1 . The environment has never been more in need of a helping hand from us. Schools, in particular, are in a great position to educate future generations and make sure that good environmental habits are learned and adopted from an early age. So, ranging from energy efficiency to recycling, here are our tips to make your school more eco-friendly and sustainable.
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Sending waste to landfill to slowly rot away isn’t the best use of the world’s resources. Plus, the space available for landfill is rapidly running out. Instead, boost recycling by providing appropriate and appealing facilities with clear signage (标识).
☆Turn off the lights and fit energy-efficient light bulbs
Saving energy used for lighting is one of the easiest things that we can do.
☆Go paperless
☆Reject plastic water bottles
Recent television programs and campaigns have raised the issue of waste plastic towards the top of the environmental agenda. In some ways, this isn’t surprising because, again, it is relatively easy for everyone to make a difference to the environment with minimal effort.
A.Encourage and enable recycling |
B.The world is becoming ever more digital |
C.All it takes is a little bit of planning ahead |
D.Get everyone involved with clean-up days |
E.It will also save money on buying traditional materials |
F.Try to maximize the use of natural light as much as possible |
G.This is the key to preventing pollution of different waste streams |
2 . Melissa Sevigny, a science journalist for Arizona Public Radio, recounts the details of the 1938 river journey of Elzada Clover and Lois Jotter, who, along with their guide, Norm Nevills, and a few other crew members, traveled down the Colorado River with the goal of cataloging (登记) undiscovered plants in the area. The Colorado River was known as the most dangerous river in the world. But for Clover and Jotter, it held-a great appeal: no one had surveyed the Grand Canyon’s plants, and they were determined to be the first.
As women scientists, Clover and Jotter faced scrutiny (监督) even before their trip began. They started in Green River, Utah, and then traveled through Cataract Canyon, Glen Canyon, and the Grand Canyon before ending at Lake Mead. For Clover, the trip fit perfectly with her dream of cataloging all the Southwest’s cacti (a kind of plant), but, more than that, it was a chance to make her mark on the field of botany. As they made their way down the river, they continued to face challenges, including navigating intense rapids, losing one of their three boats, and dealing with aggressive reporters and inaccurate and imaginary news reports. When Clover and Jotter finally reached the entrance of the Grand Canyon, they felt apprehensive, but they decided they had no choice now but to brave the wild river.
Drawing information from the crew’s letters and journals, Sevigny brings us directly into the boats and introduces us to many of the plants that Clover and Jotter surveyed and collected. The author also includes a map of the route and photographic images of the crew at different points along the way. Woven (编织) throughout the narrative of Clover and Jotter is the early history of travel on the Colorado River as well as how Indigenous peoples, Europeans, and the Park Service have shaped the eco logy of the river over time.
As the author notes, women in science still face challenges and barriers; Sevigny hopes that recalling the past will lead to a fairer future.
1. What motivated Clover and Jotter to make the journey?A.The native cultures. | B.The plants of the Grand Canyon. |
C.The scenery along the river. | D.The Southwest’s cactus species. |
A.Relieved. | B.Guilty. | C.Anxious. | D.Pleased. |
A.They were aided by reporters all the way. |
B.They ended their journey with losing three boats. |
C.They pioneered in surveying the Colorado River. |
D.They took many precious photos alongside the trip. |
A.A diary entry. | B.A book review. |
C.A news report. | D.A travel journal. |
3 . On Inaccessible Island, you hear the sound of the Inaccessible Island rails (秧鸡) everywhere. The small flightless birds move around, feeding on worms and berries. During a trip in 2011, it took days for Stervander, then a doctoral student, to spot one. “Even then, you see something little and dark, running for a second, and that’s about it,” he says. Catching one, though, proved easy. When scientists played a recording of the bird’s call, a male and female ran into the net a few minutes later.
Inaccessible Island rails live only on Inaccessible Island. “No one knew the history,” says Stervander, now a research fellow at the University of Oregon. He aimed to answer the question about these birds: How did they get to Inaccessible Island to begin with?
The first scientist to describe the rail was Percy Lowe. He thought the bird was from Africa and had always been flightless. In his view, it had arrived at the island by walking over land bridges. But now the science of plate tectonics (板块构造论) suggests that’s not the case. In a recent paper, Stervander and his colleagues give evidence for a different version.
