1 . On May 7, “eco-mermaid” Merle Liivand _________her own world record by swimming a full marathon’s distance with a single fin (鳍) in Biscayne Bay, Florida. When Merle Liivand was a child, she had health problems, and began swimming to help her lungs get _________ . In one training session, she nearly wound up swallowing some _________ that was floating in the sea.

That _________ made her think of all the sea animals who faced _________ pollution every day. She decided to work to make people more aware of plastic pollution. Inspired by sea creatures, she began swimming with a special single swimming fin _________ both of her feet. This single fin allows her to swim by _________both of her legs together. She believes swimming with it _________“a bigger message”.

Since 2019, she’s broken records, swimming vast distances—first in California, then in Florida, and this time swimming the _________ of a full marathon. Despite encountering challenges like jellyfish stings, she __________ , collecting trash along her route. Her dedication extends beyond records; it’s about community and global __________.

During her__________, a friend kayaked (划皮划艇) alongside, providing food and water and collecting the trash she __________ . By the end of her marathon, the kayak held three bags full of trash. Liivand’s actions aim to __________ a bigger goal: it’s not just about achievements, but about making a __________ impact on the world.

1.

A．planned

B．kept

C．broke

D．prepared

2.

A．stronger

B．cleaner

C．lighter

D．cooler

3.

A．water

B．plastic

C．sand

D．metal

4.

A．situation

B．cleanup

C．disaster

D．experience

5.

A．different

B．visible

C．similar

D．challenging

6.

A．attached to

B．referred to

C．applied to

D．devoted to

7.

A．connecting

B．removing

C．kicking

D．wiping

8.

A．hides

B．marks

C．finds

D．conveys

9.

A．depth

B．length

C．width

D．breadth

10.

A．persisted

B．relaxed

C．faced

D．paused

11.

A．accomplishment

B．betterment

C．management

D．agreement

12.

A．training

B．adventure

C．travel

D．marathon

13.

A．gathered

B．shared

C．sorted

D．pushed

14.

A．miss

B．review

C．break

D．reach

15.

A．various

B．lasting

C．positive

D．side

2 . As AI becomes popular, researchers have noticed its influence on the environment. Training an AI system requires huge computing power and electricity, and the resulting CO₂ emissions (排放) are one way AI affects the environment. But its environmental effect is more than its carbon (碳)footprint.

Jesse Dodge, a scientist at the Allen Institute, says, "The influence of Al systems is going to be from their applications, not the cost of training them." David Rolnick, a computer scientist at McGill University, compares AI to a hammer (锤子) “The main effect of a hammer is what is being hammered,” he says, "not what is in the hammer." Just like a hammer which can either destroy things or build a house, Al can hurt or help the environment.

In 2019, ExxonMobil, an oil company, said it would use Microsoft’s app Azure. With the Al technology, it would increase its production and create billions of dollars. This means Microsoft's AI is directly contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. This is not the only AI application that could be environmentally harmful. AI behind the ads that jump out on Instagram or Facebook pages pushes customers to spend more on products like clothes. This in turn causes more emissions through more production and delivery.

But on the other side of the coin, there are AI applications that can help deal with environmental problems, such as the destruction caused by hurricanes. One such application is xView2, a program started by a U. S. organization. It can recognize buildings damaged and people trapped in natural disasters, reducing danger and saving time for rescuers.

AI could be a valuable tool in the fight against climate change—if the Al industry can reduce its harmful climate effects. "Both AI and climate rules have roles to play." Rolnick says. When creating Al rules, he suggests considering its applications, emissions, and other production costs. Further, Dodge adds that those AI professionals should help set up some value systems to limit the technology's use.

1. Where does the effect of AI systems on the environment come from according to Dodge?

A．The popularity of AI.	B．The emissions of CO2.
C．The way of applying AI.	D．The cost of AI training.

