1 . A team of Australian and Japanese scientists are using the bacteria-killing (杀菌的) characteristics of the wings of insects, such as cicadas (蝉) and dragonflies, to create lab-made material that can kill up to 70 percent of bacteria. Insect wings have sharp points which destroy bacteria on contact. The new technology has a major influence on food storage because so much is wasted when bacterial growth goes into food. The new bacteria-killing food packaging will improve shelf life and reduce waste.

Professor Elena Ivanova from RMIT University’s School of Science said the team had successfully applied a natural fact to plastic. “We knew the wings of cicadas and dragonflies were highly-effective bacteria killers and could help inspire a solution, but replicating nature is always a challenge,”Professor Ivanova said. The breakthrough was a big step towards a non-chemical, antibacterial packaging solution for food manufacturing, she added.

Professor Ivanova and her colleagues first discovered that insect wings were natural-born bacteria killers a decade ago. The team is now working on improving the technology to find the best way to mass produce the bacteria-killing packaging. But the possible applications of the technology do not stop with packaging. In an earlier 2020 review published in Nature Reviews Microbiology, the researchers detailed how possible uses might one day even include defeating drug-resistant bacteria.

Professor Ivanova said that at the time finding non-chemical ways of killing bacteria was very important, with more than 700,000 people dying each year due to drug-resistant bacterial infection. Bacterial resistance to some medicine is one of the greatest threats to global health and regular treatment of infection is becoming increasingly difficult,” Professor Ivanova said. “When we look to nature for ideas, we find insects have developed highly-effective bacteria-killing systems. If we can understand exactly how insect-inspired patterns kill bacteria, we can engineer exactly these shapes to improve their effectiveness against infections.”

1. Why do wings of insects have the ability to kill bacteria?

A．They smell bad.	B．They are usually wet.
C．They move very fast.	D．They have sharp points.

2. What can best replace the underlined word “replicating” in paragraph 2?

A．copying

B．protecting

C．approaching

D．changing

3. What is Professor Ivanova probably eager to find out?

A．What kind of shape the cells of insects have.

B．What’s our body’s defence system against infection.

C．What’s behind the bacteria-killing systems of insects.

D．Why so many people die of bacterial infection.

4. What can be the best title for the text?

A．Smart Food Packaging Keeps Harmful Cells Away

B．Plastic-Based Bacteria-Killing Packaging Keeps Food Fresh

C．New Packaging Uses Drugs to Kill Harmful Bacteria in Food

D．Insect Wings Inspire New Bacteria-Killing Packaging

2 . Kwane Stewart stepped outside a Modesto, California, convenience store with his morning coffee and noticed a homeless man, Tom Bissell, sitting with his back against the building. A small dog sat in his lap. Stewart, a vet (兽医) at an animal hospital, noticed its injured fur and skin. He approached the man and offered to bring medication for the dog's skin, a gift the man readily accepted.

“I remember returning a week later, and the hair was coming back the rash (皮疹) was gone,” Stewart told the Modesto Bee. Tom said his dog was finally sleeping at night again because it was no longer feeling restless for its illness. “‘And you know,’ he said, ‘I’m sleeping at night.’ He started to cry, and that got me touched too,” Stewart says.

Stewart was addicted. “When you do good deeds, there is something you get in return that feels much larger. I knew I wanted to keep doing it, "he told medium.com.

Today, Stewart, 50, has his own practice in town, yet he still finds time for street pets. He's helped roughly 400 animals since 2011.

There's a great need for his kind of help. About 25 percent of Modesto's homeless population owns a pet, but there are few healthcare options available to them. To fill that gap, Stewart can often be found wandering dark streets and underpasses (地下通道), anywhere he thinks the homeless might be camped out. Stewart pays for almost all of it out of his own pocket. For those expensive procedures, he set up a GoFundMe account to help cover treatment costs. “I don't ever want to have to turn anybody away,” he explains.

“To have somebody like Dr. Stewart come out here to take care of my dog just because it's the right thing to do, that's huge.” Joe, one of the dog owners, said in a video that Stewart posted on the GoFundMe page.

1. How did Kwane Stewart help Tom Bissell's dog?

A．By offering mental comfort.	B．By providing medical treatment.
C．By introducing some famous vets.	D．By bringing it to an animal hospital.

2. What directly leads to Kwane Stewart's further kindness?

A．The professional habit of a vet.	B．The tough situation the homeless faced.
C．The requirements from the animal hospital.	D．The inspiration from offering help to Tom.

