1 . People have come to understand the enormous impacts-beneficial as well as harmful- plastics have on human lives and the environment. As polymer (聚合物) scientists committed to inventing sustainable solutions for real-world problems, we set out to tackle the issue of plastic waste by rethinking the way polymers are designed so we could make plastics with recyclability built right in.

Everyday items including milk jug, grocery bags, and takeout containers are made from a class of polymers called polyolefins. These plastics are really durable (耐用的) because the chemical bonds in those polymers are extremely stable. In a world set up for disposable (一次性的) items, durability is no longer a design feature but rather a design drawback. Imagine if half the plastics used today were recyclable through twice as many processes as they are now. Also conventional recycling requires careful sorting of all the collected materials, which can be challenging with so many different plastics. For example, separating paper from metal doesn’t require complex technology, but sorting a container from a milk jug of a different polyolefin is difficult to do without the occasional mistake.

In a study published in Science in October 2023, we described a series of polymers with only two building blocks-one soft polymer and one hard polymer-that behave like polyolefins but could be chemically recycled. Connecting two different polymers multiple times until they form a single, long molecule (分子) creates what’s called a multiblock polymer. By changing how much of each polymer type goes into the multiblock polymer, our team produced a wide range of materials with properties that covered all polyolefin types.

Using the same strategy but by adding hydrogen, we could disconnect the polymers back into their building blocks and easily separate them to use again. When we made new polymers out of these recycled plastics, they performed just as well as the original materials even after several rounds of chemical recycling. So we were able to create materials with similar properties of the plastics the world relies on. We believe this work is a step toward more sustainable plastics.

1. What is paragraph 2 mainly about concerning plastics?

A．Their multiple uses.	B．Their chemical properties.
C．Their recycling challenges.	D．Their classification criteria.

2. A key factor of producing diverse multiblock polymers is ______.

A．mixing building blocks with long molecules

B．integrating chemicals into the two polymers

C．combining two different multiblock polymers

D．adjusting the percentage of the two polymers

3. Which is a feature of multiblock polymers?

A．They are made from sustainable materials.

B．They can be recycled by adding hydrogen.

C．Their reliability outperforms traditional plastics.

D．Their properties change with rounds of recycling.

4. Which of the following might be the best title?

A．Designing for Recycling	B．Classifying Plastic Waste
C．Replace Plastics with Polymers	D．Technology Creates the Future

2 . Remember boiling tap water for drinking? Who has the time now? Instead, bottled water is everywhere, in offices, airplanes, stores, homes and restaurants. But what’s in that bottle? Beautiful names and labels depicting romantic scenes have convinced us that the liquid is the purest drink around. But given the lack of labeling requirements for bottled water, how much do consumers really know about what’s in the bottle? “The public should not assume that water purchased in a bottle, is better regulated purer, or safer than most tap water. Water utilities are required to tell the public more about the tap water than bottled water companies are,” says Mae Wu, a bottled water (expert at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a nonprofit organization in the US devoted to protecting health and the environment. Sure, some bottled water comes from sparkling springs and other, sources. But in the US, alone, more than 25 percent of it comes from a municipal (市政的) supply. The water is treated, purified and sold to us, often at a thousand fold increase in price. Most people are surprised to learn that they are drinking glorified tap water, but bottlers aren’t required to list the source on the label.

According to the Asian Bottled Water Association, water from municipal supply does not have to state on its label that it is from a community water system. However, there are some brands like Nestle Pure Life that indicate whether the water comes from public, private or deep well sources. Advertising can be misleading at best and deceptive at worst. In a recent case, a food and drink manufacturer boasted in a TV commercial that its mineral water came from a “high-quality water source” but it turned out that, that was no more than plain tap water.

The potential health risks are important to understand, but bottled water also affects the health of the planet. While we struggle to, cut down on our consumption of fossil fuels, bottled water increases it. Virgin petroleum (石油) is used to make PET, and the more bottles we use, the more virgin petroleum will be needed to create new bottles. Fossil fuels are burned to fill the bottles and distribute them. Some brands of water come from islands and countries thousands of kilometers away, and shipping bottles can cause carbon pollution to spill into the water and spew into the air.

1. Compared to the tap water, bottled water             .

A．is much better, than the tap water

B．is better regulated, purer and safer

C．spends more money on advertisement

D．is required to list the source on the label

2. What can you infer from the second paragraph?

A．We can never trust the TV commercials.

B．Advertisements on bottled water always cheat the audiences.

C．Some companies choose to state where the water comes from.

D．The government asks the company not to state the source of water.

3. How is the third paragraph organized?

A．Through listing, figures.

B．Through making comparisons.

C．Through adding background information.

