1 . When it rains, it pours, and when it snows, the lights turn off. Or so it goes in Texas, California. After a winter storm hit the Lone Star State with record snowfall and the lowest temperatures in more than 30 years, millions were left without electricity and heat. At the worst moment on February 16th, 4. 5m Texan households were cut off from power.

Whole skylines, including Dallas's, went dark to save power. Some Texans braved the snowy roads to check into the few hotels with remaining rooms, but the hotels' power went off as they arrived. Others put on skiwear and remained inside, hoping the lights and heat would come back on. Across the state, what were supposed to be “rolling” blackouts (断电) lasted for days. More than 20 people have died in motor accidents, from fires lit for warmth and from carbon - monoxide poisoning after using cars to get warm. The storm has also stopped deliveries of covid - 19 vaccines (疫苗) and may prevent around 1 million vaccinations from happening this week.

Other states, including Tennessee, were also covered in snow, but Texas got the lion's share and broke down completely. Texans are extremely angry that people in America's energy capital cannot count on reliable power. Everyone is asking why.

The short answer is that the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which operates the grid, did not properly forecast the demand for energy as a result of the storm. Some say that this was nearly impossible to predict, but there were warnings of the seriousness of the coming weather in the previous week, and ERCOT didn't make adequate preparations.

Many Republican politicians were quick to blame renewable energy sources, such as wind power, for the blackouts, but that is not fair. Some wind turbines (涡轮机) did indeed freeze. Natural gas plants broke down, as did the gas supply chain and pipelines. The cold also caused a reactor at one of the state's two nuclear plants to go offline. In short, Texas experienced a perfect storm of equipment failure.

In California, as in Texas, it would help to have additional power generation and energy storage to meet peak (峰值) demand. Weather events that once might have been dismissed as unusual are becoming more common. Without more money put in electricity grids, blackouts will be, too.

1. What happened in Texas during the winter storm?

A．People put on skiwear to save power

B．More than 20 people were frozen to death

C．Many people delayed receiving covid - 19 vaccinations

D．The whole state suffered power cuts except hotels

2. The underlined part “Texas got the lion's share” in Paragraph 3 means ________ .

A．Texas was hit hardest by the storm	B．Texas was provided with generous aid
C．Texas fought against the storm bravely	D．Texas had the power to return to normal

3. Texas failed to provide reliable power because of ________ .

A．the use of renewable energy sources

B．no warnings of the seriousness of the storm

C．the breakdown of a nuclear plant

D．improper forecast and equipment failure

4. Which of the following statements will the writer probably agree with?

A．It is not worthwhile to put too much money into electricity grids

B．We should turn to renewable energy sources rather than natural gas

C．Texas should get well prepared for the highest demand for power

D．Blackouts are unavoidable with the growing frequency of extreme weather

2 . For many people, moths are dust - colored pests that eat our clothes and disturb us by flying around lights after dark. Not for artist Joseph Scheer. The pictures he creates bring out the beauty of moths, with colors, shapes, and patterns that have never been seen before so clearly. “Digital tools let you see things you'd never see just looking with your eyes,” Scheer says. Scheer's pictures have been displayed around the world, and one reaction is heard everywhere: “People insist, ‘No, that can't be a moth,’” says Scheer.

Scheer's work began with a moth hunt in the state of New York. Scheer would leave the lights on and the windows open overnight at his university office, and then collect the moths that had flown in. When the building cleaners at the university complained, he moved the hunt to his friend Mark Klingensmith's yard. They set up two lights shining over a plastic container on a white sheet. Then moths appeared from the darkness, flew into the sheet, and fell into the plastic container. “We got a different species every night,” Scheer says. “The patterns and colors were unbelievable.”

After the hunt, they used a powerful scanner to get detailed pictures of moths. Small moths presented special challenges.

The scanner records so much information that a single moth can take 20 minutes to scan. A scan of just two small moths fills an entire CD. All that information means the size of the picture can be increased by 2, 700 percent but still keep all the details and appear perfectly clear. You'd need a microscope to see the details shown in Scheer's prints.

