1 . 阅读下面材料，填入适当的内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。

Last night at 8:30 pm, I was doing my homework     1     I heard a strange voice outside. Out of     2     (curious), I went to figure     3     what was happening.

It was     4     little bird that wanted to look for food.     5     (unfortunate), he was injured by the fence surrounding by yard. I went close to him and checked     6    (he) injury carefully. He had trouble     7     (fly) away because of the injury. I treated the bird and     8     (give) him enough food and water. I was too happy     9     (watch) him enjoying his dinner. It was obvious that the bird looked     10     (good) after dinner than before.

2 . When you swim on the beach and sea, have you ever accidentally drunk the seawater? How did it feel? It must have tasted salty. So, why is the seawater salty?

Seawater is water that comes from the ocean. Seawater can be salty because it contains an average salt content of 3.5%. This is also a place for the salt farmers to produce cooking salt and other salt.

Some theories explain that seawater comes from rainwater that falls and flows through rivers and estuaries (河口) where the seawater will be fully filled and again formed clouds because the steam uses the help of the sun. When we talk about this, we talk about the rainwater cycle. But when the rainwater cycle occurs, the water that passes through the river carries mineral salts. These mineral salts are obtained from various places of the land starting from rocks and soils that the rainwater flows through, these remaining mineral salts make seawater salty, so the salinity of seawater is different in each part of the world. But it is certain that seawater is salty or has high salinity.

The saltiest sea in the world is the Red Sea. There the temperature is extremely hot so that evaporation (蒸发) is greatly carried out. High evaporation, coupled with little rainfall and little input of water from the river, causes its highest level of salinity. There is also the Dead Sea, which is nine times saltier. Due to the high salinity, when you swim there, you can float. However, the Dead Sea is not a sea at all which is a lake geographically.

1. What’s the purpose of paragraph 1?

A．To draw a conclusion.

B．To make the article interesting.

C．To introduce a famous beach.

D．To bring in the topic.

2. Where is the salt in seawater originated from?

A．Land.

B．Ocean.

C．Rain.

D．Cloud.

3. What can we infer about the Red Sea?

A．Its salinity is higher than that of the Dead Sea.

B．The climate there causes the highest salt level.

C．People are in danger when they swim there.

D．The land around it contains the most salt.

4. Which is the most suitable title for the text?

A．The reason why the seawater tastes salty

B．The reason why the Dead Sea is not a sea

C．The reason why the rainwater cycle occurs

D．The reason why the sea looks blue and green

3 . Marathon runner Gerima Mustafa of Uganda walked some 664 kilometers across East Africa earlier this year to call attention to threats to the shea (乳木果) nut tree, a source of food, medical products and income for the many living from West Africa to Somalia.

Now research scientists studying the shea tree in Burkina Faso have found that it is the natural ecosystem that is getting degraded in this region that might do harm to the shea, which is often targeted by charcoal (木炭) traders who kill and sell the trees for far less than the long-term worth of their benefits. The habitats are lost to ever-increasing agricultural shifts too, with a clear overall link to the impacts of human activity.

Scientist Aoife Delaney of the UK, along with Burkinabe researchers and British ecologists, studied 10 different parkland locations in Burkina Faso where the trees are planted. They say the tree — able to produce nuts for 200 years — relies on pollinators (传粉者) that thrive when other trees and shrub (灌木) species around it create a habitat to support the pollinators, especially bees.

“Consequently, shea productions are likely to benefit from the preservation of a range of different tree and shrub species in parklands,” Delaney and the research team said. Their work was recently published in the Journal of Applied Ecology.

The authors recommend maintaining a range of native woody species throughout their lifespans, and planting new ones into farmland when cleared. The idea is to be intentional and active about protecting the trees.

“Only separate parts of semi-natural habitat in the surrounding landscape may not be sufficient to provide the necessary pollination services,” they concluded. “In a region that is subject to nutritional poverty and where the fund required to supply local foods is lacking for most families, maintaining natural ecosystem services that support food provision must be a priority.”

