1 . How northern Europeans beat the winter blues
Ask a child from northern Europe to draw two pictures—one on a rainy day and a second in the sunshine—and this is what you will get: in the first, as raindrops fall from the top of the page, the man behind the window has an unhappy expression. When a yellow sun sends out some light from the corner, the man is smiling.
Northern Europeans associate rain with sadness and sunshine with happiness. They think this is true because they are so aware of how their environment affects them.
AniKalayjian, professor of psychology at Fordham University, advises that we should take steps to strengthen the brain’s system against weather-driven mood changes. Research on SAD has been focused on the brain’s response to darkness and light. When our eyes detect darkness, the brain gives off melatonin, which starts sleep cycles.
A day of rain can potentially destroy your plan and affect your mood. But as the Scottish comedian Billy Connolly once said:“There is no such thing as bad weather, only the wrong clothing.”
| A．Another chemical called serotonin, however, can make people happy. |
| B．It affects about10% of the population of northern Europe each year. |
| C．That’s when people can recharge their serotonin and get a better mood. |
| D．Yet that link has no scientific basis. |
| E．Most studies prove that a negative feeling is associated with bad weather. |
| F．They determined that people actually differ in their sensitivity to weather changes. |
| G．It is seriously doubted among the people who suffer from SAD. |
2 . Companion planting is the idea that some kinds of plants can help each other grow. Plants that are compatible（兼容的，能共处的） together generally have similar needs in terms of nutrients，soil and moisture levels.
Advice about which plants are compatible is sometimes based more on tradition than proof. But experts say there is evidence to support certain combinations. These can improve harvests，reduce disease and help with pest control by attracting helpful insects.
For example，some kinds of soil bacteria take nitrogen from the air and make it into a form that plants can use. The plants hold the nitrogen in their roots. Legumes(豆科植物)are especially good at this nitrogen(氮)fixing. Then any crops that share the same space with the legumes can get the nitrogen when the roots are broken down.
Beans and potatoes can also share territory well because their roots reach different levels in the soil. Deep-rooted vegetables get nutrients and moisture from lower down in the soil，so they do not complete with plants with shallower roots.
But some plants placed together may harm each other's development. For example，tomatoes do not like wet soil but watercress does，so you would probably want to keep them separated.
Some kinds of produce should be kept apart even after being harvested. This is because of ethylene gas(乙烯气体)．Ethylene is a plant hormone(激素)that can cause some foods to ripen too quickly. Apples release ethylene gas. Apricots，melons and tomatoes also release a lot of ethylene. Some vegetables are easily affected by ethylene，including asparagus，broccoli，cabbage and cucumbers.
This risk of ripening too soon is why markets often separate high ethylene-producing foods from those that are sensitive to the gas. But if you put an apple in a bag with a green banana，the ethylene from the apple will make the banana ready to eat sooner.
What about peaches，plums and nectarines? These kinds of fruit do not need any help from an apple—they release enough ethylene to ripen themselves. But that does not mean there is no way to get the job done faster.
Growers suggest placing the fruit in a fruit bowl or in a paper bag with the top folded over. Keep the fruit at room temperature，out of direct sunlight. Once the fruit is soft enough，either use it or put it in the refrigerator to keep it from getting too ripe.
1. Companion planting refers to the idea that ．| A．some crops can grow together to benefit each other |
| B．some crops have the similar needs of nutrients，soil and water level |
| C．some plants can damage each other if grown together |
| D．a good farming method to prevent natural disasters |
| A．beans and potatoes | B．tomatoes and watercress |
| C．legumes and corns | D．rice and sugarcane |
| A．To improve the quality of fruits. | B．To produce a poisonous gas. |
| C．To keep vegetables fresh. | D．To make fruits ripe earlier. |
| A．a newspaper of medicine | B．a magazine of biology |
| C．a journal of agriculture | D．a travel report |
3 . To raise money for wildlife conservation, Mozambique in Africa will allow sports hunting. The plan is to sell 80 hunting permits a year at $11,000 each for elephants and about 60 permits for lions at $4,000 each. The government will collect most of the profits, but 20% will go to the communities in the conservation areas.
