1 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. Who made the speaker interested in insects?

A．His father.

B．His schoolmates.

C．His teacher.

2. What did the speaker use to name butterflies?

A．Diaries.

B．Posters.

C．Paper.

3. What gave the speaker a surprise?

A．A blue butterfly.

B．White butterflies.

C．Many other insects.

2 . During the last week of Fu Bao’s public viewing earlier this month, visitors endured waiting for 5—6 hours just to give a glance at the panda for only five minutes, as Everland Panda World restricted viewing time to manage the flood of visitors.

Born to parents Ai Bao and Le Bao in July 2020, Fu Bao is South Korea’s first naturally-born panda. In the days following her birth, Everland’s social media channels offered fans a steady diet of Fu Bao videos, pulling in more than 1.2 million subscribers and, as of February, over 500 million accumulated views. The most recent videos are now filled with warm and sincere messages from viewers.

Thanks to Fu Bao’s widespread popularity, her zookeeper has also found himself in the spotlight, becoming a bit of a social media star himself. Often referred to as her grandpa, Kang Chul-won offered hi own farewell message to Fu Bao, noting that the South Koreans’ special love for her all began with social media videos shared during the pandemic when the zoo was closed. She brought help and happiness to a society in many ways that was having a difficult time due to the virus. He said people visited the social media sites every day so it felt like he was raising her together with them. They cared so much for her and shared the same emotions of raising a baby panda together during such difficult times.

Fu Bao will be transferred to China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Sichuan Province. Everland says that she will be kept alone at Everland Panda World for a month to prepare her to adjust to her new environment before her overseas transfer, which will be carried out in accordance with international rules.

1. What can we learn about Fu Bao from the first two paragraphs?

A．She has a balanced diet.	B．She is five years old.
C．She is very popular in South Korea.	D．She came from Sichuan, China.

2. What do South Koreans think of Fu Bao?

A．She is a live symbol of luck and fortune.

B．She is an animal who can resist any virus.

C．She is an inspiration to overcome difficulties.

D．She is their common possession and business.

3. What will Fu Bao do a month before leaving South Korea?

A．She will go on show in Everland.	B．She will be separated for adjustment.
C．She will leave Everland Panda World.	D．She will be moved to a research center.

4. What does the underlined phrase “in accordance with” in the last paragraph probably mean?

A．On behalf of.	B．In terms of.
C．In company with.	D．In agreement with.

3 . Ten years ago, environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb was on a reporting trip about wildlife conservation. When he was shown around some new animal crossing structures near, Missoula, these new bridges and tunnels intrigued him. He was attracted by these beautiful human-built structures and inspired to write a book. Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet has now been published.

Through expert interviews, in-depth research and convincing analysis, Goldfarh brings to life the deadly consequences our 40 million miles of roadways have had and are having on the natural world and the creatures that inhabit it. A million animals are killed by cars each day in the US alone. Road salt pollutes lakes and rivers. And there's the barrier effect-the steady stream of traffic that prevents animals from migrating (迁徙) all together and finding habitats. Goldfarb writes that noise pollution is the most worrisome among all the road's ecological disasters. Both the engine noise and the tire noise greatly impact ecological environment.

Figures on deaths and disruptions (扰乱) are disheartening, but Goldfarb vividly describes how scientists are actively working on meaningful improvements to help animals and roads better coexist, such as wildlife crossings, from passages in Canada's Banff National Park to the famous Liberty Canyon Overpass in Los, Angeles. Another example is that in India, they built a new highway through a tiger reserve so that animals can come and go underneath the lifted freeway. Of course, that made the project more expensive, but it's ecologically the right thing to do.

Crossings is a truly important and landmark book on a subject whose full impacts continue to be disregarded or underestimated in considering conservation efforts. The book is a sympathetic, heart-warming guide to exploring the issues of wildlife survival and our own.

1. What does the underlined word “intrigued” in paragraph 1 mean?

A．Confused.

B．Blocked.

C．Satisfied.

D．Interested.

2. Which of the following is Goldfarb's biggest concern?

A．Road salt.	B．Roadkill.
C．Vehicle noises.	D．Endless traffic stream.

