1 . When I was 13, I climbed my first mountain near my home. I was overweight then and ________ when I reached the top. But I loved the ________.

Two years ago, my friend Mel Olsen and I drove to Oregon to climb 11,240-foot Mount Hood.

As we went higher, the trail (山路) grew ________ and steeper. At around 9 a.m., we reached an ice step. Confident I was safe, I put my full ________ on it. Suddenly, I heard a ________, and the ice broke off the step, right under my foot.

In a second, I fell backward. Soon, I came to a stop on a flat slope. I ________ my whole body, feeling ________ that I was fine, except that I was suffering from a sharp pain in my left ________ and couldn’t move.

I ________ for help, and immediately Mel and other climbers came to assist me and called Mountain Rescue. Then I was loaded into a(n) ________ and taken to a hospital, ________ I stayed for four days. The doctors told me it would be a year before I could ________ again, but I was back on the trails within six months.

The fall has made me more ________. One slip (滑倒) on a mountain can change everything. But the experience also made me ________ as a person. Since the accident, I’ve climbed another 60 mountains. I’m not going to let one fall ________ me from doing my favorite thing.

1.

A．out of danger

B．out of trouble

C．out of balance

D．out of breath

2.

A．opportunity

B．memory

C．challenge

D．mountain

3.

A．wider

B．flatter

C．narrower

D．nearer

4.

A．body

B．strength

C．foot

D．weight

5.

A．cry

B．crack

C．crash

D．call

6.

A．calmed

B．looked

C．tested

D．checked

7.

A．fortunate

B．satisfied

C．grateful

D．confident

8.

A．arm

B．shoulder

C．leg

D．eye

9.

A．yelled

B．asked

C．begged

D．arranged

10.

A．car

B．ambulance

C．truck

D．shelter

11.

A．which

B．that

C．where

D．when

12.

A．jump

B．move

C．drive

D．climb

13.

A．positive

B．cautious

C．frightened

D．anxious

14.

A．grow

B．develop

C．feel

D．act

15.

A．protect

B．ban

C．addict

D．keep

2 . The day had started out as usual for Mrs. Ito until the late afternoon when the news of destructive tsunami came over the radio.

Mrs. Ito felt ______ in her house. Her small home was built on the property that ______ escaped the terrible 1946 wave that destroyed Hilo. Many lost their lives, then. But the waves did not reach her home.

At last, 12:30a.m. came as the radio warning had said but ______ happened. Passers-by said that the tsunami must have ______the islands. Mrs. Ito went into her room and looked down the street. It was ______. Suddenly, a flash- like lighting lit the sky. The first wave of the tsunami burst Hilo’s electric power plant, and all the lights______.

______she knew it, the wave roared into her house. She was ______to the floor as her house begun to spin and finally tore apart.______, Mrs. Ito grasped for anything to stay above water when the floorboards opened up and she became______in what used to be her home. She struggled out of the boards and______to squeeze free. Then she blacked out.

When she woke up, she______herself floating on something in the water. There she was, a 62- year- old widow who couldn’t swim, hung on______to her tiny makeshift raft. At sunrise, she______two boats on the horizon. But it was too far away. She thought that ______was just a matter of time. But anyhow, Mrs. Ito was finally seen and saved.

1.

A．anxious

B．alone

C．safe

D．satisfied

2.

A．thoroughly

B．luckily

C．accidentally

D．slightly

3.

A．everything

B．something

C．anything

D．nothing

4.

A．missed

B．passed

C．preserved

D．reached

5.

A．quiet

B．calm

C．dark

D．gloomy

6.

A．turned on

B．went out

C．took over

D．set off

7.

A．Before

B．After

C．When

D．As

8.

A．rooted

B．blown

C．frozen

D．knocked

9.

A．Fortunately

B．Hardly

C．Desperately

D．Hopefully

10.

A．flooded

B．hidden

C．trapped

D．lost

11.

A．attempted

B．prepared

C．determined

D．managed

12.

A．imagined

B．caught

C．found

D．left

13.

A．closely

B．loosely

C．straight

D．tight

14.

