1. Why was Kaavan sent to Pakistan?
| A．He was given as a gift. |
| B．A zoo there wanted to train him. |
| C．A female elephant there needed a companion. |
| A．He was homeless. | B．He lost his friend. | C．He was kept in chains. |
| A．2016. | B．2020. | C．2021. |
1. Where is Destiny’s community located?
| A．Near the waterfront. | B．In the northern part. | C．In the city center. |
| A．Her high school is closed. |
| B．She has breathing problems. |
| C．The air in her neighborhood is poor. |
| A．Disapproving. | B．Unclear. | C．Supportive. |
| A．Making a survey. | B．Conducting an interview. | C．Holding a press conference. |
3 . To protect people living in areas that are likely to suffer flooding and rising sea levels, a group of architects has designed a floating home.
The project is a collaboration between British architect firm Grimshaw and Dutch manufacturer Concrete Valley. Currently at the design stage, the home will be constructed using a concrete and glass framework, which sits on a floating pontoon structure. In the event of a tidal surge or flooding, the pontoon rises with the water level to keep the home safe. Fitted with solar panels and heat exchangers, the water home will be able to produce their own electricity during power cuts, in the event of a storm.
Other firms are exploring floating homes, too. In the UK, Baca Architects has partnered with manufacturer Floating Homes. Their design was originally an entry to a competition to reduce London’s housing shortage, and has since been turned into a prototype. Baca Architects is exploring ways to provide practical, affordable, flood-resistant additional city housing, which could occupy unnecessary docks, canals and other waterways throughout London, director Richard Coutts told the Guardian.
As the planet’s atmosphere warms, areas such as the Arctic are melting fast, contributing to rising sea levels and higher risk of flooding. The ocean is already reclaiming land in some parts of the world. With the global population set to reach 9.8 billion people by mid-century, extreme flooding could further add pressure to limited land, water, food and other resources. These challenges are at the heart of the Virtual Ocean Dialogues, an initiative by the World Economic Forum and Friends of Ocean Action. The online event provides a forum for more than 50 world leaders to address the most pressing challenges facing our oceans and develop ways to protect them.
While floating homes may be a common feature in parts of Asia and other developing regions, they are emerging as a way to relieve overcrowding and protect people in busy cities and urban areas which are likely to suffer from flooding.
1. What makes it possible to produce electricity in the floating home?| A．The concrete and glass framework. | B．The tidal power. |
| C．Solar panels and heat exchangers. | D．The floating pontoon structure. |
| A．Floating homes will be useful but costly. |
| B．Floating homes have been put into use in London. |
| C．Baca Architects’ design was to ease the housing burden at first. |
| D．There is a competition among firms in the UK to explore floating homes. |
| A．Restoring. | B．Reoccupying. | C．Redeveloping. | D．Reshaping. |
| A．Melting Oceans are Causing Rising Sea Levels |
| B．A Forum is Ongoing to Explore Floating Homes |
| C．Many Firms are Working Together to Reduce Housing Shortage |
| D．Floating Homes are Emerging to Protect People from Flooding |
4 . According to the United Nations, 60 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions come directly from the way that we currently produce our electricity.71 percent of the earth is covered in water yet only around 1.5 percent of the global energy is produced through wave power. That’s what inspired Eco Wave Power CEO, Inna Braverman to take on the challenge.
Two weeks after she was born in Ukraine in 1986, the Chernobyl nuclear disaster occurred and she got hurt, suffering from breathing arrest and a clinical death. But thanks to her mother, who was a nurse, she was saved. Growing up, she felt it her purpose to find green and sustainable energy.
Inna found that previous wave energy developers have decided to pursue offshore technologies, contributing to huge installation and maintenance costs, incredibly vulnerable stations in storms, and consequently lack of funding. Her innovative version, however, is to install the power station on land. The only part of the system in the water is the floaters which bob up and down with the waves. These push compressed air into a tank where the energy is stored to produce electricity. The floaters are attached to existing man-made structures such as banks, piers, and breakwaters.
The simplicity of the design makes it cheaper to install and maintain as well as being better protected from rough weather and therefore, insurable. Once a commercial plant producing 20 megawatt s or more (enough for 20,000 homes) is in place, the unit cost significantly reduces. “Our price of energy decreases to about $0.05 US (€0.05) per kilowatt hour, which is comparable to the prices of onshore wind,” Inna explains.
A pilot station was installed in Gibraltar in 2016. It was the first wave energy system to be connected to the grid in Europe. More tests of the wave energy system have been arranged in different countries and regions.
