One of my favourite things about spring is the arrival of different species of birds. My grandfather was a bird lover, and I picked up the birdwatching hobby at a young age, thanks to his influence. My husband John and I found it a relaxing way to enjoy nature; we like birdwatching when we go camping or hiking. Plus, I have a great love of nature photography, so when we sit out in the backyard of our home, I always have my digital camera with me. John is an artist, and he often paints the birds I photograph.
Usually when the yellow warblers (莺) come back from the south in springtime, they pass us by; we don’t typically see them hanging around our home. But not on this particular sunny day in spring. As soon as I finished my workday, I put on a light jacket and went out to the backyard to relax in my favourite way: by watching the birds.
While taking some pictures of cardinals (红衣凤头鸟) and chickadees (北美山雀) at one of our feeders, I looked up and noticed this yellow warbler in our maple tree. The tree had recently begun to bud, and the bird’s yellow feathers looked striking against the yellow blooms, so I took this photo. Our backyard has a variety of trees and between my husband and me, we’ve documented almost 40 different species of birds. I’ve photographed most of them, but some can be a bit camera shy so I also keep a written list of what we see. Our more common visitors are cardinals, chickadees, hummingbirds and various sparrows.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
One day, I was watching the yellow warbler jumping among trees when a snake crawled towards it.
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At this time, I saw many small stones in the backyard.
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In her small town, Emma was known for her love and respect for all living creatures, and she believed that humans and animals should coexist peacefully and harmoniously. One day, while hiking in the nearby woods, Emma spotted a wounded (受伤的) deer caught in a hunter's trap. Without hesitation, she carefully freed the deer and nursed it back to health.
Over the next few weeks, Emma devoted her time and energy to caring for the deer. She visited it every day after school, bringing fresh fruits and vegetables. She carefully examined its wounds, applying some medicine to help it get better and prevent infection. As the days went by, the deer began to regain its strength, and Emma was overjoyed to see it stand on its legs once again.
Emma also took the time to learn about deer behavior and their natural habitat. She researched the best foods to feed the deer and created a comfortable place for it to rest in during the day. She even made a small water fountain to ensure that the deer had access to clean drinking water.
As the weeks turned into months. Emma watched as the deer grew stronger and more confident. It would often follow her around the backyard, nudging (轻推) her playfully with its nose. Emma felt a deep sense of satisfaction knowing that she had played a part in saving this beautiful creature's life.
One sunny afternoon, as Emma sat in her backyard reading a book, she heard a familiar sound. She looked up and saw the deer standing near her, looking at her with gentle eyes. It was clear that the deer had fully recovered and was ready to return to the wild.
Emma felt a sense of sadness but also knew that it was time for the deer to go back to its natural habitat. She opened the gate and watched as the deer bounded away, disappearing into the forest. From that day on, Emma continued to care for animals in need, knowing that she had made a difference in the life of at least one creature.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150个左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Months later, Emma had almost forgotten about the deer when one day, she received an unexpected visitor.
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From that day on, the deer became a regular visitor to Emma's backyard.
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3 . In southeastern Brazil, local fishers walk into dark waters in search of mullet (鲻鱼). On their own, it would be tricky to find the silvery fish. But the humans get help from an unusual partner—wild bottle-nose dolphins.
With nets in hand, the fishers patiently wait as their cetacean (鲸类的) partners drive the fish toward the shore. A signal from the dolphins—usually a deep dive—indicates when they should cast their nets. This fishing partnership has passed down through the generations, lasting for more than a century.
While researchers knew humans profited from this pairing, they couldn’t confirm whether it benefited the dolphins. Now, in a new study in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers suggest cetaceans that hunt with humans have more chances to live than those that don’t.
“Human-wildlife cooperation in general is an uncommon phenomenon (现象) at a global scale,” says Mauricio Cantor, a biologist at Oregon State University and leader of the study. “Usually humans gain the benefit, and nature pays the cost. But this interaction (互动) has been happening for over 150 years.”
Fishers were more successful when they worked with the dolphins. When dolphins were present, the fishers were 17 times more likely to catch prey (猎物) and netted nearly four times more mullet when they timed their casting with the cetaceans signals. Eighty-six percent of all 4,955 mullet caught during the study period came from their interactions at the same time—when the allies organized their actions perfectly with one another.
The study also revealed dolphins hunting with humans had a 13 percent increase in survival rate over other dolphins. These cooperative (合作的) dolphins are more likely to stay near the shore reducing their chance of being caught in illegal fishing equipment. Besides, the dolphins can take some fish directly from the fishers harvest.
