1 . Investing In the Graphite (化石墨) Revolution

December 21^st, 2014

Graphene (石墨烯) is the future. Plain and simple.

Its 200 times stronger than steel, thinner than a sheet of paper, and more conductive than copper.

And that’s not all…

Researchers all over the world are using it for critical advances in a variety of industries. Graphene makes:

·Solar cells — 50x～100x more efficient

·Semiconductors — 50x～100x faster

·Aircraft — 70% lighter

We’re talking about batteries that charge 10x faster and store 10x more power…

Phones and computer displays that bend and fold…

It’s so vital to our future that it’s been named a “supply critical mineral” and a “strategic mineral” by the United States, Japan and the European Union.

Yet only a few companies around the world have access to mineral resource that is required to make graphene. And 70% of supply is controlled by China.

So the setup is perfect for any non-Chinese supply to become an extremely profitable investment, just like rare earths a few years ago.

A new report from the Outsider Club fully outlines the situation:

·What grapheme is used for…

·And why now is the perfect time to invest in this world changing discovery.

To get this new report, simply drop your name in the box below. And in a few moments, you’ll be fully informed on the ins and outs of grapheme. All I ask in return is for you to sign up to receive our financial and economic news elater, Outsider Club.

In each issue, well bring you the financial news from the “Outsiders” perspective. It will show you how to plan your own finances, and manage your own investments. Become a reader of Outsider Club today.

So what are you waiting for?

1. What do you know about graphene?

A．It can conduct electricity very well.	B．It is much stronger than paper.
C．It is much heavier than steel.	D．It is very easy to obtain now.

2. According to the passage, a plane made of graphene can            .

A．move much faster

B．work more efficiently

C．save more energy

D．weighs much less

3. We can infer that a few years ago rare earths were            .

A．Cheap

B．common

C．profitable

D．worthless

2 . In 1925, a male sled (雪橇) dog named Balto led a 13-dog team through an extreme snowstorm during the final part of a 1,088-kilometre trip, bringing lifesaving medicine to the Alaskan city of Nome during an outbreak of the disease diphtheria (白喉), a serious and sometimes deadly infection.

Balto was celebrated as a hero whose preserved body still stands at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History in the state of Ohio. Recently, scientists took DNA from Balto’s preserved body and studied it as part of a large project called Zoonomia. The massive study compares genetic information in different animals and humans.

Balto belonged to a population of working sled dogs in Alaska, which was found to have greater genetic diversity and genetic health than modern dogs. When diphtheria spread, Nome’s port was blocked by ice. Sled dogs were the only way to get the important medicine there. Balto was one of 150 dogs that pulled sleds for parts of the 127-hour trip. During the trip, temperatures reached minus (零下) 45 degrees Celsius.

Born in 1919, Balto was part of a population of sled dogs imported from Siberia, known as Siberian huskies (西伯利亚哈士奇). The study showed these dogs greatly differed from modern Siberian huskies, however. Balto had a body built for strength and not speed, which his breeder didn’t necessarily like. The breeder had the dog’s sex organs removed so he couldn’t produce young dogs.

After the Alaska trip, Balto’s life was difficult. He was mistreated. A visiting Cleveland businessman saw Balto’s mistreatment and bought the dogs for $1,500 raised by the local community in Cleveland.

In 1927, Balto and his seven co-runners were celebrated in Cleveland. They spent their rest lives cared for at the local Brookside Zoo. Balto died of natural causes in 1933.

Kathleen Morrill, a scientist, said of Balto’s heroic mission, “These specialized dogs don’t know what they do has such gravity in people’s lives.” She added that the sled dogs’ genetic makeup “set them up to be the best animals for the job”.

1. What were sled dogs used to do during an outbreak of diphtheria?

A．Look for the origin of this disease.

B．Transport emergency medicines.

C．Help patients go to hospital quickly.

D．Discover the methods to cure the illness.

2. Which information about Balto matches the content of the text?

A．The lifespan of Balto is about 14 years.

B．Balto is the only survivor of the Alaska trip.

C．Balto had many young babies in Cleveland.

D．Respected in Alaska, Balto spent its rest life peacefully.

3. What can we conclude from the last paragraph?

A．There must be a use for one’s talent.

B．Fortune favours the prepared mind.

C．A good dog deserves a good bone.

D．A thousand mile trip begins with one step.

