1 . 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。

Chinese scientists have developed a kind of plastic that degrades in sea water and could help slow down the     1    (increase) serious plastic pollution in the ocean.

The new plastic can degrade in sea water over a period ranging from a few days to several hundred days,     2    (leave) small parts that cause no pollution, said Wang Gexia,     3     is a senior engineer. 

For a long time, people focused     4     white pollution on land. Plastic pollution in the sea only caught people’s attention when more and more     5    (report) about marine animals dying from it appeared in recent years.

Scientists combined water dissolution and biodegradation processes     6    (design) and invent     7     new plastic.

The research     8    (select) as one of the winning projects at a contest. The contest encouraged young Chinese scientists to develop groundbreaking technologies and was intended to inspire creativity. 

China has given top attention to     9    (environment) protection, contributing Chinese wisdom to     10    (resolve) global pollution problems.

2 . Like most of his classmates, Zhang Yixuan is facing academic pressure as he is preparing to attend the national college entrance examination, or gaokao, next year. However, compared with playing smartphones and games, Zhang Yixuan prefers spending his summer vacation walking in wild nature, meeting little creatures like crabs. His bedroom is packed with dozens of “living treasures” that he has collected from the outdoors, including insects, fish, and crabs.

It is the microscope that his father bought him that makes the bedroom look more like a mini-biology lab than anything else and it’s a place where Zhang can devote himself to identifying or observing crabs day and night. With the help of the microscope, Zhang buries. Himself in studying the natural world. Sometimes he spends hours simply examining the leg of a crab. It was his deep interest in nature that led Zhang into a new world of discovery.

Last year, a group of crabs caught Zhang’s attention since they looked unusual compared with the commonly seen ones in Rongxian county, where he lives. He decided to take seven of them home. After much observation and lots of researches by reading related articles and documents, Zhang speculated that it must be a new species. And it proved to be true by experts.

The hardworking and gifted teenager is very grateful to his parents for their understanding and support. His father Zhang Lefei, who was born in a rural area, loved catching fish and crabs himself at an early age. So he and his wife would take their son out into nature to explore as much as possible and would allow him to observe crabs quietly without any disturbs.

They say interest is the best teacher. And so are parents, it seems.

1. What does paragraph 1 mainly tell us about Zhang Yixuan?

A．His hobbies.	B．His character.
C．His academic pressure.	D．His relationship with others.

2. Where does Zhang Yixuan carry out his research?

A．In the wild.	B．In his school.
C．In his bedroom.	D．In a biology lab.

3. What does the underlined word “speculated” in paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．Showed.	B．Inferred.
C．Argued.	D．Suggested.

4. What is the author’s purpose of mentioning Zhang’s parents?

A．To share their interest.	B．To show their support.
C．To indicate their effort.	D．To reveal their background.

3 . 阅读下面文章，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一个完整短文，续写词数应为150左右。

“Judy, hurry up! Let’s go to the beach!” That was a familiar morning call from my older brother, Sirin. Hearing that, I would spring up quickly and we would set off on our journey. Raised by our grandparents in Savanna, we experienced our happiest moments there. Nestled between the mountains and the sea, with its lush green trees, crystal-like ocean, and clear blue sky, Savanna was like a small village from a fairy tale.

Sirin and I often enjoyed the gentle sea breeze as we explored the breathtaking coast, with the endless, open water beside us and the vast, clear sky overhead. We felt a sense of freedom to wander the sandy beach or experience the excitement of sailing out to sea, delighting in the awe-inspiring beauty of nature’s wonders. When we grew tired, leisurely walking on the soft, warm sands to collect unique, fascinating seashells brought us a different kind of peaceful joy. The friendly, warmhearted villagers treated us like family, often sharing their freshly-caught seafood with us.

Three years later, we were taken away from the village to receive a better education by our parents. Occupied with our study, we rarely visited our beloved grandparents, only calling them occasionally. We gradually adapted to the fast-paced city life and found it more efficient and convenient. Whenever we had an appetite for seafood, our dad would simply order it through his phone, and it would be delivered to our doorstep within minutes. In addition to seafood, we could order anything our hearts desired, no matter how late it was. What we loved most was the convenience of not needing to wash the dishes after eating, as they were all disposable, designed for single use.

