1 . How crowded your neighborhood is can affect the health of our planet, a new study finds. Scientists measured the effect that people have on the environment using a carbon footprint. That footprint reflects the amount of carbon dioxide (二氧化碳)—a greenhouse gas—that is sent into the atmosphere because of people’s daily activities.
Carbon footprints tend to be low for citizens. Living in a suburb (郊区) outside a city, however, can be opposite.
People living in the city centers have low carbon footprints, the researchers found. “It is much easier to have a low carbon effect if your home is close to where you work, shop and play,” explains Jones. Living within walking or biking distance cuts back on the amount of carbon dioxide compared with moving people by cars. And cities with bus and subway networks allow people to travel great distances while keeping the amount of greenhouse gases low.
Not everyone can afford to live in the city, however. Suburbs offer more space, allowing people to build larger homes. Suburbs may offer better schools to kids. But those homes are usually far away from where owners work, play or learn. So people who live in suburbs often drive long distances.
The average household in a large city sends out about 40 tons of carbon dioxide per year. The average suburban household, however, sends out close to 50 tons of carbon dioxide per year.
The new findings are an important contribution to climate research. They would give scientists a better understanding of how culture might mix with locations to influence our carbon footprints.
You may not have any control over the location of your home. Still, everyone can take steps to reduce their carbon footprints. That’s because how much we pollute is influenced not just by where we live, but also by how we live.
To reduce your footprints, start small. Turn off lights when they’re not in use. Recycle or reuse things instead of throwing them away. And as people get used to making small changes, the leap to bigger ones will get easier.
1. Why do people living in suburbs have higher carbon footprints?| A．Because they often drive to work, play or do other things. |
| B．Because their homes take up too much space. |
| C．Because they often use buses and subways to travel great distances. |
| D．Because they have to send their kids to schools by car. |
| A．By giving examples. | B．By making comparisons. |
| C．By following time order. | D．By explaining processes. |
| A．People living in big cities produce more carbon dioxide. |
| B．Culture plays the most important role in influencing the environment. |
| C．Any process of making new products may pollute the environment. |
| D．One’s small step can make a big difference to the environment. |
| A．Health. | B．Sports. | C．Culture. | D．Environment. |
2 . If you’d like to go sightseeing, the following World Heritage sites (世界遗产保护地) may be your best choices.
Jiuzhaigou Valley Scenic and Historic Interest Area
Jiuzhaigou Valley, which lies in the northern part of Sichuan Province, China, reaches a height of more than 4,800m, with a series of different forest ecosystems (生态系统). It’s particularly famous for its narrow landforms and excellent waterfalls. Some 140 kinds of birds also live in the valley, as well as a number of endangered plants and animals, including the giant panda. Jiuzhaigou Valley was recognized as a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 1992.
Khami Ruins National Monument
The city of Khami, which developed after the capital of Great Zimbabwe had been given up in the mid-16th century, is of great archaeological (考古的) interest. The discovery of objects from Europe and China shows that Khami was a major centre for trade over a long period of time. It joined the World Heritage List in 1986.
Henderson Island
Henderson Island, which lies in the eastern South Pacific, is one of the few atolls (环礁) in the world whose ecology (生态) has been untouched by humans. It is particularly famous for the 10 plants and 4 birds that can only be seen on the island. It was recorded in the World Heritage List in 1988.
Old City of Jerusalem
As a holy (神圣的) city for three different religions in the Middle East, Jerusalem has always been of great religious importance. It was given a World Heritage Status in 1981 and placed on the “World Heritage in Danger List” the following year.
