1 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。1.

A．5%.

B．80%.

C．40%.

D．10%.

2.

A．Polluting the environment.

B．Destroying wildlife habitats.

C．Endangering new species.

D．Hunting to a great extent.

3.

A．To appeal to people to protect wildlife.

B．To emphasize the importance of the Earth.

C．To describe different ways to stop pollution.

D．To analyze the reasons for wildlife’s disappearing.

2 . Strengthen Bonds With Your New Pet

Welcoming a new pet can be a magical moment for a lot of families. Unfortunately, many new pet owners struggle to bond with them. The following steps may help.

This should go without saying but spending time with your pets can greatly help you form a strong relationship. Pets love to be included in every activity of their humans, whatever the activities are.     1     Cats love playing with yarn (纱线) balls and fishing pole toys. Dogs are outgoing and usually love playing games with tennis balls such as fetch. So it’s also important to learn what type of play your pet enjoys.

Most people forget that training and teaching them tricks is a healthy outlet as well.    2     Whether you’re teaching them simple commands like ‘sit’ or something more complex like ‘turn around’ or ‘bow’, they’re sure to enjoy your company and will love you all the more for your attention, company and praises. Pets also love being rewarded with treats.     3     Moreover, when they begin to anticipate treats for good behaviour, they are more likely to be on their best behaviour, further making you and your pets grow closer.

One more thing to notice is that taking care of a pet can be a wonderful experience and also be quite frustrating. For new pet owners, it can be confusing, especially if you don’t understand what your pet needs or wants at any given time.     4     This might take a day or two, or might take months. But eventually, you will reap what you sow.

A．Training will ease your annoyance as your pets tend to obey more and behave better.

B．Giving them an extra piece of chicken for a job well done is essential for a strong relationship.

C．They usually communicate through body language so you need to pay attention to them.

D．You should always learn to be patient and accept that there will be a period of adjustment.

E．But playtime is still a necessary and effective activity to share fun moments together.

F．The Internet is a good place to figure out how you can train them efficiently.

3 . If a scientist sees a unicorn (独角兽), she’ll probably want to see more than one before telling the world about her discovery. But sometimes one unicorn is enough.

In 2007 an astronomer named Duncan Lorimer reported finding a new kind of astronomical event. It was a brief stream of energy so powerful that it could reach Earth from a galaxy billions of light-years away. He called it a fast radio burst (FRB). This remarkable find, if real, could make huge contributions to the study about universe. He predicted there would be many more – but that year, he spotted just one.

It’s not unheard of for one event to kick off a whole new field of scientific inquiry. Still it’s rare. When Lorimer’s paper came out in the journal, it was not surprising that many were skeptical. “Sometimes, what seems like a remarkable scientific discovery turns out to be an error in the data,” some commented.

Later, a young graduate student was assigned the task of finding more FRBs. Using the same radio telescope Lorimer once used, she found more bursts that just looked like FRBs. But because of the ways they appeared in the telescope data, she was virtually certain that they were some other kind of radio interference and gave them another name: perytons. As years ticked by and no more FRBs were discovered, some astronomers began to conclude Lorimer had found nothing more than an unusual example of one of these perytons.

Good news: in 2011, there was a report of a second FRB. Four more were found in 2013. Bad news: all of them came from the same Lorimer’s radio telescope. But ultimately, in 2014, there was a report from another radio telescope. More discoveries started showing up from other telescopes on a somewhat regular basis. At last the conversation about FRBs shifted – from whether they were real to where they came from.

Years of research have passed by since then. Now, Victoria Kaspi, a physics professor and principal investigator on the FRB team, predicts that once the more advanced telescopes come online in 2024, the location and distance of most FRBs detected can be found out, which will provide “golden opportunities for astronomers to study the large-scale structure of the universe”.

Finally, this “unicorn” story came to a somehow surprising end. Several years ago, a team reanalyzed the same data from the radio telescope by which Lorimer found the first FRB. There was one more that they had previously missed. Since then, other teams have analyzed even older data and found FRBs in those datasets too.

“They were just sitting there, waiting to be discovered by better techniques,” Lorimer says.

1. Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined word in paragraph 3?

A．Optimistic.

B．Curious.

C．Supportive.

D．Doubtful.

2. Why did the author mention unicorns in the first paragraph?

A．To suggest that the new scientific discovery was a myth.

B．To imply magical creatures may actually exist in the world.

C．To symbolize the previously unknown and unseen discoveries.

D．To quote an incident that once happened in the field of science.

