1 . Karen Osborn, a marine biologist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, and her colleagues came across the ultra-black fangtooth fish while netting crabs just off California’s Monterey Bay. Before releasing the specimen（样本）back in the ocean, Osborn decided to take a photo. However, despite shining light directly at the fish, she was unable to obtain a clear image of the creature.
“I was trying to take pictures of it, and I just got these silhouettes（轮廓）,” says Osborn. “They were terrible.” The expert soon realized that the blurry images weren’t a result of operator error. The tiny fish, with a mouth full of pointy teeth and a teardrop-shaped body, was somehow absorbing all the light.
Curious to see if there were other ultra-black fish hiding in the ocean, the scientists collected specimens of 18 species of deep-sea fish and used some equipment to observe how much of the light being directed towards the skin of the fish was reflected. To be classified as “ultra-black”, the fish had to absorb over 99% of the light. The team was surprised to find that 16 species, including the fangtooth fish, met the criterion（标准）.
The scientists believe that the ultra-black fish’s tissue’s unique shape and arrangement cause the light that strikes the skin’s surface to be absorbed by both the cell it hits and the neighboring cells. Given that the fish species live in the darkest part of the ocean, their need to develop such a survival skill may appear a little unnecessary. However, the researchers say the oceans are lit up by large numbers of bioluminescent（生物性发光的）animals, many of which are out seeking a meal.
The researchers, who published their findings in the journal Current Biology, believe their discovery could help with the development of coatings for submarines and other ships, or perhaps even be used to create equipment for night operations.
1. What does the underlined word “blurry” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?| A．Seemingly beautiful. | B．Difficult to discover. |
| C．Extremely disappointing. | D．Unable to be seen clearly. |
| A．They absorb most of the light. | B．They have an ultra-black skin. |
| C．They are only active at night. | D．They are good at reflecting light. |
| A．They can easily find food. | B．They can avoid getting lost. |
| C．They can escape being hunted. | D．They can quickly adapt to the deep sea. |
| A．The researchers’ opinions about the fish. |
| B．The significance of the scientific findings. |
| C．The existing applications of the fish’s ability. |
| D．The development of coatings for various ships. |
2 . Forests have a crucial role in cooling Earth’s surface by absorbing CO2 like a sponge (海绵). But only two-thirds of their cooling power comes from their ability to suck in CO2 and store it, according to a study by Deborah Lawrence, an environmental scientist. The other one-third comes from the biophysical effects — their ability to create clouds, dampen the air and release cooling chemicals.
Trees in the forests provide shade, but they also dampen the air by pulling water from the ground and releasing it from their leaves, which helps to cool the surrounding area in a way similar to sweating, Lawrence says.
This, in turn, creates the right conditions for clouds, which, like snow and ice in the Arctic, can reflect sunlight higher into the atmosphere and further cool the surroundings. Trees also release organic compounds that react with other chemicals in the atmosphere to sometimes create a net cooling effect.
To quantify (量化) these effects, Lawrence and her colleagues compared how the various effects of forests around the world feed into the climate system, breaking down their contributions in ranges of ten degrees of latitude (纬度). The researchers found that the world’s forests cool the surface of the planet by around 0.5℃ because of biophysical effects alone.
Threats to rainforests are dangerous not only for the global climate, but for communities that neighbour the forests, Lawrence says. She and her colleagues found that the cooling caused by biophysical effects was especially significant locally. Having a rainforest nearby can help to protect an area’s agriculture and cities from heatwaves, Lawrence says. “Every tenth of a degree matters in limiting extreme weather. And where you have forests, the extremes are minimized.”
This study confirms that forests have other significant ways of affecting the climate systm, giving us more reasons why deforestation is bad for the climate. It could enable scientists to improve their climate models, while helping governments to work out better conservation and climate strategies.
