The use of bamboo in science and technology is really exciting. In the Warring States period, Li Bing
Papermaking
In the Yuan dynasty, a man
2 . A lot of health care are connected with being around trees.
They also do a great deal of good for the environment by reducing air pollution and taking in carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
A tree’s ability to take in carbon dioxide is especially useful when the tree.is in cities or towns, where there are too many industrial activities. For the study, the researchers used laser scanning methods to take their own carbon readings of trees from the ground as well as the air.
They determined that Camden had a median carton density (浓度) of around 55 tons of carbon per hectare (t/ha). Greener areas of the borough, like Highgate Cemetery, had a carbon density of 380 t/ha — levels that are typically seen in rainforests.
So what exactly does this mean? Trees could help cool the atmosphere by removing carbon dioxide from the air. However, some climate scientists argue that it’s more complicated (复杂的) than that.
| A．We need to protect the ones we already have. |
| B．Global warming is happening at a faster rate than ever. |
| C．These benefits aren’t just felt in the countryside, either. |
| D．For comparison, major cities in the US have a carbon density of 7.7. |
| E．They have been known to reduce people’s stress and improve overall mental health. |
| F．Then they compared their findings with the data from the UK Environment Agency. |
| G．They think the impact of tree-planting activities today may not be seen for many years. |
3 . We are learning more and more every day about just how smart some animals are: monkeys, some species of birds, dogs, cats. But how about other animals? Snails? Mosquitos? They sure seem less smart. Still smarter than plants, though. Because it would be difficult to argue that plants are intelligent. Or would it?
In a new study, it was shown that plants send out sounds when they are sad. And these sounds are very different depending on whether they have recently been cut or whether they don’t have enough water. The sounds can’t be heard by human ears, as they are between 20 and 100 kilohertz, which is above the bottom of human hearing (which usually has the upper limit of 15-17 kilohertz).
These are fantastic results: plants don’t suffer in silence; they are screaming with pain. That is exactly what the popular science press has been doing.
There is no evidence that they are heard by anyone although theoretically (理论上) some animals — bats, moths, mice — could actually hear it as their ears are sensitive to the plant sounds. And it could very well be a byproduct (副产品) of the physical condition of these plants: less water in the system leads to more air bubbles (气泡) in plants, which leads to the sound of the popping of these bubbles.
Is this a disappointing explanation? I don’t think so. The aim is to understand why plants do what they do. And the results about the sounds contribute to this body of knowledge. They could even lead to better ways of controlling the needs of plants in gardening by sound observation.
All of this is true even if the plants don’t strictly “cry” or “scream”.
1. Why are we unable to hear the sounds of plants?| A．Because they are imagined by humans. |
| B．Because they go beyond human hearing. |
| C．Because plants don’t actually give off sounds. |
| D．Because plants are not as intelligent as animals. |
| A．Plants keep silent even when they suffer. |
| B．Water in the plants sends off different sounds. |
| C．The plant sounds might show their feelings or needs. |
| D．The study aims to control the needs and feelings of plants. |
| A．Because plants don’t actually “cry” or “scream”. |
| B．Because the results prove their knowledge of plants. |
| C．Because the results show that-plants understand what they do. |
| D．Because plants’ demands could be met by observing their sounds. |
| A．Plants suffer in silence | B．Plants “cry” in pain |
| C．Plants “scream” with joy | D．Plants need attention |
1. Which plants are the woman’s favorites?
| A．The red ones. | B．The pink ones. | C．The purple ones. |
| A．She is too busy to feed them. |
| B．There isn’t enough water. |
| C．There isn’t enough light. |
| A．Make a meal. |
| B．Water her plants. |
| C．Reach for a glass container. |
5 . Sunflowers have increasingly become popular on social media. People enjoy the bright yellow flowers and take pictures of themselves in bright fields of sunflowers, which are called “sunflower selfies.”
Actually, it is easy to grow your own sunflowers. Here are some instructions.
Do you want to start growing sunflowers from seeds?
Then, plant each seed into soil apart. Keep the soil wet, but not too wet, until the seeds begin to grow. During the growth process, you should water regularly the plants. When they grow up, it is best to put up some shelves to protect the plants from strong winds.
When seeds will start coming out of the head, it is time for harvest. Cut the flowers off and put them into a bag or container. In this way, the seeds will not fall out. Then remove the seeds by rubbing flowers with your hands or a hard brush over a container.
Finally, you’d better select those full seeds for food.
| A．Equally attractive is the delicious taste. |
| B．Sunflower seeds may be eaten cooked or uncooked. |
| C．You can also tie the plants to something tall for support. |
| D．Some kinds of sunflowers can grow up to three meters tall. |
| E．It is important to loosen the soil before the seeds are planted. |
| F．Put the selected seeds in room-temperature water for 2-8 hours. |
| G．They will develop long roots that work their way deep into the ground. |
1. Why must trees be planted according to the talk?
| A．To improve farms. | B．To replace desert. | C．To fight climate change. |
| A．4%. | B．13%. | C．17%. |
| A．Farmers’. | B．Scientists’. | C．Business experts’. |
It’s been nearly seven years since a group of volunteers grew flowers at What Cheer Flower Farm in Rhode Island, with a simple goal: get flowers into the hands of anyone in need. Best of all, each one of the tens of thousands of flowers that What Cheer grows and
What Cheer was founded by two gardeners
What Cheer’s flower beds lie in an industrial neighborhood that once
“Not only do we give this space back to the neighborhood,” says Achen, “but we are also an eco-friendly spot with the ability to help local insect and bird
8 . When dehydrated (脱水) or snipped with scissors (用剪刀剪断), plants make popping noises that are too high-frequency (高频率的) for humans to hear, a study suggests.
