1 . At first, the grains of rice that Ingo Potrykus held in his fingers did not seem at all _________, but inside, these grains were not white, as ordinary rice is, but a very pale yellow — thanks to beta-carotene (胡萝卜素), a building block for vitamin A.

For more than a decade Potrykus had _________ creating a golden rice that could improve the lives of millions of the poorest people in the world, strengthening their eyesight and their _________ disease.

_________ imagining golden rice was one thing and creating one quite another. Year after year, Potrykus and his colleagues ran into one _________ after another until success finally came in the spring of 1999.

At that point, he tackled an even greater challenge. The golden grains _________ pieces of DNA borrowed from bacteria and flowers. It was what some would call Frankenfood, a product of genetic engineering. As such, it _________ a web of hopes and fears.

The debate began the moment genetically engineered crops (GM crops) were first sold in the 1990s, and it has _________ ever since. First to start major protests against biotechnology were European environmentalists and consumer-advocacy groups. They were soon followed by their U.S. counterparts (相对应的人事物).

The hostility is _________. Most of the GM crops __________ so far have been developed to produce a plant that is not harmed by chemicals used to kill weeds (杂草) in the fields. These genetically engineered crops are often sold by the same large, multinational corporations that __________ the weed-killing chemicals that farmers spray on their fields. Consumers have become suspicious (怀疑的).

The benefits did seem small __________ golden rice was developed. It is the first strong example of a GM crop that may __________ not just the farmers who grow it but also the consumers who eat it. In this case, those include at least a million children who die every year because they are weakened by vitamin-A deficiency (缺乏) and an additional 350,000 who go blind.

Many people __________ poverty and hunger look at golden rice and see it as evidence that GM crops can be made to serve the greater public good. They see a critical role for GM crops in feeding the world’s ever-increasing population. As former U.S. President Jimmy Carter put it, “Responsible biotechnology is not the enemy; __________ is.”

1.

A．typical

B．special

C．local

D．white

2.

A．dreamed of

B．come in handy

C．been reminded of

D．broken up

3.

A．attempt at

B．effort to

C．resistance to

D．majority of

4.

A．But

B．And

C．While

D．Since

5.

A．surprise

B．obstacle

C．norm

D．opposition

6.

A．achieved

B．stressed

C．overlooked

D．contained

7.

A．was caught in

B．was alive with

C．be conscious of

D．was honored by

8.

A．announced

B．maintained

C．escalated

D．applied

9.

A．brilliant

B．understandable

C．discharged

D．rewarding

10.

A．introduced

B．reminded

C．respected

D．overlooked

11.

A．toss and turn

B．give and take

C．produce and sell

D．demand and supply

12.

A．until

B．after

C．although

D．when

13.

A．feature

B．mark

C．build

D．benefit

14.

A．worried about

B．ashamed of

C．filled with

D．admired for

15.

A．terror

B．misery

C．starvation

D．crisis

2 . How to Help Your Garden Get Through the Heat

Record-breaking heat is affecting plants in many places around the world. But gardening expert Jessica Damiano says selecting the right plants and a little care could save them.

Damiano says that in serious heat, and when that heat is dry, the soil loses water in it quickly.     1     This requires them to use energy to cool down and use water. This energy should be spent on growth, flowering, fruiting and reproducing. The stress often completely weakens the plant.

    2     These systems allow the plants to reach distant sources of wetness when the nearby area dries out.

Many foreign plants, including most plants that live for just one year, have root systems that are not deep. This means they must depend on the top few centimeters of soil for all of their water needs.     3    

Planting advice

When planting, Damiano says she always covers root balls with fungi (真菌) called mycorrhizae. It helps roots grow and helps plants deal with high temperature. She also treats her plants once a month with two materials: a seaweed-containing fish mixture and a vitamin—hormone—kelp material.

Seaweed and kelp are plants that grow in water.     4     These materials also help plants grow quickly after dividing and planting.

Finally, Damiano says the last addition is a good deal of covering on top. Covering not only keeps things looking clean, but it also helps to keep soil wetness and soil temperatures even.     5     Covering can mean the difference between life and death when it gets hot.

A．When the top soil dries up, so do they.

B．Study which plants are native to your area.

C．And it also keeps unwanted plants from growing.

D．She has watered her flower garden just two times this summer.

E．They have been proved to help other plants in difficult environments.

F．Plants will turn to their own limited water storing when they need water.

G．When plants are native to an area, they naturally develop deep, large root systems.