D．Through cause and effect argumentation.

4. What’s the author’s attitude towards the bottled water?

A．Indifferent.

B．Negative.

C．Favorable.

D．Ambiguous.

3 . Joey isn’t your typical guard pet—unless you try to break into his house.

Adam found a baby _________ in his yard. He decided to _________ him in and named him Joey. In just a few months, he _________ a family member. “He’d let anybody _________ him.” says Adam. “Right up until the kid broke in.”

That was the day when Adam came home to obvious signs of _________. Strange, snowy footprints tracked around the _________. His _________ was scratched up（刮擦）. A few items of value were _________. He alerted the police about the break-in, and officer Ashley came to the house to make a _________ .

“Joey had run in the bedroom... and kind of __________ her,” says Adam.

Ashley asked if Joey bites. Not usually, Adam explained, but he is, after all, a __________ animal. You never know.

__________ later, Ashley returned with a remarkable story: She’d __________ a suspect, based in part on the cuts all over his hands.

She asked him, ‘Did you get that __________ a squirrel?” and he says, “Yeah, it kept __________ me and wouldn’t stop until I left,” says Adam.

“The attack __________ him, obviously, because he wasn’t __________ to have a squirrel come flying out of nowhere at him,” says Ashley. “So basically he said he took what he could and __________ as fast as he could.”

In a couple of hours, Adam’s family got their __________ back, and Joey got his favorite   __________; nuts.

1.

A．dog

B．cat

C．squirrel

D．rabbit

2.

A．kick

B．take

C．throw

D．follow

3.

A．helped

B．found

C．became

D．hurt

4.

A．reward

B．comfort

C．challenge

D．pet

5.

A．robbery

B．mistake

C．murder

D．accident

6.

A．street

B．yard

C．office

D．bathroom

7.

A．bookcase

B．backpack

C．safe

D．cupboard

8.

A．missing

B．shining

C．stored

D．abandoned

9.

A．deal

B．request

C．decision

D．report

10.

A．delighted

B．surprised

C．annoyed

D．troubled

11.

A．small

B．unique

C．strange

D．wild

12.

A．Months

B．Years

C．Hours

D．Seconds

13.

A．questioned

B．charged

C．identified

D．recognized

14.

A．from

B．in

C．on

D．to

15.

A．pulling

B．chasing

C．approaching

D．attacking

16.

A．excited

B．scared

C．moved

D．encouraged

17.

A．expecting

B．noticing

C．pretending

D．promising

18.

A．checked

B．hid

C．cleaned

D．left

19.

A．clothes

B．belongings

C．secrets

D．books

20.

A．treat

B．target

C．toy

D．taste

4 . Elephants are the largest existing land mammals on the Earth; and as a _________, they require large areas of land in order to _________. As human populations have grown around the world, elephant populations have significantly fallen due to _________ habitat loss. In an effort to draw attention to the animal’s _______, Elephant Family and The Real Elephant Collective have worked together to _________ Co-Existence — an environmental art exhibition of 100 life-sized lantana elephant _________.

The Co-Existence elephants started their long journey in India, where they were made by _________ communities in the jungles of Tamil Nadu: These handmade sculptures’ were amazing. In June 2021, a total of eight separate herds were _________ to the public in London. The _________ of the exhibition was to highlight the effects of humans ____________ wild spaces. ____________ the elephant sculptures were meant to be admired, they also ____________ a message: we should change the way we live by existing in ____________ with the wildlife and nature.

“We should value our ____________ with nature and celebrate all life forms around us by sharing space,” says Dr. Tarsh Thekaekara of The Real Elephant Collective.

Funds ____________ by the Co-Existence movement were given to grassroots ____________ throughout India. These organizations tried to allow people and wildlife to coexist ____________. Some of their measures include ____________ local knowledge about wildlife, creating technological solutions to keep both animals and people safe in ____________ spaces, easing the effect of roads and railway lines to make sure wildlife can ____________ get across.

1.

A．whole

B．rule

C．reference

D．result

2.

A．survive

B．play

C．rest

D．conquer

3.

A．rapid

B．tough

C．mild

D．fresh

4.

A．section

B．distribution

C．contribution

D．situation

5.

A．arouse

B．launch

C．adopt

D．adapt

6.

A．sculptures

B．cases

C．places

D．models

7.

A．neighboring

B．volunteering

C．active

D．native

8.

A．made

B．stated

C．displayed

D．targeted

9.

A．design

B．evaluation

C．aim

D．feedback

10.

A．taking over

B．calling on

C．taking up

D．calling for

11.

A．If

B．While

C．Unless

D．Since

12.

A．injected

B．formed

C．carried

D．selected

13.

A．line

B．harmony

C．comparison

D．touch

14.

