1 . High-resolution (高分辨率) satellite imagery has been used to map every single tree in Africa, showing a technique that could help improve the monitoring of deforestation (森林砍伐) across the world. Florian Reiner at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and his colleagues used images from sate lies to map canopy (树冠) across the entire African continent.
Modern sate lies usually catch tree canopies at a resolution of 30 meters — fine for measuring the size of forests, but less good at mapping individual trees. The satellite data Reiner and his colleagues used had a resolution of 3 meters, enabling the study to map all trees, including those not part of a forest.
The results suggest that 30 percent of all trees in Africa aren’t in a forest and instead are across farmland, savannah and urban areas. “Many countries in Africa lack thick forests, but have a lot of trees.” says Reiner. “These trees are extremely important to the local ecosystems, the people and the economy. By tracking every single tree, researchers can start to monitor how these trees are coping with climate change or whether they are sensitive to deforestation.” It could also improve the monitoring of reforestation efforts, which are growing in popularity as a way of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
“At a local level, being able to consistently monitor when and where trees are disappearing or reappearing can lead to more actionable insights,” says John Francis at the Alan Turing Institute in London.
“The study is a proof of concept rather than a map ready for immediate commercial use,” says Reiner. “It’s research work. It’s showing what could be done,” he says. But he is already working with colleagues to scale up the tracking approach to cover the entire global canopy: “We’re hoping that this will be seen as a way forward in monitoring tree resources.”
1. Why is high-resolution satellite imagery used to map every single tree?| A．To know the exact height of the tree. |
| B．To have a clear picture of the canopy. |
| C．To help monitor the deforestation. |
| D．To improve the satellite technology. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Disapproving. | C．Indifferent. | D．Favorable. |
| A．Protect the trees only in Africa. |
| B．Put the map into commercial use. |
| C．Track the entire global canopy. |
| D．Improve the imagery technology. |
| A．Ways to Measure the Size of Forests in Africa |
| B．Coping with Climate Change by Tracking Every Single Tree |
| C．A Map from the Satellite Ready for Immediate Commercial Use |
| D．High-resolution Satellite Imagery Used in Monitoring Deforestation |
2 . For the first time, scientists have grown plants in the moon soil collected by NASA’s Apollo astronauts. The scientists had no idea if anything would grow in the moon dirt. They wanted to see if it could be used to grow food by the next generation of moon explorers. The results surprised them. Plants actually can grow in lunar (月球的) soil.
The researchers planted thale cress (芥蓝), a small flowering plant, in moon soil returned from the Apollo missions. The good news was that all of the seeds grew. The bad news was that after the first week the lunar soil stressed the plants so much that they grew slowly. Most of the moon plants ended up stunted—meaning small or not fully developed.
The longer the soil was exposed to radiation and solar wind on the moon, the worse the plants seemed to do. The soil collected by the Apollo 11 mission was the least helpful for growth. It was exposed a couple billion years longer to the elements.
Scientists said, “This is a big step forward to know that we can grow plants. The real next step is to go and do it on the surface of the moon.”
Moon dirt is full of glass particles from micrometeorite (微小陨石) impacts. One solution might be to use younger geologic spots on the moon, like lava flows, for digging up soil. The environment also could be changed by adding special nutrient (营养物) mixtures or artificial lighting.
Only 382 kilograms of moon rocks and soil were brought back by the six Apollo erews that landed on the moon. Most of them are still locked away, forcing researchers to experiment with soil made of volcanic ash on Earth.
Early last year NASA finally gave out 12 grams of soil to the University of Florida researchers for the planting experiment. NASA said the timing for such an experiment was finally right with the space agency looking to put astronauts back on the moon in a few years.
