1 . Most of us have heard of the 3Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle. It is the core principle of a sustainable (可持续的) life, but few of us can apply it in our own lives. Now, there’s a “lab” you can explore and discover a way toward living sustainably.
3R Lab is located in Xuhui district, Shanghai. It offers exhibitions, activities and goods that showcase the 3R principle. The key to a sustainable life, according to Vincent T. M. Fong, the 32-year-old from Hong Kong who created the lab, is to make it a long-term promise. “A sustainable life should be sustainable itself in the first place. You can’t lead a sustainable life on a whim. Small and comfortable changes are exactly what you need,” Fong said.
The lab regularly hosts ugly fruit markets, offering these strange fruits which are often thrown away by traditional markets and consumers at a quite attractive price. “They’re thrown away simply because of their appearance. Buying fruit regardless of how they look reduces food waste significantly in our daily life,” Fong commented.
A water tank with two types of straws is another equipment in the lab. “One type is made from normal plastics widely used in our daily life while the other is from PHA, a new replacement for plastics, and the water is sourced from the Suzhou River,” explained Ni Li, an employee of the lab. Visitors can see how the PHA straws degrade (降解) into a thin layer in just one month, while the others remain unchanged.
“Leading a sustainable life does not necessarily mean sacrifice,” said Fong. Consuming ugly fruit and using degradable plastics are small changes that are good for the environment and easy to stick to. Only in this way can the 3R principle become part of our lives, he added.
After working there for six months, Ni, who wasn’t mindful of the 3R principle before arriving at the lab, now uses her cup every time she buys a coffee. “The job has reshaped my life,” Ni said.
1. What does the-underlined phrase “on a whim” in the second paragraph probably mean?A.In a rush. | B.On a regular basis. |
C.Without any reason. | D.As a common practice. |
A.To reduce food waste. | B.To promote healthy eating. |
C.To sell new kinds of fruit. | D.To provide more affordable fruit, |
A.The water pollution caused by plastics. | B.The degradation of PHA straws. |
C.The interaction between two types of straws. | D.The disappearance of normal plastic straws. |
A.She avoids going to traditional markets. | B.She has devoted less time to her hobbies. |
C.She has got rid of a few bad habits. | D.She is leading a low carbon life now. |
2 . More than 170,000 people in California are unhoused. Even as the state has poured resources into fighting against the problem, the number of people without homes has ticked upward in recent years. On the surface, the state has one key advantage for people without a reliable roof over their heads: relatively consistent and livable weather. So one of my first thoughts when I heard news of a horricane attacking Los Angeles was just “What will happen to the city’s homeless population?”
City agencies quickly took action. As it became clear that the Los Angeles region could experience an extreme downpour and subsequent flooding, outreach teams fanned out across the river bank and dam areas across the city that have become home to a significant unhoused population, offering support to move them into shelters and motels (汽车旅馆).
Despite that, it’s obvious that the effects of climate change will hit the most vulnerable (脆弱的) hardest. We see this globally as extreme weather events hit countries that have contributed the least to the problem.
The most notable connection between climate change and the US housing crisis is the threat extreme weather poses to unhoused people. More unhoused people are affected as climate change drives increasingly unpredictable weather. People without homes know how to respond to expected seasonal events. But events like a near-hurricane in Los Angeles or a wildfire in ‘Maui can catch populations with limited access to information off guard.
Another link worth considering is the way in which climate change creates more homelessness and further stresses on housing systems. Hurricane Katrina, for example, displaced 800, 000 people. Four years later, 12,000 people remained without shelter.
Housing has been — and will continue to be — a key issue in Maui too as it recovers from the wildfire that killed more than 100 people. Maui has already had a housing crisis, the result of a high cost of living driven in large part by the tourism industry. And, now, many more are left looking for places to stay. Ashley Kelly, the chief operating officer at Hawaii’s Family Life Center, said: “Finding housing for any new clients is just not possible right now.”
