| A. heading B. incredibly C. adaptable D. alternative E. pursuit F. dumped G. recycled H. global I. calculated J. precisely K. generated |
Planet Plastic
Here’s a shocking statistic. Scientists have calculated the total amount of plastic ever made: 8.3 billion tonnes. Looked at another way, that’s as heavy as 25,000 Empire State Buildings or one billion elephants. And
So what’s the problem? Much plastic is in the form of packaging which is used just once and then thrown away. According to a major new study from the University of California, 9% of this is
It’s a situation that has led the paper’s lead author, ecologist Dr. Roland Geyer, to say that we are “rapidly
The team behind this report also estimate that eight million tonnes of plastic waste are
Of course, the reason why there’s so much plastic around is that it’s an amazingly useful material. We can’t get enough of it. It’s durable and
So what’s the
Professor Richard Thompson, a marine biologist from Plymouth University, says it’s poor design that is at fault. He says that if products are currently designed “with recyclability in mind”, they could be recycled around 20 times over.
Dr. Geyer agrees: “The
| A．The summer this year is terribly hot. | B．Last summer was even hotter. |
| C．Hot weather helps people lose weight. | D．Light was stronger this morning. |
91. The Problem of Packaging
A large source of rubbish is packaging material. It often makes up more than 30 percent of the total. To understand why this is true, think of the packaging commonly used for a simple product, such as toothpaste. The packaging includes not only the tube for the toothpaste, but also the box for the tube. This box is put into a plastic wrapper. Then, the boxes are transported in a cardboard container.
Most packaging material ends up in a landfill after it is thrown away. Though necessary, landfills take up valuable space, often stink, and can leak harmful substances into the soil. Landfills not included, the production of packaging material itself is a major source of air and water pollution.
People are now trying to solve the problems caused by packaging materials. In 1991, Germany took the lead by requiring companies to recycle the packaging used for their goods. To do this, the companies set up recycling bins in every neighborhood. Consumers now separate their rubbish into three categories—metal, plastic and paper cartons. They then put it into the appropriate bin. The rubbish sorted, it is transported to recycling company for processing.
The programme worked well at first. However, the amount of rubbish has begun to increase again. One reason for this is that many consumers no longer reduce waste because they think the problem is solved. It seems that to properly deal with the problem of rubbish, everyone must remain alert and do their part.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
| A．The fish in it has died out. |
| B．It has stopped flowing. |
| C．It’s got badly polluted. |
1．基本情况；
2．景点特色；
3．你的印象和感受。
注意：1．词数80左右；
2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
A Beautiful Tourist Spot in Handan
There are many places of interest in my hometown Handan.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________| A．Rainy days. | B．Sunny days. | C．Cloudy days. | D．Snowy days. |
More than any other aspect of the climate crisis, it is the over-production of carbon dioxide that has been valued. But nitrogen and its abundant use in commercial fertilizer, also leads to air pollution and climate change. Evidence suggests their use also contributes to air pollution, increases the rates of cancer and reduces biodiversity, as well as releasing gas (laughing gas).
But nitrogen helps feed around half the world’s population and remains essential for the foreseeable future. With prices of fertilizer rising, many developing countries don’t have access to it, with resulting threats to food security. The global nitrogen challenge involves both reducing fertilizer use, and getting it to where it’s needed most.
A team of scientists has come up with a five-step plan to solve this two-sided problem. Benjamin Houlton, the leader, explains that only by undertaking a holistic approach and combining solutions can the problem be solved on both levels.
The five steps identified involve changing agricultural practices, getting fertilizer to the places it’s needed, reducing nitrogen pollution and finally, both reducing food waste and promoting a change in diet. The latter two are essential because approximately one-quarter of all global food produced is wasted along the supply chain, which means that a large portion of the nitrogen fertilizer applied to crops is ultimately wasted.
Benjamin admits that adding nitrogen to the list of existing climate woes might cause a sense of exhaustion. Nevertheless, he has an encouraging message. “The truth is, nitrogen is a blessing and a curse,” he says, “But if you can reduce the spill-overs of nitrogen, you can quickly get systems to return to a more original state. That makes it very different from CO2. We lock in 30 to 50 years of climate impacts every time we send out a molecule of CO2 into the air. But with nitrogen you can get immediate returns on investment.”
