2 . If you are longing for a hike in Alaska and aren’t sure where to star, here are our favorites. There’s something for all levels of skills and ambitions.

The Kenai River Trail

A half mile down this trail are wonderful views of the Kenai River Canyon. There are really two trailheads(小道的起点); the main “upper” trail starts at mile 0.6 of Skilak Lake Rd, and the other at mile 2.3.

Turnagain Arm Trail

This 11-mile hike begins at Potter Trailhead (Mile 115). Initially used by Alaska Natives, the trail, can also be accessible to points along the way: McHugh Creck (Mile 112), Rainbow (Mile 108) and Windy (Mile 107).

Iditarod National Historic Trail

The National Historic Iditarod Trail is a 24-mile hike used by gold miners and sled-dog teams until 1918, when the Alaska Railroad was finished. It’s a two-to-three day hike through superb mountain scenery to Girdwood (where it’s known as the Crow Pass Trail), and is the region’s best backpack adventure.

Put up a tent at Echo Bend (Mile 3), or rent one of two yurts(毡房) ($65 per night) close by. For a shorter outing you can turn around at the Perch, then return to the Dew Mound Trail at Echo Bend and then to the Nature Center, making this a scenic 8-mile trip.

Reed Lakes Trail

Two alpine lakes, waterfalls, glaciers and towering granite(花岗岩) walls: the 7-to-9-mile Reed Lakes Trail is one of the most wonderful hikes in the region, and worth the climb. Once you reach upper Reed Lake, continue 1 mile to Bomber Glacier, where the ruin of a B-29 bomber lies in memorial to six men who died in a 1957 crash.

1. Which route was originally used by Alaska Natives?

A．The Kenai River Trail.	B．Tunagain Arm Trail.
C．Iditarod National Historic Trail.	D．Reed Lakes Trail.

2. What will visitors see at Bomber Glacier?

A．A memorial to six heroes.	B．A tower made of granite.
C．One of the most splendid waterfalls.	D．The ruin of a B-29 bomber.

3. Who will be more interested in the text?

A．Nature photographers.	B．Sports lovers.
C．Field researchers.	D．Alaska explorers.

3 . It is always said that China is the homeland of tea, which has a very long history of tea.     1     However, unlike the western custom of using a convenient teabag, Chinese go to a lot of effort and time to prepare good tea for their guests, using tea leaves, natural spring water and a special kettle etc. to create worldwide famous tea culture. Tea is not just a drinkable beverage(饮料), but also a taste of Chinese traditional culture and inheritance(继承) of spirit. Unsurprisingly, there are various tea leaves in China.     2    

➢Color

    3     Good green tea leaves have jade green with fresh vitality. Twisted pan green tea shows glossy gray green. If some of the tea leaves have dry, dark and brown colors, it means it is old tea. If the leaves have mixed, large contrast colors, it is believed that the tea is mixed with yellow leaves, old leaves and even old tea, which does not live up to the standard of good tea.

➢Flavor(味道)

New tea is extremely clear and transparent with strong aroma(芳香), while old tea is characterized by brown color and weak fragrance. Take green tea and black tea for example, new green tea tastes a little bitter first, and then the fresh sweet taste begins to surface gradually, leaving a long and memorable after taste in mouth.     4    

➢Place of origin

There is great gap of quality among various places of origin.     5     For example, it is well-known that Yunnan produces the best quality Pu'er tea and premium Oolong tea can be found within Fujian Province.

A．Every tea leaf has its own shape.

B．Some varieties are identified by tightness of the leaves.

C．It is always advised to select tea from its main producing areas.

D．While you’re selecting tea, you should pay attention to following aspects.

E．For foreigners in China, drinking tea may seem like simple refreshment(提神).

F．Generally, new tea leaves look fresh and pleasing, with light green or dark green.

G．On the contrary, if bitter taste takes the lead and fresh sweet taste subsides(减弱), it is black tea.

5 . Thanks to world-famous Colombian writer Garcia Marquez, many people think of Latin America as a land of magic. In his books, impossible things happen.

    1     It may come from the mix of different cultures and ethnicities in Latin America. Although some of these differences have caused conflicts, they have also been a source of beauty, as well as encouraged people in Latin America to be more open-minded.

Latin America includes more than 30 countries and areas located south of the United States in the American continent. From north to south, it starts from Mexico in North America, goes through the Caribbean and ends at the southernmost tip of South America.

    2     People can enjoy sunshine’ the Caribbean islands, ride horses on the green grasslands of the Pampas, and explore volcanoes and snow-capped mountains in the Andes. It even has the world’s biggest rainforest the Amazon. Many of the world’s most unique plants and animals live there.

There is also diverse mix of people in Latin America.     3       In countries like Mexico and Columbia, over half of the population is of mixed ethnicity. However, most of them speak the same languages-Spanish or Portuguese.

    4     Latin America people have created the samba, rumba, cha cha and tango. These dance styles require dancers to hold each other closely and move passionately.     5    

Latin America is an open and romantic place. Its impressive natural environment, historical contributions and cultural traditions have made it unique and influential.