Scheer's work is not only a new form of art. He has also made a valuable contribution to the record of the moths around him. He has helped identify more than a thousand different species. “Not from Alaska or the Amazon,” Klingensmith says. “All from one backyard.”

1. What do people mean by “No, that can't be a moth”?

A．Scheer is highly skilled at drawing	B．They don't like the pictures of moths
C．The moths in the pictures are too strange	D．The pictures seem too beautiful to be moths'

2. What is Paragraph 2 mainly about?

A．How Scheer caught moths	B．Scheer's working environment
C．How Scheer found moths' beauty	D．Scheer's friendship with Klingensmith.

3. The figures mentioned in Paragraph 4 show that ________ .

A．local moths have bright colors and clear patterns

B．a microscope should be used to prepare the pictures

C．clear pictures result from much detailed information

D．high quality paint must be used to create the pictures

4. What does the author think of Scheer's work?

A．It is a common form of art.	B．It benefits research on moths.
C．It'll get popular in Alaska or the Amazon.	D．It needs to overcome regional limitations.

3 . When thinking about what you can do to help the planet, do you support regenerative agriculture？Do you even know what it means？While it sounds like something that is up to farmers, there are ways that the rest of us can support it；one way is to practice soil-friendly eating.

    1    
Eat a variety of foods

A group of different foods can be good for getting a variety of nutrients, and by eating different types of foods, you'll help create demand for a wide variety of agricultural products, which is better for soil.     2    

Embrace the pulses（豆类）

The pulses are cheap and great alternative to meat.     3    Pulse crops are able to pull nitrogen from the atmosphere into the soil. This process is called nitrogen fixation and provides a natural fertilizer(肥料)，which is available for subsequent crops.

Make sure meat is sustainably produced

    4    However, if you do shop for meat, look for the meat which has been produced sustainably. For example, animals feeding on pasture(牧草) rather than grain are better because grain requires a lot of land, water and agrichemicals. Animals take a lot from the soil, so it's important to support owners of pasture who work to keep their soil healthy.

Reduce food waste

Reducing food waste has been getting much attention recently. By some accounts, it is one of the most important things we can do to fight the climate crisis.     5    Every item that you throw away is an item that the soil works for in vain.

A．We generally recommend eating less meat or none at all

B．It also helps ease the strain on soil since it reduces its workload.

C．Almost everyone mentions the need for regenerative agriculture.

D．It turns out that they are also a top choice for soil-friendly eating.

E．Here are some steps for how to eat in ways that are harmonious with soil.

F．If we don't take care of the soil, the soil will lose its ability to take care of us.

G．Food diversity helps with soil fertility when land is used to grow multiple crops.

4 . By any measure, the last 30 years has been completely extraordinary. In less than one generation, our planet has changed faster than in all human existence. We have transformed from simple inhabitants of this world to the architects of its future. Nowhere is this more obvious than with tropical coral reefs(珊瑚礁).

I ran into coral reefs on the shores of Arabia in 1982 as a 20-year-old. There my life changed forever the moment I dived from hot desert into the Red Sea, discovering myself surrounded by corals, which were richer and more productive than anything I had seen. What drove me then was an exploration to unlock the secret of this enormous richness.

I thought that search would last a lifetime, but over the decades orals began to sicken and die across the world. My journey took a new direction, searching for the cause of their illness and the hunt for a cure. It turns out that, although reefs have thrived(茁壮成长) for millions of years, creating geological structures so monumental that they can be seen from space, they are incredibly sensitive to upset at the hands of people. Global warming, in concert with more local pressures, such as overfishing and pollution, is killing corals.

