1 . There’s nothing quite like a winter wonderland. When the snow falls and the lakes and ponds freeze over, there’s a certain magical chocolate-box feeling to the world that ironically makes us feel cozy inside. However, it might be different for some of our pets.
• Keep the walks brief
•
If your dog is shivering a lot, it isn’t a bad idea to give them a blanket or a warmer bed. Avoid electrically heated blankets and pads as some pups might not realize when it gets too hot.
• Wrap them up in the right clothes
Make sure the clothes you choose fit them properly and don’t have any dangling bits they could swallow.
• Watch out for dangerous snow
Salt and antifreeze on sidewalks are potentially deadly to pets.
| A．It takes a dog about ten days to adjust to any temperature change |
| B．Give them a heat source |
| C．Don’t force it to get dressed |
| D．Take your dog out even in cold weather |
| E．Compare and purchase the soft clothes for it |
| F．Make sure you wipe your pup’s feet after every walk |
| G．The prospect of facing the winter cold may not be so inviting |
2 . Parrots are prey animals, which means that other predators (捕食者) in the wild, such as hawks or snakes, are looking to make them into a meal. This one factor influences parrots’ behavior in your house more than any other.
Parrots are most easily hurt when feeding on the ground. Membership in a group plays an important function in ensuring their safety and improving their chances of survival from attacks by predators. The most common predators of parrots include hawks, snakes, cats, monkeys, and bats. Some predators make attacks only during the day while others hunt in the night.
As prey animals, parrots are constantly watching out for danger and they instinctively (本能地) react to risks. Their first choice is to take flight. However, if this is not possible, they will fight with their powerful beaks to defend themselves.
Because their biggest enemy is the hawk, parrots are especially reactive to quick movements from above and behind. For this reason, it is wise to avoid quick, sudden movements near your bird. This is a built-in reaction not subject to logic or reason. Simple and relatively harmless household objects can draw extreme fear responses from a bird. For example, a balloon may represent a hawk or a vacuum hose (吸尘器软管) may be the same as a snake in your bird’s mind.
As prey animals, parrots are often frightened by exposure to new household items or strangers. It is important to expose your bird to safe experiences and changes starting at a very young age to build flexibility and improve their adaptability. Variety in diet and toys, travel, and exposure to new people and places all help to make your bird more flexible and adaptable to change.
1. What is important for parrots to better survive from attacks in the wild?| A．Living in a group. | B．Growing beautiful feathers. |
| C．Feeding on the ground. | D．Avoiding coming out at night. |
| A．To attack back. | B．To get away. |
| C．To protect the young. | D．To play dead. |
| A．It may explode suddenly. | B．It may be in a strange shape. |
| C．It may have a strong color. | D．It may move around quickly. |
| A．To explain wild parrots’ behavior. | B．To give advice on raising a parrot. |
| C．To call for action to protect animals. | D．To introduce a study on bird ecology. |
内容包括：
1.你身边的环境问题;
2.相应的解决办法。
注意：1.词数80左右;
2.可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
4 . Plant biologists have found a way that may enable poor farmers to do away with the need to purchase expensive hybrid seeds every year. Researchers at the University of California report that they have solved a long-standing problem of hybrid seeds by making exact clones of the hybrid plants from seeds.
For long, many crops have been grown from high-yielding, anti-disease or climate-tolerant hybrid seeds. But the seeds of hybrid crops do not produce plants with the same qualities during reproduction and hence farmers cannot save the seeds for the next growing season. They end up paying for new hybrid seeds each sowing season. The discovery, long sought by plant researchers, could make it easier to grow desirable high-yielding crops and make them available to the world’s farmers. Farmers could thus replant seeds from their own hybrid plants and enjoy the benefits of high production year after year, the scientists report.
While the discovery would help farmers, it would also impact the commercial interest of the hybrid seed industry. Siddiq, a former Deputy Director General in the Crop Science Division of the ICAR, said at first sight, this might seem like a setback for hybrid seed companies but there would be plenty of things they can still do. “Rice is grown over such a vast climatic and geographical range that specialized hybrids would have to be developed for each region,” he said. The companies, he said, would continue to improve their hybrids. “It will be interesting to see how all this plays out in the years to come.”
Currently, the high costs of producing hybrid seeds are a major barrier to farmers in developing countries, especially South Asia and Africa. Siddiq said if efficiently used, this method could potentially be a game-changer for poor farmers, who would need to purchase hybrid seeds just once and plant the progeny(后代) seeds from their own harvest in the following seasons.
1. What problem do the researchers aim to solve?| A．Farmers’ income. | B．Farmers’ costs. |
| C．Hybrid seeds’ cloning. | D．Hybrid seeds’ climate tolerance. |
| A．They have a pretty long growth cycle. |
| B．They tend to be affected by various diseases. |
| C．They have stricter requirements for sowing time. |
| D．They fail to reproduce plants with the same quality. |
| A．Hopeful. | B．Concerned. | C．Doubtful. | D．Anxious. |
| A．The future of the hybrid seed industry. |
| B．The drawback of cloning hybrid seeds. |
| C．A method of cloning hybrid plants from their seeds. |
| D．A means of promoting the specialized hybrid seeds. |
5 . Children returned to school after a big wildfire in Northern California. But the influence is so huge that it will be some time before the life of students there returns to normal.
Eight schools were lost to the wildfire. Government officials were not sure how many of their nearly 3,500 students would report to temporary (临时的) schools. Some families have left California. Others are staying with friends. It is too far for some of them to drive to one of those schools every day.
There are not enough classrooms for middle and high schools. So for the l3 days before the start of the traditional winter break in the school year, students will learn through independent study. They will be given homework online and be able to visit a special drop-in center in Chico, California. Children going there can get help from teachers or visit other classmates.