1. Why is Gerima Mustafa mentioned in the first paragraph?

A．To describe a marathon runner’s experience.	B．To suggest the popularity of Gerima Mustafa.
C．To introduce the importance of shea nut trees.	D．To explain an approach to protecting the wildlife.

2. What is a great threat to the shea nut trees in Burkina Faso?

A．The agricultural development.	B．The illegal hunting of animals.
C．The disturbance of human activity.	D．The pollution in their natural habitat.

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

A．Increase.

B．Spread.

C．Escape.

D．Change.

4. What do the scientists recommend locals to do to protect the shea nut trees?

A．Provide hand-pollination services.	B．Keep the biodiversity within ecosystem.
C．Replace the old shea trees with new ones.	D．Open up more natural habitats for pollinators.

4 . Pet adoption is the perfect way to add a new family member. But if a pet is too young to be adopted, it must be fostered (寄养) first. That’s how a puppy named Maggie that was rescued by the North Shore Animal League America (NSALA), ended up being fostered by a sweet six-year-old boy.

The animal rescue organization in Port Washington needed to find a foster home for Maggie because she needed to be trained with basic obedience (顺从) skills and to become comfortable with a home environment. NSALA put out a call for a foster family.

Roman Duncan’s family was the lucky one chosen for the job. The boy fell in love with the puppy and was able to be part of her growth during those formative months. The family always made it clear to Roman that Maggie would eventually be adopted and move to a different home.

When it came time for Maggie to be adopted, Roman couldn’t hold his tears. He decided to write letters to the puppy’s future family. He wrote letters about his furry friend, saying “Maggie is so cute and loves to play fetch. She is the best dog ever,” and slipped the notes and some photos into Maggie’s paperwork.

The rescue team were surprised and then incredibly touched by the notes they found when opening Maggie’s file. NSALA made sure that Roman’s notes reached her adopted family. The boy’s gesture is exactly what pet fostering is about.

A dog or cat that has gone through terrible sufferings such as being abusing needs to learn what it means to live in a home. Fostering helps reduce the animal’s stress and makes it trust people again. It is also an opportunity for people who love pets but can’t have them full-time due to some restrictions. Pet fosters can get to enjoy helping a pet in need. If you are interested in pet fostering, contact a local shelter or animal rescue near you.

1. What happened to Maggie at first?

A．She was released into the wild.	B．She was settled in a new home.
C．She was saved by a rescue team.	D．She was fostered by Roman’s family.

2. Why did Roman write notes about Maggie?

A．To express his mixed feelings.	B．To preserve Maggie’s paperwork.
C．To choose Maggie’s future family.	D．To help Maggie adapt to new home.

3. What is mainly discussed in the last paragraph?

A．The benefits of pet fostering.	B．The access to fostering a pet.
C．A homeless animal’s barriers.	D．The restrictions to adopting a pet.

4. What is the best title of the text?

A．Maggie Lives Happily in a Comforting Foster Home

B．A Boy Writes Sweet Letter to Puppy’s Forever Family

C．Pet fostering Plays Great Roles in Rescuing Lost Animals

D．Roman Duncan’s Family Adopts a new Family Member

5 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What was the weather like in the town in the past week?

A．Hot and dry.

B．Cool and dry.

C．Hot and wet.

2. What trouble did beetles cause?

A．They ran into people.

B．They bit people.

C．They attacked animals.

3. What made adult beetles flood into the town?

A．The food waste.

B．The streetlights.

C．The warm sunlight.

4. How did the locals’ fight against beetles turn out?

A．Successful.

B．Worrying.

C．Unpleasant.

6 . Compared to other big cats that prefer to be alone, lions are very social and live in groups.Researchers from the University of Minnesota find male lions typically team up into groups of two or more in order to gather resources like territories, food, and mates. These groups are called coalitions(联盟).

“Our previous research shows that males that cooperate and form coalitions live better in reproductive fitness by being able to hold territories for longer than single males,” the study lead author said. Holding territories for longer periods of time allows them to mate more often than single males, which means they have more offspring(后代).