1. What do we know from the first two paragraphs?| A．Inna was inspired by a UN program to focus on green energy. |
| B．Inna’s early experience enabled her to explore green energy solutions. |
| C．Inna came up with the idea of green energy thanks to her mother. |
| D．Green and sustainable energy solutions are greatly influenced by the nuclear disaster. |
| A．To demonstrate the environmental impact of wave energy. |
| B．To highlight Inna Braverman’s innovative approach to wave energy. |
| C．To outline the challenges faced by other wave energy developers. |
| D．To provide information about wave energy production around the world. |
| A．Its maintenance on the sea floor. | B．Its dependence on government funding. |
| C．Its installation on land. | D．Its exclusive focus on offshore technologies. |
| A．Eco Wave Power: Pioneer in Sustainable Energy |
| B．Chernobyl Survivor’s Vision: Endless Power for the Future |
| C．Land-Based Wave Power: Innovation for Green Electricity |
| D．Onshore Energy: Eco Wave Power’s Fight Against Gas Emissions |
The ancient Chinese built two great engineering wonders: the Great Wall and the Grand Canal (运河). The Great Wall’s function in military defense
The Grand Canal,
Now, it has inspired the name of Chenchen, one of the three mascots of the Hangzhou Asian Games. Chenchen,
The Hangzhou section stretches a total
6 . In times of intense stress, people sometimes let it out with a scream and a new study suggests that plants might do the same. Researchers at Tel Aviv University in Israel has found that plants let out ultrasonic (超声的) screams when damaged or stressed by drought.
The noises, falling within a range of 20 to 100 kilohertz, are too high-frequency for humans to hear, but other plants and some animals perceive them. Insects might be listening for sounds from stressed plants to assess their condition before laying eggs on their leaves. A moth (蛾) may decide against laying eggs on a plant that sounds water-stressed.
Researchers attached recording devices directly to plants to listen for secret sounds inside their stems (茎). In drought, air bubbles formed, burst and caused vibrations (振动) within the tissue that normally carries water up the plants’ stems. The process was picked up by the attached recording devices, but researchers wanted to know if any plant sounds could travel through the air.
So the team placed microphones 10 centimetres from stressed-out tomato and tobacco plants. They subjected one set of crops to drought and another to physical damage. A third group was untouched.
The microphones did pick up distinct sounds. On average, drought-stressed tomato plants let out about 35 ultrasonic screams per hour, while those with cut stems made about 25. Drought-stressed tobacco plants let out about 11 screams per hour, and cut crops made about 15 sounds in the same time. The average number of sounds from untouched plants fell below one per hour.
The researchers also attempted to identify each plant group just based on its screams. Using a type of artificial intelligence calculations, the team picked out distinct features in each set of sounds and successfully sorted their plants into three kinds: “dry, cut or untouched.”
If it is not too costly to set up the recording in a field situation, farmers might be able to hear these stress signals too. In future, enabling farmers to listen for water-stressed plants could “open a new direction”, which will be increasingly important as climate change exposes more areas to drought.
1. The moth is mentioned in paragraph 2 to show __________.| A．moths need enough water when laying eggs |
| B．some animals are able to hear plants scream |
| C．some insects are picky about their surroundings |
| D．wildlife species depend on each other when stressed |
| A．Plants’ sounds couldn’t be detected by humans. |
| B．Plants can be grouped according to their features. |
| C．Plants’ screams are related to stress types in a way. |
| D．Air bubbles contribute to the lack of water in plants. |
| A．Supporting evidence for the research result. |
| B．Potential application of the research findings. |
| C．A further explanation of the research methods. |
| D．A reasonable doubt about the research process. |
| A．Plants’ Vibrations: Way to React to Stress |
| B．Stress Signals: Secret Newly Found in Plants |
| C．Green Screams: Plants Make Noises When Stressed |
| D．Ultrasonic Screams: Discovery Opens a New Chapter |
7 . Lying in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, the fishing village Huatulco is home to nine bays, 36 beaches and thousands of baby turtles that apparently needed me. I had three open days on my calendar, and a desire to save some turtles. And so, away I went to Huatulco with Wildcoast, a group of champions-for-change who were protecting coastal and marine ecosystem in the U. S. and Mexico.
I was taken to La Escobilla to experience Wildcoast in action. Just one hour north of Huatulco, this protected beach is where mass turtle nesting happens. This natural phenomenon lasts just four days during rainy season, hundreds of thousands of female sea turtles swinging their way ashore to lay their eggs.