3. Why are the examples given in paragraph 3?

A．To bring shame on individual drivers.

B．To stress the effect of roads on wildlife.

C．To show humans' effort in animal protection.

D．To explain the necessity of creating wild reserves.

4. What does the author think of Goldfarb's book?

A．Vivid and touching.

B．Pessimistic and sharp.

C．Objective and critical.

D．Abstract and humorous.

4 . A British company has proposed releasing a GM(genetically modified) strain of the diamondback moth (菱形斑纹蛾), which has been developed to help reduce the population of these vegetable-eating insects.

Male diamondback moths carrying a deadly gene would be released which would cause their off springs (后代) to die almost immediately. Then the fall in their numbers could help to increase crop yields for farmers.

Oxitec, the company which came up with the idea, hopes to begin trials next year but faces opposition from groups who say the untested technology could threaten wildlife and human health.

“Mass releases of GM insects into the British countryside would be impossible to recall if anything went wrong. Changing one part of an ecosystem can have knock-on effects on others in ways that are poorly understood. This could include an increase in different types of pests. Wildlife that feeds on insects could be harmed if there are changes to their food supply” said Dr Helen Wallace, the director of Gene-Watch UK, who has sat on government advisory bodies.

Hadyn Parry, Oxitec’s chief executive, said there was demand from farmers for the technology and that using GM insects to kill the pests that feed on food crops is better for the environment than chemical sprays. The firm, which is supported by grants from the taxpayer, is developing a number of GM insects that would be used in Britain and around the world to protect crops and combat disease in humans.

Oxitec has contacted the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to ask what controls, if any, should be put in place around GM moth trials. A spokesman said that while its officials and advisers have discussed Oxitec’s plans, there is yet to be a formal application for a trial. Consequently the department has not reached a view on whether it should go ahead.

1. People strongly object to the idea mainly because they think _______.

A．the technology won’t be as effective as chemical sprays

B．the technology may bring about knock-on effects on insects

C．the technology won’t be well controlled

D．the technology may not be good for wildlife and human health

2. What is Dr Helen Wallace’s attitude towards the idea?

A．Disapproving.

B．Positive.

C．Doubtful.

D．Not mentioned.

3. The underlined word “combat” in the fifth paragraph can be replaced by“_______”.

A．struggle

B．avoid

C．fight

D．contract

4. Which of the following can be learned from the text?

A．Oxitec still hasn’t formed any plans to control the trials.

B．Oxitec has decided to begin the trial this year.

C．Taxpayers will not continue to support Oxitec’s research.

D．Farmers prefer GM insects to chemical sprays.

5 . The ocean is home to more than 200,000 known species and as many as 2 million that we have yet to discover. And, it is also home to 24.4 trillion pieces of microplastics. In 2022, researchers spotlighted how bad marine microplastic pollution, is getting: The total amount of microplastics on the bottom of oceans has greatly increased. in the past two decades.

Microplastic particles don’t just end up at the bottom of the ocean. Animals are eating them — at least 1,500 species have been reported to ingest plastic. And a lot of it. For example, whales in New Zealand’s Hauraki Gulf consume roughly three million microplastics daily, according to research published in Science of the Total Environment, which analyzed whale waste to see how much microplastics were present.

“Other research has shown that if plastics are small enough, they can cross the gut(肠道) wall and get into internal organs though the long-term effects are still unclear. Plastics can also release chemicals that are harmful to digestive system,” says Kahane-Rapport. “This is concerning, and while we do not yet understand the long-term health-effects, it is likely not a good sign for whales and their prey(猎物) to eat a man-made material like plastic.”

This is obviously bad for whales, but it also has effects on humans and the ocean at large. We are also part of these food chains and are consuming microplastics regularly. They are in our bottled water, in our table salt — they are even in our house dust and in the air we breathe. And we still don’t know what the health effects are. Meanwhile, the impact on whales — and what it indicates — is troubling on many fronts. “Whales are ecosystem engineers,” says Kahane-Rapport. “They can spread the nutrients that they consumed and serve as ecosystem guards — when whales are not healthy, other parts of the system will suffer.”

Kahane-Rapport says more research is needed. “The next research step will be to determine how much plastic the whales excrete(排出) and how much is left in their bodies. Following that, we would be able to determine the direct health effects on their tissues.”