The core of their vulnerability(脆弱性) lies in a 100-million-year long relationship between the coral animal and a microscopic plant, called zooxanthella, that lives in their tissues. Zooxanthellae gift corals the ability to live like plants, producing 85 to 95 percent of their food by photosynthesis(光合作用). In return, corals give the plants protection, nutrients and carbon dioxide. It's a wonderful relationship and is the secret of corals' ability to build massive reefs, greatly promoting their productivity compared to creatures without zooxanthellae. But the partnership is fragile. When temperatures rise more than a degree or so above normal maxima, the relationship turns from benefit to deadly cost.

Since the late 1990s, across huge areas of the tropics, coral reefs have suffered a catastrophic loss of life and vitality. Can anything be done to save them？The only durable fix will be a rapid reduction in greenhouse emissions to net zero. But even that won't be enough, because carbon dioxide emissions have already overshot the coral comfort zone. We will need to suck some of it back                                               too. That will take time.

In the meantime, we can give reefs a chance through better protection now. Just as a doctor would advise you to reduce stress, take more exercise and eat healthily to prevent sickness, reefs have a better chance of coping if we reduce overfishing, pollution and damage from tourism and development. Coral reefs tell us that we need to change course now if we are to leave a world fit for generations yet to come.

1. The author had a turning point in his life when____________.

A．taking adventures in the great desert

B．moving into the field of architecture

C．realizing the significance of coral reefs

D．experiencing the richness of coral reefs

2. Which of the following thing upset the author during his journey of exploration？

A．People were unconcerned about coral reefs.

B．Coral reefs were found in great danger.

C．Coral reefs recovered at a slow speed.

D．People relied too much on sea food.

3. What can be inferred from paragraph4？

A．Zooxanthellae have the ability to live like animals in the ocean.

B．Corals and zooxanthellae can well adapt to the rising temperature.

C．Corals and zooxanthellae depend on each other for their own benefit.

D．Zooxanthellae can keep coral reefs at a normal temperature at all times.

4. What's the purpose of the last paragraph？

A．To warn about the consequences of coral reefs’ loss.

B．To call for immediate measures to protect coral reefs

C．To point out the harm local tourism has done to coral reefs.

D．To inform people of coral reefs' powerful self-repairing ability.

5 . Trees are “social creature” that communicate with each other in cooperative ways that hold lessons for humans, too, ecologist Suzanne Simard says. Simard grew up in Canadian forests as a child of loggers before becoming an ecologist. She's now a professor of forest ecology at the University of British Columbia.

Trees are linked to neighboring trees by a network of fungi below the surface of the earth that resembles the nervous networks in the brain, she explains. In one study, Simard watched as a Douglas fir tree that had been injured by insects appeared to send chemical warning signals to a pine nearby. The pine tree then produced defense enzymes to protect against the insect.

“This was a breakthrough,” Simard says. The trees were sharing “information that actually is important to the health of the whole forest.”

In addition to warning each other of danger, Simard says that trees have been known to share nutrients at critical times to keep each other healthy. She says the trees in a forest are often linked to each other via an older tree she calls a “mother” or “hub” tree.

“In connecting with all the trees of different ages, the mother trees can actually ease the growth of these young trees,” she says. “The young trees will link into the network of the old trees and benefit from that huge resource capacity. And the old trees would also pass a little bit of carbon and nutrients and water to the young trees, at crucial times in their lives, that actually help them survive.”

The study of trees took on a new resonance for Simard when she suffered from breast cancer. During her treatment, she learned that one of the medicines she relied on was actually obtained from what some trees produce for their own mutual defense. She explains her research on cooperation in the forest, and shares her personal story in the new book Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest.

1. How could a Douglas fir tree send chemical warning signals to a pine nearby?

A．By an underground network of fungi.	B．By the nervous networks in the brain.
C．By making cooperation with each other.	D．By holding lessons to it as human beings.

2. According to Simard, what was a breakthrough?

A．Simard was-brought up in Canadian forests.	B．She became a professor of forest ecology.
C．The pine tree produced defense enzymes.	D．Vital information was shared among trees.

3. What helped Simard understand trees further?

A．Her rich knowledge of trees.	B．Her childhood in the forest.
C．Her medicine gained from trees.	D．Her research on cooperation.

