1 . In the late 1970s, archaeologists (考古学家) uncovered the remains of a woman and a young dog, her hand resting on the puppy’s chest in a 12,000-year-old village.
The find is some of the earliest evidence of the bond between humans and dogs. But even after years of study researchers are divided on how this bond began. Did it arise over thousands of years, as early dogs became tamer (驯服的) and more accustomed to human behaviors? Or was this fire already burning in the ancestors of dogs: the gray wolf?
Christina Hansen Wheat, a behavioral ecologist at Stockholm University, and workmates hand-raised 10 gray wolves from the time they were 10 days old. When the animals were 23 weeks old, a caregiver led them one at a time into a mostly empty room. Over the course of several minutes, the caregiver exited and entered the room, sometimes leaving the wolf alone, sometimes leaving it with a complete stranger. The team repeated the experiment with 12 23-week-old Alaskan huskies (哈士奇), which they’d raised similarly since puppyhood.
For the most part, the scientists saw few differences between the wolves and the dogs. When their caregiver entered the room, both species scored 4.6 on a five-point scale of “greeting behavior”—a desire to be around the human. When the stranger entered, dog greeting behavior dropped to 4.2 and wolf to 3.5, on average, suggesting both animals made a distinction between the person they knew and the one they didn’t. It’s this distinction that the team counts as a sign of attachment.
In addition, dogs barely paced—a sign of stress—during the test, while wolves paced at least part of the time. However, the wolves stopped pacing almost entirely when a stranger left the room and their caretaker returned. Hansen Wheat says that’s never been seen before in wolves. It could be a sign, she says, that the animals view the humans who raised them as a “social buffer”.
For her, that’s the most interesting part of the study. “If this is true, this sort of attachment is not what separates dogs from wolves,” she says. In other words, it didn’t have to be bred into them by humans, but could have been the seed we selected for, and then strengthened over thousands of years.
1. What’s the purpose of Hansen Wheat’s experiment?| A．To find out what makes gray wolves and dogs different. |
| B．To explain the reasons why humans raised dogs from ancient times. |
| C．To argue gray wolves after being tamed are easier to keep than dogs. |
| D．To prove whether gray wolves can make doglike attachment to people. |
| A．Researchers began to raise gray wolves from their birth. |
| B．Researchers used equal numbers of gray wolves and dogs. |
| C．Gray wolves felt more stressful than dogs when a stranger came. |
| D．“Greeting behavior” of the two animals was significantly different. |
| A．A reminder of feeding. | B．A sign of social attachment. |
| C．A source of comfort and support. | D．A warning of stopping pace. |
| A．Dogs are more attached to humans than gray wolves. |
| B．It is the attachment to humans that sets gray wolves apart from dogs. |
| C．The attachment between dogs and humans is the result of being tamed. |
| D．The attachment to humans plays a role in the choice of dogs or gray wolves. |
2 . Brazilian artist Néle Azevedo is best known for big public art pieces. The artist carves hundreds of 20 -centimeter-tall ice figures seated with their ankles crossed and places them atop outdoor steps and puts them in city squares all over the world, where they quickly melt. The faceless sculptures drip and pool into small puddles as time passes. Her works have been adopted by environmentalists as a kind of activist art against climate change.
But is it? Yes and (mostly) no.
The mass of melting bodies makes a natural connection to the threat humankind faces due to rising global temperatures. “Its close link with that subject is evident,” said the artist. In addition to the threat of global warming itself, the sheer number of sculptures sitting together also calls attention to the fact that we humans are all in it together. “Such kind of threats also finally put man in his place, his fate is along with the destiny of the planet, and he is not the ‘king’ of nature, but an essential element of it,” continues Azevedo on her website.
“I took every characteristic of traditional monuments and made the opposite,” she says. “I made small figures that sit on the floor. It doesn’t honor anybody. It does honor the unknown.”
Azevedo explains, “In a few-minute action, the rules of the monument are inverted: in the place of the hero, the unknown; in the place of the solidity of the stone, the momentary process of the ice; in the place of the monument size, the minimum size of the perishable (易毁坏的) bodies.” Originally Azevedo wanted her art to get people thinking about impermanence, and the sight of ice transforming into a puddle of water certainly does that brilliantly.