3. Why was it bad news that other FRBs found also came from Lorimer’s telescope?

A．Because it might mean the results were not reliable.

B．Because they were all found by a young graduate student.

C．Because these were given the name perytons and were not real FRBs.

D．Because not every astronomer had the same type of telescope as Lorimer.

4. What can we imply from this passage?

A．It’s possible for just one event to start a new field of scientific research.

B．New scientific discoveries can’t be made without advanced research techniques.

C．Scientists shouldn’t deny new discoveries even if they lack evidence temporarily.

D．Scientists should be careful to distinguish new discoveries from errors in the datasets.

4 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。1.

A．Rich soil.

B．Enough water.

C．Some crops.

D．Little shade.

2.

A．Because it had a lot of trees.

B．Because it was always raining there.

C．Because it was located near a big city.

D．Because it had a wetland with water and rich soils.

3.

A．The history of Saudi Arabia.

B．The climate change in Saudi Arabia.

C．The development of civilization in AlUla.

D．The hunting techniques of the first people in AlUla.

5 .

A．Because she is sick.

B．Because she doesn’t see why to go out.

C．Because the weather is bad.

D．Because they have something else to do.

6 . Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. abandoned B. challenge C. colored D. demonstrate E. ensures F. initiatives G. innovation H. pilot I. purchased J. recycled K. tailors

Lego: One Step Closer to Being Sustainable

The Lego Group is one step closer to reaching its goal of making all its products from sustainable materials by 2030.

The Danish toymaker revealed a prototype (雏形) brick made from     1     plastic. In a news release, Lego said the PET plastic from     2     bottles makes up the first brick to meet the company’s “strict quality and safety requirements.” One way the company     3     safety is by sourcing materials from suppliers that use processes approved by the US Food & Drug Administration and European Food Safety Authority.

“The biggest     4     on our sustainability journey is rethinking and innovating new materials that are as long-lasting, strong and high quality as our existing bricks—and fit with LEGO elements made over the past 60 years,” Lego Group Vice President of Environmental Responsibility Tim Brooks said. “With this prototype we’re able to    5     the progress we’re making to the public.”

It will be “some time” before bricks made from used materials can be     6    , Lego said. The company will continue to test and develop the PET formulation (配方) and decide whether to move to the     7     production phase, which is expected to take at least a year. One factor the company is testing is how the material can be     8    .

“Experimentation and failing is an important part of learning and     9    . Just as kids build, unbuild and rebuild with LEGO bricks at home, we’re doing the same in our lab,” Brooks said.

The move follows last year’s announcement that the company was making a $400 million investment over three years into sustainability     10    . It included phasing out the single-use plastic bags from its boxes and instead using recyclable paper for its packaging.

7 . In the Death Zone of Mount Everest

Mountain climbers call the part of a mountain over 7,000 meters the Death Zone. The human body can’t live for very long at this height, because the air is too thin and there isn’t enough oxygen. Mount Everest, the world’s highest mountain, is 8,848 meters high. What happens to the bodies of people who climb it?

Their lungs have to work very hard. Normally, people breathe about 20 times every minute when they are resting. On top of Everest, climbers must breathe 70 to 80 times a minute to get enough oxygen.     1     Other parts of the body work very slowly, to save energy. For example, the stomach stops digesting food.

    2     They have insomnia (失眠), so they always feel tired. They get very bad headaches. The sun burns their skin through the thin air, and the bright light from the snow hurts their eyes. Because they have nausea (恶心) and indigestion, they don’t want to eat, and that makes them weaker. In the dry air, they feel thirsty all the time.

Climbing on Everest also affects the brain.     3     Scientists have tested this by speaking to climbers with radios. They ask questions like, “If John is taller than Tom, who is shorter?” This is probably very easy for you to answer. But at the top of Everest, climbers have to think a long time to find the answer, and they often make mistakes. Because the climbers can’t think well, they sometimes make bad decisions and get into accidents.

Even with all these difficulties, more than 2,500 people have reached the top of Mount Everest.     4     Now, almost all climbers breathe from oxygen tanks. They use radios to communicate with people at the bottom, so they can get advice if they’re not thinking clearly. There are medicines to help them with headaches and lung problems.

A．But Mount Everest is still one of the most difficult and dangerous environments on Earth.

B．As they get closer to the top of the mountain, climbers feel worse and worse.

C．Your brain thinks very slowly, because it doesn’t have enough oxygen.

D．Scientists have found ways to solve some of their problems.

E．Only the strongest bodies can survive up there in the Death Zone.

F．The heart must beat faster to move the blood through the body.