4. In Simard's book we may discover the wisdom of the forest except          .

A．communicating cooperatively	B．warning each other of danger
C．sharing nutrients at critical times	D．sacrificing mother trees for survival

6 . I've spent all my adult life working with trees. Recently, our fundraising team was looking for novel suggestions to raise money to help________ the giant redwoods in Benmore. Some of the staff_________ I do a sponsored tree huggathon.

They knew I'd been a tree hugger since a very early age. Still,I wasn’t ________ people would be interested enough to_________ money. But my colleagues thought it was worth a_________. So I agreed to hug 350 trees in a year.

My tree hugging practice is simple: making maximum contact.This means wrapping my arms as________ round as they'll go.

________, there were a few raised eyebrows from passers-by. Some people________ quietly, maybe they thought it was a(n) ________ and old-fashioned Scottish custom. I was played jokes on among my family, too,but everyone understood it was for a________ cause.

I'm delighted that we_________ to raise more than double the original________ to help save our own splendid redwoods, which were planted in 1863 by a wealthy American.

Tree hugging is a wonderful way of reconnecting with_________.on a deep level. That's something I think we all need more of, with the________ pace of modern life. Tree hugging can help us slow down; to appreciate the small things in life. Above all, trees can teach us________.

1.

A．plant

B．save

C．grow

D．water

2.

A．requested

B．ordered

C．insisted

D．suggested

3.

A．sure

B．surprised

C．curious

D．confused

4.

A．donate

B．make

C．burn

D．raise

5.

A．visit

B．try

C．thought

D．decision

6.

A．carefully

B．straight

C．far

D．tightly

7.

A．Surprisingly

B．Fortunately

C．Definitely

D．Strictly

8.

A．laughed

B．walked

C．accepted

D．advocate

9.

A．figid

B．new

C．brilliant

D．unusual

10.

A．possible

B．hopeless

C．good

D．complex

11.

A．managed

B．tried

C．wanted

D．started

12.

A．creation

B．target

C．value

D．profit

13.

A．man

B．life

C．society

D．nature

14.

A．gentle

B．fast

C．relaxed

D．lively

15.

A．freedom

B．bravery

C．patience

D．kindness

7 . Global heating appears to be making trees drop their leaves earlier, according to new research, contradicting the idea that warmer temperatures delay the beginning of autumn.

The finding is important because trees draw huge amounts of carbon dioxide from the air and therefore play a key role in managing the climate.

The rising temperatures also mean that spring is arriving earlier and,overall, the growing season for trees in the planet's temperate zones(温带地区） is getting longer. However, the earlier autumns mean that significantly less carbon can be stored in trees than previously thought, providing less of a brake on global heating.

The new research is based on a huge dataset of observations of European trees, experiments that varied light and CO2 levels, and mathematical models. It showed that as well as temperature and day length, the amount of carbon a tree has absorbed in a season is a key factor in determining when it no longer needs its leaves and drops them. The scientists liken the effect to a person becoming full after a heavy meal and being unable to eat more food.

Earlier models that did not include the amount of carbon a tree absorbs during a season indicated that autumn could be two to three weeks later by the end of the century on current emissions (排放） trends. But the scientists' new model indicates autumn may actually come up to six days earlier. Christine Rollinson, an ecologist at the Morton Arboretum in Illinois, USA, said the earlier models were known to be simplifications but were the best available.

“The big challenge is that autumn has always been a bit of a mess,” she said. “Depending on where you are and which species you're looking at, there's some evidence that leaf fall is happening earlier and some that it's happening later. But understanding how well a tree grows during the season really helps explain that tree-to-tree variation.”

Rollinson said that we can't put all of the responsibility on to growing trees. We can cut emissions from fossil fuel burning and deforestation to address the climate emergency.

1. What is the result of rising temperature?

A．Later spring.

B．More carbon storage.

C．Shorter growth season.

