1 . Tariq Qaiser, an architect, is trying to protect mangroves (红树林). The trees could save Pakistan’s largest city Karachi, sitting on the Arabian Sea, from natural disaster. He comes to Bundal Island several times a week to document the illegal cutting of mangrove trees. Very often, “You can’t hear a single bird because the chain saws are so loud. The trees are cut down illegally for firewood,” he says, shaking his head. Besides, developers clear the mangroves to make room for construction.

Karachi has a hot climate, and its concrete buildings and paved roads make it even hotter. Offshore, there are islands where mangroves grow. They could be the key to slowing climate change. Mangrove forests pull carbon dioxide out of the air, holding four times as much of the planet-warming gas as other forests can. They support diverse ecosystems. As sea levels rise with global warming, the trees could play a big role in protecting coastal cities like Karachi from flooding. Karachi’s mangroves are disappearing. But its numbers are rising in other parts of Pakistan. With replanting efforts, the country has tripled (三倍于) its mangrove coverage over the past 30 years．

Qaiser’s work may have worked. Recently, a court in Karachi declared Bundal Island’s mangroves to be protected forests. But unforested parts of the island remain unprotected, and developers want to build there. City officials say this could provide much-needed housing and bring in billions of dollars. They claim that some of that money could be used to plant mangroves in other parts of Pakistan.

Ecologist Rafiul Haq appreciates Qaiser’s “extraordinary work” educating the public about mangroves. But he wishes Qaiser would look at the bigger picture. “Only 7% of Pakistan’s mangroves are in Karachi,” Haq says. He thinks it’s wrong to focus on the losses in 7% of the country while ignoring the success in 93% of it. But Qaiser believes it’s important to protect every bit.

6 . Our fascination with Mars has never stopped. However, in the early days of space exploration, visits were restricted to “fly-bys”, such as those by Mariner Space Probes, by means of which craft would simply pass the planet, taking pictures and collecting data as they went. The Viking “orbiters” were next, and later craft in the Viking series, known as “Landers”, began to study the surface, equipped with instruments which continued to collect data about the environment until they stopped working.

The more recent “Rovers” move around the planet’s surface as they gather information. Current proposals include missions to study geographic features, climate, and soil components, in order to determine, among other things, whether the planet can ever have supported carbon-based life forms. Scientists now believe that at some stage the planet cooled dramatically, resulting in the near-loss of its atmosphere and, thanks to the wearing away of some surface features mineral deposits and other factors, it is also believed that liquid water once flowed here.

One of the most famous craft is “Phoenix”, which landed in November 2008. Its mission was to obtain samples from beneath the surface by digging into the arctic ice while its camera provided geological data and other equipment scanned the atmosphere, measuring temperature and pressure in an attempt to discover whether the chemicals necessary for life might exist beneath the surface. The craft was expected to send back data for three months, but managed to hold out for further two. An especially important part of the project was the need to keep absolute cleanliness of the equipment in order to ensure that any organic material collected was not contaminated by microbes(微生物).

In the future manned landings may probably come true-and though it may seem an extremely difficult undertaking, plans have already been discussed for the “terraforming(行星地球化)”of the planet, giving it an atmosphere, oceans and other elements similar to earth, with, the possibility of human settlement.

7 . Researchers have found, for the first time plants letting out sounds when they are stressed. According to a study a team of scientists recorded tomato and tobacco (烟草) plants producing sound frequencies which humans cannot hear in stressful situations—such as when they experienced a lack of water or their stems (茎) were cut.

Previous research has shown that plants respond to stress by producing several visual and chemical signals. For example, stressed plants may differ in color and shape compared to unstressed plants. Meanwhile, some are also known to let out things in response to drought (干旱) or being eaten.

The latest study, meanwhile, is the first to identify plants making sounds which can be detected over a distance. The team detected the tomato plants made 35 sounds an hour on average when they were exposed to drought conditions, while the tobacco plants produced 11. When the stems of the plants were cut, the tomato plants made 25 sounds an hour on average and the tobacco plants produced 15. As a comparison, unstressed plants made less than one sound per hour on average, according to the study.