Between threats of dogs, crabs, development and oil spills, the little creatures have the whole world against them. As recently as 2002, turtles hunting was not only a common practice, but an important part of the culture and diet in the Oaxaca communities. Luckily, Wildcoast rescues turtle eggs and recreates habitats by monitoring temperatures and humidity. Thanks to their efforts, the sea turtles have made a major comeback, with now over 72 million turtles being born on the beaches that Wildcoast protects.
I got to hold 50 of the tiny creatures in a bowl. Despite an average laying of 100 eggs, just one in 1, 000 baby turtles will make it to adulthood. Gazing into the bowl, I so badly wanted them to taste the sea and find shelter somewhere deep in the ocean. Finally, it was time to liberate those little creatures. Out spilled the creatures, some moving full steam ahead while others barely paddled in place. Literally, hundreds of them began to spread out across the beach.
With each set of waves, we witnessed the survival of the fittest, some pushing past the whitewash while others crashed back to shore. Their fight for life made my eyes wet. A flock of birds were ready to dive into the sea for their moving targets. “One in 1, 000.” Nature was cruel and compassionate at the same time. After 30 long minutes, the last creature made his way to the sea.
1. The baby turtles are threatened by various factors except ________.| A．the cruel hunters | B．the rapid development |
| C．the extreme weather | D．the oil-polluted ocean |
| A．With slow pace and fear. | B．With all energy and enthusiasm. |
| C．With full caution and curiosity. | D．With great satisfaction and responsibility. |
| A．One baby turtle in 1,000 can make his way to the sea. |
| B．Thousands of baby turtles were crashed back to shore. |
| C．The struggle of baby turtles for life touched the author. |
| D．Baby turtles can hardly survive the harsh living conditions. |
| A．Think twice before you leap. | B．God helps those who help themselves. |
| C．Cease to struggle and you cease to live. | D．When the buying stops, the killing can too. |
8 . How has global warming changed your life? Perhaps you experience hotter summers. But for reindeer herders (驯鹿游牧民), the influence goes far beyond that.
Living in the Arctic region spreading from Russia to Sweden, local reindeer herders make a living by herding. For generations, they have been living in harmony with the cold winters with their deep understanding of snow and ice types, weather patterns and animal behaviors. This allows them to predict and prepare for winters.
However, the warming Arctic is messing up these traditional signals, making herders’ traditional ways of predicting weather less useful. In 2014, during the winter migration (迁徙) southward with their reindeer in North Russia, something unexpected happened. Heavy rainfall formed an ice shield above the lichen (地衣), normally covered by soft snow. Unable to access the lichen beneath the ice, the reindeer suffered from hunger, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of them.
The warming climate goes beyond threatening reindeer herders’ livelihood; it also threatens their culture. “We are an Arctic people, and our culture is written in snow. But climate change means the snow will get less and less,” Henrik Blind, a member of Sami herding family in Sweden, told The Guardian. In his language, there are over 300 words to describe snow. But with less snow, the Sami culture faces the risk of losing elements of its cultural identity.
Despite these challenges, herders have been cooperating with scientists to better deal with climate change. For example, for scientists, the difference between various types of snow is hard to tell. But local people who live with snow every day can see what scientists fail to see. At the same time, satellite data from modern scientists could help predict disasters for the local people. To combine these two different knowledge systems together, the US National Science Foundation set up the Center for Braiding Indigenous Knowledge and Science this September. The goal is to recognize the value of indigenous (土著) knowledge alongside modern research methods.
“We must realize we can’t over-consume our planet. This is urgent. We need to listen to all the indigenous people who know how to live in harmony with the planet,” Blind told The Guardian.
1. What led to the deaths of many reindeer during their winter migration southward in 2014?| A．A disease outbreak after heavy rainfall. |
| B．Food shortage due to ice-covered lichen. |
| C．Attacks by other wildlife. |
| D．Unexpectedly strong snowstorms. |
| A．By reducing language diversity | B．By threatening their cultural elements. |
| C．By changing traditional eating habits. | D．By challenging ice type descriptions. |
| A．To spread indigenous customs. | B．To test modern research methods. |
| C．To predict global natural disasters. | D．To bridge their knowledge gap. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Opposed. | C．Worried. | D．Uninterested. |
9 . Working at a commercial bank in New York City in the mid-2010s, Anna Sacks sensed a lack of meaning in her life. She wanted to do something more fulfilling.
