1 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. Who is Pierre?

A．A doctor from Senegal.

B．A university researcher.

C．A United Nations official.

2. What does Pierre mainly talk about?

A．Food supplies in the world.

B．The role that the UN plays.

C．The purpose of his study.

3. What is the expected outcome of Pierre's work?

A．A new medicine.

B．A new type of rice.

C．A new farming method.

2 . Along the river banks of the Amazon and the Orinoco there lives a bird that swims before it can fly, flies like a fat chicken, eats green leaves, has the stomach of a cow and has claw s ( 爪) on its wings when young. They build their homes about 4.6m above the river, an important feature for the safety of the young. It is called the hoatzin.

In appearance, the birds of both sexes look very much alike with brown on the back and cream and red on the underside. The head is small, with a large set of feathers on the top, bright red eyes, and blue skin. Its nearest relatives are the common birds, cuckoos. Its most striking feature, though, is only found in the young.

Baby hoatzins have a claw on the leading edge of each wing and another at the end of each wing tip. Using these four claws, together with the beak (喙), they can climb about in the bushes, looking very much like primitive （远古的) birds must have done. When the young hoatzins have learned to fly, they lose their claws.

During the drier months between December and March hoatzins fly about the forest in groups of 20 to 30 birds, but in April, when the rainy season begins, they collect together in smaller living units of two to seven birds for producing purposes.

1. What is the text mainly about?

A．Hoatzins in dry and rainy seasons.

B．The relatives and enemies of hoatzins.

C．Primitive birds and hoatzins of the Amazon.

D．The appearance and living habits of hoatzins.

2. Young hoatzins are different from their parents in that .

A．they look like young cuckoos

B．they have claws on the wings

C．they eat a lot like a cow

D．they live on river banks

3. What can we infer about primitive birds from the text?

A．They had claw s to help them climb.

B．They could fly long distances.

C．They had four wings like hoatzins.

D．They had a head with long feathers on the top.

4. Why do hoatzins collect together in smaller groups when the rainy season comes?

A．To find more food.

B．To protect themselves better.

C．To keep themselves w arm.

D．To produce their young.

3 . 听第8段材料，回答第10至12题。
1. Which color do cats see better than humans？

A．Red.

B．Green.

C．Blue.

2. Why do cats bring dead birds home？

A．To eat them in a safe place.

B．To show off their hunting skills.

C．To make their owners happy.

3. How does the man sound at the end of the conversation？

A．Grateful.

B．Humorous.

C．Curious.

4 . 听第8段材料，完成下面小题。
1. Which color do cats see better than humans？

A．Red.

B．Green.

C．Blue.

2. Why do cats bring dead birds home？

A．To eat them in a safe place.

B．To show off their hunting skills.

C．To make their owners happy.

3. How does the man sound at the end of the conversation？

A．Grateful.

B．Humorous.

C．Curious.

5 . 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。

I'm not sure     1     is more frightened, me or the female gorilla(大猩猩）that suddenly appears out of nowhere. I'm walking on a path in the forest in the Central African Republic. Unexpectedly, I'm face-to-face with the gorilla, who begins screaming at     2     top of her lungs. That makes her baby scream, and then a 400-pound male appears. He screams the

    3    (loud)of all. The noise shakes the trees as the male beats his chest and charges toward me. I quickly lower myself, ducking my head to avoid     4    (look) directly into his eyes so he doesn't feel    5    (challenge).

My name is Mireya Mayor. I'm a     6    (science)who studies animals such as apes and monkeys. I was searching     7     these three western lowland gorillas I'd been observing. No one had seen them for hours, and my colleagues and I were worried.

When the gorillas and I frightened each other, I was just glad to find     8    (they) alive. True to a gorilla's unaggressive nature, the huge animal     9    (mean)me no real harm. He was just saying: "I'm king of this forest, and here is your reminder!" Once his message was delivered, he allowed me     10     (stay)and watch.

6 . Steven Stein likes to follow garbage trucks. His strange habit makes sense when you consider that he’s an environmental scientist who studies how to reduce litter, including things that fall off garbage trucks as they drive down the road. What is even more interesting is that one of Stein’s jobs is defending an industry behind the plastic shopping bags.

