1 . The Internet’s carbon footprint is as bad as air travel. While it is difficult to measure precisely, estimates place it at over two percent of global greenhouse gas emissions(排放)—the same as the air travel.

Information may appear to spread around the world unseen to our eyes, but it actually passes through enormous data centers placed strategically about the globe, which store, organize and deliver everyone’s data. These centers are extremely energy intensive. In the EU, they consume close to three percent of its total energy usage and also require lots of water to prevent their computers from overheating. In the US, about a fifth of data centers draw water from already stressed water sources.

A typical spam email(垃圾邮件)emits around 0.03g of CO₂ emissions, though longer messages read on a laptop can go all the way up to 26g. Now multiply that by 333 billion(roughly the number of emails that get sent every day in 2022). That puts all those work emails into perspective. One study found if every British adult sent one less “thank you” email a day, it would save 16, 433 tons of carbon a year. It even predicted that the ICT industry could account for up to a fifth of the world’s energy consumption by 2025.

However, there are measures that we can take to reduce our digital carbon footprint. For instance, you can unsubscribe from marketing and other spam emails and only subscribe to newsletters that you still regularly read. Have regular data checks where you delete old contact lists and other documents that no longer have any use. Keep a clean inbox and delete emails you no longer need.

1. Why does the author make a comparison in the beginning?

A．To present the digital carbon footprint.

B．To emphasize the importance of air travel.

C．To advise people not to travel by airplane.

D．To inform the disadvantages of the Internet.

2. What can we infer about data centers?

A．It enjoys a wide popularity.

B．It has various kinds of functions.

C．It causes large energy consumption.

D．It has quite a complex mode of operation.

3. What’s the purpose of mentioning the figures in Paragraph 3?

A．To draw the readers’ attention.

B．To illustrate a certain information.

C．To highlight the change of CO2 emission.

D．To stress the importance of reducing CO2 emission.

4. What’s the author’s attitude towards reducing digital carbon footprint?

A．Neutral.	B．Optimistic.
C．Unfavorable.	D．Concerned.

2 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

In a small community located at a suburb of Exeter, a disheartening issue had been troubling the neighborhood for years. The once pleasant surroundings were ruined by piles of waste that seemed to multiply with each passing day. Residents were growing tired of the worsening environment, leading many to abandon their homes in search of cleaner neighborhoods. It was in this terrible situation that two young students, Emma and Mia, decided to take matters into their own hands.

Emma and Mia were classmates and best friends from Phillips Exeter Academy, both passionate about environmental preservation and deeply concerned about the pollution crisis their community was facing. Witnessing more and more neighbors’ leaving, they knew they couldn’t stand by any longer. Determined to bring about a change, they undertook a mission that would soon catch the attention of the entire community.

Their journey began with thorough research and planning. The two girls searched carefully on the Internet for information on environmental initiatives and connected with local environmentalists. They organized meetings with residents to understand the issues at hand, collecting data on the types of waste, the sources, and the areas most affected. Armed with this knowledge, Emma and Mia worked out a comprehensive plan and announced it to ask for opinions from the residents. Surprisingly it was strongly supported.

Their strategy was twofold. First, they initiated a waste classification and recycling program. They distributed recycling bins(回收箱) to every household and educated the community about the importance of responsible waste management. Soon, the streets began to show signs of improvement as the volume of garbage inappropriately thrown away decreased gradually.

The second part of their plan was more ambitious. Emma and Mia gathered volunteers from their school and the neighborhood to take part in a massive clean-up campaign. Armed with gloves and trash(垃圾)bags, they began systematically clearing the waste from the streets, parks, and even the local bodies of water. Their firm commitment and hard work inspired others to join the cause.

注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式作答。

Half a year later, the changes were significant.

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Emma and Mia received recognition and honors for their work.

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3 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. By 2020, where should trash sorting happen?

A．In all major cities of China.

B．Only in Zhejiang province.

C．In Ms. Chu’s neighborhood.

2. What is Ms. Chu’s profession?

A．Trash collector.

B．Reporter.

C．Politician.

3. What is one of Mr. Tang’s solutions?

A．Door-to-door training.

B．Free trash cans.

C．Plastic trash bags.

4. How will a trash collector find a bag’s owner?

A．He will call a volunteer.

B．He will see a name on the bag.

C．He will scan the bag with a phone.

4 . In 1999, Giuliana Furci, founder and founding director of the Fungi (真菌) Foundation, developed a deep interest in fungi. They were everywhere, and the 20-year-old took particular joy in the variety of mushrooms: small and button-shaped; tall and umbrella-like; round with red caps topped with white flakes. Some were commonly found in people’s diets, for they were rich in nutrients such as vitamin, fiber, minerals and protein.

But Furci also quickly realized that these fungi went largely ignored in Chile, where there were few guidebooks and an almost total lack of policies and resources to protect them from over-harvesting and other human activities. Determined to correct this, Furci wrote a field guide and set up the Fungi Foundation—a nonprofit dedicated to fungi conservation. In her guide, special attention went to the role of fungi in the ecosystem.

“Life on the planet wouldn’t exist without fungi,” said Greg Mueller, a mushroom conservation expert. “Because of their relationship with forests and trees, we can’t survive without fungi. In terms of the health of the planet, they’re incredibly important to humans and the overall ecosystem.” Fungi can break down plants and animals, thus cycling nutrients and increasing their availability in the soil. They are also important contributors to the soil carbon stock through the same process. What’s more, fungi have been found to help degrade (降解) various pollutants, such as plastic. And mycelium (菌丝体), which is the root structure of mushrooms, is now being used to replace unsustainable materials, such as plastic and animal-based products.

