1. What’s the conversation mainly about?
| A．Fighting fire. | B．Detecting fire. | C．Preventing fire. |
| A．Australia lost 4% of its trees. |
| B．The system is used in America. |
| C．The system will use heat cameras. |
| A．The size of a car. | B．The size of a plane. | C．The size of a football field. |
| A．Protecting humans. | B．Purifying the air. | C．Saving animals. |
1. When did the storm happen?
| A．Last Thursday. | B．Last Friday. | C．This Friday. |
| A．15. | B．14. | C．9. |
| A．In the kitchen. | B．In the bedroom. | C．In the field. |
| A．She took out her belongings quickly. |
| B．She rushed out with her children at once. |
| C．She told her husband to leave immediately. |
3 . Solar farms offer one way to meet the world’s decarbonization targets, but they could also be used to deal with another of the planet’s big problems: loss of biodiversity. The approach is starting to take off. Residents of Barnsdale, for example, will soon play host to a new solar farm lined with grass field of wildflowers and native grasses, which Banks Group, the developer, says will promote pollinating insects.
The idea comes from the combination of two long-term trends: declining numbers of pollinating insects and the growing amount of land distributed to solar farms. According to the Center for Biological Diversity in Arizona, more than 40 percent of insect pollinators globally are listed as “highly threatened”—an issue that could seriously threaten food security. Meanwhile, solar-energy competence has been increasing. Matthew O’Neal, a scientist at Iowa State University, would like to see more solar developers seize this opportunity.
The benefits of such projects don’t stop at the insects. Research from Yale’s Center for Business and the Environment indicates that pollinator-friendly solar farms can raise crop output on nearby farmland, increase the recharging of groundwater and reduce soil erosion. In 2018, a US Department of Energy study found that if all existing and planned solar facilities near soybean and cranberry crops included pollinator home and increased output by just one percent, annual crop values could rise by US $1.75 million, US $4 million and US $233,000, respectively.
“Farmers could identify unprofitable areas, such as poor, highly erodible lands, as candidates for a pollinator-friendly solar farm. There’s the potential to increase their net income with pollinator motivation projects,” says O’Neal.
With enough forward thinking, these studies show, clean energy can provide new environmental opportunities. “We’re at a turning point with energy production and we’re seeing more opportunities to provide extra benefits that wouldn’t have been considered with older methods of energy generation,” says O’Neal. “You never heard of a coal mine planning pollinator conservation.”
1. What can be an additional function of solar farms according to paragraph 1?| A．Adding the amount of farmland. | B．Addressing the decline of biodiversity. |
| C．Improving the solar-energy competence. | D．Increasing the amount of profitable areas. |
| A．Reduce the size of their farms. |
| B．Live away from pollinator-friendly solar farms. |
| C．Grow their crops near areas rich in groundwater. |
| D．Make full use of soil erosion areas to make extra profits. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Conservative. | C．Skeptical. | D．Uncertain. |
| A．Solar Power Is Starting to Take Off |
| B．Solar Energy Will Be in Urgent Need |
| C．Solar Farms Can Deal with the Loss of Biodiversity |
| D．Solar Farms Need to Expand the Amount of Farmland |
4 . Live with roommates? Have friends and family around you? Chances are that if you’re looking to live a more sustainable lifestyle, not everyone around you will be ready to jump on that bandwagon.
I experienced this when I started switching to a zero waste lifestyle five years ago, as I was living with my parents, and I continue to experience this with my husband, as he is not completely zero waste like me. I’ve learned a few things along the way though, which I hope you’ll find encouraging if you’re doing your best to figure out how you can make the change in a not-always-supportive household.
Zero waste was a radical lifestyle movement a few years back. I remember showing my parents a video of Bea Johnson, sharing how cool I thought it would be to buy groceries with jars, and have so little trash! A few days later, I came back with my first jars of zero waste groceries, and my dad commented on how silly it was for me to carry jars everywhere. It came off as a bit discouraging.
Yet as the months of reducing waste continued, I did what I could that was within my own reach. I had my own bedroom, so I worked on removing things I didn’t need. Since I had my own toiletries (洗漱用品), I was able to start personalising my routine to be more sustainable. I also offered to cook every so often, so I portioned out a bit of the cupboard for my own zero waste groceries. Perhaps your household won’t entirely make the switch, but you may have some control over your own personal spaces to make the changes you desire.
As you make your lifestyle changes, you may find yourself wanting to speak up for yourself if others comment on what you’re doing, which can turn itself into a whole household debate. If you have individuals who are not on board, your words probably won’t do much and can often leave you feeling more discouraged.
So here is my advice: Lead by action.
What is the text mainly about?
| A．How to get on well with other family members. |
| B．How to have one’s own personal space at home. |
| C．How to live a zero-waste lifestyle in a household. |
| D．How to control the budget when buying groceries. |
5 . The “no-mow (不割草)” movement is catching people’s attention, and I’ve joined it after having the luck to see how beautiful a natural meadow (草地) can be.
