1 . The maleo (塚雉), a bird with black feathers and a pink chest, is native to Indonesia’s Sulawesi island and a few neighboring ones. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which identifies wildlife across the world currently facing threats, estimates only 800 to 1,400 adult maleos remain in the wild. Experts do not know how many maleos still live across West Sulawesi island. They were only able to record the presence of nesting grounds in 23 villages based on reports from locals in the area. But of those, only 18 are considered active nesting areas.
Recently, the birds have been faced with new threats, which accelerate their decline. The Indonesian government plans to move the nation’s capital from Jakarta to a new city on Borneo island, which is just a six-hour boat trip apart from Sulawesi island. The island takes on the building of new roads and seaports to be used to transport materials to the new capital. Activities also include tree clearing, digging, and removing stones. The process already has changed the forest environment on West Sulawesi and is harming maleo nesting areas near the beach. These changes have made the trip for maleos to lay their eggs increasingly difficult.
Another problem has been poachers. The Associated Press reports that, regardless of official ban, they steal maleo eggs that the males’ parents have hidden in the sand, and sell the eggs for about $1 to people as food. The eggs are a traditional gift for many people in Mamuju and other parts of Sulawesi.
“As far as I know, maleo birds are in decline,” said Andi Aco Takdir, chief of the West Sulawesi Forestry Agency. He pointed to several reasons for the decline, including destruction of beach areas, and expanding human development activities. He added that government officials there are prepared to take steps to protect the maleos even with the new capital development. Andi said, “Nature conservation must be used as an achievement and must not be built leaving behind problems.”
1. Which word can be used to describe the maleos?| A．Endangered. | B．Adaptable. |
| C．Widespread. | D．Extinct. |
| A．The sudden changes of climate. |
| B．The disappearance of the forests. |
| C．The development of Sulawesi island. |
| D．The supporting work for the new capital. |
| A．People who hunt maleos for their meat. |
| B．People who live by selling maleo eggs. |
| C．People who engage in illegal hunting. |
| D．People who regard maleo eggs as gifts. |
| A．The new capital development might be stopped at once. |
| B．The government will balance conservation and development. |
| C．There seems to be a tough way for the new capital to develop. |
| D．The government will concentrate on solving urban problems. |
2 . “The era of global warming has ended and the era of global boiling has arrived,” the UN secretary general, Antonio Guterres, said after scientists confirmed July 2023 was the world’s hottest month on record.
“Humanity is in the hot seat,” Guterres told a press conference on Thursday. “For vast parts of North America, Asia, Africa and Europe, it is a cruel summer. For the entire planet, it is a disaster. And for scientists, it is clear that humans are to blame. Climate change is here, it is terrifying, and it is just the beginning. The era of global warming has ended; the era of global boiling has arrived.”
Guterres urged politicians to take swift action. “The air is unbreathable, the heat is unbearable, and the level of fossil fuel profits and climate inaction is unacceptable. Leaders must lead. No more hesitancy, no more excuses, and no more waiting for others to move first. There is simply no more time for that.”
“It is still possible to limit global temperature rise to 1.5℃and avoid the very worst of climate change but only with dramatic, immediate climate action. We have seen some progress, but none of this is going far enough or fast enough. Accelerating temperatures demand accelerated action.”
The WMO secretary general, Petteri Taalas, said, “The need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is more urgent than ever before. Climate action is not a luxury but a must.”
Other climate scientists confirmed the findings. Karsten Haustein at Leipzig University found the world was 1.5℃ hotter in July 2023 than in the average July before industrialisation.
Marina Romanello, a climate and health researcher at University College London, said, “We have data showing how the very foundations of health are being undermined by climate change. But we still have time today to turn the tide and to ensure a liveable future for us and our children.”
1. What made Guterres feel worried?| A．Global economy. | B．Natural disasters. |
| C．Serious pollution. | D．Rising temperatures. |
| A．To appeal to quick action. | B．To change people’s concept. |
| C．To frighten the general public. | D．To make his report vivid. |
| A．By analyzing some facts. | B．By quoting some experts. |
| C．By offering statistics. | D．By giving explanations. |
| A．Global Bailing: It Is Time to Act. |
| B．Global Boiling: Who Is to Blame? |
| C．Global Boiling: It Isn’t That Serious |
| D．Global Boling: What Measure Should Be Taken? |
3 . Sounds from human activity flood across the oceans, causing trouble to ocean creatures. And climate (气候) change may make some places even louder.
