1 . In today’s world, where the consequences of climate change are becoming increasingly evident, the need for energy conservation has never been more pressing.
Use your laptop more than your desktop
Laptops use an average of 20 to 50 watts of electricity to run, whereas desktop computers use an average of 60 to 200 watts of electricity to run. The reason for this is that laptops run off of battery power and desktops are continuously plugged into a power source that drains energy.
Charge your phone in airplane mode and before bedtime
While charging, switch your phone to airplane mode, so that the phone does not slow down the charging process by continually burning energy trying to connect with cell phone towers and plot your location with its GPS function. When you switch to airplane mode your phone charges more quickly.
The brighter the screen setting, the more power it uses and vibration uses more energy than a ringtone.
Unplug mobile phone and laptop chargers
Always unplug electronics and appliances when not in use.
Reduce your carbon footprint by organizing your files and eliminating unnecessary data from cloud storage! Companies offering cloud data storage need warehouses filled with servers running nonstop. These data centers consume massive amounts of energy since they require AC systems to avoid overheating.
A.Low Power Mode also saves battery life |
B.Delete unwanted files from cloud storage |
C.Saving energy is now easier with these tips from UNICEF |
D.Therefore, energy conservation has never been more pressing |
E.Unused electronic appliances may produce harm to the environment |
F.Deenergization will save you energy, money, and can prevent electrical fires |
G.Make sure to unplug your laptop from the power source once it’s fully charged |
2 . In 2014, a second year student at the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts went to Beijing Zoo with friends. Little did he know that an encounter at the aquarium there would
Today, Xu, a Beijing native, has
Each day, he spends several hours diving deep under the waves to observe and
Xu is actively engaged on social media platforms like Sina Weibo, where he regularly shares
While pursuing his passion to protect corals, he met his life partner, Liu Xiwen, through their
A.celebrate | B.change | C.excite | D.strengthen |
A.watched over | B.gazed on | C.spied on | D.looked into |
A.mystery | B.vitality | C.prosperity | D.nobility |
A.decided on | B.settled in | C.flown to | D.adapted to |
A.collector | B.gardener | C.enthusiast | D.conservationist |
A.analyze | B.trace | C.document | D.boost |
A.attracted | B.ruled | C.broke | D.cured |
A.fundamental | B.educational | C.environmental | D.biological |
A.status | B.standard | C.awareness | D.fondness |
A.positively | B.effectively | C.actively | D.comprehensively |
A.actually | B.naturally | C.scientifically | D.visually |
A.take time | B.take charge | C.take side | D.take action |
A.destructive | B.aggressive | C.passive | D.active |
A.widespread | B.cultivated | C.shared | D.agreed |
A.in-charge | B.in-depth | C.in-width | D.in-store |
3 . The Maasai people are the most easily identifiable in Kenya with their very colorful clothing and ornaments on the body. They live a nomadic life, raising and hunting animals near some of Kenya’s most visited wildlife parks.
It is a tradition for a young Maasai man, called a moran in the Maasai language, to kill a lion alone with a spear to show that he is a man. With the kill, a moran would be able to win a “lion name” and admiration among young women.
Mingati Samanya, at the age of 69, is one of the Maasai elders. During his youth, Samanya killed two lions to show he was a man.
A.It can help provide for their families. |
B.Quite often women also join in the events. |
C.That is how he had the “lion name” Mingati. |
D.Here comes how they protect the rights of the Maasai. |
E.But the Maasai seem to be ending the tradition. |
F.However, their hunting has often been taken as a threat to the lions. |
G.On a Saturday, the morans near Kimana will compete for rewards. |
My best friend, Cocoa, and I live in a senior-citizen apartment complex in a lovely small town. Cocoa is a ten-year-old poodle(卷毛狗) and I am a sixty-nine-year-old lady, so you can see we both qualify as senior citizens.
Years ago, I promised myself that when I retired I would get a chocolate poodle to share my golden years. From the very beginning, Cocoa has always been exceptionally well-behaved. I never have to tell him anything more than once. He is extremely neat—when taking toys from his box to play, he always puts them back when he is finished. I have been accused of being obsessively neat, and sometimes I wonder if he mimics me or if he was born that way, too.
He is a wonderful companion. When I throw a ball for him, he picks it up in his mouth and gives it back to me. He does many amusing things that make me laugh, and when that happens, he is so delighted that he just keeps it up. I enjoy his company very much.
But almost two years ago, Cocoa did something that challenged comprehension. Was it a miracle or a coincidence? It is certainly a mystery.