1. What do the first two paragraphs talk about concerning Brazilian fishers?| A．They trick dolphins into fishing for them. |
| B．They have been training dolphins over a century. |
| C．They harvest more fish with dolphins’ help. |
| D．They throw the fishing nets when dolphins are on the top of water. |
| A．Nature supports human beings at no cost. |
| B．Fishers benefiting from cooperation with cetaceans is common. |
| C．Human-wildlife interaction is a new global trend. |
| D．Dolphins working with man have higher survival rate. |
| A．partners | B．preys | C．dolphins | D．researchers |
| A．To call on the protection of sea creatures. |
| B．To support development in fishing research. |
| C．To show a unique human-dolphin relationship. |
| D．To encourage fishers to better draw on dolphins. |
We met at the Leeds Grenville SPCA. We were here to find the best fit for our little family of three. In my heart, however, I think I already knew which one was the right cat. Portia, a quiet brown tabby (斑猫), watched us with partially closed eyes, seemingly saying, “Take your time…” and I know it’s going to be me. As I neared her cage, one paw extended. Finally we decided to bring home a cat that day.
After a day or two of settling in, Portia became a sort of small and furry nanny to my kids. She would travel from room to room with us during the day, usually staying closest to my son. She wanted to sit where he sat, look out the windows from which he peered, and make courageous attempts to share whatever he was eating. At night, she would sprawl onto his lap during story time. We nicknamed her “Guardian Kitten” for the way she always wanted to be where he was, watching over him as if he were her own.
One day, I was gathering leaves while my child delighted in disturbing the piles. Portia was dozing on the porch, her cars sometimes shifting toward the sound of our voices. Then suddenly, from down the street, a desperate voice cried, “No! Come back here!” The phrase was repeated and the volume increased as the speaker drew closer. A Golden Retriever ignored his owner and reached my property first. In a split second it leaped over the low fence surrounding the front yard.
The dog rushed toward my son with boundless energy and body language that expressed that it wanted to play. “Puppy!” my son exclaimed, spreading his arms apart in a welcoming gesture. Unlike me, he was not aware that this dog would, at the very least, knock him down with its uncontained enthusiasm. And I wasn’t going to be able to close the space between us in time.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。
When I was wondering how to protect my son, a scream erupted behind me.
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After a while, the owner arrived, out of breath.
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5 . In 2022, campaign group Fashion Revolution Chelsea dye a garden for its Chelsea Flower Show presentation. An ancient craft, natural dyeing is a practice whose time has come again, with hand tie-dyed fashion also making a comeback in recent years.
The revival has been encouraged by Covid lockdowns, “which allowed people to explore the craft at home, says natural-dyeing enthusiast and teacher Susan Dye. It’s unlikely, though, that the practice would have caught on in quite the same way if not for a continually growing discomfort about fashion’s heavy footprint. From carbon emissions to animal cruelty, fashion is under considerable inspection. “Put it this way, 97% of dyes used in the industry are petrochemically (石油化学产品) based,” says sustainable fashion consultant Jackie Andrews, who helped advise the UN Ethical Fashion Initiative. We’ve got net zero targets which mean we’re going to have to remove all those petrochemicals from the manufacturing cycle.
Fashion is a huge polluter. According to the UN Environment Program, the industry is responsible for up to one-fifth of all industrial water pollution—due to the fact that most clothes today are produced in poorer countries where regulation is weak and enforcement weaker. Waste water is dumped directly into rivers and streams, poisoning the land as well as the water sources of people and animals who rely on them.
It’s easy to see why someone who cares about people, planet and animals, as well as clothes, might turn to natural plant dyeing. From the beauty of the raw materials—often wild plants-to the property of only bonding with natural fiber like cotton and linen (亚麻布) from the minor footprint of recycling old clothing that has grayed or faded over time to the vibrant and long-lasting dyeing results, plant dyeing feels like a quiet act of rebellion. This is why, while beginners start with simply changing their clothes’ color, new worlds open. Many of today’s natural dyers grow their own dye plants, run local community workshops, and advocate for change in industrialized fashion systems and beyond.
1. What is the main reason for the growing discomfort mentioned in paragraph 2?| A．The adoption of petrochemical-based dyes |
| B．The disturbing consequences of the fashion industry. |
| C．The fashion industry’s focus on luxurious designs. |
| D．The challenging net zero targets to be achieved. |
| A．By making a comparison. | B．By listing numbers |
| C．By giving examples. | D．By introducing a new topic |
| A．A protest against turning to natural fiber. |
| B．An objection to recycling old clothing |
| C．A resistance to vibrant colors in natural dyeing |
| D．A struggle for a sustainable fashion industry |
| A．The Environmental Impact of Natural Dyeing |
| B．The Return of Natural Dyeing with Ethical Appeal |
| C．Fashion Revolution’s Dye Garden Presentation |
| D．The Petrochemical Dye Industry and Its Challenges |
Once upon a time, in a quiet countryside, there lived a humble farmer with a heart as vast as his fields. He had a litter of adorable puppies that he needed to find new homes for. One sunny morning, he decided to paint a sign advertising the puppies and set off to nail it to a post at the edge of his yard.