After studying the genome (基因组) of the rails, scientists found the Inaccessible Island rail’s closest relative — the crake in Uruguay. Both birds are related to the black rail in America. The finding suggests the ancestors of these birds could fly. That means Inaccessible Island rails flew to their present home, and like many birds living on islands with no predators (捕食者), they gradually lost the ability to fly. Flying takes energy, so if there’s no reason to fly, it’s more practical not to.
On this island, there’s a growing population of rails, but they’re fragile. Should a predator reach the island, it could make quick work of the birds. People on nearby islands are careful to avoid introducing any predators to Inaccessible Island, and the risk is low, given how hard it is to get there. For now, the rails live peacefully in a place where few humans are eager to go.
1. What can we learn about the Inaccessible Island rails?A.They are hard to trap. | B.They can be seen everywhere. |
C.They move around quickly. | D.They are not afraid of humans. |
A.Their lack of energy. | B.Their living environment. |
C.Their way to search for food. | D.Their connection with their ancestors. |
A.Safe. | B.Tough. | C.Unexpected. | D.Dangerous. |
A.The Development of Rails on Inaccessible Island |
B.The Need to Protect Flightless Inaccessible Island Rails |
C.How Did the Flightless Bird Get to Inaccessible Island? |
D.Why are Inaccessible Island Rails Limited on the Island? |
4 . We love our pets. In fact, for most people they are more than me re pets and become more like family members. It is likely then that their owners, at some point, are going to want photographs of their furry friends. However, pet photography presents its own special problems.
Find out about your subject’s personality and habits. Where does it nod off if the sun is out? What is its favourite toy?
See the world from pets’ perspective. If you photograph a pet while you’re standing up, all you’re going to see is the top of their head and their backs, not what you want for a portrait. Get down to their eye level. Try pre-focusing your camera and just holding it at ground level so you can look up at the pet.
Bring a flash with the owner’s permission. While greeting or playing with a new pet, fire a couple of test flashes away from them to see their reaction. In daylight particularly, they never seem to mind the flash at all.
A.Think about getting in close to your subject. |
B.It’s worth a try just for a new angle on things. |
C.Animals can be unpredictable, lazy, aggressive and excitable. |
D.A good photograph focuses on the subject and not the background. |
E.If they do mind, then stick with natural light and use a white reflector. |
F.The more you shoot, the greater your chances of hitting that perfect shot! |
G.Take time to chat with the owner and observe your subject to gain some insight. |
5 . Globally, about 192.1 million animals are used annually for experimental purposes. Iran has conducted animal-based research dating back to the time of Ibn Sina. Although, like many countries, Iran regulates the use and treatment of laboratory animals, it lacks sufficient enforcement. To ensure ethical treatment of research animals, Iran needs better data about their use, and institutions and individuals need to take responsibility for their care.
Iran’s Ministry of Health, which oversees animal testing, requires all animals are treated according to international ethical standards. However, some institutions that produce or use animals provide substandard treatment, disregarding the ministry’s guidelines. To facilitate better enforcement of established regulations, Iran needs clear, accurate and reliable information about the quantity of animals used in research. All Iranian research institutions that use animals should be required to collect and report annual data on the number of animals they use, the conditions in which the animals are kept, and the animals’ research purpose. Such data would allow Iran to track each institution’s adherence (遵守) to the “3Rs”of animal research: Replacing animal-based experiments with alternative strategies, reducing the number of animals used, and refining techniques to minimize the pain and discomfort research animals experience.
In addition to government enforcement, individual institutions should prioritize the replacement, reduction, and refinement of animal use. Iran’s medical schools and research institutions should establish an accessible database with comprehensive experimental details to prevent excessive animal studies. Ethics committees shouldn’t approve experiments that use more animals than necessary or methods that require animals when alternative methods are available. In some cases, technical sampling (using a small sample size) can replace experimental sampling (using a relatively large sample size).
Individuals should also take an active role. All researchers must be trained to adhere to ethical principles and understand unnecessary pain or discomfort in animals could affect the interpretation of data.
Maintaining international ethical standards for animal treatment is vital for Iran to establish its global standing in the field of medical sciences. Iran’s government, institutions, individual scientists, and public can work together to ensure ethical animal research.