4. Which is a suitable title for the text?

A．The Story of a Sled Dog

B．The Long Cold Trip to the Alaskan City

C．A Heroic Trip to Save a Dangerous City

D．Sled Dog Hero Balto: a Good Dog with Great Genes

3 . Antarctica, the southernmost continent on Earth and a frozen continent, remains an mysterious and original land, buried in ice and surrounded by a vast, inhospitable ocean, which often shrouded (隐藏) in mystery and intrigue. It holds a wealth of scientific wonders waiting to be explored. With the aid of cutting-edge technology, researchers have delved into its icy depths, uncovering the secrets of this remote and pristine (原始的) wilderness.

At the forefront of Antarctic exploration are advanced satellite imaging systems. These orbiting wonders provide detailed maps of the continent’s surface, allowing scientists to monitor changes in ice coverage and track the movements of glaciers with unprecedented accuracy. Such data is crucial for understanding the impacts of climate change on Antarctica’s delicate ecosystem and predicting future sea-level rise.

In addition to satellites, autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) play a key role in Antarctic research. These robotic submarines are equipped with an array of sensors and cameras, enabling them to navigate beneath the ice shelves and explore previously inaccessible regions. By collecting data on water temperature, salinity, and marine life, AUVs offer invaluable insights into the dynamics of Antarctic Ocean currents and the habitats of its unique marine species.

Furthermore, drones have revolutionized scientific fieldwork in Antarctica. These unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are utilized for conducting aerial surveys of vast ice sheets and capturing high-resolution imagery of remote locations. By providing researchers with real-time data and imagery, drones facilitate rapid assessments of environmental changes and aid in the study of wildlife populations, from penguins to seals.

Despite the remarkable advancements in technology, conducting research in Antarctica remains a huge challenge due to its extreme weather conditions and remote location. However, through cooperative efforts and innovative approaches, scientists continue to push the boundaries of exploration, uncovering the mysteries of Antarctica and advancing our understanding of the Earth’s climate system.

1. What technology is primarily used for monitoring changes in ice coverage in Antarctica?

A．Drones.

B．Submersible robots.

C．Satellite imaging systems.

D．Autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs).

2. What can be inferred from the fourth paragraph?

A．Exploring and research on Antarctica is an easy task.

B．Scientific fieldwork in Antarctica is hard to continue.

C．Drones play a significant part in scientific fieldwork in Antarctica.

D．Drones capture high-resolution imagery of remote locations.

3. What’s the author’s attitude towards the research in Antarctica?

A．Objective.

B．Subjective.

C．Suspicious.

D．Indifference.

4. What would be the most suitable title for the text?

A．The Challenges of Antarctic Exploration

B．Traditional Methods of Antarctic Research

C．The Environmental Impact of Satellite Imaging

D．The Technological Wonders of Exploring Antarctica

4 . The hole in the ozone (臭氧) layer, one layer of the stratosphere (平流层), began to form over Antarctica in August 2023, causing warnings that a larger-than-average hole could further warm the Southern Ocean while the level of Antarctic sea ice is at a record low. Dr. Martin Jocker at the University of New South Wales said the bole usually began forming at the end of September, peaking in October before closing in November or December.

The ozone hole is an annual thinning of the strutosphere’s ozone layer, which has a high concentration of ozone. The hole has been “recovering” over time and ozone levels over the Antarctic are expected to return to 1980 levels by 2066.

The development of the ozone hole in 2023 was not adventitious. The ozone hole is usually smaller during El Niño years, but the model of Jucker suggested it would be larger than usual in 2023 due to the undersea Tonga volcanic explosion in 2022, which was likely to have an impact on the ozone layer in the years following. In early August, the formation was about average for the day of the year. This increased rapidly in the next few days, producing one of the largest observed ozone holes for the time of year.

The explosion of the Tonga volcano brought a large amount of water vapour (蒸气) into the stratosphere. “It was about 150 megatonnes. A factor of about three times more water vapour than we usually have,” said Jucker. Ice clouds form in the stratosphere when there is more water vapour than usual, allowing tiny ozone-destructing substances to gather there. Jucker said he was concerned about the impact of the hole on Antarctic sea ice, which has been at record low levels.

1. What do we know about the Antarctic ozone hole?

A．It happens every year.	B．It keeps at a balanced level.
C．It tends to worsen annually.	D．It remains the largest on record .

2. What does the underlined word “adventitious” in paragraph 3 mean?

A．Reasonable.

B．Unsettled.

C．Rare.

D．Unexpected.

3. What is the result of the Tonga volcanic explosion according to the last paragraph?

A．The disappearance of ozone.	B．The atmospheric changes.
C．The decrease of water vapour.	D．The formation of destructive substances.