The team say that while they only tested tomato and tobacco, it’s possible that other plants could also produce sounds, adding that the latest findings could have an influence on agriculture. “Plant sound production could offer a new way for monitoring crops water state—a question of key importance in agriculture”, the authors wrote in the study more precise irrigation can save up to 50 percent of the water cost and increase the production.

“In times when more and more areas are exposed to drought due to climate change, while human population and consumption keep increasing, effective water use becomes even more important for food security”, they said “Our results, showing the ability to distinguish between drought-stressed and control plants on the basis of plant sounds, open a new direction in the field of precision agriculture.”

8 . Last Sunday afternoon, a truck rolled into the Animal League on Long Island, carrying more than four dozen homeless cats and dogs that lost their homes in the hurricane hit on South Carolina. These animals were ________ new homes to be offered.

After communicating ________ the Rescue Center in South Carolina, the truck from Long Island ________ for South Carolina on Tuesday. It was full of ________ dog and cat food, toys and clean-up supplies. An Animal League member, Ted Moriates said. “We ________ this truck with donations from the warm-hearted people on the island. Thanks to them for donating these supplies ________.”

Moriates and another member ________ to four shelters (避难所) along the coast in South Carolina after Hurricane Dorian hit. They ________ up the animals and delivered the supplies — creating ________ for creatures moved by the storm. “We must ________ the homeless animals,” said Moriates. “These animals would have been killed if we had ________ them,” he said.

The return trip with 53 cats, kittens, dogs and puppies, ________ stops for dog walking. Some of the animals needed extra ________ on the trip because they were ________ or not used to human touch. “With a little bit of love these animals can make a ________ change and become the loving pets that everyone ________.” Moriates said.

Hours before the truck ________, the Animal League on Long Island had been full of people hoping to ________ pets. However, the animals from South Carolinas won’t be ________ for adoption for a few days because they still have to go through medical ________.

9 . John Muir once said, “Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wilderness is a necessity.” With the right knowledge, skill set and equipment, you’ll have a nice experience if you want to live in the wild. But remember, safety first.     1    

Figure out the course of action suitable for your environment. Ask yourself these questions first:     2     How many supplies would you need to start with? Do you have the skills to survive in the climate you’re considering?

Practice “survival techniques” at home before you need them. For example, learn how to make fire without matches or lighters, which is very necessary in the wild.    3    .

    4    Bring the right clothes and practical items like rope, knives, netting, lantern and flashlights, dried food, some medicine, water filter, compass and Map of Area, blankets, mirrors, axe, radio, whistle, tool and sewing kit, etc.

Consider taking classes before you leave. You re best off if you have some types of training before you set off to your dreaming Mother Nature.     5    . Also, learn to be calm when emergency happens.

10 . It’s difficult to imagine now, but at certain points in the Earth’s history, ice covered the entire planet. This frozen Earth, nicknamed Snowball Earth, was “so severe that the Earth’s entire surface, from pole to pole, including the oceans, completely froze over”, said Melissa Hage, an environmental scientist at Emory University in Georgia.

In 1840, Louis Agassiz, a Swiss natural scientist, was among the first to acknowledge and provide evidence that the Earth had gone through ice ages. Joseph Kirschvink, an American geologist, later created the term “Snowball Earth” in a 1992 textbook.

Scientists believe that four severe ice ages occurred between 750 million and 580 million years ago, probably because the Earth’s lands were all located at or near the equator (赤道), which resulted in increased weathering (风化). Weathering is happening when wind and rain break down rocks and minerals on the planets surface. The process leads to decreased carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, which allows more heat to get away from the surface and into space, cooling the planet, causing the planet into a deep freeze.

The severe ice ages eventually melted away. Scientist believe that volcanoes continued to pump carbon dioxide into the atmosphere throughout the ice ages, eventually warming the planet enough that the water cycle could restart. As the Earth warmed and came out of its deep freeze. a huge explosion of life occurred. known as the Cambrian (寒武纪) explosion.

Will we see another Snowball Earth in our future? According to Hage, it’s unlikely, due to the spread-out of the continents. “Even with extreme winters, continental ice sheets would form, which would stop continental weathering and allow carbon dioxide to build up in the atmosphere, leading to warming rather than freezing,” she said.