1. What does the underlined word “This” in Paragraph 3 refer to?| A．The tree leaves in forests. | B．The shade provided by trees. |
| C．The surrounding area in forests. | D．The water circulation done by trees. |
| A．By removing some other factors. |
| B．By comparing data of different times. |
| C．By studying the contributions separately. |
| D．By measuring the temperature in different places. |
| A．It develops a new climate model. |
| B．It matters in limiting extreme weather. |
| C．It highlights the dangers of deforestation. |
| D．It provides a scientific basis for conservation efforts. |
| A．Forests: More Than a Carbon Sponge |
| B．Forests: The Disappearing Green Lung |
| C．Forests: Major Players in Carbon Cycles |
| D．Forests: Guardians of Local Communities |
3 . California’s Pacific Grove Monarch Sanctuary(保护区) didn’t have a single monarch butterfly(帝王蝶) sighting last year, so no one knew what to expect for this year’s migration(迁徙). The pleasant surprise, according to SFGate :“The butterflies are back in town”, more than 13,700 of them , per the sanctuary’s count as of November 20,2021.What’s more , the high point of the overwintering season —which runs from October through February—is not even set to hit for several more weeks.
The butterflies typically head west from the Rocky Mountains each year to spend the winter along the Pacific coast; on the other side of the country , butterflies from the East Coast and Canada head to Mexico before the cold weather hits. The population decline(下降)over the years has been noticeable : For example , between 4 million and 10 million butterflies spent the winter in the Golden State in the 1980s, though by the late 1990s that number fell to just over 1 million. By 20I8, the butterflies numbered about 30,000, and last year , there were only about 2,000 seen across the California coast.
Researchers believe different factors have led to the butterflies’ population decline over the years, including climate change, use of pesticides, and loss of living space. And recent Wildfires in California have exacerbated the situation. Scientists say the public can help by planting milkweed ( the butterflies lay their eggs on the plant and their young feed on it; cutting down on pesticide use; and helping observe them.
Still , even though last year’s numbers were worrying, some experts say it may not be as terrible as it seems. David James, an entomologist at Washington State University, tells SFGate that the butterflies seem to be adaptable(能适应的), based on a recent study he led, and that he’s “ confident ” they’ll avoid extinction. Xerces Society conservation biologist Emma Pelton agrees, saying that “ We can make a difference. There is still time to act. ”
1. What did SFGate find surprising about the butterflies ?| A．Their growing number. | B．The time when they migrate. |
| C．The places they head to. | D．Their shorter overwintering period. |
| A．The butterflies prefer heading to Mexico. |
| B．The population of the butterflies has fallen for years. |
| C．The living space of the butterflies has been badly damaged. |
| D．The butterflies have difficulty adapting to new environments. |
| A．Worsened. | B．Covered. | C．Changed. | D．Saved. |
| A．They are too weak to migrate far. |
| B．They will be widely protected soon. |
| C．They can avoid the danger of extinction. |
| D．They make him worry about our Earth’s future. |
4 . According to new studies, many birds in the Amazon rainforest have become smaller as temperatures have increased. The difference hasn’t been obvious, but it has been significant enough that some scientists have suggested it’s a universal response to climate change.
But new research finds that the body size reductions aren’t happening across the board with some large-brained birds having much less significant changes.
For the study, researchers studied some data on about 70,000 birds that had died when they crashed into buildings in Chicago from 1978 to 2016. They added data on brain volume and lifespan (寿命) for 49 of the 52 species of migratory birds (候鸟) in the original study.
They found that birds with very large brains had reductions in overall body size that were about one-third of the reductions noted in birds with smaller brains. They thought that in birds, the species with big brains are the ones that build tools, manage to survive in tough environments, live longer, invest more time and energy into raising babies, and end up surviving better in the wild.
Researchers aren’t certain exactly how warmer temperatures might lead to decreasing body size in birds, but they are considering two possible explanations, which could even be happening at the same time. First, natural selection might be favoring birds that can dissipate heat better. This is because smaller birds have higher ratios (比例) of surface area to volume, so being small can help birds stay cool. Second, warmer summers might have less food available for birds at the time when they are feeding their babies. In that case, birds might be getting smaller because of decreased food over the years.
The findings don’t suggest that climate change is having zero impact on bigger-brained birds, but researchers believe these findings can inform us of climate change and help set conservation priorities.