1. What is the result of the planting experiment with lunar soil?| A．The plants couldn’t grow normally. | B．It was difficult for the seeds to grow. |
| C．They were struck by some diseases. | D．The soil was too stressed for the plants to grow. |
| A．To create a new crop. | B．To improve lunar soil. |
| C．To plant on the moon. | D．To find the right amount of light. |
| A．Lunar soil cannot be brought back by humans. | B．Lunar soil was difficult to obtain for testing. |
| C．Lunar soil is not suitable for planting. | D．Lunar soil is the same as volcanic ash. |
| A．Future Astronauts Will Grow Food on the Moon |
| B．It’s Time to Study Growing Crops on the Moon |
| C．Lunar Soil Consists of Tiny Glass Particles |
| D．Scientists Grow Plants in Dirt from the Moon |
3 . Scientists at MIT have managed to change ordinary spinach (菠菜) plants into natural sensors which can find chemicals used in bombs. The secret to giving spinach these special powers is nanotech (纳米技术), which is scientific area that deals with making or changing things that are extremely tiny.
“Ordinary spinach plants can be found everywhere and easy to store; like other plants, they normally take in carbon dioxide gas,” the scientists say. “But actually they can sense small changes of soil and water potential and respond to them. If we tap into this point, there is a wealth of information to access.” That’s what the scientists use to power their tiny experiments.
For this experiment, the scientists placed two different kinds of tiny nano-materials into spinach plants. To get them into the plants, the scientists put a liquid containing them on the bottom of the plant’s leaves. As part of its natural process, the spinach plant pulls water through its roots and into its leaves. If the water contains certain chemicals used in bombs, the tiny sensors in the leaves make the nano-tubes, which, along with the sensors, were placed into the spinach plant before by the scientists, produce a slightly special kind of light. By watching the plant constantly using a camera attached to a cheap computer, the scientists set up a system that can send a warning email if chemicals from explosives are found in the water.
The computer the scientists used is about the size of a playing card. They say that in the future, their system could even use a cell phone with its camera changed slightly. Discovering chemicals used in bombs is just one of the many uses the researchers are exploring. They have used such plants to discover several other dangerous chemicals as well. From their point of view, there’s no doubt that in the future, such systems could give farmers specific information about the health of the land and water on their farms.
1. Why do the scientists use plants to do the experiment?| A．They are common in the daily life. | B．They are environmentally responsive. |
| C．They absorb much carbon dioxide gas. | D．They are small in size and easy to store. |
| A．To control the camera. | B．To contain the liquid. |
| C．To fix the tiny sensors. | D．To give off plant light. |
| A．It’s diverse. | B．It’s unexpected. | C．It’s limited. | D．It’s cheap. |
| A．Spinach Is Sensitive to Chemicals in Bombs |
| B．Spinach Sends Warning Emails Using Nanotech |
| C．Nanotech Helps Spinach Grov Healthily |
| D．Nanotech Protects Spinach from Danger |
4 . Trees don’t look at the calendar to see when spring arrives, but they seem to know when spring is here better than we do. The annual shift from winter to spring is a breathtaking event to watch as leaves become green and a lush(苍翠的) environment reveals itself. Recently a research takes a look at why trees in cities are turning green earlier than expected.
Scientists use satellite imagery to see when plants turn green. By comparing spring green ups in the 85 largest US cities, scientists found that on average trees start to turn green nine days earlier in cities due to the combined effect of artificial lights and urban heat effect.
According to the findings, one of the reasons is the artificial light. City lights brightening the night skies, billboard signs lit up on roadways and car headlights all contribute to shifting the regular day to night cycle that plants and trees rely on. In order to stay alive during cruel winters, trees hit the pause button on their growth. Since temperatures can vary dramatically throughout the winter, the length of daylight is the signal trees look for to safely start growing again and turn green.
On average cities are typically 1.8 to 5.4F warmer than rural areas. This is known as the urban heat island effect. The changes in city environments may affect seasonal changes even more than climate warming and mosquito season, water cycles, and also affect pollinators(授粉媒介).
Despite the worries and concern, it isn’t all bad news. “With a longer growing season, trees would be able to absorb more carbon dioxide,” A researcher said. “Hopefully they’d have a longer period to do the cooling effect that can help relieve the urban heating effect in cities.”