However, deep within us, we sometimes longed for the simple pleasures of village life. We were told by our grandparents that more and more tourists flooded into the village, which strengthened our desire to return. So, when the eagerly-awaited summer vacation arrived this year, we finally made our dream trip back to our childhood paradise. After greeting our grandparents with hugs and smiles, we eagerly headed towards the sun-kissed seaside to relive our cherished memories.

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。

Paragraph 1: However, what we saw shocked us.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Paragraph 2: Hearing Grandfather’s words, we couldn’t wait to do something to tackle the pollution.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4 . Mars is truly a fascinating planet for those of us here on Earth.     1     It is about half as big as Earth and is often referred to as the Red Planet because of its red surface.

The Red Planet has the largest volcano in the solar system-Olympus Mons.     2     That’s about three times the height of Mount Qomolangma.

Mars also has an atmosphere, but it is very thin and made up mostly of carbon dioxide. Because of its thin atmosphere and greater distance from the Sun, Mars is much colder than Earth.     3     The dust storms of Mars can grow so big that sometimes they blanket the entire planet and last for months. The poles on Mars are a lot like Antarctica, capped by ice, but much of Mars’s ice is made from carbon dioxide, not water.

Scientists believe that studying Mars can help answer some of the key questions about our planet Earth, or even the universe.

    4     Since 1960, more than half of all attempted Mars missions have failed. The USA, Russia, the European Space Agency, and several other countries have lost many spacecraft in their quest to explore the Red Planet. Nevertheless, they will still continue their explorations. Chinese experts are confident about their plan to explore Mars, in spite of the many challenges. The first Mars unmanned spacecraft was launched from Wenchang around 2020. But it is only the beginning of deep voyages into outer space.     5    

A．It is roughly 27 kilometres high.

B．Missions to Mars have never been easy.

C．Mars, however, today has no active volcanoes.

D．The temperature at the planet’s surface varies widely.

E．However, Mars does have weather, with clouds and winds.

F．China will continue to explore the mysteries of the universe.

G．It is one of the few planets that we can see with our own eyes.

5 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

Few countries have as rich of a history and civilization as Egypt, so it’s no surprise that the Grand Egyptian Museum(GEM), which     1     (expect) to open later this year, will be the largest archaeological museum in the world. It cost more than a billion dollars     2     (build) it. When finished, it will hold     3     large number of Egypt’s ancient objects, including the treasures of a king’s tomb.

The GEM, also     4     (know) as the Giza Museum, is about 2 km from the Giza Pyramids. It isn’t the only attraction drawing tourists     5     Egypt. Other new attractions include the Mummies Hall in the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization (NMEC) in Cairo     6     two tombs in nearby Saqqara. One of them is Tomb of Djoser,     7     the paths are so puzzling that once you get in, it is difficult to find your way.

“Now many sites are getting improved,” says Egyptologist Nora Shawki. “Even     8     (go) to the pyramids is more convenient, with electric     9     (bus) getting you there and more dining places and better services.”

Though it suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic, Egypt has a strong tourism infrastructure (基础设施), making trips here     10     (easy) than you might expect.

6 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

We moved to a small seaside community in New Zealand 10 years ago, because my husband Phil worked as a biologist and he had to do research near the sea. I had seen seals (海豚) around Pilot Bay, which is near here. Sometimes you see them out on the rocks, sunning themselves or playing-but usually in their own territory. They never thought about disturbing their neighbors.

It was a dark winter morning in August this year when a seal came. At 5:50 a.m., I left the house to go fitness training. I went down to the car parked in the driveway and heard a growl (咆哮). I thought our cat, Coco, must have chased a dog under the car. I jumped into the car to avoid getting my ankles bitten, and moved slowly, but then I felt the car hit something. When I got out to have a look, I couldn’t see anything and thought it must have moved on. Then when I got back into my seat, I saw a baby seal in the headlights.