1. What is the main idea of paragraph 1?A.The origin of Iran’s animal-based research. |
B.The regulations of Iran’s research into animals. |
C.The development of Iran’s animal-based research. |
D.Moral concerns for Iran’s research animals’ welfare. |
A.To follow the ministry’s guidelines. |
B.To be in control of animal-based research. |
C.To ensure the adherence to the “3Rs” in animal-based research. |
D.To replace animal-based experiments with alternative strategies. |
A.To follow government regulations. |
B.To reduce unnecessary animal-based studies. |
C.To make research more visible to the public. |
D.To ensure the accuracy of experimental results. |
A.To encourage cooperation for ethical animal-based research in Iran. |
B.To promote the use of an accessible experimental database in Iran. |
C.To highlight ethics committees’ role in animal-based research in Iran. |
D.To stress international ethical standards in animal-based research in Iran. |
6 . Evolution (进化) can perform extraordinary makeovers; today’s airborne songbirds evolved from the wingless, earthbound dinosaurs that wandered millions of years ago. But some organisms seem to be unchanged — in other words, escape natural selection. The coelacanth, a modern-day fish, is nearly identical to its 410-million-year-old fossils.
Scientists have long wondered how these species do so. It has been assumed that natural selection keeps some species unchanged by selecting for moderate or average qualities (stabilizing selection) rather than selecting for more extreme qualities that would cause a species to change (directional selection).
But a study published in the National Academy of Sciences USA contradicts this idea, showing that evolution constantly favors different qualities in seemingly unchanging animals to improve short-term survival. In the long term, though, “all that evolution cancels out and leads to no change,” says the study’s lead author, James Stroud.
Stroud and his colleagues studied for lizard (蜥蜴) specios; all relatively unchanged for 20 million years. The researchers caught members of these populations every six months for three years. They measured each lizard’s head size, leg length, mass and height, as well as the size of its sticky toes (脚趾头), noting which individuals survived. Stroud expected to observe stabılızıng selection at work preserving moderate qualities. Instead he saw clearer evidence of directional selection: some lizards with unique characteristics, such as stickier toes, survived better.
“The study offers a good explanation for why we see what we think is stabiliring selection,” says Tadashi Fukami, an ecologist studying evolution at Stanford University. Many new qualities are evolving in the short term, but they don’t provide a crucial advantage over the long term. In other words, species staying unchanged may simply have found the best possible combination of qualities for lasting success in their environment. So what happens when the lizards’ environment changes more dramatically? To help answer this bigger question, Stroud is still making trips to visit the lizards.
1. Why does the author mention the “coelacanth fish” in paragraph 1?A.To demonstrate the power of evolution. | B.To add evidence to natural selection. |
C.To give an example of unchanged species. | D.To prove species' extraordinary makeovers. |
A.Unsolved mysteries. | B.A common belief. |
C.A sharp contrast. | D.Unique Characteristics. |
A.By analyzing lizard fossils. | B.By tracking research objects. |
C.By illustrating stabilizing selection. | D.By categorizing qualities of lizards. |
A.Make trips to visit lizard experts. | B.Summarize average features of lizards. |
C.Reveal the best combinations of qualities. | D.Examine lizards under extreme conditions. |
A freezing downpour washed the street in front of the small-town bar. I sat gazing into the watery darkness, alone as usual. I had been in that old bar for half an hour, quietly thinking, when my thoughtful eyes finally focused on a medium-sized lump in a puddle (水洼) a hundred feet away. For another ten minutes, I looked out through the window trying to decide if the lump was an animal or just something.
The night before, a dog named Shep had come into the bar begging for potato chips. He was starving and just the size of the lump in the puddle. Why should a dog lie in a cold puddle in the freezing rain? I asked myself. The answer was simple: Either it wasn’t a dog, or it was, and he was too weak to get up.
The wound in my right shoulder ached all the way down my fingers, I didn’t want to go out in the storm. Hey, it wasn’t my dog. It was just a stray on a cold rainy night, a lonely drifter(流浪者). So was I, I thought, as I gulped (大口吞咽) down what was left of my drink and headed out the door.