A．stopped

B．spotted

C．watched

D．grabbed

15.

A．death

B．misfortune

C．survival

D．hope

3 . Have you ever noticed the birdsong you used to wake up to as a child has been thinning? Such has been the case in Australia for the endangered eastern bristlebird, with its numbers declining dramatically in the past 40 years.

At first glance, there is nothing too unique about the eastern bristlebird. Its song, while beautiful, doesn’t stand out in a typical Australian forest. Since the 1980s, researchers have been trying to understand why the eastern bristlebird has seen such rapid decline. Time an again, fires taking place unexpectedly come up as the main factor — along with the increase in fire frequency, climate change and habitat loss.

Fire can be deadly for many wild animals, but there is something special about the bristlebird that makes it particularly vulnerable (脆弱的) to large, frequent fires. Eastern bristle-birds, despite being able to fly, appear not to appreciate the view of a top story. They don’t choose to live in the treetops, or even on lower branches of trees. They preferred low, dense vegetation (植被).

This habitat structure is important for many small animals even less noticeable than the bristlebird, such as spiders, beetles and worms. This means the bristlebird can act like an indicator how the entire understory ecosystem is doing. Unfortunately, low, dense vegetation is often the first to burn and disappear during a fire. Worse still, it takes years for an understory to recover fully.

The eastern bristlebird may only be one fire away from extinction,signaling a possible collapse of their ground-level ecosystem. However, all hope was not lost as this knowledge had led to emergency rescues of bristlebirds. And translocation programs, which has been an important strategy for saving almost every vulnerable native Australian species, are in place for this little unremarkable bird.

1. What do we know about the eastern bristlebird from the passage?

A．It can not fly high.

B．It has unique appearance.

C．Its song is highly appreciated.

D．Its situation has attracted great attention.

2. Which is the main reason for bristlebirds’ decline?

A．Unexpected fires.	B．Frequent fires.
C．Lack of habitat.	D．Global warming.

3. What makes bristlebirds vulnerable to fires?

A．Its importance in ecosystem.

B．Its appreciation for top story.

C．Its preference for low habitat.

D．Its influence on small animals.

4. What can we expect of bristlebirds in the future?

A．Their decline is likely to slow down.

B．Their numbers will increase rapidly.

C．They may save the entire ecosystem.

D．They will disappear with one more fire.

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。

Ben raced out of school. Christmas holidays! When he got home, he went to check on his pony, Scout. He slipped him a candy, and Scout nuzzled（用口鼻轻擦）his shoulder. Ben started toward the house and found his older brother Jack starting the snowmobile（雪地机动车）to deliver gas to Uncle Mike. Ben jumped on the back and joined him.

They set of slowly. The snow was fresh and deep on the remote mountain path. When they arrived, Jack went over with the gas can. Ben looked up the mountain and saw something moving. He got binoculars（望远镜）and saw two animals. Could it be a horse? Jack climbed back on the snowmobile and asked Ben to leave. When Ben told Jack he saw horses up in the snowy trees, Jack didn't believe it. Ben looked back up the mountain, but he couldn't see anything.

At dinner Ben told his father he saw two horses up on the mountain today. “If they are horses, they must be trapped by all this snow." said his dad. "If they're trapped, we have to do something," said Ben, his voice rising.

His dad looked at Jack. "Well, in the morning go and take a look. Take the gun and some hay（干草）. If they look as if they can survive, give them the hay. If not…"Jack looked serious, and slowly nodded. Ben knew what the gun was for, and his chest went cold.

In the morning, they set off in the cold snow. When they got to the place where Ben had seen the horses, they stopped and looked up using binoculars. No horses. They waited for a few minutes.

"I see them. They' re horses. Let's take the snowmobile up there. "Ben suddenly exclaimed. They drove the snowmobile in the deep snow and finally reached the place. "Oh no!" said Ben "They're starving!" One of the horses had lost a lot of hair, and their tails were almost gone. Their eyes were lifeless and tired.