2. How does the writer develop Paragraph 4?

A．By listing numbers.	B．By giving examples.
C．By comparing facts.	D．By explaining details.

3. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A．Rules for AI can be helpful.	B．Al's advance should be limited.
C．Production costs will be lower.	D．AI plays a role in making rules.

4. What is the main idea of the passage?

A．AI applications are environmentally harmful.

B．AI affects the environment by CO2 emissions.

C．AI is effective in solving environmental problems.

D．AI's environmental effect goes beyond its emissions.

3 . For more than 50 years, seawater has flowed through the Hong Kong’s toilets. And in 2013, Hong Kong built a system that used seawater to cool part of the city. The system sends cold seawater to a factory with heat exchangers. The seawater takes in heat to cool pipes full of circulating (循环的) water. That cooled water then flows into buildings to cool rooms. The slightly warmed seawater is sent back to the ocean. Known as district cooling, this type of system tends to use far less energy than typical air conditioners.

How much water and energy had this strategy saved Hong Kong? And why weren’t other coastal cities doing this? A team at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology set out for answers. They focused on Hong Kong and two other big coastal cities: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and Miami, Fla. The idea was to see what it might look like if all three adopted city-wide saltwater systems.

All three places would save lots of fresh water and energy, the researchers found. These savings came from the more efficient saltwater air conditioning. Though costly to build, saltwater-cooling systems could pay off in the long run for many cities.

The researchers figured out how emissions (排放) of greenhouse gases would drop if each city instead used seawater for cooling and flushing (冲刷). Next, they studied how much pollution would be created to build the new system. They compared these results to see how emissions of climate-warming gases would change for each city.

Hong Kong would see the biggest cut in greenhouse gases if the system were expanded to the whole city. It could drop by some 250,000 tons each year. Miami could see a drop of around 7,700 tons of carbon pollution per year. Saltwater cooling would cause more planet-warming gases in Jeddah than it would save. The reason: Jeddah’s unplanned urban expansion and all the pipes that would be needed to service it. The pollution coming from building such a large system would be higher than what the system would save.

1. What can seawater do in Hong Kong’s district cooling system?

A．It is used to flush all of the toilets.	B．It runs into buildings to cool rooms.
C．It circulates in pipes to warm the air.	D．It absorbs heat to cool the water in pipes.

2. What was the main purpose of the research?

A．To test if saltwater-cooling systems are fit for all coastal cities.

B．To find ways to build more efficient saltwater-cooling systems.

C．To popularize Hong Kong’s energy reduction measures.

D．To apply Hong Kong’s experience to Jeddah and Miami.

3. What are the researchers’ attitude to building a saltwater-cooling system in Jeddah?

A．Supportive.	B．Unclear.
C．Mixed.	D．Opposed.

4. What can we know about saltwater-cooling systems for different cities?

A．Kill two birds with one stone.	B．There is no one-size-fits-all way.
C．Two wrongs don’t make a right.	D．One man’s fault is another man’s lesson.

4 . In late 2017, California-based fine arts photographer Norma Quintana was planning a trip down to her native Puerto Rico to document Hurricane Maria’s destruction. Instead, she and her family found themselves caught in another natural disaster much closer to home. Beginning in early October, the Atlas Fire swept through Napa County and lasted weeks. When Quintana and her family were finally able to return to their property, everything was gone: her home of nearly 30 years, her studio, her photographs, her prints and her collection of over 100 cameras.

Ever an artist at heart, she began photographing the remains of her home and possessions. Those photos would eventually become a series, Forage from Fire. Now, the project can be viewed as part of “Fire Transforms”, a new exhibition at the Palo Alto Art Center. The exhibition mainly explores the following themes: living with fire, learning with fire, and creating with fire. It features photography, paintings, ceramics (陶瓷), sculptures, textiles (纺织品) and digital media.