Researchers have expected the oceans to get noisier because of increasing human activity. “The more goods you buy, the more shipping you have, so the more noise you have.” says Luca Possenti, a scientist studying sound in the ocean at the Royal Netherlands Institute. But Possenti and his co-worker realized that climate change might also influence how sound travels through the water.
Human-caused climate change is changing ocean temperatures, salt levels and acidity (酸度). So Possenti’s team used computers to model how those factors (因素) influence noise levels across the world’s oceans.
When waters become more acidic, they can’t take in sound at some wavelengths as well, so those sounds can travel further, adding to the noise in some areas. This effect is relatively small. Other changes impact the sound level more, the researchers found. Changes to temperature and salt levels can change how well different layers (层) of the ocean mix, which, in turn, impacts how sound travels.
The team predicted (预测) models of the world in about 70 years if climate change continues. And then they compared them with models of the world now. In the North Atlantic, they saw an increase in sound levels in the upper 125 meters of the ocean. This was caused mostly by ice melting (融化) off of Greenland, forming a cold layer of water near the ocean’s surface. Sound traveling through water tends to go toward the coldest area. As a result, sound waves tended to get stuck in the cold top layer-spreading further out across the water, instead of traveling deeper. That increased the noisiness at this depth in the North Atlantic. The models suggested that a single ship could sound about five times as loud underwater because of this. Considering all the ship traffic between Europe and North America, that may stress animals, many of which communicate, and catch food with sound.
1. How is paragraph 2 developed?| A．By quoting an expert. | B．By using examples. |
| C．By making comparisons. | D．By presenting research findings. |
| A．Effects of temperature changes. | B．Some risk factors for a nosier sea. |
| C．Impacts of acidity on wavelengths. | D．Ways oceans mix and sound travels. |
| A．Sea animals will be protected from noises. |
| B．Added meltwater does more harm than good. |
| C．Greenland is hit the hardest by climate change. |
| D．The result of the research is based on prediction. |
| A．Increase in salt levels. | B．Failure of acidity control. |
| C．Change in the ocean depths. | D．Formation of a cold water layer. |
4 . Low-effort things you can do to live sustainably
You might think you need to change a lot of your daily habits to live sustainably but, in fact, becoming more eco-friendly is much easier than it might seem. Below are some easy steps towards becoming more sustainable.
Shop at farmer markets.
Getting your daily fruit and vegetables from a local farmer market is an easy way to reduce your carbon footprint while eating healthily. It cuts out lengthy stays of the products in refrigerated storage and up to thousands of miles of fossil-fueled transportation.
Practice meatless Mondays.
Global meat production is a big contributor to greenhouse gasses.
Dispose of unused medications properly.
Flushing (冲) unused medications down the drain (下水道) can pollute water supplies affecting everything downstream. You shouldn’t throw medications away either as they can be dangerous for others to find.
It is easy to understand that buying something used is more environmentally friendly than buying something new and clothes are no exception.
| A．Shop second-hand. |
| B．Think twice before shopping. |
| C．A meatless diet can help prevent disease. |
| D．The best option is to take them to a collection site. |
| E．It is not practical to expect everyone to go vegetarian, |
| F．Additionally, less plastic in packaging reduces plastic waste. |
| G．The fast-fashion industry consumes considerable resources each year. |
5 . How is it that a fly always seems to be buzzing around your food moments after you sit down for an outdoor meal?
The answer is practice. Or, more specifically: evolution (进化). Flies and other insects have been on a multimillion-year journey of evolution, improving their ability to detect food. Being able to zero in on nutritious meals is a matter of life and death.
The family of flies that I study — the blowflies — are the buzzing ones that are usually a beautiful metallic blue, with bronze and green colors. They’ve perfected their ability to quickly sense the smells that naturally come off picnics and garbage cans. There is a lot of competition for a resource like an overflowing garbage can because of how nutritious garbage, with the meat rotting in it, is. But the blowflies can sense these smells long before their competitors or people can, and tend to show up to the scene first.