1. Which of the following is TRUE about Jiuzhaigou Valley?| A．Wonderful waterfalls can be seen there. |
| B．It is famous for many ancient objects. |
| C．It has been untouched by human beings. |
| D．It lies in the southern part of Sichuan Province. |
| A．was ruined in the mid-16th century |
| B．was once business center for trade |
| C．has over 140 kinds of birds living there |
| D．is a holy city for three major religions |
| A．Henderson Island. | B．Khami Ruins National Monument. |
| C．Old City of Jerusalem. | D．Jiuzhaigou Valley Scenic and Historic Interest Area. |
3 . Las Vegas city in Nevada is built in a desert. The city may be known to the outside world for its partying. But officials have found that there are 21 square kilometers of useless grass. The grass is never laid on, played on or even stepped on. The grass is only there to look nice.
Now, the city is asking the Nevada state legislature (立法机构) to ban useless grass. It is trying to become the first place in America to ban that kind of grass often seen between streets, in housing developments and in office parks.
It is estimated (估计) that useless grass makes up 40% of all the grass in Las Vegas and it needs a lot of water to survive. Grass needs four times more water than dry climate plants like cactus. By tearing out the grass, the city could reduce yearly water usage by 15%.
In 2003, the Southern Nevada Water Authority banned developers from planting grass in front of new homes. It also offered homeowners $30 for each square meter of grass they tear out. But fewer people are now using the program. Water usage has increased in southern Nevada by 9% since 2019. And last year, Las Vegas set a record of 240 days without major rainfall. The Colorado River provides much of Nevada’s drinking water. The river could lose more water as climate change affects it.
Water officials (官员) in other dry cities said water usage needs to be reduced. But they fear the reaction to reforms like the ones in Las Vegas if their communities do not accept them. Cynthia Campbell is the water resources adviser for the city of Phoenix in Arizona. “There might come a point whencity restrictions(限制) get too severe (苛刻的) for some residents (居民). They’ll say that is the point of no return for them,” Campbell said. “For some people, it’s a pool. For some people, it’s grass.”
1. Why does Las Vegas city try to ban useless grass?| A．To protect the local people. | B．To beautify the city. |
| C．To reduce water usage. | D．To reduce waste. |
| A．Allowing planting grass before new houses. |
| B．Encouraging the residents to tear out grass. |
| C．Praising those who don’t sign on the program. |
| D．Awarding those who reduced water usage. |
| A．Many residents won’t follow the ban. |
| B．Reaction to the reform will vary personally. |
| C．Other measures should be taken to protect water. |
| D．Water officials should consider many factors (因素). |
| A．Las Vegas Plans to Ban Useless Grass |
| B．A Method Is Adopted to Save Las Vegas |
| C．Choices between Beauty and Practice |
| D．Grass Is Important but Useless in Las Vegas |
4 . Traffic lights are red, yellow and green. They are very important signals (信号). Traffic lights are usually placed at busy street corners to help control traffic. Sometimes, they are on streets near schools and shops, too. Most young children are taught what each of the colored lights means, so everybody can stay safe.
The first traffic signals were used for trains. The signals were put alongside railway tracks (轨道). The color red was used to mean “stop” because it warned people of danger. A red light was also the easiest color to see from a distance. Train drivers could see the red “stop” light ahead and had enough time to slow down and stop their trains. A green light was used to mean “take care” and a white light meant “go”.
However, there were many dangerous accidents on the train tracks. Some train drivers thought a star shining in the night sky was a white light that meant “go”. So the signals were swapped. The “go” light was changed to green and the “take care” light was changed to white.
During these times, people travelled by train or in carts pulled by horses. Years later, when cars were built, people began to drive them because they could travel much faster than horses. However, the road rules for drivers were not very clear and many people were hurt crossing the roads. Yellow warning signs had to be placed beside the roads to remind drivers to take care and allow people to cross safely.
Today, towns and cities all over the world have traffic lights. Red and green lights match the signals used on the railways. Yellow lights are easy to see, so they are used to warn drivers that they should slow down and prepare to stop.