D．Earlier autumn leaf-off.

2. What does the underlined word “liken” mean in the fourth paragraph?

A．Compare.

B．Owe.

C．Expose.

D．Reduce.

3. What is Christine Rollinson's attitude towards the earlier models?

A．Disapproving.

B．Supportive.

C．Sceptical.

D．Unclear.

4. What is the last paragraph meant to do?

A．Offer a solution.

B．Voice dissatisfaction.

C．Show a new finding.

D．Present more evidence.

8 . Mother Hen

From the moment my husband brought home a box of six chicks, our nine-year-old, Sophie, hasn't let them _________ her sight. She named them Trixie, Bearty, Sweet Pea, Speedie, Captain Flint, and Adrian and was very _________ when we wouldn't let them sleep in her bed.

Sophie takes at least one chicken everywhere we let her and has done_________ things with her chickens. One hot day, she wanted to take Captain Flint to the creek(小溪). I wasn't so _________ about it: Could chickens swim? Sophie balanced a stick on her river tube (游泳圈)for Captain Flint to stay on, and the two_________ down the creek.

_________, Sophie dressed as a chicken for Halloween and _________ us that Trixic had to come. The reactions from neighbors were _________＂Wait,is that a real chicken you're holding?" Trixie cooed (咕咕地叫)the whole time.

The chickens are teaching us about love as well as _________ and grief.Sadly,Captain Flint faced an untimely death after an eagle attack. We had a chicken funeral, said a few words about what a good chicken she was, and thanked her for the __________ she brought to our lives before we __________ her. Sophie painted a lovely picture __________ it and has worn a pendant（坠饰） with Captain's picture ever since.

The chickens weren't__________ in the house until one morning when Sophie told me,＂There's nothing to feel happy about." Since then, we've allowed one chick inside at a time if Sophic promised to__________ immediately. The chickens brought a glimmer of joy back to our lives. In a few short months, they have taught us to__________ situations we can't change and find joy where we can. I am so grateful.

1.

A．at

B．in

C．from

D．out of

2.

A．awkward

B．ashamed

C．upset

D．guilt

3.

A．unbearable

B．unbelievable

C．uplifting

D．satisfying

4.

A．concerned

B．curious

C．serious

D．sure

5.

A．floated

B．jumped

C．slid

D．flew

6.

A．Surprisingly

B．Naturally

C．Foolishly

D．Luckily

7.

A．convinced

B．informed

C．reminded

D．showed

8.

A．complicated

B．quick

C．funny

D．crazy

9.

A．loss

B．delight

C．loneliness

D．happiness

10.

A．fortune

B．lesson

C．joy

D．reward

11.

A．abandoned

B．forgot

C．buried

D．threw

12.

A．in favor of

B．in memory of

C．in defense of

D．in possession of

13.

A．allowed

B．found

C．expected

D．held

14.

A．turn up

B．get up

C．clean up

D．stay up

15.

A．case

B．accept

C．control

D．judge

9 . The human body can't handle overheating. The processes that keep us alive work best within a certain temperature between about 36° C and 37° C, depending on the person.

If someone's body temperature goes higher, the body's primary response to heat is to try and get rid of it. To get rid of the overheat, blood vessels(血管) expand. At the same time, the heart begins beating faster. That pushes blood flow to the skin. There, the blood can release heat to cool down. Meanwhile, sweating kicks in to cool the skin.

But there is a limit to how much the body can adjust. That limit depends on an individual's health, as well as the temperature and humidity(湿度) outside. If the outside temps are hotter than the body, blood at the skin won't release heat. And where humidity is high, sweating won't cool the skin. That's because the sweat can't evaporate(蒸发). In 2008, two scientists suggested that humans can't cool off if they spend extended time at a temperature over 35° C.

No one is resistant to heat. But it hits some groups harder than others. The elderly are considered the weakest. One reason: They have fewer sweat glands(汗腺). But their bodies also respond more slowly to rising temperatures. Children, too, are at risk because they haven't fully developed the ability to regulate heat. People with certain diseases such as diabetes and heart disease also can have trouble cooling their bodies. And people living in poverty often lack air conditioning and other resources to help them beat the heat.