A．tale

B．demand

C．relief

D．connection

15.

A．owed

B．earned

C．raised

D．tipped

16.

A．events

B．clients

C．agencies

D．organizations

17.

A．peacefully

B．quietly

C．roughly

D．randomly

18.

A．learning

B．promoting

C．producing

D．collecting

19.

A．private

B．shared

C．different

D．remote

20.

A．safely

B．consciously

C．anxiously

D．hopefully

5 . 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.

6 . Friday night lights are good for the game, but they may be bad for biodiversity.

According to a study published Friday in the journal Animal Conservation, bright stadium lighting could affect the feeding habits of bats. Insects swarm (涌往) to these lights in large numbers, creating a competitive advantage for bat species who aren’t afraid of humans and human structures. This could impact local ecosystems and reduce biodiversity.

For most humans, there simply isn’t enough daylight hours—we have been developing new ways to light the night since we first controlled and used fire. But researchers say our need for continuous visibility can have serious consequences for neighboring species.

Light pollution has been linked to some ecosystem damage. Baby turtles, for example, naturally use the light of the moon to travel towards the open ocean. But constant and poorly designed artificial lighting can affect their sense of direction, obviously disturbing their life cycles.

“Increasing light pollution is a major feature of global change that’s caused by humans, and it is a potential threat to biodiversity,” co-author M. Corrie Schoeman said in a press release.

Dr Schoeman, a professor of biology at the University of Kwazulu-Natal, conducted field experiments to determine how stadium lighting affected bat behaviors. He found that “urban exploiter” bats were drawn to hunt near bright lights, while “urban avoider” bats were not. Exploiter species are able to take advantage of human resources, such as artificial light. Avoider species, by comparison, tend to avoid humans and human structures.

But it’s hardly survival of the fittest. This man-made, ecological scale-tipping could result in the decline or loss of avoider species. And that, in turn, could threaten the balance of local ecosystems.

Luckily, light pollution is considered an “easy fix” compared to other forms of pollution. Smart lighting design— hooded (带罩的) streetlamps，motion-sensitive residential lights (触控住宅用灯), and better controls to remove unnecessary brightness—can obviously reduce light pollution. As for stadium lights, earlier games could do a lot of good, both for bats and for our ecosystems as a whole.

1. What does the author want to demonstrate with the example of baby turtles?

A．Turtles are good at using human lights.

B．Light pollution has caused ecological damage.

C．Artificial lighting can train turtles’ sense of direction.

D．Human neighboring species have their own way of lighting.

2. What can we learn about the “urban exploiter” bats?

A．They are the fittest of their species.

B．They are fond of artificial lighting.

C．They always defeat “urban avoider” bats.

D．They break the balance of their species.

3. What is the last paragraph mainly about?

A．How to reduce light pollution.	B．How to improve stadium lights.
C．How to balance the ecosystem.	D．How to recognize unnecessary brightness.

4. Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A．Evolution of Bats	B．Competition Among Bats
C．Stadium Lights Change Bat Behavior	D．The Number of Bats Are Decreasing

7 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Who owns a photo taken by a monkey? That may seem like a strange question. But photographer David Slater and an animal rights group argued about it for nearly two years. They finally reached an     1     (agree) in September.

In 2011, Slater photographed endangered monkeys     2     (call) crested black macaques (黑冠猕猴) in Indonesia. Slater also set up a camera on a tripod (三脚架),     3     (hope) the monkeys would take photos of themselves.

His plan worked. One of the photos became famous after it     4     (post) online. Slater also included the monkey selfie (自拍照) in a book he published in 2014 titled Wildlife Personalities.

But the following year, the animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) charged Slater. The group declared that Slater couldn’t publish and sell the photo because he didn’t take     5    . PETA argued that the monkey that took the picture was     6     (actual) its true owner.

The two sides made     7     deal in September. Slater     8     (donate) 25 percent of the money he makes     9     future sales of the photo to groups that protect crested black macaques in Indonesia. Slater says he is happy to help the monkeys,     10     was his intention from the start.

8 . What is a “transplant?” In gardening, transplant is the process of planting seeds inside and then moving the new growth, or sprout, outside. Transplanting is easy and often costs less. You get to watch the new growth happen up close.     1     A garden expert and writer for the Associated Press, Lee Reich, can give you his advice.

To get started with transplants, you will need a container and soil.     2     Fill the containers with a special mix called potting soil and push it down — but not too much.

    3     Do this by making a small hole into the mix and put in the seeds. Cover the seeds with the potting soil and press gently again. Place the containers in a pan, or any flat, open, and larger container that could hold some water. Put water into the pan until the water reaches halfway up the containers with the seeds. After a few hours, remove them from the water.