1. Why was the color red used to mean “stop”?| A．It gave people a warning of danger. |
| B．It was the first color people thought of. |
| C．It reminded people of traffic rules. |
| D．It helped trains run smoothly. |
| A．Designed. | B．Suggested. | C．Compared. | D．Exchanged. |
a. A white light. b. A green light. c. A yellow light.
| A．a—b—c | B．b—c—a |
| C．b—a—c | D．a—c—b |
| A．The importance of traffic lights. | B．The meanings of traffic lights. |
| C．The advantages of traffic lights. | D．The history of traffic lights. |
5 . Skin-diving (潜泳) is a new sport today. This sport takes you into a wonderful new world. It is like a visit to the moon. When you are under water, it is easy for you to climb big rocks because you are no longer heavy.
Here, under water, everything is blue and green. During the day, there is plenty of light. When fish swim nearby, you can catch them with your hands.
When you have tanks (罐) of air on your back, you can stay in deep water for a long time. But you must be careful when you dive in deep water.
To catch fish is one of the most interesting parts of this sport. Besides, there are more uses for skin-diving. You can clean ships without taking them out of water. You can get many things from the deep sea.
Now you see that skin -diving is both useful and interesting.
1. Skin- diving is a new sport. It can take you to________.| A．the moon | B．a new world of land | C．the mountains | D．deep water |
| A．you are very heavy |
| B．you are as heavy as on the land |
| C．you are not as heavy as on the land |
| D．you have no weight at all |
| A．catch fish very easily | B．stay under water for a long time |
| C．climb big rocks | D．have more fun |
| A．The only use of skin-diving is to have more fun. |
| B．Skin-diving is like visiting the moon. |
| C．Skin-diving is a new sport. |
| D．Skin-diving is not only interesting but useful. |
6 . Rain beat against the window, matching my mood. I should have known that my new job at the hospital was too good to be true. Throughout the day, rumors (传言) warned that the newest employee from each department would be laid off. I was the newest one in the training department.
My boss appeared. “You probably know we’re cutting back,” he said. “Administration wants us to offer outplacement classes to help those employees find other jobs, showing them how to act in an interview, for example.” “Fine,” I answered unwillingly, not knowing what else to say.
I decided to go home early that day. In the hall, I met the lady who brought us cookies every Friday. She was a little woman with gray hair. Only her head and the top of her green apron (围裙) were visible over the cart (小车) loaded with cleaning supplies. At least she had a job!
At the final meeting, laid-off workers formed a line at the door. A colleague whispered, “I can’t believe our Cookie Lady is being laid off. We’ll miss her as much as we’ll miss her cookies.” When the colleague spoke to her in Spanish, I knew my classes would be useless for her and I realized how much better off I was than this poor woman.
I decided to do something for her. I wrote to a newspaper expressing how I felt about the unselfishness of the Cookie Lady who needed a job. A few days later, my article appeared in the newspaper and the Cookie Lady was allowed to stay in her position. On the same day, I received a letter, which seemed so unlikely that I read it twice. “An editor of a local magazine likes your piece and wants you to call her next time you’re looking for work…”
1. How did the author feel on that rainy day?| A．Nervous. | B．Excited. | C．Embarrassed. | D．Proud. |
| A．Take care of patients. | B．Leave earlier that day. |
| C．Help the laid-off workers. | D．Give up the job in the hospital. |
| A．He offered her a high-paid job. | B．He gave her advice on job hunting. |
| C．He made her story known to others. | D．He taught her how to pass an interview. |
| A．Good deeds have their rewards. |
| B．A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
| C．Little people can make a big difference. |
| D．Love brings more joy to people than work does. |
7 . 
Cheating can happen in a lot of different ways.When people cheat,it’s not fair to other people，like the kids who studied for the test or who the true winners of a game were.
Many people like the action of cheating.In their opinion,it makes difficult things seem easy,like getting all the right answers on the test.But it doesn't solve the problem of not knowing the material and it won't help on the next test—unless the person cheats again.
Some people lose respect for cheaters and think less of them.The cheaters themselves may feel bad because they know they shouldn't get that good grade.And,if they get caught cheating,they will be in trouble at school，and maybe at home,too.
