Plastic pollution at sea is reaching     1     (worry) levels. According to a review of hundreds of academic studies, it will continue to grow even if significant action is taken now     2     (stop) such waste from reaching the world’s oceans. The review by Germany’s Alfred Wegener Institute examined almost 2, 600 research     3     (paper) on the topic to provide an overview ahead of a United Nations meeting later this month.

As plastic breaks down into smaller pieces, it also enters the marine food chain,    4     (take) in by sea creatures from whales to turtles. What’s worse, some regions already contain dangerous levels of plastic, and others risk becoming     5     (increasing) polluted in the future. Getting that plastic out of the water again is nearly impossible,    6     policymakers should focus on preventing any more of it entering the oceans in     7     first place. Matthew MacLeod, a professor of environmental science at Stockholm University,    8     (involve) in a separate study not long ago,    9     also concluded effective measures are required immediately because of the possible global impacts.

While consumers can help reduce plastic pollution by changing their behavior, governments have to step up and accept     10     (responsible) for solving the problem. It’s a global problem and it needs global solutions.

China’s First National Park

China’s first national park in Northwest of China’s Sanjiangyuan area,     1     (cover)a total area of 123,100 square kilometers, was officially established in 2020     2     schedule. The national park is the country’s calling card, and unlike nature reserves,     3     protect unique species, national parks stress the protection of the entire ecosystem.

Under the national park management, herders and     4     (farmer) will be turned into the forces of     5     (environment) protection in the Sanjiangyuan area. The work     6     (expect) to provide jobs, boost incomes and give people an     7     (encourage) to protect the environment. The ecological environment of the Sanjiangyuan area has greatly improved in recent years. The grassland coverage of the area has risen sharply     8     (compare) with the last decade. The last decade also saw a significant increase in the number of wild animals, because the number of Tibetan antelopes     9     (be) over 70,000 from less than 20,000 in     10     1980s.

China’s accumulated experience in reducing food loss and waste is being shared with the world. This knowledge will help many countries improve their ability    1     (reduce) food loss and ensure food security, experts and officials said.

About 14 percent of the world’s food is lost during from    2    (produce) to retail (零售). Reducing that loss by 1 percentage point would be equal to a 28 million metric ton increase in grain output,     3    could feed 70 million people for a year. This is according to the State of Food and Agriculture 2019 report released by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.

According to the FAO, over 155 million people experienced serious food insecurity in 2020, the    4    (high) number in the past five years. This was caused by conflict, extreme weather events and economic shocks    5    (relate) to COVID-19.

Wu Laping,     6    professor at China Agricultural University’s College of Economics and Management, said food loss and waste is    7    (large) affected by economic development. They noted that    8    (develop) countries lose food mainly before it is retailed, whereas developed countries mainly lose it after retail.

    9    example, food loss and waste mostly occurs in harvesting and storage in Africa and South Asia. Up to 30 percent of food loss was found during farmers’ storage in some areas in Africa, and 21 percent of food in the United States    10    (waste) during daily consumption, Wu told Economic Daily.

Today’s skiers are used to relying on ski lifts at resorts to take them to the top of a mountain before     1     (experience)the addictive thrill of skiing down the mountain.     2    , in some snow-covered villages in Altay prefecture (辖区) of Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, it’s common in winter to see local herdsmen, with boards     3     (attach) to their feet, climb the snowy slopes without any other forms of assistance.

The pair of boards are wrapped with horsehide(马革),     4     serves a double purpose. Remarkably, the horsehide not only can provide friction (摩擦) to prevent skiers from slipping while going up, but also helps them slide more     5     (smooth)down the slopes.

According to rock carvings uncovered in the area by archaeologists, such     6     (ski) have served for around 12,000 years     7     a means of transportation for the snowfield inhabitants of Altay. The fur skiing boards gradually lost     8     (they) popularity in recent decades after paved roads linked houses to the outside world.

However, Altay plans to protect and promote its skiing culture. The local government department     9     (want) to pass its skiing tradition to future generations. The prefecture is working     10     (develop)the area as a popular destination for skiers and snowboarders. As a result, the ancient fur skiing boards and the craft of making them have found a new lease of life in modern times.

The Tianshan Tuomuer Grand Canyon is about 25 kilometers long from east to west and 20 kilometers wide from north to south. It consists of three main     1     (valley) in the shape of the Chinese character “川”.     2     (situate) in the northwest of Xinjiang at the foot of Tuomur Peak, it is also known     3     “Kuduluk Grand Canyon”,     4     means “thrilling and mysterious” in Uygur (维吾尔语). It is the only way to the ancient post road in the northern and southern Tianshan Mountains.

On June 21, 2013, the Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang     5     (list) as a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site. The area in which the Tuomur Grand Canyon lies is the     6     (large) among the four places in the Tianshan Mountains,     7     (account) for 59.87 percent of the whole site.

With its red canyons set against the snow-capped mountains in the distance, the dreamlike landscape     8     (complete) makes visitors lost in the beautiful and impressive view of nature. At night, you can see the stars. Remember that the temperature difference there is very large. While wearing short sleeves at noon, evenings may require     9     down jacket and other warm clothes. There is no tour bus service, but visitors can drive to the canyon by     10     (they) or hire a bus. Apart from it, Xinjiang is in possession of many appealing tourist spots, attracting a good number of visitors at home and abroad.