One of the artists on the exhibition is Linda Gass, a textile artist and environmental activist, who sewed a map of the damage from the 2013 Rim Fire, the largest recorded fire in the Sierra Nevada. Brian Fies’ A Fire Story is a graphic (图表的) novel and an account of the artist’s losing his home in the 2017 Tubbs Fire, along with 6,000 others. At the time, it was California’s most destructive fire, though the Camp Fire in 2018 would be worse.

“Art offers a safe place of comfort after the firestorm has passed,” says Rina Faletti, who is in charge of the exhibition. “How can we learn to transform our fear, sadness, loss, anger and confusion into something more comforting and clear? How can we rest from climate change, even as we face the real losses that fire causes in the face of global change? Thankfully, we have artists to help us.”

1. What happened to Quintana in October 2017?

A．She lost her family members forever.

B．Her home and belongings were destroyed by a fire.

C．Her trip to Puerto Rico was interrupted by a hurricane.

D．She failed to achieve her dream of becoming a photographer.

2. What can be learned about “Fire Transforms”?

A．It mainly deals with seven central themes.

B．It is part of a series called Forage from Fire.

C．It covers a wide range of artworks and media.

D．It is an annual exhibition at the Palo Alto Art Center.

3. What do Gass and Fies have in common?

A．Both are known as environmental activists.

B．Both recorded wildfires through their works.

C．Both played a key role in the 2017 Tubbs Fire.

D．Both experienced the 2013 Rim Fire first-hand.

4. What do Faletti’s words in the text stress?

A．The role of art in fighting climate change.

B．The permanent losses that fire has caused.

C．The progress we’ve made on controlling fire.

D．The influence of artists on preventing global change.

5 . Dressed in a kachhad, a traditional Nepalese clothes, Umesh Balal walked into his meetings at the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) on climate change in Dubai with a sense of determination.

Balal, who has physical disability, was there to publicly _________ inclusion of disability rights in the climate change conference, an aspect that he said has long been _________ by organizers of the world’s largest annual meeting on climate issues.

As a student, Balal was _________ about science and involved himself in research on environmental science. Those were his first few interactions that _________ the climate related issues to him. Being from a mountainous region, Balal _________ more about how climate change had _________ people there, which led him to develop climate anxiety.

The more Balan _________ himself to climate science, the more he learned about the impact of climate change. People with more resources have better chances of _________ the climate crisis. But the less developed countries, for the _________ communities, usually don’t have the same opportunities, which will push them further into the __________

And it is even harder for people with __________. Many people with disabilities in Nepal don’t have __________ to proper education or opportunities for growth. As a result, they aren’t able to advocate for their rights.   

In an interview, Balan said, “__________, I am honored that I come from a supportive family, where I had a chance of good education which __________ me to grow in life. This is what I __________for others, to change the way they live their lives.”

1.

A．control

B．achieve

C．support

D．measure

2.

A．ignored

B．studied

C．respected

D．issued

3.

A．anxious

B．particular

C．worried

D．curious

4.

A．sold

B．lent

C．introduced

D．awarded

5.

A．brought

B．knew

C．complained

D．quarreled

6.

A．affected

B．prepared

C．organized

D．admitted

7.

A．devoted

B．changed

C．limited

D．helped

8.

A．comparing with

B．coping with

C．differing from

D．resulting from

9.

A．warmer

B．cleaner

C．poorer

D．quieter

10.

A．confidence

B．calmness

C．honesty

D．crisis

11.

A．rights

B．disabilities

C．degrees

D．advertisements

12.

A．objection

B．attention

C．access

D．gratitude

13.

A．Fortunately

B．Secretly

C．Similarly

D．Naturally

14.

A．forced

B．ordered

C．warned

D．allowed

15.

A．occupy

B．want

C．cheer

D．blame

6 . With spring around the corner, stores are offering gardeners many choices for seeds. Starting a garden from seeds, rather than buying young plants, is a low-cost way to enjoy many kinds of flowers and food crops.