3 . How to Care for Indoor Plants

If you’ve ever had an indoor plant that’s quickly withered (枯萎), you might believe that you don’t have a green thumb or you’re not cut out for growing plants.     1     The truth is that anyone can be a good plant owner, and it really isn't complicated, we promise. In this article, we'll walk you through everything you need to know to care for your indoor plants, from watering to sunlight requirements to fertilizer.

    2     If your soil is either too dry or overwatered, it can damage the plant’s roots and prevent the plant from growing. In some cases under or over watering your plant can also kill it. Plants with thick leaves require more water than plants with leathery leaves. There is no specific frequency that works for all indoor plants. Instead, what you must do is determine what kind of plant you have, and follow guidelines on how often to water it by doing research on its specific type.

Stick your finger in the soil to determine how wet it is below the surface. If you put your finger into the soil up to your joint, you can feel if your plant needs more water. If the soil feels damp, then you don’t need to water it.     3     If it feels dry then it’s likely you need to water it.

Use water that is at room temperature. 68F or 20C is the best temperature to keep the water that you’re using to water your plants.     4     After that, you are supposed to take some actions to make the plants grow comfortably.

Use a hand-held moisture (水分) meter to ensure water levels in your soil.     5     The mechanism explores the underlying soil to give you a reading on how hydrated (含水的) your soil is.

A．Keep potting soil moist, but not wet.

B．Indoor plants are not necessarily good for us.

C．Well, we’re here to tell you that’s not the case.

D．Test whether your finger is long enough to put into the soil.

E．You can use a thermometer to determine the temperature of the water.

F．Over-watering can lead to rotting of the root which you need to fix.

G．Moisture meters are the most accurate way to determine how hydrated your plants are.

4 . It has long been known that plants communicate when they are stressed. You need only observe a houseplant to realize that a plant wilts (枯萎) when it needs water. Some plants may also emit a terrible taste to prevent some insects from hurting them.

Now, a new study that was conducted by researchers at Tel Aviv University, shows that not only do plants express themselves in the above ways when stressed, they also make sounds, like talking.

According to the researchers, plants make sounds at frequencies (频率) between 40 to 80 KHZ — out of the range of human ears — but within the range of some animals. “Bats make sounds in these ranges all the time, and mice, dogs and cats can partially hear within it,” Dr. Lilach Hadany, a Professor at Tel Aviv University, and one of the authors of the study said.

One of the primary breakthroughs (突破) of Hadany’s study is that the researchers have managed to understand and classify the sounds that plants make for the first time. Plants that are not stressed make about one noise per hour, but plants that are stressed or injured make many hundreds of sounds per hour. And each of these sounds seemed to be specific to the type of stress the plant was under.

This type of information could be important for agriculture. Knowing what sounds their plants are making could help farmers determine whether their crops are in danger of drought or disease and allow them to make the necessary changes to help their plants.

Amazingly enough, the researchers are not actually sure how the plants make sounds. But anyway, the discovery is still a game-changer for plant science, and potentially for the future of agriculture. One day soon your plants may be able to tell you if they are hungry, thirsty, or just feeling lonely.

1. What does the underlined word “emit” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?

A．Give off.	B．Add to.
C．Clear up.	D．Take in.

2. Which of the following is most likely to hear plants talk?

A．Humans.	B．Bats.
C．Mice.	D．Dogs.

3. What is the breakthrough of Hadany’s study?

A．They’ve found plants can communicate with each other.

B．They’ve used plants’ sounds to improve agriculture.

C．They can understand and classify plants’ sounds.

D．They’ve discovered how plants make sounds.

4. What can be a best title for the text?

A．Scientists Discover the Language of Plants

B．Animals Understand Plants’ Language

C．Plants Communicate in Various Ways

D．Stress Makes Plants Talk

5 . Kew Gardens is not only a popular tourist destination in London, but also a botanic garden and a research center that has the largest collection of living plants at a single site. So, let’s explore the Royal Botanic Gardens with CGTN’s reporter Robyn Dwyer.

Palm House

The first stop is the Palm House, a giant indoor rainforest with a wide range of plants. Visitors can enjoy these exotic plants while researchers can study the secrets of these flora. Eatable plants such as cocoa tree and African oil palm are all preserved here to keep the diversity of food resources. At the same time, it houses many medical use plants, including some that are used to treat cancer.

Temperate House

Known as the world’s largest Victorian glasshouse, the Temperate House is home to1,500 species of plants from temperate regions of the world. Some of the species kept here have gone extinct in the wild, such as Encephalartos woodii, a cycad from South Africa. And some are already extinct like Saint Helena olive, but the Kew has stored its DNA.

Mediterranean Garden

In the Mediterranean Garden, one can see plants from the Southern Europe, such as rosemary, olives and cork oak. Walking in the garden, one can feel the non-indoor vibe (氛围) of the Mediterranean and learn about the economic as well as scientific uses of these plants.