I thought, Oh, my God, “but didn’t panic—the ocean is just down the driveway and I thought it would find its way back. Off I went to the training center and gave everyone there a laugh when I said, “Sorry I’m late; there was a seal under the car.” I didn’t think about it again until I got home. As I walked through the garage (车库), I noticed our baskets had been moved. I wondered if it was the seal, but then I guessed it could not be the seal because I didn’t think it could fit through the cat door, which was the only way into the garage. But I was wrong. As I opened the door to the house, I brushed something and heard this flip-flip-flip-flip sound, and thought, “My God, that is the seal.”

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。

It was so cute like a lovely soft toy.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

We called Animal Protection Station, and a worker came over.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7 . Sometimes we only appreciate something when we realize we may lose it. That is the story of the Everglades. A shallow slow-moving river, the Everglades once covered about 18,000 square miles of southern Florida. Until the 1900s, few people lived in the grassy wetlands. Not much was understood about the unique balance of nature that existed there. Plants, creatures, and water had formed a remarkable ecosystem.

By the early 1900s, Florida’s pleasant winters attracted more people. Visitors became new permanent residents. They built homes and roads. The conditions looked good for farming, so the newcomers planted large agricultural crops. But South Florida’s cycle of flooding was a problem. To address that, developers attempted to drain (排水) the land. They also built structures to control water levels and flow.

Those changes made it easier for more people to live year-round in South Florida. However, they also disturbed life in the Everglades, which depends on freshwater regularly refilling the land. The area’s growing human population needed freshwater. And large farms consumed large quantities of freshwater. By the mid-1900s, water levels in southern Florida began to go down. Lack of freshwater wasn’t the only problem. As more and more land was developed for people and farms, the Everglades’ historic boundaries contracted. Loss of habitat and hunting threatened the survival of native species in the Everglades.

Some people hoped that the government’s recognition might save the Everglades. They fought for it. Everglades National Park was established in 1947. It became the first park in the United States created for its biodiversity.

Now, Everglades National Park protects 1.5 million acres along the southern tip of Florida. An amazing variety of creatures live there. About 360 different species of birds have been sighted in the park. Nearly 300 different species of fish have been identified. About 40 species of mammals and 50 species of reptiles inhabit the park. Nature still rules in the Everglades, a place worth understanding, appreciating, and protecting.

1. What was the Everglades like before the 1900s?

A．Naturally wild.	B．Partly explored.
C．Completely lifeless.	D．Thickly populated.

2. What problem did new residents cause for the Everglades?

A．A cycle of flooding.

B．Pollution of freshwater.

C．Possible extinction of native species.

D．The extension of historic boundaries.

3. Why are the figures mentioned in the last paragraph?

A．To attract visitors to the park.

B．To stress the great power of nature.

C．To call for more efforts to protect nature.

D．To show the successful conservation of the park.

4. What is the text mainly about?

A．How people adapted to life in the Everglades.

B．How Everglades National Park was established.

C．How humans harmed and saved the Everglades.

D．How the ecosystem of the Everglades was formed.

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。

Wild Chinese sturgeon ( 鲟) are thought to have lived at the same time as dinosaurs and among the first class of protected animals in China. Last week, a wild Chinese sturgeon, which is believed to be the     1     (large) ever found in the past two decades, arrived in Beijing for better treatment. The species is one of the     2     (critical) endangered fish species in China and can be found only in the Yangtze and Pearl rivers.

The Chinese sturgeon “Houfu” ,     3     literally means “good fortune for ever after”, arrived at the Beijing Aquarium on Monday after 22 hours of transport     4     Hubei Province.

When the fish     5     (find) by a fisherman in the Yangtze River Basin, it had been suffering from multiple     6     (injury). It was sent to the Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute for treatment immediately. As she was so weak, local care takers had difficulty     7     (feed) it. The Yangtze River Fisheries Research Institute decided to move it to Beijing to receive further treatment.

Nicknamed “Aquatic giant pandas” and     8     (list) as a wild creature under state protection, the species has been struggling due to water projects, busy waterway traffic     9     pollution in recent years. The number of Chinese sturgeon living in the wild     10     (fall) sharply to about 50 now from about 1,000 in 1982, according to researchers' estimates.