Sensing systems differ depending on the insect and species. The blowflies’ main sensing organ is their antennae, two thin projections (凸起) from the head that are covered in tiny hairs. These fine hairs are made up of special cells that contain receptors (受体) for specific smells. Think about a batch of chocolate chip cookies fresh from the oven. You can detect their delicious smells because we humans have receptors on the surfaces of the cells that line the inside of our noses. These receptors send signals to the brain: yummy food ahead. They’re detecting the sweet smell of sugar-based molecules, an energy-rich food source for us.
What’s a “good” or a “bad” smell can differ depending on the animal doing the smelling. The attractive rotting meat stench(恶臭) that a fly finds delightful is perceived quite differently by a person passing by an unpleasant garbage can on a hot day. But any fly that can detect the useful smell signal, which means “nutritious fly food here”, will have an advantage. Over time, the insects that have the receptors for those smells will have better survival rates and produce more generations.
1. Why does the author focus on blowflies in his study?| A．They have attractive deep green colors. |
| B．They have gone through much evolution. |
| C．They have unusual ability to sense smells. |
| D．They are easier to control than other species. |
| A．Detecting food resources. | B．Designing flying routes. |
| C．Producing nutrition out of garbage. | D．Escaping from enemies. |
| A．By explaining a principle. | B．By making a comparison. |
| C．By following time order. | D．By describing a process. |
| A．It’s rather easy to wipe out the blowflies. |
| B．Nutritious foods usually have attractive smells. |
| C．The receptors play a key role in flies’ survival. |
| D．Flies find a smell signal much faster than humans. |
6 . Every year on 2 February, Punxsutawney Phil, the groundhog (土拨鼠), comes out of his hole in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. If the sun is shining and he sees his shadow before going back into his hole, it means winter will last six more weeks. But if the day is cloudy, spring will come early. Curiously, Phil is not alone. In the region around Milan, tradition has it that if the bear comes out of his hole on a sunny day, he will be able to make himself a nice dry bed and then he’ll want to keep on sleeping. This will show that the winter will continue. But if it’s a rainy day, the bear will have to stay out—and spring will come soon.
“These traditions can be traced back to Indo-European civilisations 3,000-5,000 years ago,” says Venetian historian Elena Righetto. “That’s why they are spread all over Europe,” she explains. The deepest meaning of the tradition, according to Righetto, is in its seemingly contradictory (矛盾的) nature. It might seem illogical (不合逻辑的) that cold days indicate the coming of spring, or that groundhogs and bears would decide to stay out just when the weather is bad.
“The idea is that the darkest moment, when everything seems to go wrong, is when we experience a rebirth, a new life,” explains Righetto. There is a thought that life comes from darkness, just as plants start to grow from the seeds left underground during winter. This thought is so powerful that it crossed countries and survived centuries.
Traditions don’t protect people from bad weather, death, or illness, but they protect them emotionally from some of the anxiety related to those coming realities. They don’t solve the real problem, but they solve the mental problem—they help you live through the hard times of life. In a way, if we can believe in the magical powers of groundhogs and bears, we might find even an extended (延长的) winter a bit warmer and friendlier.
1. What can we learn from the first paragraph?| A．Animals are cleverer than humans. | B．The groundhog dislikes his shadow. |
| C．The bear prefers to sleep in the dry bed. | D．Nice weather indicates an extended winter. |
| A．The origin of the traditions. | B．The nature of the world. |
| C．The laws of the nature. | D．Indo-European civilisations. |
| A．They can prevent bad weather. | B．They can provide emotional support. |
| C．They can solve the real problem. | D．They can exercise magical powers. |
| A．Critical. | B．Puzzled. | C．Respectful. | D．Uncertain. |
历史 | 700 多年 | 性质 | 民间艺术盛会; “中国十大民俗”之一 |
时间 | 每年阴历正月十一至十三 | 地点 | 河南宝丰马街 |
演员 | 来自全国的曲艺艺人 | 内容 | 40多种曲艺和其它传统曲目 |
2. 可以适当增加细节, 以使行文连贯。
Dear Tom,
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hua
8 . “When one door closes,” the saying goes, “another door opens.” For one
A dog named Sheldon took part in a program to
But the very thing that made him a failure as a service dog meant he was likely
In his first
For a dog with a super sense of smell, we guess whether you’re tailing bad guys or hunting for a job, it’s always best to follow your
| A．old | B．special | C．lucky | D．sick |
| A．help | B．visit | C．teach | D．become |
| A．difference | B．mistake | C．grade | D．change |
| A．find | B．taste | C．smell | D．hear |
| A．hunt down | B．return to | C．learn about | D．depend on |
| A．sorry | B．perfect | C．famous | D．responsible |
| A．in the front of | B．at the bottom of | C．in the middle of | D．at the top of |
| A．Playing with | B．Paired with | C．Agreeing with | D．Faced with |
| A．graduation | B．recovery | C．birth | D．death |
| A．course | B．race | C．case | D．program |
| A．sold | B．built | C．stolen | D．burnt |
| A．confusing | B．interesting | C．clear | D．important |
| A．sleep | B．work | C．flight | D．risk |
| A．fear | B．choice | C．difficulty | D．experience |
| A．nose | B．head | C．plan | D．dream |
9 . Artificial intelligence (AI) is showing promise in earthquake prediction, challenging the long-held belief that it is impossible. Researchers at the University of Texas, Austin, have developed an AI algorithm (算法) that correctly predicted 70% of earthquakes a week in advance during a trial in China and provided accurate strength calculations for the predicted earthquakes.
