1 . What do ants, bees, pigeons, and herrings have in common? All these animals swarm. Swarming occurs when large numbers of individual animals move, work, or cooperate as a group. They appear to know where they are going and what they are doing. Why are they doing this?
Ants are a good example of swarming animals. Swarms of ants can do many difficult tasks. For example, they can find the shortest path to the best food source. It may appear that individual ants build nests and defend their homes, but ants aren’t clever architects or soldiers—at least not as individuals. If you watch an ant try to accomplish something, you will be impressed by how inept it is. Although individual ants don’t appear to be very intelligent, as colonies they are, thanks to swarm intelligence.
Swarm intelligence is the collective behavior of large groups. The key feature of swarm intelligence seems to be that no one is in charge. In the case of ants, there appear to be no leaders. No ant seems to be telling any other ants what to do. There is a queen ant, but her only role is to lay eggs. Yet, a colony of half a million ants functions perfectly without any managers at all. Furthermore, no single ant seems to have any knowledge about the big picture—the main goals or objectives. The swarm relies on lots of interaction between individuals who all follow the rules. One of these rules is to stay close together. When individuals stay close together, they communicate and share a lot of information.
Different animals have different methods of interaction. For example, ants leave a trail of pheromones for other ants to follow. A key component of bee interaction is movement. When bees need to move their hive, scout bees go out in search of a suitable place to live. When they return, they each do a type of dance. The “happier” the bee is about the new location, the faster the dance is. In addition, the dance includes a code with directions to the new location. The excited dancers excite other scout bees. These bees then fly out to check. They come back, get close together, and dance with the other excited bees. The bees will not move until they are all “excited”, or in agreement about the best location. Once a large enough group of bees all agree, they convince the thousands of other bees. Then they all fly together to the new site.
Some scientists are applying the wisdom of animals to solve human problems. Thomas Seeley, a biologist at Cornell University, uses swarm intelligence in his meeting. Seeley doesn’t tell his staff what to do or make all decisions. Instead, he asks his staff to identify all the possibilities, discuss their ideas, and then vote by ballot. Seeley wants his staff, like the bees, to focus on the group’s needs, not on the individual ideas. “It gives a group time to let the best idea emerge and win.” Seeley says that running meetings using swarm intelligence ideas can lead to better decisions. It can also reduce conflict among the staff.
In nature, animals use swarm intelligence for survival. For these animals, working together is a matter of life or death. For humans, there is much to learn from swarm intelligence to make our lives more efficient.
1. According to paragraph 2, “inept” means ________.| A．awkward | B．appealing | C．isolated | D．smart |
| A．There should be a leader although he may not be in charge. |
| B．It won’t work if individuals don’t understand the collective goals. |
| C．Every individual should be very familiar with the rules and with each other. |
| D．Team member should stick together and communicate what they know. |
| A．They communicate within their group through pheromones. |
| B．Failure in reaching agreements seldom occurs in an intimate team. |
| C．They head towards the new location when majority of bees agree. |
| D．The way they dance reflects how satisfied they are with the location. |
| A．boosting team spirit | B．eliminating conflicts |
| C．encouraging best ideas | D．solving interpersonal problems |
2 . Each one of us shares this planet with seven billion other individuals. And we all need transportation. The majority of cars, motorcycles, boats and planes cause pollution. They are also noisy. This is a serious problem in many cities. So inventors are coming up with innovative ideas to try to reduce the pollution and noise.
By Land
In many cities around the world, motorcycles are becoming increasingly popular. Currently, Vietnam has around 33 million motorcycles. China has almost 120 million. The convenience of these motorcycles comes at a cost. Air pollution is a growing problem. In large cities, people often complain it is difficult to breathe. They also complain about the noise.
To solve these problems, a U.S. company designed an environmentally friendly motorcycle. It uses electricity as fuel. You can drive it for 40 miles (64 kilometers) before recharging the battery.
It is also quiet and fast-60 miles (96 kilometers) per hour. This makes it a good choice for getting around a city.
By Water
The Italian city of Venice is a city with only a few roads. There are no cars in the city center. Instead of cars, water taxis and buses carry people along the city’s canals. The engines of these boats are simple and cheap. However, they cause pollution, particularly to the water. This causes damage to the city’s buildings.
