1 . The South Bronx is one of the poorest and most polluted places in America, with smog-choked freeways and smelly wastewater treatment plants.

“We’re a dumping ground,” Omar explains. “All the garbage from the rest of New York City ends up here.”

But Omar started looking at garbage in a different way. “A lot of what people throw away is perfectly good,” he says. “Just look at that stuff from construction sites—doors, sinks, toilets, People will buy those things. It’s only called garbage because somebody threw it away.” Omar was just out of college and working for an environmental group called Sustainable South Bronx when he started considering how to get this “good garbage” to people who could use it. Instead of destroying old things, why not clean them up and resell them? Why not hire people in the community to do the work? Better yet, why not make this business a “cooperative,” which means the people working in the business own it and share the profits?

Out of this, Omar started the first cooperative in the country devoted to reusing construction waste. To start his business, Omar put up advertisements along the trash-filled neighborhood streets, looking for people to work with him. He soon found four other devoted workers. They rented a warehouse and started looking for donations of used materials.

In April 2008, Omar’s cooperative, Re Builders Source, opened its business and began selling construction supplies to neighborhood builders and home owners. With the help of city officials, he also began planning a new training program to help local residents learn the skills to get good jobs that help the environment and even start their own cooperatives. Workers were trained to carefully take buildings apart so that things like doors and windows can be reused instead of being sent off to a landfill. Deconstructing buildings this way could be a huge industry with many good jobs for people who need them.

“If you have a use for something, “Omar says, “it’s no longer waste.”

1. Why is the South Bronx mentioned in the first paragraph?

A．To lead in the topic of the article.

B．To serve as the background information.

C．To contrast with the other districts.

D．To introduce a famous place.

2. Which was NOT the reason for Omar’s creating a cooperative business?

A．To provide jobs for local people.

B．To deal with dumped rubbish.

C．To promote harmony among neighbors.

D．To make money from garbage.

3. Which of the following words best describe Omar?

A．Selfish and realistic.	B．Creative and business-minded.
C．Practical and self-focused.	D．Devoted and iron-hearted.

4. Which saying might describe Omar’s action?

A．Knowledge starts with practice.	B．One good turn deserves another.
C．Four eyes see more than two.	D．Kill two birds with one stone.

2 . With greater climate disasters lying ahead, it is natural for us to make every effort to stop a series of floods, unusual snowstorms, and alarming reports from scientists. For many of us, part of that means running out to buy reusable drinking tubes, organic cleaners, and packaging-free products.

However, before you are joyful of your “green” purchases, take a second to consider a principle that should be obvious: simply consuming less is better for the planet. After all, every new item a factory pumps out requires some resources to produce. But in the confusing stream of environmental news, this simple truth can get lost. Take plastic bag bans for instance. If your city is getting rid of single-use shopping bags, it can be tempting to pay for that fashionable organic cotton bag hanging in the check-outline of supermarkets. However, experts who have analyzed the data on environmental impact insist that growing cotton is actually no better for the Earth than producing the conventional plastic bag. Any bag you already own is your best bet for carrying your groceries if you care about sustainability.

It is not just the Earth that will be happier if you buy less. You will feel more contented too. There is a common view that green buying patterns mean people are going green. However, it doesn’t seem to be that way. Reduced consumption has positive effects on increased well-being, but you don’t see that with “green” consumption.

Many studies have shown that materialism in general makes us unhappy and lonely. It is perfectly possible to be a materialist and an environmentalist at the same time. Lusting (欲望) for every new “green” product on the market might make you feel good about yourself but it presents the same emotional traps as lusting for whatever the Joneses next door are buying. If you relieve yourself of that burden of ownership, most people report feeling a lot better and freer.

1. What is the function of Paragraph 1?

A．To introduce the topic.

B．To send a warning.

C．To offer practical advice.

D．To advocate green purchases.

2. Why does the author mention “plastic bag ban”?

A．To promote cotton bags.

B．To call for less consumption.

C．To ban the using of plastic bags.

D．To reveal the harm of using plastic bags.

3. What do many people believe according to the text?

A．Buying less does benefit to the Earth.

B．Green consumption increases well-being.

C．Buying green indicates a green awareness.

D．Being green gives rise to more consumption.

4. What’s the best title for the text?

A．Green Products Win Popularity

B．Don’t Be Lost in Environmental Passion

C．Buying Green Is Never a Final Solution

D．Buying Less Beats Buying Green

3 . Victoria Falls is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. Statistically speaking, it is the largest waterfall in the world. Victoria Falls is located on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. The falls are also close to the border of Botswana. The Zambezi River, which originates in northern Zambia, serves as the falls’ water source.

There are basically two seasons for the Victoria Falls area. The rainy season runs from late November to early April with the remaining months accounting for the dry season. One would imagine that the rainy season with more water would make the falls more spectacular (壮观的), however, the additional water and subsequent mist(水汽) in the air makes it nearly impossible to see the base of the falls.

