1 . When your child begins to beg for a pet, you may draw back at the thought of the additional responsibilities. Parents usually think of all the work and responsibility having a pet could bring about.     1    

● Teach responsibility.

A family pet can help show children the importance of proper care in keeping their new friend happy and healthy.    2     Give your child a sense of responsibility by having them help meet these needs, whether they feel like it that day or not.

● Encourage exercise.

If you’ve ever been forced to keep up with a young dog or cat, you know how tiring it can be!    3     By encouraging your child to play with his or her pet, both of them will get the exercise they need to sleep soundly and live healthy and happy lives.

    4    

Teaching your child how to “play nice” with and show affection to another living being is an essential first step toward developing lifelong empathy (共情) for others. Learning how to be a good friend with a pet will teach one how to be more open and friendly to other people as well.

● Be practical.

While the benefits of pet ownership are clear, pets are definitely not for everybody. Raising pets requires a large amount of work and responsibility. You’d better make sure the whole family is aware of the requirement that come along with the pet.     5     It’s best to introduce the potential pet to your child before bringing him or her home to ensure that there is a healthy connection.

A．Treat others well.

B．Form a close bond with a friend.

C．Pets are great for helping "“break the ice”.

D．But you can use the pet’s energy to your advantage.

E．Also, some pets can be very aggressive with children.

F．All pets need to be fed, given fresh water, and exercised regularly.

G．However, allowing kids to keep a pet can teach you both some important lessons.

2 . Kids everywhere love to play. And they know a ball is a perfect thing to play with. Now scientists at London’s Queen Mary University report that bumblebees seem to know the same thing, making bumblebees the first insects known to play.

When people talk about “play”, they’re describing an animal doing something that doesn’t really seem to help it. They’re not doing the action to get food or shelter or another similar “reward”. Play usually happens when a creature is relaxed and is often repeated.

However, scientists think many animals and birds’ playing is a kind of training for things they’ll have to deal with in later life. But before this, there were no reports of insects playing.

Scientists at Dr. Chittka’s lab, carried out an experiment. First, they tagged (贴标签) 45 young bumblebees, both male and female, between 1 and 23 days old. The tags made the bees easier to identify and follow.

The scientists set up a clear pathway from the bumblebees’ nest to a feeding area. On either side of the open pathway, the researchers placed small colored wooden balls. On one side of the path, the balls were attached and couldn’t move. On the other side, the balls could roll around. It turned out that the bumblebees weren’t interested in the unmovable balls, but they made lots of visits to the rolling balls.

Grabbing the balls with their legs, the bees would flap (拍打) their wings to pull on the balls, causing them to roll. The 45 tagged bumblebees rolled balls 910 times during the experiment. Though some only did it once, others did it a lot. The younger bumblebees spent more time rolling balls. Males seemed more likely to play than females.

“It’s not clear why the bees roll the balls or whether they enjoy it But the experiment raises important questions about how the insects’ minds work and whether they have feelings. With further research, the future will hold surprises and answers in store for us,” said Dr. Chittka.

1. What is the purpose of animals’ play according to scientists?

A．To find ideal shelter.

B．To receive extra rewards.

C．To develop survival skills.

D．To get their fellows’ attention.

2. What did Dr. Chittka’s experiment focus on?

A．Bumblebees’ categories.	B．Bumblebees’ habitats.
C．Bumblebees’ intelligence.	D．Bumblebees’ behavior.

3. What was the result of the experiment?

A．Younger male bumblebees preferred to roll the balls.

B．Bumblebees possessed different wing beat frequency.

C．Bumblebees could distinguish balls of different colors.

D．A specially-built pathway helped bumblebees find food.

4. What is Dr. Chittka’s attitude to their future research?

A．Uncertain.

B．Doubtful.

C．Optimistic.

D．Critical.

3 . Live with roommates? Have friends and family around you? Chances are that if you’re looking to live a more sustainable lifestyle, not everyone around you will be ready to jump on that bandwagon.

I experienced this when I started switching to a zero waste lifestyle five years ago, as I was living with my parents, and I continue to experience this with my husband, as he is not completely zero waste like me. I’ve learned a few things along the way though, which I hope you’ll find encouraging if you’re doing your best to figure out how you can make the change in a not-always-supportive household.