1. What can we learn about Néle Azevedo’s artworks?| A．They are put in public places for artists to appreciate. |
| B．They are adopted as a way of showing artistic talents. |
| C．They are linked with the threat of climate change. |
| D．They are considered as a symbol of unity. |
| A．kept track of | B．turned upside down |
| C．laid emphasis on | D．taken into account |
| A．It is permanent by nature. |
| B．It lacks practical influence. |
| C．It takes long to see the results. |
| D．It conveys the artist’s exact intention. |
| A．Public Interest in Contemporary Art |
| B．Ice Figures Transforming into Water |
| C．Responsibility Demanded of Activist Artists |
| D．Mini Sculptures Echoing the Climate Crisis |
1. What do we know about the area?
| A．Lightning strikes mostly in December. |
| B．The people there worry about getting hit. |
| C．The area is near the Andes Mountains. |
| A．The Never-Ending Storm of Catatumbo. |
| B．The Lightning Capital of the World. |
| C．The Light of Venezuela. |
| A．One in three per year. | B．One in 12,000 per year. | C．80% of people who live there. |
| A．He’s scared of storms. |
| B．He’ll never visit Venezuela. |
| C．He’d be careful if he lived in the area. |
4 . In the Amazon rainforest, which is home to various kinds of wildlife, an American biologist has discovered a strange new species of ant, The Times reported. It has no eyes and gets a pale body and its fanglike mouthparts are longer than the rest of its head.
If you came across the peculiar ant, you might think that it belongs on another planet. Even its name— Martialis Heureka— playfully suggests that it came from Mars. And this discovery is forcing researchers to rethink what they know about the history of ants on our planet.
Christian Rabeling, from the University of Texas at Austin, discovered the new species amid the fallen leaves of the rainforest. But he did more than just notice how bizarre the ant looks. He also analyzed its genetic material, or DNA.
Comparing DNA among species can give scientists insights into family trees: the more DNA two species share in common, the more closely related they are, and the more recently they split off from ancestor.
Rabeling’s DNA analysis of Martialis Heureka showed that the species is only distantly related to other ant species. It’s so distant that it actually belonging in a separate subfamily. The last minute scientists found a new subfamily of living ants was in 1923, say the discoverers.
The DNA analysis also suggested that Martialis Heureka appeared on earth earlier than any other ant living here today. And observations suggest that the ant lives underground and paleness and blindness are two major clues. Some of the other oldest known ant species also live underground. So now, scientists are trying to figure out whether ants first evolved underground, or if they evolved above ground and then went under. A few other ant species have at least one of Martialis Heureka’s odd features, but none share them all.
So far, Rabeling has collected only one ant from the new species. Finding more specimens(样本), he hopes, will help us better understand the science and history of ants on earth.
1. The underlined word “bizarre” in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to________.| A．funny | B．special |
| C．identical | D．distinct |
| A．It’s closely related to other ant species. |
| B．It is the first ant to appear on earth. |
| C．It lives underground where it first developed. |
| D．Only blindness indicates it lives underground. |
| A．Martialis Heureka was found by accident. |
| B．Much is to be done to collect more ants. |
| C．Little known about the ant history. |
| D．More ants from the new species are needed |
5 . Catherine decided to rescue Khan after seeing him at the animal shelter. Khan was a(an)
One day,
In one last
While Khan was at the
| A．experienced | B．abused | C．fierce | D．trained |
| A．As | B．Because | C．Since | D．Although |
| A．rolled | B．climbed | C．cycled | D．walked |
| A．recommended | B．examined | C．introduced | D．teased |
| A．bond | B．circle | C．boundary | D．habit |
| A．however | B．instead | C．therefore | D．otherwise |
| A．guide | B．lift | C．drag | D．push |
| A．nothing | B．everything | C．something | D．anything |
| A．away from | B．near | C．before | D．across from |
| A．moving | B．looking | C．trembling | D．working |
| A．strike | B．follow | C．touch | D．protect |
| A．in relief | B．in surprise | C．in horror | D．in excitement |
| A．test | B．attempt | C．pull | D．fight |
| A．passed | B．held | C．put | D．threw |
| A．landed | B．stood | C．jumped | D．waited |
| A．got out | B．worked out | C．turned out | D．came out |
| A．shelter | B．hospital | C．gate | D．back |
| A．believe | B．guarantee | C．remember | D．accept |
| A．Surprisingly | B．Interestingly | C．Naturally | D．Thankfully |
| A．unwilling | B．able | C．invited | D．forbidden |
Be careful what you say around your dog．It might understand more than you think．
A border collie named Rico recognizes the names of about 200 objects, say researchers in Germany．The dog also appears to be able to learn new words as easily as a 3-year-old child．Its word-learning skills are as good as those of a parrot or chimpanzee．
In one experiment, the researchers took all 200 items that Rico is supposed to know and divided them into 20 groups of 10 objects．Then the owner told the dog to go and fetch one of the items and bring it back．In four tests, Rico got 37 out of 40 commands right．As the dog couldn't see anyone to get clues, the scientists believe Rico must understand the meanings of certain words．
In another experiment, the scientists took one toy that Rico had never seen before and put it in a room with seven toys whose names the dog already knew．The owner then told Rico to fetch the object, using a word the dog had never heard before．
The correct object was chosen in seven out of ten tests, suggesting that the dog had worked
out the answer by process of elimination（排除法）．A month later, Rico remembered half of the new names, which is even more impressive．
Rico is thought to be smarter than the average dog．For one thing, Rico is a border collie, a breed （品种）known for its mental abilities．In addition, the 9-year-old dog has been trained to fetch toys by their names since the age of nine months．
It's hard to know if all dogs understand at least some of the words we say．Even if they do, they can't talk back．Still, it wouldn't hurt to sweet-talk your dog every now and then．You might just get a big, wet kiss in return!
