1 . For most of human history, the stars shone brightly in a dark night sky. But today, cities and towns, increasingly lit by artificial light at night, dramatically reduce the visibility of stars.
Satellite data suggests that light pollution has been increasing in many parts of the world over the last decade. However, satellites miss the blue light of LEDs (发光的二极管), which are commonly used for outdoor lighting, resulting in an underestimate of light pollution.
An international citizen science project called Globe at Night (环球夜景) aims to measure how everyday people’s view of the sky is changing. The data shows that the night sky got, on average, 9.6% brighter every year. For many people, the night sky today is twice as bright as it was eight years ago. The brighter the sky, the fewer stars you can see. If this trend continues, a child born today in a place where 250 stars are visible now would only be able to see 100 stars on his/her 18th birthday.
The main factors leading to increasing brightness of the night sky are industrialization and the growing use of LEDs for outdoor lighting. The loss of dark skies threatens our ability as astronomers to do good science. But everyday people feel this loss too. Starry night skies have inspired artists, writers, musicians and philosophers for thousands of years. Light pollution also has a bad effect on the daily cycle of light and dark that plants and animals use to adjust their lifestyle. Two-thirds of the world’s key biodiversity (生物多样性) areas are affected by light pollution.
Individuals and their communities can make simple changes to reduce light pollution. The secret is using the right amount of light, in the right place and at the right time. Making outdoor lights shine downward, using lights that give out more yellow-colored light instead of white light and putting on light timers can all help reduce light pollution. A view of about 2,500 stars in a truly dark sky might convince you that dark skies are a resource worth saving.
1. How is the first paragraph mainly developed?| A．By giving an example. | B．By making a comparison. |
| C．By reaching a conclusion. | D．By raising a question. |
| A．The light pollution is getting more serious. |
| B．The night sky today gets darker than before. |
| C．It’s difficult to imagine a child’s fast growth. |
| D．LEDs are commonly used for outdoor lighting. |
| A．The bad effects of light pollution. | B．The factors causing light pollution. |
| C．The functions of starry night skies. | D．Key biodiversity areas in the world. |
| A．To explain a phenomenon. | B．To suggest a solution. |
| C．To remember a scientist. | D．To increase public awareness. |
2 . Jim Savage was setting out for a day’s fishing off the Florida coast when he heard the cries of a baby dolphin in trouble. The three-month-old had got her tail caught in the ropes of an abandoned crab trap. Jim knew that if he left her, the dolphin would have little chance of survival. He cut her free and got in contact with the authorities. She was taken to Clear water Marine Aquarium, but her injuries were so severe that she lost her tail.
The aquarium staff named the baby dolphin Winter and she gradually learned how to swim again. Unfortunately, because of the way she was moving in the water without her tail, she was in danger of developing a problem with her spine (脊椎). Kevin Carroll and Dan Strzempka, who ran a company making artificial limbs, heard about the problem and had a brilliant idea. Kevin and Dan told the staff at the aquarium that they would make an artificial (人造的) tail for Winter!
There were a lot of challenges that Kevin and Dan had to deal with along the way, like trying to fit an artificial tail on a playful young dolphin that doesn’t want to stay still! It took over fifty prototypes (模型) and a year and a half before Winter finally got her new 30-inch tail. After seeing her swim with it for the first time, Kevin said that the months of hard work had been truly worth it.
Making the tail was only half the story, though. For Winter to be able to swim properly, the artificial tail needed to be held in place without damaging her skin. Specialists came up with a soft material that firmly holds the skin and doesn’t hurt. Designed especially for Winter, this material was so successful that “WintersGel” is now being used to make artificial limbs more comfortable for people with false arms and legs all around the world.
In 2011 the tale (故事) was made into a film, “Dolphin Tale”, starring Winter herself. It’s about a dolphin that would have died, but survived because a few people cared.
1. What do we know about Jim?| A．He worked at an aquarium. | B．He freed a dolphin from a trap. |
| C．He injured a dolphin accidentally. | D．He kept a baby dolphin for three months. |
| A．Teach Winter to swim. | B．Set up a branch company. |
| C．Help straighten Winter’s spine. | D．Make a man-made tail for Winter. |
| A．Dangerous. | B．Imaginative. | C．Interesting. | D．Difficult. |
| A．A tale of a tail. | B．A lesson from a dolphin. |
| C．An important survival skill. | D．A chance encounter with a dolphin. |
Prince Llewellyn the Great was ruler of Wales for 40 years but he is now remembered more for the story of Gelert. One day, Prince Llewellyn was out hunting in the Welsh countryside. Back home, his newborn son
1.播种及发芽阶段(seed,sprout,8月份种植，发芽期10—15天)；
2.生长及发育阶段(stem,blossom,幼苗期30—50天)；
3.成熟及结果阶段(produce,fruit,开花、结果期60—100天)。
注意：
1.词数80左右;
2.请在相应位置作答。
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5 . The world is lucky when our most brilliant minds choose to work for the common good. Young Ryan Honary is among one of the brilliant minds.
Shocked by the deaths in the 2018 Camp Fire, California’s frightening wildfire, Honary turned his attention to how to decrease future disasters. In 2019, Honary won a $10,000 prize in the Ignite Innovation Student Challenge for his early wildfire detection (检测) network, which provides app technology for firefighters. He was only in fifth grade at the time.
Turning 14 years old and going into the eighth grade this year, Honary is busy working in SensoRy AI, the company he set up. With the help of his father and a team of experts, the company has received a lot of attention.