Critics fear legal hunting can destroy Mozambique’s fragile elephant population.
Here are two primary school students to share their views.
A 9-year-old girl from Beaufort, South Carolina supports the idea. She thinks that hunters kill animals without contributing a single dollar to conservation. But if hunting were permitted, they might pay for the chance to get a big-game trophy（战利品）.
However, a 10-year-old girl from Atlanta, Georgia disagrees. She thinks that if sports hunting were allowed, endangered species could become extinct.
| A．That would be a permanent loss for the mankind. |
| B．Is this the best way to save animals from extinction? |
| C．Well-regulated sports hunting can benefit the conservation of listed species. |
| D．Illegal hunters have already wiped out nearly half of the country’s elephants. |
| E．The money raised from legal hunting would contribute to protecting the wildlife. |
| F．So instead of raising money by hunting, the country should build more wildlife preserves. |
| G．The money could also be used to buy more protected lands where animals can wander freely. |
4 . Vinegar makes salad，fries and dumplings taste better， and you can even use it to clean your windows． And now， according to scientists， it may even the planet's population survive climate change．
Researchers from the RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science （CSRS） in Japan found that growing plants in vinegar makes them more resistant to droughts． This could mean that in the future， worries about climate change affecting the world's supply of food will be much lower． The discovery was made after the researchers studied the Arabidopsis， a plant known for its ability to survive in dry weather． It was found that when the plant was placed in drought﹣like conditions， it produced a chemical called acetate（醋酸盐）﹣the main component of vinegar．
After discovering this， the scientists experimented further by adding acetate to the soil of other plants， before they stopped giving them water completely． After leaving the plants for 14days， they found that the ones treated with acetate had survived， while the untreated plants had dried up and died．
It's hoped that this simple method of survival could soon be used to help farmers in dry countries keep their crops alive． "In the experiment， we targeted the staple foods of the world﹣rice， wheat and maize﹣and the basic plant of breeding species， rapeseed（油菜籽），" Jong Myong Kim， co﹣author of the study， told Popular Science magazine．
Kim also told the magazine he's already been in touch with people all over the world who are interested in trying this simple and cost﹣effective method out for themselves from flower growing companies to amateur gardeners． Although at this point keeping thirsty plants alive isn't as easy as just pouring vinegar over them， Kim said he and his team are working on making the process as simple as possible． "Now we are trying to cooperate with some farmers， and also some companies， to make a method to apply this system， "he said． And for those of us who always forget to ask our neighbors to water our plants when we goaway， hopefully this means the end of returning home from a trip to find our favorite flowers have died．
1. What is the article mainly about？| A．The world's food supply will be increased． |
| B．Plants better survive droughts． |
| C．The Arabidopsis is resistant to droughts． |
| D．Vinegar could be used to fight droughts． |
| A．be used by farmers to replace soil |
| B．only be produced by the Arabidopsis |
| C．help plants survive dry conditions |
| D．be used to improve poor soil |
| A．all breeding species． |
| B．wheat and Arabidopisis． |
| C．rice and maize． |
| D．rapeseed and Arabidopisis． |
| A．can make people's trips pleasant |
| B．turned out a worldwide success |
| C．is as simple as pouring vinegar over the plants |
| D．appeals to many flower growing companies |
5 . If anyone had told me three years ago that I would be spending most of my weekends camping, I would have laughed heartily. Campers, in my eyes, were people who enjoyed insect bites, ill-cooked meals, and uncomfortable sleeping bags. They had nothing in common with me.
The friends who introduced me to camping thought that it meant to be a pioneer.
