1 . New research shows that removing black rhinos’ horns (犀牛角) to make them less attractive to illegal hunters is reducing their territory (领地) sizes and making them less sociable with each other.

The study, published in the journal PNAS, found that de­horned South African rhinos have home ranges that are 45 per cent smaller than those of complete animals, and that they were 37 percent less likely to engage in social interactions.

“The big, dominant bulls that used to have very large territories that overlapped with a lot of females may now have much less territory and much less reproductive (繁殖的) success,” says Vanessa Duthé, who led the work at Switzerland’s University of Neuchâtel.

“It’s really hard to predict the effects of this,” she says. “It doesn’t mean that population success will necessarily decline, because it might open up gaps for younger males that would not have had the space or the means before.” Indeed, a University of Bristol study published last year showed that de­horning (去角) does not negatively affect populations overall.

But such unintended behavioral consequences necessarily feed into judgments about whether this highly invasive procedure is worthwhile. Remarkably, perhaps, there is little hard evidence either way. “No one’s put all the data together to say whether it’s a really effective measure,” says Duthé.

“What is clear is that the introduction of de­horning and a decline in illegal hunting has occurred at the same time,” she adds. “But de­horning has been accompanied by other conservation measures that may be more effective.”

“It’s incredibly complicated,” says Lucy Chimes, a member of the Bristol team. “There are so many other factors involved. You have to consider what other security measures are being carried out — fencing, patrols, staff numbers — and poverty levels surrounding parks, their nearness to national borders and whether there is community engagement.” Chimes is currently planning a project that aims to separate these and other factors. In the meantime, Duthé believes that de­horning is a worthwhile tool of last course of action. “A rhino that is behaving a little bit strangely is better than a dead rhino.”

1. What is the purpose of removing the horns of black rhinos?

A．To make them less sociable.	B．To protect them from being hunted.
C．To reduce their home ranges.	D．To affect their reproductive success.

2. What does the underlined phrase “invasive procedure” in paragraph 5 refer to?

A．The removal of rhino horns.	B．The loss of rhino territories.
C．The impact on rhino population.	D．The change of rhino behavior.

3. What is Chimes’ attitude toward the de­horning of black rhinos?

A．Supportive.

B．Opposed.

C．Unconcerned.

D．Uncertain.

4. What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．De­horning rhinos shows satisfying effects.

B．Various factors lead to the decline in illegal hunting.

C．De­horning is the last action researchers will take.

D．Rhinos are supposed to behave a little bit strangely.

2 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

Last year, 28-year-old Jane Bell moved to a suburb of Philadelphia for her newly found job and rent a house with a big yard in a village.

Jane had the habit of rising early for exercise. One cold morning, she was jogging through the nearby park when she spotted a weak husky lying by the path, seeming to have been deserted. She approached and checked it, only to find one of the dog’s legs severely broken. The pitiful dog looked at her with its sad blue eyes as if asking her for help. Blaming the dog’s previous owner for the selfish and irresponsible action, Jane, without hesitation, bent down and carried the dog home. Then she drove the dog to an animal clinic for a checkup and treatment, where a doctor told Jane it would take about 3 months before the dog got well.

Jane returned home with the dog, which she called Kobe. She made a comfortable den (窝) in the front yard and took great trouble to look after it. With time going on, Kobe gradually recovered and was able to get around with her. Every morning, Jane would take Kobe for a run. Every evening Jane came home from work, Kobe would welcome her, excitedly wagging (摇) its tail at her. Kobe kept Jane company and became her inseparable and loyal friend.

Jane’s furry companion was usually gentle and quiet. But one dawn Jane was woken up by Kobe’s loud barking and the constant noise of its pawing (用爪子抓) at the door. The moment she opened the door, Kobe pulled on her clothes with its mouth, attempting to lead her away from the yard. Initially dismissing it as typical dog behavior, Jane patted Kobe on the head to quiet it, saying firmly, “No, Kobe! Good boy, ca lm down!” However, the dog didn’t stop behaving strangely. It arched its back, its nose moving against a piece of ground in the yard anxiously. Jane was surprised and confused.