English mechanics Dick Strawbridge and Jem Stans designed a solar-powered water taxi. The solar panels charge three electric batteries. These, in turn, provide power to the engine. The water taxi can carry six passengers. It can run for a day. In the future, solar taxis could be an alternative to Venice’s current taxis.
By Air
Designing an environmentally friendly airplane is a real challenge. Planes use an enormous amount of jet fuel. This means they cause significant air pollution, and they are very noisy. Some major airplane manufacturers have started to address the problems. They are using cleaner fuels, for example. However, Swiss engineers have gone one step further. They developed a solar airplane — the Solar Impulse. Solar panels cover its wings. These panels provide power to four electric motors and batteries. The batteries allow the plane to fly at night. This plane holds the world record for the longest solar-powered flight — 985 miles (1541 kilometers) from Arizona to Texas in the United States.
1. What do the three innovative ideas proposed have in common?| A．They aim to solve traffic problems in big cities. |
| B．They use cleaner energy and cause less pollution. |
| C．They aim to change traditional way of transporting goods. |
| D．They are good will of developed countries to help developing countries. |
| A．China owns the largest number of motorcycles. |
| B．There are no cars in the center of Venice city. |
| C．Solar-powered water taxi can run for a day with one battery at work. |
| D．The newly designed motorcycle can drive 60 miles after being charged. |
| A．lighter wings | B．less noise |
| C．powerful batteries | D．longest solar panels |
| A. alarming B. carbon-intensive C. durability D. glued E. labels F. man-made G. manufacturing H. recycle I. redefine J. samples K. share |
How sustainable are your sneakers?
Over the last five years the sneaker industry has grown rapidly and shows no sign of slowing down. The global athletic footwear market is expected to exceed 95 billion (USD) by 2025. According to the World Footwear Yearbook, over 24 billion pairs of shoes are produced annually. Among them sneakers account for the largest
Sneaker production is very
These emissions mainly come from
Then why don’t we move away from the use of plastic? Since sneakers have to endure much more than a regular pair of shoes, the aspect of their
The footwear industry is at least 10 years behind the rest of fashion in terms of environmental standards. Seven out of ten brands are having discussions on sustainability, yet only 40% of companies have a sustainability program in place. Big industry players (such as Adidas and Nike) and some smaller
Considering that close to 25 billion pairs of shoes were produced worldwide in the last year, it is clear that immediate action is very important. It is my hope that we consumers will
1. According to the poster above, which groups of items will be the best for the Pearson family (father with chronic disease, mother, a 10-month-old infant, and a pet dog) to pack into their limited-size emergency supplies kit besides necessities such as food, water and clothes?
| A．passport, paper cups, whistle, rain gear, flashlights |
| B．formula, blanket, medication, diapers, pet food |
| C．pet food, cottont-shirt, plastic sheeting, books |
| D．medication, bank account records, diaper, can opener, formula |
| A．To provide more appropriate protection. |
| B．To create a sense of security and familiarity. |
| C．To make them feel more physically comfortable. |
| D．To simulate a seemingly school-like environment. |
| A．Families should adjust the contents of the emergency supplies kit every other year based on needs. |
| B．There are no specific items in the poster that address the needs in different natural disasters. |
| C．All of the supplies in the emergency kit should not be stored in waterproof and portable containers. |
| D．Children should not be allowed to include their favorites books and stuffed animals in the kit. |
| A. technical B. attributed C. confined D. observations E. sensation F. totaling G. anticipatory H. consistent I. precisely J. suspicious K. attached |
For centuries, people have described unusual animal behavior just ahead of seismic (地震的) events: dogs barking endlessly, cows halting their milk, toads leaping from ponds. A few researchers have tried to prove a link, but most such attempts have relied largely on anecdotes and single
Now researchers at the University of Konstanz, along with a multinational team of colleagues, say they have managed to
The paper’s statistical analysis showed animals’ activity significantly increased before magnitude 3.8 or greater earthquakes when they were housed together in a stable — but not when they were out to pasture (吃草). Wikelski says this difference could be linked to the increased stress some animals feel in
Besides, it showed that the farm animals appeared to anticipate quakes anywhere from one to 20 hours ahead, reacting earlier when they were closer to the origin and later when they were farther away. This finding is
Not involved with the new study, Wendy Bohon, a geologist from Washington, D.C., is
6 . Yvonne Morones, who has a pet dog named Scamp the Tramp, is talking with the Pet Journal about Scamp.