Americans use more than 100 billion thin film plastic bags every year. So many end up in tree branches or along highways that a growing number of cities do not allow them at checkouts(收银台). The bags are prohibited in some 90 cities in California, including Los Angeles. Eyeing these headwinds, plastic-bag makers are hiring scientists like Stein to make the case that their products are not as bad for the planet as most people assume.

Among the bag makers’ argument: many cities with bans still allow shoppers to purchase paper bags, which are easily recycled but require more energy to produce and transport. And while plastic bags may be ugly to look at, they represent a small percentage of all garbage on the ground today.

The industry has also taken aim at the product that has appeared as its replacement: reusable shopping bags. The stronger a reusable bag is, the longer its life and the more plastic-bag use it cancels out. However, longer-lasting reusable bags often require more energy to make. One study found that a cotton bag must be used at least 131 times to be better for the planet than plastic.

Environmentalists don’t dispute(质疑) these points. They hope paper bags will be banned someday too and want shoppers to use the same reusable bags for years.

1. What has Steven Stein been hired to do?

A．Help increase grocery sales.

B．Recycle the waste material.

C．Stop things falling off trucks.

D．Argue for the use of plastic bags.

2. What does the word “headwinds” in paragraph 2 refer to?

A．Bans on plastic bags.

B．Effects of city development.

C．Headaches caused by garbage.

D．Plastic bags hung in trees.

3. What is a disadvantage of reusable bags according to plastic-bag makers?

A．They are quite expensive.

B．Replacing them can be difficult.

C．They are less strong than plastic bags.

D．Producing them requires more energy.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．Plastic, Paper or Neither

B．Industry, Pollution and Environment

C．Recycle or Throw Away

D．Garbage Collection and Waste Control

7 . Color is fundamental in home design—something you’ll always have in every room. A grasp of how to manage color in your spaces is one of the first steps to creating rooms you’ll love to live in. Do you want a room that’s full of life? Professional? Or are you just looking for a place to relax after a long day?     1    , color is the key to making a room feel the way you want it to feel.

Over the years, there have been a number of different techniques to help designers approach this important point.     2    , they can get a little complex. But good news is that there’re really only three kinds of decisions you need to make about color in your home: the small ones, the medium ones, and the large ones.

    3    . They’re the little spots of color like throw pillows, mirrors and baskets that most of us use to add visual interest to our rooms. Less tiring than painting your walls and less expensive than buying a colorful sofa, small color choices bring with them the significant benefit of being easily changeable.

Medium color choices are generally furniture pieces such as sofas, dinner tables or bookshelves.     4    . They require a bigger commitment than smaller ones, and they have a more powerful effect on the feeling of a space.

The large color decisions in your rooms concern the walls, ceilings, and floors. Whether you’re looking at wallpaper or paint, the time, effort and relative expense put into it are significant.     5    .

A．While all of them are useful

B．Whatever you’re looking for

C．If you’re experimenting with a color

D．Small color choices are the ones we’re most familiar with

E．It’s not really a good idea to use too many small color pieces

F．So it pays to be sure, because you want to get it right the first time

G．Color choices in this range are a step up from the small ones in two major ways

8 . We may think we're a culture that gets rid of our worn technology at the first sight of something shiny and new, but a new study shows that we keep using our old devices(装置) well after they go out of style. That’s bad news for the environment — and our wallets — as these outdated devices consume much more energy than the newer ones that do the same things.

To figure out how much power these devices are using, Callie Babbitt and her colleagues at the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York tracked the environmental costs for each product throughout its life — from when its minerals are mined to when we stop using the device. This method provided a readout for how home energy use has evolved since the early 1990s. Devices were grouped by generation — Desktop computers, basic mobile phones, and box-set TVs defined 1992. Digital cameras arrived on the scene in 1997. And MP3 players, smart phones, and LCD TVs entered homes in 2002, before tablets and e-readers showed up in 2007.

As we accumulated more devices, however, we didn't throw out our old ones. "The living-room television is replaced and gets planted in the kids' room, and suddenly one day, you have a TV in every room of the house," said one researcher. The average number of electronic devices rose from four per household in 1992 to 13 in 2007. We're not just keeping these old devices — we continue to use them. According to the analysis of Babbitt's team, old desktop monitors and box TVs with cathode ray tubes are the worst devices with their energy consumption and contribution to greenhouse gas emissions（排放）more than doubling during the 1992 to 2007 window.

