3 . Forests might be the best tool humans have to fight climate change. Plants naturally absorb CO₂ and release oxygen as part of photosynthesis (光合作用), but trees can process a lot more because of the size of their trunks, green leafy crown, and root structures. This filtering (过滤) and storage capacity is part of the United Nations’ Great Green Wall plan to plant an 8,000 km (5,000 mile) long tree belt across the African continent.

More recent projects like Trillion Trees, the World Economic Forum’s 1T, and the UN’s follow-up Great Green Wall for Cities highlight forest regeneration as the most effective nature-based solution for CO₂. For example, the Great Green Wall for Cities project would create urban green areas. Once completed, the wall will capture an estimated 0.5~5 billion tons of CO₂ every year. And, if well managed, its urban forests could also reduce air temperature, lower flood risk, and improve air quality.

City trees are actually sucking more CO₂ out of the atmosphere than that was thought. Now Boston University studies show that forest edges grow almost twice as quickly and store carbon faster than trees deep inside the forest. Projects influenced by botanist Akira Miyawaki are now creating tiny community forests across the planet. Miyawaki's micro-forests are much denser (稠密) than traditional woods. They store 30 times more CO₂ than common forests and offer 30 times better noise and dust reduction, say his followers.

Dave Nowak is a researcher at the US Forest Service who has studied using trees to reduce carbon for years. Trees not only cool their surroundings, they also recycle tiny pollutants. But figuring out which exact species work best to improve air quality depends on many factors including soil, local climate, and site conditions, says Nowak. Urban planners can start by using the US Forest Service iTree Tools to choose the best trees for each locality. Another tool, American Forests’ Tree Equity Score Analyzer, helps planners to target urban forests in disadvantaged areas.

1. What will happen based on Great Green Wall?

A．More rare plants will be grown.

B．A long tree belt will appear across Africa

C．Better tools will be used to battle climate change.

D．More projects will work together to reduce air temperature.

2. What is highlighted by Great Green Wall as the best nature-based way to reduce CO₂?

A．Cleaning the air.	B．Developing new tools.
C．Forest regeneration.	D．Air temperature control.

3. How do Miyawaki’s supporters find his micro-forests?

A．Effective.

B．Costly.

C．Helpless.

D．Questionable.

4. Which is the best title for the text?

A．Great Green Wall Will Make Long Tree Belts

B．Planting More Trees Will Reduce Air Pollutants

C．Researchers Are Studying Climate Change Further

D．Forest Projects Will Help Rebalance Earth’s Climate

4 . It was a stormy March morning in 2019 off Australia’s Western Coast, when whale researcher John Totterdell and his students caught sight of the chase in the water. The scene was a mess. The first thing they spotted was about twenty black and white shapes in the water—a group of killer whales surrounding something. From the boat, all Totterdell could make out was a much larger gray blue animal at the center.

Within seconds they realized a pack of killer whales were attacking a blue whale. The whale was about 70 feet long and it was fighting back. But the killer whales, which were only about a third as big, were making coordinated(联合的) attacks and working together to kill their target. It went on for hours and eventually, the blue whale got weaker.

Sensing their opportunity, two killer whales leapt on top of the blue whale, forcing it under the water until it eventually drowned. While killer whales were known to attack blue whales, the team of researchers were the first to ever document a successful attack. They published their findings in the journal Marine Mammal Science. Their work definitely shows that killer whales, which actually belong to the dolphin family, are the top hunter in the ocean. They are so fierce(凶猛的) that even great white sharks seem to be scared of them.

According to researchers who had marked white sharks with a tracking device off the coast of California, just the presence of a group of killer whales drove away the sharks for months. Also in their favor is the close nature of killer whales' families. The group is led by a matriarch(女家长) and once they have a skill, they pass it along from one generation to the next within their family group. So, with each successful strike against a blue whale, they are relearning and expanding their culture.

1. What did John Totterdell and his students find in the water?

A．A big storm that was forming.

B．A boat surrounded by some whales.

C．The water forming different shapes.

D．A hunting between different sea animals.

2. Which word can be used to describe the killer whales?

A．Stupid.

B．Cooperative.

C．Hopeless.

D．Tiring.

3. How did John Totterdell and his students deal with what they saw in the water?

A．They made a record of it.	B．They drowned the blue whale.
C．They drove away the killer whales.	D．They created Marine Mammal Science.

4. What can be learned from the last paragraph?

A．Killer whales are never scared of sharks.

B．The arrival of the researchers drove away the sharks.

C．Female killer whales are always much fiercer than male ones.

D．Killer whales’ hunting skills are probably better than their ancestors’.

6 . Reilly, my daughter’s dog, enjoys running about in the huge backyard all day. Despite his _________ lifestyle, Reilly is a bit overweight. That’s because Reilly is always hungry and he always _________ watches us eat anything.

Sometimes, he will hold his bowl in his mouth, _________ that someone will put dog treats in it. Then he will drop the bowl on the floor so that the treats jump out, and he goes at them fast like lightning. He loves this _________ ! If we’re preparing dinner and ignoring him, he carries his bowl to the _________ and drops it with a loud noise. He hopes to draw our attention and reminds us Reilly’s _________.