1. How does climate change affect birds?| A．Their body size shrinks. | B．Their lifespan becomes shorter. |
| C．Their body temperature rises. | D．Their habit changes quicker. |
| A．By studying the bird death rate. | B．By observing the birds in nature. |
| C．By analyzing previous information. | D．By comparing different bird species. |
| A．use | B．hold | C．absorb | D．lose |
| A．Birds’ Body Sizes Vary | B．Brain Size Matters for Birds |
| C．Bird Brain Develops Sharply | D．Temperature Rises Globally |
5 . Climate change will significantly alter how sound travels underwater, potentially affecting natural soundscapes (音响范围) as well as increasing human-generated noise, according to a new global study that identified future ocean “sound hotspots.” These changes to ocean soundscapes could impact essential activities of marine life.
“We calculated the effects of temperature, depth and salinity (盐度) based on public data to model the soundscape of the future,” said Alice Affatati, lead author of the new study published today in Earth’s Future. It is the first global-scale estimate of ocean sound speed linked to future climate. In warmer water, sound waves travel faster and last longer before dying away.
Two hotspots, in the Greenland Sea and a patch of the northwestern Atlantic Ocean east of Newfoundland, can expect the most change at 50 and 500 meter depths. The major impact is expected in the Arctic, where we know already there is expansion of the effects of climate change now. Not all the Arctic, but one specific part where all factors play together to give a signal that overcomes the uncertainty of the model itself.
Many marine animals use sound to communicate with each other and navigate their under-water world. Changing the sound speed can impact their ability to feed, fight, find mates, avoid predators and migrate, the authors said. Temperature, pressure with increasing depth and salinity all affect how tast and how far sound travels in water.
Future work will combine the global soundscape with other maps of human impacts in the oceans to accurately determine areas of combined stressors (压力源), or direct needed observational research. With complicated problems like climate change, to combine different approaches is the way to go.
1. What does the new study indicate?| A．Human-generated noise will impact climate change. |
| B．Activities of marine life could impact ocean soundscapes. |
| C．Natural soundscapes may potentially affect climate change. |
| D．Climate change may affect the way sounds travel under oceans. |
| A．useless | B．initial | C．simple | D．outdated |
| A．Their food variety. | B．Their eyesight. |
| C．Their survival ability. | D．Their dashing ability. |
| A．To try different approaches. | B．To combine global soundscapes. |
| C．To analyse other human impacts. | D．To locate the places of stress source. |
6 . It’s no secret that spring is now starting earlier, but exactly how, why and where this is happening are much more complex questions. Using 50 years’ observations of some insects, like aphids, moths and butterflies, as well as birds in the UK, a group of researchers, led by Dr James Bell of the Rothamsted Insect Survey, has tried to answer some of these questions.
On the one hand, the results confirm current understanding. They reveal that aphids, moths and butterflies are now flying much earlier than in the mid-20th century and that birds are laying eggs earlier. However, this early awakening isn’t uniform across species and the degree of change varies depending on the location and habitat. As a result, the researchers have waned that wildlife may fail to match the life cycles of other species that they rely on for food.
Some of this variation is related to differences in the species themselves—moths, which turn from caterpillars to flying adults early in the year, seem to be more responsive to climate change than those which change later. In other cases, the geographical location is key. Spring activity generally occurs later in the north of the country, though the specifics vary from species to species.
In addition, the study also finds that woodland habitats, which are thought to offer animals a more stable climate, and which researchers hoped might present a “buffer (缓冲)” to climate change, did not appear to do so. It is this finding in particular that concerns scientists. “We should have seen some sort of buffer offered by the woodland that would protect wildlife against the advances of temperature, but actually we didn’t see that,” explains Dr Bell. “We have to guess that even though woodlands have stable micro-climates, they too are advancing at the same rate. Though the researchers will carry out further research to establish exactly why this is the case, the all-along outcome is very clear: all species are now at greater risk than previously thought.”
1. What did the researchers try to answer in their study?| A．Which species can sense spring very early? |
| B．Is spring coming much earlier now? |
| C．What is the detailed information about early spring? |
| D．What is people’s common understanding of early spring? |
| A．The increased chance of insects being eaten. |
| B．The change in some birds’ egg-laying habits. |
| C．The loss of some species’ natural habitat. |
| D．The break in some wildlife’s food chain |
| A．the reasons for some species’ early awakening |
| B．some species’ responses to climate change |
| C．the influences brought by early spring |
| D．the distribution of species in the UK |
| A．They’ve failed to work as expected. |
| B．They’re now in quite severe conditions. |
| C．They’ve been less affected by climate change. |
| D．They’re widely distributed throughout the UK. |
| A．Desired. | B．Worrying. | C．Beneficial. | D．Encouraging. |
7 . The hands of nature have always sculpted works of breathtaking beauty, creating an unusual sight at the home of Santa Claus.