1. From paragraph 2 we know that __________．
| A．animals are as clever as human beings |
| B．chimpanzees have very good word-learning skills |
| C．dogs are smarter than parrots and chimpanzees |
| D．dogs have similar learning abilities as 3-year-old children |
| A．Rico is smart enough to get all commands right |
| B．Rico can recognize different things including toys |
| C．Rico has developed the ability of learning mathematics |
| D．Rico won't forget the names of objects once recognizing them |
| A．Rico has a better memory partly because of its proper early training． |
| B．The purpose of the experiments is to show the border collie's mental abilities． |
| C．The border collie is world-famous for recognizing objects． |
| D．Rico is born to understand its owner's commands． |
| A．To train your dog． | B．To talk to your dog． |
| C．To be careful with your dog． | D．To be friendly to your dog． |
7 . And I hated circuses, especially the animal acts﹣men teasing lions, girls balancing on elephants and monkeys playing football. I knew that every trick a circus animal did was unnatural, achieved through strict training and quite possibly cruelty.
Happily, circuses using wild animals are now almost extinct, and zoos have definitely evolved. When my children were young, I occasionally took them to our local zoo. The elephants were in tiny cages and the gorillas looked bored as they sat peeling bananas and staring at teasing visitors. Each cage had a sign which listed the animal's name and where it came from. But, back then, there was little information included about the environmental challenges they faced.
As a result, environmentalists and animal lovers often oppose zoos. “Animals belong in the wild,” is a common and understandable complaint. But what do the animals themselves prefer?
Generally speaking, zoo animals have a longer life. But﹣﹣you may protest﹣﹣they are not free. What? Free to be hunted and killed, free to die of hunger or thirst? Maybe sitting in a cage eating bananas isn't so bad.
Not that such conditions are acceptable in modern zoos, due to the work of BIAZA, the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums. These days every zoo requires BLAZA’s approval to operate, and the association sets the standards, observes conditions in zoos and develops animal﹣research programmes.
Consequently, today, most zoo animals are born and raised in zoos, live in large, comfortable enclosures and are cared for by well﹣trained, knowledgeable and caring zoo employees. Of course it's no substitute for living in the wild but unfortunately this isn't always possible. Meanwhile, why not visit your local zoo and decide for yourself?
1. From Paragraph 2, we can guess that the writer believes circus animals .| A．should have been placed in zoos |
| B．were not treated well by their trainers |
| C．were not as intelligent as those in zoos |
| D．had much shorter lives than those in the wild |
| A．Zoo animals should be freed into the wild. |
| B．Zoos are more popular now than in the past. |
| C．Zoo animals are more restricted than in the past |
| D．Zoos now provide caring living conditions for animals. |
| A．Zoos Are Improving |
| B．Zoos or Circuses? |
| C．Closing Down Circuses |
| D．Life of Animals |
8 . Jacques-Yves Cousteau, the French explorer, once pointed out, “Population growth is the primary source of environmental damage.” Many experts are calling the growing problem of global waste a worldwide health crisis in that pollution from trash is not only harming the world’s oceans, air and soil but also endangering people’s health as well as the livelihood of all living creatures.
Reduce, reuse, recycle
Such a dilemma raises the question, is there a more responsible way of dealing with trash? Fortunately, there is. Living a zero-waste lifestyle is the way to go. One example of this is what’s often called the three R’s: reduce, reuse, recycle. Reducing the use of plastic containers as well as reusing and recycling bottles and cans decreases the amount of garbage being sent to landfills. As a result, less money is spent on waste management, and countries’ financial burdens are significantly relieved. Such positive effects on an economy is known as a circular economy.