Paragraph 1: Jack walked around the horses.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph 2: The two brothers went from door to door asking everyone to come and help.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5 . Around the world, rivers seem to be raging. While catastrophic flooding of Pakistan’s rivers has left tens of millions without homes, a drought unseen for 500 years has squeezed Europe’s major waterways almost dry. There is little disagreement about what’s going on: climate change is causing both rainfall and droughts to intensify. The question now is how to manage those climate-changed waterways and, specifically, what role dams should play in mitigating(缓和) against the kinds of disasters.

Advocates say water storage dams will become more essential as buffers(缓冲物) against extreme water flows by absorbing water during flooding and releasing it in times of drought. Dams, they say, can help combat climate change by producing renewable hydropower(水力发电) that is cleaner than fossil fuel energy.

However, criticisms have long centered on the negative impact most dams have on biodiversity and river ecosystems. Not only do the vast amounts of concrete used to build large dams leave huge carbon footprints, there is also much evidence that greenhouse gas emissions from dams are often far greater than previously thought. Increasingly a scientific case is also being made that dams actually worsen both floods and droughts.

Now, more dam developers are turning to “run-of-river” technology, in which the river’s water flows continuously through a hydropower station without a reservoir to store it. Such projects are generally considered more environmentally friendly, but they do not allow for water to be managed according to weather conditions.

Then there are those who say we should stay away from dams, and look for ways using nature-based solutions. Many ecologists say that protecting wetlands, for example, should be a priority, since those ecosystems act as natural sponges(海绵) for floodwaters within a river basin. “We have turned river basins into economic machines that only serve people and not nature, and this creates more problems, like droughts and flooding,” says Herman Wanningen, the founder of the advocacy group Dam Removal Europe. “We have to learn to cooperate with nature and not against it anymore.”

1. Why do critics oppose the construction of dams?

A．It may produce opposite effect.	B．It destroys local ecosystem.
C．It needs a large amount of concrete.	D．It gives off harmful gases.

2. What can we say about the “turn-to-river” projects?

A．Economical.

B．Inflexible.

C．Fruitless.

D．Popular.

3. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A．Dams have long lost their function as buffers.

B．Protecting wetland is a once-and-for-all solution.

C．Flooding and droughts can help promote economy.

D．The starting point of our solution should serve nature.

4. What’s the best title for the text?

A．Building More Dams: A Way Out?

B．Disaster Relief: Working with Nature.

C．Dams’ Traditional Role: Pros and Cons.

D．Worsening Climate Change: Take Action!

6 . Birds that dive underwater — such as penguins, gannets and pelicans — may be more likely to go extinct than their nondiving relatives, a new study reported in Proceedings of the Royal Society finds.

Many waterbirds have evolved highly specialized bodies and behaviors that facilitate diving. Now, an analysis of the evolutionary history of more than 700 waterbird species shows that once a bird group gains the ability to dive, the change is irreversible, which could help explain why diving birds have a higher extinction rate compared with nondiving birds.

“There are considerable morphological(形态学的) adaptations for diving.” says Catherine Sheard, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Bristol in England. For instance, gannets and some pelicans that dive into the water from the air have twists to the neck muscles and the bones in the chest. It’s possible that some diving birds are evolving under an evolutionary “ratchet,” where adaptations to use a certain food source or habitat encourage specialized evolution. These birds may become trapped in their ways, increasing their risk of extinction.

Evolutionary biologists Josh Tyler and Jane Younger investigated the evolution of diving in a collection of 727 waterbird species across 11 bird groups. They explored the link between diving and the development of new species, or their extinction, in various bird lineages(家族). Among 236 diving bird species, 75, or 32 percent, were part of lineages that are experiencing 0.02 more species extinctions per million years than the generation of new species. Bird lineages that don't dive, on the other hand, generated 0.1more new species per million years than the rate of species dying out.

“The more specialized you become, the more reliant you are on a particular diet, foraging(觅食) strategy or environment.” says Tyler. “The range of environments available for foraging is much larger for the nondiving birds than for the specialist divers, and this may play into their ability to adapt and thrive.”

1. What does the underlined word “irreversible” in paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Unexpected.

B．Unchangeable.

C．Unreal.

D．Unwelcome.