Because of these, exploration of fungi was expanded at a faster pace. However, some were already listed as critically endangered. In 2010, Furci took an even bigger step—with other environmental nonprofits, she put forward a proposal for the government to systematically assess how large new developments such as housing, dams, and highways affect fungi. In 2012, a law was passed and Chile became the first country in the world to protect fungi by law.

1. What can we learn about Furci from the first two paragraphs?

A．She enjoyed collecting mushrooms.

B．She was fond of cooking mushrooms.

C．She worried about the situation of fungi.

D．She had a habit of writing field guidebooks.

2. What is Paragraph 3 of the text mainly about?

A．The life on earth without fungi.

B．The importance of fungi on earth.

C．The relations between trees and fungi.

D．The practical uses of fungi in the future.

3. How did Furci protect the ecosystem?

A．By writing free instructions on plants.

B．By starting a non-profit ecotourism company.

C．By raising awareness of the importance of fungi.

D．By passing laws to ban over-harvesting mushrooms.

4. Which of the following best describes Furci’s work?

A．Ground-breaking.	B．Debatable.
C．Romantic.	D．Unmatched.

6 . A new study says that no matter how much the world cuts back on greenhouse gases, a large and important part of ice of Antarctica (南极洲) is expected to disappear.

Researchers used computer models to expect the future melting (融化) of protective ice around Antarctica’s Amundsen Sea in western Antarctica. They said the melting will take hundreds of years. It will slowly add nearly 1.8 meters to sea levels. And it will be enough to change where and how people live in the future.

The study found that even if future warming was limited to just a few tenths of a degree more, it would have limited power to prevent ocean warming that could lead to the breakdown of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.

Study lead writer Kaitlin Naughten is an expert on oceans at the British Antarctic Survey. She said their research suggests that Earth is set on the path to a quickly increasing speed of ocean warming and ice shelf melting over the rest of the century.

While past studies have talked about how serious the situation is, Naughten was the first to use computer modeling to study how warm water from below will melt the ice. The study looked at four different cases in how much greenhouse gases the world produces. In each case, ocean warming was just too much for this area of the ice to survive.

Naughten looked at floating areas of ice that hold back glaciers (冰川). Once these areas of ice melt, there is nothing to stop the glaciers behind them from flowing (流) into the sea.

The study also looked at what would happen if future warming was limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius over mid-19th century levels: the international goal. They found the rapid melting process in this case as well.

The world has already warmed about 1.2 degrees Celsius since pre-industrial times and much of this summer went past the 1.5 degrees mark.

1. Which can best describe the findings of the study?

A．Cheerful.

B．Encouraging.

C．Misleading.

D．Disappointing.

2. What makes Naughten’s work on Antarctic ice special?

A．Her research area.	B．Her research time.
C．Her research method.	D．Her research purpose.

3. What do we know about floating areas of ice?

A．They will flow into the sea.	B．They protect the Antarctic ice.
C．They have warmed about 1.2℃.	D．They disappear faster than other ice.

4. Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A．Ice in Parts of Antaretica Will Disappear	B．Climate Change Will Harm Humans
C．Sea Level Will Rise Suddenly in the Future	D．Limiting Greenhouse Gases Makes No Sense

9 . There are two distinctive types of electric buses making their way along Nanjing Xi Lu, one of Shanghai’s busiest roads. The first is a fleet of blue trolleybuses that serve bus route number 20, a line set up by a British-run transport company in 1928. They use poles to receive electricity from wires overhead and have kept the route running in this way for nearly a century. But while the historic electric buses are a reminder of Europe’s past technological innovation, the new buses traveling alongside them are symbols of China’s contemporary net-zero ambition. These modern electric buses powered by lithium batteries (锂电池) , were introduced in Shanghai in 2014. They offer a smoother ride, especially during starts and stops. Widely used across China, these buses are key to the country’s EV transition and are influencing the global shift towards green transportation.

The most recent data available shows that China in 2018 was still the second largest source of carbon dioxide emissions in the global transport sector, responsible for 11%, and behind only the United States, which accounted for 21%. After around two decades of government support, China now boasts the world’s largest market for e-buses, making up more than 95% of global stock. At the end of 2022, China’s Ministry of Transport announced that more than three-quarters (77% or 542, 600) of all urban buses in the country were new energy vehicles. The speed of this transition was remarkable.

So far, however, the Chinese cities with the most successful e-bus introduction — such as Shenzhen, Beijing and Shanghai — all have moderate weather and are relatively flat. To take its e-bus campaign to the next level, China faces challenges. For one thing, it is difficult to bring fleets to cities such as Hong Kong, which — like London — have double-deckers. These two-storeyed vehicles are “very hard” to electrify, because they are heavier, use more energy, and so need bigger batteries, reducing the number of passengers they can carry. Cold weather is a problem, too, as it can make a battery’s charging time longer and its range shorter. The reason China has not achieved 100% electrification for its buses is its northern regions, which have cold winters, says Xue Lulu, a transportation expert at the World Resources Institute China.

1. How does the author describe the two types of electric buses in the first paragraph?

A．By contrasting their historical significance and technological advancements.

B．By highlighting their roles in protecting the environment and lasting use.

C．By focusing merely on their technical details and performance.

D．By explaining their operational challenges and requirements.

2. What do the numbers in paragraph 2 mainly show?

A．The global impact of carbon dioxide emissions.

B．The progress of China in reducing CO2 emissions.

C．The different emission levels of China and the USA.

D．The need for more government support in e-bus market.

3. What factor contributes to the slow adoption of electric buses in China’s northern regions?

A．Poor winter weather conditions.	B．Lack of transportation experts.
C．Short charging time of the battery.	D．Heavier and bigger bus bodies.

4. Which column is the text most probably taken from?

A．Worklife.

B．Culture.

C．Travel.

D．Earth.