Zero waste was a radical lifestyle movement a few years back. I remember showing my parents a video of Bea Johnson, sharing how cool I thought it would be to buy groceries with jars, and have so little trash! A few days later, I came back with my first jars of zero waste groceries, and my dad commented on how silly it was for me to carry jars everywhere. It came off as a bit discouraging.

Yet as the months of reducing waste continued, I did what I could that was within my own reach. I had my own bedroom, so I worked on removing things I didn’t need. Since I had my own toiletries (洗漱用品), I was able to start personalising my routine to be more sustainable. I also offered to cook every so often, so I portioned out a bit of the cupboard for my own zero waste groceries. Perhaps your household won’t entirely make the switch, but you may have some control over your own personal spaces to make the changes you desire.

As you make your lifestyle changes, you may find yourself wanting to speak up for yourself if others comment on what you’re doing, which can turn itself into a whole household debate. If you have individuals who are not on board, your words probably won’t do much and can often leave you feeling more discouraged.

So here is my advice: Lead by action.

1. What do the underlined words “jump on that bandwagon” mean in the first paragraph?

A．Share an apartment with you.	B．Join you in what you’re doing.
C．Transform your way of living.	D．Help you to make the decision.

2. What was the attitude of the author’s father toward buying groceries with jars?

A．He disapproved of it.	B．He was favorable to it.
C．He was tolerant of it.	D．He didn’t care about it.

3. What can we infer about the author?

A．She is quite good at cooking.	B．She respects others’ privacy.
C．She enjoys being a housewife.	D．She is a determined person.

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．How to get on well with other family members.

B．How to have one’s own personal space at home.

C．How to live a zero waste lifestyle in a household.

D．How to control the budget when buying groceries.

4 . We humans have an outsize influence on this planet, and our winged, finned, and four-legged neighbors are in their tough time. Many animals have died out in response to the pressures, but some survivors are adapting. Some animals are showing off never-before-seen behaviors, shifting their diets, and even evolving different shapes, sizes, and colors.

The shifts can’t be avoided and are likely permanent: There’s no going back to when wildlife was still completely wild. “There’s no place anywhere on the planet in its original condition. There are micro plastics at the bottom of the ocean, and Antarctica is melting. The world has changed because we’re in it,” says Tag Engstrom, a biologist at California State University.

African elephants in Mozambique’s Gorongosa National Park are some daring members of the animal kingdom, who have found a will and a way to change right along with it.

Normally elephants use their 6-foot-long tusks to dig wells in search of water, lift objects, rip bark off trees, and even battle lions. In other words, the ivory appendages (附属品) are not just impressive to look at — they are highly useful tools. So it might seem strange that a significant number of African elephants in Mozambique’s Gorongosa National Park, once an illegal hunting wildlife area, are now being born without tusks.

According to a 2021 DNA analysis published in the journal Science, that the elephants are born without tusks is no coincidence. After decades of being shot by ivory brokers, the leading elephants in some herds have passed down a trait that prevents the females’ prize possessions from growing in — and helps them avoid being hunted. No one knows yet how widespread these genes might be in the greater population of African elephants, or how the loss of tusks might affect the mammals’ survival overall. But the findings are a powerful, if depressing, reminder of the extremes a species might endure to escape from extinction.

1. How do the animals respond to humans influence?

A．Many animals have evolved four legs.

B．Animals can survive despite the tough time.

C．Some animals are developing different shapes.

D．Animals live in harmony with human beings.

2. Why are the shifts likely permanent?

A．We human beings are evolving.

B．Wildlife are not going back to the wild.

C．Plastics appear at the bottom of the ocean.

D．The planet is no longer what it was like before.

3. What can we infer from the 2021 DNA analysis?

A．The elephants evolve the new trait by chance.

B．Elephants in some herds are all born without tusks.

C．Genes will be widespread in the greater population.

D．The new trait may help elephants survive the extinction.

4. In which column of a magazine can we most likely to find the text?

A．Travel.

B．Science.

C．Puzzles.

D．Well-being.

5 . China’s first cloned police dog, three-month-old Kunxun, has begun training after arriving at a police base in Kunming, southwest China’s Yunnan Province earlier this month.

Kunxun was cloned from a 7-year-old female police dog named Huahuangma, which is considered a great detective (侦探的) dog. A study showed that Kunxun’s DNA is 99. 9 percent similar to Huahuangma’s.

