1 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Beijing is the capital city of China. It     1     (cover) an area of around 17, 000 square kilometers, in which there are different kinds of bird habitats (栖息地),     2     (include) grassland, scrubland (灌木丛林地), wetland, and also agricultural land. Researchers call these areas “service stations,” where migrating (迁徙) birds stop     3     (rest) and feed. But the birds ‘“service stations” re     4     (rapid) closing in Beijing, as the city considers scrubland, grassland and old agricultural land to be “dirty” and “ugly”.

The loss of grassland and scrubland is already having a major influence     5     Beijing’s bird life. In the north of Beijing, the land around Miyun used to be visited by thousands of cranes (鹤). Now, much of that land is covered with man-made forest and     6     number of cranes there has greatly fallen.

“Cranes are rare and valuable animals in China. At Miyun, a festival     7     (hold) to celebrate the migration of cranes every year,” one researcher, Townshend, says. “Because it is Beijing, we can attract many people—both local people     8     visitors.”

“More cooperation (合作) between     9     (country) is needed,” Townshend adds. “Migratory birds are a shared natural heritage (遗产), and with this comes a common     10     (responsible) to protect them and the places they need,” he says.

2 . Cats don’t live by the rules, and spend most of their time just doing what they want. For the cat owner Zack King, his cat Billy’s life was enigmatic. Free-spirited felines(猫类) who like to spend time outdoors are often gone for hours at a time, leaving their owners wondering where they’ve been or what they’ve been up to. However, King soon discovered that his beloved cat was serving as a “postcat”.

Billy comes and goes as he pleases through a cat door. One day in October, when Billy was inside, King noticed a folded piece of paper covered in a plastic wrap in his collar. King carefully unwrapped it and was surprised to find a note from his neighbors. “Your cat likes to come to visit us when he is outside,” it read. “He will sit at the door and run into our house. We have no idea where he comes from. He always wants people to give him lots of scratches(挠痒). What’s his name? Does he have an owner?”

King wrote a note back, attached it to Billy’s collar, and hoped it would make it to the original sender. “We’re so glad he’s making friends with the neighbors,” it read. “His name is Billy.” It wasn’t long before Billy came back with another note, and now months later, the neighbors are still pen friends. “We both like watching movies online and cooking at home,” King said. “We have no idea what the neighbors look like. We could ask for details but there’s no need—it’s nice to have some privacy sometimes.”

“I was frustrated as the nights got colder and darker. Billy is spending more time indoors and sweet exchanges have become less frequent,” he says. “To be honest, a closed door and a sensitive alarm can ensure the safety of our houses. But they can prevent neighbors from having healthy friendships. To break the ice, we just need a cat and a note.”

1. What does the underlined word “enigmatic” mean in paragraph 1?

A．Mysterious.

B．Boring.

C．Tough.

D．Ordinary.

2. Why did King’s neighbors write a note?

A．To know the identity of the cat.	B．To express his dislike of the cat.
C．To express his thanks for the cat.	D．To ask King to take the cat back.

3. What can we learn from the last but one paragraph?

A．King has met with his neighbors before.

B．King hopes to thank the neighbors in person.

C．King shares common hobbies with his neighbors.

D．King has communicated with his neighbors online.

4. What does King imply in the last paragraph?

A．We should make friends with neighbors.

B．We should ensure the safety of our houses.

C．We should respect the privacy of neighbors.

D．We should keep pets to stay safe and healthy.

3 . Cell phones, tablets, laptops, smart-watches: the modern world is packed with a lot of devices that bring us connectivity, entertainment and information. Our hunger for the latest models leads to the “throwaway” culture, which means consumers often throw away old devices as soon as new ones come to the market, a habit that can have a significant effect on waste streams and the environment.

With concerns about e-waste growing, some companies are now turning to chemistry to develop solutions to recycle items like old cell phones, extracting value at the same time. One such example is the work being carried out by Mint Innovation, a clean tech firm based in Auckland, New Zealand. “We’ve developed a biological process for recovering valuable metals from electronic waste,” said Ollie Crush, the company’s chief scientific officer.

Crush explained that Mint Innovation’s system included grinding(磨碎)waste up into a powder. “The reason why we must do this is that we need to make sure that we’re exposing all the metal contained within to a chemical filtering(过滤)process,” he added.

When it comes to recovering a valuable material like gold, the technique used by Mint Innovation has a number of steps. According to a video, chemicals dissolve (溶解) the powdered waste into a solution, with any materials that haven’t dissolved filtered out. Microbes are then added to the mix. Gold atoms catch on to them in a process called “selective biosorption”. Next, the microbes coated gold are filtered, producing a paste which is then turned into a solid, “recycled” gold.