注意：
1.续写词数应为150个左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

Then Kobe began to dig the ground with its paws.

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Soon gas workers came.

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3 . Rumeysa Gurbuz was at home asleep on February 6 in the city of Iskenderun on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast when a magnitude 7. 8 earthquake attacked the region. The quake caused ________ damage in Iskenderun. Fortunately, her beloved pet cat Leyla woke her up 15 minutes before the earthquake ________, enabling her to ________. When the quake hit, Gurbuz jumped out the window of her home, only ________ her legs.

“If I hadn’t woken up, I would have been in the ________, Gurbuz said in comments provided to Newsweek by animal welfare nonprofit Humane Society International (HSI). ”I ________ her a lot. We are alive, and there is ________.”

After being injured in the quake, Gurbuz was ________ to a hospital. But she posted an article on the Internet in a desperate attempt to ________ Leyla. HSI saw the ________ and began searching for the cat but finally was ________.

Kelly Donithan, HSI’s director of animal disaster response who was helping to ________ Leyla, asked Gurbuz to send her a voice message calling the pet’s name in an attempt to ________ the cat out. After a lot of ________, the trick worked and the ________ pet finally emerged from the ruins.

1.

A．potential

B．significant

C．some

D．possible

2.

A．struck

B．stopped

C．spread

D．accelerated

3.

A．help

B．shout

C．cry

D．escape

4.

A．protecting

B．cutting

C．injuring

D．losing

5.

A．shelter

B．ruins

C．house

D．square

6.

A．love

B．hurt

C．owe

D．cheat

7.

A．hope

B．time

C．family

D．home

8.

A．sent

B．returned

C．guided

D．released

9.

A．memorize

B．honor

C．find

D．miss

10.

A．notice

B．post

C．picture

D．letter

11.

A．unforgettable

B．shameful

C．satisfying

D．unsuccessful

12.

A．catch

B．await

C．expect

D．locate

13.

A．pull

B．attract

C．chase

D．frighten

14.

A．patience

B．advice

C．passion

D．warning

15.

A．happy

B．surprised

C．scared

D．sad

4 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting a warm glow over the animal shelter, Sarah walked through the rows of cages until her eyes landed on a small, trembling dog huddled (蜷缩) in the corner. “I think I’ve found the one, ” Sarah whispered softly to herself as she looked into the dog’s sad eyes. This timid, abandoned dog had no idea that a journey of transformation with friendly people lay in store for him.

The shelter staff explained that the dog, named Buddy, had a difficult past and was very shy and scared. Sarah extended a hand, offering a soothing tone, “Hey sweetie, you must have a story to tell, but from now on, you’ve got a buddy in me. ”

Bringing Buddy home was just the beginning of their journey, which was rocky at first for him. Everything was strange and new, causing him to hide under furniture and startle at every sound. Therefore, Sarah provided a cozy bed, delicious meals, and most importantly, heaps of love and comfort.

Slowly but surely, he started to emerge from his shell, wagging his tail tentatively and gazing at Sarah with a glimmer of hope in his eyes. Under Sarah’s patient and loving guidance, Buddy flourished, even learning tricks and commands, and forming a deep bond with his new owner.

The journey of healing turned out to be a success. But Sarah had never expected it would bring about another one.

One day, while scrolling through social media, Sarah came across a heartwarming story about dogs being trained to assist children with autism (自闭症). Those children had social communication difficulties and had few facial expressions and gestures. Without hesitation, she inquired about the program and soon, Buddy was enrolled in training to become a certified therapy(治疗) dog. But she was unsure whether Buddy would be comfortable with the new challenge.

注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Their first day at the therapy center was filled with uncertainty.
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As the weeks progressed, Sarah noticed a remarkable change both in the children and Buddy.
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5 . A new study reveals that pigeons (鸽子) can tackle some problems just like artificial intelligence, enabling them to solve difficult tasks that might challenge humans. Previous research has theorized that pigeons employ a problem-solving strategy, involving a trial-and- error approach, which is similar to the approach used in AI models but differs from humans’ reliance on selective attention and rule use. To examine it, Brandon Turner, a psychology professor at the Ohio State University, and his colleagues conducted the new study.