One afternoon, Cocoa started acting strangely. I was sitting on the floor playing with him when he started pawing and sniffing at the right side of my chest. He had never done anything like this before, and I told him, “No.” Usually, one “no” is sufficient, but not that day. He stopped briefly, then suddenly ran toward me from the other side of the room, throwing his entire weight—eighteen pounds—at the right side of my chest. He crashed into me and I yelled in pain. It hurt more than I thought it would have.
Soon after this, I felt a lump (肿瘤). I went to the doctors, and after X-rays, tests and lab work were done, they told me I had cancer.
注意:1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
When cancer starts, a wall of calcium(钙) builds to which the lump or cancer attaches itself.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Was Cocoa just aware of what he was doing?
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________5 . Dogs have a different way of seeing the world compared to human beings. As a result of this, they heavily rely on their body language to pass their messages to people.
If you pay close attention to your dog, you will notice that at some point it will curl up just like a fox. In such cases, the paws will be curled up underneath their bodies and their tail will be well wrapped around them. This shows that the dog is probably feeling cold. Curling up helps them keep more body heat.
A.Dogs may sometimes be grass-eating animals |
B.Eating grass is not the most uncommon thing for a dog |
C.Read the text to find out more on what your dog is trying to tell you |
D.It’s a sign that they want to play or simply need something from you |
E.You may feel the joy of your dog or feel it cute to see such baby-like gesture |
F.If this happens a lot, take your dog to the vet to ensure their safety |
G.If you see your dog doing this, throw a blanket over them to help them feel warmer |
6 . Architects often spend months or even years perfecting a design to express their ideas more clearly, convey additional information, or outline the right proportions for a building. However, the urgent issue of climate change is placing new demands on their work. For example, in July, Super Typhoon Doksuri battered China, affecting more than 2.66 million people in Fujian Province alone.
Green architecture that conserves energy and reduces carbon dioxide emissions offers a solution, and concerted efforts have been made in diverse research fields over the past three decades to minimize heat loss. In addition, new buildings have to be tailored to the needs of people’s lifestyles.
Ren Jun, a professor at Tianjin University’s School of Architecture, who designed the first near-zero energy house in China in December 2019, said, “You can construct low-energy, environmentally-friendly houses, but if the interior design and environmental quality don’t meet residents’ requirements, these properties won’t be suitable to live in.”
The near-zero energy house, located-in Banbidian village in Beijing’s southern district of Daxing, won the International Design Award in the United States in January last year. The 400-square-meter property, which stands at the entrance to the village, runs on solar power gathered from rooftop panels, with the addition of a small amount of power from the grid (电网).
Ren said the first obstacle to conserving energy in the property was heat retention, which he attempted to achieve by keeping the indoor temperature at a certain level. The property is divided into five areas: a solar garden in the front yard, a central lounge, a water courtyard, a sponge zone, and a back room. For the exterior walls, Ren used three types of insulation (隔热层), including plastic foam, each about 25 centimeters thick.
Ren also looked for ways to deal with emissions at the house. He decided to install a ventilator, which pipes air that is polluted and replaces it with fresh air from outside in every room at the property.
Ren said it would take three to five years before more ultralow or near-zero energy buildings appeared in Chinese cities.
1. Which is not an important factor for designing green houses?A.Energy consumption. | B.Carbon emission. |
C.People’s lifestyle. | D.Architecture style. |
A.The house consumes little electricity. |
B.The house is deliberately designed to keep heat. |
C.The house is equipped with many intelligent facilities. |
D.The house is the first International Design Award-winning building in China. |
A.He designed the house in five stories to trap heat in it. |
B.He applied 75 centimeters of plastic foam to exterior walls. |
C.He tailored the interior design to the demand of local people. |
D.He installed a ventilator to cut down carbon dioxide emissions. |
A.Green Homes Offer Hope amid Climate Change |
B.Green Houses Feature Near-Zero Energy Consumption |
C.Ren Jun Won the International Design Award |
D.China Strives for Low Carbon Strategy with Green Houses |
Mount Fanjing National Nature Reserve is located in the northeastern part of Tongren City in the Province of Guizhou. With a total area of 43,411 hectares (公顷) and 96.5 percent forest
In January of 2013, Tongren City officially applied
8 . Any schoolchild knows that a whale breathes through its blowhole. Fewer know that a blowhole is a nostril (鼻孔) slightly changed by evolution into a form more useful for a mammal that spends its life at sea. And only a dedicated expert would know that while toothed whales, such as sperm whales, have one hole, baleen (鲸须) whales, such as humpback and Rice whales, have two.
Even among the baleen whales, the placing of those nostrils differs. In some species they are close together. In others, they are much further apart. In a paper published in Biology Letters Conor Ryan, a marine biologist at the Scottish Association for Marine Science, suggests why that might be. Having two nostrils, he argues, helps whales smell in stereo (立体空间).