“Nearly 50% of the value of e-waste comes from the gold,” Cameron Weber, a senior lecturer at Chemical Sciences, said. “In fact, there’s actually more gold in e-waste as a concentration than there is in gold that’s been mined, which shows you the value of being able to take your e-waste and recycle and reuse some of the elements that are found in it,” he added.

Looking ahead, Crush, explained the process could potentially have a number of interesting applications. “The future for Mint Innovation is to prove that our technology works with a number of different materials,” he said. “So, we’ll just keep trying to see where our microbial process makes more sense.”

1. What is Mint Innovation trying to do?

A．To develop eco-friendly products.	B．To change the “throwaway culture”.
C．To collect harmful things in e-waste.	D．To get valuable things from e-waste.

2. What is an important step in Mint Innovation’s system?

A．Mixing e-waste with gold.	B．Reusing elements of e-waste.
C．Turning e-waste into tiny pieces.	D．Exposing e-waste to special chemicals.

3. What does Cameron Weber mainly want to express in the last but one paragraph?

A．The ways of dealing with e-waste.	B．The necessity of reducing e-waste.
C．The difficulty of recycling e-waste.	D．The meaning of recycling e-waste.

4. What is Crush’s attitude towards the company’s technology?

A．Concerned.

B．Positive.

C．Doubtful.

D．Objective.

4 . People have different ways of dealing with waste paper, specifically used newspapers. Some put them in the recycling area, while others keep them as wrappers (包装纸). While these are both good measures, a Japanese publishing company had a better idea for their end use.

The Mainichi Newspapers Co., Ltd. invented the “Green Newspaper”, which allows people to grow plants with it. This unique newspaper was published on Greenery Day, which is focused on environmental news and made of green paper with seeds placed into it. What makes it even more special is the ink (油墨) used to print words and photos, which is made from plants. The publisher advises readers to tear the used newspaper into small pieces and plant them in a container with soil. They should water them, like they would do for any plant. Within a few weeks, the seeds will grow into plants.

This brilliant concept was invented by Dentsu Inc., one of Japan’s most famous advertising agencies, which works with the publishing company on the initiative (倡议). The publisher’s belief is environmental sustainability (持续性). As its mission statement says, “The Mainichi doesn’t take action only through information, but also by solving global issues.” With joint efforts, this initiative has reached the corners of Japan and sold around millions of copies daily. Other such initiatives producing plantable paper are also seen in India and the US.

About 95 million trees are lost for producing newspapers every year. The Internet, the number of whose users stands for 62.5 percent of the population worldwide, has influenced how people read news and the print readership has dropped greatly. However, the reinvention and reimagination of this newspaper will bring about a change in the publishing industry as well as having an environmental influence.

1. What do we know about the “Green Newspaper”?

A．It uses high-tech materials.

B．It provides energy for seeds.

C．It’s printed with plant-based ink.

D．It’s published to celebrate Greenery Day.

2. What message does the publisher’s mission statement convey?

A．It’s easier said than done.

B．Everything comes to him who waits.

C．Many hands make light work.

D．Actions speak louder than words.

3. What’s the author’s attitude to the “Green Newspaper”?

A．Doubtful.	B．Supportive.
C．Indifferent.	D．Negative.

4. What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．About 59 million trees are lost for producing newspapers.

B．The Internet has changed the way people read news totally.

C．The popularity of the Internet leads to the fall of the print readership.

D．The “Green Newspaper” will encourage more people to protect the environment.

5 . Scientists discovered that fewer humpback whales made the singing noises, as their population grew. “It was getting more difficult to actually find singers,” marine biologist Rebecca Dunlop in Brisbane said. She added, “When there were fewer of them, there was a lot of singing-now that there are lots of them, no need to be singing so much.”

Eastern Australia’s humpback whales came close to disappearing in the 1960s. With the end of commercial whaling (捕鲸), the population began to regrow, climbing to about 27,000 whales by 2015. That number is near estimated pre-whaling levels. As the density (密度) of whales increased, their singing behaviors changed. While 2 in 10 males made crying noises in 2004, 10 years later the number had dropped to 1 in 10, Dunlop said.

The team’s study appeared in a recent issue of Nature Communications Biology. Dunlop said she thinks singing played a big part in bringing in mates when populations severely declined. When humpbacks live in denser populations, males looking for mates also have to deal with competing whales.