In the study, the pigeons were presented with various visual images, including lines of different widths and angles, and different types of rings. The pigeons had to peck (啄) a button on the right or left to indicate the category to which the image belonged. If they got it correct, they received food; if they were wrong, they received nothing. Results showed that, through trial and error, the pigeons improved their accuracy in categorization tasks, increasing their correct choices from about 55% to 95%.

Researchers believed pigeons used associative learning, which is linking two phenomena with each other. For example, it is easy to understand the link. between “water” and “wet”. “Associative learning is frequently assumed to be far too primitive to. explain complex visual categorization like what we saw the pigeons do,” Turner said. But that’s exactly what the researchers found.

The researchers’ AI model tackled the same tasks using just the two simple mechanisms that pigeons were assumed to use: associative learning and error correction. And, like the pigeons, the AI model learned to make the right predictions to significantly increase the number of correct answers. For humans, the challenge when given tasks like those given to pigeons is that they would try to come up with rules that could make the task easier. But in this case, there were no rules, which upsets humans.

What’s interesting, though, is that pigeons use this method of learning that is very similar to AI designed by humans, Turner said. “We celebrate how smart we are that we designed artificial intelligence: at the same time, we regard pigeons as not clever animals,” he said.

1. What is the purpose of the new study?

A．To test a theory.	B．To evaluate a model.
C．To employ a strategy.	D．To involve an approach.

2. What were the pigeons expected to do in the experiment?

A．Draw circles.

B．Correct errors.

C．Copy gestures.

D．Identify images.

3. What do pigeons and AI have in common according to the study?

A．They are of equal intelligence.

B．They are good at making rules.

C．They respond rapidly to orders from humans.

D．They employ simple ways to get things done.

4. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．Pigeons’ trial-and-error method is revealed

B．Pigeons outperform humans in tough tasks

C．“Not smart” pigeons may be as smart as AI

D．AI models after pigeons’ learning approach

6 . Have you ever paused to see clouds when you rush to your destination? There’s a group of passionate “treasure finders” dedicated to observing and capturing the beauty in the sky cloud spotters.

Cloud spotters take a more serious approach to make sense of the sky.     1    

Ji Yun, 36, is an expert in cloud spotting. He set up a WeChat group to gather together people with similar hobbies in 2013. As the number of group members continued to grow, Ji and several cloud enthusiasts created dozens of online groups for different regions in China, forming the Sky Enthusiasts Association in 2019.     2    

Power comes in numbers. Three years after the association was formed, cloud enthusiasts from all over China had collected every kind of cloud in the International Cloud Atlas, a reference by the World Meteorological Organization.

    3     Cloud spotting, in fact, is an invitation to be amazed by something so common every day that we’ve become blind to. “You’re not going to be worrying too much about what formation it is and why it looks the way it does.” Gavin Pretor-Pinney, founder of the Cloud Appreciation Society, told Atlas Obscura.

Indeed, Jiang Xinwei in Jilin finds cloud spotting relaxing. Even though she is going through her toughest school year in grade 12, Jiang maintains this hobby as a short break from her heavy schoolwork. “Observing the clouds has become a habit for me,” the 17-year-old said. “    4    .”

“Clouds change in the blink of an eye.     5     ” said Jiang Na, a 25-year-old cloud spotter in Beijing.

A．Currently, there are thousands of people across different groups.

B．This often leads us to think about the relationship between humans and nature.

C．They take photos of the clouds and match them to cloud type names.

D．My worries and troubles seem to fade away as I look up.

E．But that is not to say all clouds spotters need to go to such great lengths.

F．Cloud spotting can also make some people feel blue.

G．When they roll over the sky, I feel the passage of time has a concrete shape.

7 . For many people, it is hard to imagine what it is like to lose their sense of smell. Known as “anosmia”, loss of smell can have a substantial effect on our overall wellbeing and quality of life. But while a sudden respiratory infection (呼吸道感染) might lead to a temporary loss of this important sense, your sense of smell may well have been gradually eroding away for years due to something else- air pollution.