The research team believes their method succeeded because they stuck with a relatively simple machine learning approach. The AI was provided with a set of statistical features based on the team’s knowledge of earthquake physics, and then instructed to train itself using a five-year database of earthquake recordings. Once trained, the AI provided its prediction by listening for signs of incoming earthquakes within the background rumblings (隆隆声) in the Earth.
This work is clearly a milestone in research for AI-driven earthquake prediction. “You don’t see earthquakes coming,” explains Alexandros Savvaidis, a senior research scientist who leads the Texas Seismological Network Program (TexNet). “It’s a matter of milliseconds, and the only thing you can control is how prepared you are. Even with the 70% accuracy, that’s a huge result and could help minimize economic and human losses and has the potential to remarkably improve earthquake preparation worldwide.”
While it is unknown whether the same approach will work at other locations, the researchers are confident that their AI algorithm could produce more accurate predictions if used in areas with reliable earthquake tracking networks. The next step is to test artificial intelligence in Texas, since UT’s Bureau TexNet has 300 earthquake stations and over six years worth of continuous records, making it an ideal location for these purposes.
Eventually, the authors hope to combine the system with physics-based models. This strategy could prove especially important where data is poor or lacking. “That may be a long way off, but many advances such as this one, taken together, are what moves science forward,” concludes Scott Tinker, the bureau’s director.
1. How does the AI predict earthquakes?| A．By identifying data from the satellites. |
| B．By analyzing background sounds in the Earth. |
| C．By modeling data based on earthquake recordings. |
| D．By monitoring changes in the Earth’s magnetic field. |
| A．The ways to reduce losses in earthquakes. |
| B．The importance of preparing for earthquakes. |
| C．The significance of developing the AI prediction. |
| D．The limitation of AI algorithms in earthquake prediction. |
| A．Conducting tests in different locations. |
| B．Applying the AI approach to other fields. |
| C．Building more earthquake stations in Texas. |
| D．Enlarging the database to train the calculation accuracy. |
| A．Stable but outdated. | B．Effective but costly. |
| C．Potential and economical. | D．Advanced and promising. |
10 . My family always had some sort of animal around, but none of them were truly mine. My parents didn’t permit me to
Every Friday I would clean out his bowl. I found myself
One day, I came home from school and headed to my room to
My mom walked into my room. I turned around as tears started to well in my eyes. “Mommy, George d…d…died.” With that
Suddenly, I realized that George hadn’t just
| A．draw | B．imagine | C．have | D．share |
| A．doubtful | B．excited | C．surprised | D．afraid |
| A．toy | B．mind | C．time | D．pet |
| A．take care of | B．make use of | C．get hold of | D．look forward to |
| A．reading out | B．putting away | C．turning down | D．showing off |
| A．replaced | B．recognized | C．affected | D．needed |
| A．feed | B．save | C．impress | D．find |
| A．basic | B．terrible | C．funny | D．familiar |
| A．dropped | B．emptied | C．hid | D．checked |
| A．common | B．last | C．extra | D．new |
| A．left | B．reminded | C．defeated | D．chosen |
| A．preference | B．independence | C．difficulty | D．responsibility |
| A．safe | B．good | C．sorry | D．tired |
| A．agreement | B．treatment | C．disappointment | D．achievement |
| A．Otherwise | B．Besides | C．However | D．Therefore |