Circular economy
Traditionally, manufacturers would make a product to be used and disposed of by consumers. This linear model of production offered no help in the fight against global waste. Alternatively, a circular economy was introduced. Once a product’s value is exhausted, the materials are recycled and returned to manufacturers. The outcome is less waste. One large-scale example of this is happening on the island of Taiwan.
4-in-1 Recycling Program
In 1997, Taiwan established its signature 4-in-1 Recycling Program, consisting of communities, recycling companies, government cleaning teams and the Recycling Fund. Residents separate their recyclable waste. The local government collection teams collect it. Recycling companies buy waste materials from them to make profits. Importers and manufacturers who are responsible for the recyclable products pay a fee into the Recycling Fund. The Recycling Fund is an essential aspect of the program used to subsidize(补贴) the recycling disposal system, support education and research and development as well as finance recycling efforts in the future.
Turning garbage into gold
By following a circular system, more products than ever are being manufactured using recycled materials. Environmentally-friendly decisions like these help to conserve natural resources, reduce pollution, save landfill space and even create new job opportunities. Recycling can truly turn garbage into gold.
1. According to the passage, the biggest challenge facing the world today is________ .| A．the rapid growth of population | B．the overdeveloped manufacture |
| C．the world’s large amount of trash | D．inappropriate use of plastic products |
| A．To save land and create wealth. |
| B．To minimize waste and restore used materials. |
| C．To support research and speed development. |
| D．To rid poor habits and encourage a new lifestyle. |
| A．Zero-Waste, Full Recycle | B．Circular Economy In Action |
| C．The World’s Recycling Companies | D．A Worldsize Environmental Crisis |
9 . NOT that long ago, the world wondered whether clean energy could survive without government support. Now the question is how far it can spread. The number of electric vehicles. which was about 1 million in 2015, last year reached 2 million. In electricity generation, too, trend is with the greens. In the first half of this year wind, solar and hydro generated a record 35% of Germany's power.
Greater success is breeding greater ambition. California is proposing to reach 60% renewable energy by 2030: 176 countries have clean-energy goals. Hawaii, America's most oil-dependent state, has promised to be 100% renewable by the middle of the century. So have 48 poor countries vulnerable to climate change. This week the number of multinationals making a commitment to running their operations on 100% renewable energy rose to 100.
But not every target is helpful. To see why, consider that goal of 100% renewable energy. It makes solving climate change seem easy. In fact, though wind and solar can generate the whole country's electricity some day, renewables still account for less than 8% of the world's total power output. Moreover, cleaning up electricity is only part of the battle. Even though gas-fired heating and cooking can be at least as big a source of greenhouse-gas emissions, renewable heating gets little attention. Transport policy is unpredictable, too. Carmakers may hit their goal of annual sales of 10 million electric vehicles in a decade, but battery-powered road transport, shipping and aviation are dreams. A much-quoted claim that America could rely on wind, solar and hydro alone for its electricity has recently been bitterly criticized by a group of respected academics.
Most importantly, a 100% renewables target confuses means with ends. The priority for the planet is to stop net emissions（净排放量）of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide. Putting too much emphasis on wind, solar and other renewables may block off better carbon-reduction paths. After decades of investment, it is wrong to leave nuclear power off the table. Carbon emissions in Germany actually rose because it chose to phase out nuclear power gradually and so burned more coal. New technologies, such as "direct air capture" systems designed to separate carbon dioxide from the air, may in time prove vital. Likewise, greater energy efficiency could reduce emissions by even more than using renewables would.
1. It can be inferred from the passage that .| A．the problem of climate change will be solved by using 100% renewable energy |
| B．with new technologies, Germany successfully cut down carbon emissions |
| C．it is probable that ships will one day be powered by battery |
| D．America is not likely to completely rely on wind, solar and hydro energy one day |
| A．promoting energy efficiency |
| B．blocking off carbon-reduction paths |
| C．using non-renewable heating |
| D．abandoning electric vehicles |
| A．ignore | B．reduce | C．use | D．invent |
| A．Fashion | B．Politics | C．Economy | D．Education |
Scientists have found fossils (化石) that once belonged
New Zealand is famous for its flightless birds. The kiwi is a symbol of the country. There are five recognized kiwi species
Hercules lived about 19 million years ago. A researcher said, “New Zealand is well-known for its giant birds. Until now, no one