Exposure to PM2. 5 has previously been linked with smell loss, but typically only in occupational or industrial settings. But new research is now starting to reveal the true scale and the potential damage caused by the pollution we breathe in every day. On the underside of our brains lies the olfactory bulb (嗅球). This sensitive bit of tissue is essential for the enormously varied picture of the world we get from our sense of smell. It’s also our first line of defense against viruses and pollutants entering the brain. But, with repeated exposure to PM2. 5, these defenses slowly get worn down.

“Our data show there’s a 1.6 to 1.7-fold increased risk of developing anosmia with sustained particulate pollution (粒状物污染),” says Murugappan Ramanathan, a rhinologist. One Mexican study in 2006, which used strong coffee and orange odors showed that residents of Mexico City which often struggles with air pollution — tended to have a poorer sense of smell on average than people living in rural areas of the country.

So, should we care that air pollution to which we are all exposed -is damaging our sense of smell and causing anosmia? Clearly, the answer is yes. Ramanathan says, “Air quality matters. I think we need tight regulations and control. Many people may not even realize the pollution they are exposed to. But even the everyday, low level air pollution we are exposed to should be taken more seriously.”

1. What do the underlined words “eroding away” mean in paragraph 1?

A．Evolving.	B．Becoming weak.
C．Becoming sharp.	D．Appearing.

2. What can we infer from paragraph 2?

A．Exposure to PM2. 5 has nothing to do with smell loss.

B．The pollution we breathe in on a daily basis may cause harm.

C．Our nose stops viruses and pollutants from entering the brain.

D．Our defenses will disappear quickly with air pollution exposure.

3. What does the study reveal about people in Mexico City?

A．They have developed anosmia with air pollution.

B．Their sense of smell is poorer than rural people’s.

C．They often consume strong coffee.

D．They tend to have a good sense of smell.

4. What will the author probably talk about next?

A．How we should react to air pollution.

B．What we should do to protect the environment.

C．What steps we can take to recover from anosmia.

D．How we can improve our life quality.

8 . With pet ownership becoming more popular, being saddened by the loss of a beloved pet is becoming a terrible headache. Li Peng, a woolen felt (织物) craftswoman, has found a unique way to preserve the memory of dead pets by creating realistic woolen images.

Li’s journey into this craft is accidental. During her college years, she majored in e-commerce and worked part time at a pet store. One day, while visiting a website, she came upon a small fox made entirely of wool. Astonished at its delicacy, she set off on a self-taught journey in this art form. In late 2019, Li Peng made the firm decision to start her own business and pursue wool felting as a full-time profession.

While a video showcasing the work may only take a few minutes to watch, the actual process is far more intricate. The three-dimensional creations feature genuine fur, lifelike glass eyes and tiny whiskers (胡须), each one individually secured by hand. To achieve a vivid effect, she repeatedly sticks layers of wool with a needle, winding the loose fibers together to create solid felted shapes. The key is massive patience.

The handcrafted creations satisfy her desire to convey love. The majority of her customers are pet owners who have experienced the loss of their beloved companions. They send Li photographs and even their pets’ hair, hoping to freeze the appearance of their furry friends through her wool felting models. Fascinated by the deep bond between people and their pets, she is committed to grabbing and investing these emotions in her artworks. And it turns out that the career is a success. Orders are often scheduled for one year later, and she has gained substantial attention through social media.

Reflecting on her work, Li expresses her desire to create meaningful pieces using the warm material, offering a heartfelt gift of warmth to the beautiful souls of this world.

1. What inspired Li Peng to take up wool felting as a career?

A．A temporary job at a pet shop.	B．Her self-study art course.
C．A discovery of an alternative to fiber.	D．A woolen creation online.

2. What does the underlined word “intricate” mean in paragraph 3?

A．Confusing.

B．Efficient.

C．Complicated.

D．Effortless.