Researchers wanted to find out if cooperation was more likely to happen among related male lions. In addition to monitoring lions, they collected blood, tissue, and hair samples to see if the male lions were connected. But the analysis was really a headache for researchers because the Hions had experienced two population bottlenecks. These were events that caused extreme drops in a group’s population. So the animals that remained had a very low level of genetic diversity because there were so few animals left. Researchers were trying to use records of mothers,children, and siblings to create a baseline panel. Then they compared male coalition partners to these records in order to understand how they were related to each other. The researchers observed123 male lions who belonged to 10 coalitions. They found those who were part of large coalitions of more than two members were typically brothers and cousins. But more than 70% of those that traveled in pairs were unrelated.

Sharing and cooperation are harder in larger groups because the resources have to be divided among a larger number of lions. Although these larger groups are more successful overall, lions live better individually in smaller coalitions. Researchers also found that related males were no more likely to have each other's backs when fighting enemies than unrelated males. This shows that the kin(亲属)relationship is not the only reason why males cooperate with each other,but the kin support makes the cooperation even more beneficial.

1. What helped the growth of a lion coalition’s population most according to previous research?

A．The stable territory.

B．A number of male cousins.

C．A variety of food resources.

D．Good teamwork with other groups.

2. What made researchers’ study difficult to carry out?

A．The technological bottlenecks.

B．The challenge of monitoring lions.

C．The limited genetic samples of male lions.

D．The potential danger of collecting samples.

3. What can be concluded from the study results?

A．Smaller coalitions are constantly on the move.

B．Lions of larger coalitions are usually relatives.

C．Lions tend to enjoy living in smaller forest.

D．Larger lion coalitions often help smaller ones with food.

4. What may be the best title for the text?

A．The cooperation among male lions

B．The reproduction of the lion population.

C．The competition between lion coalitions.

D．The pleasant relationship between lion coalitions

7 . The Horizontal Oak: A life in Nature
By Poly Pullar,

Growing up in a remote region of the Scottish Highlands, Polly Pullar’s childhood was pleasant, simple, and peaceful. But the wild beauty formed a backdrop to a series of major family tragedies. This is the story of how she rebuilt her life from the ground up, supported by the natural world around her.

Wildlife Walks
By Charlotte Varela,
Bloomsbury, ￡16.99

Take a walk through the Wildlife Trusts’ nature reserves with this handy guide that showcases some of our nation’s best forests, moors, woodlands and coastal locations. Each walk includes a description of the site, instructions on how to get there, available facilities and the route’s walking time.

Where the Seals Sing
By Susan Richardson,
William Collins, ￡20

Having long been fascinated by seals, Susan Richardson sets out to follow their pupping season (繁殖季). As she journeys from Cornwall to Norfolk, she learns more about these mystical creatures, while sharing personal stories about the comforting role they have played during times of grief or anxiety in her own life.

In the Name of Plants
By Sandra Knapp,
University of Chicago Press, ￡20

Botanist Sandra Knapp digs into the stories behind plant names, exploring the people who have been immortalized (使永生), from Benjamin Franklin to Lady Gaga. The 30 plants inside are accompanied by botanical drawings from the Natural History Museum.

1. Which of the books does not involve a story?

A．The Horizontal Oak: A Life in Nature	B．Wildlife Walks
C．Where the Seals Sing	D．In the Name of Plants

2. What can be inferred from the text?

A．There are probably plants named after Lady Gaga.

B．Susan Richardson introduces seals’ life in her book.

C．Polly Pullar offers readers a tourist guide of Scottish Highlands.

D．You can read Charlotte Varela’s book if you want to visit nature reserves by car.

3. Where can we most probably read the text？

A．A geographic textbook.	B．A travel brochure.
C．A magazine on wildlife.	D．A website about plants.

8 . 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。

Ten years ago, the Italian area of Cinque Terre experienced a heavy flood. Everyone in Cinque Terre has a story to tell about that terrible day. One of the most amazing     1     (story) comes from a local hotel owner, Pierpaolo Paradisi. His life was saved by his dog, Leo,     2     his hotel is named after now.