A．It has natives, Africans and Europeans.

B．Latin America’s environment is quite diverse.

C．Where does the magic in his books come from?

D．They are cheerful and can bring strangers together.

E．Many people in Latin America have open and romantic hearts.

F．The music and dance of Latin America are quite well-known.

G．To most people, Latin America is a land of happiness and passion.

6 . Joseph Francis Charles Rock (1884–1962) was an Austrian-American explorer, botanist, and anthropologist(人类学家). For more than 25 years, he travelled extensively through Tibet and Yunnan, Gansu, and Sichuan provinces in China before finally leaving in 1949.

In 1924, Harvard sent Joseph Francis Rock on a treasure hunt through China’s southwestern provinces—the Wild West of their day. But gold and silver weren’t his task : Rock, a distinguished botanist, sought only to fill his bags with all the seeds, saplings, and shrubs he could find. During his three-year expedition, he collected 20,000 specimens for the Arnold Arboretum(阿诺德植物园).

Botany, though, was just one of Rock’s strengths. As an ethnologist(民族学者), he took hundreds of photographs of the Naxi, a tribe in Yunnan province, recording their now-lost way of life for both Harvard and National Geographic, and took notes for an eventual 500-page dictionary of their language. His hand-drawn map of his travels through China’s “Cho-Ni” territory, in the Harvard Map Collection, includes more than a thousand rivers, towns, and mountains indicated in both English and Chinese, and was so well made that the U.S. government used it to plan aerial missions in World War II.

Scientist, linguist, cartographer, photographer, writer—Rock was not a wallflower in any sense. Arrogant and self-possessed, he would walk into a village or warlord’s place “as if he owned the place,” said Lisa Pearson, the Arboretum’s head librarian.

In declaring his successful return under the headline “Seeking Strange Flowers, in the Far Reaches of the World” , the Boston Evening Transcript ran a large photo of the daring explorer wearing in a woolly coat and fox-skin hat. “In discussing his heroism including hair-raising escapes from death either from mountain slides, snow slides and robber armies, he waves the idea away as if it is of no importance.”

The Arboretum and Rock parted ways after 1927, mainly because his trip cost Harvard a fortune—about $900,000 in today’s dollars. Fortunately, many of his specimens, many of his amazing photos, and his great stories remain.

1. What is the passage mainly about?

A．Rock’s service for the U.S government.

B．Rock’s cooperation with Harvard.

C．Rock’s work as a botanist.

D．Rock’s exploration in Southwest China.

2. What contribution did Rock make to the USA besides collecting new plants and specimens?

A．He traveled through some uncivilized places in China.

B．His hand-drawn map was used in WWII.

C．He showed heroism by escaping difficulties.

D．He made headlines in Boston Evening News.

3. How did Rock respond when people mentioned his heroic deeds?

A．Excitedly.	B．Proudly.
C．Calmly	D．Nervously.

4. What caused Rock to stop work for The Arboretum?

A．The vast expense.	B．The dangerous journey.
C．The challenging tasks.	D．The unknown world.

7 . In the middle of the Pacific Ocean lies the tiny island nation of Tuvalu，the fourth smallest country in the world. This group of four islands and five atolls (islands made from coral) is famous for its sandy beaches and turquoise (蓝绿色的) waters and has long been a popular tourist destination for nearby New Zealanders. However, the nation of Tuvalu is at risk of soon no longer existing; not because of war or political change, but because it will be covered by the rising ocean.

Tuvalu is experiencing the harmful effects of global warming. As global temperatures rise, so does the ocean temperature. Due to the scientific law of “thermal expansion,” when water heats it get bigger.     1     Most experts claim that the effects of climate change will make Tuvalu uninhabitable within the next 50 years. Problems are already emerging. As sea levels rise, ocean water containing high levels of salt is travelling further and further inland destroying the little amount of soil Tuvaluans have to grow crops.

Even before Tuvaluans began to suffer from the effects of climate change, lift on Tuvalu was tough.     2     Most of the land on an atoll is rock-hard arid any soil that exists on it is usually thin and poor for growing crops. The nation has always had to import food apart from fish.

More serious than Tuvalu’s lack of home-grown food has been its lack of drinking water.    3     Therefore, Tuvaluans depend almost entirely on rainwater for their water needs. Unfortunately, due to a geographical phenomenon known as La Nina, Tuvalu often suffers from long periods of drought. In autumn 2010, after seven months of no rain, the Prime Minister had to declare a state of emergency riot only because of a lack of drinking water, but also because the water left was polluted with cholera (霍乱)     4    

Tuvalu’s problems have led some of its 11, 000 inhabitants to consider migrating to Australia or New Zealand.    5     They know they’ll have to someday, but for as long as possible, they want to remain and make the world aware of what is happening to their homeland due to chimate change.

A．It was a desperate situation and, but for emergency shipments from New Zealand and Australia, many Tuvaluans would have died.

B．This is largely due to the geological makeup of atolls.