Kunxun will begin training in drug detection, and is to be a grown-up police dog at 10 months. But it would take four to five years to train a dog like Huahuangma. The birth of Kunxun provides the possibility of extending animal clone technology to police dogs, and will significantly reduce the time to train one, Zhao Jianping, Sinogene deputy general manager, told the Global Times on Tuesday. He also noted that the cost of cloning remains a bottleneck for mass production.

Wan Jiusheng, a lead researcher at the Kunming Dog Base of Public Security, told the Science and Technology Daily that Kunxun shows a better potential than the regularly bred Kunming wolfdogs in a series of tests. Wan said Kunxun will be able to become a police dog when it is about 10 months old.

A police officer told the Global Times on Tuesday that preserving the police dog blood has always been a challenge, as traditional breeding methods would dilute (稀释) the original, and the next generation’s genes will be largely beyond control. The successful police dog clone technology would address those problems and lower the elimination (淘汰) rate of police dogs at the puppy training stage, he said.

However, such technology does not mean that the mass production of police dogs has already arrived, as factors like the surroundings and trainers’ skill also play an important role, Wan noted.

Kunxun is not the first cloned police dog. In South Korea, six cloned police dogs first appeared and began patrolling (巡逻) the streets in 2008. The world’s first cloned animal, Dolly the sheep, was born in Scotland in 1996.

1. What is the benefit of cloning police dogs according to paragraph 3?

A．Living longer.	B．Costing less money.
C．Reducing training time.	D．Completing harder tasks.

2. What do Zhao Jianping’s and Wan Jiusheng’s opinions have in common?

A．Clone technology will be used on humans.

B．Cloned animals can help people in some ways.

C．Cloning police dogs hasn’t yet reached mass production.

D．The cloned police dog trainers’ skill is very important.

3. Where was the world’s first cloned police dog born?

A．In Scotland.

B．In China.

C．In the US.

D．In South Korea.

4. Where is this text most likely from?

A．A diary.

B．A magazine.

C．A novel.

D．A guidebook.

6 . There is hot, and then there is hot! Extreme heat is a period of high heat and humidity with temperatures above 90 degrees Fahrenheit for at least two to three days. Extreme heat is responsible for the highest number of annual deaths among all weather-related hazards (危害).

It’s not your imagination. Summers have been getting hotter and hotter with extreme heatwaves occurring earlier and more frequently. But why is this happening and can we better predict heatwaves in advance to give people time to prepare?

“Climate change is here and it’s already been changing human behavior and causing significant influence in the society. As global temperatures rise, historically excessive (过高的) temperatures are more likely to occur.” says Craig Ramseyer, an assistant professor who studies climate modeling in the department of geography at Virginia Tech.

Ramseyer says heatwaves are the most concerning because of the lack of attention they normally receive. “Hurricanes, tornadoes, and flash floods drive more media attention because of the natural attraction with the visual impact of those types of hazards. However, heat does not tend to be as attractive and it becomes very difficult to communicate the danger to the public,” said Ramseyer. “Around the world, more deaths occur due to extreme heat than from hurricanes, flooding, and drought combined. It impacts the most helpless of our citizens who do not have enough access to air conditioning, water, and other important resources.”

Since the Earth is running warmer than it used to, Ramseyer says that when these heatwave-related weather patterns take place, it results in higher extreme temperatures than we used to experience 30 years ago.

“As a global community, we need to decrease carbon emissions as soon as possible. We have rapidly developing technologies that are going to help advance the process, but the faster the better, there is no time to waste.”

1. What can we learn from the article?

A．Extreme heat is a No.1 death cause.

B．People are suffering more extreme heat.

C．A 100-degree heat is an extreme heat.

D．Extreme heat is getting better over the years.

2. What will Ramseyer possibly agree with?

A．Climate change will soon affect human behaviors.

B．High temperatures happened frequently in history.

C．Air conditioning and water can stop the extreme heat.

D．Garbage sorting can less advance the climate change.

3. Why is extreme heat lack of attention?

A．Extreme heat can be stopped by technology.

B．People have enough time to solve the climate problems.

C．The danger of extreme heat is not easily transferred to the public.

D．Heatwave-related weather patterns will decrease in the future.

4. What’s the article mainly about?

A．Complaints about extreme heat.	B．Prevention of extreme heat.
C．Characters of extreme heat.	D．Technologies behind extreme heat.

7 . The loss of housing due to floods is an undeniable issue. But now, Japanese housing developer Ichijo Komuten recently unveiled a “flood-resistant house” that can not only remain waterproof during floods, but also float off the ground.