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When I saw Scamp on Petfinder, all of a sudden I understood what love was like. I suddenly found I loved him because I fell in love with his face.
What did you know about him when you adopted him?
He’d been living on the street in Compton, California, and people were feeding him McDonald’s. And his name was Muffin Man, which didn’t seem to fit him at all.
What do you do to give him that bed head look?
It’s au naturel! He does get a mango shampoo and a coconut conditioner, but these gray dreads just appear on his head, back, and tail. The pet hairdresser says his hair is uncontrollable.
Scamp works with you as a social therapy dog too. How do people react to his unusual looks?
The first time he went to the senior center with me, the seniors just laughed and said, “Yvonne, what have you got there?” Then they fell in love with him. They’ll even write little adventure stories about Scamp. He just inspires people.
Has being awarded the world’s ugliest dog changed him?
He’s no longer Scamp the Tramp. He’s now Scamp the Champ. Now I have to get him a new dog tag.
1. What can be learned about Scamp the Tramp?| A．He loves fast food. | B．He looks unattractive. |
| C．He dislikes his new tag. | D．He used to live with seniors. |
| A．Why did you go to Petfinder so often? |
| B．What did you often find on Petfinder? |
| C．Who brought you Scamp the Tramp? |
| D．How did you first meet Scamp the Tramp? |
| A．Scamp turned gray after being adopted by her |
| B．Scamp is fond of being washed with shampoo |
| C．nothing has been done to change Scamp’s appearance |
| D．it is the pet hairdresser who has given Scamp his new look |
7 . Here’s how the Pacific Northwest is preparing for “The Big One”. It’s the mother of all disaster drills for what could be the worst disaster in American history. California has spent years preparing for “The Big One”— the inevitable earthquake that will undoubtedly bring about all kinds of damage along the famous San Andreas fault. But what if the fault that runs along the Pacific Northwest delivers a gigantic earthquake of its own? If the people of the Cascadia region have anything to do with it, they won’t be caught unawares.
The region is engaged in a multi-day earthquake-and-tsunami drill involving around 20, 000 people. The Cascadia Rising drill gives area residents and emergency responders a chance to practice what to do in case of a 9. 0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami along one of the nation’s dangerous and underestimated faults.
The Cascadia Earthquake Zone is big enough to compete with San Andreas (it’s been called the most dangerous fault in America), but it’s much lesser known than its California cousin. Nearly 700 miles long, the earthquake zone is located by the North American Plate off the coast of Pacific British Columbia. Washington, Oregon and Northern California.
Cascadia is what’s known as a “megathrust” fault. Megathrusts are created in subduction zones(俯冲带)— plate tectonic(板块构造)boundaries where two plates converge(相交). In the areas where one plate is beneath another, stress builds up over time. During a megathrust event, all of that stress releases and some of the world’s most powerful earthquake occur. Remember the 9. I earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean off Sumatra in 2004? It was caused by a megathrust event as the India plate moved beneath the Burma micro-plate.
The last time a major earthquake occurred along the Cascadia fault was in 1700, so officials worry that another event could occur any time. To prevent that event from becoming a severe disaster, first responders will join members of the public in rehearsals that involve communication, evacuation, search and rescue, and other possible situations.
Thousands of casualties(伤亡人员) are expected if a 9. 0 earthquake were to occur. First, the earthquake would shake metropolitan areas including Seattle and Portland. This could cause a tsunami that would create damage along the coast. Not all casualties can necessarily be prevented - but by coordinating across local, state, and even national borders, officials hope that the worst-case situation can be prevented. On the exercise’s website, officials explain that the report they prepare during this rehearsal will inform disaster management for years to come.
For hundreds of thousands of Cascadia residents, “The Big One” isn’t a question of if, only when. And it’s never too early to get ready for the inevitable.