1. What contributes to the increase of the unhoused population in California?A.Its mild weather. |
B.Its inclusive local culture. |
C.Its limited basic facilities. |
D.Its relaxed state policies. |
A.They built dams to prevent flooding. |
B.They moved homeless people to safe places. |
C.They sought low-cost housing from city agencies. |
D.They surrounded the river bank to keep people away. |
A.Mysterious. | B.Exceptional. | C.Changeable. | D.Difficult. |
A.Ways of Americans relocating disaster-affected populations. |
B.The significance of timely weather updates for the homeless. |
C.The link between climate change and the housing crisis in the US. |
D.Approaches of homeless Americans to dealing with natural disasters. |
3 . Scientists have known for years that plants respond to sounds around them. For example, flowers make sweeter nectar (花蜜) to the sound of buzzing bees. But now scientists in Israel have shown that plants also seem to be doing some “talking”.
Professor Lilach Hadany and her team at Tel Aviv University set up microphones to record tomato and tobacco plants under different conditions. Their recordings showed that the plants made ultrasonic (超声波的) sounds.
When the researchers adjusted their recordings so that humans could hear them, they heard sharp clicking noises. Plants clicked hardly at all when they had enough water. But as their soil got drier, they clicked more and more. When scientists cut off a stem (茎) from the plants, the plants also clicked more. But the clicking wasn’t the same as when the plants needed water.
It’s not clear how the plants make the sounds and whether the plants are making the sounds on purpose. But the plants are definitely making noises, and creating much more noises when they’re stressed (not enough water, stem cut off) than when they’re not.
The researchers trained an Artificial Intelligence (AI) system to identify the different kinds of clicking sounds. The system was able to tell the difference between plants that needed water and plants with cuts about 70% of the time. The result suggests that researchers may one day be able to use a plant’s sounds to figure out when it is having trouble, and what trouble it is having. That could be very helpful to farmers.
The new discovery raises many more questions. One important question is: Do plants make sounds to communicate with each other? Other research has shown that plants do seem to communicate in some ways. Plants being attacked by insects send chemicals into the air. Soon, nearby plants (that haven’t been attacked yet) start to make other chemicals that don’t taste good to insects. It’s possible that the ultrasonic sounds could work in a similar way.
1. What do the researchers find in their recordings?A.Plants’ stems click less when they are cut off. |
B.Plants click harder if they have enough water. |
C.Plants make more noises when they are thirsty. |
D.Flowers make sweeter nectar to the sound of bees. |
A.There are still some unknown issues. |
B.Not all of them are able to make sounds. |
C.There are ultrasonic sounds around them. |
D.They make less noises when they’re stressed. |
A.To help farmers drive away insects. |
B.To identify people who are in trouble. |
C.To show the growing process of plants. |
D.To distinguish types of clicking sounds. |
A.Methods for plants to protect themselves. |
B.Other questions raised by the new finding. |
C.When plants communicate with each other. |
D.Under what conditions plants attract insects. |
4 . Amanda and Daines Tanner’s dog jumped onto their bed a few months ago and pawed at their bodies while they were trying to sleep. It was around 5:30 A.m. on a Saturday — the day each week the couple
Amanda Tanner had never seen Axel, their 1-year-old border collie, so
Daines Tanner drove Gabriel to an emergency room in Houston, where doctors determined that he was having a stroke. Gabriel has since
Sabih Effendi, a doctor who
A.lived up to | B.looked forward to | C.looked around | D.lived through |
A.energetic | B.adorable | C.sleepy | D.greedy |
A.demanded | B.forced | C.walked | D.ordered |
A.instead | B.quite | C.indeed | D.rather |
A.knocking | B.looking | C.staring | D.pawing |
A.balance | B.confidence | C.gift | D.courage |
A.further | B.clearer | C.smaller | D.larger |
A.pulled | B.cast | C.noticed | D.insisted |
A.behavior | B.clues | C.symptoms | D.crisis |
A.delicate | B.numb | C.frozen | D.ideal |
A.nearly | B.immediately | C.quickly | D.barely |
A.enhanced | B.regained | C.transformed | D.combined |
A.represented | B.impressed | C.treated | D.spotted |
A.informed | B.awakened | C.grasped | D.encountered |
A.reward | B.possess | C.attach | D.display |
5 . A lot more animals glow under a special light than scientists previously thought. This ability to glow is known as fluorescence (荧光), which happens when light is absorbed as one wavelength and emitted as another wavelength.