Their new “flood-resistant house” was recently featured on a popular Japanese TV show and it has been getting a lot of attention online ever since. Japan’s TBS TV station recently visited one of Ichijo’s test sites where the company’s new flood-resistant house was being put through a simulated flood. Although it looked just like an ordinary house when the test began, by the time that water started rising around it, viewers could see the structure leave the ground and eventually float a few inches above it.

We’ve all seen floating houses being swept away in severe floods, but Ichijo’s newest invention features a system that prevents just that. The house is connected to a number of thick iron rod(杆)sticking out of the ground with thick cables(缆绳)that ensure it stays in place as the water floods past. When the water recedes, the floating house comes back down in its original position. The “flood-resistant house” also features special vents(通风口))hat close up in the event of flooding, and the plumbing also has special valves that prevent water from getting into the home. Electrical equipment like air conditioning is positioned on the upper half of the building to ensure that water doesn’t reach it.

According to engineers at Ichijo Komuten, most homes flood when water reaches the window level, but because their flood-resistant house can float up to five meters above ground, water is unlikely to reach the windows and everything else is sealed shut.

1. Why does Ichijo Komuten develop the “flood-resistant house”?

A．To make houses waterproof.	B．To get houses off the ground.
C．To keep houses forever floating.	D．To secure houses against floods.

2. What can we learn from the passage?

A．Houses throughout the world are in danger of being flooded.

B．Electrical equipment will be safe in Ichijo Komuten’s flood-resistant house.

C．Thick iron rods and cables were invented by Ichijo Komuten.

D．Ichijo Komuten’s flood-resistant houses have been put into market successfully.

3. What is the attitude of Ichijo Komuten’s engineers toward their newest invention?

A．Positive.

B．Doubtful.

C．Unclear.

D．Critical.

4. What’s the main purpose of the passage?

A．To assess the consequences of floods

B．To stress the necessity of a waterproof house.

C．To provide guidance on flood control.

D．To introduce a new invention and its functions.

8 . Antarctic blue whales have been perceived again in the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia. An international-team of researchers discovered the animals five decades after whaling (捕鲸业) nearly caused them to disappear forever. “The ocean resources at South Georgia were heavily developed during the early 20th-century industrial whaling,” says lead author Susannah Calderan, an ecologist with the Scottish Association for Marine Science.

Antarctic blue whales were plentiful in the area until whaling began there in 1904, kicking off the beginning of industrial whaling in the Southern Ocean. While hunters originally focused on species that could be easily caught, like the humpback whale, the focus quickly moved to the blue whale. Between 1904 and 1973, 345,775 Antarctic blue whales were killed in the Southern hemisphere (半球）and in the northern Indian Ocean. Around South Georgia, blue whale catches were reported year-round without stopping. Between 1904 and 1971, industrial whaling caused 42, 698 blue whales’ death, Blue whales almost disappeared in these areas.

Researchers studied all Antarctic blue whale data from the last three decades. They examined sightings (目睹)from scientific surveys collected by observers on ships, as well as opportunistic sightings reported by seamen and ship passengers to the South Georgia. They also examined acoustic(声音的）recordings of blue whale.

They found that whale surveys from ships off South Georgia resulted in just one blue whale sighting between 1998 and 2018. But more recent surveys suggest better news. A survey in February of 2020 found nearly 60 blue whale sightings, and several acoustic detections (探测).A total of 41 blue whales have been recognized through photos from South Georgia between 2011 and 2020.

“Their return is very meaningful, as it was widely thought that blue whales at South Georgia might have been hunted beyond a point where they could recover, and might never be seen again in great numbers at South Georgia,” Calderan says. “Our research shows that, populations can recover even from very low levels if they’re given enough protection.”

1. What does the underlined word “perceived” in paragraph 1 mean?

A．Kept.

B．Found.

C．Hunted.

D．Destroyed.

2. What does paragraph 2 mainly want to tell us?

A．The development of industrial whaling.

B．The cause of blue whales’ disappearance.

C．The wide spread of blue whales in the past.

D．The tricks of catching blue whales easily.

3. What did the researchers find through their surveys in South Georgia?

A．There is an increasing return of blue whales.

B．Blue whales are in a more dangerous situation.

C．More and more people like watching blue whales.

D．South Georgia is a good place to watch blue whales.