Some people seeking meaning might read a self-help book, or perhaps volunteer a few hours a week. Sacks packed up her life and moved to Connecticut for three months to participate in Adamah, a farming program that focuses on sustainable living and growing sustainable food. Returning to New York, Sacks carried with her a newfound purpose and a set of skills to turn her dreams into reality.
“One of the things that really stuck with me from Adamah was how little waste they produced and how they handled the waste they did have, mostly through composting,” she says. “And I just thought, ‘Why aren’t we doing that here? What is actually in all those bags and recycling bins at the roadsides?’”
The Adamah program opened Sacks’s eyes to the damage consumer culture is doing and the need to find solutions. So in 2016, she started working with a food rescue program, and in 2017, she found her true calling—what she calls “trash walking”.
During walks around her neighborhood, Sacks, 31, picked through trash to look for reusable items. Soon her trash walks expanded to include recycling bins in big companies. Surprisingly, she discovered really great stuff—like clothing and food—all of which she documents on Instagram and TikTok.
Under the name The Trash Walker, Sacks quickly gained popularity for her educational, funny, and surprising videos that highlight the problems with consumerism and share information about how to live a more sustainable lifestyle. “The root issue is overproduction, which leads to over-consumption, which leads to a large amount of waste,” she says.
Sacks is one of the most influential climate change activists on social media today. The lesson from her trash walking isn’t just that we need to produce less stuff. It’s that we need to stop throwing perfectly good items in the trash too.
1. What motivated Anna Sacks to get involved in Adamah?| A．A self-help book she read. | B．Her job at a commercial bank. |
| C．Her desire for a meaningful life. | D．The volunteer experience she had. |
| A．Fast-growing food output. | B．Sustainable living practices. |
| C．Advanced farming techniques. | D．Various waste management methods. |
| A．To improve her living conditions. | B．To gain popularity on social media. |
| C．To advertise her food rescue program. | D．To handle the damage by consumer culture. |
| A．Raising prices on products. | B．Collecting second-hand items. |
| C．Producing high-quality goods. | D．Making full use of products. |
10 . Many green plants that are used to decorate living rooms and kitchens are marketed as air-purifying. However, scientists largely agree that plants can’t do very much to clean an entire room. Now, a Parisian company known as Neoplants is trying to change that by growing genetically modified (转基因的) plants that help remove harmful chemicals from the air.
Its first product, called the Neo P1, is a bioengineered version of the pothos (绿萝). Pothos is characterized by its green leaves and is relatively easy to care for. The Neo P1 is meant to capture and recycle dangerous air pollutants commonly found in homes called volatile organic compounds (挥发性有机化合物VOCs), which are often human-made chemicals. So it’s a popular choice for people looking to beautify their living spaces. But the Neo P1 starts at $179, and to purchase one, potential shoppers must first join a waitlist.
The idea of air-purifying plants came from a 1989 study by NASA, in which regular houseplants were tested in two-by-two-foot rooms. When scientists filled these rooms with VOCs, they found the plants could absorb some of the harmful compounds. “Actually, it’d take about ten houseplants per square foot to noticeably improve air quality,” Michael Waring, an environmental engineer at Drexel University who wasn’t involved with Neoplants, reported in a 2019 study. “Plants, though they do remove VOCs, remove them at such a slow rate that they can’t compete with the air exchange mechanisms already happening in buildings,” Waring said.
As for Neoplants, its Neo Pl was tested in a 35-liter glass room. In it, the Neo P1’s results were 30 times better than NASA’s, according to the company — which means it’d still take a large number of them to clean a room. Currently, the company’s engineers are designing testing sites that more accurately resemble living spaces. To Neoplants’ executives, cleaning the air inside a home is a more logical starting point than trying to filter (过滤) the entire atmosphere.
1. What might prevent the Neo P1 from becoming popular?| A．Its poor quality. | B．Its unstable security. |
| C．Its high maintenance (维护，保养). | D．Its difficult availability. |
| A．Plants can significantly improve air quality in a room. |
| B．Plants contribute little to removing harmful chemicals. |
| C．The Neo P1 plays a big role in removing harmful compounds. |
| D．Houseplants are expected to replace air exchange mechanisms. |
| A．Exploring new ways to genetically modify plants. |
| B．Proving the Neo P1’s effectiveness in a living room. |
| C．Improving the air exchange mechanisms in buildings. |
| D．Designing testing sites that are similar to living spaces. |
| A．How do plants reduce air pollution? | B．What is the best plant to help clean the air? |
| C．Could genetically modified plants clean the air? | D．How can we decorate living rooms with plants? |