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

A．Deal with.

B．Bring up.

C．Take in.

D．Spread out.

2. What can be inferred from paragraph 3?

A．Researches show contradictory results.

B．Digestive system is the most affected part.

C．Small plastics are more harmful than big ones.

D．Much about microplastics’ harm remains unclear.

3. What is paragraph 4 mainly about?

A．The various sources of pollution.

B．Tab chain reaction of microplastics.

C．Possible solutions to plastic pollution.

D．Growing awareness of ocean protection

4. What will the following research focus on?

A．Microplastic pollution to the ocean bottom

B．The sufferings of other ocean creatures.

C．Whales’ contributions to the ecosystem.

D．The amount of plastic in whales bodies.

6 . Wind turbines (风力发电机) work especially well out in coastal waters, where ocean winds can be very strong. Offshore wind farms cost more to build than onshore ones. Offshore equipment must be heavier than onshore equipment. It has to stand up to very heavy winds, big waves and strong currents. Sending people to install, operate and repair equipment at sea is costly. But once set up, offshore wind could pick up bonus tasks.

According to Haris Ishaq, an engineer at the University of Victoria in Canada, one of the best add-ons to wind farms is making hydrogen gas, which means making a clean power source in a clean way. A device called an electrolyzer (电解器) can split water into hydrogen and oxygen. The electrolyzer needs fresh water, not salt water. To remove the sea salt, Ishaq’s team proposes removing the salt through a special technique, which is supposed to run on the electricity produced by the offshore wind farms.

Ishap’s group also proposes adding a second bonus task to wind farms—to capture (捕获) CO₂ from the atmosphere. Atmospheric CO₂ levels are higher than ever, resulting in a worsening greenhouse effect. A process called direct air capture, or DAC, can remove CO₂ from the air. The DAC devices need electricity to run. Fans move air across a solid material that captures CO₂ and releases everything else. When the solid material is heated to 100° Celsius, it releases the stored CO₂. The same solids can then be reused to grab more CO₂. The electricity made by wind turbines would power the devices’ fans and the electric boiler, to heat the carbon-collecting solid. To store the CO₂ released, Ishaq’s team proposes injecting it into a type of deep-sea rock. That rock reacts with the gas, turning it into more rock in 10 to 25 years.

Ishaq’s team modeled wind turbines, electrolyzers and DAC units on computers to confirm their proposed system is a good idea. The next step is to test a small version of this set up on a floating platform in the ocean.

1. Why are offshore wind farms built despite many difficulties?

A．They can serve better purposes.	B．They are money-saving.
C．They can be used longer.	D．They need little maintenance.

2. What is the second bonus task intended for?

A．Reducing greenhouse effect.	B．Testing an air-capturing process.
C．Exploring a kind of deep-sea rock.	D．Starting a hydrogen-collecting project.

3. What is the author’s attitude toward Ishaq’s team’s proposal?

A．Neutral.

B．Cautious.

C．Uncertain.

D．Approving.

4. What is the best title of the text?

A．Clean Energy Is Put into Better Use

B．Hydrogen Promises to Be The Energy of Tomorrow

C．Engineers Propose Add-ons to Offshore Wind Farms

D．Wind Turbines Work Especially Well Out in Coastal Waters

7 . Shop Sustainably

If you have to name one thing that contributes most to your ecological footprints, you may say the energy you use at home, or your car’s emissions.     1     Knowing this can make your grocery shops more planet-friendly. Here is what you can do to help shop sustainably.

●    2     Using those is a great first step. If you get some, do remember to fill them with your purchases. When you adapt yourself to reusing them, then you’ll cut your consumption of single-use plastic bags even further.

●Avoid unnecessary packing. Buy loose fruit and vegetables instead of pre-packaged produce, and avoid products that contain multiple single packages or double packaging, like grain in a box and a bag. Consider switching from tea bags and coffee pods to tea leaves and ground coffee.     3    

●Go organic when you can. In addition to the benefit organic farming has to insect biodiversity, it’s also considered more sustainable and better for the environment.     4    Choosing free-range or Marine Stewardship Council-certified products also encourages environment- and animal-friendly food production.