    1     Everything the plant needs to start growing is in the seed. All you have to do is put it into soil that is a little wet and not let the soil dry out while the seed does its own job. If there are any special requirements, they are usually printed in the simple directions on the back of every seed container.

Planting big seeds is simple.     2     Put the tip of a pencil in water and then use it to pick up each seed. It will hold one seed as you put it into its starting container.

When choosing containers to start plants, you can use any old plastic containers, newspapers or cardboards.     3     But remember to put drainage (排水) holes in each one. If you do not add holes, water can build up in the bottom and cause the seeds to rot.

Gardeners are reminded to be aware that it would be a shame to grow something in a container and then forget what it is called.     4    

And it is never too early to think about the next growing season. Once you have established plants in your garden, consider letting some “go to seed.”     5     That way you will have your own seeds for next year’s garden, and you will not have to buy them at all.

A．As a matter of fact, starting seeds is easy.

B．In fact, choosing the right seeds is important.

C．You can also use egg containers or anything that is available.

D．You can keep the containers inside your house or under a shelter.

E．This means you are growing them for their seeds, not for crops.

F．But very small seeds, like celery seeds, need a little equipment.

G．Write the names of the seeds on the containers to help you remember.

7 . There are more than 500 species of sharks. They are as diverse as the dwarf lantern shark, which is smaller than a human hand, and the whale shark, which can grow as long as a school bus. Given that there are a large number of unique species, some characteristics may be true for one species, but not for another.

Sharks have one of the longest lifespans compared with other animals. Greenland sharks are the longest-living known vertebrate on Earth, according to a study published in the journal Science. Researchers determined that the North Atlantic species likely lives for an average of 272 years, and often doesn’t reach maturity until 150 years of age. And they can live for 400 years, scientists have estimated.

The earliest evidence of shark fossils dates back as far as 450 million years. Additionally, sharks have survived five mass extinctions, one of which destroyed around 96% of all the life in the sea.

Reproduction patterns in sharks vary. On average, sharks give birth after 11 or 12 months of pregnancy, but some sharks, such as the frilled shark and basking shark, can be pregnant for over three years. Some sharks, like mako sharks and bull sharks, give live birth, while other sharks, like cat sharks, lay eggs.

Sharks are mainly silent creatures, as they don’ t have organs for producing sound. Instead of speaking, they communicate through body language. Besides, sharks have a sixth sense——picking up nanoscopic electromagnetic (纳米磁的) currents. This extra sense can help them navigate the ocean and find prey (猎物), or even a mate. With this sense, sharks hunt sick and weak animals, playing a crucial role in keeping the ecosystem healthy.

1. Why does the author mention Greenland sharks?

A．To explain the long history of sharks.

B．To show the long life of shark species.

C．To display the sharks’ survival skills

D．To stress strong competition between sharks.

2. What do the underlined words “Reproduction patterns“ in paragraph 4 mean?

A．Ways of thinking.	B．Ways of hunting.
C．Ways of moving forward.	D．Ways of giving birth to babies.

3. What can sharks’ sixth sense help them do?

A．Find a safe place to hide themselves.

B．Avoid eating weak and sick animals.

C．Make them powerful hunters in the ocean.

D．Communicate effectively with other sea creatures.

4. What is the main idea of the passage?

A．Introduce basic information about sharks.

B．Introduce scientific surveys on sharks.

C．Offer practical advice to protect sharks.

D．Display sharks’ communicative ability.

8 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. What can we learn about the weather in London next Wednesday?

A．The cold air will sweep across the city.

B．There will be a rise in temperature.

C．It may snow there.

2. How will the weather be next Friday?

A．Sunny.

B．Rainy.

C．Snowy.

3. What does the speaker advise people to do in the end?

A．Stay at home.

B．Make a snowman.

C．Wear warm clothes.