So what's the solution（解决方案）? The team's data only went up to 2007, but the researchers also explored what would happen if consumers replaced old products with new electronics that serve more than one function, such as a tablet for word processing and TV viewing. They found that more on-demand entertainment viewing on tablets instead of TVs and desktop computers could cut energy consumption by 44%.

1. What does the author think of new devices?

A．They are environment-friendly.	B．They are no better than the old.
C．They cost more to use at home.	D．They go out of style quickly.

2. Why did Babbitt's team conduct the research?

A．To reduce the cost of minerals.

B．To test the life cycle of a product.

C．To update consumers on new technology.

D．To find out electricity consumption of the devices.

3. Which of the following uses the least energy?

A．The box-set TV.	B．The tablet.
C．The LCD TV.	D．The desktop computer.

4. What does the text suggest people do about old electronic devices?

A．Stop using them.	B．Take them apart.
C．Upgrade them.	D．Recycle them.

9 . Washington, D.C. Bicycle Tours

Cherry Blossom Bike Tour in Washington, D.C.

Duration: 3 hours

This small group bike tour is a fantastic way to see a world-famous cherry trees with beautiful flowers of Washington, D.C. Your guide will provide a history lesson about the trees and the famous monuments where they blossom. Reserve your spot before availability — the cherry blossoms—disappear!

Washington Capital Monuments Bicycle Tour

Duration: 3 hours (4 miles)

Join a guided bike tour and view some of the most popular monuments in Washington, D.C. Explore the monuments and memorials on the National Mall as your guide shares unique facts and history at each stop. Guided tour includes bike, helmet, cookies and bottled water.

Capital City Bike Tour In Washington, D.C.

Duration: 3 hours

Morning or Afternoon, this bike tour is the perfect tour for D. C. newcomers and locals looking to experience Washington, D.C. in a healthy way with minimum effort. Knowledgeable guides will entertain you with the most, interesting stories about Presidents, Congress, memorials, and parks. Comfortable bikes and a smooth tour route(路线) make cycling between the sites fun and relaxing.

Washington Capital Sites at Night Bicycle Tour

Duration: 3 hours (7miles)

Join a small group bike tour for an evening of exploration in the heart of Washington, D.C. Get up close to the monuments and memorials as you bike the sites of Capitol Hill and the National Mall. Frequent stops are made for photo taking as your guide offers unique facts and history. Tour includes bike, helmet, and bottled water. All riders are equipped with reflective vests and safety lights.

1. Which tour do you need to book in advance?

A．Cherry Blossom Bike Tour in Washington, D.C.

B．Washington Capital Monuments Bicycle Tour.

C．Capital City Bike Tour in Washington.

D．Washington Capital Sites at Night Bicycle Tour.

2. What will you do on the Capital City Bike Tour?

A．Meet famous people.	B．Go to a national park.
C．Visit well-known museums.	D．Enjoy interesting stories.

3. Which of the following does the bicycle tour at night provide?

A．City maps.	B．Cameras.
C．Meals.	D．Safety lights.

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。

Diets have changed in China — and so too has its top crop. Since 2011, the country     1    （grow）more corn than rice. Corn production has jumped nearly 125 percent over     2     past 25 years, while rice has increased only 7 percent.

A taste for meat is     3     (actual) behind the change: An important part of its corn is used to feed chickens, pigs, and cattle. Another reason for corn's rise: The government encourages farmers to grow corn instead of rice     4     (improve) water quality. Corn uses less water     5     rice and creates less fertilizer(化肥) runoff. This switch has decreased     6     (pollute) in the country's major lakes and reservoirs and made drinking water safer for people.

According to the World Bank, China accounts for about 30 percent of total     7     (globe)fertilizer consumption. The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture finds that between 2005—when the government     8     (start) a soil-testing program     9     gives specific fertilizer recommendations to farmers - and 2011, fertilizer use dropped by 7.7 million tons. That prevented the emission(排放) of 51.8 million tons of carbon dioxide. China's approach to protecting its environment while     10     (feed) its citizens "offers useful lessons for agriculture and food policymakers worldwide." says the bank's Juergen Voegele.