3. Which of the following can best describe Kwane Stewart?

A．Rich and caring.	B．Smart and humorous.
C．Kind and generous.	D．Brave and intelligent.

4. What's the text mainly about?

A．Vets are in great need.	B．Stewart rose to fame overnight.
C．Street pets deserve due treatment.	D．A vet's kind act brings big impact.

3 . Having been born along the shores of Lake Victoria, the largest lake in Africa, Rahmina Paulette said she has witnessed firsthand the effects of climate change leading to great difficulties like drought and floods.

The 15-year-old Kenyan teenager said East Africa is highly dependent on Lake Victoria, but high pollution has led to poisoning of the water, soil erosion and health problems in people living around the lake.

As Paulette grew older, she realized she was slowly turning from being a witness to a victim of lake degradation. So, she decided to take action and save the lake in her own little way.

“Being an Indigenous person from Lake Victoria, I would like to help restore the ecosystem for my community that has an ancestral connection to the lake and also for the future generations to enjoy the cool breeze, good smells and see the biodiversity within Lake Victoria,” Paulette said.

In her efforts to end pollution in the lake, Paulette started an environmental organization called Kisumu Environmental Champions.

The young environmental champions carry out their activities during the weekends, and the group focuses on environmental conservation, climate change awareness and wildlife conservation.

The group, with about 200 members so far, has taken up the removal of the invasive plant hyacinth from the lake to make eco-friendly products. This project has earned Paulette international recognition. The group has made furniture, paper, cards, folders, document holders, bags and carton boxes from the water hyacinth.

With help from her mother, Paulette is trying to increase activities as she urges all Kenyans to incorporate eco-friendly ways in their day-to-day lives.

Apart from activists like Paulette, other organizations are casting the net wider in their attempt to save the lake. One such group is nonprofit Osienala in western Kenya. The organization has been cooperating with international partners such as those from China to save Lake Victoria.

1. What causes the problems of Lake Victoria?

A．Soil erosion.	B．Drought and flood.
C．Poisoning water.	D．Climate change and pollution.

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

A．Disappearance.

B．Expansion.

C．Damage.

D．Restoration.

3. How does Paulette help save Lake Victoria?

A．By planting more hyacinths.	B．By removing the hyacinths with her mother.
C．By building a factory to make products.	D．By setting up an organization.

4. What can we know about the Osienala?

A．It casts some nets over the lake.	B．It makes money while protecting the lake.
C．It seeks foreign cooperation to save the lake.	D．It’s another organization founded by Paulette.

4 . Collecting rainwater is important. It can help you save both money and the environment while preventing possible damage.     1     And lots of people have taken action to do it.

    2     Many people pay monthly for the water from the city water supply. Collecting rainwater can help you save part of that money. Why? You can use the rainwater to water your garden and wash your pets, houses, and cars without ever opening the city water supply.

Plants can grow better. It’s a known fact that plants are not huge fans of tap water. Tap water is treated with numerous chemicals unfriendly to plants. But with rainwater, you’ll never have to worry about these chemicals. After all, rainwater is a natural source of water. It generally won’t harm plants.     3    

It can protect your property (房产) from rain damage. Too much rain may damage your home.     4     This is especially true if your house doesn’t have a water collecting system.

The system can help direct rainwater away from your home to where you want to collect it, which also prevents water from flooding in your neighborhood.

You’ll help clean natural waterways. Rainwater helps the ground stay clean. But when it runs along rooftops, streets, etc., it collects many pollutants.     5     However, by collecting the water, you can prevent a considerable percentage of the pollutants from reaching the natural waterways in your hometown.

A．It’s helpful in reducing your water bills.

B．Your city offers cheaper drinking water.

C．Instead, it can promote certain plants’ growth.

D．It’s hard to collect enough water during dry seasons.

E．The resulting dirty water flows into the natural waterways.

F．Nowadays, many towns encourage people to collect rainwater.

G．For example, in rainy seasons, rainstorms may destroy your yard.

5 . A long-nosed fur seal that was tagged in Tasmania as a baby seal has suddenly turned up in Victoria 25 years later, causing a rethink of how long the animal can survive in the wild.

The male fur seal was tagged with an obvious “830” marking on its right side of the body in 1996. The marking recently caught the attention of Victorian wildlife officers who tried to find out where the seal was from and who once put the little seal there.