4. Which of the following is a suitable title for the text?

A．Stratosphere Faces New Threats	B．Ozone Levels Are Changing Continuously
C．Ozone Hole Forms Earlier Than Usual	D．Volcanic Explosion Produces Global Effect

5 . Have you ever paused to see clouds when you rush to your destination? There’s a group of passionate “treasure finders” dedicated to observing and capturing the beauty in the sky cloud spotters.

Cloud spotters take a more serious approach to make sense of the sky.     1    

Ji Yun, 36, is an expert in cloud spotting. He set up a WeChat group to gather together people with similar hobbies in 2013. As the number of group members continued to grow, Ji and several cloud enthusiasts created dozens of online groups for different regions in China, forming the Sky Enthusiasts Association in 2019.     2    

Power comes in numbers. Three years after the association was formed, cloud enthusiasts from all over China had collected every kind of cloud in the International Cloud Atlas, a reference by the World Meteorological Organization.

    3     Cloud spotting, in fact, is an invitation to be amazed by something so common every day that we’ve become blind to. “You’re not going to be worrying too much about what formation it is and why it looks the way it does.” Gavin Pretor-Pinney, founder of the Cloud Appreciation Society, told Atlas Obscura.

Indeed, Jiang Xinwei in Jilin finds cloud spotting relaxing. Even though she is going through her toughest school year in grade 12, Jiang maintains this hobby as a short break from her heavy schoolwork. “Observing the clouds has become a habit for me,” the 17-year-old said. “    4    .”

“Clouds change in the blink of an eye.     5     ” said Jiang Na, a 25-year-old cloud spotter in Beijing.

A．Currently, there are thousands of people across different groups.

B．This often leads us to think about the relationship between humans and nature.

C．They take photos of the clouds and match them to cloud type names.

D．My worries and troubles seem to fade away as I look up.

E．But that is not to say all clouds spotters need to go to such great lengths.

F．Cloud spotting can also make some people feel blue.

G．When they roll over the sky, I feel the passage of time has a concrete shape.

6 . Blowing Up Balloons with CO₂

Chemical reactions (化学反应) make for some great experiments. You can make use of the CO₂(carbon dioxide) given off by a baking soda (小苏打) and lemon juice reaction to blow up your balloon!

What you’ll need:

●Balloon        ●About 40ml of water        ●Soft drink bottle

●Juice from a lemon          ●I teaspoon of baking soda

Instructions:

●Before you begin, make sure that you pull the balloon long to make it as easy as possible to blow up.

●Put the 40ml of water into the soft drink bottle.

●Add the baking soda and mix it with water.

●Put the lemon juice in and quickly put the balloon over the mouth of the bottle.

What’s happening?

If all goes well, then your balloon should inflate! Adding the lemon juice to the baking soda creates a chemical reaction and produces CO₂. The gas rises up and escapes (逸出) through the soft drink bottle. It doesn’t, however, escape the balloon, pushing it outwards and blowing it up.

1. Which of the following do you need for the experiment?

A．Two cups.	B．Apple juice.
C．250 ml water.	D．A teaspoon of baking soda.

2. What should you do before the experiment?

A．Heat the water.	B．Drink some juice.
C．Blow up the balloon.	D．Pull the balloon long.

3. What is the purpose of the text?

A．To describe an experiment.	B．To introduce a game.
C．To produce soft drinks.	D．To save some chemicals.

7 . Jack carves a “J” one meter above the ground in the trunk of a gum tree. If the tree grows 10 centimeters each year, how far off the ground will the “J” be in five years?

8 . 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。

China’s first-ever college     1     (devote) to the study of giant pandas was inaugurated (揭牌成立) in Nanchong, Sichuan province, on Monday. The college was     2     (joint) established by the Forestry and Grassland Bureau of Sichuan province and China West Normal University in Nanchong.

Giant pandas, a species unique     3     China, are globally recognized as the “flagship species” of the world’s biodiversity conservation. They serve as     4     cultural symbol for Sichuan, home to the majority of the world’s wild pandas.

The college is intended     5     (play) a crucial role in protecting the ecological environment, restoring habitats, constructing a     6     (nation) park of pandas, promoting panda population recovery, facilitating reintroduction into the wild, as well as conducting research and publicizing panda culture.