9 . In Florida’s Everglades, few species are more closely tied to this place’s health than an endangered bird, the snail kite, which eats just one thing: snails. Over the last century, due to changing environments, these local snails have become hard to find, and the birds are dying out. But the number of snail kites has increased recently thanks to an unusual invasive (入侵的) snail, which is a pretty uncommon event.

Snail kites got their name from their amazing flying ability. They were one of the last bird species discovered in the U. S. because of where they live, often hidden in the Everglades. Over the past century, as many of their living places became pretty dry and water stopped running through parts of the Everglades, the snail kite population fell rapidly. It was one of the first birds put on the endangered species list in the 1960s. And by 2007, fewer than 800 had remained.

Right shortly after that, this invasive snail came in, and just started flourishing and getting into every wetland. Since then, the snail kite population has been slowly increasing. By last year’s count, there are now more than 3,000 snail kites. And, although it’s early in the season, researchers are finding lots of nests with eggs and young birds.

Efforts to restore (恢复) Florida’s Everglades have also helped the snail kite, bringing back local plants and the flow of water. The restoration work has been in place for more than 30 years with a cost of more than $20 billion. But progress is slow.

Though some scientists say the invasive snail may have saved the snail kite, Professor Robert Fletcher is feeling uneasy about the possible influence the species will have on the Everglades over the long term. He says, “What we should be thinking about is how to restore local snails to get those benefits rather than depending on this invasive species that can harm the ecosystem. The snails may already have a bad effect on some local plants, and a sign trouble may be showing soon.”

1. What does the uncommon event in the first paragraph refer to?

A．The snail kite’s population keeps changing.

B．The local snail kite has found a new food source.

C．An invasive snail positively influences a local species.

D．A local snail has lost its living places to an invasive snail.

2. What is the real reason behind the snail kite’s trouble?

A．Their losing good flying ability.	B．The absence of a protection list.
C．The appearance of an invasive snail.	D．Their long-lasting dry living conditions.

3. What does the underlined word “flourishing” in Paragraph 3 mean?

A．Falling slowly.

B．Growing rapidly.

C．Changing quickly.

D．Disappearing largely.

4. What do the efforts in Paragraph 4 suggest?

A．The restoration work in the Everglades has stopped.

B．Bringing the Everglades to its normal condition is difficult.

C．The Everglades is facing different kinds of natural disasters.

D．Protecting the Everglades’ water is key to snail kites’ survival.

10 . 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。

It was 3: 34 in the morning. I was in our apartment on the 22nd floor.

I went to bed at around 2 o’clock in the morning, but for some reason I woke up a minute or so before the quake started. I was comfortable in my bed, about to fall asleep again when suddenly the bed started moving a little. That bed used to move a lot, so I just thought it was my wife rolling over. I looked over to her and she was fast asleep. She wasn’t moving.

My first thought was: OK, it’s just another small quake. We used to get a lot of small quakes in Chile. But this one kept going and then got a bit stronger. It was enough to wake my wife up and she asked me, “Is the room shaking?” It is our way of asking: Are we experiencing a mild earthquake? The noise of the perfume bottles hitting each other in the bathroom and the hanging wine glasses clanging against each other in the dining room confirmed what was happening. I thought, OK, this is just a strong quake, no reason to get out of bed.

When an earthquake starts to get stronger, we have learnt that we have to open the front door because they sometimes become stuck when the building starts to sway (摇晃). So, I went to open the front door while my wife went to see how the kids were. They were still fast asleep. However, on the way to the front door, the shaking increased considerably. When I turned around to go back to the bedroom, the full force of the earthquake started to hit. I had never felt an earthquake that was so strong. I couldn’t move forward and I had to hold onto the wall to stay up on my feet.

The earthquake gave a final strong push of intensity (强度) and then our lights went out. This is the only time in my life when I honestly thought I was going to die.

注意：1.续写词数应为150个左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

The terrible shaking eventually stopped.

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Once we were ready, we woke the kids up.

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