C．Unlike normal islands, atolls have no rivers or streams, which means that most of Tuvalu has no groundwater to use for drinking.

D．Tuvalu’s representatives demanded that nations should take a more responsible rote in reducing gas emissions.

E．Therefore, sea levels are rising and for low-lying Tuvalu, this spells disaster.

F．However, they ate not willing to abandon the land of their forefathers so easily.

G．And as a member of the United Nations, they are doing just that.

8 . The Great Wall, China

Stretching over 21,000 kilometers, the Great Wall was built to prevent invasions and has a history of more than 2,000 years. UNESCO in February 2019 calls it an absolute masterpiece, not only because of the ambitious character of the undertaking but also the perfection of its construction.”

But perfection isn’t protection. 51.2 percent of the Great Wall had either already disappeared or is at a significant risk of disappearing. Besides for wind and rain erosion, the main reasons for the destruction of the Great Wall are human factors such as tourism, construction, human contact and so on.

Pamukkale，Turkey

Pamukkale, which means “cotton castle” in Turkish, is famous for its shining white calcite terraces (方解石阶地)with warm and mineral-rich waters overrun.

Before being listed as a World Heritage Site in 1988, Pamukkale had been severely damaged by human activities. People used hot spring water to fill swimming pools, some visitors stood on the rocks and some even bathed in the hot springs with soap and shampoo. To protect the terraces, the Turkish government has decided to pull down the hotels and require all tourists to visit this site barefoot.

Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Home to 400 types of coral and 1,500 species of fish, the Great Barrier Reef draws visitors to Australia from all over the world.

However, the Great Barrier Reef is expected to suffer from increasingly frequent bleaching events, cases in which corals turn white and may die, according to a UNESCO report. The heat waves caused by global warming have killed half of the coral here in the two years, according to a CNN report. Pollution from industry developments and harmful fishing practices are also big concerns.

The Dead Sea, Jordan

At 423 meters below sea level, the Dead Sea is 10 times saltier than the ocean, meaning that the water is so dense, even tourists who can9t swim will be able to float.

But the seaside resorts built in the 1980s now sit kilometers away from the water’s edge, which has lost half of its surface area in the past 40 years. The damage is irreversible due to the nature of the mineral industry and the type of agricultural use that has drained the water.

1. Which are you required to visit without shoes?

A．The Great Wall, China.

B．Pamukkale, Turkey.

C．Great Barrier Reef, Australia.

D．The Dead Sea, Jordan.

2. Which of the following statements is true?

A．Main reasons for the destruction of the Great Wall come from wind and rain erosion.

B．Pamukkale was damaged by human activities after 1988.

C．Pollution and the heat waves caused by global warming kill much coral in the Great Barrier Reef.

D．Half of the Dead Sea surface area has disappeared in the past two decades.

3. What do the above spots have in common?

A．They are all famous endangered natural spots.

B．They’re damaged only from human activities.

C．They all draw the attention of the governments.

D．They’re all seriously damaged.

9 . Dubai(迪拜)is one of the economically richest places in the world. With its numerous malls, hotels, and beautiful beaches, Dubai has always been a popular holiday destination. This city was visited by around 5 million tourists each year. The government wanted to increase this number to 15 million. However, Dubai has only 45 miles of coastline, which is nowhere enough for so many people. To solve this problem, an island that looked like a palm tree was built in 2006, and named the Palm Jumeirah.

The plan for the island was extraordinary. It was to host several hotels, shopping malls, restaurants, and homes. Although the initial plan was to build the island from concrete(水泥), a decision was taken to create it from sand and gravel(砾石), so as to give it a natural look.

To make sure that this project was a success, the best engineers from across the world were employed. Engineers from Holland formed the majority in this group. To begin with, the engineers calculated the strength of storms at sea, and also the expected amount of rise in water levels due to global warming. And then they found that, the proposed location for the island was neither very wide nor deep.

One of the difficulties the engineers came across was to put sand on the sea bed to create the breakwater(防浪堤).Finding the right sand for the project was also a daunting task, as the sand from Dubai’s deserts was too fine. Instead, sand from the sea was used, as it was coarser(粗糙). Once the breakwater was built, construction of the island began.

The Palm Island are really impressive in terms of engineering. However, these projects are so large that they may have changed the ecology of the region. Also, an immense amount of money and resources go into maintaining the islands, which is a major concern at the moment. Only time will tell if building the Palm Islands was actually a good decision.

1. What does Paragraph 1 mainly show us?

A．Beautiful attractions of Dubai.

B．The geographical features of Dubai.

C．The purposes of building the Palm Jumeirah,

D．The difficulty in developing the tourism industry.

2. Why were some changes made to the initial plan for the project?

A．To reduce the building cost.	B．To get the islands completed sooner.
C．To get the building materials more easily.	D．To make the island look more natural,

3. What does the underlined word"daunting" in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．meaningless

B．difficult

C．Impossible

D．necessary

4. According to the last paragraph, how is the construction of the Palm Islands?

A．Profitable.

B．Surprising.

C．Worrying.

D．Unbelievable.