1. What does “The Big One” refer to?| A．A gigantic geological fault in America. |
| B．A large-scale drill to prepare for disasters. |
| C．A massive and destructive natural disaster. |
| D．Mass destruction caused by the earthquake. |
| A．To prepare people for a major earthquake and tsunami. |
| B．To increase residents’awareness of upcoming disasters. |
| C．To teach people now how adapt to post-disaster life. |
| D．To cope with the aftermath of a possible earthquake. |
| A．Two plates merge into one. | B．A variety of forces converge. |
| C．Boundaries blur between plates. | D．Enormous stress is released. |
| A．A large-scale drill is supposed to prevent deaths in the earthquake. |
| B．San Andreas fault once delivered a 9. 1 earthquake in the Indian Ocean. |
| C．No massive earthquake is expected to strike Califomia in the near future. |
| D．Disaster-relief efforts at different levels may help reduce possible losses. |
| “Black Blizzard(暴风雪)”by Maurine V. Eleder This suspenseful story follows two young girls, at home alone, when a dust storm arises. Despite their young age, Betty and Mary Ann quickly take action when the severe dust storm hits. They begin taking measures to block the dust from coming into the house, which would make the air unbreathable. Although they are frightened, they take comfort thinking they can just wait out the storm inside their home. Unfortunately, Betty realizes her beloved horse is caught out in the “black blizzard.” One wrong move in the blinding storm, and Fancifoot could injure himself- or worse. Betty faces the difficult decision of leaving her younger sister to brave the storm or risking Fancifoot’s life to remain in safety Teachers could use this text to teach the history of the Dust Bowl of the 1930s or to teach thescience behind the causes and effects of soil erosion. |
| “Tornado Coming!” by Dick Donley If your students love the nail-biting tale “Black Blizzard,” they’ll love “Tornado Coming!” as well. Because this story includes a tornado, a young kid, a small dog, and a strange neighbor, you might be reminded of another tale you’ve read before. However, there are no talking scarecrows(稻草人) or flying monkeys in this story! Matt is home alone with Buster when he hears the siren(警报)warning of a tornado. Mentally ticking through the safety tips he learned in school, Matt heads for the storm cellar (防风地窖)with the tornado forming at his back. With only moments to spare, Matt realizes he must leave his little dog in the safety of the storm cellar to run to the aid of his unpleasant neighbor, Mrs. Laney. After the storm passes, Matt doesn’t wake up to find himself in Australia; however, he does find himself in a pretty odd place. This text weaves helpful tornado safety measures throughout a narrative story. For a creative follow-up activity, teachers could assign different natural disasters to small groups for research. Then, groups could use their research and the model text “Tornado Coming!” to incorporate safety tips within their own short stories about their assigned natural disaster. |
| A．want to help students learn about natural disasters |
| B．take an interest in stores related to natural disasters |
| C．have the need to equip children with safety measures |
| D．are looking for inviting and inspiring children’s stories |
| A．Betty and Mary are too young to fight against the storm alone |
| B．Betty is torn between saving Fancifoot’s life and protecting Mary |
| C．Matt offers Mrs. Laney timely help at the cost of losing his little dog |
| D．Students can add safety tips for other natural disasters to “Tornado Coming!” |
| A．Both involve a natural disaster, little kids, an animal and a neighbor. |
| B．They touch upon the theme of caring for others and self-reliance. |
| C．Helpful safety measures are highlighted in the narratives. |
| D．The main characters suffer pain and face a dilemma. |
9 . My family lost everything in the little-known flood of Baton Rouge, Louisiana last year that the Red Cross called the “Worst US disaster since Hurricane Sandy.”
It began raining in mid-August. Then it rained some more, got more powerful, and didn’t stop for days. There was talk that the local rivers were going to crest (到达顶点)and cause some pretty serious flooding. We lived somewhat close to the Amite River, but our senior neighbors told us that our neighborhood hadn’t flooded in over 100 years.
Local news said that the nearby high school may get a little bit of water inside from the rising river. We thought we had a couple of days to plan on how we were going to shelter in place because of the weather forecast.
On the 13th of August I woke up, walked outside and headed toward the direction of the river. Some of the lower areas were collecting water but there was no standing water anywhere near my house or even my neighborhood. I went back home and told my wife we should probably get some supplies in case this got serious; that maybe we should even pack a car in case we needed to leave though I was fairly certain there was nothing to worry about.
About 30 minutes into slowly packing there was a loud banging on my front door. It was my wife’s cousin. I opened the door and she said, “What are you doing?! Get out of the house!” I looked behind her and noticed my entire yard underwater and the waterline only about a half-inch from going over my doorstep and into my house.
I was floored. The river wasn’t supposed to crest until the next day. I thought we had more time.
I yelled at my wife, “We have to get out of the house. Now!”