“We were excited to respond to this call and gain important updated information from research activities done more than 20 years ago,” said the Tasmanian Environment Department marine biologist Sam Thalmann.“Scientists used to think the animals can live for at most 19 years, but this sighting of the fur seal 25 years after it was marked provides exciting new knowledge about the longest lifespan for wild fur seals in Australia.” Mr Thalmann said the seal also surprised the researchers in other ways. “We see a lot of old male fur seals that are past their best years of health and move along the Tasmanian coast as they reach their end of life, but this seal tells another story,” he said. “Unlike others, it may continue to live in good health for years to come.”

Long-nosed fur seals are found around the coasts of southeastern Australia, southern NSW and New Zealand. The Tasmanian Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment said long-nosed fur seals were once close to complete disappearance due to the fur trade in the 1800s. But in 1987, the species reappeared in Tasmanian waters and formed a breeding group on Maatsuyker Island, about 10km off the state’s south coast. In the wild, seals are eaten by several species of sharks including the white shark.

The species is now still protected and listed as rare under the Tasmanian Threatened Species Protection Act. But the number of this species is recovering fast. Now the total population in Tasmania is 4,000 to 4,500. About 1,000 baby seals are born annually there now. Australia-wide, the population is about 58,000.

1. What did the officers think about long-nosed fur seals after knowing about this one?

A．They have many secrets unknown to humans.

B．They have the strong ability to live independently.

C．They now have a much better living environment.

D．They can live much longer than people once believed.

2. What does the author mean by saying “this seal tells another story” in Paragraph 3?

A．This seal is still in good physical condition.

B．This seal is much older than other fur seals.

C．This seal draws more attention from researchers.

D．This seal never moves along the Tasmanian coast.

3. What almost led to the complete disappearance of long-nosed fur seals?

A．Having lost their natural homes.	B．Being overhunted by humans.
C．Being killed by the white shark.	D．Suffering from climate change.

4. How does the author most probably find the situation of long-nosed fur seals now?

A．Risky.

B．Hopeful.

C．Worrying.

D．Shocking.

6 . 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。

With few trees left to slow the wind in southern Madagascar, red sand is blowing everywhere: onto fields, villages and roads, and into the eyes of children     1    (wait) for food aid parcels. The area has been transformed     2     a dust bowl because of the facts that the weather is     3    (extreme) dry and forest is cleared to make farmland.

“There’s nothing to harvest. That’s     4     we have nothing to eat. As a result, we’ re suffering from     5    (hungry),” said mother-of-seven Tarira, standing at a remote World Food Programme (WFP) post near Anjeky Beanatara, where children are examined for signs of malnutrition (营养不良) and given food. It is reported that at     6     present time more than one million people in southern Madagascar need food handouts from the WFP, a United Nations agency.

The world’ s fourth     7    (large) island and one of its most diverse ecosystems, Madagascar     8    (regard) as a natural paradise (天堂) at one time. However, in parts of it, such as its far southern regions, the reality on the ground has changed. “When you look in the villages, you see children running left and right. That     9    (be) not the case before. We used to call Madagascar the green island.     10     now it is more of a red island, which makes us very sad,” said Soja Lahimaro Tsimandilatse, governor of the southern Androy area.

7 . Every day we make choices that affect the environment and people living on the earth. From the clothes on our back and the food we eat to how we travel to work, every decision we make has an effect on the planet.     1    . However, there’s still much more to be done to live sustainably(可持续地).

Sustainability doesn’t have to require huge, life-changing decisions.     2    . The primary purpose of living sustainably is to cause the least harm to the environment and people living on the earth.

Living sustainably simply requires a little more thought about our diets, what kind of toiletries and cosmetics(化妆品) we use, and how much waste we create in general.     3    , it becomes a little easier to make some positive changes.

One of the first things people tend to focus on when they first decide to live more sustainably is single-use plastic. Plastic bottles, bags, coffee cups and fresh produce wrappers are all non-recyclable.     4    , buying plastic shopping bags for your groceries indirectly causes a lot of damage to the environment. The same goes for beverages, water bottles, soda bottles and even coffee cups, which are primarily made of plastic that we can’t recycle.

Living sustainably brings many benefits. The most obvious one is that you’re less responsible for causing daily damage to the environment. Sustainable living also provides a handy opportunity to live healthier. In short, sustainable living is healthier and cheaper.     5    

A．Once we're aware of these things

B．Sustainable living is certainly possible

C．Although it may seem like a harmless act

D．And it's the most responsible choice for the planet

E．Since we know that having a positive effect on the planet is important

F．The present generations are the most environmentally conscious in history

G．It means reducing our demand for natural resources by making a few small daily changes

8 . Mosquitoes see red when they look at your skin, and that brings them in for a bite, according to new research showing that these insects find certain colors more attractive.