Boris Worm, an ocean biologist, was not involved in the research. “As animal populations recover, they change their behavior-they have different cries,” Worm said. The research suggests the seas are still noisy with humpback whale sounds.

Many humpbacks seek to bring in mates with a combination of singing and physical movements, the study notes. The large increase in the humpback population during the study period provided valuable data about changes in the animals’ behavior and they must have been singers long before whaling reduced their numbers, said Simon Ingram. But the new study demonstrates (证明) how necessary their complex and beautiful songs were to their survival and recovery, he added.

1. Which may make humpback whales sing in the discovery?

A．The power of waves.	B．The use of microphone.
C．The feeling of loneliness.	D．The increase of their numbers.

2. What does Paragraph 2 mainly say about humpback whales?

A．Their sudden disappearance.	B．Their sharp rise in numbers.
C．Their being well protected.	D．Their change in behaviors.

3. What does the underlined word “declined” in Paragraph 3 mean?

A．Increased.

B．Dropped.

C．Climbed.

D．Recovered.

4. Which does Simon Ingram agree?

A．Humpbacks’ behaviors have never changed.

B．Humpbacks’ numbers increased by whaling.

C．Humpbacks’ singing noises are important.

D．Humpbacks’ singing will disappear soon.

6 . According to a new study released Wednesday, human activity has now gone past six of nine planetary boundaries, which are ways to measure the stability and livability of Earth for humans. The study published in the journal Science Advances represents the third update of the planetary boundary framework carried out by 29 scientists from eight different countries.

The planetary boundaries concept identifies nine global priorities relating to human—caused changes to the environment. The concept sets boundaries on how much we can allow ourselves to impact not only the climate but also other global processes that can support modern civilization. Respecting these safety boundaries would minimize the risk of human activities setting off a dramatic and potentially irrecoverable change in global environmental conditions.

Crossing six boundaries does not necessarily mean a disaster to follow, but it is a clear warning signal. “We can regard it as we do our own blood pressure,” said the study lead author Katherine Richardson of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark. “A blood pressure over 120 is not a guarantee of a heart attack but it increases the risk of one. For our own and our children’s sakes we need to reduce the pressure on these six planetary boundaries.”

As pressure on the planet increases and vital boundaries are being violated, we don’t know how long we can keep turning against these key boundaries before combined pressures lead to irrecoverable change and harm.

Richardson likens the framework to a bank statement—“it tells us how much of various resources of the Earth system we can allow ourselves to use without greatly increasing the risk in the overall environmental conditions we experience on Earth.”

According to Richardson, the study shows that focusing on climate alone will not solve the climate crisis; it must be seen together with the biodiversity crisis. Life is what makes this planet unique and it is the interactions between land, ocean, atmosphere and life that together provide conditions upon which our societies depend.

There is still time to prevent disasters, but we must take action, not next year or next month but now.

1. What can be inferred from the first paragraph?

A．Our planet is safe enough to live on.

B．Man puts our environment in great danger.

C．The environmental stability can be ensured.

D．The earth we live on is in a healthy condition.

2. What does the underlined word “minimize” mean in the second paragraph?

A．Reduce.

B．Increase.

C．Reconsider.

D．Challenge.

3. What does the writer mention a blood pressure over 120 to indicate?

A．Blood pressure is an important indicator in measuring physical health.

B．Breaking six boundaries is certain to result in environmental disasters.

C．Crossing boundaries is a clear warning against damaging environment.

D．Paying attention to the behavior towards environment is very important.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．The nine planetary boundaries we should never go past

B．How much of various resources of the Earth system we can use

C．The ideal conditions upon which our humans depend to survive

D．Immediate actions should be taken to protect the environment

7 . 根据下面提示，写一篇有关太空探索是否值得的短文。
1. 我们班的学生讨论了太空是否值得探索。(worth)
2. 30%的学生认为太空探索是不值得的，他们认为太空离我们和我们的日常生活太远了。(space exploration)
3. 太空探索会浪费很多钱，而这些钱可以用来解决一些问题。(solve)
4. 70%的学生认为太空值得探索。(worthy)
5. 卫星已被用于通信以及天气预报，这使我们的生活更方便。(as well as)
6. 如果在其他星球上发现了资源，我们地球上的能源短缺问题就可以得到解决。(energy shortage)
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8 . Dogs have a different way of seeing the world compared to human beings. As a result of this they heavily rely on their body language to pass their different messages across to people.     1    

Their Way of Barking

Dogs bark for different reasons. If you notice them barking very often and loudly, they bark for an urgent reason probably.     2     It could also be a sign that they are in some kind of pain. When the barks are shorter and also softer, they probably just want to play around. Pay attention to the barks closely so that you understand exactly what is going on.