2. Why are “gannets and pelicans” mentioned in Paragraph 3?

A．To present a fact.	B．To illustrate a concept.
C．To give a definition.	D．To explain a phenomenon.

3. What do we know about Josh Tyler and Jane Younger’s study?

A．Biologists got the results by comparison.

B．Data were collected by observing waterbirds.

C．32 diving bird species went extinct during the process.

D．The aim is to build connection between diving and nondiving birds.

4. Which of the following factors plays a role in nondiving birds’ lower extinction rate?

A．Wider habitat range.	B．Quicker foraging speed.
C．More food options.	D．Stronger reproduction ability.

7 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

The power of Chinese emperors rose and fell with their control of the Grand Canal. Today, this waterway is shorter than it was once,     1     it is still the longest man-made river in the world.     2     (important), the Grand Canal continues to provide a vital cultural and economic link for modern China.

The original Canal system began around the year 605,     3     China’s emperor Yang realized that he needed a better way to move food and feed his army, so the emperor ordered the construction of the first section of the Grand Canal,     4     (connect) those existing canals, lakes and rivers.

For more than a thousand years, goods     5     (transport) along the Grand Canal. Even today the country’s watery highway plays an important economic role in China. Boats continue to carry tons of coal, food and other goods     6     Hangzhou and Jining. However, local governments eager to increase     7     (tour) and city development have torn down almost all of the older canal-side buildings. In 2005 a group of citizens proposed that the historic Grand Canal be made     8     UNESCO world heritage site, hoping this status would protect both the waterway and the architecture around it. With UNESCO status officially     9     (grant) in 2014, the world’s greatest engineering accomplishments continue to link north and south China for     10     (century) to come.

8 . It was a cool and breezy night. As I stood on the deck, I could feel the warm tangy smell coming from the sea. Earlier on, the ocean liner (邮轮) was still full of people who ________ and drank on the deck. Everyone was ________ asleep now and as I stood there, I could hear the hypnotic (催眠的) ________ of the waves.

I sat down at a corner and decided to rest my ________ head on my backpack. Slowly, my eyelids grew heavy and I dozed off. Suddenly, I was awaken by the rain ________ that fell on my face. The wind was blowing stronger and the waves got higher. The calm sea had turned ________. I struggled to stand up but lost my balance and fell as the ship was rocking ________. Many rushed out but they ________ from one side of the ship to another. The raging waters were crushing the ship and thunder seemed to smash upon our heads. People started to run about to seek shelter. After a long battle with the storm, it appeared to ________. We breathed in ________.

Suddenly someone shouted, “The ship is sinking!” Waters were rushing in as the side of the ship was damaged. I was ________ for words and stared blankly. “Hurry, John! There is no time to ________ !” I was ________ upon hearing my name as I was totally absorbed in the worries in my brain. I turned around and saw the rest of the passengers began to ________ a lifeboat. Without second thoughts, I joined them.

Until today, that terrifying ________ is still imprinted in my memory.

1.

A．fed

B．feasted

C．entertained

D．treated

2.

A．highly

B．soundly

C．lately

D．solidly

3.

A．murmur

B．shout

C．breath

D．weep

4.

A．faint

B．heavy

C．clear

D．thick

5.

A．storms

B．spots

C．dots

D．drops

6.

A．rough

B．tough

C．sharp

D．deep

7.

A．gently

B．abruptly

C．violently

D．swiftly

8.

A．paced

B．swept

C．rolled

D．slid

9.

A．turn down

B．die down

C．die off

D．turn away

10.

A．relief

B．satisfaction

C．delight

D．anticipation

11.

A．in confusion

B．at a loss

C．at ease

D．in chaos

12.

A．lose

B．save

C．throw

D．leave

13.

A．pleased

B．terrified

C．startled

D．amazed

14.

A．board

B．push

C．squeeze

D．drive

15.

A．event

B．challenge

C．encounter

D．adventure

9 . Working at a bank in New York City in the mid-2010s, Anna Sacks was living the life - just not the life she wanted. Sure, she was happy. But she wanted to do something that felt important and was fulfilling on a deeper level.