Loren Lighthall, a spokesman for one school there, said studying will be less important than dealing with pain and reconnecting with friends. “They don’t have their school, they don’t have their work, they don’t have their friends, they don’t have books and we’re asking them to do homework?” Light hall said. “It’s less important at this point. We’re going to do it. But what is important now is to deal with the pain left.”
Search members have stopped looking for the lost in burned cars and houses. But they remain available whenever there is need for help.
1. What does the underlined “those schools” in the second paragraph refer to?| A．The schools being built. | B．The online schools. |
| C．The 8 schools lost to the fire | D．The temporary schools. |
| A．Because there aren’t enough classrooms for them. |
| B．Because the traditional winter break is coming soon. |
| C．Because the students want to start a new way of study. |
| D．Because the teachers ask them to do their homework online. |
| A．Students should go to school immediately. |
| B．It is important to deal with the pain. |
| C．Students should be given much homework. |
| D．It is not necessary to study after the fire. |
| A．Life of students in North California has come to normal. |
| B．Search members have not stopped looking for the missing. |
| C．The wildfire in North California influences students greatly. |
| D．Classrooms are prepared for students affected in the wildfire. |
6 . A blue hole is a special kind of underwater cave found inland or in the sea, which forms when the earth above a cave falls in and water fills the space.
An inland blue hole’s water is very still and has different layers. A layer of fresh rainwater floats on top of salt water; the fresh water keeps oxygen from the atmosphere from reaching the salt water; brightly colored bacteria live where the two layers meet.
Diving into blue holes is very dangerous. Near the top of the blue hole, there is a layer of toxic gas, which causes itching, headache, and—in large amounts—death. Divers must also be fast. They have to get in and out of a cave before their oxygen runs out. Additionally, divers have to follow a guideline as they swim through a blue hole because it is very dark inside. Without the guideline, they may get lost.
If blue holes are so dangerous, why do explorers and scientists risk their lives to explore them? The reason is that these underwater caves can provide valuable scientific information. They provide clues about geology, archaeology, and biology. For example, some blue hole creatures probably haven’t changed for millions of years.
The blue holes could even provide clues about astrobiology. For example, divers have found bacteria there that can live without oxygen. Astrobiologist Kevin Hand says the bacteria may be similar to forms of life that might exist on Jupiter’s fourth largest moon, Europa. “Our study of life’s extremes on Earth,” he says, can help increase “our understanding of habitable environments off Earth.”
In addition, the oxygen-free environment of the blue holes preserves bones of humans and animals that fell into the caves long ago. By studying blue holes, we can understand what life was like in prehistoric times. As cave diver Kenny Broad says, “I can think of no other environment on Earth that is so challenging to explore and gives us back so much scientifically.”
1. What’s the main idea of Paragraph 1?| A．The definition of a blue hole. | B．The location of a blue hole. |
| C．The formation of a blue hole. | D．The structure of a blue hole. |
| A．In the saltwater layer. |
| B．In the freshwater layer. |
| C．In between the freshwater and saltwater layers. |
| D．In both of the freshwater and saltwater layers. |
| A．The study of life on Earth. |
| B．The study of life in the universe. |
| C．The study of life in prehistoric times. |
| D．The study of life in oxygen-free environment. |
| A．They’re oxygen-free and lifeless. | B．They’re free of air and light. |
| C．They’re death zones and mysterious. | D．They’re poisonous and dark. |
Marine (海洋的) creatures have long attracted scientists. Recently, researchers described remains discovered in northeastern Spain,
Leviathanochelys swam in
Scientists found the Leviathanochelys remains near the village of Coll deNargo in Catalonia’s Alt Urgell area.
It was a chilly autumn evening. Sarah, a tired businesswoman, left her workplace and drove home. When she turned a corner, she spotted a puppy in the middle of the road. The dog was muddy and trembling. His eyes held a glimmer of both hope and despair. Sarah couldn’t ignore the poor puppy. Approaching him cautiously, she coaxed (哄) him and brought him home.
Over the next few days, Sarah tried her best to look for the dog’s owner, but in vain. It seemed that the dog had been abandoned, with no collar or tags to identify its owner.
She determined to take care of the dog, which she named Max. She kept him in the backyard, feeding him, providing water and watching him chase his tail in the yard. The puppy trusted in her slowly with Sarah’s gentle care and patience. Sarah had a happy feeling she never had before.
As days passed, Sarah became more comfortable with Max’s presence. When she was working, Max would sit calmly by her side. When she woke up in the morning, Max would sit near her bed with a playful bark, demanding his daily walk. The early morning air was cool, and the rising sun cast a warm glow on them. Sarah realized that Max had been a great comfort to her.
As days turned into weeks, Sarah grew more attached to Max. She found herself looking forward to coming home every day, excited to see her furry friend waiting at the door. Then, she would lovingly prepare Max delicious meals. His eyes, once filled with sadness, now sparkled with gratitude. He would eagerly follow her around the house wherever she went. Max became more than just a pet; he became a loyal friend and a source of happiness for Sarah, who had discovered a newfound balance between her career and personal life. They became inseparable.
One evening, as Sarah and Max were out for their regular evening walk, something unexpected happened. A social media post attracted her attention. A lady named Emma was anxiously looking for her missing dog, Buddy.
注意：
1．续写的词数应为150左右;
2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Her heart sank as she saw the photo of a dog.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sarah arranged the bittersweet reunion.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
On February 16, 1861, a big earthquake struck Sumatra, an Indonesian island. The earthquake shook the western side of the island,
Recently, though, a team of scientists discovered that another earthquake occurred before this deadly event. According to the record, that earthquake
But silent earthquakes like the one in Sumatra change the game for scientists. These silent earthquakes happen all over
Peru