Some kids cheat because they're busy or lazy and they want to get good grades without spending the time studying.Other kids might feel like they can’t pass the test without cheating.Even when there seems to be a “good reason” for cheating,cheating isn’t a good idea.
If you were sick or upset about something the night before the day and couldn’t study,it would be better to talk with the teacher about this.And if you don’t have enough time to study for a test because of swim practice,you need to talk with your parents about how to balance swimming and school.A kid who thinks cheating is the only way to pass a test needs to talk with the teacher and his or her parents so they can find some solutions together.Talking about these problems and working them out will feel better than cheating.
1. What does the author think when kids cheat in class?| A．It is unfair to other people. |
| B．It does harm to their health. |
| C．Teachers should punish them. |
| D．Teachers shouldn't stop them at once. |
| A．Because they think the material in the test is very difficult. |
| B．Because they want to do better than the others. |
| C．Because cheating can make hard things seem very easy. |
| D．Because they have little time to study their lessons. |
| A．Some kids can’t pass the test without cheating. |
| B．Why kids cheat in the test. |
| C．Cheating isn’t a good idea. |
| D．Some kids don't spend the time studying. |
| A．Cheaters are often thought highly of. |
| B．People show no respect for those who cheat. |
| C．Parents whose kids cheat are often in trouble. |
| D．Kids cheat in the test because of swim practice. |
8 . Shark attacks in the screen are amazing. That’s because your actual chances of ever being attacked by a shark are mere one in 11.5 million. That’s roughly the same as your chances of winning an Oscar, which makes shark attack survivor, Mike Coots both incredibly unlucky and lucky: When Mike was 18, he lost his leg to a shark bite.
“I was attacked by a tiger shark in late October 1997. It was near my home on the island of Kauai — a typical fall morning with friends. The waves were really good, so nothing was stopping us.” That is until a large shark came right up under Mike and sank his teeth into Mike’s lower leg. As he tried to free himself, the shark bit down harder, shaking its head back and forth and tossing Mike around like a rag doll. Mike followed his instinct (本能): He struck the shark in the face, again and again until the shark released him. As Mike swam back into shore, he realized his lower right leg was gone. Mike’s friends rushed to his aid, and sent him to the hospital.
As soon as Mike was well, he did what many of us might consider unthinkable: he started riding the waves again, in fact, his first time back was near the site of his attack. But Mike was unshaken. Instead, he was curious — why was he attacked? His curiosity led him to research sharks, and Mike did learn something that would change his life: Humans are far more dangerous to sharks than the other way around.
His situation as a shark survivor empowered him to give sharks a voice, Mike says. He began working with the Hawaii state authorities (当局) to help pass a ban (禁令) on shark-derived products. “I partnered with other like-minded shark attack survivors and marine biologists, and we headed to Washington to urge (敦促) senators to create a nationwide bit! protecting sharks.”
1. Why does the author show the chances of being attacked by sharks?| A．To inform readers of some related knowledge. |
| B．To attract people to watch shark attacks in the screen. |
| C．To stress Mike’s unusual experience of the shark attack. |
| D．To show everyone has the chance of winning an Oscar. |
| A．By hitting the shark hard continually. |
| B．By swimming desperately to the shore, |
| C．By screaming loudly for his friends’ help. |
| D．By shaking its head up and down to get away. |
| A．To overcome his fear of sharks. |
| B．To research on how sharks attack humans. |
| C．To find out the reason for his being attacked. |
| D．To prove humans are more dangerous than sharks. |
| A．He passed a ban on shark-derived products. |
| B．He created a nationwide bill in Washington. |
| C．He worked with the authorities to protect sharks. |
| D．He urged shark attack survivors to protect sharks. |
9 . In January, 2021, the ice-making work on the ”Ice Ribbon“, a landmark venue for the Beijing Winter Olympics, was completed.