On that day, he took Leo to work. By the time they arrived at the hotel, the storm     3     (start) already—heavy rain, thunder and hail (冰雹). He decided to go back     4     (early) than usual, worrying the weather would only get worse.

“Even in the first mile, the weather changed sharply—I had never seen     5     terrible weather like that before that I was driving extremely slowly. The dog had sat in the back of the car     6     silence all the way. As the car made its way around the cliff (悬崖), Leo suddenly made his move.”

“He jumped into the front and onto my knees, so I had to stop,” says Paradisi. “I couldn’t concentrate on driving—I said     7     (angry), ‘Leo, I am driving.’” At that moment—just as he wanted     8     (move) the dog off his lap and get going again—the cliff fell away in front of them.

“Rocks rolled down from the mountain. Obviously, Leo was telling me in this way if we moved meter further forward, we would     9     (hit),” he says. Paradisi believes that Leo saved both     10     (they) lives.

9 . There are many ecosystems that are truly suffering from damage. One of the solutions to the problem is that they can be restored (修复) by reintroducing some animal species. A study shows if you introduce right large mammals (哺乳动物), you can successfully restore a lot of the planet.

Some roles that species play in the environment are extremely important, so the loss of any of these can break the ecological balance. So on the other hand, it means that reintroducing a species can produce positive results. When a few wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone Park, it became one of the most successful examples to prove the reintroduced species did help restore the ecosystem. Dr. Carly, a scientist, along with her team, was able to identify 20 kinds of mammals that could help restore a lot of what we’ve destroyed in nature if reintroduced. The species benefit the nature in different ways like helping renew soil and grass.

The team compared environments of 500 years ago with conditions of modern environments. And they figured out that only 16% of the world still has undamaged wild mammals communities, and just 6% looks similar to what it looked like before 1500. They believed that undamaged mammals communities can easily be swollen through reintroduction program, especially in South America and northern areas of Africa.

In Europe, reintroducing wolf, bison, and reindeer could really make a great impact. However, just wolves and wild horses could make a difference to Asia. “Our recommendations may not be suitable everywhere in the world—local assessments (评估) must be made to decide whether to start a reintroduction program or not. If hunting pressures within different species, shortage of food are still problems, they need solving first. However, our findings show there are huge areas of the world that could be suitable for large mammal restoration if other problems are managed,” said Dr. Carly.

1. What role did the wolves play in Yellowstone Park?

A．Attracting some other animal species.

B．Keeping the balance of the ecosystem.

C．Creating better soil for other animals.

D．Preventing more visits to the park.

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

A．Planned.

B．Cut.

C．Controlled.

D．Increased.

3. What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A．The more species reintroduced, the better for the local area.

B．It is almost impossible for the damaged nature to be restored.

C．Reintroducing species must be based on the local conditions.

D．Providing enough food for reintroduced species is a challenge.

4. In which part of a website may the text appear?

A．Environment.

B．Culture.

C．Health.

D．History.

10 . 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。

Water shortage is one of the     1     (great) crises facing us today, with two thirds of the global population living in areas     2     water is scarce(稀缺的) for a month or more every year. There are two contributing factors to this problem: increasing global demand     3     water, and unsustainable means by which these demands are being met. Yet, despite global water usage already increasing threefold(三倍) over the last fifty years, it     4    (predict) that there will be a further 60%-100% increase in water usage by 2050.

This is not just     5     matter of turning the tap off when you brush your     6     (tooth), cutting your showers down to 3 minutes, or sharing the washing-load with your flatmates. In fact, daily activities of human make up less than 4% of our total water consumption, with the     7     (remain) 92% falling into two ‘invisible’ categories: the industrial production of household items, and the production of food. Astonishingly, 69% of our total daily water consumption comes from the     8     (grow) and production of food alone.

    9     (unfortunate), there is no single go-to refererence book for the exact number of litres used in the production of any individual food item. This is a hard pill to swallow, for we have other factors     10     (consider) when weighing up the benefits of every food choice: taste, cost and convenience.