The months of June and July are probably the best time to view the falls. The water levels are still high enough to show the beauty of the falls, but the amount of water is less, creating less mist and more visibility of the falls.

As you move into the later part of the dry season, August through October, it is quite possible that you will see more rock face than falls. However, this also opens the door for walking across the top of the falls, which can be a unique and exhilarating experience as well.

During the rainy season and high water, Victoria Falls can be a challenge to capture (抓拍) with a camera because of all of the mist in the air. However, this increases the probabilities that you will be able to capture rainbow images around the falls.

The lower water levels can create more dramatic pictures with various rocks cropping out between the falls. You should also be able to see the canyon and base of the falls. You will also be able to walk across the top of the falls and take images down the face of the falls.

1. Where does the water source of Victoria Falls originate?

A．In northern Zambia.	B．In southern Zimbabwe.
C．At the border of Botswana.	D．Between the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe.

2. When is the best time for travelers to walk across the top of the falls?

A．From November to April.	B．From August to October.
C．In the months of June and July.	D．In the months of May and June.

3. What does the underlined word “this” in paragraph 5 probably refer to?

A．A camera.	B．High water.
C．The rainy season.	D．All of the mist in the air.

4. What are the last two paragraphs mainly about?

A．Travel strategies at different water levels.	B．Challenges for falls travelers to overcome.
C．Photo opportunities in different seasons.	D．Different views of the falls all the year round.

4 . 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。

The terrifying flooding of Venice could and should have been avoided. It hasn’t been this bad since 1966, when the water reached 6 feet, 4 inches. Back then,     1     (frighten) Italians called for immediate action.     2    , once the water moved away, they didn’t take it as seriously as before and thought over the issue for almost 40 years. The massive MOSE flood     3     (protect) system that was finally approved in 2003 still hasn’t been completed.

“Meanwhile, Venice is disappearing beneath the water,” said Jacopo Giliberto. “Climate change and rising sea levels are     4     (blame). But so is the fact that we pumped water from an underground aquifer (蓄水层)     5     the 1930s to the 1980s,     6     (cause) the ground beneath us to fall with impressive speed. Proud Venice is     7     world treasure, an open-air art museum, so officials instead chose more expensive invisible dams that won’t disturb the view. So far, we     8     (spend) more than $ 6 billion on MOSE, which won’t be put into use until next year at the earliest.”

“The project is a disaster, and Italians just aren’t good at long-term planning,” said Maurizio Ferrera. “Look at our booming national debt,     9     now sits at $2.7 trillion, 138 percent of our GDP. If we are to save Venice, we’ll have to change our political culture.     10     is unclear whether we have the will.”

5 . He’s as big as a small golden dog and covered with scales (鳞片). He is the pangolin (穿山甲), an endangered animal.

According to the wildlife trade monitoring organization Traffic, about one million pangolins were killed from 2000 through 2013, mainly for their scales, which are used in medicine. Pangolins are sensitive creatures and picky eaters that only eat certain species of ants, a diet that’s very difficult to copy in the food chain.

“In the last decade, there’s been a huge growth trade in pangolins between continents, especially their scales,” says Dan Challender, chair of the pangolin specialist group. Previously, most pangolin killing happened within Asia, he says. This shift means that Asian pangolins are becoming difficult to find but that the value of the scales makes it worth the extra cost to take pangolins from Africa to Asia secretly.

All eight species of pangolins, four in Africa and four in Asia, are in danger of extinction due to the illegal trade. International trade in the four species of Asian pangolins has been banned since 2000. In the past few years, a ban on international commercial trade in all eight species has gone into effect. It was voted by 183 governments that are parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), which is in charge of cross-border trade in wild animals and their parts.

Pangolins are eaten as bushmeat in western and central Africa and by some local groups in South and Southeast Asia. Their parts also are used in Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, and elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa as traditional medicine. Typically dried, ground into powder, and put into pills, pangolin scales are used in a range of traditional medicines to help mothers who have given birth to babies to recover. But they are now endangered. Perhaps no pangolins can be seen when our next generation grow up.

1. What do you know about pangolins from Paragraph 2?

A．Their meat is very delicious.

B．Their scales are of great value.

C．They are smaller than young dogs.

D．They are on the top of the food chain.

2. Why are pangolins brought from Africa to Asia?

A．Pangolins are cheaper in Africa.

B．No laws protect pangolins in Africa.

C．People in Asia can really save pangolins.

D．Pangolins have sharply decreased in numbers in Asia.

3. What does the fourth paragraph mainly tell us?

A．Pangolins have many different species.

B．The bans on pangolin trade are ineffective.

C．People used to take advantage of pangolins in different ways.

D．Governments have tried to contribute to the protection of pangolins.

4. What’s the author’s attitude towards pangolins’ future?

A．Positive.

B．Uncaring.

C．Concerned.

D．Confident.