He was lying in the three inches of water. When I touched him, he didn’t move. I thought he was dead. I put my hands around his chest and raised him to his feet. He stood unsteadily, and his head hung like a weight at the end of his neck. His floppy ears were just hairless pieces of flesh dotted with open sores (伤口).
“Come on, Shep,” I said, leading him to a corner next to the bar, where he lay on the cold cement floor and closed his eyes. A block away I could see the lights of a late-night convenience store. It was still open. I bought three cans of dog food and fed him. He couldn’t swallow but looked at me. He was dying!
注意: 1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右;2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The local vet was still at his office, so I loaded the poor creature into a taxi and headed there.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A week later, when I opened the door of the vet’s, Shep welcomed me with wild enthusiasm.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________8 . Are worms the heroes we didn’t know we needed? Silent, slimy and wriggling (扭动), you might think that worms are good for nothing except bait (诱饵) on the end of a fishing pole.
The British naturalist Charles Darwin said that no other animal has “played such an important part in the history of the world as these lowly organised creatures”. They have lived on Earth for 600 million years and have even survived five mass extinctions.
Earthworms literally move the earth, and this is why farmers love them. As they travel, they aerate (使透气) the soil by loosening, mixing and oxygenating it.
In 2022, a group of scientists at the Margarita Salas Centre for Biological Research isolated enzymes (酶) found in wax worm saliva (唾液) which are plastic-eating.
So, next time you see a worm, show it a little respect. They really are changing the world!
A.So, what do worms do that is so great? |
B.Worms have a lifespan of a few months. |
C.And worms are even inspiring the building industry. |
D.It increases the ground’s capacity to hold and empty water. |
E.However, there is more to the humble worm than meets the eye. |
F.Humans produce more than 300 million tons of plastic every year. |
G.These can break down a very common plastic that normally breaks down over many years. |
The English word “garden” gives an entirely wrong idea of the Chinese yuan, for “garden” suggests a lawn and a wide
No Chinese house allows an outsider
Adaptation from My Country and My People by Lin Yutang
10 . Four of the world’s greatest national parks
KomodoLocation: Indonesia
Area: 1, 733km2
Home to the world’s largest lizard (蜥蜴), the Komodo dragon, Komodo National Park is made up of 29 islands in the centre of the Indonesian archipelago (群岛). The park’s three main islands of Komodo, Rinca and Padar make ideal destinations for divers, as the surrounding coral reefs support a vast amount of oceanic diversity. With over 1, 000 species of fish, 260 species of coral, and countless sea animals, this is an ideal spot to swim with sharks, whales, dolphins and more.
Namib-NaukluftLocation:Namibia
Area: 49, 768km2
In the world’s oldest desert, the landscape moves. The golden dunes shift as winds blow and seasons pass. Visitors come to explore the dunes and it can be a real adventure. Jump in a 4×4 or hike across the sands on foot for a multi-day trail and you’ll soon find yourself deep in the Namibian wilderness. You’ll need a permit and doctor’s letter to take on the longer hikes, but one-day hikes give anyone a chance to see more of the Namib.
TongariroLocation: New Zealand
Area: 795km2
As New Zealand’s oldest national park, Tongariro National Park is home to three active volcanoes. And here’s the Tongariro. Alpine Crossing, a 19.4-kilometre hike that takes you across beautiful landscapes. This park also draws in skiers during the winter seasons. The biggest ski area, Whakapapa, covers 5.5km2 and has 15 lifts in all.
TeideLocation: Tenerife, Spain
Area: 190km2
This park is home to Mount Teide, the highest peak in Spain. With a height of 3,718 metres, Mount Teide is also the third largest volcanic structure on the planet. Besides, Teide National Park possesses unique plants. The most unusual among the 139 recorded species is red bugloss, which has become the symbol of the park.
1. What can visitors do in Komodo National Park?A.Hike across the biggest ski area Whakapapa. |
B.Go diving on its 29 islands. |
C.Have an up-close encounter with ocean life. |
D.Play with the Komodo dragon. |
A.Teide National Park. | B.Komodo National Park. |
C.Tongariro National Park. | D.Namib-Naukluft National Park. |
A.Both are well-known for their volcanoes. |
B.Both own more than 100 plant species. |
C.Both ate perfect choices for skiers. |
D.Both feature golden dunes. |