As he hammered in the last nail, he felt a small hand pulling at his clothes. Looking down, he saw the sincere eyes of a little boy looking up at him. The boy said. “Sir. I want to buy one of your puppies.”
The farmer, wiping the sweat from his face, replied, “Well, these puppies come from fine parents and costa good deal of money.” The boy’s head drooped (下垂) for a moment, but he reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of change, holding it up to the farmer. “I’ve got 89 cents. Is that enough at least to take a look?”
The farmer’s heart warmed, and he smiled, saying, “Of course.” He then let out a whistle (口哨), calling, “Here, Dolly!” With that, a charming sight appeared as Dolly and her four adorable pups rushed out from the doghouse and down the slope. The little boy pressed his face against the fence, his eyes dancing with delight.
As the four puppies approached the fence, the boy noticed something moving inside the doghouse. Slowly, another little fur ball appeared, obviously smaller than the others, It wobbled (摇晃) down the slope, doing its best to catch up. The boy was very excited, and he pointed to the puppy, saying, “I want that one.”
The farmer, however, knelt down at the boy’s side and gently said, “Son, you won’t want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would.”
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The boy took a step back, showing his disabled left leg.
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The little boy’s face lit up with gratitude (感激).
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7 . Goldfish may seem like simple creatures swimming in a glass tank, but they possess a rather complicated navigation system, as discovered by researchers at the University of Oxford Led by Dr. Adelaide Sibeaux, the study aims to shed light on our understanding of how fish, and potentially humans, estimate distances using what could be described as an internal GPS.
Writing in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, Sibeaux and colleagues report how they created a tank in their experiment with 2cm-wide black and white vertical stripes (条纹) on the walls, connected by similar stripes across the floor. The team trained nine goldfish to swim a set distance of 70cm and then return to their starting point when waved at. The experiment aimed to investigate how the fish would estimate this distance without any gestures, under different patterns.
Over multiple trials, the goldfish averaged a swim distance of 74cm, give or take 17cm, when presented with the vertical 2cm-wide stripes. However, when the stripe pattern was altered to either narrower vertical stripes, checked patterns, or horizontal stripes, the fish’s behavior changed significantly. Narrower vertical stripes led them to overestimating the distance by 36%, while horizontal stripes resulted in highly inconsistent estimations.
According to the researchers, the goldfish appeared to be using an “optic (光学的) flow mechanism” based on the visual density of their environment. They kept track of how frequently the vertical pattern switched between black and white to estimate how far they had traveled. The study suggests that different optic flow mechanisms are used by mammals, including humans, based on angular (有角度的) motion of visual features. The study implies that the use of visually based distance information could have emerged early in the evolutionary timeline.
“This study is novel because, despite knowing that fish respond to geometric information regarding direction and distance, we don’t know how they estimate distances,” Professor Colin Lever, although not involved in the study, said, “it’s exciting to explore fish spatial mapping because fish navigation evolved earlier and better than most mammals.”
1. Why did Dr. Adelaide Sibeaux conduct the study on goldfish?| A．To test the accuracy of goldfish’s internal GPS. |
| B．To create an advanced navigation system for humans |
| C．To uncover how an inbuilt GPS helps calculate distances. |
| D．To explore the relationships between goldfish and humans |
| A．People gestured the goldfish throughout the experiment |
| B．The tank was decorated with colorful background patterns |
| C．Goldfish tended to underestimate distances with horizontal stripes. |
| D．The change in the tank setting led to the goldfish's incorrect judgment. |
| A．optic flow mechanism is unique to humans |
| B．mammals developed flow mechanism long before goldfish |
| C．goldfish evaluated the distance with multidimensional visual information |
| D．visual density of the environment strengthened the locating ability of goldfish |
| A．Neutral. | B．Ambiguous. | C．Disapproving. | D．Favorable. |
8 . The idea that humans are facing a global extinction of experience of nature is popular, but is it true? To give more light on this issue, the scientists measured how the average distance from an individual’s home to the nearest area with low human impact changed in the last decade.