Before You Leave

    3     When you see your dog making sad faces while you are leaving, it might feel sad. Don’t worry too much because your little pet knows very well that you will definitely be back.

On Your Feet

Dogs like to lay on people’s feet during dinner time or when people are watching TV.     4     However, it’s just their way of showing you some loyalty (忠诚) and how close they want to get to you. This is a behavior that they obtained from their ancestors long ago.

Resting on you

You should feel honoured when a dog rests against you for support while it’s hanging around the place.     5     Don’t take it as being lazy. The next time your dog does this, just allow them to show their love in this way.

A．This could get a bit annoying.

B．To the dog, this is equal to a hug.

C．It could mean that the dog is really tired.

D．They are also very good at telling twins apart.

E．Read on to find out what your dog tries to tell you.

F．It’s normal for you to feel guilty about leaving your pet at home.

G．Maybe they have sensed some danger around and are trying to inform you about it.

9 . 语法填空

For many years, human beings have been trying to conquer nature, but never succeeded. What’s worse, nature has got angry. It often shows     1     (it) power and teaches human beings different lessons in various     2     (way), such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, sandstorms, typhoons, droughts, landslides, tornadoes, and volcanoes. Any of them can cause terrible disasters. For example, on March 11, 2011,     3     huge earthquake struck Japan,     4     (cause) a terrible tsunami. Many cars, ships and buildings     5     (ruin) by a ten-metre-high wall of water. Thousands of people were confirmed dead. The total energy released by the quake was equivalent to the explosion of 6.7 trillion tons of TNT,     6     is about a thousand times the total power of all the world’s nuclear weapons. Another event was the “huge volcanic eruption in Iceland” in 2010. It caused enormous damage to air travel across western and northern Europe because     7     the large quantities of volcanic ash. All of these show how     8     (power) nature is.

Compared with the great power of nature, human beings are so weak and even so helpless in face of the destruction caused by natural disasters. It would be unwise of us     9     (fight) against or even try to conquer nature. On the contrary, we should try to learn how to live with nature     10     (peaceful).

10 . Capybaras (水豚) are group animals, so they do not like being alone. In fact, leaving a capybara alone is not only uncomfortable for the animal, but it can be harmful to their physical health, as well as their mental well-being. Capybaras love to talk to each other throughout the day. Groups of capybaras spend their days sunbathing along the edge of rivers, where they enjoy swimming together in the water. They spend half of their lives in the water.

Since they spend so much time around water, it makes sense that capybaras would come into contact with a wide variety of other animals who stop in for a drink. Capybaras are gentle and peaceful river animals who enjoy napping (小睡) along the water’s edge — and often do so with other animal species as well. You can find pictures all over the Internet of these lovely animals lying beside turtles, birds, ducks, rats, and even monkeys as they enjoy a nap by the water.

Capybaras are also known to be excellent and friendly taxis in the animal world. Birds and monkeys commonly stand on the back of a capybara for a ride as capybaras search for grass to eat. Sometimes capybaras even serve as boats for other animals, letting them sit on their heads as they swim through the water!

However, if you see a capybara lying on its side with a yellow-headed caracara (长腿兀鹰) stopped on its body, don’t panic just yet. Most likely the capybara is enjoying a nice spa day. Birds often make friends with capybaras and act as a natural cleaning service, picking off bugs (虫子) that live in the capybara’s fur. It’s a symbiotic (共生的) relationship, since the yellow-headed caracara also gets to enjoy eating a bunch of tasty bugs.

1. What does the first paragraph mainly tell us about capybaras?

A．Their life habits.	B．Their survival skills.
C．Their appearance.	D．Their risks in health.

2. Why does the author call capybaras “friendly taxis”?

A．They search for food for birds and monkeys.

B．They carry their food by riding on another animal.

C．They allow other animals to stay on their backs or heads.

D．They guide other animals to swim through the water.

3. What does the author mean by saying “don’t panic just yet” in the last paragraph?

A．The caracara won’t attack you.

B．The capybara won’t suffer any injury.

C．The caracara may just take a break.

D．The capybara may be providing its cleaning service.

4. What is true about capybaras according to the passage?

A．They hate lying beside lovely animals.

B．They enjoy swimming alone.

C．They are aggressive animals.

D．They can live in harmony with other animal species.