Since the 1970s, the university has been committed to giant panda research, and     7    (create) “four firsts” in this field, according to the university’s Party chief Wang Yuanjun. The university led the country’s first giant panda field     8     (investigate) and research, established the world’s first giant panda field ecological observation station, promoted China’s first international cooperation on wildlife protection,     9     published the world’s first academic monograph (学术专著)     10     comprehensively explores the ecological environment of giant pandas.

9 . When it comes to cooling the planet, forests have more than one trick upon their trees. A new study finds tropical (热带的) forests help cool the average global temperature by more than 1℃. “The effect is largely from forests’ ability to stockpile CO₂. But around one third of that tropical cooling effect comes from several other processes, such as the letting-out of water vapor (水蒸气),” researchers reported on March 24 in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change.

“We tend to focus on CO₂ and other greenhouse gases, but forests can not only keep CO₂,” said Deborah Lawrence, an environmental scientist at the University of Virginia. “It’s time to think about what else forests are doing for us besides keeping CO₂.”

“Researchers already know that forests influence their local climates through various chemical processes. Trees let out water vapor through their leaves and, like human sweating, this cools the trees and the things around them. But on a global scale, it isn’t clear how the other cooling works compared with the cooling provided by forests’ ability of keeping CO₂,” Lawrence said.

So she and her colleagues studied how over-cutting would affect global temperatures, using data gathered from other studies. For example, the researchers used data to decide how much the letting-out of CO2 stored by those forests would warm the global temperature. They then compared those results with other studies’ results of how much the loss of other aspects of forests.

The researchers found that in forests at latitudes (纬度) from around 50°S of the equator to 50°N, the primary way that forests influenced the global average temperature was through CO₂ store. But other cooling factors still played large roles.

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

A．Improve.

B．Explore.

C．Store.

D．Defend.

2. What can we learn from Lawrence’s words?

A．Forests need CO2 to keep their balance.	B．Some chemicals are harmful to forests.
C．Forests can sweat and breathe like humans.	D．Forests may benefit us in many other ways.

3. What does paragraph 4 mainly tell us?

A．The result of Lawrence’s research.

B．Lawrence’s research method.

C．The difficulty that Lawrence was faced with.

D．The reason why Lawrence studied trees.

4. In which section of a newspaper can the text be found?

A．Nature.

B．Technology.

C．Culture.

D．Sports.

10 . Quantum mechanics (量子力学) is a branch of science that studies the smallest particles (粒子) in the universe, like atoms (原子) and even smaller things. It might sound super complex, but let’s break it down in simple language.

Imagine you have a small particle, like an atom. In the world of quantum mechanics, these particles don’t behave like the things we see in our everyday lives, like balls or cars. Instead, they act kind of like waves and particles at the same time, which is really strange!

One of the most famous ideas in quantum mechanics is the “Uncertainty Principle”, raised by physicist Werner Heisenberg. This principle says that we can’t precisely know both the position and the speed of a particle at the same time. It’s not because our measuring tools are bad; it’s because the particles themselves are naturally uncertain.

Another weird thing about quantum mechanics is something called “Entanglement.” Imagine you have two particles that are connected in a special way. If you change one of them, the other instantly changes, no matter how far apart they are. It’s like they’re talking to each other faster than the speed of light, which goes against what we know from everyday experiences.

Quantum mechanics also deals with probabilities. Instead of saying, “This particle will be here at this exact time,” scientists say, “There’s a certain chance it’ll be here, and a certain chance it won’t.” It’s like predicting the weather, but on a super small scale.

In a nutshell, quantum mechanics is a strange and fascinating world where particles act both like waves and particles, where you can’t know everything about a particle at once, and where particles can be mysteriously connected no matter how far apart they are. It’s a mind-boggling field that challenges our understanding of how the universe works, and even though it’s tough to grasp, it’s an essential part of modern physics.

1. How does the author illustrate the behavior patterns of particles in paragraph 2?

A．By presenting reliable technical data.

B．By comparing them to everyday objects.

C．By clarifying quantum mechanics concepts.

D．By associating them with chemical reactions.

2. What do the “Uncertainty Principle” and “Entanglement” reveal about particles?

A．Their physical appearances.	B．Their speed limitations.
C．Their unusual properties.	D．Their predictable movements.

3. Why do scientists use probabilities in quantum mechanics?

A．Accurate forecasts are tough.

B．They are analyzing lots of data.

C．The scale of studies varies greatly.

D．Detailed studies are time-consuming.

4. What does the text mainly tell us about quantum mechanics?

A．Its developmental history.	B．Its research challenges.
C．Its unexpected applications.	D．Its underlying principles.