On International Day for Biological Diversity this year, join CGTN to travel around the world’s national parks and reserves across seven continents. Our next program is to visit penguins and seals in the Antarctic Ice Aquarium Norway. Please stay tuned!

1. What do the three stops have in common?

A．They store plants for medical use.

B．They have plants of economic value.

C．They house plants of seven continents.

D．They own plants for scientific research.

2. Which one suits a visitor preferring outdoor sites?

A．Palm House.	B．Temperate House.
C．Antarctic Ice Aquarium.	D．Mediterranean Garden.

3. Where is the text most probably taken from?

A．A botanic dictionary.	B．A TV travel series.
C．A trip advertisement.	D．A biodiversity essay.

6 . Gotham Greens started as a single rooftop (外屋顶) greenhouse in Brooklyn. New York City. Now, it is one of the largest greenhouse lettuce (生菜) producers in North America, with soon-to-be 13 sites across nine states.

“Ninety-nine percent of the food that we eat in New York City has to be brought in from other places and has to travel very far. For example, lettuce like this usually comes from places like California that are 3,000 miles away.” explains Chief Executive Officer Viraj Puri.

The company plans to grow 100 million heads of lettuce this year. Puri founded Gotham Greens because he wanted to bring farms close to the communities they serve. For example, the lettuce grown on the roof on Third Street in Gowanus only needs to be transported down using a lift to reach the supermarket Whole Foods.        

Many people might not think of New York City as a place to grow produce, but rooftop farms can be easily found in the city. “Here, it’s about 70 degrees and the plants are growing well because we are creating the perfect growing conditions for them,“ Puri explains.

Grown completely in water in renewably-powered greenhouses, the farms use less water and land. “The plants are grown in water to which nutrients (营养物) are added, making them grow very quickly. We can avoid the use of chemicals (化学品),” says Puri.

The company also donates (捐赠) tens of thousands of young plants a year to organizations that work to feed people and provide educational programming around city farming. In the Claremont Village area of the Bronx, local students like 16-year-old Jill Bonilla care for towers of herbs and vegetables in a unique classroom.

”Plants don’t take that long to grow; you just got to take care of them properly,“ she says. ”It helps me stay healthy and stay away from junk food.“

Bonilla and hundreds of other kids are part of the educational organization Green Bronx Machine, which partners with Gotham Greens to educate students. Green Bronx Machine’s programs are in 675 schools across the country. Last year, it grew more than 8,000 pounds of food in the Bronx, and donated 150,000 pounds of healthy produce.

1. What can we learn from paragraphs 2 and 3?

A．Most of New York City’s lettuce comes from Brooklyn.

B．Rooftop farms are becoming popular in New York City.

C．Planting lettuce in New York City makes a big difference.

D．Gotham Greens was founded to make New York City greener.

2. What does paragraph 5 mainly tell us about rooftop farms?

A．Their numbers are growing rapidly.

B．They are environmentally friendly.

C．Their market has already opened up.

D．They are less costly than traditional farms.

3. What does Bonilla say about studying in the special classroom?

A．It is worth the time.

B．It is a bit challenging.

C．It has built up her confidence,

D．It has changed her ideas about farmers.

4. What do Gotham Greens and Green Bronx Machine have in common?

A．They support poor students.

B．They have their own schools.

C．They run educational programs.

D．They have farms in the countryside.

7 . Tomatoes taste great. With a lot of vitamins, they are good for you, too! People around the world enjoy this amazing fruit.

Not all tomatoes are red. They can be yellow, orange, pink or white. All tomatoes are green before they are ready to be picked. Then the tomatoes turn their true color. That’s when they are ready to eat!

Tomatoes first grew in the Americas. The Incas (印加人) grew them over 1,000 years ago. They were introduced to Europe by the Spanish in the early 16th century. The Spanish and Italians seem to have been the first Europeans to accept them as food. In France, people grew tomatoes in the garden just to enjoy their beauty. Many people there thought tomatoes would make them sick. It was years before some of them would eat tomatoes.

Tomatoes are fruits. They grow from seeds. They won’t grow in cold weather. But with water, sunlight and warmth, tomatoes grow fast. They can grow in pots or in the ground. As the plant grows taller, people may tie it to a stick. Next is the blooming stage. Flowers appear. The flowers turn into fruit. Some kinds of tomatoes can be picked in about six more weeks. Some tomatoes are large. One kind of tomato can weigh as much as two pounds.