1. What is the purpose of the text?| A．To reveal how trees survive bitter winters. |
| B．To warn how human activities disturb nature. |
| C．To explain why trees turn green earlier in cities. |
| D．To clarify how trees turning green earlier benefits cities. |
| A．Bringing out urban heat island effect. |
| B．Comparing the green-up time in sample cities. |
| C．Allowing the city environment to reveal itself. |
| D．Developing pictures shot by the satellite. |
| A．Plant pollinators. | B．Water cycle. | C．Road signs. | D．Street lamps. |
| A．Environment. | B．Education. | C．Entertainment. | D．Business. |
1. What has happened in the park?
| A．Some flowers are dying because of the dry weather. |
| B．Lots of flowers are opening up. |
| C．Some flowers have been planted in the park. |
| A．It is the hottest place in the world. |
| B．It is the driest place in the world. |
| C．It is the smallest park in the world. |
| A．In 2005 and 1998. | B．In 2004 and 1998. | C．In 2000 and 2005. |
6 . With so many different kinds of plants out there, telling them apart can seem like an impossible task. But you don’t have to have a degree in botany to start putting names to the plants you come across. Learning to recognize various species begins with studying the plants’ unique physical features carefully and recording what you see.
Study the plant’s features carefully. Whenever you come across a species you’ve never seen before, stop and take note. Look over each of the individual parts, like the stems (茎，梗), leaves, and flowers.
Use viewing aids to take a closer look. A magnifying glass will allow you to zoom in and analyze a plant’s features in more vivid detail. Similarly, you may require a pair of binoculars or a telescopic lens when you want to inspect a particular specimen (样本) from a distance.
Write down the plant’s key features.
Ask an expert to take advantage of their firsthand experience. Show your notes and any photos you’ve taken to a botanist, gardening specialist, or respected outdoorsman and see if they can help you discover the identity of a certain plant.
| A．Observe the plant carefully at first. |
| B．Take your environment into consideration. |
| C．Record each characteristic in your own words. |
| D．Judge the age and shape of the plants you have found. |
| E．Without these tools, you’ll be stuck doing a lot of guesswork. |
| F．You’ll have an opportunity to absorb a little of what they know. |
| G．Most plants can be grouped and distinguished by these structures. |
China is known as the Kingdom of Bamboo because it is the country with the most bamboo in the world. More than 400 species of bamboo, one third of all known species in the world, grow in China. The areas
Bamboo was
In the Han Dynasty, bamboo
Tall and graceful with luxuriant foliage(枝叶),bamboo is an
8 . A handful of healthy soil could contain great numbers of living organisms. However, poisonous pesticides (杀虫剂) are causing harm and destruction to them, according to a recent analysis.
For the analysis, researchers looked through nearly 400 published studies including over 2,800 experiments on how pesticides affect soil organisms. They found that pesticides harmed organisms critical to maintaining healthy soils, but these harms have never been considered in the safety reviews of the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency).Poisonous pesticides are driving factors in the sharp decline of many soil organisms, such as ground beetles. They have been identified as the most significant driver of soil biodiversity loss in the last ten years.
However, that research has always been ignored. The EPA, which is responsible for pesticide supervision(监管)in the country, openly acknowledges that somewhere between 50 and 100 percent of all agriculturally applied pesticides end up on the soil. Yet, to assess pesticides’ harms to soil species, the agency just uses a single test species, the European honeybee, to estimate risk to all soil organisms. It spends its entire life above ground in artificial boxes.
Worse still, as soil health gain popularity globally, pesticide companies have jumped up to green wash and promote their products. Every major company is now advertising its role in improving soil health, such as advocating planting cover crops. As general beliefs, these practices are indeed good for soil health and, if adopted responsibly, are a great step to take. But companies know that these practices are often accompanied by increased pesticide use. Chemicals and pesticides have to be applied more frequently to kill weeds before crops are planted.
The long-term environmental cost can no longer be overlooked. Soils are some of the most complex ecosystems on Earth, containing nearly a quarter of the planet’s biodiversity. Protecting them should be a priority, not an afterthought.