I was, nevertheless, talked into going on another fun-filled holiday in the wilderness.
| A．This time there was no tent. |
| B．Things are going to be improved. |
| C．The trip they took me on was a rough one. |
| D．I was to learn a lot about camping since then, however. |
| E．I must say that I have certainly come to enjoy camping. |
| F．After the trip, my family became quite interested in camping. |
| G．There was no shade as the trees were no more than 3 feet tall. |
6 . I work with Volunteers for Wildlife, a rescue and education organization at Bailey Arboretum in Locust Valley. Trying to help injured, displaced or sick creatures can be heartbreaking; survival is never certain. However, when it works, it is simply beautiful.
I got a rescue call from a woman in Muttontown. She had found a young owl(猫头鹰) on the ground. When I arrived, I saw a 2-to 3-week-old owl. It had already been placed in a carrier for safety.
I examined the chick(雏鸟) and it seemed fine. If I could locate the nest, I might have been able to put it back, but no luck. My next work was to construct a nest and anchor it in a tree.
The homeowner was very helpful. A wire basket was found. I put some pine branches into the basket to make this nest safe and comfortable. I placed the chick in the nest, and it quickly calmed down.
Now all that was needed were the parents, but they were absent. I gave the homeowner a recording of the hunger screams of owl chicks. These advertise the presence of chicks to adults; they might also encourage our chick to start calling as well. I gave the owner as much information as possible and headed home to see what news the night might bring.
A nervous night to be sure, but sometimes the spirits of nature smile on us all! The homeowner called to say that the parents had responded to the recordings. I drove over and saw the chick in the nest looking healthy and active. And it was accompanied in the nest by the greatest sight of all — LUNCH! The parents had done their duty and would probably continue to do so.
1. What is unavoidable in the author’s rescue work according to paragraph 1?| A．Efforts made in vain. |
| B．Getting injured in his work. |
| C．Feeling uncertain about his future. |
| D．Creatures forced out of their homes. |
| A．To rescue a woman. |
| B．To take care of a woman. |
| C．To look at a baby owl. |
| D．To cure a young owl. |
| A．A new nest. |
| B．Some food. |
| C．A recording. |
| D．Its parents. |
| A．It’s unexpected. |
| B．It’s beautiful. |
| C．It’s humorous. |
| D．It’s discouraging. |
7 . In the sea there are many islands. In its warm waters there are some little ones. We call them “Coral Islands”.
A coral island is very nice to look at. It looks like a ring of land with tress, grass, and flowers on it. One part of the ring is open to the water. There is a little round lake inside the island.
If you look into this lake, you will see beautiful coral. You may think they are flowers.
If you look at a piece of coral, you will see many little holes in it. In each of these holes a very small sea animal has lived . These sea animals make the coral.
They began to build under the water. Year after year, the coral grew higher and higher.
At last it grew out of the water.
Then the sea brought to it small trees and something else. After some years, these things changed into earth. Sometimes the wind brought seeds to this earth. Sometimes birds flew over it and brought seeds to the island.
The little seeds grew. In a few years there were plants all over the island. In a few more years there were trees growing there.
So you see, these islands were built little by little. The workers were very small. Do they not teach us a lesson? Can you think what the lesson is?
1. In the sea ________.| A．there are coral islands in all places | B．there are some coral islands |
| C．the water is always warm | D．we can see many flowers |
| A．a round cake | B．trees, grass and flowers |
| C．a ring of land | D．a round lake |
| A．flowers | B．little corals |
| C．grass | D．sea animals |
| A．small workers can’t do big things |
| B．only big workers can do big things |
| C．small workers can do big things if they work hard and work a long time |
| D．all small things can do big things |
8 . Australia is the smallest continent in the world. It is a little smaller than China. It is on the Southern Hemisphere of the earth. Australia is big, but its population is small. The population of Australia is nearly as large as that of Shanghai.
Enough laws have been made to fight against pollution. The cities in Australia have little air or water pollution. The sky is blue and the water is clean. You can clearly see fish in the rivers. Plants grow very well.