4. What might be discussed in the following paragraph?

A．The risk of killing whales at higher rates.

B．The sign of Antarctic blue whales’ return.

C．The way of protecting Antarctic blue whales.

D．The effect of the great loss of ocean resources.

9 . The country’s first national park, Yellowstone, is renaming one of its largest mountains to honor indigenous people after research revealed the man it had been named after helped lead a massacre (屠杀) against local tribes. As part of the park’s 150th anniversary, officials announced the 10,551-foot high peak formerly called Mount Doane is now First Peoples Mountain.

“It is a victory, yes. Is history being rewritten and retold truthfully? I hope so,” William Snell, executive director of the Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council, told NPR. His group helped advise federal officials on the name change. In an email, Snell said the change to First Peoples Mountain couldn't have come at a better time as Yellowstone officials prepare for the park’s anniversary in August.

The peak—along a range on the eastern side of Yellowstone Lake—had been named after Gustavus Doane, who helped lead the Washburn-Langford-Doane exploration in 1870 that eventually led to the park getting federal protection.

But recently, historians uncovered Doane’s role in an attack that left at least 173 Native Americans dead. Known as the Marias Massacre, Doane carried out the attack over the killing of a white fur trader. In writings, Doane cast a favorable light on the attack and even showed off about it for the rest of his life, the National Park Service said last week.

The renaming to First Peoples Mountain is part of a trend to better recognize the roles and contributions of Native Americans. It has also become a priority of the nation’s first indigenous cabinet secretary—the Interior Department’s Deb Haaland, who oversees the National Park Service—and Charles SamsⅢ, the first Native American to serve as that agency’s director.

Across the American West, many iconic representative mountains and other environmental places were named after early white settlers, mostly men and some with terrible pasts.

In Yellowstone, park officials say they may consider further changes to derogatory (贬损的) or inappropriate geographical names in the months ahead.

1. Why does Yellowstone decide to rename one of its largest mountains?

A．To gain more profits.	B．To uncover the history of 1870s.
C．To be in honour of Native Americans.	D．To change people's attitude towards the park.

2. What is paragraph 4 mainly about?

A．The terrible pasts of Doane.	B．The effort historians made.
C．The contributions Doane made.	D．The conclusion National Park Service drew.

3. What will Yellowstone Park do according to park officials?

A．Improve the service qualities.	B．Learn from history events and characters.
C．Protect the environment of Yellowstone Park.	D．Consider renaming improper geographical names.

4. What can we learn from the text?

A．Doane regarded his deeds as a shame.	B．Doane was once mistaken for a hero.
C．Americans reacted to the renaming negatively.	D．The government thought little of the renaming work.

10 . China is one of the countries with the most serious natural disasters in the world. There are many kinds of disasters, with wide distribution, high frequency and heavy losses. In the background of global climate change, major natural disasters occur from time to time.     1     It makes China face even much severe and complex situation. In order to rase the awareness of disaster prevention and minimize the losses, warnings and instructions are give to the public.     2     Let’s have a look.

Fire

When a fire breaks out, smoke threatens mostly.     3     Roll on the ground if you find your clothes on fire. It is too dangerous to take the elevator in this situation, so it is better to use a bundle of rope and safely slide down from the balcony. Jumping off the building blindly will cause serious injuries.

Mud-rock flow

Rainstorm may cause mud-rock flow, an it’s really dangerous to stay downstream. When you try to escape from it, instead of going along the bottom of the ditch, it is much wiser to climb up the mountain horizontally quickly. Please escape from ditch when selecting camping field. It’s important to check the weather when going into the mountain

Flood

    4     We could use a wooden bed or table to make a raft and tie it to a big tree with a safety.   rope. We have to prepare food and warm clothes to get through it.

Lightning strike

On cloudy and rainy days, a lightning strike may happen.     5     Of course, you also should stay away from iron tower poles. We need to pay attention to it even when we stay at home. Close the doors, windows and cut off the power.

A．Cut off the power and shut off water sources.

B．Please don’t stand under the tree in such kind of weather.

C．Try to find a higher place, but staying on a roof isn’t a good choice.

D．First you need to take shelter, then find a gap under the table or bed.

E．Losses caused by natural disaster in China are continuously increasing.

F．They also play a part in popularizing the knowledge and self-rescue skills.

G．In that case, please cover your nose and your mouth with a wet towel.