Researchers set up microphones near healthy and stressed tomato and tobacco plants, both in a soundproofed box and in a greenhouse setting. The stressed plants were either dehydrated or had their stems snipped. The team also recorded pots with only soil in them to check that soil, alone, didn’t make any sounds. (They found it didn’t.) On average, healthy plants let out less than one pop per hour, but the stressed plants let out about 11 to 35, depending on the plant species and stressor. Drought-stressed tomato plants were the noisiest, with some plants letting out more than 40 pops per hour.
The team fed these recordings into a machine-learning algorithm (算法) —an AI system used to identify patterns in data—and found that the trained algorithm had about a 70% success rate in differentiating the sounds made by different plants close to different stressors. They trained another AI system to differentiate between drought-stressed and healthy tomatoes in a greenhouse with more than 80% accuracy. Another model could tell what stage of dehydration a plant was in with about 80% accuracy.
In additional experiments, the team successfully recorded the cries of many other stressed plants, such as wheat, corn and pincushion cactuses.
Although the researchers gathered these recordings by setting microphones about 10cm away from the plants, they suggested that these sounds could potentially be heard by animals and insects with great hearing from 3 to 5 meters away. “These findings can change the way we think about the plant kingdom, which has been considered to be almost silent until now,” the study authors wrote.
In the future, humans could take advantage of recording devices and AI to monitor crops for these signs of dehydration or disease, the scientists suggest.
1. What did the researchers do in their study?| A．They referred to previous research. |
| B．They studied different diseases of plants. |
| C．They used AI to analyze the experimental recordings. |
| D．They adopted different ways to record the sounds of plants. |
| A．It changes people’s views on plants. |
| B．It reveals the challenges plants face. |
| C．It provides a cure for plant diseases. |
| D．It shows animals have better hearing than people. |
| A．Its results. | B．Its process. | C．Its methods. | D．Its application. |
| A．Stressed plants make popping sounds |
| B．The cries of plants were successfully recorded |
| C．AI systems can be used to detect diseased plants |
| D．Different kinds of plants make different popping sounds |
9 . Hawk Salvage, located in the historic neighborhood on Grand Avenue, is the place to find one-of-a-kind things. The store features a collection of curious things of the past and, most recently, a huge selection of rare and unique houseplants.
Founded by Greg Hawk, who has traveled from coast to coast finding items for his store, Hawk Salvage is like a well-kept history museum, its walls and display cases were filled with ancient art and historical photos. Even the space is a slice of history — it served as an automotive garage in the1940s. The front of the shop is home to lots of greenery.
On October 17 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the store will host its first-ever community plant swap, where plant parents can bring their plants and trade them for new plants. Visitors can learn tips and tricks from other fellow plant lovers and enjoy live music, artist demonstrations, food trucks and more. It will be a plant party for the ages, Hawk says. To take part in the plant swap, guests must bring at least one live and healthy plant to trade for another plant of equal size.
Because his regular picking trips was put on hold, Hawk, who is also interested in gardening, started propagating(繁殖)plants. “I started looking at houseplants and it just opened up this huge can of worms of all the cool things that are out there, and now I find myself with more plants than I want to take care of.” he says. Hosting an event where he could clear away some of his plants while reconnecting the community is a win-win situation, he adds.
Hawk says the event is open to everyone. His advice for new plant fans? “Be patient. Buy something simple to start with. Everything dies, so you’re going to kill plants — it’s part of the process,” he says. “I think the biggest tip that I would give is not to be afraid to experiment with your plants.”
1. What can visitors usually do in Hawk Salvage?| A．Trade their plants for others. | B．Get their cars or trucks repaired. |
| C．Buy some rare and unique things. | D．Draw beautiful pictures on its walls. |
| A．Owning a large garden. | B．Bringing some greenery. |
| C．Having planting experience. | D．Being good at hosting plant parties. |
| A．Why Hawk ended his regular picking trips. | B．Why Hawk decided to host the plant swap. |
| C．How Hawk took care of his plants in the past. | D．How Hawk started his journey as a plant-lover. |
| A．They should learn by experience. | B．They should stay away from houseplants. |
| C．They should be careful when planting. | D．They should turn to experienced planters. |
1. What kind of area do Bill and Sally live in?
| A．A hot area. | B．A high area. | C．A dry area. |
| A．They are gardeners. | B．They are designers. | C．They are builders. |
| A．Trees. | B．Glass houses. | C．Fences. |
| A．Successful. | B．Unsatisfactory. | C．Impossible. |