Several years ago, I moved to a tiny town in Oregon. When we pulled up to the house where we would be staying, I took one look at what I saw as the overgrown grass. The sea of grass took my breath away. “This is going to be a huge job,” I thought to myself.
I grew up in New York. My grandfather taught me how to mow our lawn (草坪) when I was 8 years old．And I took care of that lawn until I left for college. Later, I bought my own house in Connecticut, and the house came with a small lawn. By then I had been writing for Audubon magazine and had learned how pointless lawns were. I wanted to build a butterfly garden and plant some plants. I was sick of mowing. But I kept the lawn, as I was concerned about the future resale value of a house without a back lawn.
Once I had spent several weeks getting used to Oregon life, learning the local culture and finally settling down, I realized the meadow that surrounded my new home wasn’t an untidy lawn, but one of the local types of ecosystems. And in my first weeks enjoying my new favorite place in the world, I was pleased with the huge amount of life the meadow supported.
There are lots of insects, but that only means lots of healthy food for the songbirds that I now share my home with. Because of the birds, many insects are eaten, so I’ve not had any insect problems. Contrary to what many people expect from high grasses, I’ve found that I have fewer harmful insects, because it is a balanced system. There are butterflies, vegetables and beautiful wildflowers. The meadow is never the same. It changes from week to week because it’s a living system.
1. How did the author feel when she first arrived at the new house in Oregon?| A．Tired | B．Embarrassed | C．Shocked | D．Interested |
| A．She started enjoying the natural grass there. |
| B．She failed to join the “no-mow” movement. |
| C．She was worried about the untidy environment there. |
| D．She was busy improving the locals’ living conditions. |
| A．It provides a more balanced ecosystem. |
| B．It supplies many kinds of food to the author. |
| C．It causes many insect problems for the author. |
| D．It helps reduce the author’s writing pressure. |
6 . Around the world, people are realizing the significant problems caused by plastic waste. In the last 65 years, we have become increasingly dependent on plastic. It’s easy to understand why: it’s cheap to produce, light — therefore easy and cheap to transport — and incredibly strong and durable.
One popular solution to the problem is to prohibit single use plastics. In the British supermarkets, shoppers are encouraged to make more environmentally-friendly choices in packing and transporting their food.
However, such plans may not be beneficial to eliminate (消除) the use of single-use plastic altogether.
Another issue is that alternative materials to plastic are often more environmentally harmful than plastic. Take paper bags, for example.
Clearly there is a need to reduce plastic waste and its impact on the environment.
| A．But it’s these advantages that also make it so harmful. |
| B．They are very fragile and rarely reusable, unlike plastic. |
| C．One of the fields where single-use plastic has a vital role is medicine. |
| D．However, simply banning their single use may not be the best option. |
| E．It also boosts the local economy and save costs in managing littering and waste. |
| F．Bans on single-use plastic items like drinking straws are also coming into place. |
| G．According to a research, they require four times more energy when produced than a plastic bag. |
7 . Around the globe far more bird species are losing ground than gaining, according to an expansive review of a half-century of bird population research published in the journal Annual Review of Environment and Resources in May.
The review, entitled The State of the World’s Birds, showed that more than 5,200 different species of birds-just shy of half the world’s total-are known or suspected to be declining. Around 3,800 species are relatively stable, and fewer than 700 species show increases. Among birds on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, almost 400 birds worldwide have had their conservation status changed for the worse in the past three decades (moving from vulnerable to threatened, or threatened to endangered) — five times more than the number of bird species with an IUCN status that has changed for the better.
“After documenting the loss of nearly 3 billion birds in North America alone (according to a 2019 study published in the journal Science), it was disturbing to see the same patterns of population declines and extinction occurring globally,” says review coauthor Ken Rosenberg, a conservation scientist now retired from the Cormell Lab of Omithology.
The review points to disappearing and degraded habitat-resulting from climate change, urbanization, agricultural intensification, and international trade-as the leading driver of bird declines worldwide. In a note of hope, the authors cite a 2020 study indicating that restoring just 5% of habitat in priority areas around the world could avert 60% of likely extinctions.
Lead author Alexander Lees, a research associate at the Cormell Lab, also points to the need for substantial changes in human behavior to prevent further losses. “Loss and degradation of habitat is often driven by demand for resources,” says Lees. “We need to better consider how commodity flows such as beef, oil, and seed crops can contribute to biodiversity loss and try to reduce the human footprint on the natural world.”
1. In what order are threatened species arranged on the IUCN’s Red List?| A．Species quantity. | B．Living habitat. | C．Declining rate. | D．Conservation status. |
| A．Hopeful. | B．Relieved. | C．Doubtful. | D．Concerned. |
| A．Prevent. | B．Increase. | C．Cause. | D．Face. |
| A．Extra reasons for bird extinction. | B．Possible solutions to habitat loss. |
| C．Substantial changes in human behavior. | D．The prospect of biodiversity loss. |
8 . They say once you learn how to ride a bike, you never forget. Most of us learnt when we were kids, and many still put on our helmets, put our feet on the pedals, and shoot off for a ride around the streets.
First, let’s look at the health benefits. Cycling can improve cardiovascular (心血管的) health, burn excess body fat and strengthen your leg muscles.