Some people seeking meaning might read a self-help book or perhaps volunteer a few hours a week. Sacks packed up her life and moved to Connecticut for three months to participate in Adamah, a Jewish farming program that focuses on sustainable (可持续的) living and growing sustainable food. She returned to New York with a new purpose and a variety of new skills to make her dreams a reality.

“One of the things that really stuck with me from Adamah, which means ‘Earth’ in Hebrew, was how they handled the waste they had, primarily through composting (堆肥),” she says. “And I just thought, ‘Why aren’t we doing that here?”

The Adamah program opened Sacks’ eyes to the damage that consumer culture is doing on a local, national, and global level, and the need to find solutions. So in 2016, she took a master composting course and started working with a food rescue program, which she named “trash walking.”

During walks around her neighborhood, Sacks, 31, picked through garbage to look for reusable items. Soon, her trash walks expanded to include company trash cans along with residential trash. Surprisingly, she discovered a wide range of really great stuff - like clothing, decorations, plates and food.

Sacks’ main focus is simply getting people to pay attention to how many unnecessary things they buy and then throw away. “Once you become conscious of the way you consume, you can see ways you improve,” she says.

1. Why did Sacks participate in the program Adamah?

A．She was concerned about her job.

B．She intended to do volunteer work.

C．She preferred a more meaningful life.

D．She expected to learn living skills.

2. What impressed Sacks most about the program Adamah?

A．The way they dealt with the waste.

B．The sustainable food they produced.

C．The importance they placed on farming.

D．The modern lifestyle they stuck to.

3. Which of the following best describes Sacks?

A．A farmer.	B．A doer.
C．A follower.	D．A dreamer.

4. What does Sacks suggest people do?

A．Take part in trash walking.

B．Reflect on consumption patterns.

C．Stop throwing away things.

D．Avoid buying new items.

10 . Each year, as many as one billion birds are killed in the US from collisions (相撞) with glass windows and buildings every year. Birds that crashed into Philadelphia buildings began to be collected in the 1890s. Nearly 100 species of birds are known to have died out from crashes with buildings and other structures in Philadelphia. Many other species are probably affected in the city.

Called Lights Out Philly, the voluntary program in Philadelphia encourages buildings to turn out or dim unnecessary external and internal lights between midnight and six o’clock early in the morning to protect birds as they pass through during migration seasons.

Bird migration seasons are from April l to May 31 in spring and from August 15 to November 15 in fall. Each year, millions of birds pass through Philadelphia along a migration route known as the Atlantic Flyway. Bird-glass crashes are very common for migrating birds, most of which travel at night. Glass is difficult for them to recognize as hard surfaces, and artificial light can fool them into crashing with buildings and outdoor structures. Turning off lights between midnight and sunrise helps minimize the effect of artificial light when most birds are migrating.

On Oct. 2, 2020, a stormy and foggy day, Philadelphia had its largest mass collision event in more than 70 years with an estimated 1,000 birds crashing with buildings in one 3.5-square block area in just one day. Paired with a terrible storm of weather and fog conditions, the bright city and building lights attracted and confused the migrating birds, causing them to crash with buildings and outdoor structures.

Even if you don’t play a part in managing the lights of a big building, you can help birds avoid crashes by making the glass opaque to reduce the amount and intensity of artificial light at night, changing the color of lighting to blue or green, shortening the duration lights are on, directing the lighting downward or screening lighting.

1. What is the first paragraph mainly about?

A．The rich biological diversity in Philadelphia.

B．Great efforts to protect migrating birds in Philadelphia.

C．The present and the past of the bird conservation in America.

D．The serious consequence of bird-glass crashes in Philadelphia.

2. What added the danger to the migrating birds on Oct. 2, 2020?

A．Bad weather conditions.	B．Traveling in the day.
C．The mistaken route.	D．Too many buildings.

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

A．Light-reflecting.

B．Delicate.

C．Lightproof.

D．Clean.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．It Is Difficult to Save the Migrating Birds

B．Philadelphia Turns out Lights to Save Migrating Birds

C．External and Internal Lights Affect the Bird Migration

D．Lights Out Philly Program Helps Save Endangered Birds