Last month we visited Perth, the biggest city in Western Australia, and went to a wild flower exhibition. There we saw large numbers of wild flowers on show, most of which we had never seen before. We had a wonderful time. Perth is famous for its beautiful wild flowers. Every year in spring Perth has a wild flower exhibition. After visiting Perth, we spent a day in the countryside. We sat down and had a rest near a path at the foot of a hill. It was quiet and we enjoyed ourselves very much. When we heard bells ringing at the top of the hills, we looked up, but what we saw made us pick up all our things and run back to our car as quickly as we could. There were about three hundred sheep coming towards us along the path.
Australia is famous for its sheep and kangaroos. After a short drive from any town, you will find yourself among the white sheep. Sheep, sheep, everywhere you can see sheep.
1. Which country is the writer most possibly from?| A．Japan | B．Canada |
| C．China | D．America |
| A．Australia is the smallest country in the world |
| B．Australia is the same size of Shanghai. |
| C．Australia is in the northern part of the earth. |
| D．The people in Australia are as many as those in Shanghai. |
| A．Australia has enough laws to fight against pollution. |
| B．Perth is the biggest city in Australia. |
| C．The wild flowers in Perth must be different from what the author sees in his/her country. |
| D．The author enjoyed his/her visit in the country. |
9 . Would it surprise you to learn that, like animals, trees communicate with each other and pass on their wealth to the next generation?
UBC Professor Simard explains how trees are much more complex than most of us ever imagined .Although Charles Darwin thought that trees are competing for survival of the fittest, Simard shows just how wrong he was. In fact, the opposite is true: trees survive through their co-operation and support, passing around necessary nutrition “depending on who needs it”.
Nitrogen（氮）and carbon are shared through miles of underground fungi（真菌）networks, making sure that all trees in the forest ecological system give and receive just the right amount to keep them all healthy. This hidden system works in a very similar way to the networks of neurons（神经元）in our brains, and when one tree is destroyed, it affects all.
Simard talks about “mother trees”, usually the largest and oldest plants on which all other trees depend .She explains how dying trees pass on the wealth to the next generation, transporting important minerals to young trees so they may continue to grow .When humans cut down “mother trees” with no awareness of these highly complex “tree societies” or the networks on which they feed, we are reducing the chances of survival for the entire forest.
“We didn't take any notice of it.” Simard says sadly. “Dying trees move nutrition into the young trees before dying, but we never give them chance.” If we could put across the message to the forestry industry, we could make a huge difference towards our environmental protection efforts for the future.
1. The underlined sentence “the opposite is true” in Paragragh2 probably means that trees____.| A．provide support for dying trees |
| B．protect their own wealth |
| C．compete for survival |
| D．depend on each other |
| A．pass on nutrition to young trees |
| B．know more about the complex “tree societies” |
| C．look the largest in size in the forest |
| D．seem more likely to be cut down by humans |
| A．how trees grow old |
| B．how “tree societies” work |
| C．how forestry industry develops |
| D．how young trees survive |
| A．Trees Contribute To Our Society |
| B．Young Trees Are In Need Of Protection |
| C．Trees Are More Awesome Than You Think |
| D．Old Trees Communicate Like Humans |
10 . Valencia is in the east part of Spain. It has a port on the sea, two miles away on the coast. It is the capital of a province that is also named Valencia.
The city is a market center for what is produced by the land around the city. Most of the city's money is made from farming. It is also a busy business city, with ships, railways, clothes and machine factories.
Valencia has an old part with white buildings, colored roofs and narrow streets. The modern part has long, wide streets and new buildings. Valencia is well known for its parks and gardens. It has many old churches and museums. The university in the center of the city was built in the 13th century.
The city of Valencia has been known since the 2nd century. In the 8th century it was the capital of Spain. There is also an important city in Venezuela named Valencia.
1. Valencia is the capital of _______.| A．Spain | B．Venezuela | C．Valencia | D．Uganda |
| A．farm products | B．parks and gardens |
| C．clothes and machines | D．ships and railways |
| A．shops | B．factories | C．white buildings | D．wide streets |
| A．Spain and Britain | B．Venezuela and Britain |
| C．Spain and Venezuela | D．Spain and Vietnam |