3. Who are Li Peng’s primary clients?

A．Conservationists of animal rights.	B．Individuals fond of furry toys.
C．Distributors providing personalized service.	D．People suffering from pet loss.

4. What’s the crucial factor behind Li Peng’s success?

A．Fair product pricing.	B．Human-pet attachment.
C．Smart network marketing.	D．Hunger for a fine reputation.

9 . Mark Covington, founder of the Georgia Street Community Collective in Detroit, stands in a corner of his urban farm, breathing the fresh air in the early morning.     1     Early in the day, the green crops giving life to tomatoes, cabbages, eggplants, and more are bathed in gold, as if being watered by the sun. The sounds of dogs, pigs, roosters, and a group of stirring bees drown out the sounds of the city.

In 2007, Covington lost his job and returned to his childhood street.     2     “It was dirty,” he said. “There were always vacant lots, but they had always been maintained for children to play on.” He knew that if he just cleaned them up, people would pile on them again.     3    

Covington started with a small community garden.     4     One mother sent three children to help him build a larger garden where the kids could grow food, stay busy during the summer and add structure to their lives. Little by little the seeds took root, as the hands on the garden that would evolve into a farm multiplied.

    5     On one corner: a movie screen and a public garden with vegetable and flower beds. On another: a farm and a community center in a building. Nearby are garlic beds and a greenhouse. “It’s somewhat spiritual for me,” Covington says. “It’s like a sanctuary (圣殿). People come here and don’t want to leave.”

A．But if he planted stuff, they might not.

B．It’s a typical morning scene at the collective.

C．He saw garbage piled high in vacant, abandoned lots.

D．Covington made the garden a little bigger to plant more.

E．And almost immediately neighbors began asking to participate.

F．He planted a garden to help feed residents and enrich their lives.

G．What began as an effort to remove trash has turned into a site of community.

10 . Chances are you’ve heard the phrase “like a moth to a flame”——and probably seen it in action at a nighttime fire or barbecue, too. It turns out, however, this age-old saying may not be quite right. Rather than being attracted to light, moths’ tendency to fly toward brightness is a behavioral response to help them determine which way is up, suggests a new study published in the journal Nature Communications.

To avoid falling down to the ground, insects need to know which way is up, says study coauthor Yash Sondhi, a National Geographic Explorer. Without systems to maintain spatial (空间的) orientation, the brightness of the sky, even at night, has always been a strong indicator of “up”——until artificial lights came along. If they mess that up, they start plummeting.

Sondhi and a team of researchers set up experiments to investigate how different lights influence flight behavior. First, the researchers suspended a light bulb from a rope between two trees——resembling a typical downward-pointing light——and in a separate test, they turned the light upward by mounting it on a tripod (三脚架). In both cases, insects leaned their winged backs to the bulb. But when the light was pointed up, the insects often bumped to the ground.

What if the light is spread over a wide area? The researchers stretched a large white sheet across the tree and projected a UV light on it. If the insects were truly “attracted” to the light, they should fly up toward it. Instead, the insects cruised (巡航) straight through this illuminated corridor, flying how they would during the day. The team then placed the sheet on the ground and shined the light on it, which is when something truly odd happened: All these moths flying over it turned upside down and crashed out of the sky. Directionality of light is a huge factor in the pattern we have seen, not just brightness or color.

“Artificial lights may cause a mismatch between the insect’s sense of which way is up and true direction of gravity, which spells trouble for insects population.” says Sondhi.

1. What can be inferred about “like a moth to a flame” in the new study?

A．A moth is generally attracted by a flame.	B．Artificial lights are valuable for a moth.
C．Brightness indicates up for a moth.	D．A moth has a sense of direction.

2. What does the underlined word “plummeting” in paragraph 2 mean?

A．Crashing.

B．Speeding.

C．Freezing.

D．Suspending.

3. What lights influence insects most in the experiments?

A．UV lights on the tree.	B．Upward-pointing lights.
C．Downward-pointing lights.	D．Lights of different colors.

4. What is Sondhi’s attitude toward artificial lights?

A．Concerned.

B．Dismissive.

C．Doubtful.

D．Neutral.