You can eat raw tomatoes. First, wash them. Then, cut them up for salads or sandwiches. Tomatoes can be cooked, too. They can be grilled, boiled, or even fried. Do you use ketchup (番茄酱)? It is made from tomatoes. Tomatoes don’t have a smell. But they taste great in foods around the world. Many dishes from India use tomatoes. Italians use them to make spaghetti sauce and pizza, too.

1. What can we know from the passage?

A．Tomatoes come in different colors.	B．Tomatoes grew in Europe first.
C．Tomatoes can grow in all weathers.	D．Tomatoes have a special smell.

2. What does the underlined word “stage” in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．Time.

B．Board.

C．Set.

D．Flower.

3. Which of the following best shows the structure of the passage?

A．

B．

C．

D．

4. What’s the theme (主题) of the passage?

A．Family.

B．Food.

C．Science.

D．Health.

8 . Why do plants grow in some places and not in others? Why does some land have so much growing on it, while other land has almost no plants growing on it at all?

To grow, plants need several things. One is warmth. In very cold places almost nothing grows. Plants also need water. In very dry parts of the Earth only a few unusual plants can grow. That’s why dry deserts everywhere are almost not covered by trees or grass.

Plants must also have a place in which to put down their roots and grow. They find it difficult to grow on hard land. The town is built on hard land. The plants here have only the soil found between the cracks of the stones to grow in.

Another thing plants must have before they can grow is food.

What will happen if we try to make things grow on the sandy beach? A few plants, such as beach grass, will grow in sand, but most plants won’t. Even if the weather is warm enough and we water the plants each day, many of them will die because the sand on this beach has almost no food for plants.

1. According to the passage, plants need        things to grow well.

A．two

B．three

C．four

D．five

2. What does the underlined word “cracks” mean in the text?

A．缝隙

B．表面

C．夹层

D．底部

3. The reason why most plants can’t grow on the sandy beach is that        .

A．there isn’t enough sunlight	B．there is too much water
C．it is too crowded there	D．it has little food for plants

4. The passage can most probably be found in a        book.

A．science

B．history

C．travel

D．math

9 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. What is the passage about?

A．Several women living under the sea.

B．Sea plants.

C．Sea animals.

2. What do the women want to find out?

A．How the sea animals live.

B．How the sea plants grow.

C．Both A and B.

3. How many days did the women live under the sea?

A．Five days.

B．Two weeks.

C．A week.

10 . Wildfire season has begun in many places around the world. The dangerous smoke wildfires produce can spread far and wide. It blocks sunlight, poisons the air and damages the health of people and other living things.

Some of those living things could be the plants in gardens, says gardening expert Jessica Damiano, who writes gardening stories for the Associated Press. Damiano lives in New York City and recently experienced several days of very smoky air. Wildfires in eastern Canada were the source.

Damiano, like other people, limited the time she spent outdoors when the air quality was poor. She also wore a face covering when she had to go outside.

But the plants in her garden had no such escape. They had to breathe the poisoned air through the extremely small holes in their leaves.

Pollutants in smoke landing on plants can block sunlight, which is essential for photosynthesis (光合作用). Reduced photosynthesis results in reduced energy. That means slower growth. Additionally, smoke can also affect a plant’s ability to take in nutrients(营养物质).

Brooke Edmunds, a plant scientist and community horticulturalist with Oregon State University Extension, said plants that are affected by smoke for a short amount of time will usually recover quickly. “It depends on how close they are,” she said. “There could also be a localized effect, where one garden is covered in ash(灰烬), and a half-mile away, there’s nothing because that’s the way the wind was moving things around.”

The best thing home gardeners can do is keep an eye on plants. Edmunds suggests giving plants some extra love and care. “Wash the plants gently to remove pollutants left by smoke. Then give them a long, slow drink of water. Most will pull through,” Edmunds said. However, people should not use leaf blower machines to remove ashes from plants because they will risk breathing in what is blowing around.

1. What happened to Jessica Damiano?

A．She had her house burned in a fire.

B．She couldn’t afford face coverings.

C．She suffered from health problems.

D．She had to deal with poor air quality.

2. What is paragraph 5 mainly about?

A．The bad effects of smoke on plants.

B．The benefits of growing plants.

C．The role of plants in the environment.

D．The importance of water to plants.

3. What can we learn from Brooke Edmunds’s words?

A．Wind has little effect on plants.

B．Plants can sometimes make a quick recovery.

C．Ashes can spread more than half a mile.

D．Plants close to smoke usually grow well.

4. How should people protect plants affected by smoke?

A．By pulling them out of the ground.

B．By using leaf blower machines.

C．By washing them with great care.

D．By giving them a fast drink of water.