The findings mean that what you wear can reduce your chances of being bitten, but there’s little you can do in terms of your skin. That’s because everyone’s skin gives off a strong red-orange signal that’s highly attractive to mosquitoes.

“I used to say there are three major signals that attract mosquitoes: your breath, your sweat and the temperature of your skin,” said senior study author Jeffrey Riffell, a professor of biology at the University of Washington in Seattle. “In this study, we found a fourth signal: the color red, which can be found not only on your clothes, but also in everyone’s skin. The shade of your skin doesn’t matter; we’re all giving off a strong red signal.”

Researchers found that when a common species of mosquito called Aedes aegypti detects carbon dioxide (CO₂) from our breath, it then looks for specific colors—including red, orange and black—to find its meal of blood. But it ignores colors such as green, purple, blue and white.

“Mosquitoes appear to use smell to help them distinguish what is nearby, like a host to bite,” Riffell said.

“When they detect specific compounds, like CO2 from our breath, that smell stimulates the eyes to scan for specific colors and other visual patterns, which are associated with a potential host, and then they head to them.”

That process is similar to when a person smells something good. “Imagine you’re on a sidewalk and you smell pies,” Riffell said. “That’s probably a sign that there’ s a bakery nearby, and you might start looking around for it. Here, we started to learn what visual elements (要素) mosquitoes are looking for after smelling their own version of a bakery.”

Knowing which colors do or don’t tempt mosquitoes may lead to better repellents (驱虫剂), traps and other methods to prevent mosquitoes.

1. What does Jeffrey Riffell’s study find?

A．Mosquitoes tend to have a preference for bright colors.

B．Mosquito biting has something to do with your clothes.

C．The more you sweat, the less likely you will be bitten by mosquitoes.

D．Your skin color reduces your chances of being bitten by mosquitoes.

2. Which sense do mosquitoes make use of first in finding a potential target?

A．Hearing.

B．Sight.

C．Smell.

D．Touch.

3. The underlined word “tempt” in the last paragraph most probably means “________”.

A．appeal to

B．frighten away

C．calm down

D．wipe out

4. In which section of a newspaper can the text most probably appear?

A．Education.

B．Entertainment.

C．Fashion.

D．Science.

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。

Apples are ready to pick when the skin color deepens and the fruit comes away     1     (easy) from the tree. The presence of windfalls (风吹落的果子) is a good     2     (indicate) that fruits are ready to pick. Not all apples are ready     3     the same time, so pick regularly as most of them are fully developed.

To pick an apple, cup it in your hand, lift, and twist gently. It should be separate from     4     (it) end. Always touch apples gently     5     (avoid) injuring them, and never tug (拽) an apple from the tree     6     you may damage the fruiting spurs (枝丫) or cause apples nearby to drop.

Early season apples are eaten best soon after     7     (pick) as they don’t store (储藏) well. Midseason apples will store for a few weeks, and late season apples should be good for up to six     8     (month). Apples chosen for storage must be in perfect condition. Check stored apples regularly and remove the ones that     9     (be) going soft, brown, or rotting,

Store your apples in a cool but frost-free, dark, well-ventilated place such as a shed or garage. Make sure they don’t touch, or else wrap them in newspaper. Different species store for different lengths of time — keep them separate and use those     10     have a shorter storage life sooner.

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。

NASA announced that it would make 366 precious images of the universe available to the public in April     1     (celebrate) the 30th anniversary (周年) of the Hubble Space Telescope’s launch into space.

    2     site is called “What Did Hubble See on Your Birthday?”. Internet users can find out what beautiful image     3     (take) on their birthday by the telescope (望远镜), as long as they select their birth dates on NASA’s     4     (office) website.

NASA launched the Hubble Space Telescope     5     April 24, 1990. “Hubble explores the universe 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. That     6     (mean) it has recorded some fascinating     7     (wonder) every day of the year, including on your birthday,” said the website.

In the past three decades, scientists     8     have never given up on their dream of space     9     (explore) have been given a brief look at our vast universe thanks to Hubble. During this period, the telescope has become an eye in the sky for astronomers     10     (hope) to explore secrets of the universe. And now, the public will also get a chance to look into the vast and beautiful universe.