When a dog licks your face, jumps into your lap, or barks when you come through the front door, it     1     (simple) means they’re crazy about you. But did you know that your dog’s heartbeat actually increases when you tell them, “I love you.”?

According to a recent study, that may well be the case. After     2     (equip) four test dogs with heart rate monitors, the dogs     3     (guide) through a series of situations over the course of seven days to see     4     they would react to a variety of stimuli(刺激).

The tracking data revealed the four dogs averaged a resting heart rate of 67 beats per minute. When owners said “I love you.” to     5     (they) pets, the dogs’ heart rates shot to 98 beats per minute—    6     46.2% increase.

While your dog becomes     7     (cheer) just for setting eyes on you, some     8     (activity) actually had a calming effect. Quality couch time hug resulted in a 22.7% decrease in dog heart rates.

If you’re searching     9     unconditional love, consider adopting a dog from your local shelter and don’t forget     10     (tell) them daily that you love them.

The High Temperatures in Antarctica(南极洲)

Vostok station is a Russian weather station in Antarctica. It’s famous     1     having the coldest temperature ever recorded on Earth:-89.2℃. But last Friday, Vostok set     2     new record, this time for its warmest March temperature ever: -18℃. That may not sound very warm, but it’s 15℃ warmer than average. Other areas in Antarctica were even     3     (hot). A nearby weather station was 37℃ higher than average. Some     4     (place) in Antarctica were expected to be as much as 50℃ warmer than normal.

A scientist,     5     studies weather in Antarctica, said the temperatures had     6     (complete) changed our expectations about the Antarctic climate system. At this time of year, Antarctica is losing 25 minutes of daylight every day, and should be getting colder instead of warmer.

An “atmospheric river” of warm, wet air hit Antarctica last Tuesday. This kind of weather pattern isn’t that unusual. But once it got to Antarctica, it was stopped from     7     (leave) by a hight pressure system, called a “pressure dome (穹顶)”. A similar pressure dome     8     (cause) an extreme heat wave in North America’s northwest last summer.

Scientists say that the melting (融化) from this one event isn’t likely to cause big changes. And it’s too early     9    (say) if climate change led to this event. But scientists say they are watching carefully to see whether this is a one-time event     10     part of a new pattern.

Many people have realized that the whole world is being influenced by the change of the weather-making different places    1    (hot) than before. We    2    (experience) record-breaking high temperatures for more than a month so far. We are talking about temperatures above 40℃, which has a risk to life from heatstroke (中暑). We should pay attention    3    such a bad change to weather patterns.

With the whole world’s weather change likely to become more common in the future, we need to find    4    much better way to deal with possible unexpected events. Let’s start with    5    everyone can do to live in overheated places. We should all learn to walk on the shady part of the street. We’d better wear loose-fitting clothes made of cotton. At home, we need to keep the curtains, blinds or shutters (百叶窗)    6    (close). In this way, we can avoid    7    (have) sunlight warm the place    8    (direct). Of course, drinking enough cool water is also necessary during hot conditions. Larger social changes are also useful. People can choose to start    9    (they) work fairly early in the morning before the worst of the day’s heat really kicks in. Offices and shops can often close over these extra-hot    10    (hour). That is good for dealing with special high temperatures.

Venice is an attractive city between the sea and the sky. The city     1    (consist) of over 100 islands and there aren’t any cars or buses. All the islands     2    (link) by canals and bridges, making it     3    (convenience) for people to travel around the city. The best­known of the canals, the Grand Canal, serves     4     the main street in the part of the city.

Venice has a lot of world­famous tourist     5    (attraction), including Saint Mark’s Square, the Doge’s Palace and Saint Mark’s Basilica,     6     is the city’s most famous church. Every year thousands     7     tourists visit this beautiful city. They always find themselves     8    (impress) by the city’s cultural treasures.

Sadly, the Italian city has been regularly flooded by rising sea water over the years. From November to February, sea level rises up to one and a half meters,     9    (cover) many of Venice’s famous areas. But people in Venice still love their city. They are unwilling     10    (leave). Instead, they want to stay there to save Venice from the sea.

For five years, the most famous clock tower in Britain was hidden behind an ugly fortress of scaffolding (脚手架) for restoration. This summer, a sound familiar     1     Londoners for more than a century and a half will again ring out across the British capital — Big Ben is back.

The clock tower stands tall over the Palace of Westminster     2     houses the British Parliament (议会). It is officially known as the Elizabeth Tower but commonly called by     3     nickname of the enormous bell in the belfry (钟楼): Big Ben. The bell’s bong is     4     (instant) recognizable to Britons.

The size of Big Ben,     5     (weigh) a little over 15 tons, is impressive, as is the complexity of a clock mechanism based on the most     6     (advance) technology available to its 19-century creators. Nobody had ever attempted     7     (build) a clock that size to the accuracy demanded.

During the restoration, the clock was serviced for the first time since it started ticking in 1859, when crowds lined the streets to greet Big Ben’s    8     (arrive). More than 3500 parts     9     (remove) from the 316-foot tower, including much of its iron roof. Now freshly     10     (paint), the tower stands as a monument to what can be achieved by modern restoration.