●Buy seasonal and native products.     5     So you can avoid buying goods that have travelled long distances to reach your plate. As well as opting for local goods, depending on where you live, in the supermarket, you can also buy directly from the source at farmers’ markets.

A．Take reusable grocery bags.

B．Select single-use plastic bags.

C．It supports local farmers and food producers.

D．You can also refill your own containers with loose-packed food.

E．When buying organic products, look for those officially certified.

F．But it’s what we eat that accounts for up to 60% of our personal demand.

G．You’ll find it convenient whenever you buy tea or coffee in the supermarket.

8 . The world’s largest ape Gigantopithecus blacki (G. blacki) vanished from Earth between 295, 000 and 215, 000 years ago, more than 100, 000 years earlier than once thought, pushed to extinction as the environment around it shifted, researchers reported recently in Nature.

The fate of G. blacki, twice the size of the largest modern apes and resembling a super-sized version of its close cousin, the orangutan, has long been a mystery. For about 2 million years, G. blacki inhabited a landscape of forests and grasses in what’s now southern China. It left behind only scattered remnants: thousands of teeth and four jawbones, unearthed in cave sediments in the region.

To establish a chronology for the ape’s extinction, paleoanthropologist Yingqi Zhang of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing and his colleagues used different dating techniques to determine the ape’s habits, diet and environment. In the teeth, they looked for data on the ape’s diet, measuring isotopes (同位素) of carbon and oxygen as well as examining the teeth for tiny evidence of wear and tear — which can reveal not only diet, but also give hints of repeated behaviors and stress. The team also analyzed the cave sediments bearing the fossils, hunting for fossil pollen and conducting luminescence dating (光释光测年) on radioactive elements within the sediments.

The team’s reconstruction revealed that — around 700, 000 to 600, 000 years ago, southern China shifted from its forested landscape to a more seasonally-driven environment. Some apes, including the orangutans, were able to adapt to these changes. But G. blacki was unable to change rapidly enough, and its numbers slowly dwindled before going extinct, the team suggested.

The assembled evidence told a convincing story that “the extinction of G. blacki coincided in southern China with a decrease of forest cover and expansion of savanna-like environments,” said Hervé Bocherens, a biogeologist at the University of Tuebingen in Germany. Still, he said, documenting the extinction of this species from the fossil record is tricky — and it’s impossible to rule out the possibility that pockets of G. blacki may have lingered in still-undiscovered caves for longer.

1. What can be known about G. blacki according to paragraph 2?

A． G. blacki shared certain similarities with the orangutan.

B． G. blacki was twice larger than the largest modern apes.

C． G. blacki lived in places full of basins and deserts.

D． G. blacki might have thousands of teeth.

2. What did Zhang and his workmates do to figure out information related to G. blacki ?

A．They checked the situation of G. blacki.

B．They repeated the behaviors done by G. blacki.

C．They applied radioactive elements to the analysis of the cave sediments.

D．They measured isotopes of carbon and hydrogen in G. blacki diet.

3. What is the meaning of the underlined word “dwindled” in paragraph 4?

A．Increased.

B．Reduced.

C．Unchanged.

D．Multiplied.

4. What can we learn from Bocherens’s words?

A．Many hands make light work.

B．One good turn deserves another.

C．Knowledge advances by steps and not by leaps.

D．Experience must be bought.

9 . Falcons are powerful birds that may be trained to hunt in cooperation with humans. The art of training falcons as “hunting dogs of the skies” is called falconry (训鹰术). It was developed in the ancient Arabian Desert around 4000 B. C. In the past, falconry mainly involved hunting with falcons to supplement one’s diet. But now, it has become the favorite sport and pastime in the Arabian Peninsula.

Falconry includes three major processes: acquiring the falcons, training them, and hunting with them. Every year, falconers begin capturing wild falcons in June and July, the migration season. The best birds to catch are the ones with naturally nurtured hunting skills, aged one or two years. Once the falcons are captured, their heads are immediately covered with a leather hood. This is essential because they imprint as their master whomever they see first after the hood is removed. Right after a bird is caught, the training process starts. It begins by depriving (剥夺) the bird of food to make it easier to tame. The birds are taught to know their own name and respond to their master when called. Arab falconers live with their birds day and night in order to build a strong relationship with them.