Many types of baleen whales eat tiny animals known as zooplankton (浮游动物), which they catch by filtering (过滤) them from seawater using the sheets of fibrous baleen that have replaced teeth in their mouths. But to eat something you first have to find it. Toothed whales do not hunt by scent. In fact, the olfactory bulb—the part of the brain that processes smell—is absent in such creatures. But baleen whales still have olfactory bulbs, which suggests smell remains important. And scent can indeed give zooplankton away. Zooplankton like to eat other tiny creatures called phytoplankton (浮游植物). When these are under attack, they release a special gas called dimethyl sulphide, which in turn attracts baleen whales.
Most animals have stereoscopic senses. Having two eyes, for instance, allows an animal to compare the images from each in order to perceive depth. Having two ears lets them locate the direction from which a sound is coming. Dr Ryan theorized that paired blowholes might bring baleen whales the same sorts of benefits.
The farther apart the sensory organs are, the more information can be extracted by the animal that bears them. The researchers used drones to photograph the nostrils of 143 whales belonging to 14 different species. Sure enough, baleen whales that often eat zooplankton, such as the North Atlantic right whale, have nostrils that are farther apart than do those, such as humpback whales, that eat zooplankton occasionally. Besides allowing them to breathe, it seems that some whales use their blowholes to determine in which direction dinner lies.
1. What do we know about whales’ nostrils according to the first two paragraphs?A.They are adapted ones. | B.They are developed merely for smell. |
C.They are not easy to detect. | D.They are fixed universally in numbers. |
A.The teeth that baleen whales have. |
B.The smell that phytoplankton send. |
C.The sound waves that zooplankton create. |
D.The chemical signals that zooplankton give off. |
A.By quoting a theory. | B.By using examples. |
C.By making contrast. | D.By making inferences. |
A.The sense of smell. | B.The possibility to attract food. |
C.The ability to locate food. | D.The ability to communicate. |
Lǎozìhào refers to the old and famous shops, which have always been reliable and trustworthy and still enjoy
These famous and time-honored shops, eg, Quanjude and Tongrentang,
But these shops are more about businesses; they are also a historical and cultural phenomenon. He
Nowadays, with the rapid development of economy and fierce competition in modern society, some Lǎozìhào shops have been keeping pace
10 . In the Seychelles archipelago (塞舌尔群岛) in East Africa, flooding and erosion (侵蚀) caused by rising sea level pose an incoming threat to the country’s many low-lying islands. At the same time its mangrove forests (红树林), which serve as a vital aspect against these impacts, are disappearing: Approximately 70% of Seychelles mangroves have been destroyed since the late 1700s due to human-driven development and agriculture as well as soil erosion from sea-level rise.
Today the Seychelles Government is working with local community leaders to restore the mangroves, and not just for protection against rising sealevel. Research shows that these forests can store about 2.5 million tonnes of CO2 (equal to taking 500,000 cars off the road for a year), directly helping to fight climate change. They also provide a breeding ground for fisheries, a sector that contributes one-fifth of the country’s GDP, benefiting local communities’ livelihood and helping to protect the islands’ lively biodiversity (多样性).
While the concept of using nature to benefit both lives and lands is by no means new, global interest in “nature-based solutions” has skyrocketed in recent years. Many now see nature-based solutions as a key approach for addressing not only climate change but a range of social, environmental and economic challenges — from biodiversity loss, food security and air pollution to disease control and declining local economies.
Yet there remains widespread debate about what exactly constitutes a nature-based solution as well as how to best include these strategies into broader climate and conservation efforts. This indetermination has contributed to significant under-investment: It’s estimated that to limit temperature rise to below 1.5 degrees C (degrees F), hold back biodiversity loss and control land degradation (恶化), annual investments in nature-based approaches must be three times by 2030.
As nature-based solutions continue to rise on the global agenda, building a more consistent understanding around the concept and its implications will be key to raising support for effective, extensive solutions that benefit both people and the planet.
1. What do the first two paragraphs focus on?A.The diversity of economy in East African. |
B.The environmental protection in East Africa. |
C.The disappearance of mangroves in East Africa. |
D.The operation of nature-based solutions in East Africa. |
A.Novel. | B.Effective. | C.Ruinous. | D.Uncertain. |
A.500,000 cars are taken off the road. |
B.Yearly investment increases by double. |
C.The temperature rise is limited to below 2.7℃. |
D.A conference on nature-based solutions is held. |
A.What Exactly Are Nature-based Solutions? |
B.Why Are Nature-based Solutions on the Rise? |
C.How Can Nature-based Solutions Help Fight Climate Change? |
D.What Are the Potential Weaknesses of Nature-based Solutions? |