We packed up both our cars in about 10 minutes with only our most precious memories. Everything else we had built during a 10-year marriage was left behind. We evacuated about 5 miles east away from the river to my wife’s grandmothers.
After being there for about an hour someone came to the front door and said, “You guys ned to get out. The river is coming.”
Sure enough, her yard was flooding too.
We evacuated a second time in as many hours to her cousin’s house even further east. After only an hour we were told again that the river was on the way and we had to leave.
1. The author realized the arrival of the flood when ______.| A．the rain started to fall heavily and non-stop |
| B．the nearby high school was slightly affected |
| C．there was standing water in some lower areas |
| D．he was informed by his wife’s cousin at the door |
| A．He was clam enough to cope with the flood. |
| B．He became trapped by the rising floodwater. |
| C．He was shocked by the early arrival of the flood. |
| D．He lost his temper with his wife for being unprepared. |
| A．He didn’t take action immediately despite his neighbor’s warning. |
| B．He trusted the weather forecast so that he prepared himself in advance. |
| C．He and his wife brought some supplies and valuable belongings with them. |
| D．He was forced to leave the temporary homes again and again to avoid danger. |
| A．Mutual Support in Disasters | B．Baton Rouge Flooding |
| C．How to Survive a Flood | D．Methods of Predicting Floods |
10 . A simple piece of rope hangs between some environmentally friendly Americans and their neighbors. On one side stand those who have begun to see clothes dryers as a wasteful consumers of energy (up to 6% of total electricity) and powerful emitters of carbon dioxide (up to a ton of CO2 per household every year). As an alternative, they are turning to clotheslines as part of what Alexander Lee, an environmentalist, calls “what-I-can-do environmentalism.”
But the other side are people who oppose air-drying laundry outside on visual grounds. Increasingly, they have persuaded community and homeowners associations (HOAs) access the U.S. to ban outdoor clotheslines, which they say not only look unattractive but also lower surrounding property values. Those actions, in turn, have led to a right-to-dry movement that is pressing for making laws to protect the choice to use clotheslines. Only three states — Florida, Hawaii and Utah — have laws written broadly enough to protect clotheslines. Right-to-dry advocates argue that there should be more.
Matt Reck is the kind of eco-conscious guy who feeds his trees with bathwater and recycles condensation drops (冷凝水) from his air conditioners to water plants. His family also uses a clothesline. But Otto Hagen, president of Reck’s HOA in Wake Forest, N.C., notified him that a neighbor had complained about his line. The Recks ignored the warning and still dry their clothes on a rope in the yard. “Many people claim to be environmentally friendly but don’t take matters into their own hands,” says Reck. HOAs Hagen has decided to hold off taking action. “I’m not going to go crazy,” he says. “But if Matt keeps his line and more neighbors complains, I’ll have to address it again.”
North Carolina lawmakers tried and failed earlier this year to insert language into an energy bill that would expressly prevent HOAs from regulating clotheslines. But the issue remains a touchy one with HOAs and real estate agents. “Most visual restrictions are rooted. to a degree, in the belief that homogenous (统一协调的) external appearance are supportive of property value,” says Sara Stubbins, executive director of the Community Association Institute’s North Carolina chapter. In other words, associations worry that housing prices will fall if prospective buyers think their would-be neighbors are too poor to afford dryers.
Alexander Lee dismisses the notion that clotheslines devalue property advocating that the idea “needs to change in light of global warming.” “We all have to do at least something to decrease our carbon footprint,” Alexander Lee says.
1. What is NOT mentioned as a disadvantage of using clothes dryers?| A．Electricity consumption. | B．Air pollution. |
| C．Waste of energy. | D．Ugly looking. |
| A．Opposers think air-drying laundry would devalue surrounding property. |
| B．Opposers consider the outdoor clothesline as an eyesore to the scenery. |
| C．Right-to-dry movements led to the pass of written laws to protect clotheslines. |
| D．Most of states in the US have no written laws to protect clotheslines. |
| A．clotheslines should be banned in the community |
| B．clotheslines wouldn’t lessen the property values |
| C．the globe would become warmer and warmer |
| D．we should protect the environment in the community |
| A．Opinions on Environmental Protection | B．Opinions on Air-drying Laundry |
| C．What-I-Can-Do Environmentalism | D．Restrictions on Clotheslines |