Travouillon, a scientist from Harvard, wondered why so many animals had this unusual quality, and he asked one key question: Is there a function behind the ability? To address the question, Travouillon and his team took a closer look at the life histories of the glowing mammals.
The team discovered that the fluorescence was mainly found in light-colored areas of an animal’s skin and fur. Then they looked at where the fluorescence was found in the animal’s body. They compared that to the animal’s diet and how the animals moved. They also checked whether the animal was nocturnal or diurnal, Travouillon explained. Animals that are nocturnal are most active at night, whereas animals that are diurnal are most active during the day.
One finding was that fluorescence was more common among ground-dwelling, tree-dwelling and burrowing mammals compared to animals that live in water, Travouillon said. The team also found that having a fluorescent coat was more common among nocturnal animals compared to diurnal animals. One potential explanation for that fact is that having a fluorescent coat could help no cturnal animals become more visible to potential partners.
“So, for example, with a species like a quoll that has white spots on its back, the fluorescence would simply brighten their spots,” Travouillon said. “In this way, they are more easily seen. Fluorescence might help members of a species find each other and perhaps recognize each other from a distance,” Travouillon added.
On a closing note, Travouillon cautioned wildlife enthusiasts not to go searching for glowing critters with a UV light. That’s because UV light can damage the animal’s eyesight. Instead, if you want to look for animals in the dark, he recommended using a red light, since it isn’t as bright.
1. What kind of animals are most active at night according to the passage?A.Diurnal animals. | B.Nocturnal animals. | C.Glowing animals. | D.Underwater animals. |
A.To live in water. | B.To help them move easily at night. |
C.To see the members of their species clearly. | D.To brighten other nocturnal animals’ spots. |
A.UV light is harmful for the animal’s eyesight. |
B.Wildlife enthusiasts can’t search for glowing critters. |
C.Nocturnal animals can be found easily by wildlife enthusiasts. |
D.Wildlife enthusiasts had better use bright light to search for glowing mammals. |
A.Active mammals with fluorescent. | B.Suggestions for animals enthusiasts. |
C.Animals glow under special lights. | D.Mammals with an unusual ability in the night. |
注意:
1.写作词数应为 80个左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡相应位置作答。
How to Have a Low-carbon Spring Festival
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Plastic production is energy intensive (能源密集型) and consumes fossil fuels. When burnt, waste plastic gives off heat-trapping gases and other pollutants. Once such emissions (排放) reach a certain level, it results
China’s efforts
Over the past decade, China
China has also made great
1. 灾情发生的时间和地点;
2. 灾情造成损失和伤亡情况;
3. 前往救援的人员以及给与的物资和捐款情况。
注意:1. 写作词数应为80左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
A Flood disaster
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The day starts early for Tang Shengli, a bird protection volunteer in Lanshan county, Yongzhou, Hunan province. At about 5 am, the 60-year-old is in uniform and ready to start his day’s work protecting and recording migratory (迁徙的) birds. Located on the northern side of the Nanling Mountains, Lanshan is an important passageway for migratory birds. From September to December every year, more than 240 species of migratory birds fly from Siberia to Australia via Hunan. In the past 10 years, Tang has recorded more than 120 species of such birds with his camera. “The flight calls of the migratory birds at night attract me so much that I cannot sleep. All I want to do is get up and record them,” Tang says.
When Tang joined the Hunan provincial bird protection organization in 2013, he knew he faced a tough task. Numerous migratory birds were lost each year as a result of killing and illegal trade. At that time, poachers (偷猎者) lit up the hillside to attract the birds there and hunt them. Some nights hundreds of birds would be killed or caught, remembers Liao Changgui, an official with the local forestry bureau.
By day, Tang distributes brochures to villagers in Lanshan to raise public awareness of bird protection, while at night, he goes deep into the wilderness to tackle illegal hunting. “Many villagers didn’t think bird hunting was illegal, and some made a living from it. Our work has affected their business,” Tang explains, adding his wife was threatened at their home in order to stop him doing his work.