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Fun Facts about Pigeons
Pigeons are the most misunderstood of all creatures. Upon seeing a flock of pigeons, many people want
First, pigeons are highly skilled navigators (领航员). A pigeon can find its way back to its nest after
Another interesting yet not so admirable quality of pigeons is that they appear to be master procrastinators (拖延者). Scientific studies have shown that pigeons often delay the completion of a dull or troublesome task when an immediately
Next, we come to the unpleasant topic of pigeon droppings. Urban dwellers are used to seeing streets
Finally, it cannot be denied
So,
9 . Never kill a spider!
Even though spiders are nasty crawlers that you probably look down upon, killing them could actually do your house more harm than good. Here’s why.
Besides having long legs and nasty behavior, most people are scared of spiders for one specific reason: their bite. If you’re not sure about the type of spider, there’s always a chance that the spider could be poisonous.
So if that’s the case, why are we so drawn to killing spiders? As a matter of fact, it is more likely that spiders help our homes instead of harming them. Since spiders are natural predators(食肉动物), they capture pests, including flies, within your home.
In all, that’s not such a bad thing as spiders kill other pests in your home.
| A．Spiders even prey(捕食) after disease-carrying insects. |
| B．Then can you have spiders crawling here and there? |
| C．Spiders often come indoors seeking warmth and food. |
| D．But that doesn’t necessarily mean you want them anywhere near you. |
| E．Typical household spiders will create webs where their food source is coming from. |
| F．However, it has been proven that only about 10 percent of spider bites lead to serious results. |
10 . Chemists in mid-1500s Nuremburg had discovered that bird droppings were a rich source of saltpetre, a vital ingredient in the making of gunpowder. As a consequence pigeon droppings used to be almost as valuable as silver. Understandably, by the middle of the following century, there were an estimated 26,000 pigeon houses in Britain.
The practice of keeping the pigeon was introduced to Britain by the Romans. The Normans kept pigeons in specially constructed niches in castles and courtyards. When the pigeon houses in Britain were built, they were a vital source of meat and feathers. The latter were particularly prized as a source of warmth. Droppings gathered from the pigeon houses was a rich fertilizer, too.
The pigeon house was not only a source of food and revenue in medieval times, but also a status symbol. The privilege of building or owning pigeon houses was reserved for the rich. Towards the end of her rule, Queen Elizabeth I decided to open pigeon-breeding to the free market. Then, pigeon houses sprang up all over the countryside.
The number of pigeon houses across the British countryside was not universally welcomed. Each day the birds flew off to feed themselves on other people’s crops. By the middle of the 17th century, the problem of pigeons was so great that people feared that the destructive pigeons would turn England into a desert.
Luckily, an agricultural revolutionary, Charles Townsend, had introduced the turnip to Britain around 1700, keeping farm livestock fat enough to eat through the dark winter months. Later, vast quantities of natural saltpetre were discovered in Chile and California. Keeping pigeons went out of fashion.
Now, the homeless pigeons flew off to find somewhere else to live. One species discovered that Britain’s rapidly growing towns and cities were full of the sort of rock-faces they liked to rest on—humans called them “buildings”. Over time they’d become the wild urban pigeon that we know today.
1. Which of the following people in Britain would be least likely to keep pigeons in the late Middle Ages?| A．Fruit growers. | B．The nobles. | C．Gunpowder makers. | D．The miners. |
| A．Farm livestock used to be too thin for lack of food in the dark months in Britain. |
| B．Townsend revolutionized agricultural development in Britain around 1700. |
| C．The Normans set an undesirable example of raising pigeons for the British people. |
| D．England was once faced with the threat of disappearance because of pigeons. |
| A．Because people think it a sign of status and keep them to show off. |
| B．Because pigeons like to stay on hard surfaces which can be abundantly found in cities. |
| C．Because pigeons find enough food supplies when tourists and citizens feed them in squares. |
| D．Because the government encourages pigeon raising as a profitable investment. |
| A．A brief history of pigeon houses in Britain. |
| B．From function to fashion — the pigeon houses in Britain. |
| C．Profitable pigeon houses in Britain. |
| D．Pigeon houses in Britain as valuable as silver. |