Finally, cycling can also be good for the environment. It can help you to reduce your carbon footprint.
So, whether people wan to cycle for their health, getting about town, their wallet, the environment, or a combination of all of them — the popularity of cycling is on the rise.
| A．Cyclists face neither of these issues. |
| B．In recent times, cycling has seen a boost in popularity. |
| C．There are also some plus sides for your wallet’s health. |
| D．And cycling’s benefits aren’t just physical but mental as well. |
| E．Not pumping out fumes into the atmosphere is better for the planet. |
| F．Why are so many people still crazy about cycling when they grow up? |
| G．Cycling can be a great way to travel to and from work or get about town. |
9 . Sixteen miles off the windswept coast of northern Scotland, the future of renewable energy is taking shape. Turning rhythmically in the breeze, the five enormous turbines of the Hywind Scotland wind farm look like any other off-shore wind project, except one major difference — they’re floating.
While conventional offshore turbines sit atop mental and concrete towers fixed into the seabed, Hywind’s turbines rest on floating steel structures that rise and fall with waves. Carefully balanced, they remain upright despite the waving conditions. This simple sounding, yet extremely complex design is changing the way green developers view offshore wind.
It could prove to be an important development as the world attempts to meet the net zero carbon emission targets that countries committed to in the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. The energy department as a whole currently accounts for around three quarters of all the greenhouse gases emitted by human activity.
To cut those emissions, green electricity will need to be at the main source of global energy, according to the International Energy Agency. It says that by 2024, half of the world’s energy needs will have to be met by electricity produced in a net zero way.
With growing numbers of electric vehicles, combined with increased demand for electricity to replace fossil fuels in domestic and industrial uses, electricity networks will also need to become far more flexible with more ways to generate and store energy. It means that by 2045, our energy network could look thoroughly different to the way it does today. Projects like Hywind’s floating wind farm offer a present-day glimpse of what the future could look like.
While floating turbines overcome some of the issues that make offshore wind farms in deep waters impossible, there are still challenges to be overcome. There are some concerns about what impact large wind turbines might have on the marine environment. The price of floating wind projects is also still high — costing almost twice as much per megawatt hour of electricity produced compared to bottom-fixed offshore wind. But those costs are expected to drop as the technology becomes increasingly advanced, as has been seen with other wind energy projects, helping pave the way towards net zero emissions, and a future powered by carbon-free fuel.
1. Which of the following words can replace the underlined word “emitted” in the third paragraph?| A．Released. | B．Replaced. | C．Wasted. | D．Influenced. |
| A．Disapproving. | B．Objective. | C．Doubtful. | D．Indifferent. |
| A．To share his research on energy. | B．To call on people to save energy. |
| C．To replace the traditional fossil fuels. | D．To introduce a clean renewable energy. |
10 . It’s hard to imagine what Earth might look like in 2500. But a co-action between science and art is offering an unsetting window into how ongoing climate change might transform now — familiar land features into foreign landscapes over the following centuries.
These visualizations — of a dried-up Amazon rainforest and some other places — stress why researchers need to push climate predictions long past the habitual 2100, environmental social scientist Christopher Lyon and colleagues argued.
The effects of past and present greenhouse gas emissions will stay for centuries. To visualize what that future world might look like, researchers considered three possible levels — low, medium and high emissions as used in past reports — and predicted changes all the way to 2500.
For all but the lowest-mission assumption, which is roughly in line with limiting global warming to “well under” 2 degrees Celsius relative to preindustrial times as approved by the 2015 Paris Agreement, the average global temperature continues to increase until 2500, the team found. For the highest-emissions temperatures increase by about 2.2 degrees by 2100 and about 4.6 by 2500. That results in “major restructuring of the world’s eco-system”, they say.
The team then co-acted with James McKay, an artist and science communicator at the University of Leeds, to bring the data to life. Based on their predictions, McKay created a series of detailed paintings representing different global landscapes now and in 2500.
The goal of images is to visualize the future in such a way that it feels more urgent, real and close — and, perhaps, to offer a bit of hope that humans can still adapt. “To turn over the trend, we need to think about this problem as a global civilization,” Lyon says. “We wanted to show that, despite the climate people have moved into, people have figured out ways to exist in the climate.”
1. Why do they conduct the co-actions mentioned in Paragraph 1?| A．To visualize how climate change may shape the future world. |
| B．To prove the necessity to make climate predictions as far as 2100. |
| C．To predict the possible land features of the earth in the year of 2500. |
| D．To picture present effects greenhouse gas emissions have on the earth. |
| A．They abandoned some traditional levels of emissions. |
| B．They assumed high emissions may reshape the eco-system. |
| C．They mainly focused on how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. |
| D．They got tally different results from those approved by the Paris Agreement. |
| A．He argued for the prediction made by the team. |
| B．He travelled around to paint detailed global landscapes. |
| C．He put forward some measures to deal with climate change. |
| D．He helped to visualize the research results through detailed images. |
| A．News review. | B．A research paper. | C．Science news. | D．An interview journal. |