To stop poaching, in October 2012, the National Forestry and Grassland Administration issued a notice to prevent the illegal hunting of migratory birds. In December that year, the Hunan provincial government promised to fight against poaching and establish a bird monitoring and protection system. So far, 43 migratory bird protection stations have been built across the province, covering almost all key points on the passageway. In 2020, a “lights out” program started in Lanshan county to prevent the birds from being distracted (使分心).
On Nov 1, the Hunan provincial government issued a ban on hunting migratory birds and other wildlife listed under national and provincial protection. Nationwide, the National Forestry and Grassland Administration is carrying out a two-month special action plan to strengthen patrols and remove illegal hunting equipment in national parks, nature reserves and bird migration routes across the country.
1. Why did poachers light up the hillside according to paragraph 2?A.To find their way around the hill. |
B.To search for birds’ nests and catch them. |
C.To draw the birds’ attention to catch them. |
D.To lead the birds to fly safely and in the correct direction. |
A.Give up. | B.Put off. | C.Call for. | D.Deal with. |
A.Ways to punish bird poachers. |
B.Routes migratory birds fly along. |
C.Measures to protect migratory birds. |
D.Reasons why poachers try to capture birds. |
A.Ensuring birds have a safe passage |
B.Important passageway for migratory birds |
C.Flight calls of migratory birds at night attract Tang |
D.Tang records more than 120 species of migratory birds |
10 . Never has there been a primate as big as Gigantopithecus blacki. Adults of this ancient ape (猿) stood about 10 feet tail and could weigh more than 500 pounds, wandering the thick forests of ancient China during the last Ice Age.
Why this impressive animal went extinct has puzzled scientists since the ape was discovered nearly a century ago. But now, a new analysis suggests that the primate’s unique lifestyle left it vulnerable
The new study combines geological dates, pollen records, and clues preserved inside fossil teeth to present a detailed timeline of when, and how, Gigantopithecus blacki went extinct. The results reveal the creature’s decline and ultimate demise in fine detail
Kira Westaway, lead author of the new study and a geochronologist at Macquarie University in Sydney, worked to come up with more accurate dates for the sediments (沉积物) that Gigantopithecus fossils have been found in. Studies of fossil pollen from the Gigantopithecus sites also allowed researchers to study how the animal’s habitat was changing. Prior to 700,000 years ago, both Gigantopithecus and Pongo weidenreichi, another ancient ape, lived in forests where they ate leaves, fruits, and flowers available much of the year round. Due to the environmental changes, dense forests of pines, birches and chestnut relatives gave way to more open habitats with larger patches of grassland However, Gigantopithecus had a difficult time finding preferred foods. Meanwhile Pongo weidenreichi changed its diet to live on-fibrous-plants that were more readily available.
“It was the response of G, blacki to these changes that sealed its fate, ” Westaway says. The giant apes were so big that they had to move on the ground and were limited in how far they could venture, trying to make the most of twigs, bark, and other tough foods that were still accessible. It wasn’t enough.
Yet knowing the ending of the ape’s story hardly closes the case on the giant primate. Did these huge primates follow the same path to extinction, or did the story vary by location? This research opens new questions even as it explains the disappearance of Earth’s most huge ape.
1. What does the new research aim to do?A.To study the climate changes of ancient China. |
B.To analyze the geological features of the last Ice Age. |
C.To solve the mystery of the Gigantopithecus blacki’s extinction. |
D.To present some detailed findings of the Gigantopithecus blacki’s habitat. |
A.Change. | B.Removal. | C.Adaptation. | D.Extinction. |
A.The timing of the giant ape’s disappearance was worked out. |
B.Another ape was included to show their common habitat. |
C.The environmental shift had little impact on the giant ape’s habitat. |
D.Some fossil pollen were studied to reveal the giant ape’s diet preference. |
A.The giant ape responded to the change of its habitat easily. |
B.The inability to adapt quickly caused its disappearance. |
C.The giant ape had sufficient food resources on the grassland. |
D.The forested habitat was still accessible to the giant ape. |