A rare collection of “ice eggs” recently took over a beach in Finland, the result of highly particular conditions according to The Guardian.
Amateur photographer Risto Mattila was among those who came across the icy balls on Hailuoto Island in the Gulf of Bothnia between Finland and Sweden.
“The biggest of the eggs was about the size of a football,” Mattila told The Guardian. “It was an amazing view. I have never seen that phenomenon before.”
The “eggs” are created by a rare process in which small pieces of ice are rolled over by wind and water, experts said. It needs the right air temperature (below zero, but only a bit), the right water temperature (near freezing point), a shallow and gently sloping sandy beach and calm waves, maybe a light swell, said Jouni Vainio, an ice specialist at the Finnish Meteorological Institute.
It also needs something to act as the core. The core begins to collect ice around it and the swell moves it along the beach, forward and backward. A small ball’s surface gets wet, freezes and becomes bigger, Vainio added.
Autumn is the perfect season to observe the phenomenon, according to James Carter, emeritus professor of geography-geology at Illinois State University, as this is when ice starts to form on the surface of water, causing a form of slush when moved by waves.
Similar sights have also been found in Russia and on Lake Michigan near Chicago. Back in 2016, local residents of Nyda in Siberia saw giant balls of ice and snow covering an 18-kilometer stretch of coastline, ranging from the size of a tennis ball to almost 1 meter across. Chinese netizens, stunned by the magic of nature, said everyone is duty-bound to protect the environment so nature will reward us with more surprises. Some would like to touch these icy balls themselves, joking that “If there are ice eggs, there are ice chickens.”
1. How are the ice eggs formed?| A．Small pieces of ice are rolled over by wind and water. |
| B．They are set by photographer Risto Mattila. |
| C．Little cores begin to collect snow around them and the swell moves them along the beach. |
| D．Drops of cold rain get frozen and then roll to the beach. |
| A．People can enjoy the unusual sights in different parts of the world. |
| B．The formation of ice eggs needs a lot of conditions. |
| C．The appearance of ice eggs shows a disastrous phenomenon. |
| D．Some specialists began to do some research about the unusual phenomenon. |
| A．Chickens hatch out of eggs. |
| B．If everyone protects the environment, nature will reward us with more surprises. |
| C．Nature can create both eggs and chickens. |
| D．In future, ice eggs and ice chickens will appear at the same time. |
| A．A diary. | B．A guidebook. | C．A novel. | D．A web page. |
8 . In February of 1942, Mexican farmer Dionisio Pulido thought he heard thunder coming from his cornfield. However, the sound wasn’t coming from the sky. The source was a large smoking break sending out gas and pushing out rocks. This opening would come to be known as the volcano Paricutin, and over the next 9 years, its lava and ash would cover over 200 square km. But where did this new volcano come from, and what caused its unpredictable eruption?
One of the most common causes of an eruption is an increase in magmastatic (静磁) pressure. Magma (岩浆) contains various elements and compounds. At high enough concentrations,compounds like water or sulfur (硫) form high-pressure gas bubbles. When these balls of gas reach the surface, they can burst with the force of a gunshot. And when millions of bubbles explode, the energy can send ash into the air. But before they pop or burst, they act like bubbles of CO2 in a shaken soda.
Not all eruptions are due to rising magmastatic pressure- sometimes the weight of the rock above can become dangerously low. Landslides can remove massive quantities of rock from atop a magma chamber or room, dropping the pressure and instantly touching off an eruption. This process is known as “unloading” and it’s been responsible for numerous eruptions, including the sudden explosion of Mount St. Helens in 1980. But unloading can also happen over longer periods of time due heating ice or melting glaciers. In fact, many geologists are worried that glacial melt caused by climate change could increase volcanic activity.