In the Winter Olympics, where races can be won or lost by a small time gap, tiny imperfections in the ice can make all the differences. ”It’s not just a hunk of ice like you’d normally think of, like ice cubes sitting in your freezer,“ told Kenneth Golden, a U. S. mathematician who studies the structures of ice. ”It’s a much more fascinating and complex substance than people would normally think.“
The first step for building any ice rink is to purify the water to remove dissolved solids like salts and minerals. Such impurities don’t fit in the regular hexagonal(六边形的)structure of ice that forms as water freezes. The purer the water, the more consistent the ice surface.
In addition to the need for excellence in the raw materials of ice-making, technology is also very important, As one of the most advanced technologies for winter sports venues, a carbon dioxide cooling technology has been applied on a large scale for the Beijing Winter Olympic Games. CO2 , is not new when it comes to ice-making. However, it has been gradually replaced by the man-made refrigerant, like Freon.
With increasing attention toward climate change, the old refrigerant has come into use again. As an element of the atmosphere, CO2, doesn’t damage the ozone layer. Although CO2 is a greenhouse gas, its greenhouse effect is much lower than that of other synthetic refrigerants. The Winter Olympics venues adopted CO2 instead of Freon as a refrigerant in ice-making, which will reduce carbon dioxide emissions greatly.
”We believe these technological innovations will bring Beijing 2022 to spectators all over the world in a more impressive way.“ told Gao Bo from the Media Operations Department of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.
1. What is the result of impurities in water for ice-making?| A．The water isn’t able to freeze completely. |
| B．The quality of the ice will be affected. |
| C．The ice surface will be more consistent. |
| D．It’s likely for athletes to fall on the ice. |
| A．It’s the most advanced technology for ice-making. |
| B．CO2 is more efficient than other refrigerants. |
| C．CO2 is more environmentally friendly than Freon. |
| D．CO2 has already existed in the atmosphere. |
| A．Unclear. | B．Opposed. | C．Doubtful. | D．Favorable. |
| A．The Beijing Winter Olympic Games Are Coming |
| B．Beneath Olympic Ice |
| C．The Use of Refrigerants in Olympic Games |
| D．The Structure of Ice |
10 . Thirteen-year-old Kaylee has a lot of friends — 532, actually, if you count up her online friends. And she spends a lot of time with them.
But is it possible that Kaylee’s online friendships could be making her lonely? That’s what some experts believe. Connecting online is a great way to stay in touch, they say. However, some experts worry that many kids are so busy connecting online that they might be missing out on true friendships.
Could this be true? During your parents’ childhoods, connecting with friends usually meant spending time with them in the flesh. Kids played Scrabble around a table, not Words with Friends on their phones. When friends missed each other, they picked up the telephone. Friends might even write letters to each other.
Today, most communication takes place online. A typical teen sends 2,000 texts a month and spends more than 44 hours per week in front of a screen. Much of this time is spent on social media platforms (平台).
In fact, in many ways, online communication can make friendships stronger. “There’s definitely a positive influence. Kids can stay in constant contact, which means they can share more of their feelings with each other,” says Katie Davis, co-author of The App Generation.
Other experts, however, warn that too much online communication can get in the way of forming deep friendships. “If we are constantly checking in with our virtual (虚拟的) worlds, we will have little time for our real-world friendships,” says Larry Rosen, a professor at California State University. Rosen also worries that today’s kids might mistake the “friends” on the social media for true friends in life. However, in tough times, you don’t need someone to like your picture or share your blogs. You need someone who will keep your secrets and hold your hand. You would like to talk face to face.
1. What is the purpose of the first paragraph?| A．To summarize the text. | B．To tell about true friends. |
| C．To bring up a discussion. | D．To encourage online friendship. |
| A．In any case. | B．In person. | C．In this way. | D．In advance. |
| A．Worried. | B．Unconcerned. | C．Confused. | D．Positive. |
| A．It`s wise to turn to friends online. |
| B．It`s easier to develop friendships in reality. |
| C．Teenagers need to focus on real-world friendships. |
| D．Social media help people stay closely connected. |