Seeds need warmth to germinate.     4     A good average temperature for just about all seeds is about 24℃.

Now for the exciting part — waiting to see little, green sprouts! Remove all but the strongest sprout from each container.     5     Your goal now is to grow strong transplants that can survive a move to the outside garden.

In four to six weeks, most transplants should be two to three times the height of their containers. They should be strong and ready to be transplanted outside — or almost ready. Now... they are ready to go into the garden!

A．If you are new to this type of gardening, do not worry.

B．You are also an experienced gardener.

C．Then plant seeds, three or four in each container.

D．They are used to their future environment with a week of being outside.

E．The amount of warmth needed is different from plant to plant.

F．The containers should be between 5 to 10 centimeters deep.

G．Just be careful not to hurt the roots of the sprout that remains.

9 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

When you hear the word “shapeshifting” (变身), you may think of sci-fi movies, and not the climate. But that’s     1     animals are doing to deal with climate change. A new study shows that some animals are     2     (gradual) growing larger beaks, legs and ears. In this way they can lose heat more easily     3     (cool) themselves down as Earth gets warmer. “A lot of the time when we talk about climate change, we ask ‘Can humans overcome this?’ or ‘What technology can solve this?’ But we should know that animals also have to adapt     4     these changes,” said the study’s author Sara Ryding, from Deakin University, Australia. If animals fail to control     5     (they) body temperature, they can overheat and die. In one example, the beaks of some Australian parrot species     6     (grow) 4 to 10 percent larger since 1871. The study says it’s closely related to the     7     (rise) summer temperatures over the years. Similar examples include wood mice. They have longer tails, and bats in warm climates have bigger     8     (wing).

Although the changes are still small, Ryding said they could be     9     (obvious) as the days become hotter. “Body parts like ears are predicted to be bigger,     10     we might end up with a live-action Dumbo (big-eared elephant from a Disney cartoon) in the near future,” Ryding told BBC.

10 . The author, Lewis Caroll, describes an amazing creature in the famous fairy tale Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. It _________ the way of giving Alice’s own thimble (顶针) as a gift for herself, leaving the children readers a strong impression. _________, when the kids try to search for this creature in real life, they will be _________ that this creature does not exist anymore. This is the dodo, a flightless bird that has gone _________ hundreds of years ago.

Dodo were _________ to the island of Mauritius, which locates in the east of Madagascar. Their appearance could only be described _________ illustrations and written accounts from those who have seen them. The images of a dodo _________ depict (描述) it as a bird with gray feathers,yellow feet, and a beak with black, yellow and green in colors.

As the bird is _________, it was historically recorded as fat and clumsy, but now it is thought to be well-adapted. The island where dodos used to live is believed to have plenty of food _________ and few predators, so dodos did not ____________ to evolve with strong wings to fly and find food.

____________ arrived when Dutch sailors discovered Mauritius in 1598 and handed in the first ____________ of dodos to the world. In the following years, the dodos were ____________ by sailors and also by the animals they ____________, including pigs, rats, and monkeys. Their ____________ and habitats were destroyed, leading to the rapid ____________ of dodos’ population.

Finally, in 1662 the last dodo closed its eyes, and they are thought to have ____________ by 1690. It had been less than 100 years from the ____________ of the dodos to their extinction. The bird is considered as an icon of extinction, ____________ people about the fact that human activities can have ____________ influences on biodiversity.

1.

A．comes up with

B．looks forward to

C．sets down to

D．lives up to

2.

A．Besides

B．Therefore

C．Instead

D．However

3.

A．disappointed

B．embarrassed

C．motivated

D．challenged

4.

A．faraway

B．blank

C．extinct

D．lost

5.

A．special

B．native

C．own

D．independent

6.

A．linked to

B．concerned about

C．based on

D．faced with

7.

A．gradually

B．finally

C．usually

D．rapidly

8.

A．flightless

B．meaningless

C．thoughtless

D．wordless

9.

A．bargains

B．chains

C．stores

D．resources

10.

A．dare

B．need

C．like

D．long

11.

A．Tragedy

B．Comedy

C．News

D．Broadcast

12.

A．memory

B．drawing

C．setting

D．record

13.

A．raised

B．honored

C．preferred

D．hunted

14.

A．painted

B．introduced

C．sheltered

D．found

15.

A．places

B．spots

C．nests

D．scenes

16.

A．minus

B．decline

C．drawback

D．increase

17.

A．died away

B．passed down

C．passed on

D．died out

18.

A．discovery

B．adoption

C．recognition

D．realization

19.

A．attracting

B．persuading

C．warming

D．denying

20.

A．light

B．fatal

C．slight

D．mild