One day, Reilly _________, and my daughter Erin didn’t know where he went. He isn’t _________ to leave our home alone, and usually he doesn’t. Erin was _________ and walked to neighbors’ homes to __________ him. No Reilly.

Some time later, the big dog was back and not __________. In his huge mouth was a piece of delicious cooked beef, still __________. Whose dinner was this and where did he get it? __________ seemed to know a thing about it. Only one big yellow dog knew, but he wasn’t __________. To this day, not a single neighbor has reported the theft. It’s still a __________.

1.

A．peaceful

B．active

C．simple

D．boring

2.

A．thankfully

B．amazedly

C．fixedly

D．nervously

3.

A．proving

B．hoping

C．promising

D．admitting

4.

A．work

B．rule

C．choice

D．game

5.

A．kitchen

B．yard

C．street

D．park

6.

A．hungry

B．angry

C．lonely

D．thirsty

7.

A．hid

B．disappeared

C．suffered

D．changed

8.

A．required

B．guided

C．allowed

D．inspired

9.

A．curious

B．awkward

C．careless

D．worried

10.

A．respond to

B．care for

C．turn to

D．look for

11.

A．kind-hearted

B．simple-minded

C．cold-blooded

D．empty-handed

12.

A．dirty

B．smelly

C．warm

D．expensive

13.

A．Anybody

B．Everybody

C．Nobody

D．Somebody

14.

A．talking

B．singing

C．shouting

D．arguing

15.

A．deal

B．mystery

C．danger

D．reminder

9 . 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。

Climate change is already affecting wildlife all over the world, but certain species are suffering more than others. Polar animals     1     icy natural habitat is melting in the warmer temperatures are     2     (particular) at risk. In fact, experts believe that the Arctic sea ice is melting at a shocking rate — 9% per decade! Polar bears need sea ice to be able to hunt, raise their young and as places to rest after long periods of swimming. Certain seal species, like ringed seals (环斑海豹), make     3     (cave) in the snow and ice to raise their pups, feed and mate.

It's not just polar animals that are in trouble. Apes like orangutans, which live in the rainforests of Indonesia, are     4     threat as their habitat     5     (cut) down, and more droughts cause more bushfires.

Sea turtles (海龟) rely on nesting beaches     6     (lay) their eggs, many of which are threatened by rising sea levels. Did you know that the temperature of nests     7     (determine) whether the eggs are male or female? Unfortunately, with temperatures on the rise, this could mean that more females are born than males,     8     (threaten) future turtle populations.

Climate change won't just affect animals; it's already having     9     impact on people, too. Most     10     (affect) people are some of the people who grow the food we eat every day. Farming communities, especially in developing countries, are facing higher temperatures, increased rain, floods and droughts.

10 . Greenhouse gas emissions would rise if all farms in England and Wales went organic. Though the emissions of each farm would go down, much more food would have to be imported, as the amount they would produce would decrease greatly.

“The key message from my perspective is that you can't really have your cake and eat it,” says Laurence Smith, now at the Royal Agricultural University in the UK, who was part of the team that ran the numbers. Smith is a supporter of organic farming and says “there are a lot of merits of the organic approach”, but his analysis shows that organic farming has downsides too.

Farming and changes in land use, such as cutting down forests, are responsible for a third of all greenhouse gas emissions. That means reducing farming emissions and the land needed for farming is required to limit further global warming.

Smith and his colleagues found that emissions per unit of food are, on average, 20 per cent lower for organic crops and 4 per cent lower for organic animal products. However, organic harvests per hectare (公顷) are also lower on average. For wheat and barley, for instance, harvests are just half of those of conventional farms. This means 1.5 times as much land would be needed to grow the same amount of these foods.

The estimated increase in emissions varies greatly, depending on where the extra farmland comes from. If only half comes from turning grassland into farms, the increase could be as low as 20 per cent. If grassland that would otherwise have been reforested is turned into farmland, emissions could nearly double.

This doesn't necessarily mean people should stop eating organic produce, says Smith. People might choose organic food for other reasons, such as to reduce their pesticide exposure (though contrary to popular belief, organic farmers do use pesticides) or for the sake of wildlife.

Going 100 per cent organic could also harm global biodiversity. The extra land used for farming would mean the land available for wildlife would be smaller and more fragmented (碎片化的).

Smith says the best option may be to use some organic and conventional farming methods at the same time.

1. Why may greenhouse gas emissions increase if a country goes organic?

A．Organic farms take longer to build.

B．The agricultural output will increase greatly.

C．The emissions of each farm unit will increase.

D．Greater demand for imported food will be created.

2. What does the underlined word “merits” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Changes.

B．Challenges.

C．Advantages.

D．Differences.

3. What did Smith and his colleagues find?

A．Organic harvests per unit are greater than traditional harvests.

B．Organic farming needs more farmland to feed a country.

C．Global warming could be brought under control.

D．Land was not used in a responsible way.

4. What is Smith's proposal?

A．Stopping using pesticides.

B．Eating less organic produce.

C．Going back to traditional farming.

D．Adopting mixed farming methods.