Unfortunately, knowing what causes eruptions doesn’t make them easy to predict. While scientists can roughly determine the strength and weight of the Earth’s crust (地壳), the depth and heat of magma chambers makes measuring changes in magmastatic pressure very difficult. But volcanologists are constantly exploring new technology to overcome this rocky field. Advances in thermal imaging (热成像) have allowed scientists to detect underground hotspots. Spectrometers can analyze gases escaping mag ma. Hopefully, these tools will help us better understand these gas breaks and their explosive eruptions.
1. Why does the author mention the story of a farmer in the first paragraph?| A．To show the power of volcano eruption. |
| B．To introduce the topic. |
| C．To introduce the volcano Paricutin. |
| D．To explain the reason. |
| A．The bubbles of CO2. | B．The ash of the volcano. |
| C．Gas bubbles of compounds. | D．The elements of a soda. |
| A．Landslides should be responsible for its eruption. |
| B．It began to explode over a long period of time. |
| C．The process of “unloading” occurred after its explosion. |
| D．The weight of the rock above it increased as to cause its eruption. |
| A．Scientists can determine the eruption of volcano in advance. |
| B．It is quite difficult to measure the weight of the Earth’s crust. |
| C．Spectrometers can help scientists to detect underground hotspots. |
| D．Scientists are positive about further study of volcano eruption. |
9 . The accelerating melting of the Himalayan glaciers threatens the water supply of millions of people in Asia, new research warns. The study, led by the University of Leeds, concludes that over recent decades the Himalayan glaciers have lost ice ten times more quickly over the last few decades than that on average since the last major glacier expansion 400-700 years ago, a period known as the Little Ice Age.
The study also reveals that the Himalayan glaciers are shrinking far more rapidly than glaciers in other parts of the world—a rate of loss the researchers describe as “exceptional”. The paper, published in Scientific Reports, made a reconstruction of the size and ice surfaces of 14, 798 Himalayan glaciers during the Little Ice Age. The researchers calculate that the glaciers have lost around 40 per cent of their area-shrinking from a peak of 28, 000 km2 to around 19,600 km2 today.
The Himalayan mountain range is home to the world's third-largest amount of glacier ice, after Antarctica and the Arctic and is often referred to as “the Third Pole”. The acceleration of melting of the Himalayan glaciers has significant impacts on hundreds of millions of people who depend on Asia's major river systems for food and energy.
The Himalayan glaciers are generally losing ice much faster in the eastern regions. The study suggests this variation is probably due to differences in geographical features on the two sides of the mountain range and their interaction with the atmosphere—resulting in different weather patterns.
Dr Carrivick, the leader of the study, said, “While we must act urgently to reduce and relieve the impact of human-made climate change on the glaciers and meltwater-fed rivers, the modelling of that impact on glaciers must also take account of the role of factors such as lakes and debris (杂物垃圾).”
1. What may be the result of the accelerating melting of the Himalayan glaciers?| A．Himalayan is getting warmer. | B．The Arctic glaciers expand frequently. |
| C．The whole world is going towards Ice Age. | D．Asia’s water, food and energy is under threat. |
| A．The Himalayan glaciers have lost ice since they existed. |
| B．The study came to its conclusion by doing experiments. |
| C．The Himalayan glaciers have the largest amount of ice. |
| D．Climate change is the main cause of the melting of glaciers. |
| A．Because of different landforms. | B．Because of the time of sunlight. |
| C．Because of the amount of glacier ice. | D．Because of the activities of mountain climbers. |
| A．Asian people are in danger of water supply | B．The eastern region of Himalaya melts faster |
| C．Himalayan glaciers are melting at an unusual rate | D．The Himalayan mountain range has more glacier ice |
10 . Oxygen is vital to life; it is needed by the body cells of all animals. It is also very useful in industry. The method Priestley used produces only small quantities. The large amounts needed for industry are produced in a different way. Air is put into containers under great pressure. This turns it into liquid and makes it very cold. It is then gradually warmed up and each substance evaporates at a different temperature. The boiling point of oxygen is -183°C. It is caught and stored in strong steel cylinders at a pressure of 136 atmospheres. The process is known as fractional distillation.
Q: Which word has the rough meaning of “vital”?
| A．Important. | B．Useful. | C．Helpful. | D．Interesting. |