8 . Directions: Fill in each blanks with a proper word chosen from the box. Each word can be used only once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. alternatives   B. behavioural   C. completion   D. consideration   E. met F. modernizing   G. occupied   H. powering   I. schemes   J. specify   K. thorough

Carbon Impact

De-carboning existing housing will require households to stop burning fossil fuels and wood to power and heat their homes. If the UK’s current energy demand could be     1     by renewable, carbon-free energy, then there would be no problem. However, the infrastructure (基础建设) is not yet in place to do so and will not be by 2050.

The smart solution is to reduce the energy demand of homes. This energy demand includes the energy needed to heat (or cool) a home and that required for a home to run, such as     2     appliances.

Architects can have a big impact on energy demand through improving the performance of the building envelope by increasing insulation (绝缘) and airtightness. We can also work with building services engineers to     3     renewable energy generation (生成) technology and ensure that building services and appliances are running efficiently. Smart technologies can also help households control energy use. Gas boilers and cookers will need to be replaced with electric     4     such as heat pumps and conduction hobs. Some community renewable generation     5     will be needed. Household     6     changes will be useful too, for example not having windows open while the heating is on. Rebuilding houses will not be a one-size-fits-all approach. Strategies for individual homes or building types will be required and     7     analysis of a home’s performance and its occupant’s habits will be needed. This was the first step of our R20 project, a rebuilding of 9/10 Stock Orchard Street reducing the energy demand of the building, 20 years after its     8    

The rebuilding works took place while the building was     9    . For all existing housing, careful     10     will be needed regarding health and safety and people’s wellbeing. Furthermore, households will need to learn how their rebuilt home works to use it successfully.

9 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。1.

A．Children.

B．Family.

C．Parents.

D．ASPCA.

2.

A．Because most people are afraid of it.

B．Because it is powerful and aggressive.

C．Because it is very small and easy to train.

D．Because it’s a companion and protection breed.

3.

A．Ways to train various kinds of dogs.

B．The importance of dogs in our daily life.

C．Methods to collect information about dogs.

D．How to choose an ideal dog for the family.

10 . In 1969, a ship carrying 90 passengers arrived in Antarctic waters. Since then, Antarctic tourism has increased noticeably. Nowadays, over 35,000 visitors a season came to the Antarctic during summer, with the intention of visiting colonies of penguins.

That worries many environmentalists, who fear such quantities of people may be disturbing the penguins. However, a study published in Polar Biology by Maureen Lynch of Stony Brook University brings good news for penguins, tourists and tour-operators alike – for the tourists’ visits are not stressing the birds at all.

The conventional way of deciding whether visits by tourists are stressful to the animals is to recruit a bunch of PhD students to observe those animals and make a number of behavioral observations when tourists are and are not present. This is difficult and expensive, for even PhD students need to be housed and fed. Another choice is to sample the animals’ blood and analyze it for stress hormones. The problem with this is that catching animals to measure their hormone levels is stressful.

There is, however, a third way, which is to look for stress hormones in animals’ droppings (排泄物). Dr. Lynch knew from previous work by her partner that some stress hormones show up in penguin wastes, and that hormone concentrations in droppings went up shortly after animals were approached by human beings, and then returned to normal later. With that in mind, she decided to compare droppings from penguin colonies visited by lots of tourists with those less visited.

As the researchers expected, all collected samples contained related stress hormones. Contrary to their expectations, however, there were no significant differences between samples from different sites, regardless of the number of visitors those sites played host to. It seems, then, either that penguins do not worry about human visitors in the first place, or that they quickly get used to them. What is more, Dr. Lynch’s method provides an easy way to monitor the situation. If a growing number of tourists put the birds under stress, it will be possible to advise tour operators to consider their business at less-visited colonies.

1. What do we know about Antarctic tourism?

A．It enjoyed popularity in 1969.	B．It attracts visitors in all the year round.
C．It allows people to see penguins.	D．It had disturbed the penguins.

2. The problem of the conventional method lies in ________.

A．the difficulty in recruiting PhD students	B．high costs required in the Antarctic
C．comparison of penguins’ behaviors	D．the huge trouble of catching animals

3. What did Dr. Lynch’s partner find about penguin waste?

A．It contained certain stress hormones.	B．It had high level of stress hormones.
C．Its hormone level was unstable.	D．Its hormones were at normal levels.

4. What can we learn from the analysis of the collected samples?

A．Penguins are afraid of visitors.	B．Penguins are used to visitors.
C．Penguins are hardly stressed by tourists.	D．Penguins are always under great stress.