The scientists found that humans currently live 9.7 kilometers away from a natural area on average, which is 7% further away than in the year 2000. Europe and East Asia have the highest average distance to natural areas, such as 22 kilometers in Germany and 16 kilometers in France. The scientists also showed that tree cover within cities has declined worldwide since 2000, suggesting that the possibility for the urban population to access green spaces is reducing as well.
The scientists also systematically searched for scientific publications assessing a trend in experiences of nature, finding that the number of studies assessing these trends was very low (the number is 18), most of which are about the US, Europe and Japan. This shows that more studies should investigate the claim about the extinction of nature experience, especially in Africa and Latin America. The 18 studies found by the scientists show a decline in visits to nature parks in the US and Japan, a decrease in camping activities in the US, and a decrease in the number of flower species observed by Japanese children. They also find signs of decline in the use of natural elements in novels, songs and cartoons.
Despite these examples of decline, other interactions are increasing. Watching wildlife documentaries or interacting with wild animals in videogames is, for example, more common than a few years ago. “New ways of digitally interacting with nature have certainly emerged or increased in recent years,” says Dr Gladys Barragan-Jason. “But several former studies show that these vicarious interactions have a lesser effect on our sense of connection with nature than exposure to nature, such as visiting nature parks.”
1. How does the author mainly develop the text?| A．By giving examples and making contrast. |
| B．By listing data and classifying them. |
| C．By giving examples and definitions. |
| D．By analyzing data and making comparison. |
| A．the distance between humans and nature |
| B．the connection between humans and wild animals |
| C．reading novels, singing songs and watching cartoons |
| D．tree cover, visits to nature parks and nature presence in the arts |
| A．Positive. | B．Novel. | C．Indirect. | D．Complex. |
| A．Global Extinction of Green Spaces. | B．Decline in Experiences of Nature. |
| C．The Lost Joy in the Natural World. | D．A New Way of Connecting With Nature. |
9 . Today, you can buy a pair of sneakers (运动鞋) partially made from carbon dioxide pulled out of the atmosphere. But measuring the carbon-reduction benefits of making that pair of sneakers with carbon dioxide is complex. There’s the carbon dioxide that stayed in the ground, a definite carbon reduction. But what about the energy cost of cooling the carbon dioxide into liquid form and transporting it to a production facility? And what about when your kid outgrows the shoes in six months and they can’t be recycled into a new product because those systems aren’t in place yet?
Researchers are trying to help companies figure out how to account for each step in a product’s life.
As companies try to reduce their carbon footprint, many are doing life cycle assessments to measure the full carbon cost of products, from the obtaining of materials to energy use in manufacturing, from product transport to users’ behavior and end-of-life disposal (处理). It’s an impressively complex measurement, but such bean-counting is needed to hold the planet to a livable temperature, says low-carbon systems expert Andrea Ramirez Ramirez of the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.
Carbon use can be reduced at many points along the production chain—by using renewable energy in the manufacturing process, for instance, or by adding atmospheric carbon dioxide to the product. But if other points along the chain like transporting consume more energy or give off more carbon dioxide, Andrea notes, the final record may show a decrease rather than a reduction. A product is carbon-reduction only when its production actually removes carbon from the environment, temporarily or permanently.
In the rush to create products that can fight climate change, however, some companies have been charged with “greenwashing”—making products appear more environmentally friendly than they really are. Examples include labeling (用标签表明) plastic garbage bags as recyclable when their whole purpose is to be thrown away; using labels such as “eco-friendly” or “100% Natural” without official certification; and claiming a better carbon footprint without acknowledging the existence of even better choices.
1. How does the author lead in the topic of the text?| A．By listing specific figures. | B．By putting up questions. |
| C．By referring to documents. | D．By offering some solutions. |
| A．Difficult but meaningful. | B．Expensive but promising. |
| C．Energy-saving and affordable. | D．Time-consuming and valueless. |
| A．Using renewable energy in production. |
| B．Changing carbon dioxide into material. |
| C．Reducing carbon footprint in products’ life. |
| D．Cutting down carbon dioxide in transporting. |
| A．Companies are sparing no efforts to reduce carbon use. |
| B．Plastic garbage bags must be labeled as “eco-friendly”. |
| C．Most products are less environmentally friendly than before. |
| D．There is a long way to cut some companies’ ”greenwashing“. |
1. What do we know about the weather last week?
| A．It was dry. | B．It was stormy. | C．It was cold. |
| A．Driving slowly. | B．Avoiding going out. | C．Preparing enough food. |
| A．Heavy rainfall. | B．Extreme cold. | C．Strong winds. |
| A．A weatherman. | B．A sports journalist. | C．A finance news host. |
