1 . 阅读下面短文，根据上下文内容从所给的A到G的选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，每词只可选用一次。

A. are dropping out              B. have access to              C. obsess over                    D. are dying out E. be aware of                    F. devote themselves to       G. be to blame for

Nowadays, the species in the world     1    . Who will     2     it? Of course, it is human beings’ behavior that does harm to the environment, which has a bad effect on the species. People begin to     3     how many species will survive in the future if we don’t take action. So it is time for us to take steps to save endangered animals and plants. Scientists     4     finding ways to help protect them. The most important thing is that people should     5     the importance to protecting the environment. Only by joint efforts can we solve the problem eventually.

2 . Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A.catches B.combined C. contributors D. demand E. driver F.mere G.pressing H.prosperity I. speeds J.thirstiest K. trends

Feeding nine billion

When we think about threats to the environment, we tend to picture cars-not dinner. But the truth is, our     1    for food causes one of the biggest dangers to the planet.

Agriculture is among the greatest     2     to global warming. It emits more greenhouse gases than all our cars, trucks, trains, and airplane     3    —largely from methane released by cattle and rice farms, nitrous oxide from fertilized fields and carbon dioxide from the cutting of rain forests to grow crops or raise livestock. Farming is the     4     user of our precious water supplies and a major polluter, as runoff from fertilizers and manure pollute lakes, rivers, and coastal ecosystems across the globe. Agriculture also     5    up the loss of biodiversity: As we’ve cleared areas of grassland and forest for farms, we’ve lost crucial habitat making agriculture a major     6     of wildlife extinction

The environmental challenges caused by agriculture are huge, and they’ll only become more     7     as we try to meet the growing need for food worldwide. We’ll likely have 2 billion more mouths to feed by mid-century-more than 9 billion people. But population growth isn’t the     8     reason we’ll need more food. The spread of     9     across the world is driving an increased need for meat, eggs, and dairy, boosting pressure to grow more corn and soybeans to feed more cattle, pigs, and chickens. If these     10     continue, the population growth and meat-and-dairy-intensive diets will require us to roughly double the amount of crops we grow by 2050.

3 . Directions: Fill in each blank with a proper word chosen from the box. Each word can be used only once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. double          B. intense          C. pressures       D. stock          E. agriculture       F. trapped G. withdrawal     H. availability   I. drive             J. expanding     K. rising

Throughout history, people have fought bitter wars over political ideology, national sovereignty and religious expression. How much more     1     will these conflicts be when people fight over the Earth’s most indispensable resource water? We may find out in the not-too-distant future if projections about the     2     of water in the Middle East and other regions prove correct.

Less than three percent of the planet’s     3     is fresh water, and almost two-thirds of this amount is     4     in ice caps, glaciers, and underground aquifers too deep or too remote to access. In her book, Pillars of Sand-Can the Irrigation Miracle Last, Sandra Postel outlines three forces that     5     tension and conflict over freshwater. Using up the water “resource pie”. In India, the world’s second-most populous nation, with over 1 billion inhabitants, the rate of groundwater     6     is twice that of recharge, a deficit higher than in any other country. Although water is a renewable resource, it is not a(n)     7     one. The freshwater available today for more than 6 billion people is no greater than it was 2,000 years ago, when global population was approximately 200 million. (The current U.S. population is 287 million.)

Global     8     accounts for about 70% of all freshwater use. In five of the world’s most water-stressed, controversial areas the Aral Sea region, the Ganges, the Jordan, the Nileland and Tigris-Euphrates population increases of up to 75% are projected by 2025. With the fastest rate of growth in the world, the population of Palestinian territory will more than     9     over the next generation. Most experts agree that, because of geography, population     10     and politics, water wars are most likely to break out in the Middle East, a region where the amount of available freshwater per capita will decrease by about 50% over the next generation.

4 . Directions: Fill in each blank with a proper word chosen from the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. confused       B. adaptable       C floating       D. decaying       E. attempts F. imitated       G. attached       H. signs       I. samples       J. relatively       K. steady

Though it is not unusual to find marine animals under the Antarctica seafloor, researchers had always assumed that there would be few     1     of life farther away from open water and sunlight. However, the discovery of filter-feeding (滤食的) organisms— 160 miles away from the open ocean, with temperatures of -2.2℃ and under complete darkness— suggests that life in the world’s harshest environment may be more     2     than previously thought.

In 2017, BAS geologist James Smith and his colleagues conducted a three-month expedition to the middle of Antarctica’s Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf, to collect     3     of the seafloor deposits. The team drilled through the half-mile of ice by pumping almost 20,000 liters of hot water through a pipe. After about 20 hours of painstaking work, they were finally able to reach the seabed underneath.

However, when the scientists lowered the instrument, along with a camera, to collect the soil, it came up empty. After multiple failed     4    — each round trip taking about an hour— the researchers took a closer look at the footage and noticed a massive stone sitting amid the     5     flat seabed. Even more surprisingly, the rock was covered with stationary animals, like sponges (海绵) and potentially unknown species.

The finding has     6     many scientists given that certain organisms, such as sponges and coral polyps (珊瑚虫), which live their entire lives     7     to rocks, or other hard surfaces, need food supplies. In the open water, the “marine snow,” as the food is called, comes from     8     organic matter, which drifts down from the upper waters to the deep ocean. However, the species in such depth are too far from the open sea to receive     9     supplies of nutrients. To make matters worse, due to the area’s strong ocean currents, the food has to travel anywhere from 370 to 930 miles to get to them.

“This is by far the furthest under an ice shelf that we’ve seen any of these filter-feeding animals,” said Smith. “These things are stuck on a rock and only get fed if something comes     10     along.”

5 . Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. landing   B. accounted   C. rest   D. experience   E. regular   F. increased G. shortly   H. depending   I. variety   J. strictly     K. tense

Tourism in Antarctica (南极洲)

Antarctica has become one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations (旅游胜地). Since 1969, the average number of visitors to the continent has     1     from several hundred to over 34,000 today. All activities in Antarctica are     2     controlled for environmental protection purposes.

As we all know, the first expedition to Antarctica with travelers was in 1966. The modern expedition cruise industry (邮轮探险业) was born     3     after, in 1969. In 1977, both Australia and New Zealand started to offer scenic flights to Antarctica. The flights often flew to the continent without     4     and returned to the airport where they took off. The     5     was an average 12 to 14 hours with up to 4 hours flying directly over the continent.

Despite the possible dangers and risks, tourism to Antarctica continued to grow. 34,354 people visited the continent between 2012 and 2013. Americans     6     for 31.1%, followed by Germans (11.1%), Australians (10.7%), and the British (10.2%). The     7     of the visitors were from China, Canada, Switzerland, France, and elsewhere.

The main destination is the Antarctic Peninsula region. Certain private expeditions may include visits to inland sites, such as the geographic South Pole. A(n)     8     expedition can last anywhere from a few days to several weeks. A     9     of visits are provided to scientific stations and wildlife sties, hiking, mountaineering, camping, etc.

A trip to Antarctica can range anywhere from as little as $3,000-$4,000 to over $40,000,     10     on transportation, housing, and activity needs. The higher-end packages typically involve air transport, on-site camping, and a visit to the South Pole.