for a mum to have a job — as long as it’s part-time, fits around the school run or means she doesn’t have to leave the school play early or fly to the other side of the world now and again to earn a living. During the decade I’ve been a working mum I’ve received numerous critical comments from women about my work choices, but I think running my own business and travelling with my work when I can (while still taking my daughter to school most days and making pretty much every show or event) is setting a good example to my daughter. It shows her that it is possible to succeed at a time when women in many professions find it harder than men to reach the top and get less pay.
But I often feel I’ m in the minority. Do the women who roll their eyes at other women who leave the school play early or show up late to parents’ evening because their meetings overrun really believe females should only be in part-time, flexible work that fits around their children? I think it’s time for women to support each other’s career decisions.
1. What does the text mainly talk about?(no more than 10 words)2. What does the underlined sentence in the first paragraph probably mean?(no more than 25 words)
3. What may the author’s daughter learn from her working mother?(no more than 30 words)
4. What kink of job should a mother have according to other mothers who rolled their eyes? (no more than 5 words)
5. Do you agree with the author? Give your reasons.(no more than 25 words)