1. What does the underlined word “They” refer to in Paragraph 2?| A．Soil organisms. | B．Ground beetles. |
| C．Artificial boxes. | D．Poisonous pesticides. |
| A．The honeybee is a typical species living in nature. |
| B．The assessment of pesticides’ harms is one-sided. |
| C．Less than half of applied pesticide go to the soil eventually. |
| D．The EPA attaches great importance to pesticide inspection. |
| A．To obey the EPA’s rules. |
| B．To increase their product sales. |
| C．To protect the environment. |
| D．To shoulder their social responsibility. |
| A．Soil: essential to agriculture. |
| B．Pesticides: harmful to soil health. |
| C．Organisms: significant to harvest. |
| D．Pollution: destructive to biodiversity. |
9 . Five Tasks for Your Winter Garden
As autumn has come, winter is on the way. When it finally arrives, it can be cold outside. However, even a blanket of snow doesn’t stop a keen gardener.
Build New Beds
If you live in a more temperate area, you can start making new beds for your vegetable garden now. Raised beds are easy and relatively inexpensive if you have plenty of homemade fertilizers.
Tend to Apples and Pears
Winter is fit to prune(修剪) apple and pear trees. You can remove the damaged and diseased branches when the trees were dormant(休眠).
Frost covering can be put over cold hard vegetables before the temperature drops too far to help keep those plants happy in winter. Frost covering can be helpful for Brussels Sprouts, kale, winter cabbage and leeks if you live in milder climates.
Take Hardwood Cuttings(插条)
| A．Cover Crops |
| B．If you don’t have anything to made fertilizers |
| C．Here are plenty of jobs you can do in the garden |
| D．Many bare root trees can also be planted in winter |
| E．Even if homemade fertilizers will be bad as it is too cold |
| F．Plenty of leaves help keep some hardy plants from freezing |
| G．Winter is a great time to multiply plants by hardwood cuttings |
10 . With no special equipment, no fences and no watering, two abandoned agricultural fields in the UK have been rewilded (重新野化), in large part due to the efforts of jays, which actually “engineered” these new woodlands. Researchers now hope that rewilding projects can take a more natural and hands-off approach and that jays can shed some of their bad reputations.
The two fields, which researchers have called the New Wilderness and the Old Wilderness, had been abandoned in 1996 and 1961 respectively. The former was a bare field, while the latter was grassland—both lay next to ancient woodlands. Researchers had suspected that the fields would gradually return to wilderness, but it was impressive to see just how quickly this happened, and how much of it was owed to birds.
Using aerial data, the researchers monitored the two sites. After just 24 years, the New Wilderness had grown into a young, healthy wood with 132 live trees per hectare, over half of which (57%) were oaks. Meanwhile, the Old Wilderness resembled a mature woodland after 39 years, with 390 trees per hectare.
“This native woodland restoration was approaching the structure (but not the species composition) of long-established woodlands within six decades,” the researchers explained in the study.
Part of this reforestation was done by the wind, and researchers suspect that previous ground disturbance may have aided the woodland establishment—which is good news, as it would suggest that agricultural areas may be reforested faster than anticipated. However, animals—Eurasian jays, thrushes, wood mice, and squirrels—also played an important role in helping the forests take shape. This handful of species provided much of the natural regeneration needed for the forest to develop. Jays, in particular, seem to have done a lot of heavy lifting.
1. What does the underlined word “shed” in Paragraph 1 refer to?| A．Be opposed to. |
| B．Be ashamed of. |
| C．Get used to. |
| D．Get rid of. |
| A．The scale of the woodlands. |
| B．The diversity of the fields. |
| C．The rate of the changes. |
| D．The frequency of the wilderness. |
| A．The woodland restoration was approaching the structure of long-established ones. |
| B．Much of the wilderness of the fields was owed to birds. |
| C．Previous ground disturbance aided the woodland establishment. |
| D．How quickly the fields returned to wilderness over time. |
| A．The essential role of humans in the reforestation. |
| B．The factors that contribute to the reforestation. |
| C．The importance of woodland establishment. |
| D．The threats faced by a handful of wild animals. |