Many people see heat as more of an annoyance than a threat. But climate change, extreme heat and human health are all connected. As Earth's temperatures climb, extreme heat waves will probably become more common, endangering more people.

1. What pushes blood flow to the skin according to Paragraph 2?

A．Blood vessels expand.	B．Blood releases the heat.
C．The heart beats faster.	D．Sweating cools the skin.

2. What is the third paragraph mainly about?

A．The hidden dangers of extreme heat.	B．The findings of a study in 2008.
C．The influences of heat on the body.	D．The limits of the body's adjustments.

3. Who is most likely to be the victim of overheating?

A．The old.

B．The young.

C．The sick.

D．The poor.

4. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A．People haven't realized the danger of overheat.

B．The rising temperatures have claimed many lives.

C．Improper human activities cause climate change.

D．The Earth is unsuitable to live on in the future.

10 . Between a quarter and one third of all marine species rely on coral reefs (珊瑚礁)at some point in their life cycle. The Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef, covers nearly 133,000 square miles and is home to more than 1,500 species of fish, 411 species of hard coral and dozens of other species.

Australian's Great Barrier Reef has lost 50% of its coral populations in the last three decades, with climate change a key driver of reef disturbance, a new study has found.

Researchers from the Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, in Queensland, northeastern Australia, studied coral communities and their colony size along the length of the Great Barrier Reef between 1995 and 2017, finding reduction of virtually all coral populations.

“We found the number of small, medium and large coral on the Great Barrier Reef has dropped by more than 50% since the 1990s," reported co-author Terry Hughes, a professor at the centre, in a statement.

Reefs are basic to the health of marine ecosystems — without them, ecosystems collapse, and marine life dies. Coral population sizes are also considered important when it comes to the coral's ability to reproduce." A coral population has millions of small, baby corals, as well as many large ones,“ said Andy Dietzel, a doctoral student in a statement. "Our results show the ability of the Great Barrier Reef to recover becomes weak compared to the past," he added.

Population falls occurred in both shallow and deep water coral species, experts found, but branching coral and table-shaped coral — which provide habitats for fish — were worst affected by mass bleaching （白化）events in 2016 and 2017, caused by record-breaking temperatures.

Warm ocean temperatures are the main driver of coral bleaching, when coral turns white as a stress response to water that is too warm. Bleaching doesn't kill coral immediately, but if temperatures remain high, eventually the coral will die, destroying a natural habitat for many species of marine life.

The new study found the serious worsening of coral colonies in the Northern and Central Great Barrier Reef following the mass bleaching events in the past five years, and experts said the southern part of the reef also suffered record-breaking temperatures in early 2020.

“We used to think the Great Barrier Reef is protected by its huge size — but our results show that even the world's largest and relatively well-protected reef system is increasingly dropping, Hughes said. He warned that climate change is driving an increase in the frequency of the reef disturbance like marine heat waves. "There is no time to lose — we must sharply reduce greenhouse gases as soon as possible," he said.

1. What can we know about coral reefs?

A．They are not able to recover by themselves.

B．They make up the largest ecosystem in the sea.

C．They can easily be disturbed by other marine species.

D．They can influence the existence of other marine species.

2. What does the underlined word “collapse" in Paragraph 5 mean?

A．Change.	B．Disappear.
C．Crash.	D．Progress.

3. How does coral respond to high temperatures?

A．It will die very soon.	B．It will change its color.
C．It will fail to reproduce.	D．It will kill other species.

4. What does Terry Hughes want to say in the last paragraph?

A．The Great Barrier Reef doesn't have a self-protecting mechanism.

B．The Great Barrier Reef is no longer the world's largest coral reef.

C．Measures must be taken to protect coral reefs without delay.

D．Climate change can increase the frequency of heat waves.