By the end of October or mid-November, the trained falcons are ready to hunt in the desert. They have excellent vision, 2. 6 times greater than that of a human. They are also the fastest divers on the planet. One hunting technique that sets them apart from other animals is that they can be trained to deliver their prey, without killing it first. This is vital in Islamic culture because animals used for food must still be alive to ensure that the meat is halal, that is, properly prepared according to Islamic law.

Falcons have played such a crucial role in traditional Islamic cultures that a number of countries in the Middle East have made them their national bird. Falconry has grown so popular that specialist hospitals have been established to take care of these magnificent birds. Falcons are even issued their own passports. They are the only animals in the United Arab Emirates that are legally allowed to travel inside planes, enjoying a level of luxury that some humans can only dream of.

1. What is the main reason for Arabic people to hunt with falcons today?

A．To serve as entertainment and exercise.

B．To supplement their diet.

C．To replace the practice of hunting with dogs.

D．To honor their national bird.

2. What can we learn from the passage?

A．Falconers don’t give food to falcons in order to capture them.

B．Falcons are not allowed to see their masters during the training process.

C．Wild falcons with natural hunting skills are ideal for falconers to catch.

D．The trainers’ names are written on the hoods covering the birds’ heads.

3. What especially makes falcons a unique species for hunting in Islamic culture?

A．Falcons keep their prey alive before delivering it to falconers.

B．Falcons can form a strong bond with their owners quickly.

C．Falcons’ vision is particularly suitable for hunting in deserts.

D．Falcons are relatively easy to train for specific hunting.

4. According to the article, what privilege do falcons enjoy in the Arab world?

A．Free air ticket.	B．Passports issued by the King.
C．Expensive meals.	D．Access to specialized medical care.

10 . One Saturday in June, I got off the train from Vienna at Altenberg station, in the midst of a gathering of bathers, such as often flock to our village at fine weekends.

I had gone only a few steps along the street and the crowd had not yet scattered when, high above me in the air, I saw a bird whose species I could not at first determine. It flew with slow, measured wing-beats, varied at set intervals by longer periods of gliding. It seemed too heavy to be a hawk; for a stork (鹳), it was not big enough and, even at that height, neck and feet should have been visible. Then the bird made a sudden turn so that the setting sun shone for a second full on the underside of the great wings which lit up like stars in the blue of the skies. The bird was white. By Heaven, it was my cockatoo (凤头鹦鹉)! The steady movements of his wings clearly indicated that he was setting out on a long-distance flight.

“What should I do? Should I call to the bird?” Well, have you ever heard the flight-call of the greater cockatoo? No? But you have probably heard pig-killing in the traditional method. Imagine the loudest long cry a pig could make, picked up by a microphone and amplified many times over by a powerful speaker. A man can imitate it quite successfully, though somewhat weak, by shouting at the top of his voice “O-ah”. I had already proved that the cockatoo understood this imitation and promptly “came to heel”. But would it work at such a height? A bird always has great difficulty in making the decision to fly downwards at a steep angle. To yell, or not to yell, that was the question. If I yelled and the bird came down, all would be well, but what if it sailed calmly on through the clouds? How would I then explain my song to the crowd of people?

Finally, I did yell. The people around me stood still, rooted to the spot. The bird hesitated for a moment on outstretched wings, and then, folding them, it descended in one dive and landed upon my outstretched arm. Once again I was master of the situation.

1. What was the author’s cockatoo like?

A．It looked like a hawk.	B．It was blue and shiny.
C．Its neck and feet were long.	D．It was white with great wings.

2. How did the author signal to his cockatoo?

A．By waving at it quickly.	B．By singing a song loudly.
C．By screaming his head off.	D．By using a powerful loudspeaker.

3. What does the underlined part “came to heel” in paragraph 3 mean?

A．Flew about.

B．Came back.

C．Came around.

D．Landed on the ground.

4. Which can be inferred about the author from the text?

A．He knew birds very well.	B．He could speak with his bird.
C．He liked showing off in public.	D．He often surprised people around him.