Honary started creating websites when he was in third grade. He learned Python and JavaScript in a local after-school program. At the same time, he was interested in animals and the environment. He became worried as he saw how much the environment was under pressure.
When wildfires started ruining the air quality, destroying homes and killing some people, Honary thought about how AI can be used to solve environmental problems such as wildfires. In order to get data to train the machine learning models on his fire detectors, he collected real-world data from Google Earth about the Camp Fire of 2018 in California. Once a fire is detected by a fire detector, the information can be sent to the app he created. Also, machine learning can be used to predict where the fires are going.
Honary is hoping to attract more people from his generation to his company. He believes the environment is going to be a big responsibility for all of us.
1. What can be inferred from paragraph 2 and paragraph 3?| A．Honary’s detecting network was free. | B．Honary gained many awards in 2019. |
| C．Honary’s company is facing serious challenges. | D．Honary is young but makes amazing achievements. |
| A．To make a fortune. | B．To enlarge his company. |
| C．To save firefighters! | D．To reduce wildfire disasters. |
| A．By creating websites. | B．By collecting data. |
| C．By taking an after-school program. | D．By sending information to the app. |
| A．Gifted and humorous. | B．Curious and confident. |
| C．Creative and responsible. | D．Friendly and intelligent. |
A black bear was in a dangerous situation when she fell off a 30-meter-high bridge. After a long day in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains, the bear probably thought she was taking a shortcut home. She was walking across the bridge when, suddenly, two cars entered from both sides. There was nowhere to run, so the frightened bear jumped and fell over the side.
Luckily, the bear pulled herself onto an arch (拱形门) under the bridge, but she was trapped (困住) there. A driver saw the unbelievable scene and called 911.Robert Brooks, an animal control officer from the nearby town, was sent to investigate. “I thought it was a joke.” he said. But it wasn’t a joke, so he called Dave Baker of the BEAR League-a group that helps bears in trouble.
Unfortunately, the sky was getting dark, so the volunteers had to wait. Early next morning, the two men returned to the bridge with more volunteers. Amazingly, the bear was still there. They needed to help her quickly. Baker had an idea-they should hang a net under the bear, push her into it, and then lower her to the ground.
Firefighters volunteered to lower the 100-kilogram bear once she was in the net. Police officers closed the road, and when the net arrived, it was hung under the bridge. Then, an animal control officer shot a dart (飞镖) containing a sleeping medicine into the bear’s shoulder. Ann Bryant，head of the BEAR League, stood under the bridge. When the bear was sleepy, Bryant shouted “OK, push!” A volunteer rock climber used his feet to push the bear off the arch, right into the middle of the net.
The bear was gently lowered to the ground
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7 . Chen Guanghui is a guardian for black-necked cranes(黑颈鹤) in the Dashanbao Black-necked Crane National Nature Reserve of Zhaotong city, in southwest China’s YunnanProvince. Whistling(吹口哨) is the secret language Chen uses to communicate with the black-necked cranes, a type of migratory bird under first class protection in China. She says different whistles signal different things. When she whistles in an increasing tone, she tries to tell the cranes: ask your companions to come back for lunch, and they would chirp(吱喳叫)to spread the message right away.
Living near the Dashanbao Nature Reserve, a major winter habitat(栖息地) for the rare species, Chen started to take care of them in 2003, a mission she took over from her mother, whose devotion dates back to the 1990s.
“In the first few days, I remembered they ran away as soon as I approached them. I was very upset and asked my mom to come back, and I was worried they would starve,” says Chen. “I initially tried everything, even singing folk songs to attract them, but failed. Later, I used special whistles and gradually formed close bond with the cranes. ”
“I treat them as if they were my own children, and I’m always concerned about them, especially during snowy days when they can’t get food. I feel uncomfortable and anxious when I hear them chirp and usually rush to prepare corn for them. ” It’s never been an easy job, and Chen has sustained quite a few injuries over the years, even falling into frozen marsh(沼泽)while trying to save a trapped crane in 2008. However, she never gave up. With love and responsibility, she has persisted in caring for the cranes for about 20 years.
Thanks to the joint protection efforts of Chen and staff members at the nature reserve, now more than 1,900 black-necked cranes overwinter in the area each season every year, up from about 300 when the nature reserve was established.
1. How does Chen Guanghui communicate with black-necked cranes?| A．By singing folk songs. | B．By imitating chirps of birds. |
| C．By making hand gestures. | D．By blowing special whistles. |
| A．Rescuing injured animals. |
| B．Restoring habitats for rare species. |
| C．Looking after black-necked cranes. |
| D．Building Dashanbao Nature Reserve. |
| A．It is inspiring. | B．It is frustrating. | C．It is interesting. | D．It is exciting. |
| A．Efforts bear fruit. | B．Fortune favors the brave. |
| C．Virtue is its own reward. | D．A miss is as good as a mile. |
Light pollution is a serious problem. This became completely obvious when the World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness, a computer-created map based on thousands of satellite (卫星) photos,
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1. What was going on in the town where the speaker lived?
| A．A flood. | B．A forest fire. | C．An earthquake. |
| A．It was getting darker. |
| B．It was raining cats and dogs. |
| C．The sky was covered by thick smoke. |
| A．He was abroad. | B．He was in town. | C．He was in the garden. |
| A．Trees